#technically not finished but I wanted to post it while it was still their birthday!! (On the west coast at least. its 4am where i am 🫡)

[paintedcrows]

The Mystery Twins all grown up!! I love them so much. 13 forever, yet always older than me

[moonstruckmoony]

A Ravenclaw Lunch 🦅

Drew some of my favorite Ravenclaws on this platform. Although one isn't necessarily a Ravenclaw. (@traceyc-uk I genuinely thought he was a Ravenclaw when I first saw him lol but I saw your comment reply somewhere that your first playthrough was Ravenclaw so I think this counts… a bit? 😂)

This post is basically a peace offering (and a love letter) bcs I want to make more Ravenclaw friends 👀👉🏻👈🏻 definitely not because I'm obsessed with you guys' MCs

I swear it was supposed to be a silly doodle at first but idk how or when down the line but somehow it turned into this mega drawing. Took me weeks to finish it. I’m not happy with a few technical things especially lights and shadows… and some other things as well but I leave it be bcs I’m aware that I’m still learning 🥲 The rest I’m pretty satisfied with, I’m just happy that I got to finally finish this.

Front row (left to right):

Violet and Pearl Castellar by @vienguinn Omg HAPPY BELATED BELATED BIRTHDAY TO THESE BABIES! These 2 are some of my favorites and everytime you post I always open my phone real quick, your short comics are my comfort 🩵

Clora Clemons by @choccy-milky I cannot not draw Clora?!!?! I consider you a legend in this fandom tbh 👑 also I want to thank you bcs your fic and illustrations literally helped me go through my stressful period when I was at my lowest bcs of my new demanding job that I started half a year ago. I look forward to your post everytime and your Clora and Seb always heals my soul 😭🩵💚

Sally Salamander by @siboom777 Sally is just so wacky and unapologetically herself and I love her for it 🩵 Does she take commissions for toys tho?

Marvin Jerry by @runicxraven MY LOVELY SILLY ADORABLE LITTLE NERD 💗💗💗💗 I need more Marvin in my life honestly.

@najiang ‘s MC - I’m so so sorry I didn’t draw her full face😭, I tried my best to show her face as much as I can while still looking like she’s taking those sausages haha. But anyway please know that I love your art so so much and I kept going back to the curry one and the one where MC came across Amit with beard as adults (that one is hilarious). Idk if your MC has a name or you left it nameless? I assume it was the latter but if she has one I’d love to know!

Faustine Daemon by @faustinio27 Hey, a fellow INFJ! Winter is the same 🩵 I really love her story and especially her personality character sheet, you drew her expressions really well and I’m a fan!

Back row (left to right):

Oliver Lennox by @pixie-dustss Handsome boi 🥰 We’re friends already (I hope I’m not the only one who thinks that way 🫢) from TikTok and you made me a video for Secret Santa last year and I just found out recently that you’re on Tumblr too so I want to say thanks by drawing Oliver! 🩵🩵🩵

Aurélie Collins by @morelikeravenbore I loove this look for Aura, she just looks so chic with the hat and scarf 😭🩵 Sassy Ravenclaw bebe 🥰 My Winter has some French heritage (the lore is still rotting in my notebook bcs I haven’t had the chance to draw her family members 🥲) so I do hope they can be friends and Aura would teach her French bcs she can’t speak much of it 👉🏻👈🏻

Alistair Dusk by @speedysart Surprise! You commented on my last speedpaint on Tiktok yesterday and I want to spill this art so bad but I was almost done so I kept my mouth shut haha. I love the pretty boi’s hair and piercings, and the fact that you chose this blazer for him, I just love it he looks so dapper in that 😣🩵

Eleonora Russel by @zordanna I love sweet Eleonora and her fascination with the moon and stars 🩵🌌 Oh and I kept coming back to your “I feel like an orange” Tiktok bcs it’s so fluffy and it heals my stress… also I adore your art it’s super soft and painty and delicate 🥹💗

@traceyc-uk ‘s MC - YOUR MC. I SWEAR TO MERLIN HE’S ON MY MIND 24/7 LATELY. Not sure why, it’s probably bcs I kept re-reading your comics. Also bcs he’s an adorable little golden retriever (but also a fierce cat!😼) You’re super talented in drawing comics and facial expressions, I have a lot to learn especially in terms of layouting… last time I made a comic I hated the layout and the fact that it looks stiff to me, so your comics has been such an inspiration!

[gender-trash]

(i am seriously late in posting about this due to The Problems BUT whatever! its here now!!)

somewhere around late november 2022, i asked my dad "hey are there any out of print technical books you'd like a reprint of for christmas?"

he linked me to a dubious black-and-white pdf of Foundations of Mechanical Accuracy. now, i wound up checking out a copy through link+, and the original edition is a really nicely put together book! the chapters are themed around various types of measurements (length, angle, etc), and they all have these cute little diagrams which the endpapers reuse in a lil repeating pattern... the image captions are done in this really lovely dark red that did not scan for SHIT... tons and tons of diagrams and illustrations and images (both color and b&w)... just, all around, a fucking nice book!! (see also @morrak's post about it here.)

and that made me feel kind of bad about the crappiness of the pdf, which is where the Problems began. i used my phone to take pictures of all the photos and color diagrams in the original and went about replacing them in the pdf, using what turned out to be the world's worst pdf editing software (i also got through replacing all the image captions in chapter 1 of 5 before my dad convinced me to give up). i did NOT finish the pdf editing before christmas 2022 (i was going somewhat off the deep end, because both my housemates were away visiting family and i had zero external structure in my life so it was just me and my cat and this stupid FUCKING pdf wrecking my sleep schedule together); i poked away at it for most of the rest of my time off and then got so goddamn sick of it i put the project away for months. "it'll be a birthday gift instead", i said optimistically (my dad's birthday is in april! it should have been enough time!)

gentle readers, i did not finish the pdf editing by april. mostly because it was such a miserable slog that i put it off until the last possible moment and then tried to make up for it with another death march.

hating both myself and the project again, i decided i was Not going to let myself typeset Anything Else before it was done, and then took a break to bind my immortal (using the renegade publishing typeset! i didn't do any typesetting!!). SURELY, i said, i can finish this in time for christmas 2023.

i'm sure you know where this is going.

in my defense i DID finish the pdf editing by christmas, despite first doing every other possible procrastination project (including a second edition of the little second century warlord book), because by this point my dad had managed to convince me to lower my standards. on the evening of the 22nd i kicked off the print job and said to myself "this will finish printing overnight and then tomorrow i can work on sewing the textblock!"

late on the 23rd, after lots of babysitting and using at least one cartridge of every color ink in my printer, the print job was finally done. (my sweet and lovely cat wants SO BADLY to hunt and stalk the printer while it is printing -- more specifically, the printed pages, i think because they tend to make noise and move and then STOP moving. for this reason, the printer is kept in the craft room, because the cat can be shut out of the craft room and thus prevented from chewing on the pages when i have an all-day book printing job going. unfortunately the craft room was also being pressed into service as a guest room at the time so 80% of the floor space was consumed by an air mattress which i had to repeatedly trip over in order to reach the printer and replace the ink cartridges.)

then i went to my parents' house on the 24th and 25th and apologized to my dad (again) for not having the book finished. but this worked out well because we finished putting together my awesome new book clamp:

(the feet still aren't done being painted so they're just dry-fit on for now but you can still clamp books in it and that's what matters!!)

i came home, sewed the textblock (french link stitch over four linen tapes, with sewn endbands made of variegated embroidery floss over linen cord, and kozo paper glued over the spine)

... and promptly realized i SHOULD HAVE PUT IN MORE OF A GUTTER because some of the text was getting reeeeeeal close to the spine. "it's fine!" i said. "i just have to make sure it lays flat!! what better time than to try out K118 binding, a technique i have literally never done before and which people on the bookbinding discord notoriously have a hard time pulling off first try! i even have tyvek tape for it!"

so it turns out that tyvek tape isn't actually tyvek with glue on it, it's tape FOR attaching pieces of tyvek TO EACH OTHER, which maybe i could have guessed if i'd done even the slightest amount of research or planning. at this point i think it was the 27th and i was still angling to get this thing done by new year's, so no time to order Actual Tyvek.

fortunately, i had ALSO received An Package in the mail with yarn for a totally unrelated knitting project... shipped in a tyvek envelope.

i peeled all the shipping labels and stickers off my tyvek envelope, cut that shit up, and glued it on there.

and THEN it was time for gluing on covers, which i thought was going to be easy because i had actually thought ahead and ordered materials (specifically acid-free museum board), except when i cracked open the box of museum board i decided i Didn't Like It because the surface was too soft and easily dented, so i glued onto it the too-thin board material i'd previously been using (so that the cardboard goes on the outside of the book). this worked super well (the cardboard stuff has a tendency to curl up from the glue moisture, but the museum board doesn't!) and i'll probably use it on other stuff in the future.

i thought the blue bookcloth i used was kind of boring but i showed my dad the available cloth options and he really liked it, so... what do you know? i cut the piece i used on the back cover very slightly too short but it wound up being covered by the leather, so you can barely tell.

and the leather... a scrap just baaaaarely big enough from my bag of leather scraps from discount fabrics... and this the first time i'd ever attempted to put leather on a book... AND YET the only complaint i have is that i didn't manage to put an even amount on the front and back. it's reasonably square and straight!! amazing!!

i am super super happy with how this project came out (especially given the number of problems i encountered) and oh my god check out how much the spine bends

AND, AS A NEW YEAR'S PRESENT, I FINALLY MANAGED TO GIVE IT TO MY DAD

[hornyfor-redacted-onmain]

Date Day Pt. 2

Pieces of My Heart - Chapter 17 Stray Kids OT8 x reader, Soulmate AU Trigger Warning: Midly suggestive comment made, creepy behavior, and technical assault (reader gets grabbed)

Masterlist | Next Part

You got a message as you were getting ready. Having just finished taking a shower, you checked your phone to see that it was Sophie, who had sent you some memes and a sweet message asking how you were. You answered truthfully telling her you were good but still getting used to a new place. After a second to consider it, you sent her a photo of your two favorite outfit ideas with a question mark.

She answered back immediately.

Sophie oooh, date night? the first one looks really good, the second one is a little too revealing let me know how it goes :) Y/N yeah, first date. kinda nervous wish me luck!

The flood of sweet messages that followed made you smile. You took the outfit she had chosen (which included a beautiful soft sweater that just so happened to match Felixs’) and put it on. You finish getting ready just in time to hear a knock on the door, and you grab your keys and phone before opening the door.

You pause, and then hold up a finger. “Give me a second.”

For your birthday a year prior, you had been given a polaroid camera. The first few weeks you had been obsessed, taking pictures of everything and anything just to shake the polaroids out and feel cool doing it, but eventually you had gotten over it. The camera had been rediscovered in the process of packing your bags, and you had brought it along on a whim.

The sight waiting for you at the front door felt like the perfect opportunity to use it.

Felix and Hyunjin were both caught off guard when you snapped the first photo, but as you shake out the photo, they quickly get excited. They both pose for the second photo without you even having to ask. You hold up the first polaroid as the second one develops, showing it to the two boys with a smile as they crowd next to you to take a look.

Breathtakingly beautiful, and yet somehow homey, you were surprised that Hyunjin had toned down his date outfit compared to what he would normally wea. He had picked an all-black outfit that wouldn’t stand out so easily but still managed to make him look like a hundred bucks. He had his hair slicked back, and you knew his face would mostly be covered with a mask while out in public, but in the photo you could appreciate his model good looks in full.

Felix somehow managed to look ethereal, even with wide eyes of surprise. His mouth was slightly parted, having caught sight of the camera just before you took the photo. His hair was slightly messy, freckles barely seen with the washed-out coloring of the polaroid, but he looked just as beautiful as always, even though he was slightly blurry.

“Yah, a little warning would have been nice,” Felix said, even though he smiled down at the photo.

Hyunjin was already looking at the second. “Ah, this one came out so good. Do you mind if I take a photo of it?”

“Don’t go posting any photos on social media just yet. You don’t want fans to recognize you,” You warned.

“I know,” Hyunjin said, pulling out his phone. “I’ll post it later.”

You hear another snap and look back at Felix just in time to see him shaking out one last polaroid, and you roll your eyes. He smirks.

“Had to get one of you too. Especially when you look so breathtaking.”

“Hmm, they’d look so pretty in a photo shoot, wouldn’t they,” Hyunjin muttered, glancing at you out of the corner of his eye as he takes a photo of the polaroid. “All the beautiful clothes they could wear.”

Felix eyes the photo he took of you. “I think they’d look prettier if they weren’t wearing anything at all.”

“Felix!”

“Sorry babe,” He said, not looking sorry at all.

-0-0-

You weren’t normally a big fan of museums. The paintings were pretty enough, but they never really spoke to you the same way you assumed it did to more artistic people, like Hyunjin. Still, the instillation that he had brought you two for your date was not only the most colorful thing you had ever had the pleasure of walking through, but somehow also very open in its meaning.

You noticed it from the very first room you three walked in. It was covered in colorful strings, which at first just looked pretty, but from certain points in the room the strings would line up just right enough for an image to form. You spotted a butterfly first, and then what looked like a leaf.

Felix waved you over from the furthest corner, joined by two teenagers and a family of three.

“It’s the cocoon. I’m guessing that there’s a caterpillar somewhere,” he told you.

You looked around until you spotted another small group of people in a spot you hadn’t been to before. After pointing it out to him, the two of you walked over hand in hand to find that it was indeed the spot where the strings formed a caterpillar, and he grinned, leading you around the room to watch the entire process take place. You met back up with Hyunjin at the door to the next room, and he eyed your joined hands with a smirk.

“How are you liking the colors?” He asked Felix.

Felix looked back at the strings with wide eyes. “I’m more surprised they managed to form different images with the same strings.”

“Hmm, I think you’ll like this one too.”

Hyunjin led the two of you into the next room. The walls and sectioned off parts of the floor had what you assumed were cotton, only they were dyed in soft pastel colors that matched the soft pastel ombre of the walls and floors. The cotton in the sectioned of portions had small entrances, where workers would allow small groups of 3 or 4 people walk across the ground barefoot. Felix let out a small sound in surprise.

“Wow. It’s like the colors are … only kind of there, but still there. So white.”

You hummed. “I think it’s supposed to be the sky. Look, it’s mostly blue, red, orange, and pink. It’s like a sunset.”

“The cotton is the clouds,” Hyunjin agreed, taking Felix’s other hand. “Want to go walk on the clouds with me?”

Felix nodded, and the three of you made it over to the sectioned off portion. You had to wait a few minutes in the line to walk across, and the worker warned you all to walk slowly and to be careful, but once you felt the ‘clouds’ under your feet you knew that it was worth the wait. You were also immediately sure that it wasn’t cotton you were walking on.

“It’s so soft!” Felix exclaimed, wiggling his toes.

The boys waddled ahead of you, Hyunjin even reaching down to touch whatever you were walking on with his own hands in awe.

It really did feel like you were walking on a cloud.

The second installation wasn’t as interactive as the first two. It consisted of multiple pop-art paintings hanged around the room, and Hyunjin was more than eager to explain some of them to Felix. You, however, made your way around the room quickly, and with a quick thumbs up from the boys to show that it was okay, you advanced to the next room by yourself.

This one truly stumped you. You weren’t sure what it was, no matter how long you looked at it. It was a large pane of glass that nearly split the room in two, and splatters of paint littered across the glass. There were lots of dark blue and green peeking out in spots, but most of the glass was covered in bright red splatters, like someone had launched buckets of paint right at it.

You must have spent a long time staring at the art piece trying to understand because Hyunjin and Felix caught up to you, Hyunjin wrapping an arm around your shoulders.

“It’s kind of sad, isn’t it,” he murmured.

You blinked. “I don’t get it.”

He pointed out the green and blue splotches on the edge. “It’s supposed to be the earth. The blue and green is the planet, and the red represents … well, I guess you could take it literally as blood covering the earth. But I think it does a good job of representing violence, pain, anger, evil. Its pretty open to interpretation.”

“Oh,” you said, nodding in understanding. “Huh, I never would have thought of that.”

Felix rolled his eyes. “He’s just reading the information packet we were handed at the entrance.”

“You mean the one I stuffed in my bag and haven’t looked at since we got here?” You said sheepishly, reaching for the now crumbled paper.

Hyunjin laughed.

Felix began to wander off towards the other side of the room, but Hyunjin stayed with you as you started to read through the packet, learning about the artists of each piece and the meaning behind them. Hyunjin wrapped his arms around your waist and rested his chin against your shoulder, slowly rocking the two of you side to side.

You giggled. “I can’t read if you keep moving me.”

“You don’t need that anyways. I’ll explain everything to you,” he assured you.

“I’m sure you’ll do a better job anyways,” You said, giving up and deciding you’ll finish the packet back at home. “I love the way you explain things. I love the way you see things.”

“I just appreciate all the little things, the beauty in life. It makes all the big things that much more meaningful.”

“Like what?”

He pressed his mask up against your cheek in leu of a kiss, and you leaned back into his embrace. “Like you.”

“You’re such a romantic.”

“Hmm.”

The two of you stood there for another minute, softly rocking back and forth. You closed your eyes and let his warmth wash over you, the feel of his skin on yours, his chest expanding and retracting as he breathed, his soft humming in your ear.

You smiled. “You mean the world to me.”

He just held you tighter in response.

