#i know on a personal level its better as an accident but i mean the fact that its so common you can do it by accident

[barrymccaulkinem]

knowing things does kinda suck. now i get to wonder every time i see someone has put up a witch decoration that looks like That i have to wonder if they chose it mindfully or mindlessly. and which is better?

[simp4fictionalmenandjesus]

Imagine platonic yandere batfamily with a 'shallow' reader.

To set the scene, you join the family at 15. You’re old enough to have the capability to take care of yourself, but you’re young enough to want someone to take care of you. (I’m thinking she has a wealthy-ish background, not socialite level, but she’s be the richest kid at Gotham high school (public school).) You’re the result of one of Brucie Wayne’s many love affairs that somehow slipped under the radar.

your mother was a more of a logical person, raising you to follow your brain more instead of your heart. But she still taught you to be empathetic. Unfortunately, she dies in a car accident.

Your picked up by the Wayne’s and there’s immediately hostility between you and your new family. On the background check the bats had done, most evidence was pointing to you being a shallow teenage girl.

It didn’t help that the first thing you did upon arriving to the manor was force everyone into a selfie on Snapchat. Damian had to be held back from stabbing you.

The next thing you did was ask about your allowance, and then proceed to squeal once you were handed a black card by Bruce.

Once you excitedly left to your new room, Dick reminded everyone that people grieve in their own ways.

Family dinner was painfully awkward that night. There was no way that the Wayne’s would talk to you about any bat related activities, and when Bruce tried to ask you about your hobbies, you went on a 30 minute rant about designer products.

It was like having one of Bruce’s suitors constantly around.

Everything about you was shrill, high-pitched, loud and out of touch.

It’s your lack of grief thay really gets them. At your mother’s funeral, you didn’t even shed a tear. Your speech was cantered around how your mother had accomplished a lot, but it came off more as an employee describing a boss than a daughter reminiscing over her mother. When Bruce had softly asked you if you wanted your mother buried or cremated you shrugged your shoulders. “Do whatever, I don’t care.”

Now, your family is convinced that you’re a sociopathic stereotypical mean girl.

You can’t really blame them for thinking that as how would they know about the silent tears you shed every night. Keeping a front up was taking its toll on you, and even your usual coping habit of shopping wasn’t helping you feel better as with every item you add to cart you stop yourself from finding your mother to ask for her opinion on it.

After you fall asleep in tears, you’ll wake up and force yourself to forget.

———————

(Also reader’s speech at her mother’s funeral isn’t that heartfelt because she doesn’t want to share her personal memories with a room of people who she barely knows. Those are her memories. And the idc reply to whether the body is cremated or buried is genuine, to her the body isn’t her mother anymore so whatever happens to it doesn’t matter. She’s more concerned about keeping her mother’s belongings in good shape.)

———————-

A couple of years pass and you’re graduating high school. Your grades are average and you apply for a biology degree in Metropolis University. You’re not ashamed to admit that the power of nepotism definitely helped you in.

You look in the crowd for any sign of your family, and wave happily at Alfred. Do you care that no one else showed up? Not really. You didn’t need to be love. You loved yourself to make up for any of the love you lacked.

Sure, in your first year at Wayne Manor you were upset at the fact that you were never invited to things unless they were public events. But you couldn’t really complain about it, because when you did throw a tantrum and got your way, Bruce invited you to movie night which was painfully awkward as you sat on a lone arm chair while everyone else snuggled together. And the whole night you for side eyed by everyone.

The next family movie night you were invited to, everyone cancelled.

You suppose that the Wayne's and you were too different to get along.

After attending a week long spree of parties, going on a grad trip with your friend group to Ibiza, you came home to a practically empty mansion. Alfred was the only one there.

You appreciated the butler, he was the closest thing you had to a father. He hugged you tightly, before he dropped you off at the airport to fly to metropolis.

-------------------------------------

A year passes, you show up to the Wayne Manor at Alfred's request. Everyone is there.

And everyone is really nice.

Huh.

---------

Yea im turning this idea into a proper fic but I'll probably make shallow reader way cyuntier.

[physalian]

On Punishing your Characters with SA

***Trigger warning for discussion of SA in fiction***

Because I am still recovering from the bizarre alternate reality I fell into where “SA is hot and if you were a survivor you’d think so too” is at all an acceptable and defensible stance to take, I want to talk about punishing your characters, and the means through which we go about it.

This post is NOT condemning stories that go “we know this is awful, you’re here because it’s awful, we’re all gonna have a good time with it anyway”. Or, your usual Dead Dove.

This is instead critiquing stories (and their authors) who either think:

SA is kinky

SA is just a run of the mill thing that happens in adult fiction, especially fantasy, it’s par for the course

If you’re a fan of either or both and plan to attempt to justify them, you have been warned, turn back now. My tolerance for harassment about this is at an all-time low.

Disclaimer:

I am not hating on BDSM or a character whose kink is feeling helpless and controlled. BDSM is, after all, consensual, and there’s mutual respect involved. Nor am I hating on a character who is attempting to self-medicate in a harmful way and they and the narrative know it.

Keywords being: Consent, mutual respect, and self-awareness

Which is completely lost in stories that either romanticize SA or toss it in there for shits and giggles and cheap drama.

—

In fantasy in particular, rampant SA is kind of ridiculous and getting worse. It may be for “mature audiences” but often the stuff written for kids and families has more “mature storytelling” in that it can show you horrible things without being gratuitously r*pey. Characters suffer other hardships and get the same point across.

And SA is one on the list of many things in fiction that usually isn’t written with the grim reality of a realistic aftermath. Things like broken bones that heal with supernatural speed, head injuries with cherry-picked symptoms, and grief and mourning.

We don’t want to derail the whole narrative to focus on the nitty gritty recovery period of a one-time event that moves characters from A to B. That’s just how fiction works. They absolutely deserve to be written better with proper awareness and understanding, they’re just not what this post is about.

But SA is different, because it’s often treated like this horrible threat, this scandalous thing…while then not being written with the respect and tact it deserves, written like a character merely got tortured, interchangeable with any other kind of suffering but with ~titillating undertones~.

Because, odds are, the average person won’t ever know what it’s like to be tortured, or suffer debilitating injuries from an accident, or have to live with the long-term disabilities of a major head trauma or coma. But far too many of us do know SA intimately, and the flippant way it’s tossed around in fiction will never sit right with me, especially when it’s romanticized and glorified.

So in short, I’d like authors who toss it on like a garnish to pause and think: Are you prepared to write the consequences of the situations you throw your characters into? If not, then write something else.

There is of course many levels to including SA in fiction, and its importance in the story should be proportional to the effect it has on a character’s arc and how much time is spent discussing with it and dealing with it, as with any element of backstory.

Having it be a distant memory in a side character’s backstory as just A Thing that happened to them years ago should demand, bare minimum, a cracking of that character’s worldview. Otherwise, why is it here? What purpose does it serve other than to be tragic, and why is it SA over straight-up torture or any other tragedy?

If it’s just another incident and this character grew up with or is surrounded by those who take advantage of them (first of all, writer beware, that is a daunting story to tackle) the trauma of this individual event might be insignificant to them in the grand scheme of things, but it should still matter to them and how they see themselves and how they interact with those around them. Otherwise, why is it here? What purpose does it serve other than to be tragic, and why is it SA over straight-up torture or any other tragedy?

And if you’re setting up a character’s first encounter with SA, however horrific it is, or it’s this encounter with this character that makes it unique, and it’s going to be a big moment for them and the story, it had better fucking matter to them once it’s over. Otherwise, why is it here? What purpose does it serve other than to be tragic, and why is it SA over straight-up torture or any other tragedy?

It's a whole different world if this is a Stockholm syndrome story, where it is very, very clear that this relationship is fucked-up, but the character has no idea and they themselves romanticize and glorify their abuser—in those stories, it is understood that they’re an unreliable narrator and that their thoughts on what’s happening do not align with the author’s. (Most of the time. People unironically and uncritically love and want to have relationships like Harley Quinn and the Joker, without having any experience on what it’s actually like, but most of the time the comic writer tries to make it clear that she’s a victim. Most of the time).

—

I have two characters in two different WIPs who suffer this, more than once. A handles it a lot better than B. More time has passed and the perpetrator for A was a clear cut villain, while B's was someone they trusted. Neither spends every waking moment defining themselves by their abuser, but the impact of what happened to them shows up in multifaceted ways.

