#but as in that rivalry platonic weird thing they have going on in canon

[nerdynuala]

Taking the first steps of my not-so-slow but definitely steady descent into a new hyperfixation fandom

[lil-bri]

Something not quite right

a/n: I’ve decided that, instead of simply putting my thoughts and headcanons and ideas as simple and quick drafts, to just instead start actually writing it all.

summary: Kuai Liang’s (Sub-Zero) last thoughts about Hanzo during the timeline resetting.

warnings: hurt/no comfort (?), canon character death, probably not properly tagged, angst. not necessarily written as couple, could be considered as platonic and viceversa.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

It was all happening so fast. The world, disappearing around them. The trees, the sky, everything, all turning into nothing in mere seconds. Had Kronika won? For the Elder Gods, he begged not.

Maybe Liu Kang had won? Maybe he was now restarting everything with the Hourglass. Restart everything. All back to zero. Would he remember his life? Would he remember his family? His parents, his brothers, his friends and the people important for him. Would Kuai Liang be able to remember any of them? Probably not. But if he didn’t remember anything or anyone, what about…

Hanzo.

It felt weird. Knowing he would probably not remember him. That didn’t seemed all that fair, did it? After all their years of rivalry, of hatred. It took them more than 10 years to finally feel comfortable by each other’s side, to be able for Hanzo to let go of his rage. To manage it in a healthier way. And now, all of that effort would end up in the trash. Like garbage. It suddenly all felt useless. All that effort spent in helping each other and themselves, it would now all be thrown away.

And it made him feel indignation. On Hanzo’s behalf. On Bi-Han’s behalf.

This just wasn’t fair. Why couldn’t they all just have normal, peaceful lives? When had it all went to shit? Kuai Liang felt like a petulant child throwing a tantrum because he didn’t got the toy he wanted. But it still didn’t felt fair. Why couldn’t they just have peaceful, calm lives?

Bi-Han didn’t deserve to get blamed and murdered for crimes he didn’t commit. Hanzo didn’t deserve to have his family murdered, get tricked by that sorcerer and have his rage be misguided for years. Didn’t they deserve a happy ending too? When did things get so complicated?

‘I wonder what you would think, Hanzo. Would you be angry too, if you were still here?’

Maybe, in this new timeline, things will be better. Maybe Bi-Han won’t suffer for something he didn’t do. Maybe Smoke won’t die this time. Maybe Hanzo…

Or maybe they wouldn’t even know each other this time. Or maybe this whole train of thoughts was useless after all.

[devine-fem]

As someone who likes Damijon as both platonic and romantic…I don’t understand the obsession of certain antis bring up whole age gap thing when it comes to Damian and Jon. It’s getting really old and pissing me off at this point.

I can’t recall a fandom I’ve been in where antis kept bringing up an age gap between two characters.

Idk if I’m talking out of my ass but it sounds like as if antis think the fandom puts Damijon in sexual situations 24/7 when that’s not the case.

Jfc no one is forcing you to ship them if you don’t (it’s not even canon!) but don’t go around accusing the fandom as p*d*s just to make a point. ( I know in fandoms there some weirdos too but it doesn’t make up a whole)

Let the Damijon fandom enjoy whatever crumbles they are getting right now…because it’s really just crumbles at this point.

If those antis also consist of those who are our rival ships (they know who they are) like yall are getting canon content rn from DC if you’re upset with the quality of it speak with your wallet idk…???

Sorry for the rant it’s just for the most part Damijon fandom has been pretty chill (excluding Twitter that’s another can of worms) and I hate the accusations parts of the fandom love to make.

Yeah… people don’t talk about how Jon had to be 11 to Damian’s 13 before he left for space because they only read super sons, they never really look at any other source or think about their ages as more than that because tom taylor said out his mouth that they were 3 years apart when dissing the ship BUT he admits himself to not know their exact ages and that it could be a 2 year age gap.

So I just think of it as two years, and with two years I don’t really care because personally even in my youth I’ve been with people who are two years older with no issue because age alone doesn’t determine whether or not someone is taking advantage of you for obvious reasons. Age gaps are not tangible things, to some people what you consider weird is normal to someone else.

Then there’s the fact that neither Jon or Damian have birthdays. Damian was aged up for teen titans which people don’t seem to care about. Among other things like how Jon and Damian are the same age in most other universes… did you know that? Also, people like to say theres a maturity gap but forget that Damian was the immature one that picked fights. Plus, when characters grow up beside each other then it’s less ‘weird’ cause then they are expierencing similar traumas. It’s probably lots smaller then we think.

When I talk about them with a three year age gap then its probably platonic but sometimes romantic, two years then its sometimes platonic or romantic, one year, platonic or romantic and I stay between these because their age can slightly change their dynamic. It’s for fun, its exploring their platonic dynamic if it had elements of romance to it. Its interchangeable to me but for the most parts its two.

They are barbies that I play with at my own free will. They are not real people, they may imitate life but they do not infact replicate it.

So yeah… when they are young I only ever have really seen or interacted with media where J and D have not done more than maybe peck. Its just supposed to be cute and sweet.

Do people not understand the concept of the fact Jon and Damian should not be getting into a serious relationship while they are young or else it would go horribly wrong? Do they not understand that a lot of the ships appeal in the childhood friends TO lovers factor?

It kind of bothers me to be having to put the fact that I l hate Jonjay and like Daminika in my bio so people can get a feel for the type of person I am. And “rival” ships? there’s no rivalry, I don’t feel threatened by other peoples ships at all… especially if they’re canon… unless its like jonjay where the origin of the ship is inherently problematic, substanceless and built on character assassination… but we hate damijon and praise THAT? We say that damijon is worse than that? I’m sorry but jonjay to jon kent is jayroy to roy harper to me.

Twitter is very strange, very very strange people on that app to which this morning I had to uninstall because I KNEW that they would feel threatened by damijons today and hate profusely in response to it.

Although, you guys gotta put that age gap shit to bed…

Dami look 14 here to you? If Damijons are the ones who don’t read comics then how do we know that they are well in their 20s and 30s here. They are both consenting adults in main continuity that can do as they please here. You simply cannot say anything. No arguement can be supported now because now, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it.

There was no point in hate the age gap really in the first place since time was always gonna heal it anyway???

But part of me kind of understands hating it if you experience fandom through twitter which is not a fandom app at all. Damijon stans are annoying and gross on twitter, I get it but not everyone is inherently horrible for obvious reasons.

[straightbaittournament]

may the best bait win! propaganda under the cut:

twelve and missy:

they literally kiss and flirt all the time but canonically are meant to be like. best friend turned mortal enemies turned ALLMOSOST best friends again not not because of a heartbreaking misunderstanding/turn of events. missy is referred to as 12's "man-crush". but ultimately the nature of their relationship is ambiguous/not "endgame"/never consummated in any sense of the word, platonically or romantically. they like CANNOT tell each other how they feel about each other

Used to be queerbait. Decided to switch it up. They are gay and in love but also m/f presenting. If a rivalry last longer than a few millennia you aren't rivals, you're just gay.

Although the Twelfth doctor and Missy appear straight presenting, two genderfluid beings are not really "straight". Missy and Twelve had romantic undertones and even kissed a few times but ultimately did not end up together They are so so gender. They used to be two guys in gay love. Now they appear to be a man and a woman but really do they even have gender at all? I say no. It's just a fun game to them. In their future they literally swap genders. The universe would be better off if they had ended up together but they still wouldn't have been straight <3

roman and gerri:

a very queer coded Hetero relationship. slime puppy is real that’s s real thing she says

they absolutely have a weird fucking thing going on. weird coworkers with benefits mommy dom undertones thing going on except they never actually touch they just flirt and dirty talk obscenely and show-typically office talk about taking over the company and backstabbing. this is a thing for like one season and then it's dropped with little to no mention of what's in store for them or like what the fuck happened. no development no conclusion it just happened and then uhhhhhhh. they got screentime as a pair like once in a blue moon. romangerri girls were gnawing at scraps

milf x ratboy. they have like a weird sexual thing going on until they mutually betray each other on several occasions and then they end the show on bad terms but where they both still clearly have lingering feelings for each other. romangerri is basically just like queerbaiting but with straight people. have you seen their season 2 promo poster

[sixty-silver-wishes]

more caligari hcs because its 2 am and Somebody has to make them

Cesare is missing some back teeth. How he lost them is better left unexplained.

Jane can play the piano, but she's not very good at it. She had to take lessons when she was young, but they never went anywhere. The best she can do is a few basic parlor songs, but she's even worse as a singer.

