#no onscreen whump

[whump-me]

Obscure: Chapter 2

Chapter 2 of Obscure, novel-length interrogation whump about a rebel leader who can erase memories with a thought, an interrogator who can see inside his subjects’ minds… and the connection they share that neither of them suspects.

Masterpost | the Mind Games universe | Read the completed novel on Patreon

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Kirill

Kirill and Camille woke slowly together, crawling toward consciousness inch by cozy inch. They tugged each other unwillingly upward toward the lazy Saturday morning waiting for them. Kirill surfaced from dreams of fire. He gratefully emerged into the softness of her vanilla-scented hair against his nose and the arm she had draped possessively over his chest in her sleep.

Soft cotton sheets draped over the two of them like a lighter caress. They smelled like fresh laundry. Kirill eased his eyes open a little at a time. The first thing he saw was Camille’s expanse of long blond hair. Then, beyond her, the ferns he had brought a few weeks ago.

The ferns hadn’t died yet. Sunlight lay across their leaves in stripes formed by the Venetian blinds. The fronds drifted back and forth in the breeze from the air-conditioning vent. Like Kirill and Camille, they looked in no hurry to move fast on this long, lazy morning.

Camille opened her eyes with a groan that was half happiness, half reluctance. She blinked up at him and smiled. “I never knew your apartment was so comfortable,” she said, her voice thick with a half-asleep haze. The warm notes thrummed in his bones, threatening to send him drifting off again.

He smiled at her and tapped the tip of her nose. “It’s not like this is the first time you’ve seen it.”

“No, but it’s the first time I’ve stayed over,” she said. “And I wasn’t really paying attention last night.” She gave him a teasing grin. Then the grin turned into a soft smile of pure pleasure. She flopped off him, onto her back, and moved her arms up and down like she was making snow angels. “It’s so… soft,” she said, with the tone in her voice that people normally reserved for a beautiful sunset or a sublime bowl of ice cream.

“What can I say?” he said, making a couple of snow angels of his own. “I like soft and comfortable.” And for now, that was true, because that was what Camille liked, and he liked Camille. Loved her, even—if love was the word for discovering someone whose company could fill the hole inside you for a few blissful months.

The silky sheets were as new as the ferns. The ferns had come after he had visited Camille’s apartment and seen the explosion of greenery she kept there. He had asked her what kind of plant she liked best. She had said ferns.

It wasn’t manipulation. Not in anything but the most benign sense. He wasn’t trying to get anything more from her than she already wanted to give. Someday, maybe six or twelve months from now, they would be done with each other, with no hard feelings on either end. Kirill had long years of practice at keeping his breakups amicable. And when that day came, the soft sheets and the ferns would find their way to the trash bin outside.

But while she was here, he would give her what she liked. Because what he liked, more than any sheets or plants or long lazy mornings, was making her happy.

Her, or whoever took her place once she was gone.

“I’m going to make a pot of coffee,” he said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

“No, don’t leave,” she said in a playful groan, grabbing his wrist.

He tensed without meaning to. The hand around his wrist felt like a cuff holding him down to a hospital bed. Back before they had known they could trust him. Back before he had shown them they could take him at his word.

Back when they hadn’t known what effect their injections would have on him—and how dangerous he might be once the drugs did their work.

But that had been a long time ago. He had no need of old memories. Not his own, at least. And Camille’s skin was soft as her finger traced the vein on the underside of his wrist. It was nothing like the cold metal of his memory.

He forced himself to take a deep breath. Camille, mistaking it for a sigh, answered with one of her own.

“Go,” she said with theatrical resignation, loosening her grip. “Someone has to take one for the team and leave this slice of heaven so we can both have coffee. I’m just glad it doesn’t have to be me.” She screeched to the middle of the bed and lay back with an angelic smile. She closed her eyes. “Wake me when the coffee is ready.”

He stood and looked down at her with a soft smile and basked in the glow of being exactly what she needed.

He unplugged his phone, slipped it into his pocket, and padded toward the kitchen on bare feet. In the hallway, to his left, was a blank spot on the wall where his running medals had hung. His last girlfriend, Amanda, had been into races. She liked the exertion, and she liked the competition. They had run a race together almost every weekend.

Back then, he had genuinely enjoyed rising at the crack of dawn to sweat his way through the morning. It had made Amanda happy, and that was what had made him happy. Now, with the lazy weekend glow of Camille settling over the apartment like a pleasant scent in the air, the thought of all that running sounded impossibly exhausting.

His phone rang as he stepped into the kitchen. It was the ring that meant work—not the soothing buzz he had assigned to Camille, but a shrill sound that cut through the air like a freshly sharpened blade. A little of his weekend haze drifted away. He frowned as he pulled the phone from his pocket.

“Kirill Catallo,” he said. He said nothing else. He knew better than to complain about it being a weekend. PERI called him whenever they needed him.

“We have a job for you.” The voice on the other end didn’t bother with pleasantries. Sandhya Ramachandra, his assigned handler, never did. Not since Kirill had shown up in PERI headquarters almost thirty years ago in shoes with holes in the bottoms and pants that didn’t reach his ankles.

He poured water into the coffee machine by rote. “Where am I going this time?” It wouldn’t be hard to explain the sudden trip to Camille. He always told his girlfriends he had some job or other that involved large amounts of travel, to cover situations like this. Camille thought he was a sales rep for a pharmaceutical company. But he wasn’t ready to end his lazy weekend just yet.

“No travel,” said Ramachandra. “This one is at headquarters. Convenient for you.”

He frowned, even though Ramachandra was right about the convenience. He lived near headquarters because he needed to go in for his mandated checkups every three months, and because PERI didn’t want to let him too far out of their sight. But he stepped inside headquarters every four months, as required, and that was it.

He never accepted jobs at headquarters. They knew that. They had stopped asking.

He knew what a job at headquarters meant.

“No,” he said as the last of the lazy weekend haze burned off. “We’ve talked about this.”

“I know. But we need you.” Ramachandra’s voice was devoid of sympathy.

“You need me to get information from terrorists trained to resist interrogation, and to find where any but the most emotionless serial killers have buried their bodies. You have people for PERI business. People who aren’t me.”

“For this,” said Ramachandra, “we need you. And this is important enough that you can’t play the waste-of-your-talents card. This prisoner has been poaching talent from PERI for fifteen years. He has an entire network set up to change the identities of candidates and relocate them. We need that network located and shut down. We need you.”

“I don’t work with Enhanced prisoners.”

“Why not?” Ramachandra’s voice remained perfectly even, but Kirill read the challenge there. “You can’t say it’s beneath you this time. So what is it really about?”

Kirill understood the question underneath the question. Ramachandra had never outright accused him of having residual loyalties to his fellow Enhanced, but the insinuation was there every time he refused another headquarters job.

“I’m not trying to protect this person,” Kirill said, in a voice every bit as cold as Ramachandra had trained him to be. “You know better than that.”

“Then get in here,” Ramachandra said, and hung up.

Kirill shoved his phone back into his pocket.

His shoes were wet. Water ran in wide rivulets off the counter and onto the floor. He had filled the coffeemaker with twice as much water as he needed to make a pot of coffee. He was still filling it.

He stopped pouring. He blinked down at the puddle on the floor.

Then he softened his shoulders and his jaw. The lazy weekend smile returned effortlessly to his face as he walked back toward the bedroom to make his excuses to Camille. With any luck, she wouldn’t ask about the wet footprints.

---

Tagged: @cakeinthevoid @suspicious-whumping-egg

Ask to be added or removed from taglist.

[ghostlyarchaeologist]

"How much time do we have before Eliot runs out of air?"

Leverage S05E13 The Corkscrew Job.

(Now with added fic!)

[scattered-winter]

unfortunately i am never fuckign immune to 5 times divorced gay people who bicker like an old married couple. as if its my fucking fault

[theres-whump-in-that-nebula]

Just went down a rabbit hole of YT videos about the lives of actresses in old Hollywood, and came out the other side watching Wendy Carlos demonstrate how to operate her synthesizers. I now have a massive crush on her.

