#but man... in canon shes so tragic. shes not allowed to be a person. just a tool for one eye then an object for clear sky

[batsight]

Star Flower, loner, Medic of SkyClan

She/Her, cis bisexual

Mother: Turnip

Father: One Eye

Adoptive Father: Skystar

Siblings: Unnamed, all deceased.

Design notes:

-She is styled after the Pokemon, Ogerpon

-The plants are a physical part of her body. They grow out of her.

-She is the physical embodiment of The Blazing Star.

Story notes: [Abuse CW]

-She was born as a normal kitten to a traveling band of rogues who loved to trade and spread their music. Unfortunately, this band died out to a plague, one that nearly took her own life. Desperate to save his family, her father Carrot traveled to a set of tunnels in Sanctuary Lake rumored to house a reality-bending god. He asked the god for a cure, and the god asked for his eye in return. They made the exchange, and he retrieved a glowing, golden, five pointed flower. However, he was too late to save most of his family, so the entire cure went to his surviving kit. He wasn't expecting her to survive the night given her fragile state and the dubiousness of the exchange...

-But the next morning, she was perfectly fine- great, even. If a little... odd... were those buds growing on her paws...?

-It only got stranger from there. When Carrot ended up finding more cats suffering from the plague, just a few calming purrs from his kit seemed to have them ripe and ready to go the next morning. Carrot understood then what had happened- his kit had become the cure herself. And cats were starting to look towards them more, started begging for her healing, for anything. And Carrot had lost everything... wasn't it time to start winning stuff back?

-And so, the pair became One Eye and Star Flower, for recognition's sake. The two formed their own small group, filled with cats Star Flower had healed. Star Flower loved to spread her magic where she went, to save cats from the brink of death and be showered with their love and appreciation. They felt like they owed a great debt to her, and she enjoyed that.

-She was very close with her father, even if their relationship could be strained. One Eye loved her, but to an extent, he also used her. He grew arrogant in his success, believing he had become the accomplice to a god, and began to hold that over cats who fell sick. He grew desperate for control and Star Flower was his key to that.

-One day, however, her father's group encountered the early clans. They were just beginning to settle down, work out their new rules, and declare borders. But what caught the group's attention was the near murder of a young kittypet, almost mauled to death by proto-SkyClan's leader, Skystar. Unable to heal wounds with her magic, Star Flower managed to bring the cat to a twoleg, who took her away.

-Appalled by the cruelty, Star Flower took a great interest in Skystar's group, and witnessed several of his other crimes against his cats and the other groups. As did One Eye, who, seeing the early signs of a plague, had an idea to put this cat and the other leaders in their place.

-One Eye and Star Flower joined the group, with One Eye acting as a curious loner, flattering Skystar with praise. Skystar enjoyed his company, and so One Eye grew in the rank rather quickly. He also took a great interest in Star Flower and her abilities. After murdering Tom, who insulted the cats and attempted to attack them, One Eye took the chance to take control over the group, overpowering Skystar and using Star Flower's power to keep the remaining cats in line- everything is going to be okay, you'll get your cure... if you stay in line and do as One Eye says.

-This went on for a moon, of Star Flower holding her magic over the heads of her clients to keep their loyalty towards One Eye. She would be lying if she said she didn't feel pride at it all at helping her father.

-Ultimately, One Eye was overthrown and killed when Skystar came back with reinforcements from the other clans. The rest of the rogues they'd accumulated ran off, and suddenly, Star Flower was alone. She'd never been without her father, and running would mean abandoning his grave, which she didn't want. But... this place had been a home to her for some time now, and she needed a place to stay. SkyClan had taken all of the available territory in the area, anyways, and she was in no shape to brave the other territories or twolegplace. So she offered her power to SkyClan as a peace offering and asked for shelter in return.

-Skystar was still sore from the event, but he couldn't deny that having Star Flower as an asset would be beneficial to him in the long run. And around this point, his son Thunderstar had disowned him and split off ThunderClan from SkyClan. He felt that he was losing allies, losing family, and he latched on to desperate Star Flower very quickly- as a cat who would never disobey him.

-Skystar takes Star Flower under his wing as his new child, her new ward, instating her as a medic. And because she is loyal to a fault, she won't disobey a new leader so similar to her father. And so, he pushes her to do humiliating things in front of the camp, ranging from general chores like tick baths, to forcing her to run laps around camp with an injury if she took too long to work her magic. He would take out his frustration from gatherings on her and berate her over the most menial things. He would make her withhold her power to help anyone in the clan who had displeased him. And if Star Flower ever tried to stick up for herself, all he had to do was remind her of what she did, how she helped torment his cats by holding a cure over their heads to help out her father.

-This went on for years, Star Flower becoming more and more despondent. One night, there was a particularly stressful gathering, in which Skystar got into a territorial dispute with Thunderstar over a pack of dogs ravaging the territories. He lost the dispute, came home, and immediately took it out on Star Flower, shouting at and attacking the molly for "taking too much food she didn't deserve". And something in Star Flower finally snapped, and for the first time, she didn't save a life- she took one. And another. And another. As many as what remained in Skystar's soul. She was discovered taking his very last life in his nest, while she was wondering if she could pin it on the dogs. She escaped the camp, and wandered the territory for the rest of her life.

-Unfortunately, while she finally won against Skystar in the moment, it was history who decided the victor. Sparrowstar declared that they couldn't let a tragedy like this happen ever again, and doubled down on banishing rogues. Every rogue-born cat was looked at with suspicion from then on, and as the decades began to pass, Star Flower's story became twisted and bent. As the story is told, a rogue had infiltrated SkyClan's camp asking for help, but had manipulated and charmed the leader with her prowess and rose in the ranks just high enough to take him out and attempt to claim his spot. Her story was used as a cautionary tale against rogues, warning cats against those who would infiltrate the camp and rot it from the inside. Eventually, even her true name was lost to time...

Rotten Flower, Warrior of The Dark Forest

Skystar didn't hesitate to throw her in the depth of the Dark Forest when she died. She wears her mask constantly, trying to keep away from the sickness of the muck. She's embraced the false myth made about her, claiming to have killed a founder for power and prestige. But in reality, it's been so long that she's forgotten her family, her power, her name. She barely even remembers Skystar himself. Though she's admired in the Dark Forest for her achievements, she doesn't hang around anyone, and acts hostile to those who approach her.

Perhaps someone can help her remember who she truly is...?

#changing up the way I do these! wanna make it a bit more clear this is all an au #might go back and update those older posts #anyways...i blorbo'd her. i know everyone likes making her a femme fatale and thats awesome and cool and great if you do that #but man... in canon shes so tragic. shes not allowed to be a person. just a tool for one eye then an object for clear sky #shes treated as evil for warning her dad about an ambush and shes gotta humilate herself for forgiveness. like... man. i wanted to lean int #that. like shes still screwed up for helping her dad use her magic to control people especially during the plague but she didnt deserve thi #also dw she DOES leave the dark forest. she escapes. homegirl does get better #star flower #warriors #wc #warrior cats #dotc #dawn of the clans #skyclan #dark forest #razorverse #anyways i may revise this overtime.... i dont want this to just come across as like. starf suffering hour #she had good parts of her life. i kinda want to make her and bumble friends #edit: i retooled star flower to be skystar's adoptive daughter once thunderstar disowns him #i wanted to play with the original text but. that sort of thing just skeeves me out way too much sorry. so im gutting it #you already know he sucks. i dont want to do any more than that.

[teambyler]

Will's anti-Vecna song should be David Bowie's "Heroes"

We know from the new BTS pic that he has headphones and a Walkman. Like Max, he might be fending off Vecna:

Max's anti-Vecna song was highly personal to her. It helped her through her guilt and depression and feeling like she deserved to die.

For Will, "Should I Stay or Should I Go" is cute, but it doesn't have emotional weight. It might have helped a child Will in the Upside Down in s1, when it made him think of home and Jonathan, but he's all grown up now. He's changed.

If Byler becomes realized, David Bowie's "Heroes" is the perfect song for Mike and Will's relationship that would help Will resist Vecna. It's canon that Will likes David Bowie: kid Mike prefers the androgynous rock star over Kenny Rogers (s2e1).

@surferbeto on YouTube comments:

This is a heroic love song. Bowie starts out crooning but pretty soon he ramps up and belts it out hard. This song is about risking getting shot by East German border police and dragged over barbed wire for love. This is about young love against impossible odds. It's about that gloriously tragic fantasy... of giving our life in some grandly romantic way to save the life of our beloved. Maybe by taking a bullet for them and dying in their arms in the shadow of the Berlin Wall.

Having David Bowie's "Heroes" in the show would call-back to Peter Gabriel's somber 2010 cover from s1, when Mike hugged his mom thinking Will was dead. But Bowie's original is defiant, triumphant, and bittersweet. (Seriously, if you haven't yet, listen to it before reading further. It's perfect.)

It would play when Mike and Will have their first kiss. Their song of losing each other is now of finding each other.

If Byler is realized, it could play as Mike and Will dare to hold hands in the school hall, as we fade out to the end credits.

Will would put it on his Walkman. If Will and Mike are bullied for their relationship, "Heroes" perfectly expresses their defiance and willingness to love each other despite the harm that might come to them.

It's the song that would most help Will in case he gets Vecna'd. It doesn't just remind him of Mike; it culminates his journey over the five seasons. As a kid he told Jonathan he's not a baby, not just a victim. Despite seeming shy and weak, he has a huge amount of quiet courage, but his struggle in s3 and s4 was largely internal. ("I'm not gonna fall in love.") Show creator Matt Duffer says about s5: "Will's going to be a big part and focus... We're starting to see his coming of age, really... You're starting to see him come into his own." If Byler becomes real, then his fight becomes external, confronting the homophobia in Hawkins and the literal hell threatening his friends. He will rise to the occasion.

"Will really takes center stage again in [season] 5," Ross Duffer told Variety. "This emotional arc for him is what we feel is going to hopefully tie the whole series together. Will is used to being the young one, the introverted one, the one that’s being protected. So part of his journey, it’s not just sexuality – it’s Will coming into his own as a young man."

In s2, Will only allowed Mike to protect him because he didn't feel pitied by Mike; Mike saw his strength. A stronger Will will pay him back and protect him from the twin dangers they face.

It's Will's turn to be the hero. His fight for others is his fight for himself. "Heroes" perfectly expresses his journey of defying all odds to fight for HIS RIGHT TO LOVE.

P.S. Follow me and read my blog! I have so much to say!

#byler #will defends mike with a gun #stranger things #vecna #speculation #song #should i stay or should i go #david bowie #heroes #headphones #walkman

[girltigerclaw]

breaking into ur house rn

top ten characters and bottom ten. reasons are optional

I just finished this chart thing i think i actually stole from your blog a few months ago <3 Slightly edited to my own prefs.

If anyone wants the template check the reblogs, and feel free to add you own. I'd love to see. I'm just rambling under here:

Leafpool: She is more special and sacred than the virgin mary. She has everything. Daughter of the first protagonist, ex boyfriend for me to hate, TONS of wlw situationships<3, a lifetime of tragedy, and some of the most gorgeous canon art to exist.

Crookedstar: Crookedstar is a trans woman to me. Her life is genuinely just so tragic and fucked, I love it. The erins asked: “How much truama, death and misfortune can you fit into a single cat?” and then they wrote Crookedstar’s promise.

Tawnypelt: GIRLS WHO HATE THEIR FATHERS. The erins dont love her like I do.

Tallstar: I love old men… I fucking love seeing older characters and how much they’ve changed from their younger selves. Tallstar is considered one of, if not the most peaceful leader in the clans. But also when he was like 19 he went on a quest to fucking murder a guy :3

Cloudstar: I rlly do not care abt anyone in Skyclan(I like Leafstar but she's not a fav yknow?) Cloudstar... he was based as fuck. Why did Starclan get away with this shit for real??

