#because the fact that he canonically reads fanfiction plagues my mind

[adankrivervalleynearyou]

glee textposts 3

[immortalled]

hi! i’m so sorry if this is strange, i’m just working on a story and i’d love a second opinion ^^’ no pressure to answer this at all! it’s very hard to explain without proper context so bare with me

i was wondering how you think nathan would react upon finding out he’s the only person who can kill a creature that’s been plaguing him and his friends for a while, in a sort of IT inspired way? most of his friends would be dead at this point, so it’d be like a heroic attempt to make up for their losses by strapping himself with explosives lmao

he’d be around the age he appears in the show but in a tiny rural town setting with no powers

it’s a little up in the air for me on whether he would do it and what could happen afterwards, i’ve kept this quite vague mostly because it is just a loose storyline i’ve strung together while listening to a song, but if it sparks anything for you i’d love to hear!

Hi, Nonnie! Not strange at all! I love talking to people. ♥ (And apologies in advance, this got long because I started analyzing him LOL. Please feel free to skip the analysis under the cut if that doesn't interest you.)

Okay, so first off, I'm flattered you're asking me, and secondly, this sounds like a really fun fanfiction. If you're comfortable, I'd love to read it! If you ever post it on Ao3, please feel free to drop me a link! I'll subscribe!! c:

As for your question... Of course, please do always play with him however you want! I'm far from any kind of... idk, definitive authority on his character LOL, and fancreations are your own sandbox, so I'd never want anyone to change what they want to do based on my or anyone else's personal interpretation of a character. But! My personal two cents is that whether or not Nathan would sacrifice himself like that is really down to how strong his connection with his friends has grown and if he thinks there is anything to gain or save by doing so!

Nathan Young is a character who loves living. He's the embodiment of the early 2010s YOLO motto and that particular brand of unapologetic, teenagery/young adult joie de vivre attitude is why I think the storm gave him immortality as a super power. The rooftop scene in the S1 finale is a great example of this and his entire speech about going crazy while you're young, even if it's dangerous, is actually a really solid look into Nathan's worldview and what seems to drive his impulses. In fact, I think rewatching that entire episode might help you get a better perspective on Nathan and how he might handle the situation in your fanfic!

So, that is to say, I don't think mortal!Nathan is the kind of person to sacrifice his life for anything without very good reason. In fact, I'd argue that he wouldn't at all without immortality as a safety net. He's kind of a coward at times and tends to dodge anything painful or unpleasant, be it emotional or physical. But let's look at the times he sacrificed or almost sacrificed himself in canon!

S1E6 - Falling from the Wertham Community Centre. Nathan does not know he's immortal here and he almost doesn't go back for his friends at all. He only decides to try stopping Virtue because he's been pushed to the edge and realizes how much his weird little ASBO family means to him. Without them, he's totally alone again, and Nathan hates being alone. Although, in fairness, I also do not think Nathan believed there was a possibility of dying in this scenario. Rachel was mind-controlling people, not murdering them, and he clearly did not account for the fact that either of them would lose their balance. I am unsure that he would have done any of this had he known he might not make it out alive... maybe if he had exhausted all other options? Either way, the key here is that he did take risks because he thought he could still save his friends.

S2E2 - Trying to save Jamie. Nathan doesn't think before running toward the burning car to save his half-brother. He could have died here because the ecstasy he took reversed his power, but it's unclear whether or not he heard Simon's warning or if it would have made a difference. Considering how blind the reaction looked, I don't think being immortal or mortal would have mattered. But, still, he was acting on the hope that he could save Jamie.

S2E4 - Almost lets Tim gut him. In order to keep his friends from being killed by Tim the Crazy GTA NPC, Nathan agrees to be killed in their stead. However, he has to be pressured into it by his friends despite knowing he will come back to life. I think Nathan would have deeply regretted it if he had let Tim kill them, but in that moment he was far more afraid of the pain of death than anything else.

S2E6 - Suicide for fame and going toe-to-toe with the Murderous Milkman. This is one of the best examples of Nathan's growth and how he has begun to cope with his power in an extremely unhealthy way. In this episode, we see him toy with the idea of allowing himself to be killed for fame (albeit not without a little bit of peer pressure from his manager), which he does on-camera. We also see him try to legitimately fight someone for the first time when he seeks out Brian specifically for revenge after learning Brian murdered Kelly. In both instances, Nathan knows he will or could die, but he's willing to go through with it anyway because he's immortal. Dying hurts, it sucks, but he's learning to see it as something unimportant when he's able to come back to life. Obviously, he wouldn't kill himself on camera without immortality, but I think it's fair to question whether or not he'd attack someone out of revenge for a dead friend. Maybe? I don't personally think so, but it might be worth watching this episode again and analyzing the scene for yourself.

S2E7 / The "Christmas Special" - Blocking a gunman from shooting his friends. I admittedly have some beef with the characterization and overall writing of this episode, but I don't think that this particular scene is OOC. In this episode, an armed gunman bursts into the bar where Curtis works and is about to shoot. Nathan wastes no time getting in front of the gun and telling him to shoot, who cares, he's immortal. It's all very badass until he's reminded uh oh! he sold his power and is actually mortal now. Realizing that, Badass Hero Nathan vanishes and he flings himself out of the way to avoid being shot (which gets Nikki killed in the process). Now, obviously, this scene is set up entirely just to fridge Nikki and you could argue that Nathan isn't as close to Nikki as his other friends, but I don't think that would have mattered. If Nathan, mortal, had the choice between jumping between his friends and a bullet or hiding... I really do think he'd hide.

