#kaiobeast

[threewaysdivided]

Me over here in my corner thinking about YJDW, and how absolutely ironically sad it would be if after all the huffing and puffing about ghosts and all the hell he gave Danny, that Wally himself came back as a ghost post-Endgame and only Danny could see and talk to him.

I need to rewatch the OG show again but for a happier alternative, what if Danny saved Wally from his original fate?

(Young Justice: Deathly Weapons)

It seems my primary creative contribution to fandom has been the creation of a bespoke, artisanal brain-corner in which people are compelled to sit and think about DW 😅.  It’s nice to know that, while I may have sunk-cost-fallacy-ed myself into this hole, the rest of you are having fun climbing into it with me.

As for an Endgame!AU, that’s kind of complicated by DW’s… let’s say fraught relationship with canon.  I really like YJ Season 1, but as everyone and their dog has been unable to escape me telling them I think lead-showrunner Greg Weisman is an appallingly bad storyteller (in fact I think he writes like a cowardly, exploitative incel) and under his “creative control” the later entries became an infuriating mess.  Back when there were only two seasons in the mainline canon I used to cut Invasion a lot more slack – allowing it to coast on the uninformed and incorrect assumption that both entries came from the same creative team, and that the seeming disjointedness of Invasion’s narrative was the result of executive meddling or troubled production at a time when a lot of Cartoon Network’s PG animated shows were infamously being put through hell by the network. 

However, after the disappointment of the “revival” I did a little bit more looking into things and realised that what I actually liked was the output of Season 1’s distinct production team – a team which included heavy input from experienced DC creatives like lead-directors Jay Oliva and Michael Chang (previously credited on the Teen Titans 2004 series, which was also praised for good character-storytelling).  It became clear to me that there were actually two separate products:  Season 1 (plus a couple of early tie-in comics by non-Weisman writers)… and everything else.  Turns out that dropping your primary directors results in a directionless story, whodathunk?

Once I took off those rose-coloured glasses, I ran into the problem that it’s actually not possible to get from Season 1 to Invasion without fundamentally breaking the narrative in really unpleasant ways.   Deathly Weapons has since become fully canon-divergent from that break-point.  I want to pay respects to the arcs, themes and characterisation of the Oliva-Chang Season, which means Invasion wouldn’t reasonably happen in the DW!Verse.  Ergo, no timeskips, no character-assassinations, and Wally never gets randomly knifed to “subvert the expectations” of viewers who might be familiar with a prominent Flash-storyline from another unconnected continuity.  I’m not kidding: that is why Endgame ended the way it did, this is what Greg and Brandon think storytelling is, their opinions should not be trusted.

So in a way I guess that problem kind of solved itself.

But that’s not very satisfying, is it?

Looking back at my brainstorming notes from the before-times (when DW was planned with the loose possibility of connecting back into later canon), I had a post-Endgame future-fic idea which focussed more on Dick.  The idea was for Dick to end up at Danny’s apartment while trying to cope with losing Wally.  Once there I had a scene where he wanders aimlessly while Danny is out dealing with some unavoidable adult-life stuff, leading him to find some old photos of Tucker.  The main scene was going to be Dick having a “conversation” with Tucker’s (metaphorical) spirit - speaking to the memory of his foster-brother’s late best friend about his own now-gone best friend, and asking Tucker to look out for Wally wherever they might be now.

I suppose that’s more where my style of angst lands for grief/death arcs.  I like to focus on death arcs as a reflection of the character’s life – the specifics of their personality, the distinct impression their presence left on the people around them and how the unique hole they occupied aches without them.  I’ve mentioned this before in the Jason-ask but my general thesis is that we are haunted by absences more than presences; we project ghosts in attempt to fill the hole(s) left when someone abruptly vanishes from our lives.

Because of that I tend to have very different story approaches for metaphorical ghosts (which explore the internal struggles of living characters coping with a loss) vs literal ghosts (actual tangible creatures who represent an external struggle).  I know it sounds kind of ironic considering that I killed off about 70% of the core Danny Phantom cast for Deathly Weapons, but when I kill a character it’s usually so I can do a retrospective on the value of their life.  So long as they’re mourned well, I don’t personally feel a need to bring most “dead” characters back.

