#the proportions are off and the legs look strange

[whereserpentswalk]

Reblog to receive your transformation, look under the cut to find out what it feels like to transform.

Vampire: You can feel it, slowly changing you since you were first bitten by that creature. You felt stronger at first, not needing to eat, not needing to sleep. It was like the burdens of a human form were lifted from you. The only thing you needed was to drink blood, which isn't that hard to come by. Then the physical transformations began, your body becoming slenderer and more androgynous, until soon you barely are recognizable. One day you wake up and your eyes are pure black, slowly your mouth grows sharp teeth, and special joints and seams in your flesh that allow you to open it into a massive mess of fangs and teeth but close it back up into something humanoid if you want it to. As the last of your humanity goes away, your sex characteristics and body hair entirely disappears, leaving you feeling wonderfully smooth. Perhaps in the past this body would be disturbing to you, you barely look like yourself, but now, looking at yourself and feeling so much more confident, this just feels like you, like what you are meant to be.

Incorporeal: You've lost yourself. You can't feel anything. No skin, no blood, no organs. You can only really sense the vague nature of the room your spirit is inhabiting. If you want to move you just think of yourself as going to that location, and if you want to pick something up you just think of yourself as lifting it. Even your appearance is no more than a sort of hologram, able to be changed at but a thought. You feel strangely comfortable this way. Nothing can hurt you now. It takes a bit of time, you have to focus on how you look a bit to look in a way that feels really you, but it eventually feels way more like you then anything in your old body did. It's weird, your old form just felt like a vessel that you needed, but in leaving it you feel entirely free, like you just don't need that type of body anymore. You look at your old body, lying dead upon the floor, and you can't help but know that that just isn't you anymore.

Lycanthrope: It was slow harnessing the changes. The werewolf who bit you didn't tell you much when she passed on her curse. It's something you can work will, you slowly figured out how to harness small changes, modular yet more modular as time passes on. You can just give yourself the eyes, or ears, or teeth, or feet, if you need to by now. Decide exactly what is wolf and what is human. It's more normal not that you realize how fluid your body is, that every part is just a single state that part can be in and not it's permanent fate. You can choose how much of a wolf you are at any time and that's fine and normal now. And sometimes you like fully being a wolf, like how it feels to run on all fours, how it feels to taste meat freshly on your teeth, how it feels to howl at the moon. You also like being a full human at other times, especially now that that doesn't constrain you anymore. Most of the time you're just something else though. Most of the time you're just you, not wolf or human but something your own.

Cyborg: You can feel parts of your body being cut away. You don't know why but it doesn't bother you as much as you thought it would. Your legs being painlessly sliced off, those legs that hurt when you walked on them. You can feel your torso having it's organs slowly drained out of it, no more stomach pain as you have no more stomach, no more shortness of breath as your lungs become medical waste. Your fat and muscles and bone are cut from your body, leaving your body type null. A mask of sorts is closed over your skull as the skin of your face, a face you were once stuck with for your entire life, is finally taken away. And in your discarded body parts place new mechanical parts are added, and these parts are finally your own, you picked out the designs, you control exactly how they look, the art style that your new body will be drawn in, the form your form will be able to take. And if there's anything you dislike, it can always be replaced, you can't be trapped in your body anymore, and you can't be hurt by it now.

Melted: You can feel your new form, slowly writhing like the slimes you felt before did. You have no distinct parts, no bones, no limbs, no organs. All you have is the form. It feels weird, you see and feel so much differently now it can barely feel like seeing or feeling at all. It's like playing with goo in your hands, but you don't have hands anymore. Slowly but surely, you sculpt yourself a new appearance, allowing your body to be something to thrive in instead of just something to survive within. You can't control your color but everything else is up to you. It's like sculpting, even limbs and heads and eyes are all metaphors when it comes to this new universal substance that is your form. You're not sure how others will see you when you're something so strange, but you like what this means for yourself, at least for now.

Flight: Your arms have slowly been stretched out, each of your fingers longer than your entire arm once was on both hands, and this strange tight skin between them. Your body is strong in some places, but weirdly skinny in others, it all feels so different, so new. Your feet have been changed to work more like hands, now that your arms can't be used to grasp, and walking is no longer as much of a requirement for you. You feel weird, like everything is there, but it's hard to see how it all fits together. Still, now that you do get to fly it's wonderful, seeing the ground below you, seeing the sky above you, feeling so free while you're completely in the air, seeing how impressed everyone is looking at you doing that. Maybe it was worth it. Despite how much it takes getting used to you don't dislike how any of it feels, and despite what some people might think of it, it feels so nice to be able to just go through the air like that without anything restraining you anymore. You wouldn't go back at the very least.

Mind upload: You can't feel anything. But you can see, the image of what you'd expect a computer monitor to display take up the totality of your vision. You can't feel a mouse or keyboard or anything, but you can move the cursor as much as you once could move limbs. If you hadn't asked for this it would seem like the worst of punishments, but this was your desire. You can look at any website you want, and no longer do you have to worry about time, about food, about sleep. You can contact anyone online just as you once did, without any breaks. The mortal world is no longer your worry.

Limbs become longer: You know you won't be like the other giants; you'll be somewhat in-between, you're not sure if you are thankful of that fact or not. It's a lot to deal with either way. You can feel you skin and bone stretching oddly, your arms and legs doubling then tripling in their length. It hurts but you can think of all the ways you won't be human anymore. You won't fit into most spaces; you'll need certain accommodations. But you still want this despite everything that it implies. It feels strange when your torso changes, with your limbs it's just bone that's moving, but with this you can feel your organs extending and changing. Too late to change things now. You wonder how people will see you? Will they be scared? Maybe that's what you want from them now?

Pyromancy: You can feel the burning inside you now. Even when you don't focus on it in any way it's in you, your warmth, your blood always hot, the feeling with every breath that you could shoot out fire. Other people with powers need to learn how to extend them to be actually useful, not you, you had to learn how to keep yours under control. It just feels right, to be able to use fire, to feel the fire as part of your body whenever you pass by any. You find yourself fidgeting with it easily, letting the fire move alongside you, because it's just so natural. You'll light up a bit in your hands, or around your face, in the middle of conversation. It doesn't burn you anymore, it feels good, it feels better than almost anything else you've felt in your life to feel fire on your body now. A few people are afraid, but you try to keep yourself calm. Even so, it feels so good to let it burst out of you, to shoot balls of fire into the air, or breath it from your mouth, it's hard to go a long time without doing something like that. It's not just something you have but it's part of you, it's part of you that was always meant to be there perhaps.

Frog: You slowly feel yourself shrink down. It dawns on you that you're going to change a lot. But you've said your last goodbyes to your humanity either way. You can feel your hair and teeth falling out, your bones reshaping and getting smaller and more delicate. Your biology completely changing. It's a lot to get used to and it all happens within a few seconds. For a moment you're worried you'll lose your human mind, but it just doesn't happen, mentally, emotionally, you're entirely the same as you always were. But you don't have to worry about human things anymore. Frogs don't have to work jobs, or pay taxes, or pay rent, you're allowed to finally just be. When you choose to go naked, and walk on all fours, you don't even have to let on that you're human at all anymore. You can exist in peace as long as you exist and forgo the responsibility of human things unless you choose to want them.

Demon: You feel the last of your human blood get replaced with the blood of that creature. It hurts for a moment, but then you stop feeling such pain, you feel a tyle of prowess you haven't felt before. Your eyes glow, you can just feel that they glow now. Your human form begins to change, perfectly growing into your ideal body type and look, and everything feels so right. And then things go beyond just that human form. Horns grow from your head, and your teeth grow sharp, you can always feel them, even when you aren't paying attention, and it makes you feel so very cool. Your reproductive organs are replaced with a neck and head of a serpent, completely genderless, but more able to feel pleasure somehow. Wings grow on your back, and you flex them, feeling the strangeness and wonder of having new limbs and joints. You grow a scorpion like tail from the base of your spine, that equally feels so strange and wonderful and new to move. You can shapeshift back into any human form when you need to, you can even effect what people do and don't recognize as your old self, but this form, your truly demonic form, that's what truly feels like it's you.

Murder: you can kill now. No description needed.

[captainmalewriter]

Bad Sun

It was supposed to be just another day in November when the sun became bad. It happened in a flash, ending as quickly as it started. Look away and you'll miss it. While the sun reverted back to its normal state within a minute, the strange effects of the light the bad sun radiated were already felt by the people who witnessed it.

The news reported there would be a solar eclipse at around 1 o'clock in the afternoon the day it happened. Chris and Marty, two old friends from college, just so happened to be chilling outside at that time.

"Hey isn't there supposed to be an eclipse right now?" Chris asked.

"Oh yeah! Let's watch it?" Marty replied excitedly.

"Dude, no, don't be stupid. You'll burn your eyes if you do that."

"You know that doesn't actually happen, right? Oh shit look! It's happening!!"

Marty turned his head up to the sky, trying to catch a glimpse of the passing solar eclipse. Meanwhile, Chris just shook his head in disapproval and looked down at the ground instead. As he waited for the eclipse to pass, the ground underneath suddenly became flushed in a deep, luscious blue. Confused, Chris looked up and saw that everything as far as he could see had become blue- including the sun itself!

"What the fuck? Marty are you seeing this?"

Marty didn't answer. Chris turned to face him and gasped when he saw Marty's once brown eyes had become bloodshot and shined a brilliant blue. His face was contorted with pain. Chris tried forcing him to look away, but despite being the stronger of the two, he couldn't do it. His gaze was fixed solely on the blue sun in the sky.

Thankfully the blue sun quickly faded away within the next minute, taking its strange blue sunlight with it. Whatever it was, that sun was clearly bad news for whoever looked at it! Chris exhaled. He thought it was over, but soon realized he was wrong when Marty still had bright blue eyes.

"Ugh... Uhhhh..." Marty groaned. He was shaking, breathing heavily too.

Then, out of nowhere, Marty started growing taller. His legs lengthened until he hit 6'2 in height. As he went through his sudden growth spurt, Marty's quads and calves thickened until he had a pair of muscular legs to call his own. The shorts he was wearing suddenly became too tight, which left little to the imagination as his junk grew bigger too. Even when flaccid, Marty had a thick cock tip that poked through the mesh of his shorts, almost like it demanded you look at it. As Marty continued growing, blood pumped into his new tool, causing it to grow even longer as it hardened. Marty had become hung like a horse who could not only show off his impressive size but grow even bigger when hard.

His torso grew to match his new proportions too. The body fat he had melted away, leaving behind a set of 6 pack abs with sharp lines in place of his formerly chubby belly. His shoulders filled in with muscle mass, giving him impressive traps and delts. His arms blew up with mass too. The muscles in his biceps and triceps exploded with size until he had melons for arms. His forearms and hands grew bigger too. Veins ran all along his sculpted arm, even without him flexing. Within a matter of minutes, Marty had grown the type of ripped physique bodybuilders take years to build!! Only once his transformation was complete did Marty's eyes return to his usual brown color.

"What just happened!?" Chris exclaimed. He stood by frozen in shock as Marty transformed right before his very eyes. If he hadn't witnessed for himself, Chris would've never believed that the jock standing in front of him was the same average guy he roomed with back in college!

Chris' sudden shout caught Marty's attention. He turned to face him and smiled. He had an innocent look in his eyes, as if he didn't just undergo a supernatural transformation into a bodybuilder a few moments ago. It left Chris utterly bewildered.

"Marty? What happened to you?" Chris asked. Marty seemed puzzled. Chris asked again but Marty's confused expression only sharpened.

"Martyyyy don't fuck around right now! You are still you, right?"

Marty remained unresponsive. It was like he didn't remember who Chris or even his own name! In a moment of desperation, Chris began using hand gestures as he talked. Marty mirrored his movements, though all it led to was him flexing his bicep and grinning innocently. It was no use.

While Marty was busy flexing his new muscles, Chris stood there in disbelief. His mind was buzzing nonstop with various questions. What happened to his friend? What exactly was that blue sun? Why didn't he transform if he was exposed to the weird light too? He had so many questions, but basically little to no answers.

As Chris tried making sense of the situation, a commotion broke in the neighborhood. Screams echoed from down the street. His neighbors came out, fear and confusion written on their faces. A few of them had muscular men Chris didn't recognize following them out into the street. They had no sense of urgency in their eyes. Just cheery dispositions without any worries in the world.

"Holy fuck..." Chris whispered, as the gravity of what happened settled in his mind. That weird sun only lasted a minute at most, but its impact was already felt by the people who happened to see it. There was no telling what would happen next now.

[powdermelonkeg]

Holy moly I just beat all the shrines. PLEASE tell me you have theories cooking because I am losing my mind here 😭

Ancient Hero's Aspect theory time.

Look at this funky lil guy.

See this man?

Not a Zonai

Biologically, cannot be a Zonai, or Zonai-Hylian hybrid. There's a major feature of the Ancient Hero that gives it away, but let's start with the basics.

This is Rauru:

He has large ears covered in fur from the top of his head, golden horns, a third eye, and white hair with colored edges. His eyelashes are white, green, and gold, and the sclera of his eyes are white.

Proportionally, he's built more like a Zora than a human. His hips are low, with his torso the same size as his legs.

Let's look at Mineru and compare, to account for variation in Zonai physiology (the sample size is bad, but there's not much we can do about that):

Large, fur-covered ears, a third eye, white hair with colored edges. Her eyelashes are white, pink, and gold, so we can assume that some of these colors are from makeup, but her sclera are still white.

(Model ripped by WhiteMageSunny on DeviantArt)

Like Rauru, she has those weirdly proportioned hips and torso. No horns, though, so that could be a male Zonai thing, or just a him thing.

Bonus evidence, in lack of sample size, the dragons:

The three elemental dragons all have the same kind of hair as Rauru and Mineru, fluffy with spiked ends that have colored edges. And we know, from experience, that dragons keep the hair of their previous forms as their mane:

Now for our little scamp.

First off, his skin is gray-green. Not an indicator of itself, could just be a different fur color.

However, he also has:

Red, silky hair with no secondary color

Black sclera

No lashes

No horns

No third eye

Pointed ears on the sides of his head

We've established that the horns aren't a requirement, so that's also not a direct indicator. Maybe he's missing the third eye because that's a royalty-is-different trope. Maybe the red hair means he's half-Gerudo, and the ears are a byproduct of that. The black sclera is weird, but not entirely unforgivable. Zelda's done weirder (see Yeta and Yeto, or King Zora and Ruto).

(Model ripped by WhiteMageSunny on DeviantArt)

And now we get to the proportions. There's no strangely cinched waist like Mineru and Rauru have. The legs are proportional to the torso in a way that's almost human.

Still could be half-Hylian or Gerudo, right?

Wrong. Look closer.

That is a TAIL.

Neither Mineru nor Rauru have tails. But there's something even more damning here.

Mineru. Five toes. Plantigrade (on the floor) feet. Big toe to little toe, like a human.

Rauru. Five toes. Plantigrade feet. Big toe to little toe.

Hero's Aspect! Four toes! Two large middle toes! Cat toes!

Digitigrade (catlike, heel raised) feet! That spoke on the end of the sandal never touches the ground!

Where did the tail come from? The black sclera? The change in skeletal structure? The literal paws for feet?

This is not a Zonai. I'm calling it a Lomei, and I rest my case.

[wakeup01]

The Transformation House

Week One: Consumption

First Part: https://www.tumblr.com/wakeup01/751841318589841408/the-transformation-house

(Warning: freaky stuff ahead, including animal transformation, loss of identity etc. Not all of these will be furry related, scroll to the bottom if you want to vote for the next part.)

You choose to *pick up* item *milk carton*

You grab the milk carton and raise it to your nose, it smells incredibly strong. Unaware, a camera overhead turns towards you, a red light blinking on it’s front. You lightly shake the carton, the dryness of your mouth growing in intensity. This was a terrible idea, but curiosity had now gotten the better of you. Maybe just a small sip. Pursing your lips, you tilt the carton towards you until the contents hits your tongue.

You have *consumed* item *milk*.

The milk is unexpectedly thick. The taste is weirdly familiar, not altogether horrible but heady with a salty aftertaste. You take another sip, and then surrender to your thirst as the liquid starts to liberally flow down your throat. You think about stopping but you continue to gulp it all down, feeling the substance bloat your stomach. With each swallow your belly expands below you, shuddering in place like a balloon with too much air. You look down and watch it inflate, your bellybutton popping outward like the punchline to a sick joke.

Blinking, you feel confused. Something was…different. You just can’t figure out what it is. The concern quickly subsides and without hesitation you continue to slurp the full flavoured fluid from the container. Your legs begin to push further apart as a strange throbbing racks your crotch. Unperturbed, you adjust your posture, leaning forward slightly and letting your clothes fall from your body. Something about the position seems more comfortable. The weight, however, is becoming impossible to ignore, pulling you further forward. A low snort echos from your widening nostrils.

You dare to glance at your nethers as a rubbery pink sac comically unfurls where your genitals used to be. The cool air brushes against it’s sensitive surface. You wince at the heft pulling down between your thickening thighs.

*Udder* filling…1%

In one final gulp you drink the rest of the milk, belching while your chest effortlessly barrels out to ridiculous proportions. You lick your lips with a decidedly longer tongue, making sure there is nothing left of your favourite drink.

You notice the joints of your legs beginning to seize up, making your stance much more uncomfortable. Your calves appear to rub against your sides as if they had swelled up. You want to see for yourself but your neck is frustratingly difficult to turn for some reason. Maybe if you prop yourself up you could get a better look. A tiny step forward throws off your whole weight distribution. Stumbling, you attempt to keep your balance, but you can no longer hold yourself upright. With a single motion you fall forward, catching yourself with your hands. A loud snap at your wide hips, locking them in place ensures you won’t be getting back up.

You try to *lift* yourself.

Action *lift* cannot be performed.

You try to *stand*.

Action *stand* requires bipedal legs.

Pushing with your arms only makes your flattened back ache. You decide to give up on that for the time being, choosing instead to crane your neck down.

Staring at your hands, it’s hard to ignore the fact that they are quickly looking less and less human in shape. The fingers numbing as they begin to fuse, forming the clear outline of a hoof - turning black and rock hard. You can only imagine your hind legs look much the same.

*Udder* filling…37%

The thought comes that you should probably be more concerned than you are, you are literally turning into a cow after all. But for some reason that doesn’t fully register, as if that wasn’t something abnormal. Instead you feel incredibly lethargic, resigned to just stand in place. The changes only quicken as you lazily stare out at nothing, stuck wondering if there was more milk to drink.

