#era: gentlemen game

[ambros1an]

hsr x gn!reader relationship hcs

warnings: penacony spoilers (2.0+), bug mention (screwllum), angsty (aventurine & acheron), ocd mention (sunday), slight dark content (ie stalking) at end in Sundays but it’s marked in red to avoid if uncomfy

characters: sunday, screwllum, acheron, aventurine

a/n: i feel like it’s so obvious i did like 2 of these a week later 💀 i need more Sunday content in game

sunday

❧ if you manage to get past Sunday’s formal exterior, what lies behind it is a complete “know-it-all.”

❧let him nerd out about the greatest books in the current and past amber eras. he’ll make sure to tell you all about the authors too.

❧if the two of you have liking books in common, congrats! he’ll bring you on a tour to the primal waking library where you can chat all about it.

❧sunday’s compulsions become even worse with you around. is his shirt properly tucked in? he hopes there’s no wrinkles, maybe he should iron all his shirts again. oh gosh-are his shoes untied? you don’t even notice this. he’s used to hiding his true feelings.

❧he definitely confesses first. he’s aware that his status can be a hindrance when forming genuine relationships.

❧ maybe afterwards he’ll let you touch his wings. he loves the feeling of you stroking his feathers. especially when those annoying pin feathers grow in. the biggest sign of trust amongst birds- and sunday of course.

❧ and obviously you always get free vip to robin’s shows.

❧before and after the “Robin incident” are two very different Sundays.

❧the after, is a very possessive Sunday. he can’t have you become like Robin. he uses nightingales to keep watch on you, to make sure you’re safe. he knows it’s unhealthy but he just lost his sister, he can’t lose you too.

-

Aventurine

❧aventurine’s flirty facade fools most people. they think he’s sleazy and untrustworthy, and so do you in the beginning.

❧at first he talks to you because he thinks your reactions are amusing.

❧eventually your relationship gets too deep for comfort.

❧this guy will never open up. if he has feelings for you, you’ll never know. it’s not because he’s ashamed. it’s because he cannot comprehend someone actually liking him.

❧the only way he’ll confess is if you do it first. and even then he plays it off like a joke, something he can’t even believe. it takes a lot of button pressing to get him to admit his feelings.

❧aventurine is a very vulnerable person. he may rub off insults but they still hurt him deep.

❧the first time you hug him, he is baffled. affection has been foreign to him since the extinction event.

❧worming your way into his heart will get you even more riches then before. sure, he hands out money like nothing, but to you? that credit card is unlimited.

❧”what, that’s all?” he encourages you to spend.

❧brings you to casinos for good luck. not as if he needed any, but with you at least his hand doesn’t shake.

-

screwllum

❧ it isn’t uncommon for inorganic species to feel love. just as it isn’t uncommon for organic species not to.

❧ Screwllum, however, hasn’t experienced that feeling.

❧ he sees the way organic species love in a way he hasn’t. as a genius society member and one interested in life itself, how could he not be interested.

❧ which is why when he starts feeling a fluttering in his chest whenever you’re around, he must get to the bottom of it!

❧ confesses instantly. he has zero experience yet remains so confident.

❧ immediately takes time out of his day to interact with you. in whatever way possible.

❧ it could be the busiest day of his life and he’ll still make time for you.

❧ he’s described as a gentlemen by his close companions. this means opening doors for you, taking you out to places, etc.

❧ sounds too good to be true. but it is true.

❧ his one flaw, if you can even call it that, is his love for all life. and that includes bugs! no smashing them on his watch! he’s picking them up before you even get the chance.

❧ if you like bugs, even better. he’ll gently pick them up and talk about them with you. the two of you can take turns.

-

Acheron

❧ the first time you meet her, you think she’s a polite but introverted lady. she claims to be a galaxy ranger and you have no reason to doubt her.

❧ her blunt way of speaking leaves no room for questions.

❧ that is, until you get too entangled in each other’s destines.

❧ your first meeting with acheron, wasn’t actually your first. you’ve met her many times. every time though she seems not to know you.

❧ Acheron lies to protect you. just as she lied about being a galaxy ranger, she lies that she has no feelings whatsoever towards you.

❧ perhaps you remind her of someone she once knew.

❧ on some days, acheron traverses through her memories to look for you. she sees the hurt look in your eyes, but sees your smiles too. the path of a self-annihilater is a lonely one.

❧ ultimately, if you manage to convince her with words and actions that you truly care for her. she will put forth that effort tenfold. she desperately doesn’t want to be alone anymore.

❧ acheron is very protective towards you. if there’s a hint of danger, she’ll encourage you to take her with you. even going on her own to eliminate it herself.

credit to @/miau-meow-miau for first divider 🫶

[chenlesfavorite]

[TEASER] love in the dark. lee haechan

— summary : you love haechan, you truly do, you wish to be with him till death do you part though your families aren't fond of each other and he can't officially court you, your meetings are always secret. but everything becomes complicated once your parents tell you that you're promised to a complete stranger.

— pairing : haechan x fem!reader

— genre : angst, forbidden romance, secret relationship, arranged marriage

— extra : regency era, oneshot/imagine, open ending

— author's note : it's my birthday and I promised I would upload an imagine... didn't say if it was gonna be the entire thing tho so here's a little teaser for it <3 the full imagine will be released once I'm back from my break :)

— teaser word count : 851 (final w.c will have around 3-4k)

reminder that this is pure fiction and not an actual depiction of how they act.

The ballroom is glittering under the golden shine of the grand chandelier hanging above, the violinists playing a melody fitting for the current waltz unraveling. Gowns twirling around as the gentlemen lead their ladies with grace.

Amidst the setting, you feel out of place, your heart weighing you down with the secrets you keep inside it. Your feet are moving along the rhythm of the waltz, but you're buried inside the garden in your mind.

Your eyes are drawn to the figure standing in the corner of the ballroom, his fingers delicately wrapping around the glass filled with the finest wine as his eyes that know your secret follow your every step.

Though you have not exchanged any words with him the entire evening, the tension was present and you know who the figure is. One might say you know him like you know the back of your hand.

The young gentleman you’re dancing with notices your breathing switching to a heavier pace, making your distracted self quite visible. “Lady L/N, are you feeling well?” The gentleman could not resist but ask, his expression carrying concern.

“Ah, I’m well. I just seem to be a little out of it as I’ve been on my feet all evening, pardon me.” You reply, your lips curling up into a smile as you do not wish to worry the gentleman.

Putting on a quick smile is no hard work for you, after all, you have learned the practice of masking your true feelings and intentions. But one person could see through that very easily and he was still watching you from the corner.

As the waltz draws to a close, the figure watching you makes his leave by going up the stairs. You are more than sure he’s going to the balcony. You politely curtsy to the gentleman who just danced with you and you excuse yourself from the ballroom floor, slipping through the sea of people.

At last, you reach the balcony, the cool breeze of the night hitting you and of course, your guess is right. He is here.

You did not think he would come tonight, especially considering his family did not receive an invitation to the ball due to your families not being fond of one another. But alas, that was stupid of you to even ponder about, after all, wherever you are, he will be there too.

