#i just want to do more with my oc aaaaaa

[tropicalfreckles]

Thinking about Lupin and Kahlia today and thinking up drawing ideas since I still struggle with trying to write Kahlia's fanfic.

[technicalgator]

🛠️“The Engineer, is Engi-here!” 🛠️

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Finally finished my design of Engie! I love this cowboy sm <3

Ramblings and close-ups under the cut below!

A lot a people have their own interpretations/style designs of the mercs, so I thought why not make one of my fav merc? So here we are!

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Engie is that he’s an all-round decent guy, and treats everyone with respect as long as that’s reciprocated! He’s transmasc and ain’t afraid to show it, and loves his partner, the other equally insanely smart man on the team, Medic! ✨ If you don’t find him tinkering away in his workshop or hangin’ out with the Doc, you’ll find him spending some time with the other mercs that he likes, or playing with his robot dog :D

🛠️BLU🛠️

Like most headcanons, Blu Engie is a defender/builder! You’ll find him setting up a nest of defenses at a good point, and a good spot for all the mercs to heal up with his dispenser! He rarely goes out into battle and prefers to hang back, but if any enemies do get close, he won’t hesitate to give them a few rounds of his sentry >:]

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🧨RED🧨

Unlike Blu Engie, Red Engi is a battle engineer! You’ll find him running into the frontlines with his trusted mini-sentry, gear and Gunslinger! He craves the rush of adrenaline and thrill of the fight >:D (kill and maim!!!)

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✨Decals✨

One of the mercs Engie gets along with and looks out for the most is Pyro! Engie and Pyro are like a fatherly/unruly child duo to me, where they got each other’s backs on the field, and Engie himself just looks after Pyro! Pyro also looks up to Engie, and will usually show his appreciation by placing stickers on Engie’s hardhat, and pins for his overalls! Engie at first was uncertain about all the decal, but after seeing how happy it made Pyro when he wore them, he wears the decals proudly! Engie has a different decal set for both Red and Blu! ✨

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Thank y’all for stickin’ around through my rambling!! I had a BLAST drawing and designin’ my Engie! I have a doodle sheet of Engie I’m almost done with that I will also be postin’ soon as well! 🛠️✨

[ambitions-of-an-eccedentesiast]

each panel is a different camera angle and they also move a good amount in the room- help me.

Next->

<-Previous

[vehemourn]

god they were right. those ocs can brainrot

[kxllerblond]

On Clark && Organized Crime.

I really emphasize the fact Clark dabbles heavily in the criminal world (and corporate business overworld) and that he has a reputation, but also is a relatively mysterious individual-—you may have asked yourself how the fuck he manages to be some business-equivalent of John goddamn W*ck and does so while being a supernatural creature.

We've been over the HOW in terms of how he has the influence he has, the connections, etc. Clark works OBSESSIVELY, he's toxic about it to the point where the only reason he hasn't fucked his own health is because he's got the perks of being inhuman. I really hammer in the fact that Clark NEEDS to keep busy and so he dumps just about all of his waking energy into what he does and with the combination of supernatural perks && his own unmatched drive, he accomplished an insane amount in a mere 20 years that could rival just about any multi-generational crime family at this point. I touch on it a little more in detail HERE.

WHAT'S HE DO?

What does he bring to the table? What has gotten him so well connected and powerful? As one might expect from the son of a demon-— he's a deal maker, a deal settler, and a deal enforcer. He's your middleman they can't say no to and, more importantly, he's one that don't WANT to say no to. He brings other things to the table that's earned him some respect like being insanely reliable and always delivering on his promises and, of course, the fact he's got enough money and favors pocketed it makes him valuable just to be in business with.

On the less savory side of things, there are certainly stories ring leaders tell their underlings to keep them in line and many of them may or may not involve Clark and what he has may or may not have done to groups that have gone back on their word with him or went so far as to double-cross him. Rooms of gore, entire crime families wiped over night if they were lucky, killed in every way but physically if they weren't. Gnarly stuff and gnarly punishments for what Clark considers the biggest affront to him. Needless to say, with statements like that, betrayal doesn't happen much nowadays.

Got a pretty decent example of something he might get up to if you reeeeally peeved him off HERE.

BEING IMMORTAL IN A MORTAL WORLD

Arachno, you may ask, how the fuck does he exist like this for twenty something plus years and do the things he does and not be found out? Does no one ask questions??? The short answer is: he really only half avoids it and also people would rather believe a nonsensical lie than they would to accept some batshit truth.

The long answer is he has a plethora of aliases. Frankly, you could be working with or for him and not even know it. Aside from that, he sends liaisons in his stead at times, he impersonates as his own grandson, was his own son before that. Sometimes, he just goes as Mr. Thompson in person, sometimes he only communicates via voice or text. Between all these mediums of doing business, it just further lends to his wild ass reputation. Which leads us to...

THE DEMON OF WALL STREET

An annoying moniker he's earned (much to his chagrin) and is due to the culmination of his own dark reputation, the manner in which he conducts business and settles deals, and also because of the fact there are totally grandpappy crime lords out there on their last leg who SWEAR they remember dealing with the same eerily beautiful blond man in a suit that their predecessor is working with now despite how humanly impossible that would be. Some real Age of Adaline shit. Mr. Thompson does get tossed around a lot, but this title is what you'll hear most often-—especially when you're in a pinch and looking for a last ditch solution to a problem. This is where I get a lot of the OMG!! HE'S JUST LIKE JW from because, really, that's how he gets talked about-—like this scene for example.

Really, he's just some highly professional, efficient, and will-driven businessman that can be like a force of nature if you personally agitate him. Truly an angel to some, a demon to others.

GETTING IN CONTACT WITH THE DEMON

Sort of just an altered version of how you'd get ahold of him in a supernatural sense. He's got a business card with nothing but a number that usually gets passed around by people he's already worked with, sometimes it's by word of mouth. You call or text this number, you get meeting instructions, the line becomes unreachable.

[nyctoaerah]

YOU WRITE SO GOOD, LIKE HELLO??? YOUR WRITING STYLE IS SO GORGEOUS AND YUMMY, LIKE CAN I EAT IT? PLS PLS PLS??? But no joke, your writing style is literally so gorgeous 😭 like it's so detailed and all? How do you do that??😵‍💫 The gore?? The emotions? The wording?? Gosh, please take my money and enslave me queen, i am nothing but a loyal servant that shall kiss the ground that you step on🧎🏽‍♀️🧎🏾‍♀️BTW, can i get some jjk fanfics recommendations?? You write so good so you probably read good stuff too hehe😈

Dang, you're boosting my ego, pooks, and that’s not good ‘cause i have a high ego n’ i’m a Satoru kinnie /j

Thanks for the love! Just gotta let those words spill out, you know? Honestly, it’s all about pouring my heart into it and letting the words flow💀💀 and I feel more comfortable with writing things this way and i have high standards in writing so i tend to make it descriptive since I’m having a hard time understanding things if it's too simple and not detailed😔😔😔 it’s a struggle yk?