Backing up slightly, your flank begins to heat up. Your butt cheeks casually start to spread apart, displacing the flesh as your enlarging, donut shaped rear entrance is revealed to the world. The opportunity to feel shame has well and truly passed. You cringe as a strong smell wafts from behind you. With no break to the changes in sight, the base of your spine begins to wiggle as a ropey tail pulls away from you. An embarrassingly guttural groan fills the room.

The inhuman sound you made pulls you out of your subdued daze as your mind begins to kick into overdrive. Why were you on all fours?! What was that foul stench? In a panic you attempt to move, but your body is now so heavy and inelegant that you can barely turn on the spot. Like a truck trying to reverse out of a parking space. And then there was that… *thing* between your legs. At this point so large that it rubbed against your thighs, feeling it continue to expand to an impossible girth.

*Udder* filling…72%

A series of *pops* distract you from your current predicament. Your head stiffens in place; this was gonna be a bad one. You watch in terror as your neck cracks and your face inexplicably pulls out in front of you, stretching like it were made of putty. Removing any semblance of human features. You can’t help yourself as a droll *mmmoooo* escapes your throat, passing between thickening teeth. There was no doubt, you were no longer capable of speech.

Your mouth and nose continue to join and grow further from your face. Nostrils flaring. Eyes pushing apart to the sides of your head as your skull is reshaped, squashing on your shrinking brain. A distinct muzzle now hangs between your peripheral vision. Your face completely filled out into a caricature visage of a cow, reflecting back at you from the surface of the fridge, not unlike the cow adorning the side of the carton. You stare at yourself in sheer disbelief and disgust. The only identifying feature of you left is a small tuft of styled hair that humorously sticks up. Like an afterthought, A pair of cute horns grow from your slopped forehead while your ears stretch out.

*Udder* filling… 94%

The humiliation was palpable, you looked unmistakably like a…a cow. Not just any cow either, one that seemed oddly…sexualised? Somehow idealised with unrealistic curves and proportions - especially when it came to your giant puckered rear entrance and that pink…*thing*. The thought alone made you recoil. That was ignoring the sounds involuntarily coming from your hindquarters or the shameful pleasure derided by your ‘milk’ production.

You have obtained status effect *full udder*

Your ‘milk’ audibly sloshes inside your rubbery swollen udders. The pressure below you is unbelievable, the feeling consumes your entire being. Right now, nothing else matters. You didn’t want to admit it, but you NEEDED to be milked. Drained until there was nothing left. An unmistakably bovine moo leaves your mouth, torturing you as it confirms your new animal form.

As if your wish was magically granted, you feel hands grip at your sensitive udders and begin to pull. The relief is incredible, as if climaxing over and over again. You hope it never stops. Each pull floods your thoughts with pure pleasure, making your human worries seem less and less important. Was this what your life would be like now?

Action *milking* is being performed on you.

*Intelligence* stat lowered.

The hands start to get faster, getting into a rhythm that left no space to question your eventual fate. Your udder is rigorously milked. The creamy thick substance refilling the carton below you. Once filled another replaces it, and then another. You fill a dozen cartons with your musky milk loads until you are emptied out.

You feel so docile as you just stand there and let yourself be milked in the middle of a kitchen. Almost a complete farm animal in both appearance and mind. To ‘reward’ you for your service, something thick is slipped around your elongated neck.

You have obtained cursed item *cowbell*

The hands then hold your huge ear in place and a dull pain momentarily fills the cartilage.

You have also obtained item *yellow identification tag*. Previous identification deleted.

You begin to be led outside, entering a large open field, your udders swaying beneath you. The warmth of the sun shines down on your back. With the milking finished, the haze on your brain softens. Once again you feel that sense of impending dread grow as you move across the field, noticing other cows in the distance. But each clomp forward results in a loud *clang* from your cowbell. The sound seems to dispel any attempts at complex thoughts. And yet, you can’t seem to stop yourself from moving, like your body knows something you don’t. Every step you take is cementing your own fate. Your fate as a farm animal. Just eating, shitting, being milked and…god, maybe it wasn’t all that bad. No! You wouldn’t succumb! You desperately try to gather your wits but every ring reverberates through your dim cow mind.

You attempt *human thoughts*

Action not recognised.

You attempt *clear mind*

*Mind* already clear.

Your lumbering body begins to act on pure instinct, like the dumb beast you are. That inner voice getting quieter as it’s pushed under blissful cow simplicity. Any concept of being something else is fading away. You existed to be milked. Your lowly purpose. The pupils in your eyes go glassy and opaque. An image of a virile bull flashes in your head and triggers a rising heat as you imagine your ginormous hole being completely stretched out. Bred. Like a good cow. The idea lingers in your simple mind like a bad smell. Not that you exactly smell like a flower yourself. More like a dirty farm. A smelly, filthy cow. As is appropriate. It doesn’t bother you.

You lean down and begin to absently graze the grass at your hoofs, slowly chewing on the clumps with your huge teeth. Your stomachs start to gurgle while a familiar sensation presents itself. Nature takes over - your tail automatically lifting as you begin to happily relieve the remains of your humanity out of your enormous rear end.

Item *humanity* dropped.

You let out a bellowing moooooOOOOOOOOO.

*bzzttt*

New form recorded: *cow* 🐮

________________________________

“Odd. I would have put money on them choosing the dog bowl. I had a whole doberman sequence programmed and everything.” The man says, watching a live feed on an assortment of screens.

“Eh, what can you do. The dog one was kinda boring anyway. Mmm. Milk? It’s lactose free.” The other man asks, holding out a glass.

“Uh, I’ll pass thanks. But. Why…why did you design the cow to look like…that?”

“I dunno, it’s hot I guess. Better start preparing the next scenario. Promising results so far though.”

[crivalsduo]

creature, creature

a day late but this is something i wrote for @alterdnbweek

i just wanted to explore my idea of a more inhuman c!dream

People had told Techno that Dream was a monster, that he wasn’t human. It had seemed like the sort of rumors that would’ve been directed at him if things had gone differently. He knew, at least partially, what Dream had done and had chalked it up to that which was none of his business. The fact that Dream had never betrayed him, that he owed Dream for helping to save his life and return Carl to him was what mattered to Techno and he kept that carefully separated from all the rest.

Techno was a little surprised, then, when the platform stopped at the cell with a thud and he saw Dream without the mask and carefully constructed outfit that showed nothing for the first time.

He wasn’t human.

It was hard to tell what he was. Techno was aware of a humanoid shape pressed into the corner of cell, tucked beneath the lectern as much as possible. But it felt off. The stained and ripped orange jumpsuit didn’t quite fit.

“Dream?”

The cell swallowed the name. Techno took a couple steps forward. He could smell sweat and too much blood in the air. He knew what the stains were.

“You—You shouldn’t have come.” Dream’s voice muffled and strained. “It’s a trap.”

“I know, Dream, I know,” said Techno, crouching down close enough he could reach out and touch Dream if he wanted to. The smell of blood was stronger now. “C’mon, it’s alright. Lemme see you.”

Dream let out a shaky breath then unfurled himself from the corner.

Green, tangled hair that was more like a mane fell down in front of Dream’s face. Two white, rabbit-like ears stuck out from the top of his head, a green tuft of fur on the tip of the one that hadn’t been torn raggedly. His eyes were round and so dark Techno couldn’t determine the color though when the light from the glowstone hit them, they shone green. His nose was also rabbit-like with a little bit of green fur set above a mouth that was entirely too wide, curved upwards. The flat, round shape of his face reminded Techno of a barn owl. A long white tail, also tipped with green, was wrapped around Dream’s legs. Sitting, it was hard to judge proportions but the lankiness Dream had always possessed now made more sense. He was all arms and legs, the paw shaped hands ending in claws, and Techno was certain the fluff on his rabbit shaped feet hid similar claws. Where there wasn’t green fur, his skin was an almost iridescent white and his back seemed oddly hunched. Dream blinked and two sets of eyelids slid across his eyes.

“I know,” he started, bitterly, “I’m—”

Techno cut him off.

“Bruh, what the heck happened to you?”

The question caught Dream off-guard and he tilted his head as he fell silent. He pulled his arms to his chest. The sleeves of the jumpsuit weren’t long enough, exposing his forearms and all the cuts and scars and bruises. Dream swallowed.

“I—They’ve been torturing me.”

Techno winced slightly at the confirmation of what was obvious from merely looking at Dream. He hadn’t wanted to believe it but the bloody jumpsuit and the torn ear and all the bruises and cuts were impossible to miss. The abuse was written all over him and it was horrific. Techno didn’t know what to do or say, not with Dream’s strange face staring at him like he was expecting something bad.

“Dang,” he said, throat tight. “That sucks, man.”

A rough, annoyed laugh was pulled from Dream and he smiled, too-wide mouth full of sharp teeth, before he could stop himself.

“It’s not—I mean, yeah, it—it does suck.”

Dream’s shoulders dropped. His collarbone stuck out sharply and Techno realized he had to be terribly underweight. He started to dig into his pockets but Sam had turned them out thoroughly. Instead, he untucked his shirt, stuck his thumb into the last button hole, and tore a strip of fabric off.

“L, couldn’t be me.” The words were soft and teasing and Techno moved a little closer to Dream. “You said ‘they’, I’m guessin’ you mean Sam and Quackity.”

At the names, Dream tensed, large eyes flicking upwards, looking beyond Techno to the wall of lava as if he thought they would be summoned by mere mention. He was trembling, shifting uncomfortably where he sat.

“Y-yeah. It was—It was him. Quackity,” said Dream after a long moment. “He tried to make me write you a note but I didn’t. I swear, I didn’t, Techno.”

It was the most emotion he had shown this entire time, face twisting in desperation. His hands had twitched, starting to reach out to Techno before pulling back. Techno reached out instead and touched the side of Dream’s head. The hair beneath his palm was soft despite the matting.

“It’s okay, Dream, I believe you, alright? I believe you, man. Just let me take a look at you. You’re a mess,” he said.

Instead of responding, Dream pushed himself further out of the corner and closer to Techno. The blood on his skin was dried and crusty but Techno did his best to clean it off. The first time Techno’s fingers touched Dream’s skin, he almost recoiled; it had a strange texture, almost like a slime block but dry and warm. He thought Dream noticed the almost, saw the way he lowered his gaze, and to make up for it, Techno pressed his palm against Dream’s cheek. There were scars on his face and around his neck and long, thin scars curling around his shoulder and down his back. On his back, two oddly shaped lumps were raised against the fabric of his jumpsuit and for some reason, Techno thought of Phil. He started to pull the jumpsuit back but Dream jerked away.

“Don’t—Just, don’t, please,” he said.

Techno frowned. He wanted to know what had happened because he had an idea and he didn’t like the idea, not even a little. He knew why he had thought of Phil. Discarding the scrap of fabric, Techno tugged off his cloak.

“Alright, alright.” He wrapped the cloak around Dream’s shoulders, careful with what part of his back he rubbed his hand against. Then he pulled Dream against his side. “I’ve got ya, Dream.”

[bodybeyondstories]

story prompt: A tailor has the power to enchant clothes to change the wearers body and does so when clients have unreasonable asks. like a guy with a flat butt ask for pants that flatter his rear so the tailor inflates his butt out of proportion…that kind of thing

My first thought with this was what if there was some sort of less than ethical business model based on forming a runaway positive feedback loop where someone had to keep coming back to have clothes altered and then ended up altered in some way, which would be fun to write eventually. Here I riffed on some classic careful-what-you-wish-for ass expansion.

1313 words

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"You might have to adjust the seat a little, I've been hitting leg day pretty hard." Danny glanced down at me with an expectant smirk as I ran the measuring tape across his backside.

"Whatever you say, Cake Boss," I said, pretending the number wasn't exactly what it always was. "I might need to run and get a few more yards of fabric for this dump truck."

"Big butts are in style and I need to show off these gains." He swung his hips back toward the mirror to check himself out, eyes focusing expectantly on an unremarkable backside.

Are the gains in the room with us now? I thought, chuckling out loud.

Danny and I were good friends, and as such, he occasionally took advantage of the very generous friends and family discount for my tailoring services. This time, he wanted to get his suit refitted for the upcoming commitment ceremony of our mutual friends and favorite throuple, Jean, Gene, and Jerome, who were officially, begrudgingly, tying the three way knot. He had been through my shop no less than six times in the past several months, begging for an adjustment of this or that pair of trousers in anticipation of whatever new workout routine he had jumped into. He was obsessed with his ass, specifically--tragically--its undeniable flatness. I was a damn good tailor, but I could only do so much. News I had to break to him on a regular basis.

"Can't you like, work your magic or something?" he asked, winking down at me.

I thought for a long moment and relented, feet taking me toward the back of the shop. "I can try."

I reached behind my desk and pulled out a well worn notebook, decorated by decades of page folding, sticky noting, coffee staining, and annotating. It was one of many strange, sentimental pieces of inheritance I received from my mother, a practitioner of the craft who disappeared with her coven years ago. I was left with half memories of their gatherings, what little training I had paid attention to growing up, and of course, this notebook, my own annotations slowly forming a cross-generational palimpsest.

Occasionally, especially with my more tedious clients, I'll let my hobby cross into the tailoring business, enchanting the fabric with whatever magical push the wearing needs to feel their best self.

I pulled out a container of ink--hand made from ingredients foraged sustainably under the light of a full moon--and drew out what I hoped was the right mix of sigils for illusion and manifestation, sprinkled with a little bit of chaos, to give Danny the booty of his dreams. I stitched the small slip of paper into the waistband of his pants and handed them back to try on.

He slipped each leg in and pulled them up his toned quads, gasping as he stopped suddenly at the top of his hamstrings. What usually slipped on with minimal effort was now blocked by a perky bubble butt perched behind him.

"Nice!" he exclaimed, giving his newly hefty ass a jiggle. "I knew you could do it."

---

I rolled into the ceremony just as it was starting and posted up in one of the empty rows towards the back. As I passed the gaggle of bridesmates, gentlethems, attendants and henchmen (they all got to pick their own terms), Danny gave me a wink and a thumbs up, adjusting his waistline as the procession began.

As they walked down the aisle, I got a better look at my handiwork, and apparently so did everyone else. When he had left my shop his ass had looked delectably round and perky, but the pair of cheeks fighting for space as he strutted towards the front were on another level. They looked big. Really big.

Maybe it was the light? I tried to convince myself with a twinge of worry. I kept my gaze as professional as possible as he stood at the front with the rest of the attendants with his shoulders squared and hands clasped firmly in front of him. As the ceremony progressed, he seemed increasingly uncomfortable, squirming in place as he shifted from one foot to the other, the tails of his suit jacket riding up over his meaty buns.

Those cheeks were definitely bigger than they were during the fitting. In fact, they were bigger than they were twenty minutes ago. The sheen of sweat on his forehead and small winces of discomfort confirmed what I--and likely others--had picked up on. His ass was inflating imperceptibly but undeniably.

Something must have gone wrong with the spell. Or maybe something went too right? I don't know. I hoped I could intervene before things got out of hand, but time was quickly running out on that plan. The attendant behind him took a step back as his ass slowly ballooned from his otherwise slim frame, straining the fabric of his pants to their limit.

Even a magically enhanced pair of trousers can only take so much. When Jean, Gene, and Jerome were two thirds of the way through the sharing of vows, the seat of Danny's pants finally gave way, revealing his now basketball sized buns spilling into the open air clad in a pair of plaid bikini briefs.

A shockwave of gasps and murmurs spread through the crowd. "Ooo girl," "Need his leg routine," "The whole bakery..." could be heard among the general whispers of surprise and politely restrained chuckles. Danny, face a flush of embarrassment, tried to hold what remained of the seat of his pants together as he slunk away, the attendant behind him quickly taking his place before the soon to be betrothed could notice the commotion or his wildly jiggling buns disappearing out of sight.

I found him behind the reception tent, clutching my handbag full of emergency repair materials for just this situation. But I quickly came to realize that some heavy duty thread and patches wouldn't be enough.

"Dude, it won't stop!" he exclaimed, trying and failing to cover the globes of his ass. "What do we do?!"

"Okay, um," I said, grasping wildly for solutions, "I have my notebook, I can try and figure something out on the fly. Just take your pants off and the growth should stop."

"...I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?"

"I mean I can't!" he snapped, turning to show me the waistband stuck just below his hips, unbuttoned and stretched to the limit yet still woefully incapable of making it over his massive--and still slowly expanding--posterior.

"Okay, Plan B," I said, reaching into my bag. I brandished a seam ripper as I turned him around and traced the waistband of his pants until I found where I had installed the sigil. "Wow," I muttered, marveling at a pair of globular, gravity defying glutes that were nothing short of a work of art.

"What's up?" he asked, panic rising in his voice.

"Nothing, nothing, it's just...it's a lot..."

"Yeah I think we've all figured that out. Can we address this crisis while I still have any hope of wearing normal clothes?"

"Right." I snapped back into focus, searching along the seams for my signature stitch. "Found it!" I beamed, slicing through with one deft cut and yanking the sigil from the fabric.

"Thank fuck," he whispered. "Can you stitch this back up before the reception?"

"Yeah, I should have everything here, just let me--"

I was cut off by the unmistakable soft staccato of seams tearing. With the spell broken, and the pants returned to their mundane state, the overstressed fabric no longer stood a chance against the melons ballooning from Danny's lower back. Seams split one after the other as what was left of his pants fluttered apart, revealing every extensive curve of his beyond bodacious butt.

"Okay," I said. "I might have some spandex in the car."

[imagine-darksiders]

A drabble from that Pseudo x Reader found family fic I never wrote.

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“Everything about you is out of proportion,” Pseudo grunts, gesturing to your hands.

You’re so bewildered by his assessment that you actually whip them up in front of you to give them a thorough examination, as though you might inexplicably find something amiss.

But no. They’re just as they always have been. Two thumbs, eight fingers, not any one longer or shorter than they usually are.

But then, you glance up at Pseudo, and it occurs to you for the first time, that in this strange and wild world you’ve washed up in, you might be the odd one out.

Your eyes wander to his scrawny waist and leathery, honey-yellow skin that’s stretched taut over his midriff, defining abdominal muscles and sinking slightly between the bars of his ribcage. But his chest is distended awkwardly, swollen and bare and by all means overbalanced compared to his middle.

Flicking your gaze up, you take in his neck, stained nearly brown with dirt and battle paint, lending it the look of a body part that’s been stitched on top of his sternum as an afterthought.

It's thick too, almost the width of his substantial shoulders, and it tapers gently until it feeds into a head with no chin, nor any visible nose - just two jaundiced eyes and a wide, lipless mouth that’s tilted into a permanent frown. There’s no hair on top of his head. In fact, the only hair on his body sprouts as coarse, single strands from his temple and grows sporadically down the length of his arms, black as night, like the hairs that used to grow on your grandmother's chin when she forgot what tweezers were.

