#so. um yeah. enjoy?

[transmascblueblur]

What if Jak was trans? (Part I)

[Content warnings: semi-graphic descriptions of afab puberty (menstruation and unsafe binding in particular) with mentions of amab puberty, medical abuse/trauma/torture, mentions of ftm top surgery and HRT, some slightly transphobic & misogynistic phrasing/language, a brief mention of forced detransition, and subtext suggesting that cis adults see a trans minor naked without his consent, though NOT in a sexual way (as well as all the standard stuff you’d expect from the game Jak II, mostly violence).]

Out under the burning sun of the Wastelands, King Damas of Spargus is blessed with a gift from the Precursors: a baby girl.

Or so he thinks.

The heir to the Spargan throne enjoys desert life, riding the leaper lizards, watching the sand fly up behind the buggies as they speed out of the city's gate, sneakily observing the monks as they chant and perform their mysterious rituals. It's a happy, blissful time.

It doesn't take long, though, for the kid to realise that he's not a girl like everyone says he is, and communicates his feelings to the people around him as soon as he knows how. Damas, the leading reject in a city of rejects, a man ruled by nothing more than fatherly love, who would wage war on the blazing sun itself for his child, doesn't turn his back on his now-son, but embraces him. (Perhaps there are even other trans people in Spargus that ended up there for that reason, if Haven is generally a transphobic place?) He changes his former-daughter's name from the feminine Mara to the masculine Mar (or perhaps it was always Mar, in a gender neutral fashion). He cuts his son's hair, lets him wear his little dungarees, and since Mar is so young at this time, nobody who isn't already aware has no reason to suspect that Damas' son was ever anything else.

But then Count Veger strikes.

He hears that the banished King Damas, descendant of the House of Mar (and likely skilled in eco channelling), has had a son. Children are a lot easier to kidnap than adults, even the children of kings, and Veger needs someone who can channel eco for his experiments. In the night, he kidnaps Mar, whisking him out of his desert home and into the heart of metallic, miserable Haven City.

Damas' grief could swallow stars. He'll never stop looking, even if he has to empty the Wastelands of sand one grain at a time. Even if it kills him.

As surprised as Veger is to eventually discover that Mar isn't exactly a typical little boy, this doesn't affect his experiments, so he's content referring to Mar the way everyone else does, as a boy. All he truly cares about is unlocking the Precursors' secrets, anyway.

By means that remain unknown, perhaps after only a few days, or perhaps after many months, or something in-between, Mar is freed. Maybe Veger, or even an assistant of some kind, lets his guard down for just a second, and the sly little kid sneaks away, stumbling out of the lab and finding himself alone in an unfamiliar place — bare-footed, traumatised, silent. A stray croca-dog, just as dirt-covered and lonely as the boy, forms an attachment to him. With saliva dripping from flesh-rending teeth, he protects Mar from those that would harm him long enough for him to be found by Samos and taken to the Underground, where he also meets Kor.

Samos realises what that amulet around the child's neck means. As long as the kid sticks around long enough to be put on Haven's throne when Praxis is done away with, it doesn't really matter if he has shoes or not, right? Besides, as The Shadow, Samos has bigger priorities than babysitting. To the rest of the Underground, a scruffy little kid with short hair, dungarees, and a big croca-dog looks enough like a boy, so they have no reason to question whether he's a real boy or not. Besides, a lot the Underground's members generally prefer knowing that the heir to Haven isn't a girl, even if they can't quite justify why when Tess asks them.

Kor, meanwhile, already knows just who this child will become. Whilst baby Mar is now with the Underground, his older self has already come through the warp-gate and fallen into Praxis' hands, so Kor has seen the kid's older self at least once, and has seen at least a hint of the man - the hero - that he will grow into. (If he doesn't kill him first.)

And then, of course, shenanigans ensue. Mar meets Jak (thinks he's really cool) and Daxter (thinks he's really cute), is told to attempt the Tests of Manhood (and the door opened for him at first — he always knew he was a boy!), and gets kidnapped by Kor to open the Precursor Stone.

