#when is the last time they spent any time fleshing out a new and interesting character

[pochaccopipi]

Thoughts on Kuya, autonomy, and his refusal to be "captured"

(spoilers under the cut)

This SSR story is sooo good because it really fleshes out Kuya's all-encompassing hatred of being owned? Not just in a literal sense, but in an obligations/expectations kind of way too. He repeatedly states over the course of the game that he shouldn't be forced into a box, can't be defined by human morals, and has so many wildly different facets of himself that they're basically autonomous copies running around in alternate timelines.

He insists that Elysium allows visitors the right to choose if/how they participate. He seems to hate injustices that trample one's freedom (unless he's the one perpetuating said injustice— in which he considers his actions Wise And Necessary™️). He loathes being claimed as a prize. He also clearly hates being pandered to, especially when his suitors have ulterior motives and expect him to stay by their side forever. He hates when humans assume what he likes, and commit crimes against nature in order to please him. He spent centuries at Huey's side (literally indentured to him in a life-or-death contract), and even spent time in service to the lord of the yokai himself, who forced kuya back into his fox state when he was found during a suicide attempt. He was literally voided of essence to the point that he had to relive his most vulnerable years again. He experienced a loss of power and autonomy that probably felt like a betrayal. Granted it was a punishment intended to teach him humility, but it probably just traumatized him instead.

(This may also explain what happened on the Saian ship with Huey, when he was discovered in his true yokai form— something went wrong with corrupted essence, they couldnt teleport back to Klein as usual, and he burned the ship down when someone spotted him looking "beastly". It hit too close to home for him.)

Prior to meeting Eiden, he'd run out of things to enjoy in life, and turned to torturing small forest animals just to get some dopamine flowing again. He's a sadistic contrarian piece of shit but it makes sense that he feels rage against immortality/life itself, and probably approved of Huey because they shared an interest in exploring new horizons (not to mention the massive power boost he got in return).

So in this SSR r5 when he pauses in relief/shock after eiden tells him he cant force kuya to stay by his side forever, it all kind of clicked into place for me? Everything about kuyas character screams Do Not Attempt To Capture Me. He literally exploded a roomful of men who tied him down in Rusted Nation. He made a group of gamblers claw their own eyes out for daring to look at him with sexual intent. He even destroys offerings from other yokai who put him on a pedestal. He hates being expected to do anything for anyone for any reason, because those expectations often come with gross connotations or lasting debts, and have been repeatedly imposed upon him without his consent in the past.

His biggest fear might literally be losing control again.

(Of course he's a big hypocrite and does everything he hates to other people? And sometimes doesn't even realize he's doing it? Like in Astral Duo when he asks Quincy if he's done "something unforgivable" to Eiden, as if Kuya himself doesn't do unforgivable things on a daily basis).

Idk. He's just fascinating to me and I love how he seems to be driven by a pathological need to escape. He's not unaware of his weaknesses, as evidenced by him flinching when Eiden reaches behind his blind spot. He seems to be terrified of capture in every sense of the word, and does everything possible to overcome that.

Like a cornered animal :)

[vacantgodling]

i'd like to say that this year was more of a planning year than a writing year; not to say that i didn't write; but i spent a lot more time on outlining, worldbuilding, and a new skill that i've added to the fold -- conlanging(!!). because of that, i didn't hit all the goals i made last year but tbh that's aight. without further ado tho:

TOTAL WORDS WRITTEN [january 2024-november 2024]

111,535 (as of 11/15)

once again, if this was all in one place, that would be a full novel but. speaking of full novels:

2024 GOAL STATUS

❌ reach 150k words written overall ✔️ finish cage like it’s GOING to happen i will it ❌ finish the first draft of paramour!!!

so i'm only 1 for 3 and tbh i'm not that mad about it. finishing cage back in february was one of the biggest writing highlights of this year because i showed myself i could do it, i CAN finish something of novel length if i really put my mind to it.

(and yeah, i really did go and get it printed out lmao)

and more than just the accomplishment of writing 82k in one piece, it's also helped me really understand and work out what systems and processes i need to have set up prior to writing to make it work. this is why outlining has been such a huge undertaking for me this year, in varying levels of success (lmao). having a fully fleshed out outline with the literal beat by beat playout of how i want the story to go helped me TREMENDOUSLY in pushing through cage. even on chapters that were rough for me, having that outline to fallback on made it so much easier to stick to a every week one chapter system. and its something i plan to implement with my original wips too.

the only issue is, because original work inherently requires more work since there's no framework except what's in your own head... its been a bit slower for me writing wise. BUT next year i will be operating out of a desperate need for whimsey so i think i'm going to make my goals much.... less stressful than i did this year.

2024 WRITING HIGHLIGHTS

FINISHED CAGE! biggest accomplishment in my life right now tbh. seriously if you haven't and you have any interest in overwatch at all go read it and leave me nice comments while you're at it lol. technically i am working on the interlude piece between cage and its eventual sequel, schism, but that's been kinda slow going as i don't have much motivation to do it right now. first chapter of it is also up on ao3 though -> interlude - quiet

created a conlang??? in a very bizarre turn of events i have created a conlang for my wip with the working title HE WHO SMITES THE SUN (under the tag #s: ph). the language itself is called dzonime'si and if you want to see more of that process check out my #ren fights linguistics tag :)

finished the entire "first draft" of my wip betwixt thumb and forefinger--which is actually an idea that i only thought of this year so that's fun. for the uninitiated it is a gothic reimagining of twilight but with a shit ton more body horror and prochoice commentary. the reason first draft is in quotations is because it is technically a 16k word long outline that i am considering draft one. draft 2 is literally me going bullet point by bullet point and expanding the draft into something more akin to prose. i do have the first few paragraphs of draft 3 started, which is where i'm going to attempt actual prose writing for the first time. pretty much, btaf is becoming a very lengthy process but it's my first "test drive" on how this new outlining to written prose for my original projects will go. i've just gotten... distracted by other wips since then.

2025 GOALS

to be honest, i don’t know if i have many hard goals for next year. mostly because of *gestures at the state of the world right now* :))))))) it’s blatantly obvious that when things are tough, it becomes more difficult to do the things that you want to do that bring you joy. amid trying to just survive the day to day, there’s also my desires to get more involved in bothering the FUCK out of my senators, looking into ways i can be more involved locally (without burning myself out) and just generally trying to not let the state of the world get me down.

i think there’s a lot of things i want to do. i want to finish a bunch of outlines for my wips becuase i can’t tell you how REWARDING it’s been to be able to fully just go back and reread btaf’s outline whenever i like (and have the AMAZING multi leave comments on it like that’s actually another huge highlight of this year thank u friend 💛) and get excited about telling this story all over again. it motivates me to keep doing it! i'd also love to finish btaf's draft 2, maybe try and finish interlude - quiet etc. but—long story short. i don’t think i’m going to put myself on for any particular goals. next year is going to be about celebrating wins in any and every capacity. so all i wanna do is give myself wins.

looking forward to seeing y’all next year, crying about our ocs as usual

💛 ren 💛

[ura-niia]

Yknow, on a retrospective, it is interesting how the COTL fandom puts Narilamb as a devoted and hateful relationship.

In other words, I would actually love to know why we love this ship so much.

I’d love to know your point of view!

I finally have time to answer this!! I am SO GLAD that you asked.

I was extremely interested about the dynamic of this ship, you could watch it from all angles and it would still be a lovable duo; whether it be comedic, overly toxic, unrequited love/devotion, requited romance/devotion, it would still be enjoyable for everyone in the fandom. I believe that there's no bad version on how anyone portrays their relationship!

It's kinda difficult for me to see them in a light-hearted angle. Other people in the fandom have shown this kind of dynamic very well and they have all my applause.

How I portray my vision of narilamb, I still haven't fully fleshed out their story, but basically when Narinder was still a god, Lamb's devotion is for him entirely because they truly thought that The One Who Waits was their saviour and shining grace, handing them down a chance to live once more and avenge their kind. Narinder didn't pay this no mind, then plays the lamb around like a tool, speaking of honeyed words to keep the lamb up on their feet.

And by the time when Narinder told the lamb that he was just using them for his freedom and they'd just die once they surrender the crown to him, everything just came crumbling down to them. The dawning realization that there will be no hope for lamb kind, and that filled them with so much intense emotions they ended up killing Narinder along with his disciples.

Time has passed, Lamb became the new god of Death and continued to serve for their cult. Though they still pray as if there's still any other god be because that's kinda how they cope with all the change. Unaware of the forces that were trying to come back up. Narinder has used up every last drop of his divine magic to resurrect himself with the intention of killing the lamb by his hand and take the crown, but that ended up being a fail so...

Now that Narinder was in the lamb's cult, they feel obligated to watch over him. They think it's really pathetic that the former god is ultimately struggling in the mortal life. One time Narinder tried to run away from the cult and got himself in danger during it so Lamb has to swoop in to save his ass.

“It seems like that you are still in need of me." They said, but there's no smugness in the tone, it's pure disgust and malice. “You don't get to pull the strings anymore, my lord, you're under my domain now.”

I'll make this one very quick bc this is becoming long 😭 So anyway, Narinder (begrudgingly) stayed in the cult because he didn't know how to stay alive in a mortal body, and the more Lamb took care of him, the more dependent he became of them(albeit extremely pissed about that realization and acted aggressively at first then came acceptance that he's hopeless without them), the lamb was aware of this, however thought that this was just another tactic of him to get their guard down, so they pulled the strings so they wouldn't get attached again.

Soon the lamb decided to let themselves get close to him while still being wary, then suddenly became "lovers". Narinder had thought that it was the right course considering how much time they spent with eachother, though hadn't acted on romantic actions. However Lamb thinks that this is just another one of their lovers they have to deal with, so it was still very unrequited.

Then by time it became a requited relationship, unknowingly truly falling for eachother in the process. They somehow know that they're terrible for eachother, but they still work on it. Their devotion for eachother became a devotee to genuine lovers.

[ganonfan1995]

Excerpt from EOW Iwata Asks/Ask the Developer interview below.

