#massive effect fanart | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

writingoddess1125 · 7 months

Text

So I saw this fanart and got this idea! And after a gin and juice I wrote this. Enjoy!

Art does not belong to me! It says the artist is Flamingo_PinkArt on Twitter (If incorrect please tell me ;-;)

My Heart Breaks Pt. 1

Warning: Angst and some Fluff

Buggy X FemReader

Buy me a Ko-Fi? ☕️

Part 2

"(Y/N) Why the hell are we here?" You heard Buggy groan next to you annoyed, Shanks nodding in agreement. You rolled your eyes at their protest of being in the circus tent with you.

"Cause I am the one who got us the tickets, 20000 berries and I want to see the circus" You chimed proudly as you watched your favorite act come out. The clowns, Buggy grimacing at the sight of them, You see this and lean against his shoulder.

"Aww is Buggy afraid of clowns?~" You chime earning a glare from him and a blush. Shanks Grinning at this as he poked his friend in a teasing manor.

"No I'm not afraid of damn clowns! They are just... kinda creepy" He grumbled as he watched the group of bubbly cheerful clowns.

It had been a year since Gol. D Roger's had died, it had been hard on all three of you. But you luckily had each other and were trying to save up scraps of berries to start your guys own crew. You were the thief of the trio, a skilled person in breaking and entering as well as treasure hunting. Buggy was an amazing navigator and sailor while Shanks was the amazing fighter and leader of your trio of teenage Pirates.

You giggle at Buggy face of disgust at the clowns, you knew the real reason he hated them- It was the noses. He was self conscious about it heavily and seeing the clowns with the fake noses made him feel like they were making fun of him. You gently rub his shoulder gently, a silent gesture to comfort him.

Once out of the show you sighed in delight at feeling the sun on your face. Hearing both teens walking behind you and bickering between the two of them.

"Let's get some food for our journey to Hile Hile Village" You suggest, walking to the small market next to the curious. The three of you had been using this little village by Hile Hile Island as a sort of base. The three of you were planning a big heist in order to get a massive score of 750,000 berries which could help getting a bigger boat and not the stolen two decer you guys currently shared. The only issue was that the village was controlled by a dictator like man, A Lieutenant for the Marines that ruled the island. He had made it his mission to murder every pirate who tried to come to the island, so this would be a very quick smash and grab. Fleeing the island immediately afterwards.

It was simple, mildly foolish but hopefully effective.

Once in the market Buggy got toiletries, Shanks got food and you got basic supplies. The three of you walking together till you saw a beauty stand and seeing a deep red lipstick sticking out.

"Ohh I love this color" You hummed in pride at the red lipstick color, both teenage boys groaning as you took your sweet old time in choosing the brightest of red.

"I see you like the color red?" Shanks teased you, earning a sarcastic laugh from you.

"Oh yes, The color red really gets me going" You laugh as you pick the color and grab a near by red and white bandana, wrapping it around your head like a fake bonnet.

"Besides I hear red is a sigh of submission, what does that say about you Shanks?~" His face fell at your words and Buggy snorted a laugh.

You tossed down some berries for the bandana and lipstick. Following the boys back to the boat while you all chatted and teases each other, however Buggy's eyes landing on you every now and then more specifically your red lips. Everyone knew he had a crush on you, hell you had a thing for him too but it seemed he judt refused to make a move! Even when you all were on Roger's ship he never made a move on you.

"Buggy it's your turn to make dinner!" Shanks chimed out earning a groan from Buggy. After dinner you made it to the top of the deck to get some fresh air. Feeling the wind on your face as Buggy sailed you all to Hile Hile Island.

"Hey, You holding up okay?" You called out as you went to Buggy's side. The blue haired teen not meeting your eyes.

"I'm fine.." He grumbled, he knew he was pouting about something. Sighing as you look up at the night sky.

"What are you pouting about Bugs? Hm?" You pressed once more, Hearing a sigh from him.

"You um.. seem to like red right? Listen I assume you like Shanks and all. I mean ago doesnt- but um"

You look at Buggy as he leaned against the wheel of the stolen boat, not meeting your gaze.

"You two would be good together..." He grumbles, you roll your eyes and step towards him grabbing his arm hard you yank him from his pouting position and slammed your lips onto his. His eyes wide as you kiss him and leaned into the kiss, his eyes drooping as he felt warmth from you and wrapped a arm around you in return. After a moment you pulled away and grinned up at his cherry red face and eyes that were in a daze.

"I hope that answers the question of who I like Buggy" You teased, drawing a silent nod from him. Smiling you step back from his grasp and give his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Good night Bugs" You call out before heading down to the Lower Deck of the boat to sleep leaving Buggy standing there still shocked- His face breaking out in a wide grin as he silently cheered and jumped excitedly. You giggling at shearing his footsteps as he jumped up and down in excitement.

The next morning when the three of you arrived at Hile Hile Island and at dawn started your heist of robbing a jewelry store. It went smoothly enough, not too hard till the surprise alarms went off and the three of you ran.

Running through the streets you held the bag of values in your hand, the boys having a good lead on you as they slipped through the crowds and laughed. It was such a adrenaline rush! The boys ran ahead of you turning a sharp corner and heading down, as you prepared to catch up to them a muscular forearm suddenly slam put hitting you.

The wind getting knocked out of your lungs as you felt the forearm smash into your chest, your head smacking into the cobblestone ground as you looked up. The infamous Lieutenant staring down at you with a sickening grin- your eyes widened as you realized.. you were fucked.

"We are gonna be rich! Haha! That ship is ours! Right (Y/N!?)" Buggy yelled out, Hearing Shanks cheer ahead of him. Not hearing your voice he started to slow down lookknv behind him seeing you were gone and his eyes widened, Shanks still on his adrenaline high stopped as well and turned to look to see the confused Buggy.

"Where is (Y/N)?" Buggy questioned, Shanks face falling as he realized this. The two boys meeting each other's gaze and began to rush through were they had run to try and find you, calling out your name. The boys running back to try and find you, as they made it to a backstreet they see you in the back of a Marine jail wagon being dragged away to the local prison. Buggy surged forward in wanting to Spring you free but Shanks grabbed his shoulder quickly.

To say this had turned into a total shit show for you. You had been tossed in the back of the Marine jail wagon, then brought to the local prison.

There you were thrown into a cell with a women who had even in hysterics. Begging for death for her actions instead of the life sentence she was given. Your mind was racing as you tried to think of ways to get out- watching as the Lieutenant walked to you with a smile.

"It's been a while since we had a Pirate here, it's good. We needed an execution tomorrow" He said with a evil smile at you. The color draining from your face at his words.

"What!? Not a trial! Or even a proper investigation!?" You screamed as you grab at the bars. The Marine laughed loudly in your face as he leaned down to your level.

"Little girl, I'm the judge, jury and executioner. Welcome to Hile Hile!" He chimed loudly before dismissing himself with a deep laugh leaving you alone with the sobbing women.

You sat there for a while, trying to figure out what to do. Having even spoken to the women who told you she had accidently fell asleep and her child drowned and was imprisoned for murder. Now sentenced to life in prison at Impel Down, even though she wanted to die for her actions. A completely over sentencing for a horrible accident but you figured that was just how this place was run.

Going up the the barred wi dows of your cell you look out over the village. Fear running through your system as the words the man said to you rang through your system. It wasn't till you saw your two friends running in the alley by your cell did it snap you from your thoughts. Clapping your hands quickly to catch your attention you saw both of them turn to you.

"(Y/N)!" Buggy called out, looking around wildly before detaching his torso and floating up to meet you grabbing at the bars to try and pull on them. You quickly shoo him to go back down.

"No, They will see you" You hissed at him and held his hand, He floated back down but kept his detached hand with you. A sinking feeling hitting your stomach as you smiled at the two boys who rambled out in panic talking about how they would break you out. Shanks was the first one to notice your silence and the sadness in your eyes.

"Guys.. I.. I love you two-" You said to them, both freezing at your words as dread fills their system.

"Hey don't be so glum! We will get you out okay?!"

You gave Buggy's hand a squeeze sniffling back tears as you kissed the back of his hand staining it with your lipstick and taking the bandana you had bought before from around your neck and tied it to his wrist.

"I promise it will be okay Buggy.. Ill be okay" You say in a shaky voice, trying to keep him calm. Releasing his hand which floated back to his wrist.

"I'll get you out of here (Y/N)! They won't hurt you I swear!" Buggy proclaimed, his mind racing with ideas to break you out. Rushing down the alleyway in order to begin plotting.

You looked at Shanks through the bars and gave him a watery smile, tears welling in your eyes.

"Shanks... Promise me- If I go... Buggy can't see it.. He should never see me that way okay? Dont try and break me out.. you guys can get killed" You begged, tears rolling down your cheeks as you saw Shanks own eyes well with tears and nod his head.

"I-I promise (Y/N)..." He stuttered out, looking ahead and running after Buggy finally. Knowing the task that laid before him-

The next day was the day of the public execution. Wanting to make a an example out of you as they prepare for you to be killed. The Lieutenant coming by the cell you shared with the woman, who was still in her mess of a state at being imprisoned for life.

"Ah a Pirate and a Murderer" He chuckled darkly at the two of you. You glaring back at him as he leered at you-

"Does it make you feel strong to kill a child?" You asked him, earning a glare from the male who slammed his hand against the bars.

"Your show time is in half an hour- pray" He hissed at you and tossed a prison uniform and cloth bag at your feet. You knew what this was for by the red that spotted the collars on both-

Buggy had been frantically gathering a plan for his rescue mission, Ignoring the oddly silent Shanks who had just been watching him. Buggy creating a flashy and dramatic escape plan to rescue (Y/N).

"Alright It's almost ready!" He said as he grabbed rope, knives and more. Shanks looking at Buggy and sighing.

"Buggy- We can't get her-" He started but Buggy glared hard at him.

"Yes we can- if we follow this plan I can get her!" Buggy screamed, Shanks clenching his fist as he glared at his friend.

"Buggy I'm not going to let you get yourself killed" He said evenly, a silent standoff starting before Buggy shot a punch using his devil fruit which landed right on Shanks cheek knocking the red head stumble back for just a moment before Buggy bolted, running off the boat and into the rain. Buggy hearing the sound of the crowd gathering at the main city court yard, Bolting towards the direction.

Shanks chased Buggy, sliding through the rain as he saw Buggy run like his life depended on it. Buggy turned a hard corner and slipped hard, his body slamming into an alleyway wall.

Shanks grabbed Buggy and held him against the wall with all his force keeping his limbs pinned, tears running down his own cheeks as he make sure Buggy didn't move from his spot. He knew Buggy couldn't use his Devil fruit abilities as well and his limbs couldn't get far enough to reach you or strong enough to push or kick him off.

"THEY ARE GOING TO KILL HER! WE CAN HELP HER!" Buggy screamed at Shanks as the red head held his friend down-

"Buggy they will kill you!... I-I promised... I-Im sorry" He croaked out- The sound of the crowd in the courtyard got louder and Buggy moved harshly.

'We are here to show that while Gol. D Roger's influence still stands! We will be the strong hand that brings it back!'

The echoing voice sounded through the city, Buggy screaming as he tried his hardest to fight against Shanks.

'A Thief and Pirate. This is the price to pay for crimes here in Hile Hile Town! Is Death!"

The crowd cheering before there was a click before it happened- Buggy's eyes went wide as he heard the massive sound of the guillotine slamming down. The fight leaving his body as he saw the birds fly up from were the courtyard was the sound scaring them from their refuge in the rain, and the sound of cheers from the courtyard from the public execution.

He didn't even feel the cold from the rain anymore, instead feeling the emotions he had turn into ice in his chest. Like his heart had been ripped from his very being and tossed into the deepest part of the sea.

Shanks still sobbing himself pulled away from Buggy knowing it had been done. His own body shivering from the cold as he wept looking at his brothers face, Buggy's eyes looking dull like that of a fishes.

"B-Buggy I'm sorry" Shanks managed to sob to his friend, Like a puppet Buggy moved to his feet barely able to stand as he felt his body was hollow and boots too heavy. His hair sticking to his skin as he felt the rain wash away his love for Shanks and you.

"..I will never forgive this betrayal Shanks... Just like (Y/N) you are dead to me..." Buggy croaked out his voice the softest it had ever sounded, not even meeting Shanks eyes as he turned and started to walk off to towards the courtyard.

Shanks standing there in the rain not saying a word as he let Buggy go, still crying himself. The blue haired teen walking to the courtyard were the crowd was filing out, having gotten their fill of bloodshed. Buggy walked to the empty courtyard and looked up seeing the Marines cleaning the mess, the rain helping to wash the blood from the blade used and the stage it rested on. One of the Marines loading a headless female body into a basket, wearing basic black and white stripped prison attire

Buggy fell to his knees, his eyes locked onto the blade that had taken you from his life- he reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out the red and white bandana you had given him, while wet from rain he put it to his head and tied it around his blue hair.

He would remember you... he would cherish the memory. His best friend, his first love... a girl who always smiled wearing too red of lipstick and loved the circus...

He would be the greatest at it all.... Just for you.

#x reader #one peice x reader #one piece #one peice live action #buggy the clown x reader #buggy one piece #buggy x reader

602 notes · View notes

shuunnico · 4 months

Note

What's your opinion on Blizzard removing Tracers ass from all skins?

Nothing was about the model changed. Literal nothingburger.

People just deluded themselves into thinking Tracer had a bigger butt than she did because of all the porn.

There has to be some sort of name for people Mandela Effecting themselves into thinking a character looks one way because NSFW/fanart artists exaggerate a feature.

No, Hex Maniac doesn't have massive boobs.

No, 2b's hips are not as big as you think they are.

And no, Tracer doesn't have a big bubble butt like you think she does.

