#i'm GUESSING that's what list this was from lmao rip

[aces-to-apples]

could you perhaps be enticed into writing more codakin? with:

❛ you’re such a tease. ❜

❛ you know where to find me. ❜

you’ve written them so fabulously before 💖

This ask is. From January 2022. I wish you all a very I live in shame :margehiding: but hey, here's a visual reference lol? Note: Cody is deeply horny and thirsting hardcore under the cut

Cody hadn’t been present on Geonosis for the start of the war, but he was assigned to lead the 212th Attack Battalion under General Kenobi barely a month later.

Alpha-17 had given him a full briefing before shipping out, and an entire section of it had been dedicated to the behavior and neuroses of both the general and the general’s commander: a Padawan-Commander by the name of Skywalker. One-Seven had hardly been complimentary but the briefing had been helpful in dealing with them both, even after Skywalker was promoted to general himself and took ARC Trooper Rex with him to the 501st Legion.

(The captains’ tiles look good on Rex, when he’s forced into his dress whites, but that’s hardly the point.)

It’s been nearly two years since that briefing and Cody has more than enough experience to put together his own hours-long briefing just on Skywalker himself.

There are so many things about him—how his mind works, how his brain works—that Cody doesn’t think anyone else in the galaxy knows. Not Kenobi, not Commander Tano, not anyone else who’s ever shared his bed, even. And even so, Cody would never have guessed it before they started breaking formation together, but—

“You’re such a tease,” he hisses, low and resentful, as Anakin struts past.

The Jedi shoots a sunny smile back at him before reaching the front of the room and proceeding to contort himself into several showy, highly flexible poses, ostensibly to warm up. His shirt stretches with him and these poses in a variety of new and vaguely life-changing ways.

Shirt, of course, being a generous term for what the little padawan-commander’s devious mind has conjured up.

If Cody wasn’t sure she’d have let on long before now, and in a much louder fashion, he’d assume this was a deliberate attack on her part. Psychological warfare, even. If Rex knows, of course, then it just might be, but ‘get Cody so horned up, in front of a crowd of unaffiliated brothers, that he nearly bites a data-pad in half’ is not a Rex-typical form of retaliation.

The pants are—fine.

Brown fabric in a twill weave, they have a loose fit for a wide range of movement and only stay up thanks to the valiant efforts of a thick letheris belt. Of course it also has an eye-catching bar of silver for a buckle. Cody thanks every god large and small for that belt, buckle be damned. Without its stubborn presence keeping some semblance of modesty, Cody might actually shame the whole of the 212th with his lack of subtlety.

The training room is large and padded thickly, made for and used to the acrobatic nonsense of Jedi cadets. At the front—leading a mixed cohort of brothers from various assignments just barely maintaining a sense of propriety through said showy stretches—Anakin isn’t even wearing boot-liners.

And then that damned shirt.

Cody has seen glittering, sinuous dancers wearing more of a shirt than that kriffing thing.

He wants to rip it off—possibly with his teeth—and replace it with something with more coverage. Possibly himself.

At the back of the room, he watches Anakin slide his legs out to a 90-degree angle, bend, and place his hand flat on the mats. Someone finally breaks and wolf-whistles, to which Anakin simply flashes a smirk at the whole room and pushes himself up onto just his hands. Cody would be noting down the whistler for disciplinary action if he wasn’t desperately adjusting himself in his codpiece.

The shirt.

The shirt is practically nothing—or nearly so.

A black scrap of fabric dug out of a garbage bin, if Cody has to guess. It stretches obscenely around Anakin’s bulk, cut off at the diaphragm and leaving his soft belly exposed. No sleeves or real neckline to speak of, horizontal cut-outs bare inches above what’s already generous to call a hem.

The diamond cut-out in the center of his chest is the last straw.

High on his left pectoral, just under the clavicle, is a little spot of brown pigment. Cody knows that little spot intimately and with great fondness. Lying flat, the shirt covers it; showing off for an adoring crowd, the fabric twists and bunches, flashing that little spot to keen eyes.

Each time seeing it makes Cody want to stalk up to the Jedi and block everyone else's line of sight. And then bite it. Or something.

Cody has never been the jealous sort. He's from Kamino, how can he be? He's never owned a thing in his life, much less had an exclusive claim on a lover. That his jaw aches from grinding his teeth is—abnormal, to say the least.

Obnoxious, even.

And General Anakin kriffing Skywalker has the gall to enjoy it. The air around him practically crackles with his delight, even as the stupid kriffing outfit is supposed to embarrass him, or whatever Tano’s intention.

Cody has been through actual physical and mental torture modules constructed by sadists and abusers and yet, the 90 minutes that Anakin spends leading the assembly through a series of stretches and moving meditations are the longest of his life. In fairness, he wasn’t fully armored, in the middle of a crowded room, painfully aroused for the torture modules.

By the end of the time slot, Anakin’s hair is darkened and his skin glistening slightly with sweat.

He flashes an exasperated grimace at his padawan—the first indication of discomfort since he strutted into the room to start—but dismisses the troopers but his usual warm half-grin and takes their farewell-ribbing with grace. Cody watches his shoulders slump just slightly when the final trooper turns away, before he rallies.

The strut returns and Cody, unthinking, grabs his wrist as passes on the way to the exit.

Anakin meets his eyes through his helmet visor and words fail him. What is he supposed to say? ‘That was unbearably hot, never do it again’? ‘Fuck me before you go or else I might explode’? ‘May I pretty please, with a moonberry on top, suck you off’?

He hesitates too long.

Anakin Skywalker can be achingly sweet and often is, but he can also be unbearably smug and self-assured. His eyes and smile darken, becoming something wicked and teasing, and he hooks gentle fingers around Cody’s utility belt and tugs him just barely closer. Trails those fingers up the center of his cuirass. Taps them just over his sternum, where he knows a small sunflower is inked brightly, just between his pectorals.

If his helmet was off they’d be sharing breath, foreheads nearly pressed together, as close to a kiss as they can get on a battlefield.

“You know where to find me,” he murmurs, low and deep, irises nearly swallowed by pupil as he keeps Cody’s gaze.

Then fingers tap sharply against his armor and Anakin rocks back on his heels, ruffling his curls and smiling sunnily. He whistles something jaunty as he swaggers away—a normal song at one point, probably, but most likely a filthy rendition thought up by bored troopers on campaign—and Cody can’t move or speak for several moments.

If he moves, he’ll do something very much not acceptable in public, either by himself or after hunting Anakin down through the halls; if he speaks, it’ll be to moan or whine or beg, damn the consequences of whoever hears. So he stays still and quiet as a stealth mission. Until sense returns.

Or his brain boots back up.

Once it does, though, ooh…

He is going to get his revenge for that, one way or another.

[1000roughdrafts]

another request here! could i please request a fic with pregnant!reader (writer's choice for which winchester brother is the dad!) where the three are en route to a new case and are in the middle of nowhere when reader goes into labor and ends up giving birth in the impala? 😊

Warnings: pregnancy, birth, swearing, canon-level arguing between the Winchesters

Word Count: 1.8k

A/N: Full disclosure, I've never given birth so please forgive anything that doesn't make sense lmao

Having spent the last few weeks on the road, case after case with no space from each other, I had to admit that the three of us were starting to go a little crazy. Sam and Dean had been at each other's throats over the pettiest things since my six month mark in this pregnancy.

Sam would yell at Dean to get his feet off our bed, and Dean would yell at Sam to lighten up. Or they'd argue about who takes what role in hunts. Tonight, I try to just ignore them to focus on packing, but it proves difficult when my name keeps getting brought into the mix.

"I said no, Dean! We're not taking the case," Sam growls, slamming his book shut. "It's at least a days drive from here, if not two and with Y/N so deep into this pregnancy," he lets out a breath, glancing over at me with wide eyes, as if the realization of my quickly approaching due date has just hit him. "I just don't think it's a good idea."

Dean tries to shake the frustration out of his body by punching a pile of clothes into his bag. He aggressively grips onto the next pile and looks up at Sam, face tight, "so we make a couple of stops along the way to make sure everything is alright," he chides with a shrug, the bag ripping slightly as he shoves that pile into it. "Damn it," he says under his breath.

Sam scoffs with a glare in his eyes, "do you even know how many hospitals we pass to get there? None! Not a damn one!"

Dean shrugs, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth, "we'll take the scenic route then."

Frustrated, I raise my voice about theirs, "okay! Can you both please stop talking about me like I'm not here!" I shout, my voice shaking with anxiety. They both spin around, shock in their eyes as they meet mine, as if they completely forgot I was still in the room with them. Dean bows his head, "I should be allowed to have a say in this considering… oh, I don't know," I say, pretending to be amused, then raise my voice, "I'm carrying the baby! And I'll be damned if I spend the next 4 weeks of this fucking pregnancy being treated like I need to be bubble wrapped!"

"I'm just trying to protect you," Sam says sheepishly.

"And I'm telling you I don't need protection," I snap. His eyes widen, and head hangs slightly. He takes a few careful steps my way. Softening my voice, I add, "Sam, I'm tired of all the fighting, and I'm tired of being treated like I can't do anything for myself."

He lets out a long, almost unwilling, sigh of agreement. "I get it," he says softly. "I guess I wasn't thinking… we were… he-" he stutters, letting air bounce between his lips when he knows there's really only one thing he should be saying, "I'm sorry. You're right."

"Thank you," I sigh, ignoring Dean's smug smile.

"Oh, don't act like you're any better, Dean!" Sam sneers.

"Stop!" I say as Dean rolls his eyes. He grabs his bag to head for the door, muttering that he’ll be in the car before slamming the door shut behind him.

Sam scoffs, looking around the room with a blank stare. "He's been such a jerk lately," he says, looking back at me.

