#you go through the process of having it taxidermied to keep??

[fire-and-sparks]

it’s been 8 years and I’m still floored that Jacob just kept??? the dead bird taxidermied on his dresser???? absolutely fucking unhinged choice holy shit go to therapy or something

[8-dermestid]

Hello, I hope you are well! Recently I read a fanfic of yours on Ao3 about Ticci Toby and I fell in love with your writing!! I loved the way you develop the characters and their feelings!! 🤧💕✨

I would like to know if you write for Creepypasta X Virus, it is one of my favorites but there is almost no content online about it 🥹👉🏻👈🏻

Anyway, I saw your requests are open! If the idea pleases you, I would like to ask for headcanons of X Virus and Toby (or just Toby) with a reader who practices magic and has somewhat "dark" tastes (interest in poisonous animals/plants and the supernatural as a whole, in short, just a scary and adorable nerd at the same time!)

Thanks!! 💚

ahh! hello-hello!! i read x-virus' story and took notes for these, i really enjoyed writing Cody, so thank you very much for the request :-]

i rlly liked this request, and this is actually the first time i've ever done headcanon-ish things, i hope you enjoy these (bc i enjoyed writing them a lot)

x-virus & ticci toby: reader with macabre interests

relationships: ticci toby x reader, x-virus x reader

word count: 1.5k

links: available on ao3

x-virus warnings: animal death (off-screen, animal body shown) animal dissection, taxidermy, canon-typical violence

ticci toby warnings: canon-typical violence

☣︎ X-Virus | Cody _____ ☣︎

You let it slip one day that you wanted to try taxidermy, an embarrassing guilty pleasure you were confident you could keep under wraps, but Cody’s just been so nice about your eccentricities and you couldn’t help yourself.

“They use bugs in the process, lots of museums have them to clean the bones because they’re better than the best person with the best tools—” You pace back and forth as Cody watches you from your bed, “—Because that’s all they do, all they do is eat rotting flesh off the bone. The bones last much longer when cleaned by any Dermes—”

You stop yourself from mentioning the insects by their scientific name, embarrassed that you let your ramblings slip away like that.

Cody leaves the next day and you’re left alone with your thoughts. Maybe there’s another mansion full of serial killers so you can start fresh, your ears burn recalling how excited you got talking about flesh-eating bugs.

A few days later, Cody returns to the mansion with a limp raccoon and some things it stole from the local morgue.

You spend the entire night together trying to preserve this creature’s hide, you take it apart with precise motions, expertly moving the scalpel along the skin and parting flesh and sinew. You soak the skin in salts, rubbing it into the bloody underside until you smell like copper and the salt mines.

The whole room smells like formaldehyde, too.

✸ ☣︎ ​​✸

Cody is so excited to share its books with you, all of them. You spend long evenings together curled over a battery-powered lantern and ten-pound textbooks, occasionally mentioning an interesting tidbit when you come across one. Your books are filled with flattened foliage from the surrounding woods, poisonous plants and flowers, plastic baggies filled with poison ivy leaves, and hand-drawn diagrams of each plant’s internal structures in a ballpoint pen. It flips through each page carefully, examining each specimen, complimenting each note and observation.

“You should open a museum,” It says, running a finger over a pressed Conium maculatum. That snaps you out of your science headspace.

You should, but you can’t. “Besides, who would enjoy a museum like that?” You argue.

“Think about the Mütter Museum,” It quips back, “If people frequent a museum full of pickled people-guts and spines, I’m sure people would go to yours. People like flowers.”

In another universe where violence wasn’t at the forefront of your mind, maybe you’d be the curator of a weird little museum full of oddities.

​​✸ ☣︎ ​​✸

“Toby comes here all the time to burn CDs, don’t worry, the cameras stopped working years ago and they never bothered to fix them,” Cody pushes open a window and climbs into the air-conditioned computer lab of the local library, “Just don’t knock anything over, I guess.” It jokes.

You drop through the window and feel goosebumps form on your arms, you haven’t felt air conditioning in years.

Cody unlocks the door leading to the rest of the facility, you walk side-by-side, dragging your fingers over the spines of dozens of books.

“You know the Dewey Decimal System, right?” Cody asks, there’s a thrill with breaking in, especially for pleasure (rather than worrying about killing every occupant in a house, you both can focus on finding a specific edition of a book you were dying to read).

“By heart.” You joke, guiding it to the 500s: Natural Sciences.

You spend five hours squished up together reading from the same book. It points to a diagram and you explain every minute detail, Cody listens eagerly to your explanations, wanting to ingrain every word that comes out of your brilliant, perfect brain, and memorize the way you describe the venom sacs of the Hydrophis schistosus.

 The way it rolls off your tongue—Hydrophis schistosus—Cody wants that to be the last sound it ever hears, the sound echoing forever in its brain until the heat death of the universe.

You creep down to the 200s and find a few textbooks about niche religious practices. You tell Cody about the rarity of cannibalistic religious practices, and the prevalence of cannibalism in some movies ticks you off.

“Cannibalism isn’t that common,” You scoff, “It’s more than socially taboo, it’s biologically taboo. Ever heard of Kuru?”

“Tell me.” It begs.

✸ ☣︎ ​​✸

⦻ Ticci Toby | Tobias Erin Rogers ⦻

Every word that comes out of you flies over his head. Even though he doesn't know a thing about what you’re telling him about, he’s completely and utterly enamored. Toby never graduated high school, and—for the most part—he’s glad he didn’t have to spend any more time around high-school people. 

He misses learning. Sometimes Toby thinks he’s stupid, Tim and Brian went to university, and they have high school diplomas with their names on them somewhere, Toby has nothing except an honor roll card from the eighth grade. You’re so brilliant, maybe part of him thinks he’s weighing you down by stopping your ramblings to ask for clarification. He’s so deep in thought he hasn't been paying attention to your talks about the Ghent Altarpiece’s connection to ancient practices of animal sacrifice.

“Does it bother you when I do that—when I don’t know things a-and you gotta explain it to me?”

You’re sitting on the porch together looking out over the rolling fog, he sucks in a breath, the tip of a Marlboro lighting up orange-hot.

“I like it, actually.” You say matter-of-factly

Toby’s diaphragm sputters as smoke spills from his nose, and he coughs hard into his elbow. “...Doesn’t it—But I’m interrupting you because I’m too stupid to get it the first time—”

That word gives you pause, and Toby tosses away the cigarette butt and curls into himself, shame burning hot on his face.

“I don’t think—”

“E-Everyone does,” He cries, “I-I can’t help it, I couldn’t even finish high school. Tim and Brian made it to college, at least.”

You push yourself into his personal space, knocking your knee into his as you lean over to share a secret.

“I can teach you if you’d like.”

Toby’s red-hot shame melts into a giddy flush as your warm breath lands on his ear.

✸ ⦻ ​​✸

The next victim that comes Toby’s way—a family of three with a prying-eyed teenager getting too close to discovering the mansion—grants you both access to the internet for a time.

You start with Wikipedia, it’s good practice to get bare-bones information that starts the deep dive. Marine Biology is the starting topic because the random article Wikipedia spat out at you was about the bigfin squid.

Toby mumbles aloud as he scrolls through the article, the picture on the right left the hairs on his arms standing on end. Little is known about it because it dwells so deep, and scientists aren’t entirely sure why its distinct long arms are there.

“Nobody knows how it feeds?”

“We know more about space than our oceans,” You say, “We have pictures of the Big Bang.”

Toby rolls back on the wheeled chair and pushes the keyboard to you.

You open a new tab and open the search bar.

COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND.

He pulls back in, opening the third link that pops up. You sit quietly as he devours an entire article explaining the picture’s existence, he’s vibrating in his chair. Toby continues the search without your input, googling words and finding plenty of pictures of smattered space dust orbiting tiny, dense stars.

The pictures of the black hole shake him to his core, nebulae give him chills, beautiful planets and star systems and moons and—

Alpha Centauri grabs a hold of Toby’s body and keeps him there. He pushes the monitor towards you and you read along with him, he’s shaking with excitement, free hand flapping excitedly as he scrolls through the academic journal.

He prints out a few pictures before the police show up, the cosmic microwave background bathing the room in greens and blues and smatterings of yellows and reds.

✸ ⦻ ​​✸

He starts stealing books from the library, as do you. You take turns showing and telling. He shows you astronomy books and you show him textbooks about the history of taxonomy; you spend hours sitting across from each other on the floor exchanging knowledge.

“I’m—I’m glad we did this. Thanks for doing all of—of that.” 

