#that the false memories cannot mimic

[lets-try-some-writing]

For artificial prime: Optimus becomes a sparkeater during the unicron arc.

Heck yeah, an excuse to ruin my boy more.

Most relevant post here.

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙

The perfect machine. Optimus Prime was expertly designed to mimic a living Cybertronian and possess all the cognitive abilities of one. He had no spark, but the false Matrix served as both his power regulator and strategic aid. He believed he lived, and that was all that mattered. Ratchet wallowed in his guilt and his creation marched ever onward following the calls of war.

Then Unicron woke, and everything went to slag.

Optimus was not a true Prime, he couldn't be. However he most certainly had the visions of one. Ratchet created a false key to Vector Sigma as a failsafe for his use. If Optimus's false Matrix ever fell apart, Ratchet could use the data stored on the key to restore its databanks. That was the whole point. But Optimus believed the key to be real, and so his plan almost entirely revolved around throwing himself into danger to try and use the false Matrix to force Unicron back into stasis. Ratchet only managed to drag the plan out of his creation through the use of some of his well hidden coded commands, but once he had it, he knew he could not let it be. Optimus was going to use the Matrix and there was no getting around that. But Ratchet could alter it, he could make Optimus's plan work through subtle uses of technology.

A quick jab of sedatives in the dead of night, a quiet dissection of the faux Matrix, and a swift integration of an EMP field generator was all that was needed. Just like back on Cybertron, not a spark was suspicious. Optimus's memory was carefully altered to show that he'd come by for recharge inducers before heading to his berth, hence his helm ache and sluggishness. Then, just to be safe, Ratchet copied his creation's AI onto a drive he specifically designed for such a scenario. He would not be caught unprepared, especially considering the likelihood of his creation not coming back was quite high.

Optimus marched toward what Ratchet could only guess was certain death. While it hurt the medic's spark to see the only remnant of his oldest friend throw himself into what was likely to be his doom, he did nothing to stop his creation from going on. He had his failsafe, and while it would certainly be a trial to create another frame, he could do it... he had the knowledge needed to make it work... and yet, Optimus had long proven to be able to feel, if only because Ratchet made it so. The part of Ratchet that saw the being before him as his progeny in a twisted sense could not bear to let Optimus go without a farewell. As such, before the false Prime left, Ratchet held Optimus's servos in his with a gentle smile and offered what words he could.

"Come back to us alive, Optimus. We... I cannot go on without you."

Optimus was surprised, but he took Ratchet's emotional response with grace. Ratchet for his part grit his denta and stood firmly as his creation, with Megatron by his side, went through the groundbridge. Ratchet did not waver, he did not allow himself to as he kept dutiful tabs on the vital signs of the team until he could no longer trace them. He remained with the children, praying to Primus for the first time in his life since he created Optimus that all would be well. When the ground shook, he gathered the children around him while continuing to hope and shielded the small humans in the event that the worst come to worst.

Then it all stopped.

The ground no longer shook. The tides returned to normal. Tornados dissipated and volcanoes fell dormant. Optimus had succeeded, and Ratchet could not have been more relieved when his creation's vitals came back online. However that relief was short lived when the team returned without the machine Ratchet had spent so long cultivating. Megatron had dragged Optimus off and the team had been unable to stop it. According to the reports, Optimus's memory seemed to be largely shot, leaving him with only recollections of his time as Orion. For Ratchet, that translated to one horrible horrible situation.

Optimus's AI was shot, and considering he went with Megatron, his faux Matrix likely was as well. There was only one way forward, and Ratchet already hated it. The false key would fix the faux Matrix without issue. But restoring Optimus's AI? It was likely an impossible task. He would need to be captured, then Ratchet would need to see if his mind was salvageable. If not, he would need to be purged and the copy implanted. The issue with that plan? The upload of an AI copy would be a highly delicate procedure. One wrong move and the AI could be corrupted. There was no room for failure as Ratchet issued orders to begin retrieving the missing Prime.

Thankfully, they did not have to do much to get Optimus back.

Not even a week after he went with Megatron, Optimus Prime came flying out of a ground bridge in the middle of nowhere. He was covered in energon, cuts, and wounds, but he was alive. The team, Bumblebee especially, were relived beyond words when they dragged Optimus back and plopped him onto Ratchet's medical berth. However that was when things went wrong all over again.

Up until that point, Optimus had been unconscious, his AI likely overwhelmed from whatever he had gone through. However as Bumblebee came near to try and check on his Sire in all but bond, Ratchet's creation shot up, and Bumblebee dropped to the ground totally immobilized. The team could hardly comprehend what was going on until Optimus's entire frame seemed to warp and cables whipped out from somewhere beneath his plating. An unholy shriek echoed from his vocalizer before he leap and his jaw unhinged, his gaze firmly on Bumblebee who remained prone on the floor. The team prepared to open fire in pure terror, but Ratchet stepped forward first.

"OPTIMUS! EMERGENCY SHUTDOWN! CODE ORION.P.2229!"

Just before Optimus could lock in on Bumblebee or cause any damage, he froze and dropped like a bag of bolts. The team fell still, Bumblebee scurried to his pedes, and the Prime lay on the ground without so much as venting. His gaze was lifeless and Ratchet could only groan as he dragged Optimus onto the berth yet again. Scans were run as the team watched, and it was not hard to figure our that the creature of legend was now what made up the husk of their leader. Optimus's AI was totally corrupted without a trace of any sentience left. His very CNA had been altered to match that of the notorious spark eater. The only salvageable part of him was the faux Matrix, but even that was nearly impossible to even attempt to remove with how much Optimus's frame had warped.

There was no saving him. Unicron's taint had permanently devastated the frame Ratchet had so perfectly crafted. He did not have the means or the materials to make another, much less fix the faux Matrix. He had Optimus's uncorrupted AI, but it would do him little good with Optimus's nature still a secret. Waking the AI on a computer would be traumatizing for Optimus and would reveal everything all at once. There was no winning. Either Ratchet would need to somehow pull something out of his aft and fix the feral sparkeater enough to be usable, or he would need to snag a protoform from the Nemesis, alter it, get a new power source, wake Optimus's AI and get him up to speed, and THEN put him in it with the correct codes.

An impossible battle.

Ratchet warded off the team with assurances that he would fix things, all the while he strapped the spark eater down and watched it flail once the shutdown wore off. He held the datastick with Optimus's AI in his servos as he watched, contemplating. The team needed their leader. Ratchet couldn't just produce one out of thin air as he had on Cybertron. Deals with Megatron were out of the question and the team needed the wisdom of Ratchet's dutiful creation. The secret would need to come out, preferably before Optimus's AI was activated. Then hopefully, if they didn't kill him on the spot, they could find a way to get Optimus up and moving.

Surely they would see reason? Surely... they would understand... right?

Ratchet could only pray as he gathered around with the team, showed them the datastick, and began one long explanation.

[legoarsonist]

here's a funny lil talbert files rant lmaooo, compressed into a keep reading for yall's convenience. as a warning I do use both he and she pronouns for entom, and I am HEAVILY biased against her

oh and also ik that my opinion's near worthless on this topic and what's been said of importance has already happened, but i think the talbert files are completely bs and i'm glad that it's been proven as such, i've disliked entom since he first proposed that mimic burntrap theory and I genuinely think most of the shit she's done has harmed the fanbase more than anything else. I was really looking forward to the ending book for tales until entom just fuckin leaked the most important portions to it. hell, his mimic=burntrap theory has harmed fnaf theorizing irreparably, ignores multiple game's worth of precedence and enables cherrypicking through books.

kinda going on a tangent here, but I legit had a debate with someone who believed in the whole glitchmimic thing and they said that "only certain stories from the books are canon to the games" and like what??? what's the point then of the other books???? you mean to tell me that these specific books take precedence over UCN? and how glitchtrap appears in the game directly after it? bitch what?

and not to mention with how HW2 explicitly mentions how those plushies you collect are memories, and how the cut content mentions how "only a small piece of his code remains" both imply that afton IS glitchtrap (on top of ofc how the PQ sprite shows him as a big fucking purple monster, in a setting where afton shows up in the books also as a big fucking purple monster of parts, OH and on top of that the afton and vanessa relationship in the movie directly paralleling glitchtrap, and ness and the therapy tapes which mentions vanessa's father, a guy literally called bill) there is next to no actual reason to think of glitchtrap being the mimic.

oh and then there's the talbert files, which entom has said both that it's real and fake, and pretended it didn't exist? and the shit surrounding it had gotten to a point where scott had to step in and say it's fake? my god i'm so glad that her downfall's happened like this, no matter how he responds it won't look good, either she's lying about it being real and thus purposefully spreading misinformation to further his own headcanons, or she believed a source that was completely false info, and thus cannot be trustworthy when it comes to future leaks.

either way I cannot wait to see how entom's video on the talbert files pans out, because this entire situation could've been resolved with a picture of the book and they've not shown anything whatsoever so :33333333333, wonder how he'll attempt to dispute the words of the scott fucking cawthon

[literalliterature]

I'm oblivious to DND so I'm very curious about Kenku's conceptually, but Yonder sounds like the Most Character ever. Corvids are so much fun/it tracks. Which of the asks did you want to get for them? Keet 🌂 Onyx ❤️✂️ Aisling: why does she feel trapped?

I love kenku and am so glad to finally play one. They are literally just little guys, to me. In the official lore, they are flightless and can only speak by parroting what other people say, but I found the second bit to be a bit too limiting for a player character. Instead, Yonder can speak more or less normally, but they are an uncanny mimic of others' voices and, when they're not paying attention, sometimes slip into the voices of others, including those who are no longer alive.

Anyway, in terms of the meme, the question of whether I would ever kill them off is interesting because uh. The short answer is yeah, maybe, lmao. They are actually quite afraid of dying and the associated rot and decay. However, they are currently trying to resurrect their dead family members (their older sister in particular), and since they are a character in a horror campaign, there's a good chance that will all end with them either dying (perhaps in order to take their sister's place) or becoming something that transcends life and death, in which case it's arguable whether they would be "Yonder" anymore.

🌂 What genre do they belong in?

I think Keet is pretty well suited to the adventure genre that she's in, but I have also said before that she kind of behaves as though she were a shounen anime protagonist lmao. Very power-of-friendship (and violence) kind of girl. Perhaps paradoxically, she also wouldn't be entirely out of place in some kind of horror/dark fiction, as we know now that her memory loss is due to her having died before and, long story short, she now sees dead people and has unlocked wacky psychopomp abilities that she doesn't know what to do with yet.

❤️ What is one of your OC’s best memories?

They have a lot of remaining good memories of the princess whom they loved and protected as a knight. While she had several lovers, including among her knights, she had various little ways of indicating in front of everyone that Onyx was particularly favored, and they remember all of those.

✂️ What is one of your OC’s worst memories?

In the first game that I played with them, there was a moment when an enemy hit them with a psychic attack of sorts that made them relive their single worst moment. As I told my GM at the time, what they saw was not discovering the princess dead, not being sentenced to death in the tar pits, but falsely confessing to the dead under torture.

I'm going to answer the question about Aisling under the cut due to spoilers. IRL people who play with me do not look please and thank you ckjdvbdvabg

When they were still a teenager, Aisling was imprisoned for killing a guard during a botched heist. Without going into detail, they spent a couple of years there (prior to breaking out and fleeing the city-state) being almost constantly dehumanized and abused in ways physical and psychological. Also, before all this happened, they had some pretty impressive fire powers, but as a prisoner, they underwent a ritual that prevented them from ever being able to channel that magic properly again. The magic still exists, though, and without a way to escape, it can do (and has done) a lot of internal damage to their body that is sort of reminiscent of certain autoimmune conditions. All of this combined means that, obviously, her life has been permanently changed in ways that she had no control over, and she simply cannot do a lot of things that used to come easily for her previously. (On top of the chronic pain, she struggles a lot with social phobia and borderline agoraphobia, for example.) Basically, no longer physically confined but constantly reminded of the limitations imposed on her by her experience, etc. etc.

[gsasustainability]

Wenyi Pan MFA

Wenyi Pan’s artworks focus on sculptures and installations. Her current practice is concerned with narratives of individual stories, especially regarding female dilemmas, which allude to a more complex collective memory. Wenyi researches and practices a restrained approach to alienating these social dilemmas, mixing reality with fiction in space. She aims to let the silence and the restrained re-presentation of artworks become a medium for the viewer to perceive metaphor and acquire knowledge.

In the degree show, Wenyi exhibited her installation work, April (2023), which addresses the menstruation anxiety that easily being ignored or misunderstood among female population.

