#it was only MY fish that mysteriously died when she was looking after them for me too

[ol-files]

The full story of Island of Wakfu

The introduction sequence shows an egg-like planet, the color of Stasis, from which a large meteor is seen shooting through space, hurtling toward the Eliatropes' planet.

A Thousand Mysteries

"The joy of a sweet summer afternoon for our Mysteries. rejoice, Eliatropes! The day has finally come!" - Pulva

These sacred rites, bathed"s with solar flares, complete our work in honor of your glory, Goddess." - Mina

Chapter 1: The Sanctuary

Stook

Sent to look for Waki Wa on the sacred Goddess island, Nora and Efrim meet Stook on the way, a "former Eliacube" who tells them that Master Qilby has disappeared and that something is going on between him and the king (Yugo). They then meet Glip for their Wakfung trial, after which he sends them on their way to the Goddess Shrine.

At the shrine, Mina announces that the Goddess has called them. The statue of Eliatrope beseeches them to pass her three Veils in order to meet her in her abode. To begin, she requests an offering for her face – a feather from a blue Tofu –, one for her tears – a cup, made of the bark of a singing tree – and one for her hair – a comb made of a silver scale from an Oracle fish.

They gather the first two items without difficulty, then meet the Oracle fish at the pond:

«  I need to show you something; in a distant place, across dimensions... On an island in time, your fate hangs in the balance. I need you to understand how to change it. — Oracle »

He warns them that everyone's Wakfu will be eaten by an unknown force, that they are their last defense, and gives them "the dream power to fight." To hand them a scale, he introduces them to the mighty Platypus, who will assist them later.

Having collected all three offerings, they present them to the shrine. The Goddess warns them that doom is already upon them. They must pass the three Veils and are sent to the forest to learn teleportation with Glip.

Chapter 2: The Forest

« Learning is a game. When you play a game, you learn the rules and logic, while trying to be the most creative and free under its constraints. This, my children, is the true way to learn ». - Baltazar

« We are not the only inhabitants of this world. The Goddess is at the origin of everything. We are all brothers and sisters, but we must not stagnate. for Wakfu is movement, and stagnation sin. » - Chibi

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Glip teaches Nora the basics of teleportation, but as they progress through the forest, they find Prespics. This link will take you to our sister Wikia, Dofus Wiki made aggressive by the Stasis that has fallen in the forest. Nora and Efrim fight their way through and rejoin with Glip deeper into the forest, near a Stasis meteorite. Glip explains that Stasis was forbidden by Chibi the prophet, but that this rock is somehow different. For now, he will only tell them that Stasis is "anti-Wakfu." A little further, they find Chibi's Great Hall, a sanctuary where Stasis is forbidden.

« Chibi was the first to cross the third Veil. This is where he died. His body is here, a tiny spark of Wakfu still trapped in his bones. » — Glip

Inside, a skeleton rests on a rocking chair. Nora's Eliacube comments:

« Stiff, smelly... Yep, seems like a corpse, all right... Look closely. Is it real? I wonder how the prophet REALLY died... And aren't Eliatropes supposed to be immortal? Chibi was our Prophet, but he was also a great poet. He left many poems, known as Mysteries, behind in this world. This Iwak is a plug-in allowing me to decode Chibi's Mysteries. » — Nora's Eliacube

A tooltip adds that "Mysteries are pages from Chibi's secret Herbarium. Each mystery tells a long-lost tale."

Chapter 3: The Meadow

« These flowers that we call Manolia, each of them is an individual, a singular being. Their roots feed on the core of Wakfu: the heart of our, a whirling vortex, breaking its waves on our shores. » - Mina

« All Manolias are linked to a network called Wik-Fi, a precious gift. We, Eliatropes, use it to connect our Eliacubes and communicate. And so we talk with flowers, and through flowers. » - Chibi

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"He has no time for the dark roots at his fingertips; the buds on the roots, their promise, not time. It is the most beautiful flower of the field he desires." - Shinonome

Back in the meadow, Mina shows Nora and Efrim how to interact with Wakfu creatures and flowers using Wakfu and Stasis. She then sends them on their way to Vili Summit for the ritual of Chibi's rebirth. The ritual is a symbolic representation of Chibi's resurrection in his Holy Egg. There is a legend that says maybe, one day, the Prophet will be reborn... and this may be the day. There is a large egg and a Dragoturkey This link will take you to our sister Wikia, Dofus Wiki, which according to Mina is too weak to crack the egg. Efrim forces the egg open, but "as always," the Prophet is not reborn. They proceed higher up the mountain to find Tina, their "most precious flower."

« It is Chibi's soul, his gift, an heirloom for us to tend. We must see Tina bloom. Then, perhaps, Chibi will come. «  — Mina

Efrim breathes on Tina to make her bloom, to no avail, and Grougaloragran calls out to Mina, saying he must speak to the initiates at once. Mina opens an Eliatrope path (similar to a trail of successive portals) to the lake for them.

« Something has happened to the King's Palace. Qilby has betrayed his people! We're at war with invaders from the sky. Soon the threat will be upon this Sanctuary. The King is dead... but all hope is not lost. He will be reborn in his Royal Egg, his Dofus, along with his Dragon, Adamai. The King's Dofus is in the forest, in the hands of our ancestors. » — Grougaloragran

Badly injured, the Dragon sends them to retrieve Yugo and Adamai's Dofus. Before they can leave, a rain of Stasis stones falls from the sky and Mina takes the other children to the temple. From the craters, Rozens sprout, Stasis-charged flowers that corrupt their surroundings and damage characters who get too close. The Goddess speaks to Nora and Efrim:

« An ancient galactic threat coming back to haunt us. They want our Wakfu. They will drink it all. The threads of this world unravel, revealing the truth of our Origins. My children are doomed by mistakes of the past. I am sorry. I am so sorry. Something... draining my soul... My voice... fading out... » — Eliatrope

Fighting through the Rozens, spiders and Prespics, they make their way through the forest and defeat a large, corrupted Prespic. Grougaloragran contacts them through a Drake Stone, beseeching them to secure the king's Dofus right away. The twins take down the protective field around the Dofus, and thus pass the first Veil.

Stasis Rising

« A secret Lab ? What kind of accusation is that ? How can I keep a secret from the King ? I am honest and truthful ! I would never, never, ever do something behind your back, your Majesty. » - Qilby

« The smell of the dark Rozen de Stasis is a breath of tartar, do not be seduced by its beauty. - Grougaloragran

Chapter 4: The Crater

As more meteors hit the planet, Orgonax is seen walking in the distance. The Goddess speaks once again:

« Our people were cursed, long ago, in another world. We escaped a terrible doom, and we built a new world. Who amongst our people betrayed us and awakened the past? My... voice... is running out... Help me, I'm disappearing... But not fast enough... Pain... » — Eliatrope

Nora and Efrim rush back to the Sanctuary, but passing through Chibi's Great Hall they find the skeleton has fallen off the chair and down the stairs, and the room is dotted with Stasis. Nora's Eliacube makes an intriguing comment:

« Well, look at that... It actually doesn't look like a real skeleton. Why would someone place a fake Chibi here? Why would they lie to us? «  — Nora's Eliacube

They find a trap door on the floor and head down, while the Eliacube warns them that this place is sacred and forbidden. They find an underground laboratory, with a replica of Mount Zinit in the center. The Eliacube recounts that Chibi heard the Goddess's voice when he was napping on the summit and that the Council has forbidden access to the mountain ever since. On the replica, Nora finds a way to activate a hologram of Qilby:

« Qilby speaking. I'm afraid time has already run out. I can't stand it anymore. Someone has to unveil the secrets, the taboos. The King doesn't want to listen to me, the fool. All he wants is a false heaven. I want to go back. I want to avenge our fathers and our sons. Nothing can stop me now! I leave this message for history. I will climb Mount Zinit, into the forbidden zone. I will open the gates of Wakanu. I will expose the parody that is our Eliatrope Goddess. I will save us all. I will make us true warriors again. «  — Qilby

Coming out of the lab, they find more craters and the tracks left by Orgonax. Reaching the lake, they see Lu-Fu invaders tearing down the Goddess's statue while she calls for help. By the time they get to it, the statue is already in shambles, but the Goddess leaves them musical notes to invoke her beyond the Veils. A tooltip describes the Goddess Song as "a devastating Hymn from the First Veil. None but Eliatropes can hear it without instantly being consumed." She begs Nora to use the Song against her (the statue), as she can take the pain no more. As the initiate complies, she thanks her and tells them that this soul, this voice, are gone only for now, and to find her in Intiwakana, her abode.

Chapter 5: The Temple

« Qilby? Ah, the poor fellow... if only he’d listened to me doing what he did. What was it? Uh... Look... You’re so young. You might one day understand. » - Glip

« Yes, yes, yes, I passed away a long time ago, by Chibi himself, when he created our technology here in this earthly paradise. According to Chibi, his inspirations were divine, the Goddess had helped him create his wonders. If that’s true, and I’m convinced of it, then I’m of divine origin. So that’s not cool? » - Stook

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In the nearby forest, the Treechnid This link will take you to our sister Wikia, Dofus Wiki Amalami's voice and song are being corrupted by "the song from space," sung by Rozens. He becomes Amalama:

« GIVE ME YOUR SONG! LET ME TAKE YOUR TONGUE! I WILL FREE YOU FROM YOUR ABSURD GOD! I AM THE TRUE MAESTRO! I AM THE PRIMO UOMO! ELIATROPES ARE LIARS! DO YOU WANT ME TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH? YOUR GODDESS DOES NOT EXIST! HAIL, ORGONAX! » — Amalama

Unfortunately, defeating the corrupted tree also kills Amalami.

Nora and Efrim reach the temple and find the Wakfu Fountain encroached by Stasis flowers, draining its energy. They destroy the flowers and find Stook hiding underground. He gives Efrim a power-up and as they return outside, Baltazar calls for them and asks for immediate help. They head to his rescue but are caught in the middle of rampaging beasts running away from some unseen threat. They escape and fight more Lu-Fu with the young Redmo, who is killed by troopers. They then come upon Glip facing off against their leader Odo, but he is quickly struck down. Odo thirsts for Wakfu and orders his troops to set up the "Extractor" to take samples from this world. He then returns to his Frigate, letting them handle the busy work. Before passing away, Glip begs the twins to save the children hidden in the temple.

Chapter 6: Vili Valley

« Our library is the memory of our people. Everything we have done is here. Books are precious, they are life, and our memories. We need them, without them we could not survive with abstract information. We need to give them substance. » - Chibi

« As the invader approaches, our way of life is threatened. This paradise we called home is gone. The king is dead, his palace on fire. Everything seems lost. We were betrayed, but we could have done something. It’s my fault... it’s... » - Glip

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Nora and Efrim fight more Lu-Fu in the temple and rescue the young Kiri. They find an Eliatrope path to the upper levels and come across Chibi's testament.

« Chibi left his belongings to his lover, Mina. And he crowned Yugo our King. Oh boy... Master Qilby must have been so angry. » — Nora's Eliacube

Trivia: One of the children to be rescued is Zora from Wakfu: Les Gardiens, and freeing her unlocks the achievement Guardian.

Once all the children are rescued, Baltazar calls for a meeting in the Dragon Hall. Since the children cannot yet teleport by themselves, he takes them "to a place where [they]'ll be safe forever" – the timeless dimension Emrub. He leaves after imparting another power-up to Efrim, after which the Eliacube comments:

« Those kids you saved... Baltazar's children, we call them... They are younger than anyone else, but no one remembers their births. Where did they come from? » — Nora's Eliacube

It is likely that they were the children sent to another dimension during the first Mechasm attack on the Eliatropes' original planet, but it is curious that no one else seems to be aware of it.

Later, Mina says she must make a sacrifice, now that Qilby has betrayed them. She must find the Pow Wow, their most secret place of ritual, and needs their help. They must go to the Zaap portal outside the library. But before they can follow Mina, Orgonax appears and destroys the portal, forcing the duo to head to the beach and find the backup Zaap suggested by the Eliacube.

On the Beach

« You talk about education. Well, I think education is the responsibility. We cannot drown our children in the news. They have to use them to get to where they can. We’re just watching them, so they don’t get hurt. » - Mama Conch

« Time will be born from the hourglass, a grain of sand after another. Cause and consequence, brothers jumaux from the will to change the world. » - Goddess

Chapter 7: Pliyi di Bili

Nora and Efrim reach the beach and see Prissy the Conch being attacked by crab-like creatures she calls bad krabbies. They rescue her and she asks for their help finding her sisters – Ellie, Evvy, Kelly, Marcy and Mary –, who were affected by "red fumes" that made them say bad words and terrible things. Near the beach, they find another of Qilby's holograms:

« Ah... If only the Council were honest people, I wouldn't have to do this... The truth? So simple: The Eliatropes are not what they seem to be. This society is not our first. This planet is not our home world. A long time ago, we escaped. Now, we must pay the price. I will be the redeemer. I will make things right once again... Because I'm the only one who can understand Chibi. » — Qilby

After all the Conch sisters have been found, Lu-Fu arrive on a ship and storm the beach. Nora and Efrim dispatch them, then pay a visit to Mama Conch in a nearby cave. Pleased that her girls are safe and did not pick up any bad words, she gives Nora one of her pearls, which will allow her to reflect projectiles.

Chapter 8: Club Platypus

“Many Eliatropes were disappointed by the Goddess. They joined cults to forget her. She and her Veils. It is a tragedy, because if no one believes in Her, then she will leave this plane of existence. It is a fact." - Baltazar

“I don’t understand. Why walk away from the Goddess? She is gentle and caring. What reasons can justify such an affront?” -Glip

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A little farther on the beach, they meet Yama, who says a giant flower (a Queen Rozen) is sucking the light away and driving everyone mad in the nearby village. Nora and Efrim immediately provide assistance but are stunned by the cry of the dying flower. They awaken in Yama's hut, where he tells them that his leader probably won't be happy even though the flower has been taken care of, and will probably still sacrifice his sister Zoe to his "stupid Egg."

In the village, they see the Shamipus, local leader, proclaiming that the sacrifices are working since the light has returned. To continue to receive protection from the Platypus Egg, he commands more sacrifices, as expected.