Don't get me wrong, Nathan can be selfless and heroic. The fact that he's immortal does not cheapen the fact that he was willing to endure the pain of death and what appears to be a very unpleasant resurrection process for the sake of potentially saving or avenging his friends. Nathan's an ass, and he's regularly selfish, but he is not a bad guy and he sticks his neck out for people he loves way more often than any of them give him credit for. But I also just do not think that he'd be willing to sacrifice or get himself hurt if he had no supernatural "take-backs". If he sacrificed himself, I think it would have to be accidental, as with running to save Jamie; some great, fatal risk that he does not consider fatal because he's too wrapped up in an emotion greater than his fear of dying.

For your story, I think you would have to either push him to the point of not being able to think past a greater fear, or you would have to remove all other options from him. Friends gone, family gone, way of living, maybe even the rest of the world, gone. Or perhaps he's trapped, somehow, in a place where he can't return to the rest of the world? Maybe he's stuck in a place where it will forever be just him and the monster that's been hounding them. I think that he would have to sit with that revelation for a while, wear down, and then maybe he would seriously consider destroying himself to destroy the creature, if the alternative is too suffocating and grim to bear. Whatever the reason, without his friends to save, the catalyst for his decision would need to be something that directly affects Nathan, not people who are no longer alive.

Anyway, that's just my very long two cents. Again, fictional characters are up to interpretation and I think most any character can be pushed and changed to do whatever you want in the right circumstances, especially AUs. So don't let my opinions stop you if you want to take his character a different direction! The most important thing is to have fun and write the story you want to tell. c:

If you have any more thoughts or want to brainstorm some ideas, though, I'm happy to bat around some stuff with you and see what sticks! I read IT several years ago and loved it, so seeing the Misfits gang thrown into a similar situation sounds like a ton of fun.

[hws-cernunnos]

Following an advice given by my friend @flamaflavio I've decided to dedicate a series of posts on Northern Italy(because there's a serious lack of them in the fandom:(),whether they might be about culture,history,folklore,stereotypes(could be an interesting addition to characterization)or misconceptions*? Maybe even cuisine ahah

In this post I'll expain what we intend for North Italy, why it doesn't line up perfectly with canon and most importantly why Feli gets called "Italy" way more often than Mano.

Let's start by stating that in our country by North Italy we mean the regions of: Aosta Valley (Valle d'Aosta), Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Liguria(the region your girl's from), Lombardy(Lombardia), Piedmont (Piemonte), Veneto and Trentino Alto-Adige.

So you might ask me, why is it that in Hetalia Chibitalia has been shown as Florence as well??? Is it a mistake made by Hima?? Yes.. But actually no ahah! In this post I'll cover how we came to such a perception of the North in our country and why Tuscany and the rest of Central Italy, isn't included in it and doesn't consider themselves part of it :D

I won't talk about all history until nowadays of course (I'll definitely make future historical posts) I'll simply give you basic information based on early history to have an understanding of how us italians divide our country and why in canon other nations refer to Feliciano as Italy more commonly than they do with Romano(it is indeed based in history, it's not mean spirited!!).

So during the centuries prior to romanization North Italy was inhabited by a different bunch of cultures, among them the long haired Ligures(whose origin is unsure,Celtic?? Or simply celtified by their neighbors uhmm?? Talking about them in detail would take a whole ass post) the Veneti who were known for their commerce of amber and horse breeding, the Etruscans who, coming from Tuscany, colonised parts of the North and founded cities such as Bologna and in a later period a swarm of Gaulish tribes(generally referred to as the Celts).

The latter(most likely the Insubres) founded Milan in 590 BC, naming it Medhelan(the place in the middle of the plain, or among rivers) or Mediolanum as the Roman would call it later(Meśiolano as a Celtic engraving informs us) keep Milan in mind we'll come back to her later. Their domain extended from the Alps to the Adriatic sea.

This would be stopped by roman conquest that would culminate in 194 BC in the foundation of a province under the name of Gallia Cisalpina**,Cisalpine Gaul, id est Gaul on the hither side of the Alps(from the Romans point of view) that pretty much contained the regions which nowadays we consider North Italy.

The area became one of the most influential and rich provinces in the empire and it's strategic role is emphasized by the fact that in 286 the capital of the Western Roman Empire is moved from Rome to,guess where, Milan the main city in Gallia Cisalpina(and later on in Ravenna from 402 to the fall).

Is this why Grandpa is shown to leave poor Romano behind in canon in favour of his little brother??? Most likely!!! Btw if you're interested in the subject you should totally check out jjblue's Italia Annonaria (baby Feli) and Italia Suburbicaria (baby Mano) profiles on DA.

It's really unfair that the other characters call only Feliciano Italy:/ It's actually not true, as my friend flama has talked about in one her posts both Germany and America have called him Italy in the past. The fact that this behavior hurts Romano is long lasting misunderstanding in the fandom: he really doesn't care.

What annoys him it's that he's often referred to as "Italy's older brother" but not because he's Italy as well, but because that takes away his individuality: he's peeved by the fact he's only considered in relation to his brother, he's Romano besides being Feliciano's older brother ahah.

If his identity as Italy truly mattered to him he would have some kind of reaction out of being called Italy, especially by someone he has a bad relationship with like Germany, but he was left completely indifferent by that. I've often seen fanfictions where he's moved to tears by such action by it actually seems like he doesn't mind. He just wants people to understand he has a persona outside being Feli's big brother ahah.

There's actually a reason why Feli is "Italy" and it has been actually brought up recently in the fandom. Let's go back to history ahah.

A germanic general named Odoacer overthrew the last Roman Emperor, whose name for some reason I always found funnee, Romulus Augustulus.

Now the Eastern Roman Empire was having none of that and decided to invite Theodoric the Great of the Ostrogoths to rule over Italy under their approval(btw if you'll ever visit Ravenna do check out Sant'Apollinare Nuovo and Theodoric's Mausoleum). Ostrogothic rule was short lived (lasted pretty much Theodoric's reign) but greatly improved the economy and the arts. . . Too good to be true of course, because Justinian I(Eastern Roman emperor)decided he wanted to revive the glory ™ of the empire and this brings us to Gothic Wars.