"He's probably just scared, Sam," I say, brushing the hair out of his face. "I mean, you know how he is. And our lives are about to drastically change. Who knows what hunting will look like when we have a child to take care of. I mean, life is already so dangerous for us, and now we have to protect something so defenseless. That’s terrifying."

---

The cramping starts a few hours away from our destination when we stopped at a gas station for fuel and food. They were mild at first, going away as soon as they started, giving me a long enough break in between pangs to forget about the last.

"Okay, so apparently the victims all have missing hearts," Sam says in a long sigh, scrolling through news articles on his phone. He looks up with a puzzled expression, "we thinking werewolves?"

I grit my teeth as another pang hits. It's almost like I could feel every groove and line in the road. Clearing my throat, I add, "but it wasn't a full moon, was it?"

"No," Sam says in a soft whisper, "but maybe-" a shout rips through me from a cramp, interrupting Sam and he turns to look at me.

The last thing I see before clenching my eyes shut are Dean's eyes flashing back at me through the rear-view mirror.

"Yeah," I lie, my breathy voice giving me away and I yell out again when Dean drives over a bump. I throw a hand to my belly, rubbing the area that hurts. But it's all hurting now, and then nothing again. I take quick breaths. Anxiety riddles me. Did something happen to my baby? I wonder. My eyes open and my heart just pounds.

Dean pulls the car off to the side of the road with a screech when I yell out again, my hand gripping tight to seat in front of me. The second the car has slowed enough, Sam jumps out to get into the backseat with me.

Dean uses the steering wheel to push from to turn my way, "what's happening? Are you okay?" Dean asks while Sam races to unbuckle my seat belt.

"Of course she's not okay, Dean!" Sam growls, his eyes full of worry. I can hear them bickering with “I told you so” and “yeah well if you’re so smart” in the distance. My ears ring, and I'm too tuned into the frogs croaking in the swaying trees.

A tight ache hits me again and my body jerks forwards as a scream lets itself out of me.

"I think the baby is coming," Sam whispers to Dean with wide eyes.

"No shit," Dean mutters, throwing his door open to come to the backseat. He opens the door, using it to prop up his arm as he looks in.

"No, no, no," I cry, shaking my head. "It's gotta be Braxton-Hicks, it has to be-" I plead, tears streaming down my face. "It's too soon," I say anxious as all hell until another wave of pain takes over, and Sam grabs my hands in his.

"It's gonna be okay, Y/N," Sam says, gently squeezing my hands. His eyes pan up to Dean, getting his attention, "we gotta get her pants off her," Sam says quietly, and I groan.

Dean rushes into action, taking my back in his arms to lay me down on the seat. Sam works fast to get my clothes removed, but slows when the ache hits again.

Sam’s eyes widen when he realizes how close we are to holding our baby, and he rushes to remove his jacket, placing it on the seat between my legs. I prop myself up on my elbows, bringing my feet onto the seat to bend my knees and open my legs. Never in my twenty-nine years of life did I expect to be pregnant, let alone give birth in Dean’s car with the damn Winchester brothers delivering my baby, but here we are.

The cold hair nips at my naked skin, but it’s easy to push past the discomfort of that when it feels like a fucking fire was started on my lower half. Sam holds his hands on my thighs as he encourages me, reminding me to breathe and push. The irritability in me adds to the fire, and I want to tell him to shut up, but I don’t. I can’t see Dean, but I know he’s probably as scared as I feel right now, given how out in the open we are. He keeps a firm, but comforting hand on my shoulder as I push, offering words of encouragement here and there, his focus more on the world around us, scanning for danger. 

Dropping my head against Dean’s arm, I let out a groan as I push, the pain almost unbearable now. I could feel the pressure and burning of each one, and after what feels like hours the pressure increases to the worst pain I’ve felt yet.

I squeeze Dean’s hand probably harder than I should have, but suddenly a weight feels like it’s been lifted from me, and I’m washed with relief of the sweet sound of my baby crying. My arms fail to hold me any longer and I fall back against Dean. 

Sam chuckles as he holds our baby, wrapped up in his jacket, close to his chest. With Dean's help I'm able to sit up, still using him as a back rest.

"It's a girl," Sam says with a big smile, tears welling in his eyes. He hands her to me, and I'm overwhelmed with love, joy and exhaustion.

"Shh, shh," I coo before kissing her on her small forehead. "It's okay, we've got you," I whisper. Tears fill my eyes and I can't help but to sob as I look down at her beautiful face. I rock her in my arms, and her cries quickly calm, turning into whimpers. Tracing the features on her soft face I'm mesmerized at how beautiful she is.

Looking up at Sam, my tears continue to fall, but I wear a smile, "we just had a baby!" I say, almost in disbelief. I continue to rock her for a while, as if it were just me and her. Then I feel Dean's hand tap my arm.

I turn to look at his red eyes, then back at my baby, "do you wanna meet your uncle?" I say in a baby voice before looking up at Sam with a silent request to help me hand Dean our baby.

