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sparky-is-spiders · 8 months

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Hi! I’m here suffering from lack of good Archivist!Sasha content as well 😭 On that note, do you have any fic on that topic you would recommend? Or just good Sasha fics in general, (or Jonsasha, if that’s your cup of tea)? Thank you in advance 😊

Tragically, I think there is a general dearth of good Archivist!Sasha content (and just about none of it Jonsasha content, as far as I can tell (and not only is Jonsasha my cup of tea, but the ONLY thing standing between it and the #1 OTP spot (currently occupied by JE) is the fact that the Jonsasha that I desperately crave exists in my brain and nowhere else)). Admittedly, I haven't looked very far into her tag yet (I should rectify that at some point tbh) but I've dug around the Jonsasha tag when I first got into it, and I know at least one fic where Sasha drifts towards Beholding through an interest in office gossip.

In terms of Jonsasha Ao3 has:

This very good Sasha lives fic where Jon shows up to Georgie's with an unconscious Sasha and everyone involved is very confused.

These two fics are cute also. The former is by @/suttttton and is them getting together, the latter is established Jonsasha from @/dickwheelie.

Eyevatar Sasha might actually be thinner on the ground (outside of fix-its where she solves everything and her canon reckless curiosity is completely ignored). Ao3 has:

This fic, which is Jongerry with outsider PoV Sasha. Just barely has the implication that she might be shifting towards the Eye (via prying into the lives of her coworkers) but gets a mention through sheer force of Excellent Sasha Characterization. I read this and I feel like I'm reading a fic from a Sasha Understander.

There's also this fic, which looks very promising but which I haven't actually gotten the chance to read yet, so I can't speak to its quality.

Unfortunately I've only gotten into Sasha fairly recently (especially as compared to Jon, who my brain latched onto in a deathgrip from the start), so I haven't gone through her tag yet. A scroll through the Archivist!Sasha or Beholding Avatar!Sasha tags pulls up a lot of fix-it and J//mart, which isn't really what I'm looking for from the concept. I'm sure there's more out there, and if/when I find them I'll come back to this ask probably, but I lucked into Reverse Nighthawks (I was on a Jongerry kick).

But god every day I wish that I could write romance and/or longfic, because about a year ago I read a Jonmichael fic that, when discussing alternate universes (where Jon ended the world) it's revealed that he once did an apocalypse out of love for his Archivist, Sasha James. And it was one (1) single line, but it struck me so hard because god. A perfect concept I think. The potential dynamics of Archivist!Sasha/Assistant!Jon are enthralling to me. Jon destroying the world (or helping her destroy the world? Cute date night I think: bringing about armageddon with your eldritch monster partner) for Sasha... anyway mostly I mentioned that one because My God if I have to live with that tantalizing AU rotating in the background of my mind 24/7 so do the rest of you.

#also I'm very sorry how much this was About Jon #I really /do/ love sasha it's just that jon lives in my brain literally all the time #I am incapable of making a single solitary tma post that is not like 50% about him #not a Single One #every character and relationship and dynamic must somehow include jon to interest me. I struggle to care about jon-less anythings #it's a Problem #anyway I really really love sasha and want to write her one day but I need to finish my JE stuff first #the thing is the sasha in my brain is in zero other places #I extrapolated some stuff from canon to create a Blorbo but I don't think many other people interpret her the same way #I have some sasha and jonsasha stuff lying around somewhere but the gist is that I think sasha should become a morally questionable eyevata #who feeds the eye by invading people's privacy ''accidentally.'' based on her actions in the s1 finale she's probably a good person usually #but is reckless when protecting those she cares about and ESPECIALLY when curious and I want her to be a lil freaky with it #too tired to string my sasha thoughts together properly but they're mostly about how she should have a fun corruption arc #I want her to end the world in s3. I want her to have extremely difficult and complicated feelings about leaving the institute. about being #an eyevatar also. I think she didn't get enough screentime to say a lot for certain but she has enough interesting and complex things in he #brain that she could offer an interesting perspective if she survived or was the archivist. I also think she and martin should've switched #places. sorry martinlikers but she had more stuff going for her and also her perspective would be unique and interesting instead of yet #another 'the Eye is Bad.' that's actually the jonsasha thing I like the most. reading her statement and there's so many parallels between #her and jon. I think they'd compliment each other in a way literally no other jonship could manage #anyway sorting tags #jonsasha #asks #thank you for the ask btw!! I am. VERY. passionate about this subject. sasha has so much potential and stuff going for her but I get so #bitter because nobody is willing to engage with the stuff I find most interesting about her. probably another reason it took me as long as #it did to get Attached to her. I spent too much time with fanon sasha who's had the potential and complexity and points of interest #stripped away so that she can fix the world for jm to get together which is so much more boring than whatever the hell was wrong with her #(affectionate) (I like my characters a lil weird and fucked up. a lot weird and fucked up even)#ok veryvery tired need to stop rambling and think about sasha some more.#oh wait one more thought actually she's autistic and trans (projecting but also. like. tell me i'm wrong) thank you and goodnight

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aidaronan · 1 year

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The years go by. The retail jobs that Steve thinks are temporary keep piling up, but he has no idea what else to do with his life so he just keeps on keeping on.

Until a large tree falls on the lawn of the little house he managed to buy and he gets the quote on removal and the number literally hurts his soul.

He buys a small chainsaw instead. Over the course of a few weeks, he gets most of the branches cut up. He collects some large rocks from down by the quarry and digs out a fire pit in his backyard. On his days off, his friends come over and they sit out back and have a few beers. The pile of wood dwindles. The giant trunk is another story though. His chainsaw isn't big enough for it. Burning it would take forever, and Steve's terrified he'd disappoint Smoky the Bear. He's at a loss.

Until he sees another giant trunk in someone's yard carved into a bear.

He knows what to do then. Not a bear, but something else. Through trial and error, the trunk becomes the rough shape of a woman, the remnants of the branches like a crown on her head. It's not as amazing as the bear he saw, but it's his. He finds he loves the smell of sawdust and the feeling of creating something.

Just like that, Steve realizes what he wants to do. It takes several months and a lot of yard sales, but he scrounges up the tools he needs to start woodworking. He learns to measure twice and cut once. He makes tables and chairs and carves them with art and designs that get better and better the more he learns. Shockingly, people actually buy his pieces.

Even more shocking comes the realization that he's making enough money to do it full time. He puts in his two weeks notice at Melvald's and hands in his assistant manager badge.

He's not sure he's happy, but he is content. It feels good to work hard and actually have things to show for it. It also feels good to work muscles he hasn't used since high school. He carries on for a few years like that, creating and learning and creating some more. Then Eddie Munson blows back into town. Invited back so Hawkins can have their most famous alumnus sing the national anthem at homecoming. Steve's honestly surprised he shows at all. "Can't believe you didn't tell them kiss your hairy ass," Steve says. Because of course Eddie ends up around his fire pit, sipping on Steve's cheap beer like he doesn't have three Grammy awards on his mantel. The years fall away with each drink, reminding Steve of just how much it had hurt when Eddie left. He'd wanted Eddie so bad back then, more than he'd ever wanted anyone. He can feel the echoes of that deep ache across time.