In the end, Mar watches as his former carer's severed head skids along the ground towards Jak's feet. (Gross. But also kinda cool.)

Then Mar realises that Jak is actually himself in the future, and gets the validation and euphoria he never knew he needed. He takes on the name Jak for himself, and travels back in time to Sandover Village with Samos, remembering nothing of his old life but the fading light of the warp-gate. (Unfortunately, he forgets that warning about the wumpbee nest.)

(Due to time loop issues, this means that the name Jak just appears from nowhere, since the Jak living in Sandover Village was given it from his older self that he met as a child in Haven, who heard it from his older self back when he was a kid, and the loop continues. If we want a satisfactory answer to the true origin of Jak's name, time-loop aside, my personal preference is this:

The Kid isn't speaking at all when he first arrives in Sandover, and Samos was always content to refer to him as just "The Kid" anyway, so without a way to clearly communicate his desire for a name with Samos, that's how he stays for a while. Over time, The Kid gets to know Keira, Daxter, and the villagers, and they get to know him. United by the same adventurous spirit, The Kid and The Explorer grow closer, and The Explorer then becomes known as Uncle. Samos is content to have someone else caring for The Kid, now that he has a daughter to take care of, and is happy for him to have some semblance of a family, so when Uncle suggests, you know, maybe giving the poor lad a name, Samos agrees. Keira and Daxter also suggest names, of course, but Samos flat refuses to let them, Daxter especially, who is currently a scruffy urchin but who he knows will one day be an animal, name the future hero of Haven. Furthermore, Samos is perfectly aware of the grim fate that Sandover Village will suffer when the warp-gate is reopened, so he allows The Explorer to name Jak as a small way for Sandover's people to live on.)

Time passes like thick honey in Sandover Village. The sea caresses the shoreline of Sentinel Beach, wind whispers and howls through the trees of the Forbidden Jungle, and yakows chew hay lazily over at the farm. Life is good, peaceful.

Jak grows up a bit, grows closer with Daxter and Keira, gets stung by some wumpbees, does a lot of exploring, makes a lot of trouble.

Eventually he finds himself able to talk sometimes, rather than just using the sign language he and Daxter invented for themselves, and doesn't mind doing it now and then. Then Daxter's voice starts dropping. A sudden jealousy starts gnawing at Jak, so he decides to keep quiet most of the time, even in the moments he can speak. (Daxter prefers the limelight anyway.)

Growing up has other downsides, too. Jak finds himself using whatever the women of the village recommend — certain types of grass, cloth, wool — to stop the bleeding that feels constant, even if it only comes every few weeks. And sweet Precursors, it hurts. (Not to mention the other strange stuff — headaches, tiredness, his gums feeling weird, an unsettled stomach, and the urge to cry and throw things, to name a few.) Keira, going through the same thing, gives advice and support, and whilst that makes it easier to bear, other boys don't have to suffer this, and that's all Jak can think about.

And then Jak's body starts really changing, visibly — especially his chest. All the while, Daxter enjoys a flat chest, a (small) growth spurt, no stomach cramps or bleeding, and a voice that cracks pleasantly, even if he himself finds it embarrassing (as well as apparently some... interesting dreams, but Daxter refuses to talk much about them).

When it gets too much to bear, Jak starts flattening his chest with bandages and suffers through the pain, periodically repairing the damage to his ribs and lungs with green eco. He has no other options. He'll always have to live this way, he knows. It's a horrifying truth, but perhaps it’s worth it when your two best friends - and all the other villagers, for that matter - can see you for who you are. But even when he begs Samos to please do something about all these awful, awful changes, the sage refuses, because even he doesn't know what to do. (Although, having already met Jak's older self, Samos knows that one day Jak's voice will be deep, his chest will be flat, and wonders how in green tarnation that will happen. It takes him a while to realise that the answer is not a happy one.)

