#where these kinds of IFs were popularized

[on-leatheredwings]

,

[alpaca-clouds]

Dear Worldbuilders: Please Understand Cultural Norms As Cultural Norms

Two days ago I had a discussion with my new roomie. Because we are two autistic guys, who will not stop talking politics all day, and were talking about the opening ceremony of the Olympics. To which he held the opinion: "I mean, I was not offended. But I can understand the Christians who are." To which I pointed out, that they really do not get to be offended after forcing their religion onto everyone.

Somehow the discussion however went to the horrible topic of "kink at pride". And he showed me videos he saw online, where some nudists were also participating at pride. To which I just shrugged and was like: "So what? They are naked. It is not as if they are doing something sexual. They are just naked, and there should be nothing taboo about the naked body. I mean, c'mon dude, we are living in Germany which is kinda known internationally for its nudist culture." And he went: "Yeah, sure, but usually if there is a nudist beach or a nudist swimming pool I will go there expecting to see naked people." And I kept relying on the point: "Well, but what harm is done to these people being naked?" To which he went: "Well, the children...!" And I was like: "Do you really think kids are getting traumatized by seeing a naked body? You are aware there are cultures around the world in which running around naked is pretty normalized, right? I know that 'don't be naked' feels super intuitive for someone growing up over here, but keep in mind that to someone from Afghanistan or Saudi Arabia 'women should cover their hair' would feel about as intuitive, because it is just a cultural norm." Which was the point I was given.

But thinking about it, I actually do see a lot of people struggling with this concept as well. Yesterday a friend and I also talked about how many western people just assume that Christmas is celebrated by everyone around the world - even though it isn't.

And I think this shows nowhere as strongly as in fantasy and scifi media. Because a lot of fantasy and scifi media just will go ahead and assume a baseline western culture - even in settings, where it does not make sense. More than that: It will assume either modern western cultural norms or - especially for fantasy - will kind of try to extrapolate how people imagine something to have been like at some time.

And I am staying with the nudity example, because it is actually a funny one. A lot of fantasy media will assume people in a medival setting to be super touchy about nude bodies, because Victorian's were crying (according to popular myths) when they saw a naked ankle.

However: This actually could not be further from the truth. Because we have ample evidence, that in medieval times not only public baths were not sex seggregated, but that on hot summer days the peasants would also work at least partially naked on the fields.

Sure, in some areas of Europe nobility was a bit more squeaming around naked bodies than the peasants. But that was then a nobility thing - and even this was not necessarily true throughout the entire middle ages (again: The period lasted around 1000 years), and especially not throughout all of Europe.

But you know what said nobility was also super iffed about? Yeah: Women's hair. That got hidden throughout medieval Europe as well. Especially in late medieval times. At times under headscarfs, at times under certain types of hats.

Then let's also talk about the Christmas thing. Because it is a classic of fantasy media especially. The world is going to have a winter festival that involves gift giving, family parties, and often enough also dead trees in prominent locations.

Now, on one hand: A lot of cultures around the world had winter solstice festivals, so assuming that your fantasy culture will have the same is not that far fetched to have that, too. But why give it the modern Christmas traditions? There are so many other traditions you could come up with. I am sure of that. You are a fantasy/scifi writer after all!

You might ask yourself right now: Why do I even have an issue with this?

Well, the answer is simple. Because this is about Eurocentrism. Building a world like that will just assume that western European traditions are "the norm", they are what we should assume to find everywhere. And when people read fantasy media and just find it all reflected there, it is what they will start to assume. And then they are going to be all "surprised pikachu", when they find out that indeed, the world does not celebrate Christmas.

Also... Just normalize naked bodies. There is literally no harm in seeing a naked body. None at all.

[sukirofa]

sometimes a 30 year old gay man romance is a straight highschool shoujo romance

or ways i think cherry magic is similar to kimi ni todoke

lots of spoilers (especially for kimi ni todoke)

sorry if this is all over the place half of those came to mind while i was writing the already planned half

Sawako and Kurosawa are characters that are shown to have fallen in love with their respective love interests because they believe their LI saw something in them that everyone else ignored. When Shouta calls Sawako by her first name, as opposed to everyone else not knowing her real name, he acknowledges her true self and Sawako is moved by that. When Adachi tells Kurosawa that he’s noticed his hard work but it’s refreshing to see him all flustered, Kurosawa is also moved, as his imperfect side is always ignored or seen as exclusively negative by others. Their main motivator for falling for the other person is fundamentally the same and it’s interesting to compare how it unfolds for both of them. Both are inexperienced in a sense, Sawako never having a crush or a relationship before and Kurosawa, while quite experienced in relationships, has never truly had a crush (especially one to this intensity) before. They also both seem to have a thing for bedheads and losers so good for them.

Sawako and Adachi also let their feelings of admiration for their LI get in the way of realizing their own romantic feelings. One of the most important moments in both relationship developments is them moving past idolization of their LI.

Kurosawa also shares some thought processes with Kazehaya for his reasons for falling in love. Both Kazehaya and Kurosawa are attracted by their love interest’s hard work that is often overlooked by everyone around them. They like the feeling of exclusivity they get by being the only lucky ones to notice such a wonderful person which later on results to justified or not possessiveness and jealousy. 

Doesn't help that any attempt Kazehaya and Kurosawa make to get closer to their LI at the start is written off by them as simple kindness that such popular kind beloved person would show to anyone. 

On the topic of jealousy, Sawako and Adachi experience it in similar ways. While Kazehaya and Kurosawa are shown (at least in the beginning) as possessive and cautious of everyone around their LI, Sawako and Adachi feel jealous under specific scenarios. And since they’re both their respective series’ more dense person when it comes to their feelings, it’s also the main indicator for them to realize their romantic feelings. Sawako feels jealous when she assumes Kazehaya is calling Kurumi by her first name and even more when she realizes she doesn’t want Kurumi to get with him; and that’s what makes her realize her feelings for him aren’t quite platonic. Adachi contemplates whether he’s actually into Kurosawa or if he’s been swayed by Kurosawa’s feelings. But as soon as he sees him with someone he assumes is his ex girlfriend (Sidenote it’s funny how the most jealous Sawako and Adachi feel is because of an assumption they make) he gets sick and then immediately decides to confess (before he’s interrupted by Mari and once again thrown into a thought spiral of what-ifs). 

Sawako and Kurosawa both having a “it's not a dream” moment after they get their confession answered.

Before getting together both ships also have a moment early on where one of them accidentally initiates a kiss that is later referenced when it's time for their actual first kiss. When Sawako falls for Pin’s prank and unintentionally makes Kazehaya believe she's expecting a kiss, frustrated, Kazehaya says that if she were to try that again, he can't know how he'll react. When their relationship is in a rough spot Sawako does try that again, but Kazehaya has absolutely no reaction; she calls him out for his lack of affection and he responds with a kiss to reassure her (of course they also talk it out later). After Kurosawa feels guilty for kissing Adachi’s forehead, Adachi wants to reassure him he didn't hate it. So he straight up says that he didn't hate it. Kurosawa (justified) misunderstands and asks Adachi if he's sure what he's saying and Adachi hesitatingly nods. Kurosawa then goes for a kiss but thankfully theyre interrupted and Adachi makes it clear that he didn't imply that. When Adachi clears up Kurosawa’s concers about his cryptic behavior and confesses about the magic and Kurosawa decides to once again to go for a kiss; He asks again if Adachi understands what that means and Adachi this time confidently nods.

And even though everything seems to go smoothly after their first dates (and the first hand holding) both relationships have a problem looming over them. In KNT the concern is more practical, Kazehaya is mostly afraid of making Sawako uncomfortable and, as every adult around him warns him, not treasuring her (that is, not keeping their relationship appropriate). In CM’s case the problem is that Adachi feels guilty for reading Kurosawa’s thoughts without him knowing. (I also think Shouta’s need to treasure Sawako can also be compared to Kurosawa’s initial perfectionism when it came to dating Adachi, because he wanted to give him a good experience of a first relationship.) If I were to narrow it down both conflicts come down to the fear of power imbalance and creating a distance between the two as a result. In both cases the conflict puts a strain in the relationship. Both Sawako and Kurosawa notice that and call it out. 

Of course despite the similarities both conflicts unfold completely differently, mainly because of the experience gap and the age difference of the couples (as well as the content of the conflict itself). Adachi immediately confesses when he sees that he caused Kurosawa distress and the emotional climax is wrapped up with their first kiss.

Sawako and Shouta are a bit more intense (rightfully so; the conflict in KuroAda’s relationship happens a few weeks after dating, for SawaKaze this has been an issue for MONTHS) but ultimately, after Sawako makes her insecurities clear and Shouta realizes how wrong he’s been acting they also resolve the conflict by having their first kiss (as a reassurance, as a confirmation that Kazehaya’s change of attitude is not a product of change of heart, but simply a misguided decision). They also have a much needed conversation afterwards.

Some other trope-y similarities that I don't think are worth expanding on (or at least I can't expand on them as much) but I would like to point out are: the confessions being a day apart in both scenarios and involving running, a love letter (two in knt, one so far in cm). There is a blonde guy who is messy. Another guy who is third wheeling accidentally all the time. That one female character who is very invested in the main's relationship. Adachi and Kazehaya are both older brothers with questionable fathers. Both stories also feature a LDR conflict the climax of which is pretty much the same in both stories (the love letter and their first time)

At their core both KNT and CM are about the importance of mutual respect within a relationship, idolization (and how that can get in the way of a relationship), the importance of communication-that takes time and some arguments and a lot of failed attempts. If you like the one you will definitely like the other.

[deobienthusiast]

your name hurts | eric sohn

• pairing: eric sohn x gn!reader

• word count: 1.1k words

• genre: straight angst, college!au, frat boy!eric

• warnings: yall it’s just insanely sad. like there is no happy ending so don’t even expect one

• rating: PG

• notes: i’ve been on an early hailee steinfeld kick so this is based off of her song your name hurts. fully recommend listening to it while reading this

• tagging: @deoboyznet

we’re a half written story without any ending

you left me to figure it out

filled me with ecstasy, left with the best of me

but where’s the rest of me now?

