#illusionsofinsanity

[prim-moth]

Apprentice Swap Event by @sad-arcana-au !

This is my part for @illusionsofinsanity of their apprentice, Aria & Asra practicing magic~

[gokuchulainn]

Pavlov is a really clever name for a Herdier!! I like your team's naming scheme! What other Pokémon are on your team? :D

oh boy they’re all super nerdy. I’ve named them largely after scientists/naturalists/etc, with one exception.

Steller - Dewott, named for naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller (like Steller sea lion)

Pavlov - Herdier, like...ya know...Pavlov...classical conditioning

Aserinsky - Darumaka, after one of the scientists who discovered REM sleep

Fermi - Blitzle, after the creator of the first nuclear reactor

Miyagi - Sawk, named for Karate Kid ngl, it’s tradition whenever I have an anthropomorphic fighting type

Müllerian - Whirlipede, named for a type of mimicry in entomology/invert zoology in which two poisonous animals kinda look like each other to extra avoid getting eaten

[musubiki]

She's featured in the new Smash trailer at about the 9:18 mark! (Tumblr unfortunately won't allow me to paste the link but it's on Nintendo's official YouTube channel in their E3 playlist!)

OKAY I SAW IT IM IN TEARS I LOVE HER SO MUCH

[doublenuzlocke]

Entry #12: "Saving the Lost" (Zombie AU Contest Submission)

All they could do is run.

Every second was a race for survival. Straying from safe areas was always a risk, but Crystal had no choice. New Bark had fallen once again and with it, Johto’s only chance at survival had died. Professor Elm, the only man who made any progress with discovering and understanding the virus responsible for the apparent zombification of the general population, had been killed when the small town had been suddenly attacked by a second wave. His wife and young son had been able to escape and reach Violet City’s safe zone. The rest… they weren’t so lucky.

The family had arrived empty handed. Elm’s research had been stored on his personal laptop, but they had to leave it behind in order to avoid certain death. Crystal was a fool, she knew that very well. However, she couldn’t leave such important knowledge to be destroyed or lost. Instead she ran headlong back to New Bark Town, praying that the laptop was still there. Zombies tended not to care about technology. Only living things were of interest to them. They had a chance.

She wouldn’t go alone. Silver, a boy around her age with a ridiculous amount of deadly weapons stashed in a golf bag, was running right behind her, a metal baseball bat in his hands. They had met a year prior, back when the infestation had first began. They managed to become friends within that short time, which was something she was thankful for. When she had first run from New Bark back then, she had lost so much. Her best friend had given his life so she and her mother could get away.

That was what drove her to recover Elm’s laptop. Gold had given his life to save as many in the town as he could from the first wave. She owed everyone who they had lost the chance to find a cure. Even if there really wasn’t a way to bring back the dead…letting them finally rest instead of turning and killing the very people they had loved was enough. Not to mention her personal stake in a cure…

“We’re entering New Bark,” Silver warned her as they passed through the acrid landscapes, passing through what had once been a thriving forest. Now, everything had withered and turned a sickly shade of greenish yellow. The scent of death appeared to change even the plant life. “Brace yourself. You still remember where Elm’s house is, right?”

Crystal pulled out the steel rod she kept on a sling behind her back. Apprehension made her bite her lip. “Of course I remember where his house is,” she replied. “I used to spend every summer there working part time. I’d never forget it…”

Silver jumped over a fallen tree and hesitated for merely a moment, his namesake eyes glancing around wildly for any sign of movement. “You gonna lead the way, then?”

Crystal stepped beside him and scanned the area as well, making sure to look opposite of him at all times. “Might as well. Make sure to watch my flanks. It's—”

“Don’t say it,” Silver interrupted with a growl. “Never say that.”

Crystal hissed as she took the lead and walked through the barren streets, Silver right on her tail. “Jinxes are the least of our worries, Silver.”

They passed through the familiar dirt streets, leaving behind houses with broken windows and doors hanging off their hinges. The girl with blue hair had to pace her breath and avoid dwelling on her surroundings. New Bark had been a small town. Before, she had known every one of the thirty residents by name. After the attack, only six had survived. The town was now deserted and dilapidated. While Crystal and her mother stayed behind in Violet City, Elm and his family had returned to continue his research. She had been foolish enough to allow her cousin Kotone to join them.

She had thought it was safe.

Now she was most likely dead. It was all her fault.

She stopped when she heard a familiar sound. Silver paused beside her, still scouting for the source of the sound. Low, guttural growling periodically echoed in the air. They had arrived at Elm’s two story home and research center, but it seemed the intruders never left.

“What floor do you think his laptop would be on,” Silver asked over his shoulder. His thin jacket slapped her in the back as a warm wind cut through them.

“I…I’m not sure,” she admitted. “He never left the room without it.”

“So you’re saying that it’s in whatever room he…died in?”

“Most likely.”

“A scavenger hunt for a laptop among zombie scavengers,” he said with a faint chuckle of disbelief. “This mission sounds worse and worse as we go.”

“Just follow me,” Crystal huffed.

