#i did these in the least efficient way possible lol

[unkindhands]

OVA Jotakak gifs -- Manga/TVA palette Kakyoin Edit

[dinogoofymutated]

Enemies to lovers! Quicksilver/GN!Reader

So no one requested this but I can't get it out of my head so it's going here!! I absolutely love quicksilver in the comics and the animated shows but most of his content is from the movies. I'm not complaining! But I wanted to branch that out a bit lol. I guess you can imagine almost any Pietro, but I was picturing his personality from Wolverine and the X-men. Haven't seen it in a while so forgive me if this is OOC.

This is set pre-dead professor. I might have also gotten a little carried away with this one, lol, and there will be a part 2! Fights and stuff are kept super vague for my mental health sorry if it's shitty.

-ps- someone let me know if Pietro's super speed counts for swimming too??

TWS: Tlasophobia (possibly?) Almost drowning. Dehydration, wounds.

You weren't sure if you considered Quicksilver an enemy, a rival, or an arch-nemesis, but the one thing you did know was that Pietro Maximoff was the most annoying motherfucker on the planet. Seriously! As part of the X-men, he seemed to always be in your way in every major fight.

What didn't help was that you were a speedster in your own right- well, not on land that is. The same gene that blessed others with powers beyond comprehension turned you into... a fish? Sure, you were fine on land, able to blend in with regular humans, but the moment you hit the water you were completely different. Gills, fins, the works. And you were fast. Really fucking fast.

Now when you first met Pietro while on a mission, he was being a snarky bastard. Can't catch me this, too slow that, ha! The guy may be able to run on water, but he's clumsy when he's in it. You're sure you have his face memorized from the time you caught up with him beneath the waves, tugging on his ankle and pulling him into the sea. His eyes practically bulged out of his head when realized what had happened. Of course, you're sure his face was even funnier when he watched you speed off into the depths, having neutralized him for the moment.

Every fight after that turned into a contest. Who can beat who where, Who stranded the other first, easily taking them out of the battle quickly and efficiently. Things like that. The professor had to remind you sometimes that the goal is to protect others, protect humanity, not quarrel with Quicksilver. You knew that, of course. You're thankful for the professor and what he's trying to do- but every time you saw Pietro's stupid arrogant smile you just got so- aggravated!

That being said, just because he aggravated you, didn't mean you wanted him dead. In fact, fate would keep pulling the two of you together in the least expected ways.

First, it was you, saving him from a sinking ship. He had slipped and managed to knock himself out during the fight, you having found him while trying to ensure everyone was off the boat. You were conflicted at first, knowing he was your enemy but not wanting to leave him to drown. In the end, you had grabbed him. The problem was that he wasn't breathing when you made it to the shore.

Some aggressive CPR and a few broken ribs later, he was coughing up water from his lungs. You, surprisingly, were at his side, holding him steady. Pietro was confused at first, letting you help him sit up as he coughed his lungs out, but his expression completely changes when he looks up and realises who's been holding him up. He makes an incredulous face at first, then rising to his feet in a split second, although not without swaying. He eyed you suspiciously as you stood to face him.

"You shouldn't be moving so fast straight away. I'm sure I broke a few ribs trying to get you back." You said. He sets a hand on his side wincing as he Most likely prods at a few bruises.

"Why did you...?" He can't seem to finish the scentace, and you simply shrug. You couldn't leave him there. As annoying as he was, you wouldn't wish a death by drowning on anyone. You're pretty sure you'd have saved him in any other circumstances as well, but you choose not to think about that right now. His face of confusion morphs into slight seriousness, and when he looks back to the ocean to see the Brotherhood is long gone he stands for a moment. You can almost see the gears whirring in his head, and reach out to take his arm.

"Look, I get that you recover fast and all, but you should really take it easy-" Before you finish your scentace, you've been shoved back into the sand dune. Pietro is standing further away from you than before, arms crossed as the sand settles from his quick movement. You stare at him in shock.

"Your loss." He says, sticking his tongue out before speeding off and across the water, kicking up sand in your face as he does so. UGH! Even when you go out of your way to be nice, He's a dick!

Despite him being a straight up asshole the last time you saw him, it's safe to say something between you has changed. You couldn't quite place it, but you could see it in the way you would fight. What would have been brutal punches shifted to major inconveniences, like handcuffing you to a railing and things like that. Incapacitating you without dragging you further into the fight. In fact, he hadn't even snatched you up to run and drop you off hours away from the fight for a while. Beforehand, he loved to strand you somewhere land-locked, forcing you to wait until the X-men came to pick you up. Sometimes it would take days for them to get to you, so you were almost always on guard, staying close to or in the water so he couldn't catch you.

You had gotten used to the new Quicksilver, and what used to be a rock-solid defence and begun to crumble. That was your mistake. The next time you saw Pietro, there most definitely a shift in the air. This fight was going to be brutal, but you and the team had prepared for it. You thought you had anyway. But with your friends getting injured, the fight dragging on, taking a turn for the worse, you were genuinely beginning to fear for everyone's lives.

It wasn't long after that relvation that your head was spinning, and you were being plopped down on a gritty, sandy surface.

"Sorry babe, you'll thank me later!" You clench your jaw at the sound of his voice, catching the sight of sandy dunes as you tried to turn around to rip into the man.

"Pietro!-" Your venomous words were cut off as a blur of silver rushes off, kicking up a gust of wind and leaving you stranded. Worse than stranded, you would say. Pietro had left you in a desert. A bright, dry, hot ass desert. And it was not going well for you.

Not only did you have no clue where you were going, but you were beginning to realize that you were in a really bad position. It was like every drop of moisture was being sucked out of your body. Your mouth felt dry and cottony, exhaustion setting in a little too easily. You were dizzy, dehydrated, and hopelessly lost. The sun had no mercy for you. Eventually, you have to lie down, doing your best to stay awake and not fall asleep, worrying about the worst, but eventually your drooping eyes win over your will to remain awake.

The sun is starting to set when you wake up, throat dry as a bone, both sickly and exhausted. You can hear the sound of something approaching, and do your best to sit up on your knees, doubling over for a moment before forcing your body to move. A pair of legs step right in front of you as you do.

"Wow, You look terrible." Quicksilver says, and if you didn't know any better, you would almost say he looks concerned. You don't have the energy to roll your eyes or speak to him at the moment, stars flickering in your eyes as you start to sway. You start to teeter, before you're snatched off the desert sand, Pietro having caught you and scooped you up into his arms.

"Worse than terrible, actually." He mumbles this time. His concern is clear now, face close enough to your own for you to properly see him. You scoff, or at least attempt to.

"You... left an aquatic mutant... in the middle of the desert. What were you expecting?" You say, having to pace yourself. You're fully leaning your head against his shoulder now, not having the energy to keep your head up anymore. You can feel him suck in a breath and tense up as you begin to go limp against him. His hold tightens up on you before he takes off running.

You've always been accustomed to extreme speeds, at least mostly, but the combination of how ill you feel and his sudden stop makes you want to puke. You can't bear to open your eyes at the moment, choosing instead to bury your face in Quicksilver's shoulder. You're sure he's taken you to some random place to leave you to die, but he sets you down on something soft and cushioned.

"...Where-?"

"You're in the mansion." He says quickly, cutting you off. You stare at him in disbelief as he stands back up, and you realise he's taken you to the medbay. You and Pietro make eyecontact for a moment, both wondering what to say. Eventually, you watch as pietro moves across the room to purposely set off the alarm, which you know for a fact he knew how to avoid. He turns back to you, winking as he readies himself to speed off again.

"See you soon, slowpoke." He says. You make a face at him and he laughs. In a blink, he's gone, just as the doors bust open, Beast running in frantically, with the professor rolling close behind him.

You cant quite figure out this man. Normally, he'd just leave you to fend for yourself. He's never come back to get you before. Why would he do it then? At first you were sure he put you out in the desert as a deliberate attempt to leave you for dead, but now? He seemed genuinely concerned for you, and you're not sure how to feel about that.

In the end, only Pietro knew why he came back. Or did he? Maybe he was just as confused and conflicted as you were.

[mikavlcs]

Dog Days

Pairing: Wednesday Addams x reader

Summary: The help you need to confess to your crush winds up coming from an incredibly unlikely (and furry) source.

Warnings: ooc!wednesday, hints of bad poetry lol, bad writing, this is another very unserious story

Word count: 3.3k

Notes: the poetry part of this request kicked my ass and you can tell LMFAO. sorry it took so long (and sorry it kinda sucks), but i hope you guys enjoy!

Masterlist | Bonus

Confessing your feelings to someone you like was one of the most profound plights a person could ever face, you’ve decided.

Because to you, right now, there was no greater challenge to overcome, no finer show of courage than to look her in the eye and profess the nebulous depths of your infatuation without keeling over midsentence.

And this anxiety would be easier to conquer if the girl you had caught feelings for was a normie, or really any other outcast housed within Nevermore’s four walls.

But your crush was Wednesday Addams, and that more than justified the intense fear that came with the possibility of confessing.

For the past semester, Wednesday had been assigned to sit at your table in Botany, meaning that you two were almost always lab and project partners in that class. Throughout that time, she wasn’t exactly nice to you, but you’ve yet to be on the receiving end of her notoriously colorful threats, so you figured that put you somewhere friend-adjacent on the small girl’s relationship scale.

That made trying to confess to her no easier, however. Because she could literally just kill you if she decided it wasn’t good enough. If she decided you weren’t good enough.

You hoped knew she wouldn’t considering your short but cordial history, but she technically could.

Now despite her reputation (and the previously outlined possibility of murder), Wednesday never scared you. She certainly tried. You’d lost count of how many grisly medieval torture facts she offered up while working together, but they never had the intended effect of instilling fear into you. Not even once. The absurdity of it made you laugh more often than not.

But, while she didn’t scare you, she did intimidate you. Even now, months and a fully developed crush later, she could render you speechless with a single look.

That immediately did away with the possibility of a verbal confession since you were sure your vocal cords would cease operation before you could even properly start, leaving you staring at her like an idiot. So you were left to figure out another way. And after days of careful deliberation, you decided upon the vessel with which you would confess your feelings.

A poem.

Yes, it was stupid and cliché, but it was something you were familiar with, and you figured Wednesday might have at least some appreciation for it considering she herself was an aspiring writer. But very soon, you came face to face with a problem.

Wednesday herself constantly strived for perfection in every facet of life, so you knew that if anyone were to attempt to court her, she would be expecting no less from them as well.

Everything about this poem—diction, rhythm, rhyme, form—had to be superlative, efficient while effectively flawless.

It needed to be perfect and you just…couldn’t get it there.

Attempt after attempt wound up in your garbage, the papers overflowing out of the small pail by your desk while your hope slowly diminished with each failure. After the 27th trashed page, you knew you needed to stop and recoup.

This approach obviously wasn’t working, so you had to find a different one and to do that, you needed incentive. You needed inspiration. You needed the creative ascension that came with reading good, fresh poetry.

The only issue was that all of your poetry collections were well-worn, memorized from cover to cover. Though you could never tire of them, you knew they wouldn’t provide the spark of creativity you needed.

So you took a trip to the small bookstore in Jericho since the school library had very little in the way of poetry and picked up a few that caught your eye.

You were on your way to catch the shuttle back when you heard it.

A high-pitched yip rose from the alley you had just walked past, making you pause. Curious (and without much else to do), you stepped back to peer into the alley, and you let out a gasp.

Just down the alleyway was a small puppy, covered head to toe in gorgeous gold fur. A golden retriever, your mind helpfully supplied. He didn’t notice you, entirely too preoccupied tearing up an old newspaper to care about your gawking, but you were entranced.

And without your usual forms of impulse control (your teachers and parents) there with you, your mind was made up in an instant.

A twenty-minute trip to the local pet store saw you ready to leave town a few hundred dollars lighter and many bags heavier. You got all the essentials—food, toys, a collar and a leash, a bed, bowls, and whatnot.

