#i would have included his scars but they looked wonky

[chillingandtoxic]

Goth creek, if u even care

[lobotomisedsims]

SIMS 4: BEETLEJUICE MOD

Though I know I should be wary,

Still I download some mod scary,

Ghostly CC I turn loose:

BEETLEJUICE!

BEETLEJUICE!

BEETLEJUICE!

MORE INFO UNDER CUT

New CAS items:

Beetlejuice's suit (4 swatches, clean and moldy versions and different shirt colours)

Beetlejuice's trousers (2 swatches, clean and moldy versions)

Beetlejuice skin (different versions found in different places. You can find them in eye details, face paint, lipstick, and eyeshadow. Lots of different swatches for the version you want!)

Dolores's stitches (in facepaint and body scars. Version in scars has the stitches and seams separate to be put together similar to GrimGuide's halloween stitches if you've ever used that before)

Sandworm eyes (in... eyes. Where else would they be?)

Sandworm skins for SaveState furries (also works with SoraFoxy's furries and tomjj's furries, though some of the bird beaks look odd. Does not work for benji's furries. Looks weird.)

New BuildBuy stuff:

Delia's statues (set of 4, found in 'decoration'. This was my first time modeling in Blender so sorry if they came out a lil wonky!)

Beetlejuice's tombstone (3 swatches, 2 of different spellings of his name and 1 in simlish. Found in 'decoration'. PURELY DECORATIVE, DOES NOT FUNCTION AS AN ACTUAL TOMBSTONE! To get it to look more like the version from the films, I'd reccomend using the bb.moveobjects cheat to add a lil gargoyle of some sort on top)

Handbook for the recently deceased (MIGHT require Seasons? It shouldn't since I messed with the mesh and stuff but if you don't have that pack and it doesn't show up in your game let me know. 2 swatches for English and simlish. Found in 'activities and skills')

Striped wallpaper (10 swatches! I kind of went overboard. Found in 'wallpapers'... duh)

Striped chair (5 swatches, found in 'comfort'. Again this shouldn't require anything else if I edited the mesh properly, but it's possible this might require Cottage Living if I screwed up.)

New traits:

STRANGE AND UNUSUAL TRAIT

Faster at training photography and medium (from paranormal stuff) skills

Slower at building friendship and romance with other sims

Stronger 'sad' moodlets

Become inspired around occult sims (vampires, werewolves, aliens, spellcasters, mermaids, and the skeletons from jungle adventure)

Permanent happy buff when they themself become an occult (does not include the skeletons as it is a hidden trait you can't give to sims without cheats or other mods)

Random chance for sad moodlet because "nobody understands them"

Are happy when in Strangerville, become inspired in the secret lab (fair warning, I've had issues with getting this to work, this is my first set of traits so it could cause some issues! If anyone better at this stuff than me knows how to get this working 100% of the time please let me know ;u;)

Can give a "strange introduction" to new sims

Can "share dark thoughts" with other sims

Can "enthuse about cryptids"

NOTE: If you are planning on making Lydia, I would reccomend using this in conjunction with the base game 'gloomy' trait. When making this trait I didn't want to just replicate Lydia's personality exactly since I wanted this to be a trait you could use on any sim, and I didn't want to make it too similar to the 'gloomy' or 'paranoid' traits.

GROSS GHOST TRAIT

Immune to death! Since they're already a ghost and all that

Faster at training mischief and medium (from paranormal stuff) skills, slower at training charisma

Playful buff when engaging in mischief

Social need decays fast, hygiene need decays REALLY fast

Positive reaction to being dirty or in a dirty environment (including the fixer-upper apartments in city living! Receives energised moodlet upon spotting roaches and inspired moodlet with the unexplained smell)

Gains uncomfortable moodlet when clean

More likely to feel playful

Other sims will notice a gross smell around them...

Cats and dogs are scared of them (could not figure out how to do the same with horses, sorry)

Can "gross out" (mischief) and "freak out" (mean) other sims

Can "lie about being a serial killer in a past life" and "convince to visit the Neitherworld" (mischief)

Can "confess to eating bugs" and "reminisce on past pranks" (friendly)

Can "tell terrible puns" (funny)

OPTIONAL BONUS STUFF!!!

Suit and trousers based on my OC Sirius (I don't know why anybody else would wanna use these but I threw them in there anyway!) 2 swatches

I did make their little noose 'necktie' too but had trouble texturing it. No matter what I do it just shows up completely black in game. So I gave up lol

>> DOWNLOAD HERE!!! (SFS) <<

PLEASE READ! For the traits you NEED to also download the .ts4script file, not just the .package file!!!

OTHER RECOMENDED CC (important)

Some of these are REQUIRED for parts of the mod to work, others are other people's Beetlejuice related CC I thought was cool!

SaveState's furry mod (REQUIRED FOR SANDWORMS) https://www.savestatecomic.com/dlc/

@daylifesims's Lydia hair https://www.tumblr.com/daylifesims/700120977032560640/gothic-side-set-lydia-and-here-is-the-most

@kismet-sims's Lydia hair (now you got two options! lol) https://kismet-sims.tumblr.com/post/179286280949/simbleen-gift-one-lydia-hair-made-it-from

@mosneakers's posepack + Lydia inspired hair https://www.tumblr.com/mosneakers/765876897461764096/day-o-posepack

@I-too-love-mr-beetlejuice's musical Beetlejuice CAS stuff https://makesims-finds.tumblr.com/post/190684018895/ok-so-i-was-getting-impatient-and-decided-to

Divider by @strangergraphics!

[reallyprofoundkryptonite]

Smoke and Mirrors AU

Feel free to ask about him.

Close ups:

Forced to smile, pretend nothing is wrong, but the nonsense whispers at the back of his head tell him that he should feel shame for trying to bite at his shackles. He is a star, he should be grateful, for once the attention is on *him*, and after all, it is broadway, if you crack, it will be thought of as an act.

The au is complete for the most part. Dark 1920s aesthetic broadway au. It takes place in modern times and Krogan is the “pet star” of some large broadway entertainment CEO. If I am honest the CEO might end up being Viggo’s father. Who is. Horrible. If not I might close someone else.

The stitched mouth just means he has been forced into silence with a binding spell. He can fight it all he wants at first but it will always force him to smile on stage. (It is really only visible when he is fighting it, which at the beginning of his “career” he wasn’t allowed onstage because he was “unstable”

The spell does make him extremely cheery and bubbly while in public because He (the owner) wanted him to be approachable by fans.

The spell will go into “sleeper” mode whenever he is alone, which pretty much just means that it is dormant, however it still forces and influences his mood, or it tries to. He’s turned to smoking and alcohol in mild amounts to try and fight it because when he’s drunk the spell is practically fizzled away and useless.

He acts for the most part very similar though because he’s a happy drunk. The recurring hangover though kinda makes him. Far less enjoyable to be around. The hangover is about as clear as he can get to being himself while being around people at the same time.

Krogan was originally going to be in ACCOUNTING. He did not have long hair nor was he chunky when he was taken. They did this to him. The shoved the binding spell onto him first so it would start wearing his sanity down to be ready to perform and be around the public.

Then, Vikomet (Viggo’s father) started to shape Krogan in the way they wanted. Making him gain weight was an obvious choice for him because he’s a lot less scary looking like that. He would therefore be more approachable and therefore people would be more likely to overlook his sharp teeth and odd features.

With magic they just. Whisked away his scars. Except for the new magical ink that binds him to Vikomet and Vikomet alone. Hypothetically one with magical abilities might be able to steal him for their own gain, however other things are up for dibs.

Do not ask about Hamilton in this universe. It DOES NOT exist. The reason why Hamilton doesn’t exist in this universe is simply because a) I don’t like the play that much… the songs are nice but I had it shoved in my face 24/7 in school and it was tiring and B) history is a bit wonky due to multiple other factors not including the fact that dragons exist.

Most of the plays/ideas are going to be completely original ones that do not already exist but!! This means that mlm plays and other potential media will be here.

[honeybananagrilledcheesesandwich]

Do you have turtle designs for your parent swap fic? Do they wear generally the same gear as the show or is it different cause ✨shredder✨? I really really wanna draw Fanart the concept is so neat

Thanks for asking! Here's my drawing of them, though I haven't practiced enough to have a consistent style with them, so ignore if the proportions are wonky or something looks weird.

Generally, they have the same designs (Mikey and Raph are almost exactly the same), but there are some differences from Canon.

For instance, instead of the bulky padding, their knees and elbows are covered with dark fabric, similar to a compression sleeve. I really like how @probably-not-a-rutabaga draws them, like in this drawing.

The wraps are black (including the ones on their hands, but I struggled to draw the hands as is, so just imagine they're there). The one on Leo's right knee is slightly bigger to hide the scar from his knee injury.

In addition to the knee wraps, Leo wears a large scarf, which hides his throat and lower face to hide the scars on his throat and chest. His scars have long been healed over, so on his skin, they're a lighter shade, while on his shell, they're darker, spreading out in smaller cracks.

Donnie's design is different due to his shell. Slight spoilers (I think) but his shell was badly cracked. While I tried to stick to canon injuries by Shredder for Leo, there wasn't as much for the other three, so I decided to take influence from the 2018 series and gave him a prosthetic shell. The cracks, while healed over (white bone instead of textured shell), damaged the integrity of his shell, so he made a fake shell to go over top of it. It looks just like his real shell, except the slightly larger size, so that it won't tip off enemies of his weakness. To support it, he has two cross straps and a thicker belt.

Because I changed their names, I kept their colors the same for the story, just so it wouldn't be too confusing who was who. If I was drawing it, I would have probably gave them all purple masks because that's the color of the Foot clan.

Their weapons also stayed the same, just because I don't know enough about weapons to change it up. I did, however, make Raph's weapon daggers instead of sai because from what I understand, sais are supposed to be a defensive weapon, and the Shredder believes the only defense is a very aggressive offense.

[thefirstknife]

It is not correct that Guardians age.

Shin Malphur is an outlier, a sort of one-of-a-kind among Guardians. The only reason he aged was because he became Lightless. Yes, he was rezed as baby and the Ghost that rezed him died shortly after, which made Shin a Lightless Guardian. He continued to age until he got another Ghost, but we also don't entirely know how Shin's Guardian status functions with the use of Jaren's Ghost. He can clearly use Light abilities, but everything else is a big question that is unlikely to get answered. So his aging status is entirely unique and not a good example; he's essentially a Lightless Guardian using Light with a borrowed Ghost. If Jaren's Ghost doesn't function with him as a normal Ghost would, he could be aging, because he's essentially Lightless (a Ghost that actually rezed him has died). We genuinely have no clue how any of it works for him and how his Light status affects his physical appearance. He's cool as an outlier, but impossible to use to tell us anything about Guardians, Ghosts and aging.

Every other Guardian we have seen, there is proof that they have simply not physically changed. Osiris is noted as an "old man" ever since the early Dark Age. He's also shown in the comic, pre-exile and pre-Forest, alongside Ikora and they look the same as they do now. We can see Zavala being rezed in his cinematic and he looks the same as he does now (the cinematic also shows that he was rezed before the City was built). This cutscene also shows Ikora during the building of the City and she's also the same again. We can also see Lord Saladin and what he looked like in the Dark Age; same as now. This is also narrated in a lore book, an the final page in particular makes a few points about how everything around Saladin has changed and aged, while he has not.

Isirah mentions the pines are much taller than when Saladin had last seen them, but he cannot imagine their aging. He only sees what is there now. If he could have stood beneath their needles and watched their 50 years of growth, would he notice the difference?

