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guppyfish77 · 11 months ago

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Another year Another summary of Art! An Entire Year of Submas lets gooooooooooo!!!! This year I feel like I really pushed myself when it comes to illustrations and I feel like I've learned a lot! But at the same time I feel a little tired, next year I think I wanna relax and experiment a bit more, I gotta learn to loosen up! Might get more art out if I do :p

I also feel the Submas grip ever so lightly relaxing (unless they decide to do Unova remakes haha XD), so I might introduce some of my numerous ocs in 2024! I'll probably start with the conductor oc ;]

Thank you for all your support! (you are all very nice! ToT), I still have a good amount of submas stuff planned in the works so look forward to that (๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧

If you are interested, I also have some commentary and behind the scenes for some of my submas illustrations! I wanna talk about it and now seems like a good time to do so now that the year is over! (Beware! its going to be long!)

All titles are linked to the original post

Lunch Break

hoho! This one is the sort of AU thing in which the only thing that changes is that I give Emmet a Victini friend (not a part of his team, I dubbed them the "victory duo" because Emmet likes winning and Victini is the Victory Pokemon), I planned out a few wordless comics regarding the idea, they were all very lighthearted slice of life kind of stuff, usually Victini causing some mischief and the brothers having to deal with it

and here's the thumbnails for this piece! I played around with various angles but decided to keep it simple and choose a straight on angle. It was originally a snack break and Emmet sharing a granola bar with Victini, but as I was planning it, submas unexpectedly showed up in the Pokemon Anime where they were serving ekiben, after learning about it it quickly turned into a lunch break! (how fun when new information lines up with an art piece you are working on hoho! ^ ^) After studying what foods Ekiben usually have in them (there was quite a variety!) I took what I learned and try to make the food look like the gear station logo :D

In the background there are children drawings because in the battle subway one of the trainer classes you can face off against are preschoolers, and I thought at least one of them would share their drawings with the subway bosses (and of course why wouldn't they hang it up?), there is also a trophy in which you can get in the players room if you beat the subway bosses on the super trains (one day, battling competitively is not my forte), I did my best to make Emmet's office feel lived in by adding a little bit of clutter (like adding a note) but overall very organized

(hey hey that joltik mug looks familiar in the corner there, its the same one Rei is holding in the christmas drawing)

Bonus Emmet and Victini Drawings

aw come on dude, not on the trains!

ah this one, it gave me quite a bit of frustration! This piece I used to challenge myself on perspective, and challenge me it did! The version you see now is I believe the 6th iteration of this drawing! The reason for restarting so many times is because I originally wanted it to be in 3 point perspective, but I couldn't get it to look right so its now in 2 point... Haha Some valuable lessons learned there!

This illustration was inspired by the history of New York Subway Trains and Graffiti! I read about it when I got to visit the New York Transit Museum and found it super interesting!! Then I went I gotta do something with this! Since Unova is based in New York after all!

I got so many subway surfer comments, they don’t know I forgot subway surfers existed while making this and that I am a huge nerd lmao

I had a lot of fun designing the graffiti on the train (yes it says among us) stylizing the fictional letters was so fun! I studied some graffiti to see how they do it, I could've pushed the graffiti style more but then it would be illegible! I also mixed in elements of Grafaiai graffiti, and trainer that is running away is the artist trainer class in SCVL because they are graffiti artists! And the train that got graffitied is the Wifi Train, due to BW (and the DS) servers being shut down, I doubt that train gets used much anymore, which makes it a perfect target!

Derailed!

hohoho! This was a fun one! I'm not sure how many of you guys read my tags, but in there I did state that this piece was based off the fact that model trains are powered by electrifying the rail it runs on (very low watts mind you) and the fact that Joltik eats electricity, but thats not the only inspiration, it was also inspired by those videos of cats laying on the layout and derailing the train!

Theres quite a variety of thumbnails for this idea (including a comic!), and the idea was there in 2022, but this year I decided to fully commit to it! I started rendering the top right one and almost finished it, but it felt really boring to me, so I switched it up and made some thumbnails in a new perspective and viola! thats what ended up being finished!

The train that is being derailed are Sanriku Railway Type 36s, based off a model train I have in my collection! (While sharing this fact on the original post Haiku Bot detected it as a Haiku?! and this art went out of my target audience, that certainly was a day (⊙□⊙;))

Also I straight up put a picture of Thomas the Tank Engine in the background, I'm not sure if people noticed cuz its quite blurry, the fact that nobody said anything means I probably would’ve gotten away with it before sharing this fact, so hehe :3c

Unexplained Melancholy

eyy! this one! It started out wholly different

It was originally me dropping Warden Ingo in various natural landscapes around Hisui as I didn't feel like drawing anymore linear perspective (ah, but heres the thing, all environments require a little bit of perspective lol), and it was just going to be Warden Ingo hanging out in a lush forest, specifically by the train rock that was shown in his concept art! but after sitting on it, I realized I could do something more with it! by making it a snowy environment I could make callbacks to Emmet's coat being white! hence the "SNOWY!!!" being scribbled there, that was added like weeks afterwards, Then I realized I could push it even more by making the whole environment about Emmet's colors! So the new thumbnail is in color because thats whats its about!

The moon smile thing was stumbled on by complete accident, while working on it it felt empty there and I added Emmet's smile to fill the space before going "moon!!!"

The piece is also a sort of a parallel to last years piece “I am Emmet, I wish for Ingo and I to be a two-car train once more” composition wise, sort of, I tried to at least 👍

Black Tower and Whitetree Hollow

Ah! I was quite proud of this one! Black City and White Forest are some of my favorite places in Unova mainly because the parallels are so very cool!

As the thumbnails suggest it was all going to be in complete black and white, as I was working on it though I could not help but add some values in there so yup! I quite like both compositions but the perspective won me out, plus that one focuses more on the characters than the other one (as much as I love backgrounds, it really is supposed to be about Emmet and Ingo U_U)

Being places of duality and having a battle challenge in there, it really fit them!

Emmet drops the hottest single of all time 🔥🔥🔥

Not really much to say about this one since it was very much done on a whim, but

its not the first time I drew Emmet with his hat backwards, I did this little doodle around the same time I did the train graffiti piece, been wanting to do something with this silly idea, and when I heard that audio, I went :o

Following Some Rumors of a Time Machine

the finale! I decided to choose Area Zero because its a very cool place! I am inspired by cool places! and I decided to give it my all for this one!

The thumbnail I made was more for jotting down the idea, and the landscape was going to be more eyelevel? Later I decided to make it so you were looking down into the crater and you get to see the fog blocking the crystal caverns, to show that Emmet was going deeper into Area Zero and the Deepest part is his destination (the time machine, not the underdepths, I didn't know about that yet haha!) I was always going to make Emmet encounter a Slither Wing, with it being based off Volcarona, a gen 5 pokemon :]

Anyways, That's all I have to say! I hope you found it interesting! (and enjoyed my varying quality in sketches and thumbnails XD) Thanks for listening! see you in 2024! ✌

#Art Summary 2023 #Art Summary

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thecreaturecodex · 2 years ago

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Jade Seven

“Monster Girl Challenge 26 - Favorite Monster Girl” © deviantArt user “justsantiago”. Accessed at his gallery here

[Last week, I got high enough that I spontaneously developed an OC. Appearance, personality, how to represent her in PFRPG, everything. So here she is. This was another one where finding good art was difficult. This image is pretty solid, but is a place holder--I like this character enough that I’m probably going to commission at least one artist to draw her. The challenge was not in finding snake-bodied gorgon archers (that’s how Harryhausen interpreted Medusa, after all). But in finding one wearing clothing in general and more than a boob sling in particular.]

Jade Seven CR 17 N Monstrous Humanoid This woman has the lower body of an immense snake, and snakes grow from her scalp instead of hair. She wears leather armor and dark glasses, and carries a bow.

Jade Seven is a bibliomaniacal medusa. She collects rare books of all kinds and keeps a massive library. She is willing to allow others to consult her books, but only under strict supervision and on the premises. Anyone who tries to steal or damage one of her books is unlikely to escape with their life. Jade Seven leaves her library to delve into ruins and dungeons in search of lost or exotic tomes, as well as to collect magical scrolls. Occasionally she enters civilization to consult other libraries or comb through bookseller’s wares, typically using a magical disguise to avoid attracting attention.

Jade Seven is not evil, but she is pragmatic. If she feels that combat is the best way to obtain what she wants, she engages. Jade wears tinted lenses that help her follow tracks and find traps…and block the effect of her petrifying gaze. Removing them is usually her first resort in combat. Creatures that succumb to her gaze are transformed into a greenish stone reminiscent of jade. Anyone who is not petrified is peppered with arrows. Jade Seven mixes ranged combat with spells that improve her fighting prowess. She collects scrolls, wands and other disposable magic items, and does not hesitate to use them. Jade Seven has suffered the consequences of arrogance and carelessness, and would rather negotiate or flee than fight to the death.

Jade Seven may serve as either an ally or a foil to the characters. She may be hired to translate, decipher or interpret a text, or as a dungeoneer to assist in finding and disabling traps. She values money, but values books more (magical or mundane), and rarely takes on any jobs that don’t offer her access to her special interest. On the other hand, she may compete for a book that the PCs need or be working in a mercenary capacity for the PCs’ enemies. Although she considers any book at least theoretically worth her attention, she is most interested in pursuing magical manuals and tomes that grant inherent bonuses to ability scores. One of these would be the ultimate bribe to secure her allegiance.

Although Jade is somewhat coy as to the origins of her sobriquet “Seven”, the truth is straightforward. Jade Seven is the seventh iteration of the medusa librarian. One of her earliest valuable discoveries was a brace of spell scrolls of the clone spell. The previous six Jades have died, some slain by rivals, others due to poor luck or judgement in dungeon delving. Jade has only one clone left, currently preserved with unguents of timelessness. Replacing this clone, and ensuring that the Jade lineage can continue indefinitely, is one of her primary goals.

Jade Seven CR 17 XP 102,400 Variant medusa bard 13 (archaeologist) N Large monstrous humanoid Init +8; Senses all-around vision, darkvision 60 ft., Perception +29, scent Defense AC 26, touch 15, flat-footed 26 (-1 size, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural, +5 armor, +1 deflection) hp 274 (8d10+13d8+168) Fort +15, Ref +19, Will +16; trap sense +4 Immune petrifaction, poison Defensive Abilities evasion, fortification (25%), slippery mind, uncanny dodge Offense Speed 20 ft., climb 20 ft., swim 20 ft. Melee +1 longsword +18/+13/+8/+3 (1d8+2/19-20), snakebite +12 (1d4 plus poison), tail slap +12 (1d8) or snakebite +17 (1d4+1 plus poison), tail slap +12 (1d8) Ranged +2 adaptive composite longbow +24/+19/+14/+9 or +22/+22/+17/+12/+7 (1d8+3/x3) Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. Special Attacks archaeologist’s luck (10 rounds/day, +3), gaze Spells CL 13th, concentration +19 5th (2/day)—greater dispel magic, greater heroism 4th (4/day)—break enchantment, cure critical wounds (DC 20), hold monster (DC 20), legend lore 3rd (5/day)—clairaudience/clairvoyance, dispel magic, haste, hypercognition, see invisibility 2nd (7/day)—alter self, heroism, mirror image, psychic reading, tongues 1st (7/day)—abundant ammunition, cure light wounds (DC 17), expeditious retreat, identify, lock gaze (DC 17) 0th—detect magic, light, message, mending, prestidigitation, read magic Statistics Str 12, Dex 19, Con 26, Int 18, Wis 12, Cha 22 Base Atk +17; CMB +19; CMD 32 (cannot be tripped) Feats Ability Focus (gaze), Deadly Aim, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Improved Sidestep, Magical Aptitude, Mobility, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Sidestep Skills Acrobatics +25, Appraise +17, Bluff +18, Climb +13, Diplomacy +18, Disable Device +27, Disguise +18, Escape Artist +21, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, history, local) +23, Intimidate +18, Linguistics +16, Perception +29, Sense Motive +13, Spellcraft +21, Stealth +13, Survival +13 (+18 following tracks), Swim +13, Use Magic Device +23; Racial Modifiers +4 Perception Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Celestial, Common, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Infernal, Sylvan, Undercommon, 4 others SQ bardic knowledge (+6), clever explorer (+6), jack of all trades, lore master (2/day), rogue talents (guileful polyglot, slippery mind, trap spotter), serpentine, undersized weapons Gear +2 adaptive composite longbow, +1 longsword, +2 light fortification studded leather armor, belt of physical might +2 (Dex, Con), headband of mental superiority +2 (Acrobatics), efficient quiver, bag of holding (type I), ring of protection +1, lesser rod of extend spell, vest of escape, cloak of resistance +1, lenses of detection, wand of pass without trace (50 charges), wand of comprehend languages (50 charges), potion of fly, potion of bull’s strength (x2), unguent of timelessness (x2), scroll of teleport, scroll of greater invisibility, scroll of restoration (x2), scroll of arcane sight (x2), scroll of align weapon (x2), 10 adamantine arrows, 20 silver arrows, 20 cold iron arrows, masterwork thieves tools, 40 arrows, holy water (x2), 76 gp Special Abilities Gaze (Su) Turn to stone permanently, 30 feet, Fortitude DC 22 negates. The save DC is Charisma-based. Poison (Ex) Bite—injury; save Fort DC 22; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d3 Str; cure 2 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution-based. Serpentine (Ex) Jade Seven is a variant medusa with a snake-like lower body. A serpentine medusa is a Large creature with the undersized weapons SQ. She gains a +2 bonus on Strength and Constitution, a -2 penalty to Dexterity, and a +3 natural armor bonus. Her move speed is reduced to 20 feet, but she gains a climb speed and swim speed equal to her land speed. She gains a tail slap attack as a secondary natural weapon that deals damage as normal for a creature of her size. Serpentine medusas are immune to petrifaction and poison, and gain scent as a sense. These advantages grant a serpentine medusa a +1 to her CR.