Dean strolls around the Impala to stand next to Sam, taking my daughter in his arms so carefully. He holds her tightly against his chest, eyes crinkling at the corners as he sways with her. He holds his hand over her head to protect her from the wind, bringing his lips down and plants a kiss on the top of her head. "Well, aren't you just a little cutie," he says, then looks over at Sam, "must not take after your daddy," he jokes. "Ha, ha, very funny," Sam says flatly, but smiles. Dean clears his throat after a pause, "do you know what you're gonna name her yet?" Dean asks, and I glance at Sam hesitantly. "Well, I was thinking Mary Y/M/N?" I suggest, and their jaws drop, but their faces light up. Sam takes a few steps towards me to kiss me hard. "It's perfect," Sam says.

~~~ A/N: Y/M/N = either your mom's name or whatever name you want to put here :)

If you liked my story, please remember to heart, comment or reblog. Or if you'd like, you can add yourself to a tag list here if you wish :) Thank you for reading!! :)

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[cain-speaks]

🍭 𝙎𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙏 𝙏𝙊𝙊𝙏𝙃 🍭 || Macaque x Reader Oneshot

» sweet tooth (cavetown) « 0:45 ─〇───── 4:07

╔⏤⏤⏤⏤╝❀╚⏤⏤⏤⏤╗ AUTHOR'S NOTE ╚⏤⏤⏤⏤╗❀╔⏤⏤⏤⏤╝ ➤ This is a oneshot. ➤ This is romantic. ➤ Reader uses she/her and is a cat demon, so she has cat-like features/behaviors! ➤ Described the clothes but tried to keep it simple/vague so ppl could add more details if they'd like! ➤ BRO THIS TOOK SO LONG I'M SORRY. I kinda lost the plot a few times I think,, and I got super into the shadow story,, hope this is good!! Also sorry if I switched tenses at some point, it happens rip. Also also if the kiss scene is bad I'm so sorry, I'm awkward asf LMAO. ➤ TRIGGER WARNINGS include profanity, a little bit of angst, referenced toxicity, and referenced murder. ➤ Word count: 3,494

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

❝ A sweet tooth for you, I'm wide awake .❞

Your tail vibrates excitedly as the timer goes off, alerting you that the mango pudding is done chilling. Grinning widely, you almost run to your fridge, throwing open the door and crouching to pull the cool dessert out. You take a deep whiff as you wander back to the counter, shutting the fridge door with a bump of your hip. It smells heavily, and an experimental shake of the pan leads you to believe the sweet treat has successfully set.

You set down the mango pudding and turn to the dishes, rinsing them in the sink and leaving them in the basin to be thoroughly cleaned later. As you scratch a particularly stubborn splash of dried pudding from the whisk, you look over at your oven, squinting to read the numbers displayed.

5:47.

"Oh, cow-milk," you hiss under your breath, finishing up with the whisk and nearly tossing it into the basin.

I'm going to be late! you fret as you pull off your apron, throwing it upon the counter as you rush to your bedroom to pull on your outfit: a simple white turtleneck under a soft long-sleeve and high-waisted plaid pants, complemented with long socks and short, buckled heels. Once you finish with your outfit and additional accessories, you grab a basket on your way out of your room and quickly fill it with cutlery, cubed mangoes, sugar, and of course, the pudding.

You pause for a second, ears flicking about as you try to make sure you haven't forgotten anything. Your time is cut short as another alarm sings on your phone, titled Get The Fudge to Mac's!

You squeak, shoving your phone into your pocket and spinning on your heel as you race out of your home, narrowly keeping the basket from slapping against your side.

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

You're fairly certain the only reason Macaque doesn't snap at you slamming the dojo doors is because he heard you coming.

He's curled up on his couch, a hefty book in his lap—probably about something medicinal or floral if you had to guess. Your eyes flicker to his face, scowling as you see his signature smirk, golden-brown eyes scanning your hunched-over figure in amusement.

"Look what the cat dragged in," purrs the demon.

"You—hah—think you're soooo funny," you grit out, shuffling to the couch with a glare.

"When have I ever been wrong?" Macaque asks.

The monkey slaps his tail across your face before you can recite the "a" portion of your alphabetized list.

"How come you're so late today?" he teases. "Normally you're here before I am."

You roll your eyes and give a half-hearted bite to the demon's tail, barely grazing the fur, but he pulls it away with a narrowed gaze anyway. You give him a dramatically sweet face, fluttering your lashes as you set your basket on the table.

You make a lazy gesture at it. "I made something for us."

"Oh?" Macaque asks, cocking an eyebrow. "How romantic, starlight."

For a split second, you consider letting your embarrassment at the implication get to you. But then you decide if Macaque wants to be a little evil, you may as well join him.

"Only the best for you, moonflower," you coo back, revelling in the way the black-furred monkey's face heats up around his spiked mask. You immediately laugh at his blush, far more elated at your ability to fluster the stoic demon than you think is normal, adoring the way his ears wiggle as though trying to hide his face.

"Laugh it up, kitty," he grumbles, reaching out for the basket.

You lunge forward and smack his hand before his claw tips so much as brush the handles. "Nu-uh! That's for after dinner, loser."

Macaque frowns and squints at you, shaking his hand and blowing on it in classic dramatic theater kid fashion. "What are you, five?"

"Out of five~!" You sing-song, scooping up the basket as you jump to your feet. "Now get cooking, Macaroni."

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

When Macaque announces the food's almost done, you decide to raid his wardrobe for pajamas.

You zoom up the stairs before he can say a word, but to your surprise, he doesn't make so much as a sigh as your thundering footsteps fade into his room.

It's weird. Normally Macaque always whines about you snagging his clothes, complaining about the pastry stains or endless amounts of cat hair that ends up on them—which is a small price to pay when you're constantly making him yummy treats! But tonight he's oddly quiet.

Come to think of it... he's been acting off for a while.

You noticed it last month. Your time spent with the monkey had turned more physical—training, teaching you how to make certain foods, dancing, cuddling. And amongst his standard sarcasm and snark, he was complimenting you a lot more, too. You'd even started finding little trinkets around your house! So unless some other purple-coded weirdo was breaking into your house to leave you jewelry and pretty flowers, it had to be Macaque.

But on the other hand, Macaque seemed to be... distancing himself. A canceled plan here and there, an excuse to leave the room every now and then, a strange new sense of secrecy within the demon, as though he was guarding something from you. As if he was afraid of you coming too close all over again.

It was so confusing. If you allowed yourself to consider that the demon had fallen for you of all people, what were you supposed to make of his behavior? That he hated the idea of loving you so much that he was deciding between making a game of it or completely pushing you away?

The thought strikes you right in the chest, your bottom lip falling victim to your sharp teeth.

Just recently you'd come to terms with just how much you really like the monkey—how much you love the sound of his voice and the way he drags you into trouble and his devotedness to you as a friend. It'd been an earth-shattering realization, really, one that left you tossing and turning in bed and damn near ripping your fur out.

How could you be blamed? Macaque was hardened like stone in the aftermath of his past, resulting in a closed-off and apathetic creature, a lone wolf in spite of his nature. It'd taken so, so much time and patience to get to where you two were now, laughing and poking fun at each other in his dojo, his safespace.

The last thing you want is to lose everything because your silly heart loves tragedies.

"Starlight!" Macaque's sharp call comes from downstairs, making you jump. "The hell are you doing? I said dinner's done!"

"Ack—I'm coming, just a minute!"

You quickly throw on a loose shirt and shorts, struggling a bit with the hole for your tail before finally settling the limb and bounding out of the room. Immediately, an aroma of deliciousness hits your nose. You almost stumble down the stairs due to the distraction, righting yourself with an embarrassed flush (boy, are you glad Macaque didn't see that) and carefully making your way into the kitchen.

Your eyes widen at what you see. A large bowl of chǎofàn sits at the table, neighbored by a plate of tángcù lǐjǐ and another of xiǎolóngbāo. The scent is divine, and you would call the meal a gift from Buddha if it weren't for the smirking demon leaning against the counter.

"Like what you see?" he asks cockily, tail sweeping against the ground in a lazy sway.

"No way you just made all of this!" you exclaim, grinning.

"Maybe I'm just that good," replies the black-furred monkey with a wink, fetching two plates and some silverware out of various cupboards and drawers.

"Not that good," you snort, grabbing your basket from the fridge. "Come on, what's the trick this time, moonflower?"

The demon falls strangely silent at your question. You raise an eyebrow at his back, waiting for a response. Finally, in an uncharacteristically small voice, Macaque says, "I've been preparing."

There's more to it. There's definitely more to it, but you won't push.

You set the basket down on the floor and take the plate held out to you, happily filling it up before moving to your seat. Macaque joins you on the opposite side, silent save for the short scraping sound of silverware against glass. The uncomfortable silence threatens to spoil your appetite, and you spend a few quiet minutes praying that the demon across from you will say something.

"Is it good?"

Thank Buddha, you think, immediately put at ease to hear his voice.

"Duh," you say, swallowing another forkful of delicious food. "Your cooking is some of the best I've ever had."

"Oh really?" Macaque leans forward on his elbows, hands laced under his chin, and you feel your face warm ever-so-slightly. "Then where do I rank, starlight?"

"Top ten at least," you tease, reaching for more chǎofàn. Macaque unlaces a hand to pick up the bowl and pass it to you.

"At least," he chuckles. "Well, eat up. I have a play to put on."

"A play?" You repeat, cheeks round with rice.

Macaque nods. "Yes." Quickly, he adds, "for you."

You very nearly make a quip about the romance of dinner and a show, but seeing his tail tense and thud against the floor makes you reconsider.

Instead, you smile. "I'll be there."

The monkey snorts. "Better be. If you stand me up for rice and chicken, I'll never make it again."

You fake an angry grumble. "Don't you have to go prepare, smart guy?"

He blinks. Once. Twice.

"Oh," he says, simply at first. Then his eyes widen. "Oh, yes! I have to—there are things I have to—I'm going now." Macaque cuts his rambling short and just barely avoids sprinting out of the kitchen like his tail is on fire.

"Don't—" you cringe at the sound of something falling, followed by a quiet yelp. "—hurt yourself on the way out..."

•───────•°•❀•°•───────•

You sit amongst soft blankets and pillows, tails curled around your knees as you wait for the play to start. The light of Macaque's lantern bathes the dojo in a violet hue, shadows dancing with the sway of the lantern as Macaque gets into position. The monkey's innate shadow powers and connection to the lantern make it easy to manipulate it and the dark for his purposes, so part of you is confused that Macaque settles himself so far away from you. You reason that maybe the demon's just feeling extra dramatic for this story.

Or maybe this is it, you think.

Even if you don't know what that means.

"Welcome viewer, to a shadow play the likes of which have never been seen."

You smile at the signature opening line, a soft purr rumbling in your throat as you listen closely, ears perked in Macaque's direction.

"Here we follow another tale about the tragic Warrior." Macaque's voice reverberates around you, and you watch as a simplified silhouette of hi—ahem, "the warrior" manifests from the shadows. "Though this story is unlike the others—for instead of our Warrior bearing yet another arduous chapter of life, perhaps he has found his happy end.

"Everyone knows the tale of how the Sun came to betray the Moon. But what very few have to come to learn is that it was the moon that brought on such a tragedy. You see, many centuries ago, the Moon could only see their dark side—blemished, indecipherable, and lacking in light. So often the moon thought of their dark side and wept, believing that if it was all they saw, it was all anyone could see. And then the Moon realized something. They were the Sun's only companion, their only friend, so surely, surely, the Sun would give their light to them.

"And at first, the Sun did everything they could to show the Moon just how bright they could be. The Sun taught the Moon everything they knew, and the Moon took that knowledge and taught it to others, becoming a beloved warrior. And when the Moon became the Warrior, they changed the Sun into a Hero—a well-shaped, perfect vessel of holiness and goodness.

"The Sun allowed for this because they loved the Warrior, so they locked themselves within the Hero. And while the Warrior loved the Hero very much, they were so blinded by the love of their light that they didn't see what they were doing to their beloved Sun.

"Years passed and the Warrior had taken almost every bit of sunlight. Only their heart and a small sliver remained, which the Sun branded on to the Hero's golden cudgel and hid beneath stone so the Warrior could not find it. This angered the Warrior, who still could not see what they'd done to the Sun, for they were so hidden within the Hero. He said, "my hero! Why do you hide your light from me? Is it not mine, too? Have I not helped you shine?"

"The Hero replied, "I hide nothing from you, my Warrior, certainly not our light. I simply have no more to give you."