Attached to a totem surrounded by dancers, they see a Dofus protected by a force field and start looking for a way to deactivate it. Sneaking into the Shamipus's hut, they deactivate the force field and Nora dresses herself as another Shamipus. The villagers are confused and Efrim uses the distraction to cause the egg to hatch, freeing the Platypus. All the villagers immediately rally to him and therefore to Efrim and Nora. The Shamipus teleports away, promising to have his revenge. Immediately after, more Lu-Fu arrive and destroy the gate to come after the Eliatrope and Dragon. They drive them back and Yama thanks them for saving his sister and the village, then reveals the location of the secret Zaap on the beach.

Ancient Questions

« Wait a minute! There’s nothing logical about it!" - Stock

"Pow Wow is a special place. An ancient place where Chibi came when he was old. He went there to die, it was his choice; offer his soul to the Goddess." - Glip

Chapter 9: Pow Wow

Mina warns Nora that the Stasis is disrupting the Wik-Fi and making teleportation unstable. Because of this, Nora must reach the Pow Wow through a secret path below the canyon. Finding the place by herself will be her last initiation rite. Mina also says that she has a very hard decision to make, but not to judge her, as it is their only hope.

Islands of Wakfu - Mina's sacrifice

Mina's sacrifice

Finding their way through a bamboo forest, they find a Lu-Fu excavation site. They kill the invaders and find an Eliatrope path to the Pow Wow. Mina tells them that she needed privacy for the hardest decision of her life: she offered her Wakfu in this holy place in order to create a bridge to Chibi's soul. That was the only way for Nora to pass the second Veil. Activating a Zaap, Nora and Efrim reach the heart of the Pow Wow and find Mina dying. She tells them that Qilby has betrayed them and brought back Stasis. Her Wakfu has gone into a flower that Nora must plant in the temple of Wakanu, atop Mount Zinit, in order to find Chibi's island and save the Dofus.

Making their way to Mount Zinit, they find another excavation site where the Lu-Fu are forcing moles to do their labor. After fighting numerous foes, they are told by a mole that the entire mountain is collapsing, but they head into the mines, driven by necessity.

Chapter 10: Rizi

"The heart of our world is a heart of Wakfu, blue as the yolk of a timeless egg, before the cosmic omelette occurs." - Glip

"Beebee loves wakfu. Mmmm, you love wakfu..." - Beebee

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They quickly come out of the mines and fight their way up through more ranks of Lu-Fu, all the while feeding their new companion Beebee the bee with Wakfu to make her glow. With her help, they navigate through dark caverns and continue to make their way up. They find a Wakfu-extracting machine, pumping tirelessly to feed Odo's insatiable appetite. They destroy the machine and face Odo's general in battle.

On Top of the World

Chapter 11: Mount Zinit

« Why all these secrets? Something is wrong. Would the council have lied to us? Does the Goddess really exist? What would be the point of inventing such a story?" - Eliacube

"O ancient mountain, venerable spirit presiding over the material plane, you will not weep. Like insects, we cling to your sides. We dare not look upon your summit. Our eyes fall when we cross the path of your deep caves, and the intimate and dark secret of your origins." - Qilby

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Climbing ever higher, they make their way to Wakanu as Orgonax climbs Mount Zinit. On the way, they find a new hologram from Qilby:

« Mount Zinit is a place of corridors, of dark corners. Here lie the secrets of our kind. Halfway through my journey, I rest in this tomb to contemplate my choices. I may doom our way of life, our dreams, but I cannot endure the lies we tell ourselves. Eliatropes were born of the Stars, and we came here to escape our Fall. We need to confront ourselves with the truth. We need to avenge our people. The King is a liar and a coward. I will not stay silent. Not anymore. May you who find these words forgive me. » — Qilby

In the same room, they find schematics and drawings that resemble Orgonax, and the Eliacube comments that he is big enough to walk inside, and that there seems to be a hollow spot in his right hand.

Chapter 12: Wakanu

"Why did I do this? Because the king did not want to do anything! He wanted to stay here with his lies. We are supposed to move forward! We are supposed to feed on other systems to progress to the end of time. That is the real reason for Wakfu." - Qilby

"It seems unreal. Like we’re in the bowels of a whale perched on top of a mountain, like an ark from a distant past." - Eliacube

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Nora and Efrim undo the seal to the temple Wakanu and find Lu-Fu already inside. The temple is a maze designed by Chibi, and the Eliacube suspects that he may have a flower nearby, since according to Mina he performed the Pow Wow ritual. Inside a strange machine, they find the Oracle of Waki Wa. They wake him up and he tells them that he is not real, not really there. He used to be Chibi's personal assistant, but he is only a projection reactivated by Qilby when he was last here. Nevertheless, he has the power to activate a Zaap leading further inside the temple.

There, they find Lu-Fu that have drilled their way into the mountain, as well as Stasis deposits. They dispatch the creatures and reach the first chamber, first part of Chibi's puzzle. They are met there by Modo and Podo, Lu-Fu leaders looking for Stasis for Odo, who has gone to the top of the mountain to meet Orgonax. The Lu-Fu attack the characters, hoping to use them to force their way inside the Inner Sanctum, but they are no match for Nora and Efrim.

The next puzzle is a large room filled with tubes carrying Wakfu. Using the Platypus, they deactivate the force field that blocks the exit and proceed to the next room after collecting the original Eliacube. The last chamber contains statues of the Eliatrope Council, and strangely, a Rozen grows in front of Qilby's. They find Chibi's flower in front of his statue, proving that he sacrificed his Wakfu at the Pow Wow, and plant Mina's flower before her statue as she asked. Solving the last puzzle, they find an Eliatrope path to Mina's island.

Chapter 13: The Islands

"Chibi, my love, I am by your side now. I can see your face beyond the waves, like a lighthouse, which attracts me. We will be reunited in this world where souls are connected. I will be the bridge that joins you." - Mina

"Islands? You mean paradise? You really think there’s something after death? Do you think what we are looking for is a holiday? The islands are a lie, the Goddess is a scam. The Platypus is the one and only god." - Chamipus

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On Mina's island, they meet with the Oracle, who explains that her soul came here when she sacrificed her Wakfu. Since the Wakfu of Council Eliatropes and Dragons return to their Dofus upon death until their reincarnation, it may be that these islands are small planes of existence contained in those Dofus, where their souls remain conscious.

According to the Oracle, "to get to Chibi's island, you must uncover Mina's secret love for him." They find fragments of her soul, and open the way to Chibi's island. Grougaloragran meets them there for the Ritual of Ages, and to take the king's Dofus to another dimension where it will be safe. He instructs them to find the Goddess Beacon atop Mount Zinit.

« Pray for her to take you with her. In her womb, children, you'll live forever. Your soul, protected. » — Grougaloragran

*The Eliacube picked up in Chibi's maze appears on a pedestal while Grougaloragran takes the Dofus from Nora, but no mention is made of it and it simply disappears after the scene. In the animated series, Grougaloragran does however mention that Nora entrusted him with both the Dofus and the Eliacube.

Odo's Frigate appears in the sky, and as the Oracle instructs her that letting go will be the quickest way to reach Intiwakana, she lets the Lu-Fu take her aboard without resistance. There, Odo demands the king's Dofus, but Nora and Efrim attack him and his crew and gain the upper hand. Before it is too late, Odo drinks a full jar of Wakfu and becomes an even more powerful beast with the ability to teleport around the ship. But ultimately, he is still defeated, along with the rest of his crew.

Chapter 14: Intiwakana

"It’s not a lie if you believe it." - Glip

"Well, it’s time to go home now!" - Stook

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The Frigate crashes near the top of the mountain, where Nora and Efrim must face a Crackler guardian appointed by Chibi, who decreed that no one was allowed to pass. They then make their way to a small cave where they consult the Oracle one last time:

« You have saved the last Eliatrope, now this world is coming to an end. These invaders you've fought were once like you, innocent. They were seized, enslaved, brought to despair. Behold, this is their world, still alive in their dreams. » — Oracle

He shows them a vision of the Lu-Fu's world, of their Imperatrix giving up the fight after so many of her people have been taken away. In their last hour, they send a warning in dreams:

« Don't fear the loss of the material world, but embrace the pure bliss of dreams. In dreams, invisible waves become vessels. To believe is to feel. Sailing an endless ocean... to surf, but never to sink. Believe in the invisible. As it believes in you. »

— Lu-Fu Imperatrix

« This world is doomed. Mount Zinit is waking up. If you reach the top of the mountain, the Goddess may take you with her. Close your eyes, let yourself go. »

— Oracle

As they reach ever higher, Orgonax catches up with them and they are forced to fight him off to buy some time. They find a weak spot in his right hand and blow it open, creating an opening for the Platypus. Inside, he uses drops of Wakfu to tinker with the giant's internal mechanisms, making him lose his grip on the rock face. They quickly reach the top of the mountain and find a large flower that speaks with the voice of the Goddess (her last words are not transcribed for the player). Nora communes with it while Orgonax resumes his ascent. Channeling the Goddess's power, Nora launches a devastating attack against Orgonax, an explosion seen from space that wipes all life from the planet for millenia.

*The final attack against Orgonax had cataclysmic proportions and destroyed all life on the planet, and several millenia later, when the gods of the World of Twelve discovered the barren planet and recreated life on it, the process also involved highly destructive forces. Yet, mentions of Eliatrope artifacts abound in the world, such as Zaap portals, Eliatrope ruins and the book found by Karibd and Silar (mention in Dofus mmo and Dofus manga.

Source :

* https://krosmoz.fandom.com/wiki/Islands_of_Wakfu

* https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLe_N8_H2VbTULBoBL65OY7VYRIUbC-fU7&feature=shared

#island of wakfu #iow #ankama

[nellasbookplanet]

Book recs: merpeople

Everything from pretty, magical sirens and selkies to eldritch monstrosities and murderous, scientifically plausible fish-people, merpeople as a whole have a special allure and surprising versatility to them. Allow me to share with you some books!

(Also, did you know that a lot of mermaid books are very queer? If not, you're about to find out!)

Continue under the readmore for details and my thoughts on the books!

Other book rec posts:

Really cool fantasy worldbuilding

Really cool sci-fi worldbuilding

Dark sapphic romances

Vampire books

The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro & Daniel Krauss

Surely this one needs no introduction on tumblr dot com, the monsterfucker site? In 1960s America, Elisa works as a cleaner in a government laboratory when a strange fish creature is brought in to be studied, and an immediate connection sparks between the two.

Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky trilogy) by Rebecca Roanhorse

This isn't so much a mermaid book as a fantasy book in which one of the main characters is of merpeople heritage. In a pre-columbian inspired world, sea captain Xiala travels with a mysterious scarred passenger toward a dangerous goal. Also features bisexual and nonbinary leads!

Ice Massacre (Mermaids of Eriana Kwai trilogy) by Tiana Warner

Young Adult. A small island is forced to defend itself against intruding forces of vicious mermaids. As all men trying to fight them get lured in by their siren song, a ship filled with warrior girls is sent instead. However one of them, Meela, had a complicated past with one of the mermaids, which is brought back to life when the two reunite on the battlefield. Sapphic romance. This one is also available as an ongoing webcomic.

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant

A research vessel heads towards the Mariana Trench in search of answers of what happened to a ship which mysteriously lost all its crew some time earlier. In the deep dark, something intelligent and hungry awaits them. Very much mermaids of the horror variety. Sequel to a novella. Also contains a sapphic romance, however that is a pretty small part of the plot as a whole.

Our Bloody Pearl (These Treacherous Tides series) by D.N. Bryn

A siren who's been held captive by a pirate is freed, but too injured to survive on their own as their tail has become paralyzed. Another pirate captain decides to help them out and has to work to win their trust. Fairly fluffy and light on worldbuilding and plot (though there is a bit of a revenge story in there), with a focus on character and recovery. m/nb romance with an asexual love interest.

The Deep by Rivers Solomon

Novella. Yetu holds the memories of her people, descendants of pregnant African slave women who were thrown overboard, a past forgotten by everyone but her. But holding the memories alone is slowly destroying her, and she flees to the surface. A look at inter-generational trauma and the scars it leaves.

The Mermaid's Daughter by Ann Claycomb

A continuation on the classical fairy tale. Kathleen, up and coming opera singer, has suffered from a lifelong and unexplainable stabbing pain in her feet. As both her mother and grandmother died from suicide, possibly due to a similar condition, Kathleen's girlfriend convinces her to try and find out more of her family history. More of a magical realism than a full on fantasy (with a lot of focus on the intricacies of opera) but very beautiful.

Winter Tide by Ruthanna Emrys

Lovecraftian fishpeople! Aphra and her brother are the only survivors after the government raided their home, Innsmouth. Their only living family are the amphibian people of the deep, whom they will one day join, but until then they are bound to land where they struggle to build new lives for themselves after the great loss of their home and loved ones. Then rumors start to spread of a russian agent seeking dangerous and ancient magic, forcing Aphra to involve herself as they try to stop it. Does contain horror elements but is generally a much more optimistic look on cosmic horror than most lovecraftian stories, told from the perspective of one of his monsters. Lots of focus on found family and rebuilding of community. Asexual main character (however I don't think that becomes in-text confirmed until the sequel).

Eelgrass by Tori Curtis

When Bettan, a selkie, has her skin stolen by a man and gets forced into marriage, her best friend Efa is determined to save her. The other selkies however refuse to help, and so Efa seek out the help of dangerous mermaids in the hopes of rescuing her friend. Atmospheric and beautiful, with a very nice balance of platonic love between friends and a (sapphic) romance, both portrayed as equally important.

The Moon and the Sun by Vonda N. McIntyre

You can't go wrong with a Vonda McIntyre novel just, like, in general. This one is set in 17th century France, where a young woman and her brother travel to live at the royal court, where they are to care for and study a strange captured sea monster fabled to have the ability to grant eternal life. A lot of focus on court politics as well as the cultural and biological differences between the humans and the mermaid. Also available as a movie (but it's not very good, please just read the book).

Sommaren 1985 by John Ajvide Lindqvist

Including this on the list feels a little mean because it's not yet available in english, but all of the author's other works have been translated (fun fact, he's the writer of internationally acclaimed vampire novel Let the Right One In!) so odds are this one will be as well. It follows a group of young teens in 1985 finding a mermaid tied up on a beach and hiding her in a bathtub in a shed. While the mermaid is important, it's more of a coming-of-age story with few supernatural elements. The author generally writes horror, and while I wouldn't classify this as such it certainly has an ominous atmosphere throughout. Gay main character but no romance (other than sideplots involving other characters).