"Pfft. Don't you know all famous people wax our asses now? All the rage in LA." Eddie cuts a look at him and smirks when Steve rolls his eyes, grateful for the lighthearted moment to snap him out of his maudlin nostalgia. "Really though I thought about it, but then I thought it would be way funnier to donate a metric fuckton of money to Hawkins High with the stipulation that it go to the theater and band programs. Kind of bummed they couldn't honor my other request though."

"Which was?"

"My old Hellfire throne. I miss her, but apparently she's not around anymore. Something about water damage."

"Oh yeah. Water main busted a few years back and flooded the theater. I remember that." "Yeah. Had to settle for the promise they'd make a game lounge and stock it with all the supplies a budding young nerd needs."

"That's really nice, Eds."

Eddie shrugs. "I've been known to be nice on occasion. You'll come to homecoming, right? Moral support?"

Steve hasn't been to homecoming in years because he sees the other people who stayed in town all the time, and he has no interest in seeing the people who didn't. He can only answer the same questions so many times. Oh, I'm doing woodwork now. Yep, I still live right here. Nope, still not married, no kids.

He goes though, and he answers the uncomfortable questions. Because Eddie asked him to. Because no matter how long it's been, Steve can't deny that some part of him still...

He says goodbye after, and Eddie leaves again, and Steve tries not to think about that too much in the following days.

He's halfway into the project before he realizes what he's building. He'd seen Eddie's throne quite a few times back when. What he doesn't have memories of, he makes up. He adds his own touches too, making it a throne fit for a rock star, a nerd, a friend.

He carves ornate patterns, he creates scenes of dragons being beaten back by a man with a guitar, crowds of people that could be knights or concertgoers.

It's his favorite piece he's ever done, and his hands are shaking when he dials Eddie's number. He gets an answering machine and stumbles through a message.

"I made you something. I guess it's kind of silly, but it's here in Hawkins if you want it. Or I'm sure you can afford the shipping if you don't want to come. Just, I made you a chair. It's more of a... Well, you'll see. Unless you don't want to... It's Steve by the way." He hangs up before he can embarrass himself even more.

Eddie doesn't call him back. One day passes and then another. Steve tries not to let it get to him. He works on orders and new projects. He enjoys his little backyard oasis. He rents a few movies and thinks they're okay.

He's debarking some wood in his driveway when the rental car pulls up, Eddie stepping out in ripped jeans and an old Metallica tee. "Hi again, Stevie."

"Oh." Steve clears his throat. "The thing's in the garage. I'll..."

Eddie doesn't say anything for a long time, circling the throne, running his tattooed fingers over each little detail.

"You made this whole thing?"

"I did."

"For me?" Eddie looks at him then, one hand still touching the wood like he doesn't want to let go. Even under the harsh lights of the garage, his eyes are such a warm shade of brown that Steve forgets to breathe.

He nods. "For you."

"Why?"

There are a hundred answers Steve could give, but he spent so long not knowing who he was or who he wanted to be. Too long. "Because you'll always be the one that got away. Because some part of me will always want to make you smile no matter how long it's been."

Eddie falls into the throne like he just got the wind knocked out of him.

"You don't have to respond to that," Steve says. "You can just say thank you and take the chair."

"I can." Eddie blows out a breath. "But that would be incredibly stupid considering half my early ballads are about you."

"What?" Unfair. Steve doesn't have a chair to fall into.

"Oh sure, I changed the hes to shes for a while there because..." Eddie waves his hand. "But they're about you, Steve. God, I should've asked you out. I just thought..."

Hearing those words is a lot like seeing that carved bear all over again, something clicking into place that wasn't quite right before.

"Go out with me now then," Steve says. "Or stay in. I've got a frozen lasagna and I rented Contact."

"Steve Harrington? Asking Eddie 'the Freak' Munson on a date? Did hell freeze over?"

"Pfft." Steve takes a step closer toward what he wants most. "Hell froze over in 1986, Eddie. You were there."

Five months and a lot of long distance phone bills later, Steve opens Harrington Woodworking in Los Angeles. That same day, Eddie takes photos for Rolling Stone posing in an ornate throne in his living room. He tells the reporter exactly who made it and what he means. At concerts, he starts singing those ballads the way he always wanted to. More often than not, Steve stands in the wings singing along.

#steddie #fanfic #mine #woodworker steve #rock star eddie #i meant for this to be a drabble but 😂

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needle-noggins · 11 months

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(CW for SA, suicidal ideation) Here we go. My favorite and simultaneously least favorite panel of Vash and Knives.

I've seen a few interpretations of this scene and before we dive into the one that really struck me, let's start with the more... chill one. We're finally introduced to the third gun of Trigun, Vash's angel arm. And the way we're introduced to it involves Knives forcing him to pull the trigger. Of course, since no one knows anything about Knives, the people of Noman's Land blame Vash for Fifth Moon, and Vash likewise blames himself (this is kinda a spoiler but if you've been paying attention, it's just par for the course). However, he's not the one who pulled the trigger, Knives is. It brings up an interesting moral question of blame - do we blame the gun (and Vash, who is being used/objectified as a weapon here), or the person who wanted it to happen? Guns don't kill people, genocidal twins do!

Now for the awful interpretation, the one that makes me cry and wish Vash was real so I could hug him and pay for his therapy. And really highlights how awful Knives is and how far he'd go for his brother in his own, fucked-up way. I touched on this in a previous post about Legato and the Murder Cafe, and the whole time I was thinking about Fifth Moon but didn't want to say anything for the sake of spoilers.

So. Pay attention to the way Vash and Knives are standing. Knives, when he first grabbed Vash's head, was standing in front of him. He moves behind him to better control him and yeah, he's still controlling him via hand on head, and now he's got his other hand gripping Vash's chest, where feathers/wings are manifesting. Knives is assaulting him. If you wanna get crazy with it and say that the angel arm is kinda phallic, you could say... yeah. This is rape. I heard that specific interpretation once and while I accepted it I also don't know if that would be generally accepted or if I'd be called out for it, so I'm trying to tread lightly here.

It also doesn't escape me that of course the angel arm has feminine features like the plants - the plants that, again, humans are exploiting for their ability to create. There's a lot of feminist commentary to be made here but many people have said it better than me. Specifically I'm thinking of this one post I saw about gender fuckery and Tristamp Vash. Anyway.

Also, the atomic bomb/black hole/sun/whatever that is in the middle... It's just so powerful. It's terrifying. The eldritch body horror here is a punch to the gut. What the fuck, Trigun? I thought this was a funky space western!!!

Oh, and here's more commentary on the following few panels:

Vashussy shot, Knives is still right behind him. Yeah, I wasn't kidding about how bad this pose is for them. Knives, you sick fuck.

Vash shoots himself in the leg (a key difference from '98 trigun, lol), because of course he does, but it doesn't free him from the arm.

