#this was mostly imagery practice but i kinda like it

[weirdopponent]

FRUITS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN GROWING ON THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE

The apple, the classic, bright red like struck skin

fits firmly in your palm.

You crush it in your teeth and between your jaws, it snaps like broken bone.

Scavengers feast on what remains, what you leave behind.

The pomegranate, cut in half, bleeds like a heart

from four chambers, from its severed veins

which it doesn't need anymore, taken from its body like this

The peach falls to the ground and no one catches it in time

and it bruises readily, tenderly

martyred for the health of the earth

The cherry grows in pairs

One holds the other which holds the other back

When you split them apart, the ladder of your ribs aches in sympathy

The apricot shines golden from its perch in the golden sun

reminding you of the guardians blinding halo, its fierce flaming swords

Is it ever blinded? The fruit is sweet on the tongue

A banana?

That's just silly.

[claudiafrankie]

Soul Purpose/Why Are You Here?

Disclaimer: Tarot is not an evidence-based practice. You are in charge of making your own decisions.

Pile 1: Abundance

Hey pile 1! You picked the Abundance oracle card. Your tarot cards are the 2 of Swords, 3 of Swords, and the King of Cups.

As I was shuffling I was focusing on the imagery of your oracle card. I strongly got the feeling of being kind of put on the spot. You are having to make quick decisions. It's like the shape in the center of the card has so much going on around it. It's chaotic! The figures filling the picture look like sea creatures to me - sea urchins, those glowy jellyfish that live in the bottom of the ocean, sand dollars... All floating around in the current but in this big, condensed cluster. It's kinda dark in there but there's some sun coming through the current above.

Under sea kelp beds, that's the environment. You're here:

You're not quite sure what all you're going to come across. Cute fish... shark... friendly anthropomorphic sea otter wearing a news cap and suspenders... multiple sharks...

It's a little creepy/ominous but more importantly very beautiful and serene and otherworldly.

You're swimming through this kelp garden and you don't know what you're going to find, and all kinds of different things are going to pop out at you, you're going to have a lot of options in a lot of different areas in your life. You are not going to be someone who is stationary for very long. I think if you are stagnant and still (something you may struggle with) you aren't happy. You are bored more easily than others and have a deep craving for knowledge and novelty, absorbing every last drop of life that you can.

I think in human design, generator people's tell-tale sign for being out of alignment is frustration, they thrive off of having choices to pick from. This helps them feel inspired and like they are getting more out of life. Maybe you are a generator in human design, I think that is the most common type. You are a person of the people, you are salt of the earth, you care deeply for humanity and always pull yourself back to center when you catch yourself straying. You don't let things get to your head as much as you could.

It also looks like there's a chromosome in the center shape on the card. You are here unraveling karma from your past lives and for your ancestors. You are probably dealing with karma that you didn't create personally but exists in your bloodline. The bottom of the deck is the ten of swords - there are mostly sword cards here, with the king of cups standing out as the only water card. This is very Ardra energy in vedic astrology - strong, turbulent, powerful and stormy emotions. Ardra's deity is Rudra, a form of Shiva - who rules over storms. You are clearing out ooooold emotions that have been rotting in your family tree for years. You are finally processing some long-neglected baggage and releasing it.

The combination of the progression of the two to the three of swords, ending with the King of Cups suggests to me that you are going to become a true master of your inner world. Your lens you look at the world through will reach a level of clarity previously unknown to you and likely to your family. You are in tune with the environment in an electric way, sensing the humming and buzzing and shifts in the pitch and tone of the current washing around you. You let it all pass through you, understanding the futility in pretending to be unaffected. You let it pass through you, and you let it be there, and you don't let it shake you. For this reason others will cling to you - the RWS King of Cups sits on a throne carved from solid stone. It is anchored in tossing waves with a grey sky suggesting storms ahead. He looks calmly onward. People will view you as a shock-absorber, someone who can weather catastrophe and guide others through difficulty. I think this is where you are headed, but maybe aren't there quite yet.

Other people might get away (or at least seem to) with pushing aside their pain and never really dealing with it. You aren't one of these people. Your path to fulfillment is through making difficult decisions, sometimes ones where there really isn't a good option. Some of these decisions could affect other people as well. I see this as your heart existing in your head. So much compassion in tandem with a razor-sharp mind. Highly analytical, meticulous, maybe even fussy, combined with glowing warmth that can only be achieved by facing hardship.

There could be a significant male figure in your life who guides you, and you may not recognize the significance of his impact on your life until he's no longer in it. This might be someone you only know for a short period of time before parting ways. Maybe at the time of meeting them it's too overwhelming for you and it doesn't end so well, but the more you digest the relationship over time and think about what you learned from them, the deeper you understand the purity of this person, and the reasons why he navigates the world the way that he does. I think, going through hardship yourself and choosing to remain soft and gentle, you recognize this as a lesson you learned from this person. It's brave to continue believing in people. Also, it's possible to do it without being naive.

This pile knows the true meaning of unfairness. You know what it means to be made to feel selfish for taking care of yourself. You know what it means to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders, to be going through immense difficulty behind the scenes and still getting through the days treating people with kindness. Yeah you just see and feel the pain in others, you sense their stories even if it's just a stranger. You probably walk away from getting coffee and wondering how the barista is handling their breakup even though that was your first encounter with them.

Pile 2: Phenomenon

So right off the bat, Chappel Roan's song Feminomenon might be of significance lol. Maybe that song you was on repeat for you this summer, or you are LGBTQ+, or in some way don't fit in with the norm. Chappel Roan is famous for her drag outfits and crazy makeup and big hair - you could be into style, fashion, hair/makeup. Or maybe you are wanting to get more into these things but don't know how? Maybe you are struggling with expressing yourself right now, and this is a recurring struggle you deal with. If you are struggling with it, I think it's because it's actually something you're really good at - I think you have a natural eye for fashion and art, it's just that you need to reconnect with this part of yourself, and that re connection process will help you get deeper and better with and at it.

Next to your Phenomenon oracle card I pulled the Nine of Cups, Ace of Cups, and the Page of Cups. So all water, you are definitely here to learn how to express your feelings. I think you often feel like sharing how you feel makes you self-centered or you're "making it all about you," even though it ironically helps your relationships because you connect with people better when you're emotionally honest with them.

I think currently you're at a pretty comfortable spot in life. You've worked really hard and have been very much in your earth energy - taking care of your body, keeping a clean home, focusing on consistency at work and in your self-care and discipline. You've worked really hard to get here, and you're finally learning how to give yourself credit for it.

However, I think it still feels like something is missing for you. Looking at your cards (from right to left), the Page of Cups is offering the Ace of Cups to the Nine of Cups. The cup you're looking for, the special sauce that you are missing right now, is connected with your inner child. I think while working on improving your earth energy has been wildly beneficial for you (maybe you're successful for your age, or just really good at keeping your shit together and running a sane life for yourself) you have lost a little bit of touch with your inner softy.

I think you're probably cringing at that too, a little bit lol. Like "man I don't have time to cry and play in my coloring book I gotta pack lunch for work tomorrow" hahahaha. But honestly, if someone has that mindset or thought process about playfulness and fun, they need that energy the most!! In your list of things to do over the weekend that keep your life tidy and chugging along, you are being called to add something wholesome and fun in there.

It's easy to get in the swing of daily living and going through the motions, and it's not wrong at all to pride yourself on your ability to keep a tidy ship. BUT lol that doesn't mean you have to lose out on some harmless chaos and unstructured fun times. You don't let yourself let your hair down as much as you could be. Obviously don't go out and go crazy and do something dangerous lol and if you're not ready to go clubbing every weekend you can start small! Maybe there's a bakery near you that you haven't tried with kick ass muffins, go try that place out. If you're really particular about cleaning your place, try cleaning it in a more 'chill' way if that makes sense lol. Try out letting go of intensity and a "I just need to get this done" attitude. Maybe that means the floors won't be as spotless after mopping than they usually are but hey, they're still clean right?

Yeah I think what's really coming through for this pile is letting going of perfection and holding yourself to unrealistic standards, so much of your power lies in fun, and not just fun but also facilitating fun. Lifting up the people around you. With the Ace of Cups in the middle of your spread, you guys are here to out pour to those around you. People are enchanted by you and think you live a charmed life, they are envious of your innocence, your lack of care for/about status and authority. It's refreshing (i mean, these are all cups cards lol) on multiple levels! You might not notice how your inner child lifts people up, and how just one conversation you have with someone leaves them feeling nourished after you walk away.

