#thank you for the ask!!!! :D super fun

[rosynova]

(first off, i'm so sorry about the quality, i've been fighting tumblr for 2 hours trying to fix it and it doesn't want to work with me :') please click on the pics for better resolution!)

so ever since reading this ask from @blank-house i've had this little scenario in my head because of jamie's bit, and i've finally gotten the chance to sketch it out :>

[somegrumpynerd]

HEY. POINTS FINGER… any thoughts on how everyone reacted when the other joined the team? as in how did killer react when dust came, how did he and dust react when horror came, how did they all react when cross came, etc. i love love LOVE your bad sanses thoughts way too much they make me so happy. if i write hurt you write comfort and it’s awesome. also how do you think they slowly started to get closer? just.. bah give me your thoughts on them!!!! any thoughts!!!!!!!!!

You fool!! You’ve given me a chance to ramble about my special little guys and now this post will stretch on forever!! Mwahahahahah >:3c

No but seriously this is probably gonna be wicked long cause I have 1 million thoughts about these guys joining and meeting each other so uh, readmore for everybody’s safety and sanity

(^ I wrote that in the document before I started typing out my actual thoughts and uh

yeah no kidding, this is like a fucking essay so proceed with caution)

OKAY SO

I’ve said before that Nightmare got Dust for two reasons; one being that Dream had just recently started working with Ink (and soon Blue) so he and Killer were no longer able to gang up on Dream. He wanted somebody else to bulk up their numbers and give Killer a little back up. He also was starting to realise that Killer didn’t handle being alone very well, since this was when he most often got worked up and broke things around the castle (and sometimes tipped over into stage 3). Dust would be a perfect fit since he had the same amount of lvl and fighting experience as Killer, and since they were so close in circumstance they would be practically like brothers right?

The irony that he thought this about a guy he was recruiting to help kill his brother was apparently lost on him.

They absolutely hated each other. Like, it was instant. Killer saw him as a replacement, why would boss go out and get another sans - one with almost the same backstory as me - when I’m right here? Does he think I’m not good enough? Am I disposable and this is the backup for when I die in combat? He didn’t take it well. He took it all out on Dust too, not cooperating in battle, trying to start fights in the castle, etc. He couldn’t outright kill him because Nightmare had given him strict orders not to, but Killer loves a loophole. If he roughed Dust up down to 1hp and something else happened to finish him off, technically he’d followed orders.

Dust just straight up didn’t want to be there. Nightmare just showing up and yoinking him had worked fine with Killer, but Dust had wanted to sit in his empty au and die, he had no intention of joining a team or doing work of any kind - good or bad. The only reason he didn’t just lie down and refuse the entire time was that he had to fight back against Killer, as much as he wanted to die he refused to give this ass the satisfaction or lvl. He didn’t intend to be any help out in the field either, but again, Killer was making sure he got fired at so he had to retaliate to stay alive.

Eventually it got bad enough that Nightmare had to pull Killer aside and demand answers. In the year or so of knowing him Killer had never willfully disobeyed orders before, so Nightmare needed to know what had gotten into him. He dispelled the replacement rumour right away, he still wasn’t quite softened up enough to be sappy about it but he made sure Killer understood what a good worker he was and that Nightmare had no intention of losing him. It didn’t help a lot, they still hated each other for other reasons, but it eased a little.

Killer still had pretty frequent dips into stage 3, except now he would go straight for Dust usually. Nightmare had tried to explain what he’d learned about it to Dust, but he didn’t really believe that it wasn’t just Killer deciding to try and kill him for funsies. He only accepted it after a particular episode where he attacked Nightmare instead, which Dust knew Killer wouldn’t try in his right mind.

After he came back to his senses he sought Dust out. The air around Killer was very different after a stage 3, sort of sombre and almost calm, so Dust let them sit together and Killer apologised for giving him such a hard time. They actually talked for the first time in months while Killer was still calm (or tolerable, as Dust describes it), and it didn’t magically fix everything but, things were a little better. They still fought and argued and bothered each other but it wasn’t as sharp, there was a lack of real murderous intent in it all, and sometimes after an episode they would talk a little bit. It was the best Nightmare was going to get for now, so he took it.

They were still completely incompetent about taking care of themselves though. Neither of them would eat unless prompted and Nightmare didn’t have good enough knowledge of mortals to know when that should be to stop them passing out from hunger on the job. Not to mention the stars were now a full team, and with the way Killer and Dust would sometimes rather target each other on the field he could do with more backup.

Horror was the first of the group to get a choice in joining. Nightmare had taken note of how much Dust didn’t want to be part of things, and while it was in his best interests in the long run given his situation, Horror’s au was still mostly intact - though a little in disrepair. Horror was also the first in the group to have a good (and ongoing) relationship with his brother, so Nightmare knew he couldn’t just pop in and steal him, he had to be a bit more diplomatic with this one and offer a deal.

He gave Horror some time to think on his proposal - he would set up regular deliveries of food to Horror’s au in exchange for him joining their team - and was quite surprised when Horror agreed, with some stipulations. Horror was equally surprised when Nightmare agreed so easily to his terms (that he didn’t want his brother to know what he’d be doing, and that he wouldn’t kill). A little down the line the terms were altered to add that he would also be left to visit his au every week or so.