Your life was so simple before Eric Sohn. You could make it through the day without daydreaming about the what ifs. You didn’t have to worry about your heart being broken. But after experiencing life with Eric, you weren’t sure how to survive without him. Eric was one of the popular ones. Striking good looks, loud, contagious demeanor, the perfect fit to The Boyz fraternity. You wished you had taken a different way to your classes freshman year because the moment he laid eyes on you, looking lost outside the frat house, he knew he’d found his next victim. He walked you to class, told you all you needed to know about the school and about himself. He sunk his teeth into your heart, and you let him.

honestly i don’t regret you

i just wish i never met you

part of me wants to upset you, ah-ah

every single letter’s killing me

don’t know why it gets to me

every time i hear that sound

Your time with Eric was nothing short of magical. At least that’s how it felt at first. He made you happy, always bringing a smile to your face. He wasn’t huge on pda and showing his emotions, so i love you’s were given in the form of doing little things. He was a giver, that much was for sure. you loved every minute, but wished you had just kept walking. Why did you let his voice coax you into the frat house? When he broke up with you, you felt like your whole world was crashing down. How could he just end things without feeling anything? How could he be so cold? You thought of all the ways you could get him back. All the ways you could break his heart the way he broke yours. Bringing yourself to hurt someone you loved so much, despite them pretty much proving in every aspect that they didn’t love you the same, was something you could not do.

your name hurts (your name hurts)

i don’t say it no more

it’s like the worst of words (worst of words)

you don’t even know

You stopped hanging out with mutual friends. you kept to yourself, and stayed inside the small circle of friends you had outside of Eric. you begged them not to mention him, not wanting to even continue to be associated with his name. The looks of sympathy were too much. You felt like a wounded soldier anytime someone brought him up. like his name was a bullet being fired from a loaded gun, straight into the already gaping hole in your heart to kill you even more. You knew no one was doing it to be mean or cruel, but it felt like you couldn’t escape him anytime his name was mentioned. You wished he’d become nameless. Maybe then you’d be able to actually move on with your life. Go back to the way things were before him. But honestly, you weren’t sure you even wanted that either.

and this half-written story is horror at best

the kind where the hero still dies in the end

and god only knows, maybe this is a test

‘cause i kinda wanna mess you up

but i won’t, babe, not yet

You felt like you were trapped in a never ending cycle. you’d wake up, barely eat, drag yourself to class, avoid any sort of interaction with anyone unless you needed to talk. Eric had plagued every part of your life. Everywhere you looked, he was there. Every turn felt like he was constantly next to you, watching you, taunting you. It was hard to focus, and you so badly wanted to scrape your mind of the memories. You wanted to shave off the portion of your life Eric was a part of. He had made such a mess of you, that you just somehow wanted to do the same.

wouldn’t say that i regret you

but man, i wish i never met you

that your mama never even had you, oh-ah

every single letter’s killing me

don't know why it always gets to me

every time i hear that sound

The day Eric broke up with you is still burned in your mind. You remember it like it was yesterday. You replay it over and over and over like a broken record constantly skipping and never moving forward. It felt like a continuous time loop that you couldn’t get out of. How could he? He was so calm. So emotionally void. He didn’t seem fazed by the words he was saying. So nonchalant, like it was no big deal. You couldn’t believe it. Someone you trusted so dearly, had looted your entire heart out to. Someone you shared your darkest secrets and deep insecurities with. How was Eric able to just say it meant nothing to him, that it was all for fun. That it was ‘nothing serious’ to him, and he was certain you felt the same. You couldn’t believe what he was saying. Never in your life had you ever wished something bad on someone before, but sometimes you just wanted to go back in time to change certain things.

feels like burning on my lips

the ones that you used to kiss

no way you ain’t feelin’ it too

Eric would be lying if he said he wasn’t heartbroken. He fell for you in ways you couldn’t even begin to imagine. You were his everything, but so was his reputation. He had built up a strong resumé of girls who had fallen for the baseball star, only to have their hearts broken. None of them affected him the way you did. After almost two years together, it was either choose you or choose popularity. Now he’s wishing he would have chosen you. You mean more to him than any level of popularity. Now he can’t think straight. He can’t focus. He’s been benched on the baseball team, frat parties don’t hit the way they used to when he had you with him. But the peer pressure of living up to the name he had made for himself was too much. He collapsed under the pressure. “I’m surprised it’s lasted this long Eric”. “When are you going to end things Eric”. He didn’t want to disappoint anyone, and in the end he disappointed the person that means the most to him.

i hope my name hurts, my name hurts

my name hurts you (you, you, you)

Just like you, he can’t stand to hear your name. Because all it does is remind him of all the pain he caused you.

[coeluvr]

Hello dearest!

I don't usually write messages because I have weird, shy internet anxiety, but I wanted to make an exception because compliments always motivate me to keep writing and I need u to keep writing so I can finally h*ld Vincent's h*nd!!! 😔😭🤡

This is one of the few IFs where I actually want to romance all ROs!!! Usually, I have a few I really want to romance and the rest I slog through cause completionist tendencies. But you've done a wonderful job of not only making the characters feel very alive and dynamic but also making them all appealing and attractive.

I usually always want to romance the hater because pettiness fuels me but also love angst with a kill them with kindness mc (I WILL H*LD VINCENTS H*ND OR DIE FIGHTING GOD). So, confirmed Vincent-mancer. His art? HIS EYES. HIS LIPS. PRETTY PRIVELEGE IS REAL AND ALL CRIMES ARE EXCUSED (also I really tried going into it being like he's not sad!!! But, as someone who's been in that place, while not an actual war, he definitely comes across as sad in the sense of a weariness at life and that he's struggling to fit back into his skin as pre-trauma Vincent. Artist did a 10/10 job with all the art because THEY'RE SO BEAUTIFUL I CREYYYY)

But the chokehold Hunter has on me? They were gonna be first because their personality is appealing to me both fictional and irl but omg everything I read I HAVE TO HAVE MORE. Like it's moved beyond I'd definitely vibe with this character and look forward to their route to i WANT TO SMOOCH THEIR PRETTY FACE OFF. So now confirmed Hunter-mancer (I actually died on the tattoo snippet on patreon is it a good or bad day to be bi?)

Helios kind of types I'm more of a 50/50 with, but obviously gotta do it for the juicy drama. But all stuff with him has just been so ??!!!???😳😳🫠 like he just leaves me more intrigued. Confirmed Helios-mancer. (The amount of times I'm gonna replay his route to try different things is actually gonna be crazy)

Soarine hot women nuff said. But also just ???!!!?!? I can't even form words. I'm so excited for more scenes with her. Confirmed Soarine-mancer. (Ma'am pls step on me respectfully and not so respectfully)

Fadiya as the official best friend (Hunter you're a bestie too but I feel bad like I'm making u choose between me and Helios :((( ) is usually one I'd keep strictly platonic. I love platonic routes as much as romance and nothing grabs me more than having a best friend character in IFs. BUT SHES SO ADORABLE. I WANNA SMOOSH HER CHEEKS. Also I feel her cause I'm that oblivious too 😭😭😭 I always appreciate ifs having the shy and bold type flirting but I need an oblivious idiot one because I'd be accidentally flirting with her like I do with all my friends without realizing I'm in love with her (and then be unable to speak to her once I realize because flirting? With people that aren't just platonic friends??? That I have feelings for????? Sounds fake). I gotta write the fanfic now (and perhaps share with u once I get over my shyness)

I really am looking forward to the next chapter! I'm so glad I subscribed on patreon too :))) keep up the good work (it also motivates me to cure my depression and post my stuff too)

💙💙💙💙💙

This is so sweet, anon 🥺 Thank you for sending me this message!!

I'm so glad all of the ROs are appealing to you! I love them all so much they're all beautiful and have so much to their stories. 🥰

Vincent's pretty privilege is insane lmao so many people folded when they saw him 😭 I guess Vincent's inner sadness seeped through because he's really okay #trust but then I probably have a wildly different definition of okay haha very low standards of living over here. He was also never trauma free lol my man just going through it. 🤭

I understand your love for Hunter!! They are just very... very. The tattoo part is one of my favs too they're so smooth with it like okay you're popular with everyone we get it 🙄 *cries to sleep*

Helios is super interesting to me because of the way he handles things and his mindset like I need to study him under a microscope. His route will definitely fulfill all your desires for drama! 🥳

Soarine hot woman. Real. She can ruin my life any day.

Fadiya is perfection and a gift from the gods because she's just so 🥹🥹 I love her to bits and she's going to be so fun to write.

Thank you for your kind words! I love these kind of messages so you're right hehe. Definitely gave me a boost! 💗

[captain-of-silvenar]

WIP Wednesday

It's been a hot second since I did a WIP Wednesday! I got some stuff laying around, testing out new story ideas so I'm here to share one of them!

Here's a snippet of Chapter 3 of First Impressions! Do also read the other two chapters and let me know what y'all think of it!

