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pumpkinbxtch · 7 months ago

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ok ok I know this is kinda random but I am a HUGE Octavian simp for literally no reason but honestly? I trust you to see this ask and do with it what you will <3

Octavian is My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys 100000000% he stole my tortured heart for no reason he's just an annoying lil guy

Can you do an Octavian x Daughter of Poseidon/Neptune!reader where they have a kinda off/on relationship? Totally ok if you don't want to though! I love your writing!

f.u.

— octavian x daughter of neptune

☆radiostar is playin': f.u. — little mix…!

warnings; angst, off-on realtionship, (more) mean octavian, language, octavian himself is a warning (lol) a/n; yep, absolutely, Octavian is annoying really, I HATE HIM but as my mother taylor said: it's the worst men i write the best. I've never said it but I love writing angst, bro someone commit me to the psychiatric. Anyway, THANKS, hope you like this. Love, María

—I swear I'm going to drown you in your sleep!— Each word made you grip the glass tighter until Octavian could hear the material creaking, on the verge of breaking. His eyes focused nervously on the glass, but all you got out of him was a defiant hum.

—Come on...— His gaze was as empty as the promises he always made, yet you felt his warm hand wrap around your wrist, forcing you to release the glass. He gently shook your hand twice until the glass fell into his free hand. You thought it was an act of consideration for your well-being until he smashed it on the floor himself.

That was him, always showing a vulnerable side only to shatter any sign of it later. He smirked mockingly.

— You’d never do that to me.— That arrogant glint in his eyes made your stomach turn.

He was a bastard.

Disgusting.

You hated him.

You were done.

But by standing still, you proved him right, and he finally let go, heading to the kitchen. His casual footsteps echoed in the dimly lit apartment, illuminated by nearly spent candles 'cause you had been waiting for hours, cooked your best, dressed nice for him, and Octavian just decided to make you wait for four hours.

When he returned, you were still in the same spot. He didn’t even bother to look at you because sweeping up the glass shards seemed more important than picking up your broken heart. He had hurt it too many times for it to matter anymore so yes, maybe the shattered glass was more urgent to clean up.

You watched him pick up the larger pieces with his hands, and then you saw it on the collar of his shirt, something small but enough to explain why he had been so late. A lipstick stain jumped out at you, mocking you.

— was that — you murmured. He sighed heavily, knowing exactly what you meant. It drove you crazy that he didn’t even try to hide it anymore.

—So? — he asked dryly, tossing the shards into a plastic bag to keep them from mixing with the regular trash. He thought that would keep you from getting hurt, how ironic.

You stayed silent, glaring at him with knitted brows. Tears of hatred started to well up, causing an effect only you could have on him, the reason you stayed in this on-again, off-again relationship: his self-pity and subsequent regret.

But even though you could make him feel something almost impossible for him, it was too weak against his ways because he still didn’t apologize; he just kept cleaning.

If you were realistic, you weren’t in a position to demand answers. The state of your relationship was as uncertain as ever, unstable. You didn’t even know what you were to each other at that moment, but you were too scared to say it out loud and break the thread. So you just sat there, watching him finish.

And as you did, you couldn’t remember the last time you laughed together or shared a good moment without fearing breaking the relationship. Where had the good times gone? You let out a sob and didn’t realize you were about to cry like a baby until that moment.

Octavian’s sickly blue eyes looked at you, but you were too deep in your sorrow to care even if he stayed or left. He sighed and sat beside you, only by taking a seat at the table did he become aware of what he had left behind: a cold lasagna, melted candles, and two empty plates. The perfect scene of something very messed up, turning a genuine act of love upside down. You were like the sun to him, illuminating him when he should have been the one doing it.

His long hands slid across the table to stroke your arm, and he began to murmur nonsense, the same things as always because that’s how he fixed things. You shook your head, hiding your face in your hands, fighting the sobs.

— Come on, baby— he insisted, and you kept shaking your head like a hurt child. — I didn’t mean to... You know you’re the only one.

You heard the chair scrape as he moved closer, one hand wrapping around your waist.

— Get out.

He shook his head, insistently kissing your shoulder and nuzzling your cheek, trying to get you to look at him like he was the stray, wounded dog.

— Please, can we talk?

— We’ve talked enough — your voice trembling, making a hollow form in his heart. He was surprised to realize he had one, and for your bad luck, it beat for you.

He leaned in and kissed your neck gently. That was dangerous, and you knew it, but you didn’t pull away.

—I was an idiot — he murmured, leaving a trail of kisses up to your jawline, where his lips tasted salty from your tears.

He moved your hands away from your face, you no longer resisting much. It was the first time he looked at your face since he arrived, and with that gaze of his, something in those cold eyes gave you enough warmth to keep looking at them. It wasn’t ideal, but it was just enough.

He tried to smile, but it came like a smirk. He kissed you, and you let him. His lips melded with yours as more tears fell, just like you had fallen again into his game.

— Things will be different — he murmured, not stopping the kisses or the hair-stroking that kept you dazed. He tightened his grip on your waist, slowly pulling you into his lap. —Things will work between us.

Empty promises with sweet affection. His hand moved to the edge of your dress, playing with the fabric near your knees. Your hand on his shoulder as you kept kissing slowly, or you might truly break.

You had lost count of how many times those words came from his mouth, how many times you had reconciled this way, but your desire for it to be true never diminished, only grew. You wanted to believe him this time, like all the times before, but he knew the truth and was too cowardly to admit it, to accept it because he had seen the future: You weren’t his, but he resisted letting you go.

No matter if it only broke you more, if you stopped being you, if he stopped being him.

You had to leave first, and what he didn’t know was that the next morning, after one last kiss, you would.

#maría's shared dreams☆｡ﾟ✧#octavian pjo #octavian x reader #octavian pjo x reader #octavian hoo #heroes of olympus #pjo hoo toa #pjo

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trashlie · 10 months ago

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Love and Deepspace Thoughts

I promised some thoughts about Love and Deepspace and we're a week into the game and I think I can finally ramble about it for a while. I've been immensely enjoying myself and screaming daily with my friends lol and I think I've been able to formulate my thoughts pretty well! Idk how many people actually wanna read this, but I always love to have a record of my thoughts - especially something this early in game, because knowing papergames, there's going to be so much angst, so many twists and turns, and I'm already seeing a lot of threads of how things could play out and I like to be able to look back and see how wrong I was lol.

I play on the North American server and have completed chapter 7, so this will be full of spoilers for story content, as well as a lot of spoilers for anecdotes, tender moments, and some of the myth stuff - I'll try to denote where I'll mention certain spoilers in case you're trying avoid certain things, but it'd be impossible to write all of my sincere thoughts and capture all of what I really love and am looking forward to without spoilers, unfortunately.

Below will have a lot of thoughts on the current LIs as well as speculation about the 2 coming LIs, as well as their dynamics, and further speculation on where I think - or maybe just would like to see - the story could be going. To be clear, I have not cleared all anecdotes or myths, as I'm trying to savor things and good lord I cannot pull all those cards; a lot of this is compilation between my experiences as well as @poisonheart and further things I've read and discussed in the server. I will also be approaching this as a longtime player of MLQC, papergames' other otome game, because I cannot help but see the comparisons between the game and sing the praises of where I feel like they've grown and refined, but I don't think you'll need to have played MLQC to read this - you can honestly just ignore those bits lol >A<

What I can outright, sans spoilers, say is that I'm really enjoying Love and Deepspace so much and I think that it's come at a really good time for me, personally, as a MLQC player, because there's so much in game that's been completed and we're basically going through the motions doing our dailies, waiting for our new chapter events or participating in the occasional events (if you aren't hoarding resources for SP wish tree events) so it feels SO refreshing to dive into a new game that takes place in the same universe/world but have so much new stuff to uncover, so much new lore, new characters to meet and get to know. In MLQC I have a very clear favorite, but so far in LADS, I find that while I think I might have a favorite, I really enjoy all three LIs so much and I don't feel bad when I pull someone else's card, because it means I get to gobble all the lore! I don't feel like "UUUGGHH THIS GUY" when we get to X's chapter route. Perhaps it's just that LADS really caters to specific tropes and cliches in a way that I enjoy, but I feel so much like they've done these characters great justice! This goes for the MC, too, who doesn't feel at all like a cookie cutter MC meant to be a stand in for our own self-insert, but rather has a lot of personality of her own, is feisty and discerning.

Also, I gotta give a lot of props to the character customization features. I understand why people are upset that you can only change your hair and hair color in the photobooth function, but we rarely see MC out of that feature - so much of the game is in first person POV - and the times that we do see her, she's seen from the back, so maintaining the same hair for all characters allows them to keep something they can use for her stand in in such scenarios. But the customization is legit nuts! You can do so much with it, I spent so long tweaking mine the day before the game launched! I want to make side accounts I will never play just to play with that function lol

But let's get into the good stuff!

