#general knowledge riddles for kids

[mellowyellow236]

TWST Boys General HC’s!

Just some HCs for the TWST boys. No real theme to them or anything, and it’s mostly self-indulgent. Some characters will have much more than others, but I made sure everyone has at least one (You can clearly see what my favorite dorm and characters are lol-). Mostly fluff, but I’ll state before the headcanon if it’s angst, or if there’s a trigger warning, in red. Requests are open if anyone wants :) All writing under the cut!

Heartslabyul:  

Riddle Rosehearts - 

Gets very tense about things being dirty because he grew up in a really sterile environment with his mom. Sometimes, he gets worked up over something and cleans to calm down, it’s probably one of his healthier behaviors even if he has to work on not getting tense when it isn’t perfect. 

His favorite sweets are obviously strawberry tarts, but in second place is red velvet cake or cupcakes. He likes the color and thinks it tastes like chocolate. 

He likes trying all of the sweets Trey makes, and sometimes does taste tests like he’s judging them in a bake show. He lines them up, tries each of them, and thinks about what he likes and dislikes about each. 

Also, he got a hedgehog plushie from Trey, and since his overblot, he has slept with it every night as a form of comfort. 

Angst, Trigger Warning for EDs - Yeah, this one is pretty self-explanatory. Considering his devil of an almond mom and how thin he looks, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had one. 

Trey Clover - 

He’s a huge stress baker. He panics about the Prefect and Aduece duo being in trouble and suddenly the fridge is full of various baked goods. 

All of the Heartslabyul first years call him dad, but only a few to his face. Those few are Ace and Deuce, who started it. 

Trey loves trying out new recipes, and he wants to publish his own recipe book one day. 

Cater Diamond - 

Cater loves spicy food, which is canon, but my headcanon is that he makes his own spice blends to use on his food. 

Cater and Trey used to have weekly cooking/baking nights when they were roommates. Cater would cook something, and then Trey would bake something. They’d eat together and watch a movie in their dorm room. 

Angst - I subscribe to the theory that Cater was the housewarden before Riddle. Headcanon that now he thinks that Riddle’s overblot was his fault. Cater wasn’t able to help out his underclassmen when this started, since he was too weak to be able to win, and after he lost Riddle spiraled even harder down the road of a tyrant.

Ace Trapolla - 

Ace genuinely loves the hedgehogs but hates taking care of them because he can’t say no to giving them treats, and then Riddle gets mad. He’s gotten much better at hiding it when he does, though. (Riddle’s just gotten better at not getting mad about) 

He loves reading those really bad romance novels where you have to pause every few pages to figure out what just happened and why. He has a secret account he used to write fanfiction on but stopped after his brother found out and teased him over it. 

Deuce Spade - 

He calls his mom every day at the same time. He does not let anything stop him and Ace likes to stand next to him and make fake moaning sounds to annoy him. 

Angst, trigger warning for recovering addiction - Deuce used to be a delinquent, and so he did some bad stuff. He’s currently recovering from some kind of addiction, although he’s doing much better now. He has weekly meetings with Riddle about it, who uses the knowledge his mother made him learn about it to help him. They bond over not wanting to disappoint their mothers and how they want to get good grades to make them proud, even if it’s healthy for Duece but unhealthy for Riddle. 

Savanaclaw: 

Leona Kingscholar - 

His favorite place to nap is the botanical gardens because it’s warm and sunny, like a cat. 

Back when they were kids, Falena/Farena(Eng. Vs Jap. name) used to braid his hair. They used to put in little beads and things for fun. 

Agnst - When they were kids they were super close, but then Farena and Leona grew apart because Leona didn’t want to ‘hold his brother back’ after getting to know what everyone thought of him. Farena still calls him every week to try and talk, even back when Checka was a baby/toddler. Leona would never admit it but he listens to every voicemail that gets sent. 

Ruggie Bucchi - 

His favorite kind of donuts are the lemon-flavored ones. He likes that they're tangy and not as blindingly sweet. In second place is blueberry, and third is jelly-filled. 

Ruggie had been pushed to babysit Checka for Leona, and they went to a fast food place together. Ruggie taught Checka how to dine and dash. (And then came back with Leona who paid for their meals)

Jack Howl - 

He does a morning run every day and then has a big breakfast. He sees it as the most important meal of the day and never skips it, no matter what. He started doing it with the Prefect so that way he could make sure they were eating well/enough, and now all the first years meet up for breakfast on the weekends. Grim+Prefect bring tuna, Epel brings apple juice or pie, the ADuece Duo brings whatever Trey has left over, Sebek brings some fae dish made with normal ingredients so they can try it, Ortho brings various ingredients and Jack cooks whatever Ortho brings. 

Octavinelle: 

Azul Ashengrotto - 

Angst, Trigger Warning for EDs - Azul has really bad eating disorder tendencies. Like, ‘Well, I had a singular chocolate so now I can’t eat dinner’ bad. He’s working on stopping it, but right now he can’t do much about it. However, the one thing that often works is Jade’s mushroom dishes. Jade started looking for them and told Azul that they were healthy, so now they’re his safe food. Floyd wishes it was anything else at this point, he's so sick of mushrooms, but he'll let Jade cook them for Azul even if Floyd doesn't touch them. 

Jade Leech - 

Jade doesn’t have a favorite mushroom because he feels like if he picks one that makes the others less special. He had one for like a week when he first came to NRC, but felt so guilty he stopped liking it more than the others. (It was Amanita phalloides/the death cap mushroom)

Floyd Leech - 

Floyd thinks really hard about what nicknames to give people. He tries to get something that matches them, and who they are based on what he knows (Ex; Ace is often ‘crabby’, Kalim has a ‘fluffy’ personality like a sea otter, etc.) The exceptions are the Prefect and Riddle, who he just saw and went “Yeah. Shrimpy and Goldfishie. Shrimp posture and red hair. That’s what they are.” He doesn’t give nicknames to Azul and Jade because he believes that they’re both so interesting they could never be categorized as anything but their name. 

Scarabia: 

Kalim Al-Asim - 

Kalim loves jewelry and wearing it. He often gives it as gifts to Jamil, and it’s why he has so many golden accessories all over. Kalim proves the gold, but Jamil is often the one who picks out the design. 

Since Jamil’s overblot, Kalim’s started learning how to do stuff on his own. So far, he can (mostly) clean a window and (kind of) cook! Specifically, he’s learned how to cook pasta and add seasonings to soup. Not the best, but he’s trying. 

Jamil Viper - 

Jamil has so many snake things because of his last name and he hates it just because he's so sick of them at this point. He often trades gifts with Najma, so he ends up with a bunch of star-themed things as well. On his bedframe back home, he’s got little glowing star stickers. 

Pomefiore: 

Vil Schoenheit - 

He used to buy up a bunch of these Neige necklaces that were super breakable, and whenever he got mad, he would throw them at the wall until he calmed down. Then he cleans up and thinks about what happened and how he feels. Although, it’s a surprisingly healthy way of getting his anger out, especially considering the more violent nature of throwing the necklaces.

Rook Hunt - 

Rook has a ‘secret’ fanfiction account that he uses to write fanfics of Vil and Neige, sometimes together as friends and sometimes. Everything is oddly on point and both fandoms hotly debate what it means when he has a certain character bring up an event he never expanded upon and they never mentioned. His fics even have their fics written about them, including his “OCs” who are actually just his other classmates who aren’t as well known. 

Epel Felmeir - 

Epel secretly loves to bake but never did it pre-NRC because it wasn’t “manly enough” of a hobby. Now that Vil’s worried about excess sugar causing breakouts and stuff, though, he does it much more often out of spite. (Ironically, Vil thinks it’s great because Epel’s expressing himself naturally and not trying to conform to being manly or not)

Ignihyde: 

Idia Shroud - 

He likes to play the TWST version of the Sims and Stardew Valley and gets really into modding them. He likes to make characters of all of his favorite people and then talk to them. They’re hyper-realistic to how they act and look too, to the point where it’s either really creepy or romantic depending on how you look at it. 

Ortho Shroud - 

Angst - Ortho likes to listen to music and look at art because they’re the only things that he can’t automatically compute. He can do a math problem in seconds, but he’ll never be able to have the human ability to connect to art on an emotional level, so he consumes as much as he can in hopes of finding a way to experience it. 

Diasonia: 

Malleus Dracona - 

He has a dragon horde, but instead of gold, which he already has a tone of and doesn’t care for, it’s full of grotesques, pictures of gargoyles, and various gifts from his friends and father. He tried to go to sleep on it back when he was little, but nearly crushed some stuff, so Lilia decided to knit him a big blanket to use instead. Later on, Silver and Sebek also pitched in, then the Prefect, and so now Malleus has a horde and a pile of snuggly things to sleep on. 

Lilia Vanrouge - 

He calls the prefect ‘beastie’, which I am unsure of if this is canon or not. It could just be a very popular headcanon I’ve seen. 

I think it’s canon but not explicitly stated so I’ll state it as a headcanon; Lilia was in a polyamorous relationship with both Raverne and Meleanor. I ship it very hard and I need to say it. 

Silver “Vanrouge” - 

My main headcanon is that he listed Lilia as his father on all school documents. Not legal guardian, but father. He did tell Lilia, but Malleus saw and did the same thing afterward. 

Sebek Zigvolt - 

Sebek has a diary that he often writes in, and by often I mean almost every night. Surprisingly, most of it isn’t about Malleus, but rather his everyday life and school. He talks about his friends, and how classes are going, and even occasionally praises his various classmates for small things. It might seem out of character, but it’s just a place for him to vent the feelings that he has that he doesn’t want to talk about to others. 

Ramshackle:

Grim - 

Grim loves tuna, which is canon, but it’s not his actual favorite fish in terms of taste. It’s just that tuna was the only thing that the Prefect ever got for him ever since he first requested it because he was in the mood. The fact that they cared so much to get him his “favorite” after he requested it turned tuna into his favorite. 

RSA+NBC: 

Che’nya - 

Che’nya always makes sure to take really good care of his teeth and is very proud of his smile. He thinks it makes him look adorable, and it does. 

Neige Leblanche - 

Neige loves sewing and knitting, he thinks that it’s so much fun to make cute things. He’s worn them out, and often posts about them online. He doesn’t have enough free time to make his own patterns, but he hopes to be able to get good enough to do so one day. 

Neige likes acting, but he loves singing and dancing. He doesn’t get to do it as often because he mostly acts, but it’s his favorite thing to do. SDC was so much fun for him, he really wanted to get to perform and meet all of the performers from different schools. 

Because Snow White’s voice is so high-pitched, I HC him as a tenor by nature, although he taught himself to sing much higher notes, maybe even those of a normal soprano. (A tenor is the higher, often male voice in most choirs and a soprano is the higher, often female voice- It’s a bad explanation but it basically means he’s got a higher vocal range/voice than some of the other characters when he sings.)

Bittersweet - Neige is just as much of a cinnamon roll offline as he is online. He donates a bunch to charity, and considering his backstory, I think that most of it goes to orphaned or helpless children like him, who don’t have an adult around to take care of them. He hopes to make sure that no children have to go into the workforce young like he did to support the dwarves and himself, even if he knows that it’s not realistic. 

Angst - Neige never wanted to go into acting but had to because he was good at it and he couldn’t find any other well-paying jobs for children, so he could support himself and his seven friends. He loves his job, yes, but sometimes he wishes that he could’ve been a normal teen doing his school’s plays or community theater rather than worrying about having to stay on top of trends and stuff. 

Rollo Flamme - 

Already mentioned this in a previous post, but Rollo is an all-or-nothing kind of guy when it comes to crushes, but it’s a bit more than that. In almost everything, he puts either all of his time and energy into it or he just doesn’t care. Friendships, schoolwork, relationships, even little things like chores, he does it all or he doesn’t do it. 

Other Event/Side Characters: 

Checka Kingscholar - 

Checka loves visiting his uncle, so much so that he spends at least a weekend at NRC a month. It’s his favorite part of the month, and he loves that Leona will give him treats and find some time to play with him. (Leona clears his entire schedule for the weekends Checka comes out even though he’d never admit it) 

Najma Viper - 

I think Kalim has a canonic cousin based on Jasmine, so I HC Najma as being her handmaiden. Kind of like Dalia to Jasmine in the live-action Aladin. 

[nrvcntr]

My Lover is Like

hey remember how i said i'd write that fic about tav coming from a noble background and having a riddle that someone has to answer to date her and no one ever gets it right and then years later she tells gale and he knows immediately? anyway here it is

There are certain scents that bring back memories - warm grass on a summer’s day, fresh linens placed on a bed, and of course, the sickly sticky burn of a bottle of plum fizz, shared among friends. Astarion recoiled after he sniffed the open bottle, his nose scrunched in horror.

“You can’t be serious,” He said.

“You’re being dramatic. It isn’t that bad,” You replied.

You had found a crate full of bottles on your last trek and dragged it back to the campsite, anticipating a heroic welcome at your generous haul. It was nearing sunset and it seemed as good of a time as any to see what the contents of the crate were. Upon cracking the crate open, your eyes lit up at the sight of bottles on bottles of plum fizz. This had been the drink that defined your adolescence as a noble in Baldur’s Gate. It immediately brought back memories of revelry, singing songs next to bonfires, and a young Wyll Ravengard throwing up in the street. You pulled out a bottle and handed it to Astarion, who had reacted like a man who never knew the joys of noble debauchery.

“It smells like it could raise something from the dead and then kill it again,” He said, handing the bottle back to you.

“Look, we used to drink this all the time when we were kids. It’s like a rite of passage among children of nobility in Baldur’s Gate.”

Wyll, overhearing the conversation, came over to see what you were so impassioned about. At the sight of the bottle in your hand, he recoiled like someone had just smacked him upside the head.

“No. Get that thing away!” He shouted, shaking his hands.

“Oh, stop it. I remember you used to beg to play fizzy hands when we were younger,” You said.

“Fizzy hands.” Astarion said flatly, “What sort of braindead activity is fizzy hands?”