The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag

Young adult graphic novel. Morgan, a young girl living on an island, meets a selkie with whom she quickly sparks a connection. But Morgan has yet to tell anyone about her feelings about girls, and the selkie has secret motives of her own as to why she chose to come on land. Sapphic romance with enviromental themes. Very pretty art.

Bonus AKA I haven't read these yet but they seem really cool

The Mermaid the Witch and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Young adult sapphic fantasy featuring not only mermaids but also pirates!

Out of the Blue by Jason June

A young merperson must leave the sea to undergo a coming-of-age journey - and risk getting stuck on land forever.

Teeth by Hannah Moskowitz

A boy living on an isolated island befriends a merperson with dangerous secrets.

Honorary mentions AKA these didn't quite work for me but maybe you guys will like them:

The Seafarer's Kiss by Julia Ember (sapphic little mermaid retelling from Ursula's perspective), Weird Fishes by Rae Mariz (enviromental novella), The Fate of Stars by S.D. Simper (fantasy, sapphic enemies to lovers)

#next week will be vampires! #nella talks books #book recs #mermaids

[ornii]

My Better Bitter Half, Part 9

Part 9: Pilgrimage

“Let's assess, shall we? Bag over my head for optimal disorientation, wrists tied tight enough to cut off circulation, and no idea if I'm going to live or die. It's definitely my kind of party.”

(Y/n) and Wednesday, twins were bagged and dragged into a dark decrepit hole unbeknownst of their location.

“Who dares breach our inner sanctum?” A haunting voice comes out, their masks were suddenly taken off as they look around, and realize they’re still in the library.

“You can take the mask off, Bianca.” Wednesday says.

“And just like that, my hopes were dashed against the rocks of bitter disappointment. My foe was no psychotic killer. More like a bunch of high school clowns.” Wednesday thinks as they remove their masks

“Wait, I preferred you with it on.” Wednesday said.

“How did you get down here?” One asks

“Rowan” (Y/n) chimes in. “She tracked the watermark to the Poe statue. Then I solved the riddle.”

“Wait, there's a riddle?” One asks, “I thought we just snapped twice.”

“Wow, absolute Einstein here” (y/n) says with his burning sarcasm.

“The Nightshades are an elite social club.

Emphasis on elite.” Bianca said.

“We have roof parties, campouts, the occasional midnight skinny-dip. And Yoko's an amateur mixologist. She makes a killer virgin mojito. It can get pretty wild.” One girl adds in.

“Wow. Do you guys even have a bedtime?” Wednesday said with her cold sarcasm

“Last I heard, the Nightshades had been disbanded.” (Y/n) said.

“Yeah, the group kind of lost its charter 30 years ago after some normie kid died.” Xavier says

“But we have a lot of wealthy alumni, so Weems looks the other way as long as nobody makes any waves.”

“Someone like Rowan?” Wednesday adds in.

“We booted that loser last semester. Question is, what are we gonna do with them? Only members are allowed in this library.” Bianca says, and Xavier comes up with an idea.

“I say we invite them to pledge. They’re Addams, both legacy.” He explains.

“After the crap they pulled in the Poe Cup, there's no way in hell.”

“Are you mad we beat you at your own game? Let me save you the trouble glow fish.” He stands up and reveals his undone bindings.

“I'm not interested in joining, and I’m sure my sister isn’t.”

“You're seriously turning us down?” One says.

“Yes Because your little social club is so inviting.” He walks to the door, but is stopped by Kent, the mermaid and the twin of Divina.

“If you think the little burns you had at the Cup were bad, I’ll fillet you alive, get out of my way.” (Y/n) says with such unnerving calmness, Kent awkwardly side stepped and (Y/n) turned to Wednesday.

“When you’re done toying with them, let me know.” He heads up the flight of stairs to leave his more than capable sister there.

Minutes later he’s awaiting at the gate of the school, and his sister arrives.

“Good, you’re done playing with them, we can figure out our next move.” (Y/n) says.

“It seems the Nightshades were a dead end. They’re not capable of murdering Rowan, they’re barely capable of kidnapping two people.”

“Well your Standards are unnaturally high.” He says and nudges his sister, she stares at him and he walks back to his dorm, Wednesday watches her leave.

“There were so many threads to my investigation, I could weave a burial shroud. I still have no idea how Rowan mysteriously rose from the dead. Or why that monster is prowling the woods. But right now, nothing intrigues me more than this book. If I'm going to be responsible for Nevermore's demise, the question is, why am I sharing this apocalypse with a pilgrim?”

The next morning, The Students Are forced to stand at the Quad as Weems gives them the rundown for their Jobs.

“All students will report for their volunteer jobs at 10:00 a.m. sharp, followed by a community lunch at 1:00. As you know, this year Outreach Day culminates in a very special event, the dedication of a new memorial statue in the town square, which will also include performances by Nevermore students. As representatives of our school, I trust you will all put your best face forward.” She says, and hands out slips of paper for the Postions they’ll play. The Addams twins and Enid get theirs.

“Yes! I got Pilgrim World!” Enid says and (Y/n) checks it.

“Me too.” He ways, “I have natural people skills and a love of performing, so it's kind of the obvi choice.” Enid says, and grabs (Y/n)‘s arm.

“We can wear matching clothes!” Enid says smiling, which quickly changes the sullen demeanor of (Y/n). Who smiles.

“ I suppose I don’t hate that…” he says softly, and Enid turns to Wednesday.

“What'd you get?”

“Uriah's Heap, whatever that is.” She said, the students convey to Jericho to assist at Pilgrim world

“Ew. It's this weird, creepy antique store.” Enid says. “You'll love it though. I'm crossing my claws Ajax and I will be outreaching together.” Enid says, which (Y/n)‘s smile quickly Fades.

“Fantastic.” He walks off, and Weems has reached the front and begins.

“Welcome, welcome, Nevermore Academy.

Now, on behalf of the entire Jericho community, we are so, so pleased to have you all here today. Your generosity and hard work are truly... outreachous! Okay, everyone. We'll see you back here at one o'clock for lunch. Enjoy!” Weems says, (Y/n) adjusts his tie, ready to Woo Enid and make her forget about Ajax, as Enid prepares, Wednesday approaches her.

“Enid. Switch volunteer assignments.”

“What? No. Uriah's Heap is definitely not my bag.”

“It's an emergency. I need to check out Pilgrim World.”

“But Wednesday, this is not a fair trade. Why would I agree to spend the entire day at some dumpy emporium of crapola?”

“Because Ajax is volunteering there. Thing sneaked a peek at his assignment. But if you're not interested...” Wednesday begins to retract, but Enid grabs it.

“No! Oh my God, thank you. You're the best!” Enid skips away, (Y/n) stands with the ground, he turns left as he senses the approach of a woman, he turns with a smile to face enid but he unfortunately sees Wednesday.

“Wednesday? Where’s enid? You didn’t hurt you did you?”

“No, she swapped assignments with me.”

“Uh, why?” He asks, “She hates all things creepy.”

“Ajax is working at the Heap. That convinced her.” Wednesday says, (Y/n) was at a loss for words, the anger and disappointment was at a maximum as he lost his chance to possibly sweep Enid off her feet.

“I would have preferred Enid.” He says.

“I still cannot comprehend what you see in Her.”

“You don’t understand the Human emotional spectrum? I’m so shocked.” He says with sarcasm. “I’d like to spend time with women who aren’t related to me, unless you just don’t want Enid to snatch me away from you~”

“You are absurdly full of yourself, She’s After Ajax, do yourself a favor and accept cold reality. Wednesday says, He opens his mouth to say something less than appealing to his sister, but Eugene intervenes.

“Hey, Wednesday, want to grab a Hummers group photo?” He says, standing in the frame and the twins turn to face him, now both of them with the same stone face.

“Guess not.” Eugene says sheepishly as he walks away, suddenly, a woman approached, dressed as a Pilgrim.

“Good morrow, my young Nevermore kin. I am Mistress Arlene. A real OC. Original colonist. Now prithee, put your cell phones on vibrate and make haste, for you are about to travel back in time to the year of our Lord 1625, to Jericho's first pilgrim settlement. Yonder. Behold, the meeting house. Inside is a collection of artifacts related to Jericho's most beloved and pious founder, Joseph Crackstone. And beyond is our privy, America's first gender-neutral restroom.” She says, “Does anyone have a question about the bathrooms?” (Y/n) begins to raise his hand but Wednesday puts it back down.

“I haveth a query.” Wednesday said.

“Pray, be quick, child.”

“In the meeting house, which of Joseph Crackstone's artifacts are on display?”

“It is truly a treasure trove, including original farm tools, tableware, even the Crackstone family chamber pot.”

“Sounds fascinating. My Brother and I volunteer to work in there.”

“Pray, no. That exhibit is being renovated.

Today, thou will all be working at the beating heart of Pilgrim World. Ye olde fudgery!” She says, and shows the children a Fugde production shop

"Ye Olde Fudgery?" (Y/n) says, raising an eyebrow.

“More like ye olde diabetes in a box.” His sister retorts.

“Volunteers, prick up thine ears. Fudge is the lifeblood of our humble community. And samples equal sales, so grab a uniform and a box and make our forefathers proud.” She says. And adults hand out pieces of the uniforms.

“Are these for muzzling tourists?” Wednesday says.

“No, perhaps we can use them for muzzling troublesome siblings.” (Y/n) thinks.

The twins unfortunately put on a perfect facade of creepy pilgrims as (Y/n) stands there with a plate of Fudge, and Wednesday next to him.

“Enjoy your "authentic" pilgrim fudge made with cacao beans procured by the oppressed indigenous people of the Amazon. All proceeds go to uphold this pathetic whitewashing of American history.” She says in fluent German.

(In French) “Also, fudge wasn't invented for another 258 years. But please, continue to fuel this soulless corporation with your money so your children can still call Native Americans “Indians” (Y/n) says in perfect French.

“Any takers?” They say in Union, which creeps out the tourists and they leave. He calmly tosses the plate over his shoulder.

“This is getting ridiculous.” He says, Wednesday looks around and eyes the door she wishes to enter and walks off, (Y/n) follows, eventually the duo reach the door and Wednesday, using her oddly knowledgeable skill of breaking and entering unlocks the door and heads inside, he follows closely and the duo see the house, it was obviously turned into a museum, displaying multiple items

“My grandmother once told me secrets are like zombies... they never truly die. I'm not sure what secret Crackstone is hiding, but I have a strange feeling the answers to my future lie in the past. The Old Meeting House, 1625.”

“(Y/n), this is the girl from my vision. She's even holding the same book. That black one she had outside Crackstone's crypt.” Wednesday says, and (Y/n) turns to see a book on display.

“Codex Umbrarum. Book of Shadows." He opens it, and sees it all Empty. “Great. It's a fake.” He checks the back of it as his sister peers over his shoulder.

“I don't know who Etsy is, but I doubt she was an outcast settler.”

“No, she wasn’t.” He says, their investigation was suddenly sidelined as Arlene sees them.

“Just what the fudge are you two doing in here?” She says,

“Mistress Arlene.“ (y.n) said, “I proclaimed the meeting house is under repair.” She says “I know thoust heard me.”

“We don’t have firm for this. What happened to the original?” (Y/n) says, and Arlene frowns

“A child unknowing to respect thine elders, The original was stolen last month during the two o'clock witch trial.”

“It was probably the only authentic thing you have in here, yet you still charge $29.95 a ticket?” Wednesday says.

“Hold thy tongue. I'm reassigning you both.

To fudge-churning duty.”

“The original meeting house, the one in that painting, where is it?”

“How the hell should I know?

I only moved here from Scottsdale in April.” She says dropping the attitude.

“Fantastic, we’ll have to find it ourselves, I’ll ask around.” (Y/n) says.

“Ask who? No one living knows—“

“Exactly, no one living. Now If you’ll excuse me sister.” He says to Arlene, she frowns and walks off.

Back at Nevermore, (Y/n) sits cross legged in an Ally, with Wednesday watching guard, she turns to face him.

“Have you found the information yet?” She asks, his head suddenly jerks back and then forth and he opens his eyes, Gasping for air.

“I, think I do…” he says, and walks off into the forest, almost zombie like, they reach a burned down building, they search but, find nothing.

“Can you touch a leaf or something and get a vision?” (Y/n) asks.

“No, I can't just touch something. My visions seem to happen spontaneously.”

“Mother could help you learn some of the power”

“I would rather dye my hair pink than ask mother for advice.”

“Why am I not surprised, Maybe You’re Just afraid to see a vision.” He says sarcastically.

“Oh, you want me to prove it to you?” She says and grabs random items

“No. Nothing. Ah, I bet this will give us some real insight.” She says holding a Taco Bell bag..

“My visions are about as predictable as shark attacks.” Wednesday touched the gate and immediately stiffens up and convulses. (Y/n) rushes to her side and grabs her.

“Wednesday? Wednesday?!” He yells, she seems to be lost in a vision, and (Y/n) takes her away.

Minutes pass inside his room, he had a circle drawn around Wednesday, using his otherworldly skills to try and assist his sister, but her body suddenly awakens and she sits up.

“(Y/n), I saw her! The girl from my visions.

Her name is Goody Addams, and I believe she's our ancestor from 400 years ago.”

“Okay, but what does that have to do with Crackstone?

“I saw Joseph Crackstone in front of me as clearly as I'm seeing you now. He gathered all the outcasts in the meeting house and burned them alive.”

“I see, I see.. so that’s why they’re connected, Joseph killed Goody. Then Crackstone has to do with what’s going on… well, we have to think about this later, we have the concert to perform at? I assume Weems told you.

“Unfortunately so.”

“I thought nothing scared me, but that was before I stared into the eyes of Joseph Crackstone. I don't believe in heaven or hell. But I do believe in revenge. I usually serve it warm with a side of pain, but I've never faced an adversary cast in bronze.”

The Addams Twins are with other students in Jericho, preparing for the Band, but (Y/n)’s guitar skills were unmatched. But his sisters cello ability was unmatched. Weems approaches the podium.

“Thank you. It is my honor to celebrate our town's history and Jericho's noble forefather, Joseph Crackstone. Now, he believed that with a happy heart and an open ear, there was nothing our town couldn't achieve. So together as one, our community and our friends at Nevermore Academy, we've built a monument to celebrate his memory. Now, may the spirit of Joseph Crackstone be memorialized for eternity.” She says as they reveal the Statue of Crackstone, which begins to flow water.

