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nostalgebraist · 2 months

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Here are some fun / amusing / potentially-interesting facts about the process of writing and plotting Almost Nowhere, if anyone's curious.

Major spoilers for the whole of Almost Nowhere under the cut.

(There's really no way to spoiler-censor this material without rendering it incomprehensible. If you haven't read the book, do that first before reading this post.)

(1)

A large fraction of the book's eventual plot emerged from my attempts to patch a single, in-some-sense trivial continuity error I made while writing the very first chapter.

The Mooncrash section of that chapter ends with this sentence (emphasis added):

All parties were used to stillness, now, for the Mooncrash was nearly four years old.

And a few paragraphs later, in the opening of the Academy section, we get this (emphasis added again):

For (as everyone knows) the Shroud is upon us and while it tolerates the Academy — as it presently is, as it has been for the last eight years, a chrysalis, preparing itself step by minuscule step [...]

So: The Mooncrash is 4 years old. The Academy crash is at least 8 years old, and indeed older.

Yet the Mooncrash is also as old as the crash system itself! It was made by humans, during the period between the discovery of the anomalings and the mass-crashing of the human race. (This is only shown in the second chapter, but I had it in mind before then.)

How long has the human race been crashed, then? At most 4 years, and at least 8 years? How could that possibly be?

It would have been easy enough to just edit the chapter, but that's not how I do things. Restrictions, famously, breed creativity. I enjoy attempting to solve puzzles I have inadvertently created for myself, and many of my best ideas have been produced through this process.

It would also have been simple and easy to merely say: "OK, I guess time elapses at different subjective rates, in different crashes."

Amusingly, I ended up doing that anyway! But for some reason, this avenue didn't occur to me at first. By the time I started asking myself whether to include this kind of effect, I already had a different solution in mind.

I spent a lot of time beating my head against the figurative wall, trying to resolve the 4-vs-8-year issue. The early parts of my AN notes are full of this stuff.

----

At some early point, I came up with the idea that the anomalings/shades would deal with troublesome crashes by "rebasing" them, rewriting their histories.

I didn't intend, initially, for this idea to take over the plot as much as it eventually did. It was just a fun idea that underscored the huge power differential between the anomalings and their captives, and felt in line with the Cartesian/Wachowskian themes of transcending a "fake"/illusory world, radically doubting one's own perceptions and memories, etc.

But, having stipulated that "rebases" were a thing, I hit upon the idea that they could be used to modify the total quantity of past (subjective) time inside a crash -- turning 8 years into 4, or vice versa, or whatever.

So, I could fix the problem by stipulating that one -- or both -- of the problematic crashes had already been rebased, in this way.

But why? And by whom?

----

Now, at this early stage, I also had the idea in mind that the character "Anne" would eventually escape from her crash, and that she would have a hand in various major events in the story -- including some events that had already occurred, relative to the "present" of the textual PoV.

But I didn't know, yet, what these interventions actually were.

(I put "Anne" in quotes, here, because in the very early stages I casually assumed that only the PoV Anne introduced in Chapter 1 would be a major character, and that her sisters were merely background material for her personal narrative, like the tower itself. Of course, in the process of thinking through the details of things, I realized that this assumption was needless and indeed counterproductive.)

As often happens when I'm plotting a story, I found that two unknowns slotted neatly into one another, each one providing a potential solution to the problem posed by the other.

We need something for "Anne" to do in the past. Something consequential, something that shows off her newfound agency -- but also something that obscures her role from view. Ideally, something kind of weird, esoteric, "advanced"; something that feels buried inside the deep, dark center of the backstory, which the reader will only "excavate" at the end of a long, strange journey.

And we need someone to rebase the Mooncrash.

That answers the "who?" question. But again -- why?

Well, it was already in the plan that Azad would join forces with Michael, when Michael went in search of his lost Anne. That Anne would meet Azad, as a result, and that it would be Azad who persuades her to return to Michael's crash.

I didn't, at the time, have much else planned for the Anne-Azad connection.

As originally conceived, the "Azad convinces Anne to return" scene was about Azad's uncertain loyalties, and about Anne's lack of exposure to other human beings (and to the power of words, as deployed by human beings with access to real human culture). That is, it merely served specific, separate purposes in the sub-stories of these two characters. There was no intent to set up, or develop, a thread connecting these sub-stories, making Azad a major character in Anne's arc and vice versa.

But that seems like kind of a shame, doesn't it? Why go to the trouble of preparing these characters, and bringing them into contact, if I didn't have anything for them to do together?

Anne and Azad.

We need someone to rebase the Mooncrash.

We need Anne to learn about real human culture, somehow, before she leaves. I knew that, already, though I didn't have a mechanism in mind.

(I also knew, by this point, that causing Azad's appointment as translator was another one of "Anne's" consequential moves. I had conceived of this, at first, as a relatively impersonal act, done only for its historical significance. Indeed, that would have been enough -- but the more the merrier, theme/motivation-wise.)

Problems paired up, interlocked, and became each others' solutions.

(1b)

As is obvious from the above, I didn't have the scenario planned out in very much detail when I wrote the first chapter.

At the time, the story had been gestating in my head for a while, but only as a bunch of vague inklings and intentions.

The proximate cause of writing-the-first-chapter was a sudden and unexpected burst of inspiration. I was riding the bus to a social event, and suddenly my mind was awash with crisp, never-before-glimpsed details about Anne and her tower, the Mooncrash, the Academy, Cordelia's blue dress -- all the stuff of Chapter 1. It felt like a crucial message was being beamed into my brain, VALIS-style, from the Muse / Higher Power.

I had an urge to bail on the social event, turn around, ride back home, and start writing immediately -- what if the magic went away, as suddenly as it had arrived? I resisted that urge and made a perfunctory appearance at the event, but then went back home and wrote as much as I could before falling asleep.

So, when I was writing that chapter, stuff like "four years" and "eight years" wasn't based on any single coherent picture, just vibes and vague inklings.

(I think 4 years probably sounded like the right amount of time for G&A to have been in the Mooncrash, character-wise. Meanwhile, Hector's ascension from the Academy had to be long enough ago that there would be no direct overlap between Hector and any of the current students. The "Bad Old Days" had to feel like something you'd only hear about in rumors, or from authority figures who probably weren't telling the full story.)

(2)

Like TNC before it, Almost Nowhere was originally conceived as relatively simple and straightforward story, only to become something much weirder and more complicated as I fleshed out the details.

As I said above, I only had a very vague "plan" at the outset of the writing process. But I kinda knew where I was going with it, in very broad strokes.

The original arc, insofar as it existed at all, was something like:

The bilateral / anomaling tension is introduced.

The bilateral PoV characters come to an understanding of their situation.

Many of the bilateral PoV characters join up with Hector Stein, who is already trying to defeat the anomalings and free humanity from the crashes.

Azad temporarily sides with the anomalings, and Anne temporarily returns to her captive state. But both them "come around" eventually.

Anne eventually triumphs over Michael, delivers a dramatic monologue castigating him for imprisoning her (etc.), and mounts a successful escape.

Shortly after Anne's escape, some (TBD!) resolution to the main conflict is achieved. Whatever it is, it is proposed/spearheaded by the bilateral faction (and specifically Anne herself), and it somehow exemplifies "the bilateral way of thinking/being."

The humbled anomalings conclude that "the bilateral way of thinking/being" has its advantages, both practically and morally.

So the story, as originally conceived, was much more straightforwardly about the "good" PoV humans fighting back against aliens.

It unabashedly took the bilateral side in the conflict, and it ended with a "beauty of our weapons" sort of moment in which the bilaterals are both victorious and righteous, and in which these two kinds of success are closely linked and almost merged.

I have to imagine that, even in counterfactual worlds where some things went differently, I never would have stuck to this version of the story all the way through.

Because, one way or the other, I would have eventually realized that.. like... this version of the story kind of sucks, right?

I mean, why go to the trouble of introducing these aliens, and trying to make them interesting, only to say "nah, actually these guys were just wrong, it's us and our existing 'ordinary' pre-conceptions that are right, and that's what the story was about all along"?

It would have been "inventing a guy to be mad at," as the saying goes.

Not a great foundation for a story. And the least interesting possible direction to go in, given this kind of setup.

It also presents a seemingly unresolvable tension, for the writer, about how to portray the distinctively "bilateral" nature of the bilateral side in the conflict.

If "bilateral" is as broad a category as the anomalings say it is -- if you and I and all of us, whatever other qualities we possess, participate equally in this sin -- then it's hard to strike a note of emotional triumph around the quality of "bilaterality" that doesn't feel wrong, vacuous, or bloodlessly abstract.

"Woo, yeah, humans are great!" I mean, are they? All of them? You don't get to say "well, only the good ones," here, or "in their ideals if not always their acts," or anything like that. Everyone is included in the relevant category, except for the guys-who-aren't that were invented for this specific story.

It's difficult to make this land properly, in the same way it would be difficult to write a story that inspires "carbon-based life pride" or "having-DNA pride" or the like in its reader.

So this version of the story was dead on arrival. And indeed, by the time I was thinking through the stuff chronicled in (1) above, this version of the story felt like a provisional placeholder, at best, in my mind.

Nonetheless, there are various echoes of it in the story I eventually landed on.

For example, in the original version of "Anne's" escape -- conceived in a much more straightforwardly positive way -- I had Anne reading "real" books in secret, drawing moral strength from them, and then including a bunch of literary quotes in her big dramatic monologue to Michael. (I took inspiration, here, from John the Savage reading Shakespeare in Brave New World.)

And I had the idea that "Anne," being an autodidact, would read omnivorously without making culture-bound distinctions familiar to you and me; that her selection of quotes, in the monologue, would put low culture alongside high culture, infamous books alongside famous ones, etc.; and as a particular case, that it'd be fun if -- before going on to quote Shakespeare and co. -- she began the whole thing by quoting Ayn Rand.

And that one idea stuck, even if the rest of it didn't.

(Or, consider how the idea of "a powerful move in the conflict that exemplifies the bilateral way of thinking/being" actually crops up multiple times in the finished story, right up to its last scenes. One can see traces of it in the "trick" that obsesses Michael, in the use of autobiographical writing to build up nostalgium, and in Annabel's improved crash design.)

(3)

I came up with the Mirzakhani Mechanism relatively late, in between writing Chapter 13 and writing Chapters 14-15 (in which the MM is introduced).