[chocolatepot]

While I'm ranting about fandom, I have really mixed feelings about posts that are like "back in the day, we never cared about what anyone else was doing and you could write/draw/ship whatever you wanted with no backlash."

Because on the one hand, yeah, there was a much higher tolerance for dark content 10+ years ago, and I do miss that. Antis are bad, sui-baiting people for drawing cute art on one account and NSFW on another is bad, whump is excellent and I wish there were more of it.

On the other, said tolerance didn't exist everywhere and you're kidding yourself if you think it was a fandom-wide virtue. Ship wars were vicious and frequently involved judging female characters as sluts unworthy of $hero because they'd kissed another guy onscreen one time. There were plenty of places you weren't allowed to write anything but fluffy canon het or get judged. I think it mainly feels like there was some golden time of everyone being Okay With Anything just because we didn't have these massive sites where you were rubbing shoulders with everybody. On LJ, it was very easy to just interact with the other people who liked the same stuff as you.

And also on the other, the rise of antis/criticism of dark stuff/etc. went hand-in-hand with the rise of social justice awareness in fandom, and I have strong memories of people really resisting any analysis or discussion relating to bigotry or subconscious bias in canon or fanon because get out of here SJW! It's all made up and meaningless! Pretty much everyone was sorted into either the social-justice-aware camp or the called-people-SJW-unironically camp, and the former was going to be critical of what message your fic or fandom participation was carrying (in terms of sexist tropes, ship statistics, and so on) while the latter was going to be hostile to you saying you were offended or disturbed by anything at all.

I remember one time toward the end of Fandom_Wank (after UnfunnyBusiness had been split off to talk about conflicts involving -isms because people had come to recognize that not all drama is equal) when someone brought up an old wank involving people upset that in a particular fandom's AUs, the characters of color would frequently be turned into literal animals while the white characters were still human. Originally, they had been mocked because this was obviously trivial and not racist, it was just random chance which characters got turned into animals, etc. But at that time, post-RaceFail, everyone agreed that it was really messed up. And that's what I think about every time the "people used to not care about what you wrote" topic comes up.

[whumpsday]

3 whumpy anime to check out this spring!

Go Go Loser Ranger is a heroes vs. villains anime where the villains are the good guys and the heroes are downright evil. Having wiped out all the powerful monsters more than a decade ago, the heroes keep the weakest monsters captive, to parade around and torment on a weekly basis while the public believes otherwise. Because they're immortal when hit with most weapons, they'll always reform to be hurt over and over again, despite feeling all the pain.

Footsoldier D is one of those weak monsters, an immortal shapeshifter made of dust, called a "duster". After escaping the heroes' arena, he forms a plan to kill the heroes and steal the few weapons they have that can permanently kill dusters, freeing the rest of his kind. Given that he has the constitution of a porcelain doll, he can't use strength to fight: he has to rely on wits, stealth, shapeshifting (despite knowing very little about humans or the outside world), and a shaky alliance with a double-agent ranger who seems to be taking advantage of him for her own gain.

Whump tags: villain whumpee, hero whumper, immortal whumpee

Watch it on Hulu, Disney+, or any unofficial anime site.

And if you don't have time to check out a whole anime, the Go Go Loser Ranger opening theme video is also really good, with fantastic visuals symbolizing D's struggles!

An Archdemon's Dilemma is a romantic comedy stuffed to the brim with popular whump tropes. Zagan is a demonic sorcerer who attends an auction for the possessions of another recently-killed sorcerer, when he sees that one of those "possessions" is an elf slave, Nephelia. Having had a destitute, harsh past himself, he feels a rush of sympathy and buys her way out, vowing to ensure her safety. However, Nephelia is terrified, believing she's about to be used as a sacrifice in a dark magic ritual. And unfortunately for both of them, Zagan is a socially awkward loser who sucks at communicating.

It's surreal seeing something that looks like it could be a caretaker-new-master whump fic as an actual, fully-realized anime. It definitely doesn't take itself too seriously despite the premise, leaning heavily on the "comedy" part of romantic comedy, and is mostly just a silly time with lots of whump-adjacent stuff thrown in. Fanfic-y to the point of "there's only one bed" being an actual line.

Whump tags: fantasy slavery (very pet-whump-esque in its tropes), caretaker new master

Watch it on Crunchyroll or any unofficial anime site.

The Grimm Variations is an anthology of horror retellings of several Brothers Grimm fairy tales. With each episode being written and directed by different people, it varies wildly in quality, with episodes ranging from laughably bad to incredibly good, but I'm here to talk about episode 2: Little Red Riding Hood.

The Little Red Riding Hood takes place in a dystopian future where the upper and middle class use virtual reality technology to augment their reality. One man, Grey, is tired of this and craves the real: specifically, the feeling of real blood spraying him as he murders countless women, his wealth and connections protecting him from consequences. But when this serial killer makes the mistake of targeting a woman called Scarlet, he finds himself on the other side of the knife. This episode is a complete and utter gorefest with multiple onscreen torture scenes.

This isn't even my favorite episode of the series, it's like my 3rd favorite. But episode 2 is the one with the gruesome torture scene, so it's the one that goes in this post.

Little Red Riding Hood whump tags: whumper-turned-whumpee, torture, gore

Little Red Riding Hood warnings: sexual assault, eye gore, fingernail gore, violence against women, major character death

Watch it on Netflix or any unofficial anime site. Orrrr if you just wanna watch the big torture scene without any of the context, it's on Youtube.

that's all I have for now :)

(P.S: Dungeon Meshi, while not really whumpy as a whole, is also currently airing and very very good and I might write whump fanfic for it at some point in the near future. Netflix or any unofficial anime site.)

[whumpninja]

The Angel of Death, Part 3: Blood and Circuses

CONTENT WARNING: Buckle your friggin’ seatbelts, this one gets real nasty!

Featuring: cage match, forced to fight, vampire whump, mentions of (non-permanent) death, graphic descriptions of violence, muzzle, drugged whumpee, heavy gore, blood (seriously it’s a LOT of blood), violent onscreen death, extremely vague one-sentence throwing up, collar, dehumanization, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK THIS CHAPTER IS A DOOZY

It was out of sheer decency that Keola waited until Mr. Moody closed his office door before she laid into him. Her mother wouldn’t have been pleased to hear her yelling a man down the hallway of his own building, and that was the only reason she waited until they were in his office to shout “What were you even thinking?”

“I-“ Mr. Moody started, but Keola trampled him back down and kept right on going.

“You let me believe I would be doing medical work on a leopard or something, not a freaking vampire! I’m not qualified for that type of work, I could lose my job because of what you just did! And on top of that, you want said vampire to fight in your arena with a fracture in his leg? Are you insane? Completely lōlō?”

“What language is that?”

“Not the point!” Keola barked. “Mr. Moody, you tricked me. And I don’t know whether I should take it as an insult to my intelligence or my ethics. Did you think I would just be so overcome with emotion upon seeing an injured creature that I’d ignore the deceit it took to get me there? I don’t kiss boo-boos and make them all better. I do real, actual medical procedures that took hard work and training. And what I am not trained to treat? People. People like the one you’ve got chained up back there, and don’t you dare try to use the excuse of legal classification or that kind of nonsense! I am not licensed to treat your pet vampire!”

“He’s not a pet.” Mr. Moody’s voice had gotten oddly serious. He pulled up his sleeve and showed Keola a scar on his arm- a long, deep gash, healed into a dark rift in his skin. “He’s not a pet, Doctor. He’s a wild animal. I’ve seen vampires before. I have some other ones here for Saturday, and they’re pretty much like us except for the fangs. I’m not saying they’re people, but they’re not the way Angel is. Angel’s dangerous, take it from me. And that’s a good thing, I need him dangerous. But a doctor is used to treating patients that are calm and rational. A vet knows how to treat patients that aren’t. I don’t have another choice. Not with him.”

