#this is why welcome home is a threat to all of my other interests

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

a little Welcome Home theory that's probably me looking entirely too much into a single line <3

-

so i was clicking through the site for the thousandth time and this line caught my eye. maybe its 4 am and i haven't slept, maybe i'm onto something. who knows!

but this little thing... "and lively sets unlike anything seen before!". yeah, it could just be them propping up the show. OR maybe the puppets have been alive the whole time, fully autonomous but entirely unaware that they are puppets on a show. maybe to them, the neighborhood is real, and they simply cannot comprehend the presence of humans so their puppet minds don't register them. this could make for a "cosmic horror but for puppets" spin, which would be sick as fuck

their daytime is when the studio lights are on and people are around. idk how the people would teach them the scripts - maybe they did it at "night"? or maybe there was no script, and the puppets would automatically come up with their own shenanigans, dialogue, and segments that aligned with the show, bc that's what they were made for.

bc its not like the whrp team have physical puppets, or much other than art & reports, right? any information on the puppets - like Howdy being rotated between live-hand and walk-around - could've easily been a lie by the creators of the Welcome Home show. i mean, i don't think it would've gone down well if they came out and said "yeah the puppets are alive"

and now that i'm wondering how they could have living puppets, weren't the 60s/70s chock full of cults? could the WH creators have dipped into the occult to create living puppets for a ground breaking, popular, lucrative show, using minimal effort because "the show writes itself"? all they have to do is film and maybe change the puppets' costumes. if that - they could have set up hidden cameras or something.

and this is gonna sound even more far-fetched, but what if creating the puppets required human souls to power them? im not suggesting that the puppets have locked away memories from a "human life", bc that would be uh... a lot. but it's enough that given time and the right prompts, they could gain awareness, and maybe the soul does influence them in minor ways - in likes and dislikes etc.

and Wally being aware means that he fully saw the humans running the show. and maybe the occult thing is what's under Home - the source of black magic that brought the puppets to life seeping out. and he's aware because he looked into that source and it flipped a switch in his lil cotton brain

maybex2 this is what caused the show to not only shut down, but be wiped from existence. the magic seeped into Home, maybe killing someone in the process, and Wally was revealed as aware. maybe on live television. so the creators panicked and shut it all down, tried to destroy everything and gaslight the country into forgetting it ever existed. maybe in the hopes that once no one remembers the puppets, the magic will leech out of them and leave them lifeless

and that loops back into Wally being the only one referred to in present tense in the neighborhood bios. he's still aware, maybe trapped in the studio, alone. i mean, i sure hope he's not alone - i hope he has his friends with him. unless they're all decommissioned (dead)... maybe Wally is trying to bring them all back or "fix" them?

but then there's the case of all of this currently going down online. have the puppets' consciousness somehow been transferred to the internet? or has Wally gotten his little felt mittens on a computer? something else? and then there's the whrp team... could they be fake, and its really just Wally trying to cobble together the remains of his life/friends? i mean, the Question-Answerer sounds like a title a kid or naive puppet would come up with. people would've called them the Curator or somethin?

i have too many thoughts

#cuz like. AH no i should shut up i need to shut up. #no actually i dont and i wont. listen- #im just trying to piece together what clown has alluded to & what we know with the website #bc clearly the website is a Canon Thing. its part of all of this. #so how does it tie into everything #welcome home #welcome home puppet show #welcome home arg #AAAAAA I JUST!!!! I CANT WAIT FOR THIS SHINDIG TO KICK OFF #its gonna be a while obs which just means more time to be excited #and also come up with outlandish theories that are waaayyyyy off the mark #I HAVENT THOUGHT THIS MUCH ABOUT A THING IN AGES #like i love theorizing!!! and Thinking!!! this is the ultimate enrichment for my enclosure!!! #i am a tiger digging into a meat pumpkin!!! #this is why welcome home is a threat to all of my other interests #none of them make me think this much #analyzing characters & relationships and established storylines can only go so far #i need to PREDICT i need to IMAGINE i need to WAIT WAIT WAIT #i love the waiting. i also hate it. but i love it <3 #im very used to waiting. i have waited years for little things and i can wait as long as possible to watch this unravel #i have so. so. So many thoughts #about Wally and the Secrets and literally Everything #i am having fun. #it is consuming my brain and i can barely think about anything else and its FUN AS FUCK #*all of this said while guiltily side-eyeing my dc blog*

[infohazardouz]

DEMON WALLY DESIGNS! im still working out his design but here’s a general vibe hehehahe as well as some thought provoking sketches... HUUUGE infodump about the design & demon wally au below!

below i explain my choice of representing hindu designs as opposed to christian ones! if you want to skip to the relevant information pertaining to the actual au, jump to the big bold JUMP HERE paragraph!

alright, to address the elephant in the room: no, this isn’t the typical demon/devil design you may be used to! i was originally going to keep within the red-horned pointed tail kind of mythos that generally stems from christianity/christianity aligned concepts, but then i realized i honestly don’t know much about that stuff and don’t really feel qualified to handle it in a narrative. i also know that, especially within the welcome home fandom itself, a lot of people have religious trauma that generally tends to be from various branches of christianity, so i thought this would be an interesting solution: seeing as i know a fair amount about hinduism, wally’s design is inspired by concepts about demons in hindusim in general! that way, it’s easy to write and hopefully refreshing/non-triggering to the audience! also it’s fun!

JUMP HERE: Wally’s design in the demon AU is inspired by Asura in hindu mythology! That’s why he’s got like a billion hands- I’m looking at adding jewellery/a tail/other stuff, but it’ll fall in that general theme. in terms of lore relevancy: asura in hindusim were not strictly evil, which you will find reflected in my story. wally isn’t evil per say; the neighbourhood is his turf, and he will protect it from outside threats. that being said- he is generally self-serving for now and may not always have the best intentions for his fellow neighbours. what his overarching goal is and who exactly his enemy is (as well as Home’s relevancy to the story) is being left to you to discover as the comic goes on! themes of puppetry, where wally darling ends and the asura begins, and stuff like that is left ambiguous for now! puppetry will also play a role in the story, as well as self-awareness and meta themes. hinduism and religion WILL NOT play a role in the story itself. anything i think might need contextualizing will be contextualized in the description of every update; honestly im just pulling the asura elements for Wally’s design and part of his character! this will still be a very accessible comic to people of all backgrounds. if you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to send them to my askbox or leave them in the comments!

#welcome home demon au #welcome home fanart #welcome home comic #welcome home au #welcome home wally #wally darling #wally darling fanart #my art #infodump #hope this isnt too much guys i feel very corny rn HAHA #this isnt really anything serious! just a fun comic i wanted to give context to #i dont see myself doing any more longform info posts like this in the future either btw! #welcome home arg

[strawberri-yan]

TW: kidnapping, Jing Yuan babies and degrades reader, also the usual yandere stuff

Some background: Jing Yuan and reader had a fiery rivalry when they were young which morphs into a strong friendship as they grew older. But then reader decides to betray the Loufu and take part as a Stellaron Hunter. 

 You and the other Stellaron hunters were tasked on a mission to find a potential Stellaron. Things were going smoothly until all of you were ambushed by the Cloud knights. Overwhelmed and nearly beaten, the hunters make their escape. 

But you were a liability after sustaining a critical injury from knights. Kafka and the others had no choice but to abandon you. Biting your lip, you can do nothing but shout curses and profanities as your team leaves you in the middle of Cloudford. ‘Nothing personal,’ Kafka simply told you in that mocking, teasing tone of hers. Soonly after, you had been surrounded by the army of Clouds knights as they all aim their weapons at you. “My, my, now what do we have here?” A smooth, deep voice drawls out from not too far. The men part way for the white hair general as he saunters towards your pathetic form, arms crossed from behind as he sends you a knowing look. It sickened you. 

"You... I should have known you'd be lurking around here somewhere, Jing Yuan," You growled. "And as for the others, they've already made their escape,"

Jing Yuan chuckles at your words. "Is that so?Oh well, doesn’t matter. We'll find them eventually. But for now, I'm more interested in what you're doing here. Especially joining forces with the Stellaron hunters? My, how you've fallen far."

Gritting your teeth, you glared at the man. "Someone like you wouldn't understand!" you shouted. “And why are you so pleased to see me like this? Enjoying seeing me suffer?"

"Oh (Y/N), my naïve, reckless little songbird," Jing Yuan tsks, his voice dripping with condescension. "You were so easily deceived. There was never a Stellaron. It was all a ploy to draw you out, to lure you back home and into my welcoming embrace." He extends his arms wide, exaggerating his point. If you didnt know any better, he had seemed like a wicked villain from a novel. 

You's eyes widen with a mixture of shock and anger, your battered body stiffens. "You... orchestrated all of this? … did all of this just to bring me back?" You asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

Jing Yuan's smug expression doesn't waver as he steps closer to you, his hand gently caressing your bruised cheek. "Yes. I've missed you so much. I couldn't bear the thought of being separated from you for so long. Especially with those slimey, conniving   hunters. "

Your eyes blow widely at the madman in front of you,  you try to pull away from his touch, but the Cloud knight general holds you firmly in place. "I won't go back with you," you snapped defiantly. "You will not strip me of my autonomy! I am a Stellaron hunter and nothing will change that. "

Jing Yuan's expression turns dark, and he tightens his grip on your cheek. "How foolish to think you have a choice in this matter, my dear. You belong to me. You always have and you always will."

You glare back at Jing Yuan. "You’re wrong! I will never go back to the life I had with you! I decide on what I do with this life!"

Jing Yuan's lips twist into a cruel smile. "We'll see about that," he says, his tone menacing. "I have ways of making you see things my way."

Immediately, you break free from his hold and summon your weapon before lunging at Jing Yuan. The older man merely smirks as he simply dodges your attacks with ease, not really seeing you as threat as he didn’t even bother taking out his own weapon. If anything, he was toying with you.

"Is this the best you can do?" Jing Yuan taunts, dodging yet another attack. "I expected more from you."

You growled, as you swing your weapon with all your might, but Jing Yuan once again dodges gracefully.

"You're still no match for me, old friend~" Jing Yuan taunts, truly getting under your skin. "You're out of practice, weak, and foolish for thinking you could challenge me."

Your's eyes blinded with fury as you charge at him once again, determined to prove him wrong. "I remember when we used to train together, you were so much better than this. What happened to you?"

A surge of humiliation bubbles within you, especially seeing how he was able to overpower you so easily. "You think you're so much better than me, I'll show you what I'm really capable of!"

"I'd like to see you try," he chuckles, still circling around you. "But I have a feeling you'll just end up embarrassing yourself even more." But before you could even retort, Jing Yuan knocks you out by striking the back of your neck. He carries your limp body as your weapon uselessly clutters to the floor. He takes this moment to admire your gentle features as you remain unconscious in his arms. He had always found you to be vibrant and beautiful, he especially liked to see you frustrated and angry as he had found it cute.

With his soldiers escorting him to his personal Starskiff, he lays you down comfortably on the seat cushions while sitting down beside you, gazing intently.

"I've missed you, baobei," Jing Yuan whispers softly. "You're still as stubborn as ever, but that's what I love about you. You may have lost your way, but I'm here to guide you back home."

Gently, he brushes some of your hair away from your forehead and leans in, pressing his lips against in a gentle kiss.

