#idk how canon it would be for QS but

[bee-sidebranch]

Three Stars Above Clouds, Attack NO. 19, Artfight 2024

@delta-orionis the Stargazerrr

So you have observed the Stars as well?"

"Yes, when the Lights in the City gave me a chance at least, my Recordings are a shadow of what you have preserved!"

"That's always been a problem, my city would shut them off during certain hours of the night so i could observe without the light pollution"

"That's rather considerate! Though it makes sense with your additional tasks"

"..."

"Say, what do you feel when you look at them?"

"Hm, curiosity i suppose? i've always loved catalouging constellations and dissecting the phenomena that occasionally occured above me! It's simply fascinating, the scale of it all"

"Hmm... i agree, it made me feel less alone i think"

[dvrcos]

ok so I'm giving a bunch of qs for the character ask game except I'll give 2 characters

Kevin day and Aaron minyard (bet u didn't see that one coming did u)

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

6. What's something you have in common with this character?

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

9. Could you be roommates with this character?

10. Could you be best friends with this character?

11. Would you date this character?

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

13. What's an emoji, an emoticon and/or any symbol that reminds you of this character or you think the character would use a lot?

14. Assign a fashion aesthetic to this character.

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

16. What's your least favorite ship for this character?

17. What's a ship for this character you don't hate but it's not your favorite that you're fine with?

19. How about a relationship they have in canon that you don't like?

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

22. If you're a fic reader, what's something you like in fics when it comes to ths character? Something you don't like?

23. Favorite picture of this character?

24. What other character from another fandom of yours that reminds you of them?

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Hmm might send more abt other characters if I feel like it

Thank you anon I love a chance to rant about these two idiots endlessly <3

1. Like/dislike about the character

Aaron: he’s genuinely such a complex character and I think that’s what drew me to him initially like this boy has so much going on but desperately pretends like he doesn’t

Kevin: he is canonically a fucking bitch and I can’t help but love that

2. Favorite canon thing

Aaron: I think right now all of his commentary in the first book is my favorite canon thing about him like he’s such a snarky asshole. Like genuinely the scene where Neil pours the water on the ground and then throws the glass at Aaron and Aaron just goes “mature” lives rent free in my head forever and always

Kevin: “I’ve never been skiing before” and then immediately having a panic attack

3. Least favorite thing

Aaron: internalized homophobia womp womp

Kevin: dating a Raven womp womp (i don’t hate Thea literally at all I just don’t like that he stays with another Raven but that is my opinion)

4. Them in a different pieces of media

Aaron: this is most definitely recency bias but The Maze Runner bc he would fit in with those assholes too well (him and gally would be besties)

Kevin: Harry Potter/the marauders feels like the right answer but it also feels lame as fuck (I can also see him in the maze runner as well)

6. Something you have in common with this character

Aaron: Scorpio <3

Kevin: I am also a little bitch sometimes

7. Favorite fanon thing

(Me trying to remember what’s canon and what’s fanon)

Aaron: him with a lip ring and also being a little skater boy

Kevin: the similarities between him and Wymack for sure

8. Least favorite fanon thing

Aaron: I will never stand for aaron micheal minyard hate

Kevin: and I will never stand for kevin day hate either

(I just don’t get how you could hate these assholes like yes they suck that’s the whole point)

9. Could you be roommates with them?

Aaron: maybe I don’t think we’d talk to each other and idk if I could handle that

Kevin: tbh yeah probably

10. Would you be best friends with them?

Aaron: I think we’d be acquaintances at best

Kevin: absolutely not

11. Would you date them?

Aaron: yeah I think whatever he did to swoon Katelyn would work on me as well

Kevin: I would have a raging crush on him but I could not stand his personality irl (I say that with all of the peace and love)

12. My headcanons for them

Aaron: he has terrible circulation and is always cold and has chronic migraines (this is me projecting) and he is a chronic clothing stealer when it comes to his partners clothes (cough cough kevin)

Kevin: he always tries to sign with team in or near cities where the other foxes are located because he doesn’t know how to function without being near his people (cough cough aaron)

13. An emoji that represents them/one they would use frequently

Aaron: 🤓/😐 or 🥱 (he is bored with you !!!)

Kevin: 🫠/🙂 (he doesn’t know it’s passive aggressive at first but uses it excessively after finding out)

14. A fashion aesthetic for them

Aaron: he will always have an early 2000s skater boy aesthetic to me

Kevin: elevated basic featuring a lot of PSU and USC merch

15. Favorite ship for this character

(I don’t even know if I have to say it)

Aaron & Kevin: kevaaron forever and always

16. Least favorite ship with these characters

Aaron: idk honestly I feel like I don’t see many Aaron ships outside kateaaron and kevaaron (I’m pretty sure andrew/aaron exists out there somewhere and I’m choosing to ignore it for my own peace bc hate is not a strong enough work)

Kevin: Kevin/Riko

17. Ship with them I don’t hate but don’t mind

Aaron: Aaron/Jean like I see the vision I just cannot get behind it

Kevin: Kevin/Robin like I don’t mind it at all I just also do not get it but I also don’t know anything about Robin

19. Their canon relationships I don’t like

Aaron: I do like kateaaron and that’s the only canon Aaron relationship (unless I’m dumb and have forgotten but oh well)

Kevin: Kevin/Thea I am so sorry I cannot rally behind you

20. Ideal best friend for this character

Aaron: MATT MOTHERFUCKIN BOYD BABY

Kevin: Andrew and Neil are perfect

I also think they would be very good friends if they gave each other a chance and got to know each far away from Exy bc I think they’d get along and have a lot in common but they have such varying opinions on the thing most of their lives revolve around

22. What I like/don’t like in fics about these characters

Aaron: I don’t like when he blindly hates the other foxes (especially Neil and Andrew) in post-canon fics like his relationships with them are complicated but not blind hate and I love when he’s competitive and also I love when writers delve into his past addiction and trauma and let him heal

Kevin: I love love love to see him get to be nerdy or talk about his other interests outside of Exy and I don’t like when he is like a crazy health nut womp womp

23. Favorite picture (fanart) of this character

Aaron: this art altered my brain chemistry to the fullest extent of that phrase

Kevin: this one and this one tbh even though I don’t really ship kevneil

24. What characters from my other fandoms do they remind me of

Aaron: regulus black

Kevin: maybe remus lupin idk kevin day you are an anomaly my little disaster boy

25. My first impression vs now

Aaron: I was really fucking confused by the Twinyard switch the first time and now he is my fucking baby live laugh Aaron Minyard

Kevin: I thought he was the love interest for most of the first book until I looked up andriel LMAO and now he is babygirl and I love him so much (even more so after reading TSC)

Thank you again for letting me rant about these stupid little idiots I adore <3

Character ask game here

[diodellet]

So many good options for the art appreciation asks but let's go with 3, 4, 13, 14 and 27.

hi hi ner! thanks forda qs!! these are all prettie incharestinge!! (<-girlie who didn't know she'd be Yapping-Yapping)

3. and 4.) Go to [fandom] tag and reblog some art you like that has under 100 notes ++ Go to the art tag (or similar) and reblog some art you like that has under 100 notes

noted, i will undertake this mission with great care 🫡🫡

13. What are your go-to Ao3 filters?

ok i have a confession, i used to be a sort by word count++completed works only++exclude crossovers-kinda person 🤧🤧ANYWAY that was changed, now i only really exclude chat fics (ahaha,,,,theyre not really my go-to genre, like sure they're amusing but i read a really good one once* and it ruined every other chatfic for me)

*this one's for u haikyuu-natics, esp team captain stannies

hm.... i'm not super-duper picky so most of the time i can just scroll through each work's summary and tags.

but if a fandom is popular (or if i dont have the spoons for sifting through works), i stick to just reader inserts HAHAHA, maybe oc x canon if there haven't been any new x reader fics and if there's rlly nothing oough ig i have to write her myself 😭😭 sometimes doe, the curiosity strikes and i'll try looking if there are any fanfics in filipino... i really find it interesting to see how a chara's dialogue reads if theyre speaking in tagalog (tbh i think one would have more luck finding filo socmed aus on twt? but i only know about haikyuu socmed aus)

14. Best fanfic tropes ever?

oH...there are too many... u can't make me choose the best out of all my faves that's unfair 🥺jk lol

i read* this jamikali fic (i like my ships with a bit [read: a LOT] of tragedy/disaster-ness to them. it's so so so compelling to read!) and i just love the "Dubiously Unrequited Love" tag. bcs yes, the feelings are technically mutual, but there is a whole slew of other factors keeping the relationship from being a thing, which it could be a thing, but there's also that awareness that it won't last, sometimes a couple doesn't have to be endgame for the love to mean something, ykw?

this entire oneshot series....has me in a chokehold... my introduction to "Non-Sexual Intimacy" (and "Non-Sexual Nudity" i guess?) like??? holy shit??? the tension?? the way op just encapsulates the poignancy of being in such a vulnerable position without teetering too much into the cliche of roëmænce it has me On My Knees!! (like i love my smut and romance cliches, but some days i jus want a liiiitle bit more spice and variety)

Shoutout to the "Unreliable Narrator"++"Ambiguous Ending" combi that reaaaaally makes you work for understanding the plot, idk how to word it but being able to leave Just Enough Breadcrumbs and having enough trust in your readers to Get what ur implying, also forcing me to reread the fic immediately is so foul (in a good way). like there's an enjoyment in a good satisfying read, and then there's the Itch of never being sure in your interpretation, the feeling that u just need to go over it another time, spot another detail u missed, get wrecked all over again, rinse and repeat. idk i love fic.

