#he NEEDS his squirrel creators do you get that

[fdrsamericanflagduckfloaty]

?????

so i was looking at the NATM2 poster because why not and i just realized:

they got Jedediah on a horse, which, okay, cool, love that for him, but then they have Octavius just standing really... stiffly? without his then-new canonical pet squirrel? and now i'm wondering why they gave Jedediah his horse but not Octavius his beloved pet squirrel.

Give Octavius his god damn squirrel.

[tranquilpetrichor]

lesson learned

synopsis: in which a tutoring session turns out to be much more in disguise.

cast: tutor!gunwook x fem!reader ft. gyuvin and ricky (briefly)

genre: high school!au, f2l

wc: 2.2k (2225)

warnings: suggestive, making out, yn’s outfit has a skirt, gunwook kisses yn on neck, they call each other "cute" and "hot, they r nerds, please don’t do this in a study room, barely proofread and edited help

a/n: i swear why is finishing stuff so hard, this could be so much better but i'm happy i managed to finish it. also it's kinda hard not writing from y/n's perspective but it shre is interesting. i wanna make longer fics lol but for now enjoy this bc i love writing about nerds and especially ones who are down bad.

be sure to reblog and like to support your creators!

bright sunlight filtered in through the windows of the empty study room as park gunwook typed away on his laptop, trying to get homework done quickly.

outside, some students were walking across campus, birds were flying freely, and there were a distinct lack of clouds in the sky.

he would probably be there too, but he was supposed to be tutoring you soon. as boredom was slowly starting to set in, he double-checked the time. it was one minute after your appointment was set to begin.

odd. you weren’t usually late to anything.

before he could ponder it further, you walked into the room, sighed and put your stuff beside him, apologizing for being late. “i was talking to another professor about something, and i didn’t expect it to take that long. my bad…”

something seemed a bit different about you, but he wasn’t sure why. he shrugged the thought off and chuckled quietly.

“it’s no problem, y/n. one minute is nothing. do you prefer the curtains open or closed?”

you waved a hand at the window. “let’s close them.”

he got up and pressed a button on the light switch panel near the doorway, and the curtains automatically came down. this private school sure spent money on interesting things, but at least they were occasionally useful.

cute outfit, he thought.

was that a new pair of boots? it paired nicely with the skirt you were wearing. you managed to look hot and adorable at the same time.

how unprofessional to be distracted by your appearance—he frowned.

snap out of it. it’s time to do math, not stare like an idiot.

luckily, you didn’t say anything, even though he swore he saw a tiny smirk on your face, which you quickly removed in favor of a more neutral expression.

that was weird, he thought as you got your tablet out—the one you liked to take notes on during the calculus class you two had together.

he wasn’t sure of your exact grade in the class, but he heard it was quite high. you were smart, but didn’t seem to have problems asking for help if you needed it. in his opinion, that was pretty admirable.

gunwook noticed that if you did need help, you’d go to the teacher or try and talk to him. the two of you exchanged numbers eventually, texting each other for study sessions.

he loved being able to talk to you more, slowly learning little things about you—like how you wore a certain necklace on big days for luck, that your go-to snack was nuts (he couldn’t help but think of you as a squirrel after that), and that you had a dog named citrus.

he got the feeling that you weren’t the biggest on socializing with many people, preferring to only keep compaany with a few friends. he’s mutual friends with a few of them, like jungwon.

it was refreshing compared to his large friend group (although he loved them) and the many people who were merely interested in him for his looks.

of course, he wouldn’t mind if you were interested in his looks, but hopefully you also liked something beyond that.

you probably did—who else would end up chatting about precious stones or logical fallacies with him? he loved seeing you excited and passionate.

god, his face was probably going to be red if he kept this up.

“i see you said you wanted to look at stuff from the last lecture when you were booking the session,” he said, trying to banish certain thoughts from his head. “series can be difficult, so i get it.”

you nodded, offering him a sweet smile. “yeah, i just wanna go over a few of the divergence and convergence problems on the first practice problem set. i have the problems listed here.”

you pushed your tablet in his direction, and he picked it up.

he glanced at your solution for the first one, nearly written. “i mean, it looks like you applied the test correctly. just to make sure, how did you know to use that one?”

you didn’t hesitate to answer.

“given series is a p-series where p is equal to three. p is greater than three, so the series will converge.”

as expected, you kept up with his questioning. of course you probably knew what a damn p-series is. he’d just wanted to hear your voice some more.

speaking of voices, maintaining a professional tone with you was a miracle. gunwook’s composure and eloquence were paramount to getting him through student council meetings, debates and tutoring sessions, but those skills seemed to want a temporary vacation.

“do you want to move onto the next one?” he said, defaulting to his standard tutor voice.

“mhm. i remember our teacher said there was more than one way to do it. i never tried to figure out the other ways, but now i’m curious.”

gunwook flipped to a certain page in his notebook. “do you want me to show you how i did it? it’s definitely a different method, but we got the same answer.”

you shrugged. “sure. take your time.”

you were twirling your stylus pen in your hands and swiftly tucked it atop your ear. fuck, did you not know how cute you looked? your hair was neatly parted near the middle right now, but he wondered what it’d be like to see you disheveled. at this point, he might be thinking with something other than his brain.

you spent another few minutes talking with him, bringing his memory back to previous tutoring sessions. he remembered you said once that having to justify your reasoning on a topic was one of the best ways to deepen understanding, and that he was skilled at identifying the holes in your arguments.

“that’s why i would hate to lose a debate against you,” you had admitted. “it’s always more fun when we can work together.”

the offhanded comment could’ve had another meeting. as an friend, gunwook couldn’t quite discern your intentions, though. whether you just wanted him at arms length or in your arms was just another guessing game he played.

he was aware that the balance of power was always shifting between you two, but at the end of the day, you two were pretty much equals intellectually, keeping things in equilibrium. however, his underlying feelings of attraction threatened to ruin the balance.

as the session continued, you had a satisfied smile. you asked him about unrelated math proofs and got him off track. why did you want to discuss all this when your sessions were usually more focused? something was definitely off.

“well, that was actually everything i wanted to ask about,” you said to him suddenly, packing up swiftly. “i was just going to go if you don’t have anything else.”

he frowned.

no, please don’t.

what was wrong with him?

“unless, you wanted me to stay..” you continued, a smirk on your face. your laptop was closed and all of your study materials were neatly filed away.

you were definitely teasing him, and it was working, your behavior making him somewhat flustered. there was no turning back if he let himself escalate things right now. he could just let you leave—that’s what rational gunwook would do.

fuck it. rational gunwook was not in the room right now.

he reached out and grasped your arm. “and if i did?”

you smirked and stepped towards him. “then i’ll make sure you don’t regret your choice.”

with that, you pressed your lips to his, surprising him. gunwook quickly recovered, his arm snaking around your waist, pulling you in more.

no wonder you booked the session for an hour and a half.

if anyone opens this door, i’m definitely getting kicked out as a tutor. at least these walls are pretty soundproof.

he pulled away for a bit to catch his breath. "wow, did you come here just to kiss me?”

you laughed, gazing at his eyes. "it wasn't only for that, although i'd be happy to do it again. let me clarify. i have feelings for you.”

you continued. “i’ve honestly thought about it. you’re hardworking, and not just in the classroom. when i see you practicing or studying, you dedicate yourself fully, and it inspires me to do the same. you're kind, even to people who don't deserve it. on top of that, you’ve always been a good person to talk to about anything and everything. i trust you.”

“oh, and i guess you’re cute. and hot.”

you added the last part with a small smile. after each reason, he found himself surprised by your sincere words.

gunwook groaned. “y/n, you have no idea how down bad i am. i don't even remember exactly when it started, but what i do know is that i met someone interesting, someone who challenges me and jokes with me. someone who's beautiful in every way. i'm so fucking into you."

he paused, before deciding to tease you a little. "i have a question about one thing, though. you ‘guess’ i’m cute?”

“well, did you want me to say for a fact that you’re cute?” you asked.

he pouted slightly. “would have been better.”

“fine,” you said, taking his hand. “it is an undisputed fact that you’re cute.”

“thank you.”

"and hot."

"i guess so..." you rolled your eyes, an amused grin on your face. “now can we get back to kissing?”

“i was acually trying to be professional, even though i had feelings for you too,” he whispered against your ear. “but since you insist, i’ll give you what you want.”

not wanting to rush despite his boyish excitement, he leaned down and slowly began to kiss you again, running one of his hands gently through your hair. you closed your eyes.

“want you to take control, gunwook,” you said, your breath hot against his skin and your arms wrapping around his neck.

how could he say no? he was so screwed whenever it came to you. wasting no time, he brought your hips closer to his, enjoying the proximity.

he’d never seen you like this, so blissful and carefree. all he wanted to do in this moment was to make sure you kept feeling that way.

he got a small idea.

“hold on, i’m going to lift you,” he said, and you tightened your hold on him, lifting your legs so that they wrapped around his waist. you looked like a koala, hanging on so protectively to him like he was a branch.

you let out a tiny laugh of glee—it was the cutest thing he’s ever heard.

he moved over to a chair, and carefully sat down with you in his arms. your skirt was spread across your lap, contributing to the newfound messiness of your appearance, and your legs dangled off both sides of the chair.

“let me know if you don’t like something,” he said in between kisses. “the last thing i want to do is pressure you.”

“of course,” you responded, squeezing his shoulders reassuringly.

as a surge of newfound confidence rushed through him, his kisses became more intense, trailing down to your collarbone. you tilted your neck slightly to allow him more access to the area.

shit, he was probably the luckiest guy alive right now.

“so beautiful,” he murmured, tracing your chin with one of his hands, “and you’re mine.”

damn, calm down now.

“wow, for someone who’s so sweet, you sure do have a possessive side.”

he winced. “is it too much?”

you laughed and smiled playfully. “not at all. i find it hot.”

that sentence alone sent a warmth through his body.

“that’s good to know,” he replied with a smirk. he was definitely going to do that more often.

soon, his lips found yours again, like a moth to a flame. damn, he could spend all day doing this (if they had no risk of getting caught).

in his pocket, his phone buzzed, and he sighed, looking at the notification.

gyuvin: r u coming to get ice cream with me and ricky? u said ur tutoring thing with ur gf ends at 4:00

the time was 3:44 pm. wow, were they really at it for that long?

gunwook smiled. gyuvin had texted “gf” as a joke, but little did the poor guy know.

