#mel writes i guess

[the-patrex]

I have seen a LOT of discourse about the finale so here is my final opinion on it: I Liked it I thought it was Very Bad

[karmelarts]

its 2026 and the fourth star trek movie just came out. im sitting in the middle row a little to the left. chris pine shows up on screen. a chorus of jangling carabiners erupts throughout the audience, signaling that yes, i am in fact surrounded by lesbians, why wouldnt i be. this is star trek. we watch the movie. its okay. just okay. kirk is his womanizing self to a maximum for some reason. he listens to rock and sometimes roll. spock is a little more flamboyant than he usually is in this series but maybe thats just zachary quinto trying something new. anyways there is a scene after the climax of the movie where spock talks about what it means to be human and how kirk showed him the beauties of humanity. he then confesses his gay love to kirk and it goes unrequited except for a pat on the shoulder and a smile from kirk. (this is happening in a windowless room) credits roll. directed by rob speight jr. supernatural trends for a solid two weeks.

[melverie]

So......about Solomon

Before we get started: Discussions on this post are more than welcomed as long as you keep it civil and constructive. At the end of the day, this is still a game about fictional characters, so there's no reason to literally harass others over liking or disliking a character If it truly upsets you that much--which is valid btw--than the best thing to do would probably be to simply not engage with the other party, and not harass them over it; you won't change anyone's mind that way. I know most of you aren't like this but unfortunately it still needs to be said Also, if you want me to add sources to some points, feel free to ask! I've tried to mention the chapters as I go, but I might still have forgotten some. Some of the arguments I make are also hidden behind certain player options; if you can't find them, fell free to ask about them and I'll gladly tell you Also also, general spoiler warning for both the og game and Nightbringer. I'm not really covering anything specific after lesson 60 in the og game and lesson 14 in NB, but I might still mention things from later lessons

Now, onto the actual topic. There've been quite a few arguments against Solomon in the past few days, but I mostly just want to focus on those three:

Solomon wanted to force MC into killing Lucifer at the end of season 2 in the og game

Solomon betrayed the brothers and keeps hiding behind "wanting to protect humanity" as a scapegoat for his actions (putting these two together bc I think they go hand in hand, but it'll make more sense later)

Solomon tricked Asmodeus into a pact without his consent

This entire thing is very long, so feel free to jump around if one point interests you more than another

Solomon wanted to force MC into killing Lucifer at the end of season 2 in the og game

[mainly 38-12, og & 38-15, og]

He did, yeah. But here's the thing

They were all forced into a corner since the fate of all three realms was on the line here, and with the Ring of Light's whereabouts still being unknown at the time, they literally had no other choice if they wanted to save everyone. It wasn't Solomon that randomly decided the only way to restore the Night Dagger's power was by killing a powerful demon, it's always been that way. And he can't just be like "Oh well, let's switch strategies then and focus on finding the Ring of Light" when the entire cast (minus Simeon) has no idea where the ring is and the last time any of them saw it was centuries to millennia ago, if not longer. They don't have the time to search for it considering all the destruction MC's Ring has already caused in such a short period of time

Solomon first tells MC to do kill Luci, only to add that he was just joking and knows MC would never actually go through with it. Then, he says that if they wouldn't do it, he'd do it himself. Which kinda sounds like forcing, right? Except this happens [38-15, og; pic below]:

He was prepared to, which doesn't clear him of trying to indirectly force MC, let's get that straight. But ultimately he drops it and accepts that maybe their only option really is to just die here. This is also the only time we see him acting against his beliefs btw

Also yes, Solomon might not have been the one that decided they needed to kill a powerful demon, but he seems to be the one that settled on said demon being Lucifer. The only other viable options would most likely be Diavolo and Barbatos. Don't know if the Demon King in his vegetative state still counts but similar to Diavolo, killing him would probably be seen as a direct declaration of war, so they're out. And from a strategic standpoint, Barbatos is the better option to be kept alive simply because of his powers. There most likely also is some kind of sentimental attachment at play here since Solomon is much closer to Barbatos than he is to Lucifer. None of justifies killing Lucifer of course, but we also need to acknowledge that everyone's hands were tied, they were out of time and given the circumstances, this was probably the best decision they could have come to (until Simeon showed up with the Ring of Light, of course)

Solomon betrayed the brothers and keeps hiding behind "wanting to protect humanity" as a scapegoat for his actions