The MM was a product of looking back at the sci-fi elements that already existed in the story, like crashes and rebases, and trying to invent some single underlying explanation that covered all of them in a relatively parsimonious way.

This basically "worked," I think -- it certainly worked better than I had been expecting, after playing the dangerous game of "write a bunch of weird stuff and hope you'll be able to explain it all later." (I remember talking to one reader who was shocked that I hadn't had the MM in mind from the very beginning, which was flattering.)

It also had unintended consequences that kinda took over the story, but largely in a good way.

Earlier, I had planned to have the post-rebase crash timelines "screened off" from the outside world somehow, so that rebasing a crash wouldn't mess up the timeline of the outside world. But, once I'd fixed the idea that "rebasing is an MM event" in place, I realized that this wasn't consistent with the way MM events were meant to work. Instead, the exposition in Ch. 15 directly implies the stuff about rebases that Grant realizes much later in Ch. 41.

Once I'd noticed this, it was obvious that it was extremely important, and I re-incorporated it into the broader plot.

On a related note, I eventually decided that the account of the anomalings "going backward in time to our era" in Ch. 15 didn't really make sense. This meant I needed a different, more viable way anomalings and bilaterals to exist at the same point in time.

This line of thought, along with several others (like "what happened to all the nonhuman organisms?" and "which parts of the MM multiverse are real?"), eventually led me to invent Everywhere-Heaven and the beasts.

That happened right at the start of 2022, between Chapters 21 and 22.

It quickly became clear that the E-H/beasts stuff could be put to a lot of valuable use in story's third act, which was largely a worrying blank space in my head (even at this point!). From thereon out, I worked on fleshing out the third act behind the scenes while writing the second.

Not coincidentally, Chapter 22 contains a ton of E-H-related foreshadowing, and also some hints that human scientists (like Aidan in Ch. 15) had never fully understood the anomalings.

The use of Maryam Mirzakhani, a real (and recently deceased) mathematician, was a weird choice and arguably one in poor taste. All I can really say in defense of it is that it came to me suddenly, and had a number of properties that fit the vibe of the part of the story in which it appeared, and I have a policy of "going with my gut" when it suggests such things to me.

I felt similarly about this choice and another thing introduced in Ch. 15, the nuclear attack intended to kill scientists. Both of these things underscored the fact that the story took place in an alternate reality. And both felt sort of "edgy," "too dark," "too close to the real world" compared to the tone of the story so far. But I wanted to take the story to new places in the coming acts -- "darker," "more real" places -- and something felt right about introducing these elements at this exact point, as signposts providing an indication of where things were headed.

(4)

The phrase "NOWHERE TO HIDE" was originally "NO MERCY," in my notes.

And the abbreviation "NM" for "NO MERCY" was used throughout my notes for Nowhere-To-Hide related stuff, e.g. "NM Annes."

This wasn't the product of much thought, just the first thing that came to mind that had roughly the correct vibe. I almost immediately concluded that I'd have to replace "NO MERCY" with something else in the work itself, since it would seem like an Undertale reference that I didn't intend to make.

"Moon" was originally just a placeholder name -- a shorthand for "the 'NM Anne' who rebased the Mooncrash." But I liked the idea of actually using it, once it had occurred to me.

The corresponding placeholder name for A11 was "Ling," as in "linguist" (but also an actual name).

(5)

I went through 3 different outlines of the third act.

Really, there was a first outline, which was really bad, and then there were two slightly-different versions of a very different outline that mostly corresponds to the finished draft.

The first, bad outline was amusingly titled "notes-satisfying-ending.txt", because I explicitly used this post about "satisfying endings" as a guideline while writing it.

(To be clear, I don't think the linked post was to blame for the badness of that first outline. I didn't ultimately find the post very helpful as writing advice, but the "satisfying ending" outline wasn't even a "satisfying ending" in the post's own terms, and was also bad in unrelated ways.)

I don't want to go into much detail about the bad outline. It was really bad, and also really different from what eventually occurred. It's honestly a pretty embarrassing document.

A lot of the key ideas were there (E-H, etc.), and the very end of the story was roughly the same. But it had a ton of needless flaws that I later corrected. Various existing character arcs and motivations were dropped and never picked up, or suddenly diverted in some new and unfruitful direction; way too much time was spent on getting characters and objects from point A to point B, or otherwise sort of rambling about in a way that didn't matter in the end; it included a lot of whimsical "fun ideas" that weren't necessary and would have added clutter to an already very full canvas; etc.

I never got to the point of building a chapter-by-chapter version of this outline, but I'm sure it would have much longer than the existing third act, also.

The existing third act is pretty long, but it was actually the result of an aggressive pruning and tightening process.

If the "satisfying-ending" outline had a single greatest flaw, it was terrible pacing. Lots of slack, lots of empty space, and when big things did happen, they came out of nowhere, not really prompted by what came immediately before them.

The next draft of the ending resulted from taking the raw materials of "satisfying-ending," purging all the dross, re-thinking all the obviously flawed stuff, and then trying to rearrange the pieces in front of me in a way that was maximally "tight" and interconnected, with questions and tensions introduced and then resolved in a rapid-fire manner, and without any major thread "sitting around in the background" long enough to feel stale, or get forgotten.

That outline was in a file called "notes-good-end.txt."

Much later, I tightened up the plan even further, merging some things that were originally in separate chapters. This was in a file called "notes-true-end.txt", and -- true to its name -- was the version reflected in the book itself.

So there was "satisfying-ending," which sucked; "good-end," which was good; and "true-end," which was slightly better.

(I realize the multiplicity of the ending, and the account of deliberate "tightening" etc., is in apparent tension with my recent account of working by direct inspiration.

There are a few things I can say about this tension.

For one, it really is true that the third act of AN was more deliberately reasoned-out, and less directly-inspired, than some of the earlier stuff. This is kind of inevitable: you don't get to do anything after an ending, that's what an ending is, and so you have to deliberately try to make the final act of a story fully work as a thing unto itself, rather than writing checks in the hope of cashing them at some later point.

And separately, I do think the final version of the ending feels "more real," "more true to the work" than the satisfying-ending draft.

I think I was aware, even while composing "satisfying-ending," that it felt off and wrong in some ways. But it was only after going through the exercise of creating a complete ending -- some sort of complete ending -- that I was able to look back and say "OK, this fits, but this doesn't fit," and distill something that actually felt right.)

#almost nowhere

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cyn-write · 3 months

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RAMSHACKLE; Based on the Pumpkin King's Curiosity

Disclaimer: In my AU, Night Raven College is a College/University so all characters are aged up 4 years. There are also mentions of alcohol.

Ramshackle is one of the oldest dorms in Night Raven History and is based on one of the oldest stories in Twisted Wonderland's history. A dorm that often attracts troublemakers, delinquents, and outsiders, the dorm often houses NRC's worst of the worst. The dorm was shut down over 200 years ago after the mirror stopped sorting students there as no one was "curious enough." But after the arrival of the first female student at NRC, Cynthia Widow, the first Magicless Student, Grace Wilde, and Magic Meniace, Grim, the dorm has reopened and welcomed 10 troublemakers that uphold the Ramshackle name and embody the Pumpkin King's domain.

History

The tale of the Pumpkin King dates back to the beginning of Twisted Wonderland's history. Halloween was the King's domain, but after ruling Halloween for years and years he became bored. The kingdom filled with huants and magic was not stimulating to the king. After a visit to Winterfest domain, he felt rejuvenated and decided he would take over Winterfest! His kingdom was excited to take on this challenge, but they did not fully understand the concept. Despite the warnings from his future Queen, he went through with the takeover and put the Sandy Claws,the ruler of Winterfest, in the care of "The Boogy Man," unknowing the danger. Despite his excitement, the takeover was a failure to others but not him. He was rejuvenated with excitement and returned to Halloween with a new vigor! He and the Sandy Claws came to a truce with the aid of the Pumpkin Queen, and the kingdom reigned for years to come.

The Dorm was the second dorm to be installed to house the troublemakers of NRC. Supervised by ghost, the dorm has an essence of haunts and spooks. The dormleader and vice are the strongest mages in the dorm in magic and spirit, as they have to run a dorm of rulebreakers. The dorms uniforms are based on the residence of Halloween town dressed in black and white with the dormhead being the only member to have color in their uniform. The dorm was often made up of the exciled members of other dorms as well as those placed in it, making for an interesting combination.

After being out of commission for 200 years, the dorm has returned with a new batch of troublemakers thanks to the suddent apperence of 2 female students, a talking magic cat, and merging with Thatch Academy for Troubled Mages. The new dorm has a new style, new faces, and a new Vigor that would make the Pumpkin King proud.

Uniforms

⬇️Ramshackle’s Housewarden Uniform and Designs for the New Ramshackle Uniforms⬇️

The term "uniform" is currently very loosely interpreted by Ramshackle. It is more of an aesthetic with color rules. The aesthetic is "Delinquent Chic" with a main color of black with pops of purple and/or green. There is a variety of selections with each student having a unique uniform to embody the members of Halloween town. Some of the peices are from the students own wardobe while others are refurbished from the attic or scraps from other the other dorms. The unifying factor of the dorm is the headpieces and dorm emblem armband or patch. The headpieces (mask or hairpin) are of one of 7 designs: A witch, a devil, a skeleton, a bat, a pumpkin, a ghost, or a spider. There are a multitude of combinations that could be made and all must be approved by the dorm head and/or Professor Crewel to ensure it fits the dorm's guidelines.

The exception to this “free-for-all” as it is called by most is the Dorm Leaders uniform which was redesigned by Crewel and the current Housewarden. Current Dormleader, Cynthia Widow, has designed a purple gown and overcoat with a web collar, black corset, and spider motifs. Crewel aided in the design and recreation of this uniform. The uniform also has the "kings scepter" and the "Web Crown" which signify its holder as the head of the dorm.

There are designs for the new uniforms for Ramshackle based on the styles of the current students as the original designs were, as Crewel put it, affronts to fashion and sight. Crewel called it "prison chic" with the original uniforms being reminiscent of prison uniforms with the color palette being black and white uniforms with a pop of color somewhere, and the dormleader and vice’s uniforms being closer to "warden" outfits than the school standards. Despite enjoying the cruel joke, Crewel decided to revamp the uniforms to be less.... prisioner and more modern, fitting the current “delinquent chic” of the residence. He, housewarden Cynthia Widow, and Vice Housewarden Grace Wilde have been debating designs, with Housewarden Widow still against the idea of uniforms all together as "The dorm of CURIOSITY should be able to dress as curious as they please." So new uniforms are coming along... slowly.

