#Choose your class

[capriciousnarrator]

Choose Your Class

Below the image is an excerpt from my litRPG novel Crimson Gauntlet. After surviving the first rush of monsters, Eddie Rush has been presented with a choice of class by the game rig sent to him by the mysterious developer somehow behind the attack. Each offers a unique way to combat the threat. Tell me in the comments which you would choose! Hacker. Learn to control Crimson Gauntlet lifeforms!…

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#amwriting #author #book #choose your class #crimson gauntlet #cyberpunk #eddie rush #gerhard gehrke #ioadler #ioadler author #litrpg #novel #sci fi #science fiction #scifi #writing

[bedlamsbard]

okay what I've learned from this semester and this round of grading is that if I ever use an essay prompt about premodern women again (extremely likely) I'll have to say "you cannot talk ONLY about how women were oppressed by the patriarchy or I will fail the essay" instead of "talk about the ideal woman of [insert historical time period + geographical location] vs. the reality of women in [time period/location] based on the evidence that we have" (obvs it was better phrased than that on the actual prompt and it would probably be different in another context).

I...I restructured the entire class so that we'd be able to talk about stuff Greek women actually did based on the evidence. thanks for showing you didn't come to class that day, look at the powerpoint online, or do the reading.

#me (typing with gritted teeth): you went into this with an agenda and are letting your modern biases show and cherry-picking your evidence #'this literary woman was treated as property!' yes that's because she is literally enslaved #'this quote shows women were expected to be married and pregnant all the time!' you have literally left out half the quote. the middle half #'this is a situation of extreme servitude!' you didn't actually read the passage where the writer literally says 'equal companion' #'women are portrayed weaving and playing with children showing that they were brutally subjugated' #interesting. what do you really think about textile manufacture and childcare and why do you feel that they're innately negative? #context: undergraduate 100-level greek civ class at a women's college #your girl #btw they weren't forced to talk about greek women they had a choice of five prompts and had to choose three

[rebellum]

I feel like... Perhaps... Arguing that transphobia is defined by murder and that anything other than murder doesn't even matter... May NOT be conducive to fighting for trans rights.

Like... people want the right to exist as they are. They want to have access to hrt and surgeries and prosthetics. People want access to clothes that fit them and reflect how they want to be seen. People want access to medical care (eg. Getting screened and treated for sex-based forms of cancer can be impossible if you have the "wrong" sex listed to receive those tests). People want to be respected and treated well. People want to not be sexually assaulted and beaten and abused. People want to have access to housing and jobs, and the protection to not lose those things for being trans. People want access to shelters for homeless people or survivors of domestic abuse. People want name changes.

Acting like all of those things don't matter because at least they weren't murderered by an individual (and instead die of suicide or state violence, or survive and suffer) isn't okay.

#'hey people are forcibly detransitioning you and raping and beating you and you lost your job and are going to be homeless and #probably die of infection from being stabbed for trying to go to the bathroom. but at least you arent part of a demographic that has a #higher murder victim rate! shhh just ignore that we dont actually have data on the murder rate of your group.' #do ppl like. forget state based violence exists. and that thats most violence minorities face. #idk man im just. mad about people on here acting like youre only oppressed if youre a perisex trans woman who was AMAB. #cause i exist at the intersection of multiple minorities and being told hey u experience violence but at least you wont be murdered by an #individual feels like a slap in the face. #like it doesnt matter if i have to mask my neurodivergent behaviour bc if people see they could assume im on drugs and call the police and #i could potentially be really hurt but not die but hey at least i wont die just be horrifically traumatized by police brutality! #there are millions of people with mental illnesses similar to my own around the world who are institutionalized and forcibly medicated or #living on the streets or dependant on horrifically abusive caregivers #but hey at least they arent being murdered! #like. the way the transphobia discussion on tumblr rn discusses (and doesnt discuss) race and ability and class and health makes me #feel very invisible. #like if people had to choose who to believe about my experiences between listening to me a black/mixed mentally ill maybe disabled (used to #be disabled) hella nd trans nonbinary person #or listen to a white middle class trans woman's take on my experiences that theyd choose her. its such a weird weird microcosm. #its like a monkeys paw like people are finally listening to trans fems and finally recognising the violence they experience and finally #actually caring about them but for some reason decide that in order to do that its necessary to throw every other minority under the bus #like fuck man have you seen how 'anti transandrophobia truthers' discuss race? its NOT okay #we all matter we all are so similar and are part of the same groups and same communities we need to stick together #stop using trans fems as a battering ram to hurt other minorities challenge #cause like. yes its some trans fems. but its mostly NOT? #like its non trans fems telling other non trans fems that they arent oppressed #and even when many trans fems are like what the fuck dude of course other trans ppl matter whats wrong with you #the group of like 80% non trans fems 20% trans fems are like 'hmm if you are defending other trans people you must not really be trans fem' #like. denying trans fems their identity bc they disagree with them?? dude someone doesnt stop being a trans fem cause they recognise #people other than trans fems matter and exist #its just all so WEIRD its a weird little tumblr microcosm #i wanna stress. for those of you who dont have access to other lgbtq+ communities. how much it seems to be primarily a tumblr thing. to

[snakebites-and-ink]

Whumper-Turned-Caretaker CYOA 3

CW for the series

You chose to tend to their wounds.

However much they might need reassurance, you doubt they'll believe you if you tell them you’re not going to harm them. You’ll try to act non-threatening and hope that will put them a little more at ease.

You approach slowly, keeping your movements gentle. You crouch down next to Whumpee so you’re on their level and they won't feel like you're looming over them. You try to keep your voice soft as you say, “I want to treat your wounds. Can I trust you not to try any funny business?”

They nod quickly.

“That’s good.” You hope you sound soothing enough. Probably not. A little bit of soft talking isn’t going to undo the hurt Whumpee’s received at your hands, but maybe it will help them feel like they’re not imminently about to receive more.

You unlock Whumpee’s chains. “Alright, come on.”

You take them upstairs and into the bathroom, where you pull out the first aid kit. They’re as timid and as quiet as a mouse, and true to their word they don’t try any funny business.

You carefully pull off Whumpee’s shirt and inspect their wounds. No broken bones, fortunately, but they’ve got a number of cuts and bruises of varying ages and intensities. All your handiwork, of course, so you’re not surprised by any of it.

