#one with colors and the other undecided -c-

[flaming-toads]

Do I want to color this art...? -c-

[thecharactersthatnevermet]

I N T R O D U C T I O N ☆〜（ゝ。∂）

⋆˙⟡─ .✦⊹₊ ݁.୨୧‧₊˚ 𓍯๋࣭

Ah…uhm…hello?? Gosh, merely the thought of such attention’s getting me nervous. No! I must stand proud!

No need for such things, dear. Simply relax. The Witch told us his plan, didn’t he?

Hm…indeed, but where is this so-called…crowd? Shall we simply wait?

Pssht. He’s probably lied to us. Wouldn’t trust the guy, anyway. Trusting anyone in the first place is a foolish move. Everybody, please stop arguing…I…I just want to do this…

————

It seems we meet again, old friends.

I suppose fate has her way of working.

…

This isn’t about us this time, I’m afraid, loves.

A COOKIE RUN KINGDOM OC BLOG, WITH ALL OF MY LITTLE COOKIE CREATIONS IN ONE PLACE. -Witch Jonas

⋆˙⟡─ .✦⊹₊ ݁.୨୧‧₊˚ 𓍯๋࣭

Burrata Cookie -

Once the general of the Chariotry part of the army in the Golden Cheese Kingdom, the veiled warrior Burrata Cookie spent her life lavishly endorsing the fights and violent entertainment in the virtual world. When brought back, her first thought was to make amends with Smoked Cheese Cookie, not managing, however, when him and Her Radiance were taken away by Burning Spice’s minions. She now guards the kingdom with her full might, ready to crumble for her queen. VOICECLAIM: Sergeant Calhoun RARITY: Epic

Sugar Orchid Cookie -

A sweet, kind soul that can be too sweet after a while; Sugar Orchid Cookie is, indeed, one of a kind. Believing that rudeness is immature and that all should be nice, she spreads positivity wherever she goes. But she’s not as easy to trick as it seems. The candlemaker strayed from the Vanilla Kingdom, her home, in search of corrupted souls needing help. And although she’s been questioned many times, and helped many people, she hasn’t been questioned enough. Just what is hiding under that soft smile? VOICELAIM: Millicent from Elden Ring RARITY: Legendary or Super Epic, undecided Ermine Frosting Cookie - Made of a frosting differentiated by certain lack of sweetness from the other types, Ermine Frosting Cookie’s mysterious and nonchalant demeanor has always drawn cookies in. A decorated officer, former First Lieutenant, working in training young cookies in the Paladin Academy, the brooding Ermine Frosting Cookie is more polite than he first looks. Despite his difficulty with feelings, he will always assist a cookie in need. But get on his bad side, and you’ll get on the bad side of his sword. That is, if the sunny weather of the Creme Republic doesn’t blind the village boy in the meantime. VOICECLAIM: Patroclus from Hades RARITY: Legendary Marble Fondant Cookie - Messily spread color makes the most beautiful decor; Marble Fondant Cookie is anything but prim and proper. A resident and head chef of the Dark Cacao Kingdom, he first entered the royal kitchen at a young age, where his skills got him advancing the ranks quickly. As well as, well, endorsements from a certain prince. When the weather was worse than it had ever been, the aforementioned royal showed up, asking for shelter and a cure to his bleeding eye. Giving immediate aid, Marble Fondant Cookie gave him one piece of advice, and that was to follow the will that his spirit will show him. The next day, he woke up to a singular, hand-made dessert, and a cunning advisor planting seeds of doubt in everyone’s minds; getting him banished. Yet, when hearing a certain someone’s affilitation with Dark Enchantress Cookie, he desperately tried to rejoin the ranks of the kingdom, no matter what he was given. He’s now united with the healers and the army to help the kingdom he had given up on long ago, using it as a cover to search for his long-lost friend in his long forest lookouts. VOICECLAIM: Warren Rojas RARITY: Epic

Hyacinth Jasper Cookie - A gem mermaid with a gem that doesn’t glitter; Hyacinth Jasper Cookie will forever be isolated. After moving away into the new location the Gem Mermaids had chosen to live in, her lack of actual power and dull aura makes her believe the worst things about herself. Her sobs are heard every few nights, when the moonlight hits the water in a way that gives her a faint glow, almost as if taunting her. She’s been known as “The Crying Maiden”, waiting for her gem to shine, cursing everyone that hears her cries with bad luck. Is there any soul out there that will dare help her? VOICECLAIM: Lily from Glitter Force (perhaps less...cheery) RARITY: Super Epic

Pink Peppercorn Cookie (but she’s not pink cause pink is taken by the diva) - Sweet and spicy at the same time, Pink Peppercorn Cookie will always be an enigma to other followers of Burning Spice. The mural artist seems to harbor neutral feelings against the Beast, despite showing utmost respect, including some hidden meanings in the paintings of him she’s asked to manufacture. Seen as a liability by the cookies that fight for him, she has a sharp tongue that doesn’t fit her calm face, although her silent self barely puts it to use. She definitely has an ulterior motive as to why she behaves so oddly. Perhaps it has something to do with that black and purple tattoo on her wrist?

VOICECLAIM: Tigress Rarity: Super Epic

‧₊˚⋅📃✎ᝰ..𖥔 ݁

T H E — “ F A B L E S “

— cookies whose lives depend on the existence of the fairytales they were made from.

A witch once sprinkled pages from her favorite books in the batter that made four cookies. They would rise to be immortal, ancient demi-god like cookies, yet whose powers were limited. They were dropped on Earthbread after the Beasts were sealed, and lived lives so impactful, they became fairytales, fables, bedtime stories. Yet, a curse affected them all. When their story would become forgotten, then they’d slowly fade and crumble away. Naturally, they never struggled with it, and they lived in a paradise suiting all of their needs. Yet, there came a time where their stories were tossed aside. And, therefore, they teamed up once more and put their differences aside to be able to stay alive.

‧₊˚⋅📃✎ᝰ..𖥔 ݁

Lavender Limoncello Cookie [THE EAST] -

HER FAIRYTALE SUMMARY: A lady whose parents were juicemakers quickly advances through society and experiences life lessons, becoming the perfect role model for young girls (and sometimes boys, too!), and a popular story in the Hollyberry Kingdom.

The first one to descend to live amongst cookies, Lavender Limoncello Cookie was ready to give up immortality for the chance to truly live. She resides in the Hollyberry Kingom and took up the job of a photographer, living modestly and happily in a cottage before meeting her girlfriend, Key Lime Cookie, a lady-in-waiting. She lives the perfect life, and her story was passed around enough to keep her alive. Yet, as more stories rose and overshadowed hers, she was quickly forgotten and only muttered by some elderly person saying it to their grandchildren. Therefore, she’d left to meet back with her old friends and stop herself from crumbling; considering it was actively happening.

Groundcherry Relish Cookie [THE NORTH] - (Shapeshifter warning!! They use he, she and they!)

HER FAIRYTALE SUMMARY: There are stories of a woman beautiful and dangerous that are whispered especially in the Lower City in the Creme Republic. A shape-shifting spirit that takes the form of a beautiful, elegant woman, luring sailors and whoever else dares closer. She shows them card tricks, tells their fortunes and drains their energy to feed on it. The locals call her “L'esprit rusé”, and her story is told to discourage kids from talking to strangers. There’s multiple stories written about her tricks.

Despite their occasional arrogance and indifference, the refined Groundcherry Relish Cookie is kind and means well on the inside. He prefers his feminine form, wearing an Art Nouveau long dress and headpiece. She keeps to herself and lives in a weaving shop, carefully embroidering her designs onto textile. Their story lived on for a while, considering the dangers many children had to face, yet it was ruined when better conditions were offered to them, when everybody was civilised and had some brains in them. It was only said with a laugh by the occasional sailor or fisherman, recalling how he’d believe it when he was young. Now, quickly crumbling, she struggles to keep her calm demeanor as she puts her pride aside for a chance at survival.

[ADDING THE OTHER TWO LATER TODAY]

⋆˙⟡─ .✦⊹₊ ݁.୨୧‧₊˚ 𓍯๋࣭

HE/THEY/HYM/HYMN/ZY pronouns^^

Hello !!! I’m Jonas (@f1o0w3r) (BUT I dont really use that account so if I ever like/repost stuff then I’m probs on my oc blog, @ellis-jackson-stuff) I’m the owner of this blog, probably known as Sugar Orchid Cookie mod. I really wanted to share my OCs with the world, and what better way than a shared blog?

MADELEINE BLOG: @fabulousknightcommander

If you have any other OCs, feel free to rp with them! If you’re rp-ing as a CC, I’d love to rp with you! If you simply want to ask, I’d love to answer!

I WILL answer in character, the character depending on the bolding and italic or colors, listed above. If you’re directing your question to a certain character, state which.

IF SOMETHING IS OOC, I will either put “//“ in front of the message or the tag/words “WITCH TALKS”

I AM a minor, so keep the weird questions away and down. Don’t be a jerk. Do not spam, and ask before sending media. If there are any other rules to be implemented, they will be put here.

I hope some people meet my creations!

TAGS FOR ALL OCS LOWER DOWN IN THIS POST’S TAGS

TWO MORE COMING SOON - INTROS IN THE WORK

[jadedharleys]

Do you have any appearance headcanons for HS characters? Such as who are muscular, who are chubby, who are tall, etc.

i have this height chart for the kids that i dont follow super strictly (+ its kinda exaggerated i dont think that jade is THAT tall lmao) but it shows my general headcanons . also the lighting isnt great but oh well. putting all the answers below the cut cause this got long as HELL

john: short, a bit above average build. light skinned but slightly tanned+freckled, more so during the summer. my headcanons for everyones eyes is that theyre like a believable shade close to their canon colors, but when they either enter the medium or godtier, i cant decide but i lean towards medium, they change to their canon bright colors. johns are naturally blue pre-sburb. also i headcanon that hypermobile ehler danlos runs in the prospit family (saying this bc i refuse to use some godawful portmanteau family name for them) because projection, and for him it starts presenting more obviously after getting to earth c. even before then he would do weird joint shit to mess with people lol. headcanon that people keep scars from various resurrections or might end up with them from other versions due to weird universe shit so he has a couple stab scars on his chest + lots more from sburb stuff. also i like the idea of him having some visual aftereffect from going out of canon whether some breath lookin scars on his arm or something like that.

rose: mixed east asian/european (vague bc they dont technically have actual ancestry, given a no sburb au im undecided for more specific asian background but since her surname has french origins thats my headcanon for that part); darker skin. natural dark hair but she bleaches it to dye it purple. fairly average height. naturally below average weight growing up, but fills out in her teens. gray eyes before sburb; her hair dye make them look faintly lilac, but they become actual purple eventually. somewhat fluffy hair but mostly only if she styles it to be. keeps scar from being killed by jack + absorbs the scars of doomed rose from davesprites timeline.

jade: tall and lanky, but much closer to daves height than in this drawing. very similar hair and skin tone to john, but much more tan, especially at the start of sburb since she lives in the tropics. by the end theyve both faded to close to the same color. hair looks black but with brown highlights in bright light. natural green eyes, but instead of just turning brighter they also glow like the green sun in the dark (or an animal with reflective eyes). hair gets a lot fluffier and thicker after dogtiering, + gets fangs. it was very long and a tangled mess from not brushing or cutting it enough growing up, so on the pre-retcon yellow yard she gets it cut and grows it back while on post-retcon she cuts it off herself during a breakdown moment. quite a few scars from jungle mishaps + taxidermy stitching scars after dogtiering. pretty wiry from taking care of herself growing up. her ehlers danlos presents with more fatigue as she gets older so the sleepygirl vibes return...she also had to self-treat a lot of dislocations from incidents on the island. her body is a bit fucked up after godtiering from the combo of vague dogginess making the connective tissue stuff worse.