“You should not be here, Haechan.” You say in a quiet tone, approaching him with a voice that carries the slightest anger in it, mixed with worry. “And yet,” He steps closer to you. “Here I am.” That cocky smirk appearing on his face, that smirk that just makes you want to hit him.

“You did not receive an invitation!” You exclaim, though by the looks of it, Haechan just did not seem to mind nor care, this is just a game to him. A game that he loves to play. “You think too little of me if you believe an invitation could keep me from you.” He replies, his voice a soft murmur. The moonlight cast a glow over him and his eyes showed a glimmer of mischief.

You step back, the railing of the balcony pressing against your back— your breath catching in your throat. “Haechan, if anyone were to see us— if they were to know you are here—”

Your words are cut off and a light gasp escapes your lips as he holds onto the railing, trapping you in between his arms. Your eyes lock onto his, his stare sending a shiver down your spine. “Let them see, let them know,” He whispers in your ear, his low tone sounding alluring.

“I care not for their gossip, nor for the rules of society. I care only for you.” Haechan leaves those words lingering in your mind as he starts to look directly at you. You narrow your eyes, a light scoff coming from you despite the red color rushing to your cheeks. “You think this is just some grand jest, don’t you? Do you have any clue of what you risk— what we risk?”

Haechan lets out a chuckle, his breath warm against your cheek. “Risk? I risk nothing. It is you who risks everything.” He pauses before continuing. “Your reputation, your family’s pride, their plans for your future... and yet,” His voice softens. “Here you are.”

Your heart starts to pound heavily in your chest, the anger in you battling with something deeper that was inside of you, something so dangerous. You search his face for any signs of seriousness behind that smug facade of his.

You lightly push him away as you clear your voice. “I shouldn’t be here. I shouldn’t have followed you.” You say, turning away from him as you start to head for the doors of the balcony.

“But you did, you smile and dance for the others but you always come back to me because you know your heart belongs to me.” His voice fades away as you rush back inside the manor, the heat becoming very evident on your face.

[TO BE CONTINUED]

[vintagesimstress]

1850: Night at the Opera (in collaboration with The Royal Thornolia Chronicles)

After my months-long Celtic spree, the time has come to briefly return to my old era of interest...

May I present to you a small 1850s set, made together with amazing Ali, the author of @theroyalthornoliachronicles! We're both so excited to finally share it with you all 💗 Make sure to check Ali's post for her half of the collaboration - practically necessary if you want your mid-Victorian gentlemen to be properly dressed for the evening!

While Ali dealt with the men, I focused - surprise surprise - on the ladies. And made two evening dresses, both inspired by the same fashion plate from ca. 1850:

If you follow Ali's story, you probably remember that a certain mademoiselle Eleanor Valery wore the dress on the right to an opera event. The dress on the left also made a short appearance, as it (or rather: its beta version) was worn by my simself Cecile, who was kindly invited to participate in the evening as well (no, that's not my real name. I just asked my husband to give me a random female French name, and that was the first thing he came up with ;)). And so both dresses are named after those characters: Eleanor and Cecile.

Both come in 29 swatches and I swear all of those colour combos come straight from mid-Victorian fashion plates - even if Ali claimed some of them remind her of 1980s Barbies ;)

polycount: ca. 17K for Eleanor (that's HIGH my friends, you have been warned. Believe me or not, it's mostly the fault of all those tiny deco flowers) and 7,5 for Cecile

Base Game compatible

HQ mod compatible (pictures taken with the mod)

Cecile uses glass shader for lace transparency = won’t work properly in laptop mode

all LODs

custom thumbnails, bump and specular maps, lots of satin shine

tagged as everyday and formal

found under long dress subcategory

colour tagged

disallowed for random

PDNs included if anyone wants to make recolours. You don’t need them for the mesh to work.

You might notice that they vary slightly in style, and that's because I put an insane amount of work into texturing Cecile, as somehow I couldn't get it to look any satisfactory with my usual methods. I love the result, but the whole process was so convoluted that I'm not even sure if I could still retrace all the steps, let alone redo Eleanor in the same style. So we're left with this small discrepancy between both dresses. Hope you don't mind!

DOWNLOAD on my Patreon (free, no ads or early access)!

And now, once again, jump over to The Royal Thornolia Chronicles for the other half of the goodies :)

[theresattrpgforthat]

Woo, the ask box is open again!! Been wanting to ask about any alternatives to Call of Cthulhu (investigative games with the potential to be set in the early 20th century) with more open licensing, such as having Open Game Licenses or being licensed under Creative Commons?

THEME: Hackable CoC Alternatives

Hello friend! I'm excited about the new asks as well!

So as far as I know, a lot of indie designers are very happy to allow hacks and supplements done of their work, but if it isn't clear on their page, asking in a comment certainly doesn't hurt!

That being said, for this ask, I made sure to recommend games that are built on systems that have been stated to be licensed under Creative Commons or something similar.

Eldritch, by Matheus Henrique Morais.

A hack of 24XX for Cosmic Horror games in any setting. Inspired by Cthulhu Dark.

24XX is a game system that has been hacked for a number of different settings and is released under a Creative Commons 4.0 license. The base rules take up about one page, and there’s plenty of examples in other 24XX hacks of how to introduce a rule or two to help the game fit the genre you’re looking for. 24XX is also inspired by the OSR scene, so when it comes to running and designing adventures, you can design adventures for these games similar to how you might design them for other OSR games.

Haunter in the Dark, by Robot Francis.

This town is haunted. Your home is cursed. Monsters are real. Haunter in the Dark is a horror roleplaying game about a group of investigators discovering then confronting the supernatural horrors that haunt their home town. The game is powered by the Forged in the Dark engine, with rules to create your investigators defined by their relationship to the unnatural: the Descendent, the Dreamer, the Exorcist, the Scientist, the Sleuth, and the Sorcerer.

The motivations, powers, and minions of the horror are generated collaboratively by the players during the game, with players encouraged to creep each other out and brandish their character's sharp edges. The MC takes the townspeople, world, and monsters that the players depict, then twists the knife to make it worse than they could have imagined. The game helps you create an escalating mystery, followed by a climactic scene of confrontation.

This is a Forged in the Dark Game, which means it uses the mechanics familiar from the Forged in the Dark SRD. John Harper has stated that the contents of the SRD are available under the Creative Commons Attribution, and if you want to include the Forged in the Dark logo, there’s simply an attribution request to indicate it’s a logo trademarked by One Seven Design. It’s an incredibly free license, and I’m planning on writing a game in this system!

The Between, by the Gauntlet.

The Between is a tabletop roleplaying game about a group of mysterious monster hunters in Victorian-era London. They are residents of a place called Hargrave House, and their job is to investigate and neutralize monstrous threats terrorizing the city—threats that Scotland Yard won’t or can’t handle themselves. As the story progresses, they become aware of the plans of a Moriarty-style criminal mastermind they will eventually have to face in order to save Queen and country.

The Between is directly inspired by the gothic horror TV show Penny Dreadful, but also takes a lot of inspiration from British horror classics, graphic novels like From Hell and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and pulp-era stories. Mechanically, it’s Powered by the Apocalypse but also uses the mystery system from Brindlewood Bay.

