#i always like the idea where if my ocs were companions in a game you could help pixie and mags get their act together or just watch it

[l-la]

Magdalene dating route 😳

I am glad you like Mags! She'd be a delight to flirt with and talk to in a video game.

[ravenwitch45]

What if Helluva Boss were an rpg video game where you can create your own character along with having a few companions that could be playable. You get to be a hero, villain, or in between. I haven't thought about romance options.

Oh my that's an idea! I've always thought it'd be cool to have a HB game, and while my most developed idea on it was an Arkham style game where you play as Blitz mainly with tons of sidequests with the wacky cast, I see the appeal of being able to make your ocs as well, not to mention the whole moral choice thing which would seem to make for a very open ended game.

Wanna do the obvious option and work at I.M.P and deal with the shenanigans with them? Or maybe get out of the chaos maybe working for Asmodeus or Mammon at their establishments, maybe go full evil helping out Crimson or Stella, in a world so complex, and with the freedom to choose I feel there would be a lot of options.

One thing I think would spice it up even more would be choice of demon species or origin. Depending on the demon species you choose, you get pros and cons. Imps are the best at stealth and can fit into tight spots and pull off some stuff with their tails, but in most higher class places you'd be considered much more suspicious and possibly attacked on sight.

Goetia's have the opposite problem, while there welcomes by the high class and have a boost to magic skills as well as charisma, in urban city spots there incredibly noticeable and are likely to be attacked by thugs out in the open.

Succubi get a much stronger charisma boost, and maybe Shark demons are considered more intimidating, allowing them to talk to what they want easilly as well. Maybe your species would also endear you to some more easily then other choices. Striker might be much more approachable as an Imp, while he's a lot more aggressive if your a goetia. While Stella and Andrealphus would be the exact opposite.

Maybe you can also make hybrids of the species, getting both pros and cons both being slightly weaker to balance having both. Either way this sounds really cool, Thank you so much for sharing! I'd love to hear your idea as it progresses.

[bumblewarden]

So!! I've been wanting to do this for a while, but life got in the way, so now I'm here to take that thing up again because!!! Fun!!!! This is about the relationships between OCs, and I don't want to impose anything but. Regarding how Novhen and Astala would get along:

What if they HAD grown up together? Maybe not in the same family (although, it would be fun 👀👀👀👀👀👀 they are very similar and very different from each other in different aspects. For example both are very loyal and community oriented, but also Astala is loud and boisterous while Novhen is quieter and more underhanded), but definitely the same Alienage. They'd know each others' quirks and habits. Maybe Novhen got frustrated with Astala because she'd always hide in these really obvious spots when playing hide and seek and Astala in turn would never be able to find Novhen? Maybe Novhen would at some point have stolen a plum tart for her and maybe Astala would've helped him against another kid who made fun of Novhen? Maybe, if we wanted them to meet up later during the Blight, Astala had to move away from Denerim at some point. I think she's a bit older than Novhen; maybe she got married elsewhere. Or, if not, now we gave more elves storming Vaughan's estate, which is alwats fun. I think Novhen would get to lead that one operation until Nelaros's death, because before that, stealth does seem to be the best option.

I think these two would get along well, differences aside. Astala would make an effort to lower her if needed, and having a familiar face to lean on during the Blight year would probably be a big comfort to them both. I think they'd be comfortable enough with each other to talk about the recruitment and how it didn't exactly happen willingly; they could gripe about nobles and politics; they could just. Sit in silence after Broken Circle and try and digest Sloth's nightmare. They could kill the slavers at the Alienage together!!! I think having a like-minded person from the same cultural background would help enormously.

One thing Astala probably wouldn't be on board with is the Cult of Fen'Harel. She'd let Novhen practice alright and defend him if accusations about this were levelled against him, but I think she would either have fallen out of it if she'd ever been introduced to it (it didn't save Adaia after all, so...), or never warmed up to the idea of this elvhen trickster god

These are my thoughts as far as they go. What do you think? Also I hadn't thought of it, but if you want to move this conversation to DMs, they're open ^^

(And if this doesn't tickle your fancy anymore, feel free to ignore ^^)

👀👀👀👀👀 I am eating this ask up like breakfast. Or, er, ramen. Which is the thing i am actually eating atm. But yes yes yes to all of this, i love it so much

Full response under the readmore for length, but i'm realizing now my response is mostly about them as kids 😅 Oops

[Ask Game]

The way i play with companion!Novhen, i'd assume he and Astala are probably either siblings or cousins (i waffle), except this time on their mothers' sides. I don't know Astala's exact age, but Novhen was born in *pulls out notes* Wintermarch of 9:7 Dragon. If we try to stagger them based on Adaia's death, that's probably close to a decade between them which seems a tad bit higher than it should be. We'll just have to dance around that matter

Even if Astala isn't significantly older, there's probably never a single moment where he's taller than her XD Add onto that that girls tend to hit puberty first, there's gonna be quite the height difference around age 10

But yes, their personalities go in very different directions but are probably pretty compatible, especially if given the benefit of a shared childhood! They're both very sociable, but i suspect most people like Astala more, especially authority figures. She's much less of a troublemaker, and Novhen definitely took a while to come into his own as a social mastermind. (This also would make her the ideal candidate for a distraction whenever Novhen’s a-scheming. That’s gonna do her a lot of favors when trying to get him to steal plum tarts for her XD These two are the real blight as far as anyone in the alienage is concerned XDD)

Oh, actually! If they knew each other, i can imagine pretty well him practicing with or studying Astala to get better at social situation! And clearly it worked! (A: "Ok now make an angry face... You just look like you can't find a chamberpot. You have to scrunch your eyebrows like this." *jams her thumb down his forhead*)

Astala seems to prefer her hair shorter during the Blight, but how was it as a child? Because if it were in some sort of puff, i can imagine her child-level object permanence resulting in her hiding in an empty barrel with the puff still peeking over the top! (Artist's Rendition Below)

I don’t think he’d be too frustrated with her poor stealth outside of team games at least! (If they’re partnered is another story…) He does sometimes tease her that she’s not going to be a very good criminal when she gets bigger. Idk, how would she respond to that? Because how does she feels about the fact that she's not going to follow in her mother's footsteps (or how aware of that she'd be as a child) or maybe she would retort about how she’s already bigger or something else? Definitely a lot of ways to take that one lol

But also the idea of Novhen as alienage king of hide and seek is kinda cute. He's usually the last one left (all that damn thief training), so it’s not unheard of to see a parade of Astala, Shianni, Soris, and whoever else they've wrapped into their game (which with Astala could be quite a number) turning the alienage upsidedown to find him. There's probably at least one time he gets found in the first minute, and he thinks he's going to die of embarrassment. Because of that, they almost never let him be a hider in the first round. Sometimes when he’s hiding, they'll accidentally pick up seekers who weren't even playing along the way because they want to see him knocked down a peg XD That's what happens when you win too much!

Astala probably has him beat at wrestling tho! And the game where i imagine they’re most evenly matched would be arm wrestling. As an archer, Novhen has insane upper body and especially shoulder strength, but Astala has insane everywhere strength

On the less competitive side, imagine them as dance partners as little kids ☺️ Astala’s probably the more enthusiastic one about it, but i’d imagine she could drag him into it Easy whether through blackmail or Ole Reliable (puppy dog eyes). There have to be lots of events in the alienage that call for dancing, so it’s good to have a go-to dance partner! And if they ever get a Silly Urge while dancing, the one thing that i’ve found little kids most reliable to do is spin so fast they nearly make themselves sick, and when there’s two of them spinning each other, there’s no stopping them until the centrifugal force throws them both to the ground. At least they’re having fun lol

The Cult of Fen'Harel thing makes sense. I wouldn't expect Astala to be into that. I imagine in this case that Cyrion and Adaia agreed to expose the children to both sets of beliefs, so they could choose once they got older

It's a good thing Novhen's good at keeping matters hush because otherwise Astala would likely get stuck constantly mediating between Novhen and Ilanlas on matters of religion 🤭

Tbh Novhen would slightly begrudge her for choosing the Chantry, but i don't think he'd ever let her know if he could help it. It's just not worth it, and you can't talk about that without talking about Adaia's death which nobody is excited to talk about. Still, it's a potential source of drama, esp as the politics of DA:D are winding up

Back in the present day, if the endgame configuration is one where they live in the same location (which i think could only be the case if they were both companions), Novhen would offer her once for him to educate her child/ren in the way of the Cult of Fen'Harel and/or the Vir Banal'ras fighting style, probably get denied at least on the first one, and never bring it back up. He knows she's Andrastian and also wouldn't expect her to teach them that fighting style herself (too rogue-based), but if he had permission, he'd want to at least try to expose them to their family's traditions, so they could make a choice themselves like Novhen and Astala did

And honestly, if he's present for the origin, once Nelaros dies, Novhen would more than happily hand leadership of the mission over to Astala. Stealth only goes so far, and she has first dibs on revenge #SupportWomen

And with Unrest in the Alienage! As soon as Caladrius is dead, Novhen is scampering over his corpse to pick the lock on Cyrion's cage. Doesn't even wait for someone else to pilfer the key. Astala is free to react to that little scene however she wishes, and we get the whole Tabris family reunion after

Whoever’s Warden, i imagine those two leaning on each other a lot for emotional support during the Blight because not only are they the only alienage elves in the party, they’re family (or at the least childhood friends). Once we personalize the Broken Circle dreams, they get upsetting fast. If either of them get sent into that mission (or Maker forbid both of them), they’re definitely going to need to share a blanket by the fire for a minute

EDIT: the paragraph looks like it's been eaten but also! Novhen would be very cautious about Astala's Zevran romance at first. ("Yes, Stala, he's very dreamy, but let's not forget he's only here because he was hired to kill you.") We know he's very protective, and they're both so eldest sibling-coded

[cetra]

Friend!!! I’d love to hear about your Tav and who your main companions are/who you romanced! 🩶🩶🩶

OUGHGH thank u very much for the ask...... I'm still kinda embarrassed to talk about him but here he is. His name is Malachy, Mal for short. he's a half-elf Rogue (Arcane Trickster). I went with Dark Urge as his origin, so his story is still shrouded in mystery at this point in the game but he's quite submissive to the Urge.

I would classify him as MAYBE Neutral Evil based on his non-Urge actions in the game so far but this is subject to change, and the needle has moved closer to Lawful at a few points in the game, depending on the person involved and the stakes at hand.

honestly.... he's a pretty terrible person with a disgusting attitude and I would probably hate him if he were real. He will kill without hesitation anyone who wrongs him and anyone he thinks as deserving. if he spares someone or rescues a soul, it's usually because he thinks it will benefit him later

I can't say much else on him bc i've just barely started Act 2, but he's been one of the most enjoyable characters i've played as in my time of RPGs. i really love roleplaying characters who are terrible people and Mal has been one of nastiest yet. he's so awful and he honestly scares me sometimes! I also kinda think he should die but at the same time i care about him..... DELICIOUS THANK YOU!!!! 🧡

I'm gonna put everything else under a cut..... 😭😭 i'm so sorry......

The main companions atm are Gale, Lae'zel and Astarion. Lae'zel admires him and has almost max approval with him (I just finished Act 1). Gale likes him but they've argued a few times already in the game, yet he still maintains good approval with him somehow. better approval than Astarion actually, who approves of nearly all of Mal's heinous deeds in-game but gives a lot of disapproval when Mal is mean to him, which is almost always! So despite sharing a hankering for violence and a lust for blood i don't think Astarion likes him much, which makes him the smartest person in this party

romance is kinda weird. He hooked up with Minthara after the raid, but Minthara's romance in this game is notoriously broken and i think it's going to stay broken on this save file since the "fixes" have been inconsistent for most players. So i sadly decided that would be a one-time thing for him 😭 but towards the end of Act 1 after some story developments featuring Lae'zel i realized that those two were unimaginably compatible together and so I think they're endgame. The gratitude she shows towards him, how much she respects him, how similar they are in a lot of capacities..... just really touches my soul and it feels like love to me, or at least the closest thing to love I can imagine these two characters feeling. So they slept together, at the VERY end of Act 1, and i'm waiting to see what direction that goes in. But i have a really good feeling about it honesty.....

there's also the question of Gale. Gale clashes with Mal a LOT in the game and there was even a scene between them where he quite literally damned him? but then later on after that we got a scene where Gale was clearly interested in him so it turns out Gale also has a crush on him i guess?? Don't really know if it's a bug but i'm kinda happy it developed that way bc honestly it's such a juicy concept HJDFBHKJBGK 😭😭 Mal's a Heterosexual Man though so he doesnt return the feelings and now Gale is stuck with a big fat unrequited crush on Mal that i never anticipated or intended to happen. Gale is my absolute favorite character in the game though so I've never wanted an OC to kill themselves so bad until i had Mal cut off that insanely really romantic moment with Gale DFJHBDKHJG I HATE HIM SO MUCH MAN........ MOST EVIL THING HE'S DONE IN THE GAME SO FAR!! GALE SHOULD KILL HIM.

Admittedly i do really like the idea of Mal, Lae'zel and Gale being in a really weird and twisted situationship where they often can't stand being around one another as a result of their strong personalities and insane moral compasses but are also kinda obsessed with each other and have a lot of unsaid feelings between the three of them. AND MAYBE THEY ALL KISS OR SOMETHING this is all totally in my head and relies exclusively on just. My imagination going wild as i perceive them in the game. they're the worsties ever and uhhh I hate them?/ I actually love them that just seemed like a funny thing to say.......

I uh didn't mean for this to go on so long especially since i mentioned being kinda embarrassed about it but I guess i didn't realize how much I had been keeping this in..... i hadn't really shared anything about him yet before on here, so THANK U FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY!!!! now I'm gonna go hide in shame bc of how much i said okay BYEEEEE 🧡

[thetavolution]

for Bex

👄: How do they talk? What's their vocabulary like? What does their voice sound like? Any accent, verbal tics, etc?

🔮: If they were to feature in the art of a tarot card, which one would it be and why?

✍: What does your character's handwriting look like? Do they write letters often? What other contexts do they usually write in, if any?

