#the power to make more people fall for my blorbos

[aka-indulgence]

You've done it. I like the dealer now, I have officially joined the cult lol

you guys are giving me a confidence boost and making the dealer blush fkjgdkflg

[kaidanalenkosprmanager]

Sophie Shepard & Kaidan Alenko (ME1) 1/?

MIRA'S MORE CANON ME1 "After everything that happened with Zaeed, Caleston, and the Villa? I think need to tell you a few things about BAaT." "Well, after everything that happened with Zaeed, Caleston, and the Villa? I think I might owe you an explanation about how I really know Anderson." AKA: Zaeed Massani and the case of the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad message ping. :) Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (2021)

[fuckyeahisawthat]

I’ve seen a few metas now that describe Crowley as self-loathing and…that’s not quite it to me.

Crowley for sure has Issues. He has a lot of anger and doesn’t always deal with it in constructive ways. He is hypervigilant as all fuck, and the fact that he is almost always correct about the amount of danger he and Aziraphale are in at a given moment just reinforces that hypervigilance feedback loop.

He has the hair-trigger flight response of someone who has spent millennia dodging oppressive forces that are more powerful than him, and this makes him default to RUN even when on some level he knows that is not the right response to a situation. He’s very aware that there are a lot of people out there who can hurt him, and there is no one coming to protect him. The only option is to try to avoid the blow.

And he is absolutely terrified of rejection, for very understandable reasons. This also encourages him to have one foot out the door of a situation, to pretend he doesn’t care, because if you leave first and actually never cared at all then you can’t be hurt. He is painfully aware that good things can be taken away from him without warning, that love that looks absolute can turn out to be conditional, because that already happened to him.

But. As much as I love a self-loathing blorbo, I don’t think Crowley hates himself.

Sure he talks a good game about how he’s not nice. But I don’t think, for example, that he thinks he is unworthy of Aziraphale’s love, that he is not good enough for Aziraphale because he is a demon or for any other reason. Because as far as Crowley is concerned, angels and demons are the same! All that good and evil stuff is just names for sides. I think he is afraid, because he’s still not sure, after all this time, if Aziraphale feels the same way he does, and broaching that topic is an enormous risk compared to just staying in the ambiguously-defined status quo they have now. (And then he works up the courage to do it anyway, and seems to have his worst fears confirmed.)

FWIW, I don’t think Aziraphale thinks that Crowley is not good enough for him either. Not at all. But I think Crowley might think that Aziraphale thinks that after the end of s2. And that really stings, because as much as they both gave lip service to the idea of “I’m good, you’re evil,” I think Crowley always assumed that Aziraphale saw through that when it came to him as a person, that it was just something Azirphale said and not something he really believed about Crowley, and now he’s not so sure.

I also think Crowley believes he did not deserve his fall (hot take: none of them did) not because he is extra-special Good, but because that’s a fucked-up thing for someone who said they loved you to do. While he is clearly still dealing with the trauma of it, I think he knows by now: I shouldn’t have been hurt like that. I didn’t deserve it, and it wasn’t my fault.

And so the horror of Aziraphale accepting the offer of going back to Heaven is partially I thought we both understood how this system works; I thought we were on our own side together and partially I can’t believe you’re going back to the people who hurt you and at least a little bit I can’t believe you’re going back to the people who hurt me. Do you think they were right?

(And Aziraphale doesn’t! He doesn’t think that! He thinks they were wrong, but he thinks they were wrong about Crowley, that it was an individual mistake and not a feature of a system that squashes questioning and nonconformity of any kind.)

I wrote a whole meta about “I won’t be forgiven, not ever” and “unforgivable, that’s what I am” in 2019 that I won’t rehash here, but tl;dr, I don’t think Crowley is saying that as a statement of his self-worth. I think he is saying, Heaven would never let me back in, and if they did, I wouldn’t go. Because I don’t want or trust the “acceptance” of people who don’t value me as I am.

And it’s part of the cruel dramatic irony of the Final Fifteen that one of the things that breaks them apart is that Crowley values himself enough not to go back to Heaven. Crowley, who we’ve seen will do almost anything for Aziraphale, says, No. I am not putting myself back in that abusive situation. You shouldn’t either; I really wish you wouldn’t; but if you do, I am still not going back there. Not even for you.

[stepswordsen]

【大海原 AU：暗黒星の冠】 イダ竜

【WATGBS AU: COTDS】 IdaTatsu

Idate and Tatsumiya 🖤🤍❤️💙

WATGBS AU: COTDS

WATGBS AU: COTDS is an Idate and IdaTatsu centric AU between me and my friends 💞 COTDS stands for Crown of the Dark Stars 👑💫 Its other name is Ankokusei no Kanmuri.

I just wanted to post some rough sketches/WIPs of my magical oarfish wife, and my homicidal oreo, my cat cot son 🤗 Magical oarfish MILF x Buff chaotic demon DILF.

I'm planning to give Tatsumiya matching Star and Moon earrings to match with Idate's Black Sun and Star ones...

Read more under the cut if you're interested in our IdaTatsu AU!

Our WATGBS AU is named Crown of the Dark Stars (暗黒星の冠, Ankokusei no Kanmuri) 💫👑 It's an AU with its own story, separate from the original WATGBS.

WATGBS AU: COTDS is an Idate and IdaTatsu centric AU between me and my friends 💞 COTDS stands for Crown of the Dark Stars 👑💫 Its other name is Ankokusei no Kanmuri.

WATGBS AU: COTDS, which stands for Crown of the Dark Stars, or Ankokusei no Kanmuri, is an Idate centric and IdaTatsu AU between me and my friends that's a complete revamp and rewrite of WATGBS.

WATGBS AU: COTDS is an AU between me and my friends! We all contribute to it whenever we have time to draw and write for it 😌🙏

Summary of WATGBS AU: COTDS would literally just be: (Yoinks characters and the settings, makes an original story)

It's just us writing our own stories and exploring our ideas with the characters, mainly focused on him and his dynamics with other charas. We made up our own lore and revamped the characters' writing and designs. It's just us playing with our revamped and rewritten blorbo OCs in our sandbox 💞

WATGBS AU: COTDS is centered around Idate, a chaotic evil demon orca man who originally wanted to unleash the apocalypse, but became too mellow after meeting Tatsumiya.

It's an Idate centric AU that heavily focuses on IdaTatsu (Idate/Tatsumiya), and the platonic familial dynamic between the orca brothers, Idate and his older twin brother, Takama. And it has a heavier emphasis on fantasy elements. And we have our own OCs we created for it too, like our IdaTatsu fankids 🤭

Idate: The Star Eater and Grand Demon

Idate (伊達 (イダテ)) is the evil protagonist of WATGBS AU: COTDS 🖤🤍💙 He is Tatsumiya's husband and Takama's younger twin brother.

Idate is the "Star Eater" and Lord of the Underworld. Idate drinks peoples' blood and eats their souls as nourishment. He and his older twin brothers are Demons. They're secretly Grand Demons (大魔王, Dai Maou), who have much more powerful magic than other Demons. They originally lived in Iceberg Isle, but Idate ends up convincing Takama to move to the Blue Sea Kingdom with him so he can live with Tatsumiya.