None of it seems to be infected, so you figure you’ll be able to handle it without having to get a doctor involved. There’s not much you can do about the bruising other than giving it time to heal. The cuts, though, should be cleaned and bandaged.

Taglist:

@kabie-whump, @whumpanthems, @whumpsoda, @3-2-whump, @generic-whumperz, @taterswhump, @alivenova, @whumped-by-glitter

#There was such a clear majority in the last poll that I feel okay about posting this a few hours early #and I've been wanting to shift the update time to before my evening class anyways so this is a good opportunity for that #interactive #interactive whump #interactive fiction #whump poll #choose your own adventure #choose your own adventure poll #cyoa #whump cyoa #whump #whumper turned caretaker #whump writing #original fic #writing #whumpblr #whumper turned caretaker cyoa #my writing #my posts #whump community

[eggs-can-draw]

More despair disease au since @lavalave wanted more ✨

#eggs can art #danganronpa #drthh #danganronpa trigger happy havoc #monokuma #aoi asahina #byakuya togami #chihiro fujisaki #why is she here even tho she should be dead since this is a ch3 motive? I wanted to draw her in a cute nurse outfit #please remember that this is a she/they chihiro and alter ego space #toko fukawa #scissor system #makoto naegi #celestia ludenberg #in this timeline where junko decides to inflict Covid-despair on class 78 instead I choose to believe sdr2’s ch3 motive was hurricane #ALSO monokuma doesn’t say what the motive is until it gets bad #waits til Naegi is on the brink and the others aren’t much better and goes “OH YEAH! btw if one of you dies your friends get cured :]’’

[womans-armor-workshop]

My friend made a sketch of wizard robe of their's dream and asked me to make it. I love final results very much.

#seamstress daily #fandom screams into the void #handmade #cosplay #wizard robe #dnd character #dnd wizard #dnd charcter art #dnd original character #dnd party #dnd cleric #dnd classes #choose your character

[s0fter-sin]

i’ve stopped expecting interesting animation from bones. the star and stripe fight is cool but like every other fight/moment in mha, it’s only cool bc the source material itself is cool; bones does nothing to elevate the manga

they rarely try to experiment with colour and style. i saw so many colourings of the moment star and stripe made a giant version of herself out of the air; people made her look like a cosmos, like it reflected and bent the sky around her, doing so many inventive things and for the anime to just make her an outline against that godforsaken sky? i’m disappointed

but people will take me saying i’m disappointed and spin it to me saying the fight was bad. it wasn’t, just like most fights and moments in the anime aren’t bad but that’s all bc horikoshi knows how to draw. they never do anything beyond that; they never try and adapt it. whether it’s bc of time, direction, budget, or what have you, they will never do something truly inventive with their colouring

i’ve said this before and i’ll say it again, it’s not just that the sky is blue; it’s what the blue sky represents and that is an unwillingness to broaden their colour palette or atmosphere to support the changes in the tone of the story. the story isn’t just “will midoriya get into his dream high school and achieve his dream job?” it’s child abuse and societal systems and their dysfunctions, it’s racism and morality and is it right to try and save someone who’s determined to destroy the world just bc they are also a victim?

look at the finale of atla, a show that mirrors the narrative tone of mha; it starts out bright and colourful and vibrant to match the happy and small stakes nature of the story and as the tone of the story changes, the environment changes to reflect that. the siege of the north pole? everything goes blood red when the moon spirit is threatened, then goes completely desaturated when it is killed with only fire bending having any colour. the day of black sun? uses a solar eclipse to change the lighting. the entire sozin’s comet fight? has red skies and lighting to show the threat

bones abject refusal to change anything about the art itself is a detriment to horikoshi’s complex narrative

#its not just about the colour of the sky #lets get that straight #we’re doing some real the curtains arent just blue shit here so keep up #colour and lighting are a very deliberate choice in any visual medium #and choosing to ignore it and not take advantage of it will just be a detriment to whatever youre creating #i see so many colourings of manga panels where they do insane things and really do next level colourings #and to then see the anime that has so much money and talent behind it just for it to be flat and emotionless with no atmosphere? #it sucks #when you can pick out a scene from something called the WAR ARC and it looks the same as the sports festival arc? come on #and i know theres more to making a scene out of a panel then there is to colouring one #but when these indie creators doing visually gorgeous colourings its hard not to feel like the anime is lacking #and when your colours are flat and your camera angles are uninteresting then what is the point of an anime adaptation #even if they do change things here and there like the endeavour v hood fight or all might v afo #it doesnt change that the majority of the time its the exact same #and when the storm eventually comes round? that wont satisfy me either enless they change the colors of everything as well to be desaturate #and fully embrace the new atmosphere that horikoshi has very deliberately drawn #class a v deku is the one time they did a sustained colour difference and theres a reason that went over so well #coming out of my cage and ive been doing just fine.txt #go beyond plus ultra #mha #bnha #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #star and stripe #shigaraki tomura #izuku midoriya #bakugou katsuki

[yellowocaballero]

Please read "the s-classes i raised" for insane women. :D

Yesss!! That's the only other work in the male oriented OP gamer genre I've read! :D

Fully agree that the insane women are great. I love the hip teen who can snap you like a twig, cool girlboss guild leader who can snap you like a twig, and terrible yet entertaining person who can snap you like a twig. We have such a good diversity of women that I'd even forgive a love interest at this point.

It is genuinely a very cute work. A good palate cleanser for everything else. Definitely a reaction to Solo Leveling, since it is the exact opposite of Solo Leveling in every conceivable way while still having identical worldbuilding. The first chapter surprised me when it depicted just a warm and sincere and meaningful "I love you!" between two men, and that energy is maintained. It's actioney but sweet. The MC does not start out as Your Literal Mother and then transform into a badass who can beat anybody up - he says as Your Literal Mother, becomes very good at being Your Literal Mother, brainwashes you a bit?, and as a result in the moments when somebody kidnaps his cat and he does go apeshit, it's very satisfying. Very much more proof that a good supporting cast is everything.

It is funny to read this sweet and pretty straight-forward character-wise work and then immediately open up orv to read a chapter straight of kdj going absolutely insane and manipulating the Greek pantheon to steal a godhood. And you're like ah. orv is...really another level. Of insane. It is not normal behavior. I'm putting it next to Animorphs as a work that is genuinely uncrossover-able.