Pile 3: Vulnerability

Hey pile 3 welcome!

You guys picked the vulnerability oracle card and your tarot cards are the four of pentacles, the ace of wands, and the magician. This is the description for your oracle card:

"As the flower opens and offers itself, the butterfly says "yes." Opening and exposing ourselves to new possibility comes with risk, but also holds the potential for great reward. Be willing to share your gifts with the world, allowing the acceptance and recognition vulnerability can bring."

This one feels pretty damn straightforward haha, you guys are here to build literally any life that you want to. I am looking and these cards as a progression - the man in the four of pentacles seizes the ace of wands and becomes the magician. Literally he lets go of these four measly pentacles, grabs the magic wand, and become the magician he was always meant to become.

You guys have sooooo much power within you. Your manifesting skills are truly off the chart and it seems like right now you're not really sure what to do with this gift. I think you could be feeling overwhelmed by all the possibilities. You are probably the kind of person who has a lot of different interests, can feign commonality with just about anyone because you're smart and absorb knowledge like a sponge - so you have tidbits of information on a huge range of topics. Someone will bring up in conversation that their grandparents berry farm is suffering because of a disease or certain kind of pest in the area and you're like "oh yeah I've heard that those types of flies are invasive and it's like becoming a widespread problem" lmao.

You could be a gemini mars or north node - the tarot card associated with mars in gemini is the nine of swords - literally analysis paralysis is your guys' biggest obstacle. You have everything in your head, but you struggle to bring your creations to life. I wouldn't be surprised if you guys are some flavor of neurodivergent, maybe ADHD or on the autism spectrum. You are ahead of the times.

I think this pile is similar to pile one because I'm getting an ancestral element for you guys. I think the women in your family have packed on years of frustration because they were made to believe that they just can't build for themselves. The women in your family line have sat with huge creative potential but the fear they carried prevented them from being able to actually use it to birth their ideas into the real world. They saw their fathers and brothers and husbands go out into the world with so much confidence, maybe with less skill or more boring ideas, and create success for themselves. I think you should know that it was not all sunshine and roses for the men in your family - there was such a huge amount of pressure to achieve and earn and perform that they didn't even really get a chance to really choose what they wanted to do. They just knew that it was expected of them to do well and provide for their families.

But the women, ah there is so much rage honestly. You have the chance in this lifetime to channel not only your own creativity but that of your mother, her mother, her sisters, etc. I think when you create it's a full experience for you. Like it's not that you don't phone it in, it's that you can't. You can't make something and not be fully in it. I think this might be part of your blockage as well - you tell yourself that if something you make isn't perfect or exactly as you envisioned it in your head, then it was a waste of time. It wasn't. I think if you allow yourself to be messy and be a little more process-oriented, you can really get the ball rolling for yourself. And honestly probably process a lot of those packed on emotions from your family.

You are someone who can get quick results in things if you really put your mind to something. Right now it seems like your task is to sift through your daydreams, then after that you can start taking some little steps towards making something happen. Even if it's something tiny you do to get closer to a goal, it's still really important for you guys especially to really celebrate that. And really mean it when you celebrate! If you guys work a job you aren't crazy about to pay the bills like so many of us do, maybe you have been drained or just don't see how you have the time to make one of your interests something more than just an idea in your head.

This is going to be a process of re-parenting yourself in a way. If you belittle your accomplishments and progress towards the things you really want to bring into the world, they will slowly shrivel up. You wouldn't make fun of a kid for trying something new and not being amazing at it, so you can't do that with yourself. You deserve support and love on your journey, not only that but you need it! You have the power to create the space for yourself to thrive in, and then thrive in it! You guys are honestly like buzzing with electricity. I think sometimes you have so many ideas that you get confused and tired just thinking about all of them, and maybe you act out in frustration but your not even sure why your upset. There are parts of yourself that have not been given enough attention, and once you start letting them out in the light they can show you what they can help you do in this life.

I think too that getting more in touch with your sexuality will help with this process, getting more in your body and letting yourself feel sexy and sensual, really being in the moment with your body and then carrying that energy with you in your endeavors. Yeah let yourself be a horndog lol it will help you reach your goals

Best of luck pile 3, not that I think you need it hahaha

[kasienda]

Fanfiction Year in Review 2023

I fill this out every year. It’s become a bit of a tradition for me. Allows me to reflect on everything that I’ve written and kinda think about where I want to go next. And I like it better from the ask games because I don’t have to wait for asks to come in and can compare my answers from one year to the next. ^_^

1 List of fics completed this year in the order they were finished:

Displaced (Ladrien oneshot)

No Regrets (Ladynoir oneshot - smut)

You Don’t Have To Pretend With Me (Platonic Adrino oneshot)

Representation Reveal (S5 Adrinette oneshot)

Kisses in the Rain (S5 AU Love Square - technically multichapter, but it’s shorter than many of my one-shots)

Would Trust You With Everything (Adrino multichapter)

Just An Ordinary Girl (Marichat oneshot)

Love Remains (Ladynoir multichapter)

Spin the Bottle (OT4 with cour four - technically oneshot, but it’s longer than Kisses and has more kisses in it. Haha!)

2 Number of words written: 

Written: 166,114 words

Published: 151,018 words (more than twice 2022’s number!! Go me!!) 

Those numbers are incredibly close together because I haven’t been redrafting as much. Those numbers include six one shots, three completed multi chapters. And another four multi chapter WIPs saw at least one update.

And in another fun milestone! I broke a million words published on Ao3 just this last week!! (I've been writing fic since 2003 and everything I've ever written is on Ao3!)

3 Your most popular fic:

Not Part of the Plan - I suspect that this is mostly because being a teen pregnancy fic, it’s my most tropiest story this year. Haha! 

4 Your personal fav:

Aftermath - This story has usurped Right Behind You as my favorite. I’ve been able to connect to the raw hurt and grief in this story, and there’s something very raw and human about it that others seem to be able to connect to as well. I think it’s some of my best work, and that is also thanks to an amazing beta in @ladyofthenoodle who has lent her expertise in more than one way in making this one more true to lived experience. 

5 Your fav scene:

It’s so hard to pick a favorite!! I narrowed it down to my three favorites in no particular order. 

The last scene in Ch 5 Love Remains - Chat Noir give amnesiac Ladybug a geography lesson from space. It’s got Whole New World vibes, and I just loved the imagery of it.

Ch 4 of Aftermath - I’m particularly proud of Marinette’s panic attack when Adrien tells her she doesn’t have to keep coming over. Like it feels like it comes out of nowhere, but it just totally makes sense. And how it manifests and how she soothes herself (it’s not healthy, but it’s so GOOD!)

Ch 7 of Would Trust You With Everything - The scene where Chat Noir tries to tell Nino who he is, but inevitably doesn’t. And how Nino reassures him through all that. This scene feels so raw, but so heartwarming in light of Adrien’s fears. And I don’t know - it’s beautiful to me.

6 A fic or scene that challenged you:

I really struggled with Right Behind You this year, though it wasn’t for lack of trying! I had started out the year hoping to go back to an update a month here and I only updated it three times throughout 2023. 

This was incredibly frustrating because the initial drafts of scenes would come pretty easily, but I couldn’t seem to make them pop the way the earlier chapters did. The good news is I think I figured out what the issue was. Most of my writing this year has been speed writing. And a big part of that is just where I’ve been emotionally. I’m very very out of practice in editing and redrafting, which this story and Aftermath both definitely need. 

I’ve only been able to edit Aftermath because I’ve had a ton of help. (Thanks Noodles!) Sadly, it’s harder to find betas for rarepairs, but I have succeeded! (Thanks@coffeebanana!)

7 A line of writing you’re proud of: 

“She wanted to be there to see it. To see him.”

This line is way better in context, but I’ve made myself cry about three times with it. And I refuse to explain it because that would give its power away. Guess you’ll just have to go read Aftermath. 

8 A comment that touched you: 

I can never answer this question without mentioning several!! 

