#they are more likely to attack someone because they are more likely to perceive normal human behavior as a threat

[tatzelbookwurm]

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 (you're here)

Full fic on Ao3

Art of LBM

Pt. 4: An Unexp-ectoed Party (not on Ao3 yet)

Constantine was quietly freaking out. He couldn’t be sure, but he suspected that the ghost who had turned itself into a cute little tatzelwurm to avoid answering questions might be something far beyond his capabilities to deal with. Everything it said and did suggested it was way outside his scope of experience. While Tim used a shoelace to play with it like a rambunctious kitten, John mentally catalogued the things that threatened to give him a panic attack:

Before the ghost even arrived, the blinding power flowing through his spell array nearly knocked him flat. It had felt like being swatted in the eyeballs by an eldritch god.

The ghost appeared in human form, fully alive, before being transformed by the summoning magic. John had only ever heard whispers of legends about a being who could do such a thing. The legends were vague and grandiose, but some epithets included The One Who Walks Between, He Who Straddles Life and Death, Twilight Walker, Shroud Danger Child, and The Halver. 

The ghost could not only see his soul at a glance, it could perceive all the damage he had done making deals with demons.

The ghost implied it was on casual, friendly terms with the Ancient of Time aka Chronos, Kala, Father Time, etc. And that it had altered the timeline at least once already.

It could age. Despite what the ghost said, only Neverborn should be able to age. The dead were static, and given the death that he could feel sustaining the portal, this ghost had definitely died.

It was brilliant enough to pinpoint a weakness and successfully distract Tim by transforming into a shape that could manipulate his protective instincts. John did not want to admit that he also felt protective of the cute little blighter.

It had hopped out of the summoning circle as if it were just chalk scribbles, despite John working in some of his most powerful containment spells as a matter of what he had thought was excessive precaution.

Shite, the list had already reached seven items. The tatzelwurm (had Drake really just named the thing Little Baby Man?) glared at him and called him “Gross!” 

“Seriously!? This cloaking spell should be more than sufficient.” John grumbled. “Did it really have no effect?” If so, that was gonna be item number eight.

Little Baby Man tilted his head. “It worked.” Then he huffed with amusement. 

Thank fuck for small blessings. 

A quickly muttered spell turned his burning cigarette into a makeshift sort of laser pointer, and Constantine distracted Little Baby Man while he tried to think of what to do next.

“Hey kid, this is a problem.” He kept his voice low, and watched to see if the tatzelwurm appeared to pay any attention to him. It dedicated all its attention to the glowing dot, and ignored the two men.

“I assume this isn’t the normal direction your interrogations go.” Drake wound his shoelace around his hand and pocketed it. “It’s certainly a first for me.”

“Ditto, in so many ways.”

“Any idea what to do now?”

“We should probably return him where he came from, and wait for Zatanna to get back from wherever she’s disappeared to now.” John would really like a second opinion. He would also like to dump this mess in someone else’s lap and be on his way. 

Although to be fair, watching the tatzelwurm careen around after his lazer dot was actually pretty fun. Not that he’d ever admit it. Still, the creature was done answering questions and John wasn’t prepared to bind the thing because he didn’t think he’d need to pack the tools to bind an eldritch god when Batman called him to do a “quick consult.”

Danny couldn’t remember the last time he had this much fun. The CEO person played with him! He did feel a bit bad for hurting his foot, but it was difficult to dwell on regrets or worries when he could attack the string instead. And now there was a red dot to chase! It was very fast and sneaky, but he was faster and sneakier.

Is this what Paulina felt like when she wished herself to be a giant chibi version of herself to be loved and worshipped by everyone? Because he felt adorable. And fierce. He was going to kill that red dot so hard when he finally sunk his claws in it!

Frustratingly, it seemed to also have intangibility powers. Well, Danny knew what to do about that! He concentrated ectoplasm into his paw and bapped it down hard on the dot. This scorched the floor a bit, but when he lifted his paw, the red dot was skewered on one of his claws. It tried to tug away, but he clung tight. Apparently its size belied its strength, because it started to drag him across the floor. 

Danny tried to release the dot, but his claw was firmly snagged, so he resigned himself to being dragged back into the chalk circle. He tingled a bit as he crossed the perimeter, but it wasn’t a bad sensation, just a little odd. Then a portal opened up and pulled him through the water filled tube snake toy sensation in reverse and ugh! Just as bad the second time, if not worse.

The spell spat him out in human form under the Specter Speeder. Or rather, it ejected him at speed so he smacked into the bottom of the Speeder before falling back to the ground with a heavy thud. Thankfully he didn’t crack his head against the concrete, but he still couldn’t stifle a pained groan.

A firm hand wrapped around Danny’s ankle and dragged him out, and he found himself staring up at Drake and Constantine for the third time that day.

“Uh, hi,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I suppose I have some explaining to do.”

Being able to create ghost portals would come in real handy right about now. Maybe he should just commit some arson and let these two deal with escaping the basement on their own.

[wandixx]

I've seen a lot of different takes on Fear Toxin/other fear causing stuff (Yellow Lanterns Ring or something)(later just called Fear Toxin cause I'm lazy) but here is another one.

Danny seems like he isn't affected by Fear Toxin because his biggest fear is that his accident changed him so much he is no longer human, he can no longer truly experience human things.

So when he gets lungful of fear Toxin, he feels normal. He was antsy before, because c'mon, it's a rogue attack but it's not worse. Or so he thought. Because the anxiety lingers. Not enough to register as abnormal just this slight hypervigilance that makes you see things about yourself and your surroundings that you'd never realize otherwise. He'd realize he doesn't blink as often. He'd realize that if he doesn't consciously focus, he sometimes seems to not touch the ground. Forgets to breathe. He can't feel his own pulse at time. He'd realize people will miss him when he's walking down the street as if he was invisible (people just don't care about everyone they pass by). When he'd look straight into his reflection, he'd look slightly to the left. Not enough to actually name anything that was wrong but just stretched enough to fall on the wrong side of the uncanny valley. If he just caught his reflection in the peripheral vision, it'd be vaguely shadowy creature with glowing green eyes and white smoke instead of hair. Overall he'd be just wrong enough to be distinctly not human.

For everyone else, he'd be just a dude. Literally couldn't find more normal dude than this dude. Will pass as absolutely normal human unless someone is specifically looking for ecto-ghost stuff. Even most magic users wouldn't clock him at the glance

Tldr: Fear Toxin makes Danny perceive himself as some sort of eldritch horror but not enough to make him believe he'd actually be affected, while from outside perspective he's Just A Dude™

[really-good-devil]

x men and marvel characters (wolverine, daredevil, gambit, nightcrawler, etc) with transmasc boyfriend.... please i beg of you

anon i see you i see you i'm thanking you for this. i just ran with this i hope its to your liking

MARVEL IMAGINES WITH TRANSMASC BOYFRIEND

content: religion mention (majority positively), medical/social transition implied, dysphoria, transphobia

Wolverine:

For someone almost 200 years old, he has a bit to learn upon meeting you

Obviously Morph is a help with this + definitely had to give him a PowerPoint presentation

His view of masculinity somewhat is skewed but he is very insistent on treating you like a man because you identify as a man and if that means anything to you then it means something to him

Flannels! He absolutely gives you his baggy coats when you make a comment on needing more masculine clothes (not to mention the smell that his clothes leave on you is a big plus, so sue him, okay?)

Workout regiment is always taken care of and you never skip chest and arm day

He calls you "darlin'" once and then immediately goes "aw shit" because it might be too "lady-like" (his words) but he gets over it very quickly

Mutant hate? He understands all too well. Transphobia? Whole new ballgame, but it makes him just as mad. As in, he has no problem almost kabobbing someone who makes a comment about you going into a bathroom when he takes you out to one of his preferred bars

He soon realizes after that that maybe you need better hangouts and though he doesn't think the beer is as good at the other places, it's worth it to him

To him, assholes like that are no less ignorant than those who attack mutants because its all the same so he gets feisty on the defense

Once when the body dysphoria is real bad, like the kind when mirrors are the worst thing in the world and everything feels gross and tight, he listens and holds you very tightly and though he can't understand half of it, he does understand self-hatred and it hurts him something fierce

So he'll go out of his way at that point to make it known that you are one of strongest guys he knows because you're going through change and sticking to yourself and he loves it about you

He offhandedly once mentions using his claws for top surgery in an attempt to be funny and neither of you know how to react in that moment but it actually is kind of funny much later

Nightcrawler:

Much more up to speed than some others

He's not unused to the ideas of the intricacies and ideas of gender from his time in the circus and seeing the different lifestyles at play there

There's some trepidation on some people's parts about how Kurt will react considering his religion and the history, but it very hardly factors in

Very flirtatious after he gets the okay to move forward even if it's new to him

Does everything he would try to do with his previous lovers; he loves flowers that remind him of you

Constantly trying to involve you in things that he enjoys that he would hope you enjoy

Movie nights are a favorite of his and even if they end up being more modern, he's always willing to give it a chance

Kurt of all people knows what it is like to be judged and ridiculed for how you look or how people perceive someone

Body positivity is a huge part for him; complimenting your frame, your body hair, your hands

After all, his own body is not what many would consider normal, but it is still his and he accepts it, so he'll literally be damned if he can't help with that

His whole thing is finding someone new that's nice to say every day (which isn't very hard for him, tbh)

When he hears you accept any of it he gets so excited that his tail wags and he peppers you with kisses that sometimes have little nips from his fangs but they're all gentle

Loves to take you up to the top of the X-Mansion to have semi-romantic getaways and look out at the night sky and think of things far beyond where you both are right now, though he know he is happiest right at your side

Gambit:

Meets you when you first arrive to the mansion and is instantly drawn to you

Ever the gentleman while he's trying to get to know you, almost like chivalry is his default no matter the gender

After you first confess your feelings his favorite card becomes his King of Hearts

You tell him it's cheesy but he is happy that you approve

He leaves it with you the first time he goes on a mission and though he didn't doubt that you would lose it, he is so happy when he sees you kept it you can literally feel his kinetic energy reserves when he kisses you deep

His favorite is on those rare occasions where you get to dress up, whether it's for a party or infiltrating something

He loves trying to find coordinating or inverse outfits accessories if that's the case (nothing huge, but small ways to show that you two are together)

Pet names constantly

He works with his hands often so he uses them constantly to explore your body and he has magic fingers in many ways

You're so perfect to him in every way imaginable

Matt Murdock:

You meet Matt in Josie's a while after moving to the area in a new area to "start fresh"

It's not that he hustles you but you don't expect to lose at pool to him

He's very charming and easy to learn from and it takes a while but eventually you do get together

Walks around the neighborhood as an excuse to get to know things end up being tiny dates

Foggy and Karen exchanging tiny looks over Matt's boyfriend but very happy for him

You're unaware of his double life but do end up having to fuss over his scrapes

Eventually you have to explain to him and it's awkward but he just seems to take you in without seeing you and he smiles a bit and its okay from then on

You think he's just super understanding and forgiving but no he's actually known for a while

He's been very perceptive of changes in you as you transition further; he knows when you just had a T shot from how you body is working just a bit harder because of it, when your voice gets a bit deeper between the times he sees you

He also had to do a background check because you can't be too careful at this point

But though it's insanely new to him since he hasn't been with a man, he does love you with no shame

He knows what you look like vaguely but always asks anyway because he wants you to explain what you see of yourself

Always very seriously and not seriously ready to remind you that he is part of fine law firm should you need to win a case against someone at the slightest complaint

You always feel safe and seen, in a way, with him, and it never really changes

‐----------------------

I hope you enjoyed this! If you did, feel free to request more like this or a fic! Requests are open and I have masterpost here and a list of characters and ships I'd write for here. Thanks for reading!

