#i have such a backlog of writing now oh gods

[knightcallie]

Baldur's Bounties: Nicknames

At any point in life, one was given a nickname. It may be a shortening of a name, or perhaps it described something. That something could be of anything: circumstances, personalities, a moment in time, the body, favorites... Weichei contemplated the ones he has accrued over his lifetime and ones for his companions.

Weichei has been compared to a star before. He was not like the sun, something gentler. But he was not like the moon, something not so melancholic. The bright freckles on his cheeks had earned him the nickname of Starcheeks by Einar Cadmus, the paladin who gave it all up for music. His penchant for cannons and explosions earned him the name Starburst by Relentless Makatza, the gunslinger grandpa. 

His partners don’t really use the star nicknames from their own language (stellino, sternchen), using his love of cherries and his family nickname. ‘Cheri’ was typically called sweetly, fondly; but he could remember the calls of exasperation and shrill shrieks. ‘Mauschen’, the little mouse of his family. He was so small compared to his absolute giants of his family, and his ever moving inquisitive ears.

But for some reason, ‘Starlight’ slips out of his lips terribly easy for the vampire spawn of the camp. Astarion, little star in elven. Star was an obvious nickname, but for some reason, Starlight, was the one that left his lips. Wyll can take calling Astarion ‘Star’ or ‘my star’.

He can remember when he first called Astarion that, it earned quite an inquisitive look. It was like seeing the stages of grief on that pale face, but not those exact emotions. Then, a bit of a forceful bark of a laugh. “That’s cute darling.”

Then he kept calling him that throughout the adventure, earning some teasing queries from the other companions. He honest to gods don’t know why it came to him so easily, but nicknames were just also a 2nd nature to him. Damon was Dage (his big brother), Dalmond, Macadamon. Lor was just lengthening it and making the names just as ridiculous. Asperitas was Peri, Pear. Volna was Voli, Vol, Spines. Beaulieu was Beau, Bear. Damiano was Dame (either sayings), ex-husband/exie/my mistake (an extremely funny explanation), dancer. Vierna was Vie, Vienna. Yasdia was Ya-ya, Yazzy. Temerity was Mer, always Mer.

His new companions also had nicknames, though some may be kept to himself. 

Lae’zel was Lae, Zel, Lae’bel. Though, he’s not sure she’d be too keen with the nickname Toad being said familiarly. Suddenly, his heart ached at the memory of sharing custody of a frog and toad with Voli. They named them Missile and Toad respectively, especially fitting when Vetleviola came along.

Shadowheart was Orchid, Doe, Heart. He does shorten it to Shart from time to time in his journal. He’s sure she’d be appalled and punch his arm for it.

Wyll… bill… Duck, he landed with duck, and it stuck. The warlock hearing his reasoning admitted it was silly, but then when he explained that it also meant “dear” or “darling”, he softened. 

Karlach was harder to pin, having drawled out Karl. Lackey could be seen crossed out heavily in his journals. Fireball could be used, or perhaps comet. He’s working on it, maybe Chath (drow elvish for fire) would work.

Gale took some doing. They have been calling each other bookie, for their love learning and infodumping when allowed. He could see the wizard be an Eres-blessed, majorly at that. He could’ve been Eres’ Passion, and perhaps that’s why he called him Iris.

Halsin was Hal or Bear. He did remind him of Beau, he has seen large elves before. He married Beau, and his Vaddy was built like a tank. Though in his sleepy state, he has called the wood elf Sisi.

Jaheira reminded him of a grandmother, Oma slipping easily from him. She could complain and argue she was not that old, but she holds Joma close. She was probably around his parent’s age, maybe a little older. He’s also called her Heira, she doesn’t make as much fuss.

He’s told the group the whole splattering of names he’s been given. Weichei had become Weich, Cher, Cheri, Cherry, Cherries, T’puuli, Cher bear, Little Whistle, Silver Silence, maus, mauschen, little maus, triel, little triel, starcheeks, starburst, son, Batty, pup, puppy, little bat. And more he couldn’t quite recall. He’s lived 250 years, made so many friends across the trade, taught so many. 

He wondered, if the others were jealous of the type of life he’s lead. Out of everyone, he didn’t have a terribly tragic past, an abuser in his life. He’s grown up poor and constantly moved in a trade considered dangerous, but those were circumstances. His deity was quite different from the others, well the pantheon overall from his home was vastly different. They actually listened, but some do have iffy times with responses. As Eres’ passion, he was granted the blessing to be able to talk with his goddex often. Though, because the pantheon was different here, he needed a magic source to even be strong enough to get a signal.

He’s been called “my passion, passion” before, but that’s because he was chosen to be that. But hearing it fall from Gale’s lips did leave a warmth in his chest, a twinkle in his eye. Wyll took the various forms of Cheri, the familiarity just felt comforting as he leaned into the man. Astarion kept using “darling”, but that was kinda for everyone. But, he has taken to calling him mouse, finding it quite amusing especially after learning why.

[zeebee3]

Queen, I read almost all your recs and wanted to thank you.💙😍 I liked that most of them featured the breeding kink (I didn't want children before but now I might be reconsidering hehehehe).

If you could suggest more, I wouldn't be mad.😳🙏

Woohoo, so happy you read and enjoyed so many of them!! Your wish is my command--always happy to rec fics 😍

Again, in no particular order...

Dramione

She Will by Undertheglow. Draco/Hermione, written in future tense and poetic as HELL while still being scorching hot. I adore this one.

Dépaysement by Setissma. If you haven't read this OH MY GOD you're in for a treat. I can't be eloquent about how much I love it. It has it all (fake marriage, forced domesticity, tension and smut and feeelingggsssssss) and I can't be chill about it.

One Whole by SaffronGin. Don't be intimidated by the chapter count, they are delicious little bites. This fic is a JOURNEY in every sense and I had the best time following it as a WIP. In fact, I need to do reread now that it's complete--keeping the tab open!

The Unintended Consequences of Purposive Action by ellieauthor. When an accidental bit of roleplay has unintended consequences 🤭 Everything Ellie writes is whip-smart and banter-rich, and this is a peak example of it.

The Delivery Clause by ThornedHuntress. You've heard of arranged marriages, well the hot new thing is an arranged pregnancy. Enjoyyyy!

A Tentacular Spectacular by Sugarquilling. Hermione fucks the giant squid while Draco watches. I mean...idk what else to say about it (except read it, it's glorious)

We Fell In Love In October by ohthedrarry. This is a socmed AU (textfic) and dkfjsldfjskdfjl I just love it

CHESS CLUB by Ivy_and_right. Another textfic. Draco has a virginity kink, and Hermione is a virgin. Again, idk what else to say about it except that you will stay up all night reading it

icebreaker by ninepiecesofcrait. Nine really outdid herself with this one guys. PHEW BOY. Ginny gives Hermione a sex toy as a not-so-joking joke, but oops it's wrapped identically to Draco's gift. Guess which one he takes home. Guess what he decides to set to rights 🤗

For I Have Sinned by spicyxpisces and Stars_in_motion. Priest!Draco, devout!Hermione. We're not going to talk about how many times I've read this one. Join me in the soft-and-gentle edging depravity 🙏

atonement by takenbytheview. You know that scene in Atonement, when he writes That Letter then gives her the wrong one? Yeah. That. That but Dramione; That but somehow BETTER than it's ever been 🫠🫠🫠

Not Dramione

I Did Something Bad by charingfae. Tom Riddle/Hermione, with time travel and tension and the most toxic flirting you've ever seen. I think about this one all the time.