First of no, he did not betray them. Ever since the end of season 2 Solomon has made it clear that his ultimate goal is to protect humanity and that he, similarly to Diavolo in regards to the Devildom and its denizens*, would do anything in his power to protect the human world and its inhabitants [38-15, og; pic in the point above] [38-19, og; pic below]

*friendly reminder that Belphie was charged with treason for planning to destroy the human world, since in Diavolo's eyes that would have severely damaged the chance of peace between the three realms [13-14, og]

Solomon continuously sticks to his beliefs. He said he'd protect humanity, and that's what he's doing. He never extended that kind of protection to the brothers, he never made any false promises, he didn't betray them in any way, nothing

I'd also like to point out he's not actively going out of his way to antagonize demons, or angels, or whatever. In fact, he even explicitly says that he does not wish to make an enemy out of either party [10-A, NB; pic below], which of course also extends to the brothers

You can even outright ask him if he's planning on backstabbing the brothers, and this is what he has to say [11-8, NB; pic below]:

And you know what? That is a valid concern. They can't say for sure what the future holds, and they just recently had to deal with the entire Ring situation that could have very easily destroyed all three realms, so wanting to be cautious and to be prepared for the worst makes sense. He also makes it clear that he does not wish to fight the brothers if it can be avoided, so there's that

And no, he's also not tricking MC into siding against the brothers in Nightbringer. Rather, he just wants to know that they're fighting for humanity should the relationship between humans and demons in general ever turn hostile. He puts the cards open on the table and gives a proper explanation to his reasoning for siding with humanity [11-8, NB], and once again goes a little further into detail before MC gives their answer [14-16, NB; pic below]. Plus it's up to the player if they choose to stand with him or not, and no matter what you choose, he accepts the decision

Also keep in mind that season 3 heavily suggests that the human world at large has no idea that angels and demons even exist, so MC is pretty much the only one he can even ask to help protect humanity alongside him to begin with. He can't just go up to a random guy on the street and ask them to fight something who's existence they aren't even aware of in the first place

Imo Solomon also seems to know more about where things might be heading than he lets on, with him actually knowing Nightbringer and whatnot, so granting himself some peace of mind by making sure he has at least one ally is perfectly reasonable

Also, Solomon is very much aware that he is not infallible. For example, he states that he realized he still has a lot more to learn about demons [60-20, og], and he even admits that he doesn't always know what the right course of action to any given situation is, which was part of the reason he first asked MC to help him with protecting humanity all the way back in season 2 [38-19, og; first pic below]. In season 2 he actually wanted for MC to be aware of what's happening, but it was Diavolo that decided it would be better to keep them in the dark for the time being [36-18, og]. He trusts MC's judgment and that they will help him make the correct decisions [14-16, NB; second pic below]

Solomon tricked Asmodeus into a pact without his consent

Before I get into anything, let's summarize the base situation so everyone's on the same page. This is based on the things Asmo tells us [53-16, og], as well as the things Sol tells us [6-18, NB]:

Asmo was trying to flirt with someone but their friends kept on telling him to leave them alone since he's a demon -> Asmo's dejected by this and goes to a tavern in Solomon's hometown

Solomon notices and feels sorry for him; he offers to talk to him and they chat for a bit

Asmo lets it slip that he's Lucifer's younger brother

they get drunk and end up forming a pact -> Solomon says that he was only able to forge a pact with Asmo because his judgment was impaired at the time

Right of the bat--yes, the way Solomon got his pact with Asmo is not okay. I'm not putting that up for debate. He fully took advantage of Asmo here, and there's nothing that can excuse that. I also want to make it very clear that it is in no way my intention to relativize this in any way. The way he went about getting this pact is, to put it simply, fucked up and I do not wish to condone that in any way. With the following points I simply want to explain how I see things. Maybe it'll put things in a slightly different perspective for you, maybe it won't. Now, I hope I made that clear enough, so let's continue

The way I see it, Asmo seems to be pretty okay with the pact. From the way he acts around Solomon in the present day all the way to him describing his reaction to the pact as just a "did I really sign that" [53-16, og], nothing seems to suggest that he holds any ill feelings towards Solomon, and personally I don't see any reason to be angry for someone who himself seems to take no issue with a situation that is directly about him

If it were as upsetting to Asmodeus as some make it out to be, surely he would have found a way to get out of it? Asmo is one of the most powerful demons in the Devildom; if he truly wanted to break the pact he could have just killed Solomon and that's it. And if the pact itself somehow prevented him from doing so, I'm sure Lucifer would have more than gladly stepped in. Heck, I bet all of the brothers would have made it into a family thing in a heartbeat if Asmo wanted out but couldn't do anything himself. As Thirteen told MC, Solomon is immortal, not unkillable

