#idk how to tag someone elses oc lmao

[lunasbians]

Second drawing I didn't post here – Milan and Ayzee, the Skara/Viney and Lumity fankids by @/moringmark! Not tagging because I already tagged him in it on Insta a few months ago

[cuteniaarts]

Completely outside of my usual drawing niche, but yesterday I was talking to my sister and she showed me an old drawing I made for her in 2021 that I had deleted and completely forgot about. There was a period of time when my sister was absolutely OBSESSED with Wings of Fire, so I drew a humanisation (I can barely draw humans, man, I would actually combust if asked to draw a dragon) of a pre-canon younger version of one of her favourite characters, Peril, who I also have a soft spot for because, you guessed it, I found a way to link her to my main obsession :’) And when I saw that old piece, I just knew I had to redraw it

+ The original, low quality bc I screenshotted my sister filming her tablet screen over video call, under the cut to save myself some embarrassment 😅

[taken-my-name]

I have honestly had a shitty day, but y'all little gay people in my phone kept it bearable. I have barely been here for a day, and i already love it here. I have never expected to see actually active parts of the Undertale fandom, yet i have literally came here a few hours after a tumblr holiday related to it would've ended in my timezone. If anyone sees this, please know im just too scared to hop into someone's DMs and just start talking, but i need more friends from this fandom as most of my current friends lost interest long ago so please by all means DO flood my dms. I have my own AU (made out of mostly OCs). We can talk about other AUs, canon stuff, OCs, roleplay, literally anything. I just need friends.

Edits: spelling.

[akkivee]

hello vee.

@/twogallonhats on twitter made this iceberg, and now i am subjecting you to this. Explain to the best of your knowledge, good luck.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh okay sure

idk why rhyme anima is listed tbh it’s just a zany anime version of hypmic but that very well may be the reason lol like it gave us a man by the name of tom whisper weathercock lol

there’s always a prolific push for your fav to win the drb lol. iirc during the championship round in the 1st drb there was a fan?? fans??? who gave money to some guy with a following to post a video of him asking everyone to vote for mtc lol. jp fans for the second got together and made eng/kor/ch instructions on how to vote in the vr battles it’s a time can’t wait for that to kick off next year 😬

arb is technically not canon and therefore ooc lol

idk what hypmic tictok sounds mean. i can tell you of a few times hypmic was trending on tiktok tho lol

idk if they were even a soundcloud rapper, but some soundcloud rapper fell in love with hypmic and decided to make ichiro his oc/persona and put himself on a team with jyushi and samatoki and they were california division lol

back in 2018???? hypmic posted a christmas video except it was just champagne gold and base hifumi.png in a santa hat slid across the screen truly graphic design is hypmic’s passion lol

i mean there was a brief time there were rp accounts on twt so ig that’s what it

kimura loves black people so much and wants to be black so bad he felt the need to bl@ckface for one of his album drops. fandom asked he take down the posts, he didn’t, fans called him out on it, he blocked them

around the time when there was rumblings that gbr was exiting uhhhhh the eu i think, a dice cosplayer had a video of themselves popping mentos in a coke bottle go viral. someone in british politics used it as a metaphor for whatever stance they had on brexit lol

lol i’m lumping hypstage and hypnama together since i don’t think there’s a real reason they’re listed other than occasionally being points of discussion

hifumi was the original tbh creature

asmr tubers vibe with hypmic characters being their yandere bfs

idk if it’s more than memeing on hitoya but that hitoya card in the pic was clowned on so hard LOL

i couldn’t tell you a specific instance of it but hypmic jank includes frequent misspellings lol

lol i also don’t know if there’s actual controversy behind oridivis besides them getting thanos snapped

*rio voice* curry friday and the mtc seiyuu used to celebrate it lol

there was a collab with some instant curry company (probably called curry meshi lol) and they had the leaders rap a song for it. the songs’ are fun and what’s even funnier is that the song has the leaders sharing this curry and kuukou technically didn’t eat the curry bc it was all gone by the time the cup reached him (and jakurai ate most of it LOL)

i have no fcking clue what weenor busujima is lol

the fact hyprice is a thing is a damn good reason to be here lol. ogs know a hypmic series producer made the joke in 2018 during a hypnama that spawned the concept years later lmao

there was a typo on kuukou’s introductory bio that said he was 68cm LOL

akuma no hana is indeed a song about sex idk what else to tell ya lol

throwback to the hypmic bathtubs they had a live for crazy ass hypmic merch moments lol

the hangout streams are located in this building called mixalive. instead tagging that building’s twt for one of their events, hypnosis flava iirc, they mistakenly tagged a porn twt lol

there was an art trend a few years ago where artists drew their bde faves (and even real people got in on the trend) balancing a shampoo bottle on their big 🍆. ichiro was unfortunately the face of the trend

stage hitoya went viral for that pic used in the iceberg and i had to see randos calling him a two face ass character ONLY HYPMICS ARE ALLOWED TO BULLY HITOYA DAMN YOU

the seiyuu are always getting up to shit backstage lmao tradition is ishiya-san and amasaki-san prowling up on the mtc seiyuu menacingly lmao

if there’s drama or anything of relevance outside of yes stream discords exist, ion know about it lol

a few songs are inspired by/interpolate from other songs. this a normal thing in the music industry (let’s get physical by olivia newton john and physical by dua lipa comes to mind) but hypmic caught a lot of flack for ‘stealing’ from black artists. shinogi dead pools is kendrick lamar’s drank swimming pools bar for bar lol but again, it’s very normal lol the whole kendrick vs drake rap battle that happened this year literally was them using each other’s sound to diss them

some european(?) indie film had an actor wearing ichiro’s jacket

there was a brief trend in jp where they made snow sculptures of their characters as means of attractions and hypmic jumped in on it. it produced the ugliest kuukou known to man he was so unflatteringly scrunckly i loved him LOL

????? bat seiyuu family???? i’m sure what i have in mind is not what they have in mind lol but i mean yeah it’s a running joke that the bat seiyuu consider each other family lol shoutout to sakakihara-san randomly calling hayama-san his ‘onii-chan’ and both hayama-san and sakakihara-san bullying tf outta takeuchi-san by calling him ‘papa’ lol

ariana grande is based about samatoki and there’s proof lol

hypmic vs crsm rap battle was REAL and fumiya wanted to EAT THEM

kamio-san has taken to slapping kuroda-san’s ass and kuroda-san has taken to trying to murder him for it 😌

quite recently lol mtr’s album art was leaked ahead of the hangout stream in a post meant to advertise the fan meeting lol

british dice was a theory i didn’t pay attention to bc i kinda thought just the concept was dumb *wheeze* i think it had something to do with a mistranslation about dice’s father

the rest of that tier i have no fcking clue about lol

in a camera transition during the 9th live, someone’s desktop background was on screen instead of the yknow, livestreaming concert lmao

they got some ddb members to make choreography to move your body til you die!!! i tried i didn’t think it was too bad but the pace of the dance needed to be slowed down eventually lol

if this isn’t poking fun at sensei saying men should automatically know how to rap idk what that is lol

if there’s a trip the mtc seiyuu have taken that stands out from the others, i don’t know about it lol

the hypmic cafe that’s going on rn have these stickers??? standees??? for sale and someone stole all of samatoki’s LOL

[aurorangen]

OC Deep Dive Questionnaire Tag

Thank you for tagging me @matchalovertrait @mdshh @duusheen (and anyone else I might have missed, I'm so late to answer!) I'm doing it for Vincent, he's just interesting to talk about! It's a long one:

What uncommon/common fear do they have? Vincent has a fear of crowded places, how people could be watching or spying on him. What do they want? Why are they doing this? Who is behind it? Anyone could be doing it, but he knows it's from his past (unless something new has developed). Remember he has been spied on before, by someone from Strangerville. Now he doesn't know and we don't know if his Dad's disappearance and Strangerville are all linked, but you can probably guess. Also a fear of going into the operating room and surgery.

