#plus if he lost his powers... well i always figured he was the one keeping his gang alive

[irregularbillcipher]

I'm so curious if you have any thoughts on this because I sometimes think about scenarios where the Henchmaniacs come across Bill post-canon: How would Kryptos feel about finding out Bill's alive, potentially without power, potentially not even with his usual goal anymore if some time has passed and character development has happened?

Oh god do I have thoughts about this, to the point where "we need to toss Andy in here somewhere" was a running conversation between me and a friend in all our "Bill gets redeemed and has a stupid human form" aus, even the silly jokey MLP one.

So for my particular Kryptos characterization... he's been looking for him. Time works weirdly in the Nightmare Realm, imo, so even if Bill only took a few years or whatever to reform, it was ages for him.

The Henchmaniacs kinda split-- a few of them were genuinely friends with each other and stuck together, but Andy was insistent on staying right where they were spit out post-Weirdmageddon. The others, depending on how fair-weather their friendships were to Bill, joined him for a while but like... eventually they called it. He's not coming back, man, and if he actually survived and wasn't immediately tossed back into the Nightmare Realm, he sure as hell wouldn't come back here on our accounts. Yeah, Kryptos, not even you-- IDK why you think thirty years in a shit dimension matters all that much to him, but you're not special. (This uh. Started a fight, and not the type of fight that the Henchmaniacs think are a Good Time.)

Pyronica stuck by him for a little while-- partially because she was second closest to Bill and did hope he was coming back, partially out of pity because Andy was a mess-- c'mon, let's get getcha some Time Punch, we can at least have some fun while we're waiting-- but after a few centuries she dipped too. It was a "Tell me if he comes back, let me know if you need anything," type thing, but she left and Andy cussed her out for it.

They're still in the Nightmare Realm, obviously, but Bill was sort of the glue that held them together. Some of them are working on their own solutions to escape, some are just hoping to party until it kills them. They're scattered-- some of them still hang out, Teeth and 8-Ball still spend a lotta time together, Pyronica and Keyhole still go out for drinks, everyone still likes Xanthar-- but they're not a united group anymore.

I've also played around with the idea that the reason the Nightmare Realm was a prison was to keep Bill in, that someone with some degree of power like the Oracle or Time Baby, (probably not the Axolotl but maybe them) had basically stuffed Bill in to mitigate the harm he was doing, and the Henchmaniacs and every other person in the Realm was basically a casualty. With that idea in mind, the Nightmare Realm might eventually just open up a little once Bill is gone, and the Henchmaniacs might have a chance to leave.

In that case, then, all of them do. Some of them take longer than others-- the ones who actually liked Bill, liked what the group had-- but they all dip. They're not stupid enough to stick around a dying dimension for a guy that used to blow things up when he was mad.

Y'know, except Andy.

I've made a few joking jabs about Kryptos and Bill being weirdly codependent, but I do genuinely characterize them that way, especially Andy. The poor guy has known Bill since they were eight years old. He has stuck by Bill since they were stupid mortal middle schoolers in a crapsack dimension with nobody else who even liked them. He's been around this guy for trillions of years, and they've really never spent any extended time apart-- it's not exactly healthy, sure, but they have one of the longest relationships that any two beings have literally ever had. He genuinely has no idea what to do without Bill. The only period of his life where Bill wasn't in it was a pretty miserable, lonely early childhood. The other Henchmaniacs almost certainly had some sort of life without Bill-- Andy doesn't have any idea of what an okay life without Bill looks like.

If the Nightmare Realm has opened up, he eventually leaves, too, mostly to look for some sort of evidence that Bill might still out there, where he might be. If the Realm doesn't open up, he stays where he is, and tries to get the gang together again to help. He keeps insisting that Bill has to be alive because he's still alive-- Bill was the one who kept him immortal, he's the one who kept you ungrateful jerks immortal-- but even the ones who might agree still don't know what the hell to do to find him.

Either way, he ends up trying to contact the Axolotl. He doesn't necessarily know about Bill being able to call upon them, but he knows about their existence from Bill, knows they're powerful, knows they don't seem to hate Bill like everyone else who might have answers does, and he's desperate.

I like to think that Frills would talk to him. Kryptos isn't their Special Little Man like Bill is, but they're compassionate, and they can probably extend that compassion to another sad little being who got caught up in all this mess, especially one who technically has less blood on his hands then Bill.

Truly? In Kryptos' case? If he finds out that Bill is powerless and goalless now?

He doesn't care.

Now, some of the other Henchmaniacs would, absolutely, this isn't just an "aw, all Bill's terrible horrible demon friends just love him even if he's powerless <3" because that is... NOT the case.

But Andy? He became Bill's friend when Bill was less than powerless, a loudmouthed Equilateral, (straight up Irregular in my headcanon,) with no real goals or achievements under his belt. If anything, in their old dimension? Andy had the power-- he had class privilege above Bill. The only way you can headcanon he didn't have privilege over Bill is if you hc Bill as perfectly Regular and Kryptos as Irregular, which I don't. And even so, even if that is your headcanon, Bill would still not have been at all a powerful person. if Andy was trying to befriend someone for personal gain, Bill would not have been the person to schmooze to.

And they still got to the point where they were close enough that Andy is the only person Bill felt was worth keeping alive in that whole dimension. They were friends before Bill gained any type of power.

Andy befriended Bill back when he had nothing to gain. Bill wouldn't have kept him around because he was an opportunist sucking up to him, hoping to be spared from the end of the world-- just ask Preston Northwest.

Andy had to have become friends with Bill-- a powerless, annoying, opinionated Equliateral salesman-- because he genuinely wanted to be friends with him. There's no other good reason for him to have been buddies with someone outside his caste, and there's no real reason for Bill to have actually thought he was worth saving.

Now, this isn't to say that Andy isn't an absolute freak who thoroughly enjoyed all the chaos and horrors and mess that Bill caused, this isn't to say he wasn't like, snorting stardust in the Fearamid bathroom and eating galaxies or whatever. Andy liked being powerful, he liked being shitty. He had fun with it!

But when he first tagged along with Bill, after Flatland burned, it wasn't because Bill was a god. It was 'cause Bill was Bill. And weird as this all is, Bill's still Bill.

I mean, there's an adjustment period with Bill's new form if he's able to actually meet him, not just find out how he's doing-- an adjustment period with HIS new form too, if he also gets shoved into a fleshsack.

(If Bill is basically his Flatlander self, on the other hand, I imagine Andy is horrified. Not because he's powerless, but because... they turned you back into this? It just feels cruel. If he's also in a Flatlander form, he's more than a little panicked about it, he probably feels a little sick. He needs paint on him, stat, and he doesn't care about the color. Bill needs it too. Yellow and blue would be preferable, but they'll take anything, honestly.)

And once Andy realizes he's fine, (if they're in human form,) he can finally joke about how stupid and goofy these new forms are. You know, he's still gonna put his friend on blast a little.

There might also be some frustration, some, "... Could you have let me know you were okay? I spent all this time waiting and looking... did you even try to look for me?" I'm sure there's a lot of emotions he wants to work through.

If Bill has had some character development, maybe he'd be willing to have some of those talks... which I think would be both very nice and very confusing to Andy. Kryptos was never scared of Bill, and they were probably more open with each other than Bill was with most people, but Bill's still Bill so genuine emotion talk wasn't exactly something they did. There were probably subjects-- namely home-- that Andy just sort of knew not to bring up with him, and the idea that those subjects might be open to sort of talking about is a little weird and scary.

Also just... Bill was a shitty person. Still is, even if he's been potentially working on it, and frankly, Andy is a shitty person too. A lot of these AUS ended up being summed up as "two shitty Flatlanders learn to be a little less shitty together." They definitely bitch and moan about it along the way, Kryptos complains that he can't drink arsenic or do taxidermy on alien cadavers anymore-- y'know, he still misses being an immortal freak, and Bill complains even more-- but hey, this is a redemption AU, so they improve a little. Probably don't become good people, but I'll settle for lukwarm.

(Also, maybe Andy finds a friend or two that aren't Bill, and aren't connected to Bill. Probably never gonna break that codependency entirely after three trillion years, but this is everybody's self improvement arc! You can still hang out with your boyfriend but go bowling with someone or something, man.)

[lookforsomeoneelse]

Can we get some more sahsrau? Does not have to be a long one-shot, I just really like how you write! And I would love to hear more of your ideas!

Maybe about how specific characters show that they interact with the reader? For example, how they act before reader is in HSR, and once reader is in HSR? As for characters, you can choose who ever you want! You're the one writing it after all.

As for writing, you asked if writing gets better if you do it often? And well, for me what works is writing, doesn't matter if it not good, just enjoy yourself. Plus reading books, fanfics, or whatever you like once again, and this time try to pay attention to how things are worded in your favorite books/fanfics.

Anyway, take good care of yourself cause there are always people who care about you, and stay hydrated!

Alright! First ask. Only gonna be headcanons because I’m a procrastinator. Reader discretion is advised, because I have no idea what to put for the content warning. I think it only goes for Kafka though.

Herta

I touched on her briefly in another post, but know that despite her arrogance and apathy towards most, she’s just as down bad for you as the rest of the cast.

She gives her absolute best when it comes to you.

Also in Simulated Universe, your word is absolute law. If the simulated you decides that the project is a bad idea or something, Herta will absolutely stop, regardless of the resources she put into its creation.

I imagine her to be with you the exact opposite of how she treats everybody else- with the utmost respect and attention.

Once you actually do make it inside of the game for whatever reason, Herta is absolutely ecstatic.

When you’re actually around her though…

Let’s say that her IQ drops by a significant amount.

Combined with her intense faith, this can lead to a lot of misunderstandings and false assumptions.

You can legit just be sitting down or something and herta will be in the background like “WRITE THAT DOWN, WRITE THAT DOWN!”

Misha

Born as a reincarnation(?) of the Watchmaker, I’m not actually going to discuss him. Rather, I wanna talk about who he originally was, and (technically) his creation.

Mikhail Char Legwork, aka The Watchmaker, was also a devout follower of yours.

All throughout his travels on the Express, he never lost sight of your mercy, which allowed him to survive on his long journeys.

Thanks to this, you end up as a “character” in the Clockie cartoon, who the writers show as a mysterious figure who gave Clockie his powers.

There’s also a LOT of propaganda surrounding you in basically every piece of media, (in the game) including Clockie.