Just then, a terrible crashing sound echoed out a shattered window on the second floor. The growling erupted into deafening snarling before another crashing sound made the zombies inside howl with outrage.

“Sounds like someone’s already in there,” Silver exclaimed. “And from the sound of it, it’s someone who's alive.”

Crystal didn’t hesitate. She scrambled for the outdoor flight of stairs in a frenzy. “Then we can’t waste time! Grab your bat and get up here!”

She scurried up the steps, taking them two at a time before reaching the deck on the second floor. With a mighty kick, she broke the door down and rushed inside. Silver swung in behind her, his bat ready to swing in an instant. The sight inside made Crystal’s heart stop beating. Her eyes widened and for a moment, she let her guard down.

A girl with warm brown hair wearing a red shirt and overalls stood tall with a wooden chair in her hands. A zombie rushed up from the flight of stairs in the corner and she loomed over it with a fierce glare. With a shout, she brought the chair down over its head. The wood shattered in her hands and the monster collapsed, bringing down the few that were trying to crawl over it. The girl backed up and headed towards a disheveled kitchen before stopping in her tracks.

She was out of chairs.

She snapped her head up and looked in amazement at Silver and Crystal. Her mouth nearly fell open before Crystal rushed forward with tears falling down her face. “Kotone,” she sobbed. Her body shook with sorrow and joy. “Y-You’re alive! I thought you were dead!” She paused just long enough to pull away, leaving a puddle on her cousin’s shoulder. “H-How…how did you survive the attack?”

“Elm gave me his laptop and told me to make a break for it,” Kotone admitted. “When I realized that the zombies never followed me, I ran back to see if he had—” She stopped and shook her head. “I found him yesterday. Did…Did his wife and son make it?”

“Elm’s family is safe in Violet City,” Crystal told her as she wiped away her tears. “You…You were the one who didn’t come back.”

Kotone breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness. His laptop is in here,” she explained, swinging a tan computer bag into view from behind her back. “I’ve been trying to see if there was anything else I could take, but the house was a little occupied.”

“I’m happy that your cousin’s alive and all, but could you two wait until we get back to Violet City,” Silver asked impatiently. Crystal and Kotone looked to find him inspecting the stairs down to the first floor. “They’re getting angry down there.” He backed away as another hoard of zombies rushed up the stairs with a discord of rage.

Kotone bounded over and snatched the bat out of his hands. “Hey,” he protested angrily. “I’ve got plenty of weapons on my back and you take my bat?”

She ignored him. As soon as the leading zombie’s head came into view, she took a half step back and swung with all her strength. The metal bat cut straight through their ranks and sent them tumbling back in a broken heap. Silver looked in awe before glancing down the steps. The zombies remained motionless.

Silver raised an eyebrow. “Wow.”

“Five years in softball,” she told him proudly. “It’s great to finally hold a bat again. So much better than using the chairs.”

He stared at her for a few moments before shaking his head. “You can use that one for now. You’ll need it on our way back.”

“Speaking of which, we should probably leave,” Crystal said reluctantly. “It’s a long way back to Violet City. We need to hurry to get back before nightfall.”

Kotone nodded and started walking towards her cousin. Silver gave the first floor one last glance before pulling a shorter wooden bag out of his bag. He gripped the handle and took up the rear. “Well, are you leading us back, Crystal,” Silver asked.

“Might as well,” she said.

The group carefully made their way down the outside stairs. They didn’t wait to see if any zombies would pursue them. Once they were down the steps, they made a break for it. The metal rod in Crystal’s hands turned cold as she ran headfirst to the woods, her cousin and her friend right behind her. She could hear Kotone’s heavy steps behind her as she vaulted herself over the log blocking the main path. Her side burned but she kept going, unable to stop.

Something smashed into her side. Crystal was sent sprawling on her side, the earth churning beneath her body as she plowed through the dirt. The girl quickly forced herself up, her knees shaking. Then, she saw him. Oh, of all the people to see as a zombie, he was the very last that she had wanted to see. Her heart felt like it was breaking but she tried her best to steel herself, her hands clenching her weapon.

He only had one eye. She couldn’t bear to look at his face. He had been dead long enough that his undead body had started to decay, but thanks to that accursed virus, he was trapped in the early stages. She could hear the others catch her. She was thankful. They needed to run. She couldn’t fight him. Never.

The husk of her former best friend lifted his head, his jaw contorted in a smile. Crystal’s stomach swam. Had he died like that? Had he died with that smile? She stepped back, her emotions swimming in her stomach. She had to do something. But…why hadn’t he attacked her?

“Crystal,” the zombie chirped in his voice, Gold’s voice. “You’re alive!”

She panicked. With a terrified scream she swung her steel rod, slamming it into his stomach. Gold lurched back with a gurgle before clutching his stomach and glaring up at her. “Ow! I may be undead, but I can still remember what that feels like,” he exclaimed angrily. “Why would you hit me?!”

“Because you’re dead and you're talking,” she screamed.

Kotone skidded to a halt beside her, Silver right beside her with wide eyes. “Crystal! Crystal run! He’s a zombie! He's dead!”