Do they have any pet peeves? When people are late. He hates it.

What are 3 items you can find in their bedroom? His briefcase, his favourite cologne, iPad

What do they notice first in a person? Facial expressions, eye contact and body language: how they compose themselves.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how high is their pain tolerance? He has high pain tolerance physically/emotionally so 8.

Do they go into fight or flight mode when under pressure? In the past, it would be flight. But now that he is older it's always fight. In court, he can be under a lot of pressure, but he is always prepared to fight and win!

Do they come from a big family/are they a family person? From his mum's side, he has a big extended family, from Evergreen Harbour and Henford on Bagley! Growing up he has always wanted siblings. He loves having Isaac as a brother and they spend so much time together now! But his childhood was so lonely at home, while his mum was working and his dad always MIA before his disappearance. Vincent always went over to Billy's house to hang out with Charlie! Billy and Josh have always been his father figures, unlike his own. Now with kids, he'll do the best he can to provide a childhood full of love!

What animal represents them best? Vincent is obviously a lion and Isaac is an eagle. You know in an ecosystem there are food chains where predators catch prey. Well, they are Kingsleys, so they're the top of the "hierarchy". Think of it like they're going into enemy territory (investigating their dad or other cases) and they are bringing them down. But their dad is also a Kingsley...

What is a smell that they dislike? Any sort of laboratory setting chemical smell idk...I'm not saying anymore

Have they broken any bones? Nope

How would a stranger likely describe them? Secretive first. But that goes away to easy-going, amicable, reliable

Are they a night owl or a morning bird? Both actually

What is a flavor they hate and a flavor they love? Hmm Vincent is a bit of a foodie and appreciates good food, he likes a lot of stuff really. Something he hates? Mint ice cream lol

Do they have any hobbies? Cooking (I've not explored it though)

Boom, surprise birthday party! How do they react to surprises? He's all good with surprise birthday parties! Vincent would be full of gratitude to the people who took the time and effort to arrange it. He'll make sure everyone enjoys their time and divert himself from being the centre of attention haha

Do they like to wear jewelry? Ooh he likes fancy watches

Do they have neat or messy handwriting? Surprisingly quite messy. He likes typing stuff lmao

What are two emotions they feel the most? Pride, determination

Do they have a favorite fabric? As long as it's comfortable

What kind of accent do they have? British accent duh

[pointyfruit]

My birthday is on the 15th! 🎂💕

Hi, I'm Pointyfruit! Or Pointy! Oor Fruit! (They/Them)

I mainly reblog silly stuff and art! I also draw stuff sometimes. A lot of stuff overall. This is a very active, multifandom account.

Free Palestine 🍉

Aid

--------------------‐‐--------------------------------------------

Been bouncing around with my sona. This is the go-to reference if you want to draw me very pretty or shred me in a blender idk

Interests

After 7 years of unsupervised internet access, I've picked up a ton of interests! (Some of them are still being unpacked.../j)

Fandoms (roughly most to least active):

•DCA fandom

•Cult of the Lamb

•FNAF

•TSBS-> tsams -> tlaes -> teaps

•The Amazing Digital Circus -> tadc aus

Other stuff I like that I'm not kneck deep in its fandom for:

•Poppy playtime -> smiling critters

•Little Nightmares

•Undertale -> sans aus

•Minecraft

•Gravity Falls

•Murder Drones

•Mouthwashing

•Art in general

Warning: I reblog and make stuff with bright colors and eye strain often. I sometimes forget to tag it.

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Boundaries

We all got them and they are super important. I don't want to start off on the wrong foot, so let's get a few things clear.

Do not repost anything I make without my permission.

Do not upload any of my art or writings to ai

Do not make sexual comments about me or my art

Do not make suggestive comments about me or my art (this rule is slightly bendable for my art, but only if it's warranted and light.)

If you message me asking to reblog your stuff, there is a high chance you will be blocked.

Refrain from calling me derogatory names. Even jokingly: Bitch, bastard, hoe, ect.

Be respectful. Bigotry of any kind will get you blocked.

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Miscellaneous

My Tags

Pointy posts: Posts I make about whatever-have-you. Not reblogs.

Late night posts: Stuff I post super late at night which means I'm proobbably not in the right mind. Prone to be deleted after.

Pointy art: art of my ocs or anything non fandom

Pointyfanart: art of someone else's characters/stuff

Pointy doodles: art I don't deem worthy of the tags above. Messy/unfinished/silly stuff

Lmao this made me smile: laugh haha funny feel good tag

Mutuals/mutual: Usually when something of note happens in an interaction between me and a mutual... or to simply flex that the person I'm reblogging from is a mutual of mine.

Fun/game: Fun stuff I'd encourage people to join in. Usually a reblog game.

Q&A

Q: What app do you use to draw?

A: Ibispaintx all my life

Q: What device do you use to draw?

A: Phone and fingers babeeyyy

Q: How tall are you?

A: I'm 5'6

Q: Can I use your art as a pfp?

A: Yes, just credit me in your bio

Q: Who's your favorite FNAF character?

A: Aside from the blaringly obvious answer the dca, I like Bonnie, Ft.Freddy+BonBon, and Glamrock Freddy! I appreciate more, but I can't think of of them off the top of my head.

[chryblossomjjk]

bts fic recommendations | 01.17.23

→ hi friends! this is a little segment i do every tuesday (reviewsday get it, aren’t i funny, pls tell me how funny i am) where i read and review two-three fics. as a content creator, i know how big of a role other creators play in your growth, therefore, i want to do my part in making sure everyone gets the recognition they deserve! so with that being said, please check out the amazing fics listed below. make sure to like, reblog, and leave feedback! ♡ #reviewsday #kikirecs

motor head - @jeonjcngkook (jjk x reader | fwb, angst, smut, pwp)

summary: jungkook doesn’t like seeing someone else have your attention, so he decides he’s gonna do something about it.

feel like ive been here since the conception of this majesty?? like i was here for the horny discord chats n edits about motorcycle jk, therefore, it's only fair that i can gatekeeper him... mine. ALSO NOT U STARTING IT OFF W GETTING SANDWICHED BETWEEN MY BIAS N BIAS WRECKER?? THE DISRESPECT OF IT ALL!!!