“is it something important?” you asked, still on his lap.

he shut off the phone, looking back at you. “it’s gyuvin. during lunch, me, him and ricky made last minute plans to get ice cream—they’re asking me if i still want to come. i should get going soon.”

of course, his feet didn’t want to move.

you looked intrigued. “do they mind a plus one?”

yeah, they're going to tease me the entire time.

“i’ll ask,” he responded, face somewhat warm from embarrassment. "but one of these days, i’ll take you out on a proper date, just us two. you deserve it.”

your eyes lit up, and you smiled. “i’ll hold you to it, gunwook.”

his phone buzzed again.

gyuvin: yea sure bring her, we support

gyuvin: besides i have ricky he's gonna be my bf now

"they said yes," gunwook said, laughing silently at gyuvin's last message. "let's go in 5 minutes?"

you reciprocated, resting your head gently on his shoulder. "any longer and i don't think i could leave."

[self-awared]

The Anemo Archon

Genshin SAGAU Imposter Au!

Part 1 <— You are here! Part 2

Trigger warnings: Violence, not proof-read, not well written

Everything hurt.

Your whole body was on fire from running, from being stabbed, from tripping... If there was something that could hurt you, it did.

—

You had no idea why people stared at you with hatred as you entered the city of freedom. You were the Creator, after all.

It wasn't until you were jumped by the Knights of Favonius that you realized what was happening. They screamed at you, calling you an imposter that dared to steal their Creator's face.

You barely escaped with your life.

—

"The wind? What about it?" You spoke curiously as you held a small wind spirit in your hand. Istaroth had named it Barbatos. It had the ability to talk, and had a mind of its own. It had also become quite close to you as you made and molded Teyvat.

"Whenever you're hurt, follow the wind! I'll help you!" The spirit's glee brought a smile to your face.

"Will you, now? Who says I need protecting?" You responded, teasing the small and adorable creature.

"Me! I do! And the wind!" Barbatos's childish nature was nothing new to you. It was always refreshing to hear their giggles and watch them fly around you as you took a break from exploring your creation.

"Very well. The great Barbatos shall be my protector until the end of time!"

—

The memory brought a small smile to your face as you rested in the den of a cave, a squirrel huddled in your lap, a bird perched on your shoulder, and a snake around your neck like a scarf.

You had felt the wind comforting you as you ran from your attackers. The wind blowed past your face and almost pushed you forward, as if trying to get you to run faster before an arrow struck your shoulder.

You had managed to get away from your attackers, deciding to take the advice of an old friend and follow the wind. It led you to a deep cave, one that would provide you with shelter. The animals brought you food. Squirrels brought acorns, rabbits brought leaves and carrots, birds brought worms, snakes brought dead animals... The worms did creep you out though.

You ran a finger over the squirrel's fur, finding comfort in the feeling of something so soft after going through something so harsh. The peace was interrupted by a soft whisper in your ear, making you jump and scaring the animals.

"Seems like you do need the wind's protection after all!"

You were flooded with relief upon hearing the familiar voice of Barbatos, before panicking at the thought that he might believe that you were an imposter.

"Barbatos... You... Do you believe it's me?" Your hands were shaking just as bad as your breathing. It terrified you at the thought of having to flee from a beloved friend—

"Of course not, Your Grace! The wind never lies! And it's certainly not lying about the fact that your attempts at bandaging are quite poor." Barbatos teased as he sat next to you.

"May I?" Barbatos reached out to you, a hand hovering over the makeshift bandage over your shoulder.

You nodded ever so slightly, internally sighing at his normal playful nature.

As Barbatos tended to your numerous wounds—mainly the one on your shoulder—you couldn't help but notice that he looked different from what you remembered.

"Did you get a change of style?" Curiosity plagued your voice.

"I took the form of a friend." Barbatos's smile became rather dim as he spoke softly.

"Oh... I see." You paused. "What happened while I was away...?" You were reluctant in asking, as if afraid of the answer.

"Well, Your Grace... Someone claimed to be you. They fit the description told in the tales, and even the one I remember you looking like. Everyone believed them, and I'm no longer as strong as I used to be." He spoke softly, in a quiet tone, weary of any passersby, even though you were in the depths of a cave.

"So, I played along. I'm trying my best to find out how to get rid of them, I swear on my life, Your Grace." His smile was comforting as he finished tending to your injuries.

"And what should I do?"

[pictuajjx]

Hi! Here’s what I caught so far in the game. Unfortunately I don’t have any clips or screenshots because my computer is pooey. Warning, this is very long! Then my next post will have my theories and analysis pookies ❤️

In the beginning, it shows clips of the protagonist’s set up. A magazine appears with the headline of Indigo Park shuts down

There’s two graffiti outside of the park, one has wings the other says nostalgia so mostly likely other trespassers like our protagonist has came through

Rambley is always watching you through the cameras or the tv screen

Gear conveniently falls down when he asks us to find it

He hasn’t seen a visitor for at least 8 years 

There is no signs of Salem anywhere besides in Rambley’s ride (now ruined) and their keychain in the merchandise store 

speaking of the merchandise store, the hole up the ceiling looks like somebody is building up to reach there. 🤨 maybe it correlates to the gear conveniently falling

The creators head statue follows us

Something collapsed behind us when we went inside the tunnel going to Rambley’s ride

Inside the tunnel, all picture frames are up beside one. Is it Lloyd’s or Salem’s?

THERES A PICTURE OF LLOYD AND RAMBLEY SHAKING HANDS but Rambley starts glitching

Mollie Macaw is stalking us

After mollie macaws scene of the train ride one of the birds are down

She says something after the lights go off in Finley’s scene

Salem’s cut out is cut in half and is ruined

Mollie’s animatronic says “Not Rambley, he hurts Lloyd” maybe she’s copying what a staff said and therefore that’s why Rambley is not allowed backstage

Inside the backstage of Rambley’s ride when we fix it, there’s a graffiti saying “Lloyds limos” or something behind Finley’s animatronic

HOLY SHIT MOLLIE MACAW LITERALLY SNEAKS UP BEHIND YOU IN THE CURTAINS AROUND LLOYD’s SCENE???

Mollie macaw is shown chasing on the rail road track

The statue of Rambley eyes looks like a fan?

There’s food on the floor that looks like bait inside the cafe

Rambley’s eyes have a loading circle when he plays something (like the advertisement and audio recording)

Mollie plush (Important) mollie meet and greet in jet steam junction was around summer (maybe June) maybe they were meeting the flesh mascot

Lloyd plush according to the protagonist, felt like he was used a lot more

Indigo park would send items to people’s houses advertisements and dvds?

One curtain is torn at the theatre

Rambley says he doesn’t have access to the backstage, but for some reason the cameras still follows us? Maybe it’s because there’s no tv screen and it’s only the camera

Files are dropped backstage

There is a Lloyd statue in the backstage 

A loud screech sound is played when you use your critter cuff on Lloyd

There’s a secret area in the arcade game, Mollie is trapped inside a cage

I think squirrels are making love in the background. LMAOOO

Starts to glitch a little when Salem appears

Starts to glitch after we beat the game

Rambleberry popped out of the arcade machine. Rambley is fully aware of it and says maybe one day he can jump out to take a bite?

Mollie drools and bleeds out in the slide

She takes a bite out of us when we get caught

Rambley stops talking about the Mascots? (Scene after Mollie chases us and gets decapitated, he starts talking about less staffs and less visitors)

Mollie says something while chasing us

Rambley claims that he can’t do certain things and needs human authorization?? 🤨

Mollie is now dead lol

Rambley talks about the registration after this scene, and saying it’s exhausting to say?

He also try’s out the trademark which according to him, expired yesterday

Royal ranglers room closed on us by Rambley, says it’s only for them and tells us maybe we can grow big and strong to enter. What’s behind there? Why can’t he upgrade us now if we’re helping him?

When we enter the ranglers room, it shows camera footage of everywhere

Rambley head has a footage of two employees talking, asking if the flesh mascots will put them out of business. According to the protagonist they retired these. Rambley says he’s never seen anybody wear them before

Poodle plush, what is its significance? Rambley’s pretty mean about it. He starts glitching when he mentions a non-brand indigo park toy?

Retro Lloyd plush according to the protagonist there was a cartoon of indigo park. Rambley starts to be mad about it, or maybe sarcastic? He also seems to glitch every time he expresses extreme emotions

During his song, Rambley expresses his feelings and hope? He also plead with you to stay with him (what’s up with ai’s and their abandonment issues? Not complaining 🔥)

that’s all I have!! Thanks for reading hehe :P

[apersonthatexistsonthisplanet]

I spent an embarrassing amount of time looking at Yanqing hcs, scrolling through tumblr intros, and I’m proud to say i don’t know how to start an account

I did a little sketch of one of two of my children, so I’m going to introduce them ( I’m stupidly obsessed with creating ocs ) Either way, meet Ageha :) He has a whole document, linked below, but I need to ramble about him.

Ageha, if you’re a TLDR person, is a funny little guy that’s a sword but then becomes a human because well, the blacksmith that made him felt silly and then decided to infuse him with some spirit. But his creator is also in debt! With the IPC! Big surprise there, and then his creator decided to use him as payment for his debt because well, he decided to go see the holy gates.

If you’ve made it this far, congrats :D. I’ll start to talk about all the details and stuff now. Ageha is specifically a “蝴蝶双刀“，or you can say “蝴蝶之剑” if you want to be fancy. In English, it means dual butterfly knives, small knives for close combat. Concept seems familiar? No, I didn’t get inspired by soul eater, it’s the fanfic soul steel on ao3. Go check it out, it’s one of my favourites as a yanqing fan :). Although he is usually meant for close combat, he has a special design, a small little orb in the middle of the hilt. It’s meant for storing blood, and his sword form can take on different shapes and sizes based on the amount of blood stored.

I found this picture on Pinterest, but I’d love if if anyone could tell me where this came from. Basically, this is his entire weapon concept. Like any metal, he rusts if he goes without combat for too long, he kind of just becomes slower and less reactive in general XD. So then, being sealed away is kind of a punishment to him bc he becomes laggy.

Ageha was found by Pearl, and then kind of just fell in love at first sight, but not the romantic love, its more like mesmerised. Think of him as Argenti but instead of Idrila it’s Pearl. Or anything beautiful in general. He loves beauty, but of course he’s not as expressive as Argenti. As a part of the Strategic investment Department, he’s more used as a negotiation item than actual work. So he gets passed around, attacks people, carries out stuff that can help in investment. He doesn’t really mind it, but he gets really curious and tries to understand the deals that Jade or Aventurine carries out even if he’s uneducated and can’t understand anything. The only thing he knows how to do is barter and argue.

