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myinternetaddictworld · 1 year

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The Dress {P.P}

Synopsis: You bought a new dress and Peter wants to have his way with you

MINORS DNI 18+ CONTENT AHEAD CW: jealous (soft) dom peter! x bratty afab reader, oral (m and f receiving), name-calling, praise kink and degradation kink at the same time (?), use of toys, squirting, and probably some other stuff just read at your own discretion !!

a/n: this may be the smuttiest thing i’ve ever written :^]

also sorry for hiatus, finals were a bitch but i’m back!! Happy early holidays <3 ～●～●～●～●～●～●～● ～

"Babe, we have to go if we want to make this reservation on time..." Peter yelled from downstairs.

He had finished getting ready nearly an hour ago. It was your anniversary and Peter had gone all out in planning the day for you. He had already surprised you with flowers and breakfast in bed earlier. Now the two of you were preparing for dinner at one of the newest Thai places in the city.

"Comingggg," you said, finishing up your makeup. You were lying. You weren't even dressed yet but at least you had finished your hair and makeup.

You quickly rushed to the hanger with your dress on it. It was a beautiful sage green slip dress that you had been saving for a special occasion. You slipped the piece of fabric on and fanned out your hair.

"Y/N, I'm serious we have to leave no--" Peter stopped himself as he walked into your shared bedroom.

"I know I just need to slide my shoes on and we can leave." you said, fiddling with the strap on your heels.

"When did you get this dress?" Peter said curiously.

"A month ago, it was a surprise." you snickered, standing up.

"Wow...this dress is now my new favorite thing," Peter said lowly. He pulled your hips toward his and placed his head in the crock of your neck.

"Were you not just complaining about how we're going to be late?" you question.

"Mhm...but now that I've seen you in this dress, dinner seems way less important." He says peppering kisses down your neck and collarbone.

"I'm going to the car," you laugh, playfully pushing him away.

"This place better have the fastest service imaginable or I just might have to take you in the bathroom," He whined, following you.

You laugh, grabbing your coat.

～●～●～●～●～●～●～●～●～●～

"Let me see the pictures you took of me--gotta make sure you didn't make me look bad," you joke reaching for Peter's phone.

"You never look bad in pictures, baby," Peter says pulling into the driveway.

"Whatever you say," you retort, scrolling through the pictures.

"I like this one," you say, showing him a candid photo Peter managed to get of you with a glass of wine.

"Yeah, that one's my favorite too," he says smiling.

"Now let's get into the house before we get frostbite," he says turning the car off. The two of you quickly make it inside.

"I'm going to take a bath if you would like to join me...." you say suggestively while kicking your heels off.

Your eyes catch Peter's but he's looking away.

"Before you do that..." he starts.

"Let's talk about dinner."

"What about it?" you smirk, knowing where this is going.

"You know what I'm about to say," he said, his eyes finally meeting yours.

"Do I though? I mean the food was delicious and the staff were so nice...they even gave us a free dessert." you smile.

"No. The waiter gave you a free dessert because he clearly wanted to fuck you." Peter says.

"Fuck me? That's a little too far Peter. It was a 20-something college student who insisted on giving us free food. If he flirted a little, who am I to stop him." you said, the corners of your lips rising.

Peter rolls his eyes.

“His eyes were practically glued to your chest the entire time!” Peter says dryly.

You laugh at his comment.

“Point is, I think you liked it a little too much,” he says, not breaking eye contact.

“I disagree,” you said accepting the challenge.

He cocks his eye brow and darts his tongue across his lips.

“You really wanna play that game tonight? on our anniversary?” he asked softly.

“…what if I did?” you say, cocking your head to the side.

“Then tonight’s gonna be a fun night for me, I guess.” he said tossing his suit coat off. He quickly sweeps his arms under you, forcing you into a bridal carry. Once he reached your shared bedroom, he tosses you on mattress.

You let out a small huff as your body hits the squishy surface. He pushed your legs open, allowing just enough space for his body. He leaned down slowly to kiss you. The kiss was very deliberate. Peter slightly bit your lip, a move that drove you crazy. After pulling away from the kiss, his lips remained glued to your body as he kissed down your neck.

“Mhm, just like that Pete~” you moaned, running your hands through his hair. This motion all in the hopes he would move his efforts else where, preferably the growing discomfort in your underwear.

He smiled at the comment.

“You’re old tricks aren’t gonna work tonight,” he said briefly pulling his lips from your neck.

“What tricks?” you gasp out.

“Oh Peter, so good!’ and pulling my hair when you want me to go down on you.” he retorted. His face was now hovering above you.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about…” you smile. Your nails scratch his scalp and Peter practically melts in your arms.

“Hey, I told you to stop that!” he squeaks out before grabbing your arms and pinning them to the bed. You were a little off put by the speed of the action but you were dating a superhero after all.

“Am I gonna have to fill that pretty mouth of yours up for you to understand I’m not playing around tonight?” he said, now leaning into your ear. His warm breath tickled your ear and a shade of pink dusted your cheeks. You stared at him, doe eyed.

“Lemme hear you speak, princess,” he said, his lips right below your ear. Peter knew you loved it when he called you princess. He did it sparingly because the few times he had the two of you were up all night dealing with the repercussions.

“Yes,” you said shyly.

“Yeah, I should punish that little mouth of yours?” he said, cocking his head.

“Mhm,” you mumble out

“I knew you wanted it.” he huffed, pushing himself off of you. He stood at the end of the bed, waiting for you to join him. He looked down at his belt and back up at you—a clear signal of what he wanted you to do next. You quickly undid his belt and slid his pants down. You smile, eyeing the growing boner in Peter’s briefs. You tease him by palming the clothed erection before finally pulling them down completely.

You look up at him for approval before taking him partially into your mouth. You used your hands on the parts your mouth couldn’t reach. Peter never bragged about his size, but the man knew he was big. He loved seeing you struggle to take all of him.

“That’s it, baby,” he says, thrusting into your mouth slightly.

“Y-you gonna let me throat fuck you, baby?” he asks.

You moan a light ‘yes’ in reply. He takes this as a sign of approval. You take him into your hands, licking your lips. You part your lips around the tip before taking him entirely into your mouth. His hands grasp the back of your head as his hips begin pumping forward. His speed increases little by little but he tries not to push your limits.

“Look at you taking it like I knew you could,” he moans lustfully looking at you. Tears begin to fall from your eyes as he pushes as far as your throat will allow. You gag slightly.

“Shh shh, I know princess—just a little longer” he said holding his position for a few seconds longer before allowing you up for air.

Your makeup was now streaked and your eyes have glossed over with lust.

“Be a good girl for me and take it one more time, yeah?” he ask, tilting your chin toward him. He runs his thumb across your lips getting rid of your smudged lip gloss and excess salvia. You nod.

You take him into your mouth again, slowly bobbing. Peter throws his head back in pleasure. You moan seeing him enjoy himself so much.

“Fuck,” he breathed out, looking down at you.

“C’mer baby, c’mere” he sighed pulling you to your feet.

He pulled you to his lips as he forces you on the bed again. His hands roam your body as his lips move down your neck.

“Been wanting to get you out of this dress all night, love.” You let out a small laugh.

“I mean seriously! If the waiter wasn’t staring at your chest all night, I sure was,” he gushes as he gazes down at you.

“Peter, you perv!” you say, playfully placing your hand over his eyes.

“Fine i’ll be a perv, as long as I get to do this.” he says dipping his head down, placing light kisses on your exposed cleavage.

“…and don’t get me started on these curves,” he said, his hands clasping your waist.

“I’m gonna touch you now, baby, okay?” he says, tryin to read your face.

“Okay,” you nod, eagerly. He pushes the silk fabric of your dress up your legs. His hands fiddle with the lace of your panties before he ultimately pries the white laced fabric from your wet core.

“Didn’t realize how excited you were,” he growls as he runs the pads of his fingers down your wet slit. You take in a sharp breath. It’s crazy what his touch was already doing for you.

“I like that you’re extra sensitive tonight,” he laughs. He pushes himself down and places a light kiss on your stomach. Peter then pushes himself completely off of the mattress, making his way toward your closet. He returns almost as quickly as he left, holding what looked like a shoe box.

The blush on your face darkens as you realize what Peter grabbed. It was your “special box” which contained your favorite dildos, vibrators, and other sex toys you had accumulated over time. Your collection wasn’t the largest but you were quite happy with the toys you owned. When the two of you moved in, you were hesitant to show Peter your toys as other boyfriends have judged you in the past. Peter, however, was the most sex positive partner you had ever had. On top of that, the man was horny—like unhealthily horny at times. He practically came at the thought of using them on you as soon as you introduced them to him. Needless to say, he loved occasionally using toys on you. Especially when he felt you needed “punishment”

“Couldn’t resist using a friend when you’re this sensitive,” he said giving you a toothy smile.

He pulls out your tried and true vibrator and quickly clicks it on. He placed the pink silicon toy to your clit. His eyes stayed on your face. You gasp and the new sensation, bucking your hips toward him.

“You like that baby?” he smirks watching you tremble beneath him. Your so distracted by the new sensation that you can barely form whole sentences. Peter is loving every moment of it.

He clicks the vibrator off and places it next to you before pushing himself in between your legs again. He takes your legs and rests them on his shoulders. Your stomach fills with butterflies as you know what Peter is about to do. His mouth soon meets your wet core, focusing especially on the tiny bundle of nerves at the top. His hands are digging into your thighs as Peter works wonders. You soon find the coil in your stomach building up.

Your legs begin to clench around him as you get closer and closer to your peak.

“You gonna cum, Princess?” he says against you. You let out a soft “mhm” in reply as your hands grip the sheets of your shared bed.

“Good,” he said, granting you one last lick before he pulled away completely. A breeze graced your naked bottom half as your boyfriend licked his lips. You groan at the loss of contact.

“Can’t let you finish that easily,” he laughs in response.

“…that would take the fun out of it,” he finishes.

“Please~” you almost whine out. You know what he wants you to say but you like the game he’s playing.