"The Warrior was displeased, and this displeasure, coupled with the dimming Sun, poisoned their light until nothing remained but a thin halo around the two of them.

"This terrified the Warrior—to see that they were so close to becoming the Moon again, so close to being consumed by their dark side, that they demanded the Hero give them their heart. Only this time, the Hero refused.

""You are not a hero," spat the Warrior. "And you are no longer a warrior," whispered the Hero. The Warrior was so angry, so enraged, that they attempted to swallow the Sun itself. They peeled away the Hero's stone body to reveal the blazing heart beneath, fully intent to rob them of every last bit of light they had, even if it meant they'd never shine again.

"The Sun broke free of the Hero's perfect body, and, using the light on the golden cudgel, banished the Warrior to a place of no light. No stars. No song. Only darkness.

"A place where the Warrior and the Moon would blend in perfectly."

While you've never heard the story portrayed this way, you find it heartbreakingly easy to tell he's talking about his death and descent into Diyu. You fiddle with your hands, pressing on the paw pads as you stare, watching the Warrior turn into wisps as a glowing mass of shadows (the Sun?) forms into a tendril and strikes them.

It's almost too much to watch, your brain caught up in what preceded Macaque's death. Is this why he's been so nervous? It would make sense—the version of the tale makes him vulnerable to say the least, and it's oozing with painful, regretful honesty. Macaque may not be a liar, but the truth has never been easy for him.

The scene changes, shifting in a quick montage.

"For centuries, the Warrior rotted in their anger and sorrow. So angry were they that they allowed themselves to be hung from strings like a simple puppet, used as a weapon to harm undeserving victims."

Flashes of burned and otherwise destroyed villages wrap around the dojo, all with a chained Macaque hovering above, eyes burning. The last image you recognize as the Monkie Kid and his group. A shadowy tendril wraps around the kid's limbs, attached to him in a similar way to Macaque's chains. Your stomach twists.

"Even when the Warrior finally forgoed their wrath and reconciled with the Sun, they still could not find it in them to shine. They'd ruined the Moon many years ago, and now the Warrior was ruined, too.

"...or so they thought. One day, the Warrior came across a maiden. She was gentle and wild, comforting and unapologetic, unwavering and bold. She was a river, a storm, a mountain who stood unblinking before the weight of the Warrior's darkness.

"The Warrior thought they were doomed to break her, as they so often did to strong things. But then the Maiden produced a mooncake from her robes, split it in half, and said, "Would you share this treat with me, O' weary Warrior?""

A feminine silhouette appears before the Warrior, dressed in a flowing hanfu and flowers. Most interestingly, the Maiden has tufted ears and a long, fluffy tail just like—

Your face erupts in a shocked blush as understanding dawns on you. The first time you met Macaque, you'd been out selling mooncakes. It'd been a good day, and by the end you had a single treat left, which you fully intended to scarf down while watching the sun set. But then you'd seen Macaque, leaning against a bridge and watching the reflection of the sun in the river, and he just looked so sad, you thought a mooncake would add a little brightness to his face.

A pity cake it might have been, but you think it was one of the best pity cakes you've ever had.

"The Warrior took the Maiden's gift. Together, the two ate at their cakes until they were naught but crumbs and the sun had long set. Before they parted, the Maiden smiled at the Warrior.

"And the Warrior glowed.

"The Warrior glowed so bright that moonlight shown through the cracks in their skin, that stars came down to twinkle in their fur and they could hear the sweetest dreams whispering in their ears, and all they said was "Mooncake Maiden" over and over again, for the Warrior had finally found someone to glow for, not because of."

You almost bust out laughing, a mix of adoration, shock, and amusement bubbling in your chest. "Mooncake Maiden", huh? Maybe you should start a business.

"For weeks, the Warrior and the Maiden continued to meet. The Warrior continued to glow, feeling more and more like the great warrior they once were. They even began to think of themselves as the moon again, not as an imperfect surface, but as a new vast and complicated world, one they wanted to explore by the side of the Maiden. All they had to do was ask her."

The shadows merge into a single ball, gliding towards you and settling before you. The ball reforms, revealing Macaque kneeling in front of you, your hands held gently in his. But what really catches your eye is his glamor—or lack thereof. His six ears, the reason for his namesake, unfurl from his head like flower petals, glowing shades of blue, pink, and purple that illuminate both of your faces. His fangs elongate past his bottom lip and a white halo of fur surrounds his face, shimmering in the gentle light.

His eye, blind though it may be, is milky and spotted like the bright side of the moon and you can't help but think it's the most gorgeous thing you've ever seen.

"And now to discover how this story ends," he says softly.

"Macaque—" you begin, only to fall silent when he squeezes your hands.

"I know I'm not a hero," Macaque says. "I think I might always be a little evil—a trickster, a bit of a thief, a bully every now and then; a shadow of something good. But you make me feel... real. Like I can be something more, something people can love and adore without getting hurt, and I haven't felt that in a long, long time, starlight."

You blink, feeling something wet tease the corner of your eyes. Your heart thumps in your chest, tail unfurling from your knees and reaching out. Macaque meets it halfway and they curl around each other like ribbons.

"I love you," whispers the Six-Eared Macaque. Louder, he says it again, and you shiver when he says your name. "I love you, and if you'll have me, I'll be yours for eternity."

Your mouth feels dry, your body nearly numb with—what, shock? Excitement? Happiness? Exhaustion because you're feeling all the things? Probably.

But still, your heart swells at the confession and your hands slip from his to cradle his face and you say, "I love you too, Macaque."

Macaque grins, eyes shining wetly. His hands go to your cheeks, thumbs brushing under your eyes. His ears flap against your hands for a second, and then he whispers, "can I kiss you?"

Your heart nearly explodes. But you give nothing away as you utter a soft, "yes."

You're not quite sure what to expect when his lips meet yours. Fireworks, or maybe like a puzzle piece is shifting into place. You think you can safely say you feel neither, but you do feel both of your growing smiles, until you're pulling away to laugh and Macaque follows suit.

When your giggles die down, you pet the demon's ears again. "You wanna have dessert now?"

The black-furred monkey huffs, leaning into your touch. "In a minute," he murmurs, and then he's bringing you back to his lips.

❝ I like you—say it back .❞

[aeligsido]

Hiyaaaa! 🧚‍♂️

You said in this ask that you would love to talk about your OCs, sooooo... Top 5 OC? 👀🍬

Hiiii 🕺

I also do indeed!

1) how dare you make me try to rank my babies (affectionate) 2) top 5 oc of what!! So many things I could go off on!!!

Jk jk, but I did choose to list five of my first OC created in a fandom. Bc why not. Important note that some of them were created more than ten years ago (a bit reworked more recently)!

-

1- [Fairy Tail] Lyna Dreyar (technically now Dreyar-McGarden) . I genuinely don't remember much from when I created her years ago — I think I do have notes somewhere. She was always Laxus' little sister though. She was also a Dragon Slayer but now she isn't anymore jdjdjdb. I think I reworked her personality a bit too? She was more of an extrovert in my first drafts I think, but she's not as much anymore 🤔

-

2- [One Piece] Monkey D. Ceeli (previously Shelly). Once again, I created her a long time ago! And she changed a bit, too. (I mean, we also learned some more about this world since I created her lmao). She's Luffy's little sister (by three years). In my first drafts (I do have a fanfic with a few chapters posted with her as a character, over on my ff.net... not on ao3 bc i don't think I will ever complete it) she was supposed to have been raised with the ASL brothers, with a pretty serious personality and very interested by the Revolutionary in general. Also I don't remember what it was exactly but she had powers™. Now, she has a super powered haki (bc i can), she was raised by their mother (for... reasons), and Luffy doesn't know her (or that she exists). She's also way less serious and a bit more into the overexcited side.

-

3- [HP] Daisy Potter (it... wasn't her first name when I first thought about her but I can't remember what it was now). Again, a very old OC! She wasn't that developed all that time ago, but she's way more present in my mind now haha. You will never guess, but she's Harry's little sister, bc i once found the HC that Lily was pregnant when she died and I ran away with it. Interestingly enough, I think that the explanation I have for her birth now and then is the same? And same for her fate in canon,,, (I mean, a canon where she's born). Rip (i love u baby). I put her in a lot of different aus now, where she grows up differently each time and things impact her differently, but I think at her core she's a very brave and smart girl who wants to do good. She's her parents' daughter all the way!

-

4- [Star Wars] Letti Kryze. One of my most recent ones! So maybe five years old or so idk what time is. She's Korkie Kryze's daughter, a Jedi, eight years younger than Luke & Leia, and has the habit of causing accidental chaos everywhere she goes. I love her she's a baby. I remember after watching the first season of the Mandalorian thinking it would be funny if her and Din kept throwing the Darksaber back at each other bc neither of them want to be the big boss™. She's a tired teenage girl in the middle of an intergalactic war who just wants her father back and it shows.

-

5- [DC] Emma Pennyworth. Alfred's granddaughter via his daughter Julia. She is, in general, done with the Batfam's collective bullshit, and wants to hold the braincell. She's also like, twelve, so there's that. I've written her a few times actually!! She tries so hard to be serious and mature and she forgets a bit to be a kid, but also her favorite sport is annoying Damian lmao.

-

Bonus — this one time I was very into Hetalia and created an OC Bretagne, bc of course I did.

-

Yes there's a common theme in all of those lmao. Interestingly enough, even when the OC is like... Cringey and a bit Mary-Sue and all, the goal was always to have them as part of the family and... That's it. Legit 0 of them have a love interest (I'm thinking of Cana for Lyna but that's a very recent development, and I do have a few ideas for Letti but it would be another OC)!! It's so funny in insight idkdkd

I also have a fair share of OCs that are like. The next gen (you know the type). So there's that. I'm giving so many characters kids and I'm not even sorry.

... Well kids or random family members lmao.

[aria-ashryver]

Welcome to the Jungle | Choices MC Colony | Episode #2

Its 0-100 immediately today folks: Ricky the Labrador is being hunted by panthers

Oh thank god they don't understand doors 😰 RIP to the cassowary who became panther food instead of our pet dog.

At least they weren't chasing any of the colonists, righ-- OH GOD RUN EVIE RUN

It's fine she's fine everything is totally fineeee 😬 HA, behold the power of doors and running away!!

🎶Welcome to the Jungle; we've got fun* and game**🎶

*eight smokeleaf joints ** one (1) billiards table (and the very real and constant fear of being eaten to death by panthers)

In significantly more delightful news, the local elephant herd has formed a nap pile 🥺

✨ Local Blades MC dabbles in the Beastmaster & Woodslore skills ✨

(Or; Dorian attempts to feed a wild guinea pig a berry to see if it will come live with us)

(It didn't.)

(We'll keep trying.)

I'm kind of letting the MCs have free reign and decide what they want to do themselves; for the most part, they are filling in their days like this:

Dorian and Luca are doing most of the building and carpentry; Evie has gone full lumberjack; Rin spends a lot of time researching; Mariana acts as our nurse, and does a lot of cooking, cleaning, and tailoring; Dorian and Evie train Ricky (and try to tame new animals); Rin and Mariana do the gardening; Luca, Dorian, and Evie do the heavy lifting and hauling; Evie, Dorian, and Rin go mining and hunting

Here's the gang restoring one of the little ruined buildings that spawned on this map

The brave young MCs are doing a fabulous job keeping our colony safe from raids by such colourful characters as, uhhhh, "Burnskrap Slagkill the Pyromanic"?

Lmaooo Marianna has absolutely zero fucks to give, I love herrr 😆

Evie: *rifle out, actively firing, trying to defend the colony from raiders* Marianna: *walking in front of her gun* sorry, pardon me, I just need to grab that rice -- lunch will be ready in ten! Evie: ???? Marianna: Love what you've done with your hair by the way

So. Rin ran afoul of a man-eating monkey, and then the next day, the second her injuries healed and she got out of bed, she was ambushed by, i shit you not, a second man-eating monkey.

Eeeeey time for a party in our newly built rec room!! Good idea Rin, we deserve a break 😊 Its still early days in the colony --which we have dubbed Cedar Station (the location), and The MC Coalition (the group).

oh i see you smoking a joint in the corner of the party honey 👀 and right next to Evie too!

(ngl im surprised Luca didn't join lmao)

Ah, they were busy chatting to Evie, making tier lists of animals they could beat in a fight. Yeah that makes sense. (Remember that bit in ID1 where MC fights a bear? lol)

(also!! smoking / drinking beer etc is an option I can toggle on and off on an individual basis-- lmk if you want me to switch these options off for your MC sprite!)

Woooo everyone had so much fun at Rin's party that Anitha decided to join us!! Welcome Anitha!!!! 🎉🎉✨✨

