#now pinned because it is my magnum opus

[glfry]

[animehouse-moe]

Well, Tumblr decided to bug out on me and I've now lost the original question that was asked, but someone had asked for my favorite series (be it manga/anime/movies/Tv/etc), and this was my response.

(first of all, so sorry for losing the question! I should have taken a screenshot or something when Tumblr wouldn't let me post)

It's all good, I enjoy getting these types of questions because they make me think about this stuff haha. I'm not one to really do well with the idea of favorites, so having to pin down stuff like this can be interesting for me!

That said, for this one I might just stick with anime for the list to make it a little easier. I can definitely do a top ten of manga or other stuff later on though. Also, this list will be in no particular order because I'd be stuck forever trying to figure out a satisfying order for them.

Sonny Boy

I think it's a very fair point to argue, that at this stage in his career, Sonny Boy is Shingo Natsume's magnum opus. There's just not much else to it. It's a series that he created, from his own mind and talent, and he executed on that. There are very, very few people that work in anime that can manage a feat such as that. In terms of story, I don't have any issue with claiming Sonny Boy is the pinnacle of high school storytelling. It stretches the fabric of reality so far that you might struggle to claim that it's about high school, but the longer that you spend with it, the more undeniable a fact it becomes. Or maybe you could generalize it to the human condition, or how the cracks in society will fester and form no matter the condition, or how authority will always appear in a self-serving manner, or this or that or any concept under the sun.

Terror In Resonance

Call me crazy, but there's quite a few reasons why this is the Shinichiro Watanabe anime for me. Bebop and Champloo have rose colored glasses that adorn every fan in the community, so I feel like it's hard to really take a proper look at it compared to Terror In Resonance (even though it has a similar amount of users on MAL). As a Mappa project, it is simply the best they've ever been from start to finish. As a concept, Watanabe's approach is impeccable as it examines the frustration and sorrow of displaced children in a society that never wanted them. It's powerful, concise, and from start to finish an incredibly focused series filled with some of the crowning achievements of animators in the industry. Seriously. Takashi Hashimoto, the animator for this cut, actually did all the math to calculate the speed of the smoke as it fell and moved. Some of the best work you'll see on an anime.

Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song

I am a big, big fan of Tappei Nagatsuki's work, so being able to experience an anime that is entirely his vision of the work is really impressive. It's one of the biggest struggles with artists, I find. Understanding their work through different mediums. What you see as an anime is not what they created as a manga, or light novel. But this is different, it is Nagatsuki's (and Umehara's) sole vision, the entire intent behind their creativity. And WIT knocked it out of the park to an insane degree. As a post-AoT studio, they showed just how far they can push their creativity and execution on a series beyond human. Incredible story, incredible animation, arguably some of the best hand to hand combat we've seen in an anime in a very long time. It's just that good.

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

Maybe you see a trend going on with my picks, and while yes it's partly recency bias, it's also a gravitation towards anime originals. I'll add a piece to that at the end, but this is about Edgerunners right now. I was in high school when the video game was first announced. That's a decade ago, now. I played the shit out of 2077 when it dropped, and I'm absolutely eating up Phantom Liberty currently. It is then, absolutely no surprise, that I've placed Edgerunners on a pedestal. But of course, there's also a reason that Edgerunners is in the top 100 anime on MAL, and why it's Trigger's highest rated anime. It's just that damn good. An incredible story revolving around Night City and the themes that Mike Pondsmith laid the groundwork for decades ago. A true tribute to the tabletop game and the genre at large.

The Tatami Galaxy

I don't think there's a way I couldn't put The Tatami Galaxy on this list, truthfully. Of course, that also encompasses the sequel ONA The Time Machine Blues, and spinoffs like The Night Is Short, Walk on Girl. Tomohiko Morimi is a genius, Yusuke Nakamura is an icon, and Masaaki Yuasa is a savant. Incredible work for such an incredible story and message about the pursuit of perfection and the beauty that lies in the present. Arguably, much like titles such as Sonny Boy, these are 100% must watch titles for an anime fan. I'd highly recommend the others still, but these two represent such core and important aspects to how people choose to lead their lives and the frameworks that they do so within, that I strongly believe it's a requirement. I also wrote a review on the novel when I read it in January of this year.

Heike Monogatari

I think history is a very important thing to understand. I also think that history can be presented as obtuse, disinteresting, or too literal - especially in relation to history stories or myths. Heike Monogatari by Science Saru is arguably one of the greatest examples of how to display a modernized version of such a foundational tale to the history of Japan. It's also an incredibly powerful moment for the director, Naoko Yamada, as it was their first real work since the arson attacks on her home studio of Kyoto Animation. Because of the weight of her past, her work beyond words on this anime feels that much more powerful considering its messages about the past and fear of the future. It's wonderfully emotional, and contains one of my favorite closing scenes to a series.

The Saga of Tanya The Evil

Light novel aside, anime quality aside (though both are great), there's a separate reason this title is featured on this list: the adaptation. It is, for lack of a better term, borderline insane as an adaptation. It bears almost no similarity to its source. The tone is different, the scope and scale differ, there's significant changes in terms of narrative, and even the order of large scale events differs. But still, somehow, it remains a fantastic series. Bearing nearly zero resemblance to what it claims to adapt, it is something that I love. It's an incredible feat, and the gold standard of its one-of-a-kind approach to adapting a light novel.

Mononoke

Horror is a very hard thing to do right, at least in my opinion. Many get suckered into thriller territory very quickly, and avoid the psychological nature of horror. The immovable nature of something fearful standing in front of you, the slow descent into madness and despair. Mononoke grasps that incredibly well, and earns a spot on this list because of it's appeal in that manner. Also, the art is just incredible, personifying the more classical style that would be associated with the creatures and myths that pepper the story. I'm incredibly excited to see what comes from the upcoming movie.

Welcome To The N.H.K

While it may differ between its three formats, the core of the story stands strong. Impossible to put into words, it's more of a descent than anything. A descent that turns inwards on each of the characters as they slowly lose their grip on reality, as they continue to fall apart, piece by piece. I have my qualms about how they choose to end it, but I am a very bitter man at my core so it's more a personal difference than a quality one. Regardless, if you want an acid trip down the rabbit hole of depression, mania, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, and all manner of other illness, there's no better story than Welcome To The N.H.K.

Toradora!

There's something special about Toradora to me. Is it the era that the anime comes from? Is it the appeal to a classic style of romance without falling prey to the issues of the layout? I'm unsure. But something about it feels so… comfortable, to me. I could watch it again and again and enjoy each minute. It's probably not the best romance anime out there, but it's one that I'll always be drawn to.

And with that, the list is over. Just to provide some extra context and honorable mentions, I'd love to have put series like Alien 9 or Monogatari on the list, but the challenge with them is the fact that the first is a shorter OVA, and the latter is a much larger series encompasses nearly too much to explain in this sort of context. There's really quite a few series like that that I struggled with when forming this list, but they're still really great titles nonetheless.

Anyways, the anime original point. While it's sort of an unconscious thing, I do realize what I do with it. Anime originals present something that you can't experience elsewhere. They are the end all be all of their creative vision, and that excites me more than a manga adaptation. Following someone else's blueprint vs creating your own, obviously one is more interesting than the other. And that sentiment extends to some of the other titles on the list like Heike Monogatari which approaches a classic story with a radical new viewpoint, or Tanya The Evil which basically forgoes the vast majority of its source material. It's really something I struggle with at large with adaptations. So many people want to leave their marks on the work, but quit just short of doing so in a meaningful manner. Very few go the mile to say that they did something in regards to the work, and instead meddle with it in minor ways which can negatively impact its reception as the original material. A great example of valuable changes is Heavenly Delusion. The team under Hirotaka completely re-arrange the order of events in the anime, and in doing so elevate the series in a way that only they can. Anyways, I digress, a discussion that I should leave for another time. This is my list, it may not be the best list out there, but it is mine.

