#which i realize is a rather complicated way of doing something that is probably very easy

[bunnyinatree]

This might be an odd question, because I assume that most people already know how to do this... But how do folks listen to music on their phones?

My preferred method of listening to music on the go is to use a Tumblr audio post, because I can navigate away from the tab without the music cutting out. My backup method is to use YouTube, but I hate the ads and the inability to navigate away from the page/lock your phone mid-song.

Is there any way to download a song onto your phone so it's not dependent on wifi? For instance, I have MP3 files that I've edited using Audacity that I can open up on my computer and play, even when the internet is down. Is there something similar that allows you to listen to music on your phone, even while it's set to airplane mode?

[bonus-links]

rereading with the latest update to get caught up, and now I know its an option I am desperate for director's commentary on Ruins pt7, if you're willing, please

(Also I first started reading this before taking sign langauge classes, and while I am learning a different SL to ASL/whatever Slate is using, some things translate well. Which is to say I was very excited seeing Loft use thank you and other small signs, or recognising Slate's signs. Its very cool!)

OH AN OLDIE yeah sure!! i will do my best to remember wtf i was on about lol

first of all. this was posted in 2023. what do u mean it's 2025 and im only on ch2. explodes. ANYWAY.

I'm still proud of myself this this panel thing w the arrow lol where it's both coming towards the octorok and has already gone through it. this is something that didn't rlly end up making it into the final product but I don't think Slate actually makes a habit of just killing monsters willy nilly. I don't see him hunting down every monster in Hyrule after the calamity ends. He kills this octorok bc they antagonize the horses but also because. I needed an excuse for his bow to already be out HAHA

I have complicated feelings about the yiga and what their lore implies lol but for Slate's part, he has personal beef with them on account of how many times they're tried and nearly succeeded in killing him. I like to imagine the Yiga as both deeply goofy and also a serious threat at the same time lol, which i think sums up how Slate feels about them.

I did however want to take this opportunity to show his capacity to be a brutal fighter, the same way Loft is in the opening of ch1. Actually the idea for this scene even came about because in my own late-stage game I kept getting attacked by a blademaster literally every 2 feet in certain regions, and I was getting so frustrated by it I just started obliterating them with ancient arrows 💀 Slate using way more arrows than necessary was a nod to that. idk maybe this guy lived lol

this scene was also to spur comparisons between Slate and Loft's experiences. Loft is brutal with monsters, but he's never killed a human being. Realizing that the Yiga aren't monsters shocks him.

this is a failure of my own paneling bc I didn't have enough room on the page and refused to add another, but Loft is hallucinating this guardian being active. all the guardians are inactive since defeating the calamity. actually what I should have done was add a red targeting line that then disappeared in the next panel. MAN.

alright and probably what you actually wanted commentary on, first Champion sighting! The first time Slate actually sees Champion is at the end of ch1, so if you're wondering if Slate knows he's there in this scene, the answer is no. I think rather than following Slate around all along, Champion has spent most of his time just sort of. barely existing here at Fort Hateno, or sitting with the master sword. He's not exactly like the ghosts of the other champions, or King Rhoam. sorry buddy :-(

i do have a bonus comic the works re: ghost lore that I will hopefully finish. someday so I think that might answer some questions ppl have. and possibly introduce a few more. but on the whole I like to keep whatever's going on here a little ambiguous. like I said in this update's commentary, one part literal and one part metaphorical. maybe two parts metaphorical lol

I think that's all I got for this one!

[knight-a3]

Heavenbound AU

Masterpost

Vagatha "Vaggie"

I wanted to emphasize Vaggie's moth features. A friend of mine, who is a fan of the show, didn't realize that she was supposed to be a moth. When I showed her my designs, she noticed the moth themes right away. I had to explain that Vaggie was originally a moth, and that it wasn't something I came up with.

More notes under the cut

I know she says her name isn't Vagatha. But... I don't vibe with the sexual connotations. I'm too ace for it. So I'm ignoring that. I came up with a whole complicated justification for her name, but I'll get into that later.

Uniform:

Her main outfit is her hotel uniform. She and Charlie are the only staff members who bother to wear it. Alastor and Husk are never going to, and Niffty simply doesn't care.

Hair and eyes: Her hair has a more obvious moth wing pattern. Her bow is antenna instead. And she has moth fluff on her neck, wrists, and ankles. Which serves as a slight nod to one of her older design. Her short hair is also a nod to it. I never liked the floating X over her face, so I put an eyespot in her hair instead, which is always cut in half by a part. The X is exclusively on her eyepatch instead, which isn't going to be visible most of the time. And she needed a scar to go with it, which also isn't visible most of the time.

Casual:

Basically what she would've been wearing in the pilot. I just wanted to put her in an outfit that shows what she would choose to wear. I wanted to lean into the pastel colors she used to have, but also use purple instead of pink, since she seems to be associated with purple for some reason.

Battle Outfit and Wings:

I wanted her restored wings to be moth wings, rather than typical angel wings. After she regains her wings, her hair can turn into them. It leaves her with short hair, partly so I didn't have to worry about hair and wings at the same time. I primarily based her on the Condalia Silk Moth. I wanted to simplify her battle outfit slightly. I stuck with colors that were already in her palette, instead of choosing anything new. For simplicity.

Exorcist Angel:

Because I wanted the angels in general to look more human, I had to apply it to the exorcists too. Not that there was much alteration needed. But I needed a sense of consistency. I didn't like the look of the exorcists in canon. They looked too demonic with their outfits, and it didn't vibe with their self-righteous attitudes. So I chose a crusader theme instead. It felt more appropriate. The wings can "turn on and off" at will. Vaggie did it in canon after getting her wings back, so I don't see why the same can't apply to other angels. I designed the halo in a very specific way, which I'll probably get into on it's own post. It ties into how I'm reimagining the angelic hierarchy.

I think the canon lore is that the exorcists were created and named by Adam. But I don't vibe with it. I'm thinking that they were humans that either died doing something noble, or had a particular desire to fight against depravity. Consequently, they won't all be female anymore.

Human:

I wanted to base her outfit on an earlier design, and this is loosely based on a couple of her pilot design's alternate outfits. It also gives me some slightly Colombian vibes. Her hair shape is inspired by the shape of her hair in the show. Vaggie as a human name just wouldn't work. So I came up with some convoluted explanation as to why her name would evolve the way it did.

Regina "Gina" Agatha Valdez. Daughter of a Salvadorian immigrant. She wasn't interested in men, so bullies would call her "Virginia." It was a play on her name. Gina was her nickname, and placing her last initial in front would make it V. Gina. The more crass bullies called her the obvious. She died saving a child, but I haven't thought of specifics. Afterwards, she was recruited into the exorcist army. She fell because she spared a child-looking demon(probably wasn't actually a child, tbh). Once she fell, she became a demon, and her appearance changed to reflect it. She may be a fallen angel, but she's not technically an angel anymore. She's a sinner like the rest. Even if her sin wasn't really a sin. Lute cursed her to it. She didn't want to go by her old name anymore, so she went by her middle name, with her last initial in front. V. Agatha. Vagatha.

Some of the designs, besides canon, that I referenced:

(Jan 18, 2025- Changed ethnicity from Columbian to Salvadorian, that was a simple mixup on my part.)

[claralance]

Thinking about...

All the potential problems you might face dating Reo (i will definitely exploit this)

Warning: Wall of text. This is written poorly, probably repetitive, English is not my native language, not proofread. Just my headcanons and interpretation. Feel free to express your own opinions.

Sure he's smitten and he falls hard, will definitely spoils you and try to become the best boyfriend, also very loyal and a gentleman and all, but I think with his upbringing there are also certain red flags.

Solves problems with money: If you ever get upset or angry and he doesn't exactly know why/what to do, he'll resort to using money, buying you expensive gifts and shits bc that's the only way he knows (money makes people happy in his defense, his parents, for example). Plus, I think splurging money is kind of his comfort zone, like an easy escape for him bc he's dirty rich and his world revolves around materialism.

Involuntarily controlling: Not sure if I phrase this right but in Episode Nagi he admits to have a habit of using people. I think it's because he has a businessman-like mindset (due to his upbringing), he likes and is used to having things go his way, and honestly even if he dislikes his parents he definitely takes after them a lot (greedy and controlling) even though he doesn't want/like to. But all in all, I believe he'll try to keep the relationship under control (subconsciously) and will either spiral or throw a tantrum when things get out of hands.

Doesn't do well with changes: I'm sure this is similar to the previous point and you've probably seen int in the manga as well but he'll definitely get emotional and react strongly when his partner changes, maybe not really change but just do something that's out of his calculations and expectations. He gets emotionally attached and while he'll do anything for you he'll definitely start an argument when his emotions overwhelm his mind (again cue the Nagireo breakup and all of Reo's inner thoughts in epiNagi)

Intelligent but not that emotionally intelligent (not sure how to explain it but iykyk)

Will probably spiral and overthink after every argument: I think that Reo is rather well aware of his flaws, and he also has a standard for himself (probably projected by others), which will backfire when he's emotional. So, if things go wrong/out of his control -> his fault for not being enough. If he realizes that he acted like his father (or someone he hates), or if he said something really harsh, he'll probably shut down and wallow in self-deprecation.

