#I had to rewrite the first letter of chapter 2 like 3 times

[midnightwind]

me: oh, the Crows are stationed in cities usually so it wouldn't be out of line to say my Rook de Riva doesn't know how to ride a horse

*remembers they're annoying rich people*

me: ... okay, so Rook now just hates horses-

[beastimusprojects]

Lets try this one more time.

Going back and rewriting some stuff because I'm not fond of the direction I was going. Specifically, we had a really weird distribution of character time, and just chapters that didn't really do anything. And I ended up with a situation where I didn't have a way to do the stuff I wanted to do without just doing a bunch of talking scenes in a row.

So here's the first 2 chapters, again. I'll try to get chapter 3 done today, but it's where the major rewrites need to start.

Chapter 1: A Beautiful night.

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               Phoenix finally relaxed.

               As she watched the moon slide over the sun, she relished the fact that she was now, truly, wonderfully alone. More alone than anyone has been in a long time I think.

               There are, of course, ways to be alone not requiring physical distance, and ways of being together that overcome any distance. But it had been a decade since Phoenix had been together in any of those ways, barring a few times, but those had turned out to be false.

               Physically though, I’m as alone as anyone could be, sitting here 30 miles from the nearest other person. By all rights, trying to get to me now would be like trying to contact the spirits of the dead. She clutched at her necklace, as she always did when she felt lonely. That’s good. Solitude is safety. It’s been a long time. She let out a long breath as she steeled herself up for the thought. A decade, exactly.

               I’m seventeen now, an adult. She looked around at the island. A second chance, I guess, to build something new. A new life. Safe. Out here.

               We can’t do that alone. Its barely more than a barren rock.

               Ok, that’s fine, we’ll have to go into town for a while, but that’s a small risk, we can mitigate those.

               That’s the name of the game, small risks, small contact, don’t get attached to anyone and return to safety quickly. It won’t happen again like last time. She put her head between her knees. I hate you Karol.

               As Phoenix looked up to seen that the moon had finished its arc, leaving only a ring of fire visible in the newly night sky, a feeling washed over her. Not happiness, and not really peace either, but determination. No, it won’t happen again. In mere hours her first scar would twinge, and many more in the coming weeks, reminding her of the worst moments in her life. This time, I won’t just survive.

               She looked for a place to sleep as she breathed in the crisp, cool air of what was ordained to be the first night of her new life.

            And what a beautiful night it would be.

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               It was of course, a beautiful night, but even from his perch on top of the headquarters of the Hunters, Orwen saw very little of it. He ignored the brilliant ring of light around the moon, its glimmering reflection in the lake, and he did not notice the glittering swath of stars, like diamonds above. Instead, he looked deeply into a small handheld mirror as he ran his finger across his scar.

               A letter lay at his feet, opened and read, a Condemnation, a sanction for public execution. As a Hunter, this was all he needed. If it had not come that evening, maybe he would have forgotten, no, not forgotten, but moved on. Duty is always to be the driving force of a Hunter. That was rule three, petty vengeance was beneath him, but now, the order was set, Phoenix Alkaryl was to be his next mark. And the hunt would be sweet. He would prove once more that he was the best of the Hunters, that he deserved the title of Nitehawk.

               You know, it’s kind of funny, the Hunter’s Mark is supposed to only fall on the best, but this one is the only evidence that I am not the best, my only failure. “You mean nothing” he told himself he was talking to the scar “until I find her.”

               He was not there in the morning.

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               “Dere, I can see you!” Hywel had been sent out to collect the demon again. Ever since he’d been moved to Seeker Headquarters, the thing had been frustrating the living daylights out of him. He shot an arrow up to the top of the wall. I’m sure that my magic is the only reason they brought me here. He was on top of the wall in a second, his arrow in his right hand.

               His left hand was on Dere’s scruff, he always took the shape of a cat, trying to seem cute to distract people. It worked, but only marginally.

                    “Would you believe I was just out for a walk? It’s a very nice night!” Dere exclaimed. It curled up to try to seem cuter. It would be dropping the act as soon as it didn’t think it improved its chances.

               “No, I don’t believe the words of demons, especially not ones who I catch trying to escape.”

               “Oh, you’re always so serious, I was just out for a bit of fun.”

               Hywel took only a little bit of pleasure in stuffing Dere into the carrying cage as he said “oh, and I see that your idea of fun is tormenting people.”

               “There’s nothing else to do in this god-forsaken place.”

               “You see, you say things like that to try to get people to take pity on you, but then we have to remind ourselves that if you were free, your idea of fun would be to grow a thousand feet tall and bat villagers around until they pass out from the pain, when you would then eat them.”

               “”

               “Oh, nothing to say to that do you?”

               “I am not a demon of lies, I’m a demon of greed, it does me no good deny that you just described exactly my idea of fun.”

               After this moment of bluntness, Dere took to screaming profanities for the rest of the duration of the walk back to its cell.

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               Chapter 2: And a Wonderful Morning. ______________________________________________________________

               There’s nothing. Here. But. Blackberries! Phoenix was kind of mad about that fact, so mad in fact that she lit the nearest bush on fire with a clap of her hands.

               She took a few breaths, it’s fine, it’s fine, I wanted some meat, but I won’t starve. She walked back to her gondola and rustled around in her bags a little, coming up with some potatoes, onions, carrots, and a head of cabbage. You see, it won’t be that bad once we fry these up a little. She gathered some firewood, there were in fact, trees, so she could get enough wood to make a fire at least. I wish I’d had the sense to get an axe, if we have to build a house, we’re going to need one. Such concerns were, for the moment, however, pushed to the back of her mind as she started chopping vegetables.

               Cooking was one of the things Phoenix enjoyed the most. Fire had always fascinated her, mostly due to her powers. It engrossed her in a way that most things didn’t. Fire, used to make, and not unmake, it hearkens back to a simpler, more complex time, one of less violence, of more love, that is to say, the future, which if we do not make it, will be forever within our hearts. Her father had said that line many times, though she’d never understood, cooking was one of the first things he had taught her.

               Once the vegetables had been sliced, Phoenix roasted them over the fire in her pan.

               I’m going to have to go into town tomorrow, I need to buy more food if nothing else. But if I can get a few sheep and some chickens, I can probably stay here for a while and not have to go back. I really don’t want to go to town right now though.

               She watched the fire and put those thoughts away for now.

______________________________________________________________

               Orwen was known for being fast, but right now he was mostly just frustrated. He had tracked slippery prey before, but Phoenix Alkaryl was one of a kind. A night and a day and he could still only narrow her location to about a quarter of The Sky, a pitiful performance by The Nitehawk.

               Doesn’t matter how long it takes. I will find her.

            He was pouring over a map (the mirror laid just north of Levias) as he sat on the 11:45 ferry from Nerestar and Dorsinli, a convenient service which, 6 months ago, when Nerestar had been in Alliance territory, he couldn’t have used. He was glad the Free Cities were winning the war, if for no other reason than it made his job easier, the Alliance had made it clear they would not sanction Hunter activity in their territory. Now, Phoenix couldn’t be anywhere in Alliance territory, ever since he had killed his last mark, Scout the Seeker, the Alliance had closed their borders to all travel, Phoenix was supposed to be a good navigator, but no one got past Alliance gusters. So at least one thing was in his favor.

               If she’s this far off the map, she probably wanted to disappear. So, she went outward. If she made it all the way to the Outer Rim she could be on any number of islands.

               Oh, we’re here, I’d never thought they were that close.

               As he left the boat, he caught a glimpse down a dark alley of something he’d never seen before. A tall woman, wearing golden chainmail, one side of her face covered in burns, with three of her limbs replaced with prosthetics. Their eyes met, and she smiled with one half of her face. A Valkyrie, they were all supposed to be on the Levian front, the war was picking up steam there too over some drama about the missing prince. He tried to walk quickly away, but as he turned a corner, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

               “Excuse me, you are the Nitehawk, yes? You’re looking for a girl named Phoenix, right? The one who gave you The mark?”

“Indeed.”

“I know where to find her.”

No way, even if they did, why would they know? But if they did know, they wouldn’t tell me. No harm in asking about it though.

“Where?”

“Asera.” Makes as much sense as anywhere else, but no way it’s that easy.

“Why do you know that?”

“We have an interest in her, we’ve been tracking her for a while.”

“And why tell me?”

“You ask a lot of questions.” She raised her eyebrow.

“There is no trust, only favorable circumstance.” Rule 7

The Valkyrie frowned “We can’t catch her without your speed.”

Transparency or an attempt to play to my ego? Well, it wouldn't work anyway.

“Thank you for the information.” He turned to go but felt her hand on his shoulder.

“You misunderstand, I am to accompany you.” That’s not good.

“All right, we leave at once then.”

She shook her head “I have a few matters to attend to beforehand. Meet me by the northern gate.”

Probably don’t want to piss off a Valkyrie, I’ll play along for now, but if anything seems off, I’ll ditch her. “Ok.”

______________________________________________________________

            Guarding Dere was hell, and Hywel had been booked for a full week of it, some sort of hazing ritual he guessed. In every way, the thing was pure evil, you could almost feel badness radiating off it. Even just sitting close to it made you numb, like all the feeling was being sucked out of you. If you met its eyes, they weren’t really eyes at all, just pools of infinite empty blackness, more than just nothing themselves, also threatening to make you into nothing. And its smile was dreadful, you knew it was happy with itself, and when you saw it smiling, you couldn’t even hate it, the hate would drain away before you could replenish it. All you could feel was nothing. A vile creature.

               And then there was its voice. It didn’t make any sound; you heard it in your head. It didn’t say anything of any consequence, but it seemed to know everything about you. Or sometimes it would say the most utterly outrageous things, but that was the trouble, after a while of hearing, you sometimes wouldn’t know the difference.

            It was evil. In its most concentrated and loathsome form. Precisely what the Seekers were out to eradicate. Or so they say. Seems like they mostly are just fighting the war. Capturing and killing things like Dere was what Hywel had signed up for. Though the job mostly consisted of long guarding of the one that had already been captured. He longed to be out with one of the capture teams, or even out fighting in the war, something where he was doing something for someone, where he felt like he was helping.

Sometimes I hate this job.

               We aren’t that different you know. We’re both just stuck here, powerless to really go anywhere. It’s the worst feeling. I know you wish you had the power to go out and help people. You could. All you’d have to do is say the word.

