#also. lol. how obvious is it that i can't write kissing at all? xD | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

justsomeoneunordinary · 4 years ago

Text

Solo Tu

Day 4 of @winteriron-week: Fluff

Yeah, I said in the last fic that I’d combine day 3 and 4, but I don’t like how it looks like with one missing, so I still wrote this for day 4 specifically.

Also, there is obviously absolutely no chance that I’ll manage finishing the remaining prompts until Wednesday when the collection closes. While I’m a little bit disappointed in myself for that (even though it’s not my fault real life is a thing and got in the way), I still wanna write them all, just because. So, while they won’t be in the collection anymore, I will continue to upload them here on Tumblr as well as on AO3.

T, 1.4k, Tooth-Rotting Fluff With Absolutely Zero Plot Whatsoever | AO3

(Day 1 / Day 2 / Day 3)

—

Solo tu

Col calore

Quel mattino che rinasce

Intorno al sole

Cosa puo’ piu’ importare

Se la pelle tua si lascia accarezzare

The soft melody of the Italian song woke Bucky. He felt a hand brush through his hair and the smell of coffee rose immediately to his nostrils as he took a deep breath and slowly stretched.

“Your hair is so soft,” Tony murmured as he began to gently pluck on individual strands. “I still don’t know how you do it. After all, we use the same conditioner.”

Bucky just grunted and buried his face deeper into Tony’s lap. A breeze blew through the open window and carried in the smell of the salt water, which blended together with that of the coffee, and automatically put a smile on his face.

“Must be the super soldier serum,” Tony concluded.

This made Bucky snort. “What, you think the serum enhanced my hair’s smoothness?”

“How else can you be two thousand years old and still not suffer from hair loss?” Bucky could literally hear the triumphant grin in Tony’s voice, he didn’t even have to look up.

“Two thousand? Honey, I think you miscalculated a little.”

“Nonsense, I’m a genius—my math is always right.”

Bucky felt another tug of his hair, this time a little firmer than before, and whatever Tony was up to, it couldn’t be good. “Tony, are you trying to pull my hair out of envy? If so, I can assure you that your hair is at least just as beautiful, especially with the gray areas.”

Tony laughed. “‘At least just as beautiful’, you are not exactly modest.” He continued to pull his hair and explained, “No, you dork. I’m braiding it.” As if it were a matter of course.

“Oh, great. Can’t wait to unknot my hair later.”

This earned him a slight pinch on the ear. “Listen, Barnes, I won’t tolerate such disrespect here.”

Bucky grinned and finally opened his eyes, looking up at Tony’s mock insulted expression, because for what he said next, he wanted to see the reaction, “It’s Stark-Barnes now, get your facts straight.”

And yep, there it was: Tony’s eyes immediately shone with joy, emphasized by the morning sun, which turned the wonderful brown into a brilliant gold. A faint smile formed on his lips and it was as if his face were beaming in competition with the sun.

Bucky couldn’t help but take Tony’s left hand in his and kiss the golden ring on his finger, never taking his eyes off Tony’s.

Four days. Four days since they had said “Yes, I do” and retired for their honeymoon here at the Carbonell residence in Sicily. Just the two of them, this way too big house and the sea.

“I ordered F.R.I.D.A.Y. to only disturb us in an emergency. And only if the world is about to doom. Which means, neither an Avengers nor an SI problem will be able to get in our way,” Tony had explained with a grin when they got here and then dragged Bucky to bed without any warning.

With every morning he woke up, Bucky was struck by the wonder that this was indeed real. That after everything they’d both been through, he could still find happiness with Tony. Sometimes the world did give something back.

“God, you’re so cheesy,” Tony complained half-heartedly, while the smile didn’t leave his lips.

Bucky merely raised an eyebrow and pointed with a look at the loudspeaker from which the song was still being played, because…

Solo tu

Stamattina per alzarmi è ancora giorno insieme a te

… not only he was cheesy.

Tony, however, didn’t see the subtle hint, or ignored it (probably the latter) and went back to working on Bucky’s hair.

“Can I at least drink my coffee first since you’ve already made it?”

“No.”

“But then it will get cold until you are finished with the braiding!” Bucky gave him his best pout, which Tony never was able to refuse.

Apart from today, apparently. “It’s Italian coffee, it’s still good cold too,” Tony said, turning his head vigorously. “Now hold still so I don’t screw it up.”

Bucky thought about saying something along the lines of “I only like it when you’re bossy during sex” but knew that Tony would just wink at him and then tease him on purpose. And he admittedly had nothing to complain about; Tony’s hands in his hair felt heavenly. Tony worked gently and carefully, and Bucky could feel a slight vibration as Tony began to hum along with the song. If he hadn’t already been well rested, he could easily have been lulled into sleep like this.

“My mamma,” Tony began to say after a few seconds of silence, “used to wear her hair waist-length when I was a child. A silky blonde that shone like the sun in the light and had utterly fascinated me. I had always watched her with curiosity as she braided it until one day, she taught me to do it for her.”

Bucky ignored the heavy pressures of guilt as best he could whenever Tony talked about his mother. They had discussed the Winter Soldier’s actions long ago and got them out of the way—Bucky knew Tony was telling these things to him not out of malice but because he wanted to share his memories with Bucky.

However, not having a guilty conscience would never be possible for him.

“After that I did her hair almost every day until I was about nine years old,” Tony finished, a tender expression on his face that spoke of wistfulness and nostalgia. Bucky gasped for a moment when Tony turned his head to the side so that the sunrays fell directly on him—tanned skin golden in the glow, eyes shining like amber and contour framed tightly by light.

If there was a God, Tony had to be one of his celestial beings that he had sent to earth. And he was Bucky’s only.

Bucky wanted nothing more than to pull Tony down and seal his lips with Tony’s sinful ones, but the slight pulling of his hair reminded him not to move, so he was content with just taking in every detail of this paradisical picture above him in order to keep it in his memories forever.

“Now,” Tony took a red hair tie from the nightstand that was right next to the two coffee cups—he must have planned that braiding session—and wrapped it at the end of Bucky’s hair, “done.”

Bucky ran his hand over what was, judging by the pattern, a herringbone braid and smiled at Tony. “How do I look?”

“Like a princess,” came the prompt reply.

“But then I also want some flowers decorated with it. For authenticity.”

Tony laughed out loud at that. “There are some hibiscus flowers growing here, if I remember correctly, so that really shouldn’t be a problem.”

Bucky would have flowers in his hair every day without hesitation if it made Tony laugh like that. “Perfect,” he whispered, and finally sat up to kiss Tony. Tony’s lips on his was a feeling he couldn’t imagine ever getting tired of. If it were possible, he would just never stop.

Tony grinned into the kiss and when they parted, Bucky knew immediately what was coming at the sight of the mischief in his eyes. “Coffee first and then sex? After all, we’re already in bed. Well, technically still, but who cares about this kind of trivialities anyway.”

Called it. In response, he raised an eyebrow and asked, “Isn’t the beach private?”

Tony, genius that he was, didn’t take long to understand. “Oh, I like the way you think! See, this is exactly why I married you.”

“Because of the sex?”

“Precisely.”

Bucky couldn’t help but pull Tony on his shirt and kiss the cheeky grin off his face once again. In the background he heard the sound of the waves, as well as the last tones of the song, the smell of coffee and salt water still lingered in the air—and Tony’s mouth tasted of love.

Whatever their future might bring, Bucky knew he could handle it with Tony by his side. Today, tomorrow and as long as they were lucky, however, they would just enjoy themselves and their togetherness.

And then, once they got back to their chaotic everyday life, they would do it hand in hand together.