I really cannot sing the praises for the LIs enough, and that's going to be the bulk of what I'll talk about, because even this early in game, there's so much nuance to the LIs in both their characters as well as their dynamics with MC. Everyone brings a little something different to the table, and with what little we know of the upcoming LIs, I think even if for some reason the current LIs don't work for people, maybe the new ones might? But personally, I am so invested in all three of them! While I think I have a definite ranking in favor forming, it's not like it means I dislike any of them at all, and I'm always so eager to learn more!

One thing I'd like to mention before getting into it is that I love the inclusion of the myth cards, and though they are treated as alternate universes, I think it's more like they are previous or parallel timelines, but I'll try to get into that a little more as I talk about the characters!

From what I can see so far, I think Rafayel is one of the more popular fans with the North American/English-speaking fanbase - and it's not hard to see why! He's sassy, provides good comedy, he's fun to bully, and he's really pouty. I had a feeling he would be my favorite from the get go, just because I tend to have a thing for really pathetic men lmao and I have SUCH a fondness for him. I said I think I have a ranking forming, but it feels WRONG to rank them because that's how much I really like them, but if I had to, Rafayel's #2 position is really, REALLY close to #1! But the thing is, it's not just because of all of those traits above. I'd argue that he's one of the characters who has a lot of iceberg depth, as in there's a lot of depth to him that may get ignored or glossed over because of the sass and brattiness that accompanies, or even masks, it. As poisonheart puts it, the comedy hides the pain - and Rafayel comes with a LOT of pain! There's a delicious complexity to him where he is one part needy and clingy, but also one part resentful and hurt. MC made a promise that she doesn't recall - whether it was in this life or another - and you really get the sense that Rafayel wants to settle the score, but at the same time his feelings get in the way of those bitter, hurt feelings, and I really enjoy this complexity a lot! I think it elevates all of the sassiness, gives it a purpose and meaning.

Take his Nightly Stroll Bond: on the one hand it comes across as comedic and even manipulative -and it is! But when you get into it, you understand why. That's not to say if I think there's justification for manipulation because that's not what I'm here for; I'm just here for a good time and a good time I'm having. But when Rafayel says "It's been 800 years!" I don't think that's an exaggeration - he just isn't talking about just the day that he waited. Is faking an injury/illness and checking himself into a hospital overkill? Sure lol but that's what makes him so delightful to me. There's all of this hurt and unaddressed resentment, but as much as that, there's all of these feelings! Because even though he's hurt, he CARES about MC, SO MUCH. That's the problem! It would be easier if he didn't care, but he does. He's so needy, so clingy, he wants her attention because he's waited for so long while she was off, having forgotten him, living a life that abandoned and left him behind while he waited and waited and listen ;~; my stinky fish man I'm so sorry I cannot wait for her to learn the truth. I want to know SO BADLY what happened! When did they meet, anyway? He makes a comment on the homescreen when he's sulking lol about "See you in three months... three minutes, landlubber"

HOW LONG DID HE WAIT FOR HER IF ONE MINUTE IS ONE MONTH TO HIM?!

And listen, idk what anyone else thinks, but the end of chapter 7 had me in my FEELINGS, with the way he tried to leave her at the bottom of the ocean - but he couldn't, because of their promise, because he's unable to go back on it, because even though she forgot all about him and their promise and went about her life without a memory of him, he can't do that. It's the hurt! It's the resentment! It's the confliction between his feelings, because it seems like they take up equal space - his hunger for her attention, for what feels like she was so fickle to give and take away, the way she meant so much to him and he feels like it wasn't the same ;A;

(I've contemplated how possible it is that they met when she was younger, before she was attacked in the Wanderer incident 14 years ago, and if that could somehow have affected her memory, but I feel like it must be something greater, because seeing the fish glow in his heart means the vow they made was binding, so something strong must've caused her to forget. But that's also why I've contemplated if this was in another life? I'm less sure about this, because in Rafayel's second anecdote, he crosses paths with MC at university, though of course she doesn't recognize or recall him, and he specifically recognizes her voice. "Though her voice has matured, her pronunciation, enunciation, the rhythm of her speech, and even the emphasis in her sentences... Every word strikes like a drumbeat, awakening long-buried memories in his mind" It feels more likely that it happened while they were younger. Also I feel like this passage really encompasses her significance, that he can recall these details, to recognize them after so much time ;~; stinky fish you make my heart ache ;~;)

I appreciate so much that they've given Rafayel so much depth, that under the comedy of his pathetic, sulky exterior is so much reason for it, that there's an undercurrent of resentment and something dark - after all, we haven't actually uncovered what happened with the painting and Raymond. We saw the mermaid skeleton in his house - was Rafayel seeking revenge for his people?

But Rafayel also shows tremendous emotional sensitivity, in ways that sometimes catch me off guard. I distinctly remember lol sitting in shock after 4-3, and the text from Rafayel that pops up asking MC if she got the thing, telling her about how he asked a seagull to send a white seallshell why hasn't it arrived yet lol and I remember going "NOT NOW RAFAYEL READ THE ROOM ;~;" and then he goes on, telling her "if you draw on it and put it into the ocean the sea will carry the feelings you poured into the drawing to the soul you yearn for" and I just started SOBBING lol ;~; It was just so.... poignant but so simple. He didn't say I'm sorry for your loss or my condolences or anything like that - it was his own chaotic, weird method, but it was sincere. Likewise, he shows that similar sincerity in Ocean At Night, despite initially dismissing paper lanterns as silly human traditions - a lantern will be blown out why would you put all your hope in something so fleeting - coming around to using his own flame, that will never go out, to light a lantern for MC with the prayer that her hopes will never go out. ;~; Listen, I cried. I was TENDER my heart was soggy ;~;

And while I know people love a good pathetic man and enjoy chaotic sass and the fact that we really, truly NEVER know where his plots are going to go lmao - always an adventure with him - I hope they appreciate that depth and don't disavow the darker elements of him that give reason to those core elements of him. Rafayel is a character that carries his hurt and bitterness on his sleeve, rather than hiding it or shoving it away, and I really look forward to exploring it and all the messiness it has to offer, and how it will play out for MC.

On the very far end of the spectrum is Zayne. He's the character I expected to not be too fond of, so I was so pleasantly surprised as we got to know him to find myself proven wrong! I expected him to be... hm... I guess colder? More prickly? Than he turns out to be? And, admittedly, he is still rather aloof and cold on the surface, but I think it helps that he and MC have that history and that we are introduced very early to them through the A Frozen Promise Bond. It made it readily apparent that Zayne was not a cold and aloof person because he was too lofty or something but rather... it just seemed like maybe he'd been someone more awkward when he was younger, someone who didn't know how to connect very well with the daughter of this family friend, but he still tried. The snow seal took me out, you guys ;~; I never moved on from that!!!!!!

Despite seeming so cold, there's a certain kind of warmth to Zayne, just under the surface. He shows his care and concern in the ways he knows best, as MC's PCP, caring about her well being and health, but their Tender Moments are a collection of wonderful moments showing them growing closer, getting to know each other better as people, as friends and equals. For the record, Starry Nocturne hurt me so much, but it did two things I thought were so important. a. It showed that he was not infallible, which I think is very important, because often characters are written in their roles as geniuses who never fail, or else accomplish the impossible, and to see him lose a patient, while painful to read, made him so human but also b. It gave him that moment of vulnerability with MC where he could lean on her. It's so, SO important! for a MI to be able to lean on the MC, I feel, for them to be those equals, for him to be able to be vulnerable with her, but especially so for a character like Zayne who feels very reserved and closed off.

MC makes statements about feeling like there's distance between her and Zayne, especially when they first come back into each others' lives for the first time, so getting to indulge in these little Tender Moments of them taking little steps towards each other, closing that gap between them, is so satisfying! Having that history gives them a dynamic unlike Rafayel or Xavier's with her, because she has her memories of their childhood, of who he was when they were younger, and who they are now, and can compare the warmth of him opening up, of the chuckles and laughter she elicits from him. They also have this kind of flirtship I really enjoy - something very coy, not in an uwu so shy way just.... very coy, both dancing around the bush, before one of them calls it what it is - I thought the A Heartfelt Paradise Tender Moment a really good example of this!