Italy, especially the North, was left devastated by them, as they brought death(duh),poverty and were accompanied by a good dose of famine and plague. Byzantine rule wouldn't last long as a Germanic tribe***, the Lombards, took advantage of their weakness and took over italy and gave birth to a reign, which had Pavia as capital.

Said reign was called Langobardia, in particular North and Central Italy were named Langobardia Maior(The great Langobardia), which is the name under which North italy would be known as for a good part of the middle age and that gives the name to the modern region Milan and Pavia are located, Lombardia/Lombardy.

For example Boccaccio in his Decameron(in particular in the first novella) uses Lombards when referring to Italian merchants because that's the name they were given even if most of them came from Piedmont and Tuscany.

Lombard language and culture slowly was assimilated into the previous one and that can be seen in names, words and laws created in that period. This came to an end in 774 when Charles the Great, king of the Franks(and future Holy Roman Emperor), conquered Pavia and annexed the Lombard kingdom... Under the name of Kingdom of Italy!

So in other words the reason why our boy is the one who's called Italy the most is because he's simply been "Italy" for longer or more specifically for more than once(as I explain in the notes:)!!). Mano on the other hand would have most likely known as Kingdom of Sicily, Kingdom of Naples or Kingdom of the two Sicilies :). And I'm very much sure he would have been proud of such identity.

But what about central Italy??? You see the Papal States forged a document the Donation of Constantine, according to which Emperor Constantine assured Pope Silvester I(in 321) and his successors the exclusive domain over the city of Rome(btw Rome isn't part of southern Italy!!the fact South Italy is called Romano is really weird and so is North Italy as Veneziano ngl). This gave the Church access to "temporal power",id est material power and with it came territorial power. And so little by little (with the exception of Tuscany that flourished on it's own) it ate up the whole of Central Italy, which would develop a linguistic group, a culture and history of its own.

And that's pretty much what you need to know to understand Hetalia's confusing lore ahah. It's not everything I could go on explaining the era of the Commons and the Renaissance and go all through medieval and modern history to make you fully grasp it but I think it's enough for today:D let me know if you want me to talk about the subjects I mentioned in detail and if you want me to go on. Read the notes :)!!!

*I've often seen Feli wearing tarantella clothes, because it's probably assumed as the italian™ traditional dance and the music is misused in videos about Italy(all of Italy!!)when it's really characteristic of the South:)! Would be nice to see more fan arts of Mano in those garments lol really nice

**Napoleon would found in the 18th century the Cisalpine Republic in North Italy, a sister republic of France, that would later become known as the Italian Republic and then the (napoleonic!!!)Kingdom of Italy:) not to be confused with the Kingdom of Italy that would be born on the 17th of March 1861,ring a bell ahah???Read Hetalia's Risorgimento strips if you want to know about that:)))Milan djdbdb was once again the capital of all these.

***considering Romano is stated to have Arabic blood which is definitely brought by the moorish occupation, I'd assume Feli's Germanic one has to do with daddy Lombards. The longobards ruled over the South as well so ehhh, but hey it's Hima we're talking about. Genetics work in a weird way in hetalia, they're like acquired??? Hima explains that Canada, America and Seychelles don't have England's bushy eyebrows because of France's influence. Wtf. Oh btw if you might be interested in the Lombards' origin in Historia Langobardorum Paulus Diaconus informs us they came from Scania(a region in Sweden) and the settled in "Scoringa".

[laughingpinecone]

Yuletide letter

I am laughingpineapple on AO3  

Hello dear author! I hope you’ll have fun with our match. Feel free to draw from general or fandom-specific likes, past letters, and/or follow your heart.

Likes: worldbuilding, slice of life (especially if the event the fic focuses on is made up but canon-specific), missing moments, 5+1 and similar formats, bonding and emotional support/intimacy, physical intimacy, lingering touches, loyalty, casefic, surrealism, magical realism, established relationships, future fic (when in doubt, tell me what’s happening to them five, ten, twenty years in the future!), hurt/comfort, throwing characters into non-canon environments, banter, functional relationships between dysfunctional individuals, unexplained mysteries, bittersweet moods, journal/epistolary fic, dreams and memories and identities, tropey plots that are already close enough to characters/canon, outsider POV, UST, resolved UST, exploring the ~deep lore, leaning on the uniqueness of the canon setting/mood, found families, characters reuniting after a long and/or harrowing time, friends-to-lovers, road trips, maps, mutual pining, cuddling, wintry moods, the feeling of flannel and other fabrics, ridiculous concepts played entirely straight, sensory details, places being haunted, people being haunted, the mystery of the woods, small hopes in bleak worlds, electricity, places that don’t quite add up, mismatched memories, caves and deep places, distant city lights at night, emphasis on non-human traits of non-human characters (gen-wise, but also a hearty yes xeno for applicable ships), emphasis on inhuman traits of characters who were human once and have sort of shed it all behind

Cool with: any tense, any pov, any rating, plotty, not plotty, IF, unrequested characters popping up.

DNW: non-canonical rape, non-canonical children, focus on children, unrequested ships (background established canon couples are okay, mentions of parents are okay!), canon retellings, consent issues, actual covid (fantasy plagues are okay)

Les Cités Obscures: any

This is a very general “please, anything in the style of canon, just maybe with less thoughtless sexism” request. I want to lose myself in these cities again, and in the strange lands that connect them. I’d be happy to follow any of the known characters and/or OCs, or eschew characters altogether and write about the cities themselves. What caught your imagination in Brüsel, Xhystos, Taxandria, Alaxis...? The history of some cool building that was only marginally featured in one of the stories? Or an OC city! If you’ve got a favourite European city that doesn’t already have its obscure counterpart, please tell me all about it! Go big, go wild! What strange and classically surrealist happenings take place within its walls? Or even... outside Europe... Nerding out about architecture is of course very welcome. I would also love to read a story based on any Schuiten illustration, contextualizing it as if it were part of this ‘verse. Here’s a bunch of them, for example!