Both the Powered by the Apocalypse “system” and the Carved from Brindlewood license are pretty open. Vincent & Meguey Baker do not lay claim to the 2d6 mechanics of Apocalypse World, but rather use “Powered by the Apocalypse” to signify that a game was inspired by Apocalypse World in some way. There are thousands of PbtA games out there, many of which alter what some folks may have originally thought were key parts of PbtA. Meanwhile, Gauntlet Publishing runs a Discord channel that welcomes people’s ideas that use the Carved from Brindlewood label, and creates channels for each new game that has a name and a draft ready to go.

R’LYEH, by Another Cosmic Zine.

R’lyeh is a hack of Durf.

It adapts the game’s procedures and themes into a ruleset designed for tabletop scenarios of horror, investigation, mystery and madness. 

Both this game and its predecessor are designed to be hacked and re-worked, and are licensed under Creative Commons 4.0. They are fairly rules light and would probably benefit from having some supplements and home-brew! This game looks to be somewhat indifferent to the time period it’s set in, which tells me that you can probably run it in the early 19th century with little adjustments needed.

Cthork Borg, by kumada1.

Cthork Borg is a full conversion hack that adapts MÖRK BORG to a jazz age cosmic horror setting.

Cthork Borg uses the Mork Borg Third-Party License, which is fairly permissive and allows you to reference the mechanics and rules of the game. The creator for Cthork Borg even offers up the colours used in the game so that creators can create using the same colour palette! You’ll also be able to check out some other material that’s already been made for this game on the link above, including extra classes for characters, a guide to the setting, and rules for adding animals!

[quakinqueer]

Piggybacking directly off my last post, I'd now like to present my pitch for summer games 2024. Ladies, gentlemen, and nonbinary friends I present to you:

SMOSH SUMMER GAMES: RENAISSANCE

That's right, you heard me. Medieval/Ren faire theme. Think of the games, think of the costumes, think of the TRAILER. I've seen other people mention this as a potential theme but I'd like to present my own reasoning/ideas:

I've heard multiple people, especially current cast, refer to this current Era as a Renaissance/golden age, so it would frankly be perfect, especially considering it'd be the first in years to feature Anthony.

I just think all the cast would kill it at a lot of the challenges considering a lot of them visit Ren faires pretty often, so there'd really be some serious competition between them all, and if they did dress up for it they'd all look amazing. (Am I biased because I'm currently fixating hard on Damien, the loml, and think he, in particular, would THRIVE with this theme? Yes, yes I am)

We have no way of knowing if a trailer as awesome as the one for Wild West is within their current budget, but presuming for a moment that it is, THINK ABOUT IT! Just imagine the costumes and outfits, maybe a swordfight or two. I'm seeing either a tavern or royal dinner, Chanse and Angela as bards performing, Shayne and Amanda as court jesters, Damien and Trevor as an adventurer and his apprentice, Tommy as a tavern bartender/innkeeper with Spencer as that one regular who never leaves him alone, Ian and Anthony as two kings whose nations (teams) are at war. Preferably directed by Courtney, and maybe also Damien.

[twst-drabbles]

Mozus 1

Summary: Being in Noble Bell College brings out the nostalgia in Mozus. You want him to continue. You like hearing him talk about his wife.

(I was going to write about Rollo since it seemed appropriate, but Mozus took place in my brain instead.)

“And while she never witnessed the bell, she was always enchanted by its sound,” Mozus’s voice was soft in the way one cups a flower blooming in the soft frost of winter: delicately, yet still filled with the strength of love.

“Oh? Tell me more,” you couldn’t help but lean into his view with an exaggerated stretch of your spine, arms gripped behind your back. “Remember, you promised me more stories about her, Mozus.”

Mozus didn’t twitch nor lose any gram of composure. His back was still straight, but it seemed as though gravity added weight to his shoulders. “I remember well. Though I must ask, why are you so interested about such a subject?”

“Because you practically grow twenty years younger whenever you talk about your wife,” it wasn’t a radiant glow so much as it was a gentle light that bloomed from within Mozus’s heart, blanketing his shoulders in a shroud of dancing spring air, “it’s very sweet, seeing how much you love her so. Of course I want to hear you talk about your fond memories all day.”

It was a rare thing to witness from Mozus, so of course you want him to continue speaking of those years, so as long as it doesn’t hurt him. He may be an older gentlemen, and while you don’t have a clue as to what age he became a widower, to lose his wife before the age of sixty seemed far too young to lose a loved one. When you hear of stories of old couples dying, you imagine their backs curved, hands knobby and skin slack with laugh lines so deep in their faces their eyes practically vanish, and yet the twinkle in them is still there.

You don’t know the amount of years that have past after Mozus’s wife’s death, but it seems to have been enough for him to have come to terms with his grief, to speak of her memory, both good and bad.

Perhaps it was too casual an action, lightly tapping your elbow on his arm to goad him into talking more stories, but there’s something about Mozus that you just can’t help but want to be a bother him a bit. And you’re happy when you heard that tired gruff of a sigh come out of him, like you’re an insistent kid from the playground that wanted to listen to stories instead of being on the monkey bars.

“Be patient,” Mozus shook his head but it wasn’t a verbal ‘no,’ “I’ll make do on my promise, but right now we’re on Noble Bell College’s campus, and we’d do well to listen to the years of history embedded within the walls and minds of the students here.”

“Gotcha gotcha,” you straightened yourself out, disappointed but not surprised, “I’ll be sure to remind you if you do forget. You lost that game of cards after all.”

He won’t, you’re sure of it, but you may as well give him a warning in advance that you’re going to be a bother until you get those stories.

Perhaps it was dirty of you to do that, coaxing Mozus into an old card game that just so happened to be relevant to the era he was teaching to Ace, Deuce and Grim, but you had gotten the cards as a gift from one of your faerie buddies and you couldn't pass up the opportunity that was presented to you.

Oh well, what can Mozus do besides complete his promise? Besides, he didn't say no to your request. You bet he does want to talk about her as much as you want to hear about it. Otherwise, why would he indulge you?

See, this is why Mozus is probably your favorite out of all your co-workers, barring his strict conduct.