               I’m gonna stop you right there, Dere. You aren’t wrong, we are both kinda trapped here, but we’re here for opposite reasons. You had to be dragged here, because if you were out, you’d go on a murder rampage. I’m here by choice because I want to stop things like you. You are fundamentally evil, and I will never make a deal with you, because I’m not that kind of person.

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@brokendarkfairyempressforever

@hijabi-flavored-nerd

Bear with me.

[solavelyan]

I was tagged to do a fic author self rec with 5 of my personal favorites by @crackinglamb! I wrote rarepair stuff I really liked last year and feel like some other stuff aged well, so I'm gonna go for it. (And it's all Dragon Age, so I'm doing this on ye olde sideblog whee.)

Solas/F!Trevelyan is kind of what I hang my hat on around here a little bit, so I'll start with those. Most of the time the Trevelyan in question is my best girl, Thayet. She's not my most self-indulgent OC but she's definitely up there.

pull the moon to the waves (Explicit, Solas/F!Trevelyan, 10,640 words) - A canon divergent fic where Solas and Thayet admit their feelings for each other (kind of) during the journey from Haven to Skyhold, and that kicks off the romance instead of the Fade kiss in Skyhold.

This fic ruined my life a little bit because apparently if you write the Inquisitor getting fisted in a tent one time, three years later your friends are still telling "tentfic" and "fisting" jokes like they're getting a tax writeoff for it. It's also just the story that seems to keep coming back! It's actually a rewrite of an older fic called "the responsible thing" (objectively a horrible title but I'm not changing it now) from 2018 that I did as a kink meme fill, and it's getting a second rewrite as part of a longer fic that I'm working on right now but isn't getting posted yet.

Bittersweet & Strange (Mature, Solas/F!Trevelyan, 37,188 words) - A Beauty and the Beast retelling where Skyhold is the enchanted castle and Fen'Harel is the beast that haunts it.

I wrote this in less than 2 months for the @dacreateathon in 2022, and there's a part of me that would love to do a rewrite to let it be longer (...and smuttier), but I'm intensely proud of how it turned out given the time frame. I actually had Lamb and @ir0n-angel beta this one for me to help me stay on schedule, which was invaluable, I never, ever would have finished it without them being my accountability buddies and spellcheckers. I really really enjoyed writing it and think very fondly of it.

Hawke is Dead/Not Dead (Explicit, Fenris/F!Hawke, 3,224 words) - Fenris and Hawke both make for Skyhold after Adamant, Fenris because Hawke is dead, Hawke because Hawke is alive.

I wrote this for my very first exchange ever, @dasmutquisition, in 2022 (which currently has open sign-ups, btw!). I'm so fond of it and I honestly think the best parts of it are before any of the smut happens.

dying now a second time (Mature, F!Trevelyan/M!Lavellan, 17,058 words) - Taking place mostly pre-Inquisition during Thayet Trevelyan's time as a Templar, this one is mostly from the perspective of the First Enchanter of Ostwick Circle, who is a very, very canon divergent M!Lavellan, Aeryk. Told in four vignettes, it focuses on the requited but ultimately tragic love affair between them in the Circle and in the aftermath of its fall.

Aeryk is my wife's OC, so this is part creative endeavor, part personal love letter. We write together a lot, and over the last 10 years Aeryk and Thayet have gone from kind of a silly ship that we fell into during an RP game to something rather serious and dramatic that makes it into... pretty much everything we do together. They've both changed so much over the years, and DA!Aeryk has been a vague figure in Thayet's backstory for years before I really sat down to hammer out details. The wife gave me her endorsement and a lot of freedom to add details to him for this continuity.

Although it might say something about me that I got her permission to use Aeryk for fic and immediately used it to basically edge him for 17,000 words before metaphorically murdering him. So, uh. Sorry, buddy. I love u. It's a really good fic, though, I swear.

more and smaller ways of dying (Explicit, F!Trevelyan/M!Lavellan, 5,011 words) - An alternate version of chapter 3 of "dying now a second time", where Aeryk is cured of his Tranquility by the Breach and he and Thayet fuck on the floor of the Redcliffe Chantry after dispatching Alexius.

I felt bad about the other fic. Felt like they deserved it. And honestly this isn't even the only time I'm spinning off from "dying now...", I'm halfway through the first chapter of a fic that starts just after the end of the first chapter. I love them. Make them kiss. Mwuah.

I'm going to tag @volkoss, @queenaeducan, @dismalzelenka, @jellydishes, @sulky-valkyrie, and whomever else would like to do it :D

[palfriendpatine66]

Making of Monday aka why is Criminal Minds taking so long!?

Let’s talk Criminal Minds - my obikin serial killer au - which features the most planning I’ve ever done and will probably ever do again for a fic. More specifically, over the choice to use a nonlinear timeline. I'm going to break it down below the cut:

The premise of the story was always Anakin becomes obsessed with serial killer Obi-Wan while he’s in prison through sending letters back and forth. I knew the letters were going to be an important part of the story, showing how their relationship developed before they really met. I started writing everything chronologically, where at first the story was told in a large part through their letters back and forth (and also had a lot of being in their minds and seeing their reactions to the letters) and their own separate experiences. Then the story shifted when Obi-Wan was released from prison, as it was told through their experiences together. 

It went something like this: 1. Intro (Post breakup Anakin watching a true crime special and deciding he’s going to write to reporter/imprisoned killer Obi-Wan) 2. First Letter /  Obi-Wan’s WTF reaction 3. They meet for the first time in jail 4. Anakin makes his first kill, calls Obi-Wan to tell him about it 5. Obi-Wan is released from jail 6. Anakin drags him back into a life of killing - they become partners in crime 7. They become partners carnally 8. Anakin outgrows Obi-Wan’s mentorship 9. They run into Padme 10. The End

Then I decided I wanted to have a “flashback” chapter that showed Obi-Wan’s first kill. I wanted to contrast his first with Anakin’s and at first I just slipped it in before Anakin’s first kill. But once the idea of flashing back and jumping forward was introduced it was easy to realize I could do it with the whole story. I knew @sendpseuds would tell me to go with it and tell the story I wanted to tell - that there was no reason to stick to chronological order just because it was easier. I argued with them a lot in my head because I knew it was going to be a giant pain in the ass once I started messing with it. But I finally got lots of advice from them, and they were right of course, it was so worth the effort. I played with the order of events A LOT, tore my hair out, and ended up with this (at one point):

Phone call - Obi-Wan finds out Anakin has killed

First letters / they establish a relationship

Obi-Wan is released from jail and doesn’t want to kill

Flashback to Obi-Wan’s first kill

Anakin convinces Obi-Wan = Partners in Crime

Their first meeting (in jail)

Partners Carnally

Anakin’s first kill

Obi-Wan’s descent to killing

Anakin’s descent to killing

Anakin outgrows Obi-Wan’s mentorship

Padme run in

The end

I didn’t love it, but it was closer. 

Once the outline was in this order the letters I had already written didn’t make quite as much sense anymore, at least not in the order they were in, and it was hard to figure out where to put them in relation to different events. I started rewriting some of them and reached the major turning point in writing this fic. I shifted my focus from using the letters to introduce the main events of the chapter to highlighting a theme within it. I turned the purpose of the letters into showing the reader something I wanted them to learn about Obi-Wan or Anakin (or their relationship), and then have that element be at play in the “event” half of the chapter. It didn’t change the story I wanted to tell but it shifted the shape I wanted it to take. I was super super excited by these changes and took them to @yourfavoritefridge who helped me reorder and draw out specific themes.

I ended up with something like: 

Anakin’s First Letter / Anakin’s Phone call

Obi-Wan writes: Don’t Be Like me / Flashback to Obi-Wan’s first kill

Anakin writes: I Know Your Secrets / Their first meeting in jail

Anakin writes: I’m Not Enough / Obi-Wan’s decent to killing

Obi-Wan Writes: Prove Yourself / Anakin’s first kill

Obi-Wan Writes: Chill Out Kid / A killer is born

Anakin Writes: Identity / Obi-Wan is released and reluctant to kill

Anakin Writes: You’re A Part of Me/ They become partners carnally

Obi-Wan Writes: Better Yourself  / murder competition

Anakin Writes: Poor Me / Padme run in

Obi-Wan Writes: Commitment / The End

Some of these chapters have been consistent from the get go. For example, Partners Carnally (soon to update as chapter 6) was one of the first scenes I wrote for this story, and I ended up writing a letter to compliment the unhinged sentiments of the chapter that’s basically been the same ever since. But largely as I’ve written the letters they’ve really driven the events of the story, sometimes changing the events of the chapter themselves to reflect the theme, or change the order I wanted the chapters presented in. 

My current working outline (complete with asterisks) is:

Phone call

expectations vs. reality - Obi-Wan’s release/reluctance to kill

[anakin: they’ll regret it] – Obi-wan’s first kill

[Anakin: Identity] – Partners in crime 

[Take control] —Obi-wan’s descent into killing

[Anakin: you’re a part of me] - - - partners carnally

*** 7-10 subject to change??? ***

7. [Anakin: I know what you did] --- 1st meeting in jail

8. [Obi-Wan: Prove yourself ] ---  Anakin’s first kill

9. [Obi-Wan: chill out,] --- Anakin becomes a killer and ironically chills out

10.[ ?better yourself? ] --- Murder competition / fuckfest

11.[Anakin: Padme/sob story] ---Padme encountered

12.[Obi-Wan: you deserve more] --- commitment/the end

[rhaegonapologist]

rhaegon fic notes

on ch 3 of my rhaegon fic.

This was originally the end of chapter 2, but a comment on ao3 let me know that the Vale was ruled by a woman and that it was an important plot point so I had to change it:

"

All goodwill for her brother dissipated when she sat down for dinner. 

“We heard you received letters from the young Prince Aegon,” Lord Arryn said.

His wife cut in, “Does that mean you intend to prolong your stay here? We can prepare more fitting quarters for you.” 

Rhaenyra was rudely reminded of her place in the Seven Kingdoms. Of course. To the Arryns, the little Prince was learning how to read and write now, and it wouldn’t be long until he would learn how to be a proper King, in his proper place in the Red Keep. Unlike his sister, who traveled across the lands, seemingly looking for a new home to roost. 

She felt the resentment burn up in her all over again, stoked anew. 