(Also lmk if any of these are interesting enough you'd want to see more of, bc the Matt and Kurt ones I would definitely be open to making a fic so stay tuned if it happens.)

[beautysnake]

Has Narinder ever been jealous? Or has he ever attacked a cultist for inappropriately making advances on the lamb?

So here's the thing, my Narinder's denial phase is... a treat.

He is, for one: not very emotionally intelligent, and two: if asked, would refuse to acknowledge he could feel anything other than contempt or indifference for the lamb. Even after the bishop's questline is complete. Even when he has normal or pleasant interactions with them regularly. Does he actually feel contempt or indifference towards them? No, but the posturing is almost reflexive.

So when he actually starts developing feelings for them, he doesn't see those feelings for what they are, instead processing them through an almost utilitarian lens? Like "I appreciate their meticulous nature." or "They are growing into godhood well"

(think this:)

He would have an incredibly difficult time examining any growing fondness in a deeper, more meaningful way. The lamb is the new god of death after all! Gods are meant to be worshipped. Of course his life would revolve around them in some way, as do all the lives of those following the Red Crown.

He does not know the real root of those emotions, and at a certain point as things progress he refuses to even entertain the idea, even as his feelings become more and more apparent. The pride of a god is a beast in it's own right and it's not something that died alongside his divinity either.

The thought he could be falling for the one who usurped him? Absolutely not. Don't think it. Don't say it.

That being said...

Yes. He would get jealous, and not know why. He would likely assume he disliked said cultist because of some perceived incompetency, or distain for the sycophantic tendencies of mortals.

It's been fun to explore with ray! It's even better when he acts on impulse and has to figure out why the hell he did it.

Though I might have to chew on the idea of him attacking someone during this time period. I like it but it needs time to cook in my brain lol

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

might be an unrelated ask with how things are going on right now, but the only way i ever see traitor ace theory coming into fruition is if he destroys yuu's way back home because of how his feelings will boil over (since he thinks being vulnerable is uncool). i've always tried to convince myself that his silly tsundere moments are yume bait, though i really can't deny the fact that yuu is literally everything that his ex-girlfriend is not. they've watched a horror movie together from idia's lab sr (and sending grim all alone to get snacks???) in playful stage, they ride a roller coaster, and if you tell him you like it, he suggests going again again (just the two of them without grim???) bro is not slick with how attached he is to mc.

I have my own thoughts on Ace traitor theory (which you can read here)! To summarize, I don’t believe in it. If Ace betrays us at all, I think it will be in a trivial capacity (like he does something stupid that the rest of the group disagrees with, like taunting Malleus to attack him) and without malicious intent.

He may think being vulnerable is uncool, but I don’t think he’d take an action as drastic as destroying Yuu’s route home no matter how emotional he got. (That feels more like the stuff I see in angst and/or yandere fan works.) Ace gets mad and acts out, yes—but it tends to be in situations where he feels like being has been wronged, not to hinder the people he cares about. His character and his actions the entire story have done nothing but demonstrate that he values his friends and will be there for them until the bitter end, even if he whines about it the entire time.

And well 💦 when it comes to “is this platonic or romantic”, I always default to “it’s up to individual interpretation”. TWST will never give a “canon” ship for Yuu because that would impede the self-insert mass appeal design of the blank slate character. Not everyone wants to perceive X (in this case, Ace) as a love interest. Not everyone wants to perceive X (again, Ace in this case) as a friend. Therefore, there’s always going to baity lines to feed the yume crowd (Michard voice: give me your ur wallets) but lines are also kept plausibly deniable (framed as “jokes”/nor serious) or ambiguous enough to be interpreted either way.

In Ace’s Suitor Suit vignettes, he says this about his ex: “She said the thrill rides were too scary for her […] She vetoed all the action and horror flicks. Hanging out was just plain boring, so I stopped contacting her as time went on.” And indeed, Ace engages in the activities his ex refused with Yuu. They’re watching a horror movie together in Idia’s Labwear vignettes, as well as riding roller coasters and other thrill rides in Stage in Playful Land. Yes, you can interpret these as romantic since they sent Grim off by himself to get popcorn and want to ride again by themselves.

However, that’s not the only possible interpretation, and nor should it be. It could just as easily be argued that Ace and Yuu were just hanging out as friends in a “kicking back with your bros” kind of way (regardless of whatever gender Yuu identifies as). Watching horror movies and going on exciting rides are normal things that friends could do together. There is nothing inherently romantic about those acts by themselves. It could also be said that Ace is lazy and constantly trying to get out of work, so of course he’d pass off the job of getting more snacks onto someone else. The ride thing is innocuous too—maybe the others just aren’t feeling another round, while Ace and Yuu are still on that adrenaline high and want another hit of it. And again, it’s probably framed as wanting to do activities with Yuu specifically to help foster that parasocial relationship and create a sense of bonding with the player.

Of course Ace is attached to us and likes to hang out. We’re his friend, and that much has been established since the prologue. We are naturally a lot closer with him by default compared to several of the other guys (with maybe a few exceptions, like Deuce). Whether you see Ace and Yuu’s relationship as anything more than that is up to the individual!

That being said, I’d rather not talk in terms that imply one ship is “better”, “absolute”, or “more supported by canon” than others 😅 Not just for Ace x Yuu, but any ship, really. It unintentionally frames the discussion like a competition and leaves some people out of the talk if they don’t vibe with it or have different preferences, y’know?

[vixensdungeon]

Oh no, the dastardly No-Good Gang has ambushed crowd-favourite wrestler Joe Punchfist while he was promoting his upcoming charity match. He's outnumbered and getting pummeled in the middle of the ring while the officials look on helplessly. Will Joe be able to wrestle his match at next week's Renaissance Slayre pay-per-view, or will those poor orphans end up on the street? But wait! The crowd goes wild as a song starts playing and running out of the locker-room area comes…

Okay so before our valiant wrestler can run into the ring to save Joe's hide, we must create them. And we'll be using the WWF Basic Adventure Game for that!

The game assumes you'll be creating several wrestlers plus a couple managers and even a referee or announcer for each player, but we'll just be making one wrestler. This post is really long so click to see the rest of it!

First we pick a sex for our wrestler (this game was made in the early 90s so you'll excuse it if the terminology isn't up to 2025 standards). We'll be making a girl. For a name I just go to a random generator and get Weronika Sandström. She started wrestling out of high school so for random age we roll 1d10+17, getting an 18.

Then we determine our weight class. We could just pick, but that's not how we do it down in the Vixen's dungeon, so a random roll it is! A d% roll of 63 lands us in the lightweight division (sidebar: because this game is based on WWF in the early 90s, you can't actually make someone like Rey Mysterio in the game, because according to the designer's research there were no male wrestlers in the super lightweight category). Then we roll another d%. A 67 tells us that our weight is 225+1d6 pounds, 231 in our case. This gives us some game stats. Our maximum for the Aerial Tactics attribute is 90, and we get a +5 to whatever number we later generate for it. We have a -5 modifier for lift, meaning that our opponents need to roll 5 less than normal to lift us. Our maximum stamina is 90.

Next are our attributes. There's three ways to generate them: rolling random numbers and then assigning them as we see fit, using points to purchase them, or rolling them in order. And you know how we do it in the dungeon! For Brute Strength (STR) we roll a d6 on a chart and get a 6, which means a 50. Technical Ability (TEC) is 35, Brawling (BRA) is 45, Martial Arts (MAR) is 45, Aerial Tactics (AGI which is short for Agility rather than Aerial Tactics) is 30+5 for 35, Perception (PER) is 45, Stamina (STA) is 45, Business Skill (BUS) is 30, and Constitution (CON) is 45. Our lightweight girl is more of a powerhouse than you might expect!

Then we get to Advantages, which are miscellaneous qualities our wrestler might have, at the cost of lowering our basic attributes. And would you look at that, there's an option to roll them randomly! We get to roll twice and get 98 (Resistance to Attack) and 70 (Winning Appearence). We have to lower four attributes by 5 for the first one, and two of them for the second one. I choose to lower my TEC, BRA, AGI, and BUS, and then BRA and AGI again (I couldn't have lowered the same attribute twice to pay for the same advantage so I had to do them separately like that). This character is kinda starting to resemble the one I made in AEW Fight Forever, who is built entirely around kicking, although she is a heavyweight. For Winning Appearence I choose to be good-looking, and the neat thing about this advantage is that even if I had chosen to be ugly, the effect would be exactly the same and depend on whether the wrestler is good or bad. It says something about how our physical qualities are perceived depending on how our nature is perceived. For Ressitance to Attack I pick Martial Arts, which will halve the amount of stun those kinds of attacks deal against our wrestler. Your kung-fu is weak!

There's also disadvantages, so we get to roll some more, yippee! 50 and 45 would give us the same one so we re-roll one of them and get 39. We have Title Lust and Personal Vendetta. A second roll (69, nice~) means our lust is for the Intercontinental Title, meaning we can't wrestle for the World Title or the Tag Team Title. For Personal Vendetta I'll pick some bad character to feud with, probably someone from the No-Good Gang! We get to raise two and one attributes, respectively. I pick STR twice and STA once.

Now our attributes stand at STR 60 (the maximum for a starting character), TEC 35, BRA 35, MAR 45, AGI 25 (the minimum), PER 45, STA 50, BUS 25, and CON 45. We can now determine our secondary attributes. Our Power Bonus (PB) is the number of extra stun points we inflict, in our case 3/2/1/0 (I'll explain the slashes later). Our Stun Points (STN) are determined by cross-referencing some charts based on our STA and CON, which ends up giving us 200/140/92/46.

Next we determine our build. I want our girl to be of the Large variety (with some curves), so cross-reference a chart and find that at 231 lbs. our wrestler is 5' 8". Then we choose handedness. I try to roll for ambidexterity but fail, so I make her a righty like myself. As my finishing move I pick Bearhug, because isn't it nice to just cuddle your opponent into submission? Based on our AGI, our Movement (MOV) is 2/2/2/1. Based on CON, our Recovery (REC) is 4/4/3/3. Our Fan Support starts at 0, but our good looks will help in raising it! Finally we multiply our BUS by 5 for 125, giving us $125 because it's that kind of game. I'll buy a bandanna, some jeans (cut into jorts), a tank top, kneepads, and a sweat shirt, leaving us with $4. Hopefully we can make some money so we don't have to wrestle barefoot anymore!

So what's with the slashes? To illustrate, here's our final lineup of attributes.

STR 60/54/48/42 TEC 35/32/28/25 BRA 35/32/28/25 MAR 45/41/36/32 AGI 25/23/20/18 PER 45/41/36/32 STA 50/45/40/35 BUS 25/23/20/18 CON 45/41/36/32 PB 3/2/1/0 MOV 2/2/2/1 REC 4/4/3/3 STN 200/140/92/46 So you see how all our attributes actually have four values? As we start out at STN 200, they're all in that left-most value. But as our Stamina Points wear out, all our attributes start dropping!

Anyway, back to our exciting scene from earlier. "Sandstorm" by Darude starts playing as newcomer Weronika Sandström runs in to save the day!

As you can probably tell, this is a very silly game. And that's what makes it great.

[apollonia4]

Fatigue?

