Ayla - Tumblr Posts

Basic Info:

Name: Ayla

Means "Halo of light around the moon" and/or “Halo of the moon”.

Age: 27

Gender: Female

Species: Bright Clan

Slugs: Mostly uses Phosphoro slugs.

Occupation: Entertainer of the Bright clan's main village, hence why there's a harp next to her. Advisor/Right-hand woman to Alamafruz.

Abilities: Same as any other Bright clanner, which is: Melee Combat. Enhanced senses like sight, hearing, smell, etc. Agile. Speed. Durability. Prehensile Tail. Owl Screech. Sharp claws and teeth.

Facts: She loves berries. Since she's an entertainer, she knows how to dance, sing, tell tales, etc.

Week 1. Picked Ayla for the event. She traded a few grapes for the ticket. Grapes in the Middle eastern cavern are larger compared to the common ones, almost the size of a hand.

The Blakk Gala | Slugterra Community Event by @ariaterramoon

𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐀 𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑

                                       ʳ ᵒ ᵗ ᵗ ᵉ ᶰ  ᵗ ᵒ  ᵗ ʰ ᵉ  ᶜ ᵒ ʳ ᵉ

     A Porter facilmente se encantava com as coisas, por menores que fossem ou mais simples também. Jade era alguém tão divertida quanto a habilidade que tinha, Ayla parecia uma criança observando a menor piscando sem parar. “Qual é, é super legal! Você não gosta? Tipo, você consegue iluminar os lugares e trazer alegria, não?” Disparou rindo e deu um leve empurrão com o ombro na outra. Pegou alguns petiscos que estavam na mesa e os enfiou na boca. “Eu sei que você geralmente fica assim por sentimentos muito fortes, mas é legal porque você é intensa… E me faz agir da mesma forma às vezes, isso é o lado meio ruim ou estranho?”

❪ é claro que eu gosto! mas é meio inútil. ❫ a explicação porem de ayla lhe roubou um riso alegre, talvez a amiga tivesse razão, seus poderes ativavam independe de qual emoção forte fosse para jade mas para as pessoas ao seu redor sempre era uma forma de se perderem nas cores, esquecer os problemas e a hook tinha até mesmo estudado sobre isso em algumas aulas, os efeitos nas cores nas pessoas. ❪ então eu sou um potinho de alegria ambulante? ❫ soava tão engraçado dito em voz alta que a mulher gargalhou cintilando. ❪ eu gosto de deixar as pessoas felizes, mas de onde eu venho as pessoas preferem algo mais... letal. ❫ sussurrou como se contasse um grande segredo, ainda que as pessoas do castigo não fossem ruins no ponto de vista de jade elas precisavam se proteger e se proteger com alegria não parecia o ideal. ❪ eu acho legal, eu sou tipo sua boa e má influencia ao mesmo tempo, te faço ser mais imprudente mas te faço viver mais intensamente. ❫ no final das contas a vida era uma só e jade ficava feliz de aproveitar ao máximo. 

𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐀 𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑

                                       ʳ ᵒ ᵗ ᵗ ᵉ ᶰ  ᵗ ᵒ  ᵗ ʰ ᵉ  ᶜ ᵒ ʳ ᵉ

    “A minha também é. Me diz o que se faz com essa coisa? Eu só faço sentir os sentimentos alheios e ás vezes eu nem consigo controlar, acabo absorvendo um monte de merda… É tipo, você ficar enjoada e eu me desesperar e ficar também.” Disparou de forma rápida e frustrada, bufando em seguida e cruzando os braços. Mas a expressão durou pouco, porque logo tornou a sorrir, balançando a cabeça positivamente para concordar com o título que a amiga acabara de se dar pelo comentário da Porter. “Bom, você pode ser os dois. Tipo, é só escolher qual lado seu alguém merece.” Deu de ombros. “Você é um potinho de alegria pra mim, e eu acredito fielmente que mereço esse seu lado que traz felicidade.” Deu-lhe uma piscadinha de forma divertida, por mais que soasse como uma brincadeira, ela realmente estava falando sério. “Exatamente! Não é ruim, gosto de aventuras, mas acho muito ruim não conseguir me controlar em algumas situações, sabe? É tão frustrante!”

as mãos de jade envolveram a amiga para tentar acalma-la enquanto a escutava surtar, quer dizer todos precisavam de alguém que apenas os escutassem não? e jade entendia ela, entendia mesmo. ❪ eu tenho certeza que vai aprender a controlar e diferenciar quais são seus sentimentos e os dos outros, não se cobra tanto tá bem? ❫ afinal eles tiveram uma vida inteira sem poderes para ter que do nada lidar com aquelas habilidades. ❪ é claro que merece! você é uma das melhores pessoas desse lugar, eu achava que ia odiar todos os mocinhos mas olha pra gente? ❫ sorriu largo, jade gostava muito das amizades que tinha criado ali e perceber que nem todos eram ruins ou tão fúteis, ayla era fascinante e com certeza uma das favoritas em seu pequeno grupo de amigos mocinhos. ❪ no final das contas eu só retribuo tudo que você me trás, se eu brilho é por sua causa. ❫ literalmente já que as cores refletiam seus sentimentos bons ou ruins e sinceramente como podia ter sentimentos ruins por ayla? ela um amor. ❪ você quer que eu me controle mais é isso? ❫ não, ela tinha entendido o que a porter queria dizer, por isso levou ambas as mãos ao rosto da outra e fez um pouco de carinho com os polegares. ❪ vai ficar tudo bem, é só você andar com pessoas legais como eu, aí só coisas boas vão acontecer. ❫ tentou reconforta-la apesar de não imaginar o quanto podia ser difícil não saber se o que sentia era real ou uma projeção da outra pessoa. ❪ a gente podia tentar fazer uns experimentos, tipo pra ver se você consegue se controlar, se quiser eu e ajudo. ❫ afinal se havia alguém com sentimentos intensos esse alguém era a jade. 

𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐀 𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑

                                       ʳ ᵒ ᵗ ᵗ ᵉ ᶰ  ᵗ ᵒ  ᵗ ʰ ᵉ  ᶜ ᵒ ʳ ᵉ

    Não era alguém que se abria com facilidade, na verdade falar sobre coisas muito pessoais suas era totalmente raro e aqueles momentos eram bons de certa forma, guardar muita coisa calada é sempre sufocante. “Eu consigo… Tipo uns quarenta e cinco por cento. Acho que depende muito de quem é a pessoa próxima a mim ou da minha estabilidade momentânea?” Falou incerta, pendendo a cabeça para o lado antes de finalmente inspirar profundamente tentando recuperar a calma. “Convenhamos que sou uma mocinha peculiar, pareço andar em uma corda bamba. Em cima de um muro, meus valores são bem estabelecidos, e mesmo assim não consigo pender apenas para um lado.” Deu de ombros, retirando o capuz da cabeça e decidindo prender o cabelo. Entretanto desistiu de o fazer, afinal ficou muito tocada com as palavras da outra; não esperava algo tão carinhoso assim, de repente, principalmente por não estar acostumada a receber comentários como aquele. “Não, como que você me elogia e depois me faz me sentir mal por causa de um surto aleatório? Esse é o seu melhor, Jade. Você trás o melhor de mim a maior parte do tempo e eu adoro isso! Não mude, por favor, você é perfeita assim.” Talvez tivesse soado um pouco mais atrapalhada, mas é porque nunca sabia reagir a momentos fofos como aquele. Pelo menos não sem fazer algo estranho. “Tá vendo? É exatamente isso que eu falo.” Apontou para outra e depois lhe abraçou apertado por alguns segundos antes de lhe soltar. “Vamos, por favor!”

❪ acho que faz sentido. ❫ quando mais vulnerável psicologicamente ayla estivesse isso deixaria portas abertas para que seus poderes absorvessem os sentimentos mais concretos dos outros. ❪ e tá tudo bem, você não precisa escolher um lado, até porque eu entendo que isso seja complicado. ❫ jade a entendia porque se sentia do mesmo jeito, ela 8 ou 80 mas essas diferenças acabavam a colocando em um meio termo, ela era completamente defensora dos castigados e faria qualquer coisa para protege-los, por outro lado ela não era contra os mocinhos e alguns deles eram seus amigos, ela sabia que seus poderes não eram letais e talvez isso fosse um reflexo de seu desejo de não machucar outros mas também não queria se sentir fraca por isso... era tudo muito complexo, no final das contas não existia só um lado a ser escolhido, assim como não havia só um lado da história. ❪ desculpa eu não quis te deixar mal. ❫ se concertou rapidamente, um sorriso tomando os lábios com as palavras da amiga, ela sempre era a pessoa que elogiava porque ela queria que as pessoas soubessem que eram importantes, assim como ela se sentia desde que se tornou uma hook, era como que ser quem ela era fosse seu proposito, fazer com que os outros não se sentisse sozinhos. ❪ eu não vou mudar, eu prometo. ❫ estendeu o dedo mindinho para fazer o juramento, logo em seguida retribuindo o abraço. ❪ vai... ❫ ficar tudo bem. ela diria se não fosse atrapalhada pela luz, e talvez pela primeira vez tinha ficado ofuscada. os braços apertando ayla contra si, os olhos fechados. o que tinha acontecido? 

do they prefer sleeping alone or with someone else?

❪ na verdade eu... ❫ jade ficou vermelha porque para alguém de mais de vinte anos podia ser um pouco constrangedor dizer aquilo em voz alta ainda que sua família e amigos já fossem acostumados, ela se sentia as vezes um pouco invasiva ou chata por não poder mudar aquilo. ❪ não consigo dormir sozinha. ❫ quando mais nova, a primeira pessoas a reparar isso foi seu pai, ela ficava a noite toda acordada olhando as luzes como se temesse apagar e quando apagava sozinha acabava tendo pesadelos do tipo que a fazia gritar até que fosse acordada por alguém ainda que nunca conseguisse se lembrar do que acontecia neles, james acreditava que fosse algo ligado ao passado da menor e da falta de memorias que ela tinha por isso desde então ela passou a dormir intercalando entre os hooks e depois na academia com os amigos, talvez tivesse algo haver com ela se sentir protegida. ❪ isso é uma oferta pra eu dormir com você? porque se for eu aceito! ❫ ela continuou bem humorada tentando quebrar o gelo ou esconder o real significado por trás daquilo, até porque no final as noites com quem ela gostava sempre eram boas e criavam as melhores memorias que ela tinha.

Can you please describe how each of the characters laugh? :):):) I'm betting Blade's laugh is an imperceptible twitch at the corner of his lips and nothing more, but inside he's wheezing and gasping.

