#sure you can read the post on its own but what if they have a funny joke in the tag

[raven-cincaide]

Post-Canon! Megumi is a university student. His friends think he needs a break from all the curses and fighting so he can finally heal. Yuji says its a chance for Megumi to find the person who'll Megumi want to live for. Nobara says that even if he doesn't find anyone, they've already sacrificed so much; they need some kind of backup plan in case they ever need to leave the front lines. In truth, Yuji and Nobara just want to spend their youth exploring normal human things, and Megumi honestly can’t fault them. He doesn’t understand it but he doesn’t want to be left behind. So he tags along because.. well.. what else is he supposed to do?

Post-Canon! Megumi doesn’t know what to study. So he picks up a little bit of everything. He creates a schedule that fits his self-applied expectations and overachieving tendencies, going well above and beyond full-time studies. He keeps his mind occupied so he doesn't have to think about how hard it is to blend in, make new friends, and be human. (Un)fortunately, Yuji and Nobara don't let him avoid the campus life forever. 

Post-Canon! Megumi builds a routine he finds satisfactory which includes studying, gym, late night parties and nerdy book clubs. Hell he picks up anything that makes him forget about curses and being a sorcerer. He promised himself he would be 'normal' while at uni and he promised his friends. University life may not be Megumi's calling but he wasn't about to let his friends down. So he does everything to avoid things that would tempt him back.  

Post-Canon! Megumi notices you the second you enter one of his classes. He can tell you are a sorcerer and instantly determines he doesn't want anything to do with you. He tries to make himself invisible, hunched down, reading a book. Despite his closed body language, his eyes flicker over to you occasionally, although he quickly catches himself and goes straight back to reading. 

Post-Canon! Megumi is surprised when you approach his desk- one of the few remaining seats near the front. How you politely ask if you can sit beside him even though he doesn’t own the seat makes him unsure, fascinated, yet flustered. “Sure”, he replies, then a second later, grabs his bag, stands, and walks out of the class minutes. He leaves minutes before the start, skipping his first class ever. He knows he’s being rude; he knows he undoubtedly embarrassed you. But he can’t get mixed up with Jujutsu- not when he started liking uni.

Post-Canon! Megumi swears he sees you everywhere and avoids you like the plague. Yet his eyes always seek you out, and his brain takes note of every little thing about you, from the casual sweatpants and hoodie you wear to morning classes to how you’re dolled up at late-night parties. Your laugh, your make-up, the perfume you wear, depending on your mood- he notices it all. He feels all sorts of emotions when he sees you yet squelches those in the far back of his mind. No, he keeps his distance even as you get close to Yuji and Nobara. If you three are eating together, he’ll skip lunch, if you three are hanging out, he’ll cancel last minute. Sometimes, his friends let him get away with it- but more often than not, Yuji or Nobara see right through him and force him to sit beside you. And the awkwardness can be cut through with a knife. 

Post-Canon! Megumi notices when you’ve been out hunting curses. It’s the faint linger of cursed energy and the distinct smell on you that he pickles up. He notices when there’s a tiny limp in your step. He notices when you’re tired and when you’re practically burned out; the way your eyes drop during the teacher's lecture; the way you scribble down your homework mere minutes before submission, or the way you stress about not being able to buy the course literature before the first assignment is due by poking at your lunch and not answering Nobara. So he leaves his books out before going to the bathroom, knowing Yuji and Nobara will push you to take pictures of the few pages you need.

Post-Canon! Megumi swears he is done with being a sorcerer and that he doesn’t want to have anything to do with curses. Yet when he sees you stumbling out of your dorm room, in your jujutsu get up, barely able to keep your eyes open, he can’t help the pang of worry in his chest. He swears he is done being a sorcerer, even as his feet carry him to follow you.. 

[starshinesluvr]

:¨ ·.· ¨:⠀ `· . ୨୧ various edward nashton hcs & thoughts !!

contains: a mention or two about his killings in the movie, religious trauma, & drug usage. word count: 1.4k

writers note: hi friends! guhfhkj i am being brave and posting some writing on main.... ( ;´ - `;) here are a few headcanons and general thoughts that've been Marinating in my mind for a while. i felt like this was getting quite long, so maybe i'll have another post with some more soon.. because i have many thoughts..enjoooy! ^_^

♡ obviously he is obsessive. and loves repetitive actions and routines. his main special interest would be the renewal fund and the wayne family. (obviously) he has a big sense of moral justice. ⋆⭒ one of his main repetitive actions would be counting. he does this a lot with his fingers, the books on his shelf, or even the letters on a neon sign outside. just quickly under his breath. ⋆⭒ he also would sway. he usually does this in his apartment, when hes scrolling nigma or something. it really calms him. i think he would be too self-conscious to do it in public though. the King of masking. but occasionally he cant help himself when he's really focused at a café or something.

♡ but some of his other interests include: retro games, ancient civilizations, and general puzzle games. and god this man is a consistent minesweeper frequenter. heavy on frequent. loves 2048, sudoku, does the daily crossword on newspapers.

♡ half of the apps on his phone has to be games. 'games on his phone?' yes.

♡ i think he also has a undying love for pokemon. unsure what his favorite type would be, i think he would cycle through different types every single time the interest pops back up in his head again.

