#like 2 of these are references to tails gets trolled

[dirtsoilmulch]

what

#i was on this stupid canvas for like a whole workday #anyway #art #artists on tumblr #digital art #ibispaintx #fnaf books #fnaf #the fourth closet #jessica fnaf #charlie emily #john fnaf #carlton burke #cw drugs #like 2 of these are references to tails gets trolled

[jaybirddreads]

Trolls Band Together: "You just call on me, brother" (John Dory and Floyd)

Floyd’s letter is wrong.

When it first appeared, stuck to John Dory’s door, his heart overtook his head. Floyd was reaching out to him. Floyd– Floyd wrote him. John Dory’s heart sank as fast as it had risen when his eyes skimmed the contents of the letter. Immediately, the handwriting wasn’t Floyd. Or, it wasn’t the Floyd that John Dory remembered. Floyd’s scrawl was barely legible half the time back then. John Dory would spend hours deciphering his sheet music and lyrics and re-writing them in neat printed letters so they could actually practice instead of triggering aneurysms trying to read Floyd’s handwriting. John Dory had been jealous of Branch back then, because he didn’t know how to read. The handwriting in the letter that John Dory had received was big and clunky golden cursive with strokes a lot bolder than his shy little brother. 

The contents of the letter itself worried John Dory as he read it over and over again.

Dear John Dory, (Floyd– if he had written this letter– would have addressed him as John or JD.) I’m being held against my will by superstars Velvet and Veneer. Come to Mount Rageous at once and bring our brothers. Love, Floyd, the sensitive one. (Floyd would never sign off as ‘the sensitive one’.) The message itself, apart from the strange greeting and ending of the letter, was weird. John Dory didn’t know in what world his stubborn, sarcastic little brother would refer to his kidnappers as ‘superstars’. 

Floyd would also never want to risk putting any of his brothers, especially Branch, in danger. It would make no sense for him to tell John Dory to bring their brothers or even contact him– as concerning as it sounds now that he thinks about it. John Dory is positive that his brother did not write this letter. John Dory’s reasons to come to this conclusion are; 1. He claims to be being held captive. 2. It’s just not something that Floyd would do. 3. How would he even get the letter to John Dory if he’s all the way in Mount Rageous? 4. How the hell would Floyd have ever found John Dory in the first place? He lives in the middle of nowhere.

John Dory has no idea who Velvet and Veneer are, but if there is a chance that they are hurting his brother, he will do anything in his power to put a stop to that. John Dory is not going to abandon his brother again. A few years ago, he head trekked back home with his tail between his legs in search of forgiveness from at least his Gran and youngest brother only to find his grandmother’s pod abandoned, overgrown with weeds, and infected with dozens of insects. All that was left in the pod was Gran’s dirty furniture and a couple of dusty framed pictures still hung on the walls. John Dory had collected those as carefully as he could and cleaned them. They’re put away in a cupboard somewhere around his living space. He has no idea if Gran and Branch are okay, but he hopes they are. If Floyd needs his help now, John Dory is going to provide, like he should have for all four of his younger brothers years ago.

He closes the letter– that is most likely bait– and grabs one of his many maps. 

Mount Rageous is a far trip from where he is right now. If he and Rhonda hurry, they can cut the trip down to a day and a half. He’s not the biggest fan of hustling, but if that's what it takes to get to Floyd before anything really bad happens, so be it. Luckily, Rhonda loves hustling. She purrs, shaking excitedly when John Dory hovers his finger over the red-orange button.

John Dory hits the ground hard after they slow down. His elbows and knees ache. They’re still hours from Mount Rageous, but that’s good. It gives him time to come up with a plan. He knows he wants to get to Mount Rageous, find Floyd, and get him out, but that’s a wishlist, not a plan. John Dory’s radio hisses and he reaches up to turn the dial. He skips through stations, trying to find something quiet since Rhonda hates when he turns the radio off. He passes a station and pauses, turning the dial backward. We now return to superstar sensations, Velvet and Veneer’s latest hit single– music bleeds through the radio, a catchy beat that John Dory can instantly recognize as the type of rhythm that made him and his brothers famous in the first place. A girl and a boy begin to sing, the sounds of their voices are unreal. It eerily reminds him of Floyd’s singing. The people who might have hurt his brother are popstars? Ironic. Creepy, maybe. Stalkerish, probably. 

The radio provides him with nearly everything he needs. It gives him the date of their next concert, the location, and the duration. Later tonight, when he arrives at Mount Rageous, he will have to find the Boom Box before 9pm where he will have an hour to find Floyd and break him out. It’s not much better than his wishlist, but it definitely has more properties of a plan. John Dory was almost glad that it was rageons that had Floyd. They were definitely easier on the eyes than bergens, and not as strong. The moment Rhonda crossed the threshold between the Troll Kingdom and Mount Rageous, the difference was clear as night and day. Everything was big, shiny, and neon. Even the people. 

Rhonda went unnoticed, tiny among the gigantic vehicles of the rageons. 

It didn’t take as long as John Dory had imagined to find Boom Box. The crowds pouring out the door were a clear indication of what it was. It reminded John Dory of his days of selling out venues. Rhonda jumps from the main road and digs into the tail-end of the crowd, weaving through dancing rageons left and right. John Dory steers her into a dark corner, under a lonely bench that all the party-goers are ignoring. The music thrums through the air and Velvet and Veneer’s voices are much louder and much clearer than they were over the radio. They’re singing a song that feels so much like Floyd that it’s messing with John Dory’s head. The lyrics swim around his head, as if he’s a teenager again, sneaking Floyd’s journal out from under his bed to see what was going on in his little brother’s head. He and Spruce used to giggle at Floyd’s unnecessarily deep ramblings about whatever it was that got him in a tizzy. Yes, it was wrong of him to invade Floyd’s privacy like that, but in his defense, Floyd was the heaviest sleeper he had ever met (and John Dory would be lying if he said that Floyd didn’t have a talent of lyrical genius– some of their best hits were thanks to Floyd and his sad, sad journal).

John Dory rolled out of the way of several pairs of heavy black boots as a brood of angsty rageons dragged their feet to get to the snack bar. He ducks through several long pairs of legs until he reaches the nearest wall. John Dory watches as the shiny giants dance and laugh and cheer. He slides against the wall until he reaches a vent, just out of sight from most of the rageons. If Floyd is here, John Dory will search every single nook and cranny until he finds his brother. John Dory runs down every vent, turning corners sharply. He peers through every grate he finds. He sees bathrooms, dressing rooms, offices, and storage closets. 

He feels almost hopeless until he comes across the final vent opening in the west half of the building. John Dory peered in through the thin grate blinds. It was an empty purple dressing room. Make up, wigs, and costumes were strewn about haphazardly. John Dory was about to turn away and look in another part of Boom Box when his eyes caught a glimmer of something. He saw a large ornate purple perfume bottle. John Dory’s eyes widened when he noticed something move inside the semi-transparent bottle. A spark of magenta had John Dory propelling down into the dressing room without a second thought. He hit the surface of the vanity, face first, with a resounding thunk. John Dory groans, peels his face from the vanity, and shouts Floyd’s name.

Floyd– his sweet, shy, sensitive brother– gasps and presses his hands against the glass of the perfume bottle, “John Dory!” he gasps, his voice trembling with strained emotion. It’s so strange to see Floyd now, after nearly twenty years. His little brother is a man now. A man trapped in a giant glass bottle. Yeah, John Dory was right. There was no way that Floyd had written that number. “I never thought I’d see any of my brothers again.” 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” John Dory says, pressing his hand against the glasses where Floyd’s hand was. “I’ll get you out.” 

“You can’t,” Floyd’s eyes were wide with fear, “it’s a trap, JD. Velvet and Veneer are pop obsessed succubi and they’ve been stealing my talent to get famous!”

“I know it’s a trap. I’m not leaving you here. Not my brother.” John Dory shook his head. He looks around the dressing room, searching for something he can use to break the glass and get his brother out of that suffocating bottle. John Dory attempts to break the glass, but it’s no use. He kicks at it, punches at it, throws the heaviest things he can carry at it. 

Floyd drops his head against the glass with a soft thump, “It’s no use, JD. The bottle is made of diamond…” 

“Diamond,” John Dory repeats the word. It rolls off the tip of his tongue like a dry, dusty heap. There is only one thing that can shatter diamond. John Dory feels helpless once more. Floyd’s eyes droop as he stares at his feet. “There’s only one thing that can shatter diamond…” 

“Yeah,” Floyd laughs miserably. Laughter and loud foot falls cause his head to shoot up, “John, you have to leave. They’re coming back. If they catch you—” 

“Floyd, I won’t abandon you.” John Dory argues.

Floyd slams his fist against the glass, “No, just save yourself, please. Do it for me.”

“Floyd–” 

“I don’t want to see my big brother trapped in a jar.” Floyd says. 

The door knob jiggles and the click of a key echoes. John Dory looks at Floyd, his chest swelling with determination. He shoots his trusty grappling hook up, and it latches onto the vent. “I’ll be back for you, bro. Count on it.” John Dory’s pulled back up into the vent as the door opens and two near-identical rageons enter the dressing room. The last thing that John Dory sees before he begrudgingly makes his escape is one of the rageons picking Floyd’s bottle up and shaking him cruelly.

#trolls #trolls 3 #trolls band together #john dory #floyd #brozone #branch #clay #spruce

[totaldrama-showdowns]

Submissions for the Non-Human Showdown! Including ones that are invalid!

Fang (x2)

“🦈🦈🦈”

“He's Fang ❤”

Cody Jr (x2)

“Cody Jr! No! Not Aunty Heather!”

Mr Coconut (x2)

“The og. Should have won every season /serious”

vince the alligator (x2)

“SWEEEEP”

“The lore… so immaculate”

the don box (x2)

“bzzz i have a stupid fucking clue for you. ah fuck the interns put me in a lame outfit again”

“what id don on about he's slaying in that shirt”

wt pineapple (x2)

“ALEPINEAPPLE FOREVER!!!”

“👅🐍🐍🐍🐍”

Irene the fish (x2)

“shes so beautiful i’d kiss her too”

“The final remaining member of Team Victory after DJs elimination, Irene went on to win the million and the hearts of many.”

the chrarry baby (x2)

“Goo goo gaa gaa”

“ive got my eye on u chris mclean”

Princess Beth Doll

“I WANT TO BUY ONE SO BAD IRL!!!!! Also, this too is yuri”

Old Jester from reboot S2ep9

“I love when Damien hugged him! That's scene is soooo cute. Also I love fluffy animal!”