Even his arms look far too long, and you find yourself regarding them from under your furrowed brow as he stirs the pot that’s bubbling away over the firepit. One hangs a good few inches lower than the other against his muscled thigh, each fore and upper arm extended well beyond the length of a typical human’s. You recall seeing gibbons at the zoo when you were eight, how odd and funny their arms looked…

On Pseudo however, they’re borderline scary. All muscle, no fat. Almost human, not close enough to be mistaken for one.

To Pseudo, a man for whom proportions have always been off-kilter, your unvarying symmetry must be a sight to behold.

Still stirring a wooden spoon around his pot, he suddenly shifts on his four-toed feet and pointedly clears his throat, and you realise you’ve been staring for just a fraction too long.

“Sorry,” you utter, averting your eyes to the firepit and drawing your knees up closer to your chest. You feel his alien gaze linger on your downturned face for a few moments before he grunts dismissively and returns his attention to the pot of boiling broth.

“Well, I think you’re very pretty!” a youthful voice pipes up.

Slowly, you turn your head and quirk a brow down at the little ball of soot-black feathers that has claimed the spot directly beside you.

From within the mass of ebony tufts, two enormous, round eyes blink innocently up at you, golden as treated amber, and the only features visible on the child’s feathered face. There’s a mouth in there somewhere, hidden behind a plumage so black, not even the firelight seems to change its pitch. You know because the Boy – his only moniker, apparently – is much more of a talker than his gruff protector.

No sooner have you met his curious gaze however than he abruptly seems to turn shy, dropping his stare and tucking his small, contorted hands underneath his body to hide them alongside his avian legs, like an owl settling down in its nest.

“Oh?” you prompt gently, watching as a single, slender finger emerges from his feathers to trace mindless shapes in the sandy dirt.

A slight shift in the mass of darkness suggests he’s shrugged his wing, avoiding your eye as he stammers out, “Well, I mean, you’re really nice. And your eyes aren’t scary at all, a-and you’re really soft to sleep on!”

Ah. Yes, you remember that. Well, specifically you remember blinking awake on the cot Pseudo gave up for you - after much arguing back and forth - and finding a small, obsidian shape curled up on your stomach. It had taken an insurmountable effort to refrain from screaming and tossing yourself from the cot before you remembered where you were, and that there was not, in fact, some kind of wild, scraggly beast sneaking into your bed.

You also recall swallowing back the yelp and turning your head to gather your bearings, only to spot Pseudo sitting by the firepit nearby, his sharp, yellow eyes wide and alert, fixed unwaveringly on you.

Apparently, the Boy had one of the best sleeps of his life.

And you, one of the worst.

You can hardly believe it's only been a few short days since you washed up on that beach.

Sighing dismally at the memory, you tune back in to the present and find that the Boy has grown slightly more confident in his affirmations.

He's raised his head to you again, and lowered his voice to a secretive whisper, golden eyes squinted shut with gleeful mischief.

“Not like Pseudo,” he tells you, “He’s like sleeping on a rock.”

That tracks. You've seen first-hand Pseudo's proclivity for martial arts. Nobody gets that good without some fierce and rigorous training that's left his body one, solid muscle.

You’re not sure that being nice and soft constitutes pretty, but you’ll take the compliments as they were intended.

“Thanks, Kid,” you smile, prying an arm away from your knees and laying your palm gently on top of his head, smoothing back his tufted ears and earning yourself a contented warble from an unseen throat, “You’re very cute yourself.”

At that, you see his eyelids flatten and he harrumphs, grumbling, “M’not cute.”

A sudden roll of soft laughter draws your gaze back up to Pseudo, who’s standing with a hand on his jutted hip, regarding the pair of you with the beginnings of a fond smile stretching the corners of his unusual mouth. “Hate to disagree with you, kid, but you are,” he teases.

The Boy whines, and the tip of his long, black tail starts to tap against the ground in mild agitation.

For the first time, you and Pseudo give each other looks of mutual accord, and you suddenly find his towering height and alien presence just a little less frightening, eased by the unexpected warmth in his otherwise stony expression.

“I’m sure you’ll be very handsome when you’re older,” you say to the grumbling sphere at your side, trying not to smirk when the child turns his hopeful gaze onto you, “But for now, you’ll just have to accept it...”

Giving his feathered head one last tousle, you return your hand to your lap and drop an eyelid in a lazy wink. “You, kid, are very cute.”

Puffing up indignantly, he lets out a strangled sound and casts his mind about for a retort.

“Oh yeah?! W-well… Well, Pseudo thinks you’re cute too!” he accuses triumphantly, pointing a wing out at his guardian, who almost drops the spoon into his bubbling pot before he manages to snag the handle with two fingers again, whipping his head up to stare at the Boy in muted horror.

Your eyebrows shoot up towards your hairline, taken wildly aback as you meet Pseudo’s gaze, only for the pair of you to instantly snatch your eyes away from each other, and the latter to roughly clear his throat and argue, “I – When did I -? I never said-“

“-Yu-huh!” the Boy interrupts, suddenly excitable as he turns to you and blurts, “Remember when you fell in that pond? And Pseudo went in to rescue you, and then after, when you were drying off, I heard him say-“

The sudden clatter of a spoon hitting the ground promptly cuts off the end of his sentence. “-OH-kay, I think it's well past your bedtime,” Pseudo announces sharply, stalking towards his charge and reaching down to scoop him off the ground whilst staunchly avoiding your bewildered gaze.

“But I haven’t even had any supper yet!” the Boy protests, dangling helplessly by the scruff from Pseudo’s fist.

Dumping him soundly - but notably gently - on the straw-covered cot beside the tent, Pseudo grumbles, “One more word out of you, and you’ll be tonight’s supper.”

"Pseudo!" you scold through a smile.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, he's out for the count," you murmur, stretching your arms up over your head and waiting for the bliss of a good ache to flow down your shoulders.

"Good," Pseudo grunts just as quietly, watching your face scrunch up, enraptured, "He needs it."

You've found yourself sitting once again on a patch of grass just next to camp, perched near the edge of a cliff that looks out towards the cold Zonectic Mountains. The sky above you, unhindered by light pollution - or any pollution for that matter - is clear and bright as a mirror's surface, freckled from horizon to horizon by a myriad of stars.

You're staring up at them, trying to see if you can pinpoint any of the same constellations that you might recognise in your own sky back at home. Not that you were much good at it even before you wound up in Zenozoik.

"You're doing it again," his rich, dulcet voice mumbles, the rustle of grass clueing you in to his proximity.

He does this. Ventures close sometimes, not for the purpose of protecting you, as he does when you travel during the day. But when it's quiet and still after dark, and the Boy is asleep, the insects buzzing and cricketing away in their trees.

Pseudo continuously seeks you out, even though you had him pegged as a loner who neither liked nor trusted you when you first met. You chalk it up to simple curiosity. You suppose you'd be just as curious if an alien landed on your world too.

Inhaling deeply through your nose, you tear your eyes off the empyrean stars and turn to give Pseudo a questioning, heavy-lidded glance. "Doing what?"

"Thinking," he grunts, settling down in the grass next to you, leaving just a foot of space between you.

Again: Odd.

"Oh? Want me to show you how?" you quip.

It's become a mark of success for you to make the grizzled hermit smile, and as he lets out a low, breathy chuckle and leans sideways to knock his sizeable elbow against you, you allow your own grin to widen.

"Smart-ass," he huffs, turning sombre a moment later and heaving a sigh that nearly doubles his chest in size. "Thinking of how you're gonna get back to your world again, huh?"

"I'm never not thinking about it," you admit, "I just hide it better when You-Know-Who is awake..." Twisting your neck over a shoulder, you give the tent a tired look. "He doesn't like hearing that I have to leave."

Pseudo doesn't say a word in response, doesn't even meet your eye. He just stares straight ahead, his expression tight and locked on the distant peaks.

It's only when you raise your face to peer up at the stars again that he finds his voice.

"Would it be so bad?" he asks quietly, listening to a breeze pass through the camp and rustle the flaps of his tent, "If you stayed, I mean."

You miss the sideways glance he throws at you, and the hopeful gleam in his yellow eyes.

"Ha, yeah, Pseudo," you snort, "It would be pretty bad. I don't know how this world works. I'd have been killed ten times over if you hadn't found me. And I wouldn't even know how to begin building a life for myself here."

The two of you sit through another stretch of silence for several moments before Pseudo hesitantly offers, "I could teach you how..."

Once again, you fail to register the sliver of hope in his tone. It doesn't occur to you that this might be more than a polite suggestion meant only to ease your concerns. The idea that Pseudo might be extending a lonely hand towards you in the hopes that you'll take it doesn't even cross your mind.

Because how could a recluse be lonely?

"That's not the point." Exhaling softly, you reach down and gather your knees towards yourself, resting your chin on top of them and blinking up at the night sky. "I'm gonna get out of here, one way or another...." you murmur, mostly to yourself, "Just need to figure out how."

Again, Pseudo doesn't respond. And this time, he doesn't break the silence.

For a long couple of minutes, you and he simply bask under the light of the rising moon, your head upturned to gaze into it's too-large face, Pseudo's head tilted subtly to watch the side of your face.

Eventually, you hear him push himself off the ground, followed by the soft fall of his bare feet padding back towards the camp.

"You should get some sleep," he grunts over his shoulder without turning to look at you, "Tent's all yours."

Lifting your chin off your knees, you aim a soft frown at the back of his head, but you know by now that arguing with him is like throwing paper at a brick wall.

So, instead, you let out a weary sigh through your nose and softly call, "Thanks, Pseudo... You get some rest too, okay?"

The towering figure raises one, sinewy arm and waves it dismissively through the air. "Sure, sure..."

You'll hold him to that. "Goodnight, Soods," you tell him, "Sweet dreams."

His feet fall still on the dirt, shoulders locking up in surprise, but you've already returned your attention to the moon hanging in the sky.

[bluegalaxygirl]

Canvas (Zosan X Reader)

Thanks to @mrstrafalgardwater24 for the request on the first part. again i'm sorry for the wait.

Plot: Kuina and the crew paint your baby bump.

Warning: Bad language, extreme Fluff, Violence and Pregnancy stuff.

Reader is Female, Zoro X Sanji x Reader, Poly relationship, established relationship. Kuina is 5ish and has blonde hair, your eye's and skin color. Reader is about 6 to 7 months along.

You have no idea where Kuina got this idea but now that it's happening its hard to complain about it, you know the crew already loves your daughter and the baby still growing inside you but once the little girl mentioned painting on your stomach suddenly everyone wanted to do it all having different ideas of how to show their love and care for the baby. Its turned into more of a competition between a few of the crew member's so to stop any fighting and to let everyone have some fun Kuina decided to make into a contest lasting over the next week. Sitting on the deck of the sunny you can't help but smile as your daughter stands in front of you with several large tubes of different colored body paints, paintbrushes, plastic plates, pencils and paper all laid out on the grassy deck "Alright so the teams are, Luffy and Us opp, Robin and Nami, Chopper and Jibe, Franky and Brook and of course me and my dads" Kuina gives a big smile turning to her farther's who are next to her both giving her a confirming nod, Zoro can't help but smirk at his daughter taking charge as he sits cross-legged in grass facing his little girl while Sanji stands behind him mainly leaning on the swordsman's shoulder with hearts in his eyes. "Everyone will put their deigns down on paper and tomorrow we'll draw straws to see who goes first, i don't want anyone changing their designs after seeing anyone else's. We'll try and do one a day and if Mama needs a break then she gets a break" Kuina puffs out her cheeks making you giggle as Luffy, Usopp and Franky all bow their heads "Yes ma'am" the three say in unison making some of the other crew laugh seeing the hold the young girl has over her uncles. With a big smile your daughter starts handing out the pencils and paper letting the groups start to plan their designs and choosing their color scheme, "Hay wait a minute, who's going to judge?" Nami asks suddenly realizing, Usopp and Luffy are quick to look up from the paper their both sitting with to look at Kuina both realizing there isn't one.

Your daughter giggles taking a pencil and paper before rushing over to the bench your sitting soon followed by Sanji and Zoro "Mama of course" She states sitting down to you as you place a hand on her head and ruffle her hair "Hay thats not fair, of course Y/n is going to pick your design since your her daughter and partners" Usopp jumps up pointing his hand out at the four of you, Zoro lets out a chuckle letting a cheeky grin form on his face "Too bad for you long nose, just try your best then" Before an argument can break out you lightly slap the swordsman's arm then turn to the sniper "Your right, i would be biased so maybe we should have a point's system. Like 1 to 5 stars, I'll count them up so only i can see" You elbow Sanji slightly as he sits down next you his smile growing at the food reference you made "Oh my love thats so sweet" The cook sways slightly a blush appearing on his face making you giggle, Usopp sighs feeling more relaxed about things and nods his head along with Kuina who's happy that everything seems to be going well. Through the day the teams worked on their deigns most of the either measured your belly to work out proportions while others dragged you off to have a privet chat, it made you more curious about their designs since Chopper pulled you into the medical room and with the help of Jinbe placed a strange snail device on your stomach, they secretly talked before saying you could go while Brook and Franky did a lot of measurements even going as far as to get a drawing compass, a proctor and a drafter tool. None of them let you see their designs not even your own family who did most of their work in the kitchen discussing and some times arguing on what to do and coming up with an idea they could actually do instead of something big and complicated.

The next day came quickly and everyone was back outside eager to draw the straws and see what order they would be in, the plan was they would have the whole afternoon to do their work and then a photo would be taken before showing everyone who will then each secretly write down on a slip of paper how many stars which you would then count up and keep in a small book. Of course, you would be voting too but you made a mental note to not add your scores until the end as not to be tempted to add more or less to other peoples scores, with your pregnancy brain you will mostly likely forget what ever you wrote down the day before, last night you forgot what chapter you were up too in your book even though there was a bookmark on the page. "Ok, on three. One, Two… Three" Kuina yells as a member from each team pulls a straw out of your hand each a different length "Yessss" Luffy yells while holding the longest straw out of the bunch soon followed by Usopp who lifts his captain into the air as if they've won the whole contest "Calm down you two, geez" Nami sighs while pinching the bridge of her nose waiting for Robin to compare her straw with that of Chopper's and Brooks who were all the middle people "Looks like were going last" Kuina states holding the smallest straw, you thought she would be sad about it but instead she has a massive smile on her face while looking up at you and her two dads, Zoro nods sitting next to you on the bench and placing an arm around your shoulder "It'll give us more time to practice painting" the swordsman leans forward ruffling his daughters hair who groans and shoves his hand off earning a chuckle form her farther.

Sanji shakes his head while taking a seat on your work side placing his hand on your large stomach "If you ever need a break love just say so… I'll kick their asses out if i have too" The cook smirks, turning to face him you place your hand over his feeling your heart swell with love, you couldn't ask for better partners, the two are always so caring and eager to help you out when ever you need "Thanks darling" You whisper leaning in to place a light kiss on his lips which he happily leans into. "Alright gets get going, come on" Luffy and Usopp run over holding out their hands for you to take, in the past they would have just grabbed you and ran off but the first time that happened while you were pregnant with Kuina your two boys almost kicked them both off the ship and into the ocean then made them do all the chores and heavy lifting on the ship for a week, safe to say they learned their lesson. Standing up with the help of Zoro and Sanji you kiss the two goodbye before turning to your daughter who hands you your book and pen, placing a light kiss on Kuina's head you take the book and give her a looking look while running your hand over her cheek "See you later sweetie" With a wave to the others you head off with Luffy and Usopp who have already gathered what they needed and guided you to the aquarium bar. The once dim room was now light making it easier to see, a section of the large sofa lining the long fish tang was covered in a white sheet that flowed down onto the floor being held in place with white tape and two old tables on either side.

Luffy helps you get comfortable while Usopp sets up the paints and the paper they used to draw on, sitting down you sigh relaxing into the soft cuisines of the sofa "Do you need more cuisines? Water? Food?" Luffy asks hovering a little seeming a little nervous for some reason, taking his hand you give him a smile "A bottle of water would be nice but are you ok captain?" You look up at him with concern, Luffy gulps while rubbing the back of his neck "W-well, while Sanji and Zoro aren't here it's my job to look after you and.. I don't know what i'm doing, Usopp's here but.." The captain sighs looking over to his friend who is loft in thought while mixing colors together to get the right shade. Patting the captains hand you give him a big smile feeling your chest warm up at how much he cares for you and your health "Your doing great, if i need something I'll tell you, ok?" You ask getting Luffy to look at you, his eyes search yours before giving you a nod knowing your not lying to him, a large smile starts to from on his face before quick to rushing off to the bar area letting his arm stretch as to not pull you along. Letting out a little snort you can't help but start to laugh, your hand grips onto your belly as you lean forward finding the starching arm still holding your hand unbelievably funny, Luffy soon finds a bottle of water and rushes back over watching you wipe tears from your eyes before taking the bottle off him "T-thanks Lu" You giggle managing to calm from your laughing fit and let go of his hand, Usopp soon snaps out of his own little world and turns around going to speak when he see's the tears in your eyes, his body goes stiff in panic before lunging at Luffy grabbing his captain by the collar and shaking him "What did you do? Why is she gonna cry?" The captain raises an eyebrow at his friend letting his body be shaken back and forth "Usopp it's ok, Luffy made me laugh thats all" You reach out managing to stop the sniper from panicking.

With the room much calmer and Usopp apologizing to his captain the two get started on painting your belly, at first you have no idea what their making other than it being food related since Luffy kept saying how yummy it was going to look only to be hit by Usopp stating they can't eat it. The two kept you entertained or the next hour with banter, food jokes which lead Luffy to rush off for a few minutes to get snacks and the snipers adventure stories, it was so sweet seeing the long nosed man telling his obviously fake stories to your baby, It was also sweet to see Luffy look after you in a way he's never done so before, always checking if you needed anything, asking if your comfortable and helping you up if you ever needed to stretch. Two hours later they were done, after taking a photo and letting you have a look first they let the rest of the crew in to see the finished product "The great captain Usopp has created another fine master piece" Usopp smirks while pointing a thumb at himself clearly proud of his work, Kuina smiles wide while running up her uncle with big sparkling eyes "Wow, it looks so good" Chopper soon joins in on your daughters praising boosting the snipers ego more much to Nami and Zoro's dismay who both let out an annoyed sigh. Luffy groans with a pout some drool forming at the side of his mouth while laying on the floor his arm and head propped up onto the sofa next to you "It looks so yummy, now i really want cupcakes… Sanji" The captain whines while turning to look at the cook with puppy dog eyes only to be hit over the head by the cook "Don't you dare look at her like that and you can't have anything else, you've already had snacks" The blonde huff crossing his arms over his chest.

