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becomingbts · 4 years ago

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Time heals (sometimes) - Teaser 1

Summary: 6 years ago, (Y/N) thought that she was finally taking her life into her hands, leaving behind a toxic and abusive relationship with a man who taught her she’d never be worthy of love. However, it became hard to ignore his words when she met her seven soulmates who rejected her without even giving her a chance to prove herself. It took (Y/N) 3 years to realize that it wouldn’t be her end. She would live on to prove them all wrong; she would become what they all thought she wasn’t: someone worthy of love. And as she stands proudly on the stage, under the burning spotlights and the applause and the cries of the delirious crowd, she feels alive. Alive, just like the bond she believed to be broken.

Pairings: Y/N x OT7

GENRE: Soulmate AU!, Idol Y/NAU!, semi social-media AU!, ANGST (mainly), fluff, romance, maybe smut in the series.

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Warnings: The series is going to be heavy with a lot of personal experiences mixed into the fiction, so this is going to be kind of therapeutic for me. Please, consider not reading the series if you are not comfortable with: abandonment issues, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, self-harm (not descriptive and only part of MC’s past), suicide thoughts (in the past), toxic behavior, toxic and abusive relationship (in the past), depreciating self-talk and low self-esteem, a lot of curse, physical and mental pain, near death experience situation (in the past), and maybe smut scenes (happy ending though, but it will probably be quite the ride).

NOTE: I was thinking of “Moonchild” and for some reasons, some memories I’d prefer to have forgotten came back to my mind and instead of making a full-blown panic attack like I used to, I thought that it would make a great plot if I mingled that with a soulmate and idol verse and that’s how I started going into it. This is going to be loaded with personal experiences, even if they’ll probably be a bit differently explained compared to what I experienced. Despite the heavy themes and many warnings, I hope you guys will like it. I think I really needed to write it. It will be a semisocial media AU!, because I like the idea of being to write some of their conversations through texts. However, I do plan on fully writing most of it. Though, you’ll have some updates about their social medias as I will update their profiles soon after you see this. I will probably mix a lot of different media for this story such as songs written and produced by myself. I’ll upload for real MC’s EP. So expect a lot for this story. Please take well care, feedback is always very warmly welcomed, it helps me to write for real. If you need to talk to someone, my dms are always opened and if you really don’t feel well, please call urgency numbers.

Thank you for reading,

-Dolly

"And we will close our night show with the most awaited segment! The audience jumped during the commercial break, it's amazing how many people just joined us! Welcome to our interview segment and especially, welcome and thank you so much for being with us Moon!”

"Of course, thank you for having me on your radio show."

"Thank you for coming! I have to mention that this is your very first interview with another media than your usual personal platforms like Vlive, YouTube, or Instagram, so we are honored to be the first ones to greet you! Do you plan on making more activities outside your personal schedule for the promotion of your new album?"

"If I may be honest, not really. I'm the most comfortable in my own safe zone and I tend to try not to get out of it too often. It might close some doors to me but I'm comfortable with my fans that way. However, I often listen to this radio show and a lot of my fans were enthusiastic about that so I thought: why not."

"Ah, thank you so much, it means a lot! Your fans are indeed a strong community and they support you whether you go to TV shows or not. Besides, you've been a very active artist on social media and your whole career started on YouTube and SoundCloud before you signed to your current agency. We have to congratulate you on your journey! It's barely been two years but here you are, with your second EP 'People'! Congratulations on the release!"

"Thank you very much."

“For our listeners who might not know who Moon is, I’m going to introduce her to you: Moon, your real name is (Y/N), you were born on August 4th, 1998, Incheon and your mother was American so you pursued your studies in America. You have been taking online classes since the start of your career at the HULT, university of Florida, and even recently got your Business Bachelor, now aiming for a Ph.D. You started your journey on Youtube, uploading covers and vlogs until you finally started producing your own songs, releasing them on Soundcloud. You started gaining a lot of followers; thus, you started on other social media such as Twitter or Instagram. One year ago, you release your first EP called ‘BALANCE’ which is the reason why the music label BigHit reached to you and asked you if you wanted to sign with them. Did I get everything right?”

“You are. It feels like you know my life better than I do.”

"Ah not at all, but thank you, I am glad that I didn’t say something wrong! Would you mind sharing the concept of this EP? Many of your fans probably already know but maybe some of our daily listeners might not!"

"Of course. As you said, 'People' is my second EP, yet the first to be studio recorded. Signing with BigHit is a big step in my career and it created a lot of changes, hence I decided to focus on the people I have met, stayed with, became close to, or detached myself from… This is dedicated to the people who changed my life, whether they intended to or not. It could be interpreted as my social life diary in a way."

"I see, many of your fans have said that the album held a very distinct duality, with a bright and a much darker side that made quite the storm on social media. ‘Y/N our Moon’ and ‘MOONISBACK’ trended for a few nights on Twitter. Do you have anything you'd like to say about that?"

"I guess it was a surprise because this mini-album is really raw and uncensored. I didn't try to sugarcoat it nor to romanticize my experiences. I hope it brings comfort to people who haven't been feeling well. Because I think that it’s always easy to say that it's going to be okay to someone who’s not feeling well. Everything doesn’t suddenly become okay. And it's fine to be hurting, you can learn to live with this pain and move on while still hoping for better days. There is no end to hopes, and this is why my EP has a brighter side to it. Not everything is always a vast cold ocean. Sometimes, there are small or big waves that come crashing into our universe and they form something that we couldn't have imagined. They bring a little piece of sunshine in life and it helps to move on. So I hope that people who are struggling know that, despite how insignificant I might be, there is a person that understands and can relate to their struggles. I hope it can comfort them, even just slightly, to know that they are not alone."

"That's a beautiful way to put it."

"Ah, thank you."

"I have to ask because I'm really curious and I’m definitely not the only one: a lot of your fans have been theorizing about who could your title track ‘TIME’ be about? I have to ask you on the behalf of everyone. Is it okay for me to break the mystery?"

"Time is a track that shouldn’t have made it to the EP. It’s a bit like a fit of personal anger that I didn’t know I needed to let out.”

“Your anger was definitely heard and understood. People have been curious about the addressee of the song especially because of the line ‘maybe it’s time I finally let go of you’. So can you tell us who is it about?”

“Uh...Time was written for my seven soulmates who rejected me years ago."

"Seven!?"

"Yeah, it's a lot I know.”

“Is that why you have covered your soul mark with this tattoo on your arm? Netizens talked about it a lot; normally idols tend to cover their arm from the public eyes to avoid for their soulmates’ names to be known, but instead, you were proudly showing your tattooed arm, fully covering what might be under the ink. Many people assumed that it meant that you didn’t have a soulmate at all.”

“Well, I decided to cover the mark because there was no reason for me to keep it without hurting myself. I decided that I have been hurt enough to let myself take a rest. I didn’t see the point in hiding my arm either, I’m proud of my tattoo, I mean; it’s really a beautiful piece in my opinion. But to answer the assumptions, I don’t consider that I have soulmates anymore, hence why the tattoo as well."

"This is really a heartbreaking story, it must have been extremely hard. Breaking a soul bond is immensely dangerous, my link with my husband already itches when I spend the day away from him, so seven soul bonds? It must have been terrible."

"It was, but the most important is where I am now. I'm not lingering on that anymore because they made their choices and I thus made mine. I just hope that they all are healthy and happy where they are."

"I have to say I'm really impressed (Y/N)-shi, you really have a delicate and caring soul. I probably wouldn't be able to have such soft words about your soulmates had I been in your shoes."

"I think living the actual experience made me reflect on myself a lot. I'm comfortable where I am now, I'm able to do music and make what I love. I have nothing to complain about, I'm surrounded by lovely and supportive fans, I have the best manager I could have ever hoped for and a warm and healthy family. I don't need more on my side."

"I'm glad you are happy then. Many of your fans have pointed out it's really hard to make you smile and some wonder if you are happy, especially after the release of ‘TIME’, I don’t blame some of your fans for being worried."

"Ahhh, is smiling the only way to prove that we are happy? I believe my words are usually a bit more impactful than my facial expressions. I have to admit that I don't often smile, it's not a bad thing, at least I don't think so, but I just don't feel the need to smile when I don’t feel like it. Besides, I get shy easily when I expose my emotions too much."

"It's hard to imagine you being shy but at the same time now that I have you in front of me, our listeners cannot see you, but I definitely feel that you have a very shy and reserved aura despite the energy you give off when you are on stage. It’s not unfriendly either, but you’re just very soft-spoken and quiet in everything you do. Like when you came in, I barely heard you entering at all; you’re just silently making your way without a fuss, it’s really endearing, to be honest."

"Ah... I’ve been told that my stage persona and the ‘me’ in real life were two different entities but I don’t really think it’s true. I'm extremely introverted and it doesn't really mix well with the stage. So I just put it on the side for the people who came to see me and deserve to see more than a 24 years old woman who has troubles speaking without stuttering in front of other people."

"You stutter when you have to speak in front of other people?"

"Sometimes it happens when I’m nervous, and I’m very often nervous. Like right now, I’m extremely nervous. But it's something I'm working on."

"Well it's definitely paying off because I couldn't sense that you were nervous at all, just very calm and soft, but I wouldn’t be able to imagine you being nervous enough to stutter."

"A lot of artists actually have stage fright, most of them just don't want to admit it because it doesn't sound sexy when you tell your fans you're actually shaking before going up there for the show."

"This is very true, but it's refreshing to hear it from someone who actually lives through that rather than fan theories."

"That's understandable."

"Our time is coming to the end, do you have anything you would like to add before we sadly get our mics taken away?"

"Oh uhm, everyone, my new mini-album 'People' came out very recently and yet it already received a lot of love so I want to thank you for that. This EP was a very personal project and I was worried about how it would be welcomed but you all made me realize that I have nothing to fear because we'll always find someone who can relate to our stories. As long as I can help even one person with my songs, then it's enough for me. Thank you for listening to me and my voice. I hope we'll be able to meet soon. Love you my fans and non-fans as well, please take well care of yourselves in those times. Be careful and stay safe. Wear your mask!"

“Thank you so much Moon for being with us tonight. Our time was short but I really enjoyed it, I hope our listeners were able to feel that very warm presence of yours through the mic. ‘Give Me A Song’ of Moon’s EP ‘People’ will now be playing and we will see each other tomorrow night with IU for the release of her new album LILAC. Take care!”

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Uploaded : 08/04/2021

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jokertrap-ran · 4 years ago

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(光与夜之恋 Light and Night) Charlie’s 5✩ Inspiration: Daytime Spiritualities [昼日疑魂] Date Translation (END 5: Heart-throb)

“Entrust me all your fears and astonishment alike; there’s no need to hold back.”

*Light and Night Master-list | Charlie’s Personal Masterlist *Spoiler free: Translations will remain under cut *Join the Light & Night Discord (＾▽＾)~ ♪ *5✩ Inspirations have 5 Endings!! *CG Image used with permission from 蓝咕咕 ☆ *Charlie’s tag will be #For Night, For Paradox

✥ Choice: Heart-throb [心动] ★Night★

How should I reply to him…?

★ E5 NIGHT: Nope★

As an adult well-versed in the horror genre, I was immune to horror movies for the most part.

MC: Of course not. We can bet on it if you don’t believe me.

Charlie: Stakes?

It appears that I had aroused his competitive spirit, for he smiled at me with interest.

MC: How about we bet on… who gets scared out of their wits first?

Charlie: Are you certain? I’ve never once lost a bet.

It was a gamble where the outcome was uncertain. The loser would be the first to lose their composure from fear.

There’s no way I’d admit defeat all so easily in the face of a show-off like Charlie!

MC: Absolutely!

Charlie: Interesting. I accept your challenge.

Charlie: You’re going to be the one losing your pride if you get so terrified afterwards that you can’t move.

Charlie: But, before we commence this bet… Aren’t you forgetting a little something?

MC: What do you mean?

Charlie: Where did you go this morning?

MC: The hospital.

Charlie: Think again. Before the hospital?

MC: Before…? Oh, right! I went out to buy snacks.

I jumped up, running to the door and rummaging through the bag of groceries I’d left there.

MC: What do you want to drink?

Charlie: Beer, like you.

I secured two cans of beer from the contents of the bag… Wait, no! What did he just say? He wants to drink BEER!?

I thought he didn’t drink? I mean, last time…

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During my last day off, Charlie had called me in the middle of one of my drinking moods.

Charlie: You’re drinking your sorrows away at home?

MC: I’m not drowning my sorrows in alcohol. I just felt like I was in the mood to drink; there’s an emotional appeal to it.

MC: Don’t you do the same when you go to bars?

Charlie: ...I do go to the bar, but I don't drink.

MC: ...Oh?

The rumoured star of the night who bombed a ton of money in private clubs is actually a “good boy”?

MC: How's that possible? You're lying, aren't you?

Charlie: Is it that odd to not drink?

MC: ...Not really.

Charlie: It's even odder to think that going to a bar equals drinking.

Charlie: Let’s just put it this way. The only reason why I go to bars is to play.

Charlie: And administering alcohol to the body is the greatest thing one can do to sully the living and perfect human brain.

Charlie: Especially this sort of low-quality alcohol made with fermented malt. 100g of the sweetened water called beer and its low molecular weight generates 180 joules of heat with your body.

Charlie: Drinking beer? Might as well swallow active bombs instead. At least, it’ll be much faster that way.

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So… Just what was going on here? It was one of the principles he lived by. Yet, he was doing a whole 180?

MC: Aren’t you afraid that ingesting alcohol will be an insult to that sober brain of yours?

Charlie: Didn’t someone say that drinking appeals to the mood?

Charlie: I'm with my Fiancée right now. Do you think I should retain a high level of reason, or show a rare moment of dullness?

MC: Do I have a choice?

Charlie: Of course not.

Charlie: Don’t worry. I won’t use the excuse of being inebriated to pull anything funny.

MC: ...Look who’s talking here?

Charlie: I can’t stand those sort of people.

Charlie took the can of beer from me before sitting back down.

Never mind; I'll gladly drop the topic. How can an adult not drink at all? Although, I bet his abstinence is probably so that it doesn't affect his job.

Click! Click!

The crisp sound of cans being opened sounded.

Never thought that he'd open it for me.

MC: Thank you, Dr. Zha!

I naturally held an outstretched hand out, waiting for him to pass me the open can of beer.

However, Charlie didn't react.

Click, click, clack…

The continuous sounds of cans clacking came from him.

I curiously peered over, only to find Charlie staring awkwardly at the cans with his brows furrowed. They were still as intact as they came.

MC: Charlie, don't tell me that not only have you never drunk alcohol, but you also don't know how to open cans…?

Charlie: You're questioning a doctor's practical ability?

MC: Then, you...

Pop!

Charlie had cracked the can open.

He freezes, frantically shoving the beer into my open hand. Then, he shoved his hands into his pockets, putting up a professional act.

Charlie: I have the habit of trimming my nails for surgeries, so it's not convenient for me to be opening cans.

