#which iteration.......... hm

[turtlecleric]

13 with Leo, please?

13. "Shhhh, come here."

-

Someone is here.

Someone is here, in this godforsaken room with you. Crouching over you, huge and imposing - but that doesn't even matter. What matters is that someone is here. Silhouetted by the light spilling in from the hallway like an honest to God angel. They're here, pushing your greasy hair away from your eyes, speaking to you in a low tone that sounds like rushing water in your ears.

It's nice. The water. Soothing in a way you haven't felt in a long, long time. Much better than the ringing silence that you're used to. It feels... familiar, too. Like an echo from a dream, or a memory of a memory.

You want to see who it is, but everything is blurry. The light is too bright, as well. Even with this person blocking most of it, it's too much. You'd missed the light, wanted so badly to have it before now, but... it hurts.

You squeeze your eyes shut, focusing instead on the water. Wait, not water. A voice. A voice that, suddenly, you remember.

"Leo?"

You haven't spoken in so long, it's almost jarring to do so again. The rushing water quiets, and you feel him gingerly cup your jaw with his hand, the pad of his thumb brushing across your cheek. It feels... warm.

That's strange. It never felt warm before, did it? No. No, he was always oddly cool. Right?

"Yeah." His voice splits down the middle. Rasps in a way you've never heard before. But you can at least make out the words now. No more rushing, just the ringing. Still dark, but this time it's your choice. The same, but different. "Yeah, it's me. I've got you, okay? I'm taking you home."

Home?

"That's right," he whispers. Another split down the middle, like the crack in the cement that you sometimes run your fingers along, feather-light, back and forth, to keep yourself occupied. To feel something other than the cold. Your fingers twitch now, spreading along the ground. Reaching, searching for that crack. Before you find it, too-warm hands shift beneath you, and then you're being lifted.

"Leo," you whimper, still reaching. It's important. Isn't it? The crack. There's a reason that it's... important... You can't remember. Why does that scare you? Why weren't you scared before? Panic sparks, an undercurrent running just below the exhausted confusion that covers you like a blanket. Throat tight, tasting ash and copper, you try again. "Leo-"

"Shhhh, come here." He presses his forehead to yours, holding you a bit closer. "It's okay. I've got you."

That's not- not what you were- but it's... so, so nice. Being held. Feeling the warmth seep into your skin where the two of you touch. You falter, whatever goal you'd been trying to achieve lost like smoke in the wind. Your fingers reach for his plastron now, seeking the little indents there, and something about the way his breath hitches makes you want to apologize.

He moves, then. Rhythmic and fast and careful all at once. There's more rushing water, but you're...

Smoke in the wind. Floating under the current. It's... nice.

You hope this is real.

[meanbossart]

Random question. I think you once said DU Drow was kind of a jesus figure at the same time being the antichrist of murder. Is that why his crown in the bhaalist AU kind of resembles a crown of thorns?

Not very subtle, I know, LOL.

But yes, the crown I've drawn him wearing in his post-game bhaalist iteration is roughly inspired by a crown of thorns, and is supposed to be made from cuts of obsidian glass that have been melted together in this jagged shape. It's looked slightly different each time i've drawn it but the most recent art (this top one) is probably the design I'll stick to.

It's for sure something he has made for himself in that timeline to celebrate his most recent promotion from Prince of Murder to Murder King, that's kind of where the christian-parallels end, though! It was just hard to resist it with a character that is literally a god's "son" that dies and is brought back to life again. Also there's the whole Orin thing. And I guess DU drow is pretty anti-estabilishment which is quite jesus of him... Hm, maybe my christian upbringing had more of an impact than I thought :|

[usagifuyusummer]

"You're loved. Don't forget."

More ramblings and concept art below lmao.

I am devastated on thinking Timmy's fate in the series... I won't put my faith that they will handle it well, so I'll just indulge in fanworks to fill in this void. If they ever do it well one day, then I'll be there for the encore.

For now, I think you'll see a lot of somewhat depressed art on FOP for a while lol. Not continuous mind you! University is a bitch to get through. Whenever I'm free that is. Which is on long stretches of time unfortunately... Still, when I'm not posting trash, I'll be around observing quietly. You can guarantee that at least.

The work this time is inspired by @xblubotx (the adopted parents kissing Timmy one so cute omgosh) and @cubbihue FOP AU (sorry I have not memorised your AU yet). I admire that Blubot can adapt the FOP artstyle so well lmao. It'll be lightyears before I can do that 😭😭😭. Also, their Timmy fanarts break my heart, thank you. For the fairies design, I took inspiration from Cubbihue's AU. I think it's cute that they have tails, but there's not much I can say regarding their AU since its still developing. Take your time on that and have fun by the way.

The context for this one is just that Timmy is embarassed that Cosmo and Wanda are giving him the affection he is missing out from his parents. Poof is laughing from Timmy's embarrassment lol. (Not using Poof's new name because that is not that iteration of his character.) Timmy got a lot of fairy dust to remove from his face on that day...

Hm, are there side-effects to fairies kissing a mortal (on the cheeks hehe)? I kinda wish there was a comprehensive mythology book for stuff like that. There's some sources where I read that fairies kissing humans can actually result in their soul being whisked away to the other world (essentially dying yeah) and some sources say that fairies kissing you means its their way of marking territory or for good luck??? I wonder where those myths came from... but it is fascinating to think about. I guess Timmy will die young then /jk lol.

I got input from my younger sister that a darker color background is better than the dark blue one I used initially. I'm quite unsure on this, so I'll just post them all... I also don't think I nailed Cubbihue's AU on the fairy sizes... It's hard to accurately draw characters on a specific scale for me... Oh well, I can practice more. This took me 3 days at least. Also, here's a png version of the piece and two photos of the concept sketches.

I think that's all I want to yap about. Thanks for reading and have a nice day. See you when my homework isn't killing me.

[ltwilliammowett]

In door no. 10 we have a couple today. The US Brig Niagara and HMS Bounty, aren't they cute together?

More about them here:

The Bounty was a British three-master on which one of the most famous mutinies in maritime history took place on 28 April 1789 near Tonga. Since then, the story of the ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ has repeatedly become the subject of novels, non-fiction books, films, theatre plays and radio plays.

The merchant ship, built in Hull in 1784 and originally used as a coal freighter under the name Bethia, was purchased by the British Admiralty for an expedition to the South Seas. After extensive modifications, it set off on a voyage to Tahiti in 1787 under the command of Lieutenant William Bligh of Spithead to bring cuttings of the breadfruit tree from there to the Antilles. After their exploits, the mutineers settled on the remote island of Pitcairn. Off its coast, they set fire to the Bounty.

The Bounty here, however, was a replica from the 18th century built in 1960 and 1961. It was built especially for the film Mutiny on the Bounty (1962). The ship was sometimes referred to as HMS Bounty II or variants thereof to distinguish it from the original, but neither the abbreviation HMS, which is reserved for British naval vessels, nor the numbers were part of the ship's name. After being used in several other films, she was used for charter and adventure trips with passengers and as a museum ship.

Unfortunately, she sank off Cape Hatteras during Hurricane Sandy on 29 October 2012 with the loss of two crew members.

The U.S. Brig Niagara, otherwise known as Flagship Niagara. This version here of ‘the Brig’ is a replica reproduction of Oliver Hazard Perry's relief flagship during the American victory at the Battle of Lake Erie on 10 September, 1813. All iterations of this ship were constructed within the sheltered natural harbour of Presque Isle Bay in Erie, Pennsylvania including this version which began construction in 1988. Her first sailing season commenced in 1992 and has been sailing nearly continuously since.