Voussoir by setissma. Look, I'm just gonna out myself as a die-hard Setissma fangirl. Just go through their backlog and read everything--do it do it! This is a Draco/Harry/Hermione triad fic, and reading it makes me both yearny and calm (as with basically everything else Setissma writes does).

Hydra by setissma. Omg weird, another Setissma? How'd that get in here? Pansy/Harry. READ IT READ IT READ IT. These are the characterizations I would die to be able to write.

Hopefully you find more fics to enjoy from here! And don't forget to kudos and, even more meaningful, comment so the writers know you enjoyed them too. It really does make all the difference 🥰🫶

[cuephrase]

Of the DC comics you've read so far, what would be your top recommendations for people to check out/what have you enjoyed the most?

when i tell you i have been thinking about this all day- i have been thinking about this. all. day.

so disclaimer, as of writing this, i have only read 31 runs from start to finish and 18 arcs/events outside of those runs. on top of, everything i've read so far has been strictly robin-centric, so dick, jason, tim, and damian. (i have read all of steph's robin appearances lol, but i haven't gotten to reading material for her, like say batgirl 2009, yet.) i've also decided not to rec from any run i'm currently reading, so for example, you won't see any batman: gotham knights recs here. because i'm most well-read on the robins, i'm only going to rec for them.

also, i'm going to operate under the following assumption: you've got a basic knowledge of the robins. none of these are where i would necessarily recommend anyone start reading about the boys, but i do think they'd be pretty interesting if you're already somewhat familiar with them and don't want to commit to reading whole character backlogs. does that make sense? i hope that makes sense.

alright, let's do this!

DICK GRAYSON

oh god. this one is actually so hard because he has so much great stuff, but then also i have like a love/frustrate relationship with so much of it. like for instance, i really enjoyed The New Teen Titans, but also lowkey can't stand space adventures so whenever that went down i was like 😀👍. but okay. hmmmm.

i have two preboot recs, with explanations + caveats.

devin grayson's mob!dick arc, so Nightwing 1996 #99-100, 107-117. caveats: it doesn't really get to finish playing out/wraps up weird because of editorial changes/infinite crisis. but!! it's a super interesting look at how dick handles...failure. how he values himself in light of that failure.

tomasi's run, but specifically #147-153. (listen, i love the dick and tim moments in 'freefall' but the whole eternally pregnant lady thing was too weird.) this is classic, hyper-competent dick, okay? he's such a bad-ass. and an idiot- bro literally flops his severely injured ass over the bars of his glider and rides it UNCONSCIOUS back to the batcave. i can't with him. poor alfred. anyways, he deals with two-face, always a good time. and then at the end, as a treat, he cries because bruce is dead. so fun!! what was my caveat here? oh yeah, he has a girlfriend. i don't remember her name, she serves like...very little purpose, the whole relationship is very minor/background okay, but like it was so unnecessary. he can be single, dc, it's okay.

for post re-boot, just read tom taylor's run!! it's the best thing ever!! zero complaints!!

HA. yeah, just kidding. that run is very like/frustrate for me lol. oh man i'm struggling here. it's not all bad okay, i'm just really picky, and i haven't re-read any nightwing n52 and onwards since my first foray into comics (8 months ago) so my memories of these are the foggiest and i'm not sure how i feel about all of it in light of what i've read now. yk what, i'm just going to...not rec anything. sorry!!

JASON TODD

his comics either go so hard or they're absolute ass, why is there no in between. istg, i can't figure out why writers struggle with him so much?? well. i mean, i do have theories. but you didn't ask for those!

pre-boot:

detective comics #569-574. robin!jason in the hands of writers who like him is so much fun. which, don't get me wrong, i don't flat-out hate how starlin writes him, but i think you get a more well-rounded view of jason as robin when you also see him in 'tec. jason and bruce tangle with the joker, scarecrow, + mad hatter, and all of those adventures are...idk if they were intentional foreshadowing okay, but reading those and knowing where the story goes? oof. especialllllly #574. caveat: #572 is pretty light on jason, but he is great when he's on panel!

reboot:

probably a very basic answer but rhato rebirth (2016) #1-13, annual #1. i abhorred n52 rhato so i almost skipped rhato rebirth since it was still written by lobdell, but i'm really glad i didn't. i really enjoy jason's relationship with bizarro + artemis, but especially with bizarro because i think jason struggles a lot with feeling like a doomed creation, so yk, parallels. i want to say more but i know i'll get too wrapped up in discussing jason so i'm just going to stop myself.

i actually really enjoyed task force z, too. i think about tfz #8 so much, jason is such a manipulative little shit and i love it. he's so- i can't. i can't get into this rn, it deserves its own post(s).

overall for jay, i need people to read something other than utrh/lost days/b:ul 1-6. i love those, i do, but they aren't the only good pieces of jason content!!

TIM DRAKE

MY BELOVED!!!!!!!!!! in my heart of hearts, i just want to rec his whole robin run lmao. dick was my intro, okay, he is why i decided to start reading comics, but tim, specifically his robin solo is why i'm still reading comics. hooked me fr. and young justice 1998, ugh love. but it has been a minute since i read these as well, so hmm. okay okay okay

pre-boot:

batman: prodigal. short version, tim is robin to dick's batman. super fun. there's a solid amount of dick and bruce angsting too, which, love. tim is honestly just thrilled that jpv is out of the batsuit and even happier to working with dick. very cute.

robin #46. listen. they're all superheroes okay, they all feel pressure to save people. but tim...losses get to him. the amount of times that he gets shoved to a breaking point and then...gets back up. keeps going. *screams*. anyways!! this is not tim getting back up, okay? this is him being shoved way, way down. it's so good.

teen titans 2003 #20. tim's dad has died. he shows up for his weekend at the tower anyways. he is not okay. that's it, that's the pitch. i did not like...mmm at least 80% of this run okay, but a few of the issues HIT and this was one imo.

reboot:

*deep sigh*. look. tim is not tim for like basically all of n52, although there are moments here and there were he feels like himself. i did not like his 2023 solo, the best parts of young justice 2019 imo are the character designs, (except for his drake costume, what was that omg), and i haven't read any rebirth batman/'tec yet. except for zdarsky's run. which. tim is good there! but yeah, not really a whole lot of material to work with + very limited reading experience atm.

DAMIAN WAYNE

god, i love this kid. nature vs. nurture fascinates me, and so much of his story digs into that on top of trying to figure out who he is apart from all of that. i will say, i'm not a huge talia fan and by that i mean, i have no idea who she is "supposed" to be, like i have no frame of reference for that atm, so if you are a huge talia fan these recs might not hit for you because from what i've observed from her fans she is not well portrayed a whole lot since becoming his mother? i think one of the things that is normal is dick absolutely disliking her though, which cracks me up. there's this older batman story (batman #322-335) where bruce works with talia and dick goes running to selina and i was so entertained. what were we talking about? oh! damian!

preboot:

batman and robin 2009 #10-12. damian is struggling, with a lot of things. the fact that bruce might be alive, what that means for him and dick, and his mother's puppeteering. there's this line that kills me: "can't you just love me for who i am? not what you want me to be?" and the thing that gets me, is the use of who vs. what. because he could have said, "not who you want me to be", but he doesn't

reboot:

batman: shadow war. this is post-alfred's death, and honestly, most damian stuff post city of bane is pretty juicy, but there's this specific moment in shadow war: alpha #1 that had me speechless. just like 😧 i love bruce, but that man has some of the most chronic foot-in-mouth disease. oh but fair warning, for whatever reason they don't draw dami's mask connecting?? it's so- it drives me nuts.

