#this is all stuff that takes a long time to process and a long time to master

[princeloww]

what is you’re writing process/any tips? i absolutely adore your fics and am a relatively new writer looking for any advice!

Sorry it took me so long to answer this!!! I've been meaning to, I just haven't found the time to write a good enough response.

First of all, you're so kind!! Thank you so much <3 I'm not sure if my advice will be any good or any helpful at all, but I can try my best :)

If you're completely new, don't worry about your writing not being exactly what you want it to be. It takes ages for writing to develop and for writers to fall into their own natural voice. Take your time and try not to worry about how good it is — as long as you're telling the story you want to tell, and having fun doing it, you're doing it right.

As for my writing process, I'm probably very unorganised and not a good example. Once I've got an idea I kinda let it fester and live in my head for a while before writing anything. I imagine scenes or specific imagery and usually work from there.

When I'm actually writing, I like to plan stuff with pen and paper first. I write an outline of each chapter with a focus on what each scene is supposed to achieve. I focus on the "goals" of the chapter or scene, so to speak - it's important to remember what purpose each scene or piece of dialogue is serving. That purpose doesn't have to be huge to the plot, it can be for the sake of character building or developing relationships, but knowing what you're trying to achieve can really help you stay on track and keep the pacing decent.

im deeply unorganised in the sense that i have 3 notebooks for one fic and which one I use depends on my mood (the fic is NES)

My outlines are usually pretty rough to begin with - here's an actual extract from a quick chapter plan I wrote. This one was typed so it's word for word:

alec and tess at dinner table with Daisy. That intensity is gone from tess eyes. There is no love left. They eat in silence. The scraping plates gets to alec and he throws his cutlery down and leaves. Tess tells him to fuck off then and Daisy shrinks in her seat. Alec kisses Daisy's head on the way out and tells her he'll be back in an hour He goes up to his/tess room and paces back and forth for a moment, unable to shake pippas body + the river. He takes the photo of him and his family from under the bed and brings it with him. He goes on a drive, driving round and round in circles while thinking. He brakes abruptly on a bridge. Lit by his car lights, he gets out and looks our over the edge. It's the sandbrook. He grabs the picture from the car and stares at it. He curses it. In a moment of emotion, he chucks it over the bridge and watches it vanish into the night. Then, suddenly, he panics. He realises what he's done and misses the photo. He clambers off the side of the road and into the dodgy bank beneath. He stumbles through wet grass before finding the riverbank, which he almost falls into. The picture is caught on a rock. He manages to fish it out, getting his head soaked in the process. He emerges and gets back in the car. Soaking wet, he stares at the photo. It's ruined. Only his fathers face remains unsmudged. He throws it into the passenger seat and begins to cry. Properly cry.

I stuck pretty closely to this plan, if you wanna see it implemented you can read the chapter here (link).

Sometimes I write plans out multiple times to rework any issues/make things tighter but it sorta depends. From there I just write it. No beta we die like (insert any dead character). Again I'm probably not the best example lmaoo

Keep in mind what exactly you are trying to say; if a scene doesn't serve any purpose, consider whether or not it needs to be there. Feel free to experiment with tenses and formatting. It can take a while to find out what works best for you/what you enjoy the most.

Try not to get too bogged down in making things perfect though, try to have fun with it!!! and if a scene is stressing you out or causing any kind of block, try reworking it or hitting from a different angle. Find something else to focus on or another character to focus on.

Going for walks usually inspires me but that might be just me. I like walking, listening to music and thinking about writing. !!

this is getting a bit waffley now, I hope its in any way helpful or at least interesting. Thank you again for your lovely words and I'm sorry for taking so long !!!

More fic plan extracts under the cut if anyone's interested:

Same chapter plan, I don't think i kept all of this?

we cut to Alec returning home. He slips inside. The lights are off. Tess sits in the dark, at the table. She says she thought he killed himself. He says that yeah he thought about it. Then he says he decided the funeral would be too expensive, and then storms off. As he's leaving, tess shouts that nobody would go anyway. He bombs into their room and chucks the photo under his bed. He hides his head in his hands. Daisy appears at the door. He is about to cry again, so tells her not now. She frowns and vanishes down the hall. Pathetically, still wet and muddy, he climbs into bed and stares at the ceiling. His chest hurts. Hard cut

(TWENTY FIVE DECEMBERS)

This is an even rougher plan for NES:

Meanwhile, Campbell talks to Jamie and Co again, and is invited out with them that night. He says yes, eager to fit in and secure his friends. Alec surprises the kids by picking them up, crushing campbells plans. He gets mad at Alec and says it's unfair, kicking off. Alec isn't in the mood for it, so they have a spat.