[mymarifae]

these two are linked in some way. 100%. i'm hesitant to add mem to the theory board because idk if they'll be related to march too or just cyrene (being an entity that sort of embodies cyrene's... essence? like ELF elysia in hi3) but the similarities they have with Both are too big to ignore completely

unsure if they're about to go the route of cyrene and march being the same person or if march is simply like... a fragment of cyrene that was sealed and sent away to maybe give her a chance to live on since this girl is doomed to die in virtually every universe and iteration. amphoreus's time and space displacement is fucked up and it seems like we're going to be spending a lot of the adventure split across concepts of "past," "present," and "future." so that mayyyyy be why we were able to see cyrene interacting with and talking to stelle in the nameless faces video, if she's no longer "whole"/dead/...whatever.

she does appear to be emerging from a place of... non... physicality. also it's worth noting that in the first picture of her i included, she's sinking - into water or a water-like substance. that can presumably freeze over...... and become the ice block himeko and welt found march 7th in....... hm? 🤨

it's hard to say how much cyrene will have in common with elysia - it's unfair to expect them to be the exact same character, and maybe these points i'm about to bring up mean little in the end because we don't know for sure where the story is going to go, but

elysia was "born from nothing" which doesn't quite have the same connotations as march 7th's "birth" but you know. they both found themselves in a sudden state of existence with next to nothing to fall back on and they defined themselves

elysia is not humble about her beauty and speaks often of it (as she should; she is very pretty). similarly, march frequently boasts about her cuteness and describes herself as the cutest girl in the world (as she should; she is very cute)

"never forget your roots" is one of the mantras elysia lives by. this stands out to me because despite not... really needing those memories, march is pretty insistent on remembering her past. the lesson that the garden of remembrance and just the universe and her adventures in general have tried to teach her ("your present defines you; so long as you're happy here, you don't need the memories of your past, and retrieving them might destroy what you've come to love now") just doesn't appear to be sinking in. perhaps because she subconsciously has a core belief stating the opposite

as for how mem would fit into this i have nothing for you because we don't have anywhere near enough info on them for me to begin thinking about that. but it seems like they'll be a pretty big deal.

like i'm spitballing more than anything here. if march IS a fragment of cyrene i think it's also obvious that she has grown into her own, entirely separate person and her origins are inconsequential - though she might not think that if/when she learns this about herself. that might also offer an explanation for why the garden of remembrance won't let her have any part of her old memories, not even a hint. because learning that she's technically a piece of someone else might be too heavy a blow to her sense of identity and she'll be entirely too focused on all the wrong things. uncovering her past will slow her down at the most inopportune moment... make her vulnerable in all the worst ways. which might be why she appears so absent from the adventure.

it's also possible that like. all three of these guys - march, cyrene, and mem - are fragments of a titan (don't ask me which). or that march was given cyrene's coreflame (don't ask me which) before being catapulted into space. or march was the previous owner of the coreflame cyrene has now - if they can be passed on to other people - before being catapulted into space. or i mean, the coreflame cyrene HAD because i'm not convinced this girl's fully alive and well. mem IS the coreflame, brought to life/imparted with cyrene's memories and will.

do you see... there's just so very much to think about... looooots of story spoilers got thrown at us if we can just... untangle the mess... can anyone HEAR me

[localcuttlefish]

You know what. Fuck it. Classic horror AU Edward Little. Everyone sit down. Today you learn.

The scaffolding of Werewolf Edward Little:

Remember that dog that bit his hand as a boy? Not a dog. That was a whole ass werewolf mauling. He was lucky to have survived, and his father made a point of instilling the idea that he had to make something worthwhile out of his now cursed life, because who else gets a second chance like that.

(I bet the reason why he ALLEGEDLY threw hands and was involved in a court martial during his time on the HMS Dublin was because someone called him the Beast of Gévaudan or something on top of being called blackguard.)

Crozier, regardless of whether or not Ned is the only supernatural entity on the expedition (which he more than likely is not), would know Little is a lycanthrope. You can’t sneak that past Captain Francis Rawdon Moira “it’s not paranoia if I’m right” Crozier. The notion that the crew takes silverware aboard the expedition is also more notable— it’s insurance in the event of a werewolf attack.

Several scenes Edward can be interpreted as showing restraint or bottling up anger. Werewolves don’t only transform under the full moon in many modern iterations— they can transform under extreme stress, anger, fear, or even misery and sadness. He’s not just bottling up anger, he’s preventing himself from becoming a damn horse-sized wolf-monster on a ship barely big enough for most of the men to stand upright in its largest rooms.

(He’s not a violent dog, he doesn’t know why he bites.)

Fanbase characterizes Ned as a guardian dog a lot. It’s a really fun subversion of expectations for Edward’s “lunacy” as a wolf just being an overactive, twisted, violent, haunting need to protect, instead of a merciless bloodlust. He’s a resource guarder. It just so happens the resource is men aboard the expedition. It actually makes him quite a good Lieutenant when not in a massive tragedy, since he takes into consideration the importance of group survival, coordination, and safety.

The months where the moon is just spinning overhead in the Arctic are the worst of it. His skin itches from the inside out and he wants to peel himself to shreds to shed everything he recognizes as human about himself just for sake of his comfort. He can’t go outside. He can’t see the full moonlight.

Scientifically, it probably burns a TON of calories to transform from human to massive wolf thing. He’s spontaneously creating and reallocating muscle and bone. Realistically, he would need a lot of those lead-lined tins of meat to survive and not start looking to. Other meat sources. To stay alive. Which is why he’s so devastated and horrified to find out how all of the tins were poisoned. He needs to keep poisoning himself to keep everyone else safe.

The ending desperation and starvation hurts more if you consider the fact that most of the crew probably expect him of all people to snap and eat a sailor. But if we just change those watch chains from gold to silver… then he’s fighting to the end to remain human, remain calm, and not let the horror and hunger overtake him. And he succeeds in the end, actually.

I bet Le Vesconte told him frank that if the resource shortage continues, they won’t be able to trust Ned not to go feral. Ned takes initiative to PROVE the men can trust him and pierces his face with silver to poison himself and stay human.

Cainids can synthesize their own vitamin C. Scurvy was never going to be an issue for him (part of what made him good on the sea)— it was always going to be caloric deficit, starvation, thirst, and exhaustion. When Crozier finds him, Crozier can tell Ned is too weak to go feral with hunger if Ned transforms. Crozier can take the silver chains off Ned’s face. Ned can stop tearing at his skin and just be the monster everyone thinks he is, and he lies there, wolf head in his captain’s lap, whining with every weak exhale until he stops breathing.

[indieyuugure]

Hi Indie!

So, I've been wondering, how did you plan out your TMNT Iteration? I'm asking because I actually have an idea for one I'm hoping to eventually write, but don't know how to start.

Hm, I feel like “planned” is a strong word, I think it’s more like “haphazardly ‘what-if’-ed some plots into existence in the shower and whilst trying to fall asleep.” But I think there has been more concrete planning more recently in the project

I think my advice would be to come up with some really rad turtle designs. They don’t have to be forever, in fact plan on changing them later, but just come up with a design for each of the boys that makes you excited.

Once you have some turtles to imagine, you can start thinking up plots and imagining the world and characters in it. Is there a Foot clan? What are they like? Is Shredder the boss? What’s he like? Are there Krang/Kraang/utroms? Are they good or evil? What’s their agenda? Do the turtles have friends? What are April and Casey like? Etc.

If you’re stuck, try out imagining your versions of the turtles in different situations from other series. What would happen if your turtles went to space? Or went back in time? Or fought in a battle nexus arena, or had a showdown with Shredder? Don’t be afraid to pull ideas from non-TMNT universes either, it may make for something crazy and cool!

Just start going down the rabbit hole and go crazy, even if you have two ideas for something, write them both down, you can flesh out both and choose later, just make your ideas exist. I recommend doing a mix of writing and drawing to help you get firm ideas of your characters and stuff, but if drawing isn’t really your thing, you need to at the very least write it down.

Perhaps not every thought that flits through your brain, but definitely some important stuff. I guarantee you do not have a good enough memory to remember every cool idea you have. If you don’t write at least some stuff down, you risk forgetting it and you’ll be super mad if you forget an awesome idea.

Once you feel satisfied with the quantity of stuff you have—maybe you’ll invent more stuff later, maybe cut some stuff—just keep refining and re-writing the ideas until your satisfied with every aspect of the plot, characters, relationship dynamics, everything.

It helps you work out plot holes and add foreshadowing and stuff which is very important for making a cohesive story. Maybe it takes a weekend to refine it, maybe it takes a year. Go at your own pace making these decisions and ask people for help when you need it. But most importantly, do what makes you happy.

So uh, TLDR: Make your turtles first, imagine them going on adventures and meeting people, please oh please for the love of everything good in this world write your ideas down, and please refine them so you don’t end up with weird plot holes and characters that canonically got the same scar twice in two different ways at two different times.

I hope that helps! I wish you luck on your writing adventure! ^v^

Good question! :]

[wettvagina]

STICKY ICKY

desc: ohmygod! eren yeager, the college jock everyone wants to fuck, got his dick leaked all over campus. with his dickpic in every girl's phone, what happens when you finally get to see it.. warnings: p in v , creampie , blowjob , hottub sex a/n: dont do this irl guys, you will get an sti!