Letting out a giggle you look down at your tummy seeing the massive cupcake the two have done, the blue icing with sprinkles and a red cherry really does look yummy, the bow was also a very cute idea even though the two were slightly reluctant to use pink, no one knows what the gender is but the two are convinced it's going to be a boy. "Alright thats enough, lets vote so the two of you can get cleaned up, your both a mess" Nami sighs crossing her arms and handing out pieces of paper and pens letting each person write down how many stars "It really does look good Uncle Lu" Kuina gives the captain a big smile while handing you her piece of folded up paper "Thanks, it really does look yummy…. Quick let raid the fridge before your daddy finds out" Luffy whispers quickly passing you his piece of paper before picking your giggling daughter up and running to the kitchen, with a small laugh you watch as the cook makes his way over to you with a raised eyebrow handing you his piece of paper, all it took was one sorry look from you to know what was going on, in an instant the blonde goes from confused, to shock and then anger "Luffy, get your ass back here" Sanji yells with fury running off to stop his captain from raiding his kitchen and teaching his daughter bad habit's, with a chuckle Zoro plots down next to you and places his arm around your shoulders, the swordsman places his piece of paper on your lap before kissing your head which you lean into.

----- Team 2, Robin and Nami -----

The next day was Robin's and Nami's turn, again the aquarium bar was cleaned and set up so you could sit while they paint, luckily the paint was easy to wash off in the shower last night and didn't leave any residue so your stomach was a clean canvas for the two girls. Sitting down on the sofa you watch the two girls work together while chatting and filling you in on gossip you may have missed, it's a much calmer experience than yesterday which your glad for since after yesterdays antics your a little tired. As the two girls pause to get more paint you shift a little to rub your lower back only to feel two hands start to rub it for you, turning in surprise you see two hands attached to the sofa rubbing your lower back for you, knowing right away its robins doing you turn to the black haired woman and flash a thankful smile grateful for her kindness "We can take a break if you want" Robin smiles back putting down her paint and paint brush to clean her hands on a wet cloth, Nami quickly turns with slight concern not noticing you were unconformable but you don't blame her since you tried not to show it until now "Yes please" Pushing yourself up Nami is quick to rush over and take your arm helping you stand straight up "Do you want me to ask Sanji for some snack?" The navigator asks but you shake your head not feeling the need for food right now, starting to walk around Nami sticks next to you holding your arm while Robin continues with the paints and cleaning any mess they have made "I'm not an old lady Nam" You giggle taking the orange haired girls hand in yours happy to walk with her without assistance, Nami sighs before letting out a laugh gladly taking your hand and letting your arm go "Sorry"

Looking Nami over you let out a sigh wondering why she's so tense all of a sudden, before you can ask the navigator sighs seeing your giving her questioning eyes "I've never been in charge of looking after you while pregnant, i'm just… nervous that I'll do something wrong" Looking away from you Nami refuses to look you in the eyes even when you stop and take her chin bringing her face to look at you "Nami, your not doing anything wrong and i know you feel like you have too but you don't need to look after me, just because i'm pregnant doesn't mean i can't do things or tell you if i need something… Just having you around is helping me, your so caring and quick to jump to my aid either physically or verbally… mainly physically, i can't ask for anything else" You can't help but laugh at the last bit remembering how if someone made you cry or angry even by accident Nami would be so quick to hit who ever it is and make them apologies. The navigator looks up at you as you squeeze her hand in reassurance noticing the soft thankful look on your face, a small smile starts to spread across her lips while squeezing your hand back "I'll always come to your aid, if anyone hurts my girls their going to feel my wrath" The two of you laugh at her statement even though its true, all the girls on the ship feel the need to protect each other no matter what "I'm in safe hands" You hug the orange haired girls arm and lay your head on her shoulder as the two of you start walking again letting laughter fill the air.

Your greeted by Robin as the two of you get back to the sofa, the black haired woman sitting with one leg over the other while patting the place next to her for you to sit "Unfortunately were no where near done yet so to relieve your back pain i thought of an idea" Sitting down next to the woman you suddenly feel something press against your back that isn't the sofa, with a squeak you turn seeing 5 rows of hands with no wrists pressed into the sofa so you could lean back with comfort while so getting any benefits of a message. Letting out a laugh of relief you lean back against the hands, it's a strange feeling but as they start to lightly run circles over your back and shoulders you forget all about it "Thanks Robin, this is amazing but are you sure? i don't want you over working yourself" Robins sweet smile growls wider as she stands taking a plate of paint from Nami who has grabbed her own and kneels down to start working again " Thank you for your concern but I'll be fine, it's the least i can do for letting us do this" The black haired woman kneels down beside Nami starting her work again as you relax into the light massage revealing your back pain. Once the girls are done Robin takes a photo while Nami heads off to get the others, its clear now what the painting is and it brings a big smile to your face seeing the birds nest with flowers around it and three little eggs in the middle "Its so cute, my girls did so well" Sanji smiles wide while swaying from side to side, hearts appearing in his eyes making Robin giggle and Nami crosses her arms with pride "Three Egg's? Does that mean something?" Jinbe asks directing his question at Robin.

The black haired woman looks to Nami with a closed eye'd smile making the navigator blush and turn away "There were supposed to be five, one for each member of the family but… it would have been too small" Luffy is quick to run over and wrap his arms around the navigator trying to cheer her up with the help of Chopper and Kuina all telling her how good of an idea it was and that it's ok that it didn't work out that way. "Ah i see, so one for each parent" Franky states leaning down to look over the work, Brook stands behind him tilting his head to look around the cyborgs head "Its a lovely design, i'm starting to think ours is too sim-" Before the skeleton can finish his sentence Franky whips his head around an intense look on his face "Our's isn't simple" Zoro gives the two a cocky smile as he walks past them to sit next to you and wrap an arm around your shoulders "It doesn't matter if its simple or not" With a sigh you lightly hit the swordsman's secretly telling him to stop since you know where this was going, but he ignores you since Franky and Brook both turn to him with puzzled looks taking the bait with ease "Your not going to be the ones to win… I'm gonna win and there's nothing you can do about it… I have the judge on my side" That cocky smile gets bigger as the two growl at him, the swordsman's arm pulls you closer, so he can place a kiss on your head all while keeping his eyes on the two "That's not how this works" Franky yells with anger stepping a little closer, you would be scared it you didn't know he wasn't going to hurt Zoro, your too close to the green haired man so Franky won't risk it. Brook on the other hand tries to calm the situation down to the best of his ability soon having to get help from Robin and Sanji.

----- Team 3, Brook and Franky -----

Sitting once again in the aquarium bar you try not to laugh as Franky kneels in front of your talking to your stomach while Brook sets up everything on the floor, so they don't have to keep standing up. "This is very important little dude or dudette, were going to create the greatest masterpiece anyone has laid their eyes on but for this to work you have to keep as still as possible. I don't mind you moving around but please… i beg and plead with you to not push or kick towards us.. Ok?" The cyborg taps your exposed belly with his finger as if he's giving your baby a head pat before looking up at you with a big smile "Think they understand?" Letting out a laugh you place a hand on your belly and nod, with a sigh Franky leans back crossing his arms over his chest "And none of that either, you can't laugh or cough, this is delicate work" a pout forms on the cyborgs face making you throw your head back in laughter soon joined by a chuckle from Brook. After you manage to calm down and get comfortable the two start working on your stomach painting fine lines, Franky works on one said with Brook works on the other, its clear the two have been practicing in their spare time since their lines match each other perfectly, once in a while you would feel the baby shift so to stop the cyborg from panicking you would tell him about the slightest movement which he's quite thankful for.

Half an hour later you feel the baby getting fussy, its foot starting to press into your side, it doesn't hurt much its just a little uncomfortable and its probably best you get up and walk mainly to see if that will help the baby settle "Can we take a break?" You ask looking down at the two, Franky is lost on concentration his tongue peeking out the side of his mouth while Brook quickly look up at you and nods putting his stuff down before tapping the cyborg on the shoulder to get his attention "Of course, are you ok?" Brook asks standing up and offering his hand to you, taking his hand he helps you to your feet while Franky moves things out of the way for you "Yea, just a little uncomfortable, sorry the baby's being fussy" Brook shakes his head and links your arm with his while walking with you, its only now you realize someone always seems instant on walking with you, it makes you wonder if Sanji or Zoro said something or if your crew is just that concerned. "Don't be, its natural and you and your baby's comfort is more important… just don't tell Franky that" The skeleton whispers getting you to let out a little giggle, you know the cyborg cares but when he sets his mind to something its almost impossible to stop him, no wonder him and the captain get on so well. "So tiny" Brook whispers before a blush forms in his face realizing he said it out loud, raising an eyebrow you look between him and your belly noticing the tiny foot pressing into your side is now more visible than before.

Taking the Skeletons boney you lay his fingers over the foot knowing it won't move away now that the baby seems comfortable in this perspiration "I know right, its weird to think that one day they might be taller than me, stronger than me… i often wonder what adventures they might go on or what they will inspire to be, they have a lot of options and a lot of good teachers" A large smile forms on your face while looking up at the slightly teary eye'd skeleton as his fingers lightly run over the baby's foot "What ever they will be i know they will be amazing at it." Brook looks back to you with his smile getting bigger only for the moment to be interrupted by Franky "Hay be careful don't smug our work" The cyborg yells earning a sigh from the both of you, brooks hand is no where near the art work, but he removes his hand anyway and holds it up in the air in surrender. "The baby's settled now so hopefully it will be easier for you" You state walking back over to the sofa followed closely by the musician and being helped back down onto the sofa by Franky. Despite the design looking simple it takes almost three hours to do but once's its done and your handed the photo to see painting better your shocked at the thought and effort put into it. "I see you went for a mandala theme, it works perfect on her round stomach and the design also has pieces of each parent" Robin ponders once everyone has entered the room to have a look, Luffy and Chopper tilt their head in amazement and slight confusion while Usopp steps closer to get a better look "Its amazing, i can't tell whose work is who's and there's not a line out of place, no wonder this took almost four hours" The sniper states in amazement.

Raising an eyebrow at robins words you take another look at the photo before gasping in shock, Zoro is quick to rush to your side about to ask what's wrong but you turn to Brook and Franky with a giant grin that starts to hurt your face "Oh my gods, you didn't" A giggle leaves your lips getting the two to blush slightly and shy away a little, Zoro sighs in relief while placing a hand on your head "Don't do that to me" after shooting the swordsman a sorry look you see Kuina walk over to you and look over your belly also giving a gasp "Oh i see it now, Daddy your eyebrows are there and Dad so are your swords" Kuina pointing them out without touching the design, the two take a closer look noticing it too, Sanji's cheeks turn red as a smile forms on his face while Zoro flashes Brook and Franky a grin seeming to boost the two's ego's "Wait you said all the parents so where's Y/N?" Nami asks looking to the two artist's, Brook lets out a small chuckle since he did tell the cyborg that it was too subtle to notice, with a sigh Franky walks over to you and bends down while holding his palm out, the tiny hand inside his large one springs out before tracing over the image in different area's "We'll all the large curves mean hidden and the small circles surrounding them mean strength, so in other words hidden strength. The large flower like pattern means truth and these small things sticking out the stops mean joy, add that all together and its Y/n in a nut shell"

Your eyes tear up with his words as Kuina looks at him with stars in her eyes "You are such a sap" Nami giggle with a large smile on her face, Franky quickly turns to her blushing at her comment but doesn't have time to speak when you tackle him with a side hug "Oh Franky that is so sweet, i love it so much and thank you too Brook, you boys did an amazing job" You start to cry out of joy shocking the cyborg who puts an arm around you to try and comfort you, while holding his head back trying not to cry himself at your words, Sanji lets out a chuckle while taking Zoro's hand shooting his partner a cheeky grin which earns a cunning one from the swordsman both knowing there going to tease the cyborg about this later. Kuina giggles while rubbing your back happy to see how much love her mother is getting, she's soon pulled into the hug when you wave brook over wanting to thank him as well.

----- Team 4, Chopper and Jinbe -----

You took a day off from all the painting before letting the next two have their turn, as much as your enjoying all the love and care your baby is getting it made you tired so you spent most of the day sleeping, only waking up to eat. When ever you woke up you weren't alone either Zoro was sleeping next to you his arm around your waist and head on your chest or Sanji was reading with his arm around you letting you cuddle into his side as he quietly reads, sometimes whispering parts of his book he thinks the baby will like, then theirs Kuina who would be either drawing or reading a children's book to your baby while laying as close as possible to your belly. After your rest day it was finally time for Chopper and Jinbe to start their work, this was one of the most confusing to figure out from the start, that strange device they used on your belly days before along with only picking black and white as their color's made it hard to figure out what they were going to do. During the process you kept looking at your belly seeing them paint a big black area and then start adding strokes white "You ok? You look uncomfortable" Chopper asks with a concerned tone not liking the strange face your pulling, snapping out of your thoughts you look to the doctor, your facial expression instantly softens at seeing white and black paint spots on his cheek and blue nose "No i'm ok, just can't make out what your design is, with most of the others i could make it out at least half-way through" You giggle grabbing a damp cloth and leaning forward slightly wipe the paint of Choppers face.

Jinbe returns from the table with a cleaned off brush and more white paint going back to kneeling in front of you "I'm actually glad you can't tell what it is" You raise an eyebrow at the fish man who lets out a small chuckle with a large smile, Chopper lets out a small laugh too letting you whip the paint off his nose before speaking "Don't worry, it's going to be great, i don't know if we'll win but i know it will make you, Zoro, Sanji and Kuina happy" Putting the damp cloth down you lean back into the sofa, being kept in the dark leaves you a little anxious but you trust the two and know that they mean what they say "We would like the family to come into the room before showing the rest of the crew, i feel the reveal should be shared with the parents and sibling" Jinbe rubs your arm giving you a comforting smile, letting out a breath you relax and nod deciding to watch the fish swimming around in the tank while the two get back to work, the fish man is somehow amazing at calming you down even when your partners can't, you don't know if it's his experiences that make him that way or the fact that you see him as the jolly and kind uncle figure. Their deign was simple but still took about an hour and a half the two constantly looking at the sheet of paper in front of them along with a photo they kept out of your sight but you tried not to pry thinking it would be best to wait until your partners and daughter are in the room before looking.

Kuina runs up to you with a large smile seeming super excited to see what is so special that only the four of you get to see first, Sanji and Zoro walk in behind her both giving you a smile before looking down at your belly, all their smiles drop making anxiety well up inside. Zoro tilts his head in confusion along with Kuina who squint her eyes trying to figure out what it is but Sanji slaps a hand over his mouth, his eyes welling up with tears. Jinbe lets out a jolly laugh before handing you the photo they took of the painting along with the photo they have been hiding from you, your jaw drops tears welling up in your eyes at the first image of your baby, while the painting on your belly was enlarged only showing the head and chest, the scan of your baby was a full body one showing off his little hands and feet. "Oh, Jinbe, Chopper… Thank you" Tears fall down your cheeks as you look to the two who both have big smiles on their faces, Sanji suddenly breaks seeing you cry, tears fall down his cheeks as he rushes over to you, standing as quickly as your can the two of you hug each other "Oh my love, their beautiful" The two of you happily cry into each the cooks arms around your waist rubbing your back and crying into your shoulder while your arms wrap around his neck, one hand running through his hair. The scene makes Zoro and Kuina even more confused, seeing this Chopper walks over taking both their hands and pulling the two over to you "I managed to find a all ultrasound machine, it lets you see inside a person's body and maps out organs and stuff, but we used it to see the baby inside" Pulling away from Sanji you look to the two and hand over the photo in your hands but its only Kuina who takes it in slight shock.

Zoro wraps his arms around you placing kisses on your cheek down to your neck and to your shoulder before pulling away to cup your face "Sanji's right, their beautiful, I love you so much" the swordsman's voice is shaky, but he holds back the tears "I love you all so much" You whisper back placing a kiss on his lips before turning to Sanji who pulls the two of you in for a quick three-way kisses "You're amazing my love, I love you and Zoro, thank you both for another beautiful gift" The cook starts to cry again getting a small chuckle out of the swordsman who pulls the two of you back in for a hug. The three of you can't help but grin like idiots feeling giddy and overly excited about seeing your baby before its even born. "So.. thats my baby brother or sister?" Kuina asks still in slight shock as Chopper points out things for her on the photo helping her see the baby better, placing a hand on your stomach being careful of the slightly smudged art work Zoro moves out-of-the-way so Kuina can have another look "Sorry about your work" The swordsman looks to Chopper and Jinbe feeling a little bad at ruining their work but the big fish man chuckles walking over to pat the green haired man on the back "Its fine, we knew this would happen, were just glad you all love it" Chopper nods at his friends words watching as your daughter walks up to your belly with a smile placing her hands either side of the art work "Hello, it so weird seeing you before your here"

Placing a hand on her head you lightly stroke her hair feeling your heart swell with warmth at seeing how excited she is "We have one more surprise if you want to hear it" Jinbe smirks moving to stand next to Chopper who's still holding the photo in his hand "We know the gender of the baby, do you want to know?" Chopper asks with a large smile slightly bouncing on his feet in excitement, Kuina looks up at you silently begging to know if it's a boy or a girl while you look to your boys, Zoro places a hand around your waist while his other hand goes of Kuina's on your stomach giving you a slight nod while Sanji places his hand over his daughter other hand, his other hand going through your hair before resting on your shoulder "Its up to you love but.. i would like to know" The cook whispers his giddy smile getting even bigger, "Ok.. Yea, we'd like to know" You state looking back to Chopper who jumps a little with joy "You're having a boy" Kuina lets out a loud gasp before hugging your waist not caring that the paint will smudge on her face "Your so cute baby brother" Your heart swell once again as tears from in your eyes, Sanji is quick to kiss your cheek wrapping his arms around you and Kuina, he honestly didn't care if it was a boy or a girl but at least now he can start calling the baby his little prince, Zoro finally lets a tear fall but shoves his head into your neck while rubbing his daughters back hoping to hide it, he didn't mind having another girl but now they would have one of each, for some reason it made him feel like the family is complete.