Not the best at showing his problems or communicating: I think that similar to thinking that people only like his money, Reo also thinks that people only like him for the golden boy facade. It is implied that he accommodates people around him and rarely show his anger or boredom because it is what expected of him. Therefore, at the beginning of a relationship, he'll try to keep that facade up, avoiding addressing issues and just do his best to be whatever his partner might like to keep them around unless they show that they love him beyond all that.

In conclusion, I believe that Reo'd still be a great boyfriend (certified loverboy who'll do everything for people he cares about), but being in a relationship with him will have problems that might come off as overwhelming and slightly suffocating for some people, even if they're unintentional. That's also why I think he tend to falls for the wrong people and get hurt (my last post), not bc they're exactly "wrong", but relationships are complicated and I know some people run when they face emotional, attachment-related problems like these.

Long story short, I still love Reo and his character so much bc he's not just a perfect golden boy and I relate to him (or maybe I just like ppl with attachment problems). He just need lots of love and assurance. ♥︎

[ixloom819]

So I recently started getting into LADS and I do like it - the lore is very interesting and I’m excited to learn/figure out more. So I want to talk about the LIs and my thoughts on them, mixed in with my opinion about the story.

Rafayel

First off, Rafayel. I’ll be honest, I don’t like Rafayel, so I don’t have a lot for him. Yes I know he’s an interesting and complex character, but his bratty/dramatic attitude is a deterrent for me. For what it’s worth, since they’re both reincarnating beings and seem to fall for each other in a lot of timelines, I would ship him with MC as an entity, just not necessarily the main game MC. He’s probably the best out of the has-a-past-life-with-MC group.

Xavier

Next, Xavier. Xavier is adorable, and he does seem like a sweet, loving boyfriend. I can totally see him enjoying lazy days together and just being comfortable with each other. However, I do think he would want to take things pretty fast. While I’m sure he’d ultimately respect what you/MC wants, I also think he’d do everything he can think of to change their mind. Also the jealousy thing is cute at first, but it would become exhausting trying to convince him that just because a male was nice does not make him a threat to his relationship.

Do I ship him with in-game MC? Not really. From what I can tell, he’s known and loved different MCs as she’s reincarnated, definitely at least the one that gave him the star tassel(?). But it’s Queen MC that gets him to actively try to stop the cycle of sacrifice, and while he’s trying to find a solution to save both, I think it’s clear that he would choose to save Queen MC over Philos. But then he gets stranded in the past and while he’s trying to find a way back, he’s also falling in love with main game MC, which for how devoted he seemed to be to Queen MC makes it feel like a bit of a betrayal.

Sylus

Sylus is honestly the LI I’d prefer, but I ship him with MC the least. He meets MC for the first time in the main timeline and expects her to be like Sorceress MC, which as I understand is more self-serving and wicked (I could be wrong, sorry if I am). That’s why he’s so forceful at the beginning, with trying to force the resonance and making her shoot him. It’s only after he realizes and accepts that she’s a different person and she’s not going to remember that he starts becoming more of the soft, loving Sylus he is now.

And THAT Sylus I want for myself - the one that has the thrill, charisma and magnetism of a dark romance lover, but we see that once you break through the barriers he puts up, he’s such a gentle and loving man. He does everything for his beloved’s comfort and pacing and would never dream of making them do something they didn’t want to, let alone hurt them in any way. But with game MC? I’m sorry, narratively he’s the least satisfying match-up, especially since he only had one life with her.

Caleb

Caleb is a very interesting blend of a character. He’s got the fluffy growing-up-together childhood friend trope, the angst of his backstory and the whole pretending-to-be-dead-for-a-year thing, and the yummy yandere content. Caleb doesn’t have a myth yet, and I’m kinda hoping he doesn’t get one. I’m all for equality with LIs, but it’d be nice for MC to have someone who falls in love with her for the first time in this timeline. Plus I feel like Caleb and MC’s shared backstory along with the memory loss stuff fills the role pretty well.

At first I was thinking “good but not for MC” because of how toxic he was acting. But after seeing MC’s behavior with him later on- yeah no, she’s just as bad with him. And if I understand it right, the memories MC has with Caleb from their childhood show that she canonically liked him romantically as well, but was afraid of messing things up. And now things are complicated with his personality change. In my eyes, Caleb is the one MC wants. They strike me as a blaze-of-glory kind of couple, one that would rather hide away from the world and keep the other for themselves. This post explains it better than any way I can think of, but Caleb’s solution is to take away the problem to make MC happy.

Zayne

While that’s good and all, I think loving someone means that you feel safe being yourself around them and you want to become better for them, and that seems to fit MC and Zayne very well. The whole reason Zayne pursued medicine was to be able to save MC, and from this post, we can see that they’re constantly checking in with each other to make sure they’re okay. This post does a better job at showing how proactive MC is with Zayne versus reactive with the others (and how husband-wife coded they are), but regardless MC is the joy in Zayne’s otherwise work-centered life. They look out for each other and improve each other - they need each other. Zayne, rather than taking the problem away like Caleb, helps MC address the problem, get over it, and grow into a better person from it.

Regarding his other lives… Zayne’s a special boy. Unlike the other LIs, he seems to be existing in multiple alternate universes, and he doesn’t really think they exist. We know for sure that he sees Dawnbreaker’s universe as dreams, so I’d guess that he sees the other versions of him the same way. He probably thinks he’s seriously down bad, because why else would he be having all these romantasy dreams about MC? (He doesn’t realize he’s the romantasy) Regardless, he loves MC for who she is now, not for who she is in other universes.

Extra

Maybe controversial, but LADS has revealed an ick for me: reincarnated lovers. In theory it’s cute, “Oh look, these two are in love across timelines”, but in practice it just feels… off.

Sure, there are probably some points that stick with a person as they reincarnate, but circumstances and environment does affect a person. The MC we play as lives a much different life than Sorceress MC or Queen MC, so there’s going to be some changes in how they act and think. The important part of this is that main game MC is not the same MC that the LIs initially fall in love with.

If I were MC, I would be totally weirded out by this. Imagine you meet someone who’s a total stranger to you (and you are as he’s getting to know this new you) and yet he seems to know you very intimately, maybe things you don’t know yourself until he shows you. He has this knowing look and a nostalgic fondness that doesn’t make sense. It would drive me crazy and make me feel uncomfortable.

This is why I like Zayne and Caleb best as romance options for MC: because they love her for who she is in this timeline, while the others love a different version of her who lived very different lives. If I found out the truth, I’d constantly be doubting which version the man I loved cared for the most and think he was trying to find traces of other-me in me. Heaven knows I couldn’t take that blow on my mental health, and think about MC who’s life is a whirlwind right now. Girl does not deserve that kind of stress on top of everything.

[cheriladycl01]

I'm not scared! Colby Brock x MotoGPDriver! Reader Part 4

Plot: You made a tweet about Sam and Colby and were in a podcast and they brought up Sam and Colby where you talked about the paranormal and how it doesn't really scare you because you drive motorcycles at over 200mph.

Credit to misscalliopecruz for the GIF

You didn't realize just how easy it was for Sam and Colby to make calls to these haunted locations and be given permissions to film investigations.

You'd been set up for literally 3 days time which made you guys feel even more excited as it was such short notice. Colby and Sam spent the time charging all the equipment, booking hotels and doing all the admin stuff you'd offered to help them with but they'd refused saying you should try and get a few good nights of sleep while you could, so you stayed in your flat making sure you had a comfy enough outfit ready to go in.

Colby had practically begged you to wear their merch, so of course you took the hoodie he'd given to you. You'd planned to wear it with a pair of bootleg jeans as even though it was very clearly British Time you gathered in the middle of the night in an old creepy castle it would get cold. Which is why you were thankful for the hoodie rather than a top as the piece of merch Colby gifted you.

You kind of wanted to make Colby and Sam wear some of you Red Bull Merch but thought maybe that was going a bit too far so you left them packed away in the rucksack you were going to be taking with you.

You had a later night on the day before the investigation so you were able to stay up till around 4 or 5am, ending up waking up for around 11am. You did your morning workout before getting something to eat and had a slow evening before meeting up with the boys.

"Are you okay driving?" Colby asks as you all walk down to the car park of the hotel they were staying in.

"Any reason, or just because I'm the better driver?" you smirk, knowing full well you were the better driver.

"I just don't like driving in the UK, it's way more complicated than the US, those roundabouts... wild things!" he jokes, even though there was some truth to it.

"Yeah sure, I don't mind... but If I'm driving its my Spotify playlist on shuffle..." you reason and they both nod agreeing, not petty enough to start a disagreement over music, especially when you guys would probably have similar music tastes.

The drive to the castle was fun, you were all talking about the history you guys had researched and what was there.

When you pulled up, you got this zing of excitement down you spine.

"Guys, I'm really excited for this" you exclaim looking back at them getting all the stuff out the car while you were in awe of the building.

It was a huge location and you already knew that the boys would challenge you to go somewhere alone because of how big it was.

The boys got out their camera and you waited off to the side as they did their intro.

"What's up guys its Sam and Colby and today we are here a Dannamore Castle in the UK, one of the most haunted Castles in the world!" Colby says with that normal cryptic sort of look on his face.

