#porcupine tree gif

[j-tillow]

[milfweirdal]

doing this to all my CDs to keep them nice and flat and shiny <3

[machazer]

stop swimming!

russia on ice.

[mezmer]

Wowwww hahaha

[theknucklehead]

Flaky is so adorable.

She's always just so shy and scared that you just want to comfort her.

Also I always find it funny how most can never tell if she's a boy or girl.

[ne0nfeline]

[falconscales]

North American Porcupine stimboard for @porcupiney

Feel free to reblog! Stimboard requests are open!

X X X | X X X | X X X

(I made this on my chromebook. worst experience of my life ever)

[j-tillow]

[lazyneonrabbitt]

Rules of nature

Daryl Dixon x Reader

Daryl gets hurt on a simple hunting trip and reader patches him up.

You waved Daryl off with Hunter on your arm. You learned last time that having him stand next to you as his dad walked through the gate was a bad idea, having to pry him off Daryl's leg with way more effort thsn you both hoped. This time everything went way smoother and you were walking back home soon after the gate was closed.

Daryl walked until the gate was no longer visible, heading out to one of his personal stash boxes to hide his clothes in as he shifted for the hunt.

He made his rounds and quickly found a deer big enough to be his only catch and he'd be satisfied. He treaded lightly, staying low to the ground and making sure he stayed out of the deer's view. The greenery he stalked through was thick and his most of his figure well, he couldn't even see his own frontpaws.

He had the deer right where he wanted it and readied himself to jump. He lowered hhis body, legs positioned right, stepped in to jump and howled out in pain.

The second he put his front paw forward to jump he had hit something and was hit with a sharp pain through his whole jaw and muzzle.

He hit a porcupine. Daryl was so focused on the deer he hadn't sniffed out the creature hidden in the overgrown forest plants. As soon ashe ducked down and his paw hit the animal it jumped. The sharp quills on its back piercing akin and detaching from the smaller animal that now ran for its life as the large predator was distracted by the pain.

The deer was long forgotten as he tried to pull out the quills that got stuck in his face but his large paws couldn't get a grip. They were staying in.

With that came the problem of not being able to shift back into his human form, so whatever he hunted had to be dropped off near the gate in hopes someone would find it before it rotted, and a group was soon traveling so he could get help with his problem.

He shook out his fur, hoping hs'd dislodge some of the quills but only hurting himsslf more in the process. His loud whine surely scaring off any game nearby.

His best option now was to head off to a different location and try to catch something small for himeself to eat. Even a single fish would be enough for now but it was getting dark already and he mentally cursed at himself for being so careless and getting hurt. He'd prefer going home to you now with the disappointing news of having no food than wait, get help and shift back.

He'd risk it if he knew who was on the lookout shift right now, if he guessed wrong and an Alexandrian sas him come out of the treeline he'd be shot on sight.

His only option now was find food. He had go keep up his strength if he had to stay shifted, he needed to eat something.

Sticking to the lower greenery now he spotted a bird on a low branch. He could get it if he stayed low up til his jump point. He pounced and managed to catch it between his jaws, hurting himself so bad in thr process he ruined his landing and dropped hard on his side. The bird pressed into the spines that pierced through his lip and even the smallest bit of pressure hurt too much so chewing was out of the question.

He put up his best effort to pluck the bird clean in small bits, but he tore more to shreds then he left to eat. Werewolves and delicate handlings did not go hand in hand..

If he couldn't eat he'd have to sleep to conserve energy. He made his way up a sturdy tree, he'd stalk out to the main roads in the morning.

Sunrise woke him up, hopping out of the tree and slowly making his way to the roads. With his rumbling stomach he had no chance of finding and snacking on something in the meantime, but it made staying away from walkers a lot more difficult. On his way he had to fight some off, getting his hindleg caught on a vine in the process and having to limp the rest of the way after killing the walkers.

Now he was hungry and hurt even worse. He really needed someone to find him. His hid in the treeline, laying down and keeping his ears open for any sign of cars and horses, but when the sun was up at its highest he still hadn't seen anyone.

The sunlight was harsh, it warmed his fur but only made him more thirsty over time.

He waited and waited, nightfall coming and going. The sounds of crickets filled the air and he dreamed of snatching some off the greenery with how hungry he was.

Another morning came and he still hadn't seen anyone, growing desperate and worried about his family. He promised to be back soon as always but had been stuck out there for way longer than he had hoped. He needed to get home.

He'd have to hide as much as he could, but set out to the gate anyways. Staying low and out of sight was hard enough on his empty stomach, and the racing anxiety he had over who would be on watch made focusing even harder.

He made it to the abandoned houses undetected and got a glance at the watch.

Rosita.