“Please what?” he mocks.

“Baby~” you say softly, again trying to provoke the man.

“You can whine all you want but i’m not starting again until you say it.” he says, his voice more stern this time.

“Please Daddy,” you say, finally giving into his commands.

He smiles and lets out a nod of relief.

“Thank you, now i can get back to my favorite past time.” he huffs

His mouth, again, meets your core while preforming the same actions from earlier. This earns a loud moan from you.

“Mhm, that’s it—let me hear you,” Peter moans against you.

Your too immersed in the things your boyfriend’s mouth is doing that you fail to notice him grab the vibrator resting next to you. He again presses the power button, allowing the machine to come on in its lowest intensity level.

His mouth pulls away from your core to be replaced by his thumb going in small, quick circles. He lines the vibrator up with your slick entrance and slowly slides it in.

You gasp at the feeling, throwing your head back.

“Is this good baby?” he says looking up at you. He is now slowly pushing the toy in and out of you, gauging your reaction to each and every motion.

You nod vigorously, unable to form words. A prideful smirk finds its way to Peter’s face but it is quickly wiped as he places his mouth back on to your clit.

The feeling of the vibrator pushing in and out of you combined with the feeling of Peter’s skilled tongue is enough to send you over the edge, earning your first orgasm of the night.

Your breath hitches as you feel yourself come undone. Your incoherent moans and mentions of Peter’s name are also enough to send him over the edge.

He picks up his pace, his tongue and the toy both moving at ungodly speeds.

“Peter~” you moan out, hands reaching for his hair. The man is unforgiving. The sex with Peter has always been amazing but tonight was a first. You had never seen him so riled up before.

Your fingers eventually meet his brown curls, tugging lightly on them, a move you know drives him crazy. He moans into your core, sending you over the edge.

Before you have time to process anything, your body convulses with pleasure. Another strong orgasm washes over you. Your legs clasp around the man in between your legs, your hands scrambling to pull him away as you’re overstimulated.

Peter moans into you one last time before pulling away. Your chest quickly rises and falls as you begin to catch your breath.

“W-wow” you laugh, your head falling on the pillows behind you.

“Babe,” Peter says excitedly standing up and showing his face. To your surprise, Peter’s face is drenched in liquid meaning you just…yeah.

“Oh my god—Babe, i’m sorry!” you say quickly grabbing tissues from the nightstand to help him clean himself.

“Are you kidding me?! That was amazing!” he exclaims.

“Really?” you say, your face still burning with embarrassment.

“I’ve never made a woman squirt until now and I can 100% confirm that it is hands down one of the sexist things a man can witness,” he says smiling. He accepts the tissues you offered up, cleaning his face off. You laugh at his statements.

“I actually kinda…finished myself…” he mumbles. You cock your head in confusion. You eyes make their way down to Peter’s member, seeing his stomach covered in his own fluid.

“Did you seriously cum from eating me out?” you laugh.

“I am not ashamed of enjoying the fact that you’re enjoying yourself…” he says, a shade of pink gracing his cheeks. You let out a laugh.

“Happy Anniversary, baby.” he says leaning down to kiss you.

“Happy Anniversary, Spider boy” you say as he pulls away. He smiles, placing a small kiss on your forehead before grabbing more tissue and beginning to clean you up.

The clean up wouldn’t matter because Peter would shortly end up on top of you again. From that night on, you secretly wished more waiters would flirt with you. Peter wished you’d only put that green dress on for his eyes and his eyes only.

#peter parker #peter parker x reader #tasm!peter imagine #peter 3 #tasm peter x you #tasm!peter parker #peter parker fanfiction #tasm!peter parker smut #tasm smut #tasm!peter fluff #peter parker smut #tasm!peter x you #spiderman x reader #andrew peter parker #andrew garfield

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prettylittlelyres · 7 months

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Ladies Don't Write Music - 15th November 2023 - update

I'm on track for NaNoWriMo because I hit 25,000 words for the month today! I'm so pleased. Attempting NaNoWriMo at all this year was a huge gamble because I haven't written over 25,000 words since February 2023, and even then I only managed just over 37k... but I've written 25k in the last two weeks and a day!

I also finished writing Chapter Twelve today, and brought it in at 5,000 words exactly. That's both immensely satisfying, and a point of pride; it's the fastest I've finished a chapter on this manuscript since I started drafting it at the end of July. The full manuscript is now just over 60,000 words long, and I want to do some more writing before I go to bed.

Below the cut: a celebratory excerpt, my NaNoWriMo 25k badge, and the cover I designed at the start of November, because I'm proud of that, too.

I clapped the right tempo, and counted Fräulein Schneider in.

She began, halting here and there, but, in general, playing very well.

“I’m not sure if you need a teacher,” I said, as she came to the end of the first page, “You sight-read just fine, and your sense of rhythm is strong.”

Fräulein Schneider beamed at me. “Thank you!” she said, “But it’s… it’s the pitch that I struggle with. Did I really…” She looked down at her hands. “Did I really play that correctly? I keep thinking I was pressing the wrong keys, but I don’t like to look at my hands when I’m sight-reading, or I lose my place in the music.”

I shook my head. “There was nothing wrong with the notes you played,” I said, “Considering it was your first time with the piece, actually, it was excellent.”

Louisa raised her eyebrows, and looked from me to the sheet music, and then back again. “That’s… That’s a surprise,” she said, “I’ve always thought I was, well… quite bad at the harpsichord. I practise, but the music never makes any more sense than it does when I start learning a piece. My last two teachers gave up on me, but I keep playing anyway because Papa and Mama said it would be a good way to entertain my husband one day.”

“Doesn’t it sound good to you, at least?” I asked, “I mean, do you like the way it sounds, even if it’s a little confusing?”

She smiled. “Yes, very much… but I worry that it doesn’t sound so good to other people. Full of wrong notes… Who would enjoy hearing a piece they recognise mangled out of shape?”

I tapped the page she had just played. “You certainly didn’t mangle this,” I said.

“Oh,” she said, covering her face with her hands, “That’s a relief!” Then her eyes widened as she dropped her hands to her lap. “Goodness me, how embarrassing it would have been if I’d played it badly in front of its composer.”

“Badly, not at all,” I assured her, sitting down next to her at the bench, “A little slowly, perhaps, but…” I played the first few bars as they should have been played. “That’s what it’s meant to sound like. And what you played was close enough. Honestly, Louisa, if you practise for even half an hour every day, I think you’ll have the first page fluent in less than a week. Your hands will learn it, even if your ears don’t.”

I decided a while ago that Johann Schneider's character would be tone-deaf, and would enjoy watching music performed for the movement. He has a younger sister and I thought it would be interesting to explore her having the same difficulties. Johann isn't a musician (yet), but Louisa plays the harpsichord and has a lot of trouble feeling confident in what she's playing because she's never sure she's got the right pitch. Luckily, her proprioception is excellent (as is Johann's, which is why he can dance so well), so she can put her fingers on the right keys without needing to see them. This is what Katharina's trying to help her see here, in this ad-hoc music lesson; she doesn't need to hear what she's playing to be able to play it well.

I'm quite enjoying playing around with parallels between Johann & Louisa Schneider and Katharina & Hans Schmidt. In both pairs of siblings, you have the older, more serious one having trouble meeting people's expectations, in contrast with the younger, more humourous one having very little trouble at all. The pairs also mirror each other in their strengths and weaknesses: Katharina and Hans have audiovisual projective synaesthesia and perfect pitch, so can hear and see the music they're making; Johann and Louisa are literally tone-deaf (Johann completely, Louisa almost completely) and music for them is a much more visual thing than it is for most people. Then there's Katharina, whose coordination is so bad it causes problems, being the opposite of Johann, whose coordination makes him an excellent dancer who then has problems because he finds constant poorly-veiled requests to dance at parties very tiring.

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patrisska · 6 months

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This is one of the fastest paintings I have done recently - it took only several days to finish. Due to my constant problem of perfectionism, finishing an art piece takes from 2 to 5 weeks - although I feel I'm not the only one experiencing this issue.

We often spend a lot of time on something, only to get stuck at one point only because there’s something we don’t really like - and we can’t even tell what exactly is wrong. The worst part? Since we already spent so much time working on it, we want to ensure the artwork turns out great, so all the hard work wasn't in vain. After falling into this neverending vicious cycle, it's no longer possible to take joy in the creative process. And here we are, dreading the very thought of starting a new painting.

I've been thinking about this lately, and I started to think about the way I look at other people's artworks. Do I check if the values are correct? Of course not. What do I do when I notice some mistakes? Nothing, since the creator didn't ask for a critique. And here's the thing - is it worth spending so much time on creating 3 alternative versions because you're not sure which colour palette looks better? In any case, I can assure you that in several months you'll look back at your painting and think "Wow, so many things don't look good here".

Right now I already see some things I would change but it's time to shift from painting "as best as I can" to "as well as I could at that moment".

Anyway, here's a small study of a photo I found on Pinterest, I hope you'll like it!

#my art #portrait #portrait study #illustration #male portrait #digital art #digital painting

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obsessivelyloved · 7 months

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Sorry I keep sending in so many asks lol-

I can see Paul and Pat being ‘dolls’ like Tord and once Tord possesses Edd’s father (but before Edd realizes anything), he goes out of his way to find them and find people for them to inhabit. I can even see there being Tom and Matt ‘dolls’ that Tord also helps give bodies to. They help him keep Edd safe :)

I can also see the reason Tord did some spell shit to become a doll in the first place is because he tried to pull the whole red leader schtick earlier but it didn’t work, so he turned into a doll to avoid custody and so he could try again later when he finds a new body to inhabit.

Don't apologize!! This is the most fun I've had writing in a while, I haven't been insane about anything for a hot minute :D. I'm writing something for Tom as I post this

________________________________________________________

“Useless fucking body.”

Tord coughed as he put out his third cigarette. This body still wasn’t up to par with his. It couldn’t handle cigarettes. Alongside liquor. It was a shame that he was going to have to go through the transformation sober. He needed a clear mind to plan and take care of his son.