Horror was not impressed meeting the other two. He didn’t need his power as judge anymore to sense the lvl coming off them both, and given who they were working for he was instantly distrustful of them both (the uh, brother situation did not help). He was also in a place that had an abundance of food for the first time in probably years, so he was doing a lot of going hog wild in the kitchen and then getting very sick as a result.

Dust didn’t particularly feel anything for him. This guy hated him, sure, but it wasn’t forward and slashy like with Killer, it was just quiet loathing which was fine. That’s how Dust felt about himself so, y’know, mood. He did kind of feel sorry for him though, not just because of the whole famine and everything, but also because he was watching this guy eat like his life depended on it and then get sick and undo it day after day. He was the one who suggested Horror getting his food in moderation to Nightmare, which did help but was an absolute ordeal to enforce. Y’know how some people get hangry? Imagine that but you haven’t had a proper meal in years and now these people give you tiny amounts of food and don’t let you eat more for hours. The hunger mood swings were a sight to behold, you would never have guessed in those days that Horror specified not wanting to kill.

When his ability to eat had evened out and he was in better shape, Horror made a point of apologising to Dust for being aggressive with him. Over time he’d kind of softened up on him from his initial impression, since he could see plainly how wracked with guilt Dust was over his situation. It was a little easier to imagine that whatever he’d done was truly out of desperation and not just for fun, as Horror had assumed at first sight. 

They also both retained that classic sans laziness, so it was easy for them to share a space while saying and doing nothing. It made Horror the first person that Dust willingly spent time around in the castle (and vice versa since Horror was still largely suspicious of Nightmare and Killer - the deal seemed too good to be true and the stage 3 episodes didn’t help). As time went on, Horror kind of became Dust’s emotional support skeleton in a way. Dust had become quite averse to touch in his solitude and Horror very slowly brought him back out with casual gentle touches, until not only did he no longer freeze or stiffen at being grabbed but Dust would seek him out to flop next to on the couch. Horror claimed it was just returning the favour for helping with his eating situation, but really it was nice to have something resembling a friend here.

Killer, for his part, was going through This is My Replacement 2: Electric Boogaloo. Not to the same degree as with Dust, since Horror was quite a bit different, but Killer was still wary of this new addition. He didn’t really instigate anything though since, to be honest, Horror had the intimidation factor. He was like a foot taller than both of them, he had a cracked skull and completely different magic and it seemed like every time Killer saw him he was eating bread like a wolf eats a deer. So while he was going through his food moderating, Killer mostly just stayed quiet and kept his distance.

Horror had not softened on him like he had with Dust, since Killer didn’t openly show remorse. He still watched him with distrust, especially after seeing the way he scrapped with Dust for seemingly no reason other than for violence’s sake. Killer was still mostly targeting Dust in his stage 3s, but Horror had to be careful to stay out of his way since he was still working with much lower hp than the other two. What did start to convince him was seeing how similar Killer and Dust were after a stage 3 episode. Once Killer was slightly more composed (ie stopped crying), he became so tired and quiet and blunt about things he normally joked his way around. It was a little startling, but also started to bring Horror around to the idea that Killer might regret his actions too, just buried under several layers of whatever the hell is also wrong with him at any given time.

Killer and Horror only really started interacting after talking about Dust. Killer was asking how he got Dust to like him since he seems to hate everyone and everything else, Horror told him very pointedly it was because he wasn’t trying to kill Dust. Killer admitted he wasn’t trying to kill Dust, at least not anymore, he just wanted to fight for fun. It opened up a better channel of understanding, knowing that Killer did not actually have murderous intent behind his swings (stage 3 notwithstanding). It made it easier for Horror to occasionally get involved in the roughhousing which Killer delighted in, knowing that the other two knew how to hold back enough to keep him from dusting.

Speaking of stage 3, it was around this time that Killer and Dust made a very important deal. After a particularly rough episode with a little too close of a call, Killer showed up in Dust’s room and begged him shakily to make a promise - that if he ever got too out of control during one of his stages, Dust would kill him. He’d been told over and over by Nightmare that it was impossible for Killer to hurt him since he was immortal, but now there were more people around him where that wasn’t the case, and he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he came out of a stage and found himself alone. Dust promised.

It’s also worth mentioning that, once they were all close enough to be on speaking terms, Horror started bullying the shit out of these two about eating. Now that Horror knew neither of them were going to kill him, he felt safe enough to pick them up by the scruff and set them at the table to say they weren’t leaving until they had at least a snack. He let them pick what they would eat - he wasn’t that cruel about it - but he had to see them eat at least 3 times a day or they would hear about it.

It was by no means perfect or regular, but after about half a year Nightmare finally had henchmen who ate food and worked together (mostly).

Now here’s the problem… I still haven’t really figured out how or why Cross joined the team. Like, obviously there’s some kind of point in the events of underverse where it splits off into an alternate timeline, but I haven’t really figured out where yet so. Leave that one with me just a little longer. Cross joins.

Nightmare really truly didn’t intend to take anyone else in. They were (mostly) getting along, they were pretty well matched to fight the stars, he had no need of more mortals.

…but he was also pretty soft at this point. Every one of them had taken a blow to his I’m immortal I’m an island I don’t get attached to others persona and he’d gotten pretty damn fond of them all. This was why when he felt the sheer weight of loneliness radiating off of Cross, he just couldn’t bring himself to leave him.

So Cross entered the castle. 

