#which is pretty good by my standards 😅

[freepassbound]

Tagged by @water-on-glass for the last song I played:

This post had me doing a mini-marathon of Neil Young, so this is the answer to that.

Tagging: @literally3racoonsinatrenchcoat, @dysfunctional-eritrean, @thatsuccubabe, @thegirlwiththetwinklyeyes, @skinreflectsthesun, @bumpintheroad, and @ya-nahz.

[wombywoo]

Ok! I've finally decided to put together a (somewhat) comprehensive tutorial on my latest art~

Please enjoy this little step-by-step 💁‍♀️

First things first--references!

Now I'm not saying you have to go overboard, but I always find that this is a crucial starting point in any art piece I intend on making. Especially if you're a detail freak like me and want to make it as realistic as possible 🙃

As such, your web browser should look like this at any given point:

Since this is a historical piece, it means hours upon hours of meaningless research just to see what color the socks are, but...again. that isn't, strictly, necessary 😅

Once I've compiled all my lovely ref pics, I usually dump them into a big-ass collage ⬇️

(I will end up not using half of these, alas :'D)

Another reference search for background material, and getting to showcase our models of choice for this occasion~

When picking a reference for an actor or model, the main thing I keep in mind (besides prettiness 🤭) is lighting and orientation. Because I already kinda know what pose I'm gonna go with for this piece, I can look for specific angles that might fit the criteria. I should mention that I am a reference hound, and my current COD actor ref folder looks like this:

Also keep in mind, if you're using a ref that you need to flip, make sure you adjust accordingly. This especially applies to clothing, as certain things like pants zippers and belt buckles can be quite specific ☝️

Now that we've spent countless hours googling, it's time to start with a rough sketch:

It doesn't have to be pretty, folks, just a basic guideline of where you want the figures to be.

The next step is to define it more, and I know this looks like that 'how to draw an owl' meme, but I promise--getting from the loose sketch above to below is not that difficult.

Things to keep in mind are--don't go too in-depth with the details, because things are still subject to change at this point. In terms of making a suitable anatomically-correct sketch, I would suggest lots of studying. This doesn't even have to be things like figure drawing, I genuinely look at people around me for inspiration all the time. Familiarize yourself with the human form, and things like weight, proportions, posing will seem a little more feasible.

It's also important at this stage to consider your composition. Remember to flip the canvas frequently to make sure you're not leaning to one side too often. I'm sure something can be said for the spiral fibonacci stuff, which I don't really try to do on purpose, but I think keeping things like symmetry and balance in mind is a good start ✌️

Next step is just blocking in the figures. Standard. No fuss 👍

Now onto the background!

It's frankly hilarious how many people thought I was *hand-drawing* these maps and stuff 😂😂 I cannot even begin to comprehend how insanely difficult that would be. So yeah, we're just taking the lazy copy and paste way out 🤙

I almost always prepare my backgrounds first, and this is mostly to get a general color scheme off the bat. For collage work, it's really just a matter of trial and error, sticking this here, slapping this there, etc. I like to futz around with different overlay options until I've found a nice arrangement. Advice for this is just--go nuts 🤷‍♀️

Next, I add a few color adjustments. I tend to make at least 2 colors pop in an art piece, and low and behold, they usually tend to be red and blue ❤️💙There's something about warm/cool vibes, idk man..

Now we move on to coloring the figures. This is just a basic block and fill, not really defining any of the details yet.

Next, we add some cursory values. Sloppy airbrush works fine, it'll look better soon I promise 🙏

And now--rendering!

I know a lot of beginner artists are intimidated by rendering, and I can totally understand why. It's just one of those things you have to commit to 💪

I've decided to show a brief process of rendering our dear Johnny's face here:

Starting off, I usually rely on the trusty airbrush just to get some color values going. Note--I've kept my sketch layer on top, but feel free to turn it on and off as you work, so as to not be too bound to the sketch. For now, it's just a guideline.

This next stage may look like a huge jump, but it's really just adding more to the foundation. I try to think of it like putting on make-up in a way~ Adding contours, accentuating highlights. This is also where I start adding in more saturation, especially around areas such as ears, nose and lips. Still a bit fuzzy at this point, but that's why we keep adding to it 💪

A boy has appeared! See--now I've removed most of the line layer, and it holds up on its own. I'll admit that in order to achieve this realistic style, you'll need lots and lots of practice and skill, which shouldn't be discouraging! Just motivate yourself with the prospect of getting to look at pretty men for countless hours 🙆‍♀️

I'll probably do a more in-depth explanation about rendering at some point, but let's keep this rolling~

Moving forward is just a process of adding to the figures bit by bit. I do lean towards filling in each section from top to bottom, but you can feel free to pop around to certain parts that appeal to you more. I almost always do the faces first though, because if they end up sucking, I feel less guilty about scrapping it 😂 But no--I think he's pretty enough to proceed 😚

They're coming together now 🙆‍♀️ Another helpful tip--make sure you reuse color. By that, I mean--try to incorporate various colors throughout your piece, using the eyedropper tool to keep a consistent palette. I try to put in bits of red and blue where I can

Here they are fully rendered! Notice I've made a few subtle changes from the sketch, like adjusting the belt buckles because I made a mistake 😬 Hence why you shouldn't put too much stock in your initial sketch~

The next step is more of a stylistic choice, but I usually go over everything with an outline, typically in a bright color like green. Occasionally, I can just use my initial line layer, but for this, I've made a brand new, cleaner line 👍

And the final step is adjusting the color and adding some text:

Tada!! It's done!

All in all, this took me the better part of a week, but I have a lot of free time, so yeah ✌️

I hope you appreciated that little walkthrough~ I know people have been asking me how I do my art, but the truth is--I usually have no clue how to explain myself 😅 So have this half-assed tutorial~

As a bonus, here is a cute (cursed) image of Johnny without his mustache:

A baby, a literal infant child !!! who put this wee bairn on the front lines ??! 😭

Anyway! peace out ✌️

[so-i-did-this-thing]

Ok, a lot of trans guys are into historic clothing, so my notes on my Siegfried Farnon cosplay will be through that lens.

Buying vintage is tricky because clothing silhouettes are different from modern (especially where trousers sit), and a shop may or may not do vanity sizing. So, it's important to know all your measurements, have measurements of similar garments that fit well, to carefully read sizing charts, and to be able to experiment on fit (aka, be able to return stuff).

I bought 3 "new vintage" (reproduction) 100% cotton spearpoint collar shirts from Darcy Clothing. Shipping from the UK to US was fast. The green shirt is ironically not for Siegfried, because I already was on a mission to have more historic style clothing.

I am a size men's small in casual shirts, due to narrow shoulders and a 36" chest. However, I am a 14.25" neck (compared to barely 13" pre-T, which is a big change), which nudges me towards men's medium territory sometimes.

I ordered based on my neck size, a 14.5" in this case. (Darcy suggests adding .5" to your neck measurement. I erred on the smaller side because a 15" collar shirt is guaranteed to be enormous on me.)

Other stats: I am 5'10" and weigh about 160-5 lbs, with most my fat in my belly (so I can't wear slim cut shirts unless I drop about 10 lbs). Usual caveats that my fit feedback is mainly for my sizing, ymmv. Fits are straight out of the bag for this photo set - no ironing, I have a lot of meetings today. 😅

Notes:

The neck is snug only on the green shirt, perhaps because the fabric is slightly thicker, or just due to standard deviation. The white shirts fit great in the neck.