He couldn’t stop the sappy smile spreading across his face. For a moment, the annoyance of his cigarettes being useless to him was pushed aside. It had been so long since he had a child. His firstborn had only lived a few months. His second, dead within weeks. And now his third… his third was healthy and grown. Though he wasn’t entirely his just yet. But Edd will be.

He just had to wait for the transformation to finish.

Stress had him pull out another cigarette. This body changing to become his own was taking longer than he expected it to. Although it was giving him more time to plan, he was afraid of what his son would do once he finally put the pieces together. That his “real” father was no longer in this body.

Tord sighed and lit the cigarette. He pressed it to his lips, inhaled and- “Fuck!” he hissed, choking on the air. He jabbed the damn thing into his ashtray and got to his feet. He had better things to do than to try and get this body used to his habits. He’d just have to be patient for the transformation to finish.

A quick look at his phone told him it was barely 12p.m. Good, he still had time before he had to go pick up the boy. He needed to use every minute wisely.

He stepped back inside from the backyard, leaving the fresh air. The computer was still on in the living room, ebay open.

Old doll - $500

Tord was sure this was one of his generals. His friend. Poor Paul had seen better days. He looked so worn down in the picture, his right eye smashed. It was a shame, really. Before he saved his two comrades, he made sure their dolls were perfect. If he wasn’t planning on giving them human bodies he’d make sure to fix Paul. But it was fine. Once Paul was free from the porcelain, they’d destroy their prisons.

“Yes!” Tord grinned. The seller had accepted his offer for a lower price. He hummed as he went through the process and picked the fastest shipping available. It wasn’t his card he was charging so what did he care? Soon he’ll be able to introduce his friend to his son.

Even better, he was a step closer to rising to power once again.

#tord's play au #yandere tord #platonic yandere #tw yandere #yandere #yandere tw

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fuckmeyer · 11 months

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hoo boyo so i'm the small writing human o/ *waves*

thank you for your response and i just took the time to read through your Jacob black's life matters and how smeyer killed him and i found it super interesting. (also it literally excites me seeing the quotes with the page numbers🤤). -----anyway back on track now. so i've always hd a liking for twilight since i watched the movies when they released (i would have been like 10..?) because i generally like the genre it falls in to. back in feb i watched all the movies again with my mum and she owns all the books so i started to read Twilight and pretty much loved it (i'm easily pleased). it took me like three weeks to get through it which is pretty average for me (attention span..) but then when i picked up New Moon i could barely put it down. i read it in 4 days which is the fastest ive ever read a book by a looong shot. i kind of fell off with reading eclipse... it took me almost 2 whole months to get through which just shows.

i think in hindsight one of the reasons i actually love New Moon (book) more than the rest is that there isnt really a 'set in stone villain' (twilight has james, eclipse has the newborns//victoria, then BD has the volturi. i suppose edward is the only thing that could class as a villan that book but thats not my point i think i enjoyed it more because of the time we get to spend with bella and jacobs characters . . . (quick side note that i watched the movies after finishing the books and new moon has no justice i feel like it washes over the effect jacob had on bringing bella "back to life" so much. so upsetting)

anyhoodles. i think i enjoy Twilight to set up B&E, then New Moon to set up B&J, then as you say in the crit Eclipse just kind of forces you to choose. and it makes sense. after just watching the movies i cant see a way in hell anyone would be team jacob---but having read the books its a whole different story. but then again... smeyer.... yeah.

sorry this has been such a long ask and doesnt really have a question involved, feel free to not post a response as i understand it's long:')

as a last note while i think of it i think that Eclipse for me fell off in that i didnt particularly care about what it was doing. i liked reading about bella and edward in twilight and then bella and jacob in new moon and i just didnt really care for most of eclipse. but maybe thats because i fell in love with bella and jacob from new moon and then had the character sabotaged.. heavy sigh. i think it says a lot that ive had a fan art of bella and jacob walking along the beach as my phone wallpaper since i read new moon so that says it all really.

i apologise once again for the length of this. ---if you wanna see the fan art wallpaper ill find it and reblog it so its at the top of my page.

p(p?)s. i'm glad it's sunny there! it's rained here the last couple days :c

hello tiny writing human! glad to have you back :)

glad you liked the analysis! & the books. New Moon is my favorite too, & i definitely agree with you that part of the appeal is the internal struggle Bella faces. we do get Victoria in the background & the werewolves, but really the whole book is about Bella learning to cope with 1) being a human in a supernatural world 2) her grief of being alone [i.e. without Edward] in this new world. watching her pick up the pieces of her life & build something new & beautiful & imperfect with Jacob was cathartic & relatable - v much a triumph in a series so rooted in the fantastical.

& it's hard to watch Eclipse become this struggle between two boys. because really, it's not about Edward or Jacob. Bella's choice is about whether she wants to give up everything for this cold, "perfect," monstrous, immortal life; or, whether she wants to stick around & build something warm & human & imperfect & finite with Jacob.

by twisting Jacob's character from the symbols of sunshine & values of humanity he represents into a bad-boy supernatural love interest competing with Edward for Bella's affection, it erases some of the characterization that we have come to expect & love in Jacob. because when Meyer positions him as a love interest, he's not embodying the traits as a friend; he's embodying the traits of what Meyer thinks is formidable love interest and rival to Edward: confident, cocky, aggressive, persistent... Jacob becomes nothing more than a 2000s-era (& before) trope of how men in our society "should" act towards women. so, everything we came to knew about Jacob was morphed into this friend/lover hybrid that just didn't work for who he was. he is Jacob...but he is not our Jacob.

(& the movies did him even worse because the "slice of life" B/J scenes we get were mostly cut.)

anyway, thanks for coming back & letting me rant about one of my favorite characters & my fave book :)

#i'm keeping an eye peeled for the fanart :)#too bad about the rain but hopefully you get some sunshine soon!#cheers~#asks #edward cullen #jacob black

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short-circuit-the-great · 3 months

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I was tagged by @magic-ace in this post where they wanted me to answer all of them, so here it is:

🎱 ⇢ post your AO3 total stats

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction?

A classic tale of "my favorite character didn't get enough screen time" led to this.

🌵 ⇢ share the link to a playlist you love

🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?

Give it a 5. I don't mind it but it's difficult to focus on the proofreading side of it.

🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis

🔥🔥🌞🔥🔥

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

@magic-ace @mecha-milkers @i-am-an-omen

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

I haven't finished it, but Descent by Zakharie.

💌 ⇢ how many unread emails do you have right now?

Zero.

🌻 ⇢ tag someone you appreciate but don't talk to on a regular basis

@brockendrems

🐇 ⇢ do you prefer writing original characters, reader inserts, or a mix of both?

Original characters. Reader inserts aren't for me.

🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before

I will share one of my favorite taekwondo stories from many years ago because I think it is funny. Two different short dads I was sparring with managed to accidentally nail me in the face with the same kick on two different occasions, months apart. (You cannot hit the face in taekwondo but going for a headshot it happens a lot.) The first time miraculously didn't knock out any teeth but my upper lip got stuck in my braces and I had to rip it out while laughing maniacally. I looked like a corpse for weeks. The second time was straight in the nose, so my nose is still slightly crooked and makes a crunchy noise if I wiggle it to this day.

Both of the dads felt terrible but I was a teenage boy so I thought blood on my uniform was cool.

The "short dad curse" was real for a bit there and the only reason it hasn't continued is because I am now the short dad myself.

🎲 ⇢ what stops you from writing more in your free time?

I don't have this problem.

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

Knock Out and Breakdown roughhouse a lot.

🧸 ⇢ what's the fastest way to become your mutual?

Reblog my shit with silly tags.

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

I'm learning to animate, which is cool.

I'm feeling a little more hopeful about finishing my degree.

My friends are wonderful.

📚 ⇢ what's the last thing you wrote down in your notes app?

I don't use the notes app.

🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character

I know better than to share that on this hellsite.

🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

Typical murder-related writing searches.

🦷 ⇢ share some personal wisdom or a life hack you swear on

I got a small notebook to write tasks in, things I've done, what and when I ate, etc. This has been very helpful for memory loss and blackouts.

❄️ ⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best?

Don't have one, but one of these days I want to write something more hopeful, something along the lines of a 2010s-era superhero cartoon but as a novel. Don't have a plot for that one yet. It's rotating in my head, though.

🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

One of the best pieces of writing advice I ever heard was "give yourself permission to suck." When you sit down to write you can't be fixated on making it perfect the first time. All your first draft has to do is exist. Anything you write down you can change later, but you gotta get it down first.

🥐 ⇢ name one internet reference that will always make you laugh

My roommate and I keep saying "inch resting" and "ingredience" to each other.

🏜️ ⇢ what's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

Any.

🍦 ⇢ name three good things about a character you hate

He makes admittedly funny puns. That's it. That's all I'm giving Silas.

🥝 ⇢ do you lie a lot? what's the most recent lie you told?

I don't lie except for safety.

🦋 ⇢ share something that has been on your heart and mind lately

Grief.

🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing?

A few.

🍅 ⇢ give yourself some constructive criticism on your own writing

Don't give my characters enough time to "rest"--it's one crisis after the other. That's the way I like it but someone get em therapy what the hell

🐚 ⇢ do you like or dislike surprises?

It depends what kind.

🪲 ⇢ add 50 words to your current wip and share the paragraph here

She barely made it halfway down to the gallows before something slammed into her, knocking her into the side of the building and shattering a line of windows. The crowd gasped and looked up, and then all Suncatcher could see was shadows and broken glass and the gun someone shoved into her face.

“If you can’t sit back and watch nicely,” Crossfire said, “then you can’t watch at all.”

“Go to hell,” Suncatcher said, and the blades on her forearms snapped out and stabbed into Crossfire’s midsection.

☁️ ⇢ what made you choose your username?

Thought ShortCircuit would be a good pen name for Transformers fanfic. It eventually became a new pen name overall, though I still use NobleRunaway in other spaces.

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

@magic-ace @mecha-milkers @i-am-an-omen I love you guys so much. May your pancakes always be fresh.