Keola blew out her breath. “I could lose my license, my clinic. You’re asking me to risk my job for these fight shows of yours.”

“If that happens, I’ll take care of it. I promise. I’m in good with the police force, they bring me the vamps to set on Angel. I can get them to look the other way. I just- I need you, Doc.” Mr. Moody ran his hands through his thinning hair. “If I lose him-“

Keola almost said no. She almost tore the contract in two and stormed out. She didn’t care if this man lost his brutal business. She didn’t care if he was ruined because she wouldn’t help him.

But she thought of Angel.

As terrifying as he was, he was hurt. He was scared, somewhere beneath the anger. He didn’t know what was happening. She couldn’t leave him to a man who would keep exploiting him with no regard for his well-being, who would make him fight with a break in his leg.

Keola blew out her breath and sat down heavily in the chair by the wall. “If I lose my clinic-“

“You won’t. I promise, Doc. If there are any consequences, they’ll fall on me.”

Keola took her hair out of its bun and redid it, twisting it around her hand. “What about Saturday? If you make him fight-“

Mr. Moody chuckled. “I don’t exactly make him fight, Doctor. He lives for it. Craves it. Born killer, my Angel. If I don’t let him get his exercise, he’ll attack anything that gets close enough.”

“Why?” Keola couldn’t help asking. “I’m not well-read on my vampires, but I don’t think most of them are that…feral.”

“Most of ‘em don’t have six-inch teeth either. Angel’s special. You should see him in the cage.” Mr. Moody snapped his fingers. “You should. Come on Saturday, Doc.”

“What?”

“Not in any official capacity, not yet. Just come as a guest. No charge- I’ll put you right at the front. You can get a feel for what kind of injuries you might be dealing with, and see how Angel fights. See how much he loves it.”

“Mr. Moody-“

“No, no, I insist. Here. VIP ticket.” Mr. Moody banged open a desk drawer and rummaged around, resurfacing with a red slip of paper in his hand which he pressed into hers. “And hey, if it don’t work out it don’t work out. No hard feelings. But just give it a shot, yeah?”

Four hours after she’d been picked up and taken there, Doctor Keola Ioannidis found herself standing outside a fight club with a ticket to Saturday’s show in her hand.

What did I just get myself into?

——————————————————————————

She wasn’t going to go. It was after dark, which meant she wouldn’t risk the sun. And her ticket was free- she’d checked the Colosseum Club website, and the little slip she’d been given would have run her over three hundred dollars if she’d paid for it herself. And taking the contract with the club meant sorely needed extra income to keep her little clinic afloat.

But she wasn’t going to go. She couldn’t. I can’t, Keola told herself over and over all Saturday afternoon. It’s against my code of ethics. Not to mention my own morals. I can’t sit happily in an audience and watch people beat each other black and blue.

She kept telling herself that she wouldn’t go all the way up until she was standing at the door.

The website had said that the main event would be at 9:30 p.m., and Keola had waited until nearly then on purpose. She was only going to observe Angel as a potential patient. That was all. She didn’t need to see…the rest of it.

There was a bouncer at the door, a big man in a too-tight shirt. He looked her up and down disbelievingly. Keola tried to seem like the sort of person that frequented mildly illegal fight clubs, but she knew it would be a lost cause. She shoved the little red slip at the man instead.

His eyebrows went up. “VIP seating? You?”

“Me,” Keola answered. “And I got that from Mr. Moody himself, so if you wouldn’t mind letting me in, I don’t want to miss the main event.”

A smile spread across the man’s face, and he held the door open for her. “Nobody does, missy. Trust me.”

Cryptic, Keola thought.

The little club that had been empty before was now full to bursting with people. And not your average barhoppers, either, Keola noticed- many of the patrons drinking at the bar were rather obviously wealthy. Yet they’d stooped to come to this dingy little club. How popular are these fights?

She didn’t really know what to expect as she made her way to the side door and down the concrete corridor that led to the underground arena. It had been relatively quiet before, but now it echoed with the shouts of what sounded like a very large crowd. As she neared the end, she heard Mr. Moody's voice, bellowing through a microphone.

"And it's victory for Nosferata, death for Overbite! What a show! What an ending! That's gonna be hard to clean up! Mr. Edwards, not to worry, we'll get your vamp regenerated and back on his feet in plenty of time for the next match. As for Nosferata, Ms. Winslow, you should be proud of her, that was one of the most brutal matches we've had in awhile!"

Keola entered the underground stadium and immediately reeled against the wall, gasping. Not from the noise- though that was certainly overwhelming, with the roaring crowd and Mr. Moody's foghorn voice. Not from the sight, though the sea of people in the bleachers was an impressive view.

It was the smell that hit her hard, made her press her head against the concrete wall and dig her nails in for all she was worth.

The smell of blood.

Not human. No, it wasn't the sweet tang of human blood. It was the sharp, acidic smell of vampire blood, and it was everywhere. Her eyes felt hot at the overwhelming smell, and she squeezed them shut, clinging to the wall.

How many vampires have died here?

"Are you all right, miss?" asked a voice. Keola snapped her eyes open and hoped they were green instead of red.

"Yes, I'm fine," she said, smiling at the concerned employee. "Just a little dizzy, should've eaten something before I- Ronnie?"

Blue Goon was in black tonight, but she still recognized him. He squinted at her, and then his face cleared. "Oh! Hi, Doc- the boss told us he gave you a ticket, but we didn't see you at the opening so we thought you'd skipped. He'll be glad you're here! You haven't missed Angel, that's the last show of the night. Should be about a ten-minute wait." He held out his hand. "If you'll show me your ticket, I'll get you to your seat."

"Thanks," Keola said, handing over the red slip.

"Best seat in the house." Ronnie grinned. "The boss must like you."

Keola let herself be led through the bleachers to a box right in front of the ring, just above where she'd heard Mr. Moody's voice coming from. "I'll tell the boss you're here," Ronnie offered. "Can I grab you anything from the bar?"

"I'll take a Bloody Mary," Keola answered almost without thinking. "Dirty."

Ronnie winked at her. "Staying on theme, I see."

As Ronnie disappeared, Keola slumped into her chair and stared at the arena below her. It looked smaller now, surrounded by tall cage fencing. The floor had been covered with a thin layer of what could have been either sawdust or sand.

Whatever it was, it was doing a terrible job soaking up the blood. All of it was vampire blood, she could tell by the dark color- red so deep it was almost purple. The arena was splattered with it- the floor, the fencing, even a few spectators in the front had stains of blood on their shirts. The spectators were all human, and not a single one looked bothered by the violent sport they had come to watch. Many- mainly those in the front rows like Keola- seemed to have dressed up, in suits and pearls and silk gowns.

The Colosseum Club, indeed.

Ronnie appeared at her elbow with her drink just as the lights went down. "Enjoy the show," he whispered, and gave her another wink as he slipped out of the box. Keola took a sip of her drink and braced herself for what was coming.

A series of floodlights around the arena went up, and a spotlight shone down on Mr. Moody. He'd dressed up for the occasion in a gray suit, and he was beaming. "Hasn't tonight been incredible, folks?" he shouted, and the crowd roared back at him. "What a show! What a bloodbath! But we know you've all been waiting for our last match of the night, so I won't keep you waiting much longer!"

Keola heard metal creaking and leaned down to see a pair of burly men come out of a metal gate, dragging a vampire between them. She hadn't seen the earlier parts of the show, but from the sound of it, the vampires involved had been fighters.

This one clearly wasn't. He was dressed in street clothes, his face bruised. And he looked terrified. There was some sort of muzzle strapped over the lower half of his face.

"This is gonna be a good one, folks!" Mr. Moody announced. "Officer, what was this one's crime?"

One of the guards leaned into the microphone. "Tried to attack a woman outside her own restaurant," he said, his lip curling. The crowd booed, and Mr. Moody shook his head.

