#(read the book when I was 15. I was here when the fandom was TINY)

[lil-lesbian-historian]

Fanfiction has ruined some of y’all’s brains so badly. Gaiman said to expect 3 seasons of Good Omens. That’s how much content he has planned for the show - meaning there’s a definite end he’s looking towards.

What did you really think s2 was going to be? The two of them running around and then being at the Ritz just like s1? That’s not an interesting show, it’s just fan service fluff. (Which is obviously fun and all but not something you should base 3 seasons of TV show on)

Gaiman told you what has to happen for Crowley and Aziraphale to be together in the show: Aziraphale has to heal from his past ‘relationship’ to be in a healthy one with Crowley. What Nina says about her and Maggie is not just a character talking to fill up run time, it’s the show saying something too.

TL;DR: Aziraphale is in a toxic relationship with heaven and needs to get out of that mindset before he can be with Crowley. It’s natural story progression and some of y’all have fanfic brainrot where everything must be instantly gratifying.

[bikenesmith]

ive noticed some engagement on some of my monkees (shit)posts from way back in 2012/2013 — my 14/15 year old self. which is endearing, bc im aware the monkees fandom is still going, and is perhaps even more active than it was in my day. this did remind me of a @fansplaining article by allegra rosenberg / @areyougonnabe that i finally got around to reading earlier this week, the beatles live!

(i have no idea how long some of you have been here, so to recap i was fully obsessed with classic rock bands and 1960s/70s pop culture from like, 12 to 15 years old. profound impact on me in many ways, still love 60s/70s music, culture and history. also lmfao at my fandom of the last near-decade being sparked by a film set in the 60s. the several page video essay script about x-men first class' anachronistic 1960s fashion, which is sooo close to actually being filmed, will likely be the ultimate culmination of it all) the beatles were my first music fandom — while i still have feelings for the monkees [obviously, considering my ~12 year attachment to this url across nearly all of my social media] it is the beatles that i still have brain worms for. a tiny, isolated worm, but one nonetheless. so this article, i had to read.)

i was really taken by this section on the anachronistic modernizing of beatles fandom activities.

It takes a certain stripe of fannish brain to obsess over music from a bygone age instead of modern artists—taking something as broadly popular as classic rock and treating it with all the intimate, loving attention that other fans devote to a sci-fi television show, a fantasy book series, or a cult video game. These fans are cultural archaeologists, working with the materials of the past to create the passion of the present. The phenomenon is not limited to the Beatles. On TikTok, fans place meme tweets on pictures of the Stones and Bob Dylan; celebrate Freddie Mercury’s style; and make Monkees fancams. But the Beatles fandom is still top dog, with a kind of default dominance it retains from the dawn of Beatlemania. On Tumblr, you can find gifsets of Beatles movies, fanart, and the occasional Yoko Ono stan post, side by side with more typically Tumblr-esque wackiness along the lines of Paul McCartney posts tagged “#my twink wife”, “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” memes, and toxic yaoi polls.

it made me think about how this phenomenon — the blending of modern fan practices and modern pop culture (fancams, memes, insaneposting, etc) with classic rock fandom is not new (not that allegra insinuates it is — i am speaking generally), but is something that has been around for a while, and is something i participated in quite heavily when it came to monkees fandom. whether it was

editing a music video to the tune of marina + the diamonds

making art of mike nesmith as a genderbent marina + the diamonds analog

not to mention the entirety of the who (slight flashing tw)

creating mockups of a classic rock-themed homestuck/OFF/undertale/earthbound analog:

classic rock icons using homestuck icons as a base

blending classic rock into my ~aesthetic~ blog theme sensibilities:

this video where i did nothing but put the beginning of baby got back over a scene from the first episode of the monkees and the music lined up almost frighteningly well

or creating emo notepad screenshot aesthetic posts with quotes from head (1968)....

i was very invested in engineering (or maybe just yearning for + acting out desires?) a form of classic rock fandom that was "hip" to the modern fandoms i was aware of. this was likely inspired by the fact that monkees fandom at the time skewed older.

i cannot for the life of me find these accounts or screenshots of them, but i think the ultimate expression of this was a collection of twitter accounts i made as mockups of twitter stan accounts, modeled directly off of one direction accounts at the time. complete with icons that were cut-outs of musicians overlayed onto aesthetic background, and descriptions that noted how many times the musicians had interacted with them.

importantly, i could not have sustained this if not for the close friends i had at the time that were around my age and were on my wavelength, that supported it, commiserated with me, made lots — especially on the homestuck parts. even if it was a small thing, in a small fandom, it was a communal effort

idk. its interesting to see that these dreams of mine have now come to fruition.

abrupt stop, no conclusion bc this is just a post not an essay (a comment directed at my autistic ocd self). may be interesting to some of the nouveau classic rock fandom.

[schmem14]

20 questions for fic writers!

Thanks for the tag @maesterchill! Read their answers HERE.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

My stats tell me that I've written 50, but 5 are multi-chapter collections, so... a lot. Yeah.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

733,820. If you asked me three years ago if I could ever write that much I would've laughed in your face. Isn't growth amazing?

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Harry Potter (though I do read some Good Omens, Carry on Simon and Bagginshield stuff)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

UGH. I don't want to be honest here, since 2 of the five are Dramione fics I've now listed as ANON because of harassment reasons. I'll give you the NEXT five instead ;) 1. 93 Diagon Alley (Harry x George) They were roommates 2. HP Cocktober 2022 Collection (Multiple) Prompt fest 3. Solace (Harry x George) Unhealthy coping mechanisms (sex) 4. When Malfoy Met Granger... (Draco x Hermione) WHMS remake 5. Mistletoe, or Die F***ing (Harry x Fred x George) Self-explan.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes. I try to, because the BEST part of sharing is connecting with people who enjoy what I've done. Community, ya know?

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Mastermind (Draco x Hermione, Draco x Harry, Draco x Ron, Ron x Harry) The worst UHEA I've ever inflicted on y'all is this Dronarry fest 2023 story. Dark stalker Draco goes off the rails in the end. It's a masterpiece, I'm so proud of it.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

From Sunset to Star Rise (Harry x Ron) Cozy fall vibes, falling in love, little to no angst (Ron has a tiny bit of anxiety, that's all)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Yes. Mainly the bigger ship ones (Dramione, looking at you) If you're wondering WHY I write rare pairs a lot, it's because rare pair fandom is a safe space with AWESOME people. We may be few in number, but WE GO HARD and LOVE HARDER.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

ALL KINDS (though I'm not great a fluffy smut). Check out my HP Kinktober Collection 2023 posting daily RIGHT NOW. It's very kinky and dark.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

The closest I've come to crossover is more like "inspired by a vibe." I wrote a Community (TV Series) inspired paintball fic here: All's Fair in Love & War & Paintball (multiple ships)

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No, BUT I've had people post me on Goodreads. Read my thoughts on why this is bad fandom etiquette HERE

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I've had many requests, but no one has followed through yet.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No! But I'm interested in this concept, especially if the co-author is someone I vibe with.

14. What’s your all time favourite ship?

STAWP. It's too hard a question! Lately, I'm obsessed with Dronarry, and any combination of those three. I also think I'm more in love with stories than ships. If it's an amazing story I end it with "OMG this is the BEST EVER" and I say it about a lot of ships.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I'm writing a multichap Drarry fic where Draco is a wandmaker, and it's falling in love fluff. I'm terrified to write them because I feel like I'll get torn to shreds because the Drarry fandom is too amazing for the likes of little old me. I'll just read Drarry and call it good, and MAYBE I'll get the courage to finish someday.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Ideas. I'm chockful of ideas. Also, I read a ton, so I think the more you read, the better you write.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Fluff. I HATE writing fluff. Why is it so hard?

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I don't typically do it because I'm monolingual and don't want to fuck it up. I don't mind when others do it

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Harry Potter!

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

How to Care for Your Monster Book: A Guide by Rubeus Hagrid  (Hagrid x Monster Book of Monsters) Y'aaaaaallll... I have no regrets about this fic. It's the only fic I've ever written that is perfect, I'll never top it, it's just so funny and weird (like me).