It's so easy to read Zayne as being cold and aloof, but he really does have so much warmth, he just isn't good at showing it. He doesn't wear things on his sleeves like Rafayel or MC. But good LORD when he's in private....!!!!!!! The Business Trip Memoria TOOK. ME. OUT!!!!!! This is the game launch and they're already throwing this at us?! It was, to me, such a mature kind of date to give us? Two people who have had to grow used to each other's absence in their lives, and continue having to make space for those absences, as both are busy people - Zayne, a dedicated cardiac surgeon and MC a hunter - and what it means to grow used to the absence and to miss each other. But listen - when MC got in his lap?! She was touching his mouth? His face?! "What did you want me to do, in front of all those people?" he asked her? SIR?!

HELLO?! Girl. Listen.

I had to fan myself alfjkkfkjafjkafkjaf lmao

I looooooove them for that element of normalcy - for the people who have important careers and lives that they have to attend to, but still find the room for each other in their lives. The implication that Zayne rushed his way through school, took on grueling workloads and lacked a social life amongst classmates much older than him, not because he loved learning or even because he was so dedicated to his career - but because it was his way back to MC, so that he could return to stand in front of her? GOD. HOW DO YOU MOVE ON FROM THAT? HOW DO YOU HANDLE THAT? Knowing that he did it all so that he could stand in front of you again? HOWLING pls LISTEN.

Zayne may feel cold on the surface, but he is SO warm, he cares so much. And not just about MC, either. Thank God, too, because I'm not huge on the "Cold man only cares about the woman he loves" type, but Zayne cares so much about his patients, and making sure they feel seen, cared about? His first anecdote had me crying about seniors in hospitals with no relatives to accompany them to their examinations ;~; What a man.

I haven't had a chance to dig into his myth yet, which is a shame, but his third anecdote DID destroy me. I'm not even exaggerating, I was sobbing in my bedroom - and the worst part is I knew it would be painful going in and I still wasn't braced for impact enough! I mean, frankly, both his second and third hurt but nothing like the third! Parallel universe Zayne in a grim reaper role where he must kill humans turning into Wanderers - so very opposite the surgeon version of him who does everything he can to save people, both of them living parallel lives to each other, experiencing each others' lives through their dreams/nightmares. THIS HAS ME SCREAMING!!!!!

So much of MLQC has a lot to do with timelines - parallel worlds, some alternate universes, a whole timeline that's technically the same timeline reset but also still moving forward...... lol I can't help but think about where all of this fits in to LADS. Even though the Myth storylines are taken as alternate universes.... I think they're part of everyone's stories. We see echos of them. I haven't finished Rafayel's but even little moments, like making a break for it and having to run to escape attention echos a scene of Rafayel and the Princess MC making a mad dash in the market alley to escape the palace guards. It feels especially true for Xavier and MC, which I'll get to. But especially with Zayne - whose myth, again, I haven't been able to dig into, but seems to pose him as a sort of god, a forseer - we have two very different timelines/events now: his myth/Philos story and his parallel Grim Reaper self. How many timelines/parallel universes are we playing with, I wonder....?

I really want to revisit this in the future when I do get to dig into his myth, because I can see how Rafayel and Xavier's myths tie into their identities and their dynamics with MC, but I don't know yet how any of that works for Zayne and MC! I'm so intrigued, I can't wait!!!!

And finally, Xavier. God, I should have known lol in retrospect I should have realized Xavier would be my weak spot but listen..... sometimes I gotta lie to myself lol I love everything about him, the seemingly gentle eepy man who is also simultaneously a walking weapon of mass destruction but also so easily stumped by a UFO machine lol. Much like Rafayel, I'm especially fond of him because of the depth and dynamics, but also, honestly, much like Rafayel, he just checks all the boxes. Poisonheart puts it best when she says Xavier is the perfect middle-ground of the two - he's not as sassy as Rafayel is, but he'll still roast MC, he's very grounded and comes off a little aloof sometimes, but he doesn't seem nearly as aloof as Zayne, and he's also really unintentionally funny! He plays the middle-ground of them SO well. And where Zayne was working hard in order to show up in front of MC again and Rafayel has a score to settle but also so much neediness, it feels like Xavier has a LOT of karma to make up for.

Now, I personally don't have his myth cards, but poisonheart does, so everything I know I've experienced via her and all of our hours of screaming lol and the thing that really gets me the most about Xavier and MC is like..... okay it's the way he's clearly this really incredibly strong guy, but he plays the submissive prey role so well? lol He begs if she tells her to, he doesn't resist, he indulges her, he plays along - but when the mood strikes, he'll pull the dominant switch and flip the table and alkfjlFKJKAFJ ALKJFAF LAKJFAKFKJFAJ AFLKJD GODDDDDDDD IT GETS TO MEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Xavier has that sense of like.... everything for MC, right? Like he's making up for a lifetime. There's implications that maybe he's been searching through space and time for her, trying to find her, that they've lost and each other countless times before - or rather, she's lost him - and his Shooting Stars myth supports this. Sometimes it's really subtle, sometimes it stands out so much I'm in agony. She remarks so often how he feels so distant, like he's as out of reach and mysterious as a star. She has nightmares about him disappearing and he is incredibly reassuring about staying, about not leaving. And maybe I'm reading into it, but he even talks about her hanging on tight, like maybe if she's strong enough, she can keep him from ever being taken away, keep them from being separated this time.

He's also the one who feels like he's actually endured all the years. Rather than separate timelines or parallel worlds it feels like Xavier has actually traveled through space and time, like he's the same Xavier from the myth himself, which makes him talking about the loneliness of stars so much worse. How long has he been alone, searching for her? ;~;

But their dynamic just really gets to me - it's those echos, the way MC subconsciously acts on them, and how indulgent Xavier is towards her. It's the playful teasing and the gentleness and how he plays so submissive and docile but when the mood strikes he can switch it up and catch her (and me!!!) off guard. It's the way he texts LMAO never writing out you or one lmao (which is marginally better than Rafayel's COMPLETE LACK OF PUNCTUATION LMAO ALFKAJFKJAFKJAFKJAFJK) It's the way he has that innocent baby face and could absolutely get away with murder.

Initially I had contemplated if it was possible he is actually a star and while maybe that isn't true I am still not certain he's human - at least he's not from our world (especially if he really is the very Xavier from the myth) but I still like to think of him as one, because he wears the star motif so well and likens himself to one so often. Also, look, I am a SUCKER for a star motif. I was doomed from the start lol.

There's just something about the agony and TRAGEDY in their past, in the echos, the subconscious fears, and the sheer indulgence!!!!! It's MC telling Xavier he might be her enemy later and the distress it caused him, prompting him to share his access privileges with her to earn her trust ;A; It's the way he's apparently spent DECADES, at the VERY LEAST, on our earth AND HE'S A TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE COOK lmaoooooooo it's the stupid little lines he says because he's not as overtly clingy and pouty as Rafayel but an armful of plushies is a dreadful thing because then he doesn't have a free hand to hold MC's hand !!!!!!! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE NORMAL ABOUT THIS?! WHINES

I could write a whole essay about Xavier and I'm restraining myself and attempting to be really, really normal about him okay?

But yeah for him it's that depth of like... the guilt and agony he carries - because not only does leaving her hurt him, but it hurts himself, too. That unbearable loneliness, the endless wait, hoping, wondering, unsure of when, or if, he'll find her again, but refusing to give up - and when he does, endeavoring to make up for it. Like, as it is, there's something about strong men being submissive that is so lakkjfkafkjfkjaf alfjakfaf but it's the way Xavier does it with MC that is soooooo INDULGENT, so VERY "for you, because it's you" that makes me want to chew my keyboard and howl at the moon and every time he reassures her he won't leave I feel dread but also I want it to be true.

I know how papergames operates. I know Xavier may mean it, but I also know.... ;A;

And to think, this is all JUST THE LAUNCH STUFF! We haven't even passed chapter 8 yet lmao We don't even have all our LIs! We've (maybe?) yet to meet our antagonist? WHICH I'M EXCITED ABOUT BTW

Listen.

I have some thoughts and I'll try to keep them short (yknow, for me) because this is already long and rambly and maybe I can just expand on this later but: Sylus and Caleb are confirmed as LIs right? But are they the same person or not??????

If Sylus = Caleb it gives us a LOT of potential for exploring some really complex, grey morality. I mean, no matter what, Sylus is going to bring grey morality lol but especially if it turns out Caleb is actually secretly the leader of Onychinus, because it brings that whole "Who is this person I thought I knew?" and more so because Onychinus is poised as an enemy to the Hunter's Association.

But something Papergames has done in MLQC and I fully expect them to do here is explore grey morality, not only in Onychinus, but the Hunter's Association. Xavier's Tender Moments Garden of Secrets brings up the implication that some Wanderers are, in fact, intelligent, and while it's rare, it can occur. And with parallel world Grim Reaper Zayne having to kill people before they turn into Wanderers it begs the question of this world: can that happen here, too? And it gets into the moral conundrums. That's not to say the Hunter's Association are bad for killing Wanderers and protecting people but it starts to bring up questions, because in Grim Reaper Zayne's world, this is being covered up. What about this world? There's also the question of what is Onychinus even doing? I fully expect to find that whatever their objective is, it will be a question of the greater good and if the ends justify the means and the such.