Blade has three general tiers of humorous reactions:

1. Slight quirk in his eyes/faint twitch at the corner of his mouth: regular smile

2. Slight exhale through his nose: genuine amusement and laughter

3. Quiet chuckle: he’s crying with laughter on the inside

Trouble can only laugh loudly, like “BAHAHAHA” or “PAHAHAH.” Like it just bursts out of him. Like a real-life LOL. 

Tallys laughs quietly but freely. It’s a dainty, tinkling kind of laugh.

Shery laughs in a dry, breathy kind of way–I describe it as a mouse darting out of shadows. Whatever that means. She also tends to cover her mouth with her fingers when she laughs.

Riel has a really dorky laugh when he’s actually laughing, like a honking guffaw. Normally he doesn’t laugh, though, so his “in-character” laugh is a dry, amused little chuckle.

Chase has a wicked laugh sometimes, like a “heh heh heh 😈” when he’s amused but not lol-ing it up. When he is lol-ing, he has a deep, mirthful kind of belly laugh where he clutches at his sides and rolls around. 

Red has a warm, rich laugh where he throws his head back and slaps his knee.

Ayla has a kind of high, barking laugh where sometimes she chokes on her spit and it devolves into coughing wildly and turning red.

Halek has a quiet, shy kind of laugh where he sort of turns his head to the side and sort of wheezes quickly: almost like when a dog sneezes.

Briony has a bright, pealing laugh that bursts out of her, usually when she’s genuinely surprised. The kind that almost seems to catch her off-guard, and she usually has to wipe tears of mirth out of her eyes. Other times she gets fits of the giggles at silly things, and these are girlish and sometimes punctuated by a snort!

Lavinet has two laughs: a “court” laugh that is super snobby and condescending, like “ha-ha-ha, oh darling” and her real laugh, which is more like a witch’s cackle–the kind where you throw your head back and your hands crook up into talons. Like Linda laughing crazily and Bob getting all uncomfortable about it. 

Mimir has a high-pitched, girlish titter. Like “teeheehee.” It kind of unnerves people because they don’t expect it.

What kind of dancers are the ROs? It seems like Lavinet and Chase would be the best with Lavinet being good at choreographed ballroom dances(waltz, minuet) and Chase being good at just ~grooving~

You are absolutely correct! From best to worst, it’s:

Lavinet: perfect dancer when it comes to stately dances

Chase: perfect sense of rhythm, great at ~grooving~ and making it look cool and natural

Tallys: surprisingly great and graceful at dancing, but rarely cuts loose the way she could

Red: same as Chase when he gets into it, he can look endearingly dorky when he’s just jamming out but otherwise he’s a pretty swell dancer

Riel: fine at choreographed dancing, albeit a tad stiff, but privately loathes it

Ayla: only really good at headbanging but has a natural sense of rhythm that, while it does not make her necessarily a graceful dancer, you could never call her a clumsy one either

Shery: she’s very shy about dancing so you rarely seeing her doing it beyond a little shimmy, but if she were to dance a waltz or something, she would manage it without tripping 

Trouble: a pretty bad dancer. he will step on your feet and it will hurt. he is fine when it’s just jamming out with friends but as soon as it becomes like a formal thing he freezes up and is terrible at it

Blade: this one is mixed and I’ll say tied with Trouble because they’re pretty much opposites that cancel each other out. during choreographed dances like waltzes, if you give him like five minutes to observe what everyone else is doing, he can naturally fall into step and imitate them pretty seamlessly. He’ll be pretty stiff and tense while doing it, but it’s passable and not awkward. However, if you ask him to dance naturally or just groove, he is just... wow. Like shriekably bad. So awkward and stiff and weird and robotic about it. Absolute shit. Watching him try to do it makes your insides wither. It’s. so bad.

Briony: okay. I didn’t know where to place her in this scale because her sheer passion and energy makes dancing with her really fun. but. if you actually stand back and actually observe her movements... it’s awful. she has 0 coordination and just shimmies and jumps and she’s like Elaine’s dance in Seinfeld but she’s not drunk. also she’s very clumsy and will knock stuff over or bang into people. BUT as I said, she has so much fun while doing it and just doesn’t care how she looks that it’s infectious and people like “dancing” with her. But objectively it looks really bad.

I love your writing so much. <3 Question: who among the Shepherds can braid hair, and who would do MC's if they asked?

Ah, thank you so much, that's so kind of you! ❤️ And good question!

Blade: doesn't know how to braid hair, but can braid rope? Would braid hair capably if taught and would happily do MC's if asked.

Trouble: can't braid hair and will likely cause all sorts of knots and tangling, but would still be happy to do it if you were willing to suffer through it!

Tallys: can braid hair and would happily do so if asked!

Shery: can braid hair and would happily do so if asked!

Riel: no (but he may deign to brush your hair several years into the relationship if asked)

Chase: can braid hair (well, he can braid rope, and it really can't be that hard to figure out) and would happily do so if asked!

Red: can braid hair (sisters) and would happily do so if asked!

Ayla: can braid hair (I would hope so; she braids her own!) and would happily do so if asked!

Briony: can not braid hair and would be rather hopeless at it... she would try, but it wouldn't be very good!

Lavinet: can braid hair but prominently would not want to do so for her lover; might do it out of habit absent-mindedly for a close friend like Clara or Briony, but very rarely, and being asked directly to do so would put her off

Halek: can't do it right now, but would learn quickly and would do so if asked!