There is certainly a history of Hyrule that ties the entire series together. If you take too many liberties, you have to be careful whether it's still Legend of Zelda-like. Aonuma: Right, it's very difficult to balance how much to add or change. At first, we were intentionally leaving any parts that might delve into Hyrule's history vague, but partway through, we just couldn't find a way forward that way... So, around last summer, we decided to hold a boot camp and work out the story there. Terada: It truly was a boot camp, indeed. Aonuma: Even there, Grezzo didn't offer any in-depth suggestions about the story at first. So, I went back to the hotel, quickly wrote a script that would work, and brought it with me the next day. Then, we all contributed various elements that often occur in the Legend of Zelda series to the script. Using this method, we eventually completed the game's story. Sano: Over a few sessions, we spent nine days at the boot camps in total, working from morning until night. (Laughs) Aonuma: These days, even for us, it's not easy to touch on the lore of the Legend of Zelda series. When you address the history of the Legend of Zelda, you naturally have to be conscious of how things have been expressed previously in the series. But when we think about a new game, we need to think about new developments while being mindful of the past games in the series, so the scope of what you can do becomes increasingly narrow if you think in the same way every time. On top of that, because the series has been running for a long time, players are interested in its history and lore. So, when we've adopted a game plot that was not in line with the other games in the series because we prioritized the gameplay, we've been told by our fans that it didn't make sense. We realized that even if the developers didn't intend to make nonsensical changes, players could interpret otherwise.

I appreciate the effort, but I know they're talking about the fucking timeline, I HONESTLY I wish they would drop it!!

From the earlier interview segments, EOW sounds like it’s going to be a blast. Grezzo seems really thoughtful when it comes to its development, and I really love that the team at Nintendo basically asked the entire staff at Grezzo to pitch their ideas on what type of LoZ game they wanted to make, rather than coming to them with an already fleshed-out idea.

That being said, oh my god, the series would benefit so much from not boxing itself into the timeline lore. Just give us something fresh, and we can do the heavy lifting, if I'm being completely honest.

[wormtitty]

Kinktober Day 11: biting/marking (daniel/louis)

this one's quite tender. shoutout to danlou nation <3

on AO3 here.

He catches Louis just as he’s leaving the brownstone, nearly comical the way his eyes widen in shock as he takes in Daniel on his doorstep, alone and carrying a beat-up duffel bag. 

His surprise doesn’t last long, taking his bag and welcoming him in. They play catch-up in the kitchen, leaning lazily against the countertops as Daniel gives him the play-by-play of his new book, the latest developments in his relationship with the human girl - Alice, Louis recalls. Apparently she’s pregnant. 

That’s actually the reason Daniel’s here - he needed somewhere to clear his head and Louis had always offered the best advice of any of his friends. And even if they weren’t really friends, he sure made it easy enough to pretend that they were. Daniel plays the part well, inquiring after Louis’ real estate business and art collection, asking where he was headed to before he’d showed up.

With a wave of his hand Louis tells him he was just on his way out to hunt for the night’s meal when he saw Daniel; “But it’s fine, I’m not that hungry right now.”  

“Bullshit, you need to eat. You do look kinda washed out.” He jabs.

“I don’t want to be a bad host, Daniel. You’ve only just arrived.” 

Daniel scoffs. “Just drink from me, then. You forget who I spend my nights with. I’m used to being a walking blood bag. It’s fine, really.”

So Louis nods, bites his lip and steps closer; bracing his hands on the countertop on either side of his body. He blinks, once, nice and slow to give Daniel time to change his mind. He just closes his eyes and waits for the first familiar spike of pain.

He’d intended to maintain his air of easy indifference - and to his credit, he does - until he feels the puff of cool breath centimeters away from the right side of his neck and oh no . He jerks back, slamming his elbow right on the granite countertop with the force of it. 

“Other side.” Daniel blurts. Shit. He’d meant to be a little more cool about it. He takes a second to gather his thoughts. “Not there, Louis. Please.”

Confusion clouds his expression for a split second before the reality of the situation hits. Daniel watches the understanding settle over him like a blanket, hunching his shoulders and curling in on himself. 

Daniel gives the back of his neck a squeeze. “Hey, c’mon. None of that.” Louis still looks uncertain, unmoving where he stands, arms a cage around him. “I still want you to, you know. Bite me, mark me up, I’m game for it all. Just not right there, alright?”

Louis nods, eyes still fixed on the scar on his jugular; angry edges still raised and jagged despite the five years it’s been since that fateful night. The first night they met. “I am sorry, Daniel.”

“I know, I know.” He turns his head to the side, offering himself, blood pounding hot and ready in his veins. “You’re hungry, I can tell. It’s okay. Just heal me up after, okay? I don’t need any more questions if -“ Daniel stops himself, reevaluates, “ When I go back to Alice.”

“Of course,” Louis says into his mind, mouth finally occupied. He drops soft little kisses to the skin of his neck, cool lips soothing where Daniel feels feverish.

This isn’t how it usually goes with the two of them - though with no lack of interest on Daniel’s part. Louis has been content enough just keeping tabs on him, checking in every few months. This is the first time Daniel has paid him a visit in his own home.

It’s the first time since the first time that Louis has tasted his blood.

And Daniel is only human. He’s spent the last couple of years with another vampire unafraid to sink his teeth into Daniel’s flesh any chance he can get, usually ending in a scene that leaves them both naked and bloody and satisfied. So he really should have expected the physical reaction to Louis’s fangs in him, his blood flowing freely and willingly into a hungry mouth.

He realizes he’s hard a few seconds too late, after he’s already lurched closer to Louis, pressing up against the long line of his body. Louis makes a startled sound at his throat, gurgling around his blood. 

Ashamed, Daniel tries to shift back and put some distance between their bodies, but Louis stops him with a gentle hand to his hip. He detaches from his neck, fangs slipping back into his gums as he swallows around a final mouthful of blood. 

Louis looks down between them, arching an eyebrow at the obvious outline of his dick in his pants. Daniel wishes he could crawl under the floorboards and live out the rest of his days in hiding. 

“Listen, it’s not you, I just have a thing about being bitten,” he tries to explain, hiding his flushed face behind his hands. “Sorry, you can keep going. I’ll try not to make it weird.” 

He hears him breathe out a soft laugh. Daniel peeks out from between his fingers. Louis is gazing at him with… fondness? It’s too much, this attention - he shuts his eyes against the sight of him. Yeah, he’d just had the guy’s fangs in his skin, but this is different. 

“Daniel,” Louis drawls, “are you gonna hide there all night, or would you like to do something about this?”

There’s a beat of silence as he ponders this. Daniel makes up his mind in approximately ten seconds. He gives him a slow nod. “Can you… bite me again?” 

It takes an embarrassingly short amount of time to get him whining and desperate; rutting clumsily against Louis’ hip, staccato little motions that pulse in time with the pounding of his heart pumping blood into the vampire’s mouth. 

Daniel spills unceremoniously into his boxers, grunting out a quiet “Hah - shit,” the back of Louis’ shirt twisted in his grip. 

Louis withdraws slowly, licking up a little trickle that leaks sluggishly from the puncture wounds in his neck. He’s in the middle of biting his own lip and applying that blood to the wounds when Daniel delves into a fit of giggles, suddenly overcome with laughter.

“Sorry, I just realized you’ve sucked me off twice now and we still haven't even kissed.” He pants out between bouts of hiccuping laughter. 

Louis leans back in close, a giddy smile spreading wide on his face before he closes the distance. The kiss itself is messy, the taste of blood fresh on his lips. Neither of them can seem to stop smiling. It’s perfect. 

They break apart slowly, nudging noses as they pull themselves back and away. Satisfaction curls low in Daniel’s belly.

“Hey.” Louis pats his cheek, notably serious now, and tilts his chin up. “I’m not complaining, you know - far from it - but how come you came to me, and not Armand?”

Daniel scuffs his foot against the laminate flooring. “He’s not responding to my calls at the moment. Last we talked, he pitched a fit about the ring. Stormed off, left me alone on the island.”

“Well,” Louis says, even. “You know you’re always welcome here.” Slowly, he brings his lips to Daniel’s forehead. “Stay however long you need, Danny. Just leave a note if you decide to take off during the day, alright?” 

“Thanks, Louis. I really - yeah. I figured you’d get it.” 

Daniel blows out a long breath and shakes the emotion free from where it catches in his throat. He’s suddenly overcome with lethargy, a heaviness settling over his body. Louis watches him with his charming little half smirk. 

“You look like you could use a nap. Come on, I’ll make up the bed for you.”

[pipperoo]

no one asked, but i’m yapping about it again! i have still not been able to stop thinking about my “steph and the phantoms au” and i spent a lot of my free time developing it this week (instead of working on my current wip :/) here are some of my more fleshed out ideas, once again it is long and i ramble a bunch

(for more context, look at “steph and the phantoms” tag or look at my last post)

wilbur cross’ big evil plan is to resurrect himself and bring the libs back with him to take over the world or some shit like that. he’s been a ghost for awhile and became the libs disciple after he died. he uses the black altar in lakeside mall for spells (which is also his version of caleb’s club) he’s a pretty strong ghost at this point and has a few abilities from the libs from gaining power from them. right now he can summon wiggly’s tentacles, the seals that go on the ghosts when they make a deal are blinky’s eyes (he can observe through anyone that has the eyes), has some control over the ghosts with seals (pokey), nibbly allows him to suck souls to gain power easier, im still working on tinky’s. his spells are fueled by soul power, in other words, ghosts, the stronger the ghost, the more power he gets. but once he uses the energy from a soul, they cease to exist. and in order to resurrect himself, he needs a shit ton of ghost power, which means nothing good for the nerdy trio.

the spell that occurred on the night the nerds died in the starlight probably has some connections to summoning webby or something dealing with her. steph’s mom had met the band before their rehearsal and got the cd and a picture that steph finds then. she was visiting someone there and was around when the spell triggered. webby’s power flowed into her which she then passed down to steph. steph and her touch of the gift are the entire key behind stopping wilbur’s plot.