Obviously, I have a better version in my head. I would have tweaked a few things. I especially liked the idea of making Big Bro and Lil Bro estranged because of more than just...super shitty communication. Have them actually estranged because they have bad habits, they can be ugly to each other, they can get on each other's nerves. Have the gap be created naturally and have the fame and demon contract prevent a bridge from ever being built again. Genuine sibling shit. Give Big Bro MC actual regrets for how he treated him.

I would have the Yandere thing be new. Because in the new universe his brother is lowkey brainwashed into loving him simply and unconditionally and prettily - no more messiness, no more rough edges hurting each other. MC is no longer a person and is instead an abstract idea of perfection. And it's pretty easy to cut off the vague ideal of a brother's arm or dehumanize him. And it would involve MC realizing that he would have rather had the messiness and hurt and sharp edges than the perfection.

#more to that but thats without going super long #im not nearly insane over the webtoon enough to write it Just A Bit Differently like that #but man the lowkey brainwashing thing is lowkey creepy #and doing stuff with that and doing stuff with 'would you choose heartache' #and 'would you choose happiness or your brother' #could be super juicy actually. #my asks #i do love the yandere thing. like normally the yandere thing in characters like Lil Bro is cute or smth #no this guy is trying to cut off his arm the fuck #can we scroll back into. how. that is the sign of a . very big problem. #can we. pz. #you can have a bro who you can't get along with for normal guy reasons #or you can have a bro who is obsessed with you but also wants to cut off your arm #no middle ground. #insane webtoon #the s classes that i raised

[grand-line-shenanigans]

Anyways, philosophy.

#fma #fmab #greed the avaricious #bido #my art #doodles #sketchy #anyways. so in philosophy class. #we are learning about determinism which is basically this: #that every single occurrence and action in the world has one or more causes. including human decisions and actions. #which raises the question: if everything we ever do or choose is determined by causes both internal and external then can we say that we #have free will actually? #if you make a choice. there are many factors that go into that choice. your personality- your opinions- the situation you're in- #all your prior knowledge leading up to your decision- phobias and preferences and etc- everything around you that led up to the decision- #things you might not even notice consciously. #all these things lead to whatever you choose to do. so did you ever have a 'choice' in the first place? if time was wound back. #would you have made a different choice or the same one? #anyways. #philosophy #unreality #the devil's nest

[sapientiia]

telling a man that you're not interested in a situationship because its a waste of time and they say you're going a bit "too crazy." me "going crazy about it" was me calmly explaining that it wouldn't work and i wasn't interested. also starting the conversation with wanting to provide for me "as my husband" and how you're planning our honeymoon already before your brain is fully developed, and before you even truly know me, smells like divorce papers and resentment simmering on the back of the stove.. "im just asking because i'd clear my roster for you if you wanted to have a situationship again" you're joking..... you're joking.

me calmly explaining btw

#dont suddenly message a girl that you want to provide and get married #and that ur planning the honeymoon. we never even spoke romantically it was all superficial and we both KNEW that. #and then like a year later he pulls up with this its just so funny like im not a placeholder or a trophy for you LMAO? #they see an emotionally guarded woman and insist on squirming through her walls with pretty words #CLEAR YOUR ROSTER?! ive dealt with the 'make you feel special' trope..... ive been through it all #it doesnt workkkkkkkkkk #choose a woman that cant see through bullshit #think! just think..... ok class lets use our critical thinking skills!

[strixcattus]

if you wouldn’t mind, could you share the class system and magic workings of your stp dnd au?

There's a worldbuilding side to this and a game mechanics side to this. I'll start with the game mechanics, since that part's quicker.

I've made the general decision that the game the characters are playing is something that on the surface looks pretty much like D&D (same d20+ability score+skill system, for one, and pretty much all the terminology is the same), but if you poke into the mechanics of character creation it's not like D&D at all. Which is to say that classes in-game aren't quite the same as classes in D&D.

It's like college, you know? Eventually you have to declare your major (class), and you'll have to take a certain number of courses (skills) in the major (class), but that doesn't stop you from exploring courses outside of it (taking other classes' skills) as long as you can still meet the requirements for what you're trying to do.

(I imagine there are a few skills that are locked to specific classes, and others to specific patronages—a divine cleric and warlock both get to dip into a list associated with celestial magic, while their demonic counterparts have access to an assortment of more infernal abilities.)

This is how the party can have three bards who each have an entirely different relationship with magic. Contrarian is (ironically) the only one playing a normal bard, while Smitten has been almost exclusively taking non-magical bard skills, and Opportunist poured half his points into taking progressively higher ranks in a single non-bard skill.

(Most of the party is playing a single-class character. Skeptic and Broken are the primary exceptions, with neither of them having a class yet—Skeptic has a single, very expensive sorcerer skill and everything else isn't attached to a class [think extra proficiencies], while Broken has been using a level 0 character sheet the entire time, with his real sheet being held by the Narrator until the party reaches the point where all his level-locked skills become available.)

On to the worldbuilding/magic system side of things. I'll break this down by spellcasting class.

ARTIFICER: The line between artifice and wizardry is extremely blurred, and generally it's just a matter of identification, with casters on both sides being extremely uppity about their personal definitions. Generally speaking, artificers create magical effects primarily through mundane tinkering imbued with magic. They can't really take spell slots through their class, but they can create reusable magic items.

BARD: In this world, music is inherently magical, but there are some who put genuine effort into increasing the magical output of their music. Their magical repertoire is mainly limited to healing and support spells—even focused magical training can't summon fireballs by the power of music alone. There are a few bards who can manipulate other's actions or even take over their minds entirely, though...

CLERIC: Clerics can gain their magic either through actively being granted a higher status from the god they worship, or passively absorbing some of the powers of the Sleeping Gods through faith and luck. Either way, it's a pretty lax contract—their power is drawn from their god, so they'll lose them if they taper off in worship or start going against their god's morals, but all a deity ever really asks from a cleric is their faith.