Tagging: @yansurnummu @scalecallerpeak @sniperviper @throughtrialbyfire @thana-topsy

@skyrim-forever @eatthatsweetroll @baileybooradly @ashyam-xivilai

With a sudden crunch, Yera's arrow pierced through the chest of the draugr. Its death rattle followed it down as it collapsed onto the watery floor. Several more footsteps splashed toward their position as Teldryn stepped out of their hiding place and drew his sword. Flame in one hand, blade in the other, he was quick to end another draugr that approached and burned another arriving as back up. The whistle of a passing arrow was all that warned Teldryn as he turned around to see Yera having shot another of those creatures trying to sneak up behind him.  As fast as they arrived, there were now four dead-again draugrs in the crypt around them. Yera carefully stalked from her hiding position to the closest one and started rummaging around their rotten clothes for loot. Teldryn stood guard and kept his eyes and ears out for any more unwelcome visitors. It was quite the shock really to find anything else down here. As far as he knew these kinds of crypts were popular in Skyrim, same design and everything. Why there would be one under Raven Rock and not documented was beyond his knowledge. Perhaps there was some weight to Crescius’ ramblings. He tried not to think too much on it, no point in what ifs and what haves when one is in the situation already. With all the tight hallways and turns there was no telling what other monsters and fiends would be lurking here. Once Yera was done searching the draugr she moved up to him and turned her ear towards the next exit. “Don’t hear anymore footsteps,” she whispered. “Chances are they’re in their dormant state and waiting for us to walk by.” She pulled her seeing cane out again, letting it go before her and quickly clacking against the rubble on the ground. Teldryn followed behind and let her lead. She was quite insistent on it and for a good reason. It was she that told him of the draugr ambush and why they were taken down so swiftly. “There’s one patrolling around the corner”, she had told him, crouched behind a corner. “And two more walking deeper into the crypt. Chances are more will wake up though, so be prepared to fight when I take the first one down.” Recalling the memory just mere moments ago, Yera had pulled out her great ebony bow and pulled it back just in time for Teldryn to see a draugr walk right into view. Dead on, not a hint of struggle or hesitation. He’d have to ask later how Yera was so accurate without her sight. But later, Yera was walking ahead of him and he was lagging behind. Neither of them were going at much of a pace, trying to avoid splashing in the water below them. It was a refreshing change of pace from other patrons who never seemed to know where to put their feet half the time. Yera seemed right at home in the darkness and craggy ruins. The seeing cane far ahead of her, gently swinging back and forth to tell her of the obstacles. When it rose over a slight bump Yera paused and held a closed fist to signal to him. “Trap,” she said. “Right at the end of my cane, probably a pressure plate. Just go around it and we’ll be fine.” Easy order, he walked a wide berth around the end of the cane as Yera followed beside him. When he glanced up to check the upcoming stairs he did see a sort of glint behind the overgrown vines besides it. Old but effective. No one wants to become a pincushion from a swinging trap door.

[cheesybadgers]

It's buckwild that there's not really a way to talk about a certain firefighter show without sounding like a crazy delusional shipper, but...like....I've been around the block with ships that were never in a million years going to become canon. They didn't need to become canon, it was best they didn't become canon and canon was never the point. Canon so often isn't the point of shipping and I'm the first person to say that. Most of my favourite ships have no basis in canon and that's part of the fun. It's just shoving dolls together because I can. It's just 'what ifs?' that exist in my brain entirely separately from the source material.

But said firefighter show does actually have decent queer canon rep. It just made one of it's main and most popular characters queer. Yeah, it wasn't with the character most people wanted it to be, but they did it, and that felt important in itself, regardless of shipping preferences.

And even when you look at the other half of the juggernaut ship who's not currently canonically queer, there are so many decisions the writers have made that after multiple seasons of showing and telling us the same thing about his character over and over again, it's hard to come up with many other reasons that make as much sense as he's repressed and closeted. They've stagnated his growth as a character because it feels like they probably know what they should do with him next, but for whatever reason, they haven't. There was even talk of him originally being the character who was going to have a queer storyline, but they switched it somewhere down the line. But you can't say any of this without being seen as delusional lol.

I've never really been in this position with a show before??? It feels like they're so close to going there with the juggernaut ship, but I'm still not personally convinced they will actually follow through. And yet...this far into the show and their character arcs, it's getting harder to see how they skirt around it for much longer. AND YET, that doesn't mean they won't do exactly that lolol, because that's what has happened so many times before.

I'm not going to get into the batshittery of the fanbase here, because that's a separate issue, and I'm not excusing bad fan behaviour in the slightest. Harassing fans, creators or cast is always unacceptable and no one is entitled to have their headcanons become canon. But given the way this has all played out and given the decisions made by the writers, it does put the fandom in a strange and pretty unique limbo situation I've never really come across before. I guess only time will tell where it goes next, but it's just insane to me. It makes reading any kind of discourse near impossible because one section of the fanbase is talking like it's a done deal already, another section is in denial about it even being a possibility, then there's the ship wars.

Obviously, I don't believe the creative team owe the fans anything or that they should pander to fan service if it's not appropriate for the story/characters, but....I do have to wonder wtf they thought the consequences of all this might be?? 😂 I can't decide whether it's going to turn into an elaborate slowburn AO3 would be proud of, or one of the biggest fandom shitstorms of all time lol.

[kyogre-blue]

OK, post timeskip GD, go!

Got up to the bridge, which means unifying the Alliance and presumably starting an offensive against the Empire.

I've gotten all the B ranks on my supports, a bunch of A ranks, and all of Byleth's available ones except Lysithea A (which is blocked off) and someone's S. The A ranks really vary a lot in terms of how involved they are, with some being quite nice, but others being pretty whatever.

Unfortunately, some of the basic issues with the support system start to get pretty obvious. You end up doing them in batches, so they get tiring. Additionally, if you watch a few for the same character in a row, there's often overlap in what they discuss, since the characters only have a few traits. Worse, none of the growth in one support can carry over to another or even a paralogue (or to the main story). The supports just become disconnected what-ifs, in a way.

(And this not mentioning the issue that some major character details always end up hidden in the most out there support, which in 3H will require some bizarre recruitment combination.)

In regard to the main story, I don't have too much to say. It's kind of spinning its wheels while we get the new plot on the road, but it's fine. It's just... fine. Hopefully, it'll pick up once we start the real battles.

Notes again:

1185, nearly 5 years since the monastery fell. But it fell several months into 1181, so like... it's 4 years and change.

Kingdom capital has fallen, Leicester alliance is split between supporting the Church and the Empire.

Sothis is here again somehow.

Tomorrow is the Millennium Festival, how convenient. Byleth came floating down a river from Garreg Mach. It is Ethereal Moon, but... Which one is that again...

Ok, I see why AC said the reunion was underwhelming. It's cute but the buildup is non-existent.

Byleth's first concern is Rhea (relatable) but Claude thinks it might be better that she's gone. He doesn't explain why. I am gonna need some time to get used to everyone's adult voices.

Lorenz is quite chill about his father's uh allegiance.

Lorenz: This was inevitable, since our lands are so close to the empire, we have to side with them or lose our necks. Lorenz also: BUT MAYBE IF CLAUDE DIDN'T SUCK

The amount of times you can ask after Rhea is... hum. Rhea is the most personal priority for Byleth. They're definitely not upset or unsettled by her, which is funny.

Seteth thought that maybe Rhea would turn up on the millennium festival.

Claude wanted to use the monastery as a base of operations due to its location.

Why are we talking to this Seiros Knight NPC? Was an unavailable playable meant to be filling this role?

Leonie A1 with Lorenz: she gives back a handkerchief... after 5 years. Leonie's village is called Sauin. It turns out Lorenz's family were the ones who hired Jeralt to help the village all those years ago. Lorenz is still punchable, btw.

Marianne A with Hilda: Their previous two ranks were more abrasive than I expected. The A is... OK? Given their popularity as a pairing, I expected something a bit more.

Cyril A with Hilda: This doesn't feel like it should have been gated to the timeskip. This A is also kinda underwhelming. It's okay, but knowing their relationship can't advance any further is... yeah.

Not really feeling the new monastery and menu music.

They did at least change the skybox to be yellow, which is something. Makes it feel autumn-y, which is... not correct. It would be nice if somewhere aside from the cathedral interior had some visible damage.

Claude A with Byleth: He admits to not being born in Fodlan (presumably because this has nothing on Byleth being potentially not even human) though doesn't name where he's from specifically. In Almyra, people from Fodlan are viewed as cowards, which Claude attributes to ignorance (if they just met and interacted with real people from Fodlan, like his mother, they'd know better). They also looked down on him for being of mixed blood.

He came to Fodlan to try and find "a new perspective" in his goal of breaking down those barriers, but people in Fodlan are even more racist, seeing people from other nations as just beasts. He wants to bring the whole world together and start anew. I know nothing bad happens, but uh. That's, hm... At least he realizes that it was extremely unrealistic... but Claude recognizes Byleth's magic dragon god powers and thinks they can make it happen together.

At first, I was wondering why we can view Ferdinand supports when he didn't turn up, but he IS here? He wasn't in the battle or the scene after...

Ferdinand has lost his territory and is determined to stop Edelgard no matter the cost. Per his B, he always intended to unseat his father. I guess, like Lorenz, he wasn't really onboard with his evil dad from the start.

Marianne and Lorenz A is....... uh. She's not going to smile while telling you about how her family is cursed, dude.

OK, so for weekly Instruct, we're using the Cardinals' room that was sealed before, and instead of the faculty giving staff training, we run advanced drills with the students.

Byleth's open mouthed shock when told Dimitri was killed (supposedly). And then a droopy sad posture.

"Faerghus Dukedom"

Claude approves if you ask him whether he hopes Rhea is dead. He just has things he wants to ask. It's interesting given that Claude presents himself as being in your corner, and Byleth has a big bend toward asking after her, seemingly in concern.

Claude thinks that most people accept the "noble system" because of their belief in the Seiros faith. They also have prejudices against non-believers too. That's... hm. A take, for sure.

So without Rhea, the supposed closed-minded Church doctrine will weaken and there will be more room for free thought, which Claude considers a cure-all.

Claude's ultimate goal here is to have Byleth take over the church and lead Fodlan that way. Then, people could be free to think for themselves. He thinks Edelgard is after something similar. He just doesn't like that she's using so much bloodshed to get there. Not necessarily because he disapproves but because the world "can't get behind" it.

But since Rhea is probably still around, we still have questions, and Byleth ambiguously might care about her (MY A RANK), Claude backpedals into finding her being the next step and quickly hurries you off to bed.

Claude and Cyril B: Claude never knew that there were people in Almyra in Cyril's situation. Which is to say... poor and exploited? Or...?

If no one else is in Rhea's corner, Cyril is. I appreciate that he doesn't just support her because she helped him personally, but because that's the kind of person she has been - trying to help those without any status and nowhere to go. Rhea helps refugees and orphans not just because of the goddess's teachings, but because it's the right thing to do.

Claude: OK, maybe Rhea is fine. Maybe.

GROWTH??

Too bad supports are basically not canon.

Claude and Lorenz A: Claude is fine giving up leadership of the Alliance to Lorenz now that he's gotten to know him. But same is true for Lorenz. Kinda gay. Not bad.

Claude was only recognized as the heir to Reigan thanks to Judith's recommendation. Which is interesting given his background.