Shoulder seam sits somewhere between a modern small and medium. This is acceptable; the next neck size up would definitely result in a hugely baggy shirt for me, and going down a neck size would choke me.

Sleeves are typical for many trans guys -- too long. I am hoping sleeve garters will do the trick in pulling up the cuff properly on my wrist.

Fit across the chest is a bit too large for me. I would hesitate to wear this shirt without a waistcoat, but it's also a fit that could be improved with an after-market dart.

Fit across the belly is roomier than the chest - this is a boxy shirt.

Super long shirt, no danger of it untucking, even in modern hip-hugger pants (why would you do that)

Fabric is a good weight and tight weave for the green shirt. I am wearing a dark blue undershirt in these pics. The white shirts are a bit thinner - you can see the design on my undershirt, so if you bind, definitely go with a light colored binder under a white undershirt.

So, for my measurements, Darcy is pretty good! I will still struggle with many of the same fit frustrations I do in modern clothing, but have acceptable workarounds.

Next, will look at a new vintage suit from another vendor, from which I'm considering ordering Siegfried's tweed 3-piece.

[atlaslego]

A new beginning: Lego Mech Type Olympus-01

I think I put out enough trailers for this new style mech I am building😂😂😂.

Usually the first one of the new styles won’t make it to the post first. In this case, Olympus-01 came out before my very first new idea, Olympus-00.

Apparently, the most obvious change is how the torso connected. I did not use ball joints this time as I think by doing this new version, the mech looks more, well, mechanically coherent since there is no obvious gap between upper and lower body.

The leg attachment system has changed as I required new pieces. I adopted new feet ankle construction from 「DSK3」 on X, which is a very smart design as it has a better stability than mine for Astro Units. New ideas are used on the knees for the new leg design.

Coming up to arms, it is a combination of what I used for Type Atlas and Type Axiom. However, as the shoulder joints are changed, this style is actually has the best mobility out of all while hiding all the joints.

The least changed is actually cockpit. I have not found a completely new way to make it, so I kept using the modified version of my previous cockpit since the principal is pretty universal for my aesthetics anyway.

I also made some new weaponry for Olympus-01 along with the attachment mechanics to the mech. There would be one or two reels coming up to show you the mobility of the mech. So stay tuned.

P.S. I would love to hear your opinions as I am not very good at making my mechs look cooler than they should be due to my below average camera skills 😅😅😅. I shot two sets of pictures for Olympus-01. The abandoned version is a fairly standard single angle shots. I did not click with them, so I tried these ones. What are your thoughts?

Greatly appreciate you guys share the posts if you think more people deserve to enjoy this.

[prince-liest]

Hey just curious: Vox and Alastor are engaging in very extreme kinks in 666 and so far the aftercare has been ok, but do you think they've gotten good enough at it that they know how to prevent subdrop? Vox mentioned that he's not that great at aftercare in one of the installments and Alastor hasn't really done any research on the topic... I'm a bit worried about them 😅

*subdrop AND domdrop actually

It's funny that you ask this because I was planning on referencing it a bit in... [counts on fingers] 666 #8 that both of them have just been letting that happen and fucking dealing with it on their own (or not) like it's a normal thing, lmao. Alastor has absolutely just been assuming that feeling like shit after sex is a standard experience, and a non-zero part of his reasoning for not really enjoying getting off unless he's getting very specific things out of it is related to that. Vox, on the other hand, has been crawling into Valentino's bed for cuddles, which is not necessarily bad... but certainly not great when the worst of it happened after the episode where he feelings-dumped all over the place, because the person he fundamentally needed to debrief with was Alastor. There is a reason he ghosted Alastor for weeks! They have both 100% been failing at aftercare this entire time, but that's pretty expected considering the lack of communication (or even self-understanding on Alastor's part).

My personal headcanon is that Vox can drop no matter what role he's in and it's fully preventable, whereas it's pretty inevitable for Alastor to drop if he's taking on a submissive role (and pretty much never happens in any other context). A lot of what Alastor enjoys in that kind of play in 666 is rife with "I would like you to take my hypothalamus and pituitary glad and just wring them out like a sponge, thanks," which is an A+ way to end up feeling, well, wrung out after you've finished abusing your own endocrine system. Vox, on the other hand, can coast along easily on the warm and fluffies of post-coital affection because he gets just as emotional about Alastor (and Valentino) outside of sex as he does during.

The thing is, Alastor's preferences during sex are a deliberate violation of boundaries that he has outside of sex, so once sex is done, he does not actually want to cuddle or get touched very much because he's far surpassed his preferred limit on those things. What he really needs is to learn to go home, bundle up, and spend some time with a cup of coffee, something sugary, and a good book with some nice jazz playing on the radio, with the assurance that nobody is going to bother him for at least a few hours.

[midnight-black2]

hii! im sending in a request for Jann in the Archie Mademay event :) and this is my first time so sorry im nervous😅!

but prompt 11 really piqued my interest, thought about maybe a (before gt academy) nerdy and shy gamer Jann x popular sporty reader? thank you for your time bye bye :] !!

𝐒𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐒

pairing : jann mardenborough x reader

synopsis : you can't keep neither your mind off of jann nor your hands off of him either

disclaimers : not many, sub!jann, softdom!reader, kissing in public, pretty mild

note : i listened to the song sparks by coldplay while making this, so that's were i got the title, just so it doesn't seem as random lol

most people found it weird how much attention you showed jann. after all, he was close enough to a nobody.

man, society is weird.

all these unattainable standards set by messy, emotional, little humans. i mean, if you wanted to see jann, why should anyone try to stop you? you liked who you liked, and it's not like you could help it. besides, jann was sweet, cute, and ambitious. in your opinion, he was the dream guy.

you two would eat lunch together, walk each other to classes you had during the day, average college couple stuff. you never let anyone give him a hard time, and whenever you attended a social event, he was by your side (whether he wanted to be there or not). he attended all of your [sports] games, etc. the coupley stuff wasn't the weirdest part to people. the weirdest part to people was that you chose to do the coupley stuff with him. you had lines of guys and girls waiting, patiently. stalking and clinging, nagging and hanging--yet you chose him.

people talked, of course they did. negative or positive, they talked.

but over time, it got better. the jealousy never really subsided, but when the two of you walked through the halls, not as many people stared. and when you guys attended parties, not as many people ignored jann.

either way, you couldn't care less. you loved jann more than anything. nothing would change that.

you guys were sat a desk in the back of the library. quiet giggles and whispers could be heard. it was supposed to be a tutoring session, but it always turned out a different way. you always found him more interesting than algebra (or...calculus..?) and simply ended up making out. as jann explained the equation, your eyes lingered on him. you took in his facial features, admiring him not-so-subtly. he didn't notice until he looked over, and his eyes widened slightly. he smiled, before clearing his throat.

"so, do you understand? or do you need me to explain it better?" he asked, and you didn't answer. you didn't quite care, frankly. you weren't failing math, you had a 92%, which is borderline, but far from failing. so, it wasn't your biggest priority. in all honesty, you only kept up with these tutoring sessions to see him. you simply held his gaze, a look on your face he couldn't exactly read.

"were you even paying attention?" he asked, quirking a brow.

"no, not really."

"and by that you mean not at all, huh?" he asked, rhetorically. you nodded, with a small shrug. he laughed, before looking down. "so, uhm, what were you thinking about then?"

