#random dra rambling

[drathe]

Friends, you can also find me on BlueSky!

I want to throw some spicy art there since tumblr doesn't like spicy plus more random rambling

[laugtherhyena]

I need to have ibis taken away from me so that i stop expanding Ayame's family tree-

Quite literally the most random thing ever, at one point earlier this week i remembered this throwaway from Asoot's puppetmaster arc at the scene where Akane goes to spend the night at Ayame's house;

This was, obviously, done because back then none of us had any ideas let alone designs and character traits for Ayame's family, hence the need for an excuse to why they're not present.

Cut to present year where i went and made characters for her parents and thought back to this line like "Hey i should make that", since i wrote Bashira as a single child that means this is an aunt from Ippei's side of the family; Mai Hatano!

And hey i was actually nice this time around so she's actually alive post-tragedy :] so here's some general info on her:

-She's 9 years younger than Ippei, the parents were going through a rocky part of their relationship and the mom thought maybe having another kid could save their marriage but it really only made everything worse and the husband left around the time Mai was turning 2 years old.

-The deal is that the father as some kind of businessman that was having an affair with a coworker and would excuse him coming up late or not even back home by saying he was piled up with work and blaming the wife or being “insensitive about his efforts”, but she knew he was bullshitting and could tell he had someone else. So again, she thought maybe if they had another kid that would fix things but it only led to somewhat constantly arguing for over an year until he left with his lover and cut contact with the rest of the family.

-This ties into why later in life Ippei choose financial stability over following his music career, the family struggled quite a bit over the years with just the mom and two kids, they had to move a few times and Ippei even got his job as a waiter during his mid to late teens to help out with money. I guess this also ties into why he and Bashira planned so much to have Ayame, i think his parents married pretty young and inexperienced so he wanted to avoid that and have a normal family.

-On Mai’s side she felt like she was at fault for “ruining her parent's marriage” for a good chunk of her childhood and early adolescence. She's over that as an adult, though it did lead to her avoiding serious relationships with anyone though most of her life. At most she's had some flings/one night stands, but never a proper boyfriend or anything official.

-On top of that Mai is generally pretty bad at dealing with emotions, both of other people and her own. She has no idea how to comfort anyone or help when they're in some emotional turmoil or need someone to vent to, so oftentimes she is kinda just changes the subject or gives a pretty standard response of like “Damn that sucks” before doing so and proceeds to ignore the issue as in sorta of a “forget about it” way. (As you can probably guess, she's not the one to show her hurt to others for a similar reason. When she received the news that her brother and his family had died she didn't express much of a reaction at all at the foundation and only cried when she was back home because she did genuinely care for them, though her odd reaction gave the impression to some coworkers that this wasn't the case.)

-She is a very stubborn person so she doesn't talk to people about this problem of hers, much less seek help when it comes to it because the fact that she can't truly help the people she cares for when they need emotional support really hurts her so she'd rather ignore and forget than deal with her lack of abilities in the area. 

-Stubbornness and ignorance are notably her most negative traits (“I was never taught and I will not learn” sorta thing). This extends to circumstances other than her loved ones emotional needs because a lot of the time she will be dismissive or ignorant about certain things solely because they don't affect her directly nor anyone she cares for.

-That being said, she is very outwardly nice and shows care to others. Very chatty and outgoing, pretty much the opposite of her brother and niece since she can talk to people very easily. She's on good terms with pretty much everyone from Tsurugi's division and talks quite frequently to other foundation workers as well. Though she is rather blunt and says whatever comes to her mind at any given moment.

-Before the tragedy she worked as a personal bodyguard in Towa city, this busy and sometimes dangerous lifestyle led to her distancing herself from her brother a lot as they grew older. It wasn't anything intentional, just life bringing them in separate ways so while she did love her brother and his family a lot they didn't see each other super often, it was mostly during holidays, funerals or events like some of Ayame’s competitions or similar situations. This became one of her biggest regrets late in life as she wishes she could have spent more time with them.

-She broke her arm pretty badly when a client was getting ambushed and was set to stay out of business until recovered. Once she was dispatched from the hospital Ippei and Bashira came to drive her home and help her settle back, alongside doing some catching-up. That was the last time they saw each other.

-When the tragedy broke out she became stranded in Towa city because of all the chaos and the Warriors of hope hunting down the adults. Her arm was still broken then, but Mai is a rather reckless person and went around fighting despairs and rescuing other citizens in spite of her injury, which led to her injured arm getting broken and slashed in many other places which then led her developing a nasty infection that she just kept fighting on her own for months until she and a group of adults managed to leave the city.

-She was brought to a hospital pretty much immediately after by the group's leader and by that point she pretty much couldn't feel or move her hand anymore and the whole area around her arm gave her immense pain. When she started getting treated the staff tried to contact any family member which led to them contacting the Kisaragi foundation and upon informing them that she was in their care Rei requested that Mai should be moved to the foundation’s hospital facility, which was where she stayed for the majority of her recovery.

-There wasn't much Hikaru or any of the medical scaff could do to save her injured arm so she had to have it amputated to avoid further spread of infection, but at this point Mai couldn't even think much about the fact and just told them to do whatever it takes to make the pain stop. On top of losing her arm, she also became prone to infections out of how bad hers was.

-It was when she was recovering from surgery that Tsurugi came to speak to her, he apologized for the foundation taking so long to rescue her, alongside informing her how the place functions and most importantly letting Mai know that her brother and his family had died. It was only after he left that the weight of this information and everything Mai had gone settled in and, for the first time ever since the tragedy started, she cried.

-The thing is that unlike her brother, an overthinker who thinks ahead and carefully plans everything in life, Mai tends to throw herself into things head on just hoping that it will all work out in the end and while she's going through things she doesn't stop to think much about the details until it's over. So it was only as she was recovering in the hospital that she thought about everything she had gone through, everything she had lost, and for once tried to think of what her next course of action should be while going through these feelings.