-0-0-

You had once again managed to wander ahead of the boys. You decided to wait for them in a quitter section, sitting down on a bench and scrolling through your phone as you waited. A family walked through, their chatter filling the small room, but they eventually moved on, and you took a second to observe the painting in front of you.

It was pretty, not as colorful as some of the other pieces you had seen today, but you imagined it had some deeper meaning you didn’t quite get.

A guy a little bit older than you sits down on the bench next to you, and you quickly move you bag closer to your body, scooting to the side with a small nod. The two of you sit in silence, looking at the painting, before he suddenly speaks up.

“It’s amazingly intricate, isn’t it,” he says, voice deep.

“Oh, I guess,” You murmur.

He tilts his head, still staring at the painting. “I’m in awe of the technique. Don’t think I could replicate something that beautiful even if I tried.”

You hummed in agreement.

There was a moment of silence, and then he spoke up again, this time turning to look at you fully. “What do you think about it?”

“Oh, I’m not much of an art person,” You explained. “I’m actually just waiting for someone.”

The man narrows his eyes, nods his head for a few seconds, and then shoots you a blinding smile. “Are you a foreigner?”

You hesitate. “Yes?”

“Your Korean is very good.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“You know, foreigners usually learn a lot from sleeping with Korean men.”

He said the words so nonchalantly, so bluntly, that it took you of guard for a second. You couldn’t even find yourself getting angry or scandalized, because you were just so in shock that someone would even say something like that out loud. It was only then that you acknowledged how uncomfortable he was making you.

You grimaced, standing up. “Right. I think I’m just going to-“

“Yah, leaving so soon?” He says, grabbing your arm as you try to pass by.

The room was empty. There was nobody around, and there was a strange man grabbing you, and it took everything you had not scream. Maybe you should scream. Should you scream? Should you hit him? You began to panic, not sure what to do.

His grip tightened. “Hey, there’s no need to be afraid. I just want to talk.”

“Let go of me.”

You tried to sound authoritative, but you voice wavered. Your heart was pounding in your chest, and it felt like someone was squeezing it. You try to pull your arm away, but the sudden recoil of the action only has you falling towards the man. The second his other hand touches your hip, you jolt past your hesitation and slam straight into outrage.

“Let go of me!” You yell, pushing against his chest with all your might.

The action forces him to let go, and you stumble back. You’re tempted to run, and for a split second you almost do, but then the loud laugh of a kid gains the attention of the man.

Two kids run into the room, followed by a very anxious mother trying to get them to quiet down. The woman and kids seem to be part of a group, and the small room slowly starts to fill with people. You turn around to look for the man, but he’s already gone.

The kids laugh loudly again.

You rush towards the bathroom as you feel your eyes starting to sting with tears, anger making your body feel hot and fuzzy. It wasn’t until you were in the empty room that you realized your bag was vibrating. You pull out your phone, eyes widening at the 4 missed calls and dozen texts Chan had sent you. Before you can read any of them, he’s calling again.

“Are you okay?” Is the first thing he says the moment you answer.

“I’m okay,” You say instinctively, but then you pause. “I … actually, I don’t know if I am okay.”

“What happened. Where are you?”

“I’m still at the museum, I’m fine … physically. It’s- there was a guy, he said something gross, and he grabbed me. He’s gone now, but it just kind of freaked me out.”

You looked down to your arm, which felt strangely cold from the man’s touch. You felt slimy just thinking about his hands on you.

“Where are the boys?” Chan questioned, and you put him on speaker so you could wash your hands.

“I don’t know. I was waiting for them, and this creep just walked up to me.” You took a deep breath. “I think I’m okay. I just need a minute.”

“Take as long as you need sweetheart.”

You scrubbed your arm with soap in hopes of elevating the disgust, but the harder you scrubbed the more your skin began to sting, so you gave up. You dried off and took a second to just stare at the mirror. The anger was still there, so was the fear, but mostly you just felt tired. You shook your head, picking your phone back up.

“I think I’m good. I’m really sorry I freaked you out,” you told Chan.

“Don’t ever apologize for something that isn’t your fault.” He let out a sigh. “Are you sure the guy is gone?”

You peeked your head out of the bathroom. “Yeah, I don’t see him. I think he got spooked by the other people who showed up.”

Chan swore on the other end, in both Korean and English. “Do you think you can find Hyunjin or Felix?”

“Yeah, I’ll look for them. I’m sorry you had to feel that. I’m sure you’re busy.” You wandered back to the room you had just been in, but there was no sign of the boys. “I can call you back later.”

“I mean absolutely no offense to you sweetheart, but you must be out of your goddamn mind if you think I’m hanging up right now.”

You let out a small laugh. “Fair enough.”

It was comforting, knowing Chan was on the phone as you made your way around the museum. Even though you were sure you weren’t in any real danger, and the rooms you walked through were full of people, you knew deep down that you wouldn’t have felt as safe as you did now if Chan wasn’t there, even if it was just him breathing on the other end.

You finally spotted Hyunjin first, letting out a sigh of relief. “I found them.”

Hyunjin looked up with a smile as you ran up to him, but his smile quickly dropped when he saw your face. “Are you okay?”

“Let me talk to him,” Chan said, and you quickly handed over the phone.

Felix wandered over when he spotted the two of you. He noticed the tense atmosphere between the two of you, and he placed a hand on your arm in worry as Hyunjin’s face began to pull down in worry and anger.

“What’s going on?”

You licked your lips and took a deep breath. “Some guy grabbed me, I freaked out. Chan felt it.”

“Wait, some guy grabbed you?” Felix dropped his hand and looked you over in worry. He gently lifted your arm in shock, and you realized that there was a small red mark from where you had been grabbed. “Oh my god, are you okay?”

“It’s fine, I’m just pissed he got away.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Hyunjin said, and he quickly said something in Korean so fast you couldn’t even begin to understand. “Hyung, I’m calling the cops.”

“The hell you are,” you exclaimed, grabbing the phone out of his hand. “Are you insane?”

“This guy hurt you,” Hyunjin argued.

“That guy is a creep, I won’t argue with you on that, but he didn’t hurt me. He grabbed my arm a little tight, but I’ve been hurt worse by walking into a table.”

“He put his hands on you.” Felix said.

“And what do you plan on doing? Looking for him? Yelling at him? You don’t even know if he’s still here!”

“I’ll have the museum security find out who he is. I’ll track him down myself if I have to,” Hyunjin said.

“Right sure, I can see the headlines now. Stray Kids Hyunjin arrested for attacking a man who was a creep to his soulmate.” You smacked his shoulder. “What happened to keeping a low profile?”

Felix grabbed your hand. “Baby, this guy should have never touched you. What he did was not okay-“

“I know. Believe me, I know.” You interrupted. “But he’s gone now. And I’m not going to let you guys expose yourselves just to … defend my honor. He didn’t do anything that would warrant more than a slap on the wrist. It’s not worth it.”

You could tell neither one was satisfied, but something on your face must have convinced them, because they quickly conceded. You only then remembered you were still on a call with Chan, and you quickly brought the phone back up to your face and asked if he was still there.

“I’m still here,” Chan said softly.

“You get all that?”

He sighed. “Yeah.”

“I’m hanging up on you now.”

“Please, be safe.”

You smiled. “I will.”

The words ‘I love you’ burned on the tip of your tongue, begging to be released, but you swallowed them down.

It didn’t feel right.

Not yet.

-0-0-

Even though you tried to encourage the boys to finish the exhibit, they unanimously agreed to cut the date short, and you were secretly relieved. You held Hyunjin’s hand tight as you walked past the security guards, knowing he would be tempted despite your agreement, and managed to make your way out into the warm afternoon sun without any issues.

You were relieved that the boys hadn’t been recognized yet.

“You want to go home?” Felix asked, and you thought about it for a second.

Now that you were out of the museum and breathing in fresh air, the idea of cutting the date short and ending it on such a bitter ending felt wrong. You shook your head.

“What do you want to do?” He asked.

You pursed your lips. “Are there any parks nearby?”

“Hmm, there’s one two blocks away,” Hyunjin said, already looking up the directions on his phone. Then he tilted his head. “If you’re willing to walk a little further, we’re not that far from the Han river.”

“Oh! I’ve always wanted to go to the Han river!”

“Then lets go,” Felix said, eyes crinkling.

You walked in between the two, holding hands with both of them and swinging them back and forth. You felt carefree, a nice change from the exhaustion you had felt earlier, and the wind blowing through your hair swept away all your worries. Even so, you could tell neither boy was completely over what had happened.

You pulled your hands together, forcing them to hold each other’s hands as you moved behind them, giving them a big smile. “You two look good together.”

Hyunjin snorted, wrapping his arm around Felix. “Maybe I’ll steal him all for myself.”

Not one to be outdone, Felix grabbed Hyunjin by the back of the neck. “Who says I won’t come willingly?”

Hyunjin jolted back at that, and the two of them started laughing. You raised an eyebrow, noticing the way their eyes darted to each other and then back to you. You patted Felix on the shoulder as you moved past them, skipping to the corner of the street.

“Come on lover boys. You two can flirt with each other later.”

The three of you continued your walk with less tension than before, the events of the museum only a blip of an otherwise nice day.

Well, relatively nice.

It was hot out, as summer was starting to get closer. The sun was shining bright, and by the time you guys found a nice spot near the river and under the shade, you were sweating. While it wasn’t unbearingly hot, Hyunjin’s offer to get ice cream was a blessing.

He told you he would back quickly, smooching your cheek messily as he left.

Felix decided to wait with you as the other dancer left, leaning back on his elbows and closing his eyes to enjoy the cool breeze. There were kids playing and laughing, couples walking at the riverside, and even dogs running in the grass. It was peaceful.

“I hate it, you know,” Felix said.

You tilted your head in confusion. “What?”

“Having to hide this.” He opened his eyes to look at you. “Not being able to be with you so publicly.”

You eyed his mask still on his face, pulled down only slightly below his nose. Any normal person would have taken it off by now, but even though Hyunjin had led you two towards a fairly secluded area, it was still too risky for his face to be seen in public.

Or rather, it was too risky for him to be seen in public with you.

You looked down. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Felix was quick to reassure you. “It’s what I signed up for when I decided to become an Idol.”

“You still deserve your privacy,” You muttered.

“Would you have done something if we weren’t idols?”

You didn’t have to ask him what he was talking about.

It was silent for a second, wind blowing through the trees above you. Leaves and flowers began to fall around the two of you, littering the grass between you. You grabbed a flower, twirling it around your fingers as you contemplated Felix’s words.

“Maybe.” At the way his face fell, you shifted closer. “Hey, I’m not saying that your idol status was the only reason I didn’t want to get the authorities involved. Like I said before, I doubt they would have been able to do anything more than chastise the guy anyways.”

Felix sighed. “It still doesn’t seem right.”

“It isn’t. But I’m okay, really.”

You reached over to hold his hand, and he gave it a tight squeeze. When he turned his head to look at you, you were already looking at him, the wind blowing hair around and blocking your view for a second. Felix’s eyes shifted to the side, and you turned to see what he was looking at, but you didn’t see anything. You turned back in time to see him pulling his mask down.

His lips were on yours for only a split second, but it was enough to make your face heat up. Felix pressed his forehead to yours, whispering against your lips.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

You smiled, letting your lips press together again. “With you? Always.”

He didn’t say anything else after that. Hyunjin didn’t mention your close proximity when he returned, simply handing over your ice cream with soft eyes.

“Careful, it’s starting to melt,” he warned you, but it was too late. A glob of ice cream had slid off the cone and hit your fingers.

He gratefully handed you a napkin afterwards, and you laughed when his own ice cream began to melt onto his hand as well. Felix accepted his own ice cream more carefully, managing to keep his hands clean.

Without thinking too much about it, you licked the ice cream that had fallen onto your fingers before wiping the area with the napkin. You then licked around the cone edge to catch the melting ice cream drops and avoid more of a mess, finishing off with a proper taste of your actual ice cream cone. You looked up to catch both boys watching you with familiar looks.

You snapped your fingers at them, instinctively speaking in english. “Hey, mind out of the gutter. I don’t put out on the first date.”

Felix laughed at your statement, replying in korean. “Damn, there go my plans for the night.”

“Wait, what did you she say?”

The two of you laughed at the confused look on Hyunjin’s face.

Yeah. You were okay.

-0-0-

“Walking me to my door, like proper gentleman,” You teased.

Hyunjin grinned, slipping the ball cap he had used out on the streets and running his hands through his hair. “Maybe we’re just hoping for the end of the date kiss.”

“So I’ve been told,” You said, giving Felix a side eye. “You seem awfully sure of yourself.”

You turned to open your door, planning on teasing them a little bit more, but Hyunjin pressed himself up against you, leaning on his arms resting above you. You turned back to face him properly, flicking his nose.

“Did you need something?”

He puckered his lips in response, and you laughed. You conceded, reaching up to wrap your arms around his neck and pull him down for a kiss. His own hands dropped down to your waist, his touch warm and comforting as he kissed you softly and slowly. When he pulled away, you were surprised to see him looking almost sad, and you watched his eyes flicker down to your arm where the man had grabbed you.

While it wasn’t noticeable to anyone who didn’t know better, the skin was red and irritated. There was a chance it might bruise slightly.

You tucked your finger under Hyunjin’s chin and lifted his face so you could look into his eyes. “Hey, forget about it. Forget about him.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” he said.

“It wasn’t your fault,” You assured him. “Don’t let the actions of one horrible man ruin our perfect date.”

“Perfect, huh?”

“Ahh, don’t let it go to your head,” You droned, pressing another kiss to his lips.

To both of your surprise, the moment Hyunjin pulled away Felix was there, pushing you back against the door and kissing you so hard it made you see stars. He practically devoured you, your breath stolen and lips tingling when he finally pulled away. His eyes were dilated, mouth red and slick with saliva that he licked away, cupping your cheeks in his hands.

“Will you be my girlfriend?” He asked you, and you couldn’t help but laugh.

“What happened to taking it slow?”

“Screw slow.”

Later that night, as you were getting ready for bed, Hyunjin sent a message to the group chat. It was a picture of you and Felix kissing at your front door, and he sent another message after.

‘Nothing in that museum compares to seeing these two together. This is real art.’

[the-modern-typewriter]

PLEASEEEEE POST THE F/F SNIPPET I AM FROTHING AT THE MOUTH. I loved the last one you posted so when you said there's MORE? HELLO?

“Nope.” Astra flicked the light switch on the wall again, once, twice. “It’s definitely dead.” She moved over to the window, drawing the sweeping curtain aside and peering down the rain-sodden street. “Looks like the power’s gone out for everyone.”

It was supposed to be her birthday.  Who wanted to have a power-cut on their birthday? She couldn’t even cook the dinner she had planned. Of course, she hadn’t told anyone it was her birthday, it felt too much like a demand for gifts or attention, but she’d been looking forward to at least doing something special.

She turned.

Lucille hummed an acknowledgement, continuing to light candles, flitting from one to another. They made the room feel strangely more like a temple than before. Lucille was one of those impressively and sometimes terrifyingly uncluttered people; her attic flat was all smooth white lines and high ceilings. It always felt far more peaceful than Astra’s place, which tended to be sprawled through with half-finished easels, half-drunk cups of tea and stacks of marking at any given stage.

Astra bit her lip. She felt rather useless simply standing there staring, even if Lucille had already done most of the candles anyway, so asking if she could help felt a bit pointless. It was all clearly in hand. She cleared her throat.

Lucille shifted to face her at the sound and held her last match up to mouth, illuminating a flash of soft pink lips, before she blew the flame out. She shook the matchstick, trailing smoke as she set it aside, but held onto the candle in her other hand. The wax was a deep purple, the flame the same flickering gold as all the rest.

“Have you ever experimented with wax before?” Lucille asked, oh so casually.

Astra released a breath, startled by the sudden question, and shook her head. Her pulse shot up. “No,” she said. “But we talked about it.”

She very much doubted Lucille had forgotten that, judging by the look in her eyes.

They had met a little under a year ago, when Astra had wandered into one of Lucille’s exhibitions after work. Astra’s works were all traditional fine art paintings – when she had time anymore anyway – but Lucille’s had been shown in photographs that day.

“People get funny about me exhibiting actual people,” Lucille had said, coming to a stop next to her. “It’s a shame, really. A photograph doesn’t quite capture the same effect, you know?”

Lucille’s work had, technically, been painting also. It was just that she had painted on people’s skin rather than a canvas.

One man stood with his chest brushed skeletal, each line of his bones and ribs lit glossy white again. His heart was the only burst of colour. Another piece was a woman whose mastectomy scars had been painted over with blooming flowers, new growth, life. Another of the photographs still had been a portrait of a woman with half of her face perfectly made up with make-up, and the other half painted to be shattering like glass. Ruined.

“It’s quite an effect, though,” Astra had replied. Her heart had hammered wildly in her heart, too big, entranced in a way she hadn’t felt in a while.  “I can only imagine what the real thing is like.”

Lucille had smiled, head tipping to examine her, up and down. She watched Lucille back. She was a delicate sort of woman, cute and unthreatening. Astra had felt Lucille's attention slide through her veins like something molten all the same.

“I’d love to do you,” Lucille said, then. “Sometime. If you’re free.”

That was how it had started.

Astra didn’t consider herself the most lovely of models – she spent too many hours teaching art in classrooms and stealing chocolate digestives from the staffroom to be much of a work of art herself – but the paintbrush sweeping over her skin had been soothing.  