[astorinx-writes]

Tame Impala’s song “Elephant” Is About Tenma

Tame Impala’s second album, Lonerism, is considered by many (including myself) to be the artist’s magnum opus. But one song that became a huge breakout hit was certainly “Elephant.” A song about the various bands that existed around the time of Tame’s creation in their city of Perth, Australia- It tells the story of one person, who is likened to an Elephant, and is quite arrogant. Many people, both real (and fictional) may come to mind when you yourself try to imagine who the “Elephant” could be. For me, I’m most reminded of Tenma, and I’m here to explain why.

First, It would help if you gave the song a listen, so I will be linking it down below, give it a shot! Secondly, of course, I don’t actually think Kevin Parker wrote “Elephant” to be about Tenma, that would be foolish to think beyond measure. I do, however, think that the lyrics and themes contained within the song remind me of him, which again is what we’ll be discussing today.

To start, let’s go over the first half of the first verse’s lyrics. As stated on Genius.com, they are:

Well, he feels like an elephant Shaking his big grey trunk for the hell of it He knows that you're dreamin' about being loved by him Too bad your chances are slim And it's not like Mr. Shuck To get shy when they ask him who is on top

From what we can gather about Tenma’s portrayal in the 2003 series, we can see that at times he tends to give off quite an air of hubris. He’s never not upfront about his place in the world, and the people in his puzzle that he’s so desperately trying to put together. Likening him to an elephant, we get the impression that he’s large and in charge, “shaking his big gray trunk for the hell of it” implies that he’ll flaunt and make a big show about whatever, whenever, just to remind everyone of his importance. I’m always reminded of Astro/Tobio when it comes to the next 2 lines, “He knows that you’re dreaming about being loved by him / too bad your chances are slim” because quite literally we all know that at times they’ve both pinned after Tenma giving them the time of day. Even though, always like clockwork, he never delivers. Also likening him to the character in Art Garfunkel’s “Mr. Shuck ‘n’ Jive,” we’re reinforcing what was mentioned earlier about being pretentious. This time, though, we’re referring more to an event, so to speak. In this, he is being asked “who is on top,” and without hesitation, he is saying himself. Even if you considered the numerous times he’s brought up robot domination, you can’t deny he wouldn’t turn around and act like he was the glue that put everything together.

Next, we’ll discuss the second half of the first verse, which is as follows:

There must be something deep down in the dark down there But he's not too easily scared He's got friends but they got the fear Wouldn't care too much if he just disappeared Oh look, hey, there he is now coming down the stairs (Here he comes)

Now, we are getting deeper into our understanding of the “Elephant” (who again in this case would be Tenma). We begin with the notion that Tenma is quite fearless, though I would argue there are some caveats to that interpretation. My idea here is that instead of being fearless, he is actually scared shitless at many points, but to maintain appearances (either from others or even himself), he pretends not to be scared, thus further emphasizing his cockiness. The people he surrounds himself with, like Drake, are portrayed as only associating with Tenma because of what he brings to them. In many episodes, he is seen giving either money, or insider information to things no one else of his caliber would have. Which is great for them, but it ultimately means there probably isn’t anything genuine in their relationships. Rather, they are all purely transactional. The lyrics, “Wouldn't care too much if he just disappeared” do a fantastic job at emphasizing that point. The final 2 lines give way to the song becoming a bit more plot like, which leads us into the next part: the instrumental.

The instrumental part of this song has got to be my favorite part of the song, second to only the opening lines of the second verse. It’s a rock odyssey anthem that goes through many phases, that in my eyes are telling the story of Tenma showing up and the chaos that ensues. I mean, the first part before “(Here he comes)” in the first verse sounds exactly like walking down the stairs, and the roaring synth that comes in afterward is just so on brand.

What we’re left with now, is only the final verse, which, again, is below:

He pulled the mirrors off his Cadillac (Yeah) 'Cause he doesn't like it looking like he looks back He talks like his opinion is a simple fact Somebody grabbed his collar He cried the whole way home No one remembered a thing when they saw him again That's how it is 'til the end (Yeah)

In what has to be my top 3 Tame Impala lyrics of all time, the alliteration in “He pulled the mirrors off his Cadillac (Yeah) / 'Cause he doesn't like it looking like he looks back” is simply impeccable. What it does is continue where we left off before the instrumental break, where the “Elephant” was being described to us. Now, we are being told that Tenma, does not look back. So much so, that he pulled his rearview mirrors off to ensure of it. Obviously, there’s no way of knowing if he actually drives a Cadillac, or if he literally has pulled his rearview mirrors off, but what I can say is based on those lines, we’re solidifying that he views himself in a high regard, and will keep trotting forward, no matter what. The next few lines detail an event where things have gone awry, and we’re made to believe that nobody did or said anything after the fact. Though (obviously) I cannot say exactly what event this could be referring to, as it may be just hypothetical, there is no doubt in my mind, that anything that happens to Tenma just gets swept under the rug. Not even O’shay seems to say or do much regarding getting Tenma off Astro’s back, so clearly there is some forgetfulness going on here.

Overall, this was a pretty silly post to make. However, I will concede to the fact that not all things need to be serious, and sometimes you want to combine your special interests like gay barbie dolls you’ve forced to kiss. I hope, however, though, you at least left this post with a new bop to jam out to!

Here's the link to give it a listen!

[emma-dennehy-presents]

in light of that horrendous, overpriced Cult of Individuality jacket I saw today I want to share my vests from over the years

i dont even want to know how much money has gone into them. The vests are all jackets I got from thrift stores and chopped the sleeves off of, but patches and spikey bits add up quick. Cant really tell from the pictures but holy crap have my patch sewing skills improved over the years.

Late 2000s/Early 2010s: My first vest, my thrasher jacket. From my "heavy metal is my only personality trait because everything else is buried in the closet" phase. Pretty much refused to be caught without it on for most of high school and a couple years beyond, starting with just the vest and the Slayer patch. Picked up a few of the patches at shows (Black Label Society, Children of Bodom, Nightwish, Misfits, Judas Priest) the rest were from eBay or random 2000s websites. its had various layouts of spikes/studs over its life, but all got removed to make room for patches. The big blank space is because I couldnt figure out how to sew patches over pockets, at the time. I dont wear it anymore both because its beat to shit and I definitely wouldnt rep some of the patches on it anymore. (ex the confederate flag skull Pantera patch) There were signs of things to come though. I found this, hiding behind the Ensiferum patch. X3

I intend to hold onto this thing forever. I forgot it also has Eat The Rich on it.

2010s-Now: These two are more recent, and still get some wear. I started the black one after I retired my kutte, and the blue one shortly before coming out ver2.0 dropped, a couple years ago, then immediately abandoned. I will probably transfer a lot of the patches to the black vest. Some will also go to my primary vest. No idea what Im going to do with the blue one. I love the back patch but the vest is kind of bulky and doesnt go over crop Ts very well, like the black one does. The Donkey Kong patch is probably my favorite. It was either a gift, or I bought it, from the retro gaming guy, at my local flea. Its in amazing condition for being 40+ years old.

My primary vest right now is this crop job. I plan on making it my magnum opus. Once I get patches situated I plan on filling the rest of the space with pins and paint. The backpatch and the Cisn't patch on the front are from @lakemichiganbaby (SturgeonsDesigns on etsy). [currently on a break for February 2023] The bows are from @genderpunks (GreerMarsCo on etsy) I plan on sewing them somewhere else, probably on the pockets themselves, because I have Ace and Nonbinary colors painted on the pocket flaps. The button holes are a convenient spot right now because they were originally intended as hair clips. Lots of work left to do on it, but Im in no rush to be done with it as a project. Hoping this one looks are rough as my old metalhead battle jacket by the end.