How would a group spa day go for the shepherds? Imagine trying to get blade to do a seaweed wrap or something lmao

Blade: this dude can’t even get a haircut without stressing out that he’s going to get stabbed while his arms are trapped under the tarp, so good luck getting him to relax at a spa! trying to give him a massage would be like trying to get a wooden plank to relax, so he’d probably wind up sitting sullenly by the pool (underneath an umbrella or with a hat because he sunburns easily) and maybe sipping on a cucumber water

Trouble: he’s a bit befuddled by everything going on, but he’ll do it! like sure, put mud on his face if you want to! he doesn’t know what in fuck it’s supposed to do, but go crazy! he sort of has this attitude like he’s doing it because it’s fun for the spa worker LOL, like a dad letting his kid paint his nails, but he has no real interest or desire on his own, he’s just along for the ride!

Tallys: yes. give her all the facials and seaweed wraps and massages. let her do yoga in the cleansing salt and crystal room and relax her muscles in the sauna. give her a moment of peace from these lunatics. she desperately needs it and is going to do every last spa thing for as long as she can!

Shery: she’s having the time of her life, but only if the spa activities are relatively social, like getting her nails done next to Briony and Tallys while sipping on fancy drinks, or sitting in big comfy chairs while having a perfumed foot soak and chatting the hours away. she’d be less comfortable with massages (nudity?? with a stranger??) but would be living for the ‘girls’ day at the spa’ vibes! she’d feel a bit differently if the boys were along for the ride, because they bring a different energy to the whole affair... (Trouble: ‘they kept handing me cucumbers but after a certain point I didn’t want to eat them anymore’ Chase: ‘I don’t think you were supposed to eat the cucumbers... you were supposed to save your appetite for the seaweed’ Trouble: ‘oh legit, you were supposed to eat the seaweed?’ Chase: ‘yeah, it’s for the ✨nutrients✨’)

Chase: a spa is probably not the best place for him... he can’t really sit in silence without breaking it to make conversation with the spa worker or crack a joke or a quip or play a mild prank like telling Trouble you’re supposed to eat the seaweed... his mind is too restless to allow him to sit still for that long without getting bored, and low-key being forced to do so makes him kind of uncomfortable, so it’s difficult for him to relax (or for others to relax around him! they sense his chaotic vibes and they’re always like 😒 he’s really quiet over there... is he up to something?) So a spa isn’t a really compatible place for him: he can chill by the pool and hassle Blade good-naturedly, but he probably won’t enjoy the actual spa treatments themselves! also I think getting a massage would put him in some kind of mood so he’d probably end up dragging romanced/FWB!MC into a closet, don’t take him to a spa if you want to relax 😅

Riel: strangers touching him? anointing him with OIL? putting their hands on his PORES?? horrific. absolutely mortifying. the most he’ll allow is getting a manicure, and then he’ll immediately ruin it by going off to work on his laptop by the pool all day, adding to the growing collection of Men Who Don’t Know What to Do With Themselves at a Spa so the Most They Can Do is Get Out of the Normal People’s Way

Red: he’d enjoy going to a spa, especially as a date, like getting a couple’s massage or getting mani-pedis together! He’d probably be too self-conscious going as a group (as in ‘Ayla, please lower your voice, there are people meditating in other rooms... 😅’) to truly relax, but he’d be down for the experience either way and would solidly enjoy it! I feel like all of the spa people (like his massage therapist and etc.) would be in love with him and throw in all sorts of freebies because he’s so courteous and nice to them!

Ayla: she’s a bit suspicious of the whole spa idea and very dubious about the idea of getting a massage specifically, like she’d scoff and be like, “that sounds awful, I’m not doing that,” but if coaxed into giving it a try, she’d discover that she actually really enjoyed it! she’s very tense, so they’d really have to grind her down and like use insane shiatsu techniques just to pummel her body into submission, but she’d kind of be into that 😂 she’d be like, “what, they didn’t give you bruises when you guys tried it??” afterwards but feel better than she ever has in her life! I also feel like she’d be into acupuncture for some reason!

Halek: he’s totally the type to fall asleep during a massage and completely miss out on the experience - but he’ll have the best sleep of his life! if they’re a good spa, they’ll just put a towel over his face and leave him alone in a dark room to snooze for a while 😂

Briony: she’d love a group spa day, that would be her heaven! ultimately she probably wouldn’t ‘relax’ as much because she’d be too busy running around checking in with everyone and trying to keep the day coordinated and fun, like ‘okay 10 AM is facials with Lavinet, 11 AM is the girls’ time for manicures, 12 PM is lunch with everyone (and we have to remember to check on Riel and make sure he isn’t burning up because he’s stuck on the phone), etc. etc.’ So it’d be more like an outing than a restful break for her, but that’s just how she likes it, so she’d be having the time of her life!

Lavinet: she lives for spa days. she’s thriving, she’s flourishing, her crops are watered and her skin is clear. let her sip champagne and mimosas while someone pampers and spoils her. this is her paradise and no one, not even the fact that no one can find Halek and are concerned he might be passed out in a room somewhere, is going to ruin that for her. Briony comes up to her while she’s having a pedicure and is like ‘Chase and Trouble got locked in the steam room and they might die’ and Lavinet puts her sunglasses on and answers ‘sounds like that’s someone else’s problem 😎💅🏼’ her absolute favorites would be a facial and a massage combo!