#Overwatch #Tracer #Hex Maniac #Pokemon #yorha 2b #neir automata #fan art

182 notes · View notes

stem-sister-scuffle · 17 days

Text

STEM SISTER SCUFFLE: ROUND 3 MASHUP 3

GLaDOS (Portal) vs Lup (The Adventure Zone)

GLaDOS is a Quantum Physicist and Behavioural Psychologist!

Lup is an Astrophysicist and Extraplaner Researcher! (she researches inter-dimensional space travel)

Lup fanart made by @herbgerblin

Why you should vote for each contestant:

GLaDOS:

"i’m not sure how to explain this one. she’s an evil computer who makes a woman do fucked up tasks that all involve a portal gun in some way. evil computer woman i love you :3"

"She's witty, fun, they had to restrain her intelligence and it didn't work-"

"She should be able to kill everyone forever. Anyways she runs aperture she loves science so much it transcended lives and identity. It’s just what she does"

"she kills people 👍 shes cool and i like her"

"…. I mean she’s categorically not but it would be funny to include her. Again, it would be Very Funny"

"mad scientist robot representation with a complex emotional arc through multiple video games"

"She might not know what the point of her tests are, but she sure is good at making them. Bonus points for being hot"

"Managed a massive and highly advanced scientific facility in which she ran tests and experiments long after the fall of human civilization. Chell/GLaDOS <3"

"She’s GLaDOS"

Lup:

"badass trans woman who is not only a highly competent astrophysicist who was chosen to be part of the first extra-planar expedition, she is also an incredibly powerful evocation (blowing shit up) wizard and uses her powers to full effect. in addition she has, along with her husband, transformed herself into an incredibly powerful lich, just all around badass and competent woman in stem we love to see it"

"Literally studied space and inter-dimensional travel and magic and necromancy for 100 years. She was part of her home planet’s first inter-dimensional expedition on a crew of 7. She’s got that transfem swag and literally became a lich for love and science and to save the universe"

"She’s incredible. She’s trans, she’s a lich, she and her husband pined for decades before getting together, she’s an elf, she’s a twin, but that’s all just spices in the cake. She’s genuinely a genius and a total badass and is so full of love. She is the first character i thought of for submitting to a women in stem bracket because she’s just so iconic. Lup Adventurezone i would die for you"

#stem sister scuffle #round 3 #portal #portal 2 #glados #the adventure zone balance #the adventure zone #taz balance #taz lup #lup adventurezone

38 notes · View notes

imagination-mess · 6 months

Text

You could read these first (Deku), and (Dynamight) before this post for it to make sense since it's different timelines and are connected to each other post-wise. It is not necessary to do so.

_____

After a year had passed, everyone within the hero community wasn’t blind to the famous 3 graduates from U.A. A fanfiction writer and their work was trending online throughout all social media platforms. The fanfiction, with the expectation of changing their names, got published for a limited amount of physical copy without the author's permission.

The root of it becoming a trending topic was curiosity and, most of all, sadness because a crowd of fans harassed the author to where the writer had to delete their account with a massive collection of fanart over the years.

There was a panel at the Hero Expo with those same three heroes who were trending the year prior. Instead, it was during the Halloween month. The Expo requested for them to dress up as a special event for the fans.

Pro Hero Shoto pays a special tribute to the book “The Demon Prince.” He was wearing special effect makeup, showing the demonic form of the curse on the left side of his face up to his ear. He used one of the many arts of Demon Prince that was circulating the media by the same author as a reference for what he wanted.

When asked if the inspiration came from a famous book that everyone knows about, even when the author deleted their accounts. It’s well-known within the fanbase of all three.

He didn’t lie about it, because he got inspiration from it. He even expressed that he did truly enjoy the book and would still occasionally read it again whenever he could.

Another fan asked a question related to the author to everyone in the panel, which contained Pro heroes Dynamight, Deku, and Shoto.

“What would be the thing you guys would like to say or ask to the author of this book?”

It was a different response from the heroes, but all were on the same page.

If the author wishes for those books to become an officially published book. They were all willing to fund it if it was a financial issue. They all loved their book individually and would love to read more from them.

The clip of the panel was circulated throughout the media by fans. Some fans were hoping it would reach the author, who deleted their account more than a year ago.

It did reach.

Within 72 hours, the author had created a new account and provided evidence that they were, in fact, the author of “The Demon Prince, The Dragon King, The Mage.”

The author answered the hero's questions related to their books. The tweet goes viral and reposted. There are an enormous amount of times when the fans were tagged on the heroes' official accounts for them to see it.

There was art in chibi figures of the heroes underneath the thread of answers to their questions. The chibis resemble what they were wearing in the panel this weekend at the Hero Expo, including the special effect makeup on Shoto and Dynamight.

#bnha x reader #mha x reader #todoroki shoto x reader #shoto x y/n #shoto x you #shoto todoroki x reader #shoto x reader #my hero academia x reader #boku no hero academia x reader #todoroki shouto x reader #todoroki x y/n #todoroki x you #todoroki x reader #shouto x y/n #shouto x reader #shouto x you #todoroki shouto x you #shouto todoroki x reader

115 notes · View notes

thesandsofelsweyr · 1 year

Note

for the nsfw headcanon, can I request for Jason

L = Location

S = Stamina

T = Toy

X = X-Ray

from Headcanon Game - A to Z (NSFW)

⚠️ cw: smut (⚤)

L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)

Pre-Batman: Arkham Knight Jay:

Jay's super self-conscious of his many, many scars. He's definitely not into fucking in public. He won't even take off his clothes in private unless you're blindfolded or the lights are out 😞

But once you showed up at one of his safehouses dressed in his militia's fatigues, your hair tucked beneath a red beret with his Arkham Knight insignia stitched on it. One glance at you wearing his mark turned him feral, his cock straining against the zipper of his cargo pants. He raked off the top of the workbench where he'd had one of his spare helmets splayed open, scattering circuit boards, screws, bolts, nuts, spools of solder wire, tools, sketchpads to the floor in a chaotic clatter, before shoving you down on your back, hooking his fingers into the waistbands of your pants and panties, then tearing them off your hips and legs and ankles like a kid on Christmas morning. Wrapping his massive arms around your thighs, manhandling you like a sex doll, he dragged you down on his fat cock, slamming inside you to the hilt in one blunt thrust, stabbing so deep you felt like he was splitting you in two. You screamed… in misery… in ecstasy… while he fucked you at a punishing pace, grunting and growling like a beast savaging his prey, like he could fuck away all of the pain, all of the blackness, all of the scars, all of the laughter. You wanted him to stop, to never stop. You wanted him to consume you, to destroy you, to leave your pussy raw and aching for the rest of the week, the month, the year, the rest of your life. It was rough, violent, carnal, bestial, and magnificent. And by the end he knew the entire complex heard you screaming his name.

Post-Batman Arkham Knight Jay:

When Jay's terrorizing Gotham as Red Hood, he's started to heal. He's started to accept that his scars—both mental and physical—don't define him, that they're proof he survived the worst that Gotham's gravity could thrust onto him. He still prefers to fuck in the privacy of his safehouses or your place, but he won't deny that he enjoyed himself immensely that one time you convinced Red Hood to bend you over the Batmobile and fuck you senseless.

S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)

Jay's your little Energizer bunny... he keeps going and going and going... 😁 It's partly due to his trauma that it takes him longer to cum than other guys, but you and your multiple orgasms certainly aren't complaining.

Once he finishes though, he's done for a while. He sometimes struggles with excruciating orgasm headaches (a side effect of Joker's bullet grazing his skull) that leave him weak and exhausted. Again, you aren't complaining since you get to snuggle with your big muscly teddy bear, stretching him out on the bed, cradling his head in your lap, combing your fingers through his soft black hair, massaging his broad shoulders, placing tender kisses on his crown, until he drifts off into the comfortable peace of your arms: warm, safe, needed, loved 💕

(A/N: I know AK: Genesis shows Joker shooting him in the chest, but I stick with BAK: Annual's explanation. If you want to know my reasoning just ask 😉)

T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

You're the one with the toybox. Jay's not interested in using them himself (the Clown had a toybox of his own, after all) but he's more than willing to play with you. He loves to watch your toes curl and back arch, to see you squirm, hear you whimper and whine while he forces orgasm after orgasm on you with your rose (N S F W link).

X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)

Pictures you say? Let's see here... *consults Dropbox folder full of naughty Jay fanart* (The following links are N S F W!!)

My FAVE by JustTheMeatTM 🤩

Honorable Mentions: by goblinromp, by phaustok, by cr0ques 🤤

He's a big boy: at least 7 inches erect and thiccc 😋

(Thank you anon for giving me an excuse to go rewatch one of my fave pornos for inspo 😂)

370 notes · View notes

tavyliasin · 3 months

Text

The Highs and Lows of Fandom Creation

Hello darlings~ It has been a little while and this one has been on my list to get to for a while, and with the Baldur's Date Valentine's Fanworks event soon to draw to a close it seems appropriate to start preparing ourselves for the cycle of what happens when we release our works into the wild. So without further ado, our latest essay~

The RollerCoaster of Emotion That Comes With Being A Creative In Fan Spaces (FanArt, FanFiction, Cosplay, Photography, Music, and So Much More) ((Another CallOut Essay Prepare To Be SEEN)) (((Also I Have Some Coping Techniques Here Too!)))

As usual with my essay pieces I will be making plenty of use of the headers to divide topics, and I fully welcome any thoughts and feelings in the comments. Whilst I am really only in the FanFic side, and a focus on Baldur's Gate 3, I do intend to make this essay inclusive of the trials and tribulations that we all tend to face in making and sharing fanworks of all kinds and through all fandoms. The more people I speak to, the more it seems to be a universal experience, so hold on to your hats it's a bumpy ride! The first part will talk about the Rollercoaster itself, the how and why behind it all, and the second will be around how to cope with it. For readers and appreciators of fan content, I urge you to have a little look too, and at the end I will add in some ways you can help support your favourites too~

Creatives Are Emotional Beings

Starting off with the obvious callout - most of us are. We feel things deeply, and that emotion can often be an incredible driving force behind our works. Whether we're creating around things we've experience, being inspired and influenced by our current emotions, or drawing on our well of imagination to work out what characters might feel (and often more importantly how/why they feel that way), emotion is a strong part of the process.

This can be an incredible strength! Tapping in to the deeper parts of ourselves, our experiences, and the emotions at our cores, can bring out the very best in our works across all creative formats. It also tends to help our audiences engage too, as they recognise their own emotions mirrored in the works.

The Downside to Strong Emotion - The Rollercoaster Effect

This chart was initially drawn up based on writing, but truly after speaking with a few beloved Discord friends it was quick to see that this easily applies to art as well, so I'm going to go over this slightly differently to the initial plan.

The Start Of Every Ride

We begin usually around a neutral baseline, or maybe a little below if we haven't created in a while, perhaps we might start higher than baseline with the rush of an exciting new idea. Either way, the first part of the project tends to go up in mood very quickly when we share those early unfinished parts.

For writers this might be a beta reader or sharing a sample of the work as they're still writing as a teaser, artists might see this as their initial sketch or linework stage if they're sharing progress and teasers too. Cosplayers could be the first part of a build, musicians sharing a few bars of the melody - whatever it is, that first little positive boost that says Keep Going is a powerful one.

But what happens next? Well, you still have more work to do! That initial boost and confidence can drop down to a slump, especially if it's taking longer to complete than you thought it would, and double that if something goes wrong that needs to be changed or fixed.

You may, hopefully, find it begins to rise as things start to come together again and that finish line in sight, but then...

I Finished Making The Thing, Now What?

Well, first you're going to feel that massive surge of satisfaction from completing the thing. Sometimes a dopamine rush in the brain, and all that excitement of "Finally I get to share the thing I worked so hard on! It's done!" So, off you go, you post it. You share the links, maybe drop them in some Discord servers, other social media...and then, often very quickly, it hits you.

Post Publishing Drop

Those of you in the convention and event scene might also know this feeling as "Con Drop", which can take a little longer to manifest. Post Publishing Drop hits quite quickly. Sometimes it might take a few hours, but other times it starts almost within minutes of posting as all that rush of energy finishing and publishing is just...gone.

If you're lucky, you might get some quick and early feedback, especially if you're a well known or popular creator, but I imagine even those of you who tend to get very high engagement can feel a lot of this too so I don't mean to exclude any of you in any way at all~ So what is it? What's happening? WHY?!

Well darlings all that adrenaline is wearing off and realistically you're not likely to get that creative feedback and validation instantly. So that wonderfully powerful emotional heart of yours is going to crack a little. It won't last, it won't stay this low, but good gods that lack of engagement and positive reinforcement can be devastating.

The first engagements you get - kudos, likes, reaction emotes on a Discord post - they may be enough to boost you right back up to your baseline or even a little above, until the worry creeps back in again. And I know that it does, clawing and slithering in the back of your beautifully creative mind whispering those horrible lies:

Why isn't this getting the reaction I hoped for yet? Is this work not as good as before? Have people stopped liking me? Is the website/platform hiding my work? Have I upset people somehow in ways I can't even see?

Then Back Up We Go, And What Goes Up...

Hopefully those voices don't get a chance to be too loud for too long before you see more of that engagement. Maybe it's a heartfelt comment from someone, or a share from someone you respect, or just a little surge of interaction in general. You're back on top, darling, your creative heart is soaring, finally your work is being seen in a way that reminds you why you put in all that time in the first place!

And each time, the high wears off again, with a drop, though the extremities of each is likely less and less as time goes on. Unless, of course, we make one little mistake and the gradual confidence build comes crashing back down...

The Perils Of Comparing

Sometimes this might be looking at someone else's work, seeing a similar style or similar topic get far more engagement than your own. It can be really hard not to feel discouraged by this, and falling into that trap of questioning where you're "going wrong" can lead to absolute agony - I urge you to do your best to move away from this as soon as you notice the feeling. I'll cover some proper techniques later though, I promise!

