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#i come here to have a good time and look at art of my blorbos
ghostingtheinternet · 2 years
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Hate it when you find an artist who does amazing fan art of your favorite character… and then you look at their blog, and find the worlds shittiest hot takes. Like having to take your favorite horse to the glue factory. Blocked😔♥️
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olderthannetfic · 5 months
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Nearly 75% of fic on AO3 has less than 5 reader comments. Can we please acknowledge that lack of engagement in a positive fashion is the norm in fandom and that writers are expected to work for nothing in return yet readers are allowed to be entitled?
The source of my number
https://www.tumblr.com/transholmes/738776926733336576/and-even-those-numbers-on-the-lower-end-are
--
Hahahahaha.
Oh, anon.
Okay, first of all, I just posted a bunch of graphs showing exactly this, so not only am I well aware of it, but you also clearly don't read my tumblr much and are just here because some friend of yours is upset that I responded negatively to them about their dumb bookmarking opinions.
Second and more importantly...
No, no one is expected to do anything.
That's crazypants influencer talk where you think your hobbies are jobs that you have no choice about doing.
I suppose I do expect fans to have something at least marginally worthwhile to say—or else I'll block them for being whiny little bitches who make my day dumber as well as less amusing.
But mostly, what I expect is that people will do hobbies because they are fun. If I ever decide that writing fic is too boring, I will stop.
I write because it's fun.
I write original work for money too, and if you want to read that, you're going to have to pay Amazon your cold, hard cash. But I still do it because I enjoy the actual act of writing... at least a lot of the time.
What I see in the bookmark boo-hooing is a bunch of people who haven't noticed the last eighty thousand rounds of this same dumb wank and who not only expect to get the last word but expect that somehow I'm going to signal boost it on my tumblr as that... a tumblr known for contentious debates and nobody ever getting the last word till everyone's exhausted and never wants to hear about paper plates or beans again.
I also see that some of the thinnest-skinned people have fic patreons.
Now, I chose not to bring this up before because it sounds a bit below the belt in that "And thus you're morally impure and thus I can ignore your argument" way... But it's a consistent pattern in these conversations over time, and I do think it's relevant. The biggest sensitive babies are always the ones most afraid of bad reviews but also low engagement, and I think it's because they're caught in some half-pro, half-not limbo where they want the best of both worlds but keep getting the worst of both.
If you behave like a professional who is owed compensation, you can expect a more professional style of response to your work.
And what does the pro world look like? Radio silence. The occasional harsh review. Nobody caring why you wanted to write X or why you couldn't finish Y on time.
If you're here to socialize, you should look for a beta or a couple of good friends who like your blorbos and your style of fic, and then you can squee together about what you've written. It may not come in the form of visible AO3 comments. It may be in private chat.
In some cases, it may just be friends you can talk to about your writing but who aren't actually going to read it. I have plenty of friends who read different things than what I write.
That's what socializing and hobbies look like, dude.
It's fine to point out that many writers do get discouraged by low comment counts and then stop, so if I, as a reader in a fandom, want more, it behooves me to befriend writers and make them feel good.
But at the same time, writers get discouraged or move on to the next fandom all the time for all kinds of reasons. If the critical mass and the zeitgeist aren't there, then they aren't.
Do your hobbies for reasons internal to you.
If the main point is external validation, get into BDSM and find someone excited to indulge your praise kink. It will work a lot better than chasing fame via art.
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majorproblems77 · 1 month
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Sacred realm, Sacred realm, Sacred realm!!!!!
OH BOY, I AM EXCITED ABOUT THIS ONE
Prepare yourself for the most excited screaming you've ever heard because this update is wonderful and I love it and I'm so excited about it that I'm writing this instead of sleeping and it will be worth it.
Set the clock its 12.45am lets see if I can do this before I have to go to bed for the morning shift.
Alright, now for the important stuff! Sacred realm belongs to @zelda-the-sacred-realm, and all art from the comics belongs to the comic artist. I've got their permission to do these!
Link to the comic can be found here! :D
Now, get some popcorn and if your like me probably an energy drink too and lets goooooo!
Firstly...
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HI
HELLO THERE
OH MY
Big evil big bad. Who's hair is stunning i could never ngl.
(Investigates)
It's awesome to see the black knight like this. (I believe that's right? Correct me if I'm wrong.)
Though im trying to figure out what he found unexpected? Is it Sky? Is Sky the unexpected thing? Good, No body expects the blorbo to come out of the medallion and whoop ass.
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Self-sacrificing boy please you are in pain
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Cinnamon roll link please i know you're not used to this, but he's got this
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He's so damn pretty dammit, pretty boy right here. Hylia chose him for his looks first, 10/10.
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Yesssssssssss
GET THEM! GET IT!
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THE FACT THAT THEY JUMP IN FRONT OF HIM IS GIVING ME SO MUCH LIFE THEY ARE LIKE PROTECTIVE UNCLES OF THE SMALL CINAMON ROLL.
Like low key look how Sky is moving he's pushing towards time but moving more to the right to do so then time is. Which would indicate that he's moved rather quickly to get in front of this thing.
They have to protect the small hero and it gives me life.
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Okay, this all but confirms this isn't the first time they've done this.
Oh and it has to be said
BY THE POWER OF STUBBORN FRIENDSHIP!
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That's a practised spell
(using a few panels from this update here) Chapter 4 - part 1
So, I think that the last time the spirits gathered was sometime around when Twilight was still alive, we know that Time had direct contact with Twilight because of the comic panels in the last update.
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We also know that Time recognised Sky when he first appeared in the last update.
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So there one of two explanations
The medallion or something akin to it has been used in a previous hero's journey. And so some of the spirit already know each other
Or being a spirit grants them foresight that they can just fight with each other like this.
Im more inclined to lean towards the first one at this stage because of that recognition from time but to be honest I think we need to meet Twilight first before we get any answers about that.
I am also going to assume the element that time yields is Electricity (Or time haha.)
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It looks like lightning, but we've also seen him use a time spell so I'm not entirely sure at this stage.
Gonna lean towards lighting tho, it suits him
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YEAH GET HIM!
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He looks so tired, and the lines against him have been growing longer. I assume its more and more of the barrier sucking his energy away.
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Pretty boy alert
i am once again an advocate for the Sky is the Best Bean Club he just needs a nap he's going to be fine
Also, Medalion jails for Sky because he's eepy.
I assume this is how we are going to keep Sky out of this arch, he is too tired and is resting from doing this now. I hope we see you soon blorbo!
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HA
This made me chuckle, Time just grabbing him by the waist like the child he is brings me joy (Im aware Link isn't a child but he is in the cinnamon roll outfit right now so he is a child)
And time is older than him and is at current the only one who can help with the current predicament.
We interupt the end of this post for a Sky appreciation segment because he is the best bean and is my blorbo and got a bunch of great panels this update
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He
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Being the hero
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Jumping into harm's way
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The face of determination
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He
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Sleepy
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Sleepy boy we got sleepy sky and I love him
Okay im done, We shall get back to the end now.
That's everything from me! :D
I hope you enjoyed my rambling please do let me know if you spotted anything I didn't! Thanks for hanging out with me and for uhh, also hanging out as I yell excitedly about my blorbo because, to be honest, I love him and it wouldn't be something from me if I didn't soooo....
Yeah!
Thanks again to the artist for letting me do this! I really appreciate it!
Have a great night!
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utilitycaster · 5 months
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🔥 each member of vox machina
Vax: really the sadboy narrative for Liam has always been stupid but it's egregiously bad that it started with Vax, who is like, sad for maybe a fifth of the episodes and largely because Liam O'Brien's actual mother was dying, like, with all due respect what the actual fuck, fandom.
Vex: I am the founding and probably only member of the "Vex is my favorite character and also I am 100% cool with Colville's depiction of her." The generosity she shows even very early on in C1 is still a generosity borne of some degree of security - they have a keep by then - and I also just don't think you have to like a character to write them fairly. Granted it's been a minute since I read early VMO but nothing stood out to me as out of line with my understanding of Vex.
Pike: repeating myself once again but I like Pike a lot and wish we could have seen more, but because we didn't, people who say she's their favorite in C1 do tend to turn me off in that I feel they're looking for a relatively flat and widely praised character to project onto rather than a character who goes through more messy development.
Grog: I think he's often underestimated and I was guilty of doing so myself, to be honest, until I saw Travis play more and until I personally got better at D&D. Also I still maintain that playing INT 6 sensitively and well is infinitely harder than playing INT 16, all things considered, and this is yet another reason why people should play high INT more often.
Scanlan: Also underestimated; I do understand being turned off by the whole extremely horny playboy thing but as I've said before Bard's Lament is a major litmus test for me: if you think Scanlan is completely at fault here, you are wrong, and if you think he's not partially at fault, you are also wrong.
Tary: I genuinely love him and think he's a great character and one of Sam's best, but while his character arc is strong the Taryon Darrington Arc of the VM Campaign, through no fault of his own (and partly bc I personally think D&D Hell, especially pre-Descent Into Avernus publication, is kind of boring), is one of the weakest parts of the campaign because it's kind of a grab bag of loose ends. With that said I would happily watch more Darrington Brigade-one shots.
Percy: Percy is also generally a litmus test in that it's like. Is he a good person? Eventually I believe he becomes one, and even before that I think he's very sympathetic and deeply traumatized and like, 24, so I get it, but also, who the fuck cares. This ties into the Essek and the Ashton opinions and all kinds of other stuff but why are people so invested in fucking absolving their blorbo of all sins? I want someone who's lived enough of a life to have done some heinous shit because that's fun and interesting and it's pretend and also because then they can have a rewarding character arc by either working towards redemption or coming to terms with who they are or spiraling into tragedy.
Keyleth: I like Keyleth a lot but I am, as this post indicates, far more sympathetic to Vex, and so while I do think Keyleth is a fairly good person she is also extremely sheltered and naive and terrified of doing the wrong thing and I would have, like Vex, wanted to scream at her half the time were I just a random NPC wandering about the campaign. On the other hand C3-era Keyleth? fantastic no notes she has grown up in such an interesting way.
Tiberius: I think we, and by we I mean people capable of separating the art from the artist, can recognize that his concept actually fucking slapped and unfortunately he was played by someone who absolutely sucked in a myriad of ways. I would love to see the alternate universe in which the same general concept (prodigy sorcerer from Draconia who is full of themself) had to face not just the destruction of their civilization but the realization that they were taking advantage of the Ravenites and while they did not deserve to be killed by Vorugal, had done nothing to justify aid from those they had subjugated either. Like, the alternate world in which one of the current cast members or like, a close friend of the main cast (Ashly, Erika, Mary Elizabeth) played this is one I'd love to see.