Note From Administration: "To address the complaints from fellow students and parents, Ramshackle WILL be given a uniform in the same manner as the other dorms starting next year. We are currently designing and updating the uniforms. We are not giving the dorm special treatment. Uniforms will be reinforced next year."

Note from Housewarden Widow: "I'd like to see you try."

Dorm Members

There are 10 members of Ramshackle currently since the merging with Thatch Academy for Troubled Mages.

Housewarden Cynthia Widow

Name: Cynthia (Cyn) Mazikeen Widow

Twist: The Boogy Man from "Nightmare Before Christmas"

Nicknames: Cyn - Friends; Barracuda - Floyd; Reine de l'araignée - Rook; Miss Spider - Lilia; Crowley's Dog (or Crowley's B*tch) - Some... Most Students (and Leona); Boss/Housewarden - Ramshackle Residence

Birthday: January 19th

Class: 1-B

Cynthia Widow is one of the first female students at Night Raven College, and the first student stored into Ramshackle in years. As the first member of Ramshackle, she was the defector for Dormhead, but most of the Housewarden duties are handled by Grace unless it is magical. Cyn is a half-fey student in class 1-B with a love for bugs. She excels in ancient magic and is a member of the board game club. Little to nothing is known about her past but the fact she just "appeared" out of nowhere and has a grandfather she loves and misses dearly. She is often referred to as "Crowley's Dog" as she does a lot of the mage's dirty work. She doesn't mind, though. Beacuse, as long as she does Crowley's dirty work, she can get away with a lot more than she legally should *wink wink*.

Vice Housewarden Grace Wilde (Yuusona)

Name: Grace Elizabeth Wilde

Twist: Yuu! and Jack Skellington from "Nightmare Before Christmas"

Nicknames: Gracie - Friends; Shrimpy - Floyd; Mademoiselle Tirckster -> Mademoiselle Pettie - Rook; Child of Man - Melleus; Henchmen - Grim; Anglefish-Azul (in Private)

Birthday: February 2nd

Class: 1-A

Grace Wilde is the only magicless human in NRC and is often paired with Grim, but after being provided with her service familiar, Kerby, and an alchemist ring from Trein, she is now an independent student. Specializing in animal handling and alchemy. She is the first female student to be sent to NRC and the second to be inducted into Ramshackle. She was named Vice by Cyn as she was dubbed the "mother" of Ramshackle due to her talents with troubled individuals. She is in class 1-A and the horseback riding club. She is also the founder and head of the NRC weekly book club, which she started after accepting the fact that she is never going back to her world (on the account she died there) as a way to learn about this new world through books, and force some of her friends (cough*Riddle*cough) to relax and read. She checks in on the Overblot students often as well as the new Thatch Students since they worry her, and Crowley put her in charge of getting the “comfortable”.

After the first 4 overblots and 60 visits to the nurses office, Trien, Crewel, and Nurse Pinklee "convinced" Crowely that the best way to avoid lawsuits or accidentally get the magicless human killed is to listen to Pinklee's "prescription" and get her some protection. So he gratiously gifted her a certified service familiar!

Name: Kerby the Hound

Twst: Zerro from “Nightmare Before Christmas” and Cerberus from “Hercules”

Nicknames: Kerbs- Grace, Ace, Deuce, Ivy, and Cater; FLUFFY - Ramshackle Residence; Hernch-Dog -Grim; Blobfish - Floyd; Monsieur Kerby - Rook; Good Boy/Example Student - Professor Crewel

Birthday: December 25

Kerby is a Grytrash and has some magical abilities such as his Bark (which can knock people back), he can grow 2 sizes and carry 1 person, and he can dissappere into shadows on comand. Trein and the faculty thought a magical familiar was nessassary to protect the magicless student/student-employee. Plus, they owed it to her after she had dealt with the overblots (AKA Trien and Crewel pressured Crowley for funds). Kerby service familiar is a Psychiatric service familiar that alerts her to panic attacks, aids her in difficult tasks, and acts as a protector (seeing as she has been involved in a multitude of overblots and magic duals). Grace and Kerby are the friendlier faces in Ramshackle and are always willing to provide a helping hand.

Residents of Ramshackle

Name: Grim the Great

Nickname: Grims - Grace; Grimsie - Cyn; Baby Seal - Floyd; Monsieur Fuzzball - Rook; GRIMMM - Ramshackle Residence

Birthday: ???

Class: 1-A

Grim is the feline member of Ramshackle and is often seen with Vice Housewarden Grace (dubbed himself the "Vice-Vice Housewarden"). After his turbulent entrance and a rough start, he was accepted into Ramshackle and recently named an independent student in class 1-A. He has not declared a club and prefers to float around with whichever henchman he has latched to that day. As one of the original members of Ramshackle, he sees himself as a mentor to the newbies, but he is more an encourager of chaos.

Name: Reyna Francessca Bouc

Twist: Salley from Nightmare Before Christmas

Nicknames: Rey -Friends; Tiny Tetra - Floyd; Mademoiselle Electrique - Rook; Doc - Ramshackle Residence

Birthday: June 11th

Class: 2-B

Reyna Bocu is one of the 3 fey triplets that joined NRC with Thatch Academy (Romella <twst Mother Gothel> is in Pomefiore and Rhea <twist Tinkerbelle> is in Ignanhyde). The Doc of Ramshackle is one of the quieter members of the dorm but fits in perfectly. She was a master of combining science, alchemy, and magic, which got her into trouble originally. She was a child protagy with an idetic memory and a fascination with biology. She was so fascinated with the delicatcy of being that she took the idea of life in her own hands. Her lab is off-limits, but there are times a cat that is sewn together can be seen playing with an undead toad, but that is Ramshackle's little secret.

Name: Ivy Calliope Shroud

Twist: Megara form Hercules

Nickname: Ivs - Friends; Lantern Fish - Floyd; Mademoiselle Flamme - Rook; Miss Ivy - Malleus; Sis - Idia.and Ortho; Annoying Girl - Sebek

Birthday: November 1st

Class: 1-D

Ivy Shroud is one of the 25 students who joined NRC when it merged with Thatch. Ivy is the half-sister of Ignanhyde Dormleader and "Vice"- Idia and Ortho Shroud - though few would make the connection based on how Ivy acts, but if the Shrouds were somehow in the same room, aised from the hair, the likeness is uncanny. She is one of the biggest troublemakers of Ramshackle as she often starts fights and leaves school property with a very valuble and very royal Fey. She is a skilled fighter as she studied under both Captian Alina Dobbler and Professor Korra Thatch with fists and swords. She is a student of class 1-D (due to being held back in high school), a member of the Gargoyle Studies Club (She thought it was a fan club for the "Gargoyles" T.V. Series), and a serious gamer when she has time. Ivy fights for her friends and loved ones and does not back down. Despite her attitude, she is an incredible tactician and extremely intelligent (professors often comment that she would be a star student if she showed up).

Other Dorm Residence

Lucifer Locke (Twst Locke) - 2nd year (Half-Fey)

Estella Shocke (Twst Shocke) - 3rd year (Electric EelMer)

Benjamin Barrell (Twst Barrel) - 2nd year (Human)

Marshall Frost (Twst Marshmellow) - 3rd year (Human)

Lysandra DeBrock (Twst Mordue) - 2nd year (Bear Beastwoman)

Dorm Holiday Activates

Halloween Dorm theme: Haunted Doll House (Based on Coraline) - The dorm based on Halloweens KING serves up some serious flights for Halloween. They want to scare the pants off every visitor. Tho Crowley has forbidden them from doing their original idea (a recreation of Halloween Town with accurate dead bodies) because it needed to be PG-13. So Grace suggested theming there haunt after a book. What could go wrong with a Haunted Doll House, especially based on a childrens book??? (Note: Crowley Regretted this decision quickly but it was too late)

Winter Holiday: Dorm Voluntary Outing to the middle of the sea with Dr. Dobbler and Captain Alina Dobbler (Based on 'Treasure Planet' and 'The Lost Empire') or staying on campus for dorm repairs.

Beanfest: The Dorm is off-limits, but they use it anyway.

Ghost Wedding: Ivy is plotting a Missions Impossible-esque ploy to get her brother back. While poor Marsh is forced to offer himself to the ghost bride... he got slapped for having a weird smile. (Note - Marsh is a big teddy bear, and Ramshackle spent the next day consoling Marsh and telling him his smile is lovely)

Fairy Gala: Ivy and Grace are forced into Modeling.

Camp Vargas Survival Camp: Grace and Grim go to both; Luci, Estella, Benni, Lyn, and Marsh are in Athletic, and Reyna, Ivy, and Cyn are all in the Artistic group.

Weekly Game Night and Movie Night - Tournament-style weekly event for all Ramshackle members, members can bring 1 guest to have as their partner. Everyone contributes a thumark, and the winners gets the pot! On weeks everyone is poor: They switch it out for a movie (usually horror or spooky)

Summer Research Trip: The Summer Research Trip is led by the former Thatch Professors (Dr.Dobbler, Captain Dobbler, Dr. Thatch, and Professor Thatch). Since most, if not all, the members of Ramshackle and the other former Thatch students are either banned, cannot, or do not want to go home, the Docs and their wives take the students on an archeological dig in the Jungle's of the Sunset Savana. Since they are now part of NRC, the professor's extended the invitation to other students as well. The excursion last most of the summer and can stay the entire summer if they wish! (based on Tarzan and The Jungle Book)

Glorious Masqurade: Grace and Grim Go as assistance, and Cyn goes as a guest! The only reason this was allowed his beacuse Ramshackle agreed to be on their best behavior so they could make mechanical dead people! All in the name of Halloween!!! (And Marsh and Lyn were put in charge).

Playful land - Grace, Grim, Reyna, and Ivy go to Playful Land and see that Fellow has a very uncanny likeness to a fellow Thatch students... so Ivy gets in trouble "investigating" Fellow and Rey gets introuble "Investigating" the puppets and invading their privacy.

