#and jc is in any way a nice guy

[lavender-phoenix-flames]

Mdzs fandom made me realize how bad, absurd and absolutely irritating popular fanon misinterpretations could be cuz I have to see and tolerate posts calling wwx an oblivious unreliable narrator, jiang cheng an actual good person and lxc an angel have thousands of notes on daily bases and try my hardest not to explode in rage.

Seriously mdzs fandom really made me realize how horrible people can be at reading smh. Like I know media literacy and reading comprehension is low but this low damn...

[randomness-is-my-order]

i was watching the founder of diabolism animation with my cousin (for the first time!) today and it just made me extremely emotional about this story once again. i’ve already talked about alot of motifs in mdzs which are close to my heart but one thing the animation reiterates so well is this whole seeming dichotomy between wei wuxian and lan zhan.

now, i have my gripes with the show, as is the case for all adaptations of canon but the way the colours, effects and even the opening lyrics are used to maximise the differences between wwx and lwj is very fascinating. i’m not one to really buy into the “oh they’re not black and white, but they’re grey” when it comes to the wwx-black and lwj-white representation because morally speaking, i don’t find that the “greyness” tracks.

the dichotomy is moreso appealing to me for what the story inevitably delivers: appearances are deceptive, rumours are deceptive, the surface hides the true depth underneath. you go into this animated show with your protagonist surrounded by a clear narrative of some kind of fall from grace, while the deuteragonist is painted in a virtuous light from the get-go. you don’t know how it’s going to happen but the narrative so far wants you to perceive the characters a certain way while still giving you just enough to make you doubt yourself. but here’s the thing: you do doubt yourself but not to the extent that you should. wei wuxian does become some sort of heretic path cultivator, apparently, but you know he’s a nice, chirpy teen and helpful in the future but surely, he embraces the darkness when his hand is forced. and surely, lan zhan only goes against him because his morals and rules demand it. surely, lan zhan’s hand is forced as well.

and while there is some truth to it, you don’t realise that morally, very objectively, and very harshly speaking, the fall from grace doesn’t happen from wei wuxian’s end but lan wangji’s and here the whole white/black, good/evil motifs become completely secondary because who exactly is devolving here? it never was wei wuxian and realising that in it of itself is a major part of mdzs’s storytelling.

i mostly bring this up because my cousin noticed something that i, as a novel reader & cql watcher can’t pick up–that during the punishment scene in cloud recesses, wwx internally muses about how he couldn’t have lwj’s resolve during his silence endurance of punishment and later he tells jc that he won’t try to dabble into demonic cultivation ever again. setting aside the fact that this doesn’t clarify the misnomer and that these are scenes which are slightly altered or completely new when compared to canonical material, it still maintains the essence of the earlier chapters, imo. in that, my cousin remarked that wwx himself says he doesn’t have the resolve and so he might end up practicing demonic cultivation anyway. (i was sorely tempted to reply with a thesis on why that is... wrong but what’s the fun in spoiling this journey for her?)

it’s just masterful how certain story beats paint this dilemma across the two characters, where you would think wwx is likely to have acted in a certain morally questionable way while putting more faith into lan zhan but as the past unfolds and you see beneath the surface of this young guy called wei wuxian, you realise just how much of his inner strength you have glossed over and that lan zhan’s resolve was always rooted in conflict with his rules vs his morals.

and i don’t mean this to be a way of propping wwx above lwj in some arbitrary moral olympics. it’s to simply to show how falsifying paragons and making the audience doubt wei wuxian is fundamental to experiencing mdzs in ANY format. the thoughts you have when you read/watch the first few chapters will have inevitably done a one-eighty after reading/seeing the conclusion. infact, the true black/white, good/evil, wrong/right debates aren’t even centred around wei wuxian and lan zhan but wei wuxian and the cultivation society as a whole.

and if i had to give an analogy for wei wuxian’s moral representation, then it wouldn’t be grey but––and all gay puns aside––it would be a ‘rainbow’ wherein the ‘white’ morality is very much a spectrum and leaves room for more questionable methods to ultimately reach an unequivocally good goal, without defaulting to the ‘grey’ area that is more often than not used as a backhanded way of representing wei wuxian’s moral complexity.

[whumpbby]

Tbh i really hate when ppl act as if Jiang Cheng was "rotten from the start" and never actually cared about Wei Wuxian as a brother. Like, in the latter's case we can see he cares very much but that care is very much mixed in with many negative feelings, it's like when you love someone but they hurt you but you still love them, you want things to go back to the way they were before but they can't and they won't. On the former it's pretty much canon that he was an ok if high strung young man and losing everyone he ever loved in very close proximity to each other is what made him be the way he is today, he's not evil (he'd be hotter if he was) he's just angry and bitter for very valid reasons

I think it takes an extreme case of Protagonist Bias to think that. And not even following the actual protagonist's thought process - just being biased on their account in some sort of a projection. Kids these days got to used to having their bad guys colour-coded.

People are so desperate to cast a villain to the Happy Couple they will grasp at any straw to justify their opinion. They will ignore every piece of text that explains in detail why things are happening and why he's acting the way he is - even to the point of ignoring the protagonist explaining what happened and how. They will literally ignore the protagonist they're wanting to stan just so that they can have their villain. Wei Wuxian needs to be massively nerfed and woobifed for the whole shitshow to start making sense. Literally, a man with no agency! Poor helpless victim! The poorest little baby, no one suffered as he did!:(

Meanwile, Jiang Cheng's biggest sin in the novel?

He's not nice.

That's it. He tried to protect Wei Wuxian from his mother. He did all he could to bring Wei Wuxian home after the war against his best interests. He walked away from Lan Zhan being a dick when he could have easily caused him problems. He only ever fought Wei Wuxian when it was either staged or he was attacked first (in the much brought up ancestral shrine scene that people don't seem to have actually read).

But he's not nice about it. He's not even stoicly stiff like the ever-amazing Lan Wangji (who only ever cared about one thing in his life, and it's the man he wanted to fuck roughly in the bushes-_-).

It was barely a decade from having his whole extended family horrifically murdered, so obviously he should be fine by this point. (We can ignore the main plot of the decade-in the making-revenge-plot, that's not important, that's not a theme at all!) At least he should learn to repress his trauma! Because that ended great for the protagonist, right?:)

You need an intense case of lack of comprehension to miss the fact that, until the very moment of the Core Reveal, every bit of information Jiang Cheng had available to him pointed directly to Wei Wuxian being at fault for the tragedy his life became. The only doubt cast upon that conclusion was the spark of love that he could not kill. JC trusted Wei Wuxian for as long as he could. He trusted him - against a myriad of signs that he maybe shouldn't have - until the man killed his brother in law.

That's where any sane person would stop and reconsider.

And yet he was still willing to be convinced otherwise - until his sister died in his arms.

Like, this is what it took for JC to snap.

If someone says that Jiang Cheng was "rotten from the start" that only tells me they have skipped the whole fourth of the book that tells us in detail why Jiang Cheng wasn't a bad kid and how much he loved his family and Wei Wuxian. It tells me that they are here only for the romance and can't see anything else, certainly not character development (why would they? Wanxian don't develop throughout the story in any impactful way except of "oh, hey, we can be together and not care about anyone else - just like we did it before, but now with fucking included!"). It's like people who don't read books cannot comprehend the fact the author thought about this shit and put it there on purpose. It's not something that just happened to fill the pages between the Romance bits for the word count. That's, like, the actual meat of the story? These people have the critical thought capacity of a fucking tiktoker-_-

The author is telling us: look at these kids that were raised in a broken family and how it affects them as teens and young adults. How it affected their relationships with the people they love and demolished their self-worth. Look how a broken family can leave it's children scarred for life!

The idiots online: one is an innocent angel that never did anything wrong and the other an evil, selfish and hateful brat, got'cha! I am very smart!

-__-

[gravitywonagain]

Jack of All Trades

(a Fresh Powder in the Pine Trees story in three vignettes)

Sometimes when you’re working at Juniors’ Club, you’re actually doing any number of other jobs around Cloud Recesses.

~

Ski Patrol

Sometimes, you’re just faster than Ski Patrol...

.

“Lan Zhan!”

Wei Ying waves his free arm around, flagging down Lan Zhan who, to his credit, skis directly over to him. 

He watches Lan Zhan take in the scene as he approaches: Wei Ying, one foot strapped into his board, holding a child and their board in his arms, a small amount of blood running down the child’s leg. There is, also, an adult skier sitting nearby looking suitably chastened. Lan Zhan is smart, he’ll put it together.

“Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan. I need you to watch my students. Take them back to JC, I’ll meet you there. I need to get this little guy to Wen Qing and that guy,” he jerks his head at the skier, ignoring the eight-year-old’s protests at being called ‘little,’ “needs to come with me.” He keeps his voice calm and light, but his face, he knows, shows his anger. 

“Can you wait for Ski Patrol?”

“Lan Zhan. There's blood on the snow and these kids are eight. No. I cannot wait for Ski Patrol.”

“Are you--”

“Lan Zhan.”

“Yes. I will meet you at Juniors’ Club.”

Thank the Heavens for Lan Zhan and his fucking serenity. Wei Ying draws on it for the briefest of moments before he moves again. He feels steadier when he does. 