Francis has a very tense rivalry with Jane's mother. Dr. Olsen likes him enough, but Mrs. Olsen is frustrated by the fact that a commoner like him is so easily welcomed by the other members of her family, as she spent a long time socially ascending to marry into wealth. Jane has been brought up to think highly of her family and takes offense if they're insulted, so while Francis is very critical of them, he tries to restrain himself around her- which does not always go well.

Every year, Caligari celebrates March 12, the day Cesare was (canonically) brought into the asylum. Usually this means Cesare gets to spend the day outside of his box- but he's asleep the whole time, so he's not exactly doing any celebrating. He might also get a sprinkling of sugar on top of his usual porridge. as a treat

Alan is actually very, very afraid of death. This is because he's so in love with life, he's terrified at the prospect of leaving it. He was orphaned and raised by his grandfather, so part of his fear comes from being familiar with death from childhood. He loves his two best friends, but frequently gets unwanted thoughts about their potential deaths, which he doesn't want them to know about.

Alan and Francis went to school together as children; Jane was privately educated by a governess. Whenever they met up, she was always excited to ask them what was happening at school, which usually involved some account of Francis getting into fights with whoever made the mistake of bullying Alan in front of him.

Caligari actually hates the fairs. But he's gotta commit to the bit

Before he ended up at the asylum, Cesare was a talented yet amateur dancer who was poised to advance his career from clubs and dance halls to a professional ballet company. Unfortunately for him, his institutionalization meant he missed the audition that could have been his big break. He was very sickly as a child, but got into dance at a young age in order to strengthen himself.

Francis' main hobby is spying on everyone else in town. He keeps a notebook detailing as many people's schedules as he can, and loves to gossip.

Jane was always bad at eye contact, and often overcorrects this by staring at people for long amounts of time. This is often misinterpreted as either romantic interest or rudeness.

Kids in Holstenwall regularly dare each other to knock on Caligari's door and run away. They don't actually know he's Caligari; they all just think he's creepy.

Most people in town expected Alan and Jane to end up together, which made Francis feel insecure about himself. However, Jane wasn't interested in either of them, and Alan was only interested in Francis.

Francis prides himself on being logical and observant to detail. However, he cannot pick up on the hints that Alan is constantly putting down. In all fairness, Alan is so damn nice to everyone that it's impossible for anyone to tell whether or not he has platonic or romantic feelings for them.

Francis was asked to recite Alan's poetry at his funeral, but couldn't do it, as he was grieving too hard and too focused on solving his murder. He'd come to regret it, and kept Alan's poetry journal in his house, which he'd be very protective of.

Jane likes to pretend she's a ghost when she's bored. She wanders around the mansion in her long white dress, making weird noises and doing things like rattling candelabras. It's gotten to the point where a few maids are convinced there is a ghost, and she's scared away at least one prospective suitor.

Jane's mother is weirdly obsessed with England, which is why her daughter has an English name although they live in Germany. Mrs. Olsen always makes a point of following English etiquette and clothing trends, and always tries to work the fact that she has a distant relative in England into conversations. The relative in question does not want to contact her.

Speaking of English contacts, Caligari claims to have once co-authored an academic paper with a certain Dr. Seward. Nobody can confirm or deny this.

[big-royal-chicken]

Hazbin Ship Meme

My friend @staticradioismyfavhateship brought this meme to my attention, so here’s my take on it. My feelings on these ships can be read under the cut:

RadioRose 📻🌹

OTP but in a platonic way. I just really like this duo, and I think it’s because I’m biased and Rosie is my favorite character. Their dynamic reminds me a lot of another pairing from another series (one that I do ship in a romantic context).

They’re just aesthetically pleasing to look at and I love the silly fluff that comes with it. Which is ironic as they are both demon canibals.

Alastor isn’t into sex and romance, but he trusts Rosie and seems to be on good terms with her, so that’s all that matters.

RadioSilence 📻📺

I’m intrigued by the idea of Vox having these unrequited feelings for Alastor, both as a rival and maybe a lover? I just like the idea of him being uber jealous over Rosie and Lucifer. Rosie for having a deep friendship with him, and Lucifer for having a compelling rivalry. (I blame my friend and their cute art too)

Season two might shed some more light on their past so we’ll see how things go from there.

Lucifer x Alastor

(I know what it’s called, I’m not using the name)

I’m gonna be real with you chief, fandom kind of ruined this one for me. I like them as rivals who may become friends later on. I’ve been given too many recommendations showing explicit or suggestive art of the two, which is extremely out of character for Alastor. I can’t stop people from shipping it, but I am going to have to resort to filtering it out and blocking blogs that have it.

Alastor x Charlie

Same reasons I don’t like Ra/pple, but also to do with that Charlie is already in a loving relationship with Vaggie and Alastor has canonically stated that he sees her as a daughter. Honestly, Alastor x any of the Morningstar family is a NOTP for me.

Other ships

Emily x Charlie x Vaggie: I think Chaggie is cute. It could’ve had some more development in the show though. I’m intrigued by the idea of Emily x Charlie x Vaggie as a polyamorous ship.

Carmilla x Zestiel: I think it’s cute. Like Radiorose, it seems these two have a history together and have formed a deep relationship from it. Unlike Radiorose, I’m uncertain if theirs potential for romance.

CherriSnake: Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s cute and their dynamic is intriguing, but I think they were done dirty by the pacing of the show.

Lucilith: I’ve seen some cute art and their backstory is adorable, but we have yet to see how their dynamic plays out.

Huskerdust: Not a shipper, but I can see how people could be into them.

StaticMoth: This one is weird because I don’t like Valentino for obvious reasons, and Vox isn’t any better- so I think these bastards deserve each other.

Lute x Adam: Neutral about it, but I can see it being a one-sided admiration.

[mximitator]

oo ssince the arms dealer is ur fav do you have any headcanons about him?

I don't really have a lot of headcanons for the arms dealer, other than ship related stuff

First of all, when I write/draw things with the arms dealer, I like to tone down the womanizer part of his personality. I still kinda keep it, and I can understand if it counts as mischaracterization- but I just don't feel comfy writing stuff like that cause of personal reasons.

I personally think the arms dealer would sound like Jay from the KubzScouts. Like, just listen to any crazy shit Jay says and tell me it doesn't sound like something he'd say.

I mentioned this in previous posts, but I like to imagine that the goblin tinkerer and him are bros (much to the dismay of the mechanic)

Both in canon and in my headcanons, the arms dealer is a TERRIBLE flirt. This man has NO game.

In game, according to the princess's happiness chart he's a softie :]

Even though the arms dealer is a terrible flirt and kinda douchy, I imagine he's kinda a good partner. Both platonically and romantically.

I like to think that the arms dealer and the guide have a weird rivalry going on, since they both seem to argue in game a lot but are neutral of each other in their happiness chart.

Once again, I will repeat this over and over- HE'S FUCKING LOADED. BIG MONEY.

I like to think that the arms dealer is great with kids. He's basically the princess and angler's adopted dad (along with the guide), even if he doesn't admit it.

And finally, I know this makes no sense, but I like to imagine that the arms dealer has arachnophobia. Dunno why, I like seeing men be scared ig /j

[dekupalace]

isa for the character ask game perhaps? if someone hasnt already beaten me to it ;^^

all good basil!! I put the questions through a random number generator and I goooot...25, 5, and 15! oh boy! lots of 5s!

CHARACTER ASK GAME!!! 💫

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

this might be a weird answer but it's The New by Interpol...there's something about it

but also Somethin' Stupid by Frank Sinatra...because duh. what else is there to say LOL

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

I'm basic and I love isafrin more than anything cause I've loved them since the prologue but isiloop or whatever the ship name for sif/isa/loop is is also really really REALLY good. but sif and loop aren't romantic. to me. they got a secret third platonic rivalry thing going on. but they both get to hold isa's hands. do you get me

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

"oh my god he's such a himbo" back when it was only the prologue and ISA IM SO FUCKING SORRY I FELL FOR THE FACADE THAT I WAS MEANT TO BREAK...I DIDNT KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DIDNT!!!!!

but now I'm like...ohghguh I love him so much he's sooooo interesting to me ... a part of me was hoping that he was actually crazy smart and didn't show it and I WAS RIGHT!!!! also I guessed that he was trans back during the prologue too and I WAS ALSO RIGHT go me or what have you lmao

[trisshawkeye]

Yuletide 2024

Dear Yuletide Writer...