The other trap with comparison can be looking at your own past works, and over-analysing why some pieces never got the same love and appreciation as others. Picking it apart to find what you can do better is not as wise a plan as it seems for one simple reason:

Over half of this is down to pure chance!

It might be the time of day it was posted, or just one or two people seeing it and deciding to share it on that gives a work a massive boost to interaction and engagement. Maybe a work was lucky enough to get shared in a prominent community by one of the members, or even had someone with a huge following give it a boost.

At the end of the day, there seem to be very few ways to predict this. Of course there are some characters, topics, art styles, writing tropes, etc that will have a tendency to get more love from their respective fanbases - that's how popularity works - but there is no guarantee that, for example, two portraits of the same character in similar styles by different artists will have the same levels of engagement and "success". The main person you should be aiming to please with your own work is yourself~ After all, when working on it you will be the one going over it again and again, knowing every detail in and out, if you don't love the subject of those details your less likely to even reach that finish line~

And It All Begins Again

At the end of the cycle there's often one last spike up. Maybe it's a comment or interaction from someone who truly felt the depth of meaning in your work as you hoped it would, or you realise that it has done better overall in the numbers, or most often you get that creative surge of a shiny new idea that calls to you with that familiar siren song, promising the high of satisfaction and sweeping the memory of that Post Publishing Drop under the rug all over again so you won't see it coming when you trip on it.

How Do We Get Off This Ride? Where's The Safety Bar?

Darlings, be honest, you didn't want to stop. You still don't. That's why you're still right here, reading this with me. Your cycle might take a day, a week, a month, or you may go through the whole thing in a matter of hours.

Riding The Waves

The first way to begin coping is to prepare. Know yourself and how you're likely to feel, and plan ahead for it. If you know the drop is coming, you can try to avoid it, or deploy distress tolerance when it feels too much.

On a very simple level, this can be reminding yourself that the lows do not last, and those highs will still be there. You might even be tempted to try to regulate the highs as much as the lows, to bring everything a little closer in to the baseline throughout the cycle.

Distress Tolerance techniques can be important to practice when you're feeling close to your baseline and calm so that they're easier to turn to when you're feeling that low hit. There are lots of things that work for different people, so it might be trial and error - largely you're looking at relaxation techniques, distraction from the source of the distress, and/or community support.

You Can Rely On The Community!

It is ok to ask for help! You can ask people for reassurance, directly ask for feedback, or even just talk over how you feel with other creators and find out how they're handling things. Sometimes just knowing you're not alone and that your feelings are real, valid, and matter can be a real boon - that's why I'm here, spending a couple of hours putting all of this into words as best as I can for you all. I've felt this cycle too many times, but the more I talk about it with other fic writers the more I feel we are connected and that I'm not just losing my marbles over nothing~

We are human, we have emotions - strong ones, remember? - and there's nothing wrong with that at all!

There is nothing wrong with having emotions and experiencing them!

Knowing When To Step Away

If you know you're more likely to have a swift drop from lack of quick feedback, it's a great idea to plan to step away from socials as soon as you're done. Have an activity planned, or do it all write before bed so you can switch off and go to sleep. Turn off those notifications so you aren't fussing over each one of them as they come in and don't go back for a while.

Allow a realistic amount of time to pass for people to see and engage with your work before you worry it is invisible!

The Next Shiny Idea

Conversely, if you're feeling too much of a creative itch, then as soon as you're done sharing move right on to starting the next project. Let the initial surge of energy from completing and sharing something be the driving force to kickstart the next great adventure! That way you're thinking more about the new work, the sparkling allure of a fresh idea, rather than fixating on the success of the last.

Cashing in on that adrenaline rush to make a good head-start can boost you right to that early feedback stage too, then if you're really lucky when you hit the first drop-off you'll have the positive engagement from the last work to boost you back up, so in some ways you're overlaying your graphs to balance them out with each other.

Naturally this only works if you have the time and energy to do so. It's also important to know when to take breaks to avoid burning out.

General Mood Boosting Ideas

These might not work for everyone, but here are some things to try when you're in one of those lows. A lot of this may be trial and error and knowing yourself best, so treat this as a few things that may or may not be effective rather than Lia's Super Snake Oil Cure For Everything (you have to buy that from me separately, it's super expensive but it is delightfully cherry and cinnamon flavoured~)

Check in on your basic needs. Drink, food, meds (if applicable), sleep/nap, caffeine (if you usually have it), shower/bath/hygiene needs (even if just a quick freshen up it's better than nothing), fresh air/outside time (if possible), exercise/physical movement (if you're able to), social needs (can be in person or online, any social interaction/support)

Music can be a powerful mood tool. Sometimes it's cathartic to listen to music that matches your current mood, but other times it is better to listen to music with the mood you want to feel.

Media from the fandom, like the book/film/game/etc that you're making fanworks for - return to the thing that inspired you to create and remember all the things that you loved about it in the first place.

Look at other fanworks but be very cautious! Do this for inspiration, to look at things you do and don't like in other pieces, but do not do this if it will be likely to cause a mood drop for you.

Do something different and change up your routine. Something entirely new or something you haven't done for a while.

Try something small, not connected to a large piece. A few sketches, doodles, make a meme, write a few short lines of dialogue or a brief scene. Share something with far lower stakes for a little boost.

Talk to others in the creative community and have a bit of fun, maybe try some games together, whatever you like!

I'm Not A Creative, How Can I Help?

This also counts for creatives who want to support each other, too! Of course I will put the caveat that I do understand that not everyone is comfortable visibly interacting with spice and that's fine~

Drop a like or kudos if you enjoyed the piece, it takes a second and means the world~

Leaving a comment, even a couple of silly words of "I loved it" is great!

Leaving a longer comment, picking out your favourite parts? That is the kind of boost that lasts weeks darlings it really does.

Sharing the work is also a big boost, whether publicly or privately to friend/fan groups, but especially when sharing art/images please share the link with it not just the image or a screenshot~ let people find and appreciate the artist.

Follow or Subscribe or Turn on notifications if you really want to see more of their work, then you can interact sooner and give that much needed boost~

Try to be patient, especially with longer or higher effort works. Expressing excitement is a boost, but just be careful you're not putting too much pressure on the creator. We do have things going on behind the screen that can delay our plans at times.

Consider dropping an interaction on something else, or check in on how they're doing in general - a little kindness outside of just the works being produced can be a boost too!

The Grand Finale of the Rollercoaster

Thank you for staying with me to the end darlings, I know this was likely a bit of an emotional ride, but please do drop in some comments or reblogs with the other things you experience and how you handle the emotional whirlwind of being a fan creator. Always remember, you are valued for more than just what you can produce, your works are adored but the person behind them is worth so much more and always will be. Look after yourselves, I love you dearly~

#fanfic #fanart #fan creations #support for creatives #fanfic writing #ao3 writer

50 notes · View notes

ashisgreedy · 7 months

Text

“The Halloween Party”

POV: Garreth Weasley

SFW

This was written as a collab story with the following amazing people(tagged)! We took turns writing for this story and it took off in many hilarious and dramatic tangents! One person would write a few paragraphs then send it off to the next person to continue. It was so fun to be a part of and I am grateful for everyone's involvement! The end of the segments will indicate who wrote which part.

@greedyforgarreth - (GFG), @pandanscafanfiction (Pandansca), @daydreamsonacloudyday - (DOACD) @slytherin-paramour , @cuffmeinblack , @blueraineshadows , @junie-00 , @eternalremorse, @finalgirllx , @grandeoatmilklatte - (Oat), @AurorSrag @sevprince-91 (AS)

(Please see the end where @slytherin-paramour drew amazing fanart of Seb-Skein!)

WC: 9,700

Garreth spent quite a lot of time preparing for his Halloween bash. Several cauldrons were bubbling. Some were filled with a mix of alcoholic drinks while others held concoctions Garreth had perfected over the years that would induce different effects on the drinker. He couldn't decide to tell people what the effects were or if they should just find out for themselves.

He definitely wasn't in it alone as he implored his friends to assist him with this massive party. Everyone in the school was making an appearance in the Gryffindor common room. He hoped that if any Professor did get tipped off they would turn a blind eye so the students may have one last party before they graduate from Hogwarts. He adjusts his costume and fixes a big smile on his face as he begins walking through the party while the music blasts through the magical gramophones.

(GFG)

Everyone was dressed incredibly festive. It was so cool to look around the large common area and attempt to figure out who was who under their masks and disguises- with the exception of a few. His older brother Oscar, for one, showed up in his quidditch attire ('how original') and Ominis didn't bother to put much more effort in his costume than a pair of cat ears. In any case, he smiled broadly and wore his own proudly, puffing out his chest as he raised a toast of something even he didn't know high in the air. "Cheers, mates!"

As he took a deep swig, Sebastian appeared next to him wearing… was that Azkaban stripes and broken cuffs? "What are you even supposed to be, Weasley?", he sneered.

Garreth pouted, offended that not one person could tell what he was. Wasn't it obvious?

(Pandansca)

“Wouldn’t you like to know, Sallow,” Garreth answered, rolling his eyes at the Slytherin. There had to be one person at his party who would figure out what he was. Maybe she would know, she always seemed to know exactly what he was thinking.

Before Sebastian could pester him about his costume some more, Garreth clapped him on the back and disappeared back into the costumed crowd, in search of her. (DOACD)

He stumbled a little when someone accidentally stepped on his costume as it trailed out behind him, turning to rearrange himself with a grin. "Woooah, easy there my friend! We wouldn't want to ruin this masterpiece would we?"

He laughed as he gestured to the, quite frankly, fantastic costume that he'd been working on for weeks, before continuing to move through the jubilant crowd in the direction of the cauldron station. He couldn't help but give a little jiggle of his hips to the beat of the music as he went.

A giant, pink gaping hole lined with spikes entered his periphery. Several green leaves were stuffed around the edges of this person's collar. Garreth was very confused until his eyes honed in on a small bespectacled face protruding from the center of the monstrosity.

"Hobhouse? Is that you? What in Merlin's name are you supposed to be? You look like the vagina from my nightmare!"

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Duncan puffed out his chest in a show of indignation, deflating quickly under the stares Garreth's outburst had attracted.

"No! I...do you really not know?" the Ravenclaw shot back in a squeaky voice.

Garreth grinned, a show of friendliness seldom bestowed on the boy. He'd never held any ill will towards Duncan; it just happened to be incredibly fun to wind him up a little.

"What are you meant to be?" Duncan asked, his bespectacled face scrutinizing Garreth's fantastic costume.

"Never you mind," Garreth sighed, his attention caught by a melodic laugh that he'd know absolutely anywhere. "See you later, Hobhouse!"

Garreth dashed towards the source of the chuckle, barely audible over the cheers of 'nightmare vagina' aimed towards the boy he'd just left. (cuffmeinblack)

There she was. Beautiful, radiant, her eyes sparkling like new stars as she laughed, the sound of it making warmth spread through him as he gazed at her. Her cheeks were beginning to get that first pink flush from whatever she was drinking, enhancing her perfection in a way that made Garreth almost speechless.

As he paused to admire his biggest distraction, a tap on his shoulder made him turn, his gaze lifting to meet with a face painted in greys and blacks. Surrounding this mask of horror was a tattered black hood, part of a flowing black robe that draped to the floor. It was enough to make one flinch, however, the warmth of those familiar brown eyes took away the chilling Dementor look that Leander had gone for this evening.

Leander held up a drink, the vivid blue liquid smoking a little. "Is this the one that makes you levitate?" He asked.

Garreth eyed it, a smirk lifting his lips. "Maybe, why?"

Leander's smirk was even bigger. "Have you seen what Sallow has come as? If I drink this, I'm going to float over and pick a fight with an escaped prisoner," he chuckled. (blueraineshadows)

“That would be quite the show for our guests,” Garreth chuckled, “Let me grab MC first, I’m sure she’d love to see prisoner Sallow versus a dementor.” He nodded towards his target before beginning to walk towards her, the curiosity in him peeking when he couldn’t get a good look at her costume that was blocked by the bodies of her festively dressed friends surrounding her.

Leander's eyes roamed over her, a sliver between the students giving him a view of her choice of attire for the night. A quick hand stopped Garreth from moving any further, spinning him around so Leander’s eyes could scan him over, “Mate, are you two…” he paused before glancing in her direction once more, “Matching?”

As if it was the universe giving him yet another reason she was downright perfect for the Gryffindor, students cleared from her, giving Garreth a clear view of the girl who never failed to surprise him. “Brilliant!” Garreth trailed off as he excitedly pushed his way through students, his eyes never leaving the magnificent costume she proudly wore. (junie-00)

The various bells hanging from Garreth's belt jingled merrily as he approached MC with a great big grin on his face. His eyes trailed up and down, studying the ensemble that, in fact, did match his own.

"Seems you're a man of culture as well, MC."

Though his words were simply calm and friendly, the one brain cell in his head was bouncing off the walls of his skull.

"Of course! Though it almost got ruined because of one of your silly concoctions, the one that makes you croak and your throat swell like a bullfrog. Probably not the best idea for a costume party, eh? Nellie's costume got a little torn, actually, but that's probably for the better. It's a weird red suit with clown makeup and green hair. Maybe it's some sort of muggle thing."

MC took a sip of her drink, the metal claws on the ends of her fingers making small scratches in the ceramic as Garreth did the same.

(OPHOCC)

Garreth bit his lip as his eyes slowly trailed down MC’s outfit. If there was one person out of the whole charade of people he wanted to see here, it was her. MC noticed his stare and smiled smugly before nudging his shoulder.

“Now, now, Weasley, the night has just begun. Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves with the after-party thoughts already,” she winked.

Garreth chuckled and held up his hands. “Heh, you’re right. But I can’t help it when I see such a gorgeous woman right in front of me.”