Ultimately, an antagonist LI has to be sympathetic in some fashion, because how else are they going to write the story for them lol. Like they can certainly have Bond/Memoria/Tender Moments that are more about the combative element of their relationship meeting the chemistry that draws them to each other, but at any rate, there has to be something that draws them to each other and makes them care, right? So therefore, he can't be entirely bad, or at least MC has to be able to empathize with him and his objective, or the cause of it or something like that.

If Caleb = Sylus, that might be more achievable because of their history, but obviously that isn't a requirement, and that can also make it more complex, because again, that whole "this person I thought I knew".

I think there's a possibility for that overlap partly because we already have a LI with a history with MC - but to be fair, Zayne's history with MC is very different than Caleb's and has a different dynamic, so even if they didn't give him the villain route, it would still play out very differently and give them a significantly different enough dynamic that I don't think it would be a big issue.

If he's not Sylus, then there's still a lot of avenues to explore with Caleb. They've already implied that Caleb wants to take care of MC, wants her to lean on him and let him play that role for him, to stop being so strong in front of him, and I think that could very well affect his story and what has lead to his "death". Being in the airforce makes me wonder if it's possible that the military is associated in any way with Onychinus - after all, didn't he say that he does top secret work involving the deepspace tunnel, and isn't Onychinus interested in that? It wouldn't be the first time a government agency was written as being corrupt lol (and again there could be a lot gray morality here where Onychinus isn't necessarily inherently bad). Caleb could have gotten involved simply by his job.

There's the revenge angle, if he, too, was an experiment subject (which would make sense because why did Granny take him in as well?) and wanting to get back at? the people who experimented on them. Or wanting to be more involved? A spy case? SO many possibilities and I'm really excited to see where it all goes!

I think regardless of how Caleb is reintroduced to the story, I imagine there's going to be some kind of conflict - his "death" and then reappearance.... did he know that was going to happen? was it planned? was he involved? I don't think they'll bring him back and yay! now she has a family member back but I think there will be some kind of strife to work through, some good ol angst that really plays with the dynamic of feeling hurt and betrayed but wanting to return to the old times that can never be returned to, wanting to seek refuge in someone who maybe doesn't exist anymore, being drawn to someone you cared so much about and feeling so conflicted about it alfkjkfjkjafjkaf kj

I JUST HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS!!!!!!!!!!

This is such a rambling mess so kudos to anyone who made it this far. Maybe I'll manage to write some more bitesized thoughts later @___@

#Love and Deepspace #LADS Brainrot #LADS Rafayel #LADS Zayne #LADS Xavier #LADS Caleb #LADS Sylus

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lunaetis · 10 months ago

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PSA. i am a slow writer, and not a social creature.

i just want to make a post addressing this in the light of things that had been brought to my attention recently. i rarely if ever initiate a conversation especially in chats or DMs. 90% of the time the ones who still talk to me on regular basis are the ones who poke me regardless of how dead i have been since our last conversation, and i want to say how much i appreciate you guys for being understanding with me on that front. for tolerating me dropping off the conversation or unable to keep it going for long. or rarely messaging you guys first or sending unprompted asks whether ic or ooc. i know i am bad at it. and i'm sorry if i ever made anyone feel neglected by that.

i wake up at 5:40AM daily, spent 1-2 hours driving to work, work from 9-6, then another 1-2 hours drive back home. i usually have about 2-4 hours daily for leisure. i work a relatively stressful job with strict deadlines and responsibilities, so often enough my social battery is drained by the time i get home. if i don't respond to your messages, it's nothing personal, i promise. i'm just exhausted from work and irl things.

if you see me prioritizing some threads / muses / writing, again, it's nothing personal. with limited time that i could write, i tend to let my muses decide what they want to do and write what comes to me the easiest. sometimes they cooperate with me on things, sometimes they don't. i am just human, i do have partners who my muses and i tend to gravitate towards for various reasons. they're either my long-term mutuals, good friends of mine, or our muses and/or muns chemistry click really well that writing comes easy. however, that doesn't mean i don't want to write with you. i'm just slow, that's all. i do want to write with new people, and i try to do so. but i'm easily overwhelmed and take on more things than i could. that's on me, as well.

sorry if this comes out of the blue, but it needs to be said. i'm incredibly sorry if i have disappointed any of you by not meeting your expectations or have kept any of you waiting long for content from me. i do want to write with as many people as i could, but even i know it's impossible to write with everyone. i do try to reach out whenever time and energy permits, and i'm sorry if i let any of you down with promises or plots that didn't get to be explored.

for those who read up to this point, thank you for taking the time to read this. and thank you for those who still choose to stick with me even though i take forever to get to things. thank you everyone who had been so understanding and patient with me all these years. i wouldn't have still been here if it weren't for you. so thank you. i love you.

#.ooc #.psa #[ putting it under a read more just so i don't clog the dash ]

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eastralyn · 1 year ago

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The beginning

There's always a beginning. There's always a start; we're all born and then we start to live. I reflect on the start of my life a lot. I reflect on the child I was versus the person I am right now. And who will I be next? Who knows, but I am hoping by beginning at the start of it all, I will find some further understanding of who I am and why I am here. My life has been hard, interspersed by shooting moments of peace, happiness and stability. Regardless, it's all come to this one point of where I am right now. I always intended to get my whole story down, so I will start today and continue until it gets too hard to relive some of the shit I've seen done and felt.

At the beginning, I was born. I really don't know how, as it's been impossible for me to understand how two of the most incompatible people I've ever known came together to make a life. My life as it turns out. From what I've been told, it was just by chance that my parents met. For a long time, that chance encounter has haunted my ability to connect all the threads as to why I am here, how I came to burst forth into this existence.

My earliest memory is sitting outside somewhere, in one of the many place we lived. I had a packet of cookies I was trying to open but it was difficult. I pulled and pulled until the package burst open in my hands and the cookies went flying. I was sad as only a 2-3 year old can be when something so small doesn't go well. I knew no one would help me, so I just sat there, the empty bag in ribbons while I'm surrounded by the cookies I wanted so badly. It was sad to know this was just how it was. Unexpectedly, my mom showed up and exuded empathy in a way that completely took me by surprise. She was gentle as she said "let's get you some more cookies". What surprises me most is that even at a young age, this gentle and nurturing experience was not common with her. I truly believe that I keep that memory locked away safe because it's one of the few I have where it's just good. It's me and it's her and we're just good. A fleeting spot of sunshine in the marred landscape of my memories. I don't know that I ever got that from her again. But in that moment, we were gold. I look at that moment a lot until it's too painful and I have to turn away.

I like to think that her and I will exist there forever. That I'm still there as a kid and she's there as my mom. And we can loop on that forever. Because the rest goes downhill after that and that memory gets lost for a long long time

#writing #writer #write #blog #journal #personal post #eastralyn #memoir #Spotify

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tayfabe75 · 7 months ago

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Hey! You know it's crazy how you were right about literally everything. About the fact that TTPD is not what everyone expects, that maroon, cardigan and other songs are about Matty. I thought that some of them might be, but didn’t even suspect that there were so many songs about him!!

And I really want to believe that this is not the last time we see and hear about Matty as you said. But now it seems impossible. So what do you think will happen next?

Anon, just call me Cassandra! (and you wouldn't be the first!)

But... as much as I'd love to claim credit… literally all I did was just believe Taylor last year when she said 'Cardigan' was about Matty! lol

Let me explain the progression from there:

'Cardigan' was the first song of Taylor's I really listened to, and the only thing I knew about it going in was that it was about Matty Healy! Immediately, I heard an implied history. So, I looked into it and found that their history goes back at least a decade. I discovered the lyrical link between 'The 1' and 'Robbers', and the link between 'Cardigan', 'Betty', and 'August'. Well, ALL of these songs have to be about Matty, then. 'Question...?' parallels 'Cardigan' and 'Betty', and 'Maroon' parallels 'The 1'. I thought, well - these songs must be about him too. If you follow threads like this, you'll find so many more parallels and connections than you are probably prepared for. Here's one hint, for you! Keep an ear out for the Rep vault. Taylor says the tracks will be fire… and I think she's going to burn down a lot of longstanding assumptions about the album. If you want to know what I mean, just listen to 'Ready For It' and stop telling yourself that Taylor namedropping Matty's most popular song is a "coincidence"!