That said, there is a lot of potential angst that could come from someone “becoming a ghost” with the way I’ve been headcanoning it to work in Deathly Weapons.  In Chapter 16, Phantom mentions that ectoplasmic ghosts are formed when the impression of a dying person’s consciousness is preserved in ectoplasm and gives rise to a new entity.  In a best-case scenario you get a complete translation of the same person to a new bio-medium, but in other cases you might get an incomplete or warped impression – missing some pieces and exaggerating others, like a reflection in a funhouse mirror.  This is how I like to explain the humanoid DP ghosts being so gimmicky and single-minded: they’re a flanderization built from only the strongest parts of their living personality at the moment of death.  It’s also one of the reasons why Phantom and the others don’t rush to “well, they might be a ghost now” as an easy solution to characters dying or being presumed-dead.  Sure, that character might not be entirely gone… but would the pieces that remain actually be them?

It’s a style of horror that isn’t especially my bag, but I think there’s a lot of potential angst mileage in that specific brand of “came back wrong” – leaving a ghost that is uncannily like you but is missing the specific memories or details needed to actually make you you.  A familiar stranger – unable to be the person they were, having no say or fault in being what they are, but who everyone has to deal with anyway (especially if they retain enough memories to understand that they know you).

That said, there would be no situation in which Wally came back as complete ghost where he wouldn’t be completely pissy about it.  Just, the indignity of it all, really.  

Still, I think it’s worth considering that, while Wally is certainly giving Danny hell with where he is in the story right now (Mission 1 of Arc II at the time of this post), in any five-years-later post-DW scenario the two of them would be a lot more chill with each other.

While some of the YJ cast have ended up with relatively static planned personal arcs throughout DW (for clarity, a static arc is where a character doesn’t experience substantial personal change across a story – they may receive elaboration into their personality, history and/or develop new relationships with others but by the end they are still mostly the same person) I hope people can trust that Wally isn’t one of them.  Him acting like a sulky, stinky jerkass right now isn’t because I’m planning on having him be The Sulky Stinky Jerkass™ for the entire story, but because he’s at the start of his major personal arc.  His flaws are on full display at the moment because he’s going to have to confront those flaws, how they hurt him and others, and make the decision on whether (and how) to be better.

The loose timeline for DW’s planned story is that the main arc (right now comprising 11 planned missions) takes place over 6-ish months from the point where Phantom first joins the Team.  Wally’s personal arc is planned to be part of that.  Add an additional 4-and-a-half years on top of that and they would have had a lot of time to let the water settle under the bridge.

With that being said, we’re heading into the stormiest parts of the water at the moment.  The interpersonal angst is going to get much worse before it gets better.  Not somebody-dies level, but some people are going to hurt each other quite badly before the resolution and a LOT of yelling is going to happen. 

Here’s a teaser for one of the worst lines :

“Better that than some green-wood who gets people hurt because he wanted to play hero!”

Yeah, things are going to get mean.  It may be a different flavour than some expected but I am nonetheless intending to serve 4 chapters of angst, and more than one of the boys is going to get served a lot of crow to eat over that mess.

[threewaysdivided]

Reader appreciation time 💜🤍🖤

@mygoldfishateit, @kaiobeast, @strawberrycamel, @sheepheadfred, @mimeparadox and the small legion of other users and anons - thank you for being loud and curious and insightful in the tags and reblogs and asks.  I love hearing your thoughts!

@sons-of-mars, @pi-cat000 thank you for so patiently enduring my barely-hinged discord nonsense these many years.  And a more recent thank you to @youmaycallmeyourhighness, @immortalonus and the members of the DW!Discord for much rowdiness and many writing chats.

And of course, @doodly-doop and @cryxdraws thank you wildly and deeply for such lovely fic art.  I love seeing what my story looks like in your heads and am so humbled that you would deem it worthy of your time and effort.