You peek over an academic journal you’ve read at least seven times, smiling softly as Toby puts his new collection of literature into a box and pushes it into the closet. He piles a few flannels and shirts over the box to camouflage it amongst his dirt laundry.

“Why’re you doing that?”

Toby turns to you and turns away meekly, “...It’s our special thing, you get it? I don’t want anyone getting into our business. This is our thing. Our special thing.”

A warmth creeps up your neck as Toby holds your gaze. You close your journals.

“Babies have more bones than adults.” You whisper, your hand splayed over his shoulder blades, “About three hundred.”

Toby’s breath hitches as your hands warm the spot where his cervical vertebrae end and the thoracic meet.

“H-How many are—” He covers his mouth to cover a shaky breath, “—i-in the spine?”

“There are thirty-three vertebrae. Seven cervical,” You and trails down his back, “Twelve thoracic,” you creep further, “Five lumbar,” Lower and lower you go, “Five sacral,” You’re getting bold now, “...And four coccygeals.”

You hold your hands there, Toby enjoys the warmth radiating from your fingers, he wants to melt into you like watered-down clay (you would call it slip since you know everything). He wants to read books with you for the rest of his life and not do anything else.

He wants you to count every rib, every tooth in his mouth, every bone in his hands and feet—counting and counting and counting until he's dizzy.

✸ ⦻ ​​✸

[indigayghost]

The Proposal

It wasn't supposed to start at all. When Nandor asked him to polish his opal ring, Guillermo smiled, taking the ring.

It was supposed to be an easy task. But then he saw the pile of dirty clothes and if he didn't take care of it now he would forget, he didn't want to lose the ring so he put it on his finger. It wasn't supposed to stay there, it was just to make things easier.

And it did! It did make things easier! He put the clothes on the washing machine, took the clean ones to the fancy room, fold everything, b-lined to Colin Robinson's room and threw his neatly folded beige shirts and pants in like he was delivering food to a solitary cell, noticed the rugs needed to be vacuumed and better to do it sooner than later, and, well, you can't blame him for forgetting the ring.

When Nandor found him, he was humming some pop song and calmly brushing Barry the Bear's fur.

"Guillermo, did you-" He stopped, furrowing his brows.

Guillermo jumped a little bit, cursing to himself by being taken by surprise (he and Nandor do not not have a friendly competition about who can scare the other the most and he would be lying if he said he didn't matter losing) while turning to face his master.

"Oh, good night, Master!" He greeted him. It took him half a second to realize Nandor was staring at his hand and half a second more to remember why. "Oh my- Sorry! I wasn't! I wasn't using it! I just put it on and I forgot-"

"Keep it." Nandor said, interrupting Guillermo's attempt to take the ring off.

"What?"

"Keep it." Nandor repeated, looking away. "I don't even like this ring that much."

That, Guillermo noticed, was a lie. Nandor never takes this ring off, but he wasn't going to point that out now, was he?

After a moment, not as a second thought, but almost as something he wasn't sure he was supposed to say, Nandor added:

"It looks good on you."

And then he vanished in a dark smoke, as Nandor often does when he puts himself in situations he's not ready to face, leaving Guillermo to process what the living fuck happened.

So, yeah, it wasn't supposed to happen, but it did. And now Guillermo has to deal with the consequences, mostly Nandor acting as a spoiled brat and a thousand more boxes for him to stuff in the "don't think about it" storage room of his mind.

He is so good at not thinking about it, in fact, that he didn't at all in the past five days since it happened, and he would gladly continue to not think about it if he wasn't being forced to by an overly aggressive Nadja.

"What the fuck did you do this time?" She said, cornering Guillermo between her coffin and her taxidermy armadillo.

"Nothing?" Guillermo responded, trying to decide if he would manage to squeeze below her arms.

"Exactly! Nothing!" She flap her hands in annoyance. "Are you dumb? Are you idiot?"

"Look, you're being really mean right now." Guillermo ignored how Nadja looked like she was visualizing all the ways she could kill him in favor of putting his hands on his waist and pretending he has no clue what she's talking about.

"You'll see how mean I can be when i rip your fucking head off, you dumb stupid donkey!" Nadja took a deep breath and fixed her skirt. "Gizmo, my silly little baby, how much longer will you let Nandor brood around like someone kicked him in the balls before you say your cheesy gay little speech about how 'oh Nandor of course I want to marry you' or something?"

Guillermo opened his mouth to say some smart little response before his brain finally got what she actually said.

“Of course I want to what?!” He almost screams- almost, he has some self respect, after all.

“Oh, oh please don't tell me this is another one of those situations none of you talk to the other and we all have to suffer through it!” Nadja flaps her arms like some kind of delirious chicken and turns her hands into fists when she sees Guillermo's “of course it is one of those situations” stare. The one he does where you can literally see the question marks dancing around his tiny little brain. “I'm going to kill you all!”

Nadja screams. She thinks about really doing it. Ripping Nandor's heart out and snapping Guillermo's neck. It would be easy, practical, and she would never need to deal with their crap again. But then she would miss them, so she sighs, recomposes herself and says, the calmest she can muster.

“My sweet stupid human, Nandor asked you in marriage. Please accept it before he kills himself.”

Guillermo just stares at her for a second. And then stares back at the ring, now heavy in his finger. Then back at her again. And then he screams.

“What kind of shitty marriage proposal was that?! He didn't even- He didn't even ask! It's not even a wedding ring!” He argues, as if that's the strangest part of all this and not that Nandor is asking to marry him. He decides not to think about that part yet.

“The guy is one thousand years old, what did you expect?!”

“She asked Gail all right.” Guillermo says, the disgust he feels remembering Gail is clear in his tone.

“Well, yeah, but Gail wasn't for real. He didn't want to marry her, don't tell me you believed that.”

“I did!” Guillermo lies. He lied for about two seconds before he chickened out below Nadja's piercing eyes. “Look. It's just… How do I even respond?! He didn't ask it. I can't go to him and just say yes!”

“Then fuck him yes. He'll get it.” Nadja says, shrugging.

Guillermo, as much as he wants to argue, doesn't really have a good response to that

[kisskiss-slashslash]

Hi, this is my first time making a request, and it’s kinda sad so if you don’t want to do it, that’s fine. I lost my family dog last night, and was wondering if I could request some fluffy comfort about how the slashers would comfort a SO who lost a beloved pet. Thanks in advance!

Oh no, I’m so sorry for your loss, friend.

Slashers comforting their S/O who recently lost their pet

Warnings: Pet death (obviously), and slashers being unintentionally insensitive but still meaning well

Jason Voorhees

He knows how much your pet meant to you, and that they were family to you. So he helps you bury your pet with all the honors he is capable of providing, and builds a lovely wooden cross to mark the grave. It’s okay if you need some space to process everything. And if you need to be comforted, or want a distraction, or just someone to vent your feelings to, he is happy to provide all of it. He will be extra attentive to your feelings and needs for a good while.

Vincent Sinclair

He offers to paint your late pet for you, or make a wax figure of them (obviously a normal one). Anything you might want to have to remember them by.

Depending on what your wishes are, he may keep Jonesy away from you for the time being or encourage her to spend extra time with you, so you don’t feel so alone even when he has to work.

If Bo makes any kind of comment about your emotional state during this time (and Bo being Bo, he absolutely will), Vincent will 100% throw hands on your behalf.

Freddy Krueger

Freddy isn’t exactly the most emotinally intelligent guy, and he doesn’t get why you are so torn up about your pet dying, but hell, if you liked that animal so much, then he’ll recreate them in your dreams, so you can still spend at least half of your time with them.

Bubba Sawyer

Oh no! While his brothers are less than empathetic, Bubba completely understands what you’re going through. Just imagining something happening to his chickens makes him feel like his heart is breaking. So he will do his best to make it easier for you, but unfortunately he uses rather Sawyer-esque methods, aka mummifying/taxidermying your pet and then just pretending that they are still alive. He is very confused why that doesn’t seem to make you feel better.

Be patient with him; the Sawyer family's usual response to the death of a loved one is hardcore denial, so he doesn’t really know how to deal with grief. You will just have to tell him what exactly you want and need him to do.

[worldwidewebzy]

REGRETEVATOR HEADCANONS BOOOOO SCARY

Pest LOVES taxidermy, especially rouge taxidermy. Its a special interest of theirs and they've even tried some of it themselves. He's pretty good at it!!

