#honestly half my posts are just throwing fic ideas I’ll never write into the void

[jmgangel]

Little thing I wrote based off of this post of mine. I’m never finishing it so if anyone wanted to take the fic idea I do not mind.

#honestly half my posts are just throwing fic ideas I’ll never write into the void #but this was fun #honkai star rail #hsr aventurine #hsr #aventurine #dr ratio #veritas ratio #well he’s mentioned #jade hsr #hsr Jade #justmywriting #ratiorine #aventio

[feanorianethicsdepartment]

heeey! so back when @eirianerisdar posted chapter 12 of their fic the ransom of the house of fëanor - that’s the one where they finally let the brothers hellspawn and their idiot dad out of the void, but they have to throw elrond in, all very sad - i thought up my own somewhat fluffier vastly dumber au for the end of that chapter. in honour of the fic being finished, i’ve decided to write up the various scattershot ideas i’ve had for it, with the caveat that i’ll be working off my own slightly different background headcanons

the divergence point is roughly when elrond announces that he’s totally going into the void now, for realsies, the local ainur are nodding solemnly, and the fëanorians are running preliminary can-we-take-them calculations. except for maedhros, who’s very sad to hear that they must sacrifice his nephew to the eternal dark for their freedom, ‘tis truly a shame, they will honour his memory and GET THE BOAT, BOYS

or, the original elf mad scientist, his murderous blood-hungry spawn, a guy who’s extremely grouchy about not getting to do his dramatic self-sacrifice, and their somewhat-less-reluctant-than-he-should-be getaway driver go on the lam

how they got away from the valar:

námo: already knew this was going to happen, but it’s not like anyone ever listens to him, is it? in the moment, was a little more concerned with how morgoth had started belly-crawling towards the doors of night

manwë: never wanted to throw elrond into the void in the first place, and has been silently hoping elrond would call his bluff for the past week. the children are all safe and inside like they should be, and isn’t that what really matters?

eönwë: no it isn’t boss the fëanorians are a completely unpredictable wildcard we cannot afford to let them run around unsupervised!!! would probably have at least delayed the family hellspawn until backup could arrive, except

olórin: realised what maedhros was planning almost immediately and had to consciously force down a shit-eating grin. as soon as the brothers started moving, divetackled eönwë

-

[from a note attached to a harpoon lodged outside the highest window on the white tower of the isle of seabirds]

elwing - it went better than i expected, honestly. the sons of fëanor took about as much offense to elrond’s plan as everyone else has, except when words didn’t work they resorted to action. they dragged him onto vingilot and i followed them, and then we cast off together. we’ve set sail for as far away from the doors of night as we can get. i’m coming with them, of course, i’m not letting these lunatics crash my baby

i’m not entirely certain when we’ll be back? the fëanorians seem worried the valar might come after us, which wouldn’t surprise me, really. i’m taking us out towards middle-earth, we’ll see where we go after that. they’re all screaming at each other and running across the deck, i’m not convinced they have much of a plan. elrond is yelling too, he’s arguing with either caranthir or curufin, can’t tell which. the one i suspect is maglor has wrapped himself around his neck and refuses to let go. our son is alive and healthy and not in the eternal darkness, and for that, at least, i am grateful

the redhead who’s co-opted the harpoons says we’re coming up on your tower. no one’s done anything to threaten me or elrond, or even looked at the silmaril. there’s something nice about sailing with a crew again, no matter who it is. i love you, and i’ll be back as soon as i can - eärendil

[from a note attached to a harpoon found among the ruins of a house in the tirion stonecarvers’ district]

you were right, nerdanel. you were right about everything, and i was wrong. i’m sorry. the boys and i are going on another adventure right now, but we’ll come back to you someday, i promise

[from the same note, in much neater handwriting]

tell tyelpë i love him, and also that the coordinates are [rest torn off]

-

the first sign of this mess that reaches arda is the morning and evening star disappearing from the sky. gondorian astronomers, haradren scholars, avarin priests all stare flummoxed as the star of high hope simply fails to appear before the sun. no matter how unsuperstitous they are everyone agrees this is a really bad omen, and all across the globe the high halls of power tremble in fear over the new horror this must portend

the first sign of this mess that reaches the shire (except for that one took who’s really into astrology) is when eight-year-old elanor gardner rushes into bag end the next day, all ‘dad! dad! there are elves in the woods!’

sam is pretty chuffed to hear this. the fair folk don’t pass through the shire half as often as they used to, and it’s been some years since he heard their song. if they’re in the neighbourhood, why, it’d only be polite to say hello, wish them luck on their journey, hand them a letter. he packs up a nice tuck-box full of goodies to share, and then sam and elanor (and frodo, who’s going through a following-his-big-sister-around-and-copying-everything-she-does phase) set out to meet the elves

first they hear the shouting. then they see the smoke

at the end of the path his daughter leads him down, sam finds the wreckage of what looks like a crashed boat strewn across the forest, still faintly smouldering. at least a dozen elves are rushing between and up the trees, yelling at each other in the angriest quenya he’s ever heard. in the middle of the impact crater stands a blonde elf carrying a stone that shines like the phial of galadriel, wailing something sam knows just enough sindarin to recognise as ‘MY SHIIIIIIIIIP’

as sam’s gaze pans over the unfolding catastrophe, his eyes land on one of the last elves he’d expected to see, master elrond. elrond is rubbing his temple, groaning like someone who knows he’s the most responsible person around and really wishes he wasn’t. a vaguely familiar sketchy-as-fuck elf is clinging onto his shoulders, in a not-dissimilar way to how frodo-lad is currently riding on sam. elrond catches sam’s gaze