Speaking of media…

Robin

ah yes, the shining popstar of the universe herself, Robin!

Robin’s no doubt another faithful follower of yours.

She believes that her amazing voice and innate talent came from you (it actually came from Chevy, holy cow is she a good singer) and she gives many praises to you for that.

In fact, do you want to know what her best selling single is?

It’s not Sway to my Beat in Cosmos, nor Hope is The Thing with Feathers, and it’s not even If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking!

It’s actually a song- a hymn, rather, composed and sung specifically just for you.

Ask basically anybody who is a fan of hers and I can bet that they know the lyrics by heart and can absolutely sing it backwards.

Make it into their reality, and you’ll get free access to front seats to any and all of her concerts. And when I say “front seat” I mean you get a whole ass throne specifically built for your comfort.

She will die of joy if you ask her for an autograph. Keep that in mind.

Kafka

last but most certainly not least, it’s our mom, but more commonly known as Kafka, the charismatic and beautiful Stellaron Hunter with a big bounty and big boobies. (I’m f#cking ashamed of myself for writing that)

She’s the one character on this list that we haven’t been given a backstory for- except some voice lines, but they really don’t tell us anything.

As such, the only real thing I can tell you is that she’s faithful to you, just like everyone else.

It becomes a completely different song and dance if you come to them, though.

She’s essentially a glorified wine aunt, and she will treat you out for whatever you wish.

She’s also very very defensive of you.

That guy over looks stole a glance? Dead next morning.

That girl goes even within 50 meters of you without your permission? Her fate is sealed.

Kafka is by no means like this to you, however.

She’s probably gonna lick your shoes free of charge.

(A/N: I, uh, really like asks. please send more. you probably won’t get anything good, but least you’ll get what you requested.)

[infinityinakiss]

*agatha all along episode 5 spoilers*

holy shit that was a fucking episode alright

i loved the broom scene so much, whoever thought of that gets a raise.

rio being protective of agatha and her mommy issues I WANNA CRY also even the fact that rio knows any of her trauma implies that they were basically wives, agathario fans keep wining.

rip alice, but also i think she's alive, or at least gonna come back in some way. rio disappeared for some reason y'all and i think it was to deal with alice. with the way that rio was looking at agatha after she drains alice's power, it doesn't make sense that she would just disappear when it was clear that agatha needed her, unless there was something more pressing to deal with. so rio went to talk to alice.

i hope.

oh my god agatha trauma episode. so much to unpack there. the fear she had and the confusion in her eyes. her disbelief towards why her mother would continuously hate her and hurt her, over and over again. she was never able to leave that 18 year old version of herself that her mother tried to execute. then there's nicholas scratch. her son, pleading with her to stop. her mother, and her son, two swords in her heart. one she couldn't get to love her, and one she couldn't stop loving.

did she lie when she said she lost control? i vote no. her power draining thing had always started out as a form of protection, that then evolved in to becoming who her mother always thought she was. in this moment, she's terrified. she saw a rope that was thrown the well and she grabbed it.

now the juicy bit.

"you're so much like your mother" THE WAY I SCREAMED

TEEN YOUR MOM IS SO PROUD RIGHT NOW

IT WAS AMAZING, NO NOTES, BEST WAY TO DO THE WHOLE WICCAN THING IN MY HUMBLE OPINION

i love the lack of lines in the whole scene, and just letting the acting speak for itself. especially because most of the viewers already knew that he was wiccan, i really love that they didn't have agatha completely spell it out for us. i think they're at least a bit aware that this wasn't a twist, just something that was exciting.

the way wanda's magic is just so recognizable. i think joe locke did a pretty good job emulating wanda's fighting style. the fingers were on point.

i was really surprised that agatha wasn't a tiny bit concerned when she found out that teen was the child of the scarlet witch, the very person who decimated her after knowing magic existed for a solid two hours. plus it seems to be implied that she figured out who he was because she recognized his magic. it doesn't make sense that she would taunt a person that she knows has a family history of fucking shit up when they're distressed.

PHENOMENAL SONG CHOICE

i don't think this was an actual trial. i think this the road realizing that this is a coven with too many walls that needed to be broken. and i think it recognized an incredibly powerful witch that needed to figure out who he was. maybe the road thought that a spot for a protection witch needed to open up so that he could fill that space. the way the episode was structured, the way the trial was structured, didn't really line up with the other episodes. so i think agatha's real trial is coming later.

THE HEAD TILT. truly his mother's son.

wanda, come pick up your kid, he's doing something stupid

[thetoaddaddy]

I dont think i ever really explained why I like the idea of Jiraiya living a more troubled/neglected childhood. Honestly I just like the juxtaposition of the rich girl from the most influential family, the tragic orphan full of resentment, and the white trash hick from the slums.

Have I hooked you? Long sorta in this essay I will type of explanation of my reasoning post. Trimmed so you don’t have to suffer through scrolling a big long post unless you volunteer to it. And I welcome reblogs with your own thoughts added to it or comments. I like having these kinds of discussions.

It makes for a fun dynamic and puts together three very different social classes that make up the Sannin and the most common 3 classes of society. Tsunade has everything from money, social status and livin in the rich how dare the neighbours put up an extra twinkle light we’re contacting the police neighbourhood. Orochimaru lost his family but lives fairly okay being a ward of the Hokage/state plus as a genius kid with potential to end the war with his big fucken brain and lack of empathy he would most likely be treated more special. Jiraiya hiding his money in the floorboards of his room cuz he knows his parents will steal it to buy into their addictions and he’s well aware no one really expects him to be nothing more than a failure.

Plus we don’t have any characters who have a troubled relationship with their parents in this way. Yeah we got dead parents and asshole cold distant rich clan expectations parent tropes. But not too much on poor and abusive. Which is weird cuz its pretty common to be low income with some garbage parents. (Not to say that’s the case all the time of course) Nor do we see much for alcoholism or similar addictions just ruining a family. The most he ever speaks about his parents in canon is that they were civilians. Kinda cold imo. Like I get that most likely kishi figured no one cares that much from where Jiraiya came from but that throw away line had me thinking and this headcanon came out.

So it’s pretty poetic that Jiraiya grew up full Glass Castle from a nothing neglectful civilian family and made something of himself with his own determination rather than being crutched with clan powers or high blood relations. He’s a nobody who proved people wrong and grew beyond his upbringing. His life we see on screen has always been pretty born under an unlucky star/he had to claw his way for anything he’s wanted and nothing was ever given to him. So it makes sense to me anyways that his early life was just as claw his way out from falling off the face of the earth. He could have just picked the easy way and not rise above being some drunk gutter rat that is just a direct product of his upbringing. But he focused on trying to get out rather than keep the cycle going. He picked the academy and proved he was not just above the curve but the grit he already had from surviving his broken home made for a determined courageous motherfucker. With that he became rich and renowned. All on his own.

I think that gives him more interesting motivation than the canon basically being ‘on my quest for pussy brb🏃‍♂️’ Like damn can we please uncreepy him kishi i stg. And I like to ignore his railroaded prophecy ass I must find my destiny stuff. That ruins his accomplishments. Honestly as a fairly empathetic person who grew up poor and hungry why wouldn’t he take pity on three war orphans and try to do good by them where he was never given that comfort? It’s far more compelling and interesting story than some crazy old toad told me to do it and I took those words so fucking literally it led the rest of my life.

I like to imagine he’s simply more wayward and never felt satisfied staying put(especially with all the horrible memories Konoha gives him). It also makes more sense for him to have this kind of chip on his shoulder over being some average guy who had an average upbringing. He can handle himself not just in battles but in dealing with the more uncomfortable situations like traveling through poor areas with the know how.

Like he knows how to speak crackhead and the slum folk clock him as one of their own. I wouldn’t call it street cred or anything. He just has the street smarts beyond that of an average person and it shows. Plus in some verses I like to think he travels hoping to find love as well. Can’t find one’s soulmate staying put in a village can they? ;)

Not every character has to be tragic I know. And this is just what I think. You don’t have to agree with me or accept my interpretations. He could have easily just brushed off the subject cuz he keeps people at an arms length. Which he does for the most part.

But I feel like with the Sannin era we were left with such well cooked and seasoned snippets that it became kinda frustrating that the rest was kinda undercooked or plain still in the damn deep freeze. So we get brain zoomies and try to fill in the big ass gaps. I want to know how three of the most interesting and important ninja of the shinobi world grew up. It’s fun to imagine and make these types of interpretations. Even if it is answered one day in a mini series or a book, I’ll still probably prefer what I and my moots cooked up. Cuz honestly we put more care and deep thought into these characters than kishi does at this point 😭

[practically-an-x-man]

I saw you reblog the post "send an OC and you tell me which of your OCs would fall in love with them" and had a moment of oh no, how many non-furry/dragon characters do I have. So I'm throwing you a variety!! We're gonna have to put aside the fact that two out of the three here are furry characters. I'm genuinely severely lacking in human people, despite how much I talk about them. (Is this a game show where only the winner out of all of them gets a date, or are they all getting paired off? Up to you!)

CONTESTANT NUMBER ONE

I gotta throw you a character I haven't mentioned before much. Silver Bullet Babe, or just Silver for short, spends a large majority of his time studying magic. Coming from a well off family who encouraged his focus on his studies and seclusion from others, his social skills are lacking at best. On the plus side, though, being with him comes with the added bonus of a very extensive library filled with otherwise forbidden knowledge. He's also very pink with lovely hair.

(I'll never get over how beautiful this commission is, and I'm devastated that I've lost access to the artist since)

CONTESTANT NUMBER TWO

You already know this one. His info post isn't up yet, so his exact details might be blurry, but let me introduce you to the danger to aviation laws himself, Hazard! I don't. I don't have his picture on my laptop, so you're gonna just have to imagine a tall Canadian with the most mid fohawk ever who talks with an accent that is an affront to the concept of language itself. He's a great guy, I promise. Asides from how much danger he puts himself in for his own entertainment, he's a great guy.

CONTESTANT NUMBER THREE

*Shuffles through my characters* fuck okay who else is in here. hm. I feel I've gotta give you another one I haven't talked about before. I'm digging up Doe for this one.