-That being said, she never fell into a depression or took the loss as hard as someone like Keisuke did because that's just not the kind of person Mai is. Somewhat similar to her ignorant demeanor, her way of dealing with grief is mainly by occupying her mind with other things, like going places she enjoys or focusing on training and work. The last one being the reason she joined Tsurugi's division pretty much immediately after being dispatched from the medbay.

-Mai’s an action woman! She has a lot of energy and loves getting into fights, especially if it is to protect others, so it's no surprise she joined his division and not Rei’s or Teruya's. But when it comes to Tsurugi's ideals Mai is by no means a follower, she thinks he's insane, way too radical, but so far his black and white mortality hasn't affected her or anyone she cares for directly so she turns a blind eye to it, this is the guy who pays her after all. (This does change post Sdra2, especially after Keisuke almost shoots Midori)

-She was assigned to be in charge of the new members basic physical combat and self defense training, especially for those like Ryutaro and Keisuke who had no experience in this line of work before. This is part of how she ended up becoming a close friend of theirs, though Mai tends to treat Ryutaro (and Midori by extension) more like younger siblings rather than coworkers.

-The foundation provides her a prosthetic for use only during missions (by Tsurugi's orders). Mai doesn't mind that since she doesn't actually like having the prosthetic on, it feels more like a trouble to put on and use than it's worth, she much prefers not having one at all.

-On a similar vein, Mai isn't a fan of the work uniform, she finds it way too stuffy and clunky so she only puts it on right before going on a mission, alongside the prosthetic arm. Tsurugi doesn't take that well, as he sees it as Mai not taking work as seriously as she should, but she is one of his best soldiers so he refrains from picking up on her.

-Onto some more miscellaneous information. Mai’s apartment is rather disorganized and messy, but for her it’s fine because she knows where everything is, even if it's not in the right place per say. Bashira used to jokingly pick up on her over it.

-She’s also a pretty bad cook, can only really pull off simple meals which is why she's a huge fan of takeout and fast food in general.

-Back in Ippei's late teens/early 20s she was the one to keep pushing him to take initiative and ask out Bashira, though that help absolutely came alongside teasing her brother for being so shy.

-They were really close then, Ippei would even pick her up from school everyday n all. This strong care stayed strong over the years even after they started seeing each other less and less after moving out of their childhood home, and even less after their mother passed away from old age sometime around the late 2000s.

-She never spent much time with Ayame but oftentimes when she would feel self conscious about her lack of femininity her parents would mention how she's just like her aunt on that aspect

-Mai has her brother's collection of music vinyls at her place, she's not the biggest fan of classical music, but listening to it reminds her of him.

[hdra77]

Ok since this blog is kinda getting alot of attention i'll just make a pinned post about a little bit of myself

----

interested in commissioning me? my art commission page can be found here! (my commissions are closed )

i accept payment through ko-fi or paypal! feel free to dm to inquire or if you have questions! :D

!! DISCLAIMER !!

Btw please read this before following my blog!! There would be gore,body horror,dark themes and even some suggestive themes Sometimes but overall i do not post any explicit nsfw here !! (they can be filtered through tags but just putting this here as a heads up)

tags are usually: #cw body horror, #tw body horror #cw gore, #tw gore, #cw suggestive, #tw suggestive

Heyy! i'm Soren!

He/Him

You can call me zarou or dra

I am bilingual but im more comfortable speaking in english (still bad at it actually)

i really like cybercore,webcore,warcore aesthetic it may not look like it right now but expect a whole bunch of techcore designs soon

Oh and i am also a huge fan of astronomy,space and all of that sort. Along with post apocalyptic settings,body horror elements and eldritch beings.

Using my art as PFPs/Banners is okay! As long as you give proper credit! But reuploading my works without my permission or claiming them as your own is NOT okay. I will find you and i will hunt you down and turn you into a helpless flopping fish gasping for air.

Inspirations is ok too!! But please do not directly copy from the original work.

Commissions: closed

Art trades: friends/mutuals only

My socials:

Twitter - HINDRANCE77 (!! page contains some suggestive themes !!)

Youtube - HINDRANCE77

Tumblr - hdra77 (you are literally here right now)

Ko-fi - HINDRANCE77

Bluesky - HINDRANCE77

My tags:

#hdra7shitposts - yes, shitposts

#fishdoesart - all my art goes here

#fishdoesdoodles - random doodles and some occasional shitposting, mostly on ms paint

#fishdoesrequests - all my art requests goes here

#wips - wips

#fishbites.txt - ramblings

#other's art - gifts/fanarts! with a mix of some reblogs

#asks - all of my responses goes here

AU TAGS:

Metamorphosis AU

(Tag: #nine sols metamorphosis AU)

- AU masterpost(tba)

- metamorphosis Yi design

Disarray/critical system failure AU

(Tag: #rw disarray au)

- AU masterpost (tba)

- designs

Rainsols AU

(Tag: rainsols au)

- AU masterpost

- designs

OC tags:

Mains:

#7c dystopian arbitrary

#oc : Eclipsed Pantheons

#oc : nine burning skies / #BoP : nine burning skies

#oc : frosted paths unwoven

#rw chronomancer

#rw the cryptid

#7c golden life

General oc tags:

#rw ocs

#rw oc

#ocs

my DNI are basically the general DNI: proshippers,homophobes,etc. you know, the general

my interest varies but i currently hyperfixtate on these fandoms so far:

Rainworld

Nine Sols

Marikinonline4

Animator vs Animation/Animation vs Minecraft

Warrior cats

My dms here are also open so feel free to send me a message! (No weird dms or you get instant block)

Im busy and i dont check discord as frequently but i would be happy to talk to you! I would also be glad to make friends im not intimidating i promise i dont bite totally-

My ask box are always open! Ask me anything basically, my aus, ocs, pretty much anything. You can also send some requests but they will take a gajillion years to finish but i promise ill get them done soon!