A relieved huff left him as he stepped onto the road and kept his eyes on her, earning a shocked gasp before she disappeared. The sounds of her going down the stairs rung in his ears before the gate was shoved open and she came running to his aid. "Holy crap, Daryl! What happened to you?" He could only whine in response as she led him through the gate, for which she was met with quite the resistance from the original Alexandrians.

"This is outrageous!" Screamed onw woman, as a man followed up. "Anyone can just go around and break rules now?"

"I thought we made it clear we don't want that monster in here." The commotion had summoned Abraham, who easily shot down each and every comment as he helped Daryl home and up the porch steps.

There was a knock on the door just as you came downstairs. You weren't expecting anyone, but in this world that meant nothing anymore. You saw the blurred image of Abraham through the glass and opened the door for him.

"Hi, what bri-- Oh my god." You sank to your knees opun seeing your partner. Careful not to touch the spines stuck in his face you went to carress his fur, tears flowing freely without a care who saw them.

"Need anything from the doc? Gimme a list and I'm off." You thanked the man but shook your head no, having everything you needed in the house.

It was a sad scene, watching Daryl limp inside and lay down on the large rug in the middle of the living room.

He listened to your steps going into the kitchen and rummaginf through the cabinets. Then a metal object being filled with water, and then the clattering of tools.

"Relax, baby. I'm on my way." You held the bowl of water as steady aa possible, setting it down next to your injured partner. He looked horrible, so tired and weak.

You took some kichen towels, not wanting to waste time by running up to the bathroom. It was clear in his eyes how much he was hurting, if you didn't have to patxh him up yourself you'd probably cry your eyes out.

"I'm sorry, this is gonna hurt.." he watched as you picked up tongs and placed them around a single quill, close to Daryl's skin and pulled it out. He yelped in response and you apologised profusely, bending down to press a kiss to his forehead as you continued to pluck the quills from his chin. His soft whines continuing throughout the process. "I know, I know. But you'll be all good when it's over."

With all the quills removed from his lower jaw you moved on to his snout, carefully lifting his lip to see which ones had pierced all the way through.

"Alright, I'm gonna pull these ones out from the inside, it should hurt less." With one hand holding his lip up you pulled the quill through in one smooth motion, this time earning a less hurt reaction from Daryl. "See? That was a lot less bad!" Your little cheer only made him roll his eyes at you, but still moved his paw to squeeze your thigh in thanks.

You let out a soft laugh. "Don't thank me yet, we still got some left and those look deep." With a soft rub on his ear you continued, taking out the ones from the inside of his lip first before methodically moving from his nose towards the back of his jaw. There were some that got stuck crooked and dug deep, needing a strong pull and got a loud cry out of him each time. "Yeah, I'm not so nice anymore now huh." You frowned at his hurt expression, wanting nothing more than to cuddle him but his wounds were barely healing due to his malnutrition.

With a quick kiss to his forehead you got up and dug through the fridge for you dinner meats, handing them over. "Can you chew?"

He tried a piece and winced as he bit down, the pressure hurting the punctures.

So that was a no.

You went back to the kitchen and grabbed a knife and cutting board, chopping up the meat into small pieces Daryl could swallow whole. He instantly ate and hummed in satisfaction, slowly feeling the skin on his face knit back together and feel the muscle in his leg tingle as it healed.

Even after all the time you had spent with him, you still watched him heal in awe.

"Can you walk?" You watched Daryl as he slowly sat up, testing the strength of his legs and noddig as he kept up his weight. "You should go rest in bed while I go pick up Hunter from Rick's place and see if I can get some extra meat." You made sure he got up the stairs in one piece and rested in the bed before heading back downstairs and out.

Retrieving Hunter was an easy job, having him jump up in your arms as soon as he saw you at the door. You made sure to thank Rick and Michonne again for letting him sleep over and play with Judith.

Your trip to the pantry took a little longer than planned with Hunter insisting on paddin along with you on his little legs, but in the end you succeeded in getting an extra ration of meat for dinner.

Back home you dumped the meat in the fridge and wasted no time getting back up thr stairs with Hunter hot on your heels as he sniffed out his dad. He even made it past you and beat you to the bedroom, climbing onto the bed and crawling between Daryl's arms and nuzzled against his chest.

"Ahw, hey.. that's where I wanted to go." There was a soft murmur before Daryl moved and took Hunter in one arm, moving to make space for you.

With you against his chest and Hunter against yours it was clear you weren't going anywhere until dinnertime.

But that was fine. No matter who came fhrough that door, you were going to spend today in bed making sure your partner healed and rested enough to shift back.