dave: same as rose but im very much in the albino dave headcanon camp! lots of scars from strifing with bro, which show up pretty easy on him. big one on his chest from the strife where his shirt got cut, and sometimes ends up with doomed daves' scars. his eyes were naturally pinkish red but again became their super bright color eventually. heavily masks his expressions most of the time but gets better at displaying emotion while on the meteor. pretty tall and a good bit of muscle, but skinny throughout childhood from his living situation. thin hair without a ton of volume. also please make him so very very texan i beg you all.

jane: shortest of the alpha kids + chubby :] very fluffy hair, and pretty pale from not going outside as much as the other prospits. gets pretty emotive and frazzled at times + gets red in the face easily from both that and being paler. maybe a couple scars from failed assassination attempts that she usually covers with makeup to keep up the heiress public image? her and roxy both have scars from being killed pre-entry.

roxy: darker than rose + curlier hair; also mixed but less so without dirks genes in the mix obvs. second tallest of the alphas! she dyes her hair pink but not as often as rose so her roots are grown out a lot more. various scars from living in the water apocalypse + kitten accidents as it goes with those silly creatures, and more freckles than rose bc climate change lol. natural dark brown eyes instead of something "pink" lol . void style. prescratch she just bleached her hair but didnt dye it. i like to think maybe jade did end up getting a little silly :3 when she was a prisoner on derse so some scars from that too :(

jake: short!! i live for short jake. honestly might make him shorter than jane; theyre def closer in height than i drew them here. lotsss of scars he thinks they look cool. clothes usually a bit battered. haircut is not very neat whatsoever because he just does it himself to keep it out of the way which is better than jade letting hers go wild i guess. similar complexion to jade. scars on his chest from getting forked by jane which has angst potential. natural eye color is sorta hazel/green

dirk: tall! white surfer boy lookin. natural dirty blonde hair but the combo of sunbleaching + various improvised methods to lighten it to resemble his totally awesome bro makes it closer to blonde (prescratch he bleaches it so hard and its so shitty but irony am i right). extremely freckled + lots of scars but he got most of them in very stupid ways like slipping while climbing the supports for the apartment. he does ofc have the iconic neck scar. naturally had light brown eyes.

ok and trolls! this is the only pic where ive drawn all of them so itll work as my visual lol.

first tho these are my headcanons for how different castes ears look! mind that the pic of all the trolls is a bit older than this (which is also something i made a while ago in case i never needed to describe my headcanons. so some things changed from one to the next but in general the same ideas are there; also some things in this diagram i dont like as much as what i drew above so take it with a grain of salt.

also my headcanon is that on average for this age range, trolls are in the same range of heights as humans, but the higherblooded they are the taller they can get. however they keep growing a lot longer . like lobsters . which extra reason why highbloods get bigger cause they live longer

aradia: short, chubby but muscular, with super curly and long and wild hair. when alive, lots of dark red freckles and blush but when dead, very pale gray skin. for my ear shape headcanons, rustblood ears are just slightly more pointed than human ears, though you cant see hers in this pic. sometimes i draw her with horizontal pupils when i remember.

tavros: tall for a bronzeblood, but still short compared to humans. his robot legs make him taller than he was before lol. pretty obvious brown flush to his skin a lot of the time. lil bit chubby

sollux: short-average height, thin and lanky. terrible posture. i lean into the goldbloods with two pairs of ears headcanon. no freckles

karkat: he hasnt slept in a month and everyone can tell. worlds awfullest eyebags on a thirteen year old boy ever. i draw trolls with nails corresponding with their blood color but he paints his black. what do you mean he has red freckles those are the blood of his enemies. average height and constantly tense

nepeta: short. silly. will kill you. there is a nasty mix of blood under her nails at all times but look at her silly smile. she doesnt look buff but she is. super messy hair goes all over the place standing on end when she takes off her hat. cleft lip + slit pupils. lots of scars but she rocks them like a warrior cat.

kanaya: curly fluffy hair. in this pic i didnt draw it cause im a loser i guess but she has tons and tons of freckles. sometimes they look like stars (space player moment). i draw her ears with sorta leafy/almost frayed-looking edges as a rosemary nod since they kinda look like rose leaves! fairly tall for a jade.

terezi: lots of freckles on her face! very straight and pointy ears. short + chubby + not exactly visibly muscular but she WILL throw you. triangle body shape language (wide stance, very solid).

vriska: super wild unkept hair. fairly pale; burn scars across her face, side, and shoulder. the pic shows her damaged ear (she lost most of it in the explosion) but her other ear would be a bit longer than terezis but with a less dramatic point. somewhat tall and pretty solidly built.

equius: buff but NOT like a super muscular body builder he may be a troll but he is basically thirteen. hes like a buff middle schooler but not super over the top. just kinda a regular guy. i dont like how his hair looks in the comic so i draw it a bit different. strong blue (no pun intended) flush to his skin in some places, especially under eyes and near joints. fairly tall.

gamzee: ive never rlly draw him without makeup so i dont rlly have an idea of his normal appearance. tall but slouches, somehow both a bit chubby as well as awkwardly bony in places. thick + very curly hair. i draw purpleblood ears with a sorta multilobed/wavy edgy to sorta resemble approaching seadweller fins.

eridan: average height for a violetblood, but tall for a human. a few freckles. his glasses are just for show. hes like a middle schooler who you think looks so tough and edgy at the time but then you look back and realize they were just a loser kid.

feferi: short + chubby but very strong. long curly hair, lots and lots of freckles! very round + soft + bubbly shape language.

[kisuminight]

Hello! I've been reading through your DSMP Blade System AU posts and am curious about how many shards/Blades DreamXD's Blade got separated into and what other characters are one of the resulting Blades?

Considering the Blades you mentioned (c!Dream, Mamacita, Drista and Cornelius) its characters played by cc!Dream or his sister. Im guessing NotDream123 might be another one then if he exists in this AU. Also Hubert which could be fun as the most c!Karl got about him was a mention when he was at the Masquerade.

I was thinking that the core crystal broke into 5 pieces. Here is an idea of what I'm going for, please excuse the roughness:

c!Dream is made from the bit in the center, which is shaped like a diamond or a rhombus. The other 4 Blades have the rectangular shaped parts, set at an angle. Core crystals are generally one color; the contrast here is to differentiate the sections.

The original core crystal was the same as the others, roughly palm sized. The shards actually grew a bit when they became Blades of their own.

Current Blades are Dream, Drista, Cornelius, and GirlDream/Mamacita. I'm still undecided on who the last piece will be.

Unfortunately, I'm not too familiar with NotDream123. I'm probably going to end up skipping him? I checked and he dies several times, and a key part of this AU is that c!Tommy, c!Tubbo, and c!Ranboo don't really know all that much about the Blade System and how it works for regular Blades.

It probably will be Hubert. In this, Hubert was a Blade. The Egg can corrupt Blades by reaching through their bond with their Driver. Through Hubert, the Egg realizes that the corruption only lasts 1 life; if the Blade is killed, reverts to core crystal, and reAwakened the corruption is gone.

Actually, I really like this idea. So the Egg decides to try corrupting the core crystal of the Blade, and has Hubert killed again (by Billiam) shortly before the Masquerade. The core crystal is left in the Egg's room, and c!Karl accidentally grabs it when he is being murdered at the end.

This is part of the reason why the Inbetween grabbed Karl at this point. XD was manipulating it so Karl could keep Hubert's core crystal in his inventory when he died and then XD could retrieve the core crystal when Karl arrived in the Inbetween.

~

XD has a weird relationship with the Aegis pieces. As much as he wants his original Blade back, he does get less focused on his goal as the story goes on. Part of it is that DreamXD is Drista's Driver (why she has Creative) and he starts to like her. Part of it is that he is getting more interaction with other people and not stewing in his own loneliness.

GirlDream/Mamacita is the 2nd fragment recovered. I want to say that her Driver was Mexican Dream and she returned to a core crystal with his first canon death? The problem is that they're kind of joke/humor characters, and... So, humor is an important part of tension. But again, c!Tommy is not supposed to get enough info about the Blade System to read into the undercurrents of what is going on before Staged Finale. The entire situation needs a bit of workshoping. I'd need to re-watch the streams before I make a firm decision. XD grabs her after Mexican Dream's Third Canon Death.

Cornelius gets recovered because XD retrieves him. As the 3rd fragment recovered, he also gets put on a shelf.

Hubert is the 4th fragment recovered. XD pickpockets him out of Karl's Inventory in the Inbetween. Hubert does not go on the shelf because XD is too busy worrying about the damage the Egg did to the core crystal during the attempt to corrupt the core crystal. Since the Egg is an offshoot of the being that originally shattered the Aegis Blade, XD thinks it might be lingering damage for that instance, though he starts getting suspicious as he picks up more details from George and Foolish.

XD's attachment to Hubert and worrying about the damage also makes XD look at Mamacita and Cornelius in a different light. Around that point, XD stops leaving them on the shelf and starts carrying them with him.

XD is drawn to George in part because George was Dream's Driver. Part of their friendship is a shared grief for their Blades. XD does not meet Dream until the very end, when he has been mostly convinced that murdering 5 people to bring his friend back (an act that will upset all his current friends and destroy Drista, who he is fond of) is not the best plan.

~

DSMP is about humanity, about how even bad people are still people. This AU also adds a hunt for identity. When does a person stop being the same person. For a Blade, does the memory loss make them a different person in their next life? For DreamXD, the five fragments are explicitly different people, and he has to grapple with that fact as well as the driving force of his own grief and the knowledge that he can resurrect his friend--but it'll have consequences.

Editor's note from the future:

DreamXD's Aegis will be named "Reverie."

[samneugebaur21-22]

New post! A bit of King Kong art I finished just forty minutes ago (been writing down the whole thing, hence, why it took so long to post it)! Here, we have: Kong, the T-Rex / Meat-Eater, the Brontosaurus, the Stegosaurus, and the Giant Pterosaur.

I tried designing Kong based on one of Joe Devito’s “kongcepts” but I think I ended up drawing the original King Kong instead I guess!😁 Still, I think I did a neat job drawing Kong alright, though I’ll admit, I haven’t even drawn his body. I have my reasons why, but one of them is Kong is too big for the sketchbook I used to draw Kong and the other creatures. Overall, Kong looks AWESOME. 👀🔥

Now, Kong’s rival: Tyrannosaurus rex AKA the Meat-Eater. I looked at the Imaginext toy Razor the T-Rex (I used to have it when I was a kid) and the design of the Meat-Eater from Merian C. Cooper’s King Kong. I drew a row of small spines from the snout down the back, coloured it reddish-brown like in the color version of the original King Kong and I’m not sure if I drew a pattern or a mane but I think it looks neat anyway.

The Brontosaurus was easy peasy. I looked at the Brontosaurus from the 2005 and original King Kong films for inspiration. I gave it the neck from the 2005 Brontosaurus and the head from the original 1933 Brontosaurus. Overall, I think I did a cool job designing this big fellow.