Scourge: It’s fucking Scourge. He’s awesome

Briarlight: I’m disabled and I love her. She has such a consistent fun, sweet personality and she makes me happy!!<3

RavenBarley: It deserves all the attention and hype it gets. Though I wish mlm ships didn’t overshadow wlw ones in this fandom, RavenBarley is genuinely well written and makes me very emotional even if the publisher didnt allow it to be explicitly canon.

CrookedBlue: TRANS WOMEN CROOKEDSTAR YURI. Two leaders having a forbidden relationship and kits is way more interesting than Oakheart. The angst of Crooked and Blue sitting next to eachother every gathering while the entire forest has their eyes on them. Don’t look for too long, don’t let the mourning slip into your voice. You have to pretend your lover is a stranger. You… have become strangers. You can never be together again. You're enemies now. This is what we wanted, isn’t it? …We’ll never be happy again.

Mothwing: Her novella delving into her relationship with Hawkfrost was so good and heartbreaking.

Heathertail: Daughter of leader, sister of a major villian, and former love interest of a protagonist! Why did she fall off the second po3 ended. She’s shown to be very compassionate and willing to put her own feelings aside for the sake of others. Would’ve honestly prefered her as a mate to Lionblaze or get a pov herself over the nothing we got.

Blackstar: *Murders an elderly woman trying to stop me from kidnapping children. Supports a dictator openly abusing/neglecting children and the elderly. Murders a man for refusing to kill mixed raced children- then tells said man’s sister that she will never be safe.* Man…. i sure do feel bad for abusing and killing all of those people…. Good thing I will face no consequences and proceed to be made leader, where I will have even more power over the wellbeing of others.

I hate. This guy.

The New Prophecy: A classic. My first series was actually tnp! i feel more attached to first arc cats tho, if you couldn't already tell by my list lmao

Johanna Map- Best Tawnypelt content out there

BlueQuince: My personal handcrafted, homemade Yuri. Bluefur feels terrible about Tiny going missing and promises Quince she’ll help her find him. They never did, but they had a very… fleeting but intimate relationship. Quince is grieving and Bluefur feels so overwhelmed by the duties in her clan. They’ve always thought of eachother since but never met again.

Tigerclaw: My name sake<3 The angst of his earlier life is so, so facinating to me. Starclan being straight fucked up and decided killing him is their only option? He was a kid and they saw him as a lost cause from the start. They never tried any other methods, never tried to steer him in the right direction or… even just take it into their own hands and kill him themself, which they have SHOWN they’re capable of.

They watched all the the horrific crimes he commited, entirely aware they were going to happen. Thats. Fucking. Horrifying. Starclan is scary as shit… and his death? FANTASTIC. I only wish he’d gotten lives from cats he killed so that him coming back to life to suffer over and over was an actual curse from Starclan and not blessings. They knew how he would die and they gave him the lives to torture him for his sins…

Flywhisker: Adhd girlies. Painfully relate to that feeling of the constant scolding for never being “good enough” because I prefer to do things a certain way or struggle to focus. So, SO happy for her when she left the clans! You don’t have to prove yourself to anyone! Hope she’s happy and warm indoors with her brother💕

(P.S. I was very suprised to find she actually had an official art piece!)

Bluestar: Get behind me women with mental disorders. I will defend you. Beautifully complex and tragic character, my favorite written in the series. Literally can't think of a single other female character in handled as seriously and with the complexity of Bluestar. (Although her super edition was a bit of an L with how others treated her, it ultimately makes her breakdown even more painful.)

Exile from Shaodwclan: Nightstar my beloved! He's such a great guy. The rightful leader of Shadowclan, always and forever.

Ravenpaw's Farewell: HE DIED IN BARLEY'S ARMS, TELLING HIM HE WILL FIND HIM, NO MATTER WHERE HE IS. FUCK.

Crookedstar art: So beautiful. I genuinely think she's one of the prettiest cats in the series. This along with her official art by Wayne Mcloughlin.

Leopardstar: As a kid I hated her and loved Blackfoot, now I hate Blackfoot and love her. #feminism. But seriously I think she has way more going for her than he ever has. Her father is a medicine cat who hates violence, the DRASTIC change in Riverclan's view of outsiders upon Crookedstar's death and her leadership. Her already having a position of power before proving she's unworthy of it. (Unlike Blackstar who gets rewarded for his racism and violence by being made leader afterwards) and the fact she has to interact with her victims on a daily basis after what she did.

The writings attempts to redeem her are really lame and dismissive of the actually damage she did, but at the very least they TRIED to do something else with her. Personally, I would have loved to see her assassinated by Mistyfoot. Just like her mother Bluestar was almost killed all those moons ago by Tigerclaw... The parallels of violence for power and violence for peace. A victim repeating the actions of the very man who killed her brother to put an end to what he started in Riverclan.... A shadow in Riverclan, if you will. (<-Pretending erin hunter has hired me to rewrite their series)

Windclan: Tunneling as a concept and inviting outsiders into their clan so friendly and casual makes the clan seems so much more diverse than the others. It always stuck out to me!

Andddd there are my current warrior cat options as of 2023! If someone actually read this whole ramble ily<3

#THANKS FOR THE ASK. sorry i wrote you a novel❤ #I already wanted an excuse to just throw all my favs and thoughts into one place so i used ur ask as that lol #asks #mypost

[aleksanderscult]

Hi ! So, I don't know if you're familiar with Chinese dramas, but I would like to recommend one that might remind you a little of Darklina. A good old enemies to tragic lovers, where the heroine will unfortunately not end up with the bad boy (with whom things will never come to fruition and will remain unsaid on both sides) but with the nice guy. It's called Lost You Forever. And to give you a quick description of the interesting relationship in this series ; We are Xiao Yao is in love with Jing (Whom I very like. He is clearly the archetypal nice guy she'll end up with, but like, a really good guy, on top of being a good character, not like that trash Mal Oretsev), but let's be realistic, that would never have happened if a relationship with Xiang Liu (the best male character in this series) was possible from my point of view. It's very clear that she's in love with him and it's circumstances that are keeping them from letting go and being together. I have no doubt that if circumstances would have allowed, Xiang Liu would have been Xiao Yao's first choice and vice versa. Jing and Xiang Liu are literally the two males characters that Xiao Yao is canonically in love with, but there is no doubt who in my eyes she loves the most.

My favorite scene for them (unfortunately cut, so not really complete, but the most important part of the scene is there) :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-abLjkm-AA&list=LL&index=10

Sorry, but Xiao Yao knows in this moment that Jing is in a dying coma, could die at any moment, and when she wakes up, the first person she hopes / wants to see is Xiang Liu and her bird takes her to see him ? And when she understands that she won't see him, she takes her time to lie down where they both were to cry ? Okay he healed her and she wants to thank him, but that's definitely not the type of reaction you get when the love of your life is in mortal danger and you can't see another man you're close to, technically your enemy on top of that, who just saved you, and whom you supposedly just love platonically.

But the thing is, you don't always end up with the person you would have chosen. They love each other, but know their relationship is doomed to failure given the circumstances they are in, so they do not act on their feelings and will never allow themselves to. It's so tragic. Typically the kind of story I love, even if it tears my heart out.

At least that's my interpretation, as well as that of many people.

Xiang Liu is your characteristically gray character who first appears as a villain to ultimately be much more complex (with good and bad actions) who will end up in love with the heroine he will protect, despite the fact that they are technically enemies. In addition to that, they will obviously be entitled to a great magical connection which re-connects their sensations (like, she is physically injured, he is) and emotions (like, their hearts beat to the same rhythm).

But of course, there will always be anti-complexity people who will come and tell you, to the point of contradicting themselves to justify a non-romantic love on the part of the heroine, that she only cries because she has the heart too good and feels sorry for him (I remind you that at the same time, the lady knows very well that the other guy she supposedly loves, Jing, is dying...), but also that she uses for her own personal purposes because she has no real affection for him ! We like contradiction, simply because we don't like that a heroine can have contradictory feelings for a morally gray guy !

And the fact that of all the male characters, Xiang Liu is the only one of whom the heroine wanted to keep a trace in her magic mirror ?! Why is that also just her using him or only having a platonic feeling towards him ? Let's be serious for two seconds and let's accept the complexity of a human heart !

Or there are obviously simply those who will tell you that despite the fact that the guy is a gray character he is only toxic and bad for the heroine, treating her really badly ! (I still want to say that without this guy who causes her apparently so much pain, well she would have been dead and buried a long time ago !)

Otherwise, here is a small playlist of videos dedicated to this ship (send by many people), just so you can get an overall idea of ​​the dynamics :

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHTp96ofTkA3cLfybZP2xaXBCPDBoTx_-&si=s2VSBa270CVK5VeD

In fact, if I really had to compare Xiao Yao with Xiang Liu and Jing, I would say Xiang Liu is a call from the heart and Jing is a call from the head. She loves them both, but Jing brings her a trust and loyalty that she could never have from Xiang Liu given the circumstances of their respective responsibilities which technically categorizes them as enemies, even if they never really acting like that in my eyes. Also, we could see Xiang Liu as a character / creature of the order of fantasy in terms of symbolism, and therefore with whom the heroine could never have a real future, and that she will have to leave at one point or another, but which has importance in her present life in order to help her develop as a person.

Afterwards, as another story that could remind Darklina, I will recommend the Chinese drama Love Between Fairy and devil. In terms of books, I would say the trilogy a forbidden game by L.J Smith with Jenny & Julian, the shadow men, or the Empirium trilogy with Corien & Rielle. Dragonlance with Raistlin & Crysania. Only ships associated with light and darkness basically.

Either way, I'm a sucker for enemies-to-lovers or villain / gray / anti-hero characters in-love dynamics. It's so fascinating, and above all much more interesting than with a cute and nice guy without much personality in comparison... There is no worse crime than being boring in fiction.

Small bonus gifs further illustrating the Xiao Liu & Xiao Yao great dynamic :

Oh yes, I forgot to say that he bit her and regularly feeds on his blood.

OMG OMG

I'LL DEFINITELY WATCH IT, BESTIE!!

I love the plot already and the protagonists look GORGEOUS.

Either way, I'm a sucker for enemies-to-lovers or villain / gray / anti-hero characters in-love dynamics. It's so fascinating, and above all much more interesting than with a cute and nice guy without much personality in comparison... There is no worse crime than being boring in fiction.

Agree to ALL of this! I'm the same. These kind of characters are always the best! And I'm going to put all your recommendations in my list.

Just a question!

I believe Raistlin was one of the inspirations for the Darkling's character. Does he remind you of the Darkling?

#asks #enemies to lovers #enemies to lovers recommendations #the darkling #alina starkov #darklina

[arcielee]

Interview With a Writer

Thank you @valeskafics for allowing my self-indulgent series to continue 😆 This story was actually an anon request and I cannot thank them enough for suggesting this wonderful piece!

Here is the masterlist for the other talented writers I have spoken with! If you have any suggestions, please send them over. 💜

Name: valeskafics

Story: Through One Thousand Worlds and Ten Thousand Lifetimes

Paring: Aemond Targaryen, Osferth, Tom Bennett, Billy Washington, Ettore x Reader

WARNINGS: See each chapter for individual, more precise warnings. Written for a female reader.

So, when did you start writing? 

I’ve been writing fic since I was in 5th grade. I only started publishing it during COVID. My first fic I ever posted was a Robb Stark/OC SMAU, but the first one I ever WROTE was a ridiculously out of pocket Draco x Veela!OC fic where the Jonas Brothers show up for some reason.

What inspired the plot for Through One Thousand Worlds and Ten Thousand Lifetimes?

My friend, Yeni (@connorsui), was talking to me about a oneshot I had just written and mentioned that she always imagined my oneshots as being connected. She said she imagined that somehow, Aemond and Reader always manage to find each other, no matter what universe they're in.