Her stats in the plant skill are bonkers good -- normally I've been jumping in and tweaking our MC's sprites a bit so they feel more like their OG counterparts, so I was going to bump her plant skill up... but it was almost at max already! Wood Atts gonna Wood Att, I guess 😆

Looking forward to seeing what she brings to the colony! 💛💛

Thanks again for letting me steal your darlings, I will continue to try very very hard to save them from being eaten by panthers ✌😎 @rosesnink @cadybear420 @choicesmc @lover-also-fighter-also

[jennawynn]

Chronotrek TNG Part 2

Season 1 Ep 8- Season 2 Ep 1

I didn't do a very good job of keeping notes for most of this (and I might not until I'm Actually Watching again vs having it on while I work).

"There can be no justice so long as laws are absolute." More "woke garbage" that conservatives (and shatner) missed the first time around, I guess lmao.

16- Why not just cast actual old people-- oh, it's another de-aging plot. Carry on.

17- Knowing that Frakes had a back injury makes it really easy to spot. Poor guy.

23- ok ffs, if the captain calls down to Engineering, it's because he needs to know something, probably quickly. you don't delay that by giving him your full first, middle initial, last name and title when you answer the phone, you just say "Engineering".

Skipping things and doing them by hand because the _computer_ is too slow?? Are you INSANE?? It's amazing these ships don't blow up more.

RIP Yar. Does everyone just... record themselves saying goodbye to everyone just in case? brb gonna go write a letter then make sure never to update it so the things i say will be weirdly out of context.

25- Data trying to understand jokes and faking laughter is A+, no notes, I totally see why he is the autistic posterchild.

"no logs" except those needed for the narrative I guess.

Still cutting from close-ups to wide angle, from the back, stunt fight shots, huh? Even more jarring in this one with how frequently it cuts back and forth so the old admiral can kick riker in the chin.

And Season 2's opener... I have a few feelings about this one.

1- the captain outing troi's pregnancy to everyone... nice tact, cap. but the hilarious part is that he's like Picard- Counselor Troi is pregnant Riker- no reaction Picard- She's going to have a baby. Riker- :shocked_pikachu: A BABY?! yes, Riker, that's what pregnant means.

I hate pregnancy storylines (and apparently Troi's actress did too, or at least this was listed on IMDB as her least favorite ep)

I do not like the new doctor. Maybe it's bias bc I saw something about how Beverly was removed bc the actress fought against the sexist storyline last season, but she makes a mockery of Data's 'bruised feelings' when he corrects her pronunciation of his name (One is my name, the other is not.) and when he leaves, she has the parting blow of 'Day-ta. Whatever.' like his feelings, his NAME, don't matter to her. There was something else too, but I didn't write it down and now I've forgotten. She's just... grating on me for some reason.

However, the highlight of this episode is Worf volunteering to 'tuck Wesley in at night.' It was a cute scene about making sure that Wesley doesn't feel isolated if he stays onboard without his mom, that he still has people to act as his family aboard, looking out for him and acknowledging that even if he is an acting ensign, he's still a child.

[theprinceandagcd]

First Lines/WIP Wednesday

i really gotta get one of them cute graphics like y'all have... but i have no artistic talent.... so I guess I ain't gonna have one ANYWAY

@firenati0n tagged me in first lines and @heybuddy-drabbles kind of tagged me in a nice lil combo post of both so here tf we are

this is something I've shared a couple snippets of on Twitter the last few days (follow meeee @/princeandagcd) but I'm writing a fic where henry visits his dad's grave throughout canon events and then a few post canon events (weddings and kids and whatnot). this section in particular is in the middle of his and alex's relationship, specifically set after Wimbledon :)

He tucks his knees up to his chest, feeling small. "I concede that I should have expected this, mind you, because I was aware it would happen. I knew I would go from loving this idea of him to just loving him. And I do, already." Henry huffs, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Love him, that is. So much that it feels like a part of me, more than anything else does at the moment. I even think it’s making me a better person, getting to love him this way.” It’s easy to picture his dad tilting his head, eyes filled to the brim with concern. Henry needs to be honest to someone – it may as well be his deceased father. So, he pushes the words past his lips, each one razor sharp against his tongue. “But I know it won’t last, and now I only have the option of waiting for him to... to tire of me and leave." The epitaph underneath his dad’s name is right in his eyeline, the word father almost feeling like a taunt. Lately, Alex has so often assuaged the permanent ache in his chest, but the fear of what will happen has the wound ripped open, feeling as fresh as it did the day Arthur died. "That's what people do around me, right? They leave. It very well may be my slot in life." Henry swallows, thinking of Alex's brilliant smile and his hungry kisses and his gentle hands. "I know we won’t be forever,” he reiterates, pressing a firm hand to the pain beneath his sternum. “Is it selfish of me, though, to cherish this time with him? When I am cognizant of how the story ends?"

I also don't have a tag list for firstprince on here but I def should get one?? so if you're interested in being added just let me know and I'll get one started lmao i'm sorry i'm a mess bye

[riddle-me-ri]

I read your fic on short reader x different Penguins and now I'm curious- do you have any headcanons on their heights?

A/N: Uhh sure! I can come up with some I guess lmao. Most of these are just rough guess-timations. Either going off some “canon” heights listed in character sheets or based on the usual fact that Bruce Wayne/Batman is usually 6ft and something. As well as actor heights and my own height…that’s really all I’m going on rip…Sorry this got repetitive and I sorta half-assed it near the end…I don’t like dealing with measurements and they all started lining up together as the same height in my head lmao

The Penguins Height Headcanons 

(based on the bare minimum facts, actor heights, and my other thoughts)

Arkhamverse Penguin: 

4ft. 10 in. (147.32 cm)

Based on his official character profiles throughout the games

Also liable ruler I’ll be used to judge the other pengys heights rip

Reevesverse/Farrell Penguin: 

Hmm…Colin Farrell is 5 ft. 10 in. (177.8 cm)

I’m thinking thats about right…Like he’s not incredibly short…

He’s the same height or around the same height as Falcone

But Batman is still like almost a foot taller..(Pattinson is 6 ft. 1 in. (185.42 cm))

Gotham Penguin: 

So, Robin Lord Taylor is 5 ft. 6 in. (167.64 cm)

It may not seem like Oz would be that tall.. 

Given he’s hunched over and the cameras are mostly pointed downward at him during dialogue exchanges 

(from what I recall, its been a minute since I watched Gotham)

However compared to everyone else in the series, I can see that being a fair height. 

BTAS Penguin: 

Probably the same as Arkhamverse..just a wee shorter

Like 4 ft? (121.92 cm) 4 ft. 5 in.? (134.62 cm)

TNBA Penguin: 

Although this is a re-design of BTAS

The fact he somewhat stands straighter and isn’t as round.

He is slightly taller, minus moving their top hats..

I wage this Oswald is 4 ft. 10 in. (147.32 cm) or 5 ft. (152.4 cm)

Telltale Penguin: 

6 ft (185.42 cm)

The only pengy to actually match height with Bruce

And be above 5ft something.

Congrats, you punk

One Bad Day Penguin: 

Going based on some panels where he stands in front of Batman.

I’ll say this pengy is probably in the same range as Arkham, BTAS, and TNBA.

At the minimum 4ft 10 if not just 5 ft. 

The Batman (2004) Penguin: 

Like 3ft? (91.44 cm) 3.5 ft (104.14 cm)? 

Fuckin’ gremlin height…

I dunno…

He’s the shortest lad here

I know that much. 

Batman Unlimited Penguin: 

Probably shares the same height with Arkhamverse and BTAS.

Like somewhere in that higher 4 ft range, maybe even 5 ft but not above 5 ft 5 in.

[heavenssexiestangel]

ARTHURSKNIGHT'S READING REC LIST PART 1

Hello everyone. I have been planning to do one of these for a long time... And since I need to distract myself from "con drop" (which people just let me know exists), I am going to recommend a few fics to y'all.

Since I don't have the brain energy to make two lists, beware that this list contains both SFW and NSFW stuff. It goes with reader discretion. I'm not your dad and I can't tell you what to do.

So, this will be divided by ships <3

Also this will probably contain sort of my comfort fics mostly I guess

Recs under the cut because I think this will be long

EDIT AFTER ACTUALLY MAKING THE LIST: Besties this ended being just recs for Arthur Ketch/Dean Winchester and Gadreel/Dean Winchester cuz there are so many I love and I don't have the brain energy for more right now so I'm going to make it the first part of the Recs

ARTHUR KETCH/DEAN WINCHESTER

Easy to Please by orphan account (SADNESS)

Rating: E

Summary:

Ketch teases his hormonal boyfriend a little too much.

Comment: I like to re-read this from time to time. Wish the writer was still active

Morbid Painting On Display by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell (so many of her fics will be here lmao)

Rating: E

Summary:

Dean and Ketch ride the adrenaline rush of murder

Comment: Can't really go wrong with Luci y'all

You Can Take My Breath Away by Imoshen (I don't know if they have a tumblr)

Rating: E

Summary:

Ketch comes home after three days' absence. Who knew riding his motorcycle in hot weather would have his Omega mate all hot and bothered?

Comment: I'd really love to have more of this AU but. Oh well

Uptight (Let Loose) by Marveljunkie and wincestgoddess (I don't know if they have a Tumblr)

Rating: E

Summary:

When Dean gets injured on a hunt, a whole new side of ketch appears.

Comment: I should actually re-read this. I've read it a few times and it's just. Sooo good

Pinched in a Pinches by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: M

Summary:

Interrupted playtime because of work makes C/O Dean Winchester forget about a certain pinch.

Comment: Prison Guards AU my beloved

Every Time I See You (Seems I Can't Let Go) by Imoshen (I'm not sure they have a Tumblr?)

Rating: E

Summary:

Dean Winchester works as an Omega for hire. This appointment is going to be different than all others before, though. (Damn Brits.)

Comment: I love this one so much :)

Phone the LT (And Give Him A Blowie) by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: E

Summary:

Lt. Ketch receives a phone call from work. Dean's not happy about it and aims to rectify it.

Comment: brain dead basically but. I love itttt

Baby Grab Ahold of the Joystick by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: E

Summary:

Dean and Ketch are playing a game on game night.

Comment: eheheh.

Ligma Boots by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: E

Summary:

Dean came all over Ketch's work boots. It's now up to Dean to clean them.

Comment: I love this AU so fucking much and Luci knows it.

Proud Husband by @deansmultitudes

Rating: M

Summary:

Dean has a difficult case to crack. Ketch has his own ways of supporting his husband.

Comment: This is really nice, I should re-read it more. Also I'd love for the writer to write more of this universeee

Primal Urges by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: E

Summary:

Ketch indulges in Dean after a hunt.

Comment: Mhmmmh this is truly a fave

Stepfamily Shenanigans by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: E

Summary:

Dean has always had a thing for his stepfather and a day in the shop tells Dean something.

Comment: rip to me I love it so much

Give Me Your (Love) Blood by @lucibae-is-dancing-in-hell

Rating: M

Summary:

Dean and Ketch enjoy some time together.

Comment: Luci is such a good writer I cannot!!!! I love her fics so much and she knows it. Re-reading her stories is always the best

seeking salvation and doing something unholy by RocksaltandPie (I don't know if they have tumblr)

Rating: E

Summary:

After Dean rescues him from apocalypse world, Ketch is a changed man. The attraction between them is still undeniable, though. Dean finds a way to remind him of who he used to be before the angels broke him, leading to Ketch changing into a new improved version of his old self. Set right after 13.22 Exodus / Ketch's POV.

Comment: Listen, you have no idea how much I wanted to scream when I saw someone that wasn't my friend wrote Arthur/Dean. It's such a good fic too. Mind the tags and warnings here besties

GADREEL/DEAN WINCHESTER (someone other than me writing it???? A miracle)

The Great 'Nah-Duh' of Dean Winchester by @ladyknightskye

Rating: T & up

Summary:

The LARPers of Moondoor participate in a fire rescue training exercise as their quarterly community outreach project. In the process, Dean discovers something about himself. Something everyone else apparently already knew.

Comment: I mean. This was written with me in mind so like. It has everything I need bye

Actually no bye I was promised smut for this and I'm over here waiting. Somehow patiently.

Heaven Help Them by @threshie and Couyfish (I don't know if they have tumblr)

Rating: T & up

Summary:

Gadreel returns from the Empty just as Sam, Dean, Castiel and Jack are trying to solve Heaven’s angel shortage. If they can overcome the past, they might just be able to secure Heaven’s future.

Comment: This also has Sastiel, which I really don't care for, but it's one of my favorite stories of all time. Absolute fave. Love it. It's so so sweet and Gadreel and Dean are so good with each other <3

[cescalr]

New tag game: list ten of your childhood ships!

tagged by @babybeale <3... forever ago. Uh. Whoops!

[I will also state my current feelings regarding the ship, and I'll go into as little or as much detail as I feel like <3 I'm also. I have a sieve brain. I'm trying to remember what the fuck it was I shipped as a kid lmao. Anything I shipped, say, pre 2016, I think should count? ftr that means I was 14 or under when I shipped it.]

Nina/Fabian, from House of Anubis;