The bottom of your sandals clicked as you walked through the hallway of your apartment, the crisp air smelled like baby powder and cold donuts, the air conditioning system pumped frigid wind onto your face, causing a shiver to go down your spine, your face scrunched as you hurried to find your keycard, almost excited to get to your comfy queen sized bed, located in your cozy, homely room.

You saw the card scanner emit a green flash of light, indicating that the door was unlocked, with a flip of your wrist you unlocked the door, hearing everyone's voices in full volume. "No way! Is this what....the second time?" Sasha snorted, "No, this is the first time." Mikasa retorted in her usual calm voice, a slight smirk on her face as she conversed amongst the group of Ymir, Historia and Sasha.

The four of them sat on the floor of your living room, the pink, fuzzy carpet under your coffee table provided an area for Sasha to lay down as she snacked on some gummy worms in her hand, "Oh you're home, come look at this." Ymir's voice rang, your brows furrowed and you briskly deserted your belongings onto the couch before looking at what was displayed on Ymir's phone.

"WOAH!" your eyes widened as your friends snickered, "Thoughts?" Sasha chirped, "First of all, why is it so big?" you announce, "And veiny and pink." you went on, "Guess who?" Sasha snorted once again, "Wait that's real, no way, I thought that shit was AI generated or something the way how big it is." you mention as you crossed your legs to sit on the floor.

"Oh, yeah, it does look kinda fake cuz' it's zoomed up." Ymir mentions before taking her thumb and index finger to pinch at her screen, showing you the original picture, "No way! Is that?" you shouted, "Uh huh." Ymir nodded, you looked at Ymir's phone with wide eyes and a slightly heated face.

The erotic picture on Ymir's phone showed the school's thotty hottie, Eren Yeager, shirtless, grey sweatpants slightly pullled down exposing his hard cock, his phone was in his hands, half-way blocking his face but everyone knew it was him. His tense abs glazed with sweat and his dick was just panty wetting.

"No way." you iterated, in complete disbelief, feeling a sense of loss as Ymir pulled her phone away, "I mean, definitely not surprised." Historia chimed in, "He is him, after all." Mikasa sighed, "A manwhore." Sasha snarled while chewing, "Wonder who leaked it though." you say chewing on your nail.

"Hm, I say it probably got surface from his hidden Twitter account or something." Ymir suggested playfully, "Or OnlyFans." Sasha teased, "I wouldn't doubt it." Historia shrugged, "His fans are definitely getting off to that." Ymir taunted, "I know I am." you say, half heartedly. "Gross." Historia giggled, "What? I mean did you see that thing, it's like a uterus pounder." you sneered.

"That is nasty, but you're right though." Sasha agreed, "I dunno' how I'm gonna look at him the same." Mikasa shook her head, causing everyone to giggle. "Can I see that again?" you questioned, making Ymir turn on her phone, pointing the screen at you to which you grabbed, examining the entire picture oncemore.

"Hm, yeah I think I wanna fuck him now." you admit, "C'mon, have some respect for yourself." Historia joked, "No like seriously, he's carrying a third leg." you say straightforwardly. "Well I mean, if you wanna take a ride on that horse, go for it. Eren is pretty easy." Ymir states, "Yeah, wear a condom though, you wouldn't want to get any...disease." Sasha encouraged, "You know there is that party tonight." Historia mentions, "Well, it's confirmed, I'm fucking him tonight." you declare with heavy emphasis on the word fucking.

"Good luck, girl." Mikasa cheers on.

It seems the universe had been on your side that night, as Eren was nowhere to be found in Connie's condo party, you looked in every corner, bathroom and bedroom, he was absent. What if he did show out of embarrassment, I mean his dick literally just got leaked everywhere, or wait, did he have a girlfriend? And was he hooking up with her???

You obviously did not think this plan through, leading you to go on a sex-deprived, drunken rant to everyone about how you hadn't had any good sex in three months, leading Jean to pushing you outside Connie's condo, telling you to 'get some air', so you went at the top floor, to actually get some air.

And there you found him, smoking weed near in the hottub. Oh boy it was a scene, he was half naked, those God-carven abs on full display along with his v-line, his hair was free and rested delicately along his shoulders.

Smiling to yourself, you had schemed a profound plan. You threw your dress of your body, thanking yourself for wearing a matching underwear set of a pink push-up bra and matching panties. You composed yourself, barely walking in a straight line as you approached the hot tub which was sectioned off in a small square near the pool.

"Oh, I didn't realize the hot tub was occupied." You say, your glossed lips pursed once you finished talking, "O-Oh. I don't mind." Eren says calmly, taking a final puff of his blunt before discarding it. "Really? Well if you don't mind." you smirk to yourself before getting into the hot tub, the space was small, but wide enough to keep you both at an appropriate distance from eachother as you sat parallel to him, your face facing his as he exhaled the smoke.

"I've seen you before." Eren immediately striked conversation, "Yeah? I've seen you too." you smirk, Eren blushes, seemingly getting at what you were saying, "Right, we have the same major?" he asks, "Hm, what's your major?" you ask, noticing has gaze raking your body. "Huh?" he asks like an idiot, "I said what's your major?" you repeat with a sweet, calm voice, "Oh- Computer Science." he says, "Mines Econ, we probably share some classes though." you mention, "Yeah." he agrees.

"I didn't know you live in this building." Eren admits, "Oh, right." you say awkwardly, it's cuz' you dont, your broke ass lives in the building atleast four blocks away because it was the cheapest option, only rich guys with sport scholarships live here.

"Well, you barely know me, haha." you giggle awkwardly, "Well, wanna change that?" he asks with a smirk. "What are you trying to say?" you question, and in one swift motion his body is near you and his hand is ontop yours. "You know what I'm trying to say." he says, and with that final sentence, he leans in for a much anticipated kiss.

His pink, swollen, warm lips rode against yours, as you felt his hand wrap behind your neck, pulling you in closer as he slides his tongue into your mouth. His body cages yours as your back presses against the wall of the hot tub the warm water surrounded your body seemingly intensified it's tempurature.

His hand lowers to your ass, grabbing at the plump flesh as he presses kisses along your neck, his hand lowers to behind your knee, hooking both hands behind each of your knees as he pulls you up onto him, continuing to kiss onto your neck, you drape your arms around his neck feeling your clit throb against your panties.

Feeling his dick slightly poke against your inner thighs, you feel him pull away. "No- we should stop." he says almost shyly, still holding you up, "Why?" you question immediately, "I don't have a condom." he says while looking down. "Good, I wanted you to fuck me raw anyways." you say eagerly.

He grins before letting you off of him, spinning you around so that your pelvis pressed against the walls of the hot tub, you feel his hand on your ass underwater and his lips come near your ears, "You sure?" he asks, "Mhm." you hum, and feel some water splashing as he takes his dick out, you look back at at, seeing it in the flesh.

Lawd, it was bigger in real life, you couldn't wait for him to just fuck you already, you knew that you probably added some liquid into this hot tub with how wet you were. You continued to watch back as he slipped it in, slowly rocking his hips onto your ass, you arch your back as his huge dick was only half in.

"Shit." you hear him groan, and you push back onto him, his entire dick entered your pussy and you watched as his face contorted to match the pleasure he was feeling, his brows shot up and his eyes glassy. "'m gonna move." you hear him say, your hum in response was turned into a moan that fell off your tongue as he harshly pressed himself against you, grabbing onto your hips as he pounded into your pussy.

The only sounds you heard was his groans and grunts, as well as the sound of his skin slapping onto yours which was muffled by the splashing of water. "Oh shit." you cried out as you felt his fingers dig deeper into your hips, his pace increasing.

"Shit." his breaths were ragged as he watched down to where his dick slid in and out of your welcoming pussy, he slightly smirked at the sight as he leaned his face to the back of your neck, inhaling your scent before kissing onto your skin.

You were a bit surpised since he was fucking you like if you were his wife or something, you barely knew him, but you had no complaints and your thoughts were immediately slammed out of your head when you felt his dick tense inside of you, "Oh-" his words were cut off when you felt your insides get warmer, hearing him pant as he released his warm come inside of you.

"Shit." he groans, pressing himself deeper into you, his pelvis jamming against the curve of your ass as he rides out his high, moaning and groaning into your mouth as you turn your head to look back at him, only for him to kiss you oncemore.

He pulls out of you swiftly and you hear the water splash, "You think you can go for one more." you ask looking back at him, "Sure." he smiles, "Follow me." you say, climbing out of the hot tub, and grabbing onto his hand as you lead him the the changing rooms, you go into the women's changing room with your hand in his.