He's a chaotic evil demon orca and the evil protag of our AU, which makes him very fun for me to write! 🐬💞 I love writing for IdaTatsu and the others, and coming up with and adding onto each everyones' ideas whenever we discuss.

He's extremely chaotic and the world's most insufferable wifeguy /endearing that falls devastatingly in love with and eventually gets married to Tatsumiya. They feel drawn to each other, someone who's the complete opposite of the other, someone who represents what the other has never known, and tries to figure each other out.

Idate's character theme is "Void" 🖤

Idate eating and stealing souls also plays up to his whole void theme.

He's the Lord of Space and the Underworld, whose void world that contains the dead souls of all the people he ate for power.

Idate's powers represent the concept of "Void."

Idate can access a different dimension (the void between worlds), to create darkness and call it from within himself. Infinite darkness. An infinite void. Idate can create and access voids, and can call upon and manipulate darkness.

Idate's leitmotif is the Black Sun. His void is a black hole.

Idate can make makeshift weapons from dark energy. It's a black demon aura that can be controlled at will and slash into things.

Stardust is the source of all magic in the sea in our AU. Idate can make makeshift weapons from dark energy (black stardust).

Tatsumiya: The Dragon Flower and Grand Sorcerer of the Blue Sea

Tatsumiya (竜宮) is the Grand Sorcerer of the Blue Sea Kingdom 🤍❤️ She's the Lord of Creation, and Idate's wife. And also my wifey wife wife <3 🥰😘 She's a magical oarfish that serves the Blue Sea Kingdom's Princess, Lucinda, our Blue Sea Princess (BSP) OC. Her specialties are healing and star magic. 🌠

She's known as the Dragon Flower (龍花, Ryuuka) because her reputation with the sword spread across the Blue Sea. She has soul restoration and soothing properties with her powers to calm souls.

Tatsumiya is the Messenger/Aide to the Blue Sea Kingdom's Princess 💞 Her title is Grand Sorcerer (大魔導士, Dai-Madoushi). In our WATGBS AU, she took on the role after Meikai's disappearance.

Tatsumiya's leitmotif is the Moon.

As the complete opposite of Idate, her main powers are controlling flowing water, star magic (creation magic), and healing. Her royal duties as the Blue Sea's Messenger, are similar to a shrine maiden's.

Tatsumiya is so wifey to me 🤭

In WATGBS AU: COTDS, she is Idate's wife!

IdaTatsu: The Two Messengers, the Sun and the Moon

Tatsumiya is the Blue Sea Kingdom's Grand Sorcerer. Idate is one of the Grand Demons that came from elsewhere. The two Messengers of their opposing Gods.

Idate and Tatsumiya are opposites in terms of their powers, personalities, and roles. Both Idate and Tatsu are Messengers of their opposing "Gods" and queens. Our own OCs, Algol and Lucinda, are the Red Sea Princess (BSP) and Blue Sea Princess (BSP) respectively.

Tatsumiya, one of the brightest stars in the sea, and Idate the Star Eater 💞

WATGBS AU: COTDS' headcanon versions of the characters' designs

In our WATGBS AU's revamped versions of the charas (our headcanon designs), Idate is buff and has scars.

He wears blue eyeliner, and black sun and star earrings to match with Tatsumiya's red eyeliner and star and moon earrings 🌠☀️🌕

(I'll add Tatsu's earrings in the future!)

Idate wears blue eyeliner, which is the same as Tatsumiya's favourite colour, ultramarine blue (群青色, gunjyou iro) 💙

At first this was coincidental, I added it to his design cuz I thought he looked nice with eyeliner and so it'd have great visual contrast with Tatsu's design, but then I found out that Tatsu's favourite colour was ultramarine blue. So the colour I chose for Idate's eyeliner coincidentally, ended up being the same as Tatsu's fave colour…

Unintentional big brain play from me 😌

I want to give them matching couple eyeliner and earrings! Idate wears black sun and star earrings, and Tatsu wears moon and star ones ☀️🌙🌠

Ofc these are still WIPs, so I'm planning to add them eventually.

IdaTatsu are the Sun/Moon, Yin/Yang, Light/Darkness themed couple in our AU <3 The Black Sun and the Moon ☀️🖤🌙

IdaTatsu's leitmotifs have a lot of narrative significance in COTDS, which ties back to our AU's central themes 🙏 I've given a lot of focus to their relationship ☺️

Name Meanings

Idate (伊達) 伊達 = Meaning “elegance; gallantry; sophistication; showy; having style”, or “putting on airs; showing off”

I chose the kanji reading Idate (伊達) cuz both meanings fit him very well! 🖤🤗

Idate (伊達) is my headcanon kanji reading of Idate's name. Since I wanted to pick a reading with a fitting name meaning for him!

My son. My homicidal oreo… 🐬 Oreorcat

I'll eventually turn these WIPs into concept art reference sheets! Though I might format them differently.

Tatsumiya (竜宮) 竜宮 = Meaning “Dragon Palace”

It's an alternate reading of Ryuuguu 🐉🏯 The Undersea Dragon Palace from the story of Urashima Tarou in Japanese folklore.

It comes from 竜宮の使い (Ryuuguu no tsukai), a giant deep-sea oarfish, known as "The Messenger/Envoy of the Undersea God's Palace" which is exactly what Tatsumiya represents as a character!

I chose kanji readings of Idate and his older twin brother Takama's names, as well for our other OCs in WATGBS AU: COTDS, like our IdaTatsu fankids. I'm excited to show them in the future 🤗💞

[oh-no-its-bird]

Omg I just finished reading svsss!!! And now you have a naruto au about it!!!

I think either way Houhua Uchiha is hilarious, but especially in that way of *what do you mean he's actually competent/dangerous?* from elite ninja. He's absolutely a sneaky coward.

If he gets noticed by Orochimaru I think Houhua entire.... *everything* will entice Orochimaru in a way that's like. Put it in a jar. I want to put my blorbo in situations! Especially with his .... lack? Weird relation with moral (I mean both of them).

I want to know more about his genin team. Especially his sensei. Like. I know he unplayed his skills, but also he alway somehow has exactly what the situation calls for on a mission. His mission reports would be weird as hell. "Successfully solved village dispute by realizing nearby village was messing for farmer Xs crops because of family dispute about prized cow, solved with better fence and different trade route."

Just. I love this au. <3

Another one falls to the scum villain agenda, let's go !!!

YEAHHH YOU GET IT! No matter how strong he gets or may be, Houhua continues to project the aura of a very scared genin. He has whatever the opposite of killing intent is, and it throws all of his opponents off

I think that Orochimaru and Houhua would be fucking amazing to watch interact w eachother actually— Houhua is so fucking scared of him, which is typical of people to act around Oro, but like. Orochimaru seeing past the layers (both real and carefully cultivated) of a coward to see the alarmingly smart little rat underneath.

Orochimaru is poking him with a stick

You know that one scene where Asuma like, tricks Shikamaru into playing some sort of strategy game? And realizes he's really smart? Or smthn like that? Ok so something similar to that for Orochimaru and Houhua could be fun.