Poob also likes taxidermy!! Though the specific process you have to do makes poob very squeamish and sick and icky,, (that being said poob IS NOT a uwu soft enby bean, they could kick ur ass lmao)

Poobians as a whole, are the embodiments of joy, happiness, and FUN!!!!!! They thrive off envoirments with high morale and general good vibes. Their population dwindles when said elements are scarce. If a poobian's mental health is hurt in anyway, that poobian's mental health will directly correspond to their physical health, causing the poobian to fall ill.

If a poobian falls to much into their pit of despair, they can "metamorphize" into a party pooper. Party poopers are the antithesis to poobians, thriving off of despair, sadness, and turmoil. Party poopers aren't inherently evil, but their nihilistic and melancholic nature can cause party pooper communities to be.. Not the healthiest space for anybody to be in.

Party poopers can remorph themselves into a poobian, but that requires extensive mental health intervention for that to happen. Depending on how much despair is in a party pooper, recovery can take as long as years.

To avoid this, poobians are a very social species. Full of many support systems ready to help any poobian! Though unfortunately, toxic positivity has been prevalent in some poobian societies. And there's a silent, but all to painful ableism riddled in poobian society as a whole.

Every poobian smells like their favorite food!

Pest has an EXTREMELY hard time empathizing, thanks to her undiagnosed aspd, npd, and autism. They also have an hard time realizing the concept of consequence and law. (this is pretty much canon expect for the autism part iirc but yeagh)

Gnarpy has IBS. Xe seem like a IBS girlie (gender neutral) to me do yuo understand

Poob HATES gender reveal parties with a passion.

mannequin mark and wallter... Do you hear me..

Gregoriah basks in light like a lizard

OK split pilby YURI SWAGGERR!!!

HOLY SHIT you guys have no idea how cornily, unconditionally, atrociously lovesick pilby is for split and i mean it

This dude's catapiller antennae form into hearts just thinking about split, absolutely cartoonishly in love with her.

They like having silly picnics where they eat apples and bananas (pilby looooves apples) go bird watching and just have a gay ol' time...

When they were first starting to know eachother pilby wrote """"anonymous""""" love letters to split, the letters in question were painfully obviously writen by them and it made split laugh and giggle. She didnt tell pilby that she knew they wrote those letters until after pilby confessed their love to them. That made pilby all bright red it was adorable

The confession in question was pilby performing a musical number about all the stored feelings they've been hiding for split all told through song and... It didn't go how pilby wanted to and kind of failed, but split still was genuinely blown away by it. She cheered pilby up when they commented how "bad" it was and kissed them on the forehead....... <33

Infected has a friend thats minecraft youtuber and yes they have a dubstep channel intro for it yknow the ones..

Gnarpy's form is a facade, like how invader zim has a human disguise. It acts like a shield, keeping gnarpy's (surprisingly frail) true form safe in a non gnarpian envoirment. It's designed to be conventionally "cute" to ward off suspicion, and increase trustworthyness.

Gnarpian govermentals are planning on making upgraded versions of these facades. Making them more unassuming. They're even planning "human" looking facades. It's fucking scary

mannequin mark and wallter make lampert together like constructed a child. Building blueprints AAAAAA!!!!!!!!!! hashtag yaoi swagger

MICHE IS A DRAG QUEEN HE IS A DRAG QUEEN

Miche is also swagapino and black as a people SWAG

Also miche isn't actually a cat he's very much like... Hes cat adjacent but his fangs are like the whiskers if a cat fish LIKE

The elevator has existed for as long as existence itself. Nobody runs it as the elevator itself is technically an living organism

Bive exists in quantum super position. She simultaneously exists in both FNARB, and the funny maze, it's only until a player enters either floor is where she stop existing in this superposition. Kinda like Schrödinger's cat. Schrödinger's conspiracy theorist

Bive is built like she was designed by dr suess

Unlike a red teddy, reddy is very much full of love :)

[hmtaxidermy]

My cat brought me a sparrow today, I'd love to be able to keep the wings intact. But im not sure how to do that. Do you have any tips for how to go about that?

Hope I'm not being annoying!

Hello!

Unfortunately, the answer depends on where you live and what kind of sparrow it is.

(TW: Long post. Descriptive taxidermy process)

If you’re a resident of the US, it is illegal to possess, kill, or collect any parts or taxidermy of non-game native birds, regardless of if it was done by your cat.

You can only preserve this bird if you are not a US resident, OR it’s a common house sparrow.

(Not yelling at you anon, just trying to emphasize.)

Common house sparrows (pictured below) are invasive to America and therefore CAN be taxidermied!

These cuties <3

If you are a US resident and it is not a house sparrow, you legally must dispose of the bird, including any and all feathers.

Now, if it is a house sparrow, regardless of your residence, this is what you’d need to do:

Cut into the breast of the bird, making a vertical incision down to the cloaca. Be VERY delicate with the skin, as it’s paper thin and will rip.

The breast of the bird is kinda in a cartoon heart shape. Make a diagonal (slanted towards the neck) cut into each “lobe” of this cartoon heart to reach the shoulder.

Carefully cut at the joint to release the wing. Cut away excess muscle and meat from the bone. Be VERY careful, as there is skin all around this area that can be cut with the slightest pressure.

Now released, freely cut off as much extra skin you’d like to take with you.

CAREFULLY skin down to the first joint.

Now the hard part. Take your wing and place it so it stands on the ‘wrist’ joint. Using this for leverage, take a pin (I use a tapestry pin) press down on the wing until you get all the way to the ‘wrist.’ You are breaking the flight feathers away from the bone by doing this, which is what you want.

With the flight feathers released, you may now take the bones in your hand and CAREFULLY pull on them to flip the wing inside out. I must stress how LITTLE pressure you will need for this.

Congrats!! Now do this on the other wing. Clean out all meat from the bones as best you can.

With both wings turned and cleaned, mix up some warm water and a little Dawn dish soap. Let soak for a couple minutes.

Rinse and towel to remove some moisture.

Liberally apply borax to the skin and bones.

(Optional) if you’d like to pose your wings, get gauge 18 wire and sharpen one end. Carefully insert the sharp end under the skin of the ‘wrist’ and down until you hit the end of the bone. For a little sparrow, this’ll be like half an inch or so. During this time, you may poke your wire through the wing. Don’t panic. Back your wire out and try again. The feathers will hide any mistakes. Now take the rest of the wire and bend it along the ‘upper’ and ‘forearm,’ securing it with a little floral wire wrapped around it.

CAREFULLY re-invert wing. Pose if necessary.

Dry the wing with a hair dryer. Make sure to get the downy layer as well. It is important now to groom and pose the feathers, as they’ll retain their position after drying.

Set aside to dry for AT LEAST 2 weeks.

If you’ve done it right, then you should have two perfectly preserved wings!

I’m trusting you to use this information on house sparrows only. I do not condone the illegal preservation or possession of birds within the US that are protected under the Migratory Bird Act.

[flayote]

difference between a wet and dry tan? and how does it matter during the taxidermy? like whats the difference when taxidermy-ing

the only difference between a wet tan and dry tan is that a wet tan doesn't go through the drying and breaking/softening process. up until then the process and products used are exactly the same, but for a wet tan you just freeze the hide after tanning+oiling to keep the leather wet instead of drying it. you also don't need to use as much softening oil for a wet tan since you don't need to worry about getting soft leather, you only need enough oil to prevent the leather from cracking or shrinking too much as the mount dries.

the advantage of a wet tan for traditional taxidermy* is that you don't have to rehydrate the hide before mounting, just thaw it and it's ready to go. rehydrating isn't difficult but if you're a full time taxidermist the extra time adds up, and if you're tanning it yourself you save a lot of time and effort not having to break the leather. the hide also has more longevity when stored wet in the freezer, you don't have to worry about it potentially degrading in storage, so that's the way to go if it'll be a long time before it gets mounted. you also save a bit of money on tanning fees and generally have a shorter turnaround time when sending a hide to a tanner for wet tanning vs. dry.

*don't use a wet tan for soft mount taxidermy. for soft mounting you only want the parts that will be traditionally mounted, like the head and paws, to be wet/rehydrated while mounting. the rest of the body is mounted while the leather is already dried and softened. if you mount while the whole pelt is wet, it'll dry stiff and/or crinkly since you can't break/soften the leather as it dries.

[slayingfiction]

Just push me down a reversing escalator, omg god I’m going to figure out how proform a taxidermy so i can give myself a well deserve labotonmy and then keep my perfectly preserved empty to all intelligent thought head on display so i can be publicly shamed for the rest of this poor exploited planets existence (humans to earth is as excrement in nail is to humans) like the actual Dunce that i am, i wrote 10,000 words and technology hates my shrivelled scrotum soul and didnt save the draft nkt only that it then descides out mary had a fricky lamb nowhere to refresh. The torment. The anguish. This stuff can make someone try to summon the devil for a favor or some goddamn braincells on my part.