The band begins playing of "Don't Stop" by Fleetwood Mac and the crowd cheers, but (Y/n) was still miffed by his loss of possibly wooing Enid.

The crowd cheers, but their cheers quickly turn to horror as an explosion bellows from the statue, it seems someone swapped the water with gasoline, and all it took was a single match. Screams, terror, fear rang though the center, but what truly took the eye of most was the hellish screeches of an electric guitar, and a cello, as the twins play a harrowing version of Vivaldi's "Winter" as the guitars strings bellow though the area, the cellos haunting dreary tone perfectly compliments the guitar, but Weems wasn’t enjoying it.

“That was a disaster. The mayor is furious!

I've lost count of the angry phone calls, emails, and people in the town, alumni and parents. They want answers and so do I.” Weems says with such vitriolic rage at the twins sitting at the office.

“I would lead the inquisition, but I left my thumbscrews and rack at home.” Wednesday said.

“Miss Addams... you're already on thin ice.

Wafer-thin ice.”

“I swear Principal, our hands are clean.”

“What happened to you Mister Addams? You weren’t like this until your sister darkens our dorms.” She says, which changes his mood, maybe he was going back to his old ways. Weems turns to Wednesday.

“I may not have hard evidence, but I see you.

You're a trouble magnet.”

“If trouble means standing up to lies, decades of discrimination, centuries of treating outcasts like second-class citizens or worse...”

“What are you talking about?”

“Jericho.” (Y/n) cuts Weems off

“Why does this town even have an Outreach Day? Don't you know its real history with outcasts? The actual story of Joseph Crackstone and his hatred for Us?”

“I do…To an extent.” Weems says.

“Then why be complicit in its cover up? Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.” Wednesday chimes in.

“That's where you and I differ. Where you see doom, I see opportunity. Maybe this is a chance to rewrite the wrongs, to start a new chapter in the normie-outcast relations.”

“Nothing has changed since Crackstone. They still hate us. Only now they sugarcoat it with platitudes and smiles. If you're unwilling to fight for truth...”

“You don't think I want the truth? Of course I do. But the world isn't always black and white.

There are shades of gray.”

“Maybe for you. But it's either they write our story or we do, history isn’t written by those who are right, it’s by those who survive.” He says, weems Just sighs.

“You two are exhausting.”

“We know.”

“Goodnight, Minster and Miss Addams. But know, I don’t tire easily.” She says with the last foreboding warning, the twins leave the office and head back to their dorm. A but silent between each other, Wednesday was typing upon her typewriter, and Enid shows off a few outfits.

“Too much?”

“I feel like you just napalmed me, Enid.” Wednesday says.

“So glad I have my date with Ajax tonight.

Get my mind off that trainwreck of an afternoon. I literally think I have PTSD. I didn't even get to do my dance routine.” Enid says.

“What a tragedy— wait Date?” Wednesday asks.

“What kind of twisted psycho would want to sabotage such a life-affirming event?” Enid says, Wednesday ponders for a moment, and looks a bit saddened. He brother truly does care for her.

“…You're going to be late.”

“Wish me luck.” Enid says with a giggle and leaves. Meanwhile (Y/n) stands at the window, staring out into the moon, sighing solemnly as his eyes reflect the full moon.

“I don't believe in mandatory volunteer work, sugar-coated history, or happy endings, but most of all... I don't believe in coincidences. To paraphrase Agatha Christie, one coincidence is just a coincidence, two are a clue...and three are proof. Rowan's drawing of me and Crackstone happens sometime in the future. Goody Addams' warnings about Crackstone were in the past. And the monster is here in the present. Three coincidences that I know are connected. That monster could be anyone. The sheriff thinks they only exist behind the walls of this school. The truth is, there are monsters everywhere. And sometimes the monsters we least suspect are the most dangerous. They don't need teeth and claws to terrify. They hide in the shadows until no one is looking. And then they strike. But I'm looking now. And I won't stop until I find the truth.

#wednesday addams x male reader #enid sinclair x male reader #netflix #wedensday x you #wednesday #wednesday x reader #wedesnday 2022 #wednesday addams x reader #enid sinclair x you #enid x y/n #enid sinclair #siblings #twins #Youtube

[bucket-barnes]

Memories: Harriet Hook

(This was an idea I had in my algebra class the other day so enjoy some brain vomit)

Harriet remembers her mother the most. She remembered the stories her mother told her about deuls with dark fairies and true love’s kiss, Harriet’s favorite story was the one about the one handed pirate captain who fell for the lost girl, how they’d do anything for each other, even go to hell and back for each other…literally

Harriet was eleven when her mother passed. Harriet became a big sister for the second time shortly before her mother’s passing, she loved her little brother and baby sister, all she wanted was to protect them. When her mother was dying, Harriet would distract her siblings by taking them to Ursula’s fish and chips, then Harriet wouldn’t have to see her father cry, CJ could be fed, and Harry could see the girl with the teal braids he had become rather fond of.

Whispers always followed Harriet and her siblings wherever they went

“Those poor hook children, losing their mother so young” the women at Lady Tremaine’s curl up and dye would whisper loudly, Harriet knew they didn’t care, they just liked the drama, she’d always hold Harry close and tell him it wasn’t true, they weren’t losing their mother…everything would be ok

“Wonder if Hook’s returned to the bottle” the men at the chip shoppe would laugh, Harriet would always shoot them dirty looks and tell Harry not to listen to them…those men don’t know what they’re talking about

The day Harriet’s mother died, she held her hand and promised she’d take care of her family, that she wouldn’t let Harry succumb to the voices in his head, that she wouldn’t let CJ grow up not knowing who her mother was, and that she wouldn’t let her father return to the darkness. Harriet was left one thing from her mother…a red jacket, her armor

Harriet was twelve when her life gained routine. She’d wake up Harry and tell him to get ready for school while she helped Mr.Smee carry her father, who had already made his way through a bottle of rum, below deck so he’d be out of sight and could drown his grief without shattering his son’s vision of him, then she’d make sure Harry ate and took whatever medication she found on the barges that week, if she was lucky, the voices in her brother’s head would stay quiet for the morning and he’d make it to school fashionably late, she’d give his shoulder a squeeze and remind him that if the voices came back to stay with Uma and come find her, then she’d be able to enjoy the respite from her home that school gave her…but she wasn’t often lucky.

Most days the mysterious medications only made the voices worse, so Harriet would sit with her little brother in their room, holding him close while he covered his ears with his hands and begged for the voices to shut up and for the visions to go away. She’d tell him that it wasn’t real, and then she’d tell him that he was ok after the medication inevitably made him sick…she’d stay home those days

Harriet did her best to make sure CJ knew who their mother was, she’d tell her stories of their mother, stories about duels with dark fairies and true love’s kiss…though CJ’s favorite was the one about Neverland, where the lost girl and the one handed pirate captain bested Peter Pan in an epic battle. CJ would ask why Harriet would always wear the same red jacket, and Harriet would tell her that it was her armor

Harriet was fourteen when she first joined her father for a drink. It was a warm summer night, and in between swigs of rum, Harriet and her father would talk about her mother, the stories of duels and true love’s kiss replaced with grief and quiet tears. Harriet truly understood her father the nights she drank with him, the world was cruel, and he just needed to numb the pain… the pain of losing his wife, the pain of his eldest daughter growing up to fast, the pain of his son hearing voices that had no source and seeing things that weren’t there, the pain of his youngest daughter never truly knowing her mother

Harriet would go to bed late, her mind numb with alcohol, finally taking off her armor. She’d sleep and dream of duels with dark fairies and true love’s kiss…and of the one handed pirate captain who fell for the lost girl, how they’d do anything for each other, even go to hell and back for each other…literally

#disney descendants #disney #descendants 3 #harry hook #harriet hook #cj hook #ouat #killian jones #emma swan #descendants headcanons #descendants fanfiction #captain hook #once upon a time #ouat fandom #descendants fandom

[hezuart]

Hi there can we get any knowledge for five power or raincoat girl pls?

I've already discussed my headcanon over potential powers for Five here As for other knowledge, it's difficult to get a read on her personality because she was meant as an identity ruse for Six, and we don't have enough cutscenes to figure her out.

What we do know about her:

-Her nightmare was Six banging on a door, demanding entrance to a shed Five locked her out of. -She arrived at the Nest in a hot air balloon. There is a photo of a strange bug-looking man with a top hat with the balloon in the background. Five could either be related to him, or she stole his balloon. -She collects Jack-in-the-Boxes (seemingly with random, disjointed lore, canon and scrapped) -She's very good at climbing. She can climb cliffs and ladders often without struggle or fatigue. -She encounters a child with a blue scarf and red hat. She frees them from their cage and assists them with the door. At the end of the game, the Pretender is seen yelling at this child's doll remains. One would think Five would have a connection to this kid, but when Five encounters their clothed doll sitting at the dinner table, Five grabs their scarf and shoves the doll aside, jumping up onto the table and running away without much thought. So with that scene, it feels as though she doesn't have a true connection with them after all. -It could go without saying, but she is very clever. Easily evading enemies and solving puzzles to escape. -She finds a matchbox and uses the fire to light lanterns. Because of the game design, she does not keep this matchbox unlike Six who has a seemingly infinite cigar lighter. -The only time she's seen directly interacting with a Nome is when she offers a red balloon to one to allow it to safely get down from a dresser. She's constantly surrounded by nomes and she often finds their hiding spaces, but she never approaches or hugs them. -She receives help from Six, having a few brief encounters in the Nest. But when Six has somehow mysteriously collapsed on the ground, Five rushes past her to the shed, looking back. Six wakes up and rushes forward, but Five deliberately locks her out, shutting the door and leaving her to presumably die or be captured at the hands of the Butler. We lack a lot of context here, but on the surface, it appears she left Six as bait to die or be captured by the Butler. -Even when Six miraculously survives and is seen at the very end, the two I guess(??) set aside their differences and help each other in the event of their survival. Five knocks over a tree to prevent Six from falling to her death, and Six pushes a boulder over to try and kill the Pretender before she can kill Five. Whether Six forgave her or it was a temporary truce, we will never know. -Five dies (either via impact, drowning, or turning to dust via Pretender) and loses her raincoat -Because of the inclusion of Little Nightmares 2, despite the game hinting at the raincoat, Six actually did not fish out Five's raincoat from the ocean and instead actually found her own in the Pale City in LN2.

Again, game design limitations could factor into her lack of personality or interactions with the world around her, so again, very difficult to tell who she is as a person. I wish I had more to say or theorize but we have nothing to go on.

#also i call her five because its a prequel #and five comes before six #but yeah honestly im disappointed we dont have more information on her #shes a blank slate #LN five #the girl in the yellow raincoat #raincoat girl #RCG #little nightmares #ask #text post #very little nightmares #i get that the identity plot twist was like... one of the games main plot points #but it kinda caused some ruckus lore and characterwise #at the end of the day i cant help but wonder if it was even necessary

[godfreygwilym]

some notes on how i've been running the brides

when i first set out to dm cos, one of the first things i was really determined to do was give them more in-depth backstories, since— with the exception of escher getting like one paragraph lol— they're basically just. creepy dolls. which i GUESS works with gothic horror but man i would really like to have female characters with personalities!!!!

*combination of my own interpretation as well as concepts ive integrated from other dms, so if you recognize something specific i probably got it from elsewhere

ludmilla vilisevic

physically in her mid-30s, and is aged roughly 230. i play her with an rp english accent, although in my mind she has a nigerian affect. she is very poised and calculating, and always tries to be the one in control of any situation. has a talent for shadow magic, and her own sentient shadow is the closest she has to a best friend. she also has a barn owl familiar named amicus and a cat named eupraxia. when she takes a human disguise, she goes by the name of filena voltanescu.

before ludmilla married strahd, her name was lumina. she is a wizard apprentice who was lost in the mists and stumbled into barovia. naturally very curious, brave and shrewd, she marched up to ravenloft despite all the warnings. her and strahd ended up having a very romantic relationship (despite lowkey reflags from strahd the whole time lol) for a long time since there had been a long spell of no tatyana reincarnation, although they eventually began to fall apart, partially spurred by her feelings of isolation and longing for her family outside of barovia.

at the point that cos takes place, ludmilla is very distant from strahd and is really only going through the motions/trying to stay useful, though she is determined to remain a step above his other partners in terms of superiority. she spends a great deal of her time researching and experimenting on mostly-unwilling test subjects (she is well aware at this point that what she is doing is cruel, but after two centuries she's become rather indifferent). she's very fascinated by the abbot's work.

in my game, strahd has given her emil toranescu, who is imprisoned in tsolenka pass. she is working on developing a method to transfer souls from one body to another— in my game, ismark is the true reincarnation of tatyana, and ireena merely looks like her.

anastrasya "anya" karelova

physically in her early 30s, anya is just over a century old. barovian accent, and extremely flamboyant and charismatic, she loves being the centre of attention. she has a natural talent for communicating with ghosts, who are often her captive audience. not much combat skill beyond what abilities she has as a vampire, but she has a wicked skill for charming people. in human disguise, she goes by ekaterina bogdana.

anya is from minor vallakian nobility, which comes with all the trappings of petty inter-family squabbles. she has had a terribly unfortunate string of bad luck with marriages, all of her betrotheds have met poor fates or ran off. on a fourth attempt, her parents arranged for her to be married to an older landowner who she did not care for at all.

while she was engaged, anya ran into ludmilla (in human disguise) by chance. they grew close quickly and began having an affair. eventually, ludmilla introduced her to strahd, and she was instantly enamoured. before the wedding, anastrasya's betrothed "mysteriously" died, and she was whisked away to ravenloft. at this point, ludmilla and strahd's relationship was very cold, and he became preoccupied with anya.

volenta popofska

physically in her mid-20s, and is about 65 years old. barovian, and has a very floaty and whimsical way of speaking, though very soft spoken and rather self conscious. she often comes off as eerie. her vampiric abilities are amplified, making her a very good rogue/assassin. in "human" disguise, she is called violet spivakhofska.

volenta is a tiefling who was born in a small fishing village on lake zarovich. her parents did not want her, and so she was raised by the village elder. when she passed away when volenta was a teenager, she no longer had any protection from the animosity of the villagers, so she fled. eventually she was picked up by a small group of bandits, who would've attacked her, but she convinced them to let her join.

