#anyway this was a fun little challenge I might try the other ships too

[isagaiia]

jayvik kid design ⚙️

(melvik | meljay | caitvi | timebomb here)

[sleepymarimo]

I have this head cannon that I’ve been thinking of for awhile and just had to share with you.

Imagine y/n growing up with zoro in the village and she’s a couple years younger than him and called him zoozoo once, but he kinda liked it so he let her keep calling him that.

Fast forward to them running into each other at a random market while he’s out shopping with sanji and sanji hears her call him zoozoo. Once they leave, sanji makes fun of him by calling him zoozoo and Zoro just pulls one of his swords and looks him dead in there while saying, “call me that again and I’ll cut your tongue off. Only one person can ever call me that and it’s not you.”

𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬.

summary: read above! pairing: zoro x fem!reader cw: none! mostly fluff, perhaps a bit bittersweet an: hi anon!! i just had to write this bc it was too cute :) also pris try not to write something under 1k words challenge go!! ugh i need to tone it down fr... anyway, enjoy some fluff and thank the anon for their sweet hc.. also im going for a new theme soooo... wc: 2k

you were like a little fly, always buzzing around him.

technically, it was kuina that you clung to, but it might as well have been him, too.

every duel and training session, you were there. you'd clap your hands and cheer on kuina, the girl you'd come to see as an older sister of sorts. "get him kookoo!" came your chant, a toothy grin on your face as you watched the green-haired boy lose his temper once again. "y'can't beat kookoo, zoro!"

even as he barks at you to shut up, you can't help but grin. you know that you'll be scrambling to get him bandages later and you know that he'll refuse your help, all while kuina laughed in the background. this was the dynamic, the camaraderie you had all shared. kuina, zoro and you.

then it all came to an abrupt halt.

kuina's death hit everyone hard. you were inconsolable, missing her so dearly that it made your heart hurt. not knowing what else to do, you turn to the green haired boy who was the closest thing you had to her.

the two of you stand at her grave, one of your tiny hands balled into the fabric of his shirt as if he'd disappear at any moment. your free hand rubs at your tender cheeks, red and swollen from the tears you'd been shedding. "i-i miss-s her, zoozoo."

he fights back the tears in his own eyes as he keeps his gaze locked on the stone slab in front of him. this whole body is still as he utilizes as much of his willpower as possible. he's enraged. he's in mourning. he doesn't quite know how to cope in any way that isn't fighting.

your new nickname for him doesn't go unnoticed- a play on the same one you used to call kuina. he takes it with pride, not bothering to correct you.

he grabs your hand and roughly tugs you along to the training area. there was no way in hell that he'd give up, so he was going to drag you with him.

years later.

same scene, different atmosphere.

the two of you are in front of her grave, paying her respect. zoro is leaving yo- the island. he's leaving the island to fulfill his promise, to make a name for himself and become the greatest swordsman. of course you're wishing him the best, hell, you know that he's going to do it, but still, it stings a tad.

first your beloved kookoo, and now...

"zoozoo..." your arms cross and you sigh, trying to remain cheery and playful but unable to hide the concern in your tone. "y'feeling ready?"

he isn't fazed by the nickname, not when you've been calling him that for years. raising a brow and giving you an almost incredulous expression, he answers your question. "doesn't matter if i'm ready or not, i ain't gonna be the greatest swordsman if i stay here."

the two of you start the walk to the docks, a small ship ready for him. you're side by side, shoulders brushing against one another every now and then. he doesn't put any distance between the two of you. why would he? at that point in time, though he'd never admit it, you were probably the person he'd trusted most.

the silence isn't uncomfortable by any means, but there is a tension of sorts that you try your best to ignore.

when you get to the boat, you take a breath to keep cool and calm. but you're so, so bad at it. maybe a few years ago you could've gotten away with it, but zoro had grown so damn perceptive that it wasn't even funny.

"b-bye zoozoo." you nod with a shaky smile, struggling and failing to keep a straight tone as tears prick your eyes. your hands are behind your back and zoro has no doubt that they're clasped together in a bid to prevent yourself from grabbing him.

he rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue in exasperation. "y'such a pain in the ass." one of his arms slings around your shoulders and begrudgingly brings you into his chest. of course he made sure no one else was around as he did so, opting to look off toward the sea instead of down at your teary face. "i'll be fine. grow up, will ya?"

your hands unclasp and you cling to his shirt, small laughs mixing with your sniffles. "shut-t up, zoozoo."

he doesn't say anything, but if you'd quit being a crybaby for two seconds you'd notice how his grip tightened on his wado ichimonji, his knuckles whitening. the swordsman is determined to do this, but hell, even he'd be lying if he said that this didn't... well, suck.

soon after, the two of you say your final goodbyes.

he catches sight of your smile as the waves took him away, and he has to turn around. his focus is on the horizon, ending the chapter of his life that had you in it.

you're damn persistent though, like a little fly. he can't help but smirk at your words, yelled and carried by the wind.

"you're gonna be the best damn swordsman ever, zoozoo!"

such memories only come to the swordsman when he's had enough booze. when he looks at the moon and the ship is quiet except for the sound of creaking wood and crashing waves.

the thousand sunny had been docked on this island for around a day. it was a nice place, lively and sporting a plethora of shops with goods ranging from tropical fruits to exotic spices.

zoro curses when he swears he passes by the same stall for the hundredth time. "damn cook, always gettin' lost..." he grumbles, not acknowledging his notorious tendency to lose his way.

before he could take another step, he freezes at the sound of a voice that he'd only heard when he was dreaming or completely shit-faced.

"zoozoo?"

the way he turns around is almost mechanical. at this stage of his life, things like this didn't really pull a reaction from him. hell, he hadn't felt this way since he'd ran into that marine in loguetown. it was like seeing a ghost, but you're not one by any means.

he says your name, the sound almost foreign on his lips.

then he straightens up, his rational self catching up to him. you. here. in the new world?

one of his large hands makes a grab at your wrist, pulling you to an alleyway where the two of you could have some more privacy.

he has too many questions, too many thoughts and he'd be damned if he said it, but too many feelings, too. his tone is unintentionally gruff when he speaks, presenting as irritated to mask the protective urges simmering beneath the surface. "what the hell are you doin' here, huh?" you're still like a damn fly...

you take a moment to assess him, his new scars and his physique and everything. it's not like you hadn't seen him... but you're not going to admit to him that a few of his wanted posters are very much in your possession.

he still seems to be as brash as ever. headstrong and bull-headed and caring, in his own blunt way. it's not like you expected him to change much, but still, it's a relief to hear him speak to you as if you hadn't seen him in years. "well i wasn't gonna stay there either!" you defend, stubbornly crossing your arms.

that sparks a conversation about what you've been up to. he's always been alright with just letting you chatter away, but he makes sure to pay extra attention to what you tell him. your goals, your plans and where you'll be going. damn you, making this harder for him by not staying at shimotsuki village.

he's proud though, he really is.

as you continue to speak, he finds his focus directed on your expression and body language. now that the shock has worn off, he gets a closer look at you. your fingers twitch lightly, your arms snuggly crossed over your chest as if you were holding yourself together.

he remembers you being rather comfortable and relaxed around him, only growing restless when you were struggling to hold down the torrents of emotion that you were prone to feeling.

the last time he saw you like this was when he left, when you were too prideful to reach out and...

something about your little mannerisms is comforting in itself, like you haven't changed. a small wave of nostalgia crashes into the stone walls he's constructed around his heart these past few years.

you're still that teary eyed kid clinging to him like a remora, and he's damn sure that that won't ever change. you can hide it all you want, but unfortunately, he knows you.

you're good, but he's better.

"oi, c'mere, you damn crybaby." he huffs, expertly masking his satisfaction as he slings an arm around your shoulders and pulls you into his chest. a smirk tugs at his lips as he looks down on you, hell, he even wraps his other arm around you too. "thought i told ya to grow up, dumbass."

your arms wrap around him and you hide your sniffle with a scoff. "yeah, and i think i told you to shut up, zoozoo." you instinctively hold him a bit tighter. "bet you didn't miss all this crybaby stuff."

oh, if you knew how wrong you were.

the moment is cut short when an exasperated yell fills the air. "oi, marimo, what the hell are you doing with a gorgeous woman!"

zoro's grip tightens on you for a split second before he releases you with a growl, his expression morphing into one of annoyance. he turns around to face the blond, hand reaching for his blade. "mind your damn business, cook! i'll cut you up like a-"

they bicker for a few minutes while you watch on in confusion, before the cook tells him that there are marines on the island. the blond, not wanting the swordsman to get lost again, firmly grips his arm and tugs him along.

zoro's gaze flickers back to yours, hardened and glinting with determination. yet, beneath that, you can see the underlying emotion.

it makes you smile, and even as he's being tugged away, you give him a big grin letting him know that you'll be okay. a smile that says you believe in him and that you know he'll be the greatest swordsman this world has ever seen. most importantly, it tells him that you'll be there waiting for him when it's all done.

your lips part and you yell out. "bye, zoozoo!"

it's a while later when zoro and sanji finally quit their running, the thousand sunny go just up ahead in the distance.