#yandere jing yuan #yandere male #tw yandere #yandere x reader #male yandere #soft yandere #yandere #yandere honkai star rail #yandere jing yuan x reader #jing yuan #yandere hsr

[0v3rcast]

Gnaw (part 1)

Contains: Body Horror, Blood, Violence

You had fallen to Teyvat some time ago, pulled down from the sky by a brilliant platinum star, the elements gently beckoning for you, all of them trying to prove their land the most suitable for your descent.

"Welcome back, Sea-shaper," Hydro murmurs, their voice the babbling of streams and the roar of the angry sea all at once. "Fontaine has such sights to show you. As you created, we have created to honor your actions. For your beauty, we have made our people beautiful. You will want for nothing-"

"COME TO US, HOLY TINDER," Pyro roars, its voice the starving crackle of flame and the churning of molten rock as volcanoes erupt. "NATLAN AWAITS YOU WITH AN OFFERING OF ENDLESS PASSION. YOU SHALL NEVER GO UNPROTECTED, UNLOVED, OR HUNGRY."

"Welcome, almighty Whirlwind of Creation," Electro purrs, speaking with the rattle-boom of echoing thunder. "Shall you grace my people with your presence?"

"Welcome home, Blessed Foundation," Geo hums, their voice the whispers of sand and the ancient growl of tectonic plates shifting. "Liyue has grown prosperous since you've last seen it. Perhaps you should come to us instead, where the riches of Teyvat could be put directly to use in pleasing you?"

"Don't listen to them, First Breath! We've waited for you the longest, like, a whole forever! We were first!" Anemo pleads, in the tones of breeze softly rustling leaves and howling tornadoes. "Even if you just stop by, that's totally fine!"

"You've finally come home, Heart of Winter? Good. We have missed you so." Cryo coos, the flurrying of snow and ancient creaking of glaciers their voice. "Snezhnaya may be a harsh land, but faith is enough to warm the bodies of my people."

"Flower of Irminsul, Root of All, please! You cannot come down! Another wears your face, please turn back if only for a few more days!" Dendro howls, desperate, voice a cacophony of falling trees and leaves rustling. "You ar-"

Dendro's voice fades as you pass the point of no return and begin to burn through the sky towards Mondstadt, Anemo ripping at the air to direct your course even as the other elements rage at them for their impudence.

As you fall, the memory of this conversation fades from your mind.

Welcome home, Maker, whispers the Abyss into the back of your mind.

Since that day, your time in Teyvat had become quite difficult. Whatever hopes you'd had for this world were soundly dashed.

Mondstadt 'welcomed' you with scorn and hostility for sharing the same face as their Heiliger Schöpfer, the Divine above Divines.

You were unsure as to why they hated you so, simply for your face- especially since that face is one that's otherwise looked kindly upon in this world.

You do your best to take in the sights, all the same. Though you are confused by the frosty reception, this place is so much more interesting than the game shows.

There are many more homes and people, you see (and pet) some stray animals, pick a particularly low philanemo mushroom after a couple seconds of jumping and stretching in an attempt to reach it, and generally just enjoy the (rather tense) locale.

Your confusion became fear when the Knights of Favonius begin to chase you. You'd done no crime, why would they hunt you like this, especially with such wrathful looks on their faces?!

The closest you get to meeting any of the allogenes on friendly terms comes when you breeze past Sucrose, yelping out a greeting to her. She just watches you go, incredibly confused, before a Knight accidentally bowls her over in his maddened rush after you.

Just as you exit the gate, the Knights just behind you, yelling curses and what you presume are threats-

P a i n.

Eula Lawrence just pushed a greatsword through your lungs and out your back. You have no clue how she got here so fast, where from, or how you didn't notice her.

You gag and choke as your blood quickly rushes into the space (and out of your body, simultaneously).

With a vicious yank, she tears it from you in a diagonal motion, nearly carving you in half.

A darkly satisfied look in her eyes is all you receive when you uselessly try to gasp for air and plead for help.

Your vision begins to fade, but before you can die of blood loss her boot comes down.

(Your nascent godhood activates the moment you die, and it plots a new trajectory: your misery will shape you until such a time comes that you will never feel this suffering again.)

You wake screaming in the woods, hands coming to clutch at your chest.

A massive golden scar lies just between your xiphoid process and sternum, perfectly horizontal in a way that only comes with practice.

Your clothes are covered in the brownish rusty red of old dried blood, and quite badly torn from where you were sliced nearly in two.

Breathing feels... easier, somehow. Like your lungs didn't just heal from immense trauma.

Your stomach aches badly and your mouth feels like it's full of sand. How long have you been laying here beneath the sun?

Your attempts to rise from this resting place are fruitless. You're so exhausted you can barely move your fingers.

Darkness slowly weighs your eyelids down and you fall asleep, even though you know you should not.

---

Elsewhere in the world, a being wearing your face stares up at a statue to themselves, noting with some alarm the golden scar across its chest.

The only recent news they had about an imposter was the Lawrence outcast running one through.

Now they'll have to find some way to replicate your scar and keep up the ruse.

"The original has truly descended, then... fine." They hiss, words venomous, glaring at the face of the statue. "If I can't have this place as my playground, then they won't get to have you."

---

The next time you wake, it is night, and the hunger in your belly is gnawing at you with such fervor that you feel lightheaded.

When you stand, your head twinges with pain as if to protest even this miniscule expenditure of energy.

Your body stumbles at first, briefly overcome by vertigo, but quickly adjusts.

Your mind changes its tune completely upon seeing a plump, ripe Sunsettia growing on its branch.

You desperately scramble over to pull the Sunsettia from the tree- only for it to drop into your waiting hands as soon as you reach up.

The 'how' of this doesn't quite matter to you in the moment. You bite into the ripe fruit and moan in bliss at the tart taste of the flesh and the sweetness of the juices. Within twenty seconds, you've reduced this fruit to a nubby pit, almost like a peach has.

That's kinda neat, actually. You distantly wonder what you have to crossbreed with a peach to make Sunsettias.

You pat the tree as if to thank it, not noticing that it suddenly stands a bit straighter or how its leaves are just a tiny bit greener, and go to find a nice place to put down this future Sunsettia tree.

You eventually get bored of looking for a good place and just poke a hole into the ground with a fallen branch, then stuff the remains of your first Sunsettia into the hole.

You wander off into the woods in hopes of finding a road, unaware of the golden-leaved sapling slowly growing behind you.

With a new source of energy in your system, you feel the urge to get moving- might as well make the most of this while you have it.

Your stamina is better than before, it feels like. Distances that previously felt difficult feel easier on your legs- and definitely on your lungs.

Perhaps this has something to do with your demise?

...what's that weird whistling soun-

You fall, dead, an Anemo-enriched arrow punching through the back of your head.

For a brief moment, you dream of a place deep beneath the surface of Teyvat, and a ruined statue oozing corruption into infinite darkness.

You wake with a small headache, very hungry, and more than a little pissed. Won't people just leave you the fuck alone?

Somehow, you feel sturdier. Less breakable. As nice as that is, you don't particularly feel up to testing it.

You stand.

Perhaps you should avoid civilization from now on.

#genshin sagau #sagau gnaw #reader has a terrible time #sagau impostor au #aint my best work but i cant think of what else i need to add to it #next part to come out whenever it starts haunting my brain

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

Margo, Miles, and Gwen's hateration -

Something I noticed about rewatching this scene

Y'all wanna see some REAL hater behavior. Get into this -

The scene starts with Hobie and Gwen happily discussing their anomalies. They're strolling along and joking with each other for the most part

Then, Miles runs into Margo-

Originally, Margo looks genuinely annoyed. But when she sees Miles face, her expression changes instantly.

We see Margo and Miles' Spider senses trigger - which is INTERESTING. As before this moment, Miles sense has not been triggered by anyone else.

Pavitr didn't garner this response. Neither did Hobie, despite Hobie catching Miles off guard. Even when Gwen is standing above Miles, he hears her voice before feeling her there.

Margo is posing no threat to Miles whatsoever, but she's the only new Spider-person who sets of his senses. Maybe it's touch activated - but Margo is an Avatar. Although Miles can touch her, I don't think her Spider-senses would've been triggered by someone new touching her avatar. Since it's technically not 'her' and there's no need. So maybe there's something at play here.

They share the two lines together, and Miles is obviously amused by her joke.

Then the camera cuts to Gwen for the first time -

Suddenly she's like 'actually can we hurry this up?' - What's the rush, Gwen? We JUST got here, girl.

Miles doesn't respond to Gwen, instead continuing to talk to Margo.

Margo explains her situation to Miles, showing him a glimpse of her back home (she didn't have to do that, but she did which was sweet.)

Miles expresses sympathy to Margo. And when we see him, look at Gwen's face:

In this frame, the Go-Home Machine isn't active yet, Gwen is looking at Miles here, and she looks upset.

Girl, all they did was say what's up and explain why she's glowing blue. But, we do see their Spider-senses - which begs the question: Can other Spider-people sense when other Spider-people are sensing something even if they aren't sensing it themselves?

Or basically: Did Gwen know their Spider-senses were going off upon meeting? Maybe so.

But Gwen already seems uncomfortable with their interactions, directly from the beginning.

This doesn't last for long - When the Go-Home Machine is activated, Gwen looks noticeably more happy.

[hiiiiiiiii, Hobie :3]

Now that their interaction is over, Gwen is a lot more at ease. Once Miles and Hobie start discussing the machine at what it does, the expression fades.

It's only when Miles and Margo get close to each other or look each other in the eye that the behavior returns.

UMMMMMMM - Is that some HATERATION???? IN THIS DANCERY????

You pressed and distressed cause my man Miles got RIZZ? Cause he was feeling her? Because Margo is 3008 and you're so 2000-and-late? Hm.

I rest my case.

In short - Margo and Miles is cute or whatever I be shipping it tho. Gwen is clearly being a hater from minute uno. And she needs to collect herself because God don't like ugly.

Miles and Gwen are cute too tho I mean that, but sis this is messy

Anyway here's a photo of Hobie. You're welcome for the photo of Hobie.

Bye.

#if you don't like it argue with the wall #Margo Kess #Gwen Stacy #Miles Morales #ATSV #across the spiderverse #across the spider verse #atsv analysis #spiderman #spider-man #spider gwen #spidergwen #spider byte #cyberflower

[the-s1lly-corner]

A bit of a specific idea, but I had a platonic idea for all of the characters in the Amazing Digital Circus—

Maybe all of them with a Wally Darling-like Reader? An example of such being Reader also speaking in a monotone voice that is both a little unsettling yet friendly at the same time, always making eye contact and never looking away, being able to eat things by blinking, being a lot more aware than they seem, greeting people individually anytime they enter a room, etc etc.

TADC cast x wally darling type! Reader !

Still stuck on mobile so this post may be a little short and whacky <\3 + I'll be relying on this ask for wallys personality since I cant open other tabs without risking deleting my progress on this <\3 + I've never touched welcome home 😭😭

CAINE:

Honestly, I don't know anything about welcome home as stated above, but I think Caine would have a lot of the same habits; namely the eye contact and I can also see him doing the blink eating...

The only difference is that hes way high energy

I think he would think that you're just a silly lil fella, an interesting little thang, wants to study you under a microscope..