Tagging: @the-francakes @mugsdontlie @swoontodeath @vukovich @mintawasalreadytaken @peachpety @nv-md @lumosatnight and anyone else who wants to

[ben-wisehart]

hi! do you ever feel like the bingqiu fandom is binghe biased? like a lot of the time its giving.. “wow binghe is our little precious bun who deserves the world and more! ..oh and stinky neet loser sqq is so blessed to have him lul” it feels unfair towards sqq :( it makes me sad hes no ones fave but thats okay like whatever right? but even when its bingqiu hes treated like an afterthought. like we have binghe fans criticising sqq for not doing more, sj fans are frankly delusional, sqh fans think hes “too mean” to their precious hamster, liushen fans only like him bc hes a good hole/dick for lqg (obligatory “not all men” lol) idk i only follow a handful of svsss twt accs because no one seems to like him, he feels either tolerated or treated as a gag character lol 🥹

i just dislike a lot of fanon bingqiu i think? i read all the books before hopping on twitter and i see some absolute rancid takes on there like the woobification of Shaun(tm) qinghua and jiumei.. which is easy enough to avoid tbf so whatever floats their boat idc. but when i follow bingqiu accs, it feels like OC x OC rather than ~bingqiu~ if that makes sense? like i LOVE the manipulative crybaby domtop x flustered thin face subby pillow princess they have going on!! and fanon bingqiu is just.. not it? and obv id never send hate or anything (i just block and keep it moving) but it makes it kinda sucky when the fandom is already teeny tiny and a large chunk of the fandom isnt what i envisioned/expected i guess which is so odd! when they essentially erase canon!! if it’s like some queerbaity ship or whatever, people can characterise them however they want but its like CANON how they act/are in bed/etc and its all taken away!!! idk im probably just whining sorry 😭

(i included all my thoughts here sorry for the spam!!)

hey, thanks for stopping by!! I definitely know what you mean with regards to SQQ, but I will assure you that there are very much still plenty of dedicated "sqq mains" out there. My sphere of influence on twitter is heavily biased toward people for whom sqq is their favourite character, so maybe I'm not getting a representative sample of the fandom overall, but he's definitely a very well loved character and has more than his fair share of people who do him justice in their writing and for whom he's their primary blorbo!! I remember posting this on reddit a while back and more than half of the responses (though admittedly a small sample size) had him as their fave. So, I don't think he's without appreciation!

But with that said, I do get where you’re coming from. I’m not gonna talk about readers who take his actions in bad faith and actively dislike him (HOW??), but as you’ve said, even among people who do like him, we don’t always understand him as well as we could. Most fans do get on some level that he’s an unreliable narrator, but it’s still very common for people to take him at face value and completely miss his depth. He’s a funny little guy with amusing narration, but he’s also kind and selfless, and he’s also smart and witty, and obnoxious and annoying, and frankly pretty insensitive, and deeply, deeply traumatised—and a million other things! He has layers.

I think all popular characters in fandom will inevitably start getting boiled down to a few key traits. And as somebody who’s been writing fic for 15 years, it’s really hard not to let your own biases colour your portrayal? I absolutely do it with SQQ!! I focus on his kinder, warmer aspects and downplay his flaws, I’ll readily admit that. We all get drawn to a favourite character for a certain trait, and that trait becomes the grit around which our interpretations form. If you’re somebody that likes silly characters, you’re going to write SQQ and dial his silliness up to eleven. If you like kind characters, you’ll write SQQ with emphasis on his kindness. None of these traits are OOC in and of themselves, but if you start to only read fanfic and don’t revisit the source material, you can get lost in what’s popular and forget all the depth that actually made them interesting in the first place. And once you’ve grown attached to a particular version of the characters in your head, it can be really hard to let go of it. I don’t really know where I’m going with this, but I'll add that I think protagonists are just particularly prone to this happening because they're usually the one the audience relates to most.

Idk if any of that really addresses the stuff you were talking about. You mentioned dom top Binghe/pillow princess sqq and to be honest I’m kind of reluctant to talk about this in depth because I’ve received negative comments in the past for supposedly being anti-bottom Binghe, when all I’ve ever said on this matter is that I think it’s a bit weird to insist that “I’m scared of hurting you so I might as well let you do it” is proof that Binghe is canonically a bottom. The fact that someone found that statement so threatening to their view of the characters that they would go to my ao3 page, click on the first fic they saw that happened to feature bottom SQQ and leave their holier-than-thou anonymous opinion there is just bizarre to me.

To be honest tho, it tends to be Binghe characterisation that puts me off moreso than Shen Qingqiu. The only SQQ characterisation that truly bothers me is when people write him as willing to hurt Binghe, or willing to do anything with underage Binghe, but there is a LOT of Binghe stuff that I’m sensitive too. Idk if you read this thread of mine but like, even my friends whom I love make “Binghe stalking/imprisoning/"atticwifing" SQQ” jokes and these bother me way more than any random stranger saying SQQ would get off on spanking Binghe.

And like, it’s kind of hard because objectively, Binghe is a very dark character, so it doesn't feel particularly OOC to say he would do those things, but it's about framing. It bothers me when the emphasis is on how fucked up he is and not how hard he's trying, because it implies a level of futility that I just don’t think is there in canon. To me the beauty of him is in how much doing right by SQQ doesn't come naturally to him, but he ultimately decides to do it anyway because he wants SQQ to be happy. (I feel it needs to be said that I don't mean this in a judgy "if you write dark Binghe you don't understand him and are a bad person" way. Just that I myself can't handle that, and I strongly disagree if you think it's where Bingqiu's relationship is headed).

but idk, I've found my corner and I'm very happy here. I actually don't read fic as often as you'd think, mostly because I am sooooo picky, so I totally get where you're coming from :) but the fandom is still decently sized and very diverse, so there are always going to be at least a few people who share your feelings, if you can find them!

[agent-toast]

♧ • intro post! (i really gotta update this) • ♤

Hi! I'm XX or Ari! I go by they/them, please use both when possible

I'm 15 (aka, no nsfw)

I do my best to be considerate on the internet, and respect others, however I will occasionally get things wrong, so please help to explain the problem if that does happen :)

Oh, also I usually type without capitalising and use emoticons [:), :3, :>] to sound more casual, because I can't read emotions in text online very well, so I try to make it clear to others that I'm being friendly. If that doesn't float your boat, that's ok!

feel free to tag me anywhere as long as it's not spam!

==

♤ • lgbtq+ safe 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ :)

♡ • free palestine 🇵🇸 🍉 :)

==

♧ • I'm very bad at tw/cw tagging so here's a general warning just in case! •

♢ • my inbox is open, feel free to say hello :3

==

• search "free palestine" in tags for palestine-related things to reblog! •

>> my art tag is just: "my art :>"

>> also i usually just reblog things

more stuff • ♤

-i'm aroace and romance is complicated

-i like rtgame!

-i like epic: the musical :D

-i'm singaporean but have a slight british accent because i watched dantdm a lot when i was younger and now i watch grian??

-i disappoint the irish with my terrible irish accent (which is from rtgame & callmekevin)

-i like i expect you to die (VR puzzle game)

-i like doctor who (when i was like 5 i was so confused as to why the doctor was sometimes old and sometimes young and didn't know regeneration existed - i just saw it in passing) (godd i could have seen the 11th doctor when i was 5 and been obsessed from a young age but nah i chose my little pony. still i love mlp :3)

-also i used to confuse doctor who with doctor strange benedict cumberbatch

-i played a game on itch.io called "purrgatory" which is a very meaningful and cozy point and click visual novel. 100/10 would recommend. i like sean :3

-i like playing minecraft (grian hermitcraft fan)

- and cavetown! very cool songs

-i like to do a bit of casual voice acting in my spare time, as well as singing

-i draw!

-i procrastinate writing ao3 fics!!

-i play dungeons and dragons with my cousins and other friends

-i'm a sucker for extremely tiny fandoms (sherlock sam [singaporean book series]; story thieves; the revenge of magic; artemis fowl [please for frond's sake give us a good movie/animated series])

-you are cool 😎

-cringe is dead, long live cringe

previous usernames • ♧

agent-toast

frenchtoastfive

nahidadango

[rigil-kentauris]

URIANGER: 2,4, 7 OR 8 (whichever you prefer), 15-16-OR-17 (again, preference), 20, 23

RUBS MY GREEDY LITTLE HANDS TOGETHER HELL YEAH

urianger my beloved

okay let me go dig up my questions

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

I LOVE HIS THEE AND THOU-ING. I especially love the fact that. There's no reasons like culturally for him to be like this, most sharlayans talk normally, if not a touch more formally. he made himself like this. i adore it.

i forget here it is (if its an npc who says it or if its a lorebook thing) but i like the part where the lore says hes Like This because of all those damn prophecy tomes he was on as a little kid. so i just imagine tiny little urianger looking at Ye Old Prophies and COMMITTING. he is precious to me

Small thing: I also love his stupid two sets of goggles when in his Potato Sack era.

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

hmm... i feel like if i just sent him off on his own, he would wilt a bit. i would want to put him in something that gave him a fun, relaxing time, and think if thats to be accomplished I would have to send some of his People with him. he's been alone an awful lot and i see those as times that have also been or ended Bad. i think that might be something he dwells on.

OH I KNOW. okay weird one. but. BUT. hear me out. i would send him to Roller Coaster Tycoon. I know that's just technically just like a theme park but when i build them they are the BEST POSSIBLE THEME PARKS IN THE WORLD. if he could bring than, ryne, and gaia along, i just know he'd be really fulfilled by having a Fun Family Trip. i kind of see him as the guy who happily holds the bags and waits at the end of the ride. and i KNOW gaias got bags. also i feel like he is taking pictures and making the kids wear silly Park Gear. they go to some of the slow like Sitting and or Show type rides for him.

also if he was in RCT i could pick him up and Dangle him. not like malevolently but with the same emotion as I would have if I was Rotating Him

also also i have. forgotten everything ive ever read played or watched so im sure i have a better answer rolling around in there but alas.

7/8. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like/despise?

I don't actually know much about the fandom takes on Urianger. Most of what I see is people analyzing his actions w/ The Warriors of Darkness and in Shadowbringers, and I haven't seen it be unfair yet. I think, though, I am not deep in the Fandom.

