#how much of their presentation is due to personal choice and style?

[splankie]

guys i got called in for yuri duty

[ugly-anarchist]

I don't think you're a trans ally until you accept trans people who don't want to transition. And I don't just mean medically.

I mean trans men who look indistinguishable from cis women and trans women who look indistinguishable from cis men and they're happy like that. Who have no intention of changing their style, presentation, or even pronouns.

Some women don't look like the stereotypical idea of "woman" and it's the same for men. But they're still men and women. I need you to understand that gender has no bearing on appearance and people's comfort in their own bodies is more important than the fictional idea of what manhood and womanhood looks like.

And, yes, some people can't transition due to disability or funds or whatever and they're included in this, yes. But you need to accept people who don't want to either. Who willingly make the choice to not transition in any way because that's how they're the most comfortable.

A trans person who doesn't transition is just as much their gender as anyone else of that same gender. Please get that through your head.

To any trans men who don't want to transition or change their appearance in any way: You're a man. You've always been a man. You will always be a man.

To any trans women who don't want to transition or change their appearance in any way: You're a woman. You've always been a woman. You will always be a woman.

The way your body looks doesn't matter in the slightest, your gender is real and legitimate and valid regardless of any other factors.

[yakutarts]

Nightmare and Dream but feral, non-skeletal body!

For the love of god PLEASE click on the image for better quality + close ups and clothed version under the cut!!

Would you kiss them?

Video process:

I made these using a specific context

A while ages ago I drew and posted a drawing of Nightmare and Dream on their light ball form but with some alterations/personal headcanons.

On the post, I expressed my desire to draw the twins in a universe were Nim didn’t need to give them bodies, and just let them grow naturally. And specifically give them an animalistic appearance, instead of a humanoid one like most artist do.

You can see on the process video that it took me 1000 sketches to make something that looked good and I was happy with, the video is obviously sped up, the total time it took me to make this was 28 hours and 15 minutes.

Now explaining some things:

Why are they so big?

I read on a post made by Joku that Nim, before giving them skeleton bodies, tried to make them human ones, but the pure amount of magic and power the twins had made the human bodies explode or some shit. So she picked skeletons since the magic could flow freely through the bones without being confined by muscle and flesh. That made me think if their power had physical forms, it would be gigantic. So I gave them gigantic forms to better represent their status of strength and power, beings made from raw magic to serve as guardians of all emotions throughout the multiverse, of course I needed to make them big and intimidating!

Why the horns?

Artistic design choice, I gave them little horns and a chubby tail in their light ball form to purposefully make them more animalistic, wanted to keep it while making these. Also just giving them a smooth head with nothing much going on looked weird and boring.

Why the draconian look?

Dragons had been created and depicted as symbols of pure power above humanity and worshipped as deities throughout several cultures around the world, different depictions of dragons has been one of the only things present among almost all cultures, like a default folklore creature. While I tried to incorporate other mythical creatures in the design, the draconic body plan felt more right due to the influence of dragons on human beliefs, and their representation as magical and powerful beings beyond human comprehension. Plus I just really love drawing dragons.

Why the clothing choice? Also why is Dream half naked while Nightmare has everything covered?

While designing the clothes for Nightmare, I used as reference clothing that usually royalty would wear, Nightmare has a really big ego and sees himself as a king, so he uses fancy, expensive clothing and jewelry, adapted and designed for his anatomy. Not practical for battle, but his corruption can go through the fabric without damaging it, and most people and monsters just run when they see him, so he doesn’t worry about it getting dirty or tearing, Nightmare just expects every soul to instantly submit when they see him, so he never worries about getting into a battle and getting dirty he has that big of an ego.

Dream is the opposite, his style of clothing much more practical for running, jumping, flying, fighting and general exercise. He has 4 bags in total, 2 on each side, inside them he keeps several items, be it healing food, magical artifacts, first aid kit, gifts he receives, stuff he buys or random things he finds and wants to take home with him. Dream’s crown is now a colar couldn’t figure out how to make it work with the head shape and horns, his cape is from his official design, but changed to white, was planning to make it yellow but when I looked at it my eyes hurt because there was too much yellow everywhere. I made Dream’s clothes with the intent to match his official design, I didn’t to the same for nightmare because a turtle neck with a hoodie on a dragon would make him more huggable than intimidating. Plus I like to think that the leg warmers was a gift from Blue, and the ring on his horn a gift from Ink. Didn’t add more stuff on him because I couldn’t think of something that would look good and match Dream’s vibe, the rest of his clothes on his official design didn’t translate well here. Oh, while I was drawing this, I drew the colar and the leg warmers first, without the cape, Dream looked like a twink with a pet play kink.

Side note; neither Nightmare or Dream see the use of clothes as a necessity or as decency. For them clothes are nothing but pure decoration and to show off status for Nightmare, they can wear full body suits, partial clothing, just jewelry, or nothing at all, which is what they usually go for when at home, wearing or not wearing stuff doesn’t make that much of a difference to them at all.

Do they act as animals or do they have human intelligence?

Despite me using the word “feral” all the time to describe them, they do not actually act as animals. I’m only using “feral” to describe their body/anatomy, Nightmare and Dream are fully sentient and have human level intelligence/awareness. They are capable of speech and have opposable thumbs on their front paws, they can grab, write, hold… do anything a human can do with their hands with dexterity. But they do have to use only hand one at a time, and balance themselves with the other. To use both hands, they have to be sitting, or be supported by something, they can balance themselves on their wings if they have to.

And now contradicting what I just said, they have some animalistic behaviors. The twins can growl, purr and roar. Despite Nightmare being able to use his tentacles and Dream being able to shoot magic arrows out of his wings, they to also scratch and bite while fighting. Since they are big and heavy, they can easily crush bone under their weight and their bite force is strong enough to split someone in half. If you need a reference, just use Smaug from The Hobbit, he has more or less the balance of animal behavior and human intelligence I’m looking for.

Expanding more on this, the twins stretch just like felines, and often sleep in positions usually cats sleep in (they don’t actually need to sleep but do anyway). Dream likes to go fishing, and by fishing I mean jumping in a lake and chasing the fish underwater. He finds it more fun than sitting around and waiting for the fish to come to you instead.

I guess you count their lack of necessity to wear clothes as animal logic too?

_________________

If you have any more questions about them, I will be happy to answer!

And yes, I do plan on making more drawings of Nightmare and Dream on this form!

Dreamtale belongs to @jokublog

Feral concept/design by @yakutarts (me)

[aidan-thisfine]

Proseka X Twst Au - Nightcord At 25

" A mysterious music circle that operates at 1:00 AM (25:00), and whose identities are shrouded in mystery. "

Idia Shroud| Username: Gloomurai , The groups Composer

Riddle Rosehearts| Username: Rosebud, The groups Lyricist

Azul Ashengrotto| Username: Sea Witch, The Groups Manger and Artists

Cater Diamond| Username: Trick King , The groups Regular Social media Poster and Animator

Characters:

Kanade - Idia | This was a fairly easy decision just due to not going out much and a family member (in Idia's case Ortho) no longer being present.

Mafuyu - Riddle | : ) Bad mothers and Med school must go hand in hand i guess.... Anyways they're both my favs and if i have to explain more i WILL be throthing at the mouth - Since Mafuyu is the creator of the Proseka Sekai, Riddle is the creator of this Au's sekai!

Ena - Azul | I thought about this really hard causing i easily could have had Jamil as Ena instead but i felt like Azul was the right choice

Mizuki - Cater | THAT FEELING WHEN YOU HIDE BEHIND A MASK OF CHEERINESS DESPITE HATING YOURSELF - Anyways Vill was the other option for Mizuki but i have other ideas for Vill later (✿◡‿◡)

General Info:

Au starts 2 years before the main plot closer to the end of Cater and Idia's first year at NRC

This Au is pretty much just a what if the Twst kids where in the music groups of proseka and how or if that would change anything in twst canon

After Riddle joined NRC (and memorised all 810 rules of the queen of hearts) the sekai started to change to more Alice in Wonderland theme - Mostly small little things like bottles that say 'drink me' and maybe some Flamigos and Hedghogs - Then post-OB more things started to become like the Heartslabyul (A place he can be himself)

Since Cater is the one who looks after the music groups social media page (Magicam) and posting on it the most i can imagine realllllly early in the morning him forgetting to switch back to his personal account (Tbh cater probably has like 4 accounts at this point...) and posting something that has ALMOST accidently revealed his identity

I LOVE IDIA'S HOODIE IN HIS SCHOOL UNIFORM AND BELIEVE HE LIVES IN IT BUT I KNOW FOR A FACT HE DOES NOT WASH THAT THING NEARLY AS MUCH AS HE SHOULD

Azul, Floyd and Jade have a shared place to help adjust to being on land - Probably near the beach to help them adjust to land

Do i believe Azul has a fashion sense outside of ✨bussiness meeting mafia style✨? No, no i do not,the only time he does not look ready to take away everything you own is first thing in the morning and when someones (cough cough the tweels force him into something else

Riddle visited (And has been visiting) the Sekai well before the others, did Miku introduce herself.... No so therefore he took matters into his own hands, ("If she does not have a name i will just have to give her one-") Unfortunatly fairtales weren't a common occurance in his showhold and therefore Bob was the best he could come up with.....

When the group finally did meet up for the first time it went .....Well... Not great (Something about teleporting to a strange dull looking world can do that to you)

Extras (First meeting) -

[Text]

Riddle: Pardon me for my eariler outburst. Allow me to intoduce myself, My name is Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle: And this is my friend ✨Bob✨

Insert Hatsune Miku who has been dubbed 'Bob'

Cater & Idia: EMO HATSUNE MIKU !?!

(Cater: Where TF did Bob come from....)

Azul: ....* Insert Azul inner monologue here *

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reference photos used:

[flowersforchoso]

Bi-han as a father.

it takes a while for him to adjust to the concept of fatherhood as a result of the strained relationship he had with his father.

but once he gets the hang of it, he'll be the perfect mix of stern and loving. capable of striking fear in his children's hearts if you threaten to report them, "i'll tell your father" works like a charm to make them act right, but he's welcoming and will never turn his children away or refuse to engage them.

realistically, he would've like 2-3 kids max.

he's a disciplinarian through and through. won't tolerate misbehavior or disrespect, especially if its towards you. he doesn't take kindly to that.

sometimes you feel he's being excessive with it and intervene

"mommy!" your child cries, running to you for protection from their father—a refuge—to which you'd complain that he's being needlessly harsh

"you coddle them too much, that's the problem." he scolds. "no child of mine will be errant"

of course, you get upset at his hard-headedness that barely makes him see from your perspective

and he can tell, because you're no longer receptive to his advances in protest against his behaviour

so he tones down the discipline and tries to be lenient with them. keyword: tries.

nevertheless, he's nurturing and very hands-on. attentive as well. if something is wrong, he notices right away.

will cook for his children because he believes he's the better cook, but they think otherwise, since he just puts lots of vegetables in the food. he wants them to grow healthy and strong

he teaches his children from a tender age to be self-sufficient and trains them to be able to protect themselves and you, if the situation calls for it.

dad time is essential. will take them to exciting places and partake in outdoor activities like gardening, hiking, fishing or simply errands to the marketplace etc. he loves to spend time with them and would crack dad jokes here and there to entertain them. they'll pretend to find it funny.

he's overprotective and strives to be a good role model to his kids.

now if he's a girl dad, there's a slight twist.

his parenting style is much more relaxed due to his mother being the only female presence he had growing up so its a mix of cluelessness and traditional ideals shining through and will mostly take cues from you

training is not mandatory but if they're interested, he would be happy. its not as rigorous and they have the choice to opt out anytime.

he dotes excessively on them that'll make you wonder if this was the same person you married. but it's mainly because he sees them as mini versions of you

at this point, its no surprise he's the preferred parent because of how affectionate he is towards them. and big, strong dad gives the best piggyback rides.

infact, you would have to complain that he's spoiling them too much to which he'd respond

"what's it to you? don't question my parenting" and you leave it at that.

treats them delicately. his paternal instincts go into overdrive everytime and he gets easily worried when it comes to them

when they reach a certain age, he doesn't shy away from topics relating to womanhood. but that doesn't mean he initiates the conversation. he takes on the passive role of listener and further educates himself by asking you questions in private which you tease him for being eager to learn

doesn't joke with his daughters. he's a nightmare of a father nobody would want to deal with because he would raise hell if anyone dares hurt them in any capacity

he's changed so much since having them; has become softened, and is grateful to you for this wonderful gift.

but if he only has sons, its a different story entirely

he's twice as stern and this is because he grew up with brothers so he knows how unruly boys can be

training is mandatory for them, they do not get the luxury to choose. he wants them to be able to protect themselves and you, so he doesn't ever present the opportunity for slacking

in short, he rules with an iron fist. you'd have to remind him that they're his children, not his underlings

struggles with voicing his affection. you'd have to reassure your sons that their father, infact, loves them

and it's only natural they gravitate towards you.

but that doesn't mean he doesn't care for them. because he does. its all about tough love and instilling strong values in them, leaving no room for weakness.

and they constantly want to impress their father. on rare occasions when they do, or bi han is feeling particularly soft, he looks at them with adoration and ruffles their hair or simply utters a "well done" that means the world to them

they look up to their father and are always around him seeking validation

[gunnrblze]

what do you think the ghosts would be like as fathers?