All that was left was getting the dog.

Quietly approaching, you set your bags down against the mouth of the alleyway and crept closer to the puppy, careful not to startle him as he stalked a bug of some sort. Once you were within a few feet, you crouched and tore open one of the treat bags you bought. The noise got the retriever’s attention, and he stopped his pursuit to watch you, intrigued.

A soft smile made its way onto your face while you fished a treat out and held it out. It took no time at all for the pup to curiously trot over. He sniffed it for a moment, thoroughly inspecting the cookie before devouring it and looking back up at you expectantly, tail wagging furiously in the air behind him.

With a laugh, you offered him another one, then another, and another. And just like that, a friendship was formed.

The driver barely gave you a second glance when you waltzed into the shuttle with your bags and the dog, just waited for you to be seated and pulled off onto the main road. Definitely not protocol, but you imagined he wasn’t being paid nearly enough to care.

When Nevermore’s castle-like features came into view ten minutes later, you realized with a jolt that there was one thing you hadn’t accounted for: actually trying to smuggle this puppy into the school.

Given that the shuttle was already parked, you had no time for strategy. As you stepped back onto campus, your only plan was to make a mad dash for your dorm. And, after tucking the puppy inside your shirt, that’s exactly what you did. Or tried to do. You only got halfway through your journey when Yoko intercepted you in one of the halls.

“Hey! I see someone went shopping today,” she commented, giving the plethora of bags you were holding a humorous look. “Preparing for a zombie outbreak or something?”

“Something like that,” you answered, taking a step around her, but she moved with you and started matching your hurried strides.

“So, you ready for that Vampire Anatomy test tomorrow? Personally, I think I’m gonna ace it,” she smiled, fangs flashing in the overhead light. You shot her a look, because, of course, a vampire would ace that test.

You opened your mouth, a scathing retort on the tip of your tongue, but the pup chose that moment to show his restlessness, flailing his little limbs violently under the fabric of your shirt.

“Uh,” Yoko slowed at your side, brows drawn above her sunglasses. She pointed at your stomach, where the puppy was violently squirming. “What’s going on there?”

You glanced away, mouth opening and closing. Hard as you tried to come up with a plausible excuse, none came, so you said the first thing that came to mind.

“I’m pregnant.”

Poor Yoko looked positively baffled. You ran before she could say anything else.

The sprint back to your dorm was blessedly uneventful, allowing you to stumble inside with minimal issue. Thankfully, your roommate was out, so you wouldn’t need to deal with any more questions for the time being. You set the puppy down on the floor, letting him explore his new surroundings while you set his things up.

Once his bed, bowls, and toys were in place, your attention turned to another pressing issue. The pup needed a name.

Dozens of names crossed your mind in the minutes that followed, but none of them fit the energetic boy in front of you. Pondering, you watched leisurely as the retriever dragged his new leash across the floor. The sunlight pouring through the window softly bounced off his golden fur while he pranced around your room, leash still securely in his mouth.

A metaphorical light bulb clicked on and in that moment, you gave him the most beautiful, poetic name your mind graced you with.

-

“Choklit!”

The puppy in question froze and looked up at you, short tail wagging dutifully. He was already giving you his best puppy dog eyes, but you knew better than to fall for them. You moved to stand in front of him, hands on your hips.

“We’ve talked about this. Edgar Allen Poe’s collected works are not a chew toy!” You moved the book away from him, held up a blue squeaky toy in its place. “This is what you play with, got it?”

He offered you a yip in response, tail wagging a mile a minute as you handed him the bone-shaped toy. “And remember, play lightly!” you tagged on as he tumbled off his bed.

Principal Weems hesitantly allowed you to keep the puppy on the agreement that your roommate agreed to him (which she did, ecstatically) and that he not be too loud in the room. By some miracle of god, you had been able to abide by that rule for the past two weeks.

Hopefully, your luck would persist.

With him placated, you turned back to the task at hand—finishing your poem. It was coming together, a solid vision of your end goal forming. And after another ten minutes of brainstorming the last line—a woefully overdramatic would you go on a date with me? that hopefully wouldn’t get you killed in your sleep—it was finished.

You pushed back against your desk and leaned your head against the back of your chair, taking a moment to rest. Then, sitting back up, you reread the poem carefully.

A wave of inadequacy crashed into you as you ran back through the words you just wrote. Something about it just wasn’t right, but you couldn’t pinpoint exactly what.

Was the rhythm off? Were the rhymes varied enough? Outside of that, was your prose structured competently? Was the poem too much? Was it not enough? Five rereads only heeded more questions and no answers.

Frustrated, you balled the paper up and threw it behind you, already priming another paper to begin the poem anew.

The telltale pattering of paws reached your ears, turning to find Choklit nosing at the crumbled paper. With a sigh, you walked over and went to pick it up. “Sorry, bud, but my personal failures as a poet are not your toys.”

Choklit, thinking it was a game, quickly snatched the ball up in his mouth and bowed, sending light growls your way. Though you knew it wouldn’t help, you raised your hands in surrender and leaned back.

“I’m not trying to play. I just need that—” You tried to swipe it from his mouth, but he bounced backward and rushed toward the door.

At that exact moment, your roommate returned from choir practice, opening the door just in time for Choklit to run out with the paper in tow. You scrambled to your feet, edging past her into the mostly empty hallway.

“Sorry!” she yelled after you, to which you just waved.

“It’s fine! I got him,” you threw back at her just before you turned a corner in pursuit of the retriever.

You had to admit, the little guy was fast. Faster than you thought he would be (or maybe you just needed to exercise more…who knew). Bewildered students parted for you as you gave chase, giving them a quick thank you! as you kept your eyes on the golden blur ahead.

He toppled down another hallway, one you knew led to a dead end. You grinned and picked up the pace, intent on scooping him up, only to skid to a sudden stop after you turned the corner.

Because there Choklit was, sniffing around at familiar black boots while pale hands smoothed out the paper the puppy dropped before her. You were frozen, trying to figure out whether this was real or some terrible lucid dream.

Wednesday’s cold timbre inadvertently answered your question.

“I didn’t think they allowed dogs on campus,” the girl remarked, giving the puppy at her feet an inquisitive look. Your response came without thinking.

“You live with a werewolf, don’t you?” Your eyes widened. The comment was meant as a joke but could easily be interpreted as an insult. And knowing how close the two had gotten over the past few months, the last thing you wanted to do was accidentally mock Enid.

You watched Wednesday closely, but the only physical response you received was the slightest raise of her brows.

“That was almost funny.” Her words were delivered with her trademark deadpan stare, but you could hear the slightest hint of humor threaded into her neutral tone. Looking for attention, Choklit stood on his hind legs and pawed at Wednesday’s shin, giving her a clear view of the tag on his collar. The disapproval in her voice was clear as day. “You named it…Choklit?”

You gave a half-hearted shrug, pulling out a grin full of confidence you absolutely did not feel. “Can’t be a literary genius all the time.”

“I’m sure,” she retorted sarcastically, holding your unsure gaze for another moment before turning back to the paper in her hand. You followed her eyes and stepped forward with a grimace.

“Sorry, that’s… you weren’t supposed to see that.” You tried to take the paper, but Wednesday stepped back, moving the paper out of your reach.

“It’s addressed to me.”

“That it is,” you conceded with a sigh, “but it was never intended to actually be delivered to you.”

Wednesday hummed. “Well, it seems your dog disagrees.” With that, she turned her attention to the poem. You were tempted to try and take it again, but you liked having your hand attached to your body, so you resisted.

Impatiently, you waited as her eyes ran along the lines slowly, your anxiousness building with every passing moment of excruciating silence until finally, she met your gaze once more.

“A few things to note,” she began, tone much too studious for the occasion. “I applaud the fact that you made the decision not to write a sonnet. They’re easily the most overblown, abominable form of poetry and I would have had to burn this if it was.”

She gave you a small nod. “Now, I will say that I’m a bit disappointed. This certainly could have been written in perfect rhyme rather than end rhyme, but since you said this wasn’t your final draft, I’m willing to give you a pass for this oversight. Mostly. And while AABB isn’t the most complex rhyme scheme, it’s just tolerable enough here to not detract from the poem as a whole.”

You gaped. She was making the same type of comments that your teachers would when they graded your assignments. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think she was reading off the notes from a book report and not talking about a literal love confession.

The ridiculousness of the situation pulled a wry laugh from your throat, but you were quickly silenced with a harsh glare. Once you quieted, she continued, “The biggest problem I see is that this poem is lacking in length, having only a measly 12 lines. A few more couplets would have made this feel more complete.”

“Now onto the poem itself. Though your vernacular pales in comparison to mine, I will admit that your vocabulary is surprisingly expansive considering what you named your pet.” She sent Choklit a pointed look. “Furthermore, I appreciate the use of alliteration in lines like ‘A mind molded by misery and mischief’ and ‘Down into the dark depths of a dreadfully early grave’ but feel it could’ve been utilized more throughout. The mixture of masculine and feminine rhyme is interesting, though choosing one could have aided with overall cohesion.”

You just stood and stared, silently taking in her thoughts and critiques because it was all you could do. She paused, folded the paper neatly in her hand, but still didn’t give it back to you.

“In conclusion, parts of this are noticeably undercooked, but the simple act of reading it doesn’t make me want to purge my insides. I acknowledge the effort you put forth to tailor this poem to me and my interests and will admit that being described as ‘the purest of darkness personified’ is almost flattering.”

A nervous chuckle escaped before you could quell it, but this time she allowed it, her stare remaining blank. You cleared your throat, injected some joviality into your tone. “Great, so uh…do I get an A+?”

“B-, actually,” she amended, running over the folded page with her eyes. “Maybe even a C+.”

At that point, you swore you could feel the humiliation seeping into the very essence of your being. But you were determined not to let it show, to preserve what tiny amount of dignity you had left.

“Okay, well, I’m just gonna take that back and then go vanish off the face of the Earth so we never have to see each other again.” You gave her a pained smile and reached for the paper, only for her to snatch it out of your reach with a glare.

She glanced down to Choklit, who was seemingly enjoying the drama as his eyes ping-ponged between you two, then to the paper again. Another long moment passed before she looked back at you.

“I never said no.”

You blinked a few times, confused. “What?”

“The proposition outlined at the end of the poem,” she clarified, “I never said no.”

“You…” you began to repeat but trailed off as the realization of what she was implying really began to sink in. “Wait, I—you…you can’t possibly mean…”

Growing visibly impatient, Wednesday cut off your verbal meltdown. “Meet me outside the school gates after light’s out this Saturday. I get to pick the activity.”

The unsettling smile she gave you felt like a bad omen, but you couldn’t care less, still fighting off the incredulity clouding your mind. You opened your mouth to respond but when no words came, you settled for a hurried nod.

“Good,” Wednesday peered out the window momentarily. “Now, I must be going. Eugene is expecting me. I will see you Saturday and if you’re late then you’ll be the next autopsy I perform.”

Carefully, she stepped around your puppy and walked off without another word, leaving you to ponder what the hell just happened.

“Oh my god,” you whispered to no one in particular. Again, louder this time, “Oh my god!” At the sound of your excitement, Choklit came scampering over and you bent down to meet him. He stood on his hind legs, bracing his front paws on your knee. “Did you hear that, boy? The poem actually worked!”

He gave you a yip in return, tiny tail a blur behind him. You rubbed your hand along his back, chuckling at the fervent licks your hands received in return.

Only after a student skirted past you both did you realize that you were still in the middle of a hall. You promptly scooped Choklit up with both hands and cradled him by your chest, looking down at him as you began your way back to your dorm.

“Come on, let’s go get some treats. I owe you big time, buddy.”