Orochimaru somehow sniffed out that there's a LOT more to Houhua than there seems and he's got a bit of an eye on him now, just for funzies. Just as a little side project

(And then Houhua maybe says something incriminating about immortality bc he was an immortal cultivator, and Orochimaru is instantly right behind him breathing heavily over his shoulder)

I think that if Houhua ever tells anyone ab his past life, not that the system would let him, (tho considering the reincarnation in naruto, there might be a loop hole to exploit there?) I'd want it to be Orochimaru who he tells, just bc I think he'd be the most interesting character to get involved in that.

Like, other characters you might get the usual "omg no way" song and dance, maybe some hurt/comfort or whatever, and like that's fun! But Orochimaru you'd get him trying to fucking dissect the system. He's putting his plots on hold to try and figure out how to get this "system" to manifest. And if he can kill it. Or better yet: harness it's power

Oh shit Houhua's genin team, I didn't even think of that

I am suddenly struggling to think of any naruto characters who are Itachi and Houhua's age that I can throw into a team for him actually. Am I going to have to make some ocs for this? I hope not tbh, I like stuffing as many canon characters as I can everywhere

Oh god and who would their sensei be too

I can't use Itachi for the team bc he graduated early, do we even know if he was on a genin team or did he just go straight to ANBU? No but he'd have to take the chunin trials no matter what, so hmm

Yk what? I think it'd be funny if Houhua was on one of Kakashi's past teams Sarutobi tried to saddle him with, the ones he'd like fail on day 1 then dumped back into the system

I dont think the timeline on that would actually add up correctly, but it'd be really funny so I don't care actually

hear me out: Houhua was actually on the very first team Sarutobi tried to saddle Kakashi with. And at first, he's like "omg,,, isn't this Kakashi? did I stumble on a secret plot route???? Is this finally my chance to gain more character relevance points????"

But no. It's not. And Kakashi fails him and his team just like he would have anyways.

Possibly with even more ruthlessness, depending on if Houhua has interacted w him before that.

Hmmm ok so timeline.

Houhua and Itachi are both 13 during the massacre, Houhua was about to graduate, but the massacre and then taking care of Sasuke in the year that followed delayed his graduation, which also meant he got dropped from the team he was supposed to be on (whichever team it was)

So then he graduates fr a year or maybe more later, right around the time Sarutobi is starting to try and peer pressure Kakashi into taking a team.

Kakashi is given Houhua's team, makes eye contact w Houhua like once, then immediatley turns around and leaves without comment.

(This also adds tension between them later on when Kakashi eventually does take Sasuke on as a student. Plus tension between Kakashi and Sasuke, who would remember him as the sensei who failed Houhua + whatever else Houhua let slip, possibly about knowing Kakashi trained itachi)

No fucking clue who he gets saddled with in the end, but it'd be funny if his team gained some sort of reputation of being cursed bc they keep being passed around by sensei's who inevitably drop them for various reasons.

Who do u guys think would be fun to see on his team tho, I really can't think of anyone who's the right age so I'm struggling over here

LOVEEE THE IDEA OF HIM SOLVING CONFLICTS IN REALLY OUT OF NOWHERE WAYS THAT RESULT IN NO BLOODSHED AND 9 TIMES OUT OF 10 BETTER TRADE DEALS AND ROADS THATS SO FUNNY

Its not even that he he doesn't want to kill, he just thinks it's messy and will only lead to MORE problems they'd be called in to fix later down the line. This is actually the easy way, you know!!

(Somewhere far away but still watching through his crows, Itachi goes through several emotions as he watches Houhua peacefully solve more than one dispute when he was brought there specifically for murder. He's kind of going through a lot. Actually.)

(I like to think that if Houhua had been made aware of the root of the Uchiha Massacre, he could have fr helped think up a plot to get them all out of it. Unfortunatley everyone was under the impression he was a silly little untalented 13 year old. So that never happened.)

Houhua gets the nickname of "the beaurocrat nin" or smthn silly like that bc hes always resolving conflicts via the power of paperwork. The silly title only helps to make him seem more harmless, which gives him even more of an advantage in a fight when it comes to taking the enemy by surprise

[fuck-you-upmusicbracket]

Achilles Come Down (Gang Of Youths)

The self is not so weightless, nor whole and unbroken/Remember the pact of our youth/Where you go, I’m going, so jump and I’m jumping/Since there is no me without you

How, the most dangerous thing is to love/How, you will heal and you'll rise above/Crowned by an overture bold and beyond/Ah, it's more courageous to overcome.

You may feel no purpose/Nor a point for existing/It's all just conjecture and gloom/And there may not be meaning/So find one and seize it/Do not waste your self on this roof

Soldier on, Achilles, Achilles, come down/Won't you get up off, get up off the roof?

"I'm sure you'll get other submissions for this one. I have no idea who this band even are outside of this song but it fucks me up like it does everyone else. It's the tragic love of it all. The desperation of trying to save your loved one from themselves. Or are the narrators of the song Achilles' own conscience representing his indecision on whether to kill himself or not? It can mean so many things and SO many parts of the lyrics are very poetic and powerful. (also again for me this makes me cry over a Specific Blorbo in this case Dimitri Blaiddyd but that doesnt matter)"

"The cellos in the background, the lyrics, telling the story of Achilles, the fact that it's fucking 7min long, it's beautiful, it breaks me to then pull me back together, it gave me hope in a moment where I wasn't in the best mental space, it's like getting undressed to your very soul only to be cover up with a weighted blanket afterwards and be told "it'll be alright." It's like that image with the guy that's like "this is cinema" but with a song, god I love this song so much"

"Ohhhg my god. It’s so. It’s a fucking heartbreaking song but it gives hope (^^see abovw lyrics. there may not be meaning so find one and seize it gets me the most). I can’t say anymore about it but yeah"

"Achilles is about to jump off the roof, his lover is trying to convince him not to. the vibe of this song itself is so unique, the violin and the segments of French reading really grip at your soul. Towards the end there are two voices seemingly arguing. One voice is Achilles’s inner monologue and the other is his lover trying to yell over it. This part is my favorite, especially if you’re envisioning your blorbo. Tbh in my darkest times I would fall asleep to the ten hour loop every night. It felt like laying on a rooftop and looking out at the stars and the street lights. I think maybe it kept me from doing things I would regret."

Drift Away (Steven Universe)

You keep on turning pages/For people who don’t care/People who don’t care about you/And still it takes you ages/To see that no one’s there/See that no one’s there/Everyone’s gone on without you

"Being stuck in one place while people, well, drift away and leave you behind. Realizing that relationships don’t always last forever. But waiting and hoping that, eventually, you’ll come back to each other, before realizing that’s not gonna happen."

Drift Away submitted by @angelicdevil

[chrysalis-the-butterfly]

Hazbin Hotel Shipping Meme

(Credit to SaucyMist on Twitter for the template.)

OTP

Angel Dust and Husk (Huskerdust) - My favourite Hazbin Hotel ship. A blorbo who's been abused finally finding a guy who genuinely cares for him, while both are also learning to overcome their mistakes and be better people? Yes, please!