Ooh the Ghosties as fathers, this is a good one. Prepare for me to get maybe a little too in depth below the cut, cus this got too gahdamn long lol

Hesh- peak dad/husband material. giggling kicking his feet ‘n crying when he finds out he’s gonna be a father lol. he’d be as involved as possible and I see this being something he’s the most proud of in his life. i think a bit of cycle breaking would be going on with him as far as the way he and Logan were raised (looking at you Elias, yea🤨), he’d do things a little different but in a good way. would still model his parenting style quite a bit after Elias’ though in many ways. def a worrier too, and may be a little overbearing sometimes bc of it

Logan- similar to Hesh, he’d be an enthusiastic dad I think. would brag about his kids consistently, regardless of what they do/become. type to be like “my kid made macaroni art at school the other day, it’s the best thing I’ve ever seen” lmao. i see him also being veryyy supportive in general, like do/be whatever you want, as long as you’re a good person. would also parent similar to how he and Hesh were raised, but i almost see him being more lenient in some ways. def the kind to let his kids learn from their mistakes and learn good, though.

Elias- ofc we saw a lot of how he was as a father in the game (lots of debatable choices being made💀), but i think he honest to god, like most parents, did the best he could. doesn’t necessarily excuse certain things, and i think Hesh specifically prob has a lot of baggage from that, but he was also a good dad in many ways methinks. generally solid father material alongside the easily criticizable behavior LMAO

Merrick- first, he def gives me girl dad energy lol. but regardless, i see him being very very loving to his kid(s) actually, like “this is my heart and soul, everything is for them, I live breath and die for them” type shit. I can see him being a bit strict at times, mostly due to his protective nature. under the personality we see from him in the game, I think his kids/kids in general would probably bring out a goofier side of him too, the dad jokes would be unlocked immediately lol

Keegan- I see him being like a mix of Hesh ‘n Merrick tbh. Very very proud to be a father, like “I’d put it on my resume if I could”, and would love unconditionally. i think he’d be the type to maybe be a bit overbearing/intense at times like Hesh, mostly due to how much he cares about his kids wellbeing/success in life. also very supportive, and i could see him struggling a bit with how to juggle his fatherhood vs his career (like a lot of military parents tbh). he’d be the kinda dad that his kid(s) really respect i think

Kick- i honestly can’t see him being a father too much, i think he’d probably be the one here to not have kids. however if he were a father, he’d take it very seriously. i think he’d be the loving and goofy kind, his personality would really shine as a dad methinks. in his kids early years, I think he’d be tweaking out a lot like “what if I’m not good enough, what if something happens to them”, but as they get older i see his attitude almost changing like “oh yea, they love to swan dive off the back of the couch, we just let them” lol.

Rorke-pre fed here cause let’s be honest…🫥. i see him being a great dad, probably struggles with balancing that vs his career like Keegan might. he’d also be a bragger when he could like Logan, but in a more “yea my kid is on the honor roll…literally got all A’s, wtf can your kid do?🙄”proud type way lmfao. i see him being very dynamic as a father, a bit strict but a bit lax. sometimes he’s more present, sometimes he’s not. I think he’d value teaching and guiding his kid(s) like Elias. also a “you’ll learn your lesson” type of guy. you fuck up and complain and he’s like “hmm, tough shit, better luck next time” after he imparts his fatherly wisdom about it lol

[halliescomut]

The Boy Next World Finale

I'm gonna start this with a disclaimer- it's probably not going to be very nice. I do try to be kind even when criticizing media. It think it's important to know that most of my critiques about the story and show are based in the story itself, and not directed at any of the onscreen talent.

I'm also going to complain that Mame stuck so close to the original novel. I don't want to hear about how I should have expected that. I understand that when EA and SEA print BLs, whether novels, manga, manwha, webtoons, etc. are adapted to series that those series are usually like 98% accurate and often the things that aren't kept are things that are simply unrealistic for adaptation. But Mame's novels and series are a very unique situation because Mame is the author of the original material. A lot of the refusal to change these stories comes from a place of not wanting to disrespect the original creators, as well as the audience expectation to see the exact story they already like depicted in a new medium. In the case of Mame, she does not HAVE to be worried about that first part. And there is precedent for changing things in the series adaptations, we saw that with KinnPorsche, which was done with the consent and approval of the original authors (though they are garbage so fuck them really).

We will start on the negative though, because honestly I need to get it out of my system. I have defended Mame for a lot, and I really felt like in a lot of ways she had been improving in the way that she depicts her stories, particularly in her series. If you have been watching a good assortment of EA and SEA BL over the last 5 years, you can see a pretty distinct shift in how those series portray a lot of things. We saw backlash over LITA for the reveal of Payu being the one to mess up Rain's car the night of the faculty dinner thing, and A LOT of complaints over the Prapai/Sky storyline, in particular Prapai's diligence in pursuing Sky, and the words stalker was brought up and used in both cases. In the case of Payu, I always felt like that was an unnecessary inclusion in the story, nothing changed without it really, and it would have been believable and in character for Rain's car to have some sort of mechanical malfunction due to lack of regular maintenance, when he is very intentionally set up as a flighty character. I defended, and will continue to defend, the Prapai/Sky story choices, because 1: Without Prapai's persistence, there is no love story, and 2: Prapai's 'wooing' of Sky is literally him following the instructions that Sky gives to Rain in episode 2 (at least I'm pretty sure it's ep 2) about how to get Payu to fall for him. It is set up within the story that this is what Sky thinks you should do to get someone to fall for you, potentially, people still have free will after all. So to see this shift in how problematic behaviors are presented within series, and having an older novel (originally released in 2020), there really was no reason to maintain this story point in my opinion, at least not on the scale that it was.

Realistically, I think since she chose to actively change the story to basically make the parallel universes real, then she should have stuck with that. Because they weren't real in the novel and no the special chapters do not confirm that they were real, there's one that takes place from the perspective of alternate universe Cir and Phu, but it's not in a way that affects the Cir and Phu of the main universe, and the swapping either physically or Freaky Friday style of the Cir's never happens. If she chose to fully get behind the parallel universe swap, which she could have done without affecting much of the story. Personally, I think the way to go about this would have been for the accident that is the starting point of the novel/series to have taken the lives of 1 Cir and 1 Phu, leaving the alternate universe without either, and leaving the main universe with basically an original Phu and a transplant Cir. We could still have those moments of Phu being focused on getting Cir back to his Phu, and the sort of emotional climax be Cir admitting that he doesn't want to go back, because there is no Phu there. And you can still explain all of the little kindnesses that the previous Cir was doing basically the same way they explain in the show, that he was changed by the fact that Phu saw him as a person, not a robot, not a product, but a person, and so he went out of his way to do acts of kindness in secret for him, because once Cirrus learns about Phukan, regardless of the universe/timeline, he can not help but want to care for him.

The other secondary option is that they fully follow the parallel universe set-up they had, where the traumatic brain injury gives Cirrus a glimpse of what he may miss by staying afraid. It's a common story trope for a reason that when people, especially very young people, directly encounter death for the first time, that it fundamentally changes the risks you are willing to take. The classic quote is "Every man has two lives, and your second begins when you realize you only have one." Cirrus encountering a version of himself who lost his Phukan early on, and wanting to show this Cir that he needs to take that chance and pursue Phu, both to keep Phu safe, but also to maintain his own health and sanity. There's very interesting options available to play with, and none really require relying on what is inarguably a very problematic story point.

Like, I haven't really been interacting with a lot being said about The Boy Next World, because realistically I feel like a lot of people that talk about Mame's series, are coming at it from a perspective of wanting a gotcha moment. They want to say "see this is why it's problematic to have straight (presumably) women still writing BLs", and I just don't love coming at it from a place of TRYING to find problems so you can tear a woman down. Yes, we should be continuously encouraging the inclusion of queer creatives both in front of and behind the camera, but sometimes it feels like an excuse to be misogynistic. And realistically, it is a net good for queer stories of almost any quality being told and shared and discussed globally. All of that being said, given the very clear shift in how problematic behavior is portrayed within SEA and Thai BL specifically over the last couple of years, this choice will not only feel old and out of step, but distasteful to a lot of viewers. It's going to prevent people from rewatching the show, truly I have rewatched all of Mame's series at least once, and I do have favorites, but this one...knowing the endgame especially when I know that there probably wouldn't have been much of a negative reaction to a thoughtful change, it really brings down my desire to rewatch it, and I think that in itself is unfortunate because I think the story without the stalking is very emotionally affecting, and Boss and Noeul have done a really good job portraying these characters.

I did not bother to reread the novel, I only read the special chapters that were released recently, so admittedly a lot of my memory of the novel is based on my own notes and posts about it here on Tumblr, but I don't recall the final confrontation ending with Ozone trading himself for Cirrus. I'm not saying that's not what happens, just that it isn't what I recall. From a storytelling point of view, specifically one which is related to romantic storytelling, that's a shitty ending. Knowing the damage, both physical and psychological that their mother placed on Cir, Ozone taking his place is a bad ending. We had already established within both the novel and series (this I do remember) that Cirrus was putting things into place so that at the time of his graduation he would have leverage to get out from under his mother's thumb. Why would you put that aside and instead have him only escape by basically sacrificing his brother. I don't care that his brother is now 'grown', and the idea is that he would be able to withstand their mother's abuse without damage, because that's simply not true, but it also undermines the very knowing sacrifice that Cir made. He CHOSE, with intention, to stay with his mother and let his brother go with their father. He did that knowing that his life would basically be hell on Earth, but he loved his brother and was willing to do this. There's room here to blame their father, but it's made pretty clear that their father doesn't have near the resources of their mother, she was the one who brought wealth and power to that relationship, so I'm not going to put as much of the blame on him because it genuinely belongs 99% on his mother's shoulders. So why could they not simply pull the ace up their sleeves, tell her "No, you are not going to be the one in control of this" and walk out leaving her as alone as she deserves to be. You can be concerned for revenge, but that doesn't have to be an axe over their heads, a conversation between all of them to clarify what they've done to safeguard themselves against her would be plenty. We've established that both Cirrus and Ozone are very intelligent, they would have the ability to outsmart their mother who is blinded by her own ego. Would it be a Deus Ex Machina moment? A little, but it certainly wouldn't feel like it's coming out of left field. And like I said, that ending creates a dissatisfaction in the viewer because the number one concerns we've watched Cirrus have were for his brother and for Phu, so him sacrificing Ozone for Phu would not feel like a happy ending, and also feels out of character, especially when we saw the ending of their story in the universe where Ozone ended up with their mother.

Final thoughts on the negative- overall I'm just disappointed because it didn't have to be this way. There were changes made to the story, like Jin's psychic abilities, and the actual existence of the parallel worlds, so why could we not have made further changes that brought the story forward just a little bit more in step with the Thai BL scene overall?

To what I did like- literally almost everything else, which is why the whole story feels so tainted by that stalker storyline. I'll start with Noeul, because I do feel like he often doesn't get the level of respect he deserves for his acting. His portrayal of Phukan's was very well done, and in a way that is more difficult to describe. This was not necessarily a comedic role, but by virtue of Phu being kind of a silly little guy, there's a lot of moments of comedy, especially physical comedy in the show, and it is hard to do those things well, and also to not be too over the top with it, because this is more of a drama, so you don't want it to be out of place. There's also a subtlety in his acting when it comes to the more serious moments, not the sad moments, or highly emotional moments, like the confrontations with Cirrus, but the serious moments like the conversations with his father's flute. His conversations with his mother, his discussions with Cirrus about his life after his father passed, all of it is delivered in this way that feels distant in the way that you often have to distance yourself from your grief. And when we reach the point in the story, when he has the realization that the other Phukan is alone (as far as he knows) and he becomes almost panicked over it. He's felt and been alone for all of these years, I think 7 years at this point, and it's not easy, but he can do it, but the thought of this other Phu having had someone to stand by him, but now they don't, he can't stand the idea. We already see Phu as this person who is kind, his friends like him because he is this kind and thoughtful person, but this moment really hits it home to you. You know, we've watched this whole episode of him really taking us step by step through this day of mourning and remembrance, and we're not hit on the head with it, but we are reminded that yes we are seeing him doing this now as a 19/20 year old man, but that before now he was 14 and 15 and 16. A child, very fresh in his grief, having not only lost his father, but also his mother in most of the ways that matter, and in that moment when he's finally not alone on this day, so much weight is lifted. But then hie thinks of the version of him who hasn't had to carry that weight alone, and wouldn't that weight crush him if he had to start now, not just because Cirrus is gone, but because as far as Phu knows, a Cirrus that doesn't know or love him is who is there, and wouldn't that be double the heartbreak? Just...none of this is the easy simplicity that we saw in Love in the Air, so to bring this with the level of nuance that it is is very impressive on Noeul's part.

