#the arcana tale

[alpinechamomile]

new tale art really said *tilts head at you adorably* 💙💜💖 (all cgs by Gabriella Rossetti)

cgs were gathered and posted by @ask-count-lulu 🫶

[ceragondubs]

Reminder that the April 30 deadline is coming up! If anyone wants an extension please feel free to leave a comment on the video so I can see it!

Hello everyone! As some of you may have noticed, we have decided to pick our The Arcana dub back up! ^^ However, it will be a reboot because our original actors can no longer voice act so we are going to have an all new cast!

For those interested in auditioning, Nadia, Asra, and Lucio are open! In the description there will be ways to submit an audition. We’re so excited to release this casting call and hope you may consider sending in an audition! 💙

THIS IS NOT A PAID PROJECT AND FOR FUN AND EXPERIENCES ONLY! Deadline to audition: APRIL 30TH, 2024.

[chunkysoup22]

misty and opaline

[shummthechumm]

OPALINE IS FLURRY HEART TRUTHERS!!!! THIS IS HOW WE CAN STILL WIN!!!! (<--in denial)

[jontaro-kun]

God I love women I wish they were real

[paperstarwriters]

Sleep

Muriel x Reader

Warnings: Sleepy reader, a kiss is used to shut the reader up. Muriel manhandles reader a bit

Summary: It's late. You're tired, and Muriel is too. All he wants to do is bring you to bed.

[A/N]: Reader is currently me rn. I should really head to bed lol. Also, if this looks familiar, this is the file "A bed and a book" from that WIP Wednesday I did a while ago. (I'll link it tomorrow lol. I need to sleep...)

Masterlist | The Arcana Masterlist

Word count: 2,021

─────── ᶻ 𝘇 𐰁 ───────

Muriel watches you amidst the growing cold of the hut.

He watches you tremble and shiver, as you work, too focused to notice your own quaking limbs, or too busy to give it any attention. The fire dies in the fireplace, and though there was plenty of firewood that he could easily restock the fire with, a roaring fire with no one to watch over it only ever spelled trouble.

Usually he didn't even let the fire keep going this late at night, but you needed it while you worked.

You also, however, needed sleep.

"It's late."

You hum, continuing to scribble as you mutter something about a fleeting idea before you respond.

"I know. Just let me finish this."

Muriel huffs. That's not the first time you've said that and he knows full well that it won't be the last either. He pulls himself from the warmth of the bed, where he had been waiting for you, and plants his feet on the cold floor. The feeling makes him flinch for a moment, and he decides with a sigh, that he would give you one more chance.

"No. It's really, really late."

"You don't have to wait up for me."

In another moment, in another context, Muriel might have blushed at being caught caring for you. At being caught waiting or anticipating your return to his side. Currently however, a streak of frustration, fleeting but hot, burns in his chest. He "doesn't have to"? If he didn't wait up for you, you'd waste yourself away working on your projects. If he didn't wait up for you, he'd have to fall asleep and wake up to empty arms as you sit there just within reach and yet so far away. If he didn't wait up for you, would you ever sleep at all?

Muriel scoffs, and he wonders if you can hear it through your work. He wonders if you can hear him stand from the bed, and stride over towards you. Hearing you gasp as he wraps his arms around you, he figures you didn't, which only serves to target the selfish and greedy part of him—the part that makes his frustration flare all the more at the absence of your attention, the absence of your body pressed against his own.

The look you give him, wide eyed and filled with a startled awe, serves to soothe him for a moment, easing that need for attention, but it brings back to his focus the dark circles under your eyes, and the tremble of your hands hovering over your paper. It's a horrible combination really. The selfish and greedy need for your attention, for your skin against his, made virtuous through his concern for your health and your desperate need for sleep. It made it all the more hard to tell the line where he was being greedy, and where he was being concerned. Yet, if he wanted you to be happy and healthy by his side, could that even really be called greed?

As shock melts into confusion, Muriel can feel your trembling body melt against his, relaxing into the offer of sleep and rest that you continue to deprive yourself of. Greed, Muriel decides, is a kind and necessary thing to indulge in if it means you get to rest.

"It's late," he reiterates.

You scoff, rolling your eyes as you glance around the room, clearly not believing time to have slipped past you so quickly. Knowing you’re delirious with exhaustion, he doesn't trust you to realize that he had stocked the fireplace earlier that day to burn late into the night, and that no, he did not do anything that may speed up the burning process in any way.