[sheisfilledwithsecrets]

The Incident - Porcupine Tree

[testure-1988]

About Me

Name: Al /Ali

Age: 34

Cisgender

Sign: Taurus

Pronouns: she/her

USA (NJ)

Goth

Aromantic

Neurodivergent (ADHD, APD, anxiety)

Agnostic

-This is a SIDE BLOG. I will follow you with my main (nivekogresimp)

DNI if you're:

A TERF or SWERF (or just transphobic and against sex work in general)

racist

homophobic

a fascist/nazi

pro-police

hardcore Christian

misogynistic

TCC/a Columbiner

into pedophilia/ a MAP (or if you like Lolicon/shota or DD/LG)

Ableist

Zionist/pro-Israel

-I post NSFW stuff sometimes, so minors should take note.

-If you see something (artwork, a photo) that belongs to you, please let me know so I can credit you or remove it.

What I'm mainly interested in:

The Goth subculture/ trad goth stuff

Music in general (I love Industrial, Experimental, Noise, EBM, Goth Rock, Darkwave, Doom Metal, Post-Punk, Punk Rock, Grindcore, a plethora of different Electronic genres, 80s New Wave, Italo Disco, 90s/80s Hip Hop, and many other genres).

Skinny Puppy

The 1980s

Horror Movies

JTHM (and Invader Zim...sometimes)

Art & graphic design

Dark/horror/ gothic/religious aesthetic posts

goth fashion

Vampires

Cemeteries

Bones

Leftist/democratic socialist stuff

bats, cats & rats :D

Anime/manga (Berserk, NGE, Cowboy Bebop, Sailor Moon, Hellsing, Studio Ghibli, etc.)

Elden Ring

Lord Of The Rings

Skyrim

Cartoons

Batman

Little Nemo In Slumberland (the comic strip)

Mythology (Norse, Greek & Egyptian mainly)

Elvira, Mistress of The Dark

The Addams Family

Edward Gorey

Edgar Allan Poe

Some of my favorite bands/artists:

Skinny Puppy, Godflesh, Tom Waits, Einsturzende Neubauten, Meat Beat Manifesto, Coil, The Cure, Front 242, Bauhaus, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Severed Heads, Alien Sex Fiend, Acid Bath, Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, Depeche Mode, Japan, Tears For Fears, Type O Negative, Clan Of Xymox, Virgin Prunes, Cocteau Twins, Aphex Twin, Boards Of Canada, Massive Attack, Autechre, Goldie, Merzbow, Agent Side Grinder, The Klinik, (old) Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, (old) KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, Fad Gadget, Revolting Cocks, Nurse With Wound, SPK, Clock DVA, :wumpscut:, Christian Death (Rozz only), Swans, The Sisters Of Mercy, Joy Division, Dead Can Dance, Sleep, Black Sabbath (with Ozzy only), Electric Wizard, Neurosis, Cult of Luna, Isis, Ningen Isu, Yoko Kanno, Church Of Misery, Napalm Death, Anaal Nathrakh, Pig Destroyer, Nasum, Bongzilla, Phobia, Doom, Pink Floyd, Altar De Fey, TR/ST, Boy Harsher, George Clanton, Underword, The Orb, The Future Sound Of London, 808 State, Orbital, B12, LFO, Amon Tobin, The Prodigy, Ulver, Kraftwerk, Dissecting Table, Anaal Nathrakh, Lycia, Tim Hecker, Akira Yamaoka, Deftones, Porcupine Tree, Hello Meteor, The Devil & The Universe, Wardruna, Goldie, Public Enemy, A Tribe Called Quest, Naughty By Nature, Geto Boys, NWA, Wu Tang Clan, Mos Def, Common, KRS One, The Pharcyde

Current favorite bands/artists ATM:

Coil, Jim Kirkwood, 90s Jungle & DnB

[olfoartz]

Idk about yall but illuminations make the cutest fucking models ever. In fucking existence.

I’ve actually mainly only watched 2 different types of movies they made (minions and despicable me are the same series and then sing)

You guys can’t tell me the minion models (ESPECIALLY THE MAIN THREE KEVIN, STEWART AND BOB) aren’t fucking adorable. Idc how many Facebook moms use them for HORRIBLE memes but god DAMN IT.

Also gru as a child. Coke on. His model + his voice is fucking adorable. And I hate kids.

Need I say anything? Buster, Porsha, johnny, Rosita, ash, gunter and hell even crawly are cute (the best being buster porsha and Rosita)

I hate porcupines, pigs, koalas and gorillas looks. Hate them. But illuminations has the ability to make these things I HATE into something adorable af.

Now thinking of it I think illuminations made me like gorillas and koalas looks (especially baby koalas omfg). I always say koalas are like the pugs of the tree dwellers, so ugly that they’re cute.

I used to think koalas second thumb looked weird but growing up is realizing koalas and their silly hands are fucking cute‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️

Also Nooshy. I just love lynx.