Misc/Notes

After Cynthia and Grace were admitted into Night Raven officially, Crowley went through with negotioations on obsorbing The Thatch Academy For Trouble Mages into Night Raven. He knew if word got out that there were 2 lone female students who attended NRC, it would be an HR nightmare, and the press would have a field day. Thatch has been in negotiations with NRC to join schools for over 5 years, but Thatch not only had female teachers but mostly female students. Crowley turned them down since NRC was traditionally all male, but seeing as circumstances have changed, he went through with the deal! A win-win in Crowley's book. (Extept the Anti-Magic force agent, Detective Cyra Thorne <Twst Enchantress>, attached to the school due to the students' "records." She makes Crowley nervous.)

Crowley allowed the Ramshackle Students to renovate the dorm as long as their overseers (Dr. Dobbler and Captian Alina) approve, so there are a bunch of hidden trap doors, tunnels, and a few labs in the basement that no one is "supposed" to go in but Ramshackle residence.

Cyn, Ivy, and some of the other members throw parties in one of Ramshackle's basements that people pay to go to (They basically run a club), and not everything there is exactly school-sanctioned, but Crowley looks the other way since Cyn does his dirty work.

Grace was put in charge of keeping everyone out of trouble and in one piece (Aka, she was labeled Den-Mom). So whenever someone is in trouble, they go to Grace for help (even if it is over her head). Whenever they throw parties, they find someone to distract her or make her stay in another dorm for the night.

That being said, they have a speak-easy style club run by the ghosts and Cyn. No one knows how they get booze, but it appears every Sunday at 5, and Crowley gets a new bottle of wine on his desk at 6. (AKA, he is bribed, so he doesn't mind)

Ramshackle is very protective of its Den Mom. With her being Magic-less and being not of this world, they treat her as family and protect her from those who dare look down on her (One time Cyn heard a Scarbia guy say she should be kicked out for beimg magicless and he magically dissappered... and reappeaed 4 days later scared of his shadow and trembling at the sight of the Ramshackle emblem).

Somewhere in Ramshackle is a remote to the kitchen t.v. and the person who finds it gets 20 thumarks and control of the Kitchen t.v. for a week.

If you made it this far, thank you!!! I hope you enjoyed reading about Ramshackle and its residence! They are all part of my Twst Fic "A Tale of Two Yuus," and the 4 Oc's highlighted at the top are the 4 main characters. I will (eventually) link all their bios to their sections if you want to learn more about them! If you have any questions, want to interact with one of them, or want tagged once I post chapters, please comment!

Huge thank you to @/cozymochi, @/the-trinket-witch, and @/bunnwich! I commissioned the art of Ivy, Reyna, Kerby, Grace, and Cyn from them!! I did the dorm uniform designs and used base models as mannequins. I also wrote the notes on the designs, so excuse my handwriting.

Comments, Reblogs, and Likes are appreciated!!!

Do not steal!!!

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saikolikes · 5 months

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Aki’s P5R fanfic recs! (part 2)

Hi and welcome to another one of my recs posts! As you can see, this is part two: part one of this post can be found HERE and includes fics I bookmarked between April 2019 and December 2020. This second post will deal with everything I bookmarked during 2021 and 2022 (... so yes, part 3 is bound to happen some times in the future)

Here a brief disclaimer:

Everything in here is spoiler for either P5 vanilla, Royal, or Strikers;

I won’t report the tags, as it would take too long, so if you’re interested in a fic, please open the link;

Fic recs obviously reflect my tastes and preferences. For example, I love suffering and I don’t like fluff or domestic works, so browse this list knowing that;

The stark majority of the works here is shuakeshu

If you want more recs you can find them in my bookmarks, most of them are public!

MY ONGOING RECS Again, I don't read a lot of ongoing works (although, admittedly more than in the past) and these are the ones I'm subscribed to that I'm adoring!

The Lovers, Reversed by salexectria, Terra5 (E) | Royalty a/b/o AU | akeshu | series in three parts, ongoing "A Thief is caught stealing from the Northern King, and is sentenced to death for his crimes. The Alpha Prince intervenes, but at what cost to them both?" What I love about this AU is the amount of politics and worldbuilding put into it, as well as the uniqueness of double povs who constantly switch from Akira to Goro creating one back and forth that acts literally like poking into their minds. Plus the slow burn and the pining are just on point.

never die when I'm dead by threerings (E) | Royal & post-Royal | akeshu | series in 2 parts, ongoing Two one shots featuring one of my absolute flavors of this ship: sad, intense and unhinged

IDC FOR UPDATES I resolved to defeat my abandoned-wip trauma one excellent fic at a time so here's a list of works that haven't been updated in a while or the author straight up confirmed they won't keep writing them, but they are so good you just have to read them and let them remodel you. Do it. Do it now.

the year of the knife by theexistentiallyqueer (M) | No powers AU | shuakeshu | 2 chapters "The plan for Akira's junior year of high school was to keep his head down and his nose clean, but he hadn't counted on his new high school having more trouble than it was worth--and he specifically didn't plan on Akechi Goro, the haughty, machiavellian vice president of Shujin Academy's student council, dragging him face-first into political scandal and a series of encounters that would change his life." Please let teq bring you through a journey of spot-on characterization and stunning prose that will rewire your brain chemistry completely. Their take on machiavellian Akechi is really good, and the snark Akira spits in this fic is really something I cherish.

kiss & cry by MajorGodComplex (T) | Figure skating AU | shuakeshu | 2 chapters "Goro’s first thought when he hits the ground is some combination of the words ‘shit fuck hell fucking bullshit bitch fuck motherfucking hell.’ His next thought is wondering whether Akira Kurusu, senior debut, constant thorn in Goro’s side, and the only person anyone this season seems to talk about, is also trying to land a quad axel at the moment." I don't know what to tell you, the prose of this one is so witty and funny you just have to read what's published of it as of now!

honeybrains by succubused (T) | Time loop | shuakeshu | 4 chapters "a chronicle of the twenty-fourth time akira kurusu lived through the month of january 2017" What can I say, I am really a sucker for time loops and this fic took me by the heart. Tagged as character study and with rights because the characterization here is very interesting!

in the snow globe by aminami (E) | Time travel | shuake | 1 chapter "It’s your heart,” Joker says like it’s the most obvious thing. “Your desires, your hopes, your fears. I’ll carry them with me always. My little snow globe." This fic will hurt you so badly but it will be so worth it, I swear. It's just so melancholic and tender and angsty and it carved a place in my heart.

my love has never lived indoors by rhodophytae (E) | a/b/o | shuake | 1 chapter "Ren Amamiya knows he's an alpha, and he's comfortable with that, but he's pretty sure that being an alpha is, well...different for him than it is for other people. He resigned himself a long time ago to the fact that he'd probably go his whole life without finding anyone else like him. And then he meets Goro Akechi." This fic has such an interesting take on omegaverse! Paired with a stellar characterization and delicious pining, it's no surprise it's a fic I will never forget.

GENERAL RECS The fics I’ve enjoyed the most and that I go back to reading sometimes.

how joker and crow survived the coronavirus pandemic of 2020 by shntlvs (T) | Royal | shuakeshu | series of 2 works "Escaping from Maruki's false reality gets interrupted by the Coronavirus pandemic." Could you have ever imagined reading a fic centered around the pandemic? Me neither, but this one and its sequel work so well and have very compelling bits of characterization for the boys. Unexpected premise, but I utterly loved it.

straw house, straw dog by caelam (T) | 3rd sem | gen | one shot "In the saccharine utopia of Maruki’s reality, Goro Akechi’s mother is still alive." I admittedly don't read too many fics with mamakechi so I won't claim to be an expert, but this one really left me impressed with how clear and tangible the tangle of feelings is.

Knight of Pentacles, King of Spades by Naometry (M) | Medieval AU | shuakeshu | 11 chapters "“Hifumi passed on your greetings,” Akira Kurusu says, fury simmering beneath his conversational tone. “And I’m polite enough to give you my own in person. So greetings, General Goro Akechi. I am the man who will kill you.”" I started reading this fic for the war captive trope but this story has so much more to it than just that. Nao's superb skill with writing violence and viciousness will have you thrust into a cruel world where two boys seem to be bound to kill each other... unless?

Ripples by Riona (T) | gen | canon compliant | one shot "Ten people know exactly who the news is talking about, and now they’re going to have to deal with that." A peek into the heads of 10 of Joker's confidants upon learning about his death. The fic I would never imagined myself reading, but I did because it was recced to me, and now I'm recc'ing it to you, too.

When Your Eyes Meet Mine by seths_dream (E) | no powers AU | shuake | one shot "The way the bellboy lingered on him made his heart jolt, made him think that maybe, maybe the bellboy was looking at Goro the same way Goro was looking at him." I've lost count of how many times I read this fic because the horny is just so juicy, it's unironically one of the fics I come back to when I need to remind myself how to write horny stuff. (the same author also wrote this delicious pegoryu that you have to read)

a study in what not to say by succubused (T) | 3rd sem | shuake | one shot "Akira has finally had enough of Akechi's bullshit; they resolve it the only ways they know how." If you like the boys being really nasty to each other, this fic is a must. It has excellent dialogue, dynamics, and a tad of homoerotic wound tending which can't hurt no one!

MY ALL-TIME FAVOURITES The fics that rewired my brain chemistry, took my heart out, slapped it, put it back, and left me a whole new person.

27 steps to seduce a crow by relationshipcrimes (G) | Royal | shuakeshu | one shot "A handy bullet-pointed list on how to flirt with, seduce, and keep your local Akechi Goro." Still to this day, I think of this fic in terms of Goro's characterization. If I have a thing for post-canon shuake chasing each other, it's probably due to this one.

The Brigverse by TzviaAriella (E but most works are M) | Pirates AU | akeshuake | series, ongoing I admittedly don't care that much about pirates but the og fic from this series (A Brig Too Far) was being passed on so much that I gave it a try and. Oh boy. Not only is the characterization impeccable, the story compelling, and the action thrilling, but at least one scene and/or line from each work in this series has altered my brain permanently. I am a new person after reading Brigverse.

wild and free by bangandawhimper (E) | a/b/o | shuakeshu | one shot "Akira Kurusu hasn’t always been an omega. But now everyone he meets in this city assumes he’s an omega. He’s treated like an omega. He feels like an omega. He knows he feels like an omega because he remembers what it was to be an alpha." This work might have my favourite take ever on shuakeshu omegaverse, it's so fitting for them, so thought out, and the characterization is so on point... my god. Read this fic now.