Thinks its endearing how you greet everyone personally.. loves when you do it to him since it makes him feel special n appreciated

POMNI:

Overall pomni is going to need a lot of time to get used to the weirdness of the circus, and this applies to getting over the unnerving feeling she gets around you

Probably becomes speechless and does the face when you blink-eat

You know...

Just stares at where the food item once was... how did you do that...? What are you going to consume next? Why are you looking her in the eye like that?

..oh you're just telling her you enjoyed the snack you've brought

JAX:

As per usual I'm writing these all out of order, and I happen to be writing jax after I did zooble

I think jax wouldnt just think you're unsettling, I think he would think you're creepy

Now does he think you're a threat? Personally I don't think he would go as far as to classify you as such

Watches in horror as you blink and consume his sour gummy candies

Okay now this is war

You guys sometimes have unspoken staring contests, you usually tend to win them

Actually now that he thinks about it you dont seem to blink outside of eating...

RAGATHA:

"Oh, you're just a quirky lil fella!" Pretty much

Always thanks you when you greet her, she makes it a habit to greet you back when you enter a room

Tends to give you your favorite snacks, I think, but I think this can pass as a general hc rather than being specific to this post !

Little put off by the eye contact but does not turn away or show any discomfort; is able to push through it pretty well !

KINGER:

Okay so I know I mentioned some other characters being creeped out by the eye contact but I think kinger would be the most put off, asides gangle

But also I can totally see kinger having a staring problem; be it because hes lost in his thought and happens to be staring or some other thing

Accidental staring contests between you two/j

Feels like a real king when you personally greet him, probably bows a little and does a lil gesture with his hands before returning the greeting

Similar reaction as pomni when you blink-eat

Where did the food go??????

ZOOBLE:

I must admit, I think zooble would find you creepy, too <\3, or at least a little unsettling.. like sure they wont be mean to you unlike SOMEONE but they're a little put off by your odd behaviors

Though they would get accustomed to it in time, I think, especially since I have a whole "zooble ultimately doesnt care much about what's going as a means to cope w/ the digital circus as well as that just being their personality"

Does not like the eye contact, though; zooble seems like the type who wouldnt like eye contact... maybe I'm self projecting, though...

The eye contact definitely is what fed into the unsettling factor for them..

GANGLE:

The eye contact makes her so so nervous, she doesnt really have eyes the same way everyone else does but it still... makes her feel off

Similar to Caine she does feel nice when you greet her.. yes she knows out do it for everyone, but that doesnt dismiss the nice feeling she gets that someone is. Well being nice to her...

Shed like your voice, I think, oddly soothing and it's not too bold and out there.. not overwhelming, you know?

Not many ideas for gangle today <\3

#tadc x reader #the amazing digital circus x reader #digital circus x reader #caine x reader #pomni x reader #jax x reader #ragatha x reader #kinger x reader #zooble x reader #gangle x reader

[aealzx]

Fishing his cell phone from its pocket wedged under his shell, Raphael hit the speed dial for Mikey. The easiest way to check on him was just to call him after all. Especially since they had two additional bases now that he and Leo were taking turns manning for this rotation. That explained why Leo had been caught since the other three weren’t with him. But it didn’t explain why their alarms hadn’t been tripped. Unless Leo had been outside the base on patrol, like he sometimes did when he was restless.

Okay Mikey that’s five rings, pick up the phone-

“You’re speaking to the greatest turtle of all time, hero of the realms, Nexus Champion, Michael Angelo Spliterson.”

For once Mikey’s voice was a welcomed relief instead of a complete annoyance, and Raphael found himself smirking instead of wanting to throttle him. “I’m gonna beat you for that, bozo,” Raphael responded, more on reflex than an actual threat.

“Awww, but Raphy buddy, you’d actually have to win against me for once to do that,” Mikey shot back. Harmless banter at this point. Despite the hundreds of sparring matches they’d gotten into, Raphael still hadn’t managed to win against Mikey even once. But they had saved each other's lives often enough it no longer truly mattered.

“Well get over here then.”

“Uh, I’ll pass,” Mikey declined quickly. “Got the ole second base to watch over y’know. Can’t leave her on her own. What would Don say if I just abandon-”

“I mean it Mikey. Get over here, Leo’s been caught by Augustine,” Raphael interrupted, ton growing completely serious now.

“HUH-?!” Mikey’s outburst cracked over the speaker and made Raphael pull the phone away from his ear. “Whadda you-?? Start with that you-! I’ll be right there!”

The call ended with a beep before Raphael could give a retort, but he just sighed and lowered the phone to tap a different speed dial. They would need their usual backup for this one, and he also had some words to get out. Thankfully this time his call was answered on the second ring.

“Yo Raph, what’s up? Miss me that much?”

Casey. The one that had been with Leo on base sitting duty that night. “Say goodbye to your son, then get back to home base asap. I’m gonna kill you for losing my brother,” Raphael growled simply, then took his turn to end the call without a goodbye. It would be better to talk to both Mikey and Casey at the same time, in person.

Once both people were contacted Raphael slipped his phone back into its place and approached Don, raising a brow as he was mildly impressed once again by how fast his genius of a brother was manipulating his precious computer. Touch screens and a custom keyboard really sped up his process, as did state of the art equipment. Coming to stand at his shoulder, Raphael remained quiet, knowing Don would speak when he formulated his thoughts enough around what he’d found.

Sure enough, it was only minutes of watching screens flashing by incomprehensibly that Don started his report. “Interesting. I ran an analysis for interdimensional breeches, and there’s a significant outlier from the usual comings and goings of people like the Daimyo and the others we’re used to visiting.”

“So…….,” Raphael started, a request for Don to pause and let him catch up with his own thoughts. “Augustine succeeded in creating an interdimensional machine despite us having stolen what she needed for it?”

“Yes…. and no,” Don confirmed and denied. “It wasn’t stable. The bridge between dimensions was quick, and horribly uncalculated. Like a misfire from trying to modify a weapon. I think she was trying something else, and got more than she bargained for.”

“An accident,” Raphael reworded simply, then sighed. “Great. And we still don’t have enough evidence to get her locked up?”

“Not yet. But this might be a tipping point once we get it solved,” Don responded with a mirthless chuckle. If only it were that simple. Augustine was eccentric, and unstable, but apparently still too valuable for the EPF to be willing to let her go. “I’ve got a good guess where she’s hiding out now. Three of the signatures converge at one point, including the one that matches the readings I’ve remotely pulled from our third outpost. And the location is part of our list of potentials.”

“...Texas? Really?” Raphael complained, raising a brow when the location was singled out on the display.

“Yep. Texas.” Don nodded, then caught sight of an entry register on another screen and turned to meet the one who’d arrived.

“Guys! You gotta help me- I think Leo’s gone missing! You gotta help me find him.” Casey’s arrival to the home lair was announced via a stomping run as he shouted his distress, one of Leo’s swords in his hands. “He went off to do a patrol like he does, but then he didn’t come back, and then I went looking for him to come back here, but all I found was his sword thing, and he never leaves that laying around. I think he got snatched! Do you have a tracker or something on him?”

As Casey started to explain his side of the story, Raphael could only fold his arms as both he and Don stared blankly at their friend. It may have seemed like a weird ploy with ulterior motives, but after having spent so many years with the man they both knew that Casey wasn’t faking anything. He just apparently didn’t have two dots connected in his mind just yet.

“....Did you figure that all out before or after I called you?” Raphael asked simply, continuing to give Casey a dry look.

“What? Uhhhhh…… After-.... Ohhhhh,” Casey seemed confused at the apparent unrelated question. But Don and Raphael could swear they could see the dots in Casey’s mind clicking together as he remembered what Raphael had called about in the first place. “You guys already know. Heheh. Uhm….. So where we going?”

Don could only chuckle as Casey sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Before he could answer Casey the room gained another body as Mikey came dashing in. “I’m here! Let’s go! Bags are packed! Are we flying or driving?” Mikey rushed, stopping to jog in place once he reached the landing the rest were on.

“Hold on, bro. We haven’t even gone over a plan yet,” Raphael chastised, though he couldn’t hold the amusement from his tone.

“You can debrief me on the plane. Or truck. Whichever. Time’s a wasting,” Mikey continued, still jogging in place. “Did you get to talk to him? Or get a picture? Bad guys love sending kidnapping pictures. Does he look- Oh!”

At the mention of a picture Don clicked a few keystrokes to change the view of the monitors back to the video they had received. Catching sight of it, Mikey abruptly stopped moving, turning to gape at the picture. “Woah….. Ohhhh no, the crazy lady grabbed some other poor mutant ninja turtles inste- wait- is that ME? Mini me? He’s so small. But the orange headband is my thing- ohhhhh we didn’t stop her, did we.”

Raph had to snort at Mikey’s reaction to seeing the other two mutant turtles that had been kidnapped along with their brother. Only then did he start moving to comply with Mikey’s earlier prompting to get going. “Accidental cross dimension kidnapping. Is what it looks like anyway. We won’t know for sure until we ask their names once we rescue them.”

“Alriiiight. Time to finally bash this lady’s head!” Casey cheered, rotating his arm with a fist and moving to follow Raph.

“Ah ah. Not you. People with kids under the age of ten are strictly on backup duty, remember? You stay here and keep an eye on April… and Master Splinter since I’m assuming he’ll be on babysitting duty again. Keep them and Junior out of trouble, alright?” Raphael countered, whipping around to poke Casey in the chest and push him back.

“Awwwww maaann. Really? That applies even for rescue missions?” Casey whined, though he didn’t seem too upset about it. He did get to stay with April and their son after all.

“It applies for all missions. Especially breaking into government bases,” Don confirmed, slinging his prepacked backpack over his shoulders. “I’ve already messaged April, she and Leatherhead will meet you here and infiltrate their systems to give us support. Make sure Master Splinter gets to bed on time too, will you?”

“Guhhhhh, finnnee. Just punch someone good for me, alright?” Casey relented, making a show of throwing his head back in a pout. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of your dad too. Just don’t take too long.”

“We’ll be back before you know it,” Raphael assured. “You better not eat all the nachos,” he added as a warning, pointing a finger at Casey as he and the others left the raised terrace.

“Stealth plane Mikey. We’re headed to Texas,” Don directed, taking the lead to their underground hangar.

“Texas?” Mikey repeated, pausing verbally to consider a thought. “You think we can grab any kolaches while we're there?”

___________________

Previous Next (image of bloody mouth)

___________________

03 Mikey is just fine X'D He's just at a different, smaller base.

by the way, the 03 boys are in their 30s for this, if it wasn't apparent from them being scarred up and having more armor and stuff X'D

#my art #tmnt 2003 #rottmnt 2003 crossover #cross dimension kidnapping #tmnt crossover #03 Mikey #03 Raph #i posted this to the wrong blog at first #hahaha X'D derp #long post #writing

[writeforfandoms]

Welcome to New York 3

Find the series masterlist

We’ve got a POV switch this chapter! Time to see what Miguel is thinking. Or, in which his friends pester the hell out of him. 

Warnings: Swearing, Miguel is Done with Everyone, Mayday being cute, everybody just terrorizes Miguel. 