+

He imagines Kepre's face staring back at him. Was it him? Features all burned away. Years older.

+

"It's been a long time since anyone called me young." Fera, Packmaster, sits upon a scrapheap of a throne at the rear of the hall, eight rugged gunners flanking her. She's a woman now, several decades of age and violence etched into her sun-scarred skin and wizened face.

There's another cutscene from the Dark Age where we can see both Zavala and Saladin again; they are unchanged. This story in particular is important because a major point here is the divide between Guardians and mortals and how much everything around Guardians changes, while they do not. Ana's comic shows her around the time of the Twilight Gap; the only change is that she doesn't have the face tattoos. Age-wise, she is the same. The same comic also shows Zavala again, as well as Sloane, who looks the same as she does now (grey hair included). Please note that the comics are somewhat wonky lore-wise and there's some stuff that feels more like an abriged version of the actual events (for Ana in particular, she's shown "dying" during Twilight Gap while Zavala is there, but he shouldn't have been, because Ana was in Shaxx' last stand after everyone else retreated. However, art-wise, I don't think they've drawn characters wrong because there is nothing to draw wrong: Guardians don't age).

Osiris is actually the best example because we have a description of him as an "old man" from the early Dark Age. On top of that, we have images of him before he entered the Infinite Forest and experienced thousands of years worth of lifetimes in time dilation and yet, he looks the same now as he did before he went in there. If there is any aging happening, it would have to be so incredibly slow that it would essentially be imperceptible and irrelevant. Osiris has basically lived thousands of years and has remained the same as when he was rezed: an "old man."

It's also hard to say who was rezed first: Osiris or Drifter. They're about equally as old, with maybe some minor difference. The reason why Drifter looks younger (but not by a lot!) is because Guardians are simply rezed at the age they died at. It doesn't matter how long they've been Lightbearers; they're simply rezed at a certain age and they stay that way forever.

Just to cover everything, we could argue that the reason all Guardians we've seen are always the same is because changing a video game model to reflect aging would be really difficult and expensive to do. But, many of these examples are drawn (drawn cutscenes and comics) which would not be a problem to alter. We could also argue that they maybe simply don't want to change the iconic looks of characters that would make them unrecognisable, but in that case this could at least be reflected in written lore and it simply isn't. Guardians being immortal and unchanging is baked into the setting.

To cover another point; Eris. Eris is a Lightless Guardian and should age. However, there's a few problems with her as an example. First, humans in general have a longer lifespan in Destiny and she didn't lose her Light that long ago, comparatively. Second, she harnessed several other paracausal powers; that of the Hive and of the Ahamkara which have changed her body permanently. Third, it's incredibly difficult to tell on her face as most of it is covered by the blindfold and the black tar coming out of her eyes. Fourth, we don't actually know for a fact if Lightless Guardians do age as normal humans would. Most Lightless Guardians don't live long enough for us to know: Eris is literally the only example of a long living Lightless Guardian who we have visual representation of at different points in time (Season of the Witch showed us Eris as she became Lightless).

I'd like to also add something about the replies:

First, the text includes the word "ageless." It can mean "never looking old" which we can discard because Guardians evidently CAN look old. Another definition is "never appearing to grow old" aka not aging. Which can absolutely be applied to Guardians. Second, it's unclear what "favorite stage" means, I agree, and we can wonder if that might mean that Guardians can pick and choose how they're rezed. However, we have not had a single example of any Guardian ever changing their appearance drastically between rezes, and most certainly not a single example of any Guardian choosing to change their age between rezes. If they could do that, it would be fairly reasonable to assume there would be at least one example of this, but so far we have none. So I wouldn't put too much thought into it.

At least canon-wise! This is purely just information canon-wise. Headcanons and AUs and other stuff like OCs are another thing obviously. And as usual, anything about any of this could change in the future for whatever reason, but so far I think it's more than fair to say that we have plenty of proof that Guardians canonically do not age, at least for as long as their Ghosts are alive and functioning.

Also the other post about this from a few days ago that I used for some of the references.

Hi, this may be a completely nonsensical question since I know next to nothing about Destiny lore and only started looking into it once I discovered your amazing art^^ but the way I understand it so far Guardians don't age. So is baby birb Osiris simply a headcanon or is there some lore background to it?

Aah, thank you and I'm glad my art got you interested in Destiny lore, there's so much interesting stuff to dig there! 🙌✨

Baby birb Osiris is my headcanon, yes, but it's not totally groundless. Guardians (or, more widely speaking, Risen/Lightbearers) actually do age - the most notorious example is Shin Malphur, who was raised as a baby too young even to speak and then grew up normally like any other child. (It's worth mentioning, however, that the Ghost bringing him back to life wasn't his Ghost; and he, most likely, still hasn't found the one meant for him in the first place). I assume his aging slowed down significantly when he hit his peak physical form and since then he was no different from any other Risen. 

Taking this into consideration, I personally think that Risen do age, however extremely slowly and their Ghosts can slow down that process even more if they wish, basically almost stopping it. So following that theory, in my version of events Sagira got Osiris up just like any other Risen - in his prime age. The constant stress he pushed himself through gradually left him with some gray hair and wrinkles from frowning non-stop, and later he aged greatly after messing with time in the Infinite Forest too much. Sagira probably could've prevented that, but Osiris didn't care enough, since his visible age didn't seem to affect his ability to work, move and fight at all. He's in a great physical condition actually, from the looks of it.

It's a bit funny though, since Osiris may seem like the oldest Risen there, but actually Drifter is the real elderly, even though he looks quite fresh for his age 😄

[atiyasnake]

Danny phantom dc crossover idea:

Clone at the grave

Idk how but Danny ends up in gotham. Except da boi is a lil messed up. Aspects of his ghost form are peeking through in his human forms.

This inculdes

Green eyes (lowkey glow sometimes)

Some white hair

Some scars he got in Ghost form.

He also has a vivisection scar (could be part of reason he is there). There are also other various scars some that used to only show on his ghost form but are now on his human form, it's overall concerning.

The thing is Danny is also a bit bloody (red blood) and looking like he was in a fight. So he looks for a safe place and what better than to follow some kind ghosts from Gotham's cemetery. He's the King and Gotham (I love sentient ghost/spirit gotham) for some odd reason is like 'I like this kid/king so no spooky shit to hurt him' also in the cemetery I think there is just etiquette for the ghosts to not hurt each other and be respectful seeing as that is their final resting place. Anyways he's led to a grave and to just sit and chill and try to heal or overall not fully die.

Unbeknownst to him, he is sitting on the grave of formally dead Jason Todd. A grave that the bats have some surveillance on cause ya know of course they would have surveillance on an empty grave. So when poor old Danny is chilling there, the bats are made aware. When they look what they see is what honestly looks similar to a dead Jason Todd, albiet a bit smaller and white hair tuft not the exact same. And considering that Jason is very much (sorta) alive and not at the cemetery, they come to the conclusion that 'hey is that a clone?' Which is a very concerning question.

Cue bats taking a trip and coming close to the 'body' cause really it seemed like a dead body. But then Danny moves, opens his eyes and Boom ya got green, eerily close to Lazarus green which only increases their belief that this dude may possibly be some sort of clone.

So we got confused, suspicious, (concerned) bats. And meanwhile Danny is just ??? With seeing these dudes sorta surrounding him in a cemetery where he is still injured.

Now what happens next could go various ways.

They could go on the agressive detain and ask questions later.

There could be a fight.

Danny may use his spooky abilties to disappear.

Danny may simply fall unconscious and leave the bats to deal with him.

Danny could confuse them with sassiness,

OR he could be like 'ayo help would be appreciated'

OR he could be like 'can't a guy chill in a cemetery by himself'.

Overall the possibility of him leaving with the bats or going off by himself is up in the air and really depends on what type of vibes you want in this story.

Some fun things that could be included...

Bats insistent that Danny is a clone while Danny is like 'No'

OR Danny legit going like 'wait really a clone? Tell me more'

Maybe Jason and Danny meet on the street and are just like that Spiderman meme.

OR they meet and are like hey 'dead buddies' type deal

OR they meet and Jason is suspicious and shit

Batfamily members asking why there are two Jasons, wondering why one is smaller and how his hair changes.

Danny hiding from the bats causing confusion and chaos along the way

Hello batfamily adoption, Bruce reputation preceeds him.

Some 👀 when they see the vivisection/autopsy scar (maybe they don't even know its actually a vivisection until later)

Danny's spookiness peaking out more and more

Maybe at some point or something one of the magic users like Zatanna or Constantine encounter Danny and they are def unsettled. Maybe they can't tell he's the ghost king or a halfa but they know something is wrong. Maybe they knew Jason was a bit wonky in the death sense but they are like "this 'clone' is on a whole other level of fucked". This of course makes the bats wanna investigate more about the 'creation' of cloneDanny, wondering what is his purpose and how he came to be Danny and in gotham and why.

Ya know I like to think that Danny never actually tells them he's a halfa. Cause, ya know secrets and also who is he to crush their clone theory dreams.

The thing is, is that they def think Danny is a really spooky and unsettling 'clone'. Seemingly more dead than alive than Jason is. They never have moments where they think Jason is not actually breathing. His eyes seem more glowy green than Jason's and his tuft of hair seems to glow occasionally but so quick that you think it's a trick of the light. He seems so quiet and his 'presence' isn't that of a normal human. Sometimes they forget Danny is close by.

It makes them think of how Jason could have come back.

One thing I think would be present is that Danny is having issues with changing forms which was why they were sorta mixing. So when he finally is able to fully separate and they see his blue eyes, and fully black hair and they turn to Damian and are like 'ya know you two actually look pretty simi-'

So yeah this is an idea I've been in the process of figuring out. Lots of possibilities though, but if anyone also wants to have some fun with this, please do!! Never can have too many cakes after all.

[cyborgdumptruck]

Why I like Jetstream Sam: A Comprehensive Essay

I was actually thinking of making a separate post about Sam as a character. So I think the time has come. 

Disclaimer: these are just my thoughts and observations about him (might also include hcs). I do not and never intended to establish one only interpretation of him in canon. Basically, this is just me rumbling about my own comforting stuff, and you don’t need to take that seriously if you have some other opinion. 

And another heads up: my English sometimes is very wonky when it comes to writing something very important, I get pretty nervous, and it is very hard to write about it. It is probably connected with my mental health, so don’t be surprised with some mistakes. 

My acquaintance with Samuel started with memes. I was curious to know more about Sam with the thought that he might play an important part in MGR plot (I was not mistaken). However, I thought that Sam was a sidekick of Raiden who would betray him in the end (which was not true and I am actually glad that it is like that). After discovering more about the plot and characters, I got invested even more into the game (which I managed to play after months of being in the fandom). I just fell for him as a character right away. In the end, I dove deep enough into fandom to know more about him.

Here is the meme I am referring to.

and here also my favourite pic with the battle in badlands which I saw during my search.

So, what actually makes Sam such a nice and expressive character? Voice, mimic and gestures, they are rich. The way I see him move and talk..It just makes me melt. Every time I see him on the screen makes me squeal “he is so cool”. (fangirl moment I guess)

However, there is something more behind this charisma and smile. It cannot be seen from the first glance, yet it is strongly connected with him. You know what they say? The eyes are the mirror of a soul. I see those eyes, I see pure sadness. Yes, Sam hides it, yet it can be observed through his reaction to different interactions in the game. Here are a few screenshots that I consider the best representation of how it shows Sam’s despair. It is not about expression, rather the way he looks - tired, sad, broken. He hides it behind the cocky attitude and remarks.