BUT STILL, THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE LOVE AGAIN ANONNN,AAAAAA ILY🥹🫶🏻🫶🏻 YOU’VE SERIOUSLY MADE MY DAY!!🫶🏻😚

Sending loads of love and kisses to youuu🫶🏻

Here’s my recommendations, and I swear you won’t regret reading them cause they’re all top tiers!

Corpse Darling —this one is my FAV broo, made me cry and made me go through roller coaster of emotions frr, it’s written SO WELL, and it’s so elegant, the writing style is gorg and everything+ a must if you like reading abt male readers🫶🏻 IF YOU LIKE READING ANGSTY BOOKS THEN THIS!! (kagura is literally the best!!)

The Contortionist — LITERALLY SO GOOD, LIKE THE EMOTIONS, THE READER IS SO FUNNY AT THIS AND IS OVERALL A VERY GOOD BOOK RAHHH

The Fuck List— ONE OF MY FAVORITES TOO,IF YA LIKE THEM SMUTTY FICS THEN THIS IS FOR YOUU! EVERYTHING IN THIS IS LITERALLY A 5 STAR MEAL, I’M TELLIN’ YOU!!

Other Husband — This one is so good too, one of my favs fr fr, AAAA SUGURU’S SO HOT IN THIS 😍😍 IF YOU LOVE CORALINE TOO THEN THIS IS A MUST READ!!

Love Bombing— I SWEAR, the mc of this is different and refreshing, and karma is real in this + it’s written very well and i’m literally hooked (I’m watching you blade, ya better gimme my kagehikari @terrorbladewho )

Tsunami & Bloodflood— TOTALLY MY FAVORITE, IF YOU’RE INTO AN UNHINGED MEN AND YOU’RE INTO MC’S WHO WERE WEAK AT FIRST THEN PROCEEDS TO GET STRONGER, THEN THIS IS A MUST!! THE YANDERE’S IN THIS R SO GOOD, YOU WON’T REGRET READING THIS 🫶🏻 A MUST IF YOU LIKE OC FICS🫶🏻🫶🏻

Hollow Element— This is so good too + it’s written so well and is an overall a gorgeous fanfic aaa, one of the best JJK FICS THAT I HAVE READ

Cursed Prisoner— THIS ONE IS SO GOOD LIKE, EVERYTHING AND IS MY FAV TOO, LIKE, IF YOU’RE INTO READER INSERTS WHERE THEY’RE A CERTAIN CHARACTER (LIKE FOR EXAMPLE; MITSURI! READER) OR SOMETHING, THEM THIS IS FOR YOU

Otherwordly Attraction— THIS ONE IS JUST *CHEF’S KISS* IF YOU LOVE ISEKAI TROPES THEN THIS ONE IS FOR YOU!

Runaways— IF YOU'RE INTO CROSSOVERS THEN THIS IS A MUST READ!

EHE THEY’RE ALL MY FAVS<33 if you want to read some other fics that aren’t jjk then just check my library on quotev and reading list on wattpad hehe🫶🏻 THAT’S ALL, LOVE YA POOKS.

[orangez3st]

Zest's AO3 Reading List

Just a personal list for online safekeeping :) bcs my chrome mobile currently has order 66 unclosed tabs

In AO3 I read longfics so some in this list are probably over 50k+ words roughly? Idk I read so much

To authors whose works are on this list: pls comment to be tagged! You deserve all the crediiitttssss!!!!! 🫶🏻💝

My account isn't that big to reach many people in regards of sharing, but I hope you (author) don't mind me tagging you! I want to, if I could find the authors here on Tumblr, so I can deliver my utmost appreciation and rESpEcT for creating such fabulous stories many could enjoy including me. All of you are making me gush over your plot and your OC quirks and your headcanons and I love wasting my time like this lolol

To all fanfic writers out there: stay creative 💓 all of you are doing an amazing job for serving stories like these to the majority of fans down to the smallest niche area 💓💓

I'm not good with pep talk but there u go

Nor am I good with writing hypeup gushing rants, my best effort is to actually scream like a really long high pitched AAAAAA so if you catch me tapping vote/like on your story you bet I'm positively exactly doing that and went into gibberish in my own head but I now am learning to do written version 🥺🫵🏻

Readers! Always support the authors! Leave a like/kudos at the very least! Write something in the comment section no matter how short or long that is, or reblog and share, it'll make authors happy for interacting with you!! 💝

Anything on Tumblr that I read I'll add if I spot the ao3 link as well 👍🏻 I'll always update this list as I read more and more

Tags: 💐general 🌱teen 🌳mature 🍁explicit 🧸domestic/found fam/clone shenanigans 🌸typical romantic 💄smut but light/tame 🔥explicit smut ⛑️typical violence 🌧️angst or hurt/comfort

Reader Fics

More Than Empty Servitude 🌳🧸🌸⛑️🌧️ by k8s_space (Rex)

Living Legacy 🌳🧸🌸⛑️🌧️ by ashxv (Anakin & Obi-Wan & Rex, endgame unknown yet)

By Any Other Name 🍁🧸🔥⛑️🌧️ by @rowansparrow (Rex, Fives, Echo)

What Blooms in Thunder 🍁🧸🔥⛑️🌧️ by @rowansparrow (Rex)

The Headless Guardsman 🌳🌸⛑️ by AmberOwl24 (Fox) @eclec-tech

Tambor's Monster 💐🌱🌸🌧️ by AmberOwl24 (Echo POV) @eclec-tech

OC Fics

Rex

In Command 🍁🧸🔥⛑️🌧️ by Wild_Karrde (Jedi OFC Senna Aven)

Side By Side 🍁🧸⛑️🌧️🌸 by Jamie_writes99 (Bounty Hunter OFC Lenna Stale)

When We Bleed, We Bleed The Same 🌳🧸⛑️🌸 by @inkstainedhandswithrings (Force User OFC Nevaeh Requa)

An Arrangement Meant (not) to Be Broken 🌳🧸💄 by @merlyn-bane @pyromanicdaydreamer (Nurse OFC Riis Beranna)

Fives

Halo 🍁🔥🌸⛑️🌧️ by @rowansparrow (Nautolan OMC Quill Cawthon)

caught in your gravitational pull 💐🧸🌸 by @pyromanicdaydreamer (Waitress OFC Kala)