‘greetings, master samwise,’ says the wisest elf-lord of the west, ignoring the scuffle that’s breaking out behind him. ‘i must apologise for my relations’

(fëanor and elanor become fast friends, teaching each other their languages and exploring the shire together. absolutely no one else is okay with this)

-

fëanor, dragging an incredibly-put-upon elrond around the citadel of minas tirith: grandbabies!

fëanor, marvelling over the embroidery arwen is showing him: great-grandbabies!

fëanor, carrying a tiny giggling eldarion all the way up the tower of gondor: great-great-grandbabies!

fëanor, staring fixedly at an increasingly apprehensive aragorn: great-great-great...

celegorm, on dad-watching duty: actually if you lay the maths out it’s very likely every human in middle-earth is descended... from... elros... fuck

fëanor: has gone completely still

fëanor: massive grin spreading across his face, eyes sparkling like the two trees brought back to life

fëanor: eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

#feanor is basically that one hishe darth vader 'i have a SON' skit brought to life change my mind #i love the demographic-math everyone-in-me-is-descended-from-elros thing and i'll bring it up at every possible opportunity #i'm sorry eirian i needed to exorcise the brain worms #anyway #my terrible fic #fic #house of feanor #elrond #earendil #feanor #samwise #elanor #pretty much all my fic content for this fandom is stupid feanorian aus i'm sorry #the sons of feanor do indeed get a bag end breakfast. it is deeply weird for everybody #they're also way way way too eager to potentially fight the eagles #feanor is having the time of his goddamn life and doesn't care what he breaks along the way #earendil may be exploiting the opportunity to talk to humans again #and elrond is the designated driver more or less by default. poor guy #they go on adventures. elrond gets to see his kids again. shit happens #i figure elwing eventually catches up with them but there's pretty much no way i can make a scene with her and the feanorians funny #the cool calm lady of the white tower front is going up FULL FORCE #also idk what's up with those coordinates curvo told tyelpe about but there's no way they don't lead to chaos

[mira--mira]

Question from an aspiring writer:

How do you stay motivated on one project for such a long time?

I personally have the attention span of a goldfish, and whenever I have an idea I either have to write down everything my brain can spew immediately or have it be lost in the void for eternity.

Never mind going back and turning my outline into a fic or gasp editing.

Do you have any tips and/or tricks you use?

Ok, I got completely carried away with this just fyi, but hopefully I ended up answering your actual question 😂 tl;dr at the bottom.

To be honest, staying motivated is a tricky thing, one that I feel I'm still learning how to do even now and varies a bit between shortfics/oneshots and multi-chaptered fics/longfics. For a bit of background, I've been writing fanfic for about a year and a half, but I've been writing original fiction since I was seven, over a decade and a half, and I still wrestle with it. It's definitely a learning process.

One thing I wish someone would have told me when I was starting out was the power of ~scenes~ in either multi-chapters or one-shots. All writing is ultimately made up of scenes, but if you're struggling to put things together, focusing on an individual scene, or multiple short scenes, might help you focus on getting something completed, and it's something that eventually can be applied to longer works as well. Writing has been a snowball process for me and once I started getting anything completed, I felt more secure in knowing what I could write comfortably and what was out of my comfort zone, eventually getting to the point where I felt comfortable tackling bigger and longer projects and knowing I could stay with them.

OoT's interlude chapters and the snippet series are both good examples of scenes because I wrote them with that intention...even if most of them are actually two or three scenes combined. "Gai meets Hashirama and Madara", "Hashirama gets revenge on Kakashi", "Tatsuki and Hashirama pick flowers for Madara, then give them to him" etc. were all my starting points.

If you're first starting out and feel comfortable with outlines of some sort before you start writing I would encourage you to try and write down a bullet point list of your scene(s) and what you know you want to happen in it.

"Gai meets Hashirama and Madara"

* Hashirama meets Gai first, mistakes him for Lee.

* Madara is shopping for a gift for Hashirama

* Madara finds Gai and Hashirama, they spar, Gai kicks his ass, both of them love him.

This is how my initial outline looked for the first interlude chapter, technically each one of these "points" are their own scenes stuck together. Outlining is different for everyone, some people like super specific points, others even less detail than this. For me this is a nice middle that gives me a roadmap for the chapter, but allows plenty of room to naturally diverge and add detail. Play around with outlines and see what you're comfortable with/what gives you the best results.

I'm not sure of your individual situation, but if you're struggling to put together fics in general something like this might help. Doing this process again and again personally helps me stay on track and gives me a sense of progress.

This sense of progress is ultimately key and why I think motivation differs slightly between one-shots/short fics and longfics. If you confine the individual scene to a one-shot, that might give you the motivation to complete it. Even if you start writing and you get interrupted/can't finish having in one setting, bullet points sometimes help inspire me to finish because I'm not starting from scratch when I return to writing. The whole "eat an elephant one piece at a time" thing was difficult for me to learn, but ultimately proved true. Learning to chip away at something bit by bit is going to be the only (healthy) way to write longer projects you can't complete in one sitting.