It's that time of year again! Hello, and thank you in advance for writing for me—I am super-excited to see more fic in any of these fandoms! In this letter I’m including general things I like to read, and then some specific likes and prompts for each fandom, but I will be genuinely delighted by anything for my requested characters, so if you have your own ideas, please be my guest to write what your heart desires. And if you’re looking to treat, I am always keen for multiple cakes!

AO3: Triss_Hawkeye

I Do Not Want: non-con, unrequested incest, porn without plot*, omegaverse, pregnancy, mommy/daddy kink, underage, soulmate AUs, mundane/modern-day AUs for non-modern-day settings

*sex is fine, I just don’t want sex to be the sole focus of the fic

Fandom-specific DNWs are in the sign-up.

I enjoy:

Friendships and familial relationships, deep platonic and it’s-complicated partnerships, weird power dynamics, antagonistic friendships, friendly rivalries, strange intersections of violence and intimacy, navigating mixed-orientation relationships, mutual head-over-heels-in-love, love-hate relationships, mentor&protégé dynamics, established couples, polyamory, asexual characters, nonsexual intimacy, complicated gender feels

World-building, case-fic, canon divergence and what-ifs, adventurous romps, backstory, character development, atmospheric writing, nonlinear storytelling, all kinds of tenses and POVs, epistolary or experimental formats, unreliable narrators, bittersweet endings, inevitable tragedies

Moral dilemmas, angst, hurt with or without comfort, pining, misunderstandings, trust and loyalty, interesting social dynamics, culture clashes, friendly arguments, people being utterly vicious at each other, explorations of non-modern/Western morality

Science fiction, stories set in space, stories about music, horror, political scheming, religious themes

Smut likes: fumbling/awkward/figuring-it-out sex, fighting as foreplay, manhandling, biting, undernegotiated kink, non-penetrative sex, leaning into superhuman/non-human physicality where applicable

My nominated fandoms: Space Brothers, Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, The Hermux Tantamoq Adventures, Wu Ming | Hidden Blade, Joy of Life, The Long Ballad

Space Brothers

What is it? Space Brothers is a 99-episode anime about a man who becomes an astronaut in the footsteps of his younger brother—the anime can be found on Crunchyroll (the manga is on-going and published by Kodansha, but is generally less accessible, so I'm only requesting the anime—but I'm current with the manga so feel free to write as up-to-date as you like).

Nominated characters: Any (Nanba Mutta, Nanba Hibito, Brian Jay, Eddie Jay)

Relationships I like: Mutta & Hibito brotherhood, Brian & Hibito mentorship, Eddie & Mutta mentorship, Brian & Eddie brotherhood, Mutta &/ Serika, friendships all round

I love sibling relationships, and I love space! I especially love Space Brothers’ in-depth and well-researched exploration of the long process of becoming an astronaut, dealing with and overcoming trauma, and how people can help each other through difficulties. I adore the storytelling style of flashbacks to a past event informing the emotional journey happening in the present. I’ve nominated both Nanba brothers and Jay brothers, but if you’d rather write a story that focuses on just one of those characters or sibling pairs, that’s fine. And feel free to include any other wider cast members you like. No shipping Hibito with Olga beyond a one-sided crush on her part, please, but otherwise anything goes!

Prompts:

Mutta and Hibito finally meet on the Moon! I’m always interested in different takes on how that meeting goes down, and what day-to-day life is like for them up there.

Eddie in space or on the Moon imagining Brian there with him, and navigating feelings of both jealousy and happiness for the Nanba brothers that they could be able to achieve what he and Brian had wanted.

An incident during Hibito’s training as Brian’s backup, that once again becomes relevant as Hibito is training in Russia to return to the Moon. Maybe a strange scenario that Brian and Hibito train together that comes back up when he trains with the Soyuz module. Or maybe Hibito imagines what it would be like if Brian were training with him in Russia?

Missing scenes from Brian’s time on the Moon, and ways in which Hibito is unknowingly retracing his steps—or doing things differently! Could be how they interact with the Moonbase, something small that Brian changed or left behind and that Hibito encounters later.

The story arc with Hibito’s accident on the Moon is still my favourite—anything set in that time or the aftermath, from the perspective of either brother (or maybe Brian Jay, looking on from the afterlife—or the perspective of the oxygen generator!)

The Nanba brothers (and whoever else you might want to include with them) go on a road trip or camping or some other adventure. Hijinks ensue!

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

What is it? Stand Alone Complex (which can be watched for free on Adult Swim!) is one iteration of the wider Ghost in the Shell franchise, in a separate continuity from e.g. the original movies. It's two 26-episode anime seasons, a movie, and a sequel season called SAC:2045, following an intelligence department called Section 9 in a cyberpunk future as they tackle cases related to human cyberization and are confronted with an overarching mystery. (I'm mostly interested in the first two seasons).

Nominated characters: Motoko Kusanagi, Batou, Togusa, Hideo Kuze

Relationships I like: Hideo Kuze &/ Motoko Kusanagi, Batou &/ Motoko Kusanagi, Batou &/ Togusa (I like all of these as either platonic or romantic relationships), Motoko Kusanagi & Togusa

Stand Alone Complex is my favourite iteration of the Ghost in the Shell franchise—I love the convoluted mind-bending plots, examinations of collective human behaviour in the context of an ever more connected society, heroes grappling with being agents of a flawed and corrupt system and anti-villains with noble motives, and the deep, complicated closeness of many of the characters. Given Kuze’s on the list, I’d particularly love a 2nd Gig-based story, but don’t feel that you need to stay in that season if you have other ideas, and I'm happy with any subset of the nominated characters. I’m not as big a fan of SAC:2045 as I am the rest of it, but I’ve seen it and it’s in the continuity, so I’d be happy to receive something set in that part of the timeline too if you like. 

Prompts:

Post-2nd Gig, the Major goes searching for Kuze in the net—did he succeed in going on ahead and uploading his consciousness? Did he maintain his individuality, or become something other than human?

A canon-divergent AU in which the Major encounters Kuze under different circumstances that sees them being able to work together to achieve justice for the refugees.

A look into Togusa’s family life outside of his Section 9 work. Does Batou ever interact with them? What is his partnership with his wife like compared to his partnership with Batou? 

Motoko, Batou, and Kuze, all being full-prosthetic and ex-military, have similar circumstances yet different attitudes to what it means to be human and embodied, and I’d love to see some philosophical exploration of that. What does having a body, having a face, actually mean to them? Do you have gender thinky-thoughts about any of these characters? I would love to read them!

Section 9 case-fic that explores more of the setting. I’d particularly be interested in something that explores how religion has adapted to the reality of cyberization (be it Shinto, Japanese Buddhism, or something else).

There’s something very unsettling about your very perceptions being vulnerable to hacking, and not being able to trust your own senses any more—the potential for losing track of reality, places that seem both less real and more real, like the shop where the Major encountered her and Kuze’s old bodies. Would love something that leans into more of the potential for psychological horror in this setting.

The Hermux Tantamoq Adventures

What is it? The Hermux Tantamoq Adventures are a series of four children’s novels (beginning with Time Stops For No Mouse) featuring watchmaker mouse turned amateur detective Hermux Tantamoq, solving mysteries and getting embroiled in adventures.

Nominated characters: Any (Hermux Tantamoq, Linka Perflinger, Mirrin Stentrill, Tucka Mertslin)

Relationships I like: Hermux/Linka, Hermux & Mirrin, Mirrin/Birch, Tucka/increasingly inadvisable villainous love interests, Hermux & Tucka as best nemeses

I love Hermux being an everymouse in the eccentric rodent high society of Pinchester, trying to figure out how to confess his feelings for the dashing aviatrix and adventuress Linka Perflinger, and clumsily navigating the world of high fashion, scandalous art, and unscrupulous academia that he is surrounded in by his friends and neighbours. I love how vibrant and bizarre Pinchester life is, and the way the stories weave between the city and various escapades in jungles or ancient tombs or snooty seaside towns. If writing for Tucka, I think part of her charm is that she keeps getting away with the most heinous of things, and I would rather that she does not get any kind of comeuppance, but lives on to endlessly frustrate our protagonists in the future!

Prompts:

I’d love some case-fic with Hermux and friends solving a new mystery. Maybe old-timey Hollywood-esque film industry meets some kind of conspiracy and scandal (with Linka flying plane stunts!) Or at long last Hermux gets the dream commission of giving the Choo-Choo Cheesery model trains a tune-up, only to find that they’ve been used to pass around hidden messages between members of a shady organisation.