“Thank you. Here,” he hands Lan Zhan the child’s snowboard, “take this, too.” 

Lan Zhan nods at him and takes it.

Wei Ying turns to the students who are all still sitting so nicely on the snow. They really are being absolutely perfect. Lan Zhan will figure out how to compensate their parents for the truncated lesson, but Wei Ying will make them all extra hot chocolate or something when he gets back to JC. 

He adjust his grip on the kid -- eight-year-olds are not light.

“Okay guys. This is Lan Zhan. He’s a skier, but he’s going to bring you guys back to the Clubhouse and hang out with you until I get back. Don’t worry, he’s super cool. You won’t even know I’m gone. Did you guys know he used to race?”

With that new distraction in place, Wei Ying shares another quick nod to Lan Zhan and skates over to the skier sitting on the snow. The man looks appropriately guilty so Wei Ying doesn’t feel the need to yell at him again. He steps his right foot into the binding -- kicking the straps out of the way with the toe of his boot, resolved to ride like he skates -- kid still in his arms, and nods.

“Come on. Let's go tell Ski Patrol what happened.”

The skier stands and follows him. He’s not quite as incompetent as he seemed when he hit Wei Ying’s student and they make it down the hill relatively quickly. 

It’s awkward as hell, snowboarding with fifty pounds of eight-year-old in his arms. His center of gravity is so off and he can’t quite gather the speed he wants, both because it’s a green run and because he can’t let the skier out of his sight. But they make it to the clinic. The skier stays with him. Everything is fine. 

-

Wen Qing yells at him for not waiting for Ski Patrol to stabilize the child’s leg before moving him. She waits until the kid is safe with his parents and the skier has been dealt with and is gone, of course, but it’s still loud. 

“It’s just a laceration, Qing-jie. Ski Patrol would have freaked out my students and taken forever to get there.”

“A-Ning would have been there as fast as he could, and you know that.”

It’s true. Wen Ning has always been Wei Ying’s friend, but for the last few months, he’s been weirdly attentive. You get a nosebleed and pass out one time and suddenly your EMT friend comes sprinting whenever you call. 

“As fast as he could is still not instantaneous.” 

“Wei Ying --”

“I’m first aid certified, Qing-jie. He’ll be okay.”

“If he has so much as a sprain…” She points a finger at him, accusatory and threatening. 

“If he has a sprain, he got it when the fucking skier hit him, not when I carried him down the mountain.”

“Okay.” Wen Qing seems mollified by this. “You’re dismissed. I want a copy of that incident report for my records.” 

“Yes, Wen-daifu.”

“Don’t put that on me,” she says, exasperated but fond. The accusatory finger is back. “You have to wait!”

She’s starting her bachelor’s degree this summer and then med school. Wei Ying is so fucking proud of her. 

-

Lan Zhan is sitting on one of the tiny benches when Wei Ying walks into the Clubhouse. It’s adorable. He does not fit at all, knees practically up to his ears. He’s surrounded by Wei Ying’s class and they’re all drawing or asking him questions or drinking hot chocolate and Wei Ying can’t help but smile at the scene. Lan Zhan, for his part, looks entirely comfortable. He has a purple mountains’ majesty crayon in his hand, poised above the paper in front of him while he answers one of the junior’s questions about rail slides on skis. 

Wei Ying absolutely does not want to disturb any of this. But, alas, it is his job that Lan Zhan is doing and, no matter how outwardly calm he looks, Lan Zhan is probably very tired of eight-year-olds and their inexhaustible curiosity. 

It’s almost time for their parents to come pick them up, anyway. Wei Ying will just sit there with them until it’s time. Maybe he’ll take them back out to the practice hill, but getting all of their gear back on sounds fucking exhausting. 

One of the kids notices him and yells out, “Wing!” effectively ending the calm. The table turns to him, big smiles on the kids’ faces, something almost soft on Lan Zhan’s. Surprisingly, nobody spills their hot chocolate. 

Lan Zhan raises an eyebrow and mouths, wing? at him, which is fair, but they’re eight and he only has them for like four hours so what are you going to do? 

“Hey guys!” Wei Ying smiles brightly at Lan Zhan and the pack of juniors. “See, I told you you wouldn’t miss me. Lan Zhan’s pretty fun, isn’t he?”

A quick survey of the various hot chocolate levels in their cups leads Wei Ying to decide to spend a little bit longer inside. He settles himself down on the bench across from Lan Zhan, straddling it and dropping his knees almost to the floor, and starts engaging with the juniors. One of the kids shows him their drawing. Another very nearly spills their hot chocolate, but Wei Ying catches it just in time. He brushes off questions about their missing classmate and steers the conversation back toward snowboarding. 

He looks up to see Lan Zhan’s eyes on him again, or maybe still, and suddenly the room is way too warm. 

“Who wants to go out to the hill and get a few more turns in?”

The kids start jumping up, excited to go back out to the snow. Wei Ying busies himself with helping them gear back up for the cold. Lan Zhan helps, too, and soon everybody is ready to go. 

On their way out the door, Wei Ying stops Lan Zhan and says, “You know you don’t have to stay with us, right? I’ve got it from here. I’m sure this isn’t how you expected to spend your afternoon.”

Lan Zhan nods, but it’s a confirmation of Wei Ying’s ability, not an agreement. “I will stay,” he says, “I need to speak with their parents anyway.”

Which is a totally valid reason and Wei Ying tries not to notice the way his stomach swooped at Lan Zhan’s easy “I will stay.”

Wei Ying leads the line of juniors out to the practice hill and gets the Magic Carpet running again. The rest of the hour passes easily: Wei Ying child wrangling and filling out report cards, Lan Zhan helping to catch kids and soothing parents’ concerns with promises of free lessons or ticket vouchers or something. 

It’s easy, working with Lan Zhan. Too easy. Wei Ying could get used to how easy this is. 

It’s a shame, really, that Lan Zhan mostly sticks to adult lessons. He’s so good with the kids. Bullying Lan Zhan into taking more JC lessons seems a bit out of Wei Ying’s self-appointed mission for this season, though. Maybe it’ll be his goal for next year. 

Next year.

Wei Ying smiles to himself at the thought before an approximation of his name pulls him back to reality and he jogs to the top of the hill to help one of the juniors clear ice out of their toe clip. 

-

“Someday you’re going to tell me how you got a bunch of eight-year-olds to sit and color for an hour,” says Wei Ying once they’re finally back inside.

“I told them it was useful for developing fine motor skills.”

Wei Ying raises an eyebrow, “And that worked?”

“I may have implied that refined fine motor skills would improve their reflexes in the terrain park.”

Wei Ying puts down the bright green vest in his hand and turns to Lan Zhan. “You told them coloring would make them better athletes?”

“I did.” 

“I… I don’t know enough about childhood athletic development to dispute it.”

There’s a hint of a smile curling Lan Zhan’s lips, “Neither do I.”

.

[Next: Hot Chocolate Machine Whisperer]

[askthehcc]

hey Tango! do you have any advice for someone stuck in executive dysfunction mode who really needs to Get The Task Done?

Tango: hmmm... well I'm not sure exactly what executive dysfunction is, but man do I sure Not Do Things sometimes, heh.

Tango: Like, l'll totally intend to do, like, the dishes or something, but then just somehow keep scrolling on my phone for hours?

Tango: I'm not totally sure how I manage to get myself out of it, but it seems to help when Skizz gets home from work and, like, breaks me from that Funk™, you know?

Tango: the awesome thing about Skizz is that he never seems to, like, hold me by my lack of doing things.

Tango: I feel super bad and like the world's shittiest housemate, sure, but he never, like, snaps or has a go at me or anything, which is really nice of him.

Tango: Usually he just, like, says something like, 'Hey Top, your laundry has been hanging here for a couple days, do you need me to unblock this for you?'

Tango: And then he'll help me work out what's stopping me from doing it, cause it usually tends to be, like, I'm out of hangers in my wardrobe or something and I don't know where to put stuff when I take the airer down.

Tango: So, I don't know.

Tango: I'm sorry I don't have great advice.

Tango: [Rubs his neck]

Tango: I guess my advice is to get yourself someone like Skizz who will help you out with this stuff without judging you for it...

Tango: Yeah, I'm sorry.

---

Skizz: Tango? Oh, yeah, totally. He definitely has ADHD.

Skizz: I'm kinda waiting for a good time to have that conversation with him, honestly.

Skizz: The thing about Top is that he has impossibly high standards for himself that he just cannot drop.

Skizz: And I'm trying to work out whether or not a conversation about something like that would make him spiral or cause him to ease up on himself.

Skizz: And I just really don't know which way the penny will fall right now, so... you know, while I work that out, I'll just make sure things are made as easy as possible for him.

Skizz: He's a great guy and so determined and so... ridiculously hard working. Me giving him a little bit of breathing room at home is the least I could do, you know?

Skizz: Top's my boy, after all. He's my homie. My buddeh, if you will.

Skizz: And first rule of JC, you gotta take care of your buddies.

Skizz: It's as simple as that.

[incarnadinedreams]

What do you like about jc?

Oh my goodness what don't I love about him!

Well, first and most importantly, he has a purple lightning whip.