27. If someone wanted to make you a creative gift, what's the thing that would make you the happiest?

oh anything featuring my fave charas is sure to make me happy! i mean i'm just not super picky abt gifts. well, maybe a creative gift has to be smth that can last a long while? (a strong hoard-ability kaya idk im senti??)

as long as the thought and intent was there, i'm already happy enough🥰💕💕 but i guess in the context of getting fic gifted to you, probably what matters most to me is that the writer enjoyed the process of making it as well. (i'm kinda drawing off of my experience writing this fic for one of m'oomfies and the vdays drabbles*** so i could be just rambling who knows?**)

(art appreciation ask questions, please bug me to rb some underrated art and fic)

[saltlickmp3]

🏚 🔮 🪚 ⚰️ 🩸 for the character ask game bc theyre all interesting asf & im curious :P

YAY THANK YOU im assuming you mean for my ocs? i had tagged that game as them & i dont think we have a lot of media in common hehe but YIPPEE i answered ⚰️ here already :)

🏚 - what would your character do if their house was haunted? are they haunting their house? does the house reflect their state of mind, or does the house love/hate them and vice versa?

ooh it kinda depends cos strangeways can talk to ghosts, if it was a standard Dead Person haunting she'd be able to just hang out with them. like she probably wouldnt mind so much. haunting as metaphor for hanging on to the past etc. but if i was something a lot more nebulous she would 100% go full horror protagonist by a) trying to research & document & figure out whats going on and b) therefore providing a complete record of her haunting :) (she works in an archive specialsing in supernatural & extraterrestrial events in folklore lol)

mihangel would be the one haunting the house. or the house is haunting him. the house is representative of his doubt and how she feels his identity could slip away from him any moment and he doesnt know how to stop life carrying on, pulling her along with it. she is still living in the house that she knows is haunting her because she has forgotten what it was like before

rest of qs under the cut its kinda long lol

🔮 - if your character had a dream they or a loved one was going to die a horrible death (that is probably inevitable), what would they do?

strangeways would probably, very very deep down, a bit relieved - because of her Time Thing she is aging slowly and isnt sure if she'll ever die, and really cant think of much worse than living Forever. but she'd still be afraid. being theoretically able to die and seeing your own death barelling towards you is quite different. if it was someone close to her? she would walk to their house in the middle of the night and make sure they were safe.

mihangel kinda canonically has this? like he has dreams about his time Being Dead and theyre very real because it. Was real. he would only start getting Worried if it wasnt the same dream yknow? but if it was about someone else he would probably tell strangeways about it and then they would panic together lol

🪚 - what would happen if you put two of your characters in a saw trap maze together?

panic & cry & bleed a lot probably idk much about saw traps but it sounds pretty bad theyd hate it needless to say

🩸 - if confronted with a monster, would they romance them, befriend them, fight them, run away, kill them? something else?

strangeways would be taking meticulous notes & even attempting a few sketches and getting out a tape recorder to ask them a few questions & respectfully sitting down to listen. mihangel would be trying to leave but if strangeways did end up actually interviewing/documenting/petting a monster she would probably chill out a bit but maybe not get toooooo close. he's been to space & met aliens but he was also killed by one so while he knows most of them are chill she's well aware a lot of them are Not lol. he is one of those people who as a kid fully believed in fae & convinced his friends at school the beasts of exmoor were real & he'd seen one too (not in exmoor but on his grandparents farm in wales so that was pretty close when youre eight) so yeah he would be immediatly Scared by a monster. though it does depend on how Big & Feral it is ig

[madara-fate]

Ok he loves them since it's canon , but the way decade long absence no contact , not even thinking whether his daughter would be upset with his absence , this dude really is devoted to his mission . Sure he is a blessed soul , but idk he has rinnegan , why didn't he teleport once in idk even 5 months , or atleast to see his wife

, Sakura had to intercept message from the hokage to chase him and locate him to be in a relationship with him ???? He has zero contact with Sakura on his missions ?

If someone with a space time ninjutsu could be absent for a decade it is just so fucked up

You have to admit kishi made some big mistakes in gaiden while writing their story .

I'll ask u one qs " Can u actually imagine sasuke cuddling Sakura " ? Like fater they are married making the first move ? You know this proves a lot of my point

I don't deny atleast now that he loves them and needs to stay away for those long ass missions not because he wants to ? but their writing lacks depth atleast considering the problems they were given .

I agreed with your point u have to agree with mine

Bro has rinnegan !!!

Ok he loves them since it's canon , but the way decade long absence no contact , not even thinking whether his daughter would be upset with his absence , this dude really is devoted to his mission . Sure he is a blessed soul , but idk he has rinnegan , why didn't he teleport once in idk even 5 months , or atleast to see his wife

Because as I've stated before (which you alluded to at the beginning of this conversation), Sasuke took his secrecy too far, and he mistakenly thought that Sakura would be enough for Sarada growing up. Once he saw the negative impact his absence had on Sarada, he acknowledged his mistake and owned up to it.

That's why during the scene below, Sasuke wouldn't allow Sakura to take the blame for how upset Sarada was:

Because as he said, he knew the fault was his.

Sakura had to intercept message from the hokage to chase him and locate him to be in a relationship with him ???? He has zero contact with Sakura on his missions ?

Again, that's a completely baseless assumption on your part. Nowhere does it say or imply that Sakura intercepted a message meant for Naruto, and then used that to locate him. Not least because while he was on his journey, none of them knew where he was; he'd always keep his location a secret. None of them knew where he was during any of the Hiden novels because he didn't tell them. Therefore, it's as I always say - There's no way Sakura would have been able to find Sasuke if he didn't let her know where he'd be beforehand, because he could have literally been anywhere in the world. Because here's something you're forgetting - Sasuke returned to the village during Sasuke Shinden's conclusion, so he therefore spent time with Sakura in person before returning to his travels. Meaning he would have had plenty of time to tell her where he would be, in the event that she wished to join him later. No interception of messages meant for other people, is necessary here.

If someone with a space time ninjutsu could be absent for a decade it is just so fucked up

Firstly, it wasn't a decade. Secondly, I've already explained that Sasuke acknowledged his mistake.

You have to admit kishi made some big mistakes in gaiden while writing their story.

I will admit that a lot of the things he wrote in Gaiden were wholly unnecessary and done solely for cheap drama, but they still made sense in terms of at least being possible. But yes, Kishi could have reached the same conclusion using other, much better routes.

I'll ask u one qs " Can u actually imagine sasuke cuddling Sakura " ? Like fater they are married making the first move ? You know this proves a lot of my point

Well considering they've had sex, I can imagine Sasuke doing far more than just cuddling with her, because we know as a fact that they have done far more than that. I know what you're getting at - Sasuke isn't the cuddly type, nor is he one to engage in overt public displays of affection, but that obviously doesn't mean that his love and affection for his family is any less deep or sincere.

I don't deny atleast now that he loves them and needs to stay away for those long ass missions not because he wants to ? but their writing lacks depth atleast considering the problems they were given.

The writing for literally every single canon couple lacks depth, because the romance was never a focus to begin with. The platonic bonds had far more narrative significance than the romantic ones did, so relative to other stories where the romance was actually a focal point, then yes their writing lacked depth. But this is certainly not a criticism that is exclusive to Sasuke and Sakura.

Ig if you go by that logic , then yeah he loves them and he had to stay away for that mission , not because he wanted to . However , the fact he forgot his daughters face and tried to threaten her is such an embarrassing moment . He didn't recognise his own blood ?????

I'm not going to get into that topic here, but I explained in great detail during this post, why it actually made sense that Sasuke reacted in that manner when he was first reunited with Sarada.