You raised your brow to Wyll, who explained that “fizzy hands” was the beloved drinking game of your youth, where a small magical seal was applied to two bottles of plum fizz, which an individual would hold. The seal wouldn’t break until both bottles were consumed.

“Fizzy hands leads to fizzy guts, which leads to…a fizzy mess, in the street. You couldn’t pay me to take a sip of that now.” Wyll said.

You looked around the campsite and gestured to Gale, who had been beginning the preparations for dinner so intently that he hadn’t noticed the failing case you were trying to make in favor of plum fizz.

“It’s nice to know that your taste in wine is nearly as bad as your taste in men,” Astarion mused, causing you to shoot him a farcefully menacing look. Your affections for Gale were no secret, and the two of you had shared an intimate moment in the Weave, but you were unsure of your current status, or even whether he really returned your feelings. You had begun to write it off as a passing fancy, something to daydream about during long days of traveling. Though, there was no hiding how much you enjoyed being around the man, your conversations often dragging well into the night after everyone else had fallen asleep. You had never met anyone else who seemed to understand you the way that Gale did, or whose company you enjoyed nearly half as much.

“You’re a man of taste, and you’re knowledgeable about wine. Can you settle a debate for us?” You asked Gale when he walked over.

“A glass of wine sounds delightful this evening. What’s the topic of debate?” He asked.

“Astarion and Wyll may not be as cultured as you and I. Just tell them about the fine properties of this blend,” You said, trying to communicate ‘please, say this tastes good’ in your expression as you poured a glass and handed it over.

Gale swirled the glass and his eyes widened at the scent. To his credit, he took an honest sip and racked his brain for something kind to say about it. “It has notes of…berry. And cinnamon. And…” He couldn’t do it. “Acid. It tastes like it would eat a hole through a table if you spilled some on it. Do the youth of Baldur’s Gate really ingest this willingly?” He asked.

You threw your hands up.

“Poor taste, the lot of you. It cannot be helped.”

After dinner, Astarion sauntered over to you, two glasses of plum fizz in hand.

“A drink together. Sort of a truce,” He said.

You were suspicious, but took the glass in hand. The spicy, bitter, sweet, and confusing concoction ran down your throat and made your stomach feel hot. Astarion’s glass was already empty, and he poured you both another. By the time you realized that Astarion had been pouring his drinks out to get you to continue drinking, you were drunk enough to begin telling stories of your youth in Baldur’s Gate.

“So, after Wyll threw up in the street -”

“Can you please stop talking about that. I have plenty of embarrassing stories I could tell at your expense, you know. Lock.” Wyll said pointedly.

“Lock?” Shadowheart asked.

You covered your face, feeling a burning sensation creep up your cheeks.

“What none of you realize is that our beloved companion here was once the most eligible bachelorette in Baldur’s Gate nobility. Her family was wealthy and she was beautiful, intelligent, and charming…”

“Whatever happened?” You asked, making yourself laugh.

“However, she never took a partner. Singles of all creeds, genders, and races tried, but no one could get through to her. So, she began to be known as ‘the lock of Baldur’s Gate’. And, what opens a lock but a key? And the key to her heart was to answer a riddle,” Wyll explained with a dramatic flourish.

“A riddle? How droll. That’s a little…presumptuous, don’t you think?” Astarion asked. You shrugged.

“Why a riddle?” Karlach asked.

“I didn’t want to end up with someone who was a complete dunce,” You joked. It was a half-truth, since the whole truth would have disrupted the mood of revelry among your companions.

“Well, do we get to hear it?” Shadowheart asked.

You leaned back and looked at the faces of your companions. Wyll shook his head, having heard this question lamented among the singles of Baldur’s Gate throughout his youth.

“What is loving Taglath like?” You asked, the question rolling off of your tongue like a well-rehearsed line.

“What a stupid question!” Astarion huffed, rolling his eyes. He had no idea what the answer could be.

“Oh, do you know the answer, then? Since it’s so stupid,” You said, unable to wipe the smirk off of your face. It always delighted you to stump someone with the riddle, and it delighted you even more to watch them struggle with it.

“What is loving like?” You repeated, prodding Astarion for the answer.

“Darling, loving you is like poison seeping through my veins,” Astarion said, pretending to be a romantic poet, his hand gripping his chest, “- and it kills me to be parted from you,” He added, taking your hand in his icy cold grasp.

“Very sweet, but no,” You responded.

Everyone laughed, getting a little chuckle out of Astarion’s foolishness.

“Oh come on, it’s not like any of you geniuses know the answer,” Astarion said, raising a brow to the group. He looked around at their curious faces and wonders aloud, “Do you?”

“Uh, I don’t remember my childhood. Much less silly poems,” Shadowheart said, but thought about it for a moment. “Is it like a rose? Something beautiful out of the dirt?”

You shook your head.

“Chk. This is a waste of time,” Lae’zel said..

“C’mon, Lae’zel, what do you think loving is like?” Wyll probed, the githyanki rolling her eyes at him.

Lae’zel replied, “Like a well-won battle, your enemies dead at your feet.” There is a pause before she asked, “Did I answer correctly?”

“No,” You replied.

Karlach wiped her hands on her pants, not waiting to be asked. “You’re barking up the wrong tree if you ask me, solider,” She said, “But I’ll give it a try. Is it like a cool drink of water on a hot night?”

“That’s sweet, Karlach. It’s own little poem, even. But no,” You said.

“Well what’s the answer?” Astarion huffed, getting frustrated at this little display of ignorance.

“Salamander!” Wyll interjected, snapping his fingers like he cracked the code. This made everyone crack up, to his dismay. “No, because - I mean, uh - well, it’s better than corpses!” He insisted. This only made everyone laugh more.

In this revelry, no one even thought to glance at Gale, who had been watching the scene with a bemused little smile on his face.

There was a lull when the laughter died down, the silence of everyone taking a breath after a hearty laugh.

Through the silence, two words cut through the air like a knife directly to your heart.

“The Sun.”

You gasped (a reaction that, in retrospect, embarrassed you with how dramatic it was). You stared at the speaker, Gale’s dark eyes glinting in the firelight. You felt you must have looked ridiculous, your jaw agape.

In all of the years of telling the riddle, no one had ever known the answer. The key to your heart, you joked. But it had been more serious than you ever let on. As each suitor fumbled through wrong answers, it had only solidified your belief that true love would never be yours. That you would eventually have to settle for someone who couldn’t really understand you.

It was like time stopped, the visions of your companions becoming a blur as Gale came into focus.

Gale, meanwhile, appeared to be blissfully unaware that he had just broken your brain (what was left of it, at least).

“That’s…right. How did you know?” You choked out, hardly above a whisper.

“It’s a very clever riddle. See, most would probably assume that the riddle is about the works of Taglath, whom is renowned as an iconic romantic poet. His works adorn his lover with brilliant metaphors that have captured readers since their inception,” Gale explained to the group, lecturing his never-be students.

“That’s probably why Gef Deldus spent one summer immersed in Taglath’s works,” Wyll recalled, chuckling, “He told everyone that he had solved the riddle. He was convinced you would be his bride by the end of the season. What was his answer?” He asked.

“Love is like a poem,” You replied, still dumbfounded by Gale’s answer.

“The education in Baldur’s Gate leaves much to be desired,” Gale snarked, then continued, “What most people don’t know is that Taglath’s most prominent muse was another poet named Alanis. Unfortunately, most of her work has been lost to history. Almost no complete works remain, and only fragments have been collected for publication. But in her most complete work, she compares her lover to the Sun. It’s a gorgeous poem about loving someone who burns brightly and the fears associated with taking a lover of prominence. Loving despite fear,” He said.

You wondered how it was possible that your body felt like it was on fire but also like someone had thrown a bucket of ice water on you. Did none of your companions notice that you were going insane? The realization rocked you like an earthquake.

Gale Dekarios was not a passing fancy, someone to think about kissing when the option presented itself. He was neither a daydream nor a wet dream to pass the time at different hours. He was not the greatest friend you had ever had, the person who you most looked forward to speaking to each morning after you woke and each night before you went to bed. The person who you spoke about nothing and everything with, played games with, or just enjoyed a comfortable silence with. He was not your traveling companion, nor even an ally who had risked his life for you as you had done for him. It was impossible for Gale to be any one of those things because he was all of them all at once and so much more.

Oh, fuck, you realized, your knees ready to give way.

You were in love with him.

The sound of your companions laughing and chattering together mixed together and sounded like ocean waves. If anyone turned to ask you anything you probably would have just stared at them blankly. You attempted to take a step toward Gale and the drinks you had earlier in the night went to your head, sending you tumbling forward and onto the ground.

“Looks like the plum fizz kicked in. ‘Key’, maybe you should take the ‘lock’ to bed,” Shadowheart said to Gale.

You thought that if you closed your eyes, maybe the ground would swallow you up and you would never have to look at Gale again. Instead, you felt him help you to your feet, allowing you to lean against him as he walked you to your tent. You were desperate to know what was going through his mind - did he realize the gravity that he answer had?

“Easy now,” Gale said, helping you down onto your bedroll. He treated you gently, helping you to unlace your boots and get settled in under the blanket. You were sick to your stomach at being doted on by him and kept quiet, trying to focus on anything but the way he looked at you. He left for a moment and came back to bring you some water.

“Is there anything you need?” He asked.

You were quiet for a moment, then spoke.

“Gale?”

“Yes?”

“After we had that moment in the Weave…you mentioned that we shouldn’t talk about it then, with the orb being unstable and everything going on,” You said, then allowed yourself to lean into your own intoxication, asking what was truly on your mind. “Was that really the reason? Because if you don’t see me that way, you can tell me. It won’t hurt my feelings.” The words poured out of you too quickly for you to worry about sounding insecure. It was a lie, of course, that it wouldn’t hurt your feelings. Being rejected by Gale would be devastating.

Gale looked thoughtful, then recited the end of Alanis’s fragments of her poem about her lover.

“My lover is like the Sun, Brilliant and bright He eclipses me And yet I yearn

My lover is like the Sun Blinding and unyielding When he touches me I burn”

He placed his hand on your cheek, his gaze looking through you and into your soul. The two of you could say so much without a single word.

“Am I the Sun, or are you?” You asked.

Gale had loved the poem when he read it as a boy, and later thought of it often when he was with Mystra, trying to make sense of the reality of having a goddess for a lover. He had often wondered if he would ever have an identity outside of being Mystra’s chosen, or whether he would forever be tied to the Goddess. And if that was the case, why did the idea of it make him burn with jealousy?

However, the poem had taken on new meaning since he met you. He felt like the Sun, a ball of fire ready to explode in his chest at any moment. As badly as he wanted to hold you close, he knew that doing so would destroy you. Still, he wondered, might it be worth it to burn if he could have one moment of knowing what it was like to be yours entirely?

Or rather, were you the Sun? He was certainly transfixed by you, drawn to your brilliance. You, a mortal who dared to be more brilliant and enticing than his Goddess. Would following you lead him down the path to certain doom - or worse, would getting close to you lead you to your own demise? It was that thought that kept him up at night, wondering if he should escape in the night. To save you from himself, or at least get you as far away from the danger as possible.

Gale contemplated your question.

“I’m not sure,” He finally replied.

“I don’t know, either.”

You placed your hand on Gale’s, your gaze fixed on each other, searching for an answer in each other’s eyes. Neither of you could find it.

However, there was one thing that was clear to both of you: whether through flames of salvation or damnation, you would burn for each other.

[faeriekit]

I’m writing this only to excise this from my body.

TIM (& DICK) ACCIDENTALLY START THE BATFAM AU!!!

So. Recently dropped out from college, kicked out of Wayne Manor, and fast tracked through police training Officer Grayson is having a real fucking shit time at the precinct. No one respects him or his deductions or his opinions. Everything sucks ass. His most familiar and longest-living support structure was ripped out from underneath him, he’s broken up and no-contact with anyone he’s ever dated, his Blüdhaven apartment is awful and full of black mold and there’s never enough food to sustain him, his creation of his Nightwing persona is slow-going and the public is reluctant to catch on, there’s a kid hiding under his bed, his partner thinks he’s a total nepo baby even though he has no money and no contacts, and—

There’s a what.

Dick double checks under his bed. Yerp. Sure enough, just hanging out, is a black-haired kid with a raggedy coat and a backpack, just peering back out at him with his big ‘ol eyes.

“What the fuck,” says Dick, before remembering not to swear in front of kids. “...freak.”

The kid scrunches his nose.

Dick doesn’t kick the kid out because, fuck, it’s cold out in November and at least his shitty apartment has heating, but he does tell the kid that this ain’t cool and that if he wasn’t literally in the cops to take most of them down, he wouldn’t let this fly at all. In the morning, the kid skedaddles, and Dick assumes that is that.

Except he’s here the next day.

“What the fuck,” Dick repeats, and commits to the swearing this time.

In the mean time, Tim already knows what swearing is and Is On The Fucking Lamb.

His parents were murdered in their bed on their one week in Gotham for the season, and escaping the same fate had been a lot of sneaking out of the house and hitching a ride on the Gotham city bus and laying low on the streets for the week, keeping only his most important photos, his camera, and a spare set of clothes on him at all times. There had been warnings of upset in the company that Tim had overheard, but he hadn’t expected this. With no safety in Gotham, no money, no food, and no one he knew personally, Tim was Very content with his plan of hiding out under Robin’s (ex-Robin’s?) bed until the murderers are appropriately found. The company can’t be bought, traded, or sold until Tim’s found dead, after all.

So. With a motivation to avoid getting murdered, Tim very rudely ignores Dick Grayson’s attempts to keep him out of his apartment with strategic uses of puppy eyes, lockpicks, and general knowledge of exploits in electronic locks.

“Little monster,” Dick warns, even as he has a plate for Tim in the hand opposite his own, “You can’t hide under my bed forever.”

Tim ducks back further under the frame. Yes he can!!!

It devolves into day-to-day shenanigans from there. Tim never speaks since he knows his Bristol accent is recognizable. Dick suddenly has to juggle his day job, Nightwing, and stopping this little kid with a camera from crawling around this crusty and crime-riddled city all night, just so the squirt can dart into the precinct in the morning with entirely inadmissible evidence of wrongdoing?? JUST managing the baby is part-time job. Fuck. Dick is buying double groceries now. He might actually learn how to cook more than ramen-with-egg.