Do you need a girl in your life that doesn't take shit from nobody anymore? Would it be even better if it were impossible to tell if she even liked you or not? Then let me present to you, Doe! I know for a fact she has an anthro design around somewhere, but evidently not here. I don't even have her regular design on this laptop, so we gotta just imagine an orange skywing woman together. What does she have to offer? She's fearless with the strength to back that up. She's punched both Sandwing and Skywing soldiers on two separate occasions. Her boss is, unfortunately for her, also her best friend, so they're a two for one deal, so you'll also be gaining a really weird uncle as well.

Oooooh, introductions to new OCs!! I love this!!

Let's see here...

For Silver, I could see him getting together with Kestrel. They're also super inquisitive and work with magic frequently, so I could definitely see them bonding over that initially. And like... Kestrel's social skills aren't fantastic either, being a changeling who's been told effectively their whole life that the only thing they're good at is causing havoc and distress, so I think those early interactions might be a little awkward. But after that, y'know, it all would work out great!

I think Quinn would probably fall for Hazard in like.... a weird way. Like the "buddy you're just really fucking Odd. I kinda want to punch you in the face but I also kinda want to kiss you and we'll figure out the logistics of that later" kind of way. She's absolutely a daredevil too and would initially be drawn to that thrillseeking side of him, always trying to one-up him until it becomes a weird sort of game, and then that game becomes a weird sort of flirting... they'd be the weirdest, most hazardous (pun not intended) power couple on the planet, but that's my answer.

Doe definitely strikes me as Eris' type - someone who can fire right back to whatever little battles they want to throw at her, who isn't going to flinch, who's good and strong and driven to keep pace. You've heard of people getting along like a house on fire? These two would get along like nuclear fission. This might be The Most Dangerous relationship I have ever come up with, maybe not to the two of them but definitely to everyone else in the immediate vicinity.

[mlobsters]

supernatural s15e19 inherit the earth (w. eugenie ross-leming, brad buckner)

i'm not sure i want to watch this, actually. all right, next day. let's see. combination of not wanting to watch them grieve cas after that weird reaction i had to 15x18 plus feeling like writing anything about spn is completely pointless. power through

covid lockdown-era city views, along with the akf/always keep fighting on the tower and the actual coke ad about social distancing "staying apart is the best way to stay united" well this is not helping my mental state and also presents confusing idea that this universe was affected by covid, which it obviously isn't. along with everyone being raptured

SAM I did this. We could have just given Chuck what he wanted, you know, his grand finale. But I resisted. I pulled the thread. I thought we could beat this game, do it better. We tried to rewrite him, and the whole world paid the price.

taking a moment to address the absurdity that chuck's being such a brat over the fact that the brothers won't kill each other he's gonna rapture the entire earth

CHUCK I mean, picture it. The two of you... And your little lapdog Jack... Rotting on a lifeless planet, knowing it's this way because you wouldn't take a knee. Eternal shame, suffering, and loneliness. Whew! That's deep. That's sophisticated. That's a page-turner.

it is something

little schmaltzy but i'll take it. ah, well. for 30 seconds at least. i know he comes back though so it's all good

very pretty lighting

i think it's been long enough i don't care about the endless reasons to get pellegrino back on the show and i'm just happy to see him and his overflowing charisma

LUCIFER Mm. Yeah. Alright, team. I don't want to bring ants to your picnic, but that ain't gonna cut it. Okay, think about it. If the Empty pulled me off the bench, it's 'cause the Winchester charm ain't enough, right?

harsh but fair

LOL new death, dead death, lucifer actually working with chuck, dead lucifer. we're making it snappy, folks

haha and now michael was working with chuck too and he's dead. this is sure something

gotta get them covered in blood and beaten to a pulp for old times' sake

okie doke. they figured out the michael business, jack is a power vacuum, sure. we gotta wrap this up, fellas

haha makes me think of this 1998 merlin miniseries with sam neill when they all turn their back on queen mab and she loses her powers because everyone forgets about her

SAM Then I think it's the ending where you're just like us and like all the other humans you forgot about. DEAN It's the ending where you grow old, you get sick, and you just die. SAM And no one cares. And no one remembers you. You're just forgotten.

i think about it a lot so i made some gifs a while back 😂

all right. de-raptured and people indoors

not sure how i feel about this whole speech from jack about how he's gonna be as new god and basically around but not around. sucks they semi-lost their kid too

SAM You know, with Chuck not writing our story anymore, we get to write our own. You know, just you and me going wherever the story takes us. Just us. DEAN Finally, free.

kind of surprised this wasn't the finale honestly, especially with that montage that managed to get me crying.

[darkmatters-ghost]

I've run into a problem...

06 sucks!

Like we knew that, but writing wise, 06 is such a mess, and I don't- I don't know what to do about it, I have fanfic ideas that take place in 06! And it's such a mess that I feel like it'll tank the quality of my fanfic just from its garbage-ness!

And you might be thinking, oh, but 06 isn't that bad, you said yourself, it's one of your favorite games of all time, and other people deal with it just fine so–

No, you don't get it, it is that bad. And you can tell because almost nothing from that game made it out alive. Like, conceptually, there's some really cool stuff in 06. Crisis City's unique environment, Mephiles as a villain, double chaos control time powers (well...), Iblis, Soleanna. All that stuff is good, but because it was in 06. 06's garbage kinda rubbed off on it, and when everyone realized the game was horrible (including SEGA) all that stuff was never attempted again. No one decided to try and make Mephiles work in new games, no mention of Crisis City, or Solanna, or anything. It all just died with the game. Which makes it all the more impressive that Silver made it out alive.

But that's not the point. We all know it's bad.

The point is that idk where to go from here? Do I keep it the way it is? Do I change it? I'm leaning towards change but what should I change? Would people like those changes?

For example, Blaze is a mess. She's "got amnesia" or whatever, and she's here, but she doesn't talk to anyone but Silver (she almost does when she says "blue hedgehog" but that barely makes any sense and it wouldn't surprise me if it was secretly a pun lost in translation), she always seems to know what Silver was up to even if she wasn't there, she doesn't affect the plot other than making Silver doubt his judgement and then leaving, it's-, it's just a mess.

So, what if we cut Blaze out, altogether? Like, she left before Silver runs into Memphis so Silver's on his own. And since silver can't rely on her to tell him whether or not to trust Mephiles, it makes it so Silver believing him shows it off as a character trait of Silver's desperate naivety instead of it feeling like Blaze sitting there watching him get tricked cuz "it'd be funny". That whole scene really feels like Silver and Blaze get tricked by Mephiles because the plot demanded it of them more than anything else.

Plus, if you don't have Blaze here, Silver's heroes journey can be, in part, trying to figure out what to do when no one's around. Lean on other people less, make his own choices. You wouldn't even really need to cut Blaze's dialogue because Silver would be thinking "what would Blaze do/say?"

And I think it'd add to their friendship, the idea that when he comes back to the future and says he knows how to defeat Iblis, she just goes along with it, and is willing to do anything for Silver because they have such a strong relationship, because she trusts him.

But would people like that retcon? What if people hate it cuz there's less Blaze content?

Idk. It's just something I've been thinking about, there's more things I'd like to change, but luckily, a lot of 06 can be improved by adding extra context, or slightly different introductions that barely change the story.

I'd love to hear what other ppl have to say about dealing with 06's writing, tho

[archer3-13]

for fun, thoughts on each of the original gotei 13's captains and lieutenants in relation to the soul society arc

yamamoto: for the kind of character he is, i've always rather liked him. he hits the kubo sweet spot of a sympathetic monster, and overall he serves as an effective symbol of the calcification thats gripped soul society for thousands of years but without being completely unreasonable in the process. ontop of that i do appreciate the suprise of the tybw noting how the original gotei 13 were far stronger then the modern gotei, but because of the intervening centuries they lost the blood thirsty edge of warlords that made them so terrifying, because it adds an interesting dimensionality to the sentimentality yamamoto often displays to that modern gotei 13 and what distinguishes him from ywach despite being similarly brutal, overpowering authoritarian figures. which can be further complicated by reading into yamamoto and his history as a stand in figure for japan and its history as a whole, though obviously thats just reading into things.

sasakibe: like so many figures in bleach, more a plot device then a man. i like his design, i like his power, i like his relation to yamamoto and the grief that his death inspires in the resolute head captain. but hes otherwise such a non entity that theres not much else to say.

soifon: shes cute and i find it absolutely adorable how shes a murder simp for yoroichi. aside from that serves as a pretty fun minor antagonist in the soul society arc, and i enjoy how shes very a 'do as i say not as i do' kinda person who cares waaaay to much for her subordinates despite being the head of the gotei black ops murder squad. which arguably ties into her complicated feelings regarding yoroichi and the feeling of being abandoned when yoroichi had to go into exile [which makes it all the cuter that they patch things up, albeit off screen].

omaeda: not a fan as i think he can be a bit too annoying compared to his moments of competence, and the joke of 'big goofball is actually an elite assassin' does wear thin for me. i do appreciate how hes genuinely devoted to his captain and how that feeds back into soifon being more willing to do stupid things to keep his ass alive due to her own history.

gin: gin saaaaaan! always been a fan of the shit stirrer and his grins and constantly closed eyes. gin is one of the characters kubo used to best effect in all of bleach i'll go out and say, serving as an excellent red herring in the soul society arc, and a strong third party looking for the right opportunity in the winter war ontop of his tragic and well presented death. plus hes just a fun unnerving dude who can easily go from goofy to terrifying looking at the drop of a hat and for whatever kubo needed him to do.

kira: hes okay, helping to make the soul society arc and its mysteries all the more intriguing, and his power is neat. plus his gloomy demeanour does well at hiding how intelligent and decisive he is in a fight which is nice. as it stands however hes one of many characters that feels unfulfilled in terms of potential, not helped by whatever the fuck was going on with him in the tybw.

unohana: theres a reason everyone liked her even before the tybw and kenpachi 'mc fucking losing it' unohana became realized. kubo just did a really good job at giving a character with such a non threatening design overall the atmosphere of such a potential dangerous person well still overall acting in a kind and mothering way in most of her interactions. i still find her shikai kinda confusing in relation to her bankai though, but thats retroactive writing for ya.

isane: i get why she ended up being pushed into the role of fourth division captain at the end of the series as there really wasn't any other option for it that would make sense. but at the same time it does frustrate me because i feel like with that end in mind it would have been amazing to see kotetsu develop the confidence or display the combat skills that speak of potential captaincy over the course of the series, but she ultimately just kinda white mages it up well deferring to her captain. which is even more of a shame because i love her personality and her design.