Well and of course the difference between dlc Sam and Desperado Sam who is seen as a parallel to Raiden. I also like the detail that they both have scars on their left part of the face. Another interesting thing is that Sam cuts Raiden’s left arm while he had his right arm cut by Armstrong. From that point this wound started “the fall” of him. I think that he just lost his way, he lost desire to live. Raiden was his only hope, at least get rid of Armstrong as the final “revenge”. 

Surprisingly, Sam feels more of a protagonistic figure than Raiden (he just has some vibes of it). If not the circumstances, he would be a hero too, I just feel like it. 

In my humble opinion, Sam is capable of not only showing some more “human” and “genuine” side of him. He CAN FEEL because he is not fully augmented. He struggles, like all humans and who knows, maybe he wanted a better life. 

Sometimes, I feel that I can partially relate to him. I don’t know why, but it is just something that helps me to feel significant in this world. His story kinda reminds me of my own (not at all parts, but just the concept of “losing my identity”).  Anyway, the point is that I feel him as my comfort character. It is just enough to see his smile to understand that things will be alright. 

To sum up: Sam has a large potential as a character, he deserves appreciation and love. I would give anything for him to have a separate game with the whole story of the revenge for his dead father and destroying drug cartels in Brazil. It would be really awesome! 

Just look at him ;_; he is so...perfect!

[chill-pills-yandere-haven]

Hello hello! I was wondering what types of abuse/punishments Kazuha, Childe, Thoma, and maybe Xiao if you’re up for it, would enact upon their s/o? If you’re not comfortable writing this that’s completely ok! And from first glance your blog’s great

-✨

Oh my God, I'm so sorry for not answering sooner. My writer "flow" or whatever makes me want/able to write has been pretty wonky for a while. Sorry that there's no Xiao too.

(Tumblr is glitching on the read more cuts sorry)

Kazuha

Kazuha never liked to punish you, even if he can come across as sadistic sometimes. He would never scar your beautiful body either so that is completely off the table. But mind-breaking isolation also isn't his thing, he would never be able to keep away from you for a whole day.

So he doesn't.

He sets everything up so that all of his rules come across as things set in place for your safety. Even if they do include no straying from Kazuha. If you fail to obey them though, he does punish you.

But you wouldn't know that.

Kazuha spends so much time convincing you that the world out of arm's length from him is horrible. What's worse is that he knows how to prove it. He knows how to make you depend on him. Just so that he is the only one in your mind like you are in his. Just so that he knows that the first one you'll call for is him.

And he'll answer every time.

You were running.

Running as fast as you could, so that even the wind would not be able to catch you. Somehow, you escaped. Kazuha had to go into the nearby village to see if he could buy some food for the both of you. He had put his trust in you. Of course, you betrayed him. Though in your opinion, betrayal isn't a smidge of what he deserves for taking everything from you.

You never understood why he was so cautious. He had always told you about what could happen to you if you left him. About the people that would manipulate and cheat their way into doing disgusting things to you. That no one was to be trusted. Not your archon, the Raiden Shogun, not your co-workers, not your family and not your friends.

Except for him of course.

You weren't paying attention to how far you had run or where you had ended up. This led you straight into a camp of Fatui. You were sure that they weren't there the last time you looked around, but they were there now.

And they were going to kill you.

You knew the price for stepping into enemy territory and you were going to pay. Trying to run only bumped you into another fatui agent behind you. Your breathing quickened, hands too dry yet sweating buckets at the same time. Terror filled you. You never knew how to fight, Kazuha only taught you how to survive in the wilderness, not use a blade. You didn't even keep one on you!

You were going to die.

You were going to die!

You should have listened to Kazuha.

In a last-ditch effort, semi-hoping it was all a bad dream, you yelled out his name. You hoped he wouldn't be upset with you for not following the rules. You hoped he would save you.

"Kazuha!"

Nothing.

This was it.

You were done for.

Suddenly, a strong breeze blew through the air as one of the fatui agents was about to strike. You closed your eyes, if what you were hoping for really did happen, you wouldn't want to see the results. Blood and maple filled the air.

"Hey, it's ok, I'm right here. It's me, your Kazu, ok? You can open your eyes now." He held you in his arms, warmth steadying you. Kazuha brush a hand on your cheek, squishing it a bit as he led you into a soft kiss. Gentle and soothing despite the blood on him. He was expecting an apology.

"I'm sorry, I won't leave you again. Thank you for saving me." You answered his unasked question. He smiled at you, pulling you in for her another kiss.

That's right, you wouldn't.

Thoma

This lovely little housewife's punishments range from resetting your freedoms to full-on leaving you alone to die, almost that is, but after that, you'll want death anyway.

Thoma likes to work on a sort of system. Your baseline is locked up and only having access to one room with the only thing to do being sleep or stare at the walls waiting for Thoma to come back. This usually breaks down most of your will to fight back, making Thoma the only thing you look forward to seeing.

If you can maintain good genuine enough behaviour to make Thoma think you love him and make him trust you, then the ceiling's the limit. You of course still have strict boundaries, never go out by yourself, don't go out of an arm's length of Thoma, but life is so much better. You get to go outside! You get access to the majority of the Kamisato clan and several connections that of course are Thoma's as well. Every day, you two eat breakfast that he made himself and you can't help but admit that it's delicious. It's all filled with hugs and kisses and it almost feels like a healthy relationship, except for the fact that you are his prisoner. It reminds you of how honeymoons work.

The punishment differs from how far you are into these "stages". If you're at the highest, the punishment is the worst, if lower or just beginning it will be ok.

If you have been keeping up an amazing act and have gotten to that " honeymoon" stage but then messed it up? It will come crashing down on you. You instantly lose all your freedoms, even not allowed to feed yourself, though you won't be eating much now anyway. Your poor husband is heartbroken, how could you have done this to him!? After this, he will be much warier and less willing to give you things and privileges.

He put his trust in you, and you took it for granted.

Now you'd pay the price.

Childe

His punishments are bloody.

Tartaglia has always been quite fond of making others yield by spilling blood. It was what he learnt was the best way to go when he was in the abyss. Straightforward, easy, and effective.

But he would never physically hurt you.

So others take it instead.

If you misbehave, he'll threaten to hurt your loved ones, friends, hell, even that one guy you passed while shopping. The point is that if you don't comply, Ajax kills an innocent. Luckily, he's much more reluctant to hurt your family if you have a healthy relationship with them.

In his eyes, your struggling is pointless and stupid. But, pointless and stupid things must be punished or they will happen again. So if he has to go hurt someone, he will (though he would have on any sort of whim had he not had the self-control he did.

So you know that if you misbehave, your "lover" will come back to you with the blood of another on his face.

Just behave, okay? He only wants you to love him.

[kingofthewilderwest]

What did you think of the last two episodes of TNR S4? The plot was about what I expected, but I did like the alpha(?) Night Light design

In some ways, this two-part episode has been waiting to happen since Gift of the Night Fury, where the lack of other Night Furies got highlighted the first time. It's been waiting to happen since ROB's We Are Family where Hiccup was hoping to chase down Toothless's family. It's been waiting to happen since THW had us meet one Fury, but not provide the specific awe my imagination has been envisioning for a decade: the inevitable moment our characters come face-to-face with a flock of Furies.

Of course, some HTTYD fandom members are extremely attached to Night Furies as a concept, and will draw fanart of OCs, or at least alternate designs of Night Furies, Light Furies, Night Lights, and all things Fury. I suspect many of them have had the same fantasy fly through their mind as I have about meeting a Fury flock up close. But because I'm not one of those people who rests my love of HTTYD closely on the Night Fury, I am both worse and better suited for enjoying the TNR S4 finale.

I'm worse suited because I'm not the Fury fanatic that this episode would want to appeal to. There's less chance of my emotions catching in my throat finally seeing this come to be. But I'm better suited for the same reason: there's fewer emotions to disappoint if TNR doesn't hold up to standards. And we all know that TNR has not been a show of great standards - and I'm someone who hasn't minded that.

I'd say I had a mediocre reaction to the two-parter, feeling both mild yays and nays to it. Like many fans, I was offended and appalled when the human cast encountered Hiccup's somehow-still-intact prosthetic and flung it around. What the heck!!! That was too far even for me!

But for a brief moment, watching the full Night Light family take flight, I was teleported back to a younger version of myself: the self that dreamed for a full Fury family flight and desperately hoped that'd happen in HTTYD 3. Bad animation quality aside, questionable dragon design aside, for that short moment, this decade-long expectation got met.

I didn't care that TNR had us wait with anticipation for the Fury reveal in the sense that Thunder, in parallel to Toothless, was mourning a scarce family. But I do like that TNR gave us a full flock of Night Lights because that's absolutely what should be the case - this is no longer a "last of their kind" situation, and so we got to see them!

The believability of carrying that much black is low genetics-wise and designs could've used improvement (why did Mom have to have EYELASHES and why did we color code "white" as female???), but there were also designs with potential, and I accept them and like imagining what they'd look like on a bigger budget. I liked the roughness of the father's scales, as though they've gotten thicker and grayed with age. It looked odd with the limited budget and the light rendering in particular, but the concept is something I get behind.

And the Elder? The Elder? Best Fury of TNR, hands-down. Honestly, best Night Light of the franchise.

For starters, he had the best design of the furies pattern-wise. I like how the blacks and whites faded into one another rather than being a stark black jutting against white. I liked his particular pattern being both understated and regal, as well as realistic and common to real animals (once Night Light pattern ideas get too wild, I quit caring for them). I liked his scars and tears on his wings - this is a dragon of great experience. The animators needed to fix his chest size, but other than wonky proportions there, he gave a grandeur to the Night Lights I quite liked.

And it got me thinking: I wish the Elder, rather than Thunder, had been Tom's dragon. Too quickly stories lean into youth, including trying to make animal companions the same age as their owners. We did that with Tom and Thunder. But Thunder doesn't hit in part because he has virtually no personality. The Elder does. How cool would it have been if our main character's dragon was this suspicious, slow-to-trust, grand old man? Think of how the development of their relationship could've gone! When Tom was riding on the back of the Elder, I found that fantastic, and for a brief moment could enjoy the idea of the Elder and Tom being the pair instead.

The thing about the Elder is that he evokes a concept I wish the main HTTYD movies never left: this is an Offspring of Lightning and Death. This is a wild animal of great power. The reason Toothless was lovable and compelling in HTTYD 1 wasn't just "awww cute pet." It's because he was a real, complex creature of majesty. Real creatures can be silly and dorky, too, and it's fun to get to know a goofy side as he becomes familiar with Hiccup. But Toothless should never have been close to the category of "cute animal sidekick used for marketing," as he increasingly became as the years passed. Dare I say it, he was Flanderized. The Elder reminded me of the dignity that made me stare with appeal at Toothless in the first place.

Amidst all the questionable plot choices and questionable designs and questionable graphics, that one sentiment is worth it, ain't it?

[secretshinigami]

routine and soft eyes

Author: @hazblogs For: @beyondplusultra Pairings/Characters: nearmellomatt, mention of lawlight Rating/Warnings: T, mentions of Mello’s scar  Prompt: Wammy House kids sleepover (A, B, L can be included, can be AU) Author’s notes: I had so much fun with this !!! soft bois…. thank you to anyone who reads it !!