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aqua-dan · 5 months
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What are your thoughts on preboot Garth vs reboot Garth? You seem to be one of the only people who like reboot Garth. What is appealiong about him?
Well, "like" might be a strong word.
It's really no surprise that I'm saying this, but Reboot Garth has NOTHING on Preboot Garth. Let's not kid ourselves and pretend that Preboot Garth isn't superior in literally every conceivable way.
Preboot Garth is such an incredible character. He is kind, gentle, smart, and powerful. He is emotionally impactful and occupies a space that is so specifically Him that no other character could fill it. He is so compelling, so relatable, and frankly he's downright adorable too! When I have been at some of my lowest points in life, he's been a character that I've grown up alongside and used as an example of emotional strength to help me stand back up and carry on despite the anxiety and sadness and pressure. Truly, he is one of my comfort characters of all time. His story and the things he can do are also extremely interesting!
Physically strong ✔️
Control over water ✔️
Magic ✔️
Eye blasts ✔️
Diplomacy ✔️
Like 50 other things that he forgot to mention that he can do, but totally can ✔️
So you may be wondering then, why I still like Reboot Garth who is… hardly at all like what I just described. And my answer to that is: I don't know.
You would certainly be right to say that for the most part*, Rebirth Garth is nothing like his pre-n52 counterpart. (*World's Finest: Teen Titans was the closest we've gotten. It was kind of nice in regards to Garth, with the exception of a few gripes I have here and there.) And you'd be right to be upset about it. I know I am. Quite often, to be honest.
But for some reason I just can't bring myself to fully condemn Rebirth Garth. At the end of the day, I'm in fandom to have fun, you know? And if I spend all my time hating something that's out of my control… well what good does that do me? At this point, I feel like I've resigned myself to the knowledge that I simply will not be getting what I want in regards to Garth, and so I've turned to becoming a bemused spectator at the things happening in current comics. I can still become excited about it when I DO manage to find a bit that I like. There was a post a while back that went something like,
"N52 and Rebirth suck except the parts that I like. And those bits I'll toss into a blender, puree, and mix in with preboot canon."
Yeah, that. Basically, when it comes to Reboot Garth, (in my own head) I ignore the reboot and then blend up the little bits I enjoy to create the utopian world of Canon+. And from my little imaginary perch, I can choose to still enjoy this character who has taken my blorbo's name, but sadly isn't really him.
With how changeable comics are as a medium though, I do also believe that there will be a writer someday who is willing to do the legwork necessary to bring Garth back around to being the blorbo I once knew. Some currently canon things will definitely have to be tossed out, but hey, that's the nature of comics!
That said tho, I think another one of the things that prevents me from disliking him is (surprisingly) the design. It's a controversial take amongst Garth fans for sure, but I honestly like it for the most part. There are a few things I'd tweak to make him look like more of an extension of Preboot Garth (CURLY HAIR, PLEASE), but there are a lot of elements that I just so happen to find aesthetically appealing and thus don't really mind. That isn't to say that Garth didn't already look fucking incredible, because he ABSOLUTELY did. I'm just not that bothered, I guess haha!
Anyways, sorry for the overly long response! Just for funsies, please have this art of a scene from a fic I'm working on haha.
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elexuscal · 1 year
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Network Effect, but it happens immediately on the tail end of Exit Strategy
this is one of the funniest fandom AUs out there, imo. (also one of the saddest! but also like. in a fun way)
Mensah, Pin-Lee, Gurathin, and Ratthi are just SO glad to be home soon
they're also really glad that SecUnit seems to have regained the ability to talk
even if like, only 40% of what it says seems to logically follow whatever conversation they were having
like that sounds like a dig but they seriously have spent the last 2 weeks thinking its brain might have been totally fried
so they get in a shuttle to go back to the station when
mysterious ship appears out of nowhere?
YOINKS them
murderbot is like 'hey that's my friend wtf ART'
"what do you mean," its humans ask
it Does Not Clarify
maybe just says like a random stream of code, aloud. completely impossible to parse
i'd like to remind everyone that Dr. Ayda Mensah has some Severe Kidnapping Trauma that has not managed to start unpacking at all at this point. and now she's been kidnapped. again.
at least her friends are along for the ride this time???
(she feels awful for being this relieved)
ship is totally empty when they get on board
except for creepy grey people
SecUnit started being able to walk around its MedBay like 47 hours ago
it was not pretty. it fell on its face like. 3 separate times.
now it has to kill a bunch of targets
it still manages it but not with anywhere NEAR its usual level of grace
this just makes it more angry
it does not help that it keeps forgetting where it's in its own timeline
keeps pinging ART. keeps being surprised when it doesn't answer. all over again.
the humans are the ones doing the majority of the Smart Detective Work and making theories on What's Happening Here and interrogating Ras and Eletra
Ras and Eletra who, by the way, are like 'hey your SecUnit is seriously glitching you should probably put it down.'
'no'
'okay we can at least turn it off and shove it in one of the mortuary tubes-'
"NO"
"yeesh okay we're just giving a suggestion" [Eletra and Ras exchange a 'get a load of these crazy freeholders' look behind their backs]
MB is currently have a conversation, aloud, to a crumpled drone
good news: being in a familiar environment is helping MB's memory retrieval
bad news: those memories are letting MB know something Is Very Very wrong
1-3 emotional breakdowns happen during this point. One of them is definitely Murderbot's
it's even worse than in canon Network Effect
"My friend is DEAD"
they haven't found ANY dead bodies at this point, though, so...
PresAux starts realising maybe the dead friend is... an AI?
Ras's brain gets fried around this point. Then Ratthi, as the closest thing the team has to a doctor, has to cut Eletra's chip out of her neck. so he probably gets one of those emotional breakdowns.
'wtf how did we get out of a wormhole so fast??'
In this time-line, Murderbot is in no state to fight AND do complex coding attacks at the same time
(it's really in no state to be doing even one of these by the way but oh well)
that mean Pin-Lee and Gurathin are absolutely doing the majority of fighting off TargetControlSys
and then MB gets that delayed datapackage from ART
"For Eden? what the fuck does that mean?"
is it a religious message? a code?
"hey isn't there a character named that in Sanctuary Moon?" asks Ratthi
MB might be in a pitched firefight at the time but that is no reason for it to not ramble about its blorbos and how cool Eden is
Mensah starts getting an idea
They find ART's secret coding bundle
they try putting in 'Eden'. doesn't work.
okay that was too obvious. try 'Sanctuary Moon'.
nope
'SecUnit'? no
'Murderbot'? long shot but... no
since they have a copy of MB's purchase contract, they have its feed address documented. it's a real long shot, but they are desperate at this point. they try it
Re-Load in Progress. Please stand-bye.
i honestly have NO idea what MB says when ART comes online this time
maybe something super sweet and sappy. or maybe it's even less coherent than in canon
either way, the humans are like 'Holy Shit' upon realising who/what Murderbot's friend ART really is
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bomber-grl · 25 days
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Hellooo I've already requested like 2 Leo fics because I love him he's my little blorbo 🥺 my bad !! Anyway uh. I have a request for Leo Valdez 😁😁 number 20, angsty? Maybe something of his just went horribly wrong and he's stressed about it, and to give him a break you make him food and he's so happy he just bursts into tears? Thank you so much your writing style and work is amazing I love it so much 😭
Prompt #20: making them food they like
Recently Leo has taken to making new inventions non-stop. It was his passion, so the obvious reaction was to openly support it.
But, when you heard the obvious sound of something exploding from the other side of camp, you knew it was trouble.
And trouble it was. You saw Leo and began running to him to ask what was up.
Once you got closer his face and overall vibe told you everything. He was covered in sweat and soot(?) from the invention that exploded.
Most of all he seemed genuinely upset. You waited a bit to talk to Leo as he was discussing something with another camper.
Then he noticed you and began walking over
“Hey Leo” your tone was light and happy, his, not so much.
“Hey” he practically mumbled, not to mention how he dragged his feet when walking over.
“Leo, I hate to do this but I’m grounding you” you tried making your tone teasing but it was spelled out loud and clear. You said it with no room to object, you were serious.
“Why??-“ you knew this would come and quickly interrupted “you’re overworking yourself, cmon”.
You took his hand and began walking towards where arts and crafts would usually be but was currently occupied with other campers form different cabins.
They were all cooking and baking, and it was a surprise to Leo.
“Hey, what’s going on here?-“ you pushed him down to sit and went on your merry way to cook something up.
recently campers had been wanting to start baking/cooking just for the sake of making some good food for others. Especially self made rather than using the enchanted plates at the dining pavilion.
So, to cheer up Leo who was hard at work (now, having a bad day) you prepared something for him to enjoy.
It was something he told you he enjoyed from his childhood, paired with a drink he liked and a desert you wanted to share with him.
Thankfully Will who was there took out your meal once it was ready while you were occupied with Leo.
Now, it was time to go to your cabin.Regardless of whether or not it was full most days, today it wasn’t.
No one was in sight and so u snuck Leo in.
He sat down on a bean bag and you dragged some coffee table look alike and placed it in front of Leo, then placed the food.
“Here, eat up. Sorry we haven’t been able to meet recently and also sorry that your invention went haywire but I just wanted to show you some love and this little workshop proved to be a good way. Oh! I also made the dish you told me about, remember?-“
Your voice trailed off as you finally stopped your rambling and took notice of Leo’s face.
He was surprisingly silent as tears blurred his vision and ran down his cheeks.
“Leo..?” You couldn’t manage to say anything else and as soon as it happened his tears dried up.
Mostly from him hurriedly wiping his face to not make you feel bad, but still.
“Leo? Why’re you crying ?” You leaned in closer and placed a hand of yours on his shoulder.”
“Sorry it’s just that it’s so frustrating” He didn’t say anything and so you asked “what is?”
That’s what set him off.
“This is, this invention was supposed to be big and amazing, I’ve been working non stop just for all my hard work to be poured down the drain. I guess I felt so stressed I forgot I had someone who still cared.”
He finally looked you in the eyes and realized what he had said, so he continued “I’m just trying to say that this made me happy, I guess this little action was really my last straw, huh? Even if is was stupid…”
Knowing Leo felt this way really hurt you, and how could he?!?! You latched onto him and pulled him into a much needed hug.
“I’m sorry that you feel that way about your work lately but I feel the exact opposite. Even if it did end in an unwanted way you still learned, right? Not to mention how insulting it is that you don’t think your emotions are valid!! I’m happy you enjoyed this, it makes me feel appreciated. And I’m sorry I haven’t made you feel that way too.”
Leo pushed you away and turned on the waterworks. He was crying once more and although you knew he was stubborn he ultimately settled on an excuse.
“K, just let me eat your food before it gets cold.” That was the last thing he said before happily shoving down the food you made him.