Life goes on, and Jak grows older. For the first time, he finds himself truly envying his homeless, ill-treated, buck-toothed best friend, which just makes him feel worse, since Jak is objectively the luckier of the two (he's never accused of stealing, and always has a place to sleep). If Daxter notices Jak's jealousy, he's nice enough not to say anything. But no amount of envy on either side is enough to hurt their relationship, and they just grow closer the older they get.

More shenanigans ensue after the boys visit Misty Island (an inevitability, Samos knows, even if he did try to warn them). It all ends in a darkening sky, horrifying creatures crawling and fluttering out of a warp-gate, and a monster's voice cracking the tropical air like thunder,

"You cannot hide from me, boy!"

(It also ends with Daxter remaining short, furry, and bright orange. Overnight, Jak's envy is replaced with guilt as solid as the mountains.)

And just like that, Jak is back in Haven, lost and confused with nobody but an animal companion by his side for the second time in his life (but the first that he recalls).

But it doesn't last long. Seconds, at most.

Commander Erol has already received his orders from Baron Praxis, who was himself given a tip-off from Onin, and is expecting to pick up a teenage boy at the pier, and drag him to the prison kicking and screaming if necessary (through preferably with less fuss than that). Erol and his team retrieve the boy as planned, and Praxis is thrilled to finally have the most promising candidate for the Dark Warrior Program in his clutches. Imagine their surprise, perhaps when making Jak change into his prison uniform, when they notice something strange — he's not quite as male as that old soothsayer had made him out to be.

At first, the Baron is baffled. Onin had said a boy, but whoever this kid is, they're definitely the one. Their eco powers speak for themselves. Perhaps he sends Erol to ask Onin for an explanation, and perhaps she says just what she said the first time. So Praxis thinks about it. He's heard of people doing this sort of thing before, changing their sex, though he can’t quite fathom it himself. Of course, he could simply force this kid to live as female, change his name, warp his entire identity into what Praxis himself wants him — her — to be.

But then the Baron thinks some more. Jak wants to be a boy, badly. The tight bandages on his chest are a clear testament to that, and if the wise old Onin says he's a boy, she's probably not wrong. All it would take is some injections (which Jak will be no stranger to, since the eco will need to go directly into his bloodstream) and maybe some surgeries here and there. If Jak doesn't need to bind anymore, doesn't have to worry about menstruating anymore, and can grow the strength and muscle of a real man thanks to the testosterone, he will be a better warrior, and that works in Praxis' favour. Furthermore, it might even make Jak feel indebted to him, could even inspire some loyalty. After all, what use is your perfect Dark Warrior if he hates your guts, resists all of your commands, and is probably constantly plotting to kill you?

So the Baron makes Jak into a man and, as they will soon see, into a monster.

(It takes Praxis longer than it should to realise that, despite the surgeries and testosterone that he wouldn't have otherwise been able to access, Jak will never feel even an ounce of loyalty to him.)

Erol, meanwhile, has no qualms with Jak's transition. If anything, it makes him feel slightly better, because now he knows for sure that it's not a girl he's hurting (and this, for some reason, makes a world of difference to him).

Time crawls by like some dying insect as Jak rots in his cell. He's forced to train until he drops, takes beating after beating from the guards, suffers Erol's relentless sadism, screams and thrashes in the injection chair. It feels like years. He still remembers Daxter’s last words to him,

“Don’t worry Jak, I’ll save ya before ya know it!”

He wonders how long ago that was. He wonders if he’ll ever see Daxter again. He didn't know it was possible to miss someone so much, and wishes he never had to know that feeling.

Finally, the time comes. Sure, he’s a man now, and much stronger than he was, but no amount of dark eco in his blood is making him into the superweapon that the Baron has been searching for, and Jak is his last hope. (He's already seen the other four die, one at a time, wondering when it will be him.)

Praxis orders Erol to kill Jak that night. The Commander, now apparently bored of using him as his personal punching-bag and lab rat, gleefully agrees.

So Jak is left alone, lying limp in his restraints, the agony of another dark eco injection still blistering through his veins, only vaguely aware that at last, his suffering will end.