The Diamond Chest by kinneas (E) | post-Royal | shuakeshu | 3 chapters, complete "Who says you have to see Morgana speak in the Metaverse before you can hear him in the real world? Not the few hundred officers who arrested Ren in Sae’s Palace two years ago, that’s for sure." Honestly everything kinnes writes is gold but I'm shouting this fic out because I reread more than a few scenes from this fic more than once, and it's a 100k-words baby. I am a sucker for heist stories, I am a sucker for dealing with trauma in very tangible ways, and I'm a sucker for kinneas' characterization of the boys.

before midnight by specterthief (Not rated) | 3rd sem, canon compliant | gen | one shot "“I—” Swallowing past the lump in her throat, Sumire sets down her chopsticks and rubs her face with both hands. “Um—who told you I was going to training camp?” (On January 9th, Sumire goes home.)" This is the stellar Sumire characterization fic you're looking for. Read this. Read this right now.

I HOPE THIS DOESN'T AWAKEN SOMETHING IN ME (DELUSIONAL) I clicked on these fics solely due to my trust in the authors/the summary/one rec and now I find myself with a new kink. Thanks.

Containment Breach by salexectria (E) | Space pirates AU | akeshu | one shot Akira gets stranded on an abandoned spaceship seemingly infested by a terrifying creature. He finds the lonely survivor of the crew and they begrudgingly start to work together to contact help and survive. I am just going to say that I clicked for salex's name, I stayed for the stellar characterization, pining and top-tier bantering, and got overwhelmed by the tentacle sex. (/pos)

it takes two by lumensd (E) | 3rd sem | akeshu | two-shots By all means, this series has some things I usually am not interested in (phone sex, degradation) but Jay is so skilled and his akeshus are so fucked in the head that now I've signed up for the masochist Joker agenda. Hurray!

i dream of you draped in wires by rime (E) | 3rd sem | akeshu | one shot "Maruki's Shadows don't want to fight; they just want to collect data. Wait, are those cat ears?" You would think a work with the tag "catboy shibari gunplay fuckordie" can't be too serious. Wrong! Excellent character study attack 🔪🔪🔪 (from the same author there's also this P5 vanilla fic that is excellent)

Darken my doorway by EnlacingLines (E) | 3rd sem-post canon | akeshu | one shot ""I don’t need to test my theory. You should be thanking me, really. Opening this door for you.” “A door to what?” Akira says, exasperated by just how self congratulatory Goro still sounds.“ Submission.” Or: I am a firm switch shuake shipper, I don't vibe with too-extreme dynamics *proceeds to go ballistics over this fic regardless*, *awakens to the wonder of d/s a lil fucked up dynamics*

#persona 5 #persona 5 royal #p5 #p5r #p5 spoilers #p5r spoilers #shuake #akeshu #shuakeshu #akeshuake #fanfiction recommendation #fanfic #p5r fanfiction #p5 fic rec #fic rec #fic reccomendations #p5r fic rec

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qs63 · 3 months

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Amestris Military structure and organization

This is the first of my series of long posts about the Amestrian Military. This one goes over the structure and organization of the military (and the country). To see the rest of this meta series check out the Main Post.

Amestris is a military state, surrounded by other hostile countries on all sides, the country has always been at war over its borders. For this reason, even before Bradley became Führer-president, the military was the center of the government. However, when Bradley became Führer-president in his 40s[2], twenty years prior to the series beginning[3][4], he took control of the government, parliament, and courts, effectively making current Amestris a military dictatorship.[2]

Each regional branch has a commander and a sub-commander appointed to the headquarters who serve as the head of the local government.[5] Grumman served as commander of the East until his appointment as Führer-President, with Mustang serving as his sub-commander until his transfer to Central, after which he was replaced by Major General Hakuro.[2][4][5][6] It is implied by Grumman that Roy Mustang and Olivier Armstrong became the commanders of the East and North, respectively, after the Promised Day.[8]

Administrative Organization

In terms of organization Amestris is divided in 4 regions (East, West, North, and South) and a fifth administrative district at the center of the country (Central City). Each region is a semi-independent government ruled by a branch of the military, but all four regional branches are controlled by Central Command. That means a General assigned to Central Command is higher in hierarchy than a General of the same rank assigned to one of the regional branches. This is why being assigned to Central is considered a promotion and vice versa.[1]

Aside from being in charge of the regional branches Central Command is also in charge of the Military Police and the Wide Area Government (Most likely based on Japan's koikigyouse. A branch of government in charge of coordination and operations that go beyond the jurisdiction of the local governments). In turn Central command answers to the Führer's Office, which is also in charge of the military academy, the alchemy research institute, the state alchemy agency, and the alchemy school. The military as a whole is also in charge of a multitude of establishments around the country, like hotels and hospitals.[2]

As mentioned before, the Führer's office also has control of the court and the parliament despite these technically being separate entities from the military.[2]

Diagram of the Composition and organization of the Amestrian military. [2]

What is interesting about Amestris’ administrative organization and division is that this kind of autonomous or semi-autonomous government branches usually serve the purpose of power decentralization (i.e. State vs Federal government) which is the antithesis of a dictatorship. The regional divisions must have predated the Bradley administration, all the way back to a time when the parliament and democracy still worked.

The homunculi choosing to alienate the regional branches instead of dismantling them was probably their biggest mistake. In the end, even if Central held all the political power, the soldiers were still loyal to their local branch. That left each regional command with about 1/5th of Amestris’ military power at their disposal. If the Promised Day showed us anything, it is that losing control of two of the regions (East and North in this case) is enough to overthrow the central government.

It could be said then that the measures taken to keep power decentralized somewhat work even after the fall of democracy.

An example of the military’s ability to govern is Bradley passing executive order 3066 during the Ishval Civil War, as well as his subsequent Ishvalan Policy, which prohibited the resettlement of Ishval. [7][8] Another example is Roy Mustang's New Ishvalan Policy (which involves domestic development in Ishval and international treaties with Xing).[8] This latest example hints towards a shift away from Bradley's authoritarianism under Grumman's tenure, where the regional branches are allowed more control over their own policies as opposed to being micromanaged by Central Command.

General Mission

As any armed force the main purpose of the Amestris military is warfare. However, as a military dictatorship their role goes beyond defending the country and right into governance. The military holds the executive power through the Führer-President, with the regional branches acting as local governments, and is indirectly in charge of the legislative and Judicial powers (through the parliament and court).[2]

The Amestrian military is also in charge of domestic security and order mainly through the Military Police.[2]

Military Ranks

The Amestrian military has a total of 15 ranks, 11 officer ranks and 4 NCO (non-commissioned officer) ranks, at least per the perfect guides.[1][2][3] The Wikia includes two more (unsourced) NCO ranks, but I'll explain later why those might not make sense in the “real world influence” post.

Amestrian military ranks. [1]

Führer-President (大総統 - Daisōtō)

From top to bottom the ranks are:

Officer ranks

King Bradley 1894–1915,

Grumman (1915–?)[8]

General (大将 - Taishō)

Roy Mustang (1917–?) [4][8]

Lieutenant General (中将 - Chūjō)

Grumman(?–1915)[8], Raven, Gardner

Major General (少将 - shōshō)

Olivier Mira Armstrong, Hakuro, Gärtner

Brigadier General (准将 - Junshō)

Basque Grand (1908–1914) [13],

Maes Hughes (posthumously promoted two ranks),

Klemim,

Edison,

Fessler,

Roy Mustang (1915–1917)[4][8]

Colonel (大佐 - Taisa)

Roy Mustang (1910–1915)[4][8][10],

Henry Douglas

Lt. Colonel (中佐 - Chūsa)

Roy Mustang (1909-1910)[4][10][11],

Basque Grand (1908)[12],

Storch

Major (少佐 - Shōsa)

Alex Louis Armstrong,

Miles,

Roy Mustang (1908)[4][12]

Captain (大尉 - Taii)

Focker, Buccaneer,

Vato Falman (post canon)[14],

Maes Hughes (1908) [12]

1st Lieutenant (中尉 - Chūi)

Riza Hawkeye (1911–?),

Yoki

2nd Lieutenant (少尉 - Shōi)

Maria Ross,

Jean Havoc,

Heymans Breda,

Vato Falman (1915),

Henschel,

Rebecca Catalina,

Darius,

Heinkel,

Jerso,

Zampano,

Riza Hawkeye (1909-1911)[10]

Non commissioned officers ranks

Warrant Officer (准尉 - Jun’i)

Vato Falman (pre 1915),

Riza Hawkeye (1909) [11],

Roy Mustang (1905) [7][11]

Master Sergeant (曹長 - Sōcho)

Kain Fuery

Sergeant (曹長 - Gunsō)

Denny Brosh

Corporal (伍長 - Gochō)

Cadets do not seem to have a given rank. They aren't shown with rank insignias or epaulets in the OVA “Another man's battlefield” nor in the complete art book. More about this is the Training regime Post.

Roy Mustang and Maes Hughes during their cadet days. [15]

Aside from the ranks above, two other subdivisions exist under the military structure. The State Alchemists, who have an equivalent to the rank of Major, and the Military Police, who don't seem to have military ranks at all.

The qualification exam is administered at the State Alchemist examination Hall in Central City, while the yearly evaluation can be turned in at any of the military Headquarters. [2]

State Alchemists

The State Alchemists are government employed alchemists that have passed the State Alchemists qualification exam. To become a State Alchemist, you must pass four tests: written, practical, psychiatric evaluation, and an interview. Furthermore, even after obtaining the national qualification, candidates are required to undergo a yearly assessment based on a report and practical skills, and if they do not receive a good evaluation, they may be disqualified from the program. This yearly evaluation includes commissioned officers like Basque Grand, Roy Mustang, and Alex Louis Armstrong.[1]

After acceptance into the program each new State Alchemist is granted a silver pocket watch and a certificate with an official title by the Führer as proof of their service. [1][2][10]

The state alchemists have the obligation to participate in war. In addition they must follow three laws:

Obey the military

Do not create gold

Do not create people

In exchange for their services they receive privileges in the form of research funds in the tens of millions of cens annually (the equivalent to tens of 70k dollars a year), access to military documentation and facilities, and a rank equivalent to a Major. [1][2]

It is never stated when the State Alchemist program started, but only 200 people have ever passed the exam to date, and a surprising number of them fail the subsequent yearly evaluation or quit on their own. [1] Many State Alchemists renounced after the Ishval extermination war. [13]

This makes long serving State Alchemists like: Edward Elric, Roy Mustang, Alex Louis Armstrong, Basque Grand, and Giolio Comanche an oddity rather than the norm.