Secondly, you know how the elements of a tasty dish are salt, fat, acid, heat? Well he's salty, he's acidic, he's a spicy Yunmeng boy, and some sources of mixed repute claim he's got a nice fat ass. All the elements for a delicious snack are right there!!! He has the range, the depth, the complexity!

Jokes aside, a lot of it really is just based on vibes. I just... liked him pretty much immediately. My heart was won at "I'm his uncle. Any last words?" and it only got better from there. He's got most of my favorite lines in the book - whether funny or completely heart-wrenching, both directly in his dialog or about him. His sarcastic comments are always hilarious, and he's often enough actually a voice of reason and responsibility (promptly ignored). The vast majority of the time when he's not in some absurdly extreme and traumatic situation he's being pretty normal and seems perfectly likeable to me.

I enjoy that from the start he's mostly pretty practical. One of the first times we see him, he desperately wants to smack Lan Wangji but he's run the cost-benefit analysis in his mind and it's not worth it, so (grumpily) he does not. Some people point out his 'definitely don't start a petty fight unless you know you can win' reasoning as some sort of point of cowardice, but my reaction to that scene was thank god, finally someone in a fantasy novel has some common fucking sense!

Except, of course, on one very specific topic: Wei Wuxian. And then there's like a 50/50 chance all that consideration goes out the window instantly. A little pinch of unhinged obsession adds so much extra flavor! With the amount of overtime he's pulling in sect conferences he deserves a little derangement from time to time, as a treat. And that intensity goes both ways.

That fervent certainty that Wei Wuxian would be back some day, that not even death could hold him - a conviction bordering on madness, except in the end he was right? Hot.

On the other end, he's willing to sacrifice himself for Wei Wuxian and other people who loves over and over and over again throughout the story (even if he's mad about it), until he can't do that without throwing other people he's responsible for under the bus.

To the point that when we get to the big reveal after Guanyin Temple about how he was captured by the Wens... once the shock fades, you step back and think 'wait, why was that even a surprise to me at all?' The guy just took a sword through the chest for Wei Wuxian like an hour earlier (even if it was unnecessary and therefore mostly embarrassing), and was about to run back into that cave at the Second Siege with no spiritual power and a sword he couldn't even lift three days before that, and yet we're surprised he gave himself up back then?

And of course, the same goes for his nephew and I just love them so much. He doesn't hesitate for a moment to offer himself as a hostage instead of Jin Ling at the temple. He may sometimes struggle to express his love in a way that's more palatable than the prickly sharp thing it can sometimes be, but it's undeniably there. When Jin Ling is crying after the Second Siege, it's Jiang Cheng he goes to without hesitation - and that "Who did this to you?!" line, the way he doesn't hesitate to pull him away somewhere private and stick by his side.

Even things that are meant to cast him in a bad light, like his 400 spirit nets fiasco, show him also anxiously helicopter-uncling his way through baby's first "solo" night hunt, complete with undercover agents just in case, is proof that he at least cares very deeply. I think if you look beyond the surface, it's also pretty obvious why he'd spare no expense and use any method to give his bullied nephew the best debut night hunt possible in a society where talent and prestige are incredibly important to his future ability to consolidate power as the Jin heir. He wants to shield him from the same insecurities and pain he felt, especially where being overshadowed was used against him in ways that had specific negative impacts on his ability to protect people he cared about.

Another of the reasons I love him so much is because his grief is so intense that it's palpable. Those scenes post-fall of Lotus Pier where he's oscillating between numbed shock and fury, just... feel so real, and relatable, and resonate in way that's just horribly accurate. It's like his grief jumps off the page, you can feel the hurricane of horror and loss crashing into him. The scene at Nightless City, that moment where he says "Didn't you say that you could control it, that it would be fine?", where the last of his faith in Wei Wuxian shatters and the fracture is complete, like two halves of a whole have finally snapped apart and there's nothing left... I just love the intensity and desperation.

But even more, he keeps going after. He's stubbornly alive, despite it all, and I don't think he gets nearly enough credit for the fact that he's actually able to handle things pretty well, considering the situations involved. He has a breakdown about it and then he picks himself up and gets back to work. He's remarkably resilient, in ways that aren't necessarily flashy or obvious at first. Too much is made out of the ways he's broken or bitter when for the most part he's actually remarkably functional in the face of horrible traumas!

I have been trying very hard not to just spam my favorite quotes in here but this is really my favoritest favorite (from chapter 61) because it just sums him up so beautifully:

... the most laughable one was the YunmengJiang Sect, the people of which either had been killed or had scattered, leaving only Jiang Cheng, who was younger than even Lan XiChen and was still a child born yesterday, who had nobody in his hands but still dared call himself sect leader, holding up the banner of rebellion as he recruited new disciples.

Because he does the hard work, day in and day out. The boring, tedious, constant work - the endless late nights dealing with the constant problems. But he does it, and he mostly accomplishes what he sets out to do.

It's so sad that all the things he does very well get overshadowed by his insecurities, because in the end, hasn't he done incredible things? Hasn't he survived? Hasn't he gone from the youngest sect leader with nothing and nobody that Wen Ruohan could only laugh at, to "No matter which clan you choose to offend, you shouldn't offend the Jiang clan, and no matter which person you choose to offend, you shouldn't offend Jiang Cheng"?

He might be a little scarred, but isn't he succeeding all the same?

(He should probably hire a PR firm to handle the rumors his resting bitch face causes though.)

[wangxianficfinder]

In the mood for a Fic

~*~

1. Hello! Your archive of comp lists and recs is incredible, I have found so many great fics through you guys! Thank you for all your hard work!! For your next in the mood for, do you know of any fics, short or long, where WWX and LWJ are bound together? As in, they can't separate / can't go far from each other without some consequence? Preferably canon compliant/divergent (not modern). Thank you!! @gloriousclotpole​

with such a suffering, such a deadly life by cqlorphan (T, 7k, wangxian, post-canon, curses, curse breaking, getting together, angst w/ happy ending, fluff, hurt/comfort, affection, touch-starved LWJ, LWJ whump, cuddling & snuggling, love confessions)

a safe pair of hands by occultings (microcomets) (E, 11k, WangXian, Mutual Pining, Hurt/Comfort, Whump, Body Worship, Post-Canon, Case Fic, Sharing a Bed, Getting Together, First Time, Curses, Intimacy, Touch-Starved, Touch-Starved LWJ)

You'd Break Your Heart to Make It Bigger by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 32k, WangXian, soulbonding, First Time, Case Fic if You Squint, Fools in Love, soul boning, soft fools in love, Pining while fucking)

So Why Not Crack Your Skull When the Mind Swells by greenteafiend (E, 13k, WangXian, Hurt/Comfort, Curses, Case Fic, Mutual Pining, Getting Together, Confessions, Drunkenness)

Your Hand in Mine by cerbykerby (T, 20k, WangXian, Humor, Comedy, Pining, cursed to hold hands, Light Angst, Sharing a Bed, First Dates, Embarrassment, Fluff, bathing together, wwx is a menace to society, and lwj Suffers A Lot, Canon Compliant)

~*~

2. for the next "in the mood for": a fic where lwj cries in front of wwx. preferences to it being over wwx not picking up on lwj's feelings, but really for any reason, and it being the kind of thing that derails wwx and makes him focus more on what lwj might be feeling instead of making assumptions. thank you!

Until We Find Our Way by cqlorphan (T, 9k, wangxian, post-canon, getting together, love confessions, drunk LWJ, fluff & angst, sharing a bed, intimacy, kissing, pining)

Playing Nice by deliciousblizzardshark (T, 11k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Love Confessions, First Kiss, Mildly Dubious Consent, Drunk LWJ, Phoenix Mountian, The wens are fine, Public Display of Affection, Soft WangXian, Fluff and Crack, POV Alternating)

can i look the other way by shipyrds (G, 2k, wangxian, misunderstandings, fluff, post-canon)

~*~

3. Hello :) Are there any fics where A) WWX is the sect heir? I'm currently reading Balance by AnaraneSindanarie and it's really good. Yunmeng WWX and non-Yunmeng WWX doesn't matter. Anything is fine. B) WWX and LQR bonding, the later bring the mentor WWX deserves as a genius teenager. and yes, Stunted, Starving Juvenility is on my reading list for incomplete fics, so you don't have to mention that (but it's so amazing!!) Thanks for your time ♡ @utxqia​

3A)

❤️ By Any Other Name by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 31k, Wangxian, Canon Divergence, Crossdressing, Misunderstandings, Identity Porn, Identity reveal, Polski Translation Pod każdym innym imieniem by tehanu, [PODFIC] By Any Other Name by sakizar)

forever lovingly yours, by ravenditefairylights (G, 14k, wangxian, JL & WWX, post-canon, epistolary, twin prides of yunmeng feels, outsider pov, discussion of marriage, politics, fluff, chief cultivator LWJ, family bonding)

3B)

Discordant Rhapsody by nirejseki (T, 49k, LQR & WWX, wangxian, JC & WWX, WQ & WWX & WN, LWJ & LQR & LXC, canon divergence, fix-it, hurt/comfort, trauma, politics, protective LQR, protective LWJ, protective WWX, LQR centric, whump, angst)