I write fic and meta because I want to understand and tell this story, but I share it because I want to talk about these ideas and hear what you make of them.  Thanks for showing me what you find compelling about it, and for reminding me why I find it compelling too.

Motivation Monday 

Fans: tag your favourite fandom creators and let them know what an awesome job they’re doing. Add a comment to an unfinished fic. Reblog fanworks with enthusiastic tags. Send them an ask to let them know what an awesome job they’re doing.

Creators: tag your favourite fandom participants and let them know how they motivate you to do what you do. Send them asks of appreciation or dedicate some of your work to them.

Feel free to repost this header!

[gilbirda]

Thanks to you, I am now a Jason/Jazz shipper, so congrats. Kinda made me imagine a scenario when Jazz decides it's time to introduce him to her family. Obviously, meeting her parents goes as about you'd expect, but then Jason gets all sketched out when she's more nervous about presenting him to her *younger brother* than her father and she's kinda like, "I don't want to make you too nervous" and "I don't want any preconceived ideas about each other" which sketches him out even more lol.

Another victim of my flawless plan, I see

Now I want to write a Jason-meets-her-family fic.

AAAAAA

The brainrot is real.

[arzuera]

Bruh, I am so invested in Robin's Egg. I can't wait for the mass confusion when the "egg" that Damien has actually hatches into a freaking person. A freaking SUPERPOWERED GHOST PERSON haha. lmaoooo or if it happens in the middle of a big showdown, and Danny shows up as a Deus ex Machina right as everyone is about to die and pretty much singlehandedly wins despite still being kind of weak from the regeneration.

I'm also dying for Jason to have his first encounter with Damien's egg. There's no way he won't be able to feel some kind of weird energy coming from it.

I'm glad that you enjoy it so much! I have so much planned, and I'm excited as well for the reveal. There is so much I want to do!!!

It really does make me happy that you love my silly story so much.

[danphanwritingprompts]

Danny finally reaches the point of tiredness that he begs Sam or Tucker to thermos him so he can finally get some undisturbed rest. After much pushing and begging, they relent and it ends up being a pretty good idea except when they forget Danny is in there when they use that same thermos to catch a different ghost. Sex-talk-with-parents is not even on the same level of awkwardness as sharing-personal-and-thermos-space with one of your sworn enemies for an entire school day. 

[aziraphale-is-a-cat]

@kaiobeast

Bonus points if that kid is Jason as Robin and then Jason dies.

I want a Danny who wants to live. I want him running from the heroic stint he was forced into just trying desperately to live an average normal life not haunted by his parents or their great big portal fuck up.

I was his ghost form, as he starts to hate it and transforms less and less, to become more and more monstrous to fit the image of what it means that he's constructed in his head. More grotesque, and reminiscent of his death. His right arm permanently shriveled in a grim reminder of the incident that Kickstarted his stress filled teenage career.

I want a Danny that hates Batman, and Superman and Green Arrow, and Aquaman, and all the other heroes out there with kid sidekicks. He despises them for bringing more kids into this, letting them get so cemented into that way of life that they never even have time to concider any other career path than being responsible for everyone else's fuck ups.

I don't want himself scared of his past, I want him mad at it. Completely fucking outraged that as a fourteen year old who had just fucking died, he was let and even encouraged to take on the weight of responsibility for an entire town to the detriment of his social and educational wellbeing.

I want him to be a tragedy.

[ladylynse]

I want Lucius Malfoy to meet Vlad Masters so badly, it's like a real need at this point lol.

The man looked like a muggle—and a pretentious one at that—but if he were, he’d have been driven away by the anti-muggle warding, and the house elves wouldn’t have dared bring him to the drawing room. Still, Lucius knew all the purebloods in Britain, and this man certainly wasn’t any of them, so he kept his voice cool as he asked, “May I help you?”

“Whatever you are planning to do with Daniel,” the man said in a crisp American accent, “you should know that if he doesn’t manage to stop you, I will, and I can assure you, you will not enjoy my methods.”

