4, 18, 21

4, 18, 21

4. Favourite thing about roleplaying?

my first instinct is to say coming up with plots, but honestly, after yelling at avalon in dms for almost 2 days straight over dynamics we want to roleplay out, it's just sharing excitement with friends. i love plotting, i love getting invested in ships and threads and different dynamics. but nothing can top that serotonin of having your partner just as invested as you are, where you send each other asks and give each other novels for replies and just SCREAM. like the writing is nice, the plotting is fun, but the mutual investment and excitement can't be beat.

18. Are there any AU’s you’d like to explore but haven’t had the chance to yet?

for kami, i really want to hecking write the balladeer. i'm confident in my portrayal of wanderer. i know i'd do scaramouche justice, but i haven't been able to actually WRITE him. i want to write the angry-at-the-world harbinger and have him be the cryptid menace we all enjoy. i will take all threads and ideas please and thank you.

for chongyun, it's not that i haven't written it, but i am so SO SO ATTACHED to my yakshaverse. i have invested so much personal lore and headcanons into the idea that they're cryo yaksha and have ties to the past and explanations as to why they're not in canon lore. i am crawling on all fours and begging to write-

21. Are there certain characters that you gravitate towards?

the short male model types.

they have incredibly interesting lore, and are also HEAVILY misunderstood/mischaracterized by the fandom as a whole. i am the number one defender of short =/= minor, i actually loathe that trope with a passion (stares at chongyun). i want to take the short male models and give them the respect they actually deserve, because the game and fandom won't do it, so SOMEONE'S gotta do it.

"In my defense, you had very little to pick back up in my stead." He isn't sure what duties Uzumaki had been given, nor does Kami actually care what he's done. It feels good to have this banter with his twin again though, which is why Kami doesn't mind grabbing him by the wrist to pull him along.

"No one is that worried, either," he adds, as an afterthought. "If Nahida is as serious as I think she is about our freedoms, then she isn't going to care what either of us do, just as long as we report back to her at the end of the day."

He stops, even letting go of Uzumaki briefly. "Also, I think I'm thirsty. I'm going to get some tea first, do you want any?"

"Around?" Uzumaki raised a brow as he scoffed in retort, shaking his head as he stood back up to face the other, adjusting his hat once more. "If you've been 'around', then why not go to see them first if you're so worried?" Yet even when his words sounded cruel, his tone was soft, touched only with confusion.

Kaminari came to him first instead.. why?

"Typical.. You leave me with all the work, then expect me to pick it and you all back up again upon your return," Uzu turned his head away with a small smirk forming on his lips, "Come on then, I'm sure there's something she can come up with to put us to work."

it feels like hours pass by. kami's throat is sore, his eyes STING, and yet, when he finally looks up, it's only been mere minutes. he knows he looks like a mess, kami FEELS like he needs a long dunk in the bath.

but looking at ren has kami feeling guilty. not over ren's actions, not because he'd yelled, but because he also made ren cry. they're both that far gone, huh?

kami isn't sure where he wants to go from here. to HUG his cousin and have an official reunion? or to give each other space for a bit? there are way too many thoughts and questions swirling around in his mind, but nothing that settles to give him a direction. he sits for a few seconds, really taking the time to study his cousin. first, he's looking at that ugly flower pot.

not that kaminari can JUDGE ― his amethyst elephant is certainly no better (and on display right next to his television), but the fact that the pot is bedazzled has kami wondering exactly what ren did in his spare time. kami is even scanning the room for a place to PUT said plant, since it clearly means something to his long lost cousin.

he wonders if ren is tired. kami DOES have a spare bedroom that rarely gets used. there's not really a bed in there ― more of a futon type bed, but it'd work for now until he could help ren get settled in more. there's at least bedding to use. could ren use his own shower?

he's slowly getting back to his feet, making a mental note to splash water on his face in a little bit, once he helps ren feel settled. kami is no stranger to keeping himself shut away; he's certain his neighbors just think he's a recluse. which, REALLY isn't too far from the truth.

"ren." kami's voice is hoarse now, so he clears his throat, before moving awkwardly toward the hall closet. "do you...uh." he grabs a towel and tosses it toward his cousin. "...want to like. you know. clean up? i have some spare clothes i can lend you for now."

he hadn't noticed any particular smell, though that could also be shock clouding his mind. the towel lands on the floor, and kami stares at it for a few seconds. "the. uh. the spare bedroom is..." he trails off, but jerks with his thumb. "i have a futon in there, if you want to rest for awhile too. you're probably exhausted."

this is so AWKWARD. he's completely forgotten how to talk to ren, and it's even more awkward trying to pretend they both haven't just been sobbing on the floor together. but kami wants to return to feeling normal.

(WHAT EVEN IS NORMAL ANYMORE?)