Boss does a really good job. I talked a bit in my discussion of the first couple episodes, that I was a bit worried at the coldness of the character, which is balanced by the almost innate warmth that Boss has, but still feels a bit off-putting. Through the series as we are fully introduced to the other Cir's and in particular the full explanation of the multiple world/timelines, seeing those scenes playing out of how things end for Cirrus and Phukan depending on the choices made was stunning. And it wasn't just Boss's acting in those different moments, but that he had set-up everything so spectacularly in the first half of the series, that you felt all of that same grief he did as he watched. There's a level of difficulty that comes with sort of playing to an empty room, which is what Boss was having to do when he was confronting the other version of himself, and even in the finale, recording that video to Phu. It's incredibly difficult even with multiple takes to get the exact right level of emotion while also making it feel like it's all happening real time. And while you could consider Boss experienced, you still also kind of have to remember that this is his 3rd job that he's filmed. (AN: This is under the expectation that he's fully filmed Zomvivor, bc honestly, I'm not clear on that, but I'm not really counting the cameos in Wedding Plan and Love Sea here.) I do really think there's a uniqueness to Boss's portrayal of Cirrus, particularly the versions we see the most, Main Universe Cirrus, the 'parallel world' version we see in the dream sequences, and the ponytail version, because they do all feel kind of different. But there's also this underlying feeling throughout. We've set up this idea that Phukan is the catalyst that changes Cirrus, that as soon as he truly meet him, things are changed forever, and we see that multiple times, so when we see even ponytail Cirrus rein himself in over the time he spends with Phu, it just really adds so much weight the fatefulness of their relationship, the inevitability of it.

It's I think the best portrayal we've see of soulmates since Until We Meet Again. A lot of that is Boss the person, and the clear genuine affection he has for Noeul, that really shines in their work together, but a lot of it is also talent. It's not just about him making heart eyes at Noeul/Phukan, it's the physical acting he brings into it. His face acting is pretty excellent, the eyebrow twitches and glowers, but also the way you'll see his hand twitch to reach out, or the way that he grasps at Phu, not just holding him, but holding on for dear life. There's this undercurrent of desperation in a lot of the small movement he makes that really sells how much he cares about Phukan.

We're knocking on 3000 words at this point, so I'm going to give a quick rundown of the other things I really enjoyed about the series. I loved Wim and Jin in the novel, and I also very much enjoyed them in the series, thought I did feel they were pretty different form their novel counterparts. I'll also admit that Wim kinda bugged me here and there in the series and novel because of how he talked about Cirrus and his general disdain for being Cirrus's babysitter or whatever, but I am granting some leniency based on the fact that he's still young. I really liked the friend groups in general, though I didn't really feel like we got to know the others.

I talked in previous posts about the visual beauty and use of cool and warm tones throughout the story. The cinematography is frankly gorgeous, and I hope Mame (or any other production company) continues to work with that director, because he's clearly very talented. It's a balancing act to have your shots line up in such a way that the visuals build upon the story that's being told, and you will see in some shows where they kind of thought "oh wouldn't this look cool", but it overwhelms the story rather than elevating it. I never really felt that here. Shots were well-planned and well-executed with that clear intent of providing that foundation for the emotions of the story.

I might have more to say, but honestly, I don't know. Usually I'm not posting more because I plan to rewatch so that I have more clarity, and I'm looking at things from a bit more of a distance, since when I'm first watching the show, my focus is on understanding what's happening and the performances. But as discussed above, I don't know how I really feel about doing any sort of rewatch at this time. But if I do have more to say, it'll be posted here and tagged appropriately.

My Mame BLs Masterpost where you can find my posts about the other episodes as well as some thoughts about the novels

[vampireistic]

AVENTURINE CHARACTER ANALYSIS

★ with some aventio analysis too !

CW: this is aventurine we’re speaking about so; mentions of suicide, gambling, massive spoilers

ps. i’m a massive dumbass that still to this day doesn’t fully understand the penacony lore so i’ll most definitely miss things out, my bad.

Watching everyone around you die out while you are forced into living because of a God blessing you with their rainy tears really presents the duality between a blessing and a curse. Really makes you wonder if luck even existed or does experiencing constant suffering and finding a string of hope make you blind to the true nature of your condition. Are you truly fortunate, or are you merely trapped in a cycle of endless grief masked by moments of fleeting hope?

CHARACTER DESIGN

Aventurine’a design is a reflection of who he is; wealthy, confident, flamboyant and so on and so forth. More importantly, though, his design is meant to reflect his desire to be seen as well as his use as just a mere pawn. His design and character are very reminiscent that of peacocks (a design choice rather common with characters who gamble) — peacocks are known and praised for their distinctive beauty as well as their worth.

This also means that they’re a massive target for collectors meant to serve as a person’s trophy; a similar way as to how Aventurine is quite literally a slave, his extravagance meant to pale his vulnerability. This Sigonian trophy has now become a pawn for the Stonehearts (IPC), his design is almost like a branding for him (even more so than the actual mark on his neck), it’s a reminder that he’s going to forever remain someone else’s property. The collar around his neck is meant to serve as a similar reminder.

His lavish design could be seen as a way to distract from his lack of freedom. The more extravagant he appears, the more people focus on his outer beauty rather than the fact that he is, essentially, a prisoner.

HIS TRAUMA / LORE

Aventurine’s relationship with his family has always intrigued me. He absolutely loved them to his core, and they loved him completely back in turn; sounds rather perfect, right? But I can’t help but feel like them drilling into his head that he was the gem of their home, that he would bring them to victory even as a sole survivor — he was their lucky charm. Sure, at the time it probably didn’t mean too much since he was a child and understood that these were words said in desperate times, but now as he’s older? Those words haunt him once again — I mean, it’s literally one of the many reasons he has survivors guilt.

It was actually a little difficult to categorise Aventurine into an attachment style (a template for how a child will most likely act like in the future) because his relationship with his family isn’t really shown all too specifically, or at least specifically enough to understand how he truly feels about them. All I can go off of is his devotion, therefore I can vaguely assume he would have an avoidant attachment style.

Given the way he was treated as someone “treasured” or “superior”, Aventurine has developed avoidant tendencies as a way to cope with the pressure and isolation of his status. He might distance himself emotionally from others, preferring to maintain a facade of independence and self-reliance rather than risk vulnerability.

"Maybe luck won't be on your side this time, and the bill for all your past good fortune will come due."

Finally, the person in front of him turns around. The distant skyscraper reflects a kaleidoscope of colors like an opal stone, while a music box plays on its own.

"But isn't that what you've been longing for?"

────────────────────────

This man is quite literally so suicidal. Pretty obvious, I think anyone could pick that up from the fact he outwardly admits in the Penacony quest that he “attempted multiple times” in the dream world, which of course led to nothing. He’s so desperate, weak, and afraid. He’ll try anything even if he knows the final outcome is more than likely futile.

As soon as he’s allowed a little bit of freedom, his first instinct is to off himself. Perhaps that’s also just a showcase that he cannot handle the idea of his own autonomy and that’s unfortunately quite common with victims of abuse; when given freedom, they don’t understand what to do with it. It’s like freeing an orphaned deer from an animal trade…whats it’s use now that it doesn’t have anyone controlling it?

Aventurine’s duality may be a form of dissociation, a psychological coping mechanism where he separates his true self from the persona he has been forced to adopt. The “peacock” persona becomes a mask that he wears, allowing him to navigate a world where he is constantly objectified and used.

However, despite his innate survivors guilt and this want for an escape, he refuses to actually die without trying to avenge his home.

────────────────────────

Immediately after gaining a sense of agency and somewhat power, he seeks for some form of closure. He’s obviously still very determined, in this way, he’s regaining that form of liberty by using his new role to his advantage despite it clearly weighing the IPC down (that alone is purposeful, he’s a pawn for them because it’s also convenient for him).

RELATIONSHIPS (slash aventio :3)

Now I utterly hate Jade — to me, she feels like a very lazily written antagonist/villainous character, and even if she had good aspects to her, it’s completely overshadowed by the fact she’s clearly marketed as just another “dom mommy” (believe me i cringed there too). One thing I’ll praise her for is the relationship she creates with the other Stoneheart’s members — it’s disgustingly manipulative and I love it.

To Jade, Aventurine and Topaz are two sides of the same coin, similar yet vastly different. Both of them are of course beneficial to the IPC, yet if a moment arose to be replaced, she wouldn’t hesitate to backstab Aventurine over Topaz, he’s a speck of dirt on their shoulders and too much of a burden.

More specifically; the only way Jade cares For Aventurine is the same way you’d care for a weapon, you wouldn’t want it to get damaged but there’s always the option to replace it if it does. Have you seen that post where it, to simplify, stated “love but in the way a wolf loves the sheep it herds”, that’s basically the entire dynamic between all the Stoneheart’s, however it’s evident Aventurine is a black lamb.

Outside of Aventurine’s acquaintances of convenience born purely from the notion of gaining something in return, Aventurine truly has one person who’s willing to stick to his dumbassery through thick and thin: Dr Ratio.

Firstly, these two clearly mimic the dynamic between Kaveh and Alhaitham and I find myself slowly just loving their trope even more heavily — a man who thrives off the intangible for the sake of success with a man who’s entire life focuses on logic, reason and book smarts. Throughout the entire segment where the pair are about to meet with Sunday and commit to the most dramatic ass lion king esque betrayal scene, Dr Ratio is cautious. He has to make this betrayal look real, so he maintains this facade of indifference with all the quips and comments Aventurine says.

He does everything for the sake of Aventurine. This man quite literally can’t look at Aventurine after he plays the part of a betrayer because he can’t imagine himself actually doing such a thing. Does he trust Aventurine? Yeah, sure, but he still leaves Aventurine with a heartfelt note that he specified he should read in his last moments:

“Do stay I alive. I wish you the best of luck.”

Dr Ratio is one of the first people to acknowledge Aventurine’s vulnerability and doesn’t exploit it, instead choosing to console him. In a way, it’s actually a little sweet that Dr Ratio thought of a scenario where Aventurine’s godly luck ran out, it shows he views him as a person who’s gained the knowledge he has, and not just a pawn who’s been polished into a gem.

cute dividers: strangergraphics

art: amosprinz

this is a little less analytical and more so rambly than i would’ve preferred, but i also just wanted to give people the opportunity to yap and talk about aventurine and the penacony lore in general. feel free to share whatever thoughts you have on this d(^_^o)

[brucewaynehater101]

AU idea inspired from I Don't Belong Here (I Wish I Was Special) on ao3 and the atla bnha swap au here on Tumblr

So we got the Bad Timeline with the BadFam, which are a lot like in the fic, trauma and abuse goes unaddressed or horrifically handled

But to toss Human!Tim a bone, Kon and Bart do come back to life, so he at least the Core four of YJ is all together again

(when I type YJ assume I mean the core four but if you want I can also mean all of YJ)

Unfortunately Tim is ✨Traumatized✨ and unwilling to cut ties with the BadFam cuz their "stability" is one of the things keeping him sane

And then we have the Hybrid Timeline, with their BatFam, Bruce is a bat or bird hybrid, Alfred is a hybrid (dealers choice), Dick is a robin hybrid, all the other kids are their own bird hybrids

And all the Wayne (Alfred too if you choose) have wings

In this timeline being an animal hybrid is the norm! Which adds another layer of identity shenanigans for aliens like Kryptonians who already had it hard enough feigning humanity

And also this Batfam? They did the impossible. They are !!emotionally healthy!!

Oh shit happens, mental health spirals, Jason died and came back and it was whole emotional rollercoaster, except Batman didn't bataraang his kid, first thing he did after learning Jason was alive was kidnap his son again and trap him in the nest and broody chicken style until he snapped out of his instincts

And then he nabbed his bio son cuz Jason snitches on Talia or Talia wants what's best for her son and an assassin's cult is NOT it, so she sent the kid his way

Batman here isn't abusing his kids, Robin was never fired, it got passed down from Dick to Jay.

I could rave on and on how the Batfam here is happy and healthy as can be but I got an AU to present

So the BadFam is on a mission, magical artifacts are involved, Red Robin secures it but uh oh, once the mission is over he accidentally activated it in the Batcave and the next thing the BadFam know?

Red Robin's still there, except, uh number one the very pretty wings, and also he looks healthier, like his needs are being taken care of

When he breaks out the "alt-self dimension-swap code" they know what they're dealing with and establish their Tim is stuck in a Hybrid world due to an artifact and vice versa

But what really matters is how jarring it is for Hybrid!Tim to be with a world without hybrids as the norm; people with his family's faces so hostile to each other; hostile to him in his eyes; nobody to give his instincts and hybrid side their needs

Under the guise of professionalism and "I have a family to return to" and using the fact the BadFam knows only what he shares of his home dimension, Hy!Tim keeps as much of a barrier between him and the BadFam as he can

He's from a family that spoils one another's instincts and social needs. One that does do jack shit about their issues and communicates about them. A family that isn't cannibalizing itself

Suddenly being with what feels like a bastardized version is scary and he does not like it

On Human!Tim's end, he's suddenly with a family that doesn't hate him and is willingly to help him

They're welcoming and it's unnerving?? And he has a family to return to, a mission to be loyal to. Oh God, what's gonna happen to his other self?