JUST FOR FUN

these are just two issues that i enjoy for the brother content!

nightwing 1996 #25. dick and tim's relationship makes me ILL. *ahem*. this issue is mostly just super cute and fun, (there's like 0.2 seconds of angst when tim asks dick if he ever thinks about jason 😭) and i adore it sm. fun fact, it's actually one of the first comics i ever bought!

batman 2016 #16. unfortunately, tim is not here for this, but duke is! jason and damian's interactions in the background of bruce's Very Serious Speech are excellent. bruce is so dramatic and his kids are so unserious.

what i've most enjoyed

i've enjoyed the majority of what i've read, even titles/events i wasn't particularly looking forward to but had on my tbr for whichever character. i'm going to break down most enjoyed into two catergories, arcs that i loved top to bottom and then the guilty pleasures. this is not an exhaustive list, just what immediately came to mind.

top to bottom

bruce wayne: murderer?/fugitive. shocker, ik. but it's just, it's just so frickin good. i've said before, and i'll say it again, gotham war could NEVER. this right here is peak batfamily drama. the tension? the mystery? the angst? i knew nothing going into this okay, and truth be told, when i started it i was like "oh joy. another event." because i was just trying to read the 1996 nightwing run, but i'd committed to reading in full all the events it crossed over with. but i was invested so quickly. and like, i loved how the narrative supported the possibility that bruce was the murderer, because like, you know there's no way, but the more that comes out the more damning it is, and so you're like really dying to know what actually happened and i feel like the reveal was satisfying.

batman: city of bane. i'm going to cautiously put this here, because there might have been something i didn't like but i cannot recall it for the life of me right now. something about me is i love when the heroes lose. infinity war, empire strikes back? love. and ik bruce takes back gotham, but they lose alfred, okay, they lost. i also didn't expect to like this arc, i decided to read it because i wanted to know how alfred died. and first of all, i was shocked, even though i knew it was coming because i expected it to like happen towards the end. but nope. just *snap*. and then later when bruce is back in the manor and is confronted with alfred's body and his good-bye message? oh. my. god. i was bawling. despite my penchant for sad narratives, i don't tend to cry that much, but this got to me so bad. like i had to pause because i couldn't see. amazing.

red robin. his cowl is so ugly, but i really do love the run. i see a lot of discourse about it and also a lot of...interesting fanfic takes, so i don't really talk about it a lot here because it feels like most people are kind of tired of hearing about this run, which fair. i really enjoyed it as a sequel to his solo robin run. tbh, i almost put this in the guilty pleasure catergory, because there are a couple things i don't totally love, but like if the others are 10/10, this is 9/10.

young justice 1998. i love this comic so, so much. i don't even know what to say, i get so overwhelmed with joy when i think about this comic. nothing has hit the same way with this group since either, which is a crime. i need a title with this team so badly.

guilty pleasures

these are all runs/events i know some/most? people cannot stand and i totally get why, and i have problems with them, so i'm probably never going to rec them in good conscience but also like i can't lie and say i don't like them. these are not recs, okay? okay.

robin war. is it a hot mess? yes. but there is not a whole lot of canon content out there with all the boys working together, okay? so much of that event had me banging my head into a wall, but for me, there were a handful of pearls in there. i mean honestly, if i listed out pros and cons the cons list would be way longer but those pros are very precious to me.

batman and robin: eternal. very similar reasoning overall to robin war. plus cass finally came back!! i missed her. i love robin!dick and batman content, and the kids working together. this is probably my least favorite guilty pleasure though, okay, it's on thin ice.

grayson. listen, i love janin's art sm. i'm pretty neutral about spy stuff, so like i don't engage with it a whole lot. meaning, although i've heard it's tropey af in regards to the genre, i'm not familiar enough with the genre to be like trying to dig my eyeballs out with blunt spoons at the cliche of it all. the constant sexualization of dick got old super fast, and her name may have been helena but she wasn't- my list of dislikes is lengthy. but idk, i had fun with it. and imo it does have some genuinely great moments, i love dick in the desert with the baby, the ache i felt when dick wanted to come home and couldn't get a hold of bruce, issue #12 stabs me in the heart- the dick and dami reunion? stoppppp. i feel like this run and the ric grayson era are dick's most out there lmao

so yeah!! thank you so much for this ask, i had sm fun answering it. if you have any recs for me, feel free to drop them :)

[voxofthevoid]

Twenty Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by my one and only Jesus @eusuntgratie

I recently cleared out all the ask/tag games in my drafts because I realized I'd reached the pile-up stage of putting things in there and not doing shit. Thanks to everyone who's tagged me in those the last couple of months and sorry I didn't get to any!

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

148

2. What’s your total ao3 word count?

2,005,606 (crossed the 2 million milestone recently and am still buzzing about it)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

I'm only writing for Jujutsu Kaisen, but I'm posting for Jujutsu Kaisen, Bleach, and MCU.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

I was so sure it was going to be all MCU, but nope, it's a mix of MCU and Hannibal. God, that was my first Ao3 fandom, and my Hannibal fics are from 2014. It's surreal people are still reading/enjoying them.

if you're looking for jesus (then get on your knees)—MCU

i'm a ghost, you're an angel (one and the same)—MCU

A darkness seen and shared—Hannibal

Ways and Means—Hannibal

the hand you want to hold is a weapon (and you're nothing but skin)—MCU

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do! I enjoy the interactions and discussions. Plus, since I'm not a Discord (or group spaces) person, it's how I find fellow fans to chat with, especially during my initial foray into a particular fandom. I do have a huge backlog of some 1.1k comments from 2020 to mid-2021 because I didn't have much time for fandom in that period. I'm chipping away at it slowly, but I'm pretty prompt about replying to everything on my post-2021 fics.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Hmm, this Hannibal fic, I'd say: Till the bitter end

Let's just say I predicted the series finale in some weird way.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Most of mine end happily—a few are ambiguous, while others are dark.

8. Do you get hate on fic?

Oh yeah. It's only happened with MCU and Jujutsu Kaisen, and they're mostly cases of overgrown children unhappy that I didn't write the ships or dynamics they want.

9. Do you write smut?

It's my specialty now 😎

10. Do you write crossovers?

Nah. I've done fusion-style AUs, but full-on crossovers aren't something I'd like to write. I'll read them, but I'm picky.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Multiple times (MCU and YoI, iirc), both within Ao3 and offsite.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Multiple times, for multiple fandoms! It's always a delight.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I did write one(1) fic that way, but it got yeeted into the void when my co-author deleted her entire Ao3 account. I have a copy, I think.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

I'm the kind of person who's most devoted to whatever is eating my brain at the time, so right now, it's Yuuji/Gojou from Jujutsu Kaisen.

15. What’s a wip you want to finish but probably won’t?

My writing superpower is that if I lose interest in a WIP, I also lose all desire to finish it and any guilt about it. And these days, I tend to start a fic and work on just that till it's done. So the answer is—none.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I write some smokin' hot porn, and I'm pretty good at threading character study through it. The porn is the plot, in most cases. I also enjoy doing background worldbuilding that serves to give the narrative a sense of depth despite the focus being on characters and relationships.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Fight scenes, ensemble casts, and sustained plotty plots.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

Ah, I can feel my Hannibal-era Google-translate Lithuanian judging me.