It took a while for the four of you to calm down enough to thank Chopper in Jinbe, you couldn't help but pull the two into a hug, Chopper let you keep the ultrasound photo while he kept the photo of the art work knowing now he needed to show it to the crew. Unfortunately with all the hugging, crying and touching the once beautiful artwork was now nothing more than a gray patch, you felt bad but the two artist were just happy that they could do this for you. As Chopper and Jinbe let the others in you sit down on the sofa next to Zoro who grabs wipes ready to get rid of the large patch while Sanji pulls Kuina onto his lap next to you wiping off the paint thats covering almost half her face. "That's it? a gray blob" Usopp comments looking thoroughly disappointed after all the hype it got while Robin lets out a chuckle already seeming to know what has happened "Judging by everyone covered in gray paint i think it just got smudged right?" The black haired woman smiles walking up to Chopper who hands her the photo of the finished painting before bringing it back to the others, Nami and Brook are quick to gasp already knowing what it is while the others tilt their heads in confusion. Letting out a laugh you lay your head on Zoro's shoulder as he continues to clean the gray mess on your belly "You two were right, it's a boy" Luffy and Usopp quickly look over at you then back to the photo letting their gears turn until it finally clicks "I told you so" The captain happily cheers hugging the sniper who happily hugs back while cheering as well.

----- Team 5, Kuina, Sanji and Zoro -----

Its the last day and even though your excited to see what your family has planned your also kinda sad its over so soon, the art work everyone has done has been amazing and the experience has been a whirlwind of emotions but above all you've felt so much love, seeing your crew so happy and invested in your children and family life has made any doubts about bringing another child into this world completely fade away. Walking into the aquarium bar with Zoro at your side your greeted by a sweet sight, Kuina and Sanji are mixing paints hoping to get the perfect shade of the color they want and testing it on each others skin, your daughter dips her finger into the light blue paint she's made and rubs it on the cooks cheek who lets out a small laugh as she examines it. The blondes cheeks are full of different shades of Pink's, blue's and light purple's making you hold back a laugh as to not disturb the moment, Zoro wraps an arm around your waist while shoving his head into your shoulder trying to hold back his own laugh "Perfect, we have all the shades now" Kuina gives a big smile while grabbing a damp cloth to help her daddy clean on his face "If i didn't know what you were doing i would say you look sick" Zoro chuckles walking you over to the two earning a growl and a glare from Sanji "Shut it moss head, i don't see you helping" The cook snaps but his expression softens when his daughter finishes cleaning his face for him giving her a thankful look and a small kiss on the cheek before glaring back at Zoro who helps you sit down on the sofa "Helping? While your getting your makeup done, i'm helping our girl get comfortable"

Quickly standing Sanji grabs the grinning swordsman by the Kimono pulling him closer to growl at it, the two bicker back and forth while Kuina hops off her chair and makes her way over with a piece of paper in her hands completely ignoring her two dads. "Even though we know it's a boy know i did say that no one can change their deigns so i hope it's ok that we're using pink" Your daughter looks down at the paper on her hands unsure of how to feel about this but you place a hand on her head giving her beautiful blonde hair a few strokes "What ever you make will be amazing, your so talented plus colors don't have to be gender specific." A smile forms on your daughters face as you pat the seat next to you, placing the paper aside so you can't see it the little girl hops up next to you as you grab a hair tie and start tying her hair up not wanting it to get to messy "Thanks Mama". After tying her hair up Kuina gives you a smile before wrapping her arms around you, hugging her back you place a tender kiss on her head while rubbing her back, the two of you stay like that for a while enjoying each others company and warmth all while Sanji and Zoro are still bickering, the two grabbing onto each other but soon turns flirtatious, both picking on each other while making cocky complements. With a sigh you pat Kuina's back before letter her go knowing you have to stop your partners before their cocky comments turn sexual "Sanji, Zoro, come on already i can't wait any longer" Your laugh and voice gets the two to look at you, Zoro's grip that was firmly around the cooks tie loosens while Sanji lets go of the swordsman's Kimono.

The cook glances at Zoro looking from the man to his tie then back to the man giving him a glare since the green haired man hasn't let go yet, with a cocky smile the swordsman leans closer placing a light kiss on the blondes lips before moving to his ear "We'll finish this later" Zoro whispers slowly pulling away and letting go of Sanji's tie before making his way over to you "I'll get the paints" Kuina happily cheers rushing over to the table and grabbing the plate of mixed paints and some paint brushes while Zoro leans over you running his hands over your clothed stomach before starting to lift up your shirt exposing the skin underneath "So beautiful" He whispers while bending down to place his lips on yours, reaching up you place a hand on his cheek letting your thumb run across his skin as his lips move with yours, Zoro's hands move your shirt up and under your breasts tucking it into the underside of your bar so it won't get paint on it. Slowly pulling away from the kiss the swordsman gives you a loving smile before looking down at your stomach letting his hands run over it while bending down further to place a kiss just above your belly button, the sight makes your heart pound in your chest while tears well up in your eyes knowing how much he loves you and his unborn baby boy. Sanji is snapped out of his flustered shock by Kuina who giggles while pulling on the arm of his jacket "You should really take this off dad, you'll get it dirty" The cook quickly looks down at his daughter than to his jacket managing to come back to reality "Thanks sweetie"

Taking off his jacket and putting it aside Sanji starts turning up the sleeves of his white button down shirt, it doesn't bother him it gets paint on it but it would mean less washing later. Kuina happily makes her way back over to the sofa sitting down next to you as Zoro steps away to take off the top part of his kimono, the little girl can't help but let out a laugh at your flustered face that goes much redder when Sanji walks over taking his black tie off "You two will be the death of me" It slips out before you can stop it causing a squeak to leave your lips as you slap a hand over your mouth, your partners let their grins widen while looking you over with loving and mischievous eyes while your daughter throws her head back on laughter. Throwing his tie to the side making it land on top of his jacket Sanji steps closer letting his hand run over your stomach "Oh my love, you flatter us too much" leaning down to your ear the cook places a kiss just under it as your body stiffens knowing he's going to say something that will make you even more flustered "But if that does happen, i will be more than happy to give you mouth-to-mouth" Your face blows up red as you slap his arm starting to stutter but unable to form a sentence trying to tell the cook to shut up, Sanji laugh while kissing your burning hot cheeks ignoring your halfhearted protests and light hits on his chest and arms. Luckily Kuina couldn't here what was said mainly because she's laughing too hard, it's always a joy to see you so flustered since it's a rare sight and its something over her farther's can achieve.

Zoro lets out a chuckle with a shake of his head while grabbing a plate of paints and a paint brush "Alright, lets get started" The swordsman states getting the rest of his family to calm down enough to start, using Kuina's drawing as a guide your daughter paints on your side while Sanji and Zoro work on the rest, the outline made it every clear what their making bringing a smile to your face, a giant ribbon and down cutting diagonal across your belly leaving a big gap on one side, your daughter kept stepping away once in a while to look at it from a different angle and some times going up to Zoro asking him to redo a line. The swordsman didn't mind since he knows he's not that good at drawing but would often grumble under his breath having to redo a line several times to get it the right way mainly being mad at himself, reaching your hand down while trying not to move too much you run your hand through his green hair helping to calm him down which he gives you a thankful look for. Sanji's lines are neat and tidy, but he would always have a damp cloth wrapped around one finger, so he can run it under the line he's made making sure its perfect. With the three focused on their work there isn't any kind of conversation leaving the room in a comfortable and relaxing silence other than a few words here and there and at least one of them checking to see if you need a break. It didn't take long for them to finish all three stepping back to admire their work "Its almost done" Kuina jumps a little with glee happy to see it looking just the way she wants it too.

A look of surprise crosses your face since it looks down to you "Really? It's already amazing" Your comment gets your daughter shaking her head while running over to the table and grabbing four different pastel colored paints, green, yellow, orange and purple. "Were gonna need your help for this one love" Sanji smirks holding his hands out for you to take as Zoro comes to your side the two helping you stand up, the swordsman stands behind you placing his chin on your shoulder placing kisses on your neck "Ok Dad is green and Daddy is yellow. Ready?" Kuina lifts up a paint brush covered in green paint, Zoro holds out one of his hands letting his daughter paint the palm of his hand as Sanji moves to stand behind you as well placing his chin on your other shoulder "What is going on?" You whisper but only earn a small laugh and a kiss on the cheek in response, once Zoro's hand is painted your daughter takes a different brush with yellow paint and starts painting Sanji's palm that the cook holds out for her "Don't worry baby, i know you'll love this" Zoro whispers placing a few more kisses on your neck which you lean into enjoying his touch "Ok make a heart" Kuina states putting the plate down before helping her farther's make a heart with their joined hands, she adjusts the thumbs to make it perfect before standing back to have a look. Leaning back into the two you can't help but smile now knowing what their doing, Zoro's other arm goes around Sanji's waist keeping you snug in between their arms all while trying not to smug their work since his arm is hovering over the painting on your belly.

Kuina moves her farther's hands into the perfect position before giving them a nod, In perfect unison your partners press their hands onto your belly and hold it there while peppering your cheeks and neck with kisses, lifting your hands up cup their cheeks pulling the two closer to you "You boys are too sweet" You giggle turning to look at Sanji who gives you a sweet loving look "Anything for you Mi Amour" The cook whispers his lips brushing against yours before locking fully, letting out a happy hum you lean into the kiss while stroking his cheek, after a few short kisses you turn to Zoro who has a smirk plastered on his face "I told you'd like it" Leaning in the two of you share a short kiss before fully locking lips hoping to draw the feeling of his lips against yours, as another happy hum leaves your lips the swordsman lets out a needy groan wanting more so you open your mouth a little, Zoro's tongue is quick to enter your mouth roaming around as your hand moves up to hair. Kuina lets out a sigh, she's glad that her parents are in love, but she doesn't want the art work to get ruined, the swordsman's arm is perfectly still but that might change if this goes on "You can move your hands now" Your daughter states managing to brake you and the green haired man apart giving the young girl a sorry look, slowly your partners lift their hands up and off your belly leaving perfect hand prints with their thumb and fingers making a heart in the middle, in the middle a strip of green and yellow meets blending together a little and making a very light lime color.

Zoro and Sanji give you one last Kiss on the cheek before stepping away to clean their hands while Kuina walks up to you getting a better look at the hand prints "This is an amazing idea, I'm guessing the next to paints are for me and you?" You ask getting your daughter to look up at you and nod "I know my hands a lot smaller, but we can make it work. I picked Purple for you and orange for me" The young girl picks up her plate again and grabs two more paint brushes showing you the colors, placing your hand on her head you ruffle her hair before offering your hand to her letting her paint your hand. As she paints you look over to your body's seeing Zoro cleaning up Sanji's hand with a damp cloth, the two don't speck but do share an intense loving look, the cooks the first to step closer placing a light kiss on the corner of the swordsman's lip earning a groan of annoyance from the man, with both their hands clean Zoro throws the cloth down on the table then grabs Sanji's shirt pulling him in before the blonde can react. Crashing his lips onto his partners the swordsman lets out a satisfied moan forcing his tongue into the cooks mouth who instantly gives up and melts into the kiss, his hands run up Zoro's arm and take the hand that is holding his shirt managing to pull it off and interlock their fingers. Your brought back to your daughter when she puts the paint brush down and turns to her dads going to ask for help painting her hand only to see the two kissing.

With another sigh she shakes her head "Dads please… Art first, kissing later" Letting out a laugh you watch your partners pull away and slightly pout at being scolded by their daughter, it's hard to say no to Kuina when she's so determined, so the two pull away from each other and walk over, Zoro takes the plate from his daughter and starts painting her hand while Sanji looks over your purple palm flashing you a sweet smile "That color suits you mi amour" The cook tucks some hair behind your ear while leaning in to give you a light kiss, you happily return it before looking back at Kuina who has now moves to your side, with the help of Zoro and Sanji you manage to make a heart despite the size difference, placing your hands on your stomach your daughter follows along as you wrap your arm around her shoulder keeping the little girl pressed to your side "Thank you sweetie, this was a great idea, I've had so much fun" The two of you smile at each other while pulling your hands off your belly leaving the art work complete. Kuina leaves your side to look at her work her smile bigger then ever as she bounces on her feet in happiness "It looks so good" She praises as Zoro chuckles lifting her up into the air and holding her close "Heck yea it is, my little artist" The swordsman nuzzles his daughters cheek before kissing it not caring that she's trying to push him away with a paint covered hand all while giggling her little head off. Sanji quickly grabs the camera taking a photo of your belly and placing it back on the side, so he can hold you, being careful of the arm work the cook holds you from the side wrapping his arms around your waist and under your belly while your hand comes up to meet his cheek so you can pull him into a kiss.

Zoro smirks at seeing the moment your having with the blonde cook so puts his daughter down and takes her hand "Come on lets get you cleaned up and then show the others" The swordsman states pulling her over to the painting table and grabbing another cloth to clean her hand off all while praising her work. With your lips locked with Sanji's you tilt your head back a little to get a better angle letting his tongue push into your mouth with no resistance, your tongues dance around each other as light hums and moans of happiness leave your lips, it warms your heart to feel how much love your family has for each other and the unborn baby boy they haven't even met yet, you can't ask for anything more. As you pull away Kuina flings the door open and yells out for the others that their finished, of course the first people to rush in are Chopper, Luffy and Usopp, your not sure if their excited to see the art or find out the results of the contest but it doesn't seem to both Kuina. "Arrr thats so cute" Chopper smiles looking up at your belly admiring your families work "I like the hand idea" Usopp comments patting your daughter on the head as she beams up with pride at the sniper. "Its simple but beautiful" Nami smiles walking in with the rest of the crew, Jinbe walks up to Kuina placing a hand on her shoulder with a proud smile "you have an amazing talent young lady, keep it up" His praise makes her eyes sparkle with glee her pride in her and her parents work growing by the second. "Perfectly gift wrapped, how thoughtful" Robin giggles making some of the others laugh too including you and Zoro, the swordsman grabs your book and pen handing it over to you while Kuina hands out pieces of paper and pens to the crew "I can't believe this is the last one, its gone so quick" Franky chuckles after writing on his paper and handing it to Sanji as Zoro helps you sit back down.

Once everyone has scored the last piece of work you add it all together in your book before pulling out a small envelope from another page "Do we get a prize?" Luffy, Usopp and Franky all yell their eyes shining like starts making you giggle even though your feeling a little bad "No, I'm sorry, there's are just my scores, I've been writing them down and put them in here so i'm not tempted to change my own scores, I've forgotten what I've put down already" The three pout only to be slapped across the head by Nami, placing her hands on her hips the navigator scolds them for not noticing, you never told anyone what you were doing but the others could guess since you didn't hide it. With all your scores down and Robin calming Nami down the crew looks to you for the verdict, reading through the scores you can't help but let out a laugh at how things ended up "The winners are Chopper and Jinbe while the rest of you all come in second" A large smile grows on your face as you turn your book around to show them the page, everyone is tied expect for the winner who won by 4 point. There's a collective "What?" full of different emotions, happiness, disbelief and confusion "I can't believe we won" Chopper cheers as Kuina tackles him in a hug the two laughing and cheering as Zoro picks the two up kissing the tops of their heads "Great Job Chopper and thanks again.. Thanks you too Jinbe" The swordsman puts the two down before turning to the large fish man who rubs the back of his head "Oh it was all Choppers idea" Sanji shakes his head placing a hand on Jinbe's shoulder "Still thank you, it means a lot"

Nodding you give Jinbe a smile agreeing with your boys, what they did was beyond sweet and thoughtful, you got to see your baby before it was even born and find out the gender something you couldn't do with Kuina, speaking of the young girl she walks over to you her hand gripping onto Choppers "I'm glad you liked it but i'm sorry you guys didn't win" The doctor gulps feeling a little bad about it but Kuina shakes her head and takes your hand with a big smile "I didn't really care if we won or not, it was really fun and made this week at sea go bay really fast… Did you enjoy it mama, it wasn't too much was it?" Your daughter asks with sudden concern, squeezing her hand you lean closer placing a kiss on her head "I loved every second of it and even though your baby brother was a little fussy at times i think he enjoyed it too" Patting the seats next to you the two hop up cuddling into your sides, your arms wrap around them holding the two close as Kuina places her hand over her hand print on your belly "I'm glad, i can't wait to meet him" Your little girl whispers, kissing the top of her head you nuzzle into her feeling your heart swell with happiness and love only for the moment to be broken by Luffy's loud yelling "I want a rematch" Zoro, Sanji and a slightly stressed out Franky who's going over your scores are quick to look at their captain with a glare "No way" The three yell in unison making Luffy groan with a big pout before flopping onto the sofa away from you, he looks up at the three with puppy dog eyes trying his best to get them to agree like how they do with Kuina, letting out a laugh your soon joined by the two at your sides and a few other crew members as the three groan trying to ignore their pouting captain.

[laweema]

Oh God... How to Draw is SO BAD

No offense to those who like it, but it HURTS my EYES. I saw the spoilers and.. It struck me.

It seems that Peregrinecella drew these pictures, and it's really cool that fans can participate in the creation of the official merch but.. Does Tui give any edits at all when artist shows her the work? There are an awful lot of mistakes in these poses that could easily be corrected if the artist paid attention to it. What disappoints me the most is that this will be served as a TUTORIAL on drawing dragons from a book..

Most of these mistakes are broken anatomy, and very uncomfortable poses, maybe it should be a perspective, but it doesn't look like that at all.

For example, the first dragon is rainwing.. giant head, neck, front paws, mismatched proportions of wings, a short body, and a VERY SHORT TAIL, which is actually should be the longest! I corrected the line as I thought it would be right.

Another example is an mudwing, he sits as if it is about to collapse, the pelvis is not clear how it is located

And another example is nightwing, again the strange proportions of the body and neck, like almost all dragons in these illustrations, for some reason their neck is the size of their body, and sometimes even more! His tail is bent as if it is torn off from the spine, but should move smoothly, well, or not at such an angle, the calves of the legs look as if they fell into the textures of the hips, and also broke the bones of the knee..

and these are just three illustrations, and there are problems on each one.. all the dragons look very uncomfortable, some have broken wings… I'm thinking about making corrections and posting them when these lines go public, because well, it's just very bad((

[adobe-outdesign]

chia pop chia reviews, maybe? is there even a better name for those because chia pop chia sounds unwieldy but they aren't all fruit. potato chia pop when

(Note: I already covered a bunch of Chia-specific colours in my Chia review. To avoid redundancy, I'm going to list a few secondary favorites in this colour review so the entire thing isn't a repeat. Also, I'm doing my least favorite colour instead of species for obvious reasons.)

Chia pops are basically just those cheap ice pops where they come in liquid form and you toss them into your freezer. There are a bunch of them and for the most part they're normal food items... except for a few with the handful of "magical". For reasons that have never even been remotely explained in the lore, Chias that eat magical Chia pops change into a matching fruit/veg form, most of which are unique to them specifically. These additional colours give the Chia some flavor (both literally and figuratively) and are their main gimmick.

Conversion is a weird topic for these Chias. The bulk of them got redrawn and put into standard poses for customization (which is a particularly strange choice as they can't wear clothes anyway)... except for some that just didn't, for no clear reason.