When you're in a heated battle and suddenly start feeling weak. The fight is over but you suddenly fall to the ground. How do they react?

Or

When MC collapses from overusing their magic powers.

Fluff / sfw / gn!MC

Pt. 1

Lucifer, Mammon, Leviathan.

~

Lucifer:

• You found yourself in an unpleasant scenario while you were dealing with the sorcerers society's matters. You were now a renowned member among them thanks to your reputation as a sorcerer that managed to outdo even the wise Solomon.

• They asked you to investigate an ancient site that was now made to attract tourists. Only, it attracted something else.

• You were in the middle of a heated fight with a furious earth elemental. Seems it decided this site was it's nest and it did not approve any visitors.

• Elementals are very old and powerfull magicall beings, with this one being especially fierce you decided to summon Lucifer so he could help you deal with it.

• You quickly performed the summoning managing to dodge the beast's bashing attacks. "You called my dear?" Lucifer took little to no time in judging the situation and soon, together you managed to defeat the monster and clear the place.

•"That was an exceptionally well performed magic MC, I must say I am impressed." He praised you. You tried to answer but as soon as you opened your mouth to talk, a sharp pain surged through your whole body. The only noise you could make was a swift gasp as your face twisted in discomfort. After that you collapsed to the ground as if someone turned you off with a switch.

•Lucifer imidiately rushed to your side, catching you before your head hit the cold ground. "MC! MC can you hear me?! Please hold on." He tried to hide it but he was panicking. What could be the cause of this? He examined your vitals, everything was normal aside from your breathing being heavier than usuall. It could not be a curse otherwise he would've sensed it.

• He took you to the House of Lamentation, his room of course as he insisted you would be safer there. You laid in his bed for hours before finally waking up and when you did, he was right beside you, gently stroking your cheek. "You're finally awake, little lamb. Don't do this to me again, alright? I was...worried." However when you explained to him that it was just fatigue, he relaxed. You got a kiss on the forehead and spent the rest of the day chilling in his room.

Mammon:

• It was a particullary tiring day for both of you. Mainly because of school and the ammount of exams happening. Now however your biggest problem seemed to be a group of lesser demons following you suspiciously. You sensed an urge to attack in their demeanor though for now they did not take action. Looks like they were still apart of the group that disaproved of the brothers being apart of the Devildom, still perceiving them as angels.

• The situation's got the both of you tense up, not because you feared them but because you knew that if they decide to get violent, things will get messy.

• "Ya stay close to me MC." You felt Mammon's grip on your hand. "And don't worry I'll protect ya."

• The next moment your stalkers turned into your attackers. And you didn't let that slip. No matter how many of them were coming at you (and believe me they were many) none of them got close to doing any damage, stopped by Mammon's powerfull attacks or your formidable spells that you casted with exceptionall skill and speed.

• At the end it did turn into a mess as you predicted with half of the group dead and the other scurried away. You were both exhausted, panting heavily. These type of situations are not something you expirience everyday after all. Somebody had to plan this. Diavolo needs to know.

• But Mammon hardly had time to think about these matters when he heard you curse under your breath, your tone weakened and sore. He didn't need to run to you, he was already close, holding your waist, scouting the area for any more bastards that would dare mess with them. "Oi, MC! What's goin' on?? Did any of 'em hurt ya? Because if they did I'm gon-" he was interrupted by your not so distinct objection.

"I'm...just tired" you breathed out. In that moment your knees felt weak and you felt yourself fainting, the sound of Mammon's voice calling out to you slowly fading away.

• You woke up in your room. You eyes felt heavy and your body extremely exhausted, you could barely move. After a couple of seconds you noticed something or SOMEONE's in the bed with you. That someone was of course Mammon who clinged to you like a poor kitten, his head resting on your stomach and his legs wrapped around your own. He was asleep.

• You smiled lightly and reached down to ruffle his hair. "Mm..MC, that you?" You laughed and he looked up at you. "Oii stop it, I don't know what I would've done if you got hurt." His grip on you tightened, both of you knowing exactly what memory he's thinking about. He nuzzled into your neck and you both fell asleep again.

Leviathan:

• You decided to take a quick trip to the Devildom's ocean to look for a rare mineral that would help with your research. It wasn't a long journey, you would leave in the morning and be back before dinner.

• You walked along the oceanside scanning the area for the thing you were after. It was always dark here in the Devildom, the beach radiating an eerie vibe. You used magic to find traces of the mineral, finding them in a nearby cave.

• As you were about to reach out to obtain the one thing you were after, you heard a snap behind you. You turned around quickly only to be slammed to the cold wall with an immense force, your head spinning instantly. Before you stood three creatures, they looked half demon, half fish. They clearly were not happy with your presence. Maybe they were guardians? You thought. One of them tried to land another blow but you countered it's attack this time. Despite this, your situation did not look good, you were cornered.

• You decided to blast your way out, it worked. Your strenght was unmatched after all. You sent them flying away out the cave. You rapidly took the mineral and ran out of the cave only to see the monsters up on their feet already. Tough beasts.

• After a while you were still fighting, trying to fend them off of you so you could teleport out of there but the creatures were too close. You decided to run and try to summon Levi. Water was his domain in the long run. You succeeded but it took your last strenght to do so and you fell to the ground.

•"M-MC what's going on?! W-what are these monsters! They're straight out of that one anime wh-" He turned around to see you laying exhausted on the ground. Panicked, he tried to help you but he remembered the enemies are still charging at you both with raging determination.

•"I Leviathan, The Avatar of Envy summon you, come forth Lotan!" It was quick after that. He could come back to taking care of you. By that point you were unconcious but to Levi's relief you were alright.

• You woke up in his bathtub, which was surprisingly more comfortable than usuall, Levi had to put in a few extra blankets and pillows so you could rest well. He was not in there with you, you knew he was usually too shy to initiate those things on his own. After a minute or two you slowly got up, groaning a little because your body was still sore. That didn't go unnoticed by Leviathan who was actually sitting just beside the bathtub on his gaming chair watching a show.

•"MC! You're okay, you really are! I was worried sick you know. But I'm g-glad that you chose m-me to help you!" He said blushing. You smiled and gestured at him to get in the tub. He resisted at first stuttering something about you needing to heal but when you assured him that you are fine and that you just fainted from exhaustion he gave in and you two cuddled together while Levi yapped about a new game he wanted to play with you.

[lastoneout]

Honestly the whole "trans men should start using women's restrooms in protest of trans women being forced into the men's because they're not in as much danger" only works if you believe:

All trans men are capable of and willing to 100% perfectly pass as a cis man at all times no matter what.

All trans men are big, tall, burly, and strong.

Any trans man is capable of beating not only any individual woman in a fight, but multiple women all attacking at the same time.

Women are incapable of directly or indirectly harming men.

Women never react violently when threatened, regardless if the threat was real or not.

A man being marginalized in other ways does not make him less safe around women or more vulnerable to transphobic violence and/or retaliatory systemic violence as punishment for trying to protect himself. (So a black or disabled or fat man's skin color or disability status or body type does not make him more vulnerable to violence and if a black/disabled/fat trans man beat up a white cishet woman who attacked him for being in the women's restroom everyone would take his side including the cops.)

A woman would never go and get her boyfriend or a manager or the cops upon seeing a trans man(or any masc person, even gnc cishet women) in the bathroom so they can enact violence against them for her. (I guess the long history of cishet perisex white women using their tears to get marginalized men killed was made up.)

Trans men are not, in fact, a vulnerable marginalized demographic that also needs protecting from horrific violence and should happily offer themselves up as canon fodder to protect other more feminine queers even if it kills them, and not complain at all when no one stands up to help them in turn. (Also that you think real men are always tough and strong and never need help or compassion.)

Trans men are always viewed as men by transphobes, and not as whatever gender will harm them the most at any given moment, which is typically either "dangerous insane woman" or "subhuman freak".

No masc person, including butch and gnc cis women and afab nonbinary people AND butch/gnc trans women, or anyone perceived to be trans or too masc like intersex cis women with facial hair, has ever or will ever face violence for using the women's restroom despite the copious amounts of documented proof to the contrary.

Bigots and conservatives are following any sort of logic and, like fairy tale antagonists, can be rules lawyered into giving up and are not actually fully willing to be as contradictory as needed to ensure trans people can no longer exist in public at all. (Like. Idk how to tell you this but very masc passing trans men using the women's restroom will result in MORE transphobic violence and stricter bathroom laws, not less.)

Again, not to beat a dead horse, but you somehow believe conservatives and transphobes will change their minds if they see someone who looks like a man in the women's restroom. Like you really think that will fix things. Really. You really think that will work. You think that will work. Genuinely, you think that will change their minds. Really. Really.

You think men are always inherently more dangerous and prone to violence than women.

You think we should normalize and accept sacrificing trans men's lives for the sake of trans liberation.

If you think this is genuinely a good idea then I'm sorry but you have not only bought into radical feminist ideals but you also have a lot of internalized transphobia, misogyny, transmisogny, anti-transmasculinity, as well as racism, fatphobia, and ableism you need to unlearn before we start coming to you for ideas on how to fight systemic transphobia.

Because this? All this will do is get people killed. And idk man I just think maybe you should care that trans men are getting killed, and not flippantly suggest even more of them step up to the chopping block like their lives only matter so long as they can be of service to the rest of us.

[makeyoumine69]

Do you headcanon any of Patrick’s offscreen behavior?

Hello!💕

Well, aside from what we already know about Patrick's personality and habits—like watching porn, killing people, doing drugs, and being a sex addict and an asshole to everyone around him—I'd also add a few more things he might do.

I think Patrick sometimes talks to himself or rehearses in his mind how he’ll describe his actions later when he’s alone. It's as if he thinks someone's always watching.

Even though he seems calm, I imagine him having panic attacks in the middle of the night. I picture him pacing his apartment, unable to sleep, and obsessing over minor perceived failures or flaws.

When he isn't with his usual social circle, he may wander through stores compulsively, buying things he doesn't need or want just to pass the time and feel "normal."

I imagine he often calls restaurants or escort services and then hangs up mid-call because he can't decide what he wants—or maybe he just wants to hear a voice on the other end, lol.

Needless to say, I can picture him sketching in his planner. Sometimes he gets upset because he doesn't like how his doodles look, and he crumples or tears up the paper. He's also very protective of his sketches and doesn't allow anyone to see them.

Bonus point: In the movie, Patrick has a telescope, and I always think he uses it to spy on people, especially at night. If he's bored and porn magazines or tapes can't help him get off, he can spy on someone and fantasize about what he could do to that person. These fantasies can range from primitive sex to the wildest things, including violence. It depends on his mood, actually.

Okay, one more thing: In the book, he has a piano in his apartment, but I don't remember him using it. I want to believe that sometimes this man can actually play it, lazily pressing some keys. He's not a virtuoso, but I can see him being proud to have a piano, which makes him look noble. Maybe he used to impress women by playing simple melodies on the piano.

I hope you like my little HC and thank you for asking!

[spacemothsota]

How do you define consent?

Hi Anon! So let's give a little warning before I tell you, because I don't want you to misunderstand me or think that I approve of some dubious things. Okay? Okay!

Warning: Dubious consent is not consent, okay? If you ask a person indirectly and he gives indirect consent, it is not consent. This is bad. You shouldn't do this. Consent should be given to a normal question. Direct question, direct answer. (If you are communicating with a person from another country, then before agreeing to something, clarify what he means. Because the person himself may not understand that his ordinary question in his culture means one thing and in yours another, this is normal, we are different).