😄: How can you tell when they're really happy? What sorts of things make them happy? How often do they smile?

🌹: Are they experienced romantically? How many romantic partners have they had? How has this affected their view of romance?

🎉: Who are their party members/companions? Describe each of their relationships with your OC (however brief or detailed you want).

Thank you for sending this in!

👄: How do they talk? What's their vocabulary like? What does their voice sound like? Any accent, verbal tics, etc?

Even in the BG3/DnD universe, she keeps her natural American accent. Her accent could be pegged as Midwestern. You can hear her speak in The Bonneville Game. (Sorry, not sorry for plugging my show lol.)

She does find roundabout ways to explain stuff sometimes. If she can't think of what something's called, she'll try to describe it via a sound effect. It doesn't always work out. She does have a pretty decent vocabulary. She reads a lot more than people expect her to. She sometimes uses antiquated sayings, especially if it brings her joy. I.E. "They've got the morbs."

🔮: If they were to feature in the art of a tarot card, which one would it be and why?

This one was tough! Hopefully I'm reading the cards properly and I'm open to critique here. I went with the Devil due to bondage and hopelessness. She only recently regained her independence. She lost a lot of years to a situation where she was enslaved. It's part of what beat her down and has her foreseeing a bleak future for herself, which is why I thought the Devil.

On the flip side, when she's doing better she would probably be the Fool. The Fool is about accepting your choices which I think she needs to do. It can also be about entering a new phase and living in the moment. At least, that's what those cards mean for her.

✍: What does your character's handwriting look like? Do they write letters often? What other contexts do they usually write in, if any?

She has a lot of distant friends that she likes to write. She actually feels like she expresses herself better in letters so she finds it freeing. She often sends a 'thinking of you' letter whenever she has a chance. Outside of that, she writes down ideas in her recipe book or catalogues recipes she's tried and liked.

Her handwriting would probably look something like this:

😄: How can you tell when they're really happy? What sorts of things make them happy? How often do they smile?

She smiles a lot, actually! It's just not a "real" smile. It's usually some kind of smirk or something to hide her real feelings. When you get to know her, you can tell the difference between the smiles. It doesn't reach her eyes when it's her normal smile.

When she's truly happy, it's usually because she's around someone or several people she cares about and feels safe with. It can happen just being around them or telling jokes. She also will give every animal on earth a real smile. Acts of kindness towards her also get her to smile. When she really feels like someone cares about her, she gives a true smile.

People usually can see it in her eyes when she finds real joy. She's also more willing to be genuinely sappy, even if she acts like it pains her.

🌹: Are they experienced romantically? How many romantic partners have they had? How has this affected their view of romance?

She's had a lot of romantic partners, including casual ones. I don't know an exact number. She's had plenty of bad relationships. She was never really shown what love is while growing up, and she doesn't think she deserves good things.

While she understands love can be a beautiful thing, she assumes it'll always be stained by misery when it comes to her. She usually just waits for the other person to decide she's too "broken" to be with.

She had one huge betrayal in the past that makes her assume everyone will betray her eventually. It's why she wasn't even that hurt by Astarion confession. Just very confused. I tend to develop things via music and three songs that sum up her romantic past are The Stranger Song, Joke's On You, and 10:15.

🎉: Who are their party members/companions? Describe each of their relationships with your OC (however brief or detailed you want).

In BG3, she's romancing Astarion. They both do the whole "I can make them worse" and accidentally make each other better thing. Astarion is also the first person to force her to notice she actually does do good things for people.

She ends up being shocked by the effect she has on everyone else. She definitely likes to tease Lae'zel and Lae'zel eventually warms up to it. They earn each other's respect. Bex has a soft spot for Wyll, but she's terrified of the world chewing him up and spitting him out. (It already kind of did.) She questions "who protects the protector" in his case.

She thinks Shadowheart is genuinely hilarious and likes spending time with her, especially when she renounces Shar. They 100% talk shit together. Of course, Bex adores Karlach because it's Karlach. Karlach is someone who can always get a real smile out of her. They crack each other up. She loves to tease Gale, but it's always a mutual playful thing with each other. She respects him and she would stab Mystra in the eye if she could. When people outside of the group make fun of Gale, she gets angry. To steal a line from Bob's Burgers, "Messing with Gale is a privilege, not a right."

She has a fling with Halsin with Astarion consent, of course. Halsin helped raise her self-esteem up. She and Astarion will probably invite him into their lives in the future. She also wants to be Jaheira when she "grows up." I accidentally killed Minthara on her run so... no Minthara lol. Minsc cracks her up and she just can't not love that guy.

In original story adventures, she hangs with Minty, Laura, and Ingrid. Minty entertains her to no end and her earnestness is endearing to her. Minty accepts Bex as part of her found family. Minty breaks down her walls and Bex starts to open up around her.

Laura doesn't like her as much at first, but they don't hate each other. They bond over their sense of humor over time. They start being each other's wingmen, too.

Ingrid was a little scared of her at first. When Ingrid realizes she's not so bad, she starts to open up to Bex. Bex treats her more like a little sister. She's more gentle with her, but also tries to get her to stand up for herself... and she likes messing with her. Ingrid is easy to fluster. Ingrid eventually stands up for herself more, with Bex's help, and starts to rib Bex in return.

[randomsquirrel]

W00t! A chance to gush about my ginger nuisance in another setting! Please enjoy the mansplaining, manipulation, and manwhoring that Lysander gets up to! ...And when that all fails, the manslaughter XD

1) Tell us about your Tav! Name, class and subclass, race, pronouns. Do you have a headcanon for where they're from? Their family? Are they a Dark Urge? Or did you choose an Origin Character? Was it an easy decision? -Lysander Morgensonne, human Bard from the College of Lore (with a bit of Paladin and Rogue by accident, which he doesn’t realize he has until after traveling with his companions a while), and is a pan/poly he/himbo. He has no idea if he has any family, as he has no memories prior to a couple of weeks before he got tadpole’d. And he’s an OC I’ve had for over a decade, so yes, he’s custom, and I was excited to make him

2) Was there something about the character creator that just couldn't capture your Character? Please tell us about their hair, facial hair, tattoos, piercings, disabilities, their trans or intersex body, or anything else you're comfortable sharing -His hair should be much longer, and has messy asymmetric bangs, but the number of ear piercings is pretty close. Though I had to mod to get GOLD jewelry, because silver just looks wrong on him. The tattoo is BG3 only, as while he does have ink in other stories, it’s always specific to that story. Otherwise, I look at him and go “yup, that’s Lysander,” but it’s still a bit strange (positive) because he’s so rugged and handsome, and usually his version in other games/stories have him a bit more twink-ish than strong :D

3) Has your Character been using their illithid powers? -Not really, no. Not intentionally, anyway, as in a pinch or moments where he is angry, he’ll manifest a couple of those powers, but it’s something that makes him a bit leery, as while he’s not opposed to getting more power, the fact that he might become a bit too tentacle’d would play merry hell with his good looks, and that would ruin his entire Bardic vibe XD

4) Do you remember in which order you recruited your companions? Which companion introduction would have felt the most familiar / like home to your Tav / Character? -Not sure; I found Shadowheart on the ship because I needed a buddy to survive it, and I think I got Gale immediately after because the rune circle he’s stuck in is close to where she and Lys landed on the beach. I then searched for Astarion, I think, but I don’t remember if I found Lae’zel right after, or if it was Wyll and Karlach next, nor which of those two I went for first. But both Astarion’s and Gale’s meetings were very in-character, because Lys was perplexed but intrigued by how Gale couldn’t get free from his arcane predicament. And while he was jumped by Astarion when the man asked him to go "check out that sound over there," the moment that Astarion had a knife to his throat he turned the ambush around and pinned him down and demanded answers. …HOT >:3

5) Do you remember the first humanoid enemy your Character killed? Was it the first person they've ever killed, in your opinion? Would they have been bothered by it? -Neither of us do, it was not, and no, neither of us were XD

6) Were you able to save everyone when the goblins stormed the gates at the Grove? -”What are we? Big Damn Heroes” :)

7) Did you enter the Grove? -Of course! I needed to get Wyll, and also a place to go sell :P

8) Do you have a favorite member of the Druid Circle? Is it the same as your Character's? -We’re both stupid for Halsin <3

9) Do you have a favorite member of the Tiefling Refugees? Is it the same as your Character's? -Again, yes, we agree that Alfira is pretty darn cool, and it was fun helping her with her song. Bardic solidarity!

10) Do you have a favorite member of the Goblin Camp? Is it the same as your Character's? -Not really, TBH, they’re all bastards (derogatory), and we’re Magnificent Bastards (affectionate), so the vibes clash pretty hard

11) Do you have a favorite member of the Act 1 Githyanki? Is it the same as your Character's? -Neither of us had any specifically strong opinions toward any of them, we were mostly wondering how and if they’d get in our way in the future, and how pissed Lae’zel would be that we’d have to roflstomp them

12) Do you have a favorite member of the Zhentarim? Is it the same as your Character's? -Neither of us like them much, as while Lys is a bit of a Robin Hood figure at times, he despises slavers and those who would hurt others for profit. The only reason we didn’t purge the hideout and pick it clean was we needed them for trade and resources, but we were waiting for the right moment to do a bit of long-delayed justice

13) Do you have a favorite character from the Underdark? Is it the same as your Character's? -While the Underdark was interesting and a lot of fun, neither of us really had anyone stand out to us as “that dude is nifty, I like them :D”

14) Do you have another NPC you loved from a faction not mentioned above? What about your Character? -We wanna sit and drink with Jaheira and listen to all of her stories. Whatever she’s willing to tell, anyway. WE ARE BARDS, PLEASE, WE LOVE STORIES! Same for Minsc, his tales must be great, and we both wanna give Boo gentle snuggles. ALSO, TARA, LET HER STAY AT CAMP <333

15) How did the situation with the Grove, the Tieflings and the Goblins turn out for your Character? -Walks away from the Goblin Camp in slow motion as explosions go off in the background, lights a strawberry cigarillo with a cantrip, and fist-bumps Astarion as the entire party swaggers away

16) Did you save Halsin? -Heck yes! JAILBREAK!!!

17) What does your Character think of Withers? -“Soooo… I know that if one makes a face for too long it’ll stick that way, but what were you doing to get THAT kind of face? :3”

18) How did your Character deal with Wyll, Karlach, and Mizora? -He wants to give Wyll and Karlach all of the hugs and kisses they’ll ever want, and throw Mizora in a very cold river XD

19) Did your Character spend a night with a companion either the night of the party or earlier? Is it someone they have a continued interest in? -…He’s a Bard, the question is “in whom does he not have interest, and/or have attempted to flirt his way into a very good night with them.” Astarion was his first, unsurprisingly (and at the party), as both of them are of the “live it up while we can, have no regrets ‘cause we might die tomorrow” mindset, and end up unpacking sooooo much baggage as they develop a relationship and feelings for each other. Lys initially openly and all at once yearly on offers all of his companions a no-strings-attached good time if they want, any time they want, because again, they might all die the next day, so what does it matter what they do and with whom? Getting jealous or possessive is kinda stupid. And like he does with Astarion, he gets in too deep and gets attached to everyone after all. Oops. Just Bard Things, right? Accidentally believing in the power of love and being powered by it ‘cause he genuinely loves all of them <3

20) How did you deal with The Artist - Oskar Fevras? Did you even encounter him? -Lys convinced Oskar’s “owner” that his slave artist was more valuable dead ‘cause his art will be worth much more, and let him go afterward, because not only was it funny, Lys isn’t too fond of the Zhentarim. It worked out nicely for Lys when he got to Baldur’s Gate, though, so score!

21) What are your Character's thoughts on the strange artifact that was in Shadowheart's possession? Did it jump to your pack because you changed her out of your party? -Curiosity, but not enough to be nosy about it. Once she refused to tell him anything about it, he let it drop, but was both perplexed and intrigued that it transferred to him. Which, yes, was because I changed her out of the party, but I like to think it was because The Emperor recognized him as more likely to listen and go along with his plans. However, while Lys definitely was the one who would listen, he was the least likely to be manipulated, and figured out how to turn it around for his own ends eventually >:)

22) How did your Character resolve the situation with Sovereign Glut, if you met them? -Yeeeeah, in addition to being a Bard, and therefore Does As He Damn Well Pleases, he discovered a couple of levels of Vengeance Paladin a bit before they wandered into the Underdark, so he was absolutely not down with dude planning to betray the other guy. Sorry, mate, I was happy to help gank the duergar because of what they did, but you wanna do the same thing to Spaw and that’s not cool. Roll for initiative!

23) What are your Character's thoughts on the dream visitor? -As with the prism, initial curiosity, then compassion/empathy. Once he found out the visitor’s true nature, he was fascinated, because as a Bard and a Baldurian, he was absolutely chuffed at the opportunity now in his lap. …And very well aware of the power that he now held and could wield against his enemies, if he can just make sure that the visitor doesn’t suspect anything…

24) Was your illithid tadpole empowered by anything in Act 1? If so, how does your Character feel about that? -Not really, and TBH, he’s trying to forget it exists. The only reason he’s grateful for it is restoring his "self" after he was killed a couple of times, thanks to a very weird quirk of being restored at dawn after he’d been killed by something, which otherwise wipes his memories and personality in the process. (Long, LONG lore dump, there’s a reason for it, and mmm, that trauma! I'll hafta do a separate post on his backstory eventually)

25) Did your Character take the mountain pass? -Yes, and it’s what unlocks a large part of his backstory, as well as why, what, and who he is. Not everything is explained, but he figures out a lot about himself, and gets a massive boost in power and skills after exploring the monastery’s secrets. As well as a new item/weapon that gives him a few abilities that they frequently put to good use. He and his companions wonder if "Lysander Morgensonne" is actually a corruption over time of "Lathander Morninglord," and just how old is he?...