A is self-conscious about their body, as it still bears marks from that encounter. Some intimate things they used to enjoy or would have enjoyed are now off-limits. Certain conversation topics are triggering. And because everybody knows, they have a permanent reputation they can never escape, hanging over them even when nobody mentions it. They have mostly healed emotionally and have healthy romantic relationships, but it’s not something they’re ever going to forget.

B blames themselves and any chance at physical intimacy is now lost to them, though they were already asexual to begin with. They’ve told no one and anyone who would guess or might know, they’ve lied to, to protect their abuser. The SA happened among other hellish circumstances, when they have nightmares, it’s all tangled up together. But they’re also quiet and kind and thoughtful and you’d never know unless you knew.

Did I have to give SA as a backstory to both characters? No. I didn’t have to, I chose to, understanding the responsibility involved, and for these two characters and how it impacts them, SA can’t be exchanged for any other violence. It’s SA, specifically, that hurt them so badly.

People react to and adapt from and heal from SA in different ways and not everyone all the time suffers daily reminders of it—those two characters don’t—but even something as simple as having that survivor always keeping their door locked, or always having their back to the wall of a room so no one can sneak up behind them, or wearing more layers than necessary, or if they are a little bit shy or skittish or skeptical, at least shows that you, as the author, tried?

You didn’t just write it in a vacuum? You acknowledged that SA is its own kind of horror?

And lastly: If you’re using SA as a way to punish your characters’ choices, whether it’s the narrative punishing them for being painfully naïve and stubborn, the villain who “deserves it”, or a symbolic death of innocence, just please be prepared for pushback from your audience if your message is: There are situations where SA is the victim’s fault and deserved.

You don’t have to spend pages and pages distracting from the plot, but if you’re going to have your character assaulted, you owe it to them to let them hurt and heal.

Otherwise, why is it here?

[j0kers-light]

I just know Joker would be so fed up with a reader who needs glasses

Like no J, I didn't see you the other day when you were stalking me while I was shopping, sorry for not going over and say hi.

SORRY my visits to the ophthalmologist are that expensive, I'm just a girl who needs her eyes checked!!

"Bunny... what da ya mean you need... contact lenses...? Like lentils for t'eyes?"

omg I can't he is just so dumb when he wants to😭

Woah anon this one hits too close to home. I went to the ophthalmologist last Thursday and for the first time in my life, I need glasses. I am not adjusting well 😣

Let's get into it! I do hope you enjoy beloved! 🖤✨

Joker instantly makes fun of you. For starters, Frost had to help you back home since they dilated your eyes at the office and urged you not to drive. So you came through the door, looking like a lost cause clinging onto Frost.

For months you've been complaining about headaches and double vision, all on deaf ears. You had to take matters into your own hands and find a specialist to perform an eye exam.

Now you're finally getting help to correct your vision! Not like Joker cares. He picks on you by waving his hands in front of your face. You snap at him because you can still see.

"J move out the way! I'm not legally blind, this is only temporary." You grope at the air to prevent yourself from bumping into anything. You still run head first into a potted plant, knocking it over.

Joker thinks your protective glasses, he dubbed them "Ray Charles" are absolutely hilarious. They help with bright lights until your pupils return to normal but it does make you look, well, like a visually impaired person. "All you need is a cane, doll!"

Its days like this where you question why you love Joker. He's such a jerk.

Any support or help you wish to get from Joker is non existent. He is blissfully unaware about how serious your situation is. Thankfully the drops wear off but you have to endure Joker for the upcoming days until your glasses come in the mail.

Joker says the most insensitive things to you like, "Bunny what do ya mean you need uh, contact lenses? Like lentils for your eyes?" or "My Bunny is blind. Maybe I should call ya mouse instead?"

You groan for the umpteenth time and ignore him. You're not legally blind, just.. [insert level of impairment] His jokes aren't funny.

Finally your prescriptions arrive in the mail and you hastily put them on. Its like seeing the world anew. You smile and glance around the room and your eyes land on Joker, who has his jaw on the floor.

"Wow.. I uh.. ahem. You look... B-Bunny.. ya look nerdy. Did they not have a err better selection?" He looked away, hiding his blush.

And your happiness is squashed. Great. You're not his goddess anymore. You sulk around the apartment as you adjust to your new eyes feeling completely miserable. Along with the expected headaches, and discomfort, your mood is in the sewer.

It brings about.. let's say problems. Key word: Joker is the problem. He plays too much and your poor frames is his brand new toy. He bends them, loses them, and even worse? He completely breaks them all 'on accident'. Yeah right.

He just laughs each time saying, "I'll uhh buy ya a new pair."

Joker is a man of his word but your ophthalmologist gives you a disapproving look when you order your sixth pair of glasses in a two month period. Insurance has since stopped footing the bill, they're fed up too.

Your doctor suggests contacts which you think would be a better fit. It is not. Joker manages to ruin them too.

He misplaces your contact case. He uses your contact fluid for a new laughing gas compound, he distracts you and much to your horror-- you sleep with your contacts still in.

Along with the stress of new glasses, the sudden change in your life, and Joker's lack of concern, you're bound to break down and it happens one day when you're working on your laptop in the living room.

Joker sneaks up behind you and steals your new (seventh pair) of glasses right off your face. You react accordingly but with the loss of your visual aid, the room is blurry and you can't focus.

"Joker give me back my glasses! I can't see without them!"

You hear his signature laugh a little to your left and turn that way. You can barely see his figure holding your glasses up to his face. He whistles low.

"Geez, Bunny! I knew ya couldn't, ah see, but this? This is pathetic!" His words sting and make you falter reaching his side.

The one person you need the most to be supportive, and on your side during such a life changing event, is your bully. Why can't Joker be more understanding? You don't know you're crying until Joker is standing before you. He's close enough for you to see him clearly.

And he doesn't look happy. "What's gotten into you?"

He doesn't even know?!! That just makes you cry even harder. Your tears are Joker's kryptonite and he groans to himself before yanking you into your arms.

"Bunny..... stop that.. You know I haTe it when you cry." He rocks the two of you back and forth but you aren't moved by his weak attempt at an apology.

"Then why are you being so mean to me?! You keep breaking my glasses, I can't see without them, I'm... I'm so tired and—"

Joker shuts you up with a kiss and your body betrays you by kissing him back. He pulled away so he could see your e/c sparkling up at him.

“You've been soooo stressed lately. I thoughT my jokes would help ease your mind! I just wanted you to smile."

"You made fun of me and called me a nerd!" You pout.

He sighed and placed your glasses where they belong. The way he was looking at you made you adopt a slight flush to your cheeks.

"I didn't mean to be mean, Princess. These make ya look hot, very hoT. Like the sexy author I know ya are."

You looked away, mumbling. "You... you think I look hot?"

Joker laughed and spun you around in his arms. He then attacked your face with sloppy kisses while his eager hands roamed your body.

"Think? Oh I know my goddess is stunning with or without glasses. You. Are. Beaut-Tee-full and the day I say otherwise, be a dear and uh.. stab me with a knife."

He smirked hearing your joyful laughter ringing out. Oh how he missed it.

[spider-mandaily]

Totally, out of context and and all but take 'with great power comes great responsibility' - the moral lifeline and guidance that Peter takes on cherishes that made him who he is - Spider-Man... Apart from it carrying the deep heroic essence that made Peter the ultimate hero that he is, do you think it carries a deep, dark connotation, too? Like, what would you think about it in a much darker way than its heroic sense? You know what I mean?

Well, I'd be damned! I did think about this a lot. Thank you so much for bringing this in, Anon! Let's get to it!

We all know and agree that 'With great power comes great responsibility’ is one of the most iconic and heroic lines in all of superhero storytelling, and for good reason. It’s the moral core of Spider-Man, the backbone and guiding philosophy that shapes Peter Parker into the hero he strives to be. But when you really dig into it—especially from Peter’s perspective—it’s far from purely noble. It’s indeed deeply tied to his trauma, paranoia, and guilt, and there’s an undeniable darkness to it.