"And as you guys probably expected from our recent trip to see out good friend, today we have Y/N Y/L/N here with us!" Sam introduces panning the camera round to you making you smile and bunch up closer to them.

"Hey!" you grin and the boys turn to you.

"Okay for those who don't know Y/N is a MotoGP rider to she basically rides motorbikes really quickly round race-tracks for a living and she's really good at it too. The reason she is here is because she said she wouldn't be scared to come onto one of our videos and we really want to put that to the test" Colby mentions and you blush at the praise, entirely used to but it still got you every time.

They cut the cameras after showing the outside of the area saying that they'd be filming a lot of the history out-takes in their studio at home and having watched their videos you knew what they meant.

Two men and a lady came out, one was the caretaker, another was a tour guide and the other a medium of sorts that worked with the place.

Sam and Colby started to talk to the caretaker that would help in showing you round later when you walked off.

You thought you saw something dash out the corner of your eye, Sam and Colby were too busy listening too all the ins and outs of the area, what rooms you didn't have access to which in this particular castle wasn't actually that many just the unsafe spaces where the wooden flooring had gotten too old and they hadn't rebuilt it yet.

"Where's your friend?" the caretaker asks seeing that the girl wasn't where she had been a minute ago.

The others look around trying to see if you were behind the car or near the entrance but you were nowhere in sight.

"Y/N?" Colby yelled out. Sam following with a shout of his own name.

"Yeah?" you ask walking from behind a stone wall that ran behind the castle into the gardens.

"Where did you run off to?" Sam asks and the caretakers also look intrigued.

"Something caught the corner of my eye and I wanted to see if anyone else was on the property" you shrug your shoulder making Sam look to the now turned on camera Colby had, as they had started to film the minute the group were aware that you were missing.

"You just left, because you saw something?" Colby asks and you nod, making Sam chuckle. They cut the cameras, giving you a small run down of the castle, which rooms you guys weren't allowed it and when you guys had to leave by.

They also further explained not having got there before that it would just be you guys in there tonight, the caretaker however stays in the barn that was technically 'on the property' but not inside the castle just for legal purposes.

"So this is the centre of the castle. Back in the day, all residents from the Dannamore family and their friends would have been around here as this was and still is a hub" the tour guide smiles as you all look around the expanse of the hall.

"Who was part of the Dannamore Family, I'm guessing we'll meet some of them tonight?" you smile asking intrigued.

"Well Drake Dannamore has always been the most present spirit we have here. He is the original resident of the castle" she starts and you all nod.

"Is he cool?" Colby asks making you turn to him in shock. How is he referring to a like 1000 year old spirit as cool.

"He's a kind spirit yes. Y/N you'll get most the activity from him, he's the protector of this house... practically the women" she smiles.

"Really? Why's that?" Sam asks.

"Well, Drake..." she starts and you guys hear a knock from the back of the room making you all look there and the guide and caretaker laugh a little.

"I think he's here with us!" she smiles looking around before continuing.

"He married Valisa Dupont a French Lady from a wealthy family. Their family gifted and built this castle as a sign of their gratitude for Drake protecting Valisa. However, Valisa did not love Drake and apparently she became very spiteful towards him. She would cheat on him with the bakers boy who worked and lived in the home. She neglected their children making Drake exhausted" she starts and you feel a sort of overwhelming sadness wash over you. Enough for you to reach up and hold you chest.

"Vasila attempted to kill Drake but ended up mistakenly poisoning his sister Darcey. He ended the relationship with her, and she was livid. He moved on and married Bianca, who mysteriously died one night after saying for years she felt like she was being watched. People working in the castle at the time reported that Vasila killed Bianca out of jealously. Drake was in anguish and after that refused to marry again. He tried to protect Bianca as much as possible thinking Vasila was terrorizing her. After that its said that Drake either pushed her or she threw herself from the east tower, falling to her death" she finishes and you all look in shock.

"So he protects females that come into the castle from Vasila, who i'm guessing remains here as a negative energy because he feels like he needs to do what he couldn't do for Bianca?" you ask and a creak or footsteps was heard from above making all your heads snap up.

"I'd take that as a yes!" Colby laughs making you laugh as well.

"So this is an active place for all the spirits?" Sam asks looking around.

"Not all, but most. Drake can be found here along with his children who are also protectors of the home. Bianca is also here who is a very friendly and kind spirit. But its not just people who have lived in the castle. There's portals here too" the caretaker answers showing the mirrors that were facing each other.

"Woah?" you say stepping closer to Colby where the mirrors are.

"So what do we need to be wary of?" Colby asks.

"Vasila, of course. She doesn't like any-one male or female. She's been known to touch and scratch and make lots of loud noises but she's only in certain areas of the house like the tower and the pantry room" she explains.

"Because of her relationship with the baker boy?" Sam asks and she nods.

"Y/N you'll need to be extra careful of the baker boy" she admits and you look off to the left.

"Why?"

"He doesn't like ... dominant women!" she exclaims looking down, making you frown with a small laugh.

"I'm a dominant woman?" you ask with a laugh.

"Just like your presence, the tattoos, biker personality and just your aura she means, your head strong which is something Madison didn't like" the medium says for the first time since being here.

"Madison?" Sam asks.

"The baker boy, that was his name Madison!" he answers.

This would make for an interesting night!

Taglist:

@richardsamboramylove55 @braveangel777 @rockwyu @jada-lockwood @itzdarling

[sunderwight]

Thinking some more about why Old Man Viktor would want hextech to be invented, or to specifically be invented by Jayce, such that his meddling involves giving Jayce the rune that he uses to kickstart his innovations, when a simpler way to prevent catastrophe in any given timeline would but to just... not invent hextech at all?

And I've got another theory!

I think Old Man Viktor is actually looking for a way to unfuck his own timeline.

If it was just about saving others, that doesn't seem like it would be all that complicated, and, unless he's failed every prior time (possible) it should probably have a set routine by now. Also, why would there need to be so many attempts? Is he doing this for every single timeline, or is he deliberately creating new timelines and experimenting with the results?

I think it's the latter, given that we see him provide young Jayce with different runes, and that he's presumably used different methods of persuasion and involved other different factors in the process. Again, it's possible -- given Ekko and the reversal rune -- that this is the first time it's worked at all, but I think that Viktor's comment that in all timelines, only Jayce can show him the futility of his actions would in fact imply otherwise. There have been other timelines where Jayce has successfully compelled Viktor out of his plan, or else I think Old Man Viktor would have phrased it more like "only you might show me this in some version of events" rather than "in all timelines, only you can show me this".

So, probably, there have been other timelines where the world is saved by Jayce's intervention.

Which is great, and Old Man Viktor takes it as a win, but I think why he keeps on doing it and what he's ultimately after is the right formula for a means to sort of unbake his cake, if you will. Old Man Viktor's own timeline has already been doomed. He's the only one left, trapped in his "perfect" outcome that has become a prison of (in his own words) dreamless solitude. He can't escape what he's done and he can't rest, and outside of his scant interactions with the Jayces of other timelines, he's alone. His Jayce is gone, everyone is gone. Like the ingredients baked into a cake, the people that he bound together into his ascension cannot be alchemized back into the individuals that they once were.

Or can they?

After all, this is magic we're dealing with. Magic, technology, and the same genius that created the problems in the first place. If there's a way to undo it, who else could figure it out? I think the main cast of the show comprises the people who might and the people who are most likely to influence and inspire them -- Jayce and Viktor, who started the problem. Mel, an incredibly powerful mage. Singed, who taught Viktor and helped engineer his transcendence. Jinx and Ekko, two of the only other people in either city to actually figure out hextech on their own. Heimderdinger, Jayce's teacher. Even Ambessa brings along the Black Rose, who might feasibly contribute something to the undoing of Viktor's calamity.

Viktor is very stubborn, and he doesn't abandon his causes easily. I think that once he realized the folly of what he'd done, and accepted the reality that he had destroyed the world instead of saving it, his next course of action would be to either finally die or else fix it. If he can't die (probable) then that just leaves fixing it. Fixing it for other timelines is great, but ultimately, knowing Viktor and what he's like, I don't think he would be satisfied with that. He'd accept it as a consolation prize and ultimately if that's his limit, he'll find out one day. But if he has infinite space time to play around in, why not aim big? Why not try for the ideal outcome?

So that's what I think he is really waiting for. A lead into the method to truly undo what he did, and restore everyone to themselves. Not just in other timelines but in his own too.

[the-east-art]

Hi Thank you for coming to my TED Talk about how I dont like the Grid Method for drawing

I think most people in their life have seen the grid method for copying a piece of art - if you haven’t seen it you can probably at least get an idea of it pretty quick. The grid method for art requires you to break a piece into a series of equal squares, and then transfer those squares onto a blank piece of paper divided into the equal squares of the same ratio. Conceptually this idea is very sound - rather than biting off the entire picture, you focus on each section. Theoretically, if you can make square A1 look like square A”1, and so on and so forth, you should finish with an identical drawing to your picture. I, personally, have a strong distaste for this method. It teaches bad habits - especially to younger and newer artists. (If you are a big fan of this method please read all of my rant first or at least scroll to the end where I will reiterate some of the perceived positives of the method)

The best way to discuss this is to start with a general idea of how we go about drawing something - especially something from a reference! I will try not to riddle this rant with disclaimers, but not everyone will draw using the same or similar methods, but this is the way that I was taught and when discussing with other artists they usually follow similar ideas: When you draw you go from big to little - from general to specific. Getting too specific too early is detrimental. This is an art rant, so let’s chat about this with some pictures. 