He did not particularly intend to stay or make friends, he was trying to get his world back and nothing more. He even revealed a little down the line that he outright refused to kill, and was quite surprised to find that Nightmare was fine with that. At the start he was polite but not friendly with the others and mostly kept to himself.

Dust, as is often the case, did not really have an opinion. Another new guy, this one was self sufficient and didn’t bother him so he had no reason to get involved. He was content to be in the same room as Cross but didn’t start up any conversations.

Horror felt the need to speak to Cross, since Dust would happily stay silent for years and Killer was, well, Killer. Horror was somehow the closest thing to normal they had, so he was the one that made small talk. Mostly asking what Cross would like for meals and encouraging him to pick something he liked when he got the answer of “anything is fine”. As Cross settled in a bit more and actually opened up, they bonded over being the only two to enjoy food. Horror made a point of adding chocolate to the stock they kept in the kitchen and making tacos here and there for Cross.

Horror was also the first Cross kind of warmed to, mostly because he was the one devoid of lvl and Nightmare had mentioned he’d also said he wouldn’t kill. Learning a little about his au’s situation only softened Cross to him more, especially seeing that he still cared a lot for his brother and was trying to protect his home (even if Cross found it unthinkable that he lived away from it). It was through Horror that he also got accustomed to Dust, how being quiet and distant was kind of his default and that he also felt deeply haunted by the loss of his world. They weren’t exactly friends, but it was comfortable enough.

So now boss had taken in another new person, someone who takes orders like a soldier and fights with knives and ruthless precision and aims to be his righthand man, and Killer was ecstatic. By now he’d mostly put his fears of being disposable behind him, Nightmare had gotten a bit less subtle in showing how important they all were to him and Killer felt confident he wouldn’t be replaced. Which was a little bit funny, because the only guy he didn’t feel threatened by was the one who absolutely competed for his spot.

Cross needed to prove he was useful, he had to feel like he earned his keep and that all the training and suffering he’d done was for a reason. When Nightmare sent them on missions, Cross aimed to be the fastest and the most efficient and to report to Nightmare without question. Horror and Dust looking on would have expected Killer to see this 100% as a threat to his position as (self proclaimed) Nightmare’s second in command, and to go for this guy’s throat when nobody else was around.

But Killer was fascinated. Cross was completely different from any of them, bar Nightmare whose au is a whole different kettle of fish, so he had a certain element of unpredictability to him. Horror and Dust were both based on classic sans just like him, so to a certain degree he knew how they would feel about most things and what they might say, the only differences being in what they had experienced through their own timelines. Cross was based on a swap sans and his au had taken wild twists and turns away from usual events, so Killer had to learn everything about him by poking and prodding for answers or observing from a distance, much like back when it was just him and Nightmare. Cross was something new to be studied and Killer loved taking notes.

Cross did not see this as friendly. He was competing with Killer for approval, not realising Killer was playing their contest like a game. When he saw Cross training he would jump in to spar for fun, but Cross saw his rival trying to get a jump on him and take him out of the running. When Killer would hang around and pester Cross in their off time with questions, it didn’t seem like someone taking interest, it seemed like someone being nosy and looking for weaknesses to exploit. When Horror mentioned that Killer was being surprisingly contained and friendly, Cross really thought he was fucking with him.

The first time Cross was willing to even consider this was the case was when his locket came loose on the field and Killer ran back to find it, since one of the notes he’d taken was how the locket wasn’t something Cross would play about (the same as Horror with food). It didn’t make sense for someone who was seriously competing to have him kicked out to just hand his necklace back, no ransoms or attempts to crush it to upset him, just some vague remark about “owing him one” and then right back to Nightmare for orders.

Cross had to give him something of a chance after that, Horror helped a lot by telling him “he doesn’t want to hurt you, he just doesn’t know how to be normal”. It was mostly a playful jab at Killer, but reframing their interactions changed it significantly for Cross. Now they were sparring playfully and having friendly competition on jobs. He wasn’t as put off when Killer went into stage 3 because he knew he could match him in combat and the others were always on hand to help restrain or distract him. Cross also took note of how Killer calmed down a lot for physical touch, not unlike how Dust had warmed up to Horror. It went a long way into not only making him a little less combative for attention every day, but it seemed to put longer stretches between his episodes (which Cross had also started tracking so they wouldn’t be caught out by them as much).

For his part, Killer has disobeyed instructions in the past to benefit Cross, usually ignoring the task to help him if he’s hurt. He’s also given Nightmare nudges towards praising him because he’s noted that that’s what Cross needs in the same way he needs touch (not that Nightmare doesn’t praise them normally, but when Cross is going through it and needs something). He also doesn’t particularly like chocolate but has made a point of not admitting this to Horror so he can give his chocolate to Cross.

(It’s also worth noting that Cross is the only one, besides Nightmare, that has been to Horror’s au. He offered to help out during the food delivery and got to meet Horror’s Papyrus (who he is a little intimidated by but ultimately friendly with, even though it’s a little weird since he’s a good bit different from his own Papyrus). Dust and Killer can’t really visit for a few reasons, mostly because everyone will notice their lvl immediately and know what they’ve done. Dust especially doesn’t know how he would react to having a Papyrus in front of him again and doesn’t want to put Horror's family at risk to find out. Whenever he visits, his Papyrus asks about Cross now and sometimes tries to make tacos for him (key word tries, he’s still a Papyrus after all). He may have joked that seeing Cross sometimes is “like having another brother but younger and less lazy” and when Horror told him this Cross may or may not have cried.)