Mimir: she disappears and they find her like on the second day, having had her feet dipped in the jacuzzi while she casually tells every group who happens to join her their futures and the exact dates when they’re going to die. people are unnerved but keep spreading it around, like ‘there’s a woman in the hot tub who can read your fortune, haha weird right’ and by the second day there’s a line of people wanting to talk to her by sitting in the jacuzzi for 15 minutes while she tells them their future

on a scale of 1-10 (1 being nails on a chalkboard and 10 being Andrea Bocelli), how good are the ROs at singing?

Blade: solid 5, he’d be better if he wasn’t so awkward and hesitant about it, the Ket don’t really sing

Trouble: 3, pretty awful but you can’t knock him for enthusiasm

Tallys: 9, she’s a very good singer and a pleasure to listen to, though she doesn’t sing around other people often!

Shery: 8, good singer, her voice is sweet and high!

Chase: 8, good singer, but his song lyrics annoy everyone so much they often don’t notice how good his voice is

Riel, 10 but no one will ever hear him sing

Red, 8

Ayla, 5, little bit of a squawk

Lavinet, 9, she had singing lessons so she’s pretty gr8 but can sometimes drown out other people lol

Pls I must know for fanfic purposes, what do each of the ROs think about rain and thunderstorms? Love them? Hate them? Fine enough only if they're not caught in the downpour?

Blade: he likes rain aesthetically and prefers it to sunny weather, but can dislike it as a practical thing depending on his current situation; mud makes footprints and tracking much easier, rain dampens scent and hampers vision, etc...

Trouble: he’s indifferent to most forms of weather, what makes a day nice to him is the stuff he does that day and the interactions he has. So he doesn’t have any particular thoughts about rain except the stray thought of having to wrap up his rifle to prevent rust

Tallys: she loves the rain and will even sit in it if she has the chance!

Shery: she likes the rain when it’s calm and cozy, but tends not to like it so much when it’s like a RAGING thunderstorm and hurricane winds

Riel: he enjoys the rain, but from indoors. He does not like it if he has to go out in it uncovered!

Chase: he likes the rain at night, but not during the day when he has to go out and do things in it. I guess I’d say he likes it fine unless he has to be working in it!

Red: he enjoys the rain, especially in the fall. It’s a sign of the changing year for him and makes him nostalgic!

Ayla: she loves storms and rain, probably the most out of any of the ROs, and is noticeably happier when it rains or there’s thunder in the distance! She’s the type of person who looks at clouds on the horizon and urges them to rain

Briony: she loves the rain and thunderstorms and loves to sit outside (like under a covered porch) watching it or walking through the city while it rains. It’s fun for her! But sometimes, when there’s a lot of thunder and lightning, she gets this weird melancholy feeling too!

Lavinet: she dislikes the rain, primarily because it makes her hair and clothes go all wonky and she has to stay inside all day

just wondering but how soft is everyone's hair?

i saw that ask about blade's hair being so pointy it can act as a sword and it got me curious

Huh, I've never really thought about this before!

Blade: most of it's... decently soft, like an exact medium between soft and not soft? He's quite fastidious about personal grooming and care (despite what first impressions might tell you), so while he doesn't do anything particularly special to it, his hair is nice and healthy and thick, and smooth to run your hands through! The back is the most fun to play with because it's so spiky and bristly where he's chopped it off, though 😅

Trouble: I'm torn with him, I'm not sure whether his hair would be more bristly and coarse since it's quite short and shorn, or if it would be like dandelion soft because he also has that energy... I'm not sure!

Tallys: decently soft, though because it's so short, the softness is not as noticeable as, say, Shery's--I'd describe it as more healthy and thick/textured/layered than fine, soft, or silky! I'd say it's like an exact medium, sort of like Blade's!

Shery: the softest of the bunch, super silky and nice to touch! Running your hands through her hair is like slipping them through a sheet of water, her hair is so smooth!

Riel: I think at its base level, his natural hair is quite fine and soft, but because he always wears so much product (pomade/hair gel) to slick his hair to the side or back, no one would ever know that: petting it would feel quite crunchy/stiff/sculpted and smooth rather than naturally soft, and it would also deeply aggravate him!

Chase: quite soft, probably the softest of the boys after Red, though it's also so full of natural slight waves or loose curls that the first thing people usually notice is its bounciness and texture rather than its softness/smoothness!

Red: extremely soft, he pays too much attention to his hair for it to be otherwise! Though, like Riel, it's often quite stiff from hair product/pomade on a daily basis, so you have to really get to the roots to notice the natural softness! 😂 It's also very thick, and there is a lot of it, more than you would expect from first glance!

Ayla: not that soft--more wiry and thick and coarse than soft or silky, probably the least soft of the girls! Ayla herself jokes that it's like a paintbrush or a horsehair bow, so that should give you an idea on its texture!

Briony: pretty soft, and quite thick and fluffy when she lets it down from her ponytail, but also prone to many flyaways and wild stray curls, so it's not super smooth and is prone to tangles! The actual texture is pretty soft, though!

Lavinet: decently soft and very shiny and healthy, she uses good conditioner and haircare products, but because it's quite wavy/bordering on curly, your hand will usually get snagged if you try to pet it, so softness isn't usually the first thing people notice when touching it! The individual strands are very strong and smooth, though!

Halek: not that soft, it's more thick and wiry and strong than fine and soft, if that makes any sense!