Bobo :)

“SEASON 2 SPOILERS Bobo is the name of the bear that had the Raj mask in season 2 episode 12 :) idk I just think he’s silly”

DJ’s bunny

the Chris-shaped cake that Julia's group made

“I wanna eat that thang”

Dramarama Cody

“He's an alien”

Theodore (MK's stuffed unicorn)

(the arts and crafts) Shed (from season 1)

“shed sweep”

that evil little seal from wt

“sooo little and evil. who can hate him”

caleb rock

“possibly the best version of him out there”

the skull duncan carved for courtney

“you cant deny how iconic it was”

eva’s mp3 player

“the most important character in td history”

heather’s various hairstyles

“possibly the most diverse and versatile entity in td historu”

pahkitew island

“The best one”

Myself

“:^)”

ryan seacrests car

“very fast”

chef's car (total dramarama and gen 4)

“MY CAR!!!!!”

alien clone cody

“AAAAAAA*explodes into green goo*”

chris's wig

“wiggin”

heather's wig

“wiggin”

total drama yum yuk happy go time candy fish tails

“You ate it!”

trents five finger shirt

“5”

princess courtney CD

“all the greatest hits!”

owens butt

“fart”

anne maria’s hair style

“Ey im walkin here”

bridgettes surfboard

“BONK”

the fake antlers from the paintball ep

“Duncney”

manitobas fedora

“served!”

beary <3

“it’s LITERALLY beary”

ripper’s world record breaking fart

“he did it”

the portrait of cody as blue boy in wt

“funny looking”

sierra’s pizza box-cum-laptop*

“she uses the internet AND eats witj it. shes a genius”

*Mod Note: this refers to cum meaning: combined with; also used as (used to describe things with a dual nature or function).

waynes accent

“Eh we play hockey eh”

mal ventriloquist doll

“aaah im evil mal doll”

alejandro puppet

“we do a little trolling”

Chef 2.0

“He made him from a cashew”

Mt. Kīlauea

“She has the mercy to have her lava not hot enough to kill Alejandro, Ezekiel, and that random intern like... Everyone say "thank you" or somethin idk. Do you think she feels bad that Alejandro ended up in a robot suit because”

Immunity idol s4-5

“They ruined it's design in the reboot boooooooo”

MK's infernape

“Listen, she's a gamer and she's based. She would totally pick chimchar in bdsp. She probably hates people who tells her to "play platinum" because that was a game made for old people.

Try and exclude this submission, I dare you. There's nothing that says I can't submit theoretical non-humans. There's a non-zero chance that MK has an Infernape and I know it's been raised to have some awesome sneaky move. If you exclude this, I bet you'd allow "Mike's Torterra" because only a grass type fan would be a fire type and MK hater!!

Julia would keep her piplup unevolved and beat her console into tiny bits when she gets to Cynthia btw”

the drone of shame

“[picks up victim and flies away] wheeee”

that giant bowl of rice they fall into in japan

“mm giant bowl of rice”

noah’s dog

“his epic dog”

celine dion cardboard cutout

“love fucking wins #duncney”

the face huggers from Area 51

“rip tyler”

ezekiel MISSING milk carton

“Sad! He died.”

the eagle chris shot and killed

“someone arrest this man. again”

the confessional

“it’s always there for you”

geoff’s splinter

“OW”

the bread from codys pants

“man i need to rewatch island. i fucking love the pants bread”

That ice cream snowman from SMS

“LISTEN. JUST BECAUSE HE IS FROM THE EPISODE THAT SHALL NOT BE NAMED DOES NOT MEAN YOU CAN NOT GIVE HIM HIS RESPECT”

bear

“the one from raptear specifically. let's go lesbians”

that pizza chase threw the challenge for

“clearly he should be with it rather than emma. chemma? chipper? chazee? nope never fucking heard of them”

Momma's Spice

“*sprinkles it on op's head* mmmm tasty”

The Gilded Chris award

WT barf bags

“give a real f to those guys. never appeared after episode 7.”

the toxic marshmallow of loserdom

“killer of staci's hair”

The lavatory confessional

“bitch is iconic. 6/8 is a passing mark!!!”

Courtney's PDA

“why wouldnt they call it a phone idk but its so camp”

The Cassowaries

“Male cassowaries are responsible for raising the young. We love an involved father.”

Fire-breathing winged mountain goats

“You could make an Undertale reference with this (also they're really cool)”

Giant Beetle

“Dott shippers will like this one”

Mutated Maggots

“They're pretty cute!”

Six-Legged Rats

“ADORABLE EEEEEEEP!!!!”

scott bird

“what a beautiful bird”

Chef's car

“It may play a role in mkulia canon”

Gethin

that rainbow porridge in episode 8 of the reboot

“aw hell naw chris cookin up the gay porridge”

The cassowary that fell in love with Zee

“We love an iconic single mother looking for love”

The rat in the cargo hold that appears on screen for 0.5 seconds during Ezekiel's solo in "Come Fly With Us"

“That rat really carried the whole song. Iconic. Astounding. Never before seen talent. Lady Gaga is shaking in her Demonias.”

The Erymanthian Boar

“It wrecked Duncan's shit in Greece.”

The dock of shame

“So many teens walked on her, i think she deserves some recognizion”

gwen's blender necklace

Zoey's hamster (Miss Puffycheeks)

“It's cute and can punch a cat, need I say more?”

#nonhuman showdown #unused submissions

[bloodlesscecropia]

OOC POST!

New pfp alert!

Yes, finally you can see Lyrcec’s gay little face in all his green little glory. And with it, I want to present a little information about the headcanons I’m using with this blog!

Edit 2: Figured I’d plug some of my other blogs here- @ilickedyoursaltlamp is where I usually just reblog whatever I find on my dash. @saltlamplickin is my art blog.

Without further ado, here’s the new pic!

And under the cut, you’ll find my headcanons! This post may be updated from time to time to include new ones, ones I forgot, etc.

Headcanons/stuff that might be canon? Maybe. I’m going from memory. Who cares?

Mutations are varied, not just limited to blood color like Karkat’s. Traits from one caste may occasionally appear in others, but are usually culled out.

Trolls have tails! Varied in shape and length based on caste, but usually resemble a lion’s or goats. Goldbloods have two.

Jadebloods live in cloisters, raised by other jadebloods. Having a lusus is pretty much only for descendants of the Dolorosa.

Multiple fuchsias can and do exist! Male fuchsias do as well, but are not eligible to take the throne, as the Empire is strictly a matriarchy. The Heiresses duke it out on their own before the strongest challenges

Male fuchsias are treated about the same as a violetblood in terms of social status, but are rarely seen. They tend to just mind their own business.

On a side note to this headcanon, I do have a character who takes care of male fuchsia grubs, because fuchsia lusii are basically nonexistent- it’s really just Gl’bgolyb. If y’all are interested, I may make a blog for that? The whole premise is like. Sitcom shenanigans of a family of adoptive brothers being raised by a troll who is if Spencer from iCarly were a surfer dude. Let me know if you want to hear more about that.

Edit: My partner and I did end up making a blog for this concept! You can check it out @dudebropartysassacre3 , and meet the first of the fuchsia bros, Ramzes Uksayo! Bonus points if you get the reference in the URL.

#grumblr #ooc #out of character #jadeblood #hs rp #homestuck rp #unreality #jadeposting #bloodlesscecropia

[cartooncreaturelover]

Hello it's me again!

So I have some more asks, some relating to art, some just random stuff I think of XD

1. Favorite character of yours that you like drawing?

2. What's your favorite show/movie? (If you don't have a favorite, just name ones you like)

3. Oldest oc you have? How did they change throughout the time you had em?

Thanks in advance!

✨ Hi! Thank you so much for asking more questions! (You're literally the first person to send in more than one ask before! Thank you for bringing some life to my ask box, lol!)

Question 1. I don't know if I have a favorite character of mine to draw, but the first character that popped into my head was Darragh, probably since I used to draw him A LOT & know how to draw him pretty well from all the times I've drawn him before! (I'm hoping to get a light board this holiday season so I can actually finish an updated version of his reference sheet soon!)

Question 2. I like a lot of shows & movies, so I'll just list the many that I like instead!

Some Of The Movies I Like Include... Back To The Future (trilogy) Little Shop of Horrors (1986) Ferris Bueller's Day Off Gremlins Gremlins 2: The New Batch How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004) Wolfwalkers Shrek 2 Puss in Boots: The Last Wish The "Spider-Man: Spider-Verse" series The "Kung Fu Panda" series The "Sing" series The "Trolls" series

Some Of The TV Shows I Like Include... Bluey The Owl House Infinity Train Ducktales (2017) Gravity Falls Steven Universe My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005) Our Flag Means Death Bob's Burgers Central Park SpongeBob SquarePants (Seasons 1-3)

(You know, writing this list out has made me realize how much I like musicals... & DreamWorks Animation???)

Question 3. The oldest OC that I have is my first OC! I haven't drawn her in a long time, but her name is Magic & she initially was one of those classic "character a child likes, so they barely recolor the character & call it their own;" the actual character was Spyro from the Skylanders series! (Yes, I love "Pug Spyro!") Initially, the only difference was that she had white accent colors instead of gold/bronze. As I got better at drawing & designing characters, I began to actually make her more original & less like Skylanders' Spyro (pictured below!)

The first drawing (which is actually the first drawing I ever made of her!) is from 2014, I think in April; I believe we were going on a school field-trip that day to a trampoline park as a reward for the good students? I drew her with no reference in class with my pencil & colored pencils on a piece of notebook paper! Whenever that day was, it was the day I decided to take art seriously & was the start of my journey to getting as good at drawing as I am today!

The second drawing is (I think) from around 2018 when I really started to try & make her legally distinct from Skylanders' Spyro; different shaped horns, fin-like ears, furred belly & (not pictured) tail tip (kinda like Banjo's)! I made that drawing with my old & cheap watercolor set on what (I think) is sketchbook watercolor paper; & yes, that tiny little portrait is in a tiny little picture frame!

The third drawing is a concept doodle for a 4.0 design for Magic from around 2021 or 2022? I never finalized the design, but the idea was to really change her body type into being more chubby & pear-shaped like some stuffed animals I have, as well as adding stars to her design since I think of her as my "spark of inspiration" for where I am now! Since I've been working on redesigning another dragon-like character of mine recently, perhaps I'll finally get around to finalizing Magic 4.0, who knows!

You (or anybody else who may see this!) can totally ask me more questions about my interests or old/new characters of mine if you’d like! Thank you so much for taking the time to ask me fun questions to answer! ✨

#this is an ask! #questions #arianimates #Magic Spark #dragon #skylanders #shows #movies

[wellthebardsdead]

*Secrets part 2. Part 1 here*

———

Henwen: *wincing a little as Kaidan looks over his neck and wrist where dirge got his hands on him* is it bad?…

Kaidan: It looks bad… can’t really tell, Ive never seen another snow elf as a point of reference… but it looks like nightshade flowers against snow…

Henwen: It’s just bruised then… *sighs* why did you follow me?…

Kaidan: I wasn’t drunk. I was pretending to be, I saw those creeps eyeing you up all evening and when they followed you out I went after em. *huffs* I knew the thieves guild were a group of thugs but they really need to reconsider their recruiting method if they think grabbing people by their throats is appropriate… but, what did he mean by debt?…

Henwen: …when you were having a rest today he offered me some work… then asked me to plant a stolen ring on some poor guy… so I put it in his pocket instead and set the guards on him in front of everyone… must’ve really bruised his ego, heh…

Kaidan: *snickers* well, serves the bastard right but, you should have told me. Tonight could have ended very differently if I wasn’t on my toes… I don’t want to be known as the bastard who let the last dragonborn get killed. Never mind the last snow elf.