Mello is positively fuming. Someone (who shall not be named, though if you want to know it starts with “N” and ends with “-ate River”) just got on top of Forensic Science and Investigative Skills and History of Crime and the Justice System. Those are Mello’s topics. They’re the best at these and they always have been (in the two years they’ve studied here. But that’s long enough, right ?), so the fact that Mister Nobody just came in and stole their turf… That’s infuriating. To top it all off, the dean did them dirty and assigned someone to the second bed in their room, knowing full well that they need that second bed for Matt. This week is just a pile of flaming shit.

As they swing the door open they are greeted by the beeping sounds usually coming from Matt’s bed, a comforting electronic melody. Matt doesn’t even turn around to raise his middle finger to protest against how loud Mello is, but that’s also common practice around here, so no worries. 

“Heard you got your ass beat,” Matt says a while later, Mello’s hand carding through his strawberry-green hair. “By the newbie no less. How’re you taking it ?”

“Matt, my hand is dangerously close to your eyes and you need those to play on that stupid console. Better not risk it.”

“Like you’d ever hurt me,” Matt grumbles, and the certainty with which he speaks makes their heart pulse just a little faster. Mello is hopelessly in love, aren’t they ?

The rest of the evening is quiet save for that same musical background, a welcome white noise as Mello finishes their essay for Writing Comedy. The teacher seems to have some trouble with their rather macabre humour so they try to tone it down for once - rather unsuccessfully.

“Also heard you’ll have a roommate,” Matt continues a few hours later as they prepare for bed - gotta put some moisturiser on that scar like a damsel doing her skincare routine, the doctor said, “or you’ll experience how actually painful it can be”. Talk about being threatening…

“I heard. I can kick them out.” Mello would do it. Without remorse, even.

“I can sleep in your bed too,” Matt offers. “But only if you promise not to kick me out from under the covers every single night.”

“Okay, first of all, fuck off, and secondly, why the hell would I want someone else to room with me ? You’re already here. You’ve always been here.”

“And I always will be, Mels. Just… I think it’s time you get out of your shell a little bit, you know ? You can’t keep pretending that talking to me twice every day and ignoring Linda a couple times a week is enough friendly interaction for the little pea inside your coconut.” Mello turns away from the mirror, moisturiser in hand, and sends a glare to Matt who sighs and raises his hands in defeat. “Don’t say I didn’t try ! Think about it, okay, Mello ?”

They do think about it. The whole night. They don’t sleep - it’s not because Matt snores but that’s the excuse they’ll use. Ever since the accident and the scar, people have usually been too impressed - or scared - by them to even consider starting a casual conversation. Matt was there even before, and he probably always will be, Linda is a weirdo who wants to draw them with a ponytail, and… Well, that’s it. Mello lives for schoolwork, to be the best and hope to right some of the wrongs in this world.

“Yo, Mihael,” the dean says when he sees them in front of his office the following morning. Lawliet is a TA at their university, still haunting the dorms. He has a creepy smile under his stupid raccoon eyes and he keeps using Mello’s birthname, like it makes any more sense to call them with that than to call them “xXx_sexy_blondie_xXx”, or however you pronounce that out loud.

“Lawliet. I saw you assigned me a roommate.”

“I did,” he smiles still, like there’s a joke Mello doesn’t get.

“Why ?” Mello would actually like to know - Lawliet never does anything at random.

“You’ll see when he arrives later today,” is the cryptic answer, and Mello sneers at their stupid fucking dean as they leave for their 8am lecture.

Because yes, multiple things are out to get their skin - though they won’t be deterred.

The day goes by in a flash, Screenwriting and Poetry being two of their most interesting classes, and by the time they’ve finished their Crime Prevision and Prevention homework at the library, the sun is well on its way down. Mello walks slowly to the dorms, enjoying the warm air - it’s still only September and winter hasn’t come yet. The music blasting from their headphones is a perfect background to the chill atmosphere, a few bird silhouettes dark against the wonderfully peach clouds. In a few minutes they’ll kiss Matt and they’ll eat a bite, and they’ll sleep knowing they’re safe now.

When they arrive in front of their room, a few cardboard boxes occupy the entrance. Shit fuck hell, they’d forgotten the roommate arrived today. All they can see from where they’re blocked from entering is a white blob of hair on top of baggy clothes, perched on the desk and looking at whatever Matt is playing.

“Uh, I’m supposed to be able to enter my own room,” Mello kind of yells. Only kind of. “Would you please not be a giant stupid bother before I even get your name ?”

“Sorry,” the snowball says, not looking sorry at all. “I’m Nate River.”

“But you can call him Near ! He plays retro games, which isn’t… let’s say it’s not my strong point, but I’m sure it’ll go well, we’re three whole weirdos with weirdo nicknames !”

Mello blinks. Near is still here. They blink again. Near is still here, looking a little like a frog with his lopsided smile, a hand playing with one of his curls. Mello blinks a third time and doesn’t expect Near to have packed his things and go, but that was a close call.

“Are you fucking kidding me,” they mutter. “Lawliet is gonna get killed.”

“You actually know enough about criminology to not be caught, so go you.” Near is smirking. Mello wants to cry. “But I would advise against it, because he’s dating that twink Light Yagami, the alumni who came last week to give the presentation about the War on Drugs and its consequences. He’s a police lieutenant now.”

“Called it !” Matt raises a fist in victory, taking five years from Mello’s lifespan. “Anyway, now that you’re here, please do help us with the last boxes. We’ve been setting up Near’s compy and it’s revoltingly difficult.”

“I will not- how can you ask me to- I’m gonna commit arson and this time I promise I’ll succeed !”

“Dramatic bitch,” Matt says jovially. “Just come in and drop your stuff, apparently someone from the ADA thing comes tomorrow to make sure the room is accessible with a crutch and to help Near settle in.”

Mello just now notices that Near isn’t fully standing up - he’s propped on the desk, a mechanical knee peeking through the bottom of his shorts. This changes nothing - though Mello feels the both grim and hopeful sense of community that disabled people get when they meet. Their ear still works wonky and their eye ? Not the sharpest either. Without talking about all the skin damage, the phantom pain, the- hell no, they won’t get into “reflective mode” without having eaten dinner first.

Reluctantly, Mello spends the rest of the evening avoiding Near as Matt and them help him settle in, surprised by the small amount of belongings he actually has - most of the boxes he brought are board games and hundreds of little kapla sticks. Is Near planning to recreate the Golden Bridge ? He looks like a nerd, maybe it’ll be the Death Star.

Routines are a persistent thing, and before they know it, Near has managed to get a small space - small, they insist - in Mello’s well-oiled machinery. He eats breakfast with Matt, a meal that Mello forgoes entirely, and he goes on unfortunate walks to his PT appointments, because he’s out of money from whatever government organism gives benefits to disabled people and can’t afford a cab. Mello thinks they should get into it a little more, maybe call their case worker, because ramen tastes worse and worse when you have it for every meal of the week. And then Near and Matt start talking about something or another, especially topics that annoy Mello, or Near gets a little too close to them while they both work on their assignments at their desk, his elbow barely brushing Mello’s side. It makes them shiver, but they will ignore that, thank you very much.

Another routine - bedtime - has gotten a little different. One single bed is enough for “one person and a half”, according to Matt, so the obvious solution to them being three in a two single beds room is to push the beds together.

“And now you have a perfect three people beddery !” Matt triumphantly declared. “Mello, you sleep in the middle.”

“Why am I in the middle ?” they protested. “It’s the least comfortable !”

“Oh well, we can take turns,” Near had snarked, knowing full well that the first one of them to sleep in the middle would have to accept defeat.

Mello does end up in the middle, Matt cuddled against their left side where the burn is, and Near an ever-closer presence against their right arm. It’s not as uncomfortable as they expected. Near doesn’t snore and he smells like minty toothpaste, a strangely comforting scent that lulls Mello to sleep way more easily than the five thousand melatonin pills they take before going to bed.

Oh well, maybe Lawliet can live a little longer. His boyfriend - Matt saw them kissing through the peephole, it’s official now - won’t have any (more) reasons to put Mello behind bars.

Near gets on top of International Law and keeps wearing strangely baggy clothes everywhere - or well, everywhere but in the dorms. Mello has time to get used to that mechanical knee, even asking a few questions about phantom pains on the days Matt is away and the itching gets unmanageable. Near is quiet like snow but they’re nothing alike in warmth, grey eyes like molten metal setting on Mello’s face and crinkling in a smile.

And it works wonders. One time they get a bad mark (for their standards) and they even study with Near for extra credit, a presentation about the death penalty that lasts about three quarters of the two hours class. The teacher gives them both full marks and Matt celebrates by crushing them both against his chest, the smell of motor oil and mint so comforting that Mello closes his eyes, just for a little while.

It’s winter before they have time to think about it, and finals go by in a blur of “no sleep, no food, no distractions”. They even manage to end up at the nurse’s office when they faint during the Criminology Theory exam, forced to drink sugar water until the world stops exploding in a million tiny stars when they move their head.

Mello thinks that surviving their last winter exam session ever - they should be able to find a job with a double Master’s degree in Criminology and Creative writing, right ? - deserves a celebratory nap and they sprawl on the bed as soon as they’re back from the last stupid oral presentation they have to do about stupid Foundations of Criminal Justice. Near is not in the room - which is weird, because he finished five minutes and thirty six seconds before them - and Matt is away for the day to try and get his internship at the garage, so they have the full three-person bed, and they fully intend to enjoy the luxury.

They enjoy it so much that they fall asleep, only noticing that time has passed because before they blinked, it was day, and it is now very much nighttime. Light giggles fill the room along with the muted light from Near’s bedside lamp, and Mello takes the time to relish in the quiet atmosphere. Hushed conversation rises from near the desk, giggles and the smell of hot chocolate both making Mello sit up at last.

“Lookit you ! Sleeping beauty arises. Though I haven’t kissed you yet,” Matt smiles, and he climbs on the bed to press his lips against Mello’s. “Love you,” he whispers as he pulls away and goes back to slump on Near’s shoulder.

At first, Near felt like an intruder each time Matt kissed them, but he’s become so embedded in their life that Mello doesn’t feel any awkwardness anymore - to the point where not including him has become the cause of their inner turmoil.

Because yeah, uh, there’s that. Near in a tank top and booty shorts, prosthetic being painted on by a very enthusiastic Matt, has become the new image they conjure up each time the need to strangle someone arises. And poof, instant peace. Discreet touches, Near sleeping fully cuddled against their right side now, Matt nosing through Near’s hair just after he’s washed it because his strawberry shampoo smells divine, Mello even going as far as ruffling Near’s hair without warning, just to see his little nose scrunch up… All that has become routine too, and suddenly the change is too big to go by unmentioned. 

They’ve managed to hold on to their feelings until then but as Matt starts talking again, Near’s smile is a little too tight - though his eyes sparkle, it’s like… something’s missing. 

“Emergency mee-ee-ting,” they yawn, the skin around their left eye crinkling up painfully. Near notices and doesn’t even ask before grabbing the petroleum jelly tube and throwing it rather inaccurately at their face. See, that’s what they were talking about, Near has just become… there, in the way Matt is there even when he’s asleep in another part of the universe where Mello can only hope to ever go to. “We gotta talk shit out.”

“Are you over your gay crisis yet ?” Matt asks, eyes calm and open, sipping hot chocolate with noisy slurps that Mello doesn’t bother mentioning anymore. His green hair looks more and more red as time passes, which is a strange feat of hair dye conspiracy. “Can we go back to playing ?”