She’d been painted by Lucille a number of times since then, small things; a bluebird on her shoulder, an ocean up to her ankle, a ring of fingertip-shaped bruises meticulously crafted around her wrists. She was always reluctant to wash the paint off, but she’d spent a long time staring at the bruises in particular.

That was how it had evolved.

“I think you’ll like wax,” Lucille continued. “Though, as ever, you are free to say no at any time.”

Astra walked across the candlelit room and sat down in the middle of the floor in response. She raised her brows at Lucille. It wasn’t what they’d had planned for the evening, before the blackout, but she certainly wasn’t objecting to the idea.

Lucille laughed, softly, under her breath. She filled a bowl of water in the sink before coming over too, sitting down. She set the candle and the bowl to the left and studied Astra for a beat. Her attention had turned laser focused again, in the way that always made Astra’s breath catch.

Lucille was the kind of woman who suited candlelight, moonlight; anything less defined than the bright fluorescent strips of artificial bulbs. They made her seem otherworldly. Astra watched her consider, something sliding honeyed in the pit of her belly.

“Off,” Lucille murmured.

Astra pulled her dress over her head with practiced ease and tossed it a safe distance away, somewhere without fire, before wriggling out of her tights. A shiver ran down her spine as the cooler air hit her bare skin. A second shiver followed as Lucille reached out, warm fingers brushing up her calf, before moving atop her knee to press and guide her legs away from where they hunched instinctively against her chest. Astra rested them flat stretched in front of her.

Lucille leaned in to press a kiss to her lips, deep and calming, before she pulled back.

“You look beautiful,” she whispered. “Stop worrying. I’ll do your front, so you can see the finished work.”

Astra huffed and smiled, waving a hand for Lucille to go ahead.

She watched as Lucille reached for the candle. She watched as Lucille held it over her legs with a steady hand, letting her see the first time. The purple wax pooled and dropped, splattering a starburst against Astra’s thigh.

“Oh, fuck.” It blurted out of her in a shocked astonishment.

If the paint brush had always had a lulling feeling, gentle and cold, then the heat of the wax was almost like being hit. It was the same flare of heat that quickly cooled. It was, all in all, impossible to focus on anything else.

“Okay?” Lucille asked.

Astra managed a nod and managed not to giggle, breathlessly. The world apart from them suddenly felt very far away.

“Good.” Lucille reached out with her free hand, and then in one swift movement grabbed Astra by the throat and pressed her to lay down on the floor. “Don’t move,” she whispered, against Astra’s ear, before nipping her neck.  “You’ll be in trouble if you make me start over.”

Astra bit her lip for an entirely different reason than awkwardness, face flushing. She didn’t move.

The candlelight painted the room awash in shades of ochre, amber, and red; softening and sharpening corners, transforming the world she knew into new definitions. The light rippled and danced across the ceiling.

The second droplet of wax landed on her stomach, then the third, the fourth, the fifth and a small sound escaped her throat. She couldn’t brace for it. It was too unpredictable, never exactly the same heat twice. Some stung, some burned, some were the same gentle warmth as a kiss. She squeezed her eyes shut, her breathing turning ragged.

Lucille shifted more candles closer, more shades for her palette. 

It took every inch of will power Astra had to hold still as the colour splashed over her; purples and blues and bright yellows and whites. She curled her fingers into fists, digging her nails into her palms. She thought she might scream – not from pain, exactly, but because of the way every burning wax-stroke made her more aware of her body than before. More sensitive.

Lucille stopped when she started whimpering, at a particularly hot droplet just below her waist. Her hips twitched. Needing to move. Needing to deal with it somehow. Lucille leaned down to blow cool air on the spot, another soft laugh on her lips.

Astra released another, helpless, curse word in response.

“If you can’t restrain yourself, dear, I’ll have to do it for you.” Lucille’s voice was teasing. “You’re being very distracting.”

“ME!?” Astra yelped.

Lucille smothered a grin, then started again.

She pieced her work together like the fragments of a mosaic and with time the heat turned to white noise, wax pattering like bright rain upon the windows of Astra’s mind.  It was not, exactly, soothing, by any means and yet something about it was. It was overwhelming. It didn’t allow for wandering minds or ordinary troubles. She was a work of art, nothing more, nothing less. All she had to do, in the grand scheme of everything, was hold still. It was easy to get lost in the feeling.

Every so often, Lucille would pause, but time lost all meaning. It came in drips and drops, rather than anything so plebeian as seconds or minutes.

 Finally, Lucille set the candles down completely.

Astra’s head swam, and the world felt softer, and she didn’t think it was just candlelight.

Lucille leaned back over her, arms braced on either side of Astra’s head, making sure not to dislodge the wax. Her blonde hair tickled Astra’s cheek.

“Good girl. Okay?” she asked.

Astra made a noise of agreement because words felt like far too much effort. She grinned up at Lucille to make it clear. Lucille smiled back. She leaned down to press another kiss to Astra’s mouth.

“Do you want to see?”  

Astra gave her a look, because yes, of course she wanted to see.

Lucille’s smile turned to a grin again too and she helped Astra to sit up, slowly, so that she could get a good look at what she had become.

Astra’s eyes widened, her gaze roaming over the purples and blues and bright yellows and whites. Lucille had made her a constellation, a galaxy, a twinkling array of stars picked out upon the deepest swirls of night.

“Ooh.” Astra’s breath left her in a long, amazed, sigh. “Wow.”

She was, without question, fucking beautiful.

She would go to an entire gallery filled with pictures like that, 3D across the curves of her body; painstaking, blot by pretty blot.

She met Lucille’s gaze.

“Happy birthday,” Lucille said.

She’d known.

“I didn’t get through enough candles, technically,” Lucille continued, “but you can still make a wish. If you like.”

Astra laughed, and dragged her into yet another kiss, another, and another still. She kissed her breathless. She could think of nothing to wish for, in that moment, except what she already had.

The lights above them flickered, before switching back on as the power outage came to an end. Astra blinked against the brightness.

Lucille gave the nape of her neck a reassuring squeeze and pulled back. “Get cleaned up,” she said. “I’ll get dinner on.”

Astra caught her hand, and squeezed it back.

“Thank you,” she replied.

Lucille tossed her a wink, bringing Astra's hand up to her lips and pressing a kiss to her knuckles.

She was never going to feel the same lighting candles on a power-cut again.

[hyptrance1]

Hypnosis Challenge #5: Hypnotic Hijinks

Hi all, apparently this was the most requested text induction (technically there’s like an hour left until the poll closes) so I’m gonna continue this series apparently. It’s a little wild that a series I started writing at the young age of 20 still has interest 10 years later just a few days before my 30th birthday. If you’re new to this the idea is simple: try not to go under. If you end up winning good for you, but I know the majority of you are trying to go under from this challenge. If you do end up losing this challenge the post hypnotic suggestion will be to reblog this with a comment, something like “I was hypnotized by HypTrance’s induction, I must reblog his induction like a good hypnotized toy.” If thats not something you’re interested in doing if you go under then I would suggest not reading this induction. If that is something you’re alright with then well, continue reading. As always, my inductions are not for anyone who is not an adult so you better be 18+, and lastly if you are interested in more of my inductions they can be found on my profile somewhere (sorry, just search and you’ll find them eventually). That’s it, enjoy. 

So the last induction I had told you guys about how other guys had felt when going under to my words. Obviously you won’t go under for that again, so I suppose I’ll have to try a different approach. Additionally, I’m sure that you’ll be trying harder this time to resist my words and not go under, which is fine because I like the challenge. So do your best to try not and get comfortable then. Don’t let your body sink into whatever you’re laying on, don’t allow your body to subconsciously get comfortable even if it wants to. Just stay in this position while reading, focusing on both your body and my words, cause is it really winning if you dont give your attention to my words? I don’t think so, and I would tell you and your body that exact thing if you told me. So give my words your undivided attention and try not to let your body relax too much. I suggest not breathing too deeply in, and not slowly exhaling out, since slow even breaths are an easy way for your body to start relaxing. I wonder if your body will help you in resisting my words, or maybe it will follow my words instead, helping me to take you that much further under. Interesting thoughts, right?

And while your focus is split between two things, your body and my words, trying to not have your body relax to much and your breathing to slow down to much, you should also try not to let your thoughts slip out of your mind to much. It’s difficult, I know, when your attention has to be slip towards so many things, having to switch your focus from your thoughts making sure that some are not slowly slipping out, your body to make sure that your breathing isn’t slowing down subconsciously, and reading my words making sure that you are actually finishing this challenge is difficult, but I’m confident in your abilities to do all three and not be subconsciously swayed by my words telling you to just read, relax, and slowly stop thinking. It’s probably a little bit tiring though, but don’t worry, not in the I’m going under tiring, just the having to keep your attention on all these things makes you mentally tired. But that’s probably not a good thing, so you better find a way to keep yourself alert and awake. Oh, but wait, now you probably start noticing that your body is also relaxing now, that your breathing has slowed and you’ve gotten more comfortable where you are. But do you remember your original position? It’s probably difficult to think of the exact position, especially when you’re supposed to be focusing on not letting your thoughts slowly stop and continuing to stop your body from relaxing more. And reading my words on top of it is dividing your attention a little too much. Maybe this challenge is a little harder than expected. 

I don’t think focusing on all of those things is the only thing that’s hard. This would probably be easier if you didn’t find hypnosis hot, and didn’t find resisting and failing to resist hypnosis even harder. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that there’s pleasure building within your body. Is your dick hard by now? Just reading my words and imagining yourself going under to them, even after all the strong resisting you did? Well I suppose that’s just another thing that you have to try and focus on and stop from continuing: the building pleasure within you. How is your attention doing? Being split into four different directions. I hope you’re still trying to resist going under, not letting yourself relax to much, your breathing to slow, as your thoughts stay within your mind and don’t slip out, while you try to keep your hard on from inflating any more and you keep reading my words. That seems to be a lot to handle. Are you sure you can handle it?

I’m sure that last little bit of teasing reinvigorated some resistance in you. You’re probably thinking that you can’t let my words take you under, that you can let how relaxed they make you, how hard they’re making you, stop your thoughts in their tracks and leave you staring mindlessly, hypnotized. But like my last induction said, like others have said, “your eyes just keep coming back to my words, continuing to read even if the words are taking you deeper and deeper”. So even if you try to take a moment to stop, catch your breath, refocus on your thoughts, you keep coming back to my words, keep coming back to the same feeling that seems to be pulsing through your more and more: relaxation, pleasure, and probably a little bit of submission as your resistance slowly begins to fade. Just like how you haven’t noticed till now that your body is in a very relaxed position, that your hard on is fully throbbing and pulsing right now, that your eyes seem heavy and your head seems light, like there are not enough thoughts in it. 

And it is probably now that you’re having a hard time thinking. Go ahead and try. Its hard to form a thought when you’re attention is so split by everything, your relaxed body, your pleasurable hard on, your heavy eyes on my words, my words filling your mind, making it almost impossible to let your thoughts even start to enter your mind. You’re just sitting there, reading my words, unable to make a thought. It seems as though you’ve lost the challenge, but let’s just make sure for a second, alright? When I count down form 10 to 0 in a second, you’re going to slip further and further under my words until your mind is blank, empty, and deeply hypnotized. You can feel those words entering your mind, and you know that you’ll follow them, but you can try your hardest, just as hard as your hard on right now, to resist my words and not go completely under to my induction. You ready to give it one last shot?

10

Your body relaxing more, even as you try to resist. 

9

Your breathing slowing, making you relax even further. 

8

Your eyes so heavy focused on my words.

7

My words floating through your brain filling it.

6

Your thoughts unable to even form. 

5

Pleasure in your body filling every part of you. 

4

You’re hard on just slowly throbbing.

3

Resistance leaving your body. 

2

No more resistance. 

1

No more thoughts. 

0

Blank and hypnotized. 

Now you can just continue reading as you allow yourself to just stare and follow my words. At this moment you should know that you have lost this hypnosis challenge and have gone under to my words, which is fine because your body feels so good and your mind feels so nice with my words filling it. So as you continue to read this you should remember that I said that if you lost this challenge you would be given a post hypnotic suggestion, which I will give to you now. When you wake you’re going to reblog or repost my original post to the induction, whether it be on twitter, or Tumblr. When you repost this induction you will also reblog it with the comment  “I was hypnotized by HypTrance’s induction, I must reblog his induction like a good hypnotized toy.” If you do not wish to complete this post hypnotic suggestion, please feel free not to complete it and to disregard the rest of this paragraph. For those of you that are okay with following this direction, you can feel that post hypnotic suggestion flow into your mind with the rest of my words, ready to be followed when you wake up. 

Which, in another moment you will wake when I count to 3. I want you to all feel nice, relaxed, and hoary when you wake from this trance, content and feeling well rested. You will feel peaceful from your time reading these words. Now:

1

Thoughts returning to your mind

2

Becoming more alert, more awake, more conscious. 

3

Wide awake. 

Wide, wide awake. 

Well hopefully you enjoyed this second reinvention of an old challenge. I think I’ve done this one before as well, but always good, even after ten years, to rework it into an even better version. I’m hoping that you continue to enjoy both my text and voice inductions which you can find linked to my page. You can also always reach out with ideas or leave them anonymously. Other than that, trace ya next time.

[givemeanaccountalready]

The Anti-Team 7, Formally Known as Team 6 (Komorebi)

First, I’d like to thank the wonderful @pumiih for drawing my little heathens. You made them (and Naruto) so beautiful.

It’s kind of funny. I picked the number 6 as their team number because Naruto would be the sixth Hokage (Kakashi is serving as Tsunade’s Jounin Commander for now) in my little AU world. I then learned that Team 6 was the number given to Jiraiya’s team with Minato and I thought, “Well, that’s a better reason to keep it as Team 6,” so here I am.

The Word doc that I made to actually plot this thing out to a degree has the title above for the Naruto-sensei arc. That’s somewhat touched on briefly before Naruto meets his team in the flesh, where he’s joking with Sakura that “This is their Sasuke, this is our you, and this is our me,” as the two of them look over the files Tsunade gave him. And he’s technically not entirely wrong about it lol. They just have really superficial connections to the OG Team 7. I even asked Pumiih to put them in the same order as the Team 7 picture. I haven’t posted it yet, but fic will be called Komorebi which translates to, “sunlight filtering through trees,” and I liked the imagery of that, so that’s the name.

Anti-Sasuke: Chitose Hyuuga 🍬 (prestigious clan with magic eyes)

Anti-Naruto: Kaito Isobe 🪁 (orphan, known troll)

Anti-Sakura: Tsurigane Kashiwagi 🔔 (girl)

I feel slightly bad for reducing Tsuri to that but I’m laughing too hard at the summary to care. She is probably the easiest anti-parallel to spot. Whereas Sakura didn’t really have an overarching goal until the Forest Death scene, Tsuri is the only one on Team 6 with an overarching dream/goal. She wants to gain Kage level strength, even though she doesn’t necessarily want the hat, and go down in history as a legendary kunoichi. Tsuri pretty much has a five year plan, meanwhile, Chitose is doing this ninja stuff because it’s what Hyuuga do, and Kaito is simply trying to earn a living until he finds something else that he likes. There is enough internalized misogyny in this girl to power a small village. You can thank her parents for that one. Tsuri despises fan girl behavior and she even lost a friendship over her best friend choosing to like and giggle over a boy. Eventually, she’ll reconcile with her, but for now, no. Very stubborn, very bull-headed, and very driven, Tsuri does not do things by halves.

Chitose is probably the least anti-parallel of the three, since her story revolves around bonds just like Sasuke’s had. Whereas Sasuke formed new bonds within Team 7 and wanted to protect them until Itachi and the Sound 4 happened, causing him to think he needed to sever his bonds and fuel his hatred to achieve his goals, Chitose’s story is a bit different. She wants to form bonds with others, and while she doesn’t have a deeply traumatic backstory, Chi definitely has some serious hang-ups stemming from the divide between the main branch and cadet branches of the Hyuuga family. She is not close to Neji or Hinata, but she has seen them grow into stronger, happier individuals because of their teammates and the work they do, and she wants that growth too.

While she does not have the Caged Bird Seal, Chi knows that’s only due to who her sensei is and not because the clan has changed its mind. Hinata is doing her best to change the Hyuuga’s ways after the war, but at the very beginning of the story, it seems more unlikely than not. Chi and the rest of Team 6 are about 6 years younger than Naruto so Chi couldn’t have possibly been sealed on Hinata’s third birthday like Neji was. She was going to get the Caged Bird once she either finished the Academy and became a kunoichi or sometime later if she had failed. The only reason she didn’t get sealed immediately after passing the graduation exam is because a certain someone told Hiashi that Naruto was being considered as a possible jounin leader and Hiashi wisely decided to hold off on it. The Hyuuga compound is still standing… for now.

Kaito is my lil goblin. He’s a snot-nosed brat whose fear of losing another loved one and screwy sense of self/self-worth resulted in his constant trolling and mouthing off. A little hater who graduated the Academy with two full time enemies and one part-time enemy, an unrequited rival (unrequited on Kaito’s part, he doesn’t want it). Like Naruto, he is stubborn and very perceptive of others’ emotions, but while Naruto clawed his way to acceptance and changing the way things are, Kaito is more content to crash and burn in the status quo. As a result, he does not have any big dreams or goals. If Tsurigane’s story is about learning to constructively use strength for herself and on behalf of others, and Chitose’s is about learning to let others in without making herself small to accommodate them, then Kaito’s story is about finding internal peace and taking the chance that the past won’t repeat itself.