^the feminism leaving my body when sav writes about jk manhandling oc n having her use his bike as a vibrator

^^me regaining the feminism when she whips a whole tape measure at him theme shits is HEAVY LMAO

also like... your brain w this fucking smut bro?!?! it's literally one of the hottest smuts ive read in a v v v long fucking time?? THE JUMPER CABLE HANDCUFFS LIKE GTFO??? SHAKESPEAREAN OF SMUT REALLY!! and i completely get where oc is coming from bc some of the things he said had me side eyeing like... repressed feelings maybe? but then is he just super possessive and his anger/hurt came from ego n not emotions... genuinely love when the characters are hard to read like thats everything. n she better fuck taehyung >:( BUT RUN DONT WALK TO READ THIS UGH IT WAS SO GOOD BBY LIKE NO WONDER SHE WAS DOING ROUNDS IN THE TAGS!!!!!!!

tales of broken hearts - @taegularities (kth x reader | ex2l, childhood sweethearts, fluff, angst, smut)

summary: when a work trip brings you back home, you don't expect for anyone to await your return or remember you. but despite the time apart, taehyung still does - still looks at you the same way he used to five winters ago.

rid, im not joking when i say this is everything i want in a fanfic. like ex2l always gets me, and you legit mastered it with this one. something about right person wrong time just does it for me. that opening line was so simple but so so so beautiful:

"Love doesn't bloom during frigid winters."

and your ability to fully write in the pov of the character that you've crafted is nutty. like on the outside, it seems like a simple thing to do, but ik from experience that it's really not. like the way you perfectly represented oc's bleakness in the beginning through the word choices, that only shifts when taehyung is being discussed, is a1 storytelling. and same with him, like even when things are falling apart, the metaphor compares oc to a star, n that's how he sees her despite the circumstances. IM EMOTIONAL!!!

and idk dude i think i feel so strongly about this piece bc i relate to this oc sooo much. like the way ur desire to get out of ur current situation bleeds into every aspect of ur life n ruins relationships n u end up even worse than u started off in a lot of ways- NOT THIS FIC BEING A WHOLE HIT PIECE RID LMAO >:(

they deserve eachother sm and oc deserves a happy easy love and THE ROUNDABOUT MOMENT IN THE END LIKE ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME I LOVE WHEN EVERYTHING TIES IN AND UGH I FUCKING CAN'T THIS WAS A MASTERPIECE LIKE I NEED TO SEE THIS ON FILM BBY THE BIG SCREEN!!!!!!!

posting this a lil early but who gaf :')

[blowflygrls]

I’m bored and everyone else always talks about their OCs and I need to actually discuss mine for once too lmao

So Alabama (the one with red hair in the art I posted) I’ve posted about before but has had different relationships that were just not good or more flings if anything and she’s never really kind of let herself be vulnerable with anyone because it’s scary and she flips out and thinks she’s gonna ruin them as much as she acts like she doesn’t care about making people “worse.”

Louise (blonde hair, also I didn’t realize this it I think one of my mutuals already has an OC named that lmao so I might change the name to stop confusion) is her third time dating someone and she’s kind likes the chase that comes with Alabama seemingly really really wanting her one second where it seems like she basically worships her. Then when Alabama becomes distant with her, she’s very annoyed and upset but kind of also obsessed with like “oh I can make her like me again I have that sort of talent.”

Louise also has undiagnosed NPD, and she has tried to talk about it but people are always either like “yeah of course YOU would have it” because of how she acts out or go “oh no but you simply can’t have it because you’re being self aware” so she doesn’t really get any help for it.

Okay anyways I’m rambling I know but Louise really liked Alabama and kind of saw her as someone who was special, not really like anyone else which I think is what happens a lot with Alabama where she’s put on this pedestal for being kind of impulsive and “fun.”

anyways, Alabama breaks up with Louise and she kind of has a narc crash moment and is like “oh well I never liked you anyways/I just wanted a fun time and this wasn’t serious/etc” but is an absolute wreck

idk I don’t usually flesh out my OCs that well but wanted to at least try lmao just gonna tag @vommitgirl for now so I’m not just like spamming a million people

[xshimaeraxx]

I've seen many posts about people missing how common asks used to be so I have been trying to send about an ask a week. Now I send this ask first anytime I follow someone as I really don't want to bother anyone, so I'd love to know if you enjoy receiving asks and if so what kind of asks. Not having energy for asks or being comfortable with them is perfectly okay.

The categories I have in my ask notebook that I file under are in colour. Please feel free to make your response as long as you want or private (the asker cannot directly respond to private responses).

Self, Job/Work: please let me know what you are comfortable with from eh idk just ask it to nothing personal at all.

Baggishield/Tolkien, Dragon Age, Johnlock/Sherlock, ineffable spouses, other fandom: Please let me know what fandoms. I think my main fandoms and ships are Bagginshield/The Hobbit, Sherlock/Johnlock, Dragon Age Inquisition, {Pippin/Faramir Merry/Eowyn}/The Lord of the Rings and I dip my toes in a few that I currently can't remember but ships I don't engage with the canon of at all are: Good Omens but only for Crowley/Azirapheal, Stranger Things but only for Steve/Eddie , The Witcher but only for Geralt/Jaskier, and Ladybug and Cat Noir but only for Adrinette .

OC's, art/drawing, their writing, blog specific only

Story snippets ideas and prompts: Do you like receiving them?

Pets: I'd love to know all about them

Garden and Hobbies: What type of gardening and/or hobbies?

Like being tagged in things: If so what kinds of things?

*Asks are sent for fun, no pressure to answer.

hello!!! yeah, i love receiving asks, lmao, & as for ur questions:

self, job/work: hmmm. im not rly comfy w any major questions ab my irl life (like stuff along the lines of “where specifically t do you live” (like im a brit, but if somewhere were to ask js where i live in the uk, i wldnt answer, as is common sense (imo) when it comes to the internet), “how old are you” “what is (are) your irl name(s)” etc. etc. - identifying stuff, basically), tho anythin’ else is pretty much on the table rn.

fandoms: oh, fandoms my beloved. my main fandoms atm (for both reading & writing, tho some r only reading while some r only writing, etc. etc.) are cuphead (i have way too much worldbuilding for this one au of mine that branches off into so many aus of the au, its genuinely gettin a lil crazy /pos /lh; i write fic for this one, aswell- in fact, its kinda my main writing-for fandom atm ^^), the hobbit (bagginshield my beloved i love you shjshsjehejs - i also dable vaguely in lotr (mainly gimli/legolas + parentshield tbh lmao) but its mostly js the hobbit for me), good omens (i love the ineffables i love s1 & s2 & HSJSHSJSHSJ i js love it like. all around. fuck gaimon tho, death of the author tyvmm), my hero academia/boku no hero academia (i dont engage w fandom much other then a few fanfic writers’ blogs here on tumblr & ao3 fanfic lmao XD; love the anime tho), harry potter (FUCK jkr, speaking as a brit myself none of us claim her, the transphobes can have her, we dont want her /lh - love the (good parts of) fanbase tho. ive actually made some rly good fic-writer friends thru it over on discord lmao), & ofc rise of the guardians!!! (fuckin love that thing, so sad there was never a second move :sadblob: love playin around w fanon/fandom lore tho, & i LOVE jackrabbit (bunnymund/jack) its my main ship in the fandom, tho im a multishipper so im also kinda partial to some other ones ofc)

ocs, art/drawing, writing, blog specific: not entirely sure what this one’s asking/if its actually a question, but imma answer it any lolol XD. anygays - ocs: i have a few cuphead ocs, but none of ‘em r self-inserts & all only rly exist bc of/for/to enhance/move forward the plot of my (main) cuphead au, tho ofc theyre still ocs - love ‘em like my children even if i dont love ‘em as much as i do the canon characters, snirk. art/drawing: i do draw, tho i rarely post any of my art, and one or two times i have its usually bc im js proud enough of it to want to share it, ehehe. writing: i write. so much fanfic. none of its posted, but i have so many wips i frankly dont know when any one of ‘em will be, sooo… shrug. blog specific: my blog isnt rly “specific”; its more js a place for me to enage w cool art & fics & such & reblog stuff i like on here as well as probably self-promo my own fics & such, as well as js a place to put my random ramblings in XD.