Here I have a picture of a square and a circle. Next to it I have my blank piece of paper, and I want to draw it EXACTLY THE SAME on the paper. To do this - whether consciously or not - I will start taking mental ‘measurements’ of various aspects of this composition. How far are these objects from the edges? How much space do they take up? And I will compare these objects to each other - which object is bigger? Where do they connect - is their point of contact halfway up the square or a quarter ways up the square? In the previous questions I am specifically focused on circle in relationship to the square, so it’s worth noting that if my square isn’t placed correctly then everything else will be placed incorrectly as well. Early on in a piece you want to keep lines light, ready to be changed if need be. One of my professors used to say that you wanted to avoid falling in love and getting married to a line as long as possible, because once you fall in love with your lines you will be reluctant to change them. 

Here I have a square and a circle - although maybe these have a little more details going on in them than our previous square and circle. Now maybe this is overwhelming, but remember we want to start from general and then get specific - our process for drawing this should look much the same as our previous painting! Starting with the outline and general shape! This brooch technically isn’t a circle - it’s scalloped on the edges - but before we put that information in we want to make sure we have the placement of it correctly both on the paper and in reference to our other elements - the square. When we feel confident in those elements, we can start SLOWLY adding the other information. A lot of art is about training the eye - we’re looking between the picture and our drawing, trying to see visually what the difference is and correct it. 

Naturally, the more complicated the piece the more complicated this process becomes. If we, for instance, have a person, thats’ a lot more to deal with. We once again want to work outside first. My professor was very big on outlines and shadows first and details slowly after that - so I would likely want to work on the external form, and some lines, and then work in blocky shadows, and fine-tune it from there. Once again let’s ask ourselves what will happen if we just start with the eye - and we spend HOURS drawing the perfect eye - only to realize that it isn’t in the right place in reference to everything else. We’d either have to erase that eye and all our work, rework the entire rest of the drawing, or leave it to look offputting and wrong. When you start art you can get preoccupied with features, when in reality they should be one of the last elements you definitively put in. 

There’s one last part about this that is relevant to my dislike for the grid method, and it’s the idea that when we’re looking at a piece we find commonalities along lines to help guide our art. For instance here we can see that one eye lies horizontally on the same plane and the back of the dogs head matches with a place on the coat - these can help guide us in making sure things are looking right! The grids may help us to see these things, but not necessarily.

Okay, back to the grid method. As I’ve stated earlier the grid method can be used well and the principles behind it are good - our neat squares provide an easier visual way to do the exact same stuff we were doing earlier - how far is the object from the edges and from each other etc etc. However these squares actually can encourage the artist to focus too closely - again either a square at a time or a feature at a time. In addition they narrow the focus of the artist away from the whole - instead of seeing how everything lays on the entire page, you focus on how things are lying in that specific tiny box. Art is usually a dance of in and out - close and far. Taking a step back. The grid method discourages this. 

I say this again aware that many people are extremely successful using this method - young auteurs who draw a giant portrait hyperrealistic. Leyendecker would use a grid to make his smaller drawings bigger (although I would argue he first had an understanding of the previous methods for the intiial drawing, and used the grid more for enlargement of the previous piece). People do this method and do it well… just more people learn bad habits from it that they have to fight against to progress. 

The last thing I want to say is about how the flaw, always, with the grid method is that it has to be something that you can place a grid on - you become confined to the paper and ruler. While the earlier method was taught to be through still life drawings, measuring with a stick, it was clear that this eye training and method was versatile, and could be used for anything you placed in front of me, the grid method becomes a shackle. And I know I know I know, but other artists have found ways around such a block - the perspective frame for painting has been used by many artists over the years, including Vincent Van Gogh - places somewhere to make the process of copying the real world easier - but why let yourself be confined willingly? If you are a big grid believer I would beseech you to AT LEAST try and expand your studies in addition to the grid formula - a healthy diet of many different kind of studies and practices and eye trainings is what we do to hopefully, one day, be able to put the designs in our head down onto paper accurately. 

Additionally, using the grid method provides no room for your to be using your instincts to help. I’ve been reading through ot3’s personal philosophy of composition and I found the line in the introductions where they discuss the idea of following your instincts very important. Part of my philosophy firmly believes that people understand art ephemerally without the need of words first, and overtime the act of art is becoming more aware of the words and phrases of certain concepts, so that we gain the ability to use and manipulate them purposefully. 

Anyway there ya go! Let me know your thoughts!

[gunnrblze]

IM BEGGING YOU TO DO ONE FOR THE OLD MEN GHOSTS, ‘they are secretly in love with y/n’ PLEASE

Oh say less (I was gonna include them in the other post but decided against it but still want to write for them because…hnnndhsjaj)

Merrick- secretly in love Merrick feels like the frog in a pot of boiling water metaphor. he’s fine at first, the water is room temp. he can largely overlook his feelings, used to it by now. the water heats up and you’re constantly on his mind, he tamps it all down but it keeps getting hotter and hotter and suddenly he’s being snippy at work, needs more time to cool off, etc

He lets (personal) stuff build up before he can think to resolve a matter, he doesn’t even realize how deep in love he is with you, and when he does try to hide it, I think he’d fail pretty miserably. He’s one of the ghosts whose attraction i honestly think would be the most obvious to others, despite trying to pretend otherwise. This man’s unspoken devotion would escalate slowly, it’d feel like a presence rather than a set of actions/words.

Elias- this guy doesn’t trust his own emotions around love/attraction sometimes after his wife died, so if he spawns a secret crush on you at his big age, he’s most definitely going to pretend otherwise and knowingly let it eat at him. Tells himself he doesn’t have time for you, which is odd considering the way he’d always make sure shit is taken care of for you, whether he admits it was him or not. checks in on you, even if it’s just in a professional or friendly manner, quite literally makes time for you and then tells himself it’d never work.

I think he may consider himself “done” with relationships at this stage in his life, and it’d only drive his avoidance. I don’t necessarily think he’d be obvious, other than the “please god love me back” eyes he’d unintentionally give you, but I think others could probably tell something’s up with him, whether the issue is identifiable or not. If any of the ghosts could go the rest of their (short) lives without confessing to you, it’d be him imo.

Rorke (pre fed)- for starters, he’d absolutely be thrown off when he realizes he’s in love. Such a career focused man, I imagine the idea of love/marriage/family for him would be put on the very back burner, he’d be surprised. I think he’s one of the ghosts that is most likely to start avoiding you. For a long while his logic is out of sight, out of mind, until he realizes you’re still never out of his mind. He’d start being short with you, not rudely so, but just enough to distance himself. The type to divulge his secret to a close friend (Elias tbh) on a drunken whim, and then turn around and act like it meant nothing.

I also think he’d have a hard time letting himself even entertain the idea of “having you”. He’s too busy, he doesn’t deserve someone so special, he’s a bad man that does bad things, etc. Like Elias, he’s playing mental gymnastics to justify his own avoidance. I think depending on your proximity to him, he’s also the type to just blurt it out to you one day (sober). He’d make it so complicated but he’d be so up your ass all the time after that, there’s no way that’d be the end of the matter.

[robininthelabyrinth]

Team Up - ao3

Pairing: Lan Qiren/Nie Mingjue/Wen Ruohan Summary:

“Tell me, Mingjue,” Lan Qiren said. “What are the outer limits of a cultivator’s moral duty to act?”

Note: adult content

-----------------------------------------

“What are the outer limits of a cultivator’s moral duty to act?” Nie Mingjue read aloud, then grimaced in disbelief. “Teacher, is this a joke?”

“I assure you that it is not.” Lan Qiren did not quite shrug, but his expression conveyed the feeling regardless. “You were the one who wanted to look at the students’ essays answering a philosophical question of their choosing. I trust your curiosity has been adequately assuaged.”

“What does that even mean?” Nie Mingjue complained. He’d mostly wanted to see Nie Huaisang’s essay, while also very much not wanting to; he hadn’t realized it was possible that other students could be just as ridiculous. “The ‘outer limits’…what outer limits?! Naturally you should put in your utmost effort to act morally.”

“I think the essay in question was more focused on a cultivator’s ethical duty to take affirmative steps to prevent harm,” Lan Qiren said. “For instance, if you see a man who is drowning, rescue him.”

“That seems obvious.”

“Is it? Do not be facetious. What if the man is your worst enemy, the man who killed your father?” Lan Qiren paused. “Forgive me. That is the typical next question in the example. I did not mean…”

“No, it’s a good point,” Nie Mingjue said, forcing himself to move past that old pain. “If I saw Wen Ruohan drowning, do I have a moral duty to act to save him? I think that I probably would.”

“Even if you know he will only commit more atrocities in the future?”

“Well, I’d like to think that saving him from drowning would win me a few points towards convincing him to stop that,” Nie Mingjue said, meaning it as a joke, and Lan Qiren smiled, taking it as such. “That would certainly complicate the morality of the situation, I agree. But it can be my duty to save him as a fellow man and my duty to kill him for his crimes at the same time.”