Marianne's paralogue: One of the 10 Elites got cursed by his crest and he turned into a monster... that was still sentient and can talk. And he ate people. Unclear if anyone else with the crest was actually affected, or if they just carried that stigma for a thousand years...

Claude and Marianne A has an interesting implication about the timeline. Claude frames it as him running away from home as soon as he was old enough because he was tired of being discriminated against and hoped that Fodlan would be better. It was only after he arrived in Leicester and realized that it's no different that he came up with his idea to break down the boundaries between Fodlan and Almyra.

It makes more sense that his plan would be so weirdly underbaked if he's had it for less than a year and made it when he was despairing over having no place he could belong.

Flayn and Ignatz B: Flayn forgets the Church party line about the Elites being good guys, lmao. Also forgets that Saint Cethleann is generally portrayed as a woman, not a girl.

Ailell, the Valley of Torment, is the required lava stage. It was created when some kind of big heaven light destroyed the forest that used to be there. It's rumored to have been the wrath of the goddess, but that isn't recorded in scripture. (It's actually the Agarthans lol)

Count Rowe was in charge of Arianhodr (spl??) but betrayed the Kingdom to join the Empire. His general, Gwendal, wasn't happy about all this.

Judith accuses Claude of neglecting the Alliance territories for years. He left his territory with a reliable retainer ("Nardel"). Without Byleth's clout, he'd look like a "scoundrel leader." Judith leaves her territory with "Nardel" too, which is... lol.

One of Judith's men saw Rhea be dragged off by the Empire five years ago.

[cherrysoulth]

THE WAITER'S - CHAPTER 4: RIVALRY

🍵 Is it too strong? 🍵

💕Pairing: Jimin x Reader x Jungkook

✏️Genre/au: Angst, Romance, Slice of life with some action, Smut

✏️Rating: PG 18+, explicit

📝Word count: 2723

⚠️Chapter warnings: possessiveness, jealousy, rivalry, provocations

<<<𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 3 | 𝕸𝖆𝖎𝖓 𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙 | 𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 5>>>

You wait inside the pitch dark common area of the bathroom getting near the door to listen to what's going on outside. Hearing the door of the next bathroom close, then the silence. You take it as your chance to get out, but as soon as you open the door you notice a silhouette standing against the frame of the broom closet with his arms crossed over his chest. The green emergency light above the door sets the mood for feeling caught red-handed.

Guilt is written on your face and the corner of Taehyung's lips moves up in a slight smirk, showing amusement of sorts, before he walks away. You are left shocked and worried by his attitude when you realise he hasn’t called you out for inappropriate public behaviour and he was there only to confirm a suspicion. The thought that Jimin might get to know what just happened unsettles you, even if you know you don't owe him anything.

However, there’s a certain fear that he might refuse to see you after finding out about this bathroom affair, due to how frowned upon this kind of behaviour is. Maybe, he follows the monogamous mindset that floods this society, where sleeping with two men is not even considered an option. That same attitude Jungkook has had in the bathroom, the one that says 'only mine, even if we are not together' kind of thing.

You know, or at least remember, how Jungkook used to be. When it comes to Jimin, you are blindfolded with lots of what-ifs tinkering in your head. He is a mystery, something you want to explore, a book you have read the summary of, but is yet to be open and maybe is that same curiosity that Jungkook has felt. Maybe, just the inevitable attraction is what has made Jungkook feel the need to show off like that.

You make your way back to the table before Jungkook and find out the room has been lit with candles, an impressive amount of them. It's incredibly romantic and you see the group taking pictures of each other, combined and alone. You are greeted effusively by Sofie, and her new generation phone with more lenses than you ever thought a phone needed, who offers to take a photoshoot of you, using those exact words. Your concern, however, isn't that she’ll be taking pictures of you but that you might still show signs of your transgressions.

She doesn’t point out anything as she comes closer to show you the results of her work, but you can tell something is up when she stands next to you and keeps the glance a little bit longer on you. They are good-good but you think it’s due to her talent, not to your own beauty since pictures in this kind of light can be pretty difficult.

Somehow, Jungkook has managed to get himself to look perfect once again, without a single sign of what has transpired, but when he is offered to be taken pictures of and he takes off his jacket, you feel like you might get your shirt just as damp as he had not many minutes before. He poses like a model, without any sort of shyness and you hear Namjoon and Seokjin teasing him as if they were somewhere in the background when Jungkook cracks out of character in that bunny smile he used to wear.

The corner of your own lips going up and threatening to show a smile as you look at him makes you snap back to reality and focus your attention on the purple orchid at your side, the only plant in the garden with such vibrant colour. Back in time they were popular amongst royalty and wealthy but nowadays they mean gratitude and respect, so you wonder if the fact that it doesn’t match the rest of the flowers is because it’s a gift. The thought is interrupted when Namjoon approaches you to suggest you sit down, like everyone is starting to do and you take the chance to thank him for the invitation.

“It wouldn’t make sense not to invite you, sweetheart. Even if these things are not your cup of tea,” he expresses, touching your arm affectionately as you walk away to your seat.

As if he had been waiting again, Jimin starts to bring in the carts for desserts and coffee, Eunbyeol has the courtesy to take them in order to pass them around and Jimin is about to head back in when the power returns. He smiles to himself and stays just a second enough for Namjoon to refer to him.

“Jimin waiter-nim, I would like to tell my appreciation to the chef before we leave. We loved it,” he speaks as the head of the table. The smile on Jimin widens and to you with all the whites and soft colours around, the lights and the candles, he looks like an angel. One could never guess the way he moved between the sheets, looking so sweet and dedicated in his apron.

“Wait for the desserts, Kim patron-nim, they are also of his making,” he says with candour in his voice and you feel warmness in your chest for how proud he is of his friend. Making sure no one has detected your momentarily infatuation, you see the same smile printed on Hoseok’s lips as he raises the written paper to make his choice and you don’t see the blonde angel leave.

He comes in later, in the middle of an adventure telling from Seokjin’s lips that has Namjoon blushing with shyness. Apparently, Namjoon had a terrible crush on Eunbyeol for a long time before he found the courage to approach her and when he did, he teared up when she accepted to go on a date with him. Eunbyeol knew about this but the other girls were bags of awws to that memory. He notes down the orders with his eyes exchanging glances with the person speaking to him, but you just can’t seem to focus on the menu, glancing over it constantly to see his pretty handwriting the words quickly escape you. When he looks at you expectantly it gets you by surprise and you have to clear up your throat to find your voice.

“I would like some honey bread, please.”

He nods and gives you a small smile, maybe lingering a second too long on the stare before flicking his pen and walking once more inside the main restaurant. Your hand went straight to your drink as soon as he turned around and you caught Jungkook giving you an expressionless glance, before he focused on the conversation that had araised.

This time you knew what they were talking about, you had been there, but you knew another side of it because you were making out with Jungkook right before it happened. He gives you a second glance and one of the corners of his lips curves momentarily up before shifting his focus again.

You remember your lips were locking with his in one of the rooms of his fraternity as the party boiled in the whole building. Summer was near and so was the end of the semester. People were especially eager to celebrate the end of the exams and the alcohol was running around excessively. Jungkook couldn’t hold himself any longer, throwing looks at you across the room like he was going to come over at any moment and kiss you in front of everyone. So you took the wise decision to move upstairs to use the bathroom and maybe stay away from the crowd, or so you said to Yuuki, who was with you that day.

You didn't even make it to the bathroom before being pulled into a bedroom where jk hovered over you, pressing your back against the wall, and closing the door with his feet. The rooms weren’t supposed to be intruded and by far everyone was following the norm but you just didn’t know where to hide for him to get his way and be calm for the rest of the party.

The sounds of muffled moans coming from the next room, however, confirmed that you weren’t the only ones to be sneaky and mischievous and as you got distracted, looking towards the wall where the sound came from, he attacked your neck.

“Missed you so much… Fucking hated these exams….” he muttered against your skin in between open mouthed nibbles.

You used your hands on his jaw to move him from the dangerous path his lips were tracing and his hands pulling you against his hard body accompanied. Your lips were hungry for each other and his tongue entered your mouth immediately, breaths faltering quickly. “Kookie, we gotta slow down–” you told him in between your lips before he kept it going.

“Don’t worry, I just want to feel you a little–” he interrupted himself, latching on you again, grabbing on the flesh of your hips. Then the crowd outside starts to get noisy and you hear people running in a panic through the corridor to the stairs, making you separate.

When you stoped hearing noise in the hallway, you both came out of the room and walked down the stairs separately. Yuuki shouted at you through the people and signaled to follow her. Like that, she got you away from the fraternity before the fire fighters arrived to the scene.

As it turned out, someone had the brilliant idea of throwing fireworks near a vandalised tree with roll paper in it, the explanations weren’t necessary but some of the guys had to speak with the authorities that night and apparently, Seokjin was one of them.

“I just thank my parents never knew that happened. They would have disowned me!” he says, exaggerating and provoking everyone to laugh with him.

The storytelling doesn’t end there but you stop participating for a second to check on Jimin, who's bringing desert and you see it; Jungkook looks defiantly at him, only for Jimin to ignore it completely, focused on doing his job diligently. However, when he leaves your plate, his forearm brushes the surface of your own purposely, before he looks towards Jungkook. That simple touch, a successful provocation because he huffs air through his nose and snarls before looking around the winter garden, as if trying to control himself.

Jimin gives you a smile when you look up to him after Jungkook’s reaction, having missed Jimin’s glare, and you reciprocate politely. At the chance, he offers you more whipped cream, while putting a hand on your back, indiscreetly and you accept it, without moving an inch, wanting even the slightest touch.

Then you sense tension and look towards Jungkook without moving your head. His dark eyes are set on where Jimin’s hand is resting before they move to meet yours and your skin raises in goosebumps. Still, you don’t move until Jimin’s hand leaves your back and you hear him offer Yuuki some whipped cream too, seeing him move from the corner of your eye but keeping your vision towards Jungkook, who you see use his tongue over his molars inside his mouth, showing to be upset, before he wipes his lips from the sweet puffy desert. Distracted spontaneously by Seokjin, he turns his head, as he is asked about how he feels in his new position. The smile he offers to his elder, is stained, never reaching his eyes.

