#may be reworked later

[dreamaze]

Planet Nine : ISOTROPY Beautiful Ashes ✧ Shoot It Out ✧ Meteor Shower draft vs. final versions

[freckledsokka]

wip wednesday

a wee snippet of the self-indulgent tense-fuckery zukka fic i'm working on that no one asked for! most of this fic is sokka (ghost sokka? spirit sokka? who knows) waxing poetic about zuko grieving him, but i wrote this scene with korra for a touch of levity (while still being a little angsty).

note: this is NOT a reader fic. do not let the use of "you" fool you. this is fully from sokka's pov as if he's narrating this to zuko.

"You remind me of him," you tell the Avatar, something wistful tugging at the corner of your mouth, reaching to the creases of your eyes. Korra looks almost bashful, or maybe just flattered. "I get that a lot," she says quietly, as if it's a sore subject but she doesn't want to offend you by mentioning it. You smile at her, warm and reassuring. "I don't mean Aang." "Oh." She sounds surprised, which quickly gives way to embarrassed when you offer her an encouraging smirk to help the thought along. "Oh," she says again, nearly in a different octave. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I should have realized that's — of course, that's who you meant." She laughs nervously, waving her hand vaguely at herself. "Southern Water Tribe, duh." "It's not just that," you tell her, and her nervous energy seems to settle a little at the calm, smooth tone of your voice. "You have the same tenacity, the same spirit. He would be proud to see the Avatar you've become."

Korra is quiet for a moment, either out of respect or simply a loss for words. Then she smiles, a little sheepishly but no less grateful to be honored in such a way. "Tenzin told me he — the Chief? — was with you and my father the night the Red Lotus tried to kidnap me." She looks away, guilt seeping into the set of her shoulders, the way she wraps her arms across her chest. "I'm sorry, I — Did he —?" She glances back, eyes bright, pleading for some kind of forgiveness she doesn't need to be given. "Was it my fault?"

"Korra," you say slowly, frowning, placing a gentle hand on her arm. "What did Tenzin tell you? The Red Lotus had nothing to do with Sokka's passing."

Her eyes go wide. "Really? But he made it sound like — I mean, my dad became Head Chieftain not long after that, I thought —"

You can't help the chuckle low in the back of your throat, a rumble of distant thunder, warm as a summer storm. "No, Korra. Sokka never was particularly suited to be Chief. He felt it was time to pass it on, is all. That, and he felt he could do more good behind the scenes, or through his work in Republic City. But, more often than not, he was with me. Those years were some of our best." 

Korra lets out a trill of nerves, huffing in relief. "Thank the Spirits." A beat, the haunted look of someone who is technically thousands of years old yielding to the vulnerability of someone barely out of her teens carrying the weight of the Spirit and human worlds on her shoulders, knowing she is the reason your — our — friend is gone. This is the cycle we were all prepared for, and yet — "Is that why I barely remember him? Didn't he ever visit Katara at the compound? Why didn't he ever say hello?"

"I wish I could tell you, Korra, but he never gave me his reasons." A wry smile. "I'm sorry if I kept him from you."

Korra twists her mouth, setting her jaw defiantly. "Lord Zuko, if I may —" She isn't really asking permission and you know this, but you nod anyway. "That's bullshit, and you know it. He was your husband. Don't tell me you didn't know just because he didn't tell you."

Your mouth twitches knowingly, even as your expression remains impressively neutral. "I had my suspicions, of course."

"Which were?" Korra presses.

If she weren't the Avatar, I suspect you would've said something along the lines of None of your damn business or Nothing to concern yourself about. Being the Avatar still has its perks in dragging honesty out of you, it seems. Still, you manage to make it a whole production, sighing like it physically pains you to admit it. 

"He wanted to wait until you'd mastered all four elements before he would teach you" — an exaggerated eyeroll, fingers pinching the bridge of your nose — "the 'fifth element.'"

Korra's brow furrows. She blinks like she's waiting for a punchline. "The — what? There is no fifth element, unless you count energy, but —"

"I know," you agree, exhausted. "I know."

"Then what?" Korra demands, sounding as flabbergasted as she looks.

You take a deep breath, wearily replying, "Swordbending."