max and grace both died in 2008 (year might change) max fell in waylon hall during a party and grace died in hatchetfield high (still figuring her death out). they didn’t know each other but they were both seniors. they piqued wilbur’s interest bc they died at black altars and he recruited both of them. max was struggling with the fact that ppl only briefly cared he died bc he was the star quarterback and that means they would lose now and grace is struggling with the fact that her beliefs were wrong and all her faith was for nothing. grace needs a new code to follow and max wants to feel valued so they throw themselves into serving wilbur and start competing with each other. their squabbling annoys the shit out of wilbur so he puts in place that they are his number twos and that it’s impossible to rank any higher and they will always be at the same level. when they aren’t fighting for approval they become friends bc they are the only two ppl in the same situation and they start to work together. their jobs are wrangling the ghost population, keeping them away from black altars, and tracking down the ghosts that could be of use to wilbur. (they first need to gather evidence that a ghost is strong before bringing it to wilbur’s attention) max does his bully tactics to keep them away and grace leans more into the research and investigation of strong ghosts.

i’m still trying to figure out what the nerdy trio called their band, but the band with steph is called “ghost whisperer”

now here are my bases for the dynamics

lautski is probably staying pretty similar to how they have been depicted. i feel like i’ve barely thought about them bc their dynamic seems so cut and dry in this au. pete helps steph with school work and makes her feel worthwhile. running bit of only working on songs after steph has finished her hw. steph raises pete’s confidence. they both fall for each other but how can a ghost and an alive person be together?

richie meets max when max is trying to teach himself how to skateboard and he is just eating pavement. richie doesn’t realize that max is also a ghost and says his snarky comments out loud. max of course hears and immediately gets pissed and starts to stomp over (through his job in controlling the ghosts he also keeps them away from areas that he just wants to hang out at, the skatepark being one of them) richie learns of the other ghosts and quickly starts to ramble to hopefully avoid max’s wrath. max changes his tune when richie unconsciously lets slip that an alive person can see him. he plans to show richie the ropes of being a ghost in general and in hatchetfield and teaches him all the ghostly abilities they can do (teleport, summon objects that are important to the person ie their instruments, pick up real things, etc) to start max is scouting out how strong the nerds are through hanging out with richie, but as they get closer and max enjoys having friends, he starts trying to make richie stronger so he can maybe stand up to wilbur.

ruth meets grace on the streets and they bump into each other as grace is going somewhere to research. ruth is instantly fascinated with grace bc she’s another ghost and ruth thinks she’s hot. grace tries to get back to what she was doing but ruth keeps rambling to maintain her attention. ruth let’s slip where she died which piques grace’s interest and she stops being so rude. it becomes her new focus and she starts researching the deaths that happened by the starlight. they continue to hang out only bc ruth keeps finding her and grace stops finding reasons to send her away. she learns to enjoy ruth’s company and uh oh, they start to fall in love. grace starts using research as a way to get closer to ruth instead of just learning. maybe ruth also writes grace a song at some point.

these are just some of my bones for this story at large, there’s still a lot i haven’t discussed yet. i pretty sure now that this will become one of my next writing projects and i don’t want to give everything away. of course, if anyone want to know more, i will gladly divulge.

just so you know, this whole concept was made up after i had celsius for the first time and i thought it up on the clock too which is always fun. thinking about this has also disrupted my work on my most recent fic, so i really need to catch up on that. anyways, thank you to the ppl that liked this concept, it always means a lot <3

[meowthefluffy]

Hello all! I wanted to quickly post a little explanation explaining that I am fine and not like sick or anything! I haven’t posted in over two months and I just wanted to let you all know I’m okay.

Over last few months I’ve lost a lot of love and good will I feel about the sanders Sides series, and just hold no passion for it anymore- I don’t feel anything about these characters or story because the long break has at this point broken my sense of disbelief and I can’t really engage with the story on its level. I don’t think whatever this finale is will be worth almost 3 years of no content (the amount of time I’ve spent in the fandom with content coming out is under half of my overall time here)

This means I just feel no passion for making new content, while I used to be able to pull through by making Prinxiety content I’ve kinda stopped seeing them as characters in their own right - which makes it hard for me to keep making art of them. I’ve been on the cusp of the fandom for years at this point but I was able to push through via my hyper specific au’s and pretty much sole focus on Roman- but it’s just not enough to sustain mg attention when I could do other things.

I’ve been playing dnd, and making art about my ocs and writing and doing crafts and reading and I just have found that compared to my other interests sanders Sides just isn’t my passion anymore. I don’t even think I like it at all at this point.

I am still going to complete my comics and au’s that are currently ongoing- you can still request art for older comics and I will happily make posts about them (I’m trying to flesh out a way to make the superhero au an oc project so I can make it a real comic) but I don’t think I’ll be posting much ts stuff once I finish it all off

but that leaves me off with a lot of uncertainty to what I’ll actually be doing with this blog? You all come here for ts stuff but I don’t know what you all would be willing to see? Concept work for my oc comic projects? My digital art practice? Something else? I just don’t know what to do here and that uncertainty is kinda scary. I won’t be deleting my blog or anything- this blog has helped me build so many amazing connections it’s basically become a part of me- I just don’t know what to post once I fish all the art I have ongoing (pretty much just the cupid au and the lust au are all the ones I have left)

Any ideas?

[fangirlshrewt97]

Tale As Old As Time... (Part 12)

Could it be? Did this girl finally get her shit together enough to actually get back to the work everyone was waiting for so long that they are over it because of how long she took to get back to it?

Look guys, I have no idea when my next update will be, but I do have the entire story plotted out and am determined to see it though, so I kindly ask you to be patient and bear with me. 

For all the anticipation, this chapter might be a little slow, but. um. Good things come to those who wait? I know I have made you wait A LONG TIME, but you have trusted me to come back to this story. 

Also apologies if the chapter is a little rough, I am trying to get back into the groove of the story. 

So, without further ado...

Full work on Ao3 is here

(Previous Chapter)

///

Welcome back my dear. Last we left our protagonists, they were sharing a bed in slumber, the first step in their journey together formed between their intertwined hands. Now the time is coming to see whether this seed will blossom, and what it will bloom into.

///

Jai blinked his eyes open lazily, nuzzling into the black head of hair resting against his shoulder. The scent of sandalwood comforted him into sinking into it. He curled himself from his back to his side, one leg brushing another’s.

The action had him snapping his eyes open as the world came into focus with dizzying speed.

He was in Kala Bhairava's room.

In his bed.

And Kala Bhairava was curled into his side, face smushed into Jai's arm.

Jai's brain may have been difficulty processing this information, but one half of Jai's body did not. It felt his the nerves of his arm in particular were directly connected to his lower half, the way each brush of Kala Bhairava’s eyelashes against his arm, or the soft exhales of his breaths against his skin sent frissons of static down his spine. Taking a controlled breath, Jai tried to put some space between them.

He didn't get very far. He had barely moved a few inches before a small whine from Bhairava rooted him to the spot, seeing if his bedmate would awaken. The space allowed him a better view of the other man's face.

The room was illuminated by faint tendrils of light, though very little made it past the canopy curtains. Extending his free hand to part the curtain, Jai inhaled sharply.

Even the small light seemed very bright after the darkness of the bed, with the rays casting a glow to Kala Bhairava's figure.

Bhairava.

The man had asked him to call him Bhairava last night.

As memories of the previous night flooded back in, Jai was torn between mild mortification at having come to Bhairava's room at that hour of night, and a stronger sense of accomplishment.

As he pictured their kiss, he could feel the phantom weight of another body, of fingers curling into his hair. He clenched his fists tight enough for his nails to bite into the flesh of his palm, trying to will his body under control.

Jai had taken bedmates before, spent the night in arms of both men and women. And yet.

And yet.

As usual, Bhairava had made every experience feel new, so much more intense than Jai could recall feeling with any other.

In the early dawn light, the other man's face was serene. He looked younger. Softer. There was none of the fear or hesitation Jai often saw in faces.

But Bhairava had never looked at him in fear. Hadn't that been what had piqued his interest in the first place?

Curiosity, surprise, shock, confusion. Even wonder.

But not fear.

Jai pulled back his hand, letting the curtain fall to plunge the pair in darkness again. The wave of want that hit him was new. Unexpected.

This man was driving Jai out of his mind, and entirely unaware of it.

Reaching out in the dark, Jai barely laid his fingers on Bhairava's hair, softly running down their length. Bhairava seemed to melt against him.

Jai needed to get out of here.

He needed to leave before Bhairava woke.

He would be expected at the palace shrine for his daily prayers, and he couldn't let the servants find his bed undisturbed. Gossip travelled faster than air within these walls.

Decision made, Jai slowly but surely pulled himself away from Bhairava. An eternity of five minutes, Jai was hyper aware of every point of contact between them. Bhairava's brows furrowing as he tried to tighten his grip nearly undid Jai. However, Jai managed to extract himself and slipped out of the curtain. Just before the cloth fell, he glanced back to see Bhairava's frown as he rolled into the space left by Jai, pressing his face into the pillow Jai had used.

Jai left the room quietly, walking quickly through the back passages till he reached his own room. Slipping in, he breathed in relief that he had not run into anyone.

He went and laid on his bed, knowing a servant would come in a minute to prepare his bath. And his timing was perfect, no sooner had he closed the curtains of his canopy, did he hear the servant's door being opened and water being poured in.

As he laid there, he pressed a finger to his lips. The kiss had been so much more than he had expected.

He sat up with his back to the headboard.

With his eyes closed he could feel Bhairava climbing onto his lap. The way their first kiss had been a barely there brush of the lips. The way Jai's fingers remember the shape of Bhairava's waist. The warring lust and nervousness in Bhairava's voice as he requested they just sleep.

The way a finger had hesitantly brushed his hand in the dark.

How their hands intertwined so naturally between them, as if they were made to be held together.

Jai's earlier lust faded into a deeper yearning.

What if he had stayed? Would Bhairava have been embarrassed? What would those deep brown eyes look like as they fluttered awake?