26) What was your favorite enemy? Did your Character have any memorable fights or moments in combat that were ripe for headcanons and interpretation? -Can’t think of a specific enemy, but he was a fucking MENACE in the Goblin Camp. Between using the Illithid powers to mess with minds, he knows how to magically alter and “throw” his voice, so he spent quite a bit of time gleefully turning the goblins on each other, letting the problem solve itself, and freeing up their resources to deal with the three leaders more effectively. Also, it was hilarious watching the goblins murk each other over his skilled ventriloquism, especially when Lys distracted the courtyard with a bit of music after Volo got booted, leaving Astarion free to poison the booze. Fight smarter, not harder! …Though he did let himself take some “punishment” from Abdirak, which is a story for another post :3

27) Who ended up in your Character's most used party? -Astarion and Gale. I rotated around Karlach, Halsin, and Wyll as I tried to figure out the best “fourth” to complement Lys, as I didn’t know if I needed someone more tankier, or more DPSier. With the two levels of Paladin to supplement ten in Bard, Lys is tank, support, and controller, so Wyll is filling in as DPS and backup control, and we are devastating >:D

28) Did you recruit Scratch the dog? Did you encounter him at all? -WHOOSA GOOD BOY??? FETCH THE BALL, GOOD BOY :D

29) Did you adopt an owlbear? Do you have a name for your child? -Lys has two hands, and they are for giving scritchies to both Good Boys. Still don’t have a name for the feathery one, though, probably “Bite” to go with “Scratch,” or “Snack,” since Astarion was the one that accidentally scared him off when he showed up at camp the first time. SWEETIE, I LOVE YOU BUT- >:|

30) Do you have other pets as a ranger or in headcanon? -He does not, as he’s a bit of a stray cat himself, and is traveling too much for a pet. He loves cats, though, so he is delighted to meet Tara, and was wicked chuffed to get Grub into camp for a while

31) Does your Character have new or old phobias or superstitions that affect their story? -Surprisingly, none at all. But to be fair, if any of his past “incarnations” ever did, this current one has no idea

32) What's your Character's experience with and opinion of Volo? -”He might be the more famous Bard, but I’m the better one. And the better looking one”

33) Has your Character allied with the cult of the Absolute? -Ha Ha No Fucking Way Get Murdered Idiots

34) How did your Character resolve the situation with Nere and the gnomes? -A certain Myconid wanted Nere’s head, and Lys does not like slavers. There was a lot of killing, and Astarion was very happy about that. Not the gnomes, tho, they were chill, and they were happy to help Lys kill duergar, so YAY, MURDER BUDDIES!

35) Has your Character done anything that they regret in Act 1? -Not really. He has some regret that he couldn’t do more to help out some people or prevent some bad things from happening, but he’s not a god, nor can he be everywhere at once. He just does the best he can, where and when he can

36) Did your Character find the Adamantine Forge? Did they use it? What did they make? -He did, and since he’d recently unlocked some latent Paladin skills, they decided that armor and a shield would be a good upgrade from his Bardic getup. Especially since they found the relic blade Phalar Aluve in the Underdark, and he seems to have an affinity for it. Between this gear, the Lathanderian amulet they found in Grymforge, and the sort-of gauntlet he turned the Blood of Lathander into (again, long story), he was able to tap into a whole new skillset that none of the rest of the party had

37) Did your Character find the Necromancy of Thay? How are they handling it / planning to handle it? -He did, and while both Gale and Astarion were interested in it, he held onto it until they could find a safe time/place to do some careful Arcana checks on it and see exactly what it did. …And Astarion nicked it from his bags one night and had a bit of a read on his own. Lys was annoyed that Astarion had taken it without asking, but he understood the Rogue’s motivations and intentions, as he’d recently opened up about Cazador, and part of the reason that Lys had taken the book at all was that it might help them with both Gale’s condition, and helping them do something for Astarion to get him free of his "master"

38) Did your Character meet Barcus Wroot? How's he doing? -He did, and Barcus is doing quite well in Baldur’s Gate, doing Ironhand Things with Wulbren :D

39) What does your Character think of Raphael? -Lys is caught between wanting to punch Raphael in his smug face, or bending him over the table while he hits it from behind like the fist of an angry god. Dude kinda has both coming, TBH, but Lys also has survival instincts XD

40) Is your Character used to strange dreams from before the events of the adventure? -He has no memories prior to about two weeks before the Nautiloid, so he’s not even really used to normal dreams D:

41) Is your Character accustomed to being on the road from before the events of the adventure? -Yes, but he doesn’t remember how or why. It’s something that feels familiar, and he just…knows what to do and how, but not consciously so

42) Has your Character been to the Underdark from before the events of the adventure? -It’s very likely that he or an incarnation has in the past, but again, he has no memories of it. Since he was able to quickly and intuitively figure out how to free Phalar Aluve from being trapped in stone, it's very possible that he'd been down there somewhere before, or at least, become familiar with drow customs and deities during his travels

Yay, this was fun! I'll hafta do more infodumps, now that I've got most of it archived to Gdocs so I don't forget anything. And take SO MANY MORE PICS :D

BG3 Act 1 asks

I am intentionally putting the number of the inquiry at the end of each question also because I have a pet peeve that when you copy paste questions into an ask that the number doesn't carry over.

Tell us about your Tav! Name, class and subclass, race, pronouns. Do you have a headcanon for where they're from? Their family? Are they a Dark Urge? Or did you choose an Origin Character? Was it an easy decision? (1)

Was there something about the character creator that just couldn't capture your Character? Please tell us about their hair, facial hair, tattoos, piercings, disabilities, their trans or intersex body, or anything else you're comfortable sharing. (2)

Has your Character been using their illithid powers? (3)

Do you remember in which order you recruited your companions? Which companion introduction would have felt the most familiar / like home to your Tav / Character? (4)

Do you remember the first humanoid enemy your Character killed? Was it the first person they've ever killed, in your opinion? Would they have been bothered by it? (5)

Were you able to save everyone when the goblins stormed the gates at the Grove? (6)

Did you enter the Grove? (7)

Do you have a favorite member of the Druid Circle? Is it the same as your Character's? (8)

Do you have a favorite member of the Tiefling Refugees? Is it the same as your Character's? (9)

Do you have a favorite member of the Goblin Camp? Is it the same as your Character's? (10)

Do you have a favorite member of the Act 1 Githyanki? Is it the same as your Character's? (11)

Do you have a favorite member of the Zhentarim? Is it the same as your Character's? (12)

Do you have a favorite character from the Underdark? Is it the same as your Character's? (13)

Do you have another NPC you loved from a faction not mentioned above? What about your Character? (14)

How did the situation with the Grove, the Tieflings and the Goblins turn out for your Character? (15)

Did you save Halsin? (16)

What does your Character think of Withers? (17)

How did your Character deal with Wyll, Karlach and Mizora? (18)

Did your Character spend a night with a companion either the night of the party or earlier? Is it someone they have a continued interest in? (19)

How did you deal with The Artist - Oskar Fevras? Did you even encounter him? (20)

What are your Character's thoughts on the strange artifact that was in Shadowheart's possession? Did it jump to your pack because you changed her out of your party? (21)

How did your Character resolve the situation with Sovereign Glut, if you met them? (22)

What are your Character's thoughts on the dream visitor? (23)

Was your illithid tadpole empowered by anything in Act 1? If so, how does your Character feel about that? (24)

Did your Character take the mountain pass? (25)

What was your favorite enemy? Did your Character have any memorable fights or moments in combat that were ripe for headcanons and interpretation? (26)

Who ended up in your Character's most used party? (27)

Did you recruit Scratch the dog? Did you encounter him at all? (28)

Did you adopt an owlbear? Do you have a name for your child? (29)

Do you have other pets as a ranger or in headcanon? (30)

Does your Character have new or old phobias or superstitions that affect their story? (31)

What's your Character's experience with and opinion of Volo? (32)

Has your Character allied with the cult of the Absolute? (33)

How did your Character resolve the situation with Nere and the gnomes? (34)

Has your Character done anything that they regret in Act 1? (35)

Did your Character find the Adamantine Forge? Did they use it? What did they make? (36)

Did your Character find the Necromancy of Thay? How are they handling it / planning to handle it? (37)

Did your Character meet Barcus Wroot? How's he doing? (38)

What does your Character think of Raphael? (39)

Is your Character used to strange dreams from before the events of the adventure? (40)

Is your Character accustomed to being on the road from before the events of the adventure? (41)

Has your Character been to the Underdark from before the events of the adventure? (42)

Asker has a question not from the list. (43)

Asker wants Blogger to choose a question from the list. (44)

I love your oc's! I hope you're enjoying the game as much as I am!

[bardic-perdita]

Can I get aaaaaaaaa🤔 mock turtle and tweedle dumb?

Thank you for the asks!

Mock Turtle: How did you get the idea for this OC?

Breoch

My one goal when making him was "pretty elf boy". Breoch was always going to be an Astarion romancer, but I didn't realise when I created him that 'Tav' and 'Dark Urge' were two different options on the character creator. So early Breoch was pretty evil for the first few hours of the game (which really excited Astarion, I can tell you). Everything else about him sort of stemmed from the events of the game and learning more about drow culture/Menzoberranzan.

How come none of the Menzoberranzan drow knows about Breoch despite him being from a noble house? Maybe his house has fallen from grace. Why? His great-grandmother slept with a dragon. Etc.

I also wanted to play around with his moral compass: to create a character that has the potential to be kind-hearted and noble; to have had the perfect family and upbringing to be somebody that inspires others— only for him to use those special chances to seek power and slowly become corrupted by a society that would rather see him dead. His overall story arc is: good among good people -> evil among 'evil' people -> evil among good people -> good against 'evil' people.

Shrike

I'll be honest and say that Shrike started out purely for aesthetics. I wanted a paladin durge with an autumnal pallette because I thought it would be interesting. Most of their backstory came about as I answered questions like these on tumblr, or with my discord co-conspirator. I wanted them to be more canon compliant than my silly durge Zeke, so the game basically gave me their story for me.

They also romanced Astarion as I wanted to see the numerous Durge/Astarion interactions. I have romanced other companions in multiplayer games (like Lae'zel and Karlach), and Gale with Zeke. I think Shadowheart, Minthara and Wyll are the only companion romances I haven't seen yet.

I've only recently reached a point where I feel like they've fully developed both visually and from a story writing perspective. So uh, expect to see some fics and/or playlist for them soon!

Tweedle-Dum: Which location in canon is their favorite place?

Breoch understandably likes Menzoberranzan and the Underdark generally, but he'd also be impressed by the Sharran temples.

Shrike would love the swamp (before the illusion drops) and the circus

[majormeilani]

oc ask questions specifically for a hat in time ocs!!!!

when sending a question to someone, please specify by name which OC you are asking about for any that you want to know specifically about an OC!!

🌟🌟🌟🌟 if you reblog, i very much recommend tagging the names of your OCs you wish for people to ask about or a place where people can find a list of them!!! i will try to also send an ask to anyone who reblogs so knowing their names would be helpful for me too!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟

any and all of these can be answered with written responses or art (if you're feeling adventurous!!!)

(these also can be used in helping with OC brainstorming and development!! ❤️ please do not repost this list without my permission but reblogging is okay!)

50 Questions Under the Cut!!!

Where does your OC live? Are they from The Planet in the game or are they from another planet? (Like Hat Kid's/Bow Kid's home planet, a neighboring planet or celestial structure, ect.)

What is your OC's backstory? How do they fit in with the story?

What inspired you to make your OC?

What is your OC's relationship with the characters in canon? (Feel free to specify which canon characters!)

Do you have any early ideas/concepts of your OC that you scrapped or would like to share? 

What do you think your OC was like when they were younger/what they would be like when they grow up?

Do they have a motivation for wanting any of the timepieces? How would they find one? What would they do with it?

Does your OC have any hobbies or favorite past times?

What is your OC's relationship with their family like? Do they have any siblings or extended family?

What is something or someone your OC absolutely despises?

What are some of your OCs favorite things? (For example, favorite food, drink, type of music, color, things they collect, ect. anything that they are fond of)

Do they have a very distinctive manner of speech or other way of communicating? (like telepathy, sign language, making small noises, ect.) Do you have an idea of what they might sound like? (For example: an accent, certain common phrases they're likely to say, vocal tics, quirks or habits, ect? Voice claims even!)

What is their gender and/or sexuality/romantic orientation?

What is their date of birth, how old are they and/or what is their zodiac sign?

Do they have a romantic partner or romantic interest?

Do they have a companion or pet that they often hang around with?

If they had a storybook, like the ones presented in-game, what would it detail about them? (If you're feeling extra adventurous, feel free to sketch/illustrate/storyboard or describe as a short story what each page would look like!)

Is there any lore about your OC that adds to the current standing in-game lore? 

If your OC was on the Arctic Cruise, what would they likely be found doing? What would they say to Hat Kid/Bow Kid upon interacting with them?

What would a time rift level themed around them look like?

Who would they vote for in the Annual Bird Movie Awards?

What is their occupation? What are their skills?

If you could play as your OC in the game, would they have any special abilities or a specific play-style/moveset?

Does your OC have something they always have on their person? (For example: a special weapon, iconic accessory, a cherished or important object, ect.)

Would your OC be judged as a "Good Guy" or a "Bad Guy" by Mustache Girl? What did they do to receive the judgment that they do?

How many hit-points/health points do you think your OC would have?

What would your OC's idle animation/s be? How would they react if Hat Kid/Bow Kid whacked them with their umbrella? (would they do the squeaky toy animation or would they give an appropriate reaction?)

Does your OC have a specific aesthetic? Describe what things you associate them with or feel free to make a moodboard/aesthetic board that describes them!

Is your OC banned from anywhere in the game or wanted for any specific crime?

What would their handwriting and/or signature look like? 

Are they one to think through and plan their actions or do they make decisions on a whim? Or are they rather indecisive and look to others for help making a decision? Describe the process in which they might go about when making a choice about something.

Do they have any magical, otherworldly or otherwise supernatural abilities?

What is your OC's ultimate goal or wish? Would they consult time altering in order to achieve that goal?

Would your OC survive a Deathwish?

What would a level/levels that your OC appears in be like? Would they play a significant role or function like an NPC?

How would you describe your OC if they were in the game manual, a wiki page description about them or one of Hat Kid's/Bow Kid's diary entries?