Campbells bad mood continues at the birthday party. Alec pulls him aside and talks to him in the kitchen, and is quite harsh. Alec is bothered by the loud music and in a bad mood as well, so their moods clash. They fight quietly. Tom Miller overhears them talking about the hospital. Campbell storms off suddenly, leaving the house. Alec follows after him and tries to apologise, while explaining his point of view.

Campbell isn't having it, and accuses Alec of fucking up his one chance of having friends. He gets in the car and slams the door. Alec gets in beside him, and tells him they can't leave yet. He says whatever and Alec leaves him in the car to brood

THE NEVER-ENDING SKY

Hope this is at least slightly helpful if not interesting (ask for more plans and I will deliver I have ones for nearly every chapter somewhere take your pick)

[laserbobcat]

Feel free to say it's too personal, but what was your bipolar diagnosis process like? How long did it take to figure out what worked?

Trying to be precise to help but it's a bit long

Went to a psychiatrist like "Hey I might have ADHD, anyway I'm not ok AT ALL I need to know if I have something with a name on it and how to adapt cause like, I'm at the end of my rope here"

Psychiatrist was a super cool woman, super lucky. We had a few sessions and she told me there was soooo much anxiety that she had no idea wtf was under, we had to lower that first. I know she wasn't a fraud because she offered a lot of alternative stuff like plants etc (here in France, doctors will throw meds at you like it's candy, without thinking, istg) but i was like yeah no, I'm not doing ok, and things like valeriane or milpertuis won't cut it, tried already. I did not want to take antidepressants because they're fucking awful to me, and I'm not depressive, I have depressive episodes. Like, all in all, I'm pretty happy, though anxious. It's rare that life is shit enough to put me down for long, but when I spiral down it's fast and intense. So she gave me the basic dose of a med that stabilizes mood, it's used for bipolar and epilepsy. It helped a lot.

At the same time I saw a therapist pretty often, she evaluated me for adhd but I'm not really there. Not enough. The attention problems come from anxiety and HIP. So mental hyperactivity. Did you know HIP and HEP people tend to feel stupid? Hilarious.

Anyway, my psychiatrist left my town, and before she did, she gave the bipolar type 2 diagnosis, because technically it is, so my next therapist can work with that angle. But she told me not to get too hung up on the label, since really my main problem is generalized anxiety and I desperately need to approach life in a softer way.

Anyway, it took me a month to have an appointment there, I saw a nurse for a quick evaluation, then two months until the psy could see me (they're busy and not enough docs here) , we had like 5 sessions in like three months? After the meds I had to go see her pretty regularly with bloodwork to check if it was good for me etc. I'd say after 6-8 months she only saw me every 4-6 months just for a check up, because I was stabilized by the treatment and I was seeing the therapist regularly. I think the whole thing lasted two years. I still go see a therapist there, they're great.

I'm very lucky I had her as a psychiatrist, she's super cool. Before that i had shit therapists one-shots as a kid, and when I was 20 I started with alternative types of therapy that worked great and got me a lot of breakthrough, like hypnosis of kinesiotherapy. But I really wanted that medical approach cause I wanted to know what kind of label would be put on my brain, and I was really really low in life and felt I needed some kind of meds to help at this point. I'm hopeful I can get slowly off of them eventually, when my anxiety lowers enough that I can try.

Hope the info helps? I know it can help to hear other people's experiences I tried to be thorough.

[crackedpumpkin]

| 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 | 𝟏𝟔 |

a/n: lol not me being productive

taglist: @candyquokka @mikadough @em-100-blog @cursedreader @alicesmile1 @alexa24 @raegreenie4 @burdeningbitch @viannasthings @cadencannot @ml3czqo @nanasemo @certified-cole-simp @beescomet @theblindhag @mitbin24 @sweetlittlebumblebree @brooklyniswriting @cantbecreative @something-else3 @iinlovewithfictionalppl @itz-moonlight @jebesovovise @ryeheep @letthelightin2112 @classically-bored @clearlawyereaglewobbler @anajellyc @the-midnight-duck @fru1ty-bage3ls @elysiuansstuff @risagichi @mousedit@yoggi-bingus @silveritydreams @mikadough @greenunoreversecard @herondale3109 @something-else3 @herondale3109 @changeling5am @obs3ssingd3vil

[ 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 ] | [ 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 ] | [ 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 ]

“You look like shit.”