aizen: aizen is amazing in the soul society arc, because hes an incredibly successful twist villain whos plan makes sense and is intimidating not because of its complexity but because of its simplicity. hes unnerving because of how he combines the captain aizen qualities we briefly glimpse of affability and politeness, even kindness, with casual and monstrous cruelty and overwhelming power once the mask comes off. aizen is fantastic in the soul society arc. that all goes out the window following the soul society arc, where after he just walks around preening like any other peacock chess master villainous overlord about how everything is going according to keikaku, not helped by his plans and what influence hes had on things becoming progressively more complex, far reaching, and stupid as the series progresses. its really not surprising why hes such a contentious villain for so many people.

hinamori: man she gets the shit kicked out of her, to the point that it gets really cruel and sad. and the worst part is that theres never really a sense of pay off for all that suffering either, she gets the shit kicked out of her and then fades into the background of relevancy. i feel it woulda been cool if instead she got to be a captain following the timeskip into the fullbringer arc, get some satisfying sense of karmic self actualization following all the shit she gets pushed through. woulda been more interesting then just dumping the visored into the empty spots anyways.

byakuya: pretty boy pretty man. an effective rival antagonist for ichigo to match up against in the soul society arc, and i find his development from cold and ruthless to finally displaying the buried emotions and affections he has for others in his life to be some strongly compelling stuff given the heartbreak and tragedy in his life, as well as an effective commentary on class, position and the stifling effect that rules and the expectations of conformity and propriety can have on individuals.

renji: he deserves to be one of the main characters i'd say. overall solid stuff.

komamura: big fluffy dog man ruff ruff. theres a lot to unpack with komamura that i feel bleach never really did, but what was done with him was at least compelling and interesting to see. plus he fights far more intelligently then his broiling blood and brute force powers might suggest he would which is fun to watch. plus hes a big dog man! whos a good boy? he is!

iba: well an easily likeable character, being a gruff exterior dude with a surprisingly insightful mind on people and their character, like isane he doesn't really... do much outside of accompanying his captain. and well hes a total devoted bro, it is frustrating the he ends the series in a captains seat without being allowed to showcase the kind of potential that would inspire that positioning.

kyoraku: an effective captain jack sparrow type, who gets more compelling but also scarier the more insight we get into the tragedies that have befallen his own life which tend to scale with how viscous he can be in proportion during combat.

nanao: i feel like her fight in the tybw really helped salvage her as a character, because well she was perfectly acceptable until then she was also kinda just background noise as kyorakus secretary like lieutenant who freaked out hard to show off how powerful yamamoto is. her fight with the chicken god angel however opened a lot more compelling aspects of her character and the ending involving gaining courage from kyoraku assuring her he'll always support her is sweet in relation to how their character dynamic is a lot more give and take equally between the two.

tosen: i feel like kubo ran into the problem of what to do with tosen when it came to how aizens power works, and so he just kinda gave up and made tosen a surprise third bad guy as a character. i say this because he gets his ass handed to him quite brutally by zaraki and has a whole little character thing during that fight, and then the betrayal happens and he suddenly feels like a completly different character acting like he shouldn't be keeled over/nearly dead from being almost killed by kenpachi like ten minutes ago. doesnt help that his contributions during the winter war are mostly just to fuel komamura and hisagis own angst by being as villainously despicable as possible in the brief ten minutes he has showing off weird new powers that never really get expanded on again and then unceremoniously killed off in an abrupt and cruel fashion to have aizen be a cheeky bastard.

hisagi: i feel like kubo wanted hisagi to be more of a thing then he ended up being, but what is there is a solid character nonetheless who ends the series getting a bit of a yamcha treatment unfortunately. which is rather frustrating.

hitsuyaga: theres a lot more anger and impatience in him when we first meet him compared to later, which could arguably be said as character development or could be called out as inconsistent but im not gonna split hairs. hes the kind of character the inevitably gets popular and in his particular case i do rather like him so thats a plus.

rangiku: like gin shes great though for different reasons, and like a lot of characters like her i feel her more interesting qualities, the ruthlessness she often displays in combat, her intelligence and master of social situations, often get lost in favour of people slobbering over her sex appeal. shes a real fun character overall though.

zaraki: a bit overhyped if im being honest, but as far as battle maniac intense bloodlust dudes go hes a solid 8/10. it helps that hes a lot more emotionally vulnerable and complex in that regard then shonen battle maniac bloodlust dudes can often be.

yachiru: adorable murder girl is an adorable murder girl mascot. the stuff in regards to her relation to kenpachi not just as a girl he takes care off but a manifestation of his inner desire for companionship and the sword spirit stuff are i feel more interesting then she herself is.

mayuri: if his first appearance hadn't been so harrowing i feel he would have ended up being more popular then he is. he serves as a personal demon for uryu to fight very effectively, but as others have pointed out he quite obviously gets reconnected to be more charming and goofy then he originally was in later appearances. i actually find his tybw role to be the most interesting however, as it often feels hes at something of a crossroads there still embodying the older gotei mindset of peace at any cost, that older darkness, thats coming into conflict with the newer ideals and gentleness the gotei is starting to move towards thanks to figures like ichigo, a conflict he only resolves on a personal level upon nemu's death by not so much repenting as resolving that hes not gonna wallow in the old darkness and change with the times instead. that's the way i interpretted it anyways, which i feel gels with how he seems far more gentle with hachigo nemuri then he was with nemu from what little of them we see. also, i do find it interesting how he seems genuinely taken aback to some extent by ikkaku genuinely thanking him for saving zaraki, which when combing through what details we have of his past suggests some desire to actually connect with the people around him that he tends to bury due to his research and troubles with interpersonal relations in the past. which is all fascinating in its own way, but also as noted before, all comes from his post uryu fight soft character retcon where he becomes goofy murder scientist as opposed to horrific murder scientist.

nemu: eh. in her first appearence shes more so there to remind us that mayuris a monster. and in later appearances shes just kinda there to be weird fetish bait for villain powers, and unnaturally strong. and then she blows up. point being i feel like she never really finds solid footing as a character, which makes it difficult for me to really care all that much. it kinda happens at the very end, but again... she blows up pretty quickly after. essentially needed more time to cook as it were.

ukitake: less developed kyoraku but instead of being a jack sparrow type hes a sickly man whos secretly a bad ass. i dont dislike him, i just kinda wish we got to see more of him before he croaked.

kaien: is black haired ichigo. effective in relation to rukia and her character journey and story, but i dont personally have much interest in him.

[thingummies-and-whatsits]

Lewis Fic Recs: Falling

James and Robbie falling for each other—literally and figuratively. First in what is likely to be a longgg series of hurt/comfort themed lists. As usual, this is far from exhaustive so feel free to add more fics to the list!

A Lesson in Trust by divingforstones

2,598 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply A team-building exercise goes awry, leaving James injured and Robbie furious. James' memories and Robbie's actions in the moments just before and after the accident are quite revealing, and Robbie's gentle protectiveness in the midst of his crankiness and anger is very sweet. That last line is sure to give you all the emotions.

Over the Edge by greenapricot

11,809 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply James chases a suspect down the towpath and tumbles into the water below, landing himself in the hospital. Robbie's gentle ministrations are so soothing in the face of James' disorientation. And there's just something so satisfying about watching James, who is convinced things will end badly and so desperately trying to keep his guard up, ultimately have to accept Robbie's care and all the joy that follows. Plus all the barely concealed sexual tension between them.

I Thought I'd Lost You by Evenlodes_Friend

2,765 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply James just barely stops Robbie from being dragged off a high roof by their suspect, and learns a heavy lesson about facing the loss of a loved one—just as Robbie learns something about his sergeant. Written in powerful, beautifully lyrical language, this story tenderly captures the nuances of physical touch, fear, and grief.

Quick As You Like by dracofiend

7,146 Words, James/Robbie, Rated G, No Archive Warnings Apply Lewis takes a tumble over his neighbour's cat and winds up in crutches. Gradually, Robbie comes to accept James' help, and the domesticity that results feels an understated, natural development of their comfortable, easy affection—made all the better by all the delicious-sounding meals they cook together.

Night Watch by divingforstones

9,378 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply A glorious combination of dry humor, grumpy irritation, atmospheric sensuality, and genuine affection. Lewis takes a minor fall on a case, and James' insistence on hourly orientation checks throughout the night do not sit well with his patient—until he begins to understand the motivation behind it. Sometimes it takes the darkest part of the night to bring certain feelings to light.

Lewis: The World Transformed (series) by uniquepov

10,500 Words, James/Robbie, Rated G, No Archive Warnings Apply A story written in twenty-one parts of five hundred words each. A suspect pushes Lewis down a flight of stairs, and James anxiously waits by his bedside at the hospital, trying to understand why Lewis had made him his next of kin. As an extra treat, this series lets us watch Innocent unleash the true, glorious extent of her righteous anger on a homophobic surgeon who refuses to attend Lewis with James in the vicinity.

stopping by woods by Anniely

4,291 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply Robbie takes a fall while chasing a suspect through the woods, and tries his best to ignore his feelings for his sergeant while James spends the night keeping an eye on him. There are so many lovely sensory details as Robbie observes the woods, and later James in his apartment. And it's always fun to see a Robbie who's comfortably aware of his own bisexuality be the one to surprise James.

Killing Time by Willowbrooke

12, 635 Words, James/Robbie, Rated T, No Archive Warnings Apply Lewis breaks his ankle and Innocent puts him on two weeks of sick leave. But while James and Laura do their best to keep him occupied, Lewis does not take well to being stuck at home. James, enlisting the help of Robbie's neighbours, comes up with a hilariously novel solution to keep Robbie entertained—inspired in part by 'Arsenic and Old Lace' and 'Rear Window'.

[summertimemusician]

*downs four mugs of extra strong coffee with a sigh* So, that new trailer huh?

Too sleep deprived to go full theorist, so instead I'll compile all of the instances/triggers I can remember for each of the Link's journeys to distract myself from from Skyward Sword because boy having patience with the emulator controls is actually driving me batty. But if I lived through Minish Cap, Zelda I, OoT and Majora's Mask then I can probably do this.

Spoilers below I suppose?

Skyward Sword Link/Sky looking for Sun after she fell from the Cloud Barrier even though he had zero idea what was going on because she's his best friend and his main childhood friend and literally killing a god for her after he hurt her with lethal intent.