"three guesses," you said, smiling. you thought he had to have known by now, considering this is what you do every tutoring session.

"wha-Y/N, you know i'm not very good at this," he replied, cocking his head to the side in slight thought.

"oh cmon, it should be easy," you stated, with a playful eye roll. he lifted his hands up in defense.

"i really don't know," he said, and you couldn't help the laugh the emitted from you.

"gosh jann, you're smart, nerdy, but so incredibly dense."

"well then...just tell me. please?" he asked. and really, how could you say no to him? was it possible if you even wanted to? no. would you really ever want to? also no.

"i'm thinking about how cute you are. you and your perfect pink lips, how kissable they look, and your adorable curls--god, i'm thinking about you, jann. when am i ever not?" you say, leaning in closer as you speak your mind. he was slightly taken aback, before he leaned in as well. he didn't know what to say, so he didn't. he had this look in his eyes you knew all too well.

"can i...?" he queried, reluctantly. you grinned.

"you don't have to ask for a kiss, jann."

"right--sorry." you chuckled, before you kissed him. it was sweet, like honey. he was the one to pull away first.

"you know, you always do this," he said, with a head shake, but with an irresistible beam across his face.

"i know, just can't get enough of you," you said, kissing his cheek. you pecked his lips, nose, jaw, neck, everywhere you could. your hand cupped his face, and he seemed to lean into your touch. you went up for another kiss, which was a bit more feverish this time. your bodies felt hot, and you couldn't wait any longer. or...maybe you could, but you definitely didn't want to.

"let's go to my dorm, yeah?" you said, and he nodded eagerly.

goodness you loved that boy.

𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 © 𝐤𝐲𝐚-𝐢𝐬-𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐥

𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐲? 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞

[arsheyee]

Sukuna x Y/N: Your first blowjob

SMUT AHEAD KIDS BELOW 18 STAY OUT

I saw this Sukuna fanart and I was inspired to write a new smut 🫣🫣🫣🫣

Sukuna is hot 🥵 I am sorry he is toxic but hot 🥵😍

Hope you enjoy this smut 😅😅😅

I tried my best to write it ❤️🥹

TW: maybe a bit of Somnophilia

Sukuna the jujustu sorcerer , the king of curses. He is well aware of his superiority complex which is why he is conflicted about you.

Those red eyes glowed in the dark and stared down at your sleeping posture. Your ass up and you looked so defenceless and soft. What has gotten in to him a mere human like you has changed him completely. Sleeping with his robe wrapped around your body. You fell asleep inhaling his scent from the robe. It’s smelled like everything you dreamed of.

You lied deep in slumber.

He watched you everyday. You sweet innocent face. You were the perfect form of what they call a people pleaser. The meekest of the flowers.

Despite being your boyfriend he couldn’t get enough of you. The toxic nature of your relationship excited him. To defy the rules and standards . The king of curses head over heels in love with you.

You turn over on your back and your shirt rides up revealing your boobs. Your soft hums in your sleep made his cock harden. At this sight he starts palming his cock through his pants .

Fisting his dick he pumped in steady but quick pulls, tugging himself closer to the brink of ecstasy as he imagined you kneeling batting those innocent doe eyes as if you didn’t know how fucking pretty you were.

Would you blush when your lips wrapped around his swollen red tip, would you grimace at the salty taste of his arousal on your tongue.

He comes closer to the bed and started with little touches; his big palms and long fingers gently roaming your exposed thighs, the curves of you waist and your chest, earning a moan from you that aroused him even more, giving him sinful ideas on how to fuck you in your sleep.

He looks up to see you still sleeping and continues to remove your shorts feeling your wetness.

“I see you are soaking already. Even in your sleep you little slut” he smirks

“Seems like it is a good dream you’ll be having. I’ll be your living dream babygirl” he whispers in your ears.

You can hear him but you are trapped in your dream that it is to good to feel real.

Without a warning, he slipped two fingers inside you, making you jolt in your sleep. He checked to see that your eye lids remained closed, but your face scrunching up. His smirk grew wider, seeing how innocent and helpless you were under his control.

“So fucking warm” His fingers curled inside you as his long nails digged deep.

The overwhelming pleasure got you tossing, closing your legs still deep in your sleep but his large hand forced them open.

You realise that this feels too real to be a dream and you shot your eyes open.

“Su-Sukuna what are you.. ahh~” you moaned as he added a third finger in you his fingers worked faster and faster. Your hands tugged on your bed sheets, as your moans became loud. You were about to come but he pressed his hand on your stomach and pulled his fingers out.

“ Wh- Whyyy give it to me I was so close” you whined for him to continue.

“Nah, not yet, not yet..”

He stripped himself of the flimsy robe. The cool air kissed his cockhead, the relief of freeing himself from of his clothes was intense and he gave one lazy pump of his length whilst he waited for your reaction.

The precum was dripping down making your drool. Your eyes widened are were, transfixed by his cock and that only boosted his ego even further.

He sat on the edge of bed and told you to get up and come to the spot on the floor between his thighs, spreading himself wider and rolling his hips forward.

You were kneeling before you even realised you were complying with the silent order, every inch of you shivered in anticipation of what he was going to do next.

This was your first ever blowjob. That only made you more excited and wet.

Fixed by his grin and the calculating eyes that held your gaze on him, you hadn’t noticed that he was wrapping your fingers around his erection.

Heat, heavy and decadent seared your palm. You gasped at how his skin felt under your touch, how prominent the veins were against your fingers and how he twitched in your grasp as you tightened your grip. 

“You'll taste it, won't you?” he grunted with a smirk on his lips, daring you to even consider disobeying his wish.

You grimaced at the bitter taste, two fingers pressed down on your tongue and sampled the precum that continued to leak from him. 

The longer you savoured his unique flavour, the more you grew accustomed to it. Certainly, it wasn’t some delicious taste but saliva pooled in your mouth, ropes of it connected your lips and fingers.

“Open your mouth more slut.” You forced himself into your innocent and inexperienced mouth until you gagged.

Big doe eyes were his reward, your entire posture straightened as if you were lit up from his words, lewd though they may be. His hand stroked at the back of your head, brain running a mile a minute as he changed tack and fixed you with another slight pout.

“You’ll take all of me, won’t you, little one? My good girl is always so willing to make me happy. That’s it. Just… like… that. Fuck.”

He was guiding your head down as he spoke, bending you to his will with ease. Your mouth parted much like he knew your thighs would do soon enough and he groaned in delight as his aching tip grazed against tongue. 

Mere minutes into your first-ever blowjob and your jaw was aching. Saliva escaped the sides of your mouth, slurping noises making you blush as your watery eyes went up to meet his.

His gaze was hooded, lips parted with pants of air passing through them every few seconds. When he locked eyes with you, he licked those devilish lips with a smile offered along with a soft groan.

“Oh, little one, you’re a natural. Don’t fight it, relax baby. Let me feel your throat,” he hissed through clenched teeth.

You fought down the instinct to reject the intrusion as it neared your throat, the muscles working furiously and causing you to gag around him.

Shifting on your knees in discomfort, you blinked, letting the tears fall from your eyes. Gripping the base of his cock, you squeezed roughly and heard him curse under his breath from the pressure. The nails from your free hand found purchase in the material covering his thigh and bunched it in your frantic grip.

“Fuck fuck fuck” cursing out he came in your mouth.

“Swallow little one. Don’t waste even a drop. It’s tasty isn’t it”.