While most people brushed it all off as a "meaningless fling" or a "manic episode", I was studying with my fellow "tayfabes". What we found led us down some strange rabbit holes and ultimately, we landed on some unorthodox theories… so bear with me…

But… what if I told you none of it was accidental? Well, then I'd be quoting Taylor Swift! But for good reason. Rather than believe that Taylor is some madwoman who strip-mined Matty for references over the past year to torture him with yet more public scrutiny… maybe Matty was intentionally easter-egging TTPD since last year! Anyone who believed Taylor about how much he meant to her, or trusted that she would not confess her love to the devil incarnate would incidentally have all the tools to decode the album, while everyone else on Twitter scrambled and made up rumors about… Dylan O'Brien or Julien Baker, apparently? (What was it they said on SNL? "I'm just glad it's not Matty Healy"? Something like that...) Truly, TTPD was about the five stages of grief! And Swifties have yet to move past "denial"… Yikes!

Anon, if you weren't aware, Taylor and Matty are two artists who have romanticized star-crossed love stories since 2008 - "coincidentally" around the time 'Robbers' and 'Love Story' were written, both based on Romeo and Juliet. The good news is that Taylor changed the ending so they ended up together! Think 'Cardigan' is about Matty? Good news! Taylor suggests that James and Betty end up together, too.

So, go ahead, mark my words: This will not be the last we see of Matty Healy and Taylor Swift.

But I can't predict when he will show up in her front porch light. And unfortunately, Taylor seems to romanticize interrupted weddings, so I'm not sure how crazy or convoluted their current celebrity narratives are going to get before a reunion happens. The fans broke Taylor's favorite toy, and I have a strange feeling she's about to break theirs... Are you not entertained?!

I predict we'll hear something from Matty next. 🤞 Hopefully soon, clowning hard for May 3rd! Why? It's a Fortnight since TTPD's release and the year anniversary of "This one is about you. You know who you are. I love you."

Thanks for the ask! 🤍

#answered

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necrophcge · 8 months ago

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NAME:

Lee

PRONOUNS:

he/him

MOST ACTIVE MUSE(S)?

// Meddles here is technically my most active, but I'm doing stuff behind the scenes for my lads Brom ( @of-forossa ), and Samuel Whist ( @fishermcn ) so I'll add them here too lmao.

RP PET PEEVES?

// Ah hell man, probably a lack of progression when it comes to replies? When I'm writing a thread with someone, I do what I can to make sure they have enough from my own to continue the story we're telling together. So getting a reply in return that doesn't move things forward puts me in kind of a bind y'know? Matching or similar length comes with that as well, though I don't expect folks to match me word for word so much as giving as good as they've gotten!

Communication is also key! I know that it can be uncomfortable or a bit daunting to try to chat with folks you haven't gotten to know all that well, but with threads being something we create together we really should be on the same page. Even just a little update or the like is preferable to total radio silence rofl.

EXPERIENCE / HOW MANY YEARS?

// Shoot, it's probably been about twelve, maybe thirteen years now? Been on here the whole time and have bounced around to a few different fandoms before more or less settling down into the soulsborne community.

FLUFF, ANGST, OR SMUT?

// I'm definitely an angst kinda guy, though usually in the sense that things are going down or conflict is brewing rather than interpersonal drama. I live for fight-writing and the tension that comes with lives being on the line. Fluff is usually reserved for one and done replies rather than threads because I feel it's more impactful thst way, while smut is... well. I'm getting better at it, but it's definitely my weakest writing of the bunch. That, and I admittedly can get a bit nervous posting it out here in the wild for everyone to see (////-\\\\)

PLOTS OR MEMES?

// Both! Plots and plotting are my preferred go-to for our muses to get to know each other and establish what their relationship will be like going ahead, while with memes I'll usually go ham on a single reply with the intent of further fleshing out what we've pieced together for our muses.

LONG OR SHORT REPLIES?

// If you've known me on my other blogs you already know I tend to get long winded XD. Short replies never feel like I've said enough honestly, and by taking the time to get in depth with them I reckon it opens the door wider for potential interactions (memes) or it gives the other person more room to reply with (threads). Least amount I'll do is around two to three paragraphs.

TIME TO WRITE?

// I'd love to tell you folks that I'm a responsible, orderly guy who keeps a good sleep schedule and has a set time for writing. Unfortunately I'm little more than an animal who's as likely to bump out an ask or reply at 4:00 in the morning as I am to post something mid-afternoon. Ideally though... I prefer the evenings for it. More privacy, more time to gather my thoughts and less demands for me personally to have to address.

ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S)?

// I'm a firm believer in the notion that muns typically have something either in common with or identify strongly with their muses in some form or another, and I'm no exception. Meddles might be a conqueror, cruel and malicious, but struggling against a seemingly impossible task and not wanting to be alone in this world... yeah. Yeah, I can relate to that. It helps me put myself in their shoes and understand them better if there's something about them I identify with.

tagged by: @ferinehuntress (much obliged panda :D)

tagging: @yellowfingcr, @hexenjagd, @bcwblade, @rotten-pest, @izar-tarazed, and you!

#ooc tag.#// not me shamelessly plugging all the lads lmao #// but yeah! this was fun; good way of putting to words some of my processes ^^

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macabremoons · 1 year ago

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Writeblr Positivity Tag

@hallwriteblr did a post of this tag, and I knew I had to try it out! Doing what they did and putting the blank format underneath the cut!

Gently tagging: @squarebracket-trick, @leisoree, @serenanymph, @immortaladrien, @thesoftestofpetals, and anyone else who wants to join!!!

1. What motivates you to write?

The plot threads I have later down the line in my wips and my characters. Both of these points are really the same. I am excited about the things I have planned because they highlight the characters, and I am excited because my characters for the things I have planned.

2. A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

I have to pick just one????? Oh lord.

Undead things aren't supposed to grieve other undead things, and yet so many vampires were now without fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters.

3. Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

@mouseinthegreenhouse's Maximilian. They have to put up with my simping sm HIOEWHOIW. It's hard to describe Max in a way that does not boil down his character. He just has this presence that you feel in every page, this captivation. A slow, measured way of speaking where he knows no one would dare interrupt him. Love him to bits.

4. What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

I haven't really gotten to the editing phase with any of my OG works, so I guess I have to say drafting?

5. What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

Character. I try my best to write characters that are analysis worthy. That have a deeper meaning in their existence and that have a lot to say about the world. Of course not all of my characters are as well thought out as others, but when I do put my all into it there is so many intricacies that go into them.

6. What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

THE PEOPLE. I LOVE YOU GUYSS. I love seeing your works and hearing your feedback and the tags and the asks. And the mutuals. The mutuals. Getting to know other writers and getting to talk about writing more deeply with them is so much fun.

7. A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

I use WPS Offcie for my more serious projects. It's like Word, but free, and also not owned by Microsoft. This helps me not write in the middle of the night on Daycycle and work on it healthily. It is the bane and boon of my existence.

8. A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

Why must you continually make me choose a favorite child? I like how I tackled the elements on daycycle, I suppose. The fact that every element has it's own ideology behind it gives me a lot of freedom with what I can do with it. It also helps me say a bunch of stuff with it! And I enjoy making none of the elements good or evil but keeply neutral with their own psychological behavioral patterns.

9. What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

People are going to tell you to just keep going and you're going to think that it's impossible. I'm sorry to tell you that it's hard, but it's possible. I believe in you and your ability to write through this.

Unless you are going through writing burnout TAKE A BREAK. TAKE A BREAK. TAKE A BREAK. "But what if--" NO. BREAK. NOW.

10. Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters

@squarebracket-trick for her amazing writing. I really feel like I could have a discussion about any form of writing with her and she'd have something to say. @sugar-phoenix, @lyra-brie, and @leisoree for listening to my rambles and sharing their gorgeous juicy ideas to me. @wipsbymor for RJ. What I have to say more? Sigh, also for her continued support and kindness. @hallwriteblr, yes tagging you again, for being such a kind person in this community and for writing that sage one shot. @serenanymph for being one of my first mutuals and a talented writer to boot. And to everyone who is my mutual! I love you all!!