I definitely spent too much time trying to think of what I wanted the other rookies besides Team 6 to look like. There’s three other rookie teams, and Shikamaru is the jounin leader for one. I just hope that they’ll be liked when I have enough written that I’m comfortable posting so I don’t have too much dead time in-between chapters.

And because I can… NaruSaku for the main ship. Team 6 ships it.

[choccy-milky]

1. your fic is absolutely amazing. Have been bingeing it and I’m literally obsessed. The way you write just itches my brain in such a good way, literally cannot contain my love and appreciation for your work👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 cheers to you!!! Can’t wait to keep reading

2. As I was reading I found out you also deadass drawing the art to go w/ the fic?? Literally you’re living my dream 😭 plus your art is so so so well done!!!!! It’s added so much joy to my reading experience

Cannot wait to see what else you have in store!!’ Hope you have an amazing, AMAZING day, week, year, etc.!!!! 💞🙌🏻🫶🏻

OMG IM GONNA CRY 😭😭 BAHAHA U SENT THIS AT SUCH A CRAZY MOMENT cuz i just checked my ao3 comments and was down about a rude comment i got, and then i come to tumblr and like, a few mins later/literally AS i was venting about it, u send this BAHAHA your choccy senses were tingling. IM SO GLAD U LIKE IT THO AND THAT YOURE ENJOYING IT (and my drawings, even if youve defs seen spoilers by now BAHHA) hope u have a good day too, u defs brightened mine!! THANK UUUU💖💖💖

@kaviary-blog this looks so funny bc i censored u just to keep it (mostly) spoiler free BUT AW THANK U DAMN IM HONOURED THAT MY FANFIC WAS THE ONE TO MAKE YOU CRY?? IM SO HAPPY HOW INVESTED YOU ARE 😭😭💖💖 im also super happy with that chap and its so satisfying like you said to finally be able to tie of all those threads so IM GLAD IT WAS WORTH IT💖

@lovesicklovermia ONE DAY???? OMG. FIRST TWO DAYS NOW ONE?? ITS JUST GETTING SHORTER AND SHORTER. next thing i know someones gonna be like yeah so i took some highly experimental drug that lets me read at 1000% the pace of a normal person, and i finished ur fic in 2 hours 😍omg loved it!!!😍😍 BAHAHAHA but omg i totally see what u mean, they do HAHA. AND THANK U💖💖 IM GLAD UR LIKING IT💖

YEAH so in my fic fifth years are 16, and by the time things get....explicit....clora and seb are 17. im not against consuming media with teenagers depicted in sexual situations like euphoria or riverdale or w.e else bc i get that its fiction and these are just real things that happen so its fine to write about them, but their canonical ages of 15 was still too young for me and i wanted them to be 17 before it got the E rating (which is why clora and sebs birthdays end up being so close, bc i was RUSHING for them to turn 17 BAHAHHAA)

BAHAHA clora and seb secretly being together is like the most poorly kept secret in my fic, like im sure her parents technically KNOW, but due to old fashioned traditions and whatnot (and it being 1891) seb wants to be able to propose properly and with a proper ring, bc clive is intimidating and he doesnt wanna just be like "yeah so im dating your daughter and weve already fucked and i plan to marry her" LOOL he wants to do things properly and be with her with her dads permission(even tho its a bit late for that HAHA) BUT WE CAN JUST PRETEND. tldr its basically just out of some sense of chivalry on sebs side, a fear of her dad, and wanting to do things right LOL

ALSO WAIT OMG STOPPPPP I WAS LITERALLY JUST ABOUT TO POST THIS BUTI HAVE TO INCLUDE THIS NOW

YOU SAW MY POST AND IMMEDIATELY DREW THIS AS A RESPONSE WHILE IN CLASS?? BAHAHAHA IM ACTUALLY SO TOUCHED RN IM TEARING UP WTF THATS SO SWEET OF YOU WTFFFFFFFFF THANK YOU SO MUCH😭😭😭💖💖 (NOW PAY ATTENTION IN CLASS!!🤬🤬)

[tamaiory]

"Like this jewel, may my son's eyes never cloud with sadness"

—EPISODE 7 SPOILERS—

(I don't think the fanart itself counts as a spoiler, since it's a headcanon, but said headcanon is based off events form episode 7 so please be careful if you are not up to date with the story)

I really like the headcanon (and theory, in a way) of Silver being the prince of a kingdom that was once an enemy of Briar Valley. Maybe something like Lilia himself being involved in Silver's biological parents' d*aths. You see, it seems that the relationship between humans and fae is still complicated, given Sebek's thoughts and what he tells about his mother's family still not approving the marriage between a human and a fae, so the fact there was a war not so long ago is not that impossible.

Lilia states he found Silver in the forest and then took care of him, but he may not be saying the whole truth. Yes, he may have found Silver in the forest, but why was a human baby there in the first place? More so in a forest of a fae kingdom. I don't think Lilia k*lled Silver's parents and then took the baby with him out of guilt, but maybe someone put Silver in the forest in hopes of (at least) a human soldier from Silver's kingdom finding and taking care of him, all of this in the middle of a war in which (most likely) Lilia participated (given it IS canon that Lilia was a war general).

In episode 7, when Silver finds the ring, he says it looks like something someone from royalty would have, and then Lilia explains it belongs to Silver. Also, Silver's character description states that he has a "princely aura" and some characters even comment the same. Most probably Silver is a prince, but we can't know if his kingdom has fallen or if it was an enemy of Briar Valley.

In any case, following the headcanon/theory, if Silver finds out about the truth he would be completely devastated (my poor child 😭). Imagine finding out your adoptive father was almost directly involved in your biological parents' d*ath and ALSO you're the prince of a kingdom DESTROYED by the country you grew up in and it's last hope to re-emerge. And that would make him (technically) get in another war against Malleus, Sebek and (if he's not d*ad lol) Lilia.

Then he has two (2) options:

1) Sacrificing his feelings and taking the responsibility of assuming the throne of his kingdom, to help the people left there, making him an enemy of Briar Valley, as much as it hurts him (the drawing at the beginning of the post).

2) Reject the throne to fight by Malleus' side, fulfilling the duty he was trained for alongside Sebek, protecting his friends and family, although he knows there's many people who need him in his kingdom.

I honestly can see him in both situations. See, he is described more as a hero but he still is a student in NRC. We've seen Kalim and Rook (both of them also have light magic and aren't based off villains) have questionable attitudes sometimes, and we will probably see Silver doing the same too.

We can also have a happy ending for everyone: Silver takes the throne but he manages to make a peace treaty between his kingdom and Briar Valley, and now both kingdoms are allies and everyone lives happily ever after. Which is probable since this is, after all, a Disney game. But I want angst so I drew the first route ✌🏻

—End of spoilers here—

I finished this almost a month ago, but I've been waiting to post it closer to Silver's birthday in case I didn't have anything else finished. It's been a while since I've posted something, and I couldn't make anything for many birthdays because of personal matters, but I found the inspiration to draw again and now I'm working on some stuff. Hopefully I'll finish what I'm working on right now for Silver's birthday, since he is one of my favorite characters.

[k0ff1n]

WHY EVERYONE IN THE TWST FANDOM IS A PUSSY AND DOESN'T WRITE ABOUT ORTHO:

First of all, sorry if there are any errors, english is not my first language and I'm still learning it.

Seeing how people reacted to this post I'll add some things first, to at least not be called a pedo:

I'm literally a minor, so please don't call me a pedo because that's not really possible I think

If you were to actually read the post, not because you agree but because you want to complain then you have two options, to not read it at all or to consider the first point and the fact that I too would prefer the people writing about him to imagine a older looking version.

As stated before, if you want to complain pls don't interact

So I suppose that everyone who plays twisted wonderland knows who Ortho is, but in case someone doesn't, here's a little description:

He was and still is Idia Shroud's little brother, he died when he was a child and his body was remade by his brother to somehow "keep him alive".

I know that reading this gives the idea of him still being a child and that, if he was one, writing fanfictions about him would be wrong, so this is why I'll try to explain why having this idea while knowing the full story is kinda stupid.

1: HIS AGE

After saying that he died as a child and was made anew it gives the idea that he's still a child, but he technically isn't.

In the birthday card form the first year of the game, which is almost three years ago at this point, Yuu asks him in the interview what was his best memory from a past birthday party. To this Ortho answers the party that was held when he was five, which was eleven years ago. If you know basic math you should understand that 5+11=16, which makes him as old as the first years. Ok I know, some of you don't understand that being sixteen isn't the same as being five years old but for the sake of this post we'll say that, yes he's still a minor and we shouldn't write romantic stuff about him because bla bla bla (Also I'd like to point out that I'm not talking about writing nsfw stuff about him, just relationship scenarios instead of only platonic ones) but if you consider the year in which the card was released then it means that this August he'll be eighteen, so yeah legal age for stuff.

In case you want to argue about what he says in the story I'll leave the screens of the translation:

2: HIS MENTAL AGE

Writing this might seem stupid but some of you don't understand it so I'll do it anyway. We said that his body is new, and this applies for his mind too, well kind of. Some of his memories as Ortho Shroud, the one who actually lived, are still inside his head, we know that because Idia somehow put some of them back inside of him to "preserve his little brother". With this said we are left with:

50% old memories

50% all that's known to mankind

We know that in his head he can search everything, you can clearly see that during history lessons and in some of his cards (if I'm not wrong it was a birthday one but I'm not sure which of the two). He talks about how much he likes playing games with other students and that since he can predict everything they'll do they decided to create a handwritten list of moves to use against him. From this we get:

He can know everything from the entire internet, from every site and from every data storage around the world

Can without much trouble go against entire groups of people at once and still win, something that I don't think someone with the mind of a kid can do

To conclude this first part about his head I'll just say that you can't have the mindset of a child if you know everything, and this applies to him too. 3: HIS PERCEPTION OF HIMSELF

This is still about his mind but with a different point of view. When we finish the sixth chapter of the story Ortho gains a real heart, a real himself we can say. He's finally free from his brother's restrains and he starts to become a real person. The school realizes this too and accepts him as a student, starting from the first year. This might seem obvious but we know that two years before, when him and Idia arrived at the school, he wasn't perceived as a person, he was just a tool, another piece of metal and cables that his brother bought with him. Now having a heart and a mind of his own he still has the knowledge he had before but he can also appreciate things from another prospective, one only a real living being can have. I feel like saying this might not mean much but to put it simply: he arrives at the school and is fourteen, he stays a total robot for another year and then we meet him when he's sixteen. After another year he gains a heart and he's almost an adult and now, one year after he's become a person, he's to become eighteen. He's almost a literal adult, this is what I wanted to say. Another thing that I'd like to point out is the fact that during chapter six he acts a different way when with or without his brother. The "childish" version of him is only visible when he's talking to Idia and that single time that he slips in an annoyed expression, one his brother has probably never seen, he gets asked if there is need for maintenance. His real self is later introduced, he's way more similar to his brother if not worse at some points. Various times he expresses amusement in seeing someone struggle, something that even Idia had never done. We can clearly see that the version of Ortho that we've always seen wasn't the real one but something that his brother remembered about him from their childhood and that he had to take as his only option regarding personality. His real personality is yes, friendly, but not childish in the slightest. The most childish character in the game is probably Kalim lol. Btw these are some screens from one of the cards where be talks about himself and stuff, even before becoming a real person:

4: HIS BODY

We know he's short, he's 148 cm. Oh wait you want to say that his face almost looks... like the one of a young looking person? Please don't. Seriously, this might mean something if he was the only character in the game with a young looking face but he isn't, we literally got Epel and Riddle a similar design. And oh look, people write about them, even nsfw stuff, but no one complains for some reason. Epel is sixteen, a minor, but no one says anything if someone decides to simply add the "every character here is aged up so everything's fine" thing. Riddle is seventeen, oh look, another minor people don't have a problem writing about. You can clearly see how stupid this is, he's the same age as them, has the same type of design as them but for some reason is treated different from the fandom. Also, to add things to this mix of reasons, his body isn't even human, he's a literal thing made of metal, wires, fans and a heart. Idia could customize him any moment, and maybe in the future he will who knows, but for now this is what we got.

There's also a "problem" with his voice if we want to call it that. Yes, in this case I'll say that he sounds like a kid, but there's a reason. When Idia created him the only voice he has ever heard his little brother speak with was the one of a five years old, we can clearly hear the similarities between Ortho's real voice when he was a kid in chapter six and the one that AI Ortho has. But during chapter six we also hear the voice that he's supposed to have now, and it's not a childlike one, he really sounds like a teenager.

5: THE FINAL (not the dir en grey song) PART

After all these paragraphs I sincerely hope that at least some of you understand how all this doesn't make sense. I know I'm not the only one who thinks this, I know other people with this same idea but at this point no one can really write anything without being called slurs or assuming random things about them. This post was just a simple explanation of how I see this "issue", if we want to call it that.

Also as stated at the start of the post I too would really prefer an older looking version of him, one with the voice we hear in chapter six from his real and current self and not the one that resembles his old one. This said I understand why some of you want to complain about me wanting fantictions about him and this is why I say that if there will ever be some I will only be imagining the "older" version and not the one that we have now in the game.

Thanks for everyone who read till this point and have a good day :)

[beautifulsnake2162020]

We have it all (Hualian adopted daughter fanfic) Chapter 7

Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction. I only do this for fun.

Premise: Not long after comforting a bullied girl named Meng Ai, Hua Cheng and Xie Lian find themselves adopting her and together they form a family they didn't know they had needed for awhile.

Story/Genre tags: Slice of life-ish (mainly), Family focused, Hua Cheng's houses finally become homes, there may be an overarching story but that's not the focus, Hualian being parents, Fengqing being uncles, Lang Qianqiu falling in love with someone who was raised by the Xianle squad, technically post-canon (though I haven't read the books so if there are some ooc moments please forgive me).

AO3 Link

Chapter 1, Chapter 2 , Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6

Follower tags: @anonimgato1507 @fd139 (I tagged you just in case - Lang Qianqiu makes his first appearance in this chapter)

AN: In honor of Meng Ai's birthday here is Chapter 7 - which is either posted before, on, or after, September 21. Yes this chapter will be mainly focused on her birthday celebration (the preparations leading up to it and the celebration itself). I couldn't help myself - I love the song so much.

Chapter 7

"When exactly are we meeting Chenxi?"

"We'll meet in a mutual event for our first meeting. She wants to ask a few questions. Probably to check what our intentions are in asking her about that part of her life. She told me through her oracle that I'm the first person in heaven to actually be interested in knowing anything about her imprisonment. Or at least the first person who wasn't directly related to her. Then she released her oracle and he then told me that if she has any more messages for us she'll send her oracle to either one of our temples."

They arrive in the semi-secluded residence of the now mortal Shi Qingxuan. Unsurprisingly it was located on a windy location. Shi Qingxuan's new residence was on a coastal region in a more secluded part of the beach. The winds were too strong for the anyone else. But the former Windmaster felt right at home, even when the winds no longer followed their will. When they were certain that no other mortals were nearby they rid themselves of their disguises as Nan Feng and Fu Yao and turned into their regular forms with a finishing touch of glamour to conceal their divine aura.

"Finally! I thought I would have to do something drastic to make you both return." Shi Qingxuan says as Mu Qing and Feng Xin approach their home.

"We've been busy." Feng Xin says as they enter Shi Qingxuan's home. A modest structure compared to their residence that they used to have. Well ventilated to allow the wind in what may have been a hot indoor dwelling. Spacious enough to allow room to move and to entertain a fair number of guests. But it was small enough to not be a headache when it comes to cleaning and maintenance.

"Doing what? Let me guess; sparring, dates, making sure Xie Lian is happy and martial God duties?"

"The job that you were supposed to do but you were ill."

"Speaking of which - here." Mu Qing shoves a brown bottle to them.

"Here's the second to the last dosage. Same instructions as before; half a cup once a day after a meal."

"Do I have to?" They whined.

"I already feel better."

"Then throw it in the sea. It's not my problem that you're still lacking in energy. Come to think of it I think I should be thanking you." They sighed and immediately began to drink their medicine as prescribed.

"Thanking me for getting sick? You can start by giving me these cosmetics-"

"Not happening." The three of them settles on the dining room as the winds grow stronger at midday time. Midday is when they typically visit since mortals don't like being in this spot at midday because the winds were too harsh. That way they can take a break from their mortal guises while checking up on a slowly recovering Shi Qingxuan.

"What job was I supposed to do?"

"Babysit Xie Lian and Hua Cheng's little girl."

"What?!" Mu Qing and Feng Xin couldn't help but chuckle a little at their surprised look.

"How - What?!"

"Technically she isn't officially their daughter yet. They and her parents want to ask her first before officially adopting her."

"Have you seen the way she called out for them when her father was in danger?" Feng Xin asks Mu Qing in disbelief.

"I know we haven't seen the three of them talk much but something tells me she wouldn't mind being adopted by them."

"Woah, woah, Nan Yang, wait, care to explain everything to the should have been babysitter - is she cute?"

"Her name is Meng Ai, she turns seven years old on the 21st night of September -"

"How did you know the details of her birth?"

"Jing Mei told me - she gave birth to her just after sunset."

"More details for the next babysitter please!"

"Hey I was interrupted."