"

However, I'm happy with the new rewrite. Maybe Rhaenyra doesn't need a heavy handed "your brother has a cock and you don't" moment right now to wish Aegon didn't exist. Maybe she only needs to experience Aegon being a brat to have the same sentiment, after all she's been an only child her whole life.

I also wanted to explore Alicent's motherhood after last night's episode. god, theyre making me want to scrap this and just write aligon, so many issues there. I imagine she was trying her best but she was still so young, and I wonder what Rhaenyra was like in those early days. If she could stomach her best friend now a mother.

I feel like Alicent has always had a hard time loving her firstborn, her most difficult child. He represents so many things, maybe the moment he was born was the moment it truly all felt wrong. Maybe she went through post-partum depression and did not know how to deal.

Rhaenyra feeding him to fire mirrored the violence in the first chapter where she almost killed him and it was nice to connect that thread. alicent's paranoid rhaenyra will kill him because rhaenyra's been doing crazy shit like this with aegon since day one lol.

however i feel like this time rhaenyra wasn't really serious and she was doing it more for alicent anyway, aegon's not really anything to her yet. and maybe this scene represents how deep down she instinctually accepts him as targ alrdy, bc she knows he won't burn that easily in the fire. i imagine daemon put her through similar dangerous acts. alicent had experienced rhaenyra's recklessness before, but now that she's part of the family, it's even crazier up close.

i also wanted to show how young they both were too. i mean aegon's not a toy but, rhaenyra playing around and pretending to drop him was childish.

[queenofbaws]

Good morning (...or night?), for Like Wringing Blood, what is 16, 17 & 20? Hope you're doing good :)

well good morning-night yourself!!! ;P i'm all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed today, whatever the time may be, and getting to chat about the hacketts only makes it that much better!!! hehehe

16. What was the easiest scene to write?

hands down, the easiest time i've had getting a scene down is...something i haven't posted yet, ALAS! i'm so excited to finally get there, but...i've referenced it before, and i'll reference it again by simply saying it involves OLD! MEN! FIGHTINGGGGGGGG!!!!! 🥳

when i first started writing all in the family, the oneshot-turned-whole-fic precursor to like wringing blood, this scene came to me so...fully. and vibrantly. and intensely. that i decided i had to write like wringing blood, if only for this one scene to live. it wouldn't do as a oneshot, not in my mind, and it needed context so that it could (eventually) have catharsis, and just...i'm very, very excited to get to the old men fighting. and i hope, of course, that all y'all out there will enjoy the old men fighting, and i hope it'll show, how the fic as a whole kind of grew from that one angry, angry seed.

17. What was the hardest scene to write?

so my cop-out answer for this one is this: literally any scene that involves travis and constance interacting. lmao. i've for sure commented on that before, but man. it's just. a lot. having the two of them in a scene together. any time i'm working on something that features both of them heavily, the vibes are just...rancid, and i always end up having to get up and walk off some of the grimacing. it's not just a "shitty parent interacting with their kid" thing either, believe me, because i do not have the same issue with say, jed and chris. this is a constance-and-travis-specific issue and BOY. it makes getting through certain chapters...ROUGH!!!

a less generalized answer, though, is that there is another scene i haven't gotten to yet involving chris experiencing some...l...light haunting, let's say. that's non-spoilery enough, i think. chris experiences some light haunting during the course of camp, and i am having a hell of a time getting that scene down because it's also very alive and very big and very bright in my mind, but conveying it all in words has been a challenge. i keep rewriting it, keep adding things and taking them out, and short of making that particular chapter fuckin 75k words on its own, i think i'm going to continue to struggle with it for a minute, ha!!!

20. What is something you wish more people noticed about this fic?

i just want people to acknowledge that the fiddlers and hacketts being related doesn't only make sense, it exPLAINS SO MANY OF THE PLOT HOLES IN TQ AND

i wish someone would go "OH THAT'S WHERE LAURA GOT THE EYEPA

i would love for anyone to notice that the first letter of every chapter spells out rick astley's never gonna give you up

hehehe okay, for real though, i'm genuinely so flattered and even touched that people have been reading and enjoying this fic at all, given it's (1) not shippy, (2) centered on a really difficult/uncomfortable family dynamic, (3) focusing on characters who are morally grey at best, (4) deeply, deeply ugly at times. that in and of itself is all that i could ask for, truly, because this is such a personal project and so much of my own stuff is sort of being worked through within it, so anytime anyone says anything about it, my heart grows three sizes <3

the only itty bitty thing i'll say, though, and it's not really me hoping people notice so much as i hope they'll realize as time goes on, is that...nothing in this fic is there accidentally. this is not a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants story, everything in like wringing blood has been planned out and put where it is for a very, very specific reason. if those reasons aren't apparent yet, it just means we haven't gotten there ;) so if there are details that have stuck out, if there are pieces-parts that feel...conspicuous, that's all by design. i have so many planning docs for this fuckin fic, i have been sowing so many seeds. can't wait until it's time to reap them :)

behind-the-scenes fic asks!

[gekidasa]

Fic Stats Game

Thank you for the tag, @jaimebluesq!

rules: give us the links to your fic with the most hits, second most kudos, third most comments, fourth most bookmarks, fifth most words, and fic with the fewest words.

1 - Most Hits: And I will stay with you / And you will keep me close (or as I call it, Sangcheng Roommates AU). I was always somewhat surprised that this fic took off like it did, since it was a threadfic that got out of control, based on a rather silly premise (what if they were ROOMMATES at the CR!! And then unknowingly started dual cultivating to the point htat NHS developed a core earlier). The first half WAS entirely written as a thread (very unwieldly!) that I then cleaned up and separated into chapters.

And then... I will forever wonder if I should have left it at that. Except that the actual point beyond the silliness was that this was actually a canon divergence which would eventually lead to things going down differently when the Wen attack LP. I never actually wanted to get into THAT part of it, but I did choose to go into what would happen when NHS came to LP in the interim between the CR and the Wen indoctrination camp. And I also decided that they would end up betrothed. But despite researching, it was only after having written a lot more that I found out about the 3 letters and 6 etiquettes, and that... changed things. So I had to decided whether to/how much to rewrite. Anyway, I got bogged down. It's been hard. Currently there is just one chapter (part of which is already written) and maybe an epilogue to go, but... it's been awhile. I somehow haven't been in the mood to write this.

But I do plan to finish out what I'd planned. I just get distracted by newer ideas that maybe better fit how my headcanons and knowledge evolve.

2 - 2nd Most Kudos: When a secret isn't really secret. And I am ALSO continually surprised by how popular this turned out to be. It's a short little Touya/Yukito fic in which they are already a thing and Yukito sleeps over, and then has an unexpected middle of the night conversation with Fujitaka (spoilers: Yuki didn't realize that Fujitaka has been well aware of how he and Touya feel about each other for a long time). The reason its popularity is surprising is that Touya is barely in it, most of it is just Yuki and Fujitaka talking... but I admit, it IS rather sweet, like CCS tends to be.

3 - 3rd Most Comments: How Jiang Wanyin avoided being blacklisted by matchmakers. My current baby of the moment! I'm having so much writing this, I call my sangcheng Betrothal AU, and it's also a fairly silly premise. It was inspired by a tweet where a guy says his parents were trying to play matchmaker, so he told them he was gay... and then they came back with a binder full of men for him to potentially date. So in this one, JC yells in the middle of a meeting with matchmakers that he doesn't want to marry any woman. He THINKS he means "right now", but YZY takes it to mean he's a cutsleeve. She has the matchmakers prepare a list of young men to potentially be the consort of Jiang-zongzhu, and he winds up betrothed to his friend NHS. This very much plays into my headcanon that JC is ace/demi (demi, in this case) and not very selfaware about his preferences. It's also a canon divergence: YZY and Yinzhu survived the massacre of LP, and JC never lost his golden core.

4 - 4th Most Bookmarks: The Half-Eaten Peach Longs to be Filled with Cream. This is just straight-up sangcheng porn. 😂

The morning that a discussion conference at Qinghe is set to start, NHS asks JC to fill him up and plug him up so he'll feel it all day. Halfway through the day, he gets a refill.

5 - 5th Most Words: Hold the doors. My one NieLan fic so far. Also porn. Modern AU, LXC has moved into a new building and has noticed his hot neighbor NMJ. One day they ride the elevator together and NMJ helps him with his groceries. And then LXC gives dage a beer and a blowjob.

Bonus - Fewest Words: The final gift. Super short (201 words) post-canon Kamen Rider Ryuki fic, about Kitaoka's fate in a timeline without the Rider War. Yes, that sentence means it's both post-canon and canon-divergence. If you know Ryuki, you understand why. It's also Kitaoka/Reiko but more about Kitaoka himself.

Tagging @angie-s-g @revesdelimonade @apocrypha73 @lostheartkix @trixietricoter @mulberrylotus

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, May 15

KENDRA: We can return to your Watcher for our orders. BUFFY: I don't take orders. I do things my way. KENDRA: No wonder you died.

