so i was fully planning on working on wide awake counting stars or and the sun did not compare today but then i saw @lana-is-reading absolutely fantastic artwork and after getting permission to do so, i simply had to write something for it
i had lotsa fun writing this today so hopefully you'll all enjoy reading it too!
thank you again @lana-is-reading for inspiring this :D
title is from the song "Who Is She ?" by I Monster because well the song was suggested with the artwork, i had to listen to it while writing
a lost embrace
Every night, it always starts innocuously enough.
Grace is standing on the shore, staring at the horizon, gentle waves lapping at his shoes.
It's the kind of dream he's had often, even before the Eridians build him an ocean. Even before he woke up in space with no clear memories of how he had gotten there. Even before he's first learned anything about the Petrova line.
This is different however.
When he used to get similar dreams, his surroundings were just meaningless backgrounds conjured by his sleeping mind. No dream were exactly the same as the previous one.
Now… Now even though he can't explain how he knows it, he knows that it is exactly the same dream, night after night.
The same
strange
reoccurring
dream…
Because while it starts normally enough, the way it progresses leaves him gasping for breath upon waking, as if he's just narrowly escaped drowning.
More and more, he wonders if that's not precisely what's happening.
So, the dream starts the same.
Grace standing on the shore, staring at nothing in particular, blue ocean deceptively calm.
What alerts him that something is coming from the depths, he cannot explain. It's not anything observable at first. It's more of a feeling. And as much as Grace does not like such subjectivity, there's no denying it.
Why else would he drop his gaze to the ocean moments before the hue starts morphing from vibrant blue to deep purple to unsettling red?
There's an animalistic instinct within him that urges him to flee. Something within that screams at him that he is prey and whatever is coming is predator.
He stays rooted in place.
Because there is another part of him warring with that same timeless instinct, something distinctly human that whispers that there is much more happening. It's not just his natural scientific curiosity coming into play either.
It's the same complex combination of emotions that makes him look down in the first place. It's that queer feeling of resonance that prevents him from running away when it becomes clear that the ocean has turned to blood.
It's when that realisation hits that a hand, tentacle, outgrowth limb reaches out for him. It grabs at the cuff of his pants and Grace is still stuck between two states, between fleeing and staying. He falls backward, landing ass-first into viscous crimson warmth. He barely even notices.
His whole attention is focused on what is emerging in front of him with its maw gaped around large serrated teeth.
It's
horrifying
lonely
monstrous…
He can't possibly begin to describe what he is looking at, not if he wants to keep his sanity intact. He can't, not without getting the terrible impression that it is all some unspeakable distortion of himself.
But no. That would be complete arrogance.
This is definitely something completely separate from him.
The proof of that is in its bottomless gaze.
In the dark eyes that have started haunting even his waking hours…
Those he can describe.
Beautiful.
At that point of the dream, there is no sound to be perceived. It reminds Grace of space. Somehow, even knowing he's still lying in the sand and ocean-turned-into-blood, the comparison doesn't feel wrong.
The easy explanation would be that this is simply because it is part of a dream. After all, a dream doesn't need to make sense. But that doesn't feel right.
It doesn't explain how Grace – even without sound, even without any words shared – how Grace can still understand him.
Understand how he would beg night after night.
Come, he begs Grace, voiceless. Find me.
And before Grace can reply – before he can make a choice…
Grace wakes up gasping in his bed on Erid, the distant sound of waves crashing on the artificial shore definite proof that he's no longer in the dream.
He wakes up and stays still, catching his breath and doing his best to ignore the metallic tang in the air. He stays still, feeling the echo of his alien loss in his own slowing heartbeat. Feeling lost.
Unlike dreams from before, this dream-
(the same
strange
reoccurring
dream)
-doesn't get clouded into mist. No matter how long Grace stays awake, the-
(horrifying
lonely
monstrous)
-details do not lose their sharpness.
It takes weeks before Grace finally mentions it to Rocky. Weeks before he admits he's started to believe he's being hunted. Or even, possibly, haunted.
By then, there is no more ignoring the smell of iron whenever he wakes up. No more ignoring the nosebleeds.
No more ignoring that there is something wrong with him.
And yet, when Grace tries to explain the dream, only one word passes his lips.
I LOVE dream sequences and I love how this one starts off somewhat coherent but dissolves to random bits that simultaneously is 100% understandable but also a garbled mess no one can understand
Lloyd’s backstory from Akita’s POV in season 11 has got to be the strangest thing to hear. She’s just listening to this random tourist with a death wish talk about his father, the “Lord of Darkness and King of Shadows”, his war criminal ex, and the near total destruction of his homeland for like four hours only for this guy to be like: “yeah, that was wild. But anyways, that was just last month, the other day my best friend got blasted-“
my adventures with superman if you can hear me, make him gay. you’ve already cast darren criss as him, there’s only one more thing to do. don’t back down
wanted to draw a continuation of librarian agott and brimhat coco AU where they meet again a few years later:
Thinking of the qifrey level of obsession agott has over brimcaps after the incident (that also being part of the reason why qifrey took her in as his student) and coco who's always watching from afar until agott finally caught up to her...
thinking of agott who goes alone bcs she knows coco won't hurt her, and when their caps falls off their head and they're back to being just two girls in the tower, not witches or brimcaps,,,
This is a message to the TADC Fans who are defending the voice actors for the racist that they have said and done...
FUCK YOU!
Why are you all defending people who have said that horrible shit. Saying "It's not that deep-" "It happened years ago-" FIRST OF ALL! IT IS DEEP! RACISM IS DEEP! RACISM HAS CAUSE SO MUCH HARM TO THE BLACK COMMUNITY! MMHH!!! IT'S LIKE SOMEONE WASN'T PAYING ATTENTION OR STUDYING HISTORY! It caused harm physical, verbal, so many more... And wasn't that long ago when that happened. It's not even that far. I'm so disappointed in this fandom. I'm so so disappointed. And it also reveals... Who you are. Who you truly are. Which means... You either did same thing so many times that you don't care. Or believe in those racist shit. Not only that! I heard and learned that you are also attacking Black Fans and others who are against that shit. Who spoke against that racist shit!
So...
Goodbye, TADC! I hope I never see you again.
Now! This is a message to the Black Fans and the Black Community.
I'm so sorry that this happened. You all just wanted to have a good time in Fandoms. And enjoy the stuff you all love and enjoy. None of you deserve what happened. You all deserve happiness, joy, and peace. I'm mad too. I'm disappointed too. Love you all. Stay safe. Stay happy. Stay strong. Hope you all an amazing day or night.
Fuck Racists, Fuck Racism, Fuck Antiblackness in Fandoms.
Alphonse having to pretend he's totally just a guy in a suit while Ed works closely with knights of moralis as one of the library people(I forgor their names)