[machazer]

View like Porcupine Tree, song Fear of a blank Planet 🤭 and sounds similar 🤭

🕷️

[my-soul-sings]

the champion's prize: ch 5

Fandom: Love and Deepspace Characters: Sylus/Reader

Summary: The Champion will marry the chief’s daughter. That’s how it’s been traditionally, as least. And as the next Champion, you know how Sylus’ story will end: one with no room for you, the daughter of a traitor, in it.

What you don’t realise is that he’s long had his sights set on a different prize altogether.

AU inspired by Sylus’ Grassland Romance date.

ch 1 | ch 2 | ch 3 | ch 4 | ch 5 | ch 6 | ch 7

*See replies to this post for the AO3 link.

+++++++++++++

One hundred and two days. 

You wish you weren’t so keenly aware of how much time had passed since Sylus’ departure, but you’ve been keeping a close eye on the number of days that have gone by since that day. All you can do to keep your restless mind at bay is to focus on your recovery, which you’ve been making fairly good progress with. 

The twins have been helping you with that, albeit reluctantly. They claim that you need to rest more, limiting you to an hour of walking practice a day, but you know it’s secretly their attempt to slow down your recovery in order to gain more time for Sylus, given the promise he had made to you. 

For the most part you don’t mind it; it’s not that hard to slip out and practise on your own, especially when the twins are summoned to help with the increasing wanderer attacks near the village. You wish you could join them, but your mobility is one thing; whether the chief would allow it is a whole other matter too. 

Still, you hate sitting idly by. It feels like it’s been the only thing you’ve ever been able to do. Waiting to grow up so you can join the warriors, waiting for the village to accept you as one of them, waiting for Sylus to return from the next expedition… It’s frustrating, to say the least. 

“You’re not strong enough to be making promises like that.”

As annoying as Sylus can be sometimes, you know he’s right. 

You raise your bow once more, shaking the distracting thoughts off and focusing on the target before you: the trunk of a tree that now looks more like a porcupine, with arrows sticking out haphazardly on its body at various angles. Your targets used to look much cleaner, with most of your arrows roughly aligned at the same spot — you’ve even split an arrow in half a number of times before. But there’s only so much you can do after months without training, and while seated on a makeshift wooden stool in the middle of an open field.

Drawing in a deep breath, you pull your arm back, aim, and release. 

The arrow dives straight into the dirt, completely missing its intended mark. 

So it seems, you still have a long way left to go.

+++++++++++++

One hundred and seventy-two days. 

You’d be complaining about Sylus still not having returned by now, but you have much more pressing things to be worried about at this point. 

You’re trapped, sprawled out on the grass and pinned down by two younger men who are both stronger and far more ruthless than you are. One of them is holding your arms above your head, pinning your wrists hard into the dirt. The other is holding your ankles down with just one hand, while holding a large sledgehammer in his free one. The weapon is large, heavy and blunt. You would ask where on earth he got that from, but that’s hardly important right now. 

“G-Guys, we can talk about this,” you say, unable to help the shakiness in your voice. A part of you knows there’s no getting through to these monsters at this point — once they’ve decided on a course of action, there’s nothing you can do to stop them.

“Yeah, we discussed it,” the one with the sledgehammer replies, “and we agreed this is the only way.”

“You didn’t discuss it with me!”

“Duh,” the man holding your arms down chimes in, “you would have said no.”

“Of course anyone would say no to having their leg broken, again!” 

“It’s nothing personal,” Kieran says, tapping the sledgehammer against the ground lightly in a stead, ominous rhythm. “You know how it is, with Sylus taking longer than expected to come back. We can’t have him go back on his word now, can we?” 

“Don’t worry, we’ll help you get better just like before!” Luke adds cheerfully, completely missing the point. 

“Look, I promise I won’t blame Sylus or rub it in his face if he comes back late. Wouldn’t that be enough? You know I don’t go back on my word either.” 

The twins look at each other, exchanging some sort of telepathic message exclusively available to twins only. You can only wait, heart racing as you pray and hope that either Sylus will somehow swoop in to save you from this ridiculous situation now, or that the twins will realise what a terrible idea this really is. 

Fortunately or not, neither option happens. A third introduces itself in the form of distant screams and roars that suddenly ring in the air. 

All three of your heads turn in the direction of the village immediately, and then your legs are released, with Kieran springing into action first.

“Luke, stay here and take care of her. I’ll check things out.” 

“Got it!” 

Kieran’s off in a flash just like that, while Luke releases your arms, getting up and picking up his sword as he looks around to see if there’s any sign of danger nearby. 

Now free, you swiftly spring up and pick up your bow and arrows from where they had been flung onto the ground earlier. You feel much safer armed, but as you glance in the direction that Kieran ran off to, a grim expression forms on your face. 