“Lot’s of responsibilities but I love it and it gives me the income and freedom I need to settle down,” he tells him. ‘Settle down’ your brain doesn’t need a second thought to know what he means. There you almost gasp when you feel Sofie’s hand over your thigh and look at her before she leans to whisper in your ear.

“What’s with the waiter and Jungkook?”

You doubt for a second when she leans back but have a taste of your honey bread and make the wrong gesture when picking up your Omija tea so it falls straight on Sofie’s black and white striped trousers. You apologise immediately and drag her to the bathroom with the excuse to clean the stain before it settles, taking your stain pen and all. You do, however, make the pen work.

As soon as you have made sure the bathroom is empty, you go straight to the point, “Jimin, is the guy I slept with two weeks ago and I think Jungkook can smell something is up,” you tell her as you bend one knee to rub the pen against the first white stripe.

“The fuck??” she let’s out, moving backwards, making you pull her closer by the thigh to keep working with the magic pen. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she says, sounding more offended than nosey.

“You know me–” you say, looking up from your position.

“So you weren’t gonna tell me you and Jeon Jungkook had sex when the lights went off either.” Your eyes go wide and she smirks from her superior position. “You know me, I catch onto that shit,” she says. You suddenly stand.

“So you knew about Jimin,” you tell her.

“I knew you liked him because you have been quite obvious,” your eyes bulge again. “At least for me,” you then relax, squatting to keep sliding the pen over the stripes. “But I think nobody has noticed about the sex, although you both glow like damn lanterns.” She points out and you lower your head to cover your eyes with one hand in a frustrated gesture. You realise in that precise moment that your legs are not getting tired of your position because you are out of shape, you are not, but because that’s what having vigorous sex with him is, a constant reminder on your body. “So, what are you going to do now?”

“For the moment, I’m seeing Jimin tonight,” to that reply, Sofie’s jaw drops and then she wheezes with wide eyes, losing it.

“OH. MY. GOD.”

“What? It’s not like I have to compromise with any of them, right?”

“That’s right, you don’t. But, what about the too good you used before? What about leaving his house because of that?” she questions, while you go back to work on the stain. “Most important, what about the way Jungkook was looking at Jimin?”

“I’ll keep it casual, no feelings involved, and, what about that?” you respond as if you weren’t aware that ignoring feelings was simply not going to happen for you.

“He looked so–possessive,” she mentions in a lower tone, giving you a concerned look.

“I’m no one’s nothing, as I said. I don’t owe him exclusivity,” you expose, more for yourself than anything. The words said during sex, before he came, resonating in your head. ‘What you say during sex, isn’t supposed to be taken seriously, right?’ you tell yourself.

“Are you sure he knows that?” she questions. “I mean, not like you need to go tell him you’re seeing someone else, but has he said you were a thing or pointed it out?” The words sound again but you ignore them. “Like, the way he looked at Jimin–”

“Yeah,I know. I guess I’ll need to talk with him at some point,” you say sternly, weighing for a second how to even approach the subject, “Not today though,” you sigh, deciding to leave that for another moment, since you weren’t going to be alone with him any time soon.

“Was he good?” her question gets you off guard and she smirks cheekily at you. You smile at yourself and stand, rubbing your neck, feeling the tickling memory of his lips over your skin.

“He knows what he does to me,“ you admit, looking away into the mirror. Sofie is right, your skin looks brighter.

“Uuuhh–”

“It’s as if time has not passed for us. It’s comfortable, intense,” you think about his roughness, the way he has poured himself in the action. The words he’s needed you to say in order to reach his own release. He’s jealous. He was trying to show you he knows how to please you, what he can do to your body.

He definitely knows you’ve slept with Jimin. How? You can only guess. But if there’s one thing that Jeon Jungkook can’t stand, it's losing.

🍵 Oupsieee! 🍵

I hope you enjoyed this first chapter! Let me know your thoughts and reblog if you liked it.

I want to thank once more, @moonleeai for the beta work 💜

© 2021-2022 Cherry Soulth, all rights reserved. reposting/modifying of any kind, translations, unsanctioned adaptations are not allowed.

[aroace-number-eight]

One thing I kind of want to see utilized in AUs, especially canon divergent AUs, is having the Garde go by different names since they have the ability to choose their own names or go by an alias because they're in a completely different situation that may prompt them to decide on a name unlike canon, and also because we get to do it for fun

Like Six getting to have one of the names she wanted like Starla or Veronica, or Marina still traveling with Adelina and they went by Yasmin and Fatima respectively when they were in Denmark. John still living in Florida and going by Daniel Jones with his father Henri Jones, or maybe they actually leave Ohio when Henri says so and they go by Jobie and Henri Frey. Five traveling down North America with Rey and he was called by the name Carson

Picking new names for the other Garde, like I remember Hannah being a popular name for One at some point, there was a fic where the Garde went to highschool and Five was named Rich

There's a lot of potential with that in story ideas, or maybe even just thinking of headcanons about the Garde at the various points in their lives, their backstories or their what-ifs

[grapecaseschoices]

i usually don't send asks and i would send this off anon, but im scared of getting hate on this, since ive seen quite a lot of discriminatory behaviour in if fandom spaces when it comes to poc opinions so imma just stay anonymous if that's ok with u.

i came across a post you posted a while ago regarding the if ROs and the lack of diverse characters when it comes to darker skin characters and i just wanted to say thank u for making that post. i hope it gives writers and the fandom some food for thought. ive been noticing ever since i got into the if community that black/ros of black descent tend to almost always be the less popular ros and as a mixed black person myself it's really sad to see. you also mentioned the lack of darker skinned east Asians/south East Asians if i recall correctly (if not please feel free to correct me) and I honestly couldn't agree not. ive noticed in some ifs that the characters of color that are the most popular tend to be those of east Asian descent with paler skin or poc ROs who's ethnicity is left ambigious by the author and whilst I'm really happy that there's been more progress made in terms of diversity, i would love to see more black characters who aren't sidelined to the best friend stereotype and more poc characters who's ethnicity is made clearer.

some south east Asian friends of mine who are of Hmong-Thai and Agta-Filipino descent have also mentioned they would would love to see more South East Asian ROs as well as East Asian ROs who are darker skinned, because the majority of the rep that there seems to be for Asian characters are those with paler skin. its a similar feeling for Latinx ROs, i almost always see lighter skinned Latinx ROs being represented in the majority with a lack of darker skinned Latinx ros. I'm not forcing anyone to add diversity to their game ofc, but the ratio of poc ROs to white ros on some games have made me kind of sad to see, specially when there's like 4 or 5 white ros and then 2 ros of colors who seem like they were just kind of tacked on for representation points, but their backgrounds are left ambigious and no Nationality or ethnicity is ever mentioned by the author which kind of leaves me scratching my head ngl. there's also a prominent lack of SEA and SA rep in terms of ROs, so I'm always happy when I see one! I would also love to see more biracial characters who aren't half white, since we aren't all a monolith.

regarding black ros. in my time in the community whilst ive seen an increase in the amount of black ROs, seeing them always be the least popular in polls still makes me quite sad. i hope that fandom can become more open minded and give more black ROs a chance. on the other hand I've seen a lot of greatly written black ROs in comparison to back in the day, and I'm glad people are incorporating more ROs based on their culture which is great!

sorry about this essay, but i hope it doesn't come across as rude or offensive, it's just something that has been on my mind ever since ive seen your post regarding the lack of representation in if. English isn't my first language so I hope I expressed myself alright.

negl, when i the way you started and then the length of this post, i foreal thought it was gonna be a fight. so, it was a relief that isnt the case. i honestly don't think there's anything for me to add, because you said my feelings and all i could do is nod along as i read this.

though, i'm glad that my post struck a chord for you. (is that the thing to say?? i'm not even sure. i guess my purpose for that post was pointing out the ignored part and bringing on encouragement as well. so, while i'm glad it encouraged you to share your opinion and made you feel less alone in feeling uncomfortable with what you were seeing -- it sucks that things haven't changed to a point where you can feel comfortable saying your thoughts off anon without being harassed. like yikes [not at you, but at fandom]. roflmao. like this is 2023. we really STILL at a point where we're going to make people feel bad about having a GENERAL issue with the racism and colorism that if writers & the if fandom continue to show? rather than … idk continue to DO something about it.)

i would love to see more black characters who aren't sidelined to the best friend stereotype and more poc characters who's ethnicity is made clearer.

i have actually seen some improvement, too. either from the fandom directly zeroing in and supporting black characters (i know the polls can seem disheartening - and i had a feeling that's what drew you to my inbox - but there HAVE been moments where the black character would be the most favored ro -- buuuuuut .... sadly, it is still so rare that i continue to be surprised when it occurs) or in the if writers boosting black characters because they have an awareness regarding fandom's bias. i definitely do think we need more of the latter, tho.

i still think there is a very long way to go. extremely. like i think in general, despite the imporvements we have both observed, a lot of the newer games i've seen ratio is still low like you said. it's a mix instead of being - at least from my observation - as consistently majorly white like it used to be. now i'd say the ratio is aybe 3 (white characters) to 2 (characters of color, of different races) ... as opposed to 3:1. Whoo. BUT i've seen what you mentioned too, still -- too many games are still so white. And if they're not, they're more often than not theyll be light skinned East Asian or black (or mixed... with white). Or an ambigous Latino that I can't tell if they're a white Latine or meant to be a character of color. So, yeah ... i don't know what it is. a fear of writing characters of color, not finding characters of color romanceable, or just a lack of awareness.

Like I guess I agree with you (lmao), I don't want to "pressure" people to have diversity either --- mostly because the people who get hurt in cases like that are minorities reading the story. My desire, I suppose, is a want to understand. I know a lot of IF writers have the idea that 'my story is for me', and in a sense, I agree -- I think we shouldn't expect writers to bend every bit of story to the fans (not even an interactive story). I've seen the mess that can create. However, if you wanted it to be JUST your story, you would've left it in your journal. You want engagement and participation -- you want to share, and I believe most stories should be shared. So, why as an artis wouldn't you want to make a story where .... I don't know. I'm tired. I've kind of gotten to a point where I'm just like whatever. I'm disappointed in myself for expecting better from IF writers and the IF fandom.