DRUID: Druids draw their power from the interconnected network of living things called the Networked Wild, tapping into it momentarily to summon storms or communicate with plants. Their powers are, of course, stronger when there are a lot of living things nearby, but it's hard to cut them off from the Wild entirely. Druidic magic usually uses a one-way connection with the Wild—giving it a command to produce a spell—but some more powerful druids take the risk of opening their mind to the Wild entirely, gaining immense awareness with the danger of losing their individuality.

(Paladins and rangers exist in this system, but they don't have their own systems of magic. Paladins are essentially martial classes who tap into clerical magic, while rangers are martial classes who tap into druidic magic. They do have some class-specific skills, but most of what they can do comes from a combination of other classes.)

SORCERER: Sorcerers' magic is innate—less powerful, but more readily available and often more customizable. Some sorcerers can trace their magic back through their bloodline to a demonic, divine, or otherwise magical ancestor, but just as many gain their powers seemingly at random. Generally speaking, sorcerers have their potential from birth—it's not unheard of for someone to be struck by lightning and walk away with powers, but anything granted by an outside force with any measure of awareness will probably come with a clerical or warlock pact.

WARLOCK: Warlocks are similar to clerics, and can actually have any patron a cleric might (though they can also have patrons a cleric could never dream of). The difference lies in the terms of their agreement. While all a cleric's benefactor wishes for is some form of worship, a warlock is expected to provide some sort of service to their patron. For most, it does pay off in the benefits—innate abilities that don't drain from a finite pool of spellcasting energy.

WITCH: Witches deal in curses—similar to spells, but more permanent, sometimes more powerful, and more difficult to resist. The catch is that every curse has a condition that breaks it, usually tailored to the target—and the more powerful the curse, the easier it has to be to break. The condition generally falls into one of three categories: personal growth, giving up something of value, and a fetch quest. Witches can also control nature spirits, with each having their own specialty—local lakes or animal species, or even (if they're ambitious) a section of the Networked Wild.

WIZARD: The academics of the magical world, wizards gain their powers through study. They have the potential to be a jack-of-all trades (more so than any other single casting class) or to narrow in on a single field of magic and attain incredible magical abilities. There's some overlap with artificers, but generally wizards are considered to rely more on magical power than mechanical contraptions, and they have more ready access to spells.

(Making magical items, especially potions, is within the domain of both wizards and artificers, but the skills involved all technically belong to the Artificer class. Likewise, if an artificer wants to fill out their spellbook, they'll have to buy spells from another class's list—usually Wizard's.)

#the Narrator has made the decision not to force his players to choose a class until an unusually high level #for all the railroading he does in his plot he's a surprisingly lenient DM when it comes to character creation #you want to take HOW MANY levels of wildshape when you're not even a druid? #want to homebrew your own race after I specifically requested a party of corvid beastfolk? #want to create a demigod with exclusively skills that are level-locked due to power and just hold off on it for a while? #sure why not; can't do much more damage than the guy who insists on leaving all the monsters alive #so they can 'come back and give him a better fight' #stp d&d au #worldbuilding

[frog-0n-a-l0g]

UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I have to submit a STUPID idea and 2 STUPID critical thinking questions to this STUPID gt teacher WHO WONT HELP ME for this STUPID gt class that was due 2 FUCKING DAYS AGO fo a STUPID gt project. God how do I have straight A’s w how much I procrastinate

#I HATE THIS #FUCK SCHOOL #FUCK HER #FUCK THIS PROJECT #FUCK THIS #WHYYYYYYYYYYY #throwing myself off a cliff #ALSO #this class doesn’t teach anything #it all leads up to a project #OF YOUR CHOOSING #SO WE LEARN NOTHIBG #but “critical thinking“ #bitch we BEEN KNEW how to do that #anyways😋

[aphverse-confessions]

i find people who include fantasy racism, sexism and homophobia in their rewrites for ‘added drama’ and ‘issues’ are extremely unoriginal and lacking creativity. if your go to conflict is always fascism just because you have no creativity to try and come up with anything else besides what you know and is obviously ingrained in your brain, you should sit down and think why your go to awnser is always fascism.

.

#ooookay #so uh #I can understand this sentiment when directed at ppl who have no expierence being discriminated against in a particular way #and still write a story abt that discrimination #like a white person adding fantasy racism to their story #however #people often use fiction as a means of exploring or explaining our world in a way that can be more digestible to the viewer #and gay person creating a fantasy story thay focusses on a world with homophobia and how that impacts those living in it #is not adding it for 'drama' #they are commentating on the state of our world which has homophobia #maybe someone's first way to explore conflict in a story is via bigotry because they have expierenced bigotry so often in their life #they view it as one of the major driving forces in their circumstances or perspective #to belittle writing that depicts real world issues as 'adding drama' shows to me that there is a lack of reading comprehension on your part #if your first instinct when faced with a story that includes an oppressed class being oppressed is 'stop add drama' #I think you need to reevaluate some things #one the number one pieces of writing advice you hear is 'write what you know' #who are u to say someone should be more 'creative' than that #aphmau confessions #aphmau #aphblr #aphverse #fandom angies #angies #instead of being mad maybe consider WHY an author may choose to add those things to a story #maybe u want fiction for escapism and that's why it bothers you #but not everyone goes to fiction for that purpose #sometimes they want to vent issues via a story or explain to someone why smth is a problem while excluding as much bias as possible #hence the fantasy setting and depiction of oppression #🤭

[knifedancer]

Winds of Change - The Storm (Start)

On a class trip, Marinette finds herself separated from her classmates and injured when a terrible hurricane hits. Swept away by the storm surge, she's saved by an unexpected presence: Argos. They have to seek shelter together until the weather improves. But what happens when Marinette sacrifices herself to save Felix?

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ENDING: Dark, Salt, Hope, and Bittersweet. Read one or read them all. AO3

Looking for an ending?