April is a space - a continuous and an overlapping one. It consists of a film, fictional archival texts, and sculptures that mimic relics. The space is divided into three parts regarding the different components: ‘Documentary’, ‘Archives’, and ‘Discoveries’, which are interconnected to each other. April can be seen as a museum’s thematic gallery, where rumours, objects and stories that represent women’s anxiety on menstruation are stored. In a pedagogical and archaeological way, it leads the viewer to reflect on the complex relationship between official knowledge, false knowledge, and individual experience on female bodies.

Official knowledge and personal experience closely related to the body are not in opposition, nor in perfect harmony. The fear experienced by the body can often be alleviated by unrealistic talk, while familiar knowledge cannot help. That is why things that seem hilarious are believed, and why simple common sense is ignored. Such is the case with these stories about menstruation - they don’t need to be modified or criticized, they need to be recognised and accepted. It helps people find neglected traumas in the conflict between laughing about what they just saw and realising what they always did, and practice free and open life in recognising and accepting them.

[ilyelan]

𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐

𝑖 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑖’𝑑 𝑒𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑎 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑠𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑠𝑡𝑦 𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑖 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑑 𝑖 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑑. 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝑖’𝑚 𝑠𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑦 𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑘 𝑠𝑜 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠, 𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑦 𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑦 𝑙𝑜𝑙. 𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠.

the fight had been going on for hours, and azhdaha was finally getting the upper hand. he had summoned his hydro attacks, and then once they hit zhongli, he would alternate between cryo and electro attacks to deal the most damage.

another hour later, they both had sustained severe wounds, but zhongli had the worst of it. you knew you had to put a stop to it one way or another, so you told the hydro mimic, that you had lovingly named delta, to be prepared to heal everyone in the cave. it chirped in response, and you took that to mean it was ready.

standing up from your spot tucked away in the corner, you put on a false brave face, and walked in between the two.

immediately, azhdaha stopped attacking, and stood stone still. zhongli however, saw this as his chance to win, and kept attacking, this time focusing on you. he had been slightly weakened from the fight, but was still faster than you could ever dream to be, and managed to stab you straight through the stomach.

you could feel every ridge, every movement of his polearm through your entire body when he twisted it to prolong your tourture, the feeling of it moving was nothing compared to the sickening, warm feeling of blood slowly filling up all of your organs, and his polearm coming out the other side.

the adrenaline quickly faded, and you let out a strangled scream, before falling to the floor with a burst of light.

you remember passing out, but don’t remember why until you look down at your clothes, and suddenly all the memories come rushing back at once, being stabbed, the fight between azhdaha and zhongli, the graphic feeling of blood crawling up your esophagus and filling every crevice of your body. just thinking about it made you want to throw up, but you wanted to make sure azhdaha was ok before worrying about yourself.

you slowly stood up, ignoring the excruciating pain in you abdomen, and looked around, trying to get some clue as to where he was, before seeing that you were in a traditional liyue bedroom. immediately, you started panicking, realizing they had caught you, and were probably planning your execution right this moment.

that line of thought quickly dissolved into a full blown panic attack, and you didn’t even notice the door open, or how the bandages that had been wrapped around your torso had started leaking a sticky, gold substance.

you felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around you, as if someone was trying to comfort you, but they just served to make you more panicked. you thrashed in their hold, and managed to land a single hit on them, right in the chest. they let out a light grunt, “your grace, please calm down.” however their voice only served to make you panic more, as you immediately recognized it as the one who stabbed you.

zhongli kept his arms around you no matter how much you struggled, so you were left in that position for half an hour before you gave up on getting him to let go. “i apologize for having to restrain you your grace, but i couldn’t have you reopening your wounds.”

“do you seriously expect me to believe that? you’ve almost killed me multiple times, and now you’re acting like you want the best for me?” you scoffed, the pain from your wounds being replaced by anger, and a burning desire for revenge. zhongli fell into a deep bow, and started begging for your forgiveness. “please your grace, i cannot express how sorry i am. i know what i have done is unforgivable, but i truly feel remorse for my actions.”

“no you don’t. you aren’t sorry you did it, you’re sorry you were wrong. you don’t care about my forgiveness, you care about your god’s forgiveness.” you spoke with cold indifference, not once betraying the raging storm of anger inside.

“no! i care about your forgiveness! i know what i have done is unforgivable, but please don’t think for a second i don’t crave your approval.” his voice cracked when he spoke, tears starting to well up in his eyes as he pleaded with you.

“really? tell me then, if i was someone else, if i wasn’t your god, would you still be begging for my forgiveness like this? would you have even given me a proper burial after killing me?” the disdain you had for him was clear in your voice, almost as clear as the tears streaming down his face. “just tell me where azhdaha and delta are, and and i’ll leave you all alone, that is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

𝑧ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑖’𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑣

after he stabbed the impostor, he twisted his weapon deep into her stomach, prolonging her suffering as punishment for her crimes. what he wasn’t expecting was for a bright burst of golden light to appear, and for the impostors blood to be a beautiful shade of gold. his eyes immediately widened, and he fell to his knees in mourning, forgetting all about azhdaha and the hydro mimic.

he heard a loud roar, and then saw a flash of blue in the corner of his eye. he looked up, and saw the hydro mimic, he remembered you calling it delta, and moved out of the way so it could heal you, tears still streaming steadily down his face. after the mimic was down healing you, azhdaha let him take you into the city to get proper treatment for your wounds, with a promise to let you leave as soon as you asked.

when he went to check on you a few hours later, he was shocked to see you curled up, shaking in fear on the bed. he didn’t want you to reopen your wounds, but he also didn’t want to tie you up again, so he did the only thing he could think of, wrap his arms tightly around you in a sort of hug, before asking you to please calm down. he felt terrible for what he had done to you, and only felt worse after your words had sunk in. you had said he wouldn’t care if he had wounded an innocent person as he had wounded you, and he was ashamed to admit you were right.

he could only watch in sorrow as you walked out, and for the first time in his life, he truly felt powerless.

[keldabika]

headcanon in two parts, sorry. Ask does not miss it. 1.1 Oh, you know the insecticons from the tfp? Can I have a headcanon where a S/O person is on friendly terms with insecticons?

[TF PRIME] S/O Is Friends With The Insecticons

———————————————————————

* [S/O] meets them by accident quite a bit before the events of the Energon Eaters. Arachnid is still “leader” of the Insecticons by technicality as the only available ‘Queen’ for the hive-mind, however she never really patrols the area or takes care of the hive as she should, rather choosing to wander as a free mind, disobeying orders from everybody.

* You had stumbled upon the hive while taking a short walk along the side of the Jasper highway, leading out of town and to an old coal mine you liked to inhabit on your days off work. A home-away-from-home of sorts, it brought you peace of mind to have a quiet place.

* At least you thought it was a quiet, desolate area until you broke through a thinning in the rock floor of the entry shaft and ended up crashing an Insecticon tea-party.

*It was a rather awkward fall, and it had injured your hip joint on the way down, leaving you temporarily paralyzed in throbbing pains and nerve damage.

* The giant bug-like robots and their shiny, metal wingspans immediately armed themselves and aimed at the shifting dust and rockfall, growling and chittering in a language of some sort, unknown to you.

* “Is it one of those ugly-faced Decepticons ploys again?”

* “It’s too small and squishy, much sooner to be a predacons’ chew toy than any weapon.”

* You looked super confused, absolutely stupefied, completely duped, utterly incomprehensible, awkwardly awed, amazingly idiotic, a-

* Their manner of speech and vocal patterns was practically lost on you. You could pick up remnants of a language similar to broken [language], but really nothing else. In an attempt to make contact with the metallic giants to gain help, you enabled your parroting capabilities.

* Humans have the stunning ability to mimic sounds and specific noise frequencies, at levels other earthen animals, especially mammals, cannot. Using this ability, you managed to copycat the grinding and chattering noises coming from the vocal mass of bug-bots.

* [S/O]: “¿Krrt-grrut vvurrr chechch?”

* Hardshell: “¿Buzzzz vert-tet-brrrz, Erreech?”

* [S/O]: “¿Erreech?”

* Hardshell: “¡VRREE BUZZZ-EECH CLICKLICKIK!”

* The contact went well, unbeknownst to you, and the successful communication meant that you might actually have a chance at escape, or finding a hospital!

* Congrats! You are now [Tiny Bug Child]! You have no idea what they were speaking about, unaware that they were contemplating how to execute you, but you successfully managed to evade death by being cute and cuddly! People say curiosity killed the cat, but it evidently saves the naive human-who-fell-into-an-insect-cult-meeting!

* Hardshell, the Insecticon you nearly landed on top of, begins to lift you out of the rubble, and place you down upon a makeshift stone table, partially destroyed by the collapse. The others—including Wingflap, Bombshell, Shrapnel, Blockhead, and Kickback—gather closely around you, cooing and chirping in their weird language again.

* This was, evidently, how you became the new Queen of the hive, though you didn’t know it, and managed to befriend your way through the entire enclosed community and worm into the spark of every Insecticon, though they were very few in number.

* You made easy friends with Bombshell, and remained close with him up until his untimely death by Bulkheads hammer fist. He would often lay atop the Jasper cliffside with you, and make out shapes in the clouds, constellations in the stars—regaling to you tales of the Old Cybertron, when his own kind weren’t so despised, and were respected as viable assets and allies amongst those with forms like and unlike their own—until the Autobot Elitists ensured they were seen as ugly and malformed, made to hide away in the shadows and step away from society for ‘the greater good’.

* It’s how you came to hate the Autobots—and Decepticons—for all they had done, to their planet and yours, and to your friends as well.

* Your mimicry slowly turned into actual speech patterns and recognition. Repetitive sound signals were a key portion of Archaic Insecticon speech, which made it easy to recognize simple words or phrases, each indicated by a set of whirs, clicks, or beeps.

* Now that you could actively communicate with most of the hive, it was far easier to make friends with even the hardiest of bots.

* Hardshell, of course, was tough to crack. At your constant insistance, he spoke with you once or twice, and made sure to acknowledge your presence when in the room, as well as save you a seat at the underground pub every other weekend. It wasn’t actually a pub per-say, rather a dugout chamber with smooth walls and some stone slabs insert for seating, where the cons enjoyed engex they could sneak off the Nemesis from time-to-time.

* After awhile, he warms up to you, welcoming you back to the hive every day after work, standing alongside his multiple siblings, and pushing others aside to get to hold you first.

* Meanwhile this all happens, they still don’t know what a human is. Their simple understanding of earth comes only from what they’ve seen on the highway from the cliffside, or from video footage of the Autobot pests on the Nemesis. Due to their bulky size and noisiness, they’re banned from most human-inhabited areas.

* Don’t doubt that some of them have attempted to follow their [S/O] home. They have. And some of them won’t stop trying. It’s been more than one awkward encounter between you and some teens to get them to realize they could get you in trouble.

* You all eat [dessert] together sometimes, made with energon supplements for ‘The Boys™️’, with some good ol’ 25-something-kg of sugar mixed in.

* The boys were worried when you didn’t show up for a week due to hospitalization via severe food poisoning medical coma.

* When Arachnid finally returned to Earth, and her fight against Arcee had proceeded about as well as expected, she located the hive and proceeded to force them to engage in business with Megatron. She believed that by implementing her own soldiers amongst the ranks, she’d be better equipped to backstab Megatron when the time came.

* She was undoubtably surprised when Hardshell and some others adamantly refused to take part in her plans at first, until she enforced their compliance through the hive-mind.

*When she learned of your existence, and the very gauge of your importance to her former hive, she came at you with full force.

*The Insecticons were fully unprepared to deal with a fight between their small [S/O] and an extremely angry ex-Queen. In refute, they returned you to the surface without so much as a goodbye, and begged you to escape before Arachnid scented you out.

* It was soon after these events that you learned of Breakdown’s death, Bulkhead’s coma, and Bombshell’s demise due to the combined effects of a substance called Tox-En and injuries sustained during his battle with Bulkhead. It broke you inside to learn there was nothing you could have done to help, but you refused to disobey their pleas to stay away for awhile.

* At the hive, Arachnid rules supreme. Being able to control the hive-mind was a feat a human was incapable of achieving, only Cybertronians able to easily access the imbedded chain of command.

* Hardshell mourned the loss of a true friend—a small, squishy human—but a friend nonetheless.

* Wingflap and Kickback went through a collection of memories you’d left behind with them. Pictures and small objects gifted over the years, a small treasure trove of important parts of their lives, now without you in them.

* Shrapnel stims a lot more now, and has nervous tics that he believes are the result of the loss of his dear friend. He knows you aren’t dead, least not yet, but he knows that you’ll likely never come back.

* Blockhead, as dumb as everybody thinks he is, is actually very emotionally intelligent. He has a way with words he barely understands, and [S/O] acted as a big support for someone like him. Without them now, he can no longer function like normal, and now has nobody left to talk to.