[earth4angels]

Hey I just wanted to drop by to say that you have nothing to be worried about regarding writing and posting the second part of To Love.

I know I’m just the local weirdo who pops in your ask box with story ideas and theories and you probably think I’m annoying and strange but I just wanted to say that you are an amazing writer, hands down one of the best writers in the Jace fandom in particular like you just have such an amazing grasp on his character. You have been working so hard and stressing and it’s because you really care about your characters and your writing and you want to make your fans happy.

I get why you’ve been stressed about the anons who are freaking out about To Love chapter 3. But I just wanted to give some words of encouragement. At the end of th day, it is your story and you know and understand Jacaerys better than a lot of people in this fandom.

Your story is yours and yes you get requests and feedback but please just follow your instincts and trust yourself and write the story that you want.

To help your stress about the anons freaking out about Jace and his girlfriends and potential drama and bumps in college, just try to turn it into a positive: you have so many fans that are so invested in this story that you posted about a week ago like that is huge accomplishment that you should be proud of.

Yes some of the anons are kind of rude, pushy, demanding and stressful but try turn that into a positive as well: they freaking out and worried because they really care about your story and the world and lore that you have created from scratch. They want to see Jace and his girlfriend be happy because you have created and woven such a beautiful relationship in a few thousand words. Like we just got a small window, a peak, a glimpse into this established relationship which was built off of a years-long bond. You are a masterful writer who implied so much history and lore and love between not only the couple but their families as well.

Like your fans want to see more of this amazing couple that you have established and they are so worried because with your story, they care and love it so much. Like a few anons were talking about calling out of work or pretending to be sick at work to read it.

Overall, please don’t be worried. You writing is fantastic and everyone is dying to read what you have planned to write next. Also, please don’t feel bad about the 9,000-10,000 word count. You did not get carried away and everyone loves long fanfictions, especially when it comes to one shots. You clearly worked your ass off on this and stress and worry because care so much about your work, your magnum opus if you will

You got this ❤️Just try to turn every criticism into a positive because you are amazing and deserve all the praise you have been getting. Please try not to doubt yourself. I bet if you posted To Love, Chapter 2 right after the episode, your fans will be so happy.

But most importantly, I think you will be happy when you finally post it and see everyone lose their minds and you get to see all the positive feedback! Trust me

IM GETTING TO THIS SO LATE BUT I PROMISE I HAVE AO MANY ASKS !! i love u so much my angel , ure literally a light in my life 🤍🐇 this meant the entire world to me you don’t know how much im smiling and kicking my feet at this — you’re kind and adorable and i love when you come on my asks with new things like it’s just so sweet!!

your words of encouragement is everything bc i use all the feedback now to push me to write more, to deliver something beautiful for you all, ill work hard to not disappoint, i love you so much ill keep saying it again and again.

i wish i can pin this for my own sake to encourage me every day when i’m overthinking something.. (i’ve been on a writers block for three days now)

gah you don’t know how much i needed this 🤍🐇💭

[jimmycarterghostland]

My web serial 33 is still in rewrite hell. Just the other day, I found out that across and across from isn't the same thing. So I had to go through each chapter I revised so far, use the find tool option to search for every instance of "across", and make sure to add "from" after it, wherever it was needed. It was irritating, but I got it done.

For the newbies who don't know what 33 is, it's the science-fiction web novel I've been rewriting for a year now. 74 chapters total, all being rewritten. Hence my recommending nobody reads the novel until the rewrite is finished.

33 features two alien races: the Soynites and the Freemans. The Freemans destroyed Soy, the Soynites' home planet. And the Soynites have to get revenge and revive Soy. There's gray morality in 33, alien royals, death, at least one coronation(there will be multiple), spaceships, etc. It's a multiple point of view novel. If there aren't dozens of narrators in 33 right now, there will be. The planned word count is 5 million words. Formerly 20 million. I realized the 20M word plan was extremely unrealistic, so I dropped that down to 5M.

Embarrassingly, I've been rewriting 300,000 something words of 33 for the past year. That's the amount all the chapters so far add up to. Distractions and life in general are big reasons why the rewrite is taking up so much time to finish. Plus, there's the actual rewriting. There's always something I have to go back and edit in chapters that I had already revised. Sometimes I have to rewrite an entire already revised chapter, not just editing a sentence or two. But the whole thing. It's frustrating. One change can lead to me having to rewrite a whole chapter. That's what happened recently. I added something in an already improved chapter. I did it because I needed a certain character to show some cleverness. That change caused me to edit a few chapters that I had already edited earlier in the rewrite. I had to edit them in their entirety.

Anyway, my plan is to make 33 be my magnum opus. This is the work I want to be more popular than anything else I've written.

I work hard on 33. And I try to give each narrator a distinct character voice, using things like a character's mindset, a character's vocabulary, etc. to create a well-written multiple POV piece of literature. I've gotten better at writing character voice in general, but it's a challenge when there are a bunch of narrators you have to make sound unique. It is a lot of fun, though. Someday I want to be a master of writing multiple point of view literature.

33 is a Royal Road exclusive, but I plan on eventually publishing it in the original work section of Archive of Our Own. I'm eager to see how it gets received on AO3. It should be an interesting experiment.

I no longer have the detailed information about 33 pinned on my blog anymore, because seeing that post every time I went to my blog ended up frustrating me. So I figured other people felt that way too, which led me to unpin the post. I should really make more posts about 33 on here, though. Every Wednesday on Royal Road, I post an update on the rewrite.

I work on 33 every day, but progress on the rewrite moves extremely slowly. But I do have to finish this rewrite, then write the remainder of the novel, because I want 33 to be a popular and beloved piece of literature someday.

[bylightofdawn]

Some wonderful person left me a super lengthy comment on the latest chapter of Seeds and that really just made my week. I've definitely been feeling kinda low in the morale department when it comes to writing which I think is a combo of just the stress from the past couple of weeks and I think my trying to acclimate to a new antidepressant my doctor put me on.

I'm going to be heartbroken if this stuff turns me into an emotional zombie because I know it will 100% steal away any interest I have to write because that's generally what's happened in the past and why I take long breaks from writing and fandom in general. But I also kinda need to be on antidepressants because otherwise my MDD just takes over my life and I'm an anxiety riddled mess. I'm high key nervous about meeting my new GP next week and how that relationship is going to play out. But we'll see how it goes, I guess.

I need to find a happy medium between the two. I thought the crazy vivid dreams I've been having was because of the new muscle relaxer they put me on but I stopped taking it because my chiropractor mentioned it might be why I keep slipping that T4 rib and why my shoulder has gone out suddenly since it all kinda started around the same time I started to take the zanaflex. So I've quit taking it but the vivid dreams are still ongoing so it has to be from the lexapro. Which isn't the worst side effect I've ever had but I've definitely begun to notice my productivity and my ability to concentrate has gotten worse since I started taking the lexapro which sucks. I mean it could just be burnout, I'm trying to not over-react here.

I have a week until I meet with the new GP and then I think I'll have a convo with them. I just don't think my telling them I want to switch antidepressants because I am 90% with my magnum opus fanfic nd want to be able to finish it is a very good reason she will understand. LOL

Ugh this new charge cord I got off of amazon is dog shit as well and my laptop keeps not charging so I can't tell if it's it or the pin. It WAS charging without any issues on the broken OEM cable I have but it got all twisted and the wires have separated so I made an asurion claim and they STILL have not sent me the box to sent it in to get it repaired/replaced. But I don't know if I can go another week or two like this. I'm legit waiting for my laptop to charge with the cord at a weird upwards angle because even if I push it in when I put it down on the ground it doesn't bloody charge! So it's 1:30 and I'm going to be up till 2 waiting for my battery to fully charge. :| Which wouldn't be a problem if I could pick up my laptop and actually yanno write. But then it stops charging.