And that’s where we are now!

They’re a very strange group who’ve been through some inexplicable events and have all changed each other in one way or another. And whether or not it can be admitted, they are a family c:

Now onto how Nightmare was made emotionally open by each of them!! In this essay I will no just kidding could you imagine this is already like 7 pages long

If you got to the end of this post please drink some water and get yourself a snack

[good-beanswrites]

..how did they film kazui eating the dove?

A pretty grisly prop, and otherwise cool costuming >:3

I imagine they get him set up with fake teeth, colored contacts, and fake blood (it's also a bit sweet, since it's mean to go in his mouth. Haruka tries to steal some). He wanders around set in the full getup, waiting for filming to start. Yuno nags him to sing vampire with her. Kotoko is secretly jealous he got a cooler animal look than she did in Harrow. Fuuta is kind of freaked out by the whole thing. Although Kazui tries not to purposely scare anyone, a few prisoners who come late to the studio get a pretty big shock when he turns around with red eyes and flash a fanged smile 👀👀👀

The first dove is real, and some magician/animal trainers help Kazui learn the proper way to handle it. It makes for really cool shots and causes a bit of chaos around set, always treated very well. Jackalope shows up with the prop (in a bag labeled "dead dove, to eat") and it's pretty convincing. Kazui's not quite sure how to take the bite as needed, but with each try he get more and more comfortable with the action/expression. By the end he's really into it, surprising himself a but when he looks back at the footage.

[jaggededges123]

for the one sentence fanfic ask: In the dark, in the stillness of night, Nie Huaisang felt his presence return.

In the dark, in the stillness of night, Nie Huaisang felt his presence return.

He thought, for a moment, that it was the product of sleepless nights spent poring over and over about plans which could not be written down for the risk, a phantasm purely made up of his own grief-riddled imagination. Nie Huaisang looked up to the desk in the corner of his sect leader's quarters, where the familiar presence resided, where once the physical body of Nie Mingjue would have burnt candles until well after midnight, killing himself over something so trivial as the Qinghe Nie sect.

There was no body--Nie Huaisang could see nothing at all, except for a candle lighting itself at that desk. He--hesitantly, because he would rather die himself to a ghost which had gotten past his wards rather than harm the soul of his deceased brother, his late lover--reached into his bedside table for a talisman which would reveal that which he could not yet see.

When the ghostly form of Nie Mingjue flickered into tangible existence, guilt and relief tangled deep in Nie Huaisang's chest, and he couldn't help sobbing, sliding so very easily back into that position of "crybaby younger brother" that had been so ruthlessly taken from him just some years ago.

[youling-the-ghost]

maybe time to sleep now?

sleep is for the weak

[charmwasjess]

10, 14 and 20 for ask game!

For 10: Is there a fic that got a different response than you were expecting?

All of them?!?! I write mainly in Dooku's Jedi era (pre-prequels? are we still calling it that?) and that was a super tiny part of the fandom back when the movies were actively coming out. It didn't seem possible anyone would care about it now, so having any readers is like... fucking AMAZING! I love each and every one of you DEARLY.

I'll also say, responses to my fics where I'm writing Dooku and Sifo-Dyas together has been interesting. I definitely lost a reader or two, which makes me sad, but I was really surprised and incredibly touched by the much larger positive response to it. Having been a queer person in the closet for a lot of my younger life, writing queer experiences openly is really cool to me.

For 14: If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

Answered a little bit of this here and here. :D

For 20: What’s a favorite title for a fic you’ve written?

I admit, I really like Milk Run. For those of you who haven't read it, in the fic, a "Milk Run" is a Jedi slang term for an easy lowstakes mission where nothing exciting happens. Dooku is recovering from an injury and so desperate to get out of the Temple that he'll take any mission - so he and Qui-Gon are assigned a classic good ol' Milk Run. Of course, this is wonderful because Dooku knows how to handle the most dangerous missions the galaxy can throw at him, but not how to sit still, and it's fun to write him doing things he's bad at.

It also gave me a thematic chance to explore a topic I love: Jedi working nontraditional Jedi jobs. Jocasta and Sifo-Dyas lives as Jedi who both serve the Order in less traditional "run in with your lightsaber out" roles. Jocasta obviously in the Archives, and Sifo-Dyas currently supervising a group of graduate students at a Jedi archeological dig site.

There's actually a snippet I love where Sifo-Dyas is trying to explain to Dooku that there are other ways to deal with a space pirate queen that kind of hits at the heart of the fic's Milk Run theme:

“She threatens you?” Dooku tried unsuccessfully to keep the outrage out of his voice. He couldn’t possibly follow Sifo-Dyas around for their whole lives finishing his fights for him. Even if he might still want to try.

“Not in a real way. It seemed like almost pageantry to her, or posturing. You know, her crew gets to see her face off with a Jedi, and I get to pull out my lightsaber and wave it around in front of the graduate students, all just good fun…I never thought she’d actually try something.” He scowled. “Especially not with the connivance of the asshole Arnet!

“Sifo…” The words "wave it around" were echoing surreally through Dooku’s head.

“I know, I know. I’m releasing my anger into the Force.”