In fact, I think that we humans and Cybertronians most likely have a striking cultural difference (Before arriving on Earth, they didn't even have a concept of gender, guys, what is understandable to us is obviously not understandable to them. And their cultural characteristics are incomprehensible to us, for example, discrimination by body type and function). That is why the topic of consent to cyberformation is extremely, well, complex.

What exactly is the problem with consent to Cyberformation. Rather, it is that when the Cybertronians first arrived on Earth, no one thought that they had a completely different culture. Well, more precisely, people thought about it, but not as much as they should have. The Autobots communicated and communicated well with people, were extremely polite whenever possible and cautious with earthlings. This created the impression that they had the same cultural norms as we do on Earth, this misconception was a mistake. Cybertronians have their own language, holidays, customs and other elements of a developed culture, so everyone seemed to have slightly forgotten that they were still aliens. This is not bad, it's just that this difference in culture was absolutely important for understanding. (We have a situation among different cultures where during communication we can say something that is common for one people, but unfamiliar to another. For this, we need to understand and study other cultures in order to avoid embarrassment).

When Cybertronians want to cyberform a person, they just have a normal conversation. There is no strange atmosphere, just a casual conversation during which there may be questions like “Would you like to explore outer space? / Would you like to protect your home planet? / Would you like us to be friends forever? / Would you like to see other planets?” and so on and so forth. The question can be anything, mostly from the area of ​​​​what interests the person. Naturally, the person will most likely answer yes to such a question, and the Cybertronians perceive this as consent. Understand? For them, this is not a dubious consent, but simply “Yes”. This is just a normal conversation, so in essence, there is an embarrassment of misunderstanding between the person and the Cybertronian. Perhaps it is also precisely in linguistics, the language and sentence structure in Cybertronian can differ. This is precisely why there are not many “bad” reactions to cyberforming, they still exist yes. But I think it is difficult to be angry with someone when you both understand that there was a misunderstanding and confusion.

I hope you understand me. Cybertronians will not intentionally cyberform you if they refuse their question. For illustration purposes, there is a character in my AU who was not cyberformed because he gave a direct refusal.

Captain Carmine Fanzone, he worked with the Autobots and especially Prowl for a long time. He is an excellent policeman, loyal, although his attitude was still very specific, but he believed that the Autobots had good intentions (which was confirmed more than once). Captain Fanzone as an agent, monitored the Autobots' missions near cities to avoid attacks by Decepticons on civilians and to avoid traffic jams and reduce casualties to a minimum. Prowl considered him quite outstanding and his loyalty to his cause was respected by him. I think Fanzone and Prowl got along well, so when the topic of "Would Fenzone like to protect everyone" was raised in an everyday conversation, he answered that he did not. Fenzone simply explained that it was physically impossible to protect everyone and that he was simply doing everything in his power to help his people and those who trusted him. Prowl took it calmly and then did not ask such questions anymore, having received a refusal, he simply accepted someone else's choice and respected his decision to remain human and protect others. He didn't try to convince him that "if only there was such a possibility." Prowl simply knows that these words were a lie (even Cybertronians are not capable of protecting everyone, as a senior officer he knows this better than anyone).

Well, I hope you understand me correctly and my answer will satisfy you. Thank you for this question, it was really difficult. The topic is extremely difficult because, I hope I managed to convey my idea!

For the rest, to understand what Cyberform AU is: Character List Lore parts: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Answers to questions: Q&A1, Q&A2, Q&A3, Q&A4, Q&A5, Q&A6, Q&A7, Q&A8, Q&A9

[imagionationstation]

Hey! Your idea of zombie Donie is so cool!

I'm curious about the other mutants. What happened to them? Do they know about Donie's condition? What do they think?

Also, is there a time when Donie comes back, even a little bit, to his senses? Since he's not fully transformed, I suppose there are times when he's more zombie-like, and there are times when he's more "human" or normal mutant turtle?

Thank you so much!! He’s wonky but he tries 💜

Actually this is a good time to include this- @randomtmntaus

His brain space is something I have really been musing over. I think I’ve finally got some kind of handle on how I want to proceed tho.

I'm curious about the other mutants. What happened to them? Do they know about Donie's condition? What do they think?

Okay, so, the only reason that the turtles came out of this unharmed is because they were down in the sewers. The only reason that they knew crazy was happening is because of the news. They completely slept through the majority of the mob damage and then it took the Zombies a hot minute to find an open manhole to swarm the sewers.

All the other mutants seem to live above ground. The Mutanimals are taken down when they see people getting attacked and try to help. Karai’s composed the Foot of people instead of bots, so once the first Foot member is taken down, it spreads through the ranks fast.

-Unlike the brothers, when Shini gets bit, Karai doesn’t leave her-

April finds out when her dad came home and tries to murder her. She’s okay because she has insane power and was able to find a place to hide out until Casey found her. Nobody’s entirely certain how Casey managed to survive because his story changes with every telling, but they’re all pretty sure it’s a trauma response in the face of whatever happened so they leave it alone.

Casey and April end up finding one another and reuniting with the turtles after they lose Donnie. (They don’t fully comprehend this loss until they realize that his undead body is stalking them.)

The brothers run into Tiger Claws weeks after they lose Donnie. He helps them get out of the City and then they separate. Tiger Claw doesn’t know anything about Donnie other than the fact that he turned. They don’t know how many other mutants (good or bad) or humans are Zombified and they don’t dare stick around to find out.

..how has Donnie's condition affected his thought process? Like do he think differently from before or not?

Donnie’s brain is super convoluted. He doesn’t think, per say. Most Zombies exist of the moment. They have no long term memory and their short term memory is pretty shot. Donnie’s short term memory can last a while, which is why he can follow his brother’s commands. His muscle memory is what his body mainly relies on. When Donnie copies his brother’s movements enough (aka blinking at them) he’ll start doing it randomly when passive.

Zombies can’t recognize people. He doesn’t know they’re his bale, brothers, family, etc. Zero concept of who they are to him.

He doesn’t look at his brother and think, “Those are the people I’ve spent my whole life with I love them!” There aren’t any words in there. Just a lot of Notions. A Zombie knows that another Zombie won’t attack it. So Zombies who aren’t hunting don’t have a care in the world. When Donnie sees his brothers, it’s the same Notion. They won’t hurt him. He won’t hurt them. No threats. No prey.

So he hangs.

The difference is how his brain switches. It’s an immediate change.

Most Zombies take some time to become docile, but when Donnie sees his brothers, he recognizes them. Just like a human brain instantly perceives someone/something as an ally or a threat, his brain goes “them!!!” and nothing else matters. It’s like programming a computer. It acts the same way every time, even if the outcome or situations are different. His brothers could beat him up and leave him to die, but as soon as his short term memory forgets, he’ll be right back to “them!!!” as soon as they’re in his line of sight.

…It’s honestly REALLY lucky that they avoid him for weeks instead of outright killing him to get the chase over with…

But he does, kind of, have thoughts. For example, he can wonder where his brothers are. And he can attempt communication.

(Apparently woken by all the noise, he’s hanging upside down when Leo walks over, grinning at the Zombie who had been standing under him for the past hour. “Mmmmmm,” Donnie keeps humming in his awkward, tuneless way.)

He doesn’t have the sense to know to look for Mikey or to understand that standing there won’t solve his crisis. And as soon as Mikey reappears, his brain acknowledges Mikey and finally lets go of the notion that Mikey’s missing before he moves to the next thing.

-It’s different because a Zombie who believes that someone is gone will immediately move on. Donnie remembers and reacts-

If anyone wants further clarification, ask away!

Also, is there a time when Donie comes back, even a little bit, to his senses? Since he's not fully transformed, I suppose there are times when he's more zombie-like, and there are times when he's more "human" or normal mutant turtle?

Nope! He’s actually at his most Donnie/Zombie when Mikey first sees him and then progressively gets more Zombie from there. His body does an excellent job of slowing the progress, but over time the Virus adapts to be stronger than his defenses. He’s always getting a little more Zombie, but his brothers don’t learn this until the scientists manage to drag them back to the lab by force.

-There are times where his brothers can fool themselves into believing that he’s acting more Donnie, but he never is-

How did he come to be a zombie in the first place? Does he look different?

This is how he became a Zombie.

And he looks mostly the same. It’s kind of creepy how ‘the same’ he is. Zombie bodies are perceived as ‘immortal’ because they don’t grow up or grow old after they’ve been bitten. They just keep going and going and going until they get killed or the heart gives out. So while the brothers are growing and evolving, Donnie is perpetually a scrawny teenager bordering on adulthood.

However, all the Zombies have “ambush predator eyes” which helps them to better hunt. It’s one of the reasons that Donnie believed the Virus was more likely to have been a manufactured product than an accidental creation. Why would a deadly virus meant to kill the brain improve certain features? The natural bond that the virus had with the mutagen in their systems told them who the culprits were.

[kerubimcrepin]

LIVEBLOG: Wakfu Season 4, Episode 8 [PART 2]

Our guy is finally starting to understand how bad things are. <3

I think what he hates the most (after teleporting one singular time) is how this makes him lose his face. The #1 thing Joris hates the most, always, and forever, is appearing weak or unprofessional.

Yeaa lmao, everyone except for him has immediately oriented themselves in the portal, while he's struggling with the process and the landing...

Joris is way too confused to even begin being mad at this shit. Like ok. This is happening now.

I think the reason he isn't mad at this later is that it's a logical decision to [grumble, grumble] support a member of their party who was [deep sigh] struggling with teleportation for their common good as a team. Even if it was him.

The voices in my head compel me to screenshot him more.

I think Joris said this because he heard Yugo wonder if it's a trap and Yugo's opinions are very important to him <3 He's just like "man Yugo was right. 😑 as he tends to be when he's not being blinded by emotions. [is himself blinded by emotions as he is saying this]"

Joris is probably starting to get mad at Ad by now, but once again, "ughh I guess carrying the guy with the teleportation sickness, while we are all being chased by an eldritch horror, is logical... fuck's sake..."

I could write a novel about how good Toross is at randomly guessing Joris's insecurities and hitting them like every button on the keyboard.

He literally put the meaning of "You're 3ft tall, and I don't really take you seriously, and also the juxtaposition of all these three words diminishes your serious air of adulthood. You look a bit pathetic and boring, btw, despite all the expensive clothes and earnest airs. You're compensating very hard for something you don't have, and I can see that. :)" into two lines of dialogue.

And then he also uses the scare tactic of "btw I can see your Wakfu. And you are very good prey. Because you're a prey animal here. Did I mention I was going to eat you." (and also, unknowingly, this is striking at Joris insecurity #2: people learning information about him and, god forbid, perceiving him.)

AND the finisher is "however you're not good enough to be the main dish and I don't give a shit about you."

Loving Joris's little pout here. A very cute and balanced reaction to psychological warfare. Despite Toross hitting multiple good attack points, he only shows a little bit of seething on his face (but probably enough for Toross to know this got him a reaction. <3)

OF COURSE the guy whose feelings were insulted the most goes immediately after Adamai. He's so transparent about being mad, it's so funny...

When given swords, he literally fights like Atcham. [starts throwing up blood everywhere] Yeah no, no, I'm fine. Ignore me.

Of course you'd be good at dodging magical projectiles, and using your front paws to help you with jumping and standing while keeping your spine low to the ground (to avoid hits and get ready to jump/run once again). Where did you get these moves from? Your uncle? 🤣

He's so maddd.