1. What motivates you to write?

2. A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

3. Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

4. What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

5. What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

6. What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

7. A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

8. A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

9. What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

10. Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters

#tag game

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forcebookish · 1 year ago

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I don't care what anyone says I hope topmew is endgame and top takes mew away from that nasty friend group 🙏 I know some people like to victimize certain characters but let's be real here they are all shitty friends that constantly overstep his boundaries and I'm sure we don't need to get into all of Boston's atrocities. I guess the thing that gets me is people act like mew always has to carry the baggage of his friends and be the bigger person no matter what but somehow top is the one that is irredeemable and should not be forgiven under any circumstances?? If he wasn't cornered, manipulated, and coerced I would agree but that is definitely not the case here. Anyway this was longer than I expected and I'm not the best with words so I hope this at least makes some sense lol.

you're making perfect sense, anon!

i've seen folks try to say that boston is the "real victim" in his "relationship" with top...?????????? someone made a whole thread on twitter. if i had to say "no one owes anyone sex" once, i'd have said it too many times - but i've had to say it MULTIPLE times!!! what did top even do to boston? tell him he doesn't want to sleep with him?? tell him "stop?" nearly cry (twice) when boston told him that mew might be cheating on him? push him away when he wouldn't let go? wow, such abuse, so victim🙄 top out here literally just trying to stay in his own lane, date a guy, and work on the hostel while boston can't keep his creepy hands to himself😒 but i guess it's boston's god-given right to touch people who don't wanna be touched, apparently😒😒

and people got mad at mew for being "mean" to ray when he was frustrated about ray calling him drunk in the middle of the night. he even says, "i'm not picking you up again." again. he has had to help him out of these situations he puts himself into before. pathetic little meow meow or not, that is a huge burden to put on your friends time and time again. the drama already established that ray tells his friends he loves them when he's drunk, mew had no reason to think that ray was going through a crisis until he actually heard he was crying. AND THEN CAME RUNNING TO HIM!

re: mew's shitty friends (hey, cheum you can stay!), what's cool about the relationships in this drama is how many characters mirror each other, not being the same but being flipped and on opposite ends of the spectrum. the most obvious example is top and mew: top being sexually active, open to new experiences, and LOUD during sex, while mew is celibate, likes to stick to books, and hardly even breathes during sex. and for topmew, i personally think that's a strength!

but ray and boston are also mirrors to each other: ray looking up to/loving mew and boston hating/looking down on mew. and they both kinda ruin his life about it lol

and yeah, i really, really want endgame topmew. honestly, they seem to have the strongest relationship (at least among the boys and including the friendships) in the drama. i can't, and absolutely don't want to, see mew reconcile with boston. maybe ray, depending on how things go down - but i'm so not into the idea of mewray, because it smacks of "wearing him down." he held that torch for years.

i would never say that what ray has done is as bad as boston, but it's another case of not respecting someone's boundaries when they have firmly rejected them. (it's not just because it's not a forcebook ship!!! i promise!!! ...i mean, it is a little bit, of course😅)

and i find it very ugly that it wasn't until top and mew had someone serious in their lives that ray and boston couldn't deal. i've been saying this before the drama aired, but i really think that top and mew would have just had a normal, you meet, you date, you fall in love relationship (even with the drug use, it's not impossible to work through that as a couple), if it weren't for ray and boston actively trying to sabotage their relationship - if they were actually good friends. and the drama seems to be delivering on that theory. seems to be the point, actually.

thanks for popping in, anon! prayer circle for endgame topmew 🙏🕯️🙏🕯️🙏🕯️🙏🕯️🙏🕯️

#anonymous #asked and answered #ofs liveblog

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nikethestatue · 2 years ago

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Hello Nike! I actually don't know where to put this. I went to reddit first and I kind of feared what I'll say will not be accepted since it's about a ship and when I clicked Elriel thread, it leads me to Elucien ship so I went here. Okay hi again! Haha, I'm kind of new here, I have few questions but I have a whole rant haha. I read acotar because of all the Gwynriel fanarts I see on tiktok and instagram. They're all so beautiful and I loved the captions. That they are "mates" and that Az shadows dance with Gwyn and that it is a "good" stuff. Honestly, I'm a bias reader especially if I already knew the "endgame". I have so many acotar rants but I'll focus on this ship. I don't like Elain. At the first book, I didn't like her but I appreciated when she helped Feyre when she's going back to Prythian. I think it was very thoughtful of her. Then I read ACOMAF, I confessed, I tried to shrug off the first Elain and Azriel scene but it's too cute! Her gripping the fork and him smiling, her asking him question about flying and he's answering like a true poet, and her admiring the flying. And then come ACOWAR, I wanted to ship Elain with Lucien because mates but Sarah keeps on hinting it can be rejected. I wondered why did Sarah not put Lucien saving Elain instead of Azriel? And why Azriel never let go of Elain after the rescue scene. It was pretty obvious for me but then, I remembered it's impossible because Gwyn will come and she's Azriel's mate. ACOFAS was full of Elriel sweet little moments. The Solstice scene gave me life. Seeing Azriel filled with joy. The table scene!!! He made them all wait because of Elain, I was screaming but trying not to ship them so bad because I don't want to be disappointed. And then ACOSF came. I waited for Gwyn and Az sweet moments. Three scenes. Training. Not even alone together. It's like I'm reading Feyre and with the other HL interaction or Rhysand with the HL's sister on acomaf. I read acosf with the bonus scene and it only confrmed Elriel for me? The shy smiles, charged glanced, his secret to tell??? And then Azriel and Elain wanting each other? I hate to say this but I am not so disappointed because reading Elain and Azriel scene from acomaf to acosf is the best build up I've ever read! GWYN IS SUS. I am calling it. When I gathered enough courage I'm going to compile all the moments my eyebrow arched because of her. But this is too long now so yes. Thanks for the time!! I hope we will have the book this year!

I think the main issue with Gwynriel as a ship, and what they try to convince others of and themselves, is that there are NO important scenes of any kind between the two of them.

With Elriel, even if it was in the background, their scenes were highlighted, just like Nessian's. The scenes between Elriel were highlighted--they weren't just reactions that were described--they were scenes observed by others. Even what seemed to be a small scene--when Az brought Elain to the townhouse, there was a LOT around it that built it up. Elain's hair snagging into his armour, like golden threads, him carrying her over the thresh hold, her calling his hands beautiful, him immediately offering to do something FOR her, WITH her, and....leisurely? Azriel is not known for relaxation or offering to spend time with ANYONE just for fun. Here he is, taking this girl out with him to the garden, sitting with her, sunning his wings. And then we also have Lucien's reaction, once he scented who took his mate away.

That small little scene is already longer than all of Gwynriel's interactions throughout the books.

Ships are not written off-page.

The rescue from Sangravah is off page. Just a memory, from one person, a few sentences long.

The rescue from Hybern is like a 20 page chapter.

The truth teller scene is a huge, pivotal moment that's observed and commented on by everyone. It's shocking. Incredible. Perplexing. The results of that exchange are even more shocking--she kills the king with that dagger.

Again, Elriel are still very much a secondary, if not tertiary couple in ACOWAR. Yet so much time is given to their interactions. And the importance of those interactions.

Gwynriel never interact together. There are no 1:1 moments. Even where there is some dialogue or exchange, it leads nowhere. It's non consequential. Even if it was Azriel who'd brought up the history of the ribbon cutting and the Valkyries to Gwyn--I would say, okay, there is something. Because there would be results from that interaction. But it wasn't him. He had no influence on anything Gwyn-related, and she had no influence on anything Azriel-related.

Gwynriel is the same thing as Moriel--a red herring. Just like with Moriel, there was a rescue off page, but no interactions of any importance in the book. When Azriel and Mor went to steal the Orb, we never saw it, because it was all about Feysand. All interactions were surface-level.

You don't start ships off page. You don't write ships off page. The sooner some people realise that, the easier it will be in the long run.

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searchingforserendipity25 · 11 months ago

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Knit, Purl, Improvise | Dangeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. ON AO3

For Lukani, as part of the Yuletide Exchange.

“You have dropped a stitch,” Xenk said helpfully, three days into their long scouting mission.

“Honestly, and this is just a friendly suggestion, feel free to take it, piss off,” Edgin said. And then; “Shit, not the double stitch. I swear double stitches love to be dropped, they’re just dying for it. Where do I -”

“Right there.”

Xenk shifted closer. The sunlight slanting through the firs and elms fell upon his cheeks with intent, as if it were perfectly aware and quite smug about its role in highlighting his beauty. Edgin stared - it was physically impossible not to stare, okay? Even Holga would have stared, and she was very much not into tall guys.

Edgin cursed, fished out the lost stitch, and cursed again when it was clear he had to unravel a whole couple of rows to get it back into shape.

Xenk extended a hand. Long fingers, graceful wrists, calluses like - not like Holga, really. Fighter's hands; good hands. Edgin felt a normal amount, about them. "If I may -"

"Nay, you may not - nuh-huh! Get your hands off, mister. No needle-hogging here, thanks very much. If you wanted something to keep busy you should have brought it yourself, deal with it."

Xenk really was quite - well, not much taller than Edgin, but very present. Edgin was very aware of it, with the way they had sat together on the same cold boulder for hours now, peering down at the ravine below, and the cave where a band of traffickers were bound to show up, sooner or later. It looked like it was going to be a later situation.