Would he have allowed Jai to kiss him? To do more? To press him onto his back, bracketing him between his hips. For Jai's fingers to tangle in those black locks as his other hand slipped beneath the thin kurta he had been wearing.

The clicking locks of the servant's doors brought Jai back to the present. Pressing the heel of his hand to his forehead, he exhaled. He needed to get a grip.

Discarding his borrowed clothes (but not before running his fingers over where the seams had split; Bhairava gripping it so tight he tore it) Jai entered the bath. He sank into the warm water, tension seeping away from his muscles. Running his hands slowly down his chest, across his legs and back again.

He grabbed the scented oils, setting about bathing himself.

///

"Om Nama Sivaya" Jai finished his prayers, opening his eyes to watch as the priest brought the aarthi from the inner sanctum.

He reached out to hover his hands over the fire, pressing then to his hands, and repeating the motion twice more. A second priest held a silver bowl with theertha, sacred Tulsi water, which he poured a spoonful of into Jai's cupped palm. Drinking the water, Jai closed his eyes once more, pressing his palms together against his chest.

Bowing to the Shivaling, he rose from the short wooden bench.

He nodded once to the priests, who bowed to him.

Jai exited the shrine to find Kaakha waiting for him.

"Is it urgent Kaakha, or may we have our morning meal?" Jai said plainly.

Kaakha bowed. "It can wait a short while Maharaj."

The pair made their way to the royal wing, entering the dining room just in time to see Kusa throw a chikku fruit at Lava. Jai growled, making both brothers stiffen and scramble to their feet.

"Annayya!" "Jai!"

"I've meet st-street children with better manners than you two."

Lava ducked his head ashamed, while Kusa, as expected, tossed his head in the air. "Lava started it."

"I highly doubt it." Jai said drily as he took his seat at the head of the table. Kaakha sat down beside Lava.

"When did you come Annayya? I didn't hear the drums announcing your arrival." Lava asked softly, extending the platter of chutney for his brother.

"Near midnight." Jai grunted as he served himself.

That seemed to be a cue to pause further conversation. Of course his brothers could not actually be held to those standards. Barely a few minutes passed before Jai became aware of the unsubtle head tilts and glances being traded between the pair.

He placed his goblet of water more forcefully on the table, the bang making both of them jump. "What?"

Lava gulped as he ran a finger around the length of his collar. Kusa glared at him and spoke. "We met your little soldier friend."

Jai resisted facepalming. With everything that had occurred during his trip, he had forgotten about the meal between his brothers and Bhairava. Keeping his voice neutral, he asked. "And?"

"Looks like a girl." Kusa said. "Hey!"

Lava had obviously kicked him (successfully hitting his target this time). "Bhairava garu seems very nice, Annayya. Will he be staying with us for longer?"

Jai felt his eye twitch as he considered the consequences of stabbing Kusa. Not to kill. Maybe his upper thigh, he'd certainly been stuffing himself enough to have adequate padding.

"Indefinitely."

Lava and Kusa exchanged glances. “And…what is he going to be doing?”

Jai resolutely kept his eyes away from Kaakha.

"Did you behave?" Jai asked instead. There were too many feeling knotting together in his chest to make sense of presently.

"Obviously." Kusa retorted.

Jai's hand twitched. What the hell had Kusa said to Bhairava?

Draining the rest of his water, Jai signaled  for the servants to bring the water bowls.

Soaking his fingers, Jai dried his hands on the towel the servant held. "Thank you Bhagesh."

Bhagesh bowed deeply. "It is my honor Maharaj."

Jai rose from his seat, only to pause when the kitchen doors swung open to reveal Arunama. "Maharaj!"

Jai's lips twitched. "Arunama. Can I d-do something for you?"

She pointed her ever present knife at Kusa, who shrunk back against the table. "Can you feed him to the snakes?"

Jai shook his head. "I cannot risk them getting indigestion."

"Hey!" Kusa protest was muffled by Lava slapping his hand over his mouth and trying to sit on him.

Arunama harrumphed. "Fine, then I need two more batches of vegetables to prepare for the Rajyasabha."

Jai nodded, turning to Kaakha. "Make the necessary arrangements Kaakha." Kaakha bowed. "Of course Maharaj."

"Anything e-else?"

Arunama shook her head. "Any requests for lunch Maharaj?"

"Whatever you decide will be more than sa-satisfactory."

Arunama smile, pride radiating around her. "Thank you Maharaj."

///

As Jai let the arguments between Charuvat-manthri and Goopeswaran-manthri fade to the background, Jai once again pondered why he had felt the urge to go to see Bhairava last night.

They had disguised the trip as a routine trip through Jai's provinces, but their real goal had been the small area governed by Sarkar-manthri. 

Jai had fought to hide his disgust at how the people there had all been skin and bones, hairs hanging limply as further signs of their malnutrition. Even as his subjects all came to see him as he rode up to the manthri's mansion, he noticed the children with the tattered clothing and the distended bellies. Had noticed how unlike the children of the capital that looked at him with wonder, these children shrunk away and cowered in fear. He noticed the barely held back contempt in the eyes of the adults.

The initial bad taste in his mouth had only grown worse as he was ushered to a grand feast that had been prepared in his honor. So much food hoarded to fill greedy stomachs as young souls starved outside his walls. And the attitude of the manthri himself, obsequious to the point of disgust. How he spoke in double edged comments, a compliment and an insult wrapped in one.

When one of the servants, a young woman who appeared more a girl, had accidentally dropped a platter of nuts, the man had hit her with his cane. It was only Kaakha's biting grip on his arm that kept him from throttling the man in return.

That night, he had been fuming as Kaakha had reiterated how important it was to keep the manthri from guessing they knew of his desire to oust Jai from his throne. While far from the only manthri acting against him, they had determined Sarkar was the pack leader. They could not figure out what the man’s end goals were though, for all that he was greedy and craved wealth, even he would realize he was ill-suited to governing. He was far too lazy for all the responsibilities the crown bore.

No, it was better to pretend they were ignorant of the conspiracies running through his court. Until they had solid evidence and a better idea of all the players in the game, it would be reckless and foolish to confront Sarak directly now.

The following few days had been a similar ordeal of patience, with Jai grinding his teeth enough to give himself headaches. He knew he had asked for the 'Raavana' reputation to be spread beyond their borders, but it galled him that even within his own lands, his people looked at him in fear.

Easier to manipulate people to turn against a king they believed to be the cause of their misfortunes, after all.

By the time it was their day of departure, Jai was ready to crawl out of his skin, given how much anger he was keeping pent up. Kaakha had tried to suggest perhaps they should delay their return until the building storm had passed, but one glance at Jai's wild look had him keeping his mouth shut.

Jai had held back until they had crossed out of the manthri's lands before pressing hard on Ahilan’s side, and torn down the path. It was unwise to leave his retinue behind when he was technically still not in friendly territory but he almost hoped some assassin would try their mettle against him at that point.

Some bloodshed might provide relief for the storm beneath his skin.

He had been severe on Ahilan, pushing him till the animal was almost collapsing. Only catching his breath as Ahilan struggled with his, Jai had led them to the nearby river and let the animal drink water and rest. They waited till his retinue caught up with him, and Jai listened to Kaakha's scolding with a twinge of shame. He had covered more ground during his mad dash than he'd expected, and if they could maintain a steady trot, could be in the palace by nightfall.

Of course the sky had decided to come falling down on them in the last stretch to the palace, in the open road. With no other option the riders had continued till they reached the palace well past the middle of the night.

By then most of the anger had been banked, transforming into a bone deep weariness. He could not recall actively handing the reins of Ahilan to one of the stablehands, nor how his feet carried him to a bedroom that wasn't his own. He did remember the way Bhairava had pressed a blade to his throat, and how his voice had broken through the fog in Jai's brain.

"-raj? Maharaj!" Kaakha hissed sharply, similarly bringing Jai back to the present. Kaakha looked at him with a curious expression, but Jai focused on the scene in front of him. Clearing his throat, he spoke. "Well? Has an agree-," Jai paused to swallow the stammer in his tongue, "-ment been reached?"

Both ministers looked mullish but they nodded begrudgingly. Jai sighed. If only he could actually order them as he wished. Or this squabble didn’t inevitably cause problems in another few weeks. "Very well. I will see you at the Rajyasabha."

The ministers bowed deeply and exited the meeting chambers. Kaakha, to his credit, waited until the guards had also filed out before rounding on him. "I came to check on you last night. Your bed was empty. What did you do?"

Jai's eyes narrowed. "Spying on me, Kaakha?"

Kaakha bristled. "Quite the contrary, Maharaj. I'm your chief advisor. It's my duty to know of your location and safety at all times. After the ... unfortunate horse incident yesterday, I assumed you'd go straight to bed."

"I did."

Now it was Kaakha's turn to narrow his eyes. "And where might that be, may I know?"

Jai shrugged. "It's not important. I'm going to see Ahilan now."

"But Maharaj!" Kaakha cried out to his back. Jai quickened his pace. He knew he was being unreasonable, and Kaakha was right to be anxious. But all he wanted to do was get away from all these politics for a bit.

And maybe find some more ... pleasing company.

///

Notes:

“Om Nama Sivaya” - The mantra is the ultimate prayer to Lord Shiva, translating roughly to “Salutations to Lord Shiva”

Aarthi -  Hindu ritual employed in worship, often part of puja, in which fire/light is offered to one or more deities.

Theertham - Sacred water offered to devotees, often infused with tulsi (mint) leaves 

Shivling or Shiva Lingam - The Linga idol is the most common way in which Lord Shiva is represented in worship.