A Thousand Things by tickertape (M, 108k, wangxian, canon divergence, WWX is not adopted by Jiangs, develping friendships, miscommunication, misunderstanding, nightmares, panic attacks, hurt/comfort, slow burn)

decay by antebunny (G, 15k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst, Misunderstandings, Miscommunication, Fix-It, Angst with a Happy Ending, the fluffiest ending, Hurt/Comfort)

In Walls of Glass by Comfect (T, 43k, LQR & WWX, WangXian, XiCheng, Good Uncle LQR, Teacher LQR, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Fix-It, Butterfly Effect, JC friendly, Family Feels, Cultivation Theory, POV LQR, Seriously the only WWX Bashing is in the first chapter or so and is canonical in LQR's head, Initial WWX Bashing, Eventual WWX Appreciation, JC appreciation)

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4. hi mods ! hope you all are doing great :)) i wanted to ask if you have any recs of lan xichen with his mother or even just talking about her, a lot of fics show lwj have a strong bond and connection to their mother but i havent seen much of it with lxc. thanks a lot !! @makkachiin

Magical Marriage Ribbons Series by starandrea (Varies, 1m, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Accidental Marriage, Fluff, Happy Ending, Telepathic bond, Kink Negotiation, Family Drama, Magical Pregnancy, Dual Cultivation, Shapeshifters, Modern with Magic, Immortality, Yilling Wei Sect)

Alliance by snowberryrose (T, 17k, XiLi, WangXian, ChengQing) has a little

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5. Hi. I'm shy. I was hoping you could rec some fics that resemble this post.

(Future Lan Wangji in the past and throwing himself and all his affection at Wei Wuxian.)♡♡♡

Moment in Time by souein (G, 1k, wangxian, modern, time travel, romance, fluff, pining, love confessions, getting together, happily ever after)

💖 Looking at You Always, All Ways by Keysmashed T, 29k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, fluff, nostalgia, mild angst w/ happy ending)

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6. Do you have a comp list or recs for LWJ joining WWX in demonic cultivation? I have peeked through your "YilingWei Sect AU" comp list and the "LWJ Leaves Lan Clan" list, but those don't point out if LWJ also turns to demonic cultivation. (Thought of this because I was reading a rec from the Arranged Marriage comp, "Pitiful Destiny," and LWJ there decides to give in to the resentful energy and him and WWX kind of get high off it it, they find the darkness sexy, etc.)

Dual logged bridge by Lanwangjisnights (T, 3k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Fix-It, YLLZ LWJ, Yílíng Wèi Sect, Getting Together, Fluff)

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7. Hello! Can I have something similar to "sowing seeds in the cold palace" by sweetlolixo?

Where LWJ messes up things between them and WWX gives up on him. Later LWJ regrets and chases WWX, who no longer cares about him. Angstier the better.

But endgame WangXian only. I can't handle them not being together. @sareen-momos-stuff​

Honesty is the Best Policy (Except if You’re an Asshole) by piecrust ( E, 22k, College AU, Porn with feelings, Angst) it’s a modern AU, but has LWJ chasing after WWX to make amends.

the earthquake in the room by phnelt (E, 39k, WangXian, College/University, Modern: No Powers, Canada, Getting Together, Mentions of lwj/others, inter-faculty romance, strangers to lovers to frenemies to lovers, mostly book characterisation) Me immediately upon seeing #7: THE TOAST FIC. Definitely not as outlandish in tone as Sally's fics, but LWJ is definitely (and unsuccessfully) groveling in his own way. / the author of the toast fic ended up halting the comments on it, and a lot of readers thought lan zhan didn't grovel enough. Make sure they read the follow up story to it to get some closure!

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8. Hello! For the next In The Mood For I'm looking for fics in which wei wuxian, jiang cheng and jiang yanli deal with the fact that jiang fengmian and madam yu were abusive (or how their fights affected the trio in general). Prefferably fics where jy, jc and wwx have close siblings-type relationship. The setting doesn't matter (if it's modern, canon or something). Thank you and have a nice day :>

use the wood brought in by the tide by Lirazel (M, 27k, WangXian, Arranged Marriage, Hurt/Comfort, Warning for Physical Abuse, Falling In Love With Your Husband, pining for your husband, Sibling solidarity, dealing with your in-laws, lwj’s typical inner maelstrom of emotions, WWX Whump, Protective!LWJ, lwj&jyl friendship, intimate hair brushing, Skinny Dipping, Growing Up, Establishing boundaries)

Lynchpin by ShanaStoryteller (Not Rated, 103k, WangXian, JC & WWX, Time Travel, Fix-It, Lynchpin [PODFIC] by Opalsong, [PODFIC] Lynchpin by Gwogobo) it's not a major part of the fic but lynchpin by shanastoryteller(?) does have a few convos between the trio about that!

There are (no) (un)written rules by Winxhelina (T, 33k, wangxian, humor, canon-typical violence, YZY being YZY, misunderstandings, angst, pining) the siblings don't have any conversations about their abuse among themselves, but the author shows us some of their coping mechanisms through LWJ's eyes, and both Jiang siblings say things to LWJ that really gets him thinking about how abusive households have unwritten rules and how that would have shaped WWX.

the long way back home by Misila (E, 210k, WIP, WangXian, ChengQing, XuanLi, Modern AU, Family, Romance, Heavy Angst, Hopeful Ending, JC-centric, Dysfunctional Family, Abuse, Mental Health Issues, Suicide Themes, Recovery, Additional Warnings In Author's Note) if you're okay with modern AU then this fic is great, but first HUGE content warnings for abuse (duh), depression, past suicide attempt, suicidal ideation, attempted suicide. Pairings are WangXian and ChengQing.

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9. I guess this is an "in the mood for" request, but I'm looking for time travel fics (pref. WangXian) specifically where it is Lan Xichen who does the time traveling. I've found one via your (wonderful!!!!) time travel compilation lists but it's a hard parameter to search for, and I suspect is rare!. ;_;

The blame game by apathyinreverie (T, 13k, wangxian, time travel fix-it, possessive LWJ, oblivious WWX, fluff, romance, golden core reveal, golden core fix-it) locked to AO3 users only

Drag Me Into Your Coffin (I Will Drag Your Sins Into the Light) by the5leggedCricket (G, 2k, canon divergence, temporary character death, time travel fix-it, BAMF LXC) also locked for AO3 users only.

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10. For the next itmf: I’m looking for fics where wwx gets his old body back post-canon, bonus if people starts thirsting for him once they see how hot yllz!wwx is. I’ve read some of these before but I can’t remember all of them, and I’ve been hunting through prev itmf posts to find some. Thank you and as always this blog is a blessing! @llongmu

From my heart's ground. by orange_crushed(E, 37k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Grief/Mourning, Corporal Punishment, Vomiting, Injury Recovery, Blood Magic, Elemental Magic, Gardens & Gardening, Resurrection, Dissociatio, nExplicit Sexual Content, Language of Flowers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Self-Harm for Blood Magic Reasons, Suicidal Thoughts, Spiritual Coma, Brief Reference to Temporary Incontinence as a Result of Said Coma, Self-Esteem Issues) fits (but not really for the “hot yllz!wwx” angle)

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11. hello, for your next itmf can i ask for wangxian fics where jc is not mentioned at all? its a mood killer for me when im reading wangxian centric fics that always manage to somehow fit jc in the fic. i dont want even an off hand comment about him at all, dont care if the fics angst or fluff. just smth that jc doesnt appear on or even mentioned.

This Tornado Loves You by FeelsForBreakfast (M, 8k, wangxian, modern cultivation, horror, humor, mistaken identity) (only mentions the Jiang as a sect at large one time)

with such a suffering, such a deadly life by cqlorphan (T, 7k, wangxian, post-canon, curses, curse breaking, getting together, angst w/ happy ending, fluff, hurt/comfort, affection, touch-starved LWJ, LWJ whump, cuddling & snuggling, love confessions) link in #1

you explained the infinite by Pyrrti (G, 1k, wangxian, reminiscing, 2nd person pov, canonical character death, light angst, hopeful ending)

Yiling sibs Series by Sienne (M, 60k, WIP, WangXian, WQ POV, Time Travel, Found Family, Family Feels, No Golden Core Transfer, Canon Divergence, Getting Together, Family Feels, Found Family, yiling sibs, Humor, Fluff, wen family settlement, Certified JC Free, zero percent grape juice) the first part of the series DOES have jc in it (though not a very big role at all really) but the second part doesn't. It even has the tag "zero percent grape juice" 😂

Sketch by handwritten (onefromanotherworld) (G, 747, WangXian, Fluff, Slice of Life, Smitten WWX, Near Future, Married WangXian)

Stargazing (and a bit of rain) by handwritten (onefromanotherworld) (G, 984, WangXian, Fluff, Family Fluff, Family Bonding, Modern with Magic, Slice of Life)

Secrets by handwritten (onefromanotherworld) (G, 1k, WangXian, Fluff, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Getting Together, Smitten LWJ, Smitten WWX, courting gifts)

Blankets by handwritten (onefromanotherworld) (G, 909, WangXian, Fluff, Modern with Magic, Domestic, Slice of Life)

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12. hello, itmf a fic where lan wangji has a hidden disability, like autism, in canon verse, like jianghu. but like its not implied, its explicitly said that he is a bit different from normal because of that or smth. i have read a lot of that but its always modern au or modern with magic so i would like to know if there anything similar that is in the original timeline

untitled by brokke_inactive (T, 5k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, autistic LWJ, sensory overload, angst, snapshots, non-graphic animal death) not directly stated but very much there: canon time-line autistic Lan Wangji.