Echo

When I Watch The World Burn 🌱🧸⛑️🌧️ by halfwaydown (Bounty Hunter OFC Senua Hallack)

Call the Twi'lek Midwife 🌳🧸🌸💄🌧️ by ficsnooneaskedfor (Midwife OFC Citali)

And For You, I'd Break A Thousand Times 🍁🔥🧸🌸 by Mermaid_of_the_Woods (Uni Student OFC Elawyn Hawk)

Jesse

I Like These Odds 💐🧸🌸 by @pyromanicdaydreamer (Athlete OC Siala Jerikko)

Fox

After A Fashion 🍁🔥🧸🌸🌧️ by @aggy72 (Fashion Designer OFC Sylvi Arak)

hold my heart in your hands 💐🧸🌸 by @pyromanicdaydreamer (Senator Aide OMC Isaac)

Cal Kestis

The Force Betrayed 🌱🧸⛑️🌧️ by arthurmangoes (Jedi OFC Sakana Angedis)

Multi

Seeing Red 🌳🧸🔥⛑️ by @hellfiresky (Rex & Fives)

Like A Ride That Cannot Be Stopped 💐🧸🌸 by @merlyn-bane @pyromanicdaydreamer (Rex, Fives, Echo, Jesse, Hardcase)

Who We Are When It Matters The Most 🌱🧸🌸⛑️ by @merlyn-bane @pyromanicdaydreamer (de-chipping AU)

Canon Fics

loopdeeloop 🌱💐🧸⛑️🌧️ by stationary_cycle (Fox and Fives stuck on a time loop to stop O66)

As we Bend and Break through Time 🌱🧸⛑️🌧️ by MapleWren (Time Travel Cal Kestis, TCW)

The GARNet 🌳🧸 by WobblyCat (clone troopers on social media)

Like Fire in Our Bones 🌱🧸🌧️ by acuteneurosis (Time Travel Leia Organa, TCW) @this-acuteneurosis

Order 65 🌱🧸⛑️ by ChaoticGoodThiefling (Post Order 66) @beskarthief

The Presence: A Spooky Bad Batch Tale 💐🧸 by AmberOwl24 (TBB halloween) @eclec-tech

See My Youth In You 💐🧸 by @merlyn-bane @pyromanicdaydreamer (Knight Obi-Wan & Padawan Anakin)

the ghost in the walls (is just a really stupid cat) 💐🧸 by @pyromanicdaydreamer (Codywan, 212th)

[fanaticsnail]

Hello, snail! Thank you for spoiling us with your writing!! You're too talented and I'm always so happy when you pop up on my dash!!

I have a question/request for advice if you ever find yourself willing to give it. I'm in my late 20's and I haven't felt comfortable telling my new partner about my love of fanfiction and extreme hyperfixation on anime (they know I like it, but not to the extent that I do). How did you feel comfortable sharing or were you and your chef-husband always comfortable? I'm worried if I tell him, he won't be interested in me anymore as they aren't a nerd like me.

First of all, hello!! Thank you for your beautiful words and compliments on my writing. I do love this hobby and I adore sharing my words with you on here.

Thank you so much for your ask! I am in the final year of my 20s and I have been celebrating going into my 'nerdy 30' with a bit of insanity. "One fic per day for 30 days" was going to be my prompt leading up to it, but then I thought: "nah, I can do more."

I am going to add a page break, because I realised just how much I have to say about it. It is very much a personal glimpse into my life, and I hope it helps you. I'm not a relationship coach, this is just my experience.

Tldr: I love this community, and so does chef-husband.

Congratulations on your new partner! All the freshness and excitement being there with the newness is so much fun. I've been with chef-husband for 11 years now. I met him when I was eighteen, and we both worked at our 'Baratie'. I do talk about that often, and I adore writing fics for that restaurant because it just feels like home for me, but I won't linger for too long on it.

Aside from working together, we bonded over our love for music and pop culture. Death Note was one of the things that really got us both talking, and I gifted him a small plush notebook attached to a small apple, never knowing that it would be on a little mantle in our house together 11 years later.

Our tastes in anime differed a little: him with Crying Freeman, and Neon Genesis Evangelion - me with Naruto and Kuroshitsuji, but Death Note (and now JJK) was a series we both loved. Same with Ghibli. Being nerdy or geeky was one of the things that felt magnetic in our conversation, but our other nerdy interests differ.

Encouragement to Write

My husband has always wanted me to express my thoughts through writing. He wanted me to write before I even had the inkling of wanting to. When I dream, I experience full-fledged plots with twists and turns - usually science fiction with thriller tendencies.

When I say: "So, I had a dream last night", chef is already boiling the kettle, making the coffees and sat at the table while I tell him point for point what happens. Silly, but it was something that we did before we had the babies together.

Writing Fanfiction

So, I know this feeling intimately. Telling someone "So, I read and write fanfiction for fun" is still so taboo in mainstream. The one thing that changed this for me, and I talk about this a lot too, was my sister. Growing up secretly reading fanfiction was one of my hobbies because "oh my gosh, there's more? There can be more? AAAAAA". I never really wrote anything back then, not really knowing how to articulate the words I wanted to on paper or on the screen.

But back to the main point: my sister.

Sitting beside her years ago, her on her phone scrolling through her screen, I remember asking her: "what are you doing?" and, without skipping a beat, she responded with two words that really shocked me:

"Reading fanfiction."

Like, with no little blush, no fear of judgement, no little inflections of speech to indicate any signs of embarrassment. It was that easy. Simply "reading fanfiction." Immediately, I followed up with: "Oh? Who for? Canon x OC, x reader stuff, just a main character doing canon divergent stuff?" and she filled me in. I loved her for that. Healed my inner reclusive teenager huddled over an 'x reader' fic.

Last year, I remember sending her a message asking: "So... If I was to start writing fanfiction, would you read it?" and she immediately was like: "WHAT FANDOM, WITH WHO, YES SIS, GET IT GURL, WHAT ARE WE DOING?" and I filled her in the way she filled me in years ago. And so, I started writing for 'x reader'.

Telling Chef-husband I write fanfiction

Once the kids went to bed, all the chores done, him in his shed making miniature terrains for his RC cars, I was sitting merrily at my desk with a glass of wine writing my silly little stories for my silly little guys.

There was one moment where he came in from outside covered in paints and motor oils, and he was like: "whatcha working on?" and I froze. I assumed he was thinking "Oh, she's writing from her nightmares again", I enjoy open communication - so I just said it plainly:

"Writing Fanfiction."

He kind of had this little chuckle in his tone, reaching for the bar fridge and getting a beer. Popping the steel cap from the glass top, he just went: "oh yeah? For which character?"