But speaking of Lucifer, shouldn’t the same sentiment about forcing others into a pact be held toward him, too? Because he basically did the same thing with MC. This is what happens when you tell him you don’t want a pact with him [20-14, og; pic below]:

Yes, this comes down to player choice and yes, you need to make the pact for story continuity, but it ultimately does not change the fact that in-universe he forces MC into a pact if they say no

Also speaking of forcing others into a pact--Mammon and MC, anyone? Yes, MC did it because Levi asked them to so he could get his money back. We know they had no ill intentions. But you never know what the future holds and Levi literally proposed to basically hand over part of Mammon's agency over himself for the money Mammon owns him, to someone Levi has met about 5 minutes prior, knows nothing about and who's only been in the Devildom for a couple of hours at that point, no less. Lucifer also mentions that demons literally cannot resist temptation [4-10, og; pic below], so there literally was no way Mammon could have just noped out of that pact. We all know how badly he wants his credit card back, after all

To top it all of, we have MC's and Mammon's conversation in Nightbringer where Mammon explicitly says that he would only want to forge a pact with someone that is special to him [2-9, NB], and that he'd make sure to be their first pact [2-11, NB], yet he is forced into his pact with MC. A pact that ultimately turns out to be exactly what he wanted, but nonetheless he was stripped of the ability to say no when it was forged

And for the record, I'm not saying "oh, others did it too, so we shouldn't be so harsh on Solomon!!!" No! Forcing a demon into a pact isn't something that should be taken lightly. A pact literally means a demon hands a huge chunk of control of themself over to a human for as long as the pact exists. And on the other hand, for a human, making a pact with a demon usually means selling their soul. Neither party should EVER be forced into it. We of course don't know if MC actually sold their soul to Lucifer when they made their pact, but even if they didn't, Lucifer's "I won't belong to you. You will belong to me" speaks for itself

What I am trying to say here is that if you want to be mad at Solomon for forcing Asmo into a pact without Asmo's consent (which, again, is valid), you should also be mad at MC for forcing Mammon, and Lucifer for forcing MC into a pact

Anyway, back to Solomon now

Solomon actually admits that he used to treat demons like collectables--more or less, at least since he immediately follows the confession up with "just kidding" [14-14, NB]. Judging by what we've seen in the og game though, he seems to genuinely make an effort to better his relationship with the demons he has made a pact with, or at the very least with Asmo and Barbatos. I mean, the difference between Sol's relationship with Barbs in the og game vs in Nightbringer is night and day

In the present time, Asmo and Solomon are also super close. I literally cannot think of a single instance where they did not get along (though it might have happened like once or twice). You can literally pic any part in the og game to see their relationship play out, but some highlights include Solomon saying he got a huge oil painting of Asmodeus as his "permit" to summon Asmo across worlds [39-13, og] (which is not something you would allow someone you hate to do btw) and both of them mentioning that the two of them repeatedly hang out together in the human world [Proud Brothers, devilgram on Asmo's page, og], the hickey on Solomon's neck that's most likely Asmo's doing [Who Left the Hickey?, daily chat with Mammon, og]. Asmo (while drunk) is comfortable enough to tell Solomon that his cooking sucks and Solomon actually takes it to heart [47-16 hard mode, og]. Then there's Asmo's excitement at Solomon being in the Devildom for the first time [Proud Brothers, devilgram on Asmo's page, og; both of the pics below]

There's also that infamous chat pic of them doing face masks together (that I unfortunately don't know which chat it belongs to, so if someone could tell me, I'd appreciate it <3)

I don't know about you guys, but that's not typically an activity I do with someone I despise

So it's clear that current day Asmo holds no malice toward Solomon

Which, finally, leaves us with the way they forged their pact in Nightbringer

[mainly 7-12, NB & 7-15, NB]

@impish-ivy already went over it in this post, especially in the tags (I highly suggest checking out the reblogs as well btw), but to reiterate--Asmo was IN NO WAY forced into that pact. His brothers tried to talk him out of it, but at the end of the day Asmo willingly agreed to it. Yes, they were in a dangerous situation, and yes, Solomon used that as a basis to ask for the pact, but as ivy correctly points out in the tags, Lucifer could have easily handled the situation by himself, yet Asmo agreed regardless. By implying that Asmo was in any way, shape or form forced into that pact you're not only taking away a huge amount of his agency, but you also deny him his character moment and development that came with this scene. Asmo himself says that forging this pact will finally help him accept himself as a demon. Taking this moment from him is doing him a huge disservice

Aaaand that's pretty much all I have to say

If there's anything else you'd like to add, OR if there's anything you don't agree with, feel free to share! And once again, I'd like to remind everyone that civil and constructive discussions are more than welcomed on here!