“Thanks,” Cole grumbles. He jumps off the last rung and lands perfectly, hands shoved in his pockets while you cautiously make your way off the ship. The comment draws your attention, watching a girl surrounded by guards approach.

Walking up to them, it takes all the self control in your body to not gawk at the gorgeous blonde in front of you. “So,” she continues, glancing over at the rest of you with a smile, “what gives us the honour of having the ninja visit us?”

Without a single word, everyone turns to stare at Lloyd expectantly. He merely sighs, stepping forward. “Great to see you again Vania, but we need to talk in private.” 

So Vania was her name. “Of course.” She replies, sensing the gravity of the situation. With a single gesture, some of the guards that surround her flock to your side. It makes you flinch slightly, the small action not going unnoticed by Cole who moves closer to you. 

Lifting your gaze, you freeze as her eyes rest on the both of you, thoughtfulness behind them before she looks at the rest. “But before we do so, perhaps you should freshen up.” A teasing grin replaces the solemness in the air. “Because like I said, you look like shit.”

— — — — — 

“I don’t stink, do I?” Lifting up your arms, you give them a good sniff. Nya shakes her head in amusement, devouring another strawberry from the bowl of fruits in the room the guards had shown you to.

Initially, the sight of the king-sized bed for each of you had taken your breath away, staring longingly at the fluffy pillows before you’d glanced down at your grimy t-shirt with a sigh. “Like I said,” Nya had stated with a note of defeat, “we forget to restock the ship sometimes. It just so happened that it was my brother’s turn to buy the bathroom necessities.”

“It was nice of them to let us freshen up first though,” you say, collapsing on the sofa after a nice, long shower. Your fingers busy themselves with the fabric of your new dress. It’d been provided by the princess as well, an airy white dress that rests comfortably on your figure. It even came with pockets, which you gleefully showed off after you’d gotten changed. 

“Yeah, Vania’s great.” Nya says casually, biting off a grape straight from the stem. “Haven’t seen her in a while though, but she’s changed a lot since last time.” 

“Oh?” This catches your attention, shifting to sit upright with interest. “What happened?”

“It was a whole thing with her dad,” Nya explains vaguely, waving the bunch of grapes in the air. “Basically the king was this Sorcerer guy who’d been secretly doing really bad stuff behind everyone’s back and we exposed him. After that, she took over as Queen.”

You pause, processing this new discovery. “Wait, she’s the Queen of this place??”

Nya frowns, now sitting upright. “Well, duh. I would’ve thought the crown on her head to be a pretty big indicator.” 

Shit. You’d gotten so caught up in how pretty she was, that you’d completely missed it. “Oh my god… You guys have connections, huh.”

“Honestly, you should just ask Cole about it. He was front and center with the whole situation.”

“He was?” Wow. You really do learn something new everyday. “He’s never mentioned it to me before.” 

Nya shrugs, although her eyes do narrow the tiniest amount at the way you say it just as someone knocks on the door. It opens to reveal the guard who guided you to your rooms earlier, the stern look on his face only serving to make the pit in your stomach grow. 

You follow him wordlessly to a large dining hall. The ceiling is higher than the sky itself, every inch kept pristine by the countless number of maids you’d seen on the way over. A long table made of polished dark wood is filled with overflowing dishes of food, silver cutlery at each seat. 

Your feet automatically guide you over to sit next to Cole, only to falter when it’s already occupied by the Queen. It’s an awkward position, with him right next to the space at the head of the table where the Queen is supposed to sit, except that she’s currently laughing away with him on the other side. 

Zane is opposite him, about to give up his seat to you when your eyes meet. You shake your head quietly, moving to sit beside Jay who greets you enthusiastically by shoving a roasted chicken leg in your face. 

You accept it gratefully with a laugh, hoping it doesn’t sound amiss. Strangely enough, a part of you feels awfully miffed. 