A bonus was that although he was still crying, at least he was happy now.
-
A/n: I’m glad you love my writing sm it makes me happy! Hope you enjoy this one too :)
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ouroboros-hideout · 3 months
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WIP WHENEVER, WHEREVER
(we are meant to be together shakira shakira)
@olath124 tagged me for this, thanks friend!
Still rather low on content or WIPs I can show but it's something
ART
Don't know if I would call it art actually but I am currently making myself some Discord emojis of Aon aka Knife Queen aka Blorbo Girl.
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That's the first one I got done. Because smirking is very important 👆 will do 3 or 4 more I guess. Laughing, something sad, angery and what ever inspiration brings along the way.
VP
The Dogtown Noir pics where fun to do but I noticed real quick that I need a lot of focus to get some good shots. And I don't have that most of the time. I heard there is actually a city outside of Dogtown KEK maybe I will go there next and do some photos 💫
WRITING
Putting this last so no one is forced to read the wall of txt. I still have a lot of unfinished ramblings but nothing that would make sense to show. I started to write some small bits for my own amusement and positive vibes based upon a soft OTP promt list (or what ever it was called). It's only stupid conversations and I think it's nothing for AO3, so probably just throw it here whenever I finished one.
Write about your ship getting dressed up in fancy outfits together:
"Oh my god I hate this so much..."
Aon pulled on his black bolero jacket and looked at herself in the mirror next to the large closet in Kurt's apartment on the top floor of the Sapphire with an unimpressed expression.
"You don't like what I've chosen for you?" Kurt asked, still beeing busy in the bathroom.
"No... yes. I mean. No, I don't like all of this." She grimaced a little more and turned around to look at the elegant suit trousers and expensive shoes she would be wearing tonight.
"Fancy clothes, putting up with brainless snobs at glamorous parties. Pretending to care about what they do and who they are. I really don't know why you like that so much."
"You'll have fun, I'm sure of it." Kurt came back to the main room and took his leather harness, which was still lying on the bed, and put it around his shoulders. He chose a more elegant garment than usual for tonight aswell, as Alyona had demanded, but he wasn't going to abandon all of his military habits.
"I'll have fun at the bar. I know that for sure."
She was still tugging at the jacket, as if she was trying to minimize the revealing neckline of the top.
"And you had to pick something so provocative, didn't you? Well, at least it's not a glittery cocktail dress. You could have worn that yourself."
Kurt laughed heartily at the last comment, took a few steps over to her and fastened the last buttons on the collar of his black shirt.
"You look fantastic."
That didn't really convince her.
"Oh, shut the fuck up. I feel like I'm playing dress-up."
Kurt was now standing behind her, looking in the mirror with her, still smiling.
"Well, in a way, we do, don't we? If you want to get close to your prey, you have to wrap yourself in it´s fur."
Aon let out an amused snort. "You're such a poet Kurt, it's almost unbelievable," she replied sarcastically.
"Still, I'm glad you decided to come along. I don't think it will do you any harm to see something other than the workshop." He put his hands on her hips and leaned forward a little. At least he liked the sight of the two of them in the mirror.
"Hmmm, what I wouldn't give to spend all night fixing that Chimera-Junk gathering dust in your warehouse...", she replied with a playfully dreamy tone.
"You enjoyed the evening at the Totentanz. You can't deny that."
"You're seriously comparing your fancy-pants party to the thing at the Totentanz?"
"It was a party, you didn't want to go and you ended up enjoying it."
"Maybe because even the smallest circute in Maelstrom is a more interesting conversation partner than everyone you've invited today."
Kurt leaned a little closer to her.
"If you decide to stay here after all, I want you to come to every party. Not because I like to see you suffer, but because then I would finally have something to look forward to in the evening. Pleasant company and someone I can rely on."
"Don't get too excited. I might already have a plan to ruin everything."
"That doesn't matter. It would definitely still be a night to remember because you were with me."
Her face twisted into a grimace.
"Damn, you're such a suck-up. No wonder you've got all these snobs eating out of your hand."
"But the difference is that I mean my compliments to you seriously."
Kurt couldn't help but laugh again when he noticed Aon blushing and quickly turning away from the mirror so he wouldn't notice.
"Okay, let's get going. The sooner we get there, the sooner I can say I've tried long enough."
She hastily disengaged from his embrace and walked straight towards the door.
He followerd her right away.
"You stay until the end. I'll tell the bartender to keep you 'entertained'."
Think most of the ppl I would tag have already shown their awesome stuff lately so I will skip this time. See you next time!
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cookii-moon · 1 year
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This is my excuse to gush over Dragon form because yes.
Basically headcanon and redesign galore yayy
More under the cutoff since this is LONG. You have been warned.
The first part is an introduction, and then the second is actually talking about my designs and ideas and stuff, plus some thoughts/snippets/headcanons... help me.
SO apparently I am far more stupid than I thought, and the reason I say that is because for WHATEVER REASON, it took me ONE. YEAR. For the thought "Hey Cookie the ninja became dragons that one time" to even properly cross my mind, let alone set in. Which is surprising, because I historically freak out over dragons. You'd think that my favorite blorbos having dragon forms would make me instantly go crazy, but no, it took an entire year for my brain to even realize it was... you know... dragon related... even.though I knew they were dragon related... I just didn't... does that make sense? Probably not.
ANYWAYS
As it stands the dragon forms are forgettable because they're literally just reskins but with different element colors (which makes sense, cause yknow... Lego molds...) and then they vanish which obviously yeah. Who knows maybe they'll come back in dragons rising now that the ninja have their powers again.
BUT THAT DOESN'T STOP ME FROM GUSHING OVER THEM ONE YEAR AFTER THEY WERE RELEVANT.
Hyperfixation transcends the measly concept of time (actually that's probably not true I wouldn't know since I don't think about the very fabric of reality that often) so good luck stopping me.
ANYWAY, so uh... I might or might not have on a whim made messy concept sketches for each dragon form, made up a ton of headcanons, and chosen color scheme... no... no I didn't do that.
Okay yeah I did that.
...I was supposed to do two at a time.
How did I get here. The power of autistic brain.
Time to actually talk about the designs!!
Uhhh I'm gonna go in true potential order... because yes.
First... Zaneee!!!
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Without color in case it's confusing
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Also you're gonna notice a trend with this being that the drawings are not high quality or rendered or anything and are sloppily colored and that's because they're just concepts. I only did the actual "big" draconic traits because I wanted to get it finished quickly so i had an excuse to talk about it. If I ever do use them for an actual art piece then I'll fully render them n stuff obviously this is just to get across the concept.
So since Zane is a robot it.. would be kinda hard for him to suddenly get like.. organic dragon wings... or whatever...
So instead- he gets cybernetic dragon wings and a tail. Yes i know that still requires cartoon logic. The power of creation just magicked them into existence OK? It makes more sense than randomly growing scales.
The mechanic parts are mostly held together/afloat by the ice energy flowing through them (which is what the crystal-like fragments that make up most of his wings are!)
Also his horns are like a little crown... because... I dunno I thought it'd fit with his haircut and such but also ice Emperor (even though he didn't really wear a crown) look this was drawn at like 2 am I don't know what I was thinking with it or why I didn't actually draw the haircuts as well..
I imagine that he'd be very cold to the touch, especially his wings (which are pretty much sheets of ice) both Jay and Kai have ways of circumventing it, but when Cole has to deal with it (like sitting next to him or such) he gets sluggish pretty quickly. Zane is still trying to figure out a way to ease it a bit.
He also tends to make clanging noise by tapping his tail against the ground when he's upset, or make mechanical whirring noises when irritated. Nobody quite knows why since yknow robot, it's just a quirk.
His ice energy does mean he's gotten a power boost. Just like literally everyone else.
Also this is going to involve me assuming they kept these features because if Lloyd can be part dragon then so can the ninja I dare you to fight me /lighthearted
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Jay!! He bird. Feather scrunchie.
"But Cookie that's not a dragon-"
Shhhh If a dinosaur can have feathers so can a dragon they're both giant reptiles OK. Feather dragon. It's a thing.
I'm going to be honest the only thing going through my mind while drawing this was vague wing shapes I can't even put a name to (they were probably from monster hunter... I think... Uh... ) and silkie chickens. Not quite sure why I thought of silkie chickens, but I did. So here we are.
So anyways I love him. HIM!! FEATHER MAN!!!
Also I just realized while writing this he can finally be fugi dove's proper equal and arch nemesis. Amazing.
So while drawing I was like "it'd be neat if he could produce static n such with his wings/feathers" so I took off to the internet and after trying a ton of different "CAN BIRDS MAKE STATIC" "ARE BIRD FEATHERS STATIC" and such search queries I finally came up with that ostrich feathers can have static and chicken feathers were used in computer components and hummingbirds can produce static from how fast they flap their wings. Is that trustworthy whatsoever? Probably not. (Surprisingly the most trustworthy one seems to be that chicken feathers were used for computer components which is funny) But rule of cool. I get to break the laws of physics and reality for my story as long as it's cool. Yay.
He's very fluffy and enjoys using his wings to snuggle up in bed :) Cole also tries to steal him as a blanket during winter. Nya and Lloyd can't because of the static but Cole can't be shocked so Jay just has to begrudgingly accept it with his hollow bones and consequentially low weight. He's also known to let sparks off when he's excited/happy, which is f u n.
Also I used the blue/yellow color palette because they seem to be leaning towards using more yellow in Jay's color themes (like how they started using orange in Cole's or blue in Zane's) and I thought it worked really well here so yeah!! It also helps differentiate him even more.
He sheds like crazy. Especially during winter where he gets EVEN FLUFFIER. (no one knows how it's even possible) Feathers everywhere. Cole and Kai also shed, but they shed skin all in one go (usually..), whereas Jay just leaves a pillows worth of feathers everywhere he inhabits, and it drives them insane.
The type of dragon he is is mostly a flight based species. They hunt in the air, live in the air for most of their lives, and such. Because of that not only does he rarely sit down, but he is FILLED with excess energy. He's also the most natural and second fastest flier, and fastest consistent flier.
Because the type of dragon he takes after is so focused on flight, they also roost up in really high places, so you'll probably find him on the top bunk, up in rafters, on the Monastery roof, etc. He loves that they're on a mountain because it means he can take a flight whenever he wants to. That doesn't stop him from being horrible at evading actual birds, though.
He also regularly makes "chirp" and clicking noises. (By chirp I mean the type a cat will do while looking at a window or such. Look up cats chirping or smthn for an example if u haven't heard it before.)
Could I have just made him a dragon with lightning bolt patterns?
Yes but that would be very boring and uncreative (in my opinion and standards I hold myself to ofc-) SO.
Jay is chicken. Jay uses wings to shoot lightning. Thank you for your time.