Solo tu

Mi sai dare

Cose vecchie sempre nuove da sognare

Mille volte tu lo sai

Non è stato uguale mai

—

Solo Tu by Matia Bazar

(I got the translations from an unofficial site, so I don’t know how true they are. To be fair: it’s cheesy and that’s actually all you really need to know anyway.)

Solo tu ≈ Only you

Col calore ≈ With heat

Quel mattino che rinasce ≈ That morning that is reborn

Intorno al sole ≈ Around the sun

Cosa puo’ piu’ importare ≈ What matters most

Se la pelle tua si lascia accarezzare ≈ If your skin lets you caress

Solo tu ≈ Only you

Stamattina per alzarmi è ancora giorno insieme a te ≈ This morning to get up is still day with you

Solo tu ≈ Only you

Mi sai dare ≈ You can give me

Cose vecchie sempre nuove da sognare ≈ Old things always new to dream

Mille volte tu lo sai ≈ A thousand times you know

Non è stato uguale mai ≈ It was never the same

#may writes #may's moodboards #winteriron #buckytony #starkbucks #tony stark #bucky barnes #WI WEEK 2020 #WinterIron Week #my god this was so sappy i got cavities from writing it #man that was an experience...#never again #gonna write some crack now to wash the sappiness away #also. lol. how obvious is it that i can't write kissing at all? xD #i tried and that's what counts the most i'd say

61 notes · View notes

chans-bad-girl · 3 years ago

Note

Hi Hi

Just wondering how you think all the members would do aftercare as either a reaction or headcanon?

You asked and here it is:

Stray kids headcanon: aftercare

Genre: mainly fluffy, suggestive/slightly smutty

Warnings: mentions of sex

I would recommend anybody under 16 to get off this post!

Chan

at first he will hug you close so you won't leave to pee

but eventually gives in because he's tired and still in post-orgasm mood

when you're back, he'll give you mindless kisses on your had and brush your hair with his fingers for until you fall asleep

although he has issues with falling asleep, whenever he's with you he feels a bit more relaxed even when he's struggling

he's just a big man baby after his orgasm pls take care of him thanks

Minho

usually just lets you go pee

apart from a few times where he cleans you up because you just did some pet play and he can't help it

also...the type to ask you how it was lol

but he knows you loved it because "why else would you have shouted your pleas like the neighbors don't already know I take care of you well?"

loves to just lie there because he's sweaty and talk with you for a bit until you both fall asleep

absolutely lives for your little snores and records them sometimes so he has blackmail material for when you kidnap his cats to your flat 👀

Changbin

he loves going rough on you

but once he's done cleaning you up, he tries to make sure you're 100% alright and don't need anything

will also start talking about the next day and how you could spend it

smirks at you when you end up talking about sex again

"I know you can't go a day without me railing you but we just finished, damn."

Hyunjin

has no idea that girls need to pee after sex (!!) so he legit just thinks you need a second every time after sex to be alone

will get so shy when you find that out and tell him it's got nothing to do with him lol

either giggles after sex

or is just a heavy breathing mess with his hair all over his face and his limbs sprawled out, some entangled with yours

"we should do this again. like every day."

Jisung

shy. bean.

during sex he couldn't be more of a show off because, at his core, he loves acting all cocky and performing his skills and giving his all

but right as the lust wanes off, he realizes just how vulnerable you guys are

so he will need a minute until he shows his face to you again

perfect time for you to take your piss lol

eventually gets over it and can look you in the eyes again

"wanna play animal crossing?"

Felix

blows out the candles before allowing himself to calm down

then dedicates his time to you

he knows about the peeing after sex thing and all that but he still high-key gets offended at you leaving lol

"Hey, stay!"

his light-hearted side comes out

(except when you decide to take a shower later because then that side just, jumps out for a min and he's all over you the next)

loves hugging you like a coala with all his limbs around you while you lie on the bed

oh and let's not forget he will smile at you like a teenager in love and hold your hands like you're the most precious thing that he has ever held

(is it obvious he's my bias? ndnjejejd)

Seungmin

lets you do your thing in the bathroom while he rearranges the sheets

will probably take a shower (with you?👀)

massages your skull and lets you fall asleep first

might sing you a lil lullaby if he feels like it

gets a little shy but would never admit it so he goes big spoon mode

probably wakes up earlier than you the next morning and because his love language is (silent) acts of service and words of affirmation (prove me wrong, you can't), he makes you pancakes and writes you a sticky note that says "hope you have a great day and aren't too sore from yesterday xD)

Jeongin

honestly doesn't really know what to do with himself

somehow you ended up bent over the kitchen counter so now that it's over, he feels a bit too exposed

will walk to the bedroom to change into a tank top and joggers just to make you horny again

your fault if you walk in front of him when going to the bathroom

your ass gets him every time

doesn't really do too much aftercare or any "cute stuff"

but definitely tries to make sure you're cool (and up for another round lol)

379 notes · View notes

lifeofpatterns · 2 years ago

Text

TLND: Chapter 28

I apologize in advance for the ginormous length of this review... I had a lot of thoughts to write about and I didn't manage to finish it before you closed you ask-me-anything-box .... here we go, @khaleesiofalicante:

I can't believe that I just read a TNLD chapter and I am not devastated. I am actually happy and smiling. But since on Tuesday we're getting chapter 29, I'm guessing you’re just giving us an emotional break before the worst comes (I can't wait!).

I really didn't expect Camille to actually come back in person. And my heart is already breaking! Especially since we know from the next timeline that it will eventually lead him to not stay in NY for his last year. And Magnus literally running away... my poor boy... I really don't want Camille to tell him what Alec did. I don't want to see Magnus’ trust in Alec shatter - especially not in front of Camille. And I also don't want to see both Magnus' and Alec's heart break! But as much as I'm going to be devastated on Tuesday, I know it needs to happen. I think the break-up will teach them a lot and it will make it possible for them to get back together but stronger and healthier. Alec needs to learn to trust Magnus to live his own life and trust his judgment. And Magnus needs to learn to communicate better... (plus, apparently he needs to date Alec's clone xD). And maybe going back to London for a year will do him good.

Talking about that - I love the second timeline. I loved how Alec met all of Magnus' exes. And him being just exasperated with the situation! And grumpy. And jealous lol. Alec being jealous is almost as awesome as Magnus being jealous (I can't wait for Ben to show up! Can they please meet Ben again once they're back together again and Magnus is all kinds of smug.... I might need that... xD - on second thought Magnus might very well be more mature than that but the scene very much lives in my head lol).

It is so good to see how most of Magnus' exes seem to think fondly of him and their time together. It just goes to show what an amazing person Magnus is!

Just the last sentence of the second timeline made me melt: it IS a blessing to be loved by Magnus Fucking Bane. And Magnus admitting that he only dated Alec's clone because of that... melt... I just can't get over that! And him saying that Alec is the fucking original! AHHH! I love these two so much! I laughed out loud when Alec came home and Magnus was like "You probably want to talk that guy...". That must have been so uncomfortable for Magnus - your ex and your husband meeting when they look exactly like each other! xD I'm kind of wondering whether his ex noticed lol.

When they were having their fight/discussion and Magnus got mad at Alec for being so judgy about it and Magnus ranted, while Alec tried to say something but Magnus cut him of every time: I love so much how Alec went from "But you" to "Magnus", then again "Magnus" and then "Baby". It is so well written: Because without ever describing Alec's tone of voice or his facial expression, it is so obvious how Alec's whole mood changes just by the words he uses.

Magnus saying “I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings because of that.” might just be one of my favorite sentences in the second timeline. Because it shows so much about who they are and how their relationship works. How caring Magnus is. Not just when it comes to Alec but also everyone else as well. And I love how easy it is for him to apologize. It really shows what good of a place they are at at that point in time.