Exactly 24 hours after the first swap, the Tims swap back again and they figure out that for a limited but long time, they're gonna swap places every 24 hours

So they gotta get some help or tech that will cancel out the magic and since they dunno when it stops, they don't want the magic to run it's course and bam, both Tim's are dimensionally misplaced

Thankfully whoever and whatever a Tim has on their person during a swap comes with them so they can trade progress with eachother

Anyways, what matters after the second swap since the artifact's activation is that Hy!Tim instantly snitches to his family on all the red flags the BadFam raised during his time with them

And also no hybrid instincts or amenities, it was not a Good time for him, family nesting time please? :(

So while Hu!Tim thinks he's got any chance of a Good Grade in having people pay as little attention to him as possible during this trial, he's got another thing coming with the third swap when suddenly the whole family is checking on his well being

Hu!Tim grew up neglected and abused and would very much like no eyes on him, amd for all the freedom possible. He is screeching in indignation

But hey, his own family also wants him to stay with em so maybe they can convince the Hybrid Fam otherwise!

And his back hurts more than ever, but he'll get that treated once the artifact's magic ends, no need to bring it up

=======

To Word of God the subtext; the artifact swaps the two Tim's every 24 hours and is slowly making Tim a bird hybrid himself and eventually he's gonna burst wings in a Gorey way

But before the wings and maybe after comes talons, bird noises, and instincts, which he might take a while to clock in on and will make his time away from the hybrid timeline more and more miserable as his transformation progresses

Dealer's pick if he's the same species as Hy!Tim or not

========

So Hu!Tim hides as much as he can get away with from the Badfam to draw as little animosity from them as possible but does the same with the HybridFam to try and protect the BadFam's name from stains on their reputation (ignoring his own)

Hy!Tim is gathering all the evidence on the BadFam's sins and other people's to make a sufficient case against them and to convince Hu!Tim to be adopted by his family

Oh yeah, it'll be fun if the two Tim's had notebooks they placed near them before their swaps to talk with eachother

Hell maybe one or both of their notebooks gets stolen by like a rogue and that could be an episode or chekhov's gun and— idk where to go w/ it

On top of that, Hy!Tim finds every excuse he can to hangout with Young Justice instead of the BadFam because he trusts YJ more than them to the point he feels safe to tell them the whole truth and even go as far as to nest with them and let em preen his wings

Eventually he asks em "my family is gonna kidnap my new brother, can I do the same with you?"

Okay not exactly with those words but that's the vibes

Let's say they agree and he holds onto the Badfam timeline's YJ during the swap and now there's double trouble

But also the BadFam and rest of the hero scene is wondering where the FUCK the YJ went after it becomes obvious they're missing

Hu!Tim is confused why he woke up in a nest in Titans Tower and why he wants to lie down there forever but it also makes him unhappy in a way

Hy!Tim only figures out afterwards what kind of mess he's made, but no take backs! He and Young Justice are Twinning!!! He'll just cover his tracks once's the swap happens again

Honestly two dimensional versions of YJ—one where humanity is the default, and another where hybrids are—interacting would be fun to see

Hybrid Batfam is exasperated because Tim you can't keep adopting and kidnapping like you're Bruce!

==========

Me thinks that while Hy!Tim hides as much as he can, Hu!Damian, knowing his animals, clocks in on all the signs that Hy!Tim is miserable with the Badfam, doing loads of bird stuff that indicates him feeling unsafe and in danger and whatnot

What does Human!Damian do with this knowledge I wonder . . .

Maybe on the other side, Hybrid!Damian catches onto Hu!Tim becoming a hybrid and snitches and now Hu!Tim's chances at not getting adopted are down the gutter for good

Does the BadFam ever pick up on the possibility they're gonna be double-crossed or do they learn when it's too late? both routes would be fun to explor

There's also the fact that Hu!Tim isn't the only victim of abuse, neglect, and etc. in this family, it's entirely possibly that the Hybrid!Batfam will look at Human Damian, Jason, Steph, and Cass, etc. and draw up adoption plans for them too

==========

I'm not abusing the fact that anything and anyone a Tim has on or touching their person swaps with them enough

Like maybe Hy!Tim brings over Jason, Damian, Steph and Cass (maybe Duke if he's with the BadFam yet) and plants the idea of being with his family away forever, away from their Batman

And now there's a third party in this game, one that can turn on itself and fracture at any moment

A third party in this game who has limited time to choose between cutting ties with their very dimension for a family practically clones of their own and themselves

Or they can go against that option. They can go as far as to reveal the double-crossing planned against the Badfamily by the Hybrid family

Seeing the infighting and discussions between them would be fun

Timothy the human? Well he isn't gonna be human much longer now is he, nor does he have much of a choice in this matter

I'm not paying attention to Dick, or Barbara or Alfred, either of em, at all lol, so sorry about that

Maybe Hu!Tim becomes desperate and swaps his Bruce and Dick (maybe even Bats Hy!Tim swapped) with him to try and get all three of them to help convince the Hybrid Fam that he doesn't not need rescuing from the Badfam at all

It goes poorly and maybe that's what gets the BadFam to wonder if they're gonna be double crossed or set the suspicion in stone if it already exists

==========

I can imagine Hu!Jason trying to justify Titans Towers and etc. with his excuses of Replacement and whatever, only for Hybrid!Jason to go "me too bitch, you're not special, you're just an asshole (traumatized, yes, but that doesn't excuse shit)"

==========

Finally, I imagine that where the BadFam is abusive, the Hybrid Batfam is Dark with some of it being attributed to hybrid instincts, and the rest of it's just personality

Batman doesn't kill because Killing is Kind, it's a fix doing nothing to address the problem, the Killed in question

This Batman and by extension, his baby birds, will not have death be the end, you are going to live with you actions and decide what to do from there

When Jason died? Bruce Wayne gunned for Joker and ruined the criminal career. Tearing and gnawing at bones and flesh, enough that countless doors to his villainy were brought down the drain; it would be easier to become a contributing member to society

The Joker proved himself a threat to his fledgelings and it couldn't stand

Gotham's criminal scene learned better afterwards

Canary of the Coalmine, that Joker was

Maybe Hy!Tim swaps Hu!Joker so his family can fuck him up big time

Hy!Tim is just kidnapping everyone he can get his hands on for either adoption or to beat the absolute crap out of them.

Having so many duplicates in one universe could cause problems, but I think they could work it out. The shenanigans they get up to would be ridiculous and hilarious. I feel bad for Alfred if they don't kidnap Hu!Alfred as well. I do have another idea, though.

What if Hy!batfam kidnap YJ and the batfam (minus Bruce) for just an extended period of time? Like they spend a few months to years there depending on their needs? Then, after they teach they to communicate with each other, they release them back to their OG universe.

When they go back, they find that Hu!Bruce and Hu!Joker are gone. The Hy!Batfam kidnap both of them for a bit to beat the crap out of them. Hu!Joker is returned when he can no longer be a criminal.

Not sure about Hu!Batman.

Also, the Hy!Batfam often visit the Hu!Batfam and YJ. They do like a cross universe long-distance relationship. As far as Tim, though, since he's turning into a hybrid, maybe he permanently moves in with the Hy!Batfam due to his needs with his instincts. That, or somehow the Hu!Batfam figure out how to help them. Though, maybe Bart wouldn't stay in the OG universe if Tim moved. Kon has Ma and Pa Kent (maybe Jon and Clark depending on how that's going), and Cassie has her mom and others. Maybe they still go with Tim despite that. Dealer's choice, ig?

It's an interesting AU, and I'm glad you shared!

[clfixationstation]

this week's aotwt discourse: is it okay to say that Armin is androgynous

but hey at least we got a fun new nickname out of it:

Anyways, yes, Armin plainly has androgynous features. It's something that actually gets him hate from the more homophobic corners of the fandom (which is likely why this homophobic Armin fan is so adamant that he is definitively masculine).

Now, whether Armin the character likes being seen as more "feminine" is not explored in the text of AoT. So, putting down other fans based on what you think that Armin (a fictional character) would be uncomfortable with is ridiculous.

But I do have thoughts! I personally go back and forth on it a lot. I feel like Armin would feel insecure about being perceived as feminine because it has the connotation of weakness (because misogyny) and Armin is insecure about his physical strength. But I don't think it would bother him if there was not so much emphasis on physical strength in the world of AoT. So, in a modern au where there aren't titans threatening humanity, maybe Armin would embrace his more feminine features.

The other complication towards how Armin may view himself is what happened to him when he was dressed as Historia. It's possible Armin would be left feeling unsafe wearing decidedly feminine clothing :/

There's also a difference between Armin's features and how he chooses to express himself. While his physical features may be considered more "feminine" (soft features, round face, big eyes, short and slim: he pretty), do the clothes Armin chooses to wear reflect a more feminine, masculine, or androgynous presentation?

Side note: I do not believe that femininity should be restricted to the features I listed. People with all sorts of different features should be able to consider themselves feminine and be viewed as such by others. I'm simply identifying some features that my surrounding society associates with femininity. What is considered "feminine" clothing also differs from society to society.

Outside of his work uniform, Armin is primarily shown wearing a pale blue or green sweater over a white button up shirt, sometimes with a light jacket over top. Armin dresses very cozy, yet coordinated:

like bro is always in that light blue cardigan

Another consideration is that what is perceived as "masculine" or "feminine" depends a lot on cultural context. Like, if I wore most of these fits where I live in the US as a girl, they'd be seen as pretty neutral; the sweaters leaning more feminine, the plain button-ups leaning more masculine (the suspenders would be seen as simply out of style lol).

Anyways, while I would say Armin's personal style is more masculine than feminine, it comes across as less masculine than the personal style of other men in AoT, due to his soft color and fabric choices.

Honestly the style really suits him and it's super cute :) (Armin light academia king)

And I'm not really making an argument here, I'm just expressing my thoughts on the matter. People are free to depict and imagine Armin in whatever styling they please - so long as they're not being a homophobic asshat

[lynxfrost13]

silly hypothetical question: if you could turn your ocs (any characters) story into any medium perfectly to your liking, what medium would you choose?

Hi Sosa!! Oh this is such a fun question ty for asking it!!

I know for sure that Awol’s story would fit really well into a short film, since I feel like it’s contained enough and stretching it out via a longer visual media like a movie would be more of a detriment than a help. I think Awol’s story would be fun to play around with in animation, in my mind I’d see her story done in a style like Scavenger’s Reign. That show has such great animation and there are some graphic violence scenes that I think have the same energy as how I imagine Awol’s own scene with the storch she killed in her tunnel. I also think there wouldn’t be a lot of dialogue in this short since it also fits her very quiet nature. I think layout wise it’d kind of go like

Activation + being a normal ARAR unit -> degradation and her interesting in painting -> some scenes of her stuff getting confiscated/cleaned out etc with maybe a moment of her cadre -> discovery of the abandoned tunnel and some fun scenes of her just absolutely going wild -> other RTS units stumbling upon her tunnel when she’s not there -> Storch sent down to clean it as punishment for some misbehavior or other (I think this would be the most dialogue, her just receiving her orders and then complaining) -> Awol returning to her now barren sanctuary and seeing the storch -> brutal fight between the two that ends with Awol killing her -> closes with Awol painting the walls again and maybe the dead storch still in the shot bc I think that would go hard -> fin.

The next story that I definitely have a clear idea for would be the VDF-5’s whole ordeal told through a primarily Hollenhund POV as an animated show. Tbh if I could have all of my characters animated in the style of arcane I would in fact keel over and die from joy and I fear my answer for some other concepts style wise would also be this choice due to my personal tastes but I’m trying to think of what would best suit each story over what I just like. That being said the VDF-5 story I absolutely would love in studio Fortiche’s arcane style because I think the mix of animated expressiveness as well as the realism of how people look would be really good for the overall tone of the hypothetical show. I think the 2d elements of the style would be fun to explore in a sci-fi setting and it’d be perfect for fight scenes between characters as well.

