#I am in fact the number one hater of this character. most of the time if I am talking about 'male fictional character I hate' I am talking

[musical-chick-13]

I swear to every deity in existence, if Makima. MAKIMA. Complex genuinely terrifying villain of all time loses to fucking...Look. You know. I will actually throw hands.

[mangle-my-mind]

hey could you explain who jack fairy is im stupid and cant figure out why hes such a big character in the fandom

Omg yes absolutely! Thanks for the ask Anon!

Jack Fairy is the fictional originator of glam rock in the VG universe. He's the one who discovers Oscar Wilde's pin (aka the gay alien sex brooch) as a child. The pin is meant to represent an "instinctive need to camp it up", or owning queerness authentically. As an adult, Jack is considered a "true original", the one who inspires the rest of the glam scene.

Jack Fairy is technically a minor character in the film in terms of screentime, but he's very important to the narrative itself. He's at the Sombrero club when Brian and Mandy meet, and where Brian steals the emerald pin from him. While Brian has a meteoric rise, partially on the strength of stealing from/being inspired by Jack, it's implied that Jack never sees that same level of fame. Later, he's living in Berlin and finds Curt there after Curt and Brian break up. The two of them make an album together a la Bowie and Iggy. At the end of the film, Jack performs at the Death of Glitter concert, closing the chapter on the scene which he originated. That's also the pivotal show where Mandy and Curt have a moment, Brian shows up and leaves, and Arthur and Curt get it on on the roof.

I can't speak on behalf of all of fandom, but some of the reasons Jack Fairy is so beloved to me are:

He's one of the most authentic characters in the film. MUCH more authentic than Brian ever is. We see Jack making art out of his pain from childhood. We recognize his constant struggle and need to express himself truly.

He doesn't get the flowers he deserves, which is typical to first movers in pretty much any art form. He's the one who paved the way for glam to flourish, and others stand on his shoulders and claim the accolades.

He falls victim to Brian's ruthless theft multiple times over. (Sorry not sorry, I'm a Brian hater). The pin, the Sombrero club, Mandy, the glitter entourage, his music (I have a headcanon that "2HB" is a Jack Fairy song that Brian covers), etc. I wrote a fic about this concept specifically if you're interested!

He basically helps Curt get over Brian. This is more of a personal headcanon, but at this point I am in too deep to think otherwise. The fact that Curt meets Jack and then they make an album and put on a concert together is an incredible story in and of itself (and as a matter of fact I wrote that too!)

I think in general, smaller characters with a lot of space for exploration are the most fun ones to latch onto in fandom. Jack's storyline has so much potential for further analysis/art/etc. But more specifically to Jack, he is someone deeply rooted in their authenticity who doesn't get to reap the rewards of being himself, compared to those who reap the rewards of putting on an elaborate image (cough cough Brian). It's a tragic arc, which is always fun to fawn over.

Todd Haynes obviously has some great things to say about Jack Fairy, and I made a post last year pulling that together:

I'd also love to tag in Number One Jack Fairy Fan @silverfactory - maybe you have anything you'd like to add?

Sorry that this is so long-winded! I got overly excited :p

[epickiya722]

Thank you Kiya for being The Number 1 Defender of Izuku and Yuuji...😆😁😄🎖

Every time I read your posts about them, I'm so happy and proudly reblog and even show your metas to anyone who like to badmouth Izuku and Yuuji.

What I love about your metas about them are they're all based on canon. Yes, you also loce made headcanons about your favorite characters but when you defend them against those haters, all your analysis are based on canon material that most people don't really paid attention, too...🥇🏅💐

From that anon before, yes, I've read them in twitter, and got so mad, like why you have to hate Izuku and Katsuki that much?! Thanks for your posts, Kiya...💐🌻

Anon, I am sending so many hugs to you right now! You're too sweet! 😭💜

Yuji and Izuku are my boys, my faves, I just adore them, you know?

This past year or so, I just find myself wanting to ramble whether it do be meta posts or fun little headcanons and I'm glad to see you enjoy them!

Honestly, while sometimes I feel like I maybe reading a little much into the mangas (or anything), I like going back and taking in each detail bit by bit. From what I have seen, sometimes those little details do matter.

(Right now, I have two posts about the last volume covers for JJK and MHA because I have thoughts and I feel like I must say these things before they stay in my head rotating over and over.)

It's really just I have my favorite characters and I hate it when I see people hate on them for reasons that don't really make sense at all!

Like, hate them if you want, alright. Not everyone will like that character. I have characters I don't feel a lot of hype for.

However, when I see people hate on Izuku and Yuji, it's like they post anything just to be "right" about their hatred. Like "I hate this character and I'm right because of this reason." You don't hate to be right about how you feel. Your opinion of a character isn't a fact! It's based on feelings!

You don't have to throw anything to be like "my opinion is a fact".

No, your opinion is BASED on a fact.

When I have my meta rambles, they're my opinions, they're my theories. But I don't just have them and think I'm right. I have them because of what I interpret from canon and then the gears in my head get to turning.

I honestly feel like it's just the "Let's hate on New Gen MCs" trend. Which is weird to me because these some of these new MCs are no different and just as great as their predecessors.

Maybe it's just me, I don't know, but when people say they hate Izuku or Yuji I'm just like "huh".

I'm still trying to process how anybody can find Yuji or Izuku "boring" or "have no development". HUH?! I don't know if they just see that sunshine personality and they're stuck on that "nice characters are boring" mentality. Maybe it's that.

Like, they're both nice and compassionate, but they can also have their moments when they're not. Neither of them is as "pure, naive and innocent" as some people try to portray them as and when people do that, sometimes it is to say "see they're not that badass, not like my GOAT who would body their enemies".

Watching the Izuku vs Muscular fight, I thought Izuku killed that man. Yuji literally has put fear into the curse that embodies the fear of humans... HOW DO YOU MAKE FEAR FEAR YOU?!

Really, it's gotten to the point that even characters that aren't my favorites (or my number one faves) will get hate and that hate make no sense that it makes me go "am... am I reading a different manga?" Yeah, Katsuki is definitely an example. Like, I get it and as I said, hate him if you want. Not everyone will like him.

But if you actually read the manga and watched the anime from start to finish and say "Katsuki doesn't have development", I don't trust you. Yeah, he's an ass and all that but even he is aware. I have seen people defend WORSE characters and hate him..

Could be just me, but I don't know what's fun about being a hater. And I mean, someone is constantly hates and hates and post about it endlessly.

I have things I hate, too and yeah, I will express it. But to do it every single second that you're known to be a hater is wild. And then calling it being "critical"? No, criticism can be helpful. You're not helpful if you just say you hate this thing and then make up something.

That's enough rambling! 😆

Again, Anon, thank you so much!! And I hope you have a lovely day! 💜

[doyouevenshipbr0]

top 10 strongest nonbenders

ykw. im already here so why not?!?!?!

btw the biggest rule here is who the STRONGEST are. not who my favs are. ok?

so here we go

honorable mentions: ok i dont like putting groups of people which is why the equalists and the kiyoshi warriors arent on here. but they should be!

10. sokka- sokka’s strength was his mind. i love him to death but i think some people really overestimate his physical strength. he was definitely EFFICIENT when it came to fighting but i wouldn’t go any further than that. i feel like since people love sokka (as they should!) they conflate that with his combat ability and tbh i feel like that does his character a disservice. he is the mind of the group he doesn’t need to also be a fighter!

9. long shot- ill be super honest im kind of a freedom fighters hater??? ok not a HATER but i just do not really care when they have screen time. basically what im getting at is i dont remember much of him LOLLLL but like my heart is telling me he was useful and a good fighter. obv his specialty was his archery. but then again he doesn’t do anything to stand out in my mind to make him higher. and i dont remember him really doing anything that’s hand to hand combat.