♡ AND GUYS GENUINELY HERE ME OUT. i think he helped code the club penguin rewritten website . im So. so serious on this one.

♡ OH OH. OHHH!! one of his longest lasting special interests? languages. how this starts? i imagine young edward back at the orphanage, already finished reading every single book he could find... every single english book, that is. maybe he'd sneak into the library. he's sure those books have riddles that can only be solved if you understand its language first. ⋆⭒ he finds interest in the progression of languages especially. how they change over time, and the origin of words and their sounds. ⋆⭒ though i don't think he would be a polyglot. but he'd know a lot of random words here and there, and some slang words no one would expect him to know from many languages!

♡ but a language he especially would like is ASL. he'd have a heightened interest of any form of communication that doesn't involve words. like, the font wingdings y'know? any kind of 'code.' ⋆⭒ he'd especially love learning ASL on his own during his younger years, since he struggled with speaking more often back then. he doesn't talk to anyone much now a days anyways, unless its small talk. (okk i see you selective mutism representation! >_< )

♡ he is sadistic. not a headcanon, just fact. this can be seen in his killings in the movie. though he primarily killed to give a point to the city of gotham, and to become a symbol much bigger than himself, he never gives these people quick and simple deaths. he enjoys these killings. cutting off the mayor’s thumb while he was still alive, sticking rat poison in officer savage, and sticking his head in a rat cage, waiting for them to eat him alive shown for everyone to watch. these were thought out, and he enjoyed watching. he enjoyed putting on a show, and their deaths were his entertainment.

♡ though outside of being the riddler, edward has a lot of self hatred. this fronts as anger, standoffish and anti-social behaviors. he doesn't mean to be mean, its just deep rooted. a combined hatred of everyone who'd hurt him prior.

♡ even though he hates himself, he also thinks of himself as better than anyone else. he feels as if he is worthy, and he has the intellect to show it. he consistently searches for small, daily positions that keep him in power.

♡ has a love/hate relationship with his own intellect. he wishes he wasn't cursed with his knowledge, sometimes he just wishes he could be blind and stupid to the darkness of the city. but he prides himself in being smart, especially in being good with numbers. its something he knows he can actually do correctly. he loves the certainty of numbers, how they never change or lie.

♡ i think would mostly hate how smart he was when he was younger. he hated how it distanced himself from genuinely everyone, and at one point he wasn't sure if he just enjoyed being reclusive or if he simply just got used to it. ⋆⭒ he would hate how the other kids or his classmates would only talk to him when they needed answers for their work and how they would expect him to know everything. (he sadly did.)

♡ he loves consistency. but hates complacency. he knows things can change, things could be better. but he finds comfort in his routines, even if it makes his world grey.

♡ due to religion being constantly drilled into his brain throughout his childhood, he experiences severe trauma. when he does something that is not pleasing to the beliefs he was taught, he self deprecates. lots of talking down on himself. he still can remember a few memory verses and prayers, and sometimes obsessively recites them to himself. ⋆⭒ he knows some of his fears are honestly a little irrational, that maybe one day he'll just be struck down. he's trying not to let them take over his logic, but he struggles. he is constantly upset that he still has these childhood fears that bind him.

♡ speaking of his time during the orphanage: his dirty unkempt upbringing and the long lasting effects of it could be seen in his living space. the chaotic and 'dirty' environment is almost comforting to him. sticky notes with ramblings of riddles and math problems. besides, his brain works too fast to care where things were placed in his home.  

♡ despite his messy apartment, he hates feeling dirty. this is also thanks to the orphanage. he’s well kempt. everything is messy, not dirty. the orphanage was sadly, both. he looks like a sopping wet rat, it doesn't mean he smells like one though.

♡ he also has a fear of smelling bad, despite knowing he thoroughly washes. ⋆⭒ i think he would smell like soap or just his laundry detergent. he wants to try different scents, he kind of likes the idea of having a 'signature scent,' but honestly some smells give him a headache if they're too concentrated. and he can't have that while doing his everyday activities. ⋆⭒ its the kind of scent where you can only really smell it on the person when you hug them, y'know? which is kind of fine to him, he'd rather smell like nothing than something bad.

♡ he absolutely despises drops. any kind of heavy drug really he stays away from. he knows just how easily it can unravel a person, after constantly watching kids as young as 12 years old become addicted to it. his intellect would go to waste if he ever decided to start using.

♡ BUT! definitely smokes weed, or just in general he smokes. he probably tried it for the first time in his early twenties, hated it and dropped it. but he CANNOT continue handling his anxieties raw. so he picks it up again in his thirties. only occasionally... kind of.

♡ he loves LOVES animals. i like to think he had a little hyperfixation on animals and the general care for them when he was younger, so despite never having a pet, he could definitely at least recommend what to feed your average household pet.