OH you know what I do hate. Every now and again people will mishear a bit about 1.0, and start popping off about how ~~~~~~secretly~~~~ Urianger is ACTUALLY a millennial old WISE and SCHEMING IMMORTAL WIZARD~~~~~~. I cannot blame anyone for thinking that, but it drives me off the wall. hes a 29 year old weird PhD haver who went around at aetherytes and chanting his insane End Of The World prophecies, he wears EITHER potato sack OR a backless dress and the only thing he knows how to do other than is eat hot chip be bisexual and tell the most insane lies possible. actually come to think of it i feel like HE was the one who started the insane lie ' is ACTUALLY a millennial old WISE and SCHEMING IMMORTAL WIZARD' so. either that or it was a general team effort. im getting into the weeds here so i digress.

urianger is so weird. i love him.

15. What’s your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn’t matter if it’s canon or not.)

I'm on that Urianger/Than ship if the bit about the theme park didn't give me away lol. I also like Uri/Moen but if I had to pick one it would be Uri/Than. Uri/Moen makes me sad to think about...

16/17. What’s your least favorite ship for this character?

Lol I havehit up the archive for this one. I'm genuinely not sure what the most popular ships are for Uri outside of Thancred. My guess is Uri/WoL, then Moen. But lets see.

lmao i opened the ffxiv tag and the first fic is an Uri/Than fic ive been reading which YIPPE! its updated!

okay im back its all than/uri and some uri/WoL. there are other ships but i got to the point where there were so few it would feel like kicking a life-raft to mention them.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn’t matter?

I thought about this long and hard. I went at it from every logical angle. I took apart his characteristics, history, things he's done and to who. Interests, likes dislikes. I thought HARD.

I could NOT shake my immediate and initial thought of Estinien. I haven't got a stick to shake at my pile of evidence I just feel this in my heart.

I guess I was very impacted by uh... when was it. The Scions were in the Rising Stones, and Uri was mentioning he was going to get some books or something to try and share with Estinien to get to know him. It was the most endearing shit I have ever seen and it cut me to the bone. I think probably that attempt did not work but I do not care. GO FOR IT URIANGER! i also, i suppose, wonder how many friends Uri has every actively tried to make himself. like in childhood it seemed more like moenbryda Selected him, and that not many other kids liked him. his complicated history with the scions is complicated, but i think obviously he has to put in active effort to maintain those relationships (ESPECIALLY SINCE HE LOVE HOT CHIP LIES), but a lot of his character development w/ the scions seems more akin to 'hey this is the guy on our team we've known each other for like a decade so we are friends now' and less akin to 'hi my name is urianger can i show you some cool books'

its just intriguing to me why he did that. i hope so much it works out.

also come to think of it i dont know how many friends ESTINIEN have sought out of his own volition. he actively avoids aymeric half the time. orn kahi appears to have also gone the moenbryda route of Mine Now. tataru and krile had to actively hunt and Blackmail him into the scions. certainly i would call him friends with us now, and he cares a lot about alphinaud, but as far as Who Reached Out To Who, i think he is actually in the same boat as uri. huh.

vrtra, i think, is it. though i haven't had enough review time to say who lead that one.

now i want to see uri and estinien sitting silently in a room doing their own separate silent tasks (uri is reading a Tome, estinien is Caring For Weapons) SPECIFICALLY so i can caption it 'tag two blokes who do fuck all'. maybe its alisaie sneaking a bad blurry picture over her shoulder with her front camera and sending it to alphinaud.

23. Favorite picture of this character?

oh man i dont know. theres so much good ingame content and there SO MUCH GOOD ART and i do not have ANY of it tagged by character. let me go look.

OH NO I KNOW this is my favorite image of urianger of all time i want to cry every time i look at it. the fucking. expressions. i cant possibly describe in words how MUCH i feel when viewing this image. im going to pop.

[pencopanko]

Hello! ;) I was wondering about your Coco OC Rafael. Who is he? How does he know the Riveras? I think you mentioned once that he's Rosita's love interest? Basically, I just want to know more about him. (Assuming it doesn't give away spoilers for anything, of course!)

Hello, hello! Rafael is actually an OC originally created by my dear friend B who was known as heyheyitsjuju or now known as @sheepwithspecs . They're no longer active in the fandom, but I was given permission to use their OCs in my stories too and I will always credit them as the original creator. He first appeared on Chapter 9 of a fanfic titled "Echar Agua Al Mar", but unfortunately that fanfic is no longer available online. However, thankfully B and I talk about him still along with other OCs related to him, so here is a list of things about him!

Rafael Herrera Meza is a musician-turned-talent scout/music producer from Jalisco who died in the 70s. He was originally going to take over his father's oil company (the Herreras are extremely rich), but turned down the offer to focus on his music career much to his father's chagrin.

Rafael and Papá Herrera reconciled in the main timeline, though! His father was the first face he saw in the Land Of The Dead after he woke up.

He had a tiny Holland lop named Chavela whom he loved dearly throughout his childhood, and when she passed away when Rafael was around 15 or so he was inconsolable for days. Fortunately for them both they reunited years later in the Land Of The Dead, and Chavelita is now his alebrije! She is even tinier now, as she can now fit in the palm of his hands and can hide inside his sombrero.

He only had two friends growing up: Chavela and his cousin Samuel. Samuel and Rafael look similar to each other (like Marco & Miguel-level similar), but Samuel is a lot more outgoing and extroverted. He is also more angular than Rafael who has softer features. Samuel was also the one who ended up inheriting the oil business. The both of them are still very close.

Him having only two childhood friends was due to his upbringing. He was homeschooled for most of his life, and the only social interactions he had outside of his family and the family staff was with his teachers who would come to the Herrera residence to teach him lessons like math, music, and languages including but perhaps not limited to English, Arabic, Catalan, Chinese, etc. Due to this, he is also extremely book-smart and speaks or at least understands multiple languages.

He loves to read and watch adventure movies. His favorite film is "Los tres mosqueteros", and I'm sure he loves Indiana Jones and Tintin too!

Meta fact: if one is to compare him to any fictional character, he is most similarーif not identical by natureーto Geronimo Stilton.

He's known Héctor for a very long time in LOTD, and it was one of his best-kept secrets. When the Sunrise Spectacular Confrontation happened in 2017, he was all the way in Jalisco and only found out about it after receiving multiple messages in his answering machine from Ronaldo (another one of B's OCs), a mutual friend of his and Héctor. The three of them met at a cantina belonging to another friend of theirs named Toño.

He connects with Héctor due to their shared disdain towards how the mainstream music industry had become filled with music that is too polished. Due to this, Rafael takes his job very seriously and insists on discovering the "diamonds in the rough" and other musicians who love music just as much as they do.

He is an extremely talented and charismatic singer/performer with a stage presence only rivaled by de la Cruz (and later Héctor Rivera), and a baritone voice that is so strong that nobody could expect such a voice coming from a body like his . According to this post, he could have ended like de la Cruz easily since he also recorded some albums and even has a cult following in both realms, but really he only ever performs for other people's enjoyment. Plus, that is just his onstage persona and he prefers the business and backstage side of music.

He is actually extremely shy and introverted, and also has social anxiety disorder. His shyness goes up by the tenfold if he comes across women he has never met. Instead of going out to parties for high society or whatnot, he would much rather stay at home. "Here" by Alessia Cara and "party" by Dodie Clark represent his feelings towards such events.

It gets worse if he comes across a woman he loves. Those who had been involved romantically with him would describe him as very gentleman-like and softspoken, but the one complain they all have is that it would take him MONTHS to PUT HIS HANDS ON THEIR SHOULDERS. Well. A certain rosy lady has a different story, however :3c

When it comes to romance, he wants a a woman who is alright with moments of silence, is trusting & trustworthy (he travels quite a bit due to his job), and isn't afraid to make the first move sometimes. He is a gentle lover who tends to shower his lover with gifts and sweet nothingsーor in Ronaldo's more crass comment: he is a sugar daddy with a thigh fetish.

He has always had a weak heart, and even in death he can still feel the side effects thus he cannot do too much physical activities outside of jogging or stretching. He passed away some time in his late 50s due to heart failure. His cousin's daughter whom he treated like a niece was the one who found his body.

Don't let his shyness, small stature, and "wimp" nature fool you, though. He eats spicy foods like they're candy and he is well-respected in the production company he works at. He has a silver tongue and has what the kids nowadays call "big dick energy" in corporate settings.

He also has a dry sense of humor which is somewhat contrasted with an extremely contagiously bright laughter, though he usually only chuckles most of the time.

You don't want to see him angry. Héctor, Ronaldo, and Toño can atest to this. His silver tongue can be extremely sharp.

As a musician, he can play multiple instruments but his favorite is the piano.

Rosita and Victoria first saw him performing at the plaza, as told in Chapter 9 of "Echar Agua Al Mar", but they never interacted. Until a faithful day when Rosita took a trip to the plaza with Coco. He was singing "Hermoso cariño" and winked at Rosita in his performer persona when their eyes met. All flustered after listening to and gazing at Rafael and seeing him wink at her (these darn músicos!), Rosita quickly left the plaza with Coco following behind. After the performance, he couldn't help but think of that lady he just saw. She was... beautiful. The way she looked at her made his heart flutter, to the point that he winked at her! There's no way that he would meet her again.... (or was there?)