Would Trust You With Everything - this story had a ton of enthusiastic followers - way more than rarepair work usually gets, and I wrote this story right after my life fell apart and all the commenters here made throwing this story together just that much more joyful during a time when I REALLY needed it. (I'm looking at you, @bittersweetresilience, @bbutterflies @flightfoot @coffeebanana and so many others that I don't know your tumblr name!!!) Not Part of the Plan Comments - I added sex ed lessons to the end of each chapter here because there’s so much about fertility and pregnancy that people don’t know if typical pregnancy fics are anything to go by, and this seemed to inspire so many people to share their pregnancy stories!!! And these have been so cool because I’ve learned that these stories just don’t often have an opportunity to be shared. And it’s neat that this story with its accompanying lessons could create a space for that!! Aftermath comments - lots of people who have really struggled with moderate to severe depression have apparently felt very seen by this fic. And that a story that is essentially about two characters who feel very alone and like no one can understand can help people feel LESS alone and MORE understood is simply amazing!! I love this story so much!! AHH!! Here's one from @neurovascular-entrapta that meant a lot to me.

9 Something that inspired your writing:

Grief and the need to feel things in a distant abstract-these-are-story-book-characters kind of way so I don’t have to feel my actual feelings as closely every moment of the day really kept me writing the whole year long.

10 Your proudest accomplishment (that one scene; finally finishing that one fic; posting your first fic; etc):

My writing has been really raw and messy this year, and I can’t keep tenses straight to save my life. But there’s something powerful about the rawness that I really like even as all the grammatical errors and the lack of effort on the technical side of most of my stories has driven me nuts. 

I am proud of myself for being able to get back into the big projects in these last few months after not being able to face them from April to October. And I’ve started participating in a few writing events here and there again in addition to working on my own pet projects. 

11 Do you have any writing goals for the next year?

Well, I wanted to finish Not Part of the Plan in 2023, which didn’t happen only barely! So hoping the last chapter and the epilogue make it out within the next month. Once that’s done I think I want to try and make Aftermath and Right Behind You my primary focus projects this year. And of course, I’m sure new plot bunnies and writing events will take over my brain on occasion. Last year, I said I wanted my writing to become a reliable mental health tool for me again, and I’m glad to say that it definitely was that for 2023. I hope I’m able to use my writing this year to continue my healing journey. 

And maybe go and proofread all of the fics I finished in 2023 to fix all the inconsistent tense issues to prepare them for being bound eventually!

12 Anyone you would like to thank?

SO MANY PEOPLE!

@jennagrinsoverml for being one of my oldest fandom friends! For becoming a real life friend for all that we haven't actually met in person. For all the times you vented to me and listened and sent me pictures of your family and gushed over pictures of mine. I'm lucky to know you!

@ladyofthenoodle - for showing up in my DMs, For being a most insightful beta, for dragging me into a larger community over and over again, for listening to both my real struggles and my first world problems, for being my friend!!

@thelibraryloser - I don't know how to put this into words. But I very much look up to you. For your resilience through difficult times - you are role-model for how to handle this world with grace and kindness. Thank you for your stories!

@coffeebanana - for being so enthusiastic in the creation process before and after! When I have a story that is getting no attention one comment from you makes it so it doesn't matter. You give me all I need.

@bittersweetresilience and @wackus-bonkus-maximus for just being so kind and enthusiastic and supportive of any idea I happen to be talking about in any given moment. I guess for enabling me. Haha!

@blur0se and @mila-beedoodling for sharing your ideas and inspiring me to create new things!!

@asukiess, @chocoluckchipz, @sariahsue, @miabrown007 for creating so many beautiful things and for being kind and engaging in so many conversations!

And now, I'm really nervous that I'm forgetting someone because this is the first time where I feel like I've had more than three fandom friends. Haha! It's a good problem to have I suppose. In general, thank you to the miraculous community for helping me to survive this year. <3 <3 <3

Happy New Year Everyone!!

I invite anyone who wants to, to fill this out! (Or something similar because I think it can be modified for artwork pretty easily). But if you do, please tag me, so I can be a cheerleader for all you've accomplished this year!

[literatecowboy]

*opens ur window and sits on your bed* greetings, fellow König enjoyer. Have you ever considered! War God König who has a relationship with the goddess of victory! Reader? Have a lovely day!! *creepy back into my void*

Hi, and thank you so much for being my first-ever ask!! You have handed the steering wheel to a 90 year old lady who should have had her license revoked and we are going on the highway >:)

I pondered this for a little while last night and I really like it! I’m not sure if you wanted NSFW or had a specific mythology in mind so I’m just going to write down the flow of ideas that kinda went through my head. This will be mostly NSFW and the imagery is inspired by ancient American cultures :) I hope you like it, this is my first one and my first time writing real smut!!!

I'm new to tumblr and I don't know if I have to tag you in this for you to see it so I'll do it here just in case :) @polnareffsbouncybaraboobies

Smut under the cut!

—

Your bare feet made no noise against the carefully chiseled stone stairs of the temple as you climbed them. Lights from flickering braziers illuminated hairless watchdogs chained outside of the temple’s upper room, but they did not react as you passed them by. They could not see you.

Nothing mortal could see you - unless you revealed yourself. It would remain that way for now. You were deep in the heart of the territory of your people’s enemies - a people you had little love for. They worshipped you too, of course, but less…fervently. Their offerings were fewer, more pathetic. It was almost as if they thought they didn’t need your favor.

You brushed past the curtain over the doorway to the inner sanctum. It was smoky inside and smelled of coppery blood and sweet incense. Upon a dais in the center of the room stood a larger-than-life golden statue of a proud warrior holding the head of an enemy to the sky. Offerings of incense, money, food, pelts, and other luxuries surrounded it, but the god they had been offered to almost seemed unsatisfied.

König reclined at the base of his statue, his bare, rippling muscles shining in the firelight. The pelt of a jaguar was secured around his waist with intricate golden clasps and his arms and legs were wrapped in snake-shaped golden bangles. His broad, muscular chest was bare, decorated only with intricate tattoos and warpaint fashioned from the blood of the men he’d slain.

You’d never seen his face before and you could not see it now. He always wore the same helmet - its beak curved down over his face and ended in a sharp point that caressed his chest. A proud headdress of colorful feathers spilled out of the top and trailed down his back. König was terrifyingly large in size and personality - and yet you knew you could sway him to your side.

When he saw you he smiled and sat up straighter, pushing aside his war-club and decorated shield to make room for you on the chaise he lounged on.

“My love, you have been away from me for too long.” he practically purred, standing to his full height. You slunk forward and he embraced you as you traced your fingers across the muscles in his chest.

“You think I have not missed you?” you murmured, meeting his eyes with a teasing smile. He grasped your hips and lifted you into the air, pushing you back against the temple wall as his lips found your neck.

“You are as beautiful as the day we were wed, even all of these millennia later,” he growled, his voice low as he bit gently at your collarbone. You could feel his hardness pressed between your legs and you were glad you’d worn little other than your jewelry to see him.

“I have a proposition for you,” you whispered, wrapping your legs around his waist as he cupped your breast gently.

“Oh? Have you come to seduce me for a favor? I am your husband…you need not resort to such measures…” König trailed, biting your breast and trailing kisses back up to your lips. You groaned softly, and he smiled into the kiss, tracing two fingers over your entrance and ghosting over your clit.

“Already wet for me, hmm? Has it been too long since I have given myself to you?” he growled, kissing you again, more fervently this time as he slipped one finger into you, slowly pumping it in and out.

You gasped and arched your back against the wall, raking your nails down König’s chest. He hissed in pleasure as small beads of blood dripped down his chest and you could feel precum drip onto your thigh.

“Koni…” you murmured, pushing your hips down against his hand as he slid another large finger into you.

“Yes, love? What is it you want?” he smiled against your neck as he kissed and bit at the exposed skin.

“Fight for my people. Guide them to victory - ah! They will give you gifts…fuck…more than you have here. You will be their - oh, fuck, Koni - patron. They will build a bigger temple than the one you have here.” you gasped out. König was quiet, considering it for a moment.

He surged away from the wall with you in his grip, pulling his fingers out of you and dropping you on your back onto the chaise he had been reclining on when you’d come in. He tore the leopard pelt loincloth free from his waist and his cock sprang free.

“Koni, please,” you begged, half for him to be inside you and half for him to protect your people. He crawled onto you and with a single, powerful thrust, pushed his cock into you. You moaned together, your back arching as you grasped at the pelts you were laid on as he began thrusting slowly, pulling all the way out before slamming back in.