"Just because it's a restaurant doesn't mean your kind get to eat there, leech," he said. The other guard took off the muzzle, and Mr. Moody shoved the microphone into the vampire's face. "What's your name, bloodsucker?"

"M-Marcus," the vampire stammered. "But I-I wasn't trying to attack her, I just-"

Mr. Moody snatched the microphone back. "Didn't ask for a sworn testimony, vamp, I ain't a judge and these good folks sure ain't a jury." The guards opened a door in the cage and pushed Marcus through, slamming it behind him.

"But there'll still be an executioner." Mr. Moody grinned and held up his arms as the crowd cheered wildly. "Hey- Marcus, was it? If I were you, I'd start running."

Marcus threw a frightened glance around the arena and started to run, making for the other side of the stadium. A spotlight stayed on him. Mr. Moody let him have a few seconds before he turned back to the crowd. "And here it is, folks! The final match of the night! Marcus versus...the Angel of Death!"

A metal gate at the other end of the arena groaned as it opened. Behind it was darkness, and Keola squinted to see through it. As far as she could tell, nothing was behind the door.

And then Angel charged into the arena.

Keola gasped, gripping the edge of her seat. Whatever ferocity she'd seen from Angel in the basement was nothing compared to this. The vampire was snarling, practically foaming at the mouth. He looked like a rabid dog. His fangs were on full display now, the wires holding his jaw half-closed gleaming in the spotlights. His eyes were pools of glowing red, the pupils shrunk to nothing. His bare chest gleamed with sweat, his short hair dripping with it. He stumbled to the side, reeling like a drunken man, and dropped to all fours. Keola could see the way his chest heaved for every breath.

Drugged, she realized. Heavily.

Most of the crowd were on their feet now, screaming in excitement. Angel shook his head, twisting away from the side he was closest to. The noise must have been overwhelming to the senses of a full vampire- Keola was only a half-vampire and it was hard for her to handle.

And then Angel's head shot up, his eyes finding Marcus.

Marcus had started running for the opposite side of the arena, but as Angel took off after him Keola knew he didn't stand a chance. Angel stayed on all fours, clawing trenches into the floor with every bound. He was fast, too- far faster than Marcus, who didn't even reach the other end of the cage before Angel was on him.

Angel grabbed the smaller vampire around the waist, dragging him down. The pair rolled in the sand, Angel growling ferociously and Marcus crying out in terror. The whimpers of fear turned to screams of pain as Angel dug his claws into the meat of Marcus's shoulder.

As horrified as she was, Keola couldn't look away. Mr. Moody was bellowing commentary or something, but she couldn't focus on the words enough to know what they were. She heard the audience's shouts as if they were in another language.

And then- "Oh, we've got a live one!"- yelled Mr. Moody, as Marcus desperately kicked backward and slammed his foot right into the cast on Angel's leg. The leg buckled. Angel went down with a roar of pain, and Marcus stumbled away, bleeding from the claw marks in his shoulder and chest.

The vampire staggered to the edge of the cage, grabbing at the bars with bloody hands. "Please!" he begged, frantic, desperate. “Please, don’t let- no!"

Angel didn't let him get another word out. Marcus screamed in terror and pain as Angel grabbed him, claws digging in deep, and tore him off the bars, flinging him out into the sand. And then he was on top of the smaller vampire, tearing and slashing and trying with his bound fangs to bite. And Marcus was screaming and gasping and gurgling on blood. And there was the sound of bones being crushed, and flesh being ripped into, and the smell of blood was so much stronger now, overwhelming everything-

Keola leaned down, out of view of the arena, and was sick on the concrete floor.

I can't be part of this. It was too horrible. She couldn't come back to this place again and again, knowing what happened in that arena. She'd thought it would only be death. She'd never imagined the brutality of it- when she risked another glance into the cage, there was nothing left of poor Marcus but shreds of meat and bone and a pool of thick, dark blood.

And when he regenerates, they'll do it again. Vampires could not die unless it was through sunlight, silver, or a stake. No matter how thoroughly Angel destroyed his prey, they would come back to die once more. It was sickening. Keola had never been killed, had never had to regenerate- but she had heard it was painful. Excruciating.

The crowd was still cheering, and Mr. Moody shouted something about it being a great night and a good show. Keola managed to make herself look at Angel. Her brow furrowed.

The feral vampire still crouched over the remains of his prey. His chin dripped with gore, and as Keola watched he bent his head and rubbed his face in the sand, almost lying fully in the puddle of blood. He was gasping, pulling in desperate gulps of air as he tried to cover himself in his victim's blood. The wires at his jaw strained to keep his mouth closed.

For a few moments Keola had hated him, this monster of a vampire who she'd just seen murder one of their own with no remorse. But as she watched the guards grab him, bind his arms behind him, force him up and back through the gate as he thrashed and snarled in their hold, she realized something.

Mr. Moody had said that Angel was feral, a wild thing, so full of rage that he didn't have to be prompted to fight. But what Keola had seen just now hadn't been anger.

It had been hunger.

Angel, with his jaw wired shut, surrounded by blood, had been trying desperately to eat. He wasn't fighting because he was angry, but because he was starving. Vampire blood did nothing to sate a vampire's hunger- it had to be human or animal, something living. But Angel, drugged out of his mind and starved to the point of madness, only knew that there was blood.

Keola left the last two-thirds of her drink by her seat. She didn't want it anymore.

Ronnie met her at the end of the bleachers. "Hey, Doc!" he said, beaming. "What'd you think of the show? Oh, and Mr. Moody wants to see you ring-side."

Keola nodded dully, still too overwhelmed to speak. I'll tell him that I can't be part of this, she decided. He can find a new vet. I'm not going to sit by and let- all of this happen over and over again.

Ronnie escorted her through a locked door under the bleachers, to the space underneath where her box had been. This area was walled off, a tunnel of chain-link fencing and concrete. She realized that this was where the gate in the arena led- the corridor behind them must go all the way back to the cellar she had been in before.

Mr. Moody was just by the iron gate, several of his guards with him. Angel lay at his feet, his arms bound tightly behind his back, that chain leash and a solid metal collar around his neck, the other end securely fastened to a bolt in the wall. As Keola watched, Mr. Moody took a cup from a man she recognized as Red Goon and dipped his fingers into it. Smiling, he held out a hand dripping with blood. Human blood.

Angel lunged, the chain bringing him up just short of Mr. Moody's hand. He crashed to the floor, pushing himself up and trying again. Mr. Moody laughed. "All right, all right, here you go." He dropped to one knee on the concrete and held out his hand again, slipping his fingers in between the wires to let Angel lick the blood off them. "You did so well tonight," he murmured. "Sure gave 'em what they wanted, didn't we? Good boy, Angel."

Ronnie cleared his throat, and Mr. Moody glanced up. "Doc! I was hoping you'd make it! What a show, huh? A real thriller tonight." He beamed at her. "So? Do we have a deal?"

Keola had meant to say no. She'd been prepared to tell him that she couldn't do it, find someone else, it was too much.

But she couldn't look away from Angel, nearly choking himself on the chain leash for a few drops of blood off a human's fingers. He was angry, and dangerous, and savage- and he was starving and hurting and alone. And she couldn't leave him.

"Yes, Mr. Moody," she heard herself say, and saw herself extend her hand to him. "We have a deal."

When they shook on it, her hand came away sticky with blood.