Henwen: I know, I-I’m sorry…

Kaidan: …hey… *places his hand to his shoulder* it’s okay… just… don’t wander far from me until I get you trained up a bit more yeah?…

Henwen: okay… *smiles up at him* we should go to bed… early rise tomorrow…

Kaidan: With how bruised up you are I say we move at whatever pace your comfortable with. But I agree, I want to get out of this town fast… *stands up and stretches as he walks to his bed* goodnight… Wendy.

Henwen: *still unsure of the nickname but too tired to argue it* goodnight, Kaidan…

*a few hours later*

Henwen: *blinks awake hearing whispering from outside his window* … *peers out to see shrouded figures staring at the blood on the ground from where Kaidan cut Dirge’s arm clean off*

???: Told Brynjolf to be careful, anyone who can outfox him shouldn’t be taken lightly.

???: yeah, Maul said to watch out for the big guy but I think Bryn underestimated just how big his companion really was. Let’s see if the face sculptor can reattach dirge’s arm. He’s lucky he didn’t lose his head while he was at it.

???: Shame it went so wrong. The lad had some real talent, the guild could’ve done great things with him. *sighs* Anyway, how’s about we grab a drink at the flagon after we give dirge his arm back? Ey vex?

Vex: shove off delvin or I’ll be shoving that arm somewhere you don’t want it to be. *walks off ahead*

Delvin: Oh come on I was only teasing!

Henwen: … *quietly watches them sneak off, almost undetectable, invisible* … *looks over at Kaidan*

Kaidan: *snoring like a bear*

Henwen: … *gets up and pulls on his robes hiding his face again* I’m sorry my friend… I can’t always rely on you to be there to keep me alive… I need to find a way to do that on my own… *tucks him in a little making the swordsman groan and roll over*

Kaidan: *still snoring, fast asleep* I didn’t mean to make the horkers stampedezzzzi just wanted a sandwich…

Henwen: *snickers and sneaks out of the room and downstairs before heading out of the tavern, slowly tailing the two thieves down into the ratway*

*Agonised screaming echoing from far off in the sewers*

Delvin: Welp take it dirge isn’t handling the pain well.

Vex: he lost an arm what did you expect? *waves the floppy appendage at the other thief before freezing in her tracks seeing movement in the shadows* whose there?!

Delvin: *heard Henwen following for a while now but was waiting for vex to notice, just smiles and turns around, hands out showing he’s unarmed* hey there lad, it’s alright, come out. No mean tricks ere.

Henwen: *slowly peers out, spear at the ready and covered in dried blood from the last frost troll he killed*

Vex: *reaches for her knife but stops as delvin glances at her*

Delvin: oi, no weapons. No force, just words. Let’s talk lad…

Henwen: *steps into the light of the torch hanging on the wall, bright blue eyes glimmering from under the shadow of his hood* okay… we talk…

Delvin: Okay lad… I’m guessing Brynjolf just plucked you off the street and threw you into the thick of it yeah? Wanted you to get your hands dirty immediately and wouldn’t let you back down?

Henwen: he wanted me to get an innocent man imprisoned…

Delvin: Aye, and your not one for that sort of work, I think he often forgets many members of the guild have different morals when it comes to their preferences for thieving. *snickers* The mans never done an honest days work in his life. But you, you’re a good lad, I can tell by the way you walk you’re young and cautious of the world too. But yet, your here. Why is that?

Henwen: I’m not a thief… I’ve never taken anything that didn’t belong to me in my life… but I know I can’t survive in this world without someone else’s help. Everyone is out to use me or… *shudders a little* never mind… but… I need to know how I can use them too. If I can’t protect myself with brute force then-

Delvin: protect yourself with information, and the shadows.

Henwen: *nods*

Delvin: Then I think the guild can help you after all lad. Come with me, we’ll talk a little more on the way.

Henwen: … *slowly puts his spear away and steps closer to follow*

Vex: …Y’know delvin I really question why we have Bryn bringing in new recruits when you can do so much better.

Delvin: Aw thanks vex, making me blush.

Vex: Say that again and I’ll hit you with dirges arm then make him hit you himself after it’s reattached!

*a few moments later*

Henwen: *walks into the flagon after delvin to hear the screaming now at full volume and yelling between two men*

Maul: I TOLD YOU TO LOOK OUT FOR HIS BODYGUARD!

Brynjolf: HOW WAS I MEANT TO KNOW THE WANKER WAS THAT FUCKING BIG OR THAT FAST?! ONE MINUTE YOUR BROTHERS HAND WAS ON THE LADS THROAT THEN I BLINKED AND HIS ARM WAS ON THE FLOOR!

Henwen: good I didn’t appreciate the bruising he left me.

Everyone: *shuts up so fast you could hear a pin drop before looking at the three as they enter*

Vex: I got the arm let’s get it back on his body.

Delvin: and I. Got us a new recruit. *pats Henwen on the back*

Brynjolf: I- what?!

Delvin: Maybe try communicating with potential new hires ey? Rather then randomly accosting them.

Henwen: *knowing there’s a massive risk to showing his identity but deciding it’s best to be honest amongst a den of thieves* Sorry for embarrassing you lot twice now but- *pulls back his hood showing his pretty snow elf face, his long white hair, and the now dark purple bruise on his neck* I’d say we’re even now, yeah?

Brynjolf: *nearly as red as his hairline* I-… aye.

*the next morning*

Henwen: *groans flopping back into his bed in the bee and barb, covered in bee stings and smelling of wood smoke after completing the golden glow job by sheer dumb luck alone and somehow managing to not fuck it up*

Kaidan: *yawns awake* good morning, howd you-

Henwen: *snoring into his pillow completely conked out*

Kaidan: …sweet get to sleep in. *lays back down and goes back to sleep*

#yes dirge got his arm back #mercer actually thought henwens antics against Brynjolf were pretty funny but he’s absolutely thinking of ways he can exploit wendy #and yes delvin absolutely is taking the role of dad model to Henwen #vex skyrim #delvin skyrim #Brynjolf skyrim #henwen dragonborn #Kaidan skyrim #falmer dragonborn #ocs

[cryptidshuffle]

otto and bob are friends because bob grows him weed and otto needs his smart weed bc he's smarter when he's high

#psychonauts #psychonauts 2 #sorry for this one #yes thats a tails gets trolled reference #but listen. its really funny #u know otto in the 60s would have his sherlock holmes moments where hes like if i dont do hard drugs right now i wont be able to think

[nattikay]

My take on half-troll Toby and Claire. Notes below the cut:

So I’ve done these characters as full trolls before, but making them half-trolls is actually a little more difficult--for full trolls we have lots and lots of canon variety to reference, but Jim is the only known half-troll, which means we have to determine which of his features are general half-troll traits and which ones are unique to him as an individual. After carefully comparing his half-troll design with his human design as well as general troll designs, here are my conclusions, along with some general headcanons and notes about the characters:

-Pointed “elf” ears are universal among half-trolls, as they are a mix between human ears and trolls’ lamb-like ears*.

-Like full trolls, half-trolls can either be hornless or grow horns of any shape. However, I am adding a headcanon limit that while full trolls may have multiple sets of horns (like how Arrrggh and Blinky each have two), half-trolls can only have up to one.

-While both troll sexes seem to be able to grow scruffs, facial hair** still appears to be a male-only trait as it is with humans. As such, the rule carries over to half-trolls as well (so Claire gets some neck scruff but no sideburns like the boys).

-Half-trolls have a slight underbite to accommodate their tusks, but it doesn’t get as extreme on them as it can in full trolls.

-Half-trolls take on trollish skintones (Toby’s still looks pretty humanish in the drawing but it is meant to be yellower...hard to tell without context. It would be more obvious with proper texturing and such. ^^”)

-While they are a fair bit taller than the average human, half-trolls still retain very human-like proportions and never have “extra” limbs and the like (so wings, double arms, tails, more than 2 eyes, etc.)

-They are still smaller than the average troll.

-Half-troll noses have a very flat profile like those of a full troll, but the nostrils are still located at the bottom like a human, with a color and texture consistent with the rest of their face. Half-troll noses also tend to be a fair bit broader than those of their human counterparts, and may sit slightly further up on the face. The exact shape of the nose still varies by individual.

-Half-trolls have human eyes.

-Half-trolls cannot be carved; if the tattoo troll took a chisel to a half-troll, they’d just bleed a lot. The resulting scars would have a similar visual effect to trollish carvings, but the process would be incredibly messy, unpleasant, and generally just not worth it.

-Half-trolls don’t have as broad a range of hair colors as full trolls (so you’d never see one with Arrrggh’s green or Blinky’s teal unless it was dyed), but they can be a slightly more colorful/saturated than those of their human counterparts: Jim’s black saturates to (very dark) blue, Claire’s dark brown saturates to maroon, and Toby’s auburn saturates to true red.

-Because Jim shares a similar hairstyle and horn shape to Blinky, I thought it would be fun if the others had some similar features to important trolls in their lives as well. Toby has short, straight horns and a fluffy mane (albeit not fully grown in yet) like Arrrggh, while Claire is hornless with a scruff that trails part-way down her back like NotEnrique.

-If you look closely, Jim’s general face shape actually stayed remarkably similar when he became half-troll (it looks a little thinner but part of that is the dark floof cutting into the sides), so I did the same with the others.

* “But Strickler has elf ears and he’s a full troll--” yeah yeah, Strickler’s kinda an anomaly with pretty much every trait so for generalization purposes we’re just gonna exclude him

** Come to think of it, while beards seem relatively common among trolls, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one with a mustache lol. Headcanon therefore that trollish facial hair does not extend beyond the chin.