Héctor was the one who introduced Rafael to Rosita and the rest of the Rivera family. After a few shots of tequila, Rafael finally confessed to Héctor on what was bothering him that evening. Seeing this as a golden opportunity after hearing a similar story from Rosita, he dragged Rafael to see his family, much to Rafael's embarrassment (and perhaps, lowkey, to his delight).

There are so much more to him than this, but I can't post them all now because the content can and does get ✨spicy✨ at times and because there really is a lot, but he is a loveable boy and I hope you'll get to love him too! He also appears as a character for an original project B and I are working on under the working title "Project Marigold". Rosita isn't in the story for obvious reasons, but we created an OC inspired by her so that way he can always be with his beloved rosy lady regardless.

[littlemisskittentoes]

20 Fic Writer Questions

Massive thank you to @read-and-write-, @affectionatelyrs , and @daisymae-12 for tagging me! I am absolutely loving being a bit more involved with this community and interacting with all you lovely humans. It has made my heart incredibly happy 💖

How many works do you have on AO3?

I am but a baby, with a humble four works, and one drabble collection. Though I am proud to mention I do have several WIPs that I'm quite excited about, that includes some multi-chap pieces!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

Again, only at humble beginnings, clocking in at 9094

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Right now, exclusively RWRB!

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

boxing with no gloves

i'll love you when the ocean's dry

i'd be smart to walk away (but you're quicksand)

we should just kiss (like real people do)

5. Do you reply to comments? Why or why not?

Yes, always! Even throughout my grad program, workshopping always inspired me and pushed me to be a better writer. I love commenting on works that connect with me, and I think it's so lovely to interact with people that cared enough about my words to do the same on my stories!

6. What is the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Everything out from me right now ends with fluff! But I do have an assassination attempt fic in progress. It'll be a 5+1 that leans heavily into hurt, without much comfort. I'm not having it end with an 'unhappy ending'. But also not quite a light, 'feel-good ending'.

7. What is the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

I have one upcoming Halloween, Huh? fic that will have the most tooth-rotting fluff, featuring drunk!Henry, at the end that I think will keep this spot warm for a while. But, available right now, I'd probably say "i'll love you when the ocean's dry".

8. Do you get hate on fics?

So far, no. Thank gosh. I am an utter cry baby, and would sob profusely.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

My first smut piece is coming out for Halloween, Huh? ! I've also got a few oneshots on the "WIPs to Start' list. I think the vast majority of smut I'll write will interact with kink or D/s dynamics. As someone involved in the community, I love imagining FirstPrince experiencing the intensity and range of emotions that often accompanies play in this sphere.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I don't, unfortunately. If I did, it would probably be some sort of FirstPrince x One Direction/Harry Styles or Taylor Swift situation.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nope!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope! It would be a wild honor though.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I haven't! I love the idea of collaborative writing though!

14. What's your all time favorite ship?

I think because FirstPrince is the only ship I've interacted with to this level, I have to say them!

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

"You realize I'm a trapped animal down here? You're keeping me in a cage. You cannot possibly be so fucking obtuse as to not see I'm miserable," Alex's voice was obstinate, dripping venom into each syllable. Henry's eyes shuttered closed. He spoke with nothing but neutrality, but something in his features gave way to a quiet melancholy. "You know I'd free you if I could. This is bigger than us both, Alex. Hate me all you'd like. I can live with that if it means you're still breathing." -- or, an au in which Henry is Hades, Alex is Persephone, and the history books never quite got the story right.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I'd like to think my imagery tends to come across quite vividly! I also really strive to create small, tiny moments filled with softness.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Humor. I have always struggled intensely in capturing lines that come across as genuinely funny.

I also occassionally find myself really having to work at getting pacing into something that feels natural and fluid.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in a another language in fic?

I've had short instances of Alex speaking Spanish in a fic or two so far. I try to do so cautiously. I have a big fear of misrepresenting a language out of ignorance. Luckily, I'm able to interact with some lovely Spanish speakers in the Brownstone Server that are kind enough to take a look at some lines now and then!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Unpublished, One Direction. Published, RWRB!

20. Favorite fic you've written?

"i'd be smart to walk away (but you're quicksand)"! it's my longest fic, and also has some lines i'm really proud of!

---

I'd love to see your answers @treluna4 , @mudbloodpotter05 , @hypnostheory ,@hgejfmw-hgejhsf 💖

[iviarellereads]

Full TLT series to date thoughts on rereading Nona the Ninth, chapters 6-John 15:23

A probably semi-regular weekly bonus to my reread blog, since sometimes you realize things on reread that just make you need to yell in a full spoiler space.

"We lost something very important." Gideon's body, however that happened. (I neeeeeed the answersssss.) (Sorry screen reader users but the dramatic effect is required somehow here.)

“If I remember who I am, can’t I help to find them?” Oh, shatter my heart to dust, Tamsyn Muir. So many little, innocent lines stand out all the more on reread throughout this series.

Note to self, see if the red eyes or the hunger in Nona's night-one dream compare to anything later in the book. I could keyword search but I think it's more fun to let this second journey be its own adventure. Or if someone knows offhand or gets curious enough to look it up, you can reply to this post about it. I'm just waiting and relying on my memory of my first speed-read instead of peeking ahead.

John 15:23 seems as good a time as any to say I am a believer that the John River-dreams happen because of Harrow's soul being linked to Alecto's, and Nona needs to be asleep for Harrow to be able to travel it across to hear the story for us. I have seen a lot of theories and I respect them all. I love this damn fandom so much. But this is where I land right now, until something convinces me otherwise.

There is so much in 15:25 to talk about, though I hardly feel qualified to analyze it all through full-spoilers.

"So, my two kids, the guinea pigs, they were U— and T— on their certificates, you know, their old names. I thought about using those but it didn’t seem appropriate. They weren’t around to say yes or no. I was starting to really care about that. What they would’ve thought, what they would’ve wanted." I am just screaming, crying, rolling on the floor with emotion. I don't know what to believe. I think he DOES care, just… not the way he SHOULD care, maybe? It's so complicated. I just love John. I'll be so upset if he's a one-note villain in the finale the way so many people expect.

But also, the implication on the whole rest of the series so far, and on this whole book. That moment when Pyrrha says G- not G1deon. My obsession grows a tiny bit every day and will continue to do so until I get an answer as to what's going on here and why he did it.

[oddgreyhound]

1. according to Spotify Wrapped I listened to one song 1041 times, and that was Just A Man by Jorge Rivera-Herrans.

2. I have a hard time choosing lol. The one I've listened to the most intently though, was probably Stick Season (We'll All Be Here Forever) by Noah Khan.

3. I can't keep track of when I've found people, so I'll just put in my newest obsession; Phillip Labes, especially Reasons To Never Date Again and Jeff Found A Genie.

4. I can't keep track of movies either lol. I'm honestly not even sure what movies I've watched.. But Across the Spider-Verse is from 2023, right? that one then, I think.

5. tv show.. hmmm.. I mostly rewatch old shows or get to them late.. but I did watch Good Omens and have been obsessed since. best ineffable husbands ever.

6. i am not sure how to answer this lol. don't think I understand the question.

7. nope, can't do it. can't choose a favorite. I can't even choose 1 favorite from a series, let alone the entity world. just no.

8. hmmm.. I honestly haven't played a lot of video games this year.. But probably Dave the Diver.. I enjoyed that immensely, at least until I f'ed up. now we're on a break lol

9. Idk.. they're all flowing together. Maybe August because I got to go to Copenhagen pride and to a bar with some friends. And it was hot out so I felt better about the world.

10. Man, there's been a lot. Books, tv shows, movies, roleplays, art, tiny inconveniences.. idk, crying comes easy to me.

11. Go to pride!!

12. Started talking to @justthislazy mostly about fandom stuff, but also about random stuff, and she is just fantastic!!

13. It was okay. Brought cake with me to work, then went to my parents place after work and just had a chill day.

14. So many.. I can't choose just one. One series has to be All For The Game by Nora Sakavic. Read that in January and am still obsessed. Another has to be pretty much K J Charles entire catalogue though especially the Will Darling Adventures and The Doomsday Books. Also The Last Binding by Freya Marske. Magic and love. The Simon Snow books by Rainbow Rowell. The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater. Love Lessons by Heidi Cullinan. Idk if you guys can see the running theme, but I can lol. I've read more than 150 books this year though, so.. I can't just choose and you can't make me lol.

15. Idk, I think I had them all already lol.

16. idk what kind of image you want, so you get an art. This is from January and was a Secret Santa piece.

17. Same as above, this time my latest piece, finished yesterday on the 11th of December. Very experimental.

18. We eat out on a fancy restaurant every year on my dad's birthday.. And even so, the best meal I've had this year was with @alienaiver eating pork tenderloin and potatoes haha

19. I'm excited to get some peace into my life, now that I'll have more time for myself. Hopefully I'll be able to get a new apartment, maybe a car and possibly a dog.. That would be really neat. I also want to keep improving my art, especially the feel of it and the stories I can tell.

20. Hmmm.. I've learned something about how I need to take care of myself, especially in work situations. I need clear instructions or the task will simply overwhelm me and I'll end up in decision paralysis. I've also learned that when I'm on my ADHD meds, I can actually have a fun time going out to parties or concerts, so I wanna do that more in the new year too.