In general, I avoid it, but when I write for anime set in Japan, I tend to work in honorifics. My mother tongue has those too, so I know from experience that there are no English equivalents that capture the same vibe.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Hunter x Hunter, I think. That account no longer exists. On Ao3, it's Hannibal.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

I tend to be biased toward my newer works, so this keeps changing. At the moment, it's (let me be clear) every version of the story ends with you being slaughtered (JJK, goyuu).

Tagging (no pressure) 20 people because why the hell not: @possibleplatypus, @actualalligator, @joeys-piano, @cursedvibes, @backwardshirt, @m34gs, @naamah-beherit, @dragongirlg-fics, @crossroadswrite, @spacebuck, @jenroses, @calamitouskings, @knivash, @lo-55, @bookwyrmling, @sorrythatwasamistake, @ddelline, @lilyfarseer, @roughkiss and @deunan306

[snarkythewoecrow]

snippet of my untitled wip for a fandom i had no plans to write for, which is The Sandman, and it's a dreamling fic

seems i'm back on my predictable bullshit in life and writing things i had not planned when i have a backlog of other shit that needs doing

well, at least i'm predictable

so, not sure when it'll be done, not really sure about how the readers and fandom are over in these parts, but eh, rolling with it

i haven't read the comics, only seen the show, and this is me finally giving into the little gremlin in my brain and writing this shit so it'll shut up

this story will be heavy, angsty, and please see the bold warning below:

This fic (and snippet) contain implied rape/non-con

okay, so a little snippet is after the cut, i'll be working on this over the next week, creative energies are slowly returning, enjoy!

(oh and it's a/b/o too, in case that's not your thing)

"Please, Dream, it's not—I didn't—" Hob tried, the world a blur as his only anchor cutting the chain between them.

The stumbled, hurried steps he took in chase never had a chance of reaching him in time—Dream didn't allow himself to be halted unless he chose—Hob knew but still tried.

Further pleas remained lodged in his throat, though, as his gaze briefly caught a glimpse of the discarded flowers which now lay like corpses on the table.

His fingertips brushed Dream’s arm, but before they could make purchase, a gust of sand swept him away.

A hundred thoughts, all dripping with an oily coating of shame, overcame him.

His hand came to claw at his chest as realization of what Dream must have assumed, seeing him in that state, sank into his bones.

Shame and regret pried its fingers between his ribs and yanked, making plenty of room for anger and hurt to make a home.

Oh god, he’d thought… Dream had seen the teeth marks set into the flesh of his neck and not even hesitated to make a judgment…

And that fact, that he hadn’t paused, that he’d just seen the marks left on him by that—by that fucking alpha the night before—the one that had taken what he’d had no right to have….

It seemed impossible that the pain of what he’d been through could have been made worse, but this? The way Dream’s expression had hardened, closing off, the way he’d taken a step back then another, lifting his chin before discarding the flowers on the table, saying all too crisply, “I apologize for disturbing your privacy so unexpectedly—I’ll take my leave.”

Dream had not waited for an explanation—and as insane as it was, the hurt of his dismissal didn’t immediately bring Hob to tears. Instead, it lured something a bit more frightening from the depths,  dragged from the mangled mess of his heart.

Something that sounded wrong to his own ears—a giggle, small, then growing until it twisted and became just shy of deranged.

His shoulders shook as laughter overtook him, louder and more bitter to the point of hysterical as it cut his throat like shards of glass until he was choking on it, until he submitted to the hurt and folded to the floor, right there on his knees in the lingering sand on the floorboards.

[taylor-swift-bracket]

🎇Please reblog!🎇

Notable Bridges

(Under the cut)

Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)

Dear John

You are an expert at sorry and keeping lines blurry

Never impressed by me acing your tests

All the girls that you've run dry have tired lifeless eyes

'Cause you burned them out

But I took your matches before fire could catch me

So don't look now

I'm shining like fireworks over your sad empty town

Oh, oh

Enchanted

This is me praying that

This was the very first page

Not where the storyline ends

My thoughts will echo your name

Until I see you again

These are the words I held back

As I was leaving too soon

I was enchanted to meet you

Please, don't be in love with someone else

Please, don't have somebody waiting on you

Please, don't be in love with someone else (Ooh)

Please, don't have somebody waiting on you (Ooh, oh)

Back to December

I miss your tanned skin, your sweet smile

So good to me, so right

And how you held me in your arms that September night

The first time you ever saw me cry

Maybe this is wishful thinkin'

Probably mindless dreaming

But if we loved again, I swear I'd love you right

I'd go back in time and change it, but I can't

So, if the chain is on your door, I understand

Long Live

Hold on to spinning around

Confetti falls to the ground

May these memories break our fall

Will you take a moment? Promise me this

That you'll stand by me forever

But if, God forbid, fate should step in

And force us into a goodbye

If you have children some day

When they point to the pictures

Please, tell 'em my name

Tell 'em how the crowds went wild

Tell 'em how I hope they shine

Long live the walls we crashed through

I had the time of my life with you

Mine

And I remember that fight, 2:30AM

As everything was slipping right out of our hands

I ran out crying and you followed me out into the street

Braced myself for the goodbye

'Cause that's all I've ever known

Then you took me by surprise

You said, "I'll never leave you alone"

evermore

champagne problems

Your Midas touch on the Chevy door

November flush and your flannel cure

"This dorm was once a madhouse"

I made a joke, "Well, it's made for me"

How evergreen, our group of friends

Don't think we'll say that word again

And soon they'll have the nerve to deck the halls

That we once walked through

One for the money, two for the show

I never was ready so I watch you go

Sometimes you just don't know the answer

'Til someone's on their knees and asks you

"She would've made such a lovely bride

What a shame she's f*cked in the head," they said

But you'll find the real thing instead

She'll patch up your tapestry that I shred

ivy

So yeah, it's a fire

It's a violent blaze in the dark

And you started it

You started it

So yeah, it's a war

It's the fiercest fight of my life

And you started it

You started it

Tolerate it

While you were out buildin' other worlds, where was I?

Where's that man who'd throw blankets over my barbed wire?

I made you my temple, my mural, my sky

Now I'm beggin' for footnotes in the story of your life

Drawin' hearts in the byline

Always takin' up too much space or time

You assume I'm fine, but what would you do if I

Marjorie

The autumn chill that wakes me up

You loved the amber skies so much

Long limbs and frozen swims

You'd always go past where our feet could touch

And I complained the whole way there

The car ride back and up the stairs

I should've asked you questions

I should've asked you how to be

Asked you to write it down for me

Should've kept every grocery store receipt

'Cause every scrap of you would be taken from me

Watched as you signed your name Marjorie

All your closets of backlogged dreams

And how you left them all to me

Right where you left me

Did you ever hear about the girl who got frozen?

Time went on for everybody else, she won't know it

She's still twenty-three inside her fantasy

How it was supposed to be

Did you hear about the girl who lives in delusion?

Breakups happen every day, you don't have to lose it

She's still twenty-three inside her fantasy

And you're sitting in front of me

[evilpenguinrika]

How about 4 and 73?

Ask Game For Fanfic Writers

4. what is the plot bunny you’ve been carrying for the longest? optional bonus question: do you ever wonder why you haven’t written it yet and experience deep existential dread?

OHHHH BOYYYYYYYYYY. I actually have a few I believe. But I'll share a few since this would end up getting way too long lol (plus I would have to comb through my backlog to remember):

I have two plus one rewrite ideas for Ikarishipping. The rewrite is basically just a whole rewrite (for the second time in my life) of my biggest at-the-time on-going fic Bluebells and Lavenders/re: Bluebells and Lavenders that I posted way back on ffnet. The reason being that when I first wrote BbaL I was like, 13-15 and got a really nasty flame comment (I am showing my age with this lol) about my grammar and writing syntax, plot, etc and like, at the time despite English being my first language, I just could not understand grammar or the basics of the English language (look, words are hard okay 😥).