Yeah he is mad, but also he is his usual calculating self: trying to get close to him to find any possible weakness, while trying not to show that it is, in fact, what he is trying to do. He is locked in.

Cat behaviour once again. Looking like a wild animal is a normal thing for him to do.

You see: for Joris, this is revenge for all the shit this guy said — and also a way to prove his worth as a human being, despite the fact that all those things Toross said are true. If he acts like he is cold and calculating and useful, nobody will know that it actually bothered him. His status as someone thick-skinned and heroic will be proven.

(He learned the "circle them to try and get closer while they're busy shooting you, and then attack them from the back" method from Atcham too, btw.)

[scaredpigeons]

Sunrise, Crystallize I: to pray to a fallen deity.

Masterlist // Next Chapter

Zhongli x Gn!reader

SFW (there will be nsfw chapters but I will keep them separate so everyone may enjoy.)

Word count: 6.2k

You find yourself seeking solace in the prayers you speak to the god of your new home, despite the fact that he’s passed away. Despite the fact that no one answers, your loneliness seems to be lessened by the warmth of the sunrise. You gain a few new companions, and push through your awkward and nervous disposition to embark on a challenge that you may or may not have little hope of succeeding in.

CW: reader has anxiety, real deep lack of self confidence. Very socially awkward. Reader is a florist, running a greenhouse in the harbour. (Author has absolutely zero florist experience or knowledge, so many apologies.)

Authors note: this is the first chapter of many to come, as Zhongli was my first love in genshin impact. This is kind of self indulgent, because while I really enjoy badass, beautiful, desirable reader inserts who exemplify everything I want to be, part of me really fantasizes about what it might be like to have such a desirable character love me not despite of, but because of my self-perceived flaws. I also think that Zhongli is a wonderful character to explore this dynamic with, as he’s incredibly patient and thoughtful, and having lived for 6000+ years— I can really see him finding someone who is socially his opposite very charming. Anyways, please enjoy this first chapter!

———————

Watching the sun rise on Yujing Terrace had become your most beloved pastime since the death of Rex Lapis. You’d never really ventured up the steps further than Bubu pharmacy, but after everything that happened, you decided to go and pay your respects in a more private setting. 

You hadn’t attended the rite of parting. It felt too strange, seeing as you weren’t from Liyue, but you’d lived in the harbor long enough to feel a little twinge of guilt afterwards. 

The attack on the harbor had halted your plans, you really hadn’t wanted to venture outside when there was an ancient sea god wreaking havoc in the waters just beyond your home. But once everything was settled, and the novelty of Rex lapis’ passing finally became outshone by recent events, you decided it was time. 

You’d spent all evening working in your greenhouse, realizing the night had escaped you only when your eyes barely skimmed across a clock on your way to grab fresh potting soil from your storage room. You’d figured beating the morning rush to the terrace was better for your sanity, and washed your hands before heading out. 

The sun had not begun to rise, everything washed in fading starlight as you made your way up the stone stairs. You breathed a sigh of relief when you saw that only the Milileth were occupying the terrace, a few standing guard here and there and a few making their rounds. 

One soldier looked at you a bit warily, most likely wondering why you were here so early. But he only nodded politely when you sheepishly showed him your box of incense. 

When you made it to the topmost part of the terrace, you lit a singular stick and placed it in the holder. You’d seen people immediately murmuring their prayers after lighting their incense, but you weren’t really sure what to say, so you walked around a bit before standing at the railing facing east over the harbor. 

The water looked so peaceful. The sky had started brightening, the first glimmers of the rising sun peeking up from the horizon, casting early shadows along the boats and buildings. 

You took a deep breath, pushing your exhale further than normal. Your chest felt strange, You’d never really prayed to anyone before. 

“Um…” you fiddled with your hands on the stone railing, watching the sun rise ever so slowly. “I’m sorry I didn’t attend your rite of parting. Crowds are really not my thing.” 

You felt too strange to say his name out loud, hoping that wherever the wind took your words would eventually lead to wherever he was resting. Where did gods go when they die? 

“I’ve not lived in the harbor long, but I can see why you loved it. Though I have been here long enough to understand the love you must have had for your people, and the love they gave to you in return. Despite that, I feel as though we’re all going to be just fine in your absence.” 

You cringed a little, wondering if your words came across too crass or irreverent. 

“Ah, well, what I mean to say is you shouldn’t worry.” you chewed on your lip, watching more shadows form along the harbor as the sun grew and grew over the sea, bathing the sky in oranges and pinks.

“Oh, what else do people say when they do this…” you mumbled. “People usually ask for blessings or good fortune, don’t they? I’ve never really understood that. I won’t ask for anything… or is that rude too?” You could never remember the protocol for things like this. 

“Maybe I’ll just ask for happiness. If you can send some sense of fulfillment my way, that would be nice. But don’t put yourself out or anything.” 

You scoffed at yourself, rolling your eyes as you gazed out at the sea. “Or maybe I should just give my blessing to you. Does anyone do that? Ask for blessings and good fortune for you?” 

You shook your head, leaning on the railing and smiling at yourself a bit. It felt like you were talking to yourself, but it wasn’t nearly as embarrassing as you thought. 

“Well then, I ask that you rest in peace. You deserve it after the multiple millennia you endured. I can't imagine having to work for that long, sounds exhausting.” You yawned, stretching out your limbs. 

It was strange, you felt tired— obviously. Being up all night was not exactly ideal, but standing there, watching the beautiful sun rise over your city, you couldn’t help but feel a warm wash of pure… peace. You felt good. You didn’t feel so alone. 

You looked around a bit, still seeing that no one was near you, before looking up half heartedly at the sky. 

“Is that you? Is that why people do this sort of thing?” You smiled as the sun finally broke its way from the water, painting the sky in all its glorious colors. 

Hmm. Perhaps I should design a new sunrise themed bouquet. 

You rubbed the tiredness from your eyes as you made your way back to the stairs, but as you walked through the first archway, your eyes caught sight of the most beautiful man you’d ever seen. 

He was standing, holding a cup of tea while he chatted with an elderly woman at her table. The warm, early sunlight bathed him in its amber hues, making the colors of his clothing gleam, and exposing the rich warm tones of his hair. 

He was exceptionally tall, that much you could tell, even from so far away. He held himself with such grace and poise that you couldn’t help but stare. He looked like royalty. He looked like he belonged on a throne, not walking amongst the common people. 

His smile was small but contagious— you’d pressed a hand over your mouth to hide the fact that you were grinning as he did down at the little old lady in front of him. 

The woman chuckled a bit, before turning to the small flower bed behind her, before picking one of the flowers that was growing there. 

A glaze lily? They were extremely rare, you knew that for certain. They hardly grew in the wild, which is why you hadn’t bothered to grow them for your shop yet, as you harvested the majority of your seeds by yourself. 

He took the delicate flower in his gloved hand, bringing it to his nose and taking what looked like a deep breath. Your heart lurched as his face became almost solemn, but he pushed a smile through and nodded to the woman, saying something you couldn’t hear. 

You couldn’t help but watch as he finished his tea, his striking eyes scanning around the terrace. It was a moment too late when you realized his eyes were eventually going to fall on you. You— who was watching him like some sort of lunatic. 

His eyes met yours for the briefest of moments, and even from a distance they seemed to burn in the early morning sunshine. You instantly flushed, an embarrassing noise fluttering past your lips as you turned around and hid behind the archway, hoping that it looked like you were just heading back towards the overlook. 

You took several deep breaths before you dared peek around the corner again, sighing in relief as you watched the beautiful man make his way down the steps. 

That was the single most embarrassing thing I’ve ever done. You thought, before shaking your head as memories of far more embarrassing events flooded your brain. Actually, never mind. That was pretty far down on the list. 

You almost thought that perhaps you never wanted to see that man again, for fear of embarrassing yourself once more— but that thought was quickly swept away. It would be a shame never to see him again. He was far too pretty. 

———————

it was about a month into your new habit when the elderly woman called out to you. 

You were simply making your way back towards the stairs, having only ever greeted her with a polite nod or a rushed “good morning!” Here and there, so you were surprised when she called you over and invited you for tea. 

You introduced yourself, and she smiled, pouring you a cup. 

“Ah, you’re the young one running that new flower shop, yes?” 

You nodded. “Yes ma’am. ‘New beginnings: flowers and things.’ I sell little trinkets and gifts here and there when I collect them on my travels. But mostly it's just my flowers.”

”oh, you little darling. No need to be so formal. You can call me granny if you like— or Ping. Either or.”   

Normally you wouldn’t be so formal with someone you’d just met, especially an elder, but there was something about Ping that made you feel so comfortable. 

“Alright, Granny.” You smiled. 

“Much better. “ she said, taking her seat. “Now why don’t you tell me all about your shop. I was very surprised when I heard that someone had built a little greenhouse in the city.” 

And so began your new routine of waking up early to watch the sunrise— talking to yourself under the guise of “praying to Rex Lapis”, and having your morning tea while chatting with Madame Ping. 

Ping turned out to be quite the gossip, and you got most of your updates on the comings and goings of the people through her. You learned about her disciples, though you weren’t quite sure what she was a master of. She seemed very wise, having many a tale to tell and advice on things that plagued you. 

One morning you brought her a speciality bouquet of Cecelia’s, one of your more popular flowers, and she gushed about how thoughtful you were. 

“I hope you don’t mind, I stole one from the bouquet earlier and left it on the overlook as an offering with my incense.” You said, sipping your tea. 

“Nonsense, they’re your flowers to begin with, dear. I never would have even known if you hadn’t said something.” She pulls a vase from beneath her table, and pours some water from her nearby jug inside. Ping places the flowers in the vase, fluffing up the greenery to look nice and setting it on the other end of her table. 

“There, just beautiful. Thank you my dear.” She says, sitting back down.

”It's really no trouble. They’re some of my last Cecelias, my recent batch of seedlings went bad. I'll have to make a trip to Mondstadt to collect more seeds soon.” You fiddled with the sleeve of your shirt. 

“If you need someone to watch over the shop for you while you’re gone, I’m well acquainted with a traveler who is just perfect for odd jobs like that when they have the time.” 

“Oh,” you said, looking out at the colors fading from the sky. “That might be nice, I’ve been putting off going out because I’m not too sure who I can trust to watch the greenhouse.” 

You were trying hard to hide your wavering tone, but you knew immediately Madam Ping had caught on. 

“Is there something else on your mind, dear?” She said, “You know you can talk to me about anything that troubles you.” 

You paused, looking around a bit before you took a deep breath. “It’s just…”

Chewing your lip, you sighed at her kindness. You knew better than to be anxious around Ping, but your embarrassment over what you had been doing the last month was eating at you. 

“Is it strange that I've been… praying to Rex Lapis every morning, even though he’s no longer with us?” 

“Ah,” Ping hummed, her eyes glittering with mirth. “I had been wondering what you do over there before the sun rises. When you said you left a flower as an offering, I thought perhaps you prayed to a lost loved one, but Rex Lapis?” 

“I know— it's odd isn’t it? I don’t even know if gods still hear prayers when they pass but—“ 

“Nonsense.” She interrupted your downward spiral, her tone light to soothe you. “There are plenty of people who still pray to our fallen archon. And I can guarantee you that wherever he is resting— those prayers still make it through to him, and crystal clear at that. He may not be able to descend from the heavens as a magnificent dragon to grant the wishes of his followers anymore, but he will always bear witness to our prayers, of that you can be certain.” 