Ghost Trick: Cabanela

You know.. him. Dazzlingly OTT, untiring, rock-solid self-esteem, loyal to a fault, following a rhythm of his own, flawless intuition until it fails and it all burns down… him. I just want to see more of him doing stuff! The way he’s chill and open toward new people (like Sissel and Missile in ch15) makes him perfect to throw at most other characters and see how they react to the sparkles… I’d love some focus on how ridiculous his aesthetic is, half Saturday Night Fever half hardboiled detective half bubbly preteen (for a total of 150%) and yet he makes it work. Or how ruthless he can be, possibly for the sake of the people he cares for. The quote “The intimacy of big parties”. Him and Alma in the new timeline bonding over knowing (once Jowd has spilled the beans) but not remembering that terrible timeline. Some tropey scenario on the job. Snark-offs with Pigeon Man, by which I mean PM snarks and it bounces off him like water off a spotless white goose’s back.

Ship-wise it’s only Cabanela/Jowd whenever it’s not infidelity, Cabanela/Alma in what-ifs also if it’s not infidelity and Cabanela/Alma/Jowd for me (and Lynne/Memry and Yomiel/fianSissel on the side). There are a bunch of shippy prompts in all my past letters - I would however reiterate here that Jowd. is. the worst tease. always. Like, just saying, but assume he’s pining big time and Jowd and Alma figure it out - they’d make a national sport out of excruciatingly protracted teasing.

Conversely, Cabanela/Lynne and Cabanela/Yomiel are NOTPs especially from Cabanela’s side. So while I appreciate the thick tension of a good Yomiel VS Cabanela confrontation like everyone and their cat, and also really appreciate a roughed-up Cabanela, and I do love Yomiel in his own right… I don’t want Cabanela being into it. Adrenaline junkie he may be but this hurts and his coat’s a mess and there’s no perfect winning scenario so he hates every second of it. (JOWD being super into Cabanela being roughed up is another matter altogether and he should probably mind his own business. ...incompatible kinks, truly tragic. they’ll have to find some other common ground. they’re smart, resourceful, playful fellows, I’m sure they’ll manage)

Kentucky Route Zero: Donald kentuckyroutezero

I love everyone in the cast, all acts and interludes, and I am extremely into all the themes this incredible work of art ended up exploring. Agreeing with the overall doom and gloom up to Act IV, I was blown away by Act V’s strong affirmation of the importance of the arts and of the bonds we make and of carving up spaces for ourselves in capitalism’s wake. Donald was, indeed, not a part of any of that. Even the final interlude updates us on Lula and mentions Joseph, but the big guy is nowhere to be seen. So, you know, there’s fanfiction! He’s so static, defeated. I am fascinated by the chain of metaphysical spaces that goes surface -> Zero -> Echo -> Dogwood and even within that framework, the hall of the mountain king is like a hopeless dead end. Dude’s terminally stuck. So - once again, in the spirit of transformative works, how could he get... you know... unstuck? Did Lula’s momentous appearance in Act III shake him? Having a functioning Xanadu again, perhaps? How could he interrogate that oracle, what recursive wonders would it show him? If he decides to leave, what does it feel to be on the surface again after so long, or on the river perhaps? Maybe he is forced to leave by the flood, if not this one, the next... Having him meet any other character would be amazing. Past or future time spent with Weaver... seeing Conway again, changed... programmer guy chatting up musician androids... did he know Carrington from his college days or was Carrington only a friend of Lula’s?

As for Lula herself and Joseph too: “Flipping through the pages, Conway is able to gather that it’s a story about three characters: Joseph, Donald, and Lula. It’s something like a tragic love triangle, but much more complex. Some kind of tangled, painfully concave love polygon.” 😔 I ship them as a full triad, if you can nudge them in that direction, good. But I’m very open to non-romantic resolutions as well, going past their messy feelings to find each other as friends after so many years maybe. Or... a start. idk.

I’d be interested in fic that leans on the game’s adjacent genres: wanna go full-on American Gothic? Dip into surrealism? Take a leaf from Twin Peaks with tulpa / split narratives to explore the characters’ issues? I’m also open to AUs, real or through Xanadu. This also feels like a good place to stress that I really, really like caves.

And now for something completely different: FAQ:  The “Snake Fight” Portion of Your Thesis Defense is in the tagset this year. I’d say that the crossover with the snake portion of Here and there along the Echo writes itself, but it would not be correct, as in fact I would like you to write it for me. Feel free to not feature Donald if you focus on this crossover instead!

Uru would be a fun crossover too, for Donald specifically. He’s very DRC-shaped in how he tilts at doomed projects which just so happen to be deep underground.

Pyre: Volfred Sandalwood

This is a Volfred solo, Volfred&literally anyone or Volfred/Tariq, /Oralech or /Tariq/Oralech request. I adore everyone in that Blackwagon+Dalbert+Celeste, so if you want to add a Nightwing or two to any prompt, please do! I also love all the Scribes and find Erisa a compelling tragic figure, while out of the other triumvirates, I’m “love to hate them” for Manley, Brighton, Udmildhe and Deluge and would not like to see them featured in sympathetic roles. fwiw I also enjoy Jodi/Celeste and Bertrude/Pamitha a lot!