As for the actual layout of the show (otherwise this might turn into gushing abt arcane’s style oops) I’d want it contained to one season. I just think it works well as a self contained story told in 45-60 min episodes. Also Sosa I am gonna get to ur ask abt Hollenhund so I will be yapping about her more in that 😭 but if it was told from her POV primarily I think the episode layout would look something like being divided by the first chunk being much earlier and letting us see Schrott in her prime during the war and her losing her cadre, Hollenhund at her Vinetan facility, and Essig and Honig’s early friendship and assignment to the VDF-5 -> time skip and all four of our main players are brought together on the VDF-5, Schrott as her wretched present self with Hollenhund under her wing, and then the friendship of Honig and Hollenhund (man I need to make a relationship chart I fear) and seeing Essig starting to crack under the strain of commanding her ship -> final chunk showing increasing tensions between our players as well as with external issues, until the imperial blockade finally beats the ship. I’m not explaining it the best right now but ideally I’d want to highlight war (war bad basically lol) and focus on replikas who were products for war, and were neglected as individuals. I swear it’s all so much clearer in my head 😭

Moving on to Kosmos and Dorredt, I think the medium that’d best suit their story would be a video game! Specifically an exploration type one, I’d imagine it having the cozy and adventurous vibes of a game like slime rancher while having gameplay that let you play as both Kosmos and Dorredt, letting you control both of them and having them work together during outer space adventures (like categorizing asteroids or mining from them, exploring, outside ship repair, etc) as well as inside ship tasks like tending to the hydroponics or more maintenance, etc. That’d be the gameplay all while narratively you’d be exploring Kosmos and Dorredt as characters and “helping” their relationship grow over time. Ideally I’d want it to be a bittersweet sort of end with the game coming to a close after receiving a transmission from AEON potentially/not hearing anything at all -> the two of them essentially living out their service lives until both Kosmos and Dorredt can’t function like they used to and eventually die, abandoned by AEON (sorryyyy 😔). I’d want it to be a really sweet and cute game but yeah also with that slightly depressing undertone. I also think that having something like cutscenes in a cute anime type style would be really fun as one of the ways to do storytelling in it. Visually for the rest of the game though I’d imagine it in a more low poly cute style like earlier pokemon games maybe? Something that’d give a nod back to signalis at least. Also could you imagine how cute 2d dialogue sprites of the girls would be 🥹

Last but not least, Holt and Wanze! I really struggled to think of something for them but I wanted to, and ultimately I think a 45-60 minute per episode single season show would also work really well for them. I think animation would be really fun to play with especially when it comes to bioresonance and a look inside Wanze’s mind. Style wise I think I’d want it to be something like The Lovers trailer for them as replikas

Plot wise I have a clearer idea just because I’ve had them and their story longer but I think it’d start with setting up Holt becoming a senior medical replika at sierpinski + Wanze and her role as a kolibri -> Wanze then losing her bioresonance and freaking out after Holt patches her up -> their ensuing strained patient and caretaker relationship to the weird one sided dependency -> their friendship and mutual crushes and eventual romantic relationship -> the flesh and holt’s death with it ending on Wanze alive and alone. As well as throughout the show seeing the background happenings of sierpinski and Holt and Wanze’s relationships to characters like Sieben, Adler, and the rest of the kolibri cadre, etc. I think vibe wise it’d be kinda dark both in terms of aesthetic due to well. Sierpinski. But also the looming threat throughout the show of degradation and ensuing decommission and how Wanze is on extremely thin ice throughout as she struggles with everything.

Now if I did their human AU I’d still love to have it as a show, but in the style of an older anime like Monster (fitting considering the hospital/doctor stuff lmao) or maybe studio ghibli (AUGH old lady Holt in ghibli style. I’m gonna explode)

Plot wise I think that one would be less grim atmospherically but it would still be depressing as hell in the end. It’d go similarly with Wanze injury (I’d imagine human AU she’d be like knight AU and lose an eye maybe) -> holt patch up -> the difference in this show would be that Holt and Wanze wouldn’t have to keep their romantic relationship hidden to stay alive so there’d be a lot more slice of life sweet moments -> Holt getting diagnosed with brain cancer and not telling Wanze for a while so they can keep living happily -> Holt’s decline as the tumor affects her memory and motor control -> her death in this AU too. I think vibe wise this would be a lot more lighthearted and fluffy when it comes to the two of them.

[sol-consort]

The idea of the Player being an unknown Omnipresent force in the background of Shepard’s life, yet so important, is actually so interesting.

And now I’m wondering…

Did we truely piggy back on Shepard from the very beginning?

I think not. Sure we “customised” Shepard but before Eden Prime we never influenced their life. Were we only interested due to Sovereign and invested after Shepard interfaced with the Beacon, opening their mind to something higher than themself, even for just a moment.

Was it subtle?

At first yes, Shepard was very confused and worried after waking up so they would’ve probably dismissed the soft guidance and gentle words as nothing more then a crossing thought in their mind. That was, before they started listening to the beautiful, ethereal and oh so sweet sound of our cadence.

What does Shepard know?

Probably freaked out after discovering Indoctrination, but the way Saren was treated and how dismissive Sovereign was of life, there’s no possible way you could be a Reaper or anything like. They could be wrong, but the fact they were guided to the eventual demise of Sovereign and Saren, the little they could glean of your shared moments together. You wanted this as much as they did, and even if not to save the galaxy, then to stay with Shepard.

If this is what madness is; it’s the best kind

I'm glad you like the concept. It's been buzzing at the back of my mind for a while. The questions you brought up are interesting, but the answers don't align with the narrative I'm trying to build in this story.

The gist of the story and main moral is that truth is relative.

What Shepard sees, and the Player sees both very well exist. In this story, Shepard is simultaneously a fictional character in a videogame and a real living person in their universe. The Player is simultaneously a normal person in their modern world playing a videogame and a very real force present in the world of Mass Effect.

Both truths exist in this story. It just depends on which point of view the narrative is told from. Why I've been purposely using "you" to address the Player and "them" for Shepard. As if the narrator is speaking to you directly and telling this story, rather than getting into characters' heads and using "you" to showcase their inner emotions and thoughts like I usually do.

It's why I purposely wrote:

"It's not something they could explain. Where would they even begin? Who would believe them?"

Instead of:

"It's not something you could explain. Where would you even begin? Who would believe you?"

;The latter would've made Shepard more empathetic and relatable for the reader, but I abandoned my usual style because I needed to the reader separated at all times from all characters but the Player.

I'm not trying to tell an isekai or a story of a videogame character suddenly realising they're in a game. Both the player and Shepard will always be blind to the other side of the coin.

The game is more of a medium that mirrors these opposing sides and reflects them into the other universe in ways that make sense for the people in the said universe.

And I especially want it detached from the reaper technology. You can't outsmart a system using a machine built from the same parts and tools the system allowed you to have. Even the reapers are just code at the end of the day.

It's why I've been heading towards the spiritual direction, a non-empirical far-fetched method that might just slip through the filters of the universe. Reaper technology is a construct, therefore, it abides by the rules of the universe which it was built in. whilst free-will isn't.

It wasn't the beacon that allowed Shepard to breach through the veil for a second or grant the Player the power to influence them. It was Shepard themselves.

Shepard IS free willed. Any actions they take influenced by the player is an action they weren't opposed to.

The player's influence has been evident even before the Eden Prime beacon. It's not just about making dialogue choice or picking mission destinations. To have even pressed the W key to move Shepard forward is enough of an influence in itself for them to notice.

It's just that Shepard mistook you as their intuition, an unusually sharp one. All the way through ME1 up until the second game.

It's also why I want them to only come to that conclusion during the second game, after they spent three whole years in a come, with the player's presence nearby.

[mackiebeth]

(shades of) maroon

Pairing(s): Wanda Maximoff x (implied) fem!reader

Summary: The development of your relationship with Wanda from its glorious beginning to its bitter end. (Inspired by 'Maroon' by Taylor Swift.)

Warnings: strangers to friends to lovers, fluff... to angst, no happy ending (this is my weak attempt at writing angst), character death

Word Count: 6.2k

Author's Note: im still in the process of writing new stuff, so i hope you can enjoy some old writing from my ao3 in the meantime... also, requests are still open!

Main Masterlist | ao3 | Wattpad

...

When the morning came we, Were cleaning incense off your vinyl shelf, 'Cause we lost track of time again, Laughing with my feet in your lap, Like you were my closest friend...

The stench of alcohol plagued the air surrounding you. You were not one to drink much, but Tony insisted on organizing another party — what was to be celebrated, you never really figured out. As the moment thirty minutes had passed since your arrival, the several shots you had done with Natasha were beginning to take effect. You were not drunk yet, but the shots definitely acted as a stepping stone. Beneath your skin, an underlying buzz was being contained.

You were talking to Natasha about the latest news in your life, considering the two of you do not always get to talk as much as you do since she is constantly on missions across the globe. As you raised your cup to your lips, you realized it was too effortless to lift. You excused yourself, making your way through the various attendees to get to the bar for a refill.

When the bartender asked you what you wished to order, you requested your usual: "Vodka Coke, please."

You remained where you were, but you elevated your left arm vertically enough to be placed on the counter. Slightly leaning, you use the angle to reach with your right hand into your pocket to retrieve the phone being stored there. Before you could, however, an unknown voice seemed to acknowledge you, "Interesting drink-of-choice... most go for a Rum and Coke."

You turned around, expecting to find out who this opinionated person is. What you did not expect, though, is said person being a beautiful brunette. Her eyes were one of the brightest shades of green, but they were dulled by the dark eyeliner outlining her eyes. The lengthy, brown hair cascaded down her back and shoulders. You even admired her sense of style; it was edgy — to say the least — but still very fashionable in your opinion. "I like to think I'm interesting," you began. "Otherwise, I'd be boring, and that's no fun. Even so, I refuse to accept that vodka is not the better one, especially compared to rum."

She let out a small laugh when you added a theatric gag at the end, showing your distaste for the latter drink. It was a bit dramatic, but you would do it again just to hear that laugh once more. With a slight smirk forming, she returned: "Coming from a place of people who praised that drink on their hands and knees, I am sure that I'm obligated to agree."

It was your turn to provide a chuckle at her joke, "Russia?"

"Close," she replied, tilting her head from left to right. "Sokovia."

Within seconds, the mood dampened a bit. You saw the numerous news reports of what had happened to the small country: ultimate destruction. There was a sharp intake of your breath, confused about how to properly respond in this situation (especially when you are intoxicated). The girl began chewing on her lip, which you assumed to be a nervous habit due to your lack of an immediate reply.

Once you finally opened your mouth, the bartender returned with your glass. You wrapped your hand around the glass, lifting it to take a sip. It was relatively sweet, yet it still contributed to the increasing levels of liquid courage.

The awkward tension was still present between you two. You could have simply left and returned to Natasha; instead, you opted to ignore it before she had the chance to leave you at the bar. "So," the word started to become drawn out. "Wanna get out of here?"

Her eyes widened, evidently thinking something entirely different than what you were expecting. "Not like that! I just mean, do you want to hang out at my apartment or something, instead of here? It's quite loud, and parties aren't really my thing, anyway. I just come because the alcohol is free. You don't have to, of course, but..."

The anxiety was starting to overpower the liquid courage, causing you to trail off as you finished your question; you left the hope that she accepts your offer to come with you unspoken. Finally, you could see the smile return to her face, removing most of the nervousness from your body. It was small but there nonetheless. "Ok," she agreed. "Under one condition, though. I want to know your name."

"Y/N. But, I'll also need to know yours."

"Wanda. Wanda Maximoff."

"Well, Wanda," you placed your now empty glass back on the counter. "We better get going."

Nothing necessarily happened that night. It was purely innocuous fun away from the overwhelming crowd at the party. Nonetheless, it was still one of the best nights of your life. You put some records on the turntable that sat on your bookshelf, allowing your favorite songs and scents of incense to fill the room. Wanda sat at the top of your bed with her back up against the wall. She was busy observing the decorations in your room, inferring the various quirks you possessed.

The two of you talked about many things that night. In the days after, you preferred to blame the openness on the alcohol; however, you knew it was because of her. It was simply easy to talk about anything and everything with Wanda. The Sokovian even shared some of her own stories, albeit with some difficulties. You ensured her it was alright if she didn't want to share, and she admired the respect you gave.

That is not to say it was all sad, traumatic memories being shared. You found out a few things about Wanda when she is tipsy and tired: she can be quite the comedian; she likes physical touch if she is comfortable with the person, resulting in the legs that were laying on your own; and her accent — which is incredibly enticing, you might add — becomes more prominent.

It was like you two had known each other since childhood; if another person had been present, they would assume you were best friends. And, honestly, you wouldn't disagree.

That was the night Wanda had both entered your life for the first time and risen the ranks to "best friend" status.

How'd we end up on the floor anyway? You say, "Your roommate's cheap-ass screw top Rosé", that's how, I see you everyday now...

A month had passed since the night of Tony's party, otherwise known as the night you befriended Wanda. You had seen each other practically every day since then, specifically in the evenings when you do not usually work. A few significant developments had taken place since then, including — but not limited to — the Sokovian becoming an Avenger. You could tell she was apprehensive about it all, concerning the relatively unstable powers she holds; thus, you tried to reassure her whenever you could in moments when her anxieties became overwhelming.

You texted her, letting her know that you were coming over to make her dinner that night. Thankfully, she had training, so the surprise you had planned wouldn't be ruined. A couple of days prior, you researched different Sokovian recipes. You vaguely recalled something she said about her favorite food being from home, but you couldn't exactly recall the name of the dish. After a few minutes, you finally found it: Chicken Paprikash.

As the cooking was coming to an end, you heard your phone ding from the counter, indicating that you had received a text message. Quickly, you wiped your hands of the food remnants on the towel that was closest to you. When the screen lit up, you noticed the message was from Wanda, saying she would be down in a few minutes. Panic began to bubble within you, as the food wasn't done yet and you haven't even gotten the drinks poured. Surely, it is not actually the time you planned to meet—

6:00 PM. That was the time staring back at you on the kitchen clock. Although, you did not have the time to think about how to rectify the problem. Footsteps were heard behind you, and you heard the mystery person inhale deeply through the nose. "Wow," they exclaimed. You knew that accented voice from anywhere: Wanda.