~~BtVS 2x10 “What's My Line? Part 2”~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Life, Sometimes (Buffy/Spike, G) by PriclessSpike

Demon Slime (Buffy, PG) by badly_knitted

MedWhump May 2024 Day 14: Bedside Vigil (Buffy/Riley, M) by MadeInGold

The Soul Selects Her Own Society (Spike/Drusilla, T) by Cornerofmadness

[Chaptered Fiction]

In the Company of Witches and Slayers:, Chapter 36/200 (Willow/Tara, E) by VladimirHarkonnen (TheLightdancer)

Rewind, Chapter 3/? (Angel/Cordelia/Wesley, not rated) by Enigmatist

Dawn Rising, Chapter 64/? (Buffy, LOTR xover, T) by Luna_delCielo

Infinitely, Chapter 52/? (Willow/Tara, M) by Laragh

[French language] Do as Romans do, Chapter 27 (Dawn/Spike, T) by OldGirl-NoraArlani

Lindsey's Pride, Chapter 9 (Angel, Lindsey, T) by TinyDancer96

Lightning in a Bottle, Chapter 11 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by violettathepiratequeen

A Ripple In Time, Chapter 30 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by CheekyKitten

Encased by Sunshine, Chapter 36 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by acb6293

Blood and dust, Chapters 10-11 (Buffy/Spike, 18+) by Blackoberst

Lightning in a Bottle, Chapter 11 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by violettathepiratequeen

The Kitten That Killed Slayers, Chapter 10 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by Desicat

Stranger in her Body, Chapter 1 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by Desicat

Love Shackles, Chapter 1 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by Gabby

Encased in Sunshine, Chapter 37 COMPLETE! (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by Acb6293

[Images, Audio & Video]

Meme: A Spike post because this account is also about him (worksafe) by jamie-the-scene-kid

Gifset: Cordelia Chase & Buffy Summers || Pantone (worksafe) by coffygifs

Icons: Oz - Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, S02E22 (worksafe) by editfandom

Artwork: Spike & Buffy lock screens (worksafe) by nightvisionsofthepast

Artwork: Buffy drawing I finished yesterday!! (worksafe) by falsestardust

Video: Buffyverse | Difussion by Jess Wilson

Banner/Manip: Night Riding (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by all choseny

Artwork: Spike sketch (worksafe) by sanzosin

[Reviews & Recaps]

PODCAST: HELLMOUTH HOMOS: This Year's Girl/Who Are You? by Fear Queers

PODCAST: Episode 56: Lonely Heart by Gym Was Cancelled

PODCAST: She Likes Cheese... Same, Girl (S4E7) by It Stakes Two

[Fandom Discussions]

i feel like all the other people in angel are overreacting to cordelia’s vision-related pain by aardvaark

I’m a Xander “kick his ass” apologist by baelavelaryon

[anon ask] I wish Riley got to meet Kendra. Just two rule followers in love with Buffy answered by riley-summers

watching btvs and i love oz by rsbry-beret

One thing that annoys me about how offended everyone is by Anya and Spike having sex by nicnacsnonsense

I feel like [Joyce]’s got fair game hating Giles by ssaalexblake

The Ensoul angel or kill him thing is one hell of an argument by ssaalexblake, lovecanbesostrange

xander was shitty for not relaying Willow’s message when she trusted him to But... by ssaalexblake

I wish we could have seen what letter Buffy left for Joyce because it may give context... by ssaalexblake

[...] they never showed Buffy retaining the knowledge she would have gotten from turning into a noble woman by aphony-cree

Fanatic of a character continued by thetopher

The Undertaker on Buffy? by Walbucks89

"everyone always asks. Why can't you be more like buffy" -faith by Tsole96

Rewrite season 7 by Certain_Advantage799

List of people the First can appear as who could also appear as themselves at the same time by SlytherKitty13

Feeling sorry for Vamps by JacenSolo1701

Any headcanon on the slayers, vampires, demons, etc? by debujandobirds

Clare Kramer as Glory by BeneficialGrade8930

Which character did you want to see more of that left the show/ had minimal screen time? by Remarkable_Mud6377

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Join the editor team :)

[x-ceirios-x]

tony rosenhart

bio, character sheet (coming soon)

face claim images

Tony met the rest of the group at the reunion party hosted at the Penhallow house, spending his time socializing and getting to know a few mutual friends. He mostly stuck with Lian, as he usually did in large gatherings, but he enjoyed talking to Rowan when he met them. He, technically, could have been at the Gard, but thought that invite was more interesting than another meeting of listening to the adults argue.  He was in the Accords Hall a few days later when his uncle, the new Inquisitor Aldertree, was violently killed by a Projection of Valentine Morgenstern, who shouldn’t have been able to kill him but was gaining unspeakable power by the minute. He watched officials take the body away and stayed in the Accords Hall, feeling too heavy to leave and return to his uncle’s house he’d been staying in, now empty. Part of the feeling came from reliving the feelings of losing his sister at a young age, which didn’t help his desperation.  To his surprise, a girl he met at the Penhallow house appeared not much later and came to talk to him. When they first met, he thought she was rather beautiful, though she seemed interested in Sebastian, so he didn’t approach her. Now, they knew Sebastian wasn’t really who he said he was and he’d killed her little brother. They talked for a while, though he wouldn’t consider it talking; just like when he was a kid, when he experienced something significant or traumatizing as that, he couldn’t force words to leave his mouth. They got stuck in his throat and sometimes he felt like he couldn’t breathe, but her presence was surprisingly calming. He wrote in the little notebook he kept with him at all times, writing all sorts of thoughts and ideas down, or simply practicing writing in whatever language he was currently trying to learn. She didn’t seem to mind.  The day of Valentine’s final attack came, and being of age, he left Aline and Lian to fight alongside the Downworlders. When they were getting paired, he ran into a fae he felt was vaguely familiar with: they were a friend of his sister’s, several years ago, and they’d met once during his time in the Seelie Realm when he’d been taken by some rogue fairies that his sister had angered. This one was the one that helped him escape. Since that happened, he’d always been wary around anyone of the Queen’s Court, but he worked past that and fought side by side with the fae who’d saved him years before. 

promise I won't break your heart, 1.9k

isabelle needs a break from tensions in the house and runs into a new friend in the accords hall. he’s different than she’s used to, but she didn’t realize how much the company would help.

family secrets, 3.6k

while sidelined on the search for jace and jensen, isabelle finds herself writing to tony rosenhart, a boy she’d connected with in Idris a few weeks prior. mid-letter-writing, she recieves some unexpexted advice from an unexpected friend.

chapter rewrites

city of glass, chapter 3: amatis

city of lost souls, chapter 1: the last council (part 2)

[myloveforhergoeson]

tysm for the tag <3 i've only ever written the one story so my answers may be redundant, but i can talk about specific chapters of my story!

How many works do you have on A03?

just That's All She Wrote! but if we want to count individual side stories, different pov stories, and the au story that puts me closer to 10 i think!

What's your total word count?

tasw is currently 422,680 words! what!!

What fandoms do you write for?

big time rush! a long time ago i tried to write a that 70s show fic that was hyde/female oc but i got to embarrassed and deleted it lmao. she was the original roxanne (roxanne walters!!) and a few of her traits morphed into creating roxy for tasw. i also attempted a young justice wally west (kid flash)/female oc fic (althea prince) as well but only got through a rewrite of the first episode... all abandoned in favor of that's all she wrote which i think is the best choice :)

Top 5 fics by kudos:

you'll never guess... but that's all she wrote... :) but the most liked chapter on wattpad is the first one! and on here the chapter with the most notes is my most recent chapter, Sick, Sick, Sick!

Do you respond to comments?

i do my very best to!! i love love love comments and as we all know i always have soooo much to say. they make my day so i do my best to give that energy back to the commenter <3

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

None so far... but lots of my chapters have angst! i think some of the angstiest i've ever been was probably chapter 19 where roxy was writing her letters, chapter 22 where roxy and camille get into a fight, and chapter 29 when mag comes to roxys door... can you tell i prefer fluff lolll

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

none so far, but i try my best to end most of my chapters on a happy note if situationally appropriate! i really loved the ending to chapter 18 part 2 (first rames kiss!), the christmas chapter (jersey + declan surprise!), and the slightly angsty but mostly happy end to chapter 14 (rames at the dance -> phone call to kendall)

Do you get hate on fics?

not to my knowledge but tbh i don't really think i'd care. i read a lot of fics as i was growing up and i know what i like and what i don't which is why i started writing tasw in the first place. additionally, i know that i can just close out of something or stop reading or whatever and i don't need to let the author know. but i saw a post the other day about people calling original characters cringe and whatnot and that hurt for a fraction of a second before i realized how much work i've put into my story and how it led me to this blog here and all of you and i felt soooo much better

Do you write smut?

i don't but i sure do read a lot of it lolll. i can hardly write kissing without kicking my feet and giggling and getting all silly about it i can't even imagine how i'd be if i tried to write smut - it would certainly affect the quality of my writing bc i'd be far too embarrassed

Craziest crossover?

i haven't written a crossover but i think there's lots of room for btr crossovers! i think i'm going to write a victorious/icarly/btr crossover just for fun as an additional tasw chapter. there's an episode of icarly where they go to a party in LA and meet the victorious kids - i think i'd be fun to throw btr + rox into the mix :)

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

erm. yes kind of. not the whole thing but mostly just original scenes + a few points of roxy's backstory i've written copied and pasted into another fic i found. still trying to figure how to bring it up to the author in a nice way without them thinking im coming for them...

Have you ever had a fic translated?

i haven't, but how neat would that be! it would certainly be a massive undertaking

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

another thing i haven't done, but it might be cool. not really sure how it'd work out if i tried as i'm a pretty sporadic writer. i also don't do so well with deadlines

All-time favorite ship?

RAMES DUH! lolll jkjk. most of the fics i traditionally read are /ocs or /reader (i just put roxanne in the place of "me") but i've been reading so much btr fic lately and honestly any one of those ships have really been doing it for me lol. been pretty big into house and wilson from house md recently too

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

i am going to do my very very very best to finish everything i've started in my tasw-sphere because i am so dedicated to this project and i desperately want to see it through. i don't see myself undertaking another project like this though... if you can't tell im very particular about my stories, i love them super super long, and i add in so much extra stuff. but my t70s fic was really fun to write when i was (it was basically bad boy x good girl... god im kicking my feet just thinking about it) and i was super super into my young justice fic for a while (silly boy x serious girl? not quite grumpy x sunshine but somewhere along those lines), but i'm not sure those'll ever be worked on again. we'll see!

What are your writing strengths?

is length a strength? i looooove a long fic. maybe that puts me in the detailed category?

What are your writing weaknesses?

i've never really understood grammar and like... good sentence structre? obviously i know how to write lol i don't believe i'm a terrible writer but i feel like i write more of a flow of consciousness instead of well formated sentences. i drag my sentences out so much. i use "as" like once a sentence and it's been starting to drive me crazy

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

english is the only language i speak fluently + i took four years of spanish in school; i think i'd be comfortable writing basic words and sentences in spanish but anything beyond that i don't think is for me. any other language i'd like to include would also be basic things like greetings, colors, or numbers probably and not much beyond just out of respect for people who do speak that language. i wouldn't want to badly butcher something as important as the language someone speaks!!!!! but on a sidenote i love it when i'm reading a story and i have to look up translations though, feels like a little scavenger hunt hehe

First fandom you ever wrote in?

technically t70s but i never published. i'd consider this btr still

Favorite fic you've written?

you'll never guess...

EEE THIS WAS SO MUCH FUN!! i'm tagging anyone who wants to add on; i'd love to hear what you have to say!! <33

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Found this browsing Tumblr. Nobody tagged me, but I wanted to do this anyway.