[witchkillr]

CANON DIVERGENCE MASTERPOST, OR: aaa if it actually cared about the narrative integrity of its title character.

this rewrite is primarily concerned with giving agatha back the agency that she did not have in her own show, and secondarily concerned with recharacterising her early behaviour into something more consistent with wv!agatha, whom my portrayal is based most strongly on. it's also long, so feel free to take what you need and leave the rest.

i assume a fairly canonical rio here. i am open to restructuring that relationship with individual writers. in this reimagining, it is every bit as toxic as was presented to us.

so to begin with - agatha's superobjective, her goal beyond simply regaining her power, is to use that power to craft a new darkhold. she is interested in reconstructing her protection from death as quickly and efficiently as she possibly can. she has researched this extensively in the past as a backup plan, just in case something like wanda maximoff should come along, and now she's ready to go to work.

now, episode by episode:

1. AGNES OF WESTVIEW is a modernised noir detective flick, not a cop show. think, like, a significantly less cool jessica jones. agnes o'connor is a private eye with a dark past, and rio is her client, bringing to her attention a murder that slowly but surely unravels her world. [this is her perception of events. however individual partners approach characterising rio within that framing is, of course, up to them.]

otherwise the episode is perfect as is, no notes. i also have no issues with e2 - in fact i think it's excellent. agatha the master manipulator, setting up her con perfectly, the way she always does, only for it to take a sharp left turn and for her to immediately adapt? brill. so, then, we pick up with jen's trial.

3. i find agatha's behaviour in this trial to be completely absurd and out of character - or at least lacking a necessary level of nuance. her panic makes perfect sense to me: she feels trapped in a situation that is entirely new to her and should not exist, but also by the same token reminds her deeply of her time in westview. the outfit she's in is one neighbour!agnes would wear. it completely tracks that she's having a Moment, but she needs to suck it up and put the mask on like we've seen her do countless times. the whining/clawing at the door/refusing to drink the wine... no lol. none of that. it's happening internally, but on the outside, she's playing at control. she's "walked the road before"; time to work the problem.

this parlays into my issues with her handling of sharon's death etc, which is my main problem spot before we get to the end.

4. episode three begins with agatha coaxing her misbegotten coven into following her into the first trial. she is positioning herself in a leadership role, rallying the troops, making herself out to be this invaluable expert. why, then, is she so callous and selfish at the top of episode four, if she sees their trust as a resource? we know why: because rio is coming, and she is attempting to make a swift escape. i don't care, though. there needs to be a balance struck here. agatha painting herself as this uncaring and cruel is essentially shooting herself in the foot. sure, she's planning to kill them all, but she is currently forced to sleep with her back to these witches - and meat shields are useful while she's still figuring out the rules of this conjured road. or, realistically, at all. there is no "mrs. hart was a bad draft pick, okay?"; she plays at remorse, but with urgency. "it's terrible and tragic but we need to go." equally, her exaggerated anger at rio doesn't serve her, and she should be aware of that. lilia and jen have made no secret of the fact that an enemy of agatha is likely to be a friend of theirs. accordingly, she plays it less furious/physically violent(? agatha what the FUCK) and more heartbroken. she's "distraught", not outraged. "don't touch me, you don't get to touch me anymore," soap opera levels of dramatic ex behaviour leaving the coven to wonder what on earth their history is, because holy shit Agatha Harkness Is Experiencing An Emotion, what did rio do to her? these changes also heighten the "betrayal" in the soundbooth, when rio forces the issue. agatha was behaving like a person with feelings, who had normal reactions to things like covenmates dying and Whatever her past with rio is - to have the rug pulled out from under that perception hits hard specifically because she cultivated it intentionally and successfully. that also creates more tension between her and rio; she had to sacrifice her own long con for the sake of exposing rio's nature, and she did it anyway.

i take negligible issue with characterisation from e4-e7. don't feel the need to change anything there, except - and this is just wildly self-indulgent - she's in the no good deed dress in e7 instead of the wicked witch fit.

into the real meat of it now.

8. agatha always intended to sacrifice billy to save her own skin, and she does not change her mind at the last minute. she drove him to murder, among other reasons (getting him off the road, creating a concrete resolution to the scarlet witch's lingering power so that all the pieces are on the board, and in some twisted way, delivering what she owes before she lets him die) to further justify it to herself. this is however complicated by several factors - more on those later. she did not bind jen. that removes agency from both of them unnecessarily - agatha "didn't know", rendering arguably the most important event of jen's life narratively meaningless. [again, it's up to individual jen players how this is written around. if you'd like, we can plot something where agatha did bind her, but i can't see it with things being what they currently are - specifically, her comments re: jen's work being important.] re: the fight. i take significant issue with the unbalanced power dynamic here, not because i think agatha should be powerful enough to actually stand a chance against death when she's going all out, but because the way it's written and choreographed, agatha is death's victim. rio cackles from on high while torturing her and agatha, after her spells fail, does nothing to attempt to turn the tide. it's only by the grace of billy maximoff, yet again, that she escapes. they need to talk to each other in this scene at several points, and this is the first. agatha needs to attempt to manipulate rio into letting her go one last time. the issue from episode one is still not resolved: agatha still does not have her power. this is not by any stretch a fair fight. did you prefer me formidable mean nothing? having done all she could, which is significantly more than we saw, that's when billy shows up. i take everything as read until "we can't fight death", because what have you been doing for centuries then, bitch???? yeah you don't have the darkhold but the two of you together???? this is what i mean about the imbalance - she's resigned. it's not a give and take, it's rio's inevitability, her cruelty in the spotlight. i know she's saying it to set up the sacrifice - to manipulate billy into being the one to die - and i think it needs to stay like that, but i just wanted to point out that it's infuriating. now. "is this how nicky died?" i have a fresh answer to that question, and it's no*.

on this blog, agatha harkness killed her own son. she did it as a mercy, and as the only way she could think of to cheat death. this does not negate the fact that she also did it because she wanted power. he was the one thing she loved most in the world, and she killed him anyway.

nicholas was born sick. he was on borrowed time from the moment she held him in her arms the first time, and she knew that. she spent his first six years of life frantically searching for a way to fix it - to keep him, to defy death, her lover, who should have been her son's other parent. she found one, she thought, in the book of the damned: she'd been curious about the darkhold since a child, but she'd never felt she could attempt it. as nicky worsened, it became paramount that she try, no matter the cost.

as i've touched on, she had never practised necromancy before, out of respect for rio and her work... but traditional healing won't work, and she knows that. if he dies in a way other than the lady death had planned for him, and agatha returns him to life with the power she will be granted by the darkhold, then surely rio has no authority over them anymore. surely her spectre won't haunt nick anymore, then. surely agatha will be able to protect him if it does - she's heard rumours that the darkhold grants immortality. a cloak. a shield.

naturally, it doesn't work.

this sets up a far more interesting choice for her in e8, when billy asks her that damnable question - because it isn't how he died, not really, but it's more of a conflict in her. it's much murkier than a straight no. nevertheless, she does not sacrifice herself. she does not give into rio's manipulations, and she does not conflate this boy for her son. her son is dead, and agatha survives. it's all she's ever done. there is a moment of her looking devastated by the comparison before composing herself, putting her mask back on, and delivering her final words to rio: i held up my end. you'd better keep yours. so saying, she walks out of that garden in full witch kit, past the people of westview, into the woods.

i leave the ending open on this intentionally, so that respective rio and billy writers can decide how they think that scene plays out without agatha there. what happens from there is unique to each dynamic and portrayal.

for agatha, though, her next step is to start in on the goal she's had this whole time: to craft a new darkhold. and her first stop, with that in mind, is the ruins of wundagore.

[cosmos-dot-semicolon]

(⭐fanfic writers' commentary)

@plutosoda hi

Ooh, time to reread my old writing, huh? Always a fun trip, especially given I'd totally forgotten like half of it including that repetition trick you'd mentioned…

fair warning, i only got like 3 asks for this thing so I'm gonna commentate on pretty much the entire fic here. This post never ends.

Here's an entire director's commentary on All-Nighter! Enjoy!

"The covers were warm… But at least it'd get something done before passing out again."

I'm still fond of this intro. I'm terrible with being succinct, but this is somewhere where my rambling writing style really works; this section is written from experience of many a 'stayed up too anxious now you can't sleep' nights, and someone who has read a lot of the techniques to fix that problem, then didn't (ADHD lol). That is in fact what my internal monologue tends to be like at night - a mix between recalling every single way you've ever learnt to pass out, worrying about what happens tomorrow, 'why is life like that. what did i do,' and just a pinch of 3am self loathing.

I never really thought of it until an AO3 commenter pointed it out, but it was a fairly natural way of worldbuilding/expositing/characterisation all in one go. Establish the premise of the fic, Robot only bothering to process things when it's on the brink of exhaustion, the way it's kinda obsessed with productivity and efficiency and self-improvement.

I'm proud of it!

Also I like to think Lady Luck only does the weird scheduling thing for Robot. She'd be the type of person to try and make the Dungeons a personalised hell for everybody.

“Hey, could I get a coffee, do you think? …I’ve been sleeping so badly down here.”

I'm quite happy with the intro to the next bit too. My goal going into most fanworks (still) is to emulate what drew me to the original story. In this case, that's Dicey's tone and dialogue, with a bit more direct focus on the characterisation of everyone. So this is sort of a meta plot device that signals all that to the reader. I love how efficient that is. also I just like throwbacks and references okay

"The canteen was a dense jumble of kichen counters…"

I could've been a little faster with this scene and Robot subsequently making the coffee. One of my weaknesses as a writer is that I hallucinate some of the scenes in my head, and try to write down everything in that instead of just drawing a comic (cough that one unpublished Ninjago fic). I'm a sucker for describing scenery for days on end.

That said, I'm really glad I got the vibe of 'light-blue-grey' morning over to you in your fanart. It was exactly what I was imagining as I was writing this.

"Pre-ground. …But this was just evil."

I think I'm funny. Anxiety cube can put up with a lot, but terrible coffee isn't it.

"They taste horrible compared to freshly ground beans. It’s not worth the convenience."

haha. because you see. that's its heart's desire *gets turned into a dice*

"Pouring a generous portion for its new friend, Robot masked its complaints with a long sigh." "…But thanks to the innovations of modern day life-” An overhead swig downed half the mug."

A commenter pointed out that some of my lines have really good flow in them between actions and characterisation. I didn't notice that until then, but I'm inclined to agree. Some of these drive in the point really well.

"At least its fellow patron was enjoying themselves – not even flinching at the concoction and savouring the coffee raw. It was tempted to start a commentary on how dark roasts were overrated, but soon became a little more concerned about them drinking through the 100 centigrade burns. This place had quite the collection of creatures, it seemed."

I like to think Robot's a little snobby about the things it enjoys. I like to think Lady Luck tries to throw people off as much as possible.

"So, how’s the self-improvement going?" they started. "I only want top quality minions in my dungeons."

Very fun fact is that I was worried about spoiling the twist in this fic because of this line being so blatant, but I wanted to put it in anyway because it's a good character-establishing moment, and a good… re-interpretation of the line in another context? I love recontextualising canon in a slightly different way that still works for the characters in question. it's so fun

Anyways. Turns out I didn't need to worry about that because at least one reader totally missed this too so got hit with the full twist anyways. Isn't writing great?

"So, what’s keeping you up this late?” they asked. “Nightmares? A looming sense of regret and existential dread? Unfinished essays due tomorrow morning?"

essays due tomorrow morning. haha so true. i'm glad I don't take much coursework nowadays.

"You know, as useless as it looks, sleep’s rather important for you folks. It’s how you deal with all the terrible things that happen during the day, since your brain can just wipe the slate clean and try again. But funnily enough, it’s always the first thing that’s left behind whenever someone wants to better themself." "Life’s painful enough as it is. Why not change things up if your current routines aren’t working?" "Nobody ever plays the cards they’re dealt perfectly, dear… Time always slips you by when you’re not paying attention. And nobody ever knows what’s coming next. You’ve just got to learn when to raise and fold them." "Well, part of being human is never being a hundred-and-one percent efficient. If you folks still count yourself as that. I’d apologise but I remember you were quite nonchalant about your little transformation anyways."