“I haven’t even talked !” Mello protests. “I just really think it’s necessary to mention that…”

They don’t know how to continue that sentence. Near is looking at them with something strangely akin to hope, and Matt still has that infuriating openness about him like he just knows Mello so well he doesn’t need to be told what they feel. 

Near doesn’t, though, and he matters enough to Mello now for them to want to include him in the little bubble as well.

“I just think it’d be cool if we shared the secret chocolate stash with Near,” is what comes out of their mouth.

Well done caporal, please die of shame now.

“Mels, wow, that’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever said !” Matt’s voice drips with amusement - devoid of any mean spirit, they should add, because Matt is the one thing Mello knows is good in this world. And well, maybe there’s a second one they’ve stumbled on, and they want Near to know that he means a lot to them too.

“I mean it !” Mello whines. “He’s one of us now. I think we can share.”

“Mello. Please realise that I’ve been flirting with you this entire time,” comes Near’s deadpan answer. “The time I told you I wanted to braid your hair ? The time I made you sleep and finished the presentation alone because you’d gotten the flu and I hate being sneezed on ? The fact that Matt literally sits in my lap half the time, and only half because the other is spent on your lap ?”

“Okay, first of all, fuck off with me getting the flu.”

“You’re avoiding my question.” Near looks stubborn, and it’s a good look on him.

When did Mello start to think Near looks good ? “I, uh. I may be slightly romantically obtuse. Has Matt told you the time when-”

“-he kissed you and you thought he wanted to practice smooches for his secret best friend, because of course you wouldn’t be his best friend ?”

Utterly mortified, Mello can feel their cheeks become bright red. “Well, uh. Enough mushiness for tonight. Just pass me the chocolate, Matt, I’m starving.”

Matt giggles and throws a Kinder Egg at their face. Near munches on the leftover shell while Mello assembles the toy, and it’s peaceful - and happy, too, so when Mello raises a hand to their scar they smile still, in spite of their involuntary shiver.

[schadenn]

my pets!

1. (calico) Rosie aka Rosie Posie, Rose Pop, Wozie/Wozy is 17 (18 in September!)

She ran into my dad's workplace during a snowstorm! She has had at least one stroke, is becoming senile, deaf, and screams at us the whole time we shower.

2. (orange) Sweety aka Sweeter, Tweeter is 14

My neighbors took in a pregnant stray and she was one of the babies. She's my lil baby and lays on whatever part of your body is hurting to make you feel better.

3. (grey going -w-) Gabby aka Gab, Geb, Gab Gab, Gabber, Gebber, Gebby, fat girl, chonky fat gorl, thiccums, thot, thotticus is 10.

Showed up in our yard screaming for food and attention (nothing has changed.)She wakes me up to pet her, drools on me, and wipes her snot on me. She loves being under blankets.

4. (white and tabby) Izzy aka Iz, Iz Pop, Busy Izzy, dumb baby is almost 4

Was hiding in our bushes with a broken leg, hip, and head injury. She has a scar on her nose and it took over 2 years for her to have normal cat motor skills and behavior (still a bit wonky though.)

5. (grey looking out the window) Scuttle aka Scuttle butt, Scootle, baby boy, chunky boy, da baby, da baby cat, little man, little baby man is 1

Saw him at a shelter and fell in love with him. :) I called my mom crying asking if we could adopt him lol. She had seen him a week before and kept talking about him too. When I squeeze him he holds his breath and grunts instead of meowing or exhaling like the other cats. Mom says it's because he's a man. lmfao

6. (black and white maltipoo) Buttons aka Butt Butt, Baby Butt Butt, nasty is 13 (14 in November) 12lbs/5.5kg

Got her for $200 from a breeder who just had her shoved in a cage bc she couldn't have babies. :( She's so sweet and has become attached to be ever since our maltese, Winston, passed away in 2017.

7. (blonde goldendoodle) Lola aka Lo Lo is almost 10. she's 50lbs/23kg

Saw her in a pet store and fell in love. She was from a puppy mill and was half the size of her brother. She has developed tons of food allergies that we are willing to deal with unlike others who might've bought her. When someone comes in the house (including us who live there) she runs and grabs something to bring them while squeaking.

8. (black giant schnauzer) Jordyn aka Jordy, Jor Jor, big girl is also almost 10. she's 100lbs/45kg

Rescued from a humane society. We are her 4th home and no matter how difficult she got, we wouldn't return her because we knew she would probably be put down. She was supposed to be a labradoodle, but instead we got a neglected, abused, underweight, giant schnauzer with demodex mange and a yeast infection covering all of her skin. After years of training, anxiety meds, pheromone therapy, skin treatments, vet trips, and torn up couch cushions, she's a big baby and couch potato. :)

@profesorlayton

[nightwings-bussy]

one thing i really like that ronnie turned me onto is the idea that the bats all have a whole host of old injuries that can make them react to new injuries in interesting ways. im still building what i think ill include for dick as scars and physical quirks but here's a few things ive come up with:

dick's biggest issue, generally, is compounded damage. having been in the superhero business since he was basically 8, 9 years old, he's had the longest amount of time to accrue injuries, and accrue he HAS. dick's broken almost every bone in his body at least once. he has been shot, stabbed, and dropped from 40+ feet multiple times. this both means that he's got a pretty insanely high pain tolerance and a lot of "quirky" body nonsense that's the result of having to baby old injury sites.

one of the reasons dick wears his hair longer than most of the other bats is to cover the fact that it grows weird due to the sheer number of scars he has on his scalp. like, yes, it looks good, but also the closer cut it is, the more you can see the wonky growth pattern as a result of all the scarring.

dick has had a borderline comical number of head injuries and SEVERE head trauma starting with judgement day when he was about 13. at this point he's had so many severe concussions (upwards of 20) that he actually gets them really easily now. it's probably one of if not the most severe medical issue he has, for obvious reasons. bruce has him involved in a lot of experimental medical trials to try and prevent him from developing cte. (jason keeps telling him to wear a fucking helmet but because of his fighting style, he needs a much wider periphery and sensitivity to light and sound than most helmets would provide.)

on the other side of things, there are some things that bc he's been exposed to them for 20+ years, dick actually has an elevated resistance to: most torture techniques; mind control; some magic. all of these things will do him in eventually (he's only human), but he's a lot more resilient than most, and he can often pull himself out of fugue or mind controlled states as a result.

dick also has an elevated resistance to most drugs, including sedatives and psychotropics. upside: this means that it's difficult to dose him with fear toxin or sex pollen, or with any kind of drug in his civilian persona. (he's specifically resistant to the airborne strains of fear toxin, and needs to be exposed for 2-3 minutes for it to take full effect, or injected with it directly; otherwise he has a very mild reaction to it.) the downside: he's also resistant to anaesthesia and usually wakes up or remains partially conscious any time he's in surgery.

[meganshinsou-tm]

Crimson|Ink (m.)

↳ chapter three: lying from you

❧ genre:  tattoo-shop/hitmen au | tattoo artist/hitman kirishima

❧ fic warning: major character(s) death; happy ending

❧ chapter warnings: none

❧ chapter song: Lying From You by Linkin Park

♬crimson|ink playlist | ♧ character profiles | artist credit

[multi-chap masterlist] [previous chapter - next chapter]

"Who?"

Denki grit his teeth as electricity sparked from his palms, "(Y/N), you asshole! What did you say to her to make her cry!"

Kirishima's face went from amused to blank. Even if making you hate him was his end goal, he never meant to make you cry. 

Sighing, the red-head went back to cleaning up his mess from before, finally setting his tattoo machine and used utensils back on the tray. Kaminari wasn't happy with his lack of response and sent a bolt of electricity to the metal rolling tray. Kirishima was fast enough to remove his hands from the object and gave the yellow-haired male a look of disbelief.

"Dude what the fuck is your problem! You hardly even know the girl, now you want to fight for her?"

"Whether I know her or not, it's uncool to make a woman cry you moron. You've been a real dick to her ever since she stepped foot in here, for no reason! What the fuck is your problem!"

The two glared at each other and were at a stand-off. Sero and Bakugou had finally made their way to the room, both stopping at the doorway and staring at their friends who were in a fighting stance. Sero went to break everything up but the blonde held him back by the shoulder. He wanted to see how this played out, to confirm his suspicions. 

Kirishima looked over Denki's shoulder to Bakugou.

"Are you gonna let him really just start some random fight with me over some dumb girl, right here?"

Kirishima’s words only added fuel to Denki's fire and the electric male lunged at him. Kiri was taken off guard and actually tackled to the ground. Immediately Denki was using his quirk to subdue his much stronger friend. Kirishima hissed and growled as he was legitimately shocked a few times before he could harden his skin and pushed Denki off of him.

"What did you say ass-wipe," Denki sneered as he threw a punch to Kirishima's jaw.

As if a strike of luck, Kirishima had let go of his quirk the second before the incoming fist made contact with his face. Shockingly the hit rocked him on his heels, his hand went up to rub his jaw as he moved it around. Rage finally settled in his veins when Denki smirked and chuckled at him. A “you fucker,” came from his lips before he lunged at his friends waist and drove him into the ground, causing them both to slide to Sero and Bakugou's feet. Quickly, Kiri had his foe turned over on his stomach and his arms pinned behind his back, holding his face to the ground.

"I said we didn't need her around here, and we don't! You all fucking know that! Why are you suddenly letting some pretty pair of eyes make you forget what we really are huh? When I said we need someone to work here, I meant someone like us, not some random girl that can be a liability," Kirishima growled looking up from Denki and to his other friends.

A booted foot came into contact with his forehead, forcefully pushing him off of Denki. Sero bent down and helped his friend up to his feet. Bakugou smirked and walked over to Kirishima, crouching before him, both sets of red eyes burning holes into the others soul.

"You don't think I thought about that dipshit? Sure taking this job will put her in danger, but who better to protect her then us huh, and I know you'd be the first fucking one to take a bullet for her if it came down to it, wouldn't you?"

The red-heads eyes widened and he gulped. 

In the background Sero groaned at the sudden realization, Denki of course was still left behind. He quirked a yellow brow at his friend and questioned what that meant. Sero rolled his black eyes and flicked Denki's forehead. 

"He's fucking in love with her you moron."

"What? If he likes her so much then why was he being a massive dick to her," Denki replied throwing his hands up.

"I don't fucking love that brat, far from it," Kirishima growled and pushed Bakugou away so he could stand to his feet.

"Not yet at least," Bakugou chuckled and stood up.

Kirishima ignored the blonde and went to discarding the used needles and equipment from your tattoo session. He couldn't believe what was happening to him right now. Of course Bakugou would be the one to see right through him, it's been that way for years. 

The red-head may look and seem intimidating from the outside, but deep down he was a major teddy bear and believed in shit like love and finding the one. It only depressed him even more knowing that that life would probably never happen for him, not in his line of work. It was too dangerous for him to get attached and reciprocate feelings for another, to let them into his life. He already had five other people to worry about, he didn't need to add you to the list. Not after they all had failed one of their leaders already.

"Anyone have a way of getting in contact with her," Bakugou questioned, making Kirishima freeze and turn around.

Denki immediately spoke up and waved his phone in the air, "I got lil'mama's number right here!"

"Okay, how did you get her number before me or plain face over here," Bakugou questioned and snatched the phone from his hand.

Kaminari just smiled and ruffled his hair, "A good player never reveals his tricks of the trade gentlemen, I'm sorry."

Sero scoffed and slapped the back of the yellow-haired males head, causing him to yelp and glare. 

"You're no player Kami, just a dumbass."

"Thems fighting words man, wanna go?"

