#purely for when i travel

[hayaku14]

m23 was really just a whole kaishin date

[bookshelf-in-progress]

Most important thing to know before writing: What is the point of your story?

There are two parts to that question.

-What are the main story elements you want to feature? A certain character? A setting? A moment of the plot? A particular theme? Which elements are essential to the story you're trying to tell?

-What type of ending are you aiming toward? It doesn't have to be super-detailed, but knowing something about where the story is going is how you know you have a story and not just an image. Is the main character going to change/grow somehow? Learn the answer to a question? Accomplish a certain goal? Make a friend?

Defining those things before you start lets you know that your idea is a story, not just an image or a concept that won't go anywhere. It also gives you a core to base the story around and keeps you from going off-track.

As long as you have defined the essentials to the story and the general direction that you need the story to go in, everything else is negotiable. You have freedom to adjust the non-essentials and explore different possibilities as you discovery-write, so long as none of those non-essentials interfere with the point of the story. If it distracts from the main point, or turns the plot in a way that'll make it impossible to reach main point of the story, it needs to be discarded. Anything else will most likely enrich your story.

[thegreatyin]

giggling kicking my feet blushing madly

[hydrangeyes]

Brushing up on my writing through pit diving publicly into COTL:

- I have this AU (a solid one) called Death's Shepherd. I wanted to play with the idea that the Lamb has always had an affinity to death (as I have ideas on worldbuilding) even before the massacre/genocide.

- a pinch of death and violence (war), however, in this life, they have gone down the road of death. Obviously.

- This whole Au was going to be very picky with what was taken from canon, for example:

- was going to have it where the one who waits originally wasn't going to kill the lamb. That while it very much was a chance/option, I wanted to play into the info that he /was/ tampering with life and was planning to do a switch a roo of sorts. This still would have required the sacrifice of the lamb's followers, but the one who waits figures it was a price worth paying. The lamb.... not so much.

- speaking of the one who waits and a crown on two heads. After the one who waits is defeated, it is quickly noted (by some) that Narinders' soul is tainted due to his past research/experiments. As Death should have never brought life into the world.

- which is what I'm playing with. Resurrection is one thing (especially if the body and soul are still attached) but bring whole new lives, new souls into existence? Reconstructing spuls and willing them back into their past bodies? Mmmmmm yeah that has its reprocussions.

- I also wanted to play with the crown. Where whole yes, the lamb is the new death deity, the crown is the essence of death itself, like *trying to find the words* they just are. Idk how to explain it lol but yeah.

- everything else is fairly the same, tho I am cooking up having the goat be more involved main story wise.

- the goat becoming the new war deity (goats not as wiped out but damn are those numbers low, as when the hunt for lambs first started, alot of goats were either mistaken as lambs or were protecting them).

- anyway, this was based on an idea of the lamb having to navigate their new ascension; the nature of being a deity/what it means to be one; who can and can't be: of course, typical shipping mess (i guess, they'reboth a mess but like a puzzle piece and all that); the actual damage that happens when wiping out whole as DEITIES with no back up; and wanting to see how funny it would be if Narinder was force to be the Life deity rather than death (I have a whole thing about this)

- still tinkering with Nari's design and the Lamb's Names (They will have 2)

[drvwing]

omfg they killed him

[lyss-butterscotch]

How did the bond between Moon and Pebbles change before and after the big incident?

Before the incident, they never truly got to be siblings. Moon would be estatic to have Pebbles as a sibling and at this point feared messing up their relationship. 'I have someone to be my sibling now, someone i could talk to, i'm no longer alone in this life anymore'. So she's way too lenient and fussy over him, she overly worries about his feelings, doesn't correct him when he's acting out, and offered to do work if he thinks its too hard. Pebbles being on his stubborn phase would think Moon is too constraining with her attempts to bond and... underestimating him for not giving him adequate work. Which leads to him being distant, and their relationship remains professional despite Moon's attempts to bond.