she bounced around various groups of bandits and thieves for several years, finding a place but never truly fitting in. after one traumatic rejection, she went to ravenloft in search of strahd, who she had heard stories of since she was a child, and had often wished would come and take her away. to volenta's joy, strahd took a liking to her and made her his bride.

even still, volenta is an outcast due to her awkward and sometimes unsettling behaviour and knack for the macabre. strahd enjoys her, but does little to try and ingratiate her with his other partners, and so she remains self-conscious and eager to win his favour.

escher gerst

physically in his late twenties, escher has been a vampire for just over a decade. i play him with a german accent. he is usually very distant and melancholy, though he becomes much more playful when not around strahd. a bard by trade, as a vampire he discovers a natural aptitude for shapeshifting, spurred by a bit of neuroticism over not being able to see his own reflection. in human disguise, he goes by claudius belasco.

escher is also from outside the mists, the son of poor farmers who ran off to join a bard troupe. he loves stories and music, and has a knack for various instruments, but particularly enjoys the lute and the violin— strahd has gifted him two exquisite models. his troupe was caught in the mists, and unbeknownst to him, strahd began spying on them. outside the village of barovia in the svalich woods, strange orchestrated a wolf attack on the group, sparing escher so that he could swoop in and save him. when escher awoke in a plush bed in ravenloft, he became deeply enamoured with strahd, who he saw as a fairytale prince. they had a very passionate relationship with strahd lavishing many gifts on escher before convincing him to let him turn him into a vampire.

despite not being together long, however, strahd has quickly become rather bored of escher's antics, who became desperate to stay in his good graces to avoid being sealed into the crypts. after the revolt in the village of barovia, strahd took doru as a vampire spawn. escher and him would have been close friends, if escher wasn't so deeply self-conscious and paranoid over his own status. eventually, he convinced strahd to starve doru to the point of madness and return him to his father at the church. escher would feel guilty over this, were he not so deeply concerned over his own self-preservation.

also due to strahd's coldness toward him, escher developed a fascination with vallaki, where he often goes in human disguise. here, he took a human lover, a painter named anton. anton became involved with the feast of saint andral, when escher gave him a bag (secretly containing the bones) and had him deliver it to the coffin shop. during the chaos of the feast, unfortunately, strahd had anton killed— escher beseeched the party to bury him properly and behead him so he would not return as a vampire spawn.

#curse of strahd #my stuff #i will probably have to edit this later Lol unfortunately trying to edit on tumblr mobile is like scraping plastic off a frying pan #also one of my players wrote a very wonderful ludmilla/strahd story that i hope they'll publish on ao3 #ive also written a ~5k drabble about escher and started two for anya and volenta that i have not finished #anyway overall i hope it's quite clear that the brides are all indivuals who are very lonely/crave affection and fear punishment which #informs a lot of their behaviour

[saffronapplemanga]

Anime/Manga Recommendation Round Up

Anime and manga recommendation thread of things I’ve been enjoying in recent years~ 

~I’ll link any dedicated posts I have to these~

~Links to my other manga posts here~

My personal favs/ones I super enjoyed will have a ✨ on them :)

(Some of these might not have official EN translations since any physical manga I read are JP copies. I guess if any sound interesting, ask publishers to license them!)

I won’t get too much into what they’re about because I think finding out is part of the fun. I’ll mostly list the genres and a little blurb. Some of these I feel like I rarely hear anyone talk about so it would be cool to see people try these :) 

 PLEASE LOOK UP ANY TRIGGER WARNINGS!

HORROR, SUPERNATURAL 

✨The Summer Hikaru Died by Mokumoku Ren 

(2 volumes, ongoing)

To be licensed by Yen Press!

Picked it up earlier this year up knowing nothing but was immediately gripped by the eerie mood. Takes place in the country side where mysterious things have been happening. My friend couldn’t stop reading when I recommended it.

ACTION, THRILLER, DRAMA, CRIME

✨Banana Fish by Yoshida Akimi

(19 volumes + side stories, completed)

It’s getting reprinted in English, so what are you waiting for!

Anime - yes and it’s so good…

The manga is from the 80’s-90’s but the anime updated it in 2018.

Without giving too much away, it takes place in NY where our characters are trying to break out of the vicious cycle of violence and figure out a mystery that’s also connected to a conspiracy. Lovable cast, keeps you on the edge of your seat. I’m obsessed.

DRAMA, ROMANCE, LGBT

Lovers’ Kiss by Yoshida Akimi

(2 volumes, completed)

JP only

A short story where high schoolers are just trying to figure life out. Yoshida-sensei has this way of writing human stories and melancholy/tragedy while still leaving a glimmer of hope.

HISTORICAL, SUPERNATURAL

✨Mushishi by Urushibara Yuki

(10 volumes, complete)

I think the physicals are out of print but you can read it on bookwalker. It deserves a reprint!!!

Anime - yes, it’s a whole vibe please watch it

I watched S1 ages ago but never got to the rest until recently. Recently picked up the manga and plan to read it eventually. Another top fav of all time. Amazing atmosphere. We see the daily life of mushi expert Ginko deal with mysterious phenomenon mushi cause.

COMEDY, SLICE OF LIFE

✨Yotsuba&! by Azuma Kiyohiko

(15 volumes, ongoing)

Available in English

This series is super cute, wholesome, and hilarious! Yotsuba is honestly a delight, and following her daily life as she befriends her new neighbors is just a good time. Yet another fav of all time.

DRAMA, ART, SLICE OF LIFE

✨Blue Period by Yamaguchi Tsubasa

(12 volumes, ongoing)

Available in English

Anime - yes, but… listen I’ve never said “don’t watch the anime” because everyone can enjoy stuff however they want but... don’t watch the anime… I’ve never been so offended by an adaption ;_;

After discovering something he’s passionate about for the first time, Yatora navigates the art world despite his fears and being a complete newcomer. This series made me cry so much, I love it… please

ROMANCE

In the Clear Moonlight Dusk by Yamamori Mika

(5 volumes, ongoing)

Available in English

Blind-bought this a while ago. Yoi is dubbed “Prince” by her classmates for her cool demeanor, but she’s not the only one. Honestly, didn’t think I was going to like the male lead but he surprised me

ROMCOM, ACTION

MARRIAGETOXIN by Joumyaku and Yoda Mizuki

(2 volumes, ongoing)

Available for free on Shueisha’s mangaplus site

Assassin Gero needs to produce an heir so his sister can stay with her gf, but the social skills he needs to win a girl over need some help. This series is so funny and wholesome, all around a good time!

ACTION, ADVENTURE, FANTASY

✨Yona of the Dawn by Kusanagi Mizuho

(39 volumes, ongoing)

Available in English

Anime - yes, but I haven’t seen it yet so idk

I’m not very far in this one yet, but I’m having a great time. Love the friendship, the found family vibes. Seeing Yona acknowledge that she is naive and then stepping up is awesome.

idk how I slept on this for so long since it seems like something right up my alley. Literally picked up a lot of all the 39 currently out volumes (it came with the light novel too), no questions asked. I’m only a few volumes in, but I’m enjoying it a lot. It’s giving me Ertugrul vibes (the historical Turkish drama). No, I won’t expand on that point, go watch Ertugrul!

I’m committed apparently...

ROMANCE

A Sign of Affection by Morishita Suu

(7 volumes, ongoing)

Available in English

Blind-buy. A cute romance between a deaf girl and a well traveled guy. I got nervous it was going to do tropes I hated, but it didn’t! It handled them maturely and I love it for that!!!

FANTASY, ISEKAI

✨Ascendance of a Bookworm by Kazuki Miya and Shiina You

(3 seasons, ongoing)

Available in English - originally a light novel

Anime - yes, I’ve been watching this not reading it yet

Listen, isekai just don’t ever click with me, but this one does. There’s political drama and we get to learn about the culture and daily lives of people living in this world.

Our mc is reincarnated into a medieval fantasy world where access to books is limited, making it her personal hell. But don’t worry, she gonna do something about it! This series is so interesting and I love the character dynamics. Even if isekai aren’t your thing, try this!

DRAMA, HISTORICAL, POLITICAL

✨Requiem of the Rose King by Kanno Aya

(17 volumes, complete)

Available in English

It has an anime but I heard fans were really mad at the adaption. I haven’t seen it so I can’t comment.

Normally not the kind of thing I would go for, but this series has me constantly screaming. IT’S SO MESSY, but the good kind of messy. It takes every fiber in my body to contain myself when reading in public. It features an mc who was born intersex and a battle for the crown of England.

DRAMA

My Broken Mariko by Hirako Waka

(one shot)

Available in English

Saw this at the bookstore and I looked at the cover like “wow, she looks like she’s really going through it…and she’s carrying someone’s ashes, oh no…” Didn’t know anything else about it but, oof, it’s a heavy one…

DRAMA

Look Back and ✨Goodbye Eri by Fujimoto Tatsuki

(one shots)

Available in English - also on the Jump app

While Fujimoto-sensei’s more well known work wasn’t 100% clicking with me, I tried his one shots and really enjoyed them. I particularly liked the cinematic feeling and environmental story telling.

Maybe when I’m up to it, I’ll do posts on some of these that go into a little more detail on how I felt about them idk ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#manga recs #The Summer Hikaru Died #Hikaru ga Shinda Natsu #光るが死んだ夏 #Banana Fish #Lovers' Kiss #Mushishi #Yotsuba&! #Blue Period #In the Clear Moonlight Dusk #Marriagetoxin #Yona of the Dawn #A Sign of Affection #Ascendance of a Bookworm #My Broken Mariko #Look Back #Goodbye Eri #manga #漫画 #おすすめ #manga recommendation

[ksfoxwald]

Fire and Hemlock Readalong: Part 4 Chapter 1

Part Four: Nowhere

We return again to adult Polly, taking stock of her current reality and going about things very methodically in a way I don't see a lot in protagonists, and which I very much admire. Too many writers simply let their heroes go straight for the correct answer, and don't let them dwell on the problem. But of course, Diana is always asking 'how would a real person act in this situation?"

First Polly looks for her photo and her papers. She still has the Fire and Hemlock picture, but not Tom's photo.

We get some more clues from Granny, who as Diana explains in "The Heroic Ideal "Granny takes on the role of Fate and Wisdom quite overtly, shearing fish and explaining the riddle of the ballad of Tam Lin." She tells how every nine years, a funeral comes down from Hunsdon House at Halloween; every 81 years it is a woman, but all other times it is a man.

Polly runs into Nina and Leslie, neither of whom remember her, on her way to see Ivy. Polly is shocked to see that Ivy has transformed physically into Edna, although of course she has been all along. Ivy goes on about happiness again, saying "I'm only asking for what should be mine." To which Polly retorts "Who says it should be yours?" Because Ivy is Laurel, entitled to take what she wants from others, but still left empty from it.

As Polly leaves, Ivy asks where she is going. " 'Nowhere,' Polly replied, not thinking. Hearing herself say it, she gave a cackle of laughter as she hurried out of the house." She really is in search of Nowhere.

She hunts down David Bragge, who is at least able to confirm that she did receive mysterious packages of books during her childhood. Now that she's an adult, she realizes the implications of his over-friendliness and is more cynical than shocked by it.

We learn that in this new timeline, she met Seb when he crashed a party of Fiona's and sought her out immediately; that he "cajoled, bullied, and pleaded with her to get engaged to him"; that she met his parents, to which his father responded "Well, now, this is clever of you, Sebastian!" This is likely the "other way" that he was arguing for at the fair - get Polly under their control by marrying her, which is exactly Laurel's methods.

Seb also fills in a few gaps. "Laurel and my father used to be married before, you see, before my father met my mother." And that his mother died nine years ago.

So now we have a picture of Seb's life. Laurel and Morton are an immortal duo, but Morton leaves her for a mortal woman and has Seb. Laurel retaliates by taking Seb's mother - whose funeral Polly gate-crashed. Or rather, I always assumed the funeral was the whole "immortal periodically fakes their own death" trope, considering Laurel inherited basically everything, and Tom doesn't mention it; but Seb's mother would have been the one who actually died. You almost feel bad for him, thinking what that funeral must have been like from his perspective. How much did Tom know, I wonder?

Anyway, coming back to the themes of Nowhere:

Thomas Lynn, if he had ever existed, had been so separate from her everyday life that it had been an easy thing to slice him out of it - as easy as Granny fllleting plaice for Mintchoc. Except that he had not been separate at all. Almost everything Polly did in those five years went back to Mr. Lynn somehow. The four years after that had been formless and humdrum years. Polly had done things, true, but it had all been without shape, as if she had been filleted away from her own motives and the things which gave her shape.

Even her ordinary ventures like playing soccer (as hero training) and being in the school play (and inviting Tom) have all had strong connections to Tom and Nowhere. Diana brings us once again to the importance of imagination and creation in being a person; because what is a self but an imagined character, a hero, if you will?

With nothing conclusive, Polly goes back to Granny's to pack for college, but Granny, still in her aspect of wisdom, encourages her to keep trying. "If a book set you off, a book may help again," she advises.

#fh readalong #fire and hemlock #dwj

[dcwnthercbbithcle]

Post fog AUs are tricky. Like Evan & Sally have the benefit of their ties to the time period being strenuous at best, and outside of culture shock, it wouldn’t impact them much beyond sadness if they couldn’t reunite with their lovers and friends!

Doe is less straight forward though, ignoring the fact she’s dead, having her resurrected in the modern age poses A LOT, culture shock, world shock, feeling disconnected from everything, even though there is definitely a comedic benefit in it, and she can reunite with her gal pals all in the same era!

So like,,, my brain almost wants her to be resurrected out of the fog not long after her body was originally discovered? Think 90s as opposed to when she died in 84! That way she’s less of a fish out of water in terms of generation, culture and amnesia! She’s not forced to undergo that traumatizing pain of how much the world has gone on without her, in addition to the whole of being murdered, resurrected in an evidence locker, not looked for by her family in 40 odd years, etc. and the wiggle room of a lack of surveillance & modern advancements in policing / stipulations to avoid identity theft, etc. during the period would lend itself more to allow her to reintegrate into society!

Like, hear me out, 21st century, a girl resurrects from her old bloody cloths and bones in an evidence locker and crawls out, just as mortally wounded and desperately looking for help and her friends. There’s cameras EVERYWHERE. DNA and genetics is easy to use and source money in support of. The fact that she just… appeared after last being seen in the 70s is exposed quickly, as is the fact she hasn’t seemed to age a day and Doe is suddenly in the centre of conspiracy media circus plus the Entity’s followers coming after her because her spontaneous manifestation threatens to expose the Entity’s existence. Not fun for Doe!