-|-

see more fics | crossovers | have me write a longer ficlet | low-key set in this AU

[wildestheart4ever]

kaiobeast replied to your post: I have convinced my youngest sister to watch The...

Make her watch the First Avenger beforehand so she can have her heart ripped out like the rest of us.

Oh, she has already seen it [And really fancied Bucky when she first saw him lol]. I think she liked the movie???

[justheretobreakthings]

I had a sad thought today: For fifteen years, Keith assumed that he would never know why his dad ran back into the fire that took his life. Flash forward to the present, and Keith finds out that the person his dad sacrificed his life for was none other than James Griffin, age nine. James has no idea that the son of the man who saved his life is Keith, while Keith tries to comprehend the unfairness of it all.

James: “Uh, Keith… what are you doing?”

Keith, gently setting James on fire: “Shhh, just trying an experiment…”

[eravici]

Oh, that's a good idea actually. I might do that if that's the case. I always end up developing their lore and expanding it regardless of the world I put them in so I worry. But if it's already just as a drabble then I can come back to it later, as you said.

👀 I've been tempted. I really want to do something yummy for ABO Kidge. And I have a plot in mind too... (8

Some random prompts I’m afraid to write just cause they turn long, knowing me. |:

o1. Vampire Keith and Human Pidge

o2. Keith and Pidge play strip poker. ( okay, maybe not this one would turn long… )

o3. Soldier Keith and Princess Pidge

o4. A/B/O Keith and Pidge ( being real, I’d make this long or at least a series of some kind… )

o5. Childhood Friends Story ( I have one in mind… )

I have some of these with first chapters done but I’m afraid to write more. XD I mean, I already have another story in progress and three already uploaded. Do I need more? |: Maybe.

[threewaysdivided]

I find it highly amusing that I'm in almost half your top posts of the year lmao. As always, I frequently haunt your page looking for updates or tidbits on how YJDW is coming along :P

(Year in Review 2022)

Nuisance (affectionate and adoring).

To be clear: I absolutely love it when you and the other friendly ghosts (yes, you. you know who you are) come to haunt my notes. Whether that be with asks, @s, tag-rambles, general thought-sharing or anything in between. It makes me really happy that my blog is a place where you feel comfortable reaching out, and that people like my meta-rambles, stories and general nonsense enough to come asking for them. 10/10 please haunt again.

As for Deathly Weapons, I recently did a big end-of-year progress roundup if you want an overview of how things are coming along for the story. The current WIP chapter hasn't seen much change of late but there has been a lot of movement on future-entries and meta happening behind the scenes.

Have a great 2023! 💜👻🖤

[callaeidae3]

What You Prefer - Tag Meme!

I was tagged by @kaiobeast! Thanks! :)

Rules: Bold what you prefer and then tag 10 people to do the same.

Coffee or Tea - Both! I love black coffee and drinking all kinds of different tea from all over the world! My favourite kind of tea is Pu Erh, an aged tea grown in old forests! :)

Chocolate or Vanilla - Err, neither? Yeah, I don’t handle sweet things very well. If it’s chocolate then it needs to be 90% or above (or cocoa powder) and if it’s vanilla, then only subtle.

Spring or Autumn - Spring in New Zealand is such a refreshing time of year. The weather starts warming approaching the end of the year and approaching Christmas, so spring brings a lot of good vibes with it and fills the air with the scent of new growth!

Silver or Gold - It reminds me of starlight! I don’t wear jewelry, but if I did I’d chose silver.

Pop or Alternative - My favourite kind of music is soundtrack/instrumental, with my favourites being How to Train Your Dragon Soundtrack and Voltron: Legendary Defender Soundtrack(s). Since Voltron is pretty much alternative, I picked that :)

Freckles or Dimples - Fun fact: I have a chin dimple :P

Snakes or Sharks - Uhh, from a biosecurity point of view, I’m gonna say sharks. We have sharks in New Zealand. We don’t have snakes. We don’t want snakes. Australia can have the snakes. Not here. No thanks.