Charlie and Vaggie (Chaggie) - They're just so cute together! And I enjoy seeing a grumpy cynic paired with a ray of sunshine.

Emily and Lute (Emilute) - They're both angels, but very different kinds. Emily would think she can fix Lute; Lute would think she can make Emily worse. Can Emily persuade Lute to change her mind about sinners through the Power of Love? I'd enjoy seeing her try!

Sir Pentious and Cherri Bomb (CherriSnake) - A classic enemies-to-lovers pairing that's really grown on me over time.

Lucifer and Lilith (Lucilith) - I'm interested to see more of them and to find out more about Lilith.

Cute

Charlie, Vaggie, Emily and Lute (Charlie's Angels) - Yeah, I want to put all my favourite ladies together and see what happens!

Secretly Ships

Alastor and Vox (StaricMoth) - How did they meet? Does Vox love Alastor, or is it just an obsession? Does Alastor hate Vox, or does he secretly miss him? There's fanfic potential there!

Vaggie and Lute (FallenWings) - I wonder if they dated briefly when Vaggie was still an Exorcist? I wonder if Lute was a little messed up after Vaggie's Fall? I wonder if Lute doubled down on her homophobia as a coping mechanism?

Molly and Cherri Bomb (MollyBomb) - I just think it would be funny if Cherri started dating her best friend's sister! Angel would find it weird at first, but he'd know he can trust Cherri to treat his twin sister right.

Sera and Lucifer (Lucera?) - The Head Seraphim and the King of Hell? What a pairing that would be! I like this ship because it would be interesting to see an alliance between Heaven and Hell, and to make Charlie and Emily stepsisters. That, and the extreme height difference between the towering Sera and the short king Lucifer would be hilarious.

Maybe? Neutral

Vox and Valentino (VoxVal), Vox and Velvette (VoxVel), Valentino and Velvette (ValVel), and Poly Vees - I do like VoxVal as a toxic messed-up villainous power couple. But I honestly find it hard to ship Valentino with anybody. And I don't know if Velvette is compatible romantically with either of those men.

Adam and Lute (Guitarspear) - I can't decide if I prefer Adam and Lute as a couple, Lute as Adam's favourite of his many concubines, or a Burns-and-Smithers thing where Lute is obedient to the point of infatuation and Adam is clueless.

Carmilla and Zestial (ZestMilla) - They're just ... there. I don't love them, I don't hate them.

Friends / Family

Charlie, Lucifer and Lilith (Morningstar Family) - I like imagining what the family was like when Charlie was younger.

Angel Dust and Molly (Spider Twins) - One twin in Hell, the other in Heaven ... ooh, I love that angst potential!

Sera and Emily (Seraphim Angels) - I see them as a caring but overprotective mother and a curious but naïve daughter.

Husk and Niffty (CasinoSweep) - Since they're both tied to Alastor, I think they'd get to know each other pretty well. I like the idea of Husk looking out for Niffty and keeping her in check.

Emily, Sir Pentious and Molly (Emtious, Emolly and MollySnake) - I really hope they're an official trio in Season 2! They'd be awesome! Emily could help Sir Pentious adjust to an afterlife in Heaven, and Molly could get behind Charlie's cause and try to see her brother again (assuming she remembers him...).

Alastor, Mimzy and Rosie (Alzy and RadioRose) - The idea of the aroace icon Alastor building a gaggle of gal pals around him will never not be funny to me.

Charlie and Angel Dust (CharlieDust) - Caring little sister and protective big brother.

Vaggie and Angel Dust (SpiderMoth) - Bossy big sister and bratty little brother.

Emily and Angel Dust (HaloDust) - Adoring little sister and bemused big brother.

Not For Me

Carmilla and Velvette (Velmilla) - I can see why others would ship them, but I don't. They're more like business rivals than lovers to me.

Adam and Lucifer (AdamsApple) - Again, I see the appeal of shipping the First Man with the Devil. But I don't think they'd work out long-term. A tough boastful dude and the softer shortie who keeps stealing his wives? It's a recipe for disaster!

NOTP

Angel Dust and Valentino (Valangel) - I don't think this one needs much explanation. I can't ship Valentino with anyone, let alone Angel.

Adam and Lilith (Adalith) - If he was so misogynistic that she fled the Garden of Eden to get away from him, I can't imagine they're very compatible.

Charlie and Alastor (Charlastor) - I prefer them as a twisted mentor and trusting mentee, not a romantic couple.

Blank version below:

[utilitycaster]

I'm a little confused. A lot of critters say that the gods have it out for Laudna specifically, and I can't find where that idea comes from? Like the closest thing I found is that she's a Hollow One and things that affect undead are usually holy/divine. But that doesn't mean that the gods hate Laudna or that Laudna's suffering is because of the gods, right? (I'm a little scared of those Laudna stans tbh)

If I had to guess where it comes from, it, like the similarly inaccurate statements people make about Ruidusborn, comes from the longstanding tendency by the uncreative, dull, and whiny to make their blorbo the most wronged little lamb who ever lived.

Clerics mechanically get Turn Undead as an ability, which affects Laudna, because she is undead. I do want to point out that Marisha specifically chose to make Laudna more undead than Hollow Ones typically are mechanically, ie, our boy Jumanji Costco would be fine in the face of Turn Undead; and that area of effect abilities such as turn undead are not what I'd consider "targeted", ie, if Imogen were to cast Reverse Gravity in an area containing other members of Bells Hells, and they became affected by the spell, I would not say this was Predathos having it out for Bells Hells specifically. I'd also note that a spell that literally creates undead, Animate Dead, is a general cleric spell. A loyal level 5 cleric of the Dawnfather has the capacity to have a pet zombie. Is this the greatest use of their abilities, probably not, and will their god provide them with consequences, possibly, but it sure is a thing they can do, so I think the gods on the whole are really up in the air re the whole undead thing. I also think that we need to acknowledge that within the text, at this point Laudna's met four divine champions, two of them have quite literally contributed to her continued undeath in significant ways, and the other two of whom have been like "yeah we are on the same side, politics, strange bedfellows, etc, etc, I'm frankly way more interested in Fearne."

One can argue Laudna's suffering is because of the god Vecna, though as a point of order the main portions of her initial suffering occurred prior to him achieving godhood, so really, it was the lich (undead) Vecna and the necromancer (currently undead) Delilah Briarwood who seem to be largely at fault. Undead are merely a classification of entity. Just as using Turn Undead against a horde of undead may result in Laudna being turned as well, if one were to cast Moonbeam on some hostile shapeshifter, Chetney would also be affected. As Gilmore as played by Aabria said, power is simply power; intent comes from the wielder. Someone could use Turn Undead specifically against Laudna; someone could also use powers from the gods to heal, buff, or resurrect her. I doubt the Raven Queen is like, jazzed and hype about Laudna, but her specific tenet is "Undeath is an atrocity. Death is too good a punishment for those who pervert the rightful transition of the soul" and Delilah seems to be the one causing the soul transition perversions.

I suppose one could argue Laudna's suffering is the result of the gods in the same way that if I were injured by a window box air conditioner falling five stories onto my foot, while both gravity and the fact my parents decided to have children contributed significantly to this moment, no one who was not embarrassingly unserious and extremely fucking stupid would put these things forth as the culprit in this hypothetical.