No little judgement, mild curiosity on my words, having a little glimpse over my shoulder at the screen and him just being like: "Huh. The clown, right? Nice." When he left to go back outside to his hobby, I remember him just laughing with, "Let me know if you need any inspo for Sanji, babe. I've got you covered."

I remember texting my sister: "Chef knows I write fanfiction" and she responded very Gen Z with: "BAHAHAHA" followed up with "how did that go?" and I just told her the truth.

I know not all experiences are like mine, and having a partner that doesn't share the same interests and loving media that you do is daunting. Chef-husband and my marriage isn't perfect, but I knew he was my person from the way he interacted with my other hobbies: D&D, RPGs, comic books, and now writing fanfiction. I also show interest in his: RC cars/planes/drones, Warhammer, and tinkering with his puzzles and collections.

Just so you're aware, and I hope you don't mind, I asked him what he thought about people who read and write fanfiction as soon as I got this ask. He read it on my phone, and said very offhandedly:

"Like, they don't have to read or like the same things (anon) do. Anime is nothing to be ashamed of, and having someone being like: 'yeah, I'm breaking up with you because you're too nerdy' is such a shit thing to do. If (anon) is made to feel shame about something they like from someone they love, then they're a shit person to begin with and not worth pursuing."

That's chef-husband.

Chef-husband also told his boss that I read and write fanfiction, because he knew his boss also reads fanfiction. Pretty sure she reads my stuff on AO3, and I get all blushy when I think about that.

The moral of the story here that, from one passionate fanfic reader to another, whichever way this goes for you regarding confessing your interest to your partner - know you've got snail and chef-husband in Australia letting you know that you're not alone. There is a whole community here that loves and supports your joy, and I hope it all goes well for you.

I'm sorry for the long read, but I hope you appreciate a large glimpse into who I am. So much love for you, anon 🖤

Tagging @since-im-already-here because she's the reason I'm here.

[ink-going-insane]

random mystreet and diaries ramble time! specifically about travis!

travis is a really really important character to me. i probably oc-ified him in my mind on accident but iiit's fine probably. but either way he's really special to me with how his character is.

i'll probably end up rambling more about mystreet than diaries because i have more of a personal attachment to ms since that's what i mainly grew up with, so i'm sorry about that in advance ^^;

i'm also. putting it all under a read more because it's gonna get Long. so yea another warning in advance for that!

both in mystreet and diaries, it feels like travis tries to be a sorta comic-relief character at times to get everyone to smile and ignore their troubles. he does really stupid things to distract others from their issues because he's really big on having his friends feel better and happy. he's not the best at communicating at times, but he tries his best by just being weird and getting people to smile. his not too good communication skills do unfortunately cause him to use some of the...tricks he knows at Bad Times (one example being in diaries s2 when lucinda first sees her mother iirc) but he always means well and genuinely just wants everyone to be happy. even in the end of season 6 of mystreet, after everything that happened, the moment he was free and woke up and saw katelyn, he flirts with her in an effort to cheer her up even though they both just went through Hell.

travis is a really selfless character to me. in diaries, with the added s3 enki island lore, travis was essentially fighting a battle that No One There acknowledged. they all thought Travis was the cursed person causing the imps and all that jazz to show and he just. lived with it. he kept saying it was fine when his friends tried to defend him. and then there was the incident in the phoenix alliance island where people were scared of him and iirc he acted like it was fine but it really isn't but aaaaaa. and i'm so so so so happy with his choice after they got enki's relic. his choice to essentially discover himself and live freely without chaining himself down to another burden is something i will forever adore because he deserves it!! and i was so happy he saw that opportunity of freedom, to maybe feel the joy he's been wanting to feel for a long time. i don't know if any of this makes sense i really hope it does.

in mystreet travis's life is more...calm? i guess? there's the child experimentation that happened and then the whole thing of thinking his dad had two different personalities randomly with one of them being Horrible, which actually on second thought my irene does this poor guy still suffer. though we never actually really see any of it and only hear about his father's (well, michael's) negative actions (not including the child experimentation) Twice. once from lucinda talking to kim in s5 and a second time from travis talking to himself in the last episode of s6. he doesn't really talk about himself and instead opts for just vibing in the moment, and doesn’t mind listening to other's troubles.

it's obvious during pdh that he's pretty socially awkward, especially with having dante for a friend. and i think he was his only friend until starting high school where travis met aphmau and the others. like not to be rude but have you Seen dante. guy is a horrible influence. anyway so yea travis wasn't the best at communication, but this is also when he first manages to make someone Smile. he says some really bad pick-up lines to katelyn in s1 in an attempt to cheer her up after her break-up and it gets her to Smile and it distracted her from her troubles and that's when he realized that he can make others Happy with his shenanigans. and so he kept at it, because he wants people and those he cares about to Smile.

oh and quick (not quick i lied) side tangent about the Not Alone Buddies and also travis's role in the story of pdh. aphmau and travis's friendship is so so so special to me. partly because it reminds me of my own friendships vibe-wise, but also because of their special connection. i'm a bit upset that it wasn't expanded upon more during the main mystreet story but it does make a bit of sense since friendships can occasionally drift apart a little bit as you get older so the two of them aren't as close as they used to be. but i still wish they showed more of the closeness that Should Have Been There!! especially in pdh where he was set up to be sorta important! instead of opting for "here's a bunch of scenes with love interests for aphmau that you know aren't going to end up with her and almost nothing else other than strict plot mostly surrounding aphmau and her love interests" they should've had more scenes of her with her friends!!! and travis!!!! and also vylad!!!!!! because they became a trio after he transferred and that literally Never got expanded upon! i don't even think there's another scene of travis with vylad after their first meeting, i genuinely don't remember there being another one At All. maybe one or two? or just none at all and either way that's Bad. and vylad also barely has any proper scenes with aphmau also it hurts. this is a travis post but by extension it's also a Not Alone Buddies post because i love them forever and vylad should've gotten more screentime >:( along with a lot of the other characters they deserved so much more! and it really bothers me that they set up travis to be sorta important at the start of pdh, only to quickly demote him to side character and comedy duo with dante. it really hurts.