♡ not only that, but he finds interest their internal structures, and the similarities to the human body. (i honestly don't know where these hcs came from, but bare with me here.) ⋆⭒ he loves dogs, but he's found himself liking cats a bit more recently. especially strays, he finds their resilience to continue living despite their circumstances to be admirable. ⋆⭒ he'd love to adopt. but he can hardly keep track of his own health, not to mention the state of his apartment. and don't even get him started on the extra expenses. ⋆⭒ though, i think he'd be pretty scared of interacting with any stray, maybe just animals in general he'd be pretty hesitant of being around. he doesn't like the uncertainty. and hates remembering his bad experiences with animals when he was younger. ⋆⭒ i think he'd bring himself to a cat café for one of his birthdays after weighing the pros and cons, after a day that was especially rough on him or something. he usually doesn't care for the date, but he honestly just likes using it as an excuse to go out somewhere whenever he feels like it. (he probably cried either from the animals' cuteness or the fact that he was there alone, maybe a bit of both. poor employees probably didn't know what to do.) ⋆⭒ i also think it would be funny if he was allergic, but obsessed. constantly sneezing but he can't help but want to cuddle up with them. but he doesn't have to be.

[fuselsstuff]

Why i am so excited to have the Bucktommy storyline

Buck, the wild child, the hot head, overthinker, the talker, always a little much, but thats him, and he is so so loved.

He is the little brother of his found family, and in their heads he will allways be just that, so he gets all these backhanded compliments, like

" he doesnt know your an Idiot yet, but he will love you anyway like we all do"

He is such a competent person/firefighters but sometimes he doesnt get taken serious because his ideas doesnt seem thought trough, and it looks like He is just doing stuff without thinking, but thats his neurodivergent brain, people with Adhd sometimes dont have the words for their Plans and Action, they just know it (its like that With my Brain, i dont say everybody is like this)

And then we have his past realtionships,

Abby, she really really liked him, but she had her own demons to deal with, she couldnt be what Buck needed.

Allie, she knew what she gets herself into, so she broke it off before she could really fall for him and i think thats very honorable.

Taylor got Buck, she knew exactly who he is, and she was there for him, but maybe they were to similar, i dont think it would have worked out in the long term.

Natalia, well, cant say much about her.

Our boy just wants to come home to somebody that gets him, not just says that, but really really gets him, shows up for him, takes him seriously and is his person.

And yes we could debate that he has Eddie, these two have a wonderfull friendship, and i admire that. Its deep, its vunerable, they are there for each other, both need eachother, and they trust eachother, its beautiful.

But for now, its exactly that, its a beautiful friendship.

(side note... The will? That doesnt make Buck a coparent, it makes him Chris' godfather basically)

And now to his current realtionship, Tommy. I think its perfect, and the first thing i want to point out, the comunication. Buck is a talker, but no comunicator, if people dont tell him exactly what they think, he is gonna asume what they think, and well, when was that ever a good thing right? There are a lot of examples where Bucks missing comunication turned into Problems.

Tommy does comunicate, i mean... He drive to his loft before his shift, to clear the air. After He kisses him, he doesnt run away, he asks him if that was okay and then asks him out on a date. Do we have to talk about the date? He was smooth, polite and open, he didnt run away before he cleared it up to him "your adorable but i dont think your ready" comunication my friends! The Coffee meet up? " you allready know i am interested" I mean how much clearer can it get? And also that he told him that the Coffee wasnt what he would order, its a small thing but i think its just as honest and important.

And he Shows up for him, Bachelorparty and wedding! He is there because of him. The scene where Buck looks on his phone before Tommy arrives? I could feel those butterflys, *somebody is here because of me* such an amazing feeling.

I could go on and on on how amazing the character choice of Tommy is but then this would get far too long, i am Sure there are a lot of posts that point out why its so cool to have an "old" Character back.

To get back to the start, Buck is loved, he is a Idiot but with a heart of gold, truly a golden Retriever.

But its the difference between *Buck, your such an Idiot, i love you anyway* to *i love you because you are an Idiot, Evan* that makes it for me.

Thanks for reading until here, i needed to get that out, feel free to add points!

And dont get me wrong, if Buddie is gonna Happen some day, i am 100% here for it because i trust the writers.

But for now i enjoy this mature and hopefully domestic realtionship for buck storyline waaay to much <3

[spacebarbarianweird]

Silver and Gold

Summary: Vampire hunters have managed to ambush Astarion. A lot of gore, some angst and domestic fluff in the end. Set 20 years post-game

Tags: hurt/comfort, pregnant Tav, wounded Astarion

Thanks @themadlu for beta-reading!

Read on AO3

Masterlist

Headcanons

Astarion is bleeding.

He staggers barely acknowledging the world around him. It’s damn cold, it’s so fucking cold even he, an undead, feels the deadly grip of winter. The blizzard howls and the naked trees scratch the dark blue skies. 

Silver.

It’s the fucking silver.

Astarion stops and tries to claw a piece of the cursed metal out of his skin. Still, his flesh keeps regenerating, preventing it from being extracted. 

The silver is killing Astarion from the inside.

He takes another step, then another one. He needs… to go home… to safety…

Astarion stops and vomits. The agony is getting worse. He feels like a hundred insects are crawling under his skin forcing the vampire to scream in pain.

How could he be so reckless? So careless? How could he be ambushed?! 

The vampire hunter used traps against him. Astarion managed to escape but the silver particles pierced the flesh and now…

… He isn’t sure he can make it.