Normally, they are responsible for investigating incidents. However, in some cases, military personnel take command and directly participate in the investigation. A typical example of this is the search for Scar. [2] Another example is Maria Ross’s arrest and persecution in which Colonel Henry Douglas of the Military Police Headquarters took command.[9]

Military Police

The military police is a subordinate organization of the military. They receive orders from the Military Police headquarters (which in turn receives orders from Central Command) and act as the on-site execution force of the military. [2]

Colonel Henry Douglas confronts Colonel Mustang after Mustang burned Maria Ross.[9]

While the Military Police Headquarters is under the control of Central Command and parallel in hierarchy to the regional branches, the Police officers themselves are at the very bottom of the military hierarchy, and seem to be expected to obey orders from the regional branches. The police officers don't wear a rank insignia and can be seen throughout the story helping the military personnel. [2]

If you happened to read Fullmetal Alchemist Under the Faraway Sky — Roy's vacation section, you may also have noticed that Hughes has more jurisdiction and influence than Mustang outside of East City despite being a rank below him. This is again because Hughes belongs to Central Command while Roy belongs to East Command. Roy can pull rank on him, but Hughes’ job is one level above Roy's in the government structure.

Afterthoughts

The way the Amestris military is organized means that despite Roy Mustang being Hughes’ and Edward’s superior, he is hierarchically below them. This is why in episode 1 of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood Bradley not only has to inform Mustang that Fullmetal is in the city, he also has to grant him permission to use Ed to capture McDougall. This is because the State Alchemists are under the direct command of the Fuhrer's office. They do not answer to Central Command or the regional branches. Bradley is Edward's one and only boss. Ed still has to obey direct orders given by Mustang, since State Alchemists have the authority equal to a Major and a Colonel is two ranks above that, but he doesn't have to work for him. This is why Mustang considers anything done by Ed as a favor to him rather than him just doing his job.

Yeah, that also means Hawkeye was hierarchically above Mustang when she was working as the Fuhrer's aide, therefore in the Fuhrer's office. She couldn't give him orders, but she was probably handling his (or his direct boss’s) assignments, and helping approve or deny his paperwork.

Chapter 24: Fullmetal Alchemist [10]

Source

Fullmetal Alchemist Manga

Chapter 25: Master and Apprentice [6]

Chapter 36: Alchemist in distress [9]

Chapter 58: footsteps of ruin [7]

Chapter 59: the immoral alchemist [12]

Chapter 108: Journey's end [8]

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

Episode 30: The Ishvalan war of extermination [11]

Episode 64: Journey's end [14]

Military Uniform Post

Fullmetal Alchemist side story: “Start of a Journey” [13]

Fullmetal Alchemist perfect guide 1 [1]

Fullmetal Alchemist perfect guide 2 [2]

Fullmetal Alchemist perfect guide 3 [3]

Fullmetal Alchemist Chronology [4]

Fullmetal Alchemist: the abducted Alchemist [5]

The complete art of Fullmetal Alchemist [15]

#fullmetal alchemist #fma #fma meta #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood #amestris #my work

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vergilsama922 · 3 months

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Welcome to Hope's Peak Academy Grand Opening: Jabberwock Island!

So uhh.....turns out there is a fourth school. (人◕ω◕) To be fair I kinda forgot LMAO. But yes the brilliant @putaindeplagieur worked hard on this. Honestly this roster was done in like summer/spring of last year so yeah....I literally forgot until @mr-11037 brought it to my attention that there was a jabberwock school in surprise LOOOOL Okay. Anyways *Ahem* this school roster will be added to the pinned post. As for WHO's going to lead the school? Well none other than Gakuho Asano from Assassination Classroom. Truth be told this was a very early suggestion from @pyropsychiccollector and it fits. Anyways here the mad lad is. And yes. He cares very much about results.

Gakuho Asano (Ultimate Teacher of Class 73)

Gakuho is a very.........he has ways of motivating people in unique ways. Let's just leave it at that for now. Nobody else is suited to lead the jabberwock branch and all it's logistical issues than gakuho (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕). As for the vice principal? Well....

Yup. That's right. Shura Kirigakure from Class 73 and our third cameo character~ Don't worry she's competent......mostly. (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕) Look it'll work out. After all, she's going to be teaching a particularly......interesting class. Speaking of which. Let's go over who the roster is.

Class 1-A: Danganronpa Re Class 1-B: Danganronpa Hope to Hurt

Class 2-A: Danganronpa Uzujigoku Massacre Class 2-B: Danganronpa Hope Springs

Class 3-A: Danganronpa Despair Season Class 3-B: Danganronpa Hopeful Mayhem

Class 4-A: Danganronpa Black Hope Class 4-B: Danganronpa White Despair

(人◕ω◕) Sorry for forgetting but it's all good. Better late than never I say. As a bonus treat here's a nice little skit for those who bothered to make it this far. I'll probably post this skit separately later on~

??? 2: *leaning forward, an edge of excitement in their voice* So, Junko's grand plan has crumbled. Hope defeated despair. Fascinating, isn't it? How truth always finds a way to surface, no matter the layers of fiction. ??? 3: *with a calm, analytical tone* It was always a matter of fate versus free will. Junko tried to steer the course of destiny, but in the end, the free will of those students prevailed. It's a classic case of chaos disrupting the illusion of order. ??? 2 *chuckling* Or perhaps it was the other way around? The order of hope disrupting the chaos of despair? It's all about perspective~ ??? 3 *nodding thoughtfully* Indeed. But what's crucial here is understanding the balance. Junko tipped the scales too far. One must be more subtle, more... nuanced. ??? 4 *speaking slowly, their voice distant but sharp* Subtlety and nuance... those are words of someone who observes from afar. Junko played with fire. She and her sisters sought vengeance against the world, a world they deemed corrupt and unworthy. And in her pursuit, she forgot the power of forgiveness, of redemption. ??? 2 *raising an eyebrow* Forgiveness? In a game of despair? That's an... interesting take. But isn't vengeance just another form of truth? A harsh, unyielding truth that reveals the deepest, darkest parts of humanity? ??? 4 *with a hint of disdain* You see truth where I see folly. Don't forget that fiction can as well as truth blind us. It does not reveal. It consumes and distorts. ??? 3: Both of you make compelling points. But we must learn from Junko's failure. Our plans, our games, they must be more than just experiments. They must have purpose, direction—whether it's dictated by fate or crafted by our own hands.

??? 4: *with a colder, more resolute tone* Purpose and direction, yes. But at what cost? Junko lost sight of the cost — the cost of vengeance. The fire she started may have been extinguished, but the embers of retribution still burn. And in those embers, a new fire will ignite. ??? 2: *leaning back, clearly amused* Ah, the vengeful philosopher speaks. But remember, in this game, philosophy is but a TOOL. It's strategy and understanding the players that matter. And speaking of players, how interesting Makoto Naegi has become, aligning himself with Junko's sisters. Ryoko, Mukuro, and even Junko — each drawn to him, and he to them~ Seems Despair caught the Hope Itch eh? Hehehe~ ??? 3: *nodding thoughtfully* Indeed...... Naegi represents an anomaly in our grand design. His influence on Ryoko, Mukuro, and Junko... it's a variable we didn't anticipate. His actions could be seen as either fated or entirely by his own making. It’s a fascinating dynamic....Could he be....? ??? 4: *standing, their voice laced with a dark intensity* Naegi... he may be the key. The embodiment of forgiveness in a world ripe for vengeance. We must watch him closely. But as for us, this alliance of minds... it ends now. We shall not meet again until one of us succeeds in our grand design at each of our schools or falls to the inevitable hand of failure. ??? 2: *Can barely contain their chuckling* How dramatically serious you are. It's almost... amusing. Very well, we part ways. But the game continues, and may the best mastermind's philosophy prevail. Do try and not catch the Hope itch hmmm? Mastermind 4 gives Mastermind 2 a scorching hot stare and exits the room, a shadow of vengeance and purpose lingering behind. Mastermind 3: May the best philosophy prevail indeed. Naegi, the sisters, the entire game... it's all unfolding into something unprecedented. Perhaps this is the answer all along. Mastermind 2: *smirking* Unprecedented and utterly fascinating. Let the game of fates, truths, and vengeance play out. In the end, it's all just another story in the making~

#danganronpa #danganronpa au #hope universe #fanganronpa #gakuho asano #shura kirigakure #danganronpa uzujigoku massacre #danganronpa hope to hurt #danganronpa despair season #mastermind

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narcissuslecter · 3 months

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will graham teaching hannibal how to smoke weed. from a bong. or vice versa but i believe will would smoke weed before hannibal did.

tw 4 weed smoking!

will graham weed smoking (+ teaching hannibal 2 use a bong) headcanons for u babes <3

will graham smokes joints mostly, he rolls them by hand, only on weekends, never during cases.

he has one bong that he has back from when he was in high school that managed to make it's way through police academy, his years on the force and his current position at the fbi.

his bong is only for labour day weekends.

beverly is his dealer, she grows it herself with some gardening tips she got from price.

he smokes with beverly sometimes.

hannibal approaches him after a recent ripper murder after he saw the "uniquely shaped vase" on will's bedside table.