——————————————————————————

Taglist: @i-eat-worlds @softvampirewhump @scoundrelwithboba @rainbowsandwhumperflies @octopus-reactivated

@whumperfultime @pigeonwhumps @handsinmotion @starfields08000 @fleur-a-whump

@worstcasescenariolullaby

Masterlist

[cparti-mkiki]

honestly i think my biggest obstacle to enjoying fandom things like fanfic for example when it comes to succession is the fact that Logan's in many, many works, and he's always (in my very biased opinion) comically botched lol. i'm talking children's books levels of villainy and the subtlety of a saturday morning cartoon— a baby-eating menace

imo Logan’s psychological destruction of his children was much more subtle— and, also, believe it or not, an unwanted product of his own lifelong damage, not a machiavellian plan of his— than the seemingly popular idea of him being evil all day every day for shits and giggles 😭 no ray of light to be seen, just despises his kids so much he was bullying and beating them every waking hour. that's like, a plot device to facilitate sibling whump, not the characters and dynamics we saw onscreen.

of course he's a monster, going by the harm he's caused in the public and the personal, but like... the key is he doesn't WANT to be? he wants to think himself good in what matters and needs to convince himself he is. he's a horrible person, but still a person. he's got like. thought processes and emotions. lol

[whump-queen]

Do you have any OC’s or Whump scenarios that came along via spite? I know for me I get a lot of inspiration by eating traditional media where they imply something bad did/or is gonna happen, but then they cut right before it!! And I’m like “well I guess I’ll do it myself!!”

Is this pretty much the basis of fanfic yes yes it is but are there any specific instances you remember or want to mention?

Okok you want like specific instances??

How about when there’s a pretty servant boy but he never gets hit/hurt onscreen??

I’ve written a lot of servant whump and I really wish more media would explore the ~full potential~

Like, you’re telling me they never punish this guy??

They never just throw him down and beat the bloody shit out of him for fun?? For things that weren’t even his fault??

like.. He’s meant to take it. It’s literally what he’s there for.

You can beat him to the ground cuz it’s fun. Play mind games with your affection. Set him up to fail and then punish him anyway. Anything goes!

Don’t tell me you don’t wanna slap a pretty servant boy across the face with a couple rings on and hear him apologizing to you~

Leave a few nice bloody marks on his pretty face~ It’ll help him remember what he did.

You’re doing him a favor, really. helping him remember his place~

[whump-me]

I can’t be the only one here with an enduring love for lab whump that can be traced back entirely to watching The Secret World of Alex Mack as a kid.

[kabie-whump]

✧･ﾟ Ripe, About to Fall - Part 11 ✧･ﾟ

This is an 18+ slowish burn pet-whump story with added romance.

Title from 'Liquid Smooth' by Mitski

Series First | Previous Summary: Ventis still isn't talking, and Athos takes advantage of it. Theodore visits Athos and has a chat with Ventis. Content: non-con oral onscreen, beating mentions, degradation, trauma-induced muteness?, character death mention, (let me know if I missed a tag I'm brain soup right now)

Onthyes does not belong to me. He was created by my wonderful gf @sapphicccici and I have kidnapped him.

✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧

Ventis’s whole body ached as he sat at his master’s feet. It’s been at least two years since he was last beaten as badly as he was yesterday, but still not a word escaped his lips. 

He didn’t really know why he wasn’t talking. He’d like to believe it to be a brave act of rebellion, except he really did want to give in. He didn’t like being beaten up, didn’t like the threat in Athos’s eyes every time he responded to a question with a nod or shake of his head. Ventis was a lot of things, but he wouldn’t consider himself to be brave.

But the words just wouldn’t leave his lips, no matter how desperately he tried to convince them to.

At least he didn’t have to wear such revealing clothing today, since Athos wanted to keep the worst of the bruises hidden.

“He really is beautiful, Mr. Landleigh. You’re a lucky man.”

Ventis blinked himself out of his thoughts, glancing up at the source of the words. Dwen. One of Athos’s newest business partners - a man probably only ten years older than Ventis. He stood out in a room otherwise filled with people old enough to be Ventis’s parents or even grandparents. Dwen was a hungry young man in more ways than one, and he never kept his eyes to himself.

“Indeed,” Athos hummed, reaching down to pat Venits’s head. Ventis couldn’t help but lean into the touch, finding comfort in the gentleness despite its source. “He requires a fair amount of training and upkeep, but he’s certainly worth the trouble.”

“I’ve been considering getting a pet of my own. You do nothing but rave about yours. But I fear it would be challenging to find one that lives up to him.”

Ventis looks up at Athos, watching a smirk cross the man’s face. The look that means he’s up to something, and Ventis isn’t going to like it.

Athos ran his fingertips along Ventis’s cheek lovingly. “Isn’t that sweet, treasure? My friend here envies your rare beauty. Do you want to give him a taste of what it’s like to own you?”

Ventis swallowed hard, shaking his head. He knew exactly what Athos meant. Athos had let his friends use him before, but it was a rare occurrence and only when he was particularly upset with him.

 “Hm. I don’t hear a ‘no’.” Athos said with a grin. “That’s very generous of you, darling.” He stood, grabbing Ventis by a horn and dragging him over to kneel in front of Dwen.

Dwen smiled down at Ventis, his hands moving to his belt. 

Ventis’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach.

“I know you haven’t been feeling well recently,” Athos said, leaning down to speak softly into Ventis’s ear. “If you aren’t up for this, just tell me. I can make it all stop.”

Ventis shook his head again, pleading with his eyes. 

Athos’s lips were still set in a smile, but his eyes shone with disappointment. “Oh, you don’t want to stop? Alright then. He’s all yours, Dwen.”

Ventis steeled himself as Athos returned to his seat and struck up a casual conversation with his other partners. He could deal with this. He had plenty of experience. It wouldn’t kill him, and his veins were thumming with Nightspill, helpfully numbing the sharper of his emotions. 

I’m fine. I can handle this.

Dwen’s hand found Ventis’s hair, guiding him in closer until his lips touched hot flesh.

Just tune it out. 

Ventis closed his eyes, praying that Dwen would at least be gentle. Not that anyone ever was. His training took over and he opened his mouth. His fangs dug into the scarred-over spots on the inside of his lips. Better they pierce his own skin than the skin of his master, and the taste of blood wasn’t too bad once he got used to it.

Ugh. He needs to bathe.

Ventis focused on shutting down his need to breathe. He wouldn’t (couldn’t) choke, thanks to his elemental ancestry. That didn’t stop his throat from burning at the slight stretch. He clenched his fists in his lap.

Dwen let out a shaky groan, his hands grabbing for his horns to pull him even closer. “He’s… cold,” Dwen said with a chuckle. “Even on the inside. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“An air genasi quirk,” Athos quipped. “Not every man’s cup of tea, but I find it quite enjoyable. If it’s too bothersome I have a fix for that.”

Ventis couldn’t help but whimper at the thought. The ‘fix’ in question involved him chugging scalding hot water. He hadn’t been able to swallow without pain for a week after the last time. 

“It’s alright. He’s plenty tight, so I don’t mind it.”

Thank the gods.

Luckily, Dwen didn’t last long. The men Athos lended him to rarely did. As awful as his situation was, Ventis found himself somewhat prideful of his skill in this area. He couldn’t step outside on his own, but at least he could deliver a world-shattering orgasm in mere minutes when he needed to. 

He returned to his place in front of Athos, subtly stretching his sore knees as a nearby servant rushed over to fix his hair and wipe his face clean and polish the fingerprints off of his horns. Ventis’s tongue ran over the twin spots inside his upper lip where his fangs had inevitably pierced the skin. The blood masked Dwen’s taste well. Still, he was grateful when Athos offered him a sip of wine.

The guests left soon after, leaving Ventis and Athos alone. Ventis looked up at his master, unable to stop himself from glaring at the man.

“I asked you if you wanted it,” Athos said with a shrug. “You didn’t say no.”

The two spent the next couple of hours outside in the garden, in a sitting area under the shade of a tree. Ventis allowed himself to enjoy it - the taste of fresh fruit on his tongue, the sounds of wind rustling leaves and soft flutter of Athos turning the pages of his book, the scent of roses. Seated at his master’s feat like always, Ventis rested his head against his thigh and closed his eyes, clinging to the sliver of peace.

Ventis heard a servant appear and have a short conversation with Athos, but he didn’t care to decipher the words. The servant left and Ventis started to drift off, lulled towards sleep by Athos’s fingers in his hair.