Astarion falls into the snow. The wind is strong and he can barely move. He screams in pain but there is no one around – it’s a deep night and there's a blizzard and it’s hellishly cold.

Tiriel.

He needs to return to her. He has to!

But how far is he from Daggerlake? How far is he from the underground part where their cozy home is?

Atsarion makes an effort to stand up. It must be close! He rarely goes hunting far from home; even if he is lost, he can’t be far from the welcoming town.

Where people have accepted him. 

Where people know who he is.

He needs to find the way back before the final death owns his heart. Before his body turns to ash with small silver particles.

**

Tiriel yawns but decides to keep waiting. Of course, Astarion can be absent with the late winter sunrise, but there is a blizzard outside and it’s hardly a time for hunting.

Besides, she absolutely can’t sleep right now.

Who said half-elves who are knocked up by elves have it easier?

Tiriel’s life has been one hell of an agony since she got pregnant. Her back hurts, she is nauseous more often than not, and her belly feels so heavy that she spends most of her days motionless.

A kick into her stomach forces Tiriel to caress the skin, as if the child could feel the mother’s touch.

“Hm? What is it?” Tiriel asks. “You’d better be born soon because I can’t do this anymore.”

Tiriel sighs. She knows her term is close, but no one could say the exact amount of months she is supposed to be pregnant for. The less the better, she decides. 

She gets up and walks up to the bedroom where a black crib is waiting for its owner. Tiriel felt uneasy when Astarion brought that thing, decorated it himself, and then proceeded to make clothes for the newborn.

It's bad luck to prepare things for an unborn child. 

Human nonsense, Astarion pointed out when she told him that. They often die during childbirth. Elves don’t.  After saying this he planted a kiss on her belly and then proceeded to sew.

The door opens with a loud creak.

“Astarion!” She exclaims. Her body reacts immediately by sending a painful electric bold through the belly. “What happened?!”

Astarion tries to say something but then falls on the floor. His clothes are torn and he is  covered in gaping wounds.

She saw him like that only once. When he had a tadpole in his head.

“It’s… inside me…” Astarion mutters. “Help me.”

Tiriel forces him to lie on his back and cuts what remains of his shirt. Astarion stares at the ceiling trying to distract himself from the pain.

“You will need to tell me,” Tiriel says, putting a dagger into the fire to sterilize it. “Tell me where you feel them.”

Astarion nods. Tiriel approaches him, saddles him like she does when they have sex, and prepares the dagger.

“It’s alright” he mutters. “Just do it,” he points at the shoulder, “Here”

Tiriel pierces the wound with the red-hot blade. Astarion screams, tears flowing down his cheeks. 

A small chunk of silver is taken out and falls on the wooden floor. The wound  immediately heals.

Astarion points at his chest, right below the left nipple.

“Fuck,” Tiriel puts her free hand on her belly and leans towards Astarion.

The blade tears his flesh up. He screams and cries and Tiriel has an uncanny feeling that she is hearing the exact same cries that echoed through Cazador’s mansion for two centuries. 

The wooden floor is soaked in blood and so is Tiriel. The bat inside her kicks, and her back hurts. And Astarion keeps pointing at new places. 

Hips. Calves. A space below of his ear. Even one in his neck.

“Love, is that all?”

Astarion weeps, unable to say anything.

“Astarion.”

“My… back. There is a chunk left”

Tiriel bites her lip. Then she helps him sit up. Caresses his scars. 

“I will do it fast, I promise.”

He nods.

When the blade cuts the flesh Astarion makes a suffocating sound but he doesn’t scream or yell.

“I can’t reach out for them,” Tiriel says. “Fuck. Astarion, look at me, look at me!” She leans to his twisted, agonized face. “I love you, you are safe. I am doing it for you, you hear me? It's not torture, no one is punishing you.”

He sniffs.

Tiriel stands on his back. She mutilates the skin trying to reach out for the silver pieces.

When she is finally done, Astarion collapses screaming in silence like a fish taken from the water.

**

Astarion lies on the floor. The pain is slowly going away as the flesh heals, but the agony is so profound he wants to slip into oblivion.

And he is hungry.

He is starving.

Tiriel is nowhere to be seen. He tries to move but he is too weak so he keeps lying, completely naked under a thick blanket Tiriel had brought before she left.

“Tiriel, I am so sorry.” 

He hears a voice. It’s a young human man called Kere. He came to Daggelake at the beginning of winter when his grandfather, the owner of the mill, passed.  Nice lad; naive as fuck.

“He will be fine!” Tiriel enters the room. Her hands are placed above her belly and Astarion can’t resist smiling. Tiriel is covered in blood from head to toe and looks like a matriarch of the mat eater clans. “But he needs blood, I can’t give it to him.”

Kere, the dark-haired lad, watches Astarion and then stretches his hand towards him. 

“Don’t worry, I will stop him,” Tiriel says.

The blood gushes down Astarion’s throat. The fresh blood of a virgin, he realizes. This lad is young and innocent like most of his victims were. 

After a few beats, Kere tears himself free and Tiriel asks him to wait outside.

“Astarion, are you feeling better?”

“Yes, love,” he says.”Just… exhausted.”

Tiriel kisses his cheek. “Then trance.”