Dark | Salt | Hope | Bittersweet

~~~~~~~

It was a fine June day in Hong Kong, where the Parisian akuma class had chosen to spend their end of the year trip. Marinette wandered along the store fronts, looking for the perfect souvenirs for her family while her classmates buzzed from one table to the next in the bazaar. They were just out of her reach, flitting about on the bluenette’s peripherals, barely acknowledging her existence within their group. Things had not really improved at school but at least the bullying had stopped after she had reported Kim for pushing her into a locker – which was caught on the newly installed security cameras! Ladybug’s public endorsement of the new camera system throughout Paris was very popular and had come in very handy for her civilian self. It did not stop the lies or isolating behavior, but at least things were tamer. Another change had been Adrien’s sudden interest in the young designer. Things were still new; they had not put any labels on their relationship…was it even a relationship? Whatever. They were focused on getting to know each other and spending time together. There had even been a few times in the last two months where she and the model had almost kissed! Perhaps she should finally ask him what they were…

While perusing some ceramic figurines, Marinette caught a flash of something purple from the corner of her eye and she turned her face toward the rooftops to seek it out. Her eyes narrowed as she squinted toward one particular shadowed overhang across the large square from where she was, sensing something that was not entirely visible to the naked eye but having no proof. Tikki’s pats against her leg from her satchel made her shake her head. Ladybug should not be seen in China so, unless it impacted herself directly, she was not going to panic about it. She smiled politely to the vendor and purchased the small porcelain bird, which would be a gift to her grandfather. He’d appreciate the classic lines and old-fashioned process of how it was made. Turning around, she looked around to find a classmate, only to find that she was left alone again. Marinette sighed and began walking down the direction she had last seen them, hoping to catch up with her group. She knew that this was the likely outcome when Bustier had split them into smaller groups but had hoped no one would leave her behind. Guess that was out the window!

As she walked, she had the feeling of eyes on her back. A quick glance around as she pretended to look for her friends gave her no evidence of whom might be watching. Hearing a soft chime, the bluenette pulled her phone from her jacket pocket to check her weather app. She had downloaded it specifically so she wouldn’t get caught in bad weather while overseas – unfortunately the app was in Mandarin and, although she thought it would be good practice, she was still struggling to remember all the Hanzi symbols. “Hmm, there’s a summer storm coming in. Is that the symbol for rain or wind? It has been rather breezy today…” Distracted by her phone, Marinette did not see the attack coming. One minute she was walking between buildings, the next she was being shoved roughly into an alleyway. The bluenette stumbled and slammed her side into a dumpster with a hiss as the wind was knocked out of her. She could hear her phone clatter across the pavement before making a sickening crunch. Pushing herself back onto her feet, she looked up to find Lila’s cruel smile as her foot stomped down one more time on her now shattered phone.

“What is it this time, Lila?” She asked lowly, cradling her bruised ribcage.

“I warned you, Marinette, to stay away from Adrien,” her eyes took on a wicked gleam.

“Adrien can talk to whomever he wants, he’s not someone you can control or a possession you can own!”

The Italian chuckled darkly, “That’s where you’re wrong. And I’m done giving you warnings.” That’s when Marinette realized Lila was holding a short piece of metal pipe, which she now brandished against her open palm as if testing the weight, her fingers carefully avoiding the slightly jagged end where it had been previously cut. “You know, it’s a real shame about the crime rate in other countries…” Marinette barely had time to duck under the first swing, covering her head with both arms as Lila swung the pipe against her jacket-covered ribs, followed by one to her shin that made a horrible snapping and tearing sound before it collapsed under her. Tears sprung to the bluenette’s eyes; she cried out as she curled into the side of the dumpster for protection. She felt Tikki buzzing angrily in her satchel along with a huge burst of creation magic…uh oh.

Just as Lila was about to swing again, a gust of wind strong enough to knock a person off their feet whipped through the alleyway and rain began to fall, growing steadily heavier as the sky darkened. Her attacker let off a shriek as she was drenched before running off to find cover, leaving the bluenette behind to whatever fate would befall her. Marinette sucked in a ragged breath, letting her tears wash away with the rain, as she looked down at her leg. There was a horrible gash just beyond the edge of her pink capris, but nothing appeared to be sticking out of it. Grabbing hold of the bricks in the wall, she dragged herself back onto her feet and attempted to put weight on it – causing her to muffle a whimper, something was definitely fractured but she could hobble at least. Balancing on her good foot, she fished her phone up from the ground and confirmed that the entire screen was shattered beyond use. Marinette opened her bag and met the eyes of a contrite looking kwami as she tucked her phone away.

“Was it you that made this storm kick up suddenly?”

“I’m so sorry, Marinette…I was so angry that she was hurting you and I couldn’t think of anything else to help…”

The girl smiled softly, her hair and clothes beginning to stick to her skin. “Thanks, Tikki. I think you might have overdone it though…” Marinette stumbled towards the mouth of the alley, using the wall to support herself as she moved. Once she was closer to the market square, she looked around to find the place deserted in a hurry, the winds beginning to tear up the fabric sided stalls as growing rivers of water took over the streets. “It looks like you made the summer storm into a full-on cyclone…” the secret heroine murmured in terrified amazement, shutting her satchel. How was she going to get back to the hotel? Could she even find higher ground on her own without a map? Bracing for the pain that she was likely to feel, she pushed off the wall and hobbled towards a street sign on the corner, gripping the pole tightly as she tried to get her bearings. If she could get across the street, there would be a direct route back to the thoroughfare that led to their hotel around the next corner…

‘How deep does flood water have to be to sweep a person off their feet again?’ the girl questioned, not remembering the exact number Aurore had mentioned on her weather podcast. She looked down into the rushing water in front of her, it looked to be about 10-12cm deep already – she could make that, couldn’t she? No real choice now… Biting her lip, Marinette summoned her strength and stepped down off the curb, attempting to hop with little assistance from her injured leg – she made it about halfway when her footing was knocked out from under her, the water cushioning her fall, and she was swept down the street with a scream. The young designer splashed about as she attempted to get into a rescue position, struggling to keep her head above the rushing water as she cried for help. Up ahead she could see the water pounding against the side of a white delivery van before it diverted down the street and her mind raced with panic, not knowing how she could brace to be slammed against that without losing consciousness or breaking more than one bone! Closing her eyes tight and bringing her arms up to protect her face, she prayed for any intervention that might help her, she left off a scream of utter fear…