For a moment, I didn't quite know what to say as I looked at our nails. They were nearly equally long.

He doesn’t drink. He doesn’t even know how to open a can. So why does he suddenly feel whimsical enough to start drinking today?

I cracked open his can of beer for him. He carefully wiped the foam that bubbled forth the mouth of the can with a tissue.

Charlie: Just now...

He took a sip of beer and slightly furrowed his brow.

Charlie: It was a mere mistake of a perfect person.

Charlie: It will not happen again.

Saying so, the glint of pride returned to his eyes once more. And the can of beer was quietly pushed far, far away.

MC: Okay, let's get back to watching the movie.

The paused screen lit back into action, encasing the room in a chilling and terrifying atmosphere once more.

The plot gradually thickened and I got increasingly absorbed with the movie.

Everything around me started to fade as I zoned into the movie, Charlie included.

Charlie: *Coughs*

MC: ……

Charlie: (Y/n).

MC: ……

Charlie: Are you really not scared?

MC: Stop moving.

All I could do was to use a free hand to keep Charlie in place as he fidgeted in his seat.

Charlie: ……

In the movie, the prisoner that was on death row managed to successfully escape into a cramped and narrow underground passageway. As muddy water splashed everywhere, the horrible cries of the jailer sounded from the other end of the door to the secret passage.

I'd given my entire self over to the movie at this point, watching the prisoner's every step with peeled eyes. I'd totally missed the faintest of all finger snaps in the world that'd sounded by the sofa.

Squeak…

The door to the entrance opened.

MC: Is the prisoner about to get caught?

However, the movie never cut scenes to show the jailer coming through the door. Still, I was fairly certain that I'd heard the sound of the door opening. And if had also been very clear.

Just as I was about to turn around to ask Charlie about it, I witnessed a bone-chillingly horrible scene…

The door the prisoner had closed suddenly opens. Sinister winds were brewing outside.

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MC: ……

MC: It should be a sealed-off corridor outside. There shouldn’t be any wind…

The more I thought about it, the more terrified I got. All I could see was the epitome of horror in this movie unfolding before my very eyes!

I felt a chill run down my spine; one different from anything I'd ever felt before, its icy tendrils spreading across my body. An alarm sounds in my heart. I was hyper-aware, with all my nerves strung tautly. It was as if any minuscule change in the surroundings would be able to set my senses off.

BANG!

A loud sound rang out in the air as the secret passageway’s metal door was knocked down. The jailer’s savage smile was reflected upside down in the pool of water by the prisoner’s feet.

MC: AH!

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I frantically covered my eyes, subconsciously backing away into the thing I was leaning against.

Crap! I had such a big reaction! He definitely noticed...

Alas, his low voice entered my ears.

Charlie: Scared now?

His warm and powerful arm snaked around me from behind, wrapping itself around me above the blanket.

My searching back hit his chest; and the moment it did, a small yearning for comfort started making itself known within my heart, growing ever more so… Just like a lost traveller who'd finally found the lone source of light deep inside the forest.

Charlie: Admitting defeat this quickly?

Charlie's warm breath brushes against the top of my head, making the shell of my ear burn. Just a little closer and my face would be able to access the crook of his neck.

MC: Am not.

I stubbornly refused to admit defeat, but my feeble voice, muffled by my hand, proved otherwise.

Charlie: If so, then why are you covering your eyes?

Charlie: You're the one who said we're going to be watching this together? Can't live up to your words now?

His chest rumbled slightly. There was undeniable mischievousness in his voice.

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Charlie: Last chance. I’ll count to three. Put your hand down, hm?

Charlie: Three.

MC: I’m not even closing my eyes! See!?

I vehemently glared at Charlie through the gaps of my fingers.

Charlie: Not counted. I don’t advocate such viewing methods.

Charlie: Two.

MC: ...What can you even do to me?

Charlie: You don’t want to admit defeat, but neither do you want to put your hand down. Is there ever a bet so kind in this world?

His bony left hand reached up to cover the back of my hand as he attempted to push my hand back down.

I struggled against him with all my might, but he was way too strong. Hence, I had no choice but to admit defeat in this losing battle.

MC: One. I lose!

Charlie lets up, dropping the strength he’d been putting behind his fingers and ruffling my hair.

Charlie: Why are your lips poised so high up? Mad?

Charlie: Losing to me is nothing to be ashamed about.

Charlie gathered up the blanket that pooled around my waist, inadvertently pulling me closer to him as he did.

I sulked and refused to reply to him. I can’t believe I still managed to get scared by a horror movie when I’m already a full-grown adult! Not only did I lose, but I also feel ridiculed by this!

Still, I didn't want to admit that Charlie's embrace certainly did provide me with a sense of comfort.

Charlie: There, there. Don't be scared. I'm here.

He gently pats the back of my hand, speaking softly in a manner one would comfort a child.

His warm chest pressed against my back as his steady heartbeat resonated alongside mine, beating in tandem.

MC: ……

In hindsight, I realized that I’d always felt at ease and that I could forget about all my troubles whenever I was with Charlie. Even though he never fails to render me speechless and makes me want to roll my eyes at him for the most part.

Maybe it’s because he’s always so frank about things with absolutely no intent to hide anything? I don’t know...

Leaning into Charlie’s embrace, my fear and panic slowly ebbed away.

However, the door still made me feel a little uneasy, and I often found myself looking at it with frazzled nerves.

Suddenly, I noticed something strange about the little tailor alarm clock by the door.

Its hour hand was pointed at 12. The small mechanical tailor that told the time had jumped out of the clock, bobbing as it frantically rolled its measuring tape back up. Yet… I did not hear any chimes from the clock itself.

MC: What's up with today?

MC: Please tell me it’s not an actual supernatural occurrence…

I was just about to ask Charlie about it when a far-fetched reasoning for this suddenly flashed through my mind.

And it ingrained itself in my brain upon appearance, growing ever stronger…

No sound, with only the motions… Why didn’t I think of this earlier?

MC: Charlie?

Charlie: Hm?

MC: Is there anything that can cancel out sound?

Charlie: Why do you ask?

He withdrew his hand and stuffed it back into his pocket. There was a sliver of wariness in his eyes.

MC: It just came to mind. Just answer me.

Charlie: Vacuum. Sound cannot travel without mediums, and there are no atoms or molecules in a vacuum.

MC: And isn’t that your talent?

Charlie: Y-Yes?

I was getting closer and closer to confirming my suspicions.

The door that had suddenly opened without a sound, and the soundless alarm clock. If there was a scientific reason to explain all of those, then it’d be…

Charlie had just created a vacuum inside the door. That way, the air difference in air pressure on the inside and the outside would be able to push the door open.

Pity; but the soundless alarm clock had given me enough hints to piece everything together.

MC: You purposely scared me so I'd admit defeat myself? Well done, Charlie.

The movie was currently showing the part where the jailer collided with the metal door.

Thud, thud, thud…

This sound was vaguely familiar. A sudden idea hits me.

I tugged on the corner of his clothes, purposely lowering my voice.

MC: Charlie, do you hear something?

MC: Thud, thud, thud. Like someone knocking on the door.

Charlie: Are you having auditory hallucinations now? That's coming from the movie.

He held my head with both hands, turning it left and right.

Charlie: You haven't gotten any water stuck in your ears either.

I directly put my finger to his lips and looked around warily.

MC: Not that. Listen carefully.

A distant but very real thud sounded above us.

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Charlie was so terrified that he'd started shaking as he looked up at the ceiling incredulously.

I took the chance to grab onto his arm, leaning sideways to get closer to him and whispered into his ear.

MC: Believe me now?

MC: Actually, I saw something by the door just now and…

Charlie: What! What’s by the door!?

He quickly shot up from the sofa, encasing me in the shadow cast by his tall and wide back.

The movie had been paused, stopping on the dark scene of the secret passageway. The door of my entryway was partially shrouded by the eerie lighting coming from the projector. The creepy atmosphere intensified.

Charlie silently stared into the darkness for a good ten seconds before letting out the breath he’d been holding.

Charlie: What can there be?

Charlie: If ghosts truly do exist in this world, then why would the world ever allow someone as perfect as me, someone, who goes against even the laws of nature, to exist?

The corners of his mouth were raised in their usual arc. Looks like he has already regained his spirits.

The only thing that betrayed the nervousness he felt deep down were his hands that had yet to crease trembling.

He placed both his hands into his pockets, putting on a calm facade as he surveyed the room…

He’s putting his hands into his pockets again? Does he like to do that whenever he feels nervous?

Charlie: Perhaps something fell upstairs. It’s just a coincidence…

He'd only just finished speaking when another thud sounded. This time, it was much more solid, the sound seemingly reverberating through the very air of my apartment.

All colour drained from Charlie's face. I hurriedly stood up.

MC: Do you hear that!?

Charlie: Yeah.

I hid behind Charlie, slowly putting my hand into his shirt pocket. I could feel the slight tremor of his shoulders through the thin fabric of his dress shirt.

Charlie: ...I certainly do hear something.

His adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed down more of his fear. He unwittingly attempted to put his hand back into his pocket… only for it to brush against my hand that had touched the cold beer earlier.

Charlie: AHHH! HELP ME!!

Charlie: SOMETHING’S HERE!

Charlie could no longer maintain his noble attitude. He jolted, frantically throwing his composed facade out of the window as he flung my hand away.

MC: It's me!

Charlie: You…

Charlie gripped onto my shoulder with one hand while the other went to his chest. His frantic breathing slowly eased back to a normal rhythm.

Maybe it’s about time I tell him about “that”?

MC: Actually…

MC: There was once a girl who'd been imprisoned here in this room. She died from starvation here. That's why you'll often hear the sound of the door being knocked in the middle of the night.

MC: I never thought that she'd make an appearance in the morning this time…

Charlie: You're joking, right!?

I shook my head with a pained smile.

I placed both hands on his shoulders as I reached higher. I cupped my hand and got close to his ear and purposefully lowered my voice.

MC: If everything was fine and well at my place, then why would I have to call you here to watch a movie with me?

MC: Don't tell me you're thinking of running…?

Thud!

A resounding thud suddenly rang out, shaking even the walls as it reverberated.

Charlie: AHHHH!!

Charlie lost all his composure, screaming shrilly as he dove for the loveseat. I lost my balance as my knees hit the loveseat.

Amidst the chaos, Charlie had wrapped his arms around my shoulders as we both tumbled into one of the corners of the loveseat.

Charlie's skin was flushed from all the adrenaline, his breaths coming out in short and ragged pants. He was akin to a laboratory mouse who had its amygdala stimulated, lying against my shoulder paralyzed in fright.

His shrill scream earlier still faintly resonated in the air, making my eardrums ring in protest. I could help but recall how confident of himself he looked back when he made the bet...

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

Charlie: You’re going to be the one losing your pride if you get so terrified afterwards that you can’t move.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

MC: Pft- Hahaha! This is way too good!

I couldn't keep up the act anymore. I leaned my forehead against his as I snickered like mad.

MC: Okay, okay. I'm just pulling your leg!

Charlie: ...What?

Charlie: You're joking? But, you— I— Just now…?

Charlie raised his head, looking absolutely appalled. Having just had a tumble, a tuft of hair stuck out from the top of his head.

I grabbed the tuft of hair that stood arrogantly upwards and pushed it back down with a vengeance, smoothing it out in my revenge.

MC: Yeah! Who told you to scare me with your vacuum earlier!

I could acutely feel how his face immediately heated up against my shoulder. Is it because he just found out that I was tricking him? Or is it because of something else?

MC: So, can you get off me now?

Charlie: I refuse.

He simply buried his head into the crook of my neck shamelessly, avoiding my gaze.

Charlie: You'll have to first explain to me just what is going on here.

Charlie’s arms were snugly wound around my body, seemingly threatening not to let go until he’d attained what he wanted.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Is this man truly the same Dr. Zha that was listed on the leaflet detailing the famed doctors of the Hospital...?

MC: The hungry ghost was just a story I made up to scare you

Charlie: Uh-huh.

Charlie: But, just now…

MC: That was just the heating pipes.

MC: The grandpa upstairs turns the heating on at noon every day.

MC: It's going to be summer soon, yet he still keeps it up. Always at 12 sharp. The man's way more on point than the afternoon news broadcast.

Charlie raised his head, his sweat-soaked hair brushing across my cheek. It was a little ticklish.

Charlie: That's it?

MC: Yup!

Charlie: Ahem.

He sat back up, lightly clearing his throat before composing himself. Gone was the embarrassment from having lost his composure.

MC: Phew… You finally let up, huh.

He reflexively smooths out his collar. Soon, he returned to his usual self that you were all so familiar with.

Charlie snaps to attention with his hands behind his back, purposely looking around the room in an off-handed manner.

Charlie: Actually, I could already tell that something was wrong with the structure of this housing apartment the moment I stepped into it.

Charlie: Alas, it was just as I expected. The pipings are so terribly loud.

Charlie turned to look at me, slightly lowering his head and peering down at me in approval.

Charlie: Also, your acting is really good.

MC: ?

Charlie: Actually… I wasn't scared at all.

MC: ??

MC: If so, then may I ask what’s the whole purpose behind the fear that you so kindly expressed earlier?

Charlie: I was merely playing along with you. It’s the greatest form of acknowledgement towards your acting skills.

Just who is playing along with whom, in this case? Is this even up for discussion?

Still, I think his red ears speak louder than words.

Charlie returns to his seat on the loveseat. His familiar warmth envelops me once more.

Charlie: You still lost today.

MC: How did this come back to that?

Charlie: You're the one who got scared out of your wits first. You still have a penalty to serve, so...

Charlie: Comfort me.

He turned his head to the side as he hugged me. His cheeks were a rarely seen shade of red. He was flushed from the neck to the tip of his ears.

Looking at how embarrassed he was, I couldn’t help but find it a little adorable.

The heat in his embrace didn’t make me feel uncomfortable. In fact, it made a reassuring sense of familiarity slowly spread through my heart, like a warm summertime breeze blowing from the side.

I boldly nestled deeper into his arms, basking in the soft dream-like moment.

MC: How rare for you to be so quiet.

MC: Man, if only your first instinct wasn't to pick fights...

Charlie: Please, Miss. It's not like you don't enjoy it either. It'll be over soon enough.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

The movie ends before we know it after the dazed silence that lapsed.

The projector stopped screening once the movie came to a close. The screen blanked out along with my guilt, panic, and fear.

And I’d completely missed the ending of the movie.

MC: Charlie? Do you remember how the prisoner who was sentenced to death got away?

I thought that Charlie would respond immediately in that prideful tone of his, giving me a clear and concise answer. Hell, I was even prepared to withstand another round of his narcissism if that ever came to pass.

Yet, he sounded a little unsteady and unsure, almost as if he too, was thinking of an appropriate answer.

Charlie: ...How did the prisoner getaway? Simple. He defeated the jailer who imprisoned him. All horror movies end the same way.

MC: He defeated… the jailer?

MC: The jailer here is a figment of his imagination; it doesn’t exist.

MC: The prisoner’s trapped in his own dream.