I feel very whiny right now, sorry. I know first world problems here.

[torterrachampion]

19. For the writing asks!

19. If you could write an ideal fic, what would it include?

This is such a hard question! I guess my hypothetical magnum opus fic would have to be a multi chapter one. I'm far more comfortable with oneshots but I really admire the dedication that goes into writing a long fic and it gives a lot of opportunities to actually dig into the characters. My longest fic to date is only a little over the 50k mark but for the ideal/fantasy I'm cooking up here I'd like to try for 100k+ words. And although I like AUs I'm far more partial to canon compliant or canon adjacent fics, because removing characters from their natural habitat can make it difficult for me to pin down how they've become the person that they are.

Because vnc brainrot has been going strong for many, many years at this point, as of now I'd want my ideal fic to be a vnc one. And with my penchant for domijeanne I'd also most likely want this fic to centre them. Though, in order to write a canon compliant multi chapter domijeanne fic, I think I'd need to wait until either vnc ends or one of their storylines is over (the most likely scenario being Jeanne's death). Tonally I'd want the fic to fit with the manga, with a careful balance between the more serious and goofier moments (if I could manage that). Otherwise I'd just like it to be an exercise in really dissecting Domi and Jeanne to an intense degree. I'd want it to give people the same kind of brainworms as a good meta post. And I'd put Chloé in it. Somewhere.

In a perfect world there would be no spelling or grammar mistakes. I would be blessed with zero typos as though it were professionally edited.

Other than that I recently reread Crimson Shell and have been tossing around the idea of writing a long fic that would be a sort of continuation to the manga. It would give me a lot of freedom to just do whatever the hell I want and I would like to give some love to Mochijun's oldest manga. Of course, I'd need to plan a lot to get that project moving. I'd have to have at least a few twists up my sleeve if I wanted to "finish" Mochijun's work for her. I'm absolutely not as good a storyteller as her so I wouldn't want to rashly try anything that would put me out of my depth. There's also the matter of Xeno and Claudia's relationship... I'd like to lean into and deconstruct it if I ever did manage to plot out a Crimson Shell fic... but Xeno would not come out of that looking good.

[ursbearhug]

On a bit emotional bit today, I think I'll give an insight to 2 poems and decision making behind them and now.

So hi, hello. If you don't know me, I'm drop out classical student and before my studies; I disliked poetry. I always found it super over the top and needlessly elusive. Like, oh let me quickly use very flowery langauge to describe very regular and normal feeling, and slap pointless and crass and ugly rhyme over it, making it completely incomprehensible in the process.

But I found solace and joy and comfort in some of the ancient poetry. I have a lot of strong opinions on some poets too. This pushed me to start writing poems of my own again.

Beginning 2nd year was really tough. I was living in far away, secluded, nightmarish 2 foot square white room and had real tough year in front of me and literally nobody around.

I fall in love with a mutual at some later date. My first poems were really bleak and emo and that's really embarrassing to have this shit up somewhere. They stated that it's not gonna happen and we're still on friendly terms (I think, it's never obvious with them).

Later I started talking to another guy and I was under the impression that he liked me. But like... He *liked* *me*. In a hindsight, I think it's because flirting goes out of control for everyone and I wasn't very proactive with my boundaries. But to be fair to past me, I have liked the guy. I really truly did. I feel lied to now because I lived off of my imagination that was never confronted because communication is for pussies. As much as I hope he chokes on something, I hope he is doing well. Even if there is a bit (a sprinkle a dash... A gallon) of a grudge on my behalf.

But I wrote the very first, proper, fully thought out poem (that's pinned on my blog, I know not many people look at this because, let's face it; my poetry kind of sucks ass) for him and I felt really awesome doing it. Like, right now I feel it is a bit on the nose because you could trace some of the lines directly to ancient poets I emulated there, but I am still proud of my work.

And since then I've wrote some other pieces and I see improvement in them. They also haven't lost the little style of mine thing as I feared. And are still as much grounded in mythological examples as I always wanted them to.

But not only I'm proud of the improvements I made (even though I am yet to learn how to apply rhythm), I also feel validated by the virtue that they receive positive feedback. Especially from my partner, to whom, I dedicate a lot of them.

So while I thought that "Playing Catch with Love" was my magnum opus, I think it is only fair and reasonable, to move forward and create something better. A true master, is an eternal student.

Growth.

[stagefoureddiediaz]

I was wondering about the color pink in the promos. May is wearing it and so is one of the girls on their call. What does it signify and what do you think it means for May and/or the other characters?

Hey Desiree

Lovely to hear from you and thanks for the question - I love answering things about colour theory!!

The pink thing is actually such an interesting one because pink has so many different connotations attached to it and the different shades can have very different meanings attached to them. Pink is the combination of white and red - in it most pure form, but it can also be toned with most of the other shades and then you have to bring some of their individual colour meanings into play. So you can have yellow toned pinks, blue toned pinks, orange toned pinks etc creating colours such as fuchsia, salmon, coral, magenta etc.

I'm actually in the process of writing my 'magnum opus' post on colour theory but it's not going to be done - i hope - until sometime in the hiatus, but keep an eye out and I will link it in my pinned post once I've done!!

Looking specifically at the trailer pinks. May is in a baby pink - actually a bit out of character for her - we tend to see her in bold and bright - strong shades of whatever colour she is wearing. Baby pink is very much in the true forms of pink - it is just white and red and it is at the white end of the pink spectrum. it is youthful and considered feminine (girly) but it is also compassionate and caring. it is sensitive and intuitive. Putting May in that colour (and in a fluffy version of it no less) when it appears that she is having a conversation with Athena about her job - says to me that May is going to be pushing Athena because May knows Athena needs to be having that conversation - both internally and with others. The thing is May is going to get somewhere because of her compassion, because she cares for her mother and her happiness and because May is the perfect person to do it - she is sensitive and intuitive - she knows when to push and when to back away - she's been building up to this for a while - it started with the car stop, played through Mays college essay, the Tsunami, Emmett's killer and now through the Jeffery Hudson storyline - May has been supportive but questioning - helping to plant seeds and knowing intuitively when to force them on or hold back. May really is the wisest of them all and she is going to do great things in her life!

As for the girl on the falling through a hole call. That pink is more neon and has orange tones to it - its quite sugary. So its still youthful and its likely we're still in caring territory, but the orange undertones give it energy and plays into the risk taking nature the call seems to contain. generally its an uplifting colour and combined with the pink i'm thinking we'll be seeing that girl being the compassionate one - trying to be positive and uplift her friends but its very hard to be sure without more context than that one second on a new character we know nothing about yet!

I hope all this helps and that it makes sense??!!

[haztory]

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬

--erwin smith x reader; fluff, domestic, not canon compliant farmer erwin, there’s a mentioning of injuries but not enough to be considered graphic! (erwin lives!)

a.n: this is my attempt at swinging back into the ways of writing after a long, long, long hiatus! i wrote this in thirty minutes as just an exercise, but felt it was cohesive enough to post. its vague, abstract, and definitely not a magnum opus, but its something. this is more of an erwin story than an x reader one, but i hope you all enjoy regardless!

this was titled after a song on the pride and prejudice ost of the same name. highly recommend you give it a listen

anything for my sweet boy erwin ♡

(w.c: 1686)

At the initial prospect of it, retirement was somewhat akin to shooting oneself in the foot for a man like Erwin. It was condescending, debilitating, almost an insult were he any lesser than a reasonable man.

