#lemur writes

[lemurious]

you. my godsdamned main character. behave. here is a plot for you to follow, pspsps? psppspspsps?

(character demands a digression because he has just decided to reminisce about some Important Event)

okay, please remember that you are still here, now walk into this alley, you will see the Secondary Character you need to meet.

(character demands another five paragraphs of him having a Problem and being Supported by yet another character with whom he will now enter a Situationship)

here, good, good, you two are talking, excellent, please keep going, now you have this important Strategy to construct and an Event to be an Unreliable Narrator about.

(character insists on inserting a few jokes of dubious quality and demands an entire backstory on the side)

okay! i will now go to sleep and get back to you tomorrow

(character makes Sad Eyes and demands to discuss his current emotional state, followed by a plot twist that has not been planned whatsoever. right. so now we are getting the Pure Magic of Getting a Fic Written Through Me)

(sleep has not happened, tomorrow is looking decidedly blurry.)

[stimstar-of-stimclan]

sonic merch

source | source | source source | source | source source | source | source source | source | source source | source | source

[bowserbowser29]

The Guardian Angel

[whimsical-sonic]

the sillies

[ID: A digital, colored piece of Whisper and Tangle. To the left, Tangle's eyes are closed with a big, open-mouthed grin. She is posing, doing jazz hands with one foot in front of the other. She is wearing a maroon-colored jacket and black sweats, her shoes reminiscent to her typical ones.

Whisper is facing away from the viewer at a 3/4 angle. Her head is tilted down, smiling. She's wearing a black hoodie, one hand in a pocket with the other holding her cane, obscured by her tail. She's wearing jeans and black sneakers with white laces.

End ID.]

[themightyhumanbroom]

When we were first introduced to Surge and Kit, I figured that Starline had made them from scratch, and was lying about them having lives beforehand.

But he had no reason to lie. So there’s the worse option, that he not only erased who they used to be, but utterly destroyed any trace of them.

And if they had families, did he kill them?

I wouldn't put it past Starline, being the perfectionist he is, to not only make absolutely sure there isn't a trail that leads back to him but to also to kill some people's parents just so he could have the perfect subjects. But the main obstacle to them having families theory is the can of worms it opens if it were to be true.

Where the hell are everyone else's parents?

It would be a weird plot point because it expects the audience to be shocked about the absence of parents when just about the entire IDW cast don't have any parents active in their lives with the exception of Cream.

And I guess Jet?!?

It gets weirder if you consider that Tangle and Jewel were childhood friends. Who was taking care of them? Were they orphans or had their parents not died yet?

To make things worse, the opportunity to organically introduce the cast's parents has long since passed.

Why? The Metal Virus is why.

Nearly the entire planet got subsumed by the virus. By the end the only organics left seemed to be on Angel Island. If there were parents wouldn't have all of them done everything in their power to make sure they were safe? It can't even be said the writers didn't think of this because of the Cream and Vanilla subplot.

In short, if there was an opportunity to introduce people's parents, it was then.

Why the writers haven't addressed this is anyone's guess. Maybe they don't think it's important or maybe something was proposed but was shot down by the higher ups who want to keep as much distance between them and the Archie Comics (where much of the cast have parents alive and active in the story) because of goddamn Ken Penders.

This makes sense with the OG cast, I can completely understand not wanting to traverse that legal minefield. The thing is that the same problem with Surge and Kit's parentage extends to the IDW original cast. It would also be kinda weird looking if the IDW cast got parents but the OG cast didn't.

This has been a really long way of saying It's a fun idea but I doubt we're gonna learn anything about their, or any of the casts for that matter, parents.

But that's what fanart and fanfiction is for. And believe me, I'm working on it on the fanfiction front.

[vy-canis-melodis]

Animal HRT - Two articles that changed the world.

(before I begin, content warning for a fictionalised bigoted newspaper article, and disclaimer that this is all fiction)

The following is a newspaper article in a lesser-known local broadsheet. It was not particularly widely-read, except for by other journalists for big newspapers looking for a scoop of their own. Little did the author know, this was the very first article about therian HRT to release in general news, and would indirectly cause the beginning of a period of fear and trepidation for those undergoing these treatments. Which is a shame, because the original journalist seemed very progressive and accepting for the most part.

New Horizons - A deep dive into those undergoing a radical new medical procedure.

By Vanessa M.

Part 1 - The Sighting

“Vanessa”, the portly gentleman I call ‘boss’ asked to me, globules of spittle flinging themselves in my general direction, “Why is it that I saw a bleedin’ werewolf on my way to work?”

“Um? A werewolf? I don’t know, sir, why do you ask?” I balked, unsure whether this was supposed to be a test or not.