I also love the Xianzhou, so obviously he’s been to it before. He’s mainly there in Penacony tho. In Xianzhou, he’s more of running around trying to listen to rumours and look at sword designs than actually carrying out his work. The negotiations didn’t go well on his side, but based on the other people’s reactions, it didn’t seem that bad when Jade stepped in. ( Yanqing was baffled. The officials were confused. Jing Yuan was struggling to understand his words. All he did was shout at them while swinging around his arms. He wasn’t even speaking a language. )

Surprisingly, he doesn’t have any trauma, it’s just abandonment issues. The boy doesn’t want to be abandoned like a weapon, he wants to be of use to the IPC ( as if he wasn’t brought in to pay off a debt ) and he was offered a choice to leave some years ago, he just decided to stay because Pearl was there. Not like Pearl actually treats him well, he’s just weird and attached. He’s the type to start crying if you leave him alone for too long at the side of the road.

Yea but evidently if he doesn’t have trauma someone else must have taken over his trauma. That poor unlucky soul’s my other oc, he’s called Esperanza. He used to be Lucian but then I decided to split him off from the original oc he was based off of. I’ll link his document below, but keep in mind it’s not updated. I love foxians, I like the idea of Mara-struck yanqing, boom Mara-struck foxian that’s actually drunk squirrels in disguise.

I’m aware foxians don’t usually live long enough to be affected by Mara, they die around 300(?) years, while like long life species can live up to thousands of years. But I like to think that his family has something akin to progressive ageing. Basically, from a certain age onwards, they start ageing much faster. Instead of one year, they age something like ten years, so they become much more prone to Mara. This guy went and got sad about it, then decided to end the entire bloodline so no one would have to suffer anymore whilst he was affected by Mara. He basically went, “This sucks, I can’t believe the whole’s family’s crazy, we should all die together.” But then thier family doctor came by and saw him and stopped him ( really should’ve let him die )

He stepped onto the path of nihility, became an emo self-annihilator, went to a doctor of chaos, ruined the poor guy’s whole office and wrecked it, then ran out crying. Esperanza returned to the Xianzhou, where his entire family has been running away from for years cause it makes their condition that much worse. He doesn’t really get why they’ve been running away from these silly little ships for so long and now he kinds of just wanders the streets homeless and sleeping on the streets half drunk on soulglad and confused on what’s he’s doing half the day. In case you’re curious on how he survives, he snatches food from people. He’s still healthy enough to commit minor crimes.

Anyways, that’s the end of my ramble for now. If you’re curious about my head cannons, if you want to see me write something, if you have questions about my ocs, feel free to ask away (?) If its related to Yanqing, I’ll actually come sprinting over at a speed you think impossible. I don’t know how tumblr works, so I’d appreciate it if someone summarised the important things i need to know or what i should be careful about here :Kneel: Please, I’m very lost. Is apersonthatexistsonthisplanet supposed to be my username? Sorry for any errors, I don’t know what I’m writing.

Documents: Ageha: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1izlrKAsflk0s8GEzoMvzgVXKYHrXkVX5e9tEqZKEc3M/edit

Esperanza: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11ipNYMKhMi27Pork38Ecu_74OhcKbwS4CwPb1-UGytM/edit

[therummonster]

ty!!! :> anyways, lets get into this delightful au.

disclaimer, i have not fully watched ninjago, so this is all just stuff i remember from watching the snake arc, and stuff i happen to recall from seeing pirate fish reblog things. :>

i want to talk mostly about the general gods of this au.

starting with Cole, i recalled you suggesting he could have raccoon features {i came up with goat because those things disrespect gravity on a daily.}

earth gods are very proud entities, which is why when one of them looks like a creature called "trash panda" by mortals, they exiled them to an area beneath the mountain.

but with storm gods like Jay, the only reason they'd get exiled is due to being broken. like having some sort of difficulties flying. they'll likely be mostly birds, maybe some bats.

now fire and water gods? that's a rare mix.

fire gods are constantly burning and need the fuel that mortals provide, if not just using the mortals themselves.

water gods are powerful yet reclusive, most will take to islands, instead of the shore lines of big masses of land.

however when your dad and mom wanted to be rebels and met on a big mass of land, spawning you and ya sibling... kinda complicates things.

Nya sticks around the beach areas, coming up to take treasure, or give it. she's regarded as a being of fortune. and she found a storm god and an earth god that are relatively chill, so she's pretty fine with this place.

Kai is regarded as a being of rash decisions, one who's skin is hot to the touch. people worship out of fear. heretics are hard to find, because most of them have already been burned to a crisp.

now.. then there's a peculiar god, the ice god. no others that are fully like it, or even have the ability to quell the blizzards it has created around its broken territory, where villages are decimated by an unseen force. not even a storm god.

Zane is an artificial god, made of machinery that clicks and spins to make him move. he does not remember his creator, and the creator did not know what would happen when Zane was made.

he's calm and rational, yet a bit floaty, and had been alone for a long time, save for the forest's only god which he visits frequently. but he has been learning more due to a town he helps out at.

an aura around him causes people to think quicker, and often leads to higher tech inventions being made. so the town he frequents is the pinnacle of advancement.

and finally~ Lloyd, the nature god.

a deer squirrel mix, powerful, and yet he'd been cursed. {can't remember the exact details, so please forgive my paraphrasing.} his curse was to fall into a sleep every year for a very long time, only to be waken up by someone that cared for him.

Lloyd has isolated himself in his woods, casting magic to protect it, only having the animals to worship him. and oh boy, they do. they understand that he takes care of them. so in return, they offer their foods to him.

mentioning that whole bit of the animals worshiping him, i'm gonna get into that stuff.

gods are most often fed by their worshippers, earth gods obtain their food and in exchange the rocks are more stable as to not cause landslides and cave-ins, storm gods obtain their food and assist in controlling the weather for better harvests, the water god obtains food and helps keep ships safe at their sea, the fire god obtains food and will keep the lands warm, the nature god obtains food so they have the strength to continue to provide.

this is why Nya refers to Zane as a starved god.

i bring you art!

i redesigned them since i remember really enjoying drawing Zane and Lloyd :3

my top three favorites are of course Zane, Lloyd, and Nya. just because i like doing their stuff.

and i also came up with some thoughts about their history, or general actions in the main story, while i was looking at the characters and recalling what you suggested they could look like.

anyways how ya doing :>

Jfdyxixtixkglchococoxyxox this is absolu AMAZING!!!!! Habibi you are endlessly talented!!!

I would love to hear the thoughts for the story!!!! It’s under heavy revision and I would love to hear your thoughts

Ahhhhh I still can’t believe how amazing they are!!!! And how amazing you are!!!

[witchofthesouls]

More messing around with @rocksinmuffin’s Megahusband AU (seriously check it out):

You don’t know what happened; actually, you do. It was the usual Decepticon plan-of-the-week but it featured a patented Wheeljack-what-the-frag-is-that invention.

Of course, it ended up on fire because why not?! But between Starscream’s stray null-ray shot, the Constructicon’s random mixes, and the Sideswipe’s updated molotov cocktail, the last thing you remember was a beam of bright, Barbie pink hitting you so hard to fly off the table and right into Lalaland via concussion.

Wheeljack had managed to squirrel you away upon the Autobots’ retreat and you woke up to a new reality of being absolutely Tall and Metal.

You’ve been secluded inside the Autobot medbay getting prodded, poked, and scanned every inch of your new body.

You should have far more panic but a good chunk of your adult life has been composed of absolutely random events fit for a protagonist of a reverse isekai, scifi anime. Or maybe an action-comedy since you originally dated Megatron to gain an upper-hand for the Autobots, and married him out of absolute spite to ruin that smug look on his face when he proposed through the Jumbotron at the game.

Speaking of the devil, you and everyone else in a 50-mile radius can hear Megatron bellowing outside the thick, protective walls.

“We could use the fire hose.” Ironhide says, far too casual in that way where someone really wants to do it but just waiting for another person to vaguely agree to go ham on it.

“No. I got it.”

“Are you sure, Y/N? You could take a few more days off to get used to it.”

“I got the anti-gravs and the shrinking down pat down. Might as well get it over with.”

_________________

Starscream listens to his Trine-mates bicker with the rest of the Armada, scrapping like a few of the groundpounders. All of them bored and cowed by Megatron’s shortfuse as their glorious leader keeps howling your name.

Staracream can only admire all of those spiteful acts of pettiness that cumulatived into a sham marriage between you and Megatron. And after years and years of domestic, married life, the active warfare turning cold, and this farce of a semi-functioning family, Starscream could say that Megatron had developed a begrudging sense of affection towards you. Or at least some sort of feeling to trigger his posessiveness. 

Enough for the warlord to keep you on his shoulder whenever you’re at the base and actually recharge at that tiny dwelling where he needs to shift a ridiculous amount of mass into his subspace to fit through the door instead of his berth on base.

(During one of his snooping raids, Starscream had found a sparkling dollhouse, outfitted with the amenities for a human to stay as well as a bust of your scowling face.)

Unsurprisingly, a chunk of the Decepticon forces are outside the Ark as you haven’t left the orange monstrosity for a week and the Autobots stopped picking up their transmissions.

Finally, there’s movement. But it’s no human strolling out of the open hatch, it’s a new Cybertronian. One with a familiar walk and familiar expression of exasperation and they call out:

“Morning, my Titan sweetcheeks!”

It’s definitely you, and you’re annoyed.

Megatron’s sputtering, voice trailing off as you step in front in him, rivaling his height as a Seeker femme. All the mechs around stare unabashedly at your new frame. Games stop. Brawls still. His Trine-mates fall silent.

Everything. From digits to pedes to broad wings, all the armor and peeking protoform are a solid shade of Decepticon logo purple. The only exception is your newfound optics: a bright, searing shade of fuchsia. 

“Pits, Screamer,” Skywarp’s poor attempt of a whisper echoes out. “Your step-creator’s slaggen hawt!”

Skywarp’s squeak of terror from the simultaneous hums of his null-ray and a fusion canon is music to his audials.

[ow-anteater]

For the spotify wrapped. . . let's try #14 and Ramattra

(I need to see you write Ramattra like I need air. You're gonna do such a good job with him I can feel it in my bones)

Ngl this is mainly just me waxing poetically and trying to find A Voice for Ramattra ... all to the (very loose) tune of #14 Bitter Water by The Oh Hellos

I am not a fool entire, no, I know what is coming / You'll bury me beneath the tree I climbed when I was a child

He wakes up to hoar frost and for a second he is back at the monastery. The air is icy cold and still - the whole world holding its breath just for him.