Only to feel herself pulled from the waters and into the wind driven rain, held by a set of arms cloaked in a familiar fabric. Opening her eyes, Marinette turned to meet the magenta gaze of Argos as he leaped off the van and onto a neighboring roof. “Ar-Argos? What are you doing here?”

“It seems I’m here to fish you out of the flood waters. What the hell were you thinking?” came the angry question from the villain gone anti-hero.

“Look, I was out shopping for souvenirs for my family – I just found one for my grandfather but I haven’t found anything for my Maman… Anyways, then the storm happened very suddenly! I was trying to get back to my hotel! But my leg is injured, and the water was too fast…” she tried to defend herself.

“And how the hell were you injured? One minute you’re in the square and the next you’re missing…” Argos angrily replied. “I followed you and Adrien to China; I knew one of you would likely get into trouble. Adrien luckily has Gorilla but you, oh ho, you are a natural magnet for trouble.”

Marinette looked away; her face scrunched in pain as her voice dropped to a whisper. “…you wouldn’t believe me, if I said how…no one does…”

Argos’ forehead creased in concentration, his gaze taking on an analytical light. “What do you mean?”

“The girl that models with Adrien sometimes…Lila Rossi, she hates me and has lied since day one to get her way. I think she’s spying on your cousin for his father. She wants me to stay away from him so she can seduce him or something…” Marinette took a shuddering breath and let her eyes wander over the rain drenched rooftops, her voice breaking as she admitted the truth. “She attacked me in an alleyway, hit me with a metal pipe and left me for dead when the storm started.”

The hands holding her tightened and she could swear that, although it could not be heard over the present storm, a snarl reverberated against her side. She dared not look up to see what might be held in his eyes. “…I see. Does my cousin know?”

Marinette nodded weakly, shivering lightly as winds quickly chilled her wet clothes. “He knows she’s lying, but not about the abuse. Not sure if he knows if she is spying for his father. This is the first time in a while that anyone has become physical with me…” She looked out from the rooftop, realizing she must have been washed off course by several blocks, she couldn’t recognize a thing. Argos stumbled slightly as the winds beat down on them once more, making the raindrops feel like needles stabbing into their exposed skin.

“We’ll need to discuss this more later. For now, we need to find shelter.” The purple suited teen hopped from roof to roof, attempting to open the access hatches they came across – only to find them battened down tight. Letting the winds at their back to carry them further inland, Argos eventually brought them down to a small shack against a larger building on a slight hillside. It looked rickety and seemed to shake as the howling winds ripped through the streets but the wood around the latch was rotten enough to mean it was not as secured as the other buildings around them. With a slight splintering, Argos kicked in the shed’s door and settled her down on her good foot nearest the entryway before he dropped his transformation. Duusu was nowhere in sight, likely hidden away in a pocket just as quickly as he appeared from the brooch. Marinette watched as the proud, conniving Felix stalked through the room looking through the meager items stored here.

After all that had happened – on both sides of the mask – she couldn’t readily trust him. Adrien had been adamant that his cousin was turning over a new leaf, but she was unsure. Ladybug had little to no interaction with Felix beyond their first few…mishaps. Marinette had certainly met him once or twice while spending time with Adrien – like the ill-fated night of the Diamond Dance. Argos was an entirely different story, having become both a nuisance and an occasional protector. He wasn’t working with Monarch; however, he knew the villain’s identity and was unwilling to share it with the heroes. He was looking to obtain their Miraculous to make his own Wish – which had led to several confrontations on the battlefield. Felix himself was still a bit of an obnoxious jerk but, as Argos, he seemed to have appointed himself as Marinette’s bodyguard whenever his cousin was not present. Sometimes it was helpful, like the time she was being chased by a pack of wild pigs – gods, that akuma was ridiculous – and the peacock holder had pulled her onto nearby building with a scoff before dashing away. More often than not, it was just annoying. Whenever he showed up, he acted as if he was personally put-out by having to do so. It irked her to no end, yet Argos did just save her from the flood waters…

She took a moment to inconspicuously tap twice on the side of her satchel and nearly sobbed when she felt Tikki’s two taps in reply. ‘Thank goodness, at least she wasn’t hurt or lost in that current…’ Looking around the small space herself, she noted it housed mostly garbage – complete with a disassembled motorbike missing several key pieces, some rusted lumps that used to be hand tools, and a pile of loose recycling. The shed itself was perhaps three by three and a half meters in size, the wood panels that made up the walls and roof weathered by years of storms. The bluenette shivered as the wind blasted through the open doorway, causing the door to bang against the wall and empty aluminum cans to clatter about. Another rogue gust was so strong that Marinette stumbled sideways; she released a startled cry as she attempted to steady her footing with her injured leg. Felix turned at the noise and looked concerned for a moment before scowling down at her injury.

“There’s nothing here to bind your leg with, we may need to improvise until the storm dies down. No use trying to stand on it,” came the blond’s gruff reply.

Marinette scoffed softly, “Really? And here I thought we were about to perform a waltz in the Ritz ballroom. My injuries are not that severe. We’re more likely to develop hypothermia or die when this rickety old shack comes down on top of us.” The building let out an ominous creak as if in agreement with her statement.

Felix’s eyes narrowed and crossed the limited floor space, gesturing towards the doorway. “Would you rather be outside in that?”

“No, but we certainly could have found better shelter! Something off the ground and made of brick!”

“Well, excuse me, princess, if it isn’t to your liking!” The blond threw up his hands in defeat and turned to stalk away towards the opposite corner.

Another heavy gust smashed something heavy into the side and roof of the shed, adding a sickening SNAP! to the creaks and moans. Marinette watched in horror as, within an instant, part of the roof started to give way above Felix’s head. Time seemed to slow and her hero instincts pushed her into motion. Ignoring the searing pain in her leg and ribs, the young designer launched herself towards the blond while screaming his name. He began to turn at the sound just in time for her two palms to roughly press against his chest. Their eyes met for a single, fear filled, heart stopping second as he was pushed away from the falling debris…

‘Thank goodness,’ she thought.

Then everything went black.