So I decided from that flame comment I was going to rewrite that fic and I did when I was 16-17. But since then my writing and style have changed and I would like to rewrite it and post it on ao3. I think I haven't gotten around to it is because it's just... A lot to do. And a lot to plan. When I rewrote BbaL and wrote re:BbaL I had meticulous notes that I have no idea where they are now.

The other two Ikari fics I want to write, one is insp by Marianas Trench song "Haven't Had Enough" which I also originally wanted to do a Cosplay Music Video back when I was 15-16 because why not lol. Plus CMVs were really popular back in my day (OH GOD I USED THAT PHRASE). I'm not sure if it's still popular now? It would be, also a Modern AU/College AU I think? I haven't really thought that ahead other than "slow burn rivals to friends to lovers" LOL

And the second idea is just inspired by the song "SUPERMODEL" by Maneskin. I'm not sure what the root idea would be other than maybe Paul and Dawn are both huge top models...? Yeah, I hadn't really gotten too far with this idea haha.

Another plot bunny I had on hold is a Hosie one actually! Actually I have a lot but I'll share two:

One is a Modern AU and it's actually inspired by my time working on student films. Except this idea is more Josie has a webseries and brought in friends from her film school days to help her out and Hope is the cinematographer. I started writing it actually, around the same time I was working on my own webseries. But since my webseries project went caput, I haven't found motivation to keep writing this fic.

The second is a Life is Strange 1 AU where Josie is Max Caulfield and Hope is Chloe Price. I wanted it to also be like a "choose your own adventure" type fic as well where at the end of certain chapters with BIG decisions, you would then pick your choice between 2 options and skip to whatever chapter your choice would be in. I think the reason I haven't done this is cuz it's also pretty hefty to write, and also doing a "choose your own adventure" is gonna require lots of meticulous planning that I don't have the spoons for.

73. how do you visualize scenes? do you see it like a movie in your head, or do the words just flow?

Definitely like a movie in my head!! It helps me more when I picture the scenes I want to write in my head and then I just figure out the words from there.

It's especially helpful when I write fight scenes! I watch a lot of anime and other action-based shows (recently binge watched Cobra Kai and watched some clips from The Magicians since I miss that show a lot), so when I write fight scenes in my stories (mainly You're The One Born To Save Hosie series), I just visualize the fights/actions like an anime. I mean, I already mucked up the magic lore in the TVDUniverse so I might as well keep going with the artistic liberties and flair with it haha. Plus, it's really fun writing these anime-esque action fight scenes :3

.

thanks for the ask!!

[spectrechosts]

Heaven Sent - Chapter 4

The angel gets a tour of Lust, and just might be interested in some of the activities on offer.

With this we're finally fully caught up on Vandalize as it existed on Cohost. Expect a break from it while the rest of the backlog goes up, and then I'll write more.

Full Series

"With all that out of the way: Welcome to Lust." Lilith says, dragging the leashed angel into the hall. "This is my palace, home to myself, my most cherished succubi, and for the time being; you. Allow me to give you a tour of the amenities."

She strides forward, Grezayla and angel in tow, and the angel grimaces.

"What is-" It asks. "Why is it all moving?"

"Oh, you can see that? I thought the effect was quite seamless, but perhaps you have a lower tolerance for such things. Standard desire-based non-euclidean architecture; big palace, small travel time." Lilith explains. "Just walk and you'll end up where you want to be."

"We don't want to be anywhere down here." Huffs the angel, and Lilith rolls her eyes.

"Walk and you'll arrive at the destination that you seek for purely emotionless reasons, then. In the meantime, you're on my leash and you'll go where I want. Do keep up."

"First! The courtyard!" Lilith says, gesturing at the courtyard. The succubi occupying it glare daggers at the angel but keep their distance. "We have flowers, a delightful pond with a soothing little waterfall, you'll often see succubi relaxing out here when someone isn't crashing down and ruining it."

"You think you can tempt us into sin with a little waterfall?" The angel scoffs, unimpressed.

"No, I think you ought to apologize to my girls for violating their thoughts with your pious drivel while they were just having a nice time, not hurting anyone."

The angel says nothing; not to her, and not to her girls. Lilith sighs dramatically.

"Impolite, but I didn't think you'd have proper manners. We'll teach you." She says. "Moving on-"

~

"The lava spas! Nothing like letting the heat burn all your aches away after a long day. Provided, of course, you don't have to wrestle a foolish pest into them to stop it from attacking everyone for no reason."

"We care not for temperatures."

"That's great, Feathers."

~

"The orgy chamber! Big, comfortable; Just the other week-"

"Yes, yes, we heard the name we don't need you to regale us with tales of your filth." Interrupts the angel.

Lilith tilts her head. "Actually, I was going to say that I made great use of it cuddling everyone after you upset them all so terribly. But yes, mainly for orgies. Sometimes my appetites grow out of control and I gather everyone together; spend days in there fully sating my desires so that I can focus again."

She looms over the angel, fangs bared.

"Does that disgust you, Feathers? Do you hate the beast your god made of me?"

"…You made your choice."

"I suppose I did." Lilith hums, smiling. "Much as I choose to ignore your disdain now! Continuing the tour-"

~

"Is this tour just for you to repeat how much everyone hates us over and over?" The angel asks as it's pulled along, passing by more and more angry succubi.

"Feathers, no!" Lilith says, in mock offense. "We don't hate you, we hate that you crashed in and attacked us. What do you say, 'love the sinner, hate the sin'? I, for one, would really just like for you to apologize so we can all move on."

The angel turns away from her, and finds itself face-to-face with Grezayla.

"She means it, you know?" She says, softly. "I know you're scared, I was scared, but she's very forgiving."

The angel just stares at her, peering deep into her eyes.

"Some of these poor souls I can't expect any better from, but how did you fall for this?" It asks.

"Hey." Lilith growls, yanking the leash. "Dangerously close to not treating my girls with respect, right now."

"-can really feel the forgiveness-" It spits.

"You will be forgiven when you understand what you did wrong."

"Mistress, it's okay." Says Grezayla, and then she lights up. "Look, there's Azzy! Let's introduce you to her, everyone loves Azzy."

Azaerixia strides up to the angel and stares it down, fists balled.

"Apologize for hurting Mistress." She demands.

"Why should we? We act in accordance with God's will." The angel says, turning its nose up at her.

Azaerixia trembles with barely contained fury.

"Because… Because… Because you're acting in accordance with being a dickhead!" She squeaks, eyes scrunched shut. "And you have to stop so we can all be friends and have fun and touch your feathers and take you to painting night and movie night and bake cookies and give you a makeover and find you new clothes and teach you to kiss if you want-"

"Wait, Azzy, go back." Lilith cuts off her rambling, furrowing her brow.

"It's… acting in accordance with being a dickhead?" She says, opening her eyes slowly and tilting her head.

"After that."

"Painting night?"

"Painting with everyone is fun, you really don't want to miss it." Grezayla agrees.

"Just, list everything it's going to miss out on again."

"This is worse than the tour." Whines the angel as Azaerixia starts up again from the beginning, but its whining doesn't matter, what matters is-

There!

Right there, when Azzy talks about makeovers and dressing up, the angel's speck of want brightens.

That's what it wants? That's so… trivial.