“Gah,” he sighed, putting a palm to his creased, sweaty forehead, “Me eyes don’t work like they used to, but I know it was there. I was close to ‘em. But you, you’re young and spry, so I want you to be our… investigative journalist for this one.”

I gaped for just a moment before composing myself.

“You’re putting me on a case? Thank you, sir, I’ll get right to it and get you a story!” I couldn’t hide the smile on my face.

“Ah, grand,” he said gruffly, shaking my hand, “make it a good one too. Readership isn’t great at the moment.”

“Right…” As I slinked out of the office door, I heard the flick of a lighter and a mutter.

The high street wasn’t exactly bustling this time of day as I headed down… nor was it really bustling any time of day.

Where once proud department stores stood, shuttered shops stretched far, interspersed with the odd betting shop, kebab joint, and Turkish barbers’.

I walked briskly past the few groups of drunks that were dotted along the pavements, ignoring the hollers and cat calls made not to me but to a passing car most likely - I keep my head firmly down walking through here, not wanting to attract any unsavoury attention or associate myself with it in case of patrolling police officers.

I kept my pace, slowing only to let a stray plastic bag slowly amble its way across my path, until I reached the outskirts of the town, where this so-called ‘werewolf’ was last seen.

And so, I waited. The sun continued to slowly wheel its way around the sky as I accosted random passersby with the question “excuse me, have you seen… a werewolf, or any form of furry humanoid, pass by here recently?” The most common responses were either a confused glance, a handwave and a ‘sorry’, or an attempt to pretend they hadn’t seen or heard me.

A couple of hours in, however, as I was starting to lose hope, I received a peculiar answer: a narrowing of the eyes, a pull to one side, and a low ask of, “why?... Are you a cop?”

“H-huh?” Flabbergasted, I could not speak for a moment. I had to quickly try and regain my composure. “No?” That was probably a failure.

A spark of recognition, however, flashed across the person’s eyes, and I could see he was a small but stockily built man with a slightly unkempt face, and clothing that reminded me of a scene kid from a decade ago. “Oh. Ohhhh… Are you, uh…” He proceeded to wave his hands around in what looked like a type of… gang sign? It was a bisected circle and a triangle - which I recognised from my old Classics course as a theta and delta.

I didn’t know what the modern meaning was, but… this could be my only chance to find out what’s going on. I knew I didn’t have time or the possibility to question or falter at this moment. This could be a breakthrough, and after hours of nothing I was getting desperate. So, in what was perhaps not the best idea ethically in retrospect, I just said “yes.”

And that, dear readers, is how I ended up unintentionally infiltrating the Therian Community.

Part 2 - A Community

We established a bit of a rapport after that. For the sake of privacy, I will refer to him by a fake name - Keith.

“Sorry about the intimidation earlier - she’s kind of vulnerable at the moment, and I…” Keith looked somberly to the ground, clearly an empathetic man, “I don’t want her suffering any more than she already is…”

That was the point where I started to think ‘what have I gotten myself into?’ There were a lot of questions I wanted to ask in that moment. Her? This werewolf is a person? And, suffering any more? What’s going wrong?

I asked if it would be possible to see her one day - see if I could help, perhaps. He said he’d consider it. Naturally, I gave out a fake name and my journalistic burner number. I then asked if there was a way to keep in contact outside of that, and apparently there’s a small online community which he invited me to! Jackpot.

Before I decided to go any further, I wanted to do a little research.

In brief, this ‘theta-delta’ sign is not, in fact, a gang sign, but one for ‘therians’, a community of people that identify with animals, to some extent, and would rather be an animal than a human. The kind of animal you are is known as your ‘theriotype’ or ‘kintype’. Some of them wear costumes, some role-play, and some enjoy it sexually.

I did my research, and created a fake little profile - I picked my favourite animal, the skunk, and joined. Let me tell you, I’ve never had a more friendly welcome to any group ever than I did at this one. They accepted my fake persona entirely and treated her with absolute kindness.

And there were all sorts of people here. Cats, dogs, reptiles, cows… dragons? I was surprised by how diverse this phenomenon was - a lot of them were in the LGBTQ+ community, many were from minority or disabled communities, and many were neurodiverse or even something called ‘plural’ which seemed to be similar to Dissociative Identity Disorder?

I wanted to make sure I didn’t come across as suspicious or journalist-y, and while I did record all conversations, I won’t be revealing any names or identities, as it would obviously put these people at risk. Asking questions in a more friendly banter sense, I did get some answers.