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Cole. He crystal dragon. He's probably also gonna be a pain to draw (but also very fun) because of that. Yay.
I could of just done magma but I loved the idea of like a crystal dragon. So I made a ninjago related crystal dragon...
... again. Don't ask about the first one.
so uh I chose the colors bc like light blues/purples/white are pretty stereotypical crystal colors (plus I think they're pretty) and then orange... because. Cole. He has little crystal patches all over him and his scales also have like.. small crystals dotted all over.
I feel like whatever species of dragon he is is probably adapted to like.. mostly living in caves? Like cave bats kinda where it goes outside at night to hunt but sleeps and lives in caves, and probably goes deeper in the cave to hibernate. So because of that he can be sensitive to artificial light and doesn't really have any like adaptations for the winter, so he just tries to snuggle up with Jay or Kai to keep warm and gets really tired/sluggish when he's cold because reptile. On the other end he can sense vibrations since his species wouldn't be relying on sight as much, which is very handy.
Unlike Zane, Jay, or Kai, he can't really "fly" exactly. His wings are much smaller because the species kinda adapted to being able to use them as a sort of speed boost thing where they'd use them to get quick bursts of flight to catch prey, but since they mostly hunted on the ground and lived in caves they didn't need full on flight. However it's sorta a peregrine falcon situation where technically he is the fastest of all the ninja in flight, but only during a short burst.
He is also very well adapted to climbing vertical surfaces. His claws are REALLY good at gripping onto things since they were adapted to cling onto things such as stalactites, rock walls, etc. to traverse up ledges and deeper parts of caves, and he can also use his wings (and more specifically their claws) as a third pair of limbs to grip onto walls.
Cole tends to make more subtle noises, he growls when agitated and purrs when content or in pain (yes that's a thing, purring soothes and encourages healing, so cats will also purr when they're hurt or scared to comfort themselves) but it isn't very loud, so it's not easily noticeable.
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Kai!!
Again
Could I have done magma for Cole and just given Kai flame wings?
Yes. But I'm not going to, because I find this approach more interesting.
... I joke that it's magma but not REALLy, it's still just.. fire... but his scales are brown cause I thought it fit. So. A lot of people like to draw Lloyd with the kinda dragon ears so I thought it'd be cute if Kai, as his guardian, also had them since, again, a lot of people like to see them as brothers. And I just gave him generic dragon horns. Because dragon.
It's hard to simplify it because... fire... so this is probably the worst sketch..
Look OK he gets to breathe fire. Like that's one of the most iconic medieval red dragon things, he's the fire ninja, he gets to breathe fire and blow smoke out of his nostrils when mad I don't make the rules.
I also kinda went all in on generic dragon tropes (i mean ig they're not as generic anymore because of stuff like HTTYD) because... Kai.
So like hot temper, fire breath, that type of thing.
He also has a hoarding habit, as in instead of cleaning or anything when he uses something and just tosses it aside, he puts it all in an ever growing pile of stuff that he just let's stay there until somebody else cleans it up because they were sick of it. Compared to Jay's feathers it's not the WORST thing in the world.
He's slower than Zane and Jay, but can fly for longer periods of time than Zane. His species is kind of adapted to flying closer to the land. So that they can eat some well cooked cow. Yknow generic dragon stuff.
I also think it'd be funny, since dragons are fiercely protective, if these dragons had a dragapult situation where if they didn't have a kid they'd just "adopt" (in their eyes, in reality it's abducting. Usually.) a random animal and pretend it's their child. Because. Kai.
He's also fireproof, to an extent. He can withstand intense heat (unlike Cole or Jay) and can withstand intense cold (Unlike Cole... poor guy) because fire. He can't dive bomb into a volcano though since it would eventually get through and burn him to a crisp, but in small amounts he'll be FINEEEE...
Im not quite sure if he'd make any sort of draconic noises or anything. I feel like maybe he'd growl when upset, but it'd be louder than Cole? Whereas Cole does it more frequently (probably to be passive aggressive) but it's much more silent. He also has a tendency to involuntarily raise his voice a lot.
Yeah that's about it. Also if you consider lloyd to be a dragon, or think of Nya as having dragon features from when she just became h2o that one time, then the entire group might as well be renamed to Dragon ninja. Even Wu!!
..I feel like Lloyd would be jealous- Like "Oh why do THEY get to go full dragon and have wings when I don’t?!" But he'd never say anything because Lloyd.. but everybody knows something is up and is trying to make him feel better... but it's making him feel worse because it just makes him feel more singled out... oh boy that's uh I'm gonna shut that depressing thought train down right there.
Poor pixal though... she's left out because she's too cool already.
ALSO if you ever use this or want to expand upon it/take inspiration from it PLEASE DO AND TELL/SEND IT TO ME I WANT TO SEE AND HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS PLEASE DHRJGJDJDJ I LOVE WHEN MY STUFF PROMPTS IDEAS
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shirefantasies · 5 days
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do you have a fave member of the company and of the fellowship? if so, who and why?
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Oh ho ho! Well I’m glad it isn’t too overly obvious 😉 as far as the fellowship goes I’m a big Pippin girlie! From the company I love Ori so much, such a sweetheart and I love non traditional masculine characters every single time! And innocent cinnamon rolls are my kryptonite. I just love him! Bofur, he’s just so adorable and heartwarming and goofy and ahhh! Plus his early exchange with Bilbo is so iconic. “Think furnace with wings.” To quote what my personal blog @spacemanxpaninis has on its page about all my favorite characters:
On Pippin-
“My childhood fictional character crush! …that kinda carried into adulthood… I’m a sucker for humor and adorable innocent dorks, plus Pippin is extremely neurodivergent-coded and it does my clumsy screw-up heart good to see a clumsy screw-up type character. But you know what? Pippin is a hero. He overcomes so much and matures a lot and he’s not perfect, but that’s part of why I love his character. He’s different from all the other unique figures and has a heart of gold, but doesn’t always know how to use it. He wants to help and it breaks his heart that people around Pippin think otherwise and that in turn breaks MY heart. He’s just the cutest, sweetest man and I want to make him happy forever. Plus PLEASE that scene at Sam’s wedding I WILL maintain that is the funniest thing that happens in those movies darnit he is HILARIOUS. That and mission…quest…thing. Iconic. Who is doing it like him.”
On Sweet Ori-
“It kinda kills me how little screen time we got of each dwarf from The Hobbit because of sheer numbers and how much screen time they wanted to give to bigger names mostly the line of Durin. Because here we have dear sweet Ori, canonically in the movies the youngest company member and one of the most polite, this young scribe finding his courage alongside his big brother on a quest to reclaim a homeland he’s never even been to. Yes, more patterns, another cinnamon roll. I never said I had no blorbo type ok? I just adore Ori’s innocence but also the way he balances having traditional dwarf interests with other things like his art, writing, knitting, and such. He doesn’t entirely conform to his people’s standards, but seemingly isn’t too outcast for that either and I find that to be a high word of the dwarrow. Ori is just a little sunshine character for me that always makes me happy :) I wish others appreciated him more too!”
On Bofur:
I mean come on, everyone loves Bofur right??? If not THEY SHOULD! Like, his whole thing is being lovable come on. One of the most unique designs among the dwarves, Bofur looks far different from the stereotype and that’s a wonderful element of ‘not all of any given people look the same’ plus it makes him stand out even more. Bofur is such a comfort character- you know he gives the warmest hugs EVER and he holds you for as long as he can. Bonus points for being one of the first to really welcome Bilbo because he’s just that kind and accepting of a person, someone who would take a lot to really dislike somebody. Beyond being kind he’s also a great listener AND a great party companion, the epitome of ‘get you a man who can do both’ as equal gusto goes into dancing and singing and being with the people he loves and being there for them too. I just know he would be the best dad too ugh.
Lomls fr thanks for letting me rant and plug my personal blog anon 😉🥰
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idyllic-affections · 5 months
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a letter from aphelion. ♡
a letter to all the people who have made my year in one way or another. there is no particular order to this post, and some of you may find that i don't have much to say, but all of you who are on this post are here because i can recall times i've enjoyed speaking to you or seeing you in my notifs or just existing within the same space as you. i hope you all have only the best year possible next year—it seems like most of us need and deserve a good year, hm? though i regard myself as quite a gentle and sentimental soul, i struggle with putting it into words. it's ironic, considering i am a writer. i mention this because even if the things i say in this post are quite silly and lighthearted, just know that i earnestly mean what i say and each and every one of you has contributed to my year in a memorable way <3 may we all have a good 2024.
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       dear @lillonvia,
YOU!!!! YOU!!!!! HELLO. HI. MEETING YOU HAS BEEN SUCH AN HONOR AND SUCH A DELIGHTFUL PART OF MY YEAR!!! i love the little silly conversations we often have—i think it's probably a good thing that we share so many random fandoms. it's as if we lived somewhat similar lives growing up despite growing up in such vastly different environments <3 but anyway, i think the fandoms we share are really helpful in being able to have such fun conversations!! we have many things to talk about!!! despite the vast difference in timezones!!!! please go to sleep at normal hours!!!!!!! /lh
       dear @starryshinyskies,
HI AVERY <3 i was literally always so delighted to see you in my inbox back when you were still ⭐️ anon, and i still feel that kind of joy now! you have so many good and fun thoughts to share with me about things i've written and i love that... i hope moral injury ch. 2 will give you that same kind of brainrot again when it does finally come out!!!! if it doesn't that's okay too HAHA but i always love hearing your thoughts on... literally anything ever!! i have some fics of yours that i've been meaning to reblog btw, so maybe watch out for multiple essays in your notifications in the coming weeks LMAO
       dear @aroacenezha,
MAJI I AM SQUISHING YOU LOVINGLY IN MY HANDS or i can just look at you fondly if you don't want to be squished. i am okay with that too <3 i often think about how we met and i think it's both kind of funny and kind of nice. "baizhu would hate dottore" agreed so real so true that post was so correct in so many ways RAAHHH 🤝 the nice part of the way we met being my baizhu series. despite me having NOT updated it any time recently, has brought a lot of people into my inbox and sometimes into my life and i think it's very cool. i love when people feel seen. and furthermore please always send me your oc thoughts and your blorbo thoughts i love them so much 🙏🙏🙏
       dear @soleillunne,
ALYYY MY LOVE MY BELOVED you are so precious and treasured.... i love what you do, i think your writing is beautiful and has such a poetic quality to it. and i love when you appear in my inbox and notifs!!!! though tumblr is very mean to you and always eats your asks.... you are important to me and so many other people and i hope you always know that. genuinely. you are such a kind and wonderful person and you are always loved.