#jade seven #medusa #gorgon #pathfinder 1e #npc

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itsu-saragi · 2 months ago

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Devlog #6 - My Brain Hurts, but When Does it Not?

Good timezone! Sorry I'm late with the update, but the good news: we're so back. I've finally settled in and have resumed my work on this blasted project.

Writing

I reviewed my notes and decided to do another pass on the love interest character.

Ngl, he's really fucking hard to write. Usually, I can imagine how my characters act and speak pretty well, but this guy... this guy. I'm still struggling to get a grasp on him.

I wonder if it's because I'm creating him for a VN? Or maybe I'm just overthinking?

Actually, let's talk about this for a brief moment.

I'm someone who loves creating original characters. Just this past month, apart from this VN I made two other OCs for some DnD games, and that came easy. So in comparison, why has this LI-creating process been so hard for me?

Well first, it's worth noting that there's a specific method to creating characters in DnD. You pick your race, class, background, et cetra... And those selections in turn inform who your character may be. Does your character have the Soldier background and high intelligence, but low strength? Well, maybe you could interpret that as your character being a military strategist, but with little combat experience. Those rules allow for creativity within the limitations. On the other hand, I'm trying to create a character in my own homebrew world, plus there's no RPG system, so I have fewer constraints which can make my indecisive ass suffer.

Now that I think of it, it might not be a bad idea to try turning him into a DnD character...

I'm getting off track.

Anyway. Though I said there are fewer constraints when creating a VN character, I'm not totally correct there. It's just that I feel there's a different set of requirements that are more... challenging. At least to me.

You see, when I create characters I don't typically construct them with a greater purpose in mind. I just want to make them a cool little creature, and if there's an existing world or story I'll modify them so they make sense in the lore. I’ll add their shortcomings so that they have room to grow, but in a collaborative setting like DnD it’s not guaranteed that my character will go through their arc, nor do I know how that arc will play out, so it’s not my main focus.

But when creating this VN, I've realized that not only does this character need to be interesting and appealing, but I also need to give them a complete arc while simultaneously fitting the narrative and theme. And maybe more stuff I'm not aware of. These constraints aren't mechanical, they're more... structural.

I'm not sure if that's the right word. But it sure as hell made my head spin.

I don't know what the solution to this is other than keep drafting and iterating. Maybe it's turning them into DnD characters.

It's a fun challenge to think about though.

Programming

On another note, after weeks of dreaded avoidance, I finally cracked open RenPy again. And turns out it didn't suck, so yay?

I've added more scenes and choices in my prototype, which is satisfying to see when I run the code.

I think my next challenge is figuring out the scope and the UI. The scope can only be determined by working on the narrative outline so... I should probably prioritize that.

And on the days when my writing brain isn't working, I should tackle some of the UI. Hearing other devs talk about how annoying RenPy UI can be gets me a little nervous, but I guess it's time to find out for myself.

October Goals

Try to get this love interest character locked in holy shit

And if possible, figure out scope, if not try UI

Thank you for reading! I appreciate it.

#dev log #gamedev #vn development #indie otome #indie gamedev

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faaarawayyy · 8 months ago

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hai!!

i’m bea/benrey! either name is good!

my pronouns include but r not limited to hey/hem/heir, she/her, and he/him. you can find all my pronouns and how to use them here!

i label myself nonbinary and dolphinygender but im rly just a creature ^_^ also aroace and platonically objectum! i’m taken in a queerplatonic relationship <33 also im otherkin/nonhuman!! (oceankin + robotkin)

i am a minor, and i have autism and adhd, so please keep these in mind when interacting with me! nsfw/18+ blogs please dni for both our comforts

i have tons of interests but i am especially fixated currently on dungeons and dragons, spore, kirby, rain world, and all my own ocs!! my biggest spinterest will always be in marine life/the ocean, i have my #marautism tag for all that stuff

i also post my own art here! most of it is of my ocs but maybe sometimes ill post misc fandom stuff if i ever feel like making fanart!

i don’t have a strict dni rly cuz i just block n move on casually but just, i feel it should be fairly obvious that youre not welcome here if youre a bigot or a proshipper or a zionist or just super nasty!! stay far away from me tyyy

anyway. beside that. tags and other blogs beneath cut and have fun here!! feel free to interact in any way i dont bite!! peace n love

@bluelightovermurder | my dnd/dunmeshi/ttrpg posting blog. lots of character related rbs

@starryseastims | my stimboard blog! feel free to send requests!

@tmd-clangen | my (as of now inactive) clangen story blog! post-apoc horror and challenge-based, be aware it contains lots of dark themes

@delfinxxia | currently inactive artblog lol. i may repurpose it someday? idk but it’s there

@recoveryranger | also inactive pokeblr blog. idk when ill get back into it haha

misc. notes

my content warnings are formatted like the following example: #cws #blood #death (etc). common ones likely will be: blood, gore, death/animal death, eyestrain. if you need anything more specifically tagged, feel free to send in an ask stating what you’d like tagged, anon or not!

my oc art is not free use but any of my fandom art may be used for noncommercial and/or personal reasons with credit! (ex. using my art as pfp)

i don’t usually do requests, art trades, or commissions, but i’ll post if this is something that happens at any point

tag guide

#clicksnsqueaks - just me saying stuff

#textbubbles - misc. textposts not said by me

#reblog - self-explanatory

#ask - asks i’ve received and answered! i’ll tag your username too but you can also request me not to

#ask game and #tag game - if i rb ask games or get tagged in something

#others’ art - self-explanatory, art that other people have made

#friend art - also self-explantatory, art from my friends/mutuals :>

#important - things that are. well. important. serious posts only

#4me - stuff that was made for me, gifts/commissions/etc.!

#4later - resources and compilation posts usually, might tag them specifically with #art resources or #life stuff as well

#fav - stuff i REALLY like

#mecore - things that r just. mecore. yknow

#me-tagged - stuff my friends/mutuals tagged for me YAAAY

#inspiration - awesome stuff that makes me feel inspired

#silly - stuff i think is funny

#wholesome - stuff i think is cute or nice or uplifting

art-specific tags

#my art - self-explanatory!

#srb - occasional reblogs of my own work

#my ocs - also self-explanatory! contains all original characters of mine, fandom or not. #oc: [oc name] tags will also be added for specific characters, and fandom tags if they apply

#others’ ocs - for other peoples’ characters that i’ve drawn

#fanart - art i make of characters from any media! fandoms and individual characters will be tagged

#pinned #clicksnsqueaks #gif

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pipermca · 1 year ago

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K-9: Part 1

For this year's TF Big Bang event, I originally started off with a different idea than the one I ended up running with. However, I did write about 7500 words of this idea before giving it up as far too long for me to finish in the time available.

That said, I'm still interested in working on this fic, but I don't know when I'll have the time or energy. So I'm working on cleaning up what I do have of this story, and I'll serialize it here. If I end up writing any more, I'll add it here. (This post will contain the first instalment, as well as act as the index/masterpost for the whole thing.) In later instalments there will be illustrations, since this story idea was partially based on a toy. (And man, if I had a IDW2 MP-scaled Barricade figure, I'd be able to do a LOT of illos. 😄).

Enjoy.

No content warnings. Relationships: Barricade & Prowl, Bluestreak & Prowl, Prowl & OC

******************

Part 1

"After we turn in our reports, did you want to come to the Rusty Strut with me and the others?" Barricade asked.

Prowl settled on his wheels. "No."

"Aww, come on." Barricade swerved slightly to chime his fender against Prowl's. "You never go out with us. I'm starting to think you don't like me."

As they reached the station, Prowl transformed and frowned at his partner. "The only time I went to the bar with you and the others, I somehow got stuck paying the entire tab," he said. He flicked his wings as he turned his back on Barricade. "I have no desire for a repeat of that situation."

Barricade caught up to Prowl at the curb. "That's because you were new! It's tradition!" He slung his arm around Prowl's shoulders. "I promise it won't happen again."

"Regardless, my answer is still no," Prowl said, shrugging out from under Barricade's arm. "It is simply an activity I have no interest in. I am only here to-"

With a scoff, Barricade threw up his hands. "I know, I know. I've heard you say it enough." He rolled his optics. "You're just here to do a job, not to make friends." He frowned at Prowl. "You know this isn't Praxus, right? There's more to life than just being a tool of the state. Things like making friends, or having fun." Marching ahead of Prowl, he glanced over his shoulder. "You should try it some time."

Prowl shook his head. It had been a big change for him, moving from Praxus to Iacon. He missed the order of Praxus, where everyone knew their role and rules were clearly defined and followed. But because of that order, being an Enforcer there was... Well, it was not very challenging. Iacon, on the other hand, was larger and more chaotic. Bots had much more freedom to do what they wanted, which also meant that the peace was harder to maintain. But it also meant that the work of keeping that peace was more interesting.

Moving from being a Praxus Enforcer to becoming a member of the Iacon Watch was a huge shift for Prowl, but he took his job seriously. And doing his job did not mean spending time with his fellow constables in bars or dancitrons.

As Prowl and Barricade walked into the precinct, the desk clerk held up a hand to the bot he was talking to. "Just a sec- Hey! Prowl! The Captain wants to see you in her office right away."

Barricade lifted a brow ridge at Prowl. "What did you do?"

"I did not do anything, except my job," Prowl said, mystified.

Barricade rolled his optics again. "Yeah, I know," he said. "I hope you're not getting canned. I really don't want to break in another partner."

"I will come back as soon as possible to finish filing our report," Prowl said as he turned towards the Captain's office.

"You better!" Barricade called after him. "You know I hate doing reports!"

Prowl wracked his processor for any clues as to why the Captain of the Inner Watch would want to see him. Discipline was usually left up to the sergeants, but Streetwise had not mentioned any shortcomings in Prowl's performance to him. As far as Prowl knew, he had done everything expected and to the required parameters. His regular reviews had always been glowing. He had no idea what the Captain could want with him.

Prowl paused just outside the Captain's office and knocked on the open door. "You asked to see me, sir?"

Captain Overdrive looked up from her work and waved him in. "Prowl! Yes, come in. Close the door, please." She gestured at the chair in front of him and watched as Prowl took a seat. "You've been with the Iacon Watch for quite a while, yes? Are you enjoying the work?"

From his seat, Prowl could plainly see his personnel file open on the Chief's desk. He suppressed a nervous flick of his sensor wings. "I have been with the Iacon Watch for a year. And I am enjoying the work, yes," he said. "It is more of a challenge for me than what I found in the Praxus Enforcers."

Overdrive made a thoughtful noise and flipped through a few screens in Prowl's file. "You've had nothing but commendations. Not a single complaint so far. That's surprising, considering your partner." She flashed Prowl a knowing smile, then leaned back in her chair. "And you said you enjoy the challenge?"

"Yes, sir."

"In what way?"

"The work is varied. On patrol, we see something different every day. Analyzing each situation and determining the best course of action possible within the confines of our mandate is appealing to me." Prowl lifted his sensor wings. "It is very different than the work I was doing in Praxus."

"I can understand that." The Captain nodded thoughtfully. "I know the crime rate in Praxus is very low. The Enforcers there seem mostly for show, honestly."

Prowl did not think that was a completely honest assessment of the work the Enforcers did there, but he did not see the point in arguing with the Captain. "Yes, sir," he said instead.

"Your record from Praxus is impressive. Wanting a new challenge does explain why you wanted to make the move to Iacon," Overdrive said. "But I can't help feeling that we aren't utilizing you in the best possible way."

"Sir?"

"Would you be interested in something a bit more challenging? Perhaps in one of our special units?"