~~~

If you had asked Felix yesterday if he knew true fear, he would have sneered. His youth had been filled with abuse and pain at the hands of his father, who made sure the young Fathom knew the true meaning of fear.

But he would have been wrong.

For nothing had ever made him feel such pure, unadulterated terror as hearing Marinette scream his name with a tone filled with desperate dread in that shed. Her small, calloused hands shoving him from danger mere seconds from impact. Her bluebell eyes wide with fear and relief. Watching with growing horror as a large piece of debris crashed into the back of her girl’s skull with a gut-wrenching crack! Her eyes rolling back in her head as her limp body fell; being covered by debris and drenched with the unforgiving rain that came between the jagged timbers of the roof.

Felix’s back slammed into the wall, knocking the air from his lungs. “Mari-nette…” he wheezed, gasping for breath before his vocal cords finally let out a broken cry, “MARINETTE!”

Panic rising like bile in his throat, he rushed over and pushed the rubble away, digging the girl he promised his cousin to protect free. Carefully he pulled her away from the remaining pile and looked her over, finding a large and bloodied gash on the back of her skull. Felix could not stop his eyes from following the trail of bright red spots back towards the heap of timbers and roof tiles, from seeking the blood covered support beam that was meant for him. Swallowing thickly, he pulled his eyes away and back towards the bluenette. She was unresponsive, pale, and barely breathing but alive!

‘Not for long, if you don’t do something, idiot!’ he chastised himself mentally. The blond’s eyes flickered over the room again, now desperate for anything he could use to staunch the bleeding as he began to rip his shirt sleeve and press it firmly against Marinette’s head wound. Felix watched as the fabric turned red but the flow down her neck eventually slowed. ‘There has to be something else…’ His eyes fell upon her purse and he reached for it with his free hand. Opening it, he began to pull trinkets free as he desperately searched for anything – a scarf, a sanitary pad, gauze – that he could use for first aid…only to find the one thing he never expected.

A red kwami with black spots. Like a ladybug. Just as Duusu had described.

The little red goddess rose from her hiding place and solemnly took sentry over the unconscious girl, floating at his eye level. He froze as he stared at the creature, his mind whirling as it connected the logical dots and stripped back the Miraculous magic that – until this point – concealed her identity.

Marinette had a kwami.

Not just any kwami, the Ladybug kwami of Creation.

Marinette was Ladybug.

Wait… Ladybug was the Miraculous Guardian.

Oh gods, that meant Marinette was the Guardian.

Her multitude of identities collided in his mind, every memory coalescing into a single portrait of the bluenette before him. The pieces fell into place too easily, it made too much sense. Of course, she was Ladybug! He knew of no one more selfless or heroic – nor frustrating – than Marinette. But she had saved him – saved the person she knew had betrayed her and treated her so poorly, who had attacked her and made battles difficult... Knowing he could find out her identity and run back to Monarch. Or take her Miraculous for his own designs, for his own Wish. Hell, he could take the Miraculous right now!

Felix felt Tikki’s patient stare as he fingered the plain black earrings still secured to Marinette’s earlobes. It would be so easy; he could easily see his goal within reach. Ladybug was his enemy, but Marinette was… She was Adrien’s current fascination – possibly girlfriend – wasn’t she? He plucked a large splinter from her hair, careful not to agitate the bloody spot on the crown of her head. “Why did you save me? I don’t deserve to be saved…for what I’ve done…for the pain I’ve caused…” Tears burned at the corners of his eyes as he traced her delicate features with his fingertips. “I’m a horrible person, Marinette. I’m broken inside, I don’t deserve your kindness.”

“My Bug would sacrifice herself to save anyone in trouble, it’s why she kept the Ladybug mantle even when she doubted herself…” Tikki calmly supplied.

“What do you mean ‘doubted herself’?” Felix demanded of the red kwami. That description did not fit either of the girl’s identities in his mind as he knew her.

Clumsy, flaky, nervous as a civilian.

Righteous, confident, commanding as the Parisian heroine.

And, if his cousin was right about her design prowess, the embodiment of creation in both.

“She was so young when she was given my Miraculous, just thirteen. There was no training, she and Chat were simply thrown into the fight without warning, and our prior guardian was far too old... She made a mistake during Stoneheart and tried to give up the earrings,” Tikki paused as she looked at her injured chosen as she recalled that day. “But her friend, Alya, was in danger of being crushed. Marinette took immediate action and never stopped. Even when her friends abandoned her, even when she was bullied or belittled or betrayed,” the tiny god glared at the blond and he flinched.

“She never gave up saving people. Even those that didn’t ‘deserve saving’ – because everyone deserves to be saved,” the red kwami stated with finality.

Felix felt a new wellspring of guilt at his actions, but the little goddess was not done. “Hawkmoth even tried to akumatize her…” A stabbing pain, like an icy knife, went up his spine at the thought. Marinette, even without being Ladybug, would be a terrifying akuma! “She fought him off by sheer strength of will. But my little Bug has been so alone. Shouldering the world by herself. Losing allies and the Miraculous…because of you, Felix.”

The blond could no longer look into the eyes of the red kwami, too pained by his guilt and overwhelming sadness. He turned his gaze down to the face of the unconscious girl in his lap. ‘What have I done? If I had known she was you… would I have done the things I did? Would I have made my deal with Hawkmoth or stood beside you?’ Felix blinked back a few tears and gently shifted Marinette in his arms, making sure to keep the pressure applied to her head wound. ‘I can’t take back what I did but…’

“Young Master, what will you do now?” Duusu asked from his vest pocket.

“Duusu, transform me,” simply ordered the blond with a determined look in his eye. With a bright flash of light, he was transformed into Argos. He surveyed the room with a calculating eye. “Tikki, would you bring me that empty can over there?” The little goddess stared, seeming to assess his motives. Seeing her hesitancy, he softly added, “Please.”

Tikki nodded in acknowledgement before complying. The peacock user pulled a feather from his fan and infused it into the can, building a mini shelter amok that would comfortably fit the two teens in a more fortified corner of the building they were in. Argos gently lifted the immobile girl bridal style, carefully cradling her injured head against his neck, before settling them both onto the floor of his amok structure. With a gesture, the door closed behind them to keep out the wind and rain. He wrapped his cape around them both, knowing his transformation would only hold out for so long but hoping the added material might help keep Marinette a little warmer.

Eventually he heard the beeping of his Miraculous and glanced at the lapel pin on his chest. One of the five red gems darkened. Four minutes left, he needed to figure out a plan. Argos knew from experience that his amok would remain so long as he did not break it or release the feather. Not that he had anything on him to recharge… ‘May as well not exhaust Duusu,’ he thought with a frown.