[feministsouthpark]

South Park Filler Guide - Season 26

Link for Seasons  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

S26E1 Cupid Ye is FILLER

I don't buy the relevancy. Kyle is now best friends with Tolkien and Stan is jealous, even though for the past season we had Stan and Tolkien bond and even in this season they will continue to be a duo. This really seems like a filler. S26E2 The Worldwide Privacy Tour is FILLER

I really like the part when the prince and his wife move into Liane's old house, as they make use of the house being empty for the duration of the Hot Dog home story arc, but as they move out by the next time the house will be used, the impact is nonexistent. S26E3 Japanese Toiler is FILLER

How I would have liked if the shooting turned out to be a season-long mystery of who shot Randy, I was looking at the characters of the crowd for way too long guessing, before I realized everything is pointless in this one. Well, not the real world message, but the in-universe events. S26E4 Deep Learning is CANON

The easiest type of episode to recognize as canon is a relationship centered one. We get our confirmation that Stan's attempts - from S20E7 The Very First Gentlemen Oh, Jeez - to change and win Wendy over worked out. Bebe/Clyde are together as well, as are Herbert/Rick. S26E5 DikinBaus Hot Dogs is CANON

While this is the end of the Hot Dog era, it ends in a way, that counts as loss for Eric, still feeding into the idea of how easily he can lose everything and end up being homeless. S26E6 Spring Break is CANON

For Herbert is falling back into his old ways of campaigning, and depending on what happens in real life, this could have a ton of unwanted consequences... S26E7 Joining the Panderverse is FILLER

It's mostly parallel universe stuff, while Randy fixes an oven. S26E8 (Not Suitable For Children) is CANON

Roger Donovan finds a new partner by the name of Janice, and it seems like she's here to stay. Snow Day is FILLER

Yeah, no... This is the latest season anyway, but I don't believe Mr. Hankey would ever return on the show, end of story. If he does, and thus this video game becomes canon, I will change this post to include that. S26E9 The End of Obesity is FILLER

I have a feeling, that the "never mention Eric's weight again" idea will be forgotten like the numerous times Eric promised not to rip on jewish people anymore.

SPOILER-FREE RUNDOWN

S26E1 Cupid Ye is FILLER S26E2 The Worldwide Privacy Tour is FILLER S26E3 Japanese Toiler is FILLER S26E4 Deep Learning is CANON S26E5 DikinBaus Hot Dogs is CANON S26E6 Spring Break is CANON S26E7 Joining the Panderverse is FILLER S26E8 (Not Suitable For Children) is CANON S26E9 The End of Obesity is FILLER

CANON counter:

S1: 9 out of 13   S2: 3 out of 18   S3: 6 out of 18   S4: 10 out of 17   S5: 8 out of 14   S6: 11 out of 17  S7: 6 out of 15  S8: 4 out of 14  S9: 8 out of 14  S10: 4 out of 14  S11: 4 out of 14  S12: 8 out of 14  S13: 3 out of 14  S14: 7 out of 14  S15: 6 out of 14  S16: 2 out of 14  S17: 4 out of 10 + a highly lore based game  S18: 8 out of 10  S19: 9 out of 10  S20: 10 out of 10 S21: 7 out of 10 + a highly lore based game + 2 DLCs S22: 9 out of 10 S23: 8 out of 10 S24: 4 out of 4 S25: 5 out of 8 S26: 4 out of 9

Overall: 167 out of 329 Personal Note: I'm almost certain we'll have another special that I'll add to this season and I'm almost certain it'll be election-based and therefor canon. When it happens, I'll be back to edit this post. This one is basically just me predicting the future, but to be fair, they are pretty safe bets.

[lacyscabinet]

Ok…but I rlly can’t get this out of my head! Nat x reader on another team or reader playing another sport. I feel like she would go to all of our games and cheer us on, and tease us if we end up playing her team

A/N: This is so cuteeeeee!!!! I had so much fun writing this!!!! Plus this is the last fic of my "I'm going crazy, let's just post 10 fics in one day" era so I hope to get compliments in my inbox PHAHAHHAHAHAHH

MASTERLIST LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!!

Soccer lovers

Nat and you had a thing. Well, not just a thing, but the kind of thing that made your heart do happy dances. She wasn't just your girlfriend; she was your number one fan.

You played on a different team, but every game, there she was, Natalie, cheering you on like it was the championship of all championships. She had this way of making you feel like the most important player on the field.

"GO Y/N KICK THEIR ASS!" she'd shout, her voice cutting through the crowd, and it was like an extra boost of energy just for you.

Even if the game got tough, just one look at Nat in the stands, waving a banner or something equally ridiculous, and you felt ready to conquer the world.

And then one day, you got to know the name of your next rivals: The Yellowjackets.

Your team ended up playing against hers. You could see the mischievous glint in Nat's eyes as she winked at you from across the field.

"Ready to lose, Y/N?" she teased, a playful smirk on her lips.

You rolled your eyes, but secretly, it fueled your competitive spirit. The game became a showdown, and every move you made was fueled by the desire to impress not just your team but Nat herself.

When you scored, you couldn't help but steal a glance at her, and there she was, trying to hide her proud smile from her teammates.

After the game, who you lost because after all, the Yellowjackets were real champions, Nat stood by the changing room's door with a teasing remark and a hug.

"You got lucky this time," You smirked at her, she giggled "Well, I'm going to the nationals loser" sentence followed by her sticking her tongue out.

And as you walked off the field together, her hand in yours, you couldn't even imagine what was about to happen in a few weeks.

[markerofthemidnight]

I’ve just finished watching its latest video and I have to share this project with you all:

Ladies and gentlemen, go fucking watch this playlist. It’s a collection of concepts for a monster collector game called Apocryphal, which can only be described as “Pokemon if it was an eldritch horror game that took place in the Victorian era.”

In what is a surprise to absolutely no one, this concept fucking rocks.

[wolfpants]

wolfpants kinkuary '23 masterlist

Oh god! Oh Merlin! I did it! 28 days and 28 fics. Did I stick to my 1k wordcount limit per fic? I did not. Did I have a lot of fun? I absolutely did. Do I feel like hibernating now? Yes, I do! Thank you to everyone who has been reading along as I've posted - your comments/kudos/sharing/DMs and asks have meant the absolute world. I love you all from the bottom of my heart!

Wolfpants Kinkuary '23 Masterlist, by ship

🐚💘🌊🏹⛲️🌒

Drarry All Hues in His Controlling - E, 1.8k (roleplay) If You Show Me Yours - E, 1.5k (exhibitionism) The Night Before - E, 1.2k (cockwarming) Nightcall - E, 1k (begging) Obedience - E, 1.2k (praise kink) Summertime Pleasures - E, 1.8k (feet) Your Breath, My Lungs - E, 1.7k (overstimulation) - Dron Gentlemen's Club - E, 1k (medical play) Yours & Mine - E, 2.3k (possessiveness)

-

Next Gen Hymn to Apollo - Scorpius/Teddy, E, 1.9k (first time) Music, When Soft Voices Die - James/Albus, E, 1.9k (chastity) With the Dew, My Golden Hair - Scorpius/Albus, E, 1k (hair pulling)

-

Cross Gen Almost Us - Sirius/Harry, E, 678 (intercrural) The Classics - Sirius/Draco, E, 1.1k (genderbend) C*cksuckers Anonymous - Harry/Scorpius, E, 801 (gloryhole) The Hand That Feeds - Draco/Albus, E, 1.3k (dacryphilia) Galvanize - Ron/Scorpius, M, 1.2k (accidental arousal) Love is a Verb - Harry/Teddy, E, 1.6k (piercings) Run on Gasoline - Draco/James, E, 1.4k (hate sex)

-

Group Enterrement de vie de garçon - Riktor/Drarry/Deamus, E, 2.6k (orgy) The Game - Draco/Harry/Dean/Seamus, E, 1.4k (cnc) The House Sitters - Ron/Albus/Scorpius, E, 2.k (comeplay) Truth's Day-Star - Sirius/Draco/Harry, E, 1.8k (size kink)

-

Misc. Golden Era Pairings Beauty in the Sleeping Forest - Charlie/Harry, M, 721 (somnophilia) Hell Bent for Leather - Draco/Charlie, E, 1.1k (fabric play) A Room with a View in the Flowering City - Draco/Bill, E, 1k (wax) Seat You Higher than the Stars - Ron/Harry, E, 1.8k (fisting) Viridian - Blaise/Draco, E, 1.3k (humiliation)

-

entire series on ao3

[stardropsaloongossiptrain]

Bachelor/ettes and Horror

How would our ladies and gentlemen fair with scary things?