The arm's getting darker/the light inside is getting lighter! Stampede did an awesome job with their interpretation of the angel arm and I don't think I would have understood it without that. Also, on my first read I didn't notice that Vash is literally levitating, which is cool, but also terrifying because ?? he's not in control of that either??

Finally. A super painful, minimalist, double-page spread. Nightow loves 'em. Vash thinks he's dying (maybe?) and he wishes he had never existed. It's not suicidal ideation per se, but he wishes he didn't exist at all because he's already caused enough suffering. This is a low for him, because he believes so strongly in the concept of the Blank Ticket. (Come on, soupy brain bitch boy, get it together!) He's a monster, it's just how he was born, and he's not in control. Very specifically too, he says "we", and then changes it to "I"... he doesn't blame Knives at all, and that's very him. I want to shake him! Stop playing the martyr, Vash!

#trimax #trigunbookclub #cw assault #cw sa #ive never tagged content warnings before please help if i didnt do it well enough #cw sui ideation #vash the stampede #millions knives #also if you say ONE WORD about plancest i will kill you with my mind because you have sorely misunderstood the point here #posting this makes me so nervous ngl #dont hate me

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headspace-hotel · 2 years

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i'm too...skeptical of a person to vibe with much of the "witchcraft" adjacent spirituality that's popular nowadays

However, one of the most difficult things to understand about The Past is that for many of your ancestors, the distinction between "spiritual" and "mundane" phenomena did not exist.

and this does create problems for the idea that "science is for one set of questions, religion is for another" or at least the idea that "witchcraft" is a religion (exclusively). In The Past, philosophers speculated about the universe from the point of view that there were spiritual realities and that they weren't distinct from material realities. Before the modern idea of gravity, there was the idea that the four classical elements each had a particular nature, with earth being the heaviest and fire being the lightest. This also corresponded to a moral reality about the elements—the lighter elements were more "pure." (This is why in Dante's Inferno at the center of the Earth is Satan himself.) These people weren't assigning morals to substances in the way we now think of it. Their spiritual and moral realities were just "real" in the same way as the physical world.

People asked "From what we know of God, what can we hypothesize about the existence of extraterrestrial planets and beings, and what they are like?" And it's interesting to note that the belief in God didn't obstruct them from asking these questions; instead, it allowed them to ask these questions at a time when they didn't have naturalistic observations to go on.

But I'm getting off track—modern science is derived from things like alchemy and philosophy, and we are a bit biased here because we tend to see Aristotle and the like as precursors to "science," whereas when indigenous people maintain and pass down a collective body of naturalistic observations about their world, that's seen as some kind of cutesy pagan thing. Which is just racism.

In reality, ancient astronomers were also priests, medicine was practiced by shamans. They were people with knowledge that the average person did not possess. If there's a generic word for this type of person, it's "wise woman" or "wise man": the "three wise men" that are said to have visited Jesus were astronomers. The figures we see as "spiritual" often dealt primarily, and sometimes almost exclusively, with physical, natural phenomena. When they did deal with spiritual phenomena, it was for a lot of the same reasons that we do.

(Arguably, we have a worse understanding of some things, because we see everything in the physical world, including our own bodies, as unaffected by the meaning we assign them.)

What this means is that "witchcraft" can and should be to some extent "mundane" and evidence-based. But in my mind, "witchcraft" means possessing some kind of knowledge that is hands-on, practical, and not easily obtainable just by reading books or wikipedia, tempered by wisdom as a guide for when and how to apply it. It's also a social role; it suggests your knowledge makes you important to your community.

...

So I think an auto mechanic is technically some kind of witch.

#random #witchcraft #history #history of science

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ascendedastarionapologist · 2 months

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The Rite of Profane Ascention and Projected Shame: A Meta Analysis of Authorial Intent and Bias in Interpretation

If you are an Astarion enjoyer you are probably familiar with the following sentiments:

The crew member we can attribute this reading to would be Baudelair Welch, and they are not Astarion's main writer, rather the Senior Narrative Designer for Baldur's Gate 3. Astarion's creator and lead writer was Stephen Rooney, Rooney does attribute great assistance from Welch, however.

Welch was not initially part of the team, only being hired after the release of Early Access. As Welch as recounted the story, they saw Astarion during EA, wanting to become a part of the BG3 writing staff to enforce a particular narrative. The one that we are familiar with.

To better understand Welch's perspective on the concept of "Objectifying Fictional Characters" we must take a look at the indie game they developed during their time at Larian.

Don't Wake Me Up is a text based adventure game that puts you in the shoes of a game developer who is making a vampire dating sim. The twist being that the vampire character you created resents you for having romantic feelings for it.

While discussing the fact they wouldn't be adding "Good Endings" to their game, Welch describes their experience of having romantic feelings for fictional characters, often over real life people. A trend that, to their apparent frustraition, continued into their adulthood. I get this sense of shame, this desire to experience a more normative relationship with romantic feelings.

In a way, I feel kind of bad for Welch. I am a selfshipper, I think fictosexuality and genuine romantic interest towards fictional characters is morally neutral. However, my sympathy stops when Welch uses this to guilt their readers into feeling a certain way over narratives they don't have total authority over. Only very recently have people started to be cool about selfshipping, and phrases like "parasocial sexualization of fictional characters" does nothing to aliviate that stigma.

Hearing how the other staff talk about the endings, they do not share Welch's perspective more focused on player choice and the evolution of Astarion's Character through the player's eyes rather than a meta commentary on the relationship between player and character. As a roleplaying game, this is very much purposeful. Larian gives you the tools to tell the story you desire. To quote Neil Newbon,

"You might find him scary, and you should [...] but other people might really like that ending [...] going, actually I always saw Astarion going that route."

This a lot of meta context. Context that is not as blatant within the text as many who ascribe to this interpretation would want you to believe.

As a roleplaying game, BG3 gives you the option to depict your player character in a multitude of ways.

Is your player character a reluctant accomplace, determined to stay by Ascended Astarion's side no matter the cost? The game gives you that ability.

Do you see your character as an unwitting victim, a damsel to Ascended Astarion, a prisoner in a gilded cage? The game rewards this perspective in kind, the "freedom" lines coming to mind.

Or, perhaps your player character is mutually obsessed, a willing and enthusiastic participant in Ascended Astarion's villainous shenanagins. The game has options and responses that reflect this role as well. He is giddy, and gushes over how much fun you two will have if you lean into it.

A companion to this post, the poll I made measuring people's ending preference and weather not they were spoiled, is loosely tied to this. My methodology was, admitedly, a bit off. I neglected to add a neutral option, and of course my sample size is limited.

However, my theory was that among people that preferred keeping Astarion as a Spawn over Ascending him were exposed to spoilers, and my follow up question was meant to measure weather or not Welch's commentary had an effect on that.

Taking a look at the poll, the overall preference is for the Spawn ending, however, amongst Spawn enjoyers, they were often spoiled for his ending. I didn't get much feedback though, so weather or not this perception of Ascention had an effect on their choice remains conjecture.

What is interesting, however, is that through the polling process, (and the poll is still in progress at the time of posting this, so keep that in mind), the spilt between the other options were relatively even.