🌸 ⇢ do you have any pets? if you do, post some pictures of them

So remember when I answered one of these with "grief"

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

This doodle of Knock Out because it speaks to me.

🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

I wrote an entire rant and deleted it because the internet can't read. But there is something and it falls under mischaracterization.

#Spotify

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jonnipeppers · 10 months

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How long do you think it takes for you to complete one episode of saliatos 2?

Kind of impossible to generalize-

Episodes 1-5 are done, episode 6 is gonna be finished next week, eps 7-10 are mostly written with a few things left up to when i animate them

Episode 1 was written back in 2017, it was originally the story I was going to do instead of Dr Sam Mulaney's Burden, but I had a professor who told me to rewrite it from the doctor's perspective, which in hindsight I think was a mistake. But I do think it works really well as an introduction to the season. I rewrote it a little and then animated it in a week.

Episode 2 was written very quickly in a purgelike way but because of how embarrassing/horrifying the subject matter was for me to depict it took me months to finish the animation, not even because it was hard but because I just really didn't want to work on it.

Episode 3 actually took me a while to figure out. It was originally 2 episodes that I combined into one. It took me a few months to animate.

Episode 4 was the easiest to write and took me the shortest to animate,

Episode 5 I've been planning since I made season 1 LOL- Ive always wanted Roys plan to escalate like crazy to the point where hes pyschically breaking up spacetime to eidetically broadcast his worm show, it still took a lot of effort to figure out how to depict it. It was the fastest Ive animated any of these though

Episode 6 was easy to write and I'll probably finish the animation next week

For episodes 7-10 I have bits and pieces animated, but they're all written. Episode 7 has been in flux for a long time, its been going back and forth and ive been rewriting it like crazy. Episode 8 is the shortest, but probably one of the best ones. Episode 9 is also really good. Episode 10 is probably some of my best work.

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musefictions · 5 months

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2023 Writing Wrap-Up

I shook things up this year and recorded my writing process each month of this year- everything I wrote, edited, submitted to a literary magazine, or got published. So I got some stats for you today!

Everything I wrote:

13 short fiction/flash fiction pieces, 3 poems, and 1 creative nonfiction piece, for a total of 17.

These are the finished ones (I have a notebook full of scraps of lines or paragraphs that came to me that never turned into anything.) There are several that just didn't work out and I'm not pursuing them, at least for now.

Short fiction rejections:

A whopping 47! *air horns*

Short Fiction Publications:

3! (I had 4 acceptances, but we'll get to that.)

The Most Inaccurate Map in the World came out this February in Screen Door Review!

Logline: A mother newly living out of her car tries to turn the situation into an adventure for her daughter.

Imitates Life is coming out around February 2024 in The Gateway Review!

Logline: Sculptor whose creations come to life attempts to make the perfect man. This goes just as awry as you might expect.

When to Tell Your Date You're the Chupacabra is coming out in January 2024 in Over/Exposed!

...Yeah, this one is exactly what it sounds like from the title.

It got accepted by two places at the same time. This was the fastest any of my works have been picked up- I drafted it in October, two months before it was accepted.

Favorite thing I wrote:

Wet, Crooked Colt, which is about two people on the ace spectrum navigating sex. (You bet your ass I named a story Wet, Crooked Colt.)

The runner-ups are Chupacabra, which you'll see soon, and an unpublished short story that I hope will be published in 2024 (I don't like revealing much about unpublished things, but you best believe I will not shut up about them once they're out.)

When I sat down to think about why these three are my favorites, my conclusion was that they feel the most raw and honest. This year, a lot of personal experiences crept into my work, and I didn't shy away from more personal topics in general.

They also mark my style starting to change!

None of these feel like traditional Jenna stories. I look at them and think, "I made that?" It's a weird sensation. (I ended up disliking the stories I wrote this year that did feel more like traditional Jenna stories.) I've been getting weirder ideas and experimenting more with form, and instead of choppy sentences, I bounced to the other stylistic extreme and now I'm into run-ons. I love this direction and the feeling that I'm in a new era!

How I feel about my writing year:

Mixed.

I miss having a long project like a novel or novella. Lately my writing process has been like, "get an idea, get excited that I have an idea, write and edit it within the span of a few days, finish it and be sad about it."

It wasn't so much lack of motivation I struggled with this year but lack of inspiration. Maybe it's lingering effects of burnout since I had a lot of big life events (mostly good things! I graduated and started the first job I actually like! but still burnout-inducing things!)

On the plus side: this was the year I started seriously submitting to magazines, and I'm BEYOND excited about the publications. I have a much better idea of the theme tying my collection together, and I feel like the collection is taking shape.

I'm sending good vibes for 2024! If anyone has publications or snippets you want to hype up, drop them in the comments below- I'd love to check them out!

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colorico-art · 8 months

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Navigation Guide

I know this seems weird, but I made this guide to make it easier to find posts you wish to see. I function well on organization, and I'm tired of acting like I don't (even if it is hard to stay organized a lot of the time).

General Info

Seeing as how this is Tumblr, you'll be seeing a lot of stuff that I like, reblog, or create. I am consolidating all of my social media outlets into Tumblr to make it easier for me to track and organize my works. I noticed that tagging is a huge thing here on Tumblr (and a friend had to teach me how to use it well LOL). Therefore, posts will have specific tags with their own purpose. This implements the Featured Tags Tumblr has in place.

#colorico Tag

This tag is used to show what items I personally have posted, versus what has been reblogged or shared. All of my artwork, rants, test posts, etc. will all have this tag. This is so that if you do not wish to see what I reblogged, this will filter those items out.

#colorico sketch Tag

I don't know about you, but I feel that seeing the sketchwork of an artist is just really fascinating. You basically get to see what laid the groundwork for the finished piece. This tag is to showcase my sketches for those that have a similar mindset.

#colorico art Tag

Can't really say I'm using Tumblr to not showcase my art, so...yeah, this is to put all my artwork front and center. Pretty straightforward, honestly. Artwork showcased will feature other tags (because it's Tumblr, and I want more people to see my work...Sue me, I'm not ashamed to say I want some kind of attention LOL).

#colorico pdca Tag

I am implementing a technique of learning shown by Naoki Saito in his book Fastest Way to Improve Illustration (the book linked is to the English translation he made available; I'm too smooth brain at the moment to fully understand his Japanese books). The book explains the 3 Month Improvement Method, which involves the basic principles of the Plan, Do, Check, and Action Cycle commonly seen in other industries. I've been going on and off on this method for some years, but even then I have seen a stark improvement to my work.

TL;DR is that this tag will showcase my thought process of analyzing my works and seeing what can be improved on.

#colorico timelapse Tag

This one is a fairly new feature I wanted to implement. I've come across other artists' timelapse pieces, and the process itself makes it easier to see different techniques used (a live stream is better, but in today's social media climate it's easier to give out small videos compared to hour-long streams).

Additionally, sometimes there's a technique used in one piece that I need a refresher on when handling a different piece. Please be aware that Tumblr doesn't have the easiest time uploading my timelapse videos, so there may not always be a timelapse available, even if I did record it...

#colorico #featured #long post

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nimuetheseawitch · 2 years

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10, 11, 29, 30 for ao3 wrapped asks

Thank you so much for these asks! You always make me think :)

10. What work was the quickest to write?

Class A's - I'd actually forgotten this and thought the fastest was one of my newer ones, but nope, I apparently wrote this in 15 minutes.

11. What work took you the longest to write?

I think it was I'm missing you like I used to. The idea came quickly after posting the other pieces in that series, but I dug way too deep into the Kinsey reports (yay research!) and did a lot of rewrites. The next piece in that series is going to probably be the longest once I finish it - it's been most of the year...

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

Ooh, this is hard (and now I have to go read everything). I am most proud of this one:

The weather. I know talking about the weather is mundane, but mundanity has been one of my few sources of joy these last few months. I cried at the first falling leaves I saw. A New England autumn is a sight to behold. I bet you’ve never been leaf peeping. Yes, that’s a real thing, I promise. You’ll have to visit some fall, and I’ll take you on a tour of the best leaf peeping spots in Maine. You know I know all the best peepshows.

It's from the letter Hawkeye finally writes to BJ in Sitting here tonight. In general, that's one of my favorite fics I've written (I have this thing about letters and epistolary stories), but I was just so pleased with myself for You know I know all the best peepshows.

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?

Honestly, writing itself was the biggest surprise. And people's positive responses to my writing. I never considered myself a writer and started posting fic last December (not counting the one fic I wrote in 2019) and just kept going. I really shocked myself with the desire and inspiration to write as well as just how much fun I'm having. It makes me happy when I go back and actually like what I wrote (although I still have some cringe moments). It surprises me when I mention something I'm writing on Tumblr and people get excited about my ideas.

#wow i can't believe i first posted a mash fic a year ago #feels like it's been forever but also no time at all #asked and answered #ao3 asks

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bunny-rambles · 2 years

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bunny bunny BUNNY!!

omg omg i stay away from this platform for two days bc of stuff (nothing serious dw i've just been busy with some irl birthday lol) and i come back and see what??

okay, let's make some order:

- you've been in a car crash??? my baby i've read from your answers that you're better now but :////// anyways if the head wound still hurts i will pray for the fastest recovery!!

- congrats congrats on the 700 followers!! ✨ every time i see you reaching some sort of milestone i get really really happy eheh :3

- this is gonna be boring bc someone has beat me to the punch, but i too ship you with albedo! hehe i think you'd look super cute together <3 lil sweet bunny and the pretty alchemist

- last (but not least. definitely not least) omg the new piece???? i was dead set on declaring the tighnari part my favorite as soon as i finished reading it but then scaramouche happened and??? i need a second to breathe wow. i love him i love him i love him so much i wanna be the one that comforts him when he's feeling down sigh seriously tho i adored it. might be a bit of a personal bias bc ya know, it's my fave boys we're talking about but still. what a nice surprise to be back to.

and this is it! wanted to come back with some funny anecdote but i really didn't do much recently. ah, but my friends and i are making a series of board games about our favorite tv show and these days i've been busy making the trivial pursuit version of it. it turned out so cute i'm super happy :D

also! we haven't done the italian word of the day in a while so here you go: today's word is tartaruga, which means turtle, bc today i played with my turtle and he's just the cutest boy don't tell scara tho

bye bye buns! no matter what, i hope this ask finds you well

ti voglio bene!