The entire ethos of this philosophy is born out of Peter’s greatest failure: his inaction, his selfish decision to ignore a chance to stop a criminal. That choice ultimately cost his Uncle Ben his life, turning this lesson into a deeply personal, almost obsessive moral code. This wasn’t just a freak accident—it was a direct result of Peter’s actions, or rather, his lack of them. The phrase itself, while well-intentioned, became a constant reminder of his guilt and a lens through which he views every decision he makes (this has been shown in many times in the comics whereby Peter beating himself up for not being able to save everyone and all - take Gwen Stacy's death for example!).

At its best, this philosophy inspires Peter to be better, to use his powers for good, to prevent harm whenever he can. But the way Peter internalizes it is far more destructive. Instead of simply striving to help others, he martyrizes himself, taking on an impossible burden. He believes that any failure, any harm that happens ‘under his watch,’ is entirely his fault. This isn’t just heroic—it’s paranoid, self-destructive, and, frankly, psychotic when taken to the extreme.

This is why some people (And I, myself) argue that Peter’s interpretation of the philosophy is a character flaw. He operates as if the weight of the world is solely his responsibility. And while that makes him an inspiring hero, it also makes him deeply tragic. He’s driven by guilt and a need to atone, turning what could be a balanced lesson into something that actively harms him.

The irony is that this is rarely addressed as a flaw in-universe. It’s treated as admirable, even enviable. Everyone lauds Peter for his selflessness, but few acknowledge that it’s rooted in trauma and a near-suicidal level of responsibility. He doesn’t just live by the mantra; he lets it consume him.

Now, let’s flip the perspective. What happens when someone like Green Goblin or another villain (from Spider-Man's villain rogue gallery) looks at this philosophy? To them, it’s madness (obviously we have seen this kind of reaction everytime in Spider-Man's history and I'll take a basic example - think about that particular scene in Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man (2002) when Spidey was abducted by Green Goblin for a proposal of joining him and forget about his moral codes.... You know the rest!). A person who believes they’re responsible for everything that happens around them is a perfect tool to manipulate, break, or destroy. Peter’s adherence to this belief makes him predictable. It’s noble, sure, but it’s also exploitable.

At its core, the phrase ‘with great power comes great responsibility’ isn’t inherently bad. It’s a solid moral principle: if you have the ability to help others, you should. But when it’s instilled through trauma—when it’s learned through failure and guilt—it becomes something far darker. Peter doesn’t just live by it; he’s trapped by it. His motivations stem from the trauma of being a selfish teenager who made a terrible mistake, and while that mistake inspires him to do good, it also locks him in a cycle of self-blame and martyrdom.

In an ideal world, I think Peter’s arc would include learning balance: understanding that he can’t save everyone and that it’s not his fault when he can’t. Imagine a Spider-Man who fully accepts his limits and learns to forgive himself—that’s where this philosophy could evolve into something truly healthy and sustainable. But comic book characters rarely get the luxury of consistent growth, and Peter, especially, is defined by his perpetual struggle.

Ultimately, this is why Peter Parker is such a compelling character. He’s a hero not because he’s perfect but because he’s deeply flawed. His trauma drives him, his guilt shapes him, and his philosophy—while admirable—both elevates him and tears him apart. It’s heroic, yes, but it’s also psychotic, self-destructive, and tragic in equal measure. And that’s also one of the reasons that makes him Spider-Man.

[mountain--bones]

On Being "Socially Nonhuman"

One thing I've been mulling over lately...

I love how acceptance of physical nonhumanity is increasing now. I think it's very positive, and especially for those who experience clinical zoanthropy - so much support to you creatures!

Personally, I don't feel physically nonhuman at all. Not even in a figurative sense. My physical humanity has been a big part of my life's narrative, for better or worse - I've had plenty of trouble with species dysphoria in the past, but my path to healing has always been to recognise the joys in being human-bodied even if it doesn't reflect what I really am.

But the consideration - "oh, well, am I physically nonhuman?" - led me to a different idea that is just... sticking with me now, and I wanted to share it in case any other nonhuman folks relate. And also just for the sake of sharing, I need to do that more!

I'm physically human, but my nonhumanity feels... externally impactful on a level where I feel like referring to it as an "identity" alone is maybe a bit minimising.

This is because, far as I can tell, I just don't... act or feel in the way humans do?

The best examples of this are all absences.

I'm asexual, in the specific sense where I don't feel sexual attraction or desire at all, and never have. I genuinely cannot comprehend those experiences. This is pretty impactful and isolating all on its own.

But even more jarring is that I don't feel love in any conventional way. And I don't mean "just" romantic love - I mean any love at all. I don't love my friends, I don't love my family, I don't love my pets. This probably sounds horrible, but it's not! I can feel affection.

What separates my affection from "love" is that it's non-selective - I don't bond with specific individuals. A more palatable way to put this might be to say that I love my cat, but I love the neighbour's cat I see out the window just as much. But that feels reductive, because selectivity is a key part of what defines "love"! Can it be "love" if you feel it for everyone, whether you know them personally or not? Not really! It's a different thing.

And the other thing I'd say I'm distinctly lacking is, uh... survival instinct? Whatever drive pushes people (and animals) to keep going even when times are hard, even when things are desperate, on the hope that they'll make it to the other side. I don't experience that and I don't understand it (though, genuinely, I do wish I did).

Other ways I'm behaviourally inhuman are a bit subtler and harder to define. The way I think kinda throws people for a loop a lot - there are things that seem naturally intuitive to me, that other people genuinely struggle with. It's not a brag cause there's other things that are absolutely the reverse, ahah!

I guess, I thought it could be explained by neurodivergence for a while, but it all seems to run so much deeper than autism and ADHD could account for.

I have to mask myself to appear human. I have to mask any time I'm around other people, no matter how much I trust them, because I know trust only goes so far and there's some things I experience and feel that - to most people - are so "out there" that they'd just sound unhealthy.

There are things that are a normal part of my life that would be radically weird for most folks. This means I have to hide parts of my candid experience of life just to avoid uncomfortable attention or concern.

I don't like attention! I'm eccentric even when masking. The best I can do is "acceptably weird".

Fact of the matter is, you just can't live a safe, reasonable life while being open about the fact that your normal experience of the world is as a quasi-deity who became trapped in a human body by accident, who remembers the beginnings of life on Earth, who can sense the spirits of plants and animals, who peers through the layers of reality, and sometimes reacts to things before they happen. These things are all normal for me - there's no way I can be genuinely honest about myself while also "being human".

What it adds up to is that I feel viscerally nonhuman in a way that has a profound impact on my external life - yet still, I'm physically human. I am keenly aware of how my human brain impacts my way of thinking, how my human hormones affect how I feel.

So I'm not physically nonhuman, but I'm... socially nonhuman?

If you take "social" to encompass things like emotions and viewpoints and such, as well as how you talk and act?

My nonhumanity is socially impactful, and that impacts the physical (insofar as it impacts how I act, how I feel, and how I engage with the world).

It's an identity, yes, but it's not... self-contained. I can't really pass as "a normal person who happens to be nonhuman".

I doubt I'm the only one who experiences something like this! And that's part of why I'm even putting this out there. I don't exactly expect (or need) "socially nonhuman" to catch on as a term, but I wanted to say that this is how I feel, and that others who feel this way are not alone.

It can seem like a very lonely existence, I suppose. I don't know if I'll ever feel comfortable to express my genuine self around other people. Even online, I mask and hide. I would be seen differently if I didn't do that. Connection and belonging are fulfilling to me, and I value them too much to lose them just for the sake of being honest about stuff that most people wouldn't understand anyway!

Still, I don't really regret being nonhuman in this way. This is just who I am! I wouldn't be me if I were different.

[in1-nutshell]

Bot Buddy being Swerve’s older sibling

SFW, familial, platonic, Cybertroninan/ Bot reader, slight angst but has a happy ending

MTMTE

Part 1 of 2

Part 2 here

Part 3 here

For this writing, Swerve’s older sibling is going to be BIG. We are talking Fortress Maximus Big.

How does Buddy have a sibling like Swerve with their height? No one knows and quite frankly, Buddy doesn’t care. They are very close to Swerve.

Buddy doesn’t mind their younger brother talking their audial off about the most random things. They have gotten used to it by now.

“Hey Buddy. Do you think that if minibots ever became a combiner it would just turn out to be a normal sized bot?”—Swerve

“I honestly don’t know how to answer to that question.”