A decade long !!! How can a father go without his contact of his daughter , ig he really is devoted to his mission and the safety of this world , he is a good person and great soul but the fact that his absence never made him realise how his daughter would be suffering ???

To reiterate - he acknowledged his mistake, and owned up to it.

Sure he loves them "now" but the way they came about with the whole glasses plot and absence and skr intercepting messages from hokage to chase his location makes my head hurt .

Again, Sakura intercepting messages meant for the Hokage in order to chase Sasuke down, did not happen.

You have to admit loving sasuke is very hard work , and the results aren't that special apart from his looks ofc , because he is very awkward.

"Apart from his looks"? My goodness. Anon, Sasuke is one of the most respected figures in the entire Naruto universe right now, he is literally hailed as a village hero. Sakura is proud of what he is doing and she supports him wholeheartedly because she knows that he risks his life everyday to protect everyone in the village. What on earth has looks got to do with anything? Loving Sasuke is easy, because Sakura knows he has a heart of gold, and that he wouldn't hesitate to risk his life for their sake.

I think I'll end the conversation there, geez. I mean honestly come on, "apart from his looks"? Give Sasuke the credit he deserves.

[mostlikelytofangirl]

I've read fic where JGY was abusive and found it in character. I don't think 'abusive' and 'not abusive' are two separate categories of people. Under the right circumstances, any person or character can exhibit abusive behaviors and, with a long enough time frame and no interventions, their relationship could certainly become abusive.

If the word 'abuse' seems so incompatible with our beloved villains, can we really say we love them as villains if we can't love and acknowledge their capacity for harm?

-Regular Anon

Oh hi there, anon! Nice to see you again :D. Sorry this took so long in getting answered, I've been having a case of Real Life(tm) recently orz.

Anyways, I'm guessing this is maybe apropos of this other ask? In any case, let me just go part by part starting with the last statement bc I actually agree there with you.

If we claim to like a character, there's really no point in ignoring key elements of their personality, right? If we like villains, we like them bc of the fucked up shit they do and how very sexy of them it was, not in spite of. That's why even when I can indulge myself in the occasional fic with a softer canon WRH (bc food be scarce and every treat is appreciated :'))), I don't fully subscribe to that bc that's just not how he is. Even in AUs there just has to be some of his og assholery or at least make the changes make sense.

But here's where my first caveat comes, and it's something I mentioned in my other reply too. The characters' circumstances.

Now, idk what kind of fic you read, and at the end of the day, if it works for you, that's totally cool! I just would have to assume that JGY's life still had some level of shittery to it, or he was going through someting bc really, this is the character that saved a perfect stranger in the middle of the war without any ulterior motive, nothing to offer, and risking his own safety just bc it was the right thing to do.

The entire point of MY/JGY is that he was "corrupted" by a society that left him with only two options: accept your fate as a bottom feeder, or cheat the system in whatever way you can bc you are always going to be inherently disadvantaged. And here's my second caveat:

JGY doesn't read like a villain to me. An antagonist, maybe, but an actual force of evil in complete oposition to the core values of the heroes and actively trying to hurt/stop them? Not really.

So it's not only that, but also the fact that he's a nurturing person at his core that lead me to disagree with the notion that he would be purposedly abusive towards another person unless there's very pressing circumstances that would make it so that his own well-being actually depends on somehow damaging this other individual.

Sorry, but I just don't see it working in any other way.

That being said, yes, you are right, interpersonal relationships are much more complicated than just abusers and victims (despite what some corners of tiktok and twt might say lol). As I also said in that other ask, at some point in our lives, we are all going to be the assholes and even the villains in someone else's story; we are going to hurt those close to use and we are going to make mistakes bc we are humans. But there's a difference between toxic behavior and being a toxic person. So while being a dick bc you had a bad day or bc there's no good communication going on can totally happen to everyone, that's not the same as intentionally hurting and manipulating someone in a systemic fashion fully designed to keep them trapped with you.

THAT is something ingrained in the person at hand, and while there's an entire conversation to be had about nature vs nurture, in JGY's particular case there has been no examples whatsoever in canon to even suggest that that's the direction his character skews towards. On the contrary, he has sacrificed his own desires and needs for those he cares about: being a model husband to QS and never taking a concubine, helping rebuilt Cloud Recesses and creating the watchtowers even if it was unpopular, going to NHS' aid whenever he called despite it being more work for him, never hurting Madam Jin in spite of how she did hurt him, etc. By the end even, pushing LXC away when the man had clearly accepted death with him.

Again, idk the details of the fic you are refering to, for all I know, it's an entire exploration of JGY spiralling down an even darker and more desperate place than in canon, and him becoming abusive towards someone bc, idk, that's the only way in which he can feel in power when his entire life depends on others is the whole point of the thing. And that's perfectly valid too!! What's fiction for if not to explore and go beyond??

I just felt like I should clarify that, while I agree on principle with the villain statement, I don't think it applies to JGY unless there are specific factors playing along, and if those are not met, I personally wouldn't find an abusive!JGY portrayal accurate or in-character.

But once again, that's just my position and I have my preferences and my biases like any other person.

[mothmage]

20 Qs for fic writers

Tagged by @monstersinthecosmos , thank you!!!

1. How many works do you have on A03? 31 (and a few anon, i think 2 or 3. idk, when i post a fic on anon i forget about it forever)

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 446,135

3. What fandoms do you write for? currently/primarily vc, iwtv (amc), star wars, and merlin (bbc)!

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? A Lovely Little Normal Life (which, honestly, kind of annoys me lol. i know it's just bc it's a huge fandom, but really? the stupid little 12k harry potter fic i wrote in two days is my most kudos? please...); Arthur Pendragon, Long May She Reign (forever pushing my lesbian genderswap agenda); The Face of God (les mis slightly canon divergent javert character study); The Odyssey of Recollection (amc iwtv s1 pov armand); Away From Stranger Tides (potc philip/syrena fic i started ages ago and never finished, lol)

5. Do you respond to comments? yes i love talking to people in comments!!!! i've made a lot of friends through comments!!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? omg. umm. merthur fans don't know this yet bc i havent finished posting but it's arthur pendragon long may she reign (BUT it's part of a series, so it's literally fine). idk, i dont tend to write long fics that end angsty. but my angstiest fic in general is probably Hollow-Boned Boy (armand contemplating his human life in the early CoD era) or Vision of the Damned (daniel's turning from armand's pov)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? i love a happy ending!! my series Odysseus in White Silk is probably the happiest ending, and in such an undeserved way hahaha it's so very AU because i was sad after s1 of the show and just wanted them all (and armandaniel) to live happily ever after

8. Do you get hate on fics? i dont think i ever have, but i tend to read comments in good faith too, so maybe someone out there is annoyed that i interpreted their vague dislike comment as a genuine comment or something, idk. in general though, i'll say no

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? yes but i dont post that often, idk if there's a particular kind, but generally it tends to be a little rougher than is probably appropriate without discussion in real-life situations, but also very...idk my friend described it as very tender, like theyre very clearly in love. which is so funny considering that that kind of tenderness irl gives me fucking hives lmfao

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? oh wow, not in a long time. i do have a wip sitting around rn that's a crossover between london spy and cloud atlas, which is really crazy until you remember that ben whishaw is in both london spy and the cloud atlas movie lol. and cloud atlas is already about weird reincarnations and parallel worlds and stuff, so it isnt too out-there.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? i dont think so!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? yes!! The Face of God was translated into Korean by ao3 user Crescent919 !! i've had a few comments on other fics asking to translate for personal use (always yes, of course), but no one else has asked to share a translation publicly

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? no!! i've been thinking about it lately though

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? all-time? probably merlin/arthur from merlin (bbc). it's the whole fate-destiny-choice thing, it just compels me like nothing else

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? hmmm, i would like to finish Roswell -- well, kinda (agent carter farm girl / alien crash landing au) because i still have all the original notes and outlines and stuff. i also made a shitty conlang when i was first writing it, which is crazy lol. but it would need some pretty serious revisions, and i would definitely rewrite the first few chapters that i posted years ago. i just kind of lost the agent carter bug, but i might return to that fic if i ever get in the mood for it again.