8. june- so we just dont see much of her but shes got that big sniffer to do like 80% of her fighting for her. i think she doesn’t do much otherwise??? but shes a bounty hunter so shes gotta have some oomph to her.

7. hakoda- ok another person that we dont see MUCH of but we know hes the chief of the southern water tribe and is leading them in the war. and when we do see him fight he slays! we just don’t see it much.

6. asami- literally the 3 fight scenes she has she ROCKS!!!!! but like. why does she…. only have…….. 3 fight scenes…? its so weird. i feel like she is useless when it comes to fight scenes more often than not but idk WHY bc she is a RLY GOOD FIGHTER! her fight scenes genuinely shock me every time bc i forget how good she is. but they hardly show it imo. weird.

5. jet- i was rly close to putting jet at 4 and putting #4 here but HONESTLY the only big feat he has is being able to hold his own against zuko in their 1v1. other than that……doesnt he….. get his ass kicked by everyone else? jet is super resourceful, adaptive, smart, and has great combat skill. he was the leader of the freedom fighters for a reason! i just literally cannot think of a time where he won a fight. am i crazy? idk moving on

4. mai- yeah this diva can throw them mf knives!!!!!! if this show wasnt for kids she wouldve been actually killing bitches but she still gets to use her knives in a cool way! she can go toe to toe with any non bender and tbh a lot of benders too. the fact that AZULA recruits her means she knowssss she can handle herself. she just isnt as impressive as the ppl above her.

3. piandou- a lot of ppl put him at 1 and 2 but i cant do that. he is pretty much THEE master non bender and he is clearly the most skilled swordsman we see in the show. but we dont see him in his prime, and again, im just more impressed by 1 and 2. if we saw more of him maybe i could make a case for him to be higher but the shit that i see numbers 1 and 2 do make him look soft sorry!

2. suki- ugh. love her bad. she is THEEEEE KIYOSHI WARRIOR!!!!!!!!! like. what else do u need me to say. remember that part of boiling rock. when she takes the warden hostage in literal seconds? yeah exactly.

1. ty lee- so. remember when i said i love suki bad? i love ty lee BADDDDDDDDD! she is by far seen as the biggest threat out of any nonbender bc of her chiblocking and rightfully so. like taking away bending. and at her time, no one else (that we know of) could do it. genuinely is such a cool feat and she is the ONLY PERSON WHO KNOWS HOW TO DO IT!! like do i need to say it again?!?!?! benders were scared to fight her AS THEY SHPULD BE! she wasnt just a threat to benders either bc her chiblocking could temporarily paralyze anyone, bender or not. is that not enough? oh ok she is also the most agile nonbender that we see snd its not even close. she literally moves exactly like an airbender without doing any airbending. she is doing flips and tricks and cartwheels and is being cunty while taking ur bending. and she becomes a kiyoshi warrior. ty lee supremacy forever.

[mybreadsmybutters]

top 10 men?

LONG long list with extensive explanations under cut. you are forewarned.

1. aidan gallagher. continually charmed and enchanted by whatever is deeply wrong with him and the weird fucked up shit he has going on with his clinically insane dad. he wrote rpf about HIMSELF. who is doing it like him. who COULD do it like him. he needs to come out as gay immediately. at least bisexual. to improve his image. he even makes BAD terrible music. incredible guy all around. i watch his content the way people watch isis beheading videos.

2. my real life actual grandpap. he is so definitely in hell one of the worst people ever. his number one political philosophy was being a hater and fighting anyone who looked at him wrong. i miss him everyday. perhaps the most insane person i will ever meet in my entire life.

3. idk if you wanted real men but the rest of this list is probably gonna be fictional characters due to the fact that i know about ten people. anyways number three is my beloved best friend seasons 1-3 five hargreeves of the umbrella academy. WHAT a character. what if you were a cis guy who could time travel and definitely liked killing people but also were obsessive and crazy and also had a fucked up weird thing with the woman who dragged you out of the apocalypse after you spent 50 years alone and also your body wasn’t your own because your dna got swapped with that of the most prolific murderers of all time and also you were stuck in the body of a child that might’ve been You at some point and everyone is patronizing and doesn’t believe you AND you watch your family die over and over again across every timeline as you constantly fail the ones you love. what a guy. five hargreeves you will never be replicated. also homewrecked his brother with the woman whose parents he murdered like 4 timelines back and then immediately convinced everyone to kill themselves but he did that in season 4 so i dont Really count it but it was still awesome. he’s experiencing types of body dysphoria that i cannot ever fathom i projected onto this guy so hard as a little in denial 13 year old. also when i was 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 and 21 he just kind of lives in the back of my mind perpetually.

4. JOE GOLDBERG FROM HIT FRANCHISE YOU. oh man i love that fucking freak and his mommy issues and the fake woke feminist facade and nightmares in the suburbs and the Knight in Shining Armor carried out to its most horrific prolific potential UGH. i want to pin him on my wall and frame him in glass like a butterfly. he means everything to me. EVERYTHING. so many neurotic tendencies and problematic behaviors spawned from exposure to his character at a critical age. wow i love that guy forever.

5. stefan salvatore vampire diaries. first ever vampire with a binge eating disorder (kills people pathologically) THAT is intentionally narratively framed as an addiction. ALSO in some weird fucked up forced-fated-cursed love triangle forever when his soulmate is clearly just his brother. my number one favorite vampire forever. did i mention he has no sense of humor. oh MAN i love that guy.

6. FICTIONAL ANIME BOY LIGHT YAGAMI. I LOVE SERIAL KILLERS WITH AN ABSOLUTELY FUCKED MORAL COMPASS WHO HAVE A WEIRD THING WITH THE DETECTIVE INVESTIGATING THEM. also see the entire death note musical. where is the justice when the guilty all go free… what would it be if i saw the world like him like a synonym… he is ensouled in the same way JD heathers is

7. fictional anime boy kusuke saiki… man where do i even begin. he’s blonde. he’s a sadomasochist. started world war 3 in an alternate timeline. weird fucked up thing with his brother that is ambiguously sexual. holds a gun at one point. wears a labcoat. wears his hair in a PONYTAIL at one point. foundational to my adolescent sexual awakening. also the entirely fanonical dynamic he has with fellow anime boy makoto teruhashi is world changing to me.

8. mildly famous comedian gianmarco soresi who i am parasocial with. i hope to be as mentally weird about things and be an attention whore and obsessive weirdo when i am 35 too. also first ever visibly gay straight man i think which is just endlessly fascinating to watch.

9. CHARLIE DAY

10. perhaps my most controversial and vaguely revealing choice for this list but one i stand by… porn star and tik tok influencer noahwaybabes. voice of a generation. also i think he’s so stupid hot like in a way that pisses me off. also i find him vaguely annoying but i think that’s because he’s funny and hot which is a REALLY unfair combination. also because he just is annoying due to being a tik tok influencer. probably steals off twitter but i dont use twitter so i dont care.

HONORABLE MENTIONS!!!

youtuber pyrocynical who was not included in this list due to the fact that i hate him and he sucks.

jd heathers who JUST barely did not make it on. im sorry that annoying tik tok influencer who i jerk off to sometimes won out but when it comes down to brass tacks i thought including even more fictional characters would make me seem like a huger massiver loser than the other option

[lemonyinks]

losh (001) for the ask meme?

001 | Send me a fandom and I will tell you my:

Favorite character: Jenni. There is just something about her that touches my heart. She's so scared, but so full of bravery and love. She's doing her best.

Least Favorite character: Wimena Wazzo. She just made me mad every time she was on screen.

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon): jenni/imra, brainy/lyle, jan/candi, zoe/salu/ayla, rokk/gim

Character I find most attractive: none of them really

Character I would marry: also none of them

Character I would be best friends with: Salu. I think we would get along really well.