Special units! If Prowl could possibly have sat up even straighter in his chair, he would have. "I would be interested, yes, depending on the unit. Some of them do extremely important, very interesting work."

Overdrive nodded and glanced back down at Prowl's file, tabbing through a few more screens. "Do you consider yourself a mechanimal bot?"

Prowl cycled his optics. "A... I am sorry, a what?"

"Someone who likes mechanimals. You know, felinoids, zap ponies, wirehounds, whatever." Overdrive waved her hand at Prowl's file. "It says here you had an organic for a pet when you lived in Praxus."

"Yes... I did." Prowl's wings twitched as his processor churned through scenarios trying to figure out what his personal life had to do with being transferred to a special unit. "I had a flyt."

"Did you train it yourself?"

When Prowl's processor came up empty on a rational explanation for the Captain's line of questioning, he decided that the only thing to be done was answer the questions as best he could. "Yes, sir. I got her when she was just a hatchling and started training her right away. I needed to make sure she could be left alone in my flat without causing a disturbance." He dipped his wings when he realized why the fact that he had a pet flyt was in his file. "Keeping organics in your living quarters was considered irregular in Praxus, so I wanted to make certain there was no reason for anyone to file a complaint with the Garaging Authority."

"What sorts of things did you train it to do?"

"I trained her to come when she was called and to stay on her perch when commanded. Additionally, I trained her to sit on my shoulder, and to fly through a hoop that I had made for her. She could also do loops in midair, although she needed enough space to perform one." Prowl thought back to the tiny flyt, and how she would chirp and tilt her head when she wanted a little bit of extra skitter. Then he suppressed the emotional subroutines that always inserted themselves into his processor threads when he thought about Green. That wasn't useful right now. "And of course, to eliminate her waste in the proper receptacle."

"Oh, right. I guess that's something you have to think about with an organic." Overdrive laughed. "Mechanimals don't have that issue."

"No, sir."

"This flyt, did it obey your commands?"

"Yes, sir. She obeyed them very well, sir."

"How do you feel about wirehounds?"

Prowl felt off-balance. He could not figure out where the Captain's questions were leading to. "I do not know that I feel anything about them in particular."

"You're not afraid of them or anything like that, are you?"

"No, sir."

"Does your residence building have any rules about pets?"

"No, sir, except to ensure that they are well-behaved and do not cause a disturbance."

"Good." Overdrive blanked the datapad with Prowl's file on it and leaned forward, tenting her fingers together. "Prowl, I've been asked to find someone to head up Unit K-9, and I think you are the right bot for the job."

Part 2.

Part 3.

Part 4.

#my writing #maccadam #tf prowl #tf barricade #k9

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whumpbug · 5 months ago

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1, 14, 15, 18, 23 for the ask game hiiiiii I am so glad you reblogged it!! as always /nf so do what's inspiring!! :D

YAYYY THANK YOU SETH THESE ARE GREAT!!!!!!!! ｡(^▽^)ゞ

1. the last sentence you wrote

this is from a WIP with gene and cassidy and oh god seth this is such a funny line for you to have landed on HELP

"Christ, he hated Montana." (from gene's POV)

me too gene.

14. where do you get your inspriation?

oooouh i get my inspiration from so so many places... a lot of character ideas come from existing media who's fandom i'm apart of and it usually stems from me wanting to make ocs in that universe or to steal some of the character dynamics/themes

when it comes to actual writing though, a lottt of my inspiration comes from fanfiction and oc works of friends (shoutout to u seth). and if i'm being completely honest, my ideas for specific stories comes from me just. pacing my room and talking to myself in the shower and thinking of interesting dialogue to form a story around

15. favorite weather for writing

okay so the obvious (and probably most popular) answer is rainy/gloomy weather. its just the thought of being able to be cozy on the couch or in bed without the obligation to be Out and Doing Stuff that gets the brain juices flowing, BONUS if its past midnight too

18. if you keep them, share a deleted sentence or paragraph from a published fic

okay so i don't have any specific lines for a fic BUT i will share an abandoned concept i had for archie and simon.

so originally, archie was going to have more powers than just the enhanced strength and senses he does now. he was going to have some kind of ice manipulation/cryokinesis as well because i thought it seemed cool and would allow for some Great Whump, but it sort of got too complicated and i scrapped the idea completely

23. pick three keywords that describe your writing

i am going to challenge myself to Not be self-depreciative because that is my default. BUT NOT TODAY.

my 3 words would have to be: descriptive, tense, fluffy (in the sense that i can't stop writing fluff. it's my weakness.)

AND SETH U GET SOME RAPID FIRE BONUS ONES bc this ask game is too fun

13. a fandom you’re thinking about writing for

dc. specifically for my silly gorgeous man dick grayson. but i am TERRIFIED. solely because compared to most dc fans, i am SO not well-versed in the lore and would probably say something completely incorrect and embarass myself.

11. a WIP you’d like to finish someday

theres 2 that are sitting in my doc that i havent touched in a bit BUT they are:

a fic of cassidy as a child getting absolutely chewed out and punished by montana and then it cutting to present day and showing how that Trauma manifests itself. and also a mildly concerned gene.

and one for the alternative prompt in WWE (hangover) where gene is stationed in the town jail as always but its after a LONGG night at the saloon. and cassidy is the only guy locked up and hes just totally messing with him while gene wants to be Anywhere but There.

AND LASTLY 4. a story idea you haven't written yet

cassidy and gene getting drunk together. also archie and simon getting drunk together but mostly gene and cassidy. i just need the filters to come DOWN for those guys

THANKS SO MUCH SETH AND THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE CHANCE TO RAMBLE ABOUT ONE OF MY FAVORITE HOBBIES!!!!!!!! ILY TOO /P U ARE SO COOL AND AWESOME

#ask game #writers ask game #writing #writers on tumblr #not whump #bug rambles #on and on and on #THANK U SM THO!

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medi-melancholy · 2 years ago

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end of year thoughts, mostly about art stuff

so much of what i drew this past year was just like, oc designs or sketches, nothing i could categorize as my usual “finished art”, but now i’m wondering if i should maybe start posting all that kind of stuff because like. well. any art is art

i guess i just still get self-conscious about the majority of my art being concept sketches + designs, mostly for original stuff, because that isn’t what grabs attention or makes money, even if it’s what i’m most passionate about and what i personally feel i’m best at :’)

i’ve grown more comfortable almost always only sharing that art personally among friends because at least then i know i’ll hear a response or feedback, especially, again, with original stuff. i post the same art here or on twitter and it’s like 15 likes total combined so. lmao. a bit demoralizing if there’s no actual interest there

with how my physical health has destabilized in some ways, getting back into posting what i draw is going to take a lot of motivation, because i put effort in to even just sit at my desk for a few hours, to use my hands, to keep my eyes on a screen, and getting very little acknowledgment when i do post what i’ve worked on is ehhhhh

on the one hand, it feels nice to not have to stress about not posting much, because i don’t have a good idea of how many people actually care or enjoy my art, i guess. i have no clue what my follower count does besides Exist because i can easily name the same few people who engage with my art without fail, and i’m eternally grateful for them. i can only assume most of the hundreds just left tumblr over the years. that’s fair, i’ve been here for nearly 10 years now lol

on the other, it’s tough to feel seen or successful without a proper or widespread platform. if i did more fanart, specifically fanart for popular stuff, that gets attention, but no one would stick around if i didn’t keep drawing for the same things. and that doesn’t feel true to who i am at all, and an unhappy existence isn’t a sustainable one

i know one solution to more engagement is simply to post more often, which leads me back to the question of, do i just want to post everything that i do draw, regardless of if i think it’s good or bad, regardless of how ‘finished’ or ‘clean’ it is? posting more = drawing more, though, and that isn’t always possible for me. disability’s a bitch! bad luck and unpredictability are bigger bitches

i’m excited to get back to drawing, because i am at my core an artist, and if i stop creating things one way or another, i wouldn’t really be myself, i at the very least wouldn’t be happy. having to take months and months away from drawing because of the fucking conga line of illness and health complications and being busy has been tough, and it’s made me think a lot

i guess i’m working on figuring myself and what i want to do out in some new ways, and that’s ok. i’m just happy to be alive, you know? it wasn’t a bad year for me, or a particularly challenging one. i think it flew by, actually, which i think is great. it was a good time. i hurt a lot, and cried a lot, i was sick a lot a lot a lot, and bad things did happen, but that’s ok. i’m still here. thank you for being here, too, friend. ❤

#like if you read if that's ok. not in like the 'need to see the range of attention caught' kinda way but like #just checking that it's been seen i guess? if that makes sense #and if you have any thoughts or feedback that is cool too!#had some healthy cries and talks today and i'm just lettin my mind air out and befriend the thoughts or let them pass if needed

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superfluouskeys · 2 years ago

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19. Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?

29. What’s something about your writing that you’re proud of?

THANK YOU for indulging me friend you have saved me from a terrible fate (doing my homework)

19. Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?

It depends! I think bc of the way I started with fanfic I definitely err on the side of enjoying interpreting canon events/characters in my own way/to suit my own purposes, and I don’t like to add OCs if there’s not a specific “spot” for them, if that makes sense, because that’s what tends to feel off to people reading.

In the case of video games with character customization there’s already that spot for an OC, and that OC’s family, friends, etc. within the context of the story but also removed from it. But even in that context I do lean towards keeping whatever canon elements of that character the game offers, not only because that’s going to keep the overall story feeling natural but also because it offers me an interesting framework for creating my character—certain events/responses to events being indelible even when they seem contrary to what I’ve imagined can create a kind of character justification challenge that I’ve always enjoyed.

I think I am leaning a lot more towards wanting to write more OCs/original work lately, though—actually, I was thinking about this because I was rereading a bit of The Prisoner last night. I’ve been thinking about it a lot recently, just because, you know, it took up such a large chunk of my life lol. And I sort of miss it in a way, but my interest is much more on my OCs and their stories than on the actual canon characters and main focus of the story at this point LOL. Maybe leaning back towards reimagining it as a fully original work someday, since it’s really so close already, and it has some elements I’m very proud of.

In a similar vein, I’ve been thinking so much about my Stormchaser characters, a project that was regrettably lost to a truly magnificent depression spiral sometime mid-pandemic. It’s funny—I usually take awhile to warm up to my OCs, and I guess in a way it has been awhile, but I already feel like I have them in my mind and really want to share their stories! Just, you know, need more hours in the day.

29. What’s something about your writing that you’re proud of?

I think I do a really good job with dialogue, which is something I’m really proud of since it’s something I had to work hard on to achieve, and I can very much see and feel the progress over the years. Dialogue used to be one of the harder things for me, something I sort of tried to avoid because it always felt so stilted and awkward, and now it’s like my fave thing, easy, can write dialogue off the top of my head with no effort.

Something I’ve noticed recently that I’m really happy with is I feel I’m getting better at describing characters, like, looking at and observing things about other characters? And imbuing that with the emotion I mean to convey? I’ve always felt that I really lacked in physical descriptions and tended to keep them short and simple, so I’m really happy with whatever brought about this sudden ability to write evocative descriptions.

Fanfiction Writing Asks

#exciting tag for answered asks #exciting tag for writing things #absolutely blest you granted me the opportunity to talk about a fraction of what has been overtaking my brain lately LOL #AND i got to not do this stupid assignment for a few blissful moments?#amazing

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mixelation · 3 years ago

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As one of the only writers I know of who write Akatsuki centric fics (all of which are amazing btw), do you know why there's so little content for them?? They're like the best part of Shippuden imo, and there's a lot that can be done with both their backstories and personalities. It's so strange that there's like only a couple dozen stories that really focus on them, and maybe a handful are actually good.

This is a question I see bemoaned in Naruto fandom spaces periodically. I don't actually think there's a dearth of Akatsuki content in an absolute sense, but if you control for how many Naruto fics are out there and how popular the Akatsuki are as characters, then I agree there is a mismatch in amount of content people would be interested in reading and what content is actually out there. The market is not saturated, so to speak. Here's me rambling in a disorganized fashion about why that might be:

It's actually very difficult to wrestle the entire Akatsuki into a fic that takes itself seriously. Individual members or partners? Sure. You can make a completely serious fic about any of them. But as a group they're all so different in the type of chaos they cause, and they all have such naturally conflicting personalities and almost none of them have shared backgrounds... like, I do really think they just naturally devolve into a crack fic if you get more than like three together into a room. You can definitely do a "crack treated seriously" and keep everyone IC, but I also think you then lose a lot of writers/readers who want something more serious.

A lot of Akatsuki fics are "new comer added to the group," which is usually "child character adopted by Akatsuki" or "usually female character joins (or adopts them as cats for some reason) and there's almost always a romance." A lot of people don't actually like these types of stories, so they think there's less content than there actually is.