Sero chuckled and quickly pulled Denki under his arm in a choke hold, ruffling his hair and teasing about how he just got his ass kicked by Kirishima. Denki struggled under Sero's wonky elbow and whined to be freed.

"That's enough idiots. Denki, get ahold of (Y/N), see if she wants to grab coffee or something with you and Sero and you two get her back here ready to work," Bakugou commanded tossing the phone back to Denki.

Kirishima growled and stormed towards Bakugou, fuming and steaming at the ears, "Are you fucking serious? Didn't I just say –"

"Yeah I heard ya shitty hair, but you don't make the decisions around here!"

"Neither do you asshole," Kirishima replied as he went to punch Bakugou.

The blonde deflected his attack by grabbing his wrist and bringing his knee up to Kirishima's torso with so much force he hunched over and gasped for air. Holding and twisting his arm back, Bakugou leaned in close to Kirishima's ear.

"No I don't, I didn't want that shitty title, but I do have his ear in all the final decisions. I'm also your elder and I think you need to remember your fucking place before I have to remind you."

Kirishima panted and side eyed the blonde who was grinning at him. Sero and Denki both whistled and looked everywhere but the altercation happening before them, swaying back and forth on their heels as they tried to keep from snickering.

"You and I both know we need some extra help up here if we want to find the fucker that killed Yagi. Having a plain normal girl will help to keep our own 'normal' image up, plus she's destined to bring in more business with that quirk of hers and maybe we can finally get out of this shitty role. You can have everything you want, including her, without any worries or fears. Until then you know we always protect our own, and no one will even think about touching a pretty little hair on her pretty little head. Do I make myself clear?"

Kirishima grunted and pulled, but Bakugou's grip only tightened. 

The red-head didn't want to give in, he didn't want you around at all. He knew he'd go crazy having to see your face every day, smell your intoxicating scent and hear your sweet voice. He'd be forced to see that damned smile and those massive eyes. You'd become the death of him, and Bakugou was right, no matter how much he wanted you to hate him, he'd still take a bullet for you.

Kirishima didn't know why he was so head over heels for you already, maybe it really was love at first sight. Since seeing your unhealed scar, he felt the need to protect you, to know more and to go find the monster who did that to you. You'd be so much better off had you not walked into that shop, now you had everyone intrigued and gunning for your return and stay. Kirishima knew he'd be outnumbered and knew he should quit while he was ahead.

Sighing and finally relaxing, Kirishima nodded, "Crystal."

Bakugou immediately released his friend and helped him to stand straight again, nudging his shoulder with a grin before turning to Sero and Denki.

Raising his hand, Denki cleared his throat before speaking, "Not that I'm complaining or anything but why do we have to fix his fuck up?"

"Because you idiot, you really think she wants to talk to this asshole again? I expect you at least try to apologize to (Y/N) the next time you see her. We're a family here, we don't have to like each other but we respect each other, got it?"

All three of the men in the room nodded and agreed with their elder. Before leaving, Bakugou made sure to remind Denki of his task and that he'd be making his own phone call. Sero followed after the blonde, leaving Denki and Kirishima to their selves. 

Kirishima turned and started to clean up his studio, grabbing disinfectant and spraying down the tattoo chair. Denki walked over and took the bottle and sprayed the empty tray and counter tops before taking some paper towels from the red-head. They worked together cleaning the room before Kirishima gathered his things and they headed out.

"Look I'm sorry bro. I didn't know your reasoning. I just lose it when I see someone crying. I just got this overwhelming big brother vibe and I wanted to defend her."

Kirishima smiled and placed a hand on his friends shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "It's no problem man, I needed my ass kicked. It wasn't manly of me to treat her that way, but it's all I can think to do."

"So does this mean you're still going to be an ass to her?"

Kiri nodded and frowned, "I can't let her think she has a chance, not if it means endangering her life. The less she knows about us the better. If me being a jerk to her will make it easier for her to leave when the time comes then I'll do it. I don't want another body to bury."

Denki sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "Bakugou is right though, we'll protect her, so why not change?"

"It's complicated dude, and I'm tired. Let's just drop it."

The two had finally made their way back to the front of the shop. Sero and Bakugou were talking among themselves before turning to look at them, who had obviously made up by now. Denki and Kirishima gave each other a firm fist bump and the yellow-haired male smiled and chuckled before crossing his arms behind his head and sauntering to his other friends.

"Well my dudes, until Rockhead over here stops acting so dumb, that little dime is free real-estate!"

You sighed and checked the time on your phone as you walked from the vehicle and towards a coffee shop. You looked at the name of the shop before re-reading the text Denki had sent you, just to make sure it was the right place. 

A gust of chilly wind flew by, making your scarf almost fly away until a familiar cheerful voice sounded off.

"I got it cutie!"

Turning around a smile grew on your face upon seeing Denki jog your way with scarf in hand as his other clasped the collar of his coat close to his face. Sero trotted behind him pulling his beanie over his ears. You were happy to see both of their friendly faces and eagerly gave them both a hug, Denki went the extra mile and pecked your cheek, making you blush and playfully shove him.

"Let's get your cute butt inside before you freeze to death," he suggested and motioned you towards the door.

Sero ran to open it for you and nodded when you gave him a 'thank you'. Once inside the three of you ordered drinks, to which Sero insisted on paying for. There was no arguing since Denki pulled you away and to a table close by a window, leaving the black-haired male on his own. You gave him an apologetic smile and you could swear he blushed. Denki pulled your stool out and took your hand gently to help you up and onto it. He sat in a stool right next to you and rather close, making your knees brush and flashing you a literal heart stopping smile.

"Okay Denki, why am I here? I can just tell you have something up your sleeve."

"Aww, what if I genuinely wanted to spend time with you cutie, would that be so bad," he questioned and batted his lashes.

"No, it wouldn't but you're really laying on the charm right now, and if you wanted to spend time with me, I think you'd want to alone. Sero being here has me suspicious, like he's your wing-man for something."

Denki smirked and brushed back a strand of (h/c) hair that fell in your face. "Alright shorty, you got me. We're on a mission, to get you back into the shop and working for us."

If you had your drink you would've spit it out instantly from the laughter spewing from your mouth. At the right time Sero had popped up, drinks in hand and asked what was so funny.

"You two thinking that I'd even consider working at that shop, that's what's funny."

"Aww, come on (Y/N), hear us out please, if we don't return with good news Bakugou is bound to throttle us!"

You quirked a brow and sipped on your warm tea, Sero sat down on the opposite side of you and Denki. 

Why Bakugou wanted you there so bad had you intrigued. He was the one to mention it and offer the spot to you but you didn't understand why he seemed so hellbent on getting you back there. Or why any of them did, except for that red-headed jerk. If he wasn't there you honestly wouldn't think twice about the job. Who wouldn't love to work in a shop full of drop dead gorgeous tattooed men, overbearingly flirty ones at that.

"What does Bakugou want with me?"

Denki chuckled and raised a brow, "Among many things, he mainly wants you to work for us. Be our image when people first walk into the door."

"Remember I told you, we don't get a lot of female clientele," Sero questioned before taking a sip of his coffee. "Our shop can be the nicest and most modern looking shop on the street, but when most chicks walk in and see Bakugou's mad face or Kirishima's soul crushing eyes they tuck tail and run in the opposite direction. We thought if we had someone cute, feminine, sweet looking then maybe it could bring in more business. Plus, we have some other things going on as well, and having an extra hand around to answer the phone, emails, make appointments and such would be a major help."

You looked at your cup, the tip of your fingers tracing the rim of it as you took in Sero's words. You wanted to help them out, really. Being new to the area, you could use the job, the money, the friends. Also working with a band of heavily tattooed and intimidating looking guys wouldn't be so bad for other reasons. You just couldn't get over the fact though that Kiri seemed to despise you so much, for no reason. He went as far as to say the job wasn't even real and –

"I thought you guys didn't need me," you coldly replied, remembering the way Kiri said it to you.

Denki placed his hand on your forearm and Sero placed his on yours that laid on the table. You didn't flinch or seem taken off guard, you felt comfortable around these guys. You looked up to see Sero softly smiling at you with a gentle squeeze of your hand.

"Look, I know Kirishima was a jackass to you and you don't deserve that at all."

"Damn straight you don't, in fact I defended your honor and opened up a can of whoop ass on him," Denki chimed in.

"You didn't," you replied with a snort.

"He tried, Kiri won though, but it was a valiant gesture," Sero nodded and smiled at Denki. "Even Bakugou chewed him out for you. You see (Y/N), one of us may be a total dick, but the rest of us have your back. We'll keep his hard-headed ass in line, I'll tape his mouth shut if I need to, Denki will attempt to shock the shit out of him and Bakugou will blast him into oblivion."

A smile spread across your face from Sero and Denki trying their hardest to butter you up and get you to say yes. They were completely at your mercy. 

You turned to look at the golden eyed man next to you, he smiled and laid his head on your shoulder, whimping like a puppy, pouting his bottom lip. You and Sero both laughed and looked at each other, he gave you a flat lipped smile and pleading expression. Both the men were doing a damn good job at being cute and irresistible, no wonder Bakugou sent them together, it was a fool proof plan.

"I'll even bring you breakfast every morning," Sero added.

"And I'll bring you lunch!" Denki nearly shouted.

Biting on your lip you thought it over, mainly about how you'd deal with Kirishima. You couldn't just ignore and stoop down to his level of petty. You still wanted to try and make nice with him, maybe it was an off day and there was hope. Something about him made you want to try and try, even if it meant meeting rejection at each turn. He was a challenge no doubt and you sort of liked that. Plus the offerings of free food helped.

"Please, with a cherry on top," they both sung in unison.

You sighed and bit your lip, trying to hide the goofy smile that wanted to surface.

"Goddammit, okay fine! I'll do it!"

"SHE'S GONNA DO IT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! SHE'S DOING IT," Kaminari yelled and threw his hands up into the air, making you and everyone else in the quiet coffee shop jump.

You tugged on the hem of his shirt and yanked him back into his seat quickly, placing your hand over his mouth with wide eyes as you chuckled. 

"Shut the fuck up you crazy person!"

Denki smiled and grabbed your wrist, pulling it off of his mouth and placing a kiss to the top of it. You blushed and pinched his cheek before leaning forward and placing a kiss to it. The male thought he died and went to heaven as he hummed and went all starry eyed. 

"Thank you Denki, for defending me."

"I'll do it over and over again if it means I get more of those!"

"Hey, you already have her number and got a kiss, give the rest of us a shot man!"

You looked at Sero and smiled, brushing your thumb on his hand that still held yours. For the remainder of your get together, Sero went over what your duties at the shop would be. 

Real simple stuff, keeping the place clean, answering the phone and replying to emails. Going out and getting supplies when they needed them, to which one of the guys would always tag along and help. He also asked if you'd be okay with using your quirk on their not so pleasant customers with low pain tolerances. You agreed, it was nothing to do really and made you feel needed even more. The shop was open pretty much every day but you were allowed to take any days off you wanted, it wouldn't really be an issue.

After the three of you finished your drinks you decided it was time to get back home. Denki got up and helped you down from your stool while Sero grabbed your coat and helped to put it on you. Both men hooked their arms through yours and walked you back out into the cold to your vehicle. 

You hugged Denki and kissed his cheek again before he took the key from Sero and ran to their vehicle to get it warming up. Turning, you looked at Sero who smiled. A gasp came out of your mouth when a snowflake landed right on your eye lash and made you shudder. Quickly Sero held your face in one hand and gently removed the snow flake with his fingers. You both blushed at each other when you blinked and his thumbs brushed your cheeks.