Manthri - Minister

Rajyasabha - Gathering held by the king with all their ministers

///

@rambheem-is-real @budugu @bromance-minus-the-b @hissterical-nyaan @obsessedtoafault @hufhkbgg @yehsahihai @rorapostsbl @fangirl-from-discord @fadedscarlets @alikokinav @chaotic-moonlight @rambheemisgoated @rambheemlove @jaganmaya @burningsheepcrown @lovingperfectionwonderland @rosayounan @iam-siriuslysher-lokid @thewinchestergirl1208 @dumdaradumdaradum @ronaldofandom @jjwolfesworld @jrntrtitties @kashpaymentsonly @jeonmahi1864 @stanleykubricks @m3gs1mps4a @tulodiscord @teddybat24 @sally-for-sally @ssabriel @jadebomani @stuckyandlarrystuff @veteran-fanperson @ohfuckoffpls @bheemaxrama @chaidrivenwhore

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 4.5/5

Book Blurb: Gripping, romantic, and impossible to put down, this dark and immersive post-apocalyptic debut YA novel is about two teen girls who loved each other before the end of the world — and before one of them became infected with the virus that turned her into a monster.

Perfect for fans of Krystal Sutherland, Adam Silvera, and the darkly human side of the HBOMax horror-drama, The Last of Us.

Seventeen-year-old Mara is dead—mostly.      

Infected with a virus that brought the dead back to life and the world to its knees, she wakes up in a facility to learn a treatment for the disease has been found. No longer a Tick, Mara is placed in an experimental resettlement program. But her recovery is complicated by her destination: she’s sent to live with the best friend she hasn’t seen since the world ended—and since their first and only kiss.      Seventeen-year-old Rory is alive—barely.      

With impaired mobility from an injury and a dead sister, Rory’s nightmares are just as monstrous as the Ticks that turned her former best friend. Even after the Island—one of a handful of surviving communities—rebuilds itself, Rory is prepared for the Ticks to return at any time. She never expected them to come in the form of the only girl she’s ever loved.      

As the girls struggle with their pasts and the people they’ve become, the Island’s soldiers go rogue and come after the Ticks and anyone harboring them. With the Island’s fragile peace in the balance, Rory and Mara must lean on each other to survive—or risk losing the girl they love all over again.

Review:

The Last of Us meets a love story about two girls dealing with the aftermath of of a virus taking over the world and what happens when one of them is infected... and now is being let back out into the world. Mara and Rory were best friends, they've even thought about being more... until a virus known as "the Tick" happened turning people into flesh hungry zombies essentially and Mara gets infected... and that was two years ago... and now she has been rehabilitated and been put on a treatment program to treat her disease. Mara is put into an experimental resettlement program... and who better than to be her host family than her godparents... aka the same family with her old best friend and the girl she loved who she knows now hates her lives. Mara is still traumatized from what happened to her, she remembers everything she did as a Tick... everyone's she's killed including her parents. Rory is reeling from losing her younger sister, having sene her been killed, and she has impaired mobility from an injury. She is still plagued by nightmares and she's dreading facing Mara again. Rory has spent her time preparing to face off against Ticks, what she didn't expect was facing it in the form of the only girl she's ever loved. Both girls struggle with dealing with their pasts and the girls they have become since then, all the while the island's soldiers have gone wrong and are coming after the rehabilitated ticks and anyone who is harboring them... with the leader of the island's soldier particularly going after Rory and Mara, the girls will have to learn to lean on each other and grow past their differences in order to survive this new horror... and maybe fall for the new girls they are now. This was the perfect read for anyone who loved The Last of Us or loves a post-apocalyptic Romance!! The angst was real and the tension was so good. The world building in this one was fantastic and I loved how the book has you so interested in what was happening all the way to the end of the book. The romance was so well done and I loved that the girls were both healing and trying to get to know the new version of the person they loved. This is a fun read and I would absolutely recommend it!

*Thanks Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[alexacat57]

I had such a cool dream and Im making an oc prohect thing based on it. I write shockingly decent when unconcious. Might make an rp server!! If anyones interested! Uhm!

Im going to name it the DEATH OF JOY for now. It isnt that depressing but its a catchy name!! :3

Again this is literally what my brain made up when unconcious. Bcs im acoustic and have VERY cool dreams when I dream

Theres also characters and stuff but Ill post abt those laterrr

Exposition below

....

The world ended. It's never been livelier.

It was out of the blue. One day, it just started, all over the world — people stopped dying. Plants grew through concrete, and militaries lost contact.

Soon, when people went to check on the last part they found why. They were... Not dead. Never dead. Wrong.

Their eyes glowed blue. No scleras, no pupils just... A bright sort of teal. The tanks and weapons all turned to flesh inside. Mimics, at most.

That was when we started noticing. Vending machines, cars, trains — overtaken by this flesh. The plants growing on our walls weren't any anyone had seen before. Those who tried the sap, spent too much time near them... They changed, too. Not as much as the soldiers, not down to the flesh. Their eyes pierce your soul, though.

The military attacked all the big cities. People fled to towns. Then, to underground bunkers and shabby buildings. Those changed never stopped coming.

New species of beast showed up, too. Too large. Too strange.

Soon, there was two groups — those who greeted the end with religious joy, and those whomst hid away from it in the safety of the Earth.

Thus, were born the Joy and the Order. They picked 'leaders', one out of delusion and one out of practicality.

[thoughtfulfangirling]

October/Autumn Books

Over the years, I've been trying to collect books good for reading around this time of year. I thought I'd make a masterlist of sorts. There will be categories, and books may be in several of them.

Each of these books I feel have something to offer in terms only that they fit what I feel is readings for the season within their vibes. Any YA books will be explicitly marked as such. Additionally, my actual opinion of the books will be marked with 1 through 5 asterisks (stars), and because I hate rating books, I'm going to preface by saying I'm being very loosey goosey with them XD

Autumn Vibes (weather)

Autumn at the Willow River Guesthouse by C.P. Ward**

Feelgood fall read. It makes efforts to evoke autumn, having a bike trip be a part of her work routine sometime between the months of late August to October. I don't know that I personally thought it succeeded, but it tries, and I'll give it that. It also has themes of shedding an old life. In her late 20s, Lily loses in the span of a couple days her job, her apartment, and her fiance. She leaves the city to go back to her country home to figure out what she wants to do with her life. The book has the bones for a good autumn read, but the execution didn't do it for me. Judge for yourself if this sounds interesting. (I probably should just give it one star because it doesn't even MENTION Halloween, but I did like that it spent so more time with Victoria than the love interest XD)

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. Kids try to keep the magic of youth alive by going on an adventure (running away) to a doll they want to believe is haunted to her grave site in early-ish autumn.

Cemetary Boys***

YA. Takes place during autumn, and much of the book is set outside, not infrequently in a cemetary no less. Pretty good for autumn vibes. It's been a while since I've read it, so it may be more just the general weather climate that's evoked than falling leaves and such, but still, definitely feels like fall and is a story about ghosts and witches, and blood rituals. How do you go wrong with that?

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

In the Woods by Tana French ****

In his childhood, Adam Ryan was out with his friends when those friends went missing. It became a huge story, especially because when they found him, he was so traumatized, he had no memory of what took place. They never solved his mystery, but he became an investigator himself. He thought that was all behind him, except he is put on a case that has a mysterious link to that cold mystery. Ryan shouldn't be working this case, but no one has linked him to it yet, and he can't help but try and see if this new case will reveal anything about his own.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. Chunks of the book occur during autumn months and lovely descriptions of the weather and orchards, and a repeating motif of apples.

The November Girl by Lydia Kang ****

YA. Hector is a runaway, and he has planned his time hidden away until his 18th birthday perfectly to escape being in his uncle's custody any longer. On the last day a tourist island on Lake Superior is open, just before the November storms are expected to come and batter the island, he boards the fairy there and remains in secret. The island is expected to be abandoned and dangerous. It does prove to be dangerous, but what it doesn't prove to be, is abandoned. There is a strange girl also still left upon the island, and the creeping cold and raging storms only seem to give her power. She doesn't seem fully human.

Tithe by Holly Black ****

YA. Halloween approaches, and Kaye finds that her world may just be more preternatural than she expected as suddenly she is encountering fairies. Her encounter does more than open her eyes to a new world, it seems to be changing her too, and the stakes will reach a peak Halloween night.

Horror Vibes

Alice Isn't Dead by Joseph Fink *****

When her wife goes missing and doesn't reappear, one woman gives up the life she knows to become a trucker. On the road, she expects to find herself... or her wife. What she finds are mystery and horror instead.

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

Does anyone actually even need a summary? Look, if you like to read books for Halloween and haven't read this one, just do it. You're on Tumblr; make sure you know what all the Dracula Daily posts are going on about. They're excellent.

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

What is more horrific than watching a beloved child deteriorate into self harm and bad health and getting no answers, having to trust to faith instead of anything you've trusted before. Or how about a believer faced with evil powers one never expected to truly come face to face with?

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

The witch daughter of a cruel wizard is persuaded by her two elder sisters to sneak out of their carefully controlled home to see a ballet. For her, this is out of character to disobey her father, but she finds the show changes everything. She is enraptured by the performance, and more specifically, the lead, who she chances upon meeting while going out to get some air. For once, she has found something worth coming out of her shell for, but should she have left home when there are dark rumors of a man-eating monster stalking the night and the tentative tranquility of their home, and their voracious father, is as risk? Contains explicit sexual content.

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot leave.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Danielle is a hitchhiker headed to a socialist commune in Iowa that has largely been abandoned by government interests. The town takes care of itself, and they have a unique way of protecting their own against charismatic leaders who want to make this community their own. Danielle's friend had been living there before he comitted suicide, and so, she needs to know what has happened. A spirit of judgement and execution stalks the daylight hours, killing those with darkness in their hearts. But who doesn't have some amount of darkness inside of them?

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Danielle "When Ted stumbles onto a gropu of Cthulhu cultists planning to awaken the Old Ones through mystic incantations culled from the fabled Necronomicon, calling forth eldritch horros into an unsuspecting world, eh and Laura must spring into action, traveling from Boston to the seemingly-peaceful suburbs of Providence and beyond, all the way to the sanity-shattering non-Euclidian alleyways and towers of dread R'lyeh itself, in order to prevent an innocent shopping center from turning into... The Mall of Cthulhu

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Most people experience the past coming back to haunt them in some way, shape, or form. But three men who grew up on a reservation feel like they are being haunted by more than the memories of the past. They don't talk about the incident much, not since they were banned from that part of the reservation, but they feel like perhaps they should as they find themselves fighting for their lives against the ramifications of that day.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. A haunted swath of land, or a curse? The deaths may seem natural, but are they? And why do all these wasps keep showing up every which way?