It’s good that Dick has mastered some kind of weird almost-parent bullshit with the little monster, because overnight one kid under his bed turns into two.

“What the fuck,” says Dick. He tries to reach under his bed, and the new kid tries to get him with a knife. “What?? The fuck??”

“Back off! The shrimp was here first!!” the new kid growls, his street accent thickly prominent.

“This is literally my apartment?!”

“So what? What’re you going to do, call the cops to this shithole?”

“…I’m a cop?!”

Anyway. This new kid is deeply protective of the little monster, and his name is Jay something-something, mind your own fucking business, and Dick’s a little bit grateful because now at least the ten-year-old-monster has backup when he starts darting around town and also is wondering why it’s suddenly his fucking problem that he has to feed two kids he is not related to, and also apparently bailing them out at work when two not-even-pubescent kids get caught breaking and entering at seemingly random places in Bludhaven.

“Fuck off,” says Jay, to a cop, while the more silent kid is busy trying to get a look at evidence on cop desks. Dick watches from his own desk in silent horror.

“Is this yours?” asks Dick’s haggard partner.

“…Sure,” says Dick, to Jay’s clear surprise and suspicion. The monster beams with all of his adorable and also entirely fake innocence, the little shit. Dick bails them out, and then they all have lima beans for dinner as punishment for getting caught. I mean doing illegal things. (I mean getting caught.)

And then Bruce asks if Dick is coming home for Hanukkah.

Dick does not want to come back for Hanukkah.

…But the leftovers would feed the kids, actually. And it’s good food. And free. Maybe he can go for one night and not kill Bruce.

Spoiler: Dick cannot go for one night and not kill Bruce. Dick stomps to the other end of the house, texts Alfred an apology, and makes it all the way back to his car in order to drive home. Dick is on the parkway and on his way back to Bludhaven by the time that the tiny assassin in his car tries to Get Him.

They tussle. Dick only wins because he is An Adult and the assassin is, like, four foot nine.

Anyway. Cass is driven home in an improvised belt-and-dress-shirt restraint and cannot live under the bed, as she has to receive lice treatment. She stays because there is food and also other kids her age.

“Where are you getting all these kids?” Dick’s work partner asks, which is a fair question.

“…Cousins,” Dick lies.

“They live at your place.”

“Until their moms get sober again, yeah, probably,” Dick says, banking on the fact that he looks ethnic enough that no one will question the blatant reference to substance abuse or the basically-still-a-kid raising kids.

No one questions him.

He’s kind of disappointed in them about that.

Jay drops a reference to Crime Alley about this point. “You’re from Gotham?” Dick asks, perplexed. “Then why are you here?? This place sucks ass.”

“I’m in hiding. Duh.”

“From who??” Dick is fully prepared to go Nightwing on someone’s ass.

“Batman,” Jay says, severely. “I stole his tires. And then I hit him with a tire iron.”

Dick gapes. Monster gasps. Cass doesn’t get it, and takes a good heaping of spaghetti off the monster’s plate while he freaks out.

Much cute domestic shenanigans, and then it all goes to shit when the party is crashed by an assassin, who has been paid reasonable amounts of money to kill Timothy Jackson Drake.

Fighting ensues. Jay, who had known everything But the fact that Dick was Nightwing, freaks the fuck out.

"YOU?!"

"Yeah," Dick says, sheepishly, putting the escrima stick back in his pocket. "Uh. Whoops?"

"BUT YOU'RE A COP?!"

"I'm harboring you all, aren't I?" Dick points out, and rightfully so. "Cops do illegal stuff all the time. I literally got you out of trouble for your little B&E adventure in the inner city warehouses last week. If you weren’t fake related to a cop, you’d be in juvie right now for repeat offenses."

Jay, who was pretending that didn't happen and whose face is a bright scarlet, changes the topic. "Why didn't you tell us you were a fucking vigilante, then?? You should have said something?"

Dick points to the under-the-bed monster who has been squatting in his apartment since last year for that exact reason and the mostly mute mini assassin, both of whom had already known this information and said nothing. “I assumed they told you tbh.”

Jay stomps away.

Unfortunately, Tim's plan of hiding in Dick's apartment is no longer safe, and now everyone has to haul ass to move somewhere more secure.

This means needing more money.

This means needing somewhere to hide until a new place can be secured.

…Shit. This means playing nice with Bruce and asking for favors.

Dick does not want to play nice and ask for favors.

…Dick looks at the kid who’s depending on him to protect him from assassination, another orphan with nowhere else to go, and a girl who underwent abusive training and who’s never known a safe space apart from them.

Dick is going to have to get his shit together.

And he will hate it the whole fucking time.

Everyone piles into his early 2000s toyota something and off they drive, one bag each, to the house with the guy who never quite adopted Dick into his family and probably never wants to see him again, based on how literally every time Dick tries to spend time with him, Bruce can’t help but push on every one of his fucking buttons.

From there it’s a slow-churning reconciliation arc, baby! Bruce learns how to actually communicate with his kid, finds out that having the kids around improves his quality of life by 200%, and Alfred gets an early plural grandkid arc. Dick struggles not to take shit personally while they solve the deaths of the Drakes, Tim breaks his leg falling off of a place he Should Not have been, and Jason continues to learn that protecting others isn’t the same as genuine vulnerability and intimacy, and that he has value, and Cass learns that although she hates killing, she loves fighting, and using that for good isn’t bad.

Reasons I will never write this fic:

Too long!! I would never get it done in a reasonable time frame, and I can’t commit right now.

I actually…writing mysteries bores me. Sometimes actual mysteries bore me. I couldn’t execute this the way I would want it to be read. I’d give up. (Or, you know, I technically already have?)

In-betweens between the action scenes are too vague. They’re not solid in my head in the way I would want them to be if I was writing this.

This entire fic was premised under the basis of Dick looking under his bed and finding a twelve year old Tim Drake. I wanted some good old fashioned Tim & Dick bonding that wasn’t Red Hood based, since it’s still one of the most prominent tropes in their ‘&’ relationship tag.

Want to use any of this…? Go nuts. Or don’t. This has been exorcised from my body. I am now free.

[ryuichirou]

this might be a random ask but what do you think the twst bottoms reaction would be to jack’s knot? asking because i don’t think everyone would know/suspect it so there would be a variety of reactions

also because jack deserves a bit more lovin <3

Anon! Jack really does deserve a bit more lovin, so I went ahead and gave him not only NRC bottoms, but also a couple of extra boys. Aside from this being a very fun, horny reply to write, it’s also always kind of interesting to think about how aware the boys of twst world are about different species in their world… because public education surely doesn’t educate non-beastboys about this kind of stuff! But it should!

Anyways~

Riddle – if this isn’t anything spontaneous, he would probably do some research and get prepared for the knot! And he would be a little smug about it because it means that he wouldn’t make a rookie mistake everyone makes when having sex with a beastman for the first time. But he would still underestimate the size of Jack’s knot and realise that his preparations weren’t enough when it actually happens. It’ll be so awkward because he wouldn’t even be able to stand up until the knot is completely gone – Riddle is so much smaller than Jack that he’d just… hang in there :”( with his feet at least 20 cm above the ground. He might start panicking, but mostly out of embarrassment; it’s up to Jack to make sure he doesn’t start crying.

Deuce – we’ve seen his reaction hehe <3 But if it isn’t their first time, I think Deuce would get used to it pretty soon. While Jack would think that he should get better at catching himself at just the right moment to pull out not to get stuck inside Deuce, Deuce meanwhile would start enjoying the knot more and more every time they have sex. It hurts a little bit, but it’s a numbing pain that is also kind of pleasurable…

Leona – he would get silently disappointed in himself because he knew it would happen, and he didn’t stop Jack in time. But there is no way he would admit it, so he’ll end up bitching at Jack for being sloppy and overly excited, like a pup that doesn’t know when to stop. It’s not like Leona minds it too much though, as long as they don’t get cuddly or romantic and just wait for this thing to go away…

Jamil – despite seeing them every day, he doesn’t get to talk to beastmen very often: there aren’t a lot of beastmen in his dorm or his class; and with those who are there Jamil isn’t close enough to know this valuable piece of knowledge. So yeah, he knows there are some things that are unique to certain types of beastmen, and frankly he could’ve deduced it because he knows how dogs work, but… but… okay, yes, he didn’t know! But the moment he felt the knot growing inside him, he would instantly know exactly what it was, and he would hurry to jump away from the dick, but that wouldn’t help – he’ll get stuck with Jack. And he would get super embarrassed and frustrated with himself, maybe cover his face in shame and get either too talkative or silent, maybe complain about how he didn’t want this whole thing to take this long and how he has to start cooking dinner soon; but deep inside he’ll think that this is super hot. What isn’t hot is that now Jack wants to bring him to the kitchen looking like this; is he out of his mind?? (He’s trying to help…)

Vil – oh he is aware. Is it because he is surprisingly knowledgeable about sex in general or because he did his own research about wolfboys specifically because of one boy he used to really like when he was a kid? Your guess is as good as mine. Anyways, he would probably look forward to it in a way, or at least be prepared for it. Actually prepared, not Riddle prepared. It would still be bigger and more intense than he anticipated, but he would welcome the surprise; and while Jack would get flustered and apologetic, Vil would tell him that he has nothing to apologise for and turn this already post-nut situation very horny somehow. Jack never expected him to react this way, but I guess he really is just that special to Vil huh.

Epel – similarly to Deuce, he would start panicking, but also similarly to Riddle, he would look absolutely pathetic getting stuck on Jack’s dick with his tiny body suspended in the air. He would grab Jack, scratch him a little because he’d get afraid that he’ll fall off, but also try to pull himself off Jack’s dick and tug on him. Then he’ll start both crying and hyperventilating because he is very embarrassed, kind of scared and feels like a little bitch (which he loves a lot when he’s horny, but after cumming it’s just too embarrassing!!). After the hysterics calms down though and he is free, he’ll be okay and very spunky. He kind of knew that Jack’s dick would do this thing because he’s heard stuff from his teammates, a lot of which are beastmen. It was just kind of scary for the first time…

Idia – he also knew something like that would happen, but was in denial about it for the entire time, so really jokes on him. He really thought something as pervy and hentai-like wouldn’t happen irl… Why is he having sex with Jack in the first place? At first he would start complaining about Jack’s thing doing something useless, because it’s not like Idia could have pups, so why would it still do the knot when there is nothing to “knot” in the first place? Hiding his embarrassment and the cringe of the situation, he’d start talking so much that Jack will end up covering his mouth with his huge palm. And then Idia would either shut up or suddenly try to roll around… both because looking into Jack’s eyes while they’re stuck like that together is unbearable, and because for some reason he got hard again while feeling not only fucked, but pretty much bred by a wolf dick. He hopes Jack didn’t notice the latter thing…

Silver – oh he would be okay. He’d get mildly surprised, but then go “oh, right, you are a wolf”. No explanation necessary, no panic and no overdramatic reaction, just a very obvious blush on Silver’s face, chest and shoulders. Then he might ensure Jack that it’s okay and they could wait for some time… Maybe he’ll even touch the base of the penis with his fingers and massage it to make it easier for Jack. He would seem so experienced that Jack would ask if this isn’t the first time he’s having sex with a wolf beastman, but Silver would shake his head and say that this is indeed his first time. Somehow, this information made the whole situation a little weird and confusing.

Malleus – he wouldn’t really panic or anything, but he would get surprised, so he would need an explanation. He doesn’t know a lot about the ways other species procreate, so he would find it pretty fascinating… then he would confess that at first he thought something was wrong, and maybe even got a bit annoyed at something this big getting stuck inside of him, but he finds something extremely romantic about it <3 But also very lewd. The flirtiness on his face would make Jack blush a little… he better be happy that Malleus didn’t ruin his knot with magic though because it was his initial thought.

Rollo – he would probably consider it to be a punishment for sleeping with a magician lol I don’t remember him having any heavy bias against beastmen specifically (he seems to be more concerned with fae, or one fae in particular), but Jack is still a NRC student, and all of his other features would also add to Rollo feeling like he shouldn’t get intimate with him. He would love it a bit too much, so after he gets a knot, an irrational part of his brain would think that something thought that if he loves it so much, he’ll get stuck with this thing inside forever. Just out of sheer surprise and panic of course, because if he was thinking straight he would very easily figure out what was going on, and that all he had to do was wait for 10 minutes or so. Jack should shut him up or distract him in some (sexy) way just so Rollo doesn’t do anything drastic.

Fellow – he doesn’t get to hook up with other beastmen all that often, especially those who are of a similar “family” to him: foxes are still doggies, after all. He knows what a knot is, his own penis gets swollen when he is aroused, but since he doesn’t usually penetrate, this thing doesn’t get used much, so it gets un-swollen pretty quickly… so he was still very surprised when Jack knotted him: it was so hard, impossible to do anything with and so hot. Fellow is super experienced with sex, but something about being bred by a big young wolf pup scratched a very special itch inside of him and made him whine like a little bitch. It felt weirdly right in a very feral way.