It feels so good to see them happy! Like the family singing in the car, having movie night - it just warms my heart! The small gestures of love, like when Magnus took Alec's hand and kissed it.

I am so glad that the children didn't meet Camille in person! That would have been a disaster for everyone involved! And I would like to second Alec: why does Magnus _not_ have Alec in his Twitter bio?! LOL!

I don't think I've ever seen the word "boobies" that often either. So, you're definitely not the only one xD I love how Magnus is not even looking at the screen! And the conversation between Rafe, Max, Alec and David is absolutely hilarious! When I read the snippet a couple of days ago I already knew it was perfect but it got even better! I love Magnus leaving just because he doesn't want to be part of that conversation anymore – especially because when he comes back, it has gotten even worse! Lol.

I love how Alec learned from some of his parents mistakes and let his kids watch stuff that make him a little bit uncomfortable. But also, he is such a stubborn mess! xD I feel like at least half of the reason why he insists on watching it is because he wants a) see Magnus' reaction and b) he wants to not give in when it comes to Camille - even if she would never know because she is not there in person xD And because he likes tormenting Magnus a little bit...

I'm pretty sure timeline three proved Max right about what he said (“I’m pretty sure you’d do it even if you weren’t,” Max rolls his eyes.). Alec can never not thirst after Magnus! xD

I LOVED how you included the little detail about David being gay: Because it makes so much sense that he wouldn't know how hot Camille is. And Alec so noticed! Love observant Alec! I love it in general when Alec notices the little things about Magnus. Like how he notices that Magnus only said their names when introducing them to his ex and knew that it meant something.

And Max remembering the exact age at which he would be allowed to say "fuck" LOL. When I read that scene a while ago, I was sure that Max would have forgotten by then... how naive of me xD

I wasn't aware that even back then Shinyun knew the kids and send Max pictures..? Of Magnus' exes?! That is very interesting! Also, it is kind of petty and I love it! Annoying Alec is kind of her mission xD

Before I start with my thoughts about the third timeline, I wanted to say how glad I am that Alec seems to have forgiven Magnus for not being there during the election night. I was fearful that the night left some deeper scars. But I forgot how good Alec is at moving on :)

When I was reading the discussion of Magnus and Alec in the third timeline, I actually forgot that they're not together at that point in time. They really don't seem divorced during that conversation. Like, obviously they're not kissing or anything but the way they're talking - it is so loving and caring. Alec just flat out saying that he would still make their children take care of Magnus to make sure that he is safe. You've got no chill, Alec! And Magnus is not surprised at all by that! So, I went back and reread it just because I wanted to read it with that with that fact firmly in mind. Those two, honestly!

Magnus saying that he’d rather died than put Rafe through that… AHHH … my heart! I am so glad that he realized what was happening and that he wants to change it! But still… AHHHHH!!!

When Alec explained the difference between Magnus and Alec/Rafe… I’m so proud of Alec for being so observant and seeing such differences in people. And then when Magnus tries to ask whether Alec was saying Magnus was a quitter, Magnus didn’t even have to finish the sentence before Alec already knew what he was going to say and he just calmly explained to Magnus what he meant – knowing his needs and making sure no one gets hurt. I love their conversation-skills so much in this. Because just Magnus asking that, makes sure that there are no misunderstandings…Because he gives Alec the opportunity to explain.

And then when Alec says that he would still do everything to make sure that Magnus was safe… even if Rafe never forgave him.

=> “Maybe that’s fucked up. But it’s who we are.”

I think this sentence explains it perfectly. Alec knows that both Rafe’s and his decisions and feelings of responsibility are sometimes fucked up. But they both care so much and they are aware that sometimes impossible decisions have to be made. And they take on that responsibility of making these decisions and taking care of everyone else.

I’m so glad that Alec never stops showing Magnus that he cares. Even though they’re divorced and Magnus has girlfriend. Alec is still (or more like, back to being) Alec. A long time ago, Magnus asked Alec whether they could still be friends after the divorce and I think that if Magnus asked right now then Alec would either say yes, or maybe he would say “No, but we are family. We take care of each other like families does.”. Because they both know that they need the other one in their life – even if it just as friends or as an image to talk to.

Even if they decide not to get back together until Alec is no longer governor or something, I think they will always be family and be there for each other. [But PLEASE, I don’t know if I would survive them not getting back together in the end!]. With all of Magnus’ new epiphanies and both their character growth, they might just be strong enough to do it! Or just be together in every way other than the label… if they do get back together, I could actually see them messing up and calling the other “husband”, even though they’re no longer married (all the better reason the get married as soon as possible xD ).

And in a way, Alec being true his word and immediately offering the next child up to Magnus, is just further proof of him caring and also showing it. He always wants to make sure that Magnus is not alone. But it is perfect that Magnus is calling him out on it – because there really is no need to repeat the same mistakes.

I am so proud of Alec’s growth: He didn’t even check where Rafe was and just trusted him to take care of himself. And it’s Magnus who asks him to check. Couldn’t be prouder of the previously snooping parent! Or when Izzy tells him that Rafe doesn’t want to speak with them and he just accepts Rafe’s decision! Yes! And Magnus’ reaction is also so good: Instead of falling apart, blaming himself and/or Alec, he calmly ask what they should do?! Communication, baby! And Magnus knows how to cope with these emotions and just presses his fingernails into his hand? It’s obviously not the most healthiest of coping behaviors because he’s still hurting himself a little bit but compared to past behavior! Wow! And then Alec being super emotionally mature about the whole situation… this is the moment where Alec’s future-oriented perspective is just awesome. And I love how he calms Magnus down :)

I also love how you included the different ways Magnus and Alec grow: Because Alec does learn from people – both when they tell him stuff that hurt them and by watching other people. He doesn’t need to have all these self-growth goals and go to therapy in order to grow as a person. He can just be himself and learn from the past. He doesn’t even need to overthink everything. And I think their differences in styles of think is obvious in the way they think when it’s their POV: When it’s Magnus’ POV there is always self-reflection, thoughts about the past, and his emotions going on. But Alec’s thinking is way more focused on the here and now and how he can improve the situation and the life of others in the present (or near-time future). So his POV just doesn’t include the past (or at least only when it is relevant for the current situation) or analysis of his emotions and past behavior and what it could mean. But still, both of them grow as a human being. And neither version is better or worse, they are just different. I would almost say that for Alec not over-analyzing is a coping skill: Because so much shit has happened in his past, that he just doesn’t want to waste the energy on that. He’d rather just make the present better.

I love Alec’s trust and confidence in family. The belief that even when things get rough, your family will always come back and will be there for you. That you can work things out – even when people need time (like Rafe right now). I’m glad that he still has that trust. Because I feel like reason why the divorce was so hard for Alec, was because it shattered his belief in the concept of family. And how families work. And it is so good so see that he has gotten it back: I believe in part due to the fact that even though Magnus and him are not back together, Magnus has come back to him. They are family again who can talk to each other and take care of each other. And I think Alec might be using this knowledge about how Magnus (and to some degree also Alec) needed time to adjust to a new situation before coming back, to trust that Rafe will be the same: He just needs time but he will come back.

And I also believe that the Alec of the first timeline (and maybe even second) wouldn’t have respected Rafe’s self-agency as much and would have tried to make him come back. So I am very proud of his growth when it comes to learning to not run other’s lives for them.

I’m so glad that both Magnus and Alec are aware that they way they treated Rafe was not okay and that they’ve given him responsibilities that weren’t his to carry! I’m also really relieved about Alec allowing Rafe to run away: I was scared that because Alec would never allow himself to do that and Rafe is so similar to him in that regard, that he would not understand Rafe to do so. But Alec is a good Dad and maybe because his self-agency has been taken so often by us readers, he allows others to be their own person….