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

Under the Pendulum Sun *

Gothic Horror. What happens if the fairy are real and known of during the Victorian era? Well, we must preach to them of course! But it may just be that within the strange land of fairy a brother and sister find themselves in for their purpose of the gospel, the lords and ladies of fairy are more interested in the sins at the heart of the people than their hope for their souls. Very Victorian Gothic. The prose was gorgeous, and an atmosphere of eerie unease was well painted; however, beyond the stunning prose, I did not find the stories or the characters' choices all that compelling. The plot/character work wasn't for me, but if one is in the mood for eerie, haunting prose, then this would be the perfect read.

A Winter Haunting by Dan Simmons ****

Separated from his wife and broken up with by his lover, a professor returns to his home town in the Midwest in late November where the snow has already accumulated. He finds himself lingering over the death of a childhood friend and haunted by his past. Isolated in a small town with wanna be skinheads probably isn't the best time to suddenly feel like shadows are moving in, and he feels like the target.

Eerie Vibes (Horror Light)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Only a novella in length, Carmilla is a fascinating read. Follow a lonely girl outside of her country of origin come to have a visitor, Carmilla, stay at her estate under mysterious circumstances. She quickly finds herself enamored with Carmilla and quickly grows ill with her worry over unhappy events which seem to plague Carmilla overnight. Despite them however, Carmilla seems just as robust as ever despite her habit to sleep away the mornings. This book predates Dracula, and it strikes me that it lent much of its lore to Stoker's later novel.

Cemetary Boys****

YA "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. A child's parent keeps an eerie doll locked up in a cabinet, and the children's playtime has turned her into a queen of sorts. Then suddenly one of the children has a dream; a girl was murdered and her ashes placed in the doll. Her soul is restless and wants to be laid to rest in her grave, and the kids — her subjects — must find it and take her to it.

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

YA. Why is it that the worst of humankind can flourish so proliferous in the most beautiful of places? The small town of Snake Bite is littered with shadows and mystery, and it seems to be targeting the town's teens. First, Ashley's long time boyfriend goes missing, and then newcomer and outcast Logan's new friendly acquaintance is found dead. The town might hate Logan, and Ashley might come from the most prominent family in the town, but the two girls can't help but investigate the odd happenings that disappeared Ashley's boyfriend and implicated one of Logan's dads in that disappearance. The town believes he killed him, Logan is determined to prove him innocent, and Ashley still believes he's alive. She can feel his presence still all around.

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

I have never read an author that, in so little time of story, manages to dredge up so much feeling of dread. If you want to set a dark and dreary mood, Poe's your man. In today's age, I don't know that his stories come off nearly as spooky as they once did, but they certainly evoke a sort of low mood spooky stories often aim for. It's like the counter of a thriller which often evokes high, frantic energy instead of the low, desolate mood of Poe's work.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

For current readers, I don't know if this quite works as horror, but there is definitely something to the carelessness of men who create without considering their creations.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Danielle is a hitchhiker headed to a socialist commune in Iowa that has largely been abandoned by government interests. The town takes care of itself, and they have a unique way of protecting their own against charismatic leaders who want to make this community their own. Danielle's friend had been living there before he comitted suicide, and so, she needs to know what has happened. A spirit of judgement and execution stalks the daylight hours, killing those with darkness in their hearts. But who doesn't have some amount of darkness inside of them?

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot leave

Our Wives Under the Sea****

Miri's wife returns after having been missing on a submarine dive deep into the depths of the ocean, and she must contend with the fact that her home now feels a host to a stranger. She feels lonelier as ever as Leah slowly seems to turn farther away from the woman Miri knew into something completely Other.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Follow a hitchhiking ghost over the breadth of the continental US. She was run off the Sparrow Hill Road in 1952 on her way to prom and never made it there. Instead she haunts the highways of the US, hitchhiking her way from roadside diner to roadside diner. She finds a calling in spending time with someone before their last moments, fated to die on the road. Sometimes though, she gets to alter that fate. But there is one out there who has an unpleasant fate in mind for her, and he haunts the roads in his immortal demon car, determined to get the prey who escaped him in the early 1950s.

Sorrowland by Rivers Soloman****

Vern escapes the cult she was brought into pregnant with twins. Her escape only extends to the forest surrounding the commune though. A single young woman shouldn't be able to survive with two children alone like this, and yet Vern does with ease. Something is different about her. Her body starts to become foreign in parts, to change, and she realizes something was done to her. Something that haunts her and alters her. It helps her protect her children, but can will she survive it?

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night.

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Vern "A short work of prose fiction written in 1819" "often viewed as the progenitor of the romantic vampire genre of fantasy fiction." Our protagonist becomes fascinating by an intriguing gentleman and takes up with him only to begin to suspect a dark explanation of the man's behaviors.

Dark Stories

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson ****

A letter from one vampire to her maker whom she has murdered. The story is their story, the one of living under a man she thought a savior, who turned her into a monster, and showed her an initial love that hid a vindictive, controlling menace amidst the monotonousness of his vampirism. Explicit sexual content.

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

The witch daughter of a cruel wizard is persuaded by her two elder sisters to sneak out of their carefully controlled home to see a ballet. For her, this is out of character to disobey her father, but she finds the show changes everything. She is enraptured by the performance, and more specifically, the lead, who she chances upon meeting while going out to get some air. For once, she has found something worth coming out of her shell for, but should she have left home when there are dark rumors of a man-eating monster stalking the night and the tentative tranquility of their home, and their voracious father, is as risk? Contains explicit sexual content.

King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair **

The princess and heir to a kingdom besieged by a vampire army finds herself preparing for her father's surrender to the Vampire King. An unexpected and unpleasant stipulation of the treaty of surrender is the princess's hand in marriage. For her people, she agrees, but her people expect her to assassinate her new husband despite his immortal durability. Fairytale elements. Intrusive thoughts. Contains smut.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Most people experience the past coming back to haunt them in some way, shape, or form. But three men who grew up on a reservation feel like they are being haunted by more than the memories of the past. They don't talk about the incident much, not since they were banned from that part of the reservation, but they feel like perhaps they should as they find themselves fighting for their lives against the ramifications of that day.

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! You can tell that this is an older book, but for those who knew what it was like for a married woman then, that adds all the more to the horror. This is a slow and quiet horror for the most part but very poignant. I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

Mystery

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

YA. Why is it that the worst of humankind can flourish so proliferous in the most beautiful of places? The small town of Snake Bite is littered with shadows and mystery, and it seems to be targeting the town's teens. First, Ashley's long time boyfriend goes missing, and then newcomer and outcast Logan's new friendly acquaintance is found dead. The town might hate Logan, and Ashley might come from the most prominent family in the town, but the two girls can't help but investigate the odd happenings that disappeared Ashley's boyfriend and implicated one of Logan's dads in that disappearance. The town believes he killed him, Logan is determined to prove him innocent, and Ashley still believes he's alive. She can feel his presence still all around.

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!

In the Woods by Tana French ****

In his childhood, Adam Ryan was out with his friends when those friends went missing. It became a huge story, especially because when they found him, he was so traumatized, he had no memory of what took place. They never solved his mystery, but he became an investigator himself. He thought that was all behind him, except he is put on a case that has a mysterious link to that cold mystery. Ryan shouldn't be working this case, but no one has linked him to it yet, and he can't help but try and see if this new case will reveal anything about his own.

Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin ****

Under the rule of King Henry II, within Cambridge, there is amongst the people a deranged serial killer targeting children. The people point the blame at the local Jewish population, but after a raid sequesters them within the castle walls and the killings don't stop, a woman of the station of what we might call today coroner is summoned from out of the country to learn from the dead children what she may to uncover the identity of a serial killer eager to target those who would try to track them down. Historical fiction. Some explicit sexual content.

The Witch Elm*****

Toby experiences a series of devastating events, the first of which is a break in and assault that leaves him with literal brain trauma, hazy memories, and a sense that he is no longer himself and will never be so again. So when a corpse shows up in the old summer home he and his cousins stayed at and it turns out to be an old pal from school, he is left absolutely untethered from all he understands in his world, and every attempt to make it makes sense seems to send him down the wrong path. The later part of the book does take place in the autumn months, but I didn't really get the sense that this took up a whole lot of the story

Classic Halloween Elements

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Only a novella in length, Carmilla is a fascinating read. Follow a lonely girl outside of her country of origin come to have a visitor, Carmilla, stay at her estate under mysterious circumstances. She quickly finds herself enamored with Carmilla and quickly grows ill with her worry over unhappy events which seem to plague Carmilla overnight. Despite them however, Carmilla seems just as robust as ever despite her habit to sleep away the mornings. This book predates Dracula, and it strikes me that it lent much of its lore to Stoker's later novel.

Cemetary Boys****

YA, Featuring ghosts and witches and blood rituals. What is more Halloweeny? "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

Does anyone actually even need a summary? Look, if you like to read books for Halloween and haven't read this one, just do it. You're on Tumblr; make sure you know what all the Dracula Daily posts are going on about. They're excelle

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

I have never read an author that, in so little time of story, manages to dredge up so much feeling of dread. If you want to set a dark and dreary mood, Poe's your man. In today's age, I don't know that his stories come off nearly as spooky as they once did, but they certainly evoke a sort of low mood spooky stories often aim for. It's like the counter of a thriller which often evokes high, frantic energy instead of the low, desolate mood of Poe's work.

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

What is more horrific than watching a beloved child deteriorate into self harm and bad health and getting no answers, having to trust to faith instead of anything you've trusted before. Or how about a believer faced with evil powers one never expected to truly come face to face with?

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!!

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

What can have more than classic Halloween elements than a classic horror tale??