They're still cute. Better than what they pulled in the last season ;-; fabian and mara...... why...........

2. Sam and Freddie, from iCarly;

This show was just. Not good at writing romance. At all. It was bad at it. But I am very smart and know better than them (/joke) so I could do seddie justice. Er. Maybe trying to do that right now, actually. Shh.

[also, friend; jade and beck is so complicated, you're right. A fun mess, but still a mess lmao. Me and my rarepairs was always a fan of stuff that never ended up being canon though. Might as well put it next, I guess? Looking at your 3.... when it comes to icarly; we could not possibly have had more different opinions on the matter <3 lmao]

3. Tori Vega / André Harris;

I haven't watched it in years so I do not remember why! But I do remember that I did. I think. Don't - don't quote me on anything ever.

4. Willoz - from buffy the vampire slayer;

No gifs for them :( :( :( love them still so very much <3

5. Honestly, I'd steal your number 5 bestie, 6Teen was great. In the spirit of obscure animated TV shows, though - and It's been so damn long I forgot the names of some characters, had to look up the guy's name, lol - Zero and Vin from The Invisible Network of Kids. It left a profound impact on my psyche because they did something really fucked up in the last episode, plus left us on a cliffhanger, and then the show got cancelled </3 rip. Haven't watched it in a decade or so. No idea if it holds up, but I was super invested in these kids doing spy work and experiencing insane levels of trauma that would be ignored come each new episode </3. I was literally 8 years old <3. It has a TV tropes page and the entire show is availible on the Internet Archive, of all places, sooooooo I may browse. For nostalgia's sake. There are literally zero gifs available for this one, because. I mean. No shit.

7. Didn't watch any of that continuity - only got so far as Tracey Beaker Returns... alas. Anyway, my pic for 7..... hm. Sigh.

Stiles/Lydia, Teen Wolf.

This ^ is NOT romantic! she slams her mouth onto his in the middle of a panic attack. Babe. No. No. Regardless; I don't like it </3. They really. Oh god they really fucked up this one. Like a lot. Plus, they both just ended up with much better canon ships (stalia, marrish) that then got shafted for this mess to be the endgame and then the movie breaks them up anyway!!! OFFSCREEN!!!! they didn't even last 2 weeks!!!! fuck!!!!!!!! I don't like them. But I used to. Playlist, for proof. I feel like this counts, because I shipped them when I first watched the show as it aired (I was 10 when the show started), but I did still ship the pairing until well into my teens (16 or so) before I wised up (the show made them very bad in a really boring way. Not that they weren't bad before. Love how they both do things that are otherwise reprehensible but the show frames them as romantic for some fucking reason </3 I was like 13 when I saw this kiss on screen. They're lucky I did research and didn't just take it at face value or I could've gotten some really bad ideas about what's healthy in a situation like this!).

8. Zikki (Zane/Rikki), H20: Just Add Water;

Season 3 does not exist <3 [also, the way they wrote the 'cheating' plotline was fucked up. That woman planted one on him!!! he did not consent!!! Why are we supposed to be blaming him for being sexually harassed in the workplace!!! No!!!]. Still ship them fr fr.

8. maf;lkasjd;f yeahhh. Think if you watched friends as a kid, it was inevitable you'd ship rosschel, the damn thing was pushed so hard. Stand in regretful solidarity;

For really obvious reasons (being that it is rosschel); hot damn no I do not!

9. Harry and Ginny, Harry Potter.

Ignoring the horrendous movie adaptation, when I read the hp books I basically just defaulted to shipping whatever was canon. Luckily for me, the canon hp ships are actually pretty good ones! If you ignore the canaries in the room. (I. Do not. Famously. Well. Infamously.) As for Hinny, whilst its a garbage ship name, the pairing itself is pretty great <3

10. kaljdflkasdt thank god I don't remember jack shit about watching glee for the first time! the sieve brain is a blessing in this one occasion. I've already mentioned in another (tagged <3) post my vaguely-relevant hsm ships, though, so..... hmm. What should I pick.... let's think.... I'm kidding. I don't need to think.

Shoker is a major missed opportunity in ME, and I've been mad about the choices for my fem!shep for YEARS because. Look. Kaiden she did not cheat on you. You left!! You accused her of being evil and fucked off after she was resurrected!! what else was she supposed to think other than 'guess he doesn't want to date me anymore. Rude.' And. You could have sex with Jack but not romance her, that was locked to male characters >:| biphobia [Jack can have sexual relations with women, but her only real connections are to men. Rude!]. And, Liara in my games always turned herself down for romance because she assumed my shep wanted to date Kaiden because she's not a total dick to him and there's no way for me to clarify otherwise, also people making assumptions :/ not great. Plus Li becomes the shadow broker and it's a whole thing, so that doesn't really work out narratively for me anyway. Can't romance Miranda. Can't romance Tali (wouldn't anyway - Tali/Garrus <3). Refuse to romance Garrus that is just so platonic a dynamic it's not even funny. Jacob cheats and dips, so fuck him. Like... all of the fem!shep romances are terrible (or Trainor, I guess, but she's... kind of. Nobody. She's Just There. Sorry. It's not narratively interesting enough for me.) and Joker was right there and augh. Augh! Still ship. Still mad about it. Hatboy Project is doing the lord's work! I salute thee soldier in thine endeavours. Waiting to replay LE until it's been finished <3.

<3

If anyone wants to pick this up, go for it!

[sapphire-weapon]

Did you see that Stephanie panisello said that she and Matt Mercer didn't even work together in DI?? LOL looks like the cl*on stans are outta luck. Ever since Leon x Ashley has been made 100% canon it looks like Capcom is finally gonna be sinking all those other ships and good riddance. After all these years thos cl*on shippers were SO sure they were gonn a be Leon's second canonical ship but NOPE! It was us! When Leon and Claire have zero real interactions in DI do you think they'll melt down as hard as a*on stans do?

dude what the fuck are you talking about LMAO

like there's so much going on in this ask idek where to start

i'm just gonna go down the list in order, i guess

like... so what's the implication here? that because steph and matt weren't in the sound booth at the same time, leon and claire don't interact in DI? when we've already seen them on screen together in the same scenes? because i'm pretty sure that the CGI movies aren't mocapped by the english cast like the games are -- i'm pretty sure that they're mocapped in japan, and the english cast just provides the voice acting. so, like. yeah. a lot of the time, when you're doing voice work, you don't work with the other actors. it's entirely possible that your scene partner hasn't even recorded their lines yet, and you're just trying to act and react off of text you're reading in a script. that's why voice acting is so hard and why so many film actors struggle to make the transition from film to voice.

leon/ashley is not "100% canon" in the way that you're implying here. leon/ashley is canon in resident evil 4 remake and nothing else. i have said this repeatedly. don't expect capcom to commit to this ship. capcom does not commit to ships in RE. capcom won't even canonize valenfield, and you really think they're going to commit to leshley?? LMAO

even if leon/ashley was "100% canon" in that way, it would only be in the remake verse. death island is OG canon, which means that aeon is still the name of the game there. OG canon has done absolutely nothing to kill the canonicity of aeon, so we need to assume that that whole thing is still going on.

cleon has been dead canonically for a fucking decade, so i have no idea where this sentiment of "finally" is coming from, here. damnation fatally wounded it, RE6 twisted the knife and ripped the hole open further, and the ending of infinite darkness coup-de-grace'd it. anyone who honestly thought cleon was still somehow going to become canon after RE6 is an actual legitimate fucking lunatic. which leads me to my next point...

i haven't seen cleon fandom be insane since about the time of damnation's release -- so, very early 2010s. in fact, i have not met a single cleon fan since then who was operating under any sort of delusion about what the state of their ship was in terms of the canon. cleon fandom lost this war years and years ago, and they all know it.

like. bro, leave cleon fandom alone. they've suffered enough, and they're our friends, besides. i know that there's a decent number of my followers (who are also probably some of my anons) who ship cleon first but still enjoy what RE4make did and are supportive of our ship.

and i also kind of ship cleon, to a certain extent. i've been pretty vocal about this.

i mean, hell, i would even be willing to ship aeon if capcom was ever willing to put at least some thought behind the execution of it, as opposed to none at all.

i just constantly take a shit on aeon fandom because they're a bunch of joyless fucks who can't allow anyone else to have anything ever and always have to chime in on every little thing with some form of "okay but leon loves ada tho" or "don't forget aeon is canon." like, fuck off, dude. aeon fandom is in a constant state of "the best defense is a good offense" as though anyone on the fucking planet is actually trying to take the canonicity of their ship from them.

they're not. we're not. aeon won the OG timeline. they need to stop being such sore winners and trying to rub their victory in everyone else's faces and shout down people who are still trying to have fun with other things.

and they're also a bunch of media illiterate dumbasses who sit around dreaming of happily-ever-afters for leon and ada and come up with headcanons for babies and shit, when all that shit is directly antithetical to the nature of the ship so i don't understand why the fuck they even like the ship to begin with, but that's a separate point.

so like

yeah dude, you need to pull yourself the fuck out of the late aughts. the war is over. it's done. it's time to stop fighting.

[modern-inheritance]

*gently thunking back of head on wall*

It's lunch break time and I listened to all the stuff I have for the escape part 1 that will probably be ready to post either tonight or tomorrow. Got some notes on what I need to change, some mistakes, edits, etc.

but I still haven't gotten Saphira in the building yet. Everything's connected up, but I'm stuck on the point where Arya pretty much (nonverbally and not of her own free will) says 'yeah I'm...I'mma just. take a nap. now.' while Murtagh is trying to figure out what the HELL to do because now he's under a table, with a bleeding elf that is alternating between trying to crawl out to fight a Shade again and dropping in and out of consciousness, Eragon is fighting said Shade, Saphira's taking a tick longer than they planned getting into the roof, and he...

he is a regular man. With a bow and arrow a battle rifle.

oh right he needs to shoot Skinnypants McFlamingHeadedFuckboi in the forehead.

god damn it I reread the chapter yesterday but i guess that's on my list when I get home after work too!

We're so close to being done and then I can just...take a break. And actually plan for the next part because oh my god there is SO MUCH to hit there as well and at least we'll get more stuff that isn't ripped from the book but I...I might need a little time.

...This escape was not supposed to be such a big project lmao. And it's still not even as long as Reunion. That was easy to write, what the fuck....

[jeglly-bean]

could i ask a bit more about the jade & prospit designations for maruki? i'd found purple & derse to be very telling but i haven't looked at the lists in a while shdjfkgky

minus the 2 points about "dryly macabre" fatalism and "will say out loud what everyone else was thinking" (he tends to hide what he thinks), i say every other sentence really, REALLY with what maruki is like (shibusawa even calling him the most stubborn man in the world).

he's deeply workaholic, will NOT stray from the path he has in mind, and only opened up to why he was really doing all of this to joker in rank 9 (slow to trust). deep down he knew his dream was out of reach but still tried anyways..... not to mention we had like 5 separate bossfight phases around 1) his mind being very difficult to change, and 2) trouble admitting he's mistaken and upset. "strictly monogamous & fiercely devoted" is a given, thinking about anybody besides rumi is impossible for him

(also i wanted to give screenshots as evidence for all these points, but the post would be horrendously long lmao). and of course the derse one is also debatable, but "so much of their identity is built on control" feels like a deadringer idk ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

"rebellion is in their blood" might seem a lil weird at first glance considering he's closer to *imposing* some kinda dictatorship over toppling one, but it just reminds me how from his POV he's "rebelling" against the cruelties deemed acceptable by society (enough to manifest a rebellion outfit like the rest of the PT in the metaverse)

"constantly look towards the future & analyze the past" is also very prevalent with his lofty plans for utopia and his treasure literally being the newspaper of rumi's parents dying (he cannot get over the past, it infests his every thought). throughout his confidant it's incredible how often his insecurities are quickly covered up with self-deprecation, tangents about work, etc. (again, so many screenshots but they aren't worth the length lol)

and of course the "one true path he sees" amongst all the wrong ones is the path he tries to impose on everyone else! at the end of the day hope is 10/10 his aspect i gotta agree tho, absolute bang-on. and since i'm frankly horrendous at designating classes i think whatever u said about sylph probably works??? he's definitely likely to botch up whatever healing he tries to do tho, so rip him i guess lmao