Because the conversion was so uneven there's no way to make a judgement call for all colours, but on average I'd say that they looked better pre-conversion, as they tend to just look strange in the default poses—though on the plus side, most of them lost the weird lower lip that Chias used to have. Hopefully TNT will consider doing pet styles for these colours in the future so people can pick and choose what they like best.

(Secondary) Favorite Species:

Agueena: Chias that are based on Neopets-specific fruits are always neat, and the agueena was already a good-looking item, so unsurprisingly the agueena Chia also looks pretty good. It's less fruit-like than some, but the cyan-on-blue splotches make for a good pattern that works really well with the orange hair-like "leaves". The shading on this one's also really good.

Banana: I like my fruit and veg Chias ridiculous, and this is a ridiculous colour all right. The elongated body is immediately distinct and fun, and I like how its partially unpeeled, which adds a bit more visual interest to it than it would have otherwise.

My only issue with it is that I wish the face lineart was colored so it matched the rest of the design. Also, the arms and legs don't seem to actually line up with the body quite right; I kind of feel like the legs should've been redrawn and the arms dropped entirely ala the onion Chia.

Thornberry: Another Neopets-specific fruit, this design is pretty similar to the tomato Chia, which is its only major drawback. However, I find myself liking the thornberry Chia more, as it has a bit more contrast with the dark feet and the texture at top breaks up the otherwise monocolor body.

This is absolutely a colour we could use a pet style for though, as the unconverted version was much better. Aside from having better face proportions, the variable sizes of spikes really added something to it.

Least Favorite Colour:

Gooseberry: Just kind of a strange pick of fruit to begin with (for those wondering: gooseberries are an actual thing, look it up), nothing about the gooseberry Chia has ever looked good. The colors are drab and low-contrast, the body is weirdly off-kilter and has poor shading, the face placement is odd (it used to be lower down on the pre-conversion art, which was better but not by much), and ironically the thickness of the stripes make it not look much like an actual gooseberry. Honestly, all this does is make me want a watermelon Chia.

[beautification-tales]

The Goo

Sue stared at the black liquid goo, her eyes glued to the computer monitor as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world. The goo, which had arrived from outer space only hours ago, was unlike anything she had ever seen. It was smooth and shiny, with a consistency somewhere between water and oil. As she watched, it slowly started to move on its own accord, slithering across the Petri dish as if it were alive. She couldn't help but reach out and touch it, her fingers brushing against the surface of the dish. The moment her skin made contact, the goo seemed to come alive, wrapping itself around her finger like a tendril of smoke. Intrigued, she tried to pull her hand back, but the goo resisted, clinging tightly to her flesh. Before she knew it, it had spread up her arm, coating her skin in its inky darkness.

Panic set in as she realized that the goo was spreading at an alarming rate, crawling over her body like a living creature intent on consuming her. She tried to rip it off, but the more she struggled, the more it seemed to cling to her. Desperate, she reached for the intercom, intending to call for help. As her fingers closed around the switch, however, the goo seemed to sense her intentions. It surged forward, engulfing her hand and squeezing the breath from her lungs. She tried to scream, but nothing came out; the goo had sealed her mouth shut as well. As she struggled against the relentless tide of the alien substance, she could feel it getting stronger.

“Stop fighting me!” She heard a voice in her mind say.

Sue froze, feeling a strange calm wash over her. The goo continued its relentless advance, but now it seemed less like an invader and more like a guide. It flowed over her body, coating every inch of her skin, entering her nostrils, her ears, her mouth. As it filled her, she could feel it changing her, altering her at the cellular level. It was as if her body were being remade, reforged into something new and improved.

She could feel her muscles growing stronger, more defined. Her bones seemed to lengthen and strengthen, her joints loosening up. Her senses sharpened, her reflexes quickened. The goo was giving her superhuman abilities, transforming her into something beyond human. The goo also went into her mind and removed her feelings of anxiety and panic. She could feel all her darkest desires begin to emerge within her. No longer did she want to play by the rules or hide her emotions out of fear of what people will think. Now she was free to admit that she was better than most people. She was smarter and now definitely stronger.

The goo strengthened her hair as it came undone from its restrictive ponytail. The long nose on her face softened and shrunk back as her cheekbones rose and her thin lips grew thicker. The transformation grew pleasurable as she heard her once nasal voice moan with an amazing confident sultry tone.

“Unh yes…. Mmmm the power!” She moaned.

As the goo continued to flow through her, it also altered her physique in ways she could never have imagined. Her breasts grew larger and more voluptuous, she grabbed them enjoying the tight catsuit the goo had clothed her in. Her ass swelled, rounding out into a firm, supple globed that seemed to defy gravity. Her hips widened, her waist disappearing, her legs growing longer and stronger. She felt powerful, invincible.

Sue took off her glasses seeing clearly without them. She looked down at her amazing proportions and knew the goo had done it’s job. However, she was curious to what purpose she had been changed. The goo knowing her thoughts responded with two words to answer. “To rule”

[endara]

Alastor x Reader Chapter 7 out now! 🖤

Asexual/Demiromantic Alastor, Reader is AFAB and on the asexual spectrum.

Fluff + Angst + Protective Alastor. Kinda slowburn. Flashback type scenes with human Alastor and reader being a serial killer duo and falling in love. Childhood friends to lovers. Reunited after 100 years. Alastor is a mamas boy. Angel and reader have a best friends dynamic. Valentino gets fucked over!

---

In the few weeks you’d been getting to know Alastor again since you'd reunited, you had never seen his full demon form from a distance like this. You’d had his shadow tentacles used around you once or twice, sure. But then you had been too close and distracted to really get a good look. It made sense to you now why so many people were terrified of him. His limbs were warped and extended in a way that made you feel uneasy. Dark, writhing tentacles sprouted from his back, two held him off the ground while another two held his victim elevated and pinned to the wall. The rest of them swirled menacingly behind him.

It was quite fascinating… In some strange way.

You couldn’t make out what Alastor was saying, all you could hear from where you stood watching him at the end of the alley, was the radio static emanating from him. Even from here though, you could see his smile cutting through half of his face, the corners of his lips were pulled to rest beside his eyes while he grit his teeth.

“Holy shit!” Angel Dust squawked from beside you when he finally caught up and spotted Alastor.

The Radio Demon reacted to the sudden voice instinctively, not registering who the voice belonged to before he’d sent a bin lid flying like a frisbee. It smacked Angel in the head and he yelped, his feet going out from under him as the impact almost immediately stunned and knocked him out.

In the few seconds it took for Angel to fall, you just about managed to grab under his arms before his head hit the floor. But you stumbled from the sudden unexpected weight, “Jesus Christ.” You exclaimed and looked up with wide eyes at Alastor, whose limbs were now back to their regular proportions and his feet were planted on the concrete.

At least by now, he’d realised who was watching him wasn’t a threat. He looked at you with narrowed eyes and a tight-lipped smile, the man behind him still pinned to the wall and begging you to help him. The poor guy didn't realise you had no intention of stopped Alastor's fun.

You planted your feet firmly on the ground so you could better support Angel.

When you checked on your unconscious friend, you sighed in relief, he seemed like he was going to be okay. His head wasn’t bleeding and he was breathing just fine.

“What are you doing here?” Alastor asked, his voice low and annoyed from the interruption. He also didn’t like the fact that he didn’t know how long you’d been watching or following him. Or why his sentient shadow duplicate hadn’t alerted him to your presence.

“Sorry. We didn’t mean to sneak up on you.” You answered, your voice strained from trying to support the weight of your much taller friend. Slowly, you were able to lift him up enough that his legs were the only thing dragging on the floor as you approached Alastor. “We were on our way back to the hotel when Angel spotted you. I just wanted to say hi and see what you were up to.”

Alastor watched you as you struggled to keep an unconscious Angel Dust off the floor, but he didn’t offer to help. If he were you, he would have dropped the pornstar onto the cold ground without an ounce of guilt by now.

He turned his head to shoot an annoyed death glare at his victim, all that yelling at you for help was starting to get on his nerves. The man whimpered in fear and cowered towards the wall as if it would protect him. When Alastor was satisfied enough by the reaction he got, he looked back at you.

“Why are you not at the hotel in the first place my dear? Did you forget there's a madman loose with your name atop his list?”

“Of course not. But I needed to visit my club to see how everything was going without me. I can't put my life on hold forever... I brought Angel with me, so I wasn’t alone- But he isn’t very helpful now you’ve knocked him out.” You explained, lifting your friend up slightly as you mentioned him.

Alastor laughed, moving his mic from one hand to the other and then looked at the limp Angel Dust in your arms, “Aha! I suppose that is true. Although I’m not sure he would have been much help while awake either.” He flashed a charming smile and shrugged, “But not to worry darling. Now you are here you might as well stay. I will ensure you return to the hotel unscathed.”

Read here <3

[batwynn]

Hello. So I have a genuine, honest question as someone who isn't an artist. I saw you made a post about AI art floating around Tumblr lately. How does one differentiate between AI-created art vs. ACTUAL art? Some things have been easier to notice than others (ie: YouTube videos and like, moodboards and the opening to Secret Invasions) but for art specifically, are there any key things to look out for that make it obvious it's AI generated? I do not support AI in any fashion but in this day and age I do find it increasingly more difficult to tell the difference between something that was created by AI vs. created by an actual person.

Hi anon! So, heads up this might be a bit long of a post but I wanted to point out some things that I don't see frequently mentioned in other posts about A.I stuff.

First things first: Look at their other 'art' pieces. If they have a generally consistent style, a consistent type of work (Realism vs ink art for example), characters you see more than once and from different angles, character sheets, etc. You're going to notice if someone suddenly switches from little ink doodles to fully colored and realistically rendered 'art'. Now, this doesn't mean everyone switching styles or mediums is A.I, but it means to take a closer look if you notice something vastly different than their usual stuff. More A.I. clues below!

For things to look for, there's a lot of different clues but generally you're going to notice a certain new car shine to everything. Everything will be a little too clean, even if the style they are ripping off is sketchy. Sketches will have crosshatching that doesn't really make sense or random lines in a place that an artist probably would not put there. That being said, here's some examples where that isn't as noticeable:

Here you've got your usual body/anatomy problems. (Plus some elements I'll talk about later as well. This one's got it all!)

Glitchy foot, glitchy hands. glitchy eyes. Strange proportions for legs that don't exactly fit a stylization, but more of an glitch. Now, of course an artist can draw 'glitchy' things like this either by accident or intentionally, but you really only see these types of things in A.I vs actual art of a similar style. Realism artists are generally not adding extra fingers or varying sized fingers, they're not rendering the foot to only have too many toes, missing toes, and the foot also... sort of part shoe. Unless art artist is otherwise intentionally including these elements, it's generally a clear cut example of A.I stuff. (For example: Different body types and disabilities exist, and there are people with different shaped hands, shorter/longer fingers etc. But you will also usually find some kind of info with the post about the person/character that will tell you about them that can clue you in on if it's A.I vs real art.) If the artists are drawing in a style with 'exaggerated' anatomy, you can almost always see that as a persistent and intentional STYLE in their art. If they aren't, this is something you'll really notice in A.I vs realism. It can be especially true with people who fully render realistic art because it's not in line with the style, and the relevant elements of rendering art this way. Artists who do realistic rendering at this level generally know their anatomy very well, and are going for realism in all elements of the art. Some stuff like the exaggerated long legs in women are kind of everywhere, but the hands, the foot, the lopsided winky eyes (I don't know how to describe it) are not things a professional artist rendering realistic art would generally do. It's just not in line with the style, or the ability/skill that the artist has worked on. (Again, unless completely intentionally and in line with the person/character.)

For 'real' life items like the tables below, you've really just got to ask yourself: Is this physically possible? Do all the elements make sense and actually work together in a real way?

Sometime it's hard to know if you don't have any experience with, for example, acrylic and wood table making. But there are things that just don't work in real life, and there are things that maybe someone can do, but even in the provided examples it just doesn't make sense to do. For example, the little 'tree' hanging from the bottom of the left table. Would that be possible? Probably. Would someone do that? Probably not. If you're really stumped, sometimes just looking up videos of people making that type of thing can give you a better idea of what actually works together, how it's made, etc.

Here's something that really helps when you're really struggling and zooming in for every detail: TANGENTS

Ok, so tangents in art are when you're drawing a thing, like hair, and it's lining up with a different object to the point where the visual line continues from one part of art to another and it looks really unrealistic/weird. Most artists figure out how to avoid this on their own just from noticing it and feeling uncomfortable with how it looks, while others learn via the internet etc. It can happen in anyone's art at any skill level, but the amount that it happens in A.I stuff is HUGE. It's almost every single image, and you can really notice it in places where something overlaps like hair or, from the above image with the money: there's two bills that just kind of bleed together. From the same image, you can also see how her hair bleeds into the wrinkles of her jacket in an unnatural way. Comparatively, you can see in the Hela art I did below that there are overlapping elements like the hair and the ribbons behind it that do not mesh or bleed together.

Something else to look at: Symmetrical elements that don't work right. So, this is kind of getting harder to see depending on what they're generating as a subject matter and the style they are using. As always, there is a disclaimer for this. Art does not always have perfect symmetrical elements in it.

For example: in the real world, this dude's coat would have more clean symmetrical elements. As it is a sketchy doodle, they're there but they're not 100% symmetrical. With a LOT of A.I stuff, you'll notice that something meant to be mirrored on the other side of the clothing, room design, etc. is actually completly wonky/incorrect or not even there at all.

For example, in this A.I we have missmatching elements on both sides. Not only in things that could be designed to be asymmetrical, but also things that 100% should be mirrored. The left side under the buckle on the shoulder has a diamond shape. The right has a weird spikey thing. The little leaf pattern on the gold lapel area appears to be just blobs on the right side. The left shoulder area has a button and additional little detail under the buckle area. It is not there on the right side. And, again, some of this can be intentional with real art. Her arm bands could be intentionally different, for example. But elements that clearly should be reflected on the other side and are very clearly not are generally a good clue that it's A.I. A few last moment things to look out for:

Styles that are recognizable someone else's whole thing. Example: The monstrosity that someone just generated that is supposedly Calvin and Hobbs. It's pretty easy to tell because it looks like shit right now, but generally if someone is ripping off a distinct style of someone famous, it's probably A.I or at least worth double checking.

Did they suddenly start doing ______? This could be anything, backgrounds, drawing horses, full color, etc. But if they're suddenly, overnight just BOOM they're 'drawing' in a whole other style, it's suddenly really rendered, and/or there's no 'growing pains'/work shown that they've started working on drawing the thing they never drew before... It's time to take a closer look. Last but not least, look for the language they use around the stuff they're putting out. A.I people are often... a certain type. They use a lot of that NFT bro lingo that can tip you off. The tags might be all over the place for styles, or tagging certain famous artist's styles, etc. They also can be a bit more blatant in the tags and just outright tag A.I or NFTs somewhere in there. And, in the end, if you really can't tell and you really love the thing and want to share it: Ask an artist. Or just don't share it.

Thanks for reading, and I hope this is helpful in some way!

[logosbot-tm-fics]

Soooo...I'm back-

Enjoy!

Take My Tea With Formaldehyde

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Chapter 15: Feeling Lighthearted

(More beneath the cut)

It was like a breath of fresh air to discover that things could get easier. Maybe it shouldn’t surprise him. Maybe it should have been obvious that he didn’t have to live in this quiet sort of misery any more, but it still feels as though it took Mumbo by surprise. It surprised him that doing things was easier. That it was easier to exist and actually feel like a human.

Having a clean apartment felt like a restart. The same way it feels like a restart when you finally shower after being sick, as if cleaning out the dirt had also cleaned up his mind. Getting back into routines, going to work, and taking care of himself was strangely easy. As much as he felt relieved about how simple it was, it also bugged him slightly. Things had changed, and it barely felt like it.

Maybe that was for the better.

As the days passed, he discovered small things that were suddenly a lot more convenient. Like finding stuff in the flat. Before, he had to go through piles of belongings that seemed to appear out of nowhere, but now everything was where it was supposed to be.

It was easier to get the energy to do the dishes, when he only had a small amount to do. Same went for doing laundry.

He had stopped sleeping in front of the TV, and had moved back into his bedroom. No longer did the blue light keep him awake, no longer was it his only company and, somehow, falling asleep in a clean room went quicker than in a messy one.

~

It was most likely not just the clean flat that made him feel better. Sure, it had definitely helped a lot, and had made day to day life a lot less overwhelming, but other things had to have helped as well.

The thing that had probably helped the most, the thing that felt like it was going to make the biggest difference, was that Mumbo was finally getting a therapist. It had been a long time coming, when he really reflected on the way that his mental state had declined so dramatically over the past months, but he hadn’t been ready. Maybe he still wasn’t, not to take that step by himself, at least.

Luckily, he had Iskall.

Iskall hadn't nagged him or forced him to get one. But they gently reminded him that it was an option whenever the opportunity arose. They helped him look, when he finally started to consider it, and reminded him to take a break when searching for options became too overwhelming. It took a little bit, but, eventually, the pair found one that seemed right.

Mumbo thought that it was a bit funny, in a way, that just trying to get help could be overwhelming. It’s just odd really, he would chuckle, that your mind wants to fight against getting the help you need.

That strange urge to run and hide from the help he was seeking was the clearest when Mumbo almost backed out of the first appointment. His legs had felt like jello, knees shaking like he was wearing shorts in a snowstorm. He hadn't been able to wipe the sweat off his palms, and his stomach had made him feel like throwing up what little food he'd been able to eat that day.

It was frightening, he had realized as he bit on the inside of his cheek. Getting help felt terrifying.

Hell, what would happen if it didn't help? What if the therapist thought that he was being silly? What if it turned out that he actually didn't have any issues, and functioned perfectly well, and was just making up stuff for attention? He must be blowing it out of proportion, right?

He was stuck on the kitchen floor for a little while, trying to force himself to calm down. He had sat down in a corner of the kitchen, a cup of tea he'd been meaning to drink cooling on the counter, his phone in hand, held with a desperate grip.

Mumbo chewed nervously and frantically on the inside of his cheek as he tried his hardest to breathe. He tried to run through all the various breathing exercises that he’d been learning, but nothing seemed to work. By the time that he bit at his cheek hard enough to draw blood, he finally managed to unlock his phone to call Iskall.

“Hallo?” Their voice erupted from the speaker, crackly and warped. “Iskall speaking.”

This was stupid. Childish even, Iskall surely would think so too. Mumbo's mind was telling him to hang up, he shouldn't have called. How can a grown man not get himself to go to the scheduled appointment? He was utterly ridiculous.