Instead, he drags his hand down to your own, trembling as you grip your pen as if you feared it might be ripped away from you in any given moment. Though the temptation to do so is there, he knows full well how ineffective that would be. Instead, he trails his hand down your forearm. The rest of your arm is still pinned down by his in a half hug, but he doesn't even need to exert much pressure to keep you in place—your exhaustion doing most of that work for him.

Fresh from the confines of the bed, his hand and body still cling to the remains of warmth, a sharp contrast to your own, left night-chilled in the absence of the fireplace. It's clear, with the trail of goosebumps and shivers that appear in the wake of his touch, that you're freezing right now, and in desperate need of blankets and warm, warm cuddles.

His hand makes his way down to yours eventually, and he can see the twitch of your fingers as you're tempted to drop the pen to take his hand into your own. Pressing his thumb to the seam of your wrist and your palm,  Muriel feeds the temptation, massaging the tender skin as best he can manage despite his calloused fingers. He’s careful not to seem too desperate for you to relax and drop your work to follow him back into the warm embrace of the bed. Up and down, he works his thumb from the centre of your palm to your pulse on your wrist. Little by little your hand sags in his hold, your pen drooping and slipping from loosened fingers, until it finally falls and leaves a splatter of ink on the wood of the table.

Your eyes dart down and your hand tenses up prepared to apologize and clean up your little mess, but Muriel refuses to let you fuss over something so trivial when your own health is at risk. His face dips into the crook of your neck, his lips spattering kisses against your skin luring you further into his embrace until your eyes flutter closed and your head bobs against his shoulder, fighting a futile battle against the urge to sleep.

Letting go of your hand, and slipping his hand instead beneath your legs to scoop you from your seat, Muriel realizes that he too must be a little delirious with sleep. Blush grows against his face, while he continues to press kisses against your skin, but he doesn't have much energy left to care about how embarrassing his affections may be. Instead, he sighs his lips still pressed against your skin as he pulls you into bed.

"Next time, I'm dragging you to bed the moment the sun goes down," he blurts, uncaring for any embarrassing connotations you might derive from his words. Instead, he focused on holding you close against him, in his arms where you belonged as you wormed your own arms around him, finally settling into his embrace.

At least, he thought you were settling into his embrace.

Despite how your body was nearly a puddle of boneless goop in his arms, exhausted and ready for sleep, you try to turn looking back to the table where your pen and papers lay.

"my pen—" you try to argue.

"it's fine," he mutters, his voice a bit gruff with his own exhaustion. "Go to sleep"

"But the ink—"

"it's fine," he grumbles again, squeezing you tighter in case you tried to slip free. "Go to sleep"

"But—"

Muriel sighs again, loud and irritated and tired, before he leans in and seals your lips with his own. He knows that tomorrow, if he thinks to long about the events of last night, he'll burn himself with how hard he'd blush, but today, all he wants is for you to go to sleep and get some well deserved rest. He's willing to sacrifice a little embarrassment if it means you sleep.

Even if he'd find himself embarrassed tomorrow, he hopes that it'll be washed out with the pride he feels in the moment, burning bright and making his chest tight, as he feels you sag in his arms. You’re melting from his kiss alone and that makes his heart soar. The effect he has just from kissing you is wonderful sure, but it's the evidence that he knows you that makes him feel the warmest. He knows how to get you to relax. He knows how to make you feel comfortable enough to finally go to sleep. Pulling back, he settles himself back into the crook of your neck, grinning from accomplishments, as he feels you finally seem to drift of to sleep.

Of course, seem is the word of focus here. Since, moments later, Muriel can feel you once again trying to squirm free from his embrace. Though he keeps his eyes closed amidst your little struggle, he holds you tighter, muttering in a sleep raged voice for what seems like the hundredth time.

“Go to sleep.”

You fall limp at his request, though he's more than awake enough to realize what you're trying to do. Waiting and biding your time for him to fall asleep before you. He sighs at the notion, and changes tactics.

"What's wrong?"

You're silent for a moment, still feigning sleep even if he can feel your heartbeat's staccato rhythm from where you're pressed against his chest. He doesn't push though, almost hoping that you'd fall asleep while pretending to do so, but he still waits for your reply, whether it comes or not.