For longer projects, it's a similar beast just on bigger levels and with an added dimension. I would actually suggest something similar to OoT for a starting project because it is ultimately broken up into arcs that you know and can reference, instead of making a lot of og content for a fan setting. Maybe not go into it thinking, 'I'll do a complete rewrite' but once you feel like you're ready for a longer project 30K+ or so, the rough outline method and the ability to follow arcs was what got me started when I eventually decided to make the fic multi-chaptered. Try writing one arc and keep yourself contained in that. Now the added dimension aspect in general for longfics is that you eventually want to plot individual chapters in a multi-chaptered longfic and individual arcs (character, plot, etc). This comes with practice. I honestly don't think there's a way to get around that. It's something that I'm still trying to work on and I can look back at my early work and see how I've improved, how I can recognize where things didn't go well in certain places, and how I would change them if I was writing today. That's a good thing to be able to do, it means you've grown! The other thing I find that helps with staying motivated week after week for longer projects is to roughly know where you're going and to try to be excited about a plot point/scene/chapter/etc that you're going to write. Really try to hype yourself up. For me, it's a moment that comes at the very end of the chunin arc and I start grinning even thinking about it because I know it's going to be awesome. It's always what gets me through the rough days, imagining the moment I'll get to actually write that scene in its entirety (it's definitely already outlined and I mentally play it out at least twice a week lol) and is a big motivating drive.

So far I think this is pretty standard stuff if you're an outliner and you've been writing for a few years, but the other thing motivational-wise for me is having a schedule. From reading this message alone, I would not suggest it for you right away. Get comfortable finishing small things and feeling confident that if you let an idea sit for a week or two, you can pick it back up and continue. But if you eventually dip your toes into longfics (and don't plan to pre-write everything before you publish) that routine and rhythm really helps keep me going. I've made a commitment, I've posted it online, I'm going to stick to it. No one is going to jump down my throat if I fail to keep it (this is still a hobby and having fun is the most important thing) but in my mind I should commit to it unless something irl prevents me from doing so. Don't put a tight deadline on yourself, I'd start with once a month or if you write shorter chapters every three weeks. This also would help you build up and get a readership, interaction being another big motivational key.

Also, it's important to accept that sometimes you bite off more than you can chew, and when you feel completely demotivated from a fanfic project...it's okay to drop it. It's okay to take a step back and work on something else. Maybe you'll come back to it, maybe you won't. If you can, try to pinpoint what it was about that project that made you demotivated, were you pushing yourself too much and you got burnt out, was it an ongoing series and your interest for canon lagged and so did the fic, was it just too stressful to keep juggling plotpoints, etc. and keep that in mind moving forward. Every experience can be a learning one and eventually make you a better writer that can eventually tackle those bigger projects. Don't be afraid to take on big aspirational projects, but don't walk into them blind either. Above all, and this is repeated a lot because it's true, enjoy what you write. Some days you might not. That's true with anything, but any project you take on the good should outweigh the bad.

This is my wrap up of the motivational section but I also wanted to throw my two-cents in about editing because "oh no editing" is a perspective I've seen from a lot of writers, and used to have myself, but I think is going to stifle your progress in the long run.

Here's the thing: you need to look forward to editing.

You don't have to be jumping for joy, but editing, imo, should be a positive thing. You have all these great ideas, you made it into a fic, something you wrote, and now you get to go back and make it even better! This is a tough attitude to adopt. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. It took me a long time to unlearn the negative attitude and even then sometimes I still wish the editing was already done once I type in the last period. But I've learned to at least appreciate what editing does and I try to think to myself as I'm going through and making changes things like "wow, this suddenly became so much better. X plot point that I thought of ten pages from now is suddenly being hinted at and doesn't come out of left field. The transition points are a lot cleaner, it's not so jarring anymore. I bet the readers are going to love this little detail. Here's some foreshadowing that I hope someone picks up bc it's going to come back in like 5 chapters from now" it's hard, especially when you start, but this is something you made, and now are actively making better and that's something to celebrate.

I hope this helps anon! I know it's a lot and I'm by no means an expert but I've been doing this for more than a decade because I love it and I want to help others get into writing to! I have no problem answering any writing questions you may have if you find this helpful!

tl;dr

-motivation is slightly different between short/long fics.

-starting out, learn to outline by scenes and focus on finishing small projects and getting to a point where you feel like you can put something down and come back and pick it up again in a week. Completion is key and will help you feel satisfied/know your limits.

-long projects also can work on the scene-to-scene outline but now with individual chapters and individual arcs. It's tough to balance both but comes with practice. Bit-by-bit is key, as is having 'one moment you can't wait to write', possibly a schedule if it works for you, and reader feedback are all huge long-term motivational points.

-editing is tough but learn to look forward to it instead of dreading it.

edited: added a bit more/few typos fixed

#asks #anon #writing advice #god i hope this is understandable #long post

[jujutsu-headcanons]

Yes to Yuji wrecking Mahito! Just so much yes my boy needs to avenge those wrongfully killed!