story snippets & prompts: oh, i love ‘em!! always nice 2 get a new burst of writing motivation ::D

pets: ohhh, cats. i love cats. had one for a while for around a good two years or so but after he injured his paw & we had 2 keep him inside for 3 weeks straight, the flightly lil bugger’s runaway. he (might’ve; still don’t know for sure whether it rly was him or not, but he apparently responded to his name from my mother’s accounts, so :shrug:) came back in the middle of the night a week or so ago now, but idtk whether he’s dead, alive, or js been taken in by some other family who thinks he’s a stray. :sigh:

gardening & hobbies: i don’t garden, and as for hobbies… not much, rly. i like writing fic, i like reading, i like going on (short, i have shite stamina) walks every other day or so, i like talkin w my few friends. like i said, not much. ::)

like being tagged in things: yes, i do! and as for what… anything, rly! tag games, fic wip games, askbox/ask games, im good w ‘em all! ::D

thx for the ask; have a good day/night/timezone!! ::>

[sehtoast]

Writer Tag

Thanks for the tag @venus-haze <3

How many works do you have on AO3? 29

What's your total AO3 word count? 230k

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Tender Threads

Satisfy Me

One Big Wet Spot

Say Please

The Hand That Feeds

(All Homelander fics) ^

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? Most of the time, but lately I haven't had the energy or the time. My social battery is pretty fucked, but I do read every single one of them and love them

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending? So it's technically unpublished, but it basically ends with Ben (my oc) sentencing himself to die pretty painfully alongside Homelander with that thing that got revealed in Gen V. If you know you know

What’s the fic you've written with the happiest ending? Honestly, Envy.

Do you write crossovers? I've done an AU crossover for the same fandom, but not really

Have you ever received hate on a fic? Most of the hate I get is in my tumblr inbox. I haven't really done/said anything about it bc no one really wants to see or hear about it tbh, but I've gotten a fair amount of shit for pairing homie with a guy and then also more for pairing him with a trans guy. I think the only ao3 hate i ever got was barely even hate, more like someone bitching that my tender threads formatting wasn't to their liking bc it's Y/n formatted

Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Yessir yessir. Honestly just whatever i'm vibin with

Have you ever had a fic stolen? not that i'm aware although i don't think i've written anything steal-worthy

Have you ever had a fic translated? no, but @anon-nee has been my personal jesus christ in helping me make sure my english to german translations in tender threads has been accurate. love you nonnums <3

Have you ever co-written a fic before? technically no, but @homelanderbutbig did a collab with me and made this to pair with a fic i wrote, which i feel like is co-creation so i'm gonna say yes anyway. love you HBB <3

What's your all-time favorite ship? honestly i don't really have one, unless i can count my ocxcanon ship in which case it's benlander

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will? i have a depowered homelander fic where ben answers the door one day and ryan, now in his late teens, is there to finally see homie again after all those years went by. i adore the concept but i'm like NEVER in the mindset i need to actually write something like that

What are your writing strengths? yall got strengths?

What are your writing weaknesses? all of them

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? i think it's fine so long as there's clarification shortly after for the readers who may not understand, and also that you've somehow gotten it cross checked by someone who actually speaks the langauge so ensure you're not just saying some wild shit. but ultimately do whatever makes you happy idk bro i don't make the rules

What was the first fandom you wrote for? Prometheus! i was am down so bad for david omg

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to? astarion/tav. i wanna write something sooooo bad but i just can't get in the headspace for it

What's your favorite fic you've written? probably satisfy me because the role swap was incredibly fun and it's REALLY fucking cool to unbind homelander from his own behavioral patterns and manifest them into a reader's concept. like, of everything i've written, i could most clearly imagine everything that happened in that fic and i'd find myself grinning like a sick fuck while writing about literally eviscerating a man's chest cavity lmao

No pressure tags: @blindmagdalena @hom3landr @irenadel @slasher-smasher and anyone else who wants to participate

[llitchilitchi]

The tags you added to your answer are so interesting!! The arch and the vines do frame them very nicely, and its always wonderful to learn how much thought gets put behind a piece like that. Do you always use references when you draw/paint? If you dont mind sharing, id love to hear more abt your process :))

I don't mind sharing at all!

the truth is there is no process. stuff tends to just Happen most of the time. I tend to soak up everything I look at like a sponge and like to watch videoessays about art of any kind that break down certain aspects so I can use the pieces and put them into something new. I love art, be it live action movies or animation, stop motion or a music video, stained glass or architecture of fiber crafts, oil paintings or comic books and so on. when I go places I try to take it all in, I take notes, pictures if necessary, and then vomit it up on paper when the time comes.

it's like 'oh, I like This area in This game because of the ambience' (which resulted in the image in my header), or 'oh the colours in this movie Fuck' and I apply them when they come in handy. it's a bit of a backup library, especially if I know I will be working with that stuff soon (cough cough I may or may not have a lot of images of medieval manuscripts at hand for Reasons)

if I have a more specific idea for a vibe I wanna go for, though, I like looking through reference. I'll be posting a piece (Soon) of my OC and the composition and the overall clutter of it was inspired by the work of Satoshi Kon. my pride art was inspired by local 19th/20th century illustrations of folk motifs. when I worked on my pin-up zine piece, I looked through a lot of antique pinup photography, but I also wanted to tilt the overall vibe to the work of the artist Sakizou so I went through her artbooks. when I still worked on Monarchy Restoration I liked to visit places that fit it time-wise (aka late medieval castles or romantic castles that reimagine the medieval) along with watching old Czech fairytale movies, which were the key inspiration behind the aesthetic of the AU.

honestly I'm a little paranoid at times that if I look up reference of particular styles or techniques, it will show too much in my work and people will call me a fraud lmao. I don't really know why, since a lot of people very openly reference the works of famous artists and it isn't a problem (nor do I mind it when they do it), but a small part of me gets kinda mad when, idk, the houses in the background look too much like those in Cabinet of Doctor Caligari, or something. obviously that doesn't really apply to needing precise anatomy/clothing reference but I tend to put away any reference images the moment I start working on the final product so I'm not replicating someone else's work.

[dreaming-medium]

This might end up being a super long message so I apologize in advance. I’m a yapper :)

I needed to say how much I absolutely love Animals Without Direction. It’s not even funny how hard this fic grabbed my heart & will not let go. Your fic is what cemented me getting into Stray Kids. Before this, I knew of them, I even had “Backdoor” on Spotify but that was as far as I cared to go. Like 2 ish weeks ago, I ended up reading another OT8x Reader fic before this one just out of morbid curiosity ( I will always succumb

to reading something where the MC has multiple partners, I just eat it up) & the love I had for the author’s previous work & I loved it so much. I read another one after that & I was slowly finding myself caring about these boys through these fics but yours?? I knew I could not go back after reading AWD. I became high key obsessed with how you wrote them & that obsession turned into me wanting to know the real people behind these characters. One of the best decisions of my life, I swear. (I tried to fight getting into them so much but every interview that popped up on my YouTube or edit that made its way onto my fyp would not let me lmao).