The Stegosaurus was probably the toughest out of the dinos. Not only I had a bit of a struggle drawing him but it was also my first time drawing Stegosaurus or a similar dinosaur I guess. I looked at the Atercurisaurus from Peter Jackson’s King Kong and the Stegosaurus from The Isle Evrima. Overall, I think I did a splendid job, also, I think purple is an excellent color for the Stegosaurus (thanks to Atercurisaurus of course,😊) and I probably had the most fun drawing him.

Now, last but not least is the Giant Pterosaur. I’m aware there was a giant Pteranodon in the original King Kong, but I think (like others) a more suitable creature to fill the role of a giant pterosaur would be something like Quetzalcoatlus. This guy is actually based on the Quetzalcoatlus from the trailer of Seamus Blackley’s cancelled sequel to Jurassic Park: Trespasser, literally called Jurassic World! I looked at several images of Quetzalcoatlus to help draw his beak and I think I did pretty well. Nonetheless, what an incredible creature I drew!

In case you’re wondering why there are blank spots in the Stegosaurus’ beak and plates as well as the Pterosaur’s crest, I have undecided which colours I’ll use to fill them. Until then, I hope you’ll enjoy the designs I drew. And mind if I share something guys? I have been rewatching Kong: The Animated Series lately and I’ve been hit by a ton of King Kong influence! This influence drive me to been writing a King Kong series and a few movies, one of which I consider would be the scariest and greatest film so far in the King Kong franchise, in a way; it rivals Godzilla: Minus One! As for the drawings up above, there are the main photos I looked for inspiration to draw the designs of Kong and his fellow creatures!

I might think of drawing more creatures on Kong’s home. Maybe an Arsinoitherium, a Smilodon, a giant ground sloth, a giant swamp monster, who knows? Guess only time would tell. Had fun enjoying the artwork and you are more than free to leave comments on the post or do reblogs as well. See ya, until next time!✌🏻👋🏻

[em-marti-capstone]

Week 4 - October 4

This week, I tried to figure out the questions and gaps I've noticed about nostalgia.

Some of the overall questions I wrote down initially were:

Why is nostalgia limiting?

Why is there no spark in newer pop culture media? Why can’t it be remade?

Why are remakes/reboots still being created, besides for the money-grab, yet everyone still knows that the spark is not there? 

Why are there such mixed reviews on nostalgia?

Do we trust our memory? Are we constantly reshaping it?

How does our memory/nostalgia of the past shape our identity today?

Why do we long for the past so much? Is there no authenticity anymore? What lies ahead?

How can nostalgia shape our identities and/or how we think of our futures?

It was difficult to think up of a character when it came to shaping a point of view. At first, I wanted to do an elementary school teacher. In her eyes, she's watching all of these kids come and go, mostly teaching the same curriculum until technology became more advanced. Some things must be so different now, like how my 7 year old brother has a chromebook but when I was his age we were learning how to write in cursive with erasable pen. THAT was the cool technology back then, the pen, but now it's different. And yet, there's still so much that is the same, like the smiley face stickers and the way teachers write their "C"s on tests. The layout of the lunch menu and the classroom decor being the hand-prints and other arts and crafts. I was going to set this teacher in her classroom on a rainy day, but after that, I was stuck on what her story really would be.

After a conversation with Nancy and some reading of these articles, it seems like nostalgia is both liked and disliked for my generation. We dislike how it can be taken advantage of in the media, but we also still reach for it on a more personal level to comfort our stress and anxiety. We look to our memories to comfort and remind us that we got through good and bad times, that what happened has made us who we are today. Things are more certain when we're younger, and for me, I'm at a point in my life where the future seems really uncertain.

This is a quote from https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/nostalgia-and-thinking-about-the-future-can-be-good-for-you :

"When we're anxious about the future, the uncertainty of the future — or the certainty — we can turn to the past as a way of being like, ‘Well, I've had a good life, I've had meaningful experiences’ and you know, that's kind of reassuring,” Routledge says."

In this article https://www.bbh-labs.com/peak-nostalgia , the author describes how Gen Z does not see a bright future ahead. There are so many issues going on in the world that it's no surprise that we look at the past and long for how much better or easier it was.

This article's main point is that "Nostalgia gives us a sense of continuity."

These are some other articles I looked through as well:

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/29/well/mind/life-review-therapy.html

The point of view that I shaped, through a lens of self expression and some future speculation:

The gap in knowledge around nostalgia, is how our generation is very undecided on how to use the past to shape our future and its possibilities.

My research focus is to use memory recollection and reconstruction to comfort myself and/or others with the uncertainty of the future.

For this week, I wanted to start out by recreating my old childhood bedroom from memory in Cinema4D. I did not look at any old photos and the shapes are all very basic with no color. I did two versions, one where my sister and I had separate beds, and then a few years later we had a bunk bed. I've been enjoying 3D modeling, still very much learning how to use the program, but building this was fun. I do wish I went further with maybe more items in the room like our dolls or other toys, but I just tested out how well I could remember the overall layout.

For next week:

I have a couple of other ideas for making and reconstructing memory but I also need to surface ideas for this as well. I will also be looking into the articles/artists that Caroline searched for me and seeing how others have utilized nostalgia in their work.

[wannaberp]

— WHO IS HAN BEOMJI?

she’s a TWENTYyear old wannabe, born JANUARY 8, 2003. she’s currently undecided regarding companies and lives by the words “and then the miracle happens, the sun comes up again.”

maybe you should learn more or ask her a question.

▶ PLAY THE CLIP [ harsh_critique.mp4 ]

it’s an act of abject bravery when beomji approaches the door to her professor’s office and knocks three times, softly, but with persistence. determination. she’s a woman on a mission. she tells herself that the alternative is this entire situation being condensed into a firm, thoroughly-outlined email that she’d press send on and dive under the covers to hide from, in the hopes that she’d forget she’d even sent it before a response came in. but this is a grade, a grade that, for all intents and purposes, had seriously fucked up her running A average for the semester.

a C was hardly the end of the world, but its presence in her gradebook was taunting – the critique beside it, even more so. “your composition lacks inspiration,” it reads. “technically well-executed, but failed to move me as a listener.”

she’d screamed into her pillow reading it back, but the same intensity escapes her when a toneless “come in,” beckons her to enter. she contemplates, for a long moment, just turning around and leaving, taking the knock to her cumulative grade in stride and making up for it by doing exceptionally well on other, more weight-y assignments, but she’s trying this thing where she “takes risks” and “stands up for herself”. so, brave beomji sets her shoulders back and enters the room. 

realistically, there’s nothing even remotely intimidating about professor yoon: she’s a stout, friendly-looking older woman who speaks in straight-forward statements and charmingly accented idioms. her short, bobbed hair is graying and she wears colorful, quirky vests over her well-worn black turtlenecks, no matter the season – by all means, she’s a reasonable woman, and one that beomji has developed a distinct fondness for, but hinged confrontation has never really been beomji’s strong suit so it’s with very little finesse that she blurts out, “a C?!”

there’s a long, embarrassing pause through which beomji’s face colors red and she accents her statement with an aborted bow. for professor yoon’s part, spinning her chair around, the only response is a blink and a furrowed brow. 

“sorry. i, um. i have a question about the rubric for the assignment we submitted last week.” beomji corrects herself.

there’s a chuckle, something wise and expecting, amused, as though professor yoon had seen this very moment coming from a mile away. retrospectively, maybe she had. “i had a feeling. have a seat, beomji.”

ever-obedient, beomji has a seat.

“what’s your question?”

“why, mostly.” with the worst out of the way, beomji feels less afflicted and presses on, “i thought my submissions sounded really nice, and based on everything else we’ve done this semester, i thought you’d enjoy them.”

“and therein lies the problem,” professor yoon says without any hesitation. she gives beomji only a moment to take it in before she expands, “to put it simply, miss han, your compositions sound like what you think i would like to hear.”

beomji looks off to the side, both in petulance and confusion.

“you’re a great technical musician, and incredibly bright, but you’ve made a habit of seeking out a formula for what makes something a solid piece of work instead of feeling it. that's great for a scientist, but creativity can’t be manufactured, beomji, that comes from you,” professor yoon offers her a sympathetic smile. “i can’t teach you that and i can’t reward a lack of it either. so, until you can show me something that feels like something you created, your grade stands.” 

“but—”

“my best advice? find some inspiration, don’t formulate it. and for your own sake, miss han, loosen up.”

(on the way home, beomji wishes, for a bitter, fleeting moment, that she’d told professor yoon to shove it.)

[penname-artist]

I Made Two Bisexual Hazard OCs Now Come and Squish Them

You remember this post about the plane and forklift couple? Little ways back? (Only because I post things a LOT)

Okay, well,

I did the thing!

And I would like to share my work. Technically they’re both still a Work in Progress because I’m undecided on a few key elements (namely the military jargon is just, ugh) but the basis of the both of them is here! I present to thee: Tyker and Clutch!

“Tyker” (AKA Tyke or Ty) Pinion is a V-22 Osprey (that big plane with engines that can rotate to make it a helicopter), discharged from the military 3-4 years into it after some psychological problems happened - and possibly physical ones. (Side note, I hesitate to say he was in the USAF but that’s the only one that makes the most sense for an Osprey aside from maybe the Navy???) Heavily depressed following his discharge, he moved in with a highschool friend of his named “Clutch”, since he couldn’t be allowed to live by himself for the time being, and they grew to be even stronger buddies than ever. Well, maybe a little too strong.

He’s generally pretty quiet and too soft-hearted to make convincing trash talk to anybody. He’s also bisexual, but not really all that concerned about it. To be fair, he does not get out much. Also he’s become something of a TV junkie.

“Clutch” Tugger is a young heavy-duty forklift, just a couple of years younger than Ty is. She’s a chaotic bisexual with very strong butch tendencies, who works hard to provide for herself and keep the “Big Potato” alive. Part of keeping said Potato alive has been some “questionable nightly activities” of theirs that they still can’t decide whether or not it makes them a couple or just friends with benefits. The benefit is more important than the nitty gritties, in the end.

Tyker is the biggest softie probably ever, and Clutch contrasts nicely to that with her YOLO approach most of the time. They banter as old friends do and they’ve kept each other alive for the better half of the last five years, but things might be starting to change for them in a way that throws their paths into line with a few familiar faces...

Other and Unrelated Notes:

-In humanized formats here, Tyker is 6′3″, and c h o m k y (and, kinda self-conscious about it. He was more fit during his service, but five years of sitting on your ass feeling hopeless does shit to your body) with a rather uninspired working man’s shirt and jeans; meanwhile, Clutch is a tiny ferocious 4′11″ in platform boots and a backwards baseball cap.

-Tyker’s a blonde, while Clutch is originally brown, dyed...whatever color it is for the month, it changes a lot

-They both love cats unapologetically, but Clutch would trade a cat for a dog if it was big and had a patch over its eye so she could name it Patchy the Pirate

-They do video games together a lot

-If you’re wondering how a forklift and an Osprey “do it”, the answer I have for you is this: carefully. (There’s a fic covering this topic in the works and coming soon, patience)

[twstarchives]

Let Me Go!!

Card: Dorm Uniform - SSR Characters: Epel, Rook, Vil, Idia

Chapter 1

—INTERIOR HALLWAY—

Epel: Um... This is where the film studies club meets, right?

—CLASSROOM—

Epel: Excuse me...

Rook: Hello, Epel-kun! I see Vil asked you to lend a hand here.