"tch, can't believe a beautiful woman like her would want anything to do with a brute like you." sanji huffs, clearly envious and annoyed as he pulls out a cigarette and lighter.

zoro's scowl deepens, not quite up for discussing any sort of feelings with the cook. "shut the hell up, curly brows." he says, his eye subtly sneaking a final glance at the town. "it's not like that."

sanji breathes out a large puff of smoke, his form relaxing somewhat. "yeah, yeah... sure. whatever you say, zoozoo."

the air changes, going almost still as sanji finds himself looking down at a blade being held to his neck. zoro holds his sword up to the cook, glaring at him with a murderous intent.

they've had their fair share of fights, never actually meaning to harm one another, but zoro makes it clear that this subject is not up for debate. “call me that again and i’ll cut your tongue off." he growls, inching the blade a little closer. "only one person can ever call me that, and it’s not you.”

[kingofthe-egirls]

SITTING PRETTY: LUFFY x Y/N

(cw: alcohol, kitsune, east blue crew, yes i was imagining the opla cast but so were you, kissing, sitting in someone’s lap)

(a/n: this was so fun. smut maybe coming soon? we’ll see)

Songs: “Hotel” by Claire Rosinkranz

words: 1.2k

Luffy is staring at you.

He’s sitting across the campfire from you, sipping a glass of milk through a straw. You have your own moscow mule in hand, the copper mug sweating with cold condensation.

The air smells like smoke.

“So!” Luffy speaks, twirling his straw around in his drink. He slurps it loudly before continuing, “Let’s play a game!”

He smiles around at the rest of the crew, who are all in their own various states of intoxication. It’s been a long night, after several days at sea with no islands in sight. Everyone is a little bored, a little stressed, and more than a little in need of blowing off some steam. Nami shrugs.

“Sure, captain. What’s up?”

Luffy leans forward, wicked smirk painting his charming features. You stare down into your melted ice and muddled mint leaves.

“Let’s play truth or dare!”

Zoro sighs, but leans forward too. Sanji and Usopp also perk up. The Merry creaks in the waves as she sails. The ocean laps at her sides, soothing and peaceful in the summer night air. The campfire sparks up with a flare.

Luffy slurps his milk.

“What are the stakes?” Nami asks, adjusting in her seat, her boots slung over one another as she leans back. Usopp is fiddling with his slingshot.

Zoro shrugs, “Drink if you won’t take a dare, drink twice if you won’t take a truth.”

“So, we’re trying to outmatch each other? Get stuff we won’t wanna do?”

“Sorta,” Zoro says, “S’alright with everyone?”

“Sounds fun,” you admit, downing your glass before handing it off to Sanji. He’s a sucker for your sparkly eyes and fluffy tails. Your ears flick back and forth, excited. Nervous.

Sanji hurries back with a refill.

He straightens his suit jacket before sitting back down. The indigo night washes over him with a flattering, velvet softness. You wonder what shade of blue his eyes are, up close.

Luffy clears his throat.

“Sooo, who wants to go first?” His shining eyes scan the crew, and you flick up a tail (or two). He smiles, and takes a sip of his kid’s drink.

You sigh. “Truth,” you say, staring at Nami. You figure she’s gonna strike the worst, so might as well get it over with first. She stares at you, flicking her eyes up and down your scrappy frame. She arches an auburn brow.

“So, Kitty,” she sips her cider, and Sanji shifts in his seat. “Have you ever had sex before?”

She’s smiling, devilish, as you snort through your drink. She laughs as you cough, orange hair swaying in the soft breeze. Everyone else stutters and laughs, and Zoro mutters something about “starting off strong.” You swallow, sucking your teeth as you swirl melted ice around your drink.

“Yes.”

Everyone sighs out in relief, tension removed for a second of release.

Your eyes flick up to hers.

“Your turn.”

She stares back at you: a challenge.

“Dare.”

You shrug, mouth turned down, “I dare you to say when the last time you had sex was.” You stare at her glare, as she clocks you basically just gave her a truth anyway. She sniffs.

“Last week.”

“Liar!” You say, and she giggles. You shove the bottle of tequila closer to her, and she swallows what is certainly more than just one shot.

“Your turn,” she says to Zoro, who glances at Luffy for his prompt.

Luffy stares at the floor, now-empty glass held loosely in slender fingers. “What…is your favorite color?”

“I didn’t say truth, captain,” Zoro snorts, “Truth or dare, Luffy.”

“Dare?”

Sanji sighs, and Usopp says “we might as well go with it,” so Zoro sighs and starts to think of something to dare his already-reckless captain with. He settles on something silly, and tame.

“I dare you to slingshot back and forth across the ship five times.”

Happy to be moving, your hyperactive friend shoots up and starts gum-gum rocketing across the ship with no small amount of shouting. You swirl the mint leaves in your drink. “Your turn,” you murmur to Usopp, who gives Sanji a glance.

“Truth or dare?” The chef asks, his own glass of wine clutched in his delicate fist. It’s as dark as the sea.

“Truth.”

“What do Kaya’s lips taste like?”

The group ooo’s in scandalous delight, all eyes on the sniper as he stares down into his drink. “Pass,” he says, and takes a huge slurp. It dribbles down his chin. “Who’s turn is next?”

“Sanji,” you say, turning to him with a smile, “Truth or dare, handsome?”

He blushes at your pet name, and someone coughs. The blond boy licks his lips. His eyes meet yours, reflecting the fire’s red heat.

“Dare.”

“Kiss my cheek,” you preen, tails flicking around you. You bare the side of your face to him, sitting pretty by the campfire. Your scrappy jeans have stitched-on patches, and your crop top hangs loose around your frame. A single pendant hangs around your neck, and your hair is twisted into messy braids. You knock your steel-toed boots together.

Sanji hums, peaceful, as he delicately scoots toward you. He’s already sitting next to you, tall legs and broad shoulders bumping into yours as he settles closer in. His hand is slightly cool as it graces the side of your neck. “Be still, pretty,” he whispers, just for you, as he presses a slow smooch against your cheek. He bites it, playfully, and you swat him away with a fearsome blush.

Usopp giggles, and Nami snorts into her cider again. Zoro and Luffy are both silent. You swallow, and cast about the crew for someone else’s turn. “Is it me again?” You ask, and Zoro nods.

“Truth or dare?” He says, sake almost drained from his bottle. The air stills, sudden breeze gone quiet as you sit together. You curl two tails around yourself, petting the soft, arctic fur in your lap. It scratches against the striped patch on the side of your left hip.

“Truth.”

“Nope,” Zoro says, swigging his sake, “Truth is boring. You’re doing a dare. Sit in the lap of the person you’d most like to have sex with.”

Everyone gasps, except for you.

Your eyes burn with smoke, staring down the swordsman across the crackling flames. Sparks shoot up between you, orange and hazy in the moonlight. Something thumps against the ship; a fish or a shark that swims away silently.

You stand.

Sanji shifts, still close to you from his kiss. He scratches the fabric of his slacks above his left knee. His shoes are shiny and black beneath the stars. You step over them, carefully.

And you make your way across the circle, slowly as a shark circling prey.

“Sorry,” you whisper, standing in front of the captain who saved you, “Is this seat taken?”

He stares at you.

His breath comes ragged and hazy, as he sets his glass down to make room. His hands are sweaty, so he wipes them off on his shorts as you stand beside his hip. He leans back, slightly, to let you sit side-saddle across his legs. He shifts on the deck so he’s cross-legged, and you take your seat with a searing blush. Your ass fits neatly into the space between his crisscrossed legs, his heat spilling into your body as he wraps his arms around your waist.

He nuzzles into your cheek, his soft hair tickling your jaw. “Sleeping in my hammock tonight,” he whispers, his lips in your hair, “Captain’s orders.”

****

[alicesadventuresinffxiv]

What are the most popular F/F Final Fantasy XIV ships?

(*on AO3, as of October 13, 2024)

I like writing femslash, so while I was doing the FFxivWrite challenge, I had the thought: wouldn’t it be fun to try writing each of the top 10 most popular FFXIV F/F ships? 

I figured it would be a good way for me to learn to write characters I wasn’t used to, plus hopefully it would mean some of the well-liked but rarely-written pairings would get more fic for them!

But then I ran head-first into the question: what are those F/F ships? I hit some interesting challenges attempting to figure that out, so here’s a post about how I reached my answer!

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First things first: I’m using AO3 stats for this analysis, entirely because AO3 has the most robust searching and filtering tools. Trying to wrangle this kind of analysis on tumblr or twitter would be a nightmare, as much as I’d love to know the answer on those sites!

Second, let’s quickly double check my assumption that F/F ships are indeed rarepairs in this fandom.