How many works do you have on A03? 15 (and more to come)

What's your total word count? 1,235,276

What fandoms do you write for? Big Time Rush, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Criminal Case, Harry Potter, Loonatics Unleashed, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012 series), Thunderbirds (1965 series), and Transformers: Prime

Top 5 fics by kudos: The Thunderbird and the Doctor (96), The Adventures of Avery Samuels: Welcome to Grimsborough (94), Save You (74), In the Darkness (72), Take a Shot in the Dark (61) - this is at the time of answering this

Do you respond to comments? I respond to comments on The Thunderbird and the Doctor only. (Because I started it when I only had limited fics and wanted to keep going.) Beyond that, I only reply if someone has a question.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? So far, my completed fics have happy endings, but the angstiest ending will be in The Adventures of Avery Samuels: Welcome to Grimsborough.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Probably The Thunderbird and the Doctor. I gave my couple a happily ever after.

Do you get hate on fics? Not since I've been on AO3.

Do you write smut? Oh God yes

Craziest crossover? Haven't written a crossover

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Oh my God, yes!

Have you ever had a fic translated? No, but it'd be cool if someone wanted to.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? Way back when and it never worked out.

All-time favorite ship? Do shipping canon characters with my OCs count?

What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I feel like I'll finish all my WIPs, but Avery Samuels is going to be my longest story, so it feels daunting.

What are your writing strengths? Apparently, I'm good at cliffhangers.

What are your writing weaknesses? A lot (my confidence is nonexistent)

Thoughts on dialogue in another language? I don't mind it as long as a translation's easily accessible. Never written with another language, but I won't say no to the challenge.

First fandom you ever wrote in? Loonatics Unleashed

Favorite fic you've written? No! Don't make me pick! It's like picking a favourite child!

I nominate @myloveforhergoeson @kristylime @ligercat and anyone else who wants to do it!

[honey-milk-depresso]

Meanie (Azul Ashengrotto x Reader) 8

Part 1,

part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8 (END)

The final chapter. Congratulations for surviving this long with my bullshit-

“Everyone, please place the flower we have given you in their coffin.”

The sunlight was shining brightly in the early morning of NRC’s campus, 

but no happiness was to be found.

Just yesterday, you have died.

And it took a moment for Azul to realize that you were truly gone.

Everyone in NRC lined up in a single file to pay their final respects to you, one by one placing their flower in your coffin.

When it came to Azul’s turn, he had to hold himself from crying. He felt as if you were watching him. If he cried, you’ll cry too, and he doesn’t want you to fully leave this world with sadness and guilt.

He looked at you. Even if you’re dead, you looked as beautiful as ever.

He grabbed your cold hands, and placed the flower in the middle of your chest, before he gently used your hands to cover the flower, as if you are holding it.

“I love you,” he whispered, “I hope you go to a safe place.” And he walked away.

=============================================================

Azul walked back to Octavinelle with Jade and Floyd. They were silent. Yes, even Floyd stayed quiet.

The atmosphere was solemn.

Azul was solemn.

Never in his life have he came across death, let alone, someone he hold close to.

He used to love before.

He went back to his office alone and tilted his head up. Jade and Floyd went back to their rooms.

He’s not crying. He won’t cry for you.

Read it.

He heard something whisper.

“What..?”

The notebook.

He glanced to his right, the notebook labelled “ To Azul Ashengrotto”.

“Read it after they die,” Trey’s words echoed in his head as he recalls.

He grabbed the book.

To Azul Ashengrotto.

He stared at it, hesitantly flipping to the first page.

“I’m rewriting this from the accounts of Y/n, Azul. She asked for it. I hope you’re reading this.

- Trey Clover”

So Trey wrote this book for you to him.

“Azul and I were chilling at Monstro Lounge in the VIP room.

Lmao, he was soooo unlucky with his pulls, and had to answer all my questions and stuff. Apparently he thinks Idia is more handsome than Jade. Ooh~ 

I really loved the fact he wanted to spend time with me although he looks so done. I really appreciate it!”

He snorted. That was so you.

“Azul and I hanged out at the Rose Kingdom. I’m so glad Headmaster allowed me to hang out with him! Sometimes I feel like Headmaster is a dad. 

I had so much fun! Though, it’s kinda embarrassing that Azul spoilt me with so many gifts, and all I did was drag him around. I love the octopus plushie he won for me. It’s so chubby, soft and cute, just like him! 

He also bought me food from Trey’s awesome family bakery, and a really expensive pendent. I feel guilty, but I love it! It’s so pretty!”

He sighed. Really? Chubby?

“Headmaster told me I’m going to die in five months time. I’m really scared. I know I’ve joked about I feel like dying cuz of Professor Crewel’s homework, now facing with death, it feels really scary.

I have to tell everyone right? Headmaster told me he’ll tell my friends, that includes Azul. How would he feel? I don’t want him to feel sad..”

He flipped to the next page.

“Azul, Jade and Floyd came to visit me. Actually EVERYONE did! Even Leona and Idia! Can you believe it?? But I was so happy that Azul and the tweels came.

I rubbed my eyes so hard because I didn’t want them to see me cry. I was just so happy to see them!”

“Trey told me something. Well, an offered to do something for me. 

He knew I had a superrrr big crush on Azul, and he said I should tell him. I was so embarrassed at first, but I’m going to die soon, so I have to confess sooner or later right? 

He told me he’ll write a whole record of me of what I want to tell him, and then I can give it for him to read after I die.

Sounds like a good idea, but also kind of cruel. After I die????

What should I do?”

So that’s what you were talking about with him.

“I got to be discharged!

FINALLY OH MY SEVENSSSSS-

I CAN GET FRESH AIR BEFORE I DIE

DO YOU KNOW HOW BORING IT IS TO BE CHAINED TO A BED, DOING NOTHING UNTIL SOMEONE COMES TO VISIT???

PROFESSOR TREIN’S CLASS IS WAY BETTER-

Azul brought me around the entire campus, and to Octavinelle! And we played UNO! Although I lost a lot... But I’m happy I got to spend time with him and see everyone outside of the infirmary! ^^”

“I went to NRC’s Halloween Celebration!

IT. WAS. SO. COOL!!

There were like flying decorations and good food,

I got to see NRC become so lively and colorful! It was amazing!

Also I got to hang out with Azul and the tweels, and of course, everyone else!

I even got to be part of all the scaring and stuff at the Octavinelle’s scare house! heheheh~ 

I love the big finale, I wish it could last forever.”

“I made up my mind. 

I’m gonna ask Trey to help me write that book. I want Azul to have a piece of me even when I’m gone. I won’t leave him alone, and I’ll do everything in my power to do so.

If Trey is giving me the opportunity to do so, I’ll take it! Though, I should’ve done it from the beginning..”

“Azul kissed me. 

Oh my shit-

MMM I SHOULDN’T HAVE DRANK THE PLUM WINE HE GAVE ME BEFORE WE KISSED, I PROBABLY SMELT BAD-

BUT HE SAID HE LIKES IT??? WAS IT A GOOD CALL I DON’T KNOW-

But... I’m happy.. I got the courage to confess to him! On top of that, he said yes! I’m so happy I could cry..”

“I’m going to be giving the notebook to Trey. He’s gonna record it all down for me today. 

Azul, I hope you’re reading this. I want you to flip to the back. I asked Trey to attached something really important I want to share with you.”

He flipped to the back. There was a slip of paper folded, stapled to the page. It also held the pendent he bought for you. He grabbed it, and unfolded the paper.

“Azul, 

I’m writing this to you 5 months before I die. Crowley told me to tell everyone about my condition, but I wrote this for you specially.

Remember I told you in that truth or dare game?

“If I told you I was scared to die, what would you do?”

To tell you now, I’m still kind of scared. But I won’t show it! Pretending not being scared isn’t like lying.

Okay, but a practical thing, you could do anything you want with this book.

You can tear it up, throw it away, hide it or even show to everyone! Totally up to you!

I’m gonna be honest with you, I was and still jealous of you.

You were and are the picture perfect honor student of NRC. I haven’t been in NRC as long as you, but I’m just so jealous you manage to be so cool and flawless in everything you do! Well, maybe except for flying..

But still! You were and still are my role model! You always manage to amaze me! But not only that, you treated me like your best friend no matter what position you are! Maybe that’s why I fell for you, you didn’t show biasness towards me to become my friend. I hope you were genuine about our friendship!

But, I like the fact you actually sometimes don’t need other people to reflect about yourself, unlike me. I can’t reflect about me all by myself. If I were like you, maybe I could’ve been able to live entirely by myself, with my own unique worth and responsibilities. Of course, while still being friends with others!

But when it comes to self reflection, you are down to earth with yourself, you speak to yourself, and that’s very independent of you. Ever since you were little you were like that too, and that’s what made you hardworking and diligent!

I’ll end it right here, to tell you I love you. Ehehe~ Sorry it’s so sudden.

I love you, meanie.”

drip.

Pitter, patter, pitter, patter.

Slowly, Azul felt tears rolling down his face.

He broke. Except... that wasn’t true.

He’d been broken when he first heard you were about to die. He just kept strong for you, as you did for him.

He was so glad, he had spent his time with you.

You needed him. You felt like he’d done everything for you.

But now, you’re gone.

It was thanks to you, he never felt insecure about his past anymore. For the first time he met you, his really lived for the first time. He existed in this world.

“Thank you, y/n..” he choked, smiling meekly at your final goodbye letter to him, as he clutched the pendent he gave you.

“I love you so much...”

From Ramshackle dorm, your slightly dusty octopus plushie rest on the side of your pillow.

From far away, he sensed you hugging it, whispering so close to him although so far,

“I love you too, meanie..”

END

============================================================

HO SHIT-

REBLOG IT I FELT MY TEARS I-

Ok I’m joking

thank you for surviving and following with the story. 

Azul loves you. Bye, have a good day!

@magicpumpkin3 don’t kill me pls-

[wafflehousepancakes]

The Montague Siblings Series Fic Recs!

@em-gray pointed out how this fandom has no fic rec lists (tho we have one that they made now) so I thought I would help in alleviating that problem because i have a lot of strong feelings about a lot of fics!

Canon Compliant/Canon Era

Throughout All of Your Poorest Decisions by lady_flash. Pre- and post-GG. Various snapshots throughout Monty’s relationship with Richard Peele and, at the end, Percy. Sad but also wholesome and very cute at the end! 9.5k. 3/3 chapters.