So my question is have you ever lost a large amount of writing or just an amount that you can never see again, its lost in the void its yeeted out your skull, if so what did you do, if not then i'll just be in my basement snacking on my breakdown.

Babe. I'm so sorry. That is heartbreaking.

Much like you, technology hates me and I have had significant amounts of work lost on several occasions. It's one of the worst things I believe could possibly happen to a writer. Here are the steps I go through when this happens.

Search all over to find if you can find a way to recover your material. Ask people, google search, bring it to a specialist IT person if you want, do whatever you need to to get it back if possible. If you cannot get your material back, continue to the next steps.

Grieve. Trust me, no know will judge you for this. Every time I lost my work I would cry, and I mean ugly cry, and have a panic attack. I once even made my sister drive me 20 minutes into the city while I had a panic attack in the middle of a black out to see if I lost all my progress. Grieve, cry, break something. It doesn’t matter. When you write, you put a piece of your soul into it, and now that piece is lost forever. Take your time and properly process what you have lost and cannot get back. When you feel you are ready, move on to the next step.

Get a system in place so that you always have your work saved. Examples: when writing, have a timer on you phone to press save every 20 minutes. Turn on auto save. Keep multiple copies on your laptop, multiple USBs and the cloud. Write in a source that doesn’t need internet in case your internet goes out. Save every chapter in separate files, and a separate document with the full work.

Write down as much as you can remember from your writing. Over the days you can hopefully start to remember a few more things and keep adding to it. You’re much less likely to remember in a state of panic, but try to get to this asap. Short term memory is strongest, but can get lost quickly enough.

Start writing again. Yes, you will feel anxious that it’s going to happen again, and that maybe it’s not worth it. That is completely up to you to decide, but I always think writing is worth it. I’ve had my story improve while writing it the second time, and I’ve also been disappointed that it wasn’t as good as the first time. Write it anyways. If it was only your first draft, it was likely to change anyways in subsequent drafts anyways.

I have lost thousands of words of work, so I can relate to how you feel. It’s devastating and heart wrenching, and I wish you all the best in your writing. If you any any more questions, need any more tips or just want to rant, feel free to reach out. I would be happy to listen. Hopefully this helps you and any others experiencing this.

Happy Writing! @lilyjaycee27

[oddballwriter]

Do you think you could do some hcs with the EMH guys + Habit, where the reader is a Taxidermist? :] I’m a girl with a morbid fascination with dead things, being both a wildlife taxidermist and having studied mortuary sciences/embalming, for funerals as well! Grew up in a hunting family so the sight of blood and guts have never particularly bothered me. I collect animals skulls and stuff like that, too, I’d love you forever if you brought me a dead thing/a weird bug/rock/etc 🦌

꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦

Warnings: HABIT is here, mentions of taxidermy and the taxidermy process (ie skinning, guts, and the like), mild spoilers for non-video lore content of EMH, mentions of animal skulls and specimen jars

Author’s Snip: Anon, I love taxidermy and think its so cool and also find mortuary very interesting so this was nice to see that there are other weirdos (/affectionate) like me who are into these kind of things. I do enjoy bug and insect taxidermy more but I have seen animal taxidermy here on this damned website and find it amazing. Hope you like it! 

I’ll shut up now. Enjoy! And don’t be afraid to request.

꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒦꒷꒦꒷꒷꒦

Evan

He thinks its pretty cool in a way that you can make dead things look alive again

He is a bit like a teenage boy when it comes to the guts part though

I can hear Evan saying "Ew! That's so gross. Cool."

He likes looking at the things that you make

And also likes looking at the process too

Once he learns about the fact that you like being given skulls and oddities he will try and find some for you to have

I mean he might have been finding you stuff anyways because I've said in posts before that Evan likes to find you little things he finds when he goes out

Jeff

In one of the previous loops he came from a hunting family, seen in non-video based lore content

I kind hc that some stuff from previous looks leak out into future ones

I don't doubt that he collects animal skulls that he finds to have for his own little strange collection

He'd give some to you and keep an extra look out for more things that he can take so that you can have it

I think that Jeff isn't exactly squeamish, so you're work in taxidermy doesn't bug him much

I like to think that he'd eye some of your smaller stuff and have it around

Vinny

To be completely honest, Vin does find your taxidermy work cool, but also very gross and unsettling

It's mostly with the fact that you have to skin the animal and basically just throw out it's guts as you have it dry and then put the skin on a figure/statue

Here is also the fact that taxidermy is very life like so sometimes he will look at your finished projects and kind have that random thought in the back of his head going "It's gonna move. It's gonna move. It's gonna move. It's gonn-"

You're collecting is rad to him though

He'll ask about all the skulls and specimens that you have

Might hold them to have a closer look but don't worry he'll be really carful

HABIT

He fucks with this so hard

You get to skin things and make life like replicas if the thing??

Thinks you have a really neat job and honestly thinks that your studies in mortuary is neat too

He wants to help to be honest

Not because it helps you but just because he's a fucked up freak of the universe and would enjoy messing with some guts

Honestly you might give him a new hobby ngl

He brings you dead things all of the time

Just comes through the door like "Rabbit! I found you a raccoon skull for your collection."

[unheoly-confessions]

music tag game

Tagged by @1roentgen hiii Ollie <3<3

>first 10 tracks from my music shuffled and (maybe) 10 people tagged

I'll add a little tidbit abt the song for propaganda purposes and also I just want to

1. Chlorophorm Girl - Polkadot cadaver

Obsessed w this song atm. I play it a genuinely unhealthy amount. Little ballad from the pov of a guy keeping a girl in his basement! Always fun

2. This is Love - Air Traffic Controller

Yet another song I have a totally normal relationship with! Something abt it is so hypnotic. About an abusive relationship though so beware

3. For the Departed - Shayfer James

Shayfer is genuinely one of my favorite artists and one of the few I can say sounds even better live. Every one of his songs is amazing but this is one of the best. God this song is so good

4. Something Wicked (That Way Went) - vernian process

What can I say Im a sucker for a song w calliope

5. Terry's Taxidermy - Teddy Hyde

This song uses knife sharpening and "skin" ripping noises as percussion. And has a jazz band. This song rules no further questions. Also its abt a dude taxidermying himself and that goes about as well as you'd expect

6. Knives are Dangerous, Kid, So Cut The Theatrics - Jhariah

Wouldn't it be fucked up if the guy you hitchhiked a ride from and intended to kill... also intended to kill you? Yeah haha would that be fucked up or what. Anyway jharia goes so hard always and I'm such a sucker for a story song, if that wasn't immensely obvious. In my top 10 songs rn for sure

7. Estate Sale Sign - Mountain Goats

Truly a quintessential TMG song. I love when John gets to really let out that energy he has while singing the dude always sounds like he's fucking exploding with it when he sings. Every martyr in this jungle is gonna get his wish. Truly what else is there to say I'm not to patiently waiting for next week when I get to see them again!!!

8. Indecisive - Spill Tab ft Tommy Genesis

Found her through my roomate taking me to a Gus Dapperton concert but she's rad. A lot more poppy than I normally go for but this chorus was so fun esp live

9. Red Signal - The Mechanisms

Who doesn't love an ancient incantation. And also the imminent destruction of the fabric of the universe for the select few people (who also happen to be characters of greek mythology. Mechs got Layers dont worry abt it) on this train. This can barely be called a song as it is mostly chanting and spoken word but it may just be my most repeated mechanisms one.

10. Sub-Partical Supercollider - The Glorious Veins

GOD. I love science. And songs about science. And stupidly expensive failures. Anyone who has talked to me recently has realized I am very interested in the superconducting supercollider and while this song is about a different partial accelerator entirely I- ok I've lost everyone reading but this is Pique rock song abt stupid science stuff I promise. Just genuinely a good tune

I'm not gonna tag so if yall wanna do it feel free to say I tagged you !

[skyler10fic]

To Have and to Hold: Ch. 2 Venue Adventures

Carol and Daisy have three available locations in mind for their wedding. Join them as they find the one that is just right for them!

Read on Ao3

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

The first thing to decide on was the location, which would determine the exact weekend around “early June” as their timeframe. Unfortunately, they discovered, four months was cutting it close for most venues. Three spots on their list, however, still had openings, so Carol and Daisy rearranged their schedules to visit them as soon as possible on the last Saturday in February. At least it was a sunny, comparatively warm one for the season.