Akatsuki is a very large ensemble and it's hard to figure out a story that encompass the whole group and then juggle that many characters. "Hard" as in just writing that many distinct characters is difficult, and coming up with a plot for them takes a lot of creativity. Not saying fic writers aren't creative, but usually we do feel "safer" rehashing the same skeletons of stories over and over.

Individual Akatsuki members either have basically no background story (Deidara, Hidan); have a background story that is hard to connect them to other cast members (how are you going to get Kisame or Sasori or Kakuzu to interact the plot in a way that's different from what they do in canon, when most of the plot is based in Konoha?); or a background story that's confusing and hard to reconcile (everything Obito has touched). Yes, most fans will say they'd be interested in reading original concepts for, eg, Deidara's backstory in Iwa, but actually developing that and then communicating it takes a lot of effort and is going to involve OCs and other stuff that are considered "risky" in ficland. You can draw on Kisame's interaction with Itachi or Kakuzu's beef with Hashirama to get them more involved with the main cast, but it's going to necessitate a lot more creativity and work than just writing about Team 7. Or you can just write an AU, but I think people tend to shy away from deeply AU content because it's a little harder than just drawing from canon AND due to preferences in both readers and writers for stuff that's more canon-adjacent. Finally, I do think there aren't many fics focusing on Itachi or Orochimaru relative to how well-liked they are by fandom, because they are.... difficult to write, to be blunt. Like they just are. They have complicated and often conflicting motives, their backgrounds have been retconned so many times figuring out a timeline is hard, they're both super powerful genius so it's hard to figure out a plot that would actually challenge them, and overall writing them is a nightmare.

Okay, so I think those are the main challenges to creating Akatsuki fic. All that being said, here are some types of fics we should definitely be making more of:

Alternative Akatsuki rosters. Yes, I know there's hundreds of Sakura/OC-joins-Akatsuki fics (and apparently there are a lot of Akatsuki!Naruto fics?) but I think we should be exploring other characters. PLEASE give me Akatsuki!Tsunade. Please? Please. I also think the Kiri civil war could have played out differently and led to Mei joining (or Zabuza and Haku, if you like them), and I continue to be mad there's no Akatsuki!Karin fic.

.....although ngl, I would be okay with just more Akatsuki!Sakura fic. I feel like people have been writing it less recently except as reverse harem fic (which is FINE i just also want plot).

More borderline crack plots where they have to save the world because they all time traveled or something.

I want more soulmate AUs where a poor Konoha denizen has to deal with their soulmate being the worst person on earth. :( Yes, there are a few of these, but I want more.

More Akatsuki members as mentor fics. Not like "group adopts child" but more like, "character draft-dodged Akatsuki and somehow ends up with young mentee they're invested in"

More fics where an Akatsuki individual/pair has to temporarily form an alliance with another cast member to Solve A Problem

More fics about just like... Akatsuki missions gone wrong. Did they ever have to go undercover for something dumb? Did anyone just super screw up once? What happened to Kakuzu's pre-Hidan partners?

There used to be fics about Deidara being a secret Namikaze and/or Yamanaka and I would like more. I just think they're neat. Make Deidara Tsunade's secret love child bc they're both blonde, I don't care

Tell me about the Akatsuki chore chart

#akatsuki

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morvantmortuary · 3 years ago

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Maximilian “Maxi” Vincent Morvant

(The Reaper)

(Rarae Aves’s slasher/necromancer OC)

“I promise you’re in good hands with me; let’s get acquainted and figure out just what it is you’re thinkin’… in terms of your memorial, of course.”

[Previously, before Volume I…]

age: 39 (9/9/1982, virgo if he believed in astrology. he has bigger things to worry about.)

birthplace: greymoon, calcascieu parish, louisiana usa

height: 5’11’

current location: usually morvant mortuary of greymoon, louisiana, or the cemetery nearby. (but have you checked under your bed this evening?)

favorite book: other voices, other rooms - truman capote

(what he thinks his walk-on music would be: funeral march - 2WEI

what it actually would be: creature of the night - air traffic controller.

fc: daniel brühl in glasses and a suit. I know what I like.)

hobbies: while running the Mortuary and the House tend to keep him pretty busy not to mention procuring the flesh and blood necessary to keep the House tethered to They Who Provide, he does tend to enjoy a few different things in his spare time. Maxi’s a connoisseur of horror movies, good and bad, and will happily talk your ear off about the accuracy of the gore/wound sfx - though he’s also a sucker for romcoms when the mood strikes. He occasionally can be caught playing video games (especially if you challenge him to one), collects rare books, and has been known to play the piano semi-passably at two or three in the morning after a few drinks. He loves going to New Orleans for concerts, live theater, and museums, and stays the hell away from Baton Rouge on game weekends. He’s also a cheerful walking encyclopedia of death and funerary practices throughout history, including various plagues and epidemics that swept through Louisiana over the centuries. He loves animals (once having dreamed of being a vet before Death ruled his world so completely), especially his beloved reanimated cat Magnolia, and can often be seen leaving appropriate snacks out for the graveyard critters when he’s restoring older tombstones and mausoleums in the cemetery next door.

You, though, are what he adores above all.

occupation: funeral director/mortician at aforementioned mortuary (the latest in a long line of a family business of death care workers.) also a serial killer/necromancer, again the latest in the long line of a family tradition.

"What can I say? It grew on me, after a while.” He smiles, and it’s sweet, unassuming (but there’s still something too dark about those eyes of his - a brown so deep, it teeters nearly into burgundy). “It might not be... what I had in mind for myself, originally,” he says, and his eyes fall to his perfectly shined shoes. “But it’s fulfillin’, gettin’ to help take care of people on their worst days. Give them the rest the deserve. We don’t talk about that nearly enough in this country, honestly, and we can trace that back to when we started phasin’ out home funerals; funnily enough--” He pauses, and laughs - a particular half giggle, half snort. It’s a nice sound (though there’s something under it, something that feels like it could tip into a mad cackle under the right circumstances). “But look at me, goin’ on. I’m sorry, I tend to do that about my line of work.” His eyes flicker back to you behind his glasses (and the focus is a little too keen, too watchful to be only polite interest). “Tell me about what you’re lookin’ for.”

the present, in a way:

Maxi has made peace, more or less, with everything that’s gotten him to his point. After a stint of pursuing the title of his generation’s head necromancer for himself for a few years once he’d finally put his father down for good, he quickly found that power and control over the forces that had made him miserable his whole life didn’t take the fear away, or make him feel any further fulfilled. He’d quietly resigned himself to a life tending Greymoon’s dead as his family had done for generations, and trying to help their more wayward souls find a bit of respite as well as offering its nastier citizens a more fitting purpose as offerings for They Who Provide. He’d consoled himself with the notion of a life alone, contented with his purpose in his community even if they still avoided the strange boy who grew up Death’s willing pupil after all these years.

And then you showed up, and he fell hopelessly head over heels before he had any idea what was happening. It was the first time in his entire life he felt like

Now you’ve left a Mark on him so deep, it’s stained his very soul in the best way, and he’s left his on you in turn. He’s never been happier, but there are more than a few members of They Who Provide and They Who Decide who are less than thrilled of the heir apparent to the Morvant’s seat abdicating from his eligibility in the name of keeping you alive. So long as he has You, the beloved Final to his Reaper, he’s positive there’s no curse the two of you can’t face and come through together, vengeful crossroad demons be damned... again.

...Right?

favorite snippets outside the main arc:

Maxi dealing with his trans partner’s transphobic parents

Maxi and the hypothetical elementary school Mortuary field trip

Maxi going a bit over the top for a romantic Halloween

The Morvants and an S/O with depression

The Morvants and an S/O with anxiety

The Garter Post

Maxi sleeping hcs

Maxi secretly adores musicals

(Relevant playlists, other stories, and chapters in the overall continuity can be found on the main masterlist here.

all his usual tags are included in this post.)

#maximilian vincent morvant #maxi morvant #maxi morvant x you #maxi morvant x reader #final them #maxi and his reader #daniel brühl fc #slasher oc #slasher original character #necromancer oc #slasher oc x reader #slasher oc x you #maxi vibes #morvant mortuary #monsterkisser fics #(hector and rora aren’t far behind but I wanted to go ahead and get him out there)

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sorryimananti-romantic · 3 years ago

Text

Mist | Choi San | Chapter 1

Pairing: Choi San x OC (Seohyun)

Genre: supernatural (ghost), romance, high school

Trigger Warnings: paranormal, death mentions, violence

Words: 7.2k

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except my original character and the story. I do not own any gifs or pictures used.

Full story on Wattpad (don’t spoil here if you read there too)

chapter directory

------------

Seohyun kicked a pebble with her boot, sending it flying in the air. The black cat following Seohyun meowed as it wandered between her legs, rubbing itself along her naked legs. Seohyun kicked another pebble, and the cat meowed louder.

"I know, I know," she said, sighing, "I shouldn't have helped him."

The cat's grey eyes twinkled and it jumped a little to keep pace with Seohyun. She adjusted her sunglasses with the tip of her finger and tucked her long hair behind her ears, keeping her eyes fixed to the ground in hopes of finding more pebbles that she could kick.

Seohyun's hands went to the straps of her school bag on her shoulders as she finally found one, and she smirked. "Hey kitty, I'm gonna kick this one real hard."

As if the cat understood, it sat near her to watch the scene. Seohyun aimed her foot, sending the pebble flying with full force as a short laugh escaped her. She waited for the satisfying sound of the pebble hitting something hard, but a wail of pain answered her instead.

"Oops," Seohyun grimaced as she motioned the cat to follow her, trying to flee before she was caught. However, luck was rarely on her side.

"It was you, right?" She heard a boyish voice call out. She sneaked a peek, seeing a group of colourful heads belonging to boys that grew larger and larger as more joined them.

"I thought I hit one? Why are there so many..." she muttered, then turned back, bowing her head in a quick apology and turning again to run away, almost tripping on the cat and it howled in pain before following her.

"Hey, stop!" She heard voices, and she just sped up. She had enough to worry about.

"Where are my ghost friends when I need them.." Seohyun muttered under her breath as she sped up, cursing mentally. She could hear steps draw closer by every second, and she finally turned abruptly, making the group of boys stop dead in their tracks, bumping at each other.

"I apologized, what do you all want now?"

"You never apologized," the blue haired one said.

"Why do you think I bowed? To thank you?" Seohyun retorted. The blonde snickered, earning a kick in his ribs from not one but two of them.

"We couldn't see from so far, at least apologize properly!"

"Alright, alright. Was it you who got hit?"

"No, it was-"

Seohyun sighed out loud. "What got you so worked up then, if it wasn't even you?"

"He's my friend?" The blue haired boy said, making it sound more like a question.

"I told you all not to make a fuss, it's not like she did it on purpose," Seohyun heard one of them say, and her eyes shifted towards the boy with black hair, the eyebrow slit further defining his sharp features. Indeed, he was hurt. There was a painful scratch where the pebble must have grazed his cheekbone.

"Ah, so it was you..." Seohyun bit her lip. She thought she should apologize properly, so she bowed properly this time, and got up. "I never meant to hurt anyone. I'm sorry."

His eyes burned holes in her even though she wore sunglasses. He pursed his lips, nodding. "It's okay, just be careful next time."

She nodded. "Can I go now?" She didn't wait for an answer and turned, motioning the cat to come along, who meowed.

"Wait!" The eyebrow-slit boy sat down on one knee, motioning the cat to come to him, who gladly obliged and Seohyun rolled her eyes. He smiled at the cat, rubbing its head and offering it a biscuit, which the cat graciously accepted, munching right into it.

"Do you even give your cat food? It's so thin."

"It's not mine," Seohyun said and the boy's head turned up to look at her, curiosity in his eyes obvious. "It followed you rather gladly."

Seohyun just shrugged, looking away from his gaze and observing the group now. They were all dressed in school uniform like her, but it looked like it was a different school. She internally smiled at the interesting mix that stood in front of her.

"San, let's go," she heard the red-head call out. San, she thought.

"I need to go now too." Seohyun said, waiting for the boy to stop playing with the cat.

The boy- San- got up and said, "You said it's not yours. Can I take it then?"

Seohyun almost said yes, but hesitated. It was true the cat was not hers, but at this point, she could call it hers, the way it always followed her around whenever she was out. She had rather grown attached to the constant presence of her black furry friend.

"Uhh, I mean you could, but..." she bit her lip as she looked back as if for help, and then turned back to the boy. "This cat is my only friend."

Seohyun hated how it had almost come as a whisper, but the boy looked like he understood as he nodded, taking a step back. "I'll see you around then," he smiled sweetly at the cat, who meowed at him.

Seohyun finally turned, not bothering to check if the cat followed her or that boy, San. She was too scared to check. But when she heard the cat meow and rub at her legs, she smiled in relief.