Anyway, thank you all for reading, hope you have a great day! <3

[fazedlight]

Borrowed Time (S1 canon-compliant angsty character study)

Fort Rozz was heavy.

Heavier than Kara anticipated, as she struggled to lift it above her head, as she shot into the sky with shaking arms and panting breaths. Fort Rozz was heavy, and it was the last thing she would ever lift.

She couldn’t cry. Not now. There wasn’t time, with Myriad’s vibrations getting closer and closer to destroying humanity. If she started crying, if she broke her concentration, she wouldn’t be able to complete her mission to throw Fort Rozz into space.  Everyone was counting on her - Alex and Eliza and Winn and James and Cat Grant and all the others that she once cared about and all the people she had never met.

Her muscles ached, and yet she was reaching space so quickly. The air became thinner and thinner until Kara was gasping for air that would never reach her burning lungs. She watched as the edges of her sight narrowed, as her vision began to tunnel from the lack of oxygen. And all she could think about was how she was the last - how Aunt Astra and Uncle Non were dead, how the remaining kryptonians were in stasis on Fort Rozz, how she would share with them the same grave in the expanse of space.

It had always been borrowed time - she was a mistake, an aberration, a fluke to have survived the destruction of her planet. Last daughter of Krypton, they had called her. She supposed Kal would still be the last son, of a culture he never knew. He was a beginning, not an end. Not the last vestige of a dead world. Not like her. Rao, make my journey bright.

There had never been a certainty about afterlife. Her people whispered the words we will remember you in every dawn, and await the night we join you in the sky as though it meant something, and yet she couldn’t be certain if it was literal or not, or if existence in the afterlife would involve any meaningful level of consciousness.

But it didn’t matter - far more important was may Rao protect us, so that we might protect others.

She never set out to be a vigilante. That was Kal’s purpose - until it wasn’t. Until happenstance clawed out at her, and she felt with growing certainty that this was the way to honor the lost. And so it only became the greatest irony of her life that she would have to thrust her remaining kin to their deaths, to save the found family who had given her refuge. 

She wondered what death would be like, and baffled at the fact that she would be experiencing it soon, as she finally breached the atmosphere and noted the gentle curvature of the Earth into darkness. She had learned so much about the planet’s customs, learning to camouflage in one of its many cultures. Her traumatized 13-year-old self never imagined that vigilante or martyr could be in her future. 

She had dreams. Some that died on Krypton. Some that were born on Earth. She found herself enamored with the thought of disregarding algorithmic mandates, to find a companion by turning oneself over to the whims of fate. She wasn’t the type to imagine a wedding - kryptonian weddings were beautiful, but they weren’t about the consecration of love, and she never grew attached to Earthian wedding customs. But love? She found herself hoping, assuming that there was someone out there for her, waiting on Earth. Now she hoped there wasn't.

She let go of Fort Rozz, her strength finally faltering, as she drifted above the planet that had served as her home. The stars blanketed her, a sense of calm washing over her as she began to slip away. They are safe, she thought, as her eyes slowly drifted shut. Safe.

[binghe-malewife-goals]

Me, an intellectual, scoffing at the theories for arcane s2 bc no one seems to understand the characters

[exlibrisfangirl]

WIP GAME

RULES: Share the last line you wrote for your WIP, and then tag as many people as there are words.

Tagged by my belovéd Emily 💛 @dreamersscape

This is the latest line from When Blooms The Rose In Coldest Winter, my Dergent-centric Beauty and the Beast/Teen Wolf AU:

The wind was howling, the wolves were howling, the hunting dogs were howling, the mob was howling… but Derick? Derick just stood there, like a statue - unnaturally still and stone-cold silent - and it sent chills creeping down Christophe's spine.