"why don't you take a shower? i'll leave the clothes in the spare― in your room, and i'll make us something to eat, unless you're not hungry." he still has so many questions. kami wants to know EVERYTHING. he wants to hug ren and never let go. but maybe it can all wait until they've both had a chance to settle down and clear their minds.

he's  bracing  for  rejection  —  because  OF  COURSE  he  is.  the  hacker  is  a  pessimist  by  nature,  yet  in  all  fairness,  life  has  given  him  very  few  reasons  to  assume  otherwise.  it's  always  better  to  prepare  oneself  for  betrayal  and  heartache  than  allow  those  feelings  to  attack  him  completely  unguarded.  (  and  assuming  anything  EVER  goes  right,  he  can  be  pleasantly  surprised.  )  naturally,  he  expects  kaminari  to  be  no  different.  he'll  throw  him  out.  he'll  curse  him  for  daring  to  show  his  face  again  —  perhaps  he  was  even  happier  with  ren  gone.  closure  is  all  well  and  good ...  but  appearing  now  only  really  serves  to  REOPEN  old  wounds,  regardless  of  his  intent.  it  was  selfish  of  him  to  think  otherwise.  so  selfish  —  all  the  while  having  the  audacity  to  claim  his  actions  come  from  a  place  of  care  without  having  the  courtesy  to  offer  even  an  OUNCE  of  context.  he's  disgusting.  he's  wretched.  he's  evil.  he's ...  he's  spiraling.

six  months  trapped  with  only  his  own  head  for  company  haven't  exactly  been  PLEASANT.  on  some  level  ren  is  aware  of  that  —  but  he's  never  been  forced  to  truly  confront  how  bad  it's  gotten  until  that  very  moment.  breaths  are  coming  shallow  and  quick.  his  heart  feels  like  it's  trying  to  claw  its  way  out  of  his  throat.  he's  dizzy,  and  kaminari's  reply  barely  registers  in  his  ears  —  until  a  single  word  cuts  through  the  haze  of  self-loathing  like  cold  steel.

stay.  (  stay?  )  he  actually  WANTS  him  to ...

there's  an  audible  THUMP  as  ren's  knees  hit  the  ground.  he  feels  like  a  puppet  whose  strings  have  been  sliced  clean  through.  the  hacker  at  least  has  enough  sense  to  place  his  flower  pot  somewhere  off  to  the  side,  but  the  movements  feel  hazy  and  dreamlike  —  disconnected  from  everything  else  around  him.  ❝  i ... ❞   words  fizzle  and  fade  on  his  tongue.  he  finally  forces  himself  to  look  at  kaminari  —  blinking  in  disbelief  at  the  sight  that  greets  him.  for  one  fleeting  moment,  understanding  clicks  neatly  into  place;  he's  crying,  over  him.  (  actually  CRYING.  )  that  on  its  own  is  jarring  enough,  guilt  squeezing  his  ribcage  painfully.  he  wants  to  tell  him  —  wants  to  explain  EVERYTHING.  what  he  knows,  what  he  saw.  what  compelled  him  to  do  something  so  dramatic  to  begin  with  —  but  none  of  it  feels  like  it  would  absolve  the  other  of  his  pain.  ren  just  wanted  to  protect  him.  ren  still  wants  to  protect  him  —  and  if  nothing  else,  this  entire  exchange  only  serves  as  further  motivation  to  keep  him  safe.  kaminari  deserves  a  life  free  of  TROUBLES,  without  the  sins  of  their  family  hanging  over  him  like  a  dark  cloud.

a  blink,  and  ren  realizes  his  vision  is  going  blurry.  there  are  tears  dripping  freely  down  his  own  face  —  traitorous  things,  like  the  physical  manifestation  of  his  own  WEAKNESS.  the  hacker  tugs  his  hood  up,  trying  to  cover  himself  as  best  he  possibly  can.  there's  a  tremor  running  through  his  body  so  fierce  his  teeth  feel  like  they're  chattering  and  he  curls  his  fingers  so  tightly  into  the  fabric,  it  feels  like  it's  about  to  tear.   ❝  thank  you. ❞   he  manages  to  choke  out,  if  only  BARELY.

❝  ...  thank  you. ❞  for  letting  him  stay.  for  actually  caring,  even  in  spite  of  his  many  (  many  )  imperfections.

having thoughts about chongyun in modern!verse.

but basically chongyun is a popular paranormal streamer/youtuber. he'll stream himself going on ghost hunts, and then upload videos of like, ghost compilations or talking about haunted locations/cryptids. it's earned chongyun a fair amount of popularity and they love doing it.

but also chongyun is most likely really sensitive to supernatural energies, or ley lines that are strewn about. chongyun can sense if a spirit or entity is good or bad, and they can tell which locations are haunted or not. it's not the point that chongyun is psychic or anything, but chongyun probably does have strange gut feelings or can immediately feel a temperature change.

chongyun also collects EVPs too, along with pictures. but the EVPs are more for chongyun to keep as a personal record, like their own little collection of proof that they know what they're doing.

i don't know i just think it's neat. chongyun is just. HHHH about the paranormal in general.

(rewrite of an older headcanon)

talking to a friend earlier and we were discussing languages and basically i realized that chongyun can speak two, almost three languages fluently. liyue’s national language, common tongue in order to speak with those in other nations, and chongyun also speaks ancient liyuen. or liyue tongue, i forget what people refer to it as.

but also because of the relics chongyun’s had in their clan for centuries, chongyun also taught themself basic words and phrases of khaenri'ah’s language. chongyun is far from fluent, but they can speak the most basic words/phrases to get by.

"And when's the last time you slept?" (for Chongyun)

What's he supposed to tell Hu Tao? They're not used to being confronted so directly over what should have been obvious from the beginning ― even if Chongyun would rather they never said anything.

"Uh." Chongyun blinks slowly at her, before lifting a hand and glancing downward, to PHYSICALLY count his fingers. "Two...nights ago?" Two days, really, as Chongyun has the unfortunate habit of working through the night. "I napped," he continues to explain, hastily. "Please don't yell at me, I know this is a terrible habit. People just keep commissioning me, and I hate to let them down."

Chongyun makes a mental note to sleep later, or at least take an extended nap. He has a feeling that if not Hu Tao, then Xingqiu definitely would.