With a deep breath, he released his transformation and watched as the two kwami settled onto the bluenette’s chest to monitor her shallow breaths. He gently brushed his fingers over her brow and cheek. “Marinette. Please wake up. We have so many things left to fight about, you still need to find a perfect gift for your mother, and I…I have so many things to say to you. So many things to apologize for.” Tears came to his eyes once more as he looked upon her still form that laid limply against him, pulling her a little tighter into his arms as his whole body shook from suppressed sobs. “I’ve been such a fool! Please, I’ll do anything if you just wake up!”

The two kwami watched Felix brokenly cry in silence, Tikki knowing her powers would help the girl recover but unsure how long that might take. Humans being unconscious with a concussion was not a good sign and, if the injuries Marinette sustained were worse than they appeared, her powers could not reverse the damage like with an akuma. Duusu watched her holder, knowing this was the moment that would decide his future fate. Would he turn over a new leaf and finally help reunite the Miraculous? Or would this twist him into a worse tyrant than Monarch?

Felix removed his vest and what remained of his dress shirt. He draped the vest wider over his back, then wrapped the shirt around Marinette’s torso before huddling over her body to share what warmth he could. Outside the storm raged, drowning out the intermittent sounds of the boy's quiet sniffles and whispered words of encouragement to the injured girl.

~~~~~~~

How does it end? YOU CHOOSE. YOU DECIDE. READ ONE, READ THEM ALL.

Dark | Salt | Hope | Bittersweet

#miraculous ladybug #felinette #marinette dupain cheng #felix x marinette #marivanily #felix fathom #felix graham de vanily #cross posted on ao3 #hurt/comfort #major character injury #hurricanes #choose your own ending #pov marinette #tikki #duusu #pov felix #senior class trip #Trip goes wrong #alternate universe #Don't mess with Tikki #lila rossi

[piedoesnotequalpi]

Fake Fic Title:

From The Ladder’s Last Rung

Hello! I am fairly sure (after some googling) that your title is a reference to a Noah Kahan song!

Anyway, to me "last rung" can mean either the highest or the lowest point on a ladder, depending on your perspective, and that is the premise of this fic concept!

Race goes through elementary/middle/high school with a reputation of being both the class clown and one of the smartest people in his grade. What most people don't know, though, is that he uses the class clown part of his personality to deflect from the fact that he is not doing as well, grades-wise, as people might think--sure, he takes AP history when it's available, but he never gets higher than a B- on his report card for it. So when senior year rolls around, the combination of good grades in most other subjects and extracurriculars that make him seem interesting means he is able to get into one of his reach schools.

Anyway, Race goes off to school and he's very excited about the whole thing. He can finally put history, which is his least favorite subject, in the metaphorical rearview mirror; he's going to major in math and minor in dance; he's going to join all the clubs that weren't available to him in high school. During course registration, he ignores the suggestion from his RA that he should perhaps consider only taking one math class his first semester and registers for honors calculus (yes, this is a thing at some colleges) and an upper-level math class that only has a prerequisite of calc 1 and 2.

The problem with college, especially the first semester, is that it is often a big adjustment from high school no matter what your high school was like. Classes that really should not be taught lecture-style are taught that way, you're (sometimes) in a new city/town and even if you aren't you probably don't know a ton of people, and suddenly you have a much higher degree of independence. So Race is dealing with the general first semester freshman woes of making new friends and having a roommate and balancing time and navigating dining halls, but he's also dealing with the fact that for the first time in his life, he's struggling in his math classes. And that makes everything worse for him, because if he can't even do the one thing he's supposed to be really really good at, then how can he get through the rest of college? Does he even deserve to be there? Clearly his college made a mistake when they accepted him despite his less-than-perfect history grades. (those are his thoughts, not mine; he does deserve to be there)

As I mentioned earlier, he's used to using his class clown-esque personality to deflect from what's actually going on in his life, so almost no one knows how stressed he is. He still talks to his high school friends a lot, but so many of them are at their colleges having (as far as he's aware) a much easier time adjusting, so he doesn't want to talk about it with most of them. He goes to office hours sometimes, but he is very careful about which problems he gets help with to keep up the illusion that he knows what's going on. This would be less of a problem if he met up with his classmates to do homework, but he's worried he won't be useful enough to them. And obviously he would rather die than tell his new college acquaintances how overwhelmed he's feeling. The semester goes by in a blur of homework stress and club meetings and conversations where he just barely manages to convince everyone that he's doing okay (it's a lot harder than it used to be), all overlaid by the feeling that he's not good enough.

Being a college student gets easier, but not easy enough that he's able to turn everything around by the end of the semester. He withdraws from one of his math classes, and doesn't do great in the other, and he does...okay in his other classes. It's not the end of the world, but it does mean he has to drop out of the honors calculus sequence and possibly retake the class he withdrew from. But that doesn't stop Race from feeling like a failure, even though the only people who see his grades are him and his parent(s) (I haven't decided what his parent situation is in this), and they're understanding. It'll be easy to make up the credits he lost from the course withdrawal by taking some lower credit electives in later semesters, and he has seven more semesters to raise his GPA and figure things out.

And then we come back to the title and my (mis)interpretation of it (I wasn't just rambling pointlessly this whole time): To Race's parent(s), he's fallen off the bottom rung of the metaphorical ladder, so it's pretty manageable to get back up and keep going. But to Race, he's fallen off the top rung, because he can't stop thinking that he peaked in high school.

Things do get better for him, and later on he'll probably experience stuff that's way worse and wish it were just a rough first semester of undergrad, but in the moment, it really sucks!

#i hope i captured the feeling of stuff like this being the Absolute End Of The World #because being and adult/grad student has really changed my perspective #anyway hope you enjoy these angstboi hours #thanks for the ask! #my writing #ask game #asks #blurglesmurfklaine #racetrack higgins #isabel.tex #to any high schoolers or college freshmen reading this: #your first semester will probably suck if you choose to go to college. it will get better. #and if your RA recommends against you taking a class at least take it into consideration #okay posting this hoping it doesn't suck and meeting my friend for dinner #enjoy!

[pansyfemme]

im so sleepy

#i have a job interview tommorow.. #for a student job at a writing center at my college yknow #i think i will be a good fit because. im a writing major. and there arent many of us. considering this is an art school #like my major is more than that its basically the ‘choose your own adventure’ major lol i get more freedom with what classes i take i just #gotta take way more liberal arts which is fine by me #but yeah there arent many of us #so im hoping that will help #i promise im a good writer i just go weirdo style on here bc it does not matter