It’s another wanderer attack, and extremely near the village. The sounds of those deafening roars and blood curdling screams are no longer unfamiliar at this point. There have been a few times when they appeared near this hill as well, although so far they haven't been anything Luke and Kieran can’t handle. But from the sounds of it… it seems like it might be a more troublesome battle this time. You can only hope Kieran will be okay. 

Luke elbows you playfully in the side, breaking your train of thought. When you look over, he grins at you, as if he hadn’t just tried to assist his brother in a heinous crime. 

“Why so worried? Kieran will take a while to come back so you can enjoy your almost-recovered leg for a while longer.” 

In response, you raise your bow, slotting an arrow between your fingers and drawing your arm back, aiming right at his heart. 

“Or, I could put a stop to your plans right now.”  

Luke raises his hands in mock fear. “Oooh, scary.”

He immediately regrets it when you pretend to release your arrow, letting out a near shriek until he sees your arrow fall harmlessly to the ground. 

“Phew… You’re getting better at pranks now, eh?”

“I learned from the best,” you reply with a mocking grin.

Then the conversation dies and the playful atmosphere subsides, giving way to a heavier, more solemn tone. You look again in the direction of where Kieran went earlier, and Luke follows suit. 

“You think he’ll be okay?” you wonder aloud. 

“Sure he will.” Luke sounds carefree as always, but you don’t miss the subtle strain in his voice.

“The wanderers that show up are getting stronger, aren’t they?” 

“Well… yeah. Nothing we can’t handle though.” 

“But more people are getting injured and can’t fight,” you point out. “I’m almost recovered now. Take me to the village, I’ll ask the chief if I can—”

“No,” Luke says sternly. For a moment, you think it’s Sylus speaking instead, seeing as Luke is rarely this serious. “Sylus said we can’t take you there.” 

“You know him. He’s just being overly protective.”

Luke shakes his head. “It’s not that; Kieran and I agree.” He grips his sword, looking down at his lap. “That day when Sylus carried you back here, we thought you were a goner for sure. He didn’t blame us, but we knew it could have been avoided if we had followed you to the lake, or if we hadn’t let you go at all.” 

“Or, Sylus could have had to carry all three of us back on a single horse. That wanderer was strong; I’m not sure you and Kieran could have beat it yourselves either.” 

“At least we would have been better equipped to fight that kind of wanderer; you’re not great at close combat.”

A hard punch lands swiftly in his side, and Luke falls over onto the grass, curling up like a worm and groaning.

“My punches hit hard enough,” you tell him flatly. “I was taught by Sylus too, remember?” 

“Fine… I take it back.” 

“Good.” 

“Leaving that aside,” he mutters, hauling himself back into a sitting position with some difficulty, “no one cared to save you. You obviously weren’t awake to see it, but… we did.” 

You plop down next to him on the ground, a sigh leaving your lips. “I know. Sylus said as much.”

“He probably spared you the details.” 

You don’t say anything to counter that; you have no doubt Sylus already spared you most of the painful details of what he and the twins had to deal with on your behalf. 

“I don’t get why you still want to help them,” Luke continues. “If I were you, I’d have left by now.”

It’s nothing new; you’ve heard this from all three of them before. The last conversation you had with Sylus about this had happened so long ago too, although you still remember that argument like it happened yesterday. 

Hugging your knees to your chest, you turn to face Luke while resting your cheek on your knee.

“It’s not like I have anywhere else to go. I don’t know anyone or anything outside of this village, and there’s no particular place I want to go either.” 

“But Sylus said—”

“I know. He said he can leave anytime if I want to. And I know you and Kieran will follow Sylus if he goes too.” 

“Yeah. Wouldn’t that be fun?” 

You have no doubt it will be. It’d be a chaotic adventure for sure, and you would all find a way to survive somehow, despite the wanderers running amok the barren lands. 

Still… not everything can go the way you wish; not in the real world anyway. 

“Luke, who do you think will be the next champion?” you ask. 

“Sylus,” he answers without a moment’s hesitation. “Everyone knows it’ll be him.” 

“I agree,” you say, nodding. “I can’t possibly take that away from him.” 

“It’s not like you can drag him out of this village if he doesn’t want to go. If you say you want to leave, he’d be happy to go with you.” 

“I know. But that’s why it would be the selfish thing to do,” you tell him. “It was his dream to become the champion; I can’t possibly ask him to leave now. He’s already gone through so much for protecting me all these years.” 

“Do you even know why he wants to become champion?” Luke asks, sounding slightly frustrated, but you can’t figure out why. 