The word was floated around numerous times after the loss of his arm, spoken with a gentleness and, dare he say, a trepidation they believed must be adopted when speaking to the freshly injured man. For fear of upsetting him or for fear of making the situation real, he’s not quite sure. It was mentioned, nonetheless. In passing, directly, through implication; Everyone seemed to think that Erwin was less of a man and more of a liability because of his lost arm, and that retiring from the Scout Regiment would be the best option for everyone. 

That was something he took offense to. 

His physical abilities may be considerably limited now, yes, but he still holds inherent value to the cause he’s dedicated his life to. Still has goals, still has dreams, still has ideas that must be discussed and implemented if the fate of humanity is to even think about surviving beyond the next few days. 

Erwin still had some fight in him, and he still had things to offer. Things that retirement would take away from him.

The word settled like a thick tar on his tongue and left a bitter aftertaste, one he couldn’t bear to swallow down. So he didn’t. He spit the word back out, removing it from his mouth and sternly asking others to rid themselves of it too. They followed his order, albeit begrudgingly, but the conversation ended then and there. Not permanently, unfortunately. No amount of power, Erwin imagines, could ever snuff out the growing fear his missing appendage has instilled in his soldiers. That even the most untouchable, unshakeable of leaders could be tainted by this cruel world. 

He knows it's on everyone's mind, no matter how many times he can try to assuage the fears, for if the exchanged uneasy glances between his eccentric Section Commander and trusted Captain were anything to go by, then the fear his cadets must feel must be traumatizing. The looks they pass to one another when they think he isn’t looking.

Erwin lost an arm, not his intuition. It seems he’s the only one who knows that. 

But they let it go. They all do, for now at least. They reluctantly put a pin at his assertion that he would continue his work, regardless of injury, and quickly filed this topic as one they would return to at a later date. Appease him now to make him more receptive to the future. They let him continue to work himself dry, let him continue with physical missions like he wasn’t missing a trusted appendage, and entertained his reckless and drastic thoughts to a certain extent.

When he lands himself back in the infirmary, this time with a serious rupture to the side of his stomach from flying debris, and a number of broken bones that will surely cause permanent hindrance to his mobility, the topic is brought back up again. Only this time, it’s non-negotiable. His near death was the final straw in forcing Erwin Smith into retirement. 

                                                              ∵

He hates it.

Hates how quiet his home is, hates how unexciting his routine is, hates not being able to know.

But he finds that making coffee is still manageable with one arm. The sun still shines as brightly inside the walls as it does outside. The birds still chirp excitedly in the morning and the wind still blows gently in the afternoon. 

He hates retirement, but it’s manageable. 

It gets better after a while, the presence of a neighbor making his nights substantially more interesting with the dinner she brings over. 

                                                             ∵

The house is quiet once again, only the distant chirps of the birds filling the empty space. It's familiar, but he finds it unsettling this time around. A feeling of anticipation creeping into his stomach, waiting for the other shoe to drop at any moment.

It doesn’t happen. 

With a slight furrow in his brow and after a long analyzing gaze outside the window above the kitchen sink, Erwin makes his way towards the front door, granting him access to the front porch of the house. Settled away from the city, the land his house is built on stretches for miles; Fields of green spread out before him and littered with tall, blooming and swaying trees. The chickens squawk and run around before him and the horses huff their snorts of boredom. There’s activity in the Smith residence, but it’s not the kind he’s looking for. 

There’s something missing. 

Bringing his left arm up to his mouth, he curls his fingers below his tongue, blowing out a loud and sharp whistle that has all movement still for a brief moment on his farm. All attention piqued on him, the animals and the trees alike waited for Erwin’s response. 

They wait, and they wait, and they wait. But still, nothing.

The crease between Erwin’s brows dips further. A brief flash of worry settles in his shoulders. He pulls his fingers into his mouth again, blowing a whistle that lasts for a few seconds longer this time. His eyes stay trained on the hill before him, hoping to see something. Anything.

He waits a minute before the restlessness takes over and he takes his steps down the stairs of the porch, his boots crunching against the crisp grass still wet from the morning dew. He approaches the top of the hill, the one that lays level with the foundation of his house, before surveying the land further below. He looks left and right, then left again and then right again, eyes peeled for that familiar flash of grey.

Where in the world could that damn dog have gone?

The dog is usually fast enough to return before he even needs to whistle a second time, never straying too far from the property for her to not hear Erwin’s call. But this time is different. She’s gone and isn’t returning to him and that can only mean one thing.

Trouble.

He begins his trek down the hill, the morning still early enough to not have him sweating on this irregular stroll of his, but he can feel the temperature slowly rising through the air. The wind serves as his only semblance of comfort as it continues its mission of cooling the exposed skin of his forearm and neck. 

He must be walking for at least five minutes before he sees it. The scraggly grey hair of a dog's bottom, her top half hidden behind a large oak tree but her tail wagging ferociously. A small smile graces Erwin’s face subconsciously, the slowly building apprehension dissipating in an instant at seeing the vivacious mutt. 

Or at least at seeing her bottom half. 

He approaches the tree slowly, the noises of enjoyment and panting from the dog becoming louder as he draws nearer. But there’s another sound too that fills the air. A sound much sweeter and delicate, one that he’s heard a thousand times over the years,  and yet, Erwin swears it's one he can never get tired of. 

It’s a breath of fresh air, an instant drug in his veins, and the reason behind the swelling of his heart. His smile grows wider than he could have possibly imagined.

He gets close enough and the dog finally notices him, bounding over to him in an instant with a greeting bark and a perk in her step. He pats her head, a silent gratefulness at having found her finally and understanding why she refused to meet his calls. Why she continued to stay at the spot behind the oak tree a five minute walk away from her home.

He finally gets near the tree, peering around its large trunk to the spot the dog previously occupied and can’t help but laugh in surprise. 

Sitting in the space between the bulging roots are his two girls, one aged six and the other three, huddled close together as they coo and giggle over an object resting between the two’s feet. Their backs are turned towards their father, too preoccupied with whatever was settled between them to even notice the beloved dog’s disappearance from her original spot and its replacement with their father. 

His years of training to fight titans kicks in, his steps as quiet as can be as he gets closer to the girls to get a look at what they were currently fawning over. 

A baby bird. Brown in color and more than comfortable between the two children.

“What are you two doing?”

His voice sends a jolt of shock through them, the two girls jumping in the air at the sudden disruption and whipping their faces around to look at the intruder. The fear quickly melts off of their round faces when they realize who it is. 

“Daddy!” The two girls yell unanimously, unbridled joy filtering their features and Erwin briefly sees the beautiful face of their mother in them. The youngest in particular. 

The eldest managed to take most of his features, much to his wife’s pleasure, retaining his aquiline nose, the vibrant blue of his eyes, and his own oval face shape, but her hair is a delightful mix between his and his wife’s. And while she looks the most like him, she acts the most like her mother; Joyous and giggly and a passionate ball of rays. 

Now, his youngest, while looking almost entirely like a carbon copy of her mother, was in fact a replica of his own personality. Quiet, curious, diplomatic. A balance to her impulsive sister, a shining grey crater of peace in the sky.

His sun and moon. His reasons for orbit. The loves of his life. 

                                                             ∵

And as he walks his two girls back across the field to their home, their mother’s figure on the horizon and an excited chatter between them as they recount the tales of their morning in helping the baby bird, a single thought enters Erwin’s mind. 

Retirement isn’t so bad. 

[flashbang-througthe-door]

Untitled

A/n: this is a Lear/Hudson fic...I was curious...if your reading this that means I actually posted it and I'm sorry, also why is this like my magnum opus

Lear/Hudson

Tw: Swearing, smoking, a description of being left for dead

implied past relationship between Lear and Hudson

Description: The others left Lear and Hudson alone in a foolish attempt make them get along but something else happens

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

Lear and Hudson were left alone in the safe house in an attempt to make them get along, but it was hitting an interesting moment. The two men one leaning against the desk in front of the office the other leaning against the evidence board puffing away on a cigarette. To an untrained eye, they looked like they were staring at each other but to anyone who knows these two would know this is a staring contest. Whoever lost would hear about it for days. "Giving up Italy?" "Not on your life America...." Lear responses neither of them had blinked yet.