The Gilda Stories***

Vampires always fit this season. Follow a girl willing to kill to obtain freedom as she merges into life as a vampire and seeks out her people and a place to call home. 200 years of finding places for herself allow for a nice exploration of what it means for a vampire to live for a very, very long time.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Danielle "When Ted stumbles onto a gropu of Cthulhu cultists planning to awaken the Old Ones through mystic incantations culled from the fabled Necronomicon, calling forth eldritch horros into an unsuspecting world, eh and Laura must spring into action, traveling from Boston to the seemingly-peaceful suburbs of Providence and beyond, all the way to the sanity-shattering non-Euclidian alleyways and towers of dread R'lyeh itself, in order to prevent an innocent shopping center from turning into... The Mall of Cth

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot lea

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! And though a lot of the book has a veneer of the mundane, don't be deceived. There are witches and blood rituals and demonic entities tipping the scales. Perfect for those who love the spooky elements of Halloween! Also, I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson***

One of the classic horror books has to go among classic Halloween! You think you know this story, but if you haven't read it, you likely know less than you think! This is the perfect time of year to check out the original.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Follow a hitchhiking ghost over the breadth of the continental US. She was run off the Sparrow Hill Road in 1952 on her way to prom and never made it there. Instead she haunts the highways of the US, hitchhiking her way from roadside diner to roadside diner. She finds a calling in spending time with someone before their last moments, fated to die on the road. Sometimes though, she gets to alter that fate. But there is one out there who has an unpleasant fate in mind for her, and he haunts the roads in his immortal demon car, determined to get the prey who escaped him in the early 1950s.

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night. I mean what is more classic than ghosts, poltergeists, banshees, and the like?

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Vern "A short work of prose fiction written in 1819" "often viewed as the progenitor of the romantic vampire genre of fantasy fiction." Our protagonist becomes fascinating by an intriguing gentleman and takes up with him only to begin to suspect a dark explanation of the man's behaviors.

Nonfiction

From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty*****

Is the west too disconnected from death thanks to a 20 billion dollar industry that makes loved ones disappear nearly the moment they leave the world of the living and their bodies corpses? What if we returned to a not so distant practice of taking part in death rituals, to have a purpose, be a link, in a loved one's passing from this world and the next? Doughty explores those rituals and more from cultures across the world and asks us to imagine a more fulfilling grieving process that included the body of those who've passed on.

Haunted Wisconsin by Michael Norman, Beth Scott****

Collected from around Wisconsin, this book contains tales of an "assortment of ghosts, apparitions and other supernatural occurrences."

I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara***

"A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive searial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case."

Penguin Book of Hell by Scott Bruce **

Let's talk about hell. That's what this book is all about, from the ghostly afterlife of the Greeks to the hell we force on others. This follows in a pretty straight line from the Greek/Roman concepts thru the Christian concepts, to attitudes about endless punishment held today.

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night. I mean what is more classic than ghosts, poltergeists, banshees, and the like?

Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend by Mark Collins Jenkins*****

An "engrossing history draws on the latest science, anthropological and archaeological research to explore the origins of vampire stories, providing gripping historic and folkloric context for the concept of immortal beings who defy death by feeding on the lifeblood of others. From the earliest whispers of eternal evil in ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, vampire tales flourished through the centuries and around the globe, fueled by superstition, sexual mystery, fear of disease and death, and the nagging anxiety that demons lurk everywhere."

The World of Lore Books by Aaron Mahnke ****

These contain the books Dreadful Places, Wicked Mortals, and Monstrous Creatures. I haven't actually read Wicked Mortals yet, but the other two were perfect for the season and am confident so too Wicked Mortals will be too. Follow Mahnke as he explores the history of these folk tales and spoopy histories! They also work as great audio listens.

It's October, so get ready to see this even more! I still have books I want to add to it that are pending, and more will be added as I read. But I'm always looking for more books to queue up for some spoopy time (and/OR Autumn reading), and when I find there's something I wish there was more of out in the world, I find it helps to put out into it what we'd like to see.

That is to say, please feel free to add to this! I will excitedly look forward to more spoopy recs.

[sh00kspeared]

ooohh tell me more about Orien!! I just started BG3 recently also so welcome to the club lol

Ahhh thank you so much for being interested in him, and glad to see another new BG3 fan!! ♥️♥️

He’s not fully fleshed out yet, but rn I’ve got a few things— he’s a tiefling named Orienes who changed his name to Orien after setting sail with a band of pirates when he got into a financial bind in his late teens.

Funny story, I was recently in a play production of treasure island, where I played both Billy Bones and then later a generic pirate after Billy’s death scene. To help develop my character, I decided my pirate would be named Orien and was the son of Billy Bones who defected from his family and joined Long John’s crew. Since closing night was recently and I was sad to have to give up my character, I decided to immortalize him and turn him into my BG3 character, so a lot of his backstory is inspired by treasure island.

That being said, he spent his time burgling on the high seas. He lost all sight in his left eye after being given a magical artefact by a man he’d made enemies with years ago, which cursed him with blindness. (Inspired somewhat by the black spot from treasure island). He was able to destroy the item before his right eye was affected but began wearing an eye patch after his left eye grew pitch black and started spreading a magical ‘infection’ to the rest of his face and to the side of his neck. Luckily it didn’t continue growing and hasn’t seemed to have done much besides destroying his vision and causing the occasional dull throb in his head. Here’s a picture of the curse:

He later lost partial sight in his right eye after being slashed during a swordfight and now has trouble with his peripheral vision as well as being somewhat nearsighted. This is why he tends to favor stealth, ranged attacks, and magic— especially magic— he calls upon magical forces which help him tune into his non-visual senses, which allow him to still fight well despite his disability.

Orien’s crew broke up after the whole lot were captured by a rival band of human pirates who wholeheartedly believed that tieflings were devil spawns. They tortured him for three days; broke both of his horns and cut off the tip of his tail— before they could continue their torture, though, he managed to break free and decided to give up piracy once and for all, unable to deal with the trauma any longer. (Blind eye and broken horn visible here; still trying to get mods figured out which is why his eye curse isn’t visible in the pic and why only one of his horns is broken).

Flash forward to the events of the game. His past has greatly influenced his current beliefs and behavior. While he does harbor some internal bitterness toward humans due to many humans’ hatred of his kind, he’s also vowed to himself to never wreak violence on someone solely for who they are (though he does have a tendency to be defensive of tieflings in particular). He has no problem with stealing and killing, but does have a soft spot for children and animals.

Now, this man is so touch starved that he starts crushing on Astarion simply because he secretly loved how intimate the experience of having his blood get drunk for the first time felt, but eventually he started to actually fall in love and became enthralled by Astarion’s charm and flamboyancy.

I’m not far enough along to know much more, but I’m really loving Orien so far and am super excited to start Astarion’s romance lmao.

(More pics. And again, mods are wonky which is why both of his horns are intact in the last pic).

[shiiikigami]

TOGE'S NEW CANON & UPGRADES!

(manga spoilers warning)

reasoning : of all the students in his class, toge inumaki is the most neglected in the narrative. he is the only one in the manga to date that has not had any growth or change in his cursed technique. he has not progressed as a student, other than being given a rise in rank somewhat. he is the only one without any backstory beyond vague mentioning. it's also frankly strange that he is the only student that is not weapons-trained by maki and there's not any real reason given to it. i decided i'm not happy with that and spent some time re-writing a few things, and fleshing out toge inumaki the way he deserves. note that this is canon to my blog and all threads will be set this way unless someone requests otherwise.

CHILDHOOD: toge inumaki was born cursed. the inumaki clan had always been a minor clan, but they were low in popularity and in modern day they are a withering weed in the garden of the clans. the major three clans have spent centuries undermining them out of fear of their cursed speech technique being too powerful. however, the inumaki clan were no saints either. when toge was born - the rare child born with the snake eyes and fangs sealing his voice permanently with cursed energy - they passed judgement on whether he would be allowed to live, or have his vocal chords severed to limit him. a child could not be trusted with cursed speech, they reasoned. instead, however, calmer minds prevailed and he was instead sanctioned to wear a muzzle made of sacred seals to prevent him from speaking.

his early years were lonely, silent and cold. his own blood avoided him as if he were a contagious plague. he longed to play with others, to speak and be heard, to listen and hear. when he was older, able to obey and understand, the muzzle was removed. he was allowed to play with his cousins, so long as he didn't speak. for a short time, the rigid play made him happy - though he, nothing more than a child, lost control while playing pretend with the other children and spoke. a girl died.

again, he was up for judgement, muzzled once more. they had decided that although he would be allowed to live due to his auspicious birth meaning he would certainly pass on the family's cursed technique - but he would lose his vocal chords as he could not be trusted with them.

that was when special grade sorcerer gojo satoru intervened. instead of being mutilated, toge was brought to jujutsu tech to live. he wouldn't be able to attend classes for a few more years, but he would be allowed to live quietly on the grounds under light supervision of the best sorcerers in the country. no one could be harmed, and he could learn to control his technique in a safe environment.

this decision changed the trajectory of his life. instead of living like he had the plague, toge was allowed to grow into himself. to thrive and discover a new love for his curse. he was reminded again and again that with time he could learn to help others with it, and no one he cared about had to get hurt again. he could even make friends one day.

the lonely child found solace in studying, gardening, eavesdropping on lessons, and especially in cooking. as he grew, he developed his mischievous sense of humor, his natural athleticism, and learned a love of cooking. it was gojo who had helped him think of his clever way to speak without harming others after toge had made him a plate of onigiri one afternoon. with hard work - he developed his method of communication just in time to start classes.

THE INUMAKI CLAN: in the time since toge came to the school, his clan was not-so-mysteriously wiped out. it was widely known the zen'in had the most to gain with them removed - however the last remaining descendant was just out of reach and remained so. as such, toge is the heir to the inumaki clan - though he has no interest in the family that had debated his death twice and will not carry on tradition. he chooses to go his own way.

COMMUNICATION: i have created a guide to the way i write inumaki's onigiri speech here.