21. My old bed broke (too much weight on it is the suspicion) so I got a new one! the new one is way taller than I'm used to, and it's amazing haha

22. Oh man.. I haven't really been far from home much this year, only in books and such.. I think it might've been Copenhagen Pride. It's not far from home, and it's not a place that's always around, but I felt welcome there, even at night, and nobody looked at me weird, so it just felt.. right. I wish we could have Pride every day haha

23. Keep working for the goal, we got there. People might not see that you're struggling to stay afloat, but I know you are, and you're doing well!!

24. No, but that's mostly cuz i didn't make any. They're just an endless source of disappointment in myself, and I don't need more of those lol.

25. I did!! Several actually. I finished my Fursona Odd after having worked on it for like 18 months lol.. But that's just a silly character I can get art for. The more interesting characters are my DotW ones.

First off I made this lil kiddo, who turned out to be somewhat hard to write, so I'll be retiring it again, until the day I feel like I can connect again. It is a new iteration of an old character I have held dear to my heart for years, but it turned out too jaded for me to write. It's hard to get a connection to others when your character is slightly mono-syllabic and hates other people..

So Kelly is going on a break: 💔

And then there's my blue tired wet man Harakh. He's an adopted character I made, so the overarching parts of his story and personality had been chosen already, but I still got to give him my own twists, and he has a full story coming for him, that I'm really excited to share, though I don't know how much you guys here on Tumblr will get to see haha

He's the father of one of the other characters, and was born half blind and sickly, so he has learned the trade of storyteller in order to stay fed and have company and he hopes to be able to do so, even with the tragedy that happened to him.

Idk if anyone will actually read this wall of text, but I enjoyed writing it lol

End of the year Asks

Song of the year?

Album of the year?

Favorite musical artist / group you started listening to this year?

Movie of the year?

TV show of the year?

Episode of tv or webisode that defined the year for you?

Favorite actor of the year?

Game of the year?

Best month for you this year?

Something that made you cry this year?

Something you want to do again next year?

Talk about a new friend you made this year

How was your birthday this year?

Favorite book you read this year?

What’s a bad habit you picked up this year?

Post a picture from the beginning of the year

Post a picture from the end of the year

A memorable meal this year?

What’re you excited about for next year?

What’s something you learned this year?

What’s something new about your place of residence (room, home, or general location) now vs the start of the year?

Favorite place you visited this year?

If you could send a message to yourself back on the first day of the year, what would it be?

Did you keep any New Year’s Resolutions?

Did you create any characters (in games, art, or writing) this year? Describe one

[dia-the-writer]

about me my characters

Hello peoples! My name is Dia. I love writing and hope to get published one day (and I will totally tell you when and if that happens (in the very distant future because I am currently just a high school freshman)). anyway. I started this blog because I was seeing a whole lot of stuff on my dash that I really wanted to reblog but didn’t fit my main’s (@dia-the-fangirl) vibe, since that one’s just for fangirling shenanigans. I also had a whole lot of stuff in my head for my WIPs that I wanted to share with y’all, but my two favorites aren’t fandom. (I currently have the first three chapters of one posted on Quotev here.) So. HERE WE ARE!

now, since I have SEVERAL oc’s and that is what I mainly will be posting about, list under the cut.

Ex-Princess

Princess Sylvestra Coronis. 15. Human. Female, she/her. As outdoorsy as one can be when one lived in a castle for the first fifteen years of one’s life. Ridiculously protective of Auretta. Slight rivalry with Edana.

Auretta Windsong. 14. Sylph/air spirit. Female, she/her. 99% too pure for this world. Other 1% is “did you just hurt my friend? Prepare to die.” Often seen as child who needs protecting at all costs. Super strong emotionally.

Chantara Rapide. 16. Nixie/water spirit. Female, she/her. Bossy, confident, natural leader. lost her left leg at mid-thigh in an accident when she was younger, uses a prosthetic. runs the gang like the navy.

Edana Incendia. 15. Solun/fire spirit. female, she/her. takes "sarcastic" to a whole new level. rash and impulsive. huge temper. ridiculously protective of Auretta. huge softie inside but pretends otherwise.

Prince Avery placeholderlastname. 17. Elf. Male, he/him. Overinflated sense of justice. has a list of plans for when he's king a mile long. has a crush on Sylv and has since he was 14 but refuses to admit it to anyone.

School of Legends

Kristi Ruth Avila. 14. Female, she/her. aspiring writer. huge fangirl. books are her life. Tech crew theater kid. slightly autistic. tiny. don't make her mad or you'll end up with a pencil jammed up your nose.

Destiny Collins. 14. Female, she/her. theater kid who LOVES the spotlight. drama queen. enthusiastic about everything. has a hard time with the concept of personal space. morning person. tries to give KR makeovers but girl is Not Having It.

Everett Brady. 14. Male, he/him. introspective artist stereotype. gentle giant. doesn't read a whole lot or care about musical theater but knows almost everything about all of Des and Kristi Ruth's favorite books and shows from how much they jabber about them.

Xavier placeholderlastname. 14. Male, he/him. borderline tree hugger. nature photographer. Drama queen. Star Wars geek. Tries to get Everett to socialize and fails miserably. “You mean some people don’t like being around other people?”

[themoonwheniamlost]

Pink Elephants

OMG Happy (belated) Valentine's day!!! This is my gift for Nat @strangehighs in the BoN Cozy Gifts exchange. I was hella intimidated by trying to make something nice for one of the best artists in our fandom, but I saw the request for idiots in love and I thought: I can work with that!

Nat! Thank you for sharing your big brain with this tiny fandom. I’m so grateful we have you. I hope you like this!

I think I leaned a bit away from your exact request, but I hope this silly little thing still holds to the spirit of what you were looking for. (If you don’t like it, I’ll write you something new!)

Many thanks and all the flowers to @mprosperossprite!!! for organizing this! Appreciate you! And I hope you enjoy all the cake going around!

Also to my Beta and Bestie @jesuisnilunnilautre !!! Ilysm thanks for putting up with me. I would be lost in a starless universe without you! Be my blorbo?

I’m putting the Ao3 card here. The fic can be read on Ao3, or in this post under the cut! (I'm at work rn so please feel free to point out any errors! 🧡)

Rating: M 

Archive Warnings: N/A

Title: Pink Elephants

Fandoms: The Old Guard, (movie)

Relationships: BoN, 

Characters: Nile, Booker, Copley, Guard Gang

Tags: established relationship, Idiots in love, a bit of a crack fic?, mission? fic, non-linear timeline, theft, circus shenanigans, New York setting, (how do I tag that she knows things about the situation and he doesn’t…) (how to tag about circus animals/animal captivity), ethical debate, got a tiny bit angsty, sorry not sorry, references to Dumbo, first time stealing (not really) from a circus?, short fic, circus is a Mashup of Universe Soul and Ringling Brothers, please watch Sidetalk NYC,

Collections: BoN Cozy Nights Gift Exchange

Summary: 

This is the first time either of them has stolen an animal. Let alone 15 animals. Or,

Nile does a small study on how this man leaves stupid in his wake. It’s honestly something she loves about him.

“Nile! What are you doing here?!”

“What am I doing here? Why are you dressed like a clown, Book? We had a plan!”

“I can explain. But that will take too long, so I’ll sum it up. For now I just need you to get ready to drive this trailer so we can save those animals. ”

“Give me the clown nose! We had a plan. A staged, step by step plan. And now you want to jailbreak these animals out of the circus tonight?”

“... Yes.”

“... Move over. There's a reason we never let you drive.” 

********~~~~~~~~~~~~~********

Nile knows herself, okay. She’s a military brat with a little brother. She’s a smart Black girl from Chicago. She happens to be one of a very small group of immortals trying to do good in the world. She’s even in love with one of them. 

These things to say, Nile knows stupid when she sees it. Not that Nile is good at saying no to stupid. Again, Nile has a little brother. Nile's journey with the Guard so far has involved a considerable amount of stupid and reckless decisions. And still, for all her practice in stupid, this man constantly pushed the boundaries of how far stupid can go. 

Case in point. Who the fuck thinks it would be easy to steal an elephant?!? 

… Apparently her husband.

********~~~~~~~~********

If you were in Manhattan on February 16th at Nathan’s Famous on the corner of 5th and 60th?  You would've gotten dinner and a show. The crowd is taking sides and chiming in. It’s not a domestic dispute, oh no! More of a theoretical experiment. It sounds like this.

���An elephant can weigh anywhere from eight to thirteen thousand pounds. That’s 13 tons!”

“But let's say that there is already equipment to move them. Then all you would need to do is load them onto those vehicles and drive away!”

“Do you think no one is going to notice if an elephant is missing?” 

The crowd mutters, and someone calls, “I’d sure fuckin’ notice! It’s not like elephants can fly or whatever.” 

The crowd laughs.

The vendor’s son leans out of the window in order to shout this directly into the face of the man in question. “Sure, it’d be a piece of cake with a getaway car! Okay. Whatcha doin’ ‘bout making ‘em trust ya? Dem elephants smart, you know?” 

“... Hmmm.”

The woman has her hair braided in front and hand-picked out in back. She looks at the sky likes she’s expecting God to say “Bing Bong!” God does not say this. 

Nathan the Hotdog Vendor does pull his son up by the collar and say, “Alright move it along. You ain’t gotta go home, but ya can’t stay here!” 