Korra is frozen for a moment, maybe in shock, maybe in disbelief. Then she bursts out laughing, bright and cool as snow crunching underfoot, until it dawns on her that maybe you weren't actually joking. "Wait, really?" she asks incredulously. "He actually wanted to — to teach me? Why didn't he just team up with Katara? Spirits, it would've been so much fun to have a swordmaster around."

"You told me you have to learn the elements in order, Zuko," you say in a poor imitation of my voice. It's been so long, you've almost forgotten it. "He didn't want to influence your bending, or distract you from your role as Avatar, or so I assume."

Korra huffs. "Sounds an awful lot like he did tell you things, then," she mutters indignantly.

You shrug. "Not in so many words. He said a lot without ever saying it." That wistful slant of your mouth softens into something closer to melancholy. "When you're with someone as long as I was with Sokka, you learn to read between the lines. We had our own language, in a way."

"But if you suspected, why didn't you say anything? Why not encourage him?"

There's a sadness in your smile, an ache in your eyes. "Because, young Avatar," you say gently, "you always think you'll have more time."

[shiori8]

Unholy Trinity just vibin'

Crawling out from the depths of inactivity to bring you the latest product of one of my all-time hyperfixations lol. Damn, this series will never cease to have an absolute choke-hold on me.

[le-agent-egg]

Anyone who potentially sees this, I have a question! I’ve been working to cross stitch everyone from Trigger Happy Havoc, but I’m going on vacation soon and have limited space for stuff. Obviously. So!

Keep in mind Taka is currently being worked on, and I’ve done Chihiro, Leon and Mondo!

[nocturnalghoul]

Mushy May Day 5: Hair braiding

Dew and Mountain have regular hair braiding events going back to when they were first summoned. Rain learns the serene intimacy that comes along with braiding somebody's hair and having somebody braid your own.

I might rework this into something longer and/or more in-depth another time, but enjoy this for now. Happy Mushy May <3!

Words: 573

Rating: Gen/Everyone

Read below the cut or on AO3 here

The event of the night was a near sacred ritual for Dew and Mountain. They had originally learned how to braid hair from one of the sisters in an attempt to keep it out of their faces during practice, but within a few short weeks both found that they had come to appreciate the silent intimacy that the gesture brought and it all had blossomed from there. 

The two established a monthly tradition to dedicate at least one night every month to weave as intricate of braids as they could into the other’s hair. Mountain would always bring small flowers that he thought would compliment the other ghouls long silvery hair to weave in, and Dew would bring fascinating rocks and trinkets that he would find in the lake or nearby river. It added an extra layer of knowing one another that made the night feel extra special.

The first time that the ghoulettes saw them after one of these nights they had immediately asked to join, and the pair were more than happy to let them. It seemed like the perfect way to grow closer to the new ghoulettes. Dew and Mountain taught them slowly how to braid, but no matter what they always did each other’s hair so that the original intent of the tradition was never lost. 

Now here they were once again with their newest addition to the night. Rain had not really seen the point of the tradition at first, but now as he felt Dew’s fingers softly work down his scalp grabbing small sections of hair he was starting to understand. 

The combination of the soft hum that Dew let out as he concentrated and the attention to detail made him feel so seen and cared for considering the simplistic action. He had decided to start small, mostly wanting to observe the other ghouls before jumping in fully, but the delicate pull of the twin french fishtail braids that Dew had talked him into was leaving him wanting for more. 

Rain watched the intricate looping braids being built up by Cumulus on the other ghoulettes head and was mesmerized. He had no idea what was happening but the serene look on Cirrus’ face and the dedication on Cumulus’ left him feeling almost jealous. 

Right as he was getting lost in the motions of the ghoulettes he felt Dew’s breath ghost across the back of his neck as he hummed in satisfaction at a job well done. After securing the hair off with an elastic, Dew moved to pining occasional forget-me-nots that Mountain had brought into the water ghoul’s hair. 

“Those really bring out your eyes, Rainbow” Mountain called out from across the room where he was trying to organize the trinkets that he and Dew had brought. “I’m really glad you decided to join us” he heard Dew whisper just loud enough for him to hear, the tiniest whispers of his broken purr beginning to start up. 

Finally the fire ghoul finished and brought him over to the mirrors so he could see how everything looked. 