FIGHTING STYLE: toge is not a sorcerer who needs to win a fight with his fists. however, when at a major disadvantage there is a significant increase of his survival to defend himself with his hands. due to his slight form and agile nature, he studied aiki-jujutsu - a martial art that focuses not on landing punches or kicks, but about diverting an early attack using things like joint manipulation or body throwing methods. due to his natural speed and quick assessment of his opponents, he can often neutralize or disarm opponents stronger and larger than he is. he also employs his flexibility and gymnastics in his style - remaining hard to grapple with and quick to either slip away or use his opponent's momentum to take them down.

WEAPON USE: to support his hand-to-hand combat style, toge employs kunai. he uses them when necessary, imbued with cursed energy and worn on his belt. he uses them for stabbing/killing and climbing/scaling surfaces as necessary.

POST SHIBUYA-ARC CHARACTER GROWTH: toge was gravely injured after taking a hit from sukuna's malevolent shrine expansion in the shibuya incident. the sure-hit attack severed his arm above the elbow - not just in flesh but in soul too. there is nothing as painful as an injury to the soul, and he suffered greatly. however, his spirit wasn't broken. after everything they went through, he was lucky to survive. their friends and seniors had died horribly. some lost their cursed techniques. some were haunted by their injuries. what was an arm compared to that?

he was already up and out of his hospital bed after a week, and dedicated to making a strong recovery so he could join his friends in fixing the broken world they now lived in. he especially wanted to be on his feet now that yuta had returned - all of him wanted to support yuta now that he was back from kenya.

this new hardship in his life had taught him resilience. in his comatose state after the attack, when he was sure he would die, he entered a meditative state to cling to life. he found himself in tune with the cursed energy around him. using this newfound understanding, he soon developed a new technique that allowed him to be able to redirect the currents of cursed energy in the environment around him to empower his cursed speech attacks.

this new ability of his allows him to surpass his present limits. currently, when toge is faced with an opponent who is a few grades above his level he faces deadly blowback from using cursed speech on them - even using relatively docile words. while redirecting cursed energy around him, he is able to use the flow as a barrier around himself to soften (not block) the cursed energy that strikes back at him for using those words and injuring his throat. additionally, he is able to use the flow of cursed energy to boost the energy of his attacks when he speaks them. for a stronger opponent, he can not do both simultaneously and must choose to protect himself or attack.

he still faces significant limitations with this power. he cannot create cursed energy, and he has to rely on sources around him - often objects he imbued with energy and carries with him. if there is nothing he can use, he cannot use the technique. he does not disclose the technique to others, and only his trusted allies know of it.

NOTE: these changes to canon are my own works that i spent time and energy thinking over and researching. please do not take these ideas and use them as your own canon. they are also subject to change as i feel necessary or if we actually get a satisfying backstory for toge inumaki in the manga that is yet to be published.

ARTIST CREDIT: 101_toi

[lookingfts]

hello!!! do you already watch the bridgerton 4 episodes??? what are your thoughts on polin??? did you like it or not??? only if you want to answer of course, i will totally understand if you prefer not to

I have! I watched all four episodes on the day they aired. I did a short version of my thoughts on the season, but I'll do a bit of a deeper dive here. (Some spoilers below)

To set the stage: I had no real expectations for Polin. I've never read any of the books, and I didn't find myself particularly drawn to them in S1 and S2. So I figured I would watch the season, and if I didn't fall in love with them, that's fine - there are eight love stories, and people will feel different levels of investment in all of them. And if I did enjoy it, then I would be happy with that too! I try to go into everything with a mindset of hoping to enjoy it - otherwise, I wouldn't watch it. I simply don't hate watch things, I don't have time.

I'll probably need a rewatch to catch more moments that I've missed, but my initial thoughts are: I'm rooting for Polin! One of my issues throughout the last two seasons was that the show didn't give us enough of their friendship dynamic. It told us that they were friends, but we didn't see them spend much time together. I felt more like they had been friends growing up, and she was clinging to that while he had started to move on to a new phase of his life. I never got the feeling that they were friends in the present, or understood what particularly they were drawn to about each other.

In this season, I finally saw their chemistry as friends, rather than just Pen pining after Colin and him being oblivious. As Pen's confidence grew and she focused less on Colin, their relationship felt more equal and I enjoyed watching that. I also think that some of the qualities that bothered me about Penelope in previous seasons were smoothed out in S3. She was able to stand up for herself more in her real life, and thus wasn't "hiding" behind Lady Whistledown as much. She used LW to lift up the debutantes, and in general it felt like she had taken her fight with Eloise to heart and was attempting to fix things.

(I do also love Pen and Eloise's arc this season - it feels so genuine. They both truly care about each other, but they need time to work through all the hurt.)

Colin is fun this season. I've always liked him, in previous seasons, when he was interacting with his siblings. He does show real interest in them and they can confide in him. Unfortunately, he doesn't have as fleshed out of a personality as Anthony or Benedict, and I truly don't think that Luke Newton has the same acting range as Nicola, so they're a bit mismatched in that way. Nicola is obviously very talented and she looks insanely gorgeous this season.

But for the most part, I was having fun watching their story, and I wanted them to work it out. I don't think they needed to make Colin a rake; him being less experienced would have made a nice contrast to Anthony's story, I think. I also think the pacing was off; they haven't spent much time together so far, so the ending feels fast. I think they wasted a lot of opportunities to better build up their story in previous seasons so they could have hit the ground running this season.

(Ngl I really loved Lord Debling and would have been okay with Penelope ending up with him, but I know that wasn't really the marriage she wanted, so that's fine.)

So long story short: I've warmed up to Penelope, I think Colin is still a bit generic to really get invested in him, the season as a whole has been fun, and I want them to work things out. I am looking forward to the LW drama in part 2 and seeing how they get out of that mess.

[bestbonnist]

Chapter 166.2

The doll is laying back in a chair like the nameless boy during its first appearance.

The person with the blindfold also first appears in a chair. The all-white lighting of this scene and the way they struggle forward are also reminiscent of when Fushi first used the nameless boy's body and struggled to move in it.

And then the poses in these panels also mirror each other. Just a guess, but this person is probably the reason the doll is so determined to become human, just like the nameless boy was for Fushi.

I'm never going to shut up about how Fushi spent the last two arcs feeling like they weren't allowed to be happy unless they were constantly helping others and now no one can be happy unless the people around them decide that they've helped enough to earn a good rating. Everything is so much worse now. With all my love to Mizuha and Yuuki, they fucked up big time.

I really like that we're looking at what lies outside of the star system along with the people inside it. The star system is presented like it's fair because it gives everyone an even chance. You don't get human rights unless you have stars, and how much of a human you are is dictated by how many stars you have, nothing else. Every human gets an equal opportunity to earn stars once they turn eight. But then characters like the doll and Kanitarou don't have a hope in high heaven of being human, because they were never part of the system.

Just spinning my gears here, this is all hypothetical but if human beings are being mass produced and tailored to each customer's specifications like we saw in Chapter 166.1, then they're no more "real" than Kanitarou and the doll are. Toys are made up of wires, not flesh and blood, but human society only functions with the chips inside each person's body. Both rely on technology to live. People can even end up looking less and less human as well, if they get a low rating. They might eventually end up looking like a toy, given that the ramen store owner and others assumed the doll was just a person who had one star. The qualifications for being human are very specific and very arbitrary, aren't they.

On a side tangent, it struck me that the powers ordinary humans possess are more like the Beholder's than like Fushi's. The ability to make things that weren't already preexisting, the ability to give vessels life, the ability to replicate tiny details like grains of sand and such, even the ability to stretch lifespans indefinitely. Together, humans and knockers have reached a new height where anything is possible, and it's terrible. It's true that if Fushi had taken on the Beholder's abilities, they might have been able to present this from happening, but it's because they were unwilling to exert control over others like Kaibara Cybernetics does that they decided not to. You can't be a good person while holding onto that kind of power. For Fushi, they wouldn't have been able to be a person at all.

Which begs the question, what kind of state are the five star people working at Kaibara Cybernetics in? Just food for thought.

Kanitarou and the doll have the start of an interesting character dynamic. Kanitarou is polite and logical where the doll is brutish and intuitive, but by the end of the chapter it's apparent that he's just as hard-headed as it is. I think it's interesting that he insists becoming human is a pipe dream but despite that, still has a strong sense of justice for toys and wants them all to be treated well. A little sad how he basically repeats what the boy who was torturing him said, that he and the doll are just programs. It's not any less hurtful if he says it nicely.

Overall, he seems very kind, and his attentiveness to the doll seems to bring out her kindness as well. They're goofy, I hope they become friends and stick together.

[linkedbytime]

What Now Then?

So I shared what happened, so the next question is definitely what happens next.

Honestly... I don't know.

I do still care about this project. I think about it infrequently even while immersed in other things. I had a lot planned out, a story with arcs and character arcs, and I spent a good bit of time figuring out who each of these guys are in my interpretation of things.

But I think, if I did come back to this, that I'd need to do some revamping.

I really like a lot of the designs, but I might want to reexamine them again.

I also really need to toss out the first comic I did. It didn't make me happy. I don't like how it starts. I thought of that opening scene a long time ago, but I don't know if it works as a starting point anymore.

I would want to start fresh, new, actually put some more thoughtful planning into the beginning of things.

I'm also not sure I want to jump right in with all of the Links at once. While I want them to interact immediately, it is a bit overwhelming, and definitely far too ambitious. I'd probably split them up in groups of 3 to start, take some time to flesh out some dynamics more, see who'd be interesting to group up.

Also? Grayscale. Complex grayscale. I know why I wanted to do things in full color, but it is NOT my strong suit, and I don't think I should try and force it to be. Maybe do color for fun special things or certain parts of the comic for emphasis.

In any case, this isn't anything I'd be able to start anytime soon. SAD season has hit hard this year, and I'm at a different job than the one I was at when I last worked on it. It's definitely a job I enjoy more, but it involves interacting with people all day and is a lot more draining.

All things said, I would like to come back to this and take my time with it. I want to do more comic work, and I feel like this would be a good way to play around with it more.

(Also I need to go way more self-indulgent with this instead of worrying about how closely things fit to standard canon and what not. I'm not a LoZ scholar and I don't intend to be. I'm just here to have fun.)