That's what gave me the initial idea for the story, so it was really all thanks to her.

I really enjoyed that the connection between the Ewanverse characters and how they were drawn to her, one way or another.

Yeah, it was kinda hard keeping them similar enough to each other to have them be reincarnations, but also distinct enough that they were still true to the different characters (i.e. Ettore still being a genuinely bad person). It was challenging but so fun!!!!

Was there anything in specific that inspired your Reader portrayal?

I took a bit of inspiration, especially in the Aemond chapters, from the main character in the movie "47 Ronin." The female lead was this young woman who was constantly being torn away from the man she loved (played by our king Keanu), and seeing the way she still clung to the hope of them being together even though it was hopeless just made me think… Wow, I'd really like to write a fic with similar themes. So that definitely was a huge inspiration for the characterization of the Reader.

The title actually came from a quote from that movie too!

Do you have a favorite chapter?

I think the final chapter (Modern!Aemond) was my favorite because I absolutely love exploring what Aemond would be like in modern times! In this one, I went with him being kind of dorky. While the other chapters were so tragic, I got to add some comedy to that one and kind of make it up to the readers for making them suffer every week.

Did you feel your Reader complemented every reincarnation?

I think she very much was the light to each character’s darkness. Most of the Ewanverse characters are pretty tragic. I think the Reader in each chapter was able to give him happiness and love, where in canon he didn’t really have that opportunity.

Do you think you will add on to this story?

Honestly, most likely not. Since it ends with Reader and Aemond uniting in the afterlife, ready to spend eternity together, adding anything as a sequel would take away from that ending. What I might do is, if Ewan appears in a period piece, add a chapter with Reader and that Ewan character as a reincarnation.

Do you have a personal favorite story you'd like to share?

A personal favorite story of mine is definitely "A Taste of Depravity" by @youraverageaemondsimp. I feel like Cole!Reader who is Rhaenyra's daughter is rare, so it really stuck with me. Also, Mae writes fantastic smut so it sent me to another planet.

Is there another mini-series you might be working on?

I'm currently working on two miniseries for Aemond - one based on "The Lion King 2" where he'll be like Kovu and Reader will be Kiara while the other is based on "The Summer I Turned Pretty", with Aemond playing Conrad's role.

Could we get a sneak peek?

The scent of burning wood and the taste of ash in your mouth pervades your senses as you struggle to breathe, racing through the Kingswood. Your first solo hunt. It took months for Mother to finally agree, and only after you recruited Daemon to your cause. And now, even if you do manage to make it out of this unscathed, you know Mother will likely skin you alive. Perhaps she’ll even send you to the Dreadfort and have you flayed by the Boltons. Shadow rears back when a tree falls in front of the two of you, sending a new wave of flames your way. You fall from her back, your body hitting the grass, fading from consciousness as the sound of her hooves galloping away echoes in your ears. It’s not until the rise and fall of your chest steadies and your eyes flutter shut that he approaches, a smirk on his face at the realization that everything has gone perfectly to plan. He kneels down, brushing your hair off your face, taken aback for a moment at just how different you look from the last time he saw you, all those years ago. When the two of you considered each other friends. He heaves you into his arms, placing you on his own steed, quickly penning a raven and sending it off before riding away with you, back to the Red Keep. Grandsire, The plan has been set into motion. All my best, Aemond

#interview with a writer #iwaw23 #bts #of their brilliant writing #writing community #writing stuff #writers on tumblr

[esther-dot]

The only “anti Jonsa” argument that made sense to me is that not one of the characters will get a healing and healthy romance in the books because that’s not the story George is trying to tell. Going by the show, it’s not hard to believe 😕.

(about this ask)

Before I answer, I just want to say that shipping Jonsa and believing it will be canon are two different things. In fact, some of our most beloved fic writers do not think it was (in the show) or ever will be (in the books) canon, so there is no criteria as far as that goes for enjoying and creating for the fandom!

Martin has spoken about loving tragedies and tragic romances, so I’m very sympathetic to that concern. I no longer think we’re getting the ideal with Jonsa, so I even agree to a certain extent. However, the final book is called A Dream of Spring, and Spring carries certain meanings:

Knowing the book was initially going to be called A Time for Wolves, we know which house will benefit from this.

I view Dany’s goal of conquering Westeros, the intentional and unintentional catastrophe that she will cause during her invasion, as so antithetical to who Jon is, what he would be attracted to, and what Martin supports, that a mutual relationship between them wouldn’t merely be tragic, but would be the total undoing, moral and psychological undoing, of Jon. Think about how Ygritte disturbed him with her casual violence and then haunts him after her death, the toll a relationship with Dany would take on him, the state that it would leave him is goes beyond tragic, it’s purely destructive. for Jon to enter into such a relationship voluntarily would be part of Jon going down a very dark path he wouldn’t recover from. Imo, it wouldn’t be tragedy in the way people think of it, both dying fighting the others, but about mutual destruction. I don’t think that works with the tone we expect for the ending. Jon may not get a HEA, but it’s not a satisfactory ending to leave him in the worst place he’s ever been. I can buy a clean tragedy, I can’t buy that. Considering what’s in store for him, parentage reveal, the Others, Dany’s invasion, there’s already a lot going to be added to his plate, and at some point, you’d expect a bit of light to creep in there.

I’d imagine that comes in the form of romantic love, as Martin has what I would say is a high view of love. I’ve talked before about Sam and how he overcomes his fear that has ruled him for the sake of Gilly:

(link)

Love doesn’t just, randomly appear in the story, it changes the characters, for the better in this instance, it moves them and impacts the plot.

I don’t see in Jon the capability of rejecting the Starks, of betraying them in any way, and I certainly don’t think upon having siblings he believes are lost returned to him, he’d over prioritize an invader over their safety—he couldn’t with Ygritte, how much less likely now when his “new” family (the Watch) already betrayed him. If anything, I think his support and loyalty to the Starks will be hardened, even more resolute.

And if we read the Sam/Gilly scenes and see what Martin believes sincere love can do, I think we have reason to conclude that the Starks have the hopeful ending, so Jon will not end the story completely wrecked/a shell of a man, and instead, even in the midst of much personal trauma and turmoil, there will be a saving grace for him. Considering Martin’s stance on violence, it won’t be love for a warmonger that gives him a moment of peace or joy. Maybe we get the ideal ending for Jonsa, maybe we get a tragic ending for them, either way, I think it’s the only relationship that would allow for the right tone.

#dot chat #jonsa

[riewritten]

CHAPTER 6. COUNTERATTACK

EDGE OF THE PRECIPICE — DIRECTORY

ERWIN X FEM!READER, ERWIN X YOU, NO Y/N | hurt/comfort, angst, mystery, childhood friends, fake marriage, modern au, parallel universe, reincarnation, mentions of canon, pining commander erwin smith, trauma, manipulation, referenced child abuse, violence, psychological torture

SUMMARY: Aggressive land grabbing from the royal government ensue from one countryside to the other, all allegedly for the prophecy: a tree, vast source of power that'd bring great abundance and prosperity to mankind, is standing among their lands. As the said prophecy holds the answer to the tragic childhood you have no memories of, the guerilla's commander pulls out something he prepared for years to help. AO3 | FANFICTION

WORDS: 6k | Want to get tagged for the succeeding chapters? Sign up here.

Levi, Isabel, you, and Erwin stayed inside the conference room after everyone in the HQ called it a night. An old vintage television is open and its news flash report further echoed the already grim mood. 

“Breaking news: Stohess citizens, abducted by rebels to avenge their comrade’s death.”

“What?!” Isabel grimaced.

“Reportedly thirteen soldiers were dead on arrival while five were injured. Citizen casualties remain unknown as they were seized before back-ups had arrived. The rebel being avenged, Petra Ral, was a university student branded as the ‘brainwashed Eldian.’ Ms. Ral was said to be killed after trying to shoot a Military Police officer,” the newscaster continued.

“So this is their game?” Isabel taunted at the air. “Bet they’d make these five soldiers who weren’t even there fool the media with sob stories of how merciless we were.”

Petra did not deserve such disdain at her name, but this time you remain composed instead of making a scene yet again. It’s not like you could do anything about it, not when the next person interviewed on the news was your former boss—the same man who berated Petra at the cafe, the same man who made you realize how desperate you were for normalcy to the point of letting a precious friend’s reputation undeservingly stepped on over and over. Your then-boss sputtered a lot of nonsense on live TV to make his exposure longer. He spoke of how barbaric Petra was, of how he regretted hiring a girl like her, and even went far as to mention your name—that you were one of the poor fellows fooled by Petra’s “so-called” kindness because, before you went AWOL, he caught you staring daggers at him which sent shivers down his spine. He even added in his final statement, “It wouldn’t surprise me if she joined the rebels, too. Petra was smart enough to brainwash students who seemed like a complete airhead like her workmate.”

The one who broke the grim atmosphere (or perhaps made it even worse) was Erwin. He chuckled, sardonically so, as if it was nothing but a noontime gag show and your then-boss was none but a stand comedian.

Levi had the face saying ‘the fuck are you laughing on’ but didn’t waste energy to tell him out loud because, after all, out of all people inside the room, Erwin would be the one to react most unkindly once your name was said in a bad light. It’s always been that way for you, even back in Mitras, so annoyingly protective even after you berate him for taking on fights that were yours to take in the first place.

Perhaps Isabel deemed the laugh utterly displeasing and felt compelled to turn off the TV and change the topic—you were her chosen target, “I actually don’t know what name to call you anymore. Would you rather go by your original name, A—”

“That is not my original name,” you grimaced but quickly regained composure because, if anything, Isabel meant no harm, “I’m sorry. I just—I don’t like the name. Please call me as it is.”

“I prefer your current name now, too! Erwin said you were the one who came up with it as a child. How did that happen, though?”

“Erwin’s aunt allowed me to do so after she adopted me. Now that I think of it,” you then turn to Erwin to ask, “You were the one who suggested to give me a new name. Did you do that to hide me from the royal family?”

“If I were Erwin, I would’ve done the same if not more. The last thing I’d want for you is to be used as collateral for a prophecy that can’t even be proven unless you die,” Isabel tapped Erwin’s shoulders. “Smart move, Er—ouch! Levi, be more gentle!”

Levi carefully tied Isabel’s hair up to tend the wounds on her back, after which he called your name to say, “The royal family and its cohorts are squeezing their brains out to find you. Not even your face as a child could be retrieved. It was as if someone intentionally ensured that your traces would be erased.”

“When I was young, everyone in the village made a precaution to not take pictures of me. I thought it’s because camera flashes could be a trigger as they could potentially be associated with explosions, but the reason is much clearer now.”

“Seems like Erwin’s family was hands-on with you.”

“Erwin himself, even,” Levi mused, “he’s been watching you all this time. Erwin and I had known each other even before you went to university. He was the one who urged me to let you in. The ‘room for rent’ poster at the university bulletin board was intended only for you to see—just so you’d think you found us all by yourself.”

Your eyes widened.

“That’s a bit creepy,” Isabel shuddered.

“Oh, it seems like you’re not fond of saying your acts of love out loud, yeah?” Levi quipped nonchalantly at the man in question. Erwin, although stoic, seemed to ask Levi what he was trying to do right now. But even before he got to, you glared at him and asked, “Is that true?” 

“It is.”

“And you didn’t tell me anything, Levi?” the next glare was for him.

“That’s my next question to Erwin,” Levi lowered his voice, darkly so. “As I said, I’m not here to mess around with whatever prophecy the royal family is brewing behind our backs. If you still don’t give us the context regarding her identity, I’m taking Isabel home with me.”

“Hey, Levi,” Isabel grimaced.

If Erwin was threatened with that, he showed no signs of it. Instead he looked at you. His gaze was silent but asking. It didn’t take you long to construe what it was: Would you like to be the one to answer? It concerns your past, after all.