He hasn’t graced the place with his presence for years now, and yet it has gotten him good. Sometimes he can almost feel it, beneath layers of plate and wiry blood. And beneath even that, the rage that birthed him. He wonders what Mondatta would think if he knew that itch hadn’t been worked out of him.

He is alone for the first time in a long time. He had almost managed to grow accustomed to the warning flashing at the edge of his vision; telling him a human lingers close. It’s almost weird, to not have Akande hanging close by, making him defy his design. 

He moves about the hideout almost hesitantly. It’s been too long since he’s been in the cold like this. He doesn’t like how it mixed past and present in his mind. It makes his armor heavy in a way he isn’t used to. He hopes the mission will be worth it, that this delegation really does carry intel they can’t live without.

He is not built for waiting, but he has figured it out. He is nothing if not patient. He sits idly on the floor while the sun steadily climbs until the entire world shines and refracts like a prism. Then he gets up, dares to move out into the light dusting of frost the night has left.

It’s only then he realizes it’s snowing. Each speck is barely big enough to be called a snowflake. His vision stutters and zooms in close but there’s no intricate crystals to find here. The point is the moving. The art is in the falling.

He remembers Zenyatta, far away and hazy. It’s a thing he’s only started doing recently; trying to recall stubbornly instead of simply finding the memory clip buried somewhere in his harddrive. He tells himself he likes how Zen floats and changes in his own less mechanical mind. 

The truth may be he doesn’t like how the files sometimes burst to the surface corrupted and decayed. He was not built to last.

A squirrel darts through a tree beside him. It stops to stare, for a second as still as he feels. His chest erupts in sudden fondness. For this world he is doomed to inhabit, for those of his kind who was robbed of the chance to lock eyes with a squirrel through the dancing snowflakes. 

It aches, unlike anger or despair. Unlike passion. It simply aches.

This is what will do him in. He’s as sure of it as he’s sure somebody will pick up his fight when he at last joins his brothers in the dirt.

His people is young but they linger long. He overheard a funeral service; of returning home until flowers braid their roots into your throat. Until you sing in rapid blooming. His brethren won’t. The best they can ask for is peaceful silence.

Or a return to a god he’s not sure he can call his anymore. His old god lays slain and bleeding behind him; his very creator turned to dust and code running like ink. 

The warm embrace of the Iris, the cool instinctual violence of Anubis; he knows already they spring from the same source. He is not quick to meander back and dip his hands.

The kindness is a mistake. So is the brutality. They are both the point.

He shakes his head. The squirrel blinks and races on, he thinks he can hear something coming through the trees. In his HUD, warnings come back to life. He gets up, and goes back to work.

[sharkpupsblog]

😳 I Think! 😳

A Jay x GN! Reader fanfic! (With lyrics from I THINK by Tyler, the Creator)

WOOOOOO ITS HERE !!! JAY FICCCC!!!! It took me so long to write this fic ngl bcs I kept scrapping it and restarting and I finally managed to finish one and actually like it! And it’s this one! :D I do think it might be a bit OOC 💔 so I’m very sorry for that :( 👎 I hope u guys like it as well 😭‼️ Tysm everyone who waited for the fic so so sorry it took so long anyways… enjoy! 😳 !!!

I think I'm falling in love This time I think it's for real

Jay hates you really hates you because you make her heart beat too fast you make her nervous you make her palms sweat and every time you’re around she forgets what she’s out to do. Today she and Arcebus were riding in Mistfall sent out by Mr. Sands to figure out a new plan to ruin Dundull and take over it again. Everything was going great until Arcebus spotted you and warned his rider.

How can I tell you? How can I tell you?

She was supposed to be polluting the river in Mistfall when she saw you with a weird guy in a cloak and a very anxious looking girl. Jay rode Arcebus over to a small cliff watching you from above curious to what you were doing, and she wondered how she could ruin this for you. She hated you and needed to make your job as painful as possible for the way you made her heart beat.

I notice that you're there, and I'm always in your hair And you're always under my microscope

Jay watches you from above on a hill you’re helping the weird guy in the black cloak and the anxious girl. Who she learned are the spymaster and Kora you’re helping train animals to be spies and Jay watches you thinking of how stupid it is to make animals spies. She was too busy watching you to notice a stupid squirrel watching her Arcebus neighed and stomped his hoof down near the squirrel scaring it. Jay looked down at where Arcebus had stomped she smirked and said hello to the squirrel who quickly ran away knowing that hello wasn’t friendly. The squirrel ran as fast as he could trying to get away but was stopped by Arcebus running in front of him the horse snorted “where are you going?”. The Marwari ducked his head low looking more like a carnivore than an herbivore “don’t have time to chat?” the horse continued walking forward and the little squirrel backed up more until his tail hit something. He looked up seeing Jay and he was suddenly snatched up by the rider “why don’t you stay? Help me play a little game yeah?”. Jay put the squirrel in a bag and got on Arcebus riding him all the way to a bridge. There she waited and while she waited, she caught another animal trying to play hero a little seagull flew around her pecking her messing up her hair and her suit it was trying to save the squirrel in the bag. Arcebus reared and caught it midair handing it to his rider she held the seagull like if it were a dirty piece of trash. Now she had two animals she knew the chances of you coming to find them was now greater she pat Arcebus thanking him for helping her catch the animals “now we wait…”. She knew you were going to notice that the stupid animals were gone, and she knew you were going to come looking for them.

Waste of bread, I need your attention

And she was going to make you play her game.

Falling in love now I think I'm falling in love

It didn’t take long for you to come to her trying to find the animals. She heard you far from her calling out for Lucien and Beeper which she knew were the animals which was which? That she didn’t know, and she didn’t care you found her because the animals in the bag squeaked and cawed loudly in response to their names. She was on one end of the bridge, and you were on the other as soon as she saw you, she felt nervous she had to collect herself before she grabbed the bag showing it to you “looking for something? Come and get it!”. Arcebus neighed before running off and Jay could hear hooves against wood as you rode on the bridge to follow her. Arcebus huffed when he saw a smoke bomb dropped ahead the Marwari managed to dodge it and he let out an angry neigh not happy as more smoke bombs were dropped ahead. Jay used these to her advantage she asked her horse to kick one at you and he ran as fast as he could managing to get ahead of one the Marwari bucked hitting a smoke bomb. Your horse swerved hard trying to avoid the smoke bomb and you held on terrified of falling off which thank Aideen didn’t happen your horse snorted and kept running after Arcebus and Jay. When both of you ran on a new trail the smoke bombs ended your horse finally managed to catch up to the Marwari, they ran side by side with Arcebus you looked to Jay, and she looked to you tensing when she made eye contact with you.

Fell in love now

This time I think it's for real

Jay felt her palms sweat, her ears get hot, and she got nervous as you both made eye contact. You didn’t look away because you saw this as some sort of challenge. In the short time you both made eye contact she realized how pretty your eyes wer- what? Jay was the first to look away and she swallowed nervous as she realized something…She knew why you made her heart beat fast and why you made her nervous…

I think I'm in love now I think I'm falling in love I think I'm in love now, ow

Jay didn’t hate you…she had a crush on you. Gross! This couldn’t be true?! She shook her head, and she looked back to you seeing that you had an empty bag in your hands while she was busy thinking you were busy saving Lucien and Beeper. Jay looked backwards seeing the squirrel running off and the seagull flying behind him. When she looked forward, she saw your horse and Arcebus trying to bite each other you were trying to stop your horse telling them the rescue was over, but they didn’t listen they continued trying to fight with Arcebus. Jay looked up at you blushing when the thought of having a crush on you came back to her. She looked behind you seeing the river her brows furrowed and her nose scrunched a bit she was going to make you pay for her stupid crush on you.

How can I tell you? How can I tell you? How can I tell you? How can I tell you?

You looked back at her seeing her anger and was super surprised when she said “You’re gross!” you didn’t get a chance to ask why as you were shoved off your horse. You fell into the river swimming upwards shaking at the feel of the cold water when you surfaced you coughed you accidentally swallowed some water. You wiped water off your face and looked up at Jay who was still on horseback and your horse was running down to you Arcebus neighed angrily at you feeling his rider’s emotion and Jay glared down at you. You watched as she rode away confused as to why she called you gross and then shoved you in a river. Your horse hopped into the river helping you up and you both got out of the water deciding that enough work was done for today and you both deserved to take a break for the rest of the day.

I think I'm falling in love

Fell in love now

Jay made it back to the oil rig and she put Arcebus away in his stable before going to her room. She shoved her way past Sabine and Katja who were fighting but stopped and scoffed asking what the hell was her problem after Jay shoved them. Jay didn’t listen to them she just walked into her room slamming the door hearing Katja complain. Jay walked over to her bed laying down she groaned burying her face into her pillow. She thought about you she blushed, and she shook her head was she really crushing on you?

This time I think it's for real I think I'm in love now

Jay sat up her face red and warm as she kept thinking about you…” fuck” she covered her face with her hands annoyed and she thought…

‘I think I'm falling in love’

TYSM FOR READING :D

[vale-ocs-roleplay]

General informations:

Name: Andrein du Loup Noir Revenant

Based on: Armand (Vampire Chronicles, mostly from the books)

Species: Vampire

Age: physically 17 (but he is older than Léandre)

Birthday: January 1st

Height: 174 cm

Dorm:… suggestions?

Class: 3-D

Favorite subject: Conjuration

Club: theatre club

Favorite food: dark hot chocolate (with lots of cream, thanks)

Least favorite food: coffee

Hobbies: Acting (better than Léandre), visiting museums, watching romantic films

Unique magic:

“You always loved me”: he can create a false memory for anyone he wants, but these memories will fade over time.

Background:

Andrein shares the same sire as Léandre. To be honest, before Léandre there was him at the court of Nocturne Town, a sweet angel picked up from a cold and isolated street for his too kind face.

Andrein was extremely loyal to his creator, loving, servile… maybe too much. When Léandre entered his life, the first feeling was wonder, desire. There was no envy because the newcomer had been chosen as heir, but there was something dark, a hidden jealousy. Was it because the new prince had become the king's favorite perhaps? But was it because he had stolen the looks from him or ... because he wanted those violet eyes to look only at him? Yet when he tried to get closer… there was a refusal.

Léandre did not like him, the king did not care about him ... the only refuge he found was in the arms of his mentor - his and Léandre -, an elderly vampire, sweet towards him, who seemed - or seems - to adore him more than all the others but… maybe too much, or maybe not enough.