16. What are your writing strengths? ooh, i'm not really sure! i get a lot of comments mentioning characters' voices and/or personalities, so i would say maybe that!!! i also feel that i'm fairly good at mimicking an author's writing style when i want to (notably, i do not mimic anne rice when writing vc fic, lol)

17. What are your writing weaknesses? editing for sure. i have at least a hundred fics sitting on my hard drive fully or almost-fully written that i just need to edit. but i would simply rather die than do all of that. it's also why my whole merlin fic got put on pause while i went down the vc rabbithole, because i just can't bring myself to go edit the next chapters lol

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? hmm, i think it's usually unnecessary and comes off as a bit silly. that said, i did do it once (maybe excessively) in Daniel Molloy, Time Bandit (1984 daniel ends up in 1794 theatre des vampires, it's more of a character study than a time travel fic) BUT, let me defend myself -- i did it because daniel doesnt understand french, it's his pov, and he's incredibly confused and distraught for most of the fic. i felt like the dialogue being in french conveyed this sort of "daniel does not belong in this time/place" vibes. but, also, my french is...a little rough. so i'm sure it's an annoying fic for french readers lmao

19. First fandom you wrote for? warriors cats, a million years ago hahahah

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? ok, i have three different answers for this. the fic i think is the best, objectively, in terms of writing and content: The Story of Dani [...] (r63 devil's minion from armand's pov, starting with lestat's house). the fic i am the proudest of, mostly because it was my first "big" fic (it's funny now, bc it's only 41k) and i feel like i grew a lot as a writer while working on it, and i'm still happy with it: The Face of God (les mis pov javert, character study from childhood). the fic i have the most fun with and think about almost 24/7: Arthur Pendragon, Long May She Reign (r63 merthur, canon divergence, this is like a 4-part series that's currently over 300k lmao)

no-pressure tagging: @aunteat @leslutdepointedulac @butchybats @graygiantess and anyone else who wants to!!

[eltheabberation]

Mutsurie for the character ask :3

when I started shipping it if I did:

Probably when I started rereading tg:re, I really noticed how much Urie cared about him on the second time around when I was actually trying to pay close attention to the story.

my thoughts:

They’re cute! I prefer it more platonically/unrequited (poor Urie) but I can see them as a couple too. Also for some reason whenever I make up random aus it ends up being a ship there, despite me not really shipping romantically it in canon, so that’s something I guess.

What makes me happy about them:

I love the way they care about each other (well at least pre-rushima on Mutsuki’s end), like that one omake where they’re playing word chain and Urie’s thinking about him and is worried is just adorable <3 Also that one scene at the auction raid where Mutsuki is comforting Urie with his kagune just give me the feels. They’re so cute <3

What makes me sad about them:

Ngl post-rushima at least I’m pretty sure it’s unrequited on Mutsuki’s side. Urie clearly cares so much about him and worries so much about him and Mutsuki doesn’t really seem to feel the same. Idk on one hand I like seeing unrequited romance but it still makes me sad :(

things done in fanfic that annoys me:

I don’t really read any fanfic for them and this doesn’t happen that often but if you list them down as a f/m pairing I swear to god I will hunt you down.

things I look for in fanfic:

Again I don’t really read fanfic for them but if I did I’d probably look for fluffy, cute stuff or hurt no comfort. No in-between.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: 

I think Mutsuki and Aura make a good couple, and I’d probably want Urie to end up with either Saiko and/or (in an au where he actually lives) Shirazu.

My happily ever after for them:

probably one where Mutsuki stays at the chateau with Urie and the other Qs, and they get a chance to heal and live together, maybe mentor the new Qs together

who is the big spoon/little spoon:

Urie’s the big spoon, idk I just feel like it fits. Either that or they both just cuddle facing each other.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity:

Personal hc that if they started dating Urie would introduce Mutsuki to painting so they would probably enjoy doing that together, either while talking or just silently enjoying each other’s company.

[yourbuerokrat2]

On your Data was right/Q sees Picard as his beloved pet AU but with a cracky/silly twist: I know with all MY pets I've been overcome with love and cute aggression and just scoop them up and carry them around for a bit. So obviously this Q does his equivalent of that, like disappearing Picard from his ship for a few minutes to hover him inside a void and just stare at him or something before putting him back, something like that. Idk, I got the brainworms

Anon, I am pretty sure that Q already sort of does this in canon.

Small fic:

In the beginning, the crew did not really know what to do. One second their Captain was there and the other one he was gone. No missing shuttle, no clue as to where he was, nothing.

But then only moments later, he was back. And the only answer from the Captain to the questions as to where he was and what happened was a sigh and "Q".

Which, all other potential options considered, was a relieving answer. After all, the only part of the Captain that was ever truelly harmed when he was once again kidnapped by Q was his pride.

Q was a ... strange fellow. And as Picard had found out after Q had taken him to the Continuum that one time, he was even considered a strange fellow amongst his own kind. Picard was not sure wether he should feel relief at finding out that the way Q treated him was not considered normal or healthy and that even though Q apparently used to have 'toys', the way he handled Picard was something new and unique. The question as to what happened to Qs previous 'toys' and how dare Q treat other beings like such was only answered by an amused smile and the 'reassurance' that Picard did not need to worry about that because he meant so much more to Q then they did.

That had been the first and only time Picard, so far, had been to the Continuum. Or perhaps better to say had been kidnapped to the Continuum. Mainly because Qs jealousy had been rather apparent, especially when some of Guinans friends tried to explain and apologize to Picard that they can not intervene.

So, usually whenever Q felt lonely (Q never admitted to him that he was even capable of feeling lonely but considering Qs overall standing and banishments from his own species and his apparent inability to make friends with other, 'lesser' beings that seemd to be a given) or just generally felt like he wanted Picards company. Right. Now. the Captain was gone.

Where exactly Picard ended up usually depended on Qs mood. Sometimes it was for an 'adventure' that was clearly set up and arranged by Q and wheres Qs attention was less on the things at hand and mostly on Picard and his reactions. Other times, Q did not even bother to snap other people into existence or bring them to a planet.

That were the times when Picard found himself in the strange, white void. At first Picard had protested, knowing that he was not dead and that he demanded to be brought back to the Enterprise. Q, who was either with him in that void in his human form or just a voice coming from all around him always promised him to do just that but to see this as a 'short break' for both of them.

At least Q .. tried to be accomodating during these times by materializing a place for Picard to sit, to let him have some of his favorite brand of tea but there was always the weird sense of feeling like he was being... held the entire time he was there. It was a rather strange sensation considering that whatever (well the question as to who was doing this was not really unanswered) was utterly inhuman and so it was not really like one would feel when being held by another organic body and it was generally a light hold. Wether it was because Q tried to make it so Picard did not notice or wether Q simply thought Qs human body was fragile was another question Picard did not want answered. Although after this happened a few times, Picard could feel the pressure slightly intensify which he met with a 'stop it, Q'. His clear disapproval was met with amusement but, thankfully, also a disappearance of any sort of pressure on his body. Temporarily.

Another thing the crew did not know was that Qs insistance on having Picard for company at the oddest of times did not stop at the kidnappings. Because sometimes he felt Qs presence wherever he was. On the Bridge, during the missions and even when he was alone in his quarters, although there Q often did not even bother to be invisible.

All of this was at first met with clear protest and telling Q to leave him alone. His rather strong requests and even the ensuing arguments with Q however were not really taken seriously by the entity in question. And so over time Picard began to feel a reluctant acceptance towards his situation. In the end, no harm was done or presented itself.

Although some boundaries Picard still held unto. For once, he refused to let Q actually hold him in his human form. Partly because then Q tended to be quite clingy. His requests at refusing to be held when he was sleeping were, as far as he was aware, still being accepted although it was clear to him that with his continues trys to get Picard to relinquish this boudnary that Q was trying to wear him down enough so he would accept this part of 'innoncent affection' as well.

Picard just really hoped that Q was going to get bored of him and this game he was playing with him. That Q actually laughed when Picard brought up the possibility of him getting bored of 'this' and Picard did however not seem very promising.

[chthonicgodling]

For those qs: Hypnos 2, 14 and 18!

thanks!!! this got craaazy long cause of course it did so. bbbeeehind the cut I go-

[send me a question from here with an OC from here!]

2- Did you design them with any other characters/OCs from their universe in mind? 

the world Known Now as the Elysium’verse began with me messing around one million years ago specifically Maci, Seph, and Meli - then Fenixe and I met, Tory got involved, and SPIRAL. but Hypnos was actually floating around in that weird pre-Elysium era to then transition into a cameo character in the early days! (Actually Fenixe and I used to pass him back and forth before I retained custody fgkfkf). However… Hypnos was made AFTER Thanatos. oops! they were a set pair from the get-go but Hypnos came about cause like, well I couldn’t have one without the other—

so yes, his entiiiire design was born solely from selecting opposite details from his twin brother - the opposite color scheme, softe hair, angel wings. everything about Hypnos - tragically terribly - has revolved around thanatos forever….. even his character design rippp

14- If you had to narrow it down to 2 things that you MUST keep in mind while working with your OC, what would those things be?