Epel: I’d say it’s more like I was forced... Did he ask you too?

Rook: I’m helping on my own accord. The pleasure is all mine if I’m able to be with Vil.

(Clap, clap!)

Vil: Film studies club! Everyone gather around.

I’m going to discuss the details for when we begin our next student-produced film.

I’ll hand out the script first. Everyone, take one each.

Epel: Whoa, this script is so thick. They must really go all out with their activities here...

Vil: The next film we’re producing will be about time travel.

It’s set in the present day. The students of Night Raven College use a time machine...

And travel to the era of the Great Seven’s Fairest Queen of All.

Rook: The era of the Fairest Queen of All... How très bien!

What a fascinating idea, don’t you think, Epel-kun?

Epel: Hah... I guess.

Vil: The leading role is still undecided. I’ll let you know once I’ve chosen them.

Now, the time machine is the key item in this story... Epel!

Epel: ! Yes?!

Vil: I’m putting you in charge of designing it.

Epel: What?! I-I’m just the help. Why am I in charge of something so important...?

Vil: I’ve deemed you the most suitable for this.

Epel: (What gave him that idea?! I’ve never designed anything in my life. I want to say no...)

Vil: The time machine will use a magical wheel as a base. You’ll be customizing the exterior.

This way, we can shoot driving scenes.

Epel: You said magical wheel...?!

Vil: Yes. I’ve already arranged for one to use in our shooting.

I’ve asked Ignihyde’s dorm leader, Idia, to modify it, so you will work with him to complete it.

Epel: Got it!

Vil: ...You sounded very genuine there. Well, if you’re feeling motivated now, then that’s fine.

The theme of the time machine’s design should be “something beautiful and fitting for the setting.”

Your deadline is in three days at noon. Is that clear?

Epel: Yes, Vil-san!

(I was so reluctant about having to help out the film studies club... but I didn’t expect there to be a magical wheel involved!)

(That feeling of the passenger becoming one with the vehicle as they ride on... Just watchin�� it gets me all excited.)

(Maybe if I made a design that makes Vil-san’s jaw drop, he’d even let me take it for a test run.)

(Okay, I’m gonna do my best!!)

—IGNIHYDE DORM - LOUNGE—

Epel: I’m Epel, a first-year from Pomefiore. You’re Idia-san, right? Let’s work hard together.

Idia: Ugh... The glittery Pomefioran is here, hurray...

O-Oh, um... Vil-shi explained everything to me. We’ll use this lounge to work...

Epel: Okay, thank you.

Oh, that’s the magical wheel we’re going to modify there next to you, right? It’s so cool...!!

Idia: Hah... I only agreed to this ‘cause Vil-shi said he’d compensate me...

But working with other people... really makes me irritated by the second.

I need to finish this and go back to my room ASAP before my sanity gauge runs out.

Epel: (I know Vil-san’s taste pretty well since he’s been training me for months ever since I enrolled here.)

(I need to aim for a fancy design that goes with the setting and also satisfies Vil-san.)

Idia-san. Let’s do our best designing this magical wheel...!

Idia: Yeah. Let’s get this done as fast as we can...

Chapter 2

—IGNIHYDE DORM - LOUNGE—

Epel: It took all night... but it’s done! Idia-san, the coloring for the magical wheel is all finished.

Idia: Congrats on getting it done. You told Vil-shi you’d show it to him once it was finished, right? Shouldn’t you call him?

And end this so I can be alone.

Epel: Yes, I’ll go do that!

Epel: Here’s the magical wheel, painted to look like a time machine.

The design was inspired by the peacock engraved into the Fairest Queen of All’s favorite chair.

Vil: ......

Epel: Um... Vil-san?

Vil: Epel. Are you satisfied with this design?

Epel: What do you mean, am I satisfied...?

Vil: I ordered you to design something “beautiful and fitting for the setting.”

However, this piece conveys nothing from the creator’s heart.

You wouldn’t consider this design “beautiful,” would you?

Epel: ...! Well, I...

Vil: To me, this looks like you only tried to match the setting.

Redo it, Epel. And don’t think about coming back to the dorm until it’s finished.

Epel: What?! Vil-san, wait a seco— ...He’s gone.

...Dammit! How can he be angry that I made it exactly as he said...?!

But I get to work with a magical wheel, which I love so much. No way am I giving up after failing once!

I need to make something that I think is beautiful, that matches the setting,

And something that would make Vil-san satisfied, right?

I’m gonna do it!!

...... But what would that be...?

—IGNIHYDE DORM - IDIA’S ROOM—

Idia: Hehee! I got that kitty accessory I wanted! It’s a rare strength item that boosts my speed by 100!

Hehehe, now, the boss from this ultra-hard quest... You should tremble in fear of my dodging power.

(Running footsteps!)

        (Epel barges in)

Epel: Idia-san!

Idia: Eee! E-E-E-E-Epel-shi! It’s rude to come into someone’s room without knocking!

Epel: Oh... S-Sorry.

It’s just, we have to redo the time machine...

Idia: Hah? He rejected that flashy design?

Epel: Yeah... So please help me make it over again!

Idia: (I can’t believe Vil-shi. He should’ve done this himself if he was going for something specific. Why’d he leave it to someone else?)

(I can’t stand them taking away my gaming time anymore. I gotta get this done now and chase out Epel-shi...)

H-Hey, Epel-shi. Do you have anything you’re good at?

Epel: Huh? Why are you asking?

Idia: ‘Cause wouldn’t this get done faster if Vil-shi just made it himself instead of having you make it over again?

But he still put you up to it... So shouldn’t you consider that maybe you’ve got some kind of secret talent?

In online games, leveling up skills you’re good at makes getting through the game easier.

Epel: But I’m just good at things like carving apples. I can’t really use that in desig——

(...Hm? Apples...?)

I figured it out!!

Idia: Ee! I-I-It scares me when you yell out of nowhere! Wh-What did you figure out?

Epel: I figured out what I can make that’s as beautiful and fitting for the setting as I can!

Idia: I-I’m glad to see you came up with an idea. Well, let’s get on with it then.

Epel: Huh? But you stayed up all night last night. Are you sure you shouldn’t rest a little...?

Idia: Heh, staying up all night is nothing to me. I stan a group of idols who look elderly but with hearts eternally 17...

And even Moirai on the Edge can do live performances for 72 hours straight.

We’ll prevail over this ultra-hard quest!

Epel: M-Moi...rai? I-I don’t know what that means, but let’s work hard!

(This time, we’ll make a design that Vil-sanーno, that anyone would approve of!)

Chapter 3

ーーThe day the time machine is due.

???: ...el... Epel!

—IGNIHYDE DORM - LOUNGE—

Epel: *Yawns*...?

Huh? Ahh! When did I go to sleep?! And Vil-san, what’re you doin’ here?

Vil: Your deadline is today at noon, so I came to check up on how you were doing. Honestly, I cannot believe you were sprawled out asleep on the floor.

So? Have you finished the time machine?

Epel: Oh... I did. Take a look at this!

There’s a story where the Fairest Queen of All made a poisoned apple, right?

So this time, I used that as my inspiration.

The color of the whole body represents a ripe, red, shining apple.

Like one you reach out to take without even realizing it... Anyway, I made sure it looked delicious!

Vil: Hmm... Go on.

Epel: Right. The other thing I worked especially hard on was this design that’s hidden when the machine is stopped, and only gets revealed when it starts up.

I’ll turn it on to let you see.

Vil: ! You painted the tire kept inside... Is that a skull?

Epel: Yes! One of the stories mentioned that a skull rose up before the poisoned apple the Queen made turned red...

So I added a symbol that can’t be seen from the outside unless you start it up.

This time machine is as “beautiful and fitting for the setting” as I can make it right now!

Vil: ...Allow me to ask you one thing. Why did you change to a poisoned apple?

Epel: Um... When I tried to use a peacock in my design, I honestly couldn’t tell if it was good or bad...

But then I thought, no one would be able to resist a design that makes apples look appealin’...!!

Vil: ......

...Heh. You finally came up with a design that reflects you.

Epel: ...! Yeah!

Vil: Now, I will leave you with the keys to this magical wheel.

Epel: Huh? Why me?

Vil: I’m heading back to our set. You’ll deliver the machine to the film studies club yourself.

You have until noon to bring it, just as we discussed. Don’t be late. Understood?

        (Vil leaves)

Epel: ...If he was in such a rush, he could’ve just taken it himself... Wait, hold on?!

Does this mean I can ride it back to the set... maybe?

AHH~! ALL RIGHT!!

Idia: Ugh... Epel-shi, you’re too loud... Your voice is ringing through my sleep-deprived head...

Epel: Oh! S-Sorry, Idia-san.

I’ve always wanted a magical wheel... And I get to ride one I designed myself. I just can’t believe it...

Alright, let’s get to the school building!

—MAIN STREET—

Film Studies Student A: Hm...? What’s that? There’s something coming towards us from the front gate.

Rook: That is a magical wheel. And the one driving it is... Monsieur Cherry Apple, Epel-kun.

Film Studies Student A: It’s so glossy, like a real apple... And his Pomefiore uniform looks so nice. It’s beautiful!

Film Studies Student B: Driving that machine, Epel-kun’s got a radiance that’s different from his usual frail beauty.

Film Studies Student C: Yeah. That piercing cold look and his unconsciously curled-up lips... I’m so drawn to it; I can’t look away.

Rook: Did you hear that, Vil? Everyone is praising Epel-kun!

Vil: Hehe, these potatoes’ reactions are perfect.

Epel: Oh... There he is! Vil-san! Just as promised, I’m here to deliver this.

Let me stop the machine... Okay. Well, I’ll get going now.

Vil: Hold it, Epel. Stay right there.

Film studies club, your attention! I have an announcement to make regarding our next film.

For our undecided leading role... I’ve decided to cast Epel right here.

Epel: Wh... What?!

Vil: You all saw how he looked riding that time machine, yes?

I believe there’s no better person out there more suited for this role. Are there any objections?

Rook: It’s true, the sight of him riding that time machine up here almost felt like a scene from a movie.

Film Studies Student B: Yeah! Hats off to you for how dashing you looked. I’ll let you have my seat today.

Epel: W-Wait a second. I thought I was just helping with the design——

Vil: I’ve already made up my mind. I’ll thoroughly train you to be an actor, so do prepare yourself.

Now, you must do a costume fitting. Costume committee, take Epel to our club room.

Costume Committee: Okay!

Epel: I-I still haven’t said anything about doing th—let me go!!

Vil: ...I see now how drastically the sparkle in his eyes changes depending on whether he’s interested or not. Honestly. He’s a difficult apple to deal with.

Rook: Epel-kun was shining like a completely different person than he was yesterday, yes...

But perhaps were you anticipating this finale from the start?

Vil: Well, now. Who’s to say?

[cowboygenders]

at last i'm up to date on my temperature blanket! my squares so far, each representing local temperatures each week in 2023. my faves are the ones with purple :) bit more info under cut.

the temperature scale for the colors i've used so far is as follows:

purple: 20-32⁰F (-6-0⁰C)

blue: 33-49⁰F (1-9⁰C)

green: 50-69⁰F (10-20⁰C)

yellow: 70-79⁰F (21-26⁰C)

i'm regretting a bit having the blue and green scales encompass nearly 20 degree ranges each, but those temps all feel very similar to me so i'm not going back and changing anything even though the green especially is gonna take over this blanket the further into spring we go.

the blanket border is gonna be cream, i'm undecided as to whether i'm gonna start on that early or wait until the end of the year when all the squares are or are nearly done.

also i'm probably redoing that first square lmao. it's smaller and wonkier than the others, it was one of the first things i crocheted ever and you can tell. a month on of working on these squares and it's still tough but the presentation has really improved.