Do they have any cultural traditions or holidays that they celebrate? Are they a part of any religion? (Real or ones you made up?)

What are the languages that they can communicate in?

Are there any concepts for OCs that you have yet to share or have considered making? Are there any you need help developing or wish to know better? Share your thoughts.

What would your OC order from the food carts in Nyakuza Metro?

What would an outfit, accessory, weapon, badge or dye themed after your OC, made for the player, look or function like? Feel free to share multiple ideas!

How does your OC feel about Hat Kid/Bow Kid leaving the planet? Do they miss her? Are they happy she is gone? Would they write to her and what might their letter be about? 

Share a favorite art piece or creation you have made or someone else made you with this OC!

Are there certain gestures or quirks your character might make when speaking? Any specific body language they often exhibit or habits they have? (An example of a gesture could be speaking with their hands or putting their hands together and body language could be shrugging or often avoiding eye contact or tilting their head when asking a question, ect.)

What is a story, comic, art piece, project, ect. you wish/plan to create with this character? (Multiple ideas are also encouraged!)

Are there any significant things we should know about the species that your OC is? (Like if they're an alien or something, what special traits they have. Or if they're an animal or creature, describe anything unique or special about them that makes them stand out from the rest?)

Explain the design decisions that you made when coming up with your OC's design.

Are there any other OCs that belong to you or a friend that your OC has a connection to?

If Hat Kid/Bow Kid had to fight your OC, how might your OC counter them and what would happen? 

Tell me a few random facts about them!

[asimplechaos]

What was their relationships with other lambs before the whole slaughter? :0 I keep wondering what other lambs were like before everything

(cracks knuckles) alright this is a good one let's go

Well, you see!

Let me first preface this with I haven't done much lore-hunting for things outside of the game itself, and this is all based on my own interpretation of what was given in-game plus the occasional tidbits I have heard about. I have my own views on stuff like that being bread-crumbed outside of a game like this, but that's a talk for another day.

Starwatcher lived in the Silk Cradle territory, under Shamura's sect, which I like to think is more inclined to aspects of mysticism and a 'bug eat bug' mentality due to Shamura standing over both aspects of Thought and War ("War is also my domain")

I'm still unsure about her family situation at the time, as I've had a couple of ideas such as formerly being from Kallamar's but fleeing after the rest of her family fell to illness or maybe just being an orphan in the Silk Cradle in general, so sheep/lambs of familial relation are ???? as of yet

As for other lambs that were in Silk Cradle or other territories, she probably felt the same level of kinship individuals of the same species would feel, but not?? Terribly close to any of them? She was always a bit independent and self-sufficient, so she actually didn't have many friends.

Her main friend is an OC of my partner's, who was also a Silk Cradle native and was an executioner before the culling began. Pictured below, they're basically a big ol dogy (they/it pronouns!)

However, some Stuff happens when the culling picked up, and as a result, Heartless (as they are named) does not remember them being friends, and Star isn’t really in a place where she wants to try and revisit that.

Clauneck is probably the next closest to any sort of companion, being her mentor in tarot, but my view on Clauneck, as they are much further in the aspects of mysticism and apparently a tree of some sort?, is that they're very passive and pretty much let the tides of fate rush past them, remaining as rigid as a tree through all events, even when Star was eventually captured as the sacrifices began.

But of course, that changed when she learned of the prophecy and the fact the bishops were essentially scrambling to get rid of all the lambs, and that kinship she felt with other lambs suddenly amped up, knowing they were all being targeted and wanting to help them in some way, even if she was about to die herself.

In a small friend group where we're doing RP things, Star isn't the last living lamb, there are a few others, but she is the one who has taken on the role of the One Who Wait's vessel, receiving the main power of the red crown while the others have gotten fragments in order to assist her.

She's quite friendly to these other lambs that have made their way to her compound (usually by way of TOWW's assistance) and basically sees them as a sort of secondary family, though with her own hangups and fixation on revenge towards the Bishops, she doesn't really allow herself to express that too much.

Aaand that's the long and short of it! Hee hee I rambled, but can you tell I love this sheep?

[interact-if]

Hi, everyone! We're kicking things off for the A/PI Heritage Month celebration with interviews from the featured authors!

The interviews will consist of the authors' experience with writing their projects as an A/PI, insights to their project, their experience with the IF Community, and general advice for other authors!

So without further ado... Cer!

Cer, author of Snakeroot

A/PI Heritage Month Featured Author

There is something wrong beyond the trees. A curse infects these lands. They call it the Rot, a curse that distorts the lands and creatures around it. For years, its tide has been stemmed by magical barriers, dutifully enforced by hunters. For years, the strategy has worked… until now. Today is not your lucky day.

The barrier has cracked. Something slithers through.

Why now?

Why you?

Demo is currently going through processing from CScript to Twine!

Author's Ko-fi | Discord

(INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT UNDER THE CUT!)

Q1: First of all, introduce us to your project! What is it about?

Snakeroot is a very self-indulgent story about monsters, haunted forests, and surviving when the odds are stacked against you. In other words, it's basically a D&D storyline I packed into a modern(ish) fantasy IF format so I'd have even more of an excuse to draw and write about some OCs.

If we're talking actual plot, though, you basically play as a monster-hunter with missing memories & mysterious powers, fighting against the effects of a magical curse that distorts land and creatures alike. You start the game with an assignment that takes you to the edge of a Barrier, which keeps most of the curse under control, except oops! There's a part of the barrier that's broken! Lucky you've got a whole team there with you, but guess you'll have to deal with that, huh?

Q2: If it’s not too spoilery, what are you most excited about your project?

Ooh, it's tough to choose! There's a few interesting confrontations maybe towards (?) the centre of the plot that'll be fun to see played out, something along the lines of the protagonist uncovering some things about themselves, their memories, and their companions. I'm also definitely looking forward to seeing the routes that people will take through these, since it — at some points — will probably become somewhat of a balancing act. Haunted forests and magical curses are certainly a fun type of setting to work with!

Q3: What inspired the current project you’re working on?

It's basically a D&D campaign idea that I've had for a while, adapted and morphed into a shorter (ideally) and more compact (hopefully) format for IF. That being said, some part of me starting out was deeply committed to the idea of having it in a modern-esque setting, likely due to playing in a friend's Monster of the Week campaign at the time, so I've ended up at a weird in-between original setting that jumps all over the place sometimes. I think I've mentioned before that I binged a good deal of Final Fantasy playthroughs as I started as well, so I reckon that aesthetics-wise with technology, that's definitely come through with the sort of fun rule-of-cool vibe they have going on. It's all vibes, babey!

Q4: Do you pull from your own identity for inspiration? How has that been reflected in your work?

I don't think there's much of an explicit link to my identity in Snakeroot as much as I've seen other games directly address theirs, but that being said, I wouldn't be surprised if someone pointed out some implicit ways in which it bleeds through.

If I think about it in terms of the setting, I think to some point, the land in which Snakeroot takes place is somewhat shaped by where I grew up — Singapore — in which there were often surprisingly dense pockets of forest bordering the school, the back of the house, or places I frequented with friends, considering how built-up the city itself actually is. I have a habit of walking the dog late at night, so every so often I'd be struck with that ominous feeling of being watched as I walk along a particularly dark treeline, and maybe that stuck with me!

Where I live now has far less of that sort of forest / jungle-y vibe, which makes me kind of miss it, so maybe the real friends we made along the way were the definitely-not-normal owls blinking back at you when you past the treeline for too long.

Identity-wise, I'm not sure I've drawn much in terms of like, a direct connection to Singapore in addressing the dynamics of the country itself, but I do like to see representation in the stories I tell, so for instance, the Luo siblings are Chinese (or Chinese-coded, considering the original setting), one of which is canonically trans.

That being said, these aren't portrayed as a huge story element in the sense that their stories are about being Chinese or being trans, in Mallory's case — that's not what Snakeroot is about — but these are parts of their identity that make them part of who they are. It's just nice to see yourself represented in some way in any story, really, even if I think it's personally unfair that I don't have cool horns or a sword or magic glowy eyes.

Q5: What’s been your experience so far? With writing, with the if community...

Honestly, it's been really positive! The IF community has been amazingly welcoming, and I doubt I would've gotten half as far without any of the sense of support and community both fellow authors and readers have created. Writing is always shaky thanks to the good ol' writer insecurity and the occasional curse of imposters syndrome that haunts me every odd weekend or so when I can sit down and work on Snakeroot between schoolwork, but the support definitely helps!

Q6: Do you have any future projects in the works?

I've been playing around with a sci-fi type game about an android-clone protagonist who has to solve the mystery of their original's murder, with a more linear story and just one main companion — something about coded loyalty and the demands made of yourself and being a not-quite-ghost. I definitely do want to revisit it the moment I have more time!

Q7: Finally, what piece of advice would you give to fellow authors?

Find some writer buddies! Or reader buddies, whatever works. Everything's better with friends, and the support and solidarity is honestly invaluable.

[lovethisletters]

Devilish nights || A fantastic 3 one-shot!

I love this idea ngl, I love the dynamic between the three of them! And I tried to do them justice here but... there's definitely a Whole ass ranch for improvement... :C

also Diavolo is Mexa xd

Summary: the fantastic three go to a concert but things don't go as planned.

Additional notes: I was going to make this a comic but decided against it since it was gonna take me much more time to finish it, but perhaps I'll do it as a small follow up to this one-shot.

▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️

There's a reason why the Demon elite are very protective of their private life...you see: everyone has a side of their personality only the ones closest to us are allowed to see and for the demon prince, the avatar of pride and the loyal butler this is no exception.

—Uhhh?!?! You're going out?!!—all 6 brothers questioned in surprise.

—Yes, and I hope that when I arrive, the house is not a mess!— Replied the avatar of pride as he placed a distinctive blue coat over his shoulders.

—Ehhh? Are you going on vacation to the human realm, Lucifer ?! And without me ?! How cruel!—Asmodeus inquired dramatically, hugging his older brother's arm like a child begging his mother to go out and play.

The black-haired demon was unfazed by the avatar of lust childish demeanor, released himself from his grasp with ease and continued with his speech.

—Diavolo has important matters to resolve in the human realm and he needs me and Barbatos to support him, it is not a vacation.—

—I hope all of you behave in my absence; Satan, you're in charge, ”Lucifer declared.

-What?!?! Satan in charge ?! - the rest complained.

—As much as it bothers me to admit it… Satan is the most responsible among you — Lucifer looked at the blonde demon in the eyes — I'm counting on you — and the avatar of pride came out hurriedly before he could even hear the answer of the fourth brother.

—Don't— whispered the avatar of wrath as his lips settled into a sinister smile at the plan that was being formulated in his head.

[…]

—Ahhh ~ finally it's THE day! I can't wait any longer !!!— upon hearing the title "prince of hell" we could normally assume that the person bearing it is someone intimidating, ruthless and rude; but there he was ... the heir to the throne of the Devildom jumping all over the place with immeasurable enthusiasm, glow sticks in each hand and a white shirt with the image of a sun with the face of Luis Miguel on the chest.

—Diavolo, I'd appreciate it if you could calm down a bit.

—Calm down?! Lucifer! I have been waiting for this for years! I will finally be able to be at a concert of my favorite singer from the human realm! Do you have any idea how much I struggled to get these tickets?!?! I had to do it the human way! line and everything!—The redhead claimed at the lack of enthusiasm from his best friend.

—His majesty stopped time and he moved a couple of old ladies to be able to acquire the tickets in the front row; it would be appreciated if you showed a bit of enthusiasm, Lucifer.—Barbatos finally spoke, the same formal and cold smile always etched on his face to which Lucifer could only replay in the same way.

—Oh! I won't let you two ruin my night with your formalities! At least pretend you're as excited as I am!—Diavolo begged but his stoic companions could only mutter a mocking “yeeei”as they waved their respective glow sticks reluctantly and the prince of hell could only roll his eyes.

[…]

Mistakes happen, they happen when we least expect them and even worse; at too inconvenient moments.

—Quick, Lucifer, we're next!— The tallest of the 3 hurried, still jumping up and down.

—Give me a second — The black-haired demon searched in his pockets for the tickets that Diavolo had asked him to keep until the day of the concert because he was afraid of losing them among all the paperwork that week and knowing the responsible nature of his friend he entrusted them to him .

The thing is ... Lucifer could not find the tickets ... and when he realized this, with all the tranquility of the world: he cleared his throat, clasped his hands and positioned himself firmly like a teacher about to explain something to a child .

—Diavolo, in terms of tickets… I forgot the ttickets— At first the prince of hell gave his friend an incredulous look and even proceeded to laugh.

—Sure, stop playing games, Lucifer— the redhead expected a laugh from his friend followed by him handing over the tickets, but that gesture never came.

—Your Majesty I think Lucifer is not joking— Barbatos corrected

And oh my god, have you ever seen a child's face when you take a toy that he just can’t have out of his hands? And then the endless crying begins? Yes, at that moment the heir to the throne of hell simply bursted in tears.

—It’s Okay, your majesty, everything is going to be fine— The butler tried to calm him down by patting him on the back.

—Diavolo, I can buy others, don't worry— But the redhead only limited himself to pointing at the sign above the theater entrance "Sold out" was written in large letters.

—Well… I guess I owe you the next concert, how about we go to your favorite restaurant, hmm? My treat — Despite his offer, his friend only let out a sigh of despair and helplessness.

—You have no idea where you left them?

—Ummm… I guess in my office…

—Tell your brothers to bring them to you! Please!!— Lucifer was quick to dial Satan's number, because by the way things were he would not be surprised if Diavolo's despair at this moment led him to pray.

By pure chance, Lucifer noticed that he had several unanswered messages and calls from one of the angels: Simeon

—You can't reach them?—the prince questioned

Lucifer just stood there, glaring at his phone with a mixture of regret and anger.

"Damm you Simeon" was all that came to mind.

—Oh? Aren't those Solomon, Simeon and Luke?—Barbatos voice interrupted his thoughts.

And sure enough, there at the entrance of the theatre were the inhabitants of purgatory hall, dressed in human world clothing, waiting in line, the youngest of the group with tickets in hand.