Eventual Miguel O’Hara x f!reader

Word count: 1.8k

Miguel was a busy man. Keeping the multiverse intact was not easy, no matter how much help he had. There were anomalies to keep track of and hunt down, Spider-people to corral, and his own world's problems to deal with. 

In short, he did not have time for this shit. 

"She wasn't a threat," Peter B. Parker, bane of Miguel's existence and continuous pain in his ass, said. "Mayday liked her!" 

"Your baby is not an accurate judge of character," Miguel ground out, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

"Sure she is, she knows good people," Peter continued, aforementioned baby giggling from her spot against Peter's chest. "She wouldn't go to just anyone!"

"What is your point?" Miguel asked, turning away from Peter and back to his screens. He still needed reports from the last mission, and the list of anomalies waiting to be sent home was getting longer. Which meant they were behind on paperwork. (Well. Digital paperwork, but even so.) 

“My point is that you don’t have to be so suspicious of her.” Peter shrugged. “Might help your blood pressure to be less paranoid.”

“My blood pressure is fine.” Miguel flicked through another screen, frowning briefly. “Lyla, why hasn’t this report been filed with the rest?”

“I’m only doing about a hundred other things,” Lyla said, popping up reclining in an invisible seat. She pushed her glasses a little further up her nose, looking supremely unimpressed. “If you want the reports done I’ll have to stop some other process.”

Miguel clenched his jaw. “Seriously?”

“Yup.” She popped the p, just to be annoying. Miguel had not programmed her to be this annoying. He had no idea where that came from. 

“And Spider-Byte?” 

“Busy.” Lyla shrugged. “She’s got stuff on her plate.” 

Miguel dropped his head. Of course. Hundreds, thousands, of Spider-people, and it was like herding cats - unless there was a clear threat, there was a lot of doing whatever they wanted. 

“You do have some other options.”

Miguel picked his head up to look at Lyla. “No.”

“Shouldn’t you at least listen?” Peter piped up. “What’s your idea, Lyla?”

“Weeeeeeell.” Lyla glitched out to reappear next to Peter, cheshire grin in place. “We do know someone who is really good at organizing things, and researching, and put together a beautifully organized timeline and comparison chart on her own free time.”

“No,” Miguel said, though he felt like nobody was listening to him. (Which was true - Lyla and Peter both ignored him.) 

“Wow, sounds like a great potential employee!” Peter’s grin was amused. “You should do something about that, Miguel.”

Miguel groaned softly. He was not going to kill Peter. That would cause more problems than he wanted to deal with. “I’m not bringing her in.”

“Why not?” Peter shrugged. “Sounds like she’s got all the skills you need right now, and you won’t have to try to corral anyone else into doing it. Frees up Lyla’s time, helps everyone in the long run.”

“She’s not one of us.” 

“And? You’ve okayed jobs for three other non-Spiders in the caf.” 

Dammit, Miguel had forgotten about that. He’d known that was a dangerous precedent to set. 

But he got lucky - Lyla switched back to actually working. 

“Looks like an anomaly popped up on Earth-5119,” she reported. 

“I’m on it.” At this point, jumping through an interdimensional portal to avoid this problem seemed like a great idea. 

“This isn’t over!” Peter yelled, even as Miguel dived into the portal. 

Miguel had three days of peace from that particular argument. Not that it was an argument. Because his mind was made up. 

“Heard something interesting today.”

Miguel grunted, glancing back at Jess, which was close enough to admitting he was paying attention. 

“Margo told me she had a look through the filing system. Apparently it’s in rough shape.” Jess leaned one hip against his desk, arms crossed loosely over her chest. 

Miguel grunted. Yeah, he knew that. Lyla knew that. This was not news, nor was it interesting. 

“Apparently it’s keeping several anomalies from being sent home.”

“And?” Miguel tried not to snap. He did. But he was busy and this was not news. 

“She wants help, since she’s got other things to do too.”

Miguel stopped. Turning slowly to face Jess, he narrowed his eyes at her. But she was immune, holding his stare easily, one eyebrow quirked. “Which one put you up to this?”

“Nobody did. Margo asked for help, that’s all.” Her smirk was all amusement, though. “And I asked Lyla for suggestions.”

One hand lifted and pinched the bridge of his nose with a deep sigh. He knew where this was going. “The answer is no.” 

“You didn’t even let me get it out.”

“The answer is still no.”

“Miguel.” 

He looked away first, swearing under his breath. Jess had a very effective disappointed parent voice, he was quite sure it would come in handy with her little one on the way. “What?” 

“I know you have a thing about non-Spiders in the building,” she started, and then paused a moment. “Well. In this part of the building.”

He scoffed. She was not wrong, but he wasn’t going to admit that.

“But we could use the help,” Jess continued, unphased by his attitude. “You and I both know that trying to get one of us to do all that work is not gonna happen.”

Miguel made a face. He did not want to admit she was right, but, well… Margo was unwitting proof of that. And the thought of trying to make any of the Parkers do something like this? It would never get done. 

“Bringing her in would guarantee things would get tagged correctly,” Jess continued, clearly trying to sway him. “In a timely manner, even.” 

“I don’t trust her.” Miguel shifted his weight, planting his hands on his hips. 

“So set someone to watch her for a week.” Jess shrugged. “Have you even checked in on her since you saw her?” 

No. No he hadn’t. Lyla was supposed to let him know if anything happened, since she had access to cameras across the city. 

“Look, if you’re that worried about her, set someone to watch her for a week,” Jess offered, waving one hand while the other propped on her hip. “Make it a training exercise for a few recruits.” 

It wasn’t a bad suggestion, actually. And he hated that he was considering it, that he was even thinking of bringing you into this. You were not to be trusted. There was no way you had really just gathered all that information just because you could. 

But Jess was right - the work did need to get done. 

“I’ll think about it.” A little white lie. He had thought about it. 

Jess narrowed her eyes at him a little before she nodded once. “Go get something to eat,” she threw back at him as she turned away. “You’re looking peckish.” 

Miguel scoffed to himself. He was not! Besides, he had work to do still. 

Since nobody else was going to work on getting the information filed and tagged correctly, he’d just do it himself. 

He lasted less than a week. Six days of going through the information and tagging it in between the thousand other things he had to do. His temper, always short, grew even shorter, until he actually threw an empanada at Peter B. Parker. (It was one of the rare times he did not have Mayday with him, because Miguel never would have thrown anything even close to Mayday.) 

“Is this a bad time?” Jess asked dryly, looking at the smear of empanada on the wall. 

“What do you want.” Miguel couldn’t even make it a question, voice flat. 

“Got an SOS from Earth-10436, two anomalies slipped through there.”

Miguel didn’t react for a moment. Two anomalies. “Peter, you’re with me. Get Spider-Noir, too.” His mask materialized around his head. 

As soon as Peter was gone, Miguel took a moment to look at Jess. 

“You still serious about that side project?”

To her credit, Jess caught on immediately. “Sure am.”

“Fine. You’re in charge. Two week watch, minimum. I want a full report at the end of it.” He narrowed his eyes at her, aware the motion transferred through the mask.

“I’ll take care of it.” Jess turned and sauntered out, subtly smug in her way. 

Miguel wanted to be mad that he’d given in, but mostly he was just tired. One deep breath and he took off. Time to go take care of some anomalies. 

He could admit, to himself, much later, that maybe they needed the help. Him trying to do it all wasn’t sustainable (as evidenced by the healing gash in his side where he’d gotten careless). And if, as he suspected, you were not trustworthy, he’d simply find someone for the job. 

Not that he’d admit as much to Lyla, not unless he really needed to. 

Allowing himself to groan as he collapsed into bed, Miguel starfished out. If only the multiverse would stop misplacing people and cooperate. If only. 

Two weeks passed in a blur. Two new Spider-people were brought in. Canon continued to be maintained in all universes. 

In other words, things continued about as smoothly as could be expected. Something that Miguel never took for granted, considering the absolute chaos that life could be. 

That didn’t mean he was exactly pleased when Jess sent him her report. Lyla had even helpfully attached the pictures from the surveillance. 

Jess had nothing but good things to say. Which would be suspicious, but Miguel knew Jess. She wouldn’t sugarcoat things, wouldn’t lie to him. Not about this. 

“Lyla.”

“Yeah?” The AI appeared in a flash of yellow, watching him. 

“I need an employment contract.” Miguel clenched his jaw, half-hating that he was doing this. But. If it would help them, it would be worth it.

“I’m sorry, you need what?” Lyla grinned, buffing her nails. 

“An employment contract.” Miguel knew what was coming before she even said it. 

“What’s the magic word?” Lyla looked up at him from behind her heart-shaped glasses, mischief clear in the curve of her smile.

“...Please draw up an employment contract.” Miguel tried not to sound too angry, because she’d just make him repeat it.

“Yeah, already done.” Lyla waved one hand, pulling up the contract on the nearest pad. “Have fun reading!” 

Sometimes (often times) that little AI was more trouble than she was worth. At least, that’s what Miguel told himself as he sat down to read through the contract.

The sooner he got this taken care of, the better.

#welcome to new york #miguel o'hara x reader #f!reader

[c-nstantine]

A Trust Worthy Intruder

Description: Princess Y/N of Wakanda occasionally takes walks on the beach at night. What happens when she meets a stranger.

Warnings:None, spoilers for Wakanda Forever

Word Count: 0.9k

Y/N found comfort under the stars by the river. Being a princess often felt suffocating under the confines of the palace and with T'Challa's passing there was a hole left in everyone's heart. So almost every night Y/N snuck out of the palace, somehow avoiding the Dora Milaje, to sit by the river and listen to her thoughts.

As she sat on the sand and pondered, she noticed ripples in the water. the ripples soon turned into a man who walked onto the sandy beach. The moonlight reflected off of his tanned skin as he stood in front of Y/N. He was covered in jewelry and vibranium, which made no sense to Y/N. All of the stories she was told mentioned that there were no other places on Earth with vibranium.

"How did you get here? Who are you?" She asked backing away in fright. She had forgotten her weapons in the palace, she could hear Okoye's voice patronizing her for not bringing a spear out of the palace.

"I have many names. My people call me  K'uk'ulkan but those who fear me call me Namor," He spoke looking into Y/N's eyes. First the first time in a long time she felt seen by a person who liked her for being a princess or pitied her as a grieving sister. She noticed the wings on his feet and how they flutter subtly as he walked towards her.

"Do I have a reason to fear you?" Y/N asked standing face-to-face with the strange intruder. The moment his brown eyes met hers, the world seemed to stop.

"I do not believe so," Namor responded. Y/N smiled and held out her hand. He was enamored by her beauty. Even in the darkness, her features stood out. Her locs framed her face gently as the moon kissed her skin.

"K'uk'ulkan, it is. Where are you from?" Y/N was still weary of the stranger, but at least she had his name now. He smiled at her as he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.  Y/N breath was caught at the gesture.

"A place tucked beneath the ocean where a man can never touch it," He took a seat in the sand while explaining and describing his home to her. He didn't know why he was talking so openly about Talokan to a stranger but there was something that was welcoming about her. Something that he had not expected of the surface world, but something that he welcomed.

"Sounds interesting," Y/N could only imagine an entire city underwater. It sounded remarkable and she was sure it was more impressive in person. She did wonder how he got through the security of Wakanda. She also could not decide if he was a threat or not. Perhaps, he was just a man.