#trollhunters #tales of arcadia #claire nuñez #toby domzalski #jim lake jr #troll jim #headcanon #my art

[kevinwastaken]

sonic movie 2 spoilers under the cut i have A LOT to say holy shit

HOLY SHIT THIS MOVIE IS BETTER THAN THE FIRST I LOVED IT

theres so much i want to say but i have NO IDEA how to start or how to end

first and foremost they did knuckles SO MUCH JUSTICE sega wishes they could write as well as whoever the hell made this script. hes no longer the comic relief dumbass, hes a warrior!! like he used to be!! and he has dignity and honour!! and hes a little gullible but its okay, thats how he originally was anyway x

AND TAILS!! his camaraderie with sonic was so great. i loved how he came all the way to help him from whatever planet hes from and how they just bonded so well immediately and theyre already like brothers I LOVE IT

particularly i liked the scene on the beach where sonic and knuckles stopped and breathed for a sec after having lost the master emerald to robotnik and bonded over what happened to them both the day longclaw died. i liked how they related it back as knuckles’s family was fighting against her and UGH it was so sad but it was so great

AND THE REFS! they never cease to amaze me. i counted a dr robotniks mean bean machine ref (which is funny because ive been thinking about booting up my ps2 again to play it, i want to get good at puyo puyo), a sonic adventure reference during the dance off in siberia, AND ALL THE SONIC 3 AND KNUCKLES REFS!! jesus christ. theres probably more, but theyre slipping my mind

post sleep edit, remembered the manuel in the death egg looking like a manuel for a sega genesis game, that got a chuckle out of me iirc LOL

also kinda feel bad for rachel and what happened in her wedding. poor girl got set up and for what😭 a sting operation? its positively TRAGIC

ALSO THE WAY THEY ALL CAME TOGETHER AT THE END LIKE IT WAS SONIC HEROES I LOVED THAT!!!! I CAN TELL THEYRE GOING TO BE BESTIES JUST BY THE END SCENE WHERE THEYRE PLAYING BASEBALL I LOVE IT I LOVE IT

AND HOLY SHIT MY JAW DROPPED THE MOMENT I KNEW SUPER SONIC WAS GONNA SHOW UP OH MY GOD i shouldve seen it coming with the inclusion of the master emerald and the chaos emeralds and everything BUT OH MY GOD???? HE WAS SO STUNNING!!!! HE LOOKED ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS IN THE MOVIE I WAS IN AWE

AND THE ENDDDD OH MY GOD THE POST CREDITS SCENE WITH SHADOW!!!! I HAD A FEELING HE WAS GOING TO SHOW UP BUT I SCREAMED WHEN THEY SHOWED HIM I CANT WAIT FOR THE THIRD MOVIE!!!!! I BET THERES GONNA BE THIS WHOLE THING WITH GERALD ROBOTNIK, MARIA, THE INCIDENT WITH GUN STORMING THE SPACE COLONY ARK, I CANT WAIT!!!!!!

i did have a few gripes though. theyre a bit miniscule though

first of all, fuck whoever decided robotnik should floss. fuck you for that

second, did not enjoy how small the emeralds were. i know its probably so they can make sense in a human filled world but the emeralds were literally the size of my finger. and the master emerald was the size of ONE in game chaos emerald

also was a bit weirded out by agent stone drawing robotnik in his lattes but ummm hes gay so its fine idk the fujoshis will have a field day with that

alsooo kind of sad there wasnt anything with crazy carl drawing tails gets trolled or uganda knuckles. that wouldve been funny i think

ANYWAY GO WATCH THE MOVIE GO WATCH IT NOW IM GONNA PISS MYSELF I LOVED IT

ps whoever runs this show please bring in crush 40 to write the ending song of the next movie im tired of this kid cudi guy

#GOD THE MOVIE WAS SO GOOD #FUCKING LOVED IT #sonic #sonic the hedgehog #sonic movie #sonic movie 2 #sonic movie 2 spoilers

[zozophoenixxx]

OK I'M REWATCHING HTTYD BC I NEED SEROTONIN SO YE

Here are some Things I had forgotten or little details I just noticed on my rewatch, maybe even Unpopular Opinions 🤭👀

✨httyd 1✨

The reason to their ugly ass names is because "parents believe a hideous name will frighten off gnomes and trolls"

One of the reasons to Hiccup's skills and abilities with building stuff is because he was Gobber's apprentice since he was little

- HOW COME I COMPLETELY FORGOT THIS?!😳

I feel like Stoick's the only person that would get into a fist fight with a dragon 😂

"We're Vikings. It's an occupational hazard" I missed this 🥺

I love how Stoick's just so passionate about being a Viking

"It's only fun if you get a scar out of it"

OMG I JUST REALIZED THAT WHEN HICCUP SAYS "it looks like it's just you and me huh?" In RTTE he was referring back to this one scene in the first movie where he says the same thing to Astrid when they're training against the Gronckle

"The unholy offspring of lightining and death itself" BADASS✋🏼😩

Guys... Hiccup looks weird with 2 legs...

Ok but whenever they're fighting the Nadder and Astrid lectures Hiccup about taking things seriously and choosing sides... I feel like she's also trying to convince herself to take it seriously because after hitting the Nadder she kinda looked... Like she regretted it..

The way toothless shares his fish with Hiccup🥺 his facial expressions and how he's literally expecting hiccup to eat and SWALLOW it AND THE WAY HE ALSO COPIES HIS SMILE🥺🥺🥺🥺

DRAWINGS ‼️‼️‼️‼️

There's no way toothless didn't notice when Hiccup was putting the new tail in for the first time... I think at that point he already trusted him enough to do that...

I love how Astrid won't take shit from the boys

"Oh, I'm hurt! I am very much hurt!" JABDHSHA

Astrid looked so gorgeous in min 39:04 🤩

The part where they're all just shocked that Hiccup managed to convince the zippleback to go into its cage

TEST DRIVE 🥺🤩😁

The way the scene becomes way more badass right after hiccup throws away the cheat sheet and just acts on impulse 🤩

"Everything we know about you guys is wrong"

"Ow why would you do that?!" "That's for the lies. And that's for everything else" YOUNG HICCSTRID 🥺🥺

"Thank you for nothing you useless reptile" JAHDHAHSHA I LOVE THIS SCENE

ROMANTIC FLIGHT 💓😚❤️😍🧡💞✨💓💕💫I don't think I've ever been happier

"that's for kidnapping me... *kiss* And that's for everything else"

"What are you gonna do about it?" "Probably something stupid"

I swear the amount of amazing lines this movie has 🤩✋🏼

Why had I completely forgotten about the red death?

No because the way they literally made it implode

And the way toothless saved hiccup and had him completely wrapped with his wings and legs 🥺

KISSY KISSY KISSY KISS KISSSSSSS✋🏼😩😁🥰💝😍💞💖😚😌

I finished it and now I'm sad :(

Alsoooo read the tags and help me cause I'm not sure and I don't remember and also let me know what u think

#my serotonin levels 📈📈📈 #how to train your dragon #hiccup #hiccup haddock #astrid #astrid hofferson #snotlout #ruffnut #ruf and tuf #fishlegs #toothless #stoick the vast #I swear I'm so happy #literally wtf #wait what's the show that comes after httyd 1 cause Ik it's httyd1 #then 2 shows #but idk which one #then RTTE #then #httyd 2 #and #httyd 3 #and lastly #homecoming #but I don't remember #the name of those 2 shows where they're still kids #I think I'm also gonna turn this #into a friendly reminder series #what do y'all think?

[madammobius]

Chao Update: #3!

Heyo! Madam Mobius here again, and welcome back to the Mobius Garden! I’ve been really busy, and tonight I’ve got some special stuff for you, but first I just wanted to have a bit of transparency and go over a few things.

Since last time, I’ve started using Chao World Extended, a mod meant to enhance and improve the overall Chao World experience! However I’ve always been a *bit* of a purist when it comes to modding games, so I went through the customization options and only checked things that met one or more of these requirements

1: Aesthetic only: Things that only effect looks like the day/night cycle option

2: Was in the Dreamcast/GC port, but was somehow made unobtainable on PC. A good example of this is the jewel chao. The dreamcast had a little gadget called the VMU packaged in, and if you had enough of the in-game emblems you could unlock jewel chao, a special chao variant, with it. However, since the gamecube and PC have no VMU they have become completely unobtainable. Chao World Extended adds a different way to earn them through the Jewel Races! I thought this was fair because it’s still a challenge, and there would be no other way to do it anyway.

Here are some screenshots of the only options I have checked for the mod (as well as my SA2 application as a whole): 

I’ve talked to some of the chao island admins and one has confirmed that beyond one thing (which we’ll get to when the time comes) there are no other vanilla changes, just additions

Okay cool, that’s probably the most infodumpy I’m ever gonna get here lol, like I said just trying to be transparent

Now who’s ready to see some cute chao? 

They’re conversing :00 

Full video with sound here! (You can hear them talk !!)

He loves when I shake him hehe :)) 

Onto some of the more substantial changes though! I’m still trying to decide what type to evolve these little babies into, so throughout this post you may notice that I change course a little bit in the types of animals I give and which stats are highest. Rest assured though! By the end of this post I will definitively have the answer for my evolution plans!

Took a look at UwU’s stats, and it looks like her personality has cycled from the last time I checked! It was cry-baby before but now it’s energetic

Veeeeerrryyy interesting combination !

You absolute troll  ( ⚆ ◡ ⚆ )

Work hard

...nap harder

Time to learn some wonderful singing! I wanted to focus on UwU for a bit so I left OwO in class

I’ve decided that UwU is going to be a power-type! Her highest stat grade is an A in Power so I decided I want to raise it to an S when she evolves

Soon she will be strong enough to demolish the competition in karate (｀\/´)

More stat grinding...

OwO has returned! He is now a wonderful singer :)) 

Accidentally gave UwU a vulture but the new wings and hair kinda look cool with the arms lol

Laaaaaaaaa!!!

I threw a bear at him lol (￣\/￣ )

Checked the black market and they had a very interesting item for sale! It seems my emblem collecting has paid off and there is a shiny blue egg for sale

( I actually saw a rarer orange one much earlier but didn’t get it so  (ゝз･) )

I mean I really SHOULDN’T buy this one... I have enough emblems for much rarer eggs to appear... plus I’m already swamped raising the other two chao and... hmmm

I bought it.

They have all gathered around for the hatching!

Well..... at least she was there at first...

Guess she was curious and decided she doesn’t care  ¯\_༼ ಥ ‿ ಥ ༽_/¯

She’s aliiiiiiiive!!!! 

Welcome to the world, small child

DRAMATIC POSE

𝘼𝘾𝙏𝙄𝙑𝘼𝙏𝙀

...this is literally the most adorable creature on the planet I would die for you （；へ：）

Stat check!

Not terrible! I don’t think I’ll evolve her based on stats though, she’s way too adorable NOT to be evolved for looks

Checks out

Taking her to the fortune teller to get her named next... 

hmmm... blue... shiny..... water name? uhhhh hydro? no no.... ocean? nah nah...

wait.

Heheheheheh....

Heheheheheheh...

HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH...!

Everyone say hi to Soleanna! (Second N was removed in-game because of character limit, but her name is Soleanna)

For those unaware, Soleanna was the name of the City of Water in Sonic 06! I thought it was fitting because it’s water themed but also silly and a sonic reference lol

You know truth be told... UwU and OwO’s names were just kinda pulled out of a jokey joke hat because I needed to call them SOMETHING. I was gonna wait a little longer, but now that we have a naming theme...

Elise and Mephiles it is!  (again, Mephiles had to be cut short because of character limit but...)

I thought it made sense because they’re both hero and dark chao, plus it fits with the Sonic 06 reference theme

Mephiles would be proud to have an evil chao named after him :)) 

I guess Elise has taken a liking to Soleanna’s eggshell.... I can’t tell if that’s endearing or SUPER weird...

bird :)) 

looks like Mephiles is going to the races!

LITERALLY ANNIHILATED THOSE OTHER CHAO

ONCE AGAIN

He won a shovel!

Elise is gonna do some Karate! Use the strength of all those bears I gave you!

OHHHHHH!!

TWO HIT K-O!! 

She preceded to absolutely annihilate the entire tournament!

Owned

whatcha got there, Soleanna?

SHE’S RIDIN’ THE DUCK!! (ⅈ▱ⅈ)

Awwww, Elise and Mephiles are singing and playing music for her while she rides!! They’re all so cute !! 

So uh.... I kinda did some stat grinding with a dark character on Elise and well...