My other blogs:

@nyaworld-askblog - for the nyaworld au! this blog is story driven but asks for specific characters are always welcome!

My Rainworld AU tags:

#rw voided au - simple AU about iterators called voideds who drains void fluids out of other iterators, theres also some rot infection going on too

#rw disarray au/SYSTEM FAILURE - a virus in Lttm's code had created a fatal error in her system which caused her to slowly spiral into insanity as she would slowly loosen her grip onto reality, claiming that she had found the solution to their problem..but was it really the answer all along?

#rw nyaworld au - joke au about the entire rainworld cast taking place in the 2000's this one is purely just for nostalgia purposes

#into the sigverse - technically considered an au. this is just a silly little askblog about different versions of NSH interacting because for some reason they can now magically interact with different alternate universe versions of themselves. ocs being used to interact is allowed to!! anyone can use this tag however they please you don't have to send me asks to be a part of the sigverse

-- still WIP --

[i-cant-stop-fandoming-help]

Intro Post

2024 wahooo...............

Name; Mika

nicknames; uhhh idk.

Titles i have given myself; Another series lorekeeper/drasdra2 lorekeeper, ceo of rei mekaru angst, ceo of chubee garcia angst, local woman liker

Pronouns; She/he/they

Sexuality: uhhh i consider myself to be a lesbian.

Side-blog or whatever; @the-church-of-rei-mekaru

AUs; The Embrace of a Weeping Willow, M:SS fantasy au, and the warrior cats au.

Interests; DRA/SDRA2, DRDT, M:SS, other fangans, How to train your dragon, warrior cats, and wings of fire.

things i do; writing and art. and also just rambling in random posts.

Tags that may be used in a fic so you can blacklist them; tw suicide, tw death, tw pregnancy.

^will add more tws to that if i post a fic and somebody asks a tw for something.

Tags for ships i may post about so you can blacklist them; Terurei, Tsurei(as a divorced couple), Ayakane, Kiyozuna, Kinjomae, Satsurei, reihiko, kakenata, Satsuhiko

^theres also kinji x kakeru x yuki but idk the ship name for that.

Characters I really like; Rei mekaru, Mikako Kurokawa, Astrid Hofferson, Kasumi Izumo(DRRB), Misuzu Aisaka(DRRB), Teruko Tawaki, Aloiki Kahale(M:SS), Chubee Garcia(M:SS), and Ayumu Fujimori(DRRB)

Uhhh DNI; the basics. and also if youre a proshipper. please and thank you it makes me genuinely uncomfortable.

Also, i feel like i should clarify this; I do not have much care for what you ship as long as it isnt incest-y, illegal, or abusive. If i'm uncomfortable with a ship, i'll say it. I'm not going to say a ship I dont like is a "proship" because. eh. its not. BUT. Dude please just respect this boundary. I dont feel like im asking for much. I just want boundaries to be respected online. PLEASE.

ships i do not like; Uhhh. uhhhhh. hajime x emma. idk why i dont like it i just dont. I have strong opinions about akane x utsuro, and i bear a strong hatred towards it. If writing for it for a request or something, i will portray it as unhealthy and toxic. i do not remember any other ships but i will update if/when i do.

I think thats all? uhhhhhhh i should get back to writing my lesbian fic now.

oh wait i also have stupid little tags i think. Mika rambles and Mikas art. and mika does a thing.

Also also, if i unfollow/soft block you, you can ask why. Most often it could be because somethin was said or reblogged that made me feel uncomfortable somehow. I am trying really hard to not get uncomfortable so easily, but i if i get extremely uncomfortable, i tend to get somewhat of a sinking feeling in my stomach? I guess? I dont onow how to describe it, but i feel really off.

Also, for mooties n stuff, please tag posts about religion with #religion ? I have the tag blacklisted as things about religion are discomforts.

[danganronpafan777]

DRA Boys with S/o bruised by their giant doggo

A/n: Yeah, I know this is random, but sometimes I write random crap and scenarios that nobody asked for. Please don’t roast my writing too hard 😅

Tsurugi Kinjo:

When he saw the bruises, he was immediately pissed, mentally preparing to either arrest someone or tell you off if it was an accident

He wasted no time demanding what happened

"Oh, this? It was my dog, he was just happy to see me!"

He...was not expecting that answer

"..? I see, be more careful next time." He relaxes knowing that no one had intentionally hurt you.

He'll get you an ice pack and help you if it's more severe

You mainly use it as an excuse to get cuddles from him

DRA Teruya Otori:

"Y-Y/n!? Are ya okay!? Who did thi' te ya!?" He cries out, breaking into a heavier accent in shock. He immediately runs over to you and holds you.

"I-I'm sorry tha' I couldn't protect ya! Does thi' hurt-"

"Teruya! I'm okay, it was just D/n." You rub his back, noticing him tear up a bit. If you were dating, he definitely knew your dog by now. He immediately calms down, but feels a bit embarrassed.

"Oh. Sorry, Y/n. I guess I overreacted a bit." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I'm glad I have a boyfriend who cares so much." You reply, kissing him on the cheek. He stammered out an incoherent response, trying to hide his growing blush.

Kakeru Yamaguchi:

He is also immediately worried.

"Y/n! W-Who did this!? What happened!" He cries out. He overthinks about anything or anyone that could have caused this. You were so nice, what could've happened!? Did HE do that to you without realizing!?

You were quick to explain everything to him and he sighs in relief. He'll never admit it, but one of his biggest fears is hurting or scaring you due to his strength and appearance.

In the end, you're the one comforting him, but you don't mind! He also asks if he can meet your doggo sometime.

Yamato Kisaragi:

He wastes no time running over to you, and rapidly asking questions and rambling.