in main story mystreet he gets a bit more attention but it's mostly for a comic relief kinda thing at the start. the fact most of his character in s1 got retconned is really funny to me. anyway he gets character development in season 2!! he stood up for himself because katelyn was being Not Nice and i'm so proud of him for it!!! this is also when him being a creep mostly stops iirc so that's nice, but i tend to pretend the creepy scenes Don't Exist in the first place. anyway after that there isn't really much development for him iirc until season 5, though of course there's that nice fun scene in aphmau's year where michael says hello, but he shows up a lot more in season 5 and of course season 6. in s5 it's like "huh i have a weird voice in my head and i suddenly occasionally can't control my actions but surely it must've been me. oh well as long as it makes katelyn happy :)" and like. it's so precious he just wants her to be happy and it hurts knowing michael's intentions and stuff because in both s5 and the start of s6 he just wanted katelyn to smile and be happy and safe so he was okay with letting the weird voice do its thing as long as it helped. it uh. stopped helping after The Incident. but even when he was trapped in his own mind and forced to watch he wanted so badly for it all to stop because he didn't want his friends to suffer. he didn't care what happened to him as long as his friends would be okay, which is why his monologue in the last episode horrifies me. i read a theory that he's going to sacrifice himself to stop the rumored meteor in s7 and something'll cause everyone to forget him and i really really really hope that doesn't happen i hope s7 gives him an actual calming break in the end please.

i'll be honest i...don't know where i was actually going with this post. it just kinda happened. i was alone with my thoughts (bad) and i saw a post with travis on it and just went "travis :)" in my mind and the next thing i knew this wall of text got vomited onto my phone screen. thinking of travis will now be my comfort i guess?? i just think he's neat <3

[savingsallow]

HELLO MY SWEETEST WIFE BEAN! 💕😘❤️‍🔥

Glad you chose to do the ask too, always happy to know more about your our babies!

3, 5, 14 and 20 for both of Val and Ale, pleasee?

LOVE YOU, SWEETIE 😘😘😘

AAAAAA HELLO MY SWEETEST WIFE BEAN!! 🫂❤️‍🔥

— thank you for the ask and i'm glad to know that! 🤭

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(3) What was the first thing you decided on, the character's name, appearance, personality or their role in the story?

Good question!

I actually have the same sequence for Val and Ale, and it was: appearance, personality, role in the story, and character's name.

It's safe to say that this is the sequence of how I develop a character XD

(5) How did you choose their name and why? Was it simply based on vibes or is there any specific meaning behind the name? Are the reasons behind their name different in and out of the universe?

Val:

Choosing Val's name took me some time, actually. During her first playthrough, she had a different name since I wanted to get a feel of MC's vibe and reactions in general first.

After I completed the main quest, that's only when I gave Val her name, which is Valentine Esther Black. I thought of making her part of the House of Black because why not.

Additionally, I named her Valentine instead after a constellation or something because I remembered when I was creating her appearance, I was really going for that pink vibes XD. But her middle name, Esther, means "star" so there's still that tradition of somewhat naming her after some heavenly bodies.

So there you go, Valentine because of pink haired and eyes, but at the same time, one of the main themes of her lore is 'love', whether it's self-love, platonic, romantic, familial, etc.

Ale:

Ale is an OC of mine and naming him was actually easier than I expected. When I was creating his appearance, I already had the idea of naming him Alejandro because he looked like one. It's the last name that took me like an hour to think about XD

His full name is Alejandro Lúcido Salvatori, and Alejandro means "defender of the people", as for Lúcido it means "clear" or "bright". Now, his surname 'Salvatori', this kid of mine, ethnicity wise, he is half Spanish and half Italian, hence his last name. Ale grew up in Spain so he's not really good at Italian at all. But you can always sense his Spanish accent even when he speaks English (especially during his first year in Hogwarts).

(14) Do you have any quotes tied to the character, either from the story itself or from another source that fit them?

I have two quotes for each of them:

(a) inspiring quotes they say &

(b) just some shit they say.

Ale:

(a) "Reach for the stars, but also learn how to pick yourself up whenever you fall."

(b) "Looks like I can flirt my way into this."

Val:

(a) "I am my own person and I refused to be the victim of society"

(b) "Depressed but well dressed"

(20) Bonus question: share any additional thoughts, art, favourite scenes, anything you've been waiting for a chance to ramble about

WELL...

I present to you my ideas of modern Ale and Val:

I've been thinking of making a modern au fic or drawing for these two lately, so here is my inspo hihi

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— i hope you enjoyed reading this! ❤️‍🔥

[valeo-sinedubio]

Ok idk why I avoid so much to start talking more about Romanian culture because I also want to show the small drawings that I do but I always go like "Nah my drawings suck" but like- I'm always going to think my drawings suck???? And also- an artist never stops learning and improving?????

So here

This is like random things I did (mainly sketches as you can tell) but I actually like them so much and I have so many ideas for stories and stuff and I want to share them aaaaaa

Anyway here is the middle picture which is like a painting I did a few weeks ago based on an old picture from pinterest of a Romanian lady. This was supposed to be like an experiment but it came out way better than expected idk idk

This lil sketch was inspired by the hairstyle of Romanian women from last century I thought it was pretty cute but perhaps back then they didn't have time nor the products to better take care of hair :/

(also idk if you noticed but her ie is the same as the top-left drawing from the collage)

(if you don't know what an "ie" is, it's a Romanian traditional blouse. The plural is ii btw :))

Also I feel like I got a lot inspired by Rada Niță but I have no complains 'cause she is amazing if I were to meet her I think I'd die

If you want to check out what she does, her ig is @rada.nita

Also I would write whole paragraphs about my Romanian OCs because we deserve some attention but like when am I supposed to so that :///// school is killing me

But just to throw it out there the girl from the sketch above with the braids and ceapsă is called Doina (I love this name idk)

And since it's the 1st of December HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROMANIA

[mirrorworldangel]

ANGEL I JUST READ "THE TALE OF TWO DARLANS" AND I CAME HERE A S A P (btw this will have SPOILERS bc I read it on my main and I'm too scared to comment there bc I don't have a side account there༎ຶ⁠‿⁠༎ຶ)

Not gonna lie, when I first saw the title I thought "huh, what a coincidence", and then I saw the author and brother the whiplash that I received I have so many thoughts about your writing!!!!

1) Stan and Ford being cute to eachother absolutely warmed my heart, take all my money

2) Ford having a shotgun under Darlan's crib (which is expected of him lmao, and also how he's protective of his baby and his love AAAAAA)

3) Aster, just-- Aster in general holy shit. Absolute mamas boy (and with reason, the poor guy). His design?? His powers?? His name meaning?? Can completely comprehend the man's hatred and want for vengeance, you go king (but even I felt bad for our Ford lmao. And also, him watching Ford in the hospital???? The attention to detail)

4) Cleopatra, absolute queen, we stan, I'm so curious about her!! Where did she come from?? How did Aster met her???