"Now is your last chance to back out, I know we laid it on pretty thick in there but if you're really uncomfortable then you can say no. I know Kirishima really hurt you the other day and we're all terribly sorry for that. He shouldn't treat any one that way."

You smiled and placed a hand over Sero's and winked, "I'm fine now Sero, really. It means a lot to have you, Denki and Bakugou back me up on this and to seek me out. I can handle myself though, I won't let Kiri get to me."

"If he does, you just come and find one of us."

You nodded and hugged the sweet black eyed male, he hugged you back and made you feel extremely warm and wanted. Before pulling away he kissed the top of your head and opened your car door. You placed a kiss on his cheek before getting in and shutting the door behind you. A massive triangular smile was plastered on his face as you started the car and drove away. Sero knew that eventually, Kirishima would be one lucky guy.

Kirishima walked down the sidewalk, hands in his coat pockets and eyes looking at the ground. His fingers dug around briefly to grasp the shop keys in his pocket as he got closer to the door. The wind nipped at his face and he pulled this collar of the coat up to shield his cheeks while his other hand inserted the key into the lock. Behind him he could hear the sound of a car door opening and closing before the horn went off as it locked. Footsteps were heard closing in near him.

"We don't open for a couple more hours," he spoke without even looking.

"That's cool," a sweet and sarcastic voice replied.

The red-head stopped what he was doing and turned his face to glance next to him. There you stood, cheeks and nose already pink from the ice-cold air. Strands of your (h/c) hair flew around your face as your eyes squinted from the gust of wind and snow. You licked your cold and dry lips before peeking an eye open to him.

"It's really cold out here Kiri," you finally spoke in a strained tone.

His brain finally started to function again and his hand turned the key in the lock. Kirishima quickly opened the door and motioned for you to walk inside, you thanked him and did so with a sprint. Once inside you could feel your body instantly defrosting, rubbing your arms as you shook the snow from your body. A chuckle was heard behind you, making your ears perk and you looked to see Kirishima smirking.

"What - are you a dog or something?"

Instantly your smile turned upside down and you rolled your eyes and removed your coat. Kirishima rose a brow when you revealed a black caged suspender skirt with a white t-shirt underneath. The caged straps of the skirt rested right under your breasts only accentuating them more. The hem of it hit you just above the knees. You walked behind the counter to place your coat on the chair, red eyes watching as your hips swayed.

"Oh hey, of course you're early! I got you breakfast, just like I promised!"

Kirishima quickly awoke from his trance when Sero's voice filled the room along with the bell on the door. Sero patted his back as he passed him and went behind the counter. You still had snow in your hair and Sero placed your food on the counter-top and helped to flick it out of the way, your eyes and lips smiled up at him from the intimate gesture, making Kirishima green with envy already. 

Sero brushed a lock of hair out of your eyes and you thanked him. When he pulled away and discarded his own coat, you rubbed the side of your neck and looked at Kirishima, standing there and staring. You offered him a smile to which he didn't return, making your heart shrink just a bit.

The bell on the door went off again and in walked Bakugou. Coffees in his hands and an orange folder in his mouth. Your heart grew again once his red eyes noticed you and smiled with the folder hanging from his teeth. He walked over to Kirishima and nodded for him to take the object, the red-head took it and looked at the front before tucking it under his arm. Bakugou offered Kirishima a coffee and walked towards you behind the counter. Sero took one for himself and went to plop down on one of the couches. You smiled when Bakugou placed himself before you and smirked devilishly down on you.

"Looks like you couldn't stay away after all huh princess?"

Blushing and biting your lip you smiled. 

"Well when you send two of the cutest agents out to butter me up, I kind of didn't have a choice, plus they both offered me free food."

Sero yelled out a 'guilty' in the background and you giggled. Bakugou chuckled and handed you a coffee, when your hand reached out to take it he pulled it back and teased you, holding it out of your reach. Kirishima rolled his eyes, drinking his own coffee as he watched Bakugou blatantly flirting with you.

"Bakugou~", you whined and reached.

Both men had vastly different reactions to the sound of your needy whine, Kirishima felt his blood boiling and Bakugou was eating it up with a shit-eating grin. 

Finally the blonde gave in and handed the coffee to you, along with a kiss to your cheek. You blushed immediately and shyly thanked him as he pinched your chin. Kirishima let out an exaggerated sigh and went to walk behind the counter to his studio, except you and Bakugou were blocking his way. The blonde grinned and threw an arm around your shoulders, walking you both to the side and out of the red-heads way as he motioned for him to walk by. Kirishima gave you a look and you couldn't decipher what it held. His hand shoved Bakugou's shoulder as he brushed past the two of you and around the corner disappearing from your sight.

Bakugou squeezed your shoulder and ruffled your hair, making a smile return to your face. 

"You're one of us now princess. Ready to get your first day started?"

"Oh, I'm ready!"

[brainsdivided]

(2/2) OC questions

Original by @cassandrapentayaaaaas

QUESTIONS FOR CREATORS

A) Why are you excited about this character? 

I dearly love my boys for quite a few reasons, and I will obviously elaborate more in the following questions, but for this one, I love the opposites/twin trope. They aren’t direct opposites but using one to compliment and almost narrate the other’s life is awesome. Plus the set of skills these guys have is very broad and their personalities and lives are complex, so it makes for great exercise in art and writing since I tend to make characters be like me and I have a hard time writing things that are not like me (Like Ezekiel throwing hissy fits, I don’t find that an appealing thing in a character, but it’s part of him).

B) What inspired you to create them? 

I have a very difficult time developing and staying connected to female characters. This is possibly due to some wonky IRL stuff where I have a problem with women feeling foreign and uncomfortable (Which is odd because I, too, am female)(Don’t take this as me hating women, I don’t hate women, I just have a hard time fitting in with women socially, emotionally, and physically). To make writing and art more comfy, I design male characters. After RPing a female character for years and having her have a personality and hobbies I despise, I needed something to not drain me, and I managed to convince my RP partner to let me use male characters as he only feels connected to and only wants to work with female characters. I guess my boys are kind of like a piece of me I’m not able to express in real life. That’s sort of the basis for things.

C) Did you have trouble figuring out where they fit in their own story? 

Sort of. I RPed with a partner who was very specific about what they wanted. Finding loopholes was hard. It was even harder when my partner dropped the RP not long after I was baptized (He thinks it’s because I obsessed over Joshua Graham, but no no). Anyway, The twin trope influenced how things would be visualized. I like the trope of found family, and I wanted a child character to express the process of mourning. My partner did not want a child character, at least not for the whole story. So, we settled on teen/adult Ezekiel having some sort of developmental or intellectual disability with the death of his parents and his brush with radioactive death inflicting trauma on him. Isaac was intended to help guide the story in a way where I could still represent Ezekiel’s delays and behavior and not have my partner purposely derail or misinterpret what was going on. Isaac, after leaving the Legion, would become Ezekiel’s doctor, helping to put Ezekiel’s thoughts and feelings into a way that is spoken and can be understood. At the same time, I wanted Isaac to have his own internal struggle with himself. The Legion would’ve made quick work with this, so even though he makes sure to look after Ezekiel, his own health is deteriorating and making things difficult for everyone. 

A summary: Working with my partner was difficult but we produced some interesting characters and stories, even after he discontinued the story. 

D) Have they always had the same physical appearance, or have you had to edit how they look? 

Edited anything major? No, they have the same basic idea, it just might be drawn or described a little differently. Their only changes are the usual biological changes through aging and then their dress. Ezekiel will always be a thin or mildly toned man with ginger hair and amber eyes, fair skin, and covered in freckles. Sometimes we depict him as really tall in adult hood, but at the moment, he is 5 foot 6 even in adult hood. Isaac will always have fair skin with some freckles, a face mauled by scars, gray-blue or hazel blue eyes, dark brown hair, muscular, and tall. 

E) Are they someone you would get along with? Would they get along with you? 

Probably not. I don’t have a lot of tolerance for people in real life. Especially clingy people. Ezekiel needs constant socializing and loves people. I’d get irritated fast. And I’m not a huge fan of children, so that behavior on top of his clinginess would drive me mad. I’d be fine seeing him every so often or even as a neighbor, but I wouldn’t be able to be like... his best friend. I couldn’t live with him, in a sense. Isaac is the same sort of. We’d have some interesting conversations, but he is too humble for me almost to the point where self-deprecates. I’d be there for him for his depressive episodes, but I’m not someone who is experienced at mending it. I’ll be a passive friend and offer a blanket and hot chocolate, but that’s all I’m good for. 

F) What do you feel when you think of your OC (pride, excitement, frustration, etc)? 

When I think of Ezekiel, I think the Sun? Joy, Gluttony, Love, Shining, Fire, Heat, and Danger

When I think of Isaac: the Stars, Rivers, Peace, Turmoil, Dove, Pain, a Hero.

G) What trait of theirs bothers you the most? 

Ezekiel is clingy and craves attention.

Isaac represses his pain and thoughts, considers himself a burden if he tells anyone.

H) What trait do you admire most? 

Ezekiel is full of love and light and loves to create as well as destroy. He works hard to hear praise.

Isaac can see right through people and identify who is hurting and what they need to hear or need to live. He is someone who fought the Legion’s teachings in silence, still choosing to see the good in people and when he couldn’t see kindness in others, he chose to risk death and show it to others.

I) Do you prefer to keep them in their canon universe?

They don’t really have a canon universe. I suppose the canon universe is the one my partner made. The one where Ezekiel moves to Appalachia and any others was only to get me to shut up about them xD I prefer to use alternative universes because my partner killed Isaac and Ezekiel off in the canon universe. 

J) Did you have to manipulate or exclude canon factors to allow them to create their character?

I manipulated a bunch of stuff. I manipulated Joshua and Daniel’s personality to include more fatherly behaviors, I manipulated/updated NCR and Legion progress in the wasteland to match up the years, I am in the process of changing the Honest Hearts perspective of the Sorrows and Dead Horses so that I can understand what is and isn’t okay to write about native peoples, and I think that’s it.

[millicentthecat]

TROS FEELINGS

ASSORTED STAR WARS FEELINGS after the break.

Ok, I just sat down in front of my computer, and I haven't read any reviews or Hot Takes about the movie.  I went in completely unspoilered.  So these are all my instant thoughts after just seeing the film, and they are subject to change.

I was entertained but not impressed.

Palpatine is so incredibly cool.  Star Wars is a story about how cool Palpatine is.  How did he survive though?  And was it implied that Snoke was some kind of clone?  Made by Palpatine?  Why?  Why would you make a scarred, disfigured dude to go out and do your bidding?  And if you were going to make one, why not make a dozen and then never reveal yourself at all?

There were many "whys" in this movie.  Why did Kylo Ren---did he turn?  The Knights of Ren seemed to think so, but I don't know why.  And weren't they HIS followers?  Why were they suddenly defending Palpatine?  But back to--did Kylo really heel face turn because his mom said his name and then died?  And because Rey healed the hole that SHE stabbed in him, while gaslighting him with his deadname?  Was that all it took?  No thank you.  Rejected.

Also, Hux's death: rejected.  Kylo's death also rejected.  Palpatine's death also rejected.  I guess the spirits of the Jedi prevented him from inhabiting Rey's body and continuing the legacy of the Sith?  Unclear on how that worked.