I love that moment when Alec asks Magnus whether he wants to stay and he immediately hugs himself. That non-verbal sign of Magnus is so perfect! Is he only trying to stop himself from reaching out to Alec because he knows what would happen if he stayed? Or is it because he knows that he shouldn’t stay and he's reminded that he'll be alone if he leaves? Or both...?

And then there was the hug. I think we have a second very strong contender for the position of The hug. With Alec not hesitating and just pulling Magnus even closer. Because oh my, I love it so much! Especially since I asked on Tuesday for a hug-snippet – and you more than delivered! Thank you so much for that. I really needed that.

=> “When you are good-est guy I know.”

Magnus being as caring as Alec… I love them with my whole ass heart. Their affection is making me tear every time! Love them.

I feel the trust Alec has in Rafael to make the right decision to the bottom of my soul. It is so touching! This deep trust is the best kind of proof for the love Alec has for his child. Now, we only need this kind confidence in Max. And Shinyun might just be the one to offer it first. We need #AuntShinyun. After some #Chaotic-Aunt-Nephew-trying-to-outmaneuver-the-other-battles xD

I’m actually surprised that Rafael is with Izzy. That is still a super reasonably thing to do in this situation! He’d have the money to to all kinds of shit but he stays with family and helps out?! That man… xD

I’m literally in awe of the progress Magnus made in this chapter:

Magnus realizing that he wouldn’t have survived the divorce without Rafe… even though that hurts me in a weird way: Because I was so mad at Alec for thinking that he had to ask Rafe to stay with Magnus… and it hurts to know that Rafe’s sacrifice actually really was necessary. I was hoping that Alec was mistaken.. I’m not sure I’m emotionally mature enough to handle a justification of Rafe’s sacrifice….

I teared up when Magnus described how he found his way back to himself. Thank God. He deserves the best stuff in the world (=Alec).

Magnus realizing that he took Rafe for granted.. that is such a profound realization. And I’m so glad he had it! It must have been so painful to admit. But I’m so proud of it. Because he can now finally start working on this behavior pattern, change his relationship with Rafe into something better and move on from that mindset.

About the reason why he didn’t stop making Rafe take care of him: I had assumed it was related to Alec, and Magnus replacing him (especially with that snippet you posted a couple of weeks ago about someone telling Magnus that he was doing that). But the way you handled this situation now was even better: Because Magnus realized it himself. No one else told him directly. With an extremely simple question from Luca. It is perfection!

Talking about Luca: Your description of therapy and the way you let Luca act as a therapist is just superb! I don’t know how you gathered such a good perception of how therapy is supposed to work but Luca is an extremely good therapist and you somehow managed to capture that!

When Luca said their session would be about Shinyun, I just thought: Oh, this is going to be good! And it was! When Luca asked why Magnus chose Shinyun as a companion and not anyone else, my first thought was it is because he can control her and their relationship. She is obviously an extremely independent women but with her, he can make these rules and she will stick to them. Their entire relationship was totally predictable because Shinyun would follow these rules, he knows her well enough to know how she behaves in a situation, she is not overtly emotional (especially not romantically and when it comes to him), so there is little danger of it getting emotionally complicated, the media wouldn’t really care about their relationship (in comparison to his marriage with Alec), … it was just safe and controllable. Just good to recharge their energy. Even though I am wondering why they didn’t decide instead to be closer friends… that would have sufficed completely xD But more about that later…

I honestly hadn’t thought about Alec being the reason why he chose her. And I come back to my earlier statement: Luca is fucking brilliant!!! I love how he waits for Magnus to figure it out after comparing it to the situation with Rafe and when that isn’t enough, he just asks the exact same question again. It is so brilliant!

I find it very interesting that Magnus needed multiple ersatz-Alecs to compensate for the real one. Three if you count real-Alec and their growing “friendship” in the last couple of chapters. But one wasn’t enough. I think it is because he needed an Alec for every role that Alec used to play: As a romantic partner (or let’s be honest, as a companion because what he had with Shinyun was never really romantic or let alone sexual), someone to live with (Rafe) and then Alec (someone who cares for him and as a father of his children: and maybe just Alec as well – mainly when it comes to hugs xD ).

I can’t believe that every single person Magnus dated after meeting Alec was in some form or another Alec: that guy and Shinyun. And then there is Rafe as a weird form of partner as well. Oh, Magnus…

I really want to know what happens at Jace’s retirement party!

Maybe he uses Luca as another Alec-replacement - just a tiny bit: I just thought of this because Magnus asked both of them a question about how he should behave (so he uses them to figure out what he is supposed to do) and both of them ask him whether it would be fair to another person (one time Rafe and the other Shinyun)… I don’t if I’m over-interpretating this… but there is some commonality. Also, it doesn’t seem like he is asking Shinyun for advice and with Rafe it seems like Magnus getting help from him is mostly focused on Alec. Also, Rafe just doesn’t have the life experience to give good advice… So, Magnus needs someone to talk to about his thoughts and problems. And obviously, the roles of Luca and Alec are very different.. but a little bit.. For example the way Luca presents the challenge about the date to Magnus and then just raises his eyebrow as a dare for him to do it – I could totally picture Alec doing that (apart obviously for the convincing Magnus to got on a date with someone else – part xD ).

When Luca pointed out that Shinyun not loving Magnus is irrelevant, I think he meant it in more sense than one: Not just regarding the question whether Magnus should break up with her but also because Magnus doesn’t care. And I don’t think Magnus is aware of how weird that is (in terms of the romantic relationship they’re supposed to be in.).

I can literally picture the mischief on Luca’s face when he proposes his challenge to Magnus: He knows exactly what is going to happen! Oh, the joys of being a therapist! One question though: Didn’t Shinyun and Magnus already go on a date in chapter three (after the hug & when Magnus drank alcohol during the date)? Or was that work-related?

Magnus is really good at noticing patterns in his every day life once he has had an epiphany: There are so many moments in this chapter where he consciously sees how similar Alec and Shinyun/Rafe are! Or much he thinks of Rafe and wants to make it better.

I think I might be right and Max is actually going to take over Edom! Especially with the way Shinyun made Edom something more positive! YES! And Magnus is oblivious to it. Wouldn’t it be funny if Alec realized what was going on with Max regarding Edom? Because then both Magnus and Alec would only see half of what Max is doing (or who… lol). And Max using that inhaler-excuse again – oh, I love him! But Max does seem to get more responsible – even though Rafe is not crushing in the way I predicted… I really want to know what Max and Shinyun are doing…

The way Shinyun is waving goodbye enthusiastically to Max seems so out of character that I really want to know what is behind that… because I don’t believe the two of them are just discussing Max promoting products… Is she genuinely so excited at having found a possible heir of the empire? Or, what I think is way more likely given her lack of emotional outbursts, is she just pretending? For Magnus, to let him know that his child is safe? For Max, to convince him to join the firm..? I think that Max already knows that he wants to join Edom (or he is his way to come to that conclusion) but that he doesn’t want to tell Shinyun just now because he has a plan (as he has with revealing the relationship with David to Alec). He’s quite the game theorist, our little Max. But what is he planning? Just show up Shinyun to have fun? Or as another comment theorized, to make it possible for Max to go to London with Max? Or something else?

Every interaction of Shinyun and Magnus just makes it SO obvious that these two are definitely not in a real romantic relationship. It is almost painful to see them pretend. Or for Alec not to realize what is going on… Shinyun is confused that Magnus shows up because they don’t have an appointment! And her being flabbergasted at him asking her on a real date.. when they’re already in a relationship! Those two! And then she is surprised at the flowers even though she knows it’s supposed to be a real date…

I can’t believe that Magnus went to the date wearing his Alec-shirt. Like, he could just as well well have worn his Alec-hoodie… lol. But Magnus feeling safe because he knows that he might loose one replacement-Alec by wearing Alec’s t-shirt is actually quite sweet (and weird but we don’t talk about that). But imagine.. what if the date had actually turned out to be great and then they would have made out with Magnus wearing Alec’s shirt – EW!