A random thought: I think about Lori Morning a lot. She was such an interesting character to me and I would have loved to see them do more with her. I would especially like to know how the hell she ended up being the time trapper as an adult. I REALLY wish they had expanded on that. It also kinda haunts me that it is unclear what happened to her after the outpost incident. She obviously didn't die, but where did she go??

*bonus thought: I think it is interesting how similar Brainy and Imra are. I've been meaning to make a post about this for like a year now but have never gotten around to it. But, like...they're both gifted kids who grew up in non-ideal situations (to put it lightly) and dealt with a lot of social isolation that affected how they interact with people and how they view themselves. Obviously its not a 1-1 similarity between them, there are major differences to their backstories and them in general, but the similarities that are there fascinate me so much.

An unpopular opinion: While there are parts of it that I really like (Bart and Brainy friendship for example), for some reason i found a lot of the trapped in the past arc just a lil bit boring.

My canon OTP: Do Jan/Candi count? If so, them.

Non-canon OTP: Jenni/Imra. It's insane how much I think about them.

Most badass character: this is hard for me because they're all pretty badass and they all have their moments, buuuutttt I have to say Imra. The "step away from her" scene lives in my head rent free.

Pairing I am not a fan of: I am an avid Tinya/Jo hater. I'm their number one hater in fact.

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another): Tinya. I hate whatever her and Jo have going on and I fully believe she did not need the teen mom arc she had for some reason. The issue where she gives birth made me laugh, it was so ridiculous, I hated it so much.

Favourite friendship: Maybe Lyle and Ayla. I just think they're neat. Honestly my answer to this question will probably change depending on the day. I love a lot of the friendships in this series

[lostcauses-noregrets]

Before I say anything else I want to make it clear that I have so much respect for you Lost and I love your blog so much it's very precious to me but I want to be honest for once. I am an Eruri shipper, the reason why I am here in the first place, but before that I'm an Erwin fan and have always been and the amount of hate he gets is increased dramatically recently. And I mean of course twitter where the fans interact directly more than tiktok, tumblr or instagram. And the reason Erwin gets all that hate is because of this fandom. I don't say this on twitter or anywhere else because I am very shy but that's how I feel and I am pretty sure this will be seen as Eruri hate. But Eruri fandom on twitter is very much different and way bigger than here on tumblr. And they are very vocal. Most of the time it's fun, banter, jokes and things like that. But a part of the fandom is very vocal about their dislike for every other ship. They literally won't let anyone ship Erwin with Mike or Levi with others, especially Hange. They always mock Levi's fangirls and honestly, I don't appreciate how they talk about Levi (like something to be owned and only belongs to Erwin) or how often they insult other characters like Mike or Hange or "getting in the way of their ship". This isn't a problem for me personally because I am in the Eruri fandom and I choose who I interact with, I have an idea of who to follow and who to mute. But a regular person who doesn't ship Eruri doesn't know about that they often see those takes or jokes and this is one of the main reasons (apart from serum bowl) that Erwin gets so much hate. I would be pissed off, too if people always talked about Erwin like a guard dog or someone to be owned or a mindless lovesick idiot. I honestly forget why I like this ship when I see so ooc takes about them and I need to go back to manga to remember why. And I honestly don't understand why everyone is so defensive when another character's fan talks about this issue. Just because we like the same thing doesn't mean we are one, I am not responsible of other Eruris actions and it's okay to admit that there is a good amount of toxic Eruris. Just like any other ship. These days it feels like a big part of Eruris on twitter are very nice to Erwin for completely wrong reasons and mischaracterizing him and often cause the hate he receives. And I know you will probably disagree with that and it's okay but please don't take this the wrong way it'd kill me if you called me a hater or anything bad like that. I'm just a little frustrated with the fandom, every time I see an Erwin tweet I can't help it and click on it and oops it's once again started with an Eruri tweet mocking others or Levi or Hange or other ships whatever. It's getting worse than Armin stans to be honest.

So I have a policy of not responding to “I’m an Eruri but…” asks because they tend to be disingenuous at best, and outright abusive at worst*  I’m going to make an exception this time though, because I’ve had a number of asks like this. 

First of all, every fandom has fans who prefer arguing with other shippers rather than enjoying their own ship and the Eruri fandom is no exception.  There has always been a small minority of Eruri fans who are vocal in their dislike for other ships and characters and who seem to revel in provoking drama.  The fandom is far from unique in that respect, every fandom I’ve ever encountered has its fair share of troublemakers.  I’ve lost count of the number of fans I’ve blocked from every corner of the SnK fandom over the years.  If someone is starting shit, I don’t want them on my timeline. 

Here’s the thing though, I keep getting anonymous asks from people freaking out about all the drama and hate in the Eruri fandom, and I honestly don’t know where that’s coming from, because I’ve seen very little of it.  Certainly there are fans who hate other ships and characters, they're just a fact of life in fandom. I’ve got a particularly persistent “Anon” in my inbox right now who clearly dislikes Hanji.  I’m studiously ignoring them because a) I’m not interested in airing ship or character hate unless it’s Zeke; and b) they are very much in the minority.  I’ve been in the Eruri fandom for 8 years and I can probably count on one hand the number of Eruri fans I’ve met who hate Hanji. Quite the opposite in fact.  90% of the Eruri fics I’ve ever read feature Hanji as Erwin or Levi’s beloved best friend or wingman. Similarly, I have never seen anyone saying that you can’t ship Erwin and Mike.  Really?? I used to write extremely smutty Mikeru / Mikeri / Mikeruri fics but I’ve never heard so much as a peep of complaint. In fact one of my Mikeruri fics is my third most popular fic with almost 20K hits. 

Now, I’m not so naive as to think that drama doesn’t exist just because I haven’t seen it.  I probably spend more time on twitter than I do on tumblr, but I’ve got a comprehensive block list which means I avoid most of the bullshit.  However I usually pick up on the aftermath of any drama because people I follow tend to talk about it. What I have seen recently is people complaining about one or more trolls who are leaving abusive comments on AO3 and Curious Cat, and I’ve also seen fans getting abuse for fundraising for charities.  Doesn’t get much lower than that tbh. With one or two notable exceptions, who I’ve now muted, I haven’t seen large numbers of Eruri fans mocking other shippers and belittling Levi and other characters. So you’ll understand my confusion about your ask.  Perhaps the hate is real and I’ve just missed it.  Perhaps this has become a self-perpetuating rumour. Perhaps there’s something more disingenuous going on.  If you could give me more concrete examples of this bad behaviour, which is apparently rife in the fandom, I might be able to formulate a more nuanced response.  As it stands, I honestly don’t know how you want me to reply to this ask Anon. You’ve said that how the Eruri fandom behaves isn’t a problem for you and that you choose who to mute and who to interact with, but from what you’ve said here, it sounds like this is a problem for you.  I hate to break it to you Anon, but if that’s the case, it’s not a problem I can solve. 

I have no doubt this reply will provoke another flood of Anon hate, all of which will be ignored and deleted. That’s pretty much my last word on the matter. 

* If you think this is an exaggeration, here’s the most recent “I’m an Eruri but” ask I got just a couple of weeks ago.  This shit isn’t new, it’s been going on for years. 

[utilitycaster]

Threatened this once as a throwaway tag, so: let's talk about why "Justice for Adeen Tasithar" as an attempted criticism of Essek is absolutely wild as a choice.

Disclaimer: there are many deeply annoying fans of Essek who do not seem to understand that the narrative and the cast (and by extension, merch/official art/comics) will treat him differently for being an NPC, even if he is a very important NPC and a member of the Mighty Nein, and you are justified in being annoyed. There are also a number of equally annoying Essek haters, most of whom are bitter shippers who have (correctly) realized it's slightly more palatable to others in the fandom to openly hate on Essek than on a PC; or else they are the miserable souls who think that every minute spent on a character other than their personal favorite stolen and wasted time. I am a firm believer in this post; everyone is annoying and complaining on your own blog about it is your absolute right. Also, both in regards to the fans mentioned above and the characters mentioned below, it is possible for people on two opposite sides of a position to both suck.