In general, the movie was very complicated and dense, which is not a bad thing.  There was also some wonky pacing and a lot of expository dialogue.  These are things that I usually appreciate in a story, because my internal processing speed is different than most peoples', so wonky pacing and exposition help me keep a grasp on What's Going On more than action.  And ok, here's a thing that needs to be said.  If you watch the old movies from the 70s, the pacing--including simple things like the length of shots and frequency of cuts--they are MUCH slower paced than the prequels and MUCH MUCH slower paced than the sequel trilogy.  This is because movies have gotten FASTER and DENSER as each generation increases the speed with which they can process visual information, as we learn the language of film intuitively as children.  So I wasn't too put off by that, even though films that a lot of people younger than me like (like Grindlewald, for example) feel fast and dense and overwhelming to my old brain.

Some positives: so much good Sith worldbuilding.  Lots of cool aliens.  Good snek.  Complicated and fractious relationships amongst the heros.  Funny C3PO.  Solid first hour or so?  Though I may revisit that later.  I appreciated Leia training Rey, and the explicit nature of Rey's alliance to the Jedi, which I've remarked on before (to a lot of skepticism from the peanut gallery.)  Also, I thought introducing Force Healing was a bold move--though this was one of the things that knocked on the door of my brain and said "Your disbelief is still suspended, right?" and I said "yes of course please leave."

Neutrals: Rey Palpatine was a hoot.  I'm going to have to see it again before I have strong opinions about it, but I will.  The execution made it seem like a complete and utter retcon, even though I don't think it was?  IDK, mixed thoughts.

Some (of many) silly things.  Poe's romance and backstory.  Lack of Rose.  Too many walkbacks and "almosts"--Chewie almost dying, C3PO almost being erased, etc. etc.  No mention of the Rose/Finn kiss.  Random kiss between to Resistance fighters that the story tries to pretend is queer representation (GTFO).  Leia's death--I'm not upset that she died, I'm just kind of put off by how random and out of place it felt?  Like, the story halted for it to happen?  Continuing on.  Lack of Vader and/or Padme.  Rey on Tattooine for some reason?  Lando wasted.  It was AWESOME to see Lando but I felt like he was wasted, like there wasn't enough room for his character or explanation of why he was there and where he'd been.

Some more silly things.  The use of the Carrie footage was just janky.  I might not have noticed that if I wasn't looking for it, though.  I bet little kids won't notice.  Another thing little kids might not pick up on: it doesn't mean anything that the First Order has been defeated at the end.  Because they've been defeated like 6 times already.  They keep undefeating themselves, springing back up, same people, same conflicts.  It diminishes the meaning of the victories.  Even things like the Chosen One trope aren't meaningful if dozens of people are the Chosen One.

Another thing.  It didn't feel like anything that happened in this movie was planned when TFA was written.  I mean, we know that these movies were not written according to any kind of overarching plan--we know, for example, that Poe was supposed to die in TFA.  So I kind of wish that Rey Palpatine and Palpatine's rise in general has been hinted at more and built up more over the last two movies.  But TROS is not the end of a 3 movie arc, it's the end of a 9 movie arc, and so if nothing in the last two movies seems to build to this conclusion, it may still feel like a conclusion to all 9.  Or at least a spring board for fanfiction.

Ok I am going to go read what everyone else thought now.

[wickedsingularity]

Until Next Time [Chapter 14]

Banner by PhoenixAlthor @ TDA

The hand on my heart clenched painfully. I stiffened and gritted my teeth. My eyes stung and I couldn't breathe. I was there. I had reached the point where it hurt so bad I didn't know how to live for one more second.

War. We do what we can to find comfort and hope.

Remus Lupin x OC Warnings: Fear, anxiety, "phantom-pain" Words: 1823

Chapter 13 | Masterlist | Chapter 15

Recovery

Focus. Focus on your memory.

Something as simple as having breakfast that first morning after my accident had exhausted me. According to Madam Pomfrey, who came to check on me by lunchtime, both Remus and Sirius had looked in on me a few times, but I had been sleeping like the dead. The matron assured me and them that it was to be expected. It took a lot of energy to refill a person's magic.

After that, she declared me well enough to go home. I didn't dare try my magic too much, I was too scared to see it fail. It made a lot of the everyday tasks difficult to get through, and my clothes were suffering from it, not being able to cast a freshening charm on them. So I spent most of my time sleeping and reading until Madam Pomfrey wanted me for another checkup a few days later.

She advised me to use as much magic as possible. It's like a muscle that needs to be used, and then it will come back in full faster. The feeling of uselessness and unsafety I felt when my magic failed or fizzled, was almost overwhelming. I couldn't remember a time when I didn't use magic. But this was war. I had to help the Order and I had to do my work at Azkaban. So I swallowed my fear and pride, and tried.

By Monday morning, my magic was back to normal. I had tried a Patronus Shield the previous evening, and it had held up for hours. Of course, I had no Dementors at home to put it to the test, but it felt okay enough. That didn't mean I felt mentally ready to go back, but I had to, even if I was going straight onto a week at Azkaban.

With the pre-blood ward schedule, I was supposed to go onto three weeks at the Ministry, but the new wards making Azkaban safer, the schedule had changed and we were supposed to be less at Azkaban and therefore every other week. But the week I had been recovering from my loss of magic, had been all about checking and double-checking the new wards, and while they were working well, the Dementors were getting more and more out of control. So, the new schedule had been changed, to longer hours at Azkaban, including working weekends. And this morning, I was starting my first week of the new schedule at Azkaban.

Swallowing my fear, bundling it all up into a ball and hiding it away in the deepest darkest corner of my mind, I donned my freshly cleaned work robes and Disapparated. The moment I appeared on the Apparition station outside Azkaban and set my eyes on the tall stone structure further out, I felt a chill that had nothing to do with the freezing wind or the nearness to the Dementors. It was my own fear that coursed through me like a poisonous arrow, slimy tendrils of darkness wrapping around my heart. My breath was shallow, my knees felt week, my hands were sweating, heart beating loudly in my head.

I gritted my teeth, clenched my fists and took several deep breaths, forcing air deep into my lungs. If I didn't get myself under control, I could just hand in my resignation right now.

Just as I was getting my heart rate down, someone Apparated next to me. I started at the slight pop and snapped my head around. It was Walter.

"Morning," he greeted. "How are you doing?"

"Little bit hesitant," I admitted. Remus being the only one who had been able to get me to admit how much fear I was repressing while at Azkaban lately, I still felt it was safe to admit this to Walter. It was not a secret that I had nearly been Kissed by a Dementor, and Walter knew the Dementors just as well as I did.

"Understandable." He nodded. "You've tried your Shield?"

"Yeah. It held up for hours yesterday." I had Floo-ed with Walter before the weekend, and he had said that several people had been struggling with their Patronus Shields that week. The Dementors seemed to be stronger and more aggressive, and in turn a lot more draining. There was no reason to wait any longer, and I took out my wand and cast the Patronus Shield. I felt it wrap itself around me, waver for a moment, but then holding steady.

Walter smiled at me as he watched the Shield go from slightly bright blue to transparent. Then he cast his Shield, and we both grabbed a broom, mounted and set off through the icy snowy wind to the prison.

I made it through that first day without my Shield dropping, which was my biggest fear. It wavered when I saw my first Dementor. It had stopped in its tracks, turned its hooded head in my direction, and then started gliding slowly towards me. The way it behaved, it seemed like it was one of the same Dementors as that day, like it remembered what had happened. My Shield became visible, but barely. I was frozen on the spot. If I had been alone, that Dementor would have gotten me. My Shield would have dropped and I would have been defenseless to stop a Kiss. But Walter had laid a hand on my shoulder before taking one step forward, staring at the Dementor. It halted, seemed to consider us both for a few seconds, then went on its way again.

I had never been more thankful for Walter. Until Saturday.

I was exhausted when I woke up on Saturday morning. I was considering owling Madam Pomfrey, because my magic felt wonky, and it didn't feel right that I should be this fatigued. Yes, the week had been draining, the Dementors were not easy to be around, and I was still full of anxiety about my Shield. But I got dressed, Disapparated and flew my broom onto the prison. The day went on as usual – paperwork, prisoner care, food preparations... All day, my Shield didn't waver a single second, and I was surprised and proud of it.

We were all packing up and preparing to leave. Darla, Gregory and Heston had left a few minutes earlier, and Walter, me and Paula were heading towards our brooms. Halfway across the narrow bridge that led through the center of the prison, I felt a wave of exhaustion and dizziness wash over me and I stumbled. My Patronus Shield grew blue and opaque before it melted away like smoke in the wind. The chill of the Dementors crept over me and I gasped, grabbing the handrails for dear life, terrified of losing my balance and plummet down level after level after level to my death.

Walter had been behind me and was by my side in an instant, hands around my arms to help me stand. Paula looked down past the bridge and all three of us followed her gaze, seeing four Dementors flying towards us. The wound on my shoulder, where one of them had grazed me with their claws, started hurting. It was like icicles were stabbing me right into the barely healed scar.

But then it was gone, and the Dementors halted.

"Try to cast your Shield again," Walter spoke right into my ear. Only now did I notice he had his arms wrapped around me from behind. "I'm shielding you for now, but I can't keep it up for long. Cast your Shield again."

With shaking hands, I pulled my wand from my robe and cast the spell, but it didn't hold. Paula was looking between me and the Dementors. "You can do this. Focus. Focus on your memory," she said.

I took a deep breath, focused, and cast the spell again. The familiar blue grew from my skin, then went slowly transparent. Walter let go of me and stepped back slowly, taking his Shield with him. I gasped and I shook my head, and he was right back behind me. Again, I breathed and focused. Took a couple of seconds to really let the memory fill my heart. Then I cast again. The blue grew and went transparent. Walter stepped back, and this time, the chill of the Dementors did not come.

"What happened?" Paula asked, coming closer and looking worried.

"I'm not sure," I said with a frown. "I think I'm tired. Maybe I came back to work too soon. I don't know."

"You should go home and rest and maybe not come in tomorrow," Walter suggested. "We can handle things here without you for one day."

I looked back at him and shook my head. "I will be fine. I'll rest tonight, and it will be okay. Let's just... get out of here."

The other two nodded. I took one last glance down through the prison. The Dementors had retreated but were looking up at us.

I tried not to rush as I followed the other two to our brooms and flew to the Apparition Station, but when I arrived at home, I let out a breath of relief to be gone from there. I tossed my cloak over the back of the couch and was on the way to the bedroom to change my clothes when I stopped, hesitated, and then turned around and went for my cloak. I grabbed it, then dropped it.

"No. He's not there," I said to myself. "He's on a mission. With the werewolves. Right." I shook my head at my own silliness, my own weakness, and then went to get changed again.

Even after all these months of interacting with so many people, of making so many new friends, it still didn't come easy for me to seek out others when I needed it. Growing up feeling so estranged from my own family, being a loner in school and then becoming an Azkaban Security Official, I was used to getting by on my own and not needing anyone. So why did I now crave Remus' company? Why did I have the urge to go to Grimmauld Place just to not be alone?

I searched through my cabinets for something to make for dinner.

People were in and out of Grimmauld Place all the time, not just to relay messages or leave reports. No one would question it if I just... dropped by. I had before. I could leave a message for Madam Pomfrey, saying I wanted to have another check-up just in case. I could ask if anyone knew how Remus' mission was going. I could double-check the guard schedule. I could even have a drink with Sirius.

But I ended up by the kitchen table, glancing out at the waxing moon lighting up the thin layer of snow that had fallen over the landscape during the day, eating my dinner and making plans to get more food after my shift the next day.

Chapter 13 | Masterlist | Chapter 15