"More interesting than a country that just revealed how technologically advanced it was a few years ago?" Y/N nudged Namor for his comment. He chuckled slightly. For a few moments, a comfortable silence fell over them. There is something Namor found peaceful about his surroundings. He had spent so much of his life in water and with hatred of the surface world, he never imagined he'd find peace on its shores.

" It is getting late, I must go. Will you be here tomorrow?" Y/N said once she finally realized how late it had gotten. Sneaking past the royal guards without alerting her mother would be a pain this time of night.

"Yes, but do not tell anyone of my time here," Namor helped Y/N off of the sand and kissed her hand once more. When his lips met her hand, his eyes looked directly into hers. Her face felt as if it was set on a flame. If she hadn't been so distracted by his face, she might have noticed how suspicious that sounded.

"Until then," Y/N spoke before ducking into the Wakandan brush, and Namor disappeared into the water.

-

"What has you giddy, my child?" Her mother asked as they walked to Shuri's lab. Y/N's eyes had widened, she hadn't realized that she had been acting 'giddy'.

"Maybe it is related to where she disappeared last night," Okoye offered with a smirk playing on her lips. Y/N craned her neck in disbelief that Okoye would out her unprompted.

"Why is this the first I am hearing of this?" Queen Ramonda asked while looking at her eldest daughter. There was no way possible that Y/N could even begin to lie to her mother, even with one pulling at her tongue.

"Is that Shuri I hear?" Y/N spoke before attempting to scurry off her sister's laboratory.

"Ah, I think you should tell me more about these late-night excursions," Her mother's tone signaled not to be played with and the quirked eyebrow suggested that Y/N should come up with something to say quickly.

"I occasionally go out for walks at night," It wasn't a lie but it was not why Y/N  was so happy this morning. It was a mystery how Namor got passed the Wakandan barriers but it was one Y/N had no interest in solving. In her mind, if he wanted to harm Wakanda, he would've killed her by now. If she were to tell her mother of his existence and how she spoke with him, it would cause an international incident.

"And is that it?" There is something about mothers who manage to know when their child is not being completely truthful. However, Y/N was lucky her mother did not question it any further.

"Yes, mama," Y/N responded nodding carefully.

#namor #namor of talokan #namor x reader #namor x black reader #namor x black!reader #namor x wakanda reader #namor x y/n #kukulkan #kukulkan x reader #x black reader #marvel #wakanda forever #c-nstantine

[blackjackkent]

"I never thought I'd say this, but I need your advice."

Any BG3 character of your choice to Minsc, just for fun, haha

(Sentence starter meme)

Ahhhh this was fun. :D I'm not entirely sure this turned out my best work, but I do love Minsc muchly and it was definitely fun to bounce two characters off each other that I don't normally. ^_^

TY for the prompt!

---

"I never thought I would say this. But I would welcome your advice."

Minsc looks up as a lithe, stringy shadow falls across the light from the campfire. The interruption is unexpected but not surprising; he has been deep in a conversation with Boo, and he finds quite often that those around him see fit to interrupt such conversations as if they were not happening. For a time it bothered him, but Boo has reassured him that there is no offense to be taken. Boo will always be there, after all; all others in Minsc’s life ebb and flow with the tides of victory and tragedy.

So he tucks the hamster with practiced ease into his pocket and smiles genially at the githyanki warrior standing outside his tent. “Then it you shall have! What may Minsc of Rashemen do for Lae’zel of Creche K’liir?”

Lae’zel shifts uneasily from foot to foot. Her cat’s-pupil eyes are narrowed as if in wariness, though Minsc cannot fathom why. He has fought many gith in their raids upon his homeland, but he has never - that he can recall - shown threat to Lae’zel here in Baldur’s Gate.

“What troubles you?” he asks, his tone lowering in volume slightly. “If it has a butt that may be kicked, Minsc and Boo shall remove it from your sight!”

“Chk.” The young warrior flinches defensively. “You suggest I cannot fight my own battles?”

“By no means!” Minsc smiles widely. “Minsc has seen too many githyanki blades piercing unwary bellies to believe so! But Minsc and Boo never saw a righteous battle to which we could not add a blow in service. You have only to point the way.”

“It is not battle for which I require you, berserker,” she says, staring with distinct interest at the cobblestone next to his boot.

He tips his head slowly to one side. “For what, then?” he asks agreeably.

There’s a short pause. “You are from Rashemen,” Lae’zel says quietly. “You have traveled far from the place you would call home. You have seen loss as much as you have seen victory. Yet you thrive among strangers and show no fear of failure or of mockery. You are… joyful.”

Minsc nods vigorously. “All of these things are true, yes!”

A muscle works sharply in Lae’zel’s jaw. “I would know by what secret you manage it,” she says gruffly, and drops into a sitting position opposite him in a single motion, her legs crossed. “For I am also far from home. And each day I feel farther still.”

“Ahhh… I can understand this.” Minsc’s smile fades and he nods gravely. “However far Minsc has traveled from Rashemen, Lae’zel has surely traveled farther from the rocks of wildspace.”

“Yes.” 

He considers her for a moment thoughtfully. “But what tongue would dare to mock you? Minsc has seen Lae’zel fight. The ferocity of at least ten hamsters. No, twenty!”

In spite of herself, Lae’zel’s lips twitch with a flash of amusement. “This is a compliment, among the Rashemaar?”

“It is a fact only,” Minsc says gravely. “Boo confirms it.”

“Indeed.” She does not fidget, but Minsc can tell by her intense stillness that she would like to, and she still does not quite meet his eyes. “There is much in which I have failed.” She admits it flatly, like a soldier at attention reciting a patrol report. “My former goddess seeks my head. I once thought to ride a red dragon through the Astral, and instead I crawl upon Toril’s face like a broken beast.” A slight pause. “And we seek a monster even among ghaik, the creature of ultimate nightmare, my people’s greatest enemy. We hunt ghaik at the expense of all other endeavors, yet in my first hunt I shamed myself twice over in failure and capture. Meanwhile, the people of this realm cannot comprehend true githyanki majesty; they look upon me and see a brute animal, alien and vicious.”

Her lips draw in a tight line. “To fear such things is shameful. It serves no purpose. Ch’ka m’vakoth sta’leth - ‘where faith goes, fear stands aside.’ But my faith falters, and so I feel it. I know my own weakness, my own strangeness in this place. So I would know your secret, istik, that you stand among strangers, and bear the worm’s curse and the mocking of weaker folk, and laugh.”

Minsc clicks his tongue thoughtfully, and within his pocket Boo gives a loud squeak of dismay. Neither of them knows Lae'zel very well - and indeed this is probably why she speaks with such candor to him - but Boo's endless compassion is roused on the gith's behalf, and Minsc shares it. She is young; she does not yet know how to carry all the conflicting feelings within her, while Minsc is an old hand at the maelstrom. 

He thinks for quite a long time in silence before he decides how to answer. Lae’zel waits in patient stillness, like a spring coiled back on itself, unsprung. Her eyes glint in the flickering firelight. 

“Minsc has often been told,” Minsc says gravely after a while, “that his mind is as full of holes as the cheese within his pack. But his eyes have no holes and and his ears only two, and they see and hear much. And true it is that at times there is mocking at Minsc’s expense. But Minsc has found it is not all alike.”

He begins to tick off on his fingers. “There is the mocking that is true and right, where Minsc has failed. In these things Minsc mocks himself as well - to have fallen thrall to the worm and seen his mind made not his own. To have seen friends fall while he could not save them. These are fearful matters, and as when Boo encounters a hungry cat on a dark night, there is no shame in feeling all the fur stand up. In these things, Minsc thinks there are matters to be learned within the story of his failure, and so he sifts about for those good bits among the rotten and counts them a blessing.”

He tips his head pensively to one side. “Then there is the mocking of evil tongues. Those who taunt so as to distract Minsc’s boot from their buttocks.” His lips curl in a tight, feral smile. “These bear no thinking of at all, except for the thinking that chooses where my blade might slice them.” 

He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and the smile fades again. “Then there is the mocking which is foolish, cruelty without cause. Those who decry Boo as no more than a common hamster, and Minsc as a mad mongrel to be kicked about. This is the sort you mean, I think.” He waits for her to nod before he goes on. “Minsc has traveled many leagues from Rashemen, and in that time he has learned much. And one thing he has learned is that not all those who speak are worthy of the hearing. So Minsc stays among those who would value him, and kicks off those who would not as he would kick dust from his boot.”

“A thing easily said and less easily done,” Lae’zel says bitterly. “In K’liir, one is not afforded such choice. The eyes of judgment are always watching, and they suffer no failure.”

“But we are not in K’liir,” Minsc says brightly. “And so Lae’zel may choose which of her failings are worthy of scorn, and need not suffer the opinions of rude strangers whose tongues would prattle foolishness. Or - if they are not strangers, she will tell Minsc, and Minsc and Boo will see to it the rudeness is well thrashed out of itself.”

She says nothing for a long moment, but he can see the wiry, tight muscle of her shoulders start to relax slowly. “Hardly spoken like a sage,” she murmurs dryly. “And yet well-spoken in its own way.” 

She lets out a slow, heavy breath. “In truth it is not any current mockery that troubles me,” she adds in an undertone, “but the fear of it in the future. Of being found wanting, when all is said and done, by those whose opinions mean most. Among the githyanki, the weak are culled out, dishonored, sometimes killed. I would not…” 

She trails off and makes a noise of frustration as she struggles to find the words that express what is in her mind. “My people and my goddess are behind me now, and that is a shame I carry, but there are others I would still not wish to fail.”

Minsc nods. “Your people hone themselves to a sharp point, and perhaps their cruelty is worth its cost where they travel among the stars,” he says. “But where we stand upon the ground, there is no call for such culling. If it brings you comfort, you may look upon Jaheira - for she has found Minsc wanting many a time, and has told him so in full voice, but always with friendship, and always remaining by his side.”

Lae’zel lifts her head and looks at him fully for the first time, and chews the inside of her cheek thoughtfully. This, it seems, might be a new concept to her - that her failure could be censured and forgiven in the same breath. “That is some comfort, yes,” she says, with uncharacteristic softness. “I thank you.”

“No thanks is necessary,” Minsc booms cheerfully. There’s another soft squeak from his pocket, and he nods. “Only Boo asks that should you ever travel again into the skies, that you keep your eyes widened in search of another such as he. Surely you, of all our comrades, might have heard tell of other such miniature giant space hamsters, and Boo has sought a mate for many a long year.”

Lae’zel actually laughs softly. “You may tell your hamster I have heard no such tales - but in return for your counsel I shall report any I might find, and we shall consider it an even trade.”

#astreamofstars #ask meme #bg3 drabble #bg3 fic #bg3 fanfic #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #lae'zel #minsc #lae'zel & minsc #hope you like! ^_^ ty for the ask

[silver-ink-iron-words]

Hey there, my hiatus is over

I realize I promised to have this up a couple weeks ago, but hey at least I'm here now

Hope you all like it. And thank you so much for these messages, they really helped motivate me in the periods where I was struggling to write

----

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7

A Bird in the Hand, Part 8

The civilian hobbled about the kitchen in full view of the windows, collecting cardamoms, cloves, tea leaves, ginger – before dumping them into the pot to brew. The sight was peaceful, soothing, domestic.