First up was a barn-style venue at a country club. The manager picked them up from the front office in a golf cart and drove them around the property for what seemed like ages. Despite the warmth of the sun when they were standing still, the biting wind made the ride seem longer. 

“We’re so glad y’all could come out here!” the manager shouted over the noise of the motor and wind in a thick Tennesee accent. “It’s been busy busy busy. We are filling up with events left and right.” 

They finally arrived at the end of the winding trail to a little walking path. Golfers in sweaters taking advantage of the rare sunny winter day waved as they walked passed, and gorgeous huge trees lined the green. 

“This is nice,” Daisy said optimistically. “I like the landscaping and everyone seems friendly.”

“Oh yes,” the manager confirmed. “We all watch out for each other too.” She waved at some golfers who waited until they had passed to tee off. “It’s just around here now.” 

She led them around a curve in the path and through some trees to reveal a rustic-chic barn and open lawn area. 

“This is where we put the buffet area,” she said gesturing to a concrete slab with poles to support hanging lanterns. “And this is great for a photo booth!” 

Carol wandered away a bit, drawn by the sound of a nearby creek. 

“Oh no!” the manager shouted. “Honey, come back on this side of the fencing.” She frantically waved to the whitewashed wood, unfortunately missing a few sections, that lined the wedding area as a golf ball whizzed past Carol’s head. 

Carol’s heart raced as she quickly and carefully made her way back to the manager and to Daisy’s side.    

“I don’t think this is going to work,” Daisy concluded. “What if one of our guests got hit by a ball?” 

The manager pasted on a customer service smile. “We do have a teensy waver for them to sign, but we can always add some decorations or signage to help keep them in the reception area. Before you make any decisions, let’s see the inside!” 

Carol and Daisy exchanged silent looks behind her back as she led them into the barn. They would be hypocritical to be disappointed, as it was exactly what it said on the tin. Artistically arranged horseshoes, branding iron marks, and taxidermied cattle heads decorated the painted gray walls, with knotted, uneven reclaimed wood flooring and a white wagon wheel table at the entrance “for the guest book!” as the manager explained in delight. 

“The website was less…” Carol faltered. “Western?” 

The manager tsked and waved dismissively. “Oh we haven’t updated that yet to reflect the redesign, but themed weddings are so popular these days, and did you know we’re the only Western aesthetic venue in the region?! Of course, you can always tone it down if cowgirl isn’t your style. The longhorns are removable, for an extra fee for labor, and we have some nice floral paintings or some ironwork light fixtures with electric candles, whatever your taste. The space is very adaptable.” 

The tension hung in the air as they tried to find a way to politely refuse. Daisy walked around the barn to give it full consideration. They only had three choices, so if the others turned out to be worse, she wanted to make sure they could make this one work. 

Unfortunately, she was distracted in this thought process by wall decor with “Live, Laugh, Love” underscored by hunting rifles under each word, and she tripped over a knot in the wood, knocking over a three-foot-tall metal silhouette of a cowboy and cowgirl in a romantic embrace. 

“Sorry! Sorry.” She tried to right the artwork and noticed she’d chipped the paint on the cowboy’s hat where it hit the ground. She grimaced and whirled back around to rush to Carol’s side. “You know, we’d really better be going.” 

Carol took the hint and looked at her watch. “Oh, yes, we have another appointment, and with the ride back, we better go now to not be late. This looks, it’s very… aesthetic, as you said!” 

Daisy pressed her lips into a smile and nodded and hummed in agreement. The manager surrendered in disappointment and led them back to the golf cart. 

“Oh, watch out!” She stopped them just in time as a golf ball flew overhead. “Clive’s been losing his sight, poor man, but we can’t tell him not to come. His father was one of the founders of the club! So we just have to be extra careful on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.”

Carol and Daisy sent each other another silent message with raised eyebrows. A Saturday wedding was their goal, assuming it would allow more guests to make it.

Back at their car after a long walk and golf cart ride, Daisy and Carol closed their doors and exhaled. 

“So.” Daisy put the key in the ignition and started the car. “Safety seemed like a concern.” 

“Right. And, as hot as cowgirls are, maybe not our ideal wedding aesthetic,” Carol emphasized and they both let out a giggle they’d been holding in. 

“Okay, so we’re agreed. Not our scene.” Daisy backed out of the parking spot and drove on to the main road. “Though I will take note of the hot cowgirl comment for other activities.”

She glanced briefly over to Carol, who bit her lip as her imagination filled in the blanks. 

“Yes, please. But next up is…” Carol announced as she programmed the address into her phone’s GPS app, “The Church of Love, a remodeled cathedral-style venue that doubles as a popular neighborhood bar, with live music, food, and drinks, drinks, drinks.” She paused, amused. “It says it three times like that. Drinks drinks drinks. There’s more information about the types of alcohol they offer than the space itself or the pricing or what’s included.” 

Daisy sighed. “Yeah, I’m hoping they have more details in person. I mean, obviously, they are a bar, so that’s their business, but it would be good to know what ballpark we’re talking here budget-wise.” 

Carol shrugged. “Probably standard to not have it on their website. Most places didn’t either. But like, do they work with caterers, do they provide a sound system…”

“It didn’t have many pictures either. Most of them were of the stained glass windows so I didn’t get a good sense of the space.” 

They drove up to the steepled building with neon signs out front and beer ad banners flapping in the wind. It was only 2 p.m., so the parking lot was empty, save one car at the far end. They got out and knocked on the huge wooden doors, trying to avoid the judgmental gaze of the gargoyles and other creatures above and around them. 

“Hey!” called a man with spiky white hair wearing a Hawaiian shirt in 40-degree weather. “That’s just for show. Entrance is over here.” He pointed to a normal-sized metal door on the side of the church and walked inside, so they followed. The entryway and lobby were dark, but the man flipped on lights and unlocked doors as he went, clearly in charge of the facility.

“Hi, hey,” Daisy greeted as they caught up with him. “We have an appointment to talk about having a wedding here? Are you Jack?”

“Jackie,” the man corrected, “Jack was my dad. And he’d be rolling over in his grave if he knew what I’d done to his church and hosting marriages between…” Jackie looked back at them, stopped himself, and had a wheezing coughing fit. “Sorry, nothing contagious, just believe ‘em when they say smoking’s bad for ya, kids.” He coughed again and Carol and Daisy tried not to visibly recoil. 

He opened a final door and swept his arm around. “Here it is!” The first thing they noticed was the pride he took in it. The second as they stepped into the former sanctuary was the giant stained glass rose windows above with rows and rows of narrow panes of stained glass just below, throwing light all around them. 

“Whoa,” Daisy smiled. “Okay, that’s cool.” 

“Oh!” Carol lowered her gaze to see an equally huge bar counter under one of the windows. Neon lights lined the shelves full of tequila and vodka and beers of every variety and more. “Right here in the space.” 

“Convenient, right?” Jackie waggled his eyebrows. “Wait ‘til you see this.” He pressed a remote and a disco ball descended from one of the archways. Then another. And another. 

Daisy scrunched her nose in the way she did when she was trying not to be rude. “So, we were thinking the reception and the ceremony would be in different rooms. Is there anything like that?” 

Jackie raised his hands in peace, “Okay, okay, I see where you’re coming from. We have these partitions built in for this.” He walked to one of the walls at the narrow midsection of the sanctuary and folded out hinged room dividers, and the other on the other side. “Back when this was a fancy church, they’d’ve had the choir up here, see, and the people in the back in what’s now the reception space.” 

“Party in the back, got it,” Daisy confirmed. She followed Carol to the front where the altar still stood. 

Jackie’s phone rang and he walked away for a moment. 

Standing before the altar, Daisy followed Carol’s gaze up to the massive crucifix, complete with with Christ’s dying body carved in marble. Carol shivered. Daisy soothed her back. “You okay?” 

Carol huffed out a half-laugh and turned to face the sanctuary. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s weird, though. I can’t decide if it’s too holy or not enough.”

Daisy noticed below the stained glass but above the party scene, another row of gargoyles and angels stared down at them. “On paper, it sounds so cool. But in reality, it just doesn’t feel right, does it?”

They noted the way Jackie’s voice carried as he ranted to someone on the phone, echoing throughout the sanctuary even though he was far on the other side. 

Carol shrugged and gestured loosely to the marble bar counter with over a dozen marble stools and a whole wall of bottles. “It does seem like a cool bar concept. But maybe not for our wedding?” 