- 🍓

Goodness, I only left this a few days but those numbers have increased so much-

I now have 838followers,,, crazy, right? I couldn’t move past 600 for nearly two months and now I’m only 162 off my goal for this account…

It’s strange, there are times where I’m asking if it’s deserved, and honestly it’s a little overwhelming with the amount of new people here, but it’s been nice to finally have something I’m proud of be seen and talked about, it’s,,, it’s nice to have my abilities validated :,) I know that shouldn’t be important but I can’t help it, I like hearing nice things about my work

Mhm, I was in a car crash. I only came out with a cut on my forehead but I’m extremely hesitant getting into a car after;;; even now I’m clinging onto the seatbelt until my knuckles are white. But don’t worry fragola, I’m alright 💞

Hehehehehehe~ ahhh albedo my beloved, I love hearing how I’m shipped with him. Ahem… self indulgent little drabble, skip over this if you want;;; -

hand in hand on top a snowy mountain, a smile on our faces. we’re cold, our breaths mingling together through the cool mist exiting our lips, but the warmth in our chests is enough for us to not feel the unforgiving chill. enough for each other, for that is all we need. even the harshness of the hostile environment, all around us looks like a dreamscape - the winter wonderland you only hear about in fairy tales. yes, hand in hand, I’ve found the flame that keeps my heart alight, burning brightly. undying, like our unconventional love.

i love my boy so very much 💞

oh my god I put all my emotions for scara into that, I just really want to reach through the screen and reassure him that even though life has been cruel, there are some things that aren’t so bad. They might not last for long, but another good thing replaces it. (… maybe I’m not just talking about scara anymore)

Anyway-

Hehehe thank you dearest /)/////(\ scara was the highlight of that piece, but I liked all of them, tighnari’s was absolutely a self indulgent vent though college is killing me OTL

Hehe when I first read that I just thought of Tartaglia the tartaruga, and now an imagine of a lil turtle with water blades and a scarf lives in my head rent free - I hope you find this just as amusing, or maybe my humours just broken.

ti voglio bene, it’s nice to hear you’re doing well, don’t be a stranger and drop by my inbox whenever you’d like, I love hearing from my dear fragola <3

#bun speaks #🍓 anon #so sorry this is late I just have no energy for most things anymore #ily though #albedo my beloved #sorry for being so self indulgent in this;;;; but it came to me and I couldn’t stop OTL

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bagheerita · 1 month

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Writers Truth & Dare Ask Game

🎱 ⇢ post your AO3 total stats User Subscriptions: 103 Kudos: 6,416 Comment Threads: 1,083 Bookmarks: 1,312 Subscriptions: 692 Word Count: 1,674,954 Hits: 115,408

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? Ever since I was a small child I've made up stories in my head where my favorite characters get to meet each other and go on adventures.

🌵 ⇢ share the link to a playlist you love my writing playlist on youtube

🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that? 11. editing is basically rereading my own stuff, and I'm the bitch I wrote that for so what's not to love? Though it usually sucks when I get to the end of what's written and have a that can't be it, where's the rest of it? moment, but hopefully if I'm in the mood for it I can add more on❤

🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis Um... 🤔😻😭😭😭(i opened another new gdoc when i should be trying to finish something)

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help? Like, IRL or in a fic?

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love I have just over 200 bookmarks and they are all fantastic

💌 ⇢ how many unread emails do you have right now? 0. I check for new emails multiple times a day.

🌻 ⇢ tag someone you appreciate but don't talk to on a regular basis @sorchakitty Hi! It's been awhile. 🙂

🐇 ⇢ do you prefer writing original characters, reader inserts, or a mix of both? ...Neither? I mean, I prefer canon characters, bc that's why i write fanfic, I'll add in OCs when they're necessary, but I usually prefer trying to find some background canon character I can use instead if possible.

🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before Um, when I was a kid the three states I never wanted to live in were Florida, California, and Texas. Guess what, my family moved to Texas.

🎲 ⇢ what stops you from writing more in your free time? Usually when I have "free" time I'm wiped out.

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings I tend not to have firm headcanons... but in general I really like exploring D/s dynamics and I tend to prefer when the traditionally more masculine/outwardly dominant character is more submissive in the bedroom, though I also write almost all pairs as switch. I think it's a reaction to reading yaoi/BL manga for years.

🧸 ⇢ what's the fastest way to become your mutual? Post about Wraith stuff.

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now 1. the company delayed notifying the bank about my loan, so I don't have to worry about making a payment until next month. 2. I have a new foster kitten who is super cute. 3. I just "bought" an ebook that sounds like it's going to be really good.

📚 ⇢ what's the last thing you wrote down in your notes app? Buy eye drops

🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character Sometimes I think John Sheppard is extremely overrated.

🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project? how to skin a deer

🦷 ⇢ share some personal wisdom or a life hack you swear on

❄️ ⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best? I'm a sucker for regency/victorian AUs, and I desperately want one with Wraith as main characters. I'm trying to write it, but I'm not very good at the time period appropriate language and mannerisms, for all that I love reading it.

🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity You need input to create output. If you can't output (and you know, other factors like sleep aren't the issue) try reading or watching something new or different to generate input.

🥐 ⇢ name one internet reference that will always make you laugh I've seen the first 5 seasons of Red vs Blue so many times I quote it to myself in all situations.

🏜️ ⇢ what's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work? Detailed, incisive critique, with citations. 😉 Really, anything where someone quotes a piece of the chapter or mentions specifically what their favorite part was, because I can usually be like "OMG, YES, ME TOO!"

🍦 ⇢ name three good things about a character you hate Ugh. I think the only character in SGA that I unequivocally hate is Lucius Lavin. 1. Richard Kind is good actor. 2. He's probably not the worst person in the galaxy, underneath the rape-y exterior? 3. He's only in 2 episodes.

🥝 ⇢ do you lie a lot? what's the most recent lie you told? I do not.

🦋 ⇢ share something that has been on your heart and mind lately everything is expensive

🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing? not one that I can think of specifically. I mean other than it being fanfic for SGA, so... maybe I should say moderately mediocre media inspires me lol.

🍅 ⇢ give yourself some constructive criticism on your own writing You really need to work on writing conflict.

🐚 ⇢ do you like or dislike surprises? generally dislike, because I like to plan things out, but it can be fun sometimes

🪲 ⇢ add 50 words to your current wip and share the paragraph here

Scylla narrows his eyes in thought. “The name does not sound familiar,” he says. “Though I do not know much about the Fayn or their allies. They were the enemies of the Wraith.” “Why are you here again?” Toriel asks, even though Dorsey tries to glare him to silence. “I am familiar with their technology,” Scylla explains with a dryness worthy of McKay at his most withering, “not the individuals themselves.”

☁️ ⇢ what made you choose your username? It was my nickname for my cat, since she was a "house panther" or bagheera + ita. Kipling's racism aside, I adore The Jungle Book and if I don't feel like explaining to you why Kaa is the fucking boss and disney sucks, I usually say Bagheera is my favorite character. Also when I first got into AO3/tumblr I was really into Avengers and Black Panther is my favorite/the literal fucking best avenger, so it was fandom adjacent at the time.

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them Um, I was going to say my sister, but she's not on tumblr. so, less personally, I'll say @eos-x and @anonmadsci set up discord servers for Wraith-focused SGA chatting which is probably why I'm still in the same fandom after several years. Thanks!

🌸 ⇢ do you have any pets? if you do, post some pictures of them My cat Amun, better known as Bug, often called Old Man.

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it That would be literally impossible because like 90% of the fanart I've seem is also my favorite. I love people drawing Todd, and anyone doing fanart for stargate ❤❤

🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately? I'm pretty flexible about character interpretations but... if character would NOT do that

#ask game #answers #i'm supposed to be working my second job but they have nothing for me today so instead im venting my frustration #through answering all of these questions and making it your problem

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phoenixglacier · 3 months

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Tips for maintaining/building art motivation!

Want to get better at art but feel like you're not getting anywhere? Have a sad folder full of unfinished art? Does it take you three months to finish a single artpiece if it ever does get finished? Here are some tips that worked for me to keep me interested in art!

Tip 1: Notice the goal markers in each project and consider that a piece!

If you're like me and take forever to finish one piece, you're probably spending ages on each part of the project. Maybe you do just the hair, then just the face, then just the clothes. Maybe you do a sketch, then another sketch, then another sketch, then another sketch, then flat colours then rendering. Each time you hit one of those, save an image/scan/video/gif/whatever you're making of that version. Put it in that folder where you put all your finished art.

If you do lose interest in that project, one day when you look back you'll see an "unfinished" artpiece with some pretty boss stuff. It will be a more accurate record of what you actually spent your time on. Sure, this sketch doesn't have a clean lineart on it, but you can totally tell what it is! Sure, this piece has super detailed hair but flat everything else, well maybe the hair is the star of the show and for that matter that's really cool technique you used for the hair! Art doesn't always have to be finished! Just look at the work out there you're aspiring to:

Tip 2: Look at how others use art to communicate

If you're here on tumblr, there's a wide range of art out in the wilderness for you to forage. You're gonna see some people that are probably gods painting the most intensely beautiful artwork you'll never be able to fantasise - but that's just one type of content. I'm constantly attracted to art that are absolutely not in the style I lean towards, but they express emotions or pitch a new design or honestly are just about characters that I'm starving for. Not all art has to be perfectly polished, often you'll see a sketch posted instead because that was sufficient to get across the idea. Focus on the idea. Aspire to create art that gets across these ideas in one way or another.