The assassin raised his gun and took aim.  

“[Civilian]!” The villain burst into the room grinning from ear to ear. The assassin’s aim swerved, and he halted his momentum just before firing the gun. 

“Welcome home, darling,” the civilian said, holding out a cup of tea for the villain. 

The villain took the cup and placed it on the counter, instead taking the civilian into their arms. “God it’s been a day. The only thing that kept me going was the thought of seeing you.”

The assassin paused. The villain wasn’t supposed to be home yet. He’d lost his clean line of sight on the civilian.  

The villain was too strong to kill – their shadows healed them at lightning speed. But targeting the civilian? What a perfect way to strike the Achilles Heel of the villain’s entire operation. 

The assassin tilted his head, and watched the pair. The villain held the civilian securely, the two of them practically melting into each other. The civilian sang softly, and they both floated as a single unit in the gentle river of a melody. 

The assassin once again had a clear shot on the civilian. He considered taking it despite the risk, just on the mere principle of seeing two people so happily in love while his home city burned. 

But he paused. He thought he’d caught a detail, a little movement. And while it was possible he was projecting, years of bitter work in this business had taught him to trust his instincts. 

When the villain first walked through the door, the assassin could’ve sworn he saw the civilian flinch.  

--- 

“What are you getting out of this?” the assassin asked. 

To the civilian’s credit, they didn’t scream. The assassin could see them tense, coiled and ready for a mad dash back to the house. But at least they didn’t scream. 

The assassin jumped down from the tree, close enough to be a threat to the civilian but far enough still to remain out of the sight of any henchmen. He noted the civilian’s muddy gloves, their kneeling posture, the tall yellow flowers they’d been carefully pruning piled next to them in the grass. 

“Like to garden?” the assassin said. 

“Who are you?” 

The assassin was disappointed, a little bit. His targets – the ones he actually spoke to – always asked the mundane questions. They were never perceptive enough to understand that all the “why”s and “how”s and “where did you come from”s would go unanswered. He’d sort of hoped that someone like the civilian would be different. 

“I’m someone with an interest in saving lives,” he said “Now, since I like you, I'll ask again. What are you getting out of this?”  

Evidently, the civilian was the expressive type. Their eyes flicked to their trowel, then the surrounding gardens, and lastly to the house some hundred meters away, never realizing how each movement of their retinas projected their thoughts to the assassin.  

“I’m not sure what you mean,” they said finally. 

The assassin leaned against the tree. It was a deceptive stance in which he looked relaxed and unthreatening, but could spring into action at a hair-breadth’s notice. 

“One day, [Hero] is at the top of their game," he began. "The next day, main street is nothing but craters. And then some two-bit villain that no one remembers suddenly becomes god of the city." He crouched down to meet the civilian’s gaze. "Makes you wonder if there isn't a puppeteer somewhere, holding strings."

The civilian blinked. “Did you come up with that on your own, or is that the commonly held belief about me?"

“Are you saying you didn’t shack up with [Villain] willfully?” 

The look of revulsion that crossed the civilian’s face said it all. The assassin’s grin widened. He loved being proven right. 

“Okay.” He stood up, dusting off his pants, and held his hand out to the civilian. “Let’s go.” 

The civilian glanced between the assassin’s hand and his face. “You can’t be serious.” 

“Didn’t you hear my bit about saving lives?” He reached for the civilian, but they lurched away. 

“Listen,” the civilian said. They slowly rose, their bad leg making it awkward. “You do not understand what is going on here. If I disappear, [Villain] will look for me.” 

“Most villains do,” the assassin agreed. “Feels nice to be wanted, don’t it?” He took a careful step towards the civilian, but again they moved back. 

“You’re not listening. [Villain] will kill you.” 

The assassin shrugged. He leaned forward a tiny bit more. 

“Help!” the civilian yelled. The two of them stared at each other for a moment, both equally surprised by the civilian's outburst. The civilian took in a breath. Then, louder, “Help please!” 

The assassin was gone long before the guards even entered the gardens. 

---

The civilian was a decent actor. The assassin had to give them that. 

The couple went about their evening routine like usual – a warm welcome home, dinner, an after-meal tea, and then finally cuddling. The villain’s head rested on the civilian’s chest and the civilian read a paperback, all while Sinatra played on an old record in the other room. The assassin might have even bought it, if the civilian had turned the page of their book once within the last forty-five minutes.

“I would like to discuss something,” the villain said, their eyes still closed.

The civilian’s expression twinged. “Hm?”

The villain opened their eyes, and adjusted so that they were looking the civilian in the face. “I love you. You know that, right?”

“Of course.”

“And do you love me too?”

“Of course.”

The villain smiled, and that almost seemed like it would be the end of it. But then their hand went to the civilian’s jaw, shadows emanating from their fingertips. “So then why did my henchmen see you talking with a stranger in the gardens this afternoon?”

The civilian’s eyes widened. “It’s not what you think.”

“Oh, I know what it is.” The villain’s shadows warped out like talons, and the civilian jerked back in pain.

“I don’t know who that person was. I wasn’t trying to leave.” The civilian’s voice was strained. “I love you too much to ever do that.”

“My dear, if only I could believe you.” The villain held the civilian down in their writhing. They leaned in until their faces were nearly touching. “What will you do to prove you are willing to stay?”

“Whatever you want. I – ” The shadows entered the civilian’s throat, choking them and cutting off their words. Tears sprang to the civilian’s eyes.

“Come now, love.” The villain lifted the civilian in their arms. “I need to show you what happens when you let your affections stray.”

And then, just before the villain reached the door, they stumbled. The movement was awkward and wobbly – one moment they were striding confidently across the room and the next their knees were on the ground. The civilian dropped to the floor with a yelp.

The villain grasped their head as though in pain. All their shadows had evaporated. "What? . . ."

“Holy fuck,” the civilian said, scrambling backwards. “Holy fuck it worked.”

The villain jerked their gaze up. “What did you do?”

The civilian burst out laughing.

"[Civilian]!" The villain tried to move forward but swooned, only just catching themself with their arms outstretched.

“Angel’s trumpet,” the civilian said, struggling to get their laughter under control. Their wild eyes went to the empty mugs on the table. “Brugmansia candida. Symptoms include difficulty with speech, delirium –” their gaze slid back to the villain, “– and paralysis. I’ve been told it also makes for a rather delicious tea.”

The assassin’s memory flashed to the tall yellow flowers the civilian had been pruning.

“You – ” The villain tried to stand up, but collapsed down again on their knees. “I’m going to kill you.”

“I doubt it.” The civilian rose from the floor wearing a triumphant grin, and limped to the opposite wall. “You never seemed quite unhinged enough to destroy your own power source.” They opened a closet door and pulled out a backpack.

"What are you doing?" the villain asked, their voice hitched in fear.

"Leaving, of course." The civilian went to the kitchen cabinets and threw in supplies. They returned and slung the bag over their shoulders. "As much as I want to stick around and see if I brewed enough to kill you, I best get going. I'll say one thing though." They leaned down and grabbed the villain's chin. "You repulse me, [Villain]. And I never once loved you."

"I will find you." The villain's limbs began shaking as they watched the civilian move away. "It will take mere weeks. Days, even! I don't care how much of this city I have to destroy." 

The civilian's footsteps paused.

The villain's words quickened, growing eager. "That's right, [Civilian]. I will ruin this city. Stay here and you save countless lives. Mothers, children, innocent people who –"

The civilian strode back and kicked the villain in the chest. "You try anything like that, and I'm killing myself." 

The assassin watched with growing respect as the civilian limped out the front door, the villain screaming their name all along the way. 

-----

Taglist:

@d-cs , @asrasmysoulmate

#civilian x villain #villain x civilian #villain #hero #villains and heroes #heroes and villains #whump snippet #whumpblr #whump drabble #whump writing #writeblr #writing snippet #captivity #before any botany peeps come for me #I know this is a mischaracterization of the symptoms of angel's trumpet #but creative liberties and whatnot #seriously though don't fuck with angel's trumpet unless you want to visit the hospital #not a prompt

[bl4cktourmaline]

#SUPERSTAR — our esteemed guests ♡

✦ VIP — welcome, dearest friends~! you're probably wondering why superstar? That's because when the night creep in...the stars will shine brightly under the night sky and you, my friends are the stars of the show!

✦ NOTE — this is a list of people that we talk to on a few occasions, feel free to ask to be moots with us because we love interacting with other people ♡

✦ @nogenderbee — bee

💌 yue is typing...

♡ bee is one of my good friends here, honestly they can make any conversation so entertaining and not to mention THEIR WORKS ARE SO GOOD LIKE MWAH, so if you like genshin, hsr and pjsk as well, bee's blog is highly recommended! ( ⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝)

✦ @reikaoproducer — kiyo

💌 yue is typing...

♡ legit my first enstars friend that I could brainrot with!! I highly suggest checking kiyo's side blog because their writing was honestly so cute when I found them for the first time even the blog is so pretty like holy I could gush about it all day if I really want to (*ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ*.ﾟ

✦ @leeniiyx — leni

💌 yue is typing...

♡ very cool person that I would love to talk with more! I was actually nervous to talk to leni at first but the more we talk on discord, I realized it was just me overreacting haha but honestly if you like genshin and you want to see more works of the girls, leni's blog is the right one for you, we approved for real ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )✧

✦ @lovely-showtimes — jellie

💌 x is typing...

♡ Jellie is one of the nicest and friendliest person I've met in this blog. I really enjoy interacting with them as we have a lot of favourite things in common, not to mention their fics are always so good !! I usually don't read for male characters but when it comes to Jellie's work, I would read everything !! (≧∇≦)

✦ @nian-7 — yugen

💌 yue is typing...

♡ yugen is one of the few people that I honestly didn't think I could vibes with so well, I was sweating nervously when I tried talking to them for the first time but now, it's just come naturally after getting to know how nice yugen is kdhdkbd I highly suggest checking yugen's blog out like please the fics there are so fun to read ( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡)

✦ @myunghology — jian

💌 yue is typing...

♡ listen...this isn't a threat or anything but if you love enstars as much as I do, what are you doing here and go check jian's blog out like please for my sake odgekdb I love jian's leo smau, it's so funny when I read them at night especially a certain character remind me of x...(๑´>᎑<)~*

✦ @seangelfish — sil

💌 yue is typing...

♡ my idol in the enstars fandom...used to stalk the blog before I got yeeted here hehe...but seriously, if you want to brainrot with someone about enstars that isn't me and get cute fics with good writing on top of that? what are you waiting for?! sil's blog is highly recommend for you! ( ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ഒ

✦ @chocochiamy — amiie

💌 yue is typing...

♡ conversations with amiie was so fun that I may or may not stay up on a few occasions... anyways amiie is also a writer if you're interested in her works! no worries, she won't bite because she is actually very welcoming, you will feel right at home with her ”ʚ(*´꒳`*)ɞ“

✦ @catelismo — catarina

💌 yue is typing...

♡ rina is a very fun and creative person that I ever met so far, she is one of the few smau writers that I enjoy reading their smau fics so far and let me tell you that is actually hard to achieve because I avoid smau fics like a plague haha so if her works got me interested then it's definitely good, right? please shower her with love and support because she is so underrated klshehbd (｡>\\<)

✦ @msith — miika

💌 x is typing...