“Hm. What about the scenario in which you saved him from drowning and successfully used those ‘points’ that you’d won to actually convince him to refrain from enacting any of his more gruesome future plans – would you still be obligated to kill him for his past crimes then?”

“I find that scenario highly unlikely,” Nie Mingjue said dryly.

“Nevertheless,” Lan Qiren said. He was stroking his beard thoughtfully. “Indulge me.”

Nie Mingjue thought about it, then shrugged. “If he genuinely repented, in such a way that I believed he would not commit further crimes, and furthermore had adequately and sincerely apologized and sought to make up for those he had committed in the past, morality would be best served by forgiving him, not killing him.”

“Interesting.”

“Why?” Nie Mingjue glanced at his old teacher, now his peer and maybe even friend. “Did you have something in mind?”

“Nothing, really. Just a passing thought – a foolish one, and irrelevant as well.”

Nie Mingjue raised his eyebrows. It was rare for Lan Qiren to admit to being foolish. “Tell me anyway.”

“Well,” Lan Qiren said hesitantly. “You may not know too much of this, it being largely before your time as sect leader, but Wen Ruohan was not always – as he is now.”

“I remember,” Nie Mingjue said. “He would visit the Unclean Realm sometimes, back before everything. He was quite charming, once, and not nearly so mad.”

In fact, as a child, Nie Mingjue had been rather swept away by their witty and clever visitor.

“That accords with my memory,” Lan Qiren said. “I sometimes wonder if it is possible that, given the immensity of the changes, that the cause of his behavior could be…well…”

“A qi deviation?” Nie Mingjue asked, his interest involuntarily piqued. For obvious reasons, it was an area of profound interest for his sect. “I’d never thought about it – it is rather irrelevant – but now that you mention it, it’s certainly possible. It would be pretty far advanced by now, though. Drastic measures would need to be taken if you wanted to try to reverse it.”

Lan Qiren looked surprised. “There are ways to reverse a qi deviation of such severity? If anyone would know, it would be your sect, of course. But I would have thought…surely, by now…?”

“The severity and ability to reverse it depends on whether the cause is hereditary or an issue with cultivation, or both,” Nie Mingjue explained. “In our family, it’s both – everyone always thinks that it’s our sabers that kill us, but in actual fact, as long as we can keep pace with them, we’re all right. Not cultivating at all is much worse, we just die even faster. From aneurysms and strokes rather than qi deviations, to be sure, but the effect is still the same in the end, and it’s a bad death either way. No one has figured out a way to stop it from happening. But that’s just the Nie; there’s no such hereditary instability in the Wen family, so it’s probably just a cultivation issue.”

“I see. Is there something that could be done for him at this stage? Assuming it was only incorrect cultivation to blame?”

“At this stage? I think you’d be limited to –” Nie Mingjue paused, then coughed.

“Limited to what?” Lan Qiren asked.

“Ah,” Nie Mingjue said, valiantly attempting not to turn red and painfully aware he was likely failing. “Well. That is…”

“What is it?”

“…the most effective way to shock someone out of a qi deviation is dual cultivation,” Nie Mingjue said, staring at the ceiling above his old teacher’s head. “Ideally with two powerful cultivators –”

“Two? Why two?”

“Having two cultivators involved reduces the risk that the qi deviation spreads from the deviating individual to the rescuing one, rather than the correct method winning out over the deviated one. It also reduces the burden on the spiritual energy of the assisting parties, splitting the strain among two people instead of keeping it with just one…unfortunately, for someone like Wen Ruohan, given his strength, you’d have to find some very powerful cultivators to do the job. They’d have to be either exceptionally talented, with limitless potential, or else exceptionally steady, with an incredibly firm foundation. Nothing else would stand a chance against him.”

“Hm,” Lan Qiren said. “Limitless potential like yours, you mean? An exceptionally firm foundation, like mine?”

“Yes, like that,” Nie Mingjue said, nodding. “Exactly so.”

Then he paused.

“Uh,” he said. “Teacher. You’re not suggesting that…that we…are you?”

Lan Qiren smiled at him.

“Tell me, Mingjue,” he said. “What are the outer limits of a cultivator’s moral duty to act?”

-

Wen Ruohan woke up groggy, which was the first sign that something had gone wrong.

He was also not in his own bedroom, which was the second, and, for the third and most definitive indication, he was currently tied up.

This was not as unusual as it might have been – Wen Ruohan had had a bad habit of getting kidnapped when he’d been a young man, in large part due to his stubborn tendency to go wherever he damn well pleased regardless of any well-meant warnings and cautionary signs. Even after he’d become sect leader, it had happened a fair number of times, though that was more to do with the fact that he’d locked away all the sect treasures behind arrays that only he could open, requiring anyone who wanted to assassinate him and take his position to first try to take him captive…which usually turned out to be a mistake. For them.

It certainly hadn’t happened in a very long time, though.

Also, his cultivation wasn’t bound, which seemed…unwise, as far as kidnappings went.

In fact, the only part of him that was magically bound, as opposed to physically bound, was his mouth –

Huh.

The Lan sect silencing spell?

That puzzle was enough to get him to pause and take stock of the situation, rather than simply rip free at once. Wen Ruohan wasn’t sure what was less likely, that he’d been kidnapped by a Lan or that somehow someone had managed to learn the spell despite all the rules the Lan sect had against teaching their secrets to inappropriate people. Either way, there were interesting implications of all sorts involved.

Worth at least investigating, at least.

Wen Ruohan opened his eyes.

“Oh, good. You are finally awake.”

…was that Lan Qiren?

“Mingjue, he’s woken up.”

“Oh.” That was Nie Mingjue. Why was Nie Mingjue here?! Wherever here even was. “That’s – good? Ah, that is, I mean, that’s good.”

Why was Nie Mingjue stuttering?

Wen Ruohan made an inquiring sound, which made both men, now standing above the bed where he was bound, frown down at him. This was probably because his ‘inquiring sound’ had the same sound as his ‘I’m going to murder you both’ sound, even when it was unintentional.

It was often unintentional these days. He couldn’t seem to stop overreacting to everything…not that he’d admit that, of course. Better to simply pretend he’d meant his actions all along than admit to the fact that he was losing control.

Even to himself.

“I think he’s wondering why he’s here,” Nie Mingjue finally said, and Lan Qiren nodded in agreement.

“We wish to get your consent,” he said to Wen Ruohan, who gave him his best ‘what the fuck are you talking about’ look. “You have been otherwise unreachable – you no longer sit with us during the discussion conference, but far up above where we cannot speak with you causally.”

“And then you left as soon as the archery contest was done,” Nie Mingjue added, with a scowl. “Treating yourself like an emperor, too high and mighty to talk with anyone…”

“Quite rude,” Lan Qiren agreed. “And when we tried to make an appointment with you, your son informed us that you were far too busy to meet with the likes of us –”

…Chao-er had done what?

Stupid, useless, irritating boy, with no grasp of politics whatsoever! These were the leaders of Great Sects, not some useless hanger-on that could be trampled at will…and worse, to be so rude to Nie Mingjue, with his notoriously short Nie temper and equally infamous inclinations to meet disrespect with violence – did Wen Chao have a death wish? Was he dead even now?

“Fortunately for him, I was able to restrain Sect Leader Nie.”

So just scared shitless.

Fine. It was probably good for him.

“However, without an alternative method, we were forced to find other methods by which to approach you.”

No kidding.

He’d have to figure out how they managed to kidnap him. A hole like that in his defenses…

“You’re talking around the point, Teacher,” Nie Mingjue said abruptly, apparently losing patience. “You haven’t even explained why we wanted to talk to him – and you said you’d be the one to explain it.”

“And I will,” Lan Qiren said, even as Wen Ruohan’s interest in the reason abruptly spiked: was Nie Mingjue blushing? “Sect Leader Wen, we have reason to believe you may have suffered a qi deviation.”

Bullshit.

That was impossible. Wen Ruohan was way too talented to make some sort of mistake in his cultivation. Everything he’d done had been him, all him, nothing else; there were no outside influences, no errors, and certainly no deviation. How dare they suggest such a thing?! Were they looking down on him?

“We wish to assist you with purging the deviation –”

Hah, as if he’d ever permit such a thing! Firstly, there was no deviation to purge – he was fine, he had always been fine, and he would continue to be fine, whatever slander the two of them chose to believe –and secondly, even if there was, he’d never accept their help! He’d never let anyone look down on him like that. Not now, not ever. Absolutely no way, no how –

“– which we proposed to do through dual cultivation.”

Wen Ruohan paused his mental ranting.

He must not have heard that correctly.

“Dual cultivation with both of us,” Nie Mingjue added. He was definitely blushing now. “It’s the most efficient method.”

…perhaps he had heard correctly.

“Naturally we will not force you,” Lan Qiren said primly, as if that was the only issue one could find in their frankly ridiculous suggestion. “We require your consent before starting. What say you?”

Wen Ruohan was a bonafide genius, not an idiot.

He wasn’t going to say no.

Even if he wasn’t being offered sex with two extremely attractive and extremely powerful men, he’d say yes just for the potential amount of spiritual energy that they would be able to generate through the act, spiritual energy that would turn into power that he would be able to use to get even stronger.