“We can go together,” Astarion suggests, but Tiriel kisses his nose. 

“Love, it’s winter, days are short – and the baby needs some fresh air. I will be back soon.”

Astarion unwillingly goes to their bedroom and falls onto a soft featherbed. The comfortable warmth takes him and he falls into slumber. 

**

Tiriel dresses up for a winter walk and leaves the house. The baby is kicking so intensely that Tiriel mutters, “Why can’t you just sit still?”

Kere fumbles right beside her.

“Did you need anything?” she asks

“Oh no, not at all” the boy blushes. “But… Do you need any help?”

Tiriel chuckles. “For your information, I am married and pregnant.”

“I—I know! I just… Well… I wouldn’t go … alone.”

“Listen, I need to know who went after my husband. Because if they managed to do that to him once, they could do it again. I want to go and check. I am sure it’s some misunderstanding – maybe another vampire is killing people around, though I doubt it. Vampires hate each other’s guts too much to remain close.”

“I will go with you,” Kere insists. The lad gets nervous and Tiriel sighs.

“Alright, I think I am not in the best shape to fight.” She pats her belly. The baby answers with another kick.

Kere insists on going forward “just in case” and no matter how hard Tiriel tries to explain to him that she is a much more skilled warrior than she looks, it all falls flat. The young miller insists on being in charge.

As they go to the woods he tells Tiriel his story – he was native to Triboar but had to leave after his brother was accused of murder. The mill was his grandfather’s property so he decided to start over somewhere no one would associate him with his relative’s crimes.

“I am sorry,” Tiriel says,

“Don’t,” Kere shakes his head. “My brother did kill these people. Drugged and drowned them. I didn’t know that even though it happened right below my feet in our cellar. So, I fled before I was accused of aiding him. May I ask you a question?”

“Ask away,” Tiriel shrugs.

“You and your husband… You are… well I mean.. I heard that vampires can… hypnotize… their victims.”

“Congratulations Kere, you are the first person this year who has asked me this. Trust me, Astarion can’t hypnotize people. He can charm them and gaslight them but not hypnotize them. And I am not his slave or thrall.” 

Kere turns away. Tirel pats his shoulder and takes the less as they go further into the woods.

“I mean… you are… you…” the lad stumbles on his words. 

Suddenly, after feeling yet another kick against her bladder, Tiriel comes to a realization anyone smarter than her would have already realized.

“Damn, Kere” She covers her face with her palm. “How old are you?”

“Twenty!” 

“And I am fifty-six,” She says softly. “Listen, even if I were a widow, I am not a good match for you. Trust me.”

“I… I didn't mean it… but you are… half an elf… and half-elves usually… make families with… humans.”

“Maybe. I appreciate the help and thank you for giving your blood to Astarion but don’t try to court me. I don't like it.”

“And your child? If the father is a vampire…”

Tiriel feels a wave of anxiety. She has suppressed the fear of giving birth to some monstrosity, but who can know for sure? What is she bearing? An elf or a monster?

Or both?

“Vampirism is a sickness. Like plague or cholera. But not an innate condition,” she says firmly. “Damn, it’s already dark. Let’s go back.”

Suddenly a woman wearing all black jumps from a branch and appears right in front of Tiriel. Tiriel grabs her ax and immediately feels how weak she’s become.

Vampire hunter.

“So, you are that whore who sleeps with a bloodsucker?” the woman murmurs and then points at Tiriel’s rounded belly. “Kere omitted the fact you are carrying a dhampir inside you.”

Tiriel watched the huntress closely. The woman is a half-orc, tall and strong. And definitely not pregnant. 

“I rarely make mistakes, but the vampire was too fast,” the half-orc shrugs. “Well, I will be faster next time.” She takes out a silver blade and points it at Tiriel’s belly. “It's always better to prevent a problem than solve it.”

“Karsh! We’ve made a deal!” Kere stands between half-humans. “Don’t hurt her!”

“What the fuck, Kere?!” Tiriel feels rage filling her veins. “You brought her here!”

“Let me explain!” Kere begs. “Tiriel, you deserve better! You cannot be with an undead, it’s unnatural! I will take care of you, I promise! And of the child!”

The baby starts kicking as if trying to join the fight. Tiriel squeezes the handle of her ax. Kere is an idiot and easy to take down.

But Karsh…

She is wearing a full armor set. She has arrows and daggers and is much taller and stronger. 

“There will be no child.” The half-orc raises her hand to cast a spell. “I will cut that abomination out of her and should she survive, you can do whatever you want”

A thunderwave spell hits Tiriel and she barely manages to stand on both of her feet. She has to use the ax to support her weight and loses the chance to attack the vampire huntress. Instead, a blade makes a deep cut on her hand. Tiriel yells and jumps on Karsh.

And immediately loses balance.

Tiriel falls on her back bumping her head over a stone.

The child stops kicking. 

“No,” Tiriel mutters, feeling a sudden void inside her. “No, please…”

And then she hears a disgusting sound of torn flesh.

The half-ork’s head falls in the snow as the body collapses close by.

“Please!” Kere screams. “Please, I made a mistake…”

Astarion moves fast, like a deadly shadow. His hands are elbows deep in blood and gore and he is barefoot. His eyes glow red and his face is twisted.