Do not be afraid of the Laudna stans. Either they're lovely people who just really like Laudna and are talking about her character arc or making art or something and agree this is a terrible take, or they are, as said, embarassingly unserious, extremely fucking stupid, uncreative, dull, and whiny. I can provide tips to avoid them or to annoy them as you wish but like, is it even worth bothering with the latter.

[st0rmyskies]

Alone, Fear, Future, Guilt, and Secret for my main blorbo Wars

If you’re only in the mood for a couple I’ve highlighted my biggest asks 👀💕

Mwah mwah mwah 🐹

alone

Warriors does NOT deal well with being alone. He's thrilled to live in a house full of eight other people where the potential for him being truly alone at any given time is incredibly low. He can only last two, maybe three hours before needing to seek out some sort of outside influence, be that bothering a roommate or heading out to buy something and interact with a salesperson.

When there's no one around to see him and vice versa, Warriors sort of goes into low-power mode. He doesn't emote very much, he languishes on furniture and stares at the television or his phone, and sighs a lot. Being alone is also when he's at his most dangerous, likely cooking up something to surprise or annoy a friend or loved one as soon as he sees them again.

fear

Externally, War's biggest fear is aging. Getting old. Getting wrinkles, gray hairs, bags under his eyes, those lines around his mouth. Liver spots. When confronted with signs of aging he's the first to buy 3 to 5 new products and spend a day or two in the bathroom panicking.

Internally, this is rooted in a fear of becoming irrelevant in the lives of those he loves, or of being forgotten.

future

As much as he would never admit it to himself or to anyone else, Warriors is very much a product of his relationship with his family. He enjoyed being a cherished son up until a certain point in his life at which he had a major falling-out with his parents--mostly his father--that resulted in him being unwelcome in his own home for a long period of time. Because of this, he tends to form strong relationships, even if they are one-sided, and to assign a lot of his self-worth to those relationships.

The worse possible future for him would be partnering with someone who doesn't really care about him, or who sees him as a means to an end. Wars has a hard time pulling himself out of toxic relationships. That's a situation he could wallow in for years or even decades before realizing how sick it makes him. He is not consciously aware that this is a possible trap for him to fall into, as we all really hope for the best for ourselves in such situations, don't we?

Did he take steps to avoid such an outcome? No, Wars really just got lucky.

guilt

Warriors carries a LOT of guilt, believe it or not, when it comes to Champion. Is this a spoiler? It might be a spoiler.

In the Guard, Warriors was selected from among the recruits in his class for a leadership training program. His commanding officers saw the potential in him for being a great strategist. They all went through the same grueling physical training, but just like Sky taking a specialized route to become a pilot, Warriors was pulled from their coursework to undergo more rigorous mental exercises.

The Guardian Project may have been Flora's pet project to get more into Sheikah tech, but the concept was something that Warriors had drawn up early on in his own training.

There was initially some animosity there between him and Champion, especially when Champion was selected to be more intimately involved in the project, but why should Warriors feel jealous? His role was to invent and to command, or so he was told by his superiors.

Too bad for Warriors, he also had a strong personal work ethic of feeling responsible for those he was meant to oversee. So when Champion got hurt, Warriors actually got pretty torn up about it.

secret

Warriors has a lot of things that we don't know about him just yet, a few of which are outlined above. Here's another, just for fun: he has a sister with whom he had a very strong relationship growing up, although current life circumstances have really gotten in the way of their relationship.

It's probably for the best, though, because when the two of them get together, they can be downright treacherous.

[kheprriverse]

So Ko'jin is worshipped as a moon god, right?

What kind of stories do people come up with? Like do they say the craters are his beds? Do they say his power is weaker on the new moon? That he can't protect you on cloudy night (because he can't see you)?

My brain is craving mythology and the blorbos. I must know!

(if this makes no sense, please be aware I'm half asleep typing this)

Ty for the ask! I will do my best to answer this but it’ll probably only be like… half answering your questions here and mostly me yapping about Ko’jin’s overall role.

Ko’jin’s whole gist as a deity is protection of spirits and Termina as a whole more than anything. Often times if you hear stories of Ko’jin, you’re only really hearing about the Moon Serpent. It’s the most common form the people of Termina ever see of him. Rarely do they ever see the actual deity.

Most people who tend to openly talk about the serpent and spread stories are soldiers (in and out of Termina). While he protects Termina, its widely believed he primarily protects spirits or is at least a guide for them. So many soldiers often give him offerings when/after they’re drafted in hopes that, if they do die on the field, then the serpent will guide them to a good afterlife.

(His deal with spirits is one half of his “judgement” title, the other being his role of a bounty hunter of sorts.)

Stories that are usually given to children or general public are usually legends of his grand battles with other deities done in the protection of Termina. Or stories to explain meteor showers. This also relates to Moon’s Tears which is often believed to be from the serpent falling. So the stone itself is highly sought after because its often thought it would protect them. (It wouldn’t be completely wrong to assume this either since he does technically have an odd effect on those rocks and they have a strong magic.)

Also I wanted to poke the “power is weaker on new moons” thing because its mostly true. His followers mostly give him offerings/pray to him at shrines and whatnot during full moons (the festival dedicated to his return is usually on a super moon, which happens over termina yearly). The fuller the moon the more he’s able to channel his powers and the faster he can regenerate magic, which is why the Moon Serpent primarily appears on full moons (and why it’s a common belief that he’s weaker on new moons).

Also his “job” that he has regarding spirits and protecting or guiding them. After his return he has a lot of catching up to do, like a lot. He travels the world in the form of the Moon Serpent to collect spirits (and poes) and bring safely them to an “afterlife”. I really want to get into this bit more eventually as it plays into the rest of the au a lot and how it works. But I’m unsure if I should atm. Ig that’d depend if anyone wants to hear me yap about that too.

^ basically theres no way any of his followers would even know whats actually happening outside of speculation. They take what they do see (the serpent guiding spirits, the serpent protecting termina, the serpent descending from the full moon) and base their stories and faith off that (as well as any historical records and artifacts, which I think a lot of legends would have come from).

[scribble-dee-vee]

Writeblr Intro circa 2024

Hi writeblr!! Sooo, I've been around here since about 2014. (Yes, I am ancient.) However, I've been dormant for the past 4-5 years. Blame college and a brief stint on Twitter. Now that I'm active again, I thought I should make an updated writeblr intro so ppl know my Deal. Basically, I want to engage with other folks who write fiction (esp original SF), and that's a little easier if I have a clear post that outlines what I do. Here to make connections and hear about your blorbos :)

About me

Hi, I'm Vee! They/them, 23, 💖 🤍 🧡

I do journalism/comms in western New York

My literary jam is feminist/adult SF and gothic lit (OG or modern) 🥀 ⚔️ 🌙

Enthusiastic about gay people, body horror, and sociopolitical allegories

I cook, run, play tabletop games, and occasionally draw. Other than that, I'm mostly writing (for work and for fun)

If you were on pre-2020 writeblr, you likely know me from my eight billion daily tag games. (I still like tag games and appreciate u for tagging me. I have also gained adult responsibilities and better mental health, so I respond very slowly now. <3)

Always happy to get asks or dms, tho as I've noted: I may reply slowly.