I would also say to read comic books. Webtoons are good too - there are many stories I've read where I was interested enough in the story, and the art wasn't all that appealing to me. But if the art gets across that story, mission achieved, and it's also motivating to see the change in the artists' style over time. You're a baby deer taking your first steps but you're not the only one; artists that you look up to are all doing the same.

Tip 3: Set staggering "finishedness" goals

Okay, so we've talked about treating "unfinished" artwork like finished work, and we've talked about how artwork doesn't have to look "finished" to be enjoyable for us. How 'bout we do it on purpose now?

Again, I'm gonna assume you're like me and take several months to finish one piece that maybe has background, lineart, full rendering, the works. Well, remember that that's not the only type of "finished" artwork. Here are a couple of mild suggestions:

Draw the proportions cartoonised or chibi.

Work on creating a really pretty background.

Skip the lineart. Just colour straight over the sketch.

Skip the colouring too. Just tidy your sketch up slightly.

Instead of colouring your lineart, add some fun embellishments in monocolour and/or change the colour of your linart.

Pick up a sketchbook (oops I've been assuming you do digital all this time) and do any of these. After being trapped in digital I find physical sketching quite freeing.

Do this for a concept/design that you want to communicate. Consider this the equivalent of jotting down notes in a meeting that you don't want to forget.

Tip 4: Break up your art projects with more art projects

Perhaps controversial, but I find that forcing myself to stay on a single artpiece is the fastest way for me to lose motivation for it. Plus, our brains do like the satisfaction of having finished a project, so we can't deprive ourselves of that for too long.

So we have our staggered "goals"finishedness" goals above. The idea is to plan break projects that won't last more than a day or two. For example, I'm working on a piece that's been going for a month already. On a day that I just feel stuck looking at it, I'll choose to maybe do a design concept art for a different character with just a basic sketch and messy flat colours. This took me about two 1-hour sessions, which meant it was done after a day. After that, I'm back to the main project. When I'm out, I do some physical sketches, nothing coloured or super lined, just new characters again.

Give yourself permission to do other art, with the only rule being don't plan a project that's gonna be just as long. The timing is going to be different for everyone, but no one's keeping track except you.

Tip 5: Draw for yourself

Art is subjective. If you're planning to be a professional artist then you might have to be harsher on yourself, but as someone who draws for enjoyment I implore you to make yourself your biggest audience. You don't have to scrutinise every piece you make. You don't have to wonder whether others will like it. You don't have to heed unasked criticism. If you like it, an enormous goal has already been reached. We are all already our biggest critics. Draw the weird idea and never show anyone. It's fine. It makes you happy. Now go out into the wild and create <3

#phoenixglacier’s words #how to art

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laprincesaelena · 3 years

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EOA Discord Ship Appreciation Week Day 3: Growing Old Together

a/n: hey everyone! sorry i’m a day late on this one, once i start writing something, i tend to like, not stop, and that’s what happened with today’s fic lol, it took me much longer than i expected! but, regardless, here it is! today’s fic is a bit different, focusing on a different couple (though, there are mentions of gabelena lol, but you could always fill in gabe’s name with your character of choice :) ), our beloved king raúl and queen lucía!!

basically, this fic is a what if. what if the king and queen of avalor’s story had gone slightly differently? what if king raúl and queen lucía hadn’t even left to work on the carnaval floats before shuriki arrived? in this au, raúl and lucía receive the happy ending they deserve, and they live to see many more family moments and milestones than they would in canon.

(also, for the sake of the fic, let’s just say in this au, avalor gains a new ruler once the heir becomes of age, not when the current ruler dies. okay? okay :) )

anyways, before i do exactly what i did while writing this and write wayyy too much, i’ll stop myself here. a quick thank you to everyone who’s been liking, reblogging, and leaving wonderful comments on my fics so far, you don’t know how happy they make me!! and a very special thank you to @procrastinateland , for providing the beautiful art to go along with the fic!! hope you all enjoy!!

fic is below the cut!

“Got everything, cariño?”

The queen of Avalor was busy packing the carriage with boxes full of colorful decorations to decorate their latest float for the upcoming Carnaval celebrations. Carnaval was Lucía's favorite time of year, and she always looked forward to designing, building, decorating, and of course, riding aboard the kingdom's infamous Carnaval parade floats. She and her husband, King Raúl, were headed to Castillo Park to check up on the progress of the floats, and to add a few touches to their own.

"Yes, yes, everything's here!"

One could barely see the king steadily walking down the steps of the palace, for he was carrying a stack of boxes that rose to practically over his head. Lucía couldn't help but shake her head as she turned to see this sight, and met him at the bottom of the stairs to help him out. She reached up to take the box at the top of the stack, revealing her husband's face behind it.

"Need a little help there?" she joked.

"I may have underestimated my balancing skills.." Raúl replied, beginning to place the rest of the boxes in the carriage. "But luckily, everything arrived in one piece!"

"We aren't even to the park yet, don't speak too soon!" Lucía responded.

"Have fun, you two!"

The royal couple turned to the sound of Luisa's voice, who stood at the door of the palace with her husband, Francisco, and Princess Isabel, who was waving goodbye to her parents. The two waved back, and Lucía blew a kiss to her youngest daughter.

"Thank you!" Lucía called to them. "We'll see you at dinner!"

Just as the king and queen were about to step into the carriage, the sky suddenly began to turn gray. Large clouds rolled in, some of them having a dark green hue to them. Raúl protectively wrapped his arm around his wife as they stepped back, trying to get a sense as to what was going on.

Suddenly, floating out of the green haze, emerged a figure. The closest royal guards rushed to step in front of the monarchs, their swords drawn, ready to protect their rulers at any given moment.

Lucía tightly held onto her husband, and noticed how his face began to grow pale. As the shadowy figure approached, Raúl instantly recognized their identity.

"Shuriki.." he whispered.

At the very sound of her name, Lucía could feel her heart sink. For the past few months, Avalor had been involved in various defenses alongside their allied kingdoms against the wicked sorceress. Thankfully, all of these efforts against her had been successful, and Shuriki had not been able to take over any of these kingdoms. But as it turned out, Avalor was the next target on her list, and they were gravely unprepared.

"Everyone, inside! Now!" The voice of the captain of the guard echoed throughout the courtyard as the royal family quickly made their way into the safety of the palace. But they knew a few troops were no match for Shuriki, she could infiltrate the palace in a matter of minutes. A plan had to be put in place, now, or Avalor didn't stand a chance.

For little Isabel, all of this happened in the blink of an eye. One moment, she was waving goodbye to her parents on the palace steps, now her and her family were running for their lives, having mere moments to reach a safe haven. A moment later, the princess had a sudden realization. Her abuelos were here, her mamí and papí were here, but one member of her family was nowhere to be found.

"Elena!" she called. "Where's Elena?"

Raúl had been calling out orders to royal guards and staff members as they rushed through the halls, but hearing his eldest daughter's name immediately shifted his strong demeanor. His Elenita was nowhere to be found, and was possibly unaware of the danger she was in. He frantically looked around for a moment, hoping Elena would miraculously appear.

"Elena!" he called, quickly checking in each room they passed. "Elenita!"

Lucía too, joined in on the frantic search for her daughter, but a moment later, she felt just the slightest bit of hope.

"The amulet!" she cried. "The amulet, the one we gave her for her birthday last year, will always protect her from harm!"

"But what if this sort of magic is an exception?" Raúl asked, fearing the worst. "Or what if she doesn't have the amulet on? We have to find her, Lucía!"

"Ay, don't put those thoughts in my head, cariño!" Lucía replied. "I hope we find her before we escape, I truly don't want to leave without her, but she has magical protection, we don't! Hopefully this will all be settled before we even need to escape, so we can-"

But before the queen could finish her sentence, a magical blast was heard from behind them. Shuriki was closer than they thought, they had absolutely no time to waste. The royal family picked up their pace, before they encountered their royal wizard, Alacazar.

"Come, come quickly!" he called out to them. "I have a spell to protect you! But we must perform it now, or it will be too late!"

The royal family had no time to decide on where their hiding spot would be, or where they would escape to if Shuriki did manage to take the throne. Their safest and fastest option was Alacazar's spell, so that would have to do. The wizard quickly explained that this spell would protect them inside of an enchanted painting, one that not even magic as powerful as Shuriki's could touch. As the family posed together for their 'portrait', Lucía couldn't help but think of her oldest daughter. In her final moments outside of the frame, she prayed for Elena's safety, that the amulet would protect her from harm, and that once Avalor was freed from the wicked sorceress, their family could be safely reunited. The Castillo-Flores family held each other close as the incantation was recited, and a moment later, a new family portrait, with one missing princess, was displayed on the wall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

41 years later...

"Tlahcuilolli apartad, tlahcuilolli apareced, tlahcuilolli vivid!"

Elena bit her lip and clasped her hands tightly together as she watched Mateo recite the spell that would hopefully free her family from the enchanted painting. She had missed her family so much being separated from them for forty one years, and so hoped that she'd be able to finally reunite with them.

A moment later, a magical haze encircled the painting, and soon, the silhouettes of her family were pulled out of the portrait. Once the haze had cleared, Elena saw her family, safe and sound, as if no time had passed at all. Tears of relief filled her eyes as she ran right over to her family, being met by a tight embrace by her little sister.

"Isa!" she cried as she held her sister close. "Oh, I've missed you so much.." Elena then pulled back, just to take in this moment that she'd been dreaming of for so long. Isabel was still the adorable, intelligent, and innocent little girl she had last seen all those years ago, even down to the dirt stains on her dress.

Then, Elena looked up at her parents, who looked just as relieved to finally be free and reunited with their family.

"Mamí, Papí!" she exclaimed, and pulled them both in for a hug.

"Oh, Elenita.." Raúl said, holding his baby girl close. He feared if he let her go one more time, he would never see her again.

Lucía too felt her eyes fill with tears as she embraced her daughter for the first time in decades. "We were so worried about you, mija.." she said, before cupping her daughter's face in her hands. "You're alright..you're safe..the amulet really did protect you!"

"It did.." Elena replied with a nod, placing a hand on top of her mother's.