One of the main points of this fic was that while Lady Luck is blatantly on the offensive and absolutely insulting Robot to its core, she's not technically… wrong?

It's not bad advice. Lady Luck, in-game, seems very perceptive of the various insecurities mortals go through. And I like to think she does start this conversation just for genuine fun, to pick someone apart. See if they bounce back against it or just crumble. It's just a bonus that the recipient finds it harder to refute her offers afterwards.

"It might!" it snapped back, getting them to at least try and contain their mockery under a silent, wavering smirk. "You know what? I think it will be, I can feel it!"

Robot sort of does both. It's definitely very very anxious. But it's stubborn. I really like that about its character: how there's a contrast between its organised and disorganised sides? How robots are usually associated with hard numbers and calculations, but Robot's mechanic is blackjack. also it's SO autism/adhd coded. listen. in this

I don't know if there's a trope to call either of these, but they're my favourite things about both characters, and they're surprisingly introspective for a game so short on story. (I will write more about that in another post. lol).

It's a bit indulgent in how long it goes on in some areas, but eh. It works for the fic's pacing.

"The figure leaned forward to highlight its obvious obliviousness…" "I thought you were supposed to be the overly organisational optimist."

I love alliteration. yippee!

"A gentle chuckle filled the air, restrained from its usual projecting echo. "You wound me, Robot. Games are always more fun when your players at least get the chance to try and fight back."

I like to think Lady Luck's main motivation is entertainment. Which mostly involves watching people suffer. But I think it's in the spirit of luck to have it so that someone's downfall was their choice. Determinism versus free will and whatever.

The chance that somebody could escape makes things spicier. And makes it sting all the more for all those that didn't. Hooray!!

Also given Lady Luck's usual loud persona, I planned (plan) on giving her quite a few more subtle but equally threatening moments in this series. It's a thing that wouldn't really work well in the actual game, but it does in a slower medium like writing, and I fucking love that trope.

"Statistically unlikely, but I’ll humour it," she commented to an invisible aside."

You should picture this scene as her directly staring at you through the fourth wall. Like in a sitcom.

"But it’s not so bad, being a minion… I’ve heard that’s about as stable as a job as you can get these days." "…though surprisingly she was not the worst boss it had had to deal with."

I always thought this line, used on Thief in-game, would've been an absolute killer on Robot. The job market is pretty fucking shit these days under capitalism and you would be lying if you said there aren't at least some parts of the Dungeons that seem better work-wise. Inclusivity, stable employment, accommodation.

Yeah, you have no freedom, but that's also the goal of capitalism up here as well. At least in Dicey it's ridculous and ironic. And you'd get to use your degree in maths/statistics/acounting etc to its full extent! Can you fucking imagine the paperwork for a game-show/dungeon hybrid business.

"But then again, I think you’re plenty used to the grind."

I believe this was an unintentional-turned-intentional coffee pun. Boooooo

"Funny how they think that’ll discourage anybody. …Folks hear that the house always wins and immediately think they’ll be the exception."

She would be the one to know that. This was intended as a followup to Robot's entire argument before. I'm very happy that at least one person picked up on that :D

"So whatever you pick, it'll be a decision from Robot alone, no matter what your mind or body drags you into afterward.”

I believe this was also supposed to be a callback, but the wording got changed slightly. I think it was the "It feels like my mind and body won’t stop working against me" bit.

"Normally, Robot would’ve stayed to socialise and make new friends, and in all likelihood, skipping breakfast would leave it starving later on in the day. But right now, it needed some time to itself: to think and recover and remember where it was going with this."

This was another callback (that actually made it into the story). Robot immediately making another bad decision after the first, with the exact same words echoing it coming.

"Just another day in the dungeons. It could handle this."

I wanted the ending to be very short and open-ended, in that it was up to you to interpret whether Robot took the offer or not, and when. But regardless I wanted it to be like a regular intro to an episode, but with the hint something definitely fucking changed that the audience can only speculate on.

…oof. 80 minutes on this essay. My poor neck. I think that's it for now, though.

Overall I'm really happy with this piece - hence why it's one of the few things I actually put online. It's three years old, and I could've fixed the flow in some bits (there's one part where I think Robot answers a different question than was asked).

But I achieved pretty much everything I wanted to say in this piece of fanwork, it pushed me to think about characterisation a lot and my writing and editing techniques. There's a lot of neat little things I put into it, and it really got me to grips with what I liked about my inspiration in the first place.

I think that's an exercise worth trying for every fan-work creator. Stretches you brain. Almost lets you re-experience what you loved about a thing years later. Points you towards your possible future diagnoses. It's a fun time!

[riacte]

i never really paid attention to it but wow false and ren. they really do hover around each other huh. they r like bugs

Hiii anon thanks for the ask <3 I'll use this to talk about them and them in fanon because I have thoughts woooo (and I'm vibrating with excitement because I'm listening to the HC Grand Prix at the same time)

You said it exactly— like we all know they're buddies and stick together, but most of the times, we don't really notice it because it's just natural. Nondescript even. Like of course their pixels are next to each other in the background. Of course they're hanging out. It's not flashy or anything, they're just there.

[long and winding analysis that goes off in a Direction, will definitely not be maintagged, mentions of shipping and the fandom's worst enemy (comphet / heteronormativity)]

Pairing up

They're like those anime characters who are fully fleshed out individually, but for some reason, their screentime is tied together and they're always shown next to each other. That was actually my first impression of them back when I only watched Grian in HC6 lmao, every time Grian flew over the fantasy district he would casually go "that's False and Ren's bases" and my brain was like "hmm new names :) idk who they are but they stick together :)". Like you know when you're new to an unknown cast of people so you try to comprehend and memorise them as efficiently as possible? And so you start sorting the cast into duos / groups so it's easier to remember them? That was me trying to compartmentalize the hermits in HC6. Grian + Mumbo. Iskall + Stress. Scar + Cub. Joe + Cleo. ZIT. False + Ren.

It did not help that from Grian's POV, there was a part in the civil war arc when he collabed with False to prank Ren because they thought he'd pranked her and so my brain was like "weeewoooo I still don't know who False and Ren are but they continue stick together, and that's convenient for my internal sorting :)))". And that mutual association genuinely never stopped lmao (it only got worse).

Shared audiences?

I've talked about this on privtwt: False+Ren as a fanon duo (like duo Duo as in desert duo) is strangely niche even though they do stuff together all the time and they're both fairly popular on their own. And there is so much intermingling between their audiences— I know this is the case for all hermits' audiences, but it seems especially obvious between their audiences. I know in a stream Ren said he met up with False and they had a discussion like years ago about the two of them hosting a meet and greet with fans in a restaurant (that didn't happen) and internally I was like "yeah, that'll only work if they have a solidly integrated fanbase so no one feels left out in the restaurant WAIT. That's literally what's going on here".

Funny how when I was writing this, an anon sent an ask about Ren's chat basically being full of False emotes LOL. Integrated audience kinda real <3 like, even if you only watch one of them and don't actively watch the other, you still know and think of the other fondly.

Different styles? And sticking together

Actually outside of yayyy fun minigames, to me at least they have quite different styles + ways of presentation? Which feels slightly different from the above duos I mentioned? So I totally understand why people only main one of them and don’t watch the other (but still aware of the other obviously). In terms of taste and personal preference, I’ve been here long enough to know what loyal False mains generally like and what loyal Ren mains generally like. (Like, very verrrry generally.) Ren’s the dramatic roleplay storyteller and False is like, sneaky and shifty and has a wry sense of humour. They’re both funny and charming in different ways. I would say Iskall and Stress have similar presentations (“aha? AHA?”) even though they excel at different things. Cub and False are also similar to me— competent and cool people who are nonchalantly chaotic. And we all know Ren and Martyn’s instant chemistry and their similarities. It’s why a lot of Ren fans gravitated to Renchanting and Rendoc for their dramatics and flirting in the way some False fans gravitate to Fress and Falseren for the fun/mildly hysterical/teasing/sweet/pranking moments.

BUT

False and Ren bounce off each other well— it’s the playful tension and the sudden mutual whiny energy like “noooo don’t leave me🥺” but they start hitting each other 0.5 seconds later. And of course the mutual clinginess. I know people have made jokes about how they’re both smart and competent people individually but when they get together they suddenly become the silliest sillies and share one braincell <3 and I know people (read: mutuals in my DMs) have joked about Ren’s currently extremely obvious bias for her (it's as big as the BRR sign I swear 😭) and the usual “orbiting around each other group recordings”. Compared to other duos, they don’t get paired together bc of similar presentations / style. They get paired together because of the chemistry and they share so many moments lol.

Tldr: they make for entertaining on-screen interactions. It’s fun watching them rotate around each other and punch each other off things. And they do this so much that 1) everyone’s aware of it 2) everyone’s used to it.

Branding? (Or the lack of it)

Last I checked, their tag has 46 fics on Ao3 and 16 of those fics are from me (I love being spiders georg). As with every pair that's not the juggernaut pair, realistically the actual number of fics that actually focus on them is less than what we see. And you know how sometimes for the "niche" pairs, there's more ship fic than platonic fic? (Actually I think for most pairs, there's more ship fic than platonic fic.) That's also not it, they don't even have 20 ship fics. Like clearly, the current fanon interest in them is not ship motivated versus *gestures to whatever is happening in the general shipping chaos post 2021*.

What I concluded is that they lack the kind of branding that for example Convex possesses. I think it's kind of because... they're an ubiquitous constant throughout the years. They don't need a storyline or a named group to tie themselves together. No matter what they're doing, no matter what characters they're playing, no matter which servers they're on— they just kind of stay in each other's orbits. But they don't play it up or anything like hashtag SHIPrendoc or Renskall or whatever. They don't even have a proper fanon name ffs (outside of fairy pirate grotto or whatever in HC6).

(Although imo this is likely to avoid comphet irl shipping because God forbid a man and a woman are friends :))))) heteronormative irl shipping / truthing was an annoyance for years (pre the HC6 boom). But strangely enough, modern anti hermitshippers on Twitter rarely bring up the real problem of truthing in public comments and instead target people making Scarian fanart in a small corner or whatever. When many cases of Compulsory Heterosexuality literally exist in YouTube comments. But I digress.)

Ren and False are just there, pranking each other and basing together and playing five million minigames and being casually supportive of each other. Like, their biggest shared "storyline" that left a strong impression on fans / converted fans was probably MCC9. We all still talk about it today the way Ren and Martyn still talk about 3L Renchanting. And MCC9 was in 2020 when they'd already done a lot of stuff together prior to that (eg. literally being neighbours in HC6).

And the thing is, they do collab semi-frequently. In like every Hermitcraft season. In recent memory, we've got the Blue River Raceway of course, but we also get those pranks and minigames and random silly interactions like Ren breaking into False's eagle and False pranking him at her elytra race. It doesn't need to be big and theatrical in classic Ren fashion (I remember the Renbob / Falsewell storyline in HC6; her nonchalance and confusion was so funny in contrast to Renbob's hippie demeanor).

And I kind of like the way they've kind of (?? or not???) escaped from the intense duo-ification from the fandom. Okay, to be fair, I know I am the worst offender of the duo-ification of them (with my desperate do not separate agenda), and maybe I've had a negative effect on the fandom, so feel free to throw me off my soap box. I remember how hermitblr as a collective suddenly lost it when they split in MCC17. We took them for granted, we all got to used to them being together, we got used to seeing them in the background, and then suddenly they’re not??

So we’re all kind of aware of them. But it’s not a terribly big thing…. until it is.

It's the same on the M/CC Reddit. Everyone knows they're iconic. But nobody makes a post about how we need more False and Ren duo interactions because they already interact a lot. It's just a natural constant. They don't really need a spotlight because they're just... here doing funky cute friendship stuff.