My Boy Builds Coffins by enbysaurus_rex (Not rated, 48k, wangxian, canon divergence, coffin maker au, YLLZ WWX, autistic LWJ, falling in love, hurt WWX, pining, deathscapes, farmer LWJ, burial mounds settlement days, tenderness) is fucking SPECTACULAR! Autistic Lan Zhan, canon divergent in that he is raised away from the cultivation world.

still lifes from a universe with you in it by everythingispoetry (T, 31k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Non-Traditional A/B/O Dynamics, Beta WWX, Omega LWJ, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Cultivation Sect Politics, Family Feels, Hurt/Comfort, immortal cultivators nonsense, Fluff, Autistic LWJ) really most of the fics from that author have lwj coded as autistic even if its not explicitly said but the others are more modern where this one is an a/b/o canon au

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13. hey for ur next in the mood for, can i ask for anyone of them to have face blindness? preferably wangxian. i just read one and i really liked it so i was wondering if there are any other fics out there that is similar

Faces by osiesaur (G, 1k, faceblind LWJ, WWX in MXY's body, LWJ pov, learning to communicate, married wangxian)

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14. hello for your next itmf, do you know of a fic set in canon timeline where lan wangji has poor eyesight? i really liked the premise of him having eyeglasses so i thought of how it would affect him in canon verse where its not even invented. like how does he manage to be a good (great) cultivator despite the disadvantage

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15. I'm in the mood for some brotherly feels but between lwj and lxc? Like, we got so much yunmengbros stuff where they work through their issues but it's not like the other set of brothers didn't have any as well. I want some of that. Lan brothers working through their issues with each other. Thanks!

maybe together we can get somewhere (any place is better) by AlfAlfAlfAlfAlf, tardigradeschool (T, 49k, WangXian, NieLan, Modern AU, Coming of Age, Qingheng-jun raises his kids, Child Neglect, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Teen Romance, Angst with a Happy Ending, First Kiss, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Very very briefly, neurodivergent wangxian)

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16. this is an itmf request (but also id like to suggest a comp for it if it's ok) for sex worker wangxian

For a Good Time, Call by ScarlettStorm, 1st in series (E, 170k, wangxian, modern, getting together, pining, porn, onlyfans au, sexworker WWX, minor angst, mental health, therapy is good)

All Old Things are New Again series by The Feels Whale (@miscellea) (M, 59k, WangXian, Reincarnation, Modern AU, canon still happened, extreme post canon, Sugar Daddy, Kink Negotiation, gentle dom!LWJ, canonical levels of consent play, Modern Cultivators, cultivators can recognize important people from previous lives, vaguely, this started out as a cute sugar fantasy and got just   incredibly horny very fast, blame LWJ)

Afterglow by Court_on_Fire @courtonfire​ (E, 4k, wangxian, wangxian/others implied, modern, pornstar wangxian, pining while fucking, friends to lovers, porn with plot, confessions)

Unexpected by MxModern @mxmodern (E, 10k, wangxian, modern, escort WWX, sex worker WWX, CEO LWJ, past LXC/WWX)

under my skin by katje (M, 2k, wangxian, modern, light dom/sub, professional dom WWX, sub LWJ, bondage, erotica author LWJ, friends to lovers, getting together, fluff)

A New Kind of Thrill by doukeshiA (E, 27k, WIP, WangXian, Modern AU, BDSM, Pro-dom LWJ, Dom/sub, Light Bondage, Spanking, Vibrators, Masturbation, Orgasm Denial, Orgasm Control, Subspace, BDSM, Coming Untouched, Anal Play, Anal Plug, Crying, Master/Pet, Come Eating, Mirror Sex)

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sex worker-adjacent (one of them in disguise as or mistaken for a sex worker)

醉 | drunk; intoxication by sweetlolixo (E, 15k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Mythical Creature WWX, Besotted LWJ, Romance, Pregnant WWX, Fluff)

Many happy returns. by orange_crushed (E, 25k, WangXian, Modern AU, Mistaken Identity, Misunderstandings, Grief/Mourning, Loss of Parent(s), Implied/Referenced Suicide, Past Suicide of a Parent, References to Depression, Anxiety, Therapy, References to Anti-Depressant Medications, Escort Service, Loneliness, Everybody's Abandonment Issues, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Moving In Together, Oral Sex, Penetrative Sex, Hopeful Ending, Recovery, References to Escorting/Sex Work but No Actual Escorting/Sex Work)

No Refunds, Satisfaction Guaranteed by la_muerta (E, 20k, WangXian, Robots & Androids, Childhood Friends, Idiots in Love, Mutual Pining, Rimming, Come as Lube, Semi-Public Sex, Light Bondage, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Dom/sub Undertones)

out to get you (to get you) by iliacquer (E, 41k, WangXian, Switching, Bottom!LWJ, Top!LWJ, Bottom!WWX, top!wwx, Power Play, courtesan!lwj, Assassin!LWJ, Dark Lord!WWX, Bondage, Happy Ending, mention of past attempted sexual assault on a minor, See Notes for more details, Past Slavery)

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The Flautist by oleanderedits (T, 1k, WangXian, Bad blow-job jokes, Double Entendre, unintentional double entendres, Humor, Comedy, Canon Divergence, referenced sex-work, P.O.V. LXC)

please forgive my most passionate disruptions by pumpkinpaix (E, 65k, WangXian, Stripper/Exotic Dancer, Strippers & Strip Clubs, Modern with Magic, Modern: Still Have Powers, stripper!WWX, Graduate School)

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17. hello! I know this is a wangxian rec blog but I'm wondering if anyone has sizhui x jingyi centric fic recs? I'm always looking for more fics to read for that ship!! @cryiling

anyway, here's wuji by kakikaeru (T, 18k, ZhuiYi, WangXian, LingZhen, Post-Canon) and the rest of the series shows the progression in their relationship

Lan Sizhui's Guide to Courtship by Kimblydot (T, 22k, ZhuiYi, WangXian, Friends to Lovers, Falling In Love, Courtship, Misunderstandings, Aged-Up Character(s), Post-Canon, Ensemble Cast, 5+1 Things, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Light Angst, Confessions, Junior Quartet, Fluff)

what flew between us by kakikaeru (M, 12k, ZhuiYi, LingZhen, WangXian, Modern AU, Hyperventilation AU, Getting Together, High School Reunion, Miscommunications of The Omission Kind)

Accidents happen by luckymoonly (T, 1k, WangXian, ZhuiYi, Post-Canon, Fluff, Crack Treated Seriously, the lack of sex ed in the Cloud Recesses, No one is actually pregnant (except maybe WWX), Family Feels)

easier, with you by pinkfluffygiant (T, 34k, ZhuiYi, Modern AU, Summer Camp, disaster camp counselors, just kidding they're not disaster camp counselors. okay maybe only a little, disaster children, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers)

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If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***

[pumpkin-master]

So like, I know MDZS has that whole Wei Wuxian's smile is a very nice and bright thing going on and he's a pretty cheerful, optimistic and carefree guy right? In addition to that he has adopted siblings who he loves more than the world, questionable parental figures, an antagonistic view towards strict rules, and a deep love for all his precious people.

You know who this reminds me of?

Monkey D. Luffy

The obvious

Luffy is almost always seen and described with his trademark 'D' smile which is bright and happy to everyone who sees it. Both of them are people who will absolutely go to the ends of the world to make their precious people happy as well as protect them.

Family

It's also fair to take into account their familial situations, with WWX obviously not having any contact with any sort of relative of his. The closest we get, in fact, is probably Xiao XingChen, who is technically not even blood related.

Jiang Fengmian technically counts as his uncle but just barely because he knew WWX's dad very well.

And now when you look at Luffy, obviously his Dad is alive and we know Jack about his mom, but both are noticeably absent from their child's life. The only "parental" figures in his life (if you can even call them that despite how much I love them.) are Dadan and Garp.

(I'm sorry to say that Shanks doesn't count despite how much it hearts my heart. But he's more of an idol to Luffy and was only around for maybe a year at most in Fuscha? Though I guess you can call him a parental figure if you squint, but even then he's an active pirate and that alone warrants the 'questionable' title.)

And look, Dadan...is a mountain bandit and clearly not the 'parental' type, despite how much she loves ASL, and Garp... Well, do I need to say anything there? Sicked his grandchildren onto a mountain bandit and regularly put them into dangerous situations in order to become stronger. I don't doubt he loves them, but he's just not fit for raising a child as we've seen.

You could fit Makino if you really tried but she's more like the kind older sister type than a mom.

Onto the siblings, both WWX and Luffy were brought into an already existing sibling dynamic, e.i. WWX with Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli & Luffy with Ace and Sabo. Both had a bit of a hard time entering the dynamic for differing reasons (JC because he was mad that his dogs were sent away and Ace just didn't want Luffy around until he stuck up for them with Bluejam). This is an interesting similarity because they are such differing ways to enter similar dynamics.

Views on Authority

Moving onto how they view the world, both of these characters dislike strict authority, obviously they both recognize that there needs to be some authority to regulate and decide certain matters, but strict stifling authority is where these characters start getting itchy.