“No, it wasn’t that…" In his own career as a Jedi, Dooku was occasionally called out to deal with especially troublesome pirates on missions that were more his typical, life-threatening dangerous style, decidedly not milk runs, or research on cultural sites. There was nothing of good fun or lightsaber-waving in the desperate violence of those encounters. “I was just going to say… your life… it is sometimes strange to me.”

“What, just because of the Queen Theo thing?”

“This situation where you and a space pirate recreationally antagonize each other for the entertainment of your subordinates is a fine example of what I mean.” Dooku scoffed. “Come to think of it, perhaps you ought to have slept with her after all. She might have been less inclined to eventually steal from you.”

“Oh, wow, so you know all about pleasing women now.”

Dooku shot him a venomous look. “I get by.”

Sifo-Dyas began to laugh. “I honestly don’t understand why people think you have no sense of humor. You’re completely hilarious.”

[ghosts-and-blue-sweaters]

you mentioned having a modern au with ghostbur and c!tommy that's basically big hero 6... i am very intrigued... do tell me more...

OH MY GOSH MEREDITH HI!!! This ask got buried in my notifs ansgajsgajfsja apologies for the lateness!!

Okay! So! Background info:

Tommy is a kid who’s been bounced around the foster care system for most of his life. He’s used to not staying anywhere for long, and not making close connections with anybody.

That is!!! Until he lands in the home of Phil, a random guy who’s been taking care of foster kids for a while. He’s chill, and nice, and he also understands how hard things can be. Tommy likes him!

Along with getting to know Phil, Tommy also gets to know Wilbur, a former foster kid of Phil’s :) Wilbur is in his early twenties at this point, but he wound up in Phil’s home when he was a teenager—a very, very troubled teenager. Phil and Wilbur are pretty much father & son, but it’s not legal or anything; Wilbur never told Phil he wanted to be adopted, and Phil didn’t want to push it. Eventually, Wilbur aged out of the foster system and moved away, though he still lives nearby and he and Phil see each other often :) Their bond is very very close & special & filled with love.

So anyway, Tommy gets to know Wilbur! They very quickly become close, and a little after that they become unofficial brothers! Wilbur is… the closest thing Tommy’s really ever had to family. He loves him more than anything else. And Wilbur absolutely adores Tommy as well!! He’s got a little brother!! That’s kinda sweet, isn’t it?

Tommy’s ramshackle family isn’t perfect by any means—Wilbur, especially, is clearly dealing with mental health issues but he refuses to talk about any of it—but Tommy thinks it’s the best thing ever anyway. Despite the problems, the three of them really do love and care for each other, and they’re happy together. They are a family, even if not exactly legally considered one.

And then Wilbur dies. He’s killed late one night at his house, by a man with a gun. And then Tommy isn’t sure what’s family anymore.

That’s all the background info! By the time the fic actually begins, things are a lot different—a bad sort of different. Tommy and Phil don’t know what to do with each other, or how to handle losing Wilbur. Tommy quickly becomes distant, refusing to open himself up to his foster dad, and closing himself up in his room. It’s… strange. And bad. And really, really hard. And more than anything, Tommy misses Wilbur. He misses his brother. He misses his best friend. He wants Wilbur back. It wasn’t fair that he died. He shouldn’t have died.

And then, somehow, an even stranger thing happens!

While walking home one day (Tommy’s a teenager in this fic, probably 15 or 16) he comes across… Wilbur? Except it’s not Wilbur. Someone who looks like him, sure, someone who has Wilbur’s face and eyes and smile. But it’s not him.

Ghostbur doesn’t exactly know what he is either. He knows he’s a ghost, presumably the ghost of Wilbur, but he’s about as confused as Tommy is! He doesn’t know why he exists, why he apparently sounds different than Wilbur, why he can float, what his purpose is, or why Tommy is the only person who can see him. It’s all a big mess, pretty much!

And that’s kinda what the whole fic is: Tommy, still grieving his brother, has to find out what the heck to do with Ghostbur, who’s worryingly carefree about the whole situation. They also both get chick-fil-a milkshakes at some point because that’s literally why I came up with this whole AU in the first place, so that Ghostbur could have a milkshake 😭 I 100% came up with this whole entire story just so that Ghostbur could have a milkshake. I promise I am not joking.

I’ve written two chapters so far, but after I realized that I… don’t really know where the story is going/how it’s gonna end, it fizzled out 😅 But I really do like the idea!! And I do want to write more!! It’s really just a matter of me figuring out an actual plot lol

The similarities to Big Hero 6 are kinda funny ajgsjagsjsgajsgjagaha

Younger brother is best friends with older brother

Older brother is killed

Younger brother befriends a being that was created by the older brother (Baymax/Ghostbur)

A parental figure who’s not actually the parent takes/took care of younger brother and older brother (Aunt Cass/Phil)

This is basically a Big Hero 6 AU without the superpowers lol

[figcookie01]

MMM. a jobin mayhaps?

LOVE this guy and love when he went roller skating 🪲

[dootznbootz]

opinions on helen of sparta being compared to prey animals? blink blink

*blink blinks back* Then immediately sits like this because of the question.

It's a good question that I'm happy to answer! It just makes me mad.... I sincerely hate the wording of "prey" being used to describe her.

SHE IS A VICTIM! THAT DOES NOT MEAN SHE IS "PREY"!