Even Edgin found it pretty tasteless to make money off looting graves and selling the mummified corpses of ancient pixie chieftains to the highest bidder, though, and their sponsors paid decently, so he didn’t feel too bad about the bother.

Didn’t mean he hadn’t complained about it, but at least he had offered to share his egg sandwich with Xenk - that was nice, right? He was making nice, the way one made nice with an occasional coworker who did not make conversation and did not like egg sandwiches. Who, Edgin asked, did not like egg sandwiches? And he kept looking disapproving when Edgin stepped on the trails of ants that tried to make off with the crusts. No one made off with Edgin's crusts, only Holga and Kira were allowed to have his crusts.

"I am not needle-hogging," Xenk said, spacing out the vowels carefully. "I am not even touching your needles. Which I suspect, by that logics, makes you the needle-hogger here."

"Am not!"

"I merely wished to offer help where I may."

"Well, don't," Edgin snapped, and got busy tug-tug-tugging the yarn, unravelling his afternoon's work. "I am making a lovely scarf for my lovely daughter, and I am perfectly capable of making it myself."

Edgin sighed loudly. "Of course you knit. I bet you do great socks - fancy stuff, right? Marino shawls, and stuff. No, wait." Edgin narrowed his eyes, framed Xenk's face between his fingers like a pretentious portrait trying to get the sitter's measure. "You do lace knitting, don't you."

"The kindly farmers that took me in were often local champions at the local competition of threading thin shawls through rings," Xenk admitted.

"Flunk you," Edgin repeated, with feeling. Xenk's mouth tilted with a smile, just slightly. "Yeah, laugh it up, local father of one precocious kid edits out a few swear words, funny stuff. I'm doing just fine without a knitting advisory, thanks."

"There is no shame in taking aid when it is offered. Indeed, I was laid down for many moons abed with a wound, while in the care of a kindly family of farmers, when I first was taught the craft of knitting. And I must say," Xenk added, tilting his head in that disconcerting, insightful way that made the fine hairs to the back of Edgin's hair rise with not-unpleasant fright. "I am surprised at the techniques you apply. There are easier ways to undo this error than to start wholly anew."

Edgin bristled. The sun was in his eyes, now - the clouds kept chasing each other across the narrow strip of sky they could see from their spying place. Honestly, it was getting kind of chilly; but of course they couldn't start a fire, and like hell he was asking Xenk to cast a warming cantrip.

Xenk had cast a warming cantrip over their camping site every night so far, but it was the principle of the thing.

"So?"

Xenk considered him. Which was. Certainly an experience. Edgin would like it to be over as soon as possible, but, again: he could not quite look away.

"I believe you to be a man very fond of shortcuts."

"Why, Paladin Xenk, are you calling me a cheater? I am hurt," Edgin said a hand on his chest, nearly stabbed himself in the face, and turned down the needles in a dramatic movement, as if he really had meant to show he was back-stabbed levels of hurt. "Truly."

"I am merely pointing out. As a friendly suggestion. For what it counts, your scarf does look lovely."

Of course it did. Edgin had learned from his Gramps, all the wool-stuff sailors worked at in the quiet of the night, crammed together in miserable bunks by the swaying light of foul-smelling lanterns. Gramps made beautiful cardigans, thick, scratchy, wonderful shirts. So did Edgin.

"Hell yeah it is. Which you only get if you do things properly." Do it proper start to finish, my Ned, and only leave a mistake so the spirits know not to get funny ideas.

Thing was, wool was awfully expensive. Nothing you could make a living out of, really; or at least he'd never managed it. He imagined telling Xenk that, and bit back a shiver: how the hell did people even get through these long waits? How did people get to know each other, even. He had never felt the need to prove himself to Holga - or, well, he did, every day, otherwise he'd have let himself die a thousand times, he cared about her opinion more than anything and sort of built up his identity around her faith in him in a cute, a little codependent way, but. It was different with Xenk.

Whatever - dusk was setting. The ants were going nuts on the bit of crust he had left for them, well away from his blanket - Xenk ought to be happy about that, not that he cared. There were bigger things to worry about. Tonight would be the last one of their watch, he could tell; the air was shivering in the leaves, eager. His neck prickled. Start to finish, and enough mistakes for bad luck to pass through.

Well, Edgin made mistakes aplenty, and the world liked Xenk better than most; between the two of them, they ought to be fine.

"Your stitches are slipping again," Xenk noted.

"Brotherflunker," Edgin cursed, and bent down to work the needles with furious speed, the better to avoid Xenk's eyes, that tilted mouth.

#xenk yendar #dungeons and dragons #edgin darvis #edgin x xenk #dnd honor among thieves #dnd honor among thieves fic #my fics #yuletide #yuletide exchange

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alarrytale · 3 months ago

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Because of the O*s*s reunion and so many tweets about 1D reunion, it makes me think about several things. First, do you think that HL will need to come out first before the reunion will happen? Because seriously they can’t keep pushing the mortal enemies narrative like it doesn’t make any logic anymore when they obviously agreed to perform together again. And also, imo 1D reunion will 100% happen when SC will be gone for good to not milk a single penny from them anymore or pretend like it was his idea/he brought them together or whatever bs he��s not afraid to come with. So I guess it will be in like +15 ~ +20 years and idk why would they need to keep them closeted when at least H will be past his heartthrob age and not a single teenager will care about him? And secondly, if they will do a reunion and HL will be out, do you think this reunion will being harries to their reunion tour? Because let’s be real, most harries think he’s straight and definitely not in relationship with Louis (as most of them hate him because he’s a thread to their fantasies) so I don’t think they will be interested to see H with his bf on stage being all lovey dovey. This question came just because how people on X compare O*s*s reunion to possible 1D reunion and how it will definitely be impossible to get tickets to their reunion shows/the tour will be sold out in minutes because everyone will be interested but…let’s be real - H is the one with most solo and casual fans and he also brings gp to his shows just because of the hype. But will all those fans and gp be interested to see the whole band especially when H will be out and officially in relationship with Louis? My opinion is that nope, 1D reunion will be only for OG OT5/4 fans, solo Niall fans and larries. Solo harries/louies won’t be interested and Zayn’s//Liam’s fans are basically OT5 fans.

Hi, anon!

I don't think H and L need to be out for the reunion to happen, but i really don't think it will happen before they're both out. They'd all want to not have to fake it anymore, pretend they're not friends and have to surpress their love for each other. They'd want to be free and themselves fully.

I'm not sure that 1D will ever be free of SC or Sony. They'll at least always get a cut everytime they play a song written under the Sony rule. It depends on the contract.

I think if a 1D reunion happens, everyone will want to go. It's people's childhood, it's a reminder of good times, and it's community building. So i think every ot5/ot4 and every solo stan will want to go. It's an event that nobody wants to miss out on. It of course depends on how H and L came out, and how fans reacted to their relationship, but if they've managed to keep their solo fans, the H and L solo fans will turn up at the 1D reunion. Ships, allegiances or fights doesn’t matter. Every fan will be there for them.

#onedee #1d reunion #coming out #sony #boyband politics

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dcviated · 6 months ago

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mun meme

𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐔𝐍!

★ NAME: Bear/Will

★ PRONOUNS: hee/hoo him

★ BEST EXPERIENCE: I think you can get a variety of experiences at a variety of places and each of them will be 'good' or 'cool' in some way. Most of my writing at this point is related to stuff I've done in tumblr, but I don't resent or detest the platforms I used of yore. Avatar games were cool. Discord/IM isn't the worst thing. But I think the best part of writing here is the shared experience for those invested? Easier to see things go down?

★ PREFERENCE OF COMMUNICATION: Discord, easily. I mean I'm definitely reachable on tumblr IM but once we start getting into plotting I'd really rather move to something... functional. Searchable! And palatable. Tumblr IM is none of these things... it just kinda(kinda) works. So y'know.

Now that said, with the communication... I don't need a ton? You don't have to message me every day? I know I sure as hell don't message everyone everyday... I'm more of a reactive sort. Once you hit me up I'll chat away. But I can be silent for days or weeks on end otherwise. Trying to fix that...

★ MOST ACTIVE MUSE: Wylan is always able to come out and shitpost a little bit here and there. But writing his long posts can actually be a little more taxing. I'd say... Raguna and Eira are definitely the ones buzzing around more? I did a whole variety of drafts today, if you noticed. That said my roster isn't exactly the largest. And most of my public muses aren't the hardest to start a fire under outside of say... Armstrong. He's usually my weakest muse.