It was late and the room was empty, you passed through a series of empty toilet stalls to get to the other side of the room which was a changing room with showers, "Sit." you instruct, watching as he sits on the bench in front of you. You get onto your knees between his thighs, pulling at his waistband watching how his cock already erected again.

You didn't hesitate to take his cock into your mouth, sucking on the tip before licking onto the entire shaft, your lips pressed around his tip as you swirled your tongue around the slit, licking at the beads of precome around the swollen tip.

"S-Shit." you hear him groan as your head bobs on his cock, you continue to suck on the tip while stroking the parts of his dick where your mouth wasn't on. You released the tip from the warmth of your mouth to spit on it, taking it back into your mouth oncemore as you try to fit his entire length into your mouth.

His fists clench and his knees were almost shaking, loose strands of his hair hung in front of his face as water droplets ran down his bare chest and down to his chiseled abs. "Fuck." he grunts, hand digging into your hair, you look up at him as he jolts his hips forward into your mouth, making his tip hit the back of your throat.

And within seconds he's coming in your mouth, you feel his hot, white come in your mouth as he groans, thighs shaking as you continued to lick at his tip while he comes in your mouth. "Fuck!" he curses as he rides out his second high, hips stuttering slightly when you rub at his dick while he's still coming.

"I need your number." he says between heavy breaths.

[flickering-nightfall]

Watcher Thoughts

Spoilers for everything!

This is a shortened version of a much longer essay where I jotted down all my thoughts about the campaign. This is still pretty long, but hopefully it’s digestible enough.

Gameplay

Loved the initial twist. Was disappointed that we'd have another repeat with the siblings for a second. I love them but after eight campaigns, I was ready for something new. I'm not put off about not having another iterator (yet? I’m not counting Prince) either. It would have been neat, but exploring different stuff instead is good.

Got stuck a couple times, as I didn't understand what I was supposed to do to progress. I had fun exploring the regions, but exploring the majority of the first three with no idea of what to do next was frustrating. It wasn't even about story progression either - I just wanted to see more regions! But region and creature discovery felt very rewarding at least.

Portal placements were pretty wack and regions felt disconnected - you've probably heard it all already at this point. Some improvements like portal markers on the map will help (I'm certain that they'll either add it officially, or someone will make a mod). I avoided playing any region mods before this to keep things fresh, so I have zero context for any of these places. They're certainly very pretty at least.

Story

Droplets forming ripples in the water…? Yes there's a stray pixel in one frame. I made this from a spritesheet, it's not my fault, I swear

Although I would have preferred something different, I respect that the devs wanted to explore new and frankly wild routes. If it were me, I probably would have done a rare working transit system or something. Keep things grounded, group the new regions by theming so that you can at least connect them to each other. (Like Badlands + Rusted Wrecks + Torrid Desert.) I would have liked exploring ideas like scavenger societies or new biome lore instead of... rift walking through time and space madness. But I can't deny it was fun!

I really enjoyed Spinning Top (the echo), I think they’re very funny. I’m not bothered by them being able to move around - Two Sprouts, Twelve Brackets kinda imply they can too, at least enough to watch the tunnels of Subterranean. Maybe it depends on the echo too.

The decision to make a proper, repeated character out of an echo was interesting. Though I’m on the fence about the demystification of echoes and ascension. I do like Spinny’s arc and their story, and it gave me strong feelings to see them finally choose to move forward. I liked what they had to say, in terms of more lore for the ancients, their own character, and also in their final scene. 

Being tethered to the world by the sorrow of realizing you weren't loved in the way you should have been loved. Craving a warmth you can see but never feel again. The concept of peace after long-lived suffering. Able to move on because you had someone at your side, someone who cared enough to keep coming back to you, even if it was just a silent, peeping little creature. It resonated with me.

The purpose of the ending confused me at first. I thought Watcher playing with the toys was an example of their personality, maybe - distant, relatively unaffected by the events that just unfolded. And maybe that’s still true, but the emphasis on the spinning top in the campaign select screen… I’m not sure what yet, but playing with the echo’s namesake, their former beloved toys… there was something there.

I feel weird about Watcher being able to influence the world physically. I thought the point of echoes was that they were ghosts unable to interact with the physical plane. Only able to provide a bit of enlightenment for slugcat with their presence - stuck between one world and the next. Unless it’s all a dream (a trope I dislike and partially assign to Saint anyways), or Watcher is not quite an echo, in which case… hm.

Personally I'm tired of the rot, and I preferred it as a relatable and contained disease, rather than a sentient force that can corrupt worlds across time (and dimensions/timelines?). What they did with it was interesting, at least. You can explain it being Like That™ as a different strain of rot from Pebbles’, or it being because Watcher is a separate continuity. But it’s not about the explanation for me - it’s about the themes.

I enjoyed Prince as a character - I like the way they look, move and speak. But I didn’t get as attached as I could have due to my lukewarm feelings about rot stuff and Watcher’s rift powers in this DLC. Though, due to this campaign, I don’t know if I’ll keep headcanoning voidspawn as a lesser consequence (than echoes) of not being ready for ascension. The "stinging idiots" seem very intent on getting Watcher/echoes to finish crossing over into the next realm.

It seems like they want to portray the void as a force, to which the rot is the antithesis of. Prince spoke of wanting all life to go on forever, never lost - and then a force opposing its own. And it seems like that force may have won. I suppose all things must return to the cycle, or come to an end, eventually…

You can hear a single whispering iterator voice as you walk up to Prince’s puppet for the last time. That voice disappears after the karma flowers take over. Patches of them now bloom across all the regions. But the rot continues to spread! So hm I dunno what’s up with that.

Since they're adding more content later, I feel like they'll probably be character-centric threads too. Spinning Top and the Prince are probably two chapters in a broader anthology. I wonder where they’ll go from here. (Maybe a way I can unrot my save file? Haha.)

Regions

The art direction is great in my opinion. Some regions that stuck out to me:

Badlands (minus the locusts, they should really not see you while you’re invisible). The vibes are immaculate.

Torrid Desert. I usually find desert maps boring, but the sand dunes were a refreshing break from geometric tiling. In general, I really like breaks from the tile-based geometry. The first time I saw a scavenger templar/disciple (don’t remember which one) was a neat moment. I find the implications of those guys existing quite interesting.

Shrouded/Stormy Coast. Something about the warehouse crates and hanging platforms really tickled my fancy. I think the scale of it all, as well as the color provided from the crates, contributed to it feeling so good to me.

Desolate Tract: Conversely to the wavy desert dunes, this place being so flat, not boring due to the uniqueness of that, and backdropped by the wind tunnel really made me curious about this place. I hope they fix the bug that makes your FPS tank here though.

Outer Rim: Rife with secrets, both left and right. The desert portion reminded me of Kingdom Hearts' Keyblade Graveyard. Against all odds the scavengers continue to survive, and like in Torrid Desert they have strange, powered garb. Void-infused clothing? It’s interesting.

Ancient Urban: Even if I'll argue about ancient scaling forever, the actual presentation of this place was amazing. I was eating it all up and now I really want to get around designing my ancient OCs. You think it was named this as a nod to the popularized fandom term? Haha. 

Unfortunate Development: The dead coral corpse of Pebbles 2 electric boogaloo. The void worm is weird and all (is it rot-corrupted or just a faceless facsimile the rot created?), but I enjoyed the environment more. The background was a tesseract-like frame that stretched on seemingly forever. That was what really spooked me.

Brightness and contrast adjusted for viewing ease. Where is your head?

What are Starcatchers? They look iterator-like. Maybe it’s an alternate dimension thing, just as Signal Spires has the pyramid concept art iterators in the background? They could be structures that aren’t iterators, a different build type of them, or an alternate timeline, I guess. Starcatchers probably perform a function related to their name, regardless.

I remember before this DLC, some people interpreted iterator bricks as cylinders instead.

In the files Outer Rim also has a curving sky and a placeholder background where the earth is crumbling at the edge. And it’s literally called Outer Rim. Could also be a floating landmass, or sinking into the void sea, if you wanted to try out some other explanation. But I think that flat planet Rain World theory has some more evidence with this one. (I don’t think I can use flat planet RW for my space-involved AU but it is still interesting)

At the edge of the world...?

Someone (I think it was a reddit comment, I've been brain blasted with so much Watcher stuff that it's all starting to mix together) pointed out that spreading rot in the past doesn’t influence their future versions, so alternate dimensions aren’t out of the question. (Unless all regions are separate places - I wasn’t sure if places like Stormy Coast vs. Shrouded Coast were supposed to be the same or not. Or if the karma flowers kill the rot in the past, only for it to crop up again in the future and die again, but that seems overly convoluted.)