But if they ever, for some reason, become a mainstream duo on twt in its mainstream duo way with some [insert random noun] duo name, I will be so 🫠😒🔥💥🔥💥. But I literally cannot see this happening unless they team with Grian / Grian adjacent people in Life series. But even then I think they’re kinda exempt because everyone’s so used to them lol. It’s not like a shiny new uwu duo. It’s like how Stresskall is just Stresskall. Or Jleo.

(Actually, speaking of Stresskall, the entire Stress-Iskall-Ren-False group would make for an interesting fanon discussion bc it’s essentially made out of very solid and fan favourite duos. But not now. Team FRIS my absolute beloved though.)

Also, thinking about the ensemble HC fics I've read and how they're just casually kind of chilling in the background. Ren is usually paired with Doc (both platonic / romantic) but False is usually somehow mentioned in a passing comment. Same with False who's usually with the Hermitgals in ensemble fics, but there's also passing comments about her hanging out with Ren. Again, it's just a natural part of the background. Trivia that's sprinkled in between.

And that's why I think I'm so 🥺🥺🥺🥺 because it doesn't need to be big and grand... it's all the little moments <3 they have such a fun and playful dynamic and all the love for minigames <3

I don’t know if this is comprehensible or I’m just going crazy and overthinking things no one thinks about. But writing this was fun at least <3 If at least one person gets maybe 30% of this post (whatever it is), I'll be happy haha.

Post sponsored by the three people who liked my tweet from months ago 🥹

[deryuj]

Follow the curves

You wish you could focus on your case but truth be told, Connor is far too distracting.

(Or Connor is helping you with your case while you sketch him in your notebook instead)

Rating: General audience

Ship: Connor x gn!reader

I started my summer job and realized I have a lot of free time so I actually wrote a fanfic because I was bored. Enjoy!

p.s. Last time i wrote a fanfic was in 2017 and english isn't my first language, lol.

It's been three hours since you stepped your foot into the squeaky clean department. Also, it's been two hours and fifty-five minutes (minus ten minutes you spent making yourself a coffee and five minutes you took for a bathroom break, which was an excuse to just get up from your workspace and do something different) since you made yourself comfortable by your desk and started working again with the weird writings and drawings you found last night at the apartment, left by what you suspected was a deviant. Looking at the same set of lines for hours turned them into uncomprehensive scribbles and doodles at this point so you couldn't make anything out of them anyway. You needed to do something else rather than stare absent-mindedly at the same page for the next five hours until your shift is done.

You wish you could say you were going in circles with this investigation but honestly, there was no circle you could even walk in in the first place.

How frustrating.

With a soft sigh, you turned your gaze to your right where Connor sat way before you even arrived, his blue LED shining and flickering as his brown eyes stayed glued to the screen. It was funny that for an android he insisted to use computers to scroll through information like the rest of the DPD did. He didn't have to, it was probably more time-consuming and less efficient to do so, but somehow it was so endearing that he makes sure to act as human as possible and blend with the rest of his coworkers.

You haven't really spoken to him today though, he was assigned to you strictly because of the notes you discovered, it was the longest you have been in his presence, which is a bummer. Usually, you would see him casually follow Hank like a puppy, hand folded behind him, long legs easily matching his anger, quick steps, and a soft smile that was always plastered on his face. You weren't sure if he was designed to always smile or chose to do so, but you decided to believe that he wants it that way. Now though you could see that soft smile and adorable chocolate cowlick up close with him working mere centimeters away from you and you couldn't help but smile yourself.

Cyberlife sure did a great job designing him.

Connor was the newest addition to the team, assigned to help the lieutenant in his cases, which definitely did not make him happy since he oh so loved his broody and lone wolf reputation. You were pleased though, you never had a chance to work with an android (and you kinda never exactly did until now). You liked Connor, maybe more than you'd like to admit, and you found yourself doubting the whole 'friendship' if you could even call it that. Yes, he was an android and he definitely wasn't programmed to like everyone (based on his previous interactions with Gavin) but somehow you found yourself hoping that after all the small conversations you shared he, at least, considered you a friend because he liked you, not because his program told him so. Were you even making sense at this point?

You let out a soft sigh, reaching out to grab a half-empty cup of stale coffee before your eyes glided back to working Connor. He hasn't moved from his stiff position since morning, his warm eyes fixated on the computer screen, subtle nose twitches, jaw tightened, smooth hand gripping the notes you wrote down yesterday as he silently analyzed the same set of information written in your handwriting over and over again before looking up at the computer screen, trying to find some kind of clue on what exactly the deviant was trying to write down or show.

As if it was that easy to understand the maniacal scribbles they left behind before running away.

He looked so focused, so eager to prove himself and his skills to everyone that he completely shut himself off from the whole department and new information from his surroundings for now so nothing will take him out of the process of decoding the messages. You were almost curious if by any chance he knows you're watching him so shamelessly or if he even realized that you joined him by your desk to help almost three hours ago.

He was cute, really cute, and in some way you felt a little weird with choosing this word to describe a grown man, or more specifically someone designed to hunt down deviants and do it without any hesitation.

You'd rather keep your observations to yourself rather than get embarrassed though that's what you told yourself with your inner voice.

You comfortably leaned against your palm, letting your gaze dance across all the soft and sharp edges of his profile. His small, pretty nose, freckled artificial skin, pursed, plush lips, and extremely long lashes. Someone put all these details down into this single design just to make fun of you and your silly little crush on an android, that you were almost sure has no algorithm that could by any chance make him like you back. It was stupid, really, but God was he too pretty to not like.

Never mind your earlier praises, you hated Cyberlife for this design.

You felt your cheeks heat up just from thinking about this, definitely not your smartest thought of the day.

You tilted your head to the side, your hair moving with your move as you glanced at him from a slightly different angle. Still pretty. Dang.

One line, second line, join these two with another line.

Without thinking much your hand danced across your handy notebook, your pen leaving gentle lines and curves as you tried to memorize his pretty features. You weren't an amazing artist but you could at least make it resemble him. That's all you needed to do. You needed to convey his pretty profile somewhere where it won't disappear, somewhere you'll be able to look at whenever you'd feel like it, and not when Hank would get up from his desk to go to your communal kitchen with his partner in hand.

You poked the thin paper with the tip of your pen, spreading small, inked dots across his sketched cheek, dragged curled lines from his eye down to his cheek to mimic his long curtain of eyelashes, and made sure that the curve of his lips was the curviest, kissable line you ever drew on paper.

Your silly attempts caused you to let out a quiet snort. I mean the sketch wasn't bad… it's just that you finally caught up with what you were doing that caused you to realize that you were acting like a lovestruck teen if not worse than that.

Stupid- said your more sober side.

You still proudly looked down at the small sketch of Connor that popped up in the corner of your notebook, it was no longer accurate though since the model decided to finally rise his honey-filled eyes away from the screen and face you instead, clearly curious about what made you laugh during a long, boring investigation.

"What's wrong detective?" Your eyes snapped back up at his seeking expression, right in the middle of him tilting his head to the side as he would usually do whenever asking a question and being actually curious about it.

Now what?

"Ah" passed your lips before you could catch yourself. What exactly are you going to tell him and make it sound not weird?

"You draw a lot?" He took your silence as an answer and leaned in to trail his eyes along all the sketched lines, his lips curling into a soft smile to your dismay, a soft whir erupting from his chest.

You silently flipped your notebook to the next page, lips pursed as you turned your face away from him to hopefully regain your ability to say something smart rather than babble while looking at his handsome face. And yet he still watched you, or more like observed you, analyzing your mouth twitch, gaze shift, and muscle tense. Clearly, he was getting what we would call 'nervous' at his seemingly failed attempt at making a small talk and you couldn't help but feel a little guilty.

"Sometimes, helps me think or get myself to reboot" He could somehow understand the concept, maybe because you used a techy word he had some experience with.

He hummed in response, shifting comfortably in his seat, almost like he could feel his muscles sore from staying in one position, and looked down at the blank page, as if the drawing was still there and he was still taking in every single stroke of your pen.

"You are quite talented" He seemed honest, maybe there was a hint of something else, and you couldn't help but chuckle. There was something so innocent behind his words, he almost sounded excited to face a new quirk humans had.

He always liked those. The quirks. Things that made people unique and so interesting.

"I guess once I retire I'll move out somewhere quiet and spend the rest of my life painting landscapes" You mumbled sarcastically, your eyes rolling as you tried to get Connor off his path to compliment you more. He would always be painfully nice to get people to like him and accept him in the department. It worked, sure but you don't need him to get you flustered at work where people can see. Especially where that asshole Gavin can see and use it to make you annoyed.

He let out another soft, vibrating hum at your small joke, leaning down to comfortably lean against his smooth hand. He was thinking, processing and rinsing your words to find a suitable answer to your lighthearted response and hopefully match your tone.

"That sounds nice, I'm glad that for now, I can enjoy your work here at the department." He replied and you let your lips form a smile at his response. I mean you could interpret it as if he wanted to work with you more. You wouldn't complain, your work quality would suffer though. Or maybe you're looking too hard into it.

"Have you tried drawing Hank before?" You let out a sharp exhale from your mouth, your laugh stuck somewhere in your throat, safe from being let out to the world. You weren't sure if it was a joke or not, if it was it was funny, if it wasn't then it was cute but still, you don't want him to feel bad for laughing at him.

Connor didn't mind, in return, his plushy lips quirked up into a bigger smile, doe eyes narrowing as the smile finally reached them while he happily watched you light up after working with papers.

"Don't know, I guess I'll ask him if he wants to model, sounds like a cute date" You wanted to continue the banter, it was somehow of an anomaly to see Connor try to joke like this, hopefully, you weren't expecting too much of him. On the other hand, hopefully, Hank didn't hear that because even though you two are friends he'll scold you for joking around at his expense and giving 'the android weird ideas'.

In return he let out a quick, soft chuckle before clearing his throat to get back to his professional self, his pale cheeks dusted with a soft, blueish color. Seems like he doesn't want to make you feel bad for laughing at you as well.

"Sounds like a lovely evening" He admitted before falling silent once again, his brown, gooey eyes now staring deep into yours, analyzing you. In moments like this, you were always envious of how he can pretty much see through you and see what you think while you're left with his pretty face and zero ideas on what might be going on through his head.

"Let's… check the notes again and work through it together" You finally suggested, trying to put the awkward conversation (on your part) behind the door and focus back again on your actual job. You let Connor shift closer to you, his shoulder bumping against yours as you flipped pages back onto the one with your infamous little drawing.

Seeing the real deal up this close made you realize how much longer his lashes actually are, how his lips are far more softer than what you left on the paper and how many freckles you haven't even put down on your drawing.

You should probably try again, maybe at home.

Maybe with him in your apartment.

[atopearth]

Court of Darkness Part 13 - Lou Route

Lou should have the most interesting route (hopefully)! I love how he carried her to him with magic instead of waiting for her to run to him, it is definitely more efficient lol. Aww, it's sweet of Lou to pick the heroine up and take her to dinner, too bad he can't cook but at least he got all the ingredients for her. LMAO when he cheered for her saying "hurrah hurrah" because Haru said that's what he does when the heroine cooks🤣 I like how he agreed to ignore her crying as long as she cried as much as she liked. Honestly, every time we have to experience the heroine's loneliness of being stuck in a fantasy world by herself, it always makes me so sad for her. It's nice to see how relaxing it was for Lou to spend time having tea with her that he fell asleep whilst she was reading books about this world. I'm not sure what his intentions are, but it is true that he is providing the heroine comfort and reassurance in a place unknown to her. Honestly, it wasn't until Lou bought the heroine doughnuts that I realised the heroine legit has no money! She obviously can't work, has to stay at the academy blah blah, so she literally has no money at all! How insecure of a life is that... It's nice that not only did their little excursion outside allow the heroine to get a lot of gifts in terms of clothes and everything, but it also helped her understand that as long as she creates a wall between the people and her, she'll never be able to truly understand this place, their people and the magic that could possibly take her home. It's understandable that she would reject this world to protect her own identity though, since she feels like she'll lose herself if she assimilates into this fantasy world.