Make of that what you will.

Looking at all of this together, and from my perspective, I cannot see ascention as the "bad ending" , sense much of the argument for that perspective uses Welch's words as if they were gospel. To me, a bad ending is zombie astarion, or blowing up Gale in act 2, or letting Lae'zel perish at the Creché. I will however call it the EVIL ending. Ascended Astarion IS a villain, but I think the distinction between "bad" and "evil" is an important one to make. I cant see it the way Welch does, because I simply have an idiological opposition to their veiwpoint, a sentiment I feel is shared by many AA enjoyers.

I want to end this by stating very directly: this is not an attack on Welch as a person, rather a cirtique of of the bias inherent to the way they write and interpret fiction. A bias, I feel, people should be aware of.

#astarion ancunin #ascended astarion #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 #my posts

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fatuismooches · 9 months

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natalis numerus ???

synopsis: Year after year, your birthday comes around without fail. Dottore celebrates with you, as best as a man like him can anyway. (His clones too, of course.)

includes: dottore w/ gn! reader

notes: This is really just a pure fluff fic. Both Reader and Dottore are unhinged as usual. Dottore also creates headphones for you. There is a lot of kissing at the end. Thank you to 🎐 anon for inspiring some of the ideas in this fic <3.

It was your birthday today.

To be more exact, it was your- actually, your exact age would give anyone a start since your youthful appearance was a stark contrast, so it was best to keep it a secret.

After living for hundreds of years, one would probably get tired of celebrating birthdays. You could understand this sentiment of course. Sometimes, at the end of it all, when your special day was coming to a close, you wondered if the next birthday would be any different. If perhaps your life and health would be any different. If you’d be able to run around and spend your birthday a bit differently. You never asked for anything for your birthday (besides kisses from Dottore) but inside, your only wish was to be cured of illness.

Though you preferred to focus on the happy aspect of your birthday. Hell, not many could claim to live as long as you had, much less had as many sweet birthdays as you had. You were pampered to the best possible extent that a group of insane madmen could achieve, meaning you never failed to receive a ‘Happy birthday, [Name]’ from every single clone that resided in Dottore’s lab. You were presented with your favorite foods throughout the day that you’d been longing to try, to which the clones were eager to hear your feedback (your answer decides whether the current cook keeps their life or not.) Not to mention there was usually no screaming throughout the lab on this particular day. How thoughtful of them!

You even had the pleasure of receiving a present from your dear husband. Though gift-giving was far from Dottore’s expertise, he always seemed to come up with something. Knick-knacks, trinkets, novelties, rarities, curios… sometimes they were brought, but many times they were handmade by the Harbinger himself. A multicolored, six-sided cube. A strange rectangular device that allowed you to communicate with him from a certain distance (still in the wonky prototype stage). A workbook with a compilation of brain teasers (many morally questionable) that he created over the last year. You’re not sure if Pantalone has realized that the extra materials he brought were for you rather than his research.

Mortals may view how you spent your birthday as simple. Though you liked to keep your birthdays simple now. Simply receiving good wishes and lovestruck looks from the clones was enough for you. More importantly, spending time with your beloved Zandik always proved to be the highlight of your birthday. Not many immortals could claim to have the person who was at their side from the very beginning still with them. But you could, which made you happy.

Dottore himself had long stopped caring about the day of his own birth, he never cared about it even when you two were students at the Akademiya. But it was still a special day for you, it was the day your lover came into this world. Your life would be rather drab without him. So naturally you had a tradition of (lovingly) attacking Zandik at 12 AM sharp (he was always awake anyway) and forcibly dragging him to bed, under the premise that one should not be sleep deprived on their birthday. You made sure to serve him his favorite food, gift him anything he seemed interested in (you learned how to buy illegal items just for him secretly), and be at his beck and call. He never cared about his birthdays, but you liked to think you made them slightly more valuable for him. Naturally, he never cared about the birthdays of other people either. That was until you forced yourself into his life, and he supposed one as useful as yourself was worthy of slight appreciation.

But that was when you two were at the Akademiya. It was different now. Very different. You could no longer do the things you were able to. Your illness had… actually, today should be a happy day. You shouldn’t dwell on sad things. Hopefully, your aches and pains would leave you if only for a mere twenty-four hours.

As you stared at the ceiling, slowly shaking off the sleepy daze you were in, you wondered which clone would be the first to wish you. It had become somewhat of a tradition for the clones to decide amongst themselves who had the privilege of seeing you first and uttering the two important words. It would happen every year, and once a segment won they would be removed from the process until every single segment could see you first, and then it would start all over again. It was kind of funny.

You remember the first time you found out that they actually fought over who got to assist and greet you first on your birthday. To resolve these conflicts, they would enter competitions between each other - who could dissect the most amount of bodies, or dispose of the most corpses in a timely manner… You know, usual Dottore-centric stuff. Which, you didn’t really care, but after you saw how they were quite literally working nonstop, you decided to suggest a more relaxed option - duking it out in a game of TCG instead. It proved to be useful as long as you ignore the few times Prime scolded them for getting too heated.

At the end of your reminiscence, you sat up and rubbed your eyes. As you freed yourself from the soft blankets wrapping your body and swung your legs to the edge of the bed, you tried to remember which clones were candidates for this year.

Knock-knock.

Ah, looks like he was right on time.

“[Name], are you awake?” The voice from beyond the door was higher pitched than the usual deep tone you were accustomed to. You smiled as you instantly knew who it was.

“Yes, I- oh!” You couldn’t even finish your sentence before the door slammed open and a little boy shot straight into your chest, catching you off guard. It turns out that the child segment of Dottore was the first one to greet you on your special day. His tiny hands grabbed your own and he smiled an adorable toothed smile.

“Happy birthday, [Name]!”

“Why, thank you little one! That’s very sweet of you,” You hoisted the little clone to sit in your lap and he gave you a hug, which you reciprocated and giggled at his childishness. He was such a cutie.

“So many of your birthdays have gone by! How old are you now, [Name]?” He tilted his head curiously and you laughed at his question. Indeed, so many centuries of birthdays had flown by in the blink of an eye.

“Well-” Before you could respond, another voice entered the conversation.

“It’s inappropriate to ask [Name] that, little brat,” an adult segment of Dottore now stood at the doorway, rolling his eyes at the young clone, to which the child pouted and stared daggers at the other man.

“That’s not true,” the youth in your arms clung to you more, “They enjoy it when I’m inquisitive,” the boy said, repeating your words from long ago.

“Yes, yes, that’s nice, now get off of them so they can get started with their day,” the clone replied but the child stuck out his tongue defiantly and tightened his hug.

“No, I won’t.” You could see that the noncompliant response was about to send the other segment into a fit so you quickly intervened.

“Say, why don’t you go and try to guess how old I am? If you’re right, I’ll read your favorite story to you again,” you beamed at the young boy on your lap, playfully booping his nose. Regardless of whether the kid was right or not, you were going to read him the story anyway. He was always the most attentive and engaged listener.