Each Step is the Wrong Direction by TheWriterWhoNeverWrites. The scene in LG where Percy gets shot from Monty’s POV! This fic makes me very emotional. 2.9k.

not quite an epiphany by goldenthunderstorms. The scenes after Monty gets shot from Percy’s POV with a dash of religious trauma! Yes this is my fic but I’m very proud of it. 4.2k.

Any Sort of Magic by JustaHogwartsGirl. Sim and Felicity’s kiss in LG from Sim’s POV! This fic is very cute and the writing style is magnificent. 1.6k.

yours by pjobroadwayslut14. A fic written in verse(!!!) about Percy getting letters from Monty at Eton. A lovely quick read. 623 words.

The Gentleman’s Guide to Scintillating Conversation by doettes. A GL rewrite with bonus fluff and communication. Brilliant writing and a general good time. 9.9k. 1/2 chapters.

Full Circle by Random2002. An imagined NG scene in which Monty passes on Scipio’s punching lesson to Adrian. The wonderful big brother Monty content that we all need. 2.1k.

Let Me Look After You by HMS_Chill. Sickfic where Monty ignores his symptoms to take care of Percy. This fic made me feel very many things I love it. 6.5k.

Modern AUs

call me? by future_fae_king. Trying to get over his feelings for Monty, Percy slides into the DMs of a poetry account he really likes on Instagram, only to find out the poet, who writes to cope with being in love with his best friend, is Monty! Lovely writing and absolutely adorable. 1.4k.

Hospital Beds by Pink_Cactus. 5 times Monty and Percy spent in hospitals together. Very painful but so, so beautiful. Read the TWs! 27.4k. 4/5 chapters.

A Gentleman’s Guide to Divorce and Deceit by Pigzxo. When his estranged mother invites Monty and his husband over for dinner, Monty doesn’t have to heart to tell her that they had just gotten divorced. Instead, he enlists his roommate, Percy, to act as his husband. Hijinks, miscommunication, and confessions ensue. I read this whole fic in one sitting and adored it. 15.5k. 11/11 chapters.

A Bed Half Empty by SpiritsFlame. Percy wakes up alone after a hookup with Monty and makes some incorrect assumptions. Miscommunication and idiots in love doing their best. This fic is really sweet. 12.6k.

The road not taken (Looks real good now) by Random2002. Monty is an artist returning to his small hometown looking for inspiration. Instead, he finds his high school sweetheart who he never really got over in the first place. 21.9k. 5/5 chapters.

unknown by em_gray. Monty texts a random number during a depressive episode and an unlikely friendship forms. This is a comfort fic of mine, so sweet and poignant. 3.8k. 2/2 chapters.

don’t need a key (just your love to unlock it) by unremarkableworlds. A 5+1 Mercy neighbors AU! A wonderful balance of fluff and angst and beautifully written. 7.8k.

To the Letter by pinstripedJackalope. Monty is Adrian’s guardian and working at a bookstore where he meets trans musician Percy Nicks. This fic is gorgeous it makes me so emotional and is just so sweet!!! I need Kay to finish it please and thank you. 19.3k. 7/14 chapters.

Other AUs

Marks by em_gray. Canon era and compliant soulmate AU where you get magical marks on your skin that hint at who your soulmate is! A super cool concept and absolutely gorgeous fic! 3.7k.

lovers’ desire by goldenthunderstorms. A Hadestown AU in which Monty and Percy are Hades and Persephone! No Hadestown knowledge required to read it! Another one of mine that I’m very proud of! I am told it’s very painful. 11.4k. 2/2 chapters.

here’s the thing by coyotestoryteller. Part of a series of epistolary fics set in a universe with magical powers in which Monty fakes his death. Absolutely gorgeous and heart-wrenching. Good quick comfort reads. 1.5k.

shooting stars by em_gray. A loosely-inspired Cinderella AU! Monty is the prince, Percy is Cinderella, there’s magic and pining! This fic is so tender it made me cry in a bubble tea shop. Please read it. 18.4k. 3/3 chapters.

Bittersweet and Strange by crashingintothesun. Beauty and the Beast AU! Monty is the Beast, Percy is the Beauty, enemies to lovers goodness! The writing is gorgeous and I think this fic made me cry? 36.9k. 5/5 chapters.

The Bluejay’s Song by pinstripedJackalope. 1930s bank robbers with established Mercy! An absolute delight to read. 3.9k.

and indeed, there will be time by pjobroadwayslut14. Royalty AU with Prince Monty, court musician Percy, and established Mercy! This one is short, sweet, and fluffy. 2.6k.

Star Crossed by em_gray. A soulmate AU combined with a sci-fi AU! Monty is the prince of an intergalactic empire and is kidnapped by a member of the rebellion who turns out to be his soulmate that he’s been telepathically communicating with his entire life. This fic is full of political intrigue, cool space stuff, and ALL of the feelings. I could rave about this one for hours. A true fandom staple with multiple companion one-shots AND an ongoing sequel! 100.5k. 22/22 chapters.

[poohkeepsee]

I was going through my AO3 bookmarks, and I wanted to organize them a little bit. These are my Dean/Cas canon-ish fic recs.

season 5

canticles  by  2street2car Words: 10,311     Chapters: 1

“But you know something? If I couldn’t get you laid, at least I gave you a good first date.”feat: footsies at a Ruby Tuesday, stargazing, the recreation of an iconic "Dirty Dancing" scene (no, not that one—the other one), and practicing for When You're With A Girl.

FTBYAM MY BELOVED

post season 6

Someone Who's Feeling For Me  by  ellispark  Words: 45,876     Chapters: 1

Dean sees her for the first time in nearly six years in some no-name town in Idaho, and it's panic at first sight.

Lisa Braeden, the one woman Dean ever actually had a shot at a real life with, back from where he buried her in his mind. And her hand is on Cas's arm like it's no big deal, like it belongs there. Cas, Dean's dorky, sweet, badass, angelic best friend, and he's just standing there next to Lisa and not moving her hand away.

Dean feels the jealousy rising, and it's not directed where he expected it to be. Because it takes this exact moment for Dean to realize he's in love with his best friend. He's in love with his best friend, and Lisa is looking at Cas like he's the best thing since automatic rifles, and Dean is utterly fucked.

post bunker

Sun Can't Set Until Nine  by  LeverDrift Words: 67,939     Chapters: 16

Cas moves into the bunker as his powers start to fail. Dean doesn’t know if the arrangement is as permanent as he wants it to be. He's also not sure why he keeps dreaming about his friend. All he knows is that he wants Cas to stay. Overall warnings: canon-typical miscommunication & Dean having self-hatred issues.

Life Skills  by  ilovehowyouletmefall           Words: 26,052     Chapters: 3

After Metatron steals Castiel's grace, and Cas comes to live in the bunker, Dean spends a lot of time with him, sharing all of his favourite things. Dean can't help it if sharing things with Cas just makes everything better. Besides, it's Dean's job as Cas' friend to introduce him to the joys of human life. To teach him how to be human.  And if one of the experiences they end up sharing is sex with women, well... that's just part of Dean's job as Cas' friend too, right? The desire is triangulated, the rituals are intricate.

Sam Stole My Boyfriend  by  sobsicles    Words: 8,445     Chapters: 1

“Dude, you’ve been staring at me a lot lately, like even enough that Sam noticed. More than usual. So, like, what’s up?” Dean pauses, purses his lips and reconsiders. “What did I do?”

Cas knows that would be a perfect time to confess to Dean what exactly happened and what he was thinking. Maybe, Dean had some insight into the situation or even some kind of comfort to offer. But, the longer that he sat there, he realized that he could not tell Dean absolutely anything. So instead, for the first time, Cas fumbled.

“Um,” Cas mutters and abruptly stands. “Freckles?”

Dean blinked up at him as Cas pivoted and left the room. There was only one remaining option he had and unfortunately, it involved Sam.

Aching in the Absence of You  by  sobsicles Words: 95,090     Chapters: 10

Brittle and battle-worn, Cas looks at him over coffee one morning and says, "I need to go," and Dean instantly knows that he's not coming back.

He's not really sure how he knows it, but he does. It settles into the pit of his stomach, curling hot and tight like something he instinctively wants to tear out with his bare hands. He takes a breath, and it gets stuck in his throat, hitching there. It hurts, hurts, hurts when he finally exhales.

"Yeah," Dean says, "of course you do," and he nods jerkily as he looks down at his phone. He doesn't say goodbye. He doesn't look up from the screen when Cas gets up and leaves the room. He doesn't finish his coffee, or move for a long time.

By nightfall, Cas is gone.

'Communication'  by  JustAnotherSamlicker Words: 11,656

The same story told from two perspectives.

Dean bought a house and he and Cas fix it up.

Is Dean moving out? Is Cas moving in?

Should they just talk to each other already? (Yes they should)

Build a Home  by  domesticadventures Words: 20,102

After they save the world, Dean expects Cas to come back to the bunker with them.

He doesn't

season 10

The Most Important Thing  by  NorthernSparrow Words: 94,462     Chapters: 14

Jimmy Novak remembers nothing of the last six years. Reunited with his troubled daughter Claire, he's struggling to raise her on his own. The most important thing is to make Claire happy. But why does he keep having these dreams of wings, and of two men in a black car? (Canon-divergent from S10E11, when we first met Claire again and Dean was still struggling with the Mark of Cain. Takes places several months later).

season 12

Heroes for Ghosts  by  pantheon_of_discord Words: 42,922     Chapters: 7

Canon-divergent from 12.08

After Sam and Dean are arrested, Castiel is left alone and scrambling to find them. He knows they’re locked away in a government facility, and he’s still able to hear their prayers, but no matter how he tries Castiel can’t seem to track them. He chases leads and even attempts to hunt on his own, but Mary is AWOL, Crowley refuses to help, and Castiel’s options are running out.

Weeks pass, Castiel’s hope dwindles, and through it all Dean prays, keeping them connected. His voice is comforting, frustrating, and occasionally annoying, but in his solitude Castiel comes to cherish it. But then one day, without warning, Dean stops praying, and Castiel is forced to confront some uncomfortable truths about his feelings.

season 13

i want to do with you (what spring does with cherry trees)  by  sobsicles   Words: 74,173     Chapters: 8

Dean keeps going back.

When he arrives, it's always to blooming flowers and a windmill in the background, not too far from a brook, the sun painting the plains.