Yep, if you’re at all familiar with @centrumlumina's work on AO3 stats (which this analysis is somewhat inspired by ^^;), this is exactly in line with general fandom trends! For reasons that I understand intellectually but not in my heart, F/F fics tend to hover at around 6% of AO3 output overall.

Interestingly, this small slice of femslash makes FFXIV more similar to large, broad fandoms like the MCU or MHA (pictured above), and less similar to other online multiplayer videogame fandoms (pictured below). You might think that given its friendly reputation, FFXIV would attract more women and/or LGBTQ+ players and therefore have a higher proportion of femslash. But nope!

(Admittedly, pitting FFXIV against the fandom that contains Arcane feels a little unfair... :P)

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So alright, with that out of the way, let’s start by doing the obvious thing. Hey AO3, what are the top 10 relationship tags when searching FFXIV on the F/F category?

[Note: Since the Warrior of Light is typically written as the author’s original character - especially in cases with multiple WoLs - I am combining the WoL/WoL and WoL/OC tags together.]

If you’ve been in FFXIV spaces for a while, you probably already guessed the #1 result! But as someone relatively new to the fandom, I was actually quite surprised. None of my previous fandoms had nearly this much focus on original characters!

Indeed, WoL/NPC ships and OC/ OC ships absolutely dwarf the numbers for any NPC/NPC ships, with the exception of the three largest M/M pairings (Aymeric/Estinien, Emet-Selch/Hythlodaeus, and Thancred/Urianger). Also, given that not everyone tags their OCs using either of the WoL or OC tags (ack! please use tags, your works get lost otherwise!)… you can always expect results for OCs to be an undercount. Woah!

Anyway, since WoL ships are so huge, I decided it made the most sense to give them their own list:

Another thing that surprised me is that male characters in FFXIV are so many times more popular than female characters that genderbent M/M pairings will show up in these F/F lists.

And… I wasn’t quite sure how to count those ships in my tallies.

On the one hand, genderbending (not to mention trans headcanoning-ing!) characters is a fun and often subversive way to approach popular ships. More power to everyone doing it!

On the other hand, part of the underlying motivation for my own writing goal was that I wanted to write pairings that fandom somewhat overlooks. 

As such, I went with a compromise: I’m including pairings with canonically male characters in my graphs (those are the pink bars), but I kept the lists going until I reached 10 pairings involving characters who are portrayed as women in the source material.

(There were no nonbinary FFXIV characters which placed on any of my lists, sadly. Apologies to Feo Ul, who is still the loveliest of branches in my heart.)

Other than that caveat, the results here aren’t too far off from my own guesses. Anecdotally, I’d seen that a lot of WoLs are self-inserts for their players, so it makes sense that typical WoL ships are with NPCs that are generally considered to be attractive by the fanbase. Correspondingly, the Reader/Character fics that are somewhat common in other fandoms don’t even rank on these lists, which might suggest WoL/NPC ships are largely fulfilling that niche.

(Something something, FFXIV is a dating sim with combat, in this essay I will…. :P)

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Anyway, WoL ships are nice, but what I actually wanted to write were NPC/NPC ships. So let’s add a bunch more excludes to the filtering… and…

Hm. That's interesting. There's a bunch of F/F ships that I know I’ve seen fic and art for that are missing from this list!

Out of curiosity, I did a few searches specifically on these missing pairings, in case they were so rarely tagged as purely F/F (or so commonly shipped alongside a WoL ship) that trying to find them via excludes didn’t work. These were:

Alisaie/Tesleen (20 total, 13 tagged F/F)

Krile/Tataru (14 total, 7 tagged F/F)

Ysayle/Heustienne (5 total, 5 tagged F/F)

Wuk Lamat/Sphene (4 total, 4 tagged as F/F)

[Note: The first number is what I used during the writing challenge last month… which is how I ended up putting Krile/Tataru over Lucia/Hilda. Oops! But the second number is more in line with the rest of the analysis here, so I will use that going forward.]

Seems my expectations were flat-out incorrect! Of these four, only Alisaie/Tesleen makes the top ten. Meanwhile Wuk Lamat/Sphene is a pairing consisting of very new characters... so perhaps it will grow over time!

Right then, let's add Alisaie/Tesleen in, and while we're at it, let's run direct searches on all the potential candidates rather than using excludes to ensure no fics are getting needlessly thrown out.

With those adjustments in place... I reached my final top ten!

Not bad! Predictably, pairings that get more focus in canon (Gaia/Ryne and Sadu/Cirina) tend to place high, as do pairings involving Y’shtola (since she’s a very popular character overall). 

As a Lyse-enjoyer, I found Lyse getting 3/10 spots on the list to be pretty funny, as was the heavy presence of Stormblood characters! Apparently I’m not the only one who thought StB was a good expansion for lesbians. :D

There are also a few pairings here that I hadn’t ever considered before doing this analysis. But hey, that was the point of making the list! And trying to figure out the dynamics for pairings I didn’t usually ship did indeed turn out to be a fun writing exercise last month.

So what do you all think, tumblr? Did the results surprise you like they did me? Or did I overlook a pairing that really deserved to be included?

In any case, I hope you enjoyed reading this analysis!

[voxofthevoid]

WAIT LMAO I NEED TO HEAR THE TEA ABOUT SUKUGO NOW! i'm not fond of the ship either, so i'm curious to hear your thoughts

Ngl, I did crack up at how this landed in my inbox a handful of minutes after that post popped out of my queue. Also looping in @zyukan since you wanted to know too. Never change, y'all.

The tea isn't particularly scalding, just my take on canon events, but negative thoughts/assessment regarding sukugo to follow, so people who like the ship probably shouldn't read further. Unless you're into that, I guess, but then don't come bitching at me. There's also some relatively positive references to satosugu.

Initially, the ship was something I tried out during my exploratory phase in JJK. I thought I might like it but quickly realized I really fucking didn't. Granted, that applied to all non-goyuu Gojou ships because I'm a man with a pattern. Anyway, after that, sukugo was off my radar until the Shinjuku Showdown, at which point I got soured on the entire dynamic.

It's partially the framing, partially the execution, plus how these interact with what makes a dynamic shippable for me. There are moments of levity in the fight, and both parties (well, mostly Gojou if we're considering the explicit text of the fight) are having fun, but I could sense absolutely no connection between them despite the narrative trying to frame it that way. The repetition of Yorozu's words falls flat in that particular fight; it's there in her and even Kashimo's fight against Sukuna—that desire to reach him to fulfill themselves, one way or the other. In Gojou vs. Sukuna, the same is stated by the narrator, but I don't see/feel it. They're both focused entirely on themselves, even as they're enjoying the challenge.

Outside of the narration, whenever we see Gojou's and Sukuna's own thoughts, it's focused on either victory or external factors. The other person isn't anything more than an obstacle. After the fight, Gojou's happy he died a fun death and clearly respects Sukuna for his power and skill, but his focus there is on the fact that he went out the way he wanted. Sukuna praises Gojou immensely, but it's the same kind of praise he gave Jogo after he killed him—not the same extent, since Gojou warrants more respect and admiration, but both the driving factor and manifestation are fundamentally the same.

I'd say the lack of any genuine connection there is best illustrated by how there's no little chitchat between them after Gojou dies, the way there was between Sukuna and Jogo as well as Sukuna and Kashimo. That's explicitly presented as "the rare phenomenon of connecting with a sorcerer during the height of battle," and you'd think Gojou and Sukuna would have that given how much they pushed each other during the fight, but nope, it's just some slice and dice and then buh-bye.

Granted, none of this is a lack of shipping fuel—quite the opposite, given how the ship has taken off after that fight. But it's shipping fuel that's entirely antithetical to what I find appealing in a pairing.

In that linked post, I said I prefer even satosugu to sukugo, and I'd say the salient difference is that satosugu is a ship I was neutral about but ended up disliking due to fandom, while sukugo is a ship I was neutral about but ended up disliking due to canon. The former is ultimately ignorable, but the latter really isn't. Canon does a great job of presenting Gojou and Getou as two people who loved each other, and I enjoy poking at satosugu in my own fics, either when referring to Gojou's past relationships or even as part of Gojou/Yuuji/Getou. With sukugo, even that little spark is not there—I wrote an entire threesome scene with goyuu and sukuita, and Gojou and Sukuna didn't touch except in violence. I love Sukuna as a character while disliking Getou, but when it comes to ships, satosugu is more interesting than sukugo. I'll be avoiding both ships religiously, however.

[amethystfairy1]

Hihi! I just wanted to say I absolutely adore both of your fics sooooo much! The way you write all the characters is amazing :D. I was just wondering do you have any advice or tips for people looking to get into fic writing? And quick q about travelling thieves! We know that mumbo has met pearl but if Grian and Pearl were to meet would they even recognise one another? Anyway your work is incredible and I cant wait to see what you do for the rest of febuwhump!