"I just... I have an idea I want to write down."

"You can write it down tomorrow."

"But what if I forget?"

Muriel pauses. The temptation to wave away your concerns with a simple argument like, "if it's important you'll remember tomorrow," sits on his tongue, but he can't help but reflect an answer onto himself. Perhaps it was the constant wash of affection that you'd give him, or how you were often so eager to denounce whatever quiet self-deprecating thoughts he might voice aloud, or maybe it was just how often he was spending time outside of himself, and with you, or Asra, or the others. He doesn't know what exactly caused it, but he knows how it affects him now. He's important, and yet he was forgotten. To you, this project is the same.

This matters to you. Denying its importance will get him nowhere he wants to be.

"You can tell me," he offers, "I'll remember it."

"You're already half asleep."

Muriel cracks an eye open, "you are too."

Your attempt to refute his statement falls short when you yawn, which makes him yawn as well, though his is half muffled around his smile.

"alright, fine," you mutter eventually, tucking your face against his chest. Your arms squirm from their place trapped beneath his own, this time though, rather than escaping, you wrap your arms around him as you finally settle in his embrace for good.

He listens as long as he can, to you talk about the solutions to the puzzle you have noted down in your book, but you're mostly talking to yourself, thinking through the issue, refuting your own claims as you drift off, voice growing weaker and weaker before you finally sag against him, and Muriel can finally settle in against you, able to fall asleep now that you're in his arms, and he is in yours.

Before he settles however, he takes a moment to appreciate his reward, pressing a kiss against your eyelids, before he leans back and appreciates your relaxed and sleeping expression, whispering. You deserve rest like this. You deserve to relax. You've been so busy lately, he doesn't want to see you in pain.

When he finally tucks himself by your side and presses his cheek against your skin, Muriel can't help but chuckle at the chance to just fall asleep just like that. He knows it clings to him now. That falling asleep would be just as easy as that, but it hadn't always been. Sitting up forced to deal with swirling thoughts alone had once been the bane of his existence, but now, curled up with you by his side, he could talk if he needed to, just like you needed to earlier.

Now, falling asleep is as easy as one... two...

....

In the dying moments of his consciousness, Muriel continues to stare at you, pressing another kiss against your sleeping face, as he whispers precious words, fully aware you can't hear him. It doesn't really matter anyways. He'll tell you them all again tomorrow night. And if you can't hear it then, he'll tell you the next day, then the day after that, and the day after that.

"I love you," he mutters. "Goodnight."

[elsyrel]

"I've heard him send out the dogs"

The Good Guy <3

[drafthorses-official]

New Draft Horses episode drops tomorrow!

On this episode, we try to heal the divide between fans of G4 and G5! Pony animator, Makaryo, tries to show @timsplosion, @shirecorn, anxietymonstrr and @therealakineko what's so great about G5 by getting us to draw some of the weirdest and wildest moments from Make Your Mark and Tell Your Tale!

Join us tomorrow, 4pm EST/1pm PST/9pm GMT, for the live premiere of the episode to join us in the chat! Go turn on notifications so you don't miss out!

[lily-iguess]

opaline doesn’t like waffles is out now ^^

[neoscera]

whatt this is the best place to post fanart?? thank u all sm for the kind notes!! <3 have my version of opaline!! <3

and if ur also interested in original content, check out my DA, i have a series in the making :3

[jully-catpark0208]

[kaidacresto]

Luster Dawn Opaline Arcana, The Last Alicorn

After hearing of Twilights plans of limiting magic, Luster dawn went into a craze, trying to take all the magic she could in attempt to preserve it. Her rage at the situation transformed her into Opaline, similar to nightmare moon and The Pony of Shadows. Twilight had no choice but to banish her away before completing her mission

Now Opaline covers herself horn to claw in magical artifacts in attempt to keep a semblance of her power, anything she can do to maintain it, shes doing. Even going to the extreme of eating gemstones like dragons do! Its the only reason she can still do a little magic even without having friendship. Her castle is a treasure trove of precious gems and artifacts, even built on the foundations of a withered Together Tree. She is forever spiteful and mournful of what Equis has become, devoid of true magic, of beauty, of home. Her vengeance has corrupted her original intentions, instead of keeping magic for everyone, now she only wants it for herself, to reclaim the glory she once was

———————

Do not re-upload, sell, or trace my art without my permission. You can use it as reference but you gotta credit me

[paperstarwriters]

Muriel with a face full of kisses

Just saw someone else do this for a different character lmao but like, it just SCREAMED our lovely ol' Muri lmao <3

Just crawling into his lap while he's reading a book or just sitting by the fire, taking his face into your hands, cradling his cheeks in your palms as you lean up and spatter his face with kiss after kiss after kiss after kiss.