Take it back to the 90s though, cameras and genetic testing are extremely new and extremely locked behind paywalls of funding and media pressure. Small towns lack those funds, hell, most detachments barely have those shitty 10-pixel CCTVs. When Doe resurrects from her bloody clothing and bones, the world isn’t around to witness it. The cameras are pointed at the doors so they only see people coming in and out, there’s footage of evidence being entered, large bags and whatnot. Doe’s resurrection isn’t immediately outted as the supernatural nonsense it is. She seems to the world like a victim that was hidden in plain sight, beaten and left for dead. The immediate focus of everything goes to trying to solve the mystery of who hurt her and the who dun it attempted murder, not on her directly. She’s given a more merciful but non-enviable role of a pitiable and helpless victim. She’s left with her brain injury and wounds in hospital to recover and her family finally gets the clue from the news coverage to come and collect her. It’s not a perfect happily ever after for her, but it’s less painful all things considered! Doe knows the truth, or at least most of it, but given everything shes tight lipped.

I feel like, from there, it would allow for the two things I’d want the most for Doe. Doe finally having the ability to grow up, and make good on some of her ambitions, though she’s young at heart forever! AND DOE NEVER FORGETTING ABOUT HER FRIENDS AND BEING A SAFETY NET TO HELP THE SURVIVORS AS THEY TRICKLE OUT OF THE FOG IN THEIR OWN TIMES!

She’s much older than them now but she has the resources and she’ll never forget them. She’ll be there, waiting with open arms on the other side, just like she’d promised so long ago!

[howlingday]

Pokémon Au)

So either Cinder is gonna get fish slapped at Mach 6 or Levi is finally gonna earn the last part of her name, and make papa (even more) proud of her.

"Just stay where you are, and no one gets hurts." The man continued. "After all, it's bad business to assault the daughter of one of my benefactor."

"Benefactors?" Weiss' face grew pale. "But- No! I know my father isn't the most cordial businessmen, but to send an assassin?!"

"I am no assassin, miss." He pulled out a well-built machine of sorts. It looked like a small ring at first, but with a push of a button, it expanded to be large enough to be mounted on his wrist. "I am simply the greatest mind on Remnant. Rotom, take your place."

Rotom chirped and flew into his wrost machine. It buzzed and hummed to life with blue electricity. The machine stretched out a ring to beyond his fingers. He stepped forward.

Weiss stepped back. Levi stayed where she was. Feebas was below the surface of the water. Jaune was who knew where.

This was bad. Beyond bad. Weiss didn't think this training would escalate to this, so she foolishly left Myrtenaster at home to watch Arc. Never again, she decided. Trainers and Pokémon had to be inseparable. She looked to the mysterious man and grit her teeth harder, thinking back to his comment about Pokémon.

"Rotom," he pointed his arm at Levi, "Electro-Web". A net of yellow, crackling string formed on the edge of the cylinder end. When it was finished, it stayed in place. "Rotom, Electro-Web". The Rotom in his wrist-mount whined. He growled at them. "I am your master, you vermin. You will obey me!"

"They can't!" Weiss shouted. "First of all, Rotom can't learn Electro-Web because that's a Move only Joltik and Galvantula can learn, because-"

"Because of their specifically designed forelegs. Yes, yes, spare me the lecture."

"Okay, then I'll skip to berating you, then." She took a deep breath. "You, sir, are the greatest bumbling fool to have ever, EVER, disgrace the Schnee name! Pokémon to be treated as equals is the fundamental basis of our society, but you're clearly too full of your own ego that you addle-brained mind can't possibly think beyond yourself! Your plan to use and untested prototype against me failed on all possible levels, because you are so stupid! FEEBAS, WATER GUN!"

Feebas popped out of the water, sending another blast of water at Watts. Rotom couldn't use Mirror Move in it's current form, leaving him wide open. It knocked into him in his back, causing him to stumble. Weiss was going to cheer, but when it died in her throat when she saw the rage and hatred in his eyes as he stood straight. He turned towards the body of water and walked.

"You're right." He said, stepping closer and closer. "I should use what I already know, not try something new." He knelt down to the water's edge. "Rotom..."

Weiss panicked, running forward after seeing his dip the edge into the water. "FEEBAS! RUN!" The little fish Pokémon swam hard and fast to the edge, splashing water behind her.

"Bass! Bass!"

"Shock Wave."

The entire pond lit like spotlight. Close to the edge, on the other side, Weiss saw Feebas splash closer and closer until she touched the shore line. She sighed in relief. She made it.

KRA-KOOM!

The electric attack struck true, electrocuting Feebas on the shoreline. Weiss was helpless to watch her recent Pokémon become shocked to oblivion. She felt to her knees and sobbed. "FEEBAS!"

"Oh, stop wailing." The man stood and turned around. She didn't at his words. "You can always get a new one. A stronger one. A better one. Pokémon are replaceable. At least you had enough sense not to name it. We're not so unalike, you and I. You see, we- ARGH!"

Weiss turned upon hearing the sound. It was a combination of a body hitting something metal, a person being surprised, metal bending and wires snapping, and a body hitting the sand. All in less than a second. She saw Watts on the ground, his Rotom hovering above, his machine in pieces, and Levi-

"Levi! You're-!"

The was a blinding light that shined over the Pokémon. Leviathan's form grew and grew until she was well over 20 feet long! However, something wasn't right. Her body grew wider more in the front than near her tail, giving her a sort of teardrop shape, her back grew spines that spread like wings, and her crest, which should have matched her scales, was black as the sky above.

Leviathan was a Mega-Gyrados.

"This-! This changes nothing!" The man said, standing. "This is simply a minor setback, and-"

Leviathan reached down and chose Bite into the offending man to get him to shut up. He screamed in her mouth as she shook him around. She dropped him, her attack ending.

"I- I- I saw it! There! In the back of it's throat!" He shakily pointed at Leviathan. "There is a Gyaradosite lodged in her throat! If I can remove it, then-!" Leviathan roared, her presence intimidating everyone in the area. He turned on his heels and ran. "I should have known better than to trust Cinder!"

Weiss didn't move. The sight of the terrifying Pokémon rooted her in place. The Atrocious Pokémon glanced at her, then moved itself closer to the water. Slipping in, it waited. Was it waiting for her. Weiss broke herself out of her fear for a moment. It's still Levi.

She stepped onboard, and Levi carried her across the water to Feebas. She stepped off and ran over to the injured Pokémon. Her Pokémon was alive, thankfully, but greatly injured. Feebas- No. That awful, evil man was nothing like Weiss, and she was nothing like him. But... there was truth in his words. Walking to the water, rain pouring down, she got down to her chest next to Levi. She hugged her Feebas.

"You were so brave, Feebas." She pet the fish Pokémon. "So much braver than I ever was." She kissed her head. She remembered an old story about a brave woman from far away who stood up to her evil lover, who was lost in his darkness. "Lorelai. I'll name you Lorelai."

Lorelai gave a little splash at that.

#rwby #rwby au #rwby pokémon au #weiss schnee #arthur watts

[jestergirls]

Is that [Francesca Root-Dodson]? No, that’s [Ecco Doe], AKA [Jester]! [She] appears to be [26]. [She] has the abilities of [combat skills] which makes them a powerful [villain].

Like almost every woman in Fox's Gotham, Ecco was done dirty by the writers. She had a handful of minutes of screen-time before she went crazy offscreen, and then was violently murdered in the finale. So, as is my speciality, I have rescued her from the mess the show gave her, and I'm giving her a new storyline. Everything after season 5 episode 1 doesn't count towards my canon, and I am setting her before she goes insane.

Ecco was actually born "Emma", but she hasn't used that name in years. Only those very close to her know her real name. Since working for Jeremiah Valeska, she has gone by the code name "Ecco", partly to protect her own identity, and also to protect Jeremiah's.

She was abandoned at Gotham Orphanage by her single mother at a young age, but as soon as she was old enough to fend for herself, she left and scraped by living on the streets of the city, stealing and sleeping rough, like so many kids in Gotham.

At fifteen years old, she was picked up by one of Fish Mooney's lackeys and hired to work for the mob. At first, she ran errands for Fish, delivering messages and doing waiting tables in the club. As she got a bit older, she and a group of girls of a similar age were sworn into the mob and taught how to pickpocket and, most importantly, how to fight and defend themselves. Ecco was a naturally skilled fighter, and she soon became one of Fish's personal bodyguards.

When Fish died, her people vied to fill the hole she'd left in Gotham's underworld. Ecco didn't want to get caught in the crossfire of an inevitable gang war, so she decided to seek other employment. She'd heard word that a mysterious businessman called Xander Wilde was looking for a personal assistant, so she decided to see if she could make a change from mob life to the world of business.

Xander took her on, and Ecco began acting as his proxy. She answered phone calls on his behalf, attended meetings, and wrote emails. As it turned out, she was very good at taking orders without question, and maintaining a professional demeanour.

After about two years of working for Xander without meeting him in person, he finally trusted Ecco enough to let her into his underground bunker, and tell her his real name. Xander Wilde was actually Jeremiah Valeska, twin brother to the psychopathic murderer Jerome Valeska. He had been living hidden away for years, afraid that his brother would one day find and kill him.

As Ecco and Jeremiah got closer, they began to form a deep and trusting friendship - the first for either of them. Ecco stayed in the bunker on occasion, and also lived in her apartment in the city. She was with Jeremiah when his brother broke out of Arkham and went on a shooting spree at the G.C.P.D., and she saw via the news coverage that Jeremiah had been right all along about his crazy brother.

Years passed, and now Jeremiah is a changed man. Ecco's not sure what happened to him, but he is no longer the shy, nervous, man she used to work for. Now, he speaks with a different voice, carries himself differently, and talks about "changing Gotham". Ecco doesn't care that he's completely changed. Her time working for the mob taught her that loyalty is for life, and you don't question your boss.

Now, Ecco still acts as Jeremiah's proxy and accomplice. She occasionally dons a black jester costume with a white mask to hide her identity when she has to, but inside, she remains the same ruthless and loyal survivor she always was.

This is essentially the bare bones of Ecco's backstory! Things might change as she develops, but for now, this is what we're working with! If you want to plot, you can reach me on here on IM's, or on Discord!

#gothamsintro #ooc. #gang tw #guns tw #gun violence tw #shooting tw

[toxicnorn]

Wives

Harvest Moon 64

This is the first Harvest Moon I ever played and I have a lot of nostalgia for it. It's notable for having the best Harvest Moon wife that has ever existed: my beloved and darling Karen, who I married in my main save file. Karen was great because she was the rude, rebellious girl with big dreams and issues with her parents, which made her the best girl in my eyes when I was 9. Also, she could permanently leave the game if you didn't befriend her, so she had that limited edition thing going on for her.

Most of the rest were okay, except for Popuri because I didn't like her. This is mostly because I liked her mom better, who I thought was her sister for the longest time until I read the wiki just now. Maria was fine and I liked that she was a bug fan, but she was scared of my dog, so that ruled her out. Ann's okay. I should've liked her more bc she had the tomboy thing going on but she had the crime of not being Karen. Elli was my second favorite after Karen and I married her in one game. She seemed like the one best suited for being a farmer's wife and also I felt bad for her because her grandma dies.

A Wonderful Life

This was my next game. It's my favorite because you can grow old and die in it. I liked that you could buy different kind of cows in it because I prefer to play as a rancher. You could also get a few new animals that I don't think were in HM64. Sadly, this game had fewer options when it came to who you could marry.

My wife of choice was Muffy in the middle. The others were okay! Nami was cool and mysterious and Celia was a cute farmgirl. They just weren't Muffy. She's a barmaid that's experienced heartbreak. If you don't marry her, she never marries anyone and she's sad about it. I could not allow that to happen. She was also great bc she liked most food except fish, which is a very important quality in a Harvest Moon LI. Also, she had a red dress.

Magical Melody

This was my next game. It was unique in that it had a lot of LIs but also it had a farming rival. I believe that the map was significantly bigger. Sadly, the ranching was more simplistic and I don't think you could create weird hybrid crops, though tbh I just used cheats in the game they were in so that I could get them.

I think I played as a girl more in this one, so I don't really remember the bachelorettes very well.

I know for certain that I married Ann in one save. I think she's an inventor in this one. I'm also pretty sure I went after Eve in another save too. She works at the inn. I liked that she looked like she was over 15.

What's important here is that I didn't marry Jamie, who's a girl if you play as a boy and a boy if you play as a girl. They're the rival farmer, sort of rude, and are a secret LI, which should be very appealing qualities but the game literally ends if you marry them. Fucked up.

Tree of Tranquility/Animal Parade

The Wii era. I'm counting them together because I think the LIs are more or less the same across them and Animal Parade struck me as an improved Tree of Tranquility. Also, I think I only ever rented ToT. Animal Parade is a really good game. It's got a huge map, plenty of characters, and lots to explore. There's really a ton you can do. The big downside, however, is that the map is almost too big and the introduction is ridiculously long. Still, solid game.

This is another one where I preferred to be a girl. This was mostly so I could pretend that Julius was a girl.

I went after Cadace in one file, who's a shy seamstress. I don't think I ever got as far as marrying her, however. She was cute from what I could remember and relatively easy to get her hearts up because she likes herbal tea.

I definitely romanced Maya in another file. She's super bubbly and cute and she's really into food. In ToT, she has a pink dress instead.

Obviously, I married the Witch at least once. You have to. She's a witch. Isn't that reason enough?

Finally, I married Selena at least once. I don't really remember a lot about her but she has purple eyes, which is cool.

Story of Seasons

This is one of the more recent ones but I don't actually remember a ton from it. I think I got it a few years after it came out. I generally liked the game, though. The art style was pretty.

I liked Elise because she was rich, selfish, and kind of mean, traits that I appreciate in a Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons love interest. Girlboss. Her outfit's over the top and I appreciate that.

However, my heart was truly reserved for Iris because just look at her. She's one of the only female love interests who looks like she could even be above 30. This is the closest thing to a romanceable MILF in the series. She's an elegant novelist. Obvious choice. Fantastic.