MC giggled and a sudden hiccup escaped, her hand immediately covered her mouth in slight embarrassment. She then laughed and looked at her cup. “My word, this drink is getting to me already! It’s good stuff, despite the side effects.”

Garreth looked rather proud of himself in that moment. “Well, I’m glad to see you’re enjoying yourself and my brew. Maybe if you’re a good girl I’ll even give you the recipe for it. Top secret of course!”

MC raised an eyebrow. “Good girl? Garreth, what do you m-“ She noticed a commotion happening over Garreth’s shoulder. “Merlin’s beard! What is happening over there?” (eternalremorse)

Garreth’s head swiftly spun to see the racket happening behind him, and the sight to behold left both himself and MC standing speechless. The surrounding party-goers appeared to have the same reaction, as, seemingly in unison, all attention was suddenly on the spectacle before them.

Someone had gone all out and dressed up as a Hippogriff. But this wasn't just a simple costume, it was a life-size recreation of the beast. The longer Garreth looked, he could gather that one student formed the front while another, less fortunate, was tucked inside the rear, mostly hidden from view. The sheer scale of the costume and some minor collisions (one which even sent poor ‘nightmare vagina’ Hobhouse tumbling) had drawn everyone's focus.

As gobsmacked as Garreth was, he felt a sense of obligation to find out who made up this horrific ensemble. He took a deep breath, gave MC a gentle pat on the shoulder, and mustered some of that Gryffindor bravery to approach the peculiar, two-person costume. He would need a stronger drink after this.

"Um, hello there," Garreth began, wondering if the duo inside the costume could even hear him. “Might I ask who you are?” (finalgirllx)

Garreth heard a soft muffled voice come from the top half of the Hippogriff. He recognized it immediately as Poppy. “Don’t you recognize me?” she shouted, trying to make her voice carry considering the thickness of the costume. Garreth laughed. “Merlin’s beard Poppy, how did you pull this off? And who’s the other half of your costume?”

A symphony of grumbles suddenly came from the second half of the costume. Garreth could not make out what was said, but he could tell whoever was in there was not happy about their predicament. “Imelda!” Came Poppy’s muffled voice once again. “We made bets on the Quidditch game. I bet that if Slytherin lost, she had to be the bottom half of my costume. She was pretty cocky about it, swearing that there was no way Slytherin would lose to Hufflepuff, alas, here she is!” Poppy’s voice was especially cheerful about this as if she was absolutely loving Imelda’s misery.

Garreth was thoroughly impressed. He turned to the table closest to him, grabbing a drink off the table. He went to hand it to Poppy before realizing there was no way for her to drink it. “Well, Poppy, this costume is incredible. I’d toast to your effort, but I imagine you can’t drink through this.”

“Oh actually, you can pour the drink into my mouth, I added a funnel on the inside for drinks. As for Imelda, you can pass her a drink from the back.”

Garreth obliged, pouring a drink for Poppy down the Hippogriff’s mouth, where there was indeed a funnel. He awkwardly made his way towards the back of the costume, jumping as a hand emerged from the Hippogriff’s butthole, snatching the drink from Garreth’s hand. Garreth simply laughed and shook his head, turning away from the Hippogriff to find MC again, the various objects glued to his hat jingling as he walked. (Oat)

But this was Halloween, the night of chaos and Poppy’s Hippogriff was just the beginning of the show.

True to his words, Leander did take the drink that was supposed to make him fly and was prepared to execute his plan. He stretched out his hands, his sleeves being extra-large, covering his hands and he positioned himself like a dementor would and went for Sebastian, who had his back to him right now, talking to Ominis.

Neither of them had any idea of what was coming.

Duncan felt something hovering above his head and he lifted his head out of his pink flourishing tentacles, right in time to see a dementor floating above his head and he gave a squeal.

Everyone looked up and then someone shouted, “Sallow, behind you.”

Sebastian looked up and gasped. The horror of watching a dementor for real made his blood run cold and he forgot the time and place until Leander spoke up,

“Your soul is mine Sallow!”

But instead of a hoarse ghost-like voice that Leander intended to produce, a high-pitched squeaky voice out of the dementor’s robes made everyone roll on the floor with laughter.

“My voice,” Leander pressed his hands on his mouth and swirled backward but alas he couldn’t get himself down. “Get me dowwwwwwwwwn!” He squeaked. “Garreth! Get me down.” He swirled in the air shouting in his squeaky little voice.

Garreth ran underneath him, his arms extended hoping to catch him in case he falls, his bells madly jingling around his belt. MC ran behind him, her wand out and pointed at Leander, trying to get him down.

“Sebastian, Ominis, stop laughing and help us out here.”

MC yelled at the pair, as she ran madly to save her friend, almost tumbling poor Duncan Hobhouse, and his tentacles right into the butt of Poppy’s hippogriff, making Imelda lose her balance as she fell on the ground with Duncan above her and the costume splitting into half, from the middle, turning it into a half-ass Hippogriff now.

“Duncan fucking Hobhouse!” Imelda yelled as she desperately attempted to remove the butt of the Hippogriff costume from above her head and pummel Duncan hard on the face. (AS)

Garreth's eyes desperately sought out the location of his bubbling cauldrons. He really was too sober for this. His eyes landed on a purple brew that he had completely forgotten the effects it had. He decided to take a ladle full of the purple brew into his cup and a ladle full of the pink brew just next to it. He resolved that at least one of them was alcohol and would get him drunk. With his eyes closed, he chugged down the entire cup.

A loud crash of the window made him choke on the last gulp of his drink. Garreth wiped the back of his mouth and turned around to see Everette pummeling through the crashed window on his broom. He was waving something in the air that let off several small fireworks. People below him ducked and weaved out of the way of the sparks.

Garreth smiled at the display of mischievousness from an obviously very drunk Everette, who most likely had been pre-gaming well before the party even started. MC was already using the repairo spell on the window and Garreth gave her a thumbs up.

Garreth poured a second cup of his concoction and rushed over to Everette as he landed on wobbly legs. "Cheers, mate!" Garreth handed him the mixed drink. Everette took it enthusiastically and started to take a sip.

"Thanks! But, uh..." Everette looked Garreth over, the bells and claws decorating Garreth's person making him squint. "What exactly are you dressed up as?"

Garreth frowned "Isn't it obvious?" He swayed, realizing very quickly exactly what potion he'd just downed with his alcohol. (GFG)

Rule number one: never forget your own brews; a mistake he made for not the first time, and especially not the last. He blinked erratically and stumbled over his own feet as suddenly his vision went inverse- the entire room was upside down! Or- well- was it? It certainly seemed so. He didn't remember creating a potion like this but he had mixed two of them together.

Garreth looked around the room with wide eyes as he watched everyone walk along the ceiling as though it were perfectly normal. Even Amit was sitting comfortably in the chandelier as though it were an armchair (wait- wasn't it an armchair?) Good Godric, he was plastered), giggling to himself as he sipped on a drink and tried to nail Leander in the head with magical shooting stars.

"Stop moving, Prewett!", he slurred.

The Gryffindor rubbed at his eyes and blinked once more as he took in the Ravenclaw's rather… alluring attire. "Um… Amit? Did you lose a bet?", he squeaked.

Amit looked at the ginger as though he had two heads. "Garreth, my clothes are quite normal.", he called back. But since when was a corset, bloomers, and thigh-high stockinged normal?! "You, on the other hand, are rather confusing." The raven-haired boy mumbled as his eyes grew more disgusted and perplexed by the second. "What are you, again?"

Garreth opened his mouth to reply when a curiously green spell suddenly shot right past his head, singing the wall opposite him. "What in the-?!"

(Pandansca)

Garreth looked to the origin of the spell and saw a puffskein.

Wait–a puffskein?

What in Merlin’s name was a puffskein doing at the party? And why was it floating around, completely unbothered with everyone and everything around it? (DOACD)

He swayed a little where he stood, his eye's trying to focus on the small, hairy creature that he now realized was most certainly gripping a wand between it's teeth. Green wisps of magic residue emerged from the tip of the wand and Garreth let out a bellowing laugh at the sight. Somehow, he made his way to the puffskein without falling on his arse and picked the little fuzz ball up, holding it in front of his face with a grin.

"Hello there fluffy fellow, how did you get in here? And whos wand did you steal?"

He booped it on the nose and tried to pry the wand out of the creatures mouth, only for the Puffskein to clamp down and start writhing furiously in Garreth's arms.

"Woaaah, calm down! Oi!" He had almost dropped the frantic creature when Ominis appeared beside him, panting and trying to catch his breath. He held his wand up and sighed in relief.

"Oh thank Merlin, you found him! Quick, we need to change him back!"

Garreth's alcoholic, potion influenced brain became even more confused by Ominis' words.

"What...change who back?"

The blonde boy gestured to the angry little beast currently trying to roll it's way out of Garreth's arms.

"That's Sebastian!"

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Garreth's eyes slid out of focus as he tried to process the information, not trusting his drink-addled brain's slow responses amongst the thoroughly irate bundle of fur now trying to roll out of his arms. He looked down at the puffskein, noticing the tufty chestnut fur and big brown eyes, his lips curling into a grin as he realised that oh yes, this was Sebastian alright. Ominis' wand was ready, the incantation to return his friend to his human form on the tip of his tongue.

What a waste that would be.

Garreth bolted, clutching the fluffy menace against his chest as he sped through the crowds once again, trying his best not to go arse over tit with the way his vision swam and the room made absolutely no logical sense. Why was the Hippogriff's arse now tumbling across the ceiling? Did the sofas always have mouths? The only thing he knew was that the cocky, self-satisfied, altogether too handsome Slytherin Sebastian Sallow was now a ferocious little puffskein, and Garreth wasn't about to let Ominis change him back before the entire castle got a peek. He spotted MC once again, her beauty just about the only thing not addled by his questionable concoctions, and Garreth held Sebastian above his head with a triumphant grin spread across his face.

"Guess who this is?!" he shouted across the room, ignoring Duncan's hysterical screams. (cuffmeinblack)

The party goers nearest to him glanced up, the irate puffskein now snarling in ways that definitely didn't sound accurate, the wand clenched in its teeth waving dangerously around the room. Laughter echoed and a few names were called out as Ominis pressed himself through the crowd, cheeks flushed and brow furrowed.

"Hand him over, Weasley," he demanded. He aimed his wand in Garreth's vague direction, the tip of it blinking brightly.

Garreth chuckled. "But he looks so adorable!"

MC appeared beside Ominis, her eyes narrowing in on the little growling ball of fur. Her eyes then widened, a gasp leaving her lips.

"I know that wand!" She exclaimed. She put her hand to her mouth, horrified laughter bursting from it. "Who did this?! That's Seb!"

"What? No!" Leander burst past MC, his Dementor painted face aghast as he stared at Puffskein Seb. He gave a panicked look towards MC. "Please tell me he can be changed back?" He squeaked.

MC narrowed her gaze. "Why do you care?"

Leander realised everyone was staring at him and his blush was so dark it showed through his face paint. "No… no reason," he stuttered.

Ominis turned with eerie accuracy, his wand aimed right at Leander's nose. "If this was you, Prewett, you'd better start begging," he said. (blueraineshadows)

Garreth slowly blinked when he tried to follow the commotion unfolding as Ominis pressed his wand against Leander’s nose, but his efforts were in vain when different effects of his mixed potion began to take over his brain. It seemed as if the students were becoming one with their costumes, contorting into ferocious creatures right in front of him. His eyes widened as the students began to close in on them, his palms covered in a thick layer of sweat and his mouth becoming dry from his gaping mouth, paying no mind to the slytherin puffskein wrestling in his loosening hands.

“What the fu-” He whispered to himself before the ball of fur was hastily snatched from his hands.

“Come on!” MC hissed as she tugged Garreth by his arm, nearly dragging him behind her while holding Sebastian snug against her chest. Not so surprisingly, the slytherin turned beast was willingly resting in her arms as she burst through the crowd of students.

Garreth tumbled behind her, his feet failing to meet her fast pace, “Where are we going?” the goggle eyed Gryffindor mumbled as he looked around at every student he passed that looked like they morphed into their costumes. His head shooting to look behind him as he heard Ominis shout their names.

“You’ll see,” she panted as she looked back at Ominis, picking up her pace when she noticed him trailing behind them, “I want to have my fun with Seb-skein before Ominis turns him back!” (junie-00)

MC began sifting through the crowd for a particular Ravenclaw. One that claimed to “feel braver” after she did the dirty work for him finding that Giant Venomous Tentacula, yet he got all the credit for it! But what could she do? She was a naive fifth-year at the time and wanted to be liked by everyone. Maybe it was time for a little vengeance.

She spotted Duncan talking to Amit and Andrew Larson, she smiled and pulled Garreth close, nodding towards the trio. Garreth could barely make them out with the potion effect still in full swing.

MC hushed her voice a little bit. “Seb, I’m going to need your help here.”

She looked down at the brunette Puffskein whose eyes looked up at her with curiosity. She must admit he was super cute as one of the little creatures.

“See Duncan over there? I’d like you to give him the biggest fright of his life for me. For taking all the glory for the Giant Venomous Tentacula leaf he claimed he got himself from the hidden Herbology corridor.”

Garreth heard what she said and his eyes widened. “Waaaaaait, that wasn’t Dun-kein?” he slurred. MC giggled at shook her head.

“It was all me. I felt kind of sorry for him at the time.” She lowered Sebastian to the ground and winked at him. “Go get him, Seb-skein.” (eternalremorse)

Sebastian bounced his way over to the Ravenclaw, whose back was facing him as he chatted with Amit and Andrew. Both of the boys paused when they noticed the angry ball of fur behind Duncan, who was still babbling away, completely unaware.

“Uh…Duncan…” Amit started, trying to get the boy’s attention as Sebastian growled, the wand in his mouth pointed up towards Duncan. But it was too late for the poor boy, as the moment he turned around, he was hit with an array of spells being shot at him from the furry creature.