       dear @heiayen,
YOU. *GRABS YOU* *EVILLY* you. you are so. idk but YOU ARE. can't think of a good word. no words, only vibes. you are vibe-y. /lh you're another moot that has the most top tier responses to things, even non-fanfic posts. you just have Things To Say, and in the best way possible. your thoughts are so fun..... i interact with you rather often—more than some people realize, perhaps—and you are a dearly beloved presence in my life 🫶🫶
       dear @zeldadou,
though we haven't talked too much recently, i still think of you often! i love seeing your art and the way it changes and develops... and i love hearimg your thoughts about things or when you send me fun things you think i would like <33 you are a very kind person in my eyes, whether you realize it or not.
       dear @june-again,
i hope life treats you well, always. you don't deserve anything less. i think of you fondly! your kindness is and was very remarkable and treasured especially when i was first adjusting to tumblr and posting my fics and whatnot..... by the time we met, i was still very new, so i appreciated any kind interactions (i still do of course! it's just a bit different when you're new to a website like this haha)!!
       dear @kaixserzz,
I FUCK WITH YOUR THOUGHTS DUDE YOU SEEM TO COME INTO MY INBOX AT THE MOST RANDOM AND UNEXPECTED OF TIMES AND DROP THE MOST HEARTBREAKING ANGST POSSIBLE??????? HELLO?????????? ARE YOU. DOING OKAY??!???!!!! YOU WAKE UP AND CHOOSE VIOLENCE. ESPECIALLY WITH KAVEH. WTF (me too tbh 😇) /lh please always send me any platonic thoughts you have i will entertain all of them fr 💥💥💥 you have such good thoughts in that brain of yours 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥
       dear @archonsbane,
i haven't spoken to you much, so forgive me if this seems or comes off as a sudden or jarring tag, but i do enjoy talking to you. fatui moot <3 you GET IT get it about the harbingers' dynamics. i hope we have more opportunities to speak sometime! (and if that sentiment isn't shared, that is totally fine. i would respect it either way 🫶)
       dear @lesanyanyas,
we only became mutuals recently, but i hope you know that i always thought of you as one of the "blorbo from my notes" kinds of people haha!!! i always saw and recognized you whenever you were in my notifications or my inbox and you always have such delightful and fun things to say <33
       dear @umgatochamadopercyval,
CLARA HIII you are such a remarkable person, you know? you've been nothing but kind and understanding, and you have such fun thoughts and ideas!! i love hearing about them sm. even if my responses are delayed, just know that you are always welcome to ramble in my dms about your ocs or your fic ideas and i will never find it to be annoying or anything. it isn't annoying. it never is.
                                                 sincerely,                                                                           aphelion.
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there are people who did not make this list, and to those people, i hope we can become closer in 2024! if you aren't on here, it's truly only because i've hardly spoken to you. so... perhaps that is something we can do next year! i think of all my mutuals very fondly. i don't think of any of you as "less than" just because we haven't spoken mwah mwah <3
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meltypancake · 4 months
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hellooo!! i love your art sm!! do you have any tips on how to study something effectively? 🤔 how do you approach studying something for your art?
hi anon!! thank you so much 🥹and that's a really good question!
there's a lot of things that can go into it, since it will depend on what kind of artist you are - but here are some general things i look out for.
make sure the study somehow ties back into your personal work. for example, while drawing a character i'll notice that i'm struggling with a certain hand pose, so afterwards i will look up the same or similiar hand refs and do a couple studies of them. i'd approach the study like this: draw a hand based on the reference, then see if there's anything off about it. draw it again with the new knowledge you've gained. try to be careful and put your lines down accurately, since it's less about speed but about understanding the structure. finally, apply it to your personal work. this method works best for me, since it stops me from thinking "i should learn anatomy" which isn't that helpful, but lets me pinpoint something specific i'd like to learn about.
ultimately, it's about keeping the practice sustainable. it can be easy to lose your way when remembering all the things you have yet to learn (perspective, figures, muscles, colors etc.) and you end up frantically studying and studying without a clear goal except "getting good". i know the sentence "you need to practice" gets thrown around a lot, and i get where it's coming from, but i don't find it very helpful. art can be anything you want it to be, and for me, having fun with it and finding joy is a huge part of it. so if you're studying and dreading every second of it, it'll be hard to keep it up in the long term and it might even sour your relationship with your art. so a couple things you could do to study, but also have fun: - figure out what kind of art you want to do. legit, write it down somewhere and think about it. do you prefer more graphic art? more painterly and textured? bold lines, thin lines, lineless? what kinds of artists do you admire (though loving a certain art style doesn't automatically mean you would enjoy their process either!) do you prefer monochrome or greyscale or color? - depending on what kind of art you want to create, choose what you want your studies to focus on. if you just wanna draw everyone in super big poofy dresses, you don't need anatomy nearly as much as someone who's into drawing buff ladies in tanktops! - instead of thinking "i will get good at perspective and then i get to have fun drawing my blorbos", just draw your blorbos in an environment with perspective! you don't need to separate your studies from your personal art at all - you can combine them, having fun and learning from them at the same time. if it doesn't work out the way you wanted it to, set it aside, let it marinate, and try again if you like.
and if something is really hard to do, it just means your brain is changing, growing, adapting, OVERCOMING!! and it'll be a little easier the next time around :]
i hope this helped a little! feel free to hop into my inbox again if anything was unclear. hope you have a great weekend! <3
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avatarmerida · 1 year
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Still having brain rot for beta huntlow so here’s some Willina Grom content. Partially based on a HC from some cute art by @turquoisespace35 love these blorbos in every universe 💛💚
———
“A dance?” William’s ears perked up at the word. “Wh-what kind of dance?”
“Oh it’s just Grom,” said Augustus . “He’s a monster that lives underneath the school. The dance is more of a distraction really.”
“But there’s dancing? Like, proper dancing?” He asked. “And the dress code? Oh, please tell me that there is one!”
“I mean, it’s not technically required but everyone gets pretty dressed up.” He said. “It’s like the social event of the season.”
“Like a ball?” William said excitedly, hoping Augustus would confirm.
“Uh… I guess?”
“Oh, wonderful!” He exclaimed. “I’ve been meaning to throw one myself, but my uncle is less than convinced the idea is worth pursuing. Oh, how I envy you.”
“You can come too, if you want.” Augustus offered.
“Oh, that’s very kind of you Augustus but you’ve made it clear that your duties at the event would occupy you. No, if I’m to go I’d need to be directly asked to be someone’s escort.”
“Ooooh I see,” said Augustus with a mischievous grin. “Did you have anyone special in mind?”
“Oh, I don’t know uh does… Paulina have anyone to escort her to the event?” He tried to make it seem as though she hadn’t already been on his mind, but Augustus knew better.
“Hmmm I don’t know, why don’t you ask her?”
“I mean I would, but it’s not my place,” he said. “I don’t attend Hexside therefore have no link to the event and to inquire about whom she intends to attend it with might imply that I-.”
“You wanna go with Paulina.” Augustus stated.
“I… only if she wishes me to,” he said quietly. “But yes, if she were to invite me I would happily accept. But I wouldn’t want to pressure her or make her feel badly if she wanted to go with someone else.”
“Dude, I’m pretty sure if you asked if you could go with her she would totally say yes.”
“Invite myself?” He said with a gasp. “Augustus, such informality is poor form. I should hope Paulina would expect more from me. If she were to invite me I’d want it to be of her own wishes, not out of pity or obligation.”
Augustus sighed. He knew from the way that Paulina talked about William that she definitely saw him as a part of their Grom experience, but he also knew about everything in her way. They both knew William was a good guy and that he wouldn’t be anything but kind about the subject and as much as Paulina trusted him she was still relearning to trust herself. Despite her best efforts, heartbreaking situations seemed to be drawn to Paulina.
“Hey Will, there’s something I think you should know…”
———
Grom night finally arrived and everyone from Hexisde was gathered excitedly in the gym looking their best and having a great time.
Everyone but Paulina.
She shouldn’t be surprised that Boscha sought out the ruin the night for her and how well she had managed to do it. She was embarrassed, to say the least, for the second year in a row. She knew Augustus and the others would be wondering where she was sooner or later, but for now she didn’t want to ruin their fun time or give Boscha the satisfaction of her cruelty spreading.
There was only one person she wanted to see right now. But her feet worked faster than her brain and she found herself in the castle garden before she had an explanation prepared.
“What am I doing here?” she said to herself. “I can’t just show up uninvited, and he might not even be here and even if he was he wouldn’t-.”
“Oh, Paulina, to what do I owe the pleasure?” came William’s voice from seemingly out of nowhere. The soft way he said her name broke her trance as he walked over to her, a book at her side. He must be coming from the library. She went to try and hide her appearance in the shadow of the tree but before she could move back he spoke again. “You… you look stunning.” He said breathlessly, admiring the way the green in her dress complimented her eyes. The dress looked different from what he remembered, but her loveliness only increased the closer he got, her hair was tied up with a ribbon and a vibrant flowers rested behind her ear. William set down his book to properly greet her before remembering why she looked extra captivating. “But wait, what are you doing here?”
“Oh, well I uh, well I just thought,” she struggled to say before the tears caught up with her, and her hands shot up to bury her eyes. “Oh my Titan I’m so sorry,I shouldn’t have just shown up. Y-you must be busy I don’t know why I-.”
“No! No, please don’t think I’d be anything other than happy to see you,” William rushed to say. “I just thought you’d be at the ball.”
“Well, I was but I uh, had a little wardrobe malfunction,” she said with a heartbroken laugh, gesturing to her current state. He could see now the the tattered sleeves and jagged skirt were not a choice.
“I just thought it was a new fashion trend,” he said with a small smile, still finding her to be a vision even despite the abuse the dress had gone through. “Were you the one chosen to face Grom? I thought it was the youngest Blight.”
“It was,” she said taking a deep breath. “But I had my own personal Grom. I ran into Boscha before I even went inside and she wasn’t thrilled that I decided to show up.”
William’s hand formed a fist at his side, the subject of Boscha always lit a fire within him. He wished he had the throne so he could banish the girl into the boiling sea for all she made Paulina endure.
“She did this to you?” he asked through gritted teeth.
“Well, most of it,” Paulina confirmed with tears pooling her eyes. “I kinda made it worse when I tried to use my wand to fix it. I think I set a button on fire?”
“Oh my- are you okay? Did she hurt you? Why would she ever-.”
“No, no I’m okay I promise,” she assured, though the unshed tears that lingered behind her askew glasses that suggested otherwise. “I just… didn’t want to go inside like this and have everyone laugh and I didn’t wanna go home and have my dads worry and I just didn’t… wanna be alone right now. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be dumping this all on you, I should go before I-.”
“No! No, please stay,” said William. “Let me fetch my sewing supplies! I bet I can repair the rips! And we can cover the tear at the bottom with a flower and I’m sure I can locate a jacket for you to-.”