“I suppose it’s a spiritual thing for me” said one of them, a friendly fox-man, “I feel a sense of kinship with foxes. I behave like one, and I dream of them. Sometimes it feels like I’m in the wrong body - I get phantom limb in my tail, too.”

“It’s my ideal form!” Said another, a goat person, “Who’d want to be human anyway? Sounds boring!”

I later learnt that this so-called ‘werewolf’ was actually a lemur girl. But here’s the kicker. She is on a treatment program to actually turn herself into a lemur. And I’m not talking about plastic surgery that breaks your bones and transplants butt hair and makes you look like Johnny Rotten at 200% punk. I’m talking about a real treatment program that transforms her on a genetic level. There’s a clinic on the ‘dark web’ that lets you start that procedure, which is officially listed as a clinical trial of various types of skin cream. That’s where this story, this journalistic opportunity, went from a piece about a strange community of people, to perhaps the scoop of my lifetime. How has this not been reported on before?

Apparently, this clinic, run by a ‘Dr. Erian’, running semi-legally, can prescribe you a treatment plan with only a few hoops needing to be jumped through. This worried me. I’d heard horror stories about people travelling to other countries to take on cheap cosmetic surgeries with fewer hoops to jump through and things being completely botched before. And the people taking this treatment are of so many different ages, from school-children to older adults. Are they being scammed? Are they in danger?

And thus, with this line of questioning, I decided to book an appointment with this ‘Dr. Erian’. I don’t think that’s his real name, however, as the profile gathered for him doesn’t line up with any birth records I could dig up. I got an appointment surprisingly quickly, only having to wait a few days. And those days were some of the most stressful of my career, and I’ve been at crime scenes and war zones.

I had to ask myself ‘how do I get answers out of this guy?’ I got the feeling that he wouldn’t have been particularly receptive to an interview if I told him I was a journalist. Getting the information I needed but not having him kick me out, or stop talking, or worse, turn me into some kind of animal, was going to be a huge challenge, but it was what I had to do.

Before the appointment itself, Keith recontacted me to say I could meet with the lemur girl. I prepared myself for another tricky interview.

Part 3 - Face to face

A few days passed, and it was time to meet with this lemur girl, ‘Kayla’ (not her real name). The day was bright, and I brought along some pastries and snacks from the local bakery to break the ice a bit.

I walked slowly, nervously across the town to a small apartment block in an average area. Normal human people walked around; I felt their presence drilling into me like they knew I was hiding something. I stood, finger hovering by the doorbell, for what felt like hours. I was about to step foot into a whole different world, and I froze.

And then she opened the door, and I could do nought but stare. She was almost like out of a fantasy novel. Fur covered huge patches of her body, rich whites, blacks, and greys. A furred tail hung behind her, swishing left and right. No socks on, her feet were like long hands, fidgeting with the carpet fibres. I describe the bottom first, because, well, she was shorter than me by quite some margin. Hoer slightly oversized head craned up to mine, giving an expectant gaze.

“Yes?” A slightly squeaky voice asked. I stammered out a quick apology, and said Keith had told me to see her, and she softened, asking if I was the one interested in ‘the treatment’, and that she know “that wishful gaze you gave me” well. On the inside, I was confused, but I just chalked it up to nerves.

She offered me tea, and set about making it. Her face was mostly furred except for patches without on her cheeks and the bridge of her nose - now more of a short snout, ending in a wet dark point. Almost glowing, her yellow irises searched the kitchenette. Fluffy, white, round ears poked up out of her grey head-hair which was tied into a high ponytail.

Using her hands and feet, both with opposable thumbs, she climbed onto the kitchen counter, filling up the kettle with two hands and grabbing mugs dexterously with her left foot, while her tail wrapped around a cupboard handle. Her whole kitchen routine was so elegant and awe-inspiring, and she shone so brightly while doing it. You can tell when someone is so happy it radiates out into the world filling it with colour for everyone else. Her tail uncoiled as she moved and waved, coiling again to another cupboard handle to keep balance. It was breathtaking.

After the tea was done, we started to talk. I explained that I was still new to the community, that I wanted to know more about Therians, how she knew what was right for her, and about Dr. Erian and the process. I tried to come across as someone who was innocently asking these questions, and I guess either my acting skills were great, or there was more to myself than I knew.

She asked whether a skunk ‘felt right’ to me. I said I wasn’t sure, and she asked whether it was because I could be a hybrid of some sort. I wasn’t aware that was even a possibility - apparently yes! It’s not just animals and dragons; there are also hybrids, slimes, fictional species, eldritch beings, and more. Even though the numbers of people undergoing this treatment is in two digits, the variety is more than I could even imagine. I stammered out ‘maybe kangaroo?’ and we carried on.