I feel deeply for all of Pyre’s main themes - literacy, degrees of freedom, the fragile time that is the end of a historical cycle, nobodies rising up to the occasion, building a better society, and of course found family, “distance cannot separate our spirits” and all that jazz, and Volfred is squarely rooted at the center of all of them. I really really love everything he stands for, even if he’s overbearingly smug in standing for it. Just please tell me things about my fave. His relationship to the Scribes (as a historian, a some kind of vision, via *ae or once he’s a star himself)? A ‘forced vacay’ Downside ending where he looks at the Union from afar and keeps living in this strange transformational place? Life in a cramped Blackwagon that was meant for like 5 people tops and is currently eight Nightwings, a herald and an orb? Since he picked him for the job to begin with, does he respect and cherish Hedwyn as he dang well should? What does it feel like to try and Read a herald? Was he ever in danger, in the Commonwealth or in the Downside? What daring act of resistance did he and Bertrude pull off at some point in their past? It’d be cool if one of his old pamphlets came up at some point. Does he puff up as prime minister because he’s nervous, and who can see past his hyper-professionalism and lend a hand? Please roast him big time about the votes he assigns to the various Nightwings in his planner? What’s his attitude toward the flame’s purification (what with being a tree but mostly like, as a general concept. He did nothing wrong!) (well he definitely said some things wrong and sometimes oftentimes the ego jumps out, but his intentions did nothing wrong)? When did his calculating approach fail him? Something with Pamitha along the lines of that edit that goes “Can we talk, one ten to another?“/"I am an eleven, my girl, but continue”? Dude could easily be voted sexiest voice in the Downside - how much is he aware of it? Does he sing? I love how he bears his ‘reader’ brand proudly. And speaking of scars, I have to wonder, looking at Manley for comparison, if the shape of his head, with that massive crack, isn’t also due to injuries.

As a refrain from my general likes: emphatically yes xeno to both shippy interactions at all ratings and to gen explorations of what a Sap is like… I’d love to read all your headcanons.

Ship-wise, I enjoy him with Tariq as this kind of esoteric connection of minds, guarded words full of secret meanings, long contemplative walks together (is any external pov watching...?), Volfred’s Reader powers brushing against Tariq’s mind and getting weak in the knees at the starlit expanse he finds there, so unlike mortal thoughts. Tariq finds his individuality learning from him; Volfred presumably gets a transcendent glimpse of the Scribes. And I enjoy him with Oralech as pretty much the opposite of that, Oralech is so very mortal compared to him, such a precious, fleeting, burning life especially after his fall. Oralech’s idealism is very dear to me, it was their plan, their shared revolutionary spirit, I find it deeply moving. And I am very interested in seeing them rebuild their connection now that Oralech is back, changed, and in some ways he can learn to let go of his misconceptions and slowly open himself to Volfred’s love again, but in other ways that’s who he is now, with this deep-set anger, and what does it even feel to realize that you’re the symbol of the end of an era (the end of the Rites, the fading of the Scribes). I’m interested in both topside and downside endings for all of them, as long as they end up on the same side, the revolution was peaceful and they don’t angst too much about the side they ended in. Tariq can ‘find his way home’ in the near post-canon somehow or even be summoned again, as a different aspect of the same ‘moonlit vision’ that once inspired Soliam Murr.

Strandbeest: any

https://www.strandbeest.com/

I would just like words to go with these, please and thank you so very much. Worldbuild to your heart’s content! Specifically: I’m fascinated by the premise that the strandbeest are living creatures that evolve and adapt to their ecosystem. A world where life is just wind stomachs and sandy joints, and the tide that can catch you unaware. I would like a story that feels distinctly inorganic. The wonder that is the existence of these creatures. Their unique struggles. Weird and experimental if you like. With a mechanical focus, maybe?

I nominated four critters as a selection of the different cool things they can do - Percipiere Excelsus is huge and has the hammer mechanism, Suspendisse’s tail senses the hardness of the sand, Uminami is my fave caterpillar and the caterpillars overall feel like a new paradigm after a mass extinction event, Ader straight-up flies... but they’re all wonderful. If you want to focus on different strandbeest, please do!

Twin Peaks: Lucy Moran

Case fic but they don’t find out jack shit, someone disappears, David Bowie was there, it’s complicated. Fragmented, shifted, mirrored identities. New Lodge spaces. The risks of staring into the void for too long. Gentle illusions. Transcendence. The moon. Static buzzing. Any title from the s3 ethereal whooshing compilation used as a prompt, actually. Whatever goes on on Blue Pine mountain or the even more mysterious things that go on on White Tail mountain where exactly zero canon locations are found. Twin Peaks is all about the mystery to me, the awe of mystery and unknowability and the human drive to look beyond and the risks of getting a peek, and about shared consciousness and trauma taking physical form in an uncaring world. Go wild with the ethereal whooshing! But I also love the human warmth at the heart of it all, and sometimes it’s enough to anchor these characters and let them have a nice day. A fic entirely focused on some instance of coziness against the cold chaotic background of canon would be great too.

For Lucy specifically, a big draw for me is how canon (...s2 need not apply) empathizes with her way of processing the world. Not just Peaks, but On the Air’s protag who is basically a Lucy expy also gets the narrative completely on her side and that’s great. And I love how in s3, her focus on the small things around her is always echoed by bigger, climactic events beyond her horizon (bunnies / Jack Rabbit’s palace, chair order / Garland’s chair, her first scene talking about the two sheriffs / doubles everywhere...). It feels to me like some kind of off-kilter mindfulness and I love it. She’s also got a loving husband and an amazing son, which, in this economy and also this canon? Damn. The one functional family, imagine that. I am not interested in focus on family dynamics, but singularly, either Lucy/Andy or Lucy&Wally are great - in particular, I’m interested in how strange they are and yet they make it work. With the ruthless critique of traditional family structure that’s all over canon, maybe they make it work specifically because they’re not doing any of that. A bit like the Addams family... but... not goth...? Anyway. I’d love to see Lucy interact with and maybe strike a friendship with any character she’s never shared a scene with in canon! In the tagset, there’s Diane for some secretaries bonding, Audrey because??? why not?, Albert because it’d be an epic enemies to friends slowburn, some version of Laura in the future, if we’re feeling really daring maybe even some version of Coop in the future, still fragmented... or anyone you want! Outside the tagset I’d be curious about Hawk, Margaret and maybe Doris in particular, I think, and Phil, and Nadine and the Invitation to Love fandom in general (Frost says it still airs - did it get as weird as TP s3 did?), but if you have an idea with someone else, absolutely go for it!