It's a sunday night, they're both off monday.

hannibal has a "european strain" that he had imported.

will, as a federal agent, does not want to know how hannibal got it here on such short notice. or how hannibal knew how to access it at all.

hannibal has the most insane charcuterie platter laid out for them. hannibal claims it's for the "munchies".

will almost coughs up a lung laughing so hard

will packs a half bowl, goes through the motions to show hannibal. only coughs a little bit.

hannibal packs himself a full bowl.

clears it.

does not cough.

will stares at hannibal as if he's the devil.

they eat for hours with hannibal describing every single piece of food as they eat it even down to the baking process of the baguette he had made.

n e ways, there is ur will + hannibal smoking weed headcanons. hope u enjoyed!

if u want more unhinged fandom headcanons, like, reblog, share, follow, or just be gay.

see u next time <3

#hannibal #will graham #nbc hannibal #hannibal nbc #hannigram #hannibal lecter #hannibal headcanons #headcanons #gay headcanon #unhinged headcanon #weed smoking #smoker!will graham #will graham smokes #weed smoker headcanon #weed smoking headcanon #tw weed #tw weed smoking

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itscodebaby · 5 months

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Vice Academy 4 (1995)

#90s #1990s #1995 #90s movies #90s film #comedy #late night movie #movie gifs #vice academy #vice academy 4 #julia parton #b movie #b movies #cult classic #cult film #so bad it's good #rick sloane

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theadmiralslegion · 8 months

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Katoberfest 2023!

This year’s Katoberfest will be held October 22-29, 2023.

There are seven days of prompts + a free day:

Sunday October 22: Only One Bed or Kat Survives AU

Monday October 23: First Kiss or OTP

Tuesday October 24: Cuddling for Warmth or Cold Space

Wednesday October 25: Mirror Universe or "I knew you were trouble"

Thursday October 26: Academy Era or Kat in the 32nd Century

Friday October 27: Accidental Child Acquisition or Mission Fic

Saturday October 28: Where is Katrina Cornwell right now?

Sunday October 29: Free Day

There are extra challenges:

1. The Katrina: post every day 2. The Cornwell: combine both of the day's prompts into one work 3. The Vice Admiral: set this playlist to shuffle and create a work inspired by the first song that plays 4. The Admiral: create one work that includes at least five of the fifteen available prompts.

There are no requirements or limits to any medium (e.g. word count, art style, length of vid or pod, etc.).

You may answer as many, or as few, as you like and there is no specific format. The prompts are jumping off points and may be considered in universe or meta. Answers may take the form of essay, discussion, fiction, artwork, bulleted lists, gifsets, vids, vlogs, comics, whatever! It is also fine to answer prompts on a different day than that which corresponds with the prompt (if you miss it, or it is simply easier for you). There is no right or wrong way to participate! The purpose of Katoberfest is to celebrate Admiral Cornwell, not create work or drama.

When sharing on social media, tag your posts #Katoberfest2023. We will reblog and retweet all tagged posts.

The AO3 Collection is available here.

Any questions, do not hesitate to ask!

-Anika (@pixiedane) and Liz (@liz-squids)

#katoberfest #katoberfest2023 #katrina cornwell #admiral cornwell #star trek discovery #fanwork challenge #star trek challenge #please reblog

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koegama · 3 months

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I got asked about how koegama sophonts talk to each other:

the main way they talk to each other is a language Baen, which is just the word for Second because it tends to be your second language in learning systems. Baen was created by a group of Tajira linguists who created a language framework that could be spoken by all species despite their different anatomy (main concern was that many hanasei languages are unable to be spoken by other species bc they imitate actual sounds like lyrebirds that most can't really do + hard to pronounce tones).

note that it was a framework, it gave you all the phonemes allowed and vocabulary for polite conversation, but not much else. the idea was that languages evolve naturally, so they should have a laissez-faire relationship w it, letting people create new words and slang. hanasei scholars took Baen and gave it more rules and guidelines and started putting it as a secondary language for their schooling, and asked other species to learn it in a "second language standardization" effort.

it did work, but much like real languages, Baen evolved and gained regional dialects and many words ended mixed up from peoples first languages. because Baen is meant to be spoken by all species though any usage of "illegal" phonemes is not considered proper Baen, and it has an actual academy that maintains that part of the language and adds new slang and keeps tally of regional differences.

BUT… you can also learn the first language of other species if you want. most who wish to learn hanasei languages focus on sign languages and mainly the ISL (ii'mau sign language), which is taught as the default hanasei sign language, but there's around 3 or 4 others. and if you're really stubborn you can learn a native hanasei language, but you might need either a hanasei speech morph (i.e., giving you a hanasei-like larynx build. hard to get without getting extra morphs), or use external devices that take specific spoken input and make the sound for you, hanasei have no issue w other languages because well. lyrebirds lol

tajira > luminae and vice versa is more chill. luminae languages involve a lot of body language and touching/signs, and it's very rare to see a purely spoken luminae language, but other than a few signs that need 5 fingers most tajira can just learn that (and there are 4 finger adaptations). tajira languages are spoken, and they don't have any unreproducible phonemes for tajira the main thing is that they can speak underwater, but for luminae that's not a big consideration since they aren't aquatic anyway. hanasei don't like it, but they can just speak when out of water

#worldbuilding #koegama #hanasei #luminae

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epelsapples · 2 years

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I head-canon that there is probably an all-girls school in Twisted Wonderland, just like Night Raven College and Royal Swords Academy. However, the characters are based on the ‘prince’s/Heroes. For example; Prince Eric, Aladdin, Prince Phillip.

The name could be something along the lines of ‘Princess Charm Institute.(Yes I somewhat stole the name from Barbie Princess Charm School).

The school is the top school for aspiring female magicians, there are seven dormitories. (Not all of the dorms are based on the Prince’s/Heroes).

I am far too lazy to come up with names so I’ll just state what the dorms are based off of and what the character within them are like.

The Headmage would be Flora (The red fairy from Sleeping Beauty), and the co-headmages would be Fauna and Merryweather (However they would be twisted from them rather than actually being them)

Dorm 1. Based on Prince Ferdinand from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The students in that dormitory are probably the best at everything, especially magic. They ace all of their subjects with ease, charming and heroic when the time calls for it. Everybody swoons when they walk by. Especially when their Housewarden and Vice-Housewarden walk by. The top of the ‘big three’

Dorm 2. Based on Prince Charming from Cinderella. They are quite naïve and hopeless (because they spend so many hours looking for a girl because of their shoe). Probably near the bottom for their IQ, however they are still part of the ‘big three’ because of their fairytale. (Most likely going to get replaced sooner or later)

Dorm 3. Based on Prince Phillip from Sleeping Beauty. The students have some sort of ‘pizzazz’ to them. Also part of the ‘big three’. The students are second to the dorm based on Prince Ferdinand and the two are worthy competitors. Unlike the dorm based on Prince Ferdinand, they actually have some humour, since the other dorm is just oriented around studying and perfecting their classes and sword fighting abilities.

Dorm 4. Based on Li Shang from Mulan. Students are rather shy when it comes to romance however they are brilliant fighting heroes. 3rd overall across the school?

Dorm 5. Based on Prince Naveen from The Princess and The Frog. Comical but stern and very attractive. The Housewarden does not know how to cook nor fend for themselves because of their upbringing so the vice Housewarden would probably be some sort of knight. Tying with the dorm based on Li Shang.

Dorm 6. Based on Prince Eric from The Little Mermaid. The dorm leader probably has some historic connection to pirates. They are around 5th or 4th place for everything but 1st when it comes to school games. (Most likely replacing the dorm based on Prince Charming and becoming one of the big three).

Dorm 7. Based on Aladdin from Aladdin. Last in their overall school achievements? This is because practically all of the dorms are based on Prince’s or ‘heroes’ however Aladdin is not the typical hero so the dorm members have to get used to sword fighting, fencing and saving boys in distress. So yeah the bottom in terms of academics.

Teachers:

Twisted from The beast from Beauty and the Beast (History teacher)

Twisted from Eugene from Tangled (

Twisted from Hercules from Hercules (PE teacher)

Twisted from Fauna from Sleeping Beauty (Ballet teacher)

Twisted from Merryweather from Sleeping Beauty (Fencing teacher)

Twisted from The Genie from Aladdin (Ancient Magic teacher)

Overall score in terms of saving damsels in distress:

Dorm 1. 11/10 (You cannot beat the original)

Dorm 2. 5/10 (Eh.. some merits for being the second Prince in a Disney movie)

Dorm 3. 12/10 (They are cunningly intelligent)

Dorm 4. 8.5/10 (Quite awkward and stiff but they mean well)

Dorm 5. 8/10 (Funny but could be improved since joking around about somebody’s near death experience two seconds after it happened isn’t the best I suppose..)

Dorm 6. 4.5/10 (Fish jokes…cheesy pickup lines.. very much “are you from Tennessee because you’re the only ten I see”)

Dorm 7. 2/10 at best (Would probably drop them because they got distracted by something more fascinating)

#dorm leaders #leona x reader #riddle x reader #malleus draconia #disney twst #twisted wonderland #azul ashengrotto #night raven college #royal sword academy #leona kingscholar #vil schoenheit #idia shroud #jamil viper #kalim al asim #riddle rosehearts

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chatlote · 5 months

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Please. Share more info about the maruki adopts akechi au. IM INVESTED

Anything about the PT in this au? Would Akechi meet them? (Drama? Romance?)

Thank you sm for being interested! Theres SO MUCH I can say that I wouldnt be sure where to start so I will focus on the ones you did ask!

The phantom thieves are very much in this universe as well. And Akechi will join them eventually, he approaches them himself when he realizes that maybe Maruki isn't following through their cause properly. He requests them to change Maruki heart along with him for the sake of making sure the world the envision will truly be good. (Obviously this will all blow up into Akechi breaking out of brainwashing as they explore the palace)

I will copy a snippet of my notes about the fact that he is part of Shujin academy as well and how he Joker first meet! And reply to the romance question under cut!

"Akechi would be the vice president of the student council and has a general reputation of being approachable and kind and that venting about your problems to him always helps. He doesn't always use his powers it's just a general he Helps just by listening. The entire school is rumors of how kind and pretty is the counselor and his son. They might not look alike but everyone is like they are so similar it's so true this school will always be at peace with them. Then akiren charges in. And it's not like he brainwashed the whole school so rumors start, it's unpleasant and akechi won't have that its not their goal. He changes the person who started the rumors but that doesn't stop it and they can't make their plans too obvious he can't change everyone so he approaches akiren with the goal of knowing how he is doing if he should just change him into someone 'calm' and maybe the rumors would go away on their own. But he realizes akiren is … harmless and kind? There's nothing there to even rumor about. Maybe it's because akechi is there and he is pretending? He decides he wants to keep in contact he wants akiren to keep in touch to know if he will adjust well if he can give names if someone does something to him and funny enough akiren agrees in a similar reason of, tell me if there seems to be a big person that the students are worried about (so the thieves can change them) Basically they are each other new source of info for side quests. Also joker figures it out after kamoshida because the entire school seems to be Too Calm and Too Okay with what just happened. Something akechi slipped with Morgana there makes him realize Akechi has some powers too and maybe that's why."