If you knew what really are the wounds inside Andrein's heart, you wouldn't be surprised at how distorted his mind can seem.

Personality:

If Léandre is a labyrinth yes, but perhaps a labyrinth in the moonlight, Andrein is a labyrinth on a stormy night. He is such a delicate and fragile creature, so easy to break and send to hell ... but count on it that he will drag you with him.

If he hates you he will ruin you, if he loves you he will do anything to keep you with him. He's not good enough for you, he knows it, but you can't leave him.

His very fragility is his sword, his extreme insecurity is his lifeline.

However, he is not unreasonable, on the contrary, he knows how to be extremely calculating, he knows how to play any part he wants to play. It follows that he is not the simplest person in the world to relate to, you have to be a steadfast person to overcome his whims - because after all they are nothing but that - but if he really trusts someone it is not impossible to bring him back to his senses, especially if he begins to feel a sincere affection that goes beyond love for himself.

Ironically, if he sees a person in pain he can be a very good emotional support and is very good at understanding what they need in that moment.

Between him and Léandre there is a feeling of love and hate that seems more tending to hatred, but perhaps deep down it is more love ... but I advise you not to name the vampire prince in front of him, just in case.

Trivia:

- Between him and Ciaran there is a strange, unlikely bond of affection (attraction?).

-He too would be a great chocolate lover, but he only eats dark chocolate so as not to be like Léandre.

- But like Léandre, he too is "vaguely" attracted to Malleus (maybe he too has a weakness for the black hair - green eyes combo? Who knows why).

-His favorite animal is the squirrel.

-He is unsure about his physical appearance.

-When he drinks the blood he blushes.

- He has a snake bites piercing.

- He is pansexual, but he seems to attract mostly boys and he wonders why.

[yuurivoice]

What’s your opinion on the new god of war and the characters

*contains discussion of themes and components of God of War Ragnarok, skip this if you don't want vibe spoilers!*

Just beat it yesterday. I think it's fantastic! I have a few criticisms, but my time spent being a creator also makes me realize that sometimes you've gotta make sacrifices and take turns that aren't necessarily exactly what you wanted, but are what gets you to the finish line...so I ain't mad at it.

The cast of characters in particular was the highlight for me. Getting to spend more time with them rather than "oh hey it's my favorite NPC!" moments that kinda highlighted God of War in the past.

Family has obviously been a key theme, and it's a favorite of mine.

It speaks volumes that "foolish naive youth fucks everything up because they don't know any better" is one of my most hated tropes but I'm totally okay with it in this game because of how much heart Atreus has, and that it's pretty logical that when a lil baby god finds out about prophecies that blow up his ego, he'd make some dipshit choices. He doesn't know any better, and I love what it does for Kratos as a character. The culmination of these choices and how it has impacted the people around them, and ultimately their relationship as father and son, makes it all worth it in my eyes.

You know what helped me with Atreus? Seeing him practice self-talk not only as himself, but from the perspective of the people he cares about. Exhibiting a level of understanding and emotional intelligence, knowing what those people would likely think or say to him, and considering that (despite typically ignoring it, as boys often do lol) helped me avoid ever feeling like "UGH THIS FUCKING IDIOT!" which I think is critical to avoid given that we need to care about Atreus even if he's not wise.

I love every character in Asgard. Yes, even that one.

I called the squirrel hot.

I love the side quests, they're particularly well written and given a lot of care (I think each map has one key side quest, but even the smaller ones are interesting), which is what open world games typically lack. They feel meaningful because of the themes and morals shared with the characters.

I typically hate "split POV between a favorite character and someone else" but any time I spent away from Kratos felt earned and not like a chore. I'm guessing that's not a popular opinion, but then again, I don't really pay attention to reviews or anything like that.

It's my game of the year, and I loved Elden Ring, but GoW2 is the total package. The performances, the music, the writing, the gameplay. Everything is exactly what I'd want in a big AAA game in 2022, and they delivered a complete experience.

[bryan360]

Here’s my note before I’ll get started….

(DON’T YOU EVER COPY FROM MINE OR MY FRIEND’S WORK, CHARACTERS, AND STUFF IF ONE OF YOU ARE IMPOSTERS WHO HAD HABITS OF PLAGIARISM! I WILL BLOCK YOU FROM MY BLOG IF I SEE YOUR POST WITH MINE OR MY FRIEND’S ORIGINAL WORK BEING EDITED ALL OVER! I’LL EVEN SHARE IT ONTO MY BLOG SO IF EVERYONE WILL SEE THAT YOU TRYING TO COPY MINE OR MY FRIEND’S THINGS FOR NO GOOD REASON WHATSOEVER! That will be all….I mean it.)

🇵🇷Me: Hey there! Today that I got a special art trade order for my P-Pal, but also his OCs of Spot, Riya, Cude, and Murukir to enjoy. This month of August before Summer comes to an end, here's something I've been working so hard of what I feel like it. So much so, I'm completely fresh out of big sheet of paper from my Simply A+ Sketch Pad. The 20 sheets kind that I originally brought it from the store back in 🍀March 2020; though before staying in houses during the pandemic.

Link Here #1

🇵🇷Me: Since now I'm run out of big sheets, I needed to take time with one huge sheet of paper when making room in doodle art form. This is exactly I'm going for as my P-Pal 's request, but forgive me that there's some marks and coloring mistakes I've tried to covered up. Nevertheless, here's my latest secret art trade request for him; by having my squirrel character Brown while wearing his clothes in bagged size!

🥜Brown: Yeah! It wasn't the first time I'm doing this since I had with EStar99 Jason's clothes, but it'll be an honor to have this for your P-Pal and our friends. We had a good time having our sleepover at my house last month with all snuggled up of my clothes of theirs; including mine. So here I am again wearing my bagged sized clothes, but this time while doing some normal activities....well almost everything is normal. Anyways, here's what I'm talking about in this 10 part doodle art that our creator friend made.

1st through 3rd Part

Doing yoga exercises, reading CN's comic book, and eating peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. References from my April 2020 artwork I've posted on DeviantArt. Link Here #2

4th Part

Putting his chef's hat on and doing some stirring. He's making a cake with his mother like any parent and children do together.

5th Part

Hugging with Pibby and Bun Bun; especially last time where he made them during my P-Pal's previous art trade I've requested him. Link Here #3

6th Part

Accidentally got a Happy Horn on his head; causing him to change his personality and color of happiness. That’s goes for another reference from my previous artwork I’ve posted back in August 2020. Link Here #4

7th Part

Vacuuming the floors with his electronic vacuum cleaner. Do hope it’ll never caught his bagged sized clothes while he cleaning around here, though. 😅

8th Part

Putting his wireless headphones and dances to the rhythm of his favorite songs. Though I wanted to draw his dance pose a bit similar to the Cow and Chicken intro that I seen from my childhood. Just wanted to boost up his interests of CN stuff, ya know. Link Here #5

9th Part

Just a random part of holding a huge pencil. Don’t know why, but something to do with interests of drawing animation? At least that’s what I’m going for.

10 Part/Final Part

And finally here’s him having a relaxation time, but no surprise to included this for last. My P-Pal asked to draw Brown while he’s in resting his pillow bed; especially both wearing in bagged sized clothes. He does enjoying this like the same way he’s had a sleepover with his friends. Link Here #6

🥜Brown: That really takes me back about a month ago, but worth to remember how we getting along just right. As for snuggling our clothes in bagged sized? It’s perfect when snuggled up together. 😉👍

🇵🇷Me: Indeed as always, Brown. Hope that you enjoy this doodle art post I’ve made for my P-Pal. Though again forgive myself that it had some coloring mistakes when doing on one big sheet of paper I had left.

🥜Brown: That’s okay. At least it does looks good that you worked hard for. Anyways, here’s to your P-Pal and friends where I do some activities; while wearing my bagged sized clothes to remember for. Hope you’ll enjoy this as well.

Brown created by me; BryanVelasquez87 (Bryan360)

Pibby and Bun Bun - Pibby (also known as Come and Learn with Pibby! and Learning with Pibby: Apocalypse (TBA) © Adult Swim

A Happy Horn item - Unikitty! (2017-2020) © Ed Skudder and Lynn Wang, The Lego Group, Warner Bros. Animation, Warner Bros Television Distribution. Cartoon Network

@murumokirby360 @carmenramcat @alexander1301

[kariachi]

So, saw somebody else doing a whole ‘what daemons do your OCs have and why’ sorta deal so, for shits and giggles, my major loves.

Marian- Torc, Aldabra Giant Tortoise

Look, sometimes a woman is a tortoise. Patient, sturdy, stubborn, reliable. An old soul who always plans ahead, with a mind that runs like clockwork. A rock in the chaos. And then, you get people who are tortoises, but more. She has a large presence, a matriarch at her heart who walks into a room and you feel it in the air, a quiet pride barely hidden under the stereotypical tortoise humbleness that requires a massive daemon to contain it. Add to that that, for giant tortoises, Aldabra’s are known to be relatively fast and acrobatic, which is a great reflection for the fact that she has the soul of an adventurer and prankster underneath it all. For all she’s reserved and hardworking, once you get her out of her shell she burns for excitement.

Monette- Cadyl, Gelada

Again, sometimes a woman is a monkey. An outgoing and communicative creature, small and unassuming, not as smart as some but enough so, with complex social networks and a tendency to keep groups of partners and associates. She trades in favors like a gelada trade in acts of grooming, thriving in a group and wasting when she’s alone, not afraid to let go of some of her power and control in exchange for a more overall favorable outcome. But like a gelada you can’t let the charm and peaceful exterior fool you, because with cause she’s more than willing to bare her teeth in warning or threat to defend what’s hers.

Allison- Donnie, Austroplebeia cassiae

Why yes, Donnie’s species doesn't even have a common name, just one of so many little-noted stingless honeybees. Allie is everything you would expect from such a creature. Hardworking, loyal, creative, more focused on the whole than on herself. She lives for her family and her community, organizing people, supporting those around her, and standing for what she believes in, no matter the cost to herself. But the stingless portion is important. She hates to lie, and more importantly isn’t made to fight. While she’ll take to it if need be, it’s not in her nature to be on the front lines, and her roles is more in taking care of and lending support to those who can dive into the fray herself.

Dr. Carel- Lana, Northern Flying Squirrel

Though he appears to be scatterbrained, our dear doctor is more intelligent that he first seems, simply hard to understand due to how he flits from project to project that others can’t understand with dogged determination. Not one to run, not one to fight, fine alone but happy in groups as well. His, unique, viewpoint is befitting someone with a gliding daemon, as is the way his mind and feet both wander.