“Yes,” you reply, but Luke continues to stare at you expectantly, so you elaborate, even though you’re quite sure this is clear enough to be left unsaid. “I mean… the champion will marry the village chief’s daughter, right?” 

A long stretch of silence passes as Luke stares at you, with no sound coming out of his mouth that’s fallen agape. You wait and wait and wait for him to say something, but there’s no reply. Barely a hint that Luke’s still alive actually, save for his steady breathing. 

Eventually, you get tired of waiting for him to remember how to speak. 

“What, you didn’t know? I thought it was obvious.” 

Still nothing. Is this really that shocking? Anyone else would have put two and two together by now. 

Luke’s staring at you completely dumbfounded, but thankfully it only takes a few more seconds for him to gather himself and shake himself to his senses again. Finally. 

Relief sets in, until you realise he’s actually shaking from laughter. 

“Shit, I can’t wait to tell Kieran…”

Clutching his middle, he folds forward in half on the grass, his laughter booming in your ears.

For some reason, it feels like he’s laughing at you. Or maybe you’re overthinking it considering it’s Luke you’re dealing with here. 

Choosing to ignore the former possibility, you snap, “How could you both not know?” 

“Hold on hold on hold on,” Luke cuts in then with a snort, laughter finally dying down enough for him to form a coherent sentence again. “Have you even seen them talk to each other?” 

“Of course I haven’t, you know I don’t go into the village,” you retort, rolling your eyes. “But on that day when Sylus left, we all saw her giving him an embroidered pouch. It was hanging from his belt when we said goodbye. I assume that counted for something.” 

“Well, didn’t you make one for him too?” 

You pause, heat gathering in your cheeks. It’s your turn now to stare at him, dumbfounded with your mouth hanging open. Words fail you, until Luke begins snickering again as you grow increasingly flustered. 

“F-First of all, how— how did you—”

“Kieran saw you making one. You hid it when you heard him approaching, but it was too late. Then he told me afterwards.” 

Panic seizes you. If these two big-mouths knew, then…

You raise your fist menacingly again, and Luke immediately raises his arms to guard.

“Did you tell Sylus?”

“‘Course not! Didn’t wanna spoil the surprise for him.” 

You can’t quite tell if Luke is lying — you’ve never been able to get right when the twins are concerned — but his answer is reasonable enough, so you drop your fist. 

Luke exhales in relief and relaxes his stance as well. Then he continues in a lower tone, “But, you didn’t give it to him in the end, right? We were waiting for you to. Why’d you chicken out at the last minute?” 

“W-Well…” you avoid his curious gaze, “it’s… because I saw that Yvette already gave him one. What would she think if she saw him accepting an embroidered pouch from another woman?” 

“That… he doesn’t have feelings for her?” 

“It was a rhetorical question, but yes. That.” 

“I was being sarcastic too…” he mumbles, glancing once again in the direction where Kieran went. 

The momentary distraction has you collecting your thoughts, and you decide to switch the topic before he starts to hatch a scheme to blackmail you about the embroidered pouch or something. 

“What were we talking about again? Before this.” 

“Oh? Hmm… Oh, you don’t know why Sylus wants to become champion.” 

“I already said—”

“Have you ever asked him why? Instead of assuming.” 

You’re about to reply and say yes, of course you have, but come to think of it, you never actually asked Sylus directly why he wanted to be champion. The reason was obvious enough to you, and you figured he would have brought it up on his own in conversation eventually if he wanted to talk about it. It’s sort of how things have always been between you. 

Luke seems to have an idea of where your mind is going, so he doesn’t wait for an answer. 

“Maybe you should ask him properly.”

“Why? Is there something else I don’t know about?” 

He shrugs. “Dunno. But if there is, it should come from him.” 

+++++++++++++

Kieran doesn’t return even after sundown, and the sounds of fighting don’t stop. 

You debate with Luke for a while over whether or not you should both head to the village to help, since leaving you alone is apparently not an option. The debate ends when you hear an ear-splitting explosion coming from the foot of the hill, making the ground beneath you tremble. 

Your heart drops to the pit of your stomach, the worst thoughts coming to mind. What if… 

You look at Luke and you both share a brief nod before grabbing your weapons, getting up and racing to your horses, before heading straight down the hill. 

The nearer you get to the village, the louder it all gets: the cries for help, the agonised screaming; and then when the field clears, you see it: collapsed yurts, debris everywhere, unconscious, injured warriors strewn on the ground, and the children and elders rushing to get to safety to avoid getting caught up in the battle. 

It seems the culprit is just a single wanderer: a four-legged beast, with a sharp tail glowing with a bright orange light. Despite its size, its movements are swift, precise, and a single flick of its tail is strong enough to take a few men out at once. 

There are three wanderers left, all of which are about as large as the wanderer that had almost killed you back then. One is a dragon with purple wings circling the air, dodging the arrows being shot its way. 