Yes it was musky and salty but regardless it tasted delicious to you. You swallowed all of it.

“Now your turn baby” he smirked pushing you down on the bed harshly.

[kxizoku-ou]

Have you had any thoughts on hybrid versions of the one piece characters? I love seeing what animals people associate with the characters 😅. Also ears and tails are cute

Hybrid Au, my beloved!!! owo I tend to go heavier with the animal research/xeno than just "ears and tails", but yes, I absolutely have thoughts— here's a handful of my favorites/who comes to mind!

. . .

Kaidou — Auroch bull: The now-extinct relative of modern cattle, closely related to Spanish fighting bulls. Bull feels fitting for Kaidou, I think— they're huge, potentially dangerous animals that get screwed over in blood sports or as slaughterhouse bait, and near-universally seen as aggressive because of instincts that are based in self-preservation or protecting a herd. And of course, ending up as a bull hybrid is just what happens to my favs, by now... (@senjuushi)

Judge — Tawny eagle: His "Garuda" theme implies a bird of prey from the start, so it's an easy pick! Described as "opportunistic", with a habit of feeding on carrion (and stealing other animals' prey), yet still "a bold and active predator", tawny eagles fit well with Judge's vibe of regal, pompous, and trying way too hard. They also tend to mate for life... and male birds are known for flashy courtship habits. Reiju, Ichiji, Niji, and Yonji would be the same species for this Au.

Sanji — Mourning dove: Keeping with the bird theme of his family, but a far less bloodthirsty species. Mourning doves are fluffy, vocal birds that are known for being "prolific breeders". They can be territorial between males, but are also social pair-bonders. Sora would have been a dove too, and Sanji sharing her species is just one more sign that the modifications failed. There's also something very fitting about a "caged bird" theme for his experiences with Germa.

Spandam — Giant panda: Useless animal that would be extinct by now without human intervention. Clumsy, pathetic, and admittedly pretty cute, but not good for much other than existing under careful supervision in a zoo. Of course, Spandam's terrible personality ruins most of the cuteness effect his hybrid species might have— ultimately, he's a needy, spoiled idiot who's eternally dependent on the care of others. And personally, I think he should have a cute, sensitive little stubby tail, perfect to yank on when he's being a brat.

Katakuri — Grizzly bear: Linlin is a grizzly hybrid as well, and the shared species adds to Katakuri's reputation as her "perfect" son. He's huge, powerful, and highly threatening... but would be just as content to gorge himself on snacks and all but hibernate afterward. If it wasn't for his self-imposed standard of perfection, that is. His fucked-up mouth seems even worse on a large predator species, too, which definitely adds to his complex/self-consciousness over it.

Perospero — Red fox: I saw a fanart of him as a fox hybrid on Pixiv, and it convinced me. A smug, sneaky bastard who takes after his mother's carnivore tendencies, but with far less of an intimidation factor to back it up. Annoyingly talkative and far more socially oriented than he wants to admit, as well as capable of being an absolute nuisance when he wants to— all of that sounds very fitting for Peros, I think. And fox whining noises fit his crybaby side.

Cracker — Bushy-tailed woodrat: Prey animals that are described as "vocal and boisterous", and nuisances for "creating general noisy havoc"— seems appropriate for Cracker, an overconfident brat who's far less tough than he acts. Packrats (the overall category) are nest-builders, too, which fits with how he spends so much time hiding in his biscuit soldiers to avoid direct combat. Woodrats also apparently have a foot-thumping tendency; a good match for his clapping!

Pudding — British longhair cat: Babygirl-looking murder machine seems highly appropriate. British longhairs have the sweetest little faces and soft coats, but cats are nature's finest serial killers at their core. Pudding would be perfect as a needy, jealousy-prone kitty who's way too good at playing up the cutesy kitten act to get on people's good sides— right up until a tsundere moment kicks in. Then, she's all puffed-up, twitching tail and poorly stifled purring.

Caesar — Axolotl: Like his pet poison slime thing! Axolotls are apparently "used extensively in scientific research due to their ability to regenerate limbs, gills, and parts of their eyes and brains", which feels fitting for Caesar, as does the fact that they're tricky to take care of as pets (and keep getting put in cages by people who don't treat them well, at that). Also, those feathery external gills are cute!!

Queen — American alligator: Lethal fat fuck of a reptile, exactly how Queen should be! Alligators can be lazy and kind of goofy-looking, but they're still dangerous and very strong. The huge, thick tail is also an obvious plus (the "Brachio-Snakeus" trick haunts me). And really, can't you see him sprawled out all lazy, for gator-style sunbathing?

Drake — Rottweiler/Border Collie mix: A strong, intelligent, capable, and work-oriented animal, that would (as a dog-experienced friend put it), "tear a house down to the foundation" if left without enough to occupy it. Drake gives me "beaten dog" vibes, in general, and it feels fitting that his hybrid species could easily have been sweet, if not for the trauma and DEEP psychological issues.

Law — Shorthaired silver tabby: Law is so very catboy-coded. He's a grumpy, fussy kitty who will both claw your arm open if you try to touch him, and could just as easily be reduced to a purring puddle if his guard gets torn down enough to allow it. Cats are highly effective agents of violence (and can be total bastards, when they want to), but also absolute babies. And imagine tiny, angry catboy Law getting scruffed by Rocinante to prevent the aforementioned clawing.

[ronearoundblindly]

Re: Steve with a baby boy versus a baby girl: how would the reader in your different stories react to this? Which ones would ask him what's up with that, who would ignore it, who would start talking sports with the baby girl very pointedly in front of Steve . . . ?

I knew--I f***ing KNEW--someone would ask for the distinct series' Steves eventually, but this is not the ask I thought it would be about 😅 These contain some spoilers for things that either have yet to be written into fics OR won't be detailed into full storylines. You've been warned!

**Follow up to this post. Warnings for some curse words, whoops.

Fools Rush In

JJ Rogers, little boy, super curious and loves science like his own Ma, sickly like his papa was originally. Keeps though? Keeps is pretty darn happy with how Steve gently dotes on his son. Since James Joseph isn't exactly built for wrestling and running around, Steve doesn't push for that kind of interaction. They love doing crafts together, and Steve willingly participates in small, fun experiments--he's even super fascinated by some of those like a little kid himself!

It Had To Be You

The worst offender of the stereotyping for his kiddos, but in his defense, the fancy little girl's clothing from designers is precious, too. Sarah and the Power Ladies gift so much cute sh*t that it's difficult to get away from, but they also set a great example for your daughter doing whatever she wants in any clothing!

Since Steve has that workout equipment right there in the penthouse, he immediately involves his son in exercising. Precious has had so much bad experience with toxic masculinity, you are protective of your daughter anywhere near business workplaces. It's rarely only Steve taking her around the office with him. That's the hazard of your rise to power, though, and you and Steve both actively think about how not to pass that concern onto the next generation needlessly.

Steve gets way better about treating them differently as boys and girls age. By the age of ten or so, Steve's universally just a pushover. Spoils all his kids completely rotten--though, in all fairness, the kids have good heads on their shoulders.

Autumn Is Healing

To be honest, Rosie is just elated to see someone show kindness to her children at all, and you don't really have any issue with Steve's traditional approach. (In my mind, however, Rosie does not have any biological children with Steve. She's been through too much to start that again. They could adopt an older child or two, perhaps, but I don't think she gives birth again.)