Sometimes open to beta read! I only read one longer project at a time, but it's always super fun :)

I tag very consistently – happy to tag triggers for followers/moots

Fun fact: I love mushroom hunting and worked as a mycology TA. #cottagecoreera 🍄 🧚‍♀️ 🌱

About my creative writing

I write,,,, feminist/adult SF with gothic leanings (surprise!)

Longform and short! Trying to do more short writing this year, and I'll likely share a bit on Tumblr. It's easier to clip a short story than a 150k novel, god bless.

The Aesthetic: moral g(r)ays, Victoriana, androids/cyborgs, Women™, monstrous femininity, incessant Hamlet/Frankenstein motifs, extremely boring socioeconomic worldbuilding, evil queens and/or dilfs, psychosexual witchcraft, probably a cat. Also, an ominous, plot-relevant letter laced with anthrax from your unhinged and brilliant ex-wife. Open if you dare.

Major projects

I'm going to be writing some short work this year, but these are the longer projects that I have going in the background. If I reblog blorbo-related text posts, they probably have something to do with these.

Let me know if you want to be added to any project-specific taglists 😎

Heart of Lead – Series

The big one

Perpetually evolving

Never ceasing

Pls send help I can't stop adding shit

5-book gothic fantasy epic that I'll definitely publish one day but probably no time soon! My bastard child, my wicked firstborn, my greatest love <3

Character-oriented political drama set in a pseudo-Victorian, dystopian oligarchy where everyone's heart is made out of metal. It's about coming of age and discovering queer identity in a world that is absolutely fucked. God is an extraterrestrial lesbian who gives ppl very traumatizing magic powers. There are cyborgs, shapeshifters, and morally gray women in STEM. It's tight as fuck idk what else what to tell u.

Book 1 is about achillean monarchists, and book 2 is about sapphic anarchists. There are only two genders, I guess.

At this point, I've drafted most of the books at least once. Working to refine a lot of raw material atm!

Tag: "heart of lead tag" or "hol tag"

Lost Letters – Book

Aka the current active HoL WIP, and book one in the revised series structure

Length: 80k as of now; around 120-140k when the first draft is finished, I presume.

Genre: adult fantasy, gothic, noir detective drama?? um?? If you want me to frame it in BookTok terms (why?) it's a dark academia villain x villain tragic romantasy. Hrgh.

Summary: Cyborg soldier goes to college, joins a shady socialite frat, and falls in love with the jilted heir-apparent to the throne. Hilarity ensues.

(By "hilarity," I mean a militant revolutionary faction and a tragedy of Greek proportions.)

POV characters: Charles (the cyborg), Dale (the heir), and Cecelia (Charles' sister, a junior detective, the love of my life and potentially the Chosen One???)

This book is twisty and dark and immensely fun to write.

I'm about halfway through the first full draft! Hoping to share snippets and vaguepost about my children here.

Tag: "lost letters tag" (also "hol tag," tho that one's less specific)

The Last of Mortal Tourists – Book

The next longform project on the docket!

Length: a standalone work that will hopefully fall on the shorter novel/novella spectrum.

Genre: literary SF, cyberqueer, psychological space quest

Summary: The consciousness of a dead coding genius, trapped inside a spaceship, seeks a new planet to sustain their sister, the last surviving human, after the destruction of Earth.

If you're here to get wildly philosophical about gender and the myth of essential self, this is the story for you! That's why I'm writing it, lol. 🏳️‍⚧️ 🚀 🤖

This one started out as a short story (100% finished) which I want to expand.

POV: Archer Alto, the coder. Spaceship? Human? Soul?

Supporting Cast: Pandora, the last human, and Abby, a holographic impression of Archer's childhood consciousness

Tag: "the last of mortal tourists tag" or "tlomt tag"

If you read all this way, you get a whole bouquet of flowers that are certainly NOT poisonous: 🌸 🌹 💐 🥀 🌺

<3

[relatableblorbopoll]

Round 1 of preliminaries, group 14

The first two places get a place on the bracket

Little reminder: there will be 2 more rounds of preliminaries, the losing blorbos of this poll still have 2 chances of getting in the official bracket

Propaganda under the cut

Oz Vessalius (Pandora Hearts)

"Struggles with self-worth, adores books, ADHD (though that’s not canon—but he fits the diagnostic criteria), his strongest/most important relationships are platonic"

Sound (My School President)

"Lonely gay teenager who tries to be cool and sauve but gets adopted against his will by a group of losers and then falls for one of the losers who gets on his nerves a lot because he was nice to him once and then he gets all awkward and flustered around the boy and tries to avoid him and antagonize him but the boy sees through it and they eventually end up together and he becomes the most annoying person in love ever"

Luz Noceda (The Owl House)

"adhd. possibly some autism too. a weird girl who got outcasted by being herself and sure has some WACK coping mechanisms to deal with it. self worth is IN THE DRAIN. gnc and not straight. writes fanfic. artist. goes through a depression era when at her moms house. loves her mom also. this is canon stuff i'm saying"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA she is so ASDHSUJD. Okay I started watching the owl house because I knew there was a WLW couple, so obviously I had to check it out. But upon watching the show, I got so emotionally connected to it, or moreso the protagonist, Luz, that it could go beyond some people's understandings... I remember that almost any scene showing her neurodivergent traits would hit SO. CLOSE. HOME. It would be unbelievable. I literally rewatched the show more than seventeen times one summer. She is just so goshdarn relatable man. She's the weird kid, has no friends, loves making anime edits, is OBSESSED with a book series, loves witches and magic and stuff, has ADHD, an attention span that is so high when she's engaging with something she likes doing and so low when she's bored. She's just so lovely. I know a lot of people found her annoying in season one but she hit close home to me. Season two was amazing as well and she started getting even MORE relatable!! She started showing her people pleasing, how much she blames herself, it was so sad but I was glad to see a character I could relate to so much on screen. I mean i personally didn't experience the loss of my father and I personally do have one friend whom I'm able to share my life with, but she's still super relatable. She can be so silly and so cool. And her impulsivity and the way she realized she doesn't know what she wants to do when she grows up also hit close home. Mwah"

Gundham Tanaka (Super Danganronpa 2)

"Goth autistic theater kid"

Saiki Kusuo (Saiki Kusuo no Psi Nan/The Disastrous Life of Saiki K)

"He's very dead inside, especially in the English Dub, and introverted. But even so, he cares a lot for his friends, even if he never says it to them and he finds them annoying most of the times. He also be nosey and just insert himself into others' situations that don't involve him (obviously, he makes it so that nobody knows he's there and, obviously, he's also complaining about this all the time). He's canonically aroace, or at least aroace spec He's canonically trans. He was born as a girl but he didn't like it so he immediately turned himself into a boy with his psychic powers. An argument could be made about him being on the autism spectrum."