I love this question bc as we know the Elysium’verse is RP based and so this is like my constant notes to self while cycling through characters esp when a pile of ALL MINE end up talking to each other. Hypnos, despite his important history with Maci, IS in canon mostly appearing still as side cameo character or often used for brief plot Purposes (can zap anyone to sleep)/ for comic relief (can barely get through a sentence without falling asleep). yet in the back of MY head his two defining core features anytime I’m writing him is:

number one! that Hypnos has spent more time than literally anyone else with Thanatos breathing down his neck. for thousands and thousands of years. since BIRTH. they’re TWINS. even after Than was “stopped” in the Maci Days - he just receded to Hypnos’s side like up until Thanatos was arrested WHEN NEO WAS BORN A MERE SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO, Thanatos was harassing Hypnos! Luckily for him, Hypnos is married to the goddess of anti-anxiety and like. has coped healthily with her help and guidance all things considered but it’s his defining trait for sure. Hypnos is skittish and meek and prone to cowering - this was the way to Survive his brother and because of this it’s his defining and core personality trait. (how is he more functional than Maci is literaly tho lmao)

number two, though- is that Hypnos is NICE. He’s very deliberately purposely nice, again because he grew up with Thanatos, usually literaly at his side while Thanatos bullied his way through the underworld for years and years. And there went Hypnos slinking behind him apologizing quietly and trying to pick up any pieces he could (while being too afraid to confront him - but if he could make up for Than’s intense cruelty and general… asshole personally by counteracting with niceness then!! maybe that helps!!) hypnos’s single act of wrath was secretly cursing Chal with eternal insomnia out of sheer desperation (thanatos kept hurting icy what was he supposed to do!!) and even before he knew Chal was able to be redeemed he felt guilty about it every day. But Hypnos is an opposite balance to Thanatos AND to Maci, his best friend! he’s a foil! HES A FOIL!! Calm and nice with the respective most explosive and the meanest gods spending the most time at his side dfkfkfkf

18- What is the most recent thing you’ve discovered about your OC? 

idk the last time Hypnos appeared or did anything in canon lol I think back when Chal got knocked up with N and was hysterical constantly Hypnos got called to put her to sleep a few times?? )you see this is his primary role lmao). BUUUT

Hypnos’ “newest” developments came during the dionysus adventures last year since deciding that Di was Pasi’s father meant, retroactively, that Hypnos and him surely had to have to interacted. WE ALLLL SAW THAT COMIC

So this led to the revelation that Hypnos is absolutely AND TO THIS DAY completely terrified of his father in law. Does Di realize this!! I think it’s actually infinitely funnier if he has no idea but realistically he probably knows - everyone SHOULD be afraid of him, of course, cheers ;) ok no but really Di reminds him of a more unhinged thanatos which. is. aahhhhh. AAAAAAHHHHH. AAAAAAAA—

the end sorry I wrote soo Much lmao!! if u made it t the end yayay ily

[llycaons]

ep49 (1/3): a shocking numbers of fans watched this scene where jgy cried a lot and fully swallowed his excuses. guys. guys.

oh wwx is annoyed as hell that jgy is dodging responsibility for everything he's done when he, wwx, never once denied his actions and bore the full weight of them and then some

more evidence for my 'jgy actively encourages lxc's crush even though he has no intention of ever reciprocating because it grants him power over him' hc!!!!!

oh jeex lxc looks like shit. I mean I guess he's had a rough couple of days. look at those eyes bags

lxc: I'm not your sworn brother anymore. jgy (realizing he's losing his grip on lxc): NOOOOO 😭😭😭😭😭

okay to be fair I'm sure there is some genuine grief for losing the friendship and camaraderie of the one person who has always vouched for him, saved his life, supported him, etc. lxc was a wonderful friend and a powerful, steadfast ally. wasted on jgy!

you can practically see the forehead vein popping here. I don't think an lxc who fully understands jgy would ever love him. if xiyao is happening in some fic, either jgy is lying or someone's being mischaracterized. not that social factors didn't play a role in the things jgy did, but if you ignore his sadistic and vengeful nature, his willingness to murder innocent people, his unrepentant manipulation and deceptive nature, you're losing a lot of his character. for him to be someone who doesn't hurt others, he'd have to be someone guaranteed safety and respect and a position from birth. but that's so antithetical to his role in canon it wouldn't be the same person anyway

huh. why hasn't jgy tried to harras lwj more? I guess he got what he wanted and beyond lwj sealing himself, there's not much a reaction jgy can provoke

WELL. pretty clear choices here. jgy you could have packed up and fled the country before trying to kill a bunch of people and kidnapping children

lxc: why were you so cruel and murderous??? dude?? jgy: I HAD NO CHOICE BRO 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 you believe me right??? would it help if I did this 😭😭😭😭

compared to wwx's impassioned, rational, fair defenses of himself and the people he was trying to protect, this is so pathetic. wwx never denied what he did, never dodged responsibility. when he said he had no other choices, it was in defense of innocent people at risk of political persecution and mass murder, not in defense of killing people to maintain his own position, he apologized for the death of jxz and suffered his own death in retribution for even the best things he did

YOU COULD HAVE LEFT!!!! or idk, face up to the consequences of your actions

I am so so sorry to bring the marvel 'cinematic' universe into our beautiful liveblog today but this shot just screamed "Tony, you CHOSE to do that' to me

of course he ~nobly~ doesn't deny it ONCE IT'S ALREADY COME TO LIGHT. but he denied up until the breaking point because he's a slippery eel and it's impossible to get him to face any consequences for his actions!!! if I was lxc I would be exasperated to death too

NEAT FRAMING

ohhh this flashback is so skin-crawling. I really love how deathly pale the robes and jgy's face are. the red of the wedding robes and the decorations are so ominous and omnipresent, like something horrifying about to happen, like something inescapable. the music really adds to the eeriness of the scene

it always hurt so bad that qs was so excited for her wedding night. she was happy! she liked jgy a lot and always respected him and his mother! she was a good and kind and innocent person and she had no IDEA god I feel sick I hate him so much

jgy really never spared a single thought to qs's well-being. it was all about him, and his horror, and his choices, and his position, and the injustices enacted on him. self-centered to the very end. of course he didn't think he had a choice. he would never choose against his own self-interest no matter how many people he hurt. god, qin su should have lived. her suicide was such bullshit

oh my god SUCH bullshit. 'uwu but I worked so hard!' okay yeah I get it's a precarious political situation and the issue isn't even your fault but DUDE. you're placing your own power and ambition higher in importance than this woman's entire life. and you MUST have known you would have murdered any child you two had.

pretty sucky situation all around. shocking idea though. YOU COULD HAVE TOLD QIN SU

jgy truly goes through life as if it was a me-or-them battle for survival in every single situation. in his mind, whoever bore the burden here would be the one destroyed, and he never would choose his own destruction. and it does make sense based on his environment and upbringing. god, he's such a good villain. none of this at all excuses his actions ofc, but it's an extremely compelling and powerful motivator for a villain hell-bent on surviving, viewing every situation as battle to the death, and fully buying into being viewed as the victim of every scenario

another contrast to wwx! wwx hates being seen as someone who was hurt. he dislikes being viewed as weak or vulnerable in any way by his enemies (and often his allies), and the way he wins battle and arguments is though either his power or his own honesty. for someone who omits key information and lowkey manipulates many of his loved ones, his straightforward arguments are more often than not the complete truth

in case we needed a reminder of his active sadism at work. who gaf about his dad but those poor women were treated as murder weapons and then mass murdered themselves

oh I do not like this slap scene, and I'm glad lxc is horrified by it as well. the exposure of jgy's crimes has never retroactively justified the classism and oppression he fought against, nor does it grant permission to his social superiors to treat him like they're inherently better than him, such as with this slap

[kcmeo7]

[UNFINISHED] okkkk heres my joestar hc list bc i keep forgetting (complimentary jolyne pic bc she is THE coolest)

VERY LONG POST (more under the cut)

ok i cant fit this in anywhere but i feel like stands use any prns so if u see me switching prns for them thats why

ONTO LE HCS!!

jonathan - honestly i used 2 see him as strictly cishet but do u guys see the bi jonathan vision. i feel like hed be in extreme denial (victorian england) or he would just be super fucking clueless so he would be like Omg i love erina she is so gorgeous and then wonders why it makes his heart flutter when speedwagon glazes him. sometimes i am extra greedy and i see him as a he/him butch lesbian…. no one can escape my lesbo beam mwehehe. i feel like hed also be neurodivergent but idk w what and tbh he doesnt know rither bc he orobably never got it checked (and probably couldnt bc victorian england). but i also dont mind cishet jonathan. he is whatever i feel like at the moment. good for him!! good for him!!