* Arachnid could care less. She absolutely despises [S/O], and would smite them for all she cares. You matter little to her, and only worry her for the loyalty and capacity of her troops.

* It isn’t until the Energon Eaters appear that everything turns completely south.

* [S/O] finally builds up enough courage to march themselves back down to the mine, and demand to meet Arachnid face-to-faceplate.

* The desert is hot, Nevada is hotter, and the trek down the highway seems endless and tedious. You pass by 5 interstate signs on your way to the hive, and count the steps it takes to reach the entrance, parched by the time you make it there.

* In all your sweaty glory, you, [S/O], make your way down the carved pathway into the mineshaft, dark and cramped—just as you left it.

* But everything is exactly as it was left, not an item out of place. The entire hive was empty, including of those you cared about. Their rooms are full of memories, and their energon cubes still lie in a corner, collecting dust and grime.

* The search seems profitable, yet it leaves you with nothing, and the emptiness of the hive echoes around you, and in all the chambers, through the cavern walls of every room.

* You know they’re gone, that they have left without you, and without so much as a simple passing note.

* Perhaps someday you’d find them, hiding away in another Jasper mine, but you never would.

* In their haze of a hive mind, they barely even remember the face of the human they left behind. A long line across the moon—stretching on for miles—and a vampire on a false throne, draining the lifeblood from their veins, and the image of [S/O] from their minds.

———————————————————————

✨ Hope you enjoyed ✨

[raeynbowboi]

How to Play as the Eds in DnD 5e

Today, I want to build the Ed boys, Ed, Edd, and Eddy. They form a rather perfect trio, each contributing their own skills and abilities to function as a unit better than they could each individually. Although the Eds largely became friends due to sharing a name and a status as social outcasts, they work rather well together, and have the potential to be an excellent DnD party, which is what inspired me to try and build the Eds in DnD.

Ed, Edd, and Eddy are humans, but they adhere to bizarro cartoon physics, so I’ll use that as an excuse to make them Variant Humans. They each get +1 in two stats, a bonus skill, and a free feat. Eddy gets +1 DEX, +1 CHA, the Persuasion skill, and the Inspiring Leader feat. Edd gets +1 INT, +1 WIS, the Investigation skill, and the Keen Mind feat. Ed gets +1 STR, +1 CON and the Tough feat.

For backgrounds, Eddy is a Charlatan for Deception and Sleight of Hand, Edd is a Sage for Arcana and History, and Ed is an Gladiator for Athletics and Performance.

For alignment, Eddy is a rather wanton rule-breaker who scams others for his own selfish goals, making him a non-villainous example of Chaotic Evil, Ed is destructive but easy-going for Chaotic Neutral, and Double D is a rule follower of the highest order for Lawful Neutral.

ROGUE MASTERMIND ARCHETYPE

Eddy is the scheming brain behind the scams the Ed Boys pull on the children of the Cul-de-sac, as well as the primary face that tricks the kids into forking over their allowances for his shabby products. The Mastermind archetype makes Eddy a master of deception and schemes, a perfect fit for his personality and role within the Eds. As a Rogue, Eddy will take 4 skills from the Rogue skill list: Stealth, Performance, Acrobatics, and Insight. He gets skill expertise as well, and he’ll invest that expertise in Deception, Sleight of Hand, Persuasion, and Performance.

STATS AND FEATURES

STATS STR 14 DEX 20 CON 14 INT 8 WIS 8 CHA 20

SAVING THROWS STR +2 DEX +11 CON +2 INT +5 WIS +5 CHA +5

FEATS Inspiring Leader

FEATURES Blindsense: You are aware of any hidden or invisible foe within 10 feet Cunning Action: As a bonus action, Aim, Dash, Disengage, or Hide Elusive: Foes cannot attack you with advantage Evasion: Successful Dex Saves reduce damage to 0 Insightful Manipulator: 1 minute of study can tell Eddy whether a creature’s Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma, or Class Level is inferior, equal, or superior to Eddy’s.  Master of Intrigue: Eddy gains proficiency with the disguise kit, forgery kit, learns two languages, and can mimic a creature’s speech patterns after hearing them talk for at least 1 minute. Master of Tactics: Eddy can take the Help action as a bonus action. Misdirection: Redirect an attack meant for you to another creature within 5 feet as a reaction. Reliable Talent: Proficient skills can’t roll lower than 10 Slippery Mind: Proficiency in Wisdom saving throws Soul of Deceit: Eddy’s thoughts can’t be read, nor can he be magically coerced to tell the truth. He can choose to present false memories or thoughts by contesting his Deception check against the mind reader’s Insight. Stroke of Luck: Turn a failed attack action or a failed ability check into a hit or a nat 20 respectively. Uncanny Dodge: As a reaction, reduce damage from a foe you can see by half.

ARTIFICER ARTILLERIST SPECIALIST

Eddward or “Double D” is the gadgeteer of the Eds. The Eds couldn’t pull off their scams without Edd’s inventions. While Edd doesn’t believe in magic or superstition, he is highly studious and knowledgeable in chemistry, biology, engineering, mathematics, and physics. In a DnD setting, Edd would use his gadgets to replicate the effects of spells, and the Artillerist is the default Artificer specialist for an inventor type. Edd gets two skills from the Artificer skill list, and he’ll take Medicine and Nature.

Edd’s Spell List

C Firebolt, Light, Message, Spare the Dying 1 Catapult, Cure Wounds, Detect Magic, Shield, Thunderwave 2 Heat Metal, Scorching Ray, Shatter, Spiderclimb, Web 3 Elemental Weapon, Fireball, Glyph of Warding, Tiny Servant, Wind Wall 4 Fabricate, Ice Storm, Mordenkainen’s Faithful Hound, Summon Construct, Wall of Fire 5 Animate Objects, Bigby’s Hand, Cone of Cold, Creation, Wall of Force

STATS AND FEATURES

STATS STR 8 DEX 18 CON 10 INT 20 WIS 16 CHA 10

SAVING THROWS STR -1 DEX +4 CON +6 INT +11 WIS +3 CHA 0

FEATURES Arcane Firearm: Turn a wand, staff, or rod into an Arcane Firearm. Add a d8 to 1 damage roll made with spells cast with this firearm. Eldritch Cannon: Create a small or tiny cannon that is either a Force Ballista, Flamethrower, or Protector. Choose what type when creating it. Explosive Cannon: Cannon deals extra d8 damage. The cannon can be ordered to self-destruct, dealing 3d8 force damage to creatures within 20 feet with a failed Dex save, or half as much on a success. Flash of Genius: Add your INT mod to a failed skill check or saving throw up to five times per long rest. Fortified Position: Edd’s cannon provides half-cover up to 10 feet, and Edd can create two Eldritch Cannons at the same time. Infuse Item: Add magical properties to mundane objects,  turning them into Magic Items. Magic Item Adept: Craft uncommon or lower magic items for half the cost. Magic Item Savant: Ignore class restrictions when attuning to magic items. Magic Item Master: You can attune to up to six magic items Magical Tinkering: Add a magical property to a tiny mundane object. Soul of Artifice: add a maximum of +6 to all saving throws. End an infusion to drop to 1 HP instead of 0. Spell-Storing Item: Store a 1st or 2nd level spell in an item after a long rest. The Right Tool For the Job: Edd can manufacture tools with any set of Artisan’s tools, though only one at a time. Tool Expertise: Edd has expertise with Woodcarver’s Tools and Tinkerer’s Tools Tool Proficiency: Edd is proficient with woodcarver’s tools and Tinkerer’s Tools

BARBARIAN PATH OF THE BERSERKER

I debated between Barbarian and Brute Fighter, but when Ed’s upset, he is genuinely terrifying. Even Sarah and the Kankers are afraid of Ed when he’s angry. Not to mention in the Halloween special Brew-ha-ha, Ed donned the costume of Lothor, a viking warrior, and spent the night beating up the other kids. As a Barbarian, Ed gets two skills from the Barbarian skill list. Take Animal Handling and Intimidation. Because if you didn’t know, Ed loves chickens. Almost as much as he loves gravy, buttered toast, and vintage sci-fi/horror movies.

STATS AND FEATURES

STATS STR 24 DEX 14 CON 24 INT 8 WIS 8 CHA 12

SAVING THROWS STR +13 DEX +2 CON +13 INT -1 WIS -1 CHA +1

FEATS Tough

FEATURES Brutal Critical: Roll four weapon damage die on a critical hit Danger Sense: Advantage on Dex saving throws Extra Attack: Make two weapon attack actions on your turn. Fast Movement: Movement speed is 40 feet while unarmored Feral Instinct: Advantage on initiative rolls, and rage on surprise attacks Frenzy: While raging, make weapon attack with your bonus action, gain a level of exhaustion when rage ends. Indomitable Might: Use your STR stat for any STR check rolls Intimidating Presence: As an action, try to Frighten a foe. They must pass a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be afraid of Ed. Mindless Rage: Can’t be Charmed or Frightened while raging. Persistent Rage: You only stop raging if you choose to or fall unconscious. Primal Champion: STR and CON gain +4 to maximum of 24 Rage: Add +4 to weapon attack damage while raging, Resist nonmagical slashing, piercing, and bludgeoning damage, and advantage on STR checks and saving throws. Unlimited uses per long rest. Reckless Attack: Attack with advantage, but enemies have advantage on you. Relentless Rage: Resist dying while raging with a CON save. Retaliation: When Ed takes damage, he can use a reaction to make a weapon attack against the target. Unarmored Defense: AC equals 10+DEX+CON while unarmored

As a unit, the eds form a rather well-rounded trio. They form the trope of the Fighter, Thief, Mage, and have enough versatility to handle most things that come their way. Honestly, if they set their aspirations higher than swindling the Cul-de-sac kids out of their allowances to buy candy, the Eds might just be able to make serious cash with their ideas. With Edd to design and build the contraptions, Ed to do the heavy lifting or possibly head the security detail, and Eddy to draw in customers and suckers, the three could very easily set up and run a rather profitable racket, business, or product. The only real limitation is what the players can think of to have the Eds do next.

[sholangagaga]

Glamstar AU Synthetic Info/HCs

I'm still working on chapter 5 and 6 so those are a bit delayed, but I've also been working on some information about my synthetics! Partly for me to organize my thoughts, but also for you guys in case you were confused about anything mentioned in my chapters!

Synthetics are actually still fairly close to their animatronic counterparts, parts wise. They're an Endoskeleton covered in a "casing", but made to look human

Synthetic skin is stretchy, but in a plastic sense rather than like normal skin.

The endoskeleton is covered in semi-firm muscles, which is really just bundles of wires made to mimic human muscle tissue. This is what prevents a synthetic from being too "solid". (aka, it makes them huggable/pleasant for children to touch)

Synthetics don't have brains per say, it's more like a special type of computer. Where the base of the skull would be, there's slots where Chips can be inserted

There are three types of chips that make up ONE fully functioning synthetic. The Mother Chip, the Personality Chip, and the Functionality Chip

The Mother Chip is the same as a brain. It stores all of the memories and information, and is what shapes how a synthetic acts and reacts to different things. If this chip is damaged or lost, it's the same as permanent amnesia or even brain-death. This Chip cannot be removed through conventional means. Because it is the "brain", intrusive surgery and high clearance is needed to remove one

The Personality Chip stores exactly that, the personality. This Chip allows each Synthetic to be unique, giving them depth and character. While this chip can be put into new endos, without the Mother Chip it wouldn't be the exact same Synthetic. This chip isn't as deeply imbedded as the Mother Chip, but it's still hard to remove. You'll need high clearance to take this Chip out

The Functionality Chip is the big boy, it stores the AI and all possible functions of the Synthetic. While this could also be unique, each related group of Functionality Chips usually start off the same way (ex. Glamrock FC are always built with the same base. Constant upgrades is what makes each one unique) This Chip is the one that's usually removed during maintenance. There is no clearance needed to remove these chips

Synthetics have three plugs on their backs for charging. One at the base of the neck and two on the trapezius.

Down their spines are small lights color coded to each Synthetic (Freddy's is blue, Bonnie's is yellow, etc)

On their lower back is a battery display. This show how much charge a Synthetic has. However, because they're all usually clothed, you won't typically see them. Roxy and Monty's are the only ones that could be visible, however they wear an extra layer of false skin on their backs to hide it.

Charging stations only make use of the plug at the base of the neck, which takes the longest to get full charge. All three plugs are typically used in Parts and Service, either during long maintenance or just every so often for a quick recharge.

[spookyserpent]

Hi I'm really curious if you have a masterlist for the characters,powers and who they are actually in irl due to the fact I actually don't recognize a few of them in your spider versus web series? Also keep up the good work I really love this series!