After the collapse, Pebbles got ALOT of time to think about Moon's intentions. Sig confronting him helped him realize 'look how much she cares, shes not perfect, but you never gave her a chance' to add to the 'i caused her collapse' guilt. So the first thing in his mind when she wakes up again is 'make it up to her make it up to her make it up to her'. Moon on the other hand is freed from her can, she feels less constricted. Both in a 'im no longer stuck there' and 'i no longer feel alone since i can go meet new friends out here' way. Now its Pebbles' turn to be the fussy one out of obligation to repay his sin and fear of losing one of the only people who cares for him, even if it means getting subjected to her fussing. And along the way even if it took a while, they'd come to an understanding, set boundaries, and maybe Moon's liveliness rubbed off on Pebbles too and they can start building a more genuine sibling relationship.

[relic-seeker]

well then. the council has spoken; i drew a bunch of it just to get my ideas formed. here's my vessel oc duke's backstory simplified

they wandered off with said spider (oh it's a shame the wastes have made them forget his name) towards a land of the sun, moon & stars -- then residing in the moon queendom of shirigrove :-) with their two partners now.

nothing terrible will happen to them at all, of course not /sarcasm (they are tragic yuri sorry)

[invisiblesketches]

Update on me playing genshin: I'm at the Caribert quest thing and omg I dislike Eide so much

[ccaptain]

   ' ━Ah, so that's your brand new hiding place. '

   A pair of familiar, inadvisable shoes seemingly materializes out of thin air. There's a grin on the man's face as he bends down to eye level, red hues exploring the hiding space his stray snuck in and slowly turning on the side of incredulous concern.

   ' How in the hell did ya managed to get in here? You're taller than me, and almost as bulk, too! Only someone like Brother Hanu could get cramped in here, and even he... '

   They both know how. the Enigma doesn't answer him, limiting himself into quietly staring at his adoptive father as the playfulness in his voice disappears.

   ' One of these days, huh? ' A sigh. ' Come on- scoot over, 'm coming in. '

   There's a long pause. Kaeya doesn't move- but he resumes speaking, a tad on the side of incredulous.

   ' Dad... It's too big for both of us, We'll both be stuck if you come in. '

   ' That so? ' The man named Gallagher sighs with relief, chuckling in the same breath. ' Right. Would have been worth a shot, though- look who's speaking again. '

   It rips a chuckle out of him, for the way it always works- his dad is never afraid to do something scandalously funny to shock him out of overthinking. This includes trying to reach for him in a small, battered metal closet.

   Sometimes, it's just a thing that needs to be done.

   There's a can of something similiar to SoulGlad in violet-hued fingers, the comfortable silence, and his father's leg pressed against his as they sit with their backs on the wall. 

   A drop of condensation comes in contact with his thumb, unfelt. This is where Enigma breaks the silence.

   ' Dad... '

   He hesitates, a million questions in his mind. He picks the closest one, reels the others in.

   ' This feeling of emptiness... when will it stop? I thought it was going to go away on his own, but it never did. Never does. '

   There's an awry sound coming from his side. ' Hard to say, ' he starts, the movement that turns his face into a small grimace of sympathy. ' 'm kinda afraid that you put yourself into a bad situation, kid. '

   ' I did? '

   ' Yup. This... ' He gestures at Kaeya entirely, careful, ' avatar that you took, the one you told me belongs to your friend... you're really not supposed to do that. Take his looks, I mean- it just makes everything more complicated than it needs to be. Adds a whole lot of weight where there shouldn't be. Kinda jumbles everything that should be simple... ' 

   His dad trails off, irises taking on the looks of his stray without the irony shining in his eyes.

   ' You still haven't told me why ya picked him, out of all traits you could have taken. Of the amalgamate you coulda been. '

   No- no, he has not. The reason only makes sense in his brain, only tie together when Kaeya Alberich has been in the life of someone for a while. And Kaeya Alberich never got to know his father at all.

   His mouth opens, words lost. Impostor closes it, opens it again, shakes his head almost helplessly, the faint buzz of confusion starting behind his eyes before a warm hand ruffles his hair, stays in place over mussled cobalt locks.

   ' Don't sweat it, ' the man that is his father tells him, a lopsided grin on his face. ' As long as it makes sense to you, it's alright. You gotta solve this emptiness thing yourself- I can't help you much, here. '

   A few pats on his dusty behind, and his dad is up and going again. Kaeya shakes his head at the hand being offered to him, signaling that he'd like to be alone and in here a little longer.