Some obvious examples include WWX and the rules of Cloud Recesses, be constantly complained about them and he questioned how the disciples and sect Members even survived there. Another honorable mention should probably be the Wen clan indoctrination and how that whole bit went down.

For Luffy, I feel like I shouldn't need to mention the whole Pirates vs Marines since it's kind of a given, but for this I specifically mean the "hard" justice that many seem to have, like Akainu and the world government. Who just seem to wipe islands off the map willy and just assassinate any other opposition.

I should mention that both of these characters are fine with normal authority, each sect for WWX has their own governing style and enforcement but unless it's a problem for everyone else, they don't really do much. And Luffy is fine with fair authority given by how he treats Boa who is queen of Amazon lily, Momonosuke who is supposed to be Shogun and treats him as such, King Riku as well as Viola and Rebecca who are princesses. He simply treats everybody the same but he respects their position for the most part.

Friends and Precious people

Now, the most obvious thing here is that these characters will move the heavens, part the seas, and raise the dead for their precious people (sometimes literally). They both take Honor to their promises extremely seriously, WWX owed a life debt to Wen Qing and her brother for saving them and doing the core transfer (as well as WWX just not excusing what are essentially concentration camps), so he repaid the action by saving the remnants and he promised to bring Wen Ning back to life. Which as we all know, he did.

And that's not even saying like I mentioned that he gave his golden core to his brother since he lost it to the Melting hand, and before THAT he was willing to give up his hand so the Wens would forgive the sect. It’s also notable that he promised Madam Yu he would protect Jiang Cheng with his life, and, well, everything that happened afterward should tell you he did his best!

To say he takes his honor and promises seriously is an understatement. Yet the same is also true with Luffy.

We all know that Luffy is big on promises and his nakama, a huge part of One piece is demonstrating how far he and his crew go for their friends and comrades. Some examples of major things like this are:

Arlong Park and helping nami

Promising Laboon to come back and fight him

Helping Vivi defeat crocodile

Saving Robin at Ennies Lobby

Promising to help Brook reunite with Laboon

Literally all of Marineford (despite how it ends, the effort alone Luffy put into saving his brother should tell you enough)

Fishman island

Liberating Dressrosa

Wano (literally what do I need to say there? It speaks for itself)

I might have missed a few and others may not have made it but these are the biggest displays of Luffy loyalty and promises.

It is also notable that if you feed Luffy, he will repay it. That is a threat. Tama fed him once in Wano and after realizing that was her last bow of rice and the whole issue with the country, he literally fought to liberate the country with a whole army.

Symbolism

Theres a lot more I could say but the last things I will dig into is this. Both Luffy and WWX have constant symbolisms of ‘Freedom’, whether they’re quite literal or more nuanced.

WWX always has had a carefree character and this is displayed in numerous ways, like how he named his sword “whatever” or how how he’s unashamed to show his more childish side at times (“Xian Xian is three!”). His flippant attitude towards authority tells you enough but he’s also prone to use the punishment against the punisher by finding a way to make it entertaining for him. (I.e. annoying Lan Wangji and provoking Wen Chao.)

This is also just in general that his name is symbolism towards his character, with how Wei Wuxian means “no/without envies” which really gives you an idea about his personality. I’m not a mandarin speaker nor even attempting to learn it, so more information his name and it’s symbolism can be found on this post.

Now Luffy, we can’t exactly say the aumbolism isn’t hitting us in the fact with all the sun motifs and it literally being mentioned multiple times as “warrior of liberation”, “joyboy” and whatnot.

But Luffy’s smile and constant laughter is associated Nika the sun god who was a warrior who fought for freedom and s the god slaves pray to in secret. (And supposedly based on an actual diety whom i don’t actually remember the origins of right now.)

And with the Sun symbolism (this is honestly now head canon territory) but the thousand sunny being a ship that carries the fruit of the sun god doesn’t seem like a coincidence, and another is that Luffy’s straw hat being something akin to a halo is a pretty neat idea.

Conclusion

Both of these characters are some of my favorite in media and the similarities between symbolism and parallels they have with each other is insane, I honestly hope people see that this type of characterization is very fun and amazing.

But honestly i just wanted to write a character analysis with these two cause they are my fav bois haha.

[on-noon]

prompt written by @derinthescarletpescatarian :

It's been raining for ages, but the stormwater drains are empty. The catchment areas are empty. Even your backyard pond is empty. Water tanks fill normally, the plants are all alive and the gardens are as damp as expected, but not a single place in town has standing groundwater, even though it's still raining.

One Friday in April I checked my weather app, it was projected to rain the whole week. I planned to check on the state of a new sand filter the Monday after the rain ended– it had just been installed the past fall, and this rain plus the snowmelt would put it through a pretty good test.

You'd think, as a stormwater guy, I would have noticed something odd earlier, but in my defense I clock out from my job on weekends. On Monday and Tuesday, I was in the basement working on getting some rain gauges to work– the cursed things, they kept working in the lab. We'd already deployed them three times this year, and they kept failing in a new way. I failed to replicate any of the failures in the lab.

On Wednesday, I go out into the field to install the rain gauges, still unsure how they had failed the first three times, but this time it was raining. I installed the rain gauge, hooked it up to a transmitter, and then went on to the next site. While I was driving to the next site, the rain intensified, sheets of rain pounding my dashboard. I pulled to the side of the road, and checked the level in the rain gauge. It told me there was nothing. Once the rain calmed a bit, I turned around to try to troubleshoot the rain gauge. On the way, I realized I was close to the new sand filter, so I took a detour to check it out.

I put on my raincoat, got out of my truck and walked down the park trail to the pond with the filter. At least with the rain I didn't need to look out for any stray frisbee golf disks.

To my surprise, as I approached the sand filter, it was just sitting there. It was designed so that the pond next to it would overflow onto the sand, and that would filter the water before it went into the broader stormwater system before emptying into the river. This rain should be enough to make the pond overflow. I get a sinking feeling in my gut, as I look over to the pond to investigate.

The pond is empty. Cattail grows straight out of the pond muck on one side, I can see clearly a fallen tree on the sand lining the pond's bottom. Try as I might, I can find no reason for the pond to be empty– it's in the low lying part of the park, as always, hasn't had any drains installed directly into the pond, still has relatively steep banks.

I must have stared at that pond for an hour. There's no explanation for it to be empty, in April, during the fifth straight day of rain. It's supposed to only empty in a drought. It's not a drought— and we had an excess of snowmelt lately anyway.

I drive back to the lab, eventually, the rain gauges forgotten. It took me a week before I even realized I had left all but the one I had installed in the truck, never mind how long before I took down the one I had put up.

I went down to the lab to write an email to the watershed director for that area. Jill does often try out new methods– that's why she installed the enhanced sand filter anyways. When I opened my inbox, I found emails from not only Jill, but the other watershed directors, as well as the other stormwater researchers.

The emails had subject lines such as: "No-one has any answers," "Meeting to Discuss the Situation," "Do you have any idea what's going on?" "All The Ponds Are Empty," "where is the water, anyway," "Uhhhh," and "Pond JC–21 is Empty."

I read through them all, it seems my experience today was not unique. The meeting was scheduled for that time, so I went upstairs.

"Calder. It's nice of you to finally join us," Alex says.

I grunt, and sit down. It's not that I dislike working with others, it's just easier not to.

I listen to the discussion.

"If the water's not in the drains, ponds, rain gardens– where is it?" Aditya says. "The river and lake levels aren't rising either."

"At least the lakes didn't drain as well," Hazel adds.

The conversation turns to next steps. I don't know. It sounds no one else does either. I walk out of the meeting and get into my car and drive home.

I get out and run to the pond in my backyard– I don't bother pushing the vegatation out of the way, just let the wet branches hit and splash me.

It's empty. It was full a week ago, I remember pulling buckthorn out around the bank and watching a duck family on it.

I stand in the middle of the pond, and stare up at the sky. The raindrops splash on my face, definitely liquid. I look down at the pond bed. The water hits the ground, and soaks in. But it shouldn't. I know there's clay less than a foot below that foul–smelling muck. This is too much water to infiltrate.

I went to bed early that night. When I woke up, I ran out to the pond barefoot, my feet getting muddy, just to prove to myself that it was a nightmare, that maybe I just need to get a good hobby so my job isn't the one thing that defines me.

The pond is still empty. After some more staring into the rain, my pajamas start to get soaked so I head inside to clean up and eat breakfast. I go to work.

It's been over a month now. The rain hasn't stopped, but we haven't found out where it's going.

It's just our area, that's what's weird. One small part of the world suddenly has inexplicable hydrology.

I've been interviewed in a national newspaper. I had nothing to add, I can't explain what's happening.

A few stormwater researchers have moved to the area. One of them, Panbela, I've started working with. She's got some neat ideas we're trying. And she's fine if I don't respond to an email for a few days.