"I'll feed you more now, I promise," she smiled at the cat.

Meanwhile, San watched the odd pair walk away in the distance.

"So rude!" the blue haired boy said, and everyone laughed. San turned and shook his head. "Not my fault you decided to act like my parent, Hongjoong."

"Doesn't look like she's from our school, but isn't it the school near the place we usually go to eat dinner?" The blonde asked.

"Yeah, it looks like it. You're treating us to dinner there tomorrow. You remember, right Yeosang?"

"You're always hungry for food Wooyoung, how could I forget?" He answered.

The group started to walk their way, talking about their plans for dinner, but San couldn't stop thinking about the girl with the grey streaks in her hair, the girl who had no friends other than a black cat. He unconsciously shook his head, finally paying attention to his present.

----------

"I said I'm sorry!" Seohyun yelled, "Now you leave my hair, and I'll leave yours."

"You first," the woman replied.

"Together, okay? One, two, three- YOU! You lied!"

"You lied too!" The woman shouted, and pulled at Seohyun's hair, earning a satisfactory groan from her.

"It's not like you can feel pain! You're a freaking ghost!"

"Doesn't mean I'm not insulted," the woman smirked, "Alright, I'll leave you first, and you leave no more than a second after, otherwise I'll make sure you feel the pain you love." The woman let go of Seohyun's hair and Seohyun did so right after, taking quick steps backward as she massaged her head.

"Bitch..." she muttered, and the woman laughed out loud.

The woman- ghost- had been keeping Seohyun company for about two months now, occasionally popping out of nowhere and leaving just as abruptly. At first, Seohyun had tried to help her in some way, help her move on and come to terms with her sudden death by accident, but the young woman had quite a difficult death and she was the first of a kind- a ghost with amnesia. No memories of how she had died and why she hadn't moved on.

Seohyun had to admit that she had grown used to her presence. She often found herself narrating her uneventful day to her, just like today, when she had excessively complained how useless of a friend she was and how none of her ghost friends had ever done her a favour. Somehow that had turned into an argument and then to them resorting to pulling each other's hair our, except her ghost friend couldn't feel any pain since she was, well, a ghost. Dead.

"I mean," Seohyun continued, fiddling with her hair, "it would have saved me from embarrassment had you popped up and helped me out there."

"What could I have done?" The woman sat down on the pavement, the black cat gladly jumping on her lap as the woman ran her hands through her fur. "It's not like anyone else can see me."

"Hello? You could have made me disappear."

"You know it's not good for your health. Why do it unless absolutely, absolutely necessary?" The woman glared at her.

"YES! That was absolutely, absolutely necessary. There were 8 of them! I was alone!" Seohyun whined and the woman just ignored her.

"Unnie~" Seohyun sat down near her, and the woman slid away from her.

"I told you not to call me that. I have a name, and it's Jiwoo."

"How can I call you by your name? You're much older than me." Seohyun grinned.

"And that's why I don't help you. Because you're a stubborn one. Also, I'm pretty sure I'm not that old."

"That's rich coming from you," Seohyun retorted, ignoring the last remark, "I'm not the one refusing to move on just because I can't get enough of worldly pleasures."

"And that's my cue to leave you alone, like you always are. There's a reason you don't have friends, Seohyun." Jiwoo got up, putting the curled cat on the pavement.

"I do have friends-"

"I'm talking about human friends. Your sharp tongue and stubborn heart, it's about time you change that."

"I-" Before Seohyun could complete, Jiwoo disappeared. Seohyun sighed, her heart sinking a bit at her harsh but true words.

There was indeed a reason that she had no friends. And it wasn't her ability to see ghosts.

Seohyun pulled her knees to her chest, shutting her eyes. She wanted to disappear.

--------------

Senior year of high school was supposed to be tough, yes, but Seohyun had to face challenges other than academic ones.

And it wasn't just the fact that she had no social life at all; she only had a group of people she could interact with if need be, otherwise she was perfectly content on being on her own. She had no problem staying amused in her own company.

The problem was with Seohyun, though not directly. It was the problem that she could see and interact with some of the dead. And the dead made sure she got in trouble if she didn't hear their woes and skipped school to maybe find them something (or someone) they had an attachment to, or didn't take them to their loved ones immediately.

She had often tried to reason with them; she tried to explain that she was perfectly aware how bad they must have it, but she had it worse since she was still alive, and with life came unforeseen consequences, such as having to face her mother if they caused a scene (which they usually did), or if they tried to grab her attention by any means necessary, such as causing her desk to fall, her stuff to fly (where she would immediately have to either hold it or pretend to have thrown it).

She tried, oh she tried so hard to tell them to wait until she was free from school and then she would do whatever they asked her to, but no. Apparently whatever they wanted to do was more important than her school, her reputation (already in ruins), everything. There rarely was someone patient enough, and those she made sure she looked after properly. Like Jiwoo.

She wished Jiwoo was here so she could get rid of the old wrinkly man in front of her. She was trying to focus on her mathematics but it was hard to when a fat belly blocked her vision. And she couldn't even say anything out loud, so she just sent daggers through her eyes, the message in her eyes clear. But the old man just smirked, continuing to block her vision.

Seohyun sighed and turned the page of her notebook, scribbling in it, then turned the notebook to the ghost in front of her. The man was short so he didn't have to bend as he read what she had written.

"IF YOU COULD STOP PESTERING ME FOR A FEW MINUTES YOU WRINKLY OLD MAN I CAN'T FOCUS ON MATHS BECAUSE OF YOU"

The old man smirked, and Seohyun wished she could kick him somewhere he would surely feel pain even though ghosts couldn't feel pain. She was so absorbed in thinking of ways that she could make this ghost feel pain that she didn't notice him take her notebook and run away before she could snatch it back.

As soon as Seohyun noticed, she jerked in her seat, stopping herself from getting up and following him. He stopped a few feet away, teasingly coming closer and closer, the frown on Seohyun's face getting deeper and deeper until he stopped near the girl sitting in front of her, tore a page from her notebook and gave it back.

And then he did what she dreaded. He made a ball out of that paper, aimed at the teacher, taking one last look at the very satisfying horrified face of the girl who could see ghosts but refused to help them, and threw the paper ball at the teacher with considerable force, hitting him on his head.

The teacher turned, running his eyes across the classroom, not missing how everyone was glancing between the teacher and Seohyun, who folded her arms rather defensively, silently praying he wouldn't actually pick the paper ball. But the teacher bent down, and it so happened that he was also old, and a bit wrinkly, so when he read the scribbled message, his face went red.

"Who was it?!" The teacher pushed his glasses up his nose-bridge and watched as the students hesitantly pointed to Seohyun, who sank deeper into her chair, as if somehow a pit would open and swallow her.

"You meet me in my office after class." The teacher shook his head in disappointment and continued where he left.

Seohyun was given a warning, and it was her second. She had only one left before she would be kicked out of school (if something big happened, which usually did if she waited for the third warning) so she decided it was time for her to move on again.

And this time she dreaded. It was always a hassle to explain to her mom what had happened. Her mom knew she could see ghosts and when she was little, she had tried all sorts of methods, of almost all religions she could think of, hoping her only daughter would turn out normal, but she had failed. But now she liked to pretend that she had forgotten all about it, and when Seohyun told her she had gotten into trouble, she would silently nod and get her to change schools before something big happened and it got written in her school record.

So a few attempts from the old ghost trying to get her in trouble and a few days later, Seohyun was finally free of struggling. She changed schools. And tomorrow would be her first day, hopefully the last time she had to change schools before her senior year ended. Before high school ended.

Seohyun was still dressed in her old school's uniform when she went to her new school to submit her files and make sure everything was good before her first day. She had her baseball cap on this time, making sure she would hide most of her face since a lot of people would be staring at her. It was normal to stare when someone from another school came.

The black cat found her once again, following her as she walked to the building. Seohyun motioned the cat to stay and it obeyed, watching the girl walk into the building.

From a distance, San and his friends were watching the whole scene. They had recognized the girl not by her face, which was half-hidden anyway, but her cat and the grey streaks in her hair.

"Let's hope she doesn't attack you with a pebble again," Yunho snickered, and San smiled, his hand unconsciously going to the now faint scratch on his face.

"I'm not going to your rescue if that happens," Hongjoong said and Seonghwa chimed in, "Neither will I."

"I never asked you anyway..." San trailed off.

"The cat looks like it wants to escape," Jongho pointed his finger at the hoard of girls that gathered around the poor cat. "Poor cat."

"San, you should go bring the cat. It would recognize you," Mingi suggested and San considered. The cat was worth saving.

A few moments later, San was back with the cat in his arms. The cat did recognize him. He bought the cat to the boys, who lightly patted her one by one, taking turns so she wouldn't feel scared.

After about five minutes, the boys heard someone clear their throat right behind them. They turned to see it was that girl.

"Aren't you the same group from that day?" Seohyun wondered out loud.

"The cat was scared because people were gathering around her, so we brought her here," Yeosang said.

"That's... kind of you," Seohyun met eyes with each of them, and the boys got a proper look at her face for the first time without her glasses. She had light eyes. The shadows beneath her eyes were dark, which contrasted with her eyes rather strikingly.

"What were you doing here? You're not from our school," Wooyoung commented.

"Oh, I'll be joining from tomorrow..." Seohyun realized somehow she's ended up in the same school as the boys. "What class are you in?"

"Senior year, all of us," Wooyoung replied, and they didn't miss her groan.

"I'm guessing you're senior year too," Seonghwa asked, earning a nod of confirmation.

"How ironic. What if you end up in our class?" Yeosang wondered.

"God forbid," Seohyun shook her head, making them smile despite her remark. "Now, should I leave the cat here, or..."

"Does it have a name?" San asked, rubbing under the cat's chin.

"Uh, no actually," Seohyun faltered when she saw San give her a disappointed look, "I just call her kitty. You can give it a name if you want to."

"I'll think about it," San shifted his arms to hand the cat over to Seohyun, and she took it, placing the cat on her shoulders, waiting until she sat around her neck like she usually did.

"I guess I'll go now," she met eyes with San for the last time, noticing the mole on his eyelid. San nodded, and she muttered an awkward bye before walking past them, cursing at herself mentally for being so awkward with them.

"It's you who got me in trouble, you dumb cat," she muttered under her breath. The cat didn't even bother reply.

The boys watched her leave, and Yeosang finally spoke, "I have a feeling she'll be in our class now. Oh, how the tables have turned."

"Interesting," Jongho smiled, "Does San have a new friend now?"

"The cat? Sure." San smirked.

"Ah, let's see how that changes," Jongho retorted, smirking back.

---------------

Seohyun tried to calm her nerves as she looked at herself in the mirror of the girls' toilet in her new school.

The nerves always got the better of her whenever it was her first day at a school. It usually took her about three days to get comfortable with a new environment. Seohyun sighed as she wiped her sweaty palms on her black skirt, staring at her light brown eyes. She wished she could cover them with her sunglasses so she could avoid the excessive eye contact with humans and ghosts. Sadly, she couldn't do that in class.

She finally took a deep breath and somehow managed to make herself walk to the office, where she met her homeroom teacher, a middle-aged woman. She walked along with her to her class, and the teacher smiled warmly at her as she nudged her to come along.

They entered the class and watched as the boys and girls went back to sit at their seats, the room slowly falling silent. The teacher cleared her throat.

"Good morning class, we have a new student today. Please introduce yourself."

Seohyun, who had been looking down the entire time, finally gathered whatever courage she had and ran her eyes along the class as she finally spoke.

"Good morning, I am Lee Seohyun. I hope we can get along well."

"Alright, why don't you find yourself a seat?" The teacher said and Seohyun nodded, looking at the few empty seats and considering her choices.

Her first priority was to sit as far away as possible. Preferably by the window. There was one empty seat in the furthest row, but it was next to the seat by the window already occupied by someone-

It was one of those boys. She only knew San's name for now, and it was the blonde one. She quickly scanned her other options and decided this was the best for now.

As she made her way, she realized the 8 of them were all sitting around the empty seat that she was about to sit on. San was in front of her, the strawberry blonde on her other side, the rest around them too. She wondered if the seat belonged to one of their friends so she quietly asked the blonde, "Is this seat free?"

He shook his head and she internally sighed in relief as she settled herself, focusing on whatever the homeroom teacher said, trying not to stare holes at the back of San's head, until she left a few minutes later and she slumped back in her chair.

San finally turned, raising his brows, "What a coincidence."

Seohyun shrugged, straightening her skirt. "Ironic, really."

"Is there a reason you changed schools?" The blonde turned towards her, resting his head on his hand as he looked at her curiously.

"Uh," Seohyun hesitated as she tried to recall her excuse for every time someone asked her this, "for convenience. It's closer to home."