BUT I am glad that you and your friends are not only discussing but EXPECTING better, because you deserve it. Because your friends deserve to see and engage with characters who are SEA (of all shades, but especially of darker skinned). You deserve to see mixed raced characters who aren't half white (or light skinned), because as stated yall arent a monolith -- that isn't all there is in the world. (And it's WEIRD to me, like WHY do we AUTOMATICALLY assume mixed/biracial = partially white? I mean I KNOW why but COME ON! lol.)

*sighs*

i WILL say though, again, it's not all bleak: and i have seen variation of the TYPE of characters of color -- like it isn't always the cold e. asian or the black emotional pack mule best friend. so that's good. and i hope that continues.

and you're fine, dove. i actually appreciate your ask because like i said i was feeling kinda ho-hum about things but this sorta sparked a fire in me, roflmao. you expresse yourself just fine, and honestly despite the essay i wrote back i really didnt have anything worth adding.

[denimbex1986]

'Two scintillating performances are at the heart of Andrew Haigh’s time-warp film, a tear-jerking meditation on loss, loneliness and self-alienation. The lovers played by Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal are destined to live on as one of cinema’s classic screen couples.

It’s an understatement to say that Andrew Scott will break your heart in Andrew Haigh’s All of Us Strangers. Seeing him and Paul Mescal together is one of those triumphs of screen chemistry. They are both brilliant actors, and possibly even better human beings. Watching them fall, quickly and deeply, into a relationship that feels simultaneously eternal and doomed, is devastating. Little wonder they’ve been raking in awards and nominations – for themselves and for the film.

Scott, the Irish actor who soared to popularity as the so-called “Hot Priest” in the groundbreaking comedy series Fleabag, plays Adam who, like Scott in real life, is gay.

He is also miserably unhappy.

And, going by the ennui of his first few minutes on screen, he’s deeply lonely, alienated, and suffering from writer’s block. Within moments of craning over his laptop to start work on his new screenplay, he is back on the sofa scoffing junk food, watching rubbish on TV.

That’s perhaps par for the course for many writers. But there’s a sense almost that Adam is entirely alone in the world, that whatever suffering he is experiencing has consumed him absolutely. He lives in a large but apparently near-vacant high-rise block in London and seems to have no connection with people whatsoever.

So, when a dishevelled, slightly drunk and definitely horny Harry (Mescal looking wonderfully unkempt and very keen) shows up at his door, you are already hoping that Adam will invite him in, respond to the straightforward offer of company – and probably much more. Instead, he shuts the door in the face of the younger man and you realise that Adam’s suffering has a kind of terminal quality. He is morbidly alone, incapable of giving in to that most human urge for companionship.

After all, who in his right mind would turn Paul Mescal away?

It’s a good thing, then, that Harry is persistent. Otherwise we might never get to witness what turns out to be one of those truly great screen romances, full of passion and intimacy. The latter is deftly handled, the camera tenderly surveying the landscapes of the two lovers, skirting around genitalia, avoiding being too graphic while leaving little to the imagination. It’s the kind of sex, too, that really does propel the story along, and deepens our understanding of the two men and their experiences.

Before this hot romance kicks off, though, the film goes off on an alternate track. Quite literally. Adam sets off by train, you see, on a time-bending jaunt back to the suburban home of his childhood where he meets his parents (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell) precisely as they were 30 years ago, at about the time when they both died in a car accident.

It’s a wonky twist, this idea that we are able to see our protagonist hang out with the ghosts of his parents and spend meaningful moments interacting with them.

Or perhaps it’s not so strange, given that Adam is a writer and that the film he is struggling to start writing is about his parents and set in the 1987 of his childhood. However we choose to interpret what unfolds – dream, fantasy, maybe time travel – it pulls the rug from under us and at the same time enables us to go with what the film is ultimately offering us: slipstream entry into a realm of possibility, a chance to grapple with some of the many “what ifs” that haunt Adam, and perhaps haunt us all.

For Adam, it doesn’t really matter, though, if it’s real or imagined, because the effect it has on him – the feelings, the emotions, and Scott’s impeccably agonising tears – are all unspeakably real.

And so, when he has the opportunity to tell his long-dead mother that he is gay, he grabs it, and then he observes how she might have reacted had he been able to come out to her while she was alive. In an unflinchingly tender, yet perfectly restrained scene, he grapples with her instinctual prejudices and cruel responses. Because, of course, she is still mired in a different era.

Adam must work through the perplexity and devastation of realising that there is such a vast part of who he is that will forever be unknown and unknowable to his long-departed parents. That he will always be a stranger to them.

Yet, while he seems to take on this burden of regret and pain on behalf of multitudes of gay people who have gone through life without being able to come out to their parents, you realise that actually his feelings are not limited to this question of sexual identity.

In fact, Scott’s portrayal of anguish is about something more universal: that the time we have with one another is limited, and that the secrets we keep locked up limit our access to a full life. It’s this sense of being a stranger to those around us that keeps us lonely, that alienates us not only from others, but also from ourselves.

While Haigh’s film is ultimately designed to break your heart, its construction cleverly works to keep you on your toes. It’s a bit of a mind-bender, purposefully complex and littered with irrational moments that every so often threaten to topple over into the realm of science-fiction – or horror.

It is, after all, about being haunted, whether by our memories or by our imaginations. And while his parents aren’t exactly spooky, there are just enough moments of visual terror to scare Adam out of his dreams, and to keep us wondering about how the intricate layering of intrigue adds up to a story we can ultimately make sense of.

When we do, though, the truth is gut-wrenching.

It’s a film that feels deeply personal, extremely intimate. Even in scenes that take us into the sweaty, frenzied environment of gay clubs with their exuberant half-naked dancing and throbbing crowds, you feel Adam’s isolation and desperate loneliness, and his inability to properly connect with the wider world. In one such sequence, his hazy, drug-addled state ushers in almost debilitating confusion, and that’s when Haigh has us right where he wants us: floating in a kind of dreamscape, a timeless, borderless limbo that is a pure cinematic rendering of Adam’s terrible alienation.

Whether or not Adam will be able to overcome his inner pain is uncertain, but I have a strong sense that this film will, for its viewers, help resolve some of the wounds that afflict all of us. Because, in the end, we are all strangers to one another, unable to ever fully know the complete inner world of those around us.

This film does a fine job of letting us know how it feels to be just one of those countless strangers we live among. It also reminds us that, in order to connect, you need to leave your apartment, let go of the past, and not only imagine the possibilities, but dive into the world. And live.'

[abyssmonarch-cookie]

I think Undertale probably has a large au system with interconnection because when it initially became popular, there was only so much content to consume. So the fans took it into their own hands and made aus for miles with interconnectivity between them. Somewhere in between someone made the spark that was ink sans and error sans (I think that's his name?), The fandom avatars people to impose their boundless creativity and indiscriminate destruction. This encourages others to make aus that intersect with one another in the larger utverse to possibly make friends and maybe get attention from their fav au creators.

Also sans got oncler'd. Aka was the focus of many aus and sanses interacting with other sanses.

Meanwhile, with Homestuck, the thing was a long-term project with long haituses in between and supplimentaries like paradox space so there was more to bite on. Aus kind of comes from a lack of content which haituses did bring but ultimately were more like things to pass the time between updates. Outside of Heinoustuck which didn't go past act one, and crow strider, I don't think there was really any encouragement to make large-scale aus besides species swaps and other self-contained "what ifs". Not a lot of people really made a reason to start connecting aus together outside of rp shenanigans.

Which sucks because homestuck's meta narrative would be really neat with a large scale multiverse. You can make commentary about fanon and fandom creation. Secondary works. Characters in the comic already see other versions of themselves, and a multiverse au net would just be that but like... more. Plus the whole "there can only be one session that wins the game" thing can be a concept that gets played around in a grander homestuck au multiverse. Doomed selves. Divergent timelines (merstuck, heinous, what have you), that Commesentialism thing crow did.

Maybe if we can start a conduit that can encourage people to start interacting with one another it might help??? I think Crow strider has the right idea but we more playing around with fandom creation work concepts. Now we just need people to bat around the ball more.

Which is why I suggest we make Nepeta vs the multiverse where she blabla blabla

why doesn't homestuck have something similar to utmv. can you imagine how fun that would be

[hiddengiggles]

The Tickle Monster Trope

What is it about “The Tickle Monster” that’s so exciting, so shiver-inducing, so popular across this little community?

For me, I know exactly what intrigues me about it.

If you’re a person that wants to be tickled, you’re probably not around people that regularly want to tickle you. You’re stuck with this desire, this itch that can’t be scratched…

So when you’re a person that wants to be tickled, the idea of a being that actively craves to tickle you is thrilling.

More than just a craving, it’s an inevitability. When there is a Tickle Monster around, you will be tickled. Full stop. No ifs, ands, or buts. It’s exactly what a Lee desires, with nothing getting in the way of it!

So long as you can laugh, and buck, and squeal, and beg (whether to stop or to keep going), they will tickle you, and tickle you, and tickle you. They’ll tickle you head to toe, in places you didn’t even realize were so ticklish until “uh oh”, and they’re all in on making it tickle as much as possible. You have such a ticklish body, and finding just what makes you tick, what makes you produce their favorite reactions, that is the only goal for as long as they are around. It’s a rush, for them and for you!

But there’s also the threat there that makes it an exhilarating risk. What if the Tickle Monster starts, and doesn’t stop? Not only do they not want to stop, they can’t stop. Their hunger overtakes them, there is nothing that can pull them away, not begging or shrieks for mercy or squirming away, they will have their prey.

Speaking of hunger, the playful munching noises that others wouldn’t think of much? A Lee hears the threat of inescapability, of uncontrollable sensations lighting up nerve endings, and for some, of the incredibly ticklish feeling of nibbles and licks on the right place.