Duncan screamed as Sebastian continued to shoot little blasts at him. He attempted to run, but tripped, landing on the floor. The entire party stopped what they were doing to watch as Sebastian dropped his wand from his mouth and jumped on Duncan, bouncing on him a few times before he began to nip at him, Duncan screaming and flailing his arms the entire time. Everyone was laughing, but Garreth could only focus on MC’s laugh. His glassy eyes kept darting back and forth between the madness in front of him, and her.

Ominis pushed through the crowd and almost went to grab Sebastian, but he too couldn’t help but burst into a fit of laughter when his wand informed him of the scene he had walked into. (Oat)

Leander came floating at the commotion and attempted to grab Seb-skein as he attempted his final favorite trick of shoving his tongue into Duncan’s nose. He will never be able to get over the nightmare of tasting Duncan’s boogies but the fun was worth it.

Garreth however watched MC with glassy eyes, mesmerized by the tinkle of laughter coming out of her lips that he so wanted to kiss for a long time now. An absurd urge filled him all of a sudden and for a moment he felt like nothing he would do now could go wrong.

So amidst all the commotion of Duncan vs Seb-skein, Garreth almost lunged at MC, grabbed her shoulder, turned her towards him and kissed her! (AS)

A short time later, as everyone forgets the commotion and Duncans's screams, Garreth finds Puffskein Sebastian on the arm of one of the couches in the common room. Someone had put sunglasses on him and replaced his wand with a glow stick. The small creature's head bobbed to the music, eyes closed as he grooved to the beat.

Garreth knew he needed another drink, the room was finally flipping back to right side up. He pet Seb-skein on the head and smiled. "Puffskein must be lightweights, you're positively sloshed." He chuckled and then made his way to the cauldrons again.

Before he could make it all the way, Imelda, the ass of the hippogriff forsaken, popped up in front of him. She crossed her arms and eyed him. "I hate parties." She said, loudly so her voice wasn't drowned out by the music.

"Oh.." Garreth frowned a bit "Well, I could offer you a drink? Or, would you like to play a party game?"

Imelda crossed her arms. "I didn't say I hated YOUR party." She scoffed. "A game then. And be quick with it."

Garreth smiled. "A game it is!" (GFG)

While he ladled a different mix of concoction for the two of them, he mused over what sort of game they could play. His hips swayed to the music while he sipped. The party was getting into the thick of it, now; loud, thumping dance tracks as magic, pulsating orbs of light strobed to the beat in the much darker space. But the flashing lights gave him an odd sense of lost deja vu.

'Wait… Didn't something big happen earlier?' There was an odd lapse in his memory and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't remember anything past Dunkan getting his bogeys licked by Sebastian up until now… How did he get here, with Imelda? Not that he was complaining; she was lovely company. But even still… wasn't what he was forgetting important?

His brows dipped and he handed Imelda her drink but the thought of losing something brought upon a fabulous idea for a game and his eyes lit up. "How about a scavenger hunt?!", he offered.

Imelda's smirk was downright predatory with her characteristic bout of competitiveness. She took a swig of her drink and huddled close, her arm wrapping around Garreth's shoulder and pulling him close. "State your rules."

"No one else can know about the game. First person to get all items and meet back at the home base wins."

"And what does the winner get?"

Garreth thought for a moment. "A wish granted- Something doable and within reason. And the loser can't deny them."

The gears were already visibly turning in Imelda's mind as her dark eyes roamed over his lips. "You'd better hope you have more endurance than me, then.", she quipped and took a long chug of her alcohol before crushing the cup in her hand and tossing it aside. "You're going to need it for my wish." Garreth flushed fiercely. "Now- What are we hunting tonight, Weasley?"

What to hunt for indeed…

(Pandansca)

Garreth found a spare piece of parchment and a quill amongst the chaos of the party, and he and Imelda began coming up with their list of things to hunt for. There was something Garreth couldn’t quite remember, something at the edge of his memory, but it kept flitting away as they came up with item after item.

It couldn’t be that important, could it?

When they finished, he made a copy of the list with his wand and handed it to Imelda, who shot him a smirk before sauntering off in her ass end of a hippogriff costume. He reread the list, the words swimming in his vision for a second before he got them to focus again. He grabbed another concoction and downed it before setting off to look for the items on the list. (DOACD)

He chuckled to himself as he glanced over the first couple of things that he needed to find. This was going to be fun. Or an absolute shit show. It was a fine line to be perfectly honest. The fuzziness inside his head was giving him a ridiculous confidence boost, and he set off in search of a certain haughty, blonde Slytherin.

Ominis had given up on his quest to turn Sebastian back into a human, for the moment. He had thoroughly enjoyed it when his hairy little best friend had tormented Duncan Hobhouse afterall.

He was sitting on one of the large leather sofas now, swaying side to side and singing along to whatever song was blaring from the gramophone. A goblet of fire whiskey was held precariously in his left hand and he had tucked his trusty wand behind his ear.

The sofa suddenly tilted him to the left when Garreth cannonballed himself into the leather beside him, the shock making the poor Slytherin jump up and spill half of his whiskey backwards over his shoulder.

"You have a beautiful singing voice, Ominis!" Garreth's deep tone slurred into his ear from beside him.

Ominis blushed despite his rage at the dopey Gryffindor.

"Garreth! You've fucking soaked my silk shirt! …But thank you for the compliment I suppose."

Garreth leaned in close, wrapping an arm around his friend and brought his lips to the blonde's ear.

"You're very welcome, pretty kitty." His carded his fingers gently up through Ominis' hair to tug on the little black cat ears.

Ominis stilled, his breath caught in his throat. He was about to speak when he felt a sharp pain at the back of his head and heard Garreth's voice call out cheekily.

"Yoink! I've got it! Sorry Ominis!" And he jumped up and ran away holding a couple of the Slytherin's beautiful hairs.

(Slytherin-Paramour)

Garreth was on a roll, and feeling increasingly intoxicated. The last concoction he'd thrown down his throat appeared to be mostly alcohol—whisky, he'd guess by the burn in his throat. At least the common room was the right way up now, but it was becoming harder to walk in a straight line as he staggered through the crowds.

The next item on his list should be easy enough, he thought as he plunged his hand into a bowl of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. A Ravenclaw tie. Popping the beans in his mouth, he gazed around the room for his next target, spotting Everett mingling with a now traumatized Duncan. The taller bespectacled boy was rubbing the smaller on the back, suspiciously gently. If he was more sober he could have sworn it was a caress.

"Alright, Everett, Duncan?" Garreth grinned at the pair. "Can I borrow one of your ties?"

"Bugger off, Garreth," Everett replied.

"I...what?"

"This is your party, and look what that fluffy menace did to Duncan!"

Garreth tried to suppress a smirk, but his self control and inhibitions had flown out the window with his last drink. With a snort, he burst into laughter, causing an irate Everett to drag Puffskein Dunkein off through the crowds. By the time he'd stopped chuckling and dried his eyes, they were nowhere to be seen and Garreth was no closer to securing his next scavenger hunt item. He needed another Ravenclaw.

Scanning the room again, he saw MC perched on a sofa petting Seb-skein with a lazy smile, and his stomach gave an odd sort of lurch that had nothing to do with his dubious potions. MC. She'd been something to do with what he'd forgotten, he was sure... The thought didn't have a chance to fully form before he felt a searing pain on the back of his head and his vision faded to black before he hit the floor. (cuffmeinblack)

Snatches of muffled sound teased his ears and blurry images appeared through slow blinks of his eyes as a dull throb clamped around the back of his head. The room swayed dangerously as he was bodily lifted, hands holding his arms and legs, and then he felt a softness against his back.

"He looks a bit pale…"

"So would you if you took a whack to the head…"

"Who levitated that lamp anyway…"

"Merlin knows, it's bloody chaos in here…"

Something brushed up against his forehead, and there was an irritating bouncing pressure on his torso. Garreth flapped his hands at it, his coordination poor, and he thought he heard someone laugh as his hand brushed against something fluffy and warm. He blinked a few times, his vision swimming into focus.

Heads were bent over him, a mixture of amusement and worry on their faces. MC was the closest, her smile just utter perfection as he met her gaze.

"Hello handsome," she said. "Decided to rejoin the party after all?"

Handsome? He'd take that! He gave her a smile, his mouth trying to form words, but he had no idea what he was going to say. He was just happy to see her face. "Heh… wuv… y..you.." He mumbled.

The irritating bouncy pressure returned on his chest and a brown, furry puffskein appeared right in front of his nose, it snarled, brown eyes flashing, before it's tiny mouth clamped down on the end of his nose.

Garreth shrieked as laughter pealed out around him, MC wrapping her hands around a snarling and chaotic Seb-skein in an attempt to get him off. (Blueraineshadows - Raine)

As MC tried to pull the angry ball of fur away from Garreth, it only caused him more pain. The small, but razor sharp teeth had a death grip on the point of Garreth’s nose, clamping down harder with each tug from MC.

“Sebastian! You’re hurting him!” MC yelled as her grip tightened, Garreth’s face being hauled upwards and whimpers escaping his mouth with each desperate pull, “Merlin, you’re a strong son of a bitch!” she murmured through gritted teeth as she yanked Sebastian with all her might.

“MC stop, you’re making it worse!” Imelda shouted as she nudged MC out of the way, replacing her spot in front of Garreth and beginning to pinch and poke at Sebastian in hopes of finding his sweet spot to make him release the Gryffindor's nose.

A quick pluck of one of his whiskers did the trick, the small but deadly creature let out a yelp and set free Garreth, Imelda quick to pick up Seb-skein and put the single whisker in her pocket, “I needed this for the scavenger hunt, thanks you little shit.” Before Sebastian could sink his teeth into her scowling face, Imelda tossed him to MC like a toy she had no use for anymore, making her way next to Garreth to begin comforting him, putting a napkin to his bloodied nose.

MC stood with Sebastian tucked against her chest, her face turning red with anger and jealousy as she watched Imelda cuddle up next to Garreth. As she was about to march over to the two, she heard a familiar slytherin cast a spell towards her.

“Vertohumano!”

The chatter and laughter disappeared and were replaced by gasps and screams. Before she could blink, the once adorable fuzzy ball that rested in her hands transformed into a grown man, a naked grown man, who unfortunately happened to be Sebastian.

Her face glowed a bright red with embarrassment. Her arms were wrapped around his bare torso, the tips of her fingers just barely grazing his manhood. She was quick to yank her arms away with a horrified shriek, the attention that was once on Garreth was turned towards a very naked and humiliated Sebastian. (junie-00)

MC quickly removed the mustard yellow poncho she wore about her shoulders and wrapped it around Sebastian, covering his shame. As Garreth watched this, though, he felt his hands ball up into tight fists, which was rather uncomfortable due to the claws of his costume digging into his skin. But it didn't matter because how could she touch him like that? Especially in that state?

Meanwhile, Sebastian silently thanked MC for her assistance before practically bolting out of the room and back to his bed. It would be safe to assume that he wouldn't be returning to the party out of sheer mortification. However, Garreth only remembered the scavenger hunt when he spotted Imelda plucking a ladle out of one of the drink cauldrons, which was coated in a rather unappetizing thick, green substance. The game was still on, and Garreth needed to catch up quick! (OPHOCC)

As the urgency of beating Imelda in the scavenger hunt weighed on Garreth, he tapped his chin animatedly, plotting his next move. What had he been looking for? A Ravenclaw tie? He'd needed to find another Ravenclaw student and fast, knowing how badly he'd already messed up with Duncan and Everett this evening. Given how scantily clad Amit's costume had been, he'd quickly crossed off Amit as an option. He'd certainly not have a tie to spare.

Garreth suddenly recalled another Ravenclaw he had yet to approach: Andrew Larson. Yes, he'd spotted him before. And if memory served, Andrew had dressed as a... pirate, was it?

Garreth was aware of Andrew's long-standing infatuation with him since their fifth year. He harbored no resentment toward Andrew for this, given how earnestly Garreth himself had pined for MC before she had given him a chance. While he wasn't one to take advantage of someone's feelings, Garreth's frazzled mind somehow rationalized that this might be the perfect opportunity to address his jealousy over MC and Sebastian while securing that elusive Ravenclaw tie. Up the charm a bit, perhaps a slight accentuation of his bum, and he'd be good to go, or so he figured.

With this fool-proof plan in mind, Garreth embarked on his mission to locate Andrew Larson, who’d be lingering somewhere in the increasingly chaotic party. (finalgirllx)

Garreth stumbled through the party goers, locating Andrew standing by one of the cauldrons, pouring himself a cup of who knows what. Garreth walked up to him, prepping up his good ole Gryffindor charm. “Hey Andrew! Great party, huh?” He shouted over the booming music. “You’re a pirate, right?”

Andrew looked up at him, and although Garreth was in no place to talk considering how wasted he was himself, he couldn’t help but notice how drunk Andrew was. “Heeeeeey you…fiery little redhead!” Andrew slurred. “You’re looking real cute tonight! *hiccup* What are…you s’pposed to be anyway? *hiccup*

Garreth sighed, having given up on anyone else besides MC knowing his costume. He ignored the question entirely this time. “Hey mate, could I borrow your tie? I promise I’ll bring it back!” Garreth gave Andrew a flutter of his eyelashes.

“Oh, of course!” Andrew slurred again as he removed his tie from his waist incredibly slowly. “You can undress me any time, baby!”

Garreth took the tie from his hands. “Thanks buddy! I appreciate it!” But as he turned to walk away, Andrew put his hand on Garreth’s shoulder. Garreth turned around, expecting him to say something, but within a second of turning around, Andrew was puking pink sludge onto the floor, with quite a bit of it splashing on Garreth’s big red boots. (Oat)

“Woooooah!” Garreth jumped up. He didn’t know whether he should run or help the poor Larson, who had been puking most likely because of his some eerie concoction. Perhaps comforting a puking Larson would be just the perfect way to show MC. And so he did.