"That's an interesting reason to change school," he replied, earning a shrug.

"Maybe she doesn't want to tell you why exactly. Am I right?" San locked eyes with her, his smirk growing.

"Maybe," Seohyun teased back.

"How's your cat?" She heard someone call, and she looked at the black haired boy.

"It's not exactly mine, but it's fine. Probably."

"That's... reassuring. I'm Wooyoung by the way. This is Yeosang-" he pointed to the blonde next to her, "San, and that's Yunho next to you."

She looked at Yunho and he waved shyly. "That's Seonghwa," he pointed in front of him, and when Seohyun nodded, he continued, "The blueberry is Hongjoong, the red one is Jongho, and that's Mingi over there."

Seohyun nodded slowly, looking at them all slowly. "Yunho, Seonghwa, Hongjoong blueberry,-"

"I heard that!" Hongjoong shouted, turning around and making a pout at Seonghwa. Ignoring him, she continued, "San, Jongho in the front, then Mingi beside him, Wooyoung and Yeosang. I got it."

"You're quick," Yunho grinned. Seohyun wished she could tell him that it was because of the several hundred ghosts she had met and had promised never to forget their names.

"So the 8 of you are friends?" She asked, and San nodded. "Why was this seat in the middle empty then?"

"Mingi used to sit here but his eyesight got worse so he moved to the front."

"Well, that explains..."

Their teacher walked in, a man in his 30s, and she found out he was to be her math teacher. At least he's not old and wrinkly, she thought as she took out her notebook.

---------

The rest of her day was uneventful, except for the break when the boys asked if she wanted to join them but she didn't. She said she had to go to the office, but that was a lie. She wanted to take a breather.

When they left, she looked again at her options. She was already regretting sitting among the group of friends. She was going to be a disturbance to them, or something even worse. She didn't want them to think she was weird. Not yet.

She surprised herself at the thought. Why did she care? She had never cared before. But she told herself it was probably because she had a few encounters with them before and it would be weirder if they found out now. That she was strange. They'd probably stop talking to her very suddenly. That part always hurt her, which was why she always avoided making friends.

Seohyun shook her head and looked at the empty seat in the middle of the room. The spot was out of question. Being in the middle of the room meant she could be surprised from anywhere by those damned ghosts.

Then there was one in the very front with the wall. She could go there, but...

She felt more comfortable here. The spot was perfect. The problem was the boys. They were in for disappointment.

She saw some girls staring at her. They were probably considering if they should talk and make friends with her. But Seohyun was in no mood for friends, so she just put her head on the desk and closed her eyes.

She almost drifted to sleep when she heard someone put something on her desk. She got up and saw that it was San. "We figured you didn't have time for lunch, so."

Seohyun looked from the bread and juice to San, and back at the food presented to her. "Thank you, that's uh... very kind of you?" She looked at San and Yeosang, and they laughed shamelessly at her.

"You don't sound so happy," Yeosang commented and she shook her head, sipping at the juice to prove her point as she said, "No, actually I'm glad, but it wasn't necessary."

They just shook her head at her, smiling as they absorbed themselves in some discussion. Seohyun silently ate the bread, wishing she could disappear because she didn't even know how to thank people properly.

At that moment, Jiwoo the ghost appeared, and Seohyun muttered, "About freaking time."

Jiwoo laughed and said, "I see you're having a good day."

"And I don't expect you to ruin it, so please live up to my expectations for once," Seohyun hissed, keeping her voice as low as possible, but it still made Seonghwa look at her once before he focused back on his friends.

Seohyun sighed. She couldn't write in her notebook now because they would definitely see it. And she couldn't talk. So she just folded her arms as she slowly sipped on the juice while Jiwoo danced around the classroom.

As soon as the bell rang indicating the end of the day, Seohyun sighed in relief. The day was over without any incident. She slowly packed her bag, thinking about her promise to meet a new ghost after her school. It was a girl about her age, and thankfully she understood what school demanded of her, so she had promised to not disturb her.

"You look ready to go to your bed and fall right asleep," Yeosang commented.

"Tell me about it," Seohyun muttered, wearing her bag and making her way out of the class, the boys not far behind.

San watched Seohyun walk as if she was in a hurry but couldn't care less at the same time. She would speed up, then slow down again, and repeat.

"Are you in a hurry?" Wooyoung asked her, falling in step with her.

"Uh, not really. Just can't wait to get home," she said, but her voice didn't match what she said. She sounded the least excited to do that.

"Long day, huh?" Wooyoung said and she finally passed him a smile. "So you know no one at this school?"

"Well," she said, "I am new."

"Well, you can be our friend. Only if you want to."

She stopped in her track, making San almost bump in her, and she muttered a sorry to him as she continued walking again. San decided he would join them now.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"Not sure you'd like me as a friend."

"And why do you think that?" San looked at her curiously.

Seohyun sighed, "I'm... how do I put it? I don't think I need friends. But that sounds rude. I don't mean to sound rude, it's just... better if you all don't mind me. I'd only be a bother and make everyone uncomfortable."

"We don't mind. We weren't all friends from the beginning. The group grew larger with time."

"And why do you think you don't need friends?" San asked.

Seohyun looked at him, then looked away, trying to avoid his steel gaze. "Not the type of person anyone would like as a friend."

"We won't know until we try though," Wooyoung said and smiled at her, making Seohyun wonder why the world didn't have more Wooyoungs.

"No harm in trying, right?" Yunho, who was behind her, vouched in.

Seohyun stopped to look at the odd group of friends, who were all smiling cheekily.

"You sure, blueberry?" She asked Hongjoong, who gasped in surprise. Yunho laughed out loud.

"If you don't call me blueberry, then why not?"

"Blueberry." Seohyun said and turned to walk away, hearing everyone laugh and make fun of Hongjoong. She saw the familiar figure of the ghost she had decided to meet, and she motioned with her eyes to turn to their left.

The ghost understood and it waited for her to turn left too. Seohyun looked back once at the boys who were now a good few steps behind, and she turned left, hoping no one had seen her, saw the empty road and joined hands with the ghost. She felt the familiar feeling of her heart sinking and her stomach flipping as the ghost teleported her to where it wanted to go.

The boys, who did notice her turning left in a hurry, followed soon after, only to find a very empty road with no where she could have gone or hidden.

"She did turn left. Right?" Mingi asked.

"She did. Didn't she? Or am I losing it finally?" Jongho muttered.

"Maybe it wasn't her?" Wooyoung suggested.

"But it was her. The grey in her hair..." Yunho said. "Maybe she turned right?" He looked at his right, where a few students were walking too.

San had been watching her and he was very sure she had turned left. Where she had gone... was a mystery.

"Strange..."

---------------

"That's... horrible."

Seohyun stood in front of a small house, the white walls glaring back at her. The ghost, a young girl only her age, had just teleported her to an empty alley near this house, which belonged to her best friend. The ghost had just finished telling her how she had died; a road accident by a drunk driver. Since she had died an untimely death, she couldn't do anything about it except mourn over her own death.

"But... people who die in such accidents usually like to make sure justice is served, and get the perpetrator punished. Don't you wanna do that?"

"Oh, I did," the girl pushed her long black hair back, "my parents are doing a good job there, so I wanna let them continue. I don't... want them to know that I'm still here. They should find their peace with all this."

"Wow," Seohyun couldn't help but be amazed at how thoughtful this girl was, "that's very wise of you actually. So what are we doing here?"

"I checked on my friend, Chaeyoung, and it seems like she's not... doing well. I want to somehow let her know that I'm okay. I think that's when I'll be able to move on."

Seohyun, for once, felt actually sorry for the friend. She didn't have a best friend so she couldn't relate, but having someone like that in your life and so suddenly losing them... must be very sad.

"Okay, let's do this," Seohyun said, taking a deep breath and taking off her baseball cap off. She smoothened her uniform and finally rang the bell.

"What if someone else is home, and she creates a ruckus-"

"I checked, she's alone for now." The girl said, and again, she mentally applauded the girl for being so thoughtful.

"Hey, what was your name again? I mean how do I introduce-"

At that moment, a tall girl sporting a bob and puffy eyes fresh from crying opened the door.

"Hi," Seohyun said.

"Do I know you?" Chaeyeong asked.

"You don't, but I'm here to talk to you. I heard your friend recently passed away-" Seohyun paused when Chaeyoung rolled her eyes and attempted to shut the door at her face.

"Wait!" Seohyun said and Chaeyoung paused.

"My name is Soojin." The ghost finally said, and Seohyun looked at her once, catching her nervous stance before turning back to Chaeyoung.

"You might not believe it, but Soojin is here," Seohyun said, and Chaeyoung pursed her lips. "And I don't have all day, so I'll just prove it. Soojin told me some stuff only the two of you would know. How you had a crush on her brother for the longest time, how you want to meet your childhood best friend who's moved to the States, how-"

"Wait," Chaeyoung stepped out, "How- when did Soojin tell you this? Are you Soojin's friend?"

"My name is Seohyun. and I'm sure you've never heard of me from Soojin," Chaeyoung nodded and Seohyun continued, "Soojin is here. She hasn't been able to move on to the afterlife or whatever it is ahead because she can't stand seeing you in pain and blaming yourself because you invited her over to meet with you. She wants you to know that her parents are doing a great job at making sure the drunk driver gets punished, and she wants you to know it's not your fault."

Seohyun watched Chaeyoung's eyes fill with tears at that, and she put a hand in front of her mouth as tears fell, "She's really here?"

"Right here," Seohyun pointed towards where Soojin stood.

"Can't I see her?" Chaeyoung asked, "I want to see her one last time. If I can."

"I'm afraid not," Seohyun sighed, "I don't know if that's possible. But she can see you and hear you right now, just like me. So I'll leave you to say your last goodbye. You can call me when you're done, okay Soojin?"

Soojin nodded and Seohyun went into the little garden in the house to give them some space. She watched as Chaeyoung cried and spoke to her best friend for the last time, falling to her knees. Soojin couldn't touch her, but she patted her head and it was like Chaeyoung could actually feel it.

Seohyun looked up at the cloudy sky. For once, she wished it was sunnier.

After a few minutes, Soojin called out to Seohyun. She awkwardly patted Chaeyoung on the back, and Soojin started speaking as Seohyun told Chaeyoung that Soojin loved her, and yes, it was her who kept sticking their photo back at the wall to give her a sign, and she wanted Chaeyoung to stop talking to the walls because she won't be there to listen to her anymore and that would only make her look crazy (at which Chaeyoung laughed).

"I don't have a best friend, but you guys, you both had something special. And I'm saying this from my self, that I hope you cherish the bond you both had in your heart and really move on. Do what you want to, because life is short," Seohyun said and smiled.

"Thank you. I'll do my best," Chaeyoung wiped the last of her tears.

"She's going now," Seohyun said, "She wants you to smile so that's the last thing she sees."

Chaeyoung smiled as tears fell from her eyes, and Soojin said, "This fool. I told her to smile."

"Stop being so petty, Soojin, she is smiling!"

"What did she say?" Chaeyoung asked.

"She said she asked you to smile, not cry," Seohyun said and Chaeyoung burst out laughing.

Soojin thanked Seohyun for helping her, and she watched as she shut her eyes, and disappeared in an instant.

Seohyun sighed, and Chaeyoung understood. "Thank you, Seohyun. I hope we can meet again?"

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Seohyun shook her head, "I just hope you'll have a good life ahead."

"I feel bad for not doing anything for you, maybe I could take you for some coffee next time?"

"Well, actually," Seohyun looked around, "there is something you can do. Can you tell me where I am? And can you call me a taxi?"

-----------

It turned out Seohyun was actually quite a while from home, so Chaeyoung ended up paying for the taxi because she felt bad for Soojin being so thoughtless when she teleported her here (at which Seohyun admitted Soojin was one of the wisest ghosts she had encountered). About 40 minutes later, Seohyun decided to drop by at a food street, because she was starving.

Seohyun walked through the hustling street, various food carts lining the street, several restaurants and cafes amidst them. She decided jjajangmyeon would do, so she sat alone at the table in the street, waiting for her meal. She was too tired to look at her phone so she just watched the people walking and eating.

She wished Jiwoo was here. Better than having no company. She wouldn't admit it, but she had grown quite used to her company. Jiwoo still hadn't been able to recall her memories of who she was and how she died, and why she was still hanging around. So Seohyun had left her at it.

Seohyun was so lost thinking about Jiwoo that she didn't notice Seonghwa, Hongjoong and Mingi approaching her until they stopped right in front of her.

"Of all the places," Seohyun wondered out loud, not caring how it might sound to them.

"It seems like we were meant to meet today," Mingi said dramatically, and Hongjoong slapped his arm as he said, "It looks like you haven't gone home yet. Isn't it very late?"

Seohyun sat back in her chair, putting one leg on top of the other. "And what do you care?"