Caine: very soft. baby

How would each of the shepherds react If a tiny child ran up to them saying something like, "A flower for my hero!", and then handing them a dandelion?

Blade would accept the flower with a nod and a smile, then keep it in his breast pocket all day, because what is he going to do, hold it in his hand–dangerously impeding his movements–or put it down somewhere like a dick????

Trouble would ruffle the kid’s hair with a grin and say, “Thanks, kid!” and then rummage around in his pockets to give the kid something back. Probably like a bottle cap or a rock or something

Tallys would smile, thank the child, and put the flower in her hair–asking, “How does it look?”

Shery would accept the flower but go, “Me?! I’m not a hero!… but… thank you… :)” She’d show it off to anybody who would pay attention that day and beyond!

Riel would accept the flower with a smile, and if anyone were to ask him about it, he’d be like “ew, no, I hate kids and flowers, I threw it away.” But if anyone were to go searching in his belongings, they might find a pressed dandelion hidden between the pages of his favorite book…

Chase would be “OH WOW!!! A FLOWER??? FOR ME????” all excited like he’s NEVER seen a dandelion before, and would probably play a game or two of playacting with the kid. He’s not that impressed by the dandelion but it’s sweet and he gives the kid a good show as thanks!

Red would be like “omfg this is too cute” inside and would crouch and have a conversation with the kid. What’s their name? What do they want to be when they grow up? He gives them some friendly encouragement and advice and sends them on their way

Ayla would drop her gruff act for a hot second and be really touched that this kid thinks she’s their HERO. She’d kneel and let the child pin the flower to her collar like she’s a knight being ordained by her monarch.

Lavinet would let the child put the flower behind her ear before taking them along the path to find a flower to put in THEIR hair. “This way, we can match!” And she’d wear that damn flower in her hair all day long, and kick anyone who makes fun of her in the face. 

What genre of books do the shepherds like to read

Blade: short poetry books, historical fiction often featuring martial or military heroes (similar to wuxia) or knights like in Arthurian legends

Trouble: adventure novels, especially about exploring unknown lands or war dramas

Tallys: folktales, myths, and fairytale books, instructional books (such as how to grow such-and-such)

Shery: romance novels (and smut)

Riel: historical books, political and philosophical essays, autobiographies and memoirs

Chase: mysteries, thrillers, the occasional spicy romance

Halek: travelogues and cookbooks

Red: he’ll read and enjoy any book of any genre, but especially enjoys books describing magic before the Castigation and academic theses by other Mages

Ayla: she hates reading and won’t sit still long enough to finish most books, but will tolerate travelogues with lots of illustrations of plants and animals

Briony: she favors epic fantasy novels with strong heroines, but also enjoys romance and historical epics

Lavinet: romance novels, especially of the courtly intrigue or historical variety

What would be each character’s favorite classic book if they had to choose? As a bonus, what are your favorite classic books Lena?

This question came to me because I just finished Great Expectations and I am forever ruined🥲Looking for some recommendations!

Hi there, thank you for your interesting questions! I'll start with some of my favorite classics in the hopes that some of them might strike your fancy, and then move on to the characters!

Note: I should put a disclaimer that, as is the case for many classics, some of these examples are quite dark or may contain disturbing themes or content matter, so just letting you know that you may have to look up content warnings for some of these titles if you feel the need to! 

Also, the ones with an asterisk (*) are ones I think you might particularly enjoy if you liked Great Expectations!

Some of my favorite classics:

East of Eden by John Steinbeck - my absolute favorite "classic" novel and a brilliant masterpiece in my opinion! Can't emphasize strongly enough how great the prose, narrative themes, emotions, and characters are, and it's definitely Steinbeck's best novel!

Germinal by Emile Zola * - an incredible work and magnum opus by Zola, this details the harsh conditions of a coal miners' strike in Northern France and is similar in its gritty depiction of poverty to Great Expectations. Warning: it is uncompromisingly brutal and was praised at the time for its shocking realism, so be aware that it has quite a darkness to it!

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky * - I love Crime and Punishment as a pairing to East of Eden, and I also think it's the best of Dostoevsky's novels (a bone of contention between me and my partner, who insists it's actually The Brothers Karamazov) and an incredible character study; I think if you like the characters in Great Expectations, you might feel similarly while reading Crime and Punishment, though it also covers dark subject matter!

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - both Dracula and Frankenstein are absolutely wonderful stories on their own, but also incredibly important lenses into the Victorian era and its culture and beliefs! Also, the beginnings of monster fiction! How could you say no to that?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys - If you read Jane Eyre, you absolutely must read Wide Sargasso Sea, which is a postcolonial and feminist rebuttal to Jane Eyre told from the perspective of Mr. Rochester's "insane wife" in the attic!

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens * - Actually my favorite of Dickens' novels (even moreso than Great Expectations) and a must-read if you haven't already read it!

Greek classics - My favorites include The Oresteia, The Iliad (I particularly enjoy Caroline Alexander's translation), and The Aeneid.

Japanese classics - There are a few of these, but the one that's stuck the most with me was The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu. Although it provides a fascinating look at the court life of Japanese nobles at the time (and is thought to be the world's first true novel, or at least the world's earliest classic novel), it is notoriously wily when it comes to its descriptions, complex language and grammar, and difficulties with translations, so something to be aware of!

Shakespeare - My favorites include Hamlet, Othello, Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It, and Coriolanus.

Finally, let's move on to what classics would be the characters' favorites!