Hello, hello! ✨

I'm so glad you enjoy my fics and characters!

Tips to get into fic writing? Hmm...I mean, I know it's probably said a lot, but my biggest advice is don't be afraid to start. The first fic you ever write won't be perfect, it'll be far from that, and you've just gotta be ok with that. The best thing you can do is start, write something and post it, see what people think, see what you liked and didn't like about it...then do it again!

As far as like...actual advice, I'd say participate in a writing challenge! Like Febuwhump which is going on right now! 😆 It'll force you to take a prompt, make something of it, post it quickly and then move on. You'll end up with a big chunk of fics and feedback on at least some of them I'm sure, and you can go from there! Also you'd be surprised what sort of storylines might accidentally form during a writing challenge...Traveling Thieves came out of my Whumptober prompts from last year, after all!

My last bit of advice would be to not start with a long fic. By that what I mean is don't try to write some huge overarching narrative...start with something smaller.

Your favorite ship needs to get together, who asks who out? How did that go? What was their first date like? What about their first kiss? How long did it take for them to say 'I love you'? That's like four or five short fics right there. 😛

The reason I write my AU's the way I do is because of stuff like this. It's scary writing a long fic (trust me I've done it a ton of times) because once you bypass a certain point in the story, you can never go back. The fun thing about my AU's being a series of short stories is that I can always bounce up and down the timeline! If you've been keeping up with TTSBC you can see it! I wrote Flower Husbands all the way up to Scott knowing about Jimmy's wings and consistently spending the night at his apartment. They've fought, they've said 'I love you', Scott has been to the under-city and met Jimmy's parents...but I suddenly felt like writing more details about their early game relationship! Before Scott know Jimmy's big secret, before they'd said 'I love you' or anything like that...so guess what? I did just that! I wrote 'Karma Witch' and 'Lovestruck Baby' after I'd written fics like 'Gutterline Sunshine' because that's the greatest part of this set up! I can bounce around! I never get bored or stuck on one plot point because if I don't feel like working on it, then I don't have too! So if you're into worldbuilding and wanna create an AU to have your characters all exist in, I'd super super super recommend using the 'shorter stories in an interconnected series' format.

BONUS TRAVELING THIEVES QUESTION 🏃‍♀️

Pearl and Grian last saw each other when they were sold away form their colony at fifteen years old. It's been seven years since then, but considering they're twins and they were both already mostly grown before they were sold away? Yes. They would definitely recognize each other if they saw each other again. The problem would be if they'd allow themselves to admit they recognized each other...cut ties and forgotten names and all. 😭

I hope my rambling advice helped at least a little bit!

Thanks for coming by! 💖

[petz5]

Hello, I'm sure you have a lot of people here but I just wanted to say I love your content. Ranma 1/2 was my first anime and I don't really have anyone else in my life I can talk to about it. One thing I haven't seen discussed is how when the fiances have a "once and for all" battle it either ends in a tie or akane winning, favorite time this happened would have been the cooking challenge where akane only served tofu and ranma was so confused about how he wasn't getting sick to pick a winner.

I had a long reply and tumblr CRASHED AND I LOST IT 😭 first of all thank you!!! That means a lot to hear!! I don't actually get asks too often so this is rlly sweet

I agree lol I'm sure that's an ep a lot of people would consider just skippable filler and ooc bc its an ukyo/ranma ship tease one, but.......... i like it lol i didn't think it was ooc, even the damning moment at the end when ranma whispers to ukyo that he likes her better in her usual (guy) clothes comes across to me as him just being concerned that his good friend is trying to fundamentally change herself for him. Yeah it's meant to be a little flirty but he knows she likes him and is trying to boost her confidence in a way she'll be receptive to, and he makes sure akane doesn't overhear bc he doesn't want her to think he's into ukyo. I mean come on, like you said ranma was so distracted by akane's food being edible for once that he didn't even pay attention to how any of the other girls dishes tasted, it's pretty obvious who he's set on lol

I don't think ranma having to pick between suitors was ever a genuine debate despite what twitter will tell you in his mind past the first like 20 seconds of meeting each of them and going "oh she's pretty cute" before introducing akane as his fiancee lmaoooo and that said its still fun to see them egg akane on to compete against them and she's like "this is so embarrassing and stupid" and does her best anyway 💀💀💀 ranma and akane might complain the entire way but ultimately they'll do anything for each other and thats how u know its real

also my fave example of this is ~vol 30 when kodachi's rival calls ranma stupid and ugly and akane gets so offended she not only makes him go on a date w kodachi but dresses him up nice first while he's just like "what the fuck" and drags his feet abt the entire thing

[twompweek]

PROMPT LIST ~ Guide

Want to know what the prompt lists for twomp week will look like and how to use them? Look no further!

Each day of twomp week will have 8 prompts. These are for you to use as loosely or as seriously as you may choose. Throw them away entirely if nothing sparks your imagination! Or put multiple together for the ULTIMATE PROMPT. The choice here is up to you!

For each day there will be one prompt for each of the following categories:

Crossovers - Enjoy this excuse to mash up your favourite parts of twomp with other media you love. Put the characters into each other's situations, argue why they parallel your favourite characters, or just have twomp characters decide which of these is their favourite!

Swap - Here we're trying to switch things around. Think about how fun it would be to see something in twomp acting in a way it normally wouldn't. Play around with their designs or characterisation to make them fit into this alternate universe version of themself!

Fluff - Where would fandom be without the soft and cuddly feelies? Let's make things cute and wholesome so we can all give these horrific guys some time to relax.

Angst - Conversely, where would fandom be without the pain and suffering? Take people out of harms way? Goodness no! Let's make them suffer more. Put your favourites into new and worse situations and see how they struggle!

Trope - Fandom tropes... We all know them and we all love them. Lets throw some fandom classics into the mix here and see what new angles we can come at them from.

Ship - We all love our twomp ships. From the main pairing, to making background characters kiss like Barbie dolls, take this as your chance to play around with some pairings in this fandom. Platonic or romantic, all that matters is how we think they'd get on with each other.

Twomp Episode - When was the last time you watched some of these twomp episodes? Have a little rewatch of this random sample plucked for the event and see if you can make anything fun based off of them. Who knows what inspiring material might be hiding in a forgotten episode.

Colour palette - Ah, the artist classic. Crack out your pens, pencils, and drawing tablets guys and challenge yourself with a strict palette. Or simply see what ideas come to mind just by looking at them. All those greens make you think of grassy plains? Why not write about a void filled with endless fields?

But what do you do if there's a prompt you like for one day that you want to do on another day? Do it for that day anyway! The prompts are only a loose starting point. This event is for you to make whatever it is you may please.

Maybe a prompt gives you a loose idea, but as you finish your work you discover it's changed from the original prompt entirely. That's fine too! I cannot stress enough how much this is up to your own preference to use.

The official prompt list will be revealed prior to the start of the event. The dates for these are both still TBD. Keep an eye for further updates and feel free to reach out with any questions

[fizzigigsimmer]

It’s early days yet, but I already love the character of Gator Tillman. And what I specifically mean by that is I think the character is well thought out, well developed, well portrayed, challenging, and complex. I love to think about this character. Which inspires me to write stories about them. I’m emotionally invested, which again inspires me creatively. I’m also a kinky bastard so, that’s fun! My love of this character does not condone or support the bad things they do being done in real life, because that would be insane. This should go without saying, but we’re on the internet and I guess it doesn’t hurt to be clear.

Now that that is done with, onto the fun exercise I like to call “How do you think these two characters you love would bet along?” because I LOVE to think about these kind of impossible scenarios.

If Steve met Gator: Ignoring the doppelgänger situation, I think these characters would be enemies to besties, for the reason that they are the same guy. And I don’t mean because they’re played by Joe. I talked about this a little before on another post, but Steve & Gator share a character type. Actually, Steve, Billy, & Gator are all shades of the same character (which yum, threesome, but STAY ON TARGET) so it’s no big surprise why they’re so similar. What I really love about examining Steve & Gator side by side is all the ways you can realy start to picture how Steve might have been worse in a different setting, with less privilege etc. Anyway I think there would be real friction between them at first because Steve’s more emotionally developed (not to mention progressive lol) and he’s not about Gator’s punk ass. Honestly there would be a similar kind of friction/chemistry that Billy sparked when he burst in acting a fool, and if they could get past that and see how alike they are I think they’d be magnets. Could there be some sexual chemistry? Personally I find it weird when couples look too similar so it will never be my one true ship or anything, but definitely. The studies have been done, and it’s a real thing!