Hi!

Here you go:

Dsmp:

Tommy - post-mortem power absorption (avian wings = red wings like flames, etc) and power neutralisation (directed at himself)

Dream - elemental manipulation, earth related

George - never misses a shot, weapons proficiency

Sapnap - accelerated healing, fire generation/manipulation

Wilbur - compelling voice (kinda mind manipulation) + ability to see memories/drag up darkest secrets (want to tell him your deepest desires), immortal

Techno - blood manipulation, accelerated healing, super senses, immortal

Phil - reap souls, sense death, can make people into reapers (like Wil and Tech), avian = big black wings, immortal

Niki - water manipulation, can breath under water and can siren sing

Tubbo - bee-like qualities, can sting and fly

Ranboo - can teleport, a sixth sense, photographic reflexes

Ponk/Purpled/Punz/Quackity - powerless

Charlie - intangibility (can be seen as a slime if you wish, goopy boy my beloved)

Puffy - reality warping of probabilities

Sam - explosion generation/ manipulation

Foolish - sky and sea manipulation like storms

Drista - reality warping in the sense of spawning things in (she has creative mode)

Bad - darkness manipulation

Skeppy - get in and out of everywhere

Ant - mimic powers

Fundy - shapeshifter/silver tongue inherited from Wil

Eret - bond manipulation, makes you attached so can’t harm

Alyssa - sees the future

Callahan - knows where everyone is at all times

Jack - revenant

The Warden - technology manipulation

Among us Yt:

Minx - telekinesis

Corpse - possession and mind manipulation through touch

Rae - energy manipulation

Toast - sense a person’s memories through touch, low levels of telepathy (just the thoughts you have in that moment)

Sykkuno - fire and ice manipulation

Jack - can’t be killed and weapon proficiency (like Deadpool)

Tina - metal manipulation

Brooke - luck

Leslie - forcefields and portal generation

Og Mcyts:

Dan - creates clones

Stampy - powerless

Sqaishey - mind manipulation where they make you see and experience your greatest desire/dream

Shadow Lady - shadow manipulation

Cap. Sparklez - light manipulation

Sky - air manipulation

Squid - giant squid shapeshifter, can breathe underwater

Hermitcraft:

Grian - avian, parrot wings

Rendog - wolf shapeshifter

False - precognitive abilities

Beef - Minotaur body

Cleo - Revenant: cannot be killed unless their mission is complete

Iskall/Xisuma/Mumbo/ Doc/ Scar/ Gemini - powerless

Mr Beast Yt:

Mr Beast/Chandler/Chris - powerless

Origins SMP:

Scott Smajor - powerless

Tales of the SMP:

Sir Billiam - powerless

I think this is it? There might be more (I have OCs too but they only have a small part to play) and I think some of their powers change but this is the original document I wrote for these characters!

I’m glad you’re enjoying it! Thank you!

[mpanighetti]

Halloween Zero-to-Thirty Challenge Rating Challenge

October 5th Prompt: Parasite

Art by Haru!

Cuckoo Mimic (Challenge 4)

Lore

The adventurers cannot remember a time when Reginald was not among them, though they are hard-pressed to recall when they first met. He's just seemingly always been there, fighting alongside them in difficult encounters, sharing drinks at the local tavern, taking turns keeping vigilant watch over their sleeping innocent forms in the dark wilderness at night. Reggie is their comrade, their friend, their protector, their lover, and they would all readily sacrifice themselves to protect him, as they assume he would for them. That's just the special connection they share, as they definitely always have.

This party has been tricked by an insidious variety of parasitic mimic, which leaves its egg with traveling groups as they sleep. The egg emits a psychic aura that creates false memories of a tight familial bond between each slumbering group member and the unborn creature. Once the connection is established, the egg hatches, and the mimic takes a form comfortable to its hosts, who then wake up none the wiser of the intrusion. To them, this "person" has been a constant companion, and they feel a deep-seated compulsion to protect it at all costs.

Specific connections and memories are created based on the predilections of each individual; some might think of the mimic as a blood relation, others as a romantic interest.

The cuckoo mimic's longterm goals are to develop and thrive long enough to reproduce with one of its hosts and seed its offspring in another traveling party, continuing its cycle of brood parasitism. If it detects that one of its hosts questions its presence among the party, it will plot to either kill or defame the would-be accuser to remove them from the group. Sometimes this effort is so successful that it can even convince its other hosts to carry out the deed.

Affable Form. When the cuckoo mimic first joins a group, it chooses a humanoid form based on different attributes of all its hosts. For any attributes of the mimic's stat block based on a random host, a different host is picked at random for each selection. These selections are permanent as long as the mimic remains with its hosts, and potentially change as a host's features change. For example, if the mimic's speed is based on a monk host, it will increase as the monk gains speed from its Unarmored Movement feature. These changes have the same requirements as they have for the host; in the previous example, if the mimic is wearing armor, it does not gain the additional speed.

Attributes

Medium monstrosity (shapechanger), neutral

Armor Class: 14 (natural armor)

Hit Points: 102 (12d8 + 48)

Speed: 15 ft.; gains the speeds of a random host in its humanoid form

STR: 18 (+4)

DEX: 12 (+1)

CON: 19 (+4)

INT: 7 (-2)

WIS: 16 (+3)

CHA: 12 (+1)

Skills: Persuasion +5, Stealth +5; gains proficiency in two other skills from random hosts in its humanoid form

Damage Immunities: acid

Condition Immunities: prone

Senses: darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13

Languages: none in true form; speaks all the languages of its hosts in humanoid form

Challenge: 4 (1,100 XP)

Proficiency Bonus: +2

Special Traits

Adhesive. The mimic adheres to anything that touches it. A Huge or smaller creature adhered to the mimic is also grappled by it (escape DC 14). Ability checks made to escape this grapple have disadvantage. The mimic can choose to suppress this trait at any time.

Brood Parasitism. When the cuckoo mimic is about to hatch from its egg, all humanoids within 60 feet of it must make a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw; the saving throw DC increases to 18 and is made with disadvantage if the humanoid is unconscious. On a failed save, the humanoid is charmed by the mimic.

While charmed in this manner, a host believes the mimic is someone close to them, their memories are altered to indicate that the mimic has been a part of their lives for an extended time period, and they are compelled to protect the mimic at all costs, including self-sacrifice. The host justifies any inconsistencies found in its altered memories in order to maintain the delusion. The mimic has a persistent psychic connection with all of its hosts, which allows it to know each host's altered memories and surface-level emotions.

This charm effect lasts until the mimic dies. If the mimic deals damage to the host, they can repeat their Wisdom saving throw, ending the effect on a successful save.

Grappler. The mimic has advantage on attack rolls against any creature grappled by its Adhesive trait.

Innate Spellcasting (Psionics). The mimic’s innate spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 13). It can innately cast the following spells, requiring no components:

At will: mind sliver

3/day: mind spike

Actions

Pseudopod. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) bludgeoning damage. If the mimic so chooses, the target is subjected to its Adhesive trait if hit by this attack.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) piercing damage plus 4 (1d8) acid damage.

Change Shape. The mimic polymorphs into a humanoid of the same race of a random host, or back into its true form, which is amorphous but vaguely humanoid in shape. Its statistics are the same in each form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn’t transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.

[id: monster stat block for cuckoo mimic, depicting a human woman in a green dress with her back to a mirror, which reflects a room including a chandelier, candelabra, and a fireplace, but the woman's reflection doesn't match her exactly; it has the same shape and dress, but the skin is a purple-black and there are eyes and mouths in random places throughout the creature's body]

[Original prompt]

[areyougonnabe]

Short Term Memory

But there can often be a lot of “thinking you love someone” before the loving truly begins.  — The Man In The Red Coat by Julian Barnes

Now I am superlatively, actually awake. — The amnesiac composer Clive Wearing

Aziraphale knows it in Eden.

He watches the demon, Crawly, sprawled loose-limbed underneath the boughs of an eternally blooming magnolia, lazily swatting at the plump bees that buzz around his head, and knows he is in love with him. 

On this plane, in this body, Aziraphale is subject to all the forces the Almighty has created. Gravity, yes. Electromagnetism, the strong and weak nuclear. And, it seems— love as well.

Adam and Eve certainly didn’t take long to get down to it, after all. Aziraphale, having observed the Garden and its inhabitants closely, knows of no possible love other than the kind that blossoms at first light, and does not wither ever after, even as the sun falls below the horizon. That is the only reference he has to compare this feeling inside him to, the sensation that throbs deep within him when he lets his eyes linger on Crawly, on the dark pool of him beneath the tree.

“I love you,” he whispers, so softly not even the bees can hear, just to know how it feels. 

***

On the Ark, Aziraphale thinks of how foolish he was, to believe that he’d loved Crawly after just a few scant days in a garden, hardly even speaking to each other. Longing gazes and yearning sighs does not a true love make. 

He hadn’t known then, not really, the true appeal of an argument that went on long after sunset, ideas and perspectives finding purchase before being wrestled triumphantly to the rhetorical floor. He hadn’t known all the different tones of Crowley’s voice, the demon’s magical ability to parrot and mimic, to mock and decry, to leave Aziraphale wheezing with laughter one moment and incandescent with offense the next. 

But now that he does, now and only now— can he believe himself to finally, fully be in love with Crowley. 

***

In Rome, Aziraphale cannot countenance his own sheer idiocy.

How could he have possibly loved Crowley, when they’d never shared a meal together? It was a childish infatuation, before this moment, before he’d ever seen food make its way past those full lips, before he’d ever seen that tanned throat bob as it drank down a dark wine. 

Crowley’s hair is shorter, now, too, and Aziraphale finds it almost laughable he’d thought what he felt for this demon was love, when only on this day has he first seen the pale nape of Crowley’s neck, the full uncurtained juncture of his ear and jaw. 

They order course after course, jug after jug. Aziraphale does not want the night to end, because now, and only now, for the first time in nearly four thousand years, does he really and truly know that he is in love. 

***

It is the fourteenth century, and Aziraphale has not seen Crowley in ninety-six years. Every year that passes without sight of him, in this monastery high on a mountainside, hurts deeper than the last. 

It was pure folly to have thought himself in love, in those times he could go centuries without seeing Crowley, and not have each separated year be a brand new wound upon his heart.  

Love is only really proven by pain in its absence, surely. So only now, assigned to this most sacred of places, where Crowley could not tread even if he wished to, is Aziraphale absolutely positive he knows for the first time what it actually means to love.

***

London burns, and Aziraphale gathers his precious books, his artifacts and keepsakes, into a bag that rightfully should not be able to fit them all, and escapes outside the city walls. 

There is a familiar dark shape waiting for him there, lingering in the shadow of Aldgate. Aziraphale can smell the telltale scent of Hell on Crowley, the acrid stench of a bad deed done well clinging to his smoke-stained skin. 

He doesn’t need to ask where Crowley has been. His own side has warned him, in many recent holy missives, about increased activity from Below during these tumultuous times of plagues, wars, dissidence. He knows Crowley had something to do with the flames now consuming the city; to ask for details would be to invite pain. So instead they exchange mumbled pleasantries, avoiding each others’ gaze, but not willing to separate, not just yet.  

“A pity,” Aziraphale is saying. “All those homes, and oh— St. Paul’s! That interior was simply divine…” 

Crowley grimaces, ash-faced, and shrugs. “I wouldn’t know.” 

“Oh. Oh, yes, of course.” 

Silhouetted against the smoke, Crowley is wicked, and foul, and demonic, and Aziraphale loves him. Oh, he does, he does, he does. 

Only real love could withstand such conditions, such determined attempts to exterminate it. Whatever Aziraphale felt before this awful day, it was untested and as such untrue. 

It is only now, faced with such inarguable evidence of Crowley’s nature, and feeling a tide of affection rise within him nonetheless, feeling the urge to gather the demon into his arms and hold him there, whisper words of forgiveness and comfort, does Aziraphale know that he is finally in love at last. 

***

It happens again, and again. Aziraphale curses his own stupidity, as each and every time his past self is proven idiotic, infantile, naive, simply misled. His heart bears a succession of false claimants to the crown of love, each overthrown in turn. 

He did not truly love Crowley until Paris, when the demon snatched him from underneath the hanging blade of Mme. Guillotine, for love is only love when it surprises, amazes, does the impossible.

He did not truly love Crowley until St. James Park, when he refused to provide him with the means to his own destruction, because love is not love if it bends to every harmful whim, accepts every poor decision without question.

He did not truly love Crowley until the bombs fell on St. Mildred’s, because in that moment he knew Crowley must love him as well, and love is only love when it travels both ways, amplified by actions on both ends, miracles done in the maintenance of it. 