Minish Cap/Four Swords (Adventures) being fully intent on vibe checking Vaati for turning his best friend into stone, stealing the Light Force from her and then kidnapping and almost marrying her against her will and succeeding, came to care for Ezlo and the Minish later on as something of a happy incident, because they've basically been with Link through all of the journey and I feel like Link helped Ezlo heal from Vaati's betrayal as a result (my headcanon is that even if the doorway is closed, him and Ezlo still kept in contact and Ezlo taught him tricks of the Minish Trade in magical items)

OoT Link lost the Deku Tree, his father figure at the literal start of the darn game, and went to fulfill his last words by meeting the princess, who then asked him for help and Link being Link wouldn't refuse (that's a fairy for another day, I have so many thoughts on these boys), then Saria, his literal childhood friend and adopted sister, being taken by Ganon and to likely a lesser extent Ruto, who I feel he would come to see as friend even with the whole marriage thing. He also cares for Navi, the entire point of Majora's Mask is that he went looking for her at the end of the game, and he came to care for Sheik who is later revealed to be Zelda so of course he was going to kill Ganon and either succeed or die trying (well, did die trying in the Fallen Timeline Branch which was technically the 'True' one, before Majora's Mask, Wind Waker and Twilight Princess were a thing and no I will not let any of you forget that technically the Hero of Time was always meant to die but kicks it in different ways depending on the timeline, give this man a BREAK, he may as well be the Odysseus of The Legend of Zelda at this rate, the powers that be keep screwing him over yeesh).

Wind Waker Link wasn't even related to the Hero's Spirit, Ganon just fucked around and found out with the wrong kid's little sister that Wind Waker Link basically made the fates and gods bend with the force of his fury to get Aryll and later on Tetra back into making him the hero just so he could throw hands with Ganon, friendly reminder he's one of two Links that actually kill the guy, and the plot of Phantom Hourglass is also related to getting his new bestie Tetra back.

Spirit Tracks Link literally only became the Hero because his Zelda asked and they became close friends and likely remained close by the end of the game, plus his mentor and likely one of his main caretakers in his youth was basically mortally wounded during that whole deal, 'nough said.

A Link to the Past Link mainly helps Zelda because it's his uncle's final request, but then later on they actually are show to be close enough for him to invest himself on her safety even without that motivation, see A Link Between Worlds and also the Linked (hah) ending of OoA and OoS. He likely also was willing to help Zelda with the wish because, even with the awful prices and freeloading and lying, he came to care for Ravio as a friend and to a lesser extent Hilda too as she was his main guide through Lorule. Plus Marin, who really was an emotional gut punch for everybody I think (read: I played Link's Awakening as a kid and whenever I go visit a beach and a friendly seagull comes by I immediately get flashbacks, I don't know how they are in y'all's places but where I'm from they're shockingly chill).

The Original Zelda's Link aka Zelda one and Zelda II's main motivation was to find the princesses, though that one is slightly shakier because we have no idea if any of them knew each other before the world basically became an apocalyptic scenario or if it was just to vibe check Ganon again, find his vibes lacking and save the land again so it could start to heal.

Twilight Princess Link had the village children (one of them basically being like his surrogate little brother in Colin) and childhood friend taken by Ganon's minions, man had no idea what was going on or even WHO Ganon was before the game mind you, he was just a farmer herding goats in Ordon, he was just determined to get his family back no matter the cost, then he came to care for Midna and the plight of her people and what Zelda was going through and was specially close to Midna, the real thing that set him off against Ganon enough to go in with lethal intent was when he thought Ganon had killed Midna, so not only was he the source of the suffering of most of the people he cared about, but he also was under the assumption one of them DIED while he couldn't do anything about it, it's no wonder he snapped so hard and was just READY to obliterate Ganon.

Cadence of Hyrule is actually an interesting case, because not only does Link go looking for Zelda when she's trapped in an eternal slumber and then comes to care for Cadence, Zelda actually goes looking for Link too if he's the one trapped, that actually gives them away as pretty close be it as friends or something else.

Hyrule Warriors, boy is it also a complicated one. Warriors Link is a soldier willing to break rank to defend his country rather than to wait around with his fellow trainees, so him and his Zelda weren't close at all before, but I can see them becoming close when Zelda breaks out the Sheik identity as there's more chances for them to fight and interact side by side and then heal after the War of Ages is over, plus Lana and Linkle, though realistically speaking, Warriors Link would probably care about all of his comrades in battle on sheer virtue of not only their time spent on the battle field but also of the after, it's easy to relate to someone who knows what it's like to suffer through the same experience, though it's very likely he'd be the closest to Zelda, Linkle and Impa after all was said and done. They'd all have pretty similar nightmares I think.

And finally BOTW because I honestly cannot remember if Link in AoC actually lost someone close to him or if it's a Hyrule Warriors situation. Boy where do I even BEGIN with this dude (I say, as BOTW has been existing rent free in my head ever since the final TOTK Trailer dropped, honestly an achievement as usually that spot is reserved for Twilight Princess and Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask), okay. First he lost his childhood friend in Mipha when the Calamity first struck, and then the other Champions whom I feel he grew close to with time (yes even Revali), likely his family as we see concept art of a sister and a father, Zelda and finally Hyrule, his life and memories, his entire identity as a person though thankfully he was nudged into getting parts of it back. And is probably going to experience that same trauma all over again in TOTK.

Any other instances and I'll add here but Tl;Dr : All of the Links (except maybe the First Hero, Hero of Men and 10.000yrs Ago Hero, though that one is unlikely if you ask me) probably have a lot of separation/abandonment issues plus very big problems with failure (see Skyward Sword Link, no thanks to you, IMPA. And also BOTW Link who probably has the worst of the bunch) or just failing people in general, and as a result are extremely protective of whoever they consider their person and most likely always need to reassure themselves they're still there and are very dedicated to them as a result, in this essay I will-

[housewarningparty]

Oh yeah no worries about the late reply I really appreciate you finding me recs given that's how this started and all, I'm actually planning on getting started on that Buffy pile today that you've sent my way since I just finished the big fic I was reading yesterday.

Quick note on Graduation Day part 2 since that's where I finished off last ask, like I didn't dislike it by any means but I dunno didn't feel as strong emotionally as part 1 or either of the previous finales, like the Mayor's great and all love him, I did really enjoy seeing him definitively caring about Faith, but Angelus and Faith can carry way more emotional stakes and even the Master did via Prophecy Girl's prophecy but it's good as a sendoff for the Sunnydale high era. Also whoo big dumb snake we love to see it.

It turns out I'm some kind of sleeper agent because I didn't even know I still remembered the Angel theme song but as soon as it started playing I was in, it was all flooding back to me full of nostalgia, I haven't even seen Series 1 before. Great stuff, I enjoy that they're having to work in somebody explaining all the deets of Angel's backstory every episode so far, and I didn't realise how early they get their mission statement in there, first episode you've got your visions, Powers That Be, Wolfram and Hart. Definitely has its own vibe. I didn't know I did but I've missed seeing sad brooding Angel just standing on top of rooftops. I'm looking forward for Cordelia to get the character development she deserves and I like Doyle so far, he's good fun. Lonely Heart was neat getting in an MOTW episode about what the show's about as your second episode.

S4 of Buffy also feels like a new vibe for the show like you said. I like Willow's new haircut (this is the first thing I wrote down upon starting S4) and Giles in his flop era. It feels like this is where Willow decisively grabs second most important character status, Angel's gone, Giles doesn't have a job and with Cordelia gone Xander's dropped to almost the bottom rung of the regulars. Living Conditions such a fun episode my favourite of the bunch I've watched so far, like every little grievance Buffy and Kathy had being worked into the fight at the end was great, all the over the top camera work, and the juxtoposition between Buffy not having that bad a roommate and Willow truly living her worst life with her's but keeping it together, RIP Kathy I knew she wasn't long for the world when Buffy's roommate couldn't even get in the opening credits even with two new gaps, she could've handled a Cordelia workload if she'd stuck around I'm sure. Plus it was a neat throwback for Buffy to have to worry about keeping Slaying a secret again.

Oh yeah I'm looking through my notes and I had written down in the Freshman 'Whoa is that Pedro Pascal? It is. Wild.' then immediately afterwards 'RIP' Also for Harsh Light of Day I have 'Buffy deserves her post Angel+Faith rebound as well. Good for her having a good sexual encounter.' followed immediately by 'Well at least its not as bad as when Angel lost his soul but not great'. But congrats on it not being as bad as Harm. At least Willow is allowed to have a good relationship. Also congrats on Xander's rebound in this episode about bad rebounds being the last girl he was with? Anya being in the triangle of dejected women was kinda incredible considering she's not nearly in such a bad position as them but we need that cool shot. Also multiple times about Angel so far 'What a dork, love him'

Also like sidenote I don't know American geography at all I didn't realise like how close Sunnydale and LA are so close together? I always figured Angel moved a sizeable distance away but for America it's like he's moved one town over or something they're so close together

Yeah, as fun as the Mayor can be, the real emotional heart and soul of s3 is Faith, so once she's out of commission the stakes just aren't as personal and that kinda takes the wind out of the sails a little imo. Still it's a good two-parter. At least we get the gay shared dreamspace and the forehead kiss.

S4 is kind of a weird transitional season and I think it suffers a little from not having a very compelling big bad BUT there are some all-time great episodes there and the start to a lot of very important arcs. And we get a little more Faith! Also yeah Buffy's s4 love interest (post-Parker) is not a fan favorite and I certainly have some criticisms of the boy but I DO think that Buffy Summers DESERVES to get laid as much as she wants and I think it's nice that s4 is finally where that happens for her (with fluctuating degrees of associated trauma).

Re: the Angel sleeper agent stuff - one of my favorite parts of my own Buffy rewatch was having my brain rocketed into the past by the theme song and other little moments that were just ingrained on me forever. I'm not generally a big rewatcher when it comes to TV but sometimes there is something genuinely so nice about revisiting a thing you really loved!

Also yeah the geography of the Buffyverse has been confounding fans and scholars for ages. You have to just roll with it. The implication DOES seem to be that they're only a couple hours apart, but if you factor in California having terrible public transit and Buffy having NO CAR the distance definitely feels a little more insurmountable

[thessalian]

Thess vs Armchair Quarterbacks

I need to go out for some last minute supplies, hopefully beating the rain, but I needed to stop a moment and say, “What the fuck is wrong with people?”