“Oh,” you breathed. You weren’t sure if you believed her, but you didn’t want to seem rude. “Do you think it bothers him? To hear so many people while he is trying to rest?” 

“I’m sure the requests for wealth and glory get rather tedious very quickly.” Madame Ping laughs. “But what do you pray to him for?” 

You flush, running your finger along your teacup. “I don’t really ask him for anything. I just sort of… tell him about things?” You shrug, feeling rather sheepish. 

Ping simply nods, encouraging you to continue. 

“I wasn’t really ever certain he could even be listening. It just feels nice to get things off my chest, you know?” You took another sip of tea. “I feel sort of bad, I mainly just vent to him— it’s kind of like chatting with you, granny. Only I say things I might not be comfortable sharing with others.”

Ping hums, staring out over the harbor thoughtfully. 

“I’m sure your kind of prayers are the most interesting to him. Perhaps even his favorite.” She says after a few moments. 

“Really?” You scrunched up your nose a bit. “I find that sort of hard to believe.” 

Ping smiled, and her eyes seemed to glitter with something unknown. She always seemed to be brimming with unobtainable knowledge, it kept you clinging to her every word in hopes of soaking it up. 

“It was once said that after so many years of being a god— watching over his people and nation with the weight of thousands of years of history and bloodshed upon his shoulders — that Rex Lapis would don a disguise and wander among his people, to gain a taste of what it was like to be human.” She gathered your empty teacup, placed it on the tray with the rest of the tea set and put it aside. “I think perhaps your prayers would remind him of simpler times, of what it is like to be human.”

You let her words ruminate for a while, watching as the harbor started to wake up— typically your sign to tuck tail and run home. 

Finally, you spoke. 

“Do you think he enjoyed my flower offering?” You asked. 

Ping smiled wide, eyeing her bouquet of Cecelias. 

“I think it's a lovely gesture, but he was particularly fond of the glaze lily. Perhaps those— as opposed to the anemo archons favored flower would be more fitting.”

You cringed. You hadn’t even registered that Cecelia’s were known as Barbatos’ favorite flower. After giving yourself a mental scolding, and a reminder to brush up on your international flora guidebook, you hesitantly spoke up once more. 

“I’d love to, but I harvest my own seeds, Granny. I wouldn’t even know where to look for wild glaze lilies. Aren’t they extremely rare?” 

She pulled a little sack from beneath her table — she always seemed to have whatever she needed right on hand, how curious. — and gently placed it in your hands. 

“These are quite old, but I have a feeling if anyone will be able to get them to sprout, it will be you, dear.” 

————————————

You weren’t very hopeful. 

Seeds, when preserved under the perfect conditions, can last up to ten years. But extremely rare and delicate flower seeds tucked in a sack under Madam Pings table? 

You started small; putting six seeds into six little nursery pots, and diligently reading up on the proper humidity, soil, nutrients and water required for glaze lilies. Within the week, small little green shoots were poking through the soil, and you nearly jumped for joy. 

The revelry was short lived when the following week you entered the nursery to find six shriveled up, sad, and very dead plants. You cussed under your breath as you stomped around your greenhouse, reading through your glaze lily guide and wondering what went wrong. 

You had plenty of seeds, plenty of room for trial and error. 

You just did not expect the trial and error to last several months. 

It was the morning after you found your most recent batch absolutely ruined. The humidity or the hydration levels were off, they had to be. What other reason would they have turned to mush for? You’d abandoned the guidebook long ago, it was a lying liar who killed your plants before they even budded. 

“It’s just so frustrating, you know?” You said, leaning against the railing of the overlook. “I feel like if I can't do this, then my entire life as a florist has been for nothing.” 

There was no response, but you sort of enjoyed that. You still weren’t sure if you entirely believed Madam Ping when she said that the archon could still hear you, but you’d never stopped your ranting and rambling to him either way. 

“I know, I know. I’m being dramatic.” You flicked a pebble off the railing, watching as it tumbled down into the trees below. “This started out as me just wanting to give you a proper offering, one that you’d like. But now it feels like something I’m meant to do. If I can find a way to make Glaze Lilies more prosperous in Liyue again, I feel as though that would be a much better gift in your honor—  as opposed to just… sitting one on the terrace to get stolen or blown away in the wind.” 

Still no answer, but once again you were enveloped by that warm and lustrous feeling of peace as the sun rose over the water. Perhaps you were becoming addicted to this feeling. You certainly would not feel as ready to get through another day without it. 

You gave a deep sigh, thinking long and hard before you decided it was time to ask for help. 

“Granny?” You said as you made your way to her table. “Do you know anyone who has information on how Glaze Lilies were cultivated in the past?”

——————————

You were absolutely filthy. 

Your knees were coated in dirt, wet soil clinging to your arms where your gloves didn’t cover. You were nearly certain your hair was a complete disaster. 

None of that mattered. Your other plants were thriving, your shop was freshly stocked with premade bouquets and trimmed flowers for custom bouquets. You just unloaded your shipment of silk ribbons and wrapping paper, and were now nearly elbow deep in buckets of potting soil for your Mourning flowers. 

They required a specific blend of nutrients and earth in comparison to your other flowers, and with your newest batch almost ready to trim, you needed to get a move on with the new growth before they all sold out. 

You had just finished the mixing when the bell on the front door of your shop jingled. 

“Just a moment, I’ll be right with you!” You yelled out. 

The greenhouse was built connected to the shop which housed your little apartment on the second floor. 

Everything was relatively close, so you often worked in the greenhouse during the slow hours. And that damned bell was so loud, though you supposed it had to be, otherwise you could run the risk of people sneaking in and taking what they’d like. Now, you didn’t think that was likely to happen, but it never hurt to be cautious. 

You tossed your gloves onto the nearby counter and washed your hands with the bulle fruit scented soap by the sink. 

You took off your dirty apron to exchange it for the clean shop apron. It helps to look somewhat put together when greeting customers. 

You wiped your damp hands along the sides of the apron as you finished tying the knot, rounding the corner into the shop. 

“How can I help you today?” You said, making your way to the front counter and pausing to make sure your bags were stocked in case they were purchasing something. 

“I was told by a friend that you were in need of some information on historic flora cultivation?” The mans voice was deep, with a delicious rasp about it that had you wondering exactly what kind of man had a voice so alluring. 

You looked up finally, trying to peek through the shelving as he walked along, only to catch glimpses of rich, warm browns. Curse you for stocking your flower bins so damn full. 

You caught sight of warm brown hair, the morning sun gleaming in the windows to catch along the amber hues scattered throughout. 

Your heart lurched as he turned the corner, watching as his eyes scanned the walls lining your shop— decorated with plants and trinkets, little baubles glimmering in the sunlight. 

The face of quiet admiration he gave as he looked at the flowers might’ve buckled your knees if not for the realization that this was the man you had seen Madam Ping speaking to— that day. 

This was that man. The man who may or may not have haunted your dreams for weeks after you saw him. You had wanted to ask Ping who he was, but you were so incredibly embarrassed about the whole situation. Now here he was, standing in your shop as you wondered if this was insanely good luck, or insanely bad luck. 

“Ah, yes. Gran— I mean, Madame Ping said you might be around today.” You introduced yourself, welcoming him to your store as you tried to keep your voice level. 

“It’s a pleasure,” the man said, giving a slight bow. “My name is Zhongli, I currently work at wangsheng funeral parlor as a consultant, but in my spare time I am somewhat of a historian, among other things.”

”It's lovely to meet you, Zhongli.” You wrung your hands together, unsure whether you should look him in the eye or not. They were so startling, so liquid gold it was difficult to hold their gaze. 

He simply smiled softly. “I am at your service. Would you perhaps be willing to show me what you’ve been working on?” 

As his gaze traveled across you, awaiting your response, but you suddenly became very aware of your current appearance. Surely any minuscule chance you had with this man flew out the window the moment he saw your disastrous hair and dirt scuffed knees. 

Not that you thought you really had a chance with him to begin with, but it doesn’t hurt to dream big, right? 

“Ah, yes. Of course.” You said, gesturing towards the back entrance to the greenhouse. “Right this way.” 

He followed closely as you made your way back. His eyes roamed the expanse of your greenhouse in what looked like appreciation, and he nodded encouragingly at you when you paused to watch his reaction. 

“This is quite impressive.” 

Feeling your face heat up, you turned to remove your shop apron and threw your dirty one back around your waist with unsteady hands. 

“It’s nothing really, I just figured that I should turn my hobby into a source of income, and well…” you hoped he didn’t notice your slight cringe as you donned your gloves once again. “I have a lot of free time on my hands.” 

“Such dedication is nothing to shrug off so casually.” He walked around, his eyes catching the latest batch of little failures and he stood in front of them, leaning in close as if to inspect their misery in finer detail. 

“These are the lilies?” He said, eyeing the drooping sprouts. 

“Yes.” You sighed, coming to stand beside him. You were anxious, sure. But your greenhouse was your safe space. You ruled this kingdom, he was just a guest here. A well dressed, knowledgeable and extremely attractive guest, but you had to convince yourself that everything was fine. If you remained calm and collected, everything would be fine. 

Fake it ‘til you make it— or however the saying goes. 

“They either shrivel up and dry out, or they take in too much moisture and rot. I had a guidebook, but it was about as helpful as a catalyst in a crystal mine.” 

You nearly gaped at him as he let a little chuckle fall from his lips, but he cut it off with a rough clearing of his throat, continuing to look at the plants. 

“Hm, well. Let us take a look at the book. I can revise any incorrect information, and we can work from there, yes?”

Nodding, you turn to dig the accursed book from its time out in the pile of shame. (A pile of useless guidebooks that carried misinformation, or were just overall genuinely bad. However terrible they may be, you’d spend decent money on them and refuse to get rid of any of your books. Hence the creation of the pile of shame.) 

Handing it to him, you move to start clearing the ruined plants from their nursery pots. You tried not to watch him as he flipped through the book, only allowing yourself little glances from the corner of your eye as you cleaned up. When you were finished, you lined up fresh nursery pots and flicked at a loose thread on the bag of seeds. 

“Surprisingly, there are only a few minor discrepancies in this guide. Overall, it seems to be alright, however there is one glaringly obvious detail that has been completely missed.” Zhongli spoke behind you. 

“Oh?” You turned, leaning against your countertop as you waited for him to elaborate. 

“In order to successfully grow Glaze Lilies, you must sing to them.” 

Your brow scrunched in confusion. “Excuse me?” 

The corners of his lips tilted up, and you flushed at the attitude leaking from your tone in such a casual manner. You’d only just met this man, and he was being extremely professional and kind in helping you with this matter. Where were your manners? 

Zhongli however, seemed unbothered by your casual display, and simply continued on. 

“I’ll make the necessary notations here, to correct the minor discrepancies, but the main focus should be — that after the first sign of sprouting — you need to sing to them at least once daily for them to continue growing properly.”

You crossed your arms and looked at him through a furrowed brow. 

“You’re not just making fun of me, are you? Because if this is some kind of practical joke, I don't find it very amusing.”  

Zhongli smiled warmly, closing the book and leaning quite casually against the opposite countertop, his liquid gold eyes glittering with amusement, but it didn’t seem like the kind that was at your expense. 

“I can assure you, I would never jest about something so important, nor would I play any kind of practical joke at your expense. I am simply sharing in my knowledge, hoping to help you in your desires, however I can.” 

You felt your heart fluttering, and you attempted to steady your breath. “Alright. I’m sorry, I just…” how could you tell him you weren’t used to people being so sincere? How could you explain that you weren’t used to such kindness without seeming pathetic? 