Whatever. He can sit with whoever he wants. It’s none of my business anyway.

One thing you have to admit though, is that the food here is pretty great. Soon enough, your own plate looks almost just like Jay’s - filled with so many different bits and pieces that it looks almost comical. 

However, a plate of pastries catches your eye, but it’s on the other end of the table where Cole and Vania sit. Pastry, or dignity? It’s a tough choice to make. The moment you look back up after deliberating, you find that it’s already emptied, with Kai munching away on whatever remained on his plate.

The remaining crust gives away the culprit (Lloyd), looking away in defeat before biting into a lettuce leaf. After a while though, dinner concludes with the servants taking away the now empty plates, leaving everyone full and content. 

Vania is back in her rightful chair, but you pretend not to notice the way Cole’s eyes flit to you, as if silently calling you over to sit in the empty spot beside him. To his displeasure and your amusement, Lloyd slides into it barely a second later. 

“Vania, we came here because we need information.” He begins, resting his arms on the table as he leans forward. “It’s about the Fountain of Youth.” 

The atmosphere seems to still, Vania’s expression tightening the smallest amount at the mention. She takes a breath. “My father used to speak of it. What of it?” 

“We have reason to believe that someone is trying to find it, and they’ve already gotten their hands on one piece of the map.”

His revelation seems to have shocked her, her eyes wide while her fingers curl into fists at the table. Lloyd surveys her for a single moment, making the call to continue. “It’s not just that,” he pauses, “but they’ve begun targeting our friend too, though we’re still not entirely sure why. She’s not one of us - ninja wise, I mean,” he adds with an apologetic glance. “And we don’t want her to get hurt… or worse.” 

It sends a chill through your body, instinctively picking away yet again at the skin of your cuticles. Another moment of silence passes before Vania seems to reach her own conclusion. She stands up, approaching a doorway. Turning, she stares at the rest of you expectantly. “So, do you want to find out about this Fountain or what?”

— — — — — 

Step by step, she leads the group through twists and turns of the castle. The hallways become narrower and dimmer, and the air becomes staler. Almost like an unspoken agreement, everyone followed silently. 

Finally she stops, producing a locket she wore around her neck. The door in front of you is closed shut, barely any room for air to leak through. The most unsettling thing though, is how it didn’t have a handle, or keyhole. 

Instead of a keyhole, there’s an indent in the metal. It matches the shape of her locket perfectly, and she holds it against the door for all of three seconds before a soft click echoes through the hallway.

Shuddering, you can’t help but imagine being locked inside with no way out, slowly suffocating to death with the lack of fresh air. It’s a morbid thought, and you almost wish you could hold someone’s hand to ground yourself. 

It swings open with a slight push. “What you’re about to see is the buried history of my people.” Vania’s expression is serious now. “I stumbled across it some time after my coronation. My father kept this unknown for a reason, one he never wanted to see the light of day. What I’m about to show you is dangerous. I need you to understand that.”

The silence is broken by Jay’s remark. “Danger is my middle name.” 

“You said it was Skywalker once.” The words slip from your mouth before you stop yourself, pressing your lips together and shrivelling on the inside when everyone turns to look at you. “Like Luke…” You mumble pathetically. 

Kai’s expression softens into a grin. “She’s right. Besides, when have we ever shied away from danger?” He holds up a hand in front of Zane who already has his lips parted. “Don’t even.”

The tension slowly melts, his words diffusing some of the suffocating feeling you didn’t even realise had filled the air. Vania smiles in amusement. “Alright then.”

Upon entering the room, the first thing you see is dust. Lots and lots of it. Ancient scrolls that look ready to crumble with a single exhale fill the room in boxes, scattered pieces of paper lining the shelves that have dust bunnies all over them.

“No wonder your dad didn’t want anyone in this room - it’s a mess!” Cole exclaims, covering his mouth with a single hand. It isn’t enough to stop him from coughing at the sudden dust cloud sent his way when Pixel lifts up a single cloth. 

You’re about to comment, until something on the wall ahead catches your eye. A large tapestry is draped across it, covering almost all of it except for one part that looks familiar. An inkling of suspicion takes root, reaching out and gingerly grabbing the fabric. 

It gives way with a single tug, sending up a huge cloud of dust that stings your eyes. However, what you see next leaves everyone bewildered. “How…what…? What is this doing here?” Cole stammers, moving to stand next to you. 