He went around Larson, stood behind his rear, holding his hips instead of his back or shoulder that a normal person would do to help a sick person. He rubbed the side of his hips, mumbling words like, “there, there, better out than in. Let it go Andrew my boy.”

Imelda paused her hunt and watched the pair, her jaw open wide. She winced and cleaned the vomit off the floor. Andrew was now done throwing up and he was now leaning on Garreth’s shoulder, staring up into the depths of his sea green eyes. “Gaarrethhhhhh,” He mumbled, huddling close to him.

Garreth gave one of his cheeky smiles to him and then looked up to see if MC was watching this.

“Ohhh Ayyy, finally Garreth and Larson!” Someone cheered and the entire common room noticed them now, clapping and whispering.

“Get a room, boys.” Someone else jeered.

Garreth looked around and stared at a very fuming MC standing at one corner, fuming. Her face red and her lips curled into a thin line as she watched Andrew leaning over Garreth and their arms wrapped around each other.

It got even worse, when out of nowhere Andrew tried to press a kiss on Garreth’s cheek, but he noticed and shifted his head and his kiss accidentally landed on Garreth’s lips.

A huge roar and whistles filled his ears and he just saw a wild mane of hair whipping out of sight and the portrait of the Fat Lady closing. (AS)

It was less than pleasant, the taste of the kiss. Garreth stumbled back and his hand moved to catch him, but it dipped into the cauldron and he fell back onto the ground. The drunk crowd seemed to understand the situation and pulled Andrew back and helped him sit on the sofa. Garreth stood up, shaking the liquid off his arm.

“Sssorry!” Andrew slurred and dropped his head down.

Garreth gave him a tight smile. “All good, man.” he wiped the back of his arm and looked around for MC. His stomach dropped wondering what she was thinking. He took a scoop of cauldron liquid and swished it around his mouth in an attempt to cleanse it. He spit it into a nearby planter thinking that was the best course of action in his drunken stupor.

“Andrew, huh?” MC’s voice came from behind.

“N-no!” Garreth stumbled dramatically. He tripped forward and MC caught his fall. However, they both tripped with Garreth’s weight and she landed on her back while Garreth was on top.

He popped his head up and their mouths were inches away. He eyed her and his heart hammered in his chest.

“Wow, this guy really gets around.” A Hufflepuff murmured as they watched the two on the floor.

MC heard these words, breaking her trance, and pushed on Garreth’s chest to get him off. Garreth wasn’t helping much since the memory of the scavenger hunt came to mind again.

He leaned in, lips brushing over the shell of MC’s ear. He could feel her hold her breath from this close. He hummed and finally whispered. “I need one of your socks.” (GFG)

MC reeled back and despite the now rosy hue of her cheeks her expression shone scandalized. "My sock?! Garreth- Haven't you done enough crazy things tonight?" She steered him toward an (mostly, I mean- Grace and Nellie were having quite the passionate snog on it) empty sofa before settling next to him. "You're incredibly intoxicated and you're acting so strange."

Okay, yes, he'd probably had at least three too many concoctions this evening. But there was so much at stake now! He couldn't stop! Especially when his double vision caught sight of Imelda snatching a hair from a now incredibly drunk Ominis before disappearing back into the throng. A shiver of dread (and… arousal? Huh.) raced down his spine at the thought of the Slytherin winning. He could guess clear enough what her wish would be.

He turned to MC. "You don't understand! If I don't win this scavenger hunt, Imelda is going to do unspeakable things to me!"

More confused than ever, MC stared long and hard into her crush's glittering green eyes. Wasn't it not long ago that he'd kissed her…? She could still feel the warmth and taste of him on her lips. She longed more than anything to return his affections, but ever since the kiss he'd acted as though it hadn't happened at all! Her heart fluttered for him but she was receiving so many confusing, mixed signals from him. And his drunken kiss with Larson also hadn't helped matters… Was she just another party game to the Weasley? And after she'd gone through so much tireless dedication to mimic his costume… "Garreth, I don't know…", she muttered.

(Pandansca)

“Please, MC,” Garreth begged, taking her hands in his, the claws from their costumes clinking together. “You can’t leave me to the mercy of Imelda. I have to win.”

MC narrowed her eyes at Garreth, still debating on whether or not to help him. “What exactly does Imelda intend to do to you if she wins?” MC asked.

Garreth swallowed hard, his eyes wide. “I think she wants to devour me,” he breathed, and MC gasped before she furrowed her brows.

“Not on my watch,” MC said, a look of determination in her eyes. (DOACD)

She gripped Garreth's hand tightly in hers before pulling him along behind her. He nearly stumbled with the force that she dragged him with. Her eyes scanned the chaotic room in search of the Slytherin girl who was so clearly trying to get her claws into her Gryffindor. She found Imelda in a secluded corner of the common room, busy packing away a blue tie into her satchel. She looked up with a smirk as MC and Garreth pulled to a stop in front of her.

"Oh, it's the competition." She looked at the red head with sultry eyes and then at MC. "And the other competition."

MC frowned, eyes narrowing.

"I hope you're ready to pay up, handsome. I've got this scavenger hunt in the bag. Literally." She patted the satchel beside her.

MCs grip tightened around Garreth's fingers causing him to let out a small "Ow!"

She took a step closer to Imelda, her magic flaring as she attempted to control her emotions.

"I don't know what you think you're planning, Reyes, but you see this? She gestured at Garreth. He's mine."

With those words, she turned to look at the flustered man behind her, his mossy green eyes sparkling with a mixture of excitement and confusion. She reached up to grip the back of his head and pulled his face down to meet hers, lips pressing against his softly. It only lasted a couple of seconds before they parted, foreheads resting against each other.

Garreth couldn’t take his eyes away from hers as she whispered.

"You're mine."

(SLYTHERIN-PARAMOUR)

Those lips, that taste...they were already familiar. Memories came flooding back to Garreth as MC kissed him, hazy but undeniably real. That's what he'd forgotten, that odd sort of niggle at the back of his mind when he'd looked at her afterwards—they'd kissed, right here at this party! No wonder she was nothing short of miffed about Andrew and now Imelda, and the possessive darkness in her eyes intensified by the intoxicated glaze was startling.

"Since when?!" the shrill exclamation came from next to him, and he looked up to see Imelda's furious face only inches away.

MC was already rounding on her, and the way she settled into a duelling stance and wand appeared out of nowhere indicated she was deadly serious about her claim.

"Go and crawl back into the rest of your hippogriff and I'll forget you ever tried it on with my man," MC spat at her.

The confrontation was already drawing interest, Imelda's wand at the ready as Garreth watched in awe. He vaguely wondered if he'd accidentally brewed something to induce this madness, but the thought was interrupted by a loud bellow.

"FIIIIIGHT!"

Andrew Larson had stumbled into the commotion, another drink in his hand as he pointed at the two girls. Onlookers had started chanting along with him—fight! fight! fight!—it looked too late to stop the inevitable. It might have been dangerous, and he should try to stop it, but never had Garreth been so turned on as he watched the two girls fighting for him.

(Cuffmeinblack)

He blinked a few times, swaying slightly as he eyed both girls, awed by the determination on both of their faces. Imelda held her habitual scowl, eyes piercing towards MC. You had to admire the nerve of her. Facing off against the Crossed Wands Champion was nothing to be laughed at, and Imelda was not backing down. Garreth raised his eyebrows in respect, but then remembered the challenge and her prize. He touched his fingers to his lips and thought of MC's kiss. He'd definitely like more of those.

He swung his gaze to MC. She looked formidable, her face set as she stared down Imelda, her pretty mouth in a determined line. Garreth felt something stir deep inside of him, utterly separate from the cocktail of creations mixing together in there. She was marvellous. And he'd had the balls to kiss her. He puffed his chest out a bit at that.

"You can do it, darling," he said proudly.

Imelda's mouth tightened, her gaze barely flicking in his direction, filled with rage.

MC took advantage of the distraction. To be fair to Imelda, she didn't even see it coming. With one flick of her wrist, MC shot a bolt of magic from the end of her wand in a wordless charm, it speared through the space between both girls and hit Imelda's satchel with a blast of blue and white sparks. Imelda yelped and jumped back, staring in horror as the bag full of her challenge winnings dissolved into ash.

MC smirked. "Not so smug now, huh, Reyes?" She quipped. "I'd like to see you try and win now."

Imelda went pink, then red, then a hideous blend of red and purple as she glared, fists clenched. The growl of rage that left her mouth was impressive, and Garreth immediately jumped behind MC, peering sheepishly over her shoulder.

(Blueraineshadows)

A few heartbeats stretched into an eternity as Imelda contemplated her response to MC's destruction of her finds. She began to take heated steps in MC's direction, the crowd audibly gasping as tensions flared.

As attractive as a fight between two women over him may have been, Garreth realized it was time to summon his lion's courage. He needed to stand up for MC and stop this from getting worse. Just as he prepared to step forward and give Imelda a piece of his mind, an unexpected figure intervened.

"Enough! I said stop it now," Amit's voice boomed with surprising authority. His scandalous costume seems to fuel the respect he commands rather than detract from it. Everyone stopped in their tracks to listen.

"This is meant to be a fun celebration, not some feud!" Amit continued his tone firm. He pointed in Garreth's direction. "Especially not over him," Amit added.

"None taken," Garreth replied with a timid chuckle.

"Enough with the seb-skeins, hair plucking, and potion testing. Let's act like respectable young wizards, for Merlin's sake," Amit pleaded to his fellow partygoers.

The lingering question remained: as sexy as this newfound authority looked on Amit, would they actually listen? (finalgirllx)

Garreth looked over at MC, who seemed to be considering Amit’s pleas for peace. Her expression was soft as she sighed, turning to Garreth. Her mouth opened as if she was about to say something, but within a second of her turning, she was on the ground, Imelda having taken advantage of MC’s eyes off of her and tackling her.

Imelda straddled MC as the two girls began to slap at each other, screaming and blocking each other’s hits, while the other students cheered and began their chanting of “Fight! Fight! Fight!” once again. MC’s wand fell out of her hand when she was knocked down, leaving her defenseless. Although MC was wandless, she wasn’t allowing Imelda to overpower her, giving her a few good slaps in the face as the girls fought. Garreth watched in horror, wanting to peel Imelda off his girl, but being a little afraid to get involved. Deciding once again that it was time to summon his lion’s courage, he came up behind Imelda and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her up and off MC.

Once Imelda was up, he watched her turn to face him. He then felt an excruciating pain in his nose as the once loud room fell silent. He wasn’t sure what had just happened, not until he felt a warm liquid begin to coat his lips - blood. Imelda had punched him in the nose, hard enough that he had begun to bleed.

“Oh no! Garreth I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to!” Imelda began to panic, but her panic was interrupted by MC, who had grabbed a handful of Imelda’s hair, shoving her to the floor, her wand pointed in her face. “HOW DARE YOU!” MC screamed, shooting a silent spell at Imelda that resulted in dozens of spiders appearing out of nowhere, chasing Imelda up the stairs of the common room to a symphony of laughs from the other students.

Once Imelda was gone, MC turned to Garreth, who had already been handed napkins by other students, trying to stop the blood that was gushing from his nose. “Oh, you poor thing!” MC shouted. “Let’s get you to the hospital wing now!” She grabbed a hold of Garreth’s hand, leading him out of the Fat Lady portrait and into the quiet halls of Gryffindor Tower (Oat)

MC took Garreth by his hand towards the hospital wing. It seems the commotion has already wiped off the effects of his potions on them both. Garreth was holding on to his nose that was now bleeding profusely under the effect of Imelda’s Chaser strength punch, that was directed towards MC actually.

MC stopped on the way watching him bleeding down his nose to his costume now.

“Oh you poor thing, come here,” she cooed, bringing him closer and inspecting his nose. They sat down on a stone bench nearby and MC brought out a handkerchief out of her sleeves and dabbed slightly at his nose.

Garreth blushed.

The whole evening had been something for him. They have kissed...... twice. And then her and Imelda had been fighting over him and lucky for her that he got the punch. And now he was alone with her away from all the commotion. He blushed heavily as MC dabbed at his blood and pressed onto his nose to stop the bleeding. He winced as the pain hit him again.

“I am sorry.” She whispered, tears forming at the brim of her eyes, her eyes now widened with fear at the sight of Garreth’s never stopping blood.

“It’s okay.” He tried to speak through his broken nose. “It wasn’t your fault. I can handle it. Thank Merlin, she didn’t punch you like that.”

MC closed her eyes and let the teardrop down her eyes.

“Hey, MC, don’t.” Garreth said, now holding her face in his hands.

Sod the bloody nose, he will bleed to death; it doesn’t matter. But right now MC’s tears were more precious.

“Come here you silly girl.” Now it was his turn to console her. “I told you, it’s not your fault. It was all for fun. But I loved how you claimed me like that in front of everyone. You are the Hero of Hogwarts; everyone will want you but you chose me!”

“Of course I chose you. I will always choose you. I have always wanted you, ever since I stole those Fwooper feathers for you in fifth year. Who do you think I am wearing this costume for?” She said, looking up at him now.

Garreth’s eyes darted between their strange costumes of the evening, the one he completely forgot about and now he remembered.

Long forgotten was their trip to the hospital wing. Now they both sat under the star dazzling autumn sky, watching each other like they were seeing each other for the first time again. (AS)

He looked over at MC under the glittering night sky. His hand went up to cup her cheek as a smile grew on his face. The night had been so strange but it felt nice to get some fresh air and to finally be alone with MC.

She smiled at him as they lay in the grass, eyes on one another, completely ignoring the beautiful night sky. MC had yawned first then Garreth realized just how sleepy he was feeling. His eyes became droopy and he couldn't keep them open anymore despite his effort. He felt his body relax next to her then he was swept off into a dreamless sleep.