Trio of Towns

This the last one I've played and I generally like it a lot, though I never got very far into it. I'd like to pick it back up but I never remember to charge my 3Ds. I think there were some online features but I'm sure that Nintendo has taken the servers down by now. Sadly, the LIs didn't make much of an impact on me.

I think I married Komari but it's more because I had to marry someone. I don't really remember her character. I think she was cute? I don't think I really got far enough into it for the LIs to make a deep enough impact on me.

What's important here is that i preordered the game and got the preorder bonus of a capybara plush, which is still in my desk.

[theoldaeroplane]

two short stories about my Blades in the Dark character, a kobold named Autumn, and her partners. She's turned to a life of crime to try and support the three of them, as one of her partners, Eli, has become afflicted with a mysterious disease, and is trying to keep it a secret from both of them.

thanks for reading!

[---]

Monument

Sun drips through the lone window, set deep and high in the wall. It's the only glimpse of the outside world you can get in this particular spot, the basement of a forgotten brick building. The beggars and pickpockets avoid it. After all, someone once summoned a demon there. It's abandoned for a reason. But Autumn figures the demon probably wouldn't have cared to stick around after it was summoned, so she isn't too worried. And that summoner guy died, anyway, so he's not using it. She's thankful to them both. It keeps other people out.

After the river debacle, after the dog and pony show with "Healer John," after another day of coming home late to be met with Flute's doubtful gaze and questioning silence---Autumn needs a break. She's earned it.

So she spent a little money on some shiny wire, and picked through the refuse where the people who bet on the roosters threw the losers. None of them were fresh enough to be edible today, but they had the beaks and spurs she wanted.

The thing in her brick basement hunches in the damp light. It covers its face, howling in some secret joy or sorrow. It is as big as she is, and is by far the most annoying project she has yet undertaken. Or nearly is.

It is rare for her solitude to be breached, and Autumn keeps knives at hand both for their usefulness in her work and for their usefulness in making other people leave you alone. And the silence is about as close to complete as you can get here, so when she hears the careful steps and creaking stairs, she pins her ears back flat to her skull and fishes out the current favorite. The knife that settles in her grip is a gold painted handle and serrated blade, rusted just enough to make it look even more dangerous. She turns.

Eli, who settles down to lean against the sturdy guard rail, lifts his brows at her. "That for me?" he says, nodding at the knife.

He looks a little better than normal today, in that he is only panting a little and doesn't seem to be about to start chanting in a foreign language. The bags under his pale eyes are less shadowy. He's even summoned the energy to comb the little tuft of fine orange hair that springs from between his horns.

Autumn looks him over and pockets the knife. "You're supposed to be resting," she says, parroting the last overpriced doctor they had managed to hire. "Flute's going to lose her mind."

"Flute's out til tomorrow," Eli says, and fishes out his little tobacco pouch. It's supple fish leather, one of Flute's first gifts to him, dyed a luxurious umber. His pipe follows, and a book of matches. "I was tired of resting, anyway."

"She'll go ahead and kill you if she finds out. Put you out of your misery."

Eli snorts, smoke curling from his nostrils. "Oh no. She'll chain me to a wall, make sure I never escape, is all. Joke's on her. I'll just break my hand and slip out again."

Autumn says ugh and Eli laughs grimly, the pair of them keenly aware of the last time that very situation happened.

"Well, you're here," Autumn says at last, because he is, and you couldn't reverse that. "Give me a puff of that."

She climbs up next to him, sitting on the step below his. Eli, stout of both heart and body, takes the opportunity to reach over and riffle his fingers through her hair. The pipe surrendered, she takes a long drag and studies the thing she is making.

If she thinks about it too long, she always psyches herself out. The things she makes don't have meanings. She is no artist, no sculptor with a vision. She wires trash and bones and rocks together until they look too much like something else to ignore, like a cat or a dragon or a person, and then off they go to be deposited in somebody's garden or on the deck of an abandoned fishing boat. She never thinks about them again.

So she doesn't like it, the fact that this one makes her heart flinch and clench whenever she looks at it.

Eli follows her gaze. "What is it?" he asks mildly.

"How did you even find me?"

He considers this. "You're deflecting."

"Shut up," she says with an elbow going for his ribs. "I've never taken you here before."

"Maybe that's part of my disease," says Eli. "I get to know all your hiding spots."

They can't joke like this in front of Flute. She would start to cry, and nothing could make you feel more like a monster than that. So they take what they can get in the long stretches of time where Flute is off working, with their dark humor and bullshitting.

Because it is terrifying. Because the first time either Flute or Autumn learned about this illness, this disease, Eli was standing in the kitchen at the break of dawn, burning the flayed body of a rat with a vacant stare. It looked like some kind of ritual. He'd snapped out of it when they lit the lamps, and could not explain what had happened.

But in the present he is grabbing for his pipe back. "What is it, then?" he asks after he gets it. "Looks like a bird."

"I don't know. Some kind of monster. Demon, maybe. Or a god."

"Oh, the priests would just love to hear that one."

Autumn is silent, rolling her own idle musing around in her head. A god. Medicines had failed to cure Eli. Perhaps a deity, sufficiently pandered to, could.

It did not make the weight upon her shoulders lessen, but it was at least something to think about.

"Looks guilty to me," Eli says, and puffs on his pipe like his words hadn't sent a cold shock of dread down her spine. She does not look at him; she does not look at the sculpture. She tries not to look at anything.

Then he sighs, like he had been waiting for something that never came. He knows, she decides there and then. He has to know. He must know, and he's testing her.

She nearly bites a hole in her lip in surprise when Eli says, morose, "New moon tonight. I put the ropes on the chair."

Autumn's eyes slide back up to the metal thing hunched in front of them. Its empty sockets bore into her.

"Maybe you won't need them," she says.

"About knocked out your teeth last time we tried that."

"I don't need them that much."

Eli snorts. "Come on," he says with a sigh, slowly pulling himself to his feet. He tries to shake her off when she rises to help him; he's too weak to manage. "It'll be dark soon."

Autumn catches his arm, slings it over her shoulder. His weight sags onto her at once. "Yeah," she says.

They make the climb back up to the city streets, leaving the monument to her guilt alone with itself.

---

Easy

Flute gets in when Autumn heads out, and it's a rare day where they overlap more than a few minutes. In part, it is by necessity. Eli cannot be left alone too long, anymore. It's to his chagrin and theirs, but the risk of him wandering off or being seized with some strange symptom is too great.

But he sleeps, too, and it's not like Autumn has a job with the gang lined up every night. She has to keep up appearances, yes, keep her partners thinking she's found steady work---but there's leeway there.

So when Flute stops her for the customary kiss and bye, honey, love you, Autumn leans into her touch and tells her she's got the night off. Flute is surprised, then worried, and then mollified when Autumn assures her it won't affect her pay.

And anyway, Eli just fell asleep, so could the two of them figure out dinner or something?

It's not exactly what she means to say, or wants. Words do not come naturally to her the way they do to Flute. What she wants to say is I miss you.

She's not sure if she gets it through, because she can't read people like that. But she can tell when Flute's face lights up.

So Autumn makes for the nearby bodega while Flute gets out of her work clothes. She works taking minutes for some bigwig legal outfit, meaning she wears more or less the same beige and white outfit every day. On Autumn's return she looks much more like the person Autumn thinks of her as: embroidered pastels flow off her shoulders and her favorite jewelry nestles against her dark scales. Flute greets her with half a meal already pulled together, because Flute is nothing if not an overachiever.

"I got eel," Autumn says sheepishly; it's all they can afford. Or all they're supposed to be able to afford. The cash from the crew's scores is for fixing Eli, but … "And these."

Flute looks. Her eyes widen, orange marbles that glimmer in the lamplight. "Oh, Autumn," she says after a moment. "Cherries?"

There's that worry again. The nearest cherry tree is probably a week's ride away. "They're about to go bad," Autumn says. "And they fell on the ground, so they were discounted even more. I washed them off."

The cherries have never touched the ground, and there is not a moldy one among them. They are the best cherries she could find, because Flute deserves nothing less. The lie is easy.

Flute bites her lip. The prize before her is too much. "I could make a pie?" she says, hopeful.

"Only if I don't eat them all first."

"You will not," Flute says, and snatches the basket away.

She's giddy for the next two hours. Autumn gets to watch her flit around the kitchen making dough and pitting the cherries, stopping now and then to make sure Autumn hasn't forgotten how to debone an eel. She never stops talking once, about the latest gossip at her job, about the annoying new client, about the pretty riding-bird she passes on her way to work each day. She's named it Bluebell. "Is it blue?" Autumn asks, poking at the half stale bread the eels will be going on.

"No," says Flute, "it's the prettiest shade of lilac."

She does not ask Autumn about her week for nearly another hour after that, which is nearly a record. It was almost impossible to get Flute to learn Autumn did not want to be asked. There's never a good answer. But by then they're halfway through the cherry pie and some of the pear brandy Flute's kept tucked away for ages. Autumn feels sleepy and agreeable. Flute's happy prattle warms her lonely heart, and the motion of those breasts beneath that shirt doesn't hurt either. So when Flute walks her fingers up Autumn's arm and says, "How have you been, baby?", she doesn't cringe too badly.

"Okay," she says. "Busy."

"What's new at the potion shop?"

"I'm learning about antidotes," Autumn says. The lie is easy. "A gnome keeps coming in and asking for tinctures that will keep his husband going in bed." Flute giggles and snorts when she does. The lie is easy. The lie is easy.

I missed you.

"I'm so glad you've got that apprenticeship," says Flute. Her straying hand tucks a lock of Autumn's hair behind her ear. "It'll be worth it when you have your own shop."

The next bite of pie Autumn takes floods her senses with nothing but guilt. The shop again. Flute's favorite what-if.

"Maybe if we're lucky," she keeps going, and Flute practically glows when she talks like this, about the future of their little triad, "I can quit the firm and just help you."

It's hard not to choke on the shame when Autumn swallows her mouthful. "Mm. Mm-hm."

"Wouldn't that be nice," sighs Flute, dreamy. "We could see each other again. Have our own building, with an apartment on top---oh, it would be so much easier to take care of Eli if he's still sick---"

Autumn grabs the brandy and takes an enormous shot. Then she grabs Flute and kisses her, because she can't think of anything else that will make Flute stop talking about a future that will never come to pass.

It's going to be worth it, Autumn tells herself later, as they peel off each other's clothing and remind themselves of each other's bodies. It's the only way, she tells herself in the heat of their passion, her mind as far from their bed as it will go. What Flute and Eli don't know won't hurt them, she tells herself in the aftermath, cozied in Flute's arms as the sweat dries.

"Baby?" Flute says. It's muffled. Her snout is in Autumn's hair.

"Yeah?"

"You feeling okay? You seemed a little distant tonight."

"Oh," says Autumn, grateful she doesn't have to meet Flute's eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking."

Flute makes a sound of relief, of contentment. "About what?"

"About---"

How much I miss you. How much I hate lying to you. How much of a fucking idiot I am. How you deserve better than this.

"---about what to name the shop."

The lie is easy.

The lie is easy.

The lie is easy, and Autumn is a coward.

#autumn tag #bitd #corgiwrites! #these are unbeta'd but i like how they came out. especially 'easy' #anyway. these are mostly for archival purposes

[multistoty]

Continued

@power-over-one-eye​

It was true that Thusnelda had a temper. Yet like a Targaryen, she protected her own and the romantic sparks between the pair were more adorable than either of them would ever let on. The magic of the wishes, of course, was simply in making them, fishing deep for a hidden desire, molding it into words to make it real, and tossing it into a mysterious unknown that you believed was maybe, just maybe, listening. Dragons eventually wake and crawl from their dark dens. Was this what it meant to love someone? That any burden was a burden shared, that they could give you comfort with a word or a touch? For love is as strong as death. It is as great a thing to love as it is to be loved. Love is not something that can be wasted. The whole point of growing up is learning to stay on the laughing side.  Her heart is drumming in her  chest so hard it aches, but it's the good kind of ache, like the feeling you get on the first real day of autumn, when the air is crisp and the leaves are all flaring at the edges and the wind smells just vaguely of smoke - like the end and the beginning of something all at once.Every meeting led to a parting, and so it would, as long as life was mortal. In every meeting there was some of the sorrow of parting, but in everything parting there was some of the joy of meeting as well. He was Aemond, in all his perfect imperfection; Aemond, whose heart was as easy to break as it was carefully guarded; Aemond, who loved not wisely but entirely and with everything he had. Sometimes, his deadpan expression and wording couldn’t be anything besides amusing He had been the only one before her new sister to never begrudge Helaena joy. In fact, he always looked victorious when that child like grin or vulnerable laugh made itself known. “Well, oh darling scoundrel brother of mine, I would start by saying you wish for an heir.Telling a woman you would prefer to be gifted a child of one gender makes it hard for her to believe you would welcome little ones of either.One does no question miracles, or complain that they are no constructed perfectly to one's liking. Men may be stronger, but it is women who endure.It can be hard not to feel pressured at all sides when being the one supposed to produce something with your own form. I beat myself up for months with Aegon. Be a candle to take her flame and melt and meld with it instead of gas to create a blaze to burn you both to ash. The seamstress really does get tired of getting blood out of our clothing.Though if worse comes to worse, You may hide here with me, if you wish.” Now, it was her turn to gape at him. Hands falling from their tearing on her hands. Nervous habit forgotten. “How- How do you read me so easily brother? I am a royal. If I cannot even keep white lies to you, I will be a feeding frenzy to court though I will not let on who my avenging angel is-” the words died at the offered object. The blonde boy had always been the one to give her things wether it was tomes or other things.  It made her feel human and cared for.Thusnelda had been an answered prayer. The knife was one she had seen him fidget with. Aemond was always a flurry of motion wether that be his mouth causing trouble or his hands telling stories against the rich wood of the table. With reverence she would always take with a gift, a hand reached to fist her skirt to take any sweat or probably from the palm before accepting it. Holding the glimmering instrument to the light. For it wasn’t just violence. It was the glimmer of something that could create violence or upkeep protection. It would also help her feel less useless in a battle. To be a mother dragon burning down a world that would come after her children. Being Aegon’s wife would always put them in danger simply by breathing. It worried her how he had just spoke of a servant trying to steal from his wife. That meant their servants felt they weren’t taken care of enough to attempt such a thing and that they weren’t truly respected or righteously feared. Something royals much even if they wanted to warm with fire instead of melt them. The steel was unforgiving in its certainty. Truly beautiful with clear fingerprints. A well loved weapon that would serve her well. A surprising warmth in it. A delicate patter of dragon scales along the hilt. Her musings broken by the vivid pictures he was painting. How could he think she would not wish to create something beautiful of the poor trees who in death had their corpses used and abused? Her lilac eyes lost in the same imagining’s. Maybe there were figurines that she could make for the kids and her future nephews and nieces should they be blessed with them and it not haunt her friend and new sister. Carefully she took a handkerchief from her side. Careful for her waist long expertly braided hair to not be a casualty of the weapon even as an eager student. Intelligence and information vital to any queen and like a warm blanket to the targaryen girl.“I feel like you can look inside me and see all the places I am odd or unusual and fit your heart around them, for you are odd and unusual in just the same way. We are the same. I have never been so excited by something you have proposed ever. I can make a better home for my insects. I like imagining you some old father with a growing gut making toys for his children. It’s lovely. All I could want for you. For her. For us. Pure safe, happiness. I don’t want to be a blade in someone else’s hand. I want to strike when I like. Who I like and offer mercy in turn. As a child, I thought you might just make mother’s eyebrows disappear completely in her hairline.”