“No, no, but see if the size of one minibot—“—Swerve

“There goes my sleep…”—Buddy

Swerve is insecure, that’s nothing new. But it increases a bit when he is with Buddy in public. He doesn’t like it when bots or himself start comparing them with him. He really wants them to be proud of him and all of his accomplishments. Would 110% support anything Buddy… but he also has his limits.

“Hey Buddy, what are you doing?”--Swerve

“I’m trying to hone in my hiding skills.”--Buddy

“Under a table?”--Swerve

“Yep, and it surprisingly comfortable down here in this crouching position.”--Buddy

“Your stuck aren’t you.”--Swerve

“… maybe? Yes? Help?”--Buddy

“I’ll get the screwdrivers.”--Swerve

“Thanks Swerve!”--Buddy

“This has been the third time I’ve had to disassemble that table…This is getting ridiculous…”—Swerve

Swerve has taught Buddy a thing or two about what he knows about being a metalourgist. As well as teaching them bit of knowledge he knows from doing weird jobs here and there.

“Swerve what do we do when the light turns red?”--Buddy

“Oh! That’s a good question. That usually just means to-- HIT THE DECK!”—Swerve

Buddy is extremely protective of Swerve. They can sometimes get to a ridiculous level of overprotectiveness for Swerve. For example, breathe wrong in his direction, you will feel pain.

“Swerve hold my drink. I’m going to go teach a mech about keeping one’s servos to themselves.”--Buddy

“They just brushed by on accident! There is no need for violence!”--Swerve

It was no surprise that around the time the war rolled by, Buddy was approached and recruited into the Elite Guard. Swerve despite his worries fully supported Buddy.

“Don’t worry about it Buddy! I’m sure your going to have the best stories to tell me when you come back from your missions!”--Swerve

“You really think so Swerve?”--Buddy

“I am positively sure of it Buddy! You know what, this calls for a celebration! Lets go find some engex.”--Swerve

Whenever Buddy was on long trips, they made sure to try and send a message through their personal channel. Swerve tries to make his messages short, but that was nearly impossible for him to do.

“Hey its Swerve! I have so much to tell you, Buddy! First there’s this bot named Blurr and I got his number and now there is a big plan when the wars over. So the plan is that…”--Swerve

Now for some hurt.

Swerve gets notified from some officers from Buddy’s team that there was a good chance that they were killed in action in the last mission. Swerve was in denial at first, but it soon turned into a depression that would follow him for many years even after the war was over. To try and cope with the loss he would still try and send out deep space messages telling them about his day and how much he misses them.

“Hey Buddy, its Swerve again. It’s been a slow week at the bar today. Whirl’s has been on a cocktail binge and nearly attack a poor bot when he asked for the time… And Tailgate, did I talk about Tailgate, well Tailgate is… and then he exploded, I swear Buddy, he exploded!”—Swerve

Timeskip after the events of Swearth

Swerve was getting better. Sure, progress was slow but he was getting to a better place mentally, with the help of his friends and therapy. The only person who he had ever talked about Buddy was Rung. Buddy was a subject that Swerve was not comfortable speaking about too much about. Now Swerve only knows that Rung knows about Buddy ever existing but there were two another bots on board who knew about Buddy. It was Rewind and Whirl

Why? Why those two bots?

Rewind knew after accidentally stumbling on some footage of Swerve and Buddy. After seeing enough footage, Rewind could tell that Buddy at least meant something important to Swerve. He doesn’t bring it up to Swerve. He wants to but he knows if Swerve wants to eventually talk about something then he will talk.

Whirl knows Buddy as his ‘Buddy’ when he was working with the Wreckers. Buddy had joined as a collaboration between the Elite Guard and the Wreckers. Buddy ended up saving Whirl from certain doom and from then Whirl made sure that he was now Buddy’s problem.

“Hey Buddy, what do you think about breaking into a Decepticon clinic and crushing Killmasters brain module?”--Whirl

“How about we don’t do that.”--Buddy

“Your no fun, you know that.”--Whirl

“Yeah, yeah, let’s go get with the others. I think they are debriefing now.”--Buddy

Absolutely loved working with Buddy. He did find out the Buddy’s designation was on the KIA lists after he heard of their mission going off the rails. He had long accepted that Buddy was dead, or missing. Now being on the Lost Light, Whirl has some hope that Buddy might still be out there. If Swerve could create a giant holographic planet for months and not die or Rewind coming back, in a way, then anything was possible.

Now present time

Buddy was very much alive.

[heyclickadee]

Rebels is a higher stakes show than The Clone Wars. (And that’s not meant as a dig at TCW, I promise. Too much rambling under the cut):

Both shows are great. I have one I prefer over the other, but that’s just personal taste—it doesn’t mean it’s better, just that it’s different in a way that appeals to me a little more. Some people will prefer the same one as I do, some will prefer the other, and some will love (or hate) both in equal measure. This isn’t a judgement of quality. They’re different shows doing different things. The Clone Wars is more violent, more graphic, and more characters die. But Rebels has higher stakes. Let me explain.

Stakes in a story are all about potential consequences, and consequences are not synonymous with tragedy or inherently negative. Consequences are results. Results can be good or bad.

In order for a story to have stakes, there really has to be more than one potential consequence. That means potential negative consequences of failure, potential positive consequences of success—and even visa versa, which can get fun. When a story has only one potential outcome, the stakes are actually very low, no matter how tragic that outcome is.

Which brings me back to The Clone Wars.

Now, The Clone Wars does get to play around with high stakes to some extent. It’s an anthology series made up of a bunch of smaller, somewhat self-contained stories interconnected by a loose narrative whole. The stakes of those smaller, self-contained stories are often quite high, because almost every single one of them could go many different directions. The stakes of the larger narrative, however, are lower. We know how the story has to end, because the story of that ending was already told.

It’d be different if The Clone Wars was made before Revenge of the Sith. A LOT of things would probably be different if that was the case, but, the main point is that the audience knew, and had known for years, where The Clone Wars would eventually end up. No matter how many seasons there were, no matter how many times the Jedi lost or won the day, no matter how much we cheered for Rex or Ahsoka, no matter how many times it seemed like the fate of the galaxy rested in the hands of a couple Jedi and a handful of clones—it wasn’t.

The fate of the galaxy was decided a long time ago. There are so many times in The Clone Wars where it seems that fate can be avoided if circumstances shifted or if characters made different decisions—but they don’t, and we already know they don’t going in. Anakin falls, Order 66 happens, the Republic becomes the Empire, and Palpatine wins. That’s how it goes. Thats how it will always go. The main overarching stakes in The Clone Wars are connected to Ahsoka and, to a slightly lesser extent, Rex, and what happens to the two of them—and even those were slightly lowered by the fact that Rebels came out in that long hiatus and told us that Ahsoka and Rex would live.

Rebels, by contrast, didn’t have a known point at which it would have to end starting out. It was about unknown characters whose fates, successes, and failures were open ended. All we knew about them was that they didn’t show up in the Original Trilogy, but since the original trilogy was focused on Luke and his friends, that could have meant anything. Galaxies are big. There was a whole range of positive and negative possibilities for where the story could go.

(Just to be totally clear, because I’m probably being a little misleading by accident, knowing how a story ends doesn’t automatically lower the stakes. A show’s going to have the same level of stakes no matter how many times you watch it (though I’m willing to debate that). The difference I’m trying to illustrate between The Clone Wars and Rebels here is between a story written knowing its ending is inevitable, and knowing the audience knows it, and a story written knowing its ending was open.)

And here’s the other thing: telling a story that’s aware of a predetermined ending, and which is aware that its audience knows the ending, doesn’t mean there’s no tension. Suspense—not knowing—is one way to create tension in a story, but dramatic irony—the tension created in the gap between what the audience knows and what the characters in a story don’t know—is another.

A lot of stories play with both depending on the needs of each scene, but The Clone Wars is swimming in dramatic irony. The characters go along fighting their battles and trying their best while we, the audience, watch them hurtle towards the inevitable of the Revenge of the Sith. Rebels, by contrast, touches on dramatic irony every once in a while for individual scenes and episodes, but plays more with suspense overall, because nothing’s inevitable(1) and the audience isn’t sure where it’s going. Both can work and both are valid. Same with lower stakes vs higher stakes.