[another-tmnt-writer]

Truth or Dare?

Raphael x Reader

Author: Admin Mo

Summary: When Mikey needs another actor for his film project, Raph gets roped into it. He didn’t, however, expect for his costar to be so cool.

Note: There are not NEARLY enough college au fics for the bayverse boys, so have this as my first contribution. <3

Warnings: Swears, mentions of drinking, plenty of fluff

Word Count: 3.9k

“Raph, PLEEEEEAAAASE!!!” Mikey folded his hands together, pleading. “We need actors for our project and our group members can’t be in it.”

Mikey, as part of his endeavor to explore every creative program at the university the turtles were currently attending, was taking a filmmaking class. And, as a part of that class, he and his fellow classmates were required to make short projects in order to learn the basics of filmmaking, from writing to directing to using the equipment to editing. As an added bonus because his professor was so especially cruel, none of the people in his group could appear in his project, and while they had managed to recruit some of their classmates to fill in the smaller roles, one of the main roles was still unclaimed.

Raph scoffed. “Mikey, you know I can’t act for shit.”

“You don’t have to actually be good at it!” He pleaded. “You should see some of the other projects. No one in the program is good at acting.”

Raph was quiet for a second, his large arms crossed in front of him, thinking. “How long is it gonna take?”

“Few hours.” Mikey shrugged. He raised an eyebrow. “And your costar is really, really hot.”

Raph sighed, disgruntled. “When?”

“YES! DUDE THANK YOU SO MUCH! YOU WON’T REGRET IT!” Mikey ran and returned with a script and a schedule, shoving it into his older brother’s hands. “We film tomorrow!”

Raph’s eyes widened. “TOMORROW?!”

***

Raph went with Mikey to where the rest of his group was meeting to film their project. He hadn’t really had time to look at the script and Mikey assured him that they’d be filming in small enough chunks that he wouldn’t need to have very much memorized at a time. He also didn’t really know what kind of movie it was and he didn’t care; he just couldn’t wait until it was over.

A few minutes after they arrived, so did his costar. And god, he couldn’t stop staring. Mikey was right. God, why was Mikey always right?

“I am so sorry I’m late. The bus almost hit a pedestrian and it was a whole thing.” You apologized.

“Don’t worry about it!” Mikey waved off your concern. “This is my brother, Raph.”

“Nice to meet you, Raph. I’m (Y/N).” You introduced, a warm smile on your face.

Raph didn’t miss the way your eyes lingered on him, but instead of the looks disdain he usually got, instead it seemed to be curiosity. Awe, even? Weird, he decided, but not unwelcome.

It was a long, awkward moment before he realized he’d better respond. “Oh, uh, nice to meet you too.”

“Um, you guys can get to know each other a little better. We’ve gotta get the equipment set up.” Mikey said, leaving the two of you on your own.

The filming location was a place you were very familiar with: the library. Particularly, in front of the cozy little coffee shop in the library.

“I didn’t really, uh, look at the script, but I’m guessing they needed a monster for a horror movie or something…” Raph flipped through the pages, skimming.

“It’s a rom com.” You corrected quietly. “I’m the main character. You’re the love interest.”

If Raph could physically blush, he was sure his cheeks would rival the color of his mask. “…Oh.”

“Is that alright?” You asked.

“Oh! Yeah, yeah it’s fine, I just…” He chuckled to himself. “I ain’t ever acted in anything before, let alone anything romantic.”

“It’s not too much, I don’t think.” You reassured him. “I’m pretty sure the most they’ll have us do is awkwardly brush hands. It’s a coffee shop meet-cute.”

“Gotcha.” And while he was relieved, he was also a little…disappointed? Huh. Weird. “So, uh, what’s yer major?”

“I’m a film major. I’m in Mikey’s class and they needed actors, so I’m paying it forward in case I need someone in my project. What’s yours?”

“I’m undecided. Just, uh, taking some time to figure things out, you know. I never really had any…school experience before this.”

“That’s a lot to adjust to.”

“Yeah, it is. I’m getting used to it, though.”

“That’s good! If you need any help with anything, let me know. I’ve picked up a bunch of good tips and tricks.”

He chuckled. “I will, thanks.”

“Do you have snapchat?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“One second.” You fished your phone out of your bag and unlocked it, opening the app to your snapcode, which he scanned and added you. “There you go.”

“Thanks.”

“Of course.”

Raph took some more time reading over the script to get the gist of the scene and you were right. Indeed, it was a rom com. Not his preferred genre, by any means, but maybe he’d warm up to it a bit over the course of the day.

“Hey (Y/N)?” Mikey called from over where they had the camera set up on the tripod. “Do you know how to white-balance this thing? Everything is orange for some reason. Which is a great color, but I’m sure Smith will dock us points for it.”

“Oh, I’ve got you.” You nodded. You looked up at Raph, your purse in hand. “Will you hold this for a second?”

“Uh, yeah. Sure.” He nodded, holding out a giant three-fingered hand to take the bag from you. He watched you walk over to where the rest of the group was standing, crowded around the camera. You worked your magic, shuffling through the menu and helping adjust the camera correctly. Raph couldn’t stop staring. You looked so focused. So passionate. He could tell you really liked film and everything it entailed and he wished he could just find something he cared about as much as you cared about your major.

“Awesome.” He heard Mikey say, his eyes fixed on the camera’s screen. “Thanks!”

“Of course!” You walked back over to where Raph was and he handed you your bag back. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, no problem.” He opened his mouth to say something else, but Mikey walked over to the two of you.

“You guys ready? I think we’re good to start now.”

“All set.” You confirmed, giving him a thumbs-up, and Raph nodded.

***

Raph might have to reconsider his stance on this acting thing. Did he think he was all that good at it? No. But so long as he had you as a costar, he’d act willingly in any project Mikey (or you) needed him for. And at the end of the shoot, he ended up having a really good time. So much so that when you guys were all done, he was…sad. Like, really sad about it.

You parted ways. You weren’t in any of his classes, so Raph wasn’t really sure if he’d see you around that much. And he didn’t see you around…until a few weeks later.

He was at the library studying with his brothers at their favorite table when suddenly, his phone buzzed, a message from snapchat coming in. He looked at the notification, doing a double-take when he read your name there. And when he reached to answer it, he moved too fast and knocked his shell-shaped cell phone off of the table.

Shit.

He bent down to pick it up and when he opened the snapchat, he was surprised to see…the back of his shell? It was captioned: “I spy with my little eye…Something red and green 😉”

Immediately, he whipped around, and sure enough, nestled in a table by the windows was you, looking at him over the top of your laptop screen. You giggled when he spotted you, waving.

Raph nudged Mikey, who was sitting across from him and Mikey traced Raph’s eyeline to where you were, his face immediately lighting up.

“Oh! Hey (Y/N)!” Mikey waved. “You wanna sit with us?”

“Is that alright?”

“Hell yeah!” Mikey motioned you over. “The more the merrier! We can pull up a chair over here on the end.”

So, you gathered your stuff while the guys rearranged some things, putting you on the end of the table, right between Mikey and Raph. When you got over there, you noticed they were sitting with the other two giant mutated turtles on campus, who you had heard of, but hadn’t met yet.

“(Y/N), these are our brothers. Leo’s over there in the blue, our fearless leader. And this is Donatello, the one we go to for homework help.”

“Not tonight you aren’t. This paper is due at midnight and it is…” Donnie glanced down at the clock on his laptop and as soon as he did, he started typing impossibly faster. “Eleven thirty-seven. Do not look at me or breathe in my direction.”

“Noted.” Mikey nodded, a trace of fear in his eyes.

“Nice to meet you, (Y/N). You’re in one of Mikey’s classes, right?”

“Yep! I’m in his film class.” You smiled, taking a sip of your iced coffee. “I got the pleasure of costarring with this one.” You nudged Raph lightly, causing him to smile the most genuine smile Mikey had ever seen on his older brother’s face.

Huh. Mikey took note, something devious stirring in the back of his mind. Interesting…

“What did you get on that, by the way?” You asked.

“We got an A! Well, Minus. But you know how Smith is.”

“Dude that’s awesome!” You bumped your fist against his. “Good job. I’m pretty sure my group got a B, but we’re not mad about it. C’s get degrees, as they say.”

“Cheers to that.” Leo chuckled.

“What are you working on today, Raph?” You asked, tilting your head in a way that sent his heart racing in a way he could not explain.

“I have a paper for my Writing 150 class.”

“Oof that sucks. Who do you have?”

“Trainor.”

“Ouch. She hated me.” You grimaced, shaking your head. “She found out I was bi and it was all over for me.”

“Did you report her? I’m pretty sure you can report her for that sort of thing.” Raph asked, trying not to get heated over it. He was pretty sure she didn’t like him very much either, but it was probably due to the fact that he was a giant green turtle. “That’s bullshit.”

“I’m in the process of that right now.” You nodded. “She’s a bitch. I don’t know if they’ll actually do anything about it though.”

“Keep me posted. I might file something too if she doesn’t stop glaring at me during class.” Raph grumbled. “It’s annoying.”

“That would be annoying. Her beady little eyes glaring at you for two agonizing hours of ‘This is how to correctly use a comma’.”

He chuckled. “Yeah. It is.”

You glanced at your phone, which buzzed with a text from one of your roommates. “Oh! Uh, do you guys have any plans this weekend?”

“Nope. Why?” Mikey asked, curiosity seeping into his voice.

“My roommate is throwing a party, if you guys wanna come. It’ll be pretty chill. Drinks, pizza, some music.”

“Oh hell yes.” Mikey nodded. He looked at Leo. “Leo, can we?”

“I don’t see why not.” Leo shrugged. “Sounds like a good time.”

“Is there a dress code?” Mikey asked. Now that he was finally allowed to socialize, he didn’t want to fuck it up.

“Nope. Just casual. Come as you are.”

“Do you need us to bring anything?”

“If you guys have a drink of choice, bring that, I guess, but otherwise, my roommate’s boyfriend works at a pizza place, so we get a pretty good discount and we have literally so much wine.”

“That’s amazing.” Mikey nodded, making a mental note to look into jobs at a pizza place later.

“We’ll bring a veggie tray.” Donnie said, his fingers flying across the keyboard of his laptop until finally, he stopped. “I finished, by the way.”

“Good job, dude!” Mikey gave him a thumbs up. “You wanna write mine next?”

“Ha.” Donnie stared at him. “Funny.”

“What’s your paper on, Raph? Maybe I can help.”

Raph turned his laptop towards you. “We have to write it about like growing up. You can, uh, read it if you want. I don’t mind. I’m kinda stuck right now anyway.”

“Okay.” You agreed, switching his laptop for yours. You winked. “Trade ya.”

“What are you writing about?” He asked, scrolling to the top of your document.

“Women in Film.” You shot finger guns at him. “I’m about to make some Film Bois REALLLL mad.”

“Roast ‘em, (Y/N).” Mikey laughed, knowing all too well exactly which film boys you were talking about. He was not a fan.

“That’s the plan.” You chuckled and then started reading over Raph’s paper. You had known before meeting them that they hadn’t exactly had the best childhood, but…wow was it eye-opening reading the experience from his eyes. “Holy shit.”