[d4t-webserial]

D4T: Page 3 (Lu POV)

//cw: transphobic slur// go here for more info on d4t

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Lu looks at his screen for a long while trying to figure it out, had he done something that made her think he was into her? He easily could have, he was bad at social cues and stuff. He knows they’ve talked alot (that’s not enough to make people think you have feelings… right?), pretty much any free time he can spare goes to messaging her. But that’s just because she is pretty much his only friend, he’s a very self isolating person by nature and Alice is one of the only people he shows his true self around. Anyway why it’s thought doesn’t matter, he has to think about the right response. Whether or not he likes her, he knows he wouldn’t *do* anything, *she doesn’t even know he used to be trans* nonono. Hell even if he was a perfectly cis man it wouldn’t change the fact he’s so lame, she’s way too cool for him, in fact he thinks she’s probably too cool  to be his friend, she’s the coolest person he’s ever met (it’s kinda intimidating tbhon). After a bit more thought he finally responds…

trashbag_minister (Lu): “don't worry, i’m not looking to date for the moment, so i’m not gonna try and get with you or anything” 

… 

Tranny Mona Lisa (Alice): “cool jc” 

He did it!... even tho it was a bit stretched considering “the moment” was *forever* but as long as they stayed friends it's fine. 

After this, alongside their usual talking about their day and Lu telling her about this or that thing he loves, they gained a new topic of conversation, if Alice looked good. She would send him pictures “so she wouldn’t go out in a bad outfit” “to see if it might get a guy’s attention” or even after a while “because it’s funny how you respond”. She in fact often said that he took 5 minutes working on a response (he didn’t… always) which usually amounted to “you look nice” at which point she’d ask for something more specific (now that… that took him a while). These pictures proved Lu’s worst fear, she was gorgeous, like truly stunning, out of this world genetics she had only been on hormones for a bit under a year, and she had started later than Lu had but she still passed better than he ever did. He had to use all his power to not just blurt out that she’s the most beautiful woman on the face of the planet, unrivaled by even goddesses and sirens. It’s hard to keep his attraction under wraps, but he somehow managed.

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[llycaons]

ep33 (3/3): lwj earring indulgence

people rarely make wwx as self-possessed or confident as he is in canon. I'll read fic where he's like 'lan zhan I am so sorry for breathing in your direction thank you so much for giving me a square mat to sleep on I promise to behave' and he'll be SO insecure and hesitant when that's really not him! for the most part he doesn't shy away from confronting lwj or getting into his business

it's just that lwj doesn't tell him shit bc he doesn't want wwx to feel obligated to lwj which is a great impulse but wwx also likes knowing how much people care about him so it's a bit of double-edged sword?

they're helpfully reminding us that this kid's name is yuan too

this made me laugh so hard. he's standing there with his ORIGINAL FACE in his classic black robes and red ponytale, playing a flute, and he thinks playing badly is a disguise? and THEN lwj gets mad at him for fumbling their song lmao

but wwx needn't have bothered bc lqr didn't realize anyway due to being comatose. until wwx woke him up with his bad flute playing

lqr having such a strong reaction to a flute is funny bc was he even on the front lines in sunshot? they said he didn't leave the mountain very often and it's not like he's a warrior. he's probably never seen wwx play

one of his top expressions

lwj is quite strict with lsz, in his own way. not in an aggressive way, but VERY expectant of obedience

there's one single female disciple here and she stayed in the back the entire conversation before coming forward for the water basin. what, are female disciples servants who are only used for healing?

this looks so cool. green suits wwx really well honestly

perhaps I have been unfair to lsz given how annoying his character is in fanfics and how obvious of a plot device he is. but he's a nice boy, and to my surprise he's also smart!! look at him thinking through problems!

encouraging to see wwx express sentiments that before his death, he really needed someone to tell him

coming back, I think he's become in a certain sense resigned to the things in his life that happened. no use getting angry or upset over them, some things you just can't change. and this is really sad, but it's also, hopefully, indicative of a more healthy mindset in his second life

"I naturally trust you' and that's what he needs to hear, baby

also seeing them standing together makes those 'huge top' fics so funny. they are literally almost exactly the same body type and build. no lwj is not a head taller. no he is not built like a brick shithouse, his hands are not large enough to encircle wwx's waist. if anything he is slightly taller and more slight in build, where wwx is slightly bulkier. but I think his height is because of his heeled boots

damn the jingshi is really so nice. I love hat porch area and the bridge over there.

right after wwx said 'it's pointing at the person who told it to commit crimes' ljy jumped and then glared at wwx haha

omg HORSES! I didn't know they used horses! wwx bouncing like a bobblehead hehe. and all the fics insisting he only uses little apple

HANGUANG-JUN PIERCED EARS SHOT. taking this to headcanon that lwj wears earrings. let lej be a little gnc. as a treat.

this was such a strange moment. lwj walked off and left wwx behind entirely. why???

oh and this was funny. this guy seling ugly portraits that wwx took offense to

THERE HE IS!!! THE MOST DISASTER BABY OF THEM ALL!!!!

this kid kicked a civilian in the chest for saying the name 'wei wuxian' in public. he might have already been sensitive and prone to fights, but clearly his parenting has been ABYSMAL

by 'his uncle' he is talking about jc. btw. I originally thought he was referring to himself, but it just makes more sense. ha.

I hate the fairy scene possible more than any other scene in this show. why is his face so comedically twisted? why is his running so stupid-looking? unbelievable that this happened in the same episode that made me cry my eyes out

personal highlights

oh the rite of spring was INSPIRED

all of wwx's crying this episode. all of it. beautiful

cgi sword stabbing a hand my beloved <3 <3 <3

lwj's broken little 'wei ying' at the very end

everything about the jingshi opening scene. the music. the lighting. the atmosphere. the calm

wwx seeing his younger and more innocent self frolic about. as stated, I was inconsolable. I've always liked it but after today, it's going to be a very special scene to me

lwj's sexy whip scars and mysterious chest brand. can't help it. I love them. and wwx's seriousness and care during that scene was really nice too

lqr being roused by bad flute music, yelling at them to stop, then slipping into a coma and wwx sitting there like 😬 'whoops' with that funny face

wwx sitting with the bamboo background looking all cool

[golbrocklovely]

1. Personally agree about your opinion on matching tattoos with Colby. I’d think you’d want a tattoo that is unique to yourself. I get Colby can have made an impact on your life but like, you gonna be 50 and when your kid asks why you have a giant X on your back your gonna say cuz of a random guy you fanned over as a youth? Idk I have tattoos and some stand for people, but they are always a unique design that I understand. Not a copy paste situation.

2. Let’s just leave Kat and Sam alone to figure out their own relationship. Everyone has ups and downs. Maybe Sam was supposed to come visit her fam too and didn’t since Colby might need support so she went alone. It’s okay, they’ll sort it out and we just have to wish them the best either way.

3. I find it super sweet that even Jakes mom comments her support for Colby. I’m glad Jake is there for him even if it may be a smaller way than he would have back in the trap house days.

4. Finally, Kian being a dad is so weird but also I somehow think it suits him?? Like he’s gonna be a cool dad that really cares for him kid. I think Colby left a nice comment cuz while he doesn’t want kids any time soon I’m sure, he always talks about wanting a family and can understand Kians excitement. He mentioned how relieved he was the cancer didn’t affect his fertility in any way so when he is ready, I bet he will be so stoked to have his first child.

Sorry for the long one!!

hey, i don't mind a long ask. god knows my response will probably be longer lol

one. i think the reason i find it so weird is honestly bc colby's tattoos mean something to him. so to get the same one as him, sometimes in the same place, just feels off-putting. like, they don't mean the same thing to you as they do to him. you got the same tattoo as him just bc you like him. like, getting the x is fine, but getting it in the same spot is a bit silly to me.

in particular, i don't get getting the heart one. that one is literally just the simple pick-up logo. you're getting a pick-up artist's logo just bc colby got it and changed the meaning a bit for himself bc it also means protecting your heart. i just…. don't get it tbh. do whatever you want, i guess.

two. at this point, i've said all i can about sam and kat. i hope they're doing well. and that's all i can really say.

three. i saw jake's mom also commented on kian's post about being a dad. she's so sweet. she's like a friend's mom that comments on all your stuff just to be nice. i love her haha

four. i think it was just a bit surprising to see him announce it. i kinda thought that jc would have a kid before kian, but it doesn't really matter. i'm happy for him regardless.

and i think it's super sweet that colby was so concerned about having kids and making sure he could still have kids. not too many men actually look forward to being a father, so to see him want to definitely be one is sweet.

[the-firebird69]

We are now getting some serious people trying to start up the hard knock company in tagliani cuz they looked it up they said it probably means these monsters cuz they made them and they were heavily involved in xenomorph you have a crack inversion it's kind of brown. And they have a few monsters the Kraken itself is brown it's really their favorite there's a there's a few others that are crazy ones they do have motorcycles representing them and it's bando and sando those are enclosed life cycles therefore atmosphere and bando and sando do well in space the alien does too but she's better any atmosphere yeah not necessarily she's pretty good in space but these monsters are represented by motorcycles only mostly unless someone names the car after them

Scott McCracken was Trump and he was hitting the ladies to say to do it because of his duplicates and yeah he is messed up because of them but that's what he is

--few more things are happening we're experiencing a large volume of calls from our people asking what to do and it's going on and they can hear it they can see it and we're telling them and there's a lot of people trying to find us and we have armies going out and we need more people to have more of the armies my son and daughter say for maintenance we can use nights in the way satin but we need people to do that but we do know what they're talking about. These motorcycles are going to make themselves yeah people going to demand it and it's going to be protected and forced but the kit cars are not necessarily made that much and they are not produced madly they are they're trying to no.