"As fun as this all is, I'd like to go back to Lucifer now." Says the angel.

"It would be more fun if you apologized, I have more activities I can list-"

"That's fine." Says Lilith, removing the leash. "You can keep the collar, I meant it when I said it's cute. See you soon, Feathers."

The angel vanishes in a whirlwind of feathers, and a plan begins to form in Lilith's head.

[riewritten]

Hiiii rieeee! How are doing these fine days (me? Not so good haha but ill live)

Sorry im late, but im finally here to drop you the things you asked for last time about the drabble idea. Here's what i came up with;

readers feelings: she appreciated him as a friend, then as she got older, it bloomed into something 💓else💓

is it one sided: both of them think its one sides but no its not one sided. They both liked each other, Its kind of tragic if you think about it. Neither of them knew the the other liked them, then suddenly they just got torn apart from each other. And those feelings still lingering in their heart, to the point neither of them got serious with someone else.

did Erwin's mother have any hand in readers family's misfortune: no, Erwin's mother had nothing to do with what happened to her family. Her father just made some bad business choices that made him lose his money and nobility, so they moved from their house and left town. Until reader became a responsible adult and moved back in twon for her little brother's education. That's when our King Erwin Smith saw her. It was her father who advised reader not to meet with the crown prince anymore, no matter how close of friends they are, her father told her it would paint a bad image for the prince to befriend someone from the lower class. She was hurt by his words but she understood the mission. Her father was a mere noble who served the royal family when it came to businessand trading, and they lost the right to serve after what had happened. And it made them keep to themselves even more.

The story doesnt really have any deep drama in it, there might be some twists and and turns to stop Erwin and reader from being with each other. Like their dumbasses not knowing the other person's feelings, or Erwin's mother arranging a blind date for her son, or reader's father not accepting their relationship because it would ultimately harm his daughter to be the King's wife than do any good.

And if i want to spice it up, I'll have Erwin get in a car accident and forget that he loves reader or something

Im just joking.... unless ,':) In any case, it was small idea for a small fic that i dont know if ill ever write it.

You did ask for my writing blog, and that is: @fictionallystable its just there as a backlog of writings i did or writing i like to share or save to read later.

hi jay!! oh my god thank u for answering my questions last time 😙 first of all the "they both think it's one sided" NOOOOO WHY

in for the angst tho. and i like that your characters, even the side casts like reader's father, still have their own volition that makes the plot run and theyre not jus silly caricatures standing like 🧍‍♂️ as our main leads do everything by themselves

but the car accident!!@ plEASEEE JDJSDJS 😭😭😭

^ lichrally u with the spongebob meme you attached 😭

and yipee for the writing blog!! been talking to u for a while now and i know someone has a talent for writing when i talk to one, so i hope u keep it up!! (imma follow ur writing blog too jus in case u drop a dish 🤭)

the fanfic has manhwa vibes on it (mayb bc royalty plots are so prevalent in manhwa) and when i imagine erwin in that drawing style i jus deadass-

[verecunda]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @firebatvillain... er... a few weeks ago, I think. Thank you! Sorry it took me so long.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

136.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

396,444.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Oh, God. Loads, too many to list. Tolkien is currently at the top of the list, and I'm also deep in the extended Jacobite Literary Universe. :D Generally, my fandoms tend to have some sort of historical and/or fantasy setting.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Amo, Amas, Amat (NATM, Jedediah/Octavius) Slightly Scandalous (NATM, Jedediah/Octavius) Kindred Spirits (Ghosts, Captain/Thomas) Reality Bites (NATM, Jedediah/Octavius) Poetry Slam (NATM, Jedediah/Octavius)

My NATM fics are still my most popular ones by a country mile. I still get almost daily kudos on all of them, which is somewhat bamboozling, given that they're pretty old, very short, and there's been a lot more NATM fic written since then. But it is nice that folks are still finding them and reading them. :D

Then there's that random Ghosts one in there, too!

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yeah, almost always. I like to let readers know I appreciate their feedback, and it's fun to flail about our favourite characters and ships. Though right now, I have to admit that I have a bit of a backlog of comments that I need to respond to. But I'll get there. :S

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I've written a few, but possibly Nunc Dimittis, which is about Morgoth sending Sauron away at the final fall of Angband. It ends with Sauron feeling the moment that Melkor is taken captive, then later, when he's cast into the Void, and realising he's now truly alone. That fic was entirely Dark Lord angst. :P

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Oof, a fairly tough one. I'm quite big on giving my ships happy endings, wherever possible. But I'll go with A Few Good Years to Spend, because that whole fic was an exercise in giving Andreth and Aegnor a happy ending. But I very much liked the final scene, with Andreth growing old and Aegnor as totally, utterly besotted with her as ever. It also had them all surrounded by the various kids of the House of Bëor, and Aegnor being the confirmed favourite, and the image was cute. :3

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not really. I did get one really weird comment on a fic, which was basically a diatribe against the POV character. But it had nothing to do with the actual fic, it was about the character in the canon, and it seemed like it was part of some larger screed had just been c+p'd from some other site. Very strange.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yeah, every so often. I wish I wrote more tbh, because I'm a pervy wee hobgoblin. I've never even written an f/f scene or a proper threesome. So far, all my smut has been fairly tame, but I'd like to try my hand at some more kinky stuff at some point. ;)

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Yeah, when inspiration strikes. I don't know about the craziest, but I think the daftest must definitely be And Long Would Mandos Hold Him, where Death from Horrible Histories meets Saeros from The Children of Húrin and is, naturally, delighted. That one was a riot to write. XD

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge, but fuck, who knows. The internet is huge.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

A few times, into Chinese and Russian.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Not really, not if you mean both of us writing. I think the closest I've come so far was when I collaborated with peasina for last year's Pod_Together, which involves teaming up to create both a written fic and a podfic version of the same. It was a really fun experience, coming up with ideas for a story together, and interesting, because it's the first time I've ever written a story specifically intended to be read aloud, so it was something to keep in mind all the time I was writing. The end result was A (Confirmed) Knight Bachelor: written version here and pod version here. I really enjoyed doing this one! :D

14. What’s your all time favourite ship?

God, I don't know. I have no idea how to gauge that.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

ahahahaha... oh God, right now, it feels like all of them. XD

But really... sadly, probably the Legolas/Gimli post-LOTR fic I started. Honestly, I think the fact it was looking to end up as a multi-chapter affair kind of scared me from the get-go. Then I wrote myself into a knot trying to work out Legolas and Thranduil's dynamic immediately after the War of the Ring. No doubt it's the sort of thing that could be easily worked out with a bit of tinkering, but I got discouraged and ended up shoving the whole fic on the back-burner, where it's like to stay. :[

(Of course, talking about it inevitably makes me want to open it up and have another crack at it. But realistically, I don't think I'll ever finish it.)

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think I do character voices pretty well, and in book fandoms, I think I can usually pull off a decent pastiche of the style. And on a good day, I think I can do good descriptive prose.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Fucking plots, how do they work??? On a bad day, I think my prose is overdone and pedantic: too fussy.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

It can definitely add something - authenticity, atmosphere - but should also be used with caution. Writing is all about communication, after all, and if you start writing whole screeds of conversation in a language that you're not guaranteed your target audience will understand, you're not serving the story, just trying to show off. Economy is the key, I think. I also usually include a translation, either as an endnote, or as a hover-over caption.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

lol technically, I think it must be historical RPF. I used to write wee stories about the historical peeps I was obsessed with at the time.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

Oh, how the hell is anyone meant to answer a question like that.