The way the boys are written, the world building, the tension surrounding every situation, ect. It’s all so amazing. Even in your Kinktober work, the same thing applies. I rarely read kinktobers bc there’s usually no build up to the sex & I’m left bored bc the build up is always what gets me. Yours are just *chefs kiss* (That Min one has a grip on me. I live for a nerdy boy x popular girl story. AND Frottage?! I’m obviously that girl, they all obviously want me, like it can’t get better than that idk)

I’m going to make one last point & it’s so minimal that you’re probably not doing it on purpose but I just had to point it out. The way you write the reader to have minimal descriptors means a lot to me. I’ll explain: One of the very many reasons that I got out of reading K-POP fics specifically is that, more often than not, the reader was not someone I could identify with & it would take me out of the story completely. I’m not talking personality wise but physical traits.

Ex. I’m black so my MC is always black. If I read that the “reader” is supposed to be “blushing pink”, I 100% know that this reader was made with a fairer skinned person in mind, even if it’s not said explicitly. So the reader I have no longer exists & my mind is thrown out of the story. It’s different if this reader is supposed to be an OC or it’s tagged differently or whatever else, but when it’s supposed to be a character that anyone should be able to place themselves into, it’s a bit upsetting when it’s not. I hope that makes sense.

With your story, that has not happened to me. I could image the reader to be whoever & it fits. It feels like a true “reader x *insert character here*” story as it’s tagged. I’m not sure if that was your intention, as I know a lot of authors do try to have that thought while writing, but it’s something that I appreciate & it makes the reading experience so much better for me personally.

Anyways, this was just a very very long winded way to say that I love your work & I’m waiting on my knees for the next updates 🤍🤍🤍

I am so so sorry that it took me this long to reply to this message, but you obviously put so much care into typing this out so I wanted to return the care I put into replying to you.

First off, thank you SO much for your kind words. Genuinely, it means so much to me that you enjoy Animals Without Direction. Truth be told, when I first came up with the idea, it wasn't going to be an OT8 fic, it was originally going to either be a Chan, Minho, or Seungmin story. But the more I kept developing it in my head, the more I got emotionally attached to these characters I assigned to them.

The character I particularly got attached to was Jeongin as the Squire. He just kept tugging at my heart strings when I would develop little story lines. And then I was also thinking about Felix and how much his character means to the MC and every single one of them came tumbling after.

I can't even stress the smile I got on my face when I read that I got you more into SKZ with my fic. It's SO funny that you would say that because its another OT8 fic that got ME into SKZ.

Tangled by Ao3 user ThisPeachIsDirty got me to look further into SKZ and fall in love with our boys.

THANK YOU for the compliments on my writing style as well! Sometimes I get so worried that I put too much effort into the plot and the story that I forget the romance. Especially with my kinktober series (which I do plan on continuing, life is insane for me at the moment).

(Also, I also love a 'they're all in love with me' trope. i do not care if its not realistic. its my world and everyone else is living in it.)

That last point you made is not minimal. It makes me SO SO happy, you have no idea. Because, believe it or not, it IS something that I actively try to consider and adapt to when I'm writing.

The reason that we read 'reader inserts' is so that we can all feel like we're a part of the story. And it's so important that no person is left out of that narrative.

I cannot STAND how many fics all play on the 'I'm tiny, in 4 feet tall and I weigh 80 pounds soaking wet. I have dainty, tiny, frail little bones and every single person towers over me and constantly reminds me how small i am.'

oh it boils my BLOOD.

I am a 6 foot tall, athletically built, amazon of a woman. Me and my swimmer shoulders are NOT small and dainty.

My best friend is POC. And something she always told me about reader inserts is exactly what you're saying. She would say that she could tell it was written by someone who is not POC. It breaks my heart.

And while I do use descriptors sometimes. For example, i do bend this rule a little with statements such as "at your asymmetrical features", "you're not a tiny person either", or maybe a hair descriptor that may not fit someone. I do genuinely try to keep it all inclusive, because that's what these types of stories are supposed to be.

So THANK YOU for noticing. I'm happy that I could provide something that is well deserved and should not have to be requested.

I promise an update is coming soon. Quite possibly within the next few hours. I'm on a business trip at the moment and if my boss doesn't invite me out to dinner tonight, I plan on finishing the next chapter in my hotel room.

Life is... insane lately. I have zero spare time left with the job I have now.

But I promise it's coming!! it's like 90% done!!!!! Maybe even 95%. I'm trying to decide where I want to end this chapter in terms of the story.

Love you so so so so much. <33333

[sohmiya]

oc tag game

thank you @sussoro for tagging me!! this was so fun 🩷 tagging @wayhavenots @pierceaugust + anyone who wants to do it!! no pressure <3

FAVOURITE OC: emory chan from merry crisis. also because the qiu brainrot is currently taking over my entire being but yeah. despite the pride emory feels in making her dream as a musician happen, she carries the guilt from knowing it’s not exactly what her parents want for her. she’s the typical eldest daughter who acts as a third parent. another favorite is maya quimby from golden. i wrote a whole list of facts about her a while back so idk what else to say but that’s My Girl. she’s so so special to me <3

NEWEST OC: althea solis from take two. she’s vv underdeveloped right now but in the take two universe, she’s an only child. in an au, she has an older sister named athalia <3

OLDEST OC: sutton hart from midnight hours. before she became an iaos hunter, she was a detective in wayhaven. she’s very ambitious and curious. she’s definitely one of those people who have bucket lists and actually plans to do the things on her list. she felt like wayhaven is too small for her dreams so she left and now she’s in new york

MEANEST OC: cloe hoffman from infamous. idk if i should call her mean but she’s bratty and she complains a lot LMAO literally orion’s nightmare. cloe loves the spotlight and isn’t too bothered being part of the drama as long as attention is on her. because bad publicity is still publicity 🤷🏻‍♀️ she hasn’t done much self-reflection so she’s not yet aware that it stems from her parents not giving her enough attention when she was young. i think once she gains enough self-awareness, she’ll realize that it’s actually her thinking “they didn’t notice me when i was a good kid. maybe they’ll notice me now”

SOFTEST OC: piper ellis from midnight hours. another former detective from wayhaven. she’s a huge disney fan. she keeps tickets (plane, concerts, movies, amusement parks, etc) and pins them on a cork board alongside polaroid pictures. she’s introverted, soft spoken and sooo shy. she’s so easily flustered that she makes nikolas look like the biggest flirt 😭 also kirsten adler from golden. she’s sentimental and timid but less introverted than piper. she’s just self-conscious because she knows that one wrong move and the media will twist it into something that can ruin her dad’s image. she talks nonstop once you bring up something she’s extremely passionate about <3

MOST ALOOF/STANDOFFISH OC: lira kinsley from golden. she’s not a snob but she’s tired of people buttering her up for connections. when she’s moody, she straight up tells the person “my dad’s right there.” she’s selective of who she lets in to her social circle

DUMBEST (AFFECTIONATE) OC: riley cromwell from college tennis. she’s not dumb but clown blood flows in her veins <3 she can be unapologetically cringe lololol one dumb thing i’d say she does is barely controlling her junk food intake and justifying it with “i play tennis a lot. it’s fine”

SMARTEST OC: annika munroe from arcadia city. not because she’s a genius whatsoever. she just reads a lot and constantly tries to stay informed. also because she loves it when people argue with her and the looks on their faces when she ends up being right. she used to be one of my wayhaven detectives as well.