He did not truly love Crowley until he handed over a thermos full of holy water, because love is not love unless it is trusting, rather than rigid and unforgiving.

He did not truly love Crowley until they shook hands in the back room of his darkened bookshop, promising to save the world together, for love can only really be love when it is committed to, promised, sealed with a touch. 

***

“I love you,” Aziraphale says, between kisses to Crowley’s cheeks, his throat, the corners of his lovely mouth, here in the darkness of the demon’s flat on the night after the end of the world. “Crowley, I love you.” 

“How long?” gasps Crowley. “How long have you loved me?” 

“I— if you must know, I don’t believe I ever have, not until this moment. Not really.” 

“You can’t be serious. You’re lying, you’ve loved me longer than that—”

“A childish crush. A mere obsession. Darling, I swear, I never truly loved you before now!“ 

“That’s not true. You’re being ridiculous.” 

Aziraphale finds it in himself to be primly offended, even as Crowley’s fingers find the buttons of his shirt, opens them, and press into Aziraphale’s skin, shockingly cool as they travel up his chest, exploring him, claiming him. 

“I’m not!”

“You are, though. You wanna know how I know? That you’re wrong? I’ve watched you. I’ve known you, better than anyone. That— that damn look in your eyes, it hasn’t changed in six thousand years, no matter what you think. I’d’ve noticed if it had, believe me. You’ve loved me from the very start, angel. From the beginning.”  

This revelation does not square with Aziraphale’s understanding. It does not slot neatly into his narrative. “But I know,” he insists. “Everything before now, before this moment— it was nothing. It was all in my head. I feel it now everywhere, my dear.” 

“I can tell,” Crowley smirks, his hand now traveling downwards. The smirk turns into a smile as he finds purchase, and Aziraphale gasps, shudders, clutches Crowley tighter.  

“I guess it doesn’t matter,” Crowley goes on, “seeing as we’re here now, after all.” 

“Oh, but it does! Love is not love unless it is spoken aloud, and only now am I speaking it, so only now do I truly love you, Crowley—” 

“If I let you believe that you’re right,” Crowley says, and Aziraphale remembers their friendly sparring as the Ark traversed those many waters, remembers how naively thought he knew love then, “will you keep saying it?” 

“Saying—” 

“That you love me.” 

“Clearly, you’ve—ah!— known this whole time,” Aziraphale says, still managing petulance even as Crowley’s swift touch between his legs increases in speed, sending shocks of sensation rocketing upwards, “so why do you need me to prattle on?” 

There is silence, for a moment, just the sound of breathing from the both of them, coming heavier now, the sound of fabric rustling between them, and the sound of skin on skin, hot and human. 

And then Crowley speaks, right into Aziraphale’s ear, in a voice so low, so close, it makes Aziraphale shake with the dearness of it, or maybe that’s just the rising tide of pleasure inside him���  

“Let me count the ways. Because it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve heard. Because I deserve to be told, after all this time. Because—even though I’ve known, all along, doesn’t mean I ever really let myself believe. Because I love you, too.” 

Aziraphale falls apart, then, beneath the weight of Crowley’s affection, physical and otherwise, cresting over into ecstasy, unlike anything he’s known, from his own touch or that of others. 

“I take it back,” he gasps, winded, “what I said before, now I love you, now I really love you, Crowley—” 

And he goes on, until Crowley throws his head back in joy, lets out one of those pure, gleeful laughs, and cuts him off with another kiss. 

[hazzabeeforlou]

Fine Line Masterpost:

A breakdown, musically and lyrically 

In Fine Line, ‘raw honesty’ doesn’t really mean delving into the details of who Harry Styles is sleeping with, but rather it’s a glimpse into the world of a 25-year-old who is both deeply in love and who fucks up a lot; he’s given to sugary supplications, is plagued by jealousy, pouts at consequences, and struggles with understanding an inner self that keeps prodding him towards exploration of his identity.  

The album is constructed to be consumed by various factions of the fandom. There’s no getting away from the surface dedication of HS2 as an ode to a blonde supermodel with a delicious French accent whose new boyfriend’s father owns a gallery, a girl who has golden hair and blue eyes. I won’t be arguing that away, because it’s intentional, it’s meant to be the surface layer. 

The mantle is not the crust, though. Taken individually, each song can be seen as speaking to the queer experience in varied and complex ways, and I’ve seen some truly beautiful explorations of this angle. Especially with TPWK and FL, the anthemic solidarity with queer experience is astounding and gorgeous. I think it’s no accident that this broad take holds true as we zoom in and look at the complex details; Harry has written songs that speak both to this meaning and also hold incredibly personal and intimate significance between him and a partner (in this post we’ll call them Subject). 

I will be focusing on the album as a cohesive narrative in the context of it’s chronological, linear progression. Fine Line details an incredibly personal struggle; it’s a love letter, an at times embarrassing, self-loathing reflection on a love gone wrong, a love struggling, an emerging self, and a hope redeemed. 

Please feel free to ask questions if any of the technical stuff is confusing, but please also remember that these are my opinions, coupled with my analysis as a professional musician (meaning, hopefully I’m remembering those torturous years of theory dictation correctly!) 

Side A 

All four songs share an off-kilter-ness, a restless, unsettled, frantic feeling, as if Harry is balancing, undecided between throwing himself at the feet of the one he loves or pulling away. This is no illusion; the tonic base is missing from each song save WS (but even here the tonic is sabotaged in our ear, as we’ll discuss). We’re on a journey to side B; we start with a hope that sweet memories and lust can salvage love, and we end with Harry going his own way.

Golden: There are only two chords in this song, DM and CM7, the V and IV7 of the implied tonic, G Major. We never get to tonic though. We never touch that home base. The songs “da da da’s” give it a happier, peppier illusion than the text reveals. 

Harry is already broken, already reflecting and hopeless as the song begins. His intended listener, Subject - the sun, the golden one - waits for him in the sky, and is all he’s ever known. Subject has always browned his skin just right, but now, Harry reflects, perhaps has been too bright for him. (Is some aspect of Harry buried in the brilliance of Subject’s light?) This golden Subject is scared, though, scared Harry is so open. Harry doesn’t want to be alone, but he also needs to peel back edges of himself previously unexplored. Stepping into and away from light is a major theme for Harry, and this opening song sets that precedent. Subject is scared because “hearts get broken,” but Harry’s heart is already broken, so perhaps this refers not to interpersonal heartbreak, but situational. Harry recognizes he’s “out of his head...” BUT, he counters, “Loving you’s the antidote!” He naively gushes out poetry while Subject remains unconvinced. We establish an impasse. 

Watermelon Sugar: The Dm - Cm - Am6 - GM chord progression is an odd one; my best guess is that the song is in D minor, so the progression is: 

i, VII, v, IV

 That’s not typical in a minor key. Usually the leading tone note (in this case a C) is raised (so C#) making the five chord Major (V) not minor (v) and the seven chord diminished (viio) not Major (VII). also the Major IV ignores the B flat in the key signature of D minor and instead uses B natural. So all this to say that the tonic base STILL doesn’t feel like a tonic home, because the normalcy around the key signature is erased. Everything still feels unsettled, unresolved. 

Much has been made of the oral sex interpretation, so, ya. This is a song about remembering the best of times, a prayer to Subject, a plea for summertime and bellies and strawberries, and a feeling Harry is desperate to get back. 

Adore You: The three chords in this song, Cm - BbM - AbM, imply an E flat Major key, so vi, V, IV, respectively. The tonic, Eb (I), is (once again) never used, and instead vi, V, IV circle without ever coming to rest. 

Subject, “Honey,” creates a rainbow paradise. This is another love letter to Subject, let me adore you, I’ll walk through fire for you, you don’t have to say anything just listen to me, you don’t have to say you love me too, just please, please... you’ve been on my mind. Let me adore you like it’s the only thing I’ll ever do. By this wording, Harry admits that adoring Subject is not the only thing he ever does, yet he wishes Subject to remember, or imagine, this false reality. 

Lights Up: We’re in C Major here, with the chords Am - GM - FM, creating the same exact chord progression as Adore You, vi, V, IV. We (yet again!) never reach the tonic of C Major. It’s a constant tease of resolution, but there’s no solid home base. We’re suspended in limbo. 

Subject is “sorry, btw.” What does that mean, Harry asks? Sorry we’re here in this place, that this is happing? This song is Harry’s declaration: he’s not staying, he’s not coming back down. It would be sweet if things stayed the same, but no, I’m stepping into the light. “All the lights couldn’t put out the dark”... even all the golden sun of Subject couldn’t heal the void in Harry’s soul?  Harry asks subject, do you know who you are? implying that he’s determined to answer this for himself. I’m reminded of the crab in Moana, singing “Shiny.” There’s a certain bravado here, a reckless glittery happiness, a flaunting, an exuberance in discovery. 

Side B 

Tonics are all over the place. Harry is certainly certain about heartbreak. No ambiguity here. 

Cherry: GM - Em - CM, or  I, vi, IV. We’re in G Major and we know it. Repetitive “cou-cos’s” pepper the track like hanging fruit (let’s imagine from cherry trees). 

The song is a simple one, simple in its jealousy. Harry has let Subject go, and now Subject is at their best... and Harry hates it. He doesn't want his former pet term of endearment used on another, even though he has no claim on Subject’s actions anymore. Harry keeps finding bits of Subject in how he dresses. They’re not talking lately, and Harry perhaps is most upset that this separation isn’t going how he planned... Subject is at their best without him. 

The gallery line is inserted as a bridge, a unique line of music rather separate from the rest, an intentional narrative. But what’s most fascinating is the end of the song. The previous repetitive chord progression changes. Now we have 

GM - AM7 (an added C#) - Am7 (4/2 inversion) - GM

or I, II7, ii7, I

The “cou-cou” lands during the AM7 (the II7) and it lands EXACTLY on the note of B, extending the 7th chord to a ninth chord, before, on its second syllable, dropping to the A and holding there (a kind of suspension) while the chord progression resolves to the Am7 (ii7), making the A a chord tone. This is deliberate. Unless the whole piece was harmonically built around Camille’s random use of a B to A in a voicemail (also randomly in the perfect key for Harry’s voice) this was purposely recorded for aesthetic effect. I for one really love it, I could listen to breathy french girls mutter about beaches endlessly...

Falling: A straightforward progression. In the key of E Major,

 EM - C#m - BM - AM or I, vi, V, IV

With Falling, the only ballade on the album, we see Harry shift from jealousy to self destructive behavior. I don’t believe the ‘wandering hands’ line is about cheating (he and Subject were already apart) but rather, Harry seeking to wound Subject by turning to others. Communication is back open, because Subject says they care, they miss him too, but now Harry’s gone and fucked it all up. What have I become? What if Subject never needs me again? I can’t unpack the baggage they left. I just want Subject AROUND! Harry isn’t even begging for a romantic connection, he’s simply begging for Subject’s presence. He was so sure he could discover himself in LU, and now he keeps asking, what am I now? Who has he become on his own? He’s falling, and there’s no one to catch him. 

To Be So Lonely: This song waffles between two keys, just as Harry waffles between defending himself to Subject and finally, finally admitting (in just one small line) that he is, in fact, sorry. The song seems to start out in C Major, with CM and Am chords (I, iv) but then at the chorus the Am chord elides from a iv to a i, revealing the key is really A minor. The chorus goes on to be:

Am - GM - Em - FM 

or i, VII (lowered leading tone in minor), v (lowered leading tone in minor), VI

A fluttering mandolin mimics a fluttering heartbeat, and a folk music lilt gives the song a certain feel of heartbreak. 

Harry asks for Subject to not blame the drunk caller, likely himself. Harry was away. He missed Subject. He was just a little boy when he fell, and presumably Subject caught him that time. Subject is trying to be friends, they mean well, perhaps have taken pity on him, but Harry cannot stand to be called baby now, not when that name doesn’t mean what it used to, not when it’s a hollow word. Harry’s ‘home’ is suddenly a lonely place, but Subject has his reasons for how he’s acted, presumably good ones, and finally Harry gives his mea culpa, “this is it, so I’m sorry.” 

Interestingly, only after admitting that he’s made mistakes too, that he’s not perfect, that he shares the blame, does Harry confront and open himself to the realization contained in the next song, the heart of the album and the crux of what Harry’s been dancing around up until this point. 

She: In E minor, both verse and chorus use the same progression:

Em - DM - CM - Am - (Bm, a quick lead-in to) - Em 

 or i, II, VI, iv, v (no raised leading tone), i 

This Bowie-esc sounding song is the first to have characters. In addition to the Subject (perennially addressed as ‘You’) there is The Man and She. I would argue The Man and She are both Harry, a duality. The man drops his kids off at school, the man is thinking of You, like all of us do (everyone thinks of their SO perhaps). The Man goes through mundane daily tasks, but is he faking it? Does he really know what to do? He’s playing pretend, so pretend. 