To prove what I’d said, I quickly pulled up the homepage of the movie where the summary and all the reviews were written. I pointed it out to him.

MC: Look, it’s even written in the movie’s summary…

I raised my head to clarify with him, but Charlie chose to completely ignore me, turning his attention to the plush pillow on the sofa. His eyes were very shifty.

Suspicious. VERY suspicious…

MC: Charlie, you… you didn’t take this movie seriously at all, did you?

Charlie closed his eyes in a slight grimace, his eyebrows knitting…

That reaction…. I KNEW IT.

However, he quickly bounces back from that moment of frustration. His expression suddenly turned serious and exaggeratedly grim.

Charlie: (Y/n), life is but a fleeting one.

The hell is this man talking about!?

I didn’t quite know why, but the serious tone he was taking with me sounded vaguely threatening. I could only nod in accordance.

Charlie: I see that you agree as well.

Charlie: If one wishes to have a glorious life as glamorous as the sun in this fleeting period, then some trivialities will have to be forgone.

Charlie: Alas, that movie earlier was an unfortunate one to have been forgone by this perfect life of mine.

MC: ……

MC: I see. I never knew that there was such a poetic way of saying “I don’t remember”.

Charlie: Who says I don't remember?

Charlie: I remember as clear as the day how my Fiancée got so terrified that she burrowed right into my arms.

I helplessly sighed. Looks like it'll be a long time and a good long way before I'll ever manage to understand how that brain of his works.

MC: Then, does the matter of rating and evaluating this projector still exist in your precious time of existence, Dr. Zha?

Charlie: The projector? Average.

Charlie: It's hard for me to be evaluating a projector below $200,000.

Charlie: But, I can consider using it as a console for couples.

He raised an eyebrow, smiling.

MC: And just where are your thoughts running off to?

Charlie: I'm just giving my honest, unbiased opinion.

Charlie: I hope you can convey this precious review of mine to the brand makers. Consider it my good deed for the day.

MC: Alright, Mr. Charitable.

MC: Now, are you quite done with your charitable acts? I'm going to pack the projector up and send it back.

Charlie: Why?

MC: Because… I feel like I don't really need a home theatre.

Charlie stilled my hand with his own, moving to block the projector off from me.

Charlie: Wait. I’ll take it if you can’t find a use for it.

Charlie: Send it to my house next weekend.

MC: You sure about that?

Charlie: Of course, I naturally have the right to accept any common personal property that my Fiancée chooses to give up.

Charlie: Come to my house next week, and don't stand me up.

With that being said, he confidently walked out of the apartment.

The golden sports car parked by the road gave a tremendous roar as it sped up. It soon faded away, replaced by the ever-present bustle of the people on the streets

Watching the silhouette of the car gradually disappear, the events of what had gone on within my apartment resurfaced to the forefront of my mind… Charlie was far more bizarre than any horror film I'd ever watched.

However, it’s as if his appearance was slowly lowering my impenetrable guard over my small piece of land.

Now, as for what will appear in the future… Will it be volcanos? Or channels? Who knows; we’ll just have to wait and see.

⊹ ˚✩ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘◦ ✥ ◦∘ ━━━━━━━━━━━ ✩˚ ⊹

✥ Choose your Ending:

END 1 | Choice: Do Nothing [都不做]

END 2 + 3 | Choice: Approach [亲近] ⊹Touch⊹

END 4 | Choice: Listen [倾听] ❖ASMR

END 5 | Choice: Heart-throb [心动] ★Night★

❖☆————— ⊹ For Night, For Paradox⊹ —————★❖

Previous Part: Prologue

#光与夜之恋 #Light and Night #Otome #Translations #Tencent #查理苏 #Charlie #For Night For Paradox #昼日疑魂 #Daytime Spiritualities

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sanerontheinside · 3 years ago

Note

Shifting sands, sudden storms (title)

For the life of me, I don’t know if this was complete or not anymore. If complete, why still in draft form? If not, what was I thinking? Ah well.

I can, roughly speaking, date this ask. I remember doing the title prompt meme into March of 2018; I remember this because some witty anon submitted 10 titles in one ask and my poor brain shut down. (I’d informally set myself a goal of writing at least a short ficlet for every prompt, which was my first mistake. No shade on the anon either, they weren’t to know. But now I still have a file full of 40-41 titles for which I think one day I might write something.)

anyway this prompt is so old it tagged norcumi’s old blog, which tumblr [also] ate, so I’ve gone and edited that

Eeyyyyy, whaddup, this fic also decided to be part of the Mandalorian Sith ‘verse (which has also adopted another title prompt for ‘verse lore purposes, but that one—I have an idea for it, but I don’t necessarily know how to write the idea. yet.)

Y’all can definitely thank @norcumii for the fact that this fic is Jango&Shmi centric.

“All right, Quin, what do you want?” Obi-Wan drawled. If Quinlan was calling him, then clearly some mission had gone sour. Obi-Wan was still trying to shake off the last time he’d helped him out of trouble with Aayla. And wash the bitter aftertaste of glitteryl out of the back of his mouth.

Qui-Gon squeezed Obi-Wan’s shoulder as he shifted past him, leaving the cockpit to them for some semblance of privacy while he made tea in the ship’s small, but rather practical galley. He hadn’t enjoyed that jaunt into Twi’lek slave trade any more than Obi-Wan had.

“Look, um… It’s a touchy subject. Chancellor Valorum asked Master and me for a favour, he wanted us to take a look at the Trade Federation’s blockade around Naboo.”

“Thought the Senate was supposed to approve all the Jedi assignments now,” Obi-Wan probed carefully. It was a very recent ruling, at that, less than a month old.

“Yeah, hence the favour. We weren’t supposed to be there, and the Trade Federation—whoever’s running the company now grew a pair of gills or something. They blew up our ship, Ben. Then deployed an entire invasion force onto the planet.”

Obi-Wan winced. “Oh, that sounds like fun. What did they want with Naboo, anyway? They’re still fighting over the plasma trade?”

“Naboo’s holding up well, their new Queen—Amidala—well, it’s her first year of rule, but she doesn’t buckle under pressure. They tried to get her to sign a treaty that would make Naboo a protectorate of the Federation. We know how that goes…”

Obi-Wan snorted. “Right. So you got her out.”

“Jumped the blockade. The Naboo pilots are competent, but I miss outrunning smugglers with you and Garen, honest to Force. We got hit, took damage to the hyperdrive. Had to refit—on Tatooine, of all places.”

Obi-Wan grimaced. “Hutts.”

“Sand. Heat. Slaves. Pod races. Anyway, we found this kid, or I should say he found us. He helped us out—a lot—and he’s a blazing nova in the Force, Ben, I’m not kidding. He’s—no one’s ever seen anything like it. Tholme and I, we thought we could buy them out and take them back with us to Coruscant. I mean if you just met him—”

Obi-Wan sat forward sharply and dropped his feet to the floor. “So did you buy them out?”

“Just the kid,” Quin said, audibly deflating. “The owner’s deep in debt. He wouldn’t let the mom go for anything. But I can’t just think of leaving her there, without her son, even. Ben, you could—you and Qui-Gon, you could do something, couldn’t you?”

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow at the audio pickup, fairly sure Quin knew him well enough to hear even silent gestures by now. “What do you want us to do, burn the owner’s house down?”

Quinlan snorted. “Nah, he’s not a bad sort. Well, not the worst. Has faults like anyone else, Ben, you know how it goes. But if you could do anything for the mom… Shmi Skywalker, that’s her name.”

“And you’re sure the Council won’t give you funds for a good cause,” Obi-Wan prompted, but really it was just to confirm what he was sure he already knew.

“Nope. For a slave woman, Ben. She’s—Watto’s really deep in debt. He’d ask for a small fortune.”

Obi-Wan sighed and sat back, sensing Qui-Gon standing in the entry behind him. He knew their schedule and their situation even without asking, but Tatooine… “We can’t, right now,” he said, regretful. “We might know someone in the area, though. Maybe. It’ll be a little while, but we’ll let you know once we get it.”

“Thank you, Ben.” Quin’s relief and sincerity were heartfelt, almost broadcast in a physical wave from the speakers. “May the Force be with you both.”

“And you,” Obi-Wan answered, automatically, flipping the switch off.

There was a moment’s thoughtful silence. “Well,” Qui-Gon said. “Jango?”

“He’s—in the general vicinity of Tatooine,” Obi-Wan allowed.

“That is true. He’ll not want to miss a meeting with that client, however.”

“Why are we letting him do that, by the way?” Obi-Wan asked, watching Qui-Gon slip back into his seat with a sigh.

“It’s his choice,” Qui-Gon shrugged.

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

This sigh was longer and deeper. “What we know, Obi-Wan, is not enough. We don’t know what Dooku is planning; we suspect that he isn’t working alone, but is, rather, under someone’s control; we don’t know why he wants Fett, who would gladly kill my former Master with his bare hands if given the opportunity, for Galidraan. He must have had very compelling reason not to strangle Dooku on the spot.

“We don’t know nearly enough, Apprentice. It would be foolish to lose our lives by interfering, with what little we do know. We cannot help if we are dead.”

Obi-Wan’s lips thinned into a pale line. “I understand, Master. I worry that the cost will be… untenable.”

“So do I.” Qui-Gon reached across the space between them and grasped Obi-Wan’s shoulder, iron-gripped, yet reassuring still. “I have little gift in Foresight, unlike you, but even I sense a great disturbance in the future. It is nebulous, but every day less a likelihood than a certainty. You are right, Obi-Wan, but I fear our deaths will not prevent that cost, only add to it.”

Obi-Wan leaned into the hand on his shoulder, just a little. He’d take what comfort from it that he could get—hells, he’d bask in it, if only for a moment. “I’ll comm Jango,” he said quietly.

The hand on his shoulder squeezed, and did not let go.

~~~~~~~~~

Jango roundly cursed the jetiise every chance he got—which would be every other breath, if he didn’t have to save it to make his way through the heat. The internal life support system of the beskar’gam was supposed to handle this sort of thing, but was barely keeping up with Tatooine’s suns. But it was midday, and Jango was the only idiot outside, so he supposed it was probably his own fault.

He really needed to get the enviro-controls updated. He could afford it now, anyway, and his target was a junk shop owner. If Jango’s luck held, someone at the shop might have experience with Mandalorian work, though he wasn’t really counting on that. The best he expected from this venture was to maybe scavenge a few reasonably functional replacement parts.

The junk shop itself wasn’t hard to find. It was a relief to be out of the Tatooine suns, though his HUD took a few seconds to adjust to the relative darkness within. At least that let up some of the pressure on the life support system.

It wouldn’t have surprised him if the shop were empty. Many desert settlements ran on a different schedule; new arrivals quickly learned to sleep through the hottest part of the day to escape heat stroke, burns, or excessive and dangerous dehydration. To add insult to injury, here the light of the suns was reflected back almost completely from the sands, and that could do irreparable damage to one’s eyes. Jango noticed a being or two whose species had adapted to thrive in such conditions, but they too had taken to the shelter of a dwelling or a cantina fairly quickly.

But he’d been told that the owner of the junkshop was in dire financial straits; it seemed a safe enough bet that he would find a slave working through what ordinarily might have been rest-hours.

When he finally caught sight of her, Jango had to bite back a litany of harsh curses in Jinn’s name.

Jango hadn’t known what this job was for. The dar’jetii had simply handed him a lump sum in mixed Cho Mar and Wupiupi dataries, then given him the name of a slave for purchase. Honestly, if he and Jinn hadn’t both been in the same arena at Galidraan, Jango might have considered pulling details out of the man at gunpoint. Who was this Shmi Skywalker? Why did her freedom come at such a cost? What the hell was Jinn asking him to do, really—start some sort of fresh war among the Tatooine Hutts? In which case Jinn and Kenobi could please handle it on their own, and thank you.

Now that he’d caught sight of her, Jango couldn’t have cared less. He knew her; met her after Galidraan, loaded up with the others from the arena in the hold of a ship too shabby for words, angry and injured and half-mad with grief for the loss of his clan.

Shmi has been the closest to a Healer that the slaves had on that ship, and Jango probably owed her his life.

He’d been staring too long. Shmi looked up, right at him, and Jango belatedly remembered what the beskar’gam looked like to those who’d never been on Mandalore before. It was a warrior’s suit of armour, and the sharp look in Shmi Skywalker’s eye was a wary one, certainly not a look of recognition.

“Choy? Stuta che poonoo mo azal?”1

Jango undid the seals and took off the helmet. “Excuse me. You wouldn’t happen to have updated processors for mobile life support systems?”

The look Shmi gave him was searching, and it pinned him in place for almost a moment too long before she broke away. Shmi carved a systematic path through the junkshop detritus, directed him over to something that actually looked like patches to mobile life support suits with a nonstop stream of available models for him to narrow down. It took a few tries, but he did find what he needed, and even a few spare parts that would never go amiss.

“I hadn’t thought you would have so much here of Mandalorian make,” he noted, a little surprised. “It’s fairly unique work.”

“It is,” Shmi agreed. “The previous owners of the parts you are holding now had a run of bad luck, and upset Gardulla. She doesn’t like cardsharps at her sabacc table.”

Jango frowned down at the parts he’d laid out on the worktable in front of him. “I’ll make a note of it.”

Not that he was here to play sabacc. He had more than enough money to get what he came here for. He just wanted to have a better grasp on the details before he went any further.

~~~~~~~~

Shmi had recognised him almost immediately. It was one of those things she knew with a bone-deep certainty, the way Ani used to tell her of certain things before they happened. They were just hints, but even his words seemed to hold a ring of fact to them, and it was up to Shmi to decipher future-fact from other kinds.

She’d been dreaming about Galidraan. Not, surprisingly, of the broken people who’d been brought aboard there, but of their burning, fierce warrior faces full of light. Shmi dreamt of Jango fighting alongside a tall man with flashing amber eyes that could be both terrifying and kind, and felt as though she should know him, too. But he hadn’t been on the ship with the others, so she supposed that would come to mean something in a peripheral, patient, dripping-cave-water sort of way.

But Jango’s purpose for calling on Watto’s shop was the variable her mild foresight could not account for. When a figure encased in that armour stepped in, Shmi’s first thought was that another bounty hunter had called to collect Watto’s debt to the Hutts. Never mind that the Hutts had already collected their due—the Hutts also never discouraged their ‘messengers’ from looting.

Instead, Jango had bought parts from the very armour worn by an ill-fated pair of previous messengers. (Shmi had been lucky enough to have Watto’s help, and between the two of them they’d made just enough noise to discourage the looters when they’d come to call. Gardulla anger had probably been a lucky stroke for Watto and Shmi; otherwise, they might have expected another attempt the next day.)

Shmi eyed the spread of parts and odd bits of circuitry, and wondered if he was going to fix all of it himself.

“Where are you staying?” Shmi asked. “At the hotel?”

Jango hesitated. “I have—my ship.”

“On the outskirts? Far to walk, with a semi-functional suit at best.”