Another appears to have a more human shape, albeit faceless and bearing sharp blades for arms. It’s at least a head taller than the men surrounding it and attempting to fight it while at the same time avoiding its sharp strikes — even one hit could be fatal. 

You easily spot Kieran fighting it together with a few other men, and the sight of him safe and sound lifts a huge weight from your chest. Luke quickly signals to you that he’ll join Kieran, and then he’s off, but not before sending you a pointed look over his shoulder, clearly reminding you to stay a safe distance away.  

You’re about to respond, when someone is suddenly thrown into you, knocking you clear off your horse and sending you both crashing hard into the ground.

The weight crushing your body into the dirt has you grimacing in pain, especially the pressure on your injured leg. Whoever it is quickly scrambles to get off of you, and you hear her asking if you’re alright, before hauling you up to your feet. 

“I-I’m okay…” Your eyes move upwards from the hands on your arm to the stranger’s face. You recognise her sky blue eyes in an instant. 

Yvette.

A flicker of recognition passes in her eyes when she realises who you are, but she doesn’t look at you like the other villagers do. Instead of contempt, you find nothing but concern in her eyes as she gives you a once-over. 

“Sorry, are you alright?” 

“Y-Yeah…”

“Can you move?” 

“Yes.”

“Then, could you help me get the injured to safety? It’s hard for the others to fight like this.” 

Nodding, you return to your horse and follow her as she heads towards a group of people not too far away. Some are lying on the ground, motionless and in a pool of their blood, while others are still trying to get up to fight despite their grave injuries. It seems they had been fighting the beast wanderer earlier. 

With a few other villagers whom Yvette had gathered, you help to place the unconscious ones in a small wheeled cart, before leading your horse to pull the cart a safe distance away from the battlefield. Thankfully, the situation is dire enough that no one protests your presence among them. They simply follow Yvette while she instructs them, and as you observe this, you can see why everyone loves her. She’s a natural-born leader; strong, kind and brave. You can certainly imagine her leading the village in the future, so it’s probably only natural that Sylus would…

You shrug the thoughts away, not permitting your mind to wander. You have to focus for now. 

Eventually, you make it to a small clearing where a makeshift open-air clinic has been set up. The doctors and anyone who isn’t able to fight are all gathered there, tending to the injured or carrying the dead bodies elsewhere. 

Briefly, you take in the hellish scene unfolding before you. At this rate, this night will never end. The warriors that had gone on that expedition were the strongest fighters in the village, and with them gone, it doesn’t seem likely that many will survive this, if at all. The wanderer attacking the village this time is far too strong — much like the one that had nearly killed you back then. 

If only they were back by now. If only Sylus… 

“Can you fight?” 

Startled, you turn, finding yourself face to face with Yvette. She gestures to the bow in your hand. 

You hesitate, briefly looking away to glance around at the others nearby who had heard her. 

Their pointed, doubtful looks don’t go unnoticed, but Yvette pulls your attention back to her with a firm hand on your shoulder. 

“I’m sorry to ask this of you, but we need all the help we can get right now. I heard that you’re good with a bow, so would you fight with us?”

Heard… from where? 

Oh, it must have been Sylus who told her. 

Sylus… If he were here, he’d be fighting these monsters off with ease, and the village would be safe. 

As for you, you’ve always remained on the sidelines, watching him from a distance and wondering whether you’ll ever get the chance to be like that. A warrior. Someone strong enough to protect the people and things she holds dear.

You’ve been waiting all these years for a chance to prove it. To prove that you’re strong enough, that you’re worthy, and that you belong here. 

And yet, in this moment, your thoughts are far from where they used to be. Your mind isn’t dwelling on how you can protect the village, or how you can repay the blood debt of your father. 

It’s him. Only him, and how much you want to see him again. 

So you sure as hell aren’t going to die here before he comes back from that expedition. 

“Yvette, leave it—” someone else begins to say, but you quickly interrupt them. 

“Let’s go,” you tell her, before turning around and facing the battlefield before you. Gripping your bow tightly in hand, you step forward, the fierce roars of the wanderer making your ears ring. 

Your free hand grasps the little charm still safe in your pocket — the one you had meant to give to him. 

Hopefully, it’ll keep you safe for now, until you get to see him again. 

[charrfie]

Who is Franky?

Do you have a tag on your blog that I can scroll through to get up to speed on the character you want asks about?

I would like to know what questions you have already answered so I don't ask a repeat question.

Giggling over what was (probably) your autocorrect referring to flaky as franky. Thank you so much for asking though.... I'm more than happy to explain!! And very appreciative that you're so eager to learn. Check under the read more, because as I've said before, you can't vaguely ask me "who/what is [character/interest] of yours" without expecting infodumping in return....