I’ve never met a Tickle Monster who has hesitated to verbalize any one of these things. The teasing tone, perfected over the years experimenting on other victims, while you’re in the right grip to keep you exactly where they want you, and the words to tell you exactly how delicious it all is… why would they EVER stop playing with such a sensitive someone like you? They need to tickle you, they must, you’re exactly the kind of plaything they’ve needed, and now they can spend time finding what other words and noises and teasing makes you the most ticklish you can be, and exploit it.

This otherworldly entity, this Tickle Monster, is the most dangerous way to satisfy a need, a risky way to get exactly what you’ve been begging the universe to send: someone to tickle you, and tickle you, and tickle you until your cravings have been wholly fulfilled. But are you willing to pay The Tickle Monster’s price? Your itch may be scratched, but how long until they’re full? Are you willing to find out? Good luck…

[honeybeegames]

Do you have any IF recs? I want to get into more but I’m not sure where to start

anon, you have come to the right person for this.

the golden rose by @anathemafiction - if you haven’t had the pleasure of playing the demo, you need to. my IRLs know i never shut up about ana’s writing or story or characters or anything. i was blessed enough to be able to beta the finished game and i can tell you all it’s amazing. i wish i could’ve recorded my reaction because my mouth dropped several times throughout. super excited for the release in april just so i can consume it all again 😭 the MC is by far my favorite character (even though you literally play them). if you play a snarky/flirty MC you’ll know why, LOL. i could talk abt the rose all day but i’ll stop myself here so the post doesn’t get too long, haha.

blood moon by @barbwritesstuff - i feel like this is one everyone recommends, but it’s for good reason, trust me. the romance is spectacular and it’s about werewolves, where could you go wrong? carrie and marco’s romances are by far my favorites even though they’re drastically different from each other, they’ve both managed to become my favorite characters. (also if you’ve played the scene where you stay behind to watch carrie and marco stays with you you’ll know why marco breaks and makes my heart)

mind blind by @mindblindbard - again, super popular one i’m sure you’ve seen recommended, and i’m recommending it again because you need to read it. like, one play through and you’ll understand all the hype around it.

the northern passage by @northern-passage - everyone and their mom has told you to read this and now i’m here with my own mother to tell you to read this. the world building in this is one of my favorites. the writing has me rolling around. lea has my heart in their hand and i can only hope they’re kind to it.

scout: an apocalypse story by @anya-dev - PLEASE. it’s so good and the characters are all so amazing and just, please. has one of the best ever friends to lovers romances (coming from someone who wasn’t that big of a fan of this trope before reading this) that makes me emotional. “is this what friends do?” MURDERED ME IN MY OWN HOME. BEAT ME UP WITH MY OWN HANDS. still not over it.

a tale of crowns by @ataleofcrowns - read it. now. you won’t regret it. every chapter has me rolling around squealing like i’m an otome game protag. also one of the few games i cannot pick a favorite character because all of them are so dear to me. even the side characters 😭 i adore them all. (maybe X more because they were my first route, but i still wouldn’t say they’re my favorite. i love them all too much.)

checkmate in three moves by @checkmatein3moves - the amount of RO’s is so crazy, plus all the variations. phew. the talent, the patient. the writing is so good too. i’m so invested in every single relationship that i have to play every single route once all the characters are introduced. mostly because i have no self control and love the way the characters are written. (am a sailormance before i’m human.)

virtue’s end by @virtuesend-if - another amazing one that’s coming out with a new (?) demo i believe. also has a great cast of RO’s and an MC i absolutely adore. i am in love with shea and elexis both so i’m not sure what I’m going to do 😁

wayfarer by @idrellegames - dnd inspired and it plays similar to that. failing stat checks is one of my favorite things to do, lol. literally purposely lost the fight against the count to get the confession scene with aeran so that i could scream into my pillow kicking my feet and shit.

the remainder by @the-remainder - more of a vn/if mix, but still really really good. the art is beautiful and the storyline has me hooked. i would give up my arms for ilar even though they do suspicious things.

perfumare by @pdrrook - agh this one had be staying up till 6 in the morning one night just to get through all the routes. i’m in love with the writing. has another super duper amazing friends to lovers route with an angry confession. you probably imagine by now i was rolling around in bed giggling while reading that part.

these don’t have demos but they’re some of my most anticipated WIPs so: ear candy by @earcandy-if, spilt milk by @spiltmilk-if, and witches of fengrove by @witchesofferngrove all deserve praise because they’ve managed to make me love their IFs without me reading their demo. super excited for them!

[captain-of-silvenar]

And Chapter 3! I guess this could be a WIP Wednesday, but the WIP is now complete. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

----

With a sudden crunch, Yera's arrow pierced through the chest of the draugr. Its death rattle followed it down as it collapsed onto the watery floor. Several more footsteps splashed toward their position as Teldryn stepped out of their hiding place and drew his sword.

Flame in one hand, blade in the other, he was quick to end another draugr that approached and burned another arriving as back up. The whistle of a passing arrow was all that warned Teldryn as he turned around to see Yera having shot another of those creatures trying to sneak up behind him. 

As fast as they arrived, there were now four dead-again draugrs in the crypt around them. Yera carefully stalked from her hiding position to the closest one and started rummaging around their rotten clothes for loot. Teldryn stood guard and kept his eyes and ears out for any more unwelcome visitors.

It was quite the shock really to find anything else down here. As far as he knew these kinds of crypts were popular in Skyrim, same design and everything. Why there would be one under Raven Rock and not documented was beyond his knowledge. Perhaps there was some weight to Crescius’ ramblings. He tried not to think too much on it, no point in what ifs and what haves when one is in the situation already. With all the tight hallways and turns there was no telling what other monsters and fiends would be lurking here.

Once Yera was done searching the draugr she moved up to him and turned her ear towards the next exit.

“Don’t hear anymore footsteps,” she whispered. “Chances are they’re in their dormant state and waiting for us to walk by.”

She pulled her seeing cane out again, letting it go before her and quietly clacking against the rubble on the ground. Teldryn followed behind and let her lead. She was quite insistent on it and for a good reason. It was she that told him of the draugr ambush and why they were taken down so swiftly.

“There’s one patrolling around the corner”, she had told him, crouched behind a corner. “And two more walking deeper into the crypt. Chances are more will wake up though, so be prepared to fight when I take the first one down.”

Recalling the memory just mere moments ago, Yera had pulled out her great ebony bow and pulled it back just in time for Teldryn to see a draugr walk right into view. Dead on, not a hint of struggle or hesitation. He’d have to ask later how Yera was so accurate without her sight.

But later, Yera was walking ahead of him and he was lagging behind.

Neither of them were going at much of a pace, trying to avoid splashing in the water below them. It was a refreshing change of pace from other patrons who never seemed to know where to put their feet half the time. Yera seemed right at home in the darkness and craggy ruins. The seeing cane far ahead of her, gently swinging back and forth to tell her of the obstacles. When it rose over a slight bump Yera paused and held a closed fist to signal to him.

“Trap,” she said. “Right at the end of my cane, probably a pressure plate. Just go around it and we’ll be fine.”

Easy order, he walked a wide berth around the end of the cane as Yera followed beside him. When he glanced up to check the upcoming stairs he did see a sort of glint behind the overgrown vines beside it.

Old but effective. No one wants to become a pincushion from a swinging trap door.

The rest of the crypt followed in a similar fashion. Yera would pause around every corner to check and listen for any walking dead. Count them, shoot one, have Teldryn fight the awakened draugr with Yera as support. A very clean rinse and repeat process, one he hasn’t experienced in quite awhile with another person. 

There was no doubt in his mind now that Yera was a prolific dungeon crawler at the very least. Nothing seemed to pass her as she asked him positioning, number of exits, obstacles, anything to fuel her mind and line up that perfect shot she somehow pulled off every single time. It was like threading a needle at points but yet she still sent an arrow into the darkness to end with a fading groan of a dead draugr. 

“Impressive shot again, sera,” he complimented later on into the crypt. “If we’re lucky, we’ll be out of here in less than a day.”

“All depends on where it spits us out,” Yera replied. “This feels like a pretty extensive barrow. Haven’t run into any notable rooms yet, these are just tunnels and burial chambers. We might be in for quite a hike once it finally lets us out.” 

Now that he thought about it, the path they’ve taken so far has been very much away from their entrance. Not a spiral, not looping back onto itself. They must be quite a distance away now. Plus this was connected to their ebony mine. Did Crecius’ great-grandfather really walk all the way down and discover this crypt? If that was the case it was going to be near impossible to find his remains to return, if at all. 

Teldryn’s mind refocused as they came across a large circular room. All around the walls were alcoves filled with draugr sleeping in their thrones. From what he could count, there were at least five he could see, maybe more behind the rubble blocking his view. The ground was also grated which meant it was going to be a bitch fighting here.

“You stopped, so I’m guessing the next room is something interesting,” Yera whispered to him.

“Correct, it’s a circular grated floor room with lots of sleeping draugr in it. They’re all against the walls looking towards the center. We might be in for a fight, sera.”

“Is there a door at the end of it at least?” she asked. “Or is it a grated gate?”

Curious question, but deserving an answer.

“No, just a door again,” he answered. “No telling if it’s locked or not though.”

“I’m sure it’s actually unlocked,” she said back. “Now important question: how quiet do you think you can walk across the room?”

How quiet? Was she insinuating what he was thinking? It was a risk for sure to try and sneak one’s way across the room by themselves, but Teldryn wasn’t as quiet as to completely avoid a room full of enemies in plain sight.

“Can’t say I can match your stealth, boss. So even if you can get across, I’ll have trouble keeping up.”

“Not to worry, I got something for your worries.”

Yera packed away her cane and bow to raise both hands up to Teldryn. A shimmering blue light enveloped them before transferring onto himself, coating him in whatever spell she just casted.

“Muffle,” she answered after. “It’ll last just long enough to get the job done. So keep quiet and just follow my lead.”

Yera then took on a low crouch and gently stepped into the room. Teldryn followed suit after and couldn’t help but worry his lips as they began to step onto the old floor grating. The magic he could trust, but he didn’t see his patron cast it on herself. It was evident soon after that he had nothing to worry about. Even on a floor like this Yera was as silent as a ghost. Using the grated floor lines as a guide, she led them right down the center of the room. Even as they approached one of the closer alcoves, not a single one of the draugr stirred. Not even a peep.