At one time he’d hoped to escape, to tear Praxis limb from limb, to make him suffer, but apparently that time has passed.

Now there’s nothing he can do but wait for death.

But then a familiar voice, like the sun through stormclouds, rings out through the sterile silence of the prison.

[biruesque]

dead end.

[haveihitanerve]

Dick hated heights. He wasn’t afraid of them, that would be silly. He just… didn’t like them very much. He liked his feet on the ground, thank you very much. But he couldn’t tell his parents that, they were acrobats, they would be ruined. (Not likely but dick was six so he’s not very reasonable) And then his parents fell and dick felt justified in his hatred of heights. But then Bruce came along. And Dick told him, because he figured it was something Bruce should know if they were to be partners, if Bruce was going to rely on him in the field. And Bruce didn’t laugh or yell or do anything really, just looked thoughtful for a while and then went “well. That’s something we’ll have to work on I suppose.” And they did. They practiced distraction, so dick wouldn’t notice he was up high, they practiced balance, so dick would know, logically, that he was safe, and most of all they practiced trust, so dick would know that Bruce would always be there to catch him if he fell. Always. And he was there, every time. He never let dick fall. Dick hates his father for many things, even resented him for some, but he never hated how much he trusted Bruce. Even if they fought, even if they said things they didn’t mean, dick knew Bruce would still be there to catch him. He might wait a few seconds, being petty being a bitch, but he would catch him. Dick loved him for that. And Dick chased Bruce across rooftops with the balance and strength of an acrobat, and Robin flew across Gotham with all the steady assurance of one who knew he wouldn’t fall, and if he did that he would be caught. Dick Grayson hated heights, it was true, but Dick Grayson-Wayne, the first Robin, Nightwing, leader of the Teen Titans and Young Justice… Well, he thrives in the sky.

[starscelly]

i'm a star (star, star, star, star, star, star)

[wyvernity]

sss day my favorite national holiday WOOOOHHHH

bonus

[madzillus]

Ed asked Frenchie and Wee John to help make his cake topper dreams a reality

[housecow]

You’re a chatterbox in the best way possible. Does your academic writing not challenge you enough, or do you enjoy informal writing (and if so, can we read any of your stuff anywhere)?

LOL thank you i’ve always been a lil too much 🥳 but tbh. most of my informal writing ends up here nowadays, though i used to be an avid original fantasy writer and um. i wrote fanfiction from ages 10-17 loll!!

academic writing is enough for me rn though!! i’ve written more than my advisor had by the time she was a PhD candidate (her own words) lmfao but that’s the nature of our project, so :)) i enjoy it all but there’s little to no creative juices left by the time im finished w this stuff.

one day i will get back to my indulgent little stories 🥺

[missmolsa]

Jodie got stuck on babysitting duty <3

ref ☝️

[charrfie]

Making art for myself and myself only rn because no one fucking gets it (please use she/her for salad fingers if you add on in reblogs/replies!)

[g0nta-g0kuhara]

I think I've gotten to the point where I'm just gonna not interact with or even block blogs that post v/3 fan art while aggressively and needlessly harping on it in the caption

[kazoosandfannypacks]

You're my rival. Of course I think you're pretty.

[elongatedtennisball]

A Beginner's Guide to the TBCU

First and foremost, what is the TBCU? The Tennis Ball Cinematic Universe is a silly little playground where we all make our tennis balls kiss and fight to the death.

While the "Tennis Ball" part of our name may be off-putting to some, we actually have a wide variety of creatures, including (but not limited to!) gods, the odd human or two, robots, and whatever the fuck this thing is:

Anyone can join, just make an OC like you would any other, slap a tennis ball label on it (i.e; husband-tennis-ball, acoustic-tennis-ball, tennis-ball-wizard), make a blog, and tag or send an ask to either myself or @i-want-tennis-ball to join!

But before you join, you might be wondering: "Are there rules? What sort of world setting is this? Can I make just ANYTHING, or should I go for a specific vibe?"-- and that's where this helpful guide comes into play!