Besides, since there wasn’t any qi deviation, it wouldn’t matter if they were doing it to try to fix him.

In fact, if he thought about it a certain way, he was practically tricking them into doing it.

Justification obtained and ego appeased, Wen Ruohan nodded.

“Excellent,” Lan Qiren said, sounding satisfied. “Mingjue, why don’t you demonstrate your skills to Sect Leader Wen?”

Skills? Wait, had they done this before? Had Nie Mingjue demonstrated the skills under discussion to Lan Qiren in advance of –

That was about when Nie Mingjue finished getting rid of Wen Ruohan’s clothing and put his mouth on his cock, and also when Wen Ruohan decided that thinking – or overthinking, as the case might be – was overrated.

Also, Nie Mingjue really was…surprisingly skilled.

Wen Ruohan snapped the silencing spell with a thought and said, “Should I offer my compliments to the teacher?”

His voice was a little hoarser than he’d expected it to be.

…because of the spell, of course.

“Mingjue has always been an exceptional student,” Lan Qiren said, denying nothing, which…huh. Now that was a very fascinating set of images that were going to live in Wen Ruohan’s brain forever, ready to be plucked out at night when he had some time to himself. “He has always exceeded expectations.”

Nie Mingjue lifted his mouth away – Wen Ruohan had to quickly bite his lower lip to avoid letting out a thoroughly undignified whimper of denial – and said, more than a little hoarse himself, “It’s all credit to Teacher’s thorough education.”

Fuck. They really had no business saying things as enticing as that. Wen Ruohan wondered when the two of them had been getting up to this ‘thorough education’, and for how long. And in what positions –

“Would you like a demonstration?” Lan Qiren asked. “Sect Leader Wen.”

“You can call me by name,” Wen Ruohan said, casually. Well, mostly casually. “Under the circumstances.”

Lan Qiren smiled and put his hand on his hair, weaving his fingers in gently…and then tightening them until very nearly the point of pain.

“That’s nice,” he said. “You can call me Teacher.”

…huh.

-

“Are you feeling any better?” Lan Qiren asked.

“Obviously he is,” Nie Mingjue said, rolling his eyes. “Look at how he’s scowling.”

“I will admit that there may have been an – improvement,” Wen Ruohan said. It looked like it pained him to admit it, though his expression still had some of that softness that had come upon him about halfway through the previous evening’s activities and which hadn’t left him since.

Nie Mingjue wasn’t sure exactly what that signified, something he’d communicated to Lan Qiren through meaningful looks and raised eyebrows, but Lan Qiren didn’t seem to know what it meant either, other than the obvious lassitude brought on by a very enjoyable series of orgasms.

“I’m glad you are feeling better,” Lan Qiren said.

“I’m glad you admit it,” Nie Mingjue muttered, then yelped when Lan Qiren pinched him. “What?”

“Remember your manners.”

“I don’t know, I rather like it when he’s being a bit rude,” Wen Ruohan remarked, and reached over to pat the affected area, his fingers lightly tracing over the reddened flesh. “Though I also enjoy him when he’s being accommodating. Hard to pick.”

Nie Mingjue rolled his eyes.

“I will say that it makes for a rather interesting change.”

“Change?” Lan Qiren asked, and Nie Mingjue propped up his head on his hand, looking over at Wen Ruohan in silent question.

“The change in perspective,” Wen Ruohan clarified. “There was no apparent change in my thinking over time, each step appearing completely natural and related to the one before, each new thought seemingly based on the ones that preceded it. Even when I was acting in a way that now, in retrospect, appears irrational –”

“You mean completely insane,” Nie Mingjue proposed, then scooted away before Lan Qiren could pinch him again.

Now it was Wen Ruohan’s turn to roll his eyes. “Yes, well, describe it however you wish. Either way, in contrast to that, I now have an unprecedented sense of clarity.”

“That’s good.”

“Mm. Certainly, looking back at some of my previous actions, it appears that they are – exceptionally unfortunate. Particularly as to you, Mingjue: highly unfortunate.”

“Not unfortunate. Insane,” Nie Mingjue insisted, then glanced at Lan Qiren warily.

“No argument from me,” Lan Qiren said mildly. “Killing his father was indeed an act of insanity, and of tremendous cruelty. Wen Ruohan, the term I believe you are looking for so unsuccessfully is ‘regret’.”

Wen Ruohan scowled again, though he also reached out and pulled Nie Mingjue towards him, settling his head on his chest and starting to stroke his hair. “Yes, well,” he said. “You’re not wrong. I regret it. Tell me, Mingjue: shall I make it up to you somehow?”

“Just don’t commit any more crimes in the future,” Nie Mingjue said gruffly, averting his eyes. “I don’t need more than that.”

“I’ll make it up to you anyway.” Wen Ruohan smiled. His expression was still soft. “I think I will enjoy doing so. Tell me, did either of you know me before the qi deviation?”

(“Oh, he finally admits there was a deviation,” Nie Mingjue muttered, just for the principle of it.)

“I’m not sure,” Lan Qiren said. “Mingjue likely did not. As for me…I’m not sure. I knew you as being better than you have been recently, but I cannot say for sure if that was prior to the initial deviation. It likely started as some small flaw in your cultivation, likely having a relatively minimal impact at first and then escalating over time – that was why you did not notice it, and why each thought appeared logically connected to its predecessor. The deviation increased slowly but steadily over time, only eventually becoming noticeable.”

“I think that’s probably right,” Wen Ruohan said. “I think it must have started – rather a long time ago. Longer ago than you might think.”

“Is that relevant?” Lan Qiren asked, reaching up to stroke his beard. “Do you think the treatment was insufficient? Do you need it repeated?”

“Not now,” Nie Mingjue said, vaguely horrified. His stamina had limits!

“Definitely not now,” Wen Ruohan said quickly in agreement, eyeing Lan Qiren warily, as if he were a serpent ready to bite. “Though I wouldn’t object to a repeat performance eventually. After all, now that I know I can fall into qi deviation like that, it’s only reasonable to start taking prophylactic measures early on.”

“What did you mean, then?” Lan Qiren asked, ignoring the hint. “What’s the relevance of knowing you before the qi deviation?”

Wen Ruohan grinned.

“Oh, nothing much,” he said, curling one hand around Nie Mingjue and reaching out to wrap the other around Lan Qiren’s wrist. “Just wondering how much you knew about my reputation for possessiveness. It used to be quite notorious.”

Lan Qiren frowned. “When you say notorious –”

“Don’t worry about it,” Wen Ruohan said soothingly. “I already promised no more atrocities, didn’t I? It’s easy enough to grant such a thing. After all, they’re no longer necessary to get what I want.”

[incomingalbatross]

I am going to have to chew on what you're saying about religion and relationship in Christian fantasy because I tend to shy away strongly from stories that make God a fictional character. One of the things I often cite as liking about A Canticle for Liebowitz is that it never tries to tell you what God is thinking or doing - it doesn't insert him into the text as a fictional character. Which is kind of exactly the opposite of what you and OP are praising in Narnia. And maybe there's a difference between something set in the Real World and something designed as Fantasy. But anyway I need to chew on this...

okay YES that's extremely valid! I can agree with that too - which suggests my opinion is either more complicated or more fickle than I realized. xP

I think... I think I want it acknowledged that God is a person. BUT making God a character is dicey, as you say. C. S. Lewis pulled it off I think, but... would I dare, personally?? Hngh.

I think it may, perhaps, be more about worldbuilding than narrative presence. As you say, with things set in the real world (or its speculative future), if it's Christian fiction we know Christ is there. We don't need to SEE him, and religious experiences should probably be depicted with caution and restraint.

But if you're writing a fantasy world that's supposed to exist in Christian cosmology (is that the right word? within a universe/multiverse created by God, I guess I mean - again, like Narnia), where the characters have religion - THEN I think what I'm really asking for is that God be at the center of that religion in a way that makes him recognizably Someone and not Something. At least if the character is motivated/sustained by their religion.

Because the more you're trying to depict your fantasy characters having realistic spiritual lives/experiences, the more I think the Force Of Goodness or Creator or Light or what have you that they lean on probably needs to be a Person?

On the other hand! In LotR characters are very clearly receiving graces and devoted to the good and soldiering on in virtue without Eru ever being so much as mentioned, so you can clearly write deeply spiritual Christian fiction without religion in it. And I have seen SW fanfic interpreting the Light Side in a very Christian way and loved that, while being stuck with "the Light Side of the Force" as about as impersonal a label as you can find. So maybe I'm just making things up here. I don't know.

I DO feel strongly about portraying the Trinity as Persons and not Functions, because it seems to me that religion is rather hollow if there isn't Someone you can love at the center of it all. But I also agree that portraying religion or spiritual life does NOT need God to be a "character" as such.

[pandavalkyrie]

I'm a Medical Anomaly, or, How a Decades Long Issue of Mild Discomfort Was Revealed in the Worst Possible Way

Hello all.

Under the cut, I'm going to talk about how last week, I went into labor and gave birth to a very cool baby. However, in the process a complication arose that ended with my entire delivery room full of onlooking medical professionals, mouths dropped open, as I slammed that epidural button as much as possible.

This writeup includes somewhat graphic descriptions of anatomy, medical procedures, surgery, labor and birth.