Shmi offered him a place to sleep in her quarters, and latemeal, and assistance with reprogramming the suit’s computer besides. There was a storm coming, and in return for the stay he’d help her prepare meals for however long the storm raged, and cover the windows and cracks in the door. That was all the payment she needed.

Her home felt empty now, since she’d given Anakin to the Jedi. At least for one night, it might not seem so desolate. The Slave Row would gossip, she knew; but they would always talk, about everything, and offering a pallet to a freeman who couldn’t afford a hotel was not so unheard of.

Jango helped her prepare dinner and tea, and kept her talking. Shmi couldn’t recall how or when they’d gotten to the subject of family, but when she told him of her son, something eased in him. He became less a hunter, wound tight and wary, and a wistfulness crept into his gaze. Shmi knew that look, if she’d seen it rarely.

What of your own family? she wanted to ask, but caught the words back before they could emerge. She didn’t know what had happened to Jango before he’d been loaded up with the others on Galidraan, but Shmi was no fool, either. Jango Fett had never carried himself as anything other than a freeman-warrior, and his fever had left him plagued with horrors all too real not to be fresh and recent memory. She heard whispers from the other slaves, about the loss of an entire clan.

A son, he whispered softly, and Shmi wondered what this man was doing on here on Tatooine, earning a living as a bounty hunter on the dangerous fringes of civilisation. Of course, he wouldn’t say.

But there was a light in his eye that spoke of possibility, and that alone warmed Shmi’s heart.

Later that night, as she settled down to sleep in her room, exhausted, she heard the tell-tale scuff of quiet booted feet pass out through the door and onto the stairs, and caught a whiff of tabacc. Shmi wondered, briefly, what Jango was thinking of, before she drifted off to sleep.

The next day she woke to a sandstorm howling outside and sighed.

~~~~~~~~~~

After years of working with them, Jango was well aware that that Jinn and his quiet shadow weren’t really Jedi. He just didn’t feel like letting go of the suspicion, especially knowing who Jinn’s Master was. Still, Jango could probably acknowledge that it was mostly paranoia humming in his skull. Jinn’s reputation as a diplomat held fast in certain circles, but any association with the Order had eroded over the years.

Of course, Jinn still worked with Jedi, which never failed to set Jango’s teeth on edge when Jinn asked him for ‘help’. Most times, the man made sure Jango didn’t have to cross paths with members of the illustrious Order; and even when he did, Jango found himself working with the wilder sort, the jetiise who lived hard on the Outer Rim along with everyone else, or hovered just on the edge of completely cracked.

Perhaps it was telling that altogether there were few Jedi whom Jinn trusted. Jango could count them on one hand. There was the Weequay and his younger Twi’lek partner who’d been harrying slave traders for the last three decades, both looking every inch of Rim pirate. Then there was the Kiffar—Jango never wanted to be on his wrong side. They were all a bit rough around the edges, but Vos was a different kind of crazy.

Jango himself had a limited contract with Jinn, if one could even call it that. He agreed to help out Jinn on the basis of time spent together in a cell and a fighter arena on Galidraan, and Jinn had earned Jango’s respect on shaky ground. What struck him at the time was how Jinn had looked when Jango mentioned the woman Dooku had with him, Komari. Whatever damage Dooku had left Jinn with, that man understood the importance of family. Jango saw it in the way Qui-Gon looked after Obi-Wan, in the way Obi-Wan kept either an eye or an ear on Jinn; in the way the two fought, making space for each other like flowing water. These were people who understood that family was more than blood, more than shit guardians who were supposed to look after you.

Which was why, Jango thought, Qui-Gon knew exactly what had motivated Jango to accept Dooku’s offer. Kenobi had been furious, but Jango thought that was more incidental than directed at him personally. It wasn’t as though the idea of Count Dooku creating an army was a particularly savoury idea in any context.

But Dooku had come to Jango Fett with an offer, claiming that the soldiers would all be his clones. That made it Jango’s army.

Jango wanted his family back—the True Mandalorians, all of them. All those men and women who had been cut down on Galidraan decades ago. Part of him still wanted to rip out Dooku’s throat with his bare hands. But that ache for his family—that was so much stronger.

The clones… it wouldn’t be the same. It couldn’t be. Yes, Mandalorians were trained for to fight, prepared for anything. But those clones of himself—not only did was it strange to think about, millions of copies of Jango Fett, living apart from him—but he couldn’t put out of his mind the simple fact that these were men bred for slaughter. Jango would train them, yes; he would give them everything they needed to survive. But a cold certainty sat in his gut, that not a single one of these soldiers was meant to live past whatever war they’d been created for.

If Qui-Gon could sense what Jango wanted, what he intended to make of these clones, then he likely knew of their intended fates, as well. It wasn’t as though the dar’jetii was stupid. Obi-Wan, too: Jango couldn’t read the boy on his best days, but when he’d told them about Dooku’s offer he’d felt the air heat around the redhead, smelled ozone, and could have sworn he’d seen sparks fly about Jinn’s Apprentice while Jinn wasn’t looking. The entire time Kenobi’s face had been smooth with implacable calm. Jango had been, admittedly, quite impressed by that.

And a little turned on, but gods knew Jinn would have cut off something important if Jango had so much as thought of making a move. And that was if Kenobi didn’t get there first.

Dooku had, however, offered him a very impressive sum of money for the privilege of training Mandalorian warriors. Money was of a distant concern to Jango after family, but then, this was the kind of money that took care of everything. This was the kind of buy-a-moon retirement haul smugglers and thieves dreamed of—and only when high out of their heads on spice, at that.

It had almost been enough to keep him quiet, but in the end he hunted down the dar’jetiise anyway and told Jinn and Kenobi about it. He figured Jinn would probably like to know that Dooku was trying to manipulate Bando Gora business, anyway. Mostly, though, Jango had made up his mind when Dooku asked him to kill the new leader of Bando Gora. Hells, Jango hadn’t enjoyed telling Qui-Gon that his ‘sister’ was completely out of her skull on deathsticks, or that Komari was the power behind the sudden expansion of the deathstick trade.

~~~~~~~~~~

1Choy? Stuta che poonoo mo azal? = What? [Are you] looking for business or trouble?

Note: Azalus = dangerous or hazardous.

Huttese does not actually have a word for trouble, surprisingly. So, in the spirit of making your own: trooba is trouble, but azal quite specifically indicates you’re gonna get deadly trouble, or at least you’ll fucking hurt when I’m through with you, the fuck do you want with this shop?

Shmi could probably live up to that threat, even.

Trooba is a step above nuisance (hotshuh). Can also be used to cover anything from ‘expensive spice-dumping, tail-squishing smuggler’ to Sy Snootles. It’s also entirely possible it’s a borrowed or corrupted word from Basic.

#Jango Fett #Shmi Skywalker #Mandalorian!Qui-Gon #Mandalorian Sith 'verse #Qui-Gon Jinn #Obi-Wan Kenobi #Quinlan Vos #wild ficcage and au spawn #Anonymous #this prompt is so old it tagged norcumi’s old blog

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izzyizumi · 3 years ago

Video

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DigiAdvs {Adv-Tri-Kizuna-2020} x BELLE A.M.V. {Version #1} featuring DUO/O.T.P: - KouTai / Taishiro[u] ( Koushiro Izumi x Taichi Yagami ) {with cameos: Izumi family, Tentomon [mainly only at start]}; {Tri: Yamato/Sora from Soushitsu [Loss]; + Meiko pre-her reveal as a Chosen intro moment from Saikai [Reunion]}

Summary:

“ WHO IS [ IZUMI KOUSHIRO ? ] ”

“ WHO IS [ YAGAMI TAICHI ? ] ”

Contains scenes from: - Adventure {Ep38 and Ep21} -- the Ep38 scenes at start are mainly meant as filler/to fill it out; but also because I wanted those emotional slower moments in early since the rest of song is fast - Tri {as mentioned above}; – “Taiorato”-esque/implied moments from Soushitsu [Loss] (Not full-on Taiorato here, but… more for Taichi characterization) - Kizuna {beginning moments ~ Opening Theme scenes only}; – mostly just nice looking moments - Adventure 2020 {KouTai/Taishiro’s meeting in Ep01}; -- some moments of Koushiro & Chosen from final battle - Our War Game {Koushiro + Taichi}; -- some moments at the end I left with spoken dialogue on for emphasis; (I haven’t been able to sub them yet, but you get the idea...!)

Notes: Adventure Ep. 21 {“Koromon, the Great Clash in Tokyo!”}; “Our [/Children’s] War Game” [2nd Adventure film w/Omegamon]; and BELLE were ALL directed/animated by Mamoru Hosoda. - and Adv. 21 and OWG both notably (Adv 21)/HEAVILY (OWG) featured Koushiro Izumi. {Hence, this A.M.V.!}

Time spent: just under 2 hrs (1 hr 30 min on the 1st minute alone) I initially wanted to add in a bit more shots of both from 02 and Kizuna, but couldn’t fit it all in as hoped (at this time). So this will have to do for now, but hopefully it’s still enjoyable.

{Additional note: this post is mainly intended AS SHIP/OTP {Taishiro[u]} but can also be read as semi canon compliant analysis. However please remember + RESPECT this when interacting please tag only as the ship name and DO NOT tag as only “brotp” or the like only*, thank you!} (*It is ok if you tag as “friendship” or the like along WITH the ship!!) {Failure to acknowledge interacting rules WILL result in a block}

[Note: commenting/tagging positively/respectfully is ok!] (Please AGREE TO BANNERS BEFORE interacting) (Note: click on the banners to enlarge!)

(Lyrics under the ‘read more’!): {recommended to read them before watching!}

Melody, be my guide!

I want to picture a world where a {simple song?} can make the difference

Each day I wake, searching

{Interlude faster moment}:

I don’t want to imagine a future without you

I can’t do that.

{Faster verse}:

But you’re gone, the answer escapes me

Seems like everyone else HAS it figured out

Still, tomorrow will come…

Melody, be my guide!

It makes me sick Why is everybody so {happy}? Do you really need someone to {LOVE*}?

[* = “Aishiteru”]

{End verse}: When I'm alone like this, I get so anxious Melody, guide me! I don’t care what happens!!

Melody, stay by my side

Whatever comes, I won't back down...

#our war game #koushiro izumi #taichi yagami #taishiro #taishirou #taichi x koushiro #koutai #koushiro x taichi #izumi koushirou #taikoumei #taikourato #koutaiorato #taikouratomei #(Kind Of but also the intent of this one is mainly the OTP)#(I am personally open to polyships and multi shipping however and dont mind)#(Multiple interpretations of my works so!!)#(However the intent should not be to overlook the KouTai in favor of your ship)#(on a personal level I like Taiora mainly as platonic BFFs)#(I also like Meichi as Meiko being someone who also comes into Taichis life)#(even if not necessarily with them as each others 'first choice')#(or with her choosing to stay with him)#(but Meikos only here for that one introductory moment)#(because WMM does Not allow me to do all the things I'd actually like to do)#(I might have added in a bit more of KouTaiorato too if it would just LET ME...)#(Ideally I'd like to fit in small moments of Mimi and Jou supporting them too)#(but yes my editing program was already fighting me by the end)#(I hope thats a clear enough explanation of how I think this should be viewed but lol)#(Anyway @ Hosoda @ Hosoda @ hOSODA Your FrAMINGS AND ALSO @ TOEI)#(Im Not The One Creating This Series or Writing The Scripts but)#(I Think Theyre Friends TM)

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lycorogue · 4 years ago

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Hey girl! For your "Ask about WIPs" game, I'm interested in "I Don't Care" and/or "Seduce with Caution." Hope you're well, stay safe!!

Hey right back! I am doing well. Hope the same for you and yours.

[WIP tag game: my list]

Ya know what, no one else has played yet, so I'll go ahead and indulge. 😀

I Don't Care

This story actually started life as a "tumblr exclusive" one-shot called Stranger in a White Dress (published here May 2018). It was actually one of the first fanfics I posted to Tumblr. It was inspired by the song "Play Me Like a Violin" by Stephen (*warning: the music video has flashing bits, so those with photosensitivity, please be careful if you watch instead of just listen).

I don't know why specifically I latched onto Gabriel Agreste and Emilie Graham de Vanily, but it seemed appropriate somehow. The story was them having a meet cute in college. Emilie would have blown into Gabriel's life for a few minutes, stole a kiss unexpectedly, and then blew back out of his life just as abruptly.

The story stayed like that for quite some time. Then, August 2019, I heard the acoustic version of Ed Sheeran's song "I Don't Care". At first blush, the song sounded like something my husband would sing, but the more I listened the more I realized it could be Gabriel singing about/to Emilie. This song was kind of the theme of the Agrestes' relationship, in my opinion. Hence stealing the song title for the story's title. I took the first verse about being at a party, and continued my story. Gabriel was dragged to a party by his flatmate, and Emilie coincidentally was there. The two reconnected, and Gabriel turned a one-time chance encounter at a club into a potential relationship.

I'm not entirely sure where else to go with this story, aside from knowing I want it to be the love story between these two. Possibly ending with Adrien's birth. Possibly continuing until Emilie's "disappearance." Not sure which yet. However, this whole story is a bit of a slow process while I wait for inspiration to strike again, mostly by way of new music. I have been a touch obsessed for the past year with the songs "2AM" by MK (feat Carla Monroe) and "Say You Won't Let Go" by James Arthur as a back and forth between Emilie and Gabriel respectively (the fact that "2AM" has a female vocalist and "Say You Won't Let Go" has a male vocalist just makes it all the better). The only snafu there is that this would be a chapter about them drinking too much while out, and/or Emilie drunk calling Gabriel and asking for him to spend the night with her. As spontaneous as I like making Emilie, it seems a bit abrupt considering where their relationship stands at the end of the 2nd chapter. So I want to come up with a buffer one showing their first official date as my 3rd chapter. I'm just not sure what said date should look like yet. Thus this WIP sits in waiting.

If you want to read the first two chapters, you can find them over on AO3, FFN, or DA.

Seduce with Caution

This one is actually my current WIP. It's also my first foray into Miraculous Ladybug smut (aged-up, of course).

For some reason, August brings out the smut in me (is it the warm weather?), and I've written other smutty fics during that month in the past. Most have never seen the light of day. I've written a couple using the X-Men OCs created for my husband's play-by-post role-play game. I've written one using my D&D character and one of her partymates. The only smut I've officially published though was my interpretation of a handwaved sex scene in the book Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (mostly because the series was fairly unknown and that book had been published 7 years prior, so I figured not many would even find my smut).

I have never tried ML smut before though, despite enjoying a lot of the ones I've found. I just couldn't get past the mental image of the Love Square as 14-year-olds.

Last year, however, while reading Dressed to Confess by @zenmisery , she had a bit where Chat Noir's costume acted as a bit of a magical chastity belt. For some reason, that gave me this fantastic concept for a MariChat sex scene. I started working on it, but I realized that it seemed too abrupt of an interaction between these two characters without also having the story be post-reveal and the two of them being in a relationship. The concept, though, would have been how MariChat could spend a night together without Marinette finding out who Chat Noir is under the mask first. The whole premise crumbles if they're already in a relationship and/or it's post-reveal.