If Billy met Gator: See this one I’m torn on. It’s because they’re kind of a perfect storm. They’d be so competitive and there would be so much fucking posturing lol. The friction would be so thick. They would resent everything about each other, which is ironic because they are strikingly alike. I would say more alike even than Steve & Billy are, because Gator is a darker shade of blue if you catch my drift. Gator is who Steve might be if the Duffers had never created Billy, and I think Gator is what Neil thinks he wants Billy to be - even though we all know Neil’s flavor of toxic abuse doesn’t actually allow for Billy to ever get it right, even if he did try and please Neil the way Gator tries to please Roy. Billy and Gator are both motherless living under controlling and abusive fathers, trying to live up to a toxic standard of manhood in order to prove their worth. They both gravitate to positions of power and admiration that allow them to control the people around them and feel safe from a position of authority. They both ‘make their own law’ and are taking their anger and pain out on their enviorment. They would initially bring out the absolute worst in each other, and whether it was as friends or as enemies it would be ELECTRIC. But for the same reasons they would be an utter shit show, they’d get each other better than anyone ever has before. They’d sizzle.

[streetlights-was-taken]

usually I write for smaller fandoms and ships, so I'm blown away to receive comments for azazel considering that it hasn't even been 24h since I posted it yesterday (and I only remembered to share on social media today). I guess the saiou tag on AO3 is still going strong in the year of our lord 2024. amazing

anyway, I wasn't actually sure about posting it because there are some parts of the fic I'm still unsure about. but I workshopped it with a friend last night, and I think I have a better idea of how to write this fic. I have my themes and I have my murders, huzzah!

initially I wanted to play around with the theme of autonomy (or loss of) just for shuichi's character arc, but I think it's a general theme that I'll play around with angie, keebo, and korekiyo too. and juxtapose it with the theme of responsibility for ryoma, kirumi, kokichi, and kaede.

without spoiling anything, though you might be able to guess, I'm thinking that angie, keebo, korekiyo, and shuichi all fall in circumstances in the fic that challenges or limits their autonomy. there are certain restrictions they (or society or circumstances) put on themselves, and there's a general lack of freedom relative to others. what they think they're doing might not necessarily be things they actually wanted to do.

meanwhile, the responsibility camp will undergo character arcs where they realize that they have freedom and choice and it's all a question of what they'll do with it and what they're willing to be responsible for. to live, to lead, to serve, are all things they think they're doing for others, but they need to take ownership of those actions as well.

I also wanted to explore characters that usually don't get a lot of focus. I love kaito and maki for sure, but the premise of the fic doesn't really set the story up for the training trio to come together, unfortunately. on the plus side, I think it'd be fun to explore kaede in an actual leadership role, and how she'll butt heads with angie's student council. and of course, how characters like korekiyo and ryoma and kirumi would act if things went a little differently in their respective arcs.

V3 usually plays around with themes of truth/lies and trust/doubt, so I wanted to play with a different angle. I think it'll be interesting too in the context of a virtual reality simulation where tsumugi wrote in their backstories. how much of their actions are influenced by an outside script and how much of it is from their own free will? compare, for example, kirumi and korekiyo's actions and how their scripted backstory played into it, as opposed to kokichi who leaned in on his character and went all out on even trying to take responsibility of the killing game just to end it. and yet, we'd all probably say that he was the most "free" with his actions, and he did these things out of his own desires and free will, and not because his backstory dictated it so.

anyway, now that I have a clearer roadmap, I'm very excited to write the next chapters. tbh I wasn't sure of continuing the fic after spending 20k words on chapter one alone, but the comments have been unexpected and encouraging. I will try my best to write more!!

[postgamecontent]

Nintendo Switch Weekly Round-Up for the Week Ending September 21, 2024

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the Nintendo Switch Weekly Round-Up for the week ending September 21, 2024. Quite a few new and notable releases to check out this time around, so it's another large article. I've decided I'd rather do reviews as separate articles, so look for those when and if I opt to do them. My resources for such things are considerably more limited now, but I'll do what I can. Let's check out this week in the world of Switch!

Select New Releases

The Plucky Squire ($29.99)

After a storybook hero is kicked out his book, his story's ending is changed to a much bleaker one. In order to set things right, he'll have to explore both 2D and 3D worlds, solving puzzles and completing challenges. This game got some immediate attention due to James Turner, formerly of Game Freak, working on it. The game certainly looks to be intriguing, so let's hope it can deliver on its considerable promise.

Loddlenaut ($19.99)

You play as an interstellar custodian in this relaxed open-world adventure about cleaning up an alien planet. Collect trash and recycle it to craft items and upgrades, raise aquatic creatures, and use your bubble gun to make things nice and neat again. Looks like some good times if you're just trying to chill out with something this week.

I Got Isekai'd into a Shmup ($12.99)

You don't see a ton of shoot 'em ups with four-player multiplayer support, let alone ones with great titles like this. The story about the main character getting transported into the world of a shooter serves as a framing device for the vertically-scrolling bullet hell action. Eight stages, four ships, multiple difficulty modes, and even a bestiary to fill out. You almost want to reward it for the name alone.

Japanese Rail Sim: Hakone Town of Natural Beauty and Hot Springs ($49.99)

Hey, it's one of these. Hakone's a really nice place, so taking a train ride through its scenery is a solid idea. You're driving the train, and this is a mountainous route, so don't relax too much. As you play, you'll be able to view tourism info about Hakone and the Hakone Tozan Railway. Cool. Like the other games in this series, it relies on real video footage. As such, it can feel a little artificial when starting and stopping, but the effect in motion is decent enough.

Touhou Genso Wanderer -Foresight- ($37.99)

Another Touhou roguelike RPG, and these have all been of substantial enough quality that I am not sad to see one more. This is fairly similar to the Mystery Dungeon games, but the progression is a bit kinder. I'm going to be doing a review of this game on the site soon, so look forward to that. It'll be a little bit since I just got my hands on the game today.

Arcade Archives Crime City ($7.99)

Probably not the Chase HQ Universe game that people have been waiting for, but I have a real soft spot for Taito's Crime City. It's a Rolling Thunder-esque run-and-gun action game for up to two players whose playable characters are definitely not based on any particular cop movie duo of the era, no sir. There are also little sections where you move into the screen, like in Contra. Good goofy fun, which might be just what some of you are looking for today.

EGGCONSOLE Star Cruiser PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

Oh, this is a big one. This 1988 release offers polygonal 3D visuals, which was quite a sight to see at the time. You're exploring space and planet surfaces, engaging in action-based combat, and following a decent little story. There are some RPG elements here as well. Unfortunately, this game suffers from the usual issue of only having Japanese in-game text, and quite a lot of it. You might want to venture in anyway, just to experience it. Be forewarned that this is a very flashy game, so photosensitive people should probably give it a pass.

Keylocker | Turn Based Cyberpunk Action ($19.99)

A stylish turn-based RPG that incorporates rhythm game mechanics into its combat. In a messed-up future where music is banned, you are a rebellious singer. Seems nifty, and I've been given a review copy so I will be taking a deeper look at it soon.

Pixel Game Maker Series NYANxTECH ($5.99)

I suppose we're back on regular releases for the Pixel Game Maker line, which suits me just fine. This looks like a puzzle-platformer of sorts where you use different buttons to turn platforms on and off. Sure, that seems fine enough for this price point.

The Karate Kid: Street Rumble ($39.99)

There are a lot of people chasing that Shredder's Revenge success right now, and I think it is somewhat ominous that one of the first out of the gate is Game Mill's Karate Kid-flavored take. Play as Daniel, Miyagi, Ali Mills, or Kumiko as you punch and kick your way through locations and battles inspired by the first three Karate Kid movies. The Cobra Kai brawlers from this publisher weren't very good at all, and that makes it difficult for me to expect much here.

Byte The Bullet ($19.99)

Travel through the various systems of a computer to cleanse them of the virus infecting the system in this run-and-gun platformer. You can poke around each of the levels to find interesting secrets, and the game parodies a few popular classics in the genre. This is one of those games that could go either way, and I'm not going to be able to say which side it falls on until I put my hands on it.

Cricket: Jae's Really Peculiar Game ($24.99)

Another interesting turn-based RPG to look into. The main character in this one is trying to fix a past gone wrong to make a better future. Hm, sounds familiar. Battles use Mario RPG-style timing-based commands, so if that's a thing you have strong feelings about one way or the other, make sure to take it into account.

Get in the Car, Loser! ($29.99)

This game describes itself as a "rowdy hot-blooded lesbian road trip RPG" and I feel like you're going to know just from that brief whether you're in or not. It comes from one of the co-creators of Ladykiller in a Bind, and it's been out for a while on other platforms. Generally seems to have gone over well with most. This release includes both extra DLC story chapters, so you get it all in one go.

Home Safety Hotline ($19.99)

One for the horror fans, I suppose. At least the set-up is interesting. You play as an operator at a home safety line, and people will call in with some very unusual problems. You'll need to try to help them with those issues, but you can count on things getting very weird in a hurry. This release also includes the Christmas-themed DLC. Not my thing, but maybe yours.

Matchbox Driving Adventures ($39.99)

You know, I think Outright Games is doing decent enough work in the licensed game area. Like, I'm not going to say the output is always great, but of all the publishers aimed at making games based on popular kids' properties, Outright seems to deliver the most agreeable results. And that's how this game looks, really. Agreeable. If you have a kid who loves Matchbox cars, they'll probably have fun with this.