He likes it there. He likes to stand in front of the makeshift urn and check that it's still where he put it, switching out the flowers when they wilt. He likes to listen to the sound of birds chirping, insects singing, the faint sound of water trickling in the distance. He likes to turn his face up and feel the sun on his skin, wondering if Cas would do the same if he were here, somehow knowing that he would.

He likes to talk.

There's never a response, but Dean feels the breeze rustle through his hair and watches the flowers bob when bees come to them and stares as the windmill keeps turning, turning, turning. And he imagines that Cas is replying—the windmill is the tilted head, the bobbing flowers are a gentle smile, the breeze is whatever words Dean wants to hear at the time.

Sometimes, it's almost like he's there.

Trial and Tribulations of Raising a Nephilim  by  Sickandtiredofyou Words: 14,910   Chapters: 6

Dean has far too much on his plate, losing his mom, his best friend and now being a single parent to a newborn nephilim.

In which Jack is an actual newborn instead of a teenager.

post season 13

dumbassery, denial, doing (the three d's to the destination)  by  sobsicles           Words:     108,427     Chapters:     4

Freedom is just one adjustment after the next.

Cas hums again. "I think you already have. It's been months since everything settled. All that's left to do is...get used to it, and perhaps—" His voice stalls out, uncharacteristically, and his gaze roams Dean's face with intensity. When he speaks next, his tone is a little raw. "Perhaps what one does with peace is...whatever they want."

"What if I don't even know what that is?" Dean grumbles, arching an eyebrow in challenge. "'Cause I know damn well you don't just mean good food and a good bed and time in Baby, not simple wants like that. You mean—ya know, the big things, the wants we didn't get to have before."

"Yes," Cas agrees. "If you're not sure, figure it out."

"Easier said than done."

Reasons to read this:

Dean reads a story that ends like despair and his reaction is FUCK THAT

Cas wears Dean's hoodie

Jack is a toddler

The Jack and Claire sibling energy we deserve

Eileen being awesome and pulling pranks with Dean while Sam thinks she's an angel

Sam knows

YOUR HONOR THEY'RE IN LOVE

First Date  by  aeli_kindara Words: 8,968    Chapters: 1

“We should go on a date. You and me.”

Castiel wishes he could see Dean’s face. He wishes he had any idea what to say.

“I’m asking you out, Cas.”

Also known as the Dean Winchester makes the first move fic.

season 14

Broken Road  by  thegeminisage Words:     109,629     Chapters:     7

A 14.13 Lebanon rewrite. When Dean uses a wish-granting pearl to try and kill the archangel Michael before he can escape the cage in Dean's head, they instead wind up with a newly-resurrected John Winchester.

It's been more than a decade since John died, and a lot has changed: Mary is alive, Sam and Dean have what passes for a proper home in the Men of Letters Bunker, and they're living with angels. John doesn't know angels are real, he doesn't know about the fragile new relationship between Dean and Castiel, and most of all, he doesn't know that Dean said yes to Michael, or that Dean's plan to defeat Michael would send him to a fate worse than death.

Now Dean must contend with both his father asking questions he can't answer, and his loved ones learning about the darker truths of his childhood, all while constantly battling the archangel trapped inside him. But Dean coming to terms with his history may be the difference between this being the beginning of a journey—or the end.

post season 15

fools and pilgrims  by  lagaudiere Words: 31,904     Chapters: 2

Claire shows up at the bunker a day before Dean was planning to leave, with her hair cut short and a fresh tattoo on her left arm under a bandage. Chuck is dead, Jack has given up his godlike powers, and Cas is back from the Empty, which doesn't make it any easier for Dean to talk to him. Suddenly finding himself in a world without monsters, supernatural forces, or any need for hunters, Dean's solution is to go on a road trip. Claire tags along.

Dean-Claire mirror fic post Despair

what's missing is found (our souls can exhale now)  by  sobsicles Words: 27,403

It's not the first time Claire has ever gone missing. It is, however, the first time Kaia panics about it. Dean's dragged into the mess, but he soon finds that it's the best thing that could have happened to him.

canon(?) au  (Hunters and Men of Letters)

Dean Winchester's Secret (Angel) Boyfriend  by  reluctantabandon, Winter_of_our_Discontent Words: 11,191     Chapters: 1

Dean Winchester isn't exactly a team player. So when he starts mentioning a new Hunting partner, Ellen and Jo Harvelle aren't sure whether they should be worried or relieved.

But they're starting to get the feeling there's something important Dean's not telling them about Cas...

Shot Through The Heart  by  peanutbutterjelly-pie (Aleakim) Words: 11,191     Chapters: 1

Dean is a hunter.

Castiel is a Man of Letters.

And even though they have to work together on a regular basis, there is not much sympathy between them. Castiel thinks Dean too brash and reckless while Dean in return sees nothing more in the other man than a rude asshole with an obsessive love for books and a truly terrible fashion sense.

But fate clearly has a funny way of throwing those two together over and over again.

And somewhere along the way feelings change into something neither of them would have expected.

[splashinkling]

Demons in the Den Update

Draft 1 is doooooone! 🥰🥰🥰 well, the first draft of the first arc. and I'm planning to add another 2 or 3 sides that happen during the arc, but don't really fit within the pacing of the chapters so I didn't count those and at least one of them is going to be in a different pov, so that'll be fun

but I can finally pause the grind for a day or two before heading back in for draft 2 (the rewrite) and those side stories.

maybe I can play a video game (still gotta finish Haven and Octopath 🙃) or I can read my stack of unread books (recently picked up Shadow and Bone, not knowing it was adapted by Netflix) or more than likely I'll go outline another wip or arc 2-

still can't believe I wrote a whole thing, from beginning to end and I'm hyped 👏 reminds me that I need to redo the wip intro

anyways, I'll leave some fun details (and the taglist) under the cut for your perusal 😊

cheers!

fun facts about draft 1:

word count: 58,859 (58,305 cleaned up)

page count: 157 (letter), 446 (5.5"x8.25")

written in 57 days, over 3 months, 1 week

over half of this thing (about 34k), I wrote in the last 3 weeks

top 3 names most mentioned: Aliah (570), Russell (224), and Milla (187)

least mentioned: Sarwick (10), Diana (11), and Felix (20)

I was going to name the demons all special names, but I couldn't, so I looked up their scientific names

Russell was supposed to die in chapter 1

I had an idea for an AU but I'm not used to those so I didn't write it down

I just remembered that Mara's sword is decorated with etches of flames on its blade

Mara mentions her master a few times, but never appears in arc 1

Mara's description doesn't come up often but: night black hair, blue eyes, slightly tanned skin, about 5'10/179cm (but I'm still thinking about the heights), left-handed

Aliah is also about 5'8/173cm

I wrote a side story where Mara takes in a fox as a pet

Bonnie and Clyde were placeholder names (I've mentioned this before)

I wrote the epilogue before ch12 and ch12 before ch11

everything came from the following one-liner:

A demon hunter vows to [a life of vengeance], with the help of a [demon] whose fallen in love with her.

okay that's enough facts

taglist: @sleepy-night-child

[midearthwritings]

Oh Gods I'm so excited for this!

Hello my dear friends! It is me, Max, your host and devoted writer. And today I am here to challenge you, my dear followers and friends who support and motivate me!

On January 8th 2021, I have decided to open this blog to share my fics with the world. At first I thought that it would last for a few weeks, and that I would have maybe 50 followers, not more. But here I am today, 5 months later, with 650 followers, and I'm so happy about it.

So I have decided that to celebrate my blog's anniversary and my 650 followers, I would create a writing challenge. Yup, that's it. A challenge.

The deadline is July 8th, my blog's 7 months anniversary (because 7 is my lucky number). On this day, everybody will have to post their works. After that, I will link all of your works in a post (the link to this post will be available in my Masterlist).

When you upload your work, you can tag me in it, of course. But I will also ask you to use the tag Midearthwritings Rewriting Challenge . That way I will be able to easily find them and won't miss anything.

What is the challenge about and how to participate?

It is...About me. Because I am a very egocentric person. No, just kidding.

But it really is about my works. See, I used to be a literature student. And for years I have been asked to re-write pieces that already existed. It is a very common exercise, and it is always extremely fun to do. So I thought...Why not give my followers this exercise?

Below the cut will be listed thirty-five quotes and ten plots. All of them are from my works. Your task will be to write a piece based either on a simple quote, or an entire plot.

There is no limit. You can select as many quotes or plots as you want! To participate just send me a DM or and Ask telling me which one you want to write about.

Up to three people can use one quote and up to five people can use one plot :) So make sure to claim the one(s) you want before it's taken!

How long does it have to be?

As long as you want! It can be a 200 words fic or a 10k one shot. Or even a multi-chapter fic! It really is up to you!

Does it have to be a reader insert? What can I write about?

Absolutely not! It can be a reader insert, a character x character or even a story about your OC if you have one! I love to read about OCs.

You can change the pronouns in the quote you choose to fit your story.

And you can write about everything. You can write Angst, Fluff, Unhappy Ending, Triggering Topics, NSFW, Modern AU. Whatever you want! Just make sure to tag your story properly so no one will be surprised.

Can I upload my work on another platform?

Of course. Just make sure to send me the link so I can read it and add it to the final post!

Participants : @shethereadinghobbit @riderofrohirrim @guardianofrivendell @grunid @imnotevenhere9 @wishingtobeinadifferentuniverse @hobbitkin-journey @hey-its-nonny @dark-angel-is-back @bitter-sweet-farmgirl @sassyscribbler @laurfilijames @learntosharefeanor-blog @classyhorseeclipseduck @cassiabaggins

Here are all the Quotes and Plots you can choose from! Don't forget to tell me which one you picked so I can write your username next to it!

QUOTES : If you pick one (or several) of those, you will have to include the quote into your piece. Reminder that you can change the pronouns to fit your story of course.

1-One last time, you look back. (Claims : @dark-angel-is-back )

2-The words were like a punch right in the stomach. (Claims : @grunid )

3-“No. This is not good.” (Claims : @learntosharefeanor-blog )

3-Because after all, happiness takes its sweet time, doesn’t it? (Claims : @cassiabaggins )

4-”You belong to me!” (Claims : @dat-pan-dwarf )

5-”I can sense that something is troubling you…” (Claims : @imnotevenhere9 )

6-He keeps you close to him, his arms circling your body like a shield. (Claims : @hobbitkin-journey )

7-”May I join you?” (Claims : @imnotevenhere9 )

8-“I know.” You said, smiling. “I trust you.” (Claims : @dark-angel-is-back )

9-“This is a misunderstanding!”