Linka is a professional adventuress and daredevil! I’d love to see more of her own adventures pre-canon, or taking Hermux along with her for a mission (with Hermux joyfully supporting his terrifyingly competent crush/fiancee/wife). 

The second book brings up a lot of interesting worldbuilding related to how mice cemented their place as the most civilised of rodents through the underhanded actions of a particular dynasty. I would love more exploration of the place in society held by other species, and the work needed to undo the legacy of mouse supremacy. Also, whatever happened to the cats after they were overthrown? Did they really all die out, or are there still some out there to be found by intrepid adventurers?

More on the history between Mirrin Stentrill and Tucka Mertslin. Was there ever a time that Tucka really was the bright and hopeful student that Mirrin thought she was? How did their relationships with art develop up to the point at which they fell out? Maybe they do a reluctant arty team-up in the present day for publicity reasons and have to figure out how to work together without going completely mad?

Gosh, I love Tucka so much. The ultimate girlboss. She is completely unhinged and always steals whatever scene she’s in with her eye-gouging fashion and awful personality. I would love more from her perspective, on her ruthless pursuit of success and the horrible little man who keeps getting in her way.

Wu Ming | Hidden Blade

What is it? Wu Ming (Hidden Blade), starring the stunning combination of Tony Leung and Wang Yibo, is an intense, visually gorgeous, somewhat non-linear film about Communist party spies working to undermine the Wang Jingwei regime, the Japanese puppet government during WWII. If you're interested in writing for this and haven't seen it yet, go watch the movie before reading my prompts to get the full effect of the twists and turns of the story.

Nominated characters: Secretary Ye

Relationships I like: Director He &/ Secretary Ye, Director He/Ms Chen/Secretary Ye, Officer Watanabe & Secretary Ye fucked-up mentorship, Secretary Ye & Captain Wang fucked-up friendship

I love the glimpses we get into the intense trust and suspicion between different sets of characters, and the moments when the masks come off. In particular, the vicious and moody underling Secretary Ye is such an interesting little chameleon, interacting in different ways (and different languages!) with different characters. My absolute favourite scene is when Director He's spying is revealed and Ye is sent after him, culminating in a mesmerising, no-holds-barred, knock-down-drag-out fight between the two of them, landing He in prison and Ye as Watanabe's trusted confidante, and all along there's just no evidence of what's actually going on in his head.

Prompts:

Secretary Ye has so many facets, and only right at the end does it seem like the real man is allowed into the light. I'd love a look into his interiority through the story, how he compartmentalises and justifies everything he does, and what it's like to finally put down the mask.

We find out late in the film that Director He and Secretary Ye are on the same side, and maybe the only other one in their entire situation that they can trust and who truly knows them. I'd love to see what kind of relationship develops out of that proximity, whether it's a fucked-up kind of co-dependence or pining for something they can't have because the danger is too great. Especially a relationship with the kind of trust that allows them to get into the kind of fight that they do, really messing each other up but stopping short of killing the other.

Ms Chen is really interesting here because she and Director He have been married and working together all this time yet never coming into contact to preserve his cover. Secretary Ye doesn't seem to be aware of who she is during the fight, but then that could be part of the act. Why does he buy her coffee at the end—an apology, perhaps, or an invitation into a friendship? Did they meet or know each other before everyone went undercover? Wang Yibo's managed to be in couple of short films with interesting chemistry with Zhou Xun now, so it's almost a shame they didn't directly interact in this movie, but I'd love to see her looped in to whatever Ye and He have going on.

I also love what almost amounts to a seduction of Watanabe on Secretary Ye's part, only for more of a mentorship or even pseudo-parental role. Ye makes himself into the last person that Watanabe can truly trust, and only turns on him right at the end when he has lost everything, in a darkly satisfying way. I'd love a closer look into that relationship.

Someone promo'd Lust, Caution as the evil twin movie of this one and it made me laugh so much. I have no idea how you'd do it but if you want to cross them over I would be delighted.

Honestly I would happily just read more of Secretary Ye glowering and being very violent and just a little bit terrifying at people.

Joy of Life

What is it? Joy of Life is a (currently) two-season-long Chinese drama, following the story of a ~modern-day man who dies and wakes up as a baby sometime in historical China. So far, so isekai, except that it appears that he has been preceded as a transmigrator by his own mother, and the world he has landed in is far more complicated than it seems. Please note that my prompts contain major spoilers for both seasons (I note because it is worth going into this show as unspoiled as possible).

Nominated characters: Fan Xian, Li Chengze

Relationships I like: Fan Xian /& Li Chengze, Fan Xian/Lin Wan'er, Lin Wan'er /& Ye Ling'er, Lin Wan'er & Li Chengze, Li Chengze /& Xie Bi'an /& Fan Wujiu, The Emperor & Chen Pingping & Fan Jian as the world's most dysfunctional metamours

I am obsessed with the dynamic between Fan Xian and the Second Prince Li Chengze. They match each other's crazy so well. Every scene they're in, they have the seething chemistry of a whole pack of mentos dropped into a coke bottle (and it doesn't go away after the revelations of the end of season 1—if anything, it gets worse.) And it's interesting because I think Li Chengze genuinely does like and admire Fan Xian and considers him to be a kindred spirit, even while he's perfectly content to kill him if needs be. And Li Chengze's blatant disregard for the body count left by his actions puts him way too far beyond Fan Xian's moral line for him to like the man, but I think that there is a horrible little part of him that is having a lot of fun every time he manages to get one over on the Second Prince, who very much brings out the worst in him. (To be clear, I absolutely 100% ship them, though I'd be happy with any take on their canon dynamic!)

Prompts:

Circumstances allow for Fan Xian and Li Chengze to have a very frank heart-to-heart about Teng Zijing and Fan Wujiu and what those men meant to them (because, ironically, I think Li Chengze is one of very few characters who actually Gets It about seeing your bodyguard as a real person).

Anything that allows them to get just a bit unhinged at each other—like Fan Xian playing an elaborate shell game with delicious food and deadly poison and Li Chengze treating it like a fun game of Russian roulette—you know, normal things.

Please feel free to get sexy with it, whether dancing along the line of plausible deniability (Li Chengze just has to hand-feed Fan Xian grapes while he's tied up on the floor in front of him) or full on hatesex (I don't want any right out non-con, though I imagine dub-con on Fan Xian's part is quite likely, particularly since fidelity is important to him—but I want him to want it to at least some extent, and maybe be a little horrified at himself for it).

Having fun with who has what information at any one time, whether it's Li Chengze flirting with Fan Xian early on while also secretly plotting his demise, or Fan Xian desperately trying to figure out what to do with the knowledge that they're related when his nemesis is also two inches away from making out with him.

I do also really like Fan Xian's relationship with Lin Wan'er, Lin Wan'er actually liking her cousin when he's not out to get her fiance, and Li Chengze and Ye Ling'er's very reluctant and manipulative partnership, and if you want to loop the ladies into the fic as well that would be welcome. Maybe Lin Wan'er and Ye Ling'er have a girls night and leave their husbands(-to-be) in the metaphorical get-along shirt (it goes better/worse than hoped). Or make a sedoretu AU of it? (I'm not sure how you'd wrangle it given the Emperor at least knows everyone's parentage but the idea compels me).

Canon divergence AU where Fan Xian manages to have the weirdo-love-at-first-sight meet-cute with Li Chengze instead of Lin Wan'er, and the sheer hilarity/horror that would ensue as a result.

Fan Xian and Li Chengze are caught in a situation where they're forced to cooperate against an external threat from the Divine Temple and have to figure out how much to trust each other while also trying to throw the other under the oncoming train of trouble.

The Long Ballad

What is it? The Long Ballad is a single-season Chinese drama, following what you think is going to be a revenge quest for Li Changge, but which develops into a massive journey of growth taken by Li Changge and the people around her, including her sheltered cousin Li Leyan.

Nominated characters: Li Leyan

Relationships I like: Li Leyan/Hao Du, Li Changge/Ashile Sun, Li Changge & Li Leyan, Li Leyan & Li Shimin

There’s so many characters I really love in The Long Ballad, but I’d like something that focusses on Li Leyan and her journey. A timid and delicate princess going through hardship and developing skills, learning about the harshness of the world but not turning away from it, gaining the confidence to deal assertively with the men in her life, but never losing that kindness and gentleness along the way. I’m a sucker for princess/bodyguard romance, and Li Leyan/Hao Du gave me everything! I’m totally okay with other characters showing up, although I find Wei Shuyu extremely obnoxious (I don’t mind him showing up and being obnoxious! But I’d struggle with anything that ignores this dumbass’ total lack of conviction in anything, haha). 