I love how forthright the heroine was when she told the S Ranks her boundaries and how she won't tolerate random kissing and touching without her consent. I completely forgot that she hasn't talked to them at all since their first meeting in this route haha! But yeah, I really liked how she stated her thoughts clearly and succinctly and didn't let them step over her. So proud of the heroine that she was able to show how capable she is in magic now thanks to Lou. Lunas is quite cute but I wonder who he is. Lmao at Lou having his own fanclub as well and they're not toxic! They sincerely hope for his happiness! Best fanclub🥹 Lou really casually just holds her hand haha, but I guess the way he so casually does it makes it feel like it's not anything romantic but that of reassurance and care. One thing I always find saddening is that the heroine always thinks it might be better to stay in this world not because she's found people she wants to stay for but because there's no one left in her world that she thinks is willing to go back for.

Lou is the spirit of Vanum and the heroine is the incarnation of Vane? I didn't think Lou didn't actually have these memories, it always felt like he knew everything. Honestly though, I feel like this makes it as if the reason why Lou likes her because she was Vane and he was Vanum rather than because he likes her for who she is. Like it's nice that the past them are able to reunite in this way but Lou at least seems mainly smitten because of who she once was, I'm sure he's interested in the current her at least but not enough to consider it romantic so it's kinda disappointing that the romance is being handled like this. Lmao at how casually Lou tells all the guys he's Vanum and the heroine was Vane and then asks for tips on how to have a successful first date🤣 I have to admit though, their date was pretty sweet and fun haha. I'm glad it's being addressed whether Lou really loves the heroine for who she is or if it's because she's Vanum because I think it's the latter and have never really felt Lou's love for the heroine herself even though I do think he's fond of her. It was nice to know that Lou found it difficult to tell the heroine that he loves her even if she wasn't Vane because it's undeniable that she is and regardless of what they do or think, she will always be her and resemble her so he can't confidently say he loves her for just her now and I think that's understandable. It made me respect him a bit more at least haha. Lunas was Lou's valet back in the day?! I was really happy with Lou's confession. Despite my actual thoughts on their romance, I think his confession was beautiful in the fact that you could see how genuine he was and how much he noticed all the little things unique to the heroine and his love specifically for her rather than Vane. I guess it was worth the wait haha! The truly strong one is the heroine though! This girl was ready to fight and get him to love her in this life as well if he said he loved Vane rather than her.

Overall, I'm not a fan of Lou's route and I have to say it was quite boring and made me quit the game for a bit lol (real life also got busy). I think it was nice to see them spend time together and simple stuff like that, but I think the Vane and Vanum thing made it difficult for me to believe Lou really loved the heroine for who she was in this life. But, I do admit that I really loved his confession and all the words he said, it made me believe in his love in that moment even if I don't think he loves her as much as he says. Heroine was definitely the highlight of this route because of how headstrong and sweet she is but yeah, sadly not a romance I could really feel in this relationship.

[lix88888]

I would like to hear about eldritch family relationships, yes!

Also I mostly asked that because I was wondering if at any point ink nearly broke errors hand and cursed his name while he was delivering the twins. It sounds like it wasn’t that bad for him tho.

So the twins were born into the multiverse, and at the same time their eldritch forms were off chilling in eldritch land?

What was error and ink’s introduction to the concept of ‘the deed’? Did ink just see some AUs where people did it and thought he’d give it a try?

You don't know how much you made my day! Okay, I'll leave the ramble about the Errorink family for last, under a read more

As for the rest, I think Error's hand is fine lol. I recently read how @askfriskandcompany thinks about skeleton pregnancy on the side stories, and I think it's something I will start incorporating in my own headcanons: basically, after the deed, skeletons don't form ectobodies, but they have something that is described as a "bubble", floating stomach-height thanks to magic, in which the little skeleton grows and grows until it pops and here's the baby (almost all other monsters are super jealous, they have to go into labour). So, it's kinda like an egg? Super cool worldbuilding and makes sense (why go through all the trouble of making a body for 9 months? Nature is energy efficient).

And yeah, that's basically it: as already stated, Ink, Error and the kids have bodies, but they're more like avatars (actually, kinda like in the Avatar Movie, where the body is there, but if it breaks the soldiers wakes up in a pod).

Ink already knew about sex from when he first examined Gaster's mind before creating the Multiverse: basically, everything that Gaster knew, consciously or subconsciously, Ink also knows, and then he used Gaster's presence to peek inside the Original Undertale and get all kinds of details Gaster couldn't possibly know.

And now, Errorink family!

I and @stargazeraldroth have quite a few headcanons regarding Errorink, PJ and Gradient in general, and those tend to transfer in most works, so this is valid for Eldritchtale, but also usually for any of my other works.

The first thing is PJ and Gradient's personality and powers: PJ and Gradient are both similar and opposites in a lot of ways. Physically, PJ looks more like Ink, while Gradient looks more like Error, but this doesn't reflect exactly in their personality.

PJ is surly, rude and sarcastic, so personality-wise they're a lot more similar to Error than they are to Ink, and this includes their propension to destruction and violence rather than creation and art; Gradient, meanwhile, is soft-spoken, shy, socially awkward, a rather talented artist and a bit of a people-pleaser, so he got Ink's personality more than Error's.

(In many other AUs, I always headcanon that, if Error and Ink were to die/retire, PJ would become the next Destroyer and Gradient the next Protector for this reason).

However, if we go deeper, we can see that PJ cares a lot about things, that they're very loyal and driven, even if they can be impulsive (this is Ink's side coming through); following the same reasoning, Gradient is nice, but he can be calculating and obsessive, and even cruel if push comes to shove (this is all Error).

To explain with an example, if PJ wants revenge on you, they'd probably just shout at you or beat you up if you deserved it, but then they'd let it go; Gradient, on the other hand, would probably act nice to your face and then hit you were it hurts when you least expect it.

Basically, PJ is the brawns and Gradient is the brains.

In terms of powers, both kids can use either creative or destructive powers, though they each prefer one side (Gradient creation, and PJ destruction), but they also have another type of power: PJ has power over time, while Gradient has power over space. So, PJ can create time loops, go forward and bacwards in time a bit, see different branches in timelines, while Gradient can teleport effortlessly through the Multiverse better than anyone else, create portals linking places together, make pocket dimensions.

(@stargazeraldroth wrote a throwaway line in a story about PJ and Gradient working together to create a never ending corridor as a prank by combining their powers, and I think this sums up their relationship perfectly).

All of this to kinda contextualize, what is their relationship with each other and their parents?

The twins are very close, best friends, and together they're an unstoppable tag-team (if they decide you're dead, you're dead); whevener they fight, it's always resolved quickly, and there's no hard feelings.

Regarding Ink, both kids are mama's boys: very affectionate with Ink, just as protective as their dad. PJ is a bit louder about it ("What did you say to my mom?!") but Gradient is a bit more proactive ("Oh my, you tripped? How unlucky..."). Ink the one that also disciplines them more often, because Error doesn't care about the mess they make inside the Multiverse as long as it doesn't affect him lol. Gradient is a bit closer with Ink, because he shares similar interests, while PJ will willingly spend time with Ink painting, but doesn't enjoy it themselves.

Error is a bit more hands off, but it doesn't mean he loves the kids any less: he rarely tells them he loves them or that he's proud, but he knows and remembers everything they tell him/talk about, and gives them thoughtful gifts taking those things into account. When he spends time with Gradient, it's them together in silence doing things they both enjoy, while with PJ it's a bit meaner, but the fun kind ("You ready, brat?" "bring it on, old man!").

One last thing that Error and PJ both share? Their dislike of Dream lmao, because given his upbringing, he developed some confusing feelings for Ink: the poor guy idolized Ink from a young age, so he's in-between wanting a parental bond with him and having a crush, and neither option is something Error or PJ like, despite the fact that Ink would never replace either of them with Dream. Ah, they're jealous, what can you do?

All in all, they're very close and happy together.

[duchessofostergotlands]

I got a dumb question that literally is just me thinking hypotheticals when I can’t sleep. Let’s say Harry had gone off and had a child with someone, didn’t marry her at the time, but for whatever reason years later did and they have a second child. I know legally that child one would get nothing in terms of title and line of succession, but, like, considering the PR side of things, it feels like the current societal climate would cause there to be some pushback on making it more fair for both children… at least my American brain would think that way. So basically I guess my question is how do you think that scenario would play out? I guess actually my first question really should be how would 20-something Harry having an out of wedlock baby have played out, but that’s besides the point lol

I don't generally answer hypothetical questions. I can tell you what is legally possible for any British royal, but I won't guess what the response actually would have been or make it about Harry. Because if we assume a scenario where Harry had had an out of wedlock child, we can't reasonably assume that every other variable in his life would have been exactly the same. And that scenario could play out in a million different ways. There’s a massive difference between a situation like Louis and Tessy in Luxembourg who were a couple, had a child out of wedlock, and married six months later to one like Albert in Monaco who had a 2 week fling with an American on holiday and then she had his baby, who he didn’t meet until she was 11. Too many unknowns. So:

Anyone can be made a Prince/ss by the monarch through the issuing of a Letters Patent. It only automatically goes to legitimate children but the monarch can give the title to whoever.

Scottish titles (by which I mean titles created in Scotland before the establishment of Great Britain) are the only ones in the UK which can be inherited by a child who is legitimised after birth. But even then, the child is only considered to have been legitimate from the moment of their parents' marriage (see more here). All other peerages can't be inherited by illegitimate children no matter what. The way a title is inherited is stated at the time of the title's creation and cannot be changed after the fact. So for example Lord Mountbatten only had daughters so when the Earl Mountbatten of Burma title was created it said that it would pass to his eldest daughter and then her lawful heirs. So I suppose there probably isn't anything legally to stop a title from being created and the Letters Patent saying "it goes to this legitimised child" - this is a special remainder - but it would be unprecedented to my knowledge in the modern era and highly context dependent. If the royal already had a title when the child was legitimised then there's nothing that can be done. They would have to pass an Act of Parliament which revises how titles are inherited. That is a legal possibility but also very difficult (see something I wrote about women getting titles here). It isn't exactly the same but the important bit is that a change in the law would apply to 700 different families, not just one child.

They would not be in the line of succession because only legitimate children can be in the line of succession. That would also have to be changed by the government and would also have to be agreed by all other Commonwealth realms because succession impacts them too.

The important thing to remember is most of this stuff is not within the royal family's control. Some of it isn't even entirely within the British government's control! So while it seems unfair, that's a monarchy for you! It's not a question of fairness or morality or family or any of that. It's about the efficient governance of the state. I am an illegitimate child myself - not that it matters, I wasn't in line to inherit anything! - but actually that has made me incredibly aware of how important your environment is to your development so my opinion on it would entirely change depending on the context.

[suzieb-fit]

Another new week starts.

How are we all doing on that most wonderful of days - Monday.....?

Ok, that was mostly sarcasm.

But Monday doesn't have to be MoanDay. Hey. I'm an actual genius, right? That just popped into my head.

I know I'm very lucky to be early retired, at least for now (I may have to go back to work eventually for morbid reasons, but that's another conversation, lol).

But when I was working up to last year, I had a pretty intense daily work life, and I still did my best to appreciate every day, no matter what particular day that was.

But anyway, my Monday morning so far has been positive.

Sleep? Don't be silly. Mucus? Yeah, I don't wanna talk about it. Insulin pump efficiency? Ha, nope. Getting there, though.

Oops, this is turning into one of my essays.....Reel it in, woman!

So even with all that nonsense going on, I'm on with life.

Right. On with my day......

Up before six. Out for my 30 minute walk. An early one, but I'm happy with that. Great way to wake everything up.

Upper body/ab workout soon after gettinghome.

I like this one. Not done it for a long while according to the app data.