“So Rainy, do ya like it?” Dew prompted, moving the small hand mirror around behind Rain’s head so he could get a view of the back. 

“This is so much better than I imagined. I adore this.” he replied, a loud purr of his own kicking up. Yeah, Rain would definitely be making an appearance at these functions from now on.

[demonsfate]

Wikia, would you believe me if I told you this Monster High character was named Kuma?

WELL tbf Kuma probably wasn't allowed in the Mishima Polytech School or whatever the fuck due to being a bear, so Heihachi had to send him to Monster High for an education.

[attroxx]

he is very 'shounen protagonist' coded

[sm-002]

more doodles of my slasher mc, alter!! 🎆

[hydriadd]

Unfriendly reminder that under no circumstances should you dox someone or share other information about them online. You doing that raises the risks of them and those close to them being both physically and mentally harmed and is quite honestly fucking disgusting. Basic human decency doesn’t go away the minute you go online and you have all gotten way to comfortable with the ability to hide your identity.

[anulithots]

The Rose. Episode 4 - "Wild"

Monkia has infected my computer and now my mouse won't work, sooooo.... there's that.

I handwrite these and have my paper tablet translate it to text, and it thinks the fairies fae/faer pronouns are wrong and I hate it. For clarification, fae is pronounced like "fay" and faer is pronounced like "fair".

There should be one more episode for Rose, I couldn't fit the *reveals* I wanted to in this episode, but the last one should be out soon <3

And if this series has taught me anything, it's that aha moments are HARD,.

A tumblr houseplant story from @briarborealisart

The info post is here

Episode one - "Thorns"

Episode two - "Maidoe"

Episode three- "Petals"

Note - this is still a first draft, any feedback would be much appreciated. Especially for this one, this is a super interesting concept to explore, but my brain found it so difficult, and comments on if I got to the core of this would be appreciated. <3

-----

Puddles had been the one to tell Rose to hug others. Fae said everyone liked surprise hugs, the 'quintessential show of affection.

Maidoe didn't like hugs.

That, or Rose never realized how sharp fur thorns actually were.

Rose could've blamed Puddles. Maybe fae did. Fae didn't know. Rose just enjoyed Puddle's company more than faer anger. 

Rose flicked faer tail & trotted to faer plant, carefully checking to make sure their needs were met. It seemed okay. Large trailing vines, full of wild glory, with the bloom - a showcase of wild ingenuity.

So why didn't the others work that way?

Money tree glared in faer direction whenever Rose passed by - as if Rose's advice was a personal offence- before sitting with Venus.

Puddles was more absent than usual, not at all willing to have their usual debates. and fae completely shut down Rose's help.

And Maidoe?

Maidoe left. Never to be seen again. Because Rose had tried to forget faer thorns.

Rose climbed the trailing vines, inspecting each leaf for infestation (never could be too careful after the recent scare).

Rose was wild. Rose had thorns. Rose was Rose. Fae didn't know how to be any other way. Fae didn't WANT to be any other way.

So why couldn't these houseplants look at Rose's own success with faer plant & see...

....how well fae took care of it.

What did Rose do so differently with faer blooms? Fae settled upon faer high-knot -sanctuary, kneading the vines as fae thought.

Well, Rose watched & listened. Fae waited for any signs of distress. then gently eased it to how it would grow best.

And with the others?

Rose tried to give them thorn-y hugs they didn't want. But that didn't mean four thorns were bad... it just meant that Rose needed to... "cultivate" faer friendships.

Fae needed to listen and watch and only give advice when they needed it... or when they showed signs of distress..?

Rose climbed from faer perch to the base of faer plant.

Perhaps fae could ask questions. That would be helpful.

Like to Puddles. Rose found faer sitting beside Maidoe's tree, stroking the leaves.

Rose sat next to faer. "What can I help with?"

"Just... sit here, with me? For a little while."

Rose flicked faer tail "Of course"

There were ways to not poke the others.

Without covering faer thorns.

------

[Next episode - "Gone"]

if you don't mind the little self-promo: reblog this with one kind statement to "water" rose, let's spread some wonder to this convoluted place <3

And spread the word to anyone else who would like to add their houseplant to the garden, perhaps we can fill tumblr with houseplants.

[cassandralexxx]

jJudas

There is a strange duality in the guilt that comes from religion

It compounds on itself.