[savesharkwars]

Blue Greenie Race

In Cabin Daily: “Try writing in a genre you've never written before, whether that's mystery, romance, fantasy, etc. 400 words minimum, and you need proof ^” Me: Ah yes, Shark Wars, the perfect Chic lit.

Genre chosen: Chick Lit. I have never written this genre, so of course I made it ‘easy’ for myself and wrote Shark Wars “Chick Lit”. I don’t even know if that’s possible, given that the series is primarily for what I can only assume are 4th grade boys with really good taste. But I tried!!!

Note: I guess this is an AU where Mari doesn’t die??? Also she’s fairly out of character, but if that’s what I have to do to do the daily right it will be that way.

Tw: Heavily implied past animal death

Words: 1,628

(Fic and end notes under the cut.)

Mari flipped her tail. The effervescent green water that surrounded her felt warm against her scales. She knashed her teeth together happily. It was good to be home. But she felt a heaviness in her chest as she looked around at the familiar coral spires of her home. Many of her friends weren't able to feel that warmth, at least not without a twinge of multicolored sparkles courtesy of death.

So many amazing fins and flippers had been lost in the battle… So many wonderful fish she would never know the names of. So many wonderful fish that would never see their homes again. She felt water rush through her gills. To make it worse, Barklay had stayed behind in the Atlantis, appointed leader by the shark that was swimming right next to her. Barklay had been a good friend, and even though he had promised to come visit whenever he could, Coral Shiver was simply so far away from the Atlantis.

At least she had Gray.

The young megalodon was around her age, but you wouldn’t guess that just by looking at him. His blue flanks stretched on for at least double her own body length, and his tail wasn’t even included in that equation! But despite this, Gray was her friend …and nothing more. (Even if she sometimes wondered if they could be.)

She flicked her tail in an annoyed sort of way. Trying (and failing) to push the embarrassing thoughts away. Thankfully her face wasn’t all that red, so when Gray looked back at her in confusion, she didn’t seem all that suspicious. She smiled at him somewhat awkwardly, fighting to keep the blush off her face. “Just got a bit of greenie tangled in my fins,” she lied, “That’s all.”

Gray glanced around them, clearly not seeing any of the mysterious greenie that she spoke of, but took her answer anyway. “We can swim up a bit if you want,” he offered, lifting a tailstroke upward, “The greenie probably wouldn’t be a problem that way.”

Mari stared at him, not sure if him going along with her very obvious lie was worse or better than what would have happened if he had caught her on it. “Uh..” she said, flicking her fins to join him, “Sure. Thank you.”

Gray grinned and turned away from her, his gills rippled. “You’re welcome,” He said, “That’s what friends are for, right?”

“Yep!” She said, fighting for her very life to drag her eyes away from the sharpness of his teeth and the piercing blue of his eyes, “For sure!”

Gray laughed at that, and she found herself giggling along as well. In fact, this momentary joy carried her on light fins all the way back to the center of the Coral Shiver homewaters. Distracted by the new -yet familiar- sight of the telltale coral spires and short blue greenie, she gasped.

“I thought Hocuu destroyed this area?!” She exclaimed, shooting her gaze around herself in instinctive worry, “How-?”

“How’s it all here?” Gray echoed, looking around in the same way she was, “I guess the spell wore off after he died…”

Mari found herself smiling, reminded again of how that terrible frilled shark had failed out of their lives forever. (Privately, she hoped that he was somewhere in the Sparkle Blue, getting beat up by Takiza all over again.) Of course, the memory of what he did was horrific, but the fact that he was really gone made it a bit better.

“When we get to the Sparkle Blue,” she said absentmindedly, oblivious to the confusion that adorned Gray’s face at the suggestion of their deaths, “Will you help be chase Hocuu into whatever darkness exists there?”

After a moment of pondering the question, Gray finally spoke (and she was glad when a laugh bit at the edges of his words), “Of course! Maybe we can have a makeshift Tuna Run… with him as the tuna!”

She whipped around to see him, previously unaware of the possibility of the idea. (She did have to admit that it sounded quite good though.) Gray only laughed, clearly encouraged by the expression on the thresher's face. “Or maybe we could make him into our royal food seasoner…”

Now it was her turn to laugh. “Gray,” she asked, “Why would you need a royal food seasoner in the Sparkle Blue? And what makes you think that he wouldn’t take the chance to poison us?”

“Why not?” Gray asked giggling like a pup, “If we’re lucky it will be a while before we even know what the Sparkle Blue is like. Why not fantasize about embarrassing Hocuu?”

She had to agree with that, but slapped him with the back of her tail anyway. Just like a megalodon, that idea right there. (She didn’t say the words out loud, but for some reason, she felt like Gray knew what she was thinking. Panicked for a moment, she wondered if mind reading was among the powers that Takiza had taught him, before she remembered that it most certainly was NOT and she was totally fine.)

She flicked her tail and sped a bit ahead of him, shaking off the worry with a breath of fresh seawater. “Let’s race to the blue greenie!” She yelled, looking back over her fin at his slightly surprised face. But as his eyes shifted from confused to determined, she felt her heart beat an urchin’s spine faster, “It’ll be fun!” She added, trying to mask the expression that she was sure was on her face, “On the count of three?” She paused, silently asking if that was okay.

Gray nodded and swam to match her. “One,” he said, staring at the blue greenie with a little bit too much concentration.

“Two,” Mari echoed, flipping her fins a few times to stretch them.

“Three!” They said together, speeding off in the direction of the blue greenie. Thresher sharks were very fast without even trying, so Mari was surprised when Gray began to plow ahead of her. (And yes it was ‘plowing’, you don’t get to have that thick of a tail and not be accused of plowing through the water.)

She grit her teeth and sped up her tail strokes, fighting to pull ahead of Gray against the current which she (only now) realized was against her. (Gray was a bigger shark, so it didn’t affect him as much.) In no time at all though, she was ahead of him, speeding at nearly ten tail strokes per second towards the “finish line”.

She reached it in no time at all, and immediately had to pull upward so as not to get tangled in the greenie as soon as she touched it. Flipping over in the water, she watched as Gray reached the greenie, crashing right though it and scarring more than one colorful fish into the ocean around them.

Ignoring the fact that her gills were definitely working harder than normal, Mari laughed. “Slow as always, huh Gray?” She teased, swimming over to him and running her tail along his spine (sort of like the way a mother shark would). 

Gray spat some sand out of his mouth and wheeled around to look at her. He was grinning (sharp teeth shining in a way that sent a shiver down Mari’s own spine). “Not as slow as you!” He said, clearly ignoring the fact that he had lost. …but not by very much, “I really scared you when I pulled ahead!”

Mari rolled her eyes and swam a few tail strokes away. “Sure,” she responded playfully, “And that greenie really scared you when you swam nose first into the sand.”

Gray swam after her and Mari was shocked to note that the distance that had taken her three tailstokes only took him one. “Well, I guess the real winner here is the greenie then.” He said, jokingly, “Because if I scared you, and it scared me, that makes it the scariest.”

“We were going for the fastest,” she laughed, “And the greenie is definitely the loser there.”

Gray nodded seriously, as if this was in any way a conversation that deserved such a reaction. “And that makes you second place.” he said, and Mari didn’t even care that the sarcasm wasn’t very evident. (Something about his voice was just… very pretty there.) But Gray looked a little bit sad about his joke, and before she could even say anything back, he added, “And me in third.”

“Doesn’t that just put me in first then?” She laughed, swimming back towards the center of the coral circle, “If you're in third and the greenie’s in last?”

“Well-” Gray started, cutting himself off with a giggle, “I didn’t want you to be in first, and I didn’t win, so you’re in second place.”

Mari rolled her eyes and tried to ignore the way that Gray was making her heart soar. “That’s just like a megalon,” she said, out loud this time.

Gray laughed, “And it’s just like a thresher to beat me in a race,” he paused for a moment, before continuing with an even softer voice than he had been speaking with originally, “I am quite fast for a shark as, uh, big cartilage as I am.”

She felt her heart soar as she grinned, “I believe that! You really did get ahead of me for a moment there.”

As he continued to joke, Mari felt her focus waning. She wanted to listen, she really did, but that was sometimes hard when her best friend was also one that she wanted to rule a Shiver with. Not as a royal line, but as a combined leading force. Together. For as long as the Big Blue would let them, she wanted to be together.

-

Uhhh... if anyone read this I hope you liked it.

#implied animal death #shark wars #fanfic #mari sw #gray sw #sweetrougeshipping #my post

[princeofgod-2021]

LIGHT OF LIFE 374

John 1:4

UNDERSTANDING PROPHETIC MANDATES 8: SECRETS THINGS 8

Amo 3:7 CERTAINLY, THE ALMIGHTY LORD DOESN'T DO ANYTHING UNLESS HE FIRST REVEALS HIS SECRET TO HIS SERVANTS THE PROPHETS. GW

So, why did God not bother to hide the resurrection of Christ [also] from satan; why did satan himself yet go ahead and kill Jesus when he knew Jesus might rise again?

Joh 11:25 Jesus said to her, "I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE. Those who believe in me will live, even though they die; GNB

Firstly, resurrection was no very big deal for satan because it has happened before anyway and [to him] it made no significant global impact, but rather only benefiting individuals.

Jesus already raised a number of people back to life, just as Elijah and Elisha did.

Luk 8:54-55 But HE, TAKING HER HAND, SAID TO HER, MY CHILD, GET UP.AND HER SPIRIT CAME BACK TO HER AND SHE GOT UP STRAIGHT AWAY: and he gave orders that food was to be given to her. BBE

Satan himself, through his minions, do peddle the deception of the afterlife through Necromancy: the occultic practice of raising the dead to prophecy to the [gullible] living.

1Sa 28:7 Then Saul told his officers, "FIND ME A WOMAN WHO CAN TALK TO THE SPIRITS OF THE DEAD. I'll go to her and find out what's going to happen." His servants told him, "THERE'S A WOMAN AT ENDOR who can talk to spirits of the dead." CEV

He realized though, that his own concept of the Resurrection Mystery was a miscalculation, when he saw the full impact after Jesus Himself resurrected.

Mat 27:50,51,53 Jesus passionately cried out, took his last breath, and gave up his spirit…and GRAVES WERE OPENED. THEN MANY OF THE HOLY ONES WHO HAD DIED WERE BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE AND CAME OUT OF THEIR GRAVES. And after Jesus’ resurrection, THEY WERE PLAINLY SEEN BY MANY PEOPLE WALKING IN JERUSALEM. TPT

Secondly, satan supposed that only Jesus will rise anyway, and it would merely be a matter of coming back to life.

So, if he couldn’t stop it, at least Jesus will be out of the picture on earth.

He realized, only too late, that he had made the biggest mistake of his life.

JESUS became MULTIPLIED!

Heb 2:10 God—the one who made all things and for whose glory all things exist—WANTED MANY PEOPLE TO BE HIS CHILDREN AND SHARE HIS GLORY. SO HE DID WHAT HE NEEDED TO DO. He made perfect the one who leads those people to salvation. HE MADE JESUS A PERFECT SAVIOR THROUGH HIS SUFFERING. ERV

So, you see beloved, God didn’t just send Jesus to the world to die for sins He could have forgiven directly.

He wanted us to share His Glory so that we can live above sin forever and rule in His full capacity.

Now you should understand much more the primary purpose for creating man.

Gen 1:26-27 THEN GOD SAID, "AND NOW WE WILL MAKE HUMAN BEINGS; THEY WILL BE LIKE US AND RESEMBLE US. They will have power over the fish, the birds, and all animals, domestic and wild, large and small." So God created human beings, making them to be like himself. He created them male and female, GNB

Every time we look at that scripture, we have the tendency to talk only about Dominion, control and Power. We commonly see ourselves in God Image but all about Dominion.

Beloved, we must always ask ourselves: what is the most important thing man lost through the SIN?

Rom 3:23 FOR WE ALL HAVE SINNED AND ARE IN NEED OF THE GLORY OF GOD. TPT

Beloved, it is the Glory of God we lost [principally], not the Power and Dominion.

That is what brought the NEED to send someone to die for us: to make us become like God again.

It is the “Sons of God” we NEED to become, so a Son of God has to be sent, to shed Royal Blood.

Got it?

Heb 9:11-12 BUT NOW CHRIST HAS COME AS THE HIGH PRIEST OF THE GOOD THINGS TO COME. He passed through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, and he entered once for all into the most holy place NOT BY THE BLOOD OF GOATS AND CALVES BUT BY HIS OWN BLOOD, and so he himself secured eternal redemption. NET

So now, because of satan’s error, he has discovered that he has Jesus being multiplied all over the world.

The ultimate offense against him is that God now has a people who can perfectly replace him and his minions: the fallen angels.

That is the reason for his principal rage.

Rev 12:17 THE SERPENT BECAME ANGRY with the woman. SO IT WENT AWAY TO FIGHT WITH HER OTHER CHILDREN, THE ONES WHO KEEP GOD'S COMMANDS AND HOLD ON TO THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS. GW

Again I pray for you: God will keep your enemies blinded till he has perfected all concerning your Destiny, IN JESUS NAME.

Join us on Wednesday, for progress in this enlightening and explosive Subtopic.

Keep Shinning!

Brother Prince

Monday, July 03, 2023

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