How did you find out about yourself? I asked. And the answer she gave was very enlightening. She said, tail almost wagging, that she first saw lemurs at a zoo when she was five. She stayed with them for the whole day, something feeling right. Like she belonged with them.

The pure authenticity and emotion in her voice and body language cannot be understated. And while it took her a long time after that to understand her feelings and that she wanted to be one, I could tell that with every fibre of her being, she really did feel like, maybe even was, a lemur.

“Of course, yes, they’re cute and sweet,” she told me, “but to me… it’s more than that. It’s a form of being.”

I said - “I’m guessing, then, that as soon as you heard of this Dr. Erian bloke, you were right on it.”

“That’s right!” she chirped, “I’m not the first, but I am an ‘early adopter’, to use that term. Half a year later, here I am! Finally the real me. Yeah, primate HRT is quicker than other mammals, and other animals too.”

She remained still for a moment, and I knew not to interrupt.

“The interview’s pretty simple. Convince him this is what you’ve always wanted. He’ll ask you if you’ve lived as your preferred species for a year or two. Fabricate some evidence for that, he doesn’t look too deeply. Stay strong, my friend.”

The process is apparently very strange. A mix of surgeries, hormone therapy, and gene editing over the course of months if not years. Watching your own skin change colour and grow thick fur or scales, or something else. Feeling your bones and limbs shift around, grow new ones, or have them wither away. Experiencing your whole body grow or shrink. It all sounds terrifying. You can’t deny the dedication of these people, and their bravery.

But she seemed so happy about it, saying that the pain and hassle was all worth it.

Our meeting did eventually have to end, and we bid farewell on good terms. It was at this point I began to feel pretty bad about the whole thing. I’m fine with talking to Dr. Erian, but… lying to these people leaves a sour taste in my mouth. These are marginalised outcasts for whom the one bit of hope they were looking for has finally arrived. What if my reporting contributes to something bad? But, I suppose my job does hang in the balance. Whatever happens, it was now time for me to meet with the infamous Dr. Erian.

Part 4 - Man of New Medicine

The infamous Doctor himself is located in [REDACTED]. Turning off the M25, I drive [REDACTED] and, realising that I’d held my breath for about fifteen minutes, I turned left into the clinic. It’s not a particularly fancy place - there’s no signage or anything, and the front just looks like someone’s house. But I knocked, sweatily, not knowing whether this would be my last knock or the beginning of a new journey. A few nerve-wracking seconds follow. And then, I hear it. A shuffle, then a cough, a sigh, and the door opening. And there he was. Wrinkles on his face beneath his glasses, a bushy moustache emulating that of Nigel Mansell at the front, and wispy strands on top the only stars in the void of hair between the graying sides behind his ears. A white doctor’s coat over tweed framed a beerbelly, situated in the center of his short, chubby body. Not the look I expected from a scientist and doctor in charge of a revolutionary new therapy. Holding a mug of lukewarm coffee designed with the familiar theta-delta sign, he gestured for me to come in.

Having sat down, I stared awkwardly at my own mug of coffee that he’d given me. It seems he wanted to give me the floor. But, for all of my journalistic training, for all of the advice I’d been given, for the script I’d made which I tried to memorise, I just froze at that moment. Was it his piercing gaze? The elderly-style room filled with decor that seems to have eyes that follow you around the room, judging you? The wallpaper, intricately detailed and patterned with - eyes? Who is this guy? Or, wait, is it just me seeing things?

“So, skunk, huh?”

I was dropped out of my stupor by that casual comment from the man. “Oh, um, yes. That’s what I was… hoping for.” Some of my confidence had been restored, but I just wasn’t in the groove yet.

“Look. It takes a lot of effort for someone to find my services - a lot of effort,” he repeated, “to go through, to seek it out, to search for someone who can recommend you, to fill in the form, even to come here. So, if you’re serious about this, which you have to be to go through all of those steps, I’d like you to open up a little more. We can do this more casually. This isn’t a job interview where I’m analyzing your handshake and posture, but I do need to find out what route is best for you.” Leaning back, he pushed up his glasses with his index finger, them reflecting the light from his weak sepia-toned incandescent bulb, concealing his eyes in the light.

I recentred myself with a few breathing exercises, slipped back into the persona I had crafted, and began. I told him about the desire to be a skunk my whole life, that I felt a strange kinship with them, everything that I’d been told before repeated through my mouth. We went on, me telling him exactly what my friends had said to, him asking me simple questions, easy peasy. I didn’t even make any jokes about skunks being smelly or farting. Then came the first obstacle.