Slowly, you turned on your heels. "Hey, Wanda," you replied, unsure of what to say considering you were not done cooking let alone planning on what to say once she arrived.

"Is that Paprikash?" she asked as she approached the pot on the stove to take a glance for herself.

You gave a shy nod in return, "Yeah, I know you've been stressed lately with this and all." You used your free hand to motion to the surrounding building, referring to the fact she became an Avenger. "So, I wanted to do something to help, to bring you comfort. And, I know you said once that your favorite food was something from home, but I couldn't remember the name of it. But, fortunately, I was able to find it with my expertise in searching things on the internet. Ok, wait... that sounds weird—"

You stopped rambling once Wanda turned away from the stove to face you. Immediately, you noticed the tears forming in her eyes. Being the anxious person you were, you had assumed this was because of something you had done wrong. "No, no. Please don't cry, Wands. Did I make it wrong? I can make something else, or I— I can change it if I need to..."

It appeared to be quite the opposite, though. Wanda walked toward where you were standing only a few feet away. She looked up at you, taking in the genuine expression of concern on your face. No one has ever cared this much for her, excluding the family she once had when they were alive. So, she wrapped her arms around your abdomen and pulled your body as close to hers as possible. With her head resting on your shoulder near the collarbone (and your head laying on her own), you both relished in the comfort of the embrace. You brought your arms to her back, alternating between trailing your hand in up-and-down motions and in circles. Never had a hug felt so warm and relieving.

"No," she broke the silence after a moment had passed. "It's perfect, truly, Y/N. It's everything. I— I don't know how to thank you."

"You being here is enough."

The two of you ate the dish together in the peace of your own company. You found a spare bottle of rosé in Tony's cabinets, taking it to the table to be poured as needed. She loved it, as she had anticipated; yet, she loved your reaction almost as much as the food itself. You had told her that you had never had Paprikash before, that this was the first time you had eaten the dish let alone make it (which is one of the reasons why you were nervous). So, she waited impatiently with her bottom lip between her teeth as you took the first bite.

You had to admit, it was very good. In fact, it was so good that you let out a moan due to the combination of flavors currently occurring in your mouth. Upon realizing the sound you just realized, blood began to rush to your cheeks; the wine did not help the involuntary blush forming. The Sokovian laughed, not noting the latter events, and the two of you resumed eating the food and drinking the wine as conversation flowed easily.

It felt like you were transported back in time to the night you first met, feeling a similar buzz radiating under your skin. It took a similar effect on Wanda; therefore, you two decided to retire to her bedroom in the compound for the evening. It was late and you were not exactly the most sober, so she didn't want you driving home.

"Well, how could I say 'no' to a sleepover?" you supplied, humorously.

She smiled, and a sort of gleam came into her emerald eyes. Having been practically raised by sitcoms, she had always wanted something like this during her youth: a cliché sleepover with her best friend. She told you as such, "Good. I'm excited... I've never had a sleepover before, so..."

The shock you felt from that statement must have been evident on your face, for the gleam began to fade a bit while her expression slightly fell. "Well, that just won't do. We have to make this the best, classic, all-American girl sleepover. We need movies, snacks, blankets, and pillows. Do you have a game? Actually, never mind that. We can just do a verbal game like Truth or Dare or 20 Questions."

The plan you began drafting out loud caused the shine to return to Wanda's eyes. For hours, you spent your time in a fort you two built out of several blankets and pillows on the floor. The space was confined, requiring the two of you to lay as close as humanly possible. You watched two movies on your laptop, then switched to playing some games. You ended up playing 20 Questions, wherein you discovered some interesting things about each other. To summarize the most important conclusions, it was found out that: she has a guilty pleasure for stealing other people's clothes (specifically, oversized items like sweats or shirts), and you often took smoke breaks when you got stressed or overwhelmed (she liked to joke, saying she could tell that you were a "little stoner" at heart). However, the most intriguing discovery that was unearthed during the game was the potential that the other was not straight. During a round in which you were asked about your celebrity crush, you quickly gave your answer: "Florence Pugh or Brittany Snow. I don't know; they're both hot, honestly."

While you weren't exactly ashamed of your sexuality, you weren't sure of her opinions regarding the subject and didn't want to risk losing her. It never really came up in past conversations. As you registered what you just admitted, you kept your gaze down toward the carpet where you two were sitting. She gave a hum of approval, "I totally get it. Brittany in Pitch Perfect? Stunning. Florence in the Little Women remake? Perfect."

You looked up, finally allowing your eyes to meet hers. Obviously, she could tell you were succumbing to the nerves of your mind (it also helps when her powers make sensing others' strong emotions very easy). She remained in the same position from before, but her hand reached for the one resting in your lap. Taking it in hers, she gave it a gentle squeeze; the grasp strong enough to let you know she's not going to leave you. "I do not care if you're gay, Y/N. You know that, right? I don't mind women myself from time to time. It honestly depends on their personality more than their gender, you know?"

You have never felt so relieved and understood by another individual. You acknowledged her with a quick, almost unnoticeable nod. "Good," she continued with her classic smile on her face. "Wanna watch another movie?"

Sheltered by the blanket structure, you two resumed the positions of laying on the floor. This time, as the movie played on the computer in your lap, you felt her head lean on your soldier. Then, her right hand gradually crept closer to your left hand. Minutes later, her fingers were threaded between yours. At first, your heart was beating fast because you were nervous — she was making you nervous. As if she sensed this (which she did), she was able to calm you by using her thumb to rub the back of your hand.

You didn't have time to think about what it all meant that night; the two of you immediately fell asleep, and the rather serious elements of the night were seldom mentioned. Although, you only had one thought relating to Wanda before succumbing to slumber: Oh God.

And I chose you, The one I was dancing with, In New York, no shoes, Looked up, at the sky and it was...

Honestly, you were not sure if you were going to ever mention these newfound feelings you felt for the Sokovian. You wanted her to come to you, relying on whether or not she felt comfortable. While you wanted nothing more than to know whether or not she returned the sentiment, you also recognized she is in a fragile position. For instance, what if you tell her, and she totally freaks and doesn't want to be friends anymore? Or, what if she thinks that you don't want to be friends if she doesn't like you back, leaving her thinking she'll lose you? To say you were spiraling oftentimes about the situation was an understatement.

It didn't occur all of the time, though. In fact, the times you were simply spending moments with Wanda were enough to satisfy you, for that's all you truly wanted at the end of the day: her and her happiness.

About four months after you had met at the party, you were laying in Wanda's room at the compound. You were scrolling through your phone, looking at emails from the past few days that you had missed. Wanda, on the other hand, was reading a book she had just bought from a local bookstore. The room was under a comfortable silence; that is, until Wanda broke the silence with a random question: "Have you ever seen stars? I mean, in the sky... as the movies show them?"

"You haven't?"

It was not the best reply, looking back on it. The surprised tone could come across as judgmental — and, it definitely must have. The Sokovian began to sink into herself, her gaze lowering and the volume of her voice almost completely reduced. "No, I haven't," she said in a shaky response. "When I lived near Novi Grad, there were rarely nights where the sky was clear of clouds and fog enough to see any stars. Also, being locked in a cell made it quite difficult in terms of getting outside to see them. I haven't really stopped to think about it again until now."

You realized your mistake, "Sorry, Wands. I didn't mean to say it like that, like I was judging you. It's just weird to think, I guess, that you haven't seen them." There was a slight pause in your speech, "You know what? Come on." You grabbed her arm, pulling her off of the bed with you. The sudden action caused her to drop her book, but she was too occupied with trying to figure out what you were up to care about the forgotten novel.

"Where are we going, Y/N?"

"You'll see," you replied in a confident but excited tone.

"Y/N," she chuckled, loosening up. "We don't have our shoes on."

As the two of you entered the elevator, you pushed the button to take you to the highest possible floor. "Eh, shoes are for losers, anyway."

The ride took a minute or two, but the doors eventually opened in an achingly slow manner. You knew the sky would be clear tonight, therefore there would be stars visible in the upstate New York region. You took her hand in yours and dragged her outside to the rooftop.

"Well, look up!" you said, surely.

Wanda took a deep breath, then she hesitantly lifted her head. She gasped at the sight: hundreds or thousands of little white dots littered the dark, night sky. It was beautiful; there was nothing to compare it to in that regard.

She hugged you, similarly to how she did the night you made her favorite dinner for the first time.

"Do you like it?" you whispered into the ear that was conveniently located close to your mouth.

The Sokovian gave a slight nod, "I love it. I don't think I have ever seen something so extraordinary."

You nodded your own head in an unspoken agreement. The two of you just stayed there, remaining in the comfort of each other's arms as you took in the sights around you. After several moments passed, Wanda suddenly lifted her head to look directly into your eyes.

"Dance with me," she unexpectedly requested. It was not posed as a question, so you didn't think you had a choice in the matter (not that you'd deny her of anything she wanted anyways).

You moved your arms to be placed on her shoulders, encircling her neck; her arms maintained their positions around your waist. She moved her body closer, leaning near to the point that her forehead was resting against yours. This position should've been awkward — it would've been had it been anyone else; with Wanda, it felt so natural. Under the stars, the two of you simply swayed in the cool breeze of the August air.

"Y/N?"

You hummed.

"I choose you."

Your heart must have skipped multiple beats at that moment, but it did not stop you from giving your own confession: "I choose you, too."

In a speed that can only be deemed as torturous, you waited as Wanda slowly leaned in closer. Her eyes were constantly switching between your eyes and your lips. "Can— Can I kiss you?"

"Please," you practically whimpered.

Her head finally tilted and got closer until it hit — absolute fireworks. As her lips gracefully touched yours, you allowed your eyes to flutter shut to fully experience the moment in the most sensual way. It was not rushed or needy; it was the opposite, defined by the intimacy and passion that cannot possibly be found elsewhere. You could not think about anything other than how her rose-colored lips felt against yours. It is like the moment in which you finally find that missing piece that perfectly fits, bringing the puzzle all together; she's the missing piece, and your life is the completed puzzle.

As the kiss ended, you reluctantly pulled away. Her eyes remained closed at first, but they opened soon after. Her piercing green eyes never failed to stun you, not since the first day your own eyes landed upon her. You took your right hand, pushing a few strands of hair that had fallen to go behind her ear. She took her bottom lip between her teeth.

"What are you nervous about?" you inquired, noting the habit.

Her eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"You were biting your lip," you explain. "You only do that if you're nervous about something, like when you first talked about Sokovia or when you just wanted me to like the Paprikash because it's your favorite."

It was not the response she expected, but something about it made Wanda like you even more than she had previously. "Nothing, truly. I just really like you... just in case the kiss we had did not prove that enough."

"I can't even begin to describe how much I like you, Wanda. You make me so inexplicably happy; you have for a while now."

"A while, huh?" she teased, her signature smirk forming.

Unfortunately, so did your blush as you conceded, "About three months, give or take."

The Sokovian tried to do the mental work to deduce the time period, "Around the night of the sleepover?"

The blush on your cheeks brightened, and you gave a nod to affirm her response.

"We got there, eventually," she offered.

"Yeah," you agreed with a grin. "We did."

You couldn't resist the temptation any longer and shifted your head to give her more kisses. You started with light butterfly kisses on her jawline. Slowly but surely, you transferred to her cheek, to her forehead, to the tip of her nose, then — finally — locked your lips to hers.

If you could kiss her for hours, you would; so, you did. That night under the sea of stars, you two repeatedly exchanged kisses loaded with all of the feelings that had been pent up inside for a while.

The burgundy on my t-shirt when you splashed your wine into me, And how the blood rushed into my cheeks, so scarlet, it was- The mark you saw on my collarbone, the rust it grew between telephones The lips I used to call home, so scarlet, it was maroon...

You weren't sure exactly when you knew it was love. Obviously, you have known you loved her as a person for a while considering she was your best friend; but, romantic love — loving her as a partner, your supposed other half — is entirely distinct from that sort of platonic love of friends and family.

In retrospect, you think it has to be New Year's Eve. It was below freezing outdoors, leaving residents confined to the inside of their homes. This was not an issue for you and your girlfriend, for you two would never complain about the need to cuddle with each other for extra warmth.

Due to the holiday, Tony was throwing another extravagant party, which you two had obviously been invited to attend. That is how you found yourself in this predicament:

You had been standing out on the balcony for about fifteen minutes; it was getting a bit hectic inside with many people being in attendance. Normally, you'd just seek Wanda for comfort; however, you couldn't find her, leaving you to your own devices. The only immediate solution you could think of was to exit the situation by standing on the balcony in the cold air.

Though you'd been lost in thought for a while, a pair of familiar hands brought you back to the present. They tangled around your waist, one pulling you close to the front of the body behind you and the other holding a glass of red wine.

"дорогая, what are you doing out here? It's freezing," she moved her face closer to your neck. You tilted your head to the side in order to give her more access. She took advantage of this offer, peppering sweet kisses to the side of your neck. "Are you okay?" she asks, the concern evident in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm okay now," you confirmed, trying to ease her mind in the way that she does yours. "I just felt overwhelmed in there... a lot of people."