joseph - bisexual. thats not a straight man. he wanted suzie AND caesar and they smooch I DONT GIVE A FAWWWKKK 😞😞😞 hes so transgender to me too like do u see the vision. if tou dont thats ok . because I DO! i also think he has adhd him and caesar r audhd couple … yknow how some nd ppl like weighted stuff like blankets? i feel like joseph likes that but w tight clothes bc theres no other explanation for why hes wearing jeans that tight fitting. he uses hermit purple to piss people off not just for its stand ability like theres no eay he didnt poke suzie qs back w it and then giggled when she turned around and nothing was there. what a LOSER!!

jotaro - oooj ive sat on this one for the longest time. had this cooking for ages. i have it planned specifically i have it roadmapped. hes transgender to me. i feel like when he was a kid he thought he was gay then during pt 4 he identifies as straight then in pt 6 He doesnt gaf he thinks hes too old to ponderbut its something man liking adjacent. Anyways jotaro boypussy canon he told me and star plat is ALSO transgender. he (star) acts like a big dog sometimes he doesnt speak and mostly communicates by gestures and hes suuuper cuddly and sweet and gets excitable very easily. hes very curious and probably just has a little pile of things that are important to him in jotaros room. hes also the biggest snitch ever but also helps w communication bc i think joot is autistic w selective mutism (Just Like Me Fr…) so star will hold up a whiteboard and pen looney toons style when jotaro just Cannot Word. holy ahit you can tell im biased

josuke - gay man. probably talked with jotaro about being confused abt his sexuality (and maybe gender expression too) and jotaro was like [cool voice] Yeah man this atuff is normal Youre young youll figure it out dont be hard on yourself and josuke was like YAYYYY thank you :3 paraphrasing a lot. hes so autism to me as well i think josukes special intwrest would be that stupid little game he plays he knows so much abt it he used crazy diamond to shoplift merch a few times shhhh… but then he went badk and paid after bc he felt bad. stupid idiot. speaking of crazy diamond i feel like its like star where it cant say much other than dorarara ykno… except josuke is very talkative so it prefers to stay quiet and just fucking Stare. i feel like it forgets to emote bc josukes so exaggerated w how he talks so it doesnt rlly need to do much. its not like it minds anyway. usually when him and okuyasu r together you can see crazy d and the hand together bonking heads and holding hands and doing everything yheir users r too PUSSY TO DO!!

giorno - honestly i fw aroace giorno and acespec giorno in general. like thats just him to me … i also think hes part vampire bc of dio ( ik thats not how it works) so hes got little fangies and pointyish ears and he gets sunburnt a lot easier and hamon hurts him. gender wise i feel like he doesnt really care what you see him as. he/they king who sees his gender as whatever the person viewing him thinks… but in a nonbinary way … probably knew being gay and trans was a thing but it was 2001 so.. gold experience is very quiet mostly bc they both had to learn to be and ge materialised knowing this. giorno gives you the aame kind of stares cats do where they observe and their eyes r very wide. gold exp also does this. she is always listening to everything i feel like it can talk but it doesnt do so much. requiem flip flops between “please say something im getting scared” and “sweet man made horrors i can comprehend perfectly!” no inbetween. no one wants to hear what it has to say. please do not turn our universe into a flat plane. if gold exp is around someone giorno fws like bucci gang itll just sit behind them and watch, occasionally swatting at their clothes or shoes like a cat.

jolyne - LOOOOVE MY BABYGIRL. shes either bisexual w a fem lean, pan or lesbian IDGAFFF. cis woman and shes dating ermes. her hair buns move like animal ears they stick up when shesninterested they droop when shes sad they fluff when shes scared or angry. just as autistic as her father except she actually has some social skills meanwhile jotaro astands like the moyai emoji. very very talkative her special interest is probably fashion but also sumn fun like a niche sport. she yaps and yaps and yaps and sometimes she gets so excited she might unravel herself ooops … speaking of string stone free doesnt really present as her body much, choosing to just be blue strings like jokyne wants. she can talk, just doesnt unless its to jolyne and even still she prefers just sayijgnora. if you put her joot and josuke in a room together their atands will sit in a corner and just make noises at each other hur you bet the stand gossip goes crazy .. shes such a girls girl i genuienky loge her like she gives off girl yoo think is really evil and mean at first but turns out shes so nice and its like duh she was never mean just assertive

ill do the rest later im sleeby goodbugnth ill edit tkmorrow

[juuheizou]

A Defense for Mutsurie (Meta-ish I Think?? Maybe??)

Okay I have always hated and still hate this pairing (actually I forget it exists until something on my dash reminds me that they are a fan-favorite pair and only then does my apathy boil over into hatred, but same difference), so let’s get that out of the way now before someone clicks the “read more” expecting something positive bc I have been steeping this hatred for at least four years now and this is how I feel:

TL;DR every single panel I photographed for this post and then some could just as easily be read as “they don’t even like each other as people and have no romantic interest in each other wth" and that is in fact how I personally read it, but if someone really wanted to push the romance angle, they could conceivably move each other’s character development along through a deeply unhealthy romantic relationship and subsequent breakup.

CW: mentions of abuse, mentions of bullying, unhealthy relationships, long post, like an absurdly long post jesus christ

Disclaimer: I kinda ignore the entire second half of the series for so many reasons that would really need their own post to get into, though ultimately my own happiness and ability to enjoy this manga, so I am writing this with pre-Rushima characterization in mind, but it has been a fan-favorite ship since all the way back in the Auction arc, so we good.

Let’s start with some Abuse 101. Survivors of abuse (bullying is a form of abuse, even ignoring the second half or so of the series) often get caught in a mean cycle of leaning towards whatever is familiar and end up repeating what happened to them with different faces. Low self-worth plays a part in that cycle, and Mutsuki does indeed have low self-worth.

That in mind, I can see Mutsuki perhaps gravitating to Urie because men with power over him who hurt/mistreat others (thought it was worth getting specific, since his anxieties toward men imply that something happened even before the Rushima debacle, but simply being made to feel small and worthless works too, if we are just acknowledging the bullying at the Academy) are what’s familiar, what he has internalized he must be worth, and that is what Urie, internal dialogue and hidden feelings aside, is.

Urie is not a nice person. This isn’t an attack on him or on anyone who thinks he is interesting as a character. It’s just a key part of that character. One example of oh so many, nice people do not threaten to kill their teammate to keep them at a distance (shown below, context seemed needed, so see Ch.1 for the whole scene if you don’t want to take my word for it). As a natural consequence, no one is particularly friendly towards him either. He is alone because he is mean.

Mutsuki, on the other hand, was not a bully but a victim of bullying. No matter what characterization you acknowledge, he didn’t do anything to be bullied at the Academy. That’s how bullying works. Bullies and apologists will justify it, but it is never really about the victim or the victim’s fault: it is always on the bully. He is alone because other people are mean. 

Arguably, he even makes an interesting foil to Urie because they have that isolation in common and it reflects in both their self-esteem, but only Urie is unkind while Mutsuki is kind to the point of putting himself in danger to help others.

The reason this matters is Mutsuki sympathizes with Urie and treats their experiences with being alone like the same thing when he comforts him during the Auction, though, as outlined above, they are not.

I am not saying this is the same thing as Stockholm Syndrome or that being a prick is the same thing as being abusive, but Mutsuki’s concern for Urie is frankly closer to that kind of dynamic than any kind of attraction or ‘understanding him’ or whatever the shippers call it. 

Given their backgrounds and the characterization leading up to that moment, it has always rubbed me the wrong way that the fandom, for the most part, did not read it that way and decided “new favorite ship” rather than “that’s fucked up”. 

Still not calling Urie abusive (to quote another frustrating series I can’t seem to fall out of, it’s not a crime to be an asshole), but the real dynamic v. what the fans got out of it does, to a degree, remind me of Harley Quinn and the Joker. Canon showed something tragic. Fans twisted it into something romantic.

So we’ve justified Mutsuki pursuing Urie. Why would Urie reciprocate when he has done nothing but look down on Mutsuki this whole time, let alone actually been nice to him? 

And has absolutely no qualms putting him in danger and risking his (Mutsuki’s) life for his own gain?

This is where we get hypothetical, considering they did not actually pursue each other and get together, but here’s what makes the most sense in my head: Mutsuki is kind to him no matter how unkind he is back. He equates their struggles and would probably see putting a limit on his sympathy as putting Urie through what he went through. 