—Oh!? I didn't knew they had bought tickets for this!

—They didn't

—How do you know?

—Because those are YOUR tickets!

—What?!?!—Diavolo's confused expression was quickly met with Lucifer's phone right in front of his face, showing him the text messages.

—I'll go get them—but before the avatar of pride could take another step towards the purgatory hall group, Barbatos hand stopped him in his tracks.

—Your Majesty, I believe Luke's birthday is just in a few days and he seems to be enjoying himself, why don't we let them keep the tickets?—the butler suggested politely.

It took a couple of seconds for the prince of hell tho make his desicion, but the smile on the small angel face made all trace of doubt dissipate, and with a heavy sigh he finally spoke.

— leat it be, Lucifer...

—...are you sure of it, Diavolo?

—yes, perhaps next year we'll go together...all of us, right?

Lucifer was surprised but with a small smile forming on his face he said yes.

—Now... who's hungry?! We should go to the fanciest place in town, after all, It's Lucifer's treat!—the prince joked

—Perhaps the restaurant we attended last year would be fine, your Majesty?

—Ah yes! That would do!

And while Lucifer's wallet had started regretting his desicions, he was happy he could spend this evening with his dearest friends.

▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️

I was going to put a drawing of the fantastic three hanging out but I only did Diavolo bc while I was finishing Barbatos and Lucifer my computer crashed and didn't save anything :c

So here's a Diavolo in front of bellas artes to compensate:

If you find any grammatical errors let me know! I'm trying to improve my english and that would help me so so much!

I will forever thank you if you go check out my other profile: @aileysmirnov  where I post things about my OC: edits, one-shots, imagines, art, etc. If you like Greek mythology and the bat family maybe you would get to be as fond of her as much as I am!

Anyway, thank you for reading!

[pink-duda]

I will be the winner

None of the photos above are mine, I found it on pinterest and edited it.

Zoro x Card player! Reader

Words: 1312

Summary: For many years you've been going places alone to play cards and earn only money, but it looks like this year is going to be different.

Warnings: Nothing very serious, characters and places that I invented, maybe Zoro is a bit Oc, relationship between Zoro and the reader is a little strange, they are friends but there is a romantic feeling there that has to be discovered.

Notes: I want to thank @flameboyace for lent me the idea of ​​Zoro wins a sword from reader, the headcanon that inspired me this one.

This was supposed to be something much simpler than what i planned but then ideas and more ideas came up and i couldn't hold back.

Besides that was a great "excuse" for me to train as I describe places and objects, since I don't do much. I think I still have a lot to learn but I liked the result.

⚠️There may be a spelling error since my first language is not english⚠️

You guys had just arrived and apparently docked at rain island, and as the name suggests, most days here only rain or are cloudy, but surely this drizzle would not stop the Straw Hats, and especially the captain, from venturing.

As you already had a place to go, without waiting, you went down to the pier where there was not a lot of people, and without saying anything to your companions you walked away in a hurry.

"(Y/N)! Where are you going?!"

Said Nami still on the boat preventing you from taking another step.

"Don't worry! I'll bring us plenty of money!!"

You say still walking without turning to the boat.

"Really?!?!? So Zoro is going to help you!"

She says happy with her belly eyes.

"What's that got to do with me??!?"

He says with a funny face making Usopp, chopper and especially luffy laugh.

"Just go help!"

She pushed him off the boat as said this, Zoro stopped half standing next to you.

"Okay! in a few hours we will be back!! Let's go Roronoa."

After saying that you take his arm and go back to the way you were doing and waving goodbye with the other hand to the others who stayed on the boat, but who probably wouldn't take long to leave like you.

Zoro followed his side complaining about the "witch" for a few minutes, but then he was silent when you guys arrived in the center of town.

The city was not much different from normal, the houses and stores were only in different shades of blue and some had cloud and rain decorations, and in all the stores they sold umbrellas, of course all for tourists.

And then the green-haired swordsman who's been following you finally spoke.

"Do you know where we're going?"

"Not exactly, as I don't know the island, but I know where to go."

You said when you dodge some people since where you were was half full.

"Are you telling me we're wandering aimlessly?"

He basically pulled you along to a corner with fewer people to stop and better understand what's going on, you guys were in front of each other and you still hadn't let go of his arm.

"No, look, I have a compass, it always points to the tent."

You held a normal compass horizontally from your neck, but at the tip of the needle was a red heart that seemed to point south of the island.

"Tent? What are you up to?"

"Calm down, I'll explain everything, but let's get going because I can't be late."

Without further ado, you guys go back to walking around the city, going along the apparently calmer paths.

"The tent is where an event takes place once a year that many people go to see and play pife, which is a card game.

This event is over 214 years old and is always moving close to the island where the previous year's champion is.

In the beginning it was just 5 people who just wanted to have fun, the owner of the tent, and the 4 players who don't know the original name, so we called them by suits, clubs, spades, hearts and diamonds.

This game and event has been going on for generations and here we are, there are only 4 people who know how to find the tent easily because they have the compass, I have because I got it from my grandmother who was a player for many years.

Other people who don't have the compass can find the shed and play, but most of the time it's luck or they travel with one of those who has a compass."

After several minutes talking and walking, and Zoro surprisingly paying close attention to the explanation, you arrive in front of that tent, which looked like a circus shed in red, black and white.

"Wow, what a long story. But what does that have to do with money?"

He spoke stopping by your side and looking at you while you were watching the entrance to see if the event has started.

"Well...in the end the winner takes 4 million bellys from the tent and anything the other players bet, and I'm definitely going to win."

Finishing the sentence you turn and look at him with a determined look and one of the biggest smiles he's ever seen, why did you look beautiful and cute to him now?

"We have to go in right now."

You say pulling quickly he is still stunned.

"What? Why-"

"MY DEAR PUBLIC, THE OWNER OF THE HEART COMPASS AND WINNER OF THE LAST 5 YEARS ARRIVED!!! AND THIS TIME NOT ALONE! WITH THE PIRATE HUNTER, RORONOA ZORO!! WILL WE GET DEATHS TODAY?!?!?"

A very loud voice coming from the den den mushi that was above where you entered and others that were scattered around the place interrupted Zoro introducing the arrival of the two of you and making all the thousands of people look in your direction, and with it the atmosphere looking heavier.

"Because of this."

You keep walking and pulling him along trying to ignore the others with a frown on your face.

The place looked like a circus on the outside and inside a little too, around it had bleachers, in the lower seats were the various players and in the upper ones were the ones who would see them play, and the further away from the middle, richer or more important it was in society.

When you guys sat on the benches further away, people stopped looking and went back to doing what they were doing, and obviously talking about your arrival too.

No more patience for talking, Zoro just gives you a "please explain everything completely" look.

"This voice was the owner of the tent, whenever the last player arrives he does it, I know him and he's cool but unfortunately he has to do it to engage with the public and earn money.

And the look of "hate" is because I am the ancestor of the heart player, who was the first winner.

Legends say he only won because he cheated by killing the other players, so people think I'll do that too."

You end up trying not to be sad about rumors.

"This is downright ridiculous, you couldn't even kill a fly properly."

"Thanks for believing me."

You say sarcastically.

The two of you remained in a comforting silence until the tent owner called the players from the tables in the center.

In the first round there were 16 tables with 4 people each, so in total there were 64 players and certainly over 2000 people watching.

The game was quick and easy, so after knocking out and take the money bet from the 3 players, you go back to the bleacher seats you were in before, and the place you asked Zoro to wait for you, but the problem is that he wasn't there.

Looking desperately in all directions you can't find a green head like his, so start walking around until you hear fighting voices, and hopefully you'll find the head of grass.

He was in the middle of a circle of people arguing with a tall guy with shoulder-length blue hair and eyes the same color, you recognized him as Bonnie, one of Mark's henchmen, who owns the sword medallion.

you enter the circle trying to meddle in the discussion so as not to get any more problems you already have.

"Hey, come on? You guys don't have to fight, we are sivilized people, right?"

"This crazy guy is trying to get my sword!"

Bonnie says holding the katana closer to her chest.

"I just wanted to see, you idiot!"

Replied Zoro, not bothering to start a war.

"Shut up idiot."

You speak in a low voice, slapping Zoro on the chest, which probably didn't even tickle, but at least I managed to make him apparently keep quiet.

"Let them fight hearts, isn't that why you brought Roronoa?"

Unfortunately the person you least wanted to see now and appears today, Mark comes all pompous with his long black hair and pink eyes that could kill.

"It doesn't matter to you, and don't call me that."

You say giving up on the idea of ​​continuing to be a sivilized person.

"Hm, come on Bonnie, don't mix with them. Bye bye hearts, see you in the finals."

He says pulling the henchman away from you, dodging the crowd of people who were dying to see a fight and leaving you with this nervousness in your stomach.

"Why the hell did you want to see the damn sword?!?!"

You turn to the man left by your side pulling his ear down and heading back to the stands.

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! That sword had a mighty aura and I just wanted to take a look! That man was scandalous!!"

You made him sit on the bench and stood right in front of him to talk about why you're so worried.

"Zoro, if someone from this place invites you to play and the bet is your life and you lose, I won't be able to do anything, a bet is a bet and it has to be paid.

So please be quiet, don't walk around, don't talk to strangers and especially don't argue.

I really don't want to go back to the merry with one less nakama."

You say everything very seriously to see if it enters his head.

"...Okay, but get it over with soon."

He says leaning more on the bench and getting ready for bed, maybe that hurt him a little, but before you say an apology to him, the tent owner calls the players back for the next round.

The 2nd round was much easier and faster than the first, since this time it was just you and someone else, only 4 tables in the middle and 2 tables each.

The 3rd round was just you and someone else too, it was easier but harder than the last ones, 2 tables in the middle and 2 people each.

It went by so quickly, you were hoping Mark wouldn't make it to the final but it felt like life wanted to see you play against him.

Now it was just a table, you and him standing in front of each other with thousands of people looking at everything you do.

"Well, I want to pick my prize."

He says picking up the deck, deciding for himself that he would shuffle and deal.

"The game doesn't work like that..."

"Sometimes we have to renew, don't we?"

After finishing talking, Bonnie approaches your table taking the katana from its scabbard.

"I want your death and Roronoa's."

That sentence was the signal for Bonnie to kill you, but before he does, Zoro appears and stops him from continuing at the last second.

"We haven't even started the game!"

You talk worried, especially about Zoro's situation.

"I don't need to play to know I'm going to win."

"But, I yes."

And then you steal the deck out of his hands and start dealing the 9 cards each.

"If I win, Zoro and I get out of here alive and…with Bonnie's katana."

You remain resolute by finishing the deal and extending your hand towards him for him to shake hands, as a way that the two of you agree on the bets.

"Combined."

He says and holds your hand and the scales, now there's no turning back.

"When did I agree to this?!?"

Says the desperate blue haired man still fighting the swordsman.

You two ignore his words and continue to play.

The game went on for minutes and apparently there was no sign that it would end since the letter you wanted didn't show up, and the only thing you could hear were the sound of the katanas bumping into each other with the fight that was going on around you.

"Why don't you just give up?!?"

Mark tells you annoyed and discarding a card, the card you wanted.

"I don't need to give up, because I just won."

You put the cards down to show that you weren't lying and that nothing is wrong.

The silence that was in the tent ends, applause and cheers come from the audience desperately.

And at the end of your card game, Zoro also wins the fight against Bonnie, and now he managed to get the katana for a better look.

Meanwhile Mark got up from his chair and started pulling Bonnie off the floor and out of the shed to get away from this situation, they are already defeated enough to stay longer.

You would go to Zoro to see if he's alright but the owner of the shed, that you never knew the name and probably never will, stopped you with a hug.

"Congratulations, nothing surprised coming from the hearts family."

"Thanks...?"

This old man has always been a very mysterious box of surprises, but when someone compliments you, you have to thank, right?

"The prize money is in the red suitcase on the exit side, for sure your boyfriend will be able to take it. See you next year."

That was the last sentence before he left without less you being able to say goodbye to him.

Trying to forget about this awkward conversation, you go back to the main path you were doing.

There were some people around the zoro, but he didn't seem interested, he seemed to be looking for something, or rather, someone.

When he managed to meet your eyes, he came towards you like he was hypnotized.

You guys stayed a few seconds looking at each other, as if it was unbelievable you were there, but unable to stand the silence you speak.

"And then? Did you like the sword?"

You break the focus he had on you, making him look at the sword, the ground, and the people leaving, but less at you.

"Uh, now that I got to see right, yeah, it's a lot better than I expected..."

"Okay, it's yours."

You take him by surprise, he turns around and looks at you like you're out of your mind, but certainly wouldn't turn down a good gift like that.

"Thanks."

"It wasn't big, now let's get going before Nami gets mad."

You guys walk to the exit door, and the suitcase was really there, and even with a free umbrella, since it was raining.

You take the umbrella and open it while Zoro takes the suitcase like it was nothing.

With the other hand that was free you take his hand this time, and he somehow doesn't complain about it, maybe because he wanted you to do that for a long time.

He would be incredible company for the next year.

[solinarimoon]

Fields of Wildflowers 

Chapter 8

A Sihtric x OC story

AN: Nothing really to note for this chapter except friendships and more fluff and some small angst I guess.  Please let me know if you would like to be added or removed from my tag list for this story. If you wish to catch up on previous chapters, you can do so here. Or visit my masterlist.

Warnings: Mentions of past trauma and alcohol consumption.

Word Count: 3378

“Please, you deserve a few days to yourself, without the duties of a handmaiden, Cwen. After all you and the rest of the group have been through, it is the least I can do.” 

Cwen found herself standing peering out the window of Aelfwynn’s chambers, watching the everyday commotion of the people going about their lives.  The woman walking with her basket slung on her hip and her other hand holding onto their child who desperately tried to race to something across the yard.  The soldier’s casually strolling on their rounds.  The smithey and alley where Sihtric had pulled her the night before.  Cwen’s eyes lingered on the small alley for several moments.  A longing began to stir low in her pelvis. 

Cwen was broken from her thoughts when she heard Aethelflaed speak her name a bit louder.