Tl;dr at the end for those wanting to just know but I'm writing out my whole experience here because, well, I can already feel myself somehow *forgetting it*. And it was so ridiculous, I can't let that happen

From the get go I've been told first time mothers have a very long, stretched out labor. That contractions can last for several days before they get to the 'oh shit, we gotta go' stage. So when they started on Sunday afternoon, over an hour apart and lasting a few seconds, I figured I had one to two days left to finish some things up.

By around 10pm it became clear that would not be the case, but I thought I'd still have until morning.

Yeah, no. Once the frequency of contractions gets closer to five minutes apart, it's time to fucking go.

At 2am we grabbed the go bag and made the five minute drive to the hospital. Ben took a patient transport wheelchair from the reception area without asking, since the place was empty, and wheeled me to Labor and Delivery. There, they did an assessment and went "Yep, you're ready to be admitted."

So here comes the real nitty gritty anatomy and medical talk. There are two measurements for whether or not it's time to start pushing that baby out: effacement (how soft is your cervix) and dilation (how wide is your cervix). I was very, very effaced and pretty much not at all dilated.

Which is a terrible thing to hear when you're currently in the worst pain of your life. A contraction, at least for me, feels like every single muscle in your lower back just cramped up, and then it spreads forward to your abdomen. It lasts an entire minute before releasing, and then a few minutes later it starts again.

But once I was admitted, pain management started. I knew I wanted to eat something and walk around, so I delayed the epidural. Instead they got me hooked up with nitrous oxide, a gas you start inhaling when a contraction starts, and use controlled breathing until it subsides.

Let me be clear: this shit doesn't do anything. I kept it up for several hours, determined to make it work. What it does do is make you concentrate on your breathing instead of the pain itself.

Yippy. I made it long enough for Ben to go get me a sausage egg and cheese from Burger King, going from taking a bite of my sandwich to spending a minute inhaling laughing gas to no avail.

So then we started on pain management level 2. I'm going to be honest, I don't remember what this was. I don't even remember how I took it. IV probably? All I know is there is a short window of time it can be used and the end result was like 2 am on Saturday at MAGFest.

I felt fucking wasted. Which was good, because that's how this stuff worked too. I was still in pain, but felt so drunk and out of it I didn't care.

At this point I asked to use the cool labor tub in the room. I'd always romanticized the idea of laboring in a warm bath. Seemed like it would be a good idea at the time! I even asked for the tub room specifically, and lucked out that it had just opened. I figured I asked for it, I need to use it.

Yeah. Nah. I was in it for fifteen minutes before realizing I would much rather be in bed waiting this out. Ben helped me get out, get in the hospital gown, and situated in bed.

Finally, I reached the dilation point where I could no longer use the drunk stuff; it was the epidural or nothing. Which was fine, because at this point I was crying in Ben's chest begging for it all to end. The idea of a catheter going into my spine was terrifying, but the anesthesiologist was so good at numbing the spot that I felt nothing.

They gave me a button to push if the pain got bad again, laid me down, and dimmed the lights.

Around this time is when I asked Ben to take a picture for me. I can't really explain it now, but I wanted a reminder of this view I had. Something about it felt just, idk, big to me.

Well it meant something to me in the moment.

You can also see by the clock in the corner that it's now 10 pm. I'd been going for 20 hours by this point! Monday went, I got a few hours of sleep, and finally I was dilated enough to start pushing.

The way that works is you feel a contraction start (there's little to no pain with the epidural, but you can still feel the pressure in your abdomen) and you do something like a crunch, inhale, hold your legs, and bare down for a total of three breaths per minute long contraction.

I did this for several hours and made little to no progress, but the doc wasn't concerned because the heart monitor strapped to my stomach monitoring the baby said he was perfectly chill and fine in there. So we kept at it rather than going c section time.

Then the doctor started to notice something looked a little off: it was like a small part of my cervix had somehow slipped out of place and was blocking the baby's head.

That was...concerning. They also noted he was coming out at a severe angle. They figured that was the issue stalling progress. So, the solution was to have me laid on my right side in the hopes of gravity getting him straightened out. They told me to get a little sleep to get my strength back for round two of pushing.

I slept for three hours. Anyone who knows how epidurals work is saying "Omg wtf" right now (more on that later).

We get back to pushing. Nothing changes. Baby is still chill. A new doctor takes over for shift change and, while dousing my vagina in olive oil (no I'm not kidding, my baby was anointed Italian at birth) she starts to notice something.

That thing that looked like my cervix was out of position, was not my cervix. In fact it wasn't anything at all that was supposed to be in there. It was a single strand of flesh running from the top to the bottom of my vaginal wall.

A vaginal septum

Like the thing in your nose that separates your nostrils. There was one inside my vagina.

This is not normal. The doctor called in a team of medical professionals to discuss what needed to be done about this. It was blocking the baby's head and keeping him from descending, so it needed to be dealt with.

They could've gone c section at this point, but that's a much more invasive and severe surgery than just...dealing with the septum.

Finally, after getting my consent, the OB decided to simply slice and cauterize it. I was exhausted and dead to the world at this point, hadn't eaten anything in 24 hours, staring at the ceiling and repeating "whatever it takes to get him out." I looked over at one point to see my room was completely packed with people in scrubs, staring up my gaping vagina, as the doc produced a tube of something labeled silver nitrate.

So that was cool.

All in all, I went through six hours of my thirty hour labor unnecessarily because of this one little strip of flesh that, in retrospect, has probably always been there and nobody ever noticed. Pap smears have always been extremely painful for me, and now I know why. The speculum most likely pushed it out of the way, so Gynecologists never noticed it.

My OB, however, gave me a cervical check a week prior and had in fact felt something 'off'. But again, he used the speculum to get a better look, pushing it to the side and missing it. (On day 3 of my hospital stay he came to visit me and we mutually freaked out about it)

Well, it's gone now.

Once that was done and taken care of, the rest of labor went by very quickly. Once we got to the end, my entire room filled up again. Everyone from the last shift decided to stay and wait to see how the baby who got so very very stuck was fairing (one nurse said he was 'the most well behaved baby on the unit', since his heartrate never changed from normal despite....all that).

He was born on Tuesday morning with a very stretched out head (normal occurrence, it was already back to human proportions in 48 hours) while our playlist was on Total Eclipse of the Heart. Unfortunately it wasn't Here Comes the Sun, which everyone in the room agreed would be very funny if he had.

Despite everything, I only suffered a first degree tear. I thank the olive oil for that.

Now back to that epidural. That stuff works with gravity. So laying on my right side meant it pooled into the right side of my body. When I woke up that part was numb and my left side could feel contractions completely. I had to be on my back for half an hour before that pain subsided again.

Also, when everything was over, after getting breakfast and an hour of rest, they did a check to see if I could stand/walk. My left leg was fine but the moment I put any weight on my right my knee buckled like paper so I had to shimmy from the bed to the wheelchair to be carted to the mother/infant unit.

so,

TL;DR: You know how you have a septum in your nose, a fleshy bit of cartilage that separates your nostrils? I somehow had one of those inside my vagina and it's probably been there unnoticed for decades because inserting and opening a speculum pushes it to the side.

And during recovery, every time there was a shift change and the nurse did a verbal handoff, they would mention this and I'd watch as the new nurse's eyes would fly open and her mouth drop.

Note: I have not googled this at all whatsoever to see what sort of rarity, if any, this thing actually has. Like is this actually something that happens often enough or am I a true anomaly like the staff at the hospital said? Idk! Because I'm scared of looking at photos/diagrams of it. Call me stupid but I simply do not want to see it for myself. I had the displeasure of laying on my back legs spread feeling like I had barbed wire shoved in my numbed orifice, I don't need to see anything else thanks.

[quibbs126]

My brain was thinking of that idea I had of “megop kid that only Megatron knows about” again today before I accidentally took a nap

I would put these thoughts on a reblog of that post, but I’m too lazy to go looking for it at the moment

But anyways my brain decided to concoct the angsty scenario I mentioned there, in which the kid joins the Autobots and Megatron almost kills them, until he realizes who this is

I think the specific circumstances here are the kid being a new recruit in the Autobot ranks, and them and Optimus going on a mission that goes horribly, with Megatron showing up and Optimus getting incapacitated, and Megatron decides to beat up the new person because why not (actually I never figured out the reason tbh, but it’s not important)

He’s right about to kill them, but something about their appearance causes him to recognize who this really is and his act drops briefly in shock. But he keeps up his composure for now (he can’t let the Decepticons potentially see a weakness in him) and decides to spare them, telling them to go back and tell the Autobots he has their leader, and then tells them specifically to never return. When asked why he decided to show mercy, he says it’s because it matters little whether or not they live, the outcome would be the same either way; he also will enjoy seeing the dread in their face if they ever cross paths again, now that they know what he’s capable of

Later on he has Optimus captured and he decides to “interrogate” him, aka talk smack to him. But also in this case, secretly actually interrogate him on whether or not he knows the truth about his new recruit, and whether or not Optimus knowingly put them in danger and made them a soldier. He finds that no, Optimus has no clue the significance of this younger bot, treating him as he would any new recruit