Booom-Slang! ($14.99)

A quirky twin-stick shooter that offers up both a single-player campaign and a fairly interesting multiplayer mode. Up to four players can compete, but they'll do so with multiple targets in mind. There's more than one way to win, in other words. The aesthetic of this game is something else, and I suppose it could be best summarized as 3DO-ish. I can see some people being into it.

They Came From the Sky 2 ($9.99)

Be an alien invader… again. This is an entertaining action game where you play as an alien craft and need to wreak havoc on the planet. You can stomp things, shoot them, and cause all kinds of general mayhem. This advances nicely on the original game, I'd say. If you're looking for some mindless amusement, this does the job well enough.

Seasonspree ($11.99)

In this game, you play as a tanuki that can travel through time just by walking forwards and backwards. You have to use this ability to help out your friends in this relaxing adventure.

The Town of Nie ($43.22)

A "boys love" visual novel about a human who wanders into a supernatural world. He'll be interacting with some very unusual characters while searching for a way to return home, and perhaps finding love? That will depend on your choices, of course. There's a demo available for this game if you want a taste.

GINKA ($20.00)

This visual novel is about a guy whose childhood friend, Ginka, disappeared five years ago during a summer festival. When he returns to his hometown after a long absence, Ginka is still gone. But wait, here's a girl who looks just like Ginka did five years ago! She has no memories but she knows she loves the main character. What's going on here? You'll have to play to find out.

Aura of Worlds ($14.99)

A very cool roguelite platformer, and I'm not saying that because it has a grappling move. Okay, I'm not just saying that because it has a grappling move. That sure doesn't hurt, though. Really though, this is a game that gives you a lot of options about how you want to handle navigating its obstacles. If you've burned out on Dead Cells, check this out.

BZZZT ($14.99)

A precision platformer where you play as a tiny robot who has to save the world from an evil scientist. A tale as old as time, isn't it? While we have a whole lot of this kind of game on the Switch already, I must regrettably inform you that this one is very good. It's tough, as you would expect. It's even tougher if you're going for all the collectibles. But the controls are excellent, the level designs are clever, and it's very rewarding to play.

No Case Should Remain Unsolved ($9.99)

This is a short detective mystery game where you need to solve a twelve-year old case of a missing child. Examine the clues, connect memory fragments, and try to determine the truth behind this case and why it was abandoned for so long.

Sacabambaspis Chronicle ($2.99)

An odd little game where you play as a fish-thing, eating plankton to grow up while avoiding predators. Somehow there's an online multiplayer mode for up to ten players. If you want something unusual to spend a few bucks on, here you go.

pureya ($5.99)

This is a mini-game collection with more than thirty in total to play. All of them are played with a maximum of two buttons, so they're pretty simple to pick up. And that's a good thing, because you'll only be playing for ten seconds before it changes to the next game. That's the gimmick here. Of course, if you just want to play one game and see how high of a score you can get, that's an option too. Not bad for what it is.

Tamagoneko ($5.99)

A kaizo-style platformer, which is to say a game designed to make you scream in agony at the unfair difficulty of it all. There are one hundred and sixty levels to play, and your task is to rescue all of the kitten eggs in each. Wait, kitten eggs? I don't think that's how that works. Well, not really any of my business.

The Last Shot ($9.99)

Hmm, I don't know what to do with this one. It has a lot of style going for it, and I think having you play as an engineer who has to use their skills to solve puzzles is an interesting set-up in a platformer. But it just doesn't play well, which makes the platforming not so fun, and the puzzles aren't really good enough to make up for it. You might like it better than I did, though. It seems to have decent reviews on other platforms.

That's all for this week, friends. We'll be back next Saturday with another Round-Up, this time featuring a whole new Legend of Zelda game! As ever, I will plug both my Patreon (where you can find lots of cool exclusive articles) and my Ko-Fi (tips help me run this blog). There, plugged. I hope you have a super Saturday, and as always, thanks for reading!

[narastories]

Hi Nara, I hope you had a good day!

For Fanfic Writer Friday, do you want to tell me what you're working on (if you are on something currently)?

And if you've got time, I'd love to hear your opinion about the use of the past or present tense in fanfic, because it always gives me so much trouble. I don't really have a logic for using one or the other, so I'd like to know yours.

Thank you <3

Hi! Yes, thank you, I had a great day <3

Ooh, these are two very interesting questions.

1.

I'm sort of working on something... By working, I mean writing notes in my notebook and trying to figure out how to tackle this idea ^^" I really want to write a Dresden Files/FPA crossover! (Let's see if by announcing it publicly I can successfully shame me into going through with it... I doubt it, but we'll try it...)

I've never actually written a crossover, so that's already a bit daunting. Having to juggle twice as many characters/ships as I would normally is also a challenge... Currently, I'm trying to decide what POV/s to use, and how not to make this too long. But I think it would be fun to draw some parallels between the characters, and it would also be fun to bring two of the fandoms I like together like this.

Another, perhaps silly consideration is that I now have 99 fics on AO3... To make the 100th one a little bit special would be cool. (Okay, that might not happen because I have already uploaded my Yuletide fic, and I'm not actually sure where AO3 will put it in the order of fics once the authors are revealed on Jan 1st...)

Anyway, wish me luck, I can tell you that Philes would very much be on the menu ;) 2.

You're asking me this because of the tags on my last fic, right? xD

Oh dear, where do I even start? I actually wouldn't say I have a well-developed opinion on this. And I think maybe it's better if we split it into two categories: what I think of past/present tense, and how I would decide what to use.

Just from vibes alone, I would say past tense is very comfy. It sort of "disappears" because we're so used to it. No one will be turned off by you using the past tense. You can do anything with it.

Present tense, on the other hand, feels a bit more intimate to me. It can work well for a more poetic tone. It has an urgency to it like you don't know what's going to happen. But it will also very much turn some people off ^^"

I will also add that if I'm talking about multiple layers of past events, the English past tenses can give me a bit of a hard time, so using the present tense can gloriously simplify that lol

I do like reading either btw, but how do I decide what to use when writing?

I use past tense 99% of the time. (I mean, literally. I think I have 98 fics written in the past tense, wrote one in present, and I'm pretty sure the next one will be in the past tense as well lol) So I’m no expert here, although I do have some WIPs where I also used present tense and I would totally consider experimenting with it more.

To be honest, there is only one scenario where I would opt for the present tense always, and it’s the 2nd person "you" fics... Dare I say: *whispers* reader-insert. Which is a whole different can of worms altogether that we are now opening.

Personally, in my opinion, if you think old forum role playing was cool but you think self-insert fic is cringe, that’s a *skill issue*. Luckily, I have mastered my destiny and overcame feelings of cringe lmao (I'm joking, you only read what you want, of course.)

What I mean is, I find it very charming how self-insert or reader-insert fic specifically about RPG games kind of circles back around to the roots of the “role-playing” in RPG. I might not read certain types of reader-insert fics, but I think they have their rightful place in fandom.

Now, getting back to the topic of present tense lol To me, sometimes certain things will just fit better for a fic. For example, when I started writing my first Dresden Files fic, I started writing it in 3rd person, because 1st person felt intimidating. But the canon is in 1st person, and something in me knew that it just had to be done that way for the right tone, you know? (It doesn’t mean you have to stick to the way canon is written, of course. It’s more about what fits better with the mood you are going for and what effect you want to achieve.)

Same thing with my last fic: the fandom I wrote it for uses present tense and uses 2nd person for the main character. Yeah, sure you can write an OC and write 3rd person, but the right vibe I was going for was begging me to use the present tense. So yeah, in a sense it was me wanting to stick more with the canon vibe, even if that challenged me. Which is interesting because usually it’s the other way around, no?

That is a really long way of saying I tend to stick to what is closes to canon. But I think you should always listen to your gut and just write how you like it better.

Thank you for the thought-provoking questions and sorry for the long ramble.

[churchkey]

i know webgott isn't exactly the ship you primarily write for but GOD i love the way you write modern david webster in maximum volume (and i love his raport with nix it reminds me so much of my own queer friend group in ways i've yet to articulate properly) and i was wondering if you have any headcanons about their coupling and/or their interactions with their friend group (as a couple or individually)?

Haha oh my god, thank you! That's so nice of you to say! I based them loosely on my cousin and his boyfriend, who used to have epic Halloween parties before they got old and decided it was too much work, and if everyone loved it so much, they could damn well volunteer to host it themselves. Alas, no one did.

But David and Joe are still young and fun so let's talk about them. I feel like you should win a prize or something because this is officially the FIRST Webgott ask I've ever received. I do have a few headcanons about them, which did not make it into the fic because I mean, for christ's sake, the thing is already way too long. Anyway, if you'll just follow me...