Tagging: @oddwriter @takadasaiko @awlwren @seven-oomen @beaconfeels @greyhavenisback @derpylittlenico @rosieposiepuddingnpie @teenwerewoofs @alphadiablo29 @shealynn88 @rebakitt3n @msmischief101 @voidstilesplease Uhhhh, I can't think of any more, lol. If I tagged you, you are under NO obligation to do this! If I didn't tag you, but you want to do it, feel free to lie and say that I did tag you! =)

[mslanna]

2 of 3 parts on the crown gift fic done (Parts tenatitively titled: The Devil You Know; The Devil You Do; The Devil Does You) because I'm a sucker for horrible stuff like that.

anyway, snippets

Part 1:

"You watched, wondering if we'd make it without considering how strong we'd be if we did. And look at us now." With a sweeping gesture, Tav indicates the burning chaos that is the House of Hope. "It will only take a moment to finish you off," Raphael snarls. Tav laughs, a peal of joy and mischief. "That's twice as long as Haarlep said it takes to finish you." "You-" Tav doesn't let the devil finish. They step towards him and place their index finger over his lips. "Shh. I granted Haarlep my body. Something to consider, no? And I came this far. It will be a drag and I won't like it, but I will kill you if that is the only way to leave."

Part 2:

His teeth dug into the soft skin at the crook of the presented neck. Tav would pay for their insolence. Once they returned to present the Crown of Karsus to him, Raphael would make them pay for forever. And they would like it. A victory greater than the humiliation of learning Tav's body and sweeter for the unlimited power over them this will grant him.

[gardenerian]

Hey Mel 😉 In the spirit of kinktober, what are Mickey’s and Ian’s top 5 kinks?

ohohohoooo! mel is finally gettin in on the action! LOOK OUT WORLD! lmao okay so i honestly think a lot of their kinks overlap so.... here's a list of stuff 😇

okay. okay like - edging?? there's no way they're not both into that. making it laaaaaast, teasing, holding out till they're CRYING with it? please. yes. ooonly letting go when they're told they can! WOO! which leads me to.........

praise kink! they love it! THEY LOVE ITTTT. telling the other they're so good, they're taking it so good, giving it so good.... looking so good... being told they ARE GOOD? please.

in that vein - competency kink lmao YOU KNOW IT. they see each other flawlessly pull something off..... they drop to their knees IMMEDIATELY. and they know it! they show off fully knowing the other one is about to start stripping 😇

chokingggggg !! (safely!) mickey fucking loooooves ian's big ass hands wrapped around his pretty neck! you know it and i know it!

mmm bondage kink? i think they are both into this in different ways! but i feel like mickey in particular would like it.. something about feeling wrapped up and letting ian take care of him? it's almost opposite of what you might think for him.. which is why i think it works! and tying that in with the ball gag situation! 

nipple play!!!! i feel it in my very bones (lol) that ian LOVES this. loves having them tweaked and played with, lil kisses and nibbles! and also you can tie temperature into that! fuckin. ice cubes!

obviously they both have disgusting filthy mouths asdkj like i can just leave it at that

okay. oookay i think ian would probably also be super into auralism? like blindfold him and he loses his mind at the SOUNDS like mickey's voice, his noises, the sounds of them together 🥳

spank! ing! spanking! ian also loves this sound! they love marking each other up with lil spanks and nibbles and then they love kissing each other better! aftercare is a powerful kink in its own right!

role playing? but not like.... not like characters? more like, idk. personas? adding clothes into that i guess? and on that note, like. hosiery kink? i just feel that they'd lose their GOT DAMN MINDS with some panties and high socks. which like, same. ian would try to do a full on oil painting of mickey in some thigh highs 🥰

...but i haven't thought that much about it asklhjf

[musical-chick-13]

What do you think is up with the male protagonist of Apothecary's Diaries???

Prefacing this by saying that I'm about two-thirds of the way through the show, so I don't really, completely know all of what Jinshi's deal is. Nonetheless, I shall try and collect my thoughts so far!

Spoilers through episode 16 of The Apothecary Diaries under the cut.

Jinshi is an odd character for me to try to define. Because I do genuinely find him annoying at times (and not just in an "All people are annoying sometimes and characters should have flaws to enrich their personalities and feel more real" kind of way), but...I don't find myself hating him.

For one, his interest in Maomao (despite her open and obvious abhorrence of a good portion of his behavior) isn't based in any of the story beats I hate that frequently accompany this kind of dynamic (i.e. "Interested guy maintains long-standing attraction toward disinterested woman"). It's not, "I hate women, except for this super special one who is my Only Equal," it's not, "She's the only person who doesn't fawn over me, so she's the only one here who isn't Completely Stupid," and it's not, "I think winning her over is a challenge that will prove how macho and cool and suave I am."