Time and space riftwalking shenanigans were already a lot - timelines/alt dimensions feel like quite a step further. In this case you are not following just the one “thread,” as Spinny puts it.

Final Thoughts

Initially I had a poorer reaction to Watcher's story, but some of it was defensiveness over the tone and headcanons I had come to like about RW and DP. After a few days of it settling in, I find myself warming up to Watcher more. I may have liked something different more, but I can enjoy and appreciate Watcher for what it is. 

If people can differentiate the canons of the DLCs (...it might be a little easier than vanilla vs. DP, because Watcher is so fantastical), I think I can have a fun time with both. 

Speaking of headcanons, giant ancients are pretty inconsistent with a lot of the environmental clues about ancient size, even the new regions within the DLC itself. I’ll post some stuff about it with screenshots and drawings later. 

Here's a couple of them...

I think literal hand puppet iterators are a good reminder that an iterator is more than its puppet. I can really imagine them as a giant machine waving a cute toy on a stick, a form more palatable for their audience. (Although that does make Moon being stuck in the PoV of one feel a little weirder too.) It emphasizes the way ancients likely thought of them as well. The concept is just neat.

However, I don't know if I would have fixated on iterators so hard without seeing puppets as more of a proper body. The superstructure is fantastic - but the puppet avatar makes it easier to identify with them as people and characters. The puppet being completely toylike rather than closer to a body-like vessel makes that a little more difficult. 

For a lot of stuff I’ve already written, especially interactions between ancient and iterator OCs, the size discrepancy is too much. So I just won’t adhere to giant ancients or tiny everything else hahaha

In general I mostly see myself using the snippets of ancient lore, region stuff, new creatures. If possible, I'd like to see what secrets can be uncovered about the new regions. 

I’m not interested in using stuff like the sentient rot when it comes to the continuities I more deeply engage with. My opinions may continue to evolve over time, we’ll see. But these are my thoughts after a few days of processing.

[cupcakeslushie]

I am really enjoying your Empyrean Weeping AU and am looking forward to the Donnie Arc (the brothers need to save the feral child immediately).

I have a question for you: When it comes to making au how do you know if your going “too far” with an au (if there’s even such a thing) as in that your drifting too far from the canon world, characters and story? Maybe even to the point where you can’t really even say that the au is an au of a preexisting world and not just its own separate thing. How many changes, additions or flat-out rewrites are too many?

I ask this because I’m making my own au for a franchise I really adore but I’m kinda worried about going a little too crazy with my ideas. I know that because it’s an au it doesn’t have to adhere to canon, that’s why it’s called an “alternate universe” in the first place but still.

Like- Your EW characters (and overall world) are pretty different from their canon Rise counterparts and the AU is great! Feeling like it could stand on its own as a completely separate TMNT iteration.

I just don’t know if I’m going about this right with the plans for my au. So I’m looking for a bit of advice I suppose.

Whoa. Sorry that this got so long and ramble-y.

I think….hm. This is a good question. Part of it is, there really is no limit. If you’re fine with going crazy with it…but you do still want some aspects of the characters to shine through, I’ll tell you what I do.

I tend to be really interested in the whole concept of nature vs nurture. So I look at each character individually and pick out which traits I believe are ingrained, which are learned, which grew out of necessity—like coping mechanisms…and I see what new lenses I can show them through.

Like for example, Donnie’s desperate desire to be useful. We saw how panicked he became in Witch Town, when he thought there was a possibility he’d be replaced by mystic powers…if we take that fear—put it through the angle of him being raised Draxum, and being constantly treated as though he was useless…I imagined that would make him even worse at being impulsive and causing chaos in any attempt to prove himself.

Mikey is super competitive, so I figured he would shine if thrown into the battle nexus, and be an adorable little shit about it! He’d take a lot of pride in his wins—at first, but he’s also very empathetic, and those two traits would start to clash.

What if Leo’s coping skill of making everything a joke is totally stripped from him via his strict upbringing with the Foot Clan?

Raph is the one always taking care of his brothers, what would it be like if he got more attention as an only child?

These are really basic questions I started with, and I love sneaking in little ways my boys are similar and ways they’re different to canon (like Leo hating magic instead of loving it, because of what Kitsune did to him)

If you want to keep closer to the source material, but still make it your own, figure out what circumstances call for which changes, and which aspects you think would stay in tact, no matter what they go through.

I hope this made sense!

[threestarsaboveclouds]

Greetings, Three Stars Above Clouds.

Due to my absence of work, I have been quite intrigued by the activity of other iterators in the vicinity, and I must say, your purpose is the most unique by far! From listening into past broadcasts, you have quite the intricate history.

As for the questions, I only have some simple ones. But I hope they will suffice.

Has there been any anomalies in the sky that held your interest for a while? If so, has it remained mysterious or been found out? Also, the stars appear green here, but I’m not sure how. Is it because of something in the atmosphere or are they truly green?

… ah. One more. What are the physical features of your surrounding grounds? Any special structures to help with observation?

Thank you for your time. I hope your future teachings go well.

[Mirrors Reflecting Incisions, Group @rain-upon-forgotten-blades]

@rain-upon-forgotten-blades/@wingbluff

TSAC: Hello, Mirror Reflecting Incisions! I am happy to answer your questions.

Firstly, to address your questions about anomalies in the sky… the study of such occurrences is the main focus of my research, in fact! I was designed by my creators to study a wide manner of night sky phenomena. In particular, my research focuses on changes in the Celestial Spheres.

Long ago, it was believed that the objects in the sky were permanently affixed to an immutable Firmament. This belief persisted throughout the public consciousness and was widely considered fact. The Celestial Spheres, inerrant and perfect, existed, and will always exist in the manner they do in the present. Any deviations to the contrary were considered to be a bad omen; a disruption in the Karmic balance of the universe.

However, my creators, the Firmamentalists, pioneered the idea that the sky is not a static, unchanging thing; rather, the Celestial Spheres are shifting in predictable, rational ways, which are apparent to anyone with an open mind and the ability to notice. These apparent abnormalities were not signs of Karmic unrest, but instead were just small precessions upon a much grander Cycle, whose changes were previously too minute to observe, before the advancement of observational techniques.

…all that is to say, that I have studied these “anomalies” you mention in great detail. I myself have published many treatises on their origins over the Cycles, and I struggle to pick among them for one to share with you…

Hm… perhaps I shall share a topic that has been intriguing me for some time; another type of precession, namely the precession of our planet’s rotational axis.

One can think of our planet as a spinning top, rotating on its axis. This axis is tilted slightly relative to the planet’s orbital plane around the Sun, and it maintains its direction as it orbits. This axial tilt results in the seasons.

However, over a much longer timescale, this axial tilt slowly traces out a large circle, just like a spinning top will slowly wobble as it spins. This precession is very slow, completing one full circle about once every 25,000 orbits. It was almost undetectable, until the introduction of more advanced astronomical measurement techniques and the maintenance of more extensive records.

This precession also results in the movement of the celestial north pole- currently, the north pole is close to the brightest star in the constellation of The Vulture, but in several thousand orbital cycles, it will move towards the constellation of The Mother.

This movement of the planet’s axis is well understood, but there is another aspect of this phenomenon that is more mysterious. As the axis slowly precesses, it also wobbles slightly due to the gravitational forces of the Sun and Moon, in a process known as nutation. Some nutation is also caused by the gravitational distribution of the planet itself.

Due to the length of the great precessive cycle, we lack a full dataset for one complete rotation. My creators first made note of the phenomenon approximately 12,000 orbital cycles ago, and I myself have only been collecting detailed records for less than half of that. 

I have found from thousands of cycles of data that the nutation of the planet’s axis predicted by my creators appears to be inaccurate; the data I have recorded seems to be diverging from the pre-determined model. I am not sure why; I doubt it is an issue with my own equipment, as I keep it meticulously calibrated… it may be the case that the gravitational forces acting on the planet may be different than what has been estimated. I will have to re-evaluate my models… perhaps I need to change the inputs to account for the karmic effects of movement within the Void Sea…

…

…ah, I may have become distracted thinking about personal projects. I apologize.

Where was I…

…

...As for your question about star colors… I have actually discussed this before!

Put simply, the stars in the sky appear green due to the composition of the atmosphere, as you mentioned. Upon filtering out these atmospheric effects, the stars take on a wide range of different colors… though, interestingly, none are truly green.

Much can be learned about the physical properties of stars by studying their colors, so their spectra are one of the many types of data I collect with my telescopes.