Canon-specific DNWs: any singular Dreamer being the ‘source’ of canon, BOB (let alone Judy) being forever defeated in the finale, Judy being an active malevolent presence in the characters’ lives, clear explanations for canonical ambiguities, ‘Odessaverse’ being the reality layer, the Fireman’s House by the Sea being the White Lodge, whatever Twin Perfect’s on about, Cooper/Audrey, Cooper/Laura

[roaldseth]

Dankovsky (patho) or/and Gale (dds)!

You said “/and” and I am taking thatopportunity.

DANKOVSKY:

Why I like them

Second-handfavoritism—from you. Sometimes I like characters because of other people thatlike whatever said character. Psych myself up for something, I will attach toit. And I like his appearance. He has an appealing design, and I have to saythat characters describing him as corpse-like in passing sometimes ispersonally appealing.

Why I don’t

… well,he is kind of an asshole. Realistically, I wouldn’t bother with people likethat, but in terms of character traits it makes him interesting.

Favoritescene

TheMarble Nest as a whole. The cycle storytelling is very appropriate in terms ofthe endings that can be chosen, and the fact that there’s essentially no way to“win.” It’s a lot of traveling around aimlessly that gives an air ofhopelessness, whether you complete or botch the quests, you can’t reach thecharacter’s ultimate goal, but you can get yours as a player.

Favorite line

Wouldn’tsay it’s “favorite,” but the only thing I can readily think of atthe moment is: “what’s in you pockets, pumpkin?” Or at least I think that’swhat he says when you want to barter with small female children.

Itseems like one of the few times he’s actually “welcoming,” kind of likeGordon Ramsay when he talks to children versus talking to people that thinkthey know what they’re doing. I imagine him squatting down or kneeling or something to met the girls’ levels when saying it.

Favoriteoutfit

Newremake outfit > original outfit.

… hedid have those platform boots in his original art…

OTP

Burakh/Dankovsky

I willadmit that I entered the Pathologic fandom—if that’s what you can call it—allsorts of backwards. I’ve read fanfiction before actually “experiencing” thegame, and if fanfiction has ever made me ship a ship, it’s with these two. (Ihaven’t braved google translate, but) they way people write them like somesnarky (vaguely domesticated) couple is something I can get behind.

brOTP

I don’tknow. Dankovsky and Isidor or Rubin? They were colleagues, right? Or Andrey for That One Time In College feeling?

HeadCanon

Unsure.

Unpopularopinion

Also unsure.

A wish

maythe remake be release by the end of the year.

Consideringit’s impossible for him to escape his fate: may healways have a good bed to sleep on, enough food to not starve, and an abundanceof smowders and ammunition.

Anoh-god-please-dont-ever-happen

Honestly,I’m not quite sure. I haven’t given it enough thought. I mean: the man’sdealing with a plague. His life can’t get much worse.

5 wordsto best describe them

100%done with everyone’s shit?

Or:Steadfast, analytical, irritable, influential, and tired.

Mynickname for them

If I’m trying to becheeky, I’ll refer to him as Dr. Dank or Dan/Daniel, but most of the time Itake the time to say/type out “Dankovsky” or use the common diminutive “Danko.”

GALE:

Why I like them

I like his logic and level-headedness. He’s the one to suggest something out of probability, butwill place his tactics in gambits—quick to adjust and assess for situation andwhat’s called for.  He’s onlyan advisor, but will take action if deemed appropriate.

Not to mention he’s brain AND brawn. Hisbiceps give me vitality.

Perhaps there’s also a fondness for him “notcomprehend[ing]”—that he has to put a little bit more effort to awakeningto/understanding emotions. It’s a sense of (wanting to see) accomplishments andgrowth, I suppose. When everyone else around you seems to be achievingimportant life goals/markers, and you just can’t or at such a slower pace thatit get’s discouraging. But, in the end, Gale does get emotions, and it’s all themore satisfying seeing them.

Why I don’t

Not applicable. Everyone loves Gale.

Favoritescene

TheChurch’s forced interrupt in chapter 3 of Quantum Devil Saga.

It’s aninstance of vulnerability that does not really get translated within DigitalDevil Saga. The novel takes the time to point out that Bishops’ “headspaces”are very important, fragile pieces of a tribe. It invokes a feeling of pity and“feeling sorry for” this near non-human(ly described) character being subjectedto the higher power. The description given clearly displays Gale is in pain,but Serph’s calm, articulate reaction gives off the impression that it issomething that has happened before. Of course, Serph doesn’t take lightly tothis. And once everything is all said and done, Gale just comes back/wakes uplike it was no big deal, shrugging it off saying it was his duty.

Favoriteline

The firstthing that had come to mind was: “We have the advantage. Proceed.”

To me,there was nothing quite like going into a battle and hearing that being spoken.It’s done so distinctly casual. No second thoughts. No smugness. Just stated. If I wasan enemy and heard that, it would’ve probably made me very uncomfortable.

Andit’s also this distinction of approval.

Favoriteoutfit

DDS uniform > QDS uniform

I prefer the grey to the navy because it gives off more of amysterious, undefined existences, rigid, static, techno dystopian air. And the hood shiftsto a way more appealing design, in my opinion. I don’t understand the “windows”(but I will admit I do prefer it being closed), and the earpieces (that I don’treally know what to call if it even has a name) looks like it’s designed forsomething audio/sound related in DDS, and it’s not really defined/hard to interpret in QDS.