♡ miika is one of my first few mutuals on this blog >< she's very silly and friendly !! She has one of the prettiest blog theme and one of my favourite writer for PJSK !!

✦ @starfilledsky2810 — star

💌 x is typing...

♡ I only recently met star but OMG, their drawings and artworks are always so edible !! Her drawing of rin is my favourite, very underrated artist !! :D

✦ @shiho-the-rock — shiho

💌 x is typing...

♡ Shiho is your go-to blog if you want to read for female characters !! Their works are an enjoyable read and they are super friendly !!

✦ @definitelynotafurinasimp — henry

💌 x is typing...

♡ henry is one of my oldest mutuals in my other blog. Although we don't talk much, his interactions with others are always funny and friendly !! His works for genshin are always TOP-NOTCHED !! Please check out his work if you haven't already :3

#꒰🦋⌇❛・superstar; mutuals list-˚༉₊

[helaelaemond]

Osferth and #35

White Mustang - Lana Del Rey - 'caught up in my dreams / you held me a little too tight in your arms / I couldn't stop the way I was feeling the day [...] I saw your white mustang.'

Based on some of the comments in s4-5...... Osferth has turned into quite the womaniser. So have some Osferth angst.

Osferth x established relationship!reader, allusions to smut

"He's got a different girl in every town."

"Some towns he's got half a dozen girls."

"You're nothing special to him, love. Don't pin your hopes on a man who doesn't want you like you want him. You won't be the one he chooses."

The summer sun is warm overhead as you wash the sheets with your friends. You push your hair back from your face and sigh. "I know. I know."

And you do know. In your little town, there are at least two other women whose beds he warms when he passes through. He doesn't talk about it openly, but it's not a secret, either. But he's your one and only. You hope that one day, he will change his mind. That he'll choose you.

The women washing with you give you pitying looks, and it makes your cheeks burn. Their advice is sage, despite the cut of their words, and anyone sensible would heed it. Love is rarely sensible, though.

Two days later, Osferth arrives. He clatters into the town square on his white horse with a smile that lights up the sky. You watch from the tavern doorway with your feet rooted to the ground and heart racing. He does not notice you. There is a flurry of activity around him, so why would he? His words carry across the distance in drips and drabs - hints of my lord Uhtred, four days past, and forces gathering to the north. Once upon a time, you would have listened with interest, but now? Now it is only the sound of his voice that you care for. It is not deep or high, mighty or weak. Mild and unremarkable, it is. It makes your soul sing.

That evening, you return to the tavern for supper. Your master has an arrangement with the establishment to feed his washer women twice a week in exchange for their services, and you have been in their number for a few years now. This summer's eve, fish is served to you. It is a fine meal. It does not distract you from the sight of Osferth across the hall with another woman in his lap. She is prettier than you. More lovely by far.

The food is ash in your mouth.

You know that you shouldn't try to approach him this evening and spoil his fun, for he is wild at heart, despite his calm disposition, and that has never been a mystery to you - but you can't help yourself. Jealousy curls in you like a serpent, and it warps your smile into a pained grimace that does not meet your warm eyes.

You approach his table where he is kept company by laughing men and women. His gentle gaze sharpens when he notices you approach, and his pretty lips part. "Oh. Good evening." Osferth says your name, and it sounds like a prayer. Such power he wields without even knowing. It kills your sorrow for a moment. "Would you care to join us?"

The woman in his lap looks at you as if you are truly welcome - no threat at all. You were girls together. She knows you. Knows you do not compare. His hand is on her thigh.

"No, thank you. I wished only to bid you a good evening, Osferth. Your company has been missed greatly."

"As has yours, kind lady."

What's the point in hiding your red eyes? Everyone here knows of your devotion to him. They pity you, for it is not you. It will never be you. But when it comes to Osferth, you have no pride. Only love. And so when your eyes sting and tears fill them, you only smile and nod, and excuse yourself. It's a moment of weakness that makes you look over your shoulder before leaving the tavern, and a moment of joy is your reward when you see him watching you go.

On your way home, you pass the stables and peek in. His pretty, white mare is boxed away for the night. You pass her an apple that you picked earlier and she takes it from you without flattening her ears back. It makes you feel close to him. His mount likes you. Or, at least, tolerates you. Much like him. Toleration. No devotion.

The moon is shining above you when there is a knock on your door. You wipe the tears from your eyes, and open it. There's rosemary oil in your hair.

Osferth stands in the threshold. "Forgive me for the hour." He holds out a handful of wildflowers. "For you."

Anyone with pride would send him away. You have no pride. "Osferth."

It's sickening how widely he smiles when you say his name. "I've missed your voice a great deal."

"I've missed saying your name."

"Say it again. Please?"

Your eyes sting again. "Osferth."

He kisses you.

What is worse, you think later, is that the kiss does not last long. For after a tender kiss, he closes the door and sits with his legs crossed on your bed, and he talks with you. For what feels like hours, you talk together of what has happened in your lives since the winter you saw him last.

"You're unlike anyone I've ever met," he murmurs as you lie, face to face, on your straw bed. He strokes the hair away from your face.

"Is that a good thing?" you ask, butterflies in your stomach.

"I think so. You make me... you make me feel understood."

"You are understood."

He whispers your name. His lips are gentle against yours, his hand warm on your waist. It slides down over your hip and around the back of your thigh, and he hooks your leg over his. "Please," comes his request between deep kisses. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you, too." You drag your fingernails across his scalp and it brings a moan to his throat. "Stay with me tonight."

"There is nowhere I'd rather be."

"Did you have her?" The answer doesn't matter really, for he can have you either way now, too. But the question escapes you before you have the chance to catch it.

"No," Osferth breathes. His hips slowly move against yours while he scatters kisses over your jaw and neck. "She tried, but... all I could see when she kissed me was you."

"She is prettier than me."

"Yes." He runs his nose through your hair and whimpers your name. "But you are dearer to me by far."

You make his toes curl later. You know you make him forget everything but your name, and it turns his tender touches harder and more demanding, until his sweet lovemaking devolves into rough fucking. You take from each other over and over, giving as much in return, too. In your arms, Osferth finds bliss. In his arms, you take the love he cannot give. It's too much. It's not enough.

Morning comes, and you roll over with an ache between your legs and longing in your heart. "Osferth," you murmur sleepily.

The empty room offers no answer. There is no trace of him left, and you wonder if you imagined it all. Across the town square, Osferth tucks a vial of rosemary oil into his bag. He cannot take you with him. But the memory of you is something he will keep.

#osferth x reader #osferth x you #mine #osferth x oc #ask #arcielee

[sleep-drink]

Hey Guys!!!! Actor AU ShTuuuuuff

So I wanted to add a lil lore to the Actor AU comic in terms of roles and hierarchy :)

Welcome Home as a show has a VERY large turnover rate! This is in fact not entirely due to Wally though. The company the production is under “The Playfellow Network” historically tends to not treat its actors or it’s crew very well. It pays decently in terms of its crew and because of how well the show is received it’s actors are paid even more, but in terms of things like benefits (mainly again for crew) it’s garbage. Also, because they can’t keep a whole lot of people retained, they will just kind of hire anyone. Lots of people who are in the industry have passed through Playfellow and the general consensus is “oh god, you worked at Playfellow too?”. Because of the lack of employee retention, the work environment and atmosphere is catty. at best. This makes communication between departments really difficult and very stressful. On top of that is Wally, who runs the show because he’s basically irreplaceable. As you know he’s trying to protect his loved ones and fellow actors from the terrible set and network conditions which are basically discriminatory for puppets.

The characters and their roles so far (in order of hierarchy):

Wally - Star (Lead Actor):

This is pretty straight forward. He’s mr. Irreplaceable and he doesn’t like humans. With pretty good reason :)

Susan - 2nd AD (currently acting as Key PA): Susan is the Second Assistant Director on this production and has been working here for 6 months. She works basically as a backstage manager and coordinates the call sheets and wrangles actors (when she has to). Poor Susan is actually hella overworked. So (oh no!) there is actually not currently a Key Production assistant working on Welcome Home! (I love causing my characters pain eeehehehehehehee ((we’ll see more of that soon))

The Key PA is in charge of all of the production assistants and let’s them know what to do and to keep them on schedule. The person who WAS key PA did quit (mayhaps or not cuz of something Wally did) and the company has not yet hired someone new (hooray bureaucracy).

Dolly - Walkie PA (Currently ALSO acting as Key PA): Dolly is technically the Walkie Production assistant, which means they are in charge of all of the Walkie use on set (she is actually not very good at this and it’s why she often forgets to turn her own mic off). Fun fact! Dolly’s only been on this production for like a month and a half and has outlasted most other walkie PA’s! :) She started as a costume PA and then expressed interest in other areas of production to Susan. Susan was like “Omg yes help me” and kind of forced her on Walkie PA because she has some (theatrical) tech experience in the past. Walkie PA’s can act as Key PAs but dolly has no prior experience and is kind of floundering, plus weird requests from Wally (like fixing his wardrobe sleeve length for him) take up a lot of their time. They don’t mind because it’s just a rule on set that what Wally says goes, but it makes their job just that much more difficult :)))))). Dolly is dealing with it… kinda.

Sandra - PA: Sandra is a production assistant who has been here for about 5 months. Production assistants are generally considered entry-level production jobs but she has beef with Dolly because she’s been here for longer and Dolly has been (technically) promoted before her (even though there’s SO much bleed-through between departments). She also is just a bully, she’s trying to come back from a failed stand-up career, but she’s basically been blacklisted in several comedian circles. (Gee I wonder if it’s the threats and bigotry)

Everybody else who you’ve seen so far are usually random PA’s or I haven’t assigned them a true role yet. But here’s what I got so far! I am by no means an expert. I am an actor (and a stage actor mainly at that, but I’ve dabbled in film) so not all of my info is probably truly accurate. But I try! As per the usual AU CRED: @frillsand 💗 u b! Thanks for reading my ramblings!

#welcome home actor au #wally darling actor au #welcome home wally #welcome home #wally darling #welcome home fanart #clown illustrations #party coffin #dolly dreamer #welcome home puppet show

[shreddedleopard]

Kaiser’s Ego

I’ve been thinking a lot about Kaiser recently, and why I both love and hate him, and why his character rings so true.

This is mega rambling and repetitive probably, so apologies in advance, but I had to get my thoughts down.

I believe that Kaiser’s ego is broken. To explain, first let me share a definition of ego spat out by Google:

Three phrases stand out to me in relation to Kaiser:

Superiority to others

Self-respect

Personal worth

Kaiser is a character who seems so desperate to cling on to that first thing - superiority to others.

When faced with Isagi, Kaiser immediately works on destroying Isagi’s own personal worth. Kaiser quickly recognises that Isagi has a very similar skill set to him, meaning he has the potential to surpass and even replace Kaiser in his specific spot in the team (that position being the game master, mainly). He has literally made himself the king of this BM team; the director of his very own show; he is in control and occupies the central spot. But the player most likely to dethrone him is Isagi, and because of that, immediately Kaiser knows he must show this threat his rightful place.

It’s interesting to me that Kaiser so quickly goes into fight or flight mode when faced with Isagi. It’s not just friendly competition; at times, it doesn’t even feel like a healthy rivalry. It’s absolute war - Kaiser is obsessed and unhinged, and deals with Isagi like his personal well-being is under threat.