Bachelors:

Sebastian -- He loves all things horror. Has opinions on every subgenre, slasher rankings, and probably some amount of memorabilia. He vastly prefers sci-fi horror (Alien, the Thing, Pandorum) or supernatural. Plays indie horror games on his computer. If the farmer is a horror hound, they will have a friend in Sebastian.

Shane -- He's not really the type to put horror on, but it's never bothered him. He likes goofy 70s-80s stuff best, and I don't think he would enjoy 'cerebral' horror. Thinks the special effects are cool. Will mix up the big slasher names.

Elliott -- It may be controversial to put him high, but I almost put him higher. He does NOT like anything gory or icky, but I think he would really love older horror from the 40s-50s and giallo films. There's some more artistic ones that he would probably like as well. He would prefer to read horror, and has read quite a few classics. It's not his favorite genre by any means, but sometimes gets a taste for it in late fall.

Sam -- He's not a fan. He's seen some big ones with Sebastian, but he's fairly squeamish and can't handle intense gore. Gets scared pretty easily. Really wishes he could handle them, his besties love it.

Alex -- Does not like horror. Doesn't understand why someone would want to feel scared. He isn't easily grossed out, but doesn't like seeing horror violence. Simply Does Not Get It.

Harvey -- He's baby. Easily scared, even when it's 50's era stuff. Never expects a jumpscare, too much empathy for violence, will think the house is haunted for two weeks after Poltergeist. He's comedic levels unable to handle anything remotely spooky.

---

Bachelorettes

Abigail -- On par with Sebastian, maybe even more into it. Loves all things grody and scary, UNLESS spiders are involved. Better than Sebastian at recommending stuff to people who don't know anything about where to start. Loves supernatural stuff best. Orders a lot of horror comics online.

Maru -- Lives with Sebastian, so he's definitely shown her a number of things way too early when she bugged him to hang out. Is not easily frightened, and finds science based stuff really interesting. Thinks gore effects are cool and is really interested in behind the scenes stuff. Fave is probably something like Reanimator or Chopping Mall.

Leah -- She's not super into scary movies, but doesn't mind them every once in a while. Likes artier stuff like Suspiria or Pan's Labyrinth.

Emily -- Not really a fan, but might watch an older movie around Spirits Eve. Like Elliott, more likely to read something with horror concepts than watch it. Would probably like House of Leaves.

Haley -- Does not like horror. Thinks all horror is gory slashers, will not open herself up to more.

Penny -- Gets so fucking scared it's not funny. They make her sick. Does not enjoy any type of horror, even some drama is too much to bear. Really only enjoys watching happy things.

[asksythe]

Wei Ying might actually be long-lost royalty (mark 3) but it doesn’t actually mean all that much. Historical tragic, super spicy gay drama! - An Essay (1)

So I’ve been asked: now that we know MDZS happened during Wei Jin Northern and Southern Dynasty era and that the name of one of the dynasties (Northern Wei 北魏) is the same Wei in Wei Ying Wei Wuxian (魏). How come nobody in MDZS ever remarked on Wei Ying having the same surname as the royal family? 

There are three reasons for this: 

1. The royal house name of Northern Wei was not Wei. It was Yuan… and Tuoba before that. 

Yeah… 

Northern Wei eventually fractured into East and West Wei, with each branch of the royal family (Yuan and Tuoba branches) taking power on each side. 

The other Wei state in the same Six Dynasties Period was Cao Wei. The ruling house name was Cao… as in … Cao Cao… of the Romance of The Three Kingdoms fame… Yeah…   

The actual royal house with the Wei surname that you are looking for came from the Wei Kingdom during Warring States (4BCE to 2BCE), i.e., the period of chaos and war right before unification by Qin Shi Huang. I.e., over half a millennium before MDZS timeline (Although this is probably the era when the great Houses were founded: Wen, Jiang, Jin, Nie, and Lan. The book did mention the time before Wen Mao, the founder of House Wen, brought about the fall of the sect system to be a time of wars and chaos and that the Burial Mound was a Holy Mountain that was corrupted due to the countless dead well before Wen Mao’s time). 

Wei Kingdom 魏国 started out as a vassal state (called the State of Wei). Through generations of achievements and war alliances, this state evolved to become a Kingdom. The first Wei King was Wei Ying (魏嬰). Yes. That Wei Ying. Although the Ying here is a variation of the way Wei Ying’s birthname is spelled in canon with the meaning remaining the exact same. His posthumous title is Wei Hue Wang (King Wei Hue).

Although if you are looking for the historical counterpart of Wei Ying (and Jiang Cheng), you will have to look three generations down at his great-great-grandson Wei Wuji (Wuji being another way to write Wuxian), also known as Lord Xinling (Xinling Jun). Wei Wuji and his elder brother’s life is more or less what happened to Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng Jiang Wangyin in MDZS. Except in the real world, it’s Jiang Cheng who is gay (Bi, really) and whose lover’s title (Lungyang Jun) is used as a way to refer to gay porn for 2000 years after his death. Historical Wei Wuxian still died of a broken heart because his brother betrayed him though. Unlike novel Jiang Cheng, however, historical Jiang Cheng (King Wei Anli, elder brother to Wei Wuji) was said to have died of an illness supposedly caused by hearing his younger brother had died of a broken heart. Fans of tragic, complicated, highly spicy gay romance, eat your heart out. 

Ladies and gentlemen: the historical Jiang Cheng, King Wei Anli (in modern Chinese cinema), also the man who introduced gay porn into Chinese literary history.

(Modern Chinese cinema representation of Lungyan Jun: historical Jiang Cheng’s beau and the man whose title became synonymous with gay porn for literally two thousand years and counting) 

(Ancient gay porn featuring not-historical-Jiang-Cheng and not-Lungyang-jun. In ancient China, novels were written based on real concurrent events with names switched out. Pay close attention to the hair ornaments of our actors here! The one on the left is wearing a hair crown typically reserved for royal men, whereas the one on the right is wearing a cap reserved for male court officials)

Historical Wei Ying! By which I mean Lord Xinling Wei Wuji (modern Chinese game), the war hero who died of a broken heart because his big brother don’t wanna play with him no more. 

Incidentally, Wei Wuji and his brother King Wei Anli were the first people in recorded history to own Tiger Tally (Hufu).

But I shall talk about all this ancient gay drama and the OG tiger tally another day (So long, historical Jiang Cheng! You are still a horrible brother, you little shit!).    