OC I’D BE FRIENDS WITH: sutton. but also because i can put her in any if i play and she’ll end up being friends with someone there 😭 she’s loving, nurturing and thoughtful and she’s very expressive about it. i think it’s also due to having dated immortals (first, nate. now, kian. she likes old men ig) that really put into perspective how short her life is and how quickly time passes. she’s trying to learn how to not overextend herself but sometimes she just can’t help it. being affectionate comes naturally for her

[tarmac-rat]

15 Lines Game

Tagged by @seraphfighter (and I may or may not have already compiled some of these hoping someone was gonna tag me so thank you for making my dreams come true lmao 👉 👈)

Rules: Share 15 or fewer lines of dialogue from an OC, ideally lines that capture their character/personality/vibe. Bonus points for just using the dialogue without other details about the scene, but you’re free to include those as well. If you wanna you can send me one of these and i will give you context/ a snipped of what it is from! (you could also guess the context if you like!)

Open tag to anyone who wants to try this one but @seeker-of-truth @trashcatsnark @nightcxty @clusterfxckedbysirens @haveyouseenmymarbles idk maybe you guys will have fun with this one :3

These are all Riley's, shocker. Most of these are pubbed work but a smattering of them are from drafts and WIPs because Idk if those works will ever see the light of day and I really love some of the bits I write for her there too:

"I'm just a kid with a bike and a jacket. Nothing more."

["You're supposed to be dead!"] "So I've heard. Thinking I might've missed a memo on that one."

"I just don’t think the kettle gets to spout off about why he thinks the pot’s in the wrong.”

"Apologies for not coming up with a goddamn SWOT analysis for why I shouldn't get my brains blown out by a two-ton war mech!"

"No, you don't get to pull that shit on me! I am not some girl you can give flowers to in the hopes for another quick fuck. I am not a Samurai groupie you can treat like dirtshit 'cause you think I've got nothing better to do with my life. Because for the very first time, you're not the one in control, and I bet that just scares the living goddamn shit outta you, doesn't it? Well, too fucking bad!"

"If I wanted salvation, I’d’ve gone to fucking confessional. Let’s settle for survival instead."

"Want me to play by your rules? Fine. But if I do, least you all can do is help me not get another bullet buried in my skull."

"Might be an asshole but I’m an asshole with some fucking standards."

"I spent my entire childhood in a desert. When the hell was I supposed to learn how to swim?"

“But don't you dare think for a moment that I'm putting myself through all of this misery out of some twisted need to prove you wrong.”

"Oh, you're gonna wanna pick your next words real carefully, asshole, else you're gonna see why daddy Deckard should've told you not to piss off dirty nomad skanks like me."

"Got a kind of confidence in me I'm not even sure I possess."

["I want Yorinobu to answer for his crime of patricide."] "And I want ten million eddies and a gold-plated Nazaré— doesn’t mean I’m getting either of ‘em anytime soon."

"Learned from the best, take after the worst."

"Is it really that stupid to hope that everyone'll make it out of this hellhole of a city with their souls still intact, even if we can't!?"

[facedented]

GET TO KNOW THE MUN. || respond to the prompts out of character!

what made you pick up the current muse(s) you have?

uhm well i've been obsessed w/ this band & these characters ( especially 2D ) since i was a wee teenager,,,,,, his muse kinda came out of nowhere after a few years of being quiet & ran me over. he does not have a license.

is there anything you don’t like to write?

well obviously i wont write anything reprehensible or nasty but just like, surface level?? not that i can think of. it depends who / what muses im writing with, too.

is there anything you really enjoy writing?

any opportunity i can get to swim around 2D's head & make him retrospective is always a good time. i love exploring the complex thoughts characters have that we, as an audience, don't really get to see often -- or only catch glimpses of. i like getting messy & philosophical with it. but ofc angst tropes i adore, as well as found family. certain ships with 2D i also wouldnt mind exploring.

how do you come up with headcanons?

a lot of it is lived experience, i think. it'll be like "this character is just like me fr" & then i'll think of ways to make them even MORE like me. it's nice to see yourself represented, even in little ways. but sometimes i'll be inspired by fanfictions, music, tv shows . . . like i listened to an old panic! song & came up with a hc for 2D that way lmao. sometimes i'll just see humans doing human things & relate it to characters. my mind just doesn't shut up tbh

do you write in silence or do you play music?

always music. i feel like i'll pass out if i don't have some kind of sound going on constantly

do you plan your replies or wing them?

9 times out of 10 i'm winging it. sometimes, especially with first time interactions with muses from different fandoms or oc's i do some planning -- just to kind of get a grasp on who the other person is playing & how 2D would interact with them, or how their worlds would intersect. but if i worry too long it just makes me anxious haha so i just try to have fun with it & hope everyone else does, too!

do you enjoy shipping? 

im lowkey kind of reserved with my ships for 2D fjksljflks i only really have two & im not really looking to do shipping rps unless someone mused those characters & felt comfortable, but it's fun to reference his feelings in threads!

what’s your alias/name?

you can call me cal!

age?

24 years young.

birthday?

september 7th! 5 more months.

favorite color?

probably green!

favorite song?

i love music, it changes all the time.

last movie you watched?

a friend of mine showed me the second avatar movie lol

last show you watched?

'baby reindeer' on netflix. chilling.

last song you listened to?

superfast jellyfish -- gorillaz. ( shocker. )

favorite food?

idk man i love to eat but uh. i am always in the mood for chinese food.

favorite season?

fall, by far.

do you have a tumblr best friend?

not atm! most of the gay ppl in my phone are on discord lmao

tagged by : shamelessly stole it

tagging ( only if you want to! ) : @rebelpuff , @manaborn , @poeticvocals , @okoden & @moralpuppet. & anyone else who would like to!

[grisailledreams]

Never Enough

Astarion stews in a little jealousy while Brynne sings at a Gortash-sponsored party. (AKA Astarynne fluff is back deal with it)

EDIT: Lmao songfic bitches! Never Enough from The Greatest Showman

Title: Never Enough Word count: ~3108 words Pairing: Astarynne (Astarion/Brynne // Astarion/OC // Astarion/Tav -- can you tell idk how we're supposed to be tagging this?) Content Warnings: Light swearing

For a moment, there, Astarion thought he and Brynne had something special. He was the first person she spoke to in the morning. The last touch she sought before bedding down. The one she embraced hardest when that desiccated skeleton man in their camp brought him back from the brink of death, or when it was Brynne being ressurected instead. And yet, every bloody time she sang a duet, it was always with someone else!

Whenever the group came short on coin or supplies, a bard could magically make gold appear with a wiggle of the fingers and a pretty tune – even in a refugee camp. More collected in the hat if she had a partner and upped the performance value, so occasionally Brynne dragged one of their companions onstage and… well, sparks flew. Every time.