I love their confused discussion about whether this actually was a date and how one can tell what it is! And Shinyun is golden. When she tries to suggest that they could kiss and he just freaks out and it like “I’m not having sex with you”! These two are chaotic idiots! And when she’s like “come on, we’re on a schedule – kiss me now, I have to go!” Ah, it’s perfect! It’s as unromantic as it could possibly be and that’s perfect! And Magnus just kissing her to proof something to Luca lol.

I have to mention though that my romantic-malec-heart was so happy that it felt so wrong to him.

I’m so glad Shinyun started laughing. Because what if Magnus had tried to really kiss her just to prove something..?! If Shinyun would rather sell Edom than to kiss Magnus again, it must have been absolutely horrific! I never noticed how funny she could be: getting a restraining order for Magnus’ mouth?! LOL! I think Alec would like one of these as well but the other way around: Magnus mouth is restrained to never leave his xD

Shinyun going from “Oh, you don’t want to date me?!” to “What does Max like for breakfast?” is two seconds is the content I’m here for!

Also, damn you for making me like Shinyun. I tried really hard not to but I have finally reached the point where I genuinely enjoy her presence. And it's not just because they finally broke up (FINALLY!). But it was unfortunately (lol) even before that. She is just very likable in her straightforwardness. And she can be funny! And kind. And it has become so obvious that she cares a lot for Magnus and just wants him to be happy. She just really is a good friend of his and I was so biased by Alec’s perspective that I was always suspicious of her – especially with how she turns out to be in the books. But I think she will just continue to be awesome.

I’m slightly (read: VERY) worried that since they kissed outside, someone will post a picture of them kissing online and Alec is going to see it…. The sadistic half of my brain would obviously enjoy that since I enjoy angst (there is a reason I’m reading this fic lol) but also I don’t want Alec to get hurt! I just hope that if it happens it will be an opportunity for Alec to show his growth: Because he already believes that their relationship is serious (he was ready to believe that they would have a child together), so maybe it wouldn’t come to him as a huge surprise. Maybe he will feel hurt but would only calmly mention it to Magnus or Shinyun.. and that could be this perfect scene we already saw in a snippet, and Shinyun will let him know that Magnus is still very much (and exclusively) in love with Alec. And maybe then Magnus and Alec could talk about it. Not necessarily to get back together but just to be like “I love you” – “I love you, too” and then hug as friends. So basically the inverse of Shinyun and Magnus’ relationship xD I also want to see an Alec-being-happy-because-he-is-still-only-in-love-with-me-happy-dance! LOL

I have one more prediction: I don’t know if I’m going to far with this prediction here, but I could totally see Alec not over-reacting when he learns about Mavid. Because Alec is a big believer in love, so I think he is mostly worried about Max just taking advantage of David in a sexual way which could lead to many issues between the families. But I think that once he learns that Max and David are in love with each other, he’ll be their biggest supporter. I feel like Alec (at least in the third timeline) has only a tendency of overreacting when it comes to Magnus & Shinyun or to people he cares about getting hurt (in a bad way). But them being together wouldn’t be that, so… :)

Before I wrap this up, I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving me both of my wishes from my last snippet ask: Both a Malec hug and Magnus’ POV of a real date with Shinyun! Thank you so much! Both of them were so much better than I imagined when I asked for them! So thank you!

And thank you for reading this waaaay too long review. My sanity kind of left me today…

Could I ask you for a snippet about a pair of characters smiling at each other? I don’t care if it’s Magnus-Alec, Alec-Shinyun, Max-David, Rafe-anyone, Max-his parents, … :) I love some genuine love and sharing of happiness :)

#tlnd #too many thoughts #chapter 28 #i love this so much #malec #fanfic #5000 word-review #that's the normal length right?#only spend all day writing it...#was a great way to spend my saturday though xD

17 notes · View notes

lizzybeth1986 · 6 years ago

Text

Quick Thoughts on Lazy Writing, aka "Look Look, We Got You An Asian Woman LI, Now Give Us A Medal Just For Making Her Exist".

• Yep. This is not going to be about Chapter 15. I don't think Chapter 15 is worth a fucking QT post. It does not deserve it, this book doesn't deserve it, this team does not deserve it, I'm not giving it one.

• This chapter is basically part-resolution-of-Hana's-arc and part-sex-scene-on-the-balcony. I'll probably write about the balcony scene when I resume writing essays. But as of now...I'm going to write about Hana. At least that way she'll get the focus that she deserves, and that PB is so unwilling to give her 😡 So if you think I've whined too much about Hana Lee, my dear readers, let me tell you this: you ain't seen nothing yet. Leave now while you can if Hana-rants aren't your thing.

• Basically - since I'm not going to do the usual chapter walkthrough this QT - I'll summarize what happens. Xinghai and Lorelai insist on taking away Hana's belongings despite protests from Hana and the MC. There is a diamond option to help her retrieve her black embroidered cheongsam, which is more precious to her than anything else because it holds memories of her grandmother. Afterwards you get ready for the lantern festival and spend majority of the chapter trying to get Hana's parents to give a positive statement, and eventually figure out that Rashad is the key to this. You convince him to accept Xinghai's proposal, Lorelai and Xinghai openly support you and make a half assed apology to Hana, everyone is happy and telling each other their wishes, and the diamond option to scandalize the entire country (...or not. You can go to the bedroom instead lol) with your LI pops up. It ends with Maxwell getting excited about hosting your bachelorette in Las Vegas (somehow I have a feeling the TRR writers never read RoE Book 2).

• Yep that's it. There really is nothing worth writing about in this chapter, because they didn't bother to nail the most important part of it: and that is Hana's story.

• That's all I'm going to talk about today. Hana.

• Hana. Hana. Hana Hana. Hana Hana Hana. HanaHanaHanaHanaHanaHana.

• Did I mention Hana?

• Title: Light the Night. Which is straightforward, it's a festival dedicated to lanterns and takes place around nighttime. Though IMO the title should really have been: The Number of Fucks Given About Hana Lee By Her Own Writers Is Equal To The Number of Times Anton Severus Makes An Appearance In This Chapter

•

...I just had to slip that in somewhere since there is no way I can ever make this statement unironically IRL 😢

•

This is the first of many statements Hana's parents make about her inability to survive on her own. She is a "delicate flower" that requires watchful care and tending, and the MC is the "weed", the kind that doesn't fit in - but also the kind that is tough and resilient and can survive all manners of things, that depends on itself. Lorelai's argument is that without them, or without a partner that meets their approval, Hana will have very few skills to take care of herself (whose fault is that, I wonder!)

This is something Hana is aware of, and has been highlighting on the few occasions that the people who right her remember that she is meant to be a well-rounded character (which isn't often). She has spoken about not knowing how to live without her parents (Book 2 Chapter 2), how she doesn't know if her skills will help her in the real world (Book 3 Chapter 5), how she isn't even aware who she is (Book 2 Chapter 9). Her character arc was meant to be about learning what her parents neglected to teach her in their mad rush to make her the perfect aristocratic wife, the perfect hostess. Except that, unfortunately, these narrative threads were picked up in fits and starts: implied at and alluded to but never satisfactorily explored.

I will come back to punch holes in Lorelai's arguments (echoed by Xinghai at the festival) later.