Even though they knew and liked each other in high school, I don't think they got together until later. Like one time in college they bumped into each other on campus and it was like "I always had a crush on you" - "same" and then they were inseparable. They got married kinda young, around 24 or 25 (I imagined them right around 30 in the fic) and their families were like "... are you SURE you don't want to wait a little longer?" But they don't listen to anyone else, naturally, because what the hell do they know?

I also envisioned them as having gone on some long bike-camping trip up the coast on a tandem bike just before they decided to get married, and something very profound happened on this trip, maybe it just challenged them in ways they'd never been tested before, and they met and overcame those obstacles together and it sort of cemented their bond as a couple. Because if you can successfully ride a tandem with your partner, you can probably weather any storm.

They used to have threesomes with George back in the day but they don't anymore. David and George are good buddies (I've always felt strongly about this, based solely on how George was kind of nice to Webster in that episode when he comes back from the hospital and is just being such a clueless dick). They go see bands together and to see midnight showings of cult movies and stuff like that. Joe actually thinks that if David weren't with him, he and George would be a good couple.

David still has a little teeny tiny crush on Mr. Winters. He wished he knew he was gay when he actually had him as a teacher, but he totally understands why he wasn't out at work.

As mentioned in Ch. 1, they're both journalists. Joe is a sports writer for the major metro daily, David writes for a local news/arts/culture blog. This means they're always out somewhere covering a game or event or whatever, which works for them because the true secret to their success as a couple is their own selfish pursuits of what makes them happy as individuals. They're good at giving each other space to do whatever the fuck they want, knowing that at the end of the day, they don't want anything else as much as they want each other.

Everyone assumes they're about one big blow up away from divorce, but they're actually surprisingly stable. They truly enjoy each other's company and are just as content tending to their flower beds together as they are going to a party or out to the bars with their friends. They worship their cats. They have a Sunday ritual (h/t @anthrobrat) of reading the entire Sunday paper, section by section, David reading the gossip page out loud and being appalled at the list prices of houses in the Real Estate section and saving the Food section because they might actually try one of the recipes this week (they never do). At their core, they're basically just a couple of old queens sliding comfortably into middle age, though their friends would be shocked to see this side of them.

Idk... this is honestly the most I've ever thought about them so I hope it fits with what you were thinking, or at least makes sense with their little cameos in the story. Thanks for the ask, it's always fun to explore and imagine. And thank you so much for reading my stuff! I appreciate you and everyone else who takes the time to read my work so very much. Take care 😍❤️

[natasha-in-space]

Sunflowers are one of my favourite flowers and lately ive been thinking of a yooran fic where ray compared yoosung to a sunflower (in the sense that he associates yoosung with sunflowers) and he also says that the way sunflowers follow the sun is similar to the way yoosung follows rika and this keeps on rotating in my head. Do u think yoosung is like a sunflower

First ship fic, whaaat? Anyways, I don't really ship Yooran, but I do think there is a whole lot to explore with their potential dynamic. I know this was probably requested as in Yoosung being in place of MC as a tester, but I decided to take it into a more darker and grounded in canon territory. That is, Mint Eye effectively winning, and taking the rest of the RFA into its ranks. It is also kind of one-sided, but it was definitely a fun little challenge for me to write!

There are now flowers for each of them in this garden.

The reason was a rather straightforward one. The garden simply couldn't be completed without all of Rika's most beloved friends, who she longed to see by her side so badly. With each new member slowly coming to accept true happiness into their hearts, the garden bloomed fuller and brighter. And how could it not? Rika believed that the garden resembled any living creature on this Earth. It needed care, nourishment, and company to grow big and strong in order to survive against the harsh mountain winds and colds. It would grow sad when it was neglected and abandoned, and it would grow happy when it was being cared for and loved.

And now, finally, the garden has been fully completed. Blooming beautifully in the soft moonlight. A living proof of Rika's success in building a prosperous and thriving paradise for all who felt abandoned by the cruel world outside of these secluded walls.

Bluebells for Zen.

Violets for Jaehee.

White chrysanthemums for Jumin.

And sunflowers for Yoosung.

All of them were together now. Blooming and growing happily among the daffodils that were always present in this garden. They are a constant reminder of its selfless creator.

On the other hand, Mr. Ray was a mystery to Yoosung. He was the one who led them all to the truth hidden behind those traitors' many lies, along with MC as his helpful assistant. He was the one who welcomed them to paradise first and guided them into Rika's loving emrace that would open them up to true happiness. And he was the one protecting them all.

Yet, they rarely, if ever, saw him after that. Of course, he was preoccupied with his duties. His contribution to Magenta's prosperity was almost as great as Rika's. But, out of everyone, Yoosung found himself growing ever more curious of the man that his cousin has trusted so much.

He was still unaware of so many things. It was fortunate that Rika was so understanding and considerate of all of them. She didn't scold him once for being too noisy: simply smiling and informing him that she is more than happy to arrange a shared activity for them to bond over.

As long as he doesn't interfere with their work schedule, that's fine by her.

That's how they ended up taking care of the many flowers in this rather huge garden. Yoosung would be completely lost if it weren't for Ray, who gracefully whirled through the many narrow paths sprinkled throughout the flower-filled grounds, like it was his second nature. His steps were one of confidence and precision, and it was hard not to admire him for his excellence.

It was almost a bit of a challenge to try and keep up with him, without losing sight of his magenta blazer in all the other bright colors surrounding them from all sides.

"-Savior has stated that we should check on the pink roses. She's worried some pests might have damaged them from the last time she visited them." Ray's voice was firm and measured as he instructed over his shoulder. Yoosung always found it odd how he spoke to Rika and the rest of the believers in a completely different way. Not to mention MC. It's like he was a completely different person altogether, depending on who he was speaking to. Still, he would be lying if he said he didn't like this confident and measured way of speaking. It made it easy to just let go and follow his lead without thinking much, if at all.

"Pests? I thought we had a few gardeners to take care of the garden?"

Ray scoffs, walking through the flowery bushes at a quick pace, making Yoosung hurry after him. "It would be a shame if their incompetence made Savior upset."

The conversation was not very pleasant, to say the least.

Yoosung sighs as silence resumes between them once more. It's evident that Ray is only doing this because Rika instructed him to. He can't help but wonder why is Ray so disinterested in anything that has to do with them. The only times he has ever seen him get emotionally invested in something, is when he saw him talking to MC next to his workroom, as well as his meetings with Rika. Yet, to the rest of the believers, Ray appeared almost indifferent and cold in his approach.

He decides to take a chance by initiating a conversation on his own accord. Looking at Ray, who had been examining a leaf of the particular rose, it seemed that his attempt had been successful. As, the man paused, his gaze darting off to the side for a moment, before he straightened up again.

"Yes, that is correct. Savior had that in mind since the moment the first flower has been planted. Magenta's garden couldn't be completed without you all here by her side."

Yoosung's heart froze. He was aware that Rika had never left them, of course. Not really. But, to hear the confirmation of her always wanting to reunite them one day... it made him smile.

He will always be thankful to her for exposing him to the truth.

He couldn't resist his curiosity. Taking a small step towards the white-haired hacker, he brought up the question that had been on his mind for some time now. "Is there a flower that represents... me?"

Ray returns his gaze, as if he were observing him silently. Despite this, his expression remained neutral. He nods, folding his arms behind his back as he stands to face him. He almost looked like a prince, standing with his back straight like that. "There is. There is a flower for each of you."

"Can I see it?" Instantly, Yoosung perks up and takes another step closer, almost instinctively.

Ray quirks a brow, a slight change in his expression that didn't escape Yoosung's attention. Was he taken aback? Curious? Or maybe just annoyed with him getting nosy instead focusing on the job? It was difficult to read. Ray was like a book that was closed tightly, with its cover blank or fully scratched out, preventing you from even reading its title, much less its contents. Yet, for some reason, Yoosung found himself wanting to read that book more and more with each passing day.

Nodding, the hacker instructs the other man to follow him with a quick shake of his head. "I suppose the Savior wouldn't mind you learning of that."

As they walked, Yoosung was deeply in thought. What is it that made him so interested in Ray? It's not like they worked together. Or even knew one another. Their ranks were all they had.

Oh, but he was aware of the reason.

Ray was by Rika's side during those years when they were apart. He was the one who knew so many things that Yoosung didn't.

There was a part of him that felt guilty and ashamed. Rika has given them everything they need to know. She has provided them with the whole truth about that liar V and that traitor Luciel. She has given them what nobody else could. Eternal happiness.

Yet, despite everything, another small part of him, the tiniest, quietest part of him, was still in desperate need of answers.

And they were all in Ray's possession.

"-There they are."

He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost bumped into the other man's back, making him scurry off with an embarrassed flush to his cheeks. Ray either didn't notice his clumsy stunt or didn't care about it. Yoosung followed his gaze to the flowers his attention was directed at.

He squints and raises his brows in confusion. "Sunflowers?"