Var/Valko- Tarav, Bluetick Hound

And sometimes a man is a hound dog. Loyal, social, highly active, loud. Or, well, he used to be. He’s nonverbal anymore but still once he opens up you better hope you can read sign at speed because he’s not slowing down or shutting up. He reliable, playful, outgoing, and true to his pack. Adventurous and intelligent, though not a leader in any way. He’s a follower, yes, and one of the best right hand’s you’re going to get.

Irene- James, Western Pebble Mound Mouse

Is pretty much exactly what you’d stereotypically expect from a mouse- shy, a mite timid, but intelligent. She’d working on regrowing the backbone her family stole from her, but she’s polite, respectful, playful, and empathetic. True to James’s species, she’s in her element in groups despite her shyness, a creator at heart, more resilient than she first appears, and without an aggressive bone in her body (or any bones, really, but that’s besides the point).

Jadie- Wira, Ring-Necked Pheasant

Somebody somewhere ordered a prince charming, though I don’t know who. Though not immediately impressive, they have an air of confidence and grace common to male gamefowl everywhere. They’re charming, dependable, affectionate, chatty, and a hardworker, ready to drop everything and dive directly into whatever mess they need to to look out for those around them. Poly as fuck, they spoil and defend their women against all comers without a second thought, taking a fierce pride in them in all their glory, and are also strongly family-oriented, for all that they’ve run off and done their own thing.

[fizzingwizard]

I really wanna write about moominvalley s3 but I have so much other writing to do ;_;

in sum, after rewatching, I really enjoy it. My opinion is that season 2 and 3 should probably have been switched in the order. Obvs certain things would have to be changed (Moomintroll can't come back from a trip he hasn't left on yet, lol). This is just my personal opinion because the tone and build up at the end of season 2 is not answered at all in season 3. Of course, that implies the tension would get a release in season 4... which is no guarantee at all at this point.

(meant this to be so very short but as usual I rambled on and on... sooo under a cut it goes x'D - spoilers obvs)

If I had to guess where the story's going as we head towards the finale, every strong story point has involved themes of leaving/separation/fears of, etc. So as a storyteller, my theory would be that we're building up to a more major separation of some kind in season 4. But storyteller instincts, clearly, have no importance in this situation. I've been wrong many, many, many times in the past with other shows for that same reason: to me it seems you absolutely need X for the story to come together, but the creators are perfectly happy without it.

(Incidentally, I only rarely run into the same problem with books - even YA.)

But I made this post not to complain x'D Because it's not a complaint, it's more a wish/a longing, because I prefer stories that go somewhere than ones that are episodic and development that happens in one episode has no effect in the next. If you're going to do that, I think you have to be careful how strong you make you the emotional impact, because steam without a vent has nowhere to go...

(holy shit I'm still complaining) I REALLY LIKED THE SEASON THOUGH. From episode 5 on, I loved every episode except 12. Also love the first episode. I want to love 2-4, but while I like the themes in them, I find them pretty lackluster, more the sort of run-of-the-mill storyline you find in any cartoon and not a lot of Moomin-y moments. But things definitely pick up again. I VERY MUCH miss the songs they picked for each episode in s1 & 2 (currently listening to s1 soundtrack because I missed it so much :P) but, despite that, the background music was used very effectively.

(Also, the song in ep 9 that Moominpappa and Mrs Fillyjonk sing is awesome. Little My commenting "How do we all know this?" when the dance starts had me in stitches x'D if any character's gonna break the fourth wall, it should be her)

The episode that tears me in two ways the most is the finale, Midsummer Magic. I want to love it!! I love the Hobgoblin's return, I loved his "gifts" to Moomintroll, Snufkin, and Sniff. And I loved the scene at the well... I might ship Snorkmyden after all bahaha. (But tbh Little My looking into the well and seeing the Hobgoblin for an instant was my absolute favorite bit... Also, it was Toffle's Tall Tales that made me a Snorkmyden fan ^^)

But I did find that there was just too little story development for me to really enjoy the finale. Like, aside from getting brainwashed by the gifts, why were Sniff and Snufkin even there? They don't do anything. And as cool as it was to see the Hobgoblin again, he just didn't have the cool factor this time. Just my opinion though.

Well, of course, I loved Lonely Mountain xP holy cheez wiz. it's good and funny. And the sidestory with Little My! By the way, do you know Nutkin...

This should have been the squirrel's name... then Moomintroll would have Snufkin and Little My would have Nutkin... hahaha (i think im hilarious yes)

And I loooooved Moominmamma in every episode except 12 x'D because I still think 12 was very meh. But Moominmamma and Stinky's partnership was unexpected and EXCELLENT. I really like it. Wasn't sure how I'd feel about MV19 Stinky, but I like him specifically because of how he acts with Moominmamma.

Things I still don't get: why is Snorkmaiden and Sniff going off to find Snork at the end of s2 just completely retconned? (I don't know what other way to explain it!) Why did they bring the lighthouse keeper back with them if there was literally nothing for him to do xD That whole "bring the hattifattener home" thing just feels so shoehorned in... the episode is more about Moominpappa anyway. And Toffle was lovely, I adore them, I'm glad they stuck around. But I hope this isn't the last we see of them, just living happily in the fairground... I was hoping we would get a Toffle & Miffle story remix :P

I'm on the fence how I feel about the Little My centric development too. On the one hand, I like it, because without it she would be the only character who's just always fine. So I agree with the decision to create conflict for her. The trouble is there's so little of it in canon. Little My's job is being okay no matter what xD So her wanting a biological father... her feelings of insecurity about whether she belongs in the Moomin family... they just feel OOC. But they do make sense as natural things a human being would feel. Well, tbh I wish they had gone a different direction with Little My, but I do accept what I go.

I also really liked seeing Snorkmaiden showing more of her personality. Reminded me of some good fanfics. The only issue I have is: will it matter in the final season? Once again, I really want there to be a pay-off to all this development, but who knows...

And with ep 10, I wrote a post about it but got rid of it because it was too nitpicky. I really do like the ep a lot! And will probably write about it again some time. It fits the season's theme of community/tolerance well. But I can't help but feel confused by some of it. I think I really needed some explanation of wtf Snufkin doing this job was supposed to mean. For him, I mean. It's meant to be explained with the "it's important that we make our own choices" thing. The trouble is that Snufkin keeps trying to make his own choices but is blocked over and over ;_; and there just seems to be such social consequences for making the choice he's most comfortable with, even at the very start before he actually agrees to anything, that I'm just not sure that's what the take-away is. Idk. I suppose my preconceptions about Snufkin are coloring my thinking here... I guess I find it hard to believe that any Snufkin could exist who hasn't already learned the importance of making his own choices :/

Still love the episode though. It was really fun seeing Snufkin in a stressful situation and seeing him have an argument with Moomintroll. (I did feel bad when he snapped at Little My... she kinda deserved it but hey, at least apologize since you were wrong, Snuf...) And I get the other moral of the episode, that as alone as we might like to be, we still need someone's help at times... even self-sufficient, independent types like Snufkin depend on others sometimes, and this ep was a reminder of that.

Oh, and the episode with Cedric. I like how MV19 remixes stories and doles out lines randomly x'D But this one was such a jumble! Not in a bad way - I'm just observing. In the story from Tales, Cedric is Sniff's doll who he gives away because Moomintroll told him about the "getting your good deed bad tenfold thing." And then Snufkin tells him a story which is basically similar to Mrs Fillyjonk's role in the episode. But in the ep, Cedric belongs to Mrs Fillyjonk, Snufkin is the one who said the "tenfold" thing, and in the end, Mrs Fillyjonk gives Cedric to Sniff but keeps the topaz eyes? That is what happens in Tales - Snfif finds Cedric lying on the ground with its eyes removed because they're valuable - but tbh I was surprised Mrs Fillyjonk would do that. In the beginning, we do see the gleam of Cedric's eyes reflected in hers... but does that mean she kept them because they're valuable..? I thought it was clear she'd grown past that. So it's more like she kept them as a keepsake. But... that's so weird, removing a stuffed toy's eyes... xD

Ok going back to writing now. Still have more to say but I'm just prattling incessantly now lol so I'll take a break. I wish I could write concisely but I'm very prone to word vomit...

ETA: one last thing. About episodes 11 & 12. I like 11 better than 12 but they both highlight the one thing about this season I didn't like... which was that it did a lot more moralizing than earlier seasons. S1 and 2 did it too, but this was to almost cloying levels at time. Yes, I think Moominpappa needs to appreciate the adventures he has at home. That doesn't mean I don't want the side of him which longs for something beyond and which keeps one foot in his youth to go away. Or that I think it's bad. These characters have actual complexity... why water that down to morals and lessons? I've talked about t before, but I'm generally against moralize in kids TV. Just write the story and the kids will learn something from it. You don't need to beat them over the head with it.

THAT BEING SAID... I know this episode is based on that story from Tales, in which Moominpappa pretty much comes to the same conclusion: that his adventure is at home with his family. So I shouldn't be bothered! ... It's just, that story "predates" Moominpappa at Sea. (We don't technically have a timeline, it's just the order of publication.) So I guess in my head, that meant Moominpappa was only temporarily content at home, and the whole lighthouse story was that side of him coming out again and bringing things to a head. Doing it the other way around feels weird because the lighthouse was so fraught and this is so... not! It's just out of balance. To me. I admit, this is coming from imagining what I want from a Moomin show... but it's not my show xP And in the interest of fairness - would the 90s show have done the same thing? totally. It just would have been a little more charming haha

[nightingaelic]

Companions react to the Courier doing the Infinite Money Glitch in casinos.

I had to look this up, OP, and then I had to conceptualize how this would even work in a storytelling context and write it, anyway I hope you're pleased with yourself because my brain feels like a stack of used sandpaper sheets

The courier had been saving up caps for a while, stashing them in odd places around the Lucky 38. Everywhere you looked there were bottle caps: Dresser drawers in the Presidential Suite, empty ice buckets in the cocktail lounge, in jars on every shelf in the penthouse. Saving up caps for big purchases was pretty common behavior in the Mojave wasteland for anyone, so no one batted an eye when the courier assembled all of the stashes on the carpeted floor of the casino and started counting them out, checking six times before stringing them together in batches of 50 and writing down the final total: 32,768.

No, no one so much as blinked when they lugged all 656 strings of caps out the door of the Lucky 38. No one, that is, except the lucky soul who went with them, saw them exchange all the caps for chips at The Tops Casino, then drop the chips in the back of The Aces theater during Bruce Isaac's set and return to the cashier to collect triple the amount of money they walked in with.