She and Wyll sang a romantic duet about defying fate, complete with wizard-made miniature fireworks.

Shadowheart begrudgingly became the other half of a musical business deal.

Karlach had a fantastic time bellowing out a dramatic, pining vow with her.

Gale often got roped into a windy, free-spirited call to adventure.

It was the Wyll number that stuck in Astarion’s craw the most. His ability to provide special effects made him an attractive partner, as did his surprising ability to carry a tune while doing so. That may have had a little to do with Brynne. There was something about her playing that seemed to draw music out of people if she wanted it to; unlikely that Shadowheart knew any music that wasn’t a psalm to Shar. But Brynne and Wyll fell into their show, casting doubts and aspersions aside to promise that they could be together in spite of the world telling them that they couldn’t. They danced in one another’s arms. If Brynne hung a length of silk from a high ceiling – a trick she pulled in the Last Light – she and Wyll performed simple aerial feats to add to the music. And, at the end of the song, Wyll always moved in for a kiss. Astarion always held his breath. Brynne always stepped away and again reiterated that they couldn’t be together. In song.

Afterwards, her duet partners might have said something friendly about how fun it was, or ask with bright eyes how much they managed to rake in, but the romance of it all never brought them closer.

Did it? The jealous fire in Astarion’s belly only made him believe that Wyll looked at her a little too long for the rest of the night, a little too dreamy-eyed, juxtaposing a little too much of a fairytale damsel’s aura over Brynne’s face–

Not once did the bard ever, ever ask Astarion if he’d like to sing with her.

He didn’t. Why embarrass himself in front of so many people the way their associates did? But an invitation might have been nice.

It took last place in the list of his concerns when Gortash invited – “Read,” said Astarion as they looked at the notice, “insists.” – Brynne to play at a dinner honoring the officials of the Flaming Fists and, in the interest of not having anyone throw them all into Wyrm’s Rock, Brynne agreed. She’d been playing coy with the new Archduke every time he suggested they work together. “Avoiding a fight” without making promises she didn’t intend to keep. Gods. Yes, he understood the intention of it and yes, he would have done the same thing for slightly different reasons, but now she was forcing him to go along with her idiot plans because he knew — he knew, gods damn her! — that if he didn't, she'd wind up in Wyrm's Rock with Gortash waving his hand for a servant to dispose of her corpse and mop the blood from his shiny, marble floor. And then what was Astarion supposed to do? Go to Withers? What lesson would Brynne learn, then, about doing stupid things?

When the night arrived, Karlach, Astarion, and Jaheira dressed up as much as any of them cared to – Loudly, Nicely, and “Fuck It” in that order – and concealed the weapons they were banned from bringing on their persons. Brynne didn’t seem worried. Her creepy lyre strung with spider silk, she insisted, was all the weapon she needed when Astarion asked her about whether she wanted her bow or her rapier and where she planned to put either.

“Where could I possibly hide those in this dress?” she asked, with far too much laughter in her voice for comfort.

In fairness, she was right. The fabric, a fetchingly deep shade of green that made her pink skin glow, had been clipped, stitched, and draped in a style reminiscent of Antiquity – one that exposed most of her back, especially with her green-and-brown hair teased into a careless updo laced with gold chains. Matching metallic flowers and insects cast in a modern style pinned the fabric into fanciful sleeves that fell away at the elbow so as not to get in the way of her playing. She’d even abandoned her daywear boots – leather and scruffy and certainly not a pair to go with this ensemble – for soft, thick-soled sandals with jeweled clasps and straps that ran up to the thigh. Decidedly unsuitable for a fight if one broke out.

Astarion’s judgmental eye only went over her once before he took a knee at her feet, took his dagger sheath entirely from his belt, and strapped the sussur blade just above the topmost strap of Brynne’s sandal where she could easily reach it.

When she began to protest, Astarion dramatically sighed and cut her off. “I’ll have to make do with my rapier. Do take care not to lose that. We went through so much to have it forged.”

He kissed her and called her beautiful so she’d forget to keep arguing.

Their party walked through streets that used to be so lively at this time of day, when the sun had just gone down and lanterns lit the way. Taverns and burlesque houses that typically stayed loud and merry into the first rays of dawn largely closed their doors before midnight. Anyone who still dared be out by nightfall cast suspicious glances at the adventurers, not knowing whether they were saviours or oncoming damnation. Thank gods Astarion need not hunt nowadays. Breaking down those psychological walls would have been exhausting. As he and the rest of the group approached Wyrm’s Rock, they found one of the few places with open doors, bright lights, chatter, and the smell of food wafting from the windows: the Flaming Fist officers’ barracks.

Even at a party – especially at a party, maybe – there were guards. A tall, muscular woman in full steel plate stopped them at the door to mean-mug them into giving up whatever anti-Gortashian plot they might think to hatch. In that sickeningly sweet, gorgeously manipulative way of hers, Brynne batted her eyelashes and flashed the letter bearing the Archduke’s signature.

Once the manip decided it wasn’t a forgery, the glare softened into boredom and she flatly said, “No weapons past this point.”

“We know!” Brynne chirped. “We came prepared!” She turned around to face her team, raising her brows. “Right?”

Karlach, Jaheira, and Astarion exchanged glances amongst themselves. With a shrug, Jaheira said, “Don’t look at me. What, you think I’m senile and forgot we weren’t allowed to bring blades? And this one,” she said, jabbing her thumb to Karlach, “wouldn’t be able to hide a weapon in a smith’s forge.”

“Hey!”

And then they all whirled on Astarion.

He groaned, hung his head back, and drew his fingers through his freshly-washed and touseled hair. “I’m hurt. I’m offended. You all really think so little of me?!”

“I could pick you up by the ankle and shake it out of you,” Karlach offered.

“Ugh, fine, fine…” Astarion opened his doublet, pulled out a cheap, tiny dagger from a hidden pocket, and waved it in front of their faces before he deposited it in the manip’s waiting hand. “There. Happy?”

“Astarion!”

The disappointment in Brynne’s voice might have broken his heart if it hadn’t been all one massive pantomime.

In Brynne’s flurry of impassioned apologies to the manip and offers to leave Astarion behind, not to mention Jaheira and Karlach muttering criticisms of him under their breath, the Flaming Fist never once thought to check the rest of them to see if they were also carrying concealed blades. Clearly, they cared deeply about being present for this Gortash-sponsored event. The other option likely involved a trip to Wyrm’s Rock for defiance. Who would think that sweet, freckled, spring blossom face could lie so perfectly? Clearly, not the manip waving them through the gate.

Officers enjoyed higher pay and more authority, but it seemed their buildings were still just too small to host gatherings anywhere other than their courtyard. Wait, there were hay mannequins crushed below the stairs. Training yard. Out-of-place tablecloths decorated shabby trestle tables, set with gleaming silver tableware for the officers and attending patriars. No one too fancy. High-ranking merchants, lower nobility, people who might have been invited to Gortash’s ascension ceremony but also would have been surprised and eager by it. Dinner smelled expensive; a far cry from even the fare at the Elfsong. Serving staff made rounds through the party with trays of hors d’ouevres and crystal flutes full of sparkling wine, but a bar had been set up opposite the stage. A few invitees spared the party a glance, but once they saw Brynne and her lyre, they lost interest. The band had to set up. They wouldn’t be interesting until later. Then again, they didn’t know that Astarion was about to go mingle.