I just couldn't get the balance right, and so I abandoned the story. Right around December, I tried again by backtracking a touch to include the seduction and foreplay leading into the sex scene. That too seemed a bit left-field. It felt like glorious crack, and I was tempted to just run with it because crack is a fantastic story "genre" but I... just can't find it within myself to do so. So the story was abandoned again.

This past August I revisited the story once more. After 3 or 4 false starts, I tried backing up even further with my story's starting point. Now this story has become a slow-burn, sexual tension, blushfest. There's implied masturbation, and later chapters will include make-out sessions with heavy petting, but the actual true-blue smut won't show up until the final chapter or so. So my "Porn without Plot" has become "so much pining with a sprinkle of smut thrown in for flavor". 😅

I still don't have a concrete story figured out, but the working summary is: "While 19yo Chat Noir tries to demonstrate to Marinette his new 'moves' to try to win Ladybug over, he accidentally seduces Marinette. Now she has to come to terms with the knowledge that she finds him sexy and highly desirable, all while still holding a flame for Adrien. Meanwhile, Adrien has to wrestle with the knowledge that he found Marinette getting hot and bothered over him a major turn-on. Chaos ensues."

Considering it kept me over a year to write just the first chapter (but only 3 days to write the second one), I want this story complete before unleashing it onto the world. I also need to build up the confidence to let the rest of the fandom read my first ever MariChat smut soooooooooooooooooo..........

ANYWAY, yup. That's what's up with I Don't Care and Seduce with Caution.

A romance story between young Gabriel and Emilie where I humanize Gabriel....

And a slow-burn MariChat smut story that will only really include anything explicit in the last chapter or so.

Thanks so much for the ask! This was fun. Feel free to ask me more!

I've also talked about my original WIP Glitches here, here, and here, as well as talk about my other Gabriel-humanizing project When Love Matters here.

#writing #LycoRogue writing #rikareena ask #LycoRogue answers #WIP tag game #talking about my WIPs #Miraculous Ladybug #ML #ML fanfics #fanfics #I Don't Care #Seduce with Caution #please ask me things #long post

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pebblysand · 4 years ago

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[the thoughts on canon-compliance you did not ask for.]

last night between 2 and 3 in the morning (look, i couldn’t sleep, got up to write, then got caught up, okay? don’t judge me for my terrible sleeping patterns please) i had a super interesting discussion with a few people on the hinny discord channel about the definition of canon-compliant-ness. i think this is fascinating because to be honest, before getting into the hp fandom, i didn’t even think this was something one could disagree about. to me there was what was canon, and what wasn’t. a very black-and-white sort of system. i’m finding that it’s not.

through the discussions that i’ve had both on my fics and other people’s fics, it seems that i can narrow down - in the hp fandom - three elements of canon.

i. the events of the books/films

now, as a general disclaimer, you can obviously argue about whether the films are ‘canon.’ you can also argue whether cursed child is canon. there’s a lot of elements which differ between those and lots of opinions about how to look at them. personally, i tend to ignore cursed child. as to the books v. films, i pick and choose what suits my story more. generally, that’ll be the books. but for instance, i’m writing a harry&hermione friendship one shot right now, and there are a lot of movie-isms in that story because that is an aspect that was more explored in the films. however, for the purposes of this post, i’m mainly considering the source material to be the seven books. nothing more or less.

having said that, to me personally, that’s what ‘canon’ is: the events of the story and the characters that gravitate around those events, as described in the source material. things like: tom riddle killing lily and james, or harry, ron and hermione rescuing the philosopher’s stone. anything departing from that is, de facto, an ‘au.’ the whole world of what-if scenarios: what if Harry was sorted into slytherin, what if dudley was a wizard, all of those, to me, are aus.

generally, both as a reader and a writer, those are not scenarios i’m particularly drawn to. my default answer to those what-if scenarios is: ‘well, if harry is sorted into slytherin, there’s no story.’ or at the very least, there’s no story as i know it, and if there’s no story as i know it, then i’d rather read/write original fiction. it’s obviously a very personal preference and there are exceptions to this preference. i loved the changeling [1] for instance, and love the self-aware style of dirgewithoutmusic’s aus [2]. but as a general rule, that is not my preferred genre.

now, aside from the what-if scenarios, there’s also the question of filling in the gaps of the story itself. like, i find it interesting that we only make tsunamis [3] is labelled as ‘canon-compliant’ because i get the feeling that a lot of people would disagree that a fic in which hermione is harry’s first kiss is canon compliant. but, by exploiting the silence sometimes left by the author and turning it to your advantage, are you writing an au? is a negative space canon? is silence canon?

again, as a matter of personal opinion, i would not push my definition of canon-compliance as including blank spaces. to me, as long as it does not contradict the letter of the text, adding in events to the books to suit your story (i’ll address character in point ii) does not make your fic an au. to give another example that was brought up to me regarding my own work, i don’t believe that the events described in chapter nine of castles [4] are au because they exist in a blank space of the books. the fact that harry didn’t notice the 1:1s between ginny and amycus doesn’t mean they didn’t happen, it just means that they’re not in the positive space described by the books.

ii. the characters/characterisation

(as a quick vocab note, please note that below, i’m using the terms ‘ooc’ to mean that the characterisation of a character in a fic is not canon-compliant. they’re synonyms to me.)

now, while the above was pretty straight forward, i believe that this is where i perhaps differ from the masses in my interpretation of what “canon-compliance” means. more i discuss with people, the more i realise that i don’t really think there’s a real ‘canon’ characterisation. or at least not in the big things. like, yeah, it’s canon that harry likes treacle tart, because that’s a fact. but anything that is down to psychology or perspective of the character is, to me, generally up for grabs.

as a human, i believe that there’s things that people do, events that they go through, that condition them to act a certain way. while there is a core to every human being, i personally believe that in life, anyone would basically be capable of doing anything, given the right circumstances. i’ve recently - rightfully - been told my writing is all about the power of choice in our life, the reasons why we make those choices and the people those choices lead us to be. for example, do i think i might murder someone tomorrow? probably not. do i think i might be capable of murdering someone in wartime? perhaps? i don’t know, that’s not the world i live in and my life choices have not lead me to find out the answer to that. however, my point is: to me, good ‘characterisation’ is down to the circumstances and choices outlined in any work of fiction. hence, good characterisation is essentially, to me, equal to good writing.

i often say that good writing could make me believe anything and i mean it. i don’t tend to gravitate towards these fics because these ships are not my personal taste but i genuinely believe that good writing could make me believe in drarry or rarry if it tried. it’s funny because over the course of the discussion yesterday on discord, this was brought up ‘well, no one tags drarry as canon compliant,’ and i’m kind of like, i don’t know whether or not they do because i don’t read it but if they did and none of it contradicted the events as detailed in the books, perhaps it could be? like, that would take really good writing (imo), but good writing has - on occasion - made me believe in dramione a couple of times, so why not? in ‘til the sirens come calling [5], good writing made me 100% believe that harry and hermione would have an affair together. in we only make tsunamis [3], it makes me believe that they had this quiet little relationship building throughout hogwarts that we never knew about.

now, though, i suppose the question isn’t: do i believe it? the question is: is it canon? and, i think that’s where i differ from most people because to me, it is. to take ‘til the sirens come calling [5] as an example, i believe the fic is an au because hermione marries victor krum in the end. that’s going against the hard fact presented by the epilogue, and thus makes it an au. but i don’t believe the concept of a harmony affair is inherently au, because nothing is inherently au, character-wise. it’s about how you write it. how those people get to that place. that’s what makes canon-compliantness, in my opinion.

for example, for that fic, truth be told, we don’t know what those nineteen years include per canon, so they could very much include an h/hr affair. and whilst i don’t believe that the characters as they are in the books would have an affair together, i believe that the characters as they are presented in the fic, with the events and hardships that they go through, definitely would. good writing, to me, is - in part - recognising that characters are moving on a spectrum and that whilst their decisions/actions might not make sense in book-verse, they make sense in fic-verse. good writing is convincingly moving your characters from book-verse to fic-verse, and it not feeling ‘off.’

if it does feel off, that is bad writing to me, and that is also ooc-ness/non-canon compliant. it means that for whatever reason, the writer has not successfully transitioned and explained said transition through the events outlined in the story. with the right prose, you could make me believe draco decided to take on a career as a ballerina dancer after the war, and it would still be ‘canon-compliant’ to me. on the other hand, i have read fics (i won’t name them because that would be shit and also i don’t keep track of my ‘bad’ reads) where harry, ginny, hermione, or ron all act according to book canon and yet, their motivations felt off to me and completely ooc because the writing didn’t successfully lure me in. specifically, there was a lack of character evolution that i found uninteresting. i read mostly post-war stuff because i want to see my characters grow up [6].

as a last, additional note on characters, i also think that the characters in a story only exist within the prism of how we view them. this means that to me, locking my own understanding of a character's personality as 'canon' is particularly difficult because my understanding of a character is unique. i believe there are as many harry-s or ginny-s or hermione-s as there are readers. so i think saying someone's interpretation of a character isn't canon-compliant is odd because i don't actually believe there's any wrong or right answer. as i said, do i believe it likely that draco would become a professional ballerina? no. but if that works within your understanding of his character as described in the books, who am i to say that is or isn't canon compliant? i'll admit, the idea makes me sort of lol though.

iii. tone

lastly, i’ve come to find (in potter particularly) that canon-compliance might include tone. as in: hp is a story that is a) written in a certain style and b) written for children/young adults.

regarding style at a), this is honestly the main reason why it took me 15 years to write potter fic, despite the fact that i’ve been a fan for even longer than that. i genuinely thought you had to write like jkr. and i, well, don’t write like jkr. i love the books, but i don’t even particularly like her style. i like: camus, and sorj chalandon, and sally rooney, and dirgewithoutmusic and copper_dust [7]. i have zero ambition to write like jkr and don’t particularly want to read stuff that is written like her stuff either. it’s a style that imo works for her, but it doesn’t work for me as written by other people. i don’t particularly think you need to stick to her style to be canon-compliant.

which brings me onto my actual point: b) hp is a story written for children. young adults perhaps, for the later books. it sometimes explores dark themes but the writing style, the tone, etc. is lighthearted enough that it appeals to a younger audience. there’s snogging but there’s no sex, there’s violence but the torture is mostly off-screen, etc. issues like sexual assault, substance abuse, etc. aren’t explicitely brought up in the books, although they would one hundred percent fit in a book about a war that wasn’t necessarily aimed at children. the question is whether this setting and tone is part of what we call ‘canon-compliance.’

honestly, i don’t know. i didn’t think so until it was brought up to me that castles might be a dark!au and i was like: maybe? like, if you want it to be? i know what i like to read in fanfic: i love the exploration of serious themes that were not explored in the books, or explored differently due to the fact that they were written for children. one thing i will say and insist on is that i don’t think castles is all dark. i actually make a point of having lighthearted moments in each and every chapter, even just a notch, because i am attached to the fact that life as a concept is a mixture of good and bad, and you could laugh at the funeral of someone you loved, again in the right circumstances. but yeah, to me the post-war world is dark. so if tone is part of canon-compliance, then yeah in that way castles (as well as most of the stuff i read, to be honest), is a dark!au.

as a last side note, i’m not sure what that means for my other, lighter stuff though. like are the wolf’s just a puppy [8] or slipped [9] more canon-compliant than castles? i never thought about it in those terms but perhaps? it really opens up a world of questions in my mind and i don’t really have the answers to them.

conclusion:

so in sum, as a reader, what i mean as ‘canon compliant’ is basically a) the events as described in the source material and b) the characterisation of characters as they are at the start of the fic. if character evolution is sufficiently justified and well-written in the following thousands of words that the fic has, then said characterisation can still be canon-compliant, even if the characters act different than they would have in the source material itself. i’m a fan of good writing and good writing can make me buy into literally anything. it takes me places that i've never been before and convinces me that those places are the ones i should be in.

as a writer, i hope that regardless of 'compliance,' whatever i write at least makes ‘sense’ to people within the universe, even if they don’t consider it canon-compliant, per se. i feel like i can’t really be the judge of that. from the discussions we had last night, i feel like there are as many versions of what is and isn't canon-compliant as there are people.

---

[1] the changeling by annerb

[2] the boy with a scar series by dirgewithoutmusic

[3] we only make tsunamis by disOrdely

[4] castles by yours truly

[5] ‘til the sirens come calling by vexmybones

[6] as a side note and to take my own stuff as an another example, i totally agree that harry in castles isn’t harry in the books. i don’t think there’s much debate to be had in that assertion. i wrote him like this frankly because every other fic i’d read didn’t. they often had him sort of continue to be perfectly himself after the war, which i felt wasn’t speaking to me on a deeper level. imo, i think the war’s done a lot of scarring and the fic is about him growing into a new version of himself. so, to me, if i get a comment that says ‘i don’t think harry would act this way but i really love your writing’ it’s somewhat flattering but also confusing because i don’t really understand how one can enjoy the writing but not the characterisation. to me, they’re so intrinsically linked. what the comment tells me is: i think you did a very poor job at explaining character evolution and justifying character x’s [harry’s] choices but i still like your writing, somehow? i suppose that’s nice, but it doesn’t particularly compute in my brain. like, if the character feels off, it means the writing feels off and thus, why are you still reading? i appreciate all and every comment that i get but it doesn’t mean they always make sense in my own brain. if i’m honest, these comments often send me into an ocean of self-doubt about how shit my writing must be.

[7] copper_dust’s work and profile.

[8] the wolf’s just a puppy (and the door’s double locked), again by yours truly

[9] slipped (and said something sort of like your name), same.

#writing #fic writing #canon compliant #the meaning of words #pebblysand goes off a tangent #also general disclaimer that these are my thoughts #there's no wrong or right answer #it's just my own thoughts about the meanings of words

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sugarplum-senpai · 4 years ago

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Magpie, Part 3: Chapter Count, Posting Schedule, Additional Tags & More

Today, Magpie chapter 79 started the final story part, and I’m so excited to walk these last steps with you guys.

(art by @flanpu with the allowance to post—thank you so much)

Chapter Count

As already announced, Magpie will have 100 chapters in total. I concluded the draft last week and was able to hit the bullseye. I find it slightly ironic, given how snk initially was planned with as many instalments, and though @ittybittyteapot called it while I was still convinced I’d need 90 chapters max, here we are.

Posting Schedule for Part 3

Although editing isn’t entirely finished yet, I want to share this story with as little delays as possible. Which is why I will tighten the posting schedule to two chapters weekly: every Monday and Thursday.

From your feedback I know many of you rely on the weekly update and cherish it, best of all would like it to never end. I can’t express how moved I am, and must admit this constant schedule has been a blessing for me as well lately. But I need the story out of my head so I can fill my head with fresh words and stories.