You could acknowledge the way the hairs on your arm prickle at the close proximity, or the way your heart suddenly thrums. But something far more important lies in front. The wall is covered in an old painting, the vibrant colors faded but still legible enough to reveal a shocking truth. 

The painting is almost an exact copy of the one in the old temple ruins you’d visited just the other day, with the Fountain of Youth at its center. Except this time, they weren’t fighting around it.

Bodies of serpentine, humans, and all others lay on the ground, bloodshed depicted in its raw form as figures whose garbs are eerily similar to the ones you all wear stand above them with weapons in hand. Their expressions have long faded with the passage of time, but one can feel the triumphant victory that the painting emanates.

“My ancestors were vicious.” Vania’s voice had become small, almost ashamed. She picks up a scroll from the corner, unravelling it to show the rest. “The Fountain was first discovered by the Serpentine, but my ancestors soon caught wind of it. It started out with good intentions, wanting to ensure that it wasn’t used with impure motives. But some of the generals convinced everyone that our people should be the ones to seize command, to make sure that it was regulated to our standards because they believed we were superior.”

“In doing so, they basically waged war. Everyone fought, but no one else lived to tell the truth about how…” She trails off, cheeks aflame as she swallows hard. “How they massacred everyone. This is the truth of what happened. After that, it was a matter of ensuring the secret remains buried, but when my great-great-grandfather found out about it, he made sure to leave a record behind so that we would know the truth.”

Cole places a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. She relaxes a little under his gentle pats, his expression making her exhale shakily. “When I discovered this, I wanted to make it right. So tell me,” she glances around at the rest of you. “How can I help?”

“We need to know everything about this. All we have so far is that there’s four parts of a map that lead to the Fountain, and one of them is in Shintaro. Our thief might come here next, so we need to find it before they do.”

She nods. “If there’s anything helpful, it has to be in this room somewhere. I’ve been sorting things out for a while, but I’ve barely made a dent.” 

A sigh falls from your lips, gazing tiredly at what seems to be inevitable. “Well, looks like we have work to do.” 

— — — — — 

“Jay, I’m going to kill you. Slowly. Painfully.” The threat is brushed off with a giggle as he presses his lips together, desperately trying to hold back his laughter at how done you look. He’d been shifting boxes away and placing them more haphazardly than before, but what really pissed you off was the fact that he’d dunked an entire pile of scrolls right on top of the ones you’d already sorted through, and now they were all mixed up.

The lack of amusement in your expression finally dawns on him that you’re being serious. He clears his throat, grabbing someone’s arm and pulling them toward you as a shield before fleeing to the other side of the room.

Unfortunately, that someone loses his balance and lands right on top of you, knocking down yet another pile of scrolls. You land flat on your back with a sharp hiss, the breath knocked out of you. 

Upon opening your eyes, you bite back another curse when you see Cole’s dazed expression. Taking a second to breathe, you shove him off you and sit back up with all the dignity you can muster, which is pretty close to none.

“We gotta stop meeting like this.” He seems to have regained his senses, you note, raising a brow. 

“We really should.” 

He winces playfully. “Ouch. And here I thought we were cool.” He takes a scroll and unravels it, only to close it with disgust. “Yeah, that’s not what we’re looking for.” 

“What is it?” Curiosity now piqued, your hands reach for it, only to be swatted away playfully. 

“It’s not suitable for work.” 

You forget how to breathe. “I beg your finest pardon? Are you telling me that this is smut?” 

The mere mention is enough to send him into a tizzy, a flicker of amusement in your eyes as you watch him fumble for words. He glances around, shaking his head urgently. “Don’t say it out loud! I don’t want to explain - or show Vania her ancestors writing about their sexual exploits.”

Suddenly the whole thing isn’t as funny anymore. “Right.” Your focus diverts back to the search. Relapsing into silence, you pick up one scroll after another, setting them aside. Frustration leaks through the way you snap them shut, and the mildly harsh manner that you set them down with. It’d been hours upon hours of just searching, and each of the ninja had dozed off one by one until now it’s just you, Cole, and Jay left. 

The door is still open, Zane volunteering to sleep beside it and act as a weight to prevent it from closing. While amusing, it just proves more tiresome. The torchlight had begun to dim (which you thought was a really dumb decision to make fire the light source in here, considering that everything is flammable), and you could barely make out the words.