“Hmm…” The boy was sad to leave you, as you were the only adult he liked being around. But he understood, and the idea of you reading to him again was appealing. “Alright, I will. I promise to get it right!” With that he bounded off your lap and dashed out of the room, not before sending another dirty look at the older clone, who tried not to react, instead focusing on you.

“How do you feel today?” The segment inquired, needing to note down every possible change in your condition. He offered you his hand for support which you took, pulling you to your feet. “Any pains? Changes?”

“No, not really. In fact, I think I feel better today than usual. Or maybe I’m imagining it,” you hummed in response. Maybe it was the birthday happiness clouding your mind.

“Understood.” He recorded your statement in his head. “Happy birthday, by the way,” the segment mentioned nonchalantly. This segment was from when Dottore was horrible at expressing any positive emotions or words to you, and if he somehow managed to, it sounded very bland. But you found it hilarious, poking his cheek to which he then sent you a half-hearted glare of annoyance and flustered embarrassment.

“Thank you. I’m proud of you for getting that out of your system,” you teased, to which the clone scoffed at your antics, but couldn’t be mad at you for them.

“Whatever. Let’s get you ready,” he huffed and you happily complied.

—

As you expected, as soon as you entered the lab, practically everyone’s neck snapped to you. Numerous birthday wishes were sent your way, each with a maniacal toothy grin to go along with it. There was no way any of them could forget, especially when they were fighting over who got to do what inside of their own heads for days before your birthday. Some of the clones had the pleasure of feeding you, while another fixed your hair… one even gave you a massage. After all, the birthday person deserves to be pampered, no? And these were the same segments whose faces were terribly familiar, having been by your side for centuries for all the past birthdays. They knew what you liked, and it was awfully enjoyable.

But there was still one more person to see. The most important one. Zandik.

Normal people would probably think it was crazy for your lover to be the last one to wish you a happy birthday. But for you, you thought it was perfect. You spent some time with the clones so they wouldn’t feel left out, and then for the rest of the day, they knew to leave you in solitude with their creator. No distractions or interruptions with your Zandik. Besides, after all-

They always say to save the best for last, don’t they?

—

You didn’t even need to knock on the door to Zandik’s private lab as it was already open. He was expecting you. Zandik’s back was facing you when you walked in, but he realized your presence immediately and set the vial down to greet you.

“[Name],” the emotionless expression on his face morphed into an enlivened one, his pointy teeth flashing. “Earlier than I expected.” Strangely colored liquids and concoctions were scattered over the table. You think you interrupted him while he was making medicine, but he didn’t seem to care. His attention was now turned to the multitude of drawers where various items were stored, opening them and then shutting them, appearing to look for something.

“It is I,” you smiled back at him, “and what can I say? I just wanted to see you. Not to mention, I must say I’m curious as to what crazy invention you’ve thought up for me this year. It seems you never run out of ideas.” Zandik had always liked to present his little gift at the start. Despite how he acted as if it was no big deal and not very important, he was always intrigued to see your reaction.

Though this time you had an inkling of what it was going to be. A while ago, he had asked to borrow your beloved device for playing music using Radiant Spincrystals (which you had named “Music Thing” much to his amusement.)

There were other furnishings that could be used for playing Radiant Spincrystals, but you had no need for them. After all, Zandik’s own creations always surpassed the other ones. Unlike the one from Liyue, the one he had made for you was much more portable and light, so that even you could carry it around. There were even buttons that changed the volume of the music! So you assumed that he was going to make some more changes or adjustments to Music Thing.

“That is correct. But I believe you’ll find this year’s gift especially useful. Watch.” As you thought, he revealed your Music Thing and a sole Radiant Spincrystal. Zandik inserted a Spincrystal into the device, yet no sound emitted from it, which left you a bit confused.

“But nothing’s playing.”

“Is that so? Why don’t you listen closer?” He smirked at you and motioned you to come closer, which you did, and then realized there was now something plugged into the device. It was a wire that led to something much larger.

The large gadget was oddly shaped. The top of it was like a band that curved into two circles on both ends, which looked like it was padded with something soft. Regardless, you had never seen anything like it and you had no idea what it could be used for. You were very confused but then you realized you could hear the music from the Radiant Spincrystal playing from the apparatus.

“Huh…? I can hear the music coming from this thingy!” you exclaimed, picking up the weird item and bringing it closer to your face, examining it more. Zandik’s grin only grew larger.

“Put it on,” he encouraged, he himself excited to see the results of his multi-hour project.

“Put it on? How though?” You fumbled with the device and pushed the two circle things apart, bringing them to your ears. And then you were immediately entranced by the music coming from it. You felt Zandik adjust the instrument for the top part to rest on top of your head.

“A perfect fit, as I expected,” he hummed, taking a good look at you. Indeed, he was correct. The thing that still didn’t have a name fit snugly around your head and ears. But you were far more entranced and shocked by the loud music going straight into your eardrums. Instead of having the music play openly, it was going straight to you. And better yet, only you could hear it! You pushed the things covering your ears even closer in amazement, standing there for a good few minutes simply enjoying this delight.

Until it abruptly stopped.

You looked down and realized that the wire that connected this thing to your Music Thing device was unplugged. By Zandik.

“Hey! It was just getting to the good part!” You pouted.

“I’m sure it was my dear, but you don’t want to hurt your ears by putting it too close or too loud,” he chided. For such a deranged man he was always taking precautions when it came to you because of your health.

“Alright fine… but you have to tell me what it is? How does it even work!” Something better than listening to music was listening to your husband go on about his experiments and inventions and thought processes.

Zandik then picked you up with ease making you squeal with surprise, walking over to his paperwork chair and then placing you on his lap. Ah, he properly didn’t want you to stand for too long. Though he wouldn’t say that. You made yourself comfortable, resting your head on his chest as he rambled on.

“I merely redirected where the sound travels…” Just as you wanted, he delved into an explanation of what he did to make the gadget, what parts he used, the few complications, the easy parts, everything. And you enjoyed it thoroughly.

“It is truly incredible,” you commented at the end, still thinking about how easily bendable and comfortable the mechanism was. “Does this one have a name?”

“I know.” You didn’t even care that he was being smug about it. You loved it. “And no, it does not.” For some reason, he always left the naming up to you. You wondered why.

“Hmm… I dub thee… Headcircles!” You decided, and Zandik raised an eyebrow at your questionable name. “You know, because it goes on your head, and the two things at your ear look like circles!” You were rather proud of your genius name.

“Another fascinating name,” he remarked to which you playfully hit his shoulder.

“Would it kill you to be nice? On my birthday at least?” You giggled, not actually meaning it. You loved him like this.

“I am unsure as to what you mean. I truly find your names… creative,” he stated with a horrible grin on his face. “It’s why I kept you as my assistant.”

You narrowed your eyes and wrapped your arms around him. “So you kept me around for my naming ability? Not for my impeccable organizational skill? Nor my expertise in deciphering your terrible handwriting and scribbles?”