It’s my own fault for engaging in a “Recommended For You” post on Facebook. It was one of those, “You sleep for eight hours and work for eight hours; you have fourteen hours--” (yeah, the maths is wrong, I know) “--to do great things. Time is not a factor”. And I had to see the comments.

Someone was flagging up that actually, we have to work for more than eight hours just to be able to afford the electricity bill these days. And someone else responded, “Well, just move out of the USA and to someplace that has decent pay, sick pay, paid holiday, and all the benefits!” Presumptive as fuck on a number of levels, the first one being that OP was from the US. I’d figured him for a Brit, given his talk of benefits, and I double-checked to be sure and what do you know? I also figured that the guy replying was from somewhere in the EU, which turns out to be right. So I ... got involved. I flagged up that OP was from the UK, and the issues that we’re having here as regards pay, inflation, and the energy price increases.

The response I got? “Unionise!”

..................First sentence off my fingertips: “The people currently striking for higher pay are all in unions!” I then flagged up how Thatcher kind of undermined the unions’ power base, the current Tory government wants to more or less finish the job of destroying the unions, and Labour’s not stepping in to support the very labour unions that birthed his political party in the first fucking place. Finished with the statement that simple one-sentence solutions don’t help anyone because there are logistics to think about, particularly with the one about “Move away!” Because, seriously - WITH WHAT MONEY?!?

And, while I was typing this, one more response from this person. “Good time for a revolution, no?”

In principle, I agree? But again, logistics. Here’s what would happen:

We’d start with the usual kettling, indiscriminate tazer use, and usual police tactics. When and if the knives (or the explosives) came out, so would the armed police. Because this country does still have a few.

If this continued? I would not put it past this government to institute martial law, and probably make some adjustments to allow them to keep power by, like, scrapping the next election. Yes, despite it being nearly two years from now. I put nothing past this government. Plus, I mean, the army’s already out and about because they’re apparently stepping in (read: crossing the picket line) during the ambulance workers’ strike.

They would also use that martial law to force in some of the utter bullshit they’ve been trying to get through Parliament. The few remaining scraps of “right to protest” we have would go out the window, as would most privacy laws, I’d imagine.

Meanwhile, the attempted ‘revolt’ itself would cause the US to point at us and go, “See? This is what happens when you take away people’s guns!” This despite the fact that an armed general population would not have helped and would in fact only have increased the number of lives lost.

Also the number of elderly, young, and disabled people who would die in the process would be obscene. Noncombatants always suffer in these situations. And given how a lot of our media works, the spin would put the blame on the revolutionaries, not the government that sparked the mess in the first place.

Yeah, it’s nice that the dude is in a comfortable enough place that he doesn’t have to worry about this shit. It’d be nice, though, if he extended one ounce of actual empathy and looked at what people are actually going through instead of giving us “big-shit-eating-grin” emojis and one-word ‘solutions’ that would only cause more fucking problems. It’s fine to be an armchair quarterback about an actual American football game; not so much when people’s lives are on the line.

[babblingbear09]

I posted 717 times in 2022

That's 717 more posts than 2021!

15 posts created (2%)

702 posts reblogged (98%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@sharkneto

@tinned-beef

@number5theboy

@akstzs

@blurrycow

I tagged 108 of my posts in 2022

#five hargreeves - 57 posts

#the umbrella academy - 53 posts

#tua - 48 posts

#number five - 39 posts

#tua fic - 15 posts

#the umbrella academy season three - 14 posts

#lila pitts - 13 posts

#diego hargreeves - 12 posts

#tua season 3 - 11 posts

#klaus hargreeves - 10 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#that still doesn’t explain the whole time loop thing of how 100 year old five ended up in the same position if the commission didn’t exist

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Reginald has Allison Rumor Five AU

I’ve been thinking through this AU I’m never going to write so figured I’d just post.

What if Five figured out how to time travel back from the apocalypse when he was still pretty young, say 14 or 15, and he makes it back about a year after he left. He scared his siblings by vanishing that long, is clearly traumatized, and Reggie can’t trust him not to vanish again. So, he sticks with what works and orders Allison to help.

He can’t take away Five’s powers because he’s too old for it not to have major repercussions and the siblings would remember. Plus, Five is undoubtedly useful as long as he can be controlled. So instead, he has Allison rumor Five to obey Reginald.

Allison is so stressed about her brother missing for over a year and Five in his panic keeps trying to get out so he can work at stopping the apocalypse (he’s not in his best state being a young teen with the trauma of the apocalypse and weight of the world on his shoulders). So Allison goes along with it. The Umbrella Academy hadn’t fallen apart yet and their trust in Reginald hasn’t been broken yet and she just wants Five to listen to Reginald before he disappears again, this time forever. She’s young and doesn’t think this through.

From there, I can’t decide if Reggie has some short term alien technology that has her forget (which wouldn’t work on Viktor because there would be too much to forget) or if Allison doesn’t fully grasp the full ramifications and just forgets. Either way, Five is now trapped in the house, forced to obey their father and no one else realizes it.

Reggie lays some ground rules: no leaving the house without permission. No time traveling without permission. No hurting him. No communicating to anyone that he’s rumored. He makes Five tell him everything he knows about the apocalypse and immediately pulls him out of the Umbrella Academy into more specialized training. Instead, he works to force him to master time travel, now under his direct control and use it to carry out his plans.

He only lets him join the Academy occasionally for special missions. Five is able to save Ben but the trust between siblings has been lost. Reginald knows they all failed to stop the apocalypse the first time and so doesn’t stop them all from leaving, this time even Luther who feels replaced in his father’s affections.

The siblings are hurt that Five doesn’t want to be around them anymore. That he barely talks to them and refuses to leave the house and Reggie’s thumb. He does bargain with their father as much as he can for time with his siblings (ordering complete obedience from someone skilled at finding loopholes is exhausting and a little bit of sibling time helps keep Five compliant). He pops up here or there, always out of the blue and often at different ages but will never stay for long. He watches one of Diego’s boxing matches, attends one of Victor’s recitals, shows up to congratulate Allison after her wedding and after Claire is born, buys Klaus dinner, shows up at Ben’s graduation.

Five was never super close to all of his siblings growing up, but he did love them, and after finding their bodies he’s desperate to see them alive and well as much as he can. He’ll do almost anything to be able to do so. Five wants to stop the apocalypse as much as Reggie but there’s very little to go on and he feels trapped, stuck back under his father’s thumb, watching his siblings grow up and live their own lives without him. He wants to stop the end of the world, but if they can’t do that (and his father never explains how the missions he’s sent on are supposed to help) he at least wants to die with his siblings, not trapped alone in a mansion he can’t leave.

This all comes to a head when Reggie dies. In this AU I don’t know if he thought whatever they’d done wasn’t enough and still killed himself or if the Commission thought they were too close and killed him to get the timeline back on track. Either way, the siblings come home and Five is freed from the Rumor for the first time since he was 15.

He wants to tell his siblings but years of forced silence don’t make him a good communicator. His siblings are all angry at him for being his fathers puppet. But some things have changed. Five periodically showing up did help the siblings stay somewhat in touch. Viktor didn’t write the book this time around and Ben is alive. But, Five doesn’t know about the Commission and is incredibly skilled and free to leave. In steps the Handler.

From here, I don’t know where it would go. If Five would be drawn in by the Handler’s promises of help or work to fight them. But somewhere in there, the siblings would find out the truth and realize their brother has been held hostage by their father all these years after facing a year or two in the literal apocalypse. And then it would come to light that the apocalypse was caused by Reggie’s actions in the first place. Viktor would have a fellow victim of their father and the siblings would have to face an organization less interested in killing their brother as forcefully recruiting him. As if he needs any more of that in his life. No idea how this would end, but Five definitely would deserve a hug.

53 notes - Posted September 27, 2022

#4

Was anyone going to tell me Nailed it did an Umbrella Academy episode? Because this is the best thing I’ve ever seen.

114 notes - Posted October 6, 2022

#3

My burning question — does the Commission have some cool alien technology that creates Pneumatic tubes as needed or does sending a message trigger some underpaid worker to go back in time and install one where needed.

Like, I know the Commission has a talking fish and can create bodies and can make candy taste like a decade, but automatically creating Pneumatic tubes out of nothing is very impressive.

But more than that I adore the idea of some low level drone donning overalls and fake work orders grumbling under his breath about “a bowling alley, really!? What on earth is an assassin doing in a bowling alley?” as he tries to keep his cover and fend off real repair men.

124 notes - Posted September 16, 2022

#2

I’ve seen a lot of posts talking about how dumb it was that Five didn’t time travel in S3 to either escape the new end of the world or at least reverse time to save his siblings. On a rewatch, I don’t think the issue really is that he didn’t so much as the show didn’t fully explain why he couldn’t.

The Umbrellas arrive in 2019 and the Kugelblitz appears. Almost immediately after, we see Lila attempt to use a briefcase, and it completely fails. She steals another and the same thing happens — kaput. Five even says how astronomically impossible this is. The Commission briefcases have been the most reliable time travel in the show by a wide margin, way more accurate than Five’s powers and able to handle more jumps with more people far easier. Despite that, once the Kugelblitz started, they can no longer function.

Five and Lila do manage to time travel but it takes both of them plus a briefcase to barely get to the Fifties and back and doing so completely fries the commission briefcase. At this point, I don’t think even they together have the power to travel back unassisted without a briefcase. And that’s even before the Kugelblitz really powers up.

The big question here is why, which Five actually explains while they’re in Commission headquarters. The Kugelblitz is the opposite of the Big Bang — the timeline is collapsing in on itself, pretty much creating a giant black hole centered on 2019. This tells me two things:

1. Time, past and future, is literally collapsing into 2019. The Kugelblitz is an unimaginably powerful force that’s destroying the universe and only getting stronger by the second. If time travel is usually hard, I imagine trying to go backward against that force is next to impossible (I’d go with actually impossible once it got stronger). As mentioned, Five + Lila + the briefcase could barely do it. There’s little chance alone.