The first issue is the phrase itself; it co-opts a statement usually used for victims of hate crimes or political prisoners in the real world, and makes it unironically about a pretend guy who had precisely one scene, which is certainly a choice. I'm not actually opposed to using "Justice for" jokingly in fandom, but it is weird to use it relatively seriously in fandom.

The second is that Adeen Tasithar is a member of one of the Dens of the Kryn Dynasty, and is a Taskhand, a term reserved for people with high-level military responsibilities, and is a member of the Bright Queen's Court. During wartime. Coupled with the fact that Essek, who, as described below, is never portrayed as particularly cruel nor petty despite his many flaws, thinks Adeen genuinely does suck, this means that at best, Adeen Tasithar is heavily involved in military operations at a very high level and is in some way personally unpleasant. At, frankly, not even worst, we're talking D&D Donald Rumsfeld. Now, we can debate whether Essek is a war criminal or merely traitorous (not on this post though, because I don't care and it's not relevant), but, while we know very little about Adeen Tasithar, it's not an overreach to say that this man has a pretty strong chance of being guilty of his own war crimes. In general, calling for justice is something I'd hesitate to use in an "the enemy of my enemy" manner, especially if it's well within reason to consider that you're talking about Ludinus Da'leth's Kryn counterpart.

The third is that while you're under no obligation to like Essek, he really is, in general, portrayed as a decent judge of character and a terrible judge of whether selfishly following his own ambition was appropriate and what the consequences might be. He detests the members of the Cerberus Assembly with whom he works; he likes the Mighty Nein despite them ultimately being his potential undoing. He has a few friends in the Dynasty and cares about his (unambiguously good) brother, and feels remorse about his father. Essek has done terrible things in the service of his goals; but directly throwing an innocent under the bus (vs. setting into motion things that will, as a side effect, lead to innocent collateral damage, which he obviously will do) isn't his style. Again, at the very least, Adeen Tasithar is someone whom Essek genuinely believes is a bad person (note that Essek, by this time, also considers himself to be a bad person, and Trent Ikithon to be a "fuck hole", which might help your understanding of scale here). This doesn't mean Tasithar deserves what he got, but frankly, in a campaign about people who got a lot of things they didn't deserve, it's a pretty blatant straw-grasp onto a side character with the briefest of appearances to decide he's your poster boy victim just so that you can go full spiked bat on a character you dislike.

The fourth is that there's never any connection to how Essek not being friends with the Mighty Nein (or entering a relationship with Caleb) would provide justice for Adeen Tasithar, who is in an Empire prison by the end following the exchange during peace talks. It's actually entirely possible that the Empire eventually figures things out re: Adeen, notably because memory modification as a criminal act is going to be really fresh in their minds following the Ikithon trial (and if they interrogate Trent, it's also possible the Empire finds out about Essek). Essek is already a fugitive from the Dynasty and cannot move freely through the Empire as a drow whom assembly members would recognize. The guy didn't get off scot free anyway, so really, he is going to suffer to some extent; you just want him to experience abject and total misery, rather than constant fear tempered with a small degree of happiness, like some kind of sicko, or megachurch member.

The final one is that "justice for Yeza Brenatto" or "I don't like that Essek worked with the Assembly even if he wasn't happy about it" would actually be far more reasonable statements to make. Yeza was, in fact, a simple alchemist who was forced to become a pawn in the game being played by, among other people, Essek, and suffered immensely for it. The Assembly does in fact suck. And yet, rather than admit Caleb also considered working with the Assembly for selfish reasons, or that Veth, you know, exists people jump to woobify some random NPC about whom we know basically nothing other than "Military guy, well-connected politically."

So anyway: feel however you want about Essek; but if you're on Adeen Tasithar's bandwagon, I don't think you actually are terribly bothered by hypothetical fictional war crimes. I think you just are too spineless and online to say "I dislike Essek" and needed to construct an elaborate poor reason why.

[callowyn]

20 Questions for Writers

Tagged by @oakashandwillow

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 42...the perfect number

2. What's your total AO3 word count? just shy of 500k which is an insane number

3. What fandoms do you write for? >_> look. is the top fandom on my ao3 page supernatural: yes. am I still actively posting spn fic: technically also yes. but the incoherent scum villain tweets that don't make it onto ao3 are where my heart truly lies rn

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

#1 and #2 are the double header of Cumplane (Pairing), an in-universe meta for @cleromancy's threadfic, and Cumplane Forums AU, an archive of @flightlesscrowkids's communal threadfic that I shamelessly enabled. #5 on the list is also a scum villain chatfic, It's Fine Cause I'm Wearing Cat Ears, where shen yuan is still insane on the modern internet but this time binghe and liu qingge are there. thank you cucumber stans for your support and good taste.

#3 is my untamed big bang from these nettles, alms which I cowrote with @zorrosuchil (chengxian, but also wangxian and a lil tiny bit zhanchengxian, much to jiang cheng's disgruntlement).

#4 is my pacific rim reverse bang Our Blood in the Machinery in which raleigh becket is possessed, but joke's on you, he's into that shit.

5. Do you respond to comments? I try but unfortunately I often give myself the fake homework of needing to reply Meaningfully which means it simply does not happen

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? hmm probably the most it-didn't-have-to-be-this-way classic tragedy fic is The Dismemberment Song (the untamed, nieyao); the deadest dove is Jettison (pacific rim, hansens badtouch)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? I was going to say Only Human but then I remembered the last chapter ends with one of the main characters announcing her imminent demise lmao so perhaps my cql fix-it of Waking / Rising

8. Do you get hate on fics? thankfully not, I don't think they get enough attention to have haters lmao

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

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? fandom fusions are my faaaaavorite to spitball. way back in the day I had grand plans for Merlispn which (as the name should make clear) was very silly

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? not to my knowledge but cambionverse did once get cited in an academic paper

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? funnily enough one of my smallest and least-viewed spn fics, Driftwood, was translated into chinese!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? nearly all of them in fact! shout out to @thegeminisage and our series Cambionverse which is old enough to be in middle school now

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? I am a multishipper til death do us part ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? fuckin. Envesseled lmfao. ON GOD WE WILL POST THE LAST FIVE CHAPTERS I JUST DON'T KNOW WHEN

16. What are your writing strengths? *eye* think my own jokes are very funny hahaha and I love to write banter & arguments

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I can brainstorm plots all day long but executing upon them is So Hard

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? as a monolingual it is something I would do very sparingly if at all, and only if there wasn't another way to convey the same tone/emotion

19. First fandom you wrote for? the first thing I ever posted to ao3 was The Quest for Camelot which is found poetry from the merlin fic finders comm. before livejournal I did post a few things to ff.net but they are going with me to the grave

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? listen. I understand why it deals psychic damage for my followers to see supernatural content in the year of our lord 20 whatever. but read Cambion those are my kids

[aro-ortega]

since i went from a herald hater to his #1 fan literally overnight, it is now my duty to defend the herald romance route and recommend it for others. i am debating the points that were raised in this ask that i received a few weeks ago

-

"in my humble opinion, herald shouldn't have even been a romantic option in the first place. i'd take it a step further and say, the fact that he is an option undermines sidestep as a character. from a character standpoint, it doesn't make sense for sidestep to want to have anything to do with him- let alone pursue him romantically- because no matter how you've built your sidestep, it's always the case that they don't really like him by virtue of him being the picture perfect hero, full of idealism and naivety, and without constraints. he is, at once, what sidestep was and what they wish they could be. so there's going to be a lot of resentment there, so much so, that it's hard to see how sidestep could look past all of it and see herald as a possible romantic partner."