“Cwen, I don’t think you've been listening.  Which just further justifies you taking a few days to yourself.  It is not only Aelfwynn who has been through an ordeal.  Please take some time,”

Aethelflaed was seated next to Aelfwynn’s bedside where the young girl was stirring. “I know, Lady Aethelflaed, but,”

“My daughter is safe and at home because of you, Cwen,” Aetheleflaed interrupted Cwen’s argument. “And we have Wyllath to help care for her as well.  She has missed Aelfwynn and caring for her while you all were at Saltwic. The children will be well looked after. I insist.”

Cwen sighed but felt her lips tug upward in a grin, “As you wish, my lady.  But you know I would have done anything in my power to protect Aelfwynn and would do it again if needed.”

“I know this, Cwen.  She and I are both blessed to have you.”

“Thank you, my lady.  I will take my leave then.”

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

After allowing herself a few hours of sleep, Cwen’s feet could not help taking her out to the yard where she knew the children were playing.  It did not matter that she did not have handmaiden duties to fulfill this day.  She still wanted to check in on her little ones.

Aelfwynn and Aethelstan were both giggling and dashing behind trees and bushes.  Wyllath, Aelfwynn’s Mercian handmaiden was playing a lively game of hide and seek with the children. 

Aethelstan was the first to notice Cwen watching them.  He immediately raced to her with his arms outstretched.

Aelfwynn came near after similarly enveloping Cwen’s waist in a tight embrace.

Chuckling at their youthful exuberance, Cwen asked, “and how are my little birds faring this morning?”

Both children clamoured to speak over one another.

Continuing to laugh at their antics, Cwen told them to speak one at a time.

Aelfwynn spoke first.

“I am doing much, much, much better, Cwen.  Wyllath has been chasing us and we keep surprising her.”

“Yes and then she squeals and we run away!  Would you like to play with us? Please!” Aethelstan pleaded.

Cwen smiled at them.  It was beautiful to see them carefree and happy, being children once more.

Wyllath had joined them, giving Cwen a slight hug while addressing her, “Cwen! It is so good to see you.  You look well.  Aelfwynn has told me all about your adventures.”

Cwen stopped her, “I would hardly call it adventures.  More like running and fighting for our lives,” she said albeit with a smile.

Aelfwynn looked up to Cwen and scrunched her nose, “But I think it was adventurous.  I was scared and sick, but there was still a lot of excitement. Remember playing in the river? And the huge tree we slept under?”

It amazed Cwen to see the resilience of youth.  Despite all of the trauma from their journey, Aelfwynn remembered the glimmers of happiness.

“You are right, I guess little bird. I think I am just remembering the more upsetting parts of our journey.  Some of which you would not remember.” Cwen replied while placing her hand on top of Aelfwynn’s hair.

Aelfwynn smiled as if she had won an argument. 

“And you got to spend more time with Sihtric,” the young girl added while giggling with Aethelstan.

“Oh, run off and play more you two.” Cwen demanded, feeling her cheeks heat up.  

Even the children have taken notice, she thought.

Wyllath lingered a moment longer, “Aelfwynn has mentioned this man several times.  It is clear by how she speaks of him, of all of your warrior companions really, that they took great care over you all.”

“Yes, they did.  They are good men.” Cwen replied, not missing the knowing smirk and glint in Wyllath’s eye.

“And maybe one in particular that took great care of you, Cwen? This Sihtric?” Wyllath could not help herself asking.  The curiosity of a girl a few years younger than Cwen could not be held at bay.

Feeling the heat continue to rise in her cheeks, Cwen replied, “Possibly, Wyllath.  But if you will excuse me, I need to speak with Eadith.”  Allowing no other confirmation or denial of Wyllath’s questions, Cwen slipped away from the young woman and headed towards her friend.

Eadith sat on a bench beneath a sprawling tree observing the children in their play.

“Good day, Eadith.  You look well.”

“As do you, Cwen.  I see a healthy blush to your cheeks.  But that may just be a response to young Wyllath’s questions about a certain Dane of our acquaintance,” Eadith replied with a laugh.

Cwen’s mouth dropped open in shock as Eadith continued,  “the wind carries.  I could hear her prodding.”

Sitting down with a huff, Cwen responded, “Wyllath has always been curious to know about the lives and loves of those around her.  She is a sweet woman, though still very young.  Kind and loving with Aelfwynn.  I usually enjoy speaking with her…” she trailed off watching Wyllath and the children run and laugh.

“But not now?” Eadith questioned.  “Or just not when it comes to Sihtric?”

When Cwen shifted her eyes to glance sideways at Eadith, she smirked but said nothing.

“Finan and I wondered where you and he disappeared to last night.  You weren’t gone long enough to have…”

But her words were cut off by Cwen shushing her and playfully pushing her shoulder into her friend.

“No, of course not. But…” Cwen took a deep breath, “you were right.  Anout your observations before. About his passion. I have never felt so…” Cwen trailed off, struggling to find the words.

“We all see the way he looks at you.  He is yours, Cwen.  And I suspect that you are his as well, if you will allow it.”

A gentle breeze wafted through the yard, bringing with it the laughter of the children. Cwen kept her eyes fixated on the scene in front of her but felt her brows pull into a frown.  Her fingers twisting and ringing each other in her lap.  No matter how strong her feelings for Sihtric, the idea of allowing herself to be intimate and vulnerable dredged up painful thoughts.

As if knowing where her friend's mind had drifted, Eadith reached over to take one of Cwen’s hands, stopping their worried fidgeting.

“Please do not let what my brother has taken from you, what he has done to you stop you from finding happiness.”

Cwen searched Eadith’s face and squeezed her hand in return offering her a slight nod and smile. “Thank you Eadith.  I have made promises to myself to not allow my history to get in the way of my future.  But making good on those promises will take time.” Cwen patted Eadith’s hand and continued, “Sihtric has said he will wait for me. So we are moving slowly.”

After a few moments of comfortable silence, Cwen continued with a knowing smile,  “As I suspect you and Finan may be as well.”

Eadith gasped and turned her face to meet Cwen’s own, but before she could speak their conversation was interrupted. 

“Excuse me, ladies.”

“Lady Aethelflaed, good day,” Eadith spoke while standing to greet the Lady of Mercia.

“My Lady,” Cwen replied while standing to embrace her.

“I thought I told you to take the day to rest, Cwen?” 

“You did, but I could not help coming to check on them for a short while.  I did rest some this morning.”

“I am glad.  In truth I came to speak with Eadith though.”

Aethelflaed turned her body to meet the other woman’s.

“I must thank you, Lady Eadith. I was wrong to doubt you. You delivered my message to Lord Uhtred as you said you would.”

“I was happy to be of assistance,” Eadith replied with an eager smile.

“And from what Cwen has told me, you cared for Aelfwynn on the road.  Helped to cool her fever.” Aethelflaed’s eyes gazed across the field at her daughter.

“She is a fearless child. It must be in her blood,” Eadith replied.

“My daughter is fond of you.”

“And I her.” 

Cwen watched the exchange between the two women in cautious silence.  Having grown up with Aethelflaed, it was easier for Cwen to know when the woman was mulling over a serious matter rather than engaging in social niceties.

“Perhaps,” Eadith invoked, “I could be of use to her here. I could help Cwen and Wyllath with their handmaiden duties for Aelfwynn?”

Cwen’s eye darted to her lady to gauge her reaction to such a request.  Aethelflaed brought her eyes to meet Eadith and took several steps closer to speak and yet not be overheard, “I am curious.  Why did you reveal your brother as Aethelred’s murderer?”

Sighing, Eadith replied “Eardwulf may be my brother, but I knew what he did was wrong.” Cwen’s eyes found her friends as she continued, “My brother did many things that were wrong.  And I would like to try and correct his errors if I can.  I chose to be loyal to you, my lady.  And to Lord Uhtred because I believe in what you and he are doing.”

“I thank you.  But your loyalties remain to be seen.”

Cwen interjected, “My Lady Aethelflaed, I can vouch for Eadith and her loyalties,” But her words were cut short.

“I will judge that for myself.  But I thank you, nonetheless, for your aid in seeing my daughter safely returned to me.”

After Aethelflaed said farewell and returned indoors to complete her other duties, the ladies returned to the bench.

“I fear I will never win her trust. And I do not blame her for that.”

“That may be true for the lady. But if it is any consolation, you have earned my trust.  And my respect. And in equal measure, my friendship. You were the one who brought our attention to the healer in the forest. And the one who broached the difficult choice to use the wormwood. I still do not know and probably never will know if that is what saved her or if it was something else.”  Cwen reached out and clasped Eadith’s hand once more while giving the red haired woman a small smile. 

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

Later that afternoon saw Cwen tagging along with the Coccham warriors as they drank themselves silly.  Stiorra was also in their midst enjoying spending time with her father’s oathmen and attempting to keep pace with them.

The group pushed through the doorway into the ale house with a boisterous Finan encouraging the usually stoic baby monk, who was protesting any more ale.

“Come on, Osferth.  Everyone knows you cure like with like.  We drink.” Finan admonished Osferth as they approached the bar. Cwen laughed wholeheartedly at the exchange between the men.  

“If the man wishes to be done drinking, you will let him, Finan. I, for one, do not wish to be taking care of a sick baby monk.” Cwen chastised, receiving a raucous round of laughter from her friends.  The alcohol had made her lower her guard and allowed her to feel a lightheartedness that had been missing since their water fight by the stream.

“Well here then dear Cwen, you will drink his mug,” Finan all but shouted while trying to hand Cwen a mug.

“Oh no, I will take a break too,” she laughed. 

“Alright and what is your excuse then?” Finan questioned exasperatedly.

“I do not know any of you well enough to let my guard down and be drunk around you,”  Cwen quipped, an impish smile gracing her face.

“Oh no, living on the run with us, traveling in the wilderness, running for our lives.  You are right, we barely know each other.” Finan’s retort was met with another round of laughter.

“Well, I do.” Stiorra glided in between Finan’s outstretched arm to grab the mug of ale.

“Oh no, you have had enough,” Finan countered.

The rest of his words were lost to Cwen.  Sihtric had casually slung his arm up to rest on her shoulders.  The Dane continued to hold a quiet and reserved manner in relation to his Irish brother, but the alcohol had definitely reduced some of his brooding nature to allow a more carefree demeanor.  The closeness of him captured Cwen’s focus like a candle in a dark room.  She felt him stagger slightly and held on to his torso to steady him.

“Careful, Sihtric.  You may be too much in your cups now too.” Cwen looked up to meet a soft and relaxed expression on his face.  Her smile reached all the way to her eyes as she watched him.

She felt Sihtric lean his lips towards her ear, “your smile is like the stars at night, my lady. I never tire of looking at them.”

Cwen felt a rush of heat settle low in her belly once more.  

She placed a chaste kiss on the tip of his nose which prompted an equally large grin to grace Sihtric’s lips. He pulled her closer into him and kissed the top of her head before reaching behind her to tweak Osferth’s chin. 

“Hey,” he got the warrior monk's attention, “stay awake.”

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

Several rounds later they emerged from the ale house, blinking at the brightness of the day.

A passing soldier shoved Osferth who stumbled into an unassuming Cwen.

“Hey!” Sihtric hollered at the soldier while reaching out to steady her.

“I’m fine. Osferth?”

The young man just simply held up his hand as he hunched over gathering his breath. He could obviously not keep up with the amount of ale he had been served. 

Glancing around, it was easy to notice the unusual movements of the Wessex soldiers.  All across the yard, soldiers were hurrying this way and that. The general attitude around seemed harried and bothered.

“If today were a day of celebration for the new lord of Mercia, I would fear that King Edward’s guards are seizing Mercia.” Finan mused as they all began shuffling along the street.

“They do not look like they are celebrating,” Sihtric pondered aloud.

“Something has changed. I must see Aethelflaed,” Cwen mused. 

“We will see you to the hall safely, Cwen” Finan assured her.

The group began to quickly make their way towards the great hall, as Sihtric and Finan instinctively moved to walk on either side of Cwen.  Cwen felt a hand gently guiding her along her lower back and she glanced at Sihtric.

Any trace of the carefree, intoxicated man was wiped from his face.  In its place she saw that focus and concentration she had first identified with him all that time ago, in Saltwic.

His eyes scanned the surroundings constantly, while his hand remained a solid and guiding force on their way to find Aethelflaed and their lord.

In their haste to find their lord and lady, they rounded a corner and almost bumped into a guard who immediately brandished his sword at them.

Cwen found her body shielded by Sihtric as the men raised their hands.

“We meant nothing. Just didn’t see you there.” Finan spoke for all of them, quickly defusing the situation.

The guard sheathed his weapon and returned to his business while Sihtric, Cwen, Finan, and Osferth found another route to the great hall.

“Stiorra, find Eadith.  Make sure you two stay together and try to stay indoors somewhere. I will find you soon,” Cwen instructed, her voice taking on a harsh tone unusual for her.

Finan gave Stiorra a stern look and word when the young woman made to protest the demand.

Upon entering the great hall, it was clear that the lords of Mercia were unaware of the occupation that is occurring outside their doors. 

Finan spoke quietly to Uhtred who informed Aethelflaed of her brother’s seizure of Aelesburg. 

While the others stood on the steps of the hall discussing matters with Father Pyrlig, Cwen waited just inside the doors. 

Eyes searching, Sihtric scanned the faces surrounding him when he realized Cwen was not among those outside. 

When his eyes did find her, his feet took him to her side before his mind could give the command. 

Cwen watched him approach her with eyes wide open, anxious. 

“This is bad, isn’t it?” She questioned him as he took his place beside her, also watching the exchange between the figures on the steps. 

“It is,” he replied. Simple and honest. 

“I hope Stiorra listens and has found Eadith,” Cwen worried. 

“I am sure they are well and safe.”

When Cwen did not reply, Sihtric shifted his gaze to see her staring but unseeing. Brow furrowed. 

“What is it, lady?”

Broken from her thoughts, Cwen looked at her feet a moment before replying. 

“It is times like these, when men are drunk on power, that women have cause to be afraid,” she breathed. Her words were so soft, Sihtric had to strain his ears to hear her. 