Arcade Gannon: Arcade cringed as the courier struggled to drag the haul of caps out the door of The Tops. The jingle of the cap strings was attracting the attention of just about everyone on the Strip, and someone across the street yelled "High roller!"

"This can't be legal," Arcade said.

"Since when..." the courier huffed and puffed, throwing cap strings over their shoulder carelessly, "... do you give a mole rat's ass about legality?"

"What is this?!?" Arcade hissed incredulously, gesturing to the jingling pile. "Is that cashier paying you off? Are those chips the currency for some wasteland tribe I've never heard of, but somehow have a better exchange rate than the NCR does? Did I just witness a payout for a hit on someone?"

The courier sighed and paused to pat the scientist on the shoulder. "Just don't think about it too hard, okay? Now help me out with this, we're going to Doctor Usanagi's to get me tricked out with as many implants as she has on hand."

Craig Boone: While the courier jingled their way across the Strip asphalt, Boone couldn't help noticing the number of eyes turning their way to stare at the enormous payout they were openly carrying. New Vegas was already a town that kept on trucking if its very creator was killed, that was certain: It wouldn't even pause if its latest mastermind was gunned down over a fortune in steel and aluminum crowns. Boone clutched his rifle close and met as many of the curious and envious stares as he could, his own eyes burning protectively behind his sunglasses.

They managed to get all the way back to the Lucky 38 before the courier stopped and spoke to him. "Nothing? Not even a guess about what this is from?"

Boone shrugged. "None of my business. Just don't carry it all at once again. Ever."

Lily Bowen: "Did you win, dearie?" Lily asked, confused. As far as she had noticed, the courier hadn't approached any of the blackjack tables, roulette wheels or slot machines.

"Yeah, Lily." The courier grinned and started handing her strings of caps to carry. "What do you want to spend your winnings on?"

"My winnings?" Lily shook her head. "Now now, pumpkin. You won fair and square, so you get to choose what you buy."

"My treat," the courier insisted. "Anything at all. We could go to the Gourmand for dinner, we could donate to the Followers in Freeside, we could get singing and dancing lessons from the King... what do you want?"

Lily thought for a moment, wracking her brains. "Brahmin for Jacobstown."

The courier looked at her quizzically. "Brahmin? Not bighorners?"

"Brahmin," Lily confirmed, shouldering the strings upon strings of caps. "Bighorners at Jacobstown will make more bighorners, but they have no brahmin. Brahmin are sweet, easier to handle. But no one will sell brahmin to nightkin."

"Okay." The courier nodded. "Then we have to go to the Gourmand for dinner anyway. I know a guy at the Ultra-Luxe who might help."

Raul Alfonso Tejada: "Dios mío," Raul muttered under his breath. "Who did you kill for the Chairmen? They finally paying you back for getting rid of Benny?"

"Pfft." The courier waved him off, dropping a few strings of caps as they did. "Whoops. Help me out here, and I'll buy you a drink."

"A drink?" Raul laughed. "Not the whole bar? You could probably convince the Garret twins to retire if you gave them half of this haul."

"And why the hell would I want to take over the Atomic Wrangler?" The courier shook their head as they loaded the old ghoul up with caps. "I already have one casino I'm incapable of running. The only customers I get are you and the other Mojave misfits."

Raul grinned. "Hey, you invited us in, amigo. We're just the only ones loco enough to ignore the robots and take you up on it."

Rose of Sharon Cassidy: "Oh, sweet squirrel stew." Cass' eyes were as big as the dinner plates in the casino's restaurant. "That's enough change to buy the Van Graffs out of business. That's enough change to tell Alice McLafferty to stick it where the sun don't shine, then back it up with enough muscle to scare her out of the Mojave."

The courier nodded and started handing her strings of caps. "It is also enough change to start funding her competitors and drive her out of New Vegas."

"Now you're talkin'." Cass smirked and accepted the extra weight. "So who're we gonna back? Far Go? The Water Merchants? Gun Runners?"

"Actually..." the courier smiled. "A little birdie told me that the Mojave Express is looking to expand its horizons. Start offering goods in addition to services. And you know me, I like to root for the home team when I can."

Cass laughed. "Well that's a surprise. You plannin' on playin' courier again? Get yourself shot in the head a second time?"

"Not if I can help it."

Veronica Santangelo: "Uhhhh, Six?" Veronica crossed her arms. "I thought we agreed we weren't going to stir up trouble for a bit after the adventure at the dam. This screams 'trouble' to me."

"Aw, lighten up Veronica." The courier winked at her and handed her a string of caps, like a consolation prize. "We're in a casino. The odds aren't in your favor, but at least you can have fun for a bit."

Veronica turned the offering down. "Math may not have been my strongest subject when I was in school, but I do know that 30,000 minus 30,000 does not equal 90,000, under any normal odds. What are you getting yourself- and more importantly, me- into?"

The courier sighed. "It's nothing. Just a little loophole I discovered when I was poking around after Benny's disappearance. I promise, we're not going to get knifed, unless we get waylaid in the street on the way home because I'm too weighed down to move."

Veronica narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "I don't trust this," she said after a few beats, "But I'm also not keen to see you try to fight off a mugger while buried under all those caps. Give me some of that."

ED-E: The eyebot beeped, confused, when the courier stopped it from picking up the chips again. Its beeps increased in volume and frequency as they loaded the little bot up with caps at the cashier's counter, until it was hanging low in the air and having trouble turning around from the increased weight. The courier patted its metal dome reassuringly and loaded up the rest of the haul on themselves, until each step they took sounded like a cascade of sleigh bells.

"Back to the Lucky 38," the courier said, pointing toward the casino door. "I've got a bet I need to settle with Raul."

Rex: Rex whined as the courier hung strings of caps off his back. He sniffed each new addition but stood tall on his metal legs, taking the extra weight admirably until he was virtually buried by the wasteland currency.

"Can you still walk, boy?" the courier asked, when they had lightened their own load.

Rex barked. Satisfied, the courier led the way to the exit, opening the casino door with a jingle and ignoring the strange looks they were getting. The two waddled their way to the Strip's main gate and down the main street of Freeside until they staggered into the King's School of Impersonation.

The King, who had been lounging inside the stage room, jumped up when he saw the pair. "Well ain't that some money, honey," he said, clearly delighted. "You actually went and did it."

"Yep." The courier dropped some strings of caps on the nearest table and leaned over it to rest. "There it is. Now, where do we get started on fixing up Freeside?"

[redux-iterum]

A Kindling: Chapter Eighteen

(AO3 counterpart here.)

The next evening, Firepaw was on his way to bring the hag another bird when Bluestar stepped in front of him and stopped him in his tracks.

“That will be enough for now,” she said.

Firepaw blinked and set down the prey. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No.” Bluestar was curt enough to make Firepaw worry that he had indeed made a mistake, but then she looked over at the hag dozing at the foot of the stump. “I need to speak with her first.”

Firepaw watched as Bluestar walked with a severe expression up to the hag and loomed over her. The hag barely opened one eye to look up at the leader.

“You’ve sat around eating our prey for long enough,” Bluestar said. “I think we’ve more than earned your good graces. It’s time for you to tell us what you know.”

“Fine by me.” The hag stretched and got to her feet. Firepaw noted with relief that her injured paw had healed up enough to put weight on it. “Mayhaps you’d like to speak privately.”

“That’s the plan.” Bluestar started for the camp entrance, where Redtail was waiting. He nodded respectfully to the hag as she ambled past him, to which she responded with a grunt, before following the two mollies outside.

Firepaw stood in the center of camp with the bird,  having no idea what to do with himself now that he was bereft of his usual tasks. The adults in camp were talking with each other (most of them discussing what the hag might have to say), Ravenpaw had gone outside, and Greypaw was sleeping in. Firepaw considered going to talk with Goldenflower, but just as he turned her way, a loud purr made him look behind him.

It was Spottedleaf, coming up to him with shining eyes and a happily waving tail.

“You should be very excited,” she said to him cheerfully. “Tomorrow is a special day!”

Firepaw would have been delighted to be excited for anything, but he had no idea what she was talking about. Spottedleaf knew he was confused, clearly, because she continued.

“You, Ravenpaw, and Greypaw are coming with me tomorrow,” she elaborated. “We’re going on a journey to the Mother, all the way across the territories.”

“Wait, really?” Firepaw fully turned around, eyes wide. “I’ll actually see her?”

“You will!” Spottedleaf’s eyes were nearly shut with delight. “You’ll even see her heart, and if we’re lucky, all of us will receive a dream from her.”

“Already?”

Firepaw and Spottedleaf looked up and saw Ravenpaw approaching. He seemed just as surprised as Firepaw was. Spottedleaf nodded to him.

“You three ought to get as much rest as possible,” she said. “We’re leaving at daylight. Don’t worry, you’re off your apprentice duties for tonight. Just relax and eat, then sleep early.”

Ravenpaw let out a shaky sigh. “Yes, ma’am. Here, Firepaw, we can get some prey. Er— do you want to?”

“Sure.” Firepaw picked up the bird and trotted with Ravenpaw to the prey-pile. He decided to switch the bird out for a somewhat small rat, while Ravenpaw picked up a pigeon. They took a squirrel with them for Greypaw and went to their usual spot by the apprentices’ den. As they ate, Firepaw mused on how big the den seemed inside without Dustpelt and Sandstorm to share it with.

His musings faded off when Greypaw shifted the leaves and pushed through them out of the den, blinking sleepily. Ravenpaw made a small mew to get his attention and motioned to the squirrel. Greypaw yawned, nodded, and plopped down with a thud beside Ravenpaw, munching on a haunch with his eyes almost completely closed.

“We’re going to the Mother at daylight,” Firepaw informed him.

“Oh?” Greypaw swallowed, yawned, then jerked his head up, suddenly awake. “Oh! Awesome. Already?”

“That’s what I said.” Ravenpaw parted some feathers to get at his pigeon’s belly. “We have the night off to rest.”

“Man, that’ll be a long walk,” Greypaw said. “But we’ll get to see the other territories, so that’s not so bad. And the Mother, of course.” His eyes brightened. “The creator herself… can you imagine how intense it’ll be to walk through her body?”

“We what?” Firepaw squinted at him.

Greypaw gave Firepaw an amused look. “That’s how we get to her heart. What did you think we were going to do?”

“I don’t have any idea of anything,” Firepaw said. “I don’t even know which way we’re going.”

“You’ll see.” Greypaw flicked a paw. “Don’t worry, it’ll be cool. You’ll love it.” 