Jinshi is considered unearthly beautiful, to the point where people are constantly making passes at him, leaving him creepy gifts to express their obsession, and trying to slip him aphrodisiacs to push romantic and/or sexual contact on him. It's so bad that he can't have younger servants, no one except his older attendants (and later Maomao) is even allowed to see him when he wakes up in the morning, and he has to bar the doors to his office at night. Despite her consistent disdain toward his antics, Maomao is, paradoxically, the only person in Jinshi's relative age range who actually sees him as a person; because her hatred of his behavior means she's evaluating him for something other than his beauty. Even if she doesn't often like how he presents himself to her, her judgment of him is based on who he is and what he does, rather than how he looks.

And this lends a level of nuance to the show that I think prevents me from just being frustrated at Jinshi and that being the end of it. There's other nuance there, too: he does take his political work seriously; he obviously possesses significant analytical ability, and is pretty good at fighting, but doesn't think those qualities mean anything because he doesn't supremely excel at them (which, wow, what a mood, as the kids say); he tries to play nice with Lakan despite finding him incredibly off-putting because he knows it'll help keep things stable. Jinshi has some. Trouble. With personal boundaries (more on that in a second), but we are shown that he has some standards. He's willing to let Maomao go when he thinks that's what she wants. He seems genuinely horrified at Lakan's predatory comments about the courtesan he was attracted to, and at Maomao's story of how she got kidnapped. He pays for Maomao's removal from Verdigris House, but this only happens after he makes a comment to her about it and she says that it might be a good idea. And (at least so far, again, I haven't finished the show yet), when he takes her on as his personal servant, he never considers using that position to order her to accept his romantic advances. He definitely has some flaws (and I can understand if those flaws make him too off-putting to care about to some people). But I do recognize and respect the obvious effort that was put into making sure Jinshi doesn't come across as a one-dimensional character.

I've seen a theory that his, uh...less-than-stellar understanding of day-to-day personal boundaries are related to all of the things I mentioned above, in regard to how doggedly people keep pursuing him. (My sincerest apologies to whoever wrote that post, I tried to find it again and I can't.) And I do think this makes sense--that he internalized a lot of negative behaviors from his immediate environment and the way people act toward him. (I even think you could argue that, since beauty is so important for women in this setting--to the point where it's almost seen as a necessity--extreme physical attractiveness is more broadly viewed as a "feminine" quality. And since Jinshi possesses this """feminine""" quality, plenty of people treat him the way they would a woman: as an object to be looked at and obtained for clout.) I think it's also worth noting that Maomao only really responds positively toward him when he's not being flirty or pushy, during moments where he's being genuinely thoughtful (like the hairpin giving scene, Jinshi taking her to the infirmary after ingesting poison at the garden party, and catching her when she falls off the wall after drinking with Ah-Duo). So, between the deeper aspects of Jinshi's characterization, the fact that he does clearly have some principles, and the specific way Maomao's reactions to him are framed, I still find myself interested in seeing what will happen with him next.

All of that being said. I also frequently find myself going, "Dude. Wtf." And given my own personal preferences in characters and the types of relationships I like to see (which I will not get into because it's not particularly important and this response is already very long), I doubt that will change during these upcoming episodes.

[cagedchoices]

As we trickle on down the line with more people becoming more aware that there are some people out there in this world using AI language programs such as ChatGPT, OpenAI and CharacterAI to write positivity, come up with plotting ideas, or write thread replies for them, I'm going to add a new rule to my carrd which I'll be updating later today:

Please, for the love of God, do NOT use AI to write your replies to threads, come up with plots, or script your positivity messages for you. If I catch anyone doing this I will not interact with you.

[grumpycakes]

wrote this tuesday to go with The Stony Agnst pic but got self conscious

SO IDK HAVE IT

There's a rumble from deep in the tower and the lights flicker on and off. Cap, fresh from the showers, stops mid pulling his sweatshirt down. He stills for a beat in the gym's locker room. Waiting for an alarm or an announcement. Anything.

That can't be good, is all he can think.

"Jay?" Cap asks, tentatively. The silence is unnerving. He checks the control panel on the wall of the Gym, on his way out, and sees the boot up screen.

That cannot be good.

The elevators aren't moving so Steve takes the stairwell. He gets some text messages from the team in the building, checking in. Everyone's fine, powers on, just no Jarvis. Except one person.

He'd already known, been heading that way before he left the gym.

He hits the landing with the locked doors. Enters his code with a speed that even surprised himself. The doors hiss open, blessedly still working, and he takes the last set of stairs to the workshop.

Tony's standing. Stock still and with his back to the glass doors, but he's standing.