The monster has come for the monster hunter.

Astarion easily lifts Kere up with one hand and throws him against the tree, breaking his spine. 

“Please…”

Astarion rips the lad’s throat. Before Tiriel realizes what’s happened, his bloodless corpse falls in the snow.

Tiriel feels she is about to cry when Astarion collapses on his knees beside her.

“Astarion, please… Please tell me if you hear the heartbeat!” Tiriel cries. “Please…”

Astarion presses his pointy ear against her belly. His face is concentrated and Tiriel is afraid of the worst. 

But then he smiles and pats the bump.

“I can hear it,” He says. “The baby is alright.”

Tiriel lets out a relieved breath. 

“Don’t forget to scold me when I feel better,” she asks when Astarion lifts her up bridal style and carries back home.

“I won’t,” Astarion kisses her cheek. “But only when you really feel better.”

**

Astarion did forget. 

The next three days were quiet and peaceful. They spend most of the time in each other’s arms with Tiriel’s belly acting like a pillow. Tiriel is too exhausted to do any extra moves so Astarion carries her around if she needs to go to the bathroom and to have a snack. 

“It’s actually funny when someone so young falls for you,” Tiriel mumbles while eating the third meat pie. Like, he could have been my son! Astarion, what’s so funny?”

When Astarion finally stops laughing he watches his wife with the most adorable smile.

“I am 260 and you are 56. You could have been my very distant descendant.” 

“Well, that lad was literally a baby.”

“He was a moron and an idiot and I wish I killed him in a worse way.”

“He was a young idiot. We can’t blame mortals for thinking you took me hostage.”

Astarion cringes. “Maybe you can’t, but I can.”

A loud knock on the door interrupts their conversation. Someone strong but rather small in size is trying to break inside.

“Who is there?” Tiriel asks, reaching out for an ax. Astarion stops her and approaches the door. 

“What is the…” Astarion mutters.

Kere freezes at the doorstep, pale like snow. His mouth is wide open and his eyes glow like two red fires.

“Kere?!” Tiriel exclaims. “But… You killed him!”

Astarion watches in horror like the three-day-old corpse is trying to get inside but is stopped by an invisible wall.

“Let me in …please,” he croaks. “Master… please…”

Astarion steps back and grabs a fistful of his hair. No, it can’t be! It can't be possible!

“Astarion, you turned him into a spawn!” Tiriel gasps, pressing her hands against her belly. “Look at him!”

Astarion watches the spawn in horror, his mouth agape. 

“No, I can’t, Tiriel, Cazador never gave me his blood! I am a spawn myself! I can’t… I can’t do this to others!”

Kere moves like the puppet of a very experienced puppet master. The bite mark forever engraved on his neck bleeds.

Hunger.

Kere is starving. 

“Fuck,” Tiriel whispers. “He needs to eat.”

Kere makes a step forward Tiriel and Astarion bellows. “Stop and don’t move, moron!”

The spawn obeys. Tears of pain and misery flow down his cold cheeks.

“I… It was torture. I lay on the freezing ground while my body was writhing… Kill me… Please kill me…”

“Sit,” Astarion orders and Kere abides. “Take the knife.” 

Crying, the spawn does it. 

Astarion shakes his head.

He’s created a spawn.

His own slave, his own puppet. It’s not the first time he killed someone with his vampire bite, but he was so enraged with Kere he felt a connection between them when he was killing him.

It was the bond.

Tiriel approaches Astarion from behind. “We need to set him free. Give him your blood.”

“No,” Astarion says. “I won’t.”

Tiriel watches him with concern. “Astarion, you don’t need spawns or slaves”

“I don’t want either.” Astarion sits in front of Kere. “Very nice pair of fangs.”

Kere whimpers.

“I won't set you free, for now. Here is my order. You can feed on anything you want but not sentient creatures. Fleas, rats, dogs, cats, I don’t care. But I forbid you from tasting real blood. You are free to off yourself in the sun but you can also go to the Underdark to join other vampires.” 

He watches Tiriel who is absolutely displeased with his orders. “Thirty years from now, you will come back to me. And then I will give you freedom. If I want.”

“Fuck you,” Kere spits.

Astarion shrugs. “I didn’t start this war. Now go. You have some time before sunrise.”

When Kere disappears into the night Astarion collapses into the recliner. He thinks he is about to vomit.

“I didn't know I could do this. I didn’t know.”

“It’s ok, love. But thirty years. It’s a lot.”

“Not when you are immortal.” He shakes his head and reaches out for Tiriel’s waist. “Thirty years is really not a lot of time.”

30 years later, Luskan

The vampire spawn is tugged by an invisible rope through the dirty night streets.

It’s a disgusting autumn, foggy and rainy and even a forever cold vampire feels like he is about to freeze.

His term has ended. He is about to face his master.

Kere hates himself, hates Astarion, and hates Tiriel. 

He stops at the big black door where (he knows it) Astarion is, waiting for his spawn.

The loud knock sounds through the empty streets. Kere has gotten used to the fact he can feel the presence of the sentient beings but he doesn’t feel anyone approaching the door.