It felt like only seconds had passed when someone was shaking him awake. He blinked into the sunny bedroom and looked around in confusion.

"Where's MC?" He asks, rubbing his eyes and noticing he's in his pajamas and not his costume. His surroundings were also different. He had just been outside, so why was he back in his dorm?

"MC?" Leander gave his friend a look. "I don't know. She's probably in her dorm? Come on man, you've got to wake up. It's almost noon and we have so much more planning to do for tonight!"

Garreth set up, his head swimming with the sudden movement.

"What do you mean, what's tonight?" He yawned, stretching his arms above his head.

Leander gave him a look. "Mate... it's the Halloween party tonight in the common room. We've still got drinks to make and decorations to put up."

Garreth was suddenly more awake. "The Halloween party?! But that was..." His head swam from trying to recall the night. Had it all been a dream?

He went back into his fuzzy memory and recalled some of the crazy things he saw that could not have possibly been reality. He thought of Seb-skein and Amit's ridiculously sexy costume and furrowed his brows. The kiss with Andrew and Imelda being the ass of a life-sized hippogryph costume...

"Was... none of that real?" He whispered. Garreth looked at his hands as if they were foreign to him.

"Garreth, come on man. We've got a lot to do if we're going to throw an epic party in a few hours!" Leander tossed Garreth's robes onto the bed.

Garreth frowned. That means none of the kisses were real and that him and MC were in fact, not a couple. The more he awoke, the more he realized that he'd dreamt the entire party.

An idea grew in his mind and Garreth tossed off his covers and quickly stood up out of bed.

"There we go! Now come on! We've got to-" Leander's words were cut off by Garreth rushing past him. "Gar!?"

Garreth turned to his friend and smiled "I'm going to ask MC to be my date to the party tonight!" He began pulling on a decent shirt and fluffing his hair in the reflection of the window.

Leander's face lit up. "It's about time you made a move! Maybe you two can wear matching costumes." (GFG)

The amazing fanart @slytherin-paramour drew as promised! Seb-Skein!

Thank you for reading and thanks to those that joined in! This was a blast and really help rein in the Halloween spirit! 🦇🎃

#garreth weasley #hogwarts legacy #ominis gaunt #leander prewett #sebastian sallow #imelda reyes #andrew larson

66 notes · View notes

autistic-evil-xisuma · 1 year

Text

ok. sorry to post discourse here but continuing to quietly seethe about it is unproductive & will eventually make me explode. so.

here is why I have come to really hate the cane user goodtimeswithscar headcanon!

(first of all, a disclaimer; I'm aware that Scar doesn't care about people portraying him in fanworks with or without his irl disability. I'm not white knighting for him. This rant is on the behalf of myself & my disabled friends who have similar feelings on it.)

Because Scar is disabled in real life, a lot of fans also want to portray his character as disabled in fanart too. Which is awesome! not a bad thing!

It is difficult though. Scar, playing Minecraft, is piloting an effectively able-bodied character. With his disability & the tech available in real life, IRL-Scar wouldn't be able to navigate the world the way he does in game.

To portray character-Scar as disabled in the same way he is in real life would be to massively change how Hermitcraft and Minecraft as a game function. Which I think I've seen some people figure out how to do! Which is awesome! But obviously, it's not an easy thing to do.

So it seems that the thought process of many artists is, okay, so I can't make him as disabled as he is in real life. But I still want to portray him as disabled for representation!

So boom, a cane, a simple and obvious visual indicator of disability to draw character-Scar with! ...which doesn't require thinking about how his disability would impact him in-world, at all.

Of the people who do this, I've only once seen anyone talk about about what Scar's disability is, how it affects his life, how he functions with it and how it limits him. I hope it's needless to say that if you haven't put any thought into how a character is disabled, then... that isn't a disabled character.

Beyond that, many artists who draw Scar as a cane user will only include it when it's easy. It's not so simple to mine, or build, or have an archer superhero persona, or run around the server in general with a cane. So as soon as the context makes it inconvenient, the cane is gone, making it essentially a prop, not a genuine disability aid. (Of course, there are ambulatory cane users. But it's real obvious if the cane being there or not in art is completely based on convenience.)

When the headcanon is used like this, it isn't to show a genuinely disabled character. It's just for the look of one, which can be forgotten whenever it doesn't suit the context.

Scar is a very popular character. And this headcanon is getting more and more common. There isn't any getting away from it short of blocking Scar tags entirely. The constant message I feel like I'm getting from this fandom is that cane users — like myself — are just the version of disability that's easier to ignore.

I know people who do this aren't trying to cause harm, or purposefully being ableist. But it still is. Giving a character the watered-down aesthetic of disability while still being effectively able bodied isn't representation. It sucks, and imo it's better to portray Scar as non-disabled than to do this.

(And yes, I know this isn't always how it goes. Some people who headcanon Scar as a cane user do write him as genuinely disabled, especially people who are projecting their own disability. No salt to them, this isn't who the post is directed at.)

So. my points are these, I guess.

please. please don't just slap a cane on your Scar design and go Yay representation! it doesn't work like that.

In general, if you want to write or draw a disabled character, you need to spend time thinking about what their disability is and how it impacts their life. And show it.

If you're going to take away a character's disability whenever it isn't convenient then just. don't make a disabled character at all.

#sorry. im angry and exhausted.#discourse #scar #goodtimeswithscar #the tag is big enough they can handle me maintagging this.#hermitcraft discourse #ableism #fandom ableism #TBH. i see people do this with his wheelchair too. which is just as bad #but i do think its more common with the cane and also i need to let this post go or ill be here forever #🌙

115 notes · View notes

genopaint · 3 months

Text

Week 3 of dragons done and done!! We're still trucking along!

Follow me on twitter if you wanna see them posted daily!

And you can read more info on each of them under the cut!

Day 14 - Bullets Breaker

An aggressive, mean hitman who loves doing what he does. In addition to his weapons, he's also very skilled at CQC. When enraged, the red marks on his body glow and he gets a massive power boost!

Day 15 - Barfodon

These dragons have incredibly sensitive stomachs and get sick when they eat just about anything. The worst part? They'll purposely eat food that upsets their stomach, because projectile vomiting is their main form of attack! Disgusting! What they eat determines what effects their puke has. Jalapenos? Fire puke. Lemons? Electric puke. So on and so forth. Also the spikes on their stomach pulsate when sick

Day 16 - Green

Happy Dragon Appreciation Day! In the year of the Dragon? I suppose I should draw a dragon a lot of people like but doesn't get much new art... So... Here she is! Green is here to help you celebrate and appreciate your favorite Dragons! For those who are new to her, Green is a dragon girl with varying dragon powers and abilities. Her gimmick is that how she's drawn is very different and can be changed on a whim however you like! This is her base design and she's sort of a pseudo sona of sorts?

And here it is with no colors. Usually don't do traditional coloring cause I tend to mess it up but I thought it looked good today!

Day 17 - Gobblar

These dragons LOVE food. They'll eat any food they can get their hands on! If it's edible, they'll eat it! As such, you see them a lot around humans being used as garbage disposals for unfinished meals. They're kind to humans so they'll get free food.

Day 18 - Altaria

Also surprise it's daily dragon #18! I knew I wanted Altaria to be one of them and since I'm out of it, figured I'll go ahead and do the first fully fanart dragon of this thing right now! Wahoo!

Day 19 - Faerogon

Tiny, fairy like dragons who love in the woods keeping to themselves. They live in trees and sometimes even under large mushrooms! They're famous for how cute they are!

Day 20 - Vesuvius the Great Smog

A terrible dragon that lives high up in a volcano, where no one dares try to fight it. It terrorizes nearby cities for treasures, not with fire breath, but with a horrible smog breath that can linger in cities for months at a time

#dragon #dragons #character design #creature design #monster design #oc #pokemon #altaria #my stuff

15 notes · View notes

bardic-inspo · 1 month

Note

I would love to ask you a million of these but I’ll settle for three (if you feel like answering them, of course)! 🥤 🧃🎨

Thanks for participating!!! 💛

Ahh you are so sweet, thank you so much!! 😘💜💜

[Writer's Truth or Dare Ask Game] 🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

There are SO many massively talented writers out there, many of which are still on my ever-growing to-read list. I wanna send some love to @littlejuicebox's multichapter fic, Midwinter Carol, which I'm about halfway through and absolutely loving so far!

It has: Ascended Astarion! Pining for someone who's right in front of you! Divorced yearning! Beautiful, poetic prose! Just absolutely *chef's kiss* Astarion characterization! Such a compelling protagonist in Eirianwen. Girl has got backbone and I'm excited to get to know her more and see how she complements and challenges our boy. And just a the perfect balance of angst and flirty hopefulness.

The actual fic summary (below) is much better than mine. You can read the fic on AO3 or Tumblr:

Fifteen years after the Ascendant and his lover went their separate ways, they run into one another at Wyll Ravengard’s Midwinter Gala. One dance is all they share. A week later, a cataclysm of events, spurned by Eirianwen’s return, uproots the life Astarion had been building for himself. One thing is made certain: the elven sorceress is the key to any ounce of salvation he may have left, if only she stops slipping through his fingers like sand from an hourglass. But old habits die hard, and old feelings are pulled to the surface for both the elves. Astarion is forced to confront the wounds of his past and deal with the damage he's done while trying to run from himself. The Ascendant is forced to decide whether he will continue on his current path or forge a new one... perhaps one that leads him back to the love of his life.

🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before

Hmm, I think I maybe talked about this on Twitter once, but not here. Well, I'm now pretty firmly in the agnostic (if not atheist) camp, but my parents pushed me to get confirmed as a kid (we were Lutheran). And I went to a church where, part of the youth group program was performing a traveling mime show of the passion story. Like, full on face-paint, black turtlenecks, miming Jesus getting crucified. There was a super eerie soundtrack and narration that went with it. Lots of drama over whether any of the girls could try-out for the Jesus role. Whipping sound effects. Absolutely no disrespect to anyone finding religious insight through art and whatnot. It just feels a little weird and uncomfy to me personally in retrospect. But then, religion really isn't for me. Most of the other confirmation programs I heard about my classmates doing had like, community service projects instead.

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

My first commissioned piece of Astarion and my main Tav (Naomi) was just finished tonight and I'm riding a cloud about it. They're so soft with each other and the artist did such a lovely job 🥹

There is SO much incredible BG3 and Astarion art out there. This piece really stands out to me, too. I just love how they captured Astarion's tender expression here, and how lovely he looks in this lighting:

#thank you so much for the ask!! <3 <3 #ask games #fic recs #art recs #about megh #megh speaks

8 notes · View notes

parageist · 5 months

Note

If you were a slugcat what would your powers, your special mutations be? Also backstory maybe? :3

okay well i do have a slugcat OC but they don’t exactly represent me: they’re called The Hermit, and is gray with green-tipped limbs and markings. their hands are large and webbed, allowing them to climb walls and ceilings quick like a lizard, but their walking speeds and spear damage is pretty average. they make up for this by being quite crafty, and dons a pair of ancient binocular goggles. when using this ability, time slows (even slower than the effects of mushrooms), and you can freely move the camera around the room, allowing you to quickly take notice of everything in the room. though when using the goggles, you can’t control the hermit’s movement or throws at all, but it will warn you if a projectile or predator is approaching them. also after you take notice of something off-screen, it will show a faint marker at the edge of the screen pointing to it. you can customize this to show creatures, objects, exits, shortcuts, etc. the markers disappear once you leave the current room.

anyway, onto lore! [THIS IS GONNA BE A LONG ONE LMAO]

(this takes place a little bit before spearmaster’s campaign) the hermit once lived in the slugtree, but during their time the current leaders of the tribe were a lot more anxious about leaving the territory. despite this, one day the hermit leads a large expedition to find some ancient technology hermit claims will improve the lives of all the slugcats. this goes horribly wrong, and everyone but hermit is lost in the excursion. when they return, the hermit is exiled from the slugtree, never to return. because of this, they feel an intense fear of ever going outside again, and spends the next decade of their life in isolation, living in the remains of one of those giant transmission towers.

they never leave the tower, but over the years they transform a lot of it into their own massive fort, easily traversing the structure with their wall and ceiling climbing. maybe life as a hermit isn’t that bad?

then one day, they find a peculiar, spear-sized needle in one of the tower’s many shelters, alongside a wall scribbled in drawings. the hermit is fascinated by this concept of “art”, alongside the mysterious needle. finally tired of endlessly scavenging parts and improving their fort, the hermit embarks picks up two new hobbies: drawing and finding out who or what left that needle. they manage to find an ancient telescope and set it up, spending most of the day watching from atop their tower for any new travelers, while at night they retreat to the lantern-lit shelters and draw (mainly fanart of the carvings they found, which are of a strange being with antennae and seven dots on their forehead.).

eventually, they find something. a glimpse of a purple slugcat with a large be-speckled tail, carrying two white spears, traveling from the direction of the slugtree to somewhere in the distance. despite the hermit’s fear of the outside world, a primal urge burns inside them to follow this purple stranger into the fog. the next cycle a close call with a vulture sends them running back inside the safety, though they continue to ponder this for many cycles, scribbling drawings of the mysterious traveler everywhere.

deja vu strikes the hermit, as they catch yet another glimpse of the tantalizing stranger, this time traveling the opposite way, back towards the slugtree. this infatuation the hermit has with them leads them to slide down the tower and get a closer look at them. from the safety of some rafters, they observe the traveler pulling white needles from their tail and hurling them at lizards. at some point, the hermit accidentally makes a noise, and the spearmaster looks up at them, surprising the hermit with their lack of a mouth, before both of them slink away into the shadows.