~~~

I totally see where you're coming from tbh. Personally, it didn't feel right making any of the thieves any higher on the hemospectrum than Haru being an indigo, as being a highblood comes with a certain degree of social power, even if the system still oppresses them in some way. While I still believe Maruki is jade, him being purple makes an equal amount of sense given your explanation. You could even go further by stating his minor rewriting of cognitions early on could be a form of reverse chucklevoodoos. The more I think about it, the more purple maruki seems like a reverse dirk strider to me, which is as horrifying as it is hilarious. It could really go either way, but if I were to write a session, I'd still probably keep maruki as a middle-of-the road jadeblood.

[ellcrys]

15 questions

Tagged by @itstimetodrew~!! Thanks for the tag!! ☺️

1. Are you named after anyone?

No, I don't think so! I think my parents just went through the list of baby names for girls and settled on Joanna lol.

2. When was the last time you cried?

Uhh... I teared up watching one of the episodes of Blue Eye Samurai a couple days ago but the last time I Cried was on my flight back to Boston last Friday rewatching episode three of The Last of Us lmaoo. (I was like SURELY I won't cry on my nth rewatch... #rip to me)

3. Do you have kids?

*Puts on my meme hat* What am I a child bride?

4. What sports do you play/have you played?

Swimming and soccer growing up. I did ballet for like a year or two also when I was like 5. Since graduating college I haven't really done any sports, just working out at the gym pre-pandemic and then at home since the pandemic, although one of my friends is trying to start a pickup soccer group which I'll probs join if it takes off. Do want to get back into swimming again also. That's on my 2024 todo list. I've tried running as a hobby enough times to know that I suck at it and that I hate it lmao.

5. Do you use sarcasm?

Does anyone not? lol

6. What is the first thing you notice about people?

Hmm, probably their outfit; I enjoy seeing people's different styles!

7. What's your eye color?

Brown <3

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

Happy endings!!

9. Any talents?

Ugh, no?? I can't think of anything lol. Being a procrastinator and the ultimate lazy bum (only half joking). idk man, I used to be proud of my writing and amv skills but I haven't seriously tried to write anything in probably a decade and I don't think I'm ever getting back into making amvs lol. Letting things go/being resilient maybe? I'm at the point in my life where everything is just 'it is what it is', but I think I've always been good at moving on from things tbh. Life's too short to dwell.