★ EXPERIENCE / HOW MANY YEARS: I first got into RP as a result of an ex, but I spring boarded from there into way more things than I started with. I'd say my first writing came about... 2005 or 2006? Hard to pinpoint exactly. So yeah it's been a good 18 years at this point. That said, I was on a huge writing sabbatical between 2009 and 2015, so I can't technically count it all. 2009 is when I dropped WoW (and writing in there) and 2015 is when I gave tumblr rp a shot out of a need to do more creative writing. 😩

★ RP PET PEEVES:

So here's a few ... I'm grumpy. And specific with my hobby time.

Not meeting halfway with plotting. I get it, sometimes ideas are hard to come by. But if you're coming to someone wanting interactions you can't treat your RP partner like a vending machine rolling out thing after thing for you to clap over. It's important to share the burden (as plotting can sometimes be) and provide some insight. The best plots are a back and forth of "yes, and-" or "no, but-".

Sub-point to this one, but I think most of the onus does fall on you if you're dropping threads to kick off ideas for new ones. Even after a hiatus! It's what I've been doing!

Excessive commentary blogging. Before it was just a lot of dash commentary that had me going 'eh'. But in recent years it's gone past that. I've become disenchanted with blogs that become largely commentary for whatever it is they're doing on discord. All power to those discord groups doing what they do! But it reaches a point for me that I don't really see them as indie, and it can feel insurmountable trying to interact with them if you're not entangled with their zig-zagging plotlines.

And of course~!!!

Blog hoppers. Because for a slow burner and long hauler like myself, they're the most impossible people to write with! Which is a shame, because a lot of the hoppers I come across do seem to have some writing talent to them!!!

★ PLOTS OR MEMES: I.... really don't mind either at this point! It swells my soul when people approach me for plotting or interactions to begin with. I sometimes lament how flexible I can be because it makes getting some things off the ground difficult, but that's beyond inspiring to get something going that someone else made the effort. Just... as long as they keep it going past the greetings. :') See pet peeve point 1.

But anyone wanting to randomly jump into my inbox? More than welcome too!

★ ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S)?: I put a little bit of myself in all of my muses, and find some traits to relate to in all the canons I've added to my roster. But at this point most of the character writing I do comes from some degree of misdirection of my emotion or mindset. Wylan has a lot of my humor, is about all I can really pin down now for my OCs... I may have planted the seeds with facets of my personality but at this point they've all grown far past all that.

tagged by: @more-than-a-princess the old guard need to stick together!!! thanks for the tag <: tagging: @seawrought @darksails @pastballads @mielmoto @psychcdelica and whoever else or nobody whatever!

#dash :: games ooc #im feeling the drop for today #the two drinks of cyser arent helping lmao #sleep comes soon

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rphelperblog · 2 years ago

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Rule of Wolves Book Quote Rp Meme

Part 1-Book By Leigh Bardugo- inspired by @stormlit @amruination @stcrmhund @multistoty who have some amazing muses from this world- feel free to edit or change pronouns for rp uses just as some quotes may be shortened or lacking character names for the same reasons

“I forgive you for these scars. You didn't expect that, did you? I don't regret them. I found my way to who I was meant to be through the pain I endured. I'm stronger for it.”

“I'm not susceptible to flattery, only stacks of cash”

“If fate doesn't give us the chance, we steal it.”

“Power doesn't make a man wise.”

“You're twitchy for a monarch,"

“Why think of the next world when she was in this one?”

“We're not helpless. Novels are full of ragtag bands facing impossible odds.”

“Once the river was loosed, it could not be called back.”

“Sweets aren’t good for me. I’ve been told riding will make me mannish and the wind will chafe my skin and age me. I know all the things that aren’t good for me. And I want them just the same.”

“We’re not meant to live among them, locked up in their houses, wilting beneath their roofs. You were meant for the stars and open skies. You were meant for freedom.”

“War can make it hard to remember who we are.”

“ I would push you into the sea and do a jig as you drowned. ”

“I think strong men show strength, but great men show strength tempered by compassion”

Do not second-guess the sack of flour. The sack of flour is wise beyond her years.”

“I can keep hope in my heart and a blade in my hand.”

“Better to get fat on information than starve on good manners.”

“As your general, I should tell you that would be a terrible decision."

“So you'll remember me when I meet you in the next world”

“You are my prince and you have my heart.”

"And if you're the queen I want?”

“You can choose faith or you can choose fear. But only one will bring you what you long for.”

You are strong enough to survive the fall. “

“There will be no redemption for you.The woman I am can forgive you for the punishment you dealt me. But for the sake of the child I was, there is no penance you can perform, no apology you can speak that will make me open my heart to you.”

“Maybe the gift of being human is that we do not give up—even when all hope is lost.”

“I have a gift for order and a taste for chaos.”

“This is the problem with letting your enemies live.”

“A word of advice, from one bastard to another: Sometimes it’s best to let the demon have its day.”

“Some people were built for love and some were built for war. One did not lend itself to the other.”

“I can still pick up a rifle. I was a soldier before I was a Saint.”

“I believe in all kinds of things. Ghosts. Gnomes. True love.”

“This is what love does. In the stories, love healed your wounds, fixed what was broken, allowed you to go on. But love wasn’t a spell, some kind of benediction to be whispered, a balm or a cure-all. It was a single, fragile thread, which grew stronger through connection, through shared hardship and trust.”

“I loved him. I loved him and he loved me. When I was... when no one could reach me... he saw me. He... I loved him and he loved me.”

“But think how brightly you might have burned if you hadn’t always walked in shadow.”

“A great many people are looking for you."

“Has he never been trained? The work seems rudimentary.”

“He hasn’t been trained. He’s stubborn that way.”

“I can't do this alone. I . . . I can't be the last of us.”

“You push us away, keep us at arm's distance so that you won't mourn us. But you'll mourn us anyway. That's the way love works.”

“I have a gift for persuasion. I once talked a tree out of its leaves.”

“I will always seek to make it summer for you.”

“I would make you my queen because I want you. I want you all the time.”

“What am i doing? Studying something beautiful.”

“We’ve made our peace.”

“Some treaties do not last.”

“You do love a dire prophecy, don’t you?”

“Why did you go to her?"

"I would stay forever if I could",

“There was nothing else to do but keep moving forward. You chose your path. You walked it. You hoped to find a way home again.”

"I have a surplus of bad ideas, I have to spend them somewhere.”

“Because I am greedy for the sight of you. Because the prospect of facing this war, this loss, without you fills me with fear. Because I find I don’t want to fight for a future if I can’t find a way to make a future with you.”

"We all have relatives we don't like.”

“Let the hounds give chase. I do not fear death, because I command it.”

“I suppose that's why I love you."

"I'm the queen. I must do nothing but please myself."

"Would it please you to kiss me?”

“Growing up means learning to go without.”

“What a depressing thought.”

“Love was the destroyer. It made mourners, widows, left misery in its wake. Grief and love were one and the same. Grief was the shadow love left when it was gone.”

“The problem isn’t that he asks, it’s that you always say yes.”

“Maybe the gift of being human is that we do not give up- even when all hope is lost.”

“I would give you a crown if I could,I would show you the world from the prow of a ship. I would choose you.”

“Your heart is in your eyes, Your Highness,"

“I’m not supposed to let you in,”

“I have to bathe. I smell like a forest fire.”

“Because unlike him, I have a conscience.”

“I have a conscience, It just knows when to keep its mouth shut.”

“If you have a conscience, it’s gagged and tied to a chair somewhere.”

“You do realize you just referred to yourself as the queen. That means you agreed."

“Must i make a joke about everything? I must. By royal mandate and the curse of my own disposition. I find life quite unbearable without laughter.”

“I'll tell you a thousand stories, my love. We'll write the new endings, one by one.”

"I am going to kill you."

"So long as you kiss me again before you do.”

“You smell like wildflowers. You always do. What can I say to make you stay?”

“Is it the shadow inside you that makes you brave?"

"I should hope not. I was making bad decisions long before that thing showed up.”

“And if...if I wished for more?"

"He hasn't had much luck with proposals."

"The real question is how you're going to outdo this gown for the royal wedding."

“If the privateer you've hired is entirely trustworthy, he's probably not much of a privateer.”

But kings did what they wished; bastards did what they must.”

“I will march with you in times of war. I will rest with you in times of peace. I will forever be the weapon in your hand, the fighter at you side, and the friend who awaits your return. I have seen your face in the making at the heart of the world and there is no one more beloved.”

“I’ll call it a victory.”

“Everyone mourns the first blossom,Who will weep for the rest that fall?I will remain to sing for you, Long after the spring has gone.”

“Thank you, no. The last time you let it out, it tried to bite me.”

“Human life is worth preserving. But human lives? They come and go like so much chaff, never tipping the scales."

“For a life of the kind you and I have never known and will never know— quiet, peace, the surety of love.”

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