Under the cut will be 6 things you should know before joining the TBCU*! (And if you know all of this, but aren't sure how to roleplay, #6 is the one for you.)

*Don't worry, though, if you don't want to read all of this (It is... a lot.)... We'll teach you!

Number 1: Want and Hate

@i-want-tennis-ball and @i-hate-tennis-ball are the two oldest members of the TBCU, and as I'm sure you can tell, there's a bit of tension between them... (Or, well. There was. I'm... not really sure what they're doing now.)

I Want Tennis Ball, also known as Sybil, is our leader, the owner of the House many of us live in (more on that below!), and has provided lovingly for our cult family since the very beginning.

Sybil takes in any lost or wandering tennis balls that come to them, so if you're looking for a place to stay, Sybil has your back! She's an incomprehensible entity, so if you have any sort of prejudice against non-tennis balls, this isn't the place for you. We'll defend him with our lives if we have to. (At least. Most of us will. Some of us. Probably. I will.)

And then there's I Hate Tennis Ball (or, Hate, for short), the mortal enemy of the tennis balls. He's also an incomprehensible entity, like Sybil, but unlike Sybil, he's determined to kill us all.

Just a couple of years ago, they came into our House under the name "Zion", disguised as a tennis ball. We accepted him, welcomed her into our House... and that bastard tried to burn us to the ground!

Hate lives out next to the Forest (again, more on that below), in a small cottage. If you see it... it's best to just avoid it.

Recently, however... Sybil and Hate seem to be getting along? It's been quite the stir among the House's residents.

Speaking of which...

Number 2: The House

The House is where we live! Well, most of us, anyways. It's surrounded on all sides by forests, (Like the Forest, the Fae Forest, and the Willows) and a bit further out there are a whole bunch of... other stuff. I haven't really explored beyond that, to be honest. I think there's a bunch of villages and stuff?

...

The House is owned by Sybil, but anyone can come live there. There's always room! In fact, it's practically... magical, how much room there is. Sometimes I swear the hallways change on me...

The House is taken care of by @nurse-tennis-ball, the Nurse, Maid, Gardener, and much more! She loves her job, and we're all very grateful to him. If you need anything, they almost certainly will have you covered! (Just... be warned. She's a bit... odd... at times.)

You don't have to live in the House to hang out with us, but we'd be glad to have you!

Number 3: The Forests

There's four major forests around the House, each with their own unique perks and residents!

The Fae Forest

Here lies the trickster @fae-tennis-being. If you know your fae rules, take a step instead! Otherwise...

Do not enter.

The Willows

An over grown forest, filled to the brim will all sorts of magical creatures, like @snake-tennis-ball, a huge snake woman.

...

Do not enter.

The Forest

Home to the God of Order in the East, their angels, and resting just on the edge of the ruins of a village, the Forest is also magical, and doesn't like visitors.

... ...

Do not enter.

A forest

This one is just a regular forest! Nothing interesting about it at all.

Feel free to enter!

Number 4: Gods and Religion

You might have noticed that I mentioned that the Forest is home to the God of Order in the East. In fact, there's many gods around, including the 3 other gods of order (for the South, West, and North!), and many, many others, too many to count.

The Gods are run by Creation, the force that drives the Universe, and are usually subject to the whims of Fate.

If you want to make a god OC to add to our lovely cast... Simply do! We'd be happy to have them. The only slots that are taken are the Gods of Order.

(For a more extensive look into the way the gods work, check out this post!)

Many of us worship the gods, and there's no one religion that defines us. Just... try to get along.

Number 5: Magic

Magic is abundant in our Universe, just ask our residents, like @tennisball-wizard, who dabble in the stuff. There are two kinds of magic, but most people don't know the difference, and figure out magic just fine, so don't sweat the details (unless you're into the details! In which case, this is the section for you.). Magic can do whatever you need it to do.