It is going to confession for the crime of loving another

feeling like a traitor.

Not just to yourself... your God... but to the other

You are judas.

The love you shared is like that forsaken kiss in the garden.

In that confessional, you realize that your lover is Jesus

and You are Judas

It shatters me: to know you is sin but to renounce you is hell.

[heart-of-the-multiverse]

Fun fact this thought process was the EXACT reason I made the following spell when i was younger:

Spell name: essence of void

Incantation: Kurtrak Imploy (must speak kurtrak again to activate the magic once imbued unless they can route a connection to a triggering rune (advanced only))

Main magic type: darkness

Physical activation: caster must be touching the object they are imbueing with darkness energy (or if said object is the hand must be able to join their hands together for energy focus)

Spell effect: the caster imbues an object they touch with inactive darkness energy on a delayed activation. The energy will hold in this object until used up or runs out of darkness to fuel it (similar to a battery). Upon activation the imbued object will let out a burst of energy of pure darkness towards wherever it is pointed the shape of this wave of darkness depends on the obj4ct imbued

We’ve made flashlights but we haven’t made reverse flashlights

[boogiewoogieweeb]

looking at a wip you've worked really hard on and knowing that you're going to have to abandon it because things just aren't working out no matter how hard you try feels like throwing one of your beloved, trusting children down a well to drown so that their siblings can have a chance at survival at least

[puppyluver256]

Don't look away.

The hands clasp the sides of my head tightly, preventing me from moving.

Don't look away.

The person they belong to force my gaze onto grisly scenes of death, destruction, torment.

Don't look away.

I stare in horror at all the suffering before me.

Don't look away.

I close my eyes, but the hands' impossibly long fingers force my eyelids back open.

Don't look away.

My eyes begin to water, whether it is because of their being forced open for so long or my heart breaking at all I see I cannot tell.

Don't look away.

Why is this happening? I cry.

Because of reasons you will never be able to understand. Keep watching.

Is there anything I can do to stop it? I ask.

You must inform anyone you come across of this travesty. You must not let them look away either. But the suffering will continue regardless. They are all convinced they are in the right, all fighting for the will of a god that they will never confirm to be real, in fact the same god in wildly different interpretations. All the while, the innocents caught in the crossfire will continue to die, glorified in the disgusting "honor" known as martyrdom.

If there is nothing substantial I can do, I plead, then why are you forcing me to watch?

[endlessburningdarkness]

how to go from daydream to draft:

begin by daydreaming as you normally do, or just after you've finished doing so. write down every thought you have. one after another. do not reread. do not stop for spelling mistakes. just dump out every thought. this is called stream of consciousness writing. you can do this for every scene you need a first draft for.

struggling to draft the scene? try to daydream about it. start thinking about how it would look, feel, what the characters would say, act it out in your head and then write out the stream of your thoughts as they arrive.

by now you have a few scene dumps. you may be tempted to go back and edit. do not do this expect for obvious spelling mistakes. do not read closely and start thinking "i need to rework this sentence." that is for later. now you're in the zone. draft more scenes. or work out what the next scene needs to be, scaffold it with a few comments. this will be the inspiration for your next deliberate thought stream that you will write out. repeat this process until you have the whole draft.

now that you have a draft or part of a draft you get to do this very fun thing called revise until you're happy. sweep through your draft with specific goals each time. one sweep to fix spelling/grammar. another for character voice. another for plot. repeat until you're happy with it.

leave it alone. just leave it for a bit. at least a few hours or days or even weeks. forget it exists. this will allow you come back with fresh eyes. then you can do your revisions with an eagle eye. now you may realize you need to add/remove scenes. you know how to get the first version down. close your eyes and daydream at your desk if that's what takes!

remember that fiction writing is persuasive writing. you are trying to persuade the reader to care about what happens next, the character's, the world, the feelings. as you're revising, consider whether you are persuaded. is the feeling/thoughts you wanted to provoke being felt by you when you read it? when working with beta readers, be sure to communicate what you're trying to convey so they can tell you if you've been successful or not.

this got a bit beyond getting the first draft done. hope you found it helpful.

bonus tip: check the spellings of names and places and other nouns that are not typically used, like the name of a magic tool!