...she looks a bit like moldy cheese now

I’ll get her fixed up with Tails, don’t worry  ε-(´ D｀) ﾌ

no thoughts, head empty

wait a minute... i hadnt even noticed! Elise’s evolution stat traits are starting to come in! that means she’s getting closer to evolving into a power chao! (power chao have these sort of stripey patterns on them)

We did some more karate to celebrate

It went about how you would expect after her last performance  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

In other news though, I’ve decided Mephiles’ final type! I’m gonna go with run! Mephiles’ namesake is a Shadow impersonator, and since a Dark-Run chao looks like Shadow I thought it would be funny :)) 

So I went to City Escape to collect some rabbits! And uh...

They are looking....

...and I do not know if it is respectfully ●﹏●

Mephiles understands that even dark lords of evil can have cute pink bunny rabbit ears

I’m sure you’ve noticed, but Mephiles’ evolution stat traits are coming in too! He’s growing spines and getting a little bluer!

You’re so adorable I’m gonna lose it...

Alrighty! Before we go, here’s a final stat-check for the road!

----------

That’s all for now folks! Thank you for reading it all if you made it here :))

Remember to check out https://chao-island.com/ if you want to learn more about chao and the raising experience! It’s a great resource

My chao posts will always be tagged with #MobiusGarden in case you wish to block them

Love u!

#chao #sonic the hedgehog #sonic #Sonic Adventure 2 #dreamcast #gamecube #pet sim #pet simulator #vmu #soleanna #mephiles the dark #mephiles sonic #Chao Garden #long reads #long #MobiusGarden #gif

[m-i-r]

NaLu 2020 hints compilation

I've been enjoying FT100YQ for the Natsu and Lucy content, but I honestly miss talking about my OTP, so I decided to make a little compilation post to collect all of the NaLu crumbs (*cough*meals really*cough*) we got throughout this year thus far (+add a little bit of my commentary on each one of them)! ^_^

So let’s start with Mashima's Twitter Doodles:

#1:

Posted on January 25, for no particular reason. This is really among NaLu's best Twitter Doodles. The way they're smiling and holding each other is just so precious ♥

#2:

Posted on March 24, aka White Day in Japan! Natsu's giving Lucy a bunny plush as thanks for her chocolates! This one actually references a FT100YQ chapter cover, but we'll get to that later. #3:

Posted on May 23, aka Kiss Day in Japan! It's actually part of a "tutorial" that eventually takes on a "troll" route lol. Fun Fact: Mashima has plenty of official couples he could've drawn for this day, but for some interesting reason he chose to draw NaLu instead. The doodle also just so happens to bless the fandom with an official kissing artwork of their OTP, while still respecting said OTP's current status and developments in the official story (by being a "joke" post).  

  #4:

Drawn by Mashima and posted by his editor.

Apparently there was some kind of promotion on MagaPoke (the app/site that uploads the FT100YQ chapters) a while back - fans could submit requests for art by Mashima, and 3 winners were chosen. This was 1's requested artwork. ♥ There were a lot of NaLu requests apparently!

Now onto FT100YQ content! Which are unfortunately just Chapter Covers lol. (But it can't be helped, the manga's bi-weekly so it's walking at a snail's pace, and Natsu and Lucy are busy fighting separately for the time being. But the covers are really lovely!)

First, we got the cover of Chapter 49:

This one references Valentine's Day! Happy takes the spotlight with his romantic delusions, but in the background we can see Lucy shyly attempting to give Natsu Valentine's chocolate. And from Mashima's White Day Twitter doodle that he posted later on, we can conclude that her attempt was successful, and her feelings were happily accepted and reciprocated. 😉

Then, we got the cover of chapter 53:

JErza takes the spot-light this time, but in the bg we can see NaLu being dorks together. (This actually kind of canonizes Mashima's series of "Hot Spring Vacation" doodles he did back on his Twitter in 2018!) Natsu just can't help messing with Lucy lol, he truly loves being around her and having her attention. And is that.... Σ(ﾟÅﾟ) “May we stay together forever” I read up there?? Used in a romantic setting??? Σ(ﾟДﾟ)  I think all NaLu fans know what I’m trying to say lol.  

Then we got the cover of chapter 55:

This one references Children's Day in Japan. As you can see, Natsu's playing with Asuka again, and Lucy's looking at him lovingly in the bg. The Asuka omake had some strong NaLu hinting, so it's nice to see Mashima kinda reference it again. Although many may claim that Natsu’s an immature character whose unfit for parenthood, I think he’ll be a great father to his future daughter/children with Lucy. 😉

And lastly, we got the cover of the most recent chapter, chapter 58:

Gray/Gruvia take the spot-light, but in the bg we can see NaLu (and JErza) dancing together. ♥ Although NaLu's the only major pairing where neither side has openly voiced/admitted their feelings yet, Mashima still makes sure to include them in every piece with romantic undertones. The ship got his full support, and FT100YQ hasn’t been shy with romance, so I’m pretty excited to see what he has in store for NaLu. ^_^ ♥

 Now onto HERO’s hints. Or rather, HEROINE’s. HERO’s chapters were actually released weekly in 2019, but the volume containing them all came out in 2020, with an extra chapter called “HEROINE’s”.

HEROINE’s had a moment for all of Mashima’s main ships – Haru x Elie from Rave Master, Natsu x Lucy from Fairy Tail and Shiki x Rebecca from Edens Zero.

And well, the moment NaLu had was pretty damn cute, if I do say so myself:

The fact that they’re pranking people together now (or at least attempting to lol) just goes to show how close they’ve become. Natsu’s rubbed quite a bit of his personality on Lucy. And the way he takes care of her each time she’s in trouble (either drunk or passed out) is so damn precious! The smiling, blushing faces they give each other also make me feel all kinds of ways. ♥

And that concludes what we have for now! As you can see, it’s a fair bit of stuff despite them not interacting in the manga for what feels like ages! So I sure hope the fandom keeps looking at the positive side of things, and patiently wait for whatever NaLu’s gonna deliver us next. 

#NaLu #Fairy Tail NaLu

[beneaththetangles]

Reader’s Corner: Springtime of My Life, Fly Me to the Moon, and the Star Collector Audio Manga

The Springtime of My Life Began with You, Vol. 1

It is honestly times like these where I wish I could collect digital manga in paperback. The Springtime of My Life Began with You is a new digital title from Kodansha, and while I’m excited we have this new story to read in English legally, I’m bummed that I can’t go to the store and pick it up because I want to be able to flip pages to my favorite scenes and dialogue. But enough moping! This delightful volume gives me a lot of When We Shout for Love vibes (which I LOVED!), and I caught myself leaning a little closer to my computer screen to keep reading. I love these kinds of stories where the shy main girl steps out of her shell into becoming a young woman she’s always dreamed of being. Suehiro is such a relatable character and I absolutely love her love for books and desire to celebrate that love with other friends. While I feel Takasago may appear to be the typical popular guy falling for the shy girl, I was actually surprised how this plot point turns into something deeper. He’s not just this super popular dude who just “happens” to fall in love. The bookish aspect, the characters, and the hopeful journey of growing self-confidence makes this a manga one I would recommend and read again! ~ Laura A. Grace

The Springtime of My Life Began with You, Volume 1 is published by Kodansha.*

Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower, Vol. 1

If you’re looking for something like The Apothecary Diaries but with more cooking and less sex, or something like I Will Cook With My Fluffy Friends but with an imperial China flair, then the light novel Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower might be for you. The setting of an imperial China-inspired inner palace is there, as are all the consorts, eunuchs, and an emperor and his servants. However, the focus here is more on Rimi, a consort from not-Japan as she has to deal with an emperor who thinks her country’s offerings of unique cooking “ingredients” are trash and thus worth beheading the poor girl over. This leads to Rimi literally having to cook for her life, with the help of a handsome cuisinologist, a beautiful eunuch with a strained relationship with the emperor, and a cute “mouse” who may be more than just mere ratatouille. Rimi herself is a solid protagonist who does struggle emotionally with the difficulties of being in an unfamiliar environment, but is also plucky enough to deal with everything that comes her way, even including the emperor’s personal problems, and she is very passionate about cooking. Add in some hints of romance and of course some cooking details, and you have an interesting series with a fair amount going on, and one that I definitely want to read more of. ~ stardf29

Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower is published by J-Novel Club.

Star Collector (Audio Manga)

Voice actor Todd Haberkorn’s (Natsu, Fairy Tail) considerable talents are highlighted in this audio version of BL OEL manga Star Collector, in which he voices the two primary characters. With a run time of a little more than two hours, Haberkorn, who also produced the recording, is joined by the always-welcome Caitlin Glass in various roles as he narrates the story of delinquent, chain-smoking Fynn and his budding relationship with classmate and stargazer, Niko. The voiceover work, along with whimsical music and well-timed sound effects, brings life to a story that is inconsistent, at times providing picturesque descriptions that, when combined with the excellent performances, evoke a sense of theater in the listener’s mind, but which at its worst comes across as an amateur’s attempts at clumsy, erotic fan fiction, with characters that feed a romantic’s imagination at the cost of coherent characterization. Still, there are far worse ways than to spend two hours on the road than to listen to Haberkorn’s dulcet tones—just make sure you’re not pumping the audio manga through your speakers while with someone else. Just trust me on that. ~ Twwk

Star Collector is published by TOKYOPOP.

Fly Me to the Moon, Vol. 5

What can I say? Fly Me to the Moon continues to be hilarious and sweet. If you read it, you will laugh, and you will get warm fuzzy feelings. This manga’s pop culture reference game remains strong, with nods to The Six Million Dollar Man, the Sega Dreamcast, the infamous “off course” typo in Final Fantasy VII, and more. “If this were a romantic comedy, disaster would be sure to strike!” Spoiler: Despite being a romcom, the only disasters are the ones Nasa imagines. Then there’s Tsukasa’s sage observation: “With a smartphone, the warlord Nobunaga really could have gone places” (which bears at least passing resemblance to more than one anime out there). Other highlights of this volume include Aya going full mother-in-law before bonding with Tsukasa over video games, Nasa’s junior high teacher getting the wrong idea about Tsukasa, and Tsukasa and Kaname trolling Chitose. It’s a small moment, but also I appreciated the realistic detail of getting confirmation that Tsukasa really was injured back when she saved Nasa from Truck-kun at their first meeting. I heartily recommend this manga. ~ JeskaiAngel

Fly Me to the Moon is published by Viz.*

In Another World With My Smartphone, Vol. 22 (light novel)

So all of the major threats to the world are dealt with, and Touya’s married to his girls… what else is even left to do in this story? Well, for most of the volume, it’s just more of the usual filler hi-jinks: some matchmaking events (including a side-character mini-harem that’s not in the orientation you might expect), silliness regarding the BL-writing princess, and the like. They’re the kind of small adventures and happenings that filled the space between major events in previous volumes. Likewise, towards the end of volume 22, the next major event of this story is revealed, as Smartphone pulls a Fire Emblem: Awakening and introduces children from the future! Obviously, with no huge danger to deal with, they’re just here to play around and meet the parents, but it still adds the the sort of fun little twist that should please anyone who’s enjoyed this series enough to still be reading it over twenty volumes in. ~ stardf29

The light novel of In Another World With My Smartphone is published by J-Novel Club.

Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance, Vol. 2

Sometimes we need people to come alongside us and show us who we could be and stir our hearts to change despite the adversity we may face from others (or even in Maria’s case, family too). I found this to be very much true for Maria in the delightful second volume of Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance. Maria is such a sweet character, but due to the constant negativity she has had voiced to her, she’s so fearful of doing the wrong thing, offending someone, or upsetting her mother. Yet that fear doesn’t completely define who Maria is, and I loved seeing her slowly grow a little bolder in this volume! She has a hidden “brass” to her as others have claimed and a little more boldness then even she realizes, though thankfully Rintarou is helping to bring that out (Speaking of, glad he is still his teasing self!). I hope Maria continues to bloom and grow as a person and not just in romance. Seeing her bravery near the latter part of the end made me want to get up off my couch and cheer for her! I could imagine I’ll being doing a lot more of that based on the teaser we were shown for the upcoming volume! ~ Laura A. Grace

Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance, vol. 2, is published by Yen Press.*

Trapped in a Dating Sim: the World of Otome Games Is Tough for Mobs, Vols. 1-2

You’ve probably seen the reincarnated-into-an-otome-game story premise before (especially the kind that takes place at a school for nobles and royalty), but Trapped in a Dating Sim manages to put some fun twists on that concept. The protagonists of these stories are usually girls, but this book’s MC, Leon, is a guy. And he isn’t reincarnated as a major character from the game, but as a nobody who doesn’t actually have any connection to the game plot. The setting is downright dystopian, with slavery, classism, and rampant sexism against men. The world is also illogical in other ways, due being based on the wonky mechanics and shallow world-building of the game. Leon eventually meets the game’s protagonist (Olivia), antagonist (Angelica), and five love interests (Greg, Chris, Brad, Julius, and Jilk), but something has gone awry. The love interests are barely even aware Olivia exists, instead fawning over some other girl named Marie. Did I mention the snarky AI sidekick, or the fact that since the original otome game included airship battles and giant robots, the isekai world has them too? I enjoyed volume one enough that I dove right into volume two, and while I find Leon obnoxious at times, overall I like Trapped in a Dating Sim enough that I’ll continue reading. ~ JeskaiAngel

Trapped in a Dating Sim: the World of Otome Games Is Tough for Mobs is published by Seven Seas Entertainment.

With the Sheikh in His Harem, Vol. 1

When I first saw the cover and title of With the Sheikh in His Harem, I was admittedly nervous that it would be about a young woman joining other wives/concubines for one (handsome) man. Thankfully my fears were unfounded. It’s probably the first manga I’ve read with an exotic location and I’m totally here for it! Another one reason I found this to be such a compelling story is because of the character Sanagi, who is such a diligent worker. I absolutely love how that even if her situation changes, Sanagi still seeks to be true to herself and work hard. Prince Lui is another fun character; I enjoyed how he is discovering the beauty and joy in life with Sanagi. I like how passionate he is and how he not only wants the best for her, but that he will also do whatever it takes to keep her around (and safe). One of the best parts, though, is how the mangaka includes mini-travel guides. I LOVEDDDD that! It was a very fun feature to this manga and definitely “bumped up” my enjoyment of this story. Overall, I really enjoyed With the Sheikh in His Harem and thought it to be a fun escape and highly enjoyable, recommended to anyone who enjoys reading shoujo manga but is looking for something that combines a good romance and Arabian-like setting! ~ Laura A. Grace

With the Sheikh in His Harem is published by Kodansha.*

=====

Reader’s Corner is our way of embracing the wonderful world of manga, light novels, and visual novels, creative works intimately related to anime but with a magic all their own. Each week, our writers provide their thoughts on the works their reading—both those recently released as we keep you informed of newly published works and older titles that you might find as magical (or in some cases, reprehensible) as we do.

#Manga #Light Novels #The Springtime of My Life Began with You #Kimi to Aoi Haru no Hajimari #Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower #Ikka Koukyuu Ryourichou #Star Collector #Tonikaku Cawaii #Fly Me to the Moon #In Another World With My Smartphone #Isekai wa Smartphone to Tomo ni. #Golden Japanesque: A Splendid Yokohama Romance #Golden Japanesque: Yokohama Karentan #Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs #Otomege Sekai wa Mob ni Kibishii Sekai desu #With the Sheikh in His Harem #Sheikh sama to Harem de. #Reader's Corner #Articles #Author: Laura A. Grace #Author: stardf29 #Author: TWWK #Author: Jeskai Angel

[havenoffandoms]

Hi! A little idea for your requests, if you don’t mind. A Jaskier x Geralt : Jaskier feels finally brave enough to confess his undying love to Geralt but each time he tries, something gets in the way. Yennefer and Ciri support him and even try to help (successfully or not). Fun and fluff please !!! I hope you find the idea interesting~ 🌟

Okay, sooooo I may have got slightly carried away with this idea and I won’t apologise for it. Your idea really inspired me and I think it’s the cutest thing. Jaskier and Geralt are just two idiots in love in this one. There is the slighest bit of angst at the end, but the rest is fun and fluff as you wanted it. I hope I did your request justice. 

Thanks for your ask! Hope you enjoy the read xx

Warning: teeny tiny bit of angst, fluff, mild swearing, smutty references, and mild canon typical violence

1.

Jaskier was known for many things across the Continent – his ballads, his poetry, his many, many conquests that often got him into trouble (and inspired many, many ballads) – but his bravery was certainly not one of them. The bard was painfully aware of this fact, and he thought that joining Geralt on his adventures would somehow remedy this, but he had been wrong. Nonetheless, after nearly twenty years of pining and admiring the Witcher from a distance, Jaskier had decided to tell Geralt how he truly felt about him. No matter the outcome, Jaskier would tell Geralt and finally get this secret off his chest. He needed to know if Geralt felt the same way and he was ready to face the possibility that Geralt only liked him as a friend. Geralt may live for several centuries, but Jaskier did not have nearly as much time left in this life and had to make the most of the time that he had left. Even if it meant spending that time getting over Geralt…

Jaskier had a plan. He would tell Geralt over dinner, the nicest dinner they could afford, which at present consisted of stale bread, meagre pieces of cheese and some fruit that had seen better days but would do just fine. The location would be wherever Geralt decided to stop for the night on their way to Kaer Morhen. They would likely set camp at the edge of the woods (moonlit dinner, anyone?) and probably start a fire for warmth – that classed as romantic, right? Jaskier knew he could not overthink this too much. He did not have the luxury of waiting until they reached a town with a half-decent inn that offered nice (and most importantly cheap) food. He would have to work with what he had, and at the minute all that mattered was that Geralt knew how Jaskier truly felt about him.

They stopped at the edge of the woods, as Jaskier had anticipated, with the added bonus of the mountain range in the distance backdropping their campsite. The bard noticed the white peaks as the sun set just behind the mountains, casting large shadows over the plains that stretched from their current location all the way to the foot of the mountain range. The surroundings looked nothing short of picturesque – not that Geralt, the big oaf, would notice it! He was too busy unsaddling Roach, gathering sticks for the campfire and gathering his dirty clothes from his back before tossing them on the muddy ground for Jaskier to deal with in the morning, as was usually the case. When the bard’s stomach began rumbling loudly, Geralt finally looked up and his amber eyes rested on his travel companion. He looked irritated, as per usual, but there was something else reflected in his cat-like eyes. Concern, perhaps?

“Here,” Geralt said, his voice gruff and raspy and sending shivers down Jaskier’s spine, “eat this.”

Jaskier barely managed to catch the piece of hard bread with his hands. He watched in a panic as Geralt strapped his swords onto his back and readied himself to leave.

“Wha- where are you going, Geralt?”

“Hunt. We need meat to last us the next couple of days on the road,” the witcher answered without looking at him.

“But… when will you be back?” Jaskier asked, trying not to sound as needy as he felt.

“When I’ve caught something, bard,” Geralt huffed before taking off into the woods without as much as a glance over his shoulder. Jaskier was speechless for a while even after Geralt had disappeared into the dark woods.

Son of a bitch!

***

“I think the best way to Geralt’s heart is through Roach,” Ciri told Jaskier over dinner one night. The young heir to Cintra and the bard had both hit it right off when they had met. Ciri enjoyed his ballads and his poetry, and Jaskier loved teaching her about the history of the Continent, algebra and even taught her one or two songs on his lute. The girl was a natural and he felt it would be a shame to let this talent go to waste. Of course the sword training with Geralt and magic lessons with Yennefer were a lot more glamorous, and Jaskier could not hope to compete with that. Yet, Ciri enjoyed the distraction nonetheless and often used her free time to visit Jaskier. She was like the little sister Jaskier had always wanted but never had.

“I don’t see how that’s helpful…,” Jaskier admitted after a minute of considering Ciri’s words.

“Geralt loves Roach. He has a special bond with her, and I think he trusts her instincts about people more than his own. I think if he were to see you bonding with Roach, he would considerably soften around you.”

Jaskier had to admit he had never thought of that before, but it did not sound like the worst idea. The following day, he decided to follow Ciri’s advice and headed to the stables early in the morning to be sure to beat Geralt to the chase. When he arrived near Roach’s stall he noticed that the mare’s ears perked up when she saw him coming. Jaskier made soft clicking noises as he brought his hand to pet her long head. The mare let out a happy snort as she nudged against his hand demanding more pets.

“Hey girl, how are you doing? I know it’s usually Geralt who takes care of you, but today I thought I’d come and say hi myself. You’re awfully more friendly than what Geralt makes you out to be, you know. I always thought the reason I couldn’t ride you was because you’re a temperamental little thing.”

Jaskier chuckled as Roach shook her head and huffed indignantly. The bard looked around the stables and spotted a bucket with brushes, hoof picks and mane combs. Blankets and leading rope hung inside the stall Roach was residing in, right next to her saddle. Jaskier went to grab the bucket and returned to the stall, opening the door gently as to not spook the mare. He entered Roach’s personal space and fished a body brush out of the bucket. He began brushing Roach’s coat, making sure to scrub the sand and dust out of her coarse hair as best as he could. His ministrations seemed to relax the horse judging by her steady heartbeats that Jaskier could feel through her ribcage as he slid his hand along her strong body.

“You know, I never realised how big you actually are, girl. You’re a beautiful girl, aren’t you? And so sweet, too. Your coat is so silky. Geralt takes really good care of you,” Jaskier mused as he worked one side of Roach’s body.

“Of course I do,” a deep voice interrupted Jaskier’s actions and made him jump out of his skin, “Roach works hard when we’re on the road hunting monsters. The very least I can do is make sure she’s as comfortable as possible.” Geralt stared at Jaskier with a half-smile on his lips, his eyes soft as he watched the bard pamper Roach. Jaskier was not used to that kind of expression on the witcher’s face. The last time he had seen such kindness in Geralt’s eyes had been at princess Pavetta’s engagement festivities right after the witcher had saved him from yet another cuckold husband’s ire.