Prompts:

Post-canon, Leyan wants to take a diplomatic journey around the country to visit and advocate for the populace, and Hao Du is unsure about this but more than happy to be her bodyguard again. How that dynamic is changed by them being married; how they fall back into a familiar pattern of life.

Scenes from Leyan’s time with the weavers, learning about everyday life and figuring out how to act like a normal person around all these women who just think she’s putting on airs, and her growing friendships there. Or maybe she comes back to visit in the future?

Leyan’s relationship with Li Shimin, be it scenes from her childhood, or her becoming a force for good inserting herself into her father’s court. Or perhaps them both reminiscing/worrying over Changge together!

I really wish Li Leyan and Mimi Guli could be friends! Maybe the coin-purse incident goes differently, and they realise their mutual connection to Changge? What happens then? 

I’m endlessly intrigued by the Khatun as an example of what could have happened to Li Leyan, had circumstances been different and people unwilling to fight for her. I’d be really interested in a canon divergence AU in which she does get married off to the Ashile despite everyone’s best efforts. How does she handle the situation? What kind of a husband would She'er have been to her, with his inferiority complex, at the whims of other people’s power plays—or would he have been inspired to be better? What kind of place in the Ashile would Hao Du have taken, ever his princess’s loyal servant, with vicious impulses a little less checked? Would the Khatun see this little princess as a mirror of her former self and feel compelled to protect her, or as a pawn to bend to her will in service of restoring the Sui? How would literally everything else play out differently?

Thanks again, dear writer! I very much look forward to seeing what you come up with.

-Triss_Hawkeye

[pepper-ratings]

”epics”, with things like space operas, epic fantasy where people seem larger-than-life and do heroics, maybe the epic of Gilgamesh or some Greek myths or Arthurian legends

Solarpunk — Glass and Garden has two anthologies, one for winter and one for summer. There are also three Everything Change anthologies, which are free, though those are more cli-fi than solarpunk (or you could just change the theme to ‘cli-fi’). If you want novels rather than short story collections, New York 2140 is lauded as cli-fi, and Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children of Time series could fit either theme. Same author wrote Firewalkers, which iirc is shorter (more novella-length, if the coworkers prefer shorter works). Neal Shusterman’s Dry books are cli-fi.

Living Creations or something — something about a creator making something that comes to life and has a will of its own. Frankenstein is the classic one, Isaac Asimov’s robot short stories are great, maybe “I have no mouth and I must scream”, “do androids dream of electric sheep”, or even Bunny, though you didn’t like that one. But maybe the coworkers would want to discuss it.

Intelligence/Espionage — Code Girls is nonfiction, about women in code-breaking operations in WWII. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is, of course, a classic; Scalzi’s Starter Villain could also work.

Love — all about love by bell hooks, maybe an unconventional romance, or a conventional one with discussion material (Book Lovers does have a list of discussion questions at the end so you wouldn’t have to come up with your own, and it feels relevant for a book club), and maybe something that focuses on platonic love or familial love.

Bible fanfiction — okay, don’t actually call it that. But it could be interesting to read Paradise Lost or Dante’s Inferno; something by C.S. Lewis (Narnia or the Screwtape Letters); maybe Sign Here or something modern that involves hell/demons; and maybe some other retelling. Dracula could even be relevant, since Catholicism is canonically powerful there, which could be interesting to discuss.

Literary feuds — Mark Twain hated Jane Austen, so maybe a book by each. Hemingway and Fitzgerald were friends-ish, but they also had a weird rivalry going on. Stuff like that.

Doomed characters — Othello, You (Charles Benoit), The Hunger Games trilogy. A Girl Like That (Tanaz Bhathena).

Booklr Help Needed!

Ok, I know I've been completely absent, I have no excuse, I've just not been very focused the last few months. I'm going to catch up and get back on track!

But right now, I need Book Club help!! I run the book club at work, and we've been going for almost a year, but I'm running out of ideas for monthly themes.

We have a theme for each meeting, and then the members get to vote on three books that all match that theme.

Previous themes we've done are: Horror, Criminal Minds, Dark Academia, Murder Mystery, Star-Cross'd, Autobiography, Greek Mythology, Sci-Fi, Classic Lit, Hauntings, "Fae"bruary, Wanderlust.

Booklr blogs, I'd love some recommendations on themes, and some books that fit with them! Go wild - the more I have, the better!

Also, if anyone has any advice on writing discussion guides, I'd appreciate that as well - I find that really tricky!

[panlight]

if u had to imagine jakeward in any context (platonic or otherwise) as like, a major relationship, what would you imagine happening? i'm sorta curious purely because its such an ooc situation and ur sorta one of the go-tos for 'canon-compliant but not complicit' stuff like giselle

(I am so behind on asks omg)

My first thought on making Jakeward happen (either romantically or platonically) is “Bella dies.” They are both grieving her, and the reluctantly come the conclusion that the only other person who could understand their pain is their one-time rival, and they bond that way. But killing off a female character to further a man’s story isn’t generally a good look. 

So my next thought is maybe the tent scene is the impetus. Look, if SM wants to contrive a situation to get her two male leads confined to a small space and talking about their feelings all night, then she can’t complain about what fandom does with it. I don’t think it takes much of a stretch for that night to have bonded them in a weird way, and at first they’re still all resentful and “Bella is mine” about it but then they slowly realize how vulnerable they were each being with one another and either friendship or romance can bloom from there. 

This is all over-simplified, of course, because it doesn’t take into account the race and class issues SM built into their rivalry (rich, white vampire moving into the area vs poor, Indigenous boy whose people have been on the land for eons) and that leaves Jacob in a position where he absolutely does not ever have to get along with Edward, IMO. And that’s not even getting into the whole “Edward has actually killed a lot of people” stuff. Jacob not wanting to be involved with that is totally fine with me. 

But if you can work through that (or re-write it, or whatever) then they could be interesting to play with either as friends or lovers. There’s the whole hot/cold thing, but also extrovert/introvert, sunny/broody, Jacob the mechanic and Edward the musician--both create things. There’s stuff to work with there. And Jacob actually CAN, to some degree, understand the burden of Edward’s gift in a way that most other people can’t, because he does experience mind reading via the pack telepathy. So he understands knowing secrets people might not want you know and not being able to “turn off” the other voices, etc. 

[austajunk]

Komanami for the ship ask? >:)

Komanami

-Whether I ship it or not

YES YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES DO YOU KNOW HOW THIS BLOG GOT STARTED? It was started with my weird interest in this ship.

-Why I ship it or not

Honestly, I just find them interesting as each other’s parallels. Both of them seem to really understand each other and still have the dynamic “rivalry” setup that Byakuya and Kyoko do. But more than that, Nagito genuinely cares about Chiaki, but I don’t think he knows how to really express it. There’s times where he’s just weirdly protective over her and times where Chiaki puts in more of the effort to actually understand him more than the others. She can empathize with him sometimes better than even Hajime and just never holds it against him for setting her up to kill him. Not to mention, when she cradles him lovingly in the anime…

Oh and don’t forget the sparks when Chiaki was like “Actually there’s still evidence here” in the first trial and Nagito was like “… … I’m sorry… what was that?!” After that, he drank his Respect Chiaki juice. It’s awesome and tense and I love writing smut/fics where they are at odds with one another. :3

-My opinion on their canon potential (chemistry, canon interactions, etc)

Obviously we didn’t have them as a canon thing. There’s plenty of secondary canon interactions with them. And several times where Nagito is protective over Chiaki and vice versa. We know Nagito idolized her human self as an amazing source of Hope and seemed to break down as he was being brainwashed, letting his true feelings poke through as he was crying. We can speculate that this is because he genuinely messed up which is seemingly backed up by his crying out and asking Chiaki to understand and forgive him. But of course, he washes it off with claiming she’ll be a pedestal for Hope. Whether or not this is because he deeply cared for Chiaki or because his emotions are amplified by the brainwashing is the question. Personally I think it’s a lot of both.

The AI version of this is just as complicated. Nagito seems to care for Chiaki immediately, telling Hajime off for being noisy around her while she’s trying to game and being the only one to be concerned that she would guard the party against Monokuma. He also tells her to be safe and later on in the second chapter, doubles down on telling her to be careful around Fuyuhiko, not to let him get rough with her. During the first chapter trial, the two head off and Chiaki’s suggestions back Nagito into a corner. I think this is where he really starts to respect her and knows she’s one to watch out for. Afterwards, Nagito will go out of his way to praise Chiaki. He even makes it a point to steal her from their respective bf, Hajime, in the fourth chapter. But alas, he seemingly and probably smothers her, so Chiaki fled to find Hajime… only for Nagito to rush after her immediately and whine that she could be in danger!