Plus, itdoesn’t look like DDS Gale is hiding a mullet under that hood.

OTP

I’llship him with Lupa, I’ll ship him with Angel.

brOTP

Galeand Cielo, Gale and Serph; might as well toss Gale and Roland in there, too, as a concept/could-have-been dynamic.

HeadCanon

It’smore of a theory than headcanaon, and a rather extensive one, but simplified:David knew Greg—that they were colleagues in the International EnvironmentalStabilization Committee—and that’s why Gale reacted strongly in relations toLupa.

Unpopularopinion

Not really an unpopular opinion, but more of a point to be made.

I remember readingthreads and post from younger days of this fandom that generally grouped theLokapala into being a “terrorist group” or the one’s acting in some sort ofextremist way, but Gale is the one shown to have reacted to fear and terror asa resource.

When Gale is the playable character, Roland points this out saying: “I suppose you could scare civilians and then use their confusion as a tactical diversion… That’s what you were going for, right Gale?” 

Argilla suggests that Gale might actually be amused by their panic when saying: “I’m starting to feel sorry for them… Don’t tell me you’re enjoying it.” 

Gale is not a terrorist. He did not initiate the action that caused the panic and confusion, nor was the source—god retracting data from the earth—political or ideological or anything of that ilk, but it’s interesting for him using what is around him with that in mind. Not to mention the scarcity we see of his counterpart, David Gale, is during the aftermath of a terrorist attack against the Cuvier Syndrome Isolation Ward.

A wish

That Lupa was also reincarnated, and Gale was able to befriend him in thatlife as well. That’d be nice.

Anoh-god-please-dont-ever-happen

Unfortunately,I can’t think of an answer for this, not that I would want something terribleto happen, I just can’t think of anything.

5 wordsto best describe them

tactical,astute, intelligent, loyal, and… tall(?)… he’s pretty tall…

Mynickname for them

I was going to say that I don’t have any, but then Iremembered That One Time I tried to get a friend to play Digital Devil Saga andhe can’t remember any of the character’s names to save his life. If I refer to him to asanything other than “Green DJ” or “Venus Fly Trap” he probably won’t know whomI’m referring to…

I don’t know, he thought he looked like some futuristic punkDJ, I guess.

[ramblings-from-elsinore]

*slides in* Obsession numbers 9, 7, 11, 12, 2, 4, 5, and 13? Sorry that's a lot... you don't have to answer all of them if you don't want to :3

What was my inspiration for this fic? How did it come to me?

What’s my favorite part of the fic?

What’s the part of the fic I’m most proud of?

What part of the fic was the hardest for me to write?

What part of the fic am I still dissatisfied with?

Who’s my favorite character in the fic?

Were there any major decisions I made about the fic that could have made it go a whole different direction?

Was there anything I only learned about the fic after I had finished it? (themes, motifs, symbolism, etc)

Did anyone in the fic surprise me by doing anything? If so, what?

If I had to sum up this fic in a sentence, what would it be?

If I were to rewrite this fic, what would I change?

Did any thing about this fic’s reception surprise me?

What were my beta’s major comments about the first draft of this fic?

If I were to write a sequel to this fic, what would it be about?

Any other question about the fic!

Were there any major decisions I made about the fic that could have made it go a whole different direction?

So. Many.  Were and are still.  Honestly I am very undecided about many elements of this story and certain plot points that I have been toying with for a long time.  Some of the biggest decisions are yet to come, and I have been weighing them from the start.  But as for decisions I made in the past: one of the most important ones was probably regarding Ludwig’s confession and Gilbert’s ultimate capitulation.  I didn’t originally plan for Ludwig to have such a breakdown, and I thought Gilbert would agree more easily, without the crisis they both go through before the first time they sleep together.  Luckily, after much thought, I realized that that would not be true to character.  They both had to be pushed to their breaking points: Ludwig, to even consider confessing, and Gilbert, to possibly think that crossing that line was the best course of action.  They had to be desperate.  That decision didn’t really affect the direction of the story so much–they were going to end up getting together somehow or other–but it did affect the tone, I think, as both brothers are still so plagued with self doubt.

Now it occurs to me there’s another big decision that has had a ripple effect on this story: Francis and Toni sexually assaulting Ludwig.  At first I planned for this to be a consensual encounter, something that would expand Ludwig’s horizons and make him consider new things about himself.  But having a threesome with two other men seemed a bit of a stretch, and I realized that with drugs involved, that situation could easily become nonconsensual.  As it’s something that happens all too often on campuses, I decided it would be appropriate to include.  And, since I want to do justice to Ludwig as a survivor, I’ve ended up weaving the aftereffects of that assault into the narrative in ways that have changed it.  And, heads up; we haven’t seen the last of it yet.  If anything, Ludwig is bottling up his feelings about what happened to him, but they’ll have to come to the surface eventually.

What part of the fic am I still dissatisfied with?/If I were to rewrite this fic, what would I change?

Lol, so much.  Really though, I have grown so much as a writer (I hope) in the time I’ve been writing this story that when I look back on earlier chapters–most of Obsession, honestly–I cringe.  Mostly, that has to do with the fact that when I started, I was really thinking of it as fanfiction.  I thought I had to include all the little nods to canon, all the in-jokes and tics of characterization, as well as fanon interpretations of characters.  I used cringe-worthy fanfiction standbys such as “the blond” for Ludwig or, worse, “the albino” for Gilbert.  And I put Feliciano in there just because GerIta was so popular, I felt obliged to include it.  I sort of wish I could retcon Feli out of the story.  Sorry, Feli fans.  It’s not that I hate him so much, I just think he adds nothing to the story.  I do have a trajectory in mind for his character, though, so I’ll try to keep it consistent and make it work.

Did anything about this fic’s reception surprise me?