“I… I didn’t hear you come in,” Jaskier said, returning his attention to Roach and willing his racing heart to calm down. Geralt grabbed a second body brush from the bucket and got working on Roach’s coat as well. The mare let out a pleased snort at having both men take care of her.

“You were so lost in your own world that a troll choir could have burst into the stables and would’ve escaped your notice,” Geralt jested, making Jaskier stop in his tracks.

“My, my, Geralt, was this a joke? Who knew witchers have a sense of humour?”

“She likes you, you know?” Geralt commented, ignoring Jaskier’s sarcastic comment. The bard blushed at those words, and he was unsure how to respond.

“I like her, too. Despite her grumpy owner, she’s a surprisingly tame horse.”

“Hm… maybe it’s a blessing that she can’t hear your incessant singing,” Geralt teased, but his tone was light which told Jaskier that he was looking for a reaction. The bard was certainly not going to rise to the bait.

“My incessant singing is probably a nice change from the monosyllabic grunts she hears on a daily basis.”

Well, he tried not to rise at least. Jaskier dropped the brush in the bucket and retrieved the hoof pick. He kept a hand on Roach’s flank and allowed it to travel to her rump and down her leg to make her aware of where he was going. He pulled her leg up between his thighs and began picking out the dirt from between her hooves. Now was the time or never to tell Geralt how he felt about him, while they were both alone in the deserted stables and where no one could witness his humiliation if Geralt rejected him. Pull yourself together, Jask.

Deep breath in – 1, 2, 3 – and deep breath out. Go.

Just as Jaskier opened his mouth, he noticed Roach’s tail rise slightly out of the corner of his eyes. The movement distracted him long enough to momentarily forget about his intentions and before he had time to react, he felt a heavy weight land on the back of his head. Next thing he knew the stall was filled by loud and rich laughter and the stench of horse shit which had just landed on Jaskier. The bard stood frozen in place, unable to move and not wanting to believe what had just happened to him.

On the other hand, Geralt’s laughter was a sound that Jaskier wished he could bottle up and keep forever.

“Hardy-har-har… really funny, Geralt,” Jaskier mumbled under his breath as he stepped away from the mare and glared at the witcher, who was wiping his eyes with the back of his hand.

“Sorry, it’s just…,” Geralt could not even finish his sentence before he was assaulted by another fit of giggles that brought fresh tears to his amber eyes. Well, Jaskier could definitely not tell him now… that would just look plain stupid.

“Yeah, I get it. Well, don’t just stand there! Help me!” Jaskier urged the witcher, who could barely contain his hilarity.

“Oh Jaskier… I haven’t laughed like this in a long time.”

Somehow, those words brought Jaskier joy despite the overwhelming humiliation he felt.

***

3.

“Yennefer, pleaaaaase,” Jaskier pleaded the sorceress, dragging out the vowels as much as he could and ignoring the irritated eye-roll.

“Oh fine, whatever it takes to get you to finally shut up about Geralt and let me get back to my work!” Yennefer snapped at him, slamming her book shut with enough force to make the entire desk rattle in protest. Jaskier smiled brightly at her.

“You have no idea how much this means to me, Yen. My other attempts have failed dramatically.”

“So I have heard,” Yennefer said, a nasty smile appearing on her lips, “the smell of horseshit will follow you for the next months I can sense it.”

“Geralt told you, huh?” Jaskier guessed, feeling embarrassed at his expense all over again. Yennefer nodded, biting back the laughter that threatened to push past her lips.

“He told me and Ciri, and Ciri then told me what you had planned that day. I must admit that I felt slightly bad for you. So I’ll help you just because I’m sick of you and Geralt beating around the bush like blushing maidens who are too shy to tell her crush how she feels.”

“Wait, what do you mean Geralt and me... do you think that... he likes me back?” 

Jaskier was concerned that if Yennefer rolled her eyes any harder they would stay stuck like this forever. 

“Yes, dummy. Geralt is head over heels with you, how have you never noticed this before?”

“But... I...,” Jaskier was not too sure where he was going with this sentence, but as it seemed Yennefer was in no mood to wait any longer than necessary.

"If we’re going to do this, you need to do this my way, understood?”

Jaskier had a funny feeling that he would come to regret trusting Yennefer, but what other choice did he have?

“What have you got in mind?” he asked her, insecurity lacing his tone.

“Let’s just say we’ll have to hit where it hurts…,” she told him mysteriously, her smile growing more wicked and not exactly filling Jaskier with confidence.

***

Geralt grinded his teeth at the sight of Jaskier and Lambert in such close proximity. Vesemir had insisted that everyone stay several nights longer at Kaer Morhen and enjoy a feast together to celebrate the witchers returning to their former keep. There was plenty of food and ale to please everyone, and while Geralt thought he would take the opportunity to get drunk and finally admit his feelings to Jaskier, he had certainly not anticipated this turn of events. Ciri was sitting next to him but seemed blissfully unaware of his current emotional state. Why would Jaskier cosy up to Lambert of all people? His jokes were not funny, he had bad breath, not to mention a bad habit of drinking himself into an aggressive mood and physically Lambert had not much going for him either in Geralt’s humble and perfectly objective opinion. So why, oh gods why, was Jaskier looking at him like Lambert had plucked the moon from the sky?

“Aren’t they sweet together?” Yennefer cooed in his ear, only infuriating him further. Geralt barely managed a grunt as he brought his tankard of ale to his lips, took a large swig and all but slammed it back on the table, causing every dish in the vicinity to rattle. Ciri shot Geralt a quizzical side glance, which the witcher ignored.

“Why do I have a feeling that you did something shifty, Yen?” Geralt asked her, his voice barely above a growl as he watched Lambert pull Jaskier onto his lap. The sorceress merely shook her head.

“I don’t know Geralt, but I have to say it’s not your best quality.”

“Is Jaskier snogging Lambert?” Ciri asked, incredulity lacing her tone. Geralt felt every fibre in his body vibrate with anger and his blood boiled in his veins as he watched Lambert’s hand wander over Jaskier’s body like he somehow owned the bard.

Lambert had no fucking right to touch his bard.

Lambert would soon regret his decision to paw Jaskier like he was nothing but a common whore.

“Hey Vesemir,” Geralt was not acknowledging Vesemir but he knew that he had his mentor’s attention nonetheless, “have you ever heard of a witcher developing abilities to fly after undergoing the trials?”

Geralt noticed Yennefer, Ciri and Vesemir eye each other questioningly out of the corner of his eyes. The older witcher looked as puzzled as the rest of them.

“I have never come across such a case, Geralt. Why the interest?”

“Just making sure Lambert won’t survive a fall from my bedroom window,” Geralt announced as he rose from his chair and headed towards where Lambert and Jaskier were sitting. He ignored Vesemir and Yennefer’s protests, his eyes locked on Lambert who seemed to pale when he saw Geralt approach.

“Geralt, to what do I owe the…”

“Knock if off Lambert,” Geralt snapped at him, his anger only amplified by the fact that Lambert still had his arm wrapped around Jaskier, “Jaskier, how about you join me and the others over there…”

Although he had phrased it as a question, Geralt had definitely meant this as an order… something Jaskier picked up on and did not appreciate judging by the indignant expression on his face.

“I like it here, thank you very much.”

Those, as it turned out, had been the wrong words to use. Geralt had to actively calm down his nerves so he would not pummel Lambert to the ground and wipe off that cocky smile off his face.

“You heard the bard, Geralt. So piss off and go huff somewhere else.”

“There’s something I would much rather do,” Geralt said before landing a punch to Lambert’s face.

***

“What was that all about, you big brute?” Jaskier yelled at Geralt as soon as he found the witcher standing on the balcony of his room, brooding by himself as per usual. Geralt did not reply; in fact, he did not even seem to acknowledge Jaskier’s presence, which infuriated the bard to no end. Jaskier grabbed Geralt’s arm and pulled on it with enough force that it attracted Geralt’s attention. The witcher groaned in warning, but at this point Jaskier did not care if he was punched in the stomach. He needed answers.

“I could ask you the same question, bard,” Geralt snapped, his voice low and menacing. His amber eyes narrowed as Jaskier stood toe to toe with him, not showing any willingness to back down.

“I’m allowed to snog whomever I please. You aren’t my father and don’t get to tell me what to do, Geralt!”

This had all gone terribly wrong. Yennefer had suggested making Geralt jealous by flirting with Lamber, and at the time Jaskier thought it was a brilliant idea. He never thought that Geralt would act out like this. Much less give him orders like he had a say in Jaskier’s life and actions.

“I will tell you what to do when it means keeping you safe!” Geralt hissed back at Jaskier, and despite their barely noticeable height difference it felt like the witcher was towering over Jaskier.

“Keep me safe from what? Lambert is your friend, not a vampire or werewolf that you’re hunting. You know what, this was all a terrible idea, I should never have listened to Yennefer and her stupid ideas.” Jaskier did not wait for Geralt’s reply and meant to storm out of the room, but a large hand wrapped around his wrist and pulled him back.

“What do you mean by that?” Geralt demanded to know, but Jaskier was done talking.

“Let go of me, Geralt!”

“Lambert may be my friend, but I know what he’s like. I’ve seen it before. There’s been times where I partnered with him on hunts when we were younger. I saw the way he sweet-talked to women, promised them the world and took them to bed. You… you deserve better than this, Jaskier.”

Geralt’s words caused Jaskier to pause. It did not make sense. Since when did Geralt care who Jaskier went to bed with? And more importantly, since when did he care how these encounters left him feeling?

“This was all Yennefer’s idea. I was never interested in Lambert. I just… wanted to make you jealous,” Jaskier finally admitted, his voice small. He felt like a child who was being scolded. He braced himself for Geralt’s rejection.

“Why did you and Yen want to make me jealous?”

“Because I was sick and tired of seeing you two pining for each other and both being too cowardly to do anything about it,” Yennefer’s voice interrupted their little conversation. Jaskier and Geralt both looked up and saw Yennefer and Ciri standing at the door, wearing the same unimpressed expressions on their faces.

“Yen, stay out of this,” Geralt growled under his breath, but the sorceress merely smiled patronisingly at the witcher.

“Oh Geralt, I am in way too deep at this point. Either you two admit that you have feelings for each other, or I swear to the gods I will not be held responsible for my actions.”

Jaskier gulped audibly at Yennefer’s words, and as soon as Geralt felt his anxiety he pulled the bard closer to him. Geralt positioned himself before Jaskier so he was shielding the bard from Yennefer’s attacks. Yennefer and Ciri cast each other knowing looks at the witcher’s actions.

“I believe my work here is done. Geralt, don’t mess this up.”

With these final words Yennefer and Ciri disappeared leaving Geralt and Jaskier alone. The witcher kept his back turned to the bard, almost as if unwilling to face him now that his dirty little secret was out. Jaskier, on the other hand, could not have felt happier if he tried. Yennefer had been right. Geralt liked him back and that was why he had reacted the way he had upon seeing Lambert and Jaskier together.

“Oh Geralt…,” Jaskier whispered, running his hands along the broad shoulders and down the thick arms, pulling a shudder from the witcher, “and here I was worried that you would reject me.”