Hudson starts heading towards Lear still not blinking "Hey, remember no touching it's not fair" Lear reminds Hudson, who gave a slight nod remembering the few rules they set. "You remember when we first met?" Lear asks he missed the time back then "Eh, Italy right?..... Florence....that uh" Hudson tried to think back to the place "The abandoned church...your government wanted me, they sent you and a few agents I ran into the church after uhhh" Now Lear couldn't remember what happened before the church "You tried to throw us off by throwing your shirt into the water" Hudson reminds Lear right as he blinked. "Ow, hm...yeah by the time you and your lackeys got to me...I was almost out the window" Lear's eyes stung a bit "Why do we always fight?" "Because it's all we know anymore" Lear recalled being handcuffed and dragged out kicking and screaming, Hudson wasn't much help at that time. "Right..." Hudson took his sunglasses off and rubs his face "I feel like I shou-" "I don't want to talk about it anymore" "See then you shut down" "I just don't want to talk about" "you never want to talk about it" Hudson growls and Lear chuckles "Italy? Or after the fact?" Lear lights a new cigarette blowing the smoke into Hudson's face "Both, whenever I bring it up...you completely shut down or we squabble about who's more useless, why?" Hudson inquires then waves his hand getting the smoke out of his face. "Because what happened leading up to you and your barbarians catching me for that mission...and after that..." Lear shakes his head "I woke up in a dumpster...bleeding out. Adler saved my life when you were busy with someone else...in that office...we were perfect but when I needed you the most you weren't there for me" He felt tears starting to come up he walked away from Hudson it was wasn't the best time to recall. Sure the time they worked together before this was nice they got along with each other too....even dated for a bit, but like most good things it ended. Time became timeless and the others weren't back yet. Lear was writing down some info he found out and tacked it to the board he and Hudson weren't talking yet. After Italy was brought up the memories came back to both of them.

Hudson was in the office going over some files trying to keep himself busy but every once in a while out of the corner of his eye he would see Lear walk by. He was wondering what the other was up to, but he had done enough damage for today. He honestly felt bad for Italy and what followed after.

Flashback, Florence, Italy

Lear was racing away from a group of agents one being Hudson. Lear quickly lost them in a quicker attempt to throw them off he yanked his shirt off threw it into the river. He bolted down a barely used path cuts and scrapes on his body, his raven black hair was messy and there were some sticks and leaves in his hair. His brown eyes barely took in the area around him but he quickly chooses paths and ended up in the abandoned church. Against his better judgment, he ran into the church climbing up the stairs he heard the others crashing into the church. "Fuck me" he mumbles starting to climb out the window but arms went around his waist and threw him to the floor. "Hudson, up here we got him" One of the agents call out putting their boot on Lear's back pinning him down. "Vincent Russo, You're in the custody of the United States government. You will help us" Hudson kneels next to Lear "Help you? Fuck that!" Lear spits at Hudson and misses "You will help us, whether you want to or not" Hudson sighs handcuffing Lear and slowly taking him to the helicopter "Stop! Struggling" Hudson tried to get a better grip on Lear but it was very difficult because Lear was kicking and screaming.

End of flashback

Hudson heard a loud set of thumps coming from outside of the office. "...what the fuuuu" he walked out to find Lear laying on the floor with the punching bag on top of him. "You uh...hehe...you okay down there?" He chuckles crossing his arms watching Lear struggle "No, I'm not okay" he mutters trying to get the bag off of himself "I think we've been here before Vincent" Hudson kneels next to Lear "You pinned to the floor, me winning..." Hudson chuckles now sitting next to Lear "Hey...Jason..." "Hey Vincent" "what happened to us?" "Uh...well" Hudson rubs his neck he pushed the punching bag off Lear and thought about it "Well you didn't make the car ride to D.c easy" he points watching Lear sit up "Did you really think that I'd make it easy?" Lear sighs looking at Hudson put his hand on the other's shoulder "I owe you a car window...I remember that..." He chuckles softly "And a rearview mirror" Hudson adds "Wait was I really that bad?" "Well...if you remember..."

Flashback

"Jason, you sure you want to take him alone?" "Yeah, how bad can this be? He's still asleep" Hudson chuckles softly and gets in the car this was going to be a long ride. As time passed and Lear slowly woke up of course was groggy. "Where are we?" He mumbles slowly sits up "West Virginia" Hudson answers turning the radio down as Psycho Killer started playing. "Mhm..." Lear lays on his back starting to slam his feet against the window. "WHAT! KINDA GOVERNMENT AGENT TAKES MY SHOES! KEEPS ME HANDCUFFED! AND DIDN'T GIVE ME A SHI-" Lear stopped shouting once his feet went through the window. "Come on, Vincent calm down" Hudson pulls over and turns the car off making sure the back doors were locked before turning fully around in his seat. Hudson stared at Lear, who was shifting positions to get a good angle for his next kicking fit. "Your bleeding" "uh-huh" "You'll need stitches" "Uh-huh" "What are you doing?" "Uh-huh" "Vincent!!!" now not only was Hudson out a window he was now out of a rearview mirror "That's it" he climbs into the back and took his tie off using it to tie Lear's feet together.

End of flashback

Lear rubs his neck looking down as he lights a new cigarette "I fucking hate it here, it's so cold" he pulls his knees to his chest "Here" Hudson did something that hadn't happened in a long time, he pulled Lear into his lap resting his head against the others back. "In the forest after we lost contact...me and the team went to do the mission...we got caught under a lot of fire and..." Lear stops for a second putting his hands on top of Hudson's. "I got the bright idea to cause a distraction...it worked surprisingly, the plan I did worked...but I was caught and tortured..." With each part of the story, Hudson could feel Lear shake worse and worse "If you don't w-" "I need to tell someone" Lear collects his thoughts "I didn't know what fucking day it was...some grunt of Perseus...didn't like the answers I was giving so she...or he, I don't remember...they had a mask on...poured gas on my chest and lit it up" Lear was pouring tears but he wasn't finished "I got the shit kicked out of me when they tried to put the fire out...I'm so lucky....to have lived" he was done talking now exhausted he felt Hudson shift him so he could rest his head on Hudson's chest. "I didn't know, I should have done more to help you" Hudson was trying to comfort Lear but he hadn't done it in so long it was almost like he forgot, but it slowly came back to him remembering that Lear liked it when he ran his finger through his hair. So gently Hudson ran his finger through Lear's hair whispering comforting words as the door swung open. "I'm telling you there is almost n-" Adler stopped dead in his tracks as Bell bumps into him "What?...oh" Bell watches from behind Adler. "Woods owes me fifty bucks" Adler had a huge grin on his face, for two reasons one, he was going to be fifty bucks richer but secondly, because seeing Lear and Hudson cuddling meant no more fighting for now.

[duhragonball]

Intro

I keep hearing about this influx of Tik Tok users (Tokkers?), and that sounds like a weird prank.  Like, I thought Tik Tok was the cool thing all the young people do now, so why would they want to come use Tumblr, the hottest social media platform of 2011?  But I’ve been seeing an uptick in people liking my old posts, so maybe this is a real thing.  

I won’t bother telling new people how to use this website.   It’s a dumpster fire, and half of my followers have empty blogs that just say “Sem Titulo” in the header.  You can pretty much do whatever the hell you want, as long as it doesn’t have nipples in it.  I suspect a lot of users just signed up so they could see all the content, which is why they use default pfps and they never reblog anything.   They want to be spectators, not participants, and I can respect that. 