Now Harry introduces She. (When speaking of She, Harry sings in a high falsetto.) She lives in daydreams, she is the first one he sees, and Harry doesn’t know who She is. A Woman just in his head, who sleeps in his (a jump up to the falsetto for just this one word in the verse) bed while he plays pretend. Much has been said about the gender/fluidity discovery in this song, and by better than me. It’s clear what Harry is saying, it’s clear what he’s going through and wrestling with. He’s thinking of Subject, but also haunted by She, in his head, in his mind’s eye, in his daydreams. She is a part of Harry, and Harry wants to know who She is. 

Side C

Uncomplicated tonics! All Major! A shift into happiness perhaps? 

Sunflower: F Major. BbM - FM - CM, or IV, I, V.  The bridge is fancy:

iii, IV, V, vi, I, V vi, V (vi?) V 

Some trippie hippie song from the 60s! Two lines of thought are apparent from the get go; Harry says he wants to get to know Subject, but then says “before I got to know you.” It’s as if this is a new beginning, like he and Subject are starting over. Much is made of the ‘seed’ thing, a metaphor for new life and rebirth, “plant new seeds in the melody.” Harry is trying hard not to talk to Subject, to not seem eager, not act a fool. He was just tongue tied, then he’s still tongue tied, implying he’s done this whole dance before. He implores Subject to hold their sweet memories: domestic times, kitchens, kids. In Golden, Subject was the sun. Now Subject is a sunflower, hung up high in the gallery, out of the shade, in the light a sunflower needs to thrive, into the light, step into the light. Little gasps from Harry interject throughout; is he surfacing from water (LU music video?), is he breathing between kisses, is he suddenly gifted new life like Gandalf atop Isengard? The end of the piece devolves into calls of unbridled, nonsensical joy, like birds song, like mating calls amongst brilliant plumage. 

Canyon Moon: D Major. DM - GM - AM - DM (I, IV, V, I)

 Bridge DM - (Em transit?) - AM - DM (I, (ii), V, I) 

Chorus DM - AM - DM - GM (I, V6, I6, IV) 

Perhaps the most straightforward tonic bound song of the album. Harry is missing Subject, but it’s a happy nostalgia now, a hopeful one, a “two weeks and I’ll be home.” Home is no longer a lonely place, like in TBSL. The world is happy waiting (there’s no rush? No need to have everything figured out?). “Doors yellow, broken, blue.” You can’t bribe the door on the way to the sky a sky where Harry’s Golden sun awaits him, and now the sky door is broken, busted through, that blue door to a blue sky that never looked so blue. 

We get another glimpse of She here; Subject remains You, Harry remains Harry, but there’s also a She who plays old hippies’ love songs and pretends to know the words; perhaps this is another Camille reference for narrative purposes, but I lean more towards this being another reference to She as Harry, exploring odd new music he’s never heard, trying not to be so pretentious about it but failing. (He’s such an Aquarius.) Most charmingly of all, the single whistler becomes two by the end of the song. 

Treat People With Kindness: F Major. This is the most interesting piece in terms of text painting. 

We start with CM6 - FM, then FM6/4 - BbM, then back to CM6 - FM, then we hold on the Am chord, and then repeat the whole thing. So analyzed in F Major this would be V6, I, I6/4, IV, V6, I, iii. 

But. By using the I6 to IV, Harry plays with the idea of a V of IV, where you take the IV chord of the key and pretend it has its own dominant (V) and use the V of IV not as the I chord normally is used, but as a Leading Tone chord to IV. 

ALL THAT TO SAY. He’s illustrating the lyrics. During “Maybe we can find a place” the chords are playing with dual resolutions. Where is the actual tonic? Is it F Major or B Flat Major? It’s ambiguous! We don’t know! We haven’t found our place yet! 

But then! The bridge. “And if we’re here long enough” and look where we land, on a CM chord, then BbM, then FM, a solid V, IV, I progression. And THEN (bless this boy) on the word belong we get the same A minor chord (the iii) but we get a 7th added to the chord, a G, and Harry holds this G in the melody (plant new seeds in the melody), a note that VERY MUCH DOES NOT BELONG because in no universe does a iii chord in Major have a 7th added! And Harry not only ADDS but draws attention to this note, this note that doesn’t belong!!! Then this iii7 chord resolves to C Major (V), making the G note a chord tone, making it BELONG, making it fit perfectly. 

GOD. Weep with me. 

This is Over the Rainbow. This is Hair, this is Age of Aquarius. Somewhere there’s a place we can belong and feel good and people will celebrate and rejoice in us, someday a new age will dawn. 

Harry is plunging into the deep end, dreaming, caught up in his good feelings and his euphoria in being “given second chances.” He’s tentative about admitting reckless hope to Subject; instead he says, “Maybe we can find a place to feel good?” Harry says he doesn’t need all the answers. He said in LU “do you know who you are” then in Falling “What am I now?” then in She “I don't know who she is” and now he’s at peace. He feels good in his skin, and he will keep on dancing. 

Most personally, I think the sudden somber turn of the line “If our friends all pass away” is in reference to grief. He’s speaking to Subject, but also to himself. It will be okay, okay, okay. Harry can’t control his life, he doesn’t have everything figured out, but he’s come to accept that. 

Side D

Fine Line: D Major. We come full circle, returning to the use of only three chords like at the start of the album. This time, though, Harry resolves to tonic in a repetitive pattern used for both the verses and chorus: 

Bm, GM7, DM6/4, or vi, IV7, I

FL is the summation of the album, the thesis statement, the conclusion of the journey. Harry has endured tests of patience, and accepted that there are things he’ll never know. He’s trying to shake off trepidation (of plunging in the deep end? Of hoping?). He says “My hand’s at risk, I fold.” The poker analogy is an interesting one; Subject (presumably) has gotten past Harry’s poker face, has sussed out his fronts and acts and strategies, and Harry is left bare and exposed, vulnerable before them. He’s been brought to this point, but willingly he folds. He laments that “spreading you open is the only way of knowing you.” We should open up before it’s all too much. Harry is done fighting. He’s also done sleeping in the dirt. For the first time he’s not sugar-coating his words, avoiding their problems via sex and pretense and flowery language. He’s matured enough to admit, “Man, I hate you sometimes.”

Again we have the reappearance of She. Harry says to Subject, “We’ll get the drinks in, so I’ll get to thinking of her.” This She is something between them, within them now, another facet of his and Subject’s relationship. Harry is going to spend time thinking of Her. She, I believe, is a part of him. 

A fine line is a balancing act, a tightrope, a suspension between extremes. But Harry calls out into the echo of the music, “We’ll be alright.” A declaration, a hope, a promise. Brass, strings, and a building crescendo, a cacophony of movie-credit-worthy emotion, sweeps us towards closure. Ethereal voices fade out, moving from dominant to tonic, but then a solitary piano plinks on a V chord, twice, hanging in the air, a question, an invitation, a hope. 

[mossy-man]

Mossy man, ever so often I dream of teeth filling my lungs. In my waking moments I can still feel them there, and I sometimes I can taste them when I eat, white powdery bits caught in my mouth as if one slipped up into my mouth. Am I awake? Am I still asleep? Is there something that I need to do to be rid of these teeth?

where is the cashier? you’ve been standing at the counter for 10 minutes now. where are they?

your whisper reaches the ears of something.

[ dreams. curious and strange things. they may mimic our waking world. or they may be a twisted amalgamation of memories. thoughts that scare us. things that make us feel safe. true and false. we often cannot make heads or tails of them. but reoccurring dreams are the most frightening. you think of them regularly. and thus they will haunt you. anxiety and dreams are partners, in most cases. breathe, dear friend. do not worry.

your presence is very much welcome at the crossroads. ]

the lurcher sees you

the mossy man hears you

the field stalker is not within range

the church grim is not within range

you feel uncertain.

[rebuiltbionicle]

Kraata Powers

The Kraata, and by extension the Rahkshi and Makuta, have access to at least one of 42 different powers. These powers came about as an unintended byproduct of the Makuta’s antidermis based chemistry. The Kraata and Rahkshi have different hues based on their power. All these and the summaries of the powers are listed below.

Eight superfluous powers are absent from the Rebuiltverse, replaced with eight new powers that inherit the same Kraata and Rahkshi colours.

Rahkshi colour is listed armour colour first and muscle colour second. Kraata colour is listed head first and tail second. This list uses “Kraata” to refer to Kraata, Rahkshi, and Makuta as a whole. If there is a distinction between the three it will be pointed out.

Accuracy

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and purple

Kraata Colour: Red and blue

Summary: Enhances the Kraata’s hand-eye coordination, muscle control, and ability to lead a target.

Note: The Rahkshi like to throw their spears using this power.

Acid

Rahkshi Colour: Pink

Kraata Colour: Red and olive

Summary: A potent corrosive agent that can burn through nearly everything. The strongest it can dissolve is protosteel but it does so very slowly.

Note: A subpower of elemental Salt.

Adaptation

Rahkshi Colour: Black and purple

Kraata Colour: Yellow and gold

Summary: Adapts the Kraata to any environment it encounters, including the previous powers of fire and ice resistance for fiery or cold environments. They will gain associated weaknesses though. This is the only Kraata that can breathe underwater. They can adapt to a vacuum but can’t permanently survive it.

Note: Unrelated to adapting to enemy attacks.

Anger

Rahkshi Colour: White

Kraata Colour: Silver and white

Summary: Overrides target’s minds with a rage that they will unleash on whatever vexes them next. Can sometimes backfire on the Kraata when they become a outlet.

Note: An emotion power, and therefore a subpower of elemental Psionics.

Chain Lightning

Rahkshi Colour: Silver

Kraata Colour: Sand blue and olive

Summary: Throws arcs of lightning at targets. Can have a single bolt arc between multiple targets if powerful enough.

Note: A subpower of elemental Lightning.

Chameleon

Rahkshi Colour: Red and gold

Kraata Colour: Olive and yellow

Summary: Able to change the colour and texture of Kraata’s skin or the Rahkshi’s casing to blend in with the environment. Higher leveled Kraata and Makuta can become completely invisible.

Note: The illusion power can be used to accomplish the same thing, but the powers are distinct.

Confusion

Rahkshi Colour: Grey and Green

Kraata Colour: Black and gold

Summary: Robs the targets of higher mental functions, causing among other things: memory loss, aphasia, and a disconnect between the brain and the sensory organs. The severity depends on the power and intent of the Kraata; they could just make a target forget they saw the Kraata, or reduce a village into gibbering wretches. Aside from erasing memories, no permanent damage can be done with Confusion.

Note: A subpower of elemental Psionics.

Cyclone

Rahkshi Colour: Black and white

Kraata Colour: Sand blue and silver

Summary: Able to create whirlwinds of varying power, from tiny dust devils to F5 tornadoes, but no actual cyclones by human terms.

Note: A subpower of elemental Air. Also includes the ability to remain rooted to the ground, a subpower of elemental Magnetism.

Density Control

Rahkshi Colour: Black and green

Kraata Colour: Green and olive

Summary: Can change how much mass their own body is composed of, without affecting their life functions. The access mass is stored in a self-contained pocket dimension, as well three times their original mass to become heavier. Can also change where in their body their mass is located, and how tightly.

Note: Works great when coupled with shapeshifting.

Desiccation

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and yellow

Kraata Colour: Silver and sand blue

Summary: The Kraata absorbs all moisture in the area. Large bodies of water take hours to dry up, but within minutes soil will be barren and organic components will be severely dehydrated.

Note: A subpower of elemental Water.

Disintergration

Rahkshi Colour: Blue

Kraata Colour: Grey and light blue

Summary: Reduces objects to a mist of particles.

Note: Is a completely different power to fragmentation.

Dodge

Rahkshi Colour: Red and silver

Kraata Colour: Yellow and olive

Summary: Enhanced reflexes and speed that allows the Kraata to dodge even the fastest and most sudden of strikes. At the highest of levels, this power operates without the Kraata’s will, but Makuta always control it.

Note: A subpower of elemental Kinetics.

Elasticity

Rahkshi Colour: Tan

Kraata Colour: Lime and yellow

Summary: Ability to stretch and bend the body without damaging internal organs.

Note: Does not effect tools, except for Rahkshi staffs.

Fear

Rahkshi Colour: Red

Kraata Colour: Gold and red

Summary: Triggers panic responses in targets. At full strength can cause lesser strength beings to drop dead. The fear is felt towards the Kraata; there are no hallucinated phobias or anything.

Note: An emotion power, and therefore a subpower of elemental Psionics.