We do get something we need those cars nobody seems to want to do it some of them have symbolism but usually not the creatures. He's saying the Lamborghini would be nice but really it's his brother's car it's the Sterling Nova but modified he wants to rename it after a very important demon and it's kind of true that JC and Mary are protecting the money and that the car is about nuclear weapons and it is about his numbskulls who ruin stuff and they will want the car because of that and they want to make it and own it but we don't want them to own it it's very powerful the code was sick and tired of these jackasses we're going to get very sick of them with this motorcycle stuff but this is a great idea he wants the symbol and everything ironically their family crest looks a little bit like it but that would be using he monster itself he'll use as the family crest okay and they say you don't know you think so it's not a bad idea but then the car is not named Griffin was he what he meant was like the trans Am you would have the Phoenix on there the Griffin would have a griffin it was way to do that and he says you can actually have a little guy on the front of the thing so we're going to look that up and post it this is a great idea

Thor Freya

I'm on board with this one so I can't stand what they say about his mom and I can't stand it means you guys won't be able to take it and we're not supposed to take it we're supposed to jam it to them

Hera

We are Jamie to them but not as much as we should

Frank Castle hardcastle

I see how it's going with Harley-Davidson so I can have wondered what this will be like. There's some huge fights with Mac proper to take their Harley-Davidsons it's going to turn in some wonderful

Duke nukem Blockbuster

Okay let's see it for Christ's sake

Trump

Olympus

[davidwilliampsychicmedium]

Psychic Near Me

Hey Beautiful Soul

Been Googling Psychic Near Me and confused about which Psychic to pick for your Psychic Reading?

Stop: Don’t panic I’ve got you covered…

Firstly let me say ‘Hi’ - 

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Psychic Meaning

Client’s often ask me what does it mean to be Psychic as they’re curious about what I do and how a psychic works? so…

The Merriam - Webster Dictionary describes Psychic Meaning as

of or relating to the psyche / soul

lying outside the sphere of physical science or knowledge : immaterial, moral, or spiritual in origin or force

sensitive to nonphysical or supernatural forces and influences : marked by extraordinary or mysterious sensitivity, perception, or understanding

I’ve always found the dictionary’s definition of a psychic to be very wordy and bit too scientific.

I prefer - Psychic Meaning - A psychic is someone who has the ability to “Tune Into” and receive information that’s of a extra sensory nature - ie: information that’s non-physical or tangible / that which lies outside the perceptions of the 5 physical senses

and the raises the question if that’s a psychic meaning then how does a psychic work?

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Psychic Readings

Psychic Readings with me are super simple as I offer 3 different yet very comprehensive readings they are:

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[macverse]

Hubbell's Girl

---

A Joshtin - At some point, Justin says to JC "Your girl is lovely, Hubbell" and everything is different.

--

This references a few things I’ve mentioned in one of my previous Joshtin “Lance Watched” but it's not required reading to be able to enjoy this. Sorry, this is late. Life has been life-ing. I started this on May 13th if you can understand how much life has be life-ing. I know Justin wasn’t there (or at least not photographed or mentioned as far as I know) but my brain thought a little while ago that JC’s girlfriend looks so nice that Justin might like her unlike how it seemed that he hadn’t liked any of his past girlfriend while JC was dating them. I’m also not assuming that JC doesn’t like Jessica. I’ve just never seen the two of them in the same place for the entirety of Justin’s relationship sooooooo….that feels like something. Anyway, only JC could be with someone who makes me stop being distracted by how handsome he is. She looks like she’s really, really sweet. And she’s sooooo pretty. I love, love everything that she wears to appearances with JC. She and Michael are my favorite. I clearly have a type. I might have a small crush on her. Her smile! Okay, I’m gonna stop. Enjoy.

---

“That’s fucking unbelievable,” Lance says to JC as he takes a seat next to him across from the rest of the group. It’s the first official day of his Vegas birthday weekend. Lance has gotten very lucky to have almost all of his brothers here with him. Justin was on tour but he had three full nights in Las Vegas. He’d be tired and tight for time but he’d promised to drop in for a drink no matter what time it was. Among an entire hoard of his closest friends, Lance was also lucky enough to have Joey and JC in town to celebrate with him.

“The sign?” JC asks, referring to the nearly six hundred-foot electric billboards on the side of the Hilton across from where they are celebrating his 45th birthday. There is nothing like seeing your twenty-something-year-old face in an astronaut suit on the side of a building to remind you how much you’ve done in your life.

“I’m sure one of your friends, if not Michael…”JC starts but Lance interrupts him, once again amazed at how obtuse JC can be. “No JC. Them. Look at them,” Lance says gesturing at Jenn and Justin chatting away like they are old friends on a sofa the short distance across the Ayu dayclub from them. Lance looks back at JC, watching him look at Jenn and Justin. There is something about the way JC is looking at them. He’s not at all tense while he’s watching them the way that Lance expected. Lance thought for sure JC would want to split them up. He’s observed over the years that JC can be a protective boyfriend in the best way. Walking on the outside of the street. Keeping an eye on his girlfriends at parties to make sure they are okay. You know the cute, nice guy stuff that most men don’t seem to do anymore without begging. But this, whatever this is, feels like the opposite of what JC would want to see. 

Since Justin arrived, he and Jenn have been inseparable. The minute Jenn spotted Justin, she practically ran and flung herself into Justin’s embrace. It was almost like a scene out of a rom-com. Where the male interest comes back after years of separation when truthfully Justin and Jenn had last seen each other a few months ago at the LA performance at The Wiltern. Watching them greet each other, Lance half expected them to start kissing but Justin hoisted her up, carefully avoiding planting his face in her bust, and swung them around before putting Jenn back on her high healed feet. 

Something about Jenn and Justin together was captivating. Lance wanted to stop looking but he couldn’t take his eyes off of them. They complemented each other nicely. Although not entirely his style, Lance has been finding himself a little jealous of Justin’s latest wardrobe. He’d arrived in another subtly sexy, light-colored match-set linin outfit with a deep collar showing off just a hint of his buzzed, tanned chest. The outfit Jenn had on was sexy, full stop. A tight, colorful, and strappy dress with equally just enough skin showing to get your attention. Lance didn’t know how JC managed to not wisk her back up to their hotel room with her dressed like that. Their body language with each other screamed of their familiarity. The way they seem to be melting into each other due to something other than the desert heat, their bodies seemingly one despite not being each other's partner was enough to gravitate the gaze of anyone around them.

“That's real, isn’t it?” Lance asked JC. “They like each other?”

“When did that happen?” Lance asks again after JC doesn’t react to his previous question. JC shrugs and takes a sip of his drink leaving Lance to interpret the casual gesture as his response to Lance’s latest question. Justin and Jenn laugh loudly suddenly, Jenn falling backward into Justin, the back of her hand cascading across his chest while Justin’s arms flow around her both keeping her upright and emphasizing the surely hilarious story he is telling...

Read the full fic on my AO3

[gjjokok]

35 - January 7, 2024

Ok one more (hopefully last) entry for this very emotional night. I want to write a letter to JC because he has had such a major influence on my life here in NYC.

JC:

I met you through EXTREMELY weird circumstances. In case for some reason either of us forget, these circumstances are: I was hanging out at Henny and Gumpy's place just playing video games shortly after I moved to new york (early June 2023) when they told me Joe would come over. I already knew Joe from when I visited NYC earlier in 2022 with Royo so I was excited that Joe was coming over. I was even more excited and surprised when they said that Joe's boyfriend was also coming over, since I didn't even know he had a boyfriend, and because i was new to the city and so excited to meet new people. Right when you and Joe walked through the door, I remember I immediately felt good energy because you were so welcoming to me and so energetic. As we played videogames throughout the night, I ended up moving back to the bed while you lied on the foot of the bed, and somehow this turned into you (and some other people, I think mostly Gumpy and Joe?) sucking my dick while Henny and some others played videogames. It was such a fun and weird way to meet someone, but I could already tell that I liked you as a person (beyond physical attraction).

I don't even remember how it came about that I hungout with you and everyone else (Kevin, Tommy, etc.) but I'm assuming it has to do with meeting you again and talking to you more at Bubble T at Elsewhere. I met Kevin that night (which of course kicked off a somewhat dramatic situationship) but I also got to know you more, and if I remember correctly, this kicked off me hanging out with you guys on an almost weekly basis.

As we hung out in group situations more, it became clear to me that you were someone I wanted to be close to and that you were genuinely a great person. This was made even more obvious to me when you were always so open to hanging out with me one on one to go on "dates" or to let me vent about my boy problems (mostly with Kevin at the start).

Now, you have become someone that I look for at every social situation I go to. If you aren't at an event I'm at, one of the first things I do is ask other people where you are or just immediately text you to ask you when you are coming. You make me feel happier and warmer every time I see you, and I always feel comfortable coming to you with any problem I need to talk about. When you say things to me like that I have become part of your "family" in NYC, you don't understand how nice that is to hear while I am navigating my life here in NYC.

You are one of the few people in my life I would be genuinely devastated if we don't stay friends long into the future.