External Magic

External Magic is the kind of magic that fuels our very Universe. It comes from sources outside the user's body. This kind of magic is extremely safe to use, as no matter how much you use, you'll never drain your own energy reserves. You might, however, drain the reserves of the magic around you, and then you won't be able to use magic anymore. So be careful!

Internal Magic

Internal Magic is the kind of magic that comes from deep within you, and is typically a lot stronger than External Magic. Internal Magic can be extremely dangerous to use though, if you don't learn how to restrain yourself, as it draws from your very life force.

It also leaves an imprint of your magic on whatever you enchanted, sort of like a fingerprint that other people can use magic in order to see. Imprints are a little bit different for everyone, and you can be identified with them.

(Interesting note: You can gather the Internal Magic of someone else, wielding it like you would External Magic, and not only would it be safe for you to use, it would leave the imprint of them instead of you.)

Number 6: Character Creation and Some Roleplaying Tips

"This is cool and all, but what about my character? Are there things I shouldn't do? And how do I even go about roleplaying with other people? Do I just... start talking and hope someone joins?"

If you're here, you probably are asking these questions. I've got you.

Your character can do anything you want! Really, anything at all. The only limitations are: a) Your character can't dictate what other characters do. This might seem obvious, but it's always good to keep in mind. If there's something you want to happen, you'll need to communicate with whoever owns those OCs before deciding it yourself. b) Sometimes we have systems set in place (like the magic one I just explained). If you have a character that requires you to flesh out some world building, just ask! You can DM me, or join our Discord, and ask about a system, and see if anyone has got something in place*. Otherwise, it'll be yours to create! *Note: Even if a system is already in place, you can probably expand upon how it works if you need something specific. Don't sweat the details, the Universe is flexible, and we'll change it to help everyone's characters the best.

I know we're called the "Tennis Ball Cinematic Universe" but... You don't have to make a tennis ball OC! We have the Gods, of course, but we also have lots of characters pretending to be tennis balls, or tennis balls but slightly to the left, or incomprehensible entities, or creatures, or just straight up humans! Tennis balls was just a funny gimmick, and something unique to our Universe to help define us.

Now for some roleplaying tips! (If you already know how to roleplay on Tumblr, you can skip down to the bottom.)

How to start a roleplay - Locate the person you want to roleplay with. If you're in the Discord, go ahead and ask them if they wanna roleplay. Sometimes you guys can work out a situation to start them off together. You don't have to do this, though, because the simplest way to start a roleplay is to send an ask! Just go to their blog, type in an anonymous ask the same way you would type a roleplay normally (more on that in a second), and tag yourself, so that you get notified when they respond. - Remember that people are busy, and might not get around to answering your ask right away, or they might forget. DMs or Discord are good for asking people if they're available, or if they're still interested in roleplay. Don't be a dick, sometimes roleplays get forgotten, or life takes precedence. There will always be other people to roleplay with.

How to... you know. Roleplay! - Pick a format! For example, when I roleplay, there are three main things I do: Narration, Talking, and Thinking. Whatever format you pick, make sure you're consistent, so that people know what you're character is doing! - Example: ETB2 looks around, smiling gently when he sees you. This is what his narration looks like. He walks over to you, and then starts to talk. "Hey! You must be new here. This is what my talking looks like. And now thinking, right?" ((I like to put my thinking in bold, just to keep things different. Here's what that looks like.)) Your format doesn't have to look anything like mine. You can use different colors, symbols, and text formats to signify the differences. Feel free to get creative. Remember: The important thing is that you're consistent. - When roleplaying, try to think of how your character would react to the situation at hand. The best characters are the ones that are well defined, but don't worry about being perfect. It takes some getting used to, and every time you roleplay, you'll get a bit better at it! - You're on Tumblr, so I'm gonna guess you know how to use this website. Once you send an ask, and they respond, you'll use the reblog feature to continue the roleplay. And sometimes you wanna say something about your character, or your roleplay partner's. That's where the tags come in handy! Just type your message to your roleplay partner there. - You can also do an open roleplay, where you make your character do something, and then just wait to see who responds. Make sure you tag it as an open roleplay, so that people know you want interaction, and be mindful that this is less sure to get you a roleplay. - Finally: If you want to roleplay, but no one is reaching out? Reach out first! Trust me when I say a lot of us have anxiety about "bothering people". We're working on it ^_^;

Make an intro! - On your blog, introduce your character. Put down their Name, Pronouns, the Format you'll be using, and any Other Important Info.