All this to say that creating stakes is not just about negative outcomes, stories which end in tragedy can have lower overall narrative stakes than ones that end in which the characters succeed in their goals, and lower overall narrative stakes isn’t the same thing as the story having no tension or drive. All of it can work depending on what you want the story to do.

1. Except maaaaaybe Kanan’s death. That one was kind of baked in from the get-go.

[thegeneralreturns]

Thoughts on THE CROW (2024)

You know that TikTok of that emo kid, sitting in the front seat of his car, screaming "MY HEARRRRRRRT! IIIIII LOOOOOOVED HERRRRRR!"? Well, this new version of The Crow is that for two hours.

This is not a criticism. In fact, shock of shocks, I found myself kinda... sorta... loving this movie.

The path that the 1994 version of The Crow found toward its cult reverence is one steeped in tragedy. The untimely passing of its lead Brandon Lee during filming gave a tinge of romance and lost potential to what was, in essence, a big, dumb action movie. A big, dumb action movie that boasted a solid lead performance and the pinnacle of nineties set design and cinematography, but a big, dumb action movie nonetheless. No matter how good he was when the cameras were on him, Lee wasn't cast because he was a master thespian. He was cast because he was Bruce Lee's kid, and that might move a few tickets. The Crow was Bob and Harvey Weinstein's play to get Miramax in a position to compete with Warner Bros. and Batman, and one of the most infamous on-set accidents in film history led to a periphery demographic of Goth kids that are still cosplaying, buying the soundtrack, and lighting candles thirty years later.

The 2024 version of The Crow appears to be an effort to legitimately make the film that that periphery demographic seems to have been seeing in a mirage for the past thirty years, and on that score, I think it succeeds. It's open-wound sincere love story between two druggie kids, the tragedy that separates them, and the passion that brings one of them back in a rain of bullets and blood. I saw someone on Twitter call it "Twilight for scumbags," and that person deserves a Pulitzer Prize. It's pitched at that level, only instead of long, interminable stretches of the two leads staring at one another, it's broken up by bad guys getting shot in the face. There is a place for this.

FKA Twigs plays Shelly, and it's as though she sprang fully-formed out of Tim Burton's head with her compact, twee, English-accented Gothness. But I find Bill Skarsgard's Eric to be genuinely endearing. Whereas Brandon Lee's rendition of the character was an Alpha Chad who came out of the grave knowing combat tactics, the Skarsgard take is troubled, though well-meaning, and seemingly doesn't have a plan in his quest for revenge beyond "They can die and I can't." And the sight of this gaunt tree-branch taking shotgun blasts at point blank range sells the enormity of the odds against him.

The love story and character aspects of this movie are so persuasive that when the action does eventually get here, it can't help but suffer in comparison. Rupert Sanders is no Alex Proyas, and while he nails the impact of violence, the actual geography seems to give him trouble. Is it just me, or does the opera house in the climax appear to have too few floors than the sequence requires?

So which one is better? I don't know, and frankly I don't care. In a rational world, we could show appreciation that James O'Barr's source material was strong enough to facilitate two wildly different cinematic approaches. But we don't live in a rational world, and remaking a mid-nineties comic book movie is tantamount to blasphemy.

But what I do know is that we're gonna get older. New folks are gonna move in. And when you ask them which version is better, the answer won't be as one-sided as you think. Because if there's one thing that literally every version of The Crow has thought me, it is this:

Nothing this earnest stays dead for long.

[sincerely-sofie]

The """"villain""""Twig!AU is making me go insane over what would happen. I haven't hyperfixated on something so much, so quickly in years. I need to give my 2 cents or I just might implode

(Tw: self hatred, suicide implications, Death, Caps lock)

Twig would think of herself as an irredeemable monster for indirectly hurting her friends. she would probably think that, because Darkrai made people have nightmares because of malice, (while not knowing its just a thing he can accidentally do without realizing it.) she would think that on some level that she WANTED to hurt the people closest to her. Her self loathing would get SO much worse. BUT she CAN'T be self destructive because she wouldn't want anyone else to be cursed with this power. She would spiral even further. She wants to die, but she knows she can't from age because of Celebi. She would hate herself even more for even thinking of finding someone to put her out of her misery. She loves her friends to a fault. She wants to be with them, but she thinks that she's inherently evil. It wouldn't help that she would not be able to practice controlling her powers in isolation, give that nightmare aura invariably needs someone else to practice with.

Everyone in her friend group, the Guild, heck, maybe even team skull, would desperately search for her. Combing every place they can think of. Searching every mystery dungeon, forest, mountain, cave, even going under the sea to search. But it's no use. One by one all of them would give up and accept that she is missing. Maybe forever. Except Kip. He would never stop searching for her. He's madly in love with her and knows her better than anyone else. All he wants to do is tell her that he still loves her, and that he would endure any nightmare, no matter how awful, just so he could wake up next to her. And that they would figure out how to control her powers together. But he can't. Maybe he evolves from the constant stress and work put in searching for her. He can't accept that she's gone. He CANNOT live without seeing her one last time. But no matter how much he tries, he can't find her. All of his effort, YEARS of searching with no results. He would either fall into an intense depression, rarely eating or getting out of bed, or die in an accident during an expedition. His thoughts for the last who-knows-how-many-decades have almost entirely been about Twig. And that doesn't change during his last breath.

Grovyle would possibly take it the worst out of all her friend. She was the ONE person he SWORE to protect, and he SCREWED IT UP! HE COULDN'T HAVE DONE ANY WORSE! He would consider himself an utter failure on every conceivable level. It doesn't help that his old savior complex habits resurface worse than ever. He doesn't want anyone to worry about him. He needs to be strong. He always puts on a mask whenever he's around others. He denies everything when someone confronts him about obviously not doing well. Whenever he's alone, he wishes he could just, dissappear. But that would mean someone else would wonder what happened to him. So he can't do that. As a result, he becomes more distant from everyone. His friendships fade because he's never genuine. He runs away whenever he begins to get too emotional. And denies that he is doing such a thing.

Dusknoir would be incredibly distraught by this. He hurt Twig before, who's to say he hadn't done hurt her again? She didn't even say goodbye to anyone, least of all him, why would she even care about him? And now all he wants is to beg her for forgiveness. Completely unaware of the fact that she had already forgiven him for his betrayal a long time ago. He has no idea that she would be appalled that he would want her to forgive him when she would be the one begging for his forgiveness for hurting him and "being evil". Both of them recieve no closure for this. And both of them live without knowing that the other wishes they would ask for forgiveness.

Celebi would become more reserved than ever. She learned that; not only could a legend be killed, but also what happens to the person that kills them. She would consider her powers to see the future and the past a curse. One that only she can bear. She becomes so much less adventurous and adverse to risk. Whenever the other Celebi's ask her why she looks so glum, she quickly changes the subject. She can't have them know. It would destroy them. She would consider all of this her fault as well. If only she knew what would happen, she could have stopped it. If she had been more responsible, she could have had Twig live her life, and all of this would have been avoided. But she can't change it now, because if she were to try and go back in time, another Celebi might come to this timeline and learn what happened. Then they would tell the others, and then they would talk, and she would be solely responsible for ruining the lives of infinite Celebi's. It would all have been her fault. She shoos any celebi that arrives in her timeline out of there. Her relationship with Dialga crumbles as a result of how often she threatens other Celebis to tell him that they are interfering with other timeliness. Eventually, the other Celebi's start avoiding her altogether. "If she's gonna be so mean, then we just wont talk to her" they reason. She's alone, her friendships are ruined, the only people that can relate to her hate her. But they are all safe. That's the only thing that matters now.

Cressalia would take some time, but eventually she finds out what would happen. She would feel responsible for being the one that got Twig cursed with this power, but also she would try to police Twig the same way she tried to control Darkrai. "She must be doing this on purpose". Perhaps Cressalia is the catalyst that made Twig leave in the first place. By trying to help her in Cressalia's own special way, by guilt tripping them while assuming they know what they're doing. It's only after her experience with the Snivy that she realizes what she has done. And now she did EXACTLY what she did to darkrai. To someone who never wanted or asked for this power. She would want to seek forgiveness, but Twig doesn't sleep. She doesn't know where she is. This guilt would eat away at her, leaving her a shell of her former self.