Finally, speaking of my telescopes… the location of my facility grounds was specifically chosen by my creators to accommodate astronomical data collection. My structure is located high in the mountains, where the air is very cold and dry. This discourages the natural formation of clouds, which would otherwise interfere with my telescopes.

Of course, this does not prevent artificial cloud formation caused by my own functions as an iterator. Thus the vast majority of the observational equipment I control is located on the roof of my superstructure, above the cloud layer. Some of my telescopes are located at the base of the mountain; my radio arrays in particular take up far too much space to be accommodated by the limited area available on the roof of my can. However, my own steam output is much easier to predict than the erratic movement of pressure systems closer to sea level, so I am able to easily schedule periods of radio data collection during times of clear skies.

The telescopes on the roof of my structure benefit from clearer skies, but other atmospheric effects can interfere with observations; namely, turbulence in the upper atmosphere. Thankfully, my telescopes are equipped with adaptive optics systems to help mitigate these distortions. Lasers are used as artificial guide stars, allowing the system to analyze the patterns of atmospheric turbulence and correct the telescope mirrors accordingly. I actually developed this system with the help of an old colleague, Fleeting Green Sunsets. They are quite knowledgeable in the field of optics.

I hope this satisfies your curiosity, Mirrors Reflecting Incisions. If you have any discoveries of your own you would like to share, I would be happy to hear about them.

[ Un-obstructed projection here ]

[broareweabouttoviberightnow]

ok. so this is about to be a hot fuckin mess. so. I deeply apologize in advance.

one. JESUS CHRIST!! HOLY FUCK!! HEY MAN WHAT THE HELL!! so absolutely not a one of you was gonna gimme a heads up!! I just had to watch that shit n lose my goddamn MIND huh!! (kiddin kiddin love yall dearly) watchin this was real reminiscent of when I read the book for the first time which was an INSANE feelin to recapture OUGH!!

ok I DO have a few negative thoughts that im gonna get outta the way early cause I have a LOT good to say!!

I do unfortunately think the musical suffers a lot from poor pacin. so many of the songs are back to back to back with almost no dialouge or pause between which gives the story this half rushed feelin. which is a shame (even tho I love all the songs!!)

I veer back n forth between darrys characterization. I think his actor does SUCH a good time with him MOST of the time. n fact the only time I was like. hm. is when he's singin runs in the family rep n gets physical with Soda. that did not feel. right to me.

OK. enough bad!!

the narrative weavin is AOUGH SO well done good LORD I could talk FOREVER about how FASCINATIN n well done that was AOUGHHH everytime pony talks to the audience it is such a profound moment

the use of LIGHT in this show is SOO. GOD. MAN. it is SO well done.

dallas winston is. Jesus hell on wheels. he is one of the back bones of this story in a way he ain't necessarily in other iterations (ABSOLUTELY not sayin one is better then the other. after all I was a book fan first!!) but we get more context for him that we don't see in the book n movie cause those are told strictly from ponys pov. hell man. the scene where dallas finds Johnny outside n gives him the knife adds this whole new level of anguish to his suicide. he put that knife in Johnny's hands. n without him Johnny never would have killed. holy hell.

I ain't gonna talk about it again cause I already did here but. Jesus christ. soda. my baby. the way that when Johnny dies he tries to grab onto pony n pony keeps movin away? I couldn't focus on nothin else is was a HEARTWRENCHIN moment. also how he grabs darry at the end of throwin in the towel n says I need you. it's one of the only times we see soda desperate enough he reminds his brothers he's still there. he still needs to feel loved n cared for n seen.

sobbed my way through little brother n stay gold n the finale. nothin to say. no shame. next.

the set up between darry n dallas is SO intriguin to me. I was SO sat for it. I think the decision to have dallas just rolled into town a couple years ago as opposed to born n raised in tusla has so much impact on his character n how the others view him that is. just so fuckin important. darry who has always been in ponys life. who's the one who breaks his back for him. who sacrificed his dreams for his kid brother. vs dallas who rolled into town n pony immediately looked at like he hung the stars. (another delightful parallel is the idolization of Paul Newman n cool hand Luke to dallas) at the root of darrys dislike is JEALOUSY!! that he was once the one pony looked at like that!! a lot of what dallas says to darry durin there fight pricks at the fact that Dallas has been able to be all the things darry once was. aough.

sky lakota-lynch. my god. he takes such good care of johnnys character. he's so. God. man. what do I even say. how he's always rockin himself to calm down. he's got such a visceral jumpy cagey-ness to him. he's cares so fuckin much about pony man. the imagery of him n pony holdin hands n the knife between them? yeah. cool. HE WAS JUST TOO DAMN GOOD FOR GROWIN OLD. hey! I was sobbin over my laptop! rude!

MID RUMBLE WHERE PONY GOES TO HIT SOMEONE N ITS JOHNNY. OHHH. OK. KILL ME ALREADY. STUNNIN metaphor for the entire thesis of the show. right there. God.

the image at the very end of Johnny goin up to meet dallas n dallas leanin against the post. I'm SICK. good GOD. I'm gonna lose my fuckin mind.

now. a collection of lines. 'I got one of their hubcabs!!" 'do I look like Julie Andrews >:(' '544 FUCKIN PAGES' 'when you close your eyes do you see lightnin?' 'only God n the devil know what I was up to when I was 14' 'it's goldilocks n her ugly sister!!'

[hopeforchanges]

I'm actually marveling at your portrayal of Palpatine. Sure, in the new sith obi-wan au, but in every iteration I've read from you, it doesn't even compare to anything else I've read, I just can see and hear Palpy so clearly when you write him. It's disgusting how i character he is every time. I need like ... a tutorial? :D Pls??

haha, thank you :) yeah, ngl Palpatine IS the toughest character to get right and I will die on this hill; he is absolutely more difficult to write than Obi-Wan.

The tutorial consists of knowing how a groomer operates, essentially. Sure, you have the traits of psychopathy and sociopathy, the blatant narcissism, the delusions of being better than everyone, but if you want my two cents, (obviously you do when you sent this ask lol) the real core of his villainy is his grooming behavior. Sociopathy and psychopathy do not necessarily lead to evil, many diagnosed people lead fulfilling lives that do not cause them or others any destruction. Sociopathy and psychopathy are NOT inherently evil.

Grooming is evil by nature. And groomers absolutely follow a rulebook.

Step one: Targeting a vulnerable person. (Groomers have a radar for people who are in a vulnerable position - orphaned kids, traumatized people, homeless people, etc., could be anything.)

Step two: Gaining trust. (the victims of grooming call this 'kindness' - much like Anakin does on many occasions - when in reality, it's rehearsed empathy. It's a performance. They're nice to you, bring you gifts, take care of your most basic needs - food, shelter, companionship to make you feel like there's somebody in this world who actually gives a shit about you.

Step three: Isolating the target from their loved ones. If you are completely alone, that's a win for them, obviously. But because they more often than not target minors, there's someone taking care of them, at least one person who goes: this guy/gal has rancid vibes, I don't want you to hang out with them anymore. The groomer convinces the victim that their caretaker has nefarious motivations/goals (projecting much) and that if the victim calls the authority, they will be the one who's actually in trouble, not the groomer.

Step four: Slowly exposing the target to sexual stuff. This could be anything, really, it could start by just showing the victim porn without rhyme or reason to instructing them to perform some mild sexual acts. In Palpatine's case, this manifests as exposing the target to the power of the dark side and encouraging them to use it. However, do I think that Palpatine was entirely uninterested in Anakin in a sexual way? My feelings on this vary - sometimes I do see it and sometimes I don't. I see the constant unnecessary touching and constantly invading Anakin's personal space and I'm like: I need to perform exorcism on myself until I don't remember ever seeing this ever again. Then I see the intent behind and I think - hm, perhaps this is purely a slaver's touch asserting dominance over his property. Like I said, my feelings on this are unclear. Let's just say it's really fucking gross either way, which is something we can all agree on.

Step five: The actual sex. Again, in Palpatine's case, this manifests as revealing himself for who he is (abuser) and taking Anakin (the abused) down with him.

TLDR; you have to have the process of grooming at the forefront of your mind to write Palpatine well - even if in different aus his victim does not need to always be Anakin.

boy i did not mean for this shit to be this long lmao i hope this helps clarify not just how to effectively write Palpy but also for my girls and boys who may stumble upon a groomer irl.

Please be safe out there and talk to whoever you can to help you if you encounter a groomer.