New Tags for the Verse

In addition to the quicker posting, I decided to add a few more tags to this fic’s description. Outworn as the Hurt/Comfort tag often may be, this story and especially the upcoming sections live on this emotional undertow, and the new tag should give readers a clearer sense of what they’re heading into. This also concerns the Fix-It tag and, if not especially, the Underground tag since there will be further elements ahead that collide with our generally modern times and hence concept. Lastly, I added the divergence tag…with the manga coming to an end soon and having taken very different paths in the last four years, I thought I probably should.

The divergence tag, I also added to the other series parts, including the additional Fix-It tag for Sparrow (Revised).

Refreshed Polish in Other Series Parts

With concluding the Magpie draft, it felt right to recheck with former story parts for detail consistency and rounding-up purposes. In coherence with that, I undertook a final polish to Nuthatch and am currently working on the same for Sparrow (Revised). I doubt Swallow will need one, but we’ll see.

This polish mostly concerns minor sentence refurnishing, and though there is nothing story-changing added or removed, I did tweak in a very few minuscule details that will tie to Magpie and other story parts and hence improve your reading experience.

I also corrected a little consistency mistake in Magpie chapter 12, where Briar’s hair was described as dark when it’s clearly red. ;)

Personal

I can say without any regrets writing this final section has been a challenge. There are emotionally terrible sections ahead, but also emotionally glowing ones that made me overflow with love for the characters during writing, and I personally think this final part is the essence of my story. Its heart, its soul, and its roots.

I very much hope you love what I made of it. Comments and feedback, no matter how brief or long or in whichever language or coherence, always make my day and let me know you’re out there, reading and cheering along. Thank you so much for all of your support. This story wouldn’t be what it is without each one of you.

#announcement #sparrowverse #fic: Magpie #fic: Nuthatch #fic: sparrow #fic: Swallow #personal #my writing #thank you

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zirkkun-uthcs · 5 years ago

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Generic Headcanons (Sanses)

This list includes short bits of information on the various Sanses to be included on this blog. If you’re looking for a specific one, please use CTRL+F to search for the AU, due to the length of this list. Reminder as well that most of this information is entirely headcanon. If there’s canon information that I’ve messed up somewhere on this, please let me know so I can fix it and adjust accordingly!

Please note: When answering asks, I will first list the character being requested in the format of AU!Sans, but the nicknames here are listed because sometimes I drift off while writing and lean towards those names.

Undertale

Nickname/s: Comic, Tale Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / asexual

+ takes a lot of time to like someone at all, usually by default doesn’t trust people + isn’t a fan of physical contact, but if someone was to manage to get close to him, he’s incredibly cuddly + horrible with directions, will get lost really easily; uses shortcuts to make up for it

character tag

Underswap (original concept by p0pcornpr1nce, who has left the fandom and deleted the content)

Nickname/s: Blue Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: non-binary Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / bisexual

+ is a pun connoisseur; will only accept the best puns, anything less is just unacceptable + is emotional, but tries to hide it because he feels the need to keep on a strong persona for the sake of everyone else + is secretly an incredibly talented writer and has a lot of written works in his room

character tag

Underfell (original concept by Vic the Underfella)

Nickname/s: Red, Fell Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: panromantic / pansexual

+ is extremely self-conscious and hides this by acting like as much of a confident asshole as possible + crushes incredibly easy due to the lack of caring people he has in his life, but refuses to believe he’s lovable + secretly hates cats. doomfanger may or may not be the cause of this

character tag

Underlust (original concept by nsfwshamecave, who has left the fandom.)

Nickname/s: Lust, Lusty Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: biromantic / bisexual

+ is secretly a hopeless romantic, but has yet to meet anyone interested in romance over sex, so he takes what he can get + flirts with anything that breathes; has a plethora of horrible pick-up lines + has been outside of his own AU and is well-versed in the multiverse

character tag

Xtale (by jakei)

Nickname/s: Cross Date of Birth: Oct. 10th Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / bisexual

+ has difficulty trusting anyone anymore due to the betrayal he’s had in the past + he finds comfort in doodling or other art-related things, and can often be found locked away for hours doing so + will wear literally anything but his uniform when no one’s around, no matter how stupid it looks

character tag

Ink (by myebi/comyet) (same headcanons apply to Underverse!Ink)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: April 15 Height: 3′9″ / 116 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: aromantic / asexual

+ his ink vials’ colors represent: green = comfort/safety, yellow = joy/energy, orange = encouragement/creativity, red = wrath/violence, pink = love/care, purple = lust/attraction, blue = sadness/concern, cyan = calm/relaxed + refuses to ever drink his pink or purple vials anymore due to the fact he doesn’t want to mislead people into thinking he cares about them + his tastes change based on what emotions he’s feeling/ink he’s drank

character tag underverse-specific

Pale (by unu-nunu-art/unu-nunium)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: May 26th Height: 3′9″ / 116 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: aromantic / asexual

+ clings to people who help him literally only once, because he considers all nice gestures as “Oh, so we’re friends now?” + appreciates any and all physical contact and can get a bit nervous if he’s near someone but can’t hug them + when he absorbs an AU for emotions, he has even more emotions that Ink does, but it’s far more temporary

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Fresh!Ink (by myebi/comyet)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: ??? Height: 5′0″ / 152 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: aromantic / asexual

+ is a parasite like Fresh is, but isn’t the same exact one; they exist as separate beings + doesn’t ever really drink ink vials, hence why he’s replaced them with his spray cans entirely, which just contain normal pain + enjoys making large street-art style murals, but never keeps them, so he places them in hugely inconvenient parts of the multiverse just to annoy people

character tag

Error (by loverofpiggies/CrayonQueen) (same headcanons apply to Underverse!Error)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: April 4th Height: 5′4″ / 163 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / demisexual

+ doesn’t trust anyone and would rather just dispose of someone before he gets the chance to even try and trust them + has tried to delete his own emotions on several occasions, but concludes he must lose his SOUL to do so, and is too scared he’ll die + lacks logic due to the fact that he’s a glitch in a program, meaning he can no longer create logical conclusions

character tag underverse-specific

Template (by unu-nunu-art/unu-nunium)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: April 3rd Height: 4′5″ / 135 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / demisexual

+ constantly does a plethora of redeemable, good things within the multiverse to compensate for the fact he’s an “Error” + tries to be more comfortable with things like hugs in order to further distance himself from Error, despite also having haphephobia. + unlike Error, remembers his past as Geno a lot more vividly

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Ragnartale (by NaomyMikolMaria) (please note I’m a bit behind on this AU)

Nickname/s: Knight Date of Birth: ??? Height: 5′5″ / 165 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: heteroromantic / demisexual

+ doesn’t like using his magic anymore, but can’t exactly remember why it leaves a bad taste in his mouth + actively tries to void out his emotions for others’ sake, as he finds his own life far less valuable + part of him likes being a monster more than a human, because he thinks he looks horrible now and that more people will leave him alone

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Dusttale (by ask-dusttale)

Nickname/s: Dust, Dusty Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: lithromantic / asexual

+ absolutely despises all humans and it wouldn’t be surprising if he tried to kill any on sight + can often be seen talking aloud to “himself,” but he’s actually talking to “Papyrus” + has the same observant skills as Sans and is just as quick on his feet if not faster, however he’s also more rash in his decision-making due to his insanity.

character tag

Fresh (by loverofpiggies/CrayonQueen)

Nickname/s: None Date of Birth: April 20th (pretends it’s April 1st) Height: 6′3″ / 191 cm Gender: genderfluid Pronouns: he/him or they/them Sexuality: aromantic / asexual

+ while he be default doesn’t have any emotions, if for some reason he starts to feel anything, he will reject it immediately, and become incredibly harsh + started dressing in 90′s clothes as a joke, now he enjoys them unironically and has genuinely started watching human 90′s shows + sends memes to Error just to piss him off; his favorite to send is Rick Rolls

character tag

Outertale (by 2mi127)

Nickname/s: Outer Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / asexual

+ because he can see the stars all the time, he’s far more fascinated by the Earth’s sun and atmosphere compared to other Sanses + has had his jacket since he was a kid but just didn’t bother getting rid of it. that and he never outgrew it. sometimes people still think he’s a kid because of it + gets cold easily; his jacket is extremely thick and fuzzy to make up for this

character tag

Altertale (by friisans)

Nickname/s: Guardian Date of Birth: ??? Height: 4′9″ / 145 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: biromantic / demisexual

+ despises his brother so much that he won’t even look in his general direction and will likely burn or destroy anything that reminds him of his brother + appears very calm and collected most of the time, but can easily turn around and be manipulative or angry when least expected + is horrible at keeping watch of the human children because he always teaches them how to exploit things and they use that against him

character tag

Aftertale (by loverofpiggies/CrayonQueen)

Nickname/s: Geno Date of Birth: ??? Height: 5′0″ / 152 cm Gender: demiboy Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: demiromantic / demisexual

+ is really bad at social interaction due to extended isolation and because of that may come off as blunt or rude + if anyone acts friendly around him, especially if they are a more physical kind of person, he will instantly not trust them + seeing spaghetti is a sure way to make him burst into tears, but he’ll pretend he’s not actually crying

character tag

Swapfell (by poptatochisp and community)

Nickname/s: Mal Date of Birth: ??? Height: 5′3″ / 160 cm Gender: cisman Pronouns: he/him Sexuality: panromantic / demisexual

+ doesn’t do well with people who disagree with him. this will cause genuine unintended arguments over the smallest things + very formal in most situations possible, but assumes everyone else should be too + is bad at emotions, just, in general. understanding them, having them, everything

character tag

#uthcs headcanon #undertale #undertale headcanon #uthcs pin #sans

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lilhawkeye3 · 5 years ago

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Author interview! I was tagged by @sued134 :) 💕

Name: Hawk / Archie

Fandoms: that I make content for? DC Universe, Marvel, Harry Potter, the Witcher, Game of Thrones/ASOIAF, Star Wars, Doctor Who

Where do you post: FFNet and AO3. “The Villain Wrangler” DC version is also on SpaceBattles and Wattpad.

Most popular one shot: Devil’s Tritone (The Witcher)

Most popular multi-chapter: The Villain Wrangler (DC)

Favorite story written: the Villain Wrangler. I’ve had so many wonderful interactions with people because of it, but it’s most meaningful because I’ve had people tell me their own stories relating to the patients I create in my story (synopsis: kids ask to meet villains for Make-a-Wish). Actually in my last chapter I had a kid die from reaction to anesthesia during operation, and I had two ex-doctors reach out to me to say that they’d seen that happen and thought I did a good job with the topic. Shoot that sounds v depressing but I promise the fic is mostly comedy.

Fic too nervous to post: lmao I post everything I write once I’ve got a chapter finished.

How I choose titles: um. Depends? Some are from the prompts (The Villain Wrangler, Tangled Fate is a rewrite of Tangled, the Witch and the Jedi is about a witch and a Jedi, Drinking Commandos is... Howling Commandos drinking). Others are more vague (Ruby and Gold is Fox and Riyo’s colors but also a Bible verse, my Scorrose fic is scientific terms).

Do I outline: ahahaha no. Hence why my updates are all over the place. (Okay sometimes I have a general idea of where I want to go with it? But not an actual outline).

Complete: uh my one shots and shorter fics are complete. Most are WIPs. I have two that are marked as incomplete but basically are complete (I just might add stuff if I come up with any).

Coming soon: an update for TVW and Ruby and Gold.

In progress: The Villain Wrangler DC and Marvel. The Witch and the Jedi. Love is in the Hair. Tangled Fate. Worried Sick Over You. Ruby and Gold. Save a Speeder. Rise of a Huntress lmao. Drinking Commandos. At Arm’s Length. I’m probably forgetting lots lol.

Prompts: yeah I accept prompts! I have a few I still wanna write and just haven’t had time to yet.

Upcoming work: a Geraskier fic for @spielzeugkaiser . Foxiyo with a twist. James Norrington/OC. Paz/Reader or OC, haven’t decided. Kix/Reader. And a Hermione Black fic. Eventually lmao.

Tagging: @amukmuk @redrobinhoood @catsnkooks and anyone else who wants to👀

#tag game #author interview #writers #fanfiction #hawk’s rambles

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tellmewhatyouc · 4 years ago

Note

Okay, I was tagged but I don't think I got the notification, so sorry for being very late for asking for the WIP game, and as you're dipping in and out of tumblr and mostly writing on SK8, don't worry answering this if you don't have the impetus, but if you do of course I want to know about:

1. fuck it, the law and marco fic

wip file names

hey no worries! my brain has in fact been taken over by the skateboarding anime for the time being but i’m always down to talk about law and marco :3c

i’ve been really vague about it since i’m kind of not entirely sure where it’s headed?? but i basically just wanted to write canon verse marco & law (which like? it seems like they maybe exist in the same space in more recent canon which is cool? but i don’t actually Know). it’s all very self indulgent and i had the idea for a while but decided on impulse to actually start writing it, hence the title

the basic idea is a rescue mission, though i’m still deciding on what exactly caused the need for a rescue. it’s ~2.5k so far and progress is Slow but i’m happy to share the first part since i’ve been sitting on it for so long! keep in mind that it’s a draft so it may not all sound nice or make sense but i mean you can get the general idea-

Breakfast on the Polar Tang could only be described as chaotic. An even distribution of night owls and morning birds made for a wide variety of energies and a whole lot of bickering. Grouchy, overtired people didn’t mix well with the others who had willingly woken up hours prior.

Naturally, Law was in the former group, though he didn’t participate in the bickering. Sometimes, he’d diffuse arguments between members of his crew, but he’d mostly just listen in for entertainment purposes.

“Did you hear about the Whitebeards?”

Law perked up at the question and looked towards the source. Clione had spoken to Uni just a few seats down from Law.

“Yeah, with the Phoenix?” Uni asked. “That’s gotta suck real bad, losing track of your first mate.”

“What about the Phoenix?” Law interjected, causing both heads to turn and face him. The rest of the table’s chatter died down, curious to see what was important enough to grab their captain’s attention.

“Oh, uh… I heard he’s missing,” Clione said. “It was in the paper.”

“Missing?” Law echoed. “I didn’t see anything about that.”

“Today’s paper,” Uni said. “I snagged a copy when we surfaced earlier.” He reached across the table to snatch the newspaper from Shachi’s hands, earning a ‘Hey!’ before he set it down in front of Law. “Said they haven’t seen the guy in weeks.”

Law frowned before he set his fork down and picked up the paper. A few pages in-- he didn’t even make the headline-- there was a short article about Marco the Phoenix of the Whitebeard Pirates. Allegedly, he’d gone on a solo mission a few weeks prior and had yet to return. His crew claimed they hadn’t had any contact with him since he left.

“Bullshit,” Law decided as he dropped the paper back onto the table. “Whitebeard would never let something like this get out.”

“Then... why’s it right there?” Shachi asked, pointing to the photo from Marco’s wanted poster. “Kinda looks like he did let it get out, Captain.”

“It’s a bluff,” Law said. “It makes them look vulnerable. If rival crews see his most powerful man is MIA, they get a false sense of security. And that’s the perfect time for them to strike.” He took a sip of his coffee. “I do wonder what else he’s planning, though.”