Mountains or Fields - New Zealand had pretty rugged terrain and beautiful mountains. I love how wild mountain weather is, the way it has a fierce climate of it’s own that puts you at its mercy if you’re up in that terrain (like, mountain weather can be pretty freaky, but it’s exhilarating.) 

Thunderstorms or Lightning - Lightning’s cool, too, but I love imagining the wind rolling about in clouds like a rumbling purr.

Egyptian Mythology or Greek Mythology - I’m not all that keen on mythology, to be honest, so I’m not really that familiar with either. If I had to study one of the two though, I’d pick Greek as it seems to involve many creative stories.

Ivory or Scarlet - Yeah, scarlet I guess. Mainly ‘cause, you know, Keith :)

Flute or Lyre - Both! Flute and harp sounds are beautiful! I play a traditional Japanese flute and guitar (I pick more often than I do strum) and I love the stillness their tones bring to the air and the soul (okay, that’s deep.)

Eyes or Lips - They say that eyes are the window to the soul :) 

Witch or Fairy - I prefer the idea of creative magic over dark/black magic.

Opal or Diamond - Opal = Libra, my star sign.

Butterflies or Honeybees - ‘Cause honeybees are so critical to the ecosystem!! And I love watching and listening to them humming away as they bob about the flowers in spring. 

Macarons or Éclairs - I can’t handle...that much...sweetness...

Typewritten or Handwritten - While I prefer type-writing when it comes to stuff you need to edit and change quickly to keep up with your thoughts (report writing, creative writing), I prefer handwriting as it is a more contemplative process and I have photographic memory, so that’s how I learn best (by handwriting lecture notes).

Secret Garden or Secret Library - I love fresh air. I love plants (that aren’t poisonous or invasive). I love the quiet. I’m assuming that this secret garden is located somewhere away from noise, or if it isn’t, that it provides a refuge from whatever business surrounds it (I’m getting really deep here, aren’t I?)

Rooftop or Balcony - You can go out and enjoy stargazing and fresh air easily on a balcony, even take some nice naps in the sun. Not so much on a rooftop.

Spicy or Mild - I like spicy, but I don’t like my mouth being on fire and my nose running and my gut aching and my eyes tearing up. A tutor managed to trick me into trying a particularly hot piece of chilli once. It was awfully hot. I cried so much it was that hot. Never again, dear chilli. Still...I can’t believe I was stupid enough to fall for that (laughs).

Opera or Ballet - I enjoy contemporary opera, but not so much traditional/theatrical opera. I’ve danced my whole life (not in ballet, though), and so I love watching flowing, expressive dances.

London or Paris - I can’t handle crowds and I can’t handle tight, unfamiliar streets and cities. 

Van Gogh or Monet - I’m more familiar with Van Gogh’s works.

Denim or Leather (not real leather) - Yeah, denim works with me.

Potions or Spells - It requires your own energy as opposed to requiring other resources which may not be readily available.

Ocean or Desert - I live in New Zealand. We’re surrounded by ocean. I’ve grown up in a town/city where the ocean is only 15mins drive away. So yeah, ocean. I can’t handle the heat :d

Mermaids or Sirens - They seem a little more peaceful...

Masquerade Ball or Cocktail Party - I can hide behind a mask and dance ballroom dancing as I do in real life. Maybe find a partner for once. Someone who can dance with me... else I guess I’ll just go find a quiet corner and dance by myself with Casper the friendly ghost.

Hmm...who shall I tag? @arwenride, @miyura-sarkana, @benny-isa-dog and @koganewest (as well as anyone who reads this and wants to do tag meme - I tag you as well!)

[bitch-i-migth-be]

Adorable 🥰

@maxthehecker @flopy-hana @everythingf2x @tru-reader @lasenkonsila @kaiobeast @one-summer-night-i-fell-asleep @void-and-nill @weedle-testaburger @1princessbeast @pa-pa-plasma @nonbinary-octopus @transmasc-tfw2 @dp-marvel94 and whoever else wants to make cupe cakes honestly

Go wild guys w i l d

Lmao here’s a game for you to do instead of doing actual work:

Use this picrew to make your blog aesthetic as a muffin

Here’s mine

P i n k

Ehem,

tagging:

@just-a-main-character @peachykavi @glittercrashhh @drabbledealer @opulencexx and y’all better not let this flop or I’ll cry<3

[phoenixyfriend]

kaiobeast replied to your post I try not to get involved in ship war nonsense on...