I am thinking that maybe I should make some sort of introduction to this particular blog, because it’s been almost ten years and I’ve never really spelled out what I’m here for.   I mean, yeah, it’s Dragon Ball content, with a little JoJo and Hellsing on the side, but I also overanalyze stuff, while refusing to take the thing too seriously.  That’s a tricky balance, and I probably don’t always get it right, but I like to think the “duh” in my username helps set the tone.  Dragon Ball is a show about silly cartoon characters beating the shit out of each other.   It’s very dumb but also very clever and poignant at the same time.  

I did a liveblog of the entire anime in 2019, which is probably the most popular feature I have.   You can check that out here, here, and here. 

A lot of my more popular post are replies to asks.   The tag #ask duhragonball would cover them all.  You can feel free to send me a question of your own, but be advised that I turned anonymous asks off last year.   I used to take anon asks, but they gradually got stupider and less relevant over time, to the point where it just became unpleasant on multiple levels.   The last one was some guy asking me about a direct-to-home-video Popeye movie, no explanation given.   I have found that the quality of the asks goes up when people have to take accountability for their questions.   I get a lot fewer asks these days, but the ones I do get are 100 times better than the crap I used to see.  PROTIP: If you’re worried about getting on my good side, ask me about my OC.  This seems like an obvious strategy, but someone out there decided to ask me about Popeye instead, so maybe I’m putting out the wrong signals.

Speaking of my OC, I write fanfic, which I tend to cross-post to this blog.   The main feature is this epic-length story featuring my take on the Super Saiyan who lived one thousand years before Goku.  I made her a girl because it would piss off people who deserve to get pissed off.   She wears yellow pants and she’s sad a lot and she beats the fuck out of bad guys.  Is this my magnum opus?  Well, it might be.  The fic itself is tagged “#lssjluffafic” and the related material is tagged #luffastuff.  I think.   I’ll have to double check.  

That’s about it.   At some point, I need to formalize this a little more and make it into a proper pinned post, I guess, but it’ll do for now.  

[dxmichelle]

fic word search meme

I was tagged by @kaibacorpintern to search through my fics for the words DEEP, PLAY, and SIGH.

For this I'm going to stay with chapter fics since the one-shots aren't long and probably won't have those words in them.

To keep the meme going, I'm going to tag @bellamy-taft and @darksidechick823 with CARE, RUN, and COLD.

~~*~~

Of Lost Swords and Shadow Magic (YGO/HP): the magnum opus fic, which I'm sure has hundreds of instances of all 3 of these words, so narrowing down to a fun-size number of entries will be fun.

He got three steps away from her before she swallowed her hurt feelings deep back down, squared up her shoulders and drew her wand from her pocket.

Only one more would get him strong enough to delve deep into the Millennium Rod, to undo a failsafe he had put into place thousands of years ago.

He carefully dislodged his fingers from her hold, got up as quietly as he could manage it, and slunk off towards Madam Pomfrey's office, and couldn't help but shake the tiny little feeling lingering deep in his gut, that even a clean slate would not return them back to the way things were.

Kaiba wasn't just trying to get him to back down with one of his murderous looks – he knew his rival well enough by now to know he was calculating something deep behind eyes that were simultaneously fiery and frigid.

"Mr. Podmore even asked about the basics of Duel Monsters, though I don't think he has any true desire to play."

"Someone else with a connection to the Items is in play, and we don't know who they're working for…or if they act alone."

"Kaiba, you stay here and fill in the shrimp when he decides he can't play this ridiculous sport."

"Losing a duel sends your soul to the Shadow Realm for an undetermined period of time…until Yugi plays hero to get you out."

“Somehow, I don’t think Voldemort is going to play a card game with you,” said Harry.

"You're so much feistier than the last one I got to play with."

…Are you telling me," he began slowly, "that the Ministry has been playing me for a fool?"

He reached for his "KC" lapel pin, and didn't even bother to hide the almost-sigh of relief to feel the cool metal under his fingertips.

Professor Flitwick sighed, bored, and tapped his wand against one of the sheets of parchment that they were supposed to be taking notes with, and turned it into a paper bird that began to flutter around the room.

When he learned his schedule had been adjusted to accommodate a "working lunch" with Pegasus of all people, he had sighed and resigned himself to the fact that he would probably be eating somewhere ridiculously posh to accommodate the game designer's lavish taste, someone would end up consuming a great deal of alcohol, and no work would actually get done.

Ghost in the Machine (YGO): ah yes, the original mystery fic of "who tried to kill Kaiba"

“You booked an entire hotel floor…for us? How deep are them pockets of yours, anyway?”

“I appreciate the enthusiasm Joey,” said Yami, “But I haven’t played this before.”

He wasn’t ever this serious even in dueling, where each play was made with fun, lighthearted flair.

Mokuba sighed as he reached up, waving the stack of tickets in Joey’s face. “Joey… we are traveling first class.”

Murder Most Foul (YGO): the other "who tried to kill Kaiba" fic, except this one is much funnier.

Yugi took a deep breath and began to speak, and saw his rival’s eye twitch before he was even finished.

“Roland and I installed a specific set of cameras just for this purpose,” said Seto. “You didn’t think I was just going to play dead on the floor for hours, did you?”

Little snot had to be in on this – whatever this happened to be, and played his part perfectly.

After several beats pause, Seto sighed and leaned back in his chair. “…Alright, Yugi. So long as I can do whatever I want when your little band of mystery solvers aren’t snooping through my office, then we have a deal. I’ll be your corpse.”

Spherium (YGO): post-series, platonic rivalship

Because he was made of stronger stuff than everyone else seemed to think, and he sometimes wished Kaiba would just come out and say what he meant to say, instead of suppressing his feelings down deep where no one could –

“You’re not as clever as you think, and you’re not going to play me like you did in New York.”

And finally, with a sigh, tugged the basket closer and carefully picked it up by the paper wrapping that was already starting to drip a mixture of sauce and grease off the edge.

Sapphire Road (YGO/HP): the wacky future!OLSSM, Oz-au side plot.

Their wands were their only light source as they delved deeper underground…until finally, the path practically hidden behind a partially-collapsed wall led them into a wide treasure room where among the small bags of coins and statues of jackals was the heart of the Shadow Magus’s sword.

He shifted a hand to brace the back of her head better as he tilted it upwards, and the kiss deepened, neither of them willing to be the one to break away first, to return to the bleak reality before them.

“With the Pharaoh playing hero again, I bet you’ll be waiting a while,” Yami Bakura muttered, “If he’s smart, he won’t give up the stupid sword piece and will stick to the plan.”

"And if the Shadow Magus is going to play God in this living hell, then we’ll take it out.”

VERY GOOD, LITTLE WITCH. BUT TWO CAN PLAY THIS GAME….

"Don’t tell me we’re in another dungeon because I’m getting tired of playing prisoner.”

[inklingofadream]

Ink’s 2020 Fics

If you’re reading this post, you’re either a) a beloved follower of this blog, here on tumblr on new year’s eve as we wave this shockingly calamitous year into the sunset, or b) someone who’s seen one of my posts and clicked through to my blog, bc this is my new pinned post. Welcome!

According to my AO3 stats, I have posted 93,925 words of fic this year! So I’m gonna round it all up! Descriptions don’t match those on AO3, they’re somewhere between summary and stream of consciousness liner notes. check the links for full content warnings, pairings, etc

Of the fics I wrote this year, all were for The Magnus Archives with one exception. So because this is my post we’re starting with the exception! Also it ups the chances of someone seeing this v niche fic.

Love, love love- 1.2K, complete- Have YOU ever read Kurt Vonnegut’s seminal 1963 satire Cat’s Cradle for a college class and thought “gee, the narrator and Philip Castle’s first meeting would make a hilarious story in a first words soulmate au!” Look no further, because that’s exactly what this is! Also if you had that thought independently and organically dm me, i think we’re soulmates.