Elena then wrapped her abuelos in a hug, she had missed all of her family so, so much, and it felt so good to finally be reunited with them. But, Shuriki was still on the throne, their fight for the kingdom wasn't over just yet.

After a short but sweet family reunion, Elena, along with the Enchancian and Avaloran royal families, made their way onto jaquins to join the revolution stirring in the villages below. With the help of the brave people of Avalor, the forty one year reign of Queen Shuriki was brought to an end. Avalor was finally free once again, and the royal family was reunited for good. It was the happiest day in all of Avalor, and kingdom would rejoice for weeks on end. That day, it seemed as if life couldn't get any better. But, the kingdom's most prosperous and happy years were yet to come.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Four years later..

Raúl and Lucía stood proudly beside the Avaloran throne, in a ballroom filled with dignitaries, family, and friends from all over the world. Their beautiful Elenita was turning twenty years old today, but that wasn't the only event the kingdom was celebrating. After four years of experience as Crown Princess, along with learning plenty about ruling from her parents and grandparents, Elena was finally ready to become queen of Avalor.

Trumpets sounded to announce the princess' arrival, as the chief of the castle announced, "Crown Princess Elena Castillo Flores, please come forward!"

The doors to the ballroom were opened, revealing the future queen. Elena was dressed in a breathtaking blue gown, with floral embroidery across the bodice and bottom of the skirt. A red velvet robe trailed behind her as she carefully walked down the staircase. As she made her way to the throne, Elena smiled at all who had come to celebrate this day with her. Though her stubborn sixteen year old self insisted she'd be able to rule all on her own from day one, she knew that she wouldn't be the ruler or woman she was today without each and every person she passed by entering her life.

But, who had supported and guided her the most of all through this difficult journey was her family. Elena would often think of if her family hadn't survived the ordeal with Shuriki all those years ago, and how she would have ever become queen without their love, support, and guidance. She was so, so grateful they were here with her today to crown her, she had no idea where or who she'd be without them.

Once Elena reached the throne, she pulled each of her parents in for a hug, before turning to face the crowd. She stood as regally as she could for her last few moments as crown princess. Armando gently handed the crown to the king, who would have the honor of crowning his daughter the next queen.

Holding the crown above her head, Raúl took a moment to look down at his daughter, so proud of the woman she had become. He then announced, "It is with tremendous pride, that I crown you, Elena, Queen of Avalor!"

The golden crown was placed upon the young queen's head, and the ballroom erupted into cheers. Elena lifted her head with a smile, she had worked so hard and been through so much to finally achieve this moment.

Raúl stepped back and wrapped his arm around his wife, who took his hand tightly in hers. The former king and queen looked over at their Elenita, their baby girl. Even though they had mentioned it hundreds of times that day, and they would certainly continue to, they were just so, so proud of their daughter. They had no doubts that she would be one of the greatest queens to ever reign, and that Avalor would continue to thrive under her rule.

The next part of the ceremony would soon commence, where the queen would choose a partner for the first dance of the evening. Elena stepped forward, and approached her three closest friends. She bestowed a new title upon each of them, even naming her younger sister the Royal Inventor. But, she still had not chosen a partner to dance with.

Elena paused for a moment, and pretended to be in deep thought. "Now, I believe I have a decision to make.." she said, before turning towards her parents, and reaching her arm out to her father.

"Papá, no one has helped me learn how to rule more than you. Would you honor me with the first dance?"

Raúl couldn't help but gasp, as he could've sworn Elena would've chosen one of her closest friends to dance with, or even her grandfather. Sure, he knew he had been a mentor to her on her journey to become queen, but this came as a pleasant surprise to him. And of course, he would accept. He placed his hand to his heart, and bowed his head to his daughter.

"Of course, mija." he said. "It would be my greatest honor."

Raúl approached his daughter and took both of her hands in his. He leaned forward to kiss her on the forehead, and looked down at her with the proudest smile possible. "I'm so proud of you, Elenita."

"Thank you." Elena replied with a smile. "I couldn't have done any of this without you. Now, about that first dance.."

But, before they could begin the first dance, or even before any music started playing, Francisco spoke up.

"Wait!" he cried. "I didn't stay up all night writing a song for everyone to play for you for nothing!"

Elena tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean, everyone?" she asked.

Then, Lucía, Isabel, and Luisa, along with Francisco of course, stepped forward, and reached their hands to the side.

"Guitars!"

Their guitars were then handed to them, and the quartet began to play a song written and composed specifically for the occasion.

Elena couldn't help but smile, she couldn't believe her family had gone through all the effort to write a song just for her first dance! But, said first dance hadn't begun just yet, what was she waiting for? She took her father's hands in hers, and the two of them began the first dance of the coronation ball.

By the end of the song, Elena and Raúl weren't alone on the dance floor. Just about every guest was dancing in their own ways alongside them, having a wonderful time. As Elena went over to dance with her friends, Lucía pulled her husband right over for a dance. The two of them laughed and smiled as they danced to the beat, they felt as if the golden days of Avalor were returning again. Brighter days were ahead for the kingdom, and they both knew that their Elenita, their shining light, would be a guiding light for Avalor.

¡Viva la reina! Our Elena! Our love will always shine so bright!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Approximately two years later...

In the kingdom of Avalor, every day is bustling, busy, and bright. Today was no different. But today, excitement was in the air for a very special reason. Villagers were lined up and down the streets of the city, waiting for the moment to arrive. Some had claimed their seats days in advance, either paying extra money for it, or by having a bit of a camp out on the sidewalk. Children waited eagerly with small Avaloran flags in their grasps, some even held up posters or drawings that they had made themselves. Their parents were quite tired, but they knew that being here was a once in a lifetime event. But, it wasn't only the village that was filled with both chaos and excitement.

Inside the palace, the staff was busy preparing the castle for this very special event. Rulers and dignitaries from all over the world would be visiting Avalor, so the venue had to look its very best. Every member of the royal family was busy getting themselves ready for the day, but Queen Elena's room however, was where the most activity was happening.

Lucía held back tears as she placed a veil over her daughter's head, her Elenita was to be married today. The moment she stepped back to see the bride's final look, her breath was taken away. Elena wore a strapless dress, with red and gold embroidery swirling across the bodice. The bottom of the dress was long and flowing, including small details of lace, with a six foot train trailing behind her. Her long, dark brown hair was rolled into a bun, one of her favorite formal styles. Underneath her veil was her usual tiara, the rubies casting a scarlet glow whenever the sunlight hit it. The young queen was the epitome of a beautiful royal bride.

"Oh, mija..you look absolutely beautiful.." she said, having to wipe a tear or two from her eye before they fell down her cheeks.

Elena couldn't help but tear up as well as she watched her mother's reaction. "Mamí, stop it, you're going to make me cry too!" she said.

"Oh, no, no..no crying until at least the vows, you can't ruin that beautiful makeup of yours!" Lucía replied. "You look absolutely perfect, Elenita." she added, taking her daughter's hands in hers.

"Thank you.." Elena responded with a soft smile. "I still can't believe this is actually happening.."

"Neither can I!" Lucía agreed. "It feels like just yesterday you were born, it was one of the happiest days of my life..and now look at that little princess! She's all grown up, she's now the queen, and she'll soon become a wife.."

"It only took me forty six years." Elena joked with a laugh, referring to the four decades they had missed while being trapped in enchanted objects.

Lucía laughed as well, she needed a quick laugh to distract her from how fast her daughter had grown up. "Well, I'm sure those forty six years were well worth the wait, right?" she asked.

Elena smiled and nodded at the thought of her soon to be husband. She was so thrilled to be marrying Gabe, she was the happiest woman in the world with him. Thankfully, her entire family had known him for just as long as she had, so he fit right in with the royal family, and Raúl had no hesitation on giving Gabe his blessing to marry his daughter.

Then, a knock at the door signaled that it was time for members of the wedding party to begin their journey to the cathedral, and that included Lucía. The former queen held her daughter's hands tightly and kissed her on the cheek.

"Good luck, mijita." she said with a smile. "I'll see you at the altar."

A few minutes later, Raúl entered the room to escort his daughter downstairs to the carriage that would bring them through Avalor City, and to the ceremony. He too had to pause for a moment to take in the beautiful sight that stood before him. He simply couldn't believe how his little Elenita had grown so quickly, into a strong, confident, and beautiful woman. Each and every day, he would be reminded of how proud he was of his daughter, and how far she had come.

"Elenita, you look simply breathtaking." he said as he approached his eldest daughter. "I changed my mind, I don't think I'll be able to let you go at the end of that aisle." he joked.

Elena couldn't help but laugh at the thought of that, even though she knew, if it were his choice, he probably wouldn't let her go, not wanting to accept how fast she had grown. "You should've thought of that before you gave Gabe your blessing!" she joked.

"I know, I know," Raúl said. "But I'm just joking, mija, I'm thrilled for you both." he added with a smile.

"Thank you," Elena replied, returning the smile. "I'm thrilled too, a little nervous, of course, but still so, so excited."

"I'm sure you are." Raúl responded with a nod. He then sighed, and looked his daughter over one more time. "I'm so proud of you, Elena." he said. "From the moment you were born, I always have been the proudest man in the world to have been your papí. As each day went by, I thought I couldn't possibly love you any more. But each new day, I was proven wrong. I am so incredibly proud of the young woman, queen, and now, well, almost wife that you've become. I love you so much, Elenita."

Elena wrapped her arms around her father and pulled him in for a hug. She was just so grateful to have such a loving and supportive family as she did, she wouldn't want anyone else by her side to celebrate this special day with her.

Once she finally let go, she turned to pick up her bouquet of poinsettias, perfect for her mid-December wedding. She then took her other hand and held her father's tightly. "Ready to go?" she asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Raúl replied with a proud smile.

Elena and Raúl walked hand in hand to the front door of the palace, where a carriage was waiting for them. The coachman opened the door with a bow, and both he and Raúl helped Elena to get inside. It was quite a task with her long train, but thankfully, everyone fit comfortably.