It seemed like hardly half the night had passed before Firepaw and his friends were sent to sleep early. It also seemed like Firepaw had barely shut his eyes when Spottedleaf woke him up. Once again, he was too sleepy to argue with her, so he stumbled out of his nest and followed her, Ravenpaw, and Greypaw out of camp. He thought he vaguely heard some cats wishing them luck, but couldn’t grasp the words.

It was sunny out, even with patches of clouds dotting the sky. Light filtered through the trees and dappled the ground, making the cats’ pelts shine as they passed through more clear parts of the woods. Dew sparkled from every leaf and flower and blade of grass. It was all very pretty, and entirely too bright. Firepaw’s eyes were nearly squeezed shut as he walked along after his friends and the seer, which did not help his tiredness. Combined with the warmth of daylight, Firepaw was certain he was going to fall on his face and sleep again at any second.

He was grateful that no one was really speaking. He wasn’t confident in his ability to keep up a conversation.

With his mind afloat in drowsiness, Firepaw was caught off-guard by the edge of the forest into the open grasslands. He winced at the searing light and stopped in place, swiping at his eyes with a paw.

“Are you alright?” Ravenpaw asked, the first to speak this entire time.

Firepaw shook his head and forced his eyes open, gradually hating it less as each heartbeat passed. “Yeah. Yeah. I’m fine. Just… bright, is all.”

To his relief, when he looked up, he saw that he wasn’t the only one that was tired. Ravenpaw and Greypaw’s tails were low and their eyes were just as bleary as his. Spottedleaf seemed to be the only one truly awake, but she had kindly paused in her walking.

“Take a moment, boys,” she said. “Shake your pelts and feel the sunlight. It won’t do to fall asleep on our way.”

The apprentices were more than happy to obey. Firepaw did as she said and shook his fur out—and, to his surprise, it helped wake him up quite a bit. His eyes finally adjusted to the light and he scanned his surroundings to get an idea of how far they had walked.

They had made it out of the forest; the clearing of Fourtrees was visible in the distance, its boulder dully glowing in the center of the square of trees. The sloping, peaty hills of WindClan territory rose ahead of them, with shimmering ripples washing over the heath and heather. Firepaw still couldn’t see any cats there, but he was certain there had to be at least one. Perhaps, he thought a little hopefully, someone was out there, and he’d get to say hi to them.

Spottedleaf raised a paw and pointed it towards WindClan’s moors. “We’ll be going along the edge of the border that way. After that, we can stop at the Barn and rest.”

“Barn?” Firepaw asked.

“Like a house, but for…” Spottedleaf’s eyes glanced upwards as she thought. “Well, cats can live there instead. There’s a lot more mice.”

“So we can eat when we get there?” Greypaw sounded hopeful.

Spottedleaf nodded. “The loner there is very gracious with warriors. He’s used to seeing us go in all the time. Now, are we all ready to continue?”

The toms made various (still rather sleepy) sounds of affirmation, so Spottedleaf started off at a trot. They hurried after her with a yawn or two.

“A house for cats…” Firepaw said aloud, mostly to keep himself awake. “I wonder if it’ll look like the inside of a human house.”

“It’ll have more prey, at least,” Greypaw said. “And not fake ones, like that whatever-it-was you were talking about.”

Spottedleaf turned her head and tilted it curiously.

“Oh, I told these guys about this slab my old owner had,” Firepaw said to her. “It would show things on it.”

“Like reflections in the water,” Ravenpaw added.

Spottedleaf’s ear turned a little to the side. “It wasn’t, perchance, visions from ancestors, was it?”

“Nah.” Firepaw shook his head. “Just images. They were fake.”

Spottedleaf blinked. Then she huffed a breath. “I suppose nothing humans do makes much sense. Their houses, their cars, all such mysteries.”

“Cars aren’t too mysterious,” Firepaw said. “Once you’ve been in them and moved around, they’re not much to talk about.”

The other cats stopped in their tracks and turned fully to him, eyes bulging.

Firepaw looked between them nervously. “What?”

“You’ve been in a car?” Greypaw asked slowly.

“I mean…” Firepaw tilted his head a little, considering how to describe the concept. “Every house cat has. You have to go to the vet once in a while, or you get adopted into a new house. My old owner had one, and, well, I didn’t know how it worked, but I know what it’s like inside one.”

He paused, mostly to hold back a snort at how even Spottedleaf was staring at him in amazement.

“Don’t leave it there!” Greypaw lifted a paw and stomped it on the ground. “Tell us! What’s it like?”

“Oh, well…” Firepaw rolled a shoulder. “It’s pretty small, and the floor is made of stuff that kind of feels like moss. Then it has chairs—like stumps, for sitting on—and those are really smooth and slippery. And it’s got windows made of glass, that see-through stone, and you can lift your head up and watch the world go by. It’s kind of scary at first, but you get used to it.”

He left it there, because any further information he had would reveal that he had wailed like a newborn the entire first ride, and the next he had been in a panic trying to escape through the windows. He didn’t need to add that; he’d probably lose some of the awe the Clanborn cats were gawking at him with.

“It didn’t hurt you at all?” Spottedleaf asked.

“No, it’s just uncomfortable.” Firepaw took a step forward, trying to hint that they should keep moving. “It’s noisy and it shakes a little the whole ride.”

Spottedleaf took the hint and started walking again. The apprentices trotted along, though all of them kept darting looks at Firepaw. He decided to add on a little bit for flavor.

“I mean, in certain areas it shakes less,” he said. “It depends on how fast the car’s going. Where I lived, they all stayed slow. Which was lucky, since there were other cats living there.”

Ravenpaw tilted his head, observing Firepaw. “I’ve never really heard you talk about the other kittypets. Didn’t you have friends?”

“I had one,” Firepaw replied. His heart went a little heavy as he thought of Smudge. “But, you know, I’m not allowed to talk with him again. I don’t think the others would miss me, anyway.”

“It sounds like you don’t really miss them, to me,” Ravenpaw said. “I mean, you don’t seem to miss kittypet life in general.”

Firepaw blinked as he considered this. “You’re right, actually. I thought I’d miss it, but I’ve hardly even thought about it since I came to ThunderClan. It’s a lot better out here. Just— you know, like... it’s colder, sure, but I feel more alive out here. Really awake. You’re always half-asleep when you’re a kittypet.” He lowered his head a little, suddenly self-conscious. “I don’t know if that makes sense, but that’s just how it feels.”

Spottedleaf looked at him approvingly. “It does make sense. You were wise to come live with us. This is certainly where you belong.”

Firepaw relaxed and raised his head again. “I’ve never wanted to go back, honestly. I’ve been missing way too much in the world.”

“And you’ve got a lot more to see,” Greypaw said. “So keep sticking around.”

Firepaw purred a little. “Will do.”

Silence fell over the party again, but it was one of silent contemplation rather than exhaustion. Firepaw watched the landscape as they trotted through it, adoring the breeze bending the grass and heather around him and carrying distant, strange scents to his maw. The sun itself was a luxury, warming him to the core and drying the peat enough that he wasn’t stepping in mud. The beauty of the wild surrounded him.

It couldn’t get any better than this.

Spottedleaf led the apprentices towards the moor of WindClan, only pausing once to warn them to stick close to her before continuing on. They were close enough to the road for its rank to reach them, but they were still on the grassy slope a good distance above it.

“Will we be in trouble if they see us?” Ravenpaw asked anxiously. “Shouldn’t we stay down there?”

“Oh, don’t worry, chrii,” Spottedleaf soothed. “We’re on our journey to the Mother, and you’re with me. We can go wherever we like.”

The wind picked up, bringing with it the earthy scent of WindClan. Spottedleaf stopped and lifted her tail to get the apprentices to do the same, which they did. Firepaw looked around, searching for whatever she’d noticed, but couldn’t see anything until the shrubs close to him shifted. He jumped in surprise as a group of toms pushed through—all tall and lean.

Spottedleaf blinked and turned to face them, bowing her head respectfully. “Well! I didn’t expect to see you today, Rookstar.”

The angular black-and-white tom didn’t say anything at first. His eyes slowly roamed over her and the young toms, slightly narrowed. Firepaw caught sight of Wrenpaw and waved his tail, a little nervous until Wrenpaw calmly waved back.

“Hello again, Spottedleaf,” the last tom said. He was grey and faintly striped, with one ear ruggedly split down the middle. Firepaw’s own ear twitched as a phantom pain mirrored the WindClan cat’s injury. “Mother?”

Spottedleaf nodded. “I didn’t want to risk walking by the road. I hope that’s alright.”

“Seer business,” said Rookstar quietly. “Go where you like. Would you prefer an escort?”

“Oh, no,” Spottedleaf said cheerfully. “We’ll be alright, as long as your friends aren’t around.”

“They aren’t.” Tornear’s chin lowered a little, but his eyes were trained on the tortoiseshell. “The badger’s gone.”

“Been gone for a while,” Wrenpaw added. His voice was just as flat as the older toms’. “We handled that.”

“Good!” Spottedleaf curled her tail. “Then, if it’s quite alright, we can go alone. We’re stopping at the Barn and hunting there.”

Rookstar gave her one slow nod. He looked over the apprentices again and his gaze lingered on Firepaw for a moment. Firepaw met his eyes and tried to make his blink as friendly as possible. Rookstar looked away and at his followers.

“Deadfoot’s patrol should be done in the east by now,” he said. He added to Spottedleaf, “You’re free to roam.”

“Thank you, prra.” Spottedleaf bowed her front half and gestured to the apprentices. “Let’s not scare their prey. Come along!”

Greypaw hurried after her, almost nervous, and the WindClan cats turned and started to walk away. Firepaw made a few steps before noticing silence behind him. He looked back—Ravenpaw was staring after the WindClanners. Firepaw couldn’t see his face, but he seemed quite focused.

“Ravenpaw?” he asked.

Ravenpaw jolted, shook his head and almost ran after Firepaw. “Sorry, sorry.”

Firepaw waited for him to catch up to him before asking in a low voice, “What’s up?”

“Nothing,” Ravenpaw said, almost before Firepaw had finished talking. “Just thinking. That’s all.”

Firepaw tilted his head, but he didn’t push. Ravenpaw looked very embarrassed, and he picked up his pace, overtaking his friend. Firepaw decided to let it go and followed along, glancing back one last time at where the leader and his crew had walked away.

To his great surprise, they were completely gone. Not one blade of grass rustled or bent, no scent anymore, nothing.

Curious.

Bluestar was right. They were quite stealthy after all.