Fire Resistance

Rahkshi Colour: Aquamarine

Kraata Colour: Black and red

Summary: Able to withstand intense heat stresses, and is nonflammable. It takes plasma-levels of heat to harm them.

Note: Kraata are weak towards cold temperatures, but Makuta are not. Unrelated to elemental Fire.

Fragmentation

Rahkshi Colour: Brown

Kraata Colour: Bronze and tan

Summary: Pumps objects full of energy until they explode.

Note: A subpower of elemental Kinetics.

Frost

Rahkshi Colour: Light blue

Kraata Colour: Olive and gold

Summary: Takes the ambient temperature down wherever they go, able to freeze over bodies of water and cause snow.

Note: A subpower of elemental Ice.

Gravity

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and silver

Kraata Colour: Grey and olive

Summary: Can change the effect of gravity on a given object, including the Kraata itself.

Note: A narrow application of elemental Gravity.

Heat Vision

Rahkshi Colour: Yellow

Kraata Colour: Black and orange

Summary: Ability to fire beams of heat energy from the eyes. Kraata fire just the two lines ranging from parallel to converging, while the Makuta can use their shapeshifting to fire as many in whatever direction they like.

Note: Heat is a subpower of elemental Fire, but most Fire users fire heat from their tools rather than their eyes.

Hunger

Rahkshi Colour: Black

Kraata Colour: Dark grey and silver

Summary: Drains victims of their energy. The Kraata gains that energy as strength. This effects operating energy, elemental energy, or Kanohi power.

Note: Works on machines and biomechanicals. Organics are immune. Toa Power is also immune.

Ice Resistance

Rahkshi Colour: Red and yellow

Kraata Colour: Yellow and green

Summary: Able to withstand intense cold stresses, and internal fluids resist freezing. It takes “its raining oxygen” levels of cold to harm them.

Note: Kraata are weak towards warm temperatures, but Makuta are not. Unrelated to elemental Ice.

Illusion

Rahkshi Colour: Tan and blue

Kraata Colour: Green and yellow

Summary: Ability to conjure false images that, depending on power level, have the capacity to fool all the senses.

Note: A subpower of elemental Psionics.

Invulnerability

Rahkshi Colour: Grey

Kraata Colour: Black and olive

Summary: Quite literally resistant to most forms of damage. Not totally invulnerable; strong enough force can still harm them. As a downside they also resist external healing.

Note: Kraata have a specific weakness to elemental Light that Invulnerability does not protect them from. This wouldn’t be the case if they weren’t Shadow elementals.

Magnetism

Rahkshi Colour: Black and gold

Kraata Colour: Orange and black

Summary: Can adjust the ferromagnetic properties of a given object, including the Kraata itself.

Note: A narrow application of elemental Magnetism.

Plant Control

Rahkshi Colour: Green and brown

Kraata Colour: Gold and black

Summary: Able to control all the plants within a given area. Can accelerate growth or wilting, but cannot completely summon a plant from nothing.

Note: A narrow application of elemental Plantlife.

Plasma

Rahkshi Colour: Tan and red

Kraata Colour: Grey and blue-grey

Summary: Creating short-range streams of superheated gas.

Note: Distinct from heat vision but has similar applications. A narrow application of elemental Plasma.

Poison

Rahkshi Colour: Green

Kraata Colour: Green and lime

Summary: A slimy toxin that causes debilitating sickness or even death.

Note: The poison breaks down enzymes vital to the organic components of biomechanicals. Antidermis based life is immune. Fully organic life is not.

Power Mimicry

Rahkshi Colour: Maroon

Kraata Colour: Gold and olive

Summary: Upon witnessing a power, the Kraata is capable of using it themselves. They can only go as powerful as they witnessed, but are fully capable of innovating with its applications. They can only mimic one power at a time.

Note:

Power Scream

Rahkshi Colour: Purple

Kraata Colour: Red and black

Summary: Can unleash a wave of sonic energy from their lungs. Usually destructive, but can be used for relatively harmless long-range communication or to reach high-notes in choirs.

Note: A subpower of elemental Sonics.

Quick Healing

Rahkshi Colour: Black and brown

Kraata Colour: Olive and sand blue

Summary: Injuries regenerate fairy rapidly, depending on power level. The most powerful can extend the power to others.

Note:

Rahi Control

Rahkshi Colour: Magenta

Kraata Colour: Olive and grey

Summary: Able to override the will of any Rahi within the area, or just implant them with new instincts and beaviours. Changes to Rahi behaviour wear off once out of the Kraata’s field of influence.

Note: A narrow application of elemental Rahi.

Seismicity

Rahkshi Colour: Orange

Kraata Colour: Yellow and black

Summary: Channels energy into the earth, which is released as seismic waves. The earth shakes and can cause severe structural damage and cave-ins.

Note: A subpower of elemental Earth.

Shapeshifting

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and gold

Kraata Colour: Grey and lime

Summary: Control over the Kraata’s shape, into any feasible form. They cannot take the form of a plasma and risk dispersing if they take the form of liquid or gas.

Note: Kraata’s mass cannot change, but a Makuta has access to density control powers.

Shielding

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and white

Kraata Colour: Blue and red

Summary: Ability to summon defensive forcefields. These are two way and resist most forms of energy, but will pop under enough strain.

Note: Similar to the Kanohi Hau; weaker but with more applications

Silence

Rahkshi Colour: Grey and black

Kraata Colour: Lime and grey

Summary: Creates a field wherever they go that prevents sounds from permeating. This effectively both mutes and deafens everyone in range.

Note: A subpower of elemental Sonics.

Speed

Rahkshi Colour: Red and orange

Kraata Colour: Olive and green

Summary: Ability to move at heightened speeds without worrying about muscle fatigue.

Note: Subpower of elemental Kinetics.

Stasis Field

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and black

Kraata Colour: Sand blue and grey

Summary: Able to project fields that freeze objects in stasis, where no energy can interact with them and their processes are frozen at zero. Duration of the fields vary with power, but cannot be permanent.

Note: A subpower of elemental Kinetics.

Telekinesis

Rahkshi Colour: Black and red

Kraata Colour: Gold and yellow

Summary: Able to move and manipulate objects using nothing but psionic power.

Note: A subpower of elemental Psionics.

Teleportation

Rahkshi Colour: Blue and green

Kraata Colour: Olive and red

Summary: Can disappear and reappear a given distance away at will.

Note:

Tracking

Rahkshi Colour: Yellow and green

Kraata Colour: Black and yellow

Summary: Ability to “mark” a target, after which the Kraata can sense their presence for a given distance depending on power.

Note:

Vacuum

Rahkshi Colour: Orange and black

Kraata Colour: Yellow and lime

Summary: Rapid suction of the given medium, both inwards or outwards, or perhaps both at once.

Note: Traditionally a subpower of elemental Air, but Kraata can do it to water and other fluid as well.

Weather Control

Rahkshi Colour: Gold

Kraata Colour: Olive and black

Summary: Able to create and move particulate matter through the air.

Note: A subpower of elemental Water.

[nadziejastar]

What are your thoughts on the various types of lesser Nobodies?

The members of the Organization each had their own distinctive weapons that didn’t exactly cooperate if someone else tried to use them, but Keyblades were even more particular. If someone else so much as tried to pick it up, a Keyblade would simply return to its wielder’s hand. Or so Xion had heard.

We should have gotten to learn how the members of the organization got their weapons.

Nobodies derived their personalities and abilities from memories of their human lives. But what exactly were those abilities? What gave rise to them? The answer that came to mind was the presence of memory itself. They were chained by their memory, and in those bonds was power. So it was probably fair to say that Roxas and Xion were bound by the same memory.

And we should have learned how they got their “personalities” and abilities, too. The Nobodies they control are one of those abilities, no doubt. They should be based off of specific memories from when they were human. Which means that the organization members should have gotten a MUCH more flesh out backstory than they got. I’m really disappointed that most of them remained so flat, even including the popular ones like Axel. He may have been very likable, but his backstory in KH3 left him very flat.

Sorcerer

A sorcerer, magician, or “witch” attempts to influence the surrounding world through occult (i.e., hidden, as opposed to open and observable) means.

There should have been a story/lore based reason for each of their fighting styles. There are no lesser Nobodies based on Vexen/Zexion. It probably means that those two did not have any fighting abilities as humans, which makes sense. But the rest of the organization probably did fight as humans, thus they can control Nobodies based off of that fighting style.

Sniper

A sniper is a marksman who operates to shoot people from a concealed position. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision rifles and high-magnification optics, and often feed information back to their units or command headquarters.

Braig was a sniper when he was a castle guard.

Dragoon

Dragoon, in late 16th-century Europe, a mounted soldier who fought as a light cavalryman on attack and as a dismounted infantryman on defense. The terms derived from his weapon, a species of carbine or short musket called the dragoon.

Dilan was a dragoon.

XaldinHe has the image of a medieval Chinese military commander. He is excellent at strategizing, and a powerful soldier. I’m sure the players all know that he is a contender for the first or second strongest in the Organisation. I’m satisfied that I was able to depict that strength in his personality, too. I personally really like this character.–Nomura

But he was also based on a Chinese military commander. We didn’t get to learn much about Dilan. What was his motivation? Why did he side with Xehanort? 

Watching that foolish beast flail about only deepens my disdain for humans and their incessant need to be pinned down by feelings. We became Nobodies precisely to avoid the shackles of emotion. It was only later that we realized the scale of that loss: that some things simply cannot be done without a heart. Nonetheless, I see nary a pleasant thing about it.

Why did he want to get rid of his emotions and why did he consider them a weakness? What was his opinion of Ansem the Wise, and how did he feel when he was banished? Did he want to take over Radiant Garden?

Samurai

The ideal samurai was supposed to be a stoic warrior who followed an unwritten code of conduct, later formalized as Bushidō, which held bravery, honour, and personal loyalty above life itself; ritual suicide by disembowelment (seppuku) was institutionalized as a respected alternative to dishonour or defeat.

Aeleus was a samurai.

LexaeusHe’s a character with strength to rival Xaldin. While Xaldin has power plus technique, I’d say to Lexaeus is more of a samurai, or that he has bushido-style strength. If you listen to his very last line in Re:COM, I think you’ll be able to see his spirit. I wanted to do more with this character.–Nomura

Nomura said his final words showed his spirit.

Lexaeus: You are the Superior’s—Forgive me, Zexion. This was a fight I should not have started.

In Re:CoM, these are his last words. He seems to have some honor and was loyal to Zexion.

Lexaeus gave him a cruel smile. “Hmph…so I must accept my defeat here. But do not make the mistake of underestimating the darkness in me! As I am destroyed, it will leave this ruined vessel and drown you!” 

Then there was a terrible shock wave far greater than what Riku had felt from the darkness that Lexaeus radiated before the battle. 

“Wh…what’s happening?!” A relentless swirl of darkness surrounded him, swallowing him up until he disappeared into it. 

Lexaeus laughed madly. “This is my strength… I, number five in the organization… I who was once his favorite pupil!” Those were Lexaeus’s final words before he vanished into the darkness.

In the novel, there’s an extended final scene with his final words where he apparently commits seppuku and says he was “his” favorite pupil. Who’s favorite pupil? Ansem? Xehanort? We’ll probably never know.

Berserker

Berserker, Norwegian berserk, Old Norse berserkr (“bearskin”), in premedieval and medieval Norse and Germanic history and folklore, a member of unruly warrior gangs that worshipped Odin, the supreme Norse deity, and attached themselves to royal and noble courts as bodyguards and shock troops. The berserkers’ savagery in battle and their animal-skin attire contributed to the development of the werewolf legend in Europe. These Viking berserkers were infamous for fighting in a violent rage, recklessly charging at their enemies without armor or any other protection, and seemingly without concern for their own health.

Saïx is a strange case. Unlike the apprentices, we never saw Isa fighting as a human. He was just a kid. So how did he become a berserker of all things?

Prayers are uttered to Odin, as the object of contemplation. Why Odin and not the wolf, bear, or whatever? The berserk trance is brought about by Odin, he is the inspirer, that which brings something outside the self within the self. This is ond, inspiration, or vital breath. This triggers the wod, or fury and possession, which is where the wolf, bear, or whatever comes in. As a god, Odin is a “larger” concept than the animal, and so the effect he has upon the mind during the ritual will be the greater.

Berserkers worshiped Odin. To go berserk, they needed to meditate on him and receive divine inspiration. In other words, they couldn’t just go berserk at will. The needed to meditate upon a divine purpose to go berserk.

Do you know what happens to those who lose their true purpose? Inevitably, they destroy themselves.

I think Saïx was the same.

It infuriated me how you just exited our lives. I lost…all sense of purpose.

He needed a purpose to go berserk. 