Urie could exploit that, if deep down, he hates being alone. He has exploited what he knew were vulnerabilities with both Shirazu

And Yonebayashi

So before anyone tries to accuse me of being unfair to Urie, he has no problem manipulating people to achieve his end. In fact, it is a reasonable interpretation that he did manipulate Mutsuki and his compassion/desire to protect others, in the part of the Auction where he is assigned to get an injured Mutsuki to safety and instead takes a detour to confront a large group of ghouls.

It would not be the most out of character thing of him to encourage Mutsuki’s warped perception so that he can keep being a misanthropic prick, but he doesn’t have to be one alone. Mutsuki would be a means to circumvent the natural consequences (isolation) of his actions (having the personality of a venomous sea urchin and, you know, taking deliberate measures to isolate himself).

The only redeeming side to this toxic sham of a relationship is when it ends, when Mutsuki breaks that mean cycle his past conditions him to get caught in and leaves. He is done being pushed around and looked down upon and Urie is one person too many to take that shit from. No one gets to make him feel like Urie made him feel again. He learns to stand up for himself and comes out of it stronger. 

In fact, we see him stronger and carrying himself with more confidence for the brief moment between him leaving the Quinx and everything going to shit (for reasons outside the Quinx or the two of them, btw) on Rushima. 

Urie needs consequences. Especially being so self-centered, his flaws need to betray him, affect him negatively. Losing the last person left who will put up with his shit would accomplish that. If even Mutsuki can’t take it, he has to question whether his isolation is his own fault. He has to decide whether he wants to keep his cutthroat attitude or start acting like he cares about people other than himself and maybe not be so alone. He learns to be decent (maybe even *gasp* nice) to people and comes out of it kinder. 

Again, a version of that does happen with them working separate in canon. He is not necessarily shown to be kinder, but he is at least better at working with a team, considering he is leading the Qs and they aren’t falling apart at the seams.

Not implying that correlation equals causation in either of these last two points, but I figured I would supply as much canon support as I can, just to back up the idea that the theoretical character development I have in mind would be plausible.

I alluded to Harley Quinn and the Joker in terms of how the fans saw something tragic and twisted it into something romantic in that scene during the Auction, but there is another reason I picked that specific reference. I read a post once that ended with “The Joker is not Harley’s love interest. He is her origin story”. I liked that, and I think, to a less extreme point, it applies to this ship too. They would be terrible for each other as love interests, but they might have had some interesting potential as each other’s origin stories*. 

*If you’re into using romantic drama for character development, of course. Personally, romance is my absolute least favorite plot/character device, but I have this little thing called integrity and thought it was most fair to at least acknowledge that potential.

[darqx]

Too late for a prayer

❗️For commonly asked qs please see my BTD FAQ

Also here’s one i prepared earlier lol

https://darqx.tumblr.com/post/658326878706450432/a-good-look

-squints- anon is that you again cos the those asks are just so similar :d

Sometime in late October to mid November i havent decided a date lol

Thank you! And to answer your question no, no they are not XD The closest they get to related in BP is that both their species belong to the same overarching species of Demon. I think that since I draw them smiling a lot they can have similar facial expressions with all that sharp teeth, esp if you don’t see Rire’s facial hair he looks a bit younger |D;

No because for starters he’s not my charac so that would be stealing

Well they are highly intelligent animals and there are less flattering things one could be compared to lol

Rire has a large number of acquaintances, a small amount of whom have a more mutually beneficial relationship with him and so thus could be considered more like friends lol. He doesn’t have any pets though. Yet.

Personally he doesn’t do any (no time, he has... other hobbies) but he does appreciate other peoples’ work (and there are a few like, 18th century paintings of Rire out there haha)

Yes but he’d have to get really close first to check. A minor’s soul doesnt smell quite ripe.

Souls :d

Alternatively some kind of meat/protein heavy dish from the Nether that he can sink his teeth into and tear satisfyingly.

If by “get vocal” you mean lowly growl sweet dirty talk or suggestions into an ear then yes, that does sometimes happen.

Both. First an internal

followed quickly by hm interesting. XD

Here’s one i prepared earlier:

https://darqx.tumblr.com/post/621909732242882560/ok-but-fenrire-and-normal-cain-or-vis-versa

And also, technically the opposite in this answer dump:

https://darqx.tumblr.com/post/661047252551434240/humans-are-kinder-surprises

I have no idea how EP’s lore worked lol  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Hypothetically speaking if normal lycanthropy is considered passed more from human to human then it could be considered a human “disease” in which case it probably wouldn’t affect Rire at all (or if it did, then his immune system would burn through the virus pretty quickly). If for some inexplicable reason it did affect him then idk i think he’d keep his colour scheme so a large fluffy black wolf with yellow eyes?

If i am being very canonical, i would actually have to say i dont know when the time period for my project is set in since its a bit of a mash with diff elements taken from diff periods lol. But hypothetically (or BTD verse wise) if he’s been through that time period then yes he probably would have at least seen them :d He wouldnt have any real sort of opinion on them per say, other than perhaps their taste in clothing etc was...interesting.

Hm ~

[benafee]

Hi benafee! Here’s a few qs for ✨variety✨

If you had to pick a side character in one of your fics to write an entire long fic about, who would you pick? What would that fic look like?

What is your writing process like? How much do you prep/outline beforehand? Who are your style inspirations?

In Remaking the World, how is Sarah doing? Is she spiraling as badly as David, and does she know how badly or why he’s having a bad time? Does she know that he’s in love with Jack? Also I JUST noticed that this last chapter doesn’t have a word in the title- am I reading too much into it, or is that because David has lost so much control and can’t pin anything down right now?

Oh these are good.

First though, I'm just going to quickly respond to your answer about the most memorable scenes thing here

the scene describing Jack’s mom from his picture. Idk why it stuck so much with me, but I think about it all the time. It’s an imagined person from an imagined picture and neither of them knew her, but not even close to imaginary at all at the same time. I feel like I haven’t read an “I love you” like that before

I mean thank you so much. This was one of the first scenes I'd planned out for this story and I'm very happy the emotional weight I attached to this moment came through to you.

However my gratitude is somewhat tempered by indignity at the fact that I now must admit that I have spent an inordinate amount of time planning out a Kloppman-centric pre-canon (and pre-remaking the world) fic. I am writing it almost entirely for the sake of one (1) scene but isn't that always the case? Anyways, here's the rough summary:

All things considered, Bram knows he ought to be content with his lot in life. 

But Sister Martha keeps “checking in” and Mrs. Oliver’s on the warpath and Otto wants to introduce Bram to his sister and Danny won’t tell him what’s wrong and Nick and Louis aren’t being careful and Charlie keeps asking hard questions and and Patrick has it out for the new kid and Race keeps scamming Albert in the dice games they shouldn’t be playing in the first place and Jack’s up to something.

Or: the longest six months of Bram Kloppman’s life. 

Should be fun!

My writing process is, in a word, involved. I do indeed work off a plan. Many plans. For long fics (all my fics) I like to develop a few outlines - one full outline of the work, separate outlines for each chapter which I will work into, a document for developing/tracking themes, recurring motifs, and other important elements in the story, a few documents about important background information and research, and then another document where I'll jot down lines, elements, and scenes that I'd like to include and have yet to find a place for. From there I'll either proceed to slowly write into the chapter outlines based on my whims or I'll let it percolate in the back of my head for months or even years, often feeling incredibly guilty about my lack of progress, only to have it come together when I least expect it. I'm learning to accept the latter as part of my process and trying to release the guilt aspect. Most of my fics are still largely a result of process rather than planning, and sometimes a not small amount of dumb luck - I'm still tickled that the Latin root words of one of my recurring motifs built into a full transitional section which included a reasonably good metaphor about David's complicated feelings towards his schooling. You can't plan that shit. Well you probably could but I sure didn't.

As far as inspiration... I'm not sure. I'd say my writing is pretty typical for fiction writing. It's likely that there are people that unconsciously influence my writing. I reread The History of Love by Nicole Krauss a while ago and noticed that she also has a habit of slipping deeply sad lines into the middle of her narration like they're innocuous sentences. I've also taken a lot of inspiration from poetry, but that's more contributed to an awareness of form and approach than any directly trackable path of influence.

As for Sarah... I mean she's already had two pretty major breakdowns during this fic so she's not doing great. As far as how much she knows... there's definitely more revealed over the course of the fic so I don't want to get too specific here. She definitely knows something is wrong and she definitely does not know the full story, and, combined, this will lead to problems.

And finally, you really should have more faith in your interpretive abilities ;)

[drwcn]

Not to bring up the distasteful teenager memory of Twilight LMAO, but yall remember that part of the story where it is revealed after Rosalie turns into a vampire she goes and devours every single one of the men who r*ped her.