"I was curious."

"You were saying Xuan Zhen?"

"She could detect the presences of the otherworldly, she got that from her father and her mother is an oracle of Xiwangmu."

"Let me guess, she could sense your divine aura?"

"A lot more than that." Feng Xin adds.

"She could sense that Xuan Zhen, Xie Lian, and I are the same type of spirit and could feel the differences from our divine aura to the ghostly aura of Hua Cheng." Shi Qingxuan's eyes grow bigger.

"At six years old!? I wasn't able to do that till I was 15! And I was only able to be good at it at 19!"

"Yes, it's impressive that she could do it without realizing it. What a talent she has." Feng Xin says with a smiles as he takes a drink from his tea.

"But she wasn't able to tell that you were Gods?"

"She hasn't had much exposure to divine presences and the three of us are probably the first beings she has interacted with long enough for her to make those observations. Interacting with ghosts on the other hand are an almost daily experience for her. It makes sense that she could tell that we are a different being from ghosts but not know that we are Gods."

"...I hate it when you are right."

"You also love it. Why else are we together now?"

"Wait -" Shi Qingxuan interrupts before they could continue flirting. As happy as they are that these two former enemies are now a couple, they were more interested in knowing more about the new little girl in their lives.

"If her parents are still alive then why are they adopting her?" Both of them shares a look before facing back at them.

"Long story short: They are the loophole and the key to giving Meng Ai a good life. I've mentioned that her mother, Jing Mei is an oracle and she receives visions."

"Just after giving birth to her, she received a vision of Meng Ai dying as a sacrifice to Xiwangmu at the hands of her relative while her parents were already dead."

"They asked Xiwangmu for a loophole and she told them that as long as she had one parent who is dead and one parent who is alive she'll be safe from those who want to sacrifice her. And so Hua Cheng and Xie Lian are that loophole."

"Hmm? How are they sure that Hua Cheng and Xie Lian counts as a loophole?"

"Chenxi clarified her mother's solution. A parent doesn't need to be blood related to count - uh - are you okay?" Mu Qing asks as shock is shown in their face.

"Chenxi - Xiwangmu's daughter - she's back? She's freed?"

"You know her Shi Qingxuan?" Feng Xin asks in interest.

"Yes - it's...it's been so long." A smile slowly emerges in their face.

"Chenxi is one of my professors when I ascended. She helped guide me in learning about my domain and how it serves the world. She's one of the best teachers I've ever had." Shi Qingxuan pours themself another cup of tea.

"When she disappeared I had thought at first that maybe she's just in her family's mountain. I couldn't blame her - I loved it there when she brought her students there to have a rest from our studies and heavenly duties. She's one of those teachers who genuinely cares about her students. She knows when to push us and when to make us laugh at ourselves and to rest from work." Then their face becomes darker.

"When I learnt that she was imprisoned...I tried to help. I secretly went against orders against getting involved."

"What happened?" Shi Qingxuan looks at them with a dark look.

"I don't know how, but they managed to use my powers against me. One of the men - I can't remember his face, just that he had green eyes - managed to somehow choke me the more winds I made and the more air I controlled." They take a moment to breathe and to calm themself. But to Mu Qing and Feng Xin it was clear that this was a traumatic experience for them.

"When I managed to somehow escape from that man, Chenxi sent a telepathic message to me to escape. I tried to tell her that I came here to free her. She rebutted and told me that just because I controlled the winds didn't mean that I had enough strategic experience to rescue her." They couldn't help but shed a tear.

"Her last message to me was that she was proud of me - but I was not meant to rescue her. And if I wanted to honor her I should live my life to bring joy and use my domain to serve. Wasting my life away for a task I wasn't meant for is a disservice to myself and others. After that I never heard from her again." They wipe the tears that they had shed and a small smile begins to emerge as they look at the martial Gods.

"Now you know one of the reasons why I am the way that I am. Even though I was immortal, life is too short to let it slip through your fingers. Professor Chenxi was right, she almost always is."

Should we tell them?

Probably - Chenxi might want to see them again

"How was she freed? How did you contact her?"

"We don't know the exact details but Meng Ai's father, Ji Huifan was the one who freed her and her mother, Jing Mei nursed her back to health. I'm sure she would love to see you again. We're going to meet with her in some sort of mutual event. She didn't specify what yet." Shi Qingxuan couldn't help but giggle at Mu Qing's brief flash of annoyance at the Chenxi's somewhat vague instructions.

"Yup, that sounds like her. Enough instructions to know what's going on but no further questions till she thinks you're ready for more or you need it."

"Xuan Zhen was able to contact her through her oracle. Maybe she'll make an exception for you since you were her student." They let out a sad sigh.

"I'm not immortal anymore. Her nearest temple is going to take me at least an entire month to get there. I don't mind the long journey but I guess I'm still recovering on how to function as a mortal. Aging and work and all."

General Nan Yang, an oracle of Chenxi is in the temple. She says that she has a message from Chenxi and requests permission to communicate with you through the spiritual channel.

"Well it seems we're in luck, one of her oracles is in my temple now."

"Then what are you waiting for? Another war? Give the oracle your password already."

"Hmph and you call me impatient."

Granted, give her the password. Tell her that General Xuan Zhen will also be joining us.

Feng Xin glances at Mu Qing and gives a small nod. Mu Qing puts his finger on their temple and enters their joint telepathic communication. In their mind's eye they appear in their respective places as they look down on a woman with bright orange and black robes. She was kneeling down with her head down as she waits for them to speak.

Rise oracle of Chenxi.

She keeps her head down as she stands up in the center platform of the spiritual array.

You have a message for us from Chenxi?

I do General Nan Yang.

Why do you keep your head down? General Nan Yang has already asked for the message.

The Goddess Chenxi is actually asking permission if she could speak through me. She instructed that I am not allowed to look at either one of you until you have granted her permission to do so.

This was new. They glance at each other in the spiritual array. Mu Qing shrugs before nodding.

Granted.

Immediately the oracle looks up and her golden glowing eyes looks at both of them. Her back straightened and her stance now more fitting of a dignified Goddess than a follower of hers. What followed was a voice that was drastically different than hers but one Mu Qing is familiar with. Only now he realizes that what he had heard was the dulled version of her voice. It was expected since she was speaking through her oracle's body. Just like whenever her mother possessed one of her priests or priestesses, her voice blended with her mortal follower's.

Good day Generals Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen.

Chenxi, this is quite the unusual method of reaching out to us. You could have just contacted either one of us directly.

I assure you Nan Yang that there is a reason why I'm doing it this way. The short answer is that we could be eavesdropped and I'm not taking any chances.

Eavesdropped in Nan Yang's mind? I didn't know that such a thing was possible.

You also didn't know it was possible to contact me through my oracle and yet you did. But enough of that. Please tell Shi Qingxuan that I will see all three of you in Meng Ai's birthday on the 21st night of September. It will be in Paradise Manor for obvious reasons.

Understood.

And speaking of Meng Ai, the little girl has been wondering where you both disappeared to. I personally recommend visiting her before then. She's already figured out that you two and Xie Lian are Gods and is currently trying to guess which ones are you.

Well it's nice to know we've made an impression on her considering who will be adopting her...It was also nice seeing her beat Nan Yang in Go.

You were coaching her!

She's still learning the game.

Chenxi chuckles a bit.

I'll see you in her birthday celebration. Don't forget to bring a gift for her. Till then, good bye General Nan Yang, General Xuan Zhen.

She then releases her oracle who immediately brings her head down and her posture now back to a humble follower.

Thank you for your service to us. Some of my followers will escort you back to your temple for your protection.

Thank you as well General Nan Yang. And thank you as well General Xuan Zhen for your presence.

You're welcome oracle of Chenxi, depart with Heaven's blessings.

Feng Xin and Mu Qing leaves the spiritual array. Both of them grin at Shi Qingxuan.

"It seems like your old teacher has heard you. She now expects to see you in Meng Ai's birthday in Paradise Manor. Which means Nan Yang and I will have to introduce you to her before then."

"Oh gre- AH CHOO!" Horror and denial is on their face as Mu Qing gives them a pointed look as Feng Xin sends a telepathic command to some of his followers to protect the oracle.

"Which means you need to get better before going anywhere near her. Rest I'll make dinner and herbal tea tonight."

______________________________________________________________

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

He feels himself scurry along the once familiar rooms as he hides himself in plain sight.

"What are the chances that they are no longer in these lands?" A figure asks briefly looking towards his direction which frightened him that he might be caught. He made himself relax despite his fear. He cannot afford to waste any opportunity to learn more about their plans.

"If they had gone to other areas of the silk road we would have known. Our network of contacts are too vast and prominent for us to not know."

"They could have gone through sea."

"Or to the archipelagic region with several islands."

"Again, we would have known if they had fled to those lands. We have spies in the Southern coastal area and they have been closely watching every single family who consists of a father, a mother, and a daughter. So far every batch of them is not them. I still believe they are still within these lands."

"Or they could have been transported to another world entirely." A figure with green eyes say as nearly everyone groaned.

"For that to be possible they'll need a lot of energy. And no unusual power surges among mortals have been detected."

"Stop all this worrying." A figure steps in. To anyone who didn't know or look closely, the man looked to be in his early fourties. Never knowing that he, like the rest of his relatives gathered within this room was several centuries old.

"Ji Huifen and his family cannot escape forever. We can take as much time as we'd like. What's important is that his daughter is sacrificed on Xiwangmu's altar. It doesn't matter if she's a little girl or an old lady, all we need is to take her before death claims her. Are we understood?"

"Yes Zufu Bocheng." They all reply as they settle themselves in their respective seats as Ji Bocheng takes his seat.

"Tell Ji Lihua to take her time. I trust in her abilities to track Ji Huifan. But she could be impulsive and impatient. Remind her that we have all the time in the world as long as the little girl is alive."

"We will Zufu." Ji Bocheng then gives the signal to their servants. It was when he heard the incoming groans and screams of pain that was getting louder just outside of the door that Ji Huifan decided that he has seen enough. He closes his eyes as he lets go of the mouse that he has possessed. He's had enough experiences of the blood feeding rituals and he doesn't want to add more memories to the mix.

We've got you Ji Huifen

Xie Lian's telepathic presence gently guides him back to his body. He awakens in the presence of Hua Cheng and Xie Lian. All of them seated under a tree that he had felt the most calm. Both of them had leant him enough power to allow them to telepathically see and hear what he has learnt.

"Hmph if they think they have contacts everywhere then it's a good thing that I have my own network."

"Still, I believe that it is best for you and Jing Mei to stay here for a little bit more."

"Thank you Dianxia. Mei mei Lihua is probably one of the best choices they have of tracking us down."

"Why? Does she have any special abilities?"

"It's because you're siblings isn't it?"

"Correct, Lihua and I are full blooded siblings. While our forms are quite different she could easily track me down because we share the same parents. Our other siblings are only half and if only one parent is shared, there's a large number of guesswork since the identity of our blood could also be shared by distant relatives with a common ancestor. But if both parents are the same, all she has to do is to track down anyone whose blood is the closest to hers." He sighs as they stand up and start heading back towards the manor.

"Having said that while she may be good at tracking me down, she isn't the best fighter compared to our other relatives. Knowing her she probably thinks this is more of a chore."

"What do you suggest?" Xie Lian asks.

"Keep her bored. Or make sure that nothing peaks her interest while staying on the task. If she's bored enough she'll move on to something else."

"On the contrary I suggest we keep her on the task." Hua Cheng says as they stop for awhile after all three sees Meng Ai and Jing Mei entering the gardens. This was a discussion that Meng Ai doesn't have to hear.

"You've mentioned that she's not the best fighter among them but she's the best choice to track you down. What if we finally eliminate her?"

"That...may work. But I'm not entirely sure if she will become mortal once again just by being drained of her blood till she passes out or if she also needs to accompany it with grief."

"Let's continue this at another time." Xie Lian says as they enter within earshot of Meng Ai and Jing Mei.

"Baba, Xie Lian, San Lang, I need your help -"

"They are not going to help you Aiai."

"But-"

"You're not old enough for a puppy."

"But mama the puppy and it's mama doesn't have anywhere else to go."

"Aiai - I know you love animals. But you cannot adopt every single puppy and mama dog that you see."

"Hmm? Where did you see a puppy Xiao Ai?"

"Mama was doing her water ritual San Lang, it's where she sees things through water. And she was just checking on the areas just outside of ghost city and in one of the nearby cities there's a puppy with it's mother and both of them looked alone -"

"And you are not yet old enough to take care of them."

"But mama their round green eyes looked so sad."

And that caught everyone's attention.

"Xiao Ai how would you describe the type of green eyes the puppy and its mother have?"

"They were beautiful bright green Xie Lian. Like jade if it managed to glow."

"They were glowing Aiai. But you are still too young." To everyone else it became clear why Jing Mei was refusing to allow Meng Ai to get anywhere close to them. Dogs typically didn't have eyes that had the color of bright glowing jade green. It was definitely something else that was in the guise of a puppy and its mother trying to lure innocent victims like Meng Ai who wasn't aware of the dangerous trap she was being lured into. Probably a couple of demons who was using glowing jade green eyes to lure victims into their trap.

Though that didn't mean Jing Mei was wrong in saying that Meng Ai was too young and not ready to take care of a pet.

Then Ji Huifan fortunately remembered something.

"Mei, doesn't Chenxi and Xiwangmu raise animals as a community pet?"

"Those animals are technically pets which belong to the Goddesses; which is why with a few exceptions they stay inside temple grounds and are never slaughtered or killed."

"I have an idea."

"I'm not taking one of their pets and gifting it to Aiai."

"No no, what if Aiai raises one and offers it on her birthday? Then we could see how ready she is for a pet of her own."

"Hmm that could work. It could show Xiao Ai here what it means to take care of another life who depends on her."

"And every week we check their progress. Her birthday is only a few weeks away and it would be a valuable experience for her."

"And how are we supposed to remain hidden while offering the future pet to Xiwangmu?"

"Xiao Ai doesn't have to actually leave here. Something tells me they'll send someone here for her birthday. What do you think little one? Are you up for the challenge your parents gave you?" Hua Cheng asks with a teasing tone.

"Yes please, pretty please."

"I'll be choosing what you'll be raising. And I will tell you now it's not a puppy. Xiwangmu already has plenty of dogs that play around in her temples."

"Okay."

"Don't worry Aiai we'll guide you. But it's still you who will be taking up the responsibility of raising the animal whom you will offer to Xiwangmu."

"Yes, baba." Meng Ai nods eagerly as she waits for more reminders from her new parents.

"Xiao Ai why don't you play with Ruoye for awhile." Xie Lian allows Ruoye to fly towards Meng Ai as it wraps itself around her hands while a part of it rubs itself against Meng Ai's cheek in their mutual delight.

"While you're at it, take E-ming with you. Just don't take E-ming out of it's sheath." The sentient scimitar coos in delight as Hua Cheng carefully gives it to Meng Ai with a subtle but noticeable glance to Yin Yu to watch over her while she plays with their spiritual tools. Once Yin Yu leads Meng Ai to a safe distance away from the four of them while still being within their vision, the discussion becomes serious.

"I'm going to investigate the hidden demon nearby."

"I'll come with you San Lang."

"How sure are you that it's just a demon? What if it's a demon summoned by one of the mage mercenaries to try to lure us out - or even worse lure Aiai out."

"That's even better Jing Mei, getting information will be easier. If you need anything Yin Yu will know what to do." In the distance they hear Meng Ai laughing as she was chasing Ruoye who was carrying a sheathed E-ming around a field of Asters.

"Please you two, let San Lang and I handle this." Ji Huifan sighs, shares a look with Jing Mei before they both nod.

"You probably already know this but from my experience these demons are the most likely ones that they've summoned." They listen intently before making their way to where the disguised demons were located.

The couple lands a short distance away from where the hidden demons disguised as a puppy and its mother were. Standing near them made their demonic aura more obvious to them.

"They don't seem to be puppets. But that might just be because whomever created them is highly skilled."

"Hmm my bet is that they themselves are demons since if they were just puppets they would need some external power source to do that level of deception while still keeping itself intact." The sun begins to set and children begin staying indoors or staying in areas that are more crowded than the sparse field where they are in now.

"How do you want to do this San Lang?"

"We go together but you could approach it first. You'll ask the easy questions." He turns to Xie Lian with a dangerous glint in his eyes that Xie Lian couldn't help but be drawn to even after seven years of marriage.

"While I ask the difficult questions."

"Do you think they'll be truthful?" Xie Lian quickly asks to try to ignore his blush. Though he knows that Hua Cheng had already noticed.

"We'll know, and we'll have our ways to finding out the truth." They share a nod as they make their way to the hidden demons. The one disguised as a puppy starts whimpering and making pitiful sounds as it looks at Xie Lian's figure approaching.

"Whomever you are go to your true form. There are questions that you need to answer - both of you." Xie Lian says with a serious but still approachable tone. But the once seemingly innocent look of both demons are now glazed over with darkness and anger.

"Don't make us force you." Xie Lian warns as he prepares himself for any possible attack. The demon in the form of a puppy launches itself at him but its demonic face with a mouth full of sharp teeth emerged. Xie Lian quickly moved away with ease and dodged an attack from the demon in the form of the mother dog. As he bent down Hua Cheng managed to grab their throats in each hand and both demons began choking with fear.