I think this might be because it is. This is all speculation but, for Kaiser, it’s not about a love of football. It’s about being the best at something. We’ve yet to see Kaiser’s back story, but I think whatever it entails, he grew up with the mentality that love is conditional. It’s my theory that he had parents or guardians who were only ever present or interested in him when he was able to beat his competition and rise to the top in something. This is both similar and different to Hiori’s backstory. Hiori has parents who are pushy and overly-invested in Hiori’s sporting career. They lavish him with attention; it’s just the wrong sort; it’s pressure. But it fits Kaiser to have had parents who were either absent or disinterested, and for a young Kaiser, it became a fight for attention or recognition. His existence might only have ever been acknowledged when he beat the competition, surpassed expectations, did something exceptional. He had the idea reinforced that to be worthy of anyone’s time or attention, you have to meet certain conditions. You are not just born deserving of anything; the only way to receive it is to fight for it, and to come out on top.

If we look at Kaiser through this lens, so much of his behaviour suddenly makes more sense. He is so aggressive towards those who threaten his position because in his eyes, they’re not just competing for his spot as the best at football; they’re competing for the basic human needs of love and respect. If he is beaten, if he is not literally the best on that field, then he will be shut out by those around him, left unwanted and unworthy of love.

So let’s link back to that last phrase - personal worth. Kaiser’s personal worth is not something that exists in and of itself. Personal worth is not something he naturally has - it is tied to his performance; in this situation, it’s football. Compare this to someone like Isagi, who we saw way back at the start of the manga being welcomed home by supportive parents who showed him love and respect and gave him a warm meal despite the fact that his team lost. Isagi therefore knows he is worthy of these things despite his performance in any sports or school etc. As opposed to Kaiser, who in the same situation, would return home only to be ignored.

As a child, parental love is vital for someone to develop self esteem and personal worth. If Kaiser was made to compete for this, then his whole concept of self esteem and personal worth are linked to what he does, how hard he fights, what he can achieve. As opposed to Isagi, who will have a sense of self esteem and personal worth regardless of his position or performance on the pitch.

Therefore, we can surmise that Kaiser fights for his position as the centre of his team from a place of fear, in contrast with Isagi, who fights from a place of passion and love of the sport. They may appear similar in their grit and determination - their drive to win - but that drive doesn’t come from the same place. Isagi doesn’t view others as dangerous threats to be scared of. He’s not venomous and obsessed the way Kaiser is both on and off the pitch, because after the game ends, he can still walk away from a match with his self - respect and personal worth in tact, ready to fight again, whereas for Kaiser, these things are both made and destroyed on that playing field. He simply cannot afford to lose in a way that is different to Isagi.

His sense of self worth and self esteem is in tatters beneath this outer illusion of confidence and disdain for those around him. In the above art, he’s watching Isagi, who has his sights focused ahead of him. This is because Isagi is focused on where he’s headed, while Kaiser is obsessed with comparing himself to those around him - this is how he measures his own worth. If he’s not better than all of them, then he’s worthless. He’s surrounded by material displays of importance, love and affection, and yet the football at his feet is battered and barely patched up. Kaiser plays for these displays of love and adoration, because he believes this is the only way to receive them. He’s trying to patch up what’s missing for his battered inner sense of self, just like the patches on his battered football. Compare this to Isagi, who is only surrounded by the basic items he needs to play the sport he loves, with a shiny, fully intact football. Isagi plays simply for his passion for football, not to make up for anything lacking in his life outside of it. Ignore everything else that’s going on in this artwork; focus on the footballs. They represent the egos of these two players who, on the surface, might seem almost identical in their drive to win.

‘Ego is the only weapon that lets you fight back.’

‘The haves and the have-nots.’

Whilst on the surface it may look like Kaiser is all ego, in actuality, it’s the very thing that will be his downfall, because it’s what he lacks compared to Isagi. It’s broken.

This idea of the ‘broken’ or at least very much ‘breakable’ or ‘fragile’ ego of Kaiser’s is repeated on his volume cover:

His collar and chains appear to be made of very breakable glass, as opposed to other player’s metal. If the chains do represent the idea of the ego, then this imagery for Kaiser fits perfectly.

We can also see why he’s branded himself with that crown - another illusion of importance when inwardly he’s always chasing that feeling of mattering somehow. The blue rose sprouting from it - representing the unobtainable - is symbolic of the fact that Kaiser will never be able to find that feeling of self-worth and importance when he seeks it externally, because it has to come from within him. He has to understand that he is worthy and important simply for existing, not because of anything he does or achieves.

#bllk #michael kaiser #kaiser analysis #isagi yoichi #blue lock #blue lock manga spoilers

[vodika-vibes]

would you also write for Jaster Mereel (jangos adoptive dad, at least in legends I think)? There’s not that much information about him so I totally understand if he ist un-writeable but I really like him and thought I would ask 🤭

Matching

Summary: You decide to surprise Jaster. Unfortunately, neither of you are so good at talking.

Pairing: Jaster Mereel x Reader

Word Count: 1220

Warning: Dumbasses don't know how to communicate, and make assumptions.

Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni

A/N: Asking me to write for my absolute favorite Mand'alor who has ever mand'alored? Oh, twist my arm why don't you, lol. Also, this story was very easy to write, probably because I've been mentally writing it since I got the ask.

Divider by Saradika

You’ve been in a relationship with Jaster, the actual Mand’alor, for years now. Technically you’re dating, but that doesn’t feel like the right term when you’re raising a kid together.

Technically, Jango is Jaster’s kid, but he calls you buir also, so-

And Jaster’s about as close to perfect as you would ever expect from a romantic partner. He’s kind and considerate. He’s respectful, and he doesn’t make any demands.

Well, no demands that you aren’t willing to give into, at least.

And you love him. Of course you do. Enough to put up with the bullshit that is Mandalorian politics (though you’re personally of the opinion that anyone who’s willing to put up with Mandalorian politics is a few crayons short of a full box). Enough to put up with childish temper tantrums, (from Jango) and threats against your life (also from Jango, though that hasn’t happened in years).

And yet, in spite of all of that, in spite of all the years together, Jaster hasn’t once asked if you’d be willing to say the riduurok with him.

If you were any less confident in your relationship, you’d worry that he was leaving himself a way out. But, well, raising a kid together. And you suppose you could ask him, but he’s the kriffing Mand’alor.

So you think on it. You bounce some ideas off your closest friends (“Dump him.” One said. “Fight him for the title of mand’alor.” Said the other. You really need new friends).

Jango, however, thought about it for a whole day when you mentioned your minor concerns to him, and he said, “Maybe buir is waiting for something showing that you’re interested?”

“What?” You asked at the time, “Is raising you not proof enough?”

And he just grinned at you, before he ran off.

So with that super unhelpful help in the back of your mind. You thought about the situation long and hard. Over the span of weeks. And you know that your distraction has caused more than a little concern in Jaster, but, as ever, he never pushed.

You really do love him more than life itself.

And then an idea came to you. Late one night when you both were getting ready for bed. There, tattooed over Jaster’s heart, is his clan sigil. You teased him about it when you first started dating, asking him if he was afraid that he would forget what clan he belonged to, but now it was giving you an idea.

So, early the next morning you wake with your alarm, drop a kiss to Jaster’s cheek and inform him that you won’t be back until late, and to not wait up.

And though he looks like he wants to ask where you’re going, he holds his tongue, and  you hope it’s because he trusts you and not because he’s afraid to know what your answer is.

Your destination. The one, single, tattoo parlor located in the area.

And, true to your word, you don’t return home until late that night. A new tattoo inked into your skin between your shoulder blades, and covered by a bacta bandage.

Jaster is already asleep when you slip into the room. He doesn’t stir until you slide into bed, laying on your stomach and wrapping your arms around your pillows.

“Mm…cyare?”

“Go back to sleep, love.” You whisper, as you slide over to him and press a feather light kiss against his temple.

He blinks at you, sleep fading from his gaze as he takes you in. “Welcome back.” Jaster murmurs.

“Sorry it took me so long.” You reply, “I did mean to be back before now.”

He opens his mouth to say something, hesitates, and then smiles, “Well, I’m glad you got back safe.”

“Of course.” You sweep your hair off your back, the sensation uncomfortable against the bandage, and you rest your head on your arms, “How was your meeting? With Kryze, right?”

“Uneventful,” Jaster replies, as he rolls onto his side, holding himself up on his elbow, “I’ll give you a full rundown tomorrow, if you wan-” He stops mid-sentence, his gaze snapping to the white bandage on your back, “Are you hurt?”

“In…a manner of speaking.” You admit with a sigh. “It hurts, but it’s…self-inflicted?”

“What?!”

“It’s…” You sigh again, that was the wrong word, “It was supposed to be a surprise,” You grumble, “Go ahead and take the bandage off. You’ll see.”

Jaster sits up completely, and you feel his fingers, light and warm against your bare back, as he carefully removes the bandage.

And then he stops.

Stops moving, stops breathing even.

You turn your head to glance at him, “Jas?”

His fingers glide across your back, and ghost over the new tattoo, “That’s my clan sigil,” He says faintly.

“Well, yes. I suppose I should have asked if it was okay before I did it…” You mumble. 

“That’s…cyare, that’s a rather telling show of loyalty.”

You scoff, “I’ve been sleeping in your bed and raising your son for years, Jaster. I think my loyalty is pretty solidly locked in.” You squeak in surprise when you feel his lips against the middle of your new tattoo.

“You never showed any interest in tattoos before.” He murmurs against your skin.

“Yeah, well…” You shrug, “I was beginning to wonder if you weren’t asking me to say the riduurok with you simply because you wanted a way out, so this is my way of saying you’re stuck with me, I guess.”

“...cyare, I never asked you because you never seemed interested.” Jaster says slowly, as he lightly flips you so you’re looking up at him.

“Why would you assume that?” You ask.

“Because we had a whole conversation about it, and you said that it was an outdated tradition-”

“When did I say-” You stop midsentence, and you stare at him incredulously, “You mean that conversation we had right about you turned 20 and the day after my long term boyfriend broke up with me?”

“Yeah.”

Your head flops back on your pillow and you laugh, “Jaster, cyare, I love you. But you are the dumbest smart man I’ve ever met.” You grin at him, “That was me being bitter, Jas. I was hurt and angry, and you were the only person willing to listen to me. I didn’t mean any of it.”

“What about the part where you said you wanted to push your ex into a star?”

“Oh. That I meant.” You reach up and caress his cheeks, “I already plan to spend the rest of my life with you, whether or not we end up married. But nothing would make me happier than being your spouse.”

Jaster exhales slowly, and he leans in to press his forehead against yours, “Was beginning to worry that you found someone else,” He admits quietly, “You’ve been so quiet these last few weeks.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I wanted to surprise you.”

“I’m surprised. And happy.” He kisses you, slow and deep, “Mostly happy.” He adds in a low murmur, and then he shifts so he’s kneeling between your legs, “Are you in pain, cyare?”

You smile at him, small and sensuous, “Not so much that it’ll detract from what you’re planning.”

He grins and pins your hands to the bed next to your head, “Good.”

#star wars #star wars legends #jaster mereel x reader #jaster x reader #star wars fanfiction #x reader fanfiction #answered asks