I can...see how people in ancient times may have used that word and still meant it in how she is a victim... but modern-day English-speaking people calling her that??? (considering how in different languages the word "prey" could have different meanings.) I'll just say that as someone who has been "prey" herself at one point, I REALLY hate that word as a descriptor. Just say victim or survivor. 👍

Honestly to call ANY victim "prey" is so fucked up. "Prey" to me, feels like "it's meant to happen." "Prey" are part of the food chain and so that's what happens. And to compare that to abduction and SA? Almost as if "that's our place"? It also kind of implies something being "eaten" or killed... Helen SURVIVES. She's traumatized and definitely needs healing and support but it's not like she can't find joy or peace ever again. Prey just feels so fucking gross.

Also, if someone calls victims "prey", I hope they know that Moose, Elk, Boars, Bovine, ZEBRAS, etc. are technically "prey". And these are VERY aggressive animals while still being "prey" for some other animals. And also that doesn't mean that "Oh, they're powerful! Clearly they should've been able to stop it." That's victim blaming :P

She is a clever, determined, caring woman who was ripped from her home for YEARS because Paris was a dipshit who decided he needed the prettiest woman in the world despite already having a wife. He didn't care about the fact that Helen didn't want to be there and was already married. He is so selfish that he will not let her go back even when THOUSANDS have died in the war! EVEN HIS BROTHER HECTOR AND PRIAM DO NOT BLAME HER! Granted, we do not know if Aphrodite would have let him undo their deal of "I want the prettiest woman" if he DID end up feeling bad for Helen and he wished to let her go home (I doubt it based on his personality though).

"Oh, if she is so independent/strong, then why didn't she just kill Paris and leave?"

AGAIN! Victim blaming!!! First thing, people who ask that have media literacy that is piss on the poor. You also have no idea about the political implications that would have happened if she DID kill Paris. She literally cries about staying there and argues with Aphrodite about seeing Paris, only to get strongarmed by Aphrodite as, guess what? A GODDESS WILL ALWAYS OVERPOWER A DEMIGOD. (This isn't Percy Jackson where he "killed" Ares as a 12 year old (Percy, you were my childhood, but that's bullshit.))

Even confined in Troy, she ARGUED with APHRODITE about going to see Paris! She is not some meek woman who just does as she's told with no pushback! She argued with a GODDESSS! Very few survive doing that!!!

She's not "Prey to fate", she's a "VICTIM of Fate".

[chimchiri]

omg HII 2, 3, 8 & 9 and also how are you doing? :D

Ah, thank you Calisto! Doing great with bitten hands from the pup lmao. Hope you're doing great as well! <3

2. How long have you been drawing?

When I started to get interested in anime (my first anime was Dragonball Z). I only drew occasionally and only in 2007 (17yo) drew regularly - anime style of course. I even remember the very first 'serious' drawing. Unfortunately I don't have it, but at that time DBZ was so popular, there were stickers in gums. And I scaled one of Krillin up to A4, just copying it. I was so proud of it at that age (roughly... 14? 15?). I drew traditionally for very long until my brother gifted me his wacom tablet. It's super interesting to look back on how much I improved. There's still so much I see that could be better, but I also love seeing all the old art. (I even made a post about it)

3. How many classes have you taken?

Besides the mandatory school lessons - none. Sometimes I wonder if I should have, but I'm not really interested in classes. I think the only one I'd actually like to do is figure drawing. I just like to analyze my art and my own mood/interest at a time and then actively choose to work on something. I know it's probably not as efficient to improve like that and I could be further ahead if I took classes and structured it more, buuuuut moving over to the next question -

8. Do you draw professionally, or just for fun?

- I draw for myself. As in, I just love drawing and mainly do it for the fun. I am by no means a professional, but since I'm taking commissions more or less regularly and am getting paid for them, I'd say I'm semi-professional? I guess that depends on how you define 'professional' lmao. Since I didn't take classes I'm very, very hesitant to use that adjective on myself.

9. How much time do you spend drawing on an average day?

When I'm having a good run I draw after work for ca 2-2.5 hours on average. Maybe 5 out of 7 days? 4? On the weekend roughly 3-5 hours in total? Depends on my plans and at the moment I'm having a lot of them and can't get in as much art as I used to. I'm also getting back into running again which takes up some time, so I'd say 1-2 hours after work at the moment :( I'm looking forward when I can get in more again.

[sharkneto]

did you ever watch fargo? it has similar story beats to true detective, at least, season one (it’s another anthology type series, crime focused) there’s a dude in there who i think you’d get a kick out out of… very much quietly intensely batshit insane and Off™️ but somehow presents himself as the sanest one in the room. he’s rust cohle, in a way, but murderer, not detective

Thanks for the rec! Watched S1 over the past week or so. Was good but it frustrated me. Billy Bob Thornton Serial Killer was the highlight, you were right! He was very fun. What a weirdo.

I don't know if it was that I grew up in an area with accents like theirs so I was like, hyper aware They Are Doing An Accent, or that it was based on Coen Brother's work, but a lot of the characters felt... rather like caricatures? I don't know, something about it had a wall between me and it, where I wasn't immersed so they felt like We Are Actors On A Set Delivering Lines Really Well rather than I was in the moment, if that makes any sense. Maybe it was the monologues, Flannigan series can have the same affect to me.