"Y/Nohmygoshareyouokaywhodidthistoyou-"

"Yamato! I'm fine, it was just my dog!" His eyes widen in response before he goes,

"You have a dog!? Why haven't you told me!?" He quickly insists on kissing your bruises, gets you an ice pack, and walks you home. You believe it was just as much as an act of his kindness as it was an excuse to meet your dog.

Him and your dog become bffs.

Utsuro:

He doesn't really make a big deal out of it. He doesn't talk much, so in the middle of your mostly one sided conversation he goes,

"What happened?" Motioning to the bruise.

You explain what happened to him and he just nods. He isn't very worried, since he knows that nothing is going to happen to you, and his appearance alone can scare away anyone who dares to mess with you.

Thanks to his luck, the bruise heals rather quickly, but he'll still get an ice pack if you say that it's painful.

Kinji Uehara:

He doesn't make a big deal out of it, but is still concerned over what could have happened.

"Y/n, you have a bruise. Are you alright? Are you in pain?"

"Hm? Oh! I'm fine, don't worry, babe! It was just my dog." He lightly blushes a bit at the pet name, but accepts your answer.

"I see. Would you like an ice pack, dear? I suggest you be more careful when handling your dog."

He'll lightly kiss it before bringing you the ice pack. Look who's blushing now-

Haruhiko Kobashikawa:

Immediatly freaks out, not as loudly as Yamato, but he still keeps asking,

"Y/n! You're hurt! Who did this!?"

After diminishing his fears and explaining, he’ll happily kiss your bruises. He jokingly says that if someone ever hurt you then he wouldn’t hesitate to beat him up, to which you respond that his ass would get handed to him.

“Hey! I’m not that weak!” He pouts. You nuzzle his neck and he kisses you.

He’ll get you an ice pack and be sure you’re okay. There’s also a chance he’ll “check you for other bruising” Dude you ain’t slick-

Mitch Higa:

“Woah! Y/n, what happened to your arm!?”

Without even meaning to, he attracts literally the entire class’s attention. Even if you and his classmates have gotten him to be less self absorbed, the habit of attracting attention everywhere dies hard.

He does get pretty pissed off at whoever could’ve done this, but he relaxes when you explain that it’s just from big doggo. He wouldn’t make a big deal of it after that.

He’d also ask to meet your dog and would become bffs with them.

DRA Yuki Maeda:

Like Haruhiko, he’s quick to be worried, but is gentle in his approach. He tries not to make you uncomfortable or draw attention.

“Y/n, are you alright. Your arm is bruised, what happened?”

He is still relieved when you explain what happened. He’ll bring you an ice pack and will kiss your bruises if you ask him to. He’ll also shyly ask if he could meet your dog.

With his luck, there’s a chance your dog will bruise him too

[enquire]

Hello! This is my blog where I like to post art and share thoughts on the things I enjoy. I am definitely going to ramble and post random and niche stuff at unknown intervals. Whatever interests me, which may or may not be relevant to anyone else. For the foreseeable future, this blog is probably going to be DRA focused. Because having a special interest in something smaller means you gotta take things into your own hands /silly

about me

they/them || adult || ND and NB

Here's my tags:

enquire hypotheses speculation/theories

enquire status updates/info about this blog/off topic

enquire analysis critique/dissection/rambling/thoughts

enquire art drawings and artwork

enquire ??? misc, weird posts, & other chaos

enquire answers replies to asks

enquire's dra ponies my ongoing DRA/MLP AU project (all of these are tagged on this post)

Reblogs can be found here: @quxinere where you may find more evidence of my other interests.

[zorasapphires]

actually can I ask how many of my few followers want me to tag dra /gon age or da spoilers in my text rambles for any reason? I do it for you but if no one cares I won't do it because I don't want randoms in my notes ha

[secretgarden02]

Random rambles about crossover

Something something about DRA/SDRA2 x Kingdom Hearts concept with Heartless/Nobody ft. Yuki and Sora + Utsuro and Akane....

Yuki being the real person, Utsuro perhaps being his heartless being while “Yuki” (fake Yuki) being his nobody

Akane being the real person, Sora being her nobody and Yuki!Sora being her heartless (??? a bit unsure about this one since I kinda imagine them being in similiar position like Xion does, being the mix part of Yuki and Sora)

[lonelypond]

Jingle Bell Jazz, Chapter 8

Love live, NicoMaki, 3.5K, 8/?

Summary: Maki crashes a party, Nico sings a duet, and then they chat.

Chapter 8

Maki stormed out, hearing the door slam behind her, wondering briefly if the frosted glass would break, but who cared. She could pay to have all of the doors in the school replaced if they could be barriers between her and the weight of the flighty flirty touchy songstress that still burned across her shoulders. Maki shrugged into her coat, raced down the corridor, slowing in front of the usual 𝜇’s practice room where she could hear a drummer struggling. Distracted from her Nico ranting by concern for a friend, she opened the door to see Honoka sitting behind her drum kit, concentrating so hard the ginger didn’t notice when the door opened.

“Are you okay, Honoka?” Maki asked.

Honoka skipped in her seat, drumsticks skittering across the skin of the snare, “Maki! You have to help me.”

Maki sighed, but looking into Honoka’s earnest blue eyes she couldn’t do anything but roll her eyes and nod as she asked. “What is it?”

“Can you arrange that really cool Jingle Silver Bell medley you were playing for us? I want to play it at the Twelve Days of Christmas concert.”

“Sure. That’s easy.”

“And Tsubasa invited me to this party to meet people but Umi’s taking Kotori to dinner with her parents and won’t cancel so I don’t have anyone to go with me and I’m super nervous. Will you come with me, Maki? Please. Tsubasa’s going to introduce me to people and I’m afraid I’ll just…”

Do this, Maki thought to herself as her friend kept rambling, but her response was mild. “Yes, Honoka, I will go to the party with you. But I’m only going to stay for a little while.”

“That’s okay, Maki. Once I start talking to Tsubasa I’ll be fine. She doesn’t spook me.” The ginger haired drummer put her sticks in her coat pocket as she prepared to leave.