I love a good (fictional) tragedy, because all of this is no-ones fault in particular. Celebi thought legends couldn't be killed and didn't take any precautions in the possibility of that happening, Cresselia thought she was doing the right thing, both before and after Darkrai's death. Twig, Kip, Grovyle and Dusknoir couldn't have known that any of this would happen. It was the perfect storm and set of circumstances that caused this. The most tragic part of all of this, is that by trying to protect everyone, Twig hurts them more than she would have if she had simply stayed. If she didn't have a tendency to put the well-being of others over her own, she could have lead a much happier life, with some pain at the start. Rather than being in pain forever, while unknowingly causing so much more suffering. Ignorance is often bliss, but it is a curse in this.

I dunno how in character all of this is, (Personally, I think my interpretation of Celebi is a bit iffy, she probably would have known that legends can be killed, seen this future, and taken steps to prevent all this from happening) But my brain latched on to the implications of this AU like a steel trap and would not let go until I wrote this down

Thank you for continuing to make art Sophie! I love this suffering more than you probably realize. (Genuine)

Okay so like. When you said you were gathering your thoughts I was so excited. But I would have never DREAMED of this amazing ask.

This is such an interesting continuation of the AU’s premise! It really drives home the irony of Twig’s belief that she makes things worse for those around her, and that her friends would be happier if they never saw her again— Twig is the heart of the main cast. She’s keeping everyone from going off the deep end with just her presence.

I don’t know what to say other than GOOD GLORY do we ever need a tag for this AU because I’m getting attached to it 😭

[spotsupstuff]

"Ah. You again."

"You hush!" Three Sparrows aggressively points towards the abnormally sized blue Iterator puppet leveling her with an unimpressed look since she made it through the chamber hatch. "You knew I was coming over before I even started packing back at Caper's. And I know for a fact that you've known about me since I got through your retaining walls."

Oh, and he has the nerve to puff unconcerned at that, glancing back to the endless neon screens displaying manufacturing demands, asking him to deal with that and that accident occuring in the multiple levels of Desaevio. He just swipes those away. Not even betting an eye at someone losing their life in a crash.

That still sends shivers down her spine and settles an uncomfortable weight in her stomach. Even though it's been a long while now, that Boreas' Blessing has accepted her into his family.

"Yes, I have. And I have attempted to prevent you from progressing further into my factories as well-," he shoots her a warning look without any threat in it over his shoulder, "-intruder."

"Ha! Please." Three Sparrows exclaims, rather directing her attention to her goal- the umbilical arm. She needs something to ground against after all, and at this point she knows better than to ask the ancient Iterator to turn off the antigravity. Blessing doesn't like doing that- the pull of the umbilical arm on his back hurts.

Not so subtly, the arm moves to meet her as she swims to it.

"You call *that* 'preventing'? You've got to be growing rusty. You gave me a harder time while trying to get to my apartment back during my school days than now."

"Hm. Yes, well... You are pulling on your 81st birthday. I have thought you would be appreciative of me being considerate of that fact." She settles on one of the last segments of the arm at its base and with the wave of the puppet's, all the screens close. "...what with being fully organic and all. Have your joints not been bothering you?"

As he brings himself closer, she pays him no mind. Rather eyeing her knee from her perch. And... yeppp, extending it properly produces a crack. It hurts a little. Blessing glares at the thing as if it just personally offended him.

"You *are* aware I could produce you a prosthe-"

"No." She quickly waves her hand in denial. "No- I mean... thank you, Blessing. For the offer. I do appreciate both it and you being considerate. I may not... like to hear it, but I guess I really am getting old. But I'd like to stay as much myself as I can the whole way."

"..." And the so-old-that-it's-hard-to-comprehend thing gives her this look. On the outside still twisted in anger- Three Sparrows is sure his face actually got stuck that way- but buried underneath... worry, pity, confusion... fear... all that plays there in the back. "...very well. I will stop asking then."

She gives him a little smile from behind her rebreather mask. "You said that last time I visited, too. You are just a big ol' carebear, B."

Huff, cross of arms. "What are you doing here this early anyway. You are scheduled to come by in a week before departing for Zephyrus."

Three Sparrows only gives him a shrug at that, averts her eyes. "I dunno. This might... be my final outing. To Zeph especially. I don't know when I'll start greying, I don't know when mom will die back home, the next few years seem..." her hands clasp each other, fidgeting, "They seem..."

His touch is strangely light, when his hand settles on top of hers. Hiding them both away effortlessly. He's cold.

But his voice is gentle and warm, the deep tone of it reassuring. "Uncertain."

Sigh. "Yeah... Uncertain. I'm scared." She shrugs again, trying to play that vulnerability off. "Either way, I might not see you guys in person again. I thought that was... horrible. I may have cried. A little bit." She eyes him, trying to force some play through the pain. "Only a teeny tiny bit."

"Right, yes." Blessing decides to indulge her, "Because every time I have seen you cry it definitely had not felt like I was close to witnessing a river for the first time."

That at least gets her to giggle a little. "You are the meanest person ever!"

"I will be sure to take that as a compliment, little sister." And he makes a show of rolling his eyes in total exasperation.

Through little laughs, she continues: "So I'm here to stay the week. Hang out with you a little before I'll go."

When he takes too long to reply, seemingly surprised, she adds a little unsure with one of her hands worming out from underneath his to put it over it. "You can still... send me on my way, though? If you don't want me."

Oh and there's such hurt in that statement. How could he, anyway? She's his responsibility, for the last twenty or so years. And his responsibilities are precious to him. Either by their value, as his work to manufacture parts- or by how cherished they are. How beloved they've become. And just like little Eurus, Three Sparrows has managed to become dear to him too.

With a soft squeeze of her hand, Blessing indirectly answers. "Are you going to stay here now? I shall fix the air for you, if so."

There's that smile again. So easy to paint on her features, yet not any less loved for it. "I'd like to. Thank you."

As the process starts, she tells him of her plans. Motions to the guitar case on her back, points to her media player apparently containing new songs she thinks he might like.

They shall sing, they shall watch a movie and then they shall talk some more. While Boreas' Blessing indulges her, he shall look for a place for her to stay for the week, too. It must've slipped her mind.

It's alright. He's here to look after her.

[bright-tatters]

Tatters #25

A runner came to Fortune, not with a telegram, but with a message from the clinic at the center of the Ward. That had been a triumph of engineering, upgrading from the loose network of sawbones that had serviced the Ward before. The administrators were among Fortune’s favorite people in the grand scheme of things.

“There’s someone,” the runner said articulately. “They found him on the street, he’s…you’d better come see.”

“Car accidents aren’t my specialty,” Fortune said dryly. No matter what the malcontents by the mills said.

“Please, sir. A couple of people are calling him Councilor Lu.”

Fortune set down his drink and rang for Habbamock. “Show me.”

It was an evening just clearing from a rainy day, and the rivulets between Tatters’ cobblestones glistened in all their rainbow opacity. Some automobiles had come in from wealthier Wards; two together could crowd a vintage Tatters street to a near standstill. But Tatters managed. Tatters always managed.

Fortune walked, quickly. Habbamock stalked at his side, above his own height and more comfortingly muscular.

The runner walked with him into the cube of bricks where Tatters tended to its own. “One level upstairs,” said the boy, “ask for Councilor Lu.”

Fortune tossed him a silver coin and took the stairs two at a time. “Watch outside,” he said to Habbamock. He had his ring. He wasn’t going into an empath’s den unarmed.

The patient had a private room, a courtesy extended to few. Beside the bed there was a woman Fortune had seen around minor errands, one of Tatters’ even if she wasn’t one of Fortune’s.

“Sir!” she said, standing. “Fortune, sir!”

Fortune stared.

On the off-white bed under a stained brown blanket lay a man of august height with a disproportionately shrunken body. How old would Mière Lu be? Sixty? His features were distinguished but sunken, no longer handsome but careworn and strained. His skin was nearly effulgently white. And his scalp…his scalp had been shaved in patches. Red scars marked squares around his skull. Tufts of iron-gray hair half covered what proved to be, when Fortune touched him, more scars.

Fortune looked at the woman. “Miss Terrance, isn’t it?”

“Yes, sir. How did֫ you know?”