“Nah.” Daisy waved to Jackie, who waved back. She wasn’t entirely sure if he understood that they were leaving, but it didn’t matter anyway. “On to lucky number three!” 

The third venue had said to call first, so Carol talked to the receptionist who told them to come and reassured them that they would love the space, but that the venue’s manager was out dealing with an urgent situation and would meet them there as soon as she was available.

“Sounds like we have some time,” Carol said to Daisy after hanging up. “Wanna get coffee first?” 

“God, yes.” Daisy pulled into a Starbucks and they went in for a rest stop and refreshments in their long afternoon. 

Carol nibbled her thumbnail as they waited for their drinks. “What if this next one is another bust? What’s after that?” 

Daisy blew out her lips. “We go back to the drawing board, I guess. Maybe some of the ones that said they were full have cancellations or a waiting list? Wedding venues must have cancellations all the time, right, with people changing their dates or whatever?”

The barista called Carol’s name and she stepped up to take her drink, thank them, and wait for Daisy’s. Then she had an idea. “We could get creative, maybe somewhere we’re not thinking of? Somewhere not on the usual lists.”

The barista called out a drink for Tracey. Carol made sure they didn’t accidentally mean Daisy, but no, a Tracey stepped up to get an iced coffee. 

“Sorry, that’s mine,” Tracey said as Carol moved out of the way. 

“Iced coffee in February,” Daisy remarked, “that’s something I would do.” 

Tracey gave a little smile in response, then asked, “Hey, were you talking about wedding venues? I didn’t mean to overhear, just my wife and I got married last spring at a great place.” 

With that sentence, Tracey had their attention. “We’d love any recommendations at this point,” Daisy confessed. “We’re aiming for June, and most places are booked already.” 

Tracey searched in her phone for the information for the venue and showed them her screen. “Here, try this one. Gorgeous landscaping, right on this pond, there’s a wedding chapel and then an outdoor space and a reception hall with a kitchen. It’s owned by the city parks department, but as long as you bring in all your own people—photography, catering, deejay, whatever—and clean up when you’re done, it’s a good place to look into. We loved it.” 

“Thank you!” Carol typed the name of the venue and the city parks website came up with a page for the park it was in. 

“Good luck, and congratulations!” Tracey called as she left. Daisy's drink came just in time. 

Carol saw Daisy was holding in a smile. 

“What is it?” Carol asked as they walked out of the coffee shop and back to the car. 

“Look at the next address on the list.” 

“What?”

“Just do it!” Daisy urged with a laugh, getting out the keys as they reached the car. 

“Wait. No.” Carol looked up over the car at her. 

“Yup.” Daisy grinned and got in. When they were ready to go, she waited for Carol’s phone to bring up directions to the park. “Sounds like this is the one. Let’s go.” 

“How did I not realize that I was calling the parks department earlier?” Carol asked herself. “She just answered with her name, I guess, and I assumed it was a business.” 

Daisy stopped at a light and took a drink of her coffee. “I just showed you photos of this one, not the site, because honestly the web page sucked. City websites always suck, and I didn’t want you to hate it because of that or think it was run down or cheap or something just because it was a parks department venue.” 

“Fair,” Carol replied, scrolling through the scant information on the park web page. It was poorly adapted for the mobile browser, so she had to scroll horizontally as well as vertically. 

They arrived at the park just as a car with the parks department logo pulled in. 

A woman in a maroon peacoat with a clipboard got out and rushed over to them at a speed her pumps would allow. “So sorry! I was running late because there was a raccoon at the playground…” 

“Oh, that’s okay.” Daisy cringed that they had stopped for coffee after saying they were coming right over. “No rush. We just arrived.” 

“Ah! Perfect timing then. I’m Anne.” She shook both of their hands and led the way up a wooden ramp to the wedding chapel. “Let’s see here.” 

She pulled out a truly impressive ring of keys of every shape and variety and unlocked the door. An entryway with restrooms and a bulletin board of parks department activities opened up into a lobby area with a table, a few chairs, and carpet to prevent echoing. There was a simple wood stand for a guest book and a few windows for natural lighting. 

“It was renovated a few years ago, so while it looks new, it has a long history,” Anne explained.

She opened the chapel doors to reveal a modern but simple chapel. One round stained glass window above the altar showed a rose surrounded by a rainbow of colors. Large plain glass panes in the front gave them a stunning view of the pond, surrounded by willows, oaks, and evergreens. 

Anne apologized again, “It’s not the best view now but by June, I promise everything will be in bloom.” She pointed out which plants grew on which sides of the pond and the center where a fountain would be sparkling come spring but was off for the winter. 

They turned to the inside. A wood podium stood at the front with various cables and plugs for the sound system. There was nothing particularly religious about the room, nor any other clear “aesthetic” or “theme.” Daisy did notice built-in hooks for floral arrangements or other decorations, and Carol pointed out the seating was movable pews, if they needed more or fewer. 

“Yes,” Anne confirmed. “This is our standard spacing, but we have two more rows if needed or we can space them out a bit more to make the room look less empty for fewer guests. Or add a chair or two from the lobby.”

For every question and concern, Anne seemed to have an answer. She then walked them over to the outdoor and indoor reception area options, showed them the typical places buffet tables and gift tables and cake tables could go in each, the spots for speakers whether they decided to hire musicians or a deejay or a simple sound system, and a basic but functional kitchen. 

Daisy’s heart raced. This was it. She looked to Carol, who took her hand and squeezed. 

“Well,” Anne turned to them, checking off the last item on her clipboard. “That’s all I have, any more questions for me?” 

“Just to confirm,” Daisy asked, trying not to get her hopes up too high yet, “you said this is available in June?”

Anne checked her clipboard as they waited with bated breath. “Mmhm. I have down that you want Saturday, June 4, is that correct? We put a temporary hold on that date for you, but I’m afraid if you don’t put down a deposit today, we’ll have to open it up again and we can’t guarantee it will stay open.” 

Misinterpreting Carol and Daisy’s excited shared look as apprehension, she stepped back, “I’ll give you two a moment to talk it over. I’ll be out here.” She stepped outside and walked around the side of the building to remove some litter from a dormant flowerbed. 

Carol’s smile bloomed as she saw Daisy’s. “Yes,” they both said at once. Daisy squealed. “I can’t believe it. We’re getting married. Here.” 

“C’mon. Let’s test it out.” Carol led her back to the chapel. They hurried to the front and looked out at the pond, beginning to change color as the sun neared the horizon, just out of view. They stood facing each other, holding each other’s hands just as they would in the ceremony. 

“I do,” Daisy teased. 

“I do too,” Carol replied and winked. They kissed just as Anne found them. She waited politely until they noticed her.

“We’ll take it,” Carol confirmed. 

“Please,” Daisy added. 

She was tempted to add more pleases, but it was unnecessary as Anne replied, “Perfect! Let’s get the boring part over with, shall we?” She raised her clipboard to indicate she meant the paperwork. 

She led them out into the lobby where there was a table to sit at, turned on a light as it was starting to get dark, pulled out the forms, and clarified the amount for the deposit. 

As Daisy ran to the car for her checkbook, Anne confessed to Carol, “I’m glad it is a good fit for you two. Some people think it’s too plain or too small, but I’ve always loved this place.” 

“It’s perfect for us,” Carol said, reading over the paperwork and signing where indicated. 

“My parents were married here,” Anne said quietly, then put back on her cheerier parks department tone. “Of course, it’s been through two renovations since then. Wi-Fi, new appliances in the kitchen, and ADA accessible now.”

Carol finished her part of the paperwork as Daisy arrived back inside and sat down with them. She wrote the check and filled out her part of the paperwork as Carol asked Anne more about the park’s history, which Anne was all too happy to provide.  

When they were done, they stood out front as Anne locked up, remarking on how it had gotten cold while they were inside. Carol and Daisy got out their gloves from their coat pockets, wrapped their scarves tighter, and took in the surrounding park.

“Call me if you have any questions,” Anne called out to them and waved goodbye. They waved and then turned back to the pond to watch the last of the sunset fade into twilight and the stars begin to appear. Daisy slipped her arm around Carol’s waist, and Carol laid her head against Daisy’s. 

“June can’t come fast enough,” Carol sighed happily. 

“I know what you mean, but, uh, we have a lot to do before then, missy.” Daisy pulled her away and back to the car as they started shivering in the February air. “Invitations, guest list, cake, food, drinks, a wedding website, registry, music, decorations, what we’re going to wear, what color we want so we know what to ask the wedding party to wear, honeymoon destination…” 

“Okay, okay,” Carol laughed as Daisy started up the car. “I just meant, I’m excited to marry you right in there.” She pointed to the chapel. 