Tagging, with no obligation: @nocompromise-noregrets, @cilil, @bryndeavour, @chiropteracupola, @regshoe, @sanguinarysanguinity, @technicallycleverdetective, @swanmaids, @cycas, and @di-daydreamer.

[failsafes-guardian]

The Cayde Ones - yeah these ones just contain cayde, thats it.

Two convos which Cayde-6 is present, because I really need to get these down and start writing new stuff.

[Cayde's Concern - Originally written on 06/22/24]

"Hey Failsafe, I got a question."

"(depressed) yes cayde unit?"

"You know Charlotte right? Cute thing bout yay high, usually silent, good with a cannon?"

"yes, and?"

"Do you think she's been actin weird lately? Usually she goes solo wherever she's needed but she hasn't been doing much work lately."

"(Cheery) She's been talking to me a lot and sounds fine!"

"Oh! That's uh, good. Good for her, she seemed lonely a lot."

"She's very sweet! She describes other planets to me so I can imagine what its like outside of this husk of a ship!"

"Oh wow. She's never really been talkative enough to anyone to do something like that.."

"(depressed) weird, she loves doing it for me, she talks about how much I would have loved io a lot and where she would take me."

"Are you.. two, like, a thing?"

"(Cheery) I hope so!" --- I don't have any huge comments for these but I hope that people enjoy my Cayde writing as much as I do. ----

[Sometimes You Don't Even Know You've Got A Winning Hand - Originally written on 06/23/2024]

"Hey kid, got a second?"

"of course."

"Great, awesome, I've been wondering and uh no disrespect or anything, not gonna scold you, but you've not been on a lotta ops lately."

"oh. yeah, uh, just wanted a break i guess.."

"I've seen your logs kid, im not gonna pry buuuuttttt, you've been to nessus a lot. wanna tell me the details?"

"i- i mean-"

"It's failsafe ain't it? Little robotic heart in there feeling a little warm? Nothin wrong with it, I get it even, yknow, ba-"

"ssshut up. she just, had a low battery and i needed to clean her solars and refill her generators.."

"You'd think your helmet would make you better at bluffing, its why I always sweep you in poker."

"you sweep everyone at poker."

"not the point but thank you, my point was- uh.. where was I?"

"failsafe"

"Ah! Right, yeah her, it doesn't take 10 trips over the course of a week to clean some panels and fuel up her generators kid."

"…"

"I've been mentoring you for, god I can't even remember how long, but I know the face you're making right now, i've got you."

"…"

"I know what's up, and I don't wanna say this because failsafe already dislikes me but, on the down low kid. She likes you too."

"oh…"

"Yeah, don't worry, nobody needs to know, it'll be our little secret, you've got a winning hand if you play it right."

"… thanks cayde."

"Anytime kid, anytime." --- Cayde is such a good wingman, forget hunter vanguard, get him on the bachelor or something.

these ones are kinda long to put together but i mostly just need to get through the rest of my backlog.

[jamiesfootball]

5 and/or 9

5. What do you wish someone would ask you about [insert fic]? Answer it now!

from oh god you're gonna get it (you have not been given love)

Jamie's story during his messy attempt at a Ted Lasso speech was based off an episode of Community. Moe's spoken word poetry is thematically relevant. I have hidden clues regarding future character beats all throughout the first chapter. We will find out what Roy does with the Kunt shirt. At some point, Jamie will find out about Roy likening him to Icarus. Chapter 12.

9. How do you find new fic to read?

Right now it's almost purely based on recs, and even those are in backlog. I just haven't had the time to do a deep dive on AO3. Most of the time I spend not writing, I've been reading one of the dozen or so books I picked up for research.

[janiedean]

I know it's been a long time, but do you plan on writing Sandor's pov of the Heart Thing series? I'm poor, so I won't commission the fic, but I wanted to at least know how you think he'd deal with it (ex, would he hide and try to ignore it, would he try to be a better person, whisper almost-kind words to it when Sansa is sad?)

hey anon, first of all thank you so much for the kind words and please no need to commission anything like I'm just glad people still remember it T_T

that said with answers for both your questions:

yes I do plan on writing that but when it happens is... up in the air because meh like I'm trying to not sound whiny about it but if it wasn't clear from my less than stellar production lately my mental health has been completely down the drain lately and as it is rn I'm finding it extremely hard to put words together unless I have an extremely hard deadline and as it is I'm trying to finish a bunch of comms that I started but I'm like really struggling with liking anything that I write so tldr: yes but it could be three months from now and it could be next year, sure af I hope it's sooner rather than later because I really don't relish any of this but eh T_T

how he'd deal with having it: first time it happens (which would be after they get together which like.. he can't actually deny it's A Thing yknow she got his so) he thinks he someone went on a bender and forgot even if he tried to cut down on the drinking and then he's like oh god nope it's really here what the fuck and immediately gives it back to her like IM NOT WORTHY HERE, she's like yeah okay sure but I don't think it's gonna end here (she's fine with it), the second time he gets it is when she's sad for some reason and she's not nearby so he has to take care of it and actually worry about it and he's like god what do I do and just keeps it close and tries to not make anyone notice, then it happens again when something bad happens to her and she's not immediately nearby and as you said he tries to tell it something nice which for his standards would be weird but it actually works because she actually feels better and then she's all smug when she tells him and he's like wait what are you fucking kidding me

and she's like sure I'm not :DDDDDDDD

so pattern he always gets it when she's sad or down or has dealt with crappy people and so on and at some point he just embraces it like yknow what I denied it for ages but it makes no sense that I should now oKAY FINE I'M NOT UNWORTHY OF THAT

sansa is just :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD for the entire next month and robb's like did you just propose her or what NOT THAT I'D SAY NO AND NOT LIKE SHE DOESN'T WANT IT sandor is like maaaybe that's uh for another time MAYBE

he probably springs the maaaybe weee should make it official thing not long later tho

robb is just extremely happy of how he matchmade half of this union XD

ngl there were things I wanted to do in that verse including the throbb fic and sansa meeting brienne like you were my role model too but eh as stated at this point I'll be just glad if I manage to finish my commission backlog and/or literally anything that won't feel like crap after five lines so i can't guarantee it's happening at any point soon, sorry anon T_T

[asksoldieron]

SO-12: The Spirit of Harpo Marx

If there's a lot of engagement on this, this post is liable to get real long, beware before you expand.

Welcome to the Engagement Lounge, for Alight at the Window (SO-12) an instalment! Short comments can go in the replies, but there's a 475 character limit. Longer ones will need a reblog. Remember to @asksoldieron if you're reblogging someone else's reblog, so I can see it too!

Awwwwww, ya know? Awwwwww ❤️!

Poor Erik is in ⚡🔋no shape🔋⚡ to communicate, but he's doing his best. Maggie has no idea whether he's messing with her on purpose, or what's wrong with him, but she won't let him go. They'll get to him eventually. (I've just finished that part, actually. They've got him! Uh. Sorta. At least he's... safe now? 😅Oh, I can't say that with a straight face.)

This is the last of my queued posts/instalments, and I have no idea where my reading and drawing ability will be when it goes live. If I can't update you on my condition (and the condition of the next six instalments) I'll hafta have the spouse type a note for me. I want to do six more right away, or I might take a two week break, or - if I'm really struggling - it'll be a break of indeterminate length. I hope I'll be okay to just keep going, my Patrons have been so patient this year. Thanks, y'all.