Ray nods. "Sunflowers represent many things. But, they mostly hold the meaning of lasting happiness and loyalty."

He seemed quite knowledgeable about the topic. Yoosung came up to the large flowers, his fingers tracing over the stem of one of them thoughtfully. Lasting happiness and loyalty... is that how Rika thought of him? Such a sentiment made him smile.

What made him believe V's shameless lies in the first place? Of course she never died. He knew it in his heart.

"There is... more to it, though."

Ray adds, his voice sounding quieter this time around.

"More?"

The other man is now standing close to him, their shoulders touching ever so slightly. Ray doesn't seem to notice or think anything of it, but Yoosung finds himself becoming rather flustered at the sudden proximity, staring up at the hacker with a light blush dusting his cheeks.

"Sunflowers always follow the sun, wherever they turn. With no exceptions, no setbacks. My Savior told me that their unwavering loyalty to the sun reminded her of you. And, once you joined our paradise, she knew for sure that you will never stray from her." Ray turns to look at him in the eyes, his gaze strangely methodical. It causes him to gulp nervously. "-Sunflowers are lost without their sun. They cannot survive without its guidance. A sunflower without its sun there to tell it where to look, is lost and wilted. It will continue to wilt in misery until its sun comes back to show it where to turn."

Yoosung's breath grows shaky. He may have been bad at catching allegories, but this one was pretty on the nose. It left behind a bitter taste in his mouth.

"...I suppose a sunflower really is... my flower."

For some reason, that admission felt heavy in his gut. Like a bag of rocks settling deep within his body, pulling him down with their weight.

"You should be grateful that our Savior will always be there to guide you from now on. You will never feel the absence of her gentle hand again. Isn't that what you always wanted? To be told what to do."

"...Savior is too kind."

[jandjsalmon]

2023 FFRC - March🍀

Can you believe it's already April!? Crazy. Though you'd never know it here though, because my backyard still looks like Hoth. It's horrific. It's supposed to snow again tomorrow too. I just want to sit in my hammock.😢

Anyway, I hope you've all been doing well. MotherMaple (who just had a birthday btw🥳) recently came down with covid for the second time - so if you know her and love her, if you could please send her positive healing vibes, I would appreciate it (as her bestie who worries - I'm a worrier). Thank you!

Moving along -- our most exciting news this month was that my beautiful and talented daughter and her basketball team won Provincials (essentially our "State" Tournament). Go Spartans! The first time in our High School's history! I've blurred out the faces of the other girls to show you below - but here's a fun piece of trivia: two of the girls (the redhead and the brunette just to the right of my Bethy) were the girls who dressed up with her for Halloween 2017 as Betty, Veronica, and Cheryl - Mr. Aguirre-Sacasa even retweeted their photo back in the day. I'm so glad they're still all friends (though they're all smarter than I am because none of them still watch Rvd)

Okay - so getting back on track - as all of you should know by now, I'm a regular participant (and low-key assistant) at the @fanfic-reading-challenge - additionally, for the last couple of years, I've been tracking all the fic I read and I've reported back here once a month with some stats and some recs, and a little bit of boring stuff about my life. That's what this post is.

Below the cut are my March stats and some fun fic recs. I read nearly 2 million words this month - over 550 chapters (of various lengths), and 178 stories. I've been tackling the challenge tasks and am nearly done the 'extreme' mode. I'm still struggling with a few of the categories, but I think my goal this year is not only to complete the Regular/Hard/Extreme modes - but to complete every task. I'm at 212/309 so there is still some work to do.

March 2023

As for my recs for you! Try these - you might enjoy them. They are Wavier because that's what I've mostly been reading - and if you've never read the pairing before, let one of them be your first foray if you are on the fence. Don't be on the fence. Come ship with me! 🖤🖤

--*--

An Unkindness by Agmo (Wavier - E 3/3)

Summary: Finding out that he is Wednesday Addams' soulmate goes about as well for Xavier as anything involving Wednesday Addams does.

Why you should read: Soulmates are my jam. This was originally a one-shot and even though my heart kinda ripped out of my chest where they ended it, the author surprised us with two extra chapters - AND IT WAS AMAZING. There is so much growth. Soulmates are my favourite when it's not a given that everything will turn out. Characters are still beings with agency. This story has room for this growth - and I could not recommend it more. Probably one of my favourites of the year so far.

--*--

For the Rare and Radiant Maiden by @drollicpixiefanfic (Wavier - E 6/6)

Summary: Xavier Thorpe didn’t exactly expect Wednesday to use the cell phone he purchased for her. It was a ridiculous idea, a whim, a fancy. But something had compelled him to try. So, it was with some shock, two weeks into their break from Nevermore, that Xavier’s phone buzzed on his nightstand. In which, Wednesday discovers her cell phone camera, though only filtered through a black and white lens and Xavier finds himself even more under her spell as a darker side of him begins to seep through his well maintained façade.

Why you should read: I'm always a fan of a good Post S1 fic and if you can give it to me in a Xavier pov then I'm probably going to love you forever. This one was really really fun - deals with Wednesday's stalker - and has a bit of that Dark!Xavier that Ajax mentioned in S1.

--*--

In the night, I dream of woe so true by @sebikitcat (Wavier - G 7/7)

Summary: “Wednesday? What are you doing in my art studio?” It’s a stupid question, she decides. “What are you doing in my dream?” A more relevant counter. “Your dream? I thought this was my dream. Wait, are we dreaming?” Or the one where Wednesday finds herself unwittingly sharing dreams with Xavier over break. Fluff ensues.

Why you should read: SHARED DREAMING! And it's SO FLUFFY - it's the epitome of Agnes Gru squishing her fluffy unicorn. I love it.

--*--

dark doo wop (series) by @donutcats (Wavier- G - 3 fics)

Summary: It’s the way she texts him first, only a few short days after everyone has cleared out of Nevermore; and really he wasn’t even expecting that. It was meant to be a joke, adding his number and saying he’d settle for a text. But there it is. A new text from Wednesday Addams.  A simple picture of a dark and eerie fatalistic painting torn to shreds. ‘I believe some paintings are improved by the act of destroying them,’ reads the text sent directly after the picture, ‘which you should definitely take note of.’ 

Why you should read: Again - I LOVE post S1 fics where we get to speculate how Wednesday navigates modern technology and communication with Xavier. The stories are short so you can read them all in one go. Do it!

ANYWAY - I'm always looking for new fic recommendations, so if you have any stories you think I'll love (whether you wrote them or your friend wrote them or you came upon them accidentally), please drop me a line or send me a dm. I've found SO many awesome fics through recommendations from others. I'll read almost any pairing and any fandom. Shoot me a link!🖤

(lastly- I'm a little bit in love with this gif of Xavier waving - and I've been purposely flooding my dashboard with Percy for reasons - so the wave might become a theme for my year).

Anyway -👋🏼 Hiya -I'm happy you're here! I hope you have a wonderful April and I'll see you back here in a few weeks! Happy reading! 🖤

[tankshaw]

I have come back with new ones so I can actually know whether you have opinion on every ship

Lovely/Sam?

David/Vincent?

i forgot to answer this ahahaha whoops ANYWAY

LOVELY/SAM!!! Oh an iconic pairing. Honestly, I think they'd work really well together while also challenging each other in really interesting ways. If we're keeping all the events from canon, then Sam would definitely be a great support for Lovely after their turning and losing their powers, because he went through it as well. But also, I think Sam would be really grounding for Lovely. They're the kind of person who takes things head on, doesn't slow down, always jumps from one thing to the next. And Sam would be really good at getting them to take a damn break, keeping them from pushing themselves too far and such. Meanwhile, Lovely would encourage Sam to break out of his shell a little bit more and be more open in terms of things like clan events or social gatherings he might typically try to avoid if they weren't all that important. In both private and public, they're really cute. Like holding hands and shit, standing near each other literally all the time. I honestly get like married couple vibes from them in that they're not like super lovely dovey but its so obvious they are just so in love, ya feel.

David and Vincent is a SUPER interesting pairing just cause it seems so unlikely but it could work SO well too. Like honestly they'd be a huge power couple as the prince of the solaire clan and the alpha of the shaw pack. Like that a huge alliance right there, not even looking at how their personalities match each other. Speaking of. Kind of similar to Lovely and Sam, I think Vincent would really push David to be more open to others and (gently) force him to social events. Vincent would also be really good with spoiling David cause lord knows he won't do it himself. Meanwhile, I think David would be really good in pushing Vincent to be more responsible with things, especially when it comes to mortals. um. David tops the fuck out of Vincent, I literally can't see it any other way lmaoo. I think they also have a bit of a teasing thing going on where vincent is really good at (playfully) getting under David's skin. It's all in good fun and David only pretends to hate it. Also, Vincent absolutely makes David blush by doing things like pulling out his chair for him and holding the door open, etc. etc. Vincents also really fucking good at forcing David to take a break if he needs one, whether he wants it or not lolll.