2. Slavery System of Wei Jin Southern and Northern Dynasties Era. Wei Jin Era really is just Warring States Era Mark 2. War Harder! 

That is to say, being of royal blood is not what it’s cracked up to be during this specific era. Wei Jin Northern and Southern Dynasties Era (also called the Six Dynasties Era) is kinda a special case in post-Qin-unification Chinese history for the simple fact that China was anything but unified during this period. 

To understand this period, you have to look at the sheer brutality and the miraculous nature of Qin unification. Qin Shi Huang did something that nobody before him had ever done. He united hundreds of different ethnic groups through murder, violence, and a case of genocide here and there. He forced enemies that had been feuding against each other for literal centuries to become fellow countrymen. He razed temples to the ground. He tore down capitals. He burned books and then burned the men who read such books beside them. He erased entire languages and cultures and forged a single, united country out of all that. For all that he contributed to China, the title tyrant is not wrongly awarded to him. 

But with such a strong, charismatic, forceful leader, you eventually have to face the big problem: their death. The Qin Dynasty really didn’t last long after Qin Shi Huang’s passing. The Han dynasty right after was even more short-lived. Some historians even called that dynasty a stillbirth. The thing that followed was a period of pure chaos and violence where differences and ethnic tension that had brewed throughout Qin and Han dynasties finally exploded. 

Thus, was born the Wei Jin Northern and Southern Dynasties, where the previously united Empire fractured into various petty kingdoms warring against each other. At one point, there were sixteen petty kingdoms where a united empire once was. What followed were approximately three centuries of various ancient states, petty kingdoms, cultures, and ethnic groups killing, fucking, cannibalizing, marrying into each other, massacring each other, tearing, and mushing apart and into each other until they eventually became a much more homogenized cultural and racial amalgamation and arrived (with a minor hiccup at the Song dynasty, another very short-lived dynasty) at the Tang Dynasty, which was considered a golden age in Chinese history and lasted for four centuries.

So then, in an era like this, being a reigning royal is not that big of a deal as you may think it is. In fact, this specific era was known as the era where the Noble Houses and not Kings were the ones who held the real power. Yes, noble houses like the Wen, the Jiang, the Jin, the Nie, and the Lan. Because there was no effective central power, the historical counterparts of the Houses in MDZS held power that they wouldn’t in other dynasties. Not only did they own vast territories and held legal power over them, but they also charged tax brackets that were previously only charged by Emperors or Kings. They could gather army conscripts and organize their own armed forces. 

In the novel MDZS, the cultivator Houses acted exactly like the historical Noble Houses during the real Wei Jin Northern and Southern Dynasties. They held massive territories and could exert certain levels of administrative and legal power over them. They held hunting rights, tax rights. In the novel, during the Sunshot campaigns, all cultivator houses started gathering conscripts and volunteers for their Sunshot war. And finally, under Jin Guangyao’s reign, they built massive military structures. This would be unthinkable in both the era before and after this one specific era. 

Ah… going too far off the topic. I digress. The point is, being actual reigning kings during this era is really not what it seems, let alone being long-lost royals. Because being long-lost royals means your royal family probably already kicked the bucket in historical Chinese Game of Thrones… and that means… you are a slave. 

Yep, slavery. During this time in ancient China, society was separated into a strict nine-ranked caste system. Depending on which rank a person was, they might have certain rights (and duties) and could do certain jobs, and enjoy some level of protection from the provincial government. But if you are low on this ranking scale, you are effectively… not a human at all, not in the eye of the law. 

Indeed, the lower ranks of this caste system were effectively serfs, who, if they dared leave the territory of their lord, would open themselves up to slave cartels. For example: Jin Guangyao’s mom, Meng Si, during this era would be categorized as Jianren (賤人, lit: petty person, this is the insult Madam Yu used against Wang Lingjiao), an owned Jianren at that. This means that even if she quit the brothel and took young Meng Yao with her, her caste as Jianren would still remain… which means she and her son Meng Yao would be forbidden from official examinations, would not enjoy protection from the law, would not be able to own particular business, would not be able to buy and own properties, and could only do lowly, menial jobs reserved for Jianren… unless she could pay an exorbitant amount of money and favor to a local magistrate to have him create new documentations for her and push her up on the caste system. Should she run and leave the city where she was based in, without the right documentation, she would open herself and her son up to roving slave cartels in the unprotected territory between city-states. Once she fell into slavery, her status as a slave, alongside her son, would be effectively legal in the eyes of the law (what passed for it) at that time. 

Slavery is legal during Wei Jin era. In fact, slavery in China was legal up until very recently, in the last century. It was accepted and practiced wide-spread. 

By that same system, if you were a citizen of a city-state on the losing side of a war, you would also be effectively a slave. Under this sytem, entire cities and small kingdoms of people were enslaved. Indeed, this is how Qi Huang Wen branch including Wen Qing and Wen Ning were treated in the novel: as slaves of the losing side. Originally they were stationed at Ganquan 甘泉 until Jin Zixun came and forced Wen Ning and other Wen people to Qiongqi Path, which was owned by the Jin. Because they were effectively slaves, even when they did nothing wrong, no one stood up for them. No one but Wei Ying.    

This is even pointed out when Wei Ying said in the novel that because they are Wen, so they are not humans. Is that what you mean? When he went to Qiongqi Path the first time. In the eye of Chinese society of that time, the Wen... really weren’t considered humans at all.

So the point is, even if Wei Ying is long-lost royalty, in the eyes of the people in MDZS, he would be effectively a slave or from slave blood. So, Madam Yu did actually have a point when she repeatedly insulted Wei Ying (and his father) and treated them as she would a slave. Because in the eye of society of that time, they were slaves. It didn’t matter how talented Wei Changzhe was or that he was married to the disciple of Baoshan Sanren, a peer of the founders of all 5 great houses, he was still a slave. It didn’t matter how talented Wei Ying was or that he was a war hero or that he spoke truth, because he came from lowly blood, because he had no House and no Clan behind them, anyone at all (Jin Zixun, Jin Zixuan, Jiang Cheng, effectively the entire cultivator world) would feel like they could push him around and insult him without fearing retaliations. In an era without law, if you are alone, then you are automatically guilty. 

 3. Real-life cultivators are actually super anti-authority anarchist hippies. Also, MDZS world is probably heading for cultivator’s Armageddon. Also, Lan Qiren is full of shit. Two of the three Founding Sages of Daoism (real-life basis of cultivation and xianxia) say so.  

-To Be Continued (I’m tired. This is longer than I thought. I’ll complete this another day)- 

[diablo-that-first-spark]

Hell has frozen over: I am deviating from the lore

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, my dearest cupcakes, you read that correctly. Hell is indeed an icy wasteland now and the Seven Evils need full winter gear to function. I am officially ignoring certain parts of the lore and deviating back to a previous version of them.

For those who don’t really know me, here’s why this is a big deal:

Lore is sacred.

Respect the goddamn source material.