“Did you really save her from those fires?”

And thus, you tried answering in his stead, “Yes. As far as my memories are concerned, he saved me, but…”

“But what?”

Try to recall it. Try to recall it.

Years ago, you saw the giant tree and witnessed Erwin crying for the first and last time, after which he started avoiding you. He started locking the door of his room so you wouldn’t enter. You thought of ways to apologize, including searching around their house for an apology gift, leading you to a newspaper clip in his father’s room. You saw the headline news of your house being burnt to shreds. Then you remembered. You remembered what really happened in that house.

What happened? You already remembered what really happened! Why couldn’t you recall it?

You just woke up blaming Erwin all of a sudden. It came to a point that Carly brought you far away from him to ease your panic attacks. She got you checked by a psychiatrist. The professional said that your brain might be formulating memories that didn’t happen.

Then…? What happened next again…? How did your relationship with Erwin get fixed again?

Erwin eventually forced himself to your new home. He lived with you and made attempts to clear the misunderstanding. He recalled the truth to you, repeatedly so, and you finally succumbed to him when he saved you from the fires in the vacant lot—a fire instigated by random kids.

That’s what had happened, right?

Then why… Why do you have a dream about Erwin instigating that fire himself to convince you, albeit forcefully, that he saved you?

What exactly have you seen that day?

“Hey,” Isabel patted your shoulder to cut your thoughts off. “You okay?”

“I am not sure,” you muttered, “I’m not sure what I’ve seen that day,” you clasped both hands on your head, wide-eyed, utterly confused. “It’s as if my brain is making up something. It’s as if it’s intentionally painting Erwin in a bad light. The voices are speaking inside my head, full of warning, even if Erwin’s the last one to hurt me out of all the people in this world.”

REALLY? IS THAT REALLY THE CASE, LITTLE FLOWER?

“People who went through horrible situations could really have foggy recollection, you know? Your brain has a reason to be like that to protect you. Don’t beat yourself up for it. Don’t force yourself to remember.” Isabel seemed really worried this time. 

REALLY? REALLY? REALLY?

Isabel’s glare tightened at Levi. Erwin’s gaze was looking on you, then to Levi not long after, “Is that what would make you stay? Forcing her past out of her—making her remember the things she had forgotten to protect her sanity—would that really help you unveil the truth of how bastard of a father Kenny was to Furlan?”

‘Don’t speak as though Furlan’s death is not connected to her identity in the first place!’ is what Levi almost said; you could see the look of disdain on his face. But his face softened as soon as he glanced at you. You wouldn’t like to hear that from him. Erwin was right. Your past is not the primary reason he and Isabel joined the guerillas. It’s to uncover Furlan’s death. 

Levi sighed, exasperated, then gave you a bottle of water. “Isabel is right. Don’t force yourself too much.”

The days went by with Levi and Erwin seemingly in a rift between each other, yet they were still able to work efficiently for the next mission.

It came to Erwin that the Military Police distributed a huge intelligence fund to find Anna. This eventually resulted in rising worries of citizens, especially women, as they felt like someone was watching them. Some condemned the Military Police for it, but some defended it and said it was all for the prosperity of Eldia and that the royal family surely knew what they were doing.

You managed to build relations with the establishments where most Military Police hang out, which led you to befriend Marie, the owner of the bar nearest to the Interior Police headquarters, and she hired you immediately when you said you’ve been trying to find a job.

“Bloody hell, I feel like every woman I’ve been fuckin’ lately could potentially be Anna,” the MP soldier hiccuped as you poured him another drink, “and that I can’t let night pass without questionin’ ’em. It’s that or my promotion at risk, y’know?”

“It must be unfortunate to be a soldier,” you lamented. “Maybe I must be grateful I settled on a job like this.”

“I also am grateful, ya see,” he giggled and scooted closer, breath reeked of beer—disgustingly so, “’cause I get to have a beauty like ya pourin’ my glass after a long, long day.”

Fortunately, Marie swatted him away from you, “That’s my girl you’re touching there.”

“Oh, why so stingy! She’s the first woman ya hired since this damn business got movin’! Lemme have my share as yer best customer!”

“I sell liquor, not women—as if it’s even ethical to sell women,” Marie rolled her eyes and, as swift as ever, collected the used glasses at the counter. “Why don’t you find that wanted girl first so you’d have your long-awaited promotion? Flirting around won’t get you there.”

“Easy for ya to say because yer husband’s already a high-rankin’ dog!” he spat. “These damn women, suckin’ higher officers’ dick off—hic—but scold low-rankin’ soldiers tailin’ ’em.” This time, he sounded like sulking to himself, although Marie could still hear it.

Poor Marie. This bar was swamped by drunkard soldiers when their reputation changed from valor to perversion due to the intelligence mission, and yet this drunk man in front of you trying to mimic Kenny’s way of talking didn’t make the nuisance lighter.

“It’s already a woman’s burden to be tailed by the likes of you and yet you still have the guts to blame us.”

“‘Ya sayin’ something?!” the man shot daggers to the now enraged Marie, “Know yer place and just keep suckin’ yer husband off after his long long day of workin’ his ass off! Just for yer damned bar!” then he spitted on the counter. “Ya thought just ’cause ya got chance doin’ business, yer already superior to us, huh? I bet ya husband’s just lettin’ you ’cause of how good you are in bed! Know yer place and—”

The whole place is rattled into silence when Marie slaps the soldier, clearly offended, eyes shaking in anger. You thought how hard it must’ve been to her all this time, to have such barbaric customers in and out of her lawn. Perhaps that’s even the main reason why she wasn’t fond of hiring women until you asked her for help.

It was even more pitiful when a group of drunk soldiers came to rescue the man. They spat curses to the both of you, of how this whole operation of finding an unknown girl has been stressing their guts, of how they would still do it anyway because they’re men who merely wanted the prosperity of Eldia—the prosperity of the women who so despised them.

Just before Marie could request security, one soldier suddenly exclaimed, “Ah! You must be that person! Hah, we found her. We found Anna!”

It was as though a bucket of ice was thrown at you. But then, their inebriated selves were looking at Marie. They claimed Marie as the wanted girl just because she defended herself against blatant disrespect. No one seems to be functioning properly because of the liquor, hence none of them would cut the commotion off. “You see, one thing we know about Anna is that she’s a child born out of the Interior Police’s operation. Some soldier fucked a woman of a powerful lineage, a lineage so powerful that it could give the holy tree!”

“What are you trying to say?!” Marie shouted back, fuming.

“So the product of that operation must be affiliated to the military, one way or another! Right, right?! Don’t you think so?! We’re all stuck in this because someone in our ranks is a snitch! That’s it! We solved it!”

His remark seemed to turn on the lightbulbs of every soldier inside the bar. Their eyes start becoming more predatory—perhaps even more desperate, because their superiors are onto nothing but “Find her, find her, find her!” recently that every woman they come across salivates their desire to get this over with.

While you’re secretly communicating with the guerilla unit near the area so they’d arrive before the commotion starts, what he said bothered you to no end. No, it didn’t just bother you—it made you remember something, and it’s the first time you have remembered something you’re sure is accurate. 

“Once she turns ten, she’ll be the royal family’s property. Don’t you get attached to her,” he says.

“No way you’d tell that to a mother like me,” she quips, voice laced with honey. “Worry not, she is aware of it herself. Aren’t you, my cute little girl?” then pinches your cheeks.

“Yes, I do! Once I turn ten, I will bless the royal family with prospre—prospreri—prospreritri—”

“It’s prosperity,” your father spats. He seems about to scold you but ends up shaking his head instead. “Nevermind. Not like it’d make a difference if you were born smart.”

“Give her some slack,” your mother quips then fondly looks at you, “don’t mind him. Daddy’s jealous because you’re special.”

“I am?”

“Yes, you know why?”

“Why?”

“Because our bloodline is special! We’re saviors capable of finding the tree and awakening its bearer! Awaking the bearer means giving prosperity to Eldia!”

“Yay! Prosprerity!”

Your mother’s laugh gets even louder, and although your father still looks annoyed, you can see him holding back a smile.

“Miss Marie, pray tell, pray tell,” a soldier hummed, “where do the rebels stay?”

“You son of a—” Marie cut herself off and shot you a glance instead. “Go get someone to fix this.”

You nodded and tried to walk away, but another soldier cornered you, “Why do you think we could let you go when you’re working alongside this woman?” then his face turned sour, “You’re a damn rebel too, aren’t you? Look at how young you are, as old as that orange bitch!”

You very much knew who he was talking about, so your rage did something unhelpful to the situation: you slapped him hard, tears in the corner of your eyes. It enraged the soldier just the same, and so he ordered, “Cuff the two of them!” You tried to defend yourselves, but twenty inebriated soldiers were still soldiers; even if you managed to knock down five of them, someone would be swift enough to point a knife at Marie’s neck. That was your cue to stop fighting. The soldier smiled sardonically, “I see you’re a good girl.”

You let yourself be cuffed, nothing ringing in your mind but vital information you gathered while staying here.

The previous week, a customer working as a clerk inside the Interior Police said that Commander Kenny’s son was a needed sacrifice for the prosperity of mankind. He mourns for him, but it must not be mistaken for Petra who died at the same age. Petra was a life wasted. Had the rebels heeded the warning to give Anna over, no one would have been killed. You asked her then, “So it was a massacre, wasn’t it?” She shrugged and answered, “Is it really relevant if we’re talking about the rebels? The government had always wanted to get rid of them. Who would budge if it really was a massacre?”

Then, two days ago, a young soldier who had just been promoted to be a part of the Interior Police valiantly said, “Someone as powerful as Anna must be kept by the authorities, but look where she is instead, in the hands of the rebels! The royal family means no harm. They need her power for their citizens’ prosperity. It must not be held by the Eldians who could abuse it!” And so you asked him, “Do you know what Anna’s power really is?” Instead, he glared at you, “Are you not attending the church every Sunday?” When you shook your head, he sighed, deeming you lower than him. The young soldier told you everything Isabel and Levi knew about the prophecy and the tree. After thirty minutes of him rambling, you finally cut him off out of annoyance. “Do you know what exactly Anna’s part is?” You then realize that the young boy doesn’t know at all. He doesn’t know a thing, yet he still holds their words dear because they’re his fellow believers, and believing them means being loyal to the royal family.

When you and Marie were all tied and surrounded by drunk soldiers pretending as though they were inside an interrogation room, you asked,” Why do you think rebels exist, Officer?”

“Because they’re incompetent and aching for war, ruining peace for their own gain. Why? Finally admitting you’re one of them? Oh, we gon’ reward you real good, then.”

“The royal government and its cohorts are the ones ruining peace for their own gain. The rebels just retaliated to defend themselves.”

Another soldier pushed him away in a glare, “Yeah? So what is your relation to them?”

“They saved me.”

“Oh, poor girl. She must’ve been brainwashed, too,” the other one sitting on the counter, about to faint, murmured while hugging his bottle. 

“Do you know where Anna is? How about the Commander? What does he look like?”

You didn’t speak. That’s something they could never squeeze out of you. The drunk soldier, much to your and Marie’s surprise, hit your head hard with the bottle. You tried your very best to gulp down your scream, tried your very best to not let the pain know because Erwin trained you for it. You felt the blood drip to your cheeks and chin until droplets of it came down to your shirt. Marie’s screams made you dizzy.

In a span of a moment, you get the urge to sleep, but something uncanny makes you alert—the longer the blood permeates the room, the darker it gets. You thought you were merely feeling things because of the head injury, but you were sure everyone else had felt it, too. The soldier who hit you looked so utterly horrified not long after. He seemed sober again. The soldier who was about to sleep just stood up to scream. The glass bottles on the shelves started clanking against each other as the tables began shaking. The barely cleaned roof showered everyone with its long-standing dust just as if they were alive and as scared as you all were. It wasn’t long for Marie to faint, too.