“In our adorable wedding chapel! Aw, look at it.” They exhaled happily together, which made them laugh at their own cheesiness, and then Daisy drove them home where they could at least check off the biggest item on their list. 

Who would come and what they would see and do and eat while at their wedding, well, that could wait for another day.

[mozart-the-meerkitten]

I know that you have a lot on your plate, so you don't have to answer this, BUT, if you have a Gravity Falls au where the characters are in Aerwiar then consider a Wingfeather Saga au where the Wingfeather characters are in Gravity Falls.

I’m assuming by “Gravity Falls AU where the characters are in Aerwiar” you mean Anniera Falls? So like, a full alternate universe thing? Since in Wingfeather Falls the Wingfeathers do visit Gravity Falls. That’s what I’m going to go off of for this, if you had something else in mind let me know.

****SPOILERS FOR THE WINGFEATHER SAGA. Mostly just books 1-3, I think there's only one vague spoiler for book 4, so if you've read through book 3 you should be okay, but my memory is bad so read at your own risk****

Soooo back in the day I kind of had some ideas for this. It actually kind of works purely because you can keep the dynamic of two brothers, one goes missing, the other desperately tries to get him back, and years later the nieces and nephews visit.

Aaaafter that the plot gets a little more difficult. It is kind of fun to imagine Artham and Esben living in a cabin in the woods inventing things and going on adventures but I don’t think either of them are stupid enough to get involved with Bill. Unless they’ve been in Gravity Falls for a long time and they accidentally summoned the Dorito when they were kids or something.

If you integrate the idea of the Fangs and all that it could work because Gravity Falls is a profoundly weird place and I believe it could have stones that meld people with animals and well water that heals people etc. Now, Gnag I could imagine working with Bill, so if he summoned him and built the portal and all that and Artham and Esben tried to stop him, that could work. Stuff starts to go down and Esben sends Nia and his little children away to live with their grandparents. The brothers get sucked through a portal while fighting Gnag and the Fangs and they seal the threat inside but trap themselves in the process. Years later, Artham escapes, broken and mentally unstable. Nia has some contact with him after that, but he never tells her what happened to Esben and he never gets better.

Hoping that if she sends her kids to visit it might help her brother-in-law, Nia sends Janner, Kalmar and Leeli go to Gravity Falls for the summer. The kids are a range of confused, worried about, and unnerved by their eccentric uncle.

Artham doesn’t run a tourist trap like Stan does, at least, not intentionally. He displays an eclectic arrangement of items and taxidermied animals from his and Esben’s adventures when they were younger and allows people to see it after paying an admission fee. He also gives tours of the forest. People mostly come to see it because you never know what Artham’s going to say on any given day since his mind is so messed up. Some days he just tells disjointed, unrelated stories. He still stutters and mixes up words. He doesn’t wear socks, but he does wear like, fireplace gloves that he never takes off. He’s kind of a mix of Stan and Fiddleford.

Sara works in this version of the Mystery Shack, along with Maraly. Sara runs the register and Maraly fixes things sometimes? No one’s actually sure what she does, they mostly just find her eating food out of containers in the fridge and hunting monsters in the woods. She captures or kills these and brings them to Artham to display in his ‘museum’. She fixed the golf cart once.

As for Janner, Kal and Leeli, they go on adventures and work to solve the mystery they fell into just like Dipper and Mabel. Janner finds Esben and Artham’s old journals (they wrote them under pen names tho, so he doesn’t know they’re by his dad and uncle) that Artham buried in the woods after he escaped the portal. Kalmar has a blast pulling pranks and encountering creatures, he teams up with Maraly whenever he can. The image of Leeli hitting gnomes with her crutch lives rent free in my head.

The cloven exist, and they live deep in the forest, still headed by Artham’s lost love Aurendelle. Townspeople are a mixture of Glipfolk, Stranders, and Hollowsfolk from the series. Glipfolk include Oscar and the Shoosters, Stranders include Maraly’s family, Hollowsfolk include the O’Sallys and Rudric. Gammon’s also there somewhere because someone has to adopt Maraly. At some point Nia and Podo show up to help with whatever chaos is unleashed.

WAIT I GOT IT, BONIFER SUMMONED BILL AKJHGKJAHSFD he’s still living somewhere in town, waiting for the portal to open again so he can free Bill/Gnag/the Fangs. He befriends and later betrays the kids.

ARTHAM AND ESBEN GET AN ACTUAL REUINION *glares at Andrew Peterson* Artham tries desperately to get his brother back, but struggles to get the portal running again until the kids uncover vital clues about it. Artham’s terrified to see his brother again, but Esben’s not actually angry with him for what happened. Esben probably lives in this AU. Also, Idk how exactly, but Artham does get wings.

Aaaaand yeah, after that it’s not too hard to follow the base plot of Gravity Falls and modify it as needed. Hopefully that made some modicum of sense, I’m pretty tired. xD This was fun tho, I love AU’s.

[shiro-hatzuki]

hi yes i'm constantly haruka posting that this point but this is super important to me and i need you all to see this. so like i have a friend who goes by arizona, and he sometimes dms me milgram thoughts as well as post thoughts in the milgram server we're in. but unlike me, his thoughts are super cool. the gigagalaxy brain to my pathetic smol brain. and last night, they sent me an observation about haruka's season 2 mv that made me so excited that it would've been a shame to keep it to dms. so he posted in the server, and i'm bringing his thoughts to you through yet another post for the milgram tag. and if you're wondering, yes i do have permission, but in return they're going to be watching the notes on this so if you have thoughts, please share them!

spoilers for "all-knowing and all-agony" mv below the cut. there will also be talk of preserved specimens and taxidermy, though there shouldn't be anything too brutal. there will also be screenshots from the music video.

[image ID: A series of edited together discord messages from the user "Arizona." The first set of message read, quote "honestly im surprised nobody has theorized that the yellow shit is formaldehyde given his taxidermy collection. for an example its this color." endquote. There is an attached image of a bottle filled with an amber-colored liquid; however, the bottle's label says, quote "Formaldehyde-free fixing agent" endquote. Arizona's next messages read, quote "nevermind I misread the bottle. but that's still the color" endquote. The last message in the image is Arizone saying, quote "ignore the fake brain" endquote, and there is an attached stock image of a glass jar holding a fake brain while mostly submerged in amber-colored formaldehyde. end ID]

for comparison:

[image ID: A series of edited together discord messages from Arizona. Together, the messages read, quote "the formaldehyde theory would also fit in since the taxidermy clearly becomes 'degraded', as happens IRL. its a harsh chemical so eventually the specimen gets damaged. also the preservation process is brutal but I wont go into that. I feel like him being 'submerged' in the formaldehyde at the end means something" endquote. end ID]

those first few messages are referencing the times in the mv when the animals, presumed to be taxidermy, are "melting" into the amber liquid:

[image ID: A series of edited together discord messages from Arizona. Together, the messages read, quote "another note i'd like to make taxidermy isn't just scientific. it is considered an art form not sure what that could mean, just saying. the destroyed taxidermy could also represent a split, same with the stuff on the ground when he's asking if his mom's proud the intact, pure stuff, could represent 'the art' he thinks he is making- thus why he's asking if his mom's proud -the destroyed stuff represents the fact that he is literally murdering animals. in his words, 'mommy look, i've done great,' above specifically bodies that were in the taxidermy room before. BTW, the official art [referring to the art of taxidermy] as far as I know is 'letting the specimen live a life after death,' which is a bit grim" endquote. end ID]

[poisonouswritings]

Consider mc asking felix questions about his interests to cheer him up. Tell me about taxidermy felix

Oh man you guys have some really interesting ideas /gen I know nothing about taxidermy so bare with me here as I research the tag

Maybe I'm projecting here but I feel like Felix hyperfixates a lot and just starts going off!! Especially when he's upset.

Felix has been in a bad mood all day. Surly and snippish y’know? With the heavy circles under his eyes you think he might have had a bad dream or something?? But you can't be sure. What you can be sure about is the various animal parts that are just,, sprawled around the desk. So you ask about them. Oh, taxidermy? Tell me about it!

Felix hesitates for a second and is like,, 'I appreciate the effort, but you needn't try to make me feel better.'

No >:((( you love him and his interests and you wanna know >:(((( you go over and hug him from behind and look over his shoulder to the desk and kinda brush some of the fluffy hair off the back of his neck and he's blushing and squeaky and immediately feeling better.