“I do acknowledge that you possess many exceptional traits, but after all, how can I forget when you named the first Ruin Guard we dissected together? Spinny Thingy? How truly outstanding.” He mocked you with no remorse to which you immediately groaned at the mention of that name. You still remember that day vividly - you both had found a nonfunctional Ruin Guard in the wild which you two had fun dismantling, and Zandik had called it No. 7 in his notes. But you found that far too boring and recommended “Spinny Thingy” because you know, the thing spins! The look he gave you after that made you want to crawl into a hole though. (He didn’t take you up on your proposal.)

“Oh, shush you,” you muttered, a bit embarrassed at the memory. Zandik chuckled and wrapped an arm around you to support you, and a comfortable silence fell over the two of you as he began to sign and look over some paperwork. You could feel the rise and fall of his chest too, something that was strangely soothing. You could almost fall asleep… ah, you need to thank him first though!

“By the way, thank you for the gift, Zandik.”

“It was nothing,” he replied, waving off your gratitude. For one, it was actually no big deal to him, as little inventions like this were of practically no difficulty to him. Yet deep down, the scientist knows that the ultimate gift would be to free you of the suffering your sickness causes. Yet the mighty doctor has yet to find a solution to that. But you looked so content right now, he could put it to the side just for a little bit. Especially since you looked like you were about to beg for kisses with those eyes.

He was right.

You first started off with one simple kiss on the cheek, and then another on the other side. Yet Zandik continued to write, ignoring you on purpose to rile you up. But that was no problem. It wasn’t hard to get him to pay attention to you. Your hands slithered up to his shoulders for balance, and immediately you went to work, placing a kiss on his bare neck, and then two, and then three, your breath fanning against his skin.

Still no reaction.

Well, good thing you had an easy solution to this. On your fourth kiss, you bit down, intent on leaving a mark so-

“[Name],” a deep voice echoed close to your ear as the pen dropped to the table, and you knew you had him. Because for some reason it was okay to litter you with bites but you couldn’t do it to him. Nevertheless, you stopped and instead smiled against his neck to declare your victory which you knew he felt as he sighed. But, Zandik knew, you did deserve something today out of all days. And so you received the same treatment, attacking your neck with far more force than you did, causing you to let out a gasp. But it felt good. Zandik’s kisses always felt good, you thought as he now moved upwards.

“Happy birthday, [Name],” Zandik whispered so quietly, that you wouldn’t hear him if you weren’t so close to him, his pointy teeth grazing and nibbling on the shell of your ear.

Zandik saying those words always felt somewhat surreal. You still clearly remember the first ‘happy birthday’ you received centuries ago as a student. You thought him shoving a gift into your chest and telling you that you had the day off would be all you received. You genuinely did not think he’d verbally say that, considering he never knew how to form his words when it came to things like this, much less in a polite manner. Nonetheless, it made your heart soar.

You smiled against his neck, humming a wordless thank you, as your hand snaked up to his cheek and fingered the edge of his mask, silently asking for permission which he granted. Looking straight at him, you removed the mask and let it clatter on the ground, far too occupied with the handsome sight in front of you. His eyes were the most brightest and brilliant shade of red that you adored, coupled with jagged scars that ran across the top half of his face. So handsome. All yours.

“You always do this,” Zandik let out a resigned sigh, eyes rolling although he kept a firm grip on you on his lap. He had worn the mask for so long, that the rare times he took it off in front of you proved somewhat of a challenge at first due to your ceaseless stares of love despite the scars. Though now he had grown used to it. You merely giggled.

“Do what?” You feigned obliviousness. “I’m simply appreciating my husband’s face,” you shrugged nonchalantly, to which he kept his cool gaze on you.

“Is that all? Is there anything else you intend to do?” He questioned, already fully aware of what your answer would be.

“Why, thank you for asking. In fact, I intend to take advantage of my other birthday gift as well,” you purred, eyes raking down his face to his exposed neck shamelessly. Zandik was not wearing his usual layers of clothes, only his collared blue shirt along with the harness that wrapped around his body. It was your birthday, so surely you could get away with some things, you thought. You mischievously hooked a finger around the harness near his chest, pulled it, and watched it snap back with amusement. Zandik’s eyes bore a hole through you the whole time before he spoke.

“Such a greedy little thing you are… do you truly think it’ll be that easy?” He clicked his tongue in pretend exasperation and annoyance at your audaciousness, leaning into you as he kept contact with your eyes. His own was a mixture of insanity and madness, yet love and possessiveness swirled around as well, almost hypnotizing you. You wished you could see his eyes more. With the right touch, they could be so expressive, just for you of course.

“Well, you know I’ve never lost a fight. Remind me, who was the one dragging the unwilling test subjects to you, and protecting you from the Ruin Machines you accidentally set off back then?” You smirked and licked your lips, not intimidated by his little challenge. “Even now, I’d say I’m still quite something, no?” You always enjoyed every second of being bold to Zandik. Something about having such a deadly man bending to your wishes really did something to you.

His eyes narrowed at your confidence as an amused grin appeared on his face. “I have to say, your analysis is rather correct, as expected from you. You truly are something special, unique… although this may be the first battle you lose. I won’t let you have your way simply because it’s your birthday, love.”

“I guess I’ll just have to take my gift by force then… how rude of you,” you playfully teased, hands resting securely on his shoulders as his own began to dig into your thighs. “Usually, I’d take my time, but today I’m impatient,” you murmured, voice dropping to a low tone as you captured his lips with yours, eagerly deepening the kiss which Zandik reciprocated.

“No need to rush, [Name]. You should know that the best experiments are conducted with time and patience. I’m looking forward to seeing the results myself.”

One may say that this was quite an average birthday. It was nothing like a typical birthday. And they would be right. Yet Zandik does not treat you like how an average, normal lover would. He was eccentric, from the way he spoke to his actions to his hobbies. But you could always say this without hesitation.

Another birthday was well spent in your mad doctor’s loving arms.

Bonus:

“By the way, I left some cake for you.”

“I do not want it.”

“… Yes you do. I’ve known you for centuries, trying to hide your likes from me isn’t very effective, you know?

“Go to sleep.”

“Please, can I feed it to you this time?”

“No.”

“You know I’m going to keep asking this every year, right?”

“I’m not sleeping with you tonight.”

“Wait- come back! I’m sorry!”

The plate was empty the next day.

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin x reader #dottore x reader #il dottore x reader #dottore fluff #il dottore #genshin il dottore #fatui harbingers x reader #fatui x reader #dottore angst #zandik x reader #genshin impact dottore #genshin dottore #genshin impact zandik #genshin impact il dottore #genshin impact headcanons #genshin impact imagines #fragile reader <3

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the-last-thread-of-my-sanity · 1 month

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I’ve been thinking lately about how much the ‘curse of Ymir’ really does affect the psyche of each of the nine shifters and how it impacts the ending of the story.

Up until the end of Season 3/Chapter 87-88, the reader and the viewer have no idea that the shifters have a limited amount of time to live. They seem to possess this god-like power and they can rejuvenate and survive almost any injury. They seem unstoppable.

This is what motivates Erwin to create a plan to take one of the nine shifter powers with the serum- having another Titan in your arsenal would make a difference in winning the war.