But at the same time, he hears light footsteps.

And the heartbeat.

But not the presence.

Dhampir, he realizes. Kere feels a wave of fear. There is nothing worse than dhampirs. Spoilt angry children who mutilate vampires, kill them for fun and gladly partake in the vampire covens’ feuds.

And one of them is now opening the lockets.

“Who the fuck are you?” A sleepy elf in a long black housedress and a robe stares at him. Her long silver hair is messy and she looks like a drunk dryad. “Go fuck yourself.”

“I have come to see Astarion” He mutters. The young lady has a threatening aura around her – the aura of a dhampir who is oh so glad to kill vampires like him.

“You look like shit, are you aware? Dad!” Kere sees visible fangs. “There is a vampire spawn at the door.”

… Astarion decides not to waste any more time on Kere. A drop of blood and the newly made true vampire is kicked out of his house once again.

Kere tries to fight. Tries to challenge Astarion at a fair duel, but the moment he tries, Alethaine, still sleepy and angry, easily drags the intruder out of the house.

“All vampires have a unique scent,”sShe says. “I will remember yours. Don’t do anything stupid.” 

Then, Alethaine comes back to Astarion who has spent the last days engrossed in books. “Since when do you have spawns?”

“It wasn’t mine and it was an accident. Go to sleep, princess.”

Alethaine shrugs and goes upstairs. 

Astarion chuckles. 

Thirty years did pass fast. 

--

@tugoslovenka  

@herstxrgirl 

@herdarkestnightelegance  

@vixstarria 

@not-so-lost-after-all  

@marcynomercy  

@theearthsfinalconfession 

@starlight-ipomoea    

@micropoe10 

@astarion-imagine-archive  

@veillsar

@elora-the-slutty-songstress  

@fayeriess  

@lumienyx  

@tallymonster    

@caitlincat-95  

@tragedybunny  

@valeprati  

@lynnlovesthestars   

@marina-and-the-memes  

@waking-eyes   

@ayselluna  

@connorsui  

@asterordinary  

@darkarchangel96  

@locallegume  

@brainfullofhotsauce   

@coffeeanddonutscafe  

@my-queen-rhaenyra-targaryen 

@queenofthespacesquids  

@ednaaa-04  

@dajeong

@wilteddreamsofbaldursgate

@nyx-knox

@jessaryss

@sillybillylia

[coquelicoq]

i do love when i'm reading a book in french (written for people fluent in french) and there's a footnote defining some uncommon/dialectal word but the synonym given in the footnote is also a word i don't know. net zero information 👍

[astranauticus]

Do mechanites cry?

[punkshitposts]

something I think is actually hilarious is that if you go left enough you start having more stances in common with (individual) conservatives, and if you go right enough you start agreeing with (individual) leftists. like i have a pretty close friend who's self described as "just far enough right that I hate politicians" , whom I hard disagree with his overarching political stances. but the finer details of it... yeah we agree with each other. gun control/gun rights opinions taxation opinions pro-small government opinions slight separatist opinions anti two party opinions anti-corporation opinion ect ect ect.

we stand on opposite sides of a standard political compass but I genuinely think if I were to count stats, I'd agree with as many of his stances as I would a liberals/democrats stances. my hs gov teacher described the difference in right vs left to us as "everyone's goal here is the betterment of mankind, they just think the best ways to do it are different" and that's literally the best way, to me, to describe what the difference in right vs left is regarding anarchism specifically. we got ESSENTIALLY the same opinion but the ways we think are the best ways to go about enacting said opinion are what makes us different. and something abt that is really painfully funny to me. envisioning a world where an-something is the major world thing, not capitalism.... and there's STILL right vs left... but The Anarchist Versions. christ.

sorry for the book i wrote in the tags. ignore typos I am NOT retyping any of that to fix them xoxo

[fantastic-mr-corvid]

i love it when shit happens in my life that dredges up old wounds and coincidentally im re-experiencing the media i intrinsically link it to cause then i get to remember exactly why i love it and find it so meaningful all over again. there's a fucking reason ill always say Berserk [& RGU] both came into my life at a perfect fucking time and holy shit they fucking resonated with me so hard and as much as life can suck ass and lovvves kicking me in the balls when ive just recovered from last time i a least get to remember how & why i love something so much.

[tamaharu]

ive inherited a copy of lolita from my parents (i.e. i stole it from the library in our basement and started treating it like its mine) with the 1989 vintage international cover and i think its actually not that bad. better than the 50th anniversary one with the lips anyway imo (which is the cover for the library ebook vers ive checked out).

like i think any cover that incorporates the "only convincing love story of our generation" quote anywhere kind of sucks on principle, and the fact that it features a photo of a girl at all really goes against nabakovs instructions, but compared to other covers that break those two rules, the haziness of the photo creates a really evocative atmosphere i feel matches the book more or less.