“Is that why you stopped drinking with us? You feared we were drunk on power from our lord's new position?”

Sihtric’s words were not angry. Not accusing. But his voice was low and deep, pained. 

“It was a jest meant for laughs and to take the attention away from Osferth,” Cwen stalled while fidgeting with her fingers again and not meeting Sihtric’s eyes. 

After a breath, she felt the knuckles of Sihtric’s hand gently guide her chin up to meet his gaze. 

“And many jests have foundations in truth,” he whispered. 

“Yes,” Cwen breathed as her eyes began to glisten with unshed tears. 

Sihtric did not pry. He did not ask her to go on. He waited for her to speak. And if she did not, he would understand. 

All these things Cwen knew. She knew he valued her words and did not push her to be ready prematurely. He had proven this to her in the forest and again after kissing her in the alley. 

“Eardwulf was fond of drinking. Especially when he felt the need to feel in control. To exert power. So that is the truth behind my words in the ale house.”

Sihtric stared deeply into Cwen’s eyes as his hand shifted from her chin to cup the nape of her neck. He placed a kiss on her temple before shifting his position as he and Cwen followed his lord and the others inside. It was a gesture that did not go unnoticed by Aethelflaed. 

Once inside the hall again, Uhtred spoke hurried words to Finan and then turned to his other men. 

“You two, with me.”

“Where to, Lord?” Osferth asked as he followed along behind Uhtred. 

Knowing his lord meant them to likely put themselves at risk and definitely taking him from Cwen’s side, Sihtric clasped arms with Finan conveying unspoken meaning before he turned to Cwen. 

Quickly, he brought his forehead to meet hers while grasping her hips tightly.. 

“If tensions rise, stay close by Finan.”

Cwen clasped her hands on either side of his neck and breathed him in for the briefest moment. 

“Be safe.”

And he swept silently and quickly from the hall to catch up with his lord. 

Tag List: @maggiescarborough @pokeasleepingsmaug @nxrdist @mystic-shadows42 @emilyhufflepufftlk @magravenwrites @lauwrite1225 @morosemagick @thebohemianpenguin @mrsalwayswrite @notyourwildestdream @obipoelover @ecarroll1978 @93xdiagonxalley @nobodys-business-world

[greengrayeyeswrites]

shit-faced in love (chapter one)

Title: shit-faced in love

Pairing: Corpse Husband x OC (fem!youtuber!reader)

Word Count: 1,630

Warnings: Mental Health/Mental Illnesses are a big topic in this story. Mentions of depression, bpd and other mental illnesses. Angst, Fluff.

Note: This may be a Corpse x OC story but feel free to insert yourself into the main girls role. If Corpse ever announces that he doesn't like fanfics about him, I'll delete this.

Prologue — Chapter 1 — Chapter 2

— — —

„You did what?!“ Baylee screeched into the phone and Imogen sighed. She was standing in Ballinlough Community Park and watched Buddy run around in circles, greeting the other dogs. 

„Baylee, please don’t yell… This is stupid enough even without you screaming in my ear.“ Imogen rubbed the bridge of her nose and Baylee sighed. „I just can’t believe you pinky-promised on taking Pole Dancing classes when reaching two mil… Imogen, you know you’re depressed and suffer from BPD, right?“ Imogen chuckled. 

„I know, Bay. I was diagnosed often enough“ she quickly rolled her eyes and watched Buddy stumble over his feet. „To my defense, I was shit-faced hammered when we made that plan.“

Remembering the drunk game of Proximity Among Us a few months prior, where Imogen had a playful banter with the deep-voiced Youtuber Corpse Husband, send a shiver down her spine.

She was already tipsy. Tipsy and the imposter and running around like a maniac, killing everyone who came across her, when Disguised Toast asked her, what she wanted to do once reaching two million subscriber.

Her drunk laugh had ringed in everyones ears as she promised to document herself taking Pole Dancing classes like Seán and Mark had once done. 

„Do it in San Diego“ Corpse had chuckled and Imogen had pursed her lips. „You want me to fly all the way to the states to take Pole Dancing classes?“ She had asked before killing off his little astronaut.

Once back in the lobby Corpse, whom she was getting to know at that time, started talking about the weird and drunk induced idea.  „You wanted to visit your best friend in Houston anyway, right?“ The man spoke and Imogen had nodded—even if no one except her chat could see it.

„Then come to San Diego. I bet there are good schools here.“ And after taking another sip from her Vodka Imogen grinned. „Sure, why not!“

But Imogen had low-key forgot about this situation and when Corpse tweeted her this morning, her whole face flushed and she remembered everything about the drunk Among Us session.

„But are you doing it?“ Baylee’s voice brought Imogen back to the reality. „Are you really coming to the states?“ Imogen bit the inside of her lip. „I’m meeting my therapist later today. I will definitely talk about this with him and see what he has to say.“

Imogen heard Baylee hum in the background. „I would be happy if you’d come and visit me“ she started and Imogen pouted. „Me too!“ She watched Buddy run towards her, with a stick in his mouth.

She knew she had pinky-promised Corpse that she would fly over to San Diego and document her Pole Dance classes. But was she brave enough to actually do it?

— — —

Two months later, it was a hot and sticky day in June and Imogen was looking at the suitcase in front of her. She still couldn’t believe what she was about to do.

With a one-way ticket to Houston and Buddy’s pet passport in her hands, nothing was in her way to travel over the pond. She got tested negatively for Covid and was ready to embark on this new journey.

She had a good talk with her psychiatrist about the upcoming journey and he told her that she was currently stable enough to travel. He stacked up her medication and told her that she could always call him, when she felt like the mood swings were too much to handle.

It took Imogen two months to prepare Buddy for the upcoming trip, and a lot of meetings with his vet to check if the fluffy dog would be okay in two eight hour flights. 

Imogen had her phone at her ear and was currently talking with non other than her internet friend Sykkuno. „Do you think Buddy is going to be okay?“ Imogen asked, fumbling with the hem of her pajama top. „You’ve prepared him well! You checked his health with the vet and talked with airline. You also got a letter from your psychiatrist, that Bud needs to be with you at all times!“ Sykkuno spoke and Imogen sighed.

„I know, Sykk… But I’m a little anxious that he’s going to get sick throughout the flight.“ She looked at Buddy, who was still sleeping on his cushion. „I just read so many horror stories about pets dying during flights.“ - „I feel you, Imogen. I would be super scared if something would happen to Bimbus.“ 

Imogen sat down on her bed. She still had a few hours before she had to head to the airport. She was happy Sykkuno had picked up the phone, otherwise she would’ve freaked out.

„I’m seriously happy that there are no size requirements for emotional-support-dogs… I already booked business class seats so Bud and I can have more space.“ She sighed and Sykkuno chuckled. „Just imagine the faces of all these business men wondering why there’s a full grown Siberian Husky in business class“ his laugh rang in her ears and her heart jumped.

„Not gonna lie, Sykkuno, but I can’t wait to finally meet you in person!“ She grinned and looked at all the documents, that were sprawled out on her bed. 

There was the letter from her psychiatrist, stating that Imogen needed the animal for psychological reasons; a prescription of why Imogen needed said animal and all the other veterinary documentations.

Imogen could hear the one year older male laugh. „Me too, Imogen!“, his voice was as soft as usual. „I can’t wait for Bimbus and Buddy to meet!“ He chuckled and Imogen nodded.

She had contacted almost all of her closest Youtube friends and had asked them if they wanted to meet, once she and Buddy set foot in America. 

Sykkuno was one of the first to tell her, that he wanted to meet her and Buddy. Then came Rae, that invited her to do a collab or something for their channels. Poki also contacted Imogen, asking if she wanted to hang out with her.

But the one, Imogen hadn’t believe would approach her, was Corpse Husband. Corpse had called her—it had been one in the morning in Ireland—and told her that he wanted to meet her, once she was in San Diego for her Pole Dance class.

„You want to meet me?“ Imogen asked him. „You never show your face and yet you want to meet me… in person?“ His deep laugh rang in her ears. „Yeah… is that weird? We’ve been texting everyday and I really want to meet Buddy!“ Imogen rolled her eyes.

„You want to meet the dog, not me?“ He laughed even louder and Imogen was worried for a second. His breath hitched. „Are you okay?“ - „Yeah, you just sounded as if you were jealous of your dog.“ Imogen rolled her eyes and bit her fingernails.

„You know he’s not just my dog, but my companion, right?“ - „Yet you’re jealous of me wanting to meet him.“ Imogen knew that it was no use talking to him and sighed. „You know what? Let’s meet and see if you really only want to meet Buddy.“

Imogen shook her head as she remembered the late-night calls and texts from the faceless YouTuber. And she could only fathom how stressful it must be for him to actually invite Imogen over.

„When’s your flight?“ Sykkuno asked and Imogen sat down on her gaming chair, overlooking her room and sleeping Buddy on the floor. „It’s in few hours. I still need to dress properly, I’m still in my pajama. And I still need to head up to Dublin.“ Imogen laughed. „Your layover is in Washington right?“ - „Yes, I wanted to stop in Washington because Buddy can only hold in his pee for about nine hours.“ A chuckle left the black haired girls mouth and Sykkuno laughed. 

„It’s his usual sleep duration“ Imogen looked at her wristwatch. „Dang, Sykk… I’m sorry but I really need to hang up. I definitely need to get ready. Sorry Bub!“ The YouTuber on the other line laughed. „It’s okay, Imogen. Get ready. Text me once you’re boarded and in case you need anything!“ 

Imogen grinned. „Thank you Sykkuno. Really, thank you!“ She said her goodbyes and hung up. Looking at the watch one more time, she took a deep breath. 

Imogen stood up and put her phone on her desk before rushing to the pile of clothes she decided to wear for the journey. She decided on a simple black skinny jean and an oversized black print tee. 

It was one of her go-to outfits and one she felt the most comfortable with. Even if people on the internet were sometimes thirsting over her posts and pictures; she still didn’t give them thirst traps by choice.

 She would’ve never imagined people nutting over her posting a picture of her legs covered in cuts and bruises. 

Imogen never thought people would find her scars hot. And she always exclaimed in her videos, that it wasn’t pretty, that she wasn’t romanticizing her illness. She wanted to spread awareness that it was be ugly. That’s why she posted pictures of her legs. 

She wanted to show, that it wasn’t pretty, having legs covered in self-inflicted cuts and bruises. But people still thought it was hot and edgy because she dressed like that. 

Imogen straightened her hair and checked herself in the mirror. Her eyeliner had the perfect wing and her usually dark eyebags weren’t as prominent as usually. 

She took a deep breath. „Americas… here I come…“ she looked at her dog, before taking her phone and posting one more tweet, before getting ready to head up to Dublin for her first flight of the day.

to be continued...

Taglist: @wineandionysus

[iaintyourbro]

The Unknown Journey Continues

Part 1

I know it's been a while... but I've been going down a rabbit hole with @starlight-samurai regarding time loops, Jenova, Minerva, and more fun. So I figured I'd try to put it into one post to get the insanity out of my head. Everything in here is based on things we've found by either going through more obscure Ultimanias, learning more about Dirge of Cerberus and trying to decipher what the hell Jenova is by putting together various sources - including other Square Enix games - and how they handled freakishly similar scenarios.

Did you know there is a companion mobile game for it that was out on the good old flip phones? Did you know there was an online mode in Dirge of Cerberus only available in Japan, but had story elements that were not in the main game?

The sad part is, there's still so much to go through...

(I've also had various discussions with @ourfinalheaven, Manu, who doesn't have Tumblr, so here is her Twitter. and Somebody's Nightmare (here is her Twitter). So I wanted to tag them here, as it's much more fun to discuss these ideas as a group, since it'll only help you build on and strengthen your own ideas.)

Please be aware, there will be Spoilers for FFVII - Almost all Compilation titles, Xenogears, and NieR Automata throughout this.

So let's go on a journey where we explore what actually already exists in the compilation - including the idea of the whispers and timeloops - how Minerva may play into everything, and what exactly Jenova is capable of doing.

I asked Sesi if he'd ever played any of the NieR games, because he'd said something that made me wonder if they were going to take a similar approach. As a very, very quick high level summary: NieR Automata deals with a time loop type of idea. The androids will be rebooted and repeat the same things over and over again. This is broken when 2B is killed by A2 because she becomes infected with a virus. That being said, you have the option after Ending E to either erase all of your data and end the cycle OR you can try again. The Pods have a discussion, and one asks, "But won't they just do the same thing again?" and the other replies with "Maybe. But it could also be different this time."

Here's Sesi's message back to me when I asked him about this (cleaned up a bit since we were having a casual conversation over Discord):

Maybe I could just guess based comparatively on the Dirge storyline, because that was sort of SE's first flirtation with “robots and androids” since they’re all programmed and locked behind like task managers and shit that can shut them down. The story of the online mode for DoC that came out in Japan, we never got to see it, you’re basically an Android OC and you have to get to “the end of the level” and then essentially die, and a new one takes its place. This keeps happening until Weiss is essentially freed from being able to be task managed by the guys who are suppose to be able to control them and I know from tons of years with Square games that they’re verrrrry bad at differentiating their narratives they tend to just keep “ripping themselves off” so is it anything close to that?

Cuz if so I think I kinda know what you’re saying and yeah, I agree, I think with CC bringing in its poetic symbolism and LOVELESS, and DoC bringing back the cyclic nature of the lore, whispers, premonitions and future visions, proto-Materia and the perversion of this next cycle since the planet can no longer cleanse and protect itself and its will is weakening lesser and lesser to the point where it’s fate is “in a true sense of jeopardy This time essentially it’s all tied in together and sort of played as though it's a fated track; a cycle of events and something has hitched it, thus the whispers manifesting and Sephiroth's higher implied control over his destiny. Of course, even all that is just their new red herring game, but it’s definitely a part of the lore they want to play with, in order to go back and reMAKE the OG with the comp inserted from inception. Also gut punch a lot.