2. Despite all the destruction we see in the season, 2019 is the center point and the last thing to be destroyed. We see at the end of the show that the only thing left in the universe is the city block with the hotel. I’d imagine the same thing happened with the timelines. Why was every single person in the commission dusted? Because the commission headquarters is in the Fifties. If the timeline is collapsing, it makes sense that things further in the past are collapsing first. The Kugelblitz isn’t just destroying the present, it’s the collapse of the entire timeline with 2019 as the center point. I think by the time Lila and Five time travel, everyone from up to that point in history has been destroyed, not just the commission. Time is rolling up like a carpet with 2019 being the last to go. If they even could time travel, they would have even less time to live their lives or try to save the universe than they did in the Sparrow timeline.

I do think time travel could have worked. If they had known Harlan was the cause before Five and Lila time traveled, I think them with the briefcase could have made it back, killed him (sorry Harlan) and saved the world. But without that knowledge, they couldn’t have investigated and tried to save 7 different women before 1989 was dusted. And once they had the truth, the Kugelblitz was stronger and the briefcases were destroyed.

So yeah, there was literally no time traveling Five could do this season. I think even rewinds would be impossible against the gravitational pull on the timeline that was the end of the universe. For once, Five had to live it out with everyone else and accept fate.

139 notes - Posted July 2, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Happy Birthday to the 43!

Today you’re all turning 30! (Except for that weird group over there who are 34, 32, 31, 30 and a few months, and 58 going on 14 for some reason)

170 notes - Posted October 1, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[seaoftales]

⭐

*cracks knuckles* Including the muses we used to write, and probably will again, I hope you're ready for TheList™:

Dracule Mihawk

Nami - MiMi supremacy going strong forever and always, but also what if Mihawk found Nami stealing from him and she spills the beans on what Arlong's done to her and her village? 👀

Athelar - I need all the brother threads all day every day, the angst and comfort and them bonding over the years they lost

Shanks - MiShanks? 👀 But also a scenario where Mihawk agrees to join the Red Haired Pirates, not to mention a thread where they absolutely can't stand one another and keep battling it out every time they meet each other.

Shanks

Nami - preeeetty self explanatory but there's so many more things that live rent free in my head for these two, like them settling down somewhere nice, Shanks passing down the title of Yonko/retiring completely and acting like a mentor to those who want to be mentored. But also Shanks becoming King of Pirates, with things either hitting the fan and him being executed with Nami having to watch, or they both work towards making sure the world's well rid of the Marines and World Government, plus another like 28364 ideas I have for these two!

Athelar - I'd love to see how these two would vibe together when alone, but also a thread where Athelar does meddle in destiny when something unexpected in the grand scheme of things happens that threatens all the balance he saw the future holds

Benn Beckman

Nami - besides the plots we currently have in the works, I was thinking that maybe instead of Bellemere, Shanks and co. get to Nami's island that was being raided when she was a baby, and just like Shanks took Uta in, Benn does the same with Nami and the two dads raise their two daughters together on board the Red Force

Shanks - I live for Beck tormenting Shanks about everything and anything and I need more of it! Grilling him about his love life? All the 'I told you so's when he gets too drunk (nvm that Beck gets equally drunk), but also young Shanks and young Beck meeting for the first time and Shanks trying to convince Beck to join his crew

Uta

Nami - I need them to be besties, them bonding over their once mutual hate for pirates before meeting the right ones that made them change their minds

Shanks - Gimme all father/daughter threads ever because yes! Shanks helping Uta through her espresso-depresso era, finding somebody for her to help her get a hang of her Devil Fruit powers because gods know she doesn't have any control over it, and just generally wholesome and domestic things

Javi

Nami - I need more of the 'well, I guess my step-mom's younger than I am' awkward moments, but also them becoming friends whenever the Straw Hats visit the RHP, and there could also be potential for some shippy things!

Shanks - Javi being a little menace to Shanks, especially when he's younger, is living rent free in my head. Then there's all the parental figure threads we could go for, Shanks teaching him how to fight with swords, but also comforting him that he doesn't have to be like his dad just because some people expect him to be as good as Mihawk

Athelar - UNCLE THREADS! Athelar being that cool uncle with a super awesome ship who shows up at random and has all the coolest gadgets and Javi wanting to spend as much time with him as possible.

Other muses and plot blurbs are under the cut because it's Long™

Thomas Magnum

Juliet - MIGGY! All things Miggy, all the Miggy fluff, angst, hurt, EVERYTHING. But especially them having their little family of at least 2 kiddos running around, there's no threats anymore, maybe they even closed down the PI business and are focusing on working at the Nest and taking care of their kids (plus you know Robin would pretty much pay for anything they want, even when they tell him no)

Steve - I've been recently toying with the idea of what if Steve and Thomas were on the same team together when serving in the Navy, so there's potential for threads that take place in the sandbox, but also when Steve comes home in season 1, Thomas follows and Steve asks him to be on the team since day 1

TC - bonding in the sandbox, maybe some POW camp threads, TC flying TM out but the chopper has a malfunction and they have a crash landing on a potentially deserted island and need to survive

Lia - All the Thia threads, especially in a what if scenario where Miggy doesn't happen. I can see them eventually moving in together after working things out after the break up, maybe start a family down the line, but also angsty threads where they are exes having to work on a case together because AWKWARDNESS AND TENSION (and pent up sexual frustration)

Robin - Robin and TM meeting for the first time when Robin was still a journalist, all the shenanigans they went through, TM accompanying Robin to a book event where shit hits the fan and Robin's taken hostage

Chris - TM being like that annoying little brother to him, maybe they're purposefully thrown together on the same case to 'work out their differences', TM inviting him to their ohana gatherings every opportunity possible

Luciana - FAMILY BONDING TIME, especially after Katherine dies and Thomas really needs a shoulder to cry on, him showing off his super cool ex-sister-in-law to his friends when she comes to visit in Hawaii

Ethan Shah

Juliet - ALL THE SHIPPY THREADS! A thread where rather than flipping out when Juliet tells him about her past, Ethan sits down with her and hears her out, tries to understand and actually communicates his feelings for her.

Steve - I like the idea of Ethan kind of being the doctor they call for whenever anybody (read: Steve) from Five-0 gets injured on a case because he knows how to wrangle Steve into at least somewhat listening to him.

Chris - hear me out: Before Ethan moved to Hawaii, him and Chris worked in the same city and had frequent run-ins. I'd love to see them sit down, catch up, maybe even deepen their professional relationship and friendship.

Tani Rey

Juliet - the way both shows robbed us of both our fem muses having proper fem friends is horrible. Tani will drag Juliet out of the house whenever possible, not even going to put up with Juliet's protests. I need them to be besties we deserve to have!

Steve - McRey? McRey! All the shippy things! Steve finding his happy ending in Tani, retiring and settling down, her helping him stay with both feet on the ground and helping him through potential therapy, just being his rock and loving on him 24/7.

Leo - awkward dates when they're both off the schedule, bonding over things they both like, just being cute and sweet together, them also being a little competitive on which of them is the better surfer.

Noelani - gimme more besties threads! I want them both to go on a vacation together without having to worry about what the team is up to.

Lia - Tani and Lia working on a joint H50/HPD case together and things get really bad. I'm thinking they maybe get captured or they get cornered and one of them gets badly injured.

Chris - further down the line when Tani is promoted to leader of the team (and where Chris never dies because f that plotline alltogether) they constantly butt heads on whether Five-0's methods are good or not, and it eventually turns into sort of enemies to lovers trope.

Danny Williams

Steve - McDanno! A thread where they actually retire and open up the restaurant which is an instant hit rather than a miss

Chris - before Danny fully retires, he opts to bring in somebody experienced enough so the team still functions as it should, so he goes and talks to Chris if he would want to be on the team. Both are for doing things by the book and Danny believes Chris would be reinforcing that rule whenever possible.

Juliet - instead of fake-marrying Thomas, Juliet asks Danny if he would be willing to play the hubby, that way there would be no conflict between Juliet and Thomas and no bad blood.

Lia - what if Lia was the one (beside Steve) to show Danny just how nice Hawaii is? I can see them working a case together and they just click, so they start seeing each other and eventually end up dating.

Loki Laufeyson Friggason

Thor - post Infinity War, after Loki successfully faked his death once more and all the Asgardians, including Thor, have settled on Earth, Loki shows up, explaining to Thor that he needed that push after Asgard was destroyed to fuel his anger, and his "death" was something he knew would affect him greatly

Tony - post Thor 1, after Loki lets himself fall into the void, instead of being picked up by Thanos, Loki directly lands on Earth, takes up the mantle of a successful entrepreneur and connects with lots of people, Tony included.

Sigyn - the ways Sigyn would ground Loki if she was ever in the movies, and she would be his whole world along with their kidlets.

Yon-Rogg

Tony - I shall inflict pain on you with this one and you'll hate me for it. Endgame, Tony snapped his fingers, the world's restored to as it should be and he's dying. Carol's there, she remembers how Yon saved her all those years ago and she goes to him, brings him to Earth and he does the same with Tony

Carol - YonVers, and I shall accept nothing less! Yon being stripped off his title after losing to Carol and some years later she finds out he's been stuck in a slave camp of sorts, so she bails him out/buys him to be hers but she gives him freedom instead. OR! Carol managing to talk sense into Yon at the end of the first movie and in the second one it's revealed that they got married and chill on her ship.

Killian Jones

Emma - Captain Swan, all day every day. Them leaving Storybrooke together to live a happy life before shit once more hits the fan, but also the early stages where Killian endlessly teases and pursues Emma but she's having none of it!

Liam - gimme all the brotherly bonds, especially Liam never dying but they both rebel against their king, run the crew together, maybe even take a whole new path in life and don't stay pirates

Andrea Talverton

Emma - sister-in-law bonding time, Andrea potentially showing Emma what being a princess is like and them just having a wholesome bond together

Liam - Lirea, one of my alltime favourite ships to this day. I'd love to write all the happy things with them, them settling down, having a family, Andrea helping Liam get used to living in Storybrooke. But also, while in the Enchanted Forest, either Rea running way with Liam so they can be together or him asking her dad for her hand in marriage.

Geralt of Rivia

Yennefer - disregarding Geralt's last wish for him and Yennefer to be together forever, what if they instead opt to have a friends with benefits relationship that slowly and steadily develops into something more?

Jaskier - GERASKIER, all day, every day. I want to see Geralt suffer after he tells Jaskier off, them meeting sometime later and Jaskier straight up refusing to acknowledge Geralt ever existing, so the witcher really has to work for Jaskier's friendship and love.