Out of nowhere, everyone started kneeling at you, shouting their apologies, acting as though they just angered an otherworldly entity. You looked down at them, aghast, as the concussion in your head and the blood you were losing didn’t help you comprehend the situation at hand. 

The pin of the grenade was the rats under the floor, running and running as if an onslaught was happening inside their homes. The wind reeked of corpses, of anger, of suffocating entity taking control of every molecule in the space.

“T-the voice… it’s the same feeling when the voices speak…” you murmur to yourself. You did so repeatedly as the soldiers wept harder until the door banged open. 

“Why are they kneeling and crying?” Moblit exclaimed in horror.

“No! Why are they kneeling and crying while she is tied and bleeding? Oh god, Nifa! First aid kit, please!” Hange ordered.

“Oh, y-you’re here… Thank heavens.”

However, your relief was quickly replaced with horror upon seeing Erwin’s face. It’s always been like this. Back when you two were younger, your playmates have always been so scared to play pranks at you because the first time they did, young Erwin—as you quote them—had ‘made them see hell.’ Your head dripping with blood upon his arrival would obviously warrant a situation way worse than this. You might be safe now, but nobody else is—not with this sight.

“Who’s the one responsible for this?”

You refused to answer. Perhaps out of impulse, or perhaps because you finally realized how scared you are at Erwin all this time. The voices in your head may be the deeply rooted fear for Erwin the same way your former Mitras friends had feared him.

Erwin called your name and repeated the question.

“Don’t worry too much about this. More importantly, Marie, my—”

He walked towards you. The nearer his footsteps get, the more dreadful the atmosphere becomes. “Who did that to you?” 

Everyone went silent. The weeping became quiet strains. You were just about to repeat your remark—that there are more things to worry about—but then Erwin’s gaze turned to the soldier kneeling right before you.

The same officer who hit your head with the bottle.

“Commander, the place is starting to shake,” Nifa reported as she brought him the first aid kit.

“Is there an earthquake?”

“God, it reeks of corpses,” Hange pinched their nose.

“W-what?” Nanaba muttered in horror from the outside. “The rats are all over the road.”

“What the fuck is happening?”

“Fourth squad, check if the bar owner has incurred wounds. Treat her if need be. Miche, seize the soldiers. Do it quickly. Something strange is happening. Let’s leave this place all at once.” 

“How about her…?” Hange pointed at you only for their question to be answered immediately as soon as Erwin untied you himself and applied pressure on your concussion.

With all the strength you have left inside you, you try to bargain, “D-don’t hurt the soldiers,” but his face didn’t change; hence, you repeated, “Don’t you dare hurt the soldiers, Erwin.”

Despite the whole place shaking, more stray animals panicking, and people weeping in fear, his scowl was only due to your pleas. “I loathe this attitude the most. If you ought to be too merciful of your enemies, even to the point of not holding them accountable, you might as well sit still and never join any operation again.”

“They must pay for this. We both know they must… b-but—hah,” you stammered, clearly struggling not to let the dizziness take over your consciousness. “they have information regarding Anna. I heard most of it already so—”

“So they must talk about it before bullets strike their heads.”

“No,” you stopped him from addressing your wounds to look straight in the eye, “It’s not the guerilla’s move to get swayed by their emotions, yes? You—hah—you’re the one who told me.”

If he weren’t too livid, he’d be chuckling sardonically. You almost saw him do so. “I’m not fond of repeating myself.”

He’s primarily here to ruin anyone who dared to go after you—you didn’t forget that, but it irks you. Amidst your consciousness on the precipice of leaving, anger kept you awake. How helpless have you been all this time that he naturally thought this was something to be done? And why is he depriving you of dealing with your issues now that you can do so? 

“I must be the one to do that. Don’t take it away from me.”

There, you saw a glimpse of amusement in his features.

How sweet of you, really — he might’ve thought — how pathetically kind to try and save them by taking the punishment job in his stead. It’s not like you’re entirely wrong—you have all the right to subject all the needed punishment to those who laid their hands on you. It’s just that you lack something he’s been so full of all his life: resentment. He’s not just doing this for you. It’s to satiate his anger for those who dared, and while he trusts you with all of his life, he just knew you wouldn’t be able to do it the way he wants to.

“Are you worried that they’d feel pain?”

“No. Don’t try to change this—”

“Don’t you worry, silly flower. Corpses can’t feel more pain.”

“Erwin,” you warned.

“Sleep.”

“I’d seriously leave you if you do this.”

You almost saw his features falter. Before you fainted, you heard him mutter, “I’d like to see how that goes.”

The next thing you knew, you were on the infirmary bed inside the Underground, and news of what happened at Marie’s bar terrified every single citizen of Eldia, rebels alike. Believers of the prophecy increased just as the fear of the conquest horseman did. That was also the needed confirmation for Levi and Isabel because the captured soldiers spoke in a language they only heard from you before killing themselves. 

“You told me you wouldn’t kill them!” you stormed to the conference room where Erwin and the squad leaders were meeting.

“I didn’t,” Erwin said. “Go back to your room and rest. You’re still not in your best shape.”

“You killed them, didn’t you?! I told you I’ll deal with them myself!”

“He didn’t kill them. We were there. We did interrogate them, but before they could say anything, they sputtered shit and killed themselves,” Levi snapped.

After a sigh, Erwin asked, “Would you like to sit, then? That’s what we’re talking about right now.” His offer made you look at everyone who’s just as lost. Your face flushed with embarrassment. You didn’t even get to fix your hair before storming inside. You sad down beside Levi, and Erwin finally continued. “Not only did they babble in a language we’re yet to understand, they also had the same carvings written on their bodies.”

“The same carvings written on Furlan’s corpse,” Levi begrudgingly admitted.

“So, the prophecy really might be true…” Miche pondered. “Then does that mean their land grabbing in pursuit of Eldia’s prosperity could be justified?”

“Would taking lands out of their tillers be justifiable with some dark magic in our lands? How about how the royal family’s cohorts privately named the seized lands theirs? Would the power of the tree explain that?” Levi scowled.

“There are only things we confirmed in this fiasco. First, the prophecy must be investigated further, and second, the conquest horseman born out of that tree—whoever they might be—does not side with the royal family. We must also find them to know their motives, and…” Erwin looked at Levi, “…to avenge Furlan Church, the first casualty they had brought to our ranks.”

Seems like Levi and Erwin were able to fix their rift while you were unconscious but it doesn’t change the fact that the horseman slipped away from your hands—the very being that haunted you since god knows when, and it was there on that day. You also realized it as soon as the atmosphere got uncanny and the soldiers knelt before you—oh. Oh god.

“Okay, so now, before we dig deeper, does anybody know what the prophecy entails in the first place?” Hange asked. “Sorry, I’m not a churchgoer, so…”

It was Levi who answered, “The church said that the Eldian race was once called ‘Subjects of Ymir,’ and we contain a power brought by a giant tree. The people blessed upon it, however, used the power in vain and committed atrocities all over the world, and so the whole Eldian race perished. The Church believes multiple worlds stipulate the universe, and this one we have is just one of them. The Eldian race was supposed to cease existence as their divine punishment, but a bloodline who also got power from that tree saved us from it.” 

“And perhaps we can deduce that your bloodline is related to it, no?" Miche faced you. "Your counterintelligence report at Marie’s bar confirmed that a soldier admitted your upbringing was an operation led by the royal family where one of their men copulated with a woman of the same lineage.”

“And, as far as her recollection is concerned, said parents have mentioned giving her up to the royal family once she turns ten,” Moblit added.

“And! It just so happened that the fires happened on your tenth birthday!” Hange beamed. “Oh, you powerful girl.”

“It would seem as though I did it all by myself, no?” you chuckle blankly. “Burning people into crisps, inducing fear and suicide, carving on their corpses, among many other cruel things no sane human could do…”

“No, sorry,” Hange backed off, expression softening. “That’s not what I meant at all.”

Awkward silence permeated the room until Erwin cleared his throat, “To continue where Levi left off, the royal family wants the tree back in their grasp. One report we got from Petra's team before they were killed was that the previous king, Uri Reiss, on his deathbed, dreamt of the person who had saved the Eldian race through the power of the tree. His last words were, ‘Find her and her lineage, give them gratitude, for they used the tree’s power beyond their own gains.’ The royal family then deduced that by finding this lineage, they could use the tree once again. That’s the end of their report. Nothing has been found about the operation once it took place.”

The rest of the meeting was about recalibrating tasks inside the unit, considering that the prophecy was real. As soon as they finished, you followed Erwin to his room. You ensured no one would be lurking around outside, for you were about to say something that could scare them.

“The conquest devil is living inside me. I’m sure of it. That’s why they’re finding me.”

Erwin was silent, tormentingly so, and thus you repeat louder. “The conquest devil is living inside me. Everyone must know that the threat is within their ranks. You, of all people, must know what should be done at this point.”

“You see,” Erwin called your name, “while I wouldn’t deny that, I doubt it. You were not around the area when Furlan got killed, and Marie told us everything you had said. None of them could be used against you. Meaning, you didn’t say anything unusual of your character.”

“So all I have to do is prove that it’s inside me, right? Okay, then. Worry not, Commander.” Exasperated, you opened the door to dismiss yourself, only for Erwin to stop you. “Let go, Erwin.”

“They know what the voices inside you have been saying. Levi and I made a report out of it.”

You faced him wide-eyed, yet he looked at you gently, “A-and? What did they say?”

“It didn’t raise their doubts. In fact, they were filled with sympathy.” Your grasp at the knob loosened and Erwin got the chance to close the door again. He let you register the statement for a few minutes.

“They didn’t doubt me,” you repeated. “Not a single doubt at all?”

He held your shoulders against the door and gently asked, “Wanna know why?” You really are clueless as to why. Those alone are objective facts. How could they—

“Because they know you. And you’re dear to them just as they’re dear to you. When Marie explained how you defended the guerillas without fear, Nifa even started to cry. Isabel and Levi weren’t surprised, though.” His remark silenced you, your thoughts, and your horrifying claims about yourself. It was so apparent on your face that Erwin knew he won the argument yet again.

“I still wouldn’t remove the possibility that the conquest horseman lives inside me, but… yes, I understand.”

“Yup. Do as you please.”

That’s when you start getting embarrassed at the distance. Erwin is still pressing your shoulders against the door with a smile so sweet it makes you think how privileged you must’ve been to be one of his chosen people to receive a smile like that from him, knowing well not anyone could have it even if they hardly wished so.

“In the other world, what was my name? Is it Anna?”

“Strange enough, it’s not. Why do you ask?”

“Then, is my name in the other world the same as the one I go by right now?”

Erwin nodded, and so you beamed as it confirmed that your very being was not tied to poor child Anna's fate. “I like the name Carly had given me better. Glad to know I got that name in the other worlds.” You smiled at Carly’s memory. You regret not visiting her before this catastrophe happened.

“Indeed, the name you go by now fits you more, but Carly didn’t give it to you. You were the one who came up with it when she asked.”

That reminder plucked a thorn out of your heart. It made you smile wide and sweet, the very smile Erwin likes to see. “So, you told me you saw what that tree could offer. Tell me about it.”

Erwin smiled ruefully, “I told you. It’s how beautiful you look in worlds even beyond this one.”

“Seriously, I’m not kidding around.”

“Do I look like I’m kidding around?”

You rolled your eyes, hoping it could conceal the fluster instead, “Then, who am I aside from my beauty that goes beyond different worlds?” Hell, saying it out loud sounds so embarrassing. 

However, Erwin’s smile faltered, “After you used the power granted by the tree to save the Eldian race, your existence was subjected to death and despair. In every other world, you always end up dying miserably. Even now I see that you’re still being chased by it.”

“I’m the one who—” you covered your mouth in surprise, “I’m the exact person who did all that?”