"Ah, so that's what you meant when you said people don't like to have you as a friend," Hongjoong said, and Seonghwa gasped at his friend as he scolded him, but stopped when Seohyun laughed out loud.

"Since you're here, are you gonna take a seat or will you be continuing to walk aimlessly?"

"I guess we'll take a seat," Mingi said, and they all sat and decided to order food first.

"Aren't you cold?" Seonghwa asked, as he noticed how Seohyun put her bag on her bare legs.

"I am. But I'm okay," she said, and Seonghwa shook his head as he started to take off his jacket. "Oh please, I'm okay, I'll feel really bad if you do this."

"Nonsense, this is an extra layer anyway," Seonghwa handed her the jacket and she realized it was true; he did have many layers on him. So Seohyun put his jacket on her legs, muttering a thank you.

"So what's your story?" Hongjoong asked, and Seohyun raised her brows as she said, "You first. I'll talk after I have some food."

"Alright then," Hongjoong said, and told her how they all had been classmates since elementary, with Seonghwa and Hongjoong being friends since that time, until Wooyoung and Yeosang who had also been friends joined, then one by one the group grew.

"Interesting," Seohyun said, "And the 8 of you... How do you get along peacefully? I can't even get along with one."

Mingi pfft-ed at her. "We aren't exactly saints ourselves, but with us being 8, it becomes hard to take anyone serious."

Seohyun scoffed, "So the reason you all get along so well is because you all don't take anyone serious."

"Basically, yes," Mingi answered proudly, and food was served. Seohyun hungrily dig in, and Seonghwa scolded her for eating so quick.

"So with Seonghwa as a mother figure of the group," Seohyun began, "I can imagine why there is peace among all of you."

"Ha. ha. Very funny," Seonghwa rolled his eyes but Hongjoong and Mingi laughed, agreeing with her as they said, "She's not wrong."

She watched them bicker back and forth and wondered if this could really work out. They seemed very tightly knit, and she felt like an intruder. She wasn't even sure if they would feel comfortable with her. Why had they even asked her to be their friend?

"It really does show. That you've been friends for a long time," Seohyun commented, fiddling with her noodles.

"It does, huh?" Mingi smiled at her.

"Can I ask you something?" Seohyun said, and they nodded, "Why did you ask me to be your friend? I mean, you guys look okay as you are now. You don't need an extra friend in this group of yours. So why ask, and why me?"

"Well, how do I put it..." Hongjoong wondered out loud.

"You've got good aim," Mingi said, and for a second, Seohyun was lost before she realized.

"I didn't do that on purpose!" Seohyun's eyes were wide, and Mingi told her that he, of course, was joking, But he winked right after, which made her wonder if that was actually one of the reasons.

"Our group needs a girl. There are too many boys." Seonghwa said, and Seohyun raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure there's no lack of girls in your school."

"There isn't... but they are too... girly?" Hongjoong seemed to think how to put it, and Seohyun folded her arms.

"And what if I am girly too?" Seohyun countered.

"You're just the right amount of weird. Yeosang already clicked so well with you. San loves your cat. You sit in the middle of us. You have no friends. Now you can't avoid it."

"Wow, okay," Seohyun finished her noodles as she thought about what they had said. "And what if... we don't get along?" Seohyun asked.

"We're not exactly forcing you, are we?" Hongjoong asked and she nodded, "If you like to stay alone, then fine. But Wooyoung, it was his idea. And he really knows when a person needs a friend."

"Oh," Seohyun realized what he meant. She looked like she needed friends.

"Plus, we do get along well, don't you think?" Mingi smiled.

"Well, what can I say, except that you'll find me really weird. And okay, I can try. But one day, you're gonna wonder why you even thought we could be friends. You'll wish you'd never asked me."

The three of them stared at her. Seohyun stared back and once again, the three of them burst out laughing.

"We're already regretting. Was it so hard to make friends, Hongjoong?" Mingi asked.

"I don't even remember. Wow."

Seohyun couldn't help but laugh as she thought how it was gonna be. It was true. No one took anything serious.

Maybe they'll never find out about her ghost problems then.

Or maybe they'll never believe her.

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biteghost · 4 years ago

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How do you come up with so many cool characters?? All of your OCs seem so vibrant and fleshed out. Do you have a specific process for developing them, or do they just kinda come to you mostly formed? I find I struggle with building a compelling OCs for D&D games & would love to hear your thoughts on character development.

(This answer got long, sorry.) This is a super nice sentiment, I’m happy you think my characters are all cool and unique!!

As far as process goes, uh, it depends on the character? I’ve spent a long time (years) rewiring my brain when it comes to what I think about when creating OCs. They don’t usually come to me fully formed - I get an idea in my head about a concept, and then over like a week or even months of fiddling I end up with a character for that concept.

A lot of the time my characters are simply people I wanted to see more of in media as a kid! Mostly, female characters I actually relate to or are as nuanced and messy as their male cast members, haha... (It was a trip when I realized in high school that I didn’t hate female characters - it was actually that none of them were written as well as the cool boys in the anime series I liked, haha! Be the change you want to see in the world, basically.)

Inspiration for characters (and stories for them to be part of) come from a lot of places. An easy piece of advice is to make an effort to intake media you like! Read new comics, watch new movies and television shows, read books, play video games, listen to music and obsessively memorize the lyrics - hell, obsessively learn everything there is to know about black holes or public domain characters (that’s what I did, lol...)!

(Note: ’New’ meaning new to YOU - you don’t need to only be partaking of media that’s created in 2021 - you can find a lot to love in media that was created before your time, or for generations before you!)

I must reiterate: intake new media that you ENJOY! You don’t have to like all the same things as everyone else, you don’t have to be invested in the same shows and podcasts as your friends. Varied interests and taste is part of what makes us all unique! Increasing your pool of inspiration will help you come up with interesting ideas, and help you find YOUR voice. Your particular interests and the niche things that speak to you will help you figure out what kind of characters and what kind of stories you like to create! But the process doesn’t end at just intaking media... When you find the stuff that brings you joy, analyze what exactly it is about that thing that speaks to you... Put it into words. Explain it to a friend. Make it tangible, analyze the feelings and why the series made you feel that way... and then take it and shove it into your own stories, lol!

Engage critically and thoughtfully with work you like, with characters you like, and it will help you have the language and thought process to recreate it in your own work!

My creative process is like an exquisite corpse of all the characters and series I’ve liked over my lifetime. I mesh them all together in a grim blender and what comes out is a shake in the vague shape as an OC, lol

BUT... it seems like you’re asking more specifically about making characters for tabletop roleplaying games like D&D? And THAT is a different process for me than making OCs for my comics or original story ideas!

I don’t usually join a tabletop game with a fully fleshed out character, actually?? I don’t spend a long time on their backstory, and I usually figure it out like halfway through the story, or through collaboration with my game master!

My TTRPG characters are usually whatever I think would be most interesting in the given game setting or set-up and... usually they exist in opposition to whatever the core concept of the game is. So, the examples I have from games I’ve played are:

In Cardians: West (World of Darkness: Hunter the Vigil): we played in a modern-day urban fantasy setting, where players were recruited into a supernatural Hunter group that was also a criminal organization that Did Crimes and Broke The Law in the name of keeping peace and protecting humanity from the supernatural creatures that go bump in the night. I played Andrew, a Lawful Good Police Detective, because I thought playing a character who would need to grow past his original ideals of ‘Right and Wrong’ in the name of the greater good would be interesting! (And it was!)

In SINNING ADVENTURE (WoD: Geist: The Sin-Eaters) we payed in a modern-day urban fantasy setting with the premise that the players all Died and were brought back to life by forming a pact with a powerful spirit (and getting cool ghost powers in the process!) I played Cassius, a character who could not cope with his death, and thus refused to use his new powers because they were evidence that he was no longer strictly human. It caused conflict in the group and world, but I thought it would be interesting! (And it was! Cassius was a Bitch.)

In Rex Machina (Dungeons and Dragons 5E), I wanted to play an Aarakocra, but was having a hard time deciding on a class or backstory... until I found out that in the ‘canon’ of D&D Aarakocra only live to be like, mid 20s???? Their lifespans are insanely short compared to other playable races!! And I thought that was stupid, so I decided to make MY Aarakocra, Izzy, a warlock that’s looking for ways to extend his own stupidly short life. His pact essentially granted that to him, giving him extra time to find a way to achieve True Immortality. His conflict challenges what’s ‘true’ living in this world, and his extended life is in direct conflict with a lot of forces in the world we play in, and while it is very stressful I think it’s really interesting to play!

In Lamplighting (Monster of the Week), my character Aicen is an assassin who made a deal with a demon and gained supernatural perks out of it... except I decided that she doesn’t WANT to be in this deal. She is actively trying to undo it because it wasn’t her deal - she inherited it from a CEO that she killed during an unrelated job. (Aicen is probably my character I’ve put the most backstory into, and that’s just because at character creation in MOTW you are given a lot of questions about who your character is and why they’re where they are!)

In Hand of Adam (WoD: HtV), the concept was that all players were going to join a post-apocalyptic supernatural-hating cult. I played Shouter, who was a self-preserving pacifist coward who also turned out to be a fae (which the cult would have killed him over). It was stressful but very fun. I love Shouter. He ran away from fights and didn’t actually kill anyone until the last episode where they fought God (whom he killed, lol).

NOW. THESE ARE ALL JUST EXAMPLES OF HOW *I* LIKE TO PLAY CHARACTERS!! For me personally, I enjoy playing a character who has built-in conflict either with the world, the story, or the other players. I’m only able to play characters like this because my friend group are all really cool and we all know that conflict is not bad - it’s fiction and we’re just roleplaying! If I didn’t trust my GMs and fellow players as much as I do, I probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable enough playing some of these concepts.

I don’t think you need to know every little thing about a tabletop character, and in fact, not knowing some things and leaving it up to the GM and story to flesh out is an easy way to help you get more invested in both your character AND the story your GM is telling! Tabletops are a collaborative storytelling experience, so if you’ve already plotted out your character’s whole story, there won’t be much participation from other players or your GM. Figure out what your character wants, and let your roleplaying and GM slowly put all the other pieces in place over the course of your campaign!

But the TL:DR about how I make tabletop OCs is that I just... try to give them a goal, an ideal, or a personality that is in direct conflict with some aspect of the game we’re playing. I don’t want the character to be undermining the whole game, because that’s really crappy to do to your GM, but I have to have something for my character to grow through or change. I like giving them built-in character arc starters, lol. I haven’t played a game where my character has gotten along with every other player character and NPC over the entire campaign since my very FIRST game, lol!

Also, if you’re having trouble, why not ask your GM what they think? Again, tabletops are collaborative! Don’t be afraid to talk ideas out with your GM for your character.

A final note about playing in specifically oneshot games (i.e. games that are not long campaigns but are meant to be played in one or two sittings). Personally, I always just retrofit an OC I already have to play in oneshots! When I make a new character for a long campaign, it usually takes me two or three sessions to find their voice and figure out how to roleplay them. If the game you’re playing is only one session, I find it easier to jump right in and get the most out of your character and the game when you’re playing a character you already know pretty well! I’ve played characters from my webcomic quite a few times, and it’s always a lot more fun for me than figuring out a new character on the fly!

SO UH, IN CONCLUSION... sorry if this is mad unhelpfu!! My personal processes are unique to me! but that's the point - no one person will have the exact answer that works for you! You have to keep trying until you figure it out for yourself! Good luck! Keep creating! <3

#long post #asktime #not art #art talk #writing talk #tabletop talk #gif #iwishihadhorns

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bending-sickle · 3 years ago

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For the writing meme! As you asked me so many (and they really are such good questions): 4, 10, 18, 20, 28, 33, 37!

4. Do you have any OCs? Do you have a story for them? - I do. Some are born out of necessity, because roles need to be filled and sometimes the canon's roster is sparse.

But I also have My Darlings, which are characters that have more meat on their bones. (And a lot of those bones are mine.) My Supernatural novels (yay NaNoWriMo) are OC-centric (Chip, my beloved), and have a supporting cast of OCs (Saunders and Agatha, my also beloved). My (unpublished, unfinished) other long-form (and emotionally self-indulgent) fics also have an OC front and center. (Not that the poor bastards have much choice in the matter.)

Being a "fangirl" raised in the Mary Sue era, I of course live in fear of the Mary Sue accusation, but you know what? Fuck it. You have to put some of yourself into your work, right?

10. Top three favourite fic tropes. - Okay, so, I haven't read fanfic in...so long. (The bookworm in me died. I'm waiting on a new worm. But.) Also, I...don't really know what the tropes are. I mean, I don't have the list internalized, and Fanfic Tropes on TVTropes.org isn't helping much.