See I wanted Geto to be on my shit list (as I'm not normally a bad guy lover) but I swear he wore me down reading the manga. Plus he's just so pretty he makes my brain all static noises 😳 Not to mention that backstory between him and Gojo like YES give me all the drama I need buried drama 🤩

Totally agree on the Mai thing. See I wanted to hate Todo too bc of well him beating on Megumi but the moment him and Yuji were just like "Big Dumb Meat Heads" together I threw that out the window! Those two together are *chefs kiss* Absolutely stupendous I never get tired of them 👌👌👌

Mai on the other hand is just crawling more and more under my skin. Like why you gotta be like that gurl? You wanna go in the crusty corner with Mahito? Cuz you gotta crusty attitude that needs fixing like yesterday 😐

Literary brain tells me it wants more drama/character growth between Megumi and Toji. But my useless overly big heart wants to punch Toji and protect Megumi at all costs bc he just showed up on the screen like the kool aid man and burst right into my heart and I shan't forgive Megumi for that but now I will die for him so ¯\_( ツ)_/¯

But I'm not the only one who lowkey fantasizes about self inserty type day dreams??? Like every day all day I got my thoughts flowing into 500 different lil oneshots I'm too chicken to post anywhere bc I havent written anything in a while and I feel I'm rusty. But your idea! YOUR IDEA WOO BOI- I'm not even a Gojo fanatic (like I adore him but my heart dick thudded elsewhere RIP) but that scene you described of straddling him just to rip his blindfold off in the heat of an arguement that's clearly deadly to either party- Just to see him on the brink of tears fighting back every emotion to slate his composure to cocky/uncaring. Only to have it obviously failing, and the metaphorical reality around you both crumbling along with Gojo's emotional state- Oh God I would read that crap outta something like that. It fills me with the angst and I thrive on it daily *heavy breathing* You should think about posting more of your original content too! Self inserty or not bc that sounds down right brilliant on so many levels

💛anon

Bro I can't help but feel had for Gojo. That shit must have hurted. Like he looked so calm and collected when it all happened but was he really? His best friend potential lover went feral and murdered an entire village AND his family then he tried to kill his first years once and now AGAIN what is happening. Did you see the look on Gojo's face when Yaga told him he went rogue? That was a face of hurt and betrayal he couldn't even begin to understand at the young age of... What was it, 17? 18? He was practically a little itty bitty baby compared to now. I haven't read the prequel yet don't laugh at me but I've heard it hurts so much worse having to face Getou back then AND now. Stupid brain worms, stop fucking around.

I wanted to hate Todo too hut before he even turned good I couldn't. I have a thing for big buff boys who have zero brains and too much brawns I'm looking at you Metal Bat, Captain Ōbi I just wanna adopt/marry them because in all reality they're trying their best. I'm really glad Todo exists and has his big brother delusion because honestly I think that's something Yuji needs, especially in the current arc. Yuji needs as much support as he can get.

PFFFT CRUST CORNER I cannot with you omg they do need to sit on the time out chair for s bit and think about what they've done lmaooo

DID YOU CALL TOJI ZENIN- FUSHIGURO THE FUCKING KOOL AID MAN AHAHAHHHSH oh my god i hate this so fucking much or were you calling Megumi the koolaid man bc really each one is absurd n e wayz I dunno bro I rlly can't wait until Megs wakes up post Shibuya arc and actually has time to process what the fuck happened to him back then. I really want to know if he can connect the dots by himself and realize holy shit that was the source of my daddy issues right there in the flesh and how he reacts to him being a curse and all that. There's so many ways that can go too it's scary to think about.

Low key unrelated but I have a theory that Gojo can see everything from his little cube prison and knows what's going on. Its probably because of the six eyes, or because he's just fucking Gojo, or even because Geto seems kinda sadistic and would do something like that. But I can imagine him watching Megs and Toji fight and it absolutely destroying him. For starters, Gojo killed him .... Right? Wtf is he doing back? What? Second don't commit suicide in front of your kid oh my god Toji what (I'm probably just salty because of a past experience, but also, calm down Toji oh my god) and third I can see it hurting Gojo because in a way it feels like he's been trying to protect Megumi. Its obvious Gojo has this attachment to Megumi, and maybe it's because they've known each other so long, but I don't think Gojo is prepared to deal with the aftermath. Does he have to tell him, if Megs doesn't put the pieces together? Will he have to knock some sense into him to actually tell him? Because he DID try to tell Megs once before and he avoided it like the plague. Its also gotta hurt when you feel like someone's dad and you witness them have a bad interaction with their other dad.

Throw in his daughter being on the brink of death, his other son being emotionally demolished, his second year kids lost in the void and not even his void, his best friend locked him in a box, his other best friend exploded, etc. I think Gojo I pretty distraught even if he doesn't show it

Bro okay my brain is riddled with ideas like this and 90% of them are always angst. Idk where tf they come from half the time but they exist and I hate it. They're always self inserts too.

So I actually read this ask last night, but due to personal reasons I didn't reply to it now, and I actually started experimenting writing out this scenario. I had to stop when I wrote the line "Approximately one year after the first finger was consumed, Itadori Yūji was formally executed. At three minutes to midnight, Sukuna Ryomen was expelled from his body, destroying the vessel along with it. The executioner was none other than the teenager's teacher and mentor Gojo Satoru. When Y/N awoke to this news, they attacked on sight."

Oh god I made myself so sad with that line

And i do really want to post some of my fics, like I did with Nobara Meeting Sukuna For The First Time. However, I only posted that because it was short and simple lmao it was basically just a meme I didn't even run it though grammarly like I do with the headcanons.

I like sticking to the headcanons as of right now because I feel like grammar didn't exist when I make those. I can spell things wrong and leave off punctuation and word then like I'm a third grader just learning English and no one will laugh lmao. Fanfics kinda stress me out because i want them to be perfect. I also have a hard time with fight scenes and transitioning and it's s mess.