   ' You gotta be glad we have a lotta time to think about stuff, no? 'is the last thing he tells Kaeya before he's out, leaving a wink and the bark of a laughter behind.

   and a cold can of soda, untouched.

   The hut is empty. There's nobody else but him, and the unheartly silence of the abandoned planet hs picked as his residence.

   Kaeya's digits follow the jagged edges of his newest wound, a gaping hole where pale diamond should be. The skin has been broken like porcelaine, long cobalt strands trying to hide the lack of eye and the emptiness where skull and human gore should be.

   Gray materia floats around his head, trying to recompose him and shoo his fingers, foreign, cold objects, away from the problem. But the wound is fresh, terribly big, and the effort requires an addictional component to speed up the healing factor. 

   The surviving eye is as faulty as the one he took from Kaeya Alberich: all he sees are shadows dancing out of his reach, the blurry, darkened form of the table, the chairs, the kitchenette and the items he so loves to decorate having become hostile obstacles he has to avoid.

   In the corner of the main room, there are two big tanks of the liquid coming from the Misty Sea- it's what he needs to fix the missing side of his head.

   It's what he needs. A few steps ahead, and he'll close his digits around the neck of one. Feel around the tab in the bathub, plug it in, and pour.

   Simple actions to restore himself.

   But he thinks. And thinks. And he can't do this.

   He can't do this.

   He just can't do this.

   He can't move. 

   But he has to.

   The next minutes, perhaps hours, perhaps days, are a blur. All he knows is that, when he comes to some sort of consciousness again, his fingers are still tight around the plastic neck of a much lighter tank, the smell of the restoring liquid is right under his nose. His location seems to have changed.

   Kaeya doesn't remember doing all this. All that he knows is that the ceramic of the bathub is so wonderfully cold and grounding against his warm, cracked skin, and he doesn't want to move. He has no will to, but something in his body has reacted to try and make him fix himself.

   But he can't do it. His legs feel like lead, like cement.

   He can't do it.

   He wants to.

   But he just can't do it.

   Triumph and progress feeds people with some sort of frenzy, an injection of adrenaline putting them on top of the world, wanting to shout to look at them! They can accomplish ANYTHING!

   But he isn't a person. It makes sense that the little energy he had after completing his mission has oozed out of him from the gaping wound.

   An injury won't kill him- simply slow him down. His dad and mentor said that he has all the time in the world to do what he needs and wants to do, figure out when the emptiness ends.

   Today, it doesn't. It presses him against the cold surface, and he's happy to allow his heavy body to surrender, letting his warmth disperse over it.

   He can stay like this for a bit. He did what he had to do, and now it's time for him to give in to exhaustion. Just for a little bit of time, just for a small nap.

   With the part of his forehead that can still feel, Kaeya curls against the side of cold marble, and lets his eyelid fall shut over the mocking of shadows dancing just out of his reach.

   Maybe the emptiness never goes away. But I can rest for a bit... just for a little bit... and then I'll be good to go.

   Just for a little bit...

[dutybcrne]

Forever love the idea of Khaenri'ahn eyes perpetually glowing in the dark. Esp bc of all the clownery that can ensue.

[sing-me-under]

Sometimes I like to think up scenarios where Bruce dies either shortly before or shortly after meeting Tim, and the entire focus is on years into the future (like present day comics) where the world just keeps going except Bruce Wayne is dead.

There’s still an earthquake. There is an entire city wrecked with grief that’s never quite stopped grieving. There’s no uber wealthy and influential Bruce Wayne, but there’s still an entire JL and many influential people who loved Bruce willing to help Gotham in his name at least. Life goes on.

Like, Jason still resurrected. He probably already resurrected and was just wandering Gotham or in a hospital by the time Bruce died. He comes back to Gotham fully aware that his dad is dead and just sticks to the underground, never interacting with the Gotham hero community.

Speaking of the Gotham hero community, it’s more disconnected without the bats. There’s still the Birds of Prey, of course there is, but the heroes who rose up inspired by Batman and Robin just never get that spark of surety and passion. Gotham itself just feels a bit more lifeless, a bit more hopeless, without a Batman and a Robin.