When they were finally back on solid ground Yera wasted no time in checking the door and, Azura be praised, it was unlocked. The both of them quickly pushed past it and closed it quietly behind them. The tension was palpable and finally broke once they were some distance away from the room.

“I’m glad that worked out,” Yera gasped when it was clear. “I don’t think I would’ve been useful in that situation if they all woke up. It does confirm one of my suspicions however.”

Not a good sign.

“And what would that be?” he asked.

“That room was meant to deter any trespassers by how many draugr you described in it. Now that we’ve gone past it we’re probably about to get into the heart of this barrow with even more of them wandering around now. The only reason a barrow would get to this size at all is that there is something at the end of this they’re all guarding.”

“... What are they guarding, sera?” he carefully asked.

“At best? A stronger draugr than any we’ve fought yet, but alone and easily outnumbered by the two of us.”

“And worst?”

“Something that should’ve died long ago. Let’s keep moving, Teldryn.”

What had he gotten himself into again? This was getting larger than he had expected to find under Raven Rock. There was no turning back at this point, however. The discovery was here, and it was full of the walking dead and the last thing he wanted was for them to find their way out of the mines into public. No, he was going to help kill whatever was at the end of this and make sure it stays dead.

Deep breath, and off they went.

Their next encounter led them into a massive chamber. Multi-layered with a waterfall roaring in the center. From the crack in the door he made, Teldryn could already see multiple draugr walking the various bridges that made their way up to the ceiling. When he relayed this to Yera, she silently cursed and explained the noise would make it hard for her to aim at anything now. This room they would have to fight it head on. 

Swords drawn, doors flung open.

His flame atronach went first, illuminating the room in an otherworldly glow. It drew the attention of the draugr as they ran to fight it face-to-face. Using this distraction, Teldryn was able to flank and cut down at least two of them before he had to avoid a rain of arrows coming from above. Once he located the next draugr he commanded his atronach to attack and fireballs soon were catapulted up onto the bridge.

Though any normal enemy would be dead at this point, Teldryn cursed as he watched the draugr continue shooting at him as it was engulfed in flames. He called out to Yera to watch out, only to find her nowhere on the first floor.

“What-” his answer soon made itself known when he saw a blurry dark shape dash across the bridge and cut down the burning draugr. Sword glinting in the flames, Yera stood tall over him as the now unanimated body fell and hissed into a wet corpse in the waterfall. It was the last of the draugr in the room, for now, so he made his way to meet his patron.

When he reached her on the bridge, sword still in hand, she had a smile on her face.

“You,” she started, pointing a finger in his direction. “Did not tell me you had a flame atronach.”

“What can I say? I’m full of surprises.”

It got a short laugh out of her as she sheathed her sword.

“This will make it easier to finish this dungeon. But I suggest saving her for the end, yes?’

That wasn’t a bad idea, so Teldryn obeyed and unsummoned his atronach to conserve magic. Now that he had a moment to actually observe the room he noticed a grated gate on one side of the second floor.

“Now that means there is a switch somewhere,” Yera said after he mentioned it. “It’s most likely within viewing range. The room is tall, but it is not wide so there can’t be that many places to hide a switch.”

As they searched and looted the place for any valuables, they came across the switch just where she said it would be. Teldryn honestly was surprised at her accuracy; he never had a great of a time in Skyrim when he was clearing out dungeons or barrows like this. Yera was full of her own surprises the longer he stayed with her.

As they continued into the remainder of the dungeon, encountering small but meaningless traps, Yera was growing more and more frustrated. When they finally did a third loop around the rooms to find nothing else Yera stopped to lean up against a wall and pinch her nose.

“This isn’t right,” she mumbled. “These rooms are just diversions, there should be something else here.”

“We’ve checked the place already, sera. Every rock, cup, and chest you had me describe is in your head now,” Teldryn said. “We’ve done our job and cleared this place out. We can go back to Crecius and give him the news.”

“No,” she denied. “No, there’s something else here. I can just feel it.”

She pushed off the wall, pacing back and forth in front of him mumbling under her breath again. Teldyrn was willing to wait her out at this point as there was clearly nothing else in this place to explore. They killed every draugr that was awake and put them back to their eternal rest. All the traps that were mysteriously set up were undone and safe to traverse. Every random chest and shelf and drawer were looted for even a drakes worth of gold and put into her bottomless backpack and Yera wasn’t satisfied enough.

There was still the issue of not finding Crecius’ great-grandfather’s body, but how were they going to find a skeleton in this place at this point? He considered the job well and done and he really wanted to get out and back into open ground instead of this underground nonsense.

As Yera continued pacing back and forth she finally got to a level of frustration that she kicked at the wall to vent out her stress. However, instead of smashing her toes, the rocks shifted just enough to suggest something was behind it.

They both paused, glancing at each other wondering if the other saw it. Then without waiting another moment Yera was digging her gloves into the cracks of the stonework and shoving things left and right. What was a wall in actuality was a pile of stone and wood planks that had collapsed and was revealing itself to be a path. Teldryn had to resist making a face under his helmet at another hole in the wall being revealed but he got next to Yera and helped move the last of the stones away.

Once it was clear enough to safely walk through it they made their way down a winding hallway that very suddenly opened up.

“Mephala’s tits, what is this?”

There was a chamber before them, made and surrounded by basalt columns with two roaring waterfalls framing an ominous looking door. It glowed like an ember, illuminating the space just before it. Almost inviting but Teldryn had a feeling it was anything but. As if to prove his point if he squinted hard enough he could see what looked like two bone-white skeletons spread out on the doors steps.

They found what they were looking for.

“This is it,” Yera said. “Tell me that you can see something interesting in here.”

“If not the giant door in the center of the room, I do spy two skeletons in here. Fifty-fifty chance we just found the final resting place of Crecius’ great-grandfather.”

It was a bit of a climb down, having to balance on broken columns of the wall, but the two of them managed to make it down safely and toward the door. As they got closer Teldryn noticed scattered bones and dried blood that suggested a fight took place here. The rivers around them must’ve carried the rest of the bodies that fell here. Only the two skeletons near the door remained intact.

Using magelight again, Teldryn found a bound journal clutched in the withered hand of one of the skeletons and carefully extracted it. Paging through it revealed the truth of it all:

This was Gratian Carellius, and this was his final resting place.

He perished after exploring this very same barrow, and falling into a trap after slewing a wave of draugr that came after himself and his assistant. His final request was to send his notes out, and a final word to his wife that he loved her. 

Closing the journal, Teldryn gave a silent prayer to the departed, and then turned to what was beside the skeleton.

What could only be described as a literally bloody greatsword, the sword glowed similarly to the door. Blood red metal made up the blade with gold etching in the middle of it. The door had similar patterns matching the blade and Teldryn had a bad feeling around picking it up.

“Tell me you found Gratian,” Yera said as she approached him. “I hate to return to Crecius after all this work.”

“Not to worry, sera, you’re standing next to his femur,” Teldryn answered. “Though, I don’t suppose you know how to carry these bones out of here and back to the surface?”

She crouched down and took off her pack, digging into it until she produced two large bags. She handed one off to him as she worked on collecting Gratian’s bones into her bag

“Well, I doubt you’ll be very happy with me, but you did just tell me there was a giant door in this room with us.”

Ah, so he did tell her.

“And, as I have no capability to read these past years and I heard the distinct sound of a book being closed, I’m guessing you have a journal that has the answers I’m looking for.”

He was suspecting his new boss was a mindreader.

“So tell me, Teldryn Sero, what did that journal say, and how can we open this giant door?”

Once again, he was paid to do his job as a mercenary for whomever paid him. And if he was to put his professional title and pride on the line, he was going to have to do his job perfectly.

Spooky door and even scarier looking sword be damned.

“Well, there is a greatsword not two feet from your boots that Gratian thought was the key to opening this giant door. There are no obvious handles or levers to open it, and the journal said swinging the thing produced some sort of ‘ribbon’ of energy. On the door itself has these glowing lines along the sides. I’m guessing you want me to swing the sword at the door to solve this puzzle, am I right?”

“Teldryn, it’s like you’re a mind reader!” she smiled. “Since you solved the puzzle so easily, I’ll let you handle swinging the sword.”

After picking up the damned thing and solving the door puzzle, Teldryn was more than happy to pass the blade off to Yera where she strapped it to the outside of her pack. She said she had connections that would be interested in researching this sword and wasn’t about to leave any valuables behind. He was getting the inkling of an idea that she might also be a bit of a hoarder. Or a very thorough dungeon crawler.

Both of them could be correct.

Beyond the door was a long passage in similar style to the many barrows he explored back in Skyrim. Unlit braziers filled with ash dotted the walls as they continued deeper and deeper. As they continued, he noticed Yera straightened up and rest a hand on her sword hilt.

In the short time he was working with her, he got the impression that Yera wasn’t at all worried or scared of these kinds of situations. She was cool and collected, strategizing for the optimal way to move through an area without drawing any attention. Not a single moment in this place had he ever felt that she was out of her depth or in fear of her life. To see her preparing herself before they got to the end of this path was a sign something was up and it put Teldryn on edge as well.

Where there would usually be a door, it was simply open to a flooded chamber. There was a center landing with a tempting chest but nothing more that Teldryn could see from their position. He was about to enter to take point but Yera grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

“Wait,” she ordered. “Not yet.”

They held still there, behind a corner of the wall peering into this flooded chamber. For a great long while nothing happened, neither of them moved, but Teldryn wasn’t going to dismiss Yera’s instinct at this exact moment.

And it all paid off when from the other side of the room, something floated by.

Undead, with rotting clothing hanging off its bones, but emanating a powerful magical aura that Teldryn could not deny sensing even from his distance. The most distinct feature was a metal mask, strange in its shape and design and slowly looking around the room in a patrol.

He must have reacted in some way as Yera gripped his arm tighter and whispered to him,

“What do you see? Is it wearing a metal mask?”

He was going to get answers later about how much she really knew about Nordic dungeons after this, but he answered yes back. She reacted by the both of them walking away from the entrance a safe enough distance before she asked him a single question:

“Teldryn, how much do you know about dragon priests?”