I REALLY want to write out my Guardian Angel! Junpei AU because I think it's so cute. Just the idea that this boy is assigned to fight against fate and the higher ups and keep Yuji alive despite him being an idiot and a target is cute to me. Like I just canon him being the plantonic equivalent of in love with this boy and he feels like he rlly owes it to Yuji for trying to save him it's the LEAST he can do. Plus I need the mental imagine if Junpei annoying reader-chan into finding Yuji because "they play a pivotal role in Yuji's future" just for the "pivotal role" to literally be playing therapist and just being there for him and being a medium between Junpei and Yuji because guardian angels aren't allowed to reveal themselves to the person they're guarding but also/// he might risk his wings being stripped just to talk to Yuji one more time////

Okay I'm going to stop now

But yea, maybe if I have time and create little mini works like Nobara Meeting Sukuna For the First Time I'll def post them! I'll work on casually making them longer and soon I'll be confident to posts longer ones. But until then I hope just the headcanons at alright ;-;

#.ask #💛 anon #long post

[saint-leona]

Safe

Hightown funk is here for the fourth year in a row!  I absolutely adore this exchange, as evidenced by he fact that I leap out of lurk mode to post an actual fic that I wrote! Everyone needs to check out the entire collection here!

Summary: Keeping Hawke away is Varric’s way of keeping her safe.

Rating: G

Words: 1541

Notes: for @fanfoolishness for Hightown Funk 2018.  The prompt mentioned Varric writing to Hawke in the time between DA2 and Inquisition, and I kinda latched onto it.

As always, you can read on AO3.

Min.

Well, you said once that you wanted all the gossip from Kirkwall, both good and bad.  And I am always a dwarf that keeps his promises.  And you can tell Rivani to stop laughing at that.  

Yesterday was three years since that shit show with Orsino and Meredith.  Aveline and Donnic had their hands full with competing mobs - one that is sure you are Andraste reborn, and the other that is sure you are the next Archdemon.  Funny, there isn't really an inbetween.   There was a mob trying to storm the Gallows again and get near Meredith.  Not sure if they wanted to try and destroy her, or take her out and worship her.  Also had a mob outside the Hanged Man yelling that Hawke was the worst thing to ever happen to Kirkwall.  Love those assholes to pieces.  

Oddly enough, the only place in the entire city that isn't going to the Void is the Alienage.  Daisy has become a real bright spot over there - not that she wasn't before, but she's managing to keep chaos at bay.  The elves may actually be the happiest group of people in this entire damn city.

There's a sentence I never thought would see the light of day.

Stay safe out there.

****

Varric.

All that is well and good, but not one word about you?  How you're doing?  It goes something like this:  'Dearest Min, you are the bestest friend I could ever hope to have in my miserable existence, and my life is better for having you in it.  My days are darker now that you're gone, and I pray to the Maker every day that you return safe.'

See?  Pure poetry.  Maybe you should retire and I should be the writer?

Isabela had us off the coast of Llomerynn for a while, hunting down slave traders and whatever.  I think Fenris is having the time of his life.  He does love punishing slavers.  

Don't exactly know where we are now.  I mean, we're on a boat, and there's water all around, but that's all I've got.  There's word of putting into Hercinia soon, but with the Admiral, soon can mean tomorrow or six months from now.  I like to think of it as a surprise.  Sounds nicer that way.

Be well my friend.

****

Min, if you started writing that, my retirement would last about an hour, and that's being generous.

Okay, I have a surprise for you.  After nearly four years, the Chantry is finally sending their forces here to get to the bottom of what actually happened in the Gallows.  Rumor has it they're actually sending a Seeker of Truth with them.  Could be fun, who knows?  This Seeker may have a sense of humour about the whole thing.  The next Archdemon could rise and declare world peace as well.

I'm trying out this optimist thing.  I'll let you know if it works.

Point is, I'm fine.  All is well.  

*****

The Admiral and I are on the way.  We'll get you out of there.  Just hang on.

*****

Don't you dare!  You know me, I can handle this.  Whatever they want, they're not going to find you.  I'll make sure of that.  Just stay where you are.

Rivani, I know you're reading this.  You and the Elf have to keep Min away from here.

*****

Got a letter from Merrill.  

I say letter, more like loose scribbles and some illustrations.  It was amusing.  However, I couldn't laugh at the part where she says you're a prisoner now?  

Does the dwarf in distress need a daring rescue?

*****

Not a chance.  And I prefer the term 'unwelcome tagalong.'  The Seeker wants me to talk to the Divine about what happened, that's all.  After that, I should be free to go.  

See?  The optimist thing works.

*****

Varric Tethras!  What in the ever-loving fuck happened?  

Here I am, minding my business, when half of Haven blows up and now there's a giant Maker-damned hole in the sky!

I swear, you better not be dead.  Bringing you back to life just to kill you again is not on my list of shit I want to do!

*****

Aw, Min.  You do care!

Honestly, I have no sodding idea what happened.  Only know I was far enough away to not get caught in it.

(I was in the pub actually.  Huge shocker there, I know.  But I'm not living in this one, so some things can change I suppose.)

And how do you know about the Chantry and the explosion?

*****

Did you really think I was just going to let you get taken as an 'unwelcome tagalong' and do nothing about it?  I've been following you since Kirkwall.  I'm about a couple of days behind you.

*****

Damn it Min!  You're supposed to be in the Anderfels or Rivain or anywhere that isn't here!  What if they find you?

*****

Aw, Varric.  You do care!

Have you lost all faith in my skills?  They haven't found me yet, and they won't.  Will you please trust me?

*****

I do trust you Min.  But everything is going to shit.