Drew (The Music Freaks)

"I don't like him actually I hate him and love him st the same time in fact but. This man is so real and such a horrible jerkwad to everyone around him. I mean I can't relate to THAT but I should mention he also gets jelous easily, he is in love with his best friend who does not like him back, he's all moody and grouchy and bratty. And so am I and I hate it lol."

[squirrelno2]

I've been Officially Enabled thanks @what-point-is-there have a dragon age weirdo

the one, the only, the original blorbo whose fault it is that i got super into dragon age, Evura Tabris! I've made a lot of wardens (and finished the game for almost none of them shhh) but Evura is the one I would consider my "canon".

She's the kind of person where all the looting you do in rpgs is canon, because she sees no point in wasting things just because the person who had them before is dead (i mean. she's also a thief. living, dead, she'll take from anybody if she thinks they can afford to be taken from), but she's also generally very kind. So long as you don't give her a reason to kill you, like, you know, the city elf origin story where you get kidnapped by a noble on your wedding day and have to fight your way out. She kind of slaughtered everyone there, because everyone seemed to treat this behaviour as perfectly normal. when I say she's kind, I don't mean she particularly cares about killing or not killing people, I mean she gives to beggars and frees people in prison. To some people, this may seem contradictory but to Evura if there are different rules for the powerful and everyone else when it comes to laws, there should be different rules for how she treats them, too.

This also extends to her level of trust in people. Authority figures, especially humans, earn a range of reactions from mild distaste to (again) outright murder, depending on whether they earn it. Duncan received a wary respect because he was polite and respectful with elves in her alienage in spite of being human; Alistair got a wary trust out of necessity and his own self-effacing personality. She places much more and quicker trust in people like Morrigan and Sten, because those are people very clearly and visibly on the outside of society. Even when Evura doesn't trust a person, or thinks they're making a series of stupid decisions, she tends to build fondness for them rapidly so long as they don't do anything too shady. Every new person who doesn't treat her like shit for being an elf is someone she can ply with endless questions about their life and culture, and the world beyond the alienage she grew up in; that genuine interest in other people's lives combined with her stubborn insistence on everyone getting along "so help me or I will stab you" mean most people who work with her end up at least with a begrudging respect for her. More often, they're charmed by her whether they want to be or not (except of course for those authority figures she doesn't like. they pretty uniformly despise her and she likes it that way.)

She ends up romancing Alistair - I almost went for Leliana, but Leliana says some things about elves that fall under the "well-meaning but super gross" category and Evura was immediately turned off forever. They're still friends, but Evura was not about to spend her newly shortened life trying to romance someone who was going to need to Work Through Some Things about her. She didn't expect to care for Alistair beyond work buddies at all, seeing in him mostly a hapless human with a sense of humour that complemented her own, but the way he treated her as he realised/admitted his own affections made her feel like she could let down her walls. They came to rely on each other a lot, and Alistair is the only person in the group who Evura tells her stories to, instead of just asking for his.

The other person she's closest to (in a group full of misfits that she is absolutely enamoured of, let's be clear) is Zevran, who functions in her life as a brother figure. They're both elves who want more of a connection to Dalish culture than they have, in their own ways, and they feel comfortable joking around together and knowing that the other would listen if they ever felt the need to open up (this does mean. they very rarely open up to each other. somehow they still know more about each other than anybody else? it's all in bits and pieces and jokes.)

also Evura definitely talks Alistair into doing the ritual with Morrigan so they both survive, does not want Alistair to be king (because he doesn't, and no matter how much she'd prefer him in charge to someone she barely knows who betrayed her she also knows Anora is capable, and what Alistair wants is more important to her anyway), and her entire thing when she goes chasing after Morrigan is "hey we could just help you raise that kid!" - she is so pissed to hear that Alistair got to meet Keiran in Inquisition without her. She spends the rest of her life trying to figure out ways to cheat the Blight in her and Alistair in between making politically controversial choices that piss off the leadership of the Wardens because she does not at all believe they should stay apart from regular politics. She saved the damn world and you can bet she will leverage that to fight for elf rights and mage rights and anti-slavery work and so on and so forth. All causes are Evura's causes and she'll kick your ass if you tell her to ignore injustice no matter how many times you've been to Weisshaupt

[coffeesleep-ooc]

For your last anon, I have 2 things to say:

1. I think the lack of stress on the early days can be inferred to say something about SQQ, something about how SQQ is doesn’t find these moments as important because he’s planning/worrying/etc over the post-IAC events. Though I see it more as he saw those days as just an everyday thing, doting on LBH. He’s really sweet bc that’s his blorbo!! Ofc being nice to him is so easy even outside of the golden thighs part!! And!!! LBH, an easily impressionable teen is going to care a lot more about this when he’s not used to getting this kind of treatment- not just form SQQ- but from the peak. I mean even with NingNing, she’s seen to make the bullying worse- not on purpose though I still love her <3- so even the “kind” person he knows, kindness backfires.

2. I do think the “first person to show kindness” thing is so not true bc literally the first scene we see with ningning and lbh he’s snarky! And that may be after meeting the qi deviated SQQ but iirc it was immediately after so there’s no real interference. And the rest of the scene played out without SQQ doubting the plot events. Also OG!LBH had a harem of any women just because he wanted to prove himself, it’s a power fantasy not a romance. Imo if it was the “first person to shwo kindness” argument it kinda falls flat since ogLBH didn’t care about his wives the way a loving person would. He literally just married any woman to prove his power lol. (Though some could argue that’s because he reached a point of no return, but this isn’t my post to rant lol)

Hello again!!! It’s really nice to keep hearing your thoughts! And honestly i agree with most of what you say!

I believe that og!LBH may at some point thought to himself that he loved them all, but in the way you love shiny stuff that you collect and put on a shelf and sometimes play with? There is indeed power in keeping so many women and taking so many women from their houses, tribes, even husbands or sweethearts. I believe this is not bc LBH forces them to, but we all know that his presence attracts women according to the laws of the universe Airplane created. I believe these power fantasies are sometimes reflections of men that have been taught that having many women surrounding you and wanting you (to be a protector or just for your looks or body or whatever) makes you powerful and superior, this is also reflected on LBH having the heavenly sky pillar like SQQ calls it…bc we have been taught that erm…bigger makes you more proud or stuff like this.

I think I’m deviating to talking about toxic masculinity ksjdkskdjd but anyways! The point in sv is precisely that this absolute character of a man in SQQ’s eyes suddenly (not really suddenly though) turns around and becomes a person with wants and needs and what he wants is actually his old teacher. SQQ does not take this well lmao

But its also true that SQQ treats LBH’s disciple days like a calm period…i mean who wouldn’t! Imagine that you have transmigrated into the character with probably the worst death at the hands of your fav chara…i’d cry XD

I believe that dissociating a bit was normal in this scenario, but SQQ took it to the extreme, he thought that canon was written in stone, without taking into account that his presence and actions could make ripple changes to everyone including the protagonist, he thought his influence extended just to make his death less graphic, and maybe make the protagonist treat people a bit better, in short, he was too humble at first and too oblivious at the end (i mean pre IAC)

He also is trying to play his obsession with a character (first) and with his disciple (later) as something that is completely normal and cool. Cool as a cucumber. Jokes on you SY.