“No, please don’t! I mean, you’re so sweet but you've done enough already.” Paulina sighed sadly. “I’m just so sorry she ruined the dress you got for me.”
“How did you kn- I mean, what? I-I have neve seen that dress before I don’t even know what-.”
“Augustus ratted you out,” she said with a gentle smile. “But I would’ve figured it out anyway. Such a sweet, grand gesture is just too on brand for you.”
“Well… did you like it? I mean, before Bocha-.
“I loved it,” she said, taking his hands in hers and giving them a gentle squeeze. “I felt like a princess.”
“You don’t need a dress to look like a princess.” He said softly as he looked into her eyes. A blush took over her face as she couldn’t help but be taken back with just how quickly he had composed the sentiment and how utterly sincere it was. She suddenly felt guilty for allowing him to see his generous gift in such disarray. “Paulina I… please don’t be upset but… Augustus told me about what happened last year. How Boscha found out you wanted to ask someone and sabotaged your Gromposal and how cruelly everyone reacted. He said you didn’t even go last year and it… well, it just broke my heart. And then I saw how your eyes lit up when we walked by the shop with the dress in the window and I wanted to make sure you had the perfect Grom to make up for last year but I should’ve known a dress wouldn’t fix everything.”
“Well it was still the nicest thing anyone had ever done for me,” assured Paulina. “I just wish you could’ve seen it before it got ruined.”
He had to admit, he did too. His throat felt tight at the thought of her in the emerald vision she was meant to be in from the beginning. He wished he could’ve done more to save her evening, and he could still be her knight in shining armor now.
“Close your eyes,” he said and Paulina obliged without hesitation. She felt him place something on her head, she reached up and felt the cold metal. It was his crown. When she opened her eyes, she saw William had vanished but her appearance had been restored to how she looked prior to her run in with Bocha.
“What?” She said, hardly able to believe it as she ran to the garden’s fountain to observe her reflection in the water. It was true. The crown slid slightly off her head and when it did, a tear returned to her dress. Paulina understood. “William, is there a concealment stone in your crown?”
“Yes,” his voice confirmed from a location Paulina could not pinpoint.
“Why?”
“Um… no reason,” he said. “Just to ensure that I always look my best.”
“Are you invisible without it?” She laughed, scanning the area for where he could be hiding wanting to thank him properly.
“No, nothing like that,” he assured. “I just… don’t want you to see me without it. I’m not… my best.”
“Well, considering the way I came to see you tonight, I have no room to judge,” she chuckled. “But I promise I would never. Besides, it doesn’t matter to me what you look like, I like you no matter what.”
Willam did believe her, he knew Paulina was genuine and smart and kind and would not care about the gap in his teeth or the unruly nature of his hair or the other tiny imperfections that Belos had deemed necessary to conceal. But he had never shown his true self to anyone else and it was not a step that could be taken so casually.
Paulina could sense his hesitance in the silence and did not pressure why, that it was his business. But she didn’t want him to feel like he had to hide from her. She carefully removed her glasses and placed them in her pocket. As she placed them inside, she removed something to make room and held it behind her back.
“There,” she said. “Now I can’t see anything. Promise.”
He peeked his head from behind the tree where he had been hiding. “Really?”
“Really.” She said, seeing his blurry figure in the distance. “Test me.”
“Okay,” he said, holding up his hand. “How many fingers am I holding up?”
She squinted. “I have no idea.”
William laughed, his heart skipping a beat at the way she scrunched her nose attempting to see. “Fair enough,” he said, walking over to her. “I can fetch a mask from inside and walk you back to the dance.”
“Would you wanna maybe… stay?”
“You mean stand guard? In case Boscha tries something else?”
“No I mean stay, like… uh, here.” Paulina said nervously, extending her arms to him. “I made this. I thought it would look nice on you.”
He saw she was holding a bright red flower, its petals silky and long. Even with his limited knowledge of floriograhphy, he knew this flower was special. He could tell she had grown it herself.
“It… matches yours,” he said breathlessly, his eyes darting to the vision of scarlet tucked safely in her hair as he took the flower from her. It was the one thing Boscha hadn’t managed to ruin.
“Oh yeah,” she smiled. “I guess it does. Well, usually when you go to Grom with someone, you wear something that matches. And I uh… thought if you wanted to, we could…”
His eyes darted to his flower back to hers and then to the matching red dusting her checks. The dots all connected and his eyes widened as he dared to ask:
“Are you… asking me to Grom?”
“Yes?” She squeaked, her eyes locked on the ground as her hands fiddled with the belt of her dress. “I know it’s last minute, but please don’t think it’s an afterthought or because of the dress it’s just that… I just didn’t think to ask you because, well I didn’t think to ask anyone. But… I wanted to and I would’ve if I…”
His face softened. “And I would’ve accepted.” William whispered. “I mean, I do accept. That is, if you still wish for me to-.”
“I do,” she said quickly. “You’re… sure it’s not beneath you? I mean, I’m sure you’ve been to way fancier events and I mean it’s just some silly-.”
“I would be honored to go anywhere with you,” William eagerly assured her, taking her hands in his. He could not get over how truly beautiful she looked. “Oh dear, it’s just that you look so… enchanting and I’m dreadfully underdressed. I’ve just finished my training and I’ve just come from the stables and now I-.”
“Well if you ask me, you could never look anything but princely.” Paulina said sweetly.
“Thank you,” he said with a blush. He was used to Paulina being kind but something about her sudden boldness flustered him. He was grateful he could not see her as he knew he could not conceal his blush.
“Besides, no one will care what you’re wearing because they’ll be distracted by your sick moves.”
“Oh, I assure you I’m not ill.”
“No,” laughed Paulina. “I’m talking about your dancing.”
“Oh.” He said, not fully understanding but comprehending enough to know Paulina was suggesting that others would find him impressive. But the only person he cared about impressing was not in that gym. He took a grand step back and extended his hand to her as he bowed. “Well then, may I have this dance?”
Paulina giggled. “I mean, yes but I was thinking we would go back to the school and dance. There’s not even any music playing out here.” She put her hand in his and upon the contact he gently pulled her to him, putting his other hand on the small of her back to hold her close. Paulina’s free hand instinctively went to his shoulder as she tried to hide how fast her heart was beating.
“Well then I shall have to tell a joke as your laughter is a symphony all its own.” He said casually and Paulina felt as though she might faint. How did he think of that so quickly? Why did it make her legs feel like jelly? Was her face as red as it felt?
“Oh, uh okay I mean if you want…” she trailed off quietly, suddenly overly aware of his gaze. She giggled again and William smiled as though she had just played his favorite song. He took the opportunity to spin her, using the momentum to show off his ability as a lead, spinning her out and then back into his arms. He begins to walk and Paulina was happily along for the ride as William led them around the garden, holding her close and counting the steps under his breath to help her keep time.
Paulina looked down at their reflection in the pond as they passed by. Even blurry it was utterly picturesque, the way the stars shimmered against the shine of his crown, the way her vibrant green dress stood out in the collection of blues the evening sky brought, if she could only see the dreamy way Willam looked at her while her attention was elsewhere.
“Wow I didn’t know you were such a great dancer,” Paulina breathed as he spun him into him again, and then eased them into a slow dance to cool down from all the spinning.
“Isn’t that why you wanted to ask me? Because you knew I was a good dancer?” William said as he pulled her in again, but this time he held her close awhile longer. Before he returned his hand to her waist, he brushed a loose strand of hair from her face, his fingers lingering on her cheek. The moon was back behind him, dusting his shoulder in a gentle pale light that made Paulina feel as though she had fallen into a painting. The garden, the moonlight, and him all seemed too good to be true.
“Well it’s… one reason.” She said quietly, moving her hand up to cup the side of his face. She remembered how when they first met, he had kissed her hand. She remembered the way her heart skipped at the softness of his lips on her knuckle. Her hand beside his face returned the memory to her mind and made her think about-
“I’m afraid it’s getting late,” said Willam gently, interrupting her train of thought. “I’m not certain we’d make it back in time.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” she said, adjusting her grip on his neck. “I’m having a great time right here.”
“So, does your school host many events like Grom?”
“Um, well Grom is pretty unique,” said Paulina. “I mean, they have other events but thankfully they’re not as high stakes as Grom.”
“Any other ones that involve dancing?” William inquired. “Because I’d hate to think that getting to dance with you only occurs once a year.”
“Well then, we’d better make it count,” she said with a tiny smile. “Just in case.” She knew there’d be plenty of chances if she had anything to say about it, but she wanted to prolong this one as long as she could.He seemed to share the thought as he twirled her around the garden once more.
He was so close now that Paulina could see him clearly even without her glasses. He had freckles, that was the first thing Paulina noticed, dashed across his nose and cheeks like a constellation. She couldn’t understand why he would ever hide them, and she imagined how they would rise and ripple when he smiled wide. When he spoke, she could see the gap in his teeth and with all these things in place she wanted so desperately to see him smile wide. The true him was just as handsome as the William she had met, just with more little details. And his eyes were brown, a deep amber color with flakes of gold that reminded Paulina of a rusted gate that protected her tiny garden in her yard. They were warm and deep and big and… so close.
She knew he had wanted her not to, but she couldn’t help but get lost in his eyes. He didn’t seem to mind as he was equally engrossed in hers. At some point they had stopped moving, and were standing among the rose bushes holding onto each other like something out of a romantic dream. Why, if Paulina didn’t know any better she would think that-.
“Paulina, could I… would it be okay if I.. uh, may I…” His eyes darted between hers and her lips as though he was caught in a strange loop. Paulina’s mouth suddenly felt dry and she couldn’t manage a response the same way he couldn’t manage the question. But while their words failed them, something else seemed to help bring them closer together. Something buzzing in Paulina’s chest like a swarm of fire bees told her to tilt her head to the side and relax her hold on William’s neck. The same soundless thing swirling behind William’s armor like a sinkhole told him to hold her closer and close his eyes.
As his hand cupped her cheek, she had no doubt that he intended to kiss her. And she had no doubt that she intended to let him. As the space between them grew smaller, Paulina rose to her tip toes and nearly out of her shoes, eagerly hoping to make it disappear completely. The world felt like it was spinning around them.
Then it actually was.
“Woah!” they exclaimed, suddenly finding themselves creating a splash as they backed into the pond and landed in the water, losing their balance as they became blind to everything else around them.
“Oh my Titan, are you okay?” coughed William, wiping his soaked bangs from his face.
“I’m fine!” she said, her hair escaping its curls as she managed to stand up and extend her hand to him. “Are you okay?”
“Nothing damaged but my pride,” he said as he took it and allowed her to help him up. “I guess I uh… got a little distracted.”