•

On the surface this looks like a nice story? It harks back to a dress we've seen before (the black-red-gold cheongsam she'd shown us in Shanghai, alongside a dress she'd made specially for us. She also wears it when she proposes to the MC in case she's the one you declare your love to), something we know she made and is important to her, and tells us more about her youth (the dress seems to have been made when she was "of age", since those measurements perfectly fit an adult Hana) and her family in China. But I have two major problems with this:

1. How many chapters has it been since this book started? 19 chapters in Book 1, another 19 in Book 2 and 15 at present. That makes it 53 whooping chapters.

FIFTY THREE CHAPTERS AND WE LEARN ABOUT HANA'S GRANDMOTHER, SOMEONE SHE WAS IMMENSELY CLOSE TO, ONLY NOW??? IT TAKES US FIFTY THREE FUCKING CHAPTERS FOR US TO GAIN ACCESS TO THIS PIECE OF PERSONAL HISTORY????

2. The second major problem lies in the scene itself. I'll get there.

• So I'll start first with the main components of this scene:

1. The MC and Hana choose an accomplice (Maxwell/Olivia).

2. The accomplice distracts Lorelai

3. Hana distracts an attendant while the MC grabs the dress, but not before almost getting caught by another attendant. They make a run for it and find themselves in a secret hideout.

4. Hana changes into her dress and is happy. If you're marrying her, this is where she and the MC kiss. But besides this there's very little distinction between how this scene plays out if you're her friend versus if you're her fiancée.

•

The Olivia option of the Lorelai-distracting-segment is perhaps my favourite moment in the scene and the only reason it could be even remotely worth playing. Not just for Olivia herself, but also as a reminder that while Hana and Olivia have made their peace with each other and know each others' strengths, they will never actually like each other...and that's okay. Olivia reverts to her bitchy Book 1 persona, hinting at Hana's failed engagement with Lord Peter and casting her in a less favourable light, and I especially love that Hana lets her emotions take over here. There's always been a palpable tension between the two (and often Olivia is the one more open about it, while Hana usually prefers to display diplomacy instead) and this is one of the few times Hana gets to be anything other than neutral or cheerful. She doesn't like what Olivia said, and she makes it clear at least to the MC.

•

Hana Lee, Queen of Awkward Flirting xD xD

• We take a turn that almost lands us in a room where Lorelai is still talking, narrowly escape the attendant chasing us to finally find ourselves in a secret passage with a hole in the wall, from where you could easy watch the sunset.

• Hana changes into her cheongsam.

Very pretty. Lots of flowers and butterflies form the patterning of this dress.

• Now this was the point where I thought we'd learn more about this dress. Or about her grandmother. Or about her life in Shanghai. SOMETHING.

• But no. We get a brief conversation about how hurt Hana is that her mother is intent on disowning her, and the MC convincing her she is stronger than she believes herself to be. Which is nice, but it sounds like a repeat of what's been said before.

• Do you remember that one diamond scene option in The Sophomore where the MC get to to grab Natasha's Loose Pins posters so she can't sabotage Kaitlyn's band? I liked it, it was funny and I liked the thrill of the chase in that scene. And that was exactly the focus of that scene: the chase. Kaitlyn had other scenes focusing on her equation with the band, her trust issues post Gutter Kittens and how she has learned from her mistakes since TF Book 3. It made sense to have a funny, silly scene that revolved not around Kaitlyn but around that chase instead.

Well, that's exactly the focus of this scene. The chase! The fact that time was running out! The wild rush to grab that cheongsam before Hana's mother could catch her! That's exactly all this scene was meant to be and that's exactly how it was written.

But there's a huge difference here. Hana is not Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn's arc about her sexuality and about her coming out was highlighted in detail. She was given subplots that made it clear how complicated a journey it was for her and she has a canon sexuality openly addressed in the books. Hell, TF Book 2 has her scream "I'M GAY" in a crowded bar to her childhood friend Arjun!

Kaitlyn is allowed to be a well-rounded, imperfect person, who trusts the wrong people and suffers the consequences in such a way that it reflects on her self-esteem in the next few books. She had plenty of scenes exploring all these aspects of her journey, so a funny, light scene like this one works in the larger context of Kaitlyn's story.

But this scene - for Hana - was supposed to be the culmination of her entire journey. You hear that? Her entire journey! It was supposed to be the point where she made it clear to both her parents that this was who she was and this was the life she preferred to live, take it or leave it. This scene was supposed to be a watershed moment for her, and this is what it comes to? A scene where Hana isn't even the focus? Where her story, her journey isn't even the focus??

• The grandmother story irks me to no end for another reason too. It was clearly not meant to be development for Hana. If it were, there would have been more in the diamond scene itself. They would have spent the secret hideout scene on a thorough exploration of Hana and her childhood, her growing up, what this woman was like. If it really were meant as development, we wouldn't be hearing about this grandmother now at the very end.

No. That little tidbit about Hana's grandmother was bait. It's fairly obvious that most of us who love her character are literally starved for information about her compared to, say, Drake and Liam (Maxwell isn't exactly treated all that well either). So they push in this little story so that her fans can buy this scene that isn't even worth two diamonds, forget fifteen.

• So now we've got Hana's cheongsam, that she can now wear to the lantern festival (for a girl who knows how to sew, and sew beautifully, Hana has remarkably few outfits of her own) it's time for us to get ready. In some glittery beaded blue number.

Is it just me or does the art team for TRR have a thing for armbands?

• So the main problem now is to reach out to, and convince, Hana's parents before they make their final statements to the press.

• Penelope and Kiara love the festival, Olivia and Madeleine don't altogether hate it. Yay?

• Kiara is the only one among the court ladies whose wishes we hear, which is a nice touch considering she's always been the one given the least attention in the books. The lantern rituals are apparently both about letting go of things that are holding you back in your life, and making wishes for the future. Kiara is letting go of her doubts and her fears for this tour, and wishing speed in her learning of Icelandic. Hakim uses his wish to speak about work, and he's not the only one. Rashad needs help with getting a deal finalized for the Sloan firm too!

• We now move to Xinghai and try to convince him, but it only leads to a realization that Hana's parents still want to secure a match for her with the two men she'd firmly stated she had no interest in. This is nothing new, but this argument of Xinghai - also something Lorelai stated earlier - is something I want to expand on:

1. I'm incredibly familiar with the first argument. I've had a largely restrictive childhood under a very traditional Indian family dynamic (your parents are close to God so obey them), and didn't have much opportunity to mingle outside my home. As I grew older my father began to get increasingly frustrated that I was "glued to your mother's dupatta" (scarf) and not independent enough. And he said this genuinely, unironically. It never occurred to either of my parents that they'd created an environment that made it hard for me to actually make my own decisions without feeling like I was doing something wrong.

Xinghai and Lorelai are right to some extent: I mean, Hana herself on certain occasions has questioned how useful her skills are in the real world, in a Cordonia that needs her to be decisive and firm. But that didn't happen in a vacuum, did it? Both of them leave out (or in fact, don't even recognize) a significant truth about Hana's lack of independence - they were, to a large extent, responsible for it. She is dependent because they brought her up that way. Because they never gave her space to work things out on her own and the one time she demanded that space, they viewed it as an insult rather than actually give her that chance. The moment you place that much pressure and those many restrictions on a child, you've lost the right to talk about her lack of independence as if it's something that is a part of her. It isn't. You put her in that position. Tbh, it irks me that Xinghai and Lorelai genuinely don't see the irony in their statements.

What Hana had was an immensely restrictive childhood, and perhaps if she didn't have the friend circle in Cordonia that she did, she would have struggled. Her kind of upbringing doesn't allow for real world skills (something Lorelai views as a negative when she says "people wouldn't have to be resilient if they stayed in their place to begin with") and she's never been allowed to view even her own personal feelings as a good thing! This goes beyond "taking responsibility for one's past and future". She's never been allowed a responsibility that doesn't involve her being forced into matches she has had zero interest in, and that seem to have higher benefits for her family than they do for her.