Gold cast an angered look towards the brunette. “It's undead, thank you. Oh, and it’s nice to see you, too. I didn’t think I would see you again after you broke a chair over my head and knocked my eye out.”

Silver looked at Kotone with respect. “You knocked his eye out with a chair? Nice.”

“Not nice! Now I only have one eye,” Gold protested. “I don’t even have a cool eyepatch to cover it with. How is that fair?”

“How…how are you not attacking us,” Crystal asked after a moment, her eyes wet once again. “When the others were bitten, they lost their minds immediately. You…You still act human.”

“Because I’m too awesome to become a mindless scavenger,” Gold answered without a missed beat. He focused on her side before smirking at her. “I’m surprised you’re not turned too, seeing as you have a giant bite on your side.”

Crystal felt her temper flare with outrage. Typical Gold. Near death did nothing for his subtlety.

“Giant bite,” Kotone asked in a panic. Her bright hazel eyes focused on her cousin. “When were you bit?!”

“Did he bite you,” Silver asked coldly, his bat pointed directly at Gold before he pulled back, prepared to swing. “I’ll knock his head off. Let’s see him bite anyone then.”

Gold gulped and gently clutched his neck. Crystal shook her head. “No, I’ve…I’ve been bit the entire time,” she admitted. “I was bitten back during the first wave. I just…never turned. There’s a scar and the skin looks like death—”

“Nice pun,” Gold praised.

She ignored him. “But I’m fine.”

“How,” Kotone asked in amazement.

“I’m not sure. That’s why it was so important to get Elm’s laptop. If we can understand what the virus is and how it works, we might be able to cure it,” Crystal theorized.

“Maybe there’s antibodies,” Silver suggested after a pause. “If it really is a virus, then there could be antibodies capable of destroying it.”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Kotone said grimly, her hand reaching for the strap of her computer bag.

“Let me come with you,” Gold pleaded. Crystal stared at him and found his lone eye filled with determination. “If there are antibodies…maybe I have some. That would explain why I’m like…this.”

“We can’t take him back to Violet City,” Silver said in exasperation. “Taking a ‘friendly’ zombie to a safezone is the worst possible idea, ever.”

“Then we’ll make our own safezone,” Crystal said quietly.

“What,” the others asked in unison.

“We’ll go back to Violet and tell everyone what we found before going out on our own and continuing Elm’s research. It’s our best chance for a cure,” Crystal explained.

“I doubt telling everyone that we found a zombie with half a brain will go over well,” Silver mused with a frown.

“Then we’ll leave that part out,” Kotone said. “Now then, are we gonna leave New Bark before we meet unfriendly zombies, or what?”

Crystal nodded before taking a step away from the group. “We don’t have much time. We have to run. Now.” She turned to Gold. “If you end up turning…” She stopped. She couldn’t bear to say it.

He shook his head. “I know. Let’s go before we get more company, like your cousin said.”

Crystal took one last breath before rushing ahead, leading the way towards Violet City. Kotone and Silver immediately ran after her, hands squeezed on their bats’ handles. Gold went to follow them before slowing down and looking over his shoulder at the remnants of his childhood home.

“…We all don’t have much time,” he muttered grimly. He then ran after the group, leaving the ruins of New Bark behind.

[silverbuttercups]

Happy Birthday, Stella!! 🎉🎉🎂🎁

Thank you so much! 💜❤️❤️

[silverbuttercups]

For the association question, this might seem silly but I associate soulsilvershipping, bright colors and twenty-one pilots with you!

omg I love you cus that’s exactly what I give off 🥺 thank you! ❤️

[gokuchulainn]

Hey! I hope you're having a good day today! If you're still taking questions for the candle ask, Pink Sands and Honey Glow, maybe?

oh hecc I’m popular tonight!!! thanks for the ask!

pink sands: if you could go on holiday/vacation anywhere in the world for free, where would you go?

This is a tough one. I’d wanna visit my group of friends from Chile or two close friends from Georgia, but detached from personal reasons I really want to go to Iceland!

honey glow: are you an animal lover? 

Absolutely, and when I say I love pretty much all animals, I’m not the sort of person that’s just talking about cute furry animals. I love PRETTY MUCH ALL ANIMALS. INVERTEBRATES ARE BEAUTIFUL. I WANT THAT ENTOMOLOGY MASTERS OR DOCTORATE.

[gokuchulainn]

Hi! I hope you're having a good day today! If you're still taking writing prompts, could you do a speakeasy type club setting with soulsilvershipping, please?

ohhhhh yes yes! I like this prompt:

Through the smoky haze, Lyra saw deep red hair slicked back, carefully tied at the nape of the neck, and intriguing, pale eyes that kept flicking her way, accompanied by a faint smile. Her foot and the beads of her dress swung to the beat of a sultry saxophone solo in a piece that was beginning to pick up steam. Those eyes flicked her way again, and she slid from the bar stool, her gin in hand to weave through the dance floor to find the owner of those eyes, a man in all black with strikingly pale skin. To him, she reached out tugged him closer by his tie and gave him a coy grin that he mirrored. “Care to show me a good time out there, slugger?”

send me a prompt and I’ll write a 3-5 sentence mini ficlet/scene based on it!