“Me too,” she blushed.
“Are your glasses okay?” He asked frantically, remembering they were in her pocket. She pulled them out to check and was relieved to see they were as she slipped them back on.
With his crown still floating in the water, Paulina saw his true face in clarity and the warm buzzing returned to her chest. “Woah.”
“Oh!” He said timidly when he realized the truth of his current state. “I’m sorry, I look-.”
“You could never look anything but princely,” she assured.
“Heh,” he chuckled nervously. “Thank you, I thought yo- oh no! Oh no, oh no!” He said suddenly, turning his attention to the water as he began splashing and searching. “Oh I hope the water doesn’t ruin it!”
“Oh right,” she said, remembering his crown was in the water. “Oh no, I hope it’s not-.”
“Found it!” He exclaimed, holding his recovered treasure over his head. But he did not hold his crown. Instead, he held the flower she had given him. The petals were slightly wilted but otherwise the water had not damaged the plant. William held it delicately as though it was porcelain and Paulina wanted to reach out and hold him the exact same way.
“Maybe next year, we can wear matching water lilies to Grom,” she said with a smile, kneeling the the water beside him, aware but unbothered by the cold. “That way we’ll be prepared if things end up the same way.”
“Well, hopefully they won’t,” he said, trying not to think about what not ending up in the water meant. He tried to maintain his composure at the implication that she was also asking him to Grom a year in advance. “Hopefully next year we’ll actually make it to the dance and you won’t have to spend the evening in a dress that’s torn and wet.”
“Well….” She said as she brought his hand to her lips and pressed a gentle kiss to his knuckle just as he had done when they first met. “It’ll be worth it if I get to dance with a handsome prince again.”
He smiled.
“Well, I’ll never say no to a dance with fair princess.”
His freckles rise and rippled just as she imagined they would. The moment might have passed for a fairy tale first kiss, but she felt confident it would return soon and would certainly not be an event that happened only once a year.
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apoptoses · 8 months
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💖 What made you start writing? 🧠 Marius ! And/or Pandora.
💖 What made you start writing?
wow wow make me embarrass myself right out of the gate here lmao
honestly the answer is YOU, and @hekateinhell and @rainbowcarousels. like i inhaled all you guys's fic last fall and read your meta and stuff here on tumblr and it just looked like you were all having so much fun and being creative? and then i thought maybe if i tried writing and liked it, other people would talk to me about armand and i could make VC friends. and look at us now!!
and i've always been a maladaptive daydreamer, whenever i get a new blorbo i end up playing out scenes about them in my head so i thought maybe writing would be a good outlet for those thoughts. and then instead of being a weirdo who stares into space thinking about armand getting fucked dumb i would be ~plotting~ and my adhd symptom would become something productive lmao
i wish i had some deeper, more inspirational reason but 'i wanna make friends and put my weirdo thoughts to good use' is really all there is to it.
🧠 Marius ! And/or Pandora.
okay okay marius head canons, let's go:
cat guy. like cats were highly respected in ancient rome and as a guy who likes to own fine things, he would not have been down to have pests in the house. so he's always been the type to sit out food for local strays and have a favorite or two he lets wander his home. i like to imagine him giving some philosophical monologue to pandora about how vampires are similar to cats, they're both instinctual killers and pandora being like 'are you really trying to mansplain cats to me in order to justify to yourself how much you enjoy petting the stray that lives in your garden?'
i see him being a really thoughtful gift giver. he has such a hard time expressing remorse and admitting he did something wrong, so he became great at picking out presents to compensate. and besides he just has great taste. definitely the guy everyone in auvergne wants to pull their name the year lestat insists on playing the mortal game of 'secret santa'.
i feel like it would be easy to assume he hates modern art because he's such a classicist. and maybe he did at first, he didn't get the purpose of painting with such a seeming 'lack' of technique until he stood in front of a rothko himself. and with his vampire vision he saw all the subtle variations in red that covered the canvas and he got it, he was deeply moved.
definitely went all in on architecture during the egpytian revival period and had home with a facade that replicated an ancient temple. (this didn't make akasha give him any special attention. not that he would admit to hoping for that or anything, he was just keeping up with the times, obviously)
he and daniel briefly terrorized a pub trivia night by sweeping every category every time they showed up until the owner gently requested they not come back since other patrons were tired of losing. he can't help that he's well read and his companion has a great wealth of knowledge on pop culture, okay?? mortals these days are such sore losers.
some guys are into shoes, some are into watches, we know from canon that he loves gloves and so he absolutely has a pair of bespoke leather gloves in every color for every occasion. driving gloves, white lambskin gloves for formal events, fur lined gloves for winter, he has multiple drawers in his closet for his collection. no i don't need smut with him doing obscene things to someone while wearing these gloves for kinktober why do you ask
i could go on but THERE YOU GO, i hope my niche and useless thoughts about him were entertaining at least 🥰
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tavina-writes · 7 months
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@add1ctedt0you responding here in a new post bc the other one was long and this will also get pretty long! (also no worries about bothering me I'm never bothered by yelling about stuff I love yelling about stuff!!)
For your second question: I think there has to be a distinction between like "cultivator" and a traditional wuxia style martial artist. I kind of use this a bit too interchangeably in meta, but technically LOCH jianghu members aren't really cultivators. They're very human martial artist who don't get the chance to be immortal (I guess unless you're Zhang Sanfeng from HSDS who apparently lived to be 230 years old.) The distinction here is that typically (from what I understand) cultivator novels/cultivators are people who seek to cultivate to immortality/godhood/etc through whichever mode of action they've chosen. In traditional Chinese philosophy this sort of "cultivation" also means secluding oneself from the outside world and societal concerns and affairs.
A wuxia novel is about martial arts heroes who are tied up with dealing with societal affairs in the Jianghu. MDZS isn't really a traditional cultivator novel either -- it's a really interesting blend of genres and ideas, and I see a lot of the bones of traditional wuxia in it! Which is one of the reasons why I'm drawn to it!
The flying on swords bit is as far as I know, a cultivator novel thing, which, since LOCH isn't a cultivator novel, they can float, walk on water, scale surfaces we wouldn't be able to etc, but they can't fly on swords. The interview you mentioned with MXTX to my recollection said that MDZS cultivators live a maximum of 500 years. So my perception has always been that they can't achieve immortality either and probably live normal human lifespans.
I think for your first question, Novel!HYS will always be the king of my heart when it comes to just HOW much of a blorbo he is. This man is a dramatic kingpin he's. he's just SO.
Have a selection of some of my favorite book related pull quotes about him:
Venerable Lingzhi coldly replied, “I did see a young lady, but the one I saw was dead one, not a live one.” Huang Yaoshi’s heart turned cold, “What?” he quickly asked, his voice was trembling. Venerable Lingzhi replied, “About three days ago I saw a body of a young girl floating on the surface of the sea. She was wearing white clothes with a gold ring on her hair; originally her face must be so pretty. Ay! What a pity, what a pity! What a pity her body was swollen by the seawater.” What he described was exactly Huang Rong’s clothes and adornments, every single one was accurate. Huang Yaoshi’s mind was greatly troubled, his body shook, his face turned pale; a moment later he asked, “Are you telling me the truth?” Everybody else clearly saw Huang Rong boarded the small boat just a moment ago; now they heard how Venerable Lingzhi was deceiving this man, taking pleasure in others’ misfortune; but even as they saw Huang Yaoshi’s grieving face, nobody made any sound.
From Legend of the Condor Heroes, Chapter 22 "Wandering on a Shark's Back."
Further pull quotes from 22:
Ouyang Feng noticed his look and realized his grief had reached its peak so he started to have a murderous intent. Although he himself would not suffer a loss this oncoming force would not be easy to resist; hence he quickly said, “I had just come in on board this board today, and it was the first time I met all these people. When this Reverend saw some floating corpses, your daughter was not necessarily among them.” Sighing, he continued, “Your beloved daughter is such a good girl; it is very regrettable if she really died at such a young age. If my nephew found out, he would die of heartbreak.” This speech had shifted the blame from his own shoulder, but clearly did not offend either side. Listening to Ouyang Feng Huang Yaoshi was completely in shock; his heart sank in an instant. He was of the kind who loved to vent his anger to others; otherwise when the Twin Killers of the Dark Wind stole his manual, why did he break Lu Chengfeng and his other innocent disciple’s legs and expelled them from his school? This time he felt his chest was icy-cold, but his blood was boiling hot, just like when his beloved wife died some years ago. His hands were trembling, his face turned from snow white to crimson red alternatively. Everybody was looking at him in silence; their hearts were filled with unspeakable fear. Even Ouyang Feng was anxious; he gathered his ‘qi’ in his ‘dan tian’, his whole body was alert, ready to take any attack. The entire deck was unusually quiet. Suddenly Huang Yaoshi let out a long laugh, it sounded like a never ending dragon roar. This latest development has taken everybody by surprise; they were startled. They saw him facing upward and laughing wildly, getting louder and louder. His laughter had caused a chill in the air; those who listened to it felt more and more miserable. Gradually the laughter turned into weeping. The people could not bear it any longer, they felt like they shared his grief and were about to shed tears too.
Like, his reaction to hearing (inaccurately) that Huang Rong had died was just SO. Like, the thing about Novel!HYS is just that his emotions are SO vivid and so huge in amplitude. His highs are SO high and his lows are so low. Insane yoyo of a man. Beloved blorbo. What a guy.
The exquisiteness of the coffin wood, the various plants and rare orchids, the different flowers that bloom at different seasons, everything was Huang Yaoshi’s personal choice. They glittered under the moonlight, each radiating its own unique scent. Huang Rong pushed the tombstone three times to the left and three times to the right; then exerting her strength she pushed it forward. The tombstone slowly moved to the side, revealing a long and narrow stonewalled tunnel. She went in; and after making three turns she arrived at another secret door. Beyond this door was where the coffin was placed. The room was bright from the oil lamp inside a precious stone container, illuminating Huang Rong’s mother’s memorial tablet. Alone in that small underground room, seeing the painting of her deceased mother made by her father’s own hand, Huang Rong’s heart was filled with a roller coaster emotion; she thought, “I have never seen Mother. I wonder after I die, will I meet her? Was she really that young and beautiful as in the picture? Where is she right now? Is she at the sky above, or in the earth below, or still in this room? I am going to stay here forever to accompany her.” Along the wall of this tomb there were precious jewels, antique collections, and paintings and calligraphy from famous artists; each worth a fortune. After his wife died, Huang Yaoshi roamed the sea and lakes to collect these precious articles. Whether it was inside the imperial palace, or inside the house of some rich government official, or in a robbers’ den high up on the mountain; as long as he knew there was a treasure, he would come and steal or take it by force. His martial art was high, he had keen eyes and sophisticated taste; hence he managed to collect quite a bit of treasures piling up inside his wife’s grave. Huang Rong could see the bright pearls, beautiful jade, emeralds and amethysts glimmering under the firelight; she thought, “These precious jewels don’t have any feeling, yet they will live for million of years. Today I am looking at them in here, but in the future my body will turn into dust while they will still be here. Is it true that among the living things, the smart and intelligent won’t have a long life? Is it because she was so smart that my mother died when she was only twenty?”