10-“I could help, you know.” (Claims : @shethereadinghobbit )

11-“You better apologize, or I will make you regret your actions.”

12-But you cannot bring yourself to care. (Claims : @riderofrohirrim )

13-After all, you hadn’t done anything to deserve his anger. (Claims : @shethereadinghobbit )

14-“Excuse me?”

15-Or maybe were you simply imagining it. (Claims : @dark-angel-is-back )

16-You were his greatest, most precious treasure. (Claims : @bitter-sweet-farmgirl )

17-You had almost died.

18-“I see you find this rather amusing.” (Claims : @shethereadinghobbit )

19-Never before had you seen those people.

20-”They need you, all of them.”

21-”I must go now.”

22-”Yet, my love, I cannot bring myself to be angry at you.”

23-”Please, do not forget me.” (Claims : @hey-its-nonny )

24-“I will get rid of them.”

25-Why? You do not know. (Claims : @wishingtobeinadifferentuniverse )

26-“If anything happened to you, I would never forgive myself.” (Claims : @wishingtobeinadifferentuniverse )

27-“As you wish.” (Claims : @sassyscribbler )

28-“Are you feeling alright?” (Claims : @sassyscribbler )

29-“Why is it that you are crying?” (Claims : @classyhorseeclipseduck )

30-“Careful, we do not want you getting hurt.”

31-“Is this treason I hear?”

32-“Will you please get off me?” (Claims : @laurfilijames )

33-“I am sorry. I should have said something. I should have protected you!”

34-“Finally.”

35-For a moment, everything is quiet. (Claims : @hobbitkin-journey )

PLOTS : If you choose to rewrite an entire plot, you don't have to include any quote from my work. You can also change the character the story was about (ex : If you pick Be Mine, you don't have to write it about Dwalin) .

1- Angels Standing Guard : Going through a difficult time together.

2- Time Won't Heal, Only Your Love Will : Taking care of each other.

3- Let Your Love Wash Over Me : Sharing an intimate moment. (Claims : @guardianofrivendell )

4- Bye, Baby Bye : Saying goodbye. (Claims : @dark-angel-is-back )

5- Farewell : Writing each other a letter.

6- Tongues Rip Like Razors : Having a disagreement. (Claims : @wishingtobeinadifferentuniverse )

7- Pour a Little Sugar on my Wounds : Giving love to each others and showing affection. (Claims : @learntosharefeanor-blog )

8- Love Stumbled into my Heart : Realizing how much they love each other.

9- Be Mine : Confessing their love.

10- I'll Show you my Shadows : Comforting the other.

Thank you so much for reading all of this, and a big big thank you if you decide to participate! It means the world to me! ❤️

*big forehead kiss for you all*

[jackoshadows]

@nymerias-heart suggested a while back that we do some TWoW speculation while waiting for the next book.

So I was wondering if ASoIaF readers on here could reblog the character list below with the chapter count they think each character would get in The Winds of Winter. Would be really interesting to see this. If we have enough data we could do some statistics.

ADwD was already a big book with 16 POVs and 73 chapters. Jon had the maximum with 13 and several characters had 1 or 2 chapters.  In TWoW, GRRM has to fit in 20 POV characters and cover a lot of ground and story. And we only have two books left to finish the story.

The list is below. Just enter the number of chapters next to character names. You can also enter 0, if you don’t think the character will have a POV chapter.

I’ll go first.

Aeron Greyjoy... 3

Areo Hotah ...2

Arianne Martell ... 3

Arya Stark ...8

Asha Greyjoy ...3

Barristan Selmy ...4

Bran Stark ...8

Brienne of Tarth ...3

Cersei Lannister ...6

Daenerys Targaryen ...7

Davos Seaworth ...4

Jaime Lannister ...3

Jon Snow ...3

Jon Connington ...3

Melisandre ...4

Samwell Tarly ..3

Sansa Stark ...4

Theon Greyjoy ...5

Tyrion Lannister ...7

Victarion Greyjoy ...3

POV chapter count: 86

Prologue: GRRM has mentioned that we will see Jeyne Westerling. Which means this will be in the Westerlands. We may see Edmure Tully and possibly the Blackfish through this prologue.

Epilogue: The Wall and the arrival of the Others.

Location wise split of above chapters:

Essos/Vaes Dothrak/Meereen/Yunkai/Dany landing in Westeros: 21

The North: 12

Braavos/Arya in Westeros: 8

Beyond the Wall: 8

The Wall: 7

Stormlands/Young Griff’s campaign to KL: 6

King’s Landing: 6

Riverlands: 6

Oldtown: 6

Vale: 4

Dorne:2

Total: 88 chapters up from the 73 chapters in ADwD. The chapters could be of shorter length though, if GRRM cuts down on descriptions of feasts and travelogues. This is where his editor could massively help and GRRM has mentioned going back and tweaking things. For example, that Arianne sample chapter from TWoW would have her get to Young Griff instead of spending two chapters just traveling.

If we look at word counts:

A Game of Thrones: 4082 words per chapter (298k in 73 chapters)

A Clash of Kings: 4657 (326k in 70 chapters)

A Storm of Swords: 5171 (424k in 82 chapters)

A Feast for Crows: 6522 (300k in 46 chapters)

A Dance with Dragons: 5781 words per chapter (422k in 73 chapters)

He needs to go back to AGoT chapter lengths and then perhaps the limitations of book binding would not be a problem.

Here is also a link to confirmed POV chapters in TWoW. But note that this may have changed since GRRM did state in a recent notablog post that he was going back and changing things - combining chapters, splitting them, rewriting them etc.

Arya: 4

Tyrion: 3

Barristan: 3

Arianne: 3

Melisandre: 2

Theon: 2

Aeron: 2

Areo Hotah: 2

Cersei: 2

Asha: 2

Jon Connington: 2

Sansa: 1

Victarion: 1

Bran: 1

Daenerys: 1

Davos: 1

Confirmed Chapters: 33

Below the cut I have put in some of my reasoning for my POV counts.

First, I think GRRM needs to refocus on his main story and characters and make his way to the ending. That means more focus on main characters and less time spend on secondary characters. He should be spending time getting Arya, Bran, Jon, Dany and Tyrion etc. to their endgames rather than spend more time world building and telling the stories of secondary characters.

For example, Bran had like 3 chapters in Feast and Dance while Brienne got 8! Who is the more important character here? There are two books left, Bran has to finish training, find out stuff about the Others, explore lands of always winter, return south of the wall, meet back up with Jon and Arya, play a big part in defeating the Others and become King.

GRRM has written material for an entire book with Arya in Braavos. Unfortunately ASoIaF is not about Arya’s FM adventures in Braavos and Arya needs to get back to Westeros. So George has chop, cut, edit and narrow down her story there to like maybe 5 chapters before she leaves.

So either George cuts out a lot of the fat, travelogues, world building and secondary characters or he needs 8/9 books to finish or he can change his endings to suit what he has written now or he can procrastinate and just not write.

Some of the things GRRM has said regarding TWoW.

GRRM teases about events in TWOW in this interview  

“I think we’re gonna start out with a big smash with the two enormous  battles,” Martin says. Presumably one of those battles refers to the  clash between Ramsay’s army and Stannis’s forces in the North (the  outcome of which was described in Ramsay’s letter in ADWD—perhaps  falsely?—but not actively shown), while the other takes place across the  narrow sea when Yunkai attacks Meereen in an attempt to overthrow  Daenerys. In addition, Martin says, “We have more deaths, and we have  more betrayals. We have more marriages.” Let the speculation begin. As  he’s noted before, Martin says the Dothraki are coming back into the  story (“in a big way”), and he says “a lot of stuff is happening at The  Wall.”

From his Notablog updates:

06/23/2020

Of late I have been visiting with Cersei, Asha, Tyrion, Ser Barristan,  and Areo Hotah.   I will be dropping back into Braavos next week.   Now you will have to excuse me.  Arya is calling. I think she means to kill someone.

08/11/2020

Of late I have been spending a lot of time with the Lannisters.  Cersei  and Tyrion in particular.   I’ve also paid a visit to Dorne, and dropped  in to Oldtown a time or three.   In addition to turning out new  chapters, I’ve been revising some old ones (some very old)… including,  yes, some stuff I read at cons ages ago, or even posted online as  samples.   I tweak stuff constantly, and sometimes go beyond tweaking,  moving things around, combining chapters, breaking chapters in two,  reordering stuff.

08/15/2020

For the nonce, it is what it is.   My life is at home, on hold, and I am  spending the days in Westeros with my pals Mel and Sam and Vic and Ty. And that girl with no name, over there in Braavos.

Now, there are three things that GRRM just has to get done in TWoW, IMO.

Daenerys Targaryen has to resolve her Essos plot and get to Westeros by the end of TWoW.

Arya has to resolve her Braavos plot and get to Westeros

Bran has to advance a great deal in his plot/Bloodraven/Others etc. 

(Note: I suspect this is one of the reasons that TWoW is taking so long. By his own admission, Dany and Bran are the two characters GRRM finds hardest to write and my speculation is that there is a lot of these two characters in the next book.)

So I am going to assign Arya and Bran the most POV chapters - let’s say 8 each since they are the only POVs at their locations. The Essos plot is a complicated mess, but we have other POVs focused on there as well - Tyrion, Barristan and Victarion. And Tyrion will no doubt get a good chunk of chapters because GRRM likes to write for him and finds it easy to write for him.

For Oldtown I am assigning 6 chapters - 3 from Sam’s POV and 3 from Aeron giving us a look into what Euron is upto. Or it could be 4 for Sam and 2 for Aeron.

I suspect not much happening in Dorne until they align with Young Griff. Arianne and Jon Connington with a look into fAegon’s campaign advancing into KL. Some Vale stuff with Sansa and LF.

GRRM mentions spending a lot of time with Cersei and Tyrion. Cersei remains the only POV in KL and that’s an important location. Jaime and Brienne are together so GRRM can use either of them for Lady Stoneheart/the Brotherhood/Riverlands.

Lots happening at the wall. Big battles in the North and the resolution of the Northern plot - Theon/Asha with Stannis and Davos with Rickon/Northerners. I am not sure if Jon will get a POV - so I am giving him just 3 in case. I think the majority viewpoint will be Mel.