5) just one word: MAMA (I don't even know who you are - and I desperately want to!!!! - but I love you. Protective of Stan pines????? Me too queen, me too)

6) Also, are Aster's six green eyes a reference to the "Never Human Au" or is it just based on his appearance of Ford (individually, both are amazing details/references)

7) also the reference to A Tale of Two Stans??? You were absolutely COOKING with this one. The wait was definitely worth it!!! I'm so curious about what more do you have about them or if you will write about them, whatever you want to do I will inhale the shit out of it

Amazing and beautiful work as always Angel :) so excited to see what else you have planned (but also take your time if you need!!!) 🩵🩵

I'm glad that you got your gift and it got me giggling with excitement when I see the notifications! I understand that you can't comment at AO3 if you don't have a second account, but I don't mind about it.

So let me help you answer some questions:

1) I want some more Stan and Ford fluffy as parents, so at times like this I gotta do things by myself hahaha! 🤣

2) Ford already being an overprotective parent, of course he's gonna have a weapon hidden in every corner of the house that he can quickly get access to during dangerous moments. Dude got literally 5 legal guns and maybe 20 more illegally.

3) Aster is the very first OC child that I've been thinking off for a while before I met both of you and @muchmallows . This man works at a local bookstore/library has a favourite black Stenton cowboy hat when going out to town, which annoys Ford a lot. Due to inbreeding, however, he has a weak heart condition.

As stated in the story, Aster was born sometime after the portal incident and was solely raised by Stan with the help of Abuela with Soos as his adopted sibling. As soon as he graduated high school, he joined the military and became part of the Special Forces during the Afghanistan war for several years until his injury in the right eye put him in honourable discharge.

He is very efficient in any weaponry, but he prefers knives over guns. Less noisier when taking down enemies. So during their custody escape, Aster went on a war crime massacre spree hacking off soldier after soldier giving Stan enough time to get the twins and opened the portal to bring Ford home.

But it was not all rainbows. His parents were constantly fighting and Ford constantly threatening to kick Stan out, until Stan ended up suffering a heart attack and fell into a coma. He became hostile towards Ford after that without any mercy but only act civil just for the sake of the kids.

When Weirdmageddon broke out, he was visiting Stan at the hospital, where he died from a broken heart. It was at the moment he made contact with Mama and with her help, she is able to get past the barrier and ends Weirdmageddon by sending both Ford and Bill into the Dark Forest, since the ritual is considered null when Stan died.

After Weirdmageddon is over, he passes over the Mystery Shack ownership to Soos and leaves Gravity Falls after the funeral and the twins went back home, advising them to never part from one another like what his parents did.

He spends the rest of his life travelling the multiverse as a mercenary, hunting down Fords that hurt their Stans. Consider him as the Deathstroke of this au.

4) Cleopatra the six-eyed Devon Rex is his beloved pet companion that he raised since it was a kitten. He found her while he was at the town getting groceries. According to the Kitten Distribution rule, once a kitten sticks to you, they own you. Plus, she's a useful mascot to the business and the family's darling sweetheart pet (except Ford).

So the AU Ford would really have a Vietnam flashback when he sees Darlan bring home a six-eyed kitten and is very torn about it, but in the end he became the parent that spoils the pet rotten just like Stan did with Waddles.

5) And Mama - the elusive being that Aster made a contract with. Most of her contractors refer to her as Mama, but that's not her real name. If asked, she reveals her middle name is Evangeline and that's it.

Originally from a world that has now been absorbed into the Void, she is one of the many beings that reside in the lightless realm and the ruler of the Dark Forest (for clearer understanding see the Dark Forest theory), a territory of brambles, briar thorns, snow and beasts that evolved itself to survive against each other.

She is know to stalk her targets that she pities and favours due to the target's unfavourable circumstances, no matter the age, befriending them and caring for all of their needs and loving them unconditionally, whispering promises of happiness and love before she whisks them away, mostly resulting in the target's death. She desires not for power, domination; but love and family.

Unlike Bill who needs a portal to enter another dimension, she can travel easily through the shadows, though she requires a partial sacrifice (a drop of blood is enough) to officially cemented her presence physically.

She is rarely found in human history and myths because she is very much likes her privacy, but can be hinted through lullabies and urban legends.

If Bill Cipher is both a god and a demon, therefore she is both a goddess and an angel; his polar opposite. If fire is his element, then water is hers.

The rose mark tattoo on Darlan's neck is the sign of her claim over him, it acts as a conduit for him to utilise her powers but at the same time restrains him with a briar collar to keep him in line from acting irrationally.

6) Aster's six eyes scene is inspired from the many fanarts of Bill possessing Ford. I extensively checked which eye represents Bill during this moment and most artists depict Bill's eye is on the right.

The loss of right eye is also symbolic to Aster, signaling of his sacrifice to sate his revenge against Ford and that he has nothing else to lose when the only person that matters to him is dead.

So if you do a half-and-half image of the possessed Ford and Stan/Aster, Bill represents the right side while Mama represents the left.

7) I always struggled with thinking for the perfect titles to my stories, that title was a last minute because I want to upload it immediately 😅

I really want to see how Aster interacts with the other AUs of Stan and Ford with their kids (no doubt Aster would be nice to them, except Ford, he will have problems with any Fords). Doesn't matter if it's art or fanfic, I'll always deliver!

And thank you as always, Ilumi and Mallows for all of your inspiration. I'll try to divide my time wisely when I work on my art projects! If you need to ask more about them, you know what to do!

[einsatzzz]

more merch to be added to my hibari shrine yippeee! i love this set in particular bc he's smiling there while hibird is leaning on his cheek, its so cute! awawawawawawa 🥺🥺🥺💜💜💜 its not that noticeable in the pic, but theres some transparency(?) with the light purple cloth that's on his waist too. makes me wonder if i can get the printing service i know to do a similar effect for custom acrylic stands i want to have printed out in the future

and that big acrylic thingie is so nice, the glitters float around when you shake it. its not in the picture, but i also bought an A3 poster of him in the ouji set. still trying to flatten it out bc its been rolled up for a while lol. there's these two big-ass blankets of him too, but idk how to display it in a way to give it justice mdbsndgdjdh maybe later

(literally on the floor/carpet while taking pictures of these)

the lns + the art books im missing is also here! i have all the og manga volumes alr, but i wanna get the new versions too with the new covers someday (when i save up again lol).

i skimmed thru the the art books and found ACTUAL CANON HIBARI BABY PHOTOS?????!!!!!! LIKE HOLY SHIT, IM GOING TO KMS??!!! (/POSITIVE) I NEED TO HAVE THIS TL'ED ASAP 😭😭😭 THEN THERE'S HIM EATING HIS FAVE HAMBURG STEAK TOO, THEN TETSU EVEN PUT A FLAG ON IT FKDBSKSGJSSHJS WHERE WERE ALL THESE HIBARI LORE ALL THIS TIME, WHY IS THIS THE FIRST TIME IM SEEING THIS??!!! ---bye guys, i have a mission, im an expert oc-ologist but im also a dedicated hibari-ologist 🫡🫡🫡

(also its such a bonus for me that hibari is in all the covers of these books--- hahahaha)

also some character song(?) cds were included in the set i bought! will need to buy an external cd drive tho, bc my laptop doesn't have one.

anyway, there are some other stuff im still waiting on. i think i should be getting it soon?? it just got delayed bc of a typhoon orz aaaaaa srill so happy, idk how i'll disolay these in the shrine/my room. i say its my room/office, but ig its hibari's room now with hm his face is plastered all over it lmao

[milesmentis]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Spread the self-love ❤️

AAAAAA, thank you Ash!