Just do me one favour, please?  Stay away from Haven.  The people are scared and looking for something to blame.  I don't want that something to be you.

*****

Okay Varric.  I promise.  I won't say where I am, but I'll stay away from Haven.

I actually heard there were Wardens in the area.  I think I'll go looking for them.  Maybe they'll know something about Bethany.

If you do need me, just say the word.  I'll be there.

*****

Yeah, because the Wardens never led to anything bad ever.  You and I need to have a talk on what 'staying safe' actually means.

The Seeker keeps asking me about you.  I keep telling her I have no idea where you are.  It's not a complete lie.  I really don't know where you are exactly at this moment.  

Haven is starting to become something big.  Not sure what yet, but we are gaining more and more allies.  We convinced those mages that were holed up in Redcliffe to join us, and that was no easy feat.

This Inquisition business is way above my head - I know you're going to make an obligatory short joke here, so have at it - but there's something else going on that I haven't seen in a while.  These people actually believe in the Herald.  They have hope.  

And you know what?  I think I do, too.

*****

I never thought I'd see the day where you have hope in something.  Maybe the optimist thing is working after all?

*****

Min.  

By now you know about Haven.  I'm fine.  I made it out.  But we have a bigger problem.

It's Corypheus.  He's back.  I don't know how, but damn it, it's him.  He's the one that attacked the Conclave.  He's to blame for it all.  I'm sorry to do this, but I'm saying the word.  I think we need you.

*****

I'll be there in two days.  Dawn.

*****

Varric paces, as he tends to do when worried about Hawke.  He's been waiting for almost an hour, hoping that either she would be early, or the sunrise would be.  He's disappointed on both counts.

The guard that had been posted to the bridge was more that happy to leave early when Varric offered to cover the remainder of his shift.  So long as the guards on the ramparts didn't look too closely, he may just be able to get Hawke in without anyone noticing.  He made a mental note to talk to Curly about making security a little tighter.

The first rays of dawn break over the mountains and lights the valley below.  Varric squints as he looks out over the bridge to Skyhold.  At the far end is a dark figure, coming toward the fortress.  

Varric knows that gait.  He sees it every time he closes his eyes.  He's sure he'd dream about it if he were able.  

He clenches his fists at his sides as he waits for her in the gatehouse.  It takes every bit of self-control he possesses to stay put and not run to meet her.  After all, they are trying for secrecy here, and a dwarf racing over the bridge isn't exactly inconspicuous.  

She's finally close enough where he can see how four years have changed little things about her: she has a couple more scars, and she's a little leaner.  But that grin is exactly the same and is as familiar as her walk.  

She stops in front of him, shifts her weight to one leg and puts her hand on her hip.  "Varric," she says, still wearing that grin.  "You look like shit." Varric smiles back and doesn't miss a beat.  "Said the pot to the kettle."  

Hawke barks a laugh and falls to her knees before throwing her arms around him and burying her head in the crook of his neck.  "Maker, I've missed you," she whispers.

Varric hugs her back with identical ferocity.  "Hawke, you have no idea."

He doesn't know how long they stay like that, holding on to one another, but he can't bring himself to let go.  For that moment, she is here, she is in his arms, and she is safe.

#hightown funk #varric x hawke #i will always love these two

[shuuos]

amber and buttercups

UH SO I AM WRITING AN ACTUAL FIC WROW

i didnt know ao3 had a waiting list to get an account??? so ill post this there..... eventually. for now it’s gonna b right here tho so that’s........ neat...... ill try to post new chapters every friday but given that i am Not the Fastest Writer Ever i’ll probably b off schedule for the first few chapters until i get the hang of this!! anyways, enjoy this sparsely edited first chapter that was supposed 2 be longer buuuut i decided to save the rest for chapter 2

the undertangled au belongs to @izadreamer​ !!!

update: it’s on ao3 now!! if you’d rather read it there ;)

chapter 1 - once upon a time

Frisk

In their short life, Frisk would say that they’ve been through… a lot of weird stuff. Honestly, there’s nothing that can surprise them at this point.

Or that’s what they thought. Turns out the universe loves proving them wrong.

They have no idea where they are, except that it is dark. *The void? Chara suggests calmly. The thought makes their blood run cold. They know what happened to Gaster - will it happen to them, too? Can humans even be erased, the way monsters can?

Chara doesn’t seem to notice their fear, though, *How did we get here? I do not remember falling into the CORE.

“*That - that’s not funny.” A bad taste rises in their throat, and they swallow it down. Void or not, they don’t want to throw up here. Just the thought makes their heart pound. *I am sorry. Chara says, but they say it in that voice they use when they’re not really sorry, but feel like they need to say it anyways. Frisk doesn’t call them out on it, though. They probably didn’t mean to scare them - they’re friends, after all.

Instead of answering, they stand up. Their legs feel weird, like they’ve been sitting too long. *Somehow, it seems there is a solid surface underneath you. Try walking forward. They carefully do so, relaxing a bit each step. It’s comforting, the thought that they’re not going to fall. “*I’m gonna look for a way out,” Frisk tells Chara.

It’s hard, though, when everything is black. They’re doing less looking and more flailing their arms around wildly. From inside their head, they can hear Chara laughing at them. Better at them than their scary jokes, though. So they go on in what they hope is the right direction (because they don’t know what they’ll do if it isn’t.)