TMA fic (in chronological order by date of first posting)

Ache- 800, complete- y’know the period where Jon’s in his coma and Martin’s started working with Peter Lukas? That means Basira and Melanie are the only people in the Archives for a few months, and they’re both rlly messed up and traumatized. What my book presupposes is: what if they were angsty lesbians about it?

Magnus Drabbles- 19.5K, wip but with self contained chapters- a 100 word drabble for every episode of tma! including the q&as and such! except when i don’t have anything interesting to say, or i have a lot of thoughts and i wrote multiples. will be finished someday. Features some of your iconic faves, like the pioneer wife whose hubby wants her to eat him!

Fiance- 400, complete- Evan Lukas/Naomi Herne is my favorite rarepair. Herein, I took the line about her proposing and ran with it! Originally MAG 13′s Magnus Drabble, but it got too long.

she’s got you- 800, complete- Kind of a sequel to Ache. But doesn’t share continuity, just the concept of Basira/Melanie when there’s no one else around. This is Daisy’s pining perspective post-Buried. The beginning of my irrepressible urge to title tma fic after country music, even though it’s the least british thing i could possibly attach to this british podcast.

Excavation- 1.4K, complete- Jon and Daisy come out of the coffin and Daisy is like “:) best friends now! also i’m traumatized and touch-starved, so i don’t want you to stop touching me but i’ll make an exception so long as you stay in my line of sight :)” and Jon is like “:( I am a monster and she wants me to stay close so she can keep an eye on me :(” Jon gets a bit of a clue though, and then there’s platonic cuddling and showering and bed sharing :) I will never let go of the fanon illogical Archives Shower.

Till Things Are Brighter- 26K, wip- First Daisy time travel fic of many. My magnum opus, this bastard’s gonna be so long when it’s done. Daisy time travels and ends up back in 2011. Updates Tuesdays (what Tuesday will it come back from holiday break? idk, maybe the 12th, maybe the 19th. the muses will decide) Coming soon: Daisy, Gerry Keay, Naomi Herne, and Evan Lukas become a best friends squad; Annabelle Cane continues to freak Daisy out by matchmaking; Jon finally appears and there’s a 75% chance he will immediately be whumped (the other 25% is he gets a chapter or two of screentime and then gets whumped)

daisy time travels and jon suffers au- 53K, 3 works, complete- how the hell is this so long?! Daisy time travels and arrives mid-making-Jon-dig-his-own-grave. Then she forgets that context in the face of being Delighted to have her dead friends back and ends up kidnapping him into living with her. That was the whole original concept, but then people were really nice and kept giving me ideas, so it got sequels in which Jon gets rescued from Daisy, moves in with Martin, and comes to a mostly healthy friendship with Daisy. whump heavy

Reminder- 1K, complete- Oops! No one told Jon there were other Leitners out there until immediately pre-MAG4 and now he’s freaking out! Prompt fic for Rye 💖

horror molded to the shape you chose- 1.3K, complete- arguably my year’s most underappreciated fic. Contains multiple passages of my favorite prose I’ve written this year, but also bad ending/whump/body horror, so it ain’t for everyone:

Long-fingered and well-manicured; familiar; a squeeze of paternal affection that had flustered him as a young researcher, settled the anxious insufficiencies of the newly-promoted employee, pressed frustrated dread into the ill-informed Archivist, now endowed with the weighty sense of ownership they had never been allowed to express before. A voice as soft as their palms, too close to his ear. “It’s so good to see you arrived safely at last. Was the journey very difficult?”

Elias Hunt UK: Now Hiring- 1K, complete- prompt fic for peachyindeed, Melanie desperately wants a murder partner, missing scenes from S3

Coffee Date- 1.2K, complete- Daisy and Jon go out on a Regular Human Outing. Then Daisy both causes and talks him down from a panic attack. Gotta have that platonic touching bumping up against Jon’s issues with touch :3

hold you closer- 8K, complete- Flesh!Martin slowly falls into lovingly holding Jon captive (look I have a theme). Title is because while I was writing and editing it I had “Bubblegum Bitch” by Marina and the Diamonds stuck in my head, but only the lines “so hold me closer/and kiss me ha-ard!/I’m GON-na pop your bubblegum he-ART!”

Take Care- 1K, complete- cut scene from hold you closer edited so it’s unrelated to Flesh!Martin. So now it’s just a vague au where Basira’s working with Peter instead of Martin and Jmart are Being Honest With Their Feelings. Received one of my favorite reviews, from AO3 user takethebreadsticksandRUN:

Wow! What A Well-Written Ending To The Magnus Archives, A Podcast Distributed By Rusty Quill And Licensed Under A Creative Commons 4.0 Non-Commercial Share-Alike International License! It's So Strange That Jonny And Alex Decided To Let You Write The Ending Of All Seasons, But I'm Not Complaining! They Lived Happily Ever After And Never Ended The World! Nope! 

After- 1K, complete- Jon! Goes! To! Therapy! featuring my funky lil headcanon for the world where tma doesn’t end tragically, everyone not named Jonah Magnus makes it out alive, and the world goes back to normal except for everyone remembers the apocalypse happening and people who died there or from their injuries w/out Fear Vibes keeping em alive are still dead, so the whole world’s dealing with mega trauma, but not even the same trauma for everyone. and featuring a funky lil OC who thinks the other therapists Jon shopped around to who said they wouldn’t take him on bc of the whole starting the apocalypse thing are dicks.

[lalaurelia]

For the Fanfiction Questions: 1, 6, 23, 46, and 51?

Thank you~

1. What was the first fandom you got involved in?

It's kinda hard to put a pin in it, but the fandom activity as I define it for me (collecting info, reading/writing fic, discussing it with someone else) started for me with Sailor Moon. Sure, there was little to discuss at the time, but it was the first budding fandom for me, and then came the rest of anime ones.

6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in.

Oof. Not every fandom had an OTP for me, somehow. For example, Sailor Moon didn't, even though I adored it. Guess I'll list a few that had special meaning to me at one point of time.

Kira/Katou (Angel Sanctuary), Orochimaru/Kabuto (Naruto), Akagi/Kaiji (FKMT works), Johan/Tenma (Urasawa's Monster), Hitoshura/Raidou (SMT games), Tajima/Hanai (Ookiku Furikabutte), Sterek (Teen Wolf), Barrison (The Flash). And, of course, Gobblepot. Still my love after a few years.

23. Name a fic you’ve written that you’re especially fond of & explain why you like it.

This is a trick question XD Tbh, answers like these depend on my mood a lot. I suppose the one fic that I am undoubtedly fond of right now would be Half-doomed and Semi-sweet.

It's just. A story of being broken and healing, and accepting help. It has an almost therapeutic effect on me, reminding me that everything will eventually be alright.

46. If someone was to read one of your fanfics, which fic would you recommend to them and why?

Hmm... Well, I guess I'd rec my magnum opus Lost in the Rain because it's a case fic, a long story (by my standards), and even though some things could be better handled there, I'm satisfied with it. Some UST and romance tied up with a murder investigation, what's not to love? XD

51. Rant or Gush about one thing you love or hate in the world of fanfiction! Go!

Not sure what this "world of fanfiction" is about XD But I love how much freedom fanfiction gives. Any story, any trope, anything - write it all, write them all, if it pleases you. You can be as scientific or as reckless about writing fics as you want. It could prolly be extended to writing original works too, and it should be, it's just - fanfiction provides you with a stepping stone in form of canon, and you go "yeah, I'll expand on that" or "eww, you've done everything wrong and I'll fix it", and there you go and write. It's amazing.

Thank you for the ask! <3