“Yes, perhaps the royal family knows by now that you’re the person they’ve been finding for so long; that’s why their search for you got even more unrelenting.”

“God, how cruel. Why am I dying repeatedly after doing that much, then?!”

“Breaking divine laws, I suppose?”

“If that isn’t a beauty that goes beyond worlds, huh!” you huffed. Erwin, however, is still smiling as if he meant praise literally. It flustered you further. Is this due to your stress? Are you perhaps seeking comfort?

“Who were you in those worlds?” 

“I’m not sure. The worlds I’ve seen are just glimpses. The only thing clear is that you were the only one in your bloodline who used the power granted to your lineage and willingly carried the consequences tied to it.”

That’s sad to know, yet deep inside you, you’d still choose that path if that meant Erwin and all of your loved ones would not cease to exist.

“What are we in those worlds, then? Did we also know each other in childhood?"

“Uh… It's a bit more complicated than that.”

“Okay, what are we to each other based on the glimpses you’ve seen?”

He seemed to hesitate at one point, but perhaps saying it out loud made his smile return, “My lovely wife, that’s who you are back there.”

🔖@cadenza-damour @xiaotopia (hi u two it's been a YEAR [god i cant stress this ENOUGH] since ive updated this fic and i would totally understand if you'd want to get excluded from the tag list from hereon!! please gimme a heads up if this is the case, :) ty!!)

prev | GET TAGGED FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER

#erwin smith fanfiction #erwin smith x you #erwin smith x y/n #erwin smith x reader #erwin smith modern au #erwin x reader modern au #aot fanfiction #erwin smith imagine #erwin x reader angst #attack on titan #attack on titan erwin smith #aot erwin x you #aot erwin x reader #aot erwin #aot x reader #aot x you #attack on titan x reader #attack on titan x female reader #erwin x you #erwin x reader #erwin smith angst #attack on titan fanfiction

[team-frightfur]

Imo, Shark vs IV round 1 (where Tron eggs IV on into throwing so he can brainwash Shark) is the peak of Zexal. Great duel, great animation, great characters, great buildup. It also establishes IV as a wet, beat-up, yet rabid and feral kitten. Just the sight of their raggedy fur and watery eyes makes you want to reach out and pet them but, the instant you get close enough, they latch onto your fingers with their teeth and try to kill you.

Shark vs IV round 2, otoh, is pretty bad. It's good in theory, but lacking in execution. Basically, Shark is having an identity crisis over being Nasch vs being Shark, so IV duels him to try and 'bring him back'.

This is actually really good because it makes the duel a redemptive foil to R1. IV was abused but, as Tron's son, was simultaneously deeply dedicated to his abuser. As a result, he was forced to bend himself painfully out of shape to (try and) please Tron. In reality, though, his efforts to please Tron were bad for everyone involved. III, IV, V, and Tron ALL suffered for not standing up to their abuser.

Shark isn't abused, but he IS loyal to his past life's soldiers, kingdom, and the Barian world. OTOH, he also clearly hates the thought of hurting his friends, including IV. As a result, he, too, is bending himself out of shape (and into Nasch). Thus, IV trying to 'bend him back' is his way of thanking Shark.

I love this! In theory! Just a few issues.

First off, IV keeps on talking about friendship. He and Shark are, like, barely friends. They've duelled together Once.

Secondly, it seems like IV lost all his personality traits along with his villainy. This is fair IF you consider his sadism as a coping mechanism (he was lashing out from his father's abuse and trying to feel powerful/in control/ worthwhile) since it would frame his new niceness as healing. Thing is, even if that WAS the case, having IV recover offscreen is extremely underwhelming. Have that shit happen onscreen! Show him struggling with his sadism! Don't Yuri him!

Thirdly, having IV die after failing to reach Shark comes off as more meanspirited than tragic because it wastes IV as a character. This guy had the best duel in all of Zexal, dropped off the face of the earth for 50 eps, came back for (1) tag duel against a Jellyfish Man, and then got killed by Shark. III and V don't even grieve him too heavily, they just pretend to mourn so they can give Yuma a pep talk!

Anyway, Here's Stuff We Needed in Zexal: I Can't Believe They Did IV Like That Edition

1. Shark having his own weird barian flashback dreams of his past as early as Zexal I. This not only matches Rio and foreshadows his past life as Nasch, but also allows the writers to develop his relationship with Dumon, his men, and his kingdom.

2. Rio should have been conscious during her first coma (the one IV caused), causing her to develop an emotional dependence on Shark. Since their parents are dead, Shark is her lifeline. Once he gives up on her, she's finished. This explains why she switches to being Merag so easily. For years, 'I go where Shark goes' has been her reality and she needs to unlearn that.

(I know that Rio is implied to switch to being Merag first but, in canon, she has, like, no reason to do that. Which is weak.)

(If you want to make things even rougher, make Shark's chronic class skipping a result of his trying to support Rio. This makes her feel guilty for 'ruining his high school life', further encouraging her to sacrifice her own 'life' as Rio for him.

3. A joke episode after Rio's second coma (from being possessed by Abyss) where IV turns out to be visiting Rio in secret (but only when Shark isn't around). Shark finds out about this 'mystery visitor' and stakes out Rio's room for three whole days. When the inevitable confrontation happens, IV swears to Shark that he'll protect Rio alongside him, causing the boys to form a Rio Protection Squad. This not only leads nicely into their duel with Jellyfish Man, but also provides an opportunity to develop IV, III and V in a 'normal' setting.

Example: Shark gets into a motorbike accident on the way to the hospital. While Shark is fine, his locket breaks in the crash. IV finds it and has it fixed, returning it to Shark shortly afterwards. Then, to pay IV back since "I hate owing favours" Shark offers to spot IV for something.

(Bonus: this makes Shark's act of throwing away his pendant even stronger as, rather than throwing away his past with his parents (who are dead) he's throwing away his past with a living friend.)

IV proceeds to stare blankly. Years of Middle Child Syndrome, Deranged Revenge Schemes, and Severe Parental Abuse have made a 'normal life' feel foreign to him. As a result, he has no hobbies or preferences (aside from the...sadomasochism).

Cue an annoyed, tired, and weary Shark watching IV wander around an amusement park. Somehow, they end up duelling a clown.

Unbeknownst to them, III and V are both stalking the pair . III is happy to see that IV and Shark made up, while V recognises that, in failing to stand up to Tron, he failed III and IV as a brother (and Tron as a son). You know, the big theme of his duel with Kaito in Zexal I (Where Kaito is like 'It's because I still love my Dad that I have to punch him out of all this villain bullshit' and V is like 'you have such wisdom. I wish it wasn't too late to sock my dad...').

Ultimately, IV reveals that he hates amusement parks, causing Shark to push him into oncoming traffic. As a fight breaks out, III admits to V that he wanted to try out the rides with IV. V smiles and says he'll take them both sometime.

The implication is that IV liked the park but wanted something to hold over Shark, nodding to his social awkwardness, communication issues, and lingering sadistic tendencies.

4. A scene where, after IV dies, we see III and V genuinely grieve.

Example: Recall that III and V spent ages separated from V. Recall that, once V and Tron got them back, they were stuck in an abusive situation. Recall that they only escaped that situation like, 3 months ago. One way to communicate the tragedy of this is to have them flashback to happy moments, but all those happy moments are either from when III and IV are VERY young + the last three months. This visually hammers in the tragedy of the situation. V, in his eyes, wasted his time with IV. III, in his eyes, will never get to have a future with IV. IV, in trying to save Shark from going through the same pain as he went through (being bent out of shape) sacrificed the future with his brothers he was fighting for.

As for time, idk. Just. Cut the Tomato guy or someshit. There's so much useless filler in Zexal. if Zexal had HALF the planning power of Arc V they could EASILY have built up this plot.

Sorry, I just. Needed to rant. IV is my favourite character but he got done SO dirty.

#team frightfur watches zexal #thomas arclight #ygo zexal #For the record #i know he comes back to life #this does not make things better

[lesser-mook]

Miles isn’t bad, just overrated

”wild to me”, as in how could you not like him?

  Mind you they’re leaving out continuity, origin differences, the fact some aren't mantles but actual RANKS (GL), Fate/Nabu is more an Entity than a mantle. (debatable, yes)

Barry to Jay is Jim Hammond Human Torch to Johnny Storm’s Torch- existed in different times

 Hammond was an Allies soldier

Johnny is a modern Superhero whose power is cosmic in isolation

Leaving out context to make a moot point. 

I was there day one Miles’ story began, and i loyally bought his stuff. 

He ain’t all that, the main selling point is the cultural modernization that he represents, he’s an urban, black Spider-man and that’s mainly why people latch onto him.

Not that he’s in anyway compelling or interesting in a unique sense, cause he is an individual person, but the urban aesthetic mainly is what people fell in love with. And that’s 100% fine-

But it’s when you start deflecting that fact and start acting like people have an issue when they don’t like him and you just can’t for the life of you understand “why why why, don’t you like him” vs other knockoffs:

Mind you, i’m probably one of the lesser yet avid Supergirl criticizers on the net, and i’m not even talking about the show, that’s too easy, comics 100%. That requires research.

So there’s no double standard, Kara Zor El is a blue eyed blond haired girl next door archetype cosplaying as Superman, her entire appeal is to get women into the lore but she ended up being taken in by straight men as a fanbase, majorly. 

Why? 

Because she’s got a dynamic character arc? (She’s had some decent runs, nothing phenomenal)

An arc that at one point changed the landscape of DC? 

Her tragic downward spiral of self-destruction and wrapped up in a beautiful act of redemption & sacrifice?

NOPE that would be someone else, who i often WISH was Supergirl in the first fucking place.

But despite Clark Kent-PRIME being a better character, somehow hasn’t gotten a single chance in the animated media.

Young JUSTICE didn’t choose him. They chose Kara to end off S4, because we haven’t had enough of her the past 15 years, she’s so deep like that.

I DIGRESS.

As you can tell, i cannot stand her despite her innate general appeal. Why? Writing, purpose, originality and lack thereof. 

The takes of Kara that land, FOR ME, are the ones that say or do something different from the version mainline canon, and allow her to be her own thing off of Clarks coattails in some way, minor or major. 

*DC Nuclear Winter Kara Zor El, i like her.

And the fact that she’s a cutesie R63, usually. Is the only reason why she remained relevant for this long, same with Powergirl, up until people literally forgetting she existed because her contribution to the picture was big tits and a litle bit of ego.

Injusitce 2 brought her back, attitude and all.....aaaand then she went back into obscurity, WHO saw that coming? 

Same with Miles, token.

Miles not bad, not a bad kid, not the worst take on Spider-man. Just overrated.

Some people need to just admit what they like about him is the aesthetic surrounding him, and stop pretending we just don’t get what it is that’s wrong with other people regarding him.

Cause i guarantee you majority of people stanning this kid has NEVER read that issue where he fought that nobody villain: Kangaroo- which is technically where his first fight as a masked hero began.

Doesn’t mean you have to read every single issue to speak on the matter (Because i need to catch up on some of his stories myself), but the point is with all this support for this character, how invested are you really in this boy beyond what’s fed to you by Hollywood.

It means: Do you actually give a shit? Are you invested, or are you just talking?

It means don’t act stupid for the sake of feigning confusion when you know exactly what’s up. 

Like he should be or has to be liked and anything less is a problem or something.

Most people big him up because he’s a POC Spider-Man, period. 

If they (Marvel/Bendis) had any balls they would’ve made Miles more like Kaine, give him some anger issues or SOME kind of major flaw that made him having powers a serious problem- and how he uses his powers, is different enough from Peter in sheer application to where he’s not your average Spider-Man by just how he moves:

Like Deku & Allmight having roughly the same power, initially, but Deku uses his strengths so differently by S2-S3, he literally moves & fights nothing like All Might anymore. He’s his own aesthetic.

Even Full Cowling isn’t something Allmight’s really known for, it’s a visual distinction between the two.