“That bad?” He joked, trying to read your expression.

“No, it’s…Raph, this is really good, but wow. You guys went through a lot, huh?”

“Yeah…” He shrugged. “It wasn’t all bad, but it sure wasn’t normal by any means.”

“Mmm…” You nodded, looking up at him. “I mean, normal is kinda overrated.”

He chuckled. “I’m glad ya think so. Not many people do.”

You shrugged, smiling softly. “Well, it’s a good thing I’m not like many people.”

***

“(Y/N), this place is as clean as it’s gonna get. It’s a party. It’ll be messed up in,” your roommate, Haley, glanced down at her watch, “like twenty minutes.”

“I know, I just…I’m nervous. These guys are basically superheroes. I want to make a good impression.”

“Fair point.”

You swept the kitchen floor and got out the cutest paper plates you had in the cupboard as well as some solo cups and plastic wine glasses. If you could avoid broken glass today, that was probably the move.

The doorbell buzzed and your heart raced, but it was just your other roommate’s boyfriend with the pizza.

“Is Darcy here?” He asked.

“She’s upstairs getting ready, you explained, helping him get the pizza and breadsticks and everything set up on the counter. He’d also brought a few two-liters of Pepsi, which was good. You put it next to the giant jug of fruit punch you’d bought at the grocery store. It was important to make sure your non-drinking friends had something to drink, too.

A few minutes after, guests started arriving. Darcy came downstairs and started up her iconic party playlist. Your neighbors popped in. It was easier to invite them and let them have a good time with you than have them call security on you guys for throwing a party, even if it was the weekend and it was only nine.

You turned off the lamps in the living room and instead set your strip lights to party mode, causing them to cycle through a bunch of colors in time with the music. It was then that the doorbell rang again and you rushed to the mirror to check yourself once more. You adjusted your hair, straightened out your top, and checked your teeth for food. Nope, you were good.

So, with the rest of the hosts distracted, you opened the door. On the other side of it were four tall, green gentlemen, one of them carrying a veggie tray.

“Hey guys, come on in!”

You moved out of the way so they could step inside.

Mikey’s eyes widened, looking into the living room full of dancing college kids. “Woahhhhh this is awesome!”

“Glad you think so.” You laughed. “There’s food and drinks in here, the bathroom is in the hallway, and everyone else seems to be either in the living room or the back yard.”

“Where do you want this veggie tray?” Donnie asked.

“Thank you so much for bringing this, by the way! You can set it over by the pizza boxes. I can get a spoon for the dip.” You said, walking towards the silverware drawer and producing a spoon while Donnie popped the lid off of the plastic serving tray and opened up the dip. You handed him the spoon.

The guys were each sporting their signature color, but they were wearing clothes you hadn’t seen them in before. Usually, Raph liked to wear a large gray hoodie, but today, he was sporting a black t-shirt and an impossibly large red flannel with some jeans. It looked good on him. Like, really good.

Apparently, he was thinking the same thing, because as soon as you were free, he walked up to you and nudged you gently. “You look really good.”

Your cheeks flushed with warmth and you wished you could blame it on wine, but you hadn’t even had a sip yet. “Thanks. You clean up pretty nice yourself.”

Had you worn a red top on purpose? Yes, absolutely. Would you admit to it, though? No, definitely not.

But Mikey noticed. Oh, Mikey noticed everything. And he couldn’t help but think that you and his older brother would make quite the couple. Maybe there was something he could do to just…give it a little push.

***

The time came later, when the party was finally starting to wind down. Some people had left. Your neighbors had gone home, and you’d switched the strip lights to a light, warm color. You’d also switched the upbeat party playlist for something chill to play in the background. The remaining partygoers were all settled in a circle in the living room, eating whatever pizza was left, sipping on box wine, and playing a game of truth or dare.

“Haley, truth or dare?” Darcy challenged.

“Truth.”

“Okay…Fuck, Marry, Kill: Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth and…..Chris Pine.”

“DAMN.” She cursed. “You can’t do that to me. Shit. Uh…Fuck Chris…Hemsworth. Marry Chris…Pine? And—”

“Don’t you do it!” You warned.

“Kill Chris Evans.”

“Noooooooooo!” You whined, taking a sip of your drink. The rest of the group laughed. “Poor Captain America.”

“Rest in pieces, Cap.” She agreed, shaking her head. “Okay…Mikey, truth or dare.”

“Dare.” Mikey answered quickly. He always picked dare, so in the fifth round of the game, it wasn’t much of a surprise.

“I dare you…to take a shot of straight lemon juice.”

“Easy peasy.” Mikey scoffed, pouring himself a shot and downing it.

You watched as his face contorted at the sour, sour taste. You couldn’t help but giggle a little at that.

“Good job, Mikey.” Donnie laughed, dipping a piece of broccoli in dip before popping it into his mouth.

“Taking it like a champ.” Leo added, nodding.

“Alright, my turn?” Mikey asked, looking around the circle for his victim, pretending he hadn’t been planning this since round one. “(Y/N). Truth or dare?”

You thought about it for a second. How easy it would be to just choose truth again, but for some reason, you were feeling a little brave, so instead, you picked, “Dare.”

“Oooooooh,” the circle said, all of them a little surprised by that choice.

“Okay. Alright.” Mikey rubbed his hands together mischievously. All according to plan. “I dare you to kiss the hottest person in the room.”

“OOOOOOOHHHH!” The circle all stared at you and you thought for a second, a smirk settling on your features.

“Oh that’s easy.” You got up and crossed the circle until you were standing in front of Raph. Even sitting down, he was almost your height. “Think I could get a kiss?”

Raph stared up at you, shocked, waiting for you to say Sike! HAHA! Did you actually think I thought you were hot?! Loser!

But you never did, instead looking down at him with sincerity, patience. Were you a little…nervous, even?

“Why me?” He whispered, his eyes fixed on you. There were plenty of good-looking human guys still there, and yet you were certain. Unwavering. Then, louder, he asked, his heart absolutely fighting to get out of his chest, “Are you sure?”

“Positive.” You nodded, starting to lean closer. Once you were most of the way in, you let him meet you in the middle, your soft human lips meeting his, which were, you had to admit, way softer than you thought they would be.

Raphael kissed you like you were made of glass, like if he moved too fast, you would shatter. It was his first kiss, after all, and he didn’t want to fuck it up.

When it finally ended, you walked back to your seat in the circle, your cheeks rosy, heart racing. Haley gave you a nudge and you giggled, your stomach filled with butterflies. The rest of the game went along with little fanfare, and once everyone was tired enough, the apartment cleared out even more, leaving just your roommates, Darcy’s boyfriend, and the turtles, who insisted on helping clean everything up. Well, it had been Leo’s idea, but the rest had agreed to stick around to help.

You volunteered to go out into the backyard to pick up all of the stray solo cups and White Claw cans. You hated litter. You worked out there alone for a bit. As you bent down to pick up the last can you heard the signature screech of the sliding door opening.

Raph squeezed through the narrow doorway, cursing his shell for making him so damn wide.

“Hey,” you said softly, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear. Your voice was almost swallowed up by the sounds of the choir of crickets outside.

“Hey.” He closed the sliding door. “Can we talk?”

“Yeah, of course.” You nodded, tying off the trash bag you were using to collect garbage. “How was your first college party?”

“It was great. Really, really great.” He said, taking slow steps through the grass towards you. “Um…I…did you mean what you said? Earlier.”

“What do you mean?”

“When you…was I really…” he laughed at the absurdity of it. “You think I’m hot?”

“I do.” You nodded. “Of course I do.”

“I’m sorry if I find that a little hard to believe.” He shook his head, stopping right in front of you. When he was standing in front of you like this, he was remined of just how big he was compared to you, just how much he towered over you. Just how different you were. “I’m just used to the opposite reaction.”

“Believe it.” You reached forward and took his hand in yours, gripping one of his giant green fingers.

“I’m trying to.” He chuckled and fiddled with your little hand, nervous. “You know, uh…that was my first kiss in there. I wasn’t too awful, was I?”

“I didn’t mean to steal your first one.” You laughed softly. “Sorry. But to answer your question, I thought it was perfect.”

“That’s a relief.” He was quiet for a moment, thinking. “Uh…If it’s alright with ya…I’d like to give you my second kiss, too.”

Instead of answering, you took another step closer, looking up, up, up into his piercing green eyes. “You’re gonna have to come down here; I can’t reach.”

He laughed. “Right.” Raph craned his neck down, one of his large hands tilting your face up towards his so he could meet you in the middle for another perfect kiss.

***

“What are you doing?” Leo asked Mikey, who was peering through the blinds into the back yard of the apartment.

Mikey only grinned proudly, nodding to himself. “Works every time…”

[drawing-way-outside-the-lines]

Imogen Diamondsheart McKinney *Supporting character

Voice Claim: (Emma Carn) https://youtu.be/g0kCDB7KF44?t=66

Partner(s): None Parents: Sparkle Diamondsheart & Raven McKinney Kids: None Siblings: Penelope, Kerrigan, Ciaran, Violet & Aedan. Age: Immortal but translates into start-mid 20′s Birthday: Not yet born/undecided Height: 168cm (5.4ft) Body type: Skinny Eye color: Medium brown/blue-grey Classification: Demon/immortal/supernatural. Known powers: Possession, Power Replication (The power to replicate the powers of others for a period of time, in Imogen’s case, she does it by touch.) About: Energetic, Fun-loving, Playful, Flirty, Creative, Independent, Adventurous, Confident, Spontaneous, Care-Free, Optimistic, Daring, Challenging, Passionate, Sensitive, Competitive, Dramatic and Outspoken. ~ Very feminine. ~ Quirky. ~ Sexuality: Doesn’t believe in labeling her sexuality. Considers herself sexually fluid.  ~ Lives with her twin brother Kerrigan. ~ Half human, half demon, but feels mostly human. ~ Can have a bit of a short temper at times. ~ Is very creative and skilled with her hands.   ~ Heart in the right place. ~ Has a good singing voice and is fairly good at playing guitar. ~ Is really good at sewing. ~ Loves crafting. ~ There‘s nothing a glue gun can’t fix! ~ Pretty close to her parents and all her siblings. ~ Smells like: Lemongrass and raspberry ~ Very good dancer ~ Has a big Sphynx tattoo on her left shoulder. ~ Fascinated by language. ~ Speaks Irish, Latin, German, French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish.  ~ Wants to be a DJ. ~ Travels a lot. ~ Is pretty open for dating, and doesn’t want to settle down any day soon. ~ Can be a bit provocative if something/someone annoys her. ~ Likes to keep busy. ~ Cares a lot about her family, and wants everyone to succeed and be happy. ~ Parties a lot. ~ Doesn’t like the smell of burned wood. ~ Likes bugs. ~ Great cook. ~ Very outgoing. ~ Hates when caramel gets stuck in her teeth! ~ eats it anyway. ~ Very sexually active and free. ~ Doesn’t like watching the news, so tends to avoid it. ~ Wants to slap people who doesn’t believe in global warming. ~ A big fan of thunder storms! ~ Loves: Sex, partying, eating, cooking, singing, dancing, cats, cherries, elephants, dolphins, crafting, owls, mani/pedicures, spending time with family, sewing, fried seafood, talking on the phone, meeting new people, thunder, rain, rodents, glitter, pandas and makeup. ~ Her style is: early to mid 2000′s vibes. ~ Tends to get what she goes for.