Blade: The Iliad, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Count of Monte Cristo

Trouble: The Three Musketeers, War of the Worlds, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Dracula

Tallys: Tess of the D'Ubervilles, The Scarlet Letter

Shery: Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women

Riel: Crime and Punishment, Divine Comedy, Paradise Lost

Chase: The Great Gatsby, Candide

Red: Gulliver's Travels, Through the Looking-Glass, The Island of Dr. Moreau

Ayla: Pygmalion, A Doll's House

Briony: Anne of Green Gables, The Once and Future King, Le Morte d'Arthur

Lavinet: Madame Bovary, Gone with the Wind

Halek: A Farewell to Arms, Ask the Dust, The Big Sleep

What bubble tea flavour would each shepherd love? What’s your go to boba flavour?

OHHHH great question anon!!!

My go-to flavor is actually almond bubble tea (as in almond flavor, not almond milk) with boba, blended (so it's more of that slushy texture)! If that's not an option, I'll almost always go for brown sugar boba/tiger milk tea, and if that's not available, peach with peach or mango jelly is also a good option!

As for the Shepherds:

Blade: Coffee milk tea

Trouble: Honeydew slush with boba

Tallys: Thai milk tea with boba

Shery: Honey milk tea with egg custard

Riel: Royal milk tea

Chase: Taro slush with boba

Red: Almond slush with egg custard

Ayla: Mango slush with lychee jelly

Briony: Peach slush with peach jelly

Lavinet: Strawberry milk tea with strawberry popping boba

Halek: Vanilla slush with boba

Mimir: 5-color dessert (smashed mung bean, taro, red bean, pandan jelly, grass jelly, topped with coconut cream)

Prihine: Matcha milk tea with boba

Caine: Chocolate milk tea with boba and egg pudding

Thanks for your question!!

please i need to know--how would the shepherds fare in a bakery AU?

Hmm, interesting question!

Blade: don't hire him. he would drive the customers away with his very presence. just imagine some dour black-clothed man looming in your charming bakery amidst the smells of custard buns like

truly disgusting stuff

Trouble: I think this would be manageable at first, but not ideal! he's really game to try any line of work for as long as it can hold his interest, and baking could appeal to him if you pointed out its scientific/chemical qualities! Aesthetically his cakes and desserts would look like this

...but his bread would be the absolute bomb! and he'd have such a friendly and casual attitude when you walked in that I feel like people around the neighborhood would fall in love with him lol. imagine him working a wood-fire oven!

Tallys: she would be an efficient worker who made delicious pastries with homegrown or foraged ingredients--very Great British Bakeoff in essence, where they're always talking about making their own pestos or growing their own tomatoes for things or whatever--but her personality is cool and courteous enough that people would feel slightly intimidated by her, like you can't just go to her and ask for your a Shrek cake for your son's 5th birthday party, she's an artisan and you have to treat her as such! (even if she never says so explicitly herself)

Shery: this is my dream for her. She's thriving, she has her own cozy bakery with all of the pastel sweets and cute little character macarons you could ever ask for, she constantly smells of sugar and vanilla and smiles warmly when you walk inside! she is the most successful in this AU of them all and eventually goes on to go viral once people discover her quaint little bakeshop!

Riel: he's an angel investor. he gave shery seed money to pursue her dream of being a baker. she parcels him up treats and petit fours and cookies and sends them to his house once a week, or he'll stop in on his way home from work (or send his butler to go get it when he gets a craving). but in no universe are you getting him to work in a bakery, lol. and nor would you want to! the man has no instinct for cooking or baking. all of his food ends up looking like this

the best you'll get out of him is that he makes every display in the bakery extremely, painfully symmetrical...

Chase: you're probably better off hiring him as, like, the greeter or sign spinner or flyer-distributor to get people into the bakery. like, he'd be great at charming customers into your store, but I highly doubt you'd want to trust him to do anything else in the bakery. he doesn't have the patience to be cooped up behind the register all day. he'd get distracted by all the fun ingredients in the kitchen if you tried to get him to follow a recipe and bake some cakes. heck, he'd probably be distracted thirty minutes into the whole venture and would just wander out of the shop, never to return! he might accidentally turn out something tasty now and then, but it's not enough to justify having him in your bakery lol

Red: i feel like he could have helped out in a family's friend bakery for a summer as, like, a favor and a seasonal high school job, lol. would he have enjoyed it? probably not, he'd rather be doing other things, but he'd be competent and attentive enough to keep things running at a decent clip! he'd be great at running the register and service end of things, or doing the numbers or deliveries, but only so-so at the baking/kitchen end of things. he'd make great coffee!

Ayla: she'd be fairly decent at this! I think if you put her in the kitchen and gave her detailed instructions on what to do, she'd resist it at first--scowl, scowl, this is dumb, this is boring, why am I cooped up back here like a slave??--but once she got into the rhythm of things, I could see Ayla enjoying slinging dough and cranking out simple things like cookies, biscuits, and bread. No finicky decorating or delicate stuff like frosting cakes--that's how you get cakes being smashed in fits of temper--but "one-and-done" products would be great for her!

Briony: she's brilliant behind the register, cheerily calling out greetings and wrapping up your pastries in their nice little boxes while making chitchat with you. she'd be a sunny presence that made everyone feel happy and welcome in the bakery. she might be able to help out in the kitchen as an assistant now and again, but it's probably not worth the trouble... she's just as likely to trip and knock over an entire shelf of flour, or accidentally squash a cake under her elbow when going to lean on a table, that it's probably just safer to keep her out of the kitchen altogether...