“Hey, why haven’t we tried to take him on yet?” Penguin chimed in, already laughing at his own suggestion. “I bet you could at least take the Phoenix. You’d just have to slice off his wings.”

Law shook his head. “I don’t care about Whitebeard. We have other matters to attend to.” He looked down at the picture again, squinting at Marco’s half-transformed state. How did his powers work, exactly? “I wonder, if I did cut his wings off… would he be able to grow them back?”

“Whoa.” Penguin bounced in his seat. “You think so? By that logic, couldn’t you get, like, unlimited body parts from him?”

“He’d be useful for transplants,” Ikkaku chimed in from the other side of the table. She’d spoken into her coffee cup, as if she wasn’t addressing anyone in particular, but Law heard it perfectly.

“That’s a very good point,” Law replied. “A healthy donor who can regrow anything he gives up.”

Ikkaku chuckled. “Sounds like a surgeon’s dream.”

“And that poor guy’s nightmare,” Shachi added. “Captain, please don’t tell me you’re thinking about looking for him.”

Law shook his head. “Oh, no, I’m sure he’s perfectly safe with his crew, and Whitebeard is just spreading lies to throw people off,” he said. “The Phoenix would never join us, anyway. That crew is all about loyalty. I’m sure he’d sooner die for his captain than consider working under someone else.” He paused. “And forcing someone to join my crew against their will isn’t really my style.”

The table went silent. Everyone was staring at Law.

“...What?”

“Nothin’,” Shachi answered quickly. “But, hey, we’ll be sure to let you know if we see any giant flaming birds flying through the sky next time we surface.”

#i've definitely posted a few bits from this before but #now it's in context #thanks for asking! <3 #(and ty for your lovely comments lately i gotta sit down and respond ;w;)#ask

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sweetwritertanya · 5 years ago

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Noble Heart

Author’s Note: Hello my darlings! So, after watching Little Women (the new 2019 adaptation, which I’ve been meaning to see for ages), I was more than a little inspired to write something. Although I’m not really well-versed in how things were at such a time and the costums, I am growing an interest for historical or period dramas. Hence, here’s my first attempt at writing something like this. It will be a 3 or 5 parts series with original characters. Also, I will still be using the second person narrative (“you”), but the reader will have a name. Hope you all don’t mind and tell me if you enjoy the story! Not the most creative, but I’ve been having fun writing it.

Summary: Your family has struggled to make ends meet and it was only due to the county’s Duke kindness that you were able to get by. When the old man suddenly passes away, it surprises you to know the title will pass on to his never-seen-before grandson. However, there is a strange condition for the inheritance of the title.

Warning: None. This is mostly exposition and character introduction, the start of the plot. I’m thinking only later parts will have a bit of smut, but those will be tagged later on!

Word Count: 2182

It was a cold summer morning when the news erupted across the county. The Duke of Welsham was struck with sudden illness and had perished overnight. The news of the death of the old widower wouldn’t have been so worrisome if not for the fact that he was the main provider of the town’s wealth, contributing with a lot of his expansive estate to finance growing businesses as well as maintain a controlled tax limit for the land owners and workers.

You read about it in the town’s newspaper, during your daily chore of getting the groceries for your family’s household. The maid accompanying you seemed about as panicked as you felt, as much as you tried not to show it. With a serious expression, frowned eyebrows wrinkling together at the top of the bridge of your nose, you walk back with a fervor in your step.

“Mother, Father, have you heard yet?” You call out as soon as you enter the two-story house, only stopping to take off your hat and continuing deeper into the house with the basket full of provisions against your plush hip. “Does this concern us, Father? The newspaper said the Duke has fall-”

Entering the living room situated before the kitchen, you came to a halt in your speech and step when you noticed everyone in your family sitting tensely around the unlit fireplace. They each raised their eyes at your entrance, apprehension and defeat behind them. You give the basket to the maid and move to sit on the vacant armchair with them, a nervous heart and pressing lips.

“What is it?” you ask in a whisper, knowing full well something must have happened or was about to happen.

“I see you already heard the news, dear” your father’s somber tone of voice declares soundly in the silent room.

“Yes, Father. I fear how it could affect us; we are barely getting by. The Duke’s kind heart was what kept us well fed for so long, Father. What will happen now? Who will carry on the title?” The mention of a successor makes your Mother breath in a heavy breath, your younger sisters looking nervously to the ground, the twitch on your Father’s left cheek. “Are we really in danger? Do you believe they will cut our supplies, let us starve?”

“I believe you do know of the Duke’s only son, don’t you?” Your mother asks of you.

“The one he disowned? It’s been over thirty years since anyone saw him.” You vaguely recalled hearing about it.

“He disowned his son, but not his grandson, sir Augustus. Apparently, he will be the new Duke of Welsham.” As your Mother told you this, with an angry stare away from you, directed at the window, something confused you.

“Mother… How do you know all this? No one in town seemed to have the slightest idea, it’s not even in the newspaper…”

You gulped at the silent stares they cast upon you.

Bad news. It meant really bad news, for you specifically. Which was why you were currently struggling against a corset that the maids were tightening up against your ribs, so much so you could barely breath. The fact that you were boiling furious didn’t help the matter at all either. Your voluptuous frame was being tucked in to the best the garment could, due to the demands of your mother, even if you couldn’t care less about hiding your lumps and rolls.

“Why? Why?! Why the bloody hell do I have to marry the new Duke?! I am not nobility!!” you scream out, holding on to the bed’s footboard as the strings of the corset kept being pulled.

“Your family’s last name carries nobility and therefore, so do you, my lady” the maid struggled to say as she kept tightening the abdominal article around your round frame.

“Why did the old man have to put in such a bizarre condition for his grandson to inherit the title?! And why did it have to be from our family??” you grunt back.

Corset done, the maid helps you slip into the silk dark green dress your mother had prepared for you, the best and most expensive article of clothing you owned.

“From what I heard, the late Duke resented his son for marrying out of nobility and wished for his grandson to do better. And your family, my lady, is the only one in town with nobility in their blood.”

“We are not nobility! My grandfather was an Earl, that’s all! My poor Father couldn’t work anymore because of his injuries, so he refused the title long before I was born!”

“I’m sorry, my lady. The grandson doesn’t seem to think so.”

The idea of marrying a complete stranger repulsed you to no end. The possibility of you escaping with the rest of your family was not completely out of question yet. You were almost certain you could talk your Mother into it. Your Father would be more difficult, he was loyal to the town and did not like any hint of cowardice when it came to our family’s actions. And there was no telling how such expenses could be paid… But surely, to prevent his older daughter to basically be sold out to a man she never met before with the sole purpose of obtaining a higher title, he would make an exception.

“Adela!” your Mother’s exasperated tone brought you back to reality just in time.

Absentminded, you had made it downstairs and were now standing in the living room among your family. Everyone was in their best clothes and composed hairdos. Your Mother twitched her head to the side, signaling for the strange men on the other side of the room.

Two males stood the few feet the room allowed in front of you. One was a person you recognized as a servant of the late Duke, a tall man in his forties or fifties, with a small dark mustache and side burns, skin wrinkling at the side of his grey eyes. You seemed to recall seeing him during the very few times you had gone into the Duke’s property, mainly for the annual party he hosted.

The other man stood tall in the room. With dark chocolate curls slicked back, his oblong face kept a neutral expression as he looked almost right through you with hooded honey colored eyes. A narrowed turned up nose, prominent cheeks, a slightly oversized bottom lip, tan healthy skin and fit body with two small beauty marks under his left eye, there was no denying the man was to be considered attractive. His demeanor, however, left a lot to polish.

“Adela! Courtesy!” you Mother angrily whispered under her breath next to you, one hand coming around to pinch you, but the layers of clothing making you unable to feel it.

Having the town’s next Duke standing in the same room as you, your entire family depending on you, made all of it so real. Your deep scorching anger suddenly turned into paralyzing fear at what was about to happen. Your eyes moved from your mother to the man in question and you saw this as your last opportunity before news spread around.

“My apologies, your Grace, but you must find another suiter for your marriage. I do not agree with any of this” you state as you finish the asked for bow.

Ignoring the interjections and exclamations from your family and the maids, you gather most of the dress you can in your hands and quickly step away into the house’s backyard, searching for some piece and quiet to calm your racing heart and jumbled mind.

You felt like your throat was constricted, making it so hard to breathe. Unable to stand it anymore, you do your best to undo the strings at your back, shaky hands raging against the corset as you take it out and start to pull your dress back up. You took several deep breaths once the awful garment was out, starting to feel better.

“Lady Adela.”

Gasping loudly, you suddenly turn around 180 degrees and come face to face with the cause of your anxiety. He now seemed to look at you properly, rather than just through you like before.

“Your Grace” you sigh as you try to remain calm.

“I believe the reasons surrounding this matrimony were explained to you, yes?” He inquires as he looks around the small backyard, where your family had a few plantations growing, with the intent of saving the cost of buying food you could grow yourself.

“They were, yes. But I must persist, I have no intention of marrying you, your Grace.” In hopes your family could find forgiveness despite your absolute refusal, you tried to maintain a civil relationship with the men. Maybe he had inherited his grandfather’s kind heart.

“I believe that would mean very bad news for your family, my lady. If I was correctly informed, your father is unable to work and he only had daughters.” Your hopes crashed to the ground at his cold words. But your fury burned.

“I will work myself, if I have to” you adamantly told him.

The man smirks as he returns his gaze to your stout person.

“Would you rather work, than become a Duchess?”

“If I must marry someone I don’t know and don’t love, then yes.” You fold your arms under your chest determinedly, frowning heavily at him.

You notice how his eyes squint just a bit at that and he returns his gaze to the horizon to your right, lips pressed together as you both stay silent for a moment. Cold wind blows and serves to cool down your anger for now. But not for long, not when the man decided to open his mouth again, not even caring to look at you as he does so.

“You must be a pretty selfish daughter and sister, putting your own happiness before that of your family members.”

“Sir, you do not know me at all to speak such a thing!” you bark at him with tight closed fists dropping to your sides.

“Prove me wrong, then. Marry me, if just on paper, and I will take the most upper care of you and your family.” He rotated his body back to you and his honey eyes are filled with challenge, as if daring you to deny him again.

“You must be pretty desperate for your grandfather’s title if you’re willing to marry a woman that not only have you never met, but who is also undeniably unwilling to wed you.” You reciprocate the feeling he had casted on you.

“I never stated otherwise.” He simply declares, seemingly not at the least offended.

Annoyed, you huff and cross your arms again, turning your back on him and stepping heavily around the floor.

“Why? Why me? Just go and marry a noble woman from the next town over! Why do you persist on marrying me?”

“It is the most advantageable marriage. Marrying someone of the town will give me the people’s favor and respect. I hear your family is all well liked around here.”

“I despise anyone who treats marriage as a business transaction, talking of advantages and disadvantages like you were only discussing a piece of land” you whisper tiredly, taking your hands to massage your temples as you felt a headache approaching. You wondered why you were still carrying on this conversation. All you wanted was to turn around, get back inside and close yourself in your room until it all went away.

“Most marriages are, indeed. Do you feel it would be different if you were to marry someone else? Would you feel better if you had known me for years, even if the marital contract is, in itself, exactly the same?”

“At least I would have known who I was swearing to spend the rest of my life with. There would be a courtship, there would be feelings involved.” You explain to the air, refusing to look at such a stubborn and insufferable men.

“Who says there won’t be in this case?”

You halt your feet and slowly turn back, suspicion behind your eyes as you raise them to his. The man then moves his feet and in three strides he is right in front of you, only maybe a feet away, bending down to level his stare with yours, even as you lean back, away from him. He was still uncomfortably close and you could smell the eucalypti musky scent emanating from him.

“The courtship, getting to know each other, feelings… We would only be switching the order, marrying first and doing those later. So, Lady Adela, in light of your hesitance, I will give you two more days to think about it. Do come and tell me of your decision before the end of the week. I shall be awaiting you, then.”

And with that, he straightens up, bows his head slightly as a goodbye gesture and leaves back into the house, leaving you muddled and stunned in your own backyard.

#original character #original character x you #oc x reader #OC Fiction #chubby reader #chubby!reader #oc x chubby reader #fiction #period piece #historical #au #fluff #smut

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abyssmail · 5 years ago

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Caerul Design Notes,

because I’ve actually put a lot of thought into creating Caerul’s aesthetic and I’m lowkey really proud of it. I won’t get into her actual character concept/personality/backstory/etc. since this got super long, but this is how/why I made the choices I did with regards to her name and visual design!

▶ Caerul’s color scheme started off way bluer (hence the name “Caerul,” from caeruleus/a/um - “blue”/“cerulean”/“azure”/“of the sky/sea” in Latin) and less saturated, but when I gave her a (dead) twin with a red theme, I wanted them to look more alike and made both of their hair purple (although I haven’t actually done more than sketch Roseus before... he’s got purple hair and red eyes). Purple’s my favorite color, and unnatural hair colors don’t seem to be uncommon in Orth, so why not, right? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The red elements in Caerul’s design are meant to represent her honoring Roseus!

All of the base colors I use when drawing Caerul! They all end up looking a bit darker once they’re shaded though.

▶ As well as shamelessly using one of my favorite Latin words (I’m a Classics major, okay ;;>~>), I also tried to pick a name that sounded similar to the ones that already exist in-universe. This was actually fairly tricky, since as far as I can tell the names in Made in Abyss have a WIDE variety of influences. Some of them seem passably Japanese-sounding (Riko, Jiruo, Kiyui, Nanachi) disclaimer I bring dishonor to my ancestors and know 0 Japanese so this is just about vibez, others seem Western-ish (Reg, Nat, Lyza, Prushka). Some are fairly whimsical (Shiggy, Maruruk, Mitty) while others are more mysterious and fantastic (Any of the White Whistles besides maybe Lyza). The only common thread I could really settle on was a general fantasy feeling to all of the names. I tried to capture that nebulous vibe with Caerul’s name, although with something so vague and subjective it’s pretty much impossible to say if I was entirely successful. I named her siblings afterward with other Latin color words and ended up with a RGB theme lol.

▸ By the way, “Caerul” is pronounced “KAI-rool.” It rhymes with “Hyrule.” The ae diphthong makes an “eye” sound in Latin #TheMoreYouKnow

▸ “Caducalae” is a portmanteau of “caducae alae,” literally “falling/doomed/futile wings” in Latin (again), playing off how pointless it is to be able to fly when the Curse of the Abyss is a thing. Originally, they weren’t supposed to work at all outside of the Abyss, but I decided that was boring for crossovers/other verses so I scrapped it. I’m not too happy with the name since it doesn’t fit the naming scheme of the canon relics (there is no precedent at all for gratuitous Latin in Made in Abyss, which is a good thing because it’s overused in fantasy, but Latin was the only thing I was good at in high school sooooo... ^^;), but I didn’t like any of my other ideas that much, either. “Wings of Futility” feels more canon, but it’s also kinda depressing :/

▶ I’ve mentioned before that Caerul’s build is based off of mine for art reference purposes (it’s convenient to just look in the mirror while making the pose I want =w=)b), but another reason she’s so short is that I didn’t have to make the caducalae quite as big since she’s smaller, so she can actually go indoors if she’s careful.