Some of these narrators seems suspiciously like characters of their own... - And that's because, well, they are! Some of our narrators are sentient! There's no way to tell who has a sentient narrator and who doesn't until you get into a roleplay, and there's no obligation to have a sentient narrator of your own. But if that's your thing, go for it! - Just keep in mind, narrators are narrating. Unless your roleplay partner says otherwise, your characters can't hear the narrators*! *There are some exceptions, like @ball-ghost-tennis being able to hear her own narrator, and Narry (@ball-with-a-god-complex) being able to hear all narrators. But a good rule of thumb is, unless other wise stated, Narrators are Narrators, characters are characters. They don't interact!

Woah, that's a lot of color, Wiz. What's going on there? - Some of like to use colors to spice up our roleplay! A lot of times, if you see some extra colors, it means there's some sort of extra lore being hinted at. Most of us are normal, and didn't go quite as overboard with the colors as the Wizard did, but there are some... notable exceptions. (Looks at @tennisball-witch) - You can use colors, or you can leave it plain. It's entirely up to you, just like the formatting!

And... I think that's it for the basics!

Last but not least...

Other Resources for Learning More!

TBCU Masterlist of blogs! Note: Not a master list of characters, as there are so many more.

Our own Wiki!

You can join our Discord server (please ask myself or @tennisball-wizard for the invite.)

Check out @tbcu-polls, where there's currently a tournament being held, but they also do several non-tournament polls that you yourself can submit to! (It's a great way to see some new faces and learn about the sort of characters they are.)

Check out @out-of-context-tbcu, where some of our wildest moments are put on blast.

[crescentfool]

does anyone else want to stick these two in the same room together or is that just me... i simply think they are adjacent in vibes... (+a bonus thing???)

get u a fictional guy that makes you feel like this... seeing these guys just evoke a Similar Kind of Brain Chemical and Response. Help Me.

also have bonus yosuke doodle featuring the same brushes used here...! from january 23rd, lol.

[cara-carabowditbowdit]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY @fresthered !!!!!!!!!

[hunniegl4zed]

🎉🎉🎉NEW AU INTRODUCTION 🎉🎉🎉

My apologies for uploading/talking about it just now. Was a little busy in Halloween 🎃✨️✨️

So what I had in mind for the new AU is:

The name of the AU is gonna be called "Frostbite".

I already did some quick doodles of our two main characters: Nazo and Scourge. Their designs might be changed as the AU develops more.

For the ones who already guessed it, I'm basing this AU on the games from "God of War." Have loved the games for so long, and I wanna bring that energy over here as well.

Story wise:

I'm still trying to figure stuff out, with characters mainly. But here's a little I've got already

Nazo is the old god of war from a previous realm, but somehow ended up at the realm our story takes place. He falls in love with someone and try to live out his life, hiding and going under the radar, not wanting others to find out about his status as a god. Scourge, in this AU, is either Nazo's biology or adopted son. Their bond is not that good, since Nazo fears his son will one day turn against him, as he did with his own father.

His mom, and Nazo's wife has passed away due to events going on and they gotta lay her to rest as thier last wish. Only to find out the true identity of said wife/mom. In the journey, they will try to strengthen their family-bond more, with all the stuff that comes along with that.

It's still a new AU, so might shift some things around while working on in.