"Go to your true forms or I will make you." He throws both demons on front of them and they immediately go to their shadowy forms with reluctance and fear of the Crimson Rain Sought Flower.

"Now." Hua Cheng continues as he holds their jade green glowing gazes.

"We'll ask some questions and you are going to answer them. Lie and we will know."

"Hrraah...Fine...Graah."

"Why are you here?" Xie Lian begins.

"Krrah ... Krraah...to...Krraah...lure..."

"Lure who?"

"Hrrah...Graaah...a...krraah...little girl...KraAAh..."

"Do you know her name?"

"GrraAWAah...Hrraah...No...Krrraah..."

"How about what she looks like?" Hua Cheng asks in an intimidating tone.

"Krraah...Hrraaah...No...Krraah...GrAaAh!" They share a look.

Shall I make them show us?

Go ahead, you did warn them earlier.

"Hmph why don't we see for ourselves." Xie Lian slips his hand in Hua Chengs and intertwine their fingers while Hua Cheng with his other hand now outstretched reaches into the memories of both demons. He quickly found the memory he was looking for and projected them telepathically to Xie Lian's mind so they may both uncover them together.

"WE SUMMON YOU!" Cried a group of hooded and masked mages in a dark night without moonlight. The only light present was the candles arranged in a summoning formation.

"KRAahAHaha...GrahaAh...who summons...HrahaAah?"

"We do, youth devourers."

"We have a task for you."

"GRAhahaKraah...Offerring...HraAah...first." One of the mages lead two children who were in a trance to each demon. Xie Lian couldn't help but wince in horror as the youth devouring demons take their souls and devours them.

Gege?

I'm fine...its just awful

I know

"Satisfied?"

"Grahakraah...Yes...Grahaaah."

"We need you to capture a little girl."

"Her left eye is blue and her right eye is amber brown. She would be about six years old. By the end of September she will be seven years old."

"HRAAH...Krahaagh...why...Graaahk...us...kraaAAagh?"

"You youth devouring demons specialize in luring and hunting down children. Even in areas where mortals cannot easily go."

"We have prepared other offerings which you will recieve when you bring us the girl alive and with her soul intact."

"GraAAAahhk...krAaAh...her...KRaAaAhk...name?"

"She is known as Meng Ai, and her presence was felt in Jingdezhen before we lost track of her."

"Bring her to us and you will recieve the rest of your offerings."

"GRAaAh!" "HraAAaAghk!"

The memory ends but Hua Cheng keeps his control over the two demons.

"Should we ask them to lead us to them?"

"No need. I already know where those mages are, even if they travel around." Hua Cheng then summons E-ming out of its sheath.

"GrAAH krAAaAh - you liars! HraAahk!"

"We never promised your safety and continued existence." These were Hua Cheng's last words to them before E-mind destroyed them.

"Good job E-ming." Xie Lian says as the scimitar's eye looked to him for approval. Having received it, E-ming coos of soft delight.

"Hmm they're getting desperate. Something tells me that this won't be the last thing they summon to hunt or lure Xiao Ai to them."

"I'll increase the security measures when it comes to her safety. And when all else fails she still has our silver butterfly pendant on her. Our combined powers in that pendant should be able to protect her and send a message to anyone who dares harm her." Xie Lian couldn't help but smile as he notices how Hua Cheng is already thinking of her safety.

"What amuses Gege so?"

"I like this side of you. Being protective over our daughter. I don't mind seeing this more often." Xie Lian couldn't help but tease a bit as he brings himself closer to Hua Cheng's look of surprise.

"Is...is that so?"

"Mmhmm" He sighs as he embraces him with his arms around Hua Cheng's neck.

"Let's visit Puqi Shrine for awhile. Since Meng Ai couldn't be there for the meantime we'll have the bed to ourselves." Hua Cheng quickly takes out the dice and tosses it but barely looks at the number that will inevitably lead to Puqi Shrine. His gaze instead was focused on his husband as he feels his desire for him increase as he feels himself share an expression of lust with him.

"We're here Gege." He bends down to kiss him and to carry him as a groom would carry his bride. Never breaking the kiss he enters the living quarters and gently placed him on the bed.

"San Lang mmm" Xie Lian moans as he keeps Hua Cheng close to his lips with one hand while undressing him and teasing him with the other.

"Mmm Gege mmm."

They would deal with the damage left by the previous battle once morning arrives. For now they were savoring being united in their love.

______________________________________________________________

"White Lotus is clearly the better mooncake filling." Mu Qing argues as he, Feng Xin, and Shi Qingxuan went to the nearby town. It was their promised reward to Shi Qingxuan for taking care of themself to recover quicker and thus meeting Meng Ai earlier before her birthday.

"Its too subtle for a little girl's birthday."

"Well clearly not for Meng Ai since she loves it."

"She also loves the Red bean filling. The popular choice."

"Hey you two why don't you just go for the third option? You both mentioned you liked how her mom mixed both fillings together, why not go with that? Also," Shi Qingxuan browses the fabric on display.

"What do you think her favorite color is? Or or what colors do you think looks good with her?"

"The four of us secretly decided to give all three to her. We'll give her an official answer so that she won't suspect and so her mother could begin making it, Nan Feng and I will buy one mooncake with either White Lotus paste or Red bean filling and her new parents will buy the other."

"Red bean filling is easier to find and it easily sells out. Oh and I think you should just ask her since we'll be going there once we finish up here."

"Which is why we should buy the White Lotus one so that it's easier to get."

"Do you know how easy it is to screw up White Lotus mooncake?"

"Any mooncake made by an idiot will be screwed up. Why do you think we'll be tasting them first before giving it to her?" Sighing as they hear the argument continue Shi Qingxuan decides to ask the store owner if they had some fabric samples they could show. They couldn't help but laugh at both of them remaining firm in their arguments.

"Here you go sir, a book sewn with a small piece of all the fabrics we have in our store."

"Thank you so much. Come on you two, you can continue arguing outside." They say with a laugh as both of them follow them out.

"Is that your only gift to her?"

"Of course not, we're also giving her a Go set." Feng Xin says as Mu Qing enters the first store selling mooncakes. The Mid Autumn Festival was only a few weeks away and this year Meng Ai's birthday would be in the week after that. Stores were now selling their mooncakes as a form of advertising their products. By selling them now the public could gauge which stores would sell the mooncakes that appealed to their taste and stores themselves could gauge how many orders to prepare as the Mid Autumn Festival came nearer.

"Did you check with Hua Cheng and Xie Lian if they already have a Go set in Paradise Manor? I find it hard to believe that Hua Chengzhu wouldn't already have one."

"Well another one wouldn't hurt."

"Because he already bought it." Mu Qing says as he emerged with six small mooncakes. Three of the White Lotus Paste filling and three of the Red bean filling.

"I didn't buy it! It wasn't used and was just collecting dust in one of my temples and I compensated my priest with blessings in exchange for offering it to me."

"In other words - you bought it from your priest." Mu Qing rebuts as he eats his share with the red bean filling. While the taste itself was not bad it had a strangely sour after taste that he isn't sure that Meng Ai would enjoy. Jing Mei's remarkable mooncakes were smooth, flavorful and did not have any of the aftertaste he was currently experiencing now.

Perhaps it was just the red bean flavor.

He eats the White Lotus paste flavor filling and while the flavor was better than the previous mooncake, it still had that sour aftertaste.

It must be the dough.

"Uhm Xuan Zhen, I don't think a little girl is going to like this." Shi Qingxuan says as he swallows only out of politeness. But it was clear from their and Feng Xin's expressions that none of them were fans of the sour aftertaste.

"I know, this is a far cry from her mother's version."

"I honestly doubt we'll be able to find someone who could match hers."

"Describe how her mother does it. Maybe I know a place that will have something similar."

"Smooth, flavorful, concentrated in its flavor that just complements the egg inside it, sweet but not overwhelmingly so. Just enough to make you want more."

"It's almost like there is a subtle burst of it in every bite you take and because of its smoothness the flavors becomes more intense." Feng Xin adds as they begin making their way in a secluded area after they notice that it was late in the night and it was time for them to make their way to Paradise Manor. Mu Qing begins drawing a teleportation portal to get them close enough to the entrance of Ghost City.

"If she's willing to make us some, you'll understand what we mean."

"Are you sure Xiwangmu wouldn't let me borrow her for her visions and her amazing food? She's got plenty of other oracles." At this Mu Qing couldn't help but laugh.

"We've already talked about this, I highly doubt she would lend her to you just for those reasons."

"What if I send some of my followers to protect her and Chenxi's temples?"

"You don't need to request for her specifically! You can get anyone else to cook for you or to give you visions."

"Okay what if I teach Meng Ai how to fight?" Mu Qing pinches the bridge of his nose in both annoyance and amusement.

"Go ahead, try your best to convince one of the most powerful primordial Goddesses if you can borrow one of her most active oracles. I'm going to enjoy watching her kick your sorry butt." Now it was Feng Xin's turn to laugh.

"Hmph please, we both know you wouldn't let that happen."

"Well it looks like the portal is ready! Enough stalling let's go." Shi Qingxuan says quickly before Mu Qing could respond with what seemed to be a more teasing and flirtatious reply based on the expression on his face. Their flirting was often more confusing to the former Wind Master. At least whenever Hua Cheng and Xie Lian would flirt, their flirtations were more obvious and Shi Qingxuan knew to ignore it and give the married couple privacy. But with Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen being a relatively new couple (in public at least, they knew that the Generals were together a little longer before that) their flirtations with each other were a sometimes not so obvious and it was difficult to tell if the new couple were seriously arguing or if they were simply teasing and goading each other into initiating more physical forms of affection.

They emerge out of the portal and make a final check to see if their divine aura was obvious or not. Then they join the ghosts entering Ghost City.

When they enter the actual city they were greeted by Yin Yu.

"Welcome back to Ghost City. Just follow me to Paradise Manor."

"Thank you Yin Yu. What are they doing?" Shi Qingxuan asks in curiosity.

"It's going to be your first time meeting her, correct?"

"Oh yes! And might I just say I would have jumped at the chance of babysitting her if only I wasn't sick. But unfortunately I'm now mortal and I'm now more prone to illnesses." Shi Qingxuan gives a chuckle at the end. They decided that it was best that they take over the conversation since they aren't exactly sure what type of dynamic the other two have with Yin Yu. They are at least confident that Yin Yu and they can have an easy conversation. Or Yin Yu willingly listened to Shi Qingxuan's thoughts about almost anything.

"It is understandable, let's just say her mother has found her an animal that she will raise for the next few weeks and she will offer it to Xiwangmu on the day of her birthday." Yin Yu let's out a small chuckle.

"All because Xiao Ai wanted to adopt a puppy and its mother which turned out to be a couple of youth devourers in disguise."

"So she's taking care of a dog?" Feng Xin asks as they reach the entrance of Paradise Manor.

"Not exactly." Yin Yu says with amusement, when they reach the entrance of the building and before Yin Yu makes his leave he gives them one last hint.

"I hope you won't mind a certain meat being absent in your meals here - or at least whenever Meng Ai is present while eating. She's that committed." He then takes his leave and the three of them enter the manor. What greeted them was an amusing sight.

It seems that their presence was not yet noticed since Hua Cheng and Xie Lian had their backs to them while to their side was another couple who was looking down at what Shi Qingxuan presumed to be Meng Ai who was currently hidden by them.

"You know she can also eat bugs Aiai."

"No! Baba she'll be vegetarian."

"But you'll deprive her of nutritition and she's already the runt of the litter." Jing Mei says amusingly.

"But mushrooms are also protein!"

"I hate to agree Xiao Ai but plenty of mushrooms are toxic to both humans and animals." Xie Lian adds in a light tone.

"Aw." Hua Cheng chuckles in a way that they've only heard him do around Xie Lian. And now this little girl had the power to bring that out from him. Much to their astonishment. Mostly of Shi Qingxuan, but also to Feng Xin and Mu Qing.

"Xiao Ai don't worry, she's not going to be slaughtered. You're raising her to be Xiwangmu's pet."

"I know San Lang." They then hear a little squeal and what emerged was Meng Ai craddling a swaddled little piglet.

"Oh I'm so sorry we didn't notice your arrival." Xie Lian immediately says as he approaches the trio. It was then that Meng Ai noticed two familiar faces and one new one.

"Nan Feng! Fu Yao! Meet Chang-Chang." She holds up the little swaddled piglet as she eagerly runs to them. The piglet blinks innocently at them and as the three of them kneels down to her level to take a closer look.

"She's my birthday gift to Xiwangmu so she's actually her pet."

"Hello there." Shi Qingxuan says as they reach out and pet Chang-Chang on the head. Turns out the little piglet loves cuddles and immediately leans in on their hand.

"You know what - surprisingly cute." Mu Qing says as he gives a little pet to Chang-Chang on the head while Feng Xin pets her from underneath her chin. The little piglet, much like Meng Ai was happily soaking up all the positive attention from her new audience.

"Mama chose her for me because she couldn't get milk from her mama."

"Not enough nipples and too many piglets." Jing Mei clarifies from where she was standing.

"Is this why you don't want to eat pork until after she goes to Xiwangmu?" Shi Qingxuan asks and she nods vigorously.

"I didn't want to offend her. But don't worry since she'll be going to Xiwangmu in the morning, in my birthday party in the evening we'll be eating pork again." Feng Xin took the moment to carry Chang-Chang while Xie Lian formally introduced Shi Qingxuan and Meng Ai. After a few minutes he felt dampness in the swaddled cloth accompanied by Hua Cheng's laughter.

"Chang-Chang!" One of the servants accompanied Jing Mei in helping Meng Ai in cleaning the little piglet whose pee soaked through the swaddling cloth and dripped a bit on Feng Xin.

"I'm so sorry Nan Feng - if it makes you feel better Chang-Chang also peed on me when I was carrying her yesterday." Mu Qing laughs as he hands a handkerchief to Feng Xin.

"Don't worry Meng Ai, let's just say Nan Feng is used to fluids being dripped his way." Before she could ask further Jing Mei and the female servant ushers her out to clean Chang-Chang.

"Well would you look at that - it's nice to know that even Chang-Chang has taste in companions." Hua Cheng says as he joins Xie Lian's side.

"Hey! At least she's comfortable around me."

"Aw you two were right, she is adorable. Congratulations on your new little girl you two." Shi Qingxuan immediately says to quickly dissipate any incoming argument between Hua Cheng and Feng Xin. Even though they knew that these three couldn't help but bicker, they didn't want to start their visit with them bickering among each other (though it was still entertaining from their point of view). Xie Lian gives them a thankful glance and guides them to the dining room and takes advantage of Meng Ai being absent for a little while.

"Chenxi has contacted you?" Ji Huifan asks them as they enter.

"Yes, you knew?" Mu Qing asks.

"No, but she did send a message to Mei and I that she will be attending Meng Ai's birthday party."

"Huh interesting." Shi Qingxuan says as female servants begin placing food on the dining table. They couldn't help but wink at a few of them while also giving a sympathetic look. They recalled the time when they were going undercover and had to blend in among Hua Cheng's female servants.

"Any ideas on what are their next moves?" Mu Qing asks when they all settle down.

"Considering that they ventured into summoning youth devourers they would probably start summoning other demonic creatures." Hua Cheng says seriously. Xie Lian slip his hand into Hua Cheng's for their mutual comfort.

"Based on their last movements the entire group is mainly headed towards the southern areas. Probably to investigate if they had left or if their contacts have seen the three of them leave through the southern coastal areas. I'd like to request if you two could keep an eye on them."

"Of course." They then sense that Meng Ai and Jing Mei were coming. This time Chang-Chang was swaddled in a new cloth and was now laying inside a basket whose walls were high enough that the little piglet couldn't escape even if she jumped.

"Chang-Chang is not sitting on your lap."

"But my eyes are not leaving Chang-Chang."

"Chang-Chang already ate, she'll be more comfortable in your room."

"But I haven't yet and I need to see her at all times."

"Xiao - Ai would you like to put Chang-Chang nearby?" Xie Lian asks in a gentle persuasive tone and trying to find an approach that would help Jing Mei and Meng Ai have a compromise.

"She could be within your view."

"Okay Xie Lian." Xie Lian then takes the basket holding Chang-Chang on the seat in front of Meng Ai which was in between Shi Qingxuan and and Mu Qing.

"Don't worry, she's sleeping now so I don't think she'll relieve herself again. I just want to make sure I know where she is." With everyone complete they begin eating their meal.

"Say Jing Mei, by any chance do you still have any of those sample mooncakes? You know just so Shi Qingxuan here could understand Meng Ai's dilemma."

"Oh yes, I just made a new batch this morning - and no Aiai you're not getting any until your birthday."

"I was wondering if Chang-Chang could have some."

"I know what you're trying to do but the answer is still no."

"Meng Ai, think of it this way - once you get your mooncake on your birthday it will be much sweeter." Shi Qingxuan says now excited at finally tasting the coveted mooncakes of Jing Mei.

"That's true, but by then Chang-Chang will be with Xiwangmu."

"Don't worry Aiai, I'll make a pig friendly version to accompany Chang-Chang on the morning of your birthday when you offer her as a pet to Xiwangmu."

"Oh why didn't you say so mama!?" Finally satisfied the rest of the meal went on and by the end of it Shi Qingxuan now understands why Feng Xin and Mu Qing were no longer satisfied with just any mooncakes and why Feng Xin wants to borrow Jing Mei for her cooking skills.

"How do you like things so far Meng Ai?"