Have you spent time living as your preferred species? Yes, I said. He asked for proof, but this is where I decided to go into journalism mode, and ask him something. Why is that required? He gave a sigh, and provided what I wanted.

“Technically, you don’t need it. And I’m well aware that not only is it impossible to really do so - given that in order to even make an appointment with me, you’d have to participate in society: something that you can’t really do if you’re properly living as an animal. The question’s more like a test. I know that most people lie, but it’s how they lie that’s interesting. Do they dress up? Act like an animal in public? Private? And so on. It’s just… interesting.”

We carried on after that for a little longer, until I reached the second of my journalistic questions. Are these procedures safe? Where did you get them from?

“There is a risk to any procedure. Anyone who has experience with transgender hormone replacement treatment, for example, knows it increases the risk of certain cancers. Therian hormone replacement therapy is much the same, except radically different in almost every way. And the process is elementary, my dear, um.” The man let out a light cough. “Simply take the essence of what that person feels on the inside, and let the medications do the trick for the outside! With certain species, surgeries are needed, especially when it comes to vertebrae - and the physical therapy is part of it too, but for the most part, it isn’t ridiculously complicated!”

I noticed he didn’t answer me on where the research from this came from, but I wasn’t sure how to tell him that without arousing suspicion. If he was dodging questions already then that might be a bad sign. Or was it that he just didn’t remember I’d asked? I tried a slightly alternative angle. “So what, is it like CRISPR or something?”

“I’m afraid it’s classified information, but you’ll feel it once you’ve…” He seemed to be lost in thought for a few moments, “started the treatment.”

A wall pushed down on my head. I righted myself and pushed further against it. “How many people are in your care?”

“Oh, many. A hundred, officially? Maybe a few more.” He lowered his head, the light reflecting off his glasses obscuring his eyes from me. “But who’s counting?”

I felt the wall’s pressure even more. Was I starting to buckle? Beads of sweat formed at my forehead. “Are they all animals or are some of them, um… fictional… creatures?”

“Oh, it’s ever so varied. Perhaps you’ve seen the results of some of my work, but there are others; others so beautifully different to everything we thought we knew about nature.” He let out a hearty chuckle. “We don’t need to constrain ourselves to what’s real any more. People can be whoever, or whatever, they want to be.”

“A-anything?”

“Anything.”

I stayed silent for a long time after that, eyes wide and unfocused, mouth hanging somewhat limply open. The wall pressed upon my hunched back.

“I’ve heard,” the Doctor broke the silence with a hoarse, crackly voice, “many peoples’ worries and trepidations over the years. People worry about the danger the treatment poses to them, and the danger they might pose to others. But I trust that my patients will do the right thing. Now all that’s left is for me to trust you. Are you sure you want to be a skunk? That you want to go on this journey? And that you can keep yourself safe and sane until you have finished?” Upon saying this, he leaned forward, eyes drilling into mine. 

The wall pushed and pushed, my back creaking under the pressure, until it all let go at once. I had decided my next plan of action. Of course, it’s all fairly straightforward. I was just here as an information-gatherer, and I’d found out quite a lot. The idea intrigued me, and perhaps in the ultimate journalistic sacrifice I should go through with it - though I’d certainly demand a higher salary to do so. But I needed time to think. To process everything.

“No.”

In retrospect, it was a simple answer, but perhaps the most difficult no I’ve had to make in my life.

—

And that was the end of the article. But not the end of the story. After this got published, a few days later another article was found in a national tabloid. It had poached items from this story without the consent of the author, and was eventually taken down, but the damage was done. Because instead of a deep and emotional look into one author’s journey down the rabbit hole of knowledge, it was merely a bigoted hit-piece against a newly forming marginalized community. Little did either of the authors know, that these two articles would be the first dominoes that brought about something much greater.

This is an extract from the tabloid article in question.

The new woke claiming to be ANIMALS, DRAGONS and FICTIONAL CREATURES, and worse, taking risky surgeries to become more DANGEROUS predators.

In a bizarre and disturbing twist of fate, there are people taking dangerous medical procedures on taxpayer money to turn themselves into disgusting animals.

“The woke left are finally showing their true colours”, a disgruntled co-worker of one of these so-called ‘therians’ said to our reporter. “My employee enters my fast food establishment and she’s covered in fur. Probably flea-ridden too.”

A story in the local news of the town of [REDACTED] was brought to our attention by our reporter. He contacted the author of this article but she declined to comment.

This reporter’s boss was almost brought to his knees by the sighting of a savage beast roaming the streets. But instead of a bigfoot rumour, this was once a human whom the author calls ‘Kayla’ - but as an exclusive, we managed to find her real name, which will be revealed at the end of this article.