Two weeks later, when the biggest Circus act on the East Coast announces that all of their animals have been phased out of the performances and given to sanctuaries, no one thinks of the couple at Nathan’s. 

********~~~~~~~~********

Nile hadn’t been to see the Big Top since she was 10. Booker remembers her saying so. It’s why he thinks that his gift this Valentine’s will be worth it. What better way to celebrate a legacy of death that has sparked much love, hate, and capitalism? 

He asks her over dinner. Watches her light up, holds still while she covers his face in smiling kisses and a soft, “Thank you. I’m so happy you remembered, good job,” and small squees of happiness. 

If she cries he pretends not to see it. Sébastien knows that she aches for the things she’s lost. Knows how badly she wants to touch her childhood. And while he can’t give her that, giving her a Big Top is easy.  

He just never expected that giving her a gift would make him feel caged. 

********~~~~~~~~********

Nile loves doing things that can let her be normal for a second. Being Andy’s heir apparent can get so heavy. It makes her so excited when she can just be a person for a few hours. This Valentines day at the circus she takes full advantage of the opportunity. 

A nice summer dress, big earring and beads in her hair. She makes Sebastien take photos with her in the tiny booth, eats a whole funnel cake by herself, and buys a huge light stick all before its time to find their seats. On their way down to the center ring Nile buys a glow in the dark tiara, a snowcone, and a bag of kettle corn. 

Nile bounces in her seat, glad that there is no one very tall in front of them. They ooh and aah along with the rest of the crowd at all the different acts. 

Thinks that Nicky should try the trapeze. Wants to bet Joe that she’d be better than him at fire breathing. Knows that she’d lose at sword swallowing, how do they even do that without a accelerated healing?!

Nile sing along when The Ring Master starts a round of Superstition by Stevie Wonder. 

Looks back at Sebastien when she feels hater on her hand. 

He kisses her. And the look in his eyes means something stupid is coming. It’s fine, the stupid can wait until after they Leave the Big Top with a huge tiger plush and clown hat. 

After all, Nile is pretty susceptible to stupid when it might be fun.

*********~~~~~~~~********

Sebastien had his arms around her but he was looking steadily at their ceiling fan.

“So,” he started

“It made you feel something, didn't it? Watching the lion tamer. Watching all of the animals really. ”

“I just thought that I had almost done the same things to us. And they deserve so much better! So I want to steal them from the circus and take them to a better place where they never have to perform again if they dont want to.”

Nile looks at him, looks through him and says “We just gotta plan it right. No problem.”

********~~~~~~~~********

Booker was very aware that some circuses have animals. He’s seen dozens of them over the last two centuries. Dancing bears, the tigers through flaming hoops you name it. 

What he wasn’t used to was hearing about their natural behaviors in the wild. He wasn’t one for documentaries so he soaks up the knowledge like a sponge. Hears about how elpphants vist the graves of their dead, about the care of the matriarch. He learns about their memory about how elephants will sacrifice themselves tp help others in the heard, or other species of animal in times of drought or flood. 

Wonders how he could have had less love in him than these creatures. 

By the time hears about the tiger cubs, he knows Nile is watching him cry into their popcorn. He kisses her just because he can because the man he is now deserves her, and he’s crying for the man who didn’t.

All he know is that he’s grateful. He loves her, He loves these animals, and gotta get them the fuck out of this circus.

********~~~~M~~~~********

 

They made love like this often. Face to face in some configuration. Hands tight on skin slow and forceful. She likes the heft of him. The broadness of his chest. But today he shudders, there is something caged in him, and as usual she wont let him hide. 

He hold her open to bury himself in her heat, like if he tries hard enough he can burn away all the parts of him that arent her. 

She flips him, refuses to move until he looks at her. He’s a bit lost still but grounds himself in the roll of her hips and the sound of her voice. They stay locked in that dance for hours. After the musics ended, he hold he close rubs his hands up and down her spine. She watches the sunset and waits for him to tell her.

********~~~~~~~~********

When they get to the preserve its pretty smooth sailing, considering that Book doesn’t realise whats going on. Nile had called ahead to let the sanctuary know where they would leave the animals. 

They park. They to extra care to make sure that they leave the keys in an accessible place. 

Booker puts his face next to Rosie’s.  She sneaks her trunk out of an open section to touch his face. He hold onto her trunk and cries, about how he fail his past self living in a cage of hurt, how he tried to trap his family in bars because he though it would be better. Rosie lets him hold her trunk. The sun is crawling up above the treeline. 

Nile lets him cry. He needs it, In the meantime she says goodbye to everyone, The dancing tiger, the wild horses, and all the elephants, adding an last tender thank you to Rosie. Then she goes to him. Puts hel hand on his shoulder, kisses the side of his face that does not have elephant snot on it. Tells him “Lights up, we gotta go.”

“Whats that saying, the show-” He’s gripping her hand in his as they walk away

“Must go on. Yeah, so lets get out of here so that they can get started.”

They walk back out to main road. Which is when Nile realizes. That they have no car to drive back. She cusses down a storm as they get ready to hitchhike their way back to any major city. Sebatien laughs at her the entire time. 

He says thank you later, in the warm dark between them. She says you're welcome by putting her cold feet on his back. 

********~~~~~~~~********

Copley had received some strange calls in his life. Especially over these last few decades.  But to hear Nile call him on February 15th to buy all the animals from a prominent circus troupe. He’s stunned. The man is too stunned to speak, which is fine because Nile is still talking.

“-I know it won’t solve everything. And there are way more animals in need out there. But i know that Booker needs this. Needed to feel like he’s freeing something instead of breaking it. So yeah. If you could buy the animals from them please. Oh! and then the animal sanctuary up north a bit-”

And so this is how Copley spends the day after Valentine's day arranging for the sale of animals, and for supplies and costs for their next five years of care are sent to a nearby animal sanctuary. 

Perhaps selling the Rodin was good for something. 

[jessicas-pi]

#tell us what happened?

ok ok so.

Jump a few years into the past. Teenage Me has just discovered AO3. Teenage Me does not have an AO3 account and does not know about the subscribe features, so Teenage Me decides the only logical thing to do to remember which fic authors I like is to memorize their names. All of them. I had like 10-15 I would look up about twice a week to see if any of their fics had updated. (Would it have been easier just to bookmark the pages? yes. obviously. i was dumb, okay?)

Now, I was in two big fandoms at the time. Star Wars, and Marvel. I had several favorite authors from both fandoms, but there was one star wars fic-writer and one MCU fic-writer whose fics I just kept coming back to, over and over again.

Okay, skip forward to about a year ago. I am now on AO3 and on Tumblr. I am also mutuals with the Star Wars fic-writer. I nearly fainted when they followed me but that's neither here nor there.

Now, that mutual started reading and liveblogging a piece of little-known classic literature due to the influence of one of their mutuals. I was bored at the time and it sounded fun so I started reading it too!

Fast forward again a few months. I get a nice comment on a fic from someone, only to realize a few days later that Hey, This Is My Mutual's Book Mutual! So naturally I go to their blog and spam like all the posts about the book.

(Now, to be clear, as far as I can tell, there are about six people in the fandom for this book. Let's establish that. It's a tiny fandom. There are 4 works on AO3 and they are all by the Book Mutual.)

And as I'm scrolling their blog, I keep seeing a name pop up, someone that the Book Mutual discovered liked the same book and reblogs back and forth about it sometimes. And I'm like, where have I heard that name...

Cut to me, at work earlier today, almost jumping out of my seat because I realized it was my old favorite MCU fic writer.

Yeah so it turns out that I am in the same tiny fandom of less than a dozen people with both of my old favorite fic-writers.

What a day, huh?

i'm really bad at words so i'm not gonna even attempt to explain it but believe me when i say i've just experienced THEE most surreal and insane coincidence of my LIFE

[chidoroki]

TPN - “Dreams Come True”

What better way to cheer up the TPN fandom after the second season’s final episode than with the special exhibition chapter finally being fully translated. I caught glimpses of a few pages here and there over the past couple months but seeing all the children live happily together in the human world in their own little village that they made close to Emma and Alex warms my heart. Of course I would’ve loved if we got to see more of the GP Resistance (because the anime denied us of them) but following the GF kids around the world as they experience their dreams is fair enough. We started the series alongside them so might as well finish strong with them too. I really loved seeing everyone grow up but no matter how old they get or how much time passes, I’ll probably never get used to seeing Emma without her iconic “63194.” It’s a bittersweet feeling for me, but her smiles bring me so much joy and I’m beyond happy that she accepted everyone into her life as they accepted her without her memories.

I haven’t a clue on how much time passed since everyone found Emma in ch181 to now, but seeing her call out everyone’s names is a little detail that I love so much considering she had no idea who anyone was at first. Trying to remember 60+ names doesn’t seem like an easy task to me. No doubt I was just as shocked as our girl upon learning these mere children bought a goddamn plane! We learn in a couple pages that it’s because of Norman’s company that they can afford it, but still, he’s like 15 or 16 now? He’s still a child! And I’m impressed! Not only at him, but that Oliver and Violet became pilots as well! It’s especially cute when you remember that Lucas gave Oliver a little toy plane during their time at Goldy Pond.