Maki frowned. No Tsubasa didn’t spook people, she charmed people, offered them jobs and trips to Europe. She had a sudden vivid image of Nico looking at Tsubasa with shining eyes.

“Maki?”

Maki shook her head, clearing out that thought. “So where is this party?”

###

Find the temperamental redhead, Nico told herself. Figure out what had gone so wrong? Had she really been that upset about Nico..leaning...might it be considered hugging? Nico wasn’t sure. But Nico hadn’t meant anything...bad...or was Maki that upset about the camera? And Nozomi’s silly comments making the ‘pretty pianist” uncomfortable. And Maki was pretty, Nico admitted, so maybe Maki thought Nico was just using her even more? Nico had her head down, frowning as she tried to glean clues from remembered conversations with Maki and nearly walked into a very polished pair of black and white heels. She glanced up, meeting Tsubasa’s amused green eyes.

“I was just looking for you, Nico. And here you are.”

Nico chuckled, professional mode snapped in, “Nico’s lucky day.”

Tsubasa grinned, “Always a charmer. I like that about you.”

“Me too.” Nico slid her arm through Tsubasa’s. No jumping, complaining, or twitching. So it wasn’t like something about Nico had suddenly started driving cute girls away.

“There’s a party. I want you to meet people.” Tsubasa continued, “And your dress is just right for the mood.”

“Nico is always ready for anything.”

“I like that about you too.” Tsubasa put her hand over Nico’s, “Shall we go?”

###

Very silly party, Maki thought. The people were overdressed, stiff, there was only champagne circulating, with food later maybe. Honoka hadn’t been happy about that. Neither of them had seen Tsubasa yet in any of the rooms in this mansion that was smaller and less elegant than her home.

“Ooh, I see her, and there’s Nico!” Honoka waved, but at no response, started across the room. Maki started forward, then fell back several steps as she watched Nico interacting with the crowd around her, crimson sash moved from her waist to her shoulders, gesturing with her champagne glass as Tsubasa stood next to her, arms crossed, deep in conversation with an older gentleman. The band leader broke it off when she noticed Honoka crossing the room and tapped Nico on the arm and pointed. Nico waved in Honoka’s direction and the drummer picked up speed at the encouragement. Now that Honoka was nearing her ‘safe haven’ Maki could make her way out of the party and figure out where to get dinner. She turned and headed in the opposite direction from Honoka.

“Maki Nishikino?” A somewhat familiar voice called out her name. She turned to see an old friend of her parents.

Manners kicked in. “Hello, Mrs. Thomas. How are you?”

“I’m fine. Merry Christmas to you, Maki. Are your parents with you?”

Maki shook her head, “No. I brought a friend here. She was meeting someone.”

“Well, tell your mother and father I said hello.” Helena Thomas smiled at the awkward child she’d seen grow up into such a poised young woman.

“MAKI!” Someone grabbed at Maki’s sleeve. She glanced down. Nico, eyes bright and...Maki leaned in to look closer, very unfocused. Nico seemed caught on her arm, but also very unsteady so Maki resisted the urge to shake her off.

“I’ll leave you to your friend.” Mrs. Thomas smiled knowingly at Maki, but Maki wasn’t sure what could be deduced from Nico hanging from her elbow...tipsily.

“You’re tall. Have you always been tall?” Nico’s eyes were wide as she pulled herself completely upright and detached from Maki’s arm.

“Since 16.”

Nico shook her head very seriously, “No, Nico would have remembered if you were this tall.” Nico tilted her head to the side, taking her time to take a good look at Maki’s skirt, “That’s a lot of leg? How do you fit them under the piano....oh right, you’re usually only a little taller than the piano.” Somehow Nico had lugged them into a corner and now Maki was finding herself falling into a chair, “You’re usually here.” Nico leaned in, her breath warm with sharp and fruity champagne notes. How much had she had to drink? Had Tsubasa just brought her to get her inebriated? Maki felt her fist clench, but then the small sparks of light reflected in the dark red hard candy of Nico’s eyes distracted her as Nico continued.

“Nico likes you better here. I can see your eyes.”

Maki froze, again. Nico said so many things that just stopped her cold. It would be a relief when Nico was off…

That train of thought was derailed when Nico drew herself to her full, definitely questionable height, and blew out a breath.

“Nico was looking for Maki.”

“Here? How could you have...Honoka just dra…”

“No,” Nico shook her head very seriously, which seemed to make her balance unsteady. Maki reached out a hand to steady the smaller woman at the waist, which Nico then leaned into. “After you left, Maki. In a huff. Remember?”

Maki nodded.

Nico angled closer. “Nico needed to apologize. Maki probably thinks…” Another warm champagne laden breath directly in Maki’s now watering eyes, “Nico is just using her because Maki’s so TALL and pretty but Nico just wanted a good shot to remember….when Maki goes back to being a longhair,” Both Nico’s hands were on Maki’s tie, tightening it, and Maki looked up and Nico was right there and...Maki stood, forcing Nico back. “Sorry.” Nico muttered as she let her hands drop. Maki reached up to loosen the tie.

Nico put a hand on Maki’s shoulder again, drawing the pianist’s attention down, voice sorrowful. “Nico thought maybe Maki might want to start over.”

Maki had no idea what Nico meant, watching warily to see what the mood shifting songbird’s next move would be.

Nico stepped back, lowered her head, paused for a minute and then strode forward, eyes sparkling, lips in a broad grin that Maki had started seeing in random moments behind closed eyelids, “Nico Nico Ni, Nico Yazawa, number one singer in the universe” Nico extended a hand, “Nico hears from her friend Umi that you, Maki, are the best pianist in New York City.”

Maki took Nico’s hand. It was so warm and seemed to meld itself to Maki’s, which made her bolder somehow. Or was it second hand champagne? “Umi is very modest on my behalf. I am at the very least, the best pianist in the galaxy.”