But what the Paradisians don’t know is how holding the power of the Nine just perpetuates a cycle of violence and cruelty. It’s a curse as much as it is a power. No matter how brilliant or grand your scope is for what you can do with this near limitless power, you have to contend with the fact that you will only have thirteen years to do it.

This revelation to me is the what colors the entire last arc of the story leading into and after the time skip.

For Zeke, it amps up the level of desperation he has for accomplishing the euthanization plan- relying on Eren was still a variable that was largely unpredictable, and he trusted him more than he probably would have if he weren’t running out of time.

Going back further in the story, it retroactively explains why Ymir (of the cadet corps) would go back with Reiner and Bertholdt at all- a seemingly nonsensical choice when it seems she has something to live for in her relationship with Krista/Historia. But Ymir knows she has little time left. She has no future. So she chooses to surrender.

For Annie, it shows her desperation to get back to her father, a man who showed her very little affection, and yet if she could just make it back maybe she could live at least a year or two with him and make at least one happy memory with the man who raised her to kill.

Armin, I honestly feel the most for, because what he and everyone else thought of as his salvation, was actually just saddling him with a curse. And heaps of responsibility to try and be grateful for it. He went from a character with a singular and wholesome conviction, to someone wracked with guilt and forced to solve the world’s problems with limited time and resources.

In Reiner’s case, I actually think the fact that he knows he is going to die is the only thing actually keeping him alive in the tail end of the story. He wants so badly to face retribution for his deeds, and he can only find the strength to keep towing the line because he knows his violent demise is guaranteed.

Characters like Pieck and Bertholdt seem to accept their lot in life- but deal with this internally and develop their own sense of morals despite it- albeit in different ways and in Pieck’s case with a shade of pessimism. Falco and Marcel stand out as a characters who see the farce for what it is- but still want to subject themselves to it in order to prevent someone they love from suffering through it in their place.

Eren, though, it’s easy to see how discovering he has already lived more of his life in powerless ignorance than what he has left is what ultimately causes the collapse in his character. Combine that with the way that he sees ‘future memories’ and doesn’t see any future beyond his own, and suddenly you have a naturally impulsive and violent person living in the most fatalistic reality ever. It makes perfect sense that his fall from grace is near immediate and precipitous.

What difference does all that power make if all it means is that you become a tool for destruction with no future? That you will be forced to curse someone else so that this cruel power will continue to exist? That is the true legacy of Ymir and the Eldian Empire- you can have near limitless power, but you will never have true control over your own life.

And it makes for such interesting discussions and questions about power and mortality and agency- and all the seemingly ‘correct’ and ‘incorrect’ ways to respond to their dilemma.

Anyway, it is always ‘thinking about the moral quandary of the titan shifters’ hours around here…

#aot meta #character analysis #titan shifter #attack on titan #zeke yeager #bertholdt hoover #annie leonhart #armin arlert #ymir #pieck finger #falco grice #marcel galliard #eren yeager #reiner braun

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thevviitchinghour · 1 year

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Astrology Observations

DISCLAIMER: This is based on my own experiences and research it does not mean it's inherently true!! Pisces Placements aren't intentionally fake but switch up so quick. I have had so many pisces placement friends that r just so wishy washy. Pisces Venus depending on the person will literally choose shitty partners over even their closest friends! They just want to fit into the mold their partners create for them so bad u won't even recognize their personalities sometimes in certain relationships smfh. Taurus Placements get just as jealous as scorpio and can be JUST as bad about it. Have you ever dealt with a Taurus who felt lesser than you? just terrible. Pluto in sag is an interesting generational placement. It's cool to look at how it shows up. The way ppl are so self righteous and like to flaunt how their life philosophy is best. Going on social media spreading dogmatic beliefs and wanting to be a teacher but actually guiding people into the dark. Unrealistic morals & ideas that are half-baked and rooted in egotistical projections of what people deem correct. Even if the legitimacy is questionable at best. The way there is an excess of waste, consumerism, and lack of appreciation of it. The rise of fake spiritual influencers & conversations being hd around xenophobia, racism, religious beliefs & cultural appropriation. Pluto - Mercury people seem to be able to develop telepathy fairly easy or have a natural predisposition towards it? A lot of my friends who are clairaudient or sometimes hear other ppls thoughts have Pluto - Mercury aspects. Gemini Moons are actually very emotionally nuanced and understanding, I feel like Aquarius is the main air sign who tries to rationalize the emotions of OTHERS. I feel like Gemini moreso tries to understand every aspect of something. The emotional and logic, the dynamics of it all, the duality. Libra Moons seem to be more selfish than both Aquarius AND Gemini moons. It's not that they don't care about others, but the way they think/feel (which isn't surprising considering they're aries sister sign) is usually in relation to how people feel about THEM. What people think of them, how they are being perceived. How they can be liked more, etc. That's not to say Libras are not caring about others because they are!! I honestly like Libra Moons, I find them to be very sweet and considerate and if they really love you they are super giving and chill.

Aquarius Moons are solution oriented, they want to figure out how to solve or understand the root of an issue so it can be done and over with. This can cause them to come off as emotionless, dull, and unempathetic. I notice though that immature Aquarius moons are very selfish & think they're the only ones who suffer. I see that in immature capricorn moons as well. I believe it has to do with saturn. Libra Mercuries are so poetic imo Virgo is literally ruled by mercury, the only way you're going to find them boring is if they don't trust you enough to open up to you or converse with you. They are extremely intuitive & pick up on the patterns of others easily. More often than not it usually only takes a virgo a small period of time whether it be minutes or days to decide they actually just don't like you and don't want to engage with you. They also tend to mirror, so if you're boring maybe that's why you think they're boring.

#astro observations #astrology notes #astro community #astrology #pluto in sagittarius #libra moon #libra mercury #Taurus #Pluto - Mercury #Gemini Moon #Pisces #Pisces Venus

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nn-ee-zz · 16 days

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What are your other OC's like? I'm interested in hearing about the stories you came up with for them.

UH OH youre gonna get me talking!

My OCs are NPCs by origin. I was (still am) the DM of my friend group and to get their characters moving along I had to create my own.

Unexpectedly, my friends loved them.

ILYA - unwell henchman

i know its a boys name,

An aiding hand to an ambiguous villain, Ilya was introduced as sneaky, smiling, and untrustworthy. The facade collapsed once she vomited inside a cup after accidentally touching the liquified remains of (unbeknown to her) her younger sibling. The villain is a wizard of great power and transported all the liquid from their body to put out a fire, mummifying and killing the person in the process in an attempt to save several.

She seeks her sibling amongst the city. The tingling awareness of their demise at the hands of the guild she encouraged them to join and growing panic and grief led her to start a fight with someone who is spiraling as well.

She ends up at the local clinic, heavily injured and minus one eye, and spirals further from her injuries, her guilt, and the knowledge her family was correct about her being too mentally fragile to be in the city. Until....

(For now. The overall arc for this character is of recovery and improvement instead of pain and self-destruction. Forgive your past and find value within you that goes beyond self-sacrifice. With the help of others, of course.)