[calamarispiderart]

hello hello!!! random question before i get started on work haha

how do you come up with dialogue for ur hms comics? the back n forth of them feels so heavy and realistic. especially the casualness paired with the bleeding-brooding (alliteration for fun) violence makes everything just. hit. in a tragic and hopeless way imo. it’s so neat :0

i’ve been trying that kind of writing out a bit lately too. this is what i’ve managed with my iambic pentameter gang (hms but rain world iterator). MiND is being threatened by the rage pent up inside himself. and, strangely enough, it has the voice of HeART.

constructive feedback is welcome ^_^!

once again, hello hello! sending good wishes and all :]. i love ur work ^_^ 💛

oooo hmm... this isnt something ive ever really thought about trying to explain, thank you for the question! big fan of the posing in the piece youve added here btw, i like the alliteration in 'heliocentric heathen' B:•∆

honestly the way i go about writing them isnt something i feel i can put into words with a clear structure of process... often with my comics it starts with me simply having a vague idea of 'i want to make a comic today', and drawing what feels right to lead into it. the words typically link in with the actions as well - i usually draw something, draw the next thing, write a bit of dialogue, draw the next thing, write more dialogue.... not in that exact order but the words always feel to be a reaction to the actions and the actions are a reaction to the words (and/or, words and actions work in tandem). people rarely talk in a vacuum, especially when theyre having the conversation in person, so i find it helpful to see the actions as part of the dialogue and vice versa.

occasionally ive scripted out dialogue beforehand (always with actions included within the script.) but even with a script what actually is said needs to adjust with whats been drawn. when i dont write with a script (which is the norm), its often while im drawing the next frame that im thinking over whats being said. typically i just go over and over a sentence mentally, adjusting bits until it feels right, looking at it once its written on the page and adjusting it more if necessary.

perhaps a bit vague? apologies! i do have certain mental rules i try keep in mind for each of the threes characters while writing. 'how would heart respond, how would he word this? mind? i cant word it this way because i know he doesnt do this...' <subconscious questions and thoughts but they are important to keep in mind. i find it the most helpful to keep the core traits i personally see in them in mind, and let those traits kind of... guide what is said. if i think of how that collection of traits and facets would respond to something, the vague concept that creates can then go through the filters of dialogue traits i have in mind for them. ...ehhh, put more simply... 'what is the general response this character would have to this situation' and then 'how would they structure that response through words and/or actions?'.

i, being who i am, cccc being what it is, am somewhat naturally inclined to writing grim and bleeding-brooding (nice word) things. i also consider myself to be quite a grounded person, which i hope comes through in my work! however, natural inclinations aside, cccc itself is quite a bleeding-brooding album (at least it is to me). its one about depression and self hatred and it really doesnt pull many punches in that respect. or at least, thats my read on it! as a result, that becomes reflected in my interpretation of hms. however, id also note that cccc is silly at times, theres humor in it. all good grim things need a bit of levity to really make it feel Real... people joke in the worst of times, not just the best, and it really helps in writing serious things to have just a little bit of joke to it, even if its not immediately noticable... this is hard to really give examples of honestly but it is relevant i promise. im unsure if youve read much of my writing aside from my comics, but theres just a bit of absurdity and humor in both my cccc pieces that would make the writing feel sorely lacking without in my opinion. notable with how violent and tense both those pieces are.

lots of words now! hopefully helpful ones B:•] or at least interesting! ill try write out some of the core traits and details i keep in mind when writing hms so as to give better reference points to all my prior words:

heart: reactive, not instigative. he doesnt start fights, he finishes them. he also doesnt need an insane amount of prompting to get going... but he does need prompting. apathetic, a bit fanciful. hes depressed, and not in a cute way. he talks casually but he uses serious words. no point in simplifying his language - he wants to be taken seriously, and while he makes himself look small and weak at times he is Not weak and he is Not small. hes just as much of a wordsmith as the other two. he covers his mouth when he speaks sometimes, and he puts his hand over his chest... a bit defensive? muffling his own input, but notably he still speaks. lies by omission or by twisting facts - if full honesty helps his case, thats what he uses. if a white lie works better... i personally see him as a bit of a planner too. sometimes his reaction to things is built up to; it never comes out of nowhere, even if it may seem like it.

mind: instigative, less reactive. he still reacts to things but hes generally the one starting shit and hes honestly very bad at Not talking shit. uses contractions. <this is a small one but mind says 'dont' and 'cant' and i dont think ive ever heard him Not use contractions to any notable degree. kind of weak! hes proud of himself, very proud of himself, and even in the moments of the album where theyre getting along he cant drop his superiority complex. hes bad at making compromises that put him as the lesser one. hes also quick to point blame and to lie (even if hes a bit roundabout abt it). hes also not That smart - or at least, hes not any smarter than the other two. he Thinks hes smart and hes quite confident about that but that doesnt actually mean hes right lol. aggressive verbally, passive physically. hypocritical.

both of them tend to see soul as an afterthought, or as something to benefit from. note the 'something', not 'someone'. imo, they dont really see him as a valid living entity in the same way they see themselves. speaking of soul...

soul: hes difficult. hes a difficult and complicated guy. vague, fanciful, depressed, suicidal, tired... i personally see him as quite passive. both passive and active... hes violent, towards himself and towards the others. just as they dont see him as an individual, i believe hes too apathetic and burnt out to see them as individuals either. when he threatens to hang himself, thats a direct threat to the two if them as well - and it functions as one, seeing as they are all linked in that way! his suicidality isnt purely self destructive in the way it would be in other story contexts which i find important to remember. i see him as someone who sleeps a lot... and as someone who is treated more like a tool than anything else. but he is, simultaneously, idealistic. he hopes for the best and would do anything (Anything.) to try and achieve it. he wants things to Get Better or to Stop. most of the time when i write or draw him its within the 'Stopping is the only option to Get Better' stage of things. hes tired and he doesnt want to deal with things but he has to and he doesnt want to and hes at the end of his rope. honestly within the album he feels a bit like a ghost. hes granted a similar level of personhood as the shadow of what could be, which is both more and less than mind and heart get.... hes confusing! hea a difficult guy. honestly you can take a lot of my notes and thoughts on his character with a grain of salt because hes always been such a puzzle to me haha. i find him easiest to convey in art... OH yes one last thought/trait is hes a bit... arrogant? hes tired and hes careless. listen to me or fuck off and die. arrogant. what a guy.

ahaaha this kinda became me just rambling about my reads on the three but.. hopefully helpful!! this is all stuff i try keep in mind when im writing and drawing them. theres certainly nuances ive missed and things i havent worded as well as i could, but you get the idea i hope! all of that informs how i write them and... in a way they almost lead me through the piece.

also! this isnt something i often think about because its just a natural part of the process, but sometimes i end up scrapping stuff! entire paragraphs, panels and poses, because it hits a stasis where i cant find any way for one or the other to continue the interaction - theres a distinct difference between this and the interaction hitting its ending point. if ive written one person saying or doing something and none of the parties involved are able to respond in any way at all, thats a sign that ive conveyed their characters wrong and i need to go back. people *always* have a response to something, whether thats continuing the conversation or leaving or anything. if none of them can come up with a response that feels like them, ive messed up somewhere. dont be afraid to go back and rewrite things.

ummm yeah thats all i can think of to say now! thank you for the question, and thank you for the nice words!! B:•∆ im very happy my comics come off the way youve described, and very happy youve enjoyed my work enough to want to ask me about it!! means a lot to me B:•] your rainworld iterator hms concept sounds swag as hell, id just say to keep at it!! from what youve shown here youve already got a great start B:•∆ thank you again! hope you and anyone else reading this has a good week!

[leosxrealm]

002 — ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛ

★— pairing(s): Max Verstappen x Male! Leclerc! Reader

★— warning(s): none!! except google translated French and Dutch, and possible grammar mistakes

★— (a/n): once again, idk a lot about karting so... the reader's missing a few teeth bc he's 8, that's why it says somewhere that he has a gummy smile. and dialogues have intentional grammar mistakes bc they’re both kids who’re learning english.

★— character information | series masterlist

08-11

"Max, right?" he hears the voice before he sees who says it.

You plop down next to him, shooting a smile his way. He just blinked at you, slightly confused as to who you were. You stare back at him, without saying anything. His eyes widen the slightest and you can see the exact moment he recognizes you.

"You're...vanaf die dag," he mumbles, more for him than you. His expression soon changes and you can't tell if he's confused or irritated or both. (...from that day.)

"Hm?" you tilt your head, not understanding what he said, but it seems like he had recognised you. Your innocent gesture reminded him of a small cat he had seen a few times around his mother's house in Belgium. He scowls at you, this time speaking in english, "What do you want?"