I don't have all that many published works (edit: nvm I just checked and apparently I've posted 13 things?? wild), but I am absolutely shameless when it comes to recommending my faves so let's go!

Queen and Consort - Daren/Queen Anora, M, 6403 words

My longest finished work and the one I am definitely proudest of, start to finish. There is so little Cousland/Anora content and this was an excuse to channel all my arranged marriage, political uncertainty, and mutual pining feels into a story I could share. They are everything to me <3

2. From the Wreckage - Multiwarden AU, T, 23K and counting

My ongoing longfic WIP featuring Daren and Heulwen. There is another chapter coming soon as I creep ever closer to getting them out of the starting area and into the plot. So many of my favorite characters (OCs and NPCs) are only in the opening segments of the game, so getting a chance to spend time with them before the inevitable happens is just ... very precious to me

3. Jealous - Queen Anora/Daren/Zevran, T, 2617 words

Since you're the one who tagged me I couldn't NOT include the Royal Throuple on this list! It has intrigue, ballroom dancing, Daren pretending to be an absolute dunce, hurt feelings, condescending Orlesians, what's not to like?!?!?!

4. Three times Daren Cousland punched Alistair (and one time he didn't) - Daren + Alistair "what-if", Gen, 2764 words

This is my least read finished work ... and I understand why :( . Alistair is most people's favorite character and they don't want to read stuff where he's lashing out/being a dick. But if there is a single work that I would beg people to read, it's this one. It's a raw look into how gutted Daren was when Alistair left and the messy, conflicted feelings that Alistair has towards a Warden who pushes back on him. Your honor ... I love their friendship SO MUCH!

5. Ashkaari - Daren/Sten and Daren/The Iron Bull, M, 3645 words

What's this? I accidentally got porn in my PTSD and culture shock focused character piece! ... Oops. In all seriousness, I love writing about the Qunari and Daren's perspective on the Qun is very special to me. Like Cassandra, he is absolutely a person who would do well under the Qun, and the way he finds that both comforting and disconcerting is delicious. But as a bonus ... local bisexual man cannot stop ending his philosophical debates with gay sex ... more at 11.

Thanks for the tag!!

[thecosmiccrow]

Hey so, I know I've sent you a bunch of asks recently and I kinda wanted to explain why particularly you as well as just explain some things.

Basically, I think you're one of the coolest people I've had the pleasure of knowing. You're really funny and you're art is amazing. I mentioned before you're the reason I got into Tumblr and you're a big reason why I stay.

Recently I was going through a lot of stress because I had exams coming up, they were huge because they were the final exams I would ever have to unwillingly take as it was my final semester of high school, I would've finished last year but I had a really rough time and basically became a husk for a few months so I ended up failing some classes.

One of the big reasons I made it through this recent bout of stress that made me almost become a husk again was you. Looking through your art again, just seeing you enjoy all the bg3 stuff, just everything you posted/reblogged was nice to see.

So um...as thanks for that I drew some stuff of my OCs. I have a hard time expressing myself through usual stuff so I tend to do it through my projects, whether that be my original series, fanfics, or my art. I have you to thank as well for that last one, you've inspired me to start drawing more and it's been an excellent experience.

Sorry if this is cringe in advance but I felt the need to do it

I truly believe that. You and your art inspires me to go on everyday, to get better at art, to just be a better person in all aspects, in a way no one else's art has ever inspired me before.

If it were up to me you'd have infinite head pats or hugs or whatever you want.

I really hope you live a long happy life and see great success in whatever you want to do with it.

Thank you, for sharing your greatness with me and the people of the internet.

Remember, no matter what, you are loved and cherished.

AAAAAA DUDE YES! i havent been on tumblr for a lil bit, i take long breaks lol. But i was mid-answering some of my asks when The Horrors hit so idk when i’ll actually. get to them. i think yours are all done

im very glad im able to inspire you from my very limited posting now xd been going thru a rough week emotionally for some reason, and this makes me smile! :>

[rxttenfish]

hi !!! sending this on anon because i am rather nervous all things considered <:3 (i am lying to you, i have not considered 'all things'.) one monster prom fan to another (can we be compared using such broad terminology ? i feel as if i am domesticated compared to you... [compliment, or at the very least not inherently negative]) , i wanted to thank you SO SO SO VERY MUCH for giving miranda so much love and thought and mulling her over in your mind in such a ... refreshing way

i also really really really like miri , but i can only aspire to have your level of dedication . it feels almost like we are of totally different worlds... !!!!!

thank you for bringing in real world biology too :3 i absolutely adore your design for her so much (this is most likely not proper grammar, but it is very late and i am very cold and so i will hope with all my heart you will excuse this mistake. one of many, i should assume) - though !!!! i do have a question if that is alright ?????

i cant say that a marine macropredator of a significantly vibrant pink really strikes me as advantageous colouring - does the abyssal environment that you say the merfolk live in negate the need for camouflage and such ????? i apologise for sounding passive aggressive !!!! i am merely asking a question. cocking my head to the side if you will

additionally, i would like to ask something foolish. how do they acquire food? i dont want to say 'hunt', because that might seem insulting. historically were they built for stalking, or high speed chases, or...???? please, talk 'nerdy to me' as they say !!! <- in an entirely normal way befitting two strangers of course.

you know, i would have expected to hit the ask word limit by now. but it seems i have not. yippee !!!!

with my extra space, i shall add this: I ABSOLUTELY ADORE THE WAY YOIU WRITE MIRI . GOOD LOOOOOORD IT IS AMAZING HAVIJNG SOMEOENE WHO KNOWS WHAT THEYRE DOING IWIITH HER thank yoiu for making her at least moderately intelligent. i feel blessed <- is this all too harsh sounding???? im a little new to all this letter/ask-writing thing <:3

IN ANY CASE !!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOIU SO VERY MUCH. AGAIN. drops this and scuttles away