She gave a hum of agreement, "I don't even know how he knows that many people."

Her comment elicited a small laugh from you, which she took as a good sign of your emotional well-being. You let out a whine of annoyance when she briefly let go of you. As you turned to face her, though, your arm must have nudged the hand holding the glass of wine. Before anything could be done, the red liquid began to seep into your attire.

"Y/N, I'm so sorry," Wanda raised her empty hand to cover her mouth in shock. "дорогая, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to spill it. Oh my God, I ruined your clothes."

Meanwhile, you tried saying her name multiple times to try to stop her ranting. You understood it was not her fault; if anything, it was mainly yours for lacking basic spatial awareness. Eventually, you realized she would not stop on her own accord; thus, you placed your lips on hers in a final attempt to get her to slow down before she officially spiraled.

When you finally pulled away, she kept her eyes close because she was afraid of your rejection. "Wanda?" you pleaded. "Wanda? Baby, can you please open your eyes for me?"

In an apprehensive manner, she revealed her eyes to you. If the tears were not sufficient in proving her internal panic, you could feel the anxiety that was radiating from her body. "It's okay. I promise that it is okay, baby. Accidents happen, okay?"

She sniffled, clearly upset but relieved that you were not mad at her for the mistake. You raised your hands to her face, using your thumbs to wipe the lonely tears that began to slowly roll down her lightly-freckled cheeks. As you did so, the two of you stared into each other's eyes in an endless endeavor. You could barely make out the sound of a countdown coming from indoors:

"10..."

You moved to be as close to her as you could.

"9..."

"Wanda..." you said.

"8..."

You kept your thumbs stagnant now, simply cupping her face between your hands.

"7..."

"Y/N?"

"6..."

She followed suit, circling your torso with her hands.

"5..."

"I— I want to tell you something."

"4..."

"What, дорогая?" she pondered aloud, genuinely curious as to what you were about to say.

"3..."

"I love you, Wanda Maximoff. Not even with just my heart, I love you with my whole being."

"2..."

Your novel confession caused her breath to hitch in her throat. The tears that you had just wiped away were now returning with fervor.

"1..."

"I love you, too. I love you so much."

Thus, as the clock struck midnight signaling the start of a new year, you kissed the woman you loved with such a deep, irreplaceable passion. You felt like you could never come down from this high.

When the silence came we were shaking blind and hazy, How the hell did we lose sight of us again? Sobbin' with your head in your hands Ain't that the way shit always ends?

Looking back on your relationship, it was evident that you were susceptible to naïveté. When the clock strikes midnight, it does not stay midnight. The minutes will keep passing, for time does not stop for anything or anyone. Unfortunately, you had to find this out the hard way:

"Y/N?" you heard your girlfriend call you from a nearby room.

"In here!"

As she walked into the room, there was an unusual heaviness in her step. The atmosphere around you, too, was spoiled; it made you feel uneasy.

"Is something wrong, Wands?"

Given that she couldn't meet your gaze and continued to play with the rings on her fingers, it was evident that she didn't want to say whatever she had to, or that she simply didn't know how to do it in the first place: "I have to leave. I won't be back for a while."

"What do you mean?" you became even more confused. "Wanda, what the hell? What do you mean you have to leave? You have to go where? Go... Why?"

She stepped further back in favor of pacing the room. "I— I don't know, Y/N. They want me... the government, I mean... because of this mess between Tony and Steve. Natasha is setting up a safe house and a fake identity for me somewhere, most likely not on this continent. I'm so sorry. I don't want to go, but you're not safe as long as I'm here. I can't let you get hurt because of me... that has happened enough times in my life."

"No, Wanda," you cried out, not believing the words were actually true. "No! I— this isn't happening. No, you're not leaving."

"дорогая..." she trailed off, unsure of how to express her sympathy.

"No!" you began to yell, officially beyond upset. "You can't leave me; I refuse. I don't care whether you think I'm safe or not. You don't get to make that decision for me; we make that choice together. I want to be with you, Wanda! I love you; please don't leave me."

The sight unfolding before the Sokovian was heartbreaking. She could only repeat her earlier words, "I'm sorry, дорогая... I will always love you, Y/N, no matter what."

With your arms shakily encircled around your noticeably trembling body, you attempted to find solace. Further, your red face had tears flowing with no end. Wanda eventually gathered the encourage approach you. Initially, you tried to resist it by pushing her away or shrugging her off. You were so frustrated, wanting to show her that you were upset she was leaving you when you two could have stayed together. But, you gave in, for you'll always need her comfort in the end. You probably looked pathetic as you held onto her, sobbing into her chest with your arms clutching hers as if she'd fade away at any moment. Then again, you have never felt your heart physically break as much as it did that day.

Unfortunately, that sentiment didn't last very long. Only a few months later you received a call from an unknown number. Before the Avengers left and began to hide around the globe, you never would have answered the call of an unknown number. However, you know Wanda was also told not to contact you. At least, she would not be able to contact you with her personal phone, which she had left at your place with you.

Actually, you were on her phone when it happened. Oddly, you were feeling okay that day. It felt like the weight of the sadness was lifting, beginning to understand this situation would all be temporary. So, you allowed yourself to finally open her phone and scroll through all of the pictures and videos she had of you two. As you were watching a video that she took of you and her at Christmas last year, the call from the unknown number came through on your own phone. You stood silent for a moment, as if the phone would sense your presence and stop ringing if you moved a muscle. Your subconscious freeze ended, and you scrambled to the phone upon thinking about the possibility that Wanda is finally calling you after these past few months on the run.

You were close; the phone call was from Natasha. You knew she had been keeping tabs on Wanda in the beginning. You assumed she was currently acting as the middleman for a message from Wanda — you were very wrong.

"Hello?"

"Y/N?" the voice came through the speaker.

"Natasha? Is that really you? Hello? Oh my God, is everything alright? Wanda... how's Wanda? Have you heard from her? She hasn't contacted me at all this whole time, and I'm starting to get worried. Has it been too long? Natasha, what is happening? I'm scared..."

"Y/N..."

You didn't like that tone. It's the one someone uses when they know something is wrong, but they don't want to tell you that said thing is wrong. It was at that point you knew something was really wrong.

"No, Natasha. No. Tell me. I need to know. I love her, Natasha. I deserve to know."

"Wanda... she's— she's gone."

Time will never stop for anything or anyone; that principle was evident long ago when you two first confessed your love for each other on the balcony on New Year's Eve. That does not mean time cannot exponentially slow down. For at this moment, that is exactly what happened. As if your body took over for your mind, you went on autopilot: hanging up the phone on Natasha without any words being said and falling onto your knees in a fit of despair. The sob released from within can only be described as primitive, and the feeling as permanent. You clutched your chest, similar to the way you did when Wanda first told you she'd have to leave months ago.

That is not to say you blame Wanda or anyone around you, including yourself, for the outcome of today. You know there was no way of knowing, so logically nothing could've been changed in the end nor the beginning.

You were bound to be alone. Wanda wouldn't be there to hold your hand when you watched a movie, gently kiss the side of your neck when you were overwhelmed, or worry herself at the silly mistakes she made; she wouldn't be there to roll her eyes at your admittedly stupid jokes, kiss your lips while you made dinner for the two of you, or hold you in bed after a long day or a terrible nightmare. But, most importantly, Wanda — the love of your life — wouldn't be there to get married to you, raise the three children you two always wanted (because "one is not enough and two is average, but four is definitely too much"), or experience the other joys of spending the rest of your lives together as you two had intended.

At first, you were just sad all of the time. It was an endless pit of despair, rendering you hopeless. You had your whole life planned with her being in it; how could you ever live that same life, especially happily, now that she's not here to experience it with you?

Then, a switch occurred in your mind one day. The sadness quickly faded into a wave of hateful, vengeful anger. It felt like your body and soul were constantly plagued with so much anger and hurt, because how dare this happen to you two? How dare this happen to her after she's already been through and lost so much? And, how dare this happen to you after you finally found your person?

The worst of it all is it felt like you still see her everywhere, from the compound to the grocery store. Even today, there are constant reminders making it impossible for you to escape the maroon lens Wanda had left on your life. You had once perceived the maroon to be a sign of warmth and love, of Wanda herself; how could you possibly have known that one day all it would come to mean was the seething red of anger?

End.

[twstedpometea]

Pome answers Ugi-related Questions

@lapucellee's Question:

"My question is big, sorry… if ugigiugi had a Scarabia and Heartslaybu comic?? How many plagiarized comic sets did ugigiugi have?? I remember some and I don't believe I've seen Scarabia and heartslabyul comic only of the other comics but not complete sets of them because I remembered they all looked very familiar too me but I thought I thinking too much about it. How does someone have that much of plenty of free time to trace and plagiarize but not learn to draw?? Like she had around 2.2k?? Devienations before she deleted half of it….and Julia's behavior in her Egyptian Ibat netjeru and twst ik she's makes herself a Mary Sue but oh dear…"

I'll go ahead and answer these all as best as I can! Hit the Read below!

As far as I can see in my backlog? There are only individual pictures of Heartslabyul and Scarabia, respectively. Any other images I dug up that had Heartslabyul or Scarabia students present were part of group shots.

That being said, I don't claim to have everything Ugigiugi ever produced, just what people have submitted to me and what I did find when the initial call outs came out. If there is more stuff? We'd have to try and find it but it's much harder now since she has hidden a good chunk of her "art". Based on what I've observed and what people have told me, she has deleted her Twitter & Pinterest and locked/deleted her Pixiv account. According to people on DA if she has a Core Membership, she's likely using that to keep her art hidden/stored because of the gallery customization feature.

(As a side note: People who have DA accounts can still see some of the art she kept, but a lot of the controversial pieces, her Ibat Netjeru comics & art, and other "original items" are no longer visible. Many people assume that's why she keeps paying for that Core Membership, even though her reputation is pretty much tarnished and she has been essentially run off every platform.)

The truth is we don't know the totality of her art stealing. We just have numbers based on findings in art we do have and the sources we've been able to confirm.

If things look similar, it might be that again she does steal from a variety of artists but she also takes Twisted Wonderland assets so anything that looks "similar" is because of her "style" choice. Keep in mind she has been known to stitch many things from multiple art pieces to make a single drawing, creating what I've called "Franken-Art". She's also been exposed for reusing sources in multiple drawings so it's entirely possible you just spotted a repeating element. When it comes to her art theft, it is rampant yet pathetically predictable.

^ By Yosuga0101

Unfortunately, I can't say for certain if there are no Heartslabyul or Scarabia comics out there, nor could I give you an accurate count of how many plagiarized comic sets there were. When the callouts started, Ugigiugi panicked and tried to cover her tracks by hiding her "art". Part of the process many of us did was cross-reference items to ensure we had the correct source from which she had stolen. If we can verify that? It will get tallied and annotated in a folder of new findings as evidence.

Now as for how someone can have free time to trace versus learning to draw? Well, that depends on how much time she had in her RL to spend on all this and her choices. That can be broken down into a few theories people have but if you want a TLDR, here it is:

She wanted attention and validation but didn't have the skill to do it. To her it was easier to trace from others to get results vs skills.

Lack of accountability. She basically saw other people tracing and thought it was a valid excuse to do the same. (Tracing to study/improve skills is different then straight up tracing to steal).

Possible graphic designer background? This one is my personal theory due to how graphic designers are taught how to take "free" items online as assets during schooling. (This doesn't got for every GD school but its something I have observed from my own experience.)

I did have a deeper conversation about this with someone else. You can find that chain of conversion here if you want more in-depth details as to why I listed these things.

Now as for the 2nd half of this question, I again don't know much she had on her DeviantArt in total. By the time I got involved, I only saw her art gallery once on DeviantArt. I noticed it was at 1.5k pieces in March of 2023.

The above screenshot is a picture I took when I was trying to see how many TWST pieces she hid. I had originally seen 504 deviations and then it dropped to 482 (Ending at 310). I assume this is when she was doing damage control.

This is a screenshot I took this morning to verify that she went down from 1.5k to 545. In either case, because she was just tracing and not actually planning out her pieces, she was pretty much able to pump out a lot of traced artwork very fast. This discrepancy shows how much she probably stole. If you go on her profile now you'll most of her TWST art is either edited screenshots, fan writings, or other supplementary stuff like design sheets.

Now as for Ugi's behavior regarding her Ibat Netjeru and TWST stuff? That's a whole essay because this is gonna require a crash course in Mary Sue's/self-shipping (Yumeshipping) too.

As I said in an older post, I'm personally not one for self-shipping. It's not my cup of tea but I'm also not gonna tell people how they engage with their fandom spaces. (Mostly because I'm just here to vibe in my corner, I'm not a fandom policeman)

All that being said, to understand Ugigiugi's behavior, you have to understand why people create Mary Sues and participate in self-shipping. In my perspective, it falls into two main categories:

For fun

A type of parasocial comfort

Let's start with the first category. Mary Sues have a spectrum of different descriptions based on people's opinions. Our oldest known Mary Sue comes from the Star Trek Fandom. A Trekkie’s Tale (1973) Here's the link if you want to brush up on the origin.