And that’s one of few things i can actually praise of the franchise without a complaint.

That should’ve been Miles.

And no, some sparky fingers ain’t unique cause Jessica was doing that shit decades before Miles was a concept, but nobody talks about that tho.

The Invisible Woman shit? Sure i’ll give him that i guess. It’s pretty cool.

Moreso this alternate Miles’ arc is moreso learning the values of a hero in his own way, at his own pace, while maintaining enough moral differences from Parker to be a different situation. 

Say he’s 18 when he gets his power, slightly older than when Peter got his,14-15. 

Have the first 9-12 months be him using his powers for himself, a “fuck the world” attitude, until he does something deathly serious in a fit of rage or self defense, that he can’t undo and regrets for the rest of his career. 

Anything like that would’ve been more compelling.

You can’t tell me that doesn’t sound like a more interesting story, i didn’t say “better”, i said “interesting.”

Not just Peter Parker but recolored.

Again, I was there since the beginning, 2012, day one i was buying Morales comics “Because he looked liked me”, and guess what, i was NOT impressed.

The staying power wasn’t there, the justification of his looking like me (and yes he looked just like me) WAS NOT enough to warrant long term investment because while he did look like me, Miles was NOT me. Period.

I liked that both his parents were alive, ofc they weren’t an entirely black family unit, of course. 

But i liked his pops, Jefferson being a cop. His mom was good peoples, and what happened to her was...something.

But the kid overall was boring, he didn’t speak to me, he just mirrored my melanin, big deal.

Lo and behold, just looking like a person isn’t enough to justify staying power, who knew? Just being black doesn’t mean i relate to you, who knew?

That was the day i realized, true “Representation” is NOT skin deep. It’s about character, who you are as a person. Period.

Between Kaine and Morales, it’s not even a Contest. 

One has enough distinctions moral & mental to be a completely separate franchise and SHOULD'VE been in movies by now, R Rated ofc.

And the other is just a glorified What If DLC.

But ofc guess who gets a honorable mention, twice in the MCU. The Black Spider-Man ofc: 

Because he’s compelling, interesting, a long standing character in the Spider-man lore? 

No that’s KAINE, hell i’m still looking for Madam Web’s respect, on god..

I’m STILL waiting for MAYDAY to get her big break! The fact that Miles was able to skip the line in front of her, is insane to me.

Miles is likely going get to the MCU first before BEN, Web, Mayday and KAINE combined, because he’s the black Spidey.

Again, you can like him if you want, but don’t pretend for a second why people don’t like him is some mystery.

Miles looks exactly like me, i repeat and i cannot stand him as a concept- i gravitate to Venom, Kaine, Miguel, Spider-Man NOIR, Mayday, etc.

And Miguel is technically the POC Spider-man BEFORE Morales, half Mexican, but Miles is black+latino in current day, so let’s just forget all about O’Hara until some corny Spiderverse movie makes him relevant again in the post credit scene, now everyone’s going to love Miguel because he’s going to be in the next movie.

Mapping out the main reason i can’t normies sometimes, bandwagon mentality.

And it sucks cause we got him in Ultimate Spiderman XD, Edge of Time, Shattered Dimensions, so the man had some momentum getting off the pages. So what was the hold up with getting this cat in a movie? Or a Mini series like TNAS Spider-man most people forgot?

Miguel is a legit cool dude, careerman, sly, very different aesthetic, different time, different Spider-man. He is NOT Parker, trust me. 

Miguel O’Hara should’ve been gotten his own show or movie. And on that note, that obscure underwritten Spider-man Unlimited, was a Spider-man 2099 cartoon that didn’t know or it 100% knew it was trying to be 2099

But our boy Miles gets to skip the goddamn line in front of established more interesting characters that have done their time since before the Century turned, get mentions in the MCU and 2 animated movies, if that’s not AA energy i don’t know what is. 

NOW THAT’S wild to me.

#token black #spider-man #miles morales #kaine #marvel comics #knockoffs #off my mind #representation #poc #token morales #miguel o'hara #scarlet spider #ben reilly

[daiyu-amaya]

I love your TMNT fics too! Can you galk about all of your TMNT ships please? 🥺

Fic name followed by the pairings as currently, my three fics have three very different versions of these characters lol

Last Knight Saki/Raphael: Saki has always been one of my favorite villains, and it's almost difficult not to see the goofy guy from the 87 series. But In some versions of TMNT Saki is a cold-hearted monster and in Last Knight, he isn't a good guy, Saki is a mobster, he is a killer, and more importantly he is a human being. He has feelings, and for the most part, he knows some of the things he does are really fucked up. Raphael is very much a ninja capable of killing, but he's also the heart of his family. If anything Saki's bringing the true ninja out of Raphael even while they're falling deeper into a romantic relationship. This is also probably the closest I'll get to writing a soulmate fic for TMNT 😂 I enjoy writing these two interactions because there is so much I can do with them, they both are very versatile characters. Mikey/Tiger Claw: I wanted to try out this pairing as I hadn't written for Tiger Claw before and toeing the line between enemies and not enemies has always been something I'm fond of writing. These two might not stay in a relationship but they'll have fun while they are in it lol Bebop/Rocksteady: Funny to say but this is one of my OTP's, you just don't get Bebop without Rocksteady, and the same in reverse. I hadn't written for them before and I really wanted to at least hint at it as they aren't the main pairing or even the secondary lol Hamato Yoshi/Tang Shen: A Canon Pairing but one I'll keep because it is tragic and Splinter is really messed up from her death, it's fun to write different ways she died, and also how much everyone involved regretted her dying so needlessly.

Pac-Man Mikey/Delisha: Delisha is an OC of mine that I made for Mikey to fall in love with. De is my first attempt at a trans character and a romantic partner for Mikey! She's funny and adores Mikey, she also works for Shredder as a receptionist and sometimes as a medic. That actually doesn't bother Mikey that she works for the enemy because he adores her. Of course, if she worked against him and his brothers that would certainly start an argument and a possible breakup for these two. Donatello/Saki: The Main pairing for Pac-Man. They are going to hurt each other, Both of them are really messed up Donnie having gone through a situation that really made him switch up his game and Saki just being the normal paranoid bastard that he can be lol Of course their differences are going to start arguments and Saki isn't just going to allow Donnie to control whatever their wacky relationship is and Donnie isn't going to give up power that easily. Casey/Raphael: Not my usual cup of tea, but I don't mind occasionally writing pairs that I wouldn't normally, and I also got the idea because someone asked me if Donnie's with Saki who's Raph with lol They are best friends so it's easy to transition that into a more romantic relationship. They still do all their normal stuff, but now they also cuddle on the couch to watch movies-kiss, etc. Leo/Rocksteady/Bebop: I was learning about terminology and QPR caught my attention. I'd already planned for Rocksteady/Bebop for this fic but adding Leo in a Queer platonic relationship with them had all the guys dating lol April/Venus: I was researching and was reminded once again that Venus was a thing and I should add her coming back into the guy's lives after having been away for a while. Pairing her off with April gave me Casey/Raph vibes and I liked that so I added it in, Not sure If I'll write this paring again after this fic but I'll have fun exploring their dynamic in the fic.

Nova Saki/Raphael: The Saki in this is a much better person than he is in Last Knight and Pac-Man. He's also really messed up from a long possession and learning how to live in a new era. Raphael in this is learning what it's like to be stabbed in the back by 'friends'. They begin to trust each other and eventually grow romantic feelings for each other. Now when the family finds out well that's going to be fun to write lol

#thanks for the ask! #fanfiction #tmnt #tmnt 2012 #rise of the tmnt #creative writing #my writing #answering asks

[occasionallyprosie]

Nah, I don't mind rambling it's just longer than replies on Tumblr will allow.

The wonderful and difficult thing about First is there is not much to go off of even for someone who read First's story in Hyrule Historia. And there's only a few people who have roped him in so it's not like there's a wealth of fannon to build from either.

I personally see him as heartbreakingly tragic. Guy tried to fight evil and ended up locked in a dungeon for years. He was finally freed only when Demise was already a huge problem and could honestly have been so bitter for it. Dude was asked to lead the people when he'd spent years being left to rot. Add to that the goddesses loftwing (who looks a lot like Crimson) basically challenged him of "Are you worthy to be my rider?" And he still tried. He still died defending the people while Hylia raised Skyloft above the cloud barrier. He could have been "look, y'all want me to save you, but you made me so I can't. Maybe I could have (and been willing to) if I hadn't been chained in a dungeon for years..." But he had people he loved enough to go fight even though he had no chance.

@bokettochild has a wonderful characterization of First in her Blood Between Us series. I know she also is rewriting it but seeing First interact with the heroes was one of my first fics where they included him. He's so observant and almost unnervingly accurate of the heroes that get dumped in his lap.

I need to catch up on @adrift-in-thyme 's Give the Lion Fangs but everything else I've read by them is amazing.

And I still didn't answer all the questions but if you're looking for First content, I think I have one more fic rec with his direct characterization in it and one where they paint Warriors in a similar light as a sort of becoming First or channeling him... I don't know it tickles something at the back of my brain Involving First but that's so probably partly because First has a scarf but his is red.

Wow, thank you! That's some great thought food.

Yeah, most of the things I see of First is some mix of Legend, Time, and Warriors. He's got that sense of jadedness usually associated with Legend and Time, he's got that sense of duty where he'd do what's asked of him no matter its effects on him(like every Link). From what I've been looking through, he's very much a Link, and it makes sense seeing as he's their predecessor. The difference is that the first and main source of his trauma and struggles are the people he's called to protect, and yet he still protects them and gives his life for them even after all they'd done to him. A kind man would've turned his back, yet First didn't.

I did love the characterization of First in The Blood Between Us, it leans more into the jadedness that I think would set First apart from the others. Even Time and Legend, who in canon and fanon are the most jaded, don’t compare to what I'm seeing and working on making First into. He's tired, he's seen not just the worst of the darkness in the world (Demise) but some of the worst of the world itself, humans included. But he hasn't just seen it, he's experienced it.

Tell me if I'm wrong, because I have limited experience with anything related to First

But as I see it, he has that unbreakable hero's spirit, but he is broken. He's lost hope in humanity itself, the people are who he will protect but he doesn't hold any hope or trust in them. He still fights, and he will always fight (he is reincarnated to fight again and again), he will always protect the people of hyrule, he will serve his purpose. He will get up no matter what happens to him, he's unbreakable in that sense just like every single one of his reincarnations, but he has broken in that he can't truly trust or believe in anyone but himself and his goddess.

#linkeduniverse #linked universe #lu first #characterization #first hero #prosie rambles

[kidrat]

16, 27, 29 :D and i don't know any of your OCs yet so you can choose whoever each question is most interesting for/relevant to!

16. If money wasn’t a limit, what would they wear?

Ok Tzipporah I think similar to in canon tbh, she’s restricted more by occasion than price? I think she’s good at buying pieces that work with the rest of her wardrobe and at not buying too often. That said, she would probably buy some cool dresses and wear them around the house. Designer/red carpet type stuff even. I have this on her Pinterest as an example of the kind of thing she’d like. (In canon she wears a lot of flares, denim, berry pink, cobalt, brown, y2k, 70s and y2k does 70s)

TOBY would have a field day bc he’s a canonical clothes enjoyer/clothes snob. He likes 40s fashion and classic men’s tailoring. I do think he’d get silly tho and get one of those western suits custom made. Invest in some vintage leather. Also bespoke plain black T-shirts forever and ever yay <3 probably some really unique knitwear pieces. There’s some vintage Ralph Lauren sailor sweaters that would appeal (with the collars!)

Lou’s response to having a clothes budget would probably be to like, ask Toby what to buy. Ditto tailored stuff since he’s short and would appreciate it. I think he’d be the most likely to get some weird experimental stuff since he never got to as a teenager, even tho he’s the least concerned with fashion in canon.