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/761693443676045363/1183251697129226270/ordered3.png

also i believe you can indeed tell, but i drew that in ms paint with my finger .. sorry that it looks like poop <:3

(moving the image out of the link just in case it breaks-)

AAAAAA THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! this looks so WONDERFUL i love the way that you've shaped her head and how you've captured how Chunky it is... i know its one of the things people have the hardest time drawing with her so its just all the more impressive how well youve managed to capture her!!!

i also love the little doodles eeeee..... please feel free to toss all ocs at miri, its enrichment for her <3 ironically gentle chewing/biting is a Play and Bonding thing for merfolk so she shall happily Bites Bites Bites back-

(also i LOVE her smile!!! you arent anthropomorphizing in the slightest for that - miri often does have very human expressions in a way that's odd for a merfolk, because she effectively got imprinted during her time spent inland... and its politically useful if you smile and match expressions with the people you're trying to work with anyways)

ill also go ahead and answer your questions because i can! very easily clarify on them!

the color: actually, being bright red and pink is actually very common for deep sea animals, due to the way light works at depth! its why i decided miranda was abyssal, because that felt like the most natural way to explain why she's pink, since it's such an uncommon color in nature.

basically, different colors of light have different lengths! red is the shortest wavelength of light, and blue is the longest. water might be clear, but there's a lot of water in the ocean, and the more water you add, the more it filters out light - which is why the bottom of a pool might be dark and shady, but if you hold a little of the water in your hands there's no shade. the ocean is a lot deeper than a pool, and so it gets darker as you go down, but because it's also clear, it doesn't filter out all that light at the same rate.

red, being the shortest wavelength of light, gets filtered out first, so red often gets quickly darker the deeper down you go, until it's completely black! camouflage is dependent on the environment, so their color and brightness has to match the background, but it also depends on the light that's hitting the animal. it's why fawns have dappled spots, or animals might have black stripes, so they can mimic the light of their environment. and when your environment has no red light, well... red's a pretty good color to be!

because of this, a lot of animals in the deep sea can't actually see red either, which is doubly the reason why you might want to be red! think of it like tigers, and how ungulates often can't see their orange, making them look just about the same color as the foliage around them when they're hunting! miranda might stick out on land, but that's just because we aren't seeing her in the environment she's made for, where she blends in with everything else around her as much as a pure black animal.

(it's also why her bioluminescence is blue - blue is the longest wavelength of light, and the one most animals can see at that depth. if she lights up, then she wants to be seen, and she can even alter her silhouette to appear larger or smaller or breaking it up into multiple shapes if she needs to. it's why her tapetum lucidum is blue when light's shone on it, because there is blue light to be seen at depth, it's just very dim!)

(this is also why giant squid are bright red, and why the stoplight loosejaw fish is so special! the latter actually produces its own red light, and can see red light, which means that it has a secret light that won't reveal where it is but will reveal to it where its prey is!)

food: this is something that depends a lot, because there are actually multiple different species of merfolk, which is mostly my fault because i don't always feel like i communicate this the best. they're all slightly different in how they evolved to capture prey, with abyssals in particular being fuckoff huge ambush predators that attack from below, and others being shallower-water hunters or more adapted for smaller, faster prey - but they all evolved from an ancestor with a fairly consistent prey-capture method.

in short, all merfolk are ancestrally evolved to hunt whales and other large prey items, with all the extant species still holding at least a degree of this. primarily, they were ambush predators who were good at getting in close to their prey before a sudden burst of speed. they would work together in close-knit groups (one of the big pressures for their increasing socialization and larger brains, to coordinate such groups) to all mob a single prey item at once, hitting with force to cause sudden trauma, and then using their claws, double-thumbs, back feet, and mouths to hold onto their prey and refuse to be dislodged. they'd repeatedly claw and use their strong bites and massive heads to rip deeply into their prey, causing further massive trauma and shock, and if that failed, bleeding their prey to death.

think of it like the raptor prey restraint model, just further taking advantage of the fact that they were underwater, where no one else has hands that could potentially rip them off. being smaller and somewhat less-optimized for marine life compared to things like sharks and whales and large fish worked for them, because they had a novel adaptation that allowed them to take advantage of things no one else could, and the numbers to make up for it. this is, likewise, why they never lost their hands and fully developed flippers, instead making their limbs as flipper-like as possible to make up for it.

then as time went on and certain populations became separated from each other, they adapted for slightly different niches, but all remain fairly closely related to each other as a genus.

in the modern day, most merfolk don't really "hunt" for all of their meals, at least not in the same way that we might think. don't get me wrong, they still absolutely hunt and it's a larger part of their lives than it is for most humans, but they have options.

mostly, the merfolk theory for their relationship with nature is to invite it in. this is not to say they aren't controlling and pruning it, but they do live underwater, and it's far harder to keep animals out than it is on land, so merfolk accepted it and worked with it. they'll work to promote growth around their buildings and where they live, fostering the growth of sea grass and algae and coral and other sessile animals, encouraging them to set down and grow in these areas, and they'll then let more wild animals move in, further encouraged by these natural sources of food and shelter, on top of merfolk working even further to encourage them in. they serve as a functional cleanup crew for the merfolk in these settlements, being allowed to eat anything that merfolk might drop or go to waste, and even moreso might be purposefully fed at times, or have specific homes for them built. merfolk will keep encouraging them and taking care of them until they become a biorich hotspot, creating unique oasises for wildlife to live alongside merfolk.

however, this isn't just a free-for-all, persay. merfolk will also purposefully prune these populations and control how they form, often removing "problem" animals and encouraging certain behaviors which makes it easier for these populations to live alongside merfolk, not viewing them as a threat, but also not viewing them as an opportunity either. they will directly shape how these areas grow and cultivate them on a physical level, often using them as an easy shortcut to literally grow their settlements and buildings. but they will also harvest from these populations and selectively breed them, until their cities and towns act as massive public gardens full of food to be caught, picked, and eaten at any time

as there are also a lot of (very politically powerful) nomadic groups, they also do this, albeit not always so directly. they'll have specific shoals or "runs" of fish that they will follow behind and take care of, managing as they move through the ocean in accordance with the seasons. this is where the whales still factor in, because the nomadic groups will also take care of the whales, purposefully keeping an eye on their pods and taking care of them and, when the time comes, being choosy and particular in which whale they select at any given time to be hunted, harvested, and eaten.

(there's also the way in which food is distributed and managed throughout the merkingdom, since some food is indeed shipped and moved throughout the different areas, but that's a different story for another time and i've talked enough)

BUT!!!! thank you so much and thank you for enjoying all of this that ive been making with miri, and thank you for giving me an excuse to talk more about her <3