Still, was a really good cast. I needed Martin Freeman to get his comeuppence like three episodes sooner, my god that man could just wiggle out of everything (SPOILER he sent his wife to get shot???? what the fuck is wrong with him. I was screaming SPOILER OVER). I always like it when Colin Hanks pops up in things. Allison Tolman and Billy Bob Thornton fucking carried the whole thing, they were the only two I didn't really get the I Am Delivering Lines With Emotion And This Thick Minnesotan Accent feeling.

Writing was generally tight, too. Good full circle moments and Chekov's guns, pieces came together in satisfying ways. Was fun to be rooting for Molly to catch her killers and for Billy Bob to fucking get Martin Freeman. I think it could have been one episode shorter, or skipped the time jump, to give the police a modicum more competence, they were killing me.

Idk if I'll watch the other seasons, I did enjoy it overall. Might check out the newest one because I'm a slut for Jon Hamm.

[tickles-tea]

Would you ever pay a voice actor to do a special message with your fav characters voice?

god, yeah, absolutely

Kamiya Hiroshi I am looking directly at you 👀

I don’t think it’d be a special message for me, necessarily but probably a line I’d like Izaya to say ^^ Fun fact that probably no one cares about but a long time ago cries the drrr voice cast did a live event where each va submitted lines that they’d like to hear other characters say and Ono Daisuke (Shizuo’s va) requested a line to be read by Izaya 🥰

[great-tusk]

Oh I didn't realize your S/Is for Blue and Dawn where different!! Can you tell me about your Self ship with Dawn too please??

Yes!!! I love talking about these things.

Under the cut again, but this one’s a little shorter.

HE’S also Quentin! He has a pretty similar backstory except that he never went to Kanto, but he has the same family as my other s/i. He actually traveled to Hoenn after he became champion of Unova, planning to go meet Drake, and he fell in love with contests while he was there.

This is what his team looked like during his Unova journey. (He found Meloetta lost and injured, while they were horribly disoriented. He immediately picked them up, gave them some water, and ran for the nearest Pokémon Center. They were so grateful about it that they joined his team. Later, he brought them to a café that he frequents, and a man taught them Relic Song. He’s always super impressed by the transformation, and shows it off a bunch, especially in contests.) He also entered Haxorus into a bunch of Pokémon musicals, which they loved doing together.

While he was in Hoenn, Drake gifted him a Salamencite and a Key Stone.

Here are his main contest stars.

He has different costumes to match them, and eventually—once he was deep in the contest scene—he heard about contests in Sinnoh. Of course, he was immediately intrigued and had to visit to try them out. See the differences between them, the Hoenn ones, and musicals. There, he met Dawn, who he immediately thought was the most beautiful girl that he had ever seen. He eventually ended up talking to her after a contest, where he found out that she was funny and nice, too. He was like instantly smitten. Little did he know that she actually really liked him, too! They were actually pretty affectionate even before she confessed. She’d hold his hand in public so that they “wouldn’t get separated,” and other similar things.

She confessed her feelings after a contest that he won, and they’ve been a couple ever since. She’s pretty awed by the fact that he enters Pokémon like Haxorus and Mega Salamence, since they really go against like all of the stereotypes of contest Pokémon.

He’s definitely a ray of sunshine type of guy. Pretty cheerful and upbeat.

[scucouncil-doodles]

ask for da bois (/genderneutral): their sleep schedule?

gods don't really need sleep tbh

(more specific thoughts I have are just that condi does tend to go long periods of time without sleeping just because of getting wrapped up in projects, charlie and bizly are pretty similar in that they don't really tend to sleep a full night but it's not unlikely to find them curled up in some weird nook somewhere, and grizzly actually sleeps the most like a normal person since they'll sleep at night and also take naps! but just generally they suffer when they have to go back to mortal sleep schedules for any reason LOL)

[capn-twitchery]

🏅 🛌 and 🦑 for the ask game!!

(from @the-capricious-socialite )

🎖️ — Proudest non-Ambition accomplishment?

for twitch:

a few things i can't choose between...getting their ship, always a fond memory, of course! that's their wife, their lifelong companion, their partner, their pride and joy

being accepted into the corsairs at gaider's mourn, and sinking their first ship. illegal? yes! incredibly fun? also yes!

they're always proud anytime they manage to weasel their way into a fancy club or party, because by any normal standard they absolutely should not be there, and it's very funny to them that they are

for grace:

at his current point, he doesn't have a ton he's Hugely proud of yet :( poor guy. he still hasn't quite figured out what he's doing

he is secretly proud of himself for a couple things, though--first, forging a copy of the wilting dandy's book and saving him. it's the first time he really rebelled against an authority figure

second is punching the red honey cagekeeper guy in the nemesis storyline. he was kinda horrified at the time bc it was an impulse decision and that's usually really, really not his style...but he doesn't regret it at all. fully deserved, he'd do it again

in the future i think he'd be proud of cracking the jack of smiles case, even if it's not something he can solve entirely!!