[moonschocolate]

Tom Riddle headcanons!!

because lately i've been thinking about this tragic little human <3

tw: mention of torture as a topic

first of all I wanted to clarify that in this there's no Voldemort, no interest in practicing dark magic, just a teen who goes to Hogwarts soo... :)

proud slytherin. no matter how much other people can say 'slytherin = bad' he just doesn't care, he will not argue with you if you think or say that cause he will find it pointless

I don't now where I read this, but if I'll find it I will tag the person who said this before me: he has autism!!

which means he is not a very social person, and he has little/no friends

and he is deeply attached to an object/topic

the topic in question is dark magic

he doesnt want to practice it, he just finds the whole thing interesting

which deeply concerns professors

he knows everything. about horcruxes, the three unforgivable curses, origin and all

he simply thinks that knowledge is knowledge

IF HE READS?!?! OH DAMN

i strongly believe he has one hell of a library in his dorm

the most dramatic myths ever? knows them

he's just a nerd

read books about t0rture, c0mmunism, n@zism, because knowledge is knowledge

also reads light books of course i dont want to scare you

maths is not his thing

like yes he's good at it but he doesnt really care

did i say hes dramatic?

and an absolute pessimist

since i do not believe that his hair is like that just because it is, he HAS to have a hair routine (DROP IT TOM)

has an infinite collection of bookmarks

no person is allowed to touch his books

doesnt write on books even with pencils

listens to DRAMATIC classical music

EXAMPLE

(also y'all have to teach me how to put spotify songs with the blue rectangle cuz i dont have a clue on how)

JUST THE START

Idk it reminds me of him (and regulus but this is not about him)

this goes against the fact that he's dramatic, but i think that in a relationship he would be a good-old fashioned lover boy

flowers, love letters, POEMS, kissing in the rain, handing you his jacket when you're cold

and of course he wears suits

NOT a sports kid

mf doesn't know a single sport

he just learned how to swim

that's it

is defo the kind of person who is SOSOSOSOSO SKINNY

He's skeptical af on food

like i believe he's a picky eater

and i dont think he eats a lot

like he will go through the day with some coffees, some water, breakfast and a snack in the afternoon

is always gentle doing anything

when he's mad he's even more mad that he can't throw anything because then he would be even more angry that it got broken

has NO PHYSICAL FORCE AT ALL

Like his arms are spaghetti

im sorry but imo he's short

like 1.70 cm (5'5''-5'6'')

which is not really short

I CANT SEE HIM AS A TALL BEING

will not admit it but hates the sea

like as long as he can reach with his feet the "land" below then it's no problem

if he can't he'll try to act cool and say he's tired and immediately get out of the sea

it gives him a sense of pure confusion because he doesnt know what he could run into

which annoys him

because when he cant know something it hurts him physically emotionally psychologically

he knows plenty of languages

english, french, latin, russian and german

why?

because it's cool

also knows how to play the piano and the flute and the viola

"never judge a book by its cover" he does exactly the opposite

especially with books he judges the book by the cover, if he likes the cover he'll like the book too

and people can gain his interest only at first sight

he hates how lots of people can easily change their opinions as long as their group/loved ones have a different opinion

or how people always follow the crowd

people who judge mudbloods just because they're mudbloods are too stupid for him

i think we all know that he is THE teachers' pet

he's the Hermione of his generation

which means that while there are plenty of people with their hands raised the only one who will be listened to is tom

is a MANIAC in cleaning

his bed and his overall room is always tidy af

he hates getting his uniform dirty

he has plenty of nightmares about his past

which he never talks about with anyone

is the kind of person to have 4 or 5 cats

he is absolutely quiet

i got a strong feeling that this man was bullied before hogwarts at the orphanage

he has a cute little stuffed animal in really bad shape which he has from his years at the orphanage and it's hidden at the end of his wardrobe

he strongly despises children because he doesn't have a clue how to deal with them

acts like he has patience

lacks patience

in a modern au, the only thing he'd have going to school would be a black pen

not because he didnt care or was too lazy to get other things but because he didnt find having 3985729947 pens and highliters necessary

dada would be boring for him because out of curiosity he would've already learned most of the spells or wtv

i dont remember if i said it but quidditch is NOT something he likes

or just flying on a broom in general

(remus lupin behavior)

(I had to say it)

studying consists in him burying his face in the books for like 4 or 5 hours straight (my man has some serious issues)

you could tell im completely delusional because he became a killer and nothing's good-old fashioned lover boy about canon him but oh well🥰

[bangpop91]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I was tagged by the wonderful and fabulously talented @cliophilyra

1. How many fics on AO3?

57

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

357,820

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently it's predominantly 9-1-1, but I also write for 9-1-1 Lone Star, and used to write for Roswell New Mexico.

4. What are your top 5 fics by Kudos?

Sipping Him Like Whiskey

For this Child I Have Prayed

A Contractual Kiss

Growing Pains

Stay With Me

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yes. I don't my best to

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I generally as a rule of thumb make sure my angst riddled stories end on a happy or at least hopeful note.

But my WIP Carry On My Wayward Son, which should be completed some time this week will be my angstiest ending

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Ohhhhh. That is a hard one. Really that would probably be every story in the Bedtime Stories Series

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Once on a rare pair fic. I deleted the hate and went on my merry way. It was properly tagged so there was no point arguing with someone who was mad I wrote this Flint/Kyle story.

9. Do you write Smut?

Absolutely! I write all kinds. Soft and sweet, emotional, humorous, kinky.

10. Do you write crossovers?

Technically? I have written 911 and 911 lone star into most of my stories even if it is just Easter eggs of the other show.

Otherwise, I'm open to it just haven't found the right inspiration to yet.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to the best of my knowledge. I'm not where near that popular of a fan fic author for anyone to steal my stories.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated.

I have not! I'd be extremely honored though if anyone ever wanted to translated my work though.

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

@girlwonder-writes and I have something in the works! I am very excited about it!

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

This is like asking which of my children are my favorite 😂. My original ship from way back when I was just starting to make my way into fandom was Gemma Doyle/Felicity Worthington from The Gemma Doyle Trilogy. But I also have fallen in love with a great many other ships over the years. These days, Malex, Lizobel, and Flint/Kyle from Roswell New Mexico still hold a special place in my heart. Then there is Luc and Oliver of the London Calling Series, Henry and Alex from Red, White, and Royal Blue, and Joe and Nicki from the Old Gaurd.

And I refuse to pick a favorite 9-1-1 universe ship. I love them all.

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

It's my tarlos/Campbell(tarlossoup) fic I started but have been struggling to write. I still have hope but it won't be for anything hot minute if I do.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Oh man. I want to say it's coming up with interesting concepts. I don't know if I am always the best as executing them. And I am notoriously hard on myself and my own writing. So. I dunno send praise I guess 😂 feed your local artists and writers with compliments.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Spelling, grammar, executing my ideas without getting lost in unnecessary details, sometimes putting the things in my head onto the page in the way I want in a satisfying way.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I LOVE IT! I am in awe of people who can do it and do it well. I wish I was better with language as so I could do it properly. I don't my best to include it where I can but I get self conscious about it

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Oh man way way back in the day I wrote Harry potter fan fiction on Fanfiction.net.

20. Favorite fic you wrote?

Again with asking me to choose a favorite child 😂.

Paul Strickland and the Case of the missing Lion

Madam Vega and the Sensational Six

I Wasn't Looking for You

Every story in the Calypso universe

Just a Kid From Roswell

Lancing the Wound

A Soft Glow

No pressure tags for @marvelousbuckley @girlwonder-writes @nine-one-wanton @racerchix21 @rdng1230

And @dr-lizortecho @winged-fool @thepinkcrayon @thecarrott @dadbodbuck

And @30somethingautisticteacher @judymarch15 @herrmannhalsteadproduction @missmeryl92

[saintsenara]

I am literally so stressed right now since school is starting up again. I was just scrolling through your posts and I absolutely adore your opinions and thoughts. If you’re still up to the ships asks, I have a few.

For some reason, I have been thinking about age-gap relationships that wouldn’t be quite possible…and added with my love of Severus Snape… 👀👀

Abraxas Malfoy/Severus Snape - I don’t know if you’ve done Lucius/Severus but I just took it a generation back.

Romulus Augustus Lestrange/Severus Snape - I remember you mentioning in Scylla and Charybdis that the two were kindred spirits (?) since they were both killed by Voldemort.

Bellatrix Lestrange/Severus Snape - maybe a bunch of sexual tension during missions? Bellatrix’s attitude toward Severus was mainly suspicion but I feel like she meant it in a ha-ha-I’m-jealous-you’re-the-favorite way, not in a oh-wait-he-actually-is-a-traitor way.

Marlene McKinnon/Severus Snape - I love your take that she was a seasoned veteran in the First Wizarding War. It never made sense to me that everyone in the First Order were all children. Majority, maybe. But all of them being Gryffindors and out-of-school never stuck to me.

Frank Longbottom/Severus Snape - I’ve read a few works for this and I like the few takes there are.

And I already know your thoughts on Lord Voldemort/Severus Snape (it’s a favorite).

I’ve also been thinking about time-travel fix-it’s in general too. How do you think Severus would react if he found himself in Tom Riddle’s era? There’s the take on him being older and aware and absolutely done with his life, and Lord Voldemort (few years out of school or maybe in his 30s to level the age in a way) whose intrigued by the sour man (and maybe gets impressed by his knowledge of the Dark Arts?). Then there’s also student Severus meeting student Tom and getting further radicalized by this young handsome man. There’s so many to explore but at this point, if I don’t get my head out of this rabbit hole, I may never be able to pass school. 😭😭

This turned out to be longer than expected, but I love reading your posts! It’s always so entertaining, especially with your interpretation of Severus Snape. I can rarely ever talk about Severus without being attacked by Marauders fans online.

thank you very much for the ask, pal! i hope this term goes well for you - and that your extremely chic recent interest in snape-related age gap relationships endures.

let's see what we have here...

abraxas malfoy/severus snape romulus lestrange/severus snape

i'm going to take these two together - since romulus is an original character who exists nowhere other than my own head - because they occupy essentially the same role in relation to snape.

i've written before about how i really like the idea of voldemort having three distinct impacts across three separate generations - the knights of walpurgis/the original death eaters, who know the proto-voldemort of the 1940s and 1950s, with his muggle name and his retail job; these men's sons, who know the unassailably powerful voldemort of the 1970s; and these men's sons, who know the paranoid and volatile voldemort of the 1990s.

so you have abraxas - lucius - draco in each of those categories [or, romulus - rodolphus - n/a...]

snape is - of course - part of lucius and rodolphus' generation, and the voldemort he encounters when he becomes a death eater is the unstoppable political force who appears to be made of pure magic - which, naturally, makes snapemort have a very different power dynamic to something like tombraxas.

but it's also clear that snape is someone voldemort takes an interest in because he recognises so much of his former self in him - the slightly feral vibes, the poverty, the disappointing muggle father, the feeling of being an outcast surrounded by posh kids and the desire to bend those same kids to your will.

this is the reason for voldemort arranging things in scylla and charybdis so that snape can lord it over mulciber and avery, and it's also the reason why he's so insistent that abraxas and romulus [and other senior death eaters he knew at school] are nice to him - he's basically enjoying reliving his youth by, once again, making his minions obey someone who is technically their social inferior.

snape lacks the teenage tom riddle's charm [and looks], of course, which means that there's far more condescension inherent in any relationship - platonic or otherwise - that either of these two would have with him than there was in their early relationship with voldemort.

but they also have a fondness for spindly lads with an obsession with magic and regional accents, which means that i'm sure that something can come out of the fireside chats voldemort's compelling them to have with snape while they're forced to host him in their houses...

bellatrix lestrange/severus snape

i am very, very fond of this as a pairing - and, indeed, have something in the works on the topic - and bellatrix's rampant jealousy of snape is exactly why.

one of my preferred ways of exploring snape's position within the death eaters is to think of him as voldemort's exception in terms of social class - that is, that he is the only marked death eater who doesn't come from an elite, quasi-aristocratic background; and that voldemort's supporters who are from lower social classes are kept, like fenrir greyback in the rank-and-file and not permitted to take the mark.

[this is why, in my writing, i always make the carrows a similar level of posh to the malfoys and lestranges - canonically they're rather one-note working-class stereotypes, but i don't think this makes sense given what we know about voldemort's structuring of his organisation during the first war. it's also why i think that peter pettigrew doesn't receive a dark mark until he returns to voldemort post-prisoner of azkaban.]

bellatrix - on the other hand - is voldemort's exception in terms of gender [and another thing i'm wedded to thinking is that alecto carrow also doesn't receive the dark mark until the second war.]

these means, of course, that both she and snape depend on voldemort's favour - especially in the first war, when he still trusts his death eaters sufficiently highly to delegate things to them - much more than the elite male death eaters do.

i think it's reasonable to assume, for example, that rodolphus may object to his wife behaving in a way which defies the gendered conventions elite pureblood women are clearly subject to - and that it's only voldemort's authority that prevents him voicing an objection publicly. or that lucius malfoy - like sirius - conceives of snape as his "lapdog", and it's only voldemort's authority which forces him to treat him as a peer.

which means, of course, that snape and bellatrix are in competition with each other for voldemort's attention in ways which the other death eaters never have to be - which explains their vibe in canon, in which bellatrix finds snape's elevation in voldemort's good books after she falls from grace after the cock-up in the department of mysteries so infuriating.

[it also gives a really interesting dimension to her being completely fucking right about snape's loyalties, but being in the wrong position in voldemort's eyes for her opinion to be trusted by him. you just know she was pissed when she got to the afterlife.]

and - from a shipping perspective - having to be constantly jealous of and obsessed with each other is a very effective way of lighting a spark...

marlene mckinnon/severus snape

i do always like snape with an older woman, because i think it fits his whole vibe, so he goes very nicely with my preferred vision of marlene as a fifty-year-old hard-nosed ministry bitch who fucking loathes mad-eye moody.

the meet-cute? well, spies have to have handlers, don't they? dumbledore passing over his new turncoat death eater to one of his senior lieutenants - particularly given the fact that she's unlikely to be thrilled about this - is something i can get on board with.

frank longbottom/severus snape

frank and alice are other ones i don't enjoy seeing written as part of the marauders' generation - for them to be well-established aurors by the time the lestranges attack them, i think it's reasonable to assume that they're around molly and arthur's age [that is, around ten years old than snape et al.]

so i think we're repeating the same scenario as above - frank needs to debrief the order's new spy. if you know what i mean...

time-travelling snape!

i think that the teenage tom riddle would fucking hate the teenage snape, to be honest. the teen snape we meet in canon is someone who really obviously refuses to play along with the social conventions which govern an institution as elite as hogwarts - and he clearly stands out more for his grubby, feral demeanour, his uncouth manners, his way of speaking, and his refusal to be deferential to his social superiors than he does for his name and blood-status.