▶ Long hair isn’t super practical with mechanical wings with lots of bits for it to get caught in, but Caerul idolizes Lyza, so I left her hair as long as I could reasonably get away with.

▶ I heavily referenced the canon Made in Abyss character designs for Caerul’s clothing so she would fit into the world, but made some alterations to make everything more personal to her and accommodate for her wings. In general, I lightened everything up, since she takes a bunch of short, quick trips rather than lengthy expeditions. Her gloves, for instance, are loosely inspired by the ones we see many delvers wearing in the manga/anime, but are less heavy-duty and are convertible mittens/fingerless gloves for better dexterity with handling letters and such.

The best close up of the gloves I could find was actually a screenshot of the aftermath Reg & Riko’s orb piercer encounter, but I didn’t want to have to tag this for gore, so you get Lyza ^^; There’s a filter over Caerul here so you can see the glove better which is why she looks kinda washed out :/

▶ Her coat is heavily influenced by Jiruo’s, since he’s the only Moon Whistle we’ve seen in canon.

yeah, uhhhh, sorry to yoink your style my dude ^^;

▸ Caerul’s has a different color palette, a simpler lapel border, an extra set of outer pockets, and three separate panels in the back that button around her wings so she can put it on! I haven’t drawn it, but her shirt works similarly.

This is my favorite detail about her design tbh... it’s just really satisfying what a logical solution it is for some reason??? the original doodle is off rotting somewhere in my Modern European History notes, but I tried to recreate it just as sloppily here =w=)b

▶ Caerul’s corset isn’t just a painful fashion choice - it’s actually meant to be a(n admittedly heavily stylized) brace for her back against the weight of her wings.

▶ Since Caerul can’t wear a backpack with the wings, I had to get creative with storage options for her. In addition to an undetermined number of pockets on the inside of her coat, I gave her these two pouches on her thighs to carry more stuff.

I wonder how buff your quads could get carrying a significant amount of weight there...

▸ Messenger bags don’t seem super practical for delving, so I didn’t design a specific one for her to carry all the time, but Caerul does use them on occasion. Even with that, though, she still has far less carrying capacity than the average delver, which is a problem she has to deal with when carrying out her duties!

▶ The wings/caducalae were by far the most difficult part of designing Caerul, and it took several redesigns over 2+ years before I was finally happy with them. Their first design was deliberately far simpler in the interest of having to draw them a zillion times, but they ended up clunky and unwieldy looking:

chonky o~O

▸ The final design is MUCH more of a pain to draw (in fact, a lot of the time I cheat and just copy and paste them from drawings I’ve already done), but I think it looks much sleeker and more “functional”.

I also got better at making my diagrams look slightly more authentic ;0

▸ I knew I wanted jetpack-style thrusters to be a component of the wings to somewhat justify the shit I wanted Caerul to be able to pull with them (especially to eliminate the need for accounting for the damage landing suddenly could do to her ankles), but incorporating them proved to be one of the biggest problems of the design. At one point, they were going to have a whole separate attachment point on her back, but I finally just made them an offshoot of the first “joint,” as you can see in the final design.

A really messy intermediate caducalae sketch. The weird double pentagon shape was meant to be the part of the relic actually fused to Caerul’s back, but I scrapped that too when I scrapped the separate limbs for the thrusters.

▸ Speaking of the joints, they’re all balls so they can rotate all over and I don’t have to fuss too much about how they move. Likewise, the frame is metal, but I treat it like it’s kind of flexible, so Caerul can “flex” the wings open and closed. These wings are hard enough to draw period okay I’m giving myself every excuse to be inconsistent af on purpose.

▸ The caducalae have some “bonus” features that I’ve sketched out, but that Caerul hasn’t unlocked yet, and won’t for a while.

owo what’s this?

▸ For the wings, I think my biggest inspirations were some of the mechier Cardfight!! Vanguard dragon units (although I don’t remember which cards specifically) and the energy wings on the ninth-generation knightmares in Code Geass R2.

I’ve made a lot of OCs, and since I don’t like to use faceclaims, I’ve done a fair amount of character designing. I don’t think I’ve ever spent as much time or had as much fun with any of them as I have with Caerul, though! OCs aren’t always super well accepted in fandom roleplay, but the Made in Abyss community has been super welcoming and I’ve had a blast. Thanks for listening to me gush about Caerul if you got this far, and thank you to everyone who’s interacted with her!

The original sketch of Caerul from back in 2017. How far we’ve come :’D

#miscellaneous info #mun art #appearance #ooc #((no one cares lol))#((but I had fun putting all my thoughts down in writing ^^;))#((also! the full version of the new caerul art from the promo!))

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ambidextrousarcher · 5 years ago

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Sarcastic StarBharat Reviews- Episode 20: Sarcastic StarBharat Reviews-Episode 20: In which there is a fake war, and Ms. Melodrama becomes angsty.

The review is under the cut.

Tagging @milesbianmorales @mayavanavihariniharini @medhasree @shaonharryandpannisim @ambitiousandcunning @jigyask @allegoriesinmediasres @hermioneaubreymiachase @avani008 @ratnas-musings @whydoyoucareaboutmyusername @bleedinknight @justahappyreindeer @iamnotthat @chaanv and @ruminationsofaraven

This episode begins with Glitterwash. (I can already tell I’ll rant, like, A LOT) He’s climbing something to the tune of badass yet really irritating music, his bow and arrow in his hands. He touches his bow and arrow to his forehead and then throws the both of them into the river. What is this unnecessary drama for…? There comes a peacock feather and Krishn is picking up the bow from water that’s also populated with lotuses. This lecture is about parents wanting their children to be happy. Scene switches to Ms. Melodrama, clearly the precap scene. Priyamvada’s voice echoes in her mind as she flashes back to her friend telling her that as long as the thread is tied around her wrist, she must not reveal the truth to her husband. Ms. Melodrama thinks that she must be wholly devoted to her husband, and hiding secrets lessens it. (Ah. They are turning even Kunti into a doormat, I see. I thought it was just for uwu Glitterwash’s sake they did that, but no, they are ruining her whole character) She resolves to tell him the truth. Honey Boy enters the chambers as she unties the thread. She twists the thread in her hands as the camera pans on Honey Boy as he walks to Ms. Melodrama. “Kunti,” he says, smiling and taking a brooch out, “This choodamani symbolizes her husband to a woman, by wearing it in her hair, she assigns her husband the highest position in her life,” He pauses, “but I do not approve of this. I’ll put it in your hair as a symbol of love and trust.” (Erm, experienced people, please tell me whether this choodamani thing existed in real life or not.) Also, uh, why is Honey Boy so soft? IDK. StarBharat universe, I guess. He struggles to put the brooch in her hair. “Handling a women’s hair seems to be harder than running a Kingdom,” Dude. You haven’t run the Kingdom yet. The one meeting I saw, your Drama Queen brother walked out on you, and your Tathshree did what else he could. That’s it. “You have the aid of your ministers to run your Kingdom, Maharaj,” she says. “But my hair is yours alone to decorate.” Ahhh. Help! Anyway, he manages to set the hairpin right. “May I say something?” he asks. “I really liked the question you asked in the Swayamvar.” Uh, what canon fail was the Swayamvar again? Let me check…ah, yeah. Canon fail #33. “I was lost. I wished that moment itself that my answer to your question should be the right one.” Okay, non-existent questions aside, let’s move on, or so I hope. Obviously, we can’t be that lucky. She says, “The moment I saw you, I too wished that you would answer my question from your heart.” “Did you want to test my intelligence or my heart?” Oh, my, Lord and Lady of Cheesy Lines! “A person tests only that he wishes to acquire,” she replies. “You’re amazing, you managed to test my heart and win it with merely one question!” “A king should not lose his heart so quickly. The worth of the person asking for the King’s heart must also be tested.” “Are you doubting my selection, or are you flaunting your talent?” Okay, I have a question. Just who wrote such cringe lines, dude? “I was just telling you something. Justice should be decided by you.” “My married friends say that a man testing his wife is himself tested.” Er…how do I make sense of this? “So I am give another test? Tell me. What is the matter?” “I wanted to say…” starts Ms. Melodrama, starting to drop the black thread on the floor. Just at that moment, drums start beating. Both of them turn. “What is this?” asks Honey Boy. “Whose message is it at this time?” “What is it?” asks Ms. Melodrama. “The beat of the drums conveys a message. I’m sure it’s a serious matter. I should go to the sabha.” Ms. Melodrama looks forlornly as he leaves. Scene switches to the sabha. “You cannot go for a battle immediately! You have just been married.” Satyavati clearly wants to protect her grandson. “My duty comes before personal pleasure.” Ladies and gentlemen, here’s an example of ‘it’s easy to say, hard to do,’ as this guy literally dies because he pursues his pleasure AFTER BEING TOLD EXPLICITY that nope, dude, you’ll die if you do. I’m sure this isn’t canon, either. But if it is…well, he actually does die pursuing his pleasure. The dialogue continues. “If there is an opportunity for war, then it is my duty to take it.” “I can deploy the soldiers for war. For a King, no battle is his last” This is Bhishm. Um, a question? What if a King dies in battle? Maybe that doesn’t happen in the StarBharat verse. Mr. Drama Queen intercedes here. “However, the first battle remains the first.” (Wait, this is Pandu’s first war? His sons were way younger, then…when they warred for the first time.) “The people would be doubtful about the caliber of the new King, Taathshree. Pandu has to exhibit his strength as soon as he can. Forgive me, Taathshree, but I believe so. For all that I might be blind, I know how to fight a battle.” You know, I think canon Dhritrashtra may be as whiny as this guy, but not so publicly. And that’s where they failed his character. “I’ll go myself.” He finishes. Honey Boy, not to be outdone, says, “Jyeshth Bhraata is right, Taathshree. To help the King of Madra is our duty. Whoever has warred on Madra has done thinking that I am a new King, and newly married. Hence, I would have neither the courage nor the inclination to help Madra. The enemy wants to test me, and I will definitely give that test.” This is said to the sweeping BGM of the title song. Hang on, this seems suspiciously like canon fail #44. I don’t recall Madra needing to be rescued, in fact, I actually recall something along the lines of Bhishm paying Shalya Madri’s bride price and bringing her home. (Correct me if I am wrong.) Also, here we come to canon fail #45. Er…aren’t Madra and Kururashtra separate? I don’t think they both fall under Pandu’s jurisdiction. Nor do they seem exactly allied yet. Kururashtra is hardly the samrat of a Rajasuya right now, that honor goes to Indraprastha very late in the future. “Have you thought about Kunti?” interjects Satyavati. “She will be heartbroken! What answer will you give her?” Everyone looks tense. Scene switches to Ms. Melodrama, pacing her room anxiously. She whirls when Honey Boy enters, striding to him. “What happened, husband? Is it grave news?” “The same news that delights one can be grave for the other.” Why is this guy pontificating right now, really? “A husband and wife are not two different people, they are one. What is good news for you is good news for me, too.” Oh, this I expected from Ms. Melodrama. “An allied Kingdom has been attacked. I have to leave for war, right now. Rajmata and Taathshree said that someone else can go with the army but I told them that this duty is the King’s. I will go on war myself. I should have asked you for advice before I took this decision, but…” “No, husband. You have taken a decision worthy of a King. If the King of Hastinapur took any other decision, I would have lost hope.” “I know that the Queen would be happy, but I want to know my wife’s heart. If you are angry at me, then you have the right, Kunti.” She turns away from him. “A lunar eclipse happens only to the full moon. Yet, after the eclipse, the same moon is brighter and more beautiful. I will wait for you. When will you leave?” Um, you’re not supposed to be that poetic! “Right now. This instant. If I so wish, I could spend the night with you, Kunti, but that would be myself succumbing to a weakness. And when one succumbs once, he is weak for the rest of his life.” High sounding words for a guy who literally dies of his weakness for Madri. But hey, perhaps he has no idea of that weakness.

“I want to be your strength, husband, I will not be your weakness. I too am a Queen. You will return victorious, I believe in you.” She does an aarti of him, but halts before she applies the tilak. “Do you want to say something, Kunti? Tell me if there is anything in your heart.” “No, husband. My heart only carries prayers for you. May you always be victorious. I will be waiting for you.” Damn. This much sweetness…I can’t. He leaves, yet turns back once to look yearningly at Kunti, this is giving me Arjun/Draupadi vibes, but no, they are not like that, Pandu and Kunti, as far as I know. They nod at each other with smiles. This reminds me of the whole scene where the Pandavas are arrested in the future, and Arjun tries to convince Panchali to leave for Kampilya, but she shakes her head and he nods, both near tears. (Okay, this is Nila being Arjun-mad as usual, but it is kind of a foil scene.) He leaves. Outside, the army waits, crying out “Har har Mahadev!” Kunti and Pandu lock eyes for a moment as they exchange nods once more and he says “Depart!”, leaving with the army. Ms. Melodrama, of course, is crying. The scene flashes forward a few months. Ms. Melodrama is waiting for Honey Boy to return, of course in tears. Ms. Always Patnidharma touches her shoulder, giving her a lecture in Patnidharma. “Forgive me, sister, I did not want to hurt any of you by my behavior.” “Why have you stopped eating then?” What? This is canon fail #46. Kunti is a warrior maiden, a mother of warriors. She does not do shit like this, I’m sure. This is meant to be a Mahabharata retelling, not yet another abala nari thing. “What else can I do? Before, we got messages, now even that is not coming.” “If there is no news, it means that there is no news worth giving, that’s all. But it also means that there’s no bad news.” “I thirst to hear the sound of the drums.” Ah! So much sappiness, even I can’t deal with it. If you want to write angst, write believable angst, guys, please! “Believe in the King,” says Ms. Always Patnidharma. Of course, at that exact moment, because this serial is the most clichest ever, the drums start beating. The episode ends to the tune of dramatic BGM. Precap: “Maharaj Pandu has triumphed over his enemies in the war.” Vidur announces, while Honey Boy himself is galloping towards Hastina in a chariot. “Rajmata,” continues Vidur, “The King of Madra has made Maharaj Pandu his son-in-law.” Canon fail, this, remember? Scene switches to Ms. Melodrama standing in the entrance of the palace to welcome Honey Boy, as Madri makes her entry from behind the King. Oh, and if anyone was wondering why the unexplained hiatus happened yet again, it was because I kept dropping off at how boring this episode was, really. Maybe things have the potential to look up soon, let’s hope.

#sarcastic starbharat reviews #scribbler gets salty #nila rants #scribbler scribbles #nila writes #honey boy #aka pandu #ms. always melodrama #aka kunti #ms. always patnidharma #aka gandhari #satyavati #mr. paragon of perfection #aka bhishma #mr. angry drama queen/disaster-rashtra #aka dhritrashtra #vidur

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