He's startled, confused, and red as a tomato, sputtering half words as you keep kissing and kissing and kissing and kissing. His hands are raised, startled at the intrusion, but when they finally settle, it's to pull you closer, even while he's still trying to ask you what the heck you're doing. All it takes, however, is a kiss to his lips, longer than the rest, held against him like a finger asking to be quiet. Only your request, is matched, with the gentle little lick of your tongue, testing the waters of how much both you and he were willing to go for this kiss, as well as teasing and taunting your so dearly beloved.

And one of those hands cradling you close slips up to catch you by the neck, pressing you close and keeping you from escaping as he all too eagerly reciprocates. Kissing you in the way you know he loves to do, swapping between tiny needy licks at your lips and chaste kisses that he's so so eager to dole out.

If at any point you push away from him, he'll release you willingly, staring at you with droopy almost dazed eyes, awestruck and lovestruck smiling, faint but warm, like the sunbeams of a dying sun slipping between the trees. It'll take him a moment before he remembers to ask, too busy basking in the warmth of your affection. Keeping his arms tight around you, cuddling in your shared embrace. Hell, he might never ask, honestly, thinking that his chance to has long since passed, or that he would rather not run the risk of making you hesitate to do that again.

Maybe one day he'll ask. If you haven't graced him with another session of sporadic kisses all over his face. He'll ask you why you did it in the first place, after asking of course if you even remembered doing it at all.

and maybe you'd tell him that he just looked like he needed some kisses, or that he was so so pretty by the firelight that you couldn't help yourself. Or maybe you'll just shrug and say you did it on a whim. And a look will cross his face, all too familiar to you as he hesitates to ask.

You however, beat him to the punch, reaching up on your tip toes, to cup his cheeks and guide him down to you, spattering his face with your affection once more, much to his quiet delight, visible only in the way you can feel his lips twitch upwards as you kiss the corners over and over again; at the feel of his arms snaking to hold you tight against him, lifting you up so he can enjoy your kisses without giving his back a hard time, and the way he reciprocates, at every chance he gets, trying to catch up and futility drowning in all the kisses you give him.

Be warned, though, the moment you lean away. The moment you give him an opening, this former gladiator turned soft hermit would seize any opportunity he's given, and be quick to enact his affectionate revenge all over your face and neck. Kiss after kiss after kiss after kiss.

And when he meets your lips again, he'll whisper a soft confession, drowned out by the wind rustling through the trees, drowned out by birdsong and animal chatter, drowned out by the rushing river not too far away.

Simple words, that only you would ever be able to hear.

"I love you."

[ewritesfanfics]

Hi, a reader of "Heirs to the Arcana" here! I have gotten through half of your story in probably a criminally short timespan, it is a lovely take on the world-building and characters. Specifically chapter 55 yielded a sudden moment of inspiration (very vivid imagery does that) so I impulse-doodled and later finalized this sketch. I didn’t want to draw the chair, just pretend there is a chair there. Also I think the quality got fried. Either way, I thought I’d share it.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa, I love it! 😍😭

Thank you!

[asmrrpaddict]

I may be a hopeless romantic overthinker, but do you guys ever think about the pet names?

I’m out of creative ideas due to attempting to write a pirate script, so we’re talking pet names.

Here are some of my favorites that I can remember from some of my favorite VAs. I know it may be cringe, but I don’t care. These are just ones that make me smile, melt, or laugh.

Notice: while I love nicknames like Yuurivoice’s Cass/Casper, Scythe Audio’s Demon Girl, or Escaped Audio’s Denny’s, this will be pet names and nothing that specific.