“Please do not worry yourself,” he said, stepping closer. He gestured to the small starting pots behind you. “Shall we get started?” 

—————-

“—And now he’s spent the last two weeks dropping by after the parlor closes every day and just— hangs out in the greenhouse while I work? I mean, his help with starting up the lilies was wonderful, but now it’s just about keeping the right moisture levels and singing to them every night, which I refuse to do while he’s there, because I’m not up for embarrassing myself in front of the literal most gorgeous man alive, thank you.” 

Your voice carried a little louder than usual, but by now the Milileth knew your routine, and hardly even batted an eye if they heard you speaking to yourself. 

The sun hadn’t started to rise yet, you’d gotten to the terrace early, early enough that the lanterns were still lit, illuminating the darkened path up those torturous stairs. 

“And he’s so polite? I don’t know how to act around him, he’s always giving such genuine sounding compliments, asking me questions while I work, helping me with little things. Surely a man like that has better things to do with his time?” You huffed, that creeping sense of self loathing wrapping around your shoulders like an old blanket, scratchy and rough, but oh so familiar. 

“He’s so beautiful, and intellectual. He’s literally a walking historical archive and I could honestly listen to him talk for hours— But in comparison, I’m just… I’m just a little girl who plays around with dirt and flowers. I really don’t understand why he keeps hanging around.” 

You scrunched your nose as the sun started to spill those beautiful colors across the sky. 

“Do you think Madame Ping asked him to keep coming around? I know she thinks I'm lonely, but I don't need her to bribe a grown man into being my friend.” 

You shook your head, rolling your eyes. “No, I can't see her taking it that far. I just… I really don’t see why he would want to be around me.” 

That warm feeling started to envelop you, and you took a deep breath to soak it in. “I know… I have a lot of self worth issues. It’s not like I've asked him why he’s hanging around, I just kind of… let him.  Maybe I can work up the courage to ask him why he’s so interested. He probably only wants to see if I can actually manage to grow those flowers.” 

You rubbed the lingering sleep from your eyes and lingered a bit longer than usual, wondering what Rex Lapis would think about Mr. Zhongli. 

——————————

Around the 3 month mark, when things started looking promising, you developed another new habit. 

Instead of spending a dedicated section of time at night standing awkwardly and singing to your newly budded plants, you decided it would save time and effort to just sing away while you do your evening chores in the greenhouse. 

You wouldn’t go out on a limb and say that your other plants were magically affected by your singing, but like your lilies, everything in the greenhouse seemed just a bit more vibrant as you did so. 

You checked the clock, chewing your lip as you scolded yourself for missing Zhongli’s presence. 

About a week ago, he’d stopped by to say that he was taking a leave of absence to go on a trip with a friend of his. He’d introduced the traveler and their strange floating  companion to you before they headed off. 

“I’ll only be gone for a week, maybe more, but I truly look forward to seeing the progress when I return.” 

You’d sort of settled into the strange routine of greeting him in the evenings, making the odd pot of tea while he spoke about anything under the sun, entertaining you while you worked. It felt strange to not have him here, but you knew you couldn’t get too attached. When the lilies bloomed, he would most certainly lose interest, and you’d have to go back to your regular routine of lonely nights. 

Your heart felt a bit somber as you hauled a few buckets of mulch along, not really focusing on your surroundings, just zoning out while you sang random tunes to help your lilies grow. 

You remember a song you’d heard your grandmother sing a long time ago, a distant memory, but the melody was still so vibrant in your mind. 

“Eyes shining like the sunrise,

 Ever deeper than the night sky,

Nature sweet, like faun and flora,

More valuable than jade or mora, 

Take me me there, safe from harm,

Safe at home, in your arms.

nature's bounty he—“

Your voice caught in your throat as you turned to grab the next bucket only to find Zhongli standing silently in the doorway, eyes nearly glowing in the lantern light. 

You jumped, and you were sure if you had something in your hands, it would’ve flown out of them, most likely spilling all over you— embarrassing you even further. 

“Zhongli?!” You yelped, throwing a hand over your pounding heart. “I didn’t hear you come in! You nearly gave me a heart attack.” 

He chuckled, a warm sound you’d grown so fond of hearing. “I did not intend to startle you. Though I am surprised you did not hear me, considering how you’re always on about how loud that bell is.” 

“Yes, well,” your face grew so extremely warm, you pulled off your gloves and shoved them in your apron pocket, kicking a foot on the flooring of your greenhouse. ”I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here tonight, so I suppose I let myself get too carried away.” 

“I wouldn’t say you were too carried away.” His eyes were sparkling, his smile deeper than you think you’d ever seen it before. 

“Wha— are you teasing me? I thought you said you wouldn’t—“ he cut off your rambling with a simple murmuring of your name, nodding to the countertop behind you. 

Confused, you turned, and in the moonlight streaming in through exposed glass sat six perfect glaze lilies, fully bloomed. 

You walked towards them in awe, feeling Zhongli’s presence not far behind. 

“I…” you stared at them, eyes wide and mouth nearly hanging open. “I can’t believe…” 

You were hopeful, of course you were. But a part of you genuinely expected to come in one day and find them dead, destroyed like the others. You had wanted this so badly, but after months of failure, you had lost your confidence. But there, sat in front of you in their little pots, sat six perfect fully grown glaze lilies. 

“I did it.” You mumbled, turning around to face Zhongli. Your heart felt like it was bursting in your chest. You jumped, barely able to contain your joy as you shrieked. 

“I did it!” You excitedly danced around, pumping your fists in the air and whooping, in total bliss at your accomplishment. 

“You did it.” Zhongli simply said, smiling down at you.  

“We did it!” You yelled, your joy uncontainable. Without thinking, you threw yourself at him, giggling as he caught you effortlessly, spinning you around as you wrapped your arms around his neck. 

He smelled like amber, like the forest and the mountain air, crisp and pure and addicting. You took another deep breath before you realized what exactly you were doing. 

You quickly pushed yourself away, backing up with a squeaking “sorry!” Only in your embarrassment, you completely lost your bearings, immediately tripping backwards on a stack of potting soil sacks and tumbling down. 

You tried to catch yourself on the side counter, but only succeeded in grabbing hold of a stack of books you’d been meaning to relocate, the pile of shame.

Perhaps it was your karma for naming it such, perhaps it was irony, but the pile of shame merely tumbled down along with you, spilling onto your head with a terrible series of audible smacking sounds to accompany your little cries of pain. 

“Oh!” In Zhongli’s defense, he really had tried to catch you, but you supposed when you pushed away, you must have shoved him a bit farther back as well, and he was merely seconds too late from grabbing your arm to steady you. 

You sat in your embarrassment, letting a loose book stay where it landed, covering your face. 

“Are you alright?” Zhongli said, his voice filled with genuine concern. 

“Can you pretend like the last five minutes never happened?” You said, cringing beneath the pages of an extremely outdated copy of Flowers in Food: recipes for your floral tastes. 

“Unfortunately, my dear,” Zhongli began removing the book from your face, peeking down at your reddened cheeks beneath the pages. “I have the pleasure of having an impeccable memory.” 

“I had a feeling you’d say something like that.” You grumbled. 

You began peeling books off yourself, face warm as you wondered how you were going to get out of this one. 

“You did not need to apologize, though.” Zhongli said, crouching down to help you. “I am more than comfortable sharing in your excitement at such an accomplishment.” 

Your heart fluttered, and your face heated for entirely different reasons. Maybe it was okay that you’d hugged him? As much as you want to think he’s always teasing you, he has never once lied about how he’s felt about anything. 

“Oh.” You said, peeling away the last couple books. “Well then, I’m sorry for pushing away so abruptly, and uh… that you had to see all that.” 

He smiled, shaking his head as if he was going to tell you something more, when his eyes seemed to catch something along your torso. 

You looked down, and under the last book you’d pulled off your stomach sat a little glowing orb, about the size of your palm. 

Its warm amber light glowed against the fabric of your shirt, and you looked just as shocked at Zhongli for a moment. 

But his face steadied, and he smiled down at you. “It seems that your perseverance has been recognized in the highest regard.” 

You gapped down at the geo vision sitting on your stomach. 

“I… what?” 

—————————

AN: what did you think? Please let me know in the comments/tags/askbox! Also feel free to send in ideas for some dynamics you’d enjoy seeing between these two, as I have a vague idea of where the story will go, but its not entirely concrete yet!

- from Pidge, with love <3

[rhymeswithchronic]

Thought dumps about Parkour headcanons in Mercy for the Lamb. Send help

My favorite thing about writing Mercy for the Lamb is having a series focused entirely on the trauma of four entirely different people because I get to have fun playing with how different people react to their trauma

Foooor example, four people, four trauma responses :D

Evbo - Flight (running from his problems, refusing to admit he has trauma, leaving the second someone asks if he’s okay)

He’s not used to his trauma being considered as such. A lot of his trauma responses are painfully similar to things he had to do in the Noob layer to simply survive and he has it in his head that he can’t possibly be traumatized. Even if he is, obviously everyone else has it so much worse so he has no right to complain.

EMF - Fight (Acting snappy and harsh, actively thrashes/claws when someone touches him when he’s struggling)

In his position and job, he couldn’t afford to show any kind of weakness. When he perceives a threat, he has to take the offensive first before they can start an attack against him. Attack first, questions later: it’s the only way to ensure that you have the upper hand. When the world is against you, it’s you against the world.

Seawatt - Freeze (Going still and silent, disassociating, becoming extremely numb)

It’s the safest option. It’s the idea that if he doesn’t move, no one can see him. It’s the complete opposite of what a fighter is and that means it has to be unpredictable. Running or fighting the sources of his trauma is off the table. Nowhere to run and no one to fight. Instead, it all just piles up and collapses and he freezes.

Boey - Fawn (Trying to appease his perceived aggressors, promising to stay quiet/still, doing anything he can to stay in his aggressors good graces)

It didn’t always help, but a lot of his killers seemed to like it when he followed their demands. If he tried to ignore them or deliberately disobey them, they wouldn’t just kill him: they would make it *hurt*. He got used to suggesting things that might make his killers happier in the hope that it would make his death hurt less.

A few other things that I find fun that have no reason to be pointed out but I want to anyway:

They each react to anxiety in different ways. Seawatt paces, EMF chews his claws, Evbo tugs at his hair and Boey scratches his arms. Seawatt’s pacing is harmless and EMF normally doesn’t hurt himself by chewing, but they’ve gotten Boey used to wearing thick gloves to prevent his scratching habit from causing actual wounds. It’s still a regular habit for him to offer his arms to one of the others when he feels himself coming down due to how often they had to wrap them back in the day. Seawatt and EMF will hold Evbo’s hands to stop him from tugging at his hair. It’s less likely to harm him and the pressure helps.

In the most recent story, I talked a bit about how I headcanon Pre-Fighter Layer Banishment civilization to have looked, and mentioned that each layer was known for their own products.

Noobs - Clothing creation, repair, and modification. Since their boots were leather, I figured leather working would make a lot of sense for them. Leather and wool were most commonly used but it wasn’t uncommon for other layers to ask them to make special outfits for special occasions. Fighters specifically liked to send them silk and cotton to be made into their traditional outfits for battles and parties. They would create the boots for their young family members, continuously recreating them as the players aged.