the next day, the hermit returns to that spot, finding more of the spearmaster’s drawings of creatures and beings unknown to the hermit, including that same antennaed entity, confirming this is the same slugcat who left that needle here so many cycles ago. inspired by the spearmaster’s beautiful combat skills, the hermit ties rope to a pair of spears leftover by the purple traveler, fashioning two “grappling hooks” they can use to pull impaled prey closer or assist with climbing, as the rope is also tied to their back. (these two spears + rope both occupy a back slot and free up the hermit’s hands when not in use. when you have an empty hand, press grab and up to unsheath one of them. you can throw it and it does the same damage a normal spear does, but it can’t travel further than about double the length of saint’s tongue. this frees up the hand you previously had the spear in, but if you want to reel it in, you have to keep at least one hand free, and having two hands free increases the reel-in speed and force. to pull it back, hold C. once within grabbing distance, you can press grab to yank it out and return it to your back sheath slot. also keep in mind the hermit has two rope spears, and if one of them is already deployed, you can up+grab another and throw it, maintaining the original rope connection. however, if both of your spears are impaled into two different large objects/creatures and one or both of them is moving away from the other, one of the spears will be dislodged once the impaled creature moves further than the max rope length. extremely fast or forceful creatures/objects may also dislodge even if you just have one spear deployed, but most of the time they’ll stick into whatever they’re impaled to until removed. also, when both spears are out and grappled to two different objects, you can hold C to reel in the first one and V to reel in the second. keep in mind though that unlike grapple worms or saint’s tongue, the spears aren’t strong enough to allow you to dangle from impaled ceilings, and you need both spears to scale a wall, though im unsure why you would want to do that as you can just climb walls/ceilings with your webbed feet. the rope spears are designed for pulling things closer, though with both of them impaled into the same creature you can theoretically grapple to it and let it pull you along lmao)

anyway, back to story. the hermit becomes even more obsessed with art, drawing the spearmaster and the strange creatures they drew everywhere inside their tower. this helps them pass the time and keep insanity at bay, but the hermit can’t keep doing this forever. one day, either the tantalizing stranger returns for a 4th time and forces their curiosity to leave the tower, or the hermit’s transformation of their home tower leads to the creatures and plants they feed on eventually dying out, forcing them to leave and find food elsewhere.

turns out, it’s a combination of the two. the spearmaster is seen once again traveling back into the unknown, and the hermit uses their dwindling food supplies as an excuse to face their fears and satisfy their obsessive curiosity. though even if the hermit’s tower was crawling with nutritious prey and their dreams weren’t plagued with the spearmaster obsession, it seems the universe has an extra, third safeguard in place to force the hermit out of their tower. past the slugtree, far far in the distance, one of the giant cubes that dominates the horizon, crumples into the ground, shaking the land for miles with a deafening rumble. and whether it’s due to a design flaw or the hermit’s modifications, their home tower collapses in half, leaving them disoriented and destitute. hopefully their tools and the knowledge they gathered from the spearmaster’s scribbles will be enough to keep them alive, as they embark on a mission through the unknown to track down their mysterious idol.

this takes them through the following regions:

-Crumbling Skyway: an old railway bridge, with half of the hermit’s collapsed tower home crashed into it. through the railway itself is only about one or two rooms thick, it supports a variety of plants and creatures that dangle from its underside. below that is the

-Dandelion Forest: growing from the mud flats of this part of the outer expanse is a grove of lighter-than-air puffballs, connected to the ground by vines. despite being a separate biome from the skyway above, the roots that dangle from it seem to form a symbiotic relationship with the floating dandelion trees below, perhaps even being two parts of the same creature’s life cycle. whether the hermit takes the skyway or the forest floor doesn’t matter, as either way brings them to

-Midpoint Factory: a large hulking mass of steel, filled with a variety of both mechanical and biological instruments made for producing specific parts for the iterator project. though after it was abandoned in the ascension, most of the bizarre, purposed mechano-organisms remain alive inside, some still producing parts for a long-abandoned project. on top of this factory facility is a subregion called the interchange, where resources and parts for the iterator project would be put on trains and distributed to other sites in the local group. at this point the hermit has lost track of which direction the spearmaster went, and there is a secret path that will take you towards NSH’s facility, but most of the evidence points you the other way, towards the

-Hazy Spires: following the railway bridge, the ground below gives way to a hazy abyss, where bizarre structures pierce through the toxic smog. these are remains of an old bioengineering compound; matrixes of mixers and separators, where organic chemicals and the ingredients for purposed organisms were synthesized. many species were even grown in situ here, escaping from their confines and roaming the complex. at lower levels of the facility, the toxic haze grows thick enough to be dangerous, though the hermit is able to fashion a gas mask to survive the deep sections for short periods of time. eventually, the hermit discovers the collapsed railway bridge gives way and they have to ride some giant flying organism to get across the gap. on the other side is a subregion but it’s so large it may as well be it’s own, the

-Organometallic Refinery: a bioengineering compound more specified for forging a special steel alloy, infused with microbes for a self-healing effect. this facility could be considered more lifeless than the one next door, but it simply lacks a biodiverse ecosystem, as the organometal refinement process leaves the building too toxic for many creatures. though it’s unknown how much of the hazy abyss below the factory spires is created from industrial activity, as beneath the toxic clouds is a massive sinkhole called the

-Vent Zone: at the end of the organometallic refinery, the hermit finally catches up with the spearmaster after all the agonizing factory structures they passed through. both don’t know how to react, as neither have interacted with another slugcat in ages, with spearmaster having never met another of their kind before. but they look out into the distance together, as a looming superstructure grows closer and the fog grows thicker. they mount a giant flying creature to cross the vast expanse of haze between the retaining wall and the refinery, but not too far into their journey, a vulture attacks them, and the hermit panics, falling off into the abyss below. somehow they survive, waking up in a massive sinkhole. the terrain is filled with acid pools alongside the rubble of the collapsed railway bridge, and even during the day the air is dark and hard to breathe. the proximity to the hermit’s destination results in deadly, acidic rain that drowns the sinkhole every night. the hermit’s skin is chemically burnt from injuries, and can no longer stick to walls or ceilings, relying on only their spears, goggles, and gas mask to keep on surviving. what little life manages to sustain itself down here is unlike anything else, being borderline impossible to kill. as the hermit stumbles through the mangled mess of acid, mud, and metal, they eventually come across a crumbling wall, and realize this sinkhole must be a recent development. it turns out a vast aquifer once stood here, right above a chamber of void fluid. ever since ancient construction activities damaged the thin crust separating this aquifer from the void sea protrusion, the two fluids have mixed, resulting in a reducing chemical reaction, decomposing water into its base elements and allowing it to recombine into much more reactive compounds. this, combined with the draining of the aquifer for the nearby iterator facility, has led to a mixture of toxic gases and acid bubbling from the ground, creating the vent zone and the layer of haze on top of it. as the hermit scales the crumbling, slanting wall, unable to use their climbing ability, they eventually make it above the layer of smog, into the facility grounds of Seven Red Suns. first off, they cut through a passage near the top of the retaining wall through to the other side, a vast reservoir known as

-Darkwater: SRS’s facility was built in an unconventional configuration, with one of their can’s legs being right on top of the retaining wall. this means that right after the hermit steps through the wall into SRS’s facility grounds, they’re beneath their can’s underhang. the first subregion of this shaded reservoir is the Treatment Center, where pumped groundwater would be purified before being sent up SRS’s leg. a bunch of scavengers have made the refineries and water-agitators their home. past that is the Lakebed Pipeline, which during dry seasons, would transfer water across the bottom of the reservoir into the Treatment Center. during wet seasons though, the whole reservoir would be full of water, creating a vast lake underneath SRS’s shadow, even partially submerging the treatment center. however, as more iterators went online, the climate became much wetter, and so maintenance orders on the pipeline were stopped, as even during the dry seasons the reservoir was full. even before the mass ascension the lakebed pipeline fell into disrepair, which came back to bite SRS all these centuries later. the recent earthquake caused by moon’s collapse resulted in the vent zone sinkhole caving in, damaging half of SRS’s water intake systems, draining the darkwater reservoir, and what little remains of the lakebed pipeline has barely enough capacity to supply SRS with water. most of SRS’s critical systems are intact and operational for the meantime, but the creation of spearmaster will be the last bioengineering project SRS can attempt without drying up. anyway, past the lakebed pipeline is the last subregion of darkwater, the Exterior Pumping Station, which takes in water from beyond SRS’s can and pumps it across darkwater and through the treatment center, up into SRS’s easternmost leg. through this mechanical mess of pipes and pumps lies the source of half of SRS’s groundwater, the

-Underground River: a snaking maze of natural caverns and artificial conduits, the underground river is quite small compared to the other regions but it felt distinct enough to not just be a subregion of somewhere else. the dank caves and tunnels are home to a diverse selection of life, mostly adapted to breathe underwater as the conduits flood with water when the rain comes. the river eventually branches into two paths, but i’ll continue through the one which leads up into a sewer system beneath

-Derelict Cityscape: one of the oldest cities in ancient history, that sits at the bottom of a massive cliff. it was abandoned long before SRS’s construction, as most of its inhabitants chose to scale the massive cliff it’s built next to once technology allowed them to modify themselves to breathe at those altitudes. then some time later the iterator project started, and the first ever generation-2 model, Seven Red Suns, was built a few miles past the cliff, sandwiching the derelict cityscape between the two sides. what few stubborn ancients who remained at the bottom of this canyon were forced to leave once the iterator came online, drenching the ancient city in rain. the nearby cliff acts to trap most of the moisture exhaled by SRS in the canyon, resulting in the abandoned city being vastly overgrown and humid, with some buildings being completely unrecognizable as the high moisture allowed nature to overtake them. some of the more modern buildings are still standing however they lack the luxuries and advanced technologies of the living cell block skyscrapers atop iterator cans. speaking of cans, if you go to the eastern edge of the city, you’ll end up at the base of the leg of

-Seven Red Suns: okay im gonna be honest i haven’t drawn the map for this area yet but this is the end of the hermit’s journey. they finally reunite with spearmaster and meet SRS, who at first is cautious, as the spearmaster nearly died saving the hermit, but the hermit expresses their admiration for spearmaster, and SRS eventually comes around, adopting hermit, who is now The Apprentice. spearmaster, SRS, and the apprentice all teach each other different things from their journeys, and maybe one day spears and apprenti fall in love and maybe have slugpups and SRS becomes a scug grandpa or whatever the non binary equivalent to that is lmao. but yeah, that’s the end of the hermit’s journey of becoming the apprentice, but i still have some ideas i wanna write down. somewhere in SRS’s can is a blocked off area, where they first experimented with bioengineering. they were very young and experienced when they began this however, resulting in the creation of many bizarre, useless, or dangerous organisms. but to SRS they were all still living creatures, and they couldn’t just kill them all or release them into the environment, so now there’s a secret lab inside his can full of mutant beasts and it plays out like the true lab from undertale. maybe there’s even some prototypes to spearmaster in there, SRS is super guilty but doesn’t know how to deal with it, and eventually, far after spears’s and apprenti’s campaign someone discovers it and SRS has to deal with it finally. another cool idea i had for SRS’s structure is for the top to be a giant empty grassland instead of a desolate wasteland, which also lacks a city. the reason why? well that leads us to my next region idea, where you take a precipice-like skybridge across the canyon to the aptly named

-Cliffside: if you kept going to the west through the underground river, you would end up in a giant waterfall which connects up into the bottom of a giant cliff. you can also reach this area at the western side of the derelict cityscape. this cliff is natural, unlike a retaining wall or iterator can wall, with many primitive, *ancient* ancient structures carved into the rock, long since abandoned or eroded from the humid exhalation of SRS. there are a bunch of more modern structures too, including experimental city designs the ancients undertook, and a sort of giant elevator that goes to the top. there’s also a bunch of scavenger settlements along the cliffside, covered in moss and roots. once you near the top, you’ll find the giant sky bridge that crosses the canyon over to SRS’s can, and on the top of the cliff is a massive plateau that stretches out for miles above the clouds, obscured by a gigasized city, the

-Continental Capitol: the end of what i have planned so far. before the ancients built SRS, they relocated from what’s now the derelict cityscape, far above the clouds, scaling Cliffside, and founded a new city atop this plateau. because of the cultural significance and long history of this city’s population, the new city became one of the many capitals of the ancient’s global empire. this one grew so large it was known as the administrative capitol of one of the planet’s entire continents, housing nearly a hundred million ancients in its towering constructs. so yeah, after they built SRS, they had no need for a city on top, as the continental capitol was already built atop a plateau above the clouds, and was safe from the rain. now the top of SRS’s can is just a flat empty sea of grass, with a radio mast in the middle

one more bonus concept: sometime in the future but probably before saint’s time, the activity in the vent zone has damaged the retaining wall to the point where SRS’s eastern leg collapses into the sinkhole with it, breaking their can in half. maybe this also unlocks the hidden mutant lab area and spears/apprenti/their descendants discover it and SRS has to explain themselves (as also half of them fell into an acid sinkhole lmao). i also think a lava region would be really cool but i have no clue how tectonics and volcanism works in a world where the mantle is void fluid instead of magma lmao. i already handwaved the vent zone’s creation as a result of void fluid “vaporizing” water but im not sure how i could explain it turning rock into magma. either way, the geological activity from the vent zone continues, causing severe damage to SRS’s facility and can. hey, you gotta figure out a unique way for each iterator to die out instead of them all just decaying from time!

also not even kidding, this post took me over three fucking hours to complete lmao. i have been doing nothing but typing this on my phone in complete silence, checking my notes and drawings and transcribing them here, and getting up for a bathroom break once, every so often plugging my phone back in. shit it may even be four hours by now xD

anyway, this one is definitely going in the parageist classics. oh and here are sketches i have so far (i didn’t even draw the hermit/apprentice yet lmao, i just focused on all the cool regions, i love drawing maps :3)

#saved #rain world #rain world spoilers #rain world region concept #rain world concept #rain world oc #rain world srs #seven red suns #spearmaster #rain world spearmaster

14 notes · View notes