From Chapter 19 "Great Waves and Schools of Sharks"
When she was little her father often took her here; he would tell her mother anything that happened outside, regardless of how trivial those matters were. In the past several years she did not go with her father as often yet it still did not surprise her to hear her father talking in front of the coffin. She was still upset with him, so she did not want to see him. She wanted to wait quietly until he left, but what she heard next surprised her. “I have found your heart’s desire,” he said, “I know you have suffered a lot that year you rewrote the Nine Yin Manual; I want to find it and burn it in your presence, so your spirit in heaven will be consoled. I have searched in vain for fifteen years, but today I have found it.” Huang Rong was surprised, “Where did Father get the Nine Yin Manual from?” she wondered. “I did not want to intentionally kill your son-in-law,” she heard her father continue. “But it was they who insisted on riding on that boat.” Huang Rong was puzzled, “Mother’s son-in-law? Is he talking about Brother Jing? He rode on that boat, then what?” She opened her ears wide and listened attentively. Huang Yaoshi recounted how miserable and lonely his life had become ever since his wife passed away and how bad he missed her. Huang Rong listened to him pouring out his heart and her own heart was filled with sorrow. “Brother Jing and I are merely teenagers and we love each other. I don’t think it is impossible to see each other in the future; but I cannot leave my father,” she thought.
From Chapter 19 "Great Waves and Schools of Sharks"
Huang Yaoshi loved his wife very much. Moreover, his wife died because she wanted to make him happy. Therefore, he wanted to commit suicide as a sacrifice to her. But he knew his martial art was profound, he would not die easily by hanging himself or simply drinking a poison. Plus, if he died on the island, he was sure his mute and deaf servants would mutilate his body. Hence he went to the mainland and kidnapped a highly skilled boat builder to build him this fancy boat. This boat’s keel was no different from a regular boat; except that the bottom of the boat was not nailed together with ordinary metal nails, but was put together by ropes and glue. Mooring on the marina it looked like an extremely magnificent and beautiful yacht; but as soon as it sailed to the sea, the waves would disintegrate the rope and glue, and the boat would certainly sink. Originally he intended to put his wife’s coffin on the boat, take the boat to the sea and while the waves rocked the boat, he would play with his jade flute the jade-colored tidal wave song; together with his wife they would be buried thousands of feet under the sea. This way he would make a clean end to his life and not disgrace his reputation as a martial art master of his age. However, every time he wanted to go he could not bear to take their daughter along; and who would raise her if he died? Finally he decided to build a tomb and placed his wife in it. He repainted the boat every year, so it always looked new. He was going to wait for their daughter to grow up before he would take his last voyage.
From Chapter 19 "Great Waves and Schools of Sharks"
LIKE. What a guy. What an experience. We KNOW how Feng Heng died, but Huang Rong is never traumatized by the fact that her mother died giving birth to her. Her father has never hit her, blamed her, spoken (.5) of an angry word to her, disciplined her... The first time he yelled at her in her life for talking to ZBT (who he had been torturing every day for 15 years at that point! and COULD have been super dangerous) she huffily up and RUNS AWAY bc "DAD DOESNT LOVE ME ANYMORE! SEE HOW YOU LIKE IT WHEN RONG'ER IS GONE!"
Novel!HYS bought his daughter toys and is always shown hugging her when they meet again or carrying her when she's injured and taught her anything she wanted to learn even though she was never interested in anything for longer than a month. He told her about her history, never faulted or blamed her, and loved and spoiled her until she was pretty much ungovernable.
Seeing the cupboard door suddenly shatter and reveal Guo Jing and Huang Rong, Huang Yaoshi and the Six Freaks leapt back from each other, startled and delighted at the same time. Suddenly seeing his beloved daughter, Huang Yaoshi was unsure if he was dreaming. He rubbed his eyes. “Rong’er, Rong’er,” he called out, “is it really you?” Huang Rong, still holding one palm enjoined with Guo Jing’s left, gave a slight smile and nodded her head, but said nothing. At this, Huang Yaoshi’s joy exceeded all expectations; putting other thoughts behind him, he laid Mei Chaofeng’s body down on a bench, went over to the cupboard, and sat down cross-legged. One touch of his daughter’s wrist, and he felt her pulse and breathing firm and steady. Then, reaching through the cupboard doorway, he pressed his left palm against Guo Jing’s right. The many currents of sizzling qi boiling and bubbling inside Guo Jing’s body were already unbearable in the extreme; by this point, there’d been several times when he’d wanted to leap up screaming and shouting to relieve the pressure. When Huang Yaoshi’s palm came to enjoin with his, a stream of inner power flowed through with tremendous force, and instantly he felt a gradual settlement. Using his right hand, Huang Yaoshi set about kneading and massaging all the critical acupoints on Guo Jing; so profound was his neigong that, in just the time it took to make a bowl of rice, he had saved Guo Jing’s life.
From Chapter 26 "New Allies, Old Arrangements"
His HIGHS are just as high as the lows are low.
Huang Yaoshi, upon hearing his beloved daughter had somehow become the Chief of the Beggar Gang, was utterly bewildered. “What a bizarre move from Brother Qi!” he remarked. “And how heretical of him! Perhaps he’s thinking of stealing my nickname – no longer being the ‘Northern Beggar’, and instead being the ‘Northern Heretic’? The ‘Five Greats’ would then be the ‘Eastern Beggar’, ‘Western Venom’, ‘Southern Emperor’, ‘Northern Heretic’, and ‘Central Who-Knows-What?’” Her tale having reached the fight between Huang Yaoshi and the Freaks, Huang Rong gave a laugh. “That’s all,” she said. “There’s no use me saying what happened next!” Huang Yaoshi announced: “I’m going to go and kill those four bastards Ouyang Feng, Lingzhi, Qiu Qianren and Yang Kang. Come with me and watch the fun, kid.” He was talking about killing people, but because he was looking fondly upon his beloved daughter, his face was all smiles. Taking a glance at the Freaks, he felt rather contrite. Yet although he knew himself to be clearly in the wrong, he was still unwilling to hang his head and admit a fault to anyone, only offering: “The movement of qi hasn’t turned out too badly. It didn’t make me harm someone good by accident.” As for Huang Rong, she’d originally resented the Freaks for prohibiting Guo Jing from getting married to her. But now that Mu Nianci and Yang Kang had gotten engaged, this issue had already been resolved. “Daddy,” she giggled, “how about admitting to the teachers that you made a mistake?” Huang Yaoshi gave a snort. “I’m going to go and find Western Venom,” he said, changing the subject. He added: “Jing’er, you come too.”
From Chapter 26 "New Allies, Old Arrangements"
He's HILARIOUS in the book too. Like, truly, this guy is FUNNY too on top of all his other personality traits. Why do people keep forgiving him of his crimes? He's talented at everything, incredibly funny, unhinged, without any manners whatsoever, and he KEEPS DOING CRIME and ADMITTING IT whenever he's accused of ANYTHING. What a funny situation it is that he finds out about a crime (15) minutes ago and then starts going "IT WAS ME. IT WAS ALL ME! I'D DO IT AGAIN! I'D DO IT WORSE THIS TIME! ALL THE CRIMES IN THE WORLD ARE MY FAULT!"
LIKE. There's also something to be said for the way that the narrator always says, "his beloved wife" "his beloved daughter." It gets me okay, that HYS is such a deeply traumatized person who reacts badly to almost everything (and is self aware he reacts badly to everything), but the narrator cannot pry him from the word 'love.' His love for his wife. His love for his daughter. The way he himself is defined by these mentions, how Feng Heng has never stopped haunting him.
I wrote about his relationship with Huang Rong and how unaffected his love for his daughter is by his trauma surrounding the death of his wife more here.
I wrote about another key scene with HYS and his backstory here.
Also if you want to cry about the boat thing some more:
in HSDS we learn that he finally DID go suicide boating after hearing that his daughter's entire family died at Xiangyang. Guo Xiang (who is the only survivor) comes to her grandfather's house on Peach Blossom Island to look for him and there's a line of "and the docks were empty, all of the boats had gone."
Just. "All of boats had gone." BREAKS ME.
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quinloki · 3 months
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Do you wanna guess what I thought about all night Quin?
I’m legit trying to figure out what I need to sacrifice to get to be in between these two
….
And Izou. And Ace >>
I do NOT HAVE TIME to stay up and read tonight bc a repairman is coming early but ugh I was so tempted to reread that kinktober piece you did even tho I just reread it like…. Last week…
Gonna be looking that grouping up on ao3 too, I know I read another one with that set up awhile ago >>
But not tonight alas I will head off to bed at a respectable time (2am lmao) and think about them
Omg but I was going thru the tabs on my computer looking for something…. And I still have that wbp yandere ask you were sent up… and I gave it another glance and my brain went brrrr
Anyways
I just wanted you to know you killed me and I was brain rotting the whole night at work. My coworker said I was very quiet and I was like oh uh it was the smelling salts yep totally that nothing else >>
I think Thatch is gonna sneak his way onto my blorbo list here soon…
XD <3
Thatch kind of snuck his way with me too. He's very much a background character, and even with additional flash backs we don't get much on him - which is understandable, the cast of One Piece is massive.
But we get personality and such from extra, like official game pop art and such, and I think they did a good job just because the general fanon for Thatch is so consistent. Details change here and there, but I mean, that's the joy of fandom, fanon, and head canon honestly.
I have a Thatch x Reader I've got some notes for, but that's admittedly a ways off. I need to wrap more up before I dive into it (though the outline is going well, I might make it my NaNo this year and just do it all in one month.)
He's just so BIG. Like, he's barrel-chested, his hair's big, he's got that big wide smile. Idk, I know we don't get much of him, but he just has a BIG presence to me, and at the same time I feel like he's such a hopeless romantic. Maybe it's the more traditional "cook" outfit he has, or even the pompadour.
Like, who would do that to their hair unless they thought it was going to attract the ladies? 😂🥰 (or laddies.)
He whistles or hums while he cooks, I just know he does, and if he's cooking something special for someone special? He's practically singing, deep tenor teetering on baritone notes vibrating against that wide chest, damn dopey grin on his face.
(I also think he has just the best worst sense of humor and you cannot convince me he wouldn't just be FUN in the sack. (that is a very very nude image, open with care!))
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