Hideout

Ooooooooooooookay, there's...some plot points I have to skip over in order to answer this one, but yes, Tops certainly dings Steve when he treats boys and girls with different standards. You're having none of it. Steve, of all people, should know you can't predict what anyone is going to be, or be good at, as an adult. He should nurture any and all hobbies. Period.

Threadbare

I never specified girl or boy for this baby, and I've never leaned either way. You best believe Button does not allow Steve to favor 'girly' vs. 'manly' activities **if either kid has already shown interest. That's the big caveat to that: if your daughter hasn't shown any interest in sports or whatever, then you're not going to step in. If your son shows interest in fashion, like you, or art, like Steve, then you can be damn sure you fight for Steve to honor that.

Sun, Salt, and Shield

No one knows what sex the baby/child is until puberty due to the variations in tail- and mermaid-anatomy. Tony isn't allowed to try to figure it out, and very pointedly, you don't care. It doesn't matter.

This drives Steve a little bonkers. Does his kid need to cover their chest for modesty? Or are there different levels of nutrients needed for girls and boys? Steve wants a classic fatherhood experience, but that's very hard to do when he has to explain why there's a different way to toss a ball based on their genitalia...

You respond by having him show you the different ways to pitch and then whacking the ball so hard with your tail that it can easily be categorized as a 'home run' both ways. It doesn't matter.

Safety Captain

No clue if they ever have kiddos. The main story won't go nearly that far into their relationship, but as a father, I could see this Steve being pretty relaxed. He would be so excited to enjoy sports and stuff with a son, but he'd be the most open to including a daughter in physical activities right away. They'd obviously learn to swim alongside learning to walk, no questions asked, no exceptions. Pool and water safety would be drilled into those toddlers.

Thank you for asking!

[Main Masterlist; Who Would... Masterlist; Ko-Fi]

A/N: If there is another series I didn't touch on that you want to know about, just ask. Some of them weren't an immediately unique answer, so I left them out.

[milesgmoralles]

Hi! Do you mind sharing your coloring tutorial or tips? especially for the animation ones, they're so good! your gifs are crisp and HD

hi, anon. tysm! 🫶 i don't mind at all since i’ve gotten more than a few requests from before, ig it's time to give it a go. (more) details are under the cut. 😁

before we start, i want you to take note of the following things that will be helpful in the process of making/coloring gifs.

if you want to get the know-how on making gifs, @redbelles did us a solid and gave us this comprehensive guide that will save me the time for explaining lmao. 😅✌️

make gifsets without skipping frames. keep frame delay 0.05 and 0.06 for less than 25 frames. anything more or less is too fast or too slow. additionally, it's also important to note that if you're dealing w videos that are faster than 30fps you change the frame delay to 0.04.

gif using the the new dimensions (in this tutorial i used the dimensions of 540px x 510px since it's all about big gifs now 🙄).

use the standard sharpening settings (smart sharpen, amount 500%, radius 0.3px, remove gaussian blur and tick more accurate) also note the sharpening settings for 2d as you've specifically requested.

 you can use action that will convert your gif back to frames and set your timing to 0.05 with a single click. basically photoshop will follow out all of these time-consuming steps for you! just download the action and double click it. it should now be added to your list of actions.  to see your actions, go to window > actions. find the folder that says "GIF ACTION" and select the lines that says "CLICK HERE" and voila! ps will do all the hard work for you.

the coloring on your gifs will look good if you have a good base so try not to skip on video qualities. use high quality copies like 1080p or 2160p (4k ones are good) the higher the gb the better. it makes coloring so much easier and reduces grains.

*cracks knuckles* let's start!

for 2d animation's sharpening settings, it usually varies so i just move the amount around and see what looks or works better for a specific gif. i used amount: 189 and radius: 0.2 for this ponyo gif. anything can work between 189 to 350 for me but i maintain the radius at 0.2. again, you can just play the amount around until you find the one that looks good for your gif.

when i’m making gifs. i look for that notorious contrast between the light and dark parts. i think it gives life to the gif- so exposure, levels and curves are best to achieve that. for curves, just go to layer > new adjustment layer > curves. this layer is going to help brighten up the gif in certain areas, and darken others. select the white eyedropper. click the lighter part of the gif like the white/light part of the ship.

next, select the black eyedropper and click on a black/dark area of the gif (refer to the arrow bc i don't know which part of the ship is that called lmao).

you can skip the black eyedropper if you're already satisfied w the result of the white one.

color balance and selective color are your two best buddies. they’re great when you’re trying to change some tones or specific colors of the gif, like the skin tone which is very tricky.

using selective color is pretty simple, here’s a really useful guide:

if you pull any of the tabs to the right, it increases the amount of color (cyan, magenta, yellow and black), and reduces the amount of opposite color (red, green, blue and white).

i also use the blacks and whites in selective color especially if the gif is saturated w colors to tone down some parts and make shadows more visible (idk if this is still making sense 😅).

in working with color balance, i use midtones and highlights sparingly. it's really helpful in removing or balancing out a certain tone.

here's my save setting ⬆️

idk why but ps puts the default frame delay to 0.07/0.03 so open your gif in ps again and don't forget to change the delay to 0.05.

and we're done!

i sometimes go back and forth and do some tweaking until i’m satisfied with the result. this is how i color and i know it’s not perfect but i learn by constant practice. there’s really no standard in coloring so you can make yours the way you like it. just enjoy- until you get the hang of it and it becomes less daunting (or something like that). i hope this helps. if you have more questions, my askbox is always open 😊.

[esotheria-sims]

Hi!

I really like your creations and good looking game. May I ask how you managed to made it so "perfect"? Which computer do you use with wich OS and gpu?

Hi! Gosh, thank you so much!

I wouldn't know about my game being "perfect", but I'd say I've managed to accumulate a well-curated mix of cc and mods that work well together!

(Long reply under the cut!)

The secret is to constantly be on the lookout for cool cc (old or new) that fits your game, and to keep testing and trying until you've found the perfect balance.

You gotta have a general idea about the kinda aesthetic you're going for and start from there. Are you playing a modern hood with a touch of magic? Get the right cc. A medieval fantasy world? Get the right cc. A grungy desert dystopia? Get… well, you catch the drift. Want to play all of the above? Multiple dedicated cc folders are a thing, too! But as with everything else, you gotta Get The Right CC.

There are tons of posts, videos, blogs, and even sites dedicated to themed or general cc recommendations, so I won't make this long post even longer by listing them. But one general piece of advice I can give you is to comb through your favorite simmers' blogs/channels/pages/discords/etc. and see what they recommend. Some simmers have a Masterpost where they list all the mods & cc they use in their game. Most people have a WCIF tag on their blogs (here's mine!)

Also, remember to thoroughly comb through all the big cc sites and forums such as MTS, Garden of Shadows, PlumbBob Keep, SimPearls, HellHasSpoken, etc. I probably sound like a broken record on this one, but old sites and forums contain TONS of cc (some of it pretty iconic!) and it'd be a real waste to skip out on them.

As for my own PC, it's pretty mid-tier by today's standards. It's a Win10 desktop with an AMD Ryzen 5 3600 CPU, 2x16GB RAM kit, NVidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti, and 120GB SSD + 1TB HDD. Funnily enough, I remember a similar ask from a while ago wondering about the same thing, and lemme tell ya, my specs back then were… nothing to write home about. 😅

Which brings me to my next point: you don't actually need a high-end PC to play The Sims 2! This is a fussy old game, and from what I've seen in the community, how well it'll run on a given computer is… kinda random. At this point, I feel like the game relies on voodoo and spite more than any particular hardware configuration. Which is actually good news, because it means you can have a pretty game (and take pretty pics!) even if you don't have a beast of a computer!