These are the two golden rules I always follow, no matter the fanart or fanfiction I create (I’m talking about serious attempts here, not jokey sketches or memes, of course). I do not trample over established lore and rules in a world, just because I want to tell my story. I always do my best to make my story and characters work within the guidelines already set by the original creators. I don’t retcon backstories, I don’t blackwash, I especially don’t rainbow-wash, all of these are shameful practices in my eyes, and I would not be caught dead doing them.

Anyway.

With Diablo 4 out and its spin-off stories being published, I am finally forced to partially let go of the “Lore is sacred” golden rule… or at the very least, stay true to a former version of said lore. Namely, the Diablo 3 and the Sin War trilogy versions.

Now, it is obvious that Blizzard is doing its best to ignore D3 altogether in D4, outside of bringing back a few older locations like Maghda’s boss arena or the Forgotten Overlook. Returning D3 characters would rather die than mention anything from that game, while D2 characters (who should be dead 3 times over by this point) can’t shut the hell up about their former adventures.

It is also an undisputed fact that D3 is the least popular entry in the franchise among the hardcore non-fanart-creating part of the fandom. A sad fact, but a fact nonetheless.

Now, I am not saying Blizzard is a shit company, they don’t know what they are doing, I know better. No. Stories change. Things get retconned. Characters rewritten. Course-correction is necessary. That happens to almost every long-running story, it is entirely normal.

I just don’t like these changes, I think they take away from the lore overall. Attempts to erase my favorite entry from the franchise won’t make me happy, naturally, even if I wholeheartedly understand the purely logical and business reasons behind it.

So! Not to mince words, here is a list of every retcon I can think of from the top of my head, that I am going to apply to That First Spark:

1) Nephalem are weak no-name peasants who look perfectly human

Going by D3 and Sin War rules, in TFS nephalem are absolute powerhouses who survive insane shit being thrown at them, just because they are nephalem. Their power level is either off the charts or much higher than normal, both in magic and in physical strength. As a personal preference, I will also make the First Generation Nephalem (namely, Rathma) a little bit inhuman. I lllloved it when we still believed Elias would be Rathma, his design was perfect for the role. I will give Rathma a bit of a redesign for Act IV but his slight but disturbing inhuman appearance will remain so. No full-blown furry designs, that is just ridiculous, good lord.

(One day, I might write a rant about the current state of the Nephalem-era of history, because it is an absolute travesty. One day.)

2) Inarius is just a “lieutenant” of Tyrael

Yeah, nah, eff that. Rhythm brothers, till the day I die.

3) Rathma becomes the First Necromancer after he corrects a very plot-convenient mistake.

(Not going into more detail because the Rathma graphic novel is still very new.)

I’m going back to the original lore, which is far more interesting: Linarian had started a rebellion among his generation, after he realized their children were born weaker because of Inarius’ meddling. The rebellion goes horribly wrong, Inarius manages to kill most of the first generation nephalem with the aid of the Worldstone then he disappears and suffers a fate of isolation that eventually breaks his mind. On the other side, Linarian goes insane over the guilt of leading his fellow nephalem to their deaths, until the dragon Trag’Oul finds him and teaches him of the Balance, giving him the name “Rathma” (“Keeper of the Balance”).

None of this is made up by me, btw. This is how the lore was in the Sin War trilogy books.

4) Demons can be born/manufactured from the blood of angels

That is just the dumbest stuff Diablo Immortal has ever pulled, like hell I will work with that.

5) Lyndon didn’t kill Rea, instead he allows her to make his life hell

Hells, I already retconned it with the ending of Act I, without even trying. I saw into the future with this!

On a personal note: this is the most terrible story line they could have given to Lyndon, I hate everything about it, and I wish it to the deepest pits of hell. He deserves better. Grimdark is utter trash.

6) Lilith is an unkillable boss bitch that walks away from lethal crippling injuries like it’s nothing

Oh do not worry, she is going to be an absolute nightmare to take down. Quiet and co. will have to work for it hard. But originally Lilith has never been the “strahng wahmen unkillable boss bitch” modern day trope, and she won’t be that in TFS either. I have to be clever with what kind of injuries she may or may not receive.

7) Kingsport is on the south-western shore of the Western Continent

TFS works with the Diablo 3 version of the world map. If there is a location that is needed for the story, which shows up on the D4 map, but not the D3 map, I will bring that one detail in. There is nothing big behind this decision, I just grew used to the D3 map.

8) Lilith initiates the Purge of the Renegades because of Linarian's vision her son told her about

I am working with the Book of Cain version: Lilith assumes Inarius is already plotting the genocide of the children when he withdraws to meditate on the right choice. So she kills every angel and demon so that should Inarius want to destroy the children, he would remain utterly alone on a dead world. Her gambit would pay off in the end, although not before Inarius banishes her.

---

I am sure there will be a bit more retcons down the line, but for now, these are the critical nodes I see from here.

It probably doesn’t sound too bad for you, and I agree, I am probably making a mountain out of a mole-hill here. However, I have my own code to follow in creative works, and I honestly feel like this deviation from my usual methods warrants a heads-up.

So, anyway, back to the drawing board! I wish I had an ETA to give you cupcakes about the arrival of Act IV, but unfortunately I don’t. Thank you for your continuous patience!

2024.08.26.

[brigidfromthecelts]

It's Monday so here's chapter 12 of The Marriage Game! It's the start of the Pall Mall Game and the end of the picnic which gives us a chapter with around 10.5k words! 👀

Summary of the chapter: In which Law has an interesting conversation with Nami regarding her cousin, Zoro and Robin have an interesting match, Sanji and Nami share some riveting moments in each other's company and the ending of the picnic leaves a memorable impression on the guest's memory

Have you already read this story? It's a One Piece AU set in Regency Era where our characters and gentlemen and ladies navigating the road of love, misunderstandings and other troubles! Give it a try:

[fogwitchoftheevermore]

👀 martyn and/or rendog for the mcyt blaseball au?

Oh my god ok so time to divulge a secret. While I said there were three legs of this AU (Empires, Hermitcraft, and the Life Series) I just cannot get the Life Series branch to Totally work. I don't know why, I just have a much more difficult time assigning teams to the Life Series players than any other SMP. I think it’s probably got to do with how wildly different everyone’s story is in any given season and something to do with the fact that dying in a Life Series is just wildly different that dying in Empires or Hermitcraft and that difference just doesn’t transfer quite right to a Blaseball AU.

However the Life Series branch of this AU does exist, and it has basically just become a treebark AU at this point, so you're in luck. You're especially in luck because Martyn still exists in the Hermitcraft AU, so I'll give you them in both!

Let's start with Hermitcraft, because that's the simple one.

Ren Dog is a shortstop for the San Francisco Lovers with the Charm modifier. He spends his time off the field as the test dummy for Doc’s experiments or Martyn’s video games, making any given reporter fall in love with him, and watching a lot of Flormula 1.

The Charm modifier is one that allows players who have it to periodically charm their opponent into failing. In Ren’s case, this means getting the pitcher to throw an extra ball or two with a well timed smile or wink. All the lovers have it, but ladies (and gentlemen and others) get in line, because Ren is particularly good at it. Ren is also the captain of the Lovers- self appointed- because he thinks he’s good at that (he’s not but they let him have this).