Triss - I'm still of the opinion that Triss is a better match for Geralt, but I want it to be with a twist. Instead of Triss doing what she did, Geralt falls for her over time while they're both working for King Foltest and have a steady relationship that way.

Mithra Kalila - Following their marriage, I was thinking that her advisers keep telling her how Geralt is a bad idea to have as a husband, especially since he's sterile and won't be able to provide her with an heir, meanwhile Geralt proves them all wrong and is a loving and doting hubby

Anna Henrietta

Jaskier - I need all the threads with them where they are lovers while Annarietta's hubby is out of the Duchy on whatever business. Imagine Anna's all loving towards him one day, the other she throws him in the dungeons, the third day she gets him out and is all sorry.

Magnus Bane

Alec - gimme all the Malec and pre-Malec threads! Magnus doing his hardest to sway Alec, Alec giving him the cold shoulder, and then there's the stone touches and hidden kisses while they sneak around others so they don't know. But also married Malec, them adopting a baby or two or five!

Evan Buckley

Eddie - BUDDIE! Always and forever Buddie! Buddie on vacation (can go as friends before things finally spark up between them), also them taking care of Christopher together!

Blake Richards

Liam - maybe they exorcise the demon out of Liam and after their two new team members try to get him killed, he leaves the organization, Blake follows him and they open a whole new paranormal investigator organization.

Avery Murray

Steve - eyeing all of those shippy threads we had with them in the past and I'd love to revive those. They have so much potential and Avery being able to ground Steve is just so !!!!!!!!!!!

Juliet - I've said it before and I'll say it again, we don't have nearly as many girl friendship representation in both shows as we deserve! Also, Avery maybe hiring Juliet for a case, like a client of hers seems really dodgy and she wants to be sure that he's a good guy before she accepts the job offer, that sort of thing!

Simon Basset

Anthony - Simon and Anthony butting heads about whether or not Simon is good for Daphne, also "how dare you even think about dating my sister when you're my best friend". I need that so much.

Daphne - more fake dating scenarios to make sure the ton thinks they're really together, Simon fighting for Daphne's honor with Berbrooke, them raising little Augie and being wholesome parents.

Kate Sharma

Anthony - Anthony and Kate living their best life, maybe they're still in their honeymoon phase and are all lovey-dovey, also Kanthony babies all the way!

Daphne - Sisters-in-law bonding time, maybe Daphne comes to visit with Augie and Kate meets her nephew!

Edwina Sharma

Anthony - them going through with the marriage instead of Anthony ending up with Kate. I want to see how these two will develop because Edwina is absolutely starstruck and in love with him.

@taleofmuses

[shadowsong26fic]

Coming Attractions!

First Monday of the month, so here we go!

As per usual, this is also an Open Question Night--anything I've posted about here or on AO3 is fair game; my askbox is always open but tonight I'll be keeping an eye on it and responding. I do take prompts, but no guarantees on how quickly I fill them.

Not a whole lot to report this month--mostly because moving took up A Lot of time/energy/etc., so I didn't get as much writing done as I would have hoped, so just a quick blitz through:

OTP Meme fills-- I'm still super behind, haha. I caught up on June, but I need to do July, August, and September for all five ships this month, so that'll be fun.

PodTogether-- It got posted! It ended up being not quite all I'd hoped it would be (our plans were a lot more ambitious than our execution, haha), but the three bits that did get finished/posted I think turned out pretty well. I do enjoy doing this event a lot; next summer should be less busy for me, too, so hopefully it'll go a little smoother/I'll get a little closer to whatever my partner(s) and I end up planning (although I think I might take Leverage off my fandoms list next time; we'll see.)

Other SW-- No real updates here, other than we at SWBB got an ask about next year's event already (signups don't open til like December!!!), so I'm going to dig up what I started last year and hopefully actually finish it so I can participate. I've been involved with that event for so long that it felt weird to only do modding/betaing/podfic and not Write for it this time. (Precipice!verse has the same update it has for the past several months. It will not die until I leave this fandom, but it hasn't been getting much/any active focus lately.)

BSG-- Signups are still open for GBB! We could use a few more artists and betas. Story detail submissions are coming in, and I'm excited for what I'm seeing. I also want to get a little more into actively working on TOB over the next few weeks/by the end of the year. It's been floating around in the back of my head for so long and I thiiiiiink I've named all of the people and patched enough of the plotholes to get started...of course, now I need to figure out exactly when/where I need to start (especially since...you know, need to introduce a bunch of OCs plus explain why Baltar ends up in a different position...so yeah XD) I do still have various crossover snippets that might get worked on (like the one I reblogged the other day; there's also the Zeb and Helo one that I thought turned out pretty well); plus The Blood of Angry Men which I do genuinely plan to write at some point, but structuring it is a complicated question XD (Zarek character study/backstory piece; mostly focused on everything that initially sent him to prison, told through the lens of him looking back on it as he faces down his execution in S4; some stuff about charisma and followers he's lost/led to their deaths; the balance between him believing in his rhetoric and wanting power/using that rhetoric to gain it...a lot of really interesting things to think about here, lol)

Les Mis-- P&J will update soon; I'm also working on Acheron which I'm super excited for. I've written snippets of dialogue for Provenance (companion to P&J) but that won't get posted until the main fic is complete (because it's probably more fun to watch Ari solve as much of the puzzle as is possible given modern-day available records/evidence before filling in some of the gaps with a somewhat more traditional-style fic, lol)

Castlevania-- Not really much to say here other than at some point I will pick up Incinctus; also when Nocturne starts airing I will probably be Very Tempted to do a more active/actual crossover with Vampire Chronicles (bookverse) because. Like. The Theatre is right there lol (I know the vampire rules are very different in the two canons; which is part of why Marius existing in Incinctus is only a quick Easter Egg cameo; also Alucard and Armand would hate each other so much lol and I love them both so I'm not...suuuuuper interested in writing about that XD) Anyway, we'll see how much Nocturne actually draws me in, but at the moment I'm looking forward to it.

...I think that about covers it! Moving is exhausting and expensive but while unpacking/setup is still going on we are Fully Moved at this point, so...yay! Hopefully next month will pick up some.

[aramastus]

God’s Sight Ch3

Hivion Groans jumps yanking on Iron Chains “ fuck…” he quickly listens for Enddy heartbeat then sighed when she was still inside him.  Why can't he break the chains they must not be normal holy magic infused. Why would Dark Summoner have something like… unless it was meant for someone like him. The room was empty other than the few other chains dangling from the wall. Another problem is who or how that spear or spear user snacks up on him. He does not have time to think about his main worry is Enddy. Closing his eye he forces her to shrink so small she traps in one fold of his stomach. Ugh, he going to be using a lot of magic today it seems. Enddy was confused by the sudden change in size but said nothing she know Hivion does not do anything without reason and she trusts him.

Light cracks tho the opening door. And Vemoness's female voice " Hmm. Your quite the catch. Demon but not any demon…a prince" Hivion body stiffed at a woman's word that he can not see. How did she know?  Knowing that he is a demon is not hard to figure out. But that he is a prince is another thing. Why he was lost in his thoughts the lights come on? The woman rushed forward just inches from his face. Long blonde hair with few red highlights. Large round glasses over her purple eyes. In a black lab coat that was completely buttoned up. 

"Ah fuck your Zinc's boi? Damn, idiots I told you to bring me high powered demon….I didn't know they would target Zinc's kid" turns around walking a bit away from Hivion "Hey kid if I let you go don't kill me ok? Please don't tell your father about this….I didn't mean to get caught in all this really sorry. And just forget all about this?"

Hivion wore a face of complete confusion "Eh???" That is all he could say looking at this woman's back. He had never seen her before but she knows him and his Dad. Woman “You heard what I said right?” Turning around “I'm going to let you out of those chains” Undoes his chain and then bolts to another side of the room. Hivion flops onto the ground then stands up dusting himself off “ ….” walks out the door covering his eyes from the sunlight, he now standing on some kind of abandoned farm. You know what he just going to go back in town get a hotel room and pass out today been fucking nuts.  His eyes began to glow, and his body was engulfed in gusts of wind He is gone. Appearing outside the Hotel “Giant Hell” hotel for nonhumans normally would avoid places like this but they have better security than humans ones. Plus he not letting Enddy out tonight at least. “Uh Sorry Enddy I’ll let out tomorrow” his stomach blows up to the size of a beachball. Sighs in relief keeping up shrinking magic takes a lot of him.  Heading inside it looks like a fairly normal hotel other than all the nonhumans not in their human forms Hivion gets elbowed by a werebear “Come here to finish your meal in peace” Hivion blinks then realize he means Enddy “Oh no this is my Human food supplier” he not completely wrong but just best way to get people to stop asking him about Enddy.  Werebear “Oh you found a willing food source man that's so lucky! Wanna share? I’ll pay well” 

Hivion “No I don't share” resting his hand on his stomach as gets his room heads up to flop on his back on the bed  “Ugh to just what…” He hears Enddy saying sorry and trying to give him belly rubs and he laughs “Thanks love” patting his belly.

The next day Hivion sits up rubbing his eyes and looking at time ‘Oh shit it's noon… I slept way too long”  Pokeing his belly” Enddy?” He hears a groan but then he laughs “You always sleep so much in there” It warms his heart that she feels so safe inside him. He would and has killed people to keep her safe. 

Texting his dad “Hey do know a woman with blonde hair and red highlighted purple eyes who kidnapped demons?”

Zinc “Uh what..wait did someone kidnap you?! I will kill them!” Hivi “Yes but chill out Dad… they found out I was your kid and let me go scared shitless of you and asked me not to tell you or kill them” Zinc “I do know a woman who is into cult stuff she was an old friend of your mothers… but she didn't look like that” 

Hivi “Well she let me go so I guess leave it at that tho I don't know if wanna do anything about the demons being kidnapped” 

Zinc “ I will look into it, if you need a place to stay I have a house that is furnished  I was going to rent out but if need a new place you can have it” 

Hivi “ is in the human side of town?”

Zinc “ Ya I would not put my poor daughter-in-law in danger like that what do think I am!” 

Ture he loves Enddy like she is his own kid and is always happy to see her as proactive as I am of her Hivion thinks

Hivi “Then ya we will take it also I'm not going to be in today” Zinc “That's fine you can make it up or work from home, come by to get the keys later”