A moment later, the carriage began moving, and they were off. On the way to the cathedral, they passed the many villagers who had been waiting for hours for the queen's carriage to pass by. Elena waved to the people of Avalor with a smile on her face, and even gave a special wave to small children who were seated atop their parent's shoulders. After a carriage ride full of smiling and waving, they finally arrived at the cathedral.

Isabel smiled from the front doors, and began to walk down the steps to meet her sister. As the maid of honor, it was her job to make sure her dress stayed in perfect condition, which meant she was in charge of the long train on the way inside. The coachman opened the door, and Elena began to step out. With that came the cheers of the villagers who had managed to get a spot close by to the cathedral. Elena looked around and took everything in. The cheering villagers, the bells pealing, the thought that in just a short while, she would be Gabe's wife. Isabel took the back of her sister's train in her hands and lifted it up, and Raúl began to lead her inside. Before she reached the entrance, she turned around and waved to the cheering villagers with a glowing smile. She took her papí's hand in hers and held it tight, as they began to walk inside.

Inside the cathedral, she was greeted by her wedding party, who were all in position, ready to walk down the aisle the second the music started. They all gave Elena a smile, and Naomi shot her a reassuring 'thumbs up'. Isabel made her final adjustments on Elena's dress, and began to walk to her place. Once everything looked perfect, and everyone was ready to go, Elena took a deep breath, and the music started.

The journey down the aisle felt like miles for Elena, tightly holding onto her father's hand as he led her closer to the altar. She smiled at each person she passed by, the joy and excitement of the occasion had spread to practically every person in attendance. Elena's smile grew even bigger the closer and closer she grew to her future husband, this still felt so surreal. But, this was a reality, and she couldn't be happier.

It was a bittersweet moment for Raúl once they reached the altar, especially as he passed Elena's hand over to Gabe. But, with a nod of approval and a warm smile to his son-in-law, he knew that his Elenita would be in the best hands. He kissed his daughter on the cheek before heading to sit beside his wife, but before he could, Elena pulled him in for a quick hug.

"I love you," she whispered to him.

"I love you too, Elenita."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eight years later...

"Abuelo! Abuela!"

Lucía and Raúl turned to the sound of their granddaughter's voices as they ran into the parlor. Six year old Catalina Blanca and Carolina Lucía were dressed identically, quite fitting for them being identical twins. They wore a dress of ruby red satin, with short puffed sleeves and an attached ribbon at the waist, tied into a perfect bow in the back. Along with the dresses, they wore matching paten-leather shoes, and a red bow headband to keep their long, dark brown hair out of their faces. Occasionally, even their abuelos had a tough time telling them apart, but the easiest way to differentiate the two was by their personalities.

"Oh, mijitas, you both look so beautiful!" Lucía said, as Carolina fell right into her arms. "You're going to be the best looking girls at the parranda tonight."

"You think so?" Carolina asked with a smile. "I think I'm the best looking girl every day!"

Lucía laughed softly and held her granddaughter close, Carolina was always the one to take pride in her looks. "I know so." she said.

"Abuelita, which songs are you going to play at the parranda tonight?" Catalina asked, already cuddled up in her grandfather's lap. Her and Raúl were particularly close, as Catalina was the heir to the throne, and would follow in her mother's footsteps to become queen one day.

"Oh, just the usuals," Lucía replied. "Let Love Light the Way, Hearts Full of Cheer.."

"I wanna play!" another little voice cried.

Three year old Luis Raúl poked his head into the room, and had clearly overheard some conversations about playing a song. He was absolutely enthralled with his family's love of music, and couldn't wait until he was old enough to learn from his bisabuelo Francisco, his abuela Lucía, or his mamí.

"Well, I do have my guitar handy, if you'd like play a song for us before we go," Lucía offered with a smile.

Luis nodded excitedly, and sat right beside his abuela as she reached over to pull out her guitar. Lucía placed their guitar in front of the little prince, and he began to 'strum' a song for his family. Of course, he played about as well as any three year old could, but to Lucía and Raúl, it was music to their ears.

Just then, Elena and Gabe made their way into the parlor, with two year old Marcelo Roberto in his papí's arms. Elena almost didn't want to interrupt this sweet moment between her children and their abuelos, but they did have a parranda to get to!

"I didn't know we were having a concert before the parranda!" Elena joked with a soft laugh. "Your guitar playing sounds wonderful, mijo, maybe you can lead the parranda next year!" she said to her son.

"Well, he will be learning from the best, won't he?" Raúl asked, looking over to his wife with a smile.

"Oh please, if that's the case, Elena learned from the best, and turned out to be even better!" Lucía replied.

"No, no, I think he should learn from his abuela, so he can grow to become a better guitar player than the both of us!" Elena suggested.

"Now that's more like it!" Raúl responded. "One day, I'm going to see this little one's name up in lights!" he added, reaching down to ruffle Luis' hair, which made him giggle.

"So, is everyone ready to go?" Elena asked.

With a unanimous yes, the royal family made their way downstairs to head into town to begin their annual Nochebuena tradition.

As the family made their way downstairs, a thought crossed Elena's mind. She had a gift for her family that she wanted to give them tonight, but by the time they came home from the parranda, the kids would be going to bed.

"Oh uh, wait!" she said, to catch everyone's attention.

The rest of the family stopped and turned around, wanting to know what may have been forgotten this time.

"How about we go and put the stockings on the mantel? We haven't yet, and by the time we get home, it'll be time for the kids to go to bed. Let's go!" Elena told them and motioned to her family to follow behind her.

Lucía raised an eyebrow with a smile. Her daughter had something up her sleeve, but she didn't know what. She glanced over to her husband, who shared a similar expression.

They soon entered the family room, which was decked with traditional decorations passed down from generations, and some that had been handmade by Elena and Isabel over the years. All of the children's stockings, which had been customized by Isabel, were laid on the table, and the kids rushed in to take theirs and hang them above the fireplace. Gabe helped to hold each of his children up one by one, so they were able to reach the metal hanger. Elena put up hers and Gabe's, but there was still one left on the table, one that was smaller than the others. Elena stood back and waited for a moment, curious as to who would notice it first.

Surprisingly, it was her youngest son, Marcelo, who toddled over and picked it up. He walked over towards his abuelo, not knowing what to do with it.

Raúl picked it up and looked it over. It was small, and it didn't have a name written across its top like the others. "Elena, what's this?" he asked.

Elena simply shrugged, and waited for her other children to make a guess.

"Do I get another stocking?" Carolina asked, hoping it would mean more candy for her.

"No, it's Marcelo's, they're both small!" Luis said proudly. That made sense, that had to be it!

"Catalina, do you know what it is?" Elena questioned. Catalina already seemed to possess logic beyond her years, so Elena was curious as to what her daughter would come up with.

"It doesn't make sense, we each have a stocking, with our names on it, and Luis, Marcelo has his own, so it can't be his, but I'm not sure who it belongs to!" she said.

Catalina was stuck. No matter how many situations she came up with in her head, none of them seemed right.

"Well, it does belong to someone, someone in our family.." Elena hinted.

Carolina's face suddenly lit up. "Is it abuela or abuelo's? They didn't hang a stocking yet!" she exclaimed, confident that she had solved her mother's riddle.

"Oh, we'll gladly take an extra stocking!" Lucía joked, pretending to reach over for it. "More dulces for us!"

Elena laughed and shook her head. "No one's gotten it yet!" she said. "Here, I'll give you another clue. This member of our family is not here to celebrate Navidad with us this year, but they will be here next year!"

Catalina was sitting in deep thought, putting all of the pieces together in her head. Not here this year, will be next year, a member of the family, no name, and the size of the stocking had to symbolize something. Suddenly, Catalina gasped.

"A new sibling?"

With that, Elena looked at Gabe, whose eyes were wide. All he could say in response was, "oh no..."

Elena laughed and smiled. "Yes!"

Catalina and Carolina held hands and jumped up and down in unison. Luis was also very excited, clapping his hands and smiling wide. Marcelo didn't truly know what was going on, but he knew it was something good. "Yay!" he shouted excitedly, though it sounded more like he was saying 'ray!', which made his reaction even cuter.

Lucía and Raúl were thrilled as well, they absolutely adored being abuelos to their four beautiful grandchildren, they couldn't wait to welcome one more.

"I'm so excited for you, mija!" Lucía said, wrapping her daughter in a hug. "You're certainly going to have your hands full, now aren't you?"

"I sure am!" Elena agreed with a nod. "But I've managed to survive with four, how bad could one more be?"

"Oh, I've heard that before, about three children ago." Lucía joked.

"And you two thought you had your hands full with this one, huh?" Raúl chimed in, as his youngest grandson reached up to him, wanting to be in his abuelo's arms. He picked Marcelo up and tossed him in the air, making the toddler screech in delight.

"Well, though our hands may be full, our hearts are even fuller." Elena said.

In the moments leading up to the parranda, Raúl and Lucía took in this moment surrounded by their ever growing familia. They couldn't help but wonder what would've happened on that fateful day over fifty years ago if they had left to work on the Carnaval floats even a moment sooner than they did. There was a good chance that they would've never lived to witness their daughter take back their kingdom and free Avalor from Shuriki's reign. Raúl may have never been able to place the crown upon his daughter's head to crown her queen of Avalor, or proudly walk her down the aisle on her wedding day. Lucía may have never been able to see how breathtakingly beautiful her Elenita looked moments before she was married, or witness the moment her daughter became a mamí. They thought of their four, soon to be five, beautiful grandchildren, who they never would've been able to meet. Becoming their abuelos was one of their greatest joys in life. While they couldn't help but wonder about if a single thing had gone differently, they wouldn't have wanted their lives to have turned out any other way.

#eoa ship appreciation week 2021 #king raúl #queen lucía #do they even have a ship name #raúlucía?#lucíaúl?#who knows #also tagging this as gabelena for mentions of it #gabelena #elena of avalor #my fics #also if you’ve read this far hi meet some of my gabelena kiddos :)#there are a ridiculous amount of them but i narrowed it down to four (almost five) here lmaooo

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