"Oh I love it Fu Yao. Everything is so red and warm and cozy."

"Ah so is red your favorite color? Oh and before I forget you can call me A-xuan. I give you my full permission." Shi Qingxuan says with enthusiasm. Meng Ai couldn't help but giggle as she shakes her head.

"Red is beautiful but blue is actually my favorite color."

"Oh why is that?" Feng Xin asks amused.

"Because whenever blue shows up in nature, it is always a work of art. That's why you don't see many things in nature that are blue."

"Hmm? But the sky is blue." Shi Qingxuan points out.

"And so is the sea." Added Mu Qing.

"The sky is up there, and the waters only reflect it, that's why they are blue. But there aren't many species of animals that are blue. There's no blue dog, blue cat or blue horses. But peacocks have beautiful iridiscent patterns on their feathers and the most beautiful butterfly in nature is the blue butterfly." At this she excitedly turns to Hua Cheng.

"San Lang, did you know that somewhere beyond our lands is the most beautiful blue butterfly? One of Baba's friends summoned some through a portal and it was the most beautiful butterfly in nature. And Baba explained that the reason why its so vibrant is because the butterflies are not using pigment, they use some sort of structure that is too small for us to see to make their wings blue. Since they live in a part of the world that rains a lot so they need to keep their wings vibrant even when they are wet."

"How interesting Xiao Ai." He says with interest as he listens to her.

"Oh yes and it's also why when you look at it in different angles sometimes it shifts in color - Baba what do you call it?"

"Iridesence."

"Iridesence! And it's the same method that Peacocks use for their feathers. That's why their feathers are so beautiful." By the end of the meal, the new people in Meng Ai's life have a good grasp on what gifts she would love and appreciate.

______________________________________________________________

"Thank you for visiting scrap collector gege!"

"You're welcome Gu Zi." Xie Lian says as the little boy is escorted to have his formal lessons by a teacher whom Lang Qianqiu personally checked would be good for Gu Zi's temperament and would be considerate of his background. Now he and his former Guo Shi were alone ever since the battle of the heavens against Jun Wu.

"Lang Qianqiu? Is there something in your mind?" Xie Lian asks as he hears Lang Qianqiu sigh.

"Am I fighting a losing battle...Guo Shi?" Lang Qianqiu turns to face him with uncertainty in his eyes.

"He still awaits for his father's return. I don't know if that's his original father or that monster anymore. No matter how much I try and attempt to explain things to him he rejects it. What if...what if this means I'm not ready to take care of him? Or worse, what if I mess things up?" Lang Qianqiu then realizes that as much as he tries...he needs his Guo Shi.

The man who willingly painted himself as the villain in his life so that peace would prevail and so that he could be the ruler who listens to the needs of his people.

"Qianqiu." Xie Lian starts with a gentle tone. Gentler than when he was Fang Xin Guoshi, but nevertheless it was still sincere.

"I also wasn't ready when I came into your life." Lang Qianqiu nods solemnly.

"But you managed to do it so well."

"But I wasn't perfect." The stillness yet cooling air of the heavens only emphasized that there was nowhere to run. Deep inside both of them they longed to be able to form a bond, even though it will never be like how it was. One of them believed he was undeserving and it was all a wishful dream but Xie Lian couldn't help but hope. Lang Qianqiu didn't know how to reforge it, but he had to try. To try his best even though it made him uncomfortable right now.

He misses him.

But he also knows that the wounds from the recent revelations were still too fresh. And he could see that his Guo Shi knows that some things take time to heal.

"Qianqiu, there is no such thing as a perfect parent or guardian." Xie Lian couldn't help but place his hands on Qianqiu's shoulders to reassure his former student.

"But that doesn't mean you shouldn't do your best. And I know you enough that you will." Lang Qianqiu's eyes become watery as he allows the words of his Guo Shi to sink in.

Somehow, even till now...he knew just what he needs to hear.

And he couldn't help but smile in thanks to him.

"I have an idea, why don't I introduce you and Gu Zi to someone. She's six years old but it would be nice for Gu Zi to be with children around his age."

"Ugh, I've tried Guo Shi. But he refuses to interact with them whenever Mengyou and I take him to the mortal realm. I'm trying not to force things on him. He's so obsessed with his father and Qi Rong that I'm afraid that he will miss out on living life."

"Don't worry. You still have time. And I have faith in you."

______________________________________________________________

"Chang - Chang, sit." The little piglet lay down instead of sitting. Taking a deep breath Meng Ai tries again.

"Chang - Chang, stand." Mu Qing, Feng Xin, and Shi Qingxuan watches her squeal in delight as they watch the piglet stand up. The three of them have decided to take her to Shi Qingxuan's new residence with permission from Hua Cheng and Xie Lian. Since those hunting her were specifically looking for a family of three - a mother, a father, and a daughter, they tended to ignore groups that didn't meet this description. As expected Hua Cheng initially refused until Xie Lian convinced him that Meng Ai needs to take trips outside of Ghost City since she was still mortal. Even if the powers they bestowed on her butterfly pendant was more than enough to allow her to live everyday in Ghost City, Meng Ai did miss being around regular people. It was only when Hua Cheng made a special kind of illusion on her so that anyone who wasn't taking care of her couldn't see what she actually looks like.

This also gave a chance for all of her parents to rest from taking care of her while Shi Qingxuan is making up for lost time by showing that they can be relied on as her babysitter.

After all there were at least twenty hidden wraith butterflies watching over her and their treatment of her. These hidden twenty were only visible to the trio of babysitters. Threatening them by their mere presence and proximity should any harm fall on Meng Ai while she is under their watch. Meanwhile there were another ten wraith butterflies playing with her and Chang-Chang.

"You know for someone who recently became a father, Hua Chengzhou is quite protective over little Aiai." Shi Qingxuan says as they fan themself to keep cool. While it wasn't a hot day, it wasn't cool enough to be comfortable either.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but I don't blame him. Qingxuan if only you knew what these cursed immortals had sent to hunt her down you too would be concerned over her safety." Feng Xin says as he takes a bite of the latest sample of mooncakes that Shi Qingxuan bought from the capital city of this area. It was definitely better but still not as smooth as how Jing Mei makes hers.

"Hmph, never thought the day would come when Hua Cheng would be protective over someone other than Dianxia." Mu Qing says as he puts a black stone on the Go board before turning to watch Meng Ai play and teach Chang-Chang basic commands.

"Chang-Chang, down." The piglet lies down and an enthusiastic Meng Ai gives her a treat. Even from where they were sitting they could see that the butterflies were being very gentle and playful with her. Some of them have began attaching themselves on her hair, keeping some of the stray strands from flying into her face.

"Chang-Chang, stand." The piglet stands and was rewarded with another treat.

"By the way, has she guessed your identities yet?"

"She already knows Xie Lian is the Crown Prince of Xianle when she asked him last dinner and said why she thinks so. He didn't have the heart to not answer her." Feng Xin places a white stone on the Go board before once again facing the direction where Meng Ai and Chang-Chang was.

"Well to be fair Nan Yang he is going to be her new father. If there's anyone whose identity she should know its him and Hua Cheng. She's quick so it won't be long till she guesses our own identites."

"Chang-Chang, walk." Happily trotting beside her and some of the wraith butterflies trailing along behind them they go back to where the trio were seated at the outer porch area of Shi Qingxuan's home.

"General Nan Yang! General Xuan Zhen! A-Xuan! Look what I taught Chang-Chang!" She doesn't notice the look of surprise when she immediately turns and commands Chang-Chang to sit, lie down, and stand. Shi Qingxuan couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh that's brilliant Meng Ai!"

"I know A-xuan! I can't believe she finally learnt my commands now." After Chang-Chang consistently follows Meng Ai's commands she picks her up and carries her as she settles herself beside Shi Qingxuan so that she may watch the Go game.

"Meng Ai what did you call Nan Feng and Fu Yao just now?"

"General Nan Yang and General Xuan Zhen. Xie Lian said that they've been bickering ever since their early days with him. And since Xie Lian is the Crown Prince of Xianle and since they have the same type of spirit as Xie Lian the only two Gods I know who like to compete with each other are Generals Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen." She turns to look at their Go game to see if she could recognize any patterns from their first lesson with her. As she was looking she hears both of them chuckle above her.

"You just had to predict it don't you Xuan Zhen?" Mu Qing only gives him a smug look in return.

"Oh but I do have some questions - what does Ju Yang mean? Did you have to become a giant in a famous battle? Why do some of the villagers and ghosts laugh whenever they say it?"

"Well-"

"You're not ready to know yet!" Feng Xin quickly says as he cuts off Mu Qing from explaining any further. This only lead Mu Qing to laugh at his expense

"Huh? Why not? Why is your facing becoming red?" She innocently asks confused.

"Meng Ai let's just say it was an embarrassing incident for Nan Yang here and that's why he doesn't like to say it."

"But I will."

"Because you're enjoying it."

"Why do you think I have all the poems memorized Qingxuan?"

"Oh I'm sorry Nan Yang - I could tell you an embarrassing memory of mine. Would that make you feel better?"

"Oh there's no need for that Meng Ai." Feng Xin quickly says but from her expression she was going to tell them anyway.

"One time somebody ask me to do the story of the butterfly lovers ten times. But I was confused because I don't know what they mean, and because this man wanted me to do it and not one of my parents. I didn't want to ask them what he meant so I just guessed. So I made ten different drawings of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. It turned out that he wanted me to write it down. But for some reason mama and baba said that it was good that I didn't do it because that man wanted to get a sample of my calligraphy." Unbeknownst to her all three of them were alarmed.

"What did he look like?"

"I didn't see his face, but I remember he was wearing a hood and a mask. But it was during one of the village festivals when plenty of people were wearing masks."

The air became chilled at this new revelation. With the butterflies still on her hair at least they know that they wouldn't need to tell Hua Cheng of their new discovery. Feng Xin and Mu Qing share a look as the memories of their clones escaping the camp full of the hooded masked mages and the cursed immortal who was Meng Ai's aunt. What she almost did.

And now they learn that a mage mercenary had interacted with Meng Ai hoping to get a sample of her calligraphy. While they aren't entirely sure what that man was going to do with it, all three of them knew nothing good could come out of it.

"What happened to the drawings?"

"Oh I didn't like my drawings so Baba set them on fire so that the ashes could be used as a fertilizer."

They all breathed out a sigh of relief.

______________________________________________________________

"What do you think?" Hua Cheng asks as he shows Xie Lian the new modifications he made to their cottage. The cottage where they spent many of their passionate nights after their wedding. Now they both stand at the entrance of what would now be Meng Ai's room. A bed by the window since she loved waking up to the view. A desk to practice her calligraphy in and for her to read. Several stacks of blank notebooks and books on the shelves that she had always wanted to read.

And of course it was a tasteful blend of blue, Meng Ai's favorite color.

Xie Lian couldn't help but chuckle as he notices the paintings of blue butterflies and peacocks that decorate her walls.

"You really searched for and studied the blue butterfly she was talking about." Hua Cheng smiles at him with a knowing look.

"I couldn't make an accurate painting if I didn't examine the specimen itself. Fortunately I was able to get a sample of it and made some here." Xie Lian embraces him. Knowing that despite all his work he could still sense that Hua Cheng was nervous on whether Meng Ai would actually love it. But knowing her and knowing how she actually is when she is safe and happy, deep down Xie Lian knows Meng Ai would love it because Hua Cheng made it for her.

"San Lang, do you want to give it to her before her birthday in a few days? That way she could move in and if there are any changes she'd like you would know right away?" Hua Cheng couldn't help but gaze lovingly at him. Xie Lian always seemed to know what to say to relieve his worries.

"I would love that Gege." He bends down and they share a chaste but sweet kiss as their foreheads press against each other.

"Let's reinforce the wards so that we won't have to worry about any of them finding her and taking her away."

"I couldn't agree more Gege."

Three days before her actual birthday, while the rest of the world was in the midst of the week long Mid Autumn Festival, they lead her to the cottage. Ruoye once again acting as a blindfold. This time on Meng Ai whose hands were held by Xie Lian and Hua Cheng.

"I thought we would be staying in Paradise Manor?"

"We are still staying there. But you need to also be within the mortal world since its not good for a mortal to stay in Ghost City for too long." Hua Cheng explains as they guide her.

"Even when you and Xie Lian placed power on my necklace?"

"Even the powers of your necklace needs to rest and replenish every once in a while Meng Ai." Xie Lian says as they stop on front of the cottage and Ruoye unwinds itself as it goes back inside Xie Lian's sleeve.

When her eyes opened she couldn't contain her delight and hugged both of them.

"Can we go inside please?" They both laugh as she pulls them both to the door. Someone else would think that she was trying to convince them to buy the cottage.

"We have a few more surprises for you." Hua Cheng says as Xie Lian holds his hand to help with his nervousness.

Only for a few minutes as they here squeals of delight as she enters her room.

"Is - is this really for me? THANK YOU SO MUCH!" She drags them both inside as she jumps on the bed.

"Of course this is for you little one." Hua Cheng chuckles as he finds himself laying down on one side of the bed, Xie Lian on the other and Meng Ai laying down in between them with her facing him.

"Does this mean you wouldn't mind if I'm your daughter? Is it okay if I call you two Baba Lian and Baba Lang?" She asks nervously. A part of her is scared at still being rejected. But the love on both of their faces made her feel happy and safe.

She wasn't losing anyone, she's gaining more people who will love her.

"You are our daughter Xiao Ai." Xie Lian says as he leans on one arm.

"We both want you to be our daughter." After he said this Hua Cheng felt his anxiety fade away as their daughter, their Xiao Ai laughed with joy.

______________________________________________________________

The morning of the 21st of September had finally arrived.

Chenxi in disguise as one of her mother's priestesses arrives at the entrance of Paradise Manor. At the entrance was Meng Ai holding Chang-Chang who now had a blue collar around her neck. Behind her were her four parents and her three baby sitters. Everyone except Meng Ai instantly knew who she was. Meng Ai could sense she was a God but couldn't tell which one.

"Are you Xiwangmu?" She asks as she held Chang-Chang back.

"No, but she's very important to me. And I believe you have a pet offering for her."

"Will Chang-Chang be safe?" Chenxi smiles as she nods.

"I will personally make sure she is. Xiwangmu will love her. She knows you've been working hard on raising Chang-Chang." Meng Ai nods and makes Chang-Chang face her.

"You be good okay? I'll visit you if I can." She couldn't help but cry as she embraces Chang-Chang one last time. All the sleepless nights, all the time spent raising and loving her and training her...it will be over now but she knows it's because the priests and priestesses of Xiwangmu could better take care of Chang-Chang than she could.

Is that why it still hurts?

Chang-Chang sensing her sadness nuzzles her one last time as she gives her to Xiwangmu's priestess who now also carries treats and food for Chang-Chang.

"I'll be back later for your party tonight little Meng Ai. I'll just make sure Chang-Chang is safe." Chenxi smiles reassuringly as she escorts Chang-Chang to her mother's temple. There she will join all of her other pets offered to live a natural life.

"Mama it hurts." Chenxi smiles as she overhears her. Ji Huifen and Jing Mei did a great job at showing her that even they are going to be grieving. Grieving at the chance of not being the ones who will raise her. Even though they all know this is for the best, it doesn't mean that it didn't hurt.

A lesson that she herself had to learn the hard way.

She tucks that in the corner of her mind as she makes her way to the temple. There will be plenty of that when Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen ask her about that time in her life. Today was a day of celebration and she intends to keep it that way.

Once the sun had set Meng Ai's birthday celebration has begun. The guests being restricted to those she has already met but it was still more than just her parents.

While there were games that entertained her if you were to ask Meng Ai what the highlight of the night would be, it's that she got to eat all three flavors of mooncake.

"We didn't want to keep fighting what was the best flavor so we decided to give you all three." Hua Cheng couldn't help but rebut this as Feng Xin and Mu Qing gives Meng Ai their Go set gift.

"You're right, you and Nan Yang would prefer to fight over more petty things for the fun of it now."

"Pardon me!"

"Now now it's Xiao Ai's birthday."

"Hey Meng Ai, I've got you something!" Sensing another argument may happen Shi Qingxuan immediately interrupts by giving Meng Ai their present.

"Shi Qingxuan how were you able to bring a Guquin here without us noticing?" Feng Xin asks suspiciously and Shi Qingxuan couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Hey I still know and use magic, it's just not the same as before but obviously I am still highly capable for your information."

"And speaking of musical instruments." Ji Huifan and Jing Mei present their own gift, the Guzheng.

"I can finally learn the Guzheng and the Guquin. Oh it's so beautiful."

"This is the Guzheng I was playing when your father first met me." Jing Mei says as she begins playing a simple tune that gradually began to become more and more complex.

"It was once my mother's, and now it is yours Aiai."

"But-but how did you get it here?"

"We had some help." Ji Huifan says as he bends down and kisses Meng Ai's forehead.

"Remember, never stop learning. We will always be with you no matter what." She smiles as she embraces them.

"Thank you mama, thank you baba."

Now having experienced a pain similar to theirs she kisses both of them on the cheek.

And for the rest of the night, there was lively music heard in Paradise Manor celebrating the latest member of Hua Cheng and Xie Lian's family.

AN: I had to end it there for now because Chenxi's assessment and conversation with Fengqing would take place as everyone else is busy.