[indeed, he's one of the only really visibly working-class students we ever meet in canon - to the extent that i am increasingly convinced that hogwarts is a selective school...]

the young voldemort, in contrast, happily plays along with these social conventions for his own ends - simpering through slug club meetings and sending slughorn pineapple and doing all he can to be viewed as a suitable candidate for head boy, in order both to provide a cover for his wrongdoing and as a way to soothe the chip on his shoulder by beating the posh at their own game.

he's going to think snape's as common as muck, and snape's going to think he's a pretentious cunt.

a post-1981 snape going back in time and finding himself entangled with the young-adult voldemort, in contrast, i think could be rather compelling. it's very interesting that the teenage voldemort's willingness to play-act a fondness for the class system doesn't extend to being prepared to grit his teeth and suffer through a ministry internship slughorn procures for him - and his decision to go off and work in a shop has a slightly bolshy "fuck you, sir" side to it we don't otherwise really see from him.

this voldemort would, i think, be slightly more open to snape's whole vibe, and they could get cracking on all the things which make snapemort a hot ship - the shared love of magical experimentation, the dubious morality, the fact that voldemort's clearly responsible for snape's aesthetic, and so on - several decades early.

one question, though, is whether snape would know who he was.

i go back and forth on how widely voldemort's birth name is known - and whether it's ever connected to him following his return to britain in the mid-1960s.

on the one hand, i think dumbledore's secrecy surrounding it is nonsensical - a substantial proportion of the death eaters were clearly at school with voldemort, and those who weren't are still usually related to these men in some way [i always think, for example, that it's much more plausible to assume that the diary horcrux was given to abraxas malfoy, and that lucius was well aware that his father and voldemort had been at school together] - but on the other, i do wonder whether snape, who comes into voldemort's orbit as - as i've said - an exception would be made privy to the information about voldemort's background which was probably an open secret among the elite male death eaters.

[which also provides an explanation for why bellatrix is so shocked to hear harry say voldemort's a half-blood in order of the phoenix, while lucius malfoy doesn't bat an eyelid.]

which is to say, i am much more taken by the idea of snape - destroyed with grief over lily's death - rocketing backwards three decades, landing in the knockturn alley of 1951, and having no idea until he's in far too deep who the softly-spoken shop-boy who offers him a cuppa will turn out to be...

[bandagesandloveletters]

Lilla Thornton (Masters of The Air OFC)

Note: A little introduction to my newest original female character for the Masters of The Air universe. Look out for all her adventures in the weeks to come. Word Count: 895 words.

Glass plasma bottles clicked against each other as they moved inside the chipped wooden crate marked "Medical Supplies". Pyramids of morphine syrettes threatened to spill with every second step heavier than the opposite. In a different setting, desperate hands would be grabbing at the morphine, like kids to a bowl of candy. It was a highly sought-after substance on the frontlines by medics, but in the ghostly quiet hallways of the on-base infirmary, no one dared to steal from what supplies graced the stockroom. 

In the middle of the infirmary's hustle and bustle lay a heavy oak desk, out of place and odd for its surroundings but very fitting for the occupier who worked upon it, hour after hour.

Thud! Rattle! Clunk! The wooden crate came to rest upon the paper-laden desk as dainty hands rifled through its contents, determined to find the item that she so urgently needed.

"Ah-ha!" the gentle rasp with a Texan accent piped up as she grasped what she was looking for in her left hand. "There you are, you little rascal."

"Still talking to the medical supplies, I see."

"You know me, Nora. If a seasick-riddled boat journey across the pond can't change my ways, it will never happen," Second Lieutenant Thornton chirped as she turned to stand before the friendly face.

Lilla Thornton was a petite girl from Fredericksburg, Texas. Although she was small in stature, she had a big personality. As head nurse, the tiny Texan often had to drum up morale as her fellow medics worked tirelessly on wounded men evacuated from the battle-damaged aircraft returning from missions into occupied Europe. It was almost like working on a production line; as soon as a patient was stable, they'd be moved to a more suitable bed within the infirmary, away from all the chaos.

A no-nonsense kind of girl, Lilla was known for throwing herself into her work, placing it on top of her list before pleasure. Her time at Thorpe Abbotts was a perfect example of this practice. As her nurses clung to the men of the 100th every Friday at the Half Moon Inn, the young Lieutenant would spend her night taking stock of supplies and rolling bandages. Even back home, she'd rather spend her weekends studying or helping her father run the family ranch than travel the hour into Austin to go drinking and galavanting with her friends.

Growing up, she had to learn and take responsibility more quickly than most girls. At the age of seven, her dear mother Tabitha passed suddenly of an unknown illness that doctors were trying to grasp a better knowledge and understanding. Lilla was the eldest of three siblings, meaning any extra time she had after her classes were finished was spent working to bring in extra money to aid the family finances.

Her father, a cripple who couldn't work, always encouraged the brunette to follow her heart, and on the 18th of August 1941, Lilla Thornton joined the Army Nurse Corps. With a passion for helping those in need and a hard-working ethic, Army life came as easy as learning to crawl as an infant.

Training started at Brooke General Hospital, San Antonio, Texas, before she was assigned to the Eighth Air Force as a breakaway unit in September of 1942. A single gold bar sat proudly upon the collar of her dress uniform and the new role of head nurse upon her shoulders.

At Kearney Army Airfield, Nebraska, Lilla made friends with a fellow nurse from Louisiana. Like Lilla, Nora was a serious person putting just as much dedication into her role as a nurse as the Texan girl did. Nora and Lilla forged a friendship that would stand the test of time.

Thrusting the two bottles of saline towards the medic, followed by some syrettes of morphine, Lilla raised an eyebrow in question at the female before her.

"This should be more than enough for now. You don't happen to have any chocolate in your magic box, Lieutenant Thornton?" Nora’s Southern drawl emphasized certain words as she asked the smaller female. 

Holding up a finger, Lilla turned and began to search through a heavy oak drawer connected to her desk before producing a foil-covered article. Chocolate had become a rare commodity, especially with all the rationing the Americans faced while living in England, and what they could get a hold of tasted far from what they were used to back home. 

"This is my last ration for this month. It better be for a good reason you’re looking for some. You owe me one, Nora."

"You got my word, Li. If you have the time, can you check on Lieutenant Payne? I think he's coming down with pneumonia."

Looking up from her clipboard at the mention of one of the navigators, Lilla nodded. It was apparent there was some kind of bug going around the base. She’d already treated a few men with similar symptoms.

"I don't have long left until I've finished my shift here, but I'll be round as soon as possible. Just make sure he's kept warm until I get there."

Returning her attention to the crate of supplies, Lilla sat down behind the desk to begin the final stock check of her shift.

[sweet-chimera]

Okay but a Hieron/nectar half sphinx would be so powerful (if they had a kid meme)

If They Had A Kid Meme

send me a ship and I’ll tell you their:

Name: Caerulea Reject (Blue lotus)

Gender: Female (Most monster spawn are)

General Appearance: She had downward eyes like Heiron, pinkish fur, dusty purple feathers, and pink eyes with stars in them. They are infact, just a sphynx and like their mosnter form more then their human form.

Personality: She seems detached from it all, looking at most creatures like they're natural wonders to be observed. Its kind of off putting to most

Special Talents: With herons psionic capabilities and Nectars vast stores of knowledge from. Being the sphinx. Caerulea is inante knowledge of balance, order, natrual events and peoples futures. She loves doing card readings for people and giving them cryptic riddles instead of straight answers.

Who they like better: Heiron

Who they take after more: Nectar

Personal Head canon: She had to be taught not to use her powers for things like rigging the lottery or cryptically telling people when they were going to die because. Thats bad.

Face Claim: 

[wolfblood-of-anubis]

pt. 2 the anubis house kids being demigods would include:

click here for part one

Nina being terrified of her Hades powers

she has a fear of skulls and doesnt like ghosts, for a long time she’s been burying her powers on the inside so she doesn’t really understand them

they’re so underutilized that whenever something does happen, it comes out in bursts, it’s scary and sudden and most of season 1 is her self-acceptance as a child of Hades

season 2 is mainly her trying to figure out a daily life now that she’s trying to embrace/control her powers

Fabian as a child of Athena is nothing new around school. though he’s not the head of his cabin, that’s Mara, he’s fine with it, she’s more of a drill sergeant than him anyway.

Fabian being very knowledgeable about not just their gods, but also different mythology in general. he likes to branch out in learning.

he also can’t help a mystery, he loves solving things, riddles or puzzles, once he’s in there’s no getting him out

while they all read/speak Ancient Greek, he does it better than all of them combined

he also has an astronomy passion

he secretly wants to know about the monsters that dwell in america, all he’s ever seen from the god world are a few woodland nymphs and the occasional satyrs.

he’s met his mother once in his life. unlike their american counterparts, they can’t always head off to new york city once a year to visit mount olympus.

their principal and caretakers have told them they’re welcome to it one day, they would be guided by a satyr for the journey. but they always warn them that there are monsters flooding the US and how dangerous it could be.

no one’s taken them up on the offer.

Amber, daughter of Aphrodite, can be very influential

while not possessing the power of charmspeak, people tend to get very relaxed and lightheaded around her. her easygoing and charming personality seem to make her easy to talk to and have a good time with.

everyone comes to her for dating advice, the same with makeup tips or a shoulder to cry on

Amber is very empathetic to people’s emotions, especially when it comes to love or heartache, she understands how the person feels on a deeper level

Patricia Williamson, daughter of Ares, and head of her cabin during the summer (though against her will)

she’s a born fighter and doesn’t stop when she want to know something or someone’s been wronged

does not get along well with people

her most recent choice of weapon: liquids.

specifically dumping various liquids atop peoples heads for any misdeeds or annoyances they caused her

but she can also make a decent weapon out of anything, from a cell phone to a hair clip to one of Amber’s high heeled shoes

she loves finding old weapons from the years that have been stashed under the house in the tunnels

Alfie Lewis and Jerome Clarke, sons of Hermes and the resident pranksters on campus

they’re also the most annoying on campus

Alfie is also an aspiring magician and the fastest runner in the academy, sprinting like he has wings on his feet (eh?)

he also possess a great memory, only fails to use it in classes. mainly it’s for remembering how to mix certain chemicals together for the smelliest stink bomb one could imagine.

his geography knowledge is not particularly known, but Hermes was also the god of travelers, and Alfie seems to be able to know about their little globe more than anyone they’ve met. even more than the Athena kids. he never gets lost, always knows where to go and which road to take.

it surprises no one that his pickpocketing skills improved upon meeting his brother

Jerome Clarke has been at this school since he was five years old, having been sent away from home and always regretting leaving behind his little sister Poppy (also a child of Hermes)

Jerome and his sister were the result of a relationship between their father, John Clarke and the god Hermes.

Their stepmother, Joan, was nice but a bit flighty. once John’s crimes caught up to him, suddenly his children felt they were all alone. Joan sent Jerome to boarding school, one they talked about once he’d be older but she decided to get it ahead of time. it wasn’t meant as something negative, at least in her eyes, but she saw the bad influence Jerome would become to Poppy and decided she’d try to raise the girl away from the idea of gods.

it was a useless attempt really. once Poppy would reach the age of thirteen, she’d be in trouble.

England doesn’t have much in unprotected half-bloods. so they don’t have many monsters either. except for a few spread out, and with an unprotected daughter of Hermes, she wouldn’t make it 24 hours.

Jerome himself is the fastest pickpocket there is.

he’s got the mind for growing commerce and how to manipulate it

he’s the most cunning person in the house

the best liar, though ironically because of this, no one believes him when he says the truth

this leads to Alfie, also ironically, becoming the best liar in the house

he likes snakes and is proud of who his dad is

regularly scams people with multiple quick money schemes

they succeed half of the time

more to come soon and more about the staff as well

[raggstorice]

Ok so. I'm working on Flash Headcanons for Gender but... I don't know that many genders. So in the meantime...

Incorrect Quotes Part: 1

(using the Incorrect Quotes generator)

Heartslabyul

(ft. Che'nya and MC)

Riddle: What does 'take out' mean?

Trey: Food.

Deuce: Dating

Cater: Murder

Ace: IT CAN MEAN ALL THREE IF YOU'RE NOT A COWARD.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(At 3am)

Riddle, after drinking too much coffee: What if the person who named Walkie Talkies named everything?

Ace: Pregnancy tests are Maybe Babies

Deuce: Socks are Feetie Heaties

Cater: Forks are Stabby Grabbies

Ace: Defibrillators are Heartie Starties

Deuce: Nightmares are Dreamy Screamies

Cater: Stamps are Lickie Stickies

Trey, annoyed: You are disappointments

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle: Are any of you d-

Cater: Depressed?

Trey: Drained?

Deuce: Dumb?

Ace: Disliked?

Riddle: -done with Professor Crewel's homework... what is wrong with you people...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(During winter break Riddle attempts to talk to his mother. It doesn't go well.)

Riddle: You really put aside everything and came all this way for me? How did you even get here so fast?

Deuce: Several traffic violations.

Ace: Three counts of resisting arrest.

Cater: Roughly thirteen cans of energy drinks.

Trey: Also, that’s not our car.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trey: Nothing in life is free.

Deuce: Love is free!

Cater: Adventure is free.

Riddle: Knowledge is free.

Ace: Everything is free if you take it without paying.

(Trey was not amused)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trey, talking about Che'nya: So uhhh... my question is: my friend keeps on going into the pantry and grabbing handfuls of fettuccine... uncooked...

Cater: I would hope they're not grabbing handfuls of cooked fettuccine!

Riddle: In our pantry!

Trey: Yeah... and eating them raw, and they keep calling them 'chips'. ... How do I make them stop?

Cater: Is your friend here?

Trey, motioning to Che'nya's floating head: Yeah.

Ace, to Che'nya: You're a monster! Words MEAN things! >:(

Deuce: Does anybody remember- I haven't been to Olive Garden in... about a few months- but they DO have a like- fettuccine bottle that you can just- grab em out of and chew-

Deuce, to Ace and MC: HOLD ON. WAS THIS A PRANK YOU GUYS PULLED ON ME WHEN WE WENT TO OLIVE GARDEN ?!

Deuce: NO, STOP. EVERYBODY SHUT UP. DO THEY GIVE YOU RAW FETTUCCINE TO CHEW ON IN THE LOBBY OF THE OLIVE GARDEN

Everyone else: No.