Despite her questionable moral position, a lot of characters feel the need to protect her.

Art - Her wearing another characters shirt and her getting a widdle kiss from said character, because even I (the monster freak artist) have my lovely ships

ED - emo organ trafficker

''Nez, I want my oc to be kidnapped and rescued by another oc'' ''Hm, I'll make up a guy to kidnap them then''

Originally meant to be a minor antagonist that would kidnap a character to harvest their organs and be easily defeated. Villain of the week type.

However, his snarky behavior, violent temperament, fancy victorian-boy-esque looks captured a lot of attention. He is a little freak but his direct words seem to bring out a lot of honesty in other characters.

Fun facts; His name is inspired by Edward Hyde. He is roomates and best friend/adopted sibling to Ilya. He makes an effort to be fancier than he is because he was born a bastard child and forced to be his fathers servant before he murdered his siblings and father and joined the army to escape (where he met ilya and ultimately got adopted into her family <333)

Art - Him, and him as a chibi fighting the guy who rescued the person he kidnapped. They also fall in love

REDD - funny bully

I recently made an oc just to mess around with the players while they were in jail! Well, now one of them drank his blood and is forever connected to him. The other one got her finger broken cuz she poked him. He also had the prision keys the entire time but pretended to be a prisioner as well. What a menace! I love making horrible pests. His name is red cuz thats how the others refered to him, because I described him as having red hair and red eyes.

Isnt it funny how despite being a DM I never use my monster designs?! I find it a lot more interesting to make characters specifically meant to alter the course of the character development of my players. I love to change deeply and irrevocably! : D

#ask #ocs #long post

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agronzky · 8 months

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⠀⠀⠀𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐓𝐎 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐀 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐕𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐈𝐍 𝐑𝐏.

⠀⠀⠀Anyone who knows me or has rp with me knows how much I love building ambiguous — or grey, if you prefer — characters or villains. The drama, the chaos, the complex plot… It all makes everything more interesting, especially once you get bored of characters who are exclusively nice, naive and suchlike. Even so, it's a construction that needs to take several factors into account and be very delicately written so it doesn't become a trigger rather than a character.

⠀⠀⠀For this reason, below I've provided some tips on how to create villainous characters for rp, taking into account various traits, setting and also demystifying the fact that not every villain is a soulless monster. Anyway, on to the guide.

Deep and personal motivations.

⠀⠀⠀Convincing villains usually have compelling and understandable motivations, even if their actions are highly questionable. It's the premise of them being right in their quest, but using the wrong means to achieve it and ultimately losing their reason. This brings a sense of humanity and it's even possible to feel connected to what led this person to become a villain. You can truly see how they lost the way.

⠀⠀⠀Another point is the fact that not everyone wants to conquer the world, nor do they have the ambition to have a lot of money or power. Think of plots about revenge, twisted love, the quest for justice or fear. Generally, a character's deepest motivations give them more determination to fulfill their goals because it comes from something much more internal and traumatic. Give them a proper reason and make them lose the way, this is gonna make everything feel real, convincing and interesting to developed.

Moral complexity.

⠀⠀⠀The simple truth is the days of people liking completely cartoonish characters are long gone, and nowadays many people don't like those who are evil simply for the sake of being evil. This is because it's too out of touch with reality. Obviously there are people who are like that in real life, but the vast majority is more complex than this. Humans, in the end, are very complicated and, probably, will never truly understand why we are the way we are.

⠀⠀⠀To get away of this cliché and cartoonish form when creating your character, try to develop moral nuances and internal dilemmas which can explain their actions. Put a small fragment of morality in the character, make them question themselves a few times as to whether they're on the right path… Remember yin yang: there's a little tiny good inside the evil. This tip can be used for any character, when you think about it, but it's very important for those who want to create villains.

Human traits, personality and vulnerabilities.

⠀⠀⠀Like any human being, provide your character with traits unmistakably human, such as fears, insecurities or personal relationships that will impact them, to make them more realistic. Just because someone is doing something morally wrong doesn't mean they've lost all touch with their humanity, especially since not every villain is a psychopath who has no empathy for anyone. It's always very interesting when a character believes they're doing what's right or good for someone else, and this is their motivation.

⠀⠀⠀Also bring some weaknesses to the character, whether physical, emotional or psychological. This provides room for development and also ways for other characters to access them in a more specific way, either to get to know them better or to retaliate against them at some point.

⠀⠀⠀You know that line "Do you like my personality? I created it especially for you!"? Well, consider how the character behaves and bring in more layers when making the personality. Take into account how they behave in different situations and with different people.

Charisma and a magnetic nature.

⠀⠀⠀The fact is that bad guys aren't unbearable one hundred per cent of the time, they need to know how to live in society and captivate people. So define unique and appealing traits for the character, whether they're genuine or merely a façade. It's always interesting when, within the plot, most people don't know about the evil or wrong side of a character because it gives them more room for development. Maybe make them ashamed of what they're doing and try to hide it as best they can. And just think about real life: do we truly know the people around us?

Connection with other characters.

⠀⠀⠀Nobody lives completely alone since we're in a society and this makes us having connections, for more simple they can be. Thinking about that, create connections with other characters to bring more motivation and drama to your muse, such as an old rivalry, a complicated personal relationship or a surprising connection which generates tension. You can also create connections that actually bring their good side to light, you know? It's also always good to add a certain complexity, to have troubled moments, wounds that haven't healed fully, secrets being revelead, etc.

Questions for creating villains.

What are the character's main motivations?

What is the character's origin story? What led them to become what they are today?

What are the past traumas or events that have shaped their worldview?

How does the character justify their actions morally? Does they believe they are doing the right thing?

What are their weaknesses and vulnerabilities?

How does the character present themselves to the world? Are they masked, manipulative or showy?

What do they want to achieve through their actions?

What are their emotional reactions to obstacles and challenges?

How do they justify their actions to themselves? Is there any sense of internal validation?

How do they relate to the authorities or the law?

How do they see themselves? Do they see themselves as the hero of their own story?

How do they react when their plans fail?

What do they feel when faced with the possibility of redemption or change?

Other small (and important) advice!

Corruption arcs are also super interesting, leading a good character to become bad over time and through traumatic situations. Redemption arcs are also sensational. The point is: nobody was born a villain and nobody has to die a villain.

Leave clues indicating your character before fully revealing your motivations. Also try to leave some motivations completely secret, using them when the plot calls for a surprise. In the best "surprise, bitch!" style.

Think about how environment and culture can influence beliefs and actions.

A villain doesn't have to be a psychopath or murderer. There are arcs of revenge and corruption which can be created without going to such extremes.

It's obvious, but always respect other players and the limits they impose. As I said, a villain isn't always doing evil and being a complete asshole, so make sure you know what kind of approach the other person will prefer.

Always be careful when approaching topics which are triggers and avoid them as much as possible. As I said, it's not necessary to go down this route, but if you do, always keep a firm grounding when writing, because triggers are complex real-life situations that always need to be handled delicately.

The end, for now.

( Be with Morgana, my good girl gone bad ♡ )

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