"Your name... Max, right?" you re-iterate your question from before. Max just looks at you. Genuinely confused, why the hell were you so adamant about talking to him?

"You are?" he asks a question of his own. you smile at him, maybe you are getting somewhere with him. "y/n," you say pointing to yourself just like you had a year ago.

He nods. Did this kid not know about stranger danger? Nevertheless, the least he could do was tell his name in return. "Max," he says, although you already seem to know his name. "Where from?" you question him, tilting your head once again.

"Netherlands," he shrugs, looking forward. You didn't think his behavior was rude, you were happy that at least he was indulging you this time. Maybe he was just in a bad mood the other day. Who knows?

"Where that?" you ask. He looks back at you, not knowing how to answer that, so he only says the only answer he could think of, "near Belgium."

He gets up and starts walking away before you could ask him where Belgium was. This time, you're left to watch his back as he walks up to an older man before the both of them leave together.

You leave them to their business, getting up to find one of your brothers to bother next.

---

"Kat?" you jump at the sudden voice, dropping the ice cream you were eating. Eyes wide and mouth open in horror, you turn around to be face to face with Max?

You straighten up your back, quickly wiping your mouth to hide the evidence. Clearing your throat you ask him, "Why you here?"

He narrows his eyes slightly leaning over you (screw him and his tall ass) "Why are you hiding your ice - cream?"

"What? That not mine. I did not eat ice - cream?" you say, jumbling your words a little suspiciously too quickly. And Max, ever the smart, was quick to catch up on it. 

"You not allowed to eat ice cream." He says, not as a question but as a statement. "I'm a big boy! I do what I want!" you scoff turning your back on him. Now looking at the ice cream on the ground, a frown etched onto your face. 

You almost flinch when Max rests his hand on your shoulder. He slowly turns you around, a guilty feeling washing over him after seeing your sad expression. You looked ready to cry. "I will buy you new one," the words leave his mouth before he could even think. 

"Huh?" you look up at him, confused. "Wha-?"

"I'm sorry," he says fumbling with his fingers. He didn't know what else to do. He wasn't trying to scare you and make you drop your ice cream. So, he did the only thing that felt right to him. 

"Oh... It- It's okay," you try to refuse his offer but Max is already dragging you by your hand to the vendors. 

---

"Which one?" Max asks, pointing toward the different popsicle options they had. "That one!" you exclaim in glee, looking up at him with a gummy smile. Max pulls out his wallet, taking out the last few bills he had in there. 

He looks back at you once again. You're taking the popsicle from the vendor. He heaves out a sigh, damn that smile. He gives the money to the vendor, walking out of the line for the others to order. 

He looks to his side, to you. You're excitedly tearing open the wrapper. He huffs out a breath, stuffing his hands in his pockets, walking next to you. It was worth it, he thinks.

---

Max doesn't know where he is. The only one he knows here is you. "Come on!" you say taking his hand in yours. He did it before, surely he wouldn't mind if you held his hand, right? He doesn't pull back.

"Kat?" he questions as you drag him to a bench. 

"Kat?" you question, as you sit down next to him. "Uhh..." he mutters, trying to find words to explain it to you. "Kat?" he says, you tilt your head again. You shrug, not understanding him at all. 

He looks around him, before tapping your shoulder to grab your attention. "Kat!" he exclaims pointing to a girl wearing cat ears headband. You look to where he's pointing. You scrunch up your face and turn back to him. "I'm not girl!" you say angrily, angry that your new friend was calling you a girl. Girls have cooties, and you didn't! 

"Ha?" he lets out a confused noise, before understanding the situation. He shakes his head. "No no. that not- I meant-" he starts before giving up and using hand gestures to explain instead. He makes cat ears on top of his head using his fingers, similar to what the girl was wearing. Your mouth forms an "o" in understanding.

"Meow?" you question "Meow," he nods.

"Chat."

"Hm?" he turns to you. "Chat?" he questions, trying to say the way you had, failing miserably. You laugh at that. Before saying it again, this time slower. "C,h,a,t," he says, slowly, finally managing to get the pronunciation right. (pronounced- sha)

"What's chat?" he questions again. "Meow," you reply before going back to happily eating your popsicle. "What language?" he questions. "French!"  you say excitedly, happy to talk to your new friend. 

"You're French?" You shake your head, "No." He was really confused now, he doesn't know another country that speaks French. 

"Then?" 

"Monegasque! Fro- from Monaco," you reply with a big smile. Truth be told, Max had never heard of that country. He wasn't really interested in geography at the moment, too busy trying to make a career in motorsport. He makes a mental note to search for that country later.

He breaks out of his thoughts when he hears a squeal next to him and a body colliding with his. He looks down to see you hugging him. Before he could do anything about it, you push yourself away from him, holding up your ice cream stick to show him the words imprinted on it in bold letters.

ᴡ ɪ ɴ ɴ ᴇ ʀ, it read. You laugh, a toothy smile present on your face, "Free ice cream!" You hug him again, joy practically radiating out of you. Yup, spending his last bit of pocket money was worth it.

(a/n): this was supposed to be chapter 3 or 4. but i had some trouble with ch- 2 so i decided to post this instead. school's been killing me and i haven't been able to write anything this week. next chapter will definitely be more interesting (hopefully) lmk if you wanna be added to the taglist :]

HC: max started learning more about geography bc of lil y/n

ᴛᴀɢʟɪꜱᴛ (ᴏᴘᴇɴ): @miloformula123fan @its-ares @fangirl-dot-com @wolf-knights @zyonsay @1obsessedwithfictionalmen7 @fevndue @erinpiastri @v3lnys @woozarts @sebastianstansblog @badblondebisexualboy @lovecarsgoingvroom @kurating

[athenaareia]

hello PLEASE i am here for the yap about lalthambika i want to know everything you coudln't include because of outsider pov

there's actually a LOT brewing in the fic, because one point we have to remember is that except apollo (because sight) and annabeth (tartarus) have really seen her yk?

the idea actually began with a "hm... desi rhea + ma durga is in every girl/woman = fic?" and then I went down a rabbit hole of epic proportions.

some of this is addressed in the beginning notes, wherein I contextualize why exactly I had rhea take on characteristics and powers etc of both maa AND krishna - because if you keep looking further, they're the same.

other random facts:

as the tags say, sally and yashoda ma would get along so well in terms of their weirdly powerful prophecy babies that they love so so much. and notice how rhea steals cookies the way krishna steals makhan??

everyone sees her differently because a, she has many forms but more for this, b, for their own understanding. notice how I say hera sees women and mothers where artemis sees young girls? it's a matter of being your domain

grover is barely conscious, but basically rhea channels navdurga when fighting the minotaur (and I just realised that's unintentional symbolism because mahishasur was also half-buffalo). in my head it's mainly ma katyayani

rhea having that charming smile? actually krishna canon.

yes. she is literally everywhere, which is why she appears suddenly to give advice. also it's very funny to me.

I did imply that leo had taken brief sanctuary at a hindu temple, and that's where he heard the hymns/aartis rhea was singing. ashwatam keshvam is stuck in my head so she definitely sang that once, and also 100% can confirm she likes singing yada yada hi dharmasya for the bit.

did I casually ripoff annabeth's realization moment in tartarus from the mahabharat? yes. I even built up the exposition of them being a best friend duo who also happen to be cousins. plus I even made tartarus akin to a battlefield for annabeth. truly created kurukshetra!tartarus ft. arjun!annabeth and krishna!rhea before gta 6.

jason's scene? also a ripoff because I can't let my baby die and also it was the PERFECT opportunity. I'd be stupid to let that go. basically, you know how draupadi prays to krishna during the vastraharan and her saree becomes never-ending? jason asks rhea for help and so he gets more strength and also rhea takes one look at caligula's spear and says "not on my watch".

also personal fav moments: having her keep one foot over medusa because her iconography often has her standing over the demons she defeated. and ofc, manhattan bridge. the story goes that ma kali is technically a representation of ma durga's wrath. and we know she cares for and protects her followers like they're her children. so that's the aspect rhea taps into after annabeth is stabbed. also, in some iterations, ma kali is translated as "invincible" (I think?), which is what kronos later calls her.

apollo can see her properly because he's god of both knowledge and prophecy. he sees all her forms, but primarily, I think he can see ma adishakti herself (hence the subtitle name for his pov). the gods are old, they've met other pantheons, so they definitely suspect. apollo is just completely sure, and he's right.

another fun fact! ten points to you if you figure out what I mentioned without even meaning to in the last paragraph.