“I will do anything for you, my love,” he growled as he bit down hard on your neck, doing his best to leave a mark all of the other gods would see. He began thrusting faster and you raked your nails down his back, crying out in pleasure.

“These people…mean nothing to me.” he barked, pulling your hips closer to his as you bucked forward desperately, trying to take him deeper inside of you.

“They treat me as a secondary god. I do not even have the biggest temple in the city,” he growled bitterly, reaching down to circle your clit as he frantically pounded into you. You could feel your orgasm building and your eyes rolled back as you gasped.

“I will return with you,” he said, looking up to stare you deep in the eyes as you dragged your hands down his chest, smearing the intricate warpaint and leaving delicate handprints behind. “And I will rule with you, and I will fuck you like this in my temple every night.”

You came with a shriek, your back arching and pushing your trembling chest into König. He wrapped his lips around one of your nipples and sucked as his thrusts became sloppier and harder. His hips stuttered as he came deep in you, filling you until your belly swelled slightly with his seed.

You both panted together and he collapsed on top of you, laying his head on your chest as you caught your breath.

“We will not be apart again,” he murmured, gently rubbing your sides as you drifted off to sleep.

[catholic-character-tournament]

Round 5 - Catholic Character Tournament

Propaganda below ⬇️

Hellboy Propaganda

He is literally the beast of the apocalypse. He was forcibly assigned catholic at birth, he deserves this. Now i know the rules said no demons, and that is fair. But here is my propaganda: he is a half-demon AND he absolutely does not want to end the world. He just wants to hang out and beat up monsters and work his job. But catholic guilt and apocalypse stuff always gets in the way. The comic books contain a ridiculous amount of religious imagery, the author was raised catholic, and passages from the bible are occasionally quoted. Hellboy is also portrayed as a messianic figure in conjunction with being an apocalyptic one. He uh, kind of becomes the savior of the new world and its like a whole thing. Catholic imagery appears frequently. Statues of the virgin mary, churches, etc. he also wears a literal cross on his belt, what can i say.

Okay here’s my rant. Hi, hello, propaganda. The last ten issues of the comic literally feature Hellboy going to hell and killing satan. He kills satan, fucks around in hell for a bit, and then blows everything up and its godamn tragic. Forcibly assigned catholic at birth. A bro did not ask for this it just happened. His mom was a witch but tried to become catholic after she died. Kind of a banger move. It didn’t work out for her but she gets points for trying. He tried real hard to save the world and it kind of worked but he did still die and go to hell. But not because he did anything bad, it was just kind of unavoidable. Again, he did blow the place the fuck up when he was done so. Respect.

Lapsed Catholic who is literally a half demon and also the rightful King of England that’s right he’s descended from King Arthur on his mother’s side.

Matt

Matt's faith in the show is really important and well explored; one of the first scenes of the show is Matt going to confession (or, well, talking to his priest since he's not really confessing at that point). Matt struggles a lot with what he's supposed to do; everyone's telling him to kill the villain and he kinda wants to, but he literally says: "I know my soul is damned if I take his life". He struggles with his faith and goes with his doubts to his priest, and it's beautiful—also when he finally gets a costume for his vigilanteing he chooses to dress as the devil, lol. (His priest tells him that nothing makes people run to Church faster than the feeling of having the devil on their heels.)

a lot of the show is about how he justifies his vigilante actions with his faith, and whether he's doing the right thing in trying to help people or just using it as an outlet for his anger. the literal first scene of the show has him in a confession booth talking to his priest (who is a really interesting character too). this is not the scene I was talking about but it's such an excellent scene with matt talking to his priest: https://youtu.be/XHZ3NbEIDdw

canonically catholic but dresses like a demon to be quirky

honestly i dont wanna type too much but i feel that matt is a great example of someone who battles with his faith because he rarely loses his faith but rather fights with why he was made the way he was and put through what he was. He believes himself to have the devil inside him but believes that God put him there

ok in the comics barring the most current run matt has Mostly been a non-practicing Catholic that very rarely actually does any catholic Activities but ends up falling back into the Mindset and very occasionally dramatically taking confession (ex. in that one issue where he takes confession, basically tells the father that he is uniquely terrible and is thinking about violently murdering someone and when the father says "you can be forgiven" hes like "AUGFH-- NO!!!!!!!!!!" and runs out) when he's gone through some shit. and i love that its so relatable

This guy so catholic he spends an ungodly amount of time just chilling in the church. And goes there whenever there is a moral conundrum about killing people being Bad even though it would solve a lot of problems and stop said people from killing other people. This happens every other episode. Matt is the Catholic Guilt Guy. There's actually a lot of catholic stuff in the show as a whole. Just a compilation would be like three whole episodes long.

Hes great hes catholic enough to not outrught murder people but not catholic enough to not fuck before marriage hes a bisexual disaster at all times hes besties with a priest might i add hes great hes my special little guy

his catholicism is a huge piece of his characterisation he was raised by nuns in a catholic orphanage, the first scene we ever see him (as an adult and not a flashback) is him going to confession, he is good friend with his priest and has regular debates with him, etc also in s3 he has a huge crisis of faith after he lost A Lot where he stops believing for a while and it's linked to his identity crisis where he actually wants to kill another person (a hard line he previously chose never to cross) and wants to be only daredevil and not matt murdock, when he is both and needs both to exist also when he was a kid his grandmother used to say "watch out for the murdock boys, they've got the devil in them" and it created a surprising lot of his issues

So he's both catholic in the comics and the show but he's More Catholic in the show. Like, raised in a catholic orphanage by nuns (ONE OF WHICH IS HIS *MOTHER*), second scene in the show has him in a confession box kind. Matt Murdock goes out and gets the shit beaten out of him nightly and also beats the shit out of other people and purposefully leaned into devil iconography as his theme. When his nurse friend says, he takes a lot of punishment without one complaint he says "That part's the Catholicism." It is a Core Aspect of his character (at least in the show). He makes me insane. Also the same chemicals that blinded him created the teenage mutant ninja turtles and everyone should know that.

They went to confession to a priest who they had saved as their costumed counterpart and the guy recognized them by the voice, proving that it's possible and everyone else is just dumb

he takes "i wanna fight god" to new and incredibly violent levels, while also being a sweetheart and a goofball

Actually strictly WILL NOT kill criminals. Goes wayyy out of his way to avoid it. Fights with the Punisher about it. Goes to confession booth after nightly vigilante excursions. Feels so much guilt. "How have you been holding up?" "Like a good Caltholic boy" "that bad huh" - actual conversation with his priest

So Daredevil struggles with his mission as a crime fighter because killing criminals goes against his faith. He makes it a point to not kill criminals, believing that even bad people deserve a second chance. This philosophy puts him at odds against The Punisher, who is a relentless killer. As a Catholic myself, while I love the concept of a morally conflicted superhero, I think the worldbuilding around Daredevil is lacking. If he struggles with violence and killing, why doesn't he pray to warrior saints like Saint Michael, Saint Ignatius of Loyola (a former knight), or Saint Joan of Arc? Why isn't there a community of other Catholics he can turn to for guidance, considering New York City has a sizeable population of Catholics? And why are the churches he goes to always empty? Doesn't he know that the Catholic Church supports the just war theory? I think that would have made his burden more bearable.

He goes to church and confesses to punching people and says "imma do it again can i apologize in advance" and the father dude says "no you're meant to stop now" and Matt says "no" and they do this everyday. I'm not remembering it properly but this is a canon interaction i swear

HELLO HI YES I LOVE HIM AND WILL INFOR DUMP ok so. he is a vigalantty and he got named daredevil and he is an orphan and after the age of 12 was raised in an orphanage at a Catholic church and his therapist is his priest via confession abd. also his mother is a nun he has a whole mental breakdown over god and called Job a pussy because he liked god until he got better and liked god again he said "I'm dearedrvil and not even god can stop that now" and he's so cool

matt is a freakish little babygirl who was raised by nuns and definitely has religious trauma. i hate him so much (affectionately)

he’s literally fucking insane about it i don’t know what to say here. he thinks he’s chosen by god to go on some sort of holy quest to save hell’s kitchen. joan of arc ass.

i already know hes in by default j just wanted to give him a personal shout out i love this angsty catholic dweeb

how practicing he is depends on the run, but in my favorite he is quite literally confessing to a member of the last extant order millitant who happens to be a priest at a church in hells kitchen.

i love him for having the funniest version of a trope i usually hate (person gets into confession booth and asks forgiveness not for what they've done, but for what they're about to do). usually this trope just looks silly to me bc like. the priest would just say "i can't do that" and you would have to either awkwardly explain yourself or just Leave. it's funny when matt does it because fr. lantom is probably like "what are you gonna do???" and matt's like "lol. lmao. 😊 hehehe." anyway we love this angry catholic man who dresses up like the devil to beat people up in hell's kitchen

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I'm sure Harrow is lovely and I respect the space lesbians but listen to me. Listen.