Steve scans the lab as he goes to the glass door's keypad. It all looks normal till he sees it. A bench with the remains of some tech, a little blast circle of soot marring the table. There's a little spark of electricity that he sees jump from some of the remains.

Definitely not good.

The door hisses and he sees Tony flinch.

"Tony?" Steve takes a few cautious steps in "All clear?" hoping nothing is actively volatile.

In a horrible mirror of Jarvis' silence, Tony doesn't respond. No quips, no sass, not even an angry affirmative. What does come, after tense moment, is a strangled grunt.

Suddenly hyperfocusing on Tony, Steve notices he's shaking ever so slightly. He's got his hand up, pressing the heel of his palm into the bridge of his nose. Eyes squeezed shut. Stuttering breaths barely audible.

Steve crosses the lab in seconds.

"Hey" Steve tries for gentle as he loosely takes Tony's wrist. Tony's face looks tight, and pained, and he wont open his eyes. He's got a cut on his cheek, but otherwise looks fine. "Say something Shellhead." Steve doesn't add the please.

"Cap-" It's messy and raw and Tony's voice cracks at the end. It's his name as much as it's a plea.

It's all Steve needs

Then he's taking Tony's head in his palm. Pulling Tony in. Kissing his forehead. Shushing him when he takes in a gasp that sounds more like a sob. Guiding the arm Tony had up down to his own side. Feeling Tony's hand latch onto his sweater as he covers his shoulders with one arm. Pressing Tony into him.

"I've got you, you're okay." Steve mumurs into Tony's hair. Stroking the other hand through the strands. Willing and determined to hold him till the panic attack subsided.

The workshop slowly rebooting plays a lullabye of beeps and hums while Tony remembers how to breathe.

[blizzardsuplex]

Holiday Practice Drabble #1

Happy holidays, everyone! In an attempt to get back to exercising my writing muscle, I am accepting drabble prompts for basically anything prowres related for the next day or so. This one is for @shes-a-voodoo-child's prompt of Kyle O'Reilly + a treat/reward/gift.

I went with the first thing that came to mind (and will probably do so for any other requests) so sorry in advance :') Under the cut:

The gift shoved his way is more swaddled than wrapped in striped red and white. Combined with the shape of the object itself - long, relatively thin, and curved at one end - it looks like a massive candy cane (albeit one so beaten up on its way to store shelves that rolls of scotch tape were sacrificed to maintain its shape).

But that’s just the wrapping paper, Kyle knows. As for what’s under it…

Across him, Roderick Strong and Eddie Edwards look at him expectantly. “Well?” Eddie says.

“You…didn’t have to get me anything, guys,” Kyle begins. He’s not as obsequent as his tag team partner, but he's still new to Ring of Honor; he didn’t move across the border and sleep in his car for months to blow it pissing off locker room veterans. Also: what kind of impolite monster had their first instinct be to open gifts right after getting them in front of the people who’d given it in the first place? “I appreciate it, though. Really. Thanks.”

“Sure,” says Roddy with an easy nod. Neither he nor Eddie make to leave.

If Kyle doesn’t manage to completely hold back a sigh, it’s lost in the rustling of removed gift wrap. “Huh,” he says, feeling the heft of the present in his hand. That it was a hockey stick was obvious; that it didn’t seem, on initial inspection, to be a shitty one? Less so. “How’d you guys know I played hockey?”

He kind of regrets the words as soon as he says them. Eddie laughs, which doesn’t help the sudden anxiety he feels. “I mean, it’s a bit obvious, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Roddy agrees, cocksure. In this moment, Kyle is painfully aware of his flannel and beanie.

“What do you mean?” he asks, preparing for the worst.

“We saw the skates in your car! And,” Eddie continues, “we’re not judgy or anything, O’Reilly, but you don’t really seem like the figure skating type.”

“At least,” Roddy says, “not if you’d half-ass it…”

Kyle might have asked what that was supposed to mean instead - at least, if he didn’t feel a deep sense of relief. “Oh,” he says, letting his guard down for the first time since the two had cornered him at this Christmas party. In fact, he feels a bit blindsided by this show of random kindness. “Well, this is actually really thoughtful of - “

“…and, I mean. You are Canadian.”

There we go.

[smolghostbot]

was explaining Patchwork Melody and what exactly the story is to a friend and i think i gave the best explanation possible about the name and the theme even though i'm currently half-awake

(putting under a cut just because it's a sloppy mess of words and not my usual writing here, but to edit it is to lose something, i think)

and the theme of communication is why like, so much of the writing (though not as much in these snippets since most of them are like. "epilogue" stuff) is about like. just talking and establishing boundaries and resolving communication issues. like mel asking patch if they want to be touched, or waiting for permission before teasing them, that kinda stuff. and why patch's name is a secret kept close to my heart because it's kinda symbolic of the point when they finally Understand each other (which. is definitely not currently editing for a prompt i am late for.)