Geralt finally turned around at those words and hesitantly placed his hands on Jaskier’s hips, his eyes scanning Jaskier’s face nervously. Without any words being spoken, the witcher leaned closer and placed the softest kiss on the bard’s lips.

That was all the reassurance Jaskier needed as he returned the kiss. Safe to say they would not be leaving Geralt’s room any time soon.

#geralt x jaskier #geralt z rivii #geralt of rivia #jaskier #jaskier x geralt #julian alfred pankratz #the witcher #geraskier

[wirrrp]

Vision datacrunching 1

So, I'm working on how much of the slurry default should be biased towards having vision problems.  The relevant gene is 2 letters long, and is any combination of the following: {XxAaFfNn}.  X for normal, A for astigmatism, F for farsighted, N for nearsighted.

According to google, about 75% of adult humans use some kind of vision correction.  I'm going to guess it's slightly less common in trolls, due to what I will broadly refer to as selection pressure, so I'll aim for 40%.  I made 10,000 sets of peepers, and narrowed it down to look only at this gene, and here's what my first try produced.

First, the very clearcut cases.  3930 or 39% had the XX gene, meaning perfect vision with no defects.  Next, there were 119 NN, 2 Nn, 127 AA, and 51 FF -- or around 30% having a strong and definitive type of vision impairment.  Now, I either need to find ways to interpret the remaining data in the way I want, or I need to change what data gets produced.

There were only 2 cases that contained a capital X and a capital vision-impairment, so I'll ignore those for now.  The next biggest category is capital X followed by a different lowercase letter (Xa, Xf, Xn) -- there are 4864 of these, or 49%.  Next, a lowercase letter followed by capital X -- there are only 589 of those, or 6%.  Next, the mixed group -- with two vision impairment genes, where at leastone is lowercase.  There's only 313 / 3% of those.

If X+lowercase produces perfect or near-perfect vision, that gives us 88% of the population having perfect vision.  If we go lowercase+X doing that, we'll have 45% perfect vision.  I want to keep the mixed cases as examples of bad eyesight, so I'm going to take that first option, and tweak the incidence of lowercase first letters up a bit. I'm also going to scatter lowercase X around, and see if that helps.  Ready for second test.  

As long as I'm here, I'll also check out how the mutant eye placement is going.

Looks like there's 54 or 5% of the group that have one or more spare eyes during grubhood, that they grow out of with their first pupation.  Mostly on the back, a few on the front or tail, one on the head.  I think around 50 of them will pass the cut, which seems fair for Alternia.

Of those with permanent extra eyes, I see 33 with one or more stray eyes on the face, three with specifically a forehead eye, and 8 with eyes on the back of the head.  Those will probably make it just fine, as long as they can find partners during the season -- and as long as their hair doesn't bother their eyes too much.  There's another 14 with stray eyes along their back or spine, which is more inconvenient, less immediately obvious, and potentially more useful. Being able to see behind you has advantages, and at least some of them will be able to find shirts that accentuate the eye in a good way.  On a similar note, there's 4 with eyes on the chest / front of torso, which is less useful and slightly more offputting I think.  Still, only a little awkward.

Slightly more awkward are the ones that have eyes on hands or other extremities.  There's 4 "extremity" trolls, which could have them on tails or wings if they have any, or possibly on hands or feet.  There's three with eyes on the back of the hands, which is probably passable and fine.  

..but... now we're getting to the less viable zone.  There's one with an eye on the palms, who will probably have a hard time holding weapons or other tools firmly.  There's one with eyes on their fingertips, who will have a hard time using their hands for much of anything -- I think that one Could make it on some Beforuses, but definitely not Alternia.  There's another four who have eyes at the tips of their grublegs, which will go away after first pupation -- if they make it that long.  There's also six individuals that will have a malformation or loss of their primary two eyes during a pupation, so they'll have to deal with blindness either as a wriggler or an adult.

So... for stray eyes like this, out of a random sample of 10,000 trolls, we have 65 passable extra-eye mutations (0.65%), and 12 (0.12%) who will have significant problems.  That seems pretty good.  I'll compare which mutations came up how often in the next batch, as well.

Raw data below. ----------------------------------------------------- {XX:3930}

{XF:2}

{Xa:1904} {Xf:399} {Xn:2561}

{aX:223} {fX:163} {nX:203}

{an:113} {fa:1} {fn:79} {na:1} {Nf:3} {Af:3} {Fa:60} {Na:53}

{NN:119} {Nn:2} {AA:127} {FF:51} ----------------------------------------------------- {one stray on the back of the grub form}x40 {one stray on the face}x30 {one stray on the back of the body}x8 {one stray on the back of the head}x7 {one stray on the front of the grub form}x4 {one stray on the grubleg tips}x4 {one stray on the spine}x4 {one stray on the tail-grub form}x4 {one stray on the extremity}x3 {several strays on the face}x3 {several strays on the forehead}x2 {one stray on the back of the hands}x2 {one stray on the chest/ribcage}x2 {one stray on the front of the body}x2 {one stray on the fingertips} {one stray on the forehead} {one stray on the head in grub form} {one stray on the palms} {one stray on the torso/back} {several strays on the back of the hands} {several strays on the back of the head} {several strays on the extremities} {several strays on the front of the body} {several strays on the front of the grub form} {several strays on the torso/back} {"--which will be lost after first pupation"}x6 -----------------------------------------------------

#my projects #my programming

[mhdiaries]

Wave 2 Spectra Vondergeist Diary

The 18th of September

I finally get my own column in the school paper. I already have THE blog that’s on every gossip ghouls must read list but anybody can get a blog these days. Being in print gives me instant credibility however, not that I didn’t have it before... so obvious. Anyway the column is an anonymous advice/MH insider feature called Oh My Oracle. Why anonymous? Well if I used my real name I would never get anything done in class because monster would constantly be asking my advice and if I’m pursuing a bigger story I might need some monster to cover the column and I wouldn’t want my name associated with any bad advice that might be given in my absence. My suggestion box is already full of questions from monsters who need a little help negotiating teen monster life. It’s also overrun with spam. Apparently some monster thought it would be funny to sign me up for information on time share crypts and no I do not want to vacation in a “lovely little mausoleum overlooking the Great Dismal Swamp” DELETE! My first real question was this one:

Dear OMO

I’ve been seeing this really cute troll for a while now but he only wants to hang out under his bridge. How can I convince him that there are other places we could go that would be just as much fun? 

Signed,

A Ghoulfriend Gruff

Dear Ghoulfriend Gruff

I’m glad to know that he’s cute cause you’re going to be spending a lot of time underneath that bridge. It’s like my grandmother used to say, “Don’t date trolls.” Hope this helps.

All the best,

OMO

The 26th of September

Sometimes I think the only creature in the world who really understands me at all is Rhuen. She’s so clever at finding the secret places that other monsters don’t notice or have forgotten; especially at Monster High. She can be a bit mischievous at times and doesn’t always come when I call, but I absolutely reject the notion that every trail of chaos leads to Rhuen.

The 7th of October

I was just floating along today minding my own business, like I normally do, when I happened to see Deuce and Lady Twangs-a-lot... I mean Operetta... furtively slip into the empty band room. As a reporter I was intrigued, as a student I need to get to class that happened to be on the other side of band room and as a ghost, a door is not required to enter a room. As I passed through the wall into the room I heard sir hiss reading love poetry. The part I happened to hear sounded sincere... sincerely terrible. Not wanting to be late I didn’t stay for the whole conversation, just long enough to realize I had the scoop of the year! DEUCE DUMPS CLEO FOR OPERETTA!!! Naturally I went straight to Cleo to get her take on the story since that’s what a responsible reporter should do in situation of this gravity. I asked her if she felt such a betrayal was a long time in coming after what she had done to Clawd and if she would be willing to sit down and give me an exclusive interview regarding the situation. I had trouble understanding her response since she reverted to Ancient Egyptian, which I am a bit shaky in, but I think I caught the word “kiss” followed by “cobra”, “adder”, or some other type of poisonous snake, followed by what might have been “depart” “hammer”, and or “sand”. I was immediately persecuted for my investigation efforts and was set upon by that ruffian Clawd. I don’t know what his problem was since it’s obvious he and Cleo are getting back together. Fortunately, the whole school rallied to my side and our Headmistress called into question the leadership skills of our “BMOC”.

I am going to address this incident in tomorrow’s column.

The 8th of October

Oh My Oracle!

News item!

The big bad wolf was out huffing and puffing yesterday. What prompted this full moon freak out? It would be improper to speculate but could it be possible that ll that tall, dark and intermittently furry is still smarting over being dumped by his little wrapped riding hood? It’s a known fact he’s been chasing his tail for some time over that mark on his alpha status. Maybe. He. Just. Snapped. Monster High may never know but “you know who” will, as always, keep digging for the story even if it’s supposed to be dead and buried. 

The 12th of October

Our esteemed Headmistress wants every student to write an essay on their monster heritage... right. She obviously doesn’t want to know the real stories behind the students at Monster High or she would have just asked me since I have the real scoop on all of them. I offered to compile all my notes for publishing but she told me that each monster should have a chance to tell their own story. Whatever. I’ve already read through most of the essays that have been turned in - they were on her desk in plain sight so it was obvious, to me at least, that she had left them there for me to find. They run the gamut from boring to deadly boring. I suppose that I shall have to do mine now or it’s unlikely that any monster will want to read what is sure to be a wretchedly long haunt down monster memory lane. I come from royalty of course, my father was next in line for the throne of a large and powerful kingdom but my jealous uncle plotted against him and we had to go into exile. Sadly my father and mother were forced to take jobs far below their station in life to support us. It’s all quite tragic of course and I’m still debating if I should add in the part about my long lost love who still haunts our ancestral castle awaiting my return; or my family’s daring escape across enemy territory in the dead of night during the storm of the century. 

The 20th of October

I never understood why so many monsters held Ghoulia in such high esteem I mean she’s a zombie for groaning out loud. Hello? Can you say lowest rung on the monster ladder? What is it about her? Does she have some kind of special power? Has she cast some spell over everyone? I needed to know. So today I followed her because as an investigative journalist it’s part of my job to find the real truth. You’d think it would be easy seeing as how she’s so slow but several times she managed to give me the slip. Other than studying and hanging out with Cleo and the Fear Squad posers I couldn’t find anything remotely remarkable about her. I thought about just giving up until she wandered down a back passage in the library to a room that I thought only I knew about. It’s where they keep the really old reference books and stuff. I was sure she was just hiding out so she could read that stupid Dead Fast comic book she’s always carrying around but she wasn’t. She was looking through old newspapers. I don’t know how she knew I was there since I was hiding in the shadows but she pulled out the chair next to her, looked straight at me and patted the seat for me to sit down. I was so startled that I just floated over and sat down. The headline of the paper in front of her read “The Real Vondergeists” It was my family’s story... I had forgotten... Oh my soul. I must have broken down because the next thing I knew Ghoulia was patting me on the back and I was soaking on her shoulder with ectoplasmic tears. I couldn’t stop for a while and when I did Ghoulia just looked me in they eye and said in zombie, “Your secret is safe with me.” I guess now I understand.

#monster high #monster high diary #spectra vondergeist #wave 2