The reporter meets with Kayla, while pretending to be one of them, and is directed to the literal Frankenstein that conducted all of these procedures. It is revealed that not only do they ‘fabricate evidence’ of what seems to be a case of ‘species dysmorphia’ in order to get the surgeries they want, the doctor knows that and still goes ahead with these dangerous procedures anyway.

“You don’t need [proof of species dysmorphia]... I know that most people lie.” He told the reporter.

“There is a risk” he later says, regarding the procedure itself, which often takes months if not years and can be incredibly painful and debilitating, meaning patients often have to get themselves classified as disabled and live off the benefits our taxpayer money is spent on. Similarly to “transgender hormone replacement treatment… it increases the risk of…cancers.” 

The doctor himself even confesses that he and patients are worried about “the danger that [those very patients] pose to others”, but that he simply “trusts them to do the right thing”. He says that people can, and should, be “whoever, or whatever, they want to be.”

This man is not only creating dangerous creatures that are then let loose into society, he is trusting them to make their own decisions. How long will it be before one of these ‘therians’ murders or preys upon an innocent child? How can we protect our own families from those that seek to turn themselves into the very predators that used to lurk in the shadows of our ancestors, waiting to pounce and eat them? We at this newspaper urge the government to stop this madness before it is too late.

The real names of the people involved are as follows:

—

This was the second article written about therians. And things only got worse from there. While Dr. Erian’s real name was not found out or spilled, Vanessa and Kayla were targeted. Therians were outraged that Vanessa’s article would find its way into the national news as a hit piece. While some directed their anger at Vanessa herself, some were supportive of her. Kayla fled her home, and is now reported as being on the local missing person’s registrar. Keith was sentenced to minor community service after finding this out and assaulting Vanessa, who later moved away from her hometown after losing her job. Erian still works at his practice. The world is in a slightly more unstable place now, with public knowledge of therians pretty much guaranteed.

The first government debate about the existence and classification of therians is just around the corner. This could be a pivotal moment in the history of mankind, and I for one am not sure which way the pendulum will swing.

[imadethisaccountforwhispangle]

HI BITCHES i made a short 'n' sweet lil whispangle oneshot for da pride month prompts in the rainbow hill zone server (y'all might've seen it floating around it's been posted here recently) the prompt was PRIDE! im happy with how it turned out :D have a good pride month whispangle fans and remember #dykes4lyfe

[shatter-song]

She shakes her head with disappointment, “No no, this won't do at all. How are you supposed to find yourself a husband looking like this? This disgusting overweight body of fat…” The older sheep tuts with disgust. “No man would ever find this attractive enough to want you.”

…Was it really that bad? Lanolin attempts to examine her body with an equally critical eye her mother has. It didn't look bad. It just… looked like her. (Or: Lanolin's mom is a fatphobic asshole who thought she could get away with the same shit at the Restoration.)

please read the tags before the fic, just as a warning,,

[rivka-kopelman]

working on new scenes~ you can read my project here

https://www.tumblr.com/rivka-kopelman/734951066650722304/tableofcontents?source=share

[lemurious]

2024 stories

tagged by @malkaleh , thank you very much!

Leitmotif of the year: memory & legacy & history & how all of these are influenced by whose words survive, in the end.

My best story of this year: My favorite and/or truest story of this year: I don't know about "best" and I feel I am not the one to judge, but my favorite this year is the last chapter of To Be Remembered.

Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion: more like, in a fandom that needs more stories - that would be my Alcibiades story, A Garland of Violets

Story with the single sexiest moment: I am very, very ace for these :D but, I did write my first M-rated stories this year (extremely tame, of course). So. Mark Antony and Cassius at Hellespont.

Most "Holy crap, that's wrong, even for you" story // Hardest story to write // Best title: Heroes of Their Time, a take on the Iliad that is might-be-modern-might-be-ancient throughout most of it and deliberately modern at the end. It's not really wrong for me, but it is dark and it was hard to write. In the way war is dark, and it is very, very hard to come back from one.

Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters: Mme Pontmercy Pays Her Respects put me squarely in the Support Cosette At All Costs camp for Les Miserables.

Biggest disappointment: uh, none? I am Unimportant Enough that people don't come to my fics to be unpleasant, fortunately!

Biggest surprise: Les Miserables and its wonderful fandom <3 <3

Most unintentionally telling story: And Crimson Like the Dawn, because after writing it I realized how much this year will be known as The One in Which Lemur Develops Social Consciousness.

Story I haven't yet written, but intend to: A proper longer-form fic about Catilina! And a Les Miserables AU about Cosette living happily ever after and co-authoring a certain Brick.