[delta-gambit-au]

SYNERGY

“We were a good team. They knew the best strategies and they listened to my ideas with an open mind. It was the recipe for their success, earning a nice promotion within the company and making me proud. Being the talk of our co-workers was the cherry on top.” — Spam

It takes effort to create something that was never seen before. It takes guts to keep pushing forward with that never before seen idea that is not aligned with any of the current trending standards. You know that people will not take it seriously, but that shouldn’t deter you from delivering more and more of it. In time everything will click into place, and you will be glad that you haven't stopped when you started to hesitate along the way. It’s daunting, and at the same time, discouraging. But moving forward is the only way, the only path. I think the Addisons of my AU has shown me a lot of that, that ideas can’t bloom if they aren’t sown before, even if they look ugly and dull at first. To keep nurturing them alone is very hard, but one day the effort will pay off and no regrets will come to bite you back.

Anyway, the backstory of Spamton and his Addison co-workers has a very storied past. Slowly I’m gleaning some of what he was, how he got to know his friends, why the White Addisons are a dying breed and why he was forced to change his name and his own archetype to stick it to the system. You might be surprised of all the stuff Spam needed to do in order to survive, but for now, concept arts of ideas and research is all what I have to share about that.

I’m weaving a very deep story behind the origins of Spam and the forces controlling the market of Cyber World and the life of the Cyberians, and why the law forbids any direct contact with Lightners (that was before Kris and friends dropped by). Spam here is just a number, subject #451, one of many. All look the same. All do the same. All have no interests beyond the success of the company in which they grew up to become another white-collared walking utility. Everything would change when he receives an invitation to a cyber-grill to meet with one of the marketing groups he was assigned to. It was the beginning of change, and the start of his voluntary corruption. That's as much as I can say 👀 Oh, also I found out while sprucing their profiles that Sears and Spam share the same birthday day, 3rd of May, though Sears is 5 years older than Spam as they were born in 1973 😅They are the oldest of the Addison group, and that makes them the butt of jokes sometimes.

I need to explore some art-style in order to give substance to this part of the plot and tweak its world-building, which will be unlockable flashbacks in the visual-novel. There's also a new character villain I'm trying to breath life to who appears during the epilogue of the first season. I hope people will like to see a new villain Darkner. He's also another walking DAEMON like Spwatchton but this one works for the LOCAL-SYS whereas Spwatchton is one of the undercover rebels.

Sorry if my content is coming out slow or half-baked. I'm still concept-arting and being nagged at the same time by RL more often than not. Yesterday I had yet another doctor appointment to go to and this week should be my ophthalmologist...

I also... joined the Art Fight of this year... My first time doing this. Though I'm not sure if I'll be able to be very active, I'm going to fill everything with Addisons and other Darkners from my AU to force myself to make their character profiles and see if anybody would do fanart of them (who doesn't like to get fanarts of their OCs? 😅)

As of other updates, we are expecting a final interview with a good company next week that seemed pretty interested in us as we fit their profile well. Fingis crossed! 🤞

[hotchocolatefanfics]

Okay, here's my first question. I always wondered if Ceasar knew that Will played a part in Koba's suffering. He said that Koba only learned hate from humans but how did/would he react knowing that ? I personally don't think Caesar really understood the role Will had in the lab. To me, he just thought that Will knew his mother and that she died there. But I don't think he realised that she was there (and died in a way too) only because of Will.

Caesar also always saw Will as someone extremely caring, someone who will take him to the vet for a little wound and someone who gave him this big room full of toys too.

So what would be his reaction learning that Will saw Koba was smart, saw him being in that (very) little cage and just... Put him in experiment ?

That's probably the main reason I can't stand Will by the way. 😅

I’m not sure if this applies but here’s my thoughts on Will:

Will is kind of a morally grey character as he does experiment on apes (which, by action alone. could mean he medically tortured apes and/or caused their deaths when said experiments failed-basically, the kind of human where fear and hate is completely valid especially from apes like Koba) but he does it for (somewhat) good reasons-he wants to cure Alzheimer’s to save his father (and other people of course but mainly Charles-which I can’t even fault him for because I kind of relate to it!). 

Another thing is, medical testing on animals before making new medicines available is a standard practice in real-life. In that way, Will can be considered a villain of circumstance but he is definitely a hypocrite in what he does after adopting Caesar and during his childhood.

Now to your question!:

It is possible Caesar had questions about why Will adopted him at all but he might not have ever had time (or allowed himself) to think about it. The implication of his mother dying there and him later freeing Koba (and other apes) from Gen Sys while Will continued to work there alone may have been enough to give Caesar a pretty good idea of how his mother died and what Will did in that lab and he just didn’t want to go there. 

That said, I could see a scenario where (instead of challenging him) Koba questions Will’s intentions when he adopted Caesar and when Caesar tries to defend him, Koba could have said something among the lines of: “Don’t you see he used you like he used other apes?” leading to Caesar to seriously reflect on his childhood and life with humans.

OR! Caesar randomly finds Will’s other recordings (like the one he was making in Rise when Caesar was a child). Even though Will’s research involving Caesar was documenting a his cognitive growth and development and relating it to his ALZ112/13 drugs, his goal of using said drug to cure Alzheimer’s could (arguably) be considered exploitative-by that I mean, using Caesar as proof that his drug worked, and Caesar is forced to rethink Will’s motives when he adopted and raised him.

Quote Caroline here: “What about Caesar? Where does he fit in?”

This is why I call Will a hypocrite and I think (in either scenario), Caesar will recognize this and be horrified and sickened by it. The fact that Will continued to work at Gen Sys and experiment on apes in cages despite adopting Caesar raising him as his son. Like, how could Will call himself his father when Caesar could’ve easily been killed at Gen Sys or kept in a cage there just like the other apes Will experiments on?

To be clear, I do believe Will loved Caesar. Although he is never seen or heard from since Rise, I can see him trying to protect Caesar even though he chose to live in the forest with the apes he freed during the events of Firestorm: making false reports to keep people from the Muir Woods, telling anyone who would listen that the apes weren’t the cause of the virus, maybe insisting the apes weren’t dangerous and just wanted to be left alone, and so on. These actions likely leading to his death (if he wasn’t killed due to violence, he may have died from the virus). 

The problem is, even if Will did try to protect Caesar up until his death, Caesar had no way of knowing it (unless someone told him about it) and if he ever found out how he treated Koba and other apes in the lab in contrast to how he treated him, Caesar would question everything about his childhood and be left wondering if Will ever truly loved him or if it was all a lie.

TLDR, Will is a hypocrite. If Caesar knew how he treated Koba in the labs, it would disturb him but he may still consider Will a ‘good man’ unless he ever saw how deep his hypocrisy went. Will may be remembered as another abusive human to Koba, but Caesar’s perception of him will change from his father figure to a man who lied to him from the very beginning (and the absolute worst part is Caesar may never know if Will truly loved him or get closure for it).

[buildarocketboys]

Me looking at prompts list: I am Weak. Uhhh. Peterick anddddd uh. 4, 6, 12 or 15 😅😅🥺🥺🥺 🥺🥺

Thanks baby! I did 12 and 15 for you 🥰 sleepy boys time

Send me a prompt from here and I'll write a little fic!