Deuce, to Ace and Mc: YOU FUCKIN BASTARDS

Ace: OH MY GOD YOU ACTUALLY FELL FOR IT-

MC: THE PRESTIGE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deuce: I’m an idiot.

Ace:

Riddle:

Cater:

Trey:

MC:

Deuce:

Ace: If you’re waiting for us to disagree, this is going to be a long day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ace: There are seven chairs and ten kids. What do you do?

Riddle: Have everyone stand.

Deuce: Bring three more chairs!

Cater: The most important ones can sit down.

Trey, quietly: Kill three.

Everyone: ... :0

(unhinged Trey gives me fuel)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle: Imagine if someone handed you a box full of all the items you have lost throughout your life

Trey: Self-esteem, haven't seen you in years!

Deuce: Oh wow, my childhood innocence! Thank you for finding this!

Cater: I knew I lost that potential somewhere!

Ace: My moral code, is that you?

Riddle:

Riddle: I was just gonna show you this cool trunk my father gave me but do you guys need a hug?

(Dad Rosehearts is a good father agenda.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle: What did you guys get in your yearbook? I got 'most likely to succeed'

Ace, confused: 'Prettiest Smile'

Cater, totally not bitter: 'Nicest Personality'

Deuce, also bitter: 'Most likely to start a bar fight'

Trey: 'Least likely to start a bar fight, but most likely to win one'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trey: What’s something you guys are better than Riddle at?

Deuce: Mario Kart.

Cater: Yeah, video games.

Ace: Emotional vulnerability.

(That's a lie Ace. No one in NRC is good at that.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle, trying his best: That's it, we're gonna go out and find what we need!

Cater: To the town?

Riddle: Yeah, no matter what!

Trey: Well- How exactly do you propose we do that, exactly?

Riddle: I... I don't know!

Ace: Oh come off it, be serious!

Riddle: I am serious!

Ace: You're insane!

Deuce: Why, if only we were all wiener dogs, our problems would be solved!

Everyone:

Riddle: What???

Deuce: Or maybe it was a basset hound!

Ace, panicked: YOU'RE ALL INSANE!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle: Looking left cause you don’t treat me right

Ace: Looking right because you left

Deuce: Looking up cause you let me down

Cater: Looking down cause you fucked up

Trey, just trying to bake/ confused on how they got Riddle into this: What is wrong with you guys

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MC: We’ve been conducting an ongoing study to see what Deuce will and will not eat.

Ace: Grass? Yes!

Cater: Moss? Yes!!

MC: Leaves? Ohh, yes!

Cater: Shoelaces? Strange but true!

Ace: Worms? Sometimes!

MC: Rocks? Usually nah.

Ace: Twigs? Usually!

Cater: Riddle's cooking? Inconclusive...

Trey: How did you… test this?

Ace: You just hand them stuff and say ‘eat this’ and if they eat it, they eat it.

Trey: ... I don’t know how to feel about this.

Riddle: IS THAT WHERE ALL MY SPARE SHOELACES WENT?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trey, trying to convince Riddle to join the group: You know... I thought it'd be good to have someone come along who's really... strong!

Ace: And strict!

Deuce: And grumpy!

Ace: And oblivious to reality!

MC, bitter from Riddle insulting them in chapter one: And a fucking ASSHOLE.

Trey:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deuce: Why isn’t the statue smirking at me?

Ace: It isn’t smirking at anyone, they’re all just imagining it.

Riddle: Three of us saw it, Ace. How do you explain that?

Ace: points at Trey Sleep deprivation. points at MC Paranoia. points at Cater Delusional personality disorder.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Playing one of those card games like cards against humanity)

Riddle, reading off the card: Good responses for being stabbed with a knife?

Ace: Rude.

Deuce: That’s fair.

Cater: Not again.

Trey: Are you going to want this back?

Riddle:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riddle: Where's Ace, Deuce, and Cater?

Trey: They're playing hide and seek.

Riddle: Where?

Trey: I don't think you get how this game works.

(Riddle with his lack of childhood)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Authors Note: Hope you enjoy this while I figure out both their gender and my own...)

[poke-me-with-a-stick]

Chapter 8 of 'Artificial Wingman'!

For the full story, click Here!

I had a bit of a difficult time writing from Jazz's pov, but I tried my best and hope it's as good as the rest have been so far!

Enjoy!

---

After what felt like days, but was most likely only a few hours, Jazz saw the clock tower in the distance. A sigh left her as she disengaged the autopilot and took over steering, pressing her foot on the gas pedal just a bit too hard. The Speeder lurched forward, everything inside flying forwards with it, startling her enough to let up on the pedal. Now going at a more appropriate speed, she maneuvered the craft through the green and purple landscape until she reached the tower's small island.

The doors, wide and tall wooden sheets that fit perfectly into the blocked stone arches, sat open wide. A gesture of welcome, she knew, but the effect was mostly ruined by the fact that the top of the tower was made up of four large stone arches. An easily accessible way into the tower considering the lack of glass panes and general lack of gravity in the 'zone. But a gesture Jazz appreciated. It meant that he knew she was coming, and though his seemingly endless knowledge of everything in and out of the zone made an odd sensation course through her, Jazz also knew that the Ghost of Time wouldn't have opened the doors unless he was willing to help her.

Carefully, she flew the Speeder through the opened doors and landed it on the smooth stone floor. The redhead took a moment to collect herself, while simultaneously praying to whatever entity listening that the Ancient wouldn't be in a 'riddle mood', as Danny called it. Pushing open the door, she straightened her spine and unfolded from the Speeder, blueberry scones in hand.

Out of the Speeder's sound dampening walls, the sound of ticking grew prominent. The sound reminded her of an echo-y grandfather clock, a sound she remembered from her visits to Grandmama Fenton's as a kid. She followed the sound up the stairs and to the top floor, where she knew the ghost would be.

Just as she predicted, the Ghost of Time floated in the center of the room, a small smile visible on his cloaked face as he watched his screens. She only had a moment to catch the look before he turned his head towards her. "Right on time." He chuckled as he waved his hand, all of his screens going dark. Gesturing with his hands he invited Jazz deeper into his layer. "Would you like to join me for some tea?" He asked.

He shifted from man to a child as he led her over to a small nook, a tea set already placed on the table. Jazz handed the scones over to the ghost as she tucked herself into one of the wooden chairs, smiling pleasantly as he opened the box and hummed in appreciation. She watched as he settled on the other side of the table and poured her a cup of tea. Taking the moment to organize her thoughts, the woman busied herself in doctoring the tea with sugar and cream, ignoring the worrying green tint as she took a small test sip before nodding to herself and taking a longer drink.

Across from her, Clockwork did the same, meticulously spooning in sugar and cream into his cup before stirring and Sipping.

Jazz let the silence continue for a moment before setting her cup down on the matching saucer it had come from. "As lovely as this is," She began, "I'm afraid that I'm not here on a social call."

Clockwork nodded. "Yes. You're looking for young Daniel, aren't you?" He phrased it like a polite question, but Jazz knew that that wasn't the case here. Nothing this being said could be taken at face value, Danny had warned her of that the first time she met him.

She nodded, taking another sip of her tea. "Yes. He took a trip to another dimension, hoping to try something he found. He was supposed to come back yesterday, but hasn't. If he were anyone else, I wouldn't worry, but. Well, he's Danny." They both shared a small smile at that statement. "But, I'm sure you already know that." She raised an eyebrow at him, daring him to say otherwise.

The ghost let out a small laugh as he shifted back into an old man. "I am well aware of Daniel's situation, yes." He admitted to her. "But I can assure you that your brother is in no danger."

"While I believe you, I would still rather talk to my brother myself." Jazz bit back a sigh and prayed the ghost would help her without a fuss. Most of the ghosts Danny had introduced her to hadn't been as kind, let alone patient, when it came to favors.

The ghost took another sip of his tea before floating out of his chair. When Jazz started to stand, he gestured for her to remain seated. "Excuse me for just a moment." His incorpreal body tilted towards her as if to mock a bow before he dipped through the floor.

When he floated back up, now carrying a sheet of paper, the woman had a scone lifted to her mouth. It was quickly set down on her plate, forgotten the moment it left her hand. Instead, she found her full attention on the ghost.

"Before anything else," his form shifted back to that of a young adult, the paper being carefully hidden behind his back. Not as effective when you're not solid, but Jazz gave him an A for effort.

She had already prepared herself to accept some sort of deal from this meeting, so his words didn't surprise her all that much. Instead, she tilted her head and waited for him to continue.

"When the time is right, give this to the young Robin that follows your brother." He brought the paper out from behind him and handed it to her. The toxic green paper was old, almost scroll-like in its age, and had what looked to be some sort of summoning circle etched carefully into it.

Gently tracing the inked lines, she looked back at him. "What is this?" She asked curiously.

He was silent for a moment. "You already know what it is." He told her. "But, if you really want a hint, I suppose you could say that it is a failsafe. Should you find your brother in an unreachable spot." His cryptic words made her frown slightly, but she filed it away for now.

"Is there anything else I should know?" She asked instead. The ghost hummed as he floated back towards his screens, the grandfather clock in his chest ticking slightly louder as he shifted back into an infant.

"Your brother will have a difficult decision to make soon. And he will try to make it himself, without having all the information."

His serious tone was out of place, contradicted by his current form, but Jazz ignored the part of her that shifted uncomfortably. "When he comes to you for advice, and he will come to you, tell him to follow his heart. His heart leads to the best outcome."

Jazz puzzled over that bit of information. The way the ancient phrased it almost made it sound like Danny was in love or something. Then again, knowing Danny, he probably was in love. A troubling fact when he had left home with a love potion of all things, but surely Clockwork would tell her if it was important?

Standing, Jazz moved towards the old ghost. "I'll do what you ask." She told him honestly. He nodded, his seriousness dissipating slightly.

"Very well then. You'll find a clear path to the Dimension you seek just outside the clock tower. If you wish to catch it, I suggest you hurry. I'm afraid that this is as much as I can help you, though."

"This is more than enough." Jazz told him as she speedwalked to the stairs. "Thank you, Clockwork."

She was down the stairs before he could respond, missing how he turned back towards the screens observing as Daniel grabbed at someone's hand, fingers covered in salt and oil. She missed the secret smile that grew on his face as he watched the scene play out.

Jazz found the portal he meant as she drove out of the clock tower, a large and strangely colored swirl that broke up the usual green and purple of the Realms. A deep, midnight blue color that was covered in wisps of black and gray, almost smoke-like in the way they swirled.

She didn't even hesitate to drive straight into it. The sensation of exiting the zone rippled through her, making her veins buzz and her ears ring slightly. Scrunching her nose at the feeling, she shook her head slightly and looked around her new surroundings.

The first thing she saw was concrete. Gritty gray floors, and metal walls. Light filtered in through dirt stained windows near the roof, illuminating abandoned pallets and ripped tarps. She knew a warehouse when she saw one.

Grabbing her bag, she hopped out of the Speeder before turning back and snagging the keyring. A few button presses, and the vehicle vanished from sight with a singular beep! Even after watching Danny and Tucker work on that feature, she still felt the tingle of amazement watching the hunk of metal fade from view without so much as an outline.

Turning away from the marvel, she wandered around the dust-covered space until she found an exit, leading her into the salt and smog tainted air of a city's docks. Her eyes burned at the pollution, but she adjusted to it quickly. Wiping her eyes and fighting the newly appearing itch in her throat, she walked towards the high-rise city in the distance.

It didn't take her long to reach the city, and barely an hour into her arrival she found herself wandering the filth-ridden alleyways it had to offer. Her bag thumped rhythmically against her back and the Boomerang digging uncomfortably into her spine as she traversed the underbelly of the city in her quest.

It was only hours later, when she was beginning to question if Clockwork had sent her to the right place, that she felt it. It was faint, as if a distant echo, but it was undoubtedly something Ghost related. She paused, closing her eyes and stretching her senses out in search of the source. North of her, about seven blocks. The feeling of creeping frost that was cold, yet it was accompanied by the sensation of a warm hug. Her brother's presence, she knew immediately. She lived with him, after all. It was a feeling that accompanied every morning at breakfast, a greeting after coming home from school.

Jazz took a moment to sigh in relief, before focusing back in on her brother's presence. It was moving, she realized after a moment, heading further into the city at a steady pace. Frowning, she tried to focus in closer, pick up a path or something he could be walking.

Her concentration was interrupted by a warning from her other sense blaring his her mind. Eyes snapping open, she ducked and spun, throwing one of her legs low to sweep the legs of her attacker. Her foot struck true, sending the would-be mugger stumbling backwards with a pained huff as his breath left his lungs.

Readjusting, she dropped into a loose fighting stance, waiting for the man to right himself and come at her again before diving, sliding past him and kicking a pressure point behind his knee. Her attacker dropped, clutching his leg and groaning in pain.

He apparently had no sense of when a fight was lost, as he stumbled back tonhis feet rather quickly, his leg threatening to buckle as he charged at her. Sidestepping his clumsy attempt at a punch, she delivered one of her own to the side of his jaw, the bone under her fist making a slight cracking noise that she could only hear with her slightly enhanced sense of hearing.

The man dropped for a final time, out cold as a deep purple began to form in the shape of her knuckles. Jazz couldn't stop the satisfied huff that escaped her as she stepped dantily over the man. Her satisfaction quickly turned to annoyance, as she realized that the fight had allowed her brother to become out of reach of her enhanced sense. With a dissaointed sigh, she turned back the way she came, disappearing easily into the long shadows as she made her way back to the Speeder for the night. 'I'll try again in the morning.' She told herself. Her chest ached at being so close yet so far from her brother.

—

Jason stood on the rooftop overlooking an alleyway, his jaw hanging open as he watched the tall, redheaded Goddess of a woman dissappear into the shadows. Shaking his head clear, he dropped down into the alley and made his way over to the criminal.