At least we recognize how into a character we are you silly man. Though i also understand him bc LBH post abyss is scary and powerful af even if inside he is still a crybaby wife that pines hard lmao

Brain just conjured the image of LBH meeting SQQ for the first time after the abyss while internally being: I JUST WANT TO MARRY SHIZUN IS THAT SO HARD QAQ

again, thanks for sending me your thoughts! Im happy to answer what i think or have observed from sv and fics~ brainrot for sv is too strong anyways

[oddmawd]

For the 35 questions, can I ask you about numbers 8, 9, 12, 19, 21 and 25? Thanks! *sends hugs*

8. Which character(s) do you find easiest to write?

i don't find Doffy or Smoker to be particularly difficult? once i outlined each story and determined their motivations, it's been easy enough to keep them on track in terms of characterization and development (though i was intimidated by doffy early on)

also Brook in The HΩuse on Rumbar Boulevard has been a joy to write, he's a breeze and SO MUCH FUN

9. Which character(s) do you find most difficult to write?

i've been poking at a Marco (One Piece) fic and tbh he's tough, it's hard to nail his demeanor and speaking voice (i refuse to add 'yoi' all over the damn place when writing in english LMAO)

also Kurama (YYH), but not because i personally have trouble writing him per se...i just have a very specific characterization of him in mind and it's pissed people off before (like bro people are SO PRECIOUS ABOUT HIM!??? wtfffff)...i have felt self-conscious about my plans for him in The Sight Unseen as a result...also the OC i've paired with him isn't the fandom's normal OC archetype for a kurama fic and i've gotten the rudest fucking comments about it saying Rei is not "special enough" for him LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO.........it's wild what people find acceptable for this fictional blorbo (like they think they can somehow dictate which OCs are 'allowed' or not) but you do you booboo, live your truth, LMAO

12. Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about.

oh god how long we got? LMAO

i've been posting lately about The Art of Queen Sacrifice, my upcoming Doffy/OC fic...it takes place in an AU setting that's more in line with a historical pirate setting, with no Devil Fruit powers, and i'm really eager to show it to you all....OBLIGATORY MOODBOARD REPOST:

i also have a ton of OCCULT PIECE stories to share...i have fics planned for Marco, Katakuri, Shanks, Mihawk, Pedro, Crocodile, Buggy, Sabo, and many more...i just love exploring the lore of that gigantic AU, and every story is a new opportunity to map out new connections and the history of the modern, urban fantasy AU setting

19. Do you prefer canon-compliant, AUs, or something in-between?

it's one or the other and NO in-between at all

i love writing canon compliant shit...There's Fire and The Grasp of Gilded Strings are both as canon compliant as they can be considering One Piece is unfinished, and i designed both stories to fit seamlessly with canon without disrupting it...i want them to read as additional side-stories that complement the canon, and for both of them, i'm achieved that (though of course future Smoker or Doffy developments during or post-Egghead, which is where we are now in canon, could derail my plans)

tbh, setting things post-canon for complete series is my overall preference when remaining canon compliant...canon can never "unmake" anything i write when the series is complete, and i used to write exclusively for completed series before falling in love with One Piece

on the opposite side of the spectrum, OCCULT PIECE is a clear indicator of how much i love completely AU settings...i love making my own playground within the bounds of fandom <3

21. Favorite pairing to write for? (platonic or romantic!)

i don't write pairings of canon characters, so OC/CC is my preferred pairing to write (and read)

25. Have you ever daydreamed about side adventures/spin-offs from your fic? Tell us about them!

SO MANY OMFGGGGGG

the entire OCCULT PIECE world is alive in my head and i daydream about it constantly...i think Sanji is at work in the Baratie restaurant in the OCCULT PIECE world and he occasionally serves meals to the couples in the OccP universe, so it's funny to think about him serving Zoro and the Witch on a date

i think about Rei and Kurama going dancing a lot...also i headcanon that she's the OC in The Hunt sometimes, and if that story is their married life, i can't help but think about what she and Kurama got up to on their honeymoon LMAOOOOOO...planning on writing that one down someday because it's gonna be 🔥

also i daydream the conclusions of There's Fire, Beyond the Fracture and Gilded ALL THE TIME, i've basically lived out those stories a million times already LMAO

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[utilitycaster]

if you're looking for any reason to write and/or procrastinate, i'd love to hear your alluded-to thoughts on people trying to shove already-extant blorbos into a ttrpg space? it's something i've tried to Strongly Discourage (if not outright ban) at my table and i've struggled putting into words why i dislike it so much. like obviously as a dm doing homebrew world stuff it's super discouraging to feel like your players don't want to engage with it, but even beyond that it feels like it doesn't Work and i'd love to hear if you have thoughts on Why That Is

Absolutely! The biggest reason is in fact the one you say: it's really discouraging as a DM, who is doing a lot more work than anyone else, to have someone not want to build a character informed by your world. This is collaborative storytelling, and they are not collaborating. Which isn't to say that player's preferences for the type of story shouldn't be considered, but there is something very different between, for example, Erika Ishii saying "hey Brennan, I would love to play a witch" in a setting everyone in the cast committed to building collaboratively, vs. coming to your table as a DM saying "hey, this is a world I've created, it is inspired by Norse mythology" and saying "cool this is my weird west cowboy OC, why isn't there a cowboy class."

I think the other reason, and here's where I might be guessing, but I think people can get uniquely rigid and protective of pre-existing OCs. I mean...I had a vague set of OCs inspired by a lot of the fantasy stories I read as a kid for literal years, and setting aside that they don't fit in neatly to a D&D system anyway, the thought of playing one and having them die at level 2 against some will-o-the-wisps is really not something I'm open to! When it comes to a lot of the games that have character progression and start relatively weak, like D&D, most people are thinking of a cool powerful mage, not a squishy L1 wizard with 2 spell slots! I think people are precious and impatient and rigid about a lot of their OCs, so they won't take the big swings that you need to make in order to have a good time in a TTRPG because they're too afraid of losing the character before they reach their final form - and, they have a final form in mind that they might be reluctant to deviate from. Sure, some people can get past this; but many people can't. They already have too much of a story in mind and aren't open to the one being told together at the table. They won't kill their darlings and so they're going to freak out every time Darling has to make a death save.

Finally: I personally think character creation is necessarily collaborative, in that party composition is important. To give an example: I have an idea of an Eldritch Knight who learned her magic from the eccentric wizard she guarded, who then died in a locked room mystery, and she was exonerated but considered suspect (and also felt guilty) and so is in need of employment and could easily fall into adventuring. This is a pretty flexible concept in most D&D settings because a lot of the specifics aren't at all filled in. However: let's say my friend says "hey, um, one of our players had a family emergency and needs to leave our game long-term. Do you want to join?" and I say "yes, absolutely" and they say "great, they were playing a bard and were our only healer, though we do have a warlock who can be the party face," I should not play the eldritch knight with no healing! It is in fact my responsibility to roll up with, say, a cleric!

So that's really why: you can and should bring vague concepts you want to explore to a table, but you really shouldn't pick from a fully fleshed out OC because that doesn't engage with the setting nor what the party needs.