All in all, Hana's skills do not fully equip her for independent living, sure, but they both overlook their own role in her eventual inability to adjust if it comes to that.

2. What Xinghai says about trust going both ways. He misses the fact that she already did. She trusted them completely and did everything they told her to, often to her own detriment. The engagement to Lord Peter? That's the perfect example of this. It wasn't her fault that the match broke: she followed through with it no matter how uninterested she was in the man, to the point where when he asked her if she really loved him she couldn't open up and tell him how she really felt. Yet she was viewed as responsible for the breaking of that match - for doing everything she was expected to do - and left Shanghai viewing herself as a failure.

She's spent years trusting them, spent most of her young life perceiving their worldview as correct and wanting to do right by them! She's gone above and beyond when it comes to trusting and respecting her parents' judgement! Even at the cost of her own happiness! There is only so much any human being can take before they realize how messed up this manner of bringing a child up is.

But guess what. None of this is actually addressed properly in the book, because we never get a real insight into Hana's upbringing and the effect it has had on his with any kind of nuance.

• After Xinghai and Lorelai tell us that what they're planning for Hana is for her own good, and imply that either Neville (the man is still around, yes) or Rashad can prove to be advantageous for her and moreso for their family and business. Hana and the MC briefly agonize over this, and if the MC correctly names the firm that Rashad wants as a client (IDK what happens if she doesn't - TBH I was sleepwalking through this chapter and wasn't interested in seeing what the alternative was this time. Sorry guys) they work on convincing him to work with Xinghai in exchange for introducing him to a contact in this firm.

• The MC first gets to choose what she will let go of, then chooses what she wishes for. Once this is done, Hana's mother makes a statement in support of the MC, having spoken to Rashad and suddenly realizing that their daughter can thrive without their handholding. Emotional family reunion. Everyone is happy. Lorelai apologizes and Xinghai reveals his wish for Hana to be happy. The end.

• There you go guys. This is how it ends. That's the conclusion of Hana's entire character arc. The culmination of a journey that lasted three whole books involving Hana fighting to create an identity for herself...ends in her parents realizing she's useful on her own after all. After all this time, after so much conflict and stress and confusion...it all boils down to her parents still seeing her more as an asset than as a daughter.

Awesome message, TRR, awesome message. Now give me a moment while I vomit.

Allow me to elaborate. She is still worthy only if she facilitates Xinghai's deal with Rashad's firm, if they manage to gain an advantage even minus her alliance with a titled man. There is no real change. Not in Hana, not in her parents, not in their relationship. This conclusion is superficial and is a horrifically weak way to end Hana's overall arc.

• To sum up the rest of the chapter before I give you a broader insight into why this chapter pissed me off so much...there is an LI diamond scene and then Maxwell announces a bachelorette party in Vegas (why aren't they doing that in Cordonia? Cordonia clearly has a gambling hub and a pretty famous casino if one were to recall RoE).

• The LI diamond scenes are quite sweet - all the LIs get to speak about family and having children - and there is a lot of sweetness and tenderness in all of them from what I've seen of the screenshots. Had this chapter not ruined this book for me, I would probably appreciate it better? In any case, I might do a four-LI-breakdown-essay of this scene once I feel up to it. I'll be doing the same for the LI scenes at the Capitol, Lythikos and Valtoria. Eventually.

• The Hana-specific scenes in this book, however...I think I'll pass. We have had just three so far: Polo Playing at Portavira, Snow Angel Making at Lythikos and Hana's Cheongsam here at Valtoria. None of these scenes possess any depth or nuance, none of them say much about Hana that hasn't already been said, each of them are pale echoes of the scenes we have seen Liam and Drake getting. If you're going to give an LI three individual scenes in 15 chapters of a book, those scenes had better be excellent, detailed and nuanced in their characterization. If you're not ready to give us that...then what's the point, team TRR??? You could have either given us more scenes with tiny but substantial tidbits, or less scenes but with bigger opportunities to know her better. But something tells me that you don't care enough about this character or your LGBTQ audience enough to actually do the work.

• And this problem isn't restricted to Book 3 alone. Hana has been subject to lazy writing since Book 2. The groundwork laid for Hana in Book 1 was really good...but that's all it was: basic groundwork. No Hana stan should have to pat you in the back for laying a good foundation for that character, not when the other two established LIs had just as solid a foundation PLUS excellent buildup in subsequent books. And no Hana stan should have to thank you now for throwing only scraps their way.

• Hana's foundations in Book 1 lay in two areas: her sexuality and her complicated relationship with her family. Hers was the classic coming-out-of-the-closet story, and it was heavily implied that she was never really given the space to view herself as anything but "straight", that she'd been pressurized into pursuing men, that the experience of falling for the MC itself was immensely confusing for her (in her first confession scene, she couldn't even articulate her feelings - that was how confusing this experience was).

But her sexuality is hardly ever directly touched upon in the books beyond that (beyond a botched Facebook response from a Pixelberry employee who dubbed her as "bi if she is pursuing you and straight if she is pursuing the Prince" like WTF - and a post from one of the writers stating that the team sees her as "bisexual...but that is something she is still figuring out". However the books never really touches on this the way they did for Kaitlyn, and they really, really should have. They should have established her sexuality in no uncertain terms within canon).

However she identifies herself, Hana's struggles would still be important and valid, and she would still have major issues coming out to herself and her family. In this recent chapter, Lorelai's issues are aired as a class issue rather than on the level of sexuality, which is contradicted by the very fact that Hana was pushed to pursue men, make herself desirable to eligible men, assumed by her parents to only have an interest in men. Not only does canon tell us very little about her parents' views on her sexuality, they don't openly voice what she identifies as!

• Book 1, in fact, is the only book they seemed to have put in some effort, but as I have maintained earlier, I refuse to give them credit for that because what you give in the first book is the foundation of the character. It can only come to life if you build on that foundation in the next book, and the next. But Book 2? Lazy writing from the start. The revelation that Liam - not Madeleine - was responsible for Hana's return came from Drake's scene, not hers. In Italy when Liam and Drake had amazing character and background building scenes, Hana was stuck with scenes that were barely about her. At the beginning of the Paris chapters, she got one of the most lackluster scenes in the entire book (the fashion runway with Penelope). I suppose there must have been some backlash because they brought out two good scenes in the Paris section - the Patisserie scene and the Library scene, only to treat her later like a persona non grata in Shanghai. SHANGHAI. HANA'S OWN HOME.

• This point is incredibly important, because Shanghai was the only place that was home to an LI. The narrative at this place should have been centered around her. The stories and love legends should have been told by her. Her background should have been receiving focus like never before but it didn't. Shanghai only lasted two chapters (as opposed to Capri's 3 and Paris' 4) and neither of those chapters gave her enough focus besides the confrontation with Xinghai. The panda reserve scene revolved around Liam. The night market scene focused on the mending of Drake and Maxwell's relationship with Hana functioning as a mere mediator. Liam was the one who got to give us the lovely dragon koi legend, not Hana who actually lived in China. Hana's only diamond scene in Shanghai focused less on her and more on the trip to NY - and she didn't even appear in the first chapter in that city!! (the writers later came up with the excuse that Hana was emotionally drained after her confrontation with her parents...except that NOBODY in the story - not even the MC - gave a flying fuck about where or how she was or why she wasn't there).

• I bring up Book 2 mainly because it's important for us to understand that what the writers have been doing with Hana isn't just restricted to this book or this post hiatus period. It's been ongoing. She's been given lazy, half-baked writing for a majority of the series, and I cannot even count the "development" she got in Book 1 because those are only building blocks. If you don't develop a character beyond that, all that's really there is a hollow shell. Hana had the promise and the potential to be a truly well-developed character, and they made a shell out of her instead.