Without warning, your eyes decide to wander from the parchment to your soulmate sitting opposite you. Your knees are barely inches apart, having made yourself as comfortable as possible and ignoring how Jay’s now passed out in a corner. 

Cole’s brows furrow every once in a while, concentrating on his task and completely tuning out everything else. There’s a smudge of dirt on his cheek that’d somehow gotten there, part of you itching to reach out and wipe it off his face. 

What’s his history with Vania?

Blinking, you look back down at the scroll you’d been holding, opting to place it to one side and grabbing another to skim through. More useless stuff. Taking another, you open it. 

Your eyes wander over to Vania’s sleeping figure against your own will, her face peaceful as she breathes slowly. She seems almost ethereal, and the way that they got along was the exact opposite of how you two constantly bicker. They’d make a good couple.

A sting pricks your finger, looking down to see scarlet blooming on the surface. “You okay?” His concerned tone is quiet, not wanting to disturb the rest who’re sleeping. 

“I’m alright.” You watch it trail down your finger. “It’s just a paper cut or something.” 

“Uh, no.” He frowns. “You do realise that these scrolls could be housing all sorts of bacteria, right?” 

“I’ve got a pretty good immune system,” you reply with a shrug. “You don’t know the things I’ve eaten past their due date.”

He pauses. “That’s….really gross actually.” 

It makes you grin. “Really? More gross than the way you were shovelling those pancakes into your mouth this morning?” 

“I’ll have you know that it was a matter of our honour.”

“And dignity, I assume.”

“Obviously.”

You share a smile. He shifts, moving to sit next to you and copying the way you lean back against the wall. “I can’t wait for it to be over,” you breathe, vowing internally to never take showers for granted ever again.

“Me too.” He chuckles, shoulder pressing against yours. “Maybe when it is, we can have a gaming rematch. Y’know, for your honour and dignity.” 

You turn to face him, only for the retort to die on your tongue when you find that he’s already been looking at you the whole time. Somehow, you manage to find your voice though it comes out small. “Says you.”

He raises a cocky brow. “Why? You too chicken?” 

A glimpse of golden hair in the corner of your eye makes you clear your throat, looking away. “We should invite Vania.”

You can hear the surprise in his voice. “Vania? I guess so.” You hum non-committedly, absentmindedly fiddling with your fingers.

“I heard that you helped her out with her father.”

“Oh, that? It wasn’t much. People were in danger. Of course I helped. It’s been ages though, but we still keep in contact every now and then. She even invited us over for a vacation.”

You force another nonchalant nod. “That seems good. You should definitely go and catch up with her after all this is over. I don’t think dinner was enough time.”

You can feel his shoulders stiffen. “We caught up plenty.” 

“I can tell.”

His amused huff elicits a glare from you, only to be taken aback at his expression. His eyes are gentle, and the way he’s looking at you is as if he can see past all the ugly walls you’re putting up right now in front of him. His lips are curled into a soft smile, taking your hand in his and brushing his thumb against the raw skin you’d been picking at since earlier. 

“Catching up was great and all…” his voice became quieter. “But I wasn’t really thinking about her in the first place.” 

His eyes flit down to your lips, swallowing hard.

Something about the way he says it activates your defiant streak. As if testing something, you lean forward, lips ghosting against the corner of his. Your eyes search his, desperately looking for an answer you’re too scared to face, an emotion too much to name. 

His hand cups your cheek, your purpose long forgotten as he leans in.

And then you sneeze. 

[toacaldoric]

Ngl, I'm not overly fond of prophecies as a whole, because while it's mildly nice to know stuff's gonna happen ahead of time, it's usually more of a stumbling block in the long run (at least, when considered from the potential perspective of a character subject to said prophecy). As such, I tend to find a certain comfort in words spoken by Atrus at the beginning of "Myst", and at the end of "Riven: The Sequel to Myst"...

"...But I must admit, such conjecture is futile. I know my apprehensions might never be allayed, and so I close, realizing that - perhaps - the ending has not yet been written."

And

"...And now, I am at rest, understanding that in Books, and Ages, and Life, the ending can never truly be written."