Yes, I thought you didn’t need me anymore. If you didn’t need me, then I no longer held meaning.

For him, it was Lea. 

Saïx hesitated for a second, and Roxas ran at him.

He blocked the Keyblade.

Long ago—I remember, I didn’t hate fighting. Saïx flung his claymore at Roxas.

And so, Saïx remembered things from a long, long time ago.

My theory is that Saïx would need to meditate on his purpose before he could go berserk. Before he went berserk fighting Roxas, he thought back to a time before he hated fighting. Back when he had someone to protect and fighting actually had meaning.

Assassin

A murderer of an important person in a surprise attack for political or religious reasons.

One of the things I disliked about KH3 was its characterization of Axel/Lea and seemingly retconning his role as an assassin. On the clock tower, Axel and Saïx revealed their shared goal of finding Subject X. Saïx wanted to work his way to the top of the organization hierarchy so he could find out what happened to her. Axel said that he couldn’t keep up with Saïx and his willingness to do the icky jobs Xemnas wanted them to do to achieve that rank.

This flies in the face of ALL the hints from the previous games about their shared objective:

In order for Sora—no, for Roxas to live, and also for us to accomplish our own goal, Zexion is in the way. And, if it’s for the sake of our own goal, we already decided what to do, that time.

In the novel, Axel references their shared goal and how they decided to do whatever it took. Zexion was in the way and Axel killed him.

Given the right memories, the Replica could mimic the powers of the original. Which meant that if he were implanted with somebody else’s memories, he would, hypothetically, gain other powers. Somebody’s—or maybe even a Nobody’s. He had one particular Nobody in mind. All the members of the Organization were still influenced by the memories of their human lives.

Here, it references Axel’s memories of his human life as a reason he wants to use the Riku Replica to defeat someone and absorb their powers. Sounds like Axel was, at least partially, motivated by revenge.

Axel let out a breath. “Look, I knew Vexen and Zexion would cause trouble for you. That’s why they’re not around anymore.”

That sounded more like he was justifying it to himself, Axel thought. Their lack of hearts didn’t render their actions meaningless. It wasn’t as if they never thought carefully or acted without objectives in mind. Humans and Nobodies alike would pursue their own purposes.

“The dirty work doesn’t bother me,” Axel went on. “You just make for the top.” There was nothing false in that, and he looked Saïx in the eye as he said it. Saïx stared hard back at him. Right. We have our own agenda.

Again, it demonstrates how Axel was always the one willing to do the dirty work to achieve their goal.

“Everything is back to normal. Of course this is for the best, isn’t it?”

The reason I’m unable to answer Saïx is probably because I depend on him, thought Axel.

“Xemnas has also been irritated at the recent changes in plan. Everything has to go back to normal, for the sake of our goal too… Lea.”

Axel finally looked over at the sound of that nostalgic name. Saïx was looking at him. It made him think of his time as a human, and the memories came surging back.

Here, Saïx is trying to coerce Axel into killing Xion for the sake of their goal. He never even considers doing it himself. It sounds like Axel was always the one who handled the icky jobs like killing, not Saïx. Because, obviously, that was Axel’s job. He was the assassin.

I just did what I thought was the best thing at the time. For Roxas, for Xion, for the Organization—and for Isa. But most of all for me.

Axel was at first willing to kill Xion. And who was he doing it for? Isa. And for himself. Because he needed Isa. He emotionally depended on him. Saïx knew Axel needed him and manipulated him by calling him “Lea”.

Axel didn’t care anymore about what the Organization needed, what Xion or Roxas wanted, or even what was supposed to be good for the worlds. He had been using the Organization for his own ends from the start. The only thing that had changed in the meantime was who it was all for. Maybe Saïx would call that a betrayal. But his world had changed.

It doesn’t sound like Axel’s willingness to kill had anything to do with Subject X or finding information about her. It sounds like Axel was wiling to kill for Saïx. He and Saïx wanted to take over the organization for Saïx’s sake.

What were you really after, Lea? We joined the Organization at the same time, and formulated our plan. At this point, it’s just an idle fantasy. Everything changed. You, and me.

When Axel refused to do what Saïx wanted and left the organization, he apparently didn’t need him anymore. And Saïx couldn’t handle that.

Yes, I thought you didn’t need me anymore. If you didn’t need me, then I no longer held meaning.

Of course, Axel’s motivation was retconned in KH3. Instead of Isa being his reason for staying in the organization, it became Subject X/Skuld. And along with that change, Axel’s role as an assassin was whitewashed. Maybe the idea of the fan-favorite Axel being happily willing to ruthlessly murder people didn’t seem appropriate anymore. Especially if it was no longer not for his best friend, but for a girl who is basically a stranger to him. I dunno. But I think it’s BS.

Dancer

A warrior who dances across the battlefield, garbed in colorful raiments. Tends to have low stats and specializes in support magic.

Demyx was a dancer.

DemyxFrom the beginning he was created as a light-hearted character, but his voice actor really made him stand on his own as a character despite the short appearances he had. He is by no means strong, so I think it’s funny how you don’t see it coming when his abilities make him a formidable opponent. His line before exiting was something I thought of on the spot and had them add in.–Nomura

He is described as not very strong. We never got to see him as a human, but he was probably a performer.

Gambler

(Bakuto, 博徒) were itinerant gamblers in Japan from the 18th century to the mid-20th century. They were one of the forerunners of the modern Japanese crime gangs known as yakuza. Bakuto plied their trade in feudal Japan, playing traditional games such as hanafuda and dice. They were mostly social outcasts who lived outside the laws and norms of society.

Luxord has still not received a backstory. I think we can tell a lot about him with this, though.

LuxordIn all honesty he is my absolute favourite Organisation member. I like how he treats everything as a gamble, like Setzer from FFVI of old. I actually wanted to make him stand out more. At least I got him to say some things during the meeting scene added to KH2 FM+… but Luxord should have been able to do so much more…–Nomura

Nomura wanted to do more with him.

The nation of Lucis was said to have worked akin to a mafia crime family since the nation’s ancient beginnings, and despite its peace was said to have engaged in strict rule, including a ban on firearms and a lockdown in the capitol city. Noctis was the crown prince, and Regis the current king. Ignis, Gladiolus, and Prompto—Noctis’s team members—acted as his entourage akin to a Yakuza kyodai-shatei structure.

Maybe his gambler/bakuto job is the reason why he’s apparently going to have a connection to the Verum Rex world. In Re:Mind, Yozora’s driver sounded like Luxord. And Luxord’s wild card is apparently going to be what helps Sora return.

Reaper

Death is frequently imagined as a personified force. In some mythologies, a character known as the Grim Reaper causes the victim’s death by coming to collect that person’s soul. Other beliefs hold that the Spectre of Death is only a psychopomp, serving to sever the last ties between the soul and the body, and to guide the deceased to the afterlife, without having any control over when or how the victim dies.

The Reaper and Ninja Nobodies were introduced in KH3. I think Marluxia’s intentions were supposed to be known by the time KH3 started. He wanted to bring his sister back. That’s why he wanted to control Sora and the Keyblade and take over Castle Oblivion. That’s something that should have been explored in the Dark Seeker Saga, explaining how Marluxia became a vessel. Maybe Xehanort convinced him that if he helped open Kingdom Hearts, he could reunite with his sister.

Ninja

A ninja (忍者) was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included espionage, deception, and surprise attacks. Their covert methods of waging irregular warfare were deemed dishonorable and beneath the honor of the samurai.

Larxene’s backstory is a Keyblade wielder from the age of fairy tales. But why was she a knife wielding ninja archetype character? What was her life like before she became a Nobody and tried to take over Castle Oblivion? How did she get so twisted and when did her hatred of men develop? What is the nature of her feelings for Marluxia? That’s what I wanna know.

[flourchildwrites]

Witch, Please!  Fictober 2019  (30/30)

A multi-fandom Fictober prompt compilation.  Your wish is my command, but be careful what you ask for.  You just might get it.

Prompt:  “All Hallows Eve” from Writetober 2019 Prompt List

Fandom:  Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia

Relationship/Pairing:  Todoroki Shouto/Yaoyorozu Momo

Genre:  Trick or Treating

Rating:  Teen And Up Audiences

Word Count:  804 words

Read on AO3

“Trick or Treat!”

Halloween doesn’t make sense to Shouto; however, it isn’t the idea of pretending to be someone else that he can’t comprehend.  Though he isn’t as exuberant as Midoria, Shouto idolized All Might. In fact, he still does. It’s natural for kids to have such dreams.

Shouto can picture himself as a child, turning the corners of a happy home in loose socks and a towel tied his neck like a cape.  His mother would have laughed, and his father would have smirked, peering thoughtfully over the top of his morning paper. Of course, this false memory is nothing more than a poor imitation of normality, strung together from odd ends of pop culture and sitcom reruns.

But it’s a nice thought nonetheless.

No, it isn’t the costumes and pretend play that baffles Shouto.  It isn’t even the flash mobs, zombie runs or themed pub crawls. If U.A. had not kept him so busy, he might have joined in.

It’s the child, a little boy of maybe five or six, who stands in front of him dressed in a navy blue jumpsuit with burgundy wrist guards that causes him unease.  Brown eyes bright with awe, he rocks back and forth, teeming with excitement in his snow-white boots. The child’s movements strain the gray neckpiece connecting the high collar of his costume, and lower down, a brown utility belt jingles with every subtle movement.

Impressed, Shouto scans the child’s heart-shaped face, noting the wig as well as the makeup applied over his left eye to mimic Shouto’s infamous scar. It’s hard to fault the child or his proud mother for their fastidious attention to detail.  Yet, Shouto cannot help but wonder if they’d feel the same if they knew the story behind his mark.

He keeps his silence and forces a small smile, dropping a piece of candy into the kid’s plastic pumpkin along with a pre-autographed card.  Both treats hit the bottom of the container with a hollow thump. It’s only his twentieth visitor, but Shouto has already grown tired of tricks, treats and the children who’ve swarmed the decorated auditorium.

In true U.A. style, the event is ridiculously “Plus Ultra,” from Tokoyami’s Haunted House to the three-legged race officiated by Iida.  Even Bakugo has a part to play, though he has no lines. Ground Zero merely stands by Midnight’s side as she welcomes the crowds, and perhaps it is progress enough that he isn’t yelling obscenities over the sound of Earphone Jack’s festive music.

Shouto’s directive is to be more personable, and to this end, he is paired with Creati, handing out candy on a mock front porch.  So disarming is she that sometimes Shouto forgets that the Yaoyorozu family is old, old money. So kind, that from time to time, villains underestimate her S-class intelligence.

He’s realized recently that she takes advantage of their ignorance.  But not tonight.

Tonight, her smile is as open and unguarded as ever.  Bright eyes blaze in midnight shades of gray offset by the crimson cape of her hero’s costume and the gold belt glinting beneath it.  Flashes of skin capture Shouto’s unbidden attention, but moreover, he finds himself enthralled by the way she connects with both the students and parents.  They might put Shouto on a pedestal as a potential successor to All Might, but the public feels like they know Momo Yaoyorozu.

And sometimes Shouto is jealous.  Of what, he isn’t sure.

“Has the hero Shouto come to help me eat all this candy?” she asks the small boy.

Delight spreads across the child’s face when he realizes she’s talking to him and not the semi-pro handing out candy alongside her.  He happily thrusts his hand inside the plastic jack-o’-lantern and offers Momo an orange KitKat, which she politely declines. Instead, she produces a box of pocky and offers mini-Shouto a slender stick.  They laugh and share their sweets. Momo’s tongue darts out to greet the rich chocolate, and Shouto finds himself watching and wondering.

In the space of a second, the young man’s mind flits back to his earlier reverie.  But now, he is no longer the child; Shouto is the father, sipping a cup of tea, legs tucked under the kotatsu.  A little girl with split black and white hair sprints outdoors. She catches snowflakes in her gloved hands and spins as the flurries continue to fall.  Momo is seated next to him, watching their daughter.

It’s pleasant and disarming -- the precise qualities Momo exudes despite the danger lurking just out of sight and mind. He shakes the pesky thought off and continues to attend to the never-ending line of lookalikes. If it is jealousy Shouto feels, he hopes it will not show.  Not for the first time, he wonders if these wishful daydreams are truly tricks or treats.

A/N:  And that's a wrap, folks! Here's some light Todomomo to round out my Fictober 2019 challenge. Perhaps this is a couple of days late, but I'm calling this project a win. 30/31 is pretty good! A million thanks to everyone who followed this collection and encouraged me along the long, long road. As always, your kudos, bookmarks, subscriptions, comments, likes and reblogs give me life. Also, don't be a stranger and check out my tumblr. Send me questions, comments or whatever else may be on your mind.