I am really awkward at tagging because What If I Annoy Someone so please consider yourselves tagged? I would love to see it for folks I follow on Tumblr <3 and art or story, too!

[promptcorner]

I’ve been having this thought for a hot minute, and I can’t hold it in any longer.

You all know the number one rule of ghosts? Don’t ask a ghost how they died? Well, let’s expand on that!

What if ghost stories are put in a similar vain? When a human tells a ghost story that is actually true in front of another ghost or in their haunt, or it’s completely fake but the story is about said ghost, they get mad.

Like how in those ghost hunting videos where the hunters share the story near or in the haunted forest or something and the ghost gets pissed. They will either ignore them out of spite or haunt their butts in response.

The thing is, they’re fine with telling people their stories. But only their own story and only if they want to, because it’s still their death story. Unless they know about another ghost’s story and for plot reasons the ghost in question can’t tell it themselves, think the Pariah Dark episode where everyone is sitting around a plug-in camp fire, then they’ll share it.

It would be funny if Danny just never tells a ghost story, especially his own. He doesn’t know what stuff he makes up could be true and make a ghost attack him. Danny is also just tired of hearing ghost stories because of his parents at this point.

So, he goes around it by telling people internet movie/TV/book theories. I’m thinking the Mort Theory.

Just imagine Danny telling a group of people around a campfire in a haunted forest who have NO clue what Madagascar is and sully focusing on Mort in the Theorizer’s tone. He summarizes the first hour or so of the theory (the part where the Theorizer just goes episode by episode and explains the plot and points out all the weird stuff that happens) and it does the job.

It pokes fun at telling ghost stories while not insulting anyone and scaring everyone in the process. And bonus! Danny doesn’t have to share his story for a while!

[bowserbowser29]

Headcanon:

Bark likes and knows how to do ice sculptures

(Cue to whisper and tangle,visibly flabbergasted at a sculpture of them made by bark because he wanted to)

Given he’s also good at knitting, I imagine he’d knit their shirt/cloak for the statue just for extra shits and giggles

[themightyhumanbroom]

Just had a really funny idea that a lot of the IDW original cast has a lot of weird or alarming misconceptions about humans on account of the only human they've met being Eggman.

Amy decides to educate them about humans after hearing Tangle say with way to much confidence that humans have to eat a dozen eggs everyday or they melt and everyone (Jewel, Whisper, Lanolin, Surge, Kit) didn't question it. This group lesson goes off the rails and the only conclusion the six of them came too, much to Amy's frustration, is that humans love guns but are all terrible shots.

[qqlettuce]

In Defense of Tangle

I and many of my peers had a pretty heated response to IDW 57 after Tangle's "Big OOF" moment. Given everything we know about their friendship up to this point, it almost seems like character assassination, but after letting it settle and putting more thought into it, I don't think it's as bad as I initially thought. Where I think things went wrong is that the audience didnt have enough context for Tangle's perspective up to this point. When we last saw her, she parted ways with the Resistance to go on a solo search for Whisper. And now all of sudden she's plopped back into this new situation. We have to remember that Whisper was the one that initially left Tangle. This parting that as we know, caused a lot of emotional disruption for Tangle.

And later in 57, Tangle is clearly put off by the mere idea of Whisper trying to separate herself again. Whisper keeps trying to run from her and I'm sure as someone who thought she was the other's closest friend, this would cause a lot of pain and confusion.

I think this would have all hit more effectively if we had gotten a glimpse of Tangle's search. Going out of her way to find someone she truly cares about and with a much more optimistic view of their reunion and future. Her search would be come to a halt when Jewel gives the call to action and possibly even mentions that Whisper is there? This is something that should be good right, she's going to see her best friend again! Looking back at the RI cover, a lot is told that we definitely didn't realize right away. The colors are bright and poppy, there's a cute pose going, and the girls are finally reunited and clasping hands! This issue should be all about fun and cuddly things right? But their expressions spell uncertainty! On the surface everything feels so bright, yet something is wrong. That's kinda how I believe Tangle felt reuniting with Whisper again.

Tangle and Whisper aren't in sync anymore. They've had a lot of time away from each other, Whisper just went through another horrid moment in her life that re-opened a lot of wounds. Tangle seemingly didn't know this from the beginning, and despite the past, the Diamond Cutters aren't an untouchable subject to Whisper. Tangle isn't stupid, she honestly comes off as one of the more emotionally intelligent characters, so I can only believe her namedropping the Diamond Cutters again was an attempt to get positive affirmation from her. She doesnt understand why her friend is acting so coldly around her and she continues to cut her off. I feel Tangle has done more than enough to try and understand Whisper, but now I think it's time for Whisper to understand Tangle.