The reason why ppl don’t like Pidge ships is because it gets in the way of their M/M ships. That’s why Pidge is often made trans, shipped with Allura, or ace.

As an ace person who’s friends with a lot of trans people, and who always headcanons Pdige as trans and sometimes as ace... I’m gonna go ahead and say that “made” isn’t necessarily the best way to phrase this and is kind of dismissive of headcanons that genuinely want Pidge as rep. Correlation is not causation, etc.

I understand that a lot of people write Pidge as ace because they don’t ship her with anyone anyway and can claim diversity points since it’s easiest to write ace people in a scenario without romantic partners, and have done that myself before! But I also think it’s irresponsible to say that “getting her out of the way” is WHY people headcanon her that way. Those headcanons come about due to Pidge’s canon inclination towards science instead of romance and her Polly Oliver-style arc in the first season.

[ladylynse]

Have some Draco feels here, but I think Danny's approach to healthy family dynamics would really throw him for a loop. Yes, his parents love him, but they've instilled this NEED to always be the best and put a ton of pressure on Draco to excel and live up to their high standards of being a pureblood. Danny does not care how good or bad Draco does at anything, only that he likes doing it, and I think that unconditional acceptance without judgement would be the thing that draws Draco to Danny.

(re this AU)

Yes. Yes, all of this. The Fentons certainly aren’t perfect, but they most definitely are supportive of and love their children and aren’t afraid to show their love for each other. If you tossed Draco into an environment like that, he’d probably go quiet, not sure how to react, not sure how much is genuine and how much is for show, and he wouldn’t be comfortable doing anything until he’s figured out what game there is, what story’s being told below the surface or going on behind the scenes and whatnot, because he’s grown up expecting everything to have a double meaning or hidden agenda and not just. Being genuine. 

For all that Vlad tried to teach him that life’s a chess game, Danny knows it’s not, or at least that it doesn’t have to be, so he’s certainly not going to play games when he’s thrown in with the Malfoys--at least not with Draco and his emotions. That’s very different from pranks. Danny has had people manipulate his emotions before, and he can recognize it now when it’s being done to someone else. Proof that the entire world isn’t going to demand something of you, that every action or good deed or kind word isn’t a precise interaction, something that’s expected to be reciprocated in equal or greater amount at a future date as opposed to just generically passed on in hopes of making everyone’s life a bit better, is something that Danny can do for him.

And, like you say, Draco’s always had to live up to incredibly high standards. He’s never really had a chance to be himself. Danny would highly encourage him to just be himself when they’re alone, hoping that would give him the confidence to drop the act more often when they’re not. Not being the absolute best at everything doesn’t make him less. It makes him normal. Danny could help tease out some of Draco’s actual talents--ones he’s not necessarily aware of because such interests/skills aren’t seen as the most desirable and therefore worthy of time and effort and enjoyment--and help him learn to appreciate himself for who he is, since chances are very good he doesn’t, as he’s too busy trying to be someone he’s not--or doesn’t have to be.

[justheretobreakthings]

Okay, I just had a thought, but what if Keith's hybrid status makes him have really bad reactions to medication? It would make doctor's visits SO STRESSFULL, and like, allergic reactions and drug toxicity to medication is super dangerous. LIke imagine if he gets injured in the field, he absolutely HAS to have specialist care, especially for blood transfusions incase he gets a hemolytic reaction. Imagine this happening on Earth before Voltron, and nobody knows how to treat him?

Oooh, yes, the medical records doctors on Earth have for Keith must be a nightmare. I know I and a lot of people share the headcanon that when Keith gets hurt or sick, he hides it and doesn’t let anyone help him, and this could be a good reason for it: in the past, getting medical attention was way more stressful than getting sick or hurt in the first place, so he’ll do whatever he can to avoid it.