Then, “Ah, the young Lord Riinturuth returns!”

Ventis sat up straight with a jolt, his eyes snapping open. There, escorted by the butler, was his younger brother, Theodore. Ventis squinted at him, curious about why he had returned after that awful dinner, but Theodore made a point of not even glancing in his direction. His eyes were on Athos alone.

“Come, sit down! What brings you back to my humble manor, my Lord?”

Anyone else would find Athos’s voice nothing aside from welcoming, but Ventis knew better. He knew that edge of caution hiding under his words. 

Theodore sat in a plush chair and the butler poured him a glass of wine. “Please, just call me Theodore, Mr. Landleigh. There is no need for formalities with me. I come to you today as little more than a student.”

Ventis resisted the urge to snort. Theodore was never the ‘student’ type. He’d always been more interested in hunting and fighting and honing his magic.

“Oh? You intrigue me, Theodore. Do go on.”

“Well, I have a request for you. You are an influential person in this city, which is why my father wanted us to have dinner together at the start of my stay here. But the truth is, he looks down upon those who find their power through economic pursuits. To him, business is too fickle of a thing to rest your legacy on.”

Athos hummed, displeased.

“But I could not help but respect you, sir,” Theodore pressed on. “Being born into power is one thing, but having the ability to take it for yourself? To me, that is much more impressive. My time in Nimbria was only meant for me to study leadership with the Venturas, but I believe it would benefit me to learn from you as well. If you will have me, I would love to observe your business practices from time to time. And in return I can promise that your business will always have a friend in my kingdom’s ports.”

Athos considered Theodore with a raised brow. “And you are certain that this proposition has nothing to do with your long lost brother here?” Athos’s hand rested atop Ventis’s head.

Theodore’s eyes flicked to Ventis for a second before he fixed his gaze on Athos once more. “I can assure you, sir, that he means nothing to me. It is thanks to his absence from home that I was able to ascend to my position as our father’s heir. Our shared past will cause no issue.”

Athos hummed, absentmindedly stroking Ventis’s hair as he thought. “Very well. I have no children of my own, so maybe it will do me some good to have an eager young mind to shape.”

“Thank you, sir. You will not regret this.”

The two sat and chatted for a while as Ventis tried to come to terms with the fact that his brother would be coming by even more after this. Had he not been humiliated enough already?

“Ventis, go fetch more wine,” Athos said after he and Theodore had finished off what was left of the previous bottle.

Ventis stood with a short nod and walked inside.

Moments later, as he was just passing through the doorway into the servant’s corridors, a hand grabbed his arm. He gasped sharply as the fingers dug into bruises. Ventis turned, his eyes going wide when he saw his brother staring back at him.

“Jasper,” Theodore said, his voice low. “I’m here to rescue you.”

Ventis took a small step back, shaking Theodore’s hand off of his arm. Why was everyone trying to save him all of a sudden? More importantly, why would Theodore want to save him? They’ve always been rivals. Theodore said himself just earlier today that Ventis’s absence had been good for him. Ventis couldn’t believe for a second that Theodore actually cared what happened to him. His actions five years ago had proven that all too well.

How was Ventis supposed to believe that the very same person who had singlehandedly ruined his life actually wanted to help him?

Theodore definitely saw the blatant disbelief and confusion on Ventis’s face. He leaned in closer, dropping his voice even lower.

“Listen, brother. While you are still under Landleigh’s thumb, Onthyes Ventura will not train me, and that is the entire reason I am in this city in the first place. I am helping you whether you want me to or not, so I suggest you make this easy on both of us and not be so fucking stubborn for once.”

Ventis’s heart stopped.

“Onthyes is alive?”

Those were the first words he had spoken in days. They came out as a broken whisper. A tiny sliver of hope in a world that had seemed so dark for so long.

Theodore looked taken aback. “Yes, of course he is.”

“I…” Ventis sunk to the ground, squatting on his heels and threading his fingers through his hair. His breaths came with far too much difficulty and his vision blurred. “I thought he was dead.”

Suddenly, everything was different. There was hope. And Ventis didn’t know what to do with it. He choked out a sob, covering his face with both hands.

“Jas- Ventis?” He could feel Theodore getting closer and squatting down in front of him. 

“How?” Ventis croaked. “I don’t… I don’t understand.”

“After he failed to rescue you, his guard friends knocked him out and left him there. They didn’t kill him.”

“I-If you’re lying, Theo-”

“I’m not lying. He can’t come to see you himself, obviously, so I’ve come in his place. I will get close with Landleigh, and at the first opportunity I will get you out of here. But you have to work with me. You have to trust me.”

Ventis glared at Theodore through his tears. “Trust you? After what you did to me? Are you joking?”

Annoyance flashed across Theodore’s face before he schooled his expression back into neutrality. “You’re still on about that? It was five years ago. I was fourteen. Grow up and move on.”

“Move on?” Ventis hissed. “That would be easy for you, wouldn’t it? You’re not the one who…” he trailed off, not wanting to say the word. They both knew what it was anyway, and it hung between them, unspoken.

Died.

“You came out fine in the end,” Theodore muttered. “I am not responsible for the way you decided to cope.”

Ventis glared at the wall behind Theodore. “I do not want your help.”

“You do not have a choice. Onthyes is useless to me without you.”

Theodore extended a hand down to Ventis. Ventis glared at it, then rose to his feet on his own.

“Like it or not,” Theodore continued, “I am currently your only hope of seeing him again. I can not force you to cooperate with your own rescue, but I would encourage you to think it over.”

With that he left Ventis alone, headed for the exit. Ventis took a moment to collect himself, scrubbing tears away with his sleeves, before he resumed his journey to the wine celler. 

When he returned to Athos’s side with a fresh bottle the man’s eyes searched his face immediately. Ventis glanced away with hope that he wouldn’t notice his watery, red rimmed eyes. 

Athos took Ventis by the chin, forcing his face up towards his own. There was a little smile on his face as he brushed his thumb across Ventis’s bottom lip.

“You look beautiful today, treasure,” Athos said gently.

“Thank you, master.”

✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧

Next

I'm sorry this one took so long omg. I'm at a point in this story where I just want to skip to the recovery but I gotta get there first, so I keep writing scenes for the future because that's more exciting to me right now. Luckily, that means I'm impatient and Ventis is probably going to get out in the next chapter or two! Yay!

@scp-1296 @sapphicccici @acer-gaysimpstuff @morning-star-whump @yeetmyskeet

@sleepyiswhumping @bitchaknso @unicornbeck @wounds-seen-and-unseen @3-2-whump

@looptheloup @rainydaywhump

[bemusedlybespectacled]

wait hold on

if as of 2x01 Izzy is missing only three toes (I think if it were the whole leg, Frenchie would have said that)

IS HE LOSING THE REST OF HIS LEG ONSCREEN?????

ARE WE GETTING CANONICAL IZZY WHUMP???????

[snakebites-and-ink]

!! This masterpost is out of date !! The new one can be found here

Masterpost

Hi, I’m @snakebites-and-ink! This is my whump blog and main blog. It’s semi-sfw, in that I never write or reblog explicit onscreen sex, but may include other kinds of mature content. This post contains navigation to my writing and other important posts, but if there’s something you can’t find feel free to send me an ask about it! You can find more about me, including favorite tropes and squicks, in my intro post.

Blog/Info

Whumpblr intro post

Current content warning system

Interaction policy

Ask/submission guidelines

Feel free to tag me/send me stuff

I also have a cohost, though I'm not as active on there

Writing

Let me know if you want to be added to or removed from any taglists :)

Technically Not Human (working title)

A superhuman signs away his rights and goes to an institution that will train him up for the highest bidder.