A kidnapper, one he had been tracking for a while after busting a human trafficking ring about a week back, layer out by a beautiful woman. The irony didn't escape the anti-hero, a dry smirk overlaying his face. He let out a low whistle of appreciation as he caught sight of the deep purple and blue bruise on the man's jaw, shaped almost like a heart. There was no way the man had escaped this fight without a fracture at the very least.

Quickly tying the man up and setting a signal for the police to follow, he turned back to the direction she had walled off in. There was zero sign she had even been there, besides the goon she downed. Hurrying up to the rooftops didn't wield any answers either, no trace of the woman anywhere. He wanted to search for her, get her name, 'Maybe her number too…' but he was called away by Oracle hacking into his comm and redirecting hum to an armed robbery in progress.

He hoped to find her again, but for now he had a job to do. Besides, if she was going around taking down petty criminals like a pron he had no doubt they would cross paths again. Especially if she kept wandering around Crime Alley at night.

—

Danny felt something at the edge of his consciousness, a slight tugging that was familiar to him. Before he could try and focus on it however, a warm hand latched onto his, causing his chest and face to warm, while sending his brain into another small meltdown. He wasn't sure exactly when he started to have this reaction to Robin's touch, but no amount of telling himself that it was just logical to hold hands while walking around a dangerous city at night calmed his racing heart.

'Stop it.' He told himself. 'In three days he will probably lose all romantic feelings for you.' His heart clenched painfully at the thought, but Danny refused to let what if's cloud his judgment right now. If it was all temporary, then he would just enjoy it while it lasted.

—

Back in the ghost zone, Clockwork smiled at his screens. Everything was happening just as it should be.

---

(I know there might be some typos and/or Grammer mistakes, but it's okay because I tried my best.)

For the amazing people who follow the story so far, as well as the lovely person who made the prompt for it: @halfblackwolfdemon @manapeer @xxwintrynightzxx @im-totally-not-an-alien-2 @blu-lilac @academicpurposes @secretdestinywerewolf @passivedecept @naluforever3 @postit-nope @spiteismymiddlename @2t-productions @plague-daisy @feet-achy @bubblecookies16 @thesapphiredragon13 @justwannabecat @magicalcollecter @adeniumdream @amuseofminds @lupagrim @readerkayden @dr-syko-pharm-4 @ladythugs @angelheartgamer @markthespot68 @kyrianclawraith @michikoy-yuki @servasvictoria02 @your-emo-nightmare @vala-dreams @scarlett-green-rose @t1dwarrior-of-earth @charlie-the-frogie @akikoyuii @mysticalcomputerdetective @roseuniverse999 @im-totally-not-an-alien @thefearfullone @weird-droplet-309 @jaytriesstuff @raventao @jacquelynwinchester @dragongoblet @tlise21 @longlivethefallen @the-archer-goddess @temple-of-jalebi @adepresseddwightsblogofjunk @plainly-colorful @the-legal-shipper @49saltpeppershakers @igotafewbadideas @tumbling-darkling @sparklygardenbouquet @sarcastic-yami @blueneko9314 @starscreamlover @liedboutmurder @do3y @roze-realm @some-mildly-happy-human @yinari-uchiha @azuera @chaoticmistake @altairsarts @kawaiikenna @heartsong18 @thetoyboxs @tricksovertreats @mnemovoid @lim4b3ans @horribly-lost-and-gay @keimiwolf @dryeraseslime @joey394

[balloons-in-bold]

A Struggle In Secret: The Wedding Riddle

Part one of three in my series on growing up in a cult.

My upbringing in The Family International, formerly known as The Children of God, was a mixed bag. I had such a loving and supporting family, and many incredible experiences traveling and performing. Most of the latent effects of the isolation of homeschooling and living in a country with an especially difficult language barrier surfaced during my later integration into "normal" American life.

David Berg, my great-grandfather and the founder of The Children of God, died several years before I was born. Nonetheless, he remained an all important religious figure in our lives, behind only Jesus himself. My education and spiritual development was buttressed by decades of propaganda material, yet my cult experience wasn't as intense as previous generations. My parents did the best they could to shield us kids from the abuses they went through. The 2000’s marked the waning years of a cult that once boasted ten thousand members. The bustling commune homes that dotted the globe became fewer and less populated. Because of the cult’s lessened omnipresence, I wasn’t provided sufficient opportunities to develop my social and romantic skills properly, which, compounded with introverted tendencies, left me with few substantial relationships, a problem that persisted long after we had left the cult.

It took several years to stop blaming myself for my stunted development, and even longer to move forward on a path of self improvement. I had crippling social anxiety that I still feel clinging to me occasionally. Pulling up to a party or other social function, I’d feel jolts of electricity shoot through my body, and the adrenaline would drain my brain of coherent thoughts, leaving only an urgent sense of dread. My journey of self discovery and search for community and connection was made so much more difficult by the lack of shared experiences I had with those around me. Every time I mentioned my past, and how, no I can’t relate to your funny high school anecdote, I mostly got blank stares and a rush to change the topic. A surface level explanation didn’t come close to adequately bridging the gaps separating myself from those around me.

2022 Was when I determined that, in order to properly move forward, I needed to confront the remnants of isolation and alienation in as direct a way as possible. As an artist, that meant telling my story through symbolic imagery. Like a divine revelation, the story of Samson fighting the lion (Judges 14:5) entered my mind. A struggle in secret that no one at his wedding had knowledge of, and when presented with the riddle, had no chance of coming up with an answer (Judges 14:12-14).

The painting was at first only meant to be a quick solution as background imagery but grew into so much more. I layered to the collage portions of the canvas to tell the journey that stretched back thousands of years, starting with papyrus fragments, followed by King James bible pages, old MO letters, Life With Grandpa pages, and topped off with the A-beka christian fundamentalist homeschooling material. Expanding outwards and constricting inwards, leaving me trapped and isolated. The border has its cracks, fracturing under the cumulative dissonance of the inevitable internal struggle. The painted portion leads towards the center, down into a pit so deep, climbing out feels almost impossible.

I wanted to push the physicality of the balloon sculpture in a way I’d never done before. I drew inspiration from ukiyo-e images of samurai clashing with tigers, intertwining the two subjects in violence, hands grasping and claws slashing so deep that the two become one. I portrayed in Samson’s face, the rage and frustration I felt pent up over so many years, being released with the urgency and determination of a warrior assured that the fight is already his.

This first part in the series was finished and photographed a while ago in private, now being used as marketing material to promote my upcoming exhibition where I’ll be displaying the second painting and sculpture in the series. The next part, “Out Of The Strong, Something Sweet”, is an attempt to harmonize the darkest parts of my family legacy with the wonder and excitement, the joy and support I experienced throughout my upbringing in The Family International.

Please join me at The Jung Center of Houston, Texas for the exhibition, funded in part by Houston Mayor's Office of Cultural Affairs through Houston Arts Alliance, for the opening reception August 19th, 3pm to 6pm; and don’t miss my talk on the closing day, August 24th at 2pm to hear more about my art and journey.

[dracomort]

What is it about Draco that appeals to you? The same question with Tom. I found myself struggling to articulate to a friend as to why I found the characters to be so intriguing. This got me curious as to what you like about the characters and what you enjoy about reading/writing them.

Draco is not really a typical favourite character for me. I don't like cowardice nor incompetence and he has both in spades (the second-hand embarrassment is... a lot). He's a character who is a disappointment the vast majority of the time, and someone who redeems himself only in moments of faltering inaction, rather than any sort of grand stance. However, I find him a realistic and refreshing breath of fresh air in a universe full of righteous, selfless heroes. Draco is someone who only cares about problems when they affect him personally, someone who will happily turn a blind eye to the suffering of others so long as he is benefitting from it. To me, he's one of the only truly morally grey characters in HP, and that is very appealing.

I like how Draco struggles so much more than most of the teen characters with making the 'right' decisions, because to him, 'right' is not as straightforward as it is for someone like Harry. To make the morally 'good' decision and to protect the people he loves are one and the same for Harry. This isn't the case for Draco. There are no easy answers that don't betray or harm the people he cares about. Not to mention, Draco has no reason to be on Harry's side, nor any reason to believe he has any chance of defeating Voldemort. More so than any of the other students, Draco has seen the extent of Voldemort's power and brutality up close. That would put a damper on the enthusiasm of the most idealistic person, and Draco is hardly an idealist.

Also, just from a general likeability perspective - i think his shitty mean jokes are funny and I like spoilt rich kids.

Tom is a character I love especially from a writer's perspective because there's so much untapped potential to be explored both in his psyche and the missing years of his life. I would hate for WB to make a Tom Riddle prequel series, especially one helmed by JKR (who clearly can't even remember how to write Dumbledore anymore).

While it's a valid interpretation, I don't have much interest in born psychopath Tom. I will always prefer him as someone shaped primarily by his environment because well, there's more than enough there to make him the person he is. We only see Tom through Harry and Dumbledore's eyes and their view is limited and warped by their own biases (Dumbledore in particular). I have always found it fascinating that Dumbledore could look at a child who has never been loved and hence does not understand or value love, and see that as a personal failing of the child rather than a tragedy.

I don't remember who said it, but I remember seeing a response to a post here where a user said something along the lines of: 'most of us don't want to admit that given a similar upbringing, we'd end up more like Tom than Harry'. And I think there's a lot of truth in that. Tom is very much an imperfect victim, someone whose response to his circumstances is understandable yet heinous. Voldemort's hatred of Muggles is fascinating because it doesn't simply come from a perspective of bigotry and hatred of 'otherness', it comes from personal experience and first-hand knowledge. I don't know if giving him an institutionalised Great Depression childhood and a WWII adolescence was intentional, but it gives him such a fascinating layer of depth.

[moonrivcr]

❀ *◦ ning yi zhuo. cis woman. she/her. bisexual. ⇝ hey, isn’t that mingxia "millie" ruan? i think that the twenty-four year old from fremont county, colorado works as a vet technician at happy villagers vet clinic and a cashier at the raven house, but outside of that people describe them as icicles glittering in the rising sunlight, fleece blankets littered everywhere, a clear night sky, a ring of skeleton keys, and antique dollhouses meant to be looked at and not touched. i hear they are gullible & flighty, but they are also known to be trusting & open-minded. consider giving them a visit at their home in kingpin trailer park and get to know why they’re called the stargazer.

-partially blind, sheltered little bean -book smart, not very street smart -is used to being babied and full of unearned confidence -wasn't properly socialized as a teenager, a tiny weirdo -not a lot of life experience, but she's doing her best to come into her own -doesn't realize that her long-lost sister is in anchorage -is lowkey having prophetic dreams, but she's not fully aware of it -excited to explore her new home (with her trusty seeing eye dog at her side)

pinterest / playlist

tw: ableism mention, kidnapping mention

always a riddle in the world, she said, always a riddle inside my head: lore.

Childhood:

Born the youngest of the Ruan siblings, Millie doesn't remember much about her life before she was adopted. But despite the lack of knowledge about her origins, there was always one consistency that persisted among her siblings, even long before they were placed under the care of their loving adopted parents: Millie was always to be shielded and protected from anything that could potentially hurt her, something that became a central facet of her upbringing throughout every stage of her life.

Her adopted parents', already teetering on the edge of overprotective when it concerned their children, were even more cautious with Millie thanks to a childhood diagnosis of optic nerve hypoplasia just after she was born. Though her sight wasn't entirely gone, her vision was much more limited than other kids her age, which came with its own set of challenges.

Paired with a general delay in her cognitive development in the earliest years of her life, her parents took extra care in looking after their youngest. But despite their best efforts to give Millie whatever she needed to succeed in life, their helicopter parenting became a hallmark of her childhood, with the girl rarely allowed to leave their side and venture out on her own for fear that she might unintentionally hurt herself.

Millie appreciated their warmth and unwavering support, but even as a child, she was frustrated that there were milestones she wasn't allowed to reach on her own, eager for the room to explore and make mistakes like any other kid.

Still, despite the initial obstacles, Millie had a penchant for learning new things, eager to soak up information and discover how things around her and out in nature worked, even if it took her a little longer than other children to fully understand and retain the information. This desire lead to a natural curiosity about science and history, as well as a fascination with animals of all shapes and sizes that persisted long into her teenage years and adulthood.

Adolescence:

Though she was already confined to her own personal bubble, the whole world seemed to change for Millie the day that Mei disappeared. Sure, her parents had always been extra cautious with her, erring on the side of slightly controlling over the baby of the family, but that only seemed to ramp up in intensity when Mei was taken. And with Millie considered particularly at risk due to her limited vision, they became downright paranoid over her safety.

On the cusp of turning thirteen, she was not allowed to do anything that ordinary teenagers would've been doing: joining clubs, going to sleepovers, or even volunteering at the local animal shelter. But even despite her natural curiosity, Millie didn't mind her new, more isolated existence all that much. A part of her figured that her parents were right, that they were only keeping a close eye on her to protect her from being victimized the way her sister had been. No, the restrictions on her personal freedoms didn't hurt half as much as losing her big sister. That was what haunted her the most, not knowing what happened to Mei.

So Millie spent the formative years of her adolescence keeping to herself, learning to navigate life with her deteriorating vision, and fostering her interests within the safe confines of her house. Her only saving grace was that she managed to convince her parents to allow her to remain in public school, though she was barred from doing anything outside of attending her classes.

Even when she eventually graduated from high school and began her collegiate studies, Millie wasn't allowed to live on campus or attend any parties with the other kids her age. Instead, she spent all four years being driven to class by her parents and living at home. But she took solace in her studies, eager to learn as much as she could from her professors and dedicating herself to her academic pursuits, hopeful that one day she would get to put that knowledge to good use outside the walls of her childhood home. Pretty soon, she was walking across the stage at graduation, elated at what she'd accomplished and looking forward to whatever the future held.

Present Day:

That was when the dreams started again. Millie had always dreamt in fully opacity, frequently dreaming of simple mundanities that seemed to occur in the near future like clockwork. She'd never really thought much of her dreams before, chalking their occasional accuracy up to her overactive imagination creeping little slices of her life directly into her subconscious. Nothing more than a simple question of probability and suggestibility, that's all. But this time, she dreamt of a place entirely unfamiliar to her, something outside of the safe bubble that her parents had constructed to keep her safe: a snow-dusted forest, a cat sleeping on the windowsill of a cozy bookstore, and a sign that reads "Welcome to Anchorage."