🛌 — How’s their sleep schedule?

answered for grace here!

for twitch, it's not Great, by normal people standards--odd hours, more prone to naps than a full night's restful sleep, occasionally they'll collapse from forgetting (or avoiding) sleep for too long

they just don't like sleeping!! they like to be on the move at all times. they find it hard to fall asleep, they have weird dreams, and they hate dreaming in the regular way--if they're going to parabola, they want it to be on their own terms!!

plus, they zail at odd hours, they trade the night watch & driving duties with their crew at random, most of their smuggling has to be done when other people are asleep...so it's very inconsistent

🦑 — Would they kiss a Rubbery Man?

twitch: absolutely in a heartbeat without question, yes

grace: absolutely not.....he's still getting used to the idea that rubberies exist at all :( (and he isn't one to kiss strangers. and has yet to meet any rubberies properly)

FL OC ASK GAME

[egginfroggin]

Tell me your headcannons for Kirby! I don't get to hear people's thoughts about Kirby much!

Well, it's been almost two months, but it's Kirby time!

I actually have a ton of HCs for Kirby in general, though the ones for the puff himself are pretty regular, I think. He's a cheerful, clever little lad, full of innate power that the Copy Abilities serve to amplify.

As far as more in-depth HCs go, I do have one that I keep meaning to talk about, concerning what Kirby is and how he relates to Void.

This will probably get very long, so I'll put it under a read more.

Thank you for the ask, friend! :>

Kirby and Void are related in that they are both the same species at different points in their lifecycles.

Voids (the species) are incredibly powerful beings comprised mainly of magic, stardust, and emotions given form. There cycle is self-perpetuating, and killing a Void is nigh impossible

Void is the archaic name for the species; the species has never been particularly common, with few in existence at any given time, so they are mostly regarded as legend. The species is more commonly referred to as Star Children

The life cycle of a Void, or Star Child, has two branches, differing between the first and second phases; the first cycle has four phases:

Null phase, also called the Void phase: at this stage, the Void consists of ambivalent magic and stardust. The ambivalent magic absorbs energy that it comes across as it drifts through the cosmos, and will begin to lighten with positivity or darken with negativity. This form, though extremely rare, is arguably the most powerful

The "Puffball" stage: having absorbed positivity, the Void coalesces into a solid, mostly static, stable form. It is full of latent energy, and if one can sense magic and affinities, they will find that the Puffball is blindingly bright, full of love, joy, and brightness. The Puffballs are inherently light, and have an instinctive drive to A) protect that which they love, and B) suppress darkness, and especially Dark Matter, their anathema and direct opposite Puffballs usually become warriors in at least some capacity; they are considered guardians of light and the universe, and extremely powerful, skilled beings, each unique in their own sense

The Decline, or Tainted, stage: At this stage, the Puffball, usually centuries old by now, has begun to experience side effects from fighting Dark Matter. Their light has begun to diminish, and their instincts become more conflicting. Eventually, they tip into the fourth and final stage of this branch

The Dark Matter stage: eventually, the Puffball will become so stained with darkness that their light fades entirely, and they become Dark Matter. In direct opposition to Puffballs, Dark Matters are full of negativity, envy, grief, and anger, and where Puffballs seek to protect and cultivate light, Dark Matter seeks only to harm and spread negativity Dark Matters are usually unstable, and may take many different forms; they bear one, single eye (possibly a living metaphor for their one, single goal, and narrow drive), and light is their anathema. Puffballs are the creature most capable of destroying them Once a Dark Matter is thoroughly defeated, they are returned to stardust, their persisting, tattered soul laying dormant until, eventually, their magic returns to an equilibrium, and they begin the cycle anew as a blank, featureless Void

The other branch of the cycle results from the Void absorbing negative emotions, turning its magic dark; in this branch, the Void evolves directly to the Dark Matter phase, with a power level and process similar to that of puffballs -- they have immense raw power, which they temper as their form coalesces into something similarly solid

Examples of Puffball-stage Star Children include Kirby, Keeby, Meta Knight, and Galacta Knight; Galacta Knight was sealed when he was beginning to enter the Decline phase, causing the Ancients to worry over what a being of his incredible -- even by Void standards -- power could do when he eventually fell to darkness

Currently, the only known Dark Matter that evolved directly from the Null stage is or was Zero

Void, the character, is in an odd place, as he was defeated in the Null stage; however, as killing a Star Child permanently is nigh impossible, the effect of being defeated at such a vague, unpredictable stage seems to have halted his physical progression into a full Puffball while still allowing his consciousness to fully blossom

And, for my favorite *checks notes* and only bubterfly knight, a vague few points that are subject to change:

Morpho Knight is not a true Puffball, and is an enigma; he physically resembles one, but is considered more of a "panic button" for the universe. His role is to escort ancient, exhausted souls to the afterlife, ending them permanently -- and this includes Star Children whose existence threaten the fabric and stability of just about everything He is neither light, nor dark, but somewhere in between, and he exists to keep that same equilibrium stable across the universe

That was a lot of writing! Ough.

These theories are basically a framework that I built my fics around; Kirby lore is pretty vague, usually, and someday I'll probably do a truly deep dive into it (red string and everything, probably), but today is not that day. Some smaller points are subject to change, but the overarching summary remains just about the same across all of my AUs -- yes, including Little Stray Feathers.

I could go on a whole 'nother rant about how the magic system I've roughly got in place and how it applies to different characters (i.e., Hyness, all the Mirror World reflections, Gooey, etc.), but we'll be here all day in that case.

Thank you so much for the ask! Sorry it took so long to respond to -- I knew it was going to be a chonker, and it took a while to find the energy and time to write it all up.

Thank you again! I hope you have a very good day! <3