Flaky is a character from the show happy tree friends! If you're unfamiliar, this was an online series/serialized cartoon that debuted in late 1999 and is still ongoing in the present (though episodes are released at MUCH slower rate). There's not much to necessarily know about the show to understand it since it's fairly cut and dry; it's a shock horror series centered around cutesy cartoon animals being killed in extremely grotesque ways and then coming back totally fine the very next episode. And........ that's about it. There's no ongoing plot stringing it together, there's no interesting character commentary, no efforts to expand the worldbuilding at all, and there's only vague efforts to be coherent/avoid inconsistencies... but hey, fall out boy collaborated with the HTF team to make a music video, so that's something..

If I make the series seem incredibly uninteresting and bordering on obnoxious, it's mainly because it's not something I'd willingly recommend to anyone. Like. You genuinely should probably not watch this show if you didn't hop on the bandwagon of its popularity in the 2000s (<- something that only happened because of the online landscape's demand for excessively edgy media at the time). It's not worth your time and it's unlikely you'll take away anything meaningful from it, if not actively harmful. That being said, it unfortunately means something to me!!!!!!!! 5th grader laika was exposed to it far too early in their childhood and formed an extremely strange, convoluted relationship with the franchise!!!! I really do care about the characters in it.. deeply! Despite how I wouldn't recommend it to anyone else, of course ^^;; Granted, my personal interpretation of it is..... almost completely devoid of any of the original source's canon. Which has a lot to do with it..

Paragraphs in and I haven't even addressed who flaky is (ノ_<。) but I felt that the context was necessary. Flaky is a red porcupine that is mostly characterized by their debilitating anxiety. The writers of the show have a tendency of stereotyping and stigmatizing different mental/physical conditions for each character they create, but unfortunately I find a LOT of familiarity in flaky's affliction, which makes what was intended to be harmful into something I can find genuine solace in. This, of course, is not to say any of the other depictions in HTF are alright. There's some pretty heinous shit in there. But in flaky's case at least, I feel a lot of kinship with them. This goes for their gender weirdness too, as the ambiguity of it is an ongoing bit throughout the show. I get it!!!! Flaky is a character I relate and LOT to!!!!

As a result of how fear drives them most times, they're often characterized as a helpless and frightened vicitm in fan spaces..... though I would argue is not entirely correct...? Flaky is a very self destructive individual, but their terror also guides them in ways that inadvertently hurt others through means of prioritizing their own safety. I really do not see this talked about often enough, despite it being one of- if not my most- favorite traits of theirs. It's extremely compelling to analyze and factor into their every interaction. Their senseless paranoia even goes so far in one episode that they directly and INTENTIONALLY injure a loved one out of self preservation. And its completely brushed past by people?!?! I will never understand it!!!! Please understand I am not trying to convey that they are EVIL since they do mean well most times, but more nuanced than lots of folks would let on. Even if it wasn't intentional on the show creators' parts.

I have a couple other htf characters that I particularly enjoy exploring flaky's relationships with, namely flippy, flick (because the name fliqpy is stupid, I've decided to call him this), cuddles, giggles, sniffles, and nutty. Though of course, other relationships they've formed with unmentioned characters are compelling as well in their own right, such as their relationship with lifty and shifty.. it's just not something I tend to focus on as much.

After all of this, if you are, by any chance, interested in seeing flaky's character firsthand, you don't have to watch very many episodes to get a grasp of what's going on with them. I would recommend viewing the episodes without a hitch (<- BY FAR MY FAVORITE HTF EPISODE EVER MADE EVER.... SOOOOOO MUCH WONDERFUL CHARACTERIZATION HERE THAT WAS A TOTAL ACCIDENT ON THE CREATORS PART), party animal, water you wading for, and ski ya wouldn't wanna be ya. In that order! Happy trails part 2 is also pretty good for the few seconds they appear in it; it works pretty well for character symbolism, albeit unintentional. There ARE other episodes that accidentally impart some grander takeaway for their character which I would be happy to detail, but these cover the main bases.

Returning to the questions you asked at the very start though (and my apologies for not being more concise)...... you are free to ask any questions you would like about them n_n! It's not often that I get asks about flaky; I believe I've only gotten one or two in this blog's lifetime. Ask away! If you'd like to see what art I've posted of them, you can check #flaky htf. If you'd like to see other people's art of them that I've reblogged, check my #kin tag, and they should be sprinkled throughout it :^D

[notyourdad6y]

It's been so long,

Years have gone,

Since I belonged,

Hold me please,

Stay with me,

And I will sleep,

I will go now,

But I will be with you,

Hold my gaze,

Hold me inside you.

-

XSX

_

💕