this is all valid and true and i do agree that if there were, say, a canon or default sidestep playthrough it would not include interacting much with herald, imo.

however, it is equally true that you can play a sidestep where it would make sense for them to agree to train herald; one of the routes for a hero hunter sidestep is that they are "training" the heroes because there are things bigger and badder than they are that they need to be ready for. a sidestep with this or a similar motive (i imagine there is something similar that would work for an anarchist sidestep) would have reason to agree to train herald.

yes, there is a lot about herald that sidestep can harbour hate for. but if they decide to spend more time with him it becomes clear that there is more to herald than they thought and there are actually parallels between themself and herald. also, sidestep, as a telepath and an addict, has plenty of incentive to want to spend more and more time with herald; how his mind feels is just another addiction for sidestep to fall in, which increases their time with herald and increases how much they learn about him and allows their feelings to shift from negative to positive (im not saying its healthy, but its sidestep so it was never going to be)

"i think it's very telling that the trigger for his romance is just sidestep thinking he's hot. (sidenote: the amount of times "oh no, he's hot" came up as an option in conversations with him annoyed me so much.) it feels incredibly superficial."

good news ! you can romance him without clicking any of those options ! (im not a fan of how often it's an option either tho) unless i am misremembering, i did not choose any of those options in my most recent playthrough and i successfully romanced him, and it was very sweet and fun to read/play

"and i know he was given a bit more depth in retribution, and maybe if given more time to develop, his romance would reveal some nuance, but this whole thing to me feels like a misstep from the author. or i don't know, maybe i'm just not seeing it the way it should be."

there is a lot more to herald than meets the eye. there is depth there and nuance i promise.

i played a herald romance route with a sidestep who initially hated herald and saw him as his number one enemy, agreed to train him bc the heros need to be better and then agreed to spend more time with him because he was chasing a high, and then accidentally fell in love and more importantly trust with the last person he expected. because he is genuine and he is kind and he does care. playing as a telepath and choosing to spend time with herald feels so good; it can rewire your brain from a herald hater to a herald fan.

also. i super recommend playing a route where you pursue herald romantically while ghosting/friendzoning ortega. reasons: 1. the parallel of the older, more experienced hero ("hero") falling for the rookie 2. ortegas reaction if you decide to confess that you're going on a date with herald 3. (ending dependent) ortegas reaction when they find out that herald knew what you were before they found out - that you told him but they just happened to stumble on the truth 4. (if ortega + sidestep had a thing back in the day) the ghost of that relationship hanging over sidestep + herald's; it is like ceasar haunting cleopatra + marc antony in the second half of cleopatra (1963)

anyway, cannot recommend at least trying to get to know/romance herald enough it is honestly surprising how good his route is, i had an immensely enjoyable time in that playthrough. i also recommend the series How Not to Fall on ao3 it is very good

[boundlss]

well, it's munday so i'll post something a little self-indulgent.

actually, aside from twain on my blog antisatiric (who will of course ALWAYS be my uncontested favorite muse and character), my favorite muse over here is cyran azerrad kapral, one of my dnd pcs. he's sort of the worst to interact with ever but i have a deep love for him.

the muse i relate to the most is shiroe, which is why my blog is themed like this. actually i love shiroe more than life itself, he's probably the only example of me finding something extremely personal to relate to in any protagonist ever and almost every beat of his personal arc resonates with me.

how ever. i have it on good authority that the muse i am ACTUALLY most like is shen qingqiu, which makes me want to die every time i think about it as i am that man's number one critic and hater. we don't need to discuss the fact that i nevertheless write him.

(as for characters i DON'T muse, um, my favorite of those is my friend inky's oc vel. hi inky if you're reading this. i love him.)

[finitefall]

Do you think Emilia portrayed Daenerys well? Most people consider her acting mediocre at best.

Short answer: yes, I loved Emilia as Daenerys.

Long answer: Emilia getting so much criticism has always been unfair.

First, you have the Tamzin Merchant debate and while I'm sure some people who say they picture her as Daenerys are honest, the fact is that many saying she would have been better for the role are antis Dany. It's obvious why: Tamzin said herself she couldn't connect to the character so she wasn't interested in playing the role. There are no hard feelings from her not getting the part unlike what some people have said. Emilia, on the contrary, absolutely connected to Dany and fell in love with her as much as all Dany fans. So it has nothing to do with Tamzin being a better actress or fitting the description of the book character better than Emilia: if Tamzin wasn't invested in the character, she wouldn't have defended Dany as Emilia did. And they hate Emilia for defending Dany and for saying "I stand by Daenerys" after the finale. There's also another very ugly part, and it concerns things that have been said about Tamzin's looks who would look like a Targaryen and especially Daenerys because... you know, I really don't want to repeat those insults. Basically, antis Dany have been disrepectful towards both Tamzin and Emilia, under the pretense of Tamzin being better for the role, using the fact that Martin wanted her as Daenerys after seeing her in The Tudors when in fact, they don't give a crap about Tamzin.

Second, you have the criticism that Emilia was expressionless, when it wasn't her who wanted this but D&D. She said it herself:

There was a number of times I was like, ‘Why are you giving me that note?’ While I am quite consistently a 'How can I help?’ kind of person, there were a few moments where I was like, 'Don’t tell me what to do with my girl. I know what to do!’ It's like Daenerys’ calling card became cold expressionlessness. I always wanted to infuse that with some humanity because no one’s consistently like that. I would sometimes fight back a little: 'I get that she has to be steely and unforgiving and a powerful force. But in this moment she’s also a goddamn human being. So I’m going to give you that and I really pray that you take that in the edit.’ (source)

How is it her fault that D&D wanted to change her character so much? It wasn't. Now, at first, people didn't know Emilia so I could understand the criticism. But she did say it after the show, so it would be great if people gave her a break and could appreciate the work she's been able to do with such awful writers giving her dumb notes.

Third, her haters literally said she used her brain aneurysms as an excuse for this, that she was as crazy as her character for saying she was gonna die while she was on set. And the more love Dany got, the more her haters would also hate on Emilia, finding literally everything awful about her.

Also, Emilia was new: her first real role before GOT (so not counting students productions, commercials, and a very minor role) had been in a mediocre film on television in 2010 (still, her performance hadn't been criticized by critics, only the film). She graduated from drama school in 2009. Again, she was new. So when she was cast as Daenerys in GOT in 2010, at 24 years-old, she didn't have a lot of experience. She was just a very motivated, full of potential young actress who fell in love with Dany. So can we compare her to other cast members who had a lot more experience? No. That being said, there are people who aren't antis Dany at all and have absolutely nothing against Emilia, but just weren't convinced by her acting. Fair enough: you can't please everyone! Do I believe that even with more experience, she can become a Lena Headey or a Peter Dinklage, for example? No, I don't, but that doesn’t mean she’s a bad actress at all.

So if people say Emilia's performance didn't leave a huge impression on her unlike others have, I understand. For me, she did leave a huge impression as Dany, but that's personal and subjective. But if people say she's a mediocre actress and use the arguments I've talked about, they're just being unfair and many of them hate Dany as much as they hate Emilia.

[galaxicide]

SHIPPING INFO / answer the following for your muse so people know how shipping works on your blog !

WHAT IS YOUR OTP FOR YOUR CHARACTER.

ben and poe...but i don't think this surprises anyone now. some people might wanna thump me for saying they share some similarities: children of the resistance; so shared history (childhood friends if you're me), tempers, flyboys, stubborn and determined, competitive, huge hearts and sm more. they just happen to be fighting on different sides of the war, which only makes things all the more delicious to me. i just think theirs is an intriguing dynamic that should have been explored more in the sequels. but alas...the mouse is a hater.