Still though, I think there was a lot missing from the narrative to properly set this all up and have it not feel so sudden and out of place. I think a filler issue was definitely needed to see Whisper recovering from the Surge dilemma and Tangle on her search to get a good feel of the contrast in their state of minds.

Also even if you still think Tangle's comment were insensitive, I don't know how Whisper gets a pass for this.

[whispangleblogger]

I am not somebody that hops onto the "comic discourse" a lot. I usually prefer to talk things through with my friends and share opinions in private.

But since Tangle more or less got ignored so far i take the chance and talk a bit about her appearance in 64

She jumps in as a supportive character towards Whisper and helps her to prevent another breakdown. While yes, there was a scene in Urban Warfare that did the exact same thing, i feel like with issue 64 we finally see how strong of an impact this support actually has on the page. (I talk a bit more about Urban Warfare further down this post.) I don't even dare and call this bait (Edit: Not my words btw. i saw this used in another heated post. I personally never felt baited in any form. If anything, the girls relationship is one big highlight in these comics.) because it simply isn't. Here is a character that cares for her partner and also is uncomfortable with the whole situation to begin with. She has to decide where her priorities lie. Her reaction is to be expected to be focused on a trembling Whisper and all i can say is i'm glad we finally have a good depiction of that.

Tangle has the right to approach Whisper in ways i think no other character is able to, she earned it and it pretty much shows on this page. Softly taking down Whisper's mask and checking on her, the body language in these panels is chefs kiss. She's truly a bouncy girl, but it's good to see her being serious every now and then, i feel like it's a side of her that people usually tend to ignore. (And i really don't know why that is.) Evan Stanley does always an amazing job if it comes to showing Tangle in a different light or how she cares about her friends and loved ones. In regards about the current arc and even the last one, i feel like this post is a good chance to add my personal take to it as well, since it's been on my mind for a good while now. I feel like 64 finally makes a step into the right direction again.

To elaborate a little on that, i wasn't really a big fan of Urban Warfare, simply for the fact that it's pacing is all over the place. There were a lot of things that needed to be covered, to name a few: - new team building - Whisper's trauma - Lanolin introduced as a new character - a LOT of other teams jumping into the scene - the city itself all squeezed into a 5 book arc. One more book compared to a mini series that usually gives full focus to a set of chosen characters.

To make this clear, there are also good things in Urban Warfare as well but thanks to the fact how rushed the whole story felt in it's core it's a bit hard to enjoy the good bits as well...

Misadventures still deals with the same pacing problem and i believe that is where the real issue lies. As a reader/collector of the books and longtime fan of them, all i can say is:

I wish the comics would get their old, well cared, time for details back. Yes, a story like the Metal Virus was a long run but in the end it was a fantastic read. Mini arcs like Trial by Fire (Still one of my favorites), that focus on other things instead of the usual action, are also very important for character development and add a lot of depth to them. Endless Summer is a great example for such addition as well. These books provide insight into character interaction we usually don't see otherwise. Of course i have no idea how much SEGA is involved into everything if it comes to general decisions like how long one arc is supposed to last and when the next one should start.

(The next part is based on my personal taste, this has nothing to do with the general narrative of the books. I just want to share my thoughts about this since i really don't write them down a lot.)

As a little side note, i feel like Lanolin is a great character so far. Her stubborn and rule book like demeanor as a leader is refreshing to say the least. She also seems to be really close to how her creator ABT imagines her to be and i really appreciate that. But i can't help it and feel like her team dynamic with Tangle and Whisper comes of as rather… rocky ? On a combat level of things it works really good but on a friendship level it's somehow lacking atm. There is this boss and coworker relationship going on that feels more like real work. Obviously though she's new and needs more time to get better established. I guess we will see how this plays out in the future. I'm all in for a good or funny team dynamic but i also can't help it and feel like she works better as an addition to Jewel, running the restoration, the navigator typ that sends intel via com instead of a field combatant. Even if she proved she's good at close combat as well during her encounter with Whisper in 64. That being said, i am all open for surprises and more character development on her part. This is really just a "now" opinion and can easily change over time. I like the sheep, i really do.

[pocketscribbs]

my favorite thing is when Sonic artists get creative and consider the characters’ abilities/personalities when drawing them in action

my personal favorite example is Tangle the Lemur and her fabulous tail

she ziplines down grind rails, she’s probably fast enough to spin dash regularly but she instead uses her tails to create her own “spiral dash”(this is what i’m calling it)

just one of the many reasons why I think Tangle is such a fun character, her excitable and thrill-seeking attitude mixed with her powerful, stretchy tail makes for some creative and entertaining visuals