Nico giggled, “Nice to meet you Maki Nishikino. Maybe you can play me something sometime.”

And then Nico wobbled again and Maki again found her arm around the smaller woman’s waist, guiding her to the chair, “How much have you had to drink?”

Nico shrugged, “A couple of glasses. Nothing Nico can’t handle.”

“Have you had anything to eat?”

“Not since breakfast.”

“”You’re probably starved.”

“Nico could use a…” Nico stared around her at trays of especially unappetizing chunks of not really food. “something on a cracker.” Nico groaned, “You’re a rich people, why don’t rich people have proper food at their parties. Nico should have asked Tsubasa if there would be dinner.”

Maki sniffed dismissively at Tsubasa’s name, “If I took a girl to a party like this, I’d feed her before she drank herself silly.”

Nico stared at Maki, blinking her long eyelashes, considering Maki’s statement. Maki wondered if the crimson eyed crooner was going to take offense but her tone was bemused curiosity. “Do you take girls to parties?”

“Um...I haven’t...I mean... I could...If I did, I mean...there would definitely be...Or we could go to a restaurant or….”

Nico’s laugh was shrill but not unkind, “If you took Nico to White Castle, you’d just complain when Nico ordered a milkshake with her onions. And burger.” Nico sounded very serious about the burger.

Maki shook her head, managing a lazy wink. “Not true. If it’s chocolate, I’m dipping my fries.”

“Deal.” Nico stood up, sliding her arm through Maki’s and pleased when the taller girl only tensed slightly, “Let’s go” Nico paused and wrapped her lips and voice around the next two syllables so silkily that it was probably going to haunt Maki’s dreams forever “Ma-ki.”

But then, the world intruded back.

“Nico!” Tsubasa’s polished, practiced smooth invaded Maki’s Nico moment.

Nico tilted back, letting Maki carry most of her not weight, “Tsubasa. Hi! I found Maki.”

Tsubasa acknowledged Maki with a brief head tilt. “Let’s sing. Someone requested “Fly Me To The Moon.” Let’s make it a duet. The piano’s over here.”

“I don’t know the music.” Maki said.

Tsubasa stared for a moment, then smiled, “Oh no need, I’ve got this. Come on, Nico.”

Nico hung there for a second, her glance flashing to Maki’s face and Maki knew she hadn’t hid her disappointment.

“Nico is on her way to another party.” Nico righted herself, still a little unsteady, Maki had to stop herself from grabbing for Nico’s waist again, “But I have time for one song…” soft, sweet eyes caught Maki’s and the pianist nodded, “So let’s liven up this joint.”

Tsubasa swung into “Fly Me To The Moon” and Nico lost any visible symptoms of unsteadiness. She grabbed the sash at her shoulders and started playing with it as she opened her arms to the audience. And then her voice hit that spot that captured all of Maki’s senses, flirtatious and sure and sensual.

"Fly me to the moon Let me play among the stars And let me see what spring is like On a, Jupiter and Mars In other words, hold my hand In other words, baby, kiss me

Fill my heart with song And let me sing forevermore You are all I long for All I worship and adore In other words, please be true In other words, I love you"

It wasn’t the same, Nico realized. She’d watched Tsubasa for years, playing, charming, singing...smooth, successful, everything Nico dreamed of being. As Tsubasa slid effortlessly in, taking the chorus, Nico noticed Tsubasa winking at a random young woman in the audience, all of the performer’s attention outward, only checking in with Nico as she was ready to trade off.

"Fill my heart with song Let me sing forevermore You are all I long for All I worship and adore In other words, please be true In other words, in other words I love You"

Nico could sense Maki on the edge of the crowd, the redhead hunched somehow, and too sad to be glaring. But Nico didn’t know why Maki’s mood had plummeted. Singing with Tsubasa was nothing like the electrical acceleration of Maki’s fingers sweeping dexterously across a keyboard, making magic molten in the air so Nico could spin it into wonder, eyes never leaving Nico, challenging Nico to match her skill. Tsubasa played well, a pro, but Nico missed the dare, the raw, searching passion, the edge of a thrill where one misstep would knock her back to earth. Nico kept catching glimpses of the fidgety redhead out of the corner of her eye. Maki had been frowning at the piano, but now she was completely focused on Nico, amethyst eyes aglow, and Nico, though aware of the need to work the audience, couldn’t tear herself away from this new sensation.

###

Nico had barely escaped the party. Stopped every step on her way back to Maki for congratulations and offers of food or drink, blowing kisses at Tsubasa, finally Nico had battled her way back to where Maki was standing, both their coats in hand. Nico let Maki help her into her coat.

Still giddy from the applause and her mood lifted even higher by Maki’s attentiveness to her every word, enthusiasm and joi de vive practically bubbled from Nico as she grabbed another White Castle slider. Maki had been serious about dipping her french fries. Nico’s milkshake was between them and every time Nico went to drink from it, Maki would playfully growl and shake her head, making the curls go shaggy in front of her eyes. Nico took a sip anyway just to see how wounded Maki would get. They had quite a stack of burgers between them.

Maki held one up, her tone dubious, “Did you pick this place because the burgers are as tiny as you?”

“Hey.” Nico bit hers in half and Maki grabbed the milkshake back for a three french fry dip.

“These are classic. Steamed to perfection.”

“They aren’t bad.” Maki admitted, swallowing the fries.

“Haven’t been before?”

Maki shook her head, mouth full of burger.

“Nico saves her visits for special occasions.”

Maki grinned.

As champagne cloudy as the early evening had been, Nico did remember part of a conversation. “So, Maki, Nico’s been wondering, where would you take a girl to feed her before a boring party that was only any good because Nico sang.”

Maki was suddenly very interested in the arrangement of the french fries, sliding one out from the bottom. “Depends on the girl.”