But 1 things clear, NazSeelk is bound to happen/already happend in the story 👀✨️✨️✨️

Hope ish gonna be good 🤞🤞🤞🤞

[butterflieswhisper]

hiiii ^^ beastlife fishie analysis. spoilers ahead. etc etc

okay so. the main point of this is simple. I don't think the salmon head cursed c!fishie. Explaining that is the harder part I think. also i'm going to refer to the salmon head thing in e5 as "the incident" from here on out because frankly i think it's funny

Let's start with the incident. The big day. etc. What happened? Why did it happen? Obligatory third questioning statement? Well. She was gifted the salmon head for her birthday by kiwi(or like. someone in the kiwibird system. -bird system. the birds). Immediately upon receiving it she relives parts of season one and fishie herself doesn't really acknowledge it. The other players definitely notice but im not caught up enough in any other pov yet to like have thoughts on that I'll come back to that point someday. Fishie seems shaken, sure, but she moves on so quickly, especially considering what happened just there. 37 seconds of standing frozen, unresponsive. she recovers in 5 seconds. And seeing how she reacts later on to realizing the memory situation--if she was aware that happened, she would probably be concerned by it. She puts it on for a brief second at the end of the party and takes it off immediately. She's otherwise normal -- well. as normal as she is otherwise up to that point. Because that is also how she acts with pretty much any salmon head, even just kiwi herself.

I raise: Episode one, about 8:20 in. The slow zoom on kiwi as the static overtakes every other noise. This is the *exact* same behavior displayed when fishie receives the salmon head, albeit without actual concrete old video footage style flashbacks. In episode two (28:55ish) the same thing happens when she looks at the salmon head in moch's house, but this time there is technically a flashback -- kiwis grave. Fishie moves on immediately and doesn't acknowledge her behavior at all, and, seeing as it is fishie, im inclined to believe that means she does not know she is doing it. Fishie (when alone) will discuss all of her problems in immense, and usually misguided detail (bestie i promise kiwi doesn't hate you???) to the audience and/or herself. I mean she's not alone in episode one, and it is technically presession, and i guess getting struck by lightning is a decent distraction from your problems, but in episode two? She is completely alone. There is nobody with her. She went looking for moch and moch is not there. She still doesn't acknowledge the fiveish seconds she is completely frozen. This happens again and again with kiwi and salmon heads.

And then that leads you to e5. The incident. She's. well. she's doing worse. 0:50. "This will distract me if i leave it up." This is the first mention from fishie herself about how fucking weird she's being, and even then she doesn't seem concerned. I think she does not realize she's being so so incredibly weird about it. If the static and freezing is what's referred to as "distraction" then keeping it in her inventory makes it worse actually so it wouldn't really make sense unless the way it is distracting her is NOT the. well. whatever the fuck is wrong with her (affectionate). After she puts the head on there's the static all the time but for a short brief amount of time she's like significantly more normal and i don't really know if that means anything i just think it's really funny.

And then we all know what goes on during the incident i'm not analyzing this video frame by frame. um. i could. but i am not going to right now. And then she has the conversation on the table with kiwi where she like is normal for 5 minutes. Like genuinely the most. i guess stable? fishie's thought process is is like in the moments directly after the incident. She is immediately understanding with the antikiwi situation, they come to an agreement that they're like. okay now. "thank you for everything and im so sorry i couldnt do more" / "it was short, but it was nice" "i knew what i was getting into when i married you" etc etc and then they kind of rush it at the end because people won't stop dying. But then fishie is fishie and takes it in the complete opposite extreme (from. um. whatever was wrong up until now. to "oh kiwibird must secretly hate me because" and then there's no real good reason she's just like that) and it's also an issue. And i think the season two memory thing is also a part of that but this is so long already and so i'm not going to get into it rn. So bringing all of this back to my original point: the salmon head was not the cause of the curse(?) because she's been so weird all the time forever and the salmon head thing was just like. an effect. of whatever went Wrong(tm) in the season transition. like the head was a vessel to Be Worse about it but i feel like it would have worked with any salmon head she got her hands on and that it happened to be kiwico was a coincidence and also that the head wasn't cursed at all there's just something deeply wrong with fishie s3 in general and uh yeah 👍

I'm so sorry this is so disjointed i had a thesis statement and everything. alas