If you (like me) have no clue about taxidermy, he starts explaining, kinda picking up stuff and showing it to you and letting you touch it and kinda pacing around the room because There's A Lot Of Ground To Cover And He's Gonna Make You An Expert On This!!

I feel like,, he got into taxidermy originally for spellcasting or whatever but then he just liked it, both the aesthetic and the process.

Okie so idk if this is ever discussed in the story but I like the idea of Felix having like,, death-sensing abilities (cause imagine it's the scene where he's holding Rime and trying to keep him alive but it isn't working and all of a sudden there's just this magical little ding! like 'new death detected' or whatever and Felix just completely loses it because in that moment he Knows Rime is dead but he can't accept it-) so I feel like he just kinda walks through the forest and finds specimens that way? Also might buy some from the market. Or maybe Stella kills something and brings it to him, I could see that too.

If you show any interest at all, he's whipping out a squirrel for you to try. He just kinda,, had it,,, in an ice chest or something,, honestly he was probably gonna use it to calm himself down but having you do it is so much more fun!!!

I think he would use magic a lot, like for the form and to prep the skin and whatever? Like he still manually skins it but he might make it more resistant to accidental tears or something. You're trying to cut it the right way and he puts his hand on top of yours to guide you?? His eyes are focused on your work but he kinda hums under your breath that you're doing a great job? Wkfigofjsja. Dead. Dead as the animal.

Technically you're supposed to let the skin tan for 24 hours but I'm sure there's a spell that speeds up the process. As you're changing out the salt and all that, Felix is telling you about about the first time he ever taxidermied something. He wanted to show off so it was probably like,, a small bird or something? It didn't go well but look! He got the skull okay! That's what's on his necklace, that first attempt. Even if it didn't turn out great he's still very proud of it.

Once the skin has been tanned and misted and all that, he helps you pull it onto the form and stuff it. You're kinda just like 'man this is a lot more gruesome than it is at Build-a-Bear' and he's like 'YOU CAN MANUFACTURE YOUR OWN BEAR???' he's never taxidermied anything that big and it's an amazing idea to him and yours just like.... Babe no...... Stuffed bears..... 'yes exactly you stuff them that's how taxidermy works'

He's disappointed when he finds out it's just dolls

The room smells like death and chemicals but I fiercely believe Felix has some kind of magical candles or something to help with that.

Watch him while he works. He really is at peace, his hands moving expertly from task to task. His hair keeps getting in his face so he asks you to tie it up for him.

I think Rime would have been pretty neutral to taxidermy, so Felix probably didn't talk about it with him all that much. You can tell how excited he is to have the chance now.

He,, he gets so excited that he starts slipping between Common and Velan,,,,,, he's explaining how to Mount and Pose and Whatever and you're just nodding along with no idea what's happening but Oh His Voice Sounds Pretty

Talks about how one time Sage was being a dick so Felix put a taxidermied snake in his bed and for the next week Sage slept in everyone else's rooms. Ended up with Anisa having to take away all Felix's taxidermy stuff until he promised to not do it again

Once your specimen has been mounted and settled, Felix displays it on his bookshelf. Says that you have a real knack for it.

[samuraiko]

For the vignette, I’ve always imagined Ashton to make his own clothes, what if he made some homemade accessories or clothing pieces for the rest of the party?

Hmmm... I'll do my best, Anon.

"Make It Fashion"

The Hells sat in Ashton's room at the Krook House, working diligently on their masks for the upcoming ball. Naturally, their respective personalities and talent (or occasional lack thereof) made for a wide variety in style and craftsmanship, but they still enjoyed themselves in the process.

Having finished his, Ashton began idly sifting through some of the additional leather and metal that he had left over, and started working on something new.

"I thought you were done," Orym chimed in where he was sitting next to the earth genasi.

"I am. I just... had an idea."

With surprising dexterity, he wove three long dyed strips of leather together into a braid, then fashioned a loop at one end. He added in a couple of glass baubles that looked nice with the leather, then presented Orym with a leather thong bracelet.

"Here... you don't have to wear it tomorrow night, but maybe with your regular look," he muttered without looking at the halfling.

Orym took it, turned it over in his fingers, and smiled. "It's great. Thanks, Ash."

Ashton then took two of Chetney's larger chunks of discarded wood, and began boring two holes in each of them. He slipped a small metal rod into each, then removed them, tied a few random thin strips of leather in all different colours to each rod, then replaced them in the wood. "Hey Fearne... catch."

The faun snatched it out of the air. "Is this a hair comb?"

"Yeah."

"Why thank you, Ashton."

"Don't worry, I promise not to steal it off you - it'd clash with my hair."

Fearne smirked at him, and Ashton tossed the other hair comb to Imogen, who telekinetically caught it while still grumbling at her less-than-impressive attempts at crafting her mask. "Thanks, Ashton. Maybe you should give me lessons in crafting."

"Nah, I don't have the patience for that."

By now, Laudna had noticed what Ashton was doing, and pouted. "I don't get a hair comb?"

"Nope. Got something better in mind for you. Hang on a sec." Ashton went into Milo's rooms to borrow a tool, then came back and began banging on a long strip of metal with a hammer. Twisting it, hammering it, twisting it again, hammering it again, he eventually pounded it into a loop.

"Is that supposed to be a bracelet?" she asked as he tossed it to her.

"Nope... it's a choker for Pâte. Figured he deserved something a bit more hardcore."

Laudna gave a delighted gasp and immediately slipped it around the neck of her taxidermied rat puppet. Adopting the coarser speech she used for Pâte, she chuckled and said, "I absolutely love it. Makes me look tough."

"That's the idea."

Ashton looked over at FCG and frowned thoughtfully. "Hmmm." He reached for another ring of metal, as well as some metallic wire, and went to work.

"Are you making something for me too? That's so nice of you, Ashton."

"Yeah, well, you deserve it." A few minutes later, Ashton had fashioned a rather stylized sun-beamed brooch for the automaton. "Here - you can put this on your satchel that you keep your stuff in."

"Ashton... you didn't have to. Really."

"Yeah I did, so say 'thank you' and then shut up about it."

"Thank you," FCG said quietly, and he carefully affixed it to his bag.

"Whatcha making for me?" Chetney asked, brushing away a pile of wood filings.

"Not sure yet," Ashton replied, sitting back on his stool and frowning. "Do you even deserve a present?"

"Of course I do!"

"I'll think about it." Ashton went back to work, found a few more dyed strips of leather, braided them together and wove in a few glass baubles, then he added some bright metallic wire into the weave. "Hey Dorian, heads up. I doubt it'll go with your outfit, but that should help keep your hair out of your face if things get dicey."

"Much appreciated, Ashton," the air genasi replied.

"Are you really doing mine last?!" Chetney yelped.

"All right, all right, quit your complaining." Ashton grabbed several more strips of leather and began weaving them together, then affixing a couple of metal rings, then he tossed it to Chetney, who deftly caught it.

"What's this supposed to be?"

"It's a muzzle. Seems perfect for you."

[jaketeachesdeath]

Hi, so. i'mma explore your blog (and some others) to see if i can find some clues but i thought it would be worth asking

anyways I've been thinking about what I'm going to do when my cat dies, and i kinda think i'd like to keep her skull? no taxidermy, i just want the skull. something physical to remain on my desk, so i can still have her with me. weirdness of that all aside, I don't have any experience with preserving bones or taxidermy//vulture culture other than following really cool blogs like yours and i was wondering if you had any thoughts of advice? im kinda torn because i want to let her decay and what not but i want her skull and omg this ask is longs i am so sorry anyway - when my cat dies i want to keep her skull how does one go about that?

Hi,

Usually my advice would be to to skin, remove the head, deflesh as much as possible and marcerate.

I understand that this is a particularly sensitive case.

So I'd advise when your cat does pass to put the body inside a mesh bag or tights and actually bury in a marked grave. This way you get to lay them to rest, let them decay whilst also having very little involvement with the whole process.

Once time has passed youll be able to unearth the remains in one place meaning all teeth should still be accounted for.

As for how much time that entirely depends on soil conditions. It may be worth burying something of the same size and seeing how long that takes. Of course weather and seasons will also affect rate of decay so take note of this if you do decide to trail run it.

Once unearthed you can go through the final stages of cleaning, this may just be warm soapy water or if you want to whiten the skull then a clean and then peroxide.

You can of course then rebury the rest of the skeleton or perhaps you change your mind at that stage and then you just repeat the stages above

I hope that helps!