27. Forgiveness or vengeance (or…)?

Answering this as a group since they’re all similar/ this links into the group dynamic. They will forgive each other anything. Kinda part of the at war thing. ‘Oh you let me get martyred yesterday? Well, it happens, we move’. Against other people they also love vengeance, but eventually this warps into a going through the motions thing. Like, revenge is an excuse to keep having the excitement of a new mission. So the answer is whatever allows them to keep on as normal and stay busy. That said at the very start of her story, Tzipporah is a true revenge chooser. She’s the only one whose initial motivation is personal that way.

29. What recurring dreams do they have?

Ok so the thing about Lou is he *is* the evil clone/replacement for the original third member of the group. So like, my man is canonically having recurring dreams about dying tragically in a blaze of glory. From his point of view that really happened to him, he just woke up after. Honestly he probably has a lot of dreams that repeat though, going back to childhood. He has problems sleeping, sometimes sleep paralysis. Super vivid dreams and continuing nightmares and stuff would be in character.

The other two I’m not sure. I don’t think Tzipporah sleeps well, but I think she lies there awake rather than dreaming anything weird. Toby probably dreams vividly, but off the top of my head there’s nothing repetitive.

#thanks for asking #sorry I only finished it this morning it took me longer to answer thsn I expected! #:)

[kiseiakhun]

you’re so right but jason todd is so woman coded. and i could go into heavy detail

Listen, Jason Todd can be woman coded because you want him to be woman coded. You know it in your heart. You don't have to provide Irrefutable Canon Proof to prove your point, unless you find that kind of activity fun and rewarding, in which case provide away because I love batshit theories about canon and I am all ears. It just drives me crazy because like, listen. What people say are "women coding" are like, normal tropes that have been applied more to MALE characters than female characters because like... even when women were allowed to be people, their main point in the narrative was to be a prop to a man's story. Even when they were well developed, fully realized characters within their own right, their significance within the narrative was to support a man's journey. Like, I've heard criticisms about fridging that say Alexandra DeWitt was a tragic character from the start, that she had all the hallmarks of being a victim right from her introduction, and it doesn't matter! The point was that she was part of a long line of women who died for the man's story to move forward. It doesn't matter if she was doomed from the start. It doesn't matter if she was a dynamic, complex character who did get focus within the story. It doesn't change the fact that her inclusion in the story was to only serve Kyle's narrative.

So it drives me a little insane to see people argue that this male character is woman coded because he has an emotional arc focused on how other people have wronged him and we see him at his lowest point having a mental breakdown and experiencing irrational emotions because "that's a woman's story". No? It's not? Like historically it's NOT. Men are allowed to feel the full spectrum of human emotion. Men are allowed to buckle under the weight of all the burdens they carry and scream their sorrows out to the world. That's. That's not a woman's story. Achilles wept in the Iliad. Macbeth was flawed and poignant and allowed to be a fully developed person while Lady Macbeth was a scheming schemer from the start. Emotional arcs, through antiquity into the modern day, have been given to men! Men's stories are full of how they've been hurt, how they've been disenfranchised. Underdog stories are an entire genre within themselves. Emotional arcs have been written for men from the dawn of literature.

Like I keep seeing the same argument about how male protagonists have to be stoic and manly men and show no emotions and be hyper successful providers and I want to tear my hair out. No! No they don't!! You are describing a hyper specific genre of action heroes and like, one type of video game protagonist that was popular in AAA titles from the late 2010s. Oh my god. Please read more books. Please watch more movies. I'm losing my mind. Male protags are not like this as a rule BECAUSE IT'S BORING. BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO WATCH THE STORY OF A SUCCESSFUL MAN BECOMING EVEN MORE SUCCESSFUL. THAT'S A SPECIFIC TYPE OF POWER FANTASY THAT NOT EVERYONE ASCRIBES TO ASIDJDHDH READ MORE BOOKS.

I'm fine. I'm fine.

Anyway. Sorry anon I didn't mean to dump all this in your ask. I have just been thinking about this since yesterday and it's been driving me bonkers and also I'm a bit tipsy right now. Tell me about why Jason is female coded. I'll find my post about why Kyle is a girl YA protagonist and reblog it in solidarity.

#asks #anon #SORRY #Kyle is female coded because that's what my heart and my dick says <3 i need no further reason

[biboomerangboi]

BOTW/TOTK Link is so funny cause even without the constantly tragic doomed to repeat the cycle narrative that applies to LOZ Lore his backstory is so fucking tragic. Like he was just a guy who became a knight and was tasked to save the world and protect the princess and he failed and the princess has been fighting on her own for 100 years and all his friends are dead and he can’t remember anything but then he does get his memories back and he saves the world and then when he’s finally rebuilding. Hyrules in danger again and everyone wants him to step up and save the world and all his friends are in danger and he fails to catch the princess who’s been his person for the past few years and she is sent to the past and basically dies there and he’s still expected to fight on and it’s so fucking tragic. Any other story he’d be THE EMO but instead he’s just the dude that shows up like Tony Hawk, immediately free climbs cliffs and jumps into the depths and agrees to be shot out of towers. Like he canonically eats rocks. He’s the hero of hyrule yet when the paper covers the story’s of how he saves the day it just says some blonde twink. He’s the only man allowed in Gerudo town and has a statue in the immortal lands of Zora but also he is just a horse girl that says hyaaa! The worlds ending so he got a job in the paper that doesn’t recognise him despite his name being known far and wide. Everyone sees him and gives him food because he’s like 2 apples tall. I’m so normal about him.

#the little guy of all time #link #botw #totk #totk spoilers #loz #link legend of zelda #legend of Zelda #tloz

[burr-ell]

i don't get Hopes fans' insistence that Claude was fixed by a white woman/man (Byleth) and that he’s better when he's used as a prop for a separate white woman (smellygard). Like they of course don't put it like that but that's deadass what they're saying when they attribute all of Claude’s positive character traits to Byleth and when they cheer so hard for Claude ruining his dreams in the service of a violent imperialist.

Claude and Byleth are better (and straight up GREAT) as equals who help each other grow closer to others and not "well Claude was completely evil until Byleth made him good" and he's DEFINITELY better as an antagonistic force against smellygard than a dumb yesman. like sorry to the Claude "fans" that want him to just be a dumb violent brown boy who only gets fixed by the good white characters but he's an amazing and good person all by himself 🚶

as a disclaimer, as a white woman i won't put words in the mouths of fans of color who like hopes!claude—and many do! but many also don't, at least in part for the reasons you mention, and anything i have to say on the topic will be echoing them. (@butwhatifidothis, for example, who's talked a lot about this specifically from this angle.)

i can understand the argument that byleth influenced claude to grow emotionally closer to people and his trust in her allowed him to break down the walls he would have kept up otherwise. but i think it's more than a little bit silly to attribute hopes!claude's behavior entirely to the absence of byleth. because we have canon proof of what claude looks like without byleth, and it's called "fire emblem three houses", a game in which claude a) doesn't try to take over anything even when given some good opportunities to do so and b) never even considers siding with edelgard. even "well claude didn't have the year at garreg mach" still falls flat when you consider that claude was already a clever and curious person before garreg mach, traits that are, by all accounts, largely absent in his motivations in three hopes.

hopes!claude only works as a tragedy, and even then i find it hard to believe. (and of course, having the series' first POC lord be the Tragic One in a fanservice game, compared to his two white counterparts who make off like kings by comparison, is pretty gross no matter how you slice it.) of the many traits canon claude has, "stupid enough to believe he can help edelgard conquer a continent and then starscream her" is not one of them. it's literally just edelgard's (equally stupid, but at least in-character) canon alliance with the slithers, believing she can turn around and destroy them after depleting her own resources bringing any potential allies she might have had to ruin, but with a golden deer coat of paint. i think that, as a golden deer fan, i can be forgiven for not finding that very appealing, even as an AU, and i'm certainly not paying sixty bucks for it.

seriously, Warriors + three houses could easily have just been another fanservice-y romp like the original, where the 3h characters get to interact with past canon characters and they're all friends and go on adventures together, yay!! but they didn't. they went the most financially foolish route possible and it's not at all surprising that fans weren't interested.

#'we thought this story would really touch people's hearts :)' ah yes found family engaged in a war of conquest. my favorite. #fe3h discourse #crit tag #seriously they couldn't make a serious 3h warriors story that ended happily bc it retroactively makes their bestselling game pointless #so why not just make a goofy dumb fanservice story?? #bc sure it would retread the original warriors but you could bring in other main characters who weren't in the original #(characters who were locked out because of possible sequel bait. oops.) #like. fix some of the issues with original FEW's gameplay bring in ike roy and the twins + 3h characters and the og warriors cast #throw em all in a big tribute to the series and boom. done. it wouldn't sell like hotcakes but it would probably make decent money #instead they did this and the sales nosedived after the first week and kept dropping #sowwy bout it koei guess you'll have to simp for imperialist crab-chan on your own time

[10holmes]

Just re-read Going Back The Way We've Come again because I was feeling nostalgic and craving some sweet angst and because I still love this fic of mine so very much.

Anyway, I am now mentally and emotionally stuck in a painful daze reflecting on chapter 2 - where Xiao Xingchen's past is relived - especially concerning that personal headcanon of mine that I included there.

Back when writing this chapter, seeing that canon apparently wasn't painful and tragic enough, I thought:

What if XXC and XY had almost met sooner?

What if there had actually been a slim chance that XY would have even not encountered Chang Cian at all... but Baoshan Sanren instead, back when he was seven?

What if Baoshan Sanren actually descended her mountain once a year to look for orphans and then came to Yueyang that specific year?

And what if she had allowed then ten-year-old XXC to come with her and help her look for a potential child to join them?

This would have actually been the perfect grounds for a little canon-divergence AU that's all happy and cute with maybe some minor angst.

But as I am fond of gut-wrenching and soul-splitting pain, I decided, let the possibility be there but then have them miss that chance by a very very very small margin.

And now I've made myself cry because it is just so damn painful to read and think about that missed chance... The two of them almost meeting... Xue Yang being so close to a happy childhood, not having his hand crushed, his finger turned into pulp or almost losing his life, not going on to commit all of the attrocities later on, and then Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan would also not have had to go through any pain and emotional and physical torture either...

There could have been that wholesome happy future for all of them... But it was missed by just a heartbeat because Xue Yang had been detained elsewhere, got back too late and wasn't there when Xiao Xingchen could have chosen him but selected another orphan first...

Oh the sweet sweet pain....

In a similar way, I thought long and hard about their actual first encounter in canon and why it escalated the way it did and, yet again, my angst-driven self was like

What if all of it was in fact ultimately just based on one big unfortunate really minuscule misunderstanding?

What if what each of them thought they heard or what they said was not at all perceived the way it was intended to and what was meant to be said and heard?

What if they had even been trying to say something but were interrupted too soon and didn't get to say what might have been significant to diffuse the tensions and avoid any growing resentment?

So we might have Xiao Xingchen, who is actually quite smitten with young Xue Yang already, despite his rather unruly behaviour, and even muses about the younger’s potential as a cultivator when receiving the proper training, but before he can even begin to say anything along those lines, Xue Yang, who is already or still too heated and angry by Song Lan's attack, interprets XXCs manner all wrongly as self-important and haughty and interrupts him to lay words in his mouth and thus never learns of the man's true thoughts...

Another twisted knife to the heart for another possible diverging path to a better outcome not being taken...

And now you may lie with me, staring at the ceiling, contemplating our existence...

@verycatbluebird & @ba0shanblack

#xue yang #xiao xingchen #xuexiao #the untamed #cql #mdzs #XueXiao fic meta post #Going Back The Way We've Come #fic musings #inflicting angst and pain and emotional damage to me and my readers #almost forgot to tag #this is also a #SongXueXiao #fic #And Song Lan plays an important role as well