HOW LARGE DOES THE AGE GAP HAVE TO BE TO MAKE IT UNCOMFORTABLE.

i am a person who will say age is but a number when it comes to mcloving. but if there is going to be an age gap when shipping with ben, I prefer it to be a few years younger, perhaps five at the most? doesn't mean I can't be convinced further with the right mun and muse, but not to like 20, aka how old rey was... now, older...cough. that's a free for all. there's not really a limit there for me or Ben.

HOW FAR DO STEAMY MOMENTS HAVE TO GO BEFORE THEY ARE CONSIDERED NSFW.

err...dicks out? nudity and touching is what i'd consider nsfw, personally.

ARE YOU SELECTIVE WHEN SHIPPING.

umm, i don't think so. i'm always open to crossover and oc shipping as well as canon. but with ben it does take a partner who is rather understanding because loving ben isn't always easy, and he doesn't always find it easy either. he has a lot of baggage and black hole's worth of emotional and intimacy issues. at least in canon verses.

WHO ARE OTHER CHARACTERS YOU SHIP YOUR CHARACTER WITH.

oh, boy....well, it currently is only poe. that's more or less the only ship I wrote on my old blog and it has haunted me ever since. but that doesn't mean I'm not 39585843% open to something else. i love exploring new dynamics sm.

DOES ONE HAVE TO ASK TO SHIP WITH YOU.

you can send me a shippy ask and I'll see how I feel about it. or you can come kick my ass and be like WE'RE GONNA SHIP THIS BITCH. I'm pretty easygoing when it comes to shipping, always willing to dip my toesies in the water.

ARE YOU SHIP OBSESSED OR SHIP MORE-OR-LESS.

obsessed and proud. people who think romance writing is somehow less than other forms of writing are absolute whackos and we can't be friends. love keeps the world going around, we always need more of it.

ARE YOU MULTISHIP.

yes. that is likely to remain unless my brain says otherwise. but it's rare that I singleship. hasn't happened in a long time.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SHIP IN YOUR CURRENT FANDOM.

are you gonna make me say ben / poe again? cus this is getting embarrassing. but aside from them. i enjoy the obvious han / leia, but also finn / rey, dinn / luke, obi-wan / happiness. the usual stuff.

FINALLY, HOW DOES ONE SHIP WITH YOU.

we've been over this. jump into my ims and say BITCH GET IN THE CAR, WE SHIPPING. but again you can always send memes. they don't even have to be romantic. i do like to interact platonically, too, just to see how our muses mesh etc. that's important! being friendly ooc is a must too. friends make the best shipping partners. that's a fact, innit? and plotting stuff is so much easier if you have a good rapport. I'm always up for crossover ships and i love ships that take me by surprise.

[scary-flag]

can someone pls explain how the hell izzy hands is racist? im literally a bipoc and am fighting for my life trying to figure it out.

Hi!

The thing is most people do not actually think that! I am trying to understand the issue from the outsider perspective, but let me throw my hat into the ring:

There is, of course, a large number of people who do not like Izzy (which is understandable - he is the antagonist after all), but some of them (like, 5 or 6 people maybe? These are the same users all the time tbh, but I'm not gonna list nicknames here) make some very weird stretches. Their reasoning is mostly:

- Izzy is racist because he manipulates Ed, who is a PoC (would be true to an extent but we know Izzy's reasoning is not racially based but a toxic relationship-based)

- Izzy is racist because he only acts mean towards characters that are PoC (which is not true, as he has hit Black Pete and deprived Wee John of rations for a week which was a rather severe punishment on a ship)

- Izzy is racist because for some reason people insist he must be from the upper class, which is not true again, as there is nothing that would suggest that

- Izzy is racist because he asked the English to release Ed into his custody (this one, in fact, clearly rises from the lack of understanding what "release to custody" would mean on a ship in the 1700s and people read it in the modern sense of the term)

- Izzy is racist because he wants to dominate Ed (this is epic bullshit, the man is clearly fixated on actually *being* dominated here)

- Izzy is racist because he wants to see Ed as a cruel, unhinged murderer (and this would be racist indeed, if it was a correct assumption, but it is not because we know Izzy wants it *not* because Ed is PoC, but because he is in a toxic love with the legendary image of Blackbeard)

Tbh all the anon hate is 100% one and the same person and I am 99% sure it's one of those people who constantly post their "crit" in the Izzy Hands tag. Because let's face it: what person would spend so much time writing posts about a character they do not like?

It is worth remembering though that not everyone who does not like Izzy is a part of the weird, unhinged circle. Most people are normal about it and I had some really good discussions with those who dislike Izzy that were absolutely not hateful. They usually do not go around calling people racist and abusive for reblogging Izzy fanart.

I am also VERY disappointed seeing people who call themselves anti-racist legit attacking bipoc. This is beyond my comprehension.

If you want to dig deeper I recommend reading @uselessheretic post - they are PoC, were harrassed by the anon haters, and makes good points about the whole situation.

[3eggy5me]

Mid-Year Book Freak Out

Thank you for the tag @bojanus, I am bad at responding to things, but love seeing these on my feed! Time to create the things I love to see in the world ;)

Number of books you’ve read so far: 126

Best book you’ve read so far in 2024:

The Skull by Jon Klassen - it was a children's book that really plays with the construct of children's media. Based on a folk tale, a young girl leaves her home and finds a beautiful home with a sentient skull living inside - but the skull is chased every night by its body. Beautiful illustrations, eerie, fun.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024: 

In fact... I don't think I've read a sequel this year! I've read some books in a series (without finishing them), but I don't think I've read two related books. Or a sequel or a prequel...

New release you haven’t read yet but want to: 

I really want to read Northranger, by Rey Terciero and Bre Indigo! I love books inspired by or adapting classics. And the concept of Northanger Abbey in modern-day Texas sounds incredible!

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:

I... do not know. I haven't been following new releases too closely. I feel like I just wake up one day and get pleasantly surprised. If I could manifest more books from Evie Dunmore (no, I haven't yet read Gentleman's Gambit, and yes, I do want to) or another release from Cat Sebastian... I enjoy their romance work. I've been enjoying the manga series, A Sign Of Affection and The Apothecary Diaries, so I'd take more of those, too.

Biggest surprise favorite new author (debut or new to you): 

I read two books by Sayaka Murata this year. She's a Japanese author, and I read Convenience Store Woman and Earthlings. They both feature sort of... off-kilter women as the main characters, observing society as inherent outsiders. They are very different sides of the contemporary lit spectrum, in terms of content/trigger warnings. But there was something SO fascinating about her approach and style. BUT! I also got super into Kurt Vonnegut (I read two books). He's SO funny! Wow! Cat's Cradle and God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian. I'm looking forward to reading more and more.

Newest fictional crush:

I am, in fact, a huge hater. There's no one. :/

Book that made you cry: 

I looooved the play Dear Elizabeth, by Sarah Ruhl. It is made using the letters between Elizabeth Bishop and her long-time friend, Robert Lowell. Letters and friendship, across distance... It is so nice. Admiration. Advice on writing. Struggles with health. Living... Sigh. To be fair, I cry reading a lot of books. But this one felt significant.

Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received): 

Honestly, I haven't bought that many books this year! Apartment living is hard. I did get a book signed, for FREE, at an event. Called Road Home, by Rex Ogle. Getting it signed makes it feel beautiful - sooo we'll say that one. :)

Book that made you happy: 

I work in publishing! So holding one of my first creator owned books in my hands this year was very very meaningful. Besides that though, I really enjoyed reading James Kochalka's graphic novel diary series. My local library had ebooks of the series - until very suddenly, they didn't. I'll never know what happens after 2011.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?: 

I would like to read at least one more Kurt Vonnegut this year. I'm also currently reading A Lost Lady by Willa Cather and The Factory by Hiroko Oyamada. So I definitely need to finish those! But - I also want to read Robin by Kami Garcia and Gabriel Piccolo, finish out some manga series I started... Read some low fantasy cozy-core romance books... Maybe pick up another Haruki Murakami book... Etc. Etc. I'll inevitably read like thirty more graphic novels, minimum, as well. And with that... I do not really have anyone to tag. So I suppose, do it because you want to. :)

Mid-Year Book Freak Out

Thank you for the tag @falliblefabrial, since my new years resolution this year was to read more, it's exciting to lay out some of my reading so far mid way through the year :D

Number of books you’ve read so far: 29

Best book you’ve read so far in 2024:

Though I've read several fantastic books, I'm gonna highlight Sex Bunker Apocalypse by Adam Brink here. It was among the first handful of books I picked up this year to start reading more, and its fast pace and pure commitment to its premise made it an engaging read. The setup is uniquely zany (three people bunker down in a sex shop during an apocalypse, and when they leave it the world has changed in fantastical ways), and it's executed with such heart and sincerity that I was invested from the first page to the final one.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024: 

I have a terrible habit of reading like, the mid-series or even final books of romance series without reading the first books, but thankfully they're usually designed for each book to stand on its own.

So far my favorite has been An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera, which is technically #2 in the Las Leonas trilogy. I discovered this year that I'm a sucker for historical romance, but was struggling to find a good execution of a sapphic historical romance until THIS book. The pairing is great, there's a delicious push and pull of the power dynamic since each have something the other wants, but it's also grounded in some real historical context of the lesbian scene in Paris. Lovable characters, real stakes, and tension that culminates in some decadent sex scenes!

New release you haven’t read yet but want to: 

I have Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma R. Alban and A Blustocking's Guide to Decadence by Jess Everlee on some of my libby lists. I may or may not read them depending on library availability. Can you tell I'm trawling the "sapphic historical romance" tags? XD.

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:

I'm not super plugged in to release schedules and such, so currently don't have anything in particular anticipated!

Biggest surprise favorite new author (debut or new to you): 

If you can believe it, I never read any Jane Austen until this year and I am now HOOKED. Pride & Prejudice, Emma, and Persuasion are the ones I've read so far, and each one continually delights me. Despite being written over 200 years ago, her characterizations, emotions, and social foibles are timeless. I remember in Emma there's a section towards the end where a woman excitedly reads a letter her crush sent her to a friend and I was like "!!!! That's literally just like today, like sending screenshots of texts in the groupchat!!!!" So even though I am no expert in some of the historical nuances, I find the characters and their interactions SO relatable they feel like something I could find today.

Newest fictional crush:

In The Salvation Gambit by Emily Skrutskie, there's a super hot lady who works in a forge carved out of a spaceship making weapons, and she's described SO cool and hot and competent and sweaty... Ahaha I drooled (honestly all the women in that book are hot)

Book that made you cry: 

Okay well let's be real I'll cry at almost any book, but I'll specify that I cried while reading Satisfaction Guaranteed by Karelia Stetz-Waters. It's an adult romance that felt very grounded, and there were some particular scenes about following your dreams and such that touched my heart (plus the beginning is a funeral! There are funny bits but there is also some sincere grief that got to me).

Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received): 

The Stars too Fondly by Emily Hamilton has a beautiful cover that matches the book very well.

Book that made you happy: 

The Gentleman's Gambit by Evie Dunmore was the first modern-written historical romance I read this year (I had read some Jane Austen prior, which is of course slightly different vibe), and revealed to me just how fun and engaging historical romance can be. I remember literally kicking my feet and giggling because I was so invested and delighted in how things played out.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?: 

Well currently A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers just arrived on my libby, so I need to read that soon before the loan runs out. I also just ordered Endurance by Elaine Burns since I'm in a bit of a sapphic sci-fi mood, so once that's here I hope to read it. I also am pretty sure I need to finally read Murderbot at some point (it's the kind of thing where I've heard so many good things about it that I'm pretty sure I'll love it, but then once I've read it it'll be over ahaha so I keep "saving" it for later).

No pressure tags (if you want to ignore, I will not be offended): @lifeofmysteries, @3eggy5me, @meiioh, @avatar-masterofallfandoms, @musicallynerdy

[harfanfare]

How to win a heart of Jamil Viper?

1.   Don’t be a typical hero(ine).

Contrary to the popular romance trope, tripping over the air to land on a certain cool-looking boy, and dropping all carried things, wouldn’t make Jamil fall for you. Instead, just falling because of you and sharply crashing with a floor would make him rather cautious around you and keeping a distance whether he has anything in his hands.

Believe him or not, he doesn’t need another ditsy and erratic person around him—like a certain leader from a certain dorm, who happens to create a mess anytime, anywhere.

So, let someone else be the protagonist of the story.

In that situation, you may be a side character that gets its way through obstacles and classic borders of story scheme and is much more interesting than the main persona.

That’s how you get his attention.

‎‎‎‎‎‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

2.   Be a help.

Oh, a person that would help him with his chores means to him much more than gold. Sometimes.

“Can I help you anyhow?” you asked when Jamil was going to the kitchen after a daily training with the rest of the dorm. He lifted his eyebrow, waiting for further explanation. “I mean with cleaning or something.”

Jamil glanced at you, not sure about your intentions.

Who would like to do something to help without having something in return? With only your will? No, it doesn’t work well in the same sentence.

But some help would be great. So, he just needs to keep sure that he won’t fall into any trap for letting you help, yes?

“Sure,” he said casually, not letting his face nor voice reveal any of his thoughts he run into. “[Name], right? Could you bring and clean the dishes from longue?”

And you helped. You really helped him a lot, staying over two hours till everything was shimmering with cleanliness and your abrupt desire to clean something and be more useful, burned out.

“Thank you for your help,” Jamil said, after correcting the last cushion in the Scarabia’s longue. You flashed him a smile. “But why, if I can ask, did you offer it in the first place?”

He got a quick response in form of a shrug.

“I... don’t really know,” you admitted, glancing at him. “...But you don’t complain, no?”

‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

3.   Be his dish taster.

“The way to a one's heart is through his stomach.”

“Try it,” Jamil handed you a spoon filled with some kind of stew. You consentaneously your opened mouth and drank all content of the spoon. Your mouth filled with many flavours and you couldn’t be sure if you ever ate that good combination in your life. “How was that?”

“Excellent as always.”

You said it all sincerely and maybe would have asked for seconds, if not the fact that Jamil already turned his back to you and got back to pots. He took another spoon and tried the dish himself, clicked his tongue and added more salt.

Once again, he turned to you and handed you a spoon.

“And how was that now?”

“Excellent as always,” you chuckled as he frowned at you.

“Don’t you think that you should add more words to your dictionary? You say the same thing on every dish,” once he said that you finished drying the last plate and preparing silverware for today’s fiesta.

“Don’t you think that I won’t be able to eat anything at the party when I will eat enough of your cooking now to write a poem about each of your culinary masterpieces?” Jamil chuckled slightly at your words.

“So, you don’t want any more?” he teased, but inside he was really flushed. Praises or cajolery, it all makes his heart skip a beat.

Finally, there was someone who appreciated all work he’s done.

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4.   Distract Kalim from him.

“You really shouldn’t go there,” you said, your voice as serious as you could keep it. “I mean, what if there is a monster who wants to kidnap you?”

Kalim cocked his head a little, considering your words. After a while, he nodded, fully convinced by your argument.

“You’re right,” he said. “I will warn others about this..!”

Kalim turned on his heel and spotted some people returning from morning classes. He ran to them, greeting them and walking with them as he tried to introduce the situation.

Still not believing Kalim fall for your words, you were standing alone in the centre of the corridor, a bit dumbstruck to discover the excuse Jamil came up with work.

“...Are you sure, you don’t want to tell him that some student’s from other dorm are here?” you asked as if saying to yourself your thoughts aloud.

But there was someone, someone who was hiding behind a big potted palm. He only gave you thumbs up as a preventative measure if there was still a chance that Kalim didn’t just dash through the halls to talk with some dorm students.