Chara stops talking after a while, like they’re thinking of something. Frisk pretends not to notice. It’s a bit too quiet without their chatter, though, and it scares them a bit. They wind up the music box in their locket, and listen to the song. It makes them want to cry, but better that than going crazy from how quiet it is.

*Frisk… Chara says suddenly. Frisk doesn’t like the way their voice sounds, but it’s not enough to stop them from walking. *Frisk, they say again, sounding even more worried now. They still don’t stop walking, because they want to get out of here right now.

*Frisk, there is no-!

Instead of ground, they step right into - a hole? Off a cliff? They can’t really tell. But that’s not important because they’re slipping and they can’t catch themselves, can’t keep themselves from falling. Again.

There’s nothing they can do now except for wait to hit the ground. Is there even any ground in the void? Or are they going to keep falling until they die? Would they be able to die here?

Falling in the void is strange - it feels less like falling and more like they’re floating. Like the girl from that movie Alphys likes, the one about a floating kingdom. It’s not a good comparison, though, because they’d love to be in that movie and they hate being here.

*...is that a light? Frisk can’t see it, but they feel it burning them up. Then they see it. It’s bright, brighter than the sun, and it’s growing. It eats up the darkness until they can’t see anything but white.

And eventually, that fades, too.

Varian

Varian is hauling equipment to his lab when the sky bursts into light.

It blinds him and leaves his head pounding, as if someone is hammering a nail into his skull. By the time it’s over, he’s gasping for air, hoping it’ll be enough to ward off the nausea.

Above him, there is a small silhouette, stark against the bright blue sky. At first, he thinks it’s a meteor, but as it descends, he can make out hair and clothes and oh god that’s a person. He watches as they crash into the trees and land with a dull thud.

And just like that, the trance is over. Everything processes at once - therewasalightandthenacometpersontheyfelltheyfell - and he’s not sure what to do now. The scientific part of him is screaming to look, because whatever that was, it definitely wasn’t natural. As if that wasn’t incentive enough, there’s a tugging sensation in his stomach, like something’s pulling him towards them. Weird.

Ruddiger jumps on his shoulder, shooting him an apprehensive look. Varian gives him a quick pat and mutters, “It’s ok, buddy, this’ll only a minute.” He’ll go in, see who it is, and then go get help if they need it. And they’re going to need it, because scientifically speaking, they’d at least have a few broken bones, if they’re lucky.

Bile rises in his throat as he realizes they could be dying. Could be dead.

Nope, nope, he is not going to think about that. He’s just going to focus on seeing what happened right now, that’s all. He can worry about that later. Besides, he can’t deny that he isn’t curious, and what kind of scientist would ever deny his own curiosity?

Not him, that’s for sure, he thinks to himself as he follows his gut into the tree grove.

The first thing Varian notices is the blood. There’s not that much - just near their head, but it’s still enough to make him feel woozy. Ruddiger digs his claws into his shoulder, reminding him what he’s here for, and he takes a deep breath. He doesn’t recognize their strange clothes. Must not be from here, he thinks. They’re small, too; just going off of their height, he’d say they’re about half his age.

Between their arms, something flashes bright gold, catching his eye as he stumbles back a bit from the sheer amount of blood.

He has to get his dad, a doctor, anyone. He can’t - he wasn’t expecting so much blood. He‘s prepared to run when a sudden cold overtakes his wrist, as if someone with icy hands was grabbing him. *The bleeding is superficial, a voice whispers in his head, leaving will only make it worse.

But they need help-

*Then help them! You cannot let anyone else know that we are here!

Varian can’t tell if they are his thoughts or not, but he finds himself being pulled towards the child nonetheless. Ruddiger hops off and scampers to their side. He bats at their head, and they shift slight in response. He watches with baited breath as they lift themselves up, limbs shaking. After a moment of struggling, they somehow manage to get into a sitting position, tucking their legs underneath them.

How-? A glimmer of pride, one that is not his own, rises up in him, and the icy grip holding on to him vanishes. At that moment, the child turns their unfocused eyes on him - well, in his direction. They blink once, twice, and slur in a strange accent, “*…Kara?”

Their face is bloodstained in a way that makes his stomach churn, so he tries to focus on their eyes, which are glowing even redder than the apples he feeds Ruddiger sometimes. Huh. That’s… weird.

For a moment, the two just stare at each other, though Varian can’t really tell if they’re looking at him or in his general direction. Then, for some reason, they reach for him with outstretched arms. They kind of look like Ruddiger when he wants to be held - wait.

“You… you want me to carry you?” The thought is foreign, absurd, and he’s pretty sure moving them is a bad idea, but they don’t really give him a choice. Ignoring his protests, they lean forward and slump against him. Blood sluggishly leaks from them all the while, staining his clothes.

What’s he supposed to do now? He’s not some kind enough of… childcare expert! He’s the opposite of a childcare expert-!

*Oh my god, just carry them! the voice snaps. He readily obeys, slipping an arm under their legs and lifting them up. They only feel about as heavy as Ruddiger, much to his surprise (are kids supposed to be this light?). As if summoned by his thoughts, the raccoon chirps, holding a broken locket in his hands.

A deep sadness resonates within him, and Varian is startled by it. He’s never seen the thing before, why is he so upset at the sight of it?

Regardless, he allows Ruddiger to store it in the apron pocket, and picks up the broken pieces. From what he can tell, it’s not the actual locket that’s broken, but a music box inside of it. He is relieved; machinery isn’t difficult to fix, as long as you have all the right pieces.