I’m unsure whether or not Megatron would tell him the truth or not here. I want to say no, and that he decides its best only he knows. But I also kind of want yes for the idea of Optimus now knowing this information, but has no clue what to do with it once he gets back to Autobot base. Because his source of information is Megatron, but this is also way too out there for Megatron to have just made up. Also that’s kind of a bombshell to drop on this kid who assumes they’re just some random Transformer from nowhere in particular. So he has to live with it and he isn’t good at keeping up lies

The kid might have gotten that something weird was going on with Megatron during that confrontation, but the best they can assume is that Megatron must have been reminded of someone when looking at them, because they shouldn’t have history with the Lord of the Decepticons

But anyways, after all this, when Megatron finally has a moment to himself in complete privacy, he does feel really guilty about the fact that he nearly killed his own child. Yeah he got rid of them a long time ago, and he’s never had much of a burning desire to be reunited with them or anything, but it still affects him. He’s got very mixed and complicated feelings towards them, and he doesn’t know what to do with it. He’d rather they didn’t show back up at all, though it would have been worse if he hadn’t realized at all and he’d gone through with killing that recruit

Alright, done with the summary. Honestly, could probably make a fanfic out of it, but whether or not I will, that’s to be seen. As I’m sure y’all know, I come up with a lot of ideas I don’t actually do anything with. Also I don���t know if I’d do anything beyond this. If I were to go through with this fanfic, I should; feels like we need some payoff and learning of truths, but writing one idea into a fic is hard enough, actually continuing that story would be practically impossible for my scattter brain. Just look at the one fanfic I have written for Transformers

But yeah, it sounded neat. Though I remembered as I wrote this, I think the main idea surrounding the initial concept was Megatron not being able to say shit about other cross-faction kids due to his own secret one, and this stays a bit too much I think. But you know, still worth at least a fanfic concept I suppose

[cultkinkcoven]

Hi, I’m someone who’s wanted to get into witchcraft for a long time, but I can’t tell if there’s any entity willing to work with me. How do I know if I’m ready? How do I know if there’s someone willing to be my patron?

To put a very complicated answer simply: you won’t know until you know.

Firstly, you don’t have to work with an entity to start doing witchcraft. Devotional work and witchcraft are not synonymous. Most witches practice for years before they start working with spirits or seeking patronage. Your magic comes from within, understanding your energy and power, how you work, and the kinds of practices you’re willing to do is your first concern. Once you start to mature into your practice and feel confident as an individual, you can start looking for a magical partner.

You won’t know you’re ready until you’re ready, and you won’t know which deities want to work with you until they reach out. With Lucifer, I gradually started to feel a deep and inexplicable interest in him. I started to become extremely curious about his lore, his attributes, his energy etc. I started seeing signs of him everywhere, synchronizations and coincidences. I started thinking about him constantly, and that lead to me eventually reaching out. This is usually the way it goes with me and any deity. Your deep interest in them is one of the first signs that they’re pulling you towards them.

Patronage isn’t always (or even usually) something you approach a deity with right off the bat (and remember that not every spirit you work with will be a permanent presence). At least for me, patronage is a thing that happens to be established after working with a deity that I feel extremely connected to for some time. I consider Lucifer to be my primary guide. I didn’t officially ask him to be my patron, one day I kind of just realized that he was. In our contract he made it clear that he considers himself to be my protector and that I should consult him before working with other spirits. These are mutually agreed upon terms that developed as we learned more about each other.

It’s kind of like asking “how will I know who is willing to be my best friend?”

When you make friends and discover that you really like each other, you happen to become best friends. You don’t approach a stranger and say “would you please be my best friend?” but rather, you and your closest friend at some point mutually recognize that you’re each other’s best friends after a long time of building your relationship together. Magical relationships are much the same. Had I asked Lucifer to be my Patron the first time I approached him, he probably would have told me to slow down.

Whether or not any given entity will be willing to be your patron is unknowable until you interact. I’d focus less on finding a patron and more on deciding which energies you’d like to work with and experience in your practice. They will naturally place themselves in your life as they fit.

[0m3g4skanohiforge]

Y'know, I realize that this topic might not be of much interest to you, because I've never seen you approach it at all, but it's something I can't help but wonder every time I see your (absolutely phenomenal) work...

Have you ever considered attempting one of the unofficial masks, like Helryx's? Or, alternatively, could your methods even be applied to them in any way, with them lacking an official physical base model and all.

I'm mostly asking because I've always really really wanted to see what those would look like when created as authentically as possible. It's always been one of those things that can't quite be replicated with the usual methods, no matter how much colour matching of paints you do. So every time I see you nail it when replicating that feel, my mind can't help but wander there

(Thank you for reading my rambling ask! And also I apologize if this has ever been asked already!)

This is very much a topic of interest! Both for myself and for you, but also many others. I'm happy to talk about it!

Working with unofficial designs comes with two complications. The first is the simplest to solve - getting that digital model into real space, which would cleanest be done with a resin printer. I've actually recieved some resin printed parts already in order to try to figure these out! They do need to be really good finishes and very well sanded tho. I know some folks are really comfortable with printing groove lines, but maybe I'm just really picky. I don't want my parts to stand out as replicas or fakes, while still being identifiable as them. Fortunately, again, that can be sorted and solved.

The second and harder one is based on the limitations of Silicone Molding and Resin Casting, my work. Official parts were made in molds, so mimicking the forms of the molds both results in specific consistencies of design and means they must always be able to fit in and be removed from that mold. Recreating that mold shape is how I get accuracy.

Printed parts may not be made with such design details in mind, resulting in awkward shapes and uneven angles. These would catch the mold shape and tear it with use, resulting in a significantly reduced mold lifespan. Some of these parts can be simply modified after print - cutting and sanding away internal pockets, for example. However angles on the front would need to result in an actual modification of the Masks design, for which I think would be better done before printing. I'll probably see about commissioning someone to make some of those.

Speaking of though... I still wanna double check the sources of some of the models I'm testing with, and make sure this is okay with the designers. I don't wanna mess up someone's work, and I'd rather comfortably get their okay

[hysteriaww]

would kai have saved bonnie if damon left her ?

The simple answer imo is yes - the complicated answer would be his *reasons* for saving her.

I feel like if Kai saved Bonnie in 6x22, it would be VERY different from when he saved her in 6x13 on her bday. In 6x13, saving Bonnie was a huge sacrifice Kai made bc of his newfound guilt and other growing feelings about her. But if Kai saved her in 6x22, that man would do it out of SPITE lmfao. Like sure, maybe a *tiny* fragment of leftover post-merge Kai would save her bc he believed she deserved better, but at the mental state that he was in by 6x22, i think a larger part of him would actually be looking to save her out of this petty urge to make bonnie suffer, bc dying would be too easy for her according to his thought process 💀

In canon, remember how Kai got annoyed by damon seemingly deciding to let bonnie die and choosing elena over her super quickly? He complains, saying smthg like "This decision was supposed to torture him," bc he wanted damon to agonize over the bonnie vs elena choice for a long time. Similarly, i think bonnie dying just like that would eliminate a lot of the angst, pain and tension of the situation, so Kai would save her life *just* so bonnie and damon would be forced to live with the uncomfortable reality of damon choosing elena over her and deal with the emotional fallout of that instead of pretending they have the world's best friendship, as they'd been doing for all of S6 (bc Kai would enjoy watching that mess).

Ofc, that would probably result in Bonnie aiming a lot of her resentment towards Kai for forcing her to face those hard truths, but maybe, after an initial explosion (and a lil nudging from Kai), she might realize that targeting kai is just shooting the messenger rather than addressing the root problem (her toxic friends). If it hadn't been kai, then somebody else would've made bonnie see the truth but either way, that's something she needed to see.

Realistically, even after this realization, i don't think bonnie would've suddenly warmed up to kai, but i think it might've pushed her to ditch damon instead of sticking around Mystic Falls to help him all the time (which would've consequently made Kai suddenly lose interest in Mystic Falls too xD). If Damon then chose to seek her out to beg her (read: force her) to defeat the town's new villains-of-the-week, or if he found her w his humanity off and tried to kill her to get elena back, i think kai might've surprised them all by appearing out of nowhere to get damon off bonnie's case (bc kai being kai was prob keeping tabs on bonnie's whereabouts as soon as she skipped town).

And maybe Kai's sudden appearance would've led to a bonkai confrontation with Kai realizing he may have saved her out of spite in 6x22, but there is no explanation for why he saved her from damon this time besides.. *wanting* bonnie to get her life away from her friends. And maybe that would've also led him to unsubtly point out that an elena-free existence had actually made bonnie's life better, thanks to kai.

Bon would probably kick his ass halfway across the world after a comment like that but i think it would stick with her, making its way under her skin as it sinks in that the horrific thing Kai did really did end up working out for her in the long run. Bc as we know, even at his lowest, there was always some part of Kai that begrudgingly wanted bonnie's attention and validation and rly resented her friends getting that from her while walking all over her. It would take a long time, but slowly and surely, i think Bonnie's intuition would eventually pick up on that tiny part of Kai that saved her life to show her that she deserved better. It would be very uncomfortable for her to realize that Big Bad Kai could no longer be an easy scapegoat for all her problems, but that might be just what she needs to finally see Kai as a person, rather than a monster. And from there? Well, looots of opportunities and potential would open up from there 😏