Imogen’s tag Imogen’s house/home Imogen’s moodboard Handwriting/ask answer pic:

One song to describe her: Disclosure feat. London Grammar - Help Me Lose My Mind Personal Playlist: 1. Major Lazer - Light It Up (feat. Nyla & Fuse ODG) (Remix) 2. Marlon Roudette - When The Beat Drops Out (Blondee & hagen Radio Edit) 3. Sirens of Lesbos – Long Days Hot Nights (Claptone Remix) 4. Tep No - Karma, You Got Owned 5. Aloe Blacc - I Need A Dollar (Ben E & Falki Remix) 6. Florence + The Machine - You've Got The Love (Dennis Kruissen Remix) 7. Kungs ft. Molly - West Coast 8. Lilly Wood & The Prick and Robin Schulz - Prayer In C (Robin Schulz Remix) 9. Tep No - A Different You (ft. Jessica Hart) 10. Maroon 5 - Animals (Gryffin Remix) 11. Mattafix - Big City Life (LEEX Remix) 12. Kungs - Candy (feat. Jasmine Thompson) 13. Just Kiddin - Thinking About It (Fabich & Ferdinand Weber Remix) 14. Sebastien - High On You (ft. Hagedorn) 15. James Hype - More Than Friends (ft. Kelli-Leigh)

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket Manga Review , ch 109

-The Tragedy of a an episodic format attempting to connect narrative in a series: (Tohru’s Background or Kyo’s Focus?)

One of my issues with se03, ep6 (other than it being 3 chapters combined horribly with new material added for shock value) is that it was weakly undecided who would be the focus? who would the narrative follow?: Is it tohru’s own pov abt herself? is it the gramps giving boring exposition abt tohru over weak still images of flashbacks or is kyo thinking abt tohru’s pain?

The truth is, it was all the above in the manga, but the manga gave each a chapter focus so that the chapter is well-directed with focused narrative. The anime weakly jumbled the 3 chapters together as they always do. You mix chapters & tada~ you got an ep, you only need a broad weak theme that connects the dots! here: it is tohru! & that’s it. As long as the 3 chapters discuss tohru in any form & manner, nothing will seem off if we put them next to each other in a 20 minute ep! right? riiiiiight ????

.. this was never a correct way. Just like a chapter needed a narrative direction, the ep is the same!!

ch 107: The beginning of tohru’s pov on her realization abt loving kyo.

ch108: tohru’s full pov of shock upon reaching the conclusion that she loves him & the beginning of her mom’s issues & abandonment.

ch109: Kyo’s pov abt tohru’s pain & his involvement, guil & the sheet hug.

ch110: (completely cut from the anime!!!!!!!!!!!!!) Kyoru’s part: the aftermath of kyo & tohru crossing the line of being in the most vulnerable & intimate, building towards a more crushing impact of the climax. The stronger & more painful their love is, the more it will hurt. Also a yuchi buildup?!!!!

-so, you see each chapter has a direction i& a narrative it follows independently that is weaved together to make a connected tissue of the overall plot. The anime puts the 3 chapters next to each other & we are lost on who to follow? kyo or tohru or the gramps. That’s why it feels tohru is weak & her two chapters worth of pov is stolen from her cuz it cut or shortened to include the grandpa, kyo, isuzu, shigure & let’s not forget (kazuma, yuki & haru) at the beginning, the dramatic shock value addition & OP & ED. All these take valuable screen time. The ep shocks us by moving from tohru to kyo. One minute she’s crying with him on the streets, next he’s at the grave & she’s visiting isuzu.

Kyo said he isn't going to the grave in the ep, upon seeing him actually going, I just assumed he wanted to avoid, hana, cuz I’m so invested in his story that I remember sth happened in se1, ep 14.. ages ago, The anime didn’t even allow kyo to inner talk abt avoiding hana... In their weird mind, kyo only inner talks in dramatic situations..See the difference!

Not only the writer (a) reminds us why kyo avoided the grave visit, she also (b) seized the opportunity to shine lifht onto an issue that will be the center of kyo’s struggles: Running away!

The anime introduce this in kyo’s pov only when kyo confronts tohru. Only when it was needed & couldnt be avoided. This is sth that will be the core of all the climax & the aftermath as well! Kyo running away.. How bad are you if you avoid inserting one line only that can be said in few seconds & establish great deal & foreshadow plenty!!!!!!!!!! I can’t for the life of my understand why short lines are cut from kyo when in the anime they have him be standing silent in the graveyard. Like slap the line above the silent scene!!!!! But doing so means the anime team understands tohru & kyo’s issues. They don’t. Not the slightest.

-Ep 6 signals the beginning of the anime moving from episodic format of se1, 2 & 5 eps of se3 & entering a connect plot. The anime doesn’t know how to do that & screwed tohru in the process. The protagonist’s main issues are one ep worth only. The antagonist main issues are one ep only (ep7).  Ep 6, was treated as a stand alone ep (minus the inserted shock scene to create a lingering issue that needs a following ep to explain. TOLD YOU they don’t know how to make a series!). Thus the following ep 7 is akito’s focus. Everything that was established in ep 6 was pit on hold until akito reaches the craziest mindset for the climax. See why ep 6 was so bad? it is Should NOT be a stand alone ep.

-The plot connects kyoru emotional & physically: (Kyo’s chapter with a tohru’s focus:

Unlike the anime, the chapter knows what it’s presenting 7 where it’s going. Kyo’s issues. This ch focuses on him uncovering parts of his past as it connects with tohru’s. Unlike the anime, we know why kyo's connection to kyoko’s past. The anime is hiding this for the climax, no problem, it can still work both ways. However, hiding kyoko /kyo connection doesn't necessarily mean hiding kyoko/tohru connection. But the anime is cutting this to milk it in an ova or series next year~ no problem,  it can still work if you handle this ep’s  flashback better. for all the artistic creativity they inserted in the added scene, they failed miserably in tohru’s flashback portion. how?

By choosing a frontal pov shot in tohru’s grandpa flashback as if the audience are the ones who abandoned tohru or opening the door to find her alone. it does NOT work at all. why? the audience are encouraged to be like tohru since ep 1 as tohru is the mother, angel, fixer & endearing hopeful girl. The audience will NEVER abandon tohru, that’s why tohru’s story felt disconnected & weak in the anime. Not knowing what kyoko did, who would abandon such child?! differently not us. so why use the frontal pov shot? -_-’

-tohru confesses her pain to kyo without being ushered by isuzu, without any outside factor. She simply visited the grave & came home. hiding her pain. once again. like she always do. One question by kyo, prompts her to “ complain a little” call back to se1, ep5 as he advised. we see tohru get out of her shell little by little. NOT SCREAM OR SLAP. She opened up. why? cuz the story is abt “ opening the lid” not abt “ snatching the lid”. No need for shocks. Yuki opened his lide slowly, tohru even slower, kyo is resisting opening his altho it is cracking in this chapter. When your story focuses on character buildup it pays!

-I’ll give the anime credit when it due. The hug scene is so good both in manga & anime. but so awesome in animation, colors, music & voice acting. It’s breathtaking & painful. The most beautiful kyoru scene in the whole anime.

-It represents their mutual vulnerability, understanding, pain & determination to love the other but not also let go. kyo has made his mind to be locked in order not to hurt tohru & tohru has made her mind that she can’t let go of her mom.

You see, the scene’s meaning hits different between manga & anime; In the anime: tohru has already challenged the sohmas & screamed to be with kyo, while kyo is still decided to leave her. In the manga: they’re both at the same spot (undecided). I like both interpretations but I’ll choose the manga’s version. Simply cuz it means tohru is still uncovering her issues which means more focus on her, & more explanation of why cant tohru love her mom & kyo at the same time.

-This expression on tohru’s face is a the complete opposite of the shock value expression in ep 6! T_T. I do’nt even hate the shocked scene addition itself that much, I just think (a) this is NOT its time! Tohru deserved better spotlight! (b) kyo didn’t friggen forget! ah! THIS I HATE! (c) the whole shocked scene was so wasted in ep 7. tohru return to her stupid dumb lalala~ land, cooking & forgetting kyo. what growth? what determination & screams to isuzu? what enduring kagura’s slaps? nope! just happy & cooking, lalala~ no one was freaking over her mom’s picture~ lalala~ & kyo just slept it over~ shhhh... its okay. he’ll forget again... see? totally wasted!

The anime knows nothing abt connected narrative! augh!

Side Notes:

We see kyo asking the gramps why he’s offering him info abt tohru which is so logical! XD. I love it.

I’ve read ch 110 & wanted to insert the kyoru scene in ch 110 here, & put yuchi alone in a different post, then I realized I’ll need to talk abt it again once I analyze yuki’s own expressions! XD. so, I’ll put all ch 110 together in one post. It kinda half written by now, so I’ll publish it very soon in two days time. I didn’t read ch 111 yet tho.

I hope ch 110 is the last I feel this much disappointments in furuba’s anime & by ch 11, it hopefully be be minor changes altho I doubt that cuz the manga needed to dwell into tohru’s mindset & the anime kinda stopped after ep 6. so, yup! more big changes coming!

The sheet hug is so brilliant in theory & application! so romantic & so endearing! love it so much! The anime did it so well, too!

I love kyo’s narration & pov cuz it’s so refreshing change from the anime where he rarely does!

I really wish they kept the kyoko abandoning tohru part in the anime... sigh~ it has nothing much to affect her story with katsuya. so it won’t ruin the spin off/ ova or whatever it’s called. 

I love the light focus on tohru in this chapter & how organic & natural it is opposed to how forced the plot seems in the anime....

[literaticat]

When someone nudges you on QueryManager, do you get an email notification or some kind of notification? What if they click "other" (as in, not an offer) - is that a different notification than if they click "Report an Offer" or "Withdraw". I nudged a few agents on QM and just wondering if the messages went through/show notifications.

OK when you query via query manager, there's a thing you can click to send a message to the agent after you query. It gives you the option to click WHY you are sending a message -- either a) withdrawing the query, b) notifying them that you have an offer, or c) other.

I sent a test query to myself to see what each notification looks like on my end because I couldn't remember.

c) first I tried "other" -- simply a nudge, or more info, or whatever. I got an email, and also a little notification on the front page "dashboard" of QM.

b) then I tried "have an offer" -- with that I got an email, and also a colored notification on the dashboard, and ALSO an unmissable yellow pop-up message hovering dead center when I tried to go to other queries, being like YO, OFFER, PAY ATTENTION

c) then I did "withdraw" -- I didn't get an email, but it did give me a notification on the dashboard and removed the query from the queue and into the archive.

