#leifs request

[thesnivy123]

[ghost-of-hallownest]

they deserved better 😔

[lairde-lampblack]

... I am trying to make it home...

i spent literally all damn day on this

[thesnivy123]

lyrics r from The Ignominious Demise Of Dr Pilchard by the mechanisms. Also this is the most kickass bug i have ever fabled.

[thesnivy123]

Bug fables spoilers, particularly leif's request, under the cut

Okay okay so. Zommoth, right? Particularly their dynamic with Leif?

Now, I'm all for angst. I'm all for a couple of mothshrooms fighting to the death. But... well, i've got a take that i haven't actually seen before. found family those fungus.

Imagine if it turned out that Zommoth attacking Team Snakemouth was just some sort of misunderstanding. Maybe they were scared, maybe they were trying to protect their territory, hell, maybe they saw Leif as kin and assumed the other two were trying to hurt him. Now, imagine that, after that big fight, they get back up.

And they don't try and finish the job.

Now, honestly, I think Leif... never really accepted the truth. Leif's Request is optional. It had to be wrapped up nicely so it wouldn't affect the main story too much- Of course, this means the conclusion turns out feeling kinda forced... But maybe Leif is coping with denial. Maybe he's not actually at peace with what he is. Maybe he's scared, scared that he's dangerous, scared of what harm he could possibly cause whether or not he wanted to.

And now, he's face to face with someone who's a lot like him. A lot less... alive-looking, sure. Maybe a bit closer to a vaguely sentient weird dog than a full person. but they’re like him, in a way.

I think Leif and Zommoth being buddies is a really good dynamic. Siblings, even- And I think Zommoth's presence could help Leif with his issues in a way that, sadly, Vi and Kabbu wouldn't be able to. The support of friends can do wonders, sure, but when your troubles are something so terrifyingly unique to you, like, yknow, learning you're a parasite in a dead man's corpse?

it would be nice to have someone to relate to. Not just relate to- Someone to heal alongside of. Someone who's still in a similar situation to you, someone who's like you right NOW, who hasn't healed yet. Somebody who can help you learn to love yourself while still needing helpnof their own. I think Zommoth fits that niche very nicely for Leif- Sure, they're probably not having an identity crisis like he is, but... They're a cordyceps too. They're like him. And they're DEFINITELY going through some serious fuckin' trauma, you canNOT tell me that a giant zombified lab experiment wouldn't have issues.

I think theyd work nicely as friends, in the sense that they're essentially eachothers therapy dogs. Leif helping Zommoth recover from the years of isolation and the experiments and maybe whatever shattered bits of memories might be left over from their host. Zommoth teaching Leif how to care for himself in the way he actually needs to, as a fungus, not a moth. To accept that, even if he doesn't like it, he can’t change what he is, and neglecting his needs as a Cordyceps won't change the fact that he's a Cordyceps.

in other words- i propose the Cordysibs AU. let Zommoth join the found family. they deserve it.

[thesnivy123]

this is... mildly old-ish art (not recent but not particularly old) but im really really fucking proud of it. As in, this is still some of my best work holy shit

WARNING FOR GORE AND ALSO HEAVY BUG FABLES SPOILERS, SPECIFICALLY RELATING TO LEIF'S REQUEST

Whats funny is that i dont draw gore. I've never drawn gore of anyone or anything other than leif. Even then, that "gore" isn't even graphic. just rough doodles of a slightly inconvenienced and vaguely uncomfortable moth with his spaghetti brain sticking out. but something just fucking POSSESSED me to draw this a few months back. And i am so fucking proud of this.

for context: i don't do this for any other characters i like. i think it's just 'cause i can make a metaphor out of peeling the moth and also cordyceps funny. also if im being completely honest i do not think this poor pathetic crumpled paper ball of a man will learn to accept that he’s a mushroom unless he actually sees what he is. dune scorpion incident doesn't count he passed out before he could see it. peel this bug immediately

[thesnivy123]

Tomcat Disposables by Will Wood is a very Leif song, i think.

featuring pre-death leif and one (1) very confused and upset eventually-to-be-leif cordyceps

[lairde-lampblack]

i brought more bugs to lunch today