Fierce Corpse!Qin Su coming for Jin Guangshan’s life.

JIGGY was always looking for ways to make a fierce corpse wasn’t he? Well consider this.

Madam Qin confronts JGY, but it was already too late. Qin Su was already pregnant. JGY, being the dumbest smart person, realized he has fucked up, but what to do? It’s not like he can tell Madam Qin he knocked up his own sister accidentally. Unknowing of this, Madam Qin then went to Qin Su to tell her the truth. Surely even if that degenerate won’t stop this marriage, once Qin Su finds out they are related, she wouldn’t go through with it.

Well, little did Madam Qin expect, once Qin Su finds out, she’s so overcome with disgust she takes her own life (canon compliant, I think? idk what that episode was about to be honest. I always assumed Jiggy drugged her to keep her quiet, but Qin Su was the one to take her own life. Jin Rusong is at best a ball of cells at this stage and abortion is a staple trope of cdrama don’t @ me. I take no criticisms.)

Well shit, now Qin Su is half a step away from death. Jiggy discovers this first, and is like O.O oh feck, but also... opportunity????  He recruits evil gremlin extraordinaire Xue Yang, and beginner’s luck takes them to a successful resurrection.

*cue Mary Shelly shaking her head from beyond the grave or... in the future....technically.*

Qin Su is rightfully like wtf JGY, but Jiggy is like aight sis i know you’re mad, but hey now that everyone knows what’s the deal here, I think we have a common enemy: Jin Guangslut. Should we kill him or should we kill him?

Xue Yang: yo so .... you still gonna get married or what?

Qin Su: if you even think about getting married i swear to god -

JGY: ....okay, how about “fake” marry. Once dear old Dad is dead, we can...idk have an amicable separation. I can even set you up on a date with a guy I know in the fierce corpse community. His sister is still in my basement come to think of it -

QS: what

JGY: what

QS: you are a fucking nutjob, Jiggy, you know that? I can’t believe I was attracted to you.

JGY: first of all that’s hurtful, but... hey at least you didn’t insult my mother.

QS: why would i? our mothers are innocent. *deep sigh* okay fine, how should we kill JGS, I vote for castration. Also *points to the black veins on her paste-y complexion* this is gonna be a problem.

XY: *quirk an eye brow* realllly starting to see the family resemblance now. Don’t worry I got make up to cover that up. Also gotta find you some blush, so you don’t look so ... undead.

~

JGY “so we get prostitutes -”

QS “No. Jiggy, I’m sensing some internalized classism. Let’s just sic Xue Yang on him and be done with it.”

JGY “....you were less bossy before.”

QS “I was also less dead before. Also, Xue Yang doesn’t mind, do you dear?”

XY *eating the candied pastries QS got him* “Nah, not at all, jiejie. I can wear a dress and get dolled up if you want, but I want silk and the dress needs to be tailored. Bespoke. *points to his plate* These are great. Do you have more?”

JGY: *facepalm* what have done.

QS: created a fierce corpse you can’t control. Karma’s a bitch, isn’t it brother?

~

QS “I feel bad for Chifeng-zun. If I had to sit and watch you and Lan Xichen make eyes at each other over the guqin day in and day out....”

JGY “Oi, you’re not even my real wife.”

QS “Doesn’t mean I can’t nag you. Also, you have an issue, you know. You can’t just murder your way to the top.”

JGY “I wasn’t -”

QS “Save it. If you give Xue Yang enough candy, he’ll tell you anything.”

JGY “NMJ is a problem. He disrespects -”

QS “You think maybe the reason he thinks you’re a untrustworthy little shit is because you are...an untrustworthy little shit? Also he’s always violent and aggressive towards you...yeah ‘cause you’ve been playing Terrible Temper Tango on repeat for weeks.”

JGY “.....................” *well sis does have a point, maybe i should re-evaluate my strategy “Then what do you suggest I do?”

QS:  I believe Xue Yang calls it “when it doubt, fuck it out.” 

JGY: ...............................you two need to stop hanging out together. 

~

Jin Guangyao and Qin Su spend many nights in the secret chamber plotting together. Apparently the Jin crazy can both be inherited and developed. Qin Su decides her second life is rather nice, and having power is nice too, but she’d rather have some friends. 

*Jiggy and Qin Su’s Ten Step Plan to Un-Fuck the Cultivation World*

Aka Jiggy’s illegal but necessary emergency U-Turn. 

Step 1: Start playing some nice music ffs, and maybe when NMJ is in a better mood, the venerated Triad can be the venerated Triad. ;) 

Step 2: start treating MXY better. He could be useful as a loyal brother. 

Step 3:  Sic him on Nie Huaisang. They seem like they could do well together. Also, the easiest way to get through to NMJ is through his little brother.  

Step 4:  Make Jin Guangshan disappear.

Step 5: Speaking of little brothers, they’re gonna have to eventually deal with Lan Wangji. Even Qin Su’s 78 year old grandma with cataract can see he’s just a liiiiittle hung up on Wei Wuxian, who is unfortunately....dead. 

”How do you suppose we fix this particular problem?” 

”Isn’t there some cultivator prisoner found guilty punishable by death in your single minded cleansing of your political enemies?” 

"Of course. Go on I’m listening, mei-mei.” 

”So while you were off being shady, I did some research. There is a spell. I think a potential trade off could be made if we bargain right. Their soul, which was forfeit anyway, in exchange for a lifetime of protection and financial stability for their families.” 

“>:) dear sister, where have you been all my life I’ll never know.” 

Qin Sun, “Just make sure they’re not too hard on the eye. Lan Wangji doesn’t seem to be the shallow type but one never knows.” 

Step 5: Jiang Wanyin needs an emotional laxative like... last year. Look into resurrecting Jiang Yanli. Once she’s alive, all that Yunmeng Bullshit will resolve, and you will also have a Lotus Pier forever grateful for Jin Guangyao and Qin Su’s kindness. If that doesn’t work...idk get Jiang Wanyin a dog. 

“Okay, hooow are you going to get a woman to give up her soul to -”

“Can we fierce corpse her? Wei Wuxian had a bunch of undead ladies hanging around right?” 

“........worth looking into.” 

Step 6:  Jin Zixuan. Yikes -

JGY “I didn’t kill Jin Zixuan. Wei Wuxian did.” (note: CQL washed WWX of any responsibility for the deaths of others by making it so that the Song of Turmoil caused him to lose control. This, in fact, is not what is written in book canon. WWX did lose control by himself without external influence. I can cherry pick the plot points I want to keep.) 

QS “..........but you sent him to his death.” 

JGY “..........”

QS *Deep sigh* “Who can we throw under the bus this time for Jin Zixuan’s death, Jigs? Someone that won’t be missed...got it. Su She.” 

JGY “He’s loyal to me, he’s an ally -” 

QS “Listen here, once you resurrect Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian, you will have the eternal gratitude of Yunmeng Jiang and Gusu Lan. Who gives a shit about Su Minshan that simpering turd.” 

JGY: True. *he’s understood by now that he could get rid of those who would talk shit, belittle, and disrespect him...but he could always do more with a couple of important influential people who would spread words of his goodness. Stubborn righteous cultivators like the Jiangs, Nies and Lans.* “Also Jin Zixuan’ll be an undead, not able to inherit. We’re safe.” 

QS: “Exactly.” 

Xue Yang: eating candy......... *eye roll* 

Step 7: Because Step 6 didn’t work out, forget about Jin Zixuan. 

JGY: “you know... maybe Jin Zixuan moved on.” 

QS: “Would explain why we couldn’t call his soul back the way we called back Jiang-gu’niang.” Qin Su glances back at Jiang Yanli’s soul-infused clay body in the process of being reanimated (lifted this idea straight from Inuyasha - ahem- kikyo.) “It’s probably better this way. I don’t like the thought of sharing the control of Lanling Jin with more people.” 

JGY:  “Ah, blood of my blood you are indeed.”

Step 8:  Reveal Jin Guangshan’s evil deeds. Once they kill Dear Ol’ Dad, they can just blame EVERYTHING on him and have him be the disgrace of the entire cultivation world, and them the unfortunate children left to do his bidding and trying the best they could to salvage what they can from his trail of ruins.

Step 9: Reunite Wen Ning and Wen Qing. Lie. Blame it all on Jin Guangshan who is too dead to argue in his own defense. If Jiang Wanyin finds out about Wen Qing...well, information gets around. 

JGY “So about that Date.” 

Qin Su: “Yes I distinctively remember you promising me eligible young men of the Fierce Corpse Community.” 

JGY: >:) I’m here to make good on my words. 

Step 10: Reap the benefits of a world restored.