“Smart.” Nico drummed the table, “Pretty and talented too, even if Maki cuts around the edges. So has there been a girl?”

Maki, cheeks slightly flushed, continued her study of everything not Nico, wondering if the singer was still a little tipsy. When she did glance up, Nico’s expression was one Maki’d seen before, Nico reading sheet music, hearing the chords in her head.

“Sorry.” Nico pushed back, from the table. “None of Nico’s business.”

“Almost.” Maki said softly.

“Almost?”

Maki’s shoulder slump was almost too slight to register, “I was...she was just…” Maki smiled ruefully at Nico. “I could never say anything.”

Nico leaned forward, elbow on the table, chin in hand, eyes misted over with a wistful haze, “Nico had a girl once.”

Maki tried not to sound nervous, “The one who quit...the piano player?”

Nico shook her head and pushed the milkshake Maki-ward, “No, freshman year, before Nico met Eli or anyone. We had a couple of dates at parties.”

“What happened?” Maki sipped instead of dipped.

“She didn’t think Nico could be serious about music and her.” Nico’s face sharpened, eyes holding Maki’s with a fierce intensity. “Nico is serious about everything.”

Maki wasn’t sure she was breathing. In the cheerful, clanking bustle of the White Castle, there was suddenly this moment, where she waited for Nico’s next breath instead of her own.

Then Nico flipped the mood again, snatching and unboxing a hamburger, eating it in two bites, a sly gleam as she smirked at Maki, “Anyone interested in Nico will have to keep up.”

Startled, Maki giggled, “Really? I can take one steps for three of yours, how hard could that be?”

Nico crumbled up the cardboard, tossing it at Maki, who let it bounce off her shoulder, “You’ll see.”

They ate in silence for a minute before Maki got up the courage to ask her next question. She cleared her throat and Nico stopped swiveling her straw through her shake. “How do you know Tsubasa?”

“Oh, Nico’s been a big fan since she dropped out of school to start her band. And a few of the upperclassmen played for her Nico’s freshmen year so we’d run into each other at parties and a friend introduced Nico.”

“So why quit school now?”

“Why are you going to Switzerland?”

Maki shook her head and took Nico’s milkshake away, “That’s a question, not an answer.”

Nico stuck out her tongue. Maki bit into a burger, then contemplated dipping the rest in the half of Nico’s shake that was left.

“Hey!” Nico squeaked, “Nico draws the line at burger crumbs.”

“Answer my question.” Maki lowered the burger threateningly. Nico grabbed for her hand but Maki pulled away.

“All right, all right.” Nico closed her eyes, sighed, and leaned back, “Nico had big plans for Bibi, but then Coco quit, work got too busy, and Nico heard Tsubasa wanted a new sound. So I reached out.”

“What does Eli think?”

Nico pulled her jaw back and raised her chin, obviously attempting an impersonation, “Nico should stay in school.” Nico sighed and flailed her arms. “But it’s boring. You get that. Nico heard that’s why you’re going to Switzerland.”

Maki once again found linear streams of thought balking at Lucerne. She still hadn’t cracked jazz, but without Nico there...but the possibilities, the dynamics, the exchange between music and musicians, it was such a new joy, Maki wasn’t sure she wanted to give up the experiment. Was this what Melton wanted?

“Maki?” Nico sounded worried and curious.

Maki just blurted what she was thinking. “Jazz is a new country.”

Nico blinked, not understanding.

“New language?” Maki tried.

“Parlez vous jazz?” Nico giggled.

“Exactly.” Maki let one of her hands play out a chord on the table, “And I don’t want a return ticket yet.”

“So Nico is irresistible.”

“Je ne comprends ...” Maki started gathering the empty wrappers, scowling playfully at Nico, “Actually, Nico ne comprends pas, I said Jazz, j-a-z-z, not Ni-co.”

Nico raised flicked imaginary dust off one shoulder and raised one brow, her tone completely immodest, “Nico is synonymous with all good things.”

Maki roared with laughter as Nico spluttered for a moment at her reaction, then joined in. Everyone left in the dining room was staring at them. Maki finally laid her head down on the table, still shaking with amusement.

“You’d better drive me home before they kick us out. We have an early morning.”

“Huh?” Maki turned her head to look at Nico.

“I told Eli I’d have you there at 10 a.m. We’re playing for Honoka and Umi and Nozomi and the rest at 11. Eli thought an audience might help stop the…”

Maki had gone pale, “I can’t...I’m not ready…”

“You’ll do fine.”

Maki stood, “Let’s go practice.”

Nico yawned, exaggerating her movements, “Nico is too tired. Don’t worry, genius.”

Maki’s face twisted as she got ready to retort but then Nico pursed her lips and blew a kiss over her hand at Maki.

“Nico will sing in your dreams.”

Nico would be singing even if Maki couldn't sleep, the pianist already seeing hands reaching for keys to play, heart and head too full of song.

A/N: It's too darn cold, so I had some time to catch up on writing. Enjoy!

[kaylaxwrites]

baking (Queenie/Reader)

words: 1215 (yay finally broke the thousand mark on something) request: Can I please get a fem!reader x Queenie fic? She's just so perfect and I love her. Preferably a baking fic where the reader is a muggle? Thank you! A/N: I researched cakes in the 1920s for this

You hurried down the streets of New York City, groceries filling your arms. It was freezing outside. It had been a terrible day today and you just wanted to get home and bake this cake for your sister—a shoulder jammed into yours. Your groceries went flying. You noticed the man who ran into still hurrying down the street, not even pausing to look at you. Looking back around, you wanted to cry at the sight of the cracked eggs on the ground. You didn’t know if you had enough money for replacement groceries; your job at the factory just covered necessities for you and your sister and you sure as hell were not letting your baby sister take on a job at her age. You knelt down to collect what was salvageable of your groceries and so did a flying pink ball of energy.