[todayisafridaynight]

Hey so ive been this reading this manga called "ojisama to neko" ( eng: "a man and his cat" ) and its sosososo cute so sweet 10/10 would recommend also THE MAIN MAN LOOKS. KINDA LIKE SAWASHIRO EVEN IF THEIR PERSONALITIES COULDNT BE MORE FAR APART. His name is Fuyuki Kanda and he is very dear to me just thought to share hope u have a wonderful day

NOOOO I LOVE OJISAMA TO NEKO SO MUCH !!!! I REMEMBER WHEN IT FIRST CAME OUT YEARS AGO AND I REALLY WANTED PHYSICAL COPIES OF IT DESPITE IT BEING ONLY IN JAPANESE AT THE TIME AAAAAA SUCH A GOOD SERIES I LOVE FUKUMARU SO MUCH….

[faaun]

please delete your philosophy gpt-3 post. it's most likely stolen writing.

philosophy?? idk which one you're referring to sorry. also no . if it's the poetry one, see in tags. actually see in tags anyway. actually pls look at my posts on AI too . sorry if it's badly worded i'm very tired :')

[hellolulu]

When I see a post I really like reblogged by someone I follow, I will usually go and check the original post to see if there are bonus features there (aka tags that are basically "and another thing!") lol

[playingonedchess]

i dont have any emotions. except being like annoyed that doesnt count. and bored. i feel bored and annoyed. thats my whole life theres nothing else. im bored with my life and annoyed at how rubbish i am. im boring and annoying. thats all i am in the world all there is to see and all anyone ever thinks of me. i appear as a person simply as bored and annoyed and boring and annoying and theres nothing else. its for the best anything else is too much effort and too embarrassing i coildnt do it. the more people are bored and annoyed by me and dismiss and ignore me the better its easier theres no effort and this way i dont care cause theres nothing there its all blank and nonexistent and meaningless so theres nothing to notice or even have an opinion on and its all no one nothing blank rubbish what was i even talking about

[yelloworangesoda]

maxwell and sammy are all mine and i love them like my children but its pretty hard to divorce them from fnaf enough to make them straight up ocs. sammy especially bc hes technically not my oc, even if i made up every aspect about him except his name and dead twin sister

[arolesbianism]

Y'know I should rly do a comb through of the wiki and correct any mistakes in the logs cause even if I'm too lazy to add all the ones not there it would make double checking the ones that are on there much easier

[anaquariusfox]

I spent the evening looking into this AI shit and made a wee informative post of the information I found and thought all artists would be interested and maybe help yall?

edit: forgot to mention Glaze and Nightshade to alter/disrupt AI from taking your work into their machines. You can use these and post and it will apparently mess up the AI and it wont take your content into it's machine!

edit: ArtStation is not AI free! So make sure to read that when signing up if you do! (this post is also on twt)

[Image descriptions: A series of infographics titled: “Opt Out AI: [Social Media] and what I found.” The title image shows a drawing of a person holding up a stack of papers where the first says, ‘Terms of Service’ and the rest have logos for various social media sites and are falling onto the floor. Long transcriptions follow.

Instagram/Meta (I have to assume Facebook).

Hard for all users to locate the “opt out” options. The option has been known to move locations.

You have to click the opt out link to submit a request to opt out of the AI scraping. *You have to submit screenshots of your work/face/content you posted to the app, is curretnly being used in AI. If you do not have this, they will deny you.

Users are saying after being rejected, are being “meta blocked”

People’s requests are being accepted but they still have doubts that their content won’t be taken anyways.

Twitter/X

As of August 2023, Twitter’s ToS update:

“Twitter has the right to use any content that users post on its platform to train its AI models, and that users grant Twitter a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to do so.”

There isn’t much to say. They’re doing the same thing Instagram is doing (to my understanding) and we can’t even opt out.

Tumblr

They also take your data and content and sell it to AI models.

But you’re in luck!

It is very simply to opt out (Wow. Thank Gods)

Opt out on Desktop: click on your blog > blog settings > scroll til you see visibility options and it’ll be the last option to toggle

Out out of Mobile: click your blog > scroll then click visibility > toggle opt out option

TikTok

I took time skim their ToS and under “How We Use Your Information” and towards the end of the long list: “To train and improve our technology, such as our machine learning models and algorithms.”

Regarding data collected; they will only not sell your data when “where restricted by applicable law”. That is not many countries. You can refuse/disable some cookies by going into settings > ads > turn off targeted ads.

I couldn’t find much in AI besides “our machine learning models” which I think is the same thing.

What to do?

In this age of the internet, it’s scary! But you have options and can pick which are best for you!

Accepting these platforms collection of not only your artwork, but your face! And not only your faces but the faces of those in your photos. Your friends and family. Some of those family members are children! Some of those faces are minors! I shudder to think what darker purposes those faces could be used for.

Opt out where you can! Be mindful and know the content you are posting is at risk of being loaded to AI if unable to opt out.

Fully delete (not archive) your content/accounts with these platforms. I know it takes up to 90 days for instagram to “delete” your information. And even keep it for “legal” purposes like legal prevention.

Use lesser known social media platforms! Some examples are; Signal, Mastodon, Diaspora, et. As well as art platforms: Artfol, Cara, ArtStation, etc.

The last drawing shows the same person as the title saying, ‘I am, by no means, a ToS autistic! So feel free to share any relatable information to these topics via reply or qrt!

I just wanted to share the information I found while searching for my own answers cause I’m sure people have the same questions as me.’ \End description] (thank you @a-captions-blog!)