Maybe there is a Batman actually, but it’s usually someone else in the suit. Maybe it’s Nightwing trying to be Batman in that initial grief but giving up at the behest of his friends. Maybe he never returned to Gotham at all, absolutely refused to. This cursed city is the gravesite of four family members. Maybe it’s Superman in the bat suit once every few months or even one a year, making himself seen just enough to keep the urban legend alive. Maybe it’s someone else entirely. A different vigilante using the name but everyone knows they’re not really Batman.

But there’s definitely no more Robins. No one thinks of the second Robin and aspires to his fate. Maybe Tim temporarily takes on the Robin mantle, but the weight is too heavy and he makes a different name for himself. Maybe he tried to reach Dick and bring him back to Gotham, but he never succeeded in convincing anyone. Maybe he went straight to Bruce a la fanon and tried to help, but he couldn’t.

I had this one idea where Bruce saw this scrawny boarding school kid with a whole lot of spark and the exact same vision for Gotham’s future, and instead of letting him be Robin at Alfred’s behest and with Dick’s acknowledgement, he instead decided “when this kid is old enough, I want him to be my successor.” and he starts teaching Tim the basics. He already failed Dick and Jason, so he resolved to not let Tim be an active vigilante until he’s 18. He fucking dies anyway but leaves a will and instructions for Tim to basically learn from the same teachers when he’s of age, but Tim’s mom dies and his dad is comatose so Tim goes “Fuck It. Gotham needs me now” and drops out and speedruns his world tour way earlier than Bruce would have wanted.

There’s still Damian, somewhere. Maybe Talia drops him off with Dick when it’s apparent she can’t protect Damian in the League, not from its cruelties and certainly not from her father. Nightwing is unobtrusive to the grand scheme of the LoA. Talia may not like Dick, may have been frequently at odds with him during his Robin days when a family with Bruce seemed like it was in the palm of her hand, but she trusts him, unfortunately. He was loyal to Bruce, at least, despite all their disagreements and domestic hostilities. Dick looks at Damian and thinks “I’m the same age Bruce was when he took me in. Damian is the same age I was. I can’t do this, but damn it all if I don’t try” and the regret fills him and he’s doing everything not to drown in it.

But there’s still Cass somewhere, probably with Barbara. There’s still Helena and Stephanie and Duke and the kids who became Robins in another timeline but choose a different name to rally under here, if they take up arms at all.

At least without Batman, there’s no Joker. He went down in that helicopter over the Atlantic Ocean and never showed his face again.

Regardless, this world is just a little more worse for wear, a little more tired and weary. This is a world where Batman dies, not with a bang but with a sizzle, and he doesn’t come back. No one is sure if he’d even want to.

[torgawl]

it's been like 3 hours and i can't stop thinking about xiao and aether. you guys don't get it. it's the way the heart in qixing is likely referring to aether. it's because aether dedicated his poem and his dreams to xiao. it's because xiao smiled when he heard it. it's the way he's always looking out for aether. it's because even though everything was okay xiao made the effort to be vocal about how worried he was when aether pretended to drown. it's because aether is the only person capapable of persuading xiao, to the point others are aware he would do anything for him only and use it to convince him every chance they get. it's because aether is the only person capable of relieving the pain of xiao's karmic debt, not because of his powers but solely by being a part of xiao's life. it's because during the lantern rite instead of looking at the sky xiao looks at aether. it's because everytime they're together everyone else always comments about how close and fond of each other they are. it's because xiao is the only character aether is able to have alone time with without paimon. it's because as long as aether says his name xiao will always answer his call.

[didnt-hear-idsb-live-again]

God I’m so fucking miserable

[mpregspn]

what's a good sam heavy episode to watch today

[blujayonthewing]

reflecting on how all of my other DMs have gone above and beyond to lovingly weave my and my friends' backstory elements into the larger worldbuilding of the campaign by contrast to all of the ways Elyss' DM has gone out of his way to suppress or excise any influences her family may have ever had on anything and I'm genuinely near tears over it

[hudbannonarchive]

they just don’t make movies about people being sent 20-30 years into the past anymore