He hung back for a moment, though, so he could fix her hair. One of the curls she left loose didn’t look as nice as the one next to it. “Singing with Karlach again?” he asked, trying to sound conversational; he failed to keep out the grumble. “Or are you forcing poor old Jaheira on stage with you for once?”

“Neither.” Astarion glanced up. “No duets.” And glanced down to fix the drape of one of her sleeves. “Gortash sent an incredibly specific set list for me.”

“Dictatorial even in party music. I should be less surprised.”

“Maybe if I do a decent job for his underlings, I’ll get to play for the man, himself!” They both laughed. Neither of them wanted to be in the same room as Gortash again unless it was to slit his throat. “Alright. Don’t pickpocket anyone, okay?”

“But darling,” he purred, briefly drawing his foreknuckle over her cheekbone and the elven knots tattooed over it, “you know how your pretty music makes my fingers itch.”

Again, she giggled, rolling her eyes, but her face glowed in that odd, warm way that eladrins seemed to do when they were happy. Absolutely blinding, sometimes, like the morning after that first night they’d spent together, or the one after their little celebration with the tieflings. Luckily, she’d been sunny in his direction often enough that he could stand its light. He liked that she saw their dynamic burglary duo status as something favorable. Even cherished.

Astarion kissed the back of her hand, demure enough in his gesture so as not to cheapen her presence in front of her audience, but also to enough eyes to make sure they all knew she was taken. “Break a leg, my love,” he murmured, right before he melted into the crowd. The strings sang to him before he reached the open bar.

The wine did nothing to relax the tension in Astarion’s legs and he’d sooner chop his own foot off before he jiggled a leg the way Brynne did whenever she felt restless. He wasn’t used to a task so full of nothing. They were always trying to infiltrate, steal, expose, kill, or save someone or something, typically with mixed results, and while they could have spent half that time doing something more worthwhile, at least it felt productive when they inevitably found gold, treasure, or new equipment. None of that, here. She’d told him so. But with all those eyes glued to her, easing into the music, Astarion spied no fewer than three purses he could cut and several pieces of jewelry easily liberated. On toetips, he could probably sneak into the officer’s chambers and rummage through their things before Brynne even finished the song. He’d done beautiful work with her in the counting house like this. She could play for hours. He hadn’t met a lock he couldn’t pick.

Instead, Astarion tried to listen to the music. War songs, mostly, an anthem to Bane, and multiple numbers clearly written by Gortash, himself, praising his new elevation in status… all ridiculous. The attendees listened politely and applauded with extra strength when Gortash’s name was mentioned, but for the most part, they spoke amongst themselves. Karlach and Jaheira managed to elbow their way into a table with a wealthy old married couple who were dressed far too formally and too old-fashioned to be anything other than family or donors. By the sounds of it, they were too deaf to be offended by Karlach’s occasional loud outburst. The wife in blue velvet patted Karlach on the shoulder while her partner, Wife in Green, launched into a rambling tale that Jaheira patiently listened to… or, at least, she seemed to nod periodically.

Servants served dinner and Karlach tried to wave Astarion over to join them, but he held up a hand. Being a vampire made his already limited elven diet that much more restrictive. The only hunger he’d felt lately was for… well. He didn’t need to say it, did he?

As Brynne wrapped up another song about Gortash – Jannath’s Ecstasy – one of the Archduke’s representatives, sent to the event as his stand-in, tapped a spoon to his glass and stood up. A thin little human man with a whisker-thin mustache and a curly-tailed coat. He cleared his voice and said in a reedy voice, “A few words, from His Grace, Archduke Enver Gortash…”

Oh, the droning. Blah blah blah, dawn of a new age, blah blah blah, thin steel line. The myriads pamphlets regarding Gortash’s policy plans were bad enough. Each syllable of this speech made Astarion want to dismantle his ears piece by piece from the inside out. He caught Brynne’s eye. She grinned at him, lips pressed tightly together so she could rearrange her expression if one of the Fists realized she wasn’t drinking in every word. Jaheira and Karlach did that. One, desiring to learn more about their enemy through the words he spoke through a puppet. The other, glowing red and barely containing her fury; the patriars at their table soon fanned themselves from the heat.

 Finally, the human stepped down, bid the attendees to enjoy their meal, and flashed Brynne a signal to continue playing her set. She dipped her head with a sweet smile and dropped an inch as some kind of respectful curtsy that managed to not put her playing stance off-balance. Nothing more than background noise, no one could say that Brynne didn’t do her very best when it came to music. Even when she only had a true audience of one. Her eyes found Astarion again. That smile widened and warmed.

He couldn’t look away, not when her fingers danced over the strings and made the lyre twinkle like a starry music box.Her expression softened and Astarion knew this song was his.

“I’m trying to hold my breath. Let it stay this way. Can’t let this moment end.”

No one noticed that this wasn’t part of the preapproved set list for quite a while. Perhaps they were too invested in complimenting the food and wine selection and the Fists had long tuned her out by then. Fine. They didn’t need to. Astarion’s stomach squirmed in a more pleasant way than to which he was accustomed, letting the music caress him in the way Brynne clearly wanted to do herself. A clandestine little love note in the middle of a crowded room. A shame that it couldn’t last.

“All the shine of a thousand spotlights, all the stars we steal from the night sky will never be enough. Never be enough. Towers of gold are still too little. These hands could hold the world, but it’ll never be enough. Never be enough for me.”

 Faces began to turn to stone. Laughs throttled and broke mid-throat. The attendees who weren’t entirely pro-Gortashian rule shifted uncomfortably where they sat. The rest glared. Brynne sang, her lyrics full of greed and reaching farther beyond what was reasonable, all packaged up in the sound of a gentle ballad that grew in strength with each iteration. Karlach groaned a little and when Astarion glanced over to their table, the tiefling was rubbing her temple with a single finger and Jaheira looked ready to garrote Brynne. Astarion shook his head, smirking. They were going to get run out of town if she didn’t stop soon.

Every person in that courtyard aside from Brynne and Astarion had missed the parts that solidified her song as one of love, and Astarion greedily hoarded them for himself.

You set off a dream in me, getting louder now. Can you hear it echoing? Take my hand. Will you share this with me? ‘Cause darling, without you…

No matter how many bank vaults they flawlessly emptied, no matter how fine the wines they stole, no matter how heavy their gold purses grew, it would never be enough without Brynne at his side, hand in hand.

Who else could be his partner in crime as well as in life?

The song ended as gently as it started and through the polite, if stilted, smatter of applause, Brynne blew Astarion a kiss. A pair of Fist gauntlets escorted her off stage. She laughed, waved off their worry, tried to assure them that it wasn’t any criticism of the Archduke or his loyal patriars, but to the gate she went all the same. Astarion gestured with his head for Jaheira and Karlach to follow, pocketing his secret smile.

He grabbed Brynne’s hand before she saw him exit the courtyard. Karlach and Jaheira launched into complaints about barely being able to eat anything or get properly drunk, or how they were having such a nice conversation with those sweet old Grans. Astarion and Brynne tuned them out. She squeezed his fingers. Heat bloomed in his chest.

Brynne never sang songs to any of the others the way she did for him. And he’d never get enough of it.