Prologue

Lore post

Ch. 1

Ch. 2

Asher

A story about a pet who’s allowed to live the life of a person. Set in the box boy universe. (Fair warning: no rescue/deconditioning arc planned)

Ch. 1

Ch. 2

Ch. 3

Ch. 4

Ch. 5

Ch. 6

Ch. 7

Ch. 8

Ch. 9

Ch. 10

Whumper-Turned-Caretaker CYOA

What it says on the tin. Updates every Monday assuming I can stay on top of it.

Pt. 1

Pt. 2 (+ bonus)

Pt. 3

Pt. 4

Pt. 5

Pt. 6

Pt. 7

Whumpuary 2024

Standalones: #1 - #5 - #7 - #8 - #9

Multi-part: #3 + 4, #2 + 6, #10 + 12, #11 + 13, #14 + 15

Standalone Drabbles

Pet Whumpee + Broken Dish

Recovering Clone Whumpee

Already-trained Pet

Reluctant Whumper Whumpee

Hero Brainwashed to Living Weapon

My writing tag

My other posting tag

Ask and submission boxes are OPEN with anon enabled!

[riallasheng]

Answering an Ask

In an unusual way, because my darn tumblr be broken and didn't show the ask in my inbox! Fortunatly, @edutainer2022 PMed me to make sure I got it! ^^

===============

Hi! Just in case the asks act out, some ask game points for you:

🍒 What’s your favorite character dynamic to write? (Can be romantic or platonic, specific or general!)

🥭 Rank from most enjoyable/fun to write to least: Fluff, Smut, Angst, Crack.

🍏 Is there something you overuse, whether it’s a certain phrase, trope, or piece of punctuation?

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

=============

🍒 What’s your favorite character dynamic to write? (Can be romantic or platonic, specific or general!)

Platonic and/or familial! While I can and will write romance, there's always a heavy focus on the friendship of the characters, more than the romantic ^^

----------

🥭 Rank from most enjoyable/fun to write to least: Fluff, Smut, Angst, Crack.

Well, I don't actually write Smut at all (closest I'll come is Lime, and usually I'll only write Orange. I've never actually written even a Lemon, let alone anything more hard core than that), and the closest I get to Crack is 'here is a silly thing that canonically could happen' rather than true crack.

Sooooo....

Drama (angst, fluff, serious, comedy, and bunch of other stuff rather than a heavy focus in just one type.) FAR and away my favorite.

Angst & Whump (as old fanwoman is old and I go by the definition that ANGST is mental/emotional 'harm' that may have a physical element or trigger, but is all about the emotions and mind. Meanwhile Whump is physical 'harm' that may have an emotional/mental element or trigger, but is all about the physical). I generally prefer it to be an ELEMENT of a story, and I strongly prefer hurt/comfort, but I do have some instances fics / ficbits that are (mostly) solid angst and I'm more likely to have Angst scenes / elements in my works than Fluff

Fluff: tends to be only sparingly and mixed in admist other things, and even my 'pure' fluff pieces like A Cure for Boredom were cahracter and fan-lore explorations alongside the fluff. Mostly because pure fluff BORES ME ^^;;

------------

🍏 Is there something you overuse, whether it’s a certain phrase, trope, or piece of punctuation?

Ellipses, probably XD I actually try to alter my writing style to a degree depending on who the viewpoint character is, but I am ANYTHING but brief (even though I know brief / less is more is the 'in' thing now). So I tend to have lots of details and asides and descriptions and trend much more towards being VERY wordy

-----------

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

Oh yeah, many things XD There's always at least ONE 'fix it' in every fic I write. Sometimes small, sometimes BIG... I try to give my reasoning for any / all changes, I do my best to respect that other people may have totally different takes than me. But yeah, there's always fix-its in my fics for things that bug me or that I flat out hate

Heck, in an example that I'm currently writing (well, re-writing as back in the Naughts this darn thing was COMPLETE and now I'm re-writing it from memory XD ). In As the Wyrm Turns and my fanfic Universe in general....

I moved Marineville. I've always HATED that it's canon location for a REALLY LONG LIST OF REASONS THAT ARE VERY VALID DARN IT, so I moved it to Maine (Isle Au Haut specifically). On top of solving most of my list o' issues, it also meant that I could have the Aquaphibians living in or near 'Atlantis' ^^

[bitter-hibiscus]

I'm gonna get on my knees (would you kick me in the face, please?)

Rating: Mature

Archive Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage

Categories: F/M, M/M

Fandoms: DCU (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days, Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics), Batman - All Media Types

Relationships:Roy Harper/Jason ToddTalia al Ghul/Jason ToddStephanie Brown & Jason ToddJason Todd & Bruce Wayne

Characters:Jason ToddRoy HarperTalia al GhulBruce WayneStephanie Brown

Additional Tags: Asexual Jason Todd, Whump, Consent Issues, Unhealthy Relationships, Casual Sex, (not onscreen but mentioned), Attempted Murder, Underage Prostitution, Street Kid Jason Todd, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Talia Al Ghul isn't good nor evil but a Secret Third Thing, Bruce Wayne Tries to Be a Good Parent, Jason Todd is Not Okay, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, things that are very clearly s/a but Jason doesn't see them as such, Hurt No Comfort, Angst, Jason's No Good Very Bad Sex Life, not beta read we die like jason's self-esteem, Internalized Acephobia, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat

Language: English

Summary:

“I don't want to have sex with you,” he'd told the man, shaking and pulling his hand away. “I'm never going to want to have sex with you.”

“That's okay, Jason,” was the only response he'd gotten. It made him wonder if that was Bruce deciding he wouldn't, because it wasn't worded like it had never been an option in the first place, but Batman had always been notoriously bad with words.

Or, asexual Jason Todd doesn't know what consent means. Unfortunately for everybody involved, he's very good at hiding it.

[tarisilmarwen]

Ahsoka "The Jedi, The Witch, and The Warlord" Liveblog

Woo boy, there were certainly some Choices in this.

Yeah yeah, I'm late and spoilered to hell I know, look, I have been Going Through It out in realspace and my priority has been finishing Whumptober fics, cut me some slack.

Anyway.

Lars Mikkelson continuing to crush it as Thrawn.

"Even I fell victim to the... heroics of a single Jedi." Looooooool another bit for my collection of Pissy!Thrawn moments.

We're not going to get an explanation for why the Nightsisters and Thrawn are so tight, are we?

Morgan looks a little bit trepidacious about all of this ha ha.

All right, a point in this show's favor, this look at Nightsister rituals and culture is interesting.

And the flaming sword is cool, I'll admit.

Ngl, the editing really needs to be tightened up in this scene, we really only needed the one or two establishing shots before cutting into the interior.

Eman continues to be the perfect Ezra. I love him. 10/10 no complaints.

Ngl, this is sweet on the surface that Ezra's new saber has pieces of Kanan's buuuuuuuut *waves Green Saber Ezra Supremacy flag*.

Sabine, let him borrow y'all's lightsaber and YOU build a new one.

Ah goody, an Exposition Reveal.

-_-

This... doesn't actually explain Baylan's "Your family is dead because your Master didn't trust you." line btw. JUST SAYING.

I don't even know what the narrative wants anymore re. Sabine's choice to gamble Thrawn's return for Ezra.

Aaaand please not to be reminding me of the Wrong Jedi arc kthnx.

Oh good an action scene.

Ezra and Ahsoka being cool Jedi together, nice. Could be more emphasized and staged even more coolly tho.

Well poop, I guess that's the reason why we had to risk stowing away on Thrawn's ship.

Oh good! This holomap thing is exactly the kind of plot device I actually needed for one of my Sabezra Week fills.

Lol Thrawn be taking NO chances lololol.

Oh hello finally some of Thrawn's theme in the score here. Thrawn using the men's loyalty and fanaticism towards him personally to achieve his goals, fits the culty vibes, sure.

I am liiiiiviiiiiiiiiiiing for the subtle nervousness in Ezra's voice when talking about Thrawn finding the Dathomir castle and waking the witches. PLEASE CAN I HAVE A THOUSAND WHUMP AND ANGST FICS ABOUT THE IN-BETWEEN BEFORE EZRA'S ESCAPE FROM THE CHIMAERA?