Yes–that I haven’t gotten any hate for it, really, unless you count one chapter being taken down from DeviantArt (back in the dark days when I still posted my writing there).  There have only been a few unwelcome comments in all this time, and those weren’t from haters so much as entitled, angry readers.  Mostly the reception has been warm and beyond my wildest hopes.  I’m surprised this fic became so popular–I don’t think it would be wrong to say it’s among the most popular fics for the pairing.  I’m so thankful for each and every kind comment I get.  The responses never fail to surprise me–it warms my heart to hear from folks who have been reading for years, sticking with me and my slow-ass updates and feeling for my boys all this long time.  So thank you, deeply and truly. :)

Did anyone in the fic surprise me by doing anything?  If so, what?

The two characters I’ve been most surprised by are probably Liz and Sebastian, the boys’ father.  I didn’t have big plans for either of them, but they’ve both turned out to be important and lots of fun to write.  The whole backstory with the Beilschmidt family history has developed over time, and I’m so glad I’ve been able to flesh it out.  It’s important for me to keep Sebastian human, even if he’s often cast in a bad light.  And as for Liz, it’s fascinating to write someone on the outside who knows about the brothers’ relationship.  I realized, once she found out, she was going to be much more important than I had thought.  I knew I didn’t want her to have a stereotypical “eww you’re so gross that’s wrong” or “omg you’re made for each other, who cares love is love” reaction–I wanted her to be human and complex, as well.  I realized she’s struggling, too–with how to support a friend she genuinely loves and shares a complicated past with, while also being very troubled by what she knows.  I think Liz has a strong moral compass, but a nuanced one as well.

Angie has also surprised me some.  In writing her, I’ve come to flesh her out more and think about her past and future–she’s become much more than “Ludwig’s heterosexual experiment” as she was originally pegged to be.  I have big plans for her that I hope I’ll get to include as the story goes forward.

None of these characters really did any one surprising thing–it’s been more of a gradual revelation with them.

What were my beta’s major comments about the first draft of this fic?

I actually don’t really have a beta.  I’ve talked things over with lilienpasse in the past, though, and have appreciated her input on a number of chapters, and she has made a wonderful sounding board when I’m trying to figure out where I’m going.  I remember some conversations where I’ve been able to use her as the guinea pig for some of my more outlandish ideas (thanks for letting me subject you to that, LP!) and she definitely reigned me in where I needed it.

I am going to have to think a bit more on my favorite part of the story and which was hardest to write.  I’ll answer later :)  Thank you for the questions, and for your patience waiting for a response!!

[klonoadreams]

Help, I just saw a post that asked "Akuroku or Rokushi". I oppose pedophilia and headcanon Roxas and Xion as blood relatives. HOW DOES ONE CHOOSE THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS BETWEEN PEDOPHILIA AND INCEST?

Oh gosh, I think you’re asking the wrong person, since I was part of the KH fandom from the very beginning, so growing up I got a look at a lot of things before games like Days and BBS came out. I’ll put it under a readmore.

So like…back when KH2 came out, I kinda was under the impression that Axel wasn’t that much older than Roxas (since I thought he was like Riku and…yeah…), so I never gave much thought to it when I dabbled in KH fanfiction. Like, honestly, my biggest concern was just BAD YAOI and female character bashing. (it was REALLY bad)

Of course, then Days came out a few years later and became a huge game changer to Org. XIII fanfiction. Before then, there was nothing but CoM and KH2, so shit like the accursed Saix Puppy created this AWFUL trend in characterization that plagued the fandom.

Xion ended up getting the short end of the stick by people who disliked the fact that she was friends with Axel and Roxas, because of the whole “gets in the way of my ship” mindset that existed. Honestly, I still had the Rokunami ship ingrained in my mind from the many KH3 fics I read, even though Xion and Roxas have a shit ton more canon chemistry in comparison.

I had to unlearn a lot of things when I realized that a lot of the stuff I read…wasn’t actually that good to begin with. So I started being more picky about the stuff I read and had standards I wanted to follow, especially in regards to ships. I started looking for chemistry, because it sure as hell didn’t exist in any of the fics I used to read because I was desperate for anything while waiting for any more news on KH3.

So I’m all, I’ll give it a chance if it’s written well. Then BBS came out and changed fucking EVERYTHING. Because with Ienzo being a child, it basically proved that Nobodies DO in fact age, when everyone thought otherwise about it (with the exception of Roxas and Namine, because they’re special, but lmao, turned out it wasn’t just them). I think it might’ve had something to do with a KH novel entry or something? IDK.

All I know is that I started to pay more attention to Lea and Isa, because remember what I said about that chemistry? They definitely had it and it worked a lot better than what I saw in Days with Axel, Roxas, and Xion (I mean it in the sense that Axel acted more like this reluctant babysitter who grew attached to his charges after being stuck so long with Org. XIII that his growth pretty much stagnated).

It’s been a wild ride for me when it comes to KH ships, because of the shit that went down before certain games were released. Sorry if I kinda went off-topic, but some things tend to stick around long after things pop up and I guess that’s how one can choose between the two.

Of course, there’s also the fact that some people tend to skip over games, which ends up locking them out of a lot of info, since people tend to think that they’ll be fine if they just stick to KH1 and KH2 and ignore the other games.

AUs also exist (oh god, do they exist…I’m looking at you, high school AUs) and people have different headcanons and character interpretations as well, so you never know what’s up. Honestly, I usually just stick to my main ships of SoRiKai, TerrAqua, Skulmeyer, GulAva, and whatever poly ships I can get from the rest of the Foretellers.

Otherwise, I’m just so STARVED for non-shippy gen fics because there’s so much potential to be explored with KH fics that ends up getting ignored…yeah…

Sorry if this isn’t the type of answer you were hoping for.

(I should mention that I headcanon Axel/Lea as the designated babysitter, so I have a hard time shipping him with anyone who isn’t Saix/Isa at this point in time)