====

if i may infodump, the name itself kinda represents the whole vibe because like, the entire thing is very much about communication. and the name "Patchwork Melody" works as like, wordplay on [****]'s nickname and Melody, obviously, but it also like, brings to mind this image of a very jittery song composed of parts of a bunch of other songs, like a musical quilt, something that maybe starts out discordant but the longer you listen the more you can kinda understand it, it isn't what you expect but it's not bad.

so like. about them bringing out the best in each other, for patch, he starts the story as an anxious fear blob after years of abuse, and then he (eventually) starts being treated like the most important thing ever by mel and sort of learns to see himself as more of a person at the same time mel does. and additionally he sort of learns that even though he can't speak that doesn't mean he can't, express needs and desires, and he doesn't have to just be a wallflower, whether it's asking for things or setting boundaries

and for mel, deep down she's an anxious as hell person with no social skills who is constantly pushing people away by being just too much, and having to learn to intentionally modify her behavior in order to not constantly freak out patch kind of teaches her to be more considerate and personable, not just of him but of everybody. like, learning to meet people's energies halfway without having to sacrifice who she is.

like, their character motivations at the start of the story are Fear (Patch) and Loneliness (Mel), but by the end their motivations become Self-Actualization (Patch) and Kindness (Mel) and neither of those would be possible without the interference of the other

tl;dr i am just a simple gay and sometimes an ADHD transfem dorkass and a traumatized queer fae who are both autistic-coded are a found family and that's okay.

[fazedlight]

Writing is so weird because sometimes thousands of words will spill out of you at a time, but other times you take weeks to write a 600-word ficlet 🤷

[lil-artist-blog-fandoms-ocs]

To find something lost

God damn, I was just about to go to sleep and my brain decided that it was the perfect time to write something. Not sure if I'll continue it, but who knows

It was one of those days. When nothing is wrong, but everything isn't right either.

The bus closed its doors with a quiet creak and then roared, moving away and leaving a few people behind.

Mel let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. A little cloud came out of her mouth. Oh. She didn't remember the weather being so cold this time of the year. Tomorrow she should pick some warm clothes to wear.

The girl was strolling down the street, looking at her feet.

Almost a year, huh?

A little rock was bouncing off her shoe with little knocks. If she can keep kicking this rock until she crosses the road, this will be the first achievement in a....long time.

Ever since her older brother disappeared she was looking for him everywhere she could think of. And of course, to this day she's yet to find him. Every day she would walk around the town after school. She would give out flyers or hang the MISSING posters. But nothing seems to work.

A sigh.

She kicked the rock too hard and it bounced further and further away, until it hit a building and stopped, laying now motionless on the ground. Mel took her eyes off the ground and looked at the building.

"Joey Drew Studios" she whispered to herself.

The girl looked up and down, left and right. Yep, that's the place her brother used to work at... Jeez, it looks abandoned... No surprise, considering her brother wasn't the only employee to go missing. Did the police ever check here? Well, they said they did. But after one of them tried to convince Mel and her mom that her brother just got tired of them and left without a word... The girl had a hard time believing those people.

She looked around. Is breaking in an abandoned building a crime? It's not like she wants to steal anything. She just wants to check for clues...

There are people around though. She can't get inside the building right now.

She looked at the wall as if trying to burn it. How is she going to get in anyway? She looked up and down once more. Oh.

A ventilation shaft.

Cool.

Looking around once again, she pretended to drop something. Crouching, she touched the ventilation hatch. Rusty. She might be able to break it.

Another quick glance around. Less people. That's good.

And-a one

And-a two-

The hatch broke off surprisingly easy, as if Mel wasn't a teenager but a professional fighter. Wow.

Either this thing couldn't live without maintenance for a year or the studio was going really cheap on things.

No time to waste, time to crawl in. Which she did, trying her best to cover the shaft entrance.

Ugh, this thing is so dusty and is that a cobweb?

Mel couldn't look at the web longer since the thin rusty metal couldn't hold her weight and gave up, sending her flying down. The only sound that escaped the girl was a short yelp.

[crazywolf828]

But who will be getting pegged🤔 Sun is the obvious option, but he's already got a spot (maybe a few tbh) so who is the lucky lad