Matt Murdock is the Catholic character of all time, and if you make him lose, I am blowing up this website and everyone in it.

He is Catholic. His mother is a nun. He grew up in a catholic orphanage. Half the episodes in the show include him going to confession. When he needs therapy, he talks to his priest. He dresses up as a devil partly because of the Catholicism.

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One time he got godly powers on loan from Heimdall (see below), and he did a lot of good with it, and then the second it was over he just... well. Also see below!

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This man's every coping mechanism is Catholicism.

Please vote for Matt in the @catholic-character-tournament because he's the best and most realistic representation of what it means to be Catholic. Someone who's been punched and bet and crushed by life but still gets up every day to try. No, he's not a nun like his competition but he's not less devoted because of that. Not everyone is called to service. In the day he works at a defense lawyer to help people. Not for the money but to help people not get screwed over by the law. And at night, he dons a mask and beats up assholes when the law fails them. Is he perfect? No, that's the point. Matt is a broken man who is just trying his best to do well and live like Jesus.

He fully embodies the Catholic doctrine of faith and good works. He has faith in what he's doing even if others challenge him. He believes in forgiveness and repenting even when going up against "the devil."

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"The people you murder deserve another chance." ... "No, Frank. To try again, Frank. To try. And if you don't get that, there's something broken in you you can't fix, and you really are a nutjob." "You think God made you a one-man firing squad. But you're wrong. There is goodness in people, even in you. And you're gonna have to kill me, 'cause I'm never gonna stop coming for you, until I take you down."

Daredevil Season 2 Episode 3

He (tries) to love his enemy. He believes in Elektra and Frank and maybe Dex and their ability to change. To be good. And when he can't, Matt refuses to compromise on his morals. While not quite "turning his cheek" he never scoops to their level. Because they don't get to destroy who he is.

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Daredevil Season 3 Episode 13

All he does is for the love he has to his neighbors, his community. He loves New York. Not for self-fulfilling needs or for the money or for the fame. He does it because he believes in justice. Because the law was created by humans and is inherently sinful.

"But his competition met God and was disappointed and blah blah"

Daredevil is more grounded (at least the show, maybe less the comics). So now, Matt doesn't met God. But he sure gets mad at him. All of season 3 he angry at God for all the trauma he expired.

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"You see, that was me, Sister. I suffered willingly. I gave my, uh... sweat and blood and skin without complaint. Because I too believed I was God's soldier. ( chuckles ) Well, not anymore. I am what I do in the dark now. I bleed only for myself. ( scoffs )" ... "You might hate God right now, but the feeling is not mutual." "No, I don't hate him. I've just seen his true face, is all."

Season 3 episode 1

As a Catholic I don't really want to fight God in a parking lot. Well I do but not in the same way that I've understood (primarily Jewish people but probably other Abrahamic religions) want to fight God in a Denny's parking lot. I want to yell and scream and cry at God and for the feeling to not be mutual. For Him to never stop loving me. As long as I have faith, He will reach out his hand.

[daisywords]

ok hiiiii im back i have soo many questions. bc I am Looking at the every dead person gets reanimated thing 👀

if someone dies, can they get reanimated in their own body/possess themselves? just like missing their own free will ig? or is it more of a truly mindless-zombie type of situation?

and since the body still reanimates if it's chopped up, is it like. one divided consciousness? can a zombie guy carry around their own severed head like a macabre fashion accessory.

is there a special way to bury the dead that prevents this or stops them from shambling around?

how does the society of this world like. work around that? bc thats craaazy to have to live with and KNOW is going to happen to u and everyone u care about.

bonus to that how do ppl in this world feel about it? is this like. a horrifying eventuality or is it just like kinda normalized for them?

that was like one million questions sorry I am just. soooo intrigued rn loll

hiiiiiii thank you for asking I could talk about this all day

Nope! It's actually one powerful entity that possesses all of them. Kind of like a hivemind situation. (Except said entity's mind is mostly imprisoned so they are operating mostly on instinct)

Yes! Because of the hivemind thing, not only can separated body parts from the same body work together, but any number of intact bodies or parts from different bodies can work together (If you have multiple left alone for long enough they might uh. merge...)

You have to cremate them or otherwise completely destroy the body/significantly alter the material for the effect not to take hold. Also fun fact possessed bodies do not decompose :) And basically become invulnerable the longer they are possessed. Luckily we have magical Divine Light weapons that can hurt them, though!

It is crazy! Typically they will have infrastructure set up to make it fairly easy to cremate a body as soon as possible, so in a well-functioning city, you won't have that many issues with it. Obviously you still get problems if someone dies alone/in their sleep/unaccounted for. Culturally it's encouraged to try and have people die in a hospital or something similar because they have a system for that. And luckily the empire employs a task force whose number one job is basically zombie exterminator (but their role has expanded to other sorts of cop stuff. also a significant thing keeping the empire together since that's run centrally). People are also incentivized to live in tighter communities, since if you're off in the wilderness, you can get Got by all they other guys who have died in the wilderness over the years. Another a side effect of all this is that it's easier to get away with murder since it's not particularly suspicious to just...get rid of a body. Another thing it affects is their medicine, since things like dissection are Not Done for practical reasons, as you can imagine.

It is fairly normalized (They don't have cultural memory of a time when this didn't happen, so it's just like the way the world works). It is a horrifying eventuality but in the same way regular old death/disease is for us. There are a lot of cultural implications obviously so like for example they don't have any concept of honor/desecration of dead bodies. once they die you have no reason to respect the body as an object. time to destroy it as fast as possible. you know your loved one isn't in there any more because very shortly Something Else is going to be. It also affects stuff iconographically in the sense that you would never see human skull imagery, for example. People don't have a baseline shorthand idea for what a human skull looks like. Something else interesting is that it cements the human/animal divide in their world concept, because it only happens to humans, so "human is a type of animal" is not really a way of thinking.

[presidenthades]

I am doing very minor revisions of Daemon’s Handbook (mostly formatting and continuity errors), and I wanted to do some behind-the-scenes commentary before too much time passes and I forget my original thoughts. Here’s Chapter 7!

(Note that these commentaries aren’t canon to the verse until/unless the author writes them into the series. I might change my mind on a few points later, but these are the thoughts I had while writing.)

If I had to pick a favorite chapter to write, it’s this one. It’s the first post-time skip chapter, so we get to behold all the children (now young adults) in full horny mood.

Also, Alyssa develops a personality, and BOY is it a personality. I originally planned to make her a female version of Aegon III, who is very quiet, but it occurred to me that a hellion would be more fun (and torturous for Daemon, which is the real goal in this fic).

Aegon and Aemond are supposed to return directly to King’s Landing and wait with their family to receive the Dragonstone party, but Aegon decided he couldn’t wait to see Jace again and Aemond only required mild convincing to go along. And yes, the boys took a bath first in some river so they look nice and groomed~

One of Jace’s biggest character quirks is anxiety. She has ALL the anxiety. Comes with being an eldest sibling and second in line for the throne. I don’t consider her shallow, but she perceives her appearance as an important part of her political and social toolkit because the society they live in puts a lot of stock in appearances, especially women’s. So she’s finicky about looking the right part for every occasion. (Also she wants to look nice for her husband whom she hasn’t seen in three years, nothing wrong with that.)

I made Luce a knitter, partly because I’m a knitter and I like incorporating my interests, and partly because I wanted to give her a textile craft that wasn’t embroidery. I hope I’m not being too biased when I say that in this era, knitted products (like socks) are more useful than embroidered products (like fancy handkerchiefs). The practical value of knitting, and it being an acceptable craft for ladies even if it’s not as popular as embroidery, seemed fitting for Luce, who isn’t super conventional but also not a complete rebel. I also really like the imagery of her sending flowery socks to the Stepstones for Aegon and Aemond and Grandpa Corlys to wear.