Lavinet: naur... maybe if you want her to be your hot cashieress, but even in an AU, I feel like there are a lot of jobs she'd take over working in a bakery or any kind of food service! flour? in her hair? i don't think so, darling! while she enjoys food and sweets, she has absolutely zero interest in how it's made or selling it, so this would not be a good fit for her at all!

Halek: baking isn't his passion, but he's obviously second-best at this bakery thing after Shery! I think he'd be one of those weird, elusive, sort of temperamental artist-bakers, the ones who are only open from like 4 AM-9 AM, you have to line up outside and stand on the sidewalk for like 20 minutes before you're allowed to buy up to 3 bagels because he only makes exactly 200 every two days, but once you finally get the damn thing, it's the best bagel you've ever had in your life! oh and he only offers plain and veggie cream cheese or an egg and sausage sandwich, no other options!

Aside from Halek, who's the best cook out of the ROs? Or what's their level of cooking knowledge/experience in general?

Blade: he can cook, but his cooking almost entirely functional: it doesn't taste bad by any means, but it's quite plain and perfunctory, aimed at sustenance and nutrition rather than decoration or embellishment--he's the type of guy who would meal-prep grilled chicken, rice, and veggies 4 days out of the week if left to his own devices... so he's able to do it, but no one's exactly begging him to make them a meal!

Trouble: he's actually quite a good cook if forced to cook, but he's usually too lazy to bother with it and will prefer to eat out or just grab a meal at the local tavern rather than cook for himself--at least as a current bachelor! I could totally see him doing the cooking or being some sort of house-husband later in life and being quite good at it, but for now, he just doesn't bother!

Tallys: she's an excellent cook and actually currently (at this point in the game) outstrips Halek in outright experience and knowledge, though in the long run he'll do better than her when it comes to sheer potential. Like many Elves, she's spent a lot of time perfecting the art of cooking, so she's a pretty amazing chef, though she rarely exerts herself to cook for the whole group because she finds it more stressful than just cooking at her leisure for one or two people!

Shery: she's a good cook, but moreso an excellent baker, probably the best out of the Shepherds! She's not super interested in cooking meals--having to keep track of everything in real-time rather than going at her own pace is stressful for her, plus she's just not as passionate about normal meals--but she loves baking sweets and confections, and people will physically fight over her treats!

Riel: awful. horrendous. he knows the theories of cooking and what makes food tastes good and the concepts of fine dining, but he's never stepped foot in a kitchen in his life except to make himself butter and bread once when he was a teenager, or to pour himself like a glass of milk... absolute disaster. he would way overcomplicate/overthink it and be like, well to achieve the browning effect, surely one must fry the lasagna in oil before putting it in the oven?... but when would the cheese go on...?

Chase: he's, um, fine at it? he can make himself meals if he has to and could survive off of his cooking, is how I would put it, but honestly, it would just be like sandwiches or something extremely simple all of the time, like heating up pre-made soup or something like that! He just has 0 interest in cooking and has exclusively either eaten out or found food using other methods (ie mooching or stealing or conning...) his whole life, so while he's technically capable of it, you'll likely never see him doing it!

Red: he used to be a pretty bad cook when he was younger (because he kept getting distracted or would start day-dreaming in the middle of stirring a stew and letting it burn, driving his mother and sisters to absolute hysterics), but nowadays he's a pretty competent cook, namely because he figured out that 1) people find it sexy and 2) his sisters threatened to beat the absolute shit out of him if he didn't learn, so now he's pretty good at it and would make a fine cook, though it isn't typically his preference! Once he's a husband/father, though, I could see him getting even better!

Ayla: when she's cooking just for herself, she's more like Blade and tends to be purely practical, fixing herself simple fare like stir-fried veggies and rice, but when cooking for others, she's pretty good and usually makes tasty dishes! She just way overestimates people's spice tolerances... but other than that, she has a good eye for fresh produce and various seasonings and flavors!

Briony: right now, she's absolutely AWFUL at it (like is the type to tearfully serve someone a blackened crisp of nothing and be like, '...is it okay? 🥺' and they have to choke it down and be like 'omg... so good... 🥴'), but given enough time, experimentation, and a lot of patience and encouragement from others, she could ultimately display quite the talent for it! Just give her like... 2-3 more years!

Lavinet: the worst cook of the bunch, even worse than Riel (though not by much). don't let her step foot in a kitchen or you'll all die of food poisoning. has absolutely no common sense when it comes to cooking, has less than 0 interest in learning it, and just hates it in general. complete natural disaster. could put someone into a coma.

I think the current scale would go Tallys -> Halek -> Shery -> Trouble - Ayla (tied) -> Red -> Blade -> Chase -> Briony -> Riel -> Lavinet, with room for people to shift places and rise in the rankings over time!

Mc makes friendship braclets for each, and explains what it means What's the reactions.?

Wears the friendship bracelet proudly on display:

Trouble

Chase

Red

Ayla

Is overjoyed and points out the friendship bracelet to everyone they can:

Briony

Shery

Accepts the friendship bracelet gratefully and wears it, but it’s often hidden by a sleeve:

Tallys

Blade

Accepts the friendship bracelet gratefully but doesn’t always wear it, instead keeps it in their pocket or on a necklace or ankle:

Lavinet

Riel