“Oh, honey, here, let me help,” she said, picking up what she could. “That man had no right, runnin’ into you like that. Calls himself a gentleman…” She muttered the last part and turned her attention back to you once everything was picked up. She immediately noticed the tears in your eyes. “Oh, honey, there’s no reason to be upset! Baking a cake, huh? Here, come with me—my apartment is just around the corner. I have all the baking stuff you could ever imagine.” Before you could reply, before you could even think, she had your arm in hers and was pulling you down the street. She rambled to you the whole block; you could barely get a word in. But, to be honest, you loved listening to her speak. “My sister Tina says I talk more than what’s good for me and that it’s going to get me in trouble one day, but she doesn’t know the trouble it’s gotten me out of.” The two of you arrived, finally, at your destination. Queenie—as you learned her name was—unlocked and opened the door for you, leading you inside. “Here we are!”

"It’s a swell place you got here,” you said, setting your remaining groceries on her kitchen counter.

“It’s really not much,” she replied. She stepped over to you to pull your coat off your shoulders and place it on the coat rack next to the door. “So what kind of cake were you thinking of making? Chocolate? Vanilla? Oh, pineapple upside down? I love it! And I just bought some cherries the other day!” She flurried around the kitchen, looking for the ingredients.

You took the time, then, to look around her apartment. It wasn’t exactly spacious, but nice and cozy. The roaring fire was nice compared to the roaring winds outside. Random household items were strung around the room. You swore you occasionally saw these objects move out of the corner of your eye, but you just had to be imagining things. Your attention was drawn away from the room when a loud bang came from the kitchen. You quickly darted back around the corner to see what had happened. What you were met with stunned you.

“Is that…?” you began. “You have an electric mixer?!” You ran up to the machine to admire it closer. “I’ve always wanted to use one of these!”

“Well, here it is!” Queenie gestured grandly to the machine. “So let’s get to it, yeah?”

With the aid of the mixer, you managed to prepare the cake in practically no time. With Queenie’s help, it was perfect. You couldn’t wait to bring it home to your sister—she would love it. As you set it on a rack to cool, Queenie’s sister arrived home. Tina froze, with her coat halfway pulled off, when she saw you. Her eyes darted between you and her sister.

“Queenie, can we have a word, please?” she said, finally hanging her coat on the rack. “Alone?”

Queenie sighed and looked at you before following her sister into the adjacent room. “Now there’s no need to be rude, Tina,” she said.

They then spoke in hushed voices. You could only pick up pieces of the conversation. Not that you were eavesdropping, or anything. “What are you doing bringing…you know how much…” “I was just bein’ kind, what’s wrong…” Tina caught you looking through the crack in the door and she quickly marched over to close it all the way. You blushed, embarrassed at being caught. A few minutes later, Queenie emerged from the room. Tina stayed away. 

“Your sister doesn’t like me much, does she?” you joked halfheartedly.

“She’s just…wary…of other people.” Queenie seemed to search for an explanation. “We grew up together, you know? Ever since we was kids, it’s just been the two of us. Our parents died of dra—” She coughed. “Chicken pox when we were younger, so it’s just been the two of us for a long time. We don’t get much visitors, neither.” She looked at you for a moment. “So it’s not just you, sugar, not at all.”

You sat in a moment of semi-awkward silence, before you jumped up. “I should be going home,” you said, beginning to collect your things. “It’s getting late. My sister will be wondering where I am.”

“Stay a little longer?” Queenie pleaded.

“No, I really should be heading home.” You gathered up your coat and bag before grabbing the cake. “Thanks for all your help, Queenie, I really appreciate it.” And then you were out the door. As you began down the hallway, you swore you heard Queenie yell, “Why’d you have to go and run her off?” You smiled softly and began your walk home.

You returned to Queenie’s home a few days later. You had to return her cake pan (and you wanted reason to see her again). Queenie looked very surprised to see you standing on the other side of her door. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

You held up the cake pan in response. “Had to return this, didn’t I?” You stepped through the threshold and into the apartment. You noticed the kitchen was a mess. “What’s going on here?”

“Things have been…tense lately. I’ve been stress baking.”

“Tense, huh?”

“Yeah…”

She began to come up with an explanation, or maybe and excuse, but you cut her off with a fistful of flour to the face. You felt your jaw drop along with hers. Why did I just do that? Oh my goodness, you thought. Why— You spluttered as a handful of flour similarly flew into your face. The two of you stared at each other for a second before an all-out flour fight began. You were laughing and giggling and shrieking as you chased each other around the kitchen. The kitchen became like a warzone, with the flour dust coating every surface. Queenie tackled you in the middle of the kitchen and the two of you slid across the hardwood floor, eventually falling down. You laid on the ground, panting, but smiling, as Queenie looked down at you from above.

Don’t do this, don’t do this, don’t do this, you thought to yourself as thoughts of leaning up to kiss her entered your mind.

“Do it,” Queenie whispered.

Before you could wonder if you had said something out loud, your lips were already pressed against hers.

[drathe]

Cleaning up sketches for the comic made me go full on horny mode

[laugtherhyena]

Thinking back to the time I saw someone on twitter host one of those character award things for the Dra cast and i felt the digital equivalent of banging at the door of a crowded party from outside of the house its taking place while yelling and screaming "NO!!! LET ME IN!!!!!!!!!!!" because i couldn't run for Ayame's biggest fan (I don't have a twitter presence, no one would vote for me)

[drathe]

Now when I think about it, in Planescape Torment you are technically the monster someone could fuck and you’re surrounded by more monsters… the most normal one being Annah 🤔

[drathe]

Man, cat is ill again, I’m freaking out cos idk if it’s the medication side effect or what, vet is not available NEVER AGAIN I SWEAR I WILL NOT GET A CAT AGAIN FROM THIS DAY ON IM GONNA BREED STICK BUGS

[drathe]

i have finished.

big

big

sad

[drathe]

Tomorrow the final Veilguard mission, man I feel like I’m gonna be so empty after