Pros - Varieties of high quality food. This one I think speaks for itself since we know they supply food in-series, but I feel like before things got bad the food was more than just “cows that are good at parkour” and “cows that suck at parkour”. They were known for their spices and cooking techniques typically passed down by parents to children or new Pros, biologically related or otherwise.

Masters - Metalworking and jewelry. This headcanon is kind of based on a separate headcanon that Masters use jewelry as courting gifts. If someone wants to court another Master, they would gift them jewelry in their colors. For example, EMF would give gold jewelry to his partner. These could include things like chest plates but only as decoration. They would’ve been responsible for creating metal-based boots for naturally born players (other players spawn with their boots, no creation necessary).

Fighters - Music and Art. While art existed in all the layers, the fighters were known for their high energy musical selection and produced discs and the things used to play them. I like to think that the fact that the Legends were locked behind discs had a significance to the Fighters, being the last remnants of their culture after their fall. Their other forms of art were considered the best and most popular. They specialized in abstract art, focused more on emotion than anything else.

Players can spawn or be naturally born. For the most part, newly spawned players would be almost immediately adopted into a family and raised as one of their own assuming they were young enough. Those that were older would be shown the ways of life by the community, often building their own unique ideas and experiences through the entire community’s efforts. There definitely might have been some discrimination, but it wasn’t as common as Class bias would have been. This still very much existed if not as violently upheld as it became.

Fighters in particular were big on family. Players that ranked up or spawned in would be welcomed with open arms and integrated into family units.

Lastly

Boey will forever be autistic. In my heart ❤️

[honeycreammilkshake]

Yuji can finally have his own Human Earthworm with blobkuna haha

it seems to me that gege is really fond of metaphors and stories within stories, so i took a closer look at the human earthworm series that was given to us in the anime/manga and i found a lot of interesting things that, as usual, i'm going to turn into a sukuita essay. (sorry for the overly long rant coming up, anon ;-;)

the basic plot of the 4th movie is that an ordinary man is transformed into a half-worm, half-human creature by an evil scientist/doctor. the human earthworm manages to escape but is forced to hide from the outside world as he will be perceived as a monster because of his appearance. however, his hiding place also enables him to meet an animal rights activist who ends up falling in love with him. she is a very understanding, compassionate, and empathetic person (remind you of someone?) and although she is scared of him at first, she looks past his "monstrous appearance" to find the true person within, and he is ultimately more human than other humans are.

in the end, though, he is killed by the girl's friends, who only see a monster. before they attack him, though, she tells them that they will be the monsters for killing him.

this theme of the humans being more monstrous than the actual monsters themselves, such as in literature like frankenstein by mary shelley or the metamorphosis by franz kafka, is a theme used to invert and reframe the popular myths and stories of monsters both looking abnormal and being unnatural.

so... what does this mean in relation to sukuna and yuuji's story?

i think it's pretty clear that sukuna was perceived as monstrous from his birth onward. in historical japan, during the heian era, there was a lot of conflict between different religions and very rapid changes in culture and lifestyles as people began breaking away from chinese influences. this era is sometimes called the "golden age of the imperial court" because of the court's growing power and cultural prosperity, and a lot of this power resided with the Fujiwara clan who had intermarried with the imperials. however, for the majority of ordinary people, this era saw a lot of suffering, hardships, low quality of life, and a high infant mortality rate.

sukuna was born into this starving world and would have died had he not eaten his twin in the womb. but he was unwanted and unwelcome from the moment he was born. i've written this before (so i'm sorry if it's getting a bit repetitive) but i think a lot of fans don't realize how much more demanding and cruel life was during this time (compared to modern day japan) in terms of life expectancy and quality. and those factors shaped sukuna into what he is, or at least make up a part of his becoming a monster.

in sukuna's own words his existence itself is anathema. the literal definition of this is "vehement disliking" and is a synonym of abhorrent. in religious usage it means "exclusion from the society of the faithful because of heresy" and it is described as being "cursed."

sukuna was perceived as being a curse before he even became cursed objects. whether or not he was born with extra limbs and/or lots of cursed energy, he was still seen as something unnatural and inhuman.

in other words, his unusual appearance and origin is monstrous to others. and i think he took this to heart and decided to just go with it, because he refuses to be seen as human by anyone even though he was in fact born one. he would rather be feared and despised as an imaginary demon than treated like a real person who was essentially cast out of the normal world.

but yuuji doesn't treat sukuna like just another monster in the end. instead, he offers him such selfless acceptance and honest empathy. and i don't think sukuna can take something like that.

sukuna is very aware of his own nature. he seems really proud to be an unfeeling, indifferent entity of chaos.

hm.....

lots of thoughts on this one panel alone. but i'll try to keep my ideas short. i believe that sukuna embraced what others saw as his "cursed nature" and became the strongest so he could be above all the hatred and ignorance that made others perceive him as being a monster. so he matched his actions to what people feared from him.

he became the monster so he could look down on those same people and also so he could isolate himself from ever being affected by those feelings again. after all, those others are nothing more than weak prey who shouldn't lament their own suffering, just like he shouldn't lament being seen as cursed from birth on. just like he claims he isn't lonely because only the most selfish can be on top.

but still. people want to destroy him for just being the role they more than likely forced him into. he never became more than what people saw him as, and yet they still hate him.

he claims to be above that hatred, but i think it might actually get to him. while else would he reflect so much on it during his fight with yuuji. yuuji, who he lived inside of, who he looks down on for being "weak" because he is far too emotional and caring for others, yet that's one of the biggest reasons for yuuji's strength. strength sukuna tries to undervalue because he can't stand the idea that strength can ever be compassionate as well.

yuuji hates sukuna's ideals and his indifference to the value of life. but he still accepts sukuna. he sees past the monstrous appearance and realizes sukuna was made into a monster by chance. what if someone was there for him, like wasuke was there for yuuji? even though wasuke still pushed yuuji away and was all that yuuji had, he still kept yuuji tethered to being a good person and caring for others. wasuke served as both a lesson in what not to become and a reminder for yuuji to realize the importance of life.

sukuna probably didn't have that, or if he was given that chance, it was far too late for him.

yuuji actually wanted to live with sukuna. he wanted to the animal rights activist to sukuna's worm monster, but in the end, sukuna chose death.

the humans killed the monster they made, yet again. sukuna would rather live and die as a curse than be anything different. yuuji loved him even as a worm, but sukuna couldn't take it.

and yuuji looks so heart-broken and disappointed for it.

also. i didn't notice this until now. but yuuji cradles sukuna's remains so so gently... in the hand that looks monstrous.

monster to monster. yet yuuji was so tender. he didn't seek to mock sukuna. instead, he said that they were the same. that sukuna is him.

yuuji was created for the purpose of housing sukuna inside of him, for being his vessel. he was made into a "monster" but instead of letting that turn him into something evil, he used his abilities to save other people. and he even wanted sukuna to come back to him!!!

again, i'm sorry for making this into yet another paper-long incoherent rant. i probably should have stuck to my original reply which was "sad we couldn't see their halfling children ;-;" but then this happened instead. thank you for bearing with me if you read through the mess of my thoughts. ty for your wonderful ask anon <3

[meowuff]

Third part of the "Changeling/Mimic Sky Kid Creature" Series

HIDDEN FOREST

I am happy to present you the Creatures living in the dark and misty depth of the hidden forest!

The hidden forest is a dark and vast maze of trees, shallow rivers and many caves to explore. The heavy rain and the sun being hidden behind dark clouds and gigantic trees cause the forest to be cast in a constant dimness.

The dark habitat and the constant rain reminded me of the rainforest so what better adaption for the little critters would it be than the one comparable to amphibians?

Most of their features are inspired by frogs plus a bit of a snake like behaviour here and there.

The Frog-Kids live in every nook and cranny of the hidden forest. They climb to the highest top of the trees, crawl through the many dark caves scattered throughout the realm and swim through the shallow rivers and ponds formed by the constant rain.

If not being on a hunt, Frog-Kids wander the land as pairs, picking one companion during their young years and staying with their choice for the rest of their life. Together with their chosen second half they patrol the woods, climb the hills and trees and sleep together in the shallows of the rivers and ponds.

Because of the constant rain, the capacity of normal hearing got quite useless, the continuous pattering of water drops drowning out most of the sounds. As consequence, the Frog-Kids ears changed over time to help filtering out the most important noises. They are most comfortable to move around on all fours, making it easy to jump onto higher places or into the water quickly, if someone would be walking into their paths.

If they do decide to walk on two legs, when disguised as normal Skylings, they tend to walk hunched over, keeping their arms in the front to fall back on all fours at any moment.

Compared to an average tall Skyling, Frog-Kids are often half a head or a full head taller than them. Combined with them rarely wearing moth clothing, it doesn't pull any attention to them, thanks to the fact that vets or butterflies tend to change their hight during their journey. As a result, they are being perceived as one of them.

Due to the generally wetter environment and their adaptation to spending quite a lot time in the water, their hands and feet developed webbing. As consequence of this, they are incredible fast swimmers, unbeatable if you would try to escape them if you are unlucky enough to fall into the murky waters.

Because of the webbing, their gloves are not able to properly hide those features and you'll be able to see the webbing even through their disguise.

Because of the generally dark atmosphere in the rainy forest, the Frog-Kids especially pick out Skylings with dark clothing and masks to steal their disguises from. The dim colours letting them blend in better than the brighter orange-beige of the moths.

They are not able to wear any capes as those tend to melt in the rain of the Hidden Forest, it being one of the reasons that this realm is known to be dangerous to venture through for young Skylings.

Additionally, the absence of the cape is causing older, more advanced Skylings to feel a need of protection if they cross paths with the Frog-Kids, and they tend to stay on the ground to help them, making it easier for the Creatures to guide them into uncharted parts of the forest, just to either eat them or leave them lost in the dark as entertainment.

Even if Frog-Kids are venturing the Forest as a pair, if it´s about hunting for food, they exclusively do it alone. It is not just being more efficient but also prevents any competitive behaviour between themselves, which could cause a fight about resources and end in attacking each other.

The Frog-Kids have no teeth but instead use their long and extendable tongue for hunting. Their jaw, similar to that of a snake, is able to dislodge and widen their mouth significantly, making it easy to swallow their victims whole.

The tip of their very strong tongue can light up brightly, comparable to the few lanterns scattered around the forest. When hunting, they usually position themselves higher up on one of the mushrooms growing on the trees and let their tongue lure some unsuspecting Skylings to them, which just think they found a light source to recharge their own light.

As soon as the Skylings get close enough, the Frog-Kids tongue shoots out and envelope their pray. Once they have you in their grasp, it is impossible to wiggle your way out of it again. Just seconds after capturing you, they swallow you whole and digest you over the next days.

Their diet consists of Skylings exclusively, but due to the way of consuming them, they keep their hunts for them to more or less once every 2 weeks.

Frog-Kids are sinister, dangerous beings. If you are encountering a single one, it means they are on the hunt for food. If you cross paths with a pair of them, it means they want to have some fun getting you lost in the darkest, unknown corners of the Forest. Either way, meeting any of their kind is a bad sign for moths as well as vets. If you venture the forest during the night and see a bright light slightly moving between the trees, it is advised to keep your distance, even if your own light is at its lowest. After all, you´ll never know for sure if you´re not being watched from above, observed to turn your back and open up a chance to snatch you from the muddy floor of the forest...

Signs to distinguish a Frog-Kid from a Sky-Kid:

no cape

webbing between thumb and hand visible

walking around lightly hunched over

wearing dark masks and clothes

skin color is a musky dark green

> Reference of the Hidden Forest <