It’s just such a funny relationship with potential. I wish there was more to pick up on, but at the same time, I’m so happy for what’s there and I’ll always talk about it!

They have a genuine chill chemistry if you want to see them in a more platonic and friendly light in canon… which I do like a lot. Canonly, I feel with all my heart that Chiaki’s love and Hope even after her death led to her classmates being reborn and able to find love with each other again with Nagito and Hajime. I think both of them still love her too.

-My opinion on fanon interpretations/fandom around it (Favorite widespread hcs, pet-peeves, etc)

Again, I think KomaNami fans in general feel like they have to be defensive. They have such lovely art and wonderful headcanons. They’re all about exploring what is there and taking it further. But of course, it’s a divisive ship because Nagito is “only gay” and I feel like a lot of biphobic rhetoric gets thrown our way. In essence, like every other group in this fandom, we all need to chill and know that we’re all valid and it’s so much fun.

We KomaNami fans are small, but I think we have amazing fics and art! And posts too. :3

[misdemeanors-are-stolen]

a recommendation of homestuck fics

long edition

these are fics i treasured enough to come back to over years of browsing homestuck content. fics that take homestuck itself, translate it beautifully into pure text, and make it something new; like a cool caterpillar into an even cooler somehow butterfly

TLDR at the bottom if you just wanna get my summary of a fic’s vibes instead of all the rambling. also, this gets long, so here’s a read more:

Like One Sundered Star by Oriflamme https://archiveofourown.org/works/869819/chapters/1670205 The longest fanfic narrative I’ve ever read, and what’s even more impressive than its 1.7+ million words is the high quality throughout the whole of the tale. I’ve avoided saying ‘fanfic’ singular because it’s actually split into three works, with the second two fics in the series being linked to at the appropriate point in the main fic; don’t go out of order, or you will be massively confused. LOSS is a fanfic of a fanfic, an AU of an AU; it sources from Real Men Wear Tights, a superhero AU centered around John and Karkat, and then adds so much to it (like reincarnation and mafia elements and horrorterror POV) that it ends up outgrowing those roots to become a fully-original fic. It’s got deep depths of characterization and introspection for every main character. The eight human kids, the twelve prominent trolls, the four guardians present, three Exiles for the beta kids’ session, all four of the Midnight crew, plus a handful of extras like the aforementioned horrorterrors - they each get a long POV section to their own. And it’s not overcluttered or crowded - nobody is forgotten in a scene, or squished somewhere awkwardly. The time travel ends up being clear enough to track, although it is very clever the way it wraps everything up, and because there are so many characters, you get to see so many interactions that never ended up happening in canon. Plus the adorable friendship between Dave and the Mayor. It defines and makes use of fraymotifs and game powers in very fitting ways, giving them weird arbitrary conditions and abilities, and clarifies what the Sylph class actually even does! Epic battles - emotional sincerity between parties and partners who really need it - John’s journey of learning to reach out to others and ask for help - the true horrors of Horrorterror possession and what can go wrong when you have such a condition - as well as slice-of-life when you have a bunch of superpowered kids living under one roof. They’re remarkably like regular kids, except traumatized, or Jade. And the side characters, such as Janine and Rose’s fellow magic practitioners, are lovable characters that pop up every so often to remind you that yes, there is a whole planet besides our main characters. I can’t even pick a favorite part, because I keep running through it all and finding things I like just as much as what could have been my favorite. What I will mention is that Dave teaches WV to make horribly inaccurate use of sign language, has a lovely platonic hate/rivalry with Karkat for half the fic, and ends up making an enemy of the Condesce. Over apple juice, that is. It’s a long read, and by the end it’s so full of thick loss and genuine concern over whether anyone’s even going to survive till the end it becomes slow reading where you have to take it all in before the next blow hits you, in the most admirable way a fic can be. I’m not typically emotional when I read, but this one got to me a good few times.

Refuge In Oblivion (series) by Adjourned https://archiveofourown.org/series/1569664 Comprised of two fics of comparable length; You Are a Refugee From an Omnicidal Empire and You Guard the Pyres of a Stillborn Universe, either of which may be read first, as they both provide context for the other.

YGTPOASU is the prequel, centered around the four beta kids. This one features a wonderful dive into sort of the actual process of playing through Sburb’s world quests; the themes, symbols, and metaphors the game uses, and a glimpse at intended boss fights and progression and all. (And quite possibly the saddest scene involving an anvil ever written.) It’s mostly told from Dave’s perspective, but does branch out for the other kids. YAARFAOE happens after YGTPOASU, but can be read first for a unique experience that becomes totally recontextualized after reading YGTPOASU next. It sits firmly on Karkat’s perspective for a while before going back to Dave, and is mostly average college life when the weird kid in shades indoors who won’t talk to anyone suddenly becomes a chatterbox around Karkat. Who he shares Sburbian Mythology 101 with. RIO hasn’t been updated since 2020 and may not be again, but it’s still a read worth your time, especially as it’s the shortest of these three fics at merely ~220,000 words. It really weaves theater magic in front of your eyes, especially in YGTPOASU, I can still feel the magic of those scenes. Hephaestus’s last challenge for his Knight, the ache of realizing what the anvil scene comes out to, the outsider’s view of Jade and Rose that really puts into perspective how terrifyingly powerful these kids are, even if it doesn’t seem so compared to the strength of the opponents they face. And it has, by quite a measure considering Like One Sundered Star is among the fics I’ve read, my favorite interpretation of in-game mechanics of Sburb; fraymotifs, power activation, the truly impressive timeline monologue in the anvil scene, and the alchemization process itself is touched on.

Dayvhe’s Broken Diamonds Club by Unda https://archiveofourown.org/works/16031783/chapters/37419350 (fic is locked to AO3 members only) Another long-haul fic at just over 1.1 million words, this one is a trollstuck, no-sgrub au that does a fantastic job turning what little we see of Alternia in canon into a whole living world, really leaning into the sci-fi alien society of it. And I can’t praise well enough how it manages to stick the trollified beta and alpha kids into Alternia’s current and old history as if they were always meant to be there. The fic centers around Sollux, Karkat, and Dayvhe (trollified Dave, as is obvious) - unlike the other fics, Sollux gets roughly 80% of the POV, with Dayvhe and Karkat sharing the other 20%. Still, the 12 main trolls and trollified human players have a large presence in this fic. The big strengths of this fic are in 1) its development and care for the alien world trolls have; taking care to remember trolls’ nocturnal nature, changing terms and expressions to fit it; plus the definitions in troll quadrants that really illustrate how, when taken seriously, they would work; and bringing in little-mentioned facts of alternia like the existence of zombies, 2) its interpersonal relationships and how these people, so flawed, still choose each other, they don’t flake off at the slightest inconvenience or distaste but continue to work to be better - or sink and fall off by refusing to. The fic’s summary does a great job of describing the start, but know that this fic ends up with full-out war between the Condesce and an Heiress or two, assisted by a famous movie director. !! It does tag a few things readers should know about, but particularly by the end it gets quite heavy, and does feature legitimate mental illness/health issues, plus torture (physical and mental), dissociation/doubting reality, and a couple other things I don’t know what to name as. If you’re unable to deal with anything in this vein, you might not want this fic.

TLDR: Like One Sundered Star starts out superheroes and ends up cycling back around to Sburb the long way around. It can’t be summarized as a humorous or plot-focused fic alone because it balances both simultaneously in a similar vein to Homestuck itself. It has sad chapters, funny chapters, despairing chapters where you can feel just how overwhelmed and outgunned these kids are, but they’re still moving forward.

Refuge In Oblivion is a two-part choose-your-starting-point series where either fic you choose first will provide half the picture, which the second fic completes beautifully; will you choose the college au where Sollux and Karkat get in over their heads with Dave right by their side; or the events leading up to that, the kids sorting through a world intertwined with what Sburb used to be and what’s on the kids’ plates now, before sending off a goodbye to one of the two.