Daemon is fit for his age, but he’s in his 40s and he’s got a lot of old battle wounds, so chasing around toddlers is fairly strenuous. Also, toddlers are FAST. Alyssa is closer to three than two, and she’s spent her entire life trying to keep up with her older sisters, so she’s got a fairly good sense of balance and isn’t stumbling around as much.

“Pretty girl” is 100% Aegon’s pet name for Jace, and I’m using it gratuitously in one of the sequel fics, which is Jace and Aegon-centric. (I’ll have an update soon on what I’m writing next, but I’ve decided to break down the epic longfic idea into multiple, more manageable mid-length fics.)

Aemond thinks Alyssa is spooked by his eyepatch and scar at first, but she’s actually falling in love at first sight. 😂 She’s got heterochromia so she probably *likes* that his eyes aren’t symmetrical either.

Aegon and Aemond are no longer afraid of Daemon! They’ve seen a lot of shit in the Stepstones, so their middle-aged uncle seems like less of a big deal now. Poor Daemon.

Aegon and Aemond are currently 18 and 16, so I made their stomachs black holes like most teenaged boys. They also have been eating a lot of rations at the Stepstones, even as royal princes, so a “plain” meal at Dragonstone seems awesome.

I have nothing to say about the melons, except that I’m very sorry for Lucera 🥲

Idk why but there’s something about Jace being very dutiful and proper that attracts messy rebels like Aegon and Baela. Opposites attracting, maybe? Kinda like how Luce is on the wilder side but Aemond is super put-together. I’ve thought about a crackish scenario where Viserys messes things up (as usual) and betroths Jace/Aemond and Luce/Aegon. I think Jace and Aemond would get bored with each other while Luce and Aegon might accidentally kill each other.

Jace and Aegon know their siblings are being stupid about their feelings for each other. Jace tries not to meddle (she doesn’t like it when Daemon meddles so she resists the urge), and Aegon makes fun of Aemond in the half-hearted hope it’ll goad Aemond into doing something.

I like to imagine that Luce eventually invents double-entry accounting in this universe. I also think she’s a big fan of the abacus, which is a more visual way of keeping track of numbers. She also likes charts and graphs in general.

The three dragonglass daggers that Luce orders from the blacksmith are for her, Jace, and Joff. (Luce loves all her sisters, but she has a special place in her heart for the three of them who are full-blooded sisters.) Purple for Jace (royal color for the future queen), green for Luce (like the sea and Velaryon colors), red for Joff (Targaryen color, nice and bloody). She isn’t expecting her sisters to use them as weapons; she wanted to make a gesture before Jace’s official wedding, since it marks a huge change in their lives.

I keep describing Luce and Aemond’s relationship in this fic as Pride and Prejudice-esque, and I stand by it. Miscommunication, ego issues, awkward flirting, a failed first proposal. One commenter described Daemon as the anti-Mrs Bennet, trying his best NOT to let the girls marry. 😂 And if we keep the analogy going, Clement Celtigar is Mr Collins while Otto is the closest thing we have to Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

I established in the beginning that Daemon is very bad with feelings. This scene where he tries to comfort Baela is part of his character arc and emotional growth, but he stumbles a few times more before the end of the fic.

I am very pleased that so many readers pinpointed Joff/Daeron as black cat and golden retriever energy, because I was definitely going for that. Daeron spews a lot of word vomit in his one line of dialogue, but you might notice he mentions “I got that thing you really wanted.” See the final scene in Chapter 11 for “that thing.” 👀

Jace is making PR a priority in her reign (and before her reign). She’s observed how loyal the Dragonstone smallfolk are to the Targaryens and wants to spread that loyalty to the realm’s smallfolk in general. This is why she and Aegon do the flight into the city, and why she has her Princess Diana moment on the way to the wedding.

Chapter 8 commentary here

[wisteriagoesvroom]

for the writers truth or dare thingy:

🎨🍓🍄

-isla

🎨 link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

it's hard to pick one favourite! gonna shout out some artists whose stuff i loved recently instead, like @dokidokistart, @kiki0716, @greenygay, @28220-c, @hyonibee, @qqlimnn, @mecachrome's chibis and sooo many more. (as u can tell i love an illustration linework style and an anime kinda style.) but yea! we're so lucky to have such talented fanartists on f1blr.

🍓 how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

for f1 rpf... i'd already been active in other fandoms before and then i saw the lestappen lore and was like. holy shit. red and blue imagery? childhood enemies to whatever this is? two of the most talented vroom vroom blorbos of their generation acting like total simps around each other? this goes hard.

then it was the deep and fast drop into landsoscar once i saw what the (extremely talented) other writers were cooking there too!!

🍄 share a headcanon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

uhhhhh the landoscar getaway driver au. which i would one day maybe like to attempt, mostly to practice writing an action-comedy, but let's not get too ahead of ourselves, which is what i tend to do. often.

from this asks game

(thank u for asking @momimf1ne!)

[spotsupstuff]

If it’s alright with you, I’d love to hear more about your version of Chasing Wind! I absolutely love the idea of half the city being inside their can, and all the cool stuff in the surrounding area, and her design!

awww shit i don't have MANY Wind thoughts she's mostly in the bg. but i'm gon try n scramble for smth for u, captn

to her design, a few small facts! they are the iterator who's design has probably changed the least since i've first made one for them two years ago

her design is HEAVILY inspired by @/inkycorvid, especially the earrings!!! praised be the elder sage for big brain design thoughts

her current outfit is based off of the Rattanakosin dress of Thailand! (simplified to hell n back cuz gods i do have to limit myself Somehow with this kinda stuff else my hand goes caput 🙏. i still have yet to really get the outfit down properly tbh)

the city being half within them and their citizens genuinely loving them lead to Wind becoming SOMETHING of a teacher to the side of her main jobs as an Iterator. this is mostly the case because i sent this vid to shkika sayin "my Wind vibes" and she replied with

so now i'm fucked up about it, because this fucca -points at the screenshot- is SO right about that, that WOULD happen. Wind is SO fuckin excited about teachin kids funky stuff like that. Full of Energy

their holy characterization formula is "good-looking jolly young teacher in either kindergarten or first few years of elementary school who knows martial arts" she looks like an absolute sweetheart but can put a man into an involuntary nap with singular karate chop. like she's still a pushover but at some point the hands start flyin

a city within the iterator is practically unheard of

Wind LOVES their interjections. like every other sentence is gonna have an "oh!" "ah!" "hah!" or smth of the like in it. i didn't headcanon this on purpose she just started doing it herself in her dialogue so i guess that's her Thing now

their positive attitude towards everything ever and their love of kids brought them close to Nish. these two together in one room is like LED headlights on a car. they are so fucking bright you're gonna go blind within seconds

nobody knows how- least of all Suns- but Wind ended up growing very fond of and close to Suns. they converse theory and go through simulations together a lot, when Wind's communications aren't down because of the tornadoes. if this was one of those AUs where the iterators, as their puppets, just hang around, those two would be like constantly at each other's hip. often subconsciously. they are like that one fuckin char dynamic meme

[some nasty stuff under the cut. you have been warned- it's nothing Particularly graphic but the imagery is Not Fun]

Wind is like the only iterator who took Suns' degression into their Hot Girl Summer arc ""well"" cuz she's just tryin so so hard to be positive to the point of blinding herself to bad things completely later down the line. even Nish was wigged about The Hot Girl Summer arc. The Hot Girl Summer arc is Not A Good Thing

ignoring Suns' drama: Wind's voice gets shot at some point and as result it becomes reverbated. the reverbs get worse when she's in distress

[paullovescomics]

Ghost in the Shell

I hadn't seen the original Ghost in the Shell (1995) until a few days ago. Here are some thoughts about it.

It could definitely use a new translation. There's a lot of exposition delivered through dialog, and some of the movie's philosophical ideas are also expressed through dialog, and some of it comes through kinda clunky. (Maybe it's also not very clear in the original Japanese?) This is in addition to the usual sort of awkward phrases, repetition, phrases that feel like nonsequitors, etc. (Translation is not easy.) But in 1995, anime was just starting to gain a foothold in the wider American media market, and studios were probably not paying for the most careful translations.