10. Where were you born?

Wisconsin of all states lol

11. What are your hobbies?

Nothing creative anymore, that's for sure (#rip). Uh, I love going out and doing things. I'm the furthest thing from a homebody so being trapped at home during the pandemic drove me nuts. Things I do on the regular include visiting independent bookstores, art museums, and seeing shows. I try to travel/see someplace new on the regular, whether that's going out of state/country or walking through a new neighborhood in the Boston area. I love eating, definitely a foodie. I read a lot (more fanfic than actual lit these days whoops) and watch a lot of tv. I also enjoy just walking around and people watching (will frequently walk around the neighborhood/city without any real purpose in mind as I go crazy if I'm cooped up in my apt for too long). I also love sending snail mail and exchange postcards monthly with a friend in London, and send holiday cards/postcards to family/friends when I travel. I guess documenting my interests on Tumblr can also be considered a hobby considering how much time I spend on here lmao.

12. Do you have any pets?

No, but I plan to adopt a cat when I (hopefully) get my own place!

13. How tall are you?

5'4" :')

I'd love another two inches... just two measly inches :')))

14. Favorite subject in school?

Growing up, probably math. I was good at it, and I loved how logical it was. I also really enjoyed chem, probably because it was the most math adjacent science (hilariously though, I hated physics). In college obviously computer science, my major. Though I've always loved my literature classes also.

15. Dream job?

Man I'd love to open and own an independent bookstore/cafe. Dream job for real.

Tagging (if you want!) @lordsardine, @goldshitter, @akechikurusus, @popflythesky, and anyone else who wants to do this!

[raffaelamusiker]

Formal request to also ask all of them for the fic ask

(You can't prove it's been a whole month)

Origonal post

What is your favorite line that you’ve written in a fic?

‘Not yet’ whispers through the trees and B’Elanna shudders. And I couldn't even tell you why but it's my most favourite <3 From Existing In Your Orbit

What is one canon thing that you wish you could change?

Oooh boy. Honestly Rios staying in 2024.

Out of the comments you’ve received on your fics, what are two or three of your favorites?

I recently recieved amazing long comments on my Jemily series and I think they might be my most favourite. Also Jaz's comment on Mercy and the ones where people ask me for more smut because they're so funny.

What is your wildest headcanon?

I wrote a crack fic the other day where Seven drank a Big Gulp without taking a breath so I guess that one.

What’s your ideal writing setup?

Somewhere cosy and no noise.

Do you like to outline your fic first or create as you go?

Depends. For multi-chapter I usually try and have an outline or basis. usually just go with the flow and what kind of fic it is.

Have a piece of a WIP you want to share?

“What, and I’m not important enough for you to want to stay?” Raffi shoots back, picking at her nails. 

The hand that’s gripping the page of the book in her lap moves quick enough that it rips it before she snaps the book shut loudly. A pang of regret fills her chest at the fact that this is one of Raffi’s books but her frustration takes over everything else. 

“Stop putting words in my mouth, Raffi.” Seven stands to walk away. “When have I ever said you aren’t important? If I didn’t want to be here I wouldn’t come.” 

“You’ve never said I am important!” 

Gasp angst who'd have thought.

Is there a tag you like to search for when looking for fanfics to read?

Only if I'm trying to read a specific fic i've read before. I usually just scroll through all the fics til I find one I want to read again.

Do you like to post fics on a schedule or at random?

Random. Gotta keep you all on your toes you know.

What helps you focus when you write?

Really wish I knew haha.

What is your favorite fic that you’ve written?

This is a hard toss up but it's got to be either Before the Sunrise, Raffaela or Nostalgia

Do you write for yourself, for others, or both?

Both. Writing is cathartic and helps me get out my messy thoughts but also I love sharing things with others.

Why did you start writing fanfic?

To get all these ideas out of my head and to help me mentally.

Which character is your favorite to write?

Hmm...I wonder...

Raffi, of course though Emily will always be my baby too.

Which character is the toughest to write?

Sometimes I find Seven tough from a 3rd person pov, but honestly men are just hard to write lmao

Do you write for multiple fandoms? If yes, what is your favorite fic of yours for each fandom?

Well I've listed my CM and Picard faves already but my Voyager fave is probably A Collective of Four

How often do you read your own fics?

So often lmao.

Do you want to write something outside of fanfiction? If so, what about?

Well me and bestie want to write our AU's into books. Princess and Knight AU and Pirate AU. All wlw of course.

If a movie or show were based on your fic, which fic would you choose and who would you fancast?

All the Saffi fics should be real. Just saying. (Well not all of them...)

What inspires you and your writing?

Stupid dumb characters in my head /affectionate, and talking to others.

Do you research for your fics?

Usually if its needed. And it's usually for small little things.

What fics do you prefer on a scale of canon compliant to wildly original?

Probably in the middle. But I'll read near enough anything tbh.

Do you often write about a relationship or focus on an individual?

I usually focus on one character within a relationship with the relationship surrounding it.

Have you included any sexy scenes in your fics? If yes, do you find them easy or difficult to write?

It depends on the vibe tbh. Sometimes it flows a lot easier than others. I do have to write from a giving position usually though otherwise its hard af lmao.

Is it easier to write angst or fluff?

Angst. I never feel like I get fluff right honestly.

What sort of endings do you prefer to write: ambiguous, bad, happily ever after, etc.?

Happy endings even if everythings gone to shit before. Except Before the Sunrise but that's an outlier. Sometimes I'll do ambiguous or bad but I tend to need the happy endings to make me feel better haha.

How many WIPs do you currently have?

Oh no...I don't even want to count. Ones that are written that don't include multichapters? Maybe 5? MC's and just ideas included thats probably in the teens honestly.

Does anyone beta read or edit your fics?

Bestie Blaine is always the best beta and makes my stuff make sense <3

Is there a fanfic or fanfic writer you recommend?

If I had to choose one fic, it would have to be Foundations. Authors, alreadyaccepted, smol_yellowbumblebee, ericine, daxs10thhost, bimichaelburnham, sleeplessrivers, dolcewrites, fenrisranger, thequeerengineer, sgtmac, falltonadir...okay just everyone in the Saffi/Picard tag okay <3

What led to your interest in the fandom?

My partner got me watching the first season of Picard and there were gays so, the rest is history I guess.

Are non-fandom friends aware that you write fanfic?

I am quite open about it haha.

What is the most impactful lesson you’ve learned about writing?

Reading other people's fics and interacting with them is the best way to enchance your own writing.

Do you like writing short fics or long fics?

I love writing long fics but lately that's been an impossible struggle and I've felt kinda like a failure. Last year I wrote something like 70 fics because I did a lot of drabbles. This year I want to focus on longer fics and I have quite a few ideas stored up.

Do you have a writing milestone you’re working towards?

It depends. Sometimes i can look at a chapter and I'll guess how long it is (and then it'll be longer) but I usually go with the flow.

Any advice for writers working through burnout or writer’s block?

As someone who just got out of burnout, its to try something new. I started With Love, A which is a totally different format from what I've done before and it's really brought me out of the slump. Also talking through things with other people is always great.

Would you ever want to write something canon if you got the opportunity?

I would like to make my own canon someday haha.

Is there a favorite trope you like to write?

Hurt/comfort is my beloved.

If someone were to make fanart of your work, what fic or scene would you hope to see?

Polycule cuddle pile. Which one? I have too many to choose from.

[thisintermezzo]

What are your favorite bits of localization in FF14? ☺️ I'm not sure if I'm asking for anything specific ... I just want to see you ramble I guess, haha! It would be a nice change from the usual "why did they leave this part out" lol. And there are valid instances where you have to question some loc choices, to be sure. But hearing that localization is your jam... I wanted to know what you love!

What a good question! I had to wait until I was on my computer to answer so I could type faster, hahaha.

I got into FFXIV specifically because of its localization, so I have a different relationship with it compared to other games I've played. I'm really interested in the nuances and challenges of game localization and had heard this one was competent, so I actually initially just bought myself the Encyclopedia Eorzea because I didn't want to play an MMO, lmao. TL;DR below!

I was really impressed with the consistency of the writing quality within the book and how clean and expansive everything was. I got super invested in the plot section of the book somewhere around the last "act" of the 1.0 story arc. (Louisoux was my original favorite FFXIV character, RIP king.) The first book covers the plot sections from the true beginning of the game (1.0) to the end of Heavensward.

I started playing because the format of the Encyclopedia Eorzea is an actual "real" encyclopedia, so it's written from the perspective of an in-world historian. It's not narrative, so I didn't get to see character dialogue, which I decided I had to know about. What do the characters talk like? How do they sound?

I watched some cutscenes (Heavensward onward only), and by then, Endwalker had a trailer out and the hype levels were high, so I decided to play the free trial and... well.

ANYWAY, WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THE LOCALIZATION: HERE WE GOOOO

Mostly, I really like the direction they chose for the localization in-world -- using modes of speech fitting this type of fantasy setting, but also defining those modes of speech so that the characters all speak in their own ways.

Further, the localization team's stance on the localization is my preferred variety: they aim to provide the intended end experience. If your feelings as a player are supposed to be "wow, cool spell name!" when playing in Japanese, you should have the same experience playing in another language, even if this necessitates changing the name of something that may already be in English, etc.

They also separate things based on their... idk, in-game perspectives. Like, there's text that's canon to the game (signs your character can read, dialogue, etc. that's fully "in-world"), and then there's player interface text (menus, quest names) that you see, but the character doesn't, so they can have different localization styles for those things. I think it provides a lot of brightness and levity and helps to balance out how "heavy" the in-world text can feel in places without casual English.

I think it's all crafted with a lot of skill, charm, and honest interest, and so it's definitely one of my favorite game localizations, period.

Also, some of my favorite highly specific instances include quest names like "Quake Me Up Before You O'Ghomoro", but also heavy-hitter sections like Myst's last speech in the DRK quests and sooo many other beautifully-worded similar pieces. If I list them, this post will be like twenty more paragraphs. Sometimes I just want to say the quotes out loud so I can hear and feel the words, you know? Extremely good. I love words.)