Redacted Audio

Darlin’, Treasure, Lovely, Angel, Starlight, Sunshine

Redacted Bonus:

Terror & Menace

Nomad:

Little One & Babe (Caleb)

Reverie Audios:

Sweets, Dove, Bunny

Reverie Bonus:

Terror

Captain Matt:

(Don’t you make fun of me! 🫵🤣)

(My) Darlin’, Love & thanks to listening to an older audio, My girl.

Obsidian Lantern:

Bug

MasterMissy:

Sweetheart

Good Boy Audio:

Paradise, Darling, Baby (Magrius)

Yuurivoice:

Sugar & Boo

Aural Arcana:

Baby

Everyone who does Aizawa from My Hero Academia says:

Kitten

AJ Audio:

My everything, My Love, Pearl (Siren’s Son character, but on AJ’s series)

One name 3 VAs: Wolf Z Row, KC Audio, and Phasmid ASMR.

(Little) Rabbit

Others that I don’t remember exactly where I heard them.

Sweetness, Ladybug, Sunflower, Pebble, Starshine.

I’m sure I’m missing some. Honestly if I ever get into a relationship, I hope that he will use one of these. ❤️ I would fall so hard!

[onebadpunspoilsabunch]

The biggest issue that I have with g5 is all of the unanswered questions about what happened during the time frame between g4 and g5. The biggest ones are:

What happened to the alicorns? 

What happened to the other sapient creatures? Donkeys, mules, zebras, horses, cattle, sheep, buffalo/bison, deer/reindeer, hippos, yaks, griffons, hippogriffs/seaponies, dragons, Changelings, kirin, anthro cats, diamond dogs, anthro birds, etc etc.

How was Equestria able to function with the magic gone? And who's been raising the sun and moon this whole time if the magic has been gone? Is it someone outside Equestria?

They're never going to answer any of those questions.

The only reason why I watched MYM all the way through is because I was waiting for a proper explanation for all of the questions the movie didn't answer. I think the majority of us were under the impression that the TV show or comics would provide those answers.

Well... they didn't. And, let's face it, they probably never will. And if they do, the explanation will be bad.

The explanation they gave for the Unity Crystals and ponies dividing in the comics was... dumb.

The explanation they gave for the Unity Crystals and ponies dividing in the TV show was... dumb. And inconsistent.

Sunny in The Traditional Unicorn Sleepover:

Sunny Starscout: But then one day, a magical accident happened! An Earth pony got hurt by a unicorn! Everypony started fighting with each other! The princess, wanting to protect her kingdom and all of the ponies in it, decided to put all magic into three crystals before it got out of hoof. After that, Earth ponies only felt safe with other Earth ponies. Unicorns with unicorns. And Pegasi of a feather flock together. The ponies galloped, trotted, and flew as far as they could with their crystals, settling in what would become Zephyr Heights, Bridlewood, and Maretime Bay. And that's where they lived forever... until now.

Spike in the Isle of Scaley:

Spike: Twilight's reign was peaceful for many moons until Opaline Arcana appeared. She'd been banished from Skyros.

Sunny Starscout: The Alicorn land?

Spike: She wanted to rule all ponies. She thought that Alicorns were superior.

Spike: But my friends were strong. Our friendship had created such powerful magic that Opaline had to resort to dark ways to overthrow Equestria. She even attacked the dragons to transform into a Fire Alicorn!

Spike: The crystals were created to hide the magic of Equestria in them. All of pony magic. And all of dragon magic inside the Dragon Stone. Twilight sent us here to protect us and put a spell around Equestria to hide it from Opaline.

G5 is basically implying that Opaline was a much bigger threat than all of the other major villains the G4 characters had faced, which I don't believe for a second. Even after she powered herself up with the dragon's magic.

There's no implication that Opaline had mind controlled and used the dragons as an army back when she faced Twilight and her friends. Twilight and her friends could've just used their Element of Harmony powers to take away Opaline's magic, or turn her to stone, etc etc.

The series finale showed that they didn't need the physical elements or tree to access that magic...

So why didn't they use it on Opaline?

I think the moment where I started to become disappointed in G5 was when they released that TYT short showing the dragons before they were properly introduced in Chapter 6.

And when I saw how horribly they were designed, I just got angry.

And then I saw how they looked in the main show, and my disappointment grew...

And then I saw that Spike had the same horrible model as the other dragons (with minor changes) and I wanted to throw up XD

And then I finished Chapter 6 of MYM, and I realized that I had wasted my precious time on G5.