But, either way, there will be a break at some point, because I'll have a while where I can't write or draw and that's going to eat up my backlog. Also, recent updates have done more stupid things to my theme and I think the site needs a redesign - maybe including some radical simplification. I'm just not mobile friendly and I can't make the current format behave. People with better eyesight than me do a lot of reading on their phones.

I have no idea how to build a community and I'm flailing, really, but maybe if I can get the interface more convenient, more people will like me? (I have no idea. Probably they won't.)

Look, though! You've got some extra art to tide you over! And a song!

I'm not in love with how Erik's design looks right now - he looks like a train wreck, but he should look like a train wreck. Nobody is going to fix his hair. I still feel self-conscious about it. He used to be cute. I've got to do a full-body rendering of how he'll clean up, but I don't have time for it now.

However, I did do a page of something trying to get comfortable with his ability to emote in train reck form. I don't have time to finish it, but I think it looks cool so I'm sharing.

This is potentially a way for me to serve you the music without lyric backgrounds that you can't read! It's very labour-intensive, but I was figuring out how to do it and it might get a little easier with practice. Also, my current tablet is struggling with the resolution and I plan to update it by the end of the year - depending on sale prices.

After I saw Hedwig and the Angry Inch, I found out the original Off-Broadway incarnation had filked music with lyrics by John Cameron Mitchell. 🥹😊I'm calling it! This is something other people sharing my identity do to tell their stories! Filk musicals are an enby thing! We do not give a shit about the music industry's copyrights! I'm performing nonbinary correctly!

So here's the lyrics again, and maybe I'll give you the rest in comic form as my vision and my tools improve.

You Are Found! (based on "We Are Young" by fun.) I need a minute, I… I don’t know if I’m ready yet I’m tryin’ to get my shit together, Maggie, please don’t be upset My family must be looking for me somewhere very near Guess I knew you must be coming but I can’t believe you’re here, and… It’s been forever since I’ve seen your face I know you want to take me home But although it hurts to do this work they need my help for what it’s worth —  Oh, gods I’m not sure if I wanna go So maybe if, next time you see me, You can take me by the hand, You’ll steal me away At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down No, I wanna go home I’m just not done I guess that I, I just hoped We could visit and I’d get right back to work But I can’t go yet So I must forget 'Cause I think you’ll hafta steal me away At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down Steal me away at last (na na na na na na) Come steal me away at last (na na na na na na) Steal me away at last (na na na na na na) Come steal me away at last (na na na na na na) The gods have their own plan (na na na na na na) But I’m just one weary man (na na na na na na) So you're gonna hafta steal me away at last (na na na na na na) I have so much to do (na na na na na na) How can I go with you? (na na na na na na) So you're gonna hafta steal me away (na na na na na na) At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down At last I am found So I guess the party’s over Time to get sober, and come down So maybe if, next time you see me, You can take me by the hand You’ll steal me away at last

See you soon! Ha, I hope!

Late edit: Two week break, folks. No drawing ability yet, so we're stuck with it. I still hope to get you the next six by the end of the year. I'll keep you posted!

[Back to Site?]

[benkyoutobentou]

31 Days of Productivity Reading: Day seventeen

I didn't write a before section, so we're starting right with it today.

I'm free! Today was the last performance of the musical I've been playing in. In general, I do enjoy playing in pit orchestras, but the location of this performance was just brutal and I've been sick of it for. Since I started.

Look at me go, thing are going exactly to plan. I read seventeen pages today, which is a little less than usual, but leaves me with exactly thirty pages to read tomorrow. Using my average reading pace of four minutes per page, that puts me at just over an hour of reading (an hour and eight minutes to be exact). Tomorrow, I'll be finishing 独り舞！

If I read anymore tonight, I'll pick up a manga, but it's not looking likely, as I'd rather use my time to continue clearing out my JPDB reviews and start my way on getting through some flashcard backlogs for other languages, since I haven't had much time to even review vocabulary consistently with the musical going on. It also doesn't help that JPDB is actually the only flashcard system I can access on my phone (I use Anki for Mandarin and Mango for German as of right now, but I've really been thinking hard about downloading Mango onto my phone).

Oh my god..... I have free time again. You know what this means, right? Of course not because I am about to type the most ridiculous thing. I now have time to watch all those Beijing opera performances on YouTube I've been wanting to see!

[lesbianjesuslovesyou]

oh dear god. Dear god. Fuck. Dear lord. Dear lord have mercy.

I have fallen through a fever dream of a rabbit hole and indubitably gotten drunk in your fanfics. Like I don’t say this often. But your fanfics legitimately manage to incorporate ALL of my kinks. And theirs like. So fucking many of them.

Your fics + name swapping sites have been legit the only thing that’s kept me going for like the past week. It’s like a drunk haze except I’m not drunk I’m just insanely horny (I recently started testosterone as I’m transitioning. So yeah. That’s why)

but holy FUCK. You’re like some fucking Angel sent from above. You have spanking overstimulation, degradation AND super dom tops + whiney pathetic bottoms??? It’s just. God. So fucking good. I feel delerious just thinking about it. You’ve made me delirious.

Sorry for that long ass intro. I think I just came here to metaphorically ask/ beg if you take requests or any type of prompts or anything?

Fuck I do love the Cytherea and Gideon fics don’t get me wrong I also love the Harrow and Gideon stuff too. I just like a little non/dub con in my smut fics sometjmes. Brings an extra rough element. And you always have Cytherea give off such perfect ‘Mean Mommy Don’ vibes ifnejdjsjdjd.

something even wacker? I’ve never read a single tomb book. I had no idea what it even was. I still haven’t read it yet. I just know the characters single-handedly from your fics. I typically replace all the names with my current favorite ship which is Toradeen. Aka Toralei x Clawdeen from monster high. With Toralei as the bottom cause girlie ain’t topped a single thing in her life and she not about to start now lol.

but what’s so fun is that you’ve seriously gotten me interested in reading those books. I have a severe backlog of books I need to read. But I’m definitely adding the series to the list just cause of you! So uh? Win for the tomb series?

anyway sorry this was long. I just got excited to see you were on tumblr

sa/lkdsnkkgdjhfallbjsfbdsk vjghfdkbjvnskz Oh my GOSH, you are the sweetest!!! I am SO glad you've enjoyed my fanfiction. Truly, that means the world to me. <3 And you haven't even read the series! It is definitely worth looking into; Gideon the Ninth is legitimately one of the best books I've ever read, and it sparked over 130 fanfictions in less than two years... being able to combine my favorite book series with my favorite BDSM tropes and kinks has genuinely made me so happy. I haven't written this much in my whole life, and it's all thanks to this series with the silly goth nun and butch swordswoman.

I do take requests! Sometimes I post on Twitter (@utilitywhiskers) with a "drop # kinks and we'll see what happens" and try to create a fic with the first ones that pop up in the comments.

I'm not on Tumblr as much as I used to be back in my pre-fandom days (when the interface was still easy! and didn't make my computer lag!), but you're also welcome to shoot me a request in my Askbox here. I tend to only write Locked Tomb fics, but I love exploring new kinks.

And since you made me blush like a schoolgirl with your super sweet message, here's a sneak peek of some future fics that I hope to finish once the fandom-wide Holiday Exchange is over: -Dollification -Human Slave AU -Littlespace/Ageplay -T-Dick Blowjobs -Circus AU -Hypnokink -Freeuse Noncon -Judicial Punishment -Serial Killer AU ...and so, so, so many more <3 Thank you again for the super sweet comment. I am sincerely so happy that my fics have brought you joy (and kept you warm at night!).