This movie is so cyberpunk. Everything is made of metal, loads of people have cybernetic enhancements, the world is emotionally cold, everybody's trapped in these huge opaque systems. This time was a real heyday for the genre. I probably would've liked this aspect of it more if I'd seen the movie closer to 1995. IIRC I'd read Neuromancer not long before then and was super impressed by it, like everybody else. Now the depressive aspects stick out to me more. Maybe that's because some parts of it feel more real now, but also because I've just decided I want to imagine better futures. Cyberpunk is that kind of fictional future that tries to show the danger of where we could go if we don't fix some things, which is needed, but we've done so much of that over the last thirty years that we let our ability to imagine something better atrophy. We need to exercise those muscles more.

Along those lines, compare the setting of this movie to solarpunk imagery. They are so different.

So much anime of this era has 80s action movie vibes. Some sort of rebellious or (as here) special type of cop having firefights in the streets, with lots of vehicles involved.

I like how it starts with the characters' lives well advanced. They've had full lives before the story starts. Kusanagi has been a cyborg for years. We get practically nothing about her former life or what led to her becoming a cyborg. This is so different from more recent movies' obsession with origins and backstories and establishing clearly defined motivations. Not that any of those things are bad, but there's more than one way to make a good movie. Movies can also act like short stories that drop us into a world just long enough to tell one compelling tale.

Although the animation here is much more detailed than what we see in cartoons designed for TV, it still cuts some corners. (This is not meant to be a big criticism; budgets have limits.) Transitional and action scenes are very well animated, while dialog scenes are mostly static, with lots of immobile, staring faces. Some of my favorites are those "transitional" scenes (or maybe better thought of as establishing the environment?) of normal life going on in the city. Those had a very strong tone to them, and they involved a lot of animated elements so they must have taken a lot of care to produce.

[andromeda3116]

Hi! Sorry to bother you, but I recently discovered you on A03 through your Zutara fics and I must admit that I'm mesmerized by your stories. They are so wonderfully written—the structure, the development, the characters, the dialogues and the political aspects are so beautiful. Everything about them makes me want to dive in and read and explore the worlds you have created.

I'm writing this in the hope that you might be able to provide me with a little guidance. I really admire your work, and I wanted to know if you had any tips on how to develop characters, dialogues and conflicts, for every scene you've written contributes to the story in some way (it's really engaging and thrilling as a reader).

Without further ado, I hope this finds you well. Thank you :)

First of all, thank you for your kind words! And I'm flattered that you wanted my advice!

The only "trick" I can actually impart is: I've gotten a lot of mileage out of just reading my story out loud to myself, and seeing if it sounds good. And from there is a lot of "oooh, that sounds wrong, how about..." until you get something that works, or -- quite often, in my experience -- you just highlight the sentence to come back to later when you're less frustrated. And try again. (This is particularly useful with dialogue.)

But for the rest... I know this is going to sound trite, but the answer is to just write a lot. And read a lot.

Everyone has their lists of writing advice, how to structure stories and make them pop -- but ultimately, everyone has a different way of doing those things, and mostly, there isn't actually a correct answer. Finding your voice just takes practice.

Reading a lot -- and watching a lot of movies and shows! -- can teach you a lot of the wrong ways to do it, either because you cringe away from the screen/page for reasons you can't put into words, or because it all comes together so well that you try to mimic it in your own writing and you have to figure out why you couldn't do it like they did. Trust me, I wrote a lot of derivative shit while trying to capture someone else's lightning in my own bottle. I honestly don't think that's a bad thing -- everyone learns from someone else, and everyone starts off by mimicry. If anyone claims to have had their own unique voice from the start, they're full of shit.

Redwall taught me how to craft imagery, I can point you back to the FFX oneshot that taught me how to use single-sentence punches to gut the reader, Terry Pratchett taught me how to incorporate politics into a story in such a way that it doesn't feel dry, there was a brief period back on fictionpress.net (s/o to my other fandom olds) where weird single-sentence poetry (?) things? were super-cool to me and they taught me how to build emotion using syntax, Lord of the Rings taught me how build an engaging plot, the drabble and one-sentence challenges taught me how to use conservation of words to make what I did have count -- and so on and so forth.

I've been writing stories since I could hold a pencil, and sharing them, getting feedback on them, and actively engaging with them since I was 13 (I'm 33). It sounds like weak advice, but it really legitimately just does come down to "read something that sets your brain on fire, try to do something like it, inevitably fuck it up, try it again until you figure out why it didn't work, fix that, read something else that sets your brain on fire, try to do it, inevitably fuck it up --" ad nauseum, until you've figured out enough "yikes"-es that you know how to craft a story on your own that hits all the notes you want it to hit. Kinda like sculpting, you start with a shapeless rock and chip away at all the parts that don't work until you learn what does. And the statues you make get better and better the more of them you sculpt. They don't have to be good. A lot of them won't be. And that's a good thing! It's the process of learning how not to do it that teaches you how to get it right.

But other than that, I unfortunately can't give you a lot of advice. It honestly does just take a lot of practice, consuming stories and digesting them and pulling their pieces out to try and make something out of it all yourself. And accepting that you're gonna fail a lot. I failed a lot. I still fail a lot. There's never a point where you're done learning how not to do it.

Wanting to write well is the first step. Writing badly is the second.

[barkanon]

The days seem to blur by with the blank gray walls and concrete floor. The man inside wasn’t really sure how long he was there; one day, one week? He lost track after the 7th meal of cold rice and beans that was practically thrown through the door.

No one was really sure what he was, and no one wanted to take chances.

~ More under the cut below bc it's kinda long 9around 700 words SLDFKJ)! TW/CW include: References to human and animal death (including family death, and murder ofc), abuse, isolation, and alcohol abuse. Nothing too graphic, but I'd rather list out the warnings just in case! ~

The days seem to blur by with the blank gray walls and concrete floor. The man inside wasn’t really sure how long he was there; one day, one week? He lost track after the 7th meal of cold rice and beans that was practically thrown through the door.

No one was really sure what he was, and no one wanted to take chances.

The door clicked as it unlocked and three officers walked in. The prisoner inside was pushed against the wall and handcuffed by two officers and searched for any potential weapons. The third officer put a sort of muzzle on him, learning the hard way that the man will bite.

Finding no weapons, the officers dragged the shorter guy to another room and shackled him to the table before sitting him down.

Another man walked in, dressed nice though he still wore a badge. Two officers accompanied him in case the prisoner tried anything.

“Name’s Officer Pierce,” the well dressed man said. “May I have your name?”

“Ah, everyone calls me Bark, obvious nickname isn’t it?” The prisoner laughed, though no one else was amused. The room was deafeningly silent, though the man didn’t seem bothered.

“May I have your legal name?” Officer Pierce questioned, his voice a little more firm.

Bark spoke after a tense moment of thought, realizing he would end up losing any fight he tried. “… It’s Issac Baxter. But please, I really don’t like that name.”

The officer wrote in his notebook before looking back up to Bark. “Where are you from?”

“The United States, though I haven’t gone back in a long time..”

Officer Pierce wrote that down as well.

“What state?” The officer didn’t look up from his writing as he questioned.

“South Texas. Grew up rural,” Bark snickered, “farm and all!”

“Hm, what was your family like?” The officer asked casually, though it was clear it wasn’t just small talk.

Bark let out a sigh, his body growing a little tense and restless as he tapped his foot. “Well… I had a mom. I don’t know about a dad. I was raised by this other family - I never learned their names - they had my mom and I work a lot, my mom ended up passing from the heat when I was… 10 or so?” The prisoner wrapped his arms around himself, staring at the ground. “The family’s kids would make fun of me a lot, and the adults never really treated my mom and I well. Thankfully they allowed us to build our own little shelter in the yard, which at least shielded us from rain and hail…”

The officer wrote down notes quickly as Bark spoke. “What kind of farm work did you do?”

“Animals, mostly cattle,” Bark started. “That’s actually how I ended up collecting bones, any sick animals that would pass, I would wait for them to rot a little and then take what I could salvage! It took days but it would be worth it..”

The detective grimaced at the imagery before continuing his questions. “What happened to make you leave that?”

The silence was deafening as Bark tried to figure out his words.