“Hi,” he forced out, blinking back the tears that were surging forward at the awful weight of his thoughts. “Um, it's Mumbo, I'm really sorry for calling, but I'm kinda, sorta- uh- on the verge of a breakdown?” Mumbo tried to be proud of himself for pushing through the feeling of hang-up-god-dammit-you-are-being-ridiculous that was spreading rapidly through his body and mind, but it was too hard. Everything was just too hard.

“Oh-” Iskall replied after what was probably only a couple of seconds, but still managed to feel so sudden that Mumbo almost jumped out of his skin. From the concern in their voice, he could vividly picture an Iskall with furrowed brows and downturned lips, and his hands only shook harder at the knowledge that he was causing them such concern. “Are you… hm, is there anything I can do to help?”

Mumbo nodded, fully aware that they couldn't see him. It made him feel even more stupid. “Yeah, uh- this is stupid, I'm sorry, but could you please come over?” He gasped, his chest tight. “I mean you don't have to, especially not if you're busy, but it would make everything just a tiny bit easier. I'm really sorry, you don't have to, I'm just panicking, it's silly, sorry.”

He heard Iskall let out a small, kind laugh, something so reassuring that he could’ve melted right then and there. “Hey, don't apologize, I asked if I could help. I'm currently not doing anything too important either way, so…” They went silent for a second. “I should probably be able to be at your place in about uh, forty minutes, I think? Is that okay? I just have a few things to finish up before leaving.”

Relief flooded Mumbo, rushing through him like ocean waves, calming after a storm. "Yeah, yeah, that'd be fine."

"You sure? I could maybe get to your place sooner, but-"

"No no, it's fine. I can wait," Mumbo responded, breathing calmer.

“Okay, I'll be there in a bit then,” Iskall replied, their voice even and calm. “Bye for now.”

“Bye.”

If Mumbo had to be honest with himself, he absolutely hated waiting. It usually paralyzed him, left him in a terrible stasis of sitting around and overthinking every possibility. However, this time it almost felt nice to have some time to gather himself before Iskall showed up.

During the forty minutes he spent waiting, he spent five of those sitting on the kitchen floor. Then he spent ten minutes laying on the floor instead, when it got difficult to breathe again. It took him a while to be able to stand up, his legs still feeling far too weak to even try, and he had lost track of the time when he eventually managed to get to his feet.

He took it slow, breathed in and out carefully, and leant on the counter with a shaky step forward. It wasn’t much, but still, he felt just that little bit better.

Mumbo glanced at the clock as he put his, now cold, cup of tea in the microwave, silently setting the timer and watching the seconds count down. He breathed in time with that too, using the boxy numbers as a reference for each inhale.

He flinched again when it beeped, despite his eagle-eyed focus on the timer, before slowly pulling the steaming cup out from inside. The last few minutes before Iskall’s arrival were spent sitting at the table just cradling the warm cup. He still felt too anxious to be able to drink it, but just holding it and letting the warmth put feeling back into his fingers was relaxing.

Then finally, the doorbell rang. A wave of silence filled Mumbo's head, his mind calming down a lot more. He had company now, Iskall was right outside. They’d listen to his worries, they’d take care of him.

Still a bit shaky, Mumbo made his way to the front door.

~

Iskall ended up sitting at the table with Mumbo for a while, as Mumbo vented his anxiety about the appointment. They didn't judge him, nor tell him that his anxiety was irrational, even though it surely was, they just listened in silence.

“You know, you don't have to go to therapy if you don't want to,” they said when Mumbo eventually ran out of steam, slumping back into his seat like a marionette with its strings cut.

He couldn’t stop himself from staring wide-eyed at the other for a few long moments, just watching Iskall’s expression, trying to understand exactly what they thought of him. “I-I know,” Mumbo settled on eventually. “I just…it feels like it would help. Even though I'm worried that it might not, or that I'm just exaggerating how I'm feeling, I feel like I should try.”

Iskall hummed in understanding. “I see, well…if you want - just as a suggestion - I could go with you?” They leant back in their chair as they took a sip of their tea. “I'd wait outside, then we could go for a coffee afterwards, and you can decide then if you'd like to go to another appointment.”

They paused for a moment, giving Mumbo a breath to process what they were suggesting, before pushing on.

“That way, you’ve given it a go. You’ve felt what it's like, and you can properly figure out if it's for you.” They nodded confidently, setting their teacup down with a quiet clink. “Also, it’d give you the opportunity to see if the therapist we’ve found is right for you or not.”

Mumbo turned the words over in his mind with a thoughtful hum. It seemed like a good idea, really. It did, in fact, make him feel better about the entire thing, and suddenly he realized just how badly he had been craving that familiar company. He hadn't even realized that he had felt like he had to go, despite not being fully sure if he wanted to; the thought of having a familiar face there to wave him in felt like a godsend.

It was like everything was finally clicking into place, and Mumbo hadn’t even realized that he was smiling.

He grinned up at Iskall, the warmth of his own tea seeping pleasantly into his hands. “Yeah,” Mumbo said, and it sounded almost confident. “Yeah, that'd be amazing.”

~

In the end, his therapist turned out to be lovely. She had a certain calm, understanding energy about her that made Mumbo relax almost as soon as he stepped into her office.

The entire situation still felt a bit weird, definitely, but that weirdness wasn’t so uncomfortable anymore. Instead, it felt almost exciting. He was glad that he was trying something new.

It just felt nice to talk to someone who didn't know him, and therefore wouldn't say things to just please him. Someone who listened just to listen, without Mumbo feeling as if he was a burden for talking. It was a bit anxiety inducing, since it was his first time, but it felt like that anxiety would disappear in the future, and by the end of the session, Mumbo felt a lot lighter.

“So?” Iskall asked with a smile, as the pair of them walked out of the building together.

“I'll go back next week,” Mumbo replied. “It was a lot nicer than I thought. I think it might genuinely help me a lot.”

Iskall smiled, the sort of smile that spreads so uncontrollably across your lips until the corners of your mouth ache. “That's good to hear,” they said, and they looked so happy. They looked so glad. “Now, how about that coffee?”

Mumbo only laughed in response. It might've just been his head making things up, but some part of him was so certain that smile looked proud.

It felt nice, to make his friend proud.

~

Another thing that helped was knowing that he had people who cared about him. Yes, he had his siblings and Iskall, but he had other people as well. They had fallen to the wayside a little in the midst of everything that had happened, a fact that Mumbo couldn’t help but feel guilty for, but that hadn’t seemed to change much. In fact, it felt exactly the same as it did before when Tango messaged him to invite him to hang out.

He said that he was planning a small get together, and had wondered if Mumbo was interested in joining. It would be him, Mumbo, Impulse, as well as a few of Tango's other friends: Zedaph, Skizz, and Cub.

The first thing Mumbo felt was a shockwave of anxiety. He couldn't say no to such a kind offer, but what if they didn't want him there? What if they just invited him out of courtesy? It would be out of character, sure, but he couldn’t blame them for not wanting to spend time with him. Especially when he had been so absent for the past few months.

But… something about that didn’t feel right.

So Mumbo took a step back, just like his therapist had once recommended to him. He took a second to breathe, to drink some water and refresh himself before looking at the message again. And, this time, as he looked over the first text that had been sent between them in weeks, (a text that very clearly wasn’t trying to pressure him or force him into anything; a text that left his options open), Mumbo knew that it was genuine.

He was a little ashamed of the surprise he felt at that, but it felt like a step in the right direction either way. Mumbo hadn’t ever really thought about it, but in the back of his mind there was a constant feeling that people - his friends, his colleagues, everyone - disliked him.

Getting invited to something and pushing past that feeling… it suddenly meant a lot more. It felt nice to know that people wanted to see him. It felt nice to know that people cared about him. Even if they weren't close, and even if they weren't Gr-

He pushed that thought away, good mood suddenly soured.

He should probably reply to Tango.

~

Mumbo felt a bit awkward as he stood outside of Tango's apartment, one shaking finger hovering above the doorbell. He knew that they wouldn't mind him being there, since he had been invited, but the muffled laughter sounding from inside made his heart twist.

Anxiety crept up his spine, whispering horrible promises into his ears. He really didn’t want to ruin the joy inside the flat, and a part of him worried that he would, whilst another stubbornly argued against it. He wasn’t sure how long he stood there like that, paralyzed under the frozen grasp of his fear, in half a mind to just turn around and leave. It might’ve been hours, though that was incredibly unlikely.

He only managed to snap out of his anxious daze when his phone pinged, a sharp noise that rang in his ears like the most obnoxious of yelling. He shook out his sweaty hands and took a deep breath, a voice that sounded suspiciously like Iskall’s in the back of his mind, telling him that he wasn’t alone. That it was okay to be here, and that it was okay if he needed to leave early. He was taking this at his own pace, and that’s alright.

He was welcome here, Mumbo reminded himself as he pressed the doorbell. He was visiting his friends, and they would be happy to see him.

It only took a second for the door to open, as if Tango had run for it the moment that Mumbo rang. He was laughing as he opened the door, his cheeks red with a full, rosy sort of happiness, and he beamed as he saw Mumbo waiting there.

“Dude!” Tango exclaimed, throwing his arms out for a hug. “I'm so happy that you decided to join, come on inside!”

Mumbo smiled in response, leaning into his hold with a deep inhale, before the pair were walking further into the apartment.

Tango handed him a hanger out of nowhere, gesturing to a rail where Mumbo could leave his coat. “Feel free to just leave that there. There's snacks in the kitchen if you want any, and we’re just hanging out in the living room for now!” He explained, hands waving around all the while. Mumbo responded with a nod.

“Awesome. Now, I gotta make sure that–” A loud crash interrupted whatever he was saying, and Mumbo watched a little dazedly as Tango’s brows shot up like something straight out of a cartoon, and he yelled, “Zedaph! I swear to God, if you–”

Whatever else he was trying to say was lost to another echoing crash, before Tango was sprinting back down the hall without so much as a second glance. Laughter erupted as the man disappeared around the corner, and Mumbo took another deep breath at the sudden chaos.

Well, he found himself relaxing. Might as well grab some food.

~

The energy in the living room was comfortable and infectious. As soon as Mumbo had sat down on the couch, a bag of crisps tucked under his arm, he got pulled into playing a board game.

As it turned out, Cub had brought a friend along as well, and Tango quickly decided that it would work best if they played in three separate teams. On one team it was Tango and Zedaph, another was Impulse and Skizz, and Mumbo ended up on a team with Cub, and his friend, Scar.

The first few rounds went pretty well, with Scar showing himself to be particularly adept at scamming everyone else out of points, including his own teammates, somehow. They quickly ended up in the lead, whilst Tango and Zed were second, and Impulse and Skizz were last. Lighthearted bickering was quick to follow between the two losing teams, which quickly distracted them from the game.

Mumbo silently watched them, his heart yet again twinged as it reminded him of the dynamic he, Iskall, and Grian used to have. He missed it. He missed it a lot, actually. He wished he could somehow turn back time, to before-

“Don't mind them,” Cub cut through the mayhem suddenly, as if noticing how Mumbo started to get lost in his thoughts. “The four of them have been close since high school, so they're bound to get a bit distracted,” he explained with a sharp grin.

“I can tell, they all seem to share a brain cell,” Mumbo smiled.

Cub leant back with a hearty laugh, folding his arms across his chest. “Yeah, I suppose they do.”

Quiet fell between them then, but Mumbo found it wasn’t uncomfortable. He didn’t have any qualms with sitting back to watch the chaos unfold, and breaking the silence didn’t feel intimidating either. Something about that felt… new.

“How long have you known them?” Mumbo asked quickly, trying not to dwell on it as he turned to face Cub.

“Hm, not that long, really. I met Impulse in university, and he introduced me to Tango and Zed within a week. Apparently Zed was even on the same course as me, I had just never noticed until after I’d met him.” He shrugged. “Skizz showed up a little while later, since he lived in another city. So- not long. Scar, on the other hand…”

At that, Scar leaned into their conversation in a way that told Mumbo he thought he was being inconspicuous, like a cat who thinks you can’t see them because they’re moving slowly. He really wasn’t.

“I've known Impulse for a while!” He started. “Honestly, I can’t remember where we met. One second I didn't know him, and then, bam! I had known him for years.” He laughed, something buttery and pleasant. “He must've introduced me to the others as well, except for Skizz, I hadn't met him until now. Actually–”

As Scar kept talking, Mumbo found he couldn't help but to listen. Something about him was magnetizing, a sort of natural charisma that made him impossible to dislike. It was so reminiscent of- of-

“Well, anyway, that’s how we snuck a rooster into our final!” Scar concluded, before turning his attention to Mumbo. “Mumbo! A little birdy told me that you're a fan of Ariana?”

Apparently, at some point during Scar’s rambling, the others managed to drag Cub into their weird argument, leaving Scar and Mumbo to their conversation. He had barely noticed when it happened, but now he was cursing being left alone. It felt like his heart had stopped, blood rushing in his ears as the world around them fell deathly silent.

Memories of the Fridays spent on his couch, watching videos together with Grian clouded his mind like smoke. Memories of them laughing together, of them sitting in comfortable silence together.

“Uh, yes, I am,” Mumbo coughed, trying to get that smoke out of his lungs as quickly as he could. “I-I’ve been into her music for a while now, I've followed her for a few years. Which is honestly pretty funny, since my childhood friend, Iskall, is her manager. So, um, yeah.” He smiled awkwardly at Scar, clearing his throat again.

“Oh!” Scar exclaimed, something lighting up in his eyes, “I guess it really is a small world!” He laughed again, clapping his hands together excitedly.

Mumbo honestly felt a bit confused now. “What do you mean?” He asked.

“Oh, well, I know Iskall as well! I happen to be Ariana's bodyguard, actually,” he replied casually, as if he were talking about the weather. As if everyone worked with the most well-known celebrity in the country.

Mumbo's brain was absolutely whirring with the new information, as he filed through all the information that he knew about Ariana, (which, unsurprisingly, was quite a lot.)

“Oh!” He gasped as he recalled the name of Ariana’s head of security. “You're Scar Goodtimes?” He didn’t really mean to ask, but the question slipped out with such ease that Mumbo couldn’t even find it in himself to be ashamed.

“The one and only!” Scar said. “So you know my full name, but didn't recognise me?” He asked curiously.

Mumbo blushed. “Well, I’m rather face blind, if I’m honest… I always have been! I've seen photos of you, but you tend to be dressed in suits and sunglasses, so, uh, sorry. If you hadn't said anything I probably wouldn't have realized.”

“Ah, I see,” Scar nodded with a strict understanding. “That makes sense!”

They were quiet for a second as Mumbo processed the information, sifting through the things that he knew about Scar’s work in his mind. Then, he spoke again, “I, er, I hope you don't mind me asking, but… what is she like? I only know what Iskall’s told me, but they haven’t said much.”

Scar looked thoughtful, mulling over the question for a minute or two before he started, “Well, it's a bit hard to say! She's very sweet, and polite. One of the most humble celebrities I've worked with, that’s for sure, but other than that, I don't actually know much.” The man looked as if he was debating something then, so Mumbo stayed quiet, even as his words came to a stop.

“... She struggles a bit with her mental health from time to time,” Scar eventually seemed to decide on. “And she's a very private lady. The person who knows the most about her is definitely Iskall, and I don't know either of them that well, unfortunately.”

Mumbo nodded, the answer not coming as a surprise. “Well, thank you, anyway. I couldn’t help but to ask, I must admit that I'm rather curious about her.”

“Ah, no worries! I would've asked as well if the roles were reversed.” Scar replied with a smile. “Well, while I might not know much about Ariana, I certainly found out quite a lot about roosters. Let me tell you–”

Scar started talking again, and as Mumbo listened he found himself watching the rest of the group. He couldn't help but miss his own, the ones that were as close to him as these friends were to each other. He couldn't help but to miss Grian.

He felt an urge to text him, to ask him how he was doing, to beg him to please come over again, can we just talk?

Mumbo pushed the urge away as much as he could.

~

After his visit at Tango's, Mumbo found himself missing freshly cooked meals. Impulse had cooked up a feast later into the evening, a wide spread of vegetables and meats, all seasoned and baked to perfection, and even the thought of them now made his mouth water.

He’d been living off of instant ramen and frozen meals for too long, and it left his fridge and cabinets far too empty for comfort. Instead of being filled with food that he could actually use, it was filled with random jars he didn't remember buying, sauces he never used, pickled things, and random packets that looked a bit too suspicious. The vegetables he did have didn't look fresh at all, and also, where the hell did all these tubes come from?

He sighed heavily, desperately wanting to put off buying food to another day, since it was pouring outside. He would rather stay at home, drink some tea and watch whatever crap was on TV, but then his stomach growled again and he remembered Impulse’s cooking, and… damn it, he should go to the store.

After all, what would Iskall say if they saw his fridge now? What would they think? What would Gr-

Mumbo shook his head, snapping out of the train of thought. He didn't want to think about him, but ever since he was at Tango's, he had started to pop up in his head more and more. He sighed, waited for his mind to clear a bit. It hurt too much to think about him, about the things that he might say.

So, instead of thinking, Mumbo grabbed some reusable bags and sat down at the kitchen table. He very pointedly avoided looking at Grian’s seat as he made a list of the things he needed.

He read through the list a few times, double checked that he’d written tea down, and glanced through the cabinets one last time to see if he needed anything else.

When he couldn't find anything missing, Mumbo grabbed his coat, pulled on his boots, and started towards the store.

~

Half of the time, Mumbo found grocery shopping to be the most dull, boring and uninteresting thing on the planet, and at other times, he found it therapeutic to walk through the isles listening to music, crossing things off from the list.

This time, it was definitely the latter.

That was another one of those things that had made life a little bit better, to find joy in ordinary chores and mundane tasks. There was something pleasant about doing what he needed to, about taking care of himself, about being able to do small things that he would have previously dreaded with a smile.

Somehow, his motivation for cooking a decent meal didn’t disappear while he was out grocery shopping, and he even left with a solid meal plan scribbled down on the back of his shopping list. He walked out of the doors with two hefty bags and a pleasant lightness on his shoulders even so, and, in his good mood, Mumbo decided that he’d walk the nicer route home. It was longer, sure, but it let him wind through some lovely little side-streets and a vibrant park or two.

He stumbled on a cute bakery as he walked, a small, independent looking store with fresh bread lining the windows. The scent from the bakery was absolutely heavenly, and he couldn't stop himself from going back to it, just to buy some bread. Sure, he had bread he'd bought at the grocery store and buying more things only made the bags harder to carry, but bakery bread was always a lot better, so it was worth it.

So, Mumbo ended up with bags that were heavy, filled to the absolute brim with fresh vegetables and ripe fruits, as well as two loaves of freshly baked bread. He had to stop a few times on the walk home to let his arms relax, otherwise he'd end up with aching arms and his food would most definitely end up getting dropped on the street. Yet, it didn't change how content he felt.