Zufu - Formal way of saying grandfather (at least according to google)

Mei mei - little sister

Ji - Hope, Lihua - Pear blossom

Chang-Chang - Flourishing (I found this in a site for chinese names for female dogs [ https://www.pupnames.com/dog-names/chinese/female ] )

I wanted to give Chang-Chang more scenes but I'm not too experienced with pigs as pets to contribute specific scenes.

I was so inspired and guided by the reconciliation scene in the story "A Splinter in the Heart" by theearlymorningmist (read here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/54114421/chapters/137010871) although I will be approaching Lang Qianqiu reconciling with Xie Lian more gradually in this story. They'll still have the big heart to heart reconciliation talk but I feel Lang Qianqiu has to gradually be ready for it and needs to understand what it's like raising a kid first. Also just to make things clear - Lang Qianqiu is Meng Ai's love interest but I won't let them meet till after she grows up.

[vriskarlmarx]

🌈💞🪄 for the real fic writers ask thing!

<3 thanks for the ask! for context this is about this ask game hehe

🌈is there a fic that you worked *really fucking hard on* that no one would ever know? maybe a scene/theme you struggled with?

oh hmm that's a hard question. i think probably the one that was hardest for me to write for technical reasons was probably discipline & punish (a beyond birthday-centric fic) because i was trying to say some specific things while also trying to settle on a characterization and backstory that made sense to me for beyond (who i think is a very interesting character but whose entire characterization as we see him is 1. a performance 2. filtered through *two* potentially unreliable narrators lmao so it's kind of a free-for-all imo!) and also it was a pinch hit so i was working kind of a tight deadline ig. i did have fun writing it, though i still don't really know if i succeeded at tackling the things that i wanted to talk about with it tbh (actually there's one specific thing i am not satisfied with, the others i'm ranging from satisfied to unsure).

the ones i worked hardest on or struggled most to write for personal reasons were No Return Address (disco elysium/sacred and terrible air) and Conventional Weapons (fullmetal alchemist manga/brotherhood), both of which felt to write like what i imagine trying to pull your teeth out with your fingers might feel like physically.

💞what's the most important part of a story for you? the plot, the characters, the worldbuilding, the technical stuff (grammar etc), the figurative language

when i read fanfiction it's probably mostly the characterization that i'm paying attention. i've clicked out of very beautifully written and technically-competent things just because i did not agree with the characterization. my tolerance meter for "he would not fucking say that" is very low i think ahahaha (this parenthesis is me acknowledging that often this is very subjective and my "he would not fucking say that" is probably often someone else's "hey that's fun why's he saying that i want to know more" or perhaps "it's sexy that he's saying that so who cares" or something idk)

when i write, it's always whatever singular specific thing i'm trying to explore, which is usually a specific framing device, metaphor, feeling, perspective, etc. i am usually focused on that specific thing (or at most like 2) that i am trying to explore, which can be for example using a second person narrator, or telling the story counter-chronologically, or hammering down on a specific comparison, or raising a specific point about canon. so it really varies depending on the story but there's usually one central concept that it's sort of "about".

🪄what is your post-writing/sharing aftercare? How do you take care of yourself or celebrate yourself when you've finished a fic?

do you do this?? i've never done this. i just post it on the internet and then it's literally whatever man. sounds fun to have a little post-sharing routine though!

[bonnvivre]

a funny thing- ch 24/25 word dump

WUAHAHAHA 4AM BABEY YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS

i’ve been cookin low and slow with this one and i mean real slow like. too slow . as in 2 weeks later whoops

this one’s a real doozy so grab a snack

FIRST PAGE ON THE GOSUKU TAG WHEN YOU SORT BY KUDOS LETS GOOOOOOO major rweiser W

———————————————

ch 24

thinking abt yuuji flying down the sidewalk and megumi becoming the equivalent of a flag whipping behind him pls yuuji not everyone can keep up 😭

fred says fuck

mmmmmm crunchy cookies i love me some egg shell

yeah with cooking, you can play around with the measurements and adjust along the way, but baking is whole different beast :[ i made creme brulee for our new year dinner, my first time baking actually, and i was terrified the entire process cus one wrong step and its over (they turned out good in the end, though i wanted to leave it in the fridge longer) 

sukuna and uraume on the same wavelength love that

daww megumi just be a kid its okay 

gojo’s nicknames for toji PLS father-fushi and fraidy-guro

hehehe he technically called sukuna pretty ,, i agree

LMAOOOOO AINT NO WAYY OFC HE SABOTAGED HIM 

i feel like toji would actually do well in getting sales (if he had the proper cookies) considering he’s “a pro at freeloading off women” which leads me to believe he’s got hella charisma . 

“Fushiguro stops just before the table, one hand balled into a fist so tight, the muscles of his arm are easy to see, flexing dangerously beneath his skin.” uwwheheheerhfbud sorry

OH SHT THE GIRLIES ARE FIGHTING YOOOOOOOO AND SUKUNA JUMPING IN FOR GOJO ???? in front of the kids in a school fundraiser is crazy lmao

pinky

gojo taking bets on who’s gonna win reminded me of mei mei betting on the gojo-sukuna fight

i had a crazy amount of secondhand embarrassment going thru that hhhhhh yknow that feeling when you just wanna curl up and cover ur eyes and you’re fighting to even look back ? yeaaaaa

“Hurting people is bad. And you’re not bad!” ohh yuuji ughhh he has no idea of what sukuna was before, that he’s done more than hurt people .. children really only see the side of their parents that they’ve allowed to show them. it’s why kids usually think the highest of them, so yuuji saying that sukuna’s not bad gets me cus he’s known and seen only the best of him. but it makes me feel gooey inside cus, while everyone else sees the former king of curses, yuuji sees his dad and when he does eventually find out, he’ll still always be his dad before anything else (does this make sense i hope it makes sense im trying to make my thoughts coherent)

oh hey they’re talking abt it !

I GASPED OH MY GOD PLEAS EOLASOE APLEAS EPLAS EPALEAPSLEAPSH NOOOOOOOOO FFGGHGBBVV HITTING MY BED GRFGHJVNGRRAAGGHHFEG

im being tortured i thinj you’re trying to kill me here this is the worst case of edging ive ever had in my life (no not like that) 

post-chapter notes:

IM ALREAYD RIOTING YASTOP BLUE BALLING ME

id read real housewives of jujutsu sorcery

————————————

ch 25

GRADE 1 ?? AS IN ONE ?? AS IN  O N E  ?? AS IN, YUUJI IS NO LONGER A PRESCHOOLER

when you said small time-skip, i thought you meant a few months later . i was wrong

aight time to update the time board: yuuji’s in first grade so he’s 6 yrs old, we’re in 2013 now (i think), gojo is 24 yrs old  23 yrs old (chap takes place during summer, bday not passed yet)

it’s 2013, he can get a 3ds now :D im gonna get him on smash bros . OR KID ICARUS UPRISING IT SHOULD BE OUT ALREADY

they should totally name the potential pet after me (jk)

OKAYYYY THATS A START HE KISSED HIM ON THE HEAD !! WE’RE GETTING SOMEWHERE :O now go lower. preferably on the li

oh yeah yeah definitely not together whatever helps you sleep at night man

im gonna need the bad bitches birthday bash one-shot someday with the way shoko’s bringing it up

the fact gojo’s heard the threat so many times before that he can finish it and brush it off

CANDY CRUSH  !!?!??

AWWWWWW THATS ADORABLE ;____; sukuna wanting to do something to surprise gojo’s first day as a teacher and yuuji suggesting to make a cake cus he knows his daddy loves sweets AND they spent the whole day prepping awawawawaw so cutee

they called on uraume for help too LOL poor them 

yuuji being a snitch HA i can’t help but think of my siblings

you can’t be serious gojo, not after that? people also don’t usually sleep and cuddle the homies cmon man

mother is mothering and mother is leading the herd (no but i love how he adapted to the role very easily, likely to prior experience)

whuh the fundraiser was last year ? am i overthinking the timeframe … ok im back after going thru the calendar that makes sense 👍 carry on wait hold on first semester of first grade ended so they’re on break ... summer break ?? unless this is going off of a different schooling system (oh yeah duh japan lol)

ohhh please let them meet mama-guro i can imagine the absolute shock on their faces trying to comprehend how someone like toji managed to marry someone like her 😭 bonus points if toji is much more softer around her too and the sheer whiplash of seeing him having ANY sort of loving side is enough to send gosuku into a spiral

“It’s exactly the type of thing Sukuna would never be caught dead wearing, which means Satoru must do all in his near-infinite power to make him wear it.” real

THESE THREE ARE RIDICULOUS LMAOOOOOO sorry kids your fathers are busy trying to one-up each other

“But, then again, these are just go-karts; how much damage could he really do?” famous last words before disaster

oh no

hey sukuna’s living life at least he’s having fun and that’s all that matters 🥰

not the pyramid projectiles

CONICAL AMMO !?$&7)-)26 MARIO KART IRL GONE WRONG oh my god its too late for this i need to sleep

OH MY GOD ?????? 

WHADDYA MEAN THEY’RE GONE ??????

post chap notes:

what just happened

no really what jusr happened

the amount of times i’ve said oh my god throughout the entire go-kart scene i was clutching my pearls

he recreates his reign in the silliest ways, all while wearing nice little red bow :3

nah i get it the entire first arc was dedicated to how messed up he was abt suguru so i understand the doubts but they’ve also near kissed multiple times .. unless they were super down with kissing the homies 

“I sure hope nothing bad has happened to them...” STOP

[sso-montana]

post garnok montana 👀 what is that like for her 👀 -dinosaurvalley

HELLO HI JOSEPH MY GUY

Ok, so, I'm taking this as only the immediate post garnok time up to like 2 years later bc else it would be so much lmao (so this covers only the post garnok and traveling Jorvik arc since both happens in the span of 3/4 years of one another)

After the squid is properly sealed again so he doesn't fucking destroy the whole island (he's just sealed. He can't be destroyed. In my version Aideen and Garnok are like ying and yang. You can't have one without the other.) the Soul Riders can return to their normal life.

Which is a pretty hard thing to do if you don't know what your normal life looks like. After coming back to Jorvik Montana immediately got involved in magic shit and saving the world and dealing with her parents death which meant she never even had the chance to form some sort of new, every day lifestyle. And she tries, she tries so hard to cope with this normalcy of not spending evening and nights taking out Dark Core machines or dealing with pandoric rifts. So she tries. She helps out at the stables, does work at the forge and helps out with the deliveries, keeps learning new spells and studying magic.

But something is missing. Despite everything she still feels like she has something to do, that there are still things she needs to finish. There's this hollow feeling in her chest that haunts her when she's alone, when it's night and she's laying alone in her bed and no matter what she does it won't leave.

And Justin knows something is wrong. She's thinner than before, she's not dyeing her hair as regularly, she's stoped asking him to spend the night with her, Onyx tells him that she doesn't talk much when the both of them are going on trail rides. Every time he tries to talk to her she changes the subject or says she doesn't want to talk. This goes on for months until one day Justin finally blows up at her and the two of them have the worst fight they've ever had.

Only once Montana breaks down and admits she doesn't know what to do, that she feels lost and without purpose and with no idea of what to do next, of how to fix herself do both of them sit down and talk it out. Justin gets them tea and a box of tissues for Montana and they spend a few hours sitting on her bed, talking about what possibilities there are for her.

In the end they arrive at the conclusion that it would be good for her to travel around Jorvik for a while. Make sure all the portals and stones are sealed, help with any rifts or magic chaos that just naturally occurs on Jorvik. Maybe even learn some new spells, try out how she could perhaps still use her magic. Possibly even find a cure for her corruption.

And it's not like she's leaving for years on end without coming back. She drops by every few months, makes sure she's there for birthdays and things like Christmas or big celebrations. While on the road there are enough people she knows where she can crash at their stables and if that's not an option she has a tent for bad weather and a hammock for warm summer nights. It's actually helping a lot with relearning who she herself as a person is. After 2 to 3 years of this she's figured out how to somewhat navigate from that point forward (aka. Taking over Conrad's Blacksmith once he retires and taking care of magic activities around Moorland, Silverglade and Fort Pinta. Plus still helping out at Moorland Stables and permanently moving back in. Justin and her technically took a break (does that work if you never really were officially together?) and had the whole "if you find someone else take that chance" talk but neither of them did so now they officially are a thing. Only took them abt 8 years to get there

(I change my mind. Justin and her stay an item. They accidentally adopt 3 kids. They don't have biological ones. Mayhaps they got married)

[rawliverandcigarettes]

Ok gang!!!

It's been a while, and I think it's time to come clear about a plan I used to have, and how I am very unsure about whether or not it's worth doing.

I technically have the first chapter of The Empire of Preys ready to go. I have basically only that. I did plan to release it on the birthday of Halfway Home's last released chapter, but the truth is: it's happening smack in the middle of an incredibly busy time for me, so I have basically nothing ready as far as promotional material goes.

Also, and it was my plan for a little while, I don't think I can sustain the one chapter per week release schedule I once had with Halfway Home --and I had to come to terms with the fact that I do not have it in me to polish that story nearly as much as I did Halfway Home. I still love it, I still want it out... but I think I'll take it much slower and at a more regular "fanfic" pace for me than what I did with HH. The story of TEoP is not completed yet. I am not completely sure on how to go about certain PoV characters. But, I feel like I can't wait for a "perfect" version like I did with HH, or I will never release this story.

So, while I'm not sure whether or not I'll actually post the first chapter on the 20th of April, I will try to begin posting it relatively soon, and make no promises on when the next one will come out.

I have, however, character portraits in the work! It's coming!! At some point!! Maybe this week if I can finish my work by then!!

Anyway, I hope you are all doing fine, and stuff is doing good, and all of the things. <3

[weekend-whip]

Ninjago Fic Rec Week: Day 7

Prompts: Gen / Team Fics! (IIIIITS THE GRAND FINALEEEEEE)

lloyd garmadon makes kai smith cry on his birthday- Has been recc'ed a couple times but *I* just read it and now *I* have to rec it too! The brotherly dynamic between the two already has me by the throat, but then both of their perspectives on birthdays just really helps drive the point home!! So pleased to have this fic shown to me!

Aftermaths: Lloyd and Kai post-MotO and oof they both go through it emotionally

Visionary- A fic jam-PACKED with introspective and dynamics with the main six, consisting of Lloyd getting a glimpse of what the other's went through prior to becoming ninja (and other hardships), while the other five use their experiences to help Lloyd move forward with his own troubles. That's...literally the barest I can break this fic down into, but there's soooo many emotions and moments and perspective and AAAAAA

An Endless Light: Made ME weep, man. WEEP I SAY. An immortal Lloyd just loves his family, man. AND GODDD THE ENDINGGGGG

the L-word: FIVE TIMES THE NINJA TELL LLOYD THEY LOVE HIM (and the one time he says it back) THE FOUND FAMILY VIBES ARE STRONG WITH THIS ONE!!! PLATONIC USAGES OF I LOVE YOU *throws flowers petals* LET THE PEOPLE LOVE OUT LOUD!!

The Sun Rises Every Single Night: TIME TRAVEL FIC of Lloyd contending with holy crap how much things have CHANGED but also, despite everything, he is still himself. Kind of a character study, but all entertaining and wholesome ;w;

Time Marches On: A fic that is lamentably not finished, but the chapter that IS there is a wonderful reflection by Wu on how his students have changed (I like time-reflective fics, I suppose) punctuated with a heart-wrenching conversation with Lloyd, which is something I will always love to see~ (but pls if for nothing else the Wu+Lloyd convo is so GOOD *rolls around*)

Thank You, For Giving Me Wings: Or, Five Times the Ninja accidentally called Wu 'Dad' (and the one time one of them didn't on purpose). Oh look, another time-reflective piece about Wu and the Ninja, but this time by me! And could be finished if the Nya chapter didn't give me such a writer's block on how to phrase what I want to saaaay *wails* Anywaaaay, lot of Wu and lots of family emotions and lots of the ninja being vulnerable and soft in their "father's" presence ;w;)/

Some Burn Hot, Some Burn Cold: A story about Lloyd, Elemental Powers, and the effects both those things can have on the ninja's emotions. Everyone's got a role to play in this one, though the parts with Cole and Lloyd hit me the hardest, man. Also may or may not have been my inspiration for Elemental Outbursts ;P

All I Want For Christmas is You: If I had a nickel for every time I recc'ed a Christmas fic in the middle of July, I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot but it's weird that it's (about to) happen twice (aka Lloyd experiences Christmas for the first time and attempts to hide that fact and the ninja simply love him very very very much in the process).

All I'm Asking For- And last but most certainly not least, my other very favorite Ninjago fic ever, the masterpiece that inspired me to get back into writing to begin with ;w;

Kind of a (Christmas-y) AU the diverts from MotO but doesn't necessarily contradict it either, my mere meager description just cannot do it the justice it deserves! Everyone gets some form of closure after all these years of fighting to just be okay, even if for a little while, all sprinkled with marvelous character moments and interactions and holiday shenanigans that are guaranteed to warm your heart at one point or another. A great pick me up to dive back into year round regardless (as I do)

(this fic is technically and obviously about everyone, but the way it starts and ends with Cole's perspective on his team............ *bursts into tears* something about it just feels so perfectly right in a way I still can't manage to explain. But know I hold this fic so very near and dear to my heart and you should too <3)

And that is it! Woot, didn't think I'd make it every day, but turns out I read a lot more than I think! Shoutout to @21st-century-ninja for putting this all together!!