If you personally asked me how I would describe a Mary Sue, I would describe them as an unbalanced character who has the narrative revolve around them, including the characters. Often the Mary-Sue is underdeveloped or developed to have disproportionate positive traits vs negative traits. They often steal the narrative or take over relationships the cast has because it's easier to self-insert an idealized character versus trying to learn to write how their character would actually interact with the cast. They can also be known to demote characters to tropes/strawmen or simps for the sake of centering their OC amongst the cast.

Most of the time it's for indulgence. Self-shipping is generally what Mary Sues and Selfshippers(Yumeshippers) do because they have "favs" they wanna draw or write about exclusively and while it can be for fun it also is a type of parasocial comfort.

Now compare that with Ugigiugi and what she's doing? She generally "tried" to have her own fun and fantasies play out. It's evident she was a fan of the Ennead comic and her desire to self-insert herself into it is what made her draw/write her Ibat Netjeru stories. The same thing can be said for Twisted Wonderland as well. She just self-inserted herself into the story to be the main focus of not just the story, but of the cast's lives in various degrees.

In Ibat Netjeru it seems she's the reincarnated daughter of the Egyptian god Anubis and is the love interest of Seth while also having other male characters hold affection for her to make her feel wanted by everyone. This is a power fantasy of her wanting to be a "designer of the gods". She wants her art to be desired by people and of course, get the attention and praise that comes with it. Low effort, high reward type of setup with the usual dramatic flare of the Egyptian gods in the background.

With Twisted Wonderland, it's no different. The main issue with her Mary Sue behavior is the information and story building makes no sense and is highly questionable in some areas when analyzed.

She's still using her adult age (older then Leona in fact), yet she goes to classes as a student? She hangs around Ace, Deuce, and the other first years who are canonically 16-years-old? What does a woman in her mid-20's have in common with teenagers? Not a lot I'd imagine. Flip the genders for a second. Would it be cool for a man in his mid-20's to be hanging around a bunch of high school girls? Talk about giving people the ick! There's also the fact she seems to flip-flop with how she chooses to represent their "friendships". Only a few notable ones she keeps boundaries with are her "not favs" Eveyrone else seems to get the flip-flop treatment between friends and romantic/intimate posing. She doesn't really consider where the boy's canon POV on boundaries, friendships, or how they want to present themselves.

....And even if her self-insert doesn't view the first years as potential "end-game" romantic partners, it seems to be the male gaze, affection, and attention she wants from them all to different levels of degree. Characters like Azul and Idia go to pieces around her, Jade and Floyd like to flirt with her (to the point of sexual harassment which gets treated as a punchline to a joke. Sourced here) and Leona…she's completely butchered his personality by portraying him as a pining simp who gets jealous every time she talks to Malleus, creating a frustrating love triangle given Leona's real personality. Hell, even the NPC students fawn over her!

But even when the characters aren't simping over her, she's still the center of their world. Or more accurately, she's strips them of their personalities to make herself the most important person in their lives or has written herself in places where other characters had relationships.

Examples:

She's Idia's fellow Otaku and gamer "healer" (he even goes so far as to call her Healer IRL) when in canon Idia plays with "CrimsonMuscle" (Lilia), wiping out that friendship entirely.

She inserted herself into Epel and Deuce's conversation on the beach in Chapter 5, casting herself as the one who helped, ruining Epel and Deuce's developing comradery.

She positions herself as Riddle's therapist (at least in one writing I saw).

At every turn she is there somewhere in these boys' (or even the teacher's) lives in a profound role or in ways that make no sense. She sells t-shirts she designed herself (the irony) in Sam's shop. Crewel and Vil both think she's stylish. Sebek calls her "Teacher" and asks her to be his drawing tutor. (Which is just her using Sebek as a springboard to "admire" her art skills)

Even the world bends to her power fantasy to the point it conflicts with world-building. She has a magipen and can fly a broom despite not being magical? It's implied she has some sort of connection to characters like Zeus and Maleficent. Hell, she was able to lift the Lightening Rod during Chapter 6's dungeon tower run and defeat at least one Titan (even tho Vil and the others struggled to lift or even control that thing).

The entire story of Twisted Wonderland warps to make her the most important person in EVERYONE'S lives.

You can see where it ultimately leads to her behavior as a Mary Sue/Selfshipper. Now here's the thing. Because of all these factors? Most people who are into Mary Sue/Selfshipping are just here for themselves. (Cause..that's the definition of what those things are in the fandom space) In practice that's usually "fine" because most of the time these types of people tend to stick within their own social circle or spaces and most people block and move on from them. Rarely do you see any fan-made Mary Sue run huge numbers in any fandom. The reason she got so much attention and ultimately got called out was because she was a serial tracer. Add the tracing, the Mary Sue behavior, and the self-shipping? It basically looks like someone is using other people's artwork to get their indulgence and gain popularity for it. So of course, nobody was happy about it. Who would be? I don't think anyone would have cared about her and her artwork if she was drawing on her own skills and sourcing her free resources. But again she did choose to actively trace other people's artwork. She's an adult. Not a pre-teen who just got online and exposed to the fandom spaces. So now she has to deal with the consequences of her digital footprint and reputation. Hopefully, this breakdown helped you understand a bit. I know this is a very long post but I wanted to ensure you got a lot of facts as well as screenshot proof and images to understand why Ugigiugi is what she is in this context. ~TwstedPomeTea

[oxygenbefore1775]

how they wrap gifts

➼ featuring: annie, armin, eren, jean, hange, levi, mikasa, pieck, porco, reiner zeke

⋆꙳•❅‧ ‧❆ ₊⋆ ⋆₊ ❆‧ ‧❅•꙳⋆

annie

since she very carefully unwraps her own presents, she ends up reusing the paper for the following year - oftentimes the same paper would go as a wrapping for the same person she'd received the gift (and thus the paper) the previous year from

measures out a piece of paper by eye and never gets the size wrong

a pull-string bow nestled in a corner is peak level of gift decoration for Annie but she'd always make sure to attach name tags

armin

chooses wrapping paper and ribbon based not on the festive season but on the vibes of a person the gift is intended for - so everyone gets their gift theme-coordinated

adjusts his wrapping technique to suit the shape of the present perfectly, wraps and unwraps the gift multiple times for necessary corrections

adds a personal hand-written card within each present alongside the recipient's favourite treats

eren

uses too much tape and spends too much time hunched over each present, making sure every edge is crisp and neat

opts for solid color wrapping paper as he prefers to write the recipient's name directly on the paper

no non-sense embellishments - if he ever uses one, it would be a ribbon tightly wrapped around the present to ensure its security, topped off with a plain looking bow

jean

too cool for conventional design wrapping paper so he uses kraft paper and customizes it with doodles putting undoubtedly and most certainly zero effort in the creation process

can't stand the look of tape on the kraft paper which results in him hot-glue-gunning his way through each present for speed

ties a length of twine around the present and glues on a totally not thoroughly planned out potpourri arrangement for a finishing touch

hange

uses metallic and holographic wrapping paper paired with ribbon of the same bright neon color

the wrapping is meant to be destroyed in their mind that's why they pack the presents like party crackers and fill it with confetti and glitter

always adds a bag of goodies to the main gift

levi

uses double-sided tape since it's more neat than regular tape or glue

color-codes gifts with different kinds of wrapping paper so that he remembers which present is for whom - one could say that he chooses the recipient's favorite design but he'd never admit to it

has adopted one wrapping style for himself and never strays away from it, honing it to perfection in speed and precision

mikasa

opts for furoshiki instead of paper since it's more practical and would skip over the messy wrapping process - fabric with subtle flower patterns is her favorite

embroiders the recipient's initials on each piece of cloth to add a personal touch and ensure that she wouldn't mix up the presents

makes the bow so tight for security that only she is able to untie it afterwards and tucks dried flowers under the knots for the look and slight fragrance

pieck

never really bothers with the choice of wrapping paper - if there isn't some lying around the house, she'd simply make due with whatever newspaper she has

glitter and pull-string bows draw the attention from all the wrapping mistakes that's why Pieck rarely starts over and keeps going no matter what

might go an extra mile of wrapping gifts several times just to fuck with people

porco

implements more complicated styles of wrapping including origami patterns and such

prefers scented wrapping paper basing his paper choices primarily on fragrance rather than appearance - also makes sure that everyone knows that he uses scented paper and thus is fancier than them

makes it his mission to use as little tape as possible

reiner

since most of the stationery in the house was bought for Gabi, Reiner often finds himself using her supplies, with glitter glue being the most frequent choice

his presents are usually the biggest since he oftentimes gets carried away and buys a bunch of mini-gifts alongside the main one

the little bows he crafts at the end of the ribbons or to attach a name tag are consistently the cutest - the same goes for the thematic stickers strategically placed throughout the present

zeke

it would be a stroke of luck to see Zeke's gifts wrapped in any sort of wrapping paper, or just paper for that matter - he doubts that it would be worth his time and effort wrapping each present up just for the paper to get eventually destroyed

that's why gift bags are his besties - not only do they save him the effort of wrapping but they can also be repurposed for future use

the same goes for the name tags - he's customized wooden blanks with the names of a set group of people and reuses them from year to year

[acertainmoshke]

Cracks in the Stone this time!

You said that they have a different gender system, and your character bios indicate that the different genders are associated with different deities of the setting and have some traits associated with. I'm also guessing, knowing you, that these genders are very much not going to be just stand-ins for Earth genders.

So I'm curious as to how that works with regards to worldbuilding - like cultural implications, how romance works, how gender is assigned and/or chosen, if gendered spaces are common or not, if professions tend to be gender-segregated. Stuff like that.

(hoping this makes sense)

Thank you thank you thank you this is like my favorite topic!!! So, yes, in the main fantasy kingdom there are 5 genders and they have nothing to do with physicality. When we meet characters from other kingdoms, they are more binary. So.

In Halara, a gender comes with:

A certain clothing style (though this series covers 1,000 of Halaran history—CitS is about 400 years in—and the later you are the less strictly differentiated these styles are)

A certain headscarf style (these remain more regimented, outside of a few weird pockets of history, but they aren't ranked in any way—just a sort of social signal)

Association with a certain deity (since gender is a conscious choice, this has less to do with personality traits and more what a person has to offer the world or how they want to present themself)

A suffix on the end of their name (really only used for formal introductions and official documents)

A gender does not come with:

An expected role in society (behaviors, friendships, etc)

Certain jobs (well, not the expectation of such, but due to the nature of being associated with different deities some are more likely. Tsap, the sun deity, is associated with farmers; Kitso, the deity of art and craftsmanship, is more likely to be associated with people who make things)

Certain romances (traditionally, marriages are arranged, but—for commoners, anyway—it would be considered vulgar to take the children's physicality into account when doing so. The point is to have a partnership in one's work and home, and children come from enough of them. Nobility do take into account compatibility for producing heirs, but the betrothed may still be any mix of genders)

Pronouns (the Halaran language only has one third person singular pronoun—yes this language exists, I generated it with vulgarlang and then tweaked it to my desires and then painstakingly made it into a searchable dictionary—and originally I tried to give each gender "translated" neopronouns, but it made it unreadable. One or two characters with unexpected pronouns works but every character makes it distracting. So now every Halaran human uses they)

That sounds great! How do I get one of these genders?

Glad you asked! Halaran cultural life happens in three stages:

Childhood: ages 0-13. Children have no gender, and they all dress in tunics and leggings (styles vary across time and location). Once public schools are introduced, they typically go to school (or tutors if they're wealthy) from 8-13.

Youth: ages 14-19. Traditionally the age of apprenticeship, but that doesn't apply to everyone (namely nobles and servants), and in later years further schooling is another option. Around 12-13 adults around an older child will help them think about who they want to grow into and they will choose their gender, revealed on their 14th birthday (generally a big party) when they begin to wear adult clothes and tie their hair back.

Adulthood: 20+. 20 is usually another big birthday celebration, and when a person starts wearing a full headscarf (side note: these are because hair is considered a sort of representation of the soul and a personal matter; they don't cut it either), after which they take it off only around family, partners, or very close friends. This is also when one would graduate their apprenticeship and begin a career in their own right, and the age at which they are eligible to marry, though depending on circumstance they don't always right away.

Example: Aryel

(slight tw for blood)

I'm using a character from book 2 because I've commissioned art of them. Book 2 is actually set earlier than book 1 by almost 100 years anyway. Aryel is the ruler of Halara and also leads the army in a great war, splitting their time between the two. At court they dress like this:

Aryel is on the right. You can't really see it here, but they're wearing a skirt. They are clearly recognizable from that and their tichel-like scarf as a ku, the gender associated with Tsap (who, in addition to farming, includes things like protectiveness, loyalty, and often war). Next to them is Wyllawher, the Queen of the neighboring kingdom, where they wear more typical fantasy gowns.

This is Aryel and their second-in-command, Etlin. The little capes represent their rank, but from the uniforms (and practical hats) you can't tell what either of their genders are, which makes for a fun temporary breakdown of that system actually.

Both art pieces drawn by @/clickerflight

I have a whole separate lecture on non-human genders and sexes in Halara, so let me know if you want that one too!