12: tummy rubs

Pete climbs into Patrick's bed next to him.

Patrick groans. "Do you have to? My stomach hurts."

"Awww, does wittle baby have a tummy ache?" Pete mocks.

Patrick kicks him in the shin.

"Ow!"

"Can't you just leave me alone for once in your life?" Patrick gripes. But he's not really that mad, Pete can tell.

Mostly because when Pete shuffles closer to him and tucks his arm around Patrick's body, Patrick doesn't shrug him off.

He doesn't even tell him to stop when Pete sneaks his hand under the hem of Patrick's t-shirt and starts rubbing big, slow circles over Patrick's soft, gorgeous belly.

In fact, he hums and leans into Pete's touch.

"That's nice," he says. "Keep going."

Pete smiles into Patrick's back. He's under no misapprehensions what a privilege it is that Patrick allows him to do this. He's pretty sure Patrick even makes his girlfriend turn out the lights before he'll get undressed. He's so self conscious.

It makes Pete upset. Patrick is beautiful, every inch of him. But whenever he tries to tell Patrick that, he snorts or rolls his eyes or pushes Pete away and the moment is gone. So he just lies there quietly, giving Patrick belly rubs.

"Yeah..." hums Patrick. "Can you go further down?"

"Further...down?" Pete repeats. Further down is under Patrick's waistband.

"Yeah," says Patrick. "Unless you don't want to." He begins to pull away from Pete, uncertainty written in the lines of his body.

"No, I want too!" Pete says, too fast and too eager. Patrick chuckles.

"Shut up," Pete mumbles into his shoulder as his fingers pull Patrick's waistband away from his waist to let his hand sneak under. He grasps at Patrick's flesh, squeezing just a little, until Patrick yelps and he goes back to rubbing and stroking, oh-so-innocently.

"Y'know," says Patrick, yawning, "You'd make a great boyfriend if you weren't so annoying all the time."

Pete freezes. He waits for Patrick to notice, but Patrick has started snoring. He's fallen asleep in Pete's arms.

Pete keeps stroking Patrick's tummy, holding him tight in his arms while he sleeps.

He tries not to think about what Patrick said, or what it meant. It probably didn't mean anything.

Anyway, what he and Patrick have is special. This, falling asleep together on the tour bus in the middle of the afternoon, is just one of the reasons why.

Pete's never gonna jeopardize that.

15: humming / singing them to sleep

Patrick's phone rings and Patrick blinks blearily into the darkness before reaching for his phone and checking the time. 3am.

Only one person calls him at 3 in the morning. Rolling his eyes, he answers the call.

"Hey Pete," he whispers hoarsely. "Do you know what time it is?"

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," Pete says. He sounds on the verge of tears.

"Pete, Pete, I was just kidding," Patrick says. "You OK?"

"Yeah," says Pete, Patrick's reassurance apparently working wonders to calm him down. "Yeah I'm fine, I just- can't sleep."

Which isn't exactly a rare occurrence, but it's also not the first time Pete's called Patrick in the middle of the night because he can't sleep. He waits for Pete to continue speaking.

"Would- can you sing to me?" Pete asks, voice a soft and frightened animal. "That...it sometimes helps," he finishes lamely.

Patrick has to swallow a lump in his throat. "Sure," he says. "Sure, Pete, of course."

He starts singing - lullabies and rock songs and jazz standards, tunes he makes up on the spot and a couple from their albums. He sings through the night, till his voice is hoarse, and they see in the dawn together before Pete's breathing finally, finally slows and deepens on the other end.

"Pete?" Patrick whispers. When he receives no reply other than a gentle snore, he smiles. "Good night, Pete," he murmurs, then hangs up.

He falls asleep immediately and sleeps well into the afternoon.

[thedragonagebigbang]

Bang Creator Interview: Tumblr: @AmmoniteFlesh  |  AO3: AmmoniteFlesh

The Collaboration period has begun! In these quiet months before works are due, we want to foster a sense of excitement, camaraderie, and celebration among our participants. To that end, all participants were given the option of a formal interview by our mod, Dema, or an informal “ask-game” survey. We hope you enjoy getting to know our phenomenal creators as much as we have!

Top Eight People Having An Absolutely Soul-Destroying Time in This City: number four will KILL you!

Faust and Dema discuss The Bog, the power of deadlines, and Ghila “So, So Blighted” Mahariel

Dema: We're well into the writing and collaboration period now; how's it going? Are you excited? Are you in The Bog?

Faust: Oh my god, I am extremely in the Bog.

Dema: Any particular monsters in that Bog with you? 

Faust: Well, I'm only just coming out of a massive writing slump that sucked away a lot of my ability to work on anything. But while I'm not nearly as far ahead as I would like to be, I've always worked best at the last minute (unfortunately lol). I feel confident that I can finish. The fic itself I'm actually feeling really good about! I like what I'm doing, I have like 90% of it in bullet points, there are some moments I'm SUPER proud of. It's coming together - I just wish it was doing so a touch more quickly! 

Dema: Oh, are you me? (LOL I really really empathize) 

Faust: Honestly, I'm in awe of anyone who doesn't work this way lmao

Dema: Same. What helped you emerge from your writing slump?

Faust: I'm not sure! Going easy on myself helped - sometimes you really just need to let the batteries recharge. Plus my artist sent some absolutely BANGER sketches and was just generally very complimentary about my writing, which is always nice. Also, just... lowering the standards I set for myself. Writing is also kind of my day job, so it's sometimes difficult to remind myself that this is the Fun Writing that does not need to be perfect. 

Dema: Yeah, perfect really is the enemy of good. I'm so glad you gave yourself some grace and are back on the horse! What is your ideal writing environment? Do you have any rituals around it?

Faust: I love writing in a cafe, if I've got headphones to cancel out the noise. It just feels so indulgent? Here I am, getting my work done over a hot chocolate, people-watching – makes me feel very artsy lmao. I'm trying to get better at bringing more of that energy home, though, because I cannot afford to write at a cafe every day. 😅 Usually I do two pages of journalling first, to get all the noise out of my brain so I can focus. Then it's pomodoros all the way!

Dema: I also love cafe writing! And the pomodoro method, for sure. How long do you usually write in one go? Or is it varying a lot?

Faust: It varies a lot - sometimes I only manage one 25-minute burst and then I get distracted. Other times I go for several hours. The reason I decided to do the Big Bang in the first place was that having a deadline makes me waaaaay better at actually sitting down and getting words on the page - that external structure is so, so helpful.

Dema: I agree! Are you pretty used to writing longer-form fic like this, or is the Big Bang stretching your wordcount?

Faust: Yes and no? I have my extremely in-progress longfic, which is currently sitting at about 25k words, but that's literally it. I've worked on long-form stuff a ton, but actually completed very little of it - again, because I struggle a bit without external structure. I've cheated my way into feeling more comfortable with my DABB fic by writing something that's kind of a long-form piece and kind of a collection of shorter pieces. This nefarious plan to make me less intimidated by the prospect is working great so far! 

Dema: Is your longfic a DA fic?

Faust:  It is! It's an Origins retelling featuring my Mahariel, Ghila - who is extraordinarily Blighted and just generally does not have a good time. It's actually the first DA fic I ever wrote and the first fic for anything that I published, so it's very very close to my heart.