Ruddiger hops on his shoulder and he stands up, his legs only slightly cramped. After a moment, he decides to head directly to his lab rather than try to pull a cart while carrying a child and Ruddiger. He’ll come back for it later; there’s no reason for anyone to try and steal the materials.

. . .

The voice was right, Varian thinks idly as he wraps thick bandages around the unconscious child. Other than the gash on their head and a few cuts on their hands, they’re completely fine. It’s more like they happened to stumble in a particularly rocky area than fell from the sky.

They passed out sometime while he was carrying them, which he only figured out when he laid them down on the table. God, he immediately assumed the worst with how limp they were then.  He just hopes they don’t fall off somehow.

Whatever he had been hearing back there, and he knows he heard something, has gone silent. Quite frankly, he’s relieved. It was really starting to stress him out.

“Ruddiger!” Varian calls as he stumbles to his work-desk. “Tell me… when they wake up, ok?”

With a sigh, he slumps over the scattered papers in a dead faint.

Chara

Chara watches with amusement. The human boy seemed to be aghast at the sight of blood, but they did not realize to this extent. The raccoon - Ruddiger? - stays seated next to Frisk, watching the boy anxiously.

*It is alright, Chara tells it gently, you can go with him. “Ruddiger” stares at them instead. They blink, and remember that their locket is still in the boy’s possession.

They do not feel comfortable with Frisk knowing it is broken, and they say softly, *Actually, could you help me wake him up?

#undertangled au #tts varian #varian tangled #frisk (undertale) #chara (undertale) #undertale #uhhh do i have a writing tag? #i dunno but ill use thhis for now #bo's writing #scribbles and stuff #fun fact: the scene where chara asks varian for help was originally gonna b them kicking his shins bc they are small and Angery(tm) #plus they need attention #hmmm im fairly proud of this tbh #also idk if ill keep the chapter name bc on one hand it's the first song in the ut soundtrack #and has a fairy tale motif which...... fits #buuuuut im kind of on the line abt it?

[buoyantsaturn]

Voltron AU?

ok so im actually in the middle of planning a SUPER big fic for a voltron au so these headcanons are gonna be less like a story like a lot of the others have been and be more like some of the planning that i did in prep for the fic??? i hope u don’t mind

this also turned out super long so i hope you don’t mind that i put it under a cut

so first of all i had a super hard time deciding between Green Paladin!Annabeth and Yellow Paladin!Leo or Yellow Paladin!Frank and Green Paladin!Leo but i ended up with leo and frank instead of leo and annabeth which i still don’t know if i agree but here’s the planning/headcanons anyway

Background info:

The Garrison is college-like with grads and undergrads since it never actually clarifies what kind of school it is

fricken?? Hera instead of Haggar??? Zeus instead of Zarkon???? it writes itself

So jason’s like a brother to nico and nico has/had a crush on percy. percy frank and leo were all bros and nico was kinda there too sometimes but when he dropped out they tried to look for him sometimes but gave up. when leo and frank were seniors is when jason came back

Nico

the Red Paladin aka the emo aka keith

disappeared bc basically the same day that he was told that jason was dead he found out that bianca died too and it was kind of just too much and he ran away without thinking of the consequences

Jason

the Black Paladin aka tired aka shiro

basically a graduate student who was offered a position on the kerberos mission with leo’s mom. has hella memory problems when he gets back to earth like pretty much remembers that the garrison exists but none of the people inside

Percy

the Blue Paladin aka he didnt ask for this aka lance

also a graduate student and was offered the same position on the kerberos mission as jason but he waited too long to get back to the garrison (he wanted to talk to annabeth first before he made such a big decision) and he was super bitter at jason for getting the spot instead of him

Frank

the Yellow Paladin aka the cinnamon roll aka hunk

he didnt really want to go to the garrison but his mom had been an engineer there and her life insurance money covered like half of tuition and they offered him scholarships that covered the other half and his grandma said “you have to” so he kinda had to 

Leo

the Green Paladin aka lowkey depressed aka pidge

goes to the garrison completely on scholarship bc his mom worked there but as soon as she goes mission on the kerberos mission and the garrison stops trying to look for her they come to leo and basically tell him “your scholarship’s up if you don’t start paying for classes we’re kicking you out” so he starts working his butt off to try to get some academic scholarships bc wihtout the garrison and his mom he’s homeless

Piper

essentially Princess Allura

she’s like 300 years old bc i like the idea of alteans having ridiculous ages like that

during the war against the galra empire sometimes she would just kinda,,,, sneak into the fights but as soon as someone found her there they’d send her right back to teh castle and her father trapped her in a healing pod for her own good ok she was going to get seriously hurt if she kept sneaking onto the battle field sky space void

Will

essentially Coran but kinda not?? like not the weird space uncle more like attractive alien young man who’s slightly less in charge than piper

medically trained and served as a battle field medic during the war but the king soon enlisted him on keeping piper safe bc someone had to keep an eye on her honestly

also just to throw some of that solangelo in there (since thats the point of this right) when will and piper get out of the cryopods jason catches piper like completely effortlessly so nicos like “ok i can do that too” but will literally just takes him out ok and will just kind of lays on top of him while he’s waking up and they just stare at each other for a little while tbh it’s pretty gay

thanks for the suggestion hopefully i’ll be able to actually post the actual fic soon so you get more than just boring planning and things!!!

drop an au in my ask and get a list of headcanons!

#solangelo #voltron au #ask #anonymous #wow this is so long dang