As for romance, I'm obviously a shuake fan if you have glanced at my blog. Basically there would indeed be a endgame with the two of them but things are a bit more complicated than that. Because for Akechi to heal and accept himself after Maruki brainwash breaks, he needs Joker to not have loved his pleasant self. Unlike canon it's not like that's a version of him he was just pretending to be, it's a version of him that existed out of his control.

So basically while they have feelings for each other before it a bit, even though Maruki says he shouldnt (making this one of the few things Akechi has picked out of his own free will) and Joker mostly likes him as a friend. Their relationship mostly develops as in a similar way to Sumire Rank5-10, Joker spends time with Akechi figuring out together what 'Akechi' even is as a person, its been all 4 years since he has been under control, and now all he has is Anger and Sadness at his manipulation and forgotten memories that came back. Joker is the one who introduces him to competitive games like darts and shogi this time around. The most validating thing Joker does for Akechi is loving his anger more than his politeness in the end.

#maruki adopts akechi au #using that as a tag for easier finding #this is still just a very small portion of my notes I feel like so #any more specific questions feel free to ask >:) !

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unholybinchicken · 13 days

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on darren and dusty's past friendship

not gonna lie, dusty revealing he and darren were best friends in primary school did surprise me (as did quinni revealing that she used to walk to school by herself and then became friends with darren) because i'd always kind of envisioned darren and quinni as being this package deal from day 1 (kind of like amerie and harper) but i do have some theories as to how their friendship waned over the years

so here's what we know:

of the families we see on heartbreak high, the reids and the whites appear to be the most wealthy. dusty's parents are shown to be very wealthy and live in a nice house. everyone else seems to be lower-middle-class. darren says "dusty's parents have cash flow". dusty's dad is apparently connected enough to put on events and fundraisers for his son to invite his friends to, and can also afford security for said events.

dusty's parents pulled him out of hartley and enrolled him at st bruno's (which sidenote is a fictional school but is giving cranbrook vibes).

darren spends some time hanging out with dusty at st bruno's because they're upset that ca$h was spending time with chook.

dusty reveals that darren was his best friend in primary school; during sleepovers, they would make dusty's transformers perform sexual acts on each other.

my theories:

darren and dusty went to the same local public primary school from kindergarten to the end of year 4. darren stayed there for years 5 and 6; dusty's parents enrolled him at an all-boys anglican private school (not bruno's; likely a fictionalised version of one of the GPS schools) for year 5 onwards. all-boys schools, while often portrayed as a safe place for lgbt students in the media (see glee's dalton academy for example), are (at least in australia) cesspools of toxic masculinity and tend to produce conservative politicians who make laws discriminating against women, the lgbtqia+ community, first nations people, disabled people, and just about anyone who isn't a straight white rich man. four corners has some great documentaries about it (see here and here). a lot of the more prestigious and expensive schools in sydney tend to start at either kindergarten, year 3 or year 5.

even though they never had any romantic or sexual relationship, dusty was one of the first people darren came out to and vice versa. when talking to ca$h about darren, dusty always uses darren's correct pronouns.

dusty's parents pulled him out of the private school midway through year 7 and enrolled him at his local public high school (hartley); this was when amerie developed a crush on him.

at this point, darren had already made friends with quinni. dusty made friends with spider and ant.

spider acting like an andr*w t*te wannabe (which we know really ramped up when he got to high school) combined with the attitudes dusty picked up in his formative years at private school made them both pretty uncomfortable and unsafe for a young darren who was exploring their queerness and finding themself. over time, darren and dusty stayed civil but they never were as close as they had been in primary school, at least while dusty was at hartley.

somewhere along the way, maybe not intentionally, being seemingly replaced with straight white male spider by their former best friend might have contributed to darren's belief that they're a hard person to love.

also darren would steal a shitton of alcohol and perfume and extraneous stuff from dusty's house every time they came over (yeah *shrug* ... it's a thing they do).

#ngl this is giving me fic ideas #i have too many fic ideas not enough time #heartbreak high #dusty reid #darren rivers #darren is lowkey a kleptomaniac wbk

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ansbobcar · 3 months

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will ppl kill me if i say i wrote another oc to write a fic with orter??? and it could be in the same universe as my loser=lover fic???

I swear it's because I'm addicted to those "hey let's get married out of convenience" plots and the thought of Orter getting beaten at a drinking game is funny.

HERE'S MY NEWEST MASHLE OC Y'ALL

_ _ _

GENERAL INFO:

Name: Rinka Ontarin

Other names: Rinka Onoji, Looney Vision, The Blood Cane, Bloody Sicko, The Devil's Child

Sex: Female

Age: 25

Birthday: December 5th

Blood Type: O

Height: 170cm

Weight: 68kg

Occupation: Vice head of the Magical Power Administration, Divine Visionary

House: Adler

Affiliation: Bureau of Magic (current), Easton Magic Academy (former/drop out), the Onoji Family (former)

Dominant Hand: Left

Foot size: 25cm

Good Subjects: Magic Geography, Broom Classes

Bad Subjects: Magic History, Magic Zoology

Hobbies: Drinking, Doodling

Favourite Food: Baked Sweet Potatoes

Favourite Word: “Irrational Judgement”

Favourite type of the opposite sex: “Ew.”

Dislikes: People turning back on their promises, Irrational decision making, Drunk people

Frequently visited spots: Casino, Bars

Appearance:

She has her blonde hair up in a half ponytail with frosted lavender tips and yellow eyes. She wears black gloves and wears a grey dress shirt paired with grey pants with a muddied orange trench coat with her DV emblem (don't know what the design is pls help). Line wise, it's a singular line on her left cheek which bends like a J.

Skills/Abilities:

Personal Magic:

Contracts - In a similar fashion to Stars and Stripes, she’s able to force laws/deals onto anything she chooses, the only restriction being the amount of magical energy she pours into one increases the potency, permenancr and serious effect of the laws/deals. Her personal magic is barely utilised because it’s absolutely demonised in her family because she caused the death of her father which was ruled to be suicide. Why would someone’s personal magic be so legally binding? It’s so backhanded but as a result of this, she’s an invaluable member of the Bureau of Magic having managed to force everyone into a vow of secrecy if they know about her magic.

Sangs - The rest of the world believes her personal magic to be blood manipulation, she is capable of manipulating her own blood internally, externally and those within a nearby vicinity.

Sangs Bindings - Blood chains

Summon:

Eris (Goddess of Discord) - If she had a summons it would be Eris. Her wand transforms into an ambiguously defined golden staffed mallet. Eris does not appear behind her in the slightest.

Equipment:

Basic Wand - Like everyone else, she wields a basic wand, however unlike most. She doesn’t utilise a wand for her ‘personal’ magic. She finds wands stupid though and only utilises it for show half the time.

Paring Knife - She draws blood quite a lot.

Family History:

Her father was a member of the Onoji, which was well known for being a part of the Bureau of Magic and producing natural 2 liner magicians.

However, when she was 4, she practically killed one of her many aunts right infront of the others by playing Old Maid as a natural 1 liner. And thus her personal magic was demonised and personally restricted to be unused, making up a new personal magic to hide the true nature of her magic.

She wasn’t completely mistreated, but by rejecting her personal magic, she felt emotionally neglected and as a result has an irrational fear of other people knowing her personal magic. Due to her mistreatment, her mother divorced while she was attending Easton Magic Academy.

WEAKNESSES:

Bloodloss/Anaemia - The moment she stops circulating her blood by solidifying it is the moment she loses a shit tonne of blood circulating in her system. Sure she may never run out of blood but it doesn’t circulate. So she’s prone to fainting through bloodloss of just lack of circulation.

Overreliance on Magic Enhancement - If she’s up against someone who can cancel her magic, she’s fucked because it’s what makes her invincible to majority of opponents.

Often forgets to keep a defensive stance- This is mostly because she has been training to be physically fit/strength being able to maintain speed under increased gravitation force.

Extra Info:

She’s a drop out from Easton Magic Academy due to lacking the funds to attend the school and her mother encouraging her to just live her life like she wants to instead of following the footsteps of what her father and the others want her aka being Divine Visionary. However, she drops out of Easton magic Academy to focus on being Divine Visionary full time.

She’s closer to Ryoh and Kaldo because they were the most welcoming of her at the time she and because as a barely 20 year old, she was placed with the Magical Power Administration of all things and the two of them helped her out. She was also the youngest Divine Visionary at the time before Rayne Ames took that record.

Ryoh and Kaldo know her true personal magic and are sworn into secrecy through it. Ryoh acts as a better father figure towards her, that’s why she’s close to him but he’s busy with his wife and kid so she feels bad to keep him away. Kaldo’s more like a brother figure for her, they’ve got the typical sibling banter.

She’s a heavy drinker and takes at least 6 hours of continuous drinking of the strongest things to get tipsy.

PLOT IDEAS:

Orter Madl's parents want him to be engaged before he turns 24 otherwise they'll set him up with someone against his will. But obviously, this guy isn't interested in anyone even tho he's gone on like 5 dates just to get them off his radar and work.

Rinka, his trusty vice head/former head of Magical Power Admin, suggests and offers him to try dating her to solve his problem. He ends up accepting her offer after he realises his parents will literally set him up with a high schooler.

They both suck at dating though having literally gone to the bar to get drunk for the past 3 weeks and he feels miserable because she's a better drinker.

Ryoh becomes the idea man and suggests they do a picnic date but ahah... these are the heads of the magical power administration and end up having to settle a dispute between Giants and Orter is reminded of why she was called The Blood Cane as she bursts the Giant into pieces before it could attack her.

"Don't worry, now you don't have to worry about losing game."

They make stupid bets to pass the time but Orter quickly discovers her secret when her father/other aunts greet her and she ignores them without knowing what's going on.

"Do you... know them?"

"Don't even recognise their faces."

I wanna make her slowly open up to him and vice versa BUT THEN BIG PLOT TWISTS OCCUR TOWARDS THE END OF THE MASHLE CANON STORY—

_ _ _

Ye that's all.

#mashle fanfic idea #mashle oc #orter madl

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