His arms are so comfortably around Sabine awwwwww.

Thrawn be all srs bznss and I'm loving it.

Yeah no, Jedi!Sabine is REJECTED, she did not have any kind of necessary mental or emotional breakthrough, she wasn't shown calming her mind properly, sorry Dave THE LEGWORK AIN'T THERE, Imma fix this to be Ahsoka in the inevitable rewrite/fixfic that I've apparently decided I'm doing.

Oh Ahsoka is helping too, well I'm still not having Sabine be able to do it.

HAAAAAAAAAA THAT PISSED LOOK OF THRAWN'S OH MAN THE SNARLING LIP CURL, THE RAGE, YES PLEASE MORE.

The struggle to recompose himself OH MAN.

This is peak Mirrorverse!Thrawn and I'm here for it. I love seeing my headcanons playing out onscreen.

Aaaaaand this would have been the perfect scene to have Ezra and Sabine sharing the Our Lightsaber, meanwhile Sabine should be fully kitted out Mando style.

*simmers*

STAGE THIS DIFFERENTLY SO THAT SABINE'S BESKAR IS NOT CONSTANTLY LITERAL PLOT ARMOR PLEASE.

Aahhhhhhh Ezra my love! <3

Should have either let him use the Our Lightsaber or continued with the Force martial arts though, pick a lane. Or have a conversation about why they need to actually get him another saber.

Eman is... waaaaaaay better at this than Rosario, sad to say, lol.

Look at him GO THERE'S MY BOY.

I love him.

Oh what are we doing now?

Ohhhhh the zombie!troopers!

Lol Ezra must have left before the Nightsisters could show Thrawn their zombie techniques.

Eman makes this look flawless, I am in love.

Battle Couple Sabezra moment, awww.

"I missed you."

FAKSJHFAKJFHHKKHHHFHFH OKAY DEAD.

DEAD AND DECEASED.

LIKE THE ZOMBIES LOL.

Aaaaaaaaand I'm gonna adjust this in the fixfic, because right now it looks like they were waiting to actually dock.

And my typing is being slowed down hang on a second.

Still dumb.

Okay back.

Thrawn basically telling Morgan, "Right, so you're going to have to go fight the Rebels and stall die for me, mmkay?"

She's looking like she might regret all of this now lolol.

I do like how the finale is making it very very easy for me to fix later lol.

Like here. Morgan should have attempted to stop Ezra and Sabine. Just a small attempt, and then blocked by Ahsoka, and Ezra and Sabine run around and outmaneuver them.

BATTLE COUPLE SABEZRA. :D

Aaaaand final trailer shot accounted for.

Okay, can there be a little more effort on the choreography there please?

Oh no Sabine, EZRA SAVE HER.

Or we could retcon Sabine into actually legitimately being Force Sensitive and have her pull the Our Lightsaber.

SIIIIIIIIGHHHHHHH.

*grumbles, takes down notes about how to fix this in my rewrite*

Oh come on Ezra, you can jump that.

Catch me melting at the sheer and utter trust Ezra has in Sabine's abilities.

(But also, screw this, she's getting a jetpack in the rewrite.)

Aaaaaaaaaand I do hate that they got separated again, screwing alllllll of that.

Nice of the troopers to just politely stop shooting.

Yeah so, this is basically gonna be a 1 v 100 for Ahsoka when I rewrite it, let my girl have a hard fought climactic battle, she can take it.

"Your friends are dead." Uhhhh nah they ain't what does this bit of dialogue even connect to?

Lol Ezra gets to put on the big boy stormtrooper armor.

The vaaaaaaaaaguely panicky twitches that Thrawn has here. A+, excellent, no notes.

No kill like overkill LOLOLOL.

Thrawn, internally: Shitshitshitshitshitshitshiiiiiiiiiiiiit.

Ah Thrawn is going to try Break Them By Talking. Ezra tanked this let's see if Ahsoka can do the same.

Nope, she's Affected.

Aaaaaand he out.

Bye Thrawn!

Hmmmmgh, yeah no, because in my rewrite I'm axing the entirety of Sabine actually becoming a Jedi it's going to be better that she goes with Ezra on the Eye of Sion instead of stays with Ahsoka, if she stayed a Jedi then yes that's what the conclusion should have been that makes narrative sense now that I see it.

But also again, I Do Not Like That Plot Point so--*grumblegrumble mumble*

Hi Morai!

Bandit queen Shin? I could dig it.

Baylan chilling with Mortis god statues.

I STILL DO NOT SEE ANY SOLID EVIDENCE THEY'RE GONNA DO ABELOTH GUYS, SORRY.

And Thrawn is setting up base on Dathomir. Lol wait til he finds out that there's basically nothing there anymore lololol.

Those uh... those be a lotta dead troopers. Probably most of the Chimaera crew.

...Cripes did they die naturally, did Ezra kill them, or did Thrawn pull some kind of Jonestown thing in order to enact his eventual revenge?

Oh maaaaan what if it's that last one, that would fit with the cult-like chanting in his intro omgghghhhggkajsfkjh.

Frick man, Thrawn fixing to unleash an undead army on the GFFA that can really only be taken out by lightsabers.

Oh come on, you're telling me Ezra was on the Eye and didn't pull some last minute shenanigans before he left?

Didn't screw Thrawn over one last time for nostalgia's sake?

(He and Sabine are blowing up some engines before they skedaddle, in the fixfic.)

HERA AND EZRA SHOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED A HUG, FILONI.

The attempt at bookends here is cute but no. LET HERA HUG HER SON.

THIS DOESN'T EVEN REALLY WORK AS A BOOKEND.

YES THE PART WHERE CHOPPER RECOGNIZES HIM IS CUTE BUT THIS IS WASTED DRAMA. THERE'S NO REASON FOR THIS.

LET HERA HUG HER SOOOOOOONNNN.

This whole scene just doesn't work because we're trying to shoehorn it into being a bookend for the opening, it doesn't wooooooooooorrrrrk.

THEY SHOULD HAVE HUGGED.

*furiously taking down notes on how to rewrite this scene*

*grumbling*

Blah blah Sabine can feel Anakin there but Ahsoka can't? blah blah blah.

Aaaaaaand closing us out with "As The Sun Sails And The Moon Walks"

Well.

Where do I begin?

Okay so... final verdict... I DO actually like this show.

THAT BEING SAID.

There was soooooooo much about the execution and so many of the narrative choices that I just NEEDED to be better and it frustrates me. Because this show by all rights should have been a spectacular emotional thrill ride like Kenobi and it just wasn't.

A lot of the problems and nitpicks I had with Kenobi are exacerbated here, especially under Filoni's brand of, "I didn't care for what Lucas did with the Prequels, here let me fix it." NO FILONI IT DIDN'T NEED FIXING IT WAS FINE! HOW THE FORCE WORKED WAS FINE! THE JEDI WERE FINE!

But there's such GOOD STUFF in here that I can't discount it all fully like I can with the Sequel Trilogy. (Which, believe me, I have attempted to workshop and fixfic but ultimately gave up on.) The purrgil lore! The Ancient Dathomiri! Another galaxy! Whatever Baylan was up to! Sabezra being adorable! Thrawn!

Soooooo yeah, basically join me sometime in the future for when I inevitably create a fixfic AU for this show like I did for Aldnoah.Zero because unfortunately I can't give up on this show I need to fix it, just hand me the characters and story and I can fix it.

Can't do much for the camerawork, choreography, and occasional stiff acting (Not you Eman, Natasha, Ray, Evan, and Lars, you're all great.) but I can at least salvage that part lol.

Ultimately... mid. Excellent premise and cool concepts brought down by subpar execution and some frankly baffling narrative decisions. But gimme like a week and I will workshop a Fanon AU that I can be completely happy with.

Hopefully we get a Season Two? Maybe? Or resolve everything in the Mandoverse movie?

Peace out, y'all.