Time Loops

I was somewhat surprised to find out that this concept is NOT new to FFVII's universe. It's discussed in Dirge of Cerberus... probably one of the least played and least understood of the compilation. (Trying to sell a third person shooter with terrible controls to a market of mostly people used to turn-based combat wasn't going to go well.)

On top of it, we didn't even get all of it, since online mode was never released outside of Japan, and the Dirge of Cerberus Lost Episode was on Amp'd Mobile and Verizon flip phones back in 2006. Were you around for the cell phones in 2006? I had the ones on the list, and how somebody could play a game on those blows my mind.

Square has a tendency to reuse themes from their other titles. Probably one of the most blatant is the similarities between Xenogears and Final Fantasy VII. They were both being developed at the same time and a lot of ideas that didn't make it into FFVII ended up in Xenogears.

NieR

So how does this work? In NieR (both Replicant and Automata), you play the same path multiple times. Each time, it's slightly different depending on what side quests you did your first and second playthrough, but there's also other subtle differences throughout the story. In Automata, you get to play as 2B your first playthrough and 9S for your second. They follow the same path, but you get it from his perspective the second time and it reveals a bit more of what is going on. However, even with some slight differences, the main plot points stay the same and the ending result it also the same.

Then on your third playthrough, you wake up in the Bunker, and you're getting ready to go on a new mission. This time, though, 2B is killed and shit hits the fan. Things get crazy, you play as a new character: A2. In the end, pretty much everyone "dies", but you can choose to "reboot" and try again. You also can say you are done and let them all rest and delete your save data (the game gives you the option for both Automata and Replicant, and with Replicant, it actually leads to a new ending).

The striking thing for me is... There are certain events that will always happen, no matter what.

Fixed Points in Time

It's been years since I've watched Doctor Who, but there was something that stuck with me, and that was the fixed points in time. You can read about all of them here, but here's the basics:

Now, of course Doctor Who goes into this with much more detail and it's a recurring theme. However, as you read through that page, you'll probably find many aspects that have been used in various JRPGs that you've played. And Doctor Who most likely pulled some of the idea from classic Science Fiction novels. Each story puts its own spin on it.

How does this relate to FFVII Remake? Well, when they say that the major plot points will stay the same, it reminds me of this. No matter what, Cloud must fall into the Sector 5 Church, the Sector 7 Plate must be dropped, Aerith and Zack both must die, and Meteor has to be summoned, to name a few. So, with a time loop, those things would still have to take place in order to prevent a complete collapse of reality (at least in how Doctor Who uses it).

Therefore, the Whispers are ensuring that the Will of the Planet is followed.

One of the major themes in FFVII is that of loss. People die and they do not come back. Yes, other FF games do allow this to happen (FFX, FFXIII, FFXV), but VII is not those games. It was written with that idea in mind, that once a person dies, they, just like in real life, are dead and cannot be brought back.

I've previously written that I think they'll make us believe we are able to change fate, but we will eventually be slammed with the reality that we can't. That is because the planet has determined that certain events are fixed points.

Xenogears

Xenogears takes a bit of a different approach to the loop idea. Instead of repeating the same time period over and over, it has the characters reincarnated, and the same outcome happens each time: Elly dies. However, each time it's different. After all, they're in various time periods, in some cases thousands of years apart.

In all of the lives of Fei (who will have a different name in each time period) and Elly (who is always Elly/Elhaym), Elly will end up dying trying to protect Fei and the others. In one life, she is a religious figure at a totally not Catholic church, in another she's the wife of a scientist who was working to create children from nanomachines due to mass infertility issues. But she is ALWAYS with Fei, even if his name changes.

In her Mother Elhaym time, this is when Lacan (Fei) finally snaps. Though he's not fully aware of his past lives, he becomes aware, the anger consumes him, and he becomes Grahf. Fei is then reborn into the time period you play the game in.

There's a lot to unpack with this, so I won't go into it. Grahf wants to destroy God (Deus) because he thinks if he does, then it'll stop the suffering (his suffering).

If you do want to read more about Grahf, you can do so here, but it probably won't make much sense unless you've played Xenogears up to that point... Since it's much later in the game that this is all explained.

Lacan's desire was to stop the cycle of Elly always sacrificing herself for his sake. Though Grahf is not a perfect existence - he's not fully "The Contact", he sacrifices himself in order to let Fei move forward, and hopefully stop the cycle, by destroying the Deus system. (Elly also tries to sacrifice herself here, but Fei goes after her and stops her.)

Now, some people may think I'm saying that Cloud or somebody is going to do this in order to save Aerith or Zack (or his village or mom), but in FFVII if they do the loop method, I don't think Cloud, Tifa, Barret, and the others are aware of it. Most likely, it's only 'Sephiroth' and Aerith who are aware of it.

How this Could Be used for Final Fantasy VII

I'm stressing could because there's so many different possibilities on how they use this (if they are using this), so please, don't take this as fact. This is based on speculation based on what we know.

A time loop is a great way to explain away the differences in the story that we've seen: Biggs being alive, Wedge living for longer than he should have, etc. Since these are not major plot changes, they can simply say that this time it'll be slightly different... but your fixed points (major plot points) will remain the same.

It's a way to pull in some of the more obscure themes from Dirge of Cerberus and also play with the LOVELESS lore.

It could all simply be a big red herring and it's really just a remake of OG, but with the compilation tied together nicely... since it works much better when it's combined and not in 50 different games, books, movies, etc.

I don't think it's a "sequel" per say, not in the way I generally perceive a sequel. It's more of a loop of the same thing. The question is, when is the loop started and what will cause it to end? When will the planet (if it even is the planet) determine that it's good enough to begin moving forward?

JENOVA, Sephiroth, Genesis, and Minerva - Oh My!

Let's be real... Genesis isn't exactly the most popular character in the FFVII Compilation... but what if they make him one of the most important to the story? //Ducks as various fruits and vegetable are thrown in my direction//

I think what Genesis is probably most known for is his love of LOVELESS. He has the entire thing memorized and randomly says lines from it throughout Crisis Core. LOVELESS lore is still something I'm trying to grasp, so I am not going to comment much on it. Once I understand it more, I'll update this.

...And then this happens. The secret ending for Dirge of Cerberus, where Genesis picks up Weiss. Weiss, who has now been introduced along with Nero in FFVII INTERmission and is an optional ridiculously hard boss in the Shinra battle simulator in chapter 17 of the main story. There is some lore associated with the battle sim - so if you don't plan on beating it or you just can't, you can look up the pre-battle and post-battle cut scenes on YouTube. They're very short, but interesting. (I beat this asshole last night - it's a hell of a fight.)

....To Be Continued because apparently Tumblr won't allow more than 10 images per post now.... Next will be more on JENOVA and Sephiroth along with Minerva.

[danses-with-dogmeat]

Introducing My Fallout OCs!

OMGGGG y’all, I can’t. I’ve apparently reached over 200 of you fantabulous followers and I am so ecstatic! I honestly don’t even know if this is considered a milestone or anything, but I was super psyched, so I'm doing something about it, dang it!

Also, just a heads up on me right now, I just started school again, so my posting miiiiiiight be a bit sporadic every now and then, but I’m determined to still try and get a few posts out every week, so we’ll see how that goes. I’m also pretty backed up on requests at the moment, I’m still accepting them for the time being, but I may turn off my asks if I’m finding difficulty getting to everyone.  

Anyways, I know I don’t ever really talk about my Fallout Original Characters, but I’m thinking of doing some stuff with them in the future, so this seemed like a good place to start  🤷‍♀️ So, here they are! One from each of the 3 FO games I write for. If ya’ll want to send in any asks about these folks, please feel free to do so! 

(Art for these peeps is pending potentially as well).

My Lone Wanderer: Hope

Appearance: 

- Basically like a black-haired, blue eyed Sarah Connor (y’know, from Terminator), she’s got a small frame, but is an absolute beast. She loves to change up her hair, but prefers the iron maiden, unladylike, or rude ridge styles and will often dye it bright-ass colors, cuz why not? She’s pretty pale considering the vault background and the fact she is constantly wearing full body combat or leather armor when she’s outdoors, and she has a few piercings she actually got before leaving the vault. 

What’s in a Name: 

- “Hope” was the name that her parents chose for her before she was even born, but she can’t stand it, she just tends to see it as a cruel joke in the world they live in. She instead goes by Effie (short for Ephialtes, cuz she’s edgy and dramatic and read too much in school). Hope tends not to tell anyone her real name, and if she does, you’d best not use it to refer to her, unless you like being enslaved. The only one who could ever get away with it is Jericho and a select few people from the vault (Stanley, and her father, but she’s still not happy about it.)

Sexuality: 

- Pansexual

Main Companion: 

- Jericho

Relationship(s): 

- She has a sort of “friends with benefits” type situation going with Jericho, but it ends up getting... complicated, and turning somewhat into a relationship.

Bestie(s):

- Even though he’s her boss, Hope likes to hang out with Eulogy when she’s in Paradise Falls. When she was in the vault, she spent a lot of time with Stanley, and was pretty close with Butch, Wally, and Paul as well. 

Fam Dam: 

- James and Catherine are/were her parents (obviously). But she also considered Stanley to be a sort of uncle to her. 

Karma: 

- Oh, the worst. She’s honestly awful. She steals, she murders, she enslaves, she blows up settlements, all of it. She’s got a lot of things she needs to work out...

Faction of Choice: 

- The Slavers of Paradise Falls. (Yeah... she sucks.) The Brotherhood and the Outcasts just never really struck her fancy, and her and Jericho found it was easy to make bank with the slavers. Hope also is a friend to Allistair Tenpenny and Mister Burke... and not the folks in Megaton. Cuz they’re all not really alive.

Vault Occupation: 

- Engineer

Fun Fact!:  

- Hope is really bad with empathy, and absolutely needs to experience something for herself before she can make any sort of judgement on it, or other people who have had that same experience.

My Courier Six: Sage

Appearence: 

- Sage doesn’t really consider herself very “flashy” in comparison to most folks in NV. She’s got shoulder length brown hair (blast back or clean cut style) and brownish-hazel eyes. She’s pretty damn tan (Mojave, you know) and doesn’t have many scars, but the ones on the right side of her forehead clearly indicate where she was shot in the head (thanks, Benny). She and Boone tend to twin quite a bit, with matching red berets and sunglasses.

What’s in a Name: 

- The poor girl has no clue what her real name was before she was shot, but she saw a box of labelled herbs in Doc Mitchell’s house when she was recovering from her headwounds and decided she liked the name “Sage.”

Sexuality: 

- Bisexual

Main Companion: 

- Craig Boone

Relationship: 

- Also Boone :) it’s a pretty darn slow-burn romance with lots of bumps along the way, but their love always seems to prevail. (Gross and sappy, I know)

Bestie(s): 

- Arcade, plus Rex, and ED-E. Also Victor and Doc Mitchell.

Fam Dam: 

- No clue, unfortunately. She eventually tries to find out something about her past and her family, if she has any, but she’s got a few things to deal with first (hint, one rhymes with pleaser’s fleegion).

Karma: 

- She may make mistakes along the way, but Sage really does try her best to be as good as possible. 

Faction of Choice: 

- Mr. House and the Followers of the Apocalypse. Would like to get rid of House, but can't bring herself to become responsible for everything once he's gone. She considers herself his personal empathy and tries to assist with the goings on of the Mojave even after the battle of hoover dam. Fucking wiped out everyone in the Legion. Her and Boone are a force to be reckoned with. And she never really cared much for the Brotherhood since she had such little interaction with them. She has a good relationship with Freeside and most of the settlements/other towns as well.

Previous Occupation: 

- Courier? She has no idea what else. But she’s oddly really good with medicine 🤔

Fun Fact!: 

- She supports Mr. House for a number of reasons, but one of the biggest is that she doesn't want to lose Victor. He saved her, and she considers the securitron to be her oldest friend (besides Doc Mitchell). She knows it's a little selfish, but she can't bring herself to put an end to him after he pulled her from her own grave and helped bring her back from the brink of death.

My Sole Survivor: Jolene Arvanidis-Ryan

Appearence: 

- She���s got auburn hair she usually keeps cut short (clean cut) or in a bun, green eyes, pale skin with a good amount of freckles and has exceptionally straight teeth (braces suck, but you know.) When traveling with Cait, people tend to think they’re related. Jolene tends to wear a black beret and, if she has the time and resources, she likes cat eye style eyeliner. 

What’s in a Name: 

- Her first name runs in the family... plus her dad really liked Dolly Parton, so that helped cement the first name for him. Nate’s last name was Arvanidis, and she tends to use that as her last name exclusively, she rarely reveals her maiden name (Ryan) to anyone. 

Sexuality: 

- Straight

Main Companion: 

- Paladin Danse

Relationship: 

- It takes a long time (post BB), but she ends up being with Danse. 

Bestie(s): 

- MacCready and Cait

Fam Dam:  

- Pre-war, her father was a carpenter and her mother was a major in the US military, she had no siblings and was very close with her father since her mom was often away on deployment. 

Karma: 

- Decent. Tries her best to do what’s “right,” but she sometimes has a hard time determining what that is. Is good at following orders, even if she doesn’t always agree with them (BB is the exception in this case).

Faction of Choice: 

- Brotherhood of Steel, at least until BB, then she tends to focus more on the Minutemen, but still stays by the BOS’s side when it comes to taking down the Institute. Despite her loyalty to the BOS, she always regrets what she did to the Railroad, and how she ended things with the Institute, and she holds quite a bit of resentment towards Elder Maxson for ordering her to pull the trigger that ended her son’s life, and the other lives within the Institute. 

Previous Occupation (Pre-War): 

- She was a Gunnery Sergeant in the US Military. (Trying to follow in her mother’s footsteps).

Fun Fact!: 

- She hates killing feral ghouls, but keeps it under wraps since she tends to travel with MacCready and Danse the most. After that random encounter where she found herself murdering her own neighbors, she can’t bring herself to look into the eyes of any feral ghouls she has to kill. 

Bonus! Fun Fact!:  

- She started out as my sort of "throw away" playthrough where I wanted to do a BOS run, just out of curiosity, but she ended up being my main playthrough… probably because Danse is just the best and I can't get enough of that tin can thesaur-ass.