Dayvhe’s Broken Diamonds Club is all about romance. Troll romance. Troll romance and also ludicrous levels of violence - well, not all that ludicrous if you’ve read anything about Alternia. Also turning Alternia into a whole planet, expanding on the many ‘wondrous’ horrors and tortures trolls have at their disposal, and following a rebellion against the Condesce’s rule that ends in a wildly unprecedented way.

that is actually as much as I could attempt to condense these fics to, summary-wise. i’ll have a shorter-fic list out some time whenever, these are just the three cream of the crop fics i’ve seen. genuinely if you’re just looking for good homestuck content, if you like novels and prose more than comics, go read sundered star and/or refuge in oblivion. but if you’re aching for something alternia with trolls and troll culture, dayvhe’s broken diamonds club is for you

[kitkatt0430]

cisco ramon for the "send me a character" thing

NOTP - Caitlin Snow. I love their friendship so much, but shipping them is just... weird. They've got such a sibling/platonic soulmate vibe going on; while I did attempt to get into the KillerVibe ship when I first joined the fandom, it just never clicked for me. That being said...

BROTP - Caitlin Snow. These two people love each other just so much. They're besties forever and I could see them as maybe QPPs because they're definitely each other's world. But the platonic soulmates vibe they've got going on is just the best thing ever.

OTP - Hartley Rathaway. These two have such belligerent UST. They were one of the first pairings I got super into for the show because the dynamic was just too much fun. The actors do a great job of conveying the unresolved rivalry between them and it's such a shame we never got to actually see them bury the hatchet on screen, because the hint of friendship between them in season two was just... I wanted more of that so badly. Given that Hartley was initially in the pilot script and later written out, there's a lot of 'what could have been' going on with him, which has so much fic potential.

Second Choice OTP - Harry Wells. He's a close second to Hartley as fav OTP for Cisco. There are a lot of the same relationship dynamics between Harry and Cisco as there are with Hartley and Cisco, but we actually get to see that friendship develop onscreen. To be honest, I just really seeing Cisco in sunshine and grumpy dynamics. :D

Fluffy Ship - Barry Allen. They're both sunshine boys, so I just want these two to cuddle so much. These two get so many hugs and time to be touchy-feely with each other on screen, so when that happens I go melty for Barrisco. <3

Angsty Ship - Harry Wells again. Harry has a lot of bottled up self-loathing and would likely see their age gap as being a barrier. On top of that, Harry's struggles when he becomes disabled over the course of season 4 clearly further affect Harry's feelings of self worth. Since emotional hurt/comfort is a fav trope for me, the potential for misunderstandings and emotional angst between these two is too much fun.

Fav Poly Ship - Hartley Rathaway and Lisa Snart. While Barriscowest is a close second (what with the parallels between Barry's relationships with Cisco and Iris being quite numerous) Hartley and Lisa are a favorite because they've both got that belligerent UST vibe with Cisco. And since I headcanon Lisa as being aro, the three of them cover both the romantic feels and the QPP feels for me.

Weirdest Ship - I don't really know, hm... I don't really have any crack pairings or anything like that. I think the closest would be HR. Season 3 inverted Cisco's sunshine and grumpy dynamic with Harry when it came to HR - HR was the sunshine to Cisco's grumpy. It was definitely weird, but also showed how much Cisco was struggling with his grief for Dante and the last several years of traumatic experiences. So while I haven't written any HR/Cisco yet, I do really enjoy the ship for how it plays around with the Wells/Ramon dynamic.

Bonus:

Favorite Canon Ship - Kamilla Hwang. I wasn't sure about Kamilla at first because Cisco spent the entire fifth season not really moving on from Cynthia and I will never truly get over the impression that Cisco's decision to remove his powers was an overreaction to his break up with her, all of which heavily overshadowed Kamilla's arrival on the show. But while season six struggled at first to show instead of tell when it came to Kamilla/Cisco as a couple, once they had a few episodes under their belt together they were really cute and their relationship was clearly healthy and stable.

[courtney-deserved-better]

my opinion on td finalists

spoiler alert, im not a fan of most

TDI: Owen & Gwen

uh I personally don’t like either of these guys for finalists. gwen did do a lot but there were so many times where she just acted so apathetic I was like why?? are you still here?? and as for owen... I didnt like him as a character for a Long Time and he's growing on me but he just doesnt seem like finale material

I think a duncan versus leshawna finale would've been super fun to watch. especially if they teamed up to take down heather in the semifinal. those two had such a fun dynamic, especially in the triathlon episode, that I think taking it to the finale would've been fantastic. also leshawna deserved to win that season and you cannot change my mind

TDA: Duncan & Beth

duncan, while not my first choice, I can see making it through to the finale this season. but beth?? no. im sorry but shes just too much of a side character and is canonically fake nice and annoys everyone else so it doesn’t really make sense

an interesting finale would’ve been duncan versus courtney considering how volatile their relationship was this season. however, bc courtney was kinda awful to duncan, I dont think she deserves to win this season. it would be cool if there was one ending where their votes tied and they made up and decided to split the money but that just feels too tame, both for a finale and for their dynamic

harold versus duncan could be interesting, but because duncan tends to bully harold, I dont think his win would be fair in this situation. I think lindsay versus harold would be the best, as this season is about lindsay learning to take charge and come up with strategies, and while he can be off-putting and occasionally condescending, I think harold has a lot of useful skills that could really flourish in the finale

TDWT: Heather & Alejandro

while I dont ship them at all, I truly dont think there could've been a more satisfying final two. we’ve had their rivalry build up from day one, they have a ton of good songs together, it really completes heather’s arc of antagonist to antihero to protagonist. heather winning is the best ending in my mind, but I like  alejandro winning too. the only problem I have with his ending is that it only happened because heather threw in the wrong dummy-- I think it would’ve been more clever for him to have switched them or something like that

ive been thinking about some other final twos that I think would be interesting, though unable to top the canon one imo. gwen versus courtney would be really cool because of the friends turned enemies thing-- I think it would be interesting for courtney to be put in danger and gwen has a choice of saving her or going for the money and she save courtney before apologizing again (maybe dumping duncan) and the two make up and split the money. 

though I don’t really enjoy either as characters mostly due to their writing, cody and sierra would be an interesting final two. maybe cody finally stands up to sierra, or sierra struggles with wanting to be the winner of total drama or helping the boy she likes win. it definitely wouldn't be as good as the canon two but there would be a lot of clashing dynamics at play that'd be fun to explore

TDROTI: Lightning & Cameron

admittedly, I don’t remember too much from this season, but it really felt like these two kind of coasted by. I never found lightning to be a particularly compelling character and thought it weird how he suddenly went from dumb jock to evil jock in the last episode or two. cameron really felt like he was just carried through the season, similarly to beth, though I dont have as much as an issue with him winning. I dont think it was a bad finale, per se, I just think if those were the final two they should've been written better from the start

seeing as how jo really played the game and went all in, I think she would’ve been a great finalist. it would’ve been interesting to see her versus (commando?) zoey though im not the biggest zoey fan. I think a jo versus lightning finale could actually work (or brick) though if there was a jo versus cameron finale, I couldn't see him logically winning bc jo would just destroy him

TDAS: Mike & Zoey

*BIG FUCKING INHALE* no. just no. im probably not gonna say anything that’s not already been said so ill keep it short. bland, mal writing bad, have someone who's been in the game for 3 previous seasons instead of  1 make it to the ALL STARS FINALE. jfc.

you know what would’ve been an interesting finale? gwen versus courtney. they both said they wanted to reach the final two with the other one, so maybe they do! maybe they start to struggle with their friendship because of courtney’s competitive streak! maybe one of their helpers is duncan and that causes strife between them! maybe they become enemies again and don’t make up until the finale! maybe they decide to split the money! idk! it would've had a hell of a  lot more flavor than what we got

TDPI: Shawn & Sky

I don’t really have an issue with either of these characters making it to the finale. they’re compelling, worked hard, and have distinct goals. I would’ve liked to see jasmine in the finale but I'd be cool replacing either one with her: jasmine and shawn having to compete against one another would be an interesting relationship hurdle and sky versus jasmine would've been cool because they’re both very athletic and it would’ve been the first f vs f total drama finale (we've had m vs f and m vs m but no all-girl finales...)

TDRR: Surfer Dudes & Police Cadets

Again, I don’t really have an issue with this finale. I really like how Sanders and MacArthur both work hard in their own ways and have to learn how to work together (MacArthur breaking Sanders’ arm and realizing that she can negatively affect her partner and also that Sanders is super tough was a GREAT arc). I know there’s been some contention about the Surfer Dudes being eliminated and then coming back so late in the game, but it made sense to me. They chose to lose because they felt that they owed it to Devin and Carrie, and that choice paid off when Devin and Carrie called in a replacement team. I doubt the surfers expected that to happen, they were just trying to be fair, but that kindness was rewarded in a big way which I think was sweet, especially  considering how much of a hot mess this show can be. 