This is what the different notifications look like on the dashboard. (There are also separate WARNING notifications that are a different color if a query has been in the box for over 30 days or something, but I can't show you that rn because I don't have any of those). And btw, these notifications don't go away unless I purposely click them away:

This is what the pop-up looks like:

And, just for fun, this is what the "statistics" tab on the dashboard looks like right now -- the "undecided" queries are ones that are either brand-new like from the past couple days, or that I haven't decided about. The "submissions waiting" and "event submissions/queries with attachments" are fulls/dummies that are undecided:

[freedfromthegalactichivemind]

Horde Clone Headcanons #2: Food

Number 2 in my self-indulgent headcanons, the mythos that I use in my Hordak and spacebat-heavy Spop fanfictions.   #2 Food, Nutrition and Culture(s) around Eating  Solid food, much like emotional facial expressions, is a privilege reserved only for Prime.  A. Capabilities  That said, in my world, Prime eats (the banquet for Glimmer and Catra was not just for show).  The clones obviously prepared all of that food and knew how to set a table, and so I have food as a thing not just to impress and intimidate planetary “guests,” but as something that Horde Prime genuinely enjoys - and, of course, reserves for himself.   Clones are capable of eating.  They have teeth (rather sharp ones judging by those canines).  They have stomachs and intestines, or at least some equivalent thereof.  However, the nutritional fluid they are given (the “nutrient-rich amniotic fluid” according to Wrong Hordak) is their general method of sustenance as it is efficient and not particularly pleasurable / is flat-bland.  They *can* eat (because Prime can inhabit any one of them as a temporary vessel and my choose any one of them to be modified into a main Vessel) but generally do not, as their soldier’s rations are the simple fluid.  B. Make-up of the amniotic fluid  In my ‘verse, it is a mixture of raw ingredients harvested from various planets, grown on-ship, a mix of animal-derived proteins and plant-matter, in particular there is a photosynthetic element that creates basic nutrition when exposed to the light of stars (particularly yellow stars), hence its green color.  It also contains an element of recycled clone, clone-blood and general life-force.   Taking it is not considered the same as raw cannibalism, more on that later.  C. Base-species traits  Whatever species Prime “uplifted” them from or corrupted them from (or he himself came from, I am undecided on my headcanon for Prime’s origins and can go many ways - but my idea of spacebats definitely have a base-species)... well, they were omnivores.  They had a diet comparable with humans and with various kinds of bats.  Like much of the fandom, I enjoy imagining them as big fruit bats and have the idea that fruit featured heavily in their base-species’ diet. I also tend to add insects in, since many kinds of bats are insectivores, hence why one of my OCs enjoys eating bugs and landing on Planet Etheria with its giant magical guardian horror-bugs was the best thing that could have ever happened to him!  BBQ time!  C. Battlefield Permissions and Rites  While clones normally do not eat, as they are able to, they have one type of permission to do so under Prime:  Getting stuck behind enemy-lines.  If a squadron is pinned-down or stranded planetside (and Prime, in his mercy, deems them worthy of rescue / doesn’t want to waste the resources, because, let’s face it, clones take time to grow), they are allowed to eat from local flora and fauna to keep themselves going if their liquid rations have run out. Battleships are equipped with tools to scan what is generally safe for them in chemical-makeup.  This is considered very stop-gap and they are not meant to take any pleasure from it.   If the situation is particularly dire, it is not considered a sin for clones to eat their own dead.  Brothers taking from fallen Brothers to survive has very rarely ever happened, but it has happened.  It tends to forever change the survivors.  D. Post-Primefall Foodways   Eating, to use a pun, was an acquired taste for clones after the Fall of Prime. They each had ingrained in them the “behind enemy lines” permission-idea, but it was very difficult for any of them to not shake the feeling that they were doing something wrong by partaking in “something reserved only for Prime.”  Gradually, because it was a matter of survival, the greater part of them began growing accustomed to it.  Encouraged by their Etherian hosts (and presumably the peoples of other planets, too), they began exploring their own tastes in conjunction with their general learning to embrace identities.  Some clones truly cannot get the hang of eating and, for them, some substitues for the amniotic fluid have been created to replace it when the last of the rations run out.  It is not entirely the same thing as the true fluid, as the photosynthesis process is different than what was available in space and because clones are no longer recycling one another.   There is a form of it available (in a town specific to my fanfic) that is a very close approximation due to some of the healthy local clones doing blood-donations for the sake of its creation.  The replacement-amniotic fluid is employed mainly for the sick and the injured as a medical treatment, for example, for anyone in a coma, but no one has any judgement for a clone who just cannot eat taking it instead.  For those spacebats who do get the hang of eating, fruit is a favorite, if not universal.  Now, different bats may favor different types of fruits, but give a bat a mango or a juicy melon and you’ve made a very happy bat!  As said, in my world, some will snack on a big ol’ bag of roast crickets.  Otherwise, they’re able to eat almost anything that’s within a human range, and then-some on certain fruits that are digestible to them, but may be toxic to humans.   E. Survivor’s Guilt  The few spacebats who’ve survived battlefield experiences via partaking of the fallen of their kin - to a man - cannot stand meat.   This was a trait that was suppressed in Prime’s days, in regards to no one thinking much about the makeup of the amniotic fluid and if a spacebat was unlucky enough to get into that kind of situation TWICE, well, Prime’s orders were Prime’s orders.  In the post-Prime era, anyone who’s had to survive that way becomes a vegetarian by default.   It’s not necessarily a moral decision, it really is more a matter of the texture of flesh on their teeth will bring them flashbacks.   It is a known-trait among them, therefore any time a Horde-clone mentions they are a vegetarian or the topic comes up, they will often be the recipient of grave looks from their brothers - a sense and an assumption that said brother was a one-time cannibal.  This can cause great confusion among those clones that never had to do that for survival but have chosen vegetarianism as a lifestyle due to flavor-preferences or a bonding with animals.   It is a strange bit of stigma - that if the topic comes up, the contingency cannibalism is immediately assumed.   F. Undecided Headcanons  I don’t have it solidified, but sometimes I headcanon that spacebats cannot abide coffee - not caffeine in general (I like making Hordak fond of tea), but coffee specifically. Gives them the shakes, is mildly toxic to them.  I also have used, once, the idea that they become inebriated on sour / spoiled / fermented milk.  (This is something I ganked from the old science fiction film and series Alien Nation for fun). Neither of these are solidified and can vary, depending upon what I want to write for a given fic.  

[mysticalmusicwhispers]

hey,,,your thoughts and headcanons on indchuran college au 😳😳😳😳😳(i am very predictable as per usual)

o-o o-o college aus have my heart so thank you for the ask! These turned out as platonic/general hcs but I hope you like them nonetheless! (also this isn’t really associated with any set AU and is separate from the indchuran bros for life AU)

notes: this is based on the little I know about how US colleges/universities work ahahah sorry for any inaccuracies lol

— They’re all in the same year, and China and India got put in a dorm together with Iran next door (oh my god they were roommates ;) )

— They meet when Roshan heard Aditya’s got a copy of a book they wanted, went over to borrow it, and found Aditya trolling Yao with meme songs while the latter was wearing headphones and trying to study (this is kinda half assed and I don’t think it’s funny enough so if you’ve got another meeting scenario please do tell 👀)

— Yao’s fashion is a hot mess, per usual. It’s half lazy college student wear and half blinding eye-strain. Sometimes he still goes edgelord mode and does dark colors and goth attire when he’s particularly annoyed or grumpy (in addition to threatening to evict Aditya/steal all his possessions if he’s bugging Yao); Aditya and Roshan just coo at this. 

— Roshan dresses very eccentrically. I think it’s called the art hoe aesthetic? They dress like an art student but pick even more outlandish outfits. But it’s elegant in an eye-catching way, and it makes them stand out a lot. They like it and also love the attention it gets them :) also Roshan would be an amazing person to ask for clothing opinions, except that they might criticize your current outfits too much hksdfsdf

— As for Aditya, I don’t really have a set image for him really? lol I'd give anything to see him dressed in some kind of academia aesthetic (glasses are a bonus), but I feel like his style is more casual and comfy? just average person casual shirts and hoodies. Still knows how to pick good outfits though, but makes awful decisions when in the wrong headspace (like being Severely sleep deprived)

— Yao either studies a) business b) politics c) game theory d) a mix of all three (overachiever). I think he’d also take some of those like, quantum math classes and stuff just to ~expand his horizons~ and ends up taking enough to get a minor in that. Also absorbs STEM stuff from other people although he never went that route :\

— Roshan studies art history! They’re wicked at math as well though, I think they’d definitely be interested in studying pure mathematics as either a minor or a fun side hobby.

— Aditya minors in literature/creative writing and regularly waxes poetic about life. He also complains about the school cafeteria food in flowery prose. Yao yells at him to just make food himself if it’s so bad, but it’s too much effort 😔 (this is literally me)

I’m still undecided on what he majors in, but for now I’m stealing your hc that it’s biophysics :>

— Yao’s tried dabbling in stocks as part class project and part personal side hobby; one of his professors probably helps him with this, and somehow he gets a lot of money even though he invests in some very questionable things that look like shitpost material

— Courtesy of talking with @luyous, these three competitively study during midterms/finals season. They hardcore compete to get the best grades, even though they’re in different majors, and literally. the temperature heats up a couple degrees in the dorm when they’re revising because they all want to “beat” the other two 😭

— Literally they’re such bookworms but have a thirst for being The Best 😔

— Yao has a shit sleep schedule and both Aditya and Roshan have called him out on this multiple times; Aditya more often because they share a room and it’s kind of annoying when your roommate’s desk lamp is still on at 3 AM while you’re supposed to be sleeping. He eventually bought an eye mask for this but still has to forcibly drag Yao to bed at least once a week.

— Aditya is the resident boomer and tech hoe (although he fools around on the computer more than he does useful stuff) inspiration from you raunak <3

— Roshan and Aditya once tricked Yao into watering a fake plant they bought from Target for a full five months :) They keep a log of the shenanigans on their respective social medias as proof <3

— Roshan has a windowsill with a line of very cute potted plants! It’s very aesthetic and they show them off to anyone who asks. Don’t touch though because the plants are their babies

— Aditya sings very well! Has perfect pitch and all that. Does karaoke nights with friends, drags Yao along even though all he does there is type away on his laptop (and sometimes glances up to simp for Aditya). Often prank calls acquaintances, occasionally with Roshan, because he’s also pretty good at voice acting

— Out of the three, Aditya’s probably the friendliest if you’re a stranger, but it do be hard trying to build a friendship with any of them 😔 yao’s condescending to strangers and it takes some time to crack him if you don’t come off as quick-witted and smart on the first try, Roshan doesn’t really take people they just met super seriously unless they can impress/charm them, Aditya’s flashy but is kinda flaky and sometimes talks down to you and seems to always have something else to do besides hanging out one on one unless you win his respect. They’re good with each other though, occasional spats are mostly misunderstandings unless there’s Too Much miscommunication going on

— They’re all kinda legends for academic achievements. Roshan probably got a paper published in some vaunted journal about idk, changing methods of making pottery in ancient Iran or something; Yao has his stocks (and is also kinda rich in the first place so he’s “famous” before that) and Aditya probably got an internship or opportunity to do lab work for a cutting edge research thing

— they no-homo each other all the time it’s insane. It doesn’t help that they’re in close quarters (Yao and Aditya being roommates and Roshan right next door) so it’s like, accidentally wearing the other’s clothes, stealing snacks, so much touching and closeness lol classic pining material

— Yao jokes at least once a day that Roshan is just a parasite of his and Aditya’s dorm, with the amount of time they spend in there instead of in their own dorm, but they sniff haughtily and say that at least their dorm is much more organized than whatever indchu have going on (it’s true; Yao believes in organized chaos and pretends his organization system is having No Organization; Aditya just does whatever he wants and “anyways I’ll find it when I need it”, Roshan is the only sane one here)

— Roshan drinks tea religiously (all three of them do, but Yao chugs energy drinks sometimes, Aditya binges coffee when needed, whereas Roshan’s solution is tea)

— They’re kinda chaotic but it’s fine they’ll make it through uni :)