Even if it was still raining, even if his arms ached, and even if he had started to long for a cup of hot tea. He still felt content.

Then, Mumbo turned the corner onto his street.

He was nearly home, he could see his apartment building from where he stood, but that did nothing to stop the grocery bags from clattering out of his loose grip. The bread fell out, its beautiful crust soaked in a puddle on the pavement, and the punnet of apples came loose, fruit rolling across the ground. All of those good things were ruined in an instant, all of the things that he had been looking forward to were nothing more than a smushed pile against gray concrete.

But none of that mattered, and Mumbo wasn’t watching as eggs smashed and vegetables bruised. Instead, he was slack, staring straight ahead with weak, shaking hands.

Because right across the street, on the familiar, uneven doorstep of Mumbo’s apartment block, stood Grian.

He was rocking back and forth on his heels, his back turned to the street. Even so, Mumbo could see that he was twisting his hands anxiously, picking at the skin around his nails. It was almost picturesque, the way that he stood there on the empty side of the street, as if everyone had cleared out to give the two of them this moment - though, realistically, most people were probably just inside because of the rain.

Mumbo couldn’t care about the loss of his groceries as he blinked owlishly at Grian, frozen in place. He couldn't really believe his eyes as he took in every detail of the man’s silhouette, trying to convince himself that it wasn't just his imagination; that Grian was actually there.

He stared at him as he glanced up towards the window of Mumbo's flat, as he flitted between pacing or just tapping his foot, seemingly unaware of everything around him. He looked like he was deep in thought, as if he was trying to decide whether he should leave or not. Everytime that he steeled himself, spine straightening and hands curling into fists, he’d crumble, and go back to just standing outside the building, rocking back and forth.

Grian looked significantly better than the last time Mumbo saw him. His hair was in better shape, trimmed and washed, albeit wet from the rain. He wondered what style Grian usually let it sit in now, he wondered if that had changed, since they last saw each other so many weeks ago. His clothes looked clean, he was standing straighter, and he seemed to have put effort into what he was wearing.

All in all, he looked good. He looked better, so much better. If it wasn't for the pacing, Mumbo would've assumed that Grian was doing well.

It could have been hours that Mumbo stood there, glued to the pavement with watering, blinkless eyes, before Grian finally made up his mind on what he was going to do. He watched with horror as Grian turned around, walking in the opposite direction.

He hadn't seen Mumbo, hadn't noticed him.

He had decided to leave.

Mumbo’s heart dropped from his throat to his toes, fluttering with the desperate pace of a hummingbird, and yet, he couldn't move. He was frozen in place, deafening pulse hammering in his ears. He had to move! He had to!

It wasn't until a passerby walked into him, too busy looking at the groceries littering the ground, that Mumbo moved. In that moment he didn't care about the bread, he didn’t care about making himself a good, fresh meal, or the fact that there was traffic on the road. He didn't care if he ran into someone. He didn’t care if he made a fool of himself.

All he could care about was stopping Grian from leaving. He had to stop him from leaving.

His heart was yelling at him that if he didn't stop Grian from leaving, then this would be the last time he ever saw him. That they'd be stuck in this godawful limbo forever, neither of them ever gaining the strength to try and fix things between them. In those few seconds, where all he could see was the retreating outline of Grian’s rain-soaked hair, he was certain that was true.

It was true for both of them, but he could fix it. Right now, he could fix it.

That's why Mumbo ran out into the road without a second thought, throwing himself straight out into traffic, and only narrowly avoiding getting hit by a car. The driver slammed on their horn and rolled down the window to yell curses at him for his recklessness, but he could barely hear it.

Mumbo could only sprint as fast as he could, legs pumping under him like he was possessed. Adrenaline and fear and longing all melted together into some dangerous potion in his gut, he only cared about stopping Grian, he–

He didn't stop running until he caught up to Grian, his fingers first just brushing against the sleeve of his jacket as he remained just out of reach. In that split second, it was like Grian was nothing but a figment of his imagination, a shadow haunting him as he slipped through quivering fingers. It was only a moment, but the surge of absolute terror that rushed through him at that gave Mumbo a boost like nothing else.

Before he really knew what was happening, he had managed to grab Grian with a far sharper grip, long fingers tangling around his arm like a vice. He watched, tense and slightly lightheaded, as Grian yelled in response, spinning around like a whip as he tried to yank himself away.

His expression was sour, his eyelashes wet, as he seemed about ready to scream at whatever stranger had grabbed him until they let go.

Mumbo watched the exact instant that he realized who it was that was holding onto him.

Grian’s angry expression faded rapidly, first settling into a look of pure disbelief, before a hint of relief and happiness coloured his face. A smile was next, small and barely-there but still present enough to send fireworks shooting through Mumbo’s chest. He looked as if couldn't believe his eyes at all.

In a second, the happiness faded and his face crumpled like a child, something young and helpless and pained overtaking every inch of his expression. He looked sadder and more regretful than Mumbo had ever seen him, his mouth moving wordlessly as he stared up at the taller man.

Up close, Mumbo’s only thought was that he was glad Grian was truly doing better. With relief, he could see that Grian was wearing a small amount of makeup to highlight his features. It was polished, carefully placed and vibrant, but didn't hide the fact that he still had bags beneath his eyes. He still looked tired, a sleeplessness that may as well have been etched into his very bones, but the dark circles were so much less apparent than before.

Then, finally, Grian managed to croak, “Mumbo?” He said shakily, and Mumbo had never heard his name sound like an oath before. He had never heard someone call for him like they had been thinking of him for weeks, like they had been practicing holding the shape of his name on their tongue.

He could do nothing but stare, taking in every detail of the man’s face as the pair of them stood together, stuck in place. Mumbo’s tight, shaking grip stayed on Grian’s arm, his mind blank as he tried to think of a single word that would be a reply good enough for something as terrifying and profound as Grian’s own.

But he couldn’t; couldn’t do anything but gape as he spotted a half-smoked cigarette between Grian's fingers. He seemed to have forgotten it, unlit due to the rain, the smell only slightly present. How long had Grian been pacing? How long had he been out in the rain?

“Mumbo, listen, I–” Grian inhaled, about to continue, but was promptly cut off by Mumbo pulling him into a tight hug.

Grian gasped, and for a split second Mumbo was terrified that Grian wouldn't hug back, that he would resist, push Mumbo away, and leave. That this would be it, he would watch as Grian retreated away from him, and they would have forever missed their chance.

He could feel as Grian trembled. He didn't want to let go. He couldn't let go.

Then, he felt a pair of hands hovering over his back. At first they were careful, landing lightly on his soaking wet coat, but quickly they turned desperate. Those hands felt searching against him, grabbing fistfuls of as much fabric as they could reach, like whatever Grian could hold would stay with him forever. Like Mumbo would leave if Grian didn’t hold on tightly enough.

Mumbo barely registered that the other was crying, the tears blending with the rain, smudged into every other droplet that was already coating his shoulder.

"I'm sorry,” Grian sobbed, burying his head in Mumbo's shoulder. “I'm so sorry."

There were tears on Mumbo’s cheeks too as he pulled Grian as close as he could, burying his nose in damp, blond hair.

“It's okay, I'm here. It's okay," he reassured, and he wasn’t quite sure who he was talking to as he said it. It didn’t matter, they both heard it.

Neither wanted to let go, as they stood there in the pouring rain. Neither could bring themself to.

[bruciemilf]

MORE I NEED MORE OF BATGORDON WITNESS PROTECTION AU

Bruce being so eerily quiet. He moves around like he's never been there and it creeps Jim the fuck out. In the course of one week, he also made a lengthy list of Bruce's peculiar but strangely endearing quirks?

Firstly, he doesn't kill bugs. Even spiders. Jim tried to and Bruce threw a tantrum of monstrous proportions (Bruce raised his voice a little bit and felt guilty for 2 hours bc he's still shaken by how mean he was to Alfred)

Bruce doesn't waste food; If they're eating pasta he'd eat the leftover sauce with a piece of broken, fluffy bread. No crust, ever. Tomato looks cute on his pink lips.

Bruce journals everywhere; On his napkins, on his skin, right on his wrist or legs. Small thoughts, big thoughts, -- Jim guesses, at least. He never wants to show Gordon anything.

(Bruce writing like, "Jim does not like sweets. That is sad. Will darkness finally devour me, or have I gotten too bitter?")

Give me Jim who talks abt Bruce like dog owners talking abt the mutt they saved from the pound, or a grumpy husband talking about their spouse, " Well, can't complain. I knew what I was getting myself into.".

He really didn't.

But oof. The Sexual Tension.

The Batman equipment Is still in the cave, and Bruce is constantly stressing the police officers crawling around will find it. Every night he tries to sneak off, and every night he's almost successful.

Because at first? Jim couldn't care less. " Do your thing, man. Go give some kid bad dreams or whatever it is that you do."

But the longer they're around eachother, the closer their connection is. Jim doesn't consider himself a possessive or controlling man. But when Bruce tries to tip toe his way out of his, -- their apartment? He has to speak up.

Except Bruce won't just roll over belly up and pliant. No, he pushes and avoids and bumps shoulders with him, but Jim won't have it,

Grabbing Bruce by that diamond sharp jaw and more or less slamming him back into the couch, " sit the fuck down and listen to me when I'm talking, boy."

Bruce goes ruby red. We all know he's a sucker for it

[my2phetaliaheadcanons]

Let's Build an AU Poll #3

PREVIOUSLY ON BUILD AN AU~

All our sweet heroine wanted to do was repair a leaky faucet. Instead, she fell down a dark pipe in her basement, taking her from the world she knew. The trip down changed her body from a chunky 3D to a flat 2D sticker.

Now, confronted with a possible threat (Y/N)’s on edge.

~

 “It’s a~ me-”

(Y/N)’s heart raised itself to its crescendo. Its beats overtook the bush rustling as the blood raced in her ears. She couldn’t look away from the leather gloves that pushed aside the foliage.

She leaned back. Her legs tense, but frozen as the leafy tunnel flashed two blue orbs. She swore, it growled as a couple tears fell and her body trembled.

“Alfred!” Cheered the happy face that popped into view.

At the strange man’s bright smile, (Y/N)’s legs gave out. Fear turned to confusion as she processed the view in front of her.

The man, or at least (Y/N) assumed he was an adult with those ‘chibi proportions’, struggled momentarily to remove himself from the bush. Its green, construction paper leaves stuck to his flat surface like stickers. Each twist of his flimsy body revealed that he was double-sided as he plucked off each leaf.

Yet, some parts of Alfred moved like a normal man. His golden hair fluttered as he messed with the burrs. Sapphire eyes, hidden behind round glasses glinted in the sunlight as he looked over himself. His round, gloved hands moved without hindrance as he felt along his jean overalls for more plant matter.

Alfred would have been very handsome. If he was normal.

“-that’s how I found you.” Alfred trained his blue eyes onto (Y/N). “So, what’s your name.”

And apparently, he had been talking all this time.

(Y/N) um’ed as she looked around with reddened eyes. She could feel the smoke that floated off her fried nerves as she weighed her options.

To trust, meant that Alfred would be her defacto hero. He hopefully would rescue her and get her home within an hour. On the other hand, what if he wasn’t as nice as he looked. What if this was all just a ruse? A wolf in sheep’s clothing so to-

(Y/N)’s off-rail train was stopped as Alfred knelt down in front of her. His face contorted with worry as he took her hands in his.

“Dudette, you ok?”

The way he rubbed his thumbs over her hands, felt normal, comforting even. Like she was still in the 3D world. Sitting at home, warped in a fleece blanket on her grey couch.

“I’m o-“ (Y/N)’s voice warbled as tears rose again like hightide. “kay.”

His baby blues softened as he wiped away a single tear that dared to fall.

“Hey~” He cooed. “I’m a hero, you can trust me to help.”

His smile was so warm. Begging her to let him help. With a sigh, (Y/N) answered with her name.

Somehow, the smile rivaled the cartoony sun above as he complimented her name. Repeating it with a happy chirp as he pulled her up from the meadow floor.

“So, wanna tell me how you wound up Merry Meadow?”

A small heat flushed over (Y/N)’s cheeks as she told the blond her story. The embarrassment burned as she detailed the trek into the basement. Her hands fluttered in gestures as she explained the strange pipes and painful transformation.

 At the end of her tale, Alfred stared at (Y/N) for a moment. His blue eyes were blank as he blinked.

She jumped at his sudden grab. His gloved appendages were on hers once more. He dragged her close, his eyes now sparkled with excitement as he lowered his face close.

“YOU’RE AN ALIEN!!”

The sheer volume of his voice rang her eardrums as she flinched backward. Yet, she remained upright from his unrelenting grip.

“WHAT?! No! If anyone’s an alien, it's you!” She accused, ripping her hands out of his grip. Her finger aimed at his face.

Nah-uh. Shook the blond. “You’re not from here, which means it's you.”

Oh. (Y/N)’s finger fell. She guessed he was right. But did that mean she couldn't get home? After all, she was under the assumption that pipe was a one-way trip. Could there really be a way to return home? What if her ‘alien’ status caused her to be hunted and killed? Or worse, become an experiment?

As her fates raced before her eyes, Alfred put a hand on her shoulder. He gave it a simple squeeze, bringing her attention back to him.

“Don’t worry Alien (Y/N).” Alfred said with a laugh and thumbs up. “As the hero of the Toad Kingdom, I’ll get you back to your spaceship.”

Huh? Now, it was (Y/N)’s turn to blink blankly. At what point did she mention a ship? Was this his poor attempt at meta-humor?

Alfred looked to the side and coughed when (Y/N) didn’t react. She swore he muttered something in that cough. Stuffed craow, maybe? Was that a-

“Anyway!” Alfred chirped. “How about you come back with me to my place?”

Once again (Y/N)’s face embraced the inferno as she squeaked. What did he mean by that?!

“Yeah, ya know.” He spoke with an innocent head tilt. “So, you can rest, before we figure out which warp pipe will get you home.”

Ah, that made more sense.

Nodding she gestured to him to lead the way.

~

Despite his chibi portions, Alfred moved fast. It felt even faster to (Y/N) as she tried to take in the meadow around her.

It was weird to take in all the cartoony nature. The over-saturated flowers came in both natural and unnatural colors. The paper grass that crunched under (Y/N)’s bare feet and Alfred’s work boots. The sky was a single shade of blue instead of the ever-changing gradient of blues she was used to.

In the distance, the occasional spiraled tower appeared, but this time they weren’t as scary. Even with their hyper-focused stares, Alfred’s presence lessened their pressure.  

As she noticed her observation created too great a gap, she dashed forward. Nervous that if she let him go too far, she would lose sight of her only salvation.

Not realizing he stopped, (Y/N) ran right into his back. She grunted; her arms scrambled to prevent herself from falling like a piece of paper.

The ‘hero’ said nothing about her plight. Just reached an arm back to steady her.

“Don’t move.”

Her eyes widened at his serious tone. Before she could utter a single question, two beings hopped out of the grass.

They seemed humanish at first with their chibi human proportions. That was it, though. These beings had big, brown, bowel cuts that draped like ugly curtains over ferociously thick eyebrows. Their eyes were dark and angry while each snarled lip was cornered by two large tusks.

 The taller of the two stepped forward. His voice was gruff as he shouted at Alfred.

“ALFRED!! IN THE NAME OF THE KOOPA KING, THIS IS WHERE YOU AND YOUR FRIEND FALL!”

 As the last syllable floated through the air, the duo rushed forward. Their tiny hands balled into fists as they were prepped to punch both (Y/N) and Alfred.

(Y/N) tried to scream that she just met the man. That she didn’t understand what was happening, but it fell on deaf ears. If they had ears.

The short one targeted (Y/N) but before his punch could land, she found herself thrown into the air. In shock, she turned to look downward. Alfred had been the one to throw her away as he dodged his own assailant. With a simple turn on the point of his boot, he was able to land a solid punch. The force flung the enemy back.

As she sailed downwards, she watched in amazement as Alfred then turned to the short one. A blood thirsty grin split his face as he kicked the being. It appeared to fly further than the first as it flew toward it.

Her fluttering fall took her back towards the ground, but before she could make contact Alfred’s strong arms cradled her. He tucked her head under his chin as he turned to address those freaks.

“Tell your king that if he really wants to stop me, he needs to stop sending Goombas!”

At that comment, the ‘goombas’ growled and stood back up. Red streamers seeped from their road rashes as they supported each other. Even from a distance, (Y/N) believed they were ready for round two.

But, a simple challenge stomp from Alfred caused them to pause. When he took a step forward with (Y/N) in his arms, they began to tremble. Another, with the same malicious grin, and the goombas turned and dashed.

As their retreat kicked up a cloud of dirt, Alfred laughed. It was loud and clear like a young lion declaring victory over his territory. (Y/N) still tucked tightly in his arms.

The jovial nature behind it wiped away all traces of blood-thirstiness. Yet, she couldn't forget any of that.

“What the HECK was THAT!?” She squirmed in his arms as Alfred resumed his path home.

“A normal Tuesday.” He responded with a chuckle.

~

It took a bit for Alfred to finally let (Y/N) down. The man had used the excuse of other creatures coming in for kill as a reason to keep her close.

It wasn’t enough to keep her there forever, especially since they had settled into silence. Though, (Y/N) was sure he could tell she had more questions. Alot more that stewed in the back of her mind.

As the arts and crafts sun began to set, Alfred turned back to her. His arm reached around her shoulders as he gestured to a cabin at the hill’s bottom.

“There’s home sweet home, alien dudette.”

“It’s quaint.” She responded. The sight was like an open door, inviting exhaustion to lay heavily upon her flattened bones and brain.

As (Y/N)’s shoulders sagged under Alfred’s grip, he hummed. It’s deep, melody relaxing the stressed woman even more.

“Do you want to me to carry you again?” She didn’t even look at him as she said no. She walked ahead; feet heavy as she was eager to reach her promised rest.

Near feet from the door, Alfred popped up next to her. Somehow having one last burst of energy as he positioned himself in front of her.

“Dudette, I forgot to tell you one thing.”

She cocked an eyebrow at his statement. Silently urged him to get on with it.

“My brother lives with me. And he’s a bit skittish.” Alfred pushed his fingers together in a cutely nervous fashion. “So… would you wait outside while I talk to him.”

Another blank stare, this time created by the numb exhaustion.

“Please?” He added with the sweetest puppy dog eyes.

Instead of the basic ok (Y/N) wanted to give. Annoyance from all the unknows crept into her tone.

“Only if you give me a blanket and pillow first.”

The fun thing about AUs is that they don't have to follow the canon. Though I am 90% sure which nation will be Luigi, I just wanna see what y'all will say.