I then got my Monday house chore put of the way. Cleaning the bathroom (no pic of that, haha), then time to sit on the floor by the big window for breakfast.

Favourite time of day. I love my frothy collagen/inulin decaff filter. And I have found I love breakfast, no matter what changes I keep having to make. Tomorrow will be keto porridge made with coconut "flour", cashew butter, frozen blueberries and more collagen.

I had to get moving again, as my blood sugar was running way too high this morning. It had actually been settling down, so that was a curveball. I thought it was possibly a faulty insulin pod.

I haven't done anything for my YouTube channel for ages, so I got on with a HIIT workout. Takes longer to upload than it does to actually do the workout 😅.

Monday's fitness ended with lower body pilates.

Before starting that, my blood sugar went in the exact opposite direction, so obviously not a pod issue. Just a, y'know.....ME issue, lol.

Anyway, meh to all of that. I feel good.

Basic 15hr fast as usual. Same high quality food as usual, and a good, positive day all round.

Hooray for a happy Monday 😊.

[voteformightyclocks]

Rebels Season 1 Rewatch

Let's start off with Rebels being an awesome show. It was a major part of my life ever since I was 14 (which was when Season 3 came out), and I remember actively checking the library website daily when Season 4 came out, desperate to reserve it or get on the waitlist for it as early as possible. It was the first show I was immensely invested in, and as such it holds a special place in my heart. So, I decided to (FINALLY) rewatch it after all these years, and wow am I not disappointed

I've always defended Season 1, saying it's not as bad as people say. Sure, it's got a lot of issues, and it's definitely not the best Rebels has to offer, but it's at least good. I think I underappreciated it last time I watched it though. The show is clumsy, but only because it fails to balance being a kids show with being a deep show with complex themes like the Clone Wars did. Each individual episode was good, everything built up to a satisfying finale, and characters were fleshed out really well. I can't really complain too much about it because quite frankly, it's only fault is experimenting and trying to be something amazing

But, there are two changes I would make to Season 1 if I got to redo it. And it's worth noting that neither would change the overarching plotline, and most episodes would remain as-is, they're more minor changes that would've had a much stronger impact

Ezra Isn't Kanan's First Padawan

This is the biggest change I would make. Kanan has renewed hope by the start of Season 1, and he's fighting hard, so it would've been cool if we had the show hinting at a former padawan prior to Ezra. In Episode 10 "Path of the Jedi" when Yoda and Kanan talk, have Kanan admit he's scared of failing Ezra like he failed his other padawan. Leave the other padawan's fate ambiguous of course, so you could potentially bring them back. Likely as an Inquisitor for the Ahsoka show so that you don't have to use an animated suit of Inquisitor armor. This would add so much depth to Kanan's pain and trauma, and it would add a lot of gravity to Ezra's training for older audiences, but for kids it would just be a cool fun fact about Kanan's past

2. Kanan Taps Into The Dark Side

In Episode 15, we get the finale, "Fire Across the Galaxy". Ezra saves Kanan, and the two end up facing off against the Grand Inquisitor. This is an epic Star Wars battle, and it shows off the Grand Inquisitor's power, as he defends against opponents on either side of him. He gives Ezra his iconic cheek scars and knocks him off the platform. Ezra's fine, of course, but Kanan (and maybe a couple of audience members? But that's a stretch lol) believes Ezra was killed.

K: "That was a mistake." GI: "Why? Because you have no one else to die for you?" K: "No, because I have nothing left to fear."

EPIC leadup to Kanan tapping into the Dark Side, but instead the show squanders their opportunity. Kanan is stronger than ever in the Light Side, and instead of the Grand Inquisitor being killed in a fair fight at his full power, he's killed by his own failure to recognize the flaw in his lightsaber design. It feels unsatisfying when rewatching it. I wish Kanan tapped into the Dark Side, calling upon it for power, and using it to destroy the Grand Inquisitor. I wish Ezra witnessed that, and saw the darkness within Kanan, yet still chose to learn from him. It could be a cautionary tale for Ezra, who now understands what the Dark Side is, and in early Season 3 when Ezra taps into the Dark Side himself, and when he talks to Kanan about it, have him say something like "I understand why you used it. It makes sense now" or something

Conclusion

Rebels Season 1 is amazing and heavily underrated, but it fails to balance it's themes efficiently, which pushes more mature audiences away and damages the show way more than it should

If you have yet to watch Rebels Season 1, please give it a chance, and continue on to the end of Season 4

[lifeinthegladhouse]

i finally got out of coffee i think. at least for the most part. got a job doing something else cos a friend gave us a lead. i feel so fortunate, my partner went on so many fucking interviews and kept getting snubbed by psycho small biz owners but finally found a good spot, and because of that we've met some really chill amazing folks who have been so welcoming and helped get me a lead at a spot BLOCKS away, so now we can DEF move to a spot that will work for both of us, AND its by a school so i can take classes (lol). im already starting to know a lot of people in the neighborhood and the spot ill be working at sort of caters to a lot of local businesses *anyways* so im really excited to start meeting people again. despite my interpersonal trauma and dodginess, i really thrive with community and it's very hard for me to find what that IS in a healthy way and i REALLY miss having that when i lived in seat*le ... covid fucked my life so goddamn bad like honestly? objectively worse than most people's tbh (like not to be weird but like, it... it did) and i finally feel like maybe now i can have some positives to focus on while dealing with my dad possibly dying and it feels weird to have this really huge positive and really huge negative happening at once but trying to rock with both and just accept things.

anyways ive been living with in laws for like idk 7 or 8 months and im ready to move out and also REALLY glad i didnt work for the people i almost worked for who were batshit bc i REALLY deserve working for a good boss and this owner is really cool and honestly he also raised my wage even tho i didnt ask for it? which is nice? esp for a small business?! i feel SO fucking lucky and he knows about my dad and isnt bothered by the fact that i might have to go sometimes and i just... really feel like thank fucking GOD this is what ive been waiting for.

we've just been taking it really really REALLY slow making sure we start things off RIGHT because GODDAMN shit was BAD in california and im just not willing to sell my time and my sanity to another sociopath like yall i cant even begin to tell you how bad its been with my work shit and its like, i am literally the most honest hardworking efficient down to earth person. people LOVE having me as their coworker, but i am NOT willing to work for assholes anymore. i can NOT do it. i am NOT willing to lead myself into suicide world AGAIN. like, no. i refuse it.

[miracleandplagueau]

Ooh, I'm pretty curious about your AU, I have a bunch of questions (if you don't mind answering. I just really love to hear ideas from AUs in general lol):

1-Will it be a comic, a fanfic, a fanfic with images to show important moments or just a concept in general?

2-Do the other kwamis simply DON'T EXIST in this AU, or did you choose only to not include them (so like, they DO exist in your world, but simply won't be shown)?

3-Will the sentimonster plot still happen? Will you put Félix (AND Argos) in your AU?

4- Do you plan to redesign all secondary characters? (Like the miracuclass, Félix, Nathalie, the major etc etc)

5-Will you change the miraculous powers? (Specially fluffy's, since he/they seem to be one of the kwamis in your au. Will they still have time travel powers?)

6-Are the characters you already redesign the ones who will be the other miraculous holders or will this be a spoiler? (So I'm guessing like, maybe Chloe gets the bunny and Sabrina the bee since that would make Sabrina the queen instead of Chloe lol- I didn't really get from your first post if you said that the AU would have kwami swaps, maybe I understood it wrong)

FIRST OF ALL THANK YOU FOR ASKING THESE ARE ALL GREAT QUESTIONS

1. Right now Im going to focus on posting lore snippets, some important lore changes, concept arts and doodles and possibly rants on miraculous' bad writing, but I am planning to make it a comic eventually!

2. They do exist.. or at least they did (I'm still writing that part). Fluffy is a prime example that other wonders (miraculouses) do exist, but outside of the kwamis in the lineup, they won't appear or be used.

3. Nope! There's a massive block that prevents the sentimonster plot for happening which I will mention in question 4. As for Felix and Argos, they're not happening either. I was actually thinking of removing Felix completely because I want a mostly straight-forward plot. Besides, I doubt MnP!Gabriel would allow any of his possible accomplices to bear an actual Wonder due to risks that could come If the person was to betray them or ESPECIALLY allow hormone pumped teenagers to fight by his side long-term

4. I have a few designs in mind, but in miracuclass's case they're not going to be something major unless I have a really good idea for a rewamp. Besides, most of them aren't going to be that important anyway..

5. YES! I already made changes to the Wonders of butterfly, peacock, rabbit and slight tweaks to turtle.

Butterfly - as we know from canon, akumas serve a purpose to create faithful followers. I went along with that sentence and I decided that the wonder allows the user to SHARE their power with a person of choosing (the strong emotion requirement is still there). With that, It puts a limit on Monarch's (Hawk Moth) power as he can't send more than 5 akumas without feeling the effects on his body. Due to lack of power provided by the Wonder, the artifact just drains the user themselves to gather an efficient amount to share. I hope It makes sense the same way as it does in my head..

Peacock - While butterfly's Wonder has an extremely close relation to Ladybug (creation) and it COULD make sense, I never really felt the sentimonster power have the same engagement. To me, It feels like a plot device ESPECIALLY WITH LIVING SENTIMONSTERS. Idk. I gave it a minor purpose - to disguise/confuse. It might still change over time but currently, the power allows the user to "hypnotise" their person of choice. The idea mostly came from the feathers and eye-like elements on peacocks, distracting you with their beauty.

Turtle doesn't change much. I just figured the creation of the shield doesn't have to be JUST round so the turtle user can create a wall made out of the green hexagons. It could be useful in other situations like maybe using it as a platform or a bridge! I doubt Its canon, but If it is I guess no changes then

Most important point though - NO TIME TRAVEL. Yes, the rabbit wonder doesn't have time travelling powers and instead has ones resembling the horse's miraculous. It can jump into "the burrow" and jump out on the other side. Time travel is a plot device anyway, all my homies hate time travel (toh is the ONLY exception)

6. It's not a miraculous swap AU, no. Most of the holders will be aligned with the show, although there will be a difference here and there

Thank you again for asking!! Im glad the designs were interesting enough to get your attention

[erigold13261]

I think the butterfly effect that makes the arachinkids in the Sayu crew AU being a thing would be Gwen and co (or just Gwen?) being friends with Sayu crew online and distancing herself from her father, and the fallout between them happening a few years earlier, before she knew of her Peter ending with Gwen being taken in by NSR

Love that this actually came kinda close to what I did end up thinking of in my version of the AU! With the Arachnikids being online fans for the mermaids lol.

I do think the distancing from her father was probably something that did happen, but not intentionally. I can see Gwen really loving this girl mermaid online and seeing herself in her (at the time just like beta-Sayu before being the Sayu we see later on) but being super self conscious about a "boy liking girl things" and possible being seen as a girl before she was ready to come out (or maybe not realizing she was trans at the time and these mermaids are just what cracked the egg lol).

So she hid this part of herself. A part that would become a really big deal over the years and help her figure out who she truly was. Hid her online friends. Just started to become so distant from her father to try and play it safe as she started working with these mermaids.

I don't know what Gwen's Peter's home life was like, considering he was always around Gwen's family for the most part, so I don't think Gwen could use the excuse that she's just hanging out at Peter's place. I do think she might make an excuse that they are studying while she works at a cafe or library on the mermaids (with Peter there to talk with as she does this even though he doesn't care personally about these mermaids).

I can't really see a scenario where their blow-up happens earlier and Gwen being taken in by NSR (or at the very least the mermaid team who could help her). Mainly because if it happened earlier then Gwen wouldn't have means to run away efficiently (like a 14-15 year old running away is probably more successful than a 11-12 year old most of the time), so in that case it would have been a small fight but George would have been able to explain what he meant and apologize for his overreaction.