Speaking of GP, is it just me or does Emma’s current outfit resemble her GP one just a little bit? Sure we have no idea what color scheme this one has but come on, the short jacket, the dark shirt and jeans.. just imagine it! Jemima, Yvette, Alicia and Mark remade Gillian’s original GP outfit sometime before the Grace Field Raid arc (ch137 extra page) so I don’t doubt they could’ve done the same for Emma. Of course that’s just me being completely hopeful and missing the Goldy Pond arc to death but yeah! I’m also so happy to see Chris up and moving again! Seeing him wake up briefly in ch181 was nice but this is so much better. I imagine he and Emma have a lot to catch up on in terms of stories, with him being unconscious since ch105 and Emma not remembering anything.

But here we go, the original 15 escapees plus Norman, Phil, Sherry, I believe I saw Carol somewhere and a couple other random kiddos ready to see the entire world. They get to accomplish so much.. and in a single day too I believe? At least that’s what Phil and Alicia say a bit later about everyone’s wishes, but aahh what a lucky bunch. Hell, I’ll say we’re lucky readers too to be able to see such a great story. Can’t thank Shirai and Demizu enough y’all. I wish we got to see more of Alex though. He’s such a kind soul but I’m sure he’ll be just fine staying behind with everyone else.

This entire page where we learn about Norman as a CEO is gold. I still can’t believe this child successfully built up an entire multipurpose company not only to help their search for Emma but also because he didn’t want to live off the Ratri clan. I wish I knew about this last week when writing out Norman’s birthday post because hell yeah this deserves some praise! AND he managed to graduate school as well during all that! Well, by skipping grades which totally makes sense. I mean, if he managed to pass all the Grace Field and Lambda tests effortlessly I’m sure normal human world school was a piece of cake for him. Holy shit dude, keep on impressing me why don’t ya. Not only him but Nigel and Sonya too! I’m not surprised that Vincent helped out but I’m glad those two got a tiny moment to shine as well! Ray is another obvious choice when it comes to helping Norman, as they’re best friends and he’s always been good with machines.. but boy, I can’t take you seriously when you’re just sitting there unamused and eating chips! Hahah I love him so much! And the fact he replies to Norman’s idea with just a simple “kay” is an eternal mood.

Okay boys aside, can we talk about our fabulous girls now? Because oh my god, they’re so darn beautiful! They’re more fashionable than I’ll ever be and it’s so cute how they drag Emma along to take advantage of the 3-for-1 deal. But our girl pulls off that sporty look so well! (r.i.p. goldy pond outfit ver2.0). I’m not at all surprised that Nat wanted to go see the opera. That's perfect for him and I’d like to think the anime did something similar with that one shot we see of him in the human world. We don’t see him in a theater like this but to me it looks like he’s on the streets of Broadway? At least that’s the vibe I get from it. I’m sure there was something music related on one of those signs.

I can’t get over how adorable all the children look and how happy they are fulfilling their wishes, even if some of them aren’t as extravagant as others. Like eating a fluffy pancake and a ton of ice cream? We can do that whenever we want. But for these kids, it means everything and they absolutely deserve to experience such simple joys like that after all the harsh nonsense they’ve been through. I also love how Ray continues to be such a great older brother by still looking out for them too. The fact he remains completely unfazed by the haunted house is perfect. This boy has been haunted by his own nightmares and demons his entire life, there’s no way a couple of lousy jump scares are gonna spook him. Though I do find it funny that Alicia and Rossi still manage to get scared while Yvette is having the time of her life. I can’t help but laugh at Thoma’s “Shirai face” as well.

I find it interesting that out of all the different kinds of exhibits they could’ve shown us while Rossi visits a museum, they give us dinosaurs.. like that seems so silly to me. Y’all have seen several demons in your young lives already and yet dinosaurs manage to amaze you too? God these kids are precious. And then our boy Phil finally gets to see and ride a train! Just look how happy he is! The poor kid can’t even sit still he’s so darn excited and I can’t help but smile with him! Thankfully the anime showed us this too.

We eventually get to Ray’s wish and guys.. oh my fucking god. Tell me that this is not the absolute best and prettiest smile we get to see from him!! It honestly leaves me speechless okay? Ray never imagined he would ever get to see the outside world, let alone live past the age of 12, and yet here he is, seeing such a beautiful sight such as this, right in front of him instead of from inside a book. You can’t believe how happy and proud of him I am right now. Did you see how ecstatic I was when the anime kept Isabella alive? Multiply that feeling by ten and there ya go. That’s my level of happiness upon seeing my favorite boy smile like THAT! AAHHH!! That panel is gonna live rent free in my head until the end of time. I can’t get over how damn perfect it is. His smile is so pure and how he looks like he’s in complete awe is beautiful. He’s about to burst into tears and I swear I might do the same because I’m making myself emotional over this fantastic boy. Someone hold me.

No seriously, hold me because we’re about to get into some angst as we move onto to Emma’s wish. We all know that ever since 2039 her one dream was to ride a giraffe once they got outside, so here we are, about ten years later and the animals in question are within reach. Our girl should be totally excited, right? Ha, not quite.

That wish was something the old Emma wanted, but since demon god had to be such a bastard, this Emma doesn’t know what to think, let alone what to even feel. She hasn’t experienced the same hardships as her family. She hasn’t gone through hell and back while holding onto that one wish that would make all the suffering worth it. The amount of joy everyone else felt upon living out their dreams, she wonders if she would be able to feel it too.

They brought her here to make her happy, but is this truly want she wants as well? This is old Emma’s wish after all. What about her and what she wants? Could this wish make her just as happy as her old self? She knows her family is only trying to help, but seeing her doubt herself does a number on my heart. Even without her memories, she’s still the same Emma deep down, as she doesn’t want to disappoint her family. She spends so much time worrying about living up to her family’s expectations, to try and be that Emma they all love so dearly.

Little does she know that she acts the exact same as usual, almost as if nothing has changed when she finally expresses how much she wants to ride a giraffe. And that’s great considering when they first arrived at the giraffes, no on had even mentioned riding them. She came across that feeling all on her own and everyone else can’t help but laugh and feel relieved. Her mind may have forgotten but her heart remembers everything. There is no “old Emma” and “new Emma” to her family, just “Emma” and words can’t express how wholesome that is because they love her regardless. All that matters to them is Emma’s happiness because if anyone deserves to feel and experience that, it’s her.

I just made myself tear up, damn it. I started this series with season one okay? I heard about this precious girl’s dream within the first minute of the first episode and here I am, a little bit over two years later, finally reading about it coming true and seeing that bright as hell smile on her face. Do you know how amazing it is to come full circle like that? My heart feels so full right now. I’m beyond proud of her and love her to death. Say what you want but I believe this to be the true manga ending in my eyes.

(damn this series for always getting me emotional)

[questionablygourmet]

From your book ask: 2, 15, and 17 please 😊📖

2. top 5 books of all time?

Oh, that one's hard. Let's go with...

One of the Wayward Children novels, by Seanan McGuire. I'm not sure which one, but I've read Down Among the Sticks and Bones and Come Tumbling Down the most.

Kushiel's Dart, by Jacqueline Carey

Daughter of the Empire, by Janny Wurts and Raymond Feist

The Slow Regard of Silent Things, by Patrick Rothfuss

and for a nonfiction.... I'm choosing between a few here, but probably The Righteous Mind, by Jonathan Haidt. I was annoyed at my mother for how she recommended it (she seemed convinced it would utterly blow my mind and change my worldview, which it really did not), but it was still a very, very good book with a lot of useful information and concepts that I still find myself referencing.

15. recommend and review a book.

I spent a lot of time on this one on the personal blog, so I'll copy from there, with an additional note that it gave me nontrivial Hannibal vibes -

I just finished The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, by Natasha Pulley, and I would be delighted to recommend it. It is the story of a British government clerk whose life is saved by a mysterious pocketwatch that was left in his flat one day, and the Japanese watchmaker who made it.

It is a little slow to get into (which is why I didn’t read it when I received it as a gift in 2016; I was finishing grad school then and did not have much mental energy to spare); while clearly there is Something Weird going on with Mr. Mori, the watchmaker, it’s hard to believe he’s the person who actually made the bomb that his watch saved Thaniel from, despite another expert’s assertion that the remains of the bomb trigger mechanism bear the hallmarks of his work.

If you don’t know ahead of time - though I’m about to tell you! which will hopefully convince more people to read it (there is a tiny fandom with some good fic and it could use some more!) - the fact that it’s actually a romance really sneaks up on you. I went into it without knowing anything except that my dad had given it to me after he read and loved The Night Circus (Erin Morgenstern) on my recommendation, and said that this book had made him feel a similar sort of wonder.

This made me sure it couldn’t possibly be queer despite the neon signposts in that direction for quite a while. xP (My dad, while generally on the progressive side for a rich, cishet white male boomer… does not voluntarily read a lot of queer fiction.) So I got a very pleasant surprise! But I don’t think one loses anything from knowing it’s a queer romance going into it; it’s absolutely delightful to watch it unfold in its meandering, quietly lyrical sort of way.