• And it's not like the TRR team is unable to write women. Case in point: Olivia Nevrakis. Olivia's character development has been consistent and well-written throughout the entire series. Not only are her background, motivations and emotional state constantly given attention, the narrative somehow ensures she gets good development even when the focus isn't on her.

For instance, Olivia takes a definite backseat in Book 2, and she's mostly relegated to either investigation work or slowly becoming part of the MC's inner circle. She doesn't have a presence in group scenes where Liam appears, and she doesn't have a single individual scene the way she did in Books 1 and 3. Still, she is given enough material to facilitate her growing relationship with the MC (if she so chooses) and the group. As Liam's alternate LI, parallels have been consistently drawn between her and the MC especially in Book 3. Her faith and belief in Liam is constantly highlighted as unwavering, and her trust in the MC takes a while but culminates eventually in Olivia sharing an important part of her family history with her first.

Olivia's growth from a wary cactus to someone who trusts you if you reach out to her enough, wouldn't have been half as convincing if she wasn't given that kind of development. But perhaps this is because Olivia - like Liam - is so involved in the larger plot of the books, whereas Hana exists mostly outside of the main plot.

• But you know WHO isn't exactly all that central to the main plot of the series but still gets great character development? DRAKE. It started slow, with Drake's first individual diamond scene coming in as late as Chapter 7 (which IMO makes sense, since they needed the MC to warm up to him first), but he was given a solid foundation in Book 1 that was built on in Book 2, and furnished with detailing in Book 3. His diamond scenes were mostly rich in character development and the book was consistent in their focus of him as well.

In Book 3, there is a marked difference between how he is written as an LI versus as a friend. While his overall arc was frustrating to some readers, it was built up pretty well and the conclusion to it (the duel) was written in such a way that it really felt like a vindication of sorts. The duel in fact had an added significance if the MC was his fiancée, because both are commoners who are being targeted by Neville for "rising above their station". There isn't a single scene of Drake's in Book 3 that doesn't explore his character in a detailed manner, or have two diametrically different scenes highlighting his LI/non-LI status.

How does the duel act as a game changer for Drake? He tells it to us himself: the duel was not just for his honour alone, but for every commoner a noble has slighted. For his family, for his sister, for his fiancée (if he is marrying the MC) or friend. It's poignant, dramatic, powerful as a culmination of Drake's journey. The conflict resolution of an arc should end with a bang, and Drake's really did.

• Hana on the other hand is a different story altogether. No matter what her relationship is with the MC in Book 3, she is mostly relegated to "best friend" status regardless. Her initial conflicts as a fiancée seemed to indicate she feared turning into her parents (Chapters 1 and 2) and it sounded really promising, but that characterization was dropped as soon as the Unity Tour kicked off. She is depicted worrying about how she will survive and contribute to Cordonia and whether her skills really equipped her for the outside world, but it is explored only in one character scene of hers, and very very superficially.

Unlike the duel scene for Drake, Hana's conflict-resolution scene this chapter falls flat and doesn't really mark much of a change. The only difference in her relationship with her parents' is that they see her as useful minus a man by her side now. Emphasis on useful. What kind of resolution is that? Does it have a great impact? Does it have any impact?

• Hana's treatment is marginally better only when you compare it to Maxwell's, who has had just one character scene so far, and who hasn't seen much significant development since the beginning of Book 3. Even though the team has mentioned that he was meant to be an LI from the beginning, the way he was written in the beginning and the way they write him now tells me otherwise.

But they don't have that excuse for Hana. Hana WAS a confirmed LI from the beginning. She WAS part of the original lineup. Which means they should have been working as hard on her as they did Liam and Drake. What excuse does the team have for not developing her properly??

• The problem here is clear: both Drake and Olivia are centered within the narratives that focus on their stories. When the focus comes to Paris in Book 2, or Lythikos in Book 3, they are front and center. Compared to that, how is Hana going to compete? At the points that the narrative should be focusing on her, she is given garbage in place of content and story. Even when the narrative is supposed to be about her relationship with her parents and her growth outside their influence, she is the least important person. She was the least important person in Shanghai, and she's now the least important person in this chapter that was supposed to showcase how far she has come from the nervous, underconfident girl we met in Book 1. It's even more infuriating when you take into account that she was meant to be the only female LI, that they

1. never planned to give people who wanted to romance a woman in TRR more than just this option, and

2. couldn't be bothered to follow through and do a decent job of the one option they had.

• I hate calling Hana a Mary Sue, because that wasn't at all what she originally was. She was indecisive, had low self esteem, didn't always enjoy the activities and skulls she was pressurized into learning. There was at least one occasion where she spoke of getting her way by failing...and now the same character is labelled a Mary Sue.

But you know what? There's a reason why she is addressed as such. A Mary Sue is a mark of lazy writing and poor characterization, used on characters that are made to appear perfect in lieu of real development. And while Hana started out a little flawed and confused and in need of guidance, she soon turned into this Ms Perfect who was talented in everything and received praises from everyone instead of an actual insight into her character.

• Hana is at a disadvantage on her own. She is the only LI among the four who was brought up elsewhere (in China), and who wasn't from familiar ground (America)/fictional places (Cordonia) for the writers. Her issues are very culture-specific, they rise out of a context. Not many people may relate to that straightaway so it is essential that her story is handled with a lot more care and nuance. She is a woman of colour who is in the closet, brought up (as is hinted) in a family that doesn't exactly view her sexuality as normal. This is how the Hana of Book 1 was written.

Then Book 2 happened, and the writers either realised they didn't know enough to write this story convincingly, or didn't care enough to do the research. I suspect it's a mix of both. Even so, they should have done some reading up, done some homework, tried to at least center this character around her own narrative. No one is asking for a thesis on society and norms in Shanghai - they're asking for some good background, some basic research, legends and stories that she must have grown up with, if that's what it takes to do justice to this character. If you're going to create a character so unfamiliar to this world and make her a love interest, you had better put in the work that story requires.

Otherwise stop. Stop branding yourself as LGBTQ friendly when most of your female LI fans have to make do with mere scraps, stop patting yourselves on the back for including women of colour in your books when you view them as nothing but tokens.

• I'm sure Liam and Drake sound more lucrative...popular...whatever...and that factors into the way they're being writen, but when the lone female LI consistently gets the short end of the stick, what do you expect? They write Hana (and many other female LIs) in such a way that they're almost set up to fail. At least a few players I have spoken to have highlighted how they went from liking Hana in Book 1 to hardly interested in her presence in Book 2. That change didn't occur out of nowhere: when the writers themselves don't write her with any amount of conviction, how do you expect the readers NOT to lose interest?

There have been a lot of improvements made in terms of readers' demands. Whether it involved the way LI scenes were written, or Liam's initial lack of romantic interactions in Book 3, or even how Kiara's PTSD was addressed. The one thing neglected every. single. time. was Hana. And I'm saying this because I've spoken and spoken and spoken about how little Hana is given and how much more she deserves, and things still haven't changed. I highly doubt they will at this point. It's too late now. Hana's arc is largely over, and her ending makes absolutely no sense when you compare it to the way her story was initially written. Had she had the kind of focus that, say, Drake has been having, we wouldn't have this rushed mess of a conclusion for her story.

• Tldr: Hana could reached her potential as a character. She could have been interesting, imperfect, inspiring. If her writers were actually bothered. But they aren't, so those of us who do love her are left wondering if we care about her more than the people who created her (yes we do). I'm tired, fam. I give up. I think I'm done with this book, and I don't think I can ever get back to loving it the way I used to.

#the royal romance #trr hana #hana x mc #hana lee #hana rant #trr quick thoughts #quick thoughts #i think i'm done with this book #long post

161 notes · View notes