So in this regard, instead of the Gwen running away and showing NSR's corruption through their abuse of power and being basically above the law, it actually turns into George being really supportive of Gwen and even helping her make more time for these mermaids that make her so happy (and possibly even helping convince Miles' family to let him go to the Lights Up audition/NSR if Aaron couldn't convince them).

Maybe Peter still dies in this version, which could be a reason why George is just so supportive Gwen in this regard. Actually, it would be neat to see a dynamic kinda like how FRAU Mama pushes Yinu to play music because she thinks that is what Yinu wants and thinks she is being supportive. Except in this regard, Gwen actually wants this support and wants her dad to help push her (while FRAU Yinu thinks this is what Mama wants her to do and also feels obligated to keep playing instead of doing it for love and passion).

Perhaps this Yinu is going through something similar to FRAU Yinu, where she is slowly losing passion as she's been working at NSR by this point for about 6 years at this point. It wouldn't be as bad as the Failed Revolution, but she would start to be jealous of Gwen and George's relationship with the healthy communication while she feels like she can't fully talk to her mom. So that could be a plot point for this version of this AU!

Also, something I forgot to mention in my other long post of the AU, is that I love the idea that all these teens get into the mermaid project for different reasons. Like the Crew got into the project as a way to escape their home lives, Gwen used it as a way to express herself (similar to I think why Remi even started drawing mermaids in the first place). Peni was just super interested in the whole thing and just started fixating on the project. Miles was into the project but moreso loved the friends he made along the way. Ganke would be the opposite of Miles with him liking the friends and then getting care for the project itself. I think Margo was just looking for something related to tech both as an escape from her home life but for a potential project in her portfolio for the future that she just got really deep into the project and stuck around after making friends. Pav wanted to help out Remi as well as just have creative fun, and Gayatri would most likely have just joined in some sessions before getting really invested in the project and having a lot of fun with the voice acting which kept her on the project.

It's just cool to think that all of these different people from all over the world join together to make something significant happen! Literally it's like fandom and just online community, but it's so nice to see it in this kind of scale because it puts into perspective how great fandom community can be and how it can help people out of all kinds of situations.

Anyway, yeah sorry for that little ramble! I do definitely think the only way this AU happens is definitely because of kids/teens being online and finding life long friends because of that. :3

[narrators-journal]

A wolf in sheep's clothing

I feel so bad for the asker on Ao3 lol. This one took me so fuckin' long to settle on an idea for, and on top of that, I struggled to write Akechi for some reason?? I dunno why, but he feels iffy here, as does Akira, but I need this little beastie out of my to-do's lol. I hope you enjoy regardless!

Kinktober Masterlist: Here

CW: Very mild. It's mostly just spanking. Semi-public if you squint, as well as dubcon, but I just let this be a simple tease rather than a whole thing.

Being who he was, Goro Akechi was essentially the king of the metaverse. Soaked deep into the collective consciousness of the public, he could reach the devil for tea, and with the experience he had in palaces, helping with Sae’s casino was a cake walk. Even if he was limited to solely using Robinhood so as to not give himself away.

So, something as simple as breaking in after an expedition onto the game floor with the phantom thieves was meant to be quick, efficient, and utterly safe.

Yet...Loki still whispered in the back of his mind, “Maybe stick to robinhood. Kurusu seems like the type to explore on his own as well, and we wouldn’t want him of all people catching you.” “What would that do, though? I have a mask that hides my entire face in my other costume. All he’d see is a weird bird looking thing.” Akechi snorted, even as he worked his way through the more industrial-looking, less populated corridors of the palace. Not bothering keeping an eye out for shadows as he went. “Because I asked nicely. Just for the attitude, even if you DO try to call on me, I’m not coming out.” The bull huffed, and while Akechi was at least 60% sure his persona couldn’t disobey a summon, the petty threat still got his scarlet eyes to roll.

Loki was a bit favored, the brunette didn’t need to be the second coming of the detective prince to know that he preferred a persona more aligned with his true intentions and work than a sterile, goody-goody version. So, he could also admit to himself that his slight favoritism may have spoiled the demonic bull a tad. Leading to his ungodly annoying streaks.

But, regardless of Loki’s snobby power plays, or whatever weird bullshit was putting the monster on edge, Akechi did as he was told and kept to his princely, white-and-red costume with the embarrassingly long-nosed mask while he was studying the layout of Sae’s warped area.

The main floors had instantly been off of the table since he’d scoped the place out the first time. Simply too crowded and normal for him to be able to sneak away from the thieves if needbe, even with the distracting dance of lights and cacophony of sounds. So, that left the detective with the less guest-facing areas if he wanted any potential escape routes or stealth openings.

So, he took his time in his recon. Taking long moments to study any possible network of ventsilation shafts or hallways for a way to swing killing Joker without getting caught. Any shadow that dared to bug him simply got skewered by Robin’s arrows.

However, Akechi was prepared for a confrontation, even if it was with a phantom thief. What he wasn’t prepared for was to crawl halfway into a vent to peer down into the never-ending maw of cold metal, and hear the motor of a door or gate shutting. “Oh what the- AH!” In a matter of seconds, the great second coming of the detective prince...was trapped under a shockingly heavy metal gate. And, while Loki didn’t actually say anything, Akechi could feel the smug ‘I told you so’ rattling around his own head. “this is utterly fine.” He huffed out, planting the palms of his hands on the metal walls and trying to pull himself forward. “This is. Fucking fine.” Yet, much to his annoyance, the belt of his pants was too fat to fit under the garage door trying to seal the vent. “All I did was trip a single alarm. The gate’s not even crushing me, this is manageable.” “Are you sure about that, Crow? You seem kind of stuck from this side.” A new voice echoed through the metal.

The sudden addition of Joker registering to the brunette damn near took the man out like an almighty attack. Loki you slut, did you know about that horrid little bastard following us?! He internally snarled at his persona, simply getting a petulant “Humph!” As his response. Which was all he needed to know that he’d fist fight his own monster later. “Uh, I-I’m pretty sure, Joker. What the hell are you even doing here though?” He asked aloud, doing his best to seem properly confused and embarrassed rather than kick Akira in the nuts for existing. “I came back to see if I could use our game card to get extra coins. Since I couldn’t do much else and didn’t want to sleep...what are you doing here though? It’s, like, midnight in reality.” He pointed out, making Akechi chuckle slightly, “Ah, well...I was simply trying to get the lay of the land in here. Try to find the treasure room, or any keys and see if I could map it out for when we returned.” Relying on a softened truth and his natural bruised ego to sell it. Which, only got him a long moment of silence from the leader of the phantom thieves.

Then, that pesky road block of thick leather was abruptly yanked down. ”E-Excuse me?!” He snarled, his mask gone, his face red, and his teeth bared when he turned his head as best the vent would allow, to glare at the opening of lighting his body beneath the stubborn gate created. “Oh shit, I...I’m sorry.” Akira squeaked, that blood-boiling confidence gone just as fast as Akechi’s sugary tone was. That smooth voice suddenly uneven from the shot of flustered shame surrounding each stuttered word.

Yet, Akira didn’t pull Akechi’s snowy white pants back up, or pried that stupid gate back up. He instead simply sat there. Probably staring at the pale skin of the detective’s ass with that deer-in-the-headlights fear that Akechi had seen when they’d first run into eachother. What a dumbass. I’m going to fucking flay you, now. “Kurusu, you dumb fuck, fix-” His venom was cut short when he felt the sudden and sharp sting of a strike to his ass.

He’d been fucking spanked.

Not entirely intentionally, it seeemed. Judging from the awkward stretch of painful, silent seconds that followed. Nothing but whatever movement could seep into Akechi’s metal prison bouncing off of the vent walls, and Akira’s horror mixing with the detective’s surprise like paint in water. At least, until a switch seemed to flip in the phantom thief.

The awkwardness and impulsivity gone for a dark giggle instead. A sound far more fitting for his rather low voice, and one that sent a slight buzz into Akechi’s blood that mingled with the lingering tinge of pain from Akira’s strike. “Kurusu.” The detective prince tried, keeping his voice calm, and slow like he was talking to a nervous animal instead of a hormonal teenager seemingly slipping into some repressed fuckery. Or, perhaps those were both appropriate situations for that method. “Please pull my pants back up. And let me out of this vent.”

Another stretch of silence followed that… ”what if...I don’t though?” Holy shit.

Now, normally, Akechi would’ve summoned Loki the second his pants were fucked with. But, while he was slowly growing freaked out by Akira’s abrupt shift in personality, there was a voice within that was just barely louder than that anxiety. A dark, curious voice suggesting, Maybe, just maybe. We can hold off for a bit longer. See if we can talk our way out of it...or if it just takes a fun turn. With such impregnable reason, the brunette found he couldn’t quite muster the will it took to bring the demonic bull out. “W-why exactly do you prefer me stuck halfway into a vent?” He asked instead, only getting another smack to his ass cheek, and another ripple of conflicting pleasure and pain into his half-stiff cock. “I’m not sure,” Akira admitted the curious edge Akechi could just hear through the metal of the vents and the morbid darkness of the man’s words encouraging him. “I sort of pulled your pants down on impulse...but now I...dunno, just kind of enjoy this.” He continued, smacking the detective’s ass again to earn a hiss and a wince. That fucking gate throwing an unwanted dose of aching into the equation, but the thought of Akira possibly turning evil was...hot.

Letting out a slow breath, Akechi pushed that discovery down. Trying again, this time with more sugar in his words, “U-um, well if you simply want to hook up with me, this is...a sketchy way to make that known, y'know.” Which, got him another harsher strike to the ass.

At that point, his rear end stung like a horde of angry wasps, but the pain of the impact of Akira’s hand on his ass continued to radiate a delicious warmth throughout his body as well. “Y’know, I’m half tempted to tell the others your ass got stuck~” the phantom thief warned, almost purring with an evil energy bleeding from his words that sent another trickle of lewd excitement down Akechi’s spine despite the escalation. “Maybe I could let Ryuji and Yusuke take turns with you. I think it would be kind of nice to see such a pristine goody-two-shoes defiled in such a fun way.” He continued, his warm hand suddenly gentle as it lovingly rubbed the burning out of Akechi’s skin. Only feeding the heat that had his dick twitching. “That would be a crime, dumbass. Would you really want to add sexual assault to your record?” The detective snapped out, only to get a harsher slap to the cheek of his ass. “Maybe I’ll just assault you, then leave you for a fucking shadow to kill. How about that instead?” He shot back, and while Akechi knew that Akira was far from the type to even carry through on the first half, the way his voice dropped further into a venomous malice made his heart skip a beat as much as it made his dick twitch against the metal of the partially-shuddered vent. What in god’s name am I into? But, that thought was not one he wanted to ponder when he was stuck beneath a mall store’s shudder, on his knees, with his pants falling around his knees and a possibly twisted phantom thief making threats. So, he shook his head a bit and recomposed his social mask once again. ”Look, could you just...maybe pry the vent door open so I could get out? We can both just forget this entire situation. I’ll forget you pulling my pants down, and talking about killing me, you forget about me being stuck in a vent like a dumbass and my threat to report you.” A moment of silence followed his words yet again. Foreboding, but there was also a beam of hope for his dignity still.

Then, with a sigh that was nearly inaudible through the metal of the ventilation system, Akira pulled Akechi’s pants back up. Which, the detective prince took as agreement, so when Joker finally got the metal gate back up enough so that Akechi could worm his way free, he said nothing but a prim “Thank you, Joker.” and left it at that. Both men simply leaving that entire encounter at that vent opening and just leaving the palace in their own, separate ways. Not a further word between them, and the air around them a noxious mix of cold and awkward.

”Well, that was enlightening.” Loki chuckled when the two persona users had parted in those quiet hallways, but Akechi ignored any teasing from that motherfucker. He didn’t need a magical monster to state how mixed up and confused he was. Both at how such a sketchy encounter left him with a boner, and how Akira had it in him to stoop so low on...apparently impulse.

So many questions. No more time.