Much like in Undertale and Deltarune, the games in the Myst franchise have a heavy reliance on player choices to determine the ending they receive at the end, but not so much a "morality" thing in the process (except for the third game, "Exile", which has a subtheme set around making up for past wrongs and forgiving folks, which is all I'll say to avoid spoilers). It also heavily leans into a mechanic that allows the player to jump around between worlds, though using special books to do so (think "Magic Treehouse", but without all the training wheels, and without being limited to just various times and places in Earth's history, but visiting other worlds and cultures instead). Overall, there's a number of times where it seems fate is set in one way or another, but it's up to the player to find a third (or fourth, or fifth) door to take to change the outcome of everything.

Something I wish to share that I find {{very very}} intresting is the fact that Ralsei perceives the events chapter 4 to mean the course of the prophecy hasn't changed. When if you'll allow me I'd like to propose something that clearly he hasn't thought of; Chapter 4 was simply a telling of the prophecy due to the amount of text describing it in the area the fountain was birthed, and it's VERY possible the actions they have taken HAVE deviated from the og prophecy.

Obviously I don't fault any of the Fun Gang for not considering this, but to me with how much Chapter 4 was also about carving your own path it's very possible they've already started

Idk just a thought

[hinamie]

unconditionally

[bowsbar]

pillowbook thoughts because ive been thinking about them all day!

[riddlemearose]

Posted a new fic yesterday in my Despite Everything series, that can be read on AO3 here.

got your heart in a headlock Summary: She's tired. A century of magical extertion to keep herself and the Calamity in stasis while she prayed for Link to awaken has taken its toll on her. Zelda just wants to be a teenager with no responsibilities, even if it's only for a little while. A.K.A. Flora, Twilight and Wild take a vacation in the aftermath of the Calamity's defeat.

Relationships:

Flora & Twilight & Wild

General Tags:

Fluff and Angst

Post-Breath of the Wild and Pre-Linked Universe

A ridiculous amount of teasing banter

[edensgaia]

Tbh my feelings on the sunkissed breakup would be very different if the first instance of a betrayal/doing things behind each others back/not taking each other seriously started with the whole giving Bacon hearts thingy, but it didn't, the trust hasn't been totally there for a longer time than that

[microwavetoaster-selfships]

I think I need that "Wow, I haven't stubbed my toe in five months! I was then shot fifty-seven times." Audio again

[the-daydream-archives]

i decided to check when i first started the current project I'm doing and apparently, it was on June 2024 and it was originally going to be a single item but it instead spawned several large sets one after another💀💀 and since my perfectionist side is not letting go any time soon, who knows when this will get finished soon 🤡🤡 lmao im such a clown

[comfortlesshurt]

OKAY, IT'S FINALLY HITTING

(will you guys hate me if I post this longfic a month later than planned?)

[dandyshucks]

i was going to draw a cute celebratory guzbug bc of pwd application acceptance today but . no energy. tomorrow perhaps !!!

also im rly hopeful that being on disability will perhaps lessen my life stress and then maybe i will have more mental space again to work on se.lfsh.ip things more the way I used to ... 🍀🤞!!!

[hermitsdump]

kind of amazing how you can spend 99% of your life forgetting about someone's existence and still have nightmares about them for... nearly 20 years at this point. it's been 10 years since seeing them. fucj

[wereh0gz]

I keep flip-flopping between loving my current art style and wanting to go back to how I used to draw things and I haaaaate it

[reitziluz]

this september has been absolutely cursed so far. back to back misfortunes and setbacks.

the funniest one (or well, the one i can't help but laugh about) is how my new doc at the health center was gravely worried over my hemoglobin count. surely it is a sign my hrt dose is too high and all my organs are going to melt!

i have just recently graduated from the trans hrt specialty clinic after a long time of monitoring my hemoglobin and figuring out a dose that actually keeps me just above the lower threshold of the clinical range i'm aiming for. they figured my blood is just Like That as a genetic thing. the only time in my life i've had a hemoglobin count within the reference ranges is the few years when i ate mostly vegan and donated blood regularly. i was told by a school nurse at fifteen that i should donate blood when i turn 18 because my blood is so thick.

like it's p likely i was a bit dehydrated during that latest blood draw too. the doc needs to chill. there were much more worrying things in the results than the hemoglobin. stuff that's the actual reason i went to get the tests done.

but my blood being thick and rich like a luxurious vampire delicacy never fails to make me laugh

[please-picturemeintheweeds]

..