“The… one of the adults would get drunk and.. violent. But I had enough. I took a shovel and hit him, and he didn’t get back up. The adult woman heard and… I knew they’d probably kill me for that, so I hit her as well. I think I still have the man’s skull, it’s got a large crack down over the left eye..”

The man hesitated before writing it down. “What happened after that?”

“I ran away. I don’t remember where I went. I’m pretty sure I ended up crossing into Mexico for awhile…”

Bark continued to recount the crimes and places he went, fleeing countries whenever he would be caught. He confessed to 56 murders, and said he was ‘unsure, but probably did’ murder another 60. He also confessed to 10 recent murders that happened the previous night, yet he adamantly denied the murder of the two inside the home.

After the interrogation, Bark was returned to his cell to serve his sentence in isolation.

[kerocola]

Hi Kero! I just wanted to let you know I am so excited for Eyes/On and any projects you make in the future. Curious what the inspiration(s) to create a semi-long form project like this was?

It's a long one!

I had a failed story I was working on called Lilypad Mall that never did see the light of day. It had a 11 page work document and focused on my frog girl Keroline. Looking back, the project was really unfocused and all over the place, designs didn't have much connection between each other.

Ultimately I scrapped it back in 2021 as I lost interest in it and left to do other things. Focusing on character design practice and whatever I was going to do with the vtuber design I had made.

The whole vtuber thing was going to be general whatever streams of me working or me playing games, with a small animation series meant to tell a backstory of how the character came to be. The basic rundown of that story was first person torture, but I kinda ran out of ways to show body horror and torture from a first person view and tell a story on the side. This is where the name "Eyes/On" came from! I simply kept it because I couldn't think of a better name after the story shifted.

This iteration of Eres was also primarily evil, focusing on her being a mad witch focusing on experiments and making monsters. This whole project was really ambitious and made me realize I dunno if I could stream that often!

So I focused on retooling that story into something else and salvaging the designs. You could say that Eyes/On has been in the works since 2019! As for the current iteration of the story, it's heavily inspired by the shows and music that involve a larger world with tons of other life taking place in it.

Things like Made in Abyss, Houseki no Kuni, Somali and the Forest Spirit, The Ancient Magus' Bride, music from the talented Mamyukka with songs like 蒼の海底都市, アストロノミア, あやかしばなし, and the whole Evilz album.

There's definitely more, but this post is already getting long enough! But I got a little more left to say.

For the side project, it's main inspiration is mostly from my own feelings, partly my dreams, and Yumi Nikki. If it ever does end up becoming a bigger thing I've got a lot of ideas for imagery and designs that I can't do for Eyes/On that I'd love to use for it.

[memento-morianon]

(Image description: several small drawings of different textile patterns, with captions and descriptions next to them. The captions of each, from left to right and top to bottom, are as follows:

Orc embroidery, on tanned hide or leather. Lots of angular patterns, evokes animal trails, mostly straight lines. dyed leather, hair, and sinews. The patterns shown are all small and repetitive, much like animal footprints or simple geometric shapes.

Gnomish weaving. Focused on nature imagery, geometric, repetitive patterns for everyday stuff, elaborate sun/moon/mountain imagery for important stuff. Mainly earthy colors. The patterns shown here depict a few simple nature motifs that imply moving water, grass, and abstract critters. Below these are more intricate an detailed images of a mountain, three moons, and the sun.

Elven embroidery, on woven cloth or tanned hide. Lots of freehand curves, mostly plant imagery, tiny stitches for smoother lines, very texture. greater detail for formal things. Colorful. The patterns here depict many curving lines and dots, similar to vines and ferns. Towards the center, there is a flying bird near a block of texture similar to tree bark.

Goblin weaving, mostly for baskets. Very geometric, tight layered weave, so many zig zags. watertight, sealed with tree resin. The patterns shown here are repetitive angular shapes and zig zag lines, following square and diamond weave shapes.

Dwarven beading, on leather or woven cloth. Very geometric, but also kinda kaleidoscope. So much texture, evokes mountain imagery and stones, more beads = more formal. Metal, wood, and stone beads. The patterns here are made of many small lines and circles and other simple shapes, packed close together in directional lines that form large shapes. Some of them mimic a woven texture.

End description)

Decided I needed to practice textile designs so I can make unique visuals on my characters' clothes.

[nakimochiku]

that fic meme

How many works do you have on AO3?: 142

What’s your total AO3 word count?: 408,786 (ooh. Not bad?)

What fandoms do you write for?: all. Hell baby i write for fandoms im not even IN. But at the moment, mdzs.

What are your top five fics by kudos: All this time I was just waiting for you (moon knight), These Violent Delights (moon knight), That a Ghost should be so practical (Hamilton), I don’t want anyone else (when i think about you)(moon knight), what we hate in others (we see in ourselves)(attack on titan)

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?: i do cause i actually just really really wanna talk to people!

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?: probably I Call The Shots(snk), everyone died. Or Keep Pushing (snk), everyone is GOING to die.

What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?: probably Found a Place to Rest my Head (saiyuki), cause no one dies and they adopt kids.

Do you get hate on fics?: on this one particular Hannibal fic

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?: All kinds. Partial to anything with any kinda dirty talk/praise kink. Literally cant write smut without that featured. After that, a lot of D/s tones.

Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?: I’ve actually never written a crossover?! Like at most ive written “ y characters in x universe” like. Typical hogwarts au or some shit. Craziest of those i’ve written was a sentinel/guide au for spn.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?: probably not and im not sure id care even if i did.

Have you ever had a fic translated?: Yep!

 Have you ever co-written a fic before?: Nothing that ever got published. Mostly shooting shit with friends.

 What’s your all-time favorite ship?: Impossible to answer. Changes on every rewatch even of old favs. But i can tell you my ship dynamic! Rivals to friends to lovers. Gimme some rivals to ship ANY day.

What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?: This University Au for moon knight that is sitting half finished in my Docs is fucking haunting me.

 What are your writing strengths?: Putting my whole pussy into whatever it is i’m writing. Also, imagery and extended metaphors.

What are your writing weaknesses?: Cohesion. The ideas are there but smoothing them together is so tough!

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?: I wish i could do it because it adds a flavour of authenticity to the fic but… i also know i hate reading it, and if i can suspend my disbelief and IMAGINE the character is speaking a different language when im told they are, thats enough.

First fandom you wrote for?: Technically Yugioh, but never posted. So Officially, Naruto.

Fave fic you’ve written?: impossible question BUT gun to my head for an answer, i think i did a DAMN GOOD job on Artemis Agrotera (the walking dead). Some A+ imagery and extended metaphors there.

tagging any mutuals who haven’t done this yet. But also specifically @first-renegade

[yeyinde]

I’m not sure if this question is going to make a lot of sense (im kinda drunk whoops) but do you have a sort of thesaurus/dictionary you use? I’m absolutely in love with your imagery, I’ve been trying to get back into writing lately as a way to help with mental stress and your writing just has this vibe to it that feels like it heals my soul. is it possible to learn this power? Have you just picked up all these gorgeous synonyms from years of practice? Granted English isn’t my first language so finding these words myself seems to be extra hard for me, if you have a tool that could help a girl out I’d be infinitely grateful lol

Hiya!!

I mostly learned this in primary school, I'd say! We had this amazing French teacher who would assign us words each night for homework and we'd have to find as many synonyms and antonyms as we possibly could, so it sort of carried over from that!

Also, I get distracted very easily when I'm writing, and most of the ones I found were through procrastination because I'd look a word up, and go down as many synonym rabbit holes as I could just to avoid finishing a fic 😅

I don't have any particular app I use (mainly because most of them are seldom updated/poorly maintained). I've tried a lot of them but nothing beats the instant answer of word + define in google and its etymology page on Wikipedia.

To keep track of them all, I just add all the words that look/sound pretty to me on a massive Google doc. It makes things so much easier because you can categorise them however works best for you! I keep them neat by just adding little keywords I can search up. (Like, emotions and then a list of subcategories; or actions; or words for "x, y, z."). I found most of the words I use by just clicking random words and their synonyms or by seeing a word in a fic or a poem, or a novel that stood out to me.

And ahhhhh, you have no idea how incredibly happy it made me to read the lovely things you said! 'Just has this vibe to it that feels like it heals your soul'?! Stop!! Nice things are not allowed to be said about me and my sloppy writing! 😭

Thank you so much!!! 🖤 I really hope this helps!