Jamil only looked at you and mouthed “No. Party. Today.” and quietly shifted to the corner, where the wall hid him and he could finally get up.

Mission accomplished.

‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

5.   Get rid of bugs for him.

“[Name],” Jamil called out to you, bursting through the door to your room. He looked very pale and panic was staying still in his eyes. “Would you be so kind to... deal with an intruder?”

You frowned a little before biting back a sigh. At first, you were concerned. Even Kalim getting in a serious mess didn’t make him react that seriously. But then you remembered that there was one thing that could make Jamil call you out of nowhere, acting like in an emergency. Emergency only in eyes of few.

Bugs.

Jamil never admitted to you that he is scared of them, but every time you brought up the topis, he snapped his fingers at it, saying that insects just aren’t his favourite kind of animal.

“Hmm~ Maybe after I finish this chapter,” you said, conspicuously turning a page of the book you were reading and with all your will trying not to smile nor to look at the wincing expression Jamil was wearing.

“[Name],” he said, his voice shaking with anger or frustration. “Go there right now or I will make sure you won’t get today’s dinner.”

...No dinner?

“Yes, mum,” you said putting the textbook aside and getting up from the comfortable couch.

Of all people, Jamil is probably the only one—well, maybe also Trey—that could make those words sound dangerous. Like, no dinner made by the best chef in Scarabia? It would be pure agony.

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6.   Have competitions.

“Aren’t you a little too good in this game?” you asked, regretfully placing pieces of the game back to the initial places.

He gave you a smile that slowly turned into a smirk, as you groaned at the next round you have lost. You flopped on the big pillow, all your will to play destroyed, as you sank between really cosy material.

“I told you I won’t give you a head start,” Jamil said, his steady voice mixed with amusement. “You even told me that you don’t want me to go easy on you before the game started.”

“Too bad,” you clicked your tongue at his response. “I was sure that after watching you play with Kalim, I remembered your tactics.”

You’ve watched at least eight rounds of Jamil and Kalim playing this game, and when it was coming to end, you were almost sure you understood and remembered the technique he was using in certain situations.

But, to your disappointment, it looked like he – even without using any of his tricky cards in his sleeve – was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, because, after three moves, you knew that probably all three were wrong when the opponent was Jamil.

“You gained nothing by it. Of course, I lost to him or... there would be a trouble,” he exclaimed. “You are different.”

“Oh, thank you. I can lose but he can’t, huh?” you frowned at him as he almost choked on the surprise he felt by hearing your response.

“...Yeah, that’s it. Just it.”

‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

7.   Have study sessions together.

“One class had a test before us,” you said scrolling through your class chat group. “They said that there wasn’t any question about these dates.”

Jamil scribbled down years of the most important magic wars, from time to time looking at you who were listing some test exercises and feeling somehow unmotivated to even properly open a history book.

Your notebook was lying in front of you, today’s lesson topic on the top of the page and many detailed doodles on its margin.

Once again... what was the unit you are having an exam about?

“It doesn’t mean, we won’t get a question about that,” Jamil tried to convince you, sliding textbook your way. “Now, read that aloud, while I prepare notes.”

You blinked twice as if woken up from daydreaming. Were you daydreaming?

“Are you sure..? I mean, all I will do is reading. Wouldn’t you rather want us to read it silently and then share our notes after this?”

“Don’t think about it much. I really like your voice,” he said it so thoughtlessly you weren’t sure if said it as an unarguable fact or just his smooth talker abilities were showing off, “and gave me your notes for the last exam so we’re even. And you won’t do any good notes when you’re sulking over this exam like that.”

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8.   Remind him to take breaks.

“You won’t get out of here,” you exclaimed spreading your arms as shielding a door from him. “Not a chance.”

Jamil stood a feet next to you, grimace stretching on his lips as he knew what’s coming up.

“I have to go, [Name].”

He tried to get through you, lightly removing you of his way. He wasn’t a fan of using force on anyone, and he was a hater of using force on you.

Much more than a speakable argument, you were pushing each other closer or further from the door, having a staring contest and reciting all the things he had done in the past two days; except for his daily duties and with the upcoming birthday party of few students of Scarabia who happen to have a celebration in the same day, the number of tasks he was given was overwhelming.

“Stop it!” you protested, trying to push him back. “I am seriously worried about you! Please... take a break.”

Every time he was coming closer to the exit, you stepped back, blocking his way, bumping into him and having to try again.

“You know I have a lot of work to do,” he said, finally stepping back and giving you a break from trying to separate him from the door. “I can’t just give up all my duties, even if I would love a break.”

“I can do it for you,” you quickly offered. “But please, now, go to sleep and don’t you dare touch anything related to school or cleaning.”

...What a weird request.

When was the last time anyone told him to take a break?

He doesn’t remember.

But now, he can say it was recently, all thanks to you.

‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

9.   Promise.

It was really hard for him once all his hard work to keep a high position within the dorm students suddenly dropped after his overblot accident.

“[Name]...”

However, the thing he regretted the most was hurting you. Taking the whole dorm under his unique magic spell, the hypnosis also affected you, making you another servant of his. Even you weren’t the one he ordered a lot, you felt betrayed that even the friendship you two developed didn’t stop him from overblotting.

And if he knew that you would avoid him like fire after the accident, he would probably hesitate a lot.

His throat tightened as he saw you one day in the corridor, looking somehow lonely and tired. He dashed to you, beseeching you to talk to him.

“Sorry for asking, but, Jamil, you don’t hate me, right?” you asked with a pain in your voice. You couldn’t even look at his face, feeling the incomprehensible weight in your gaze. “I mean... Do you only act in front of me friendly? ...Like... with Kalim..?”

“No, no, no,” he protested quickly, making it almost sound like a plea. He gently grabbed your hands, praying that you won’t harshly jerk them back because of him. “I don’t hate you. I really like you. I mean every word I said to you.”

The feeling of release struck you like thunder, you took a big breath, your eyes watering. You slowly reached for his touch, finally ending in a hug.

Jamil ran his fingers through your hair, smelling a familiar, reassuring scent of yours. After a while, he whispered a question.

“So... could you please not avoid me anymore? I know it will be hard to bring up the same relationship we had, but... could you give me a second chance?”

“Okay. But under one condition,” you said, slightly backing off from him. Before he could wonder about the term you would require from him, you finished your thought. “You must be honest with me. I... don’t know what will I do if it all turned to be a play...”

“I will,” he replied, putting his whole heart in these two words. “I will always be honest with you. And won’t ever use my unique magic on you.”

You looked up at him, a small smile starting to rise and heart-throbbing more wilder with his words. “Promise?”

“Promise.”

‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎

10.            Make him confess.

“What are you doing this weekend?”

Jamil appeared in front of you, almost like popping out of nowhere, as you were done with today’s lessons and slowly heading to your dorm. He caught up with you, changing his pace to match yours.

“I have no plans. I will be probably sleeping or something,” you answered honestly, shrugging and reminding yourself that you should finally hang out with some people from your class to make sure your social life isn’t all over dead.

You were walking in quietly before Jamil broke silence and spoke up again.

“Would you like to go somewhere?” he asked his voice only giving a hint of nervousness—it was nothing compared to the stress he felt inside. It was just a “yes or no” question, he knew that he will meet in future many amazing people like you and shouldn’t be stressed, but having someone so dear to him being asked for a meeting where he will try to finally out find his feeling... it is stressful.

“Hehe~ what, are you asking me on the date?” you teased, but much more than mocking, you were hoping for an answer. For the honest answer, he promised you.

“...And what if I am?” he asked, his voice a bit hushed, but steady.

You felt how heat was coming all the way up to your cheeks, although you tried your best not to let anything more, as if a blush wasn’t obvious enough, know how excited and spellbound you are.

“Then, your wish is my command.”