I remember thoroughly enjoying Crossover fanfics, both writing and reading, because of how fun it was to try and fit the pieces together. Original Flavour was also a fave, for the challenge and the wonder of seeing it well-executed. And Crack fic is, of course, a guilty pleasure. It's so delightful!

But I guess if we're talking about, like, plot-specific, then... Look, all I'm coming up with are the usual tropes of "there was only one bed" or "fake dating" or "coffeeshop au" and frankly I...don't really care for them. (Especially the AUs. Specifically when they're "these characters, but in a coffeeshop. In highschool. If they were cops. If they were rivalling bakers. Like...just write original fic then. But AUs where it's "but they failed" or "but that one lived" or "but they found out" then yes, yes, give me the extrapolation! I love that shit.)

Okay, so fanlore.org also has a list so, here's me picking three: canon divergence au, crossover, hurt/comfort. Honourable mentions: crack, first time, and enemyslash (yiss).

18. First, second, or third person? - I once read a first person fic and liked it, but I'm still shocked about it, so. I can't really get into second person, and even less if they do "y/n" because even after all this time, my first instinct is to read that as a computer prompt for "yes/no". So I prefer to read and write in third person. I do, however, seem to like to write in third-person subjective or limited (which is like writing in first person but the grammar's different, basically).

For example, my NaNoWriMo's are in this, but - because I got tired, and needed the word count - I'll slip in passages in italics from some other character's viewpoint. I have a superlong "this is how I have been coping these past plague years" fic that I haven't published - or finished - which is strictly one third person subjective, and, wow, it's... Sometimes it's claustrophobic. But also an interesting challenge, like, the reader know what the other character means, but our viewpoint doesn't, or I get to play with what they've noticed or not, or how they interpret things... Dunno, it's fun. Challenging, but fun.

20. Do you work on a single project or many at the same time? How does that work for you? - Yeah, no, I'm a one-project kind of person. If it's not a one-shot, in which case I might be able to hit pause on one thing while I work on another, then I am shackled to one project and one project only. If not, well...just ask all those unfinished projects, crying in their corners. Also, I've not particularly rife with inspiration or the energy behind it, so it's not like I've got many options going on at the same time. I just...keep on trucking with whatever I've got going.

I don't know, man. I guess the answer is it doesn't work for me but I keep trying to just keep going.

28. Any writing advice that works for you and you feel like sharing? - My favourite is the "fuck whoever said you can't use the word said" advice. Just use it. Said. It's a fine word. Neutral. Invisible.

My other favourite is "No, you will not remember. Write it down."

33. Give your writing a compliment. - *writes and deletes answers for five minutes* Dialogue good. Exposition good. Words pretty.

37. Do you research before writing or while you write? Is it fun or boring for you? - As I write, mainly because I never know what minor detail my brain will refuse to remember and instist is necessary for some throwaway line or metaphor. It can be frustrating or derailing, but most of the time it's an interesting, fun little break. And there's the plus side of finding out new things I can use. Yay knowledge!

#reasons why pepperf is awesome #things you might have noticed about me #writing

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sokkathebluewolf · 4 years ago

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I am chickened out from gladiator because it is this long and it keeps getting longer is it worth my time to read it ??

... Uh, well. I can’t help but wonder if you’re aware this blog is run by the actual author of the story in question? I don’t know if you expect me to give you a non-biased answer when I’ve considered the story was worth 8 years of my life xD as far as I’m concerned, it absolutely has been worth it, but I can’t speak for the whole wide world when it comes to that. If you want the opinions of readers, there’s probably other blogs run by people who have read the story and who might have critical opinions about it... that may be what you were looking for. If, however, you were deliberately hoping to get my opinion on my own story... well, yes, for me it’s clearly worth it xD Otherwise, I would’ve quit ages ago.

The story is indeed very long and it keeps getting longer, and it will keep getting longer because we’re not done yet and won’t be for a while :’D if you’re the type of reader who can’t stand it when they catch up to stories and have to wait for updates, well, feel free to give it a shot when I’m done writing it, I guess? It’ll be a while until then, but it’s up to you. If you don’t like reading really long stories, then it’s probably better for you if you don’t force yourself to read this one, I know not everyone is ready to dedicate that much time to reading something, especially if they have lots of things to do. Hence, if the length daunts you, that’s alright, it daunts me too and I’m responsible for it xD it’s fine if that deters you from reading it.

But as the way you phrased your question almost sounded like you’re challenging me to give you some sort of sales pitch to catch your attention, let’s see if I can pull it off:

Gladiator is a massive ATLA AU, not only in terms of story length but also scope: it’s a complete rewrite of the entirety of ATLA in a more mature setting, starting chapter 1 with the characters 5 years older than they were in canon. Aang’s adventures in saving the world did not take place here because of a simple enough reason: Katara didn’t accompany Sokka on his boat on the fateful day when they were meant to find Aang, which means the story as we’ve known it simply doesn’t take place. I’ve taken liberties here and there, added some changes from canon when I needed to do so, in order to ensure the story works, but the gist of the story is to set a stage where the Fire Nation marched onwards, practically unopposed, and conquered the Earth Kingdom with the power of Sozin’s Comet (just in case it needs to be clarified, without certain technological developments, Ozai’s wild plan to incinerate the whole world wouldn’t happen, and if Team Avatar isn’t assembled before the Comet shows up, said technological developments simply wouldn’t exist... :’D). I’ve had to figure out how many details would change, how much of the original story would or wouldn’t happen without Team Avatar’s involvement, I think most my choices have been solid, but it’ll be up to you to decide if you think they are or not if you read the story.

The worldbuilding of Gladiator, then, is preeeetty huge and complicated because of that starting point. There’s a lot of elements that are completely new (such as the Gladiator League and all its derivates), some OCs, some lore expansion, so you can definitely say it’s an ambitious project. In a sense, I’ve reset canon to zero, and at the same time I haven’t, which makes things complicated but, for me, really fun to develop. If you’re interested in seeing more of the Avatarverse explored, characters repurposed, with new dynamics and relationships, Gladiator may just be what you’ve been looking for :D

In my experience, the main reason why most people stumble into this fic (other than by sorting FF.net’s ATLA stories by review count and drawing blanks upon glimpsing a Sokkla story on the first page xD) is because they’ve been drawn into Sokkla, or they’re looking for stories centered around Azula or Sokka. Gladiator, evidently, features all three such elements because, obviously, those two are the protagonists and their relationship is the beating heart of the whole tale. I’ve been asked in the past who’s the real protagonist and I honestly still have no idea xD but anyways, if you’re interested in reading a story with a toooooon of Azula character development, even if it takes place across a long, long time, this story may just do the trick. I’ve done the best I could to keep her character as true to what I believed a young adult Azula might become, within the circumstances of this story. She has grown a LOT in 200 chapters, goes without saying (if she hadn’t, I’d be one heck of a failure of an author x’D), so if you’re interested in seeing a slow but effective growth arc for Azula, you’ll certainly find that in Gladiator. Same is true for Sokka, but I think most people who come to this fic for Sokka are interested in seeing him being a badass, which we have plenty of as well xD still, it’s also a long and slow process for Sokka to grow into a powerful warrior, neither him nor Azula start out in the story with all the answers, and they both bump into many hurdles as they navigate their complicated lives.

There’s a lot of humor in Gladiator, perhaps more than expected with a story that has that sort of dark premise, but it’s, on great measure, because Sokka and Azula are inevitably given to banter xD if you want to read a lot of banter between those two, well, you may not be bored in 200 chapters because, while the nature of their exchanges does vary as they both develop, their conversations are usually pretty spirited and they love trying to outsmart each other all the time.

If you are already a Sokkla shipper and the main reason you’re here is because you want more Sokkla goodness in your life... I’ll just say Gladiator has become a bit of a dream come true for me as a Sokkla shipper as well, because it’s the perfect space for me to work with virtually every idea I’ve ever had for these two. Yes, there’s drama and conflict here and there, if you’re not too given to angst there’s a few parts of the story that won’t sit so well with you, though if you love angst you’ll probably enjoy them plenty... yet what I’m most proud of, with this story, is having developed their relationship not only as best I could, but I’ve also attempted to defy typical storytelling structures for romance stories, where the lead couple can’t seem to have a stable relationship because “that would be boring”. Screw that, man: these two have been in a serious relationship together in-story by now for well over half the published chapters, and I’ve had the time of my life writing their dynamics as a couple while the plot continues to develop around them. This, however, is not everyone’s cup of tea, so if you aren’t all that given to seeing such traditional romance storytelling structures dismissed because I wanted to write my favorite ship dealing with all their external struggles while finding strength in the bond they share, Gladiator may not hold your attention long enough for you to devote yourself to reading it beyond chapter 100-ish. On the other hand, if this subversion of romance structure is what you’ve been looking for all your life, or if it’s what you always wanted and never knew you wanted it, or if you’re simply curious as to whether it works or not, Gladiator may suit your interests fairly well. Again, Sokkla is the absolute center of this story, both together and independently, so if you want to see a rewrite of ATLA with them at the core of just... everything? xD that’s absolutely what you’ll find here.

That being said, there’s things I guess you should mind about Gladiator: I have some relatively controversial takes about certain things, including interpretations of fan-favorite characters that some people have been known to take offense over. I, personally, believe my interpretations of those characters don’t deviate that much from canon or that, when they do, the setting itself explains why the deviation works as it does, but due to the fact that I work with a protagonist who was in a villainous role back in ATLA, her relationships with some characters can be more complicated than a lot of people seem to believe they should be. Hence, if you’re not particularly adverse to reading content that brings up big questions about the motivations of certain characters, or how they’d react if the story from ATLA hadn’t happened exactly as it did, you’ll have enough fun in Gladiator. If, however, you don’t particularly care to see anything that shows beloved characters in a not-so-flattering light, this story may not be for you (though, if you’re willing to humor me and allow my story to question your perception of those characters, feel free to try the story as well).

There’s also a variety of dark themes and situations in Gladiator, something that any reader should be warned about in this day and age: I am 100% against violence for the sake of violence, to name one such subject, and I generally try to portray it with as much nuance as possible, but even if I feature my own characters criticizing their violent world and wanting to put an end to the strife caused by the Fire Nation, some of the violence in Gladiator may be a little too much for the readers who prefer the tone of the original ATLA. Hence, if that’s how it is for you, it’s another reason to approach the story with caution. I won’t pretend I’ve handled every theme and subject perfectly, but I’ve never wanted the darker moments to feel gratuitous in any way, so if you’re open to reading a darker take on the Avatarverse, this may work for you after all.

Alas! If you want to see Azula growing out of the toxic Fire Nation indoctrination, if you want to see Sokka gaining confidence and strength as a man and warrior, if you want to see a fleshed-out but still very much villainous Ozai, if you want to see Toph fulfilling her dreams of joining an all-out fighting league where she can beat people up for a living, if you want to see a myriad of secondary ATLA characters (like Song, or Shoji!) given new lives and even genuine protagonism, if you want to see Zuko discovering he’s allowed to just... be happy? xD Gladiator may prove interesting enough for you.

Furthermore, if you want to see Azula being true friends with Mai and Ty Lee, discovering a dragon, developing new firebending styles, confronting her misplaced beliefs about herself, rebelling subtly (and lately, not so subtly) against her father, growing into a great leader who could change the Fire Nation’s nefarious direction... aaand if you want to see Sokka fighting creatively (sometimes with TWO swords!), navigating the dangerous waters of interacting with Fire Lord Ozai, staying true to his beliefs while also learning that the world is not as black-and-white as he was raised to think it was, understanding himself better and making the most of his potential as a quick learner, writing embarrassing haiku and being an unapologetic rebel who goes toe-to-toe with Heads of State just because he can... yep. Probably read it? xD

Lastly... if you want to see Sokka and Azula grow through their mistakes, learning to understand each other, fighting side by side, training together, dancing to no music, learning the underrated pleasure of proper communication in a relationship, sassing each other left and right, flirting in ridiculous ways, taunting each other in many regards, laughing at each other’s terrible jokes, protecting each other fiercely, challenging each other to a spicy ramen eating contest, discovering indirect bending, being highly inappropriate at times and places where they shouldn’t be, making long, dangerous yet fun journeys together, sneaking around to meet up when they’re not supposed to, standing by each other in their darkest moments, watching over the other when they’re sick/injured, being ready to sacrifice virtually anything for each other, and even defying and defeating even death to save each other...? Well, I don’t know if there’s any other stories where you might find all of this, but I can guarantee you’ll find it in Gladiator :)

If none of this is convincing enough... that’s a shame, but I understand. If it convinced you to give it a shot, however... I guess I’ll just hope you enjoy it enough to stick around! :) thanks for taking my story into consideration regardless of whatever you decide. Have a nice day!

#anon #ask #gladiator #self-promotion I guess?

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