Dema: Can you tell me more about Ghila?

Faust: I AM ALWAYS READY TO INFODUMP ABOUT MY GIRL/AMBIGUOUSLY GENDERED ENTITY! Ghila was the result of me looking at how Mahariel has to travel all the way from the Brecilian Forest to Ostagar while Tainted and going 'oh, you should by WAY more fucked up by this'. She almost dies of the Blight, gets saved by the Joining in the nick of time, continues dying of the Blight but more slowly, until Avernus is finally able to stabilise it. She then steadily gets more and more Darkspawn-like, unlocking some cool spooky powers along the way.

She's also just so, so full of love - and full of rage for how the Dalish have been mistreated. Her opinion of the world is very cynical, but she does her best to make it better anyway. A lot of her arc is about trying to find a way to exist and survive in a world that hates her - both because of her Dalish-ness and because of her newfound monstrosity. And she does get there in the end, but it's a long and bitter road. I have so many feelings about it.

Dema: I am adding immediately to cart, haha! She and your fic sound super interesting. 

Faust: Thank youuuuuu 🥰 I'm Love Her

Dema: Is Origins your favorite installment of the franchise, then?

Faust: It's my favourite to write fic for! Favourite full stop is probably DA2 - I just love the characters, the small setting, the tight scope of it. But Origins has a lot more missed opportunities and loose ends imo, just by dint of having more going on, so I find it much easier to dive into and play with! 

Dema: In our last minutes, you may have seen that I'm titling these interview posts with a click-bait title 😂

Faust: Oooooooh

I'm gonna go with Top Eight People Having An Absolutely Soul-Destroying Time in This City: number four will KILL you!

Dema: L O L amazing! 

Faust: why thank you 😄

Dema: And it has been delightful interviewing you, thank you for taking the time! I hope you have a fantastically productive writing week.

Faust: No worries!!! It was super fun, thank you for doing these.

[adorablebanite]

OC Deep Dive Questions

Thank you @hippotooth for the tag, and giving me more excuses to blab about my dumb girl!

I'd love to tag some folks, should they wish to partake (if they haven't already!) @newtia @beecreeper @obuoliukai @melvinthedepressedrobot @ennissg @sankttealeaf @forged-by-fire @forlornghosts @walkerdraws @lizziemajestic @archduchessgortash @archduchessgabrielle @elinorbard @sunflowergem @threeofswrds @arianiziolek @defira85 @lillietea @kawareo @toobisa @kaava @asteria49 @demong @aurorawintersnight @archduke-enver-gortash (I'm sorry if I missed anyone! I'd love to see EVERYONE'S response, if possible!

(I realize Tumblr doesn't let me tag more than a handful of people but i'm stubborn and will do it in the replies, lmao)

Questions/Answers for my beloved OC ~Lilla~ under the cut

Warning - she's literally just a "made in a lab for gortash" trope, so enjoy extreme self-indulgence!

What common/uncommon fear do they have?

I don't know if there's much in the way of common when it comes to BG3, but I suppose Lilla's actually fairly brave! She's a Banite after all - though it took some getting there. Honestly her worst fear is getting "fired" by the boss - but that's a given. Lady Orin actually terrifies her, and maybe Balthazar a bit, as well (he's just mostly stinky and smug, though.)

Do they have any pet peeves?

You'll be sick of hearing this already, but given Lilla's nature, her biggest pet peeve is when people don't cooperate with Gortash 😅

Honestly just general incompetence - her standards rival the Chosen's, which are basically impossible, so good luck!

What are 3 items you can find in their bedroom?

An emerald silk bathrobe, an alchemy station stocked to the brim with all the good stuff, and a small library nook!

What do they notice first in a person?

Visually not much (unless she's attracted to them, in which case she's just like the rest of us and looks respectively, or otherwise 😉).

Believe it or not, she doesn't judge much based on looks; she's learned from the boss that every person has the potential to offer some skill or opportunity that could benefit the Banites and their chosen - so she's always looking to see what she can exploit or harness from someone, and to see if she can delegate their skills to Gortash's cause.

On a scale from 1-10, how high is their pain tolerance?

Pretty high up there- gonna say at least an 8, but she's cheating because she was kind of intentionally 'made' that way. Once she got a pommel from a greatsword straight to the cheekbone during a tournament and she just kind of smiled bloody at the dude which freaked him the fuck out because she's so small and un-phased.

Do they go into fight or flight mode when under pressure?

Depends on the pressure! She's survived/won a battle royal against some really grizzled Banites - though it may have mostly been luck -but it helped shape her ability to respond to fear fairly well! Again, the whole 'Banite blood' thing helps a lot!

She did have a massive panic attack when she thought her worst fear (see first question) was realized, which sent her into quite a state - so that would be the closes to fleeing she's ever gotten, really.

Do they come from a big family/are they a family person?

If by "family" you mean "secret Banite sect at the outskirts of Calimport," then yes she comes from a fairly big family, but she doesn't remember them, since they erased her memory when she was five and gave her to an Ilmater orphanage (long story - sounds weird - it is). Not really a family person, but could be, if her path took a different turn! She's quite nurturing considering all things (Which may have been a point of contention with Bane, but she ultimately proved herself, eventually).

What animal represents them best?

This is such a hard question...I never considered. Hmm what could be considered regal and unhinged in the same stroke? Maybe I'll say Owl - because it's the symbol of knowledge, and she's a knowledge domain cleric? Also she can be fairly deadly if you let your guard down around her 😊 Also she doesn't shut up sometimes.

What is a smell they dislike?

Balthazar.

Have they broken any bones?

As mentioned before, she had her face smashed with a really heavy weapon. Would you be interested in a smol excerpt? (You get it regardless 😅 (as usual warning: amateur writing)

How would a stranger likely describe them?

Very prim, proper, and polite! Quite sweet as well! Unless you've said something uncouth about Lord Gortash (It is recommended to not do that around her).

Are they a night owl, or morning bird?

She's extremely gort-coded, so whatever he wants (so both)

What’s a flavor they hate and a flavor they love?

Plump red berries are her favourite for reasons only the readers of AFI know :p. I don't know what she doesn't like! Maybe dirty/muddy meat and potatoes, which also only AFI readers will know why ^_^

Do they have any hobbies?

lol. lmao.

Alchemy I guess xD. Basically studying anything that makes her more competent/useful at her job.

Boom, surprise birthday party! How do they react to surprise?

I think at first she'd think it was a waste of time, but she wouldn't admit that she loves it (and the attention).

Do they like to wear jewelery?

Yes! A black suede collar with a Banite charm! She switches it for an Ilmater charm when in public though >.>

Do they have neat or messy handwriting?

Very neat, very succinct, very efficient. Transcribing was the very first reason Gortash hired her - especially because she's able to use her Mage Hand to write (ie in unseen places for what may or may not be for spying purposes).

What are the two emotions they feel the most?

This is so lame and cringe but just general catharsis for fulfilling her purpose. It's a perk of the whole "made in a lab" trope. For a being conceived during a silly Banite ritual designed to make the perfect servant for Bane's chosen (whoever it should be at the time), she actually feels a great deal of love -it's up to individual philosophy if it's organic/genuine, or preprogrammed.

Do they have a favourite fabric?

Emerald silk ^_^

What kind of accent do they have?

An English one, I dunno man. She grew up in an orphanage, but was taught by Ilmater nurses/clerics, so she sounds like a fancy lil bitch.