She originally gave the idea very little thought, brushing off these dreams as nothing more than something she must've picked up in a geography class, or perhaps a nature documentary she'd seen in the past. But the visions of this place became more persistent, more vivid in her sleeping mind, and Millie was having a hard time finding a logical reason for her newfound fascination with this place, a city she'd never even thought about before, with her mind's cautious insistence that maybe it was a sign. Maybe there was a reason she was meant to go here, something beyond her largely unchallenged, more scientific worldview.

Her parents were apprehensive to allow Millie to leave Colorado, especially as her vision was bound to only worsen over time. But after years of doing exactly what was expected of her, of taking their helicopter parenting in stride, she was more than ready to start her own adventure and explore the world at large. But is Anchorage really the right place for Millie to venture out on her own and start to forge her own path, to test the waters of independence in a place with unknown dangers waiting around each corner? Only time will tell.

always a thing of wonder, the way we come to be: stats.

General Info: Full Name: Mingxia Allison Ruan. Nicknames: Millie, Mimi, Xia (only really used by her family). Age: 24. Date of Birth: July 12th, 2000. Zodiac Sign: Cancer. Gender: Cis woman. Pronouns: she/her. Sexual Orientation: Bisexual. Romantic Orientation: Biromantic. Relationship Status: Available, single. Alignment: Chaotic Good. MBTI: ISFP, the Adventurer.

Appearance: Faceclaim: Ning Yi Zhuo. Height: 5′2. Eye Color: Brown, partially blind in both eyes. Hair Color: Jet black. Tattoos: None. Piercings: A single earlobe piercing on each ear, a helix piercing at the top of her right ear (her twenty-first birthday present to herself and her one small rebellion).

Background: Education: Graduated with a bachelor's degree in veterinary sciences from Colorado College. Occupation: Vet technician at Happy Villagers Vet Clinic and a cashier at the Raven House. Residence: Kingpin Trailer Park. Class: Middle. Ethnicity: Chinese. Language(s) Spoken (in order of fluency): English / Mandarin.

Identity: Label: the stargazer. Positive Traits: easy-going, trusting, open-minded, forgiving, curious. Negative Traits: naïve, tactless, foolish, forgetful, flighty. Quirks/Habits: has a loud laugh, jiggles her leg when she's anxious/feeling restless. Love Language: Quality time. Hobbies: Knitting, listening to audiobooks and podcasts, watching documentaries, journaling. Likes: shapeless dresses, knit sweaters, overly blushed cheeks, fuzzy socks, trinket dishes. Dislikes: feeling like a burden, feeling inept. Fears: being tricked, never standing on her own.

[kimium]

Choosing one character from each dorm (Housewarden, vice Housewarden, or regular student) describe how you think they would enjoy a museum date! 🥰💜

Hello friend! Thank you for the ask! Let's get started! I love museums and I think going through them is fun, but let's set some guidelines.

First, museums can hold a wide range of topics so I'm not going to base this on a specific type of museum. If I did then the subject matter alone would knock out some characters from considering them under "enjoying a museum date".

So, I'm going to base this on the general aspects of a museum: displays that give information, sometimes have some interactive elements, a few live shows in certain areas by performers/workers of the museum, a screening room for films on the museum's topic matter, a café/restaurant because all good museums need at least one, and a gift shop.

This is long, so it's under a cut.

My List of One (1) Twisted Wonderland character per dorm that I think would enjoy a museum date

Heartslaybul - Riddle

Museum dates have everything I think Riddle would love: information, multiple displays to look at, strict guidelines for behaviour, and a place to grab tea afterwards. Yes, Riddle would love to go on a museum date. For the topic, I think Riddle would be fine with anything as he strikes me as someone who loves learning and appreciates expanding his knowledge on any topic.

Pros:

-Willing to go to any kind of museum due to his love of learning

-Genuinely wants to look at the displays and see all the sites

-Genuinely wants to talk about the exhibits whoever he's with over tea once they're done looking at the exhibits.

Cons:

-When I said he wants to look at all the displays, I mean it. He will read EVERYTHING and you cannot move until he's done.

-You have to follow his schedule, meaning you cannot switch which exhibit you're going too. He's even mapped out any live events or films you want to see perfectly into the schedule. Good for seeing everything, bad for improvisation.

-Following the rules is also a MUST. If that sign says "No photos here" they MEAN it and you cannot break the rule. This also means no sneaking a kiss in the dark or something because public indecency is BAD. At least you convinced him holding hands isn't part of public indecency.

-There will be a quiz afterwards and you need to pass otherwise he'll feel the date wasn't successful.

-Tea is a must and if you aren't a tea person I'm sorry but you're wrong. (Sorry, my tea opinions. I'm joking.)

Savanaclaw: Jack

Look, in my heart Jack's the only one in Savanaclaw who would enjoy a museum date. He has the patience to look at the exhibits, likes reading the plaques with information, and finds the slightly overpriced gift shops charming. For the topic, Jack would love a horticulture museum or a conservatory with thousands of plants. Big bonus if there are cacti.

Pros:

-Jack will go through the exhibits and not rush you along! He likes looking around and learning about the topics too! Not afraid to switch things around and skip exhibits if you're not interested.

-He's filled with plant knowledge and will probably get into light conversation with other patrons/workers over displays.

-Not afraid to do the interactive elements! Even if it's a live show, he'll be willing to step up which makes the experience more memorable.

-Will buy you that oversized, slightly pricey stuffed cacti with a cartoon face because you batted your eyes and said "please".

Cons:

-If there are too many people, Jack's sensitive hearing and nose will overload and he may need to step outside or rush through an exhibit if it's super loud.

-Attracts too many curious kids who haven't learned personal boundaries and want to tug on his tail or pet his ears.

-Wants to take some of the cacti home and you have to remind him that they're part of the museum/conservatory.

Octavinelle: Azul

A museum you say? Information about a niche topic Azul is fascinated by? A chance to see what draws customers to an establishment? Potential business deal with the museum's restaurant to partner with Monstro Lounge? Say no more! He'd be delighted to go with you on this business ven— I mean date! I'm sorry, but Azul can't leave his capitalism behind for your date. As for museum, Azul would love one that's Geological based: talking about both the ocean and land.

Pros:

-Azul has all his ocean facts! You have a question or follow up thought about an exhibit? Say no more, Azul will happily tell you! He's also not a slouch with land based knowledge as, like Riddle, he's very studious.

-May have a small schedule made of places he's most interested in seeing, but has no problem adding your preferences in to maximize your time.

-Will pick a museum with an Excellent restaurant so you'll eat super well. Azul has STANDARDS and no date of his will eat subpar food.

Cons:

-Azul's knowledge is too good and he may accidentally attract a crowd who believe he works at the museum or is a guest speaker. This sometimes makes leaving a challenge.

-Will grumble if they have even the slightest mistake or nitpick about the information on the ocean. He will proceed to "correct" this "gross misconception" even though it's all a technicality. You just have to let this slide.

-He is taking notes, as I said above, about what draws patrons into the museum and restaurant. Will do data collecting on the menu at the restaurant and will nitpick anything. Ordering can take forever as he's quizzing the poor server. Also is trying to secure a deal with the restaurant to promote Monstro Lounge.

Scarabia: Jamil

I think between Kalim and Jamil, Jamil would like a museum date more. He's patient and knowledgeable while also enjoying learning. For the museum I think Jamil would love one centred around the history of a specific country or location, as he likes travel.

Pros:

-Jamil, like Riddle, is prepared on the date! You'll see all the exhibits and places! Also like Riddle, Jamil knows many things, though I feel this will be a learning experience for the both of you. This means you can share the experience of learning with Jamil and that's special.

-Jamil has no problem holding hands the entire time, gently guiding, but also willing to take time at each exhibit.

-He has no problem sharing food at the restaurant, which I think is a fun, classic date move!

-At the gift shop he will stop you from overspending. He can help enforce a hard limit should spending be an issue. He can also help choose between items too!

Cons:

-Anyone "suspicious" gets too close and it's game over for them. Jamil is too used to assassins and other ill intentions going after Kalim and he can't turn that off. I'm sorry. This may result in getting scolded by the staff or even kicked out...

-Will not participate in any interactive event unless he's looked EVERYTHING over and deemed there to be no traps or harmful elements.

-This same suspicion goes to the food at the restaurant so it might be best if Jamil packs a picnic lunch and do that separate from the museum.

-May accidentally get into an "information" battle with the staff when you're at the Scalding Sands exhibit because Jamil knows too much about his hometown. He's just a tad prideful.

Pomefiore: Rook

Please know in my heart Vil is included in this as I live by the rule "do not separate them" and "Everyone has two hands" and "OT3s rule my life". I'm so sorry... I have RookVil brain rot. Anyways, I picked Rook specifically to talk about because while I think Vil likes museums, he doesn't like obscuring himself in public. The chance of people recognizing him is too high. For the museum it has to be an art museum. There is simply no other way with Rook.

Pros:

-You want to learn about a specific piece or artist? Wow, Rook suddenly found a museum with that specific piece or artist's collection! Isn't that amazing? No, he did not spend hours searching for the perfect museum for you...

-Rook knows so much about art! Not just the piece and technique itself, but also about the artist. You need not join a single guided tour or ask a worker as Rook can do all the explaining.

-He loves holding hands the entire time and sneaking kisses. Rook is just so in love and wants to express it! It's sickeningly sweet. Though, if that's not your thing, he'll happily oblige.

-100% willing to take photos! Either of the art pieces, if allowed, or of you two to commemorate the date. All his photos are perfect and deserve to be in a photography magazine.

-Rook will pay for the meal. No, don't try to argue with him. He is the one arranging the date and so he wants to pay for everything. Next time he'll allow himself to be treated, but this time it's on him.

-See something you want at the gift shop? It's bought. See something you didn't know you wanted but as soon as Rook buys it you know it's perfect? Yeah, that happens.

Cons:

-Rook will poetically explain a piece loudly with all the random French sprinkled in. I hope you've kept up with learning some French... Rook is too into his speech to translate.

-Will get into "passionate conversations" over pieces of art with anyone. Is also prone to dunking on people by displaying his knowledge of the arts.

-Casually mention off hand that you really like a piece? Rook is calling a worker over asking how much it is. Please, put that wallet down, Rook! All the art is super expensive!!!

-If anyone bothers you they'll be sorry :) Later, of course! Rook has to treat his date to The Perfect Date first.

Ignihyde: Idia

Okay, first know that under ANY normal circumstance you're not getting Idia out on a museum date. Nope! He's staying huddled at home where the Wi-Fi is, cuddled under blankets and pillows, playing his games. However, he will come out to the museum for two (2) exhibits: space and an anime exhibit. That's right, anime sometimes do exhibits of costumes and facts about the series too! Twisted Wonderland did it as a matter of fact! So, pick either one of those and Idia has a high chance of coming out, especially the anime one if it's limited time.

Pros:

-Tickets? Maps? Any information about the exhibit? Idia has it. He has it a week before the exhibit and purchase was released to the public. Do not ask how.

-Strategies. Idia has an entire game plan to optimize your time and see the parts you're both interested in. He also has the "correct" time to go to the exhibit AKA when there are as few people as possible.

-Knows so much about the exhibit. He's practically a walking, talking, breathing encyclopedia. If there is anything you don't know he'll either tell you on the spot or look it up with ease. I will note this is only for an anime exhibit. For space he only cares about the parts he's interested in, discarding the rest.

-Any limited edition merch is already ordered and bought. Anything else you want at the gift store? He'll buy it. Idia has a ridiculous amount of money so it's easy for him.

Cons:

-Idia gets into rage debates with people over aspects of any anime/game. Does not have to be part of the exhibit. Someone could off-handed say something wrong and Idia is there to correct. Please, Idia, step back... you'll get kicked out.

-Hides his hair and generally doesn't want to be noticed. This means any interactive display is a no-go. Frets a little too much over people recognizing him as "a Shroud".

-Will only eat at the restaurant if they have a cool theme to their food, like when anime cafes open up. (Which are super fun by the way, I loved going to those.)

-Will try (and succeed) in buying out the entire gift shop if he isn't stopped.

Diasomnia: Malleus

Personally, I think all of Diasomnia would like museums, but I'm picking Malleus to talk about because I think he'd enjoy them the most. For the topic I think Malleus, like Riddle, would like any museum as he's always willing to learn. Though, if I had to pick a topic for Malleus it would be architecture.

Pros:

-Malleus is willing to go to any museum and learn along side you. Unlike some of the others, he genuinely has little base for the topics, so he's not spitting facts, but simply absorbing the information.

-Completely fascinated by everything in the museums! He's essentially an overpowered dragon child looking in awe and wonder at the displays and exhibits. Super cute and that means nothing will be boring to him. Also means he'll create fun memories with you because he's so into trying it all.

-Hold his hand and he's over the moon. He'll treat it like he's holding a treasure and won't want to let go. Also feel free to drag him around because so few people have the courage to just tug at him and it's refreshing.

-You want something at the restaurant or gift shop and it's yours. No questions, no comment on price. Also, Malleus is paying because Lilia told him that it's the courteous thing to do. Please let Malleus have it this time and then pay for the next date as equality in spending money on dates is important!

Cons:

-People are terrified of Malleus. Like, here is the heir to Briar Valley and one of the strongest mages just casually strolling the museum. At least unlike Vil most aren't brave enough to try snapping a photo.

-Like with Rook if anyone bothers you or gives you a hard time they're in so much trouble. This may include "minor" infractions that aren't really worth it.

-Malleus may not have a good sense of strength and accidentally break something. He is willing pay for it, despite all the museum staff terrified of demanding money from The Malleus Draconia.

-I'm sorry but there is a high chance that Sebek WILL trail the date because he "has to protect Malleus-sama". If you're lucky Lilia has averted this. If you're unlucky Lilia is right there beside Sebek as an agent of chaos.

And there we have it! Here is my list of museum dates and thoughts about them. It's long, but I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think, friend and your choices! I'm always eager to read your thoughts!