“I’m good with faces.” And people tended to be off balance, respectful, or both when confronted with Fortune’s knowledge of their names. “What happened?”

Her concern transferred from herself to the patient. “I found him in the street,” she said. “Just like you see him, it was snowing out, I…I called for help. I just stared at him waiting and I…I recognized him. Fortune, Councilor Lu disappeared eight years ago.”

Almost to the day. “He obviously hasn’t been having a good time of it. Thank you, summoning me was the right move.”

“Are we in trouble?”

‘We’ meaning Tatters? “No. I’ll manage this. You can go, if you want. Councilor Lu is under my protection now.”

She stood. “I’ll go, then. Will you be staying? Can I get you something to eat?”

Fortune felt himself doing a double take. “No,” he said, and also felt himself smiling. “That’s kind of you. No, I’ll be fine.”  Kindnesses too often came with knives.

“Goodnight, sir.”

“Goodnight, Miss Terrance.”

Fortune sat up with the comatose Councilor. He could see, in the bare lines of the emaciated man’s face, the person who had initiated him, twenty long years previously. An empath. Did that mean he deserved this?

Who had taken him? Why? What did all the scars mean? Why drop him off in Tatters? What could Fortune do? Total physical custody of a member of the Council of Light was nothing to sneeze at. Lu might get him precious leverage. If anyone would believe he was here.

Then again, how many former pages would be happy to know he’d simply died of his injuries? After all, teenaged Bailey White could not possibly have been a first or a last.

Fortune sat beside the patient. “They called you a born showman,” he said quietly, and reached for Lu’s hand. It was cold and clammy. “So what are you promoting now?”

The hand twitched in his grasp. Fortune backed off, letting it lie against his palm.

That’s when he saw the ring.

[twistedwonderlandshenanigans]

Hi I love you @my-cursed-brain (if you want me to tag your alt in the future just lmk bc. I will probably split this into different posts just for the sake of organization) Anyways!! Regarding the Dance AU, I'll give you a little bit of bg information first. Night Raven Dance Academy is a prestigious school with availability for anyone from the middle class tax bracket right on up to royalty, but the difficulty and the quality of the lessons are dependent on your financial standing. (For example, Vil, Neige, Leona, Riddle - they all have the best teachers NRDA has to offer, with a rigorous training schedule and their academics are less of a priority than dance is in terms of personal goals, and are done via asynchronous classes to accommodate for their schedule. Ace, Deuce, Vizzie (OC), are still in a pretty intense dance program, but they still have their normal classes to attend in person). NRDA is divided by floors based on where you're going for classes. Now for Neige, Riddle and Vil. They are the queen bees, studying specifically ballet. Since Leona took a temporary leave from the academy after a dance related accident, the three of them have been competing to be the top dancer at the school. They've got a "Mean Girls" sort of dynamic going, where they treat each other like enemies as much as they treat each other like friends. Part of this is because they've known each other since middle school. Part of this is the (mostly) friendly competition between them. Part of this is the Gender Envy. Neige is openly gender fluid, with supportive (adoptive) parents. This somewhat irks Vil, not just the self expression and the support, but it seems to give Neige more flexibility as their instructor knows Neige is comfortable playing either a typically female OR male lead, resulting in Neige being picked over Vil for leads often, never due to skill, only due to the comfort level the instructor has been made aware of. However he has major imposter syndrome and nobody he can talk to about it because he knows Vil and Riddle will kind of tear him apart, but his parents don't really acknowledge his issues, just telling him he's perfect and he knows its not true. Vil can't say he wants the female lead. He has considered coming out to his father as trans, but overheard a conversation his dad had with Riddle's mom, and realized the moment he told his father he would be disowned, his reputation would be ruined, and his dance career would be over. So he stays quiet, silently seething as Neige gets the glory he wishes he had. Riddle is afab in this universe. She is in denial about being trans, as she knows her mother would not be supportive, which has severely impacted her motivation and passion for dance. Everything just Feels Wrong, and when she looks at Vil and Neige she wonders why she feels a sense of loss or like something's missing. So her performance hasn't been as good as it has in the past, leading to more issues and one-sided conversations from her mother, and empty promises that she'll try to do better but she really doesn't know what's wrong. Her mental health starts to wear on her quite a bit, but Vil and Neige pick up on it eventually.

There will be a day, eventually, in which the three of them are able to really talk to each other and sort their shit but it takes A While to get there. wheeee thank you for asking about it I love talking about worldbuilding and stuff and its a great reward for when I finish chunks of hw so I really appreciate it in that way too lmao

[nerves-nebula]

For the Basic Neglect AU, does Splinter get a "trying to be a better father" arc like in Rise or is he gonna try to do better for a day n a half and then fall into old habits?

💙💙💙

*slams hands on table in an aggressively excited manner*

you have allowed me to rant about a new idea i have and you WILL listen OK SO HERE'S THE DEAL WITH THIS AU.

this AU will be drawing on a lot of my own personal experiences with neglect/abuse!! It's a pretty DIRE AU but its also supposed to be kind of funny in a dark sorta way i guess.

SO SPLINTER RIGHT? SO. I'm gonna level with you anon, he's just gonna be an absolute dogshit father. A bad person, even. and he will never admit it.

the situation is very "I'm not hurting you, I provide everything for you! and if I am hurting you then it's not that bad, and if it IS that bad it's not my fault because parenting isnt fucking easy" in a cyclical way in which he is never to blame.

any attempts he makes to reconcile with his kids have everything to do with what he THINKS a "good parent" should do and NOTHING to do with actually thinking of his kids as people.

so he'll hug Donnie if Donnie is crying, but if Donnie tries to pull away, Splinter won't let him go, even if Donnie REALLY DOESNT WANT TO BE HUGGED RIGHT NOW (<- based on a real event)

He's got no concept of boundaries and sees his children trying to set boundaries as an insult against The Closeness of their Relationship.

he says he doesn't have favorites but he'll always make excuses for Leo's behavior/abuse of his siblings. he doesn't think of himself as a mean person, but he'll laugh if the thing his kids are upset about aren't "serious" enough to warrant their reactions, or he'll be annoyed if they're upset about something he considers trivial.

he gets annoyed at Donnie and Mikey's stimming and often implies or just says his kids are stupid/think stupid things/got what they deserved for acting stupid.

(side note: Mikey is terrified of being "stupid" because Splinter has made it clear that the way to avoid harm is by "not being stupid" and if you're "stupid" then you somehow deserve what happens to you in a really gross victim-blamey way)

The closest thing they have to Family Bonding Time is eating meals together, watching TV/movies together, and training together. Which Splinter always makes worse/more tense whenever he's there because no one knows when it's going to stop being Nice Family Time and start being Splinter Dissecting The Way You Eat Time.

And in their free time he really doesn't give a shit what they do. He doesn't want them going topside for like the first 13 years, but he also doesn't really check up on them until its the end of the day (in which case he doesn't actually put them to bed. he just makes sure they're inside and then locks them all in while he goes to sleep so that they can't get lost or something. he does NOT give them good hygiene/sleeping habits I tell ya waht)

so they start sneaking out to the surface when they're pretty young and he has no idea cause he's "too busy" to watch them all the time. This has led to a lot of small accidents that could've been avoided if the fucking CHILDREN were being WATCHED but WHATEVER.

BASICALLY - he is a BAD DAD in this AU and he should never have had kids.

hope this answers your question :)

[1moremilgram-enjoyer]

Hey, this is a post that got buried in our account at some point, but I'm very curious about what you think about the German aspects of Shidou's medical history!

(Sorry for being the third Shidou person lol)

-Venus

Wow you're all gonna drag me kicking and screaming into liking Shidou huh? He's already going up in the rankings lol.

Anyways, I'm gonna be honest, as cool a find as it is, I have zero idea what the deal with the German is. Shidou very clearly worked in a Japanese hospital, as seen in Throw Down.

Notice the green signs in the background are written in... well I assume it's Japanese it's gonna be real awkward if that's some other language lol. They’re not the only ones btw, they’re just the clearest.

So it's unlikely he was doing his work in Germany unless he moved his wife's body there after her accident or something, but as much as Shidou's sotryline plays fast and loose with the science of it all, I highly doubt that would work in the slightest.

Now, after some research, turns out Japanese medicine does take some words from German, though it’s most commonly used by older generations and for obstetric (related to pregnancy I think) and gynecologic practice, which isn’t quite what we’re dealing with here. We’re listing completely unrelated organs.