Martyn isn’t a player in this universe (but it’s not off the table! It never is off the table to become a player, if the Hermits are looking to add anyone to season 10). He’s just a regular guy doing regular guy things. He and Ren are at the very least living together, I’ve not decided if they’re married. I don’t know why but something in my bones is telling me that Martyn is a video game dev for his day job.

Ren’s Assigned Garages Song: i’m in love with a blaseball player

Sorry I’m not giving Martyn one because he doesn’t play

Martyn Inthelittlewood is our Parker Macmillan in this AU because I am nothing if not consistent.

Martyn I started his career as a first baseman for the Alaskan Immortals during Pre-History. He was one of the best players in the League and made the Fans, some of whom are Watchers, because the metaphor is literally right there, lots of money due to his Profit modification, which increased idol payouts x10. Fans of teams that weren’t the Immortals got jealous and cursed him with Non-Proft, baring any Immortals fans from making money off of him, as well as Firewalker, which would curse any team he left with team wide instability. If the Immortals Watchers wanted to make money off of Martyn, they’d either have to leave the team that he was single-handedly bringing to every championship or risk his leaving the team killing the entire team.

The Watchers chose to risk it.

And then a lot more stuff happened to Martyn I that I’m not gonna get into, and I’m going to assume that you’re a Blaseball fan, anon, so you already know all this anyways. If you’re not, I’d absolutely be willing to explain but this post is already so long without it. Anyways, Martyn I gets trapped in the Vault for an undisclosed number of years and clones get made of him that don’t remember any of this.

We don’t know what happened with Parker II, so we don’t know what happened with Martyn II either. This will never fail to make me deeply deeply angry.

Martyn III is made the intern-interim commissioner of the newest era of Blaseball, the era in which Ren was a season 1 player.

Ren Dog was a first basemen for the LA Tacos while they were still the LA Tacos. He’s our Wyatt Mason in this AU, if you haven’t gathered. This also means he should be way worse of a player than I made him but I felt bad doing that. When the Grand Unslam happened and the world fractured around him, every member of the Tacos suddenly lost their names, the only identifier Blaseball players had at this point, and became Ren Dog. Martyn III guided the Fans (Watchers and Listeners alike cause why not) in restoring all the members of the team, except for Ren. Because that’s just not how this works. It never is.

Ren dissolved into static and became the Microphone, his own entity separate from the gods and management of Blaseball. He plays by his own rules and helps save the world from the guys in charge. Martyn III might not be a fan of the guys in charge, but he doesn’t understand the Microphone, and it scares him, and he doesn’t know why.

It should be known that while Blaseball was running I was a diehard for Parker/Wyatt, and so that heavily effects this whole thing. Specifically, a very important thing to me was that Wyatt/Ren was a normal person during pre-history when Parker I/Martyn I was playing Blaseball for the first time. The Boss (the Watchers) weren’t his biggest fan and maybe, just maybe, the Watchers pulled some strings to put Ren in the latest iteration of Blaseball so they don’t run the risk of him and Martyn III meeting each other and talking for too long. What happens to Ren in the Grand Unslam is just helping keep them apart even more.

However, what Ren is doing as the Microphone is bad for business. Very bad. So maybe they pull another few strings to send Ren very far away for, ideally, a very long time. And maybe they equally orchestrate some bad things happening to Martyn III and Martyn IIII so that they finally get the perfect puppet with Martyn IIIII.

But nothing ever works out the way they want. Because the game, the business, is falling apart at the seams. Because Martyn I is still in the Vault, dead set on getting out, and when Martyn IIIII finds out that he isn’t his own person? That he’s a clone of a man that’s still alive and still angry? That he’s missing memories most of his life because they were taken from him?

Yeah he doesn’t take it so well.

He finds himself asking the Microphone- Ren- for help. He doesn’t know why. But Ren can’t reach him where he is, so Martyn takes ahold of the Microphone himself, directs the new generation of Fans into taking down the old ones, the Watchers, who are now management and straight up ending the world. And he does take them down, but the world still ends, and inside that Black Hole, everting gets weird for Martyn.

It’s a side effect of taking up the Microphone- you don’t do that and not get weird.

Ren’s still not quite around, never really will be again, but now that Martyn’s taken up the Microphone, they can talk. And this Martyn is not the one that Ren knew and loved long before all of this, but he also kind of is? He used to be, even if he doesn’t remember it? But admittedly, Ren isn’t the Ren that Martyn knew either. They’ve both changed beyond belief, and maybe they can have something new together now. And maybe having something new means having it in the void at the end of the world but, well, at least they get to have it.

I care about them a lot in this AU they make me crazy.

Martyn’s Assigned Garages Song: firewalker with me

Literally what else did you expect

Ren’s Assigned Garages Song: ENCORE

I’ll be frank this one’s a bit of a cop out because Rain is a Garage and this is a Blaseball song but it wasn’t released under the Garages label. But look it’s just so good.

[thescrolls-haveforetold]

for the ask game and nerevar/nerevarine: 🤝🥰💘😳🤲🎻🚗 (answer what you like!)

YEAAAAAAAH NEREVARINE How do they express platonic affection?: Nerevar typically expresses platonic affection through advice, verbal affection and trying to uplift their friend more than anything else- calling them nicknames (buddy, kid) basically trying to act as an older sibling would! Nerevar is generally a very good mentor figure to a lot of people and tries to be as supportive as possible! Usually when Nerevar meets people, and she likes them, thats when they become friends. Neht's very open for friendships, but mostly AFTER the main questline of morrowind. Who do they currently consider to be their best friend and why? Has their best friend changed over time? : I think they'll forever consider Voryn to be their best and closest friend, even two hundred years after his death, Voryn unfortunately holds a specific place in Neht's mind that he has difficulty letting go of. Do they have a "canon" romantic partner? If so, who is it and what is their relationship like? If not, what kind of person would be the optimal romantic partner for them (the most interesting narratively, not necessarily the healthiest/what they think their preferences are)?: Nerevar isnt...necessarily open to romantic partners, outside of political conveniences- but there IS an AU where they do have a partner, but it is extremely complicated. BUT I DO LIKE SHIPPING THEM. SHIP ART IS ALWAYS FUN AND I LOVE SHIPPING NEREVAR ESPECIALLY. As for 'types' nerevar doesnt have one. Neht likes ladies and gentlemen, simple >:3 How easily are they embarrassed/flustered? What sorts of things catch them off-guard and make them lose their cool?: Neht is NOT easy to fluster. They are EXTREMELY good at turning anything back at the person trying to catch them off guard- pretty people, though... maybe? Do they have any deep desires that they don't talk about and/or don't even realize they have? Do these desires conflict with their main goal at all?: Nerevar is relatively sure of himself, but of course this guy wants stuff that contradicts what hes got going- he longs for the past, he longs for how it was back in the first era- he wishes it was different. but honestly? its never gonna happen, so yk... hes gotta b realistic abt these things Do they know how to play an instrument? If so which one(s)? Do they enjoy music in general?: nope! aaaand Neht likes sea shanties. i KNOW they do In a modern AU, what kind of job would they have, if any?: either shit fucked politician or retiree