I gotta say, this does kinda remind me of the TDI finale, with the villain (heather/ice dancers) getting eliminated third, and their rival (gwen/police cadets) making it to the finale with the fun guy (owen/surfer dudes). The reason I like the Surfer Dudes as finalists more than Owen is that I felt they put in more effort during challenges and had more of an arc (with Josee’s mind games ending up bonding them as a team after strife, choosing to be eliminated for the sake of fairness, etc). 

Speaking of Owen, it’s kind of ironic that if I had to replace a team in the finale, I would replace the surfer dudes with the reality tv pros. they’re my favorite team and I think it wouldve been great for them to really live up to their name. I think it also would've been funny for the ice dancers to be so focused on their rivalry with the cadets that the pros just completely go under their radar until its the final three and the ice dancers are like “oh crap they’re PROS why haven't we been trying to destroy them??”

I also wouldn't mind replacing the surfer dudes with the sisters. I know emma gets a lot of hate (mostly because of nemma which I only like platonically) but I actually like her as a character (when she wasn’t being obsessive) and I think she and kitty were a great team that had a good arc of learning to work together. I also think it would be really interesting because for the final three they would all have rivalries with one another: the police cadets and the ice dancers (obvious) the ice dancers and the sisters (josee messed with them in at least 2 challenges) and the sister and the police cadets (kitty and macarthur’s game/road rage was hilarious)

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

*Cackling* Now rank your ot3's!

*long sigh*

SECTION 1:

Yes, there are sections, this is a list of 20 things. I like to be organized. These ones I seek out. I like them. I actively enjoy them on purpose.

1. Roloceit: My BOYS. Are these my 3 favorites? perhaps. You can't prove anything (you sure can, just look at my goddamn Ao3). Something about the dynamics here is just...so good for me? The combination of fluff/angst/multi-talented braincells is wonderful. I need these three to watch a documentary and tear it to absolute pieces. Also they would be so good at...actually having methods of supporting each other??? I love them.

2. Analogince: in the same vein, the SNARK. THE SASS. THE GROUPCHAT THAT WE ALL KNOW EXISTS THAT IS SOO OVERLOADED WITH SALT THAT IT'S A DEHYDRATION RISK. Also healthy communication??? supportive signifs??? good shit

3. Anxcietmus: The Dark Sides™. Again, I think these three just get each other. That means great fluff and great angst possibilities ABOUND and especially when it comes to being a menace in the rest of the mindscape. Yes. Good. Have fun.

4. Intruloceit: Someone please make this nerd take a fucking break for once. The chaos of leading what you THINK is a stuck-up buttoned-up nerd only to feel such an odd mixture of pride and mortal terror at discovering a TRUE mad scientist. Yes. Logan deserves to go ape-shit. Let him.

5. Analoceit: Did someone ask for some amused gay judgement? You got the whole scale here, Distinguished, Functional, and Disaster. They don't need the group chat because they can do it with just a look. Perfect. Wonderful.

6. Intruloxiety: slightly less snark, which is why it's ranked lower, but I don't think it would be any less supportive. Between the three of them I think they'd have a conversation about boundaries right up front and constantly be checking in with each other. Which is good!! Please do this!!

7. Loroyality (am i making up some of these names as I go? yes): The Light Sides™! The reason this is ranked lower is because I think they've got some in-canon struggles that would take some time and effort (from errybody) to sort out before I would consider this relationship healthy, but after that? Forget it. We vomiting sushine and rainbows and our teeth hurt from how sweet they are. I have faith in them.

8. Royaliceit: *sniff sniff* did someone say ANGST??? This is the only one I put up here that I mainly look for to get angst because BOY HOWDY. Especially post-POF? Roman you poor thing why do I project so strongly onto you, my god. This is a MESS and they need to do WORK to FIX IT but it's all about the misunderstanding and the healing and oh my god please someone tell Roman his worth is not based on how well his work is received please. Also if you're like me and you subscribe to the headcanon that the last time Patton and Janus agreed on something it was to stay in the closet as long as possible...*choo choo bitches angst town here we come*

SECTION 2:

These ones I don't actively seek out but you know?? For a headcanon post? They seem pretty chill. Haven't devoted a lot of brainpower to 'em, just think they're neat.

9. Moloceit (my keyboard is so confused you guys): Now THIS. THIS is the obnoxious trio of philosophy majors that ALWAYS hog the good library table. Someone will say ONE GODDAMN thing and they'll be talking about ontology and subjectivity for hours. It's impossible to tell whether or not they're being serious when they do it. As a most-definitely-not-a-philosophy-student, no. I mean, yes but no.

10. Anaroceit: you know those fucking divas that strut into the mall like they own the goddamn place? These bastards. They are the Heathers (except actually decent people) and you will not get between them and their purchases. If you come after one of them the other will overprotective the fuck out of them and rip you to shreds. You might be worried sometimes that they're hurting each other but they do actually talk about their boundaries. solid 7/10.

11. Analogicality: (whoa, we're halfway there...): These three just seem like they'd be super domestic. Not that it wouldn't also be adorable, but just kinda...routine? Virgil doesn't like new shit, Logan likes a schedule, and Patton enjoys doing things together in 'traditions.' Some spice but they're all fairly level-headed so...the most they get is screaming out songs with the windows down (WHOA LIVIN' ON A PRAYER)

12: Intrulogicality: You know those scenarios where you got Person A who runs headlong into crazy bullshit, Person B who likes to pretend they're not as into the crazy bullshit as Person A but is, and Person C who gets dragged into shit? There you go.

13: Anxmoceit: I think once they all sat down and had a conversation they might actually be decent??? But I can't stop seeing Patton and Janus coparenting Virgil so it stays platonic in my head. (listen i don't kinkshame but i am aroace, that does limit me a bit when it comes to this bag of nonsense)

14. Intrumoceit: Again, LONG conversation, but it's better to have one crazy dumbass whom you both love but please stop giving up heart attacks every two seconds bb we can't deal with these palpitations. I think this would require SO much work on Patton's end to make this healthy that I can't see it very clearly.

15. Intrumoxiety: This one I put down here because while Janus isn't the best at being straightforward (or straight) he DOES understand himself enough to actually have a productive conversation when he has to. I think Virgil would be too caught up between the dynamic of Patton and Remus for it to be healthy for him, especially at the beginning. It would end up dumping too much of the conflict resolution into his court and uh...no. No thanks. Do I think they COULD make it work? Yes, of course, but I wouldn't seek it out.

16. Anaroyality: Uhhh yeah they exist. Y'all gotta do some work to establish good boundaries but yeah, I think you could do it. Have a makeup day where everybody just fucks shit UP at a Sephora or an Ulta and try crazy looks on each other. You could do it. I believe in you.

SECTION 3:

These are the ones I will actively avoid, more often than not. If they're not handled carefully--which is not the responsibility of other creators, I take full blame, this is just how I personally interpret them--they can squick me out. The ones with Roman and Remus are down here, and as a disclaimer, this isn't because I view poly relationships where not all parties are dating each other as inherently inferior, not at all. I just think that within a relationship where both Roman and Remus are dating the same person, that has the potential to go REAL bad REAL quick.

17. Intrulogince: Do I want to see Roman and Remus playfully competing to win the favor of our favorite nerd? yes. Do I think it would end up aggravating the rivalry they already had to really bad places? Also yes. Either with Roman backing off and internalizing the idea that he's not good enough or by exploding on both of them. It's a bad time. No. That being said, I have seen things where Logan is just spoiled by incredible things made in the Imagination and those are very sweet. a good time.

18. Intruprinxiety (that looks so weird when it's spelled out, oh my god it sounded so much better in my head): Again, exacerbating a pre-existing rivalry, oh dear me, and this time poor Virgil's caught in the middle? a mess. There is also the potential for them to be childhood friends to lovers which would be very sweet but the overlap with all of their combined histories are...a lot of baggage. Like so much.

19. Intruroceit: The only way I can see this happening is Roman's inadequacy issues and abandonment issues going THROUGH THE FUCKING ROOF and it would force Remus into being a pseudo-therapist for them and Janus your habit of messing with Roman needs to gtfo right the fuck now.

20. Intruroyality: is anyone surprised that this one is my least favorite? Between the squicks I get from Patton as a character, the relationship between Patton and both of the twins in canon, and how much baggage Roman and Remus have...no. Absolutely not. I have horrible memories of some very toxic relationships that I can absolutely see here and no.

*phew* that was a long one. you're welcome.

EDIT: thank you @shinekittenace for names seriously this post is a mess