German used to be frequently employed in Japanese obstetric and gynecologic (OBGYN) practice; however, it is now less frequently used. Source.

There are a few other words of German origin, which you can find listed here (CW for a few potentially uncomfortable words, especially related to WWII and medicine). You’ll see there’s quite a few medical terms there, but none of them match what’s on the tag. At least it explains why Shidou knows German in the first place, which is honestly a really cool detail!

I also thought about maybe his wife being German, but I don't think that works either. As stated in an interrogation question (T2 Q17), Shidou and his wife began dating in middle school, and they were family friends (T2 Q16) so it's likely their parents knew each other before they were born, and thus were likely in the same country. The only option I see is both of them being born in Germany, then moving to Japan, but they can't have spent much time there otherwise Shidou should have a higher level than "conversation level" German (T2 Q4). Are their parents German then? What- Why would we need to know this?

Other than that, yeah I’m struggling a bit on this one. Was he writing in German to hide what he was doing from the doctors who didn’t speak German? That’s too silly though. I think the best answer is what was brought up in the rb you linked, that it’s just meant to lead us into thinking of that scandal in Germany so as to get a better idea of what Shidou was doing. That or just Shidou flexing that Japanese-German medicine connection.

Apart from that, regarding some of the other things from the thread you linked. I think the tags being triage tags could certainly work! Especially the things from, well, Triage, since they seem to have a slightly different design, though that could be me going insane. It certainly makes more sense with the “cards of promise” thing, since triage tags carry a more concrete promise than… morgue tags? (don’t know what they’re called).

And the 007 in the back of the tags, I’m not sure if it actually has any medical meaning, but it could have a symbolic meaning.

The number seven has also ingrained itself into both the celebration of life and the mourning of death in Japan. After a baby is born its birth is celebrated on its seventh day of life, conversely after someone's death there is seven days of mourning, then they are mourned once again seven weeks after the death. Source.

So it could represent mourning for the people Shidou has killed, while also representing the hope for his wife’s rebirth. Something like that, maybe.

Or maybe prisoner 007 Kazui was the one who caused the accident /j

Anyways, hope that was good enough! Thanks for the ask, take care!

[lumilasi]

Updated these two to add them to NCP. Also decided to change Silas into a girl instead, as otherwise their mom (design pending) would be stuck with FOUR gremlin boys lol

The Faylunes are probably the most well-adjusted family in this story (alongside the Knights), but even they aren't without tragedy in it.

Info below:

Age(s): 18

Heights: they're both roughly 167 cm tall

Nicknames:

Milo: Gremlin I Celine: Cece

Alternate name: Celine & Milo Danau (Danau is the Fae bloodline surname)

(coming from the latin name danaus, referring to a tribe of tiger butterflies)

Family: older brothers Claude and Hayden, Mother (name pending)

Friends: Classmate Adam Knight, sometimes they also hang out with Ichirou's group. (Ichirou, Marco, Janus & Clover)

Occupation: High school students.

Abilities:

MILO

As a SPD, he can merge with shadows and traverse through them. He can also paralyse people by, er, chomping them, or in case of small children, just by staring at them.

His kind feed off of fear their presence causes, and so he naturally gives Spooky Vibes when in demon form, which can cause paranoia, anxiety or small unease in people. (His vibes aren't as strong as Hayden's yet)

As a moth/bug type, he can also fly and shrink into a tiny size if he wants to.

Having a fae heritage means he is able to summon his wings (and extra pair of arms) in fae/human form without needing to transform fully.

He's pretty good at smacking things with staff-like weapons.

CELINE

She is highly intelligent, able to process information quickly and is curious/persistent enough to dig out things she doesn't know about, even if its hard

Excellent swordswoman, Celine's skill with her dual blades is considered highly impressive for her age.

She is incredibly stealthy, able to sneak up on even her brother Hayden, which is not an easy feat.

Fairly fast and agile at flying, though not as fast as Hayden who is Very Speedy Boi

Personality:

Milo: A friendly, kind of a chaotic gremlin with himbo energy. Means well but has a bad habit of breaking things and causing chaos accidentally. Temperamental and ready to throw hands for his friends and family anytime. Dumb enough to not realize if someone has a crush on him, unless he gets told directly (might still not connect the dots lol)

Celine: Smart, seemingly the polite and level-headed one. An absolutely mischievous gremlin in truth who likes messing with people and causing chaos just like Milo - only intentionally, and she is typically able to cover her tracks. Really loves learning about new things and is pretty competitive, often wanting to prove she's smartest in the room, for better or worse.

Weaknesses:

Milo: Due to witnessing their father's death, Milo has a phobia of tight places/being buried alive and therefore doesn't enjoy being in cramped rooms or crowds that get too big. He is mute that does sometimes cause trouble with communication, as not everyone understands sign language, and he doesn't know any telepathy spells and struggles to learn such magic.

Celine: Sometimes a bit too smug for her own good, where she overestimates her own capabilities. Her competitiveness can lead to problems where she might lash out at her friends and family if she loses, and generally act kind of mean. She always does apologize once she realizes she's gone too far, though.

ABOUT THEIR LATE FATHER:

The Faylunes had a fairly normal and happy family life living at the glow apple farm they ran.

Things changed however as their father was crushed in an accident during a storm, where the barn collapsed onto him; a lightning had struck it and he'd gone there to try and put the fire out.

Milo had rushed to try and help his dad when he'd gotten stuck under fallen debris and due to being disoriented hadn't been able to use his shrinking ability to escape,. Unfortunately, Milo didn't make it on time, and the resulting sudden flash of fire from the collapse also hit Milo, resulting in him losing his other eye and later wearing an eyepatch. (There is regenerative magic in this world, but trying to regenerate such delicate organs like eyes to another person is very risky and often not worth the effort)

Since he's the only one who directly witnessed the event, he was hit the worst out of the whole family, going mute and developing severe fear of tight places that seem to threaten to collapse onto him, like the barn collapsed onto their father. (He didn't develop a fear of fire given it ultimately wasn't the blaze that killed their dad, and had he not gotten trapped, their father could've probably managed to put the fire out.)

Fun Facts

Every sibling in this family has a clothing piece referencing their butterfly/moth wings and theme made by their mom; Celine has her long-sleeved shirt, Milo his fluffy cardigan coat, Claude his jacket, and while Hayden has no natural wings, being a Moon Mage instead of Fae, he still has agreen butterfly themed shirt made to him by their mother.

Milo's SPD form is blue as the inverse of his wing colors is bunch of blues.

Celine is a huge fan of Avane Faydream, as she's seen how incredibly good fighter and tactician she is, and she really digs tough and smart ladies.

Another person she finds cool is Adam's oldest brother Chester(Azul) who is currently "away," (he's a wanted fugitive for stealing something highly valuable and dangerous from the Overshadower Council, a branch of their world's government), but Celine doesn't know that)

Generally, she tends to dig confident and intelligent people, who are able to use their tactical skill to defeat an opponent instead of brute forcing it.

Milo is closest with their oldest sibling Claude among the bunch, but generally all 4 siblings are fairly close and have their own inside jokes that others don't get.

Celine in turn, is closer with Hayden than Claude

Milo's wings are based on Atlas moth, and Celine's the tiger butterfly like their older brother Claude's wings.

Milo tends to want to keep his cardigan on even during summer, when its honestly too warm to wear. This tends to lead to him stripping naked apart from the said cardigan, up until his mom tells him off

Milo's shirt has the logo of his favorite in-world rockband, the Showman's Lament. His sister also loves it, and owns a similar shirt, just white instead of dark grey.

While, like their older siblings, the two go to school in the capital Chrysalis city, they always travel back home to their mom for weekends and holidays, as she's currently mostly by herself otherwise.

Their dad was the Sleep Paralysis Demon, while their mum is the tiger butterfly Fae

The siblings' style tends to be kind of a mix of urban, sporty and punky fashion when in the city, but at the farm they do wear more practical clothing to help out their mother. (Hayden and Claude do the same ofc)

Milo has a ravenous appetite and will easily devour meals meant for three people.

When he's stressed, Milo might monch on canvases, including their home curtains sometimes which are full of 'mysterious' holes as a result.