The story is set in a fictionalized 19th century, with clockwork that can do things it really shouldn’t, and a few other supernatural elements; I think I’d classify it as “steampunk-esque,” but not really steampunk. It’s more that it sits adjacent to that aesthetic category. There’s some exploration of themes of nationalism and cultural shifts (and British cultural hegemony), but they’re secondary to the development of relationships between the characters, and may be a bit too… British in perspective… for some readers. (Clan na Gael/Clann na nGael, a historical Irish republican group, plays the role of something of a bogeyman; they are the architects of some major bombings around London during the course of the story, and the way the story pokes at Japanese cultural shifts was interesting to me but felt a bit under-resolved.)

At any rate, if you like understated, slow-burn romance (with a side of found family and trauma-processing), it’s very worth a read!

17. top 5 children’s books?

Sing a Song of Popcorn: Every Child's Book of Poems - ack, I don't seem to still have a copy, but I'm glad I was able to find the title. I've always loved poetry and these are just. So much fun. I can still recite one of the longer story-poems from it from memory.

The Magic Well, by Maida Silverman - Basically Tam Lin, except with a mother and daughter, where the daughter becomes the ward of the Queen of Fairies. Gorgeous art, and I read it so many times.

Dinotopia, by James Gurney - an absolute fucking classic.

The Paper Bag Princess, by Robert Munsch - more of a young-kid sort of book, but so good. I used to "read" it to my little brother before I actually could read, because I had it memorized.

The Lorax, by Doctor Seuss - I fucking adored all of Doctor Seuss's stuff growing up, but The Lorax was my favorite. My dad did the best voices with that one.

[nyxocity]

Fic Writer Questions!

Thanks to @redmyeyes for the tag!

1) How many works do you have on AO3?

82, although that's not even close to my actual total. There's a bunch on LJ that have never been transferred (all shorter works)

2) What’s your total AO3 word count?

1,780,805 (over 2mil on LJ)

3) How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Mostly three, plus a couple dips into a few other pools. X-Men Comic Book fandom, Buffy & Angel fandom (they kinda count as one since it's the same universe), and Supernatural & SPN RPF. Dips have included Dragon Age, Firefly, a tiny bit of TVD, a Sons of Anarchy crossover.

4) What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

This is tough if I go by numbering. Homework Verse has the most kudos scattered across all parts, but Stranger Than Fiction has the most as a single story. Anyway...

Homework Verse (J2 RPF, 200k+ words) - My very first RPF fic, Supernatural or otherwise. Two of my online fandom friends basically TOLD me I was going to write Teacher/Student J2, and I kept protesting that I drew the line at RPF. They didn't care. 200k later, here we are. This story was a game changer for me; it made me fandom famous. I still love those boys with my whole heart, and they still talk to me sometimes.

Stranger Than Fiction (Sam/Dean, 50644 words) - This story idea took root immediately following the episode The Monster at the End of This Book. I quit the Big Bang I'd already begun writing for that year (which was Who Watches Over Me, which I finished and posted for BB the following year) to write this story. It just took hold hold of me and took over. I wrote it in 6 weeks and it was easily the most fun I ever had writing anything--I cackled like a madwoman most of the time.

Who Watches Over Me (J2 RPF, 96591 words) - This story was, at the time, the toughest thing I'd ever written. Little did I know that would become the norm and not the exception, as I began to write more complex stories. It was by far the longest story I had ever posted all at once in its entirety (rather than chapter by chapter) and I had no idea if people would like it. Fortunately a lot of people did.

Like Staring Into the Sun (Sam/Dean, 23243 words) - Ah, my very first hardcore Wincest fic. I remember writing the first chapter of the story (meant to be a one shot honestly), and just sitting there, at 5am, being terrified to post it. It was twisted, dark and intense and SO porny I was scared people might think I was weird. There wasn't anything like it out there at the time. As it turns out, people loved it so much I ended up writing eight more parts.

Like a Fish Out of Water (Sam/Dean, 59498 words) - I have a lot of love for this story. It didn't come to me easily, but it was fun to write. I remember smiling a lot and just having a nice, warm cozy feeling the whole time. I had no idea if anyone was interested in reading this many words of what amounted to a dramedy curtain fic

Of course there are other stories that I feel deserve love, but I can't argue with these.

5) Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I do. And by that, I mean I try. I don't always succeed in answering them all, but I answer as many as I have time and energy for. Life is busy and there is writing to do as well. I read every comment I get (multiple times) and I feel guilty for all the ones I don't answer, because they mean SO MUCH TO ME. Like you took time to leave this beautiful, well thought out comment, or even a keysmash, or a heart, in response to something I wrote. That means the world.

I WISH there was a reaction function for comments on Ao3, so I could heart things, or laugh in response. Replying with emojis without words feels weird. So yeah, a reaction function would be amazing. But in the meantime, I do my best.

6) What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Hmm. Probably A Touch of Evil. Interestingly, it's also a HAPPY ending, so there you go lol. It's a serial killer love story with a happy ending that comes at an exorbitant price.

8) Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written?

I'm not sure why the OG post skips from 6 to 8 lol . So, yes, I have written a few minors crossovers. Mostly Faith in the SPN verse with the boys, nothing too crazy, because she fits right in. But for long stories, I have written all of ONE crossover. It's Dean Winchester/Jax Teller (SPN / Sons of Anarchy). My crossovers so far have tended to make sense to crossover, so I don't think any of them are crazy.

9) Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes. I got some hate on a Buffy/Xander fic back in the day. I got really excited and had fun with it. Like yeah, now I'm SOMEBODY! You're no one til someone hates you lol Most of that was people who were haters of the ship, or were like, gross, they're like brother and sister (they weren't, they were FRIENDS). I've gotten nasty comments here and there on some of my SPN fic. My favorite was the person who accused me of having a "Top Dean Agenda". I STILL laugh about that one. I don't respond to that crap.

10) Do you write smut? If so what kind?

Have you MET ME? LOL If I ever post a story without smut just put me out to pasture, because I'm done. And all kinds. Het, Gay, PWP, Plotty porn, mostly super kinky but some vanilla (but intense). I used to challenge myself regularly to see if I could up my kink game--like hmm, but could I write THIS? I haven't written really kinky sex in a long time, though. Might be time to do that.

11) Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Several times. Who Watches Over me was stolen by someone and converted to One Direction Lourry fic. Literally just did a name change. Someone else stole a bunch of my one shots and passed them off as their own. I know there were a couple other instances but I only vaguely remember. I never got too deep into it, most of the time the people who discovered the theft already told everyone else too, and the plagiarist had been hammered by them so hard that I didn't have to step in before they took it down.

12) Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes. I used to get requests so often that I just posted my usual response in my profile for people to read instead of replying. Definitely into Russian and Chinese for most of the stories listed with most kudos above.

13) Have you ever co-written a fic before?

A few times on one shot fics. SO MUCH FUN. I love co-writing with people.

14) What’s your all time favorite ship?

Sam/Dean. Easily. Hands down. I just love their unique relationship, bond and love so much.

15) What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Well I finally finished A Touch of Evil after posting 3 chapters in 2009 and never touching it again until 2017. And I never thought I'd finish that. So never say never, I say. That said, there's the third and final part of my X-Men comic book epic that remains unfinished by about five (shorter) chapters, and it HAUNTS ME. But I don't think I'll ever finish it.

16) What are your writing strengths?

NOW we get to the hard questions. I'm really good at dialogue, bouncing banter back and forth between characters, and I have a sense for how long a scene should be. I just KNOW when it's going on too long, even if there's more that needs to be said, and I try to tighten it up in that case.

A friend of mine once told me "Porn is my gift". I don't write as much of it as I used to, but yeah, I shine in that area.

17) What are your writing weaknesses?

So I always reach a point after writing so many words in an unpublished fic where I'm like, I have no idea if this is even any good/makes sense/hangs together etc. Beyond that, I've been writing for so long that I've had so much practice that I've strengthened a lot of my weaknesses. I'm sure I still have some, but I don't FEEL them like I used to anymore. That said, there are things I simply will not write. Like historical pieces. Because I would research the fuck out of every detail trying to get it perfect and then I would still doubt myself completely.

18) What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I mostly try to avoid it, because there's no way I would ever get the language correct. I usually write it in English and then explain that they're saying it in another language. Like, "What are you doing?" the man asks, speaking in Chinese. Then reiterate in the continuing dialogue in various ways that they're speaking in Chinese.

19) What was the first fandom you wrote for?

X-Men Comic Book fandom. I was reading a lot of Remy/Rogue fic back in 1996-1997, and one day I was like, you know what? This person did a pretty good job on this story. It's not great, but it's pretty good, and if they can have the guts to put it out there, then I can do it, too.

20) What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

This is a tough question. I don't love all my children equally, but I love them all a lot in different ways lol

Remembering favorite is different than which one I think is BEST... Homework Verse is probably my favorite. I was learning so much about writing then, I was really growing, and discovering, and pushing my limits. Those characters lived and breathed in me, I swear they spoke through me from some alternate universe. They feel so REAL to me. There's so much of what I've learned in life in that story, like really, big, life changing ideas and understandings that happened to me that I put into that story. There's so much of me in that story, and yet there's so much of THEM, too. It's their story, but it's also mine. It's raw and not entirely perfect and it feels like home to me.

--

So that's it, that's my piece. I feel like EVERYONE has been tagged since it took me 3 days to have time to do this, but I'm basically tagging any of you writers out there who haven't done this yet!