#but that aside this is really funny i wouldn't mind little scenes like this being added to reload tbh. not too many but def a few

[princekirijo]

I just had a random thought and felt like I had to share with someone.

You remember in Persona 3, that one optional exchange when you talk to Ken about coffee and what you put in it? And you can joke and say you put hot sauce in there and Ken genuinely can't tell if you're joking or not and it kinda freaks him out?

Well, I was thinking about how I hope small things like that are kept in for P3R and then I thought: Minato strikes me as one of those really adventurous types of eaters. Not the ones who will actively search for new things to try, but the ones who see something weird put in front of them and go "... Eh, fuck it, I'll give it a try" so do you think he'd ever just actually put hot sauce in his coffee and drink it in front of Ken just to mess with him?

Don't ask me how my brain went to this, I have no idea.

Help this is actually so funny 😭 no because I know the exact dialogue option you're talking about and it's really cute and funny and I can TOTALLY see him doing that to mess with Ken.

How I'd imagine it going down is like: Ken comes down one morning and sees Minato making coffee. Minato sees Ken, sees his coffee and thinks "hmm. yeah". Then, while making eye contact with Ken the entire time, he reaches to the cupboard, pulls out the hot sauce, adds it to the coffee and takes a huge gulp without saying a single word. Swallows it down the hatch all while Ken is just standing there mouth open because like what would you say to that 💀

Then I can imagine either Minato actually sitting down and enjoying it OR he just slowly leaves the room doing his best to keep his composure until he walks into the bathroom and immediately gags because while the look on Ken's face was worth it... the taste probably wasn't 😭

[anonzentimes]

Hello!

What is your opinion on danganronpa 2.5?

hello anon! thank you SO MUCH letting me ramble!!! :)

I really do love Danganronpa 2.5, I think it's really cool that they explain more how everyone was waken up, I also adore that the plot is based off of statements in Danganronpa 2 only elaborating and exploring them more. Not only that, but they make it all about Nagito who's the same character that is complex enough to have three entire songs haha!! So it works out well.

2.5 reverses Nagito's luck cycle which makes it easier to understand and I really love it. It also adds the statement that truly Nagito would rather have his luck not harm others but rather help them and harm himself, there's also the detail that Nagito's luck is so prominent in his life that even in a world made by his subconscious it is always there. It also implies he deep down wishes talent didn't exist which is something he'd never admit or even know he felt with his unhealthy obsession and dedication with hope and the ultimates!!!

I really enjoy world destroyer too, I think his scenes are very interesting, like, ok man thanks for pulling up with your FINGER GUNS??? It's super cool!! His design is pretty interesting too even if it's just adding to Hajime's preexisting one.

I also like the detail that alongside Nagito's own death the memories that he remembers most vividly is Hajime's smile and his time with him which is just very sweet

The moments with Makoto and Sayaka being out of character because Nagito views them, especially Makoto, so highly is super funny too. Kazuichi and Fuyuhiko's friendship is also fun and something we don't get to see often! The background characters we get to see are also just very fun.

I find it really interesting that by swapping Nagito's belief with the opposite it's basically telling what the genuine issue is in their world because his beliefs stems from the flawed ideals of hope's peak. The issue in their world isn't the talentless, it's the talented. No one is happy, talentless people feel worthless, and being talented is exhausting in its own way. All of the social pressure of not being treated as humans being at its most extreme in this world is upsetting for most everyone.

also this Parallel makes me lose my MIND!!!!!!

Danganronpa 2.5 has a lot of REALLY good stuff going on for it, I think the only complaint I see about it is Nagito's "contradiction," which I'll talk a little bit about!

Basically, people like to point out that with Nagito's suicide plan he should have been more upset, "He never believed in Hajime though?"

I've seen a few pretty good interpretations of it, but the one I think makes most sense is that he was talking more to Izuru kamakura since he had gotten his memories back. Nagito's old and new memories merge together, he remembers pretty much everything. Which is why he sees Izuru first, then corrects himself seeing Hajime, and Hajime replies that they're both him.

Nagito then says he knew he'd make it to the lowest stratum, and that he believed in him. Basically saying that Izuru could do anything.

Maybe he believed the supposedly Bad luck from going into the Neo World Program would end up in Good luck? It's unclear a bit, but I definitely believe he's talking to Izuru a bit at the very least. Mostly because if he believed in Hajime in the killing game his luck cycle wouldn't have gone, good luck: the traitor was selected, bad luck: the plan didn't work and they lived.

Nagito has known Hajime and Izuru now and accepts him for who he is. It's honestly really sweet. Hajime himself has grown and accepts Nagito for who he is as well. They both forgive each other and it's just really sweet. They've been through a lot!

Overall little rambles aside, I think Danganronpa 2.5 is really lovely. It adds more to Nagito's character, tells more information about how the class woke up while using actual text from Danganronpa 2, and is just super fun! I love Danganronpa 2.5 a lot.

[mikailys]

MCL NewGen Ep 7 Commentary

Since there's a lot to cover I think it's for the best doing a full post, so under the cut you go~

First thing first, I have actually liked it, a lot. The whole fake dating situation is hilarious, as the continuous teasing between Candy and Mr. Mendal. In some points it kinda took a toll on me and I had to physically stop the game, get up and go taking a walk around the house because the second-hand embarassement was really something, but despite everything it was enjoyable.

I read some players didn't like the fact it was way shorter than the others but I didn't really mind it. It had everything I expected and even more. Nonetheless I have to agree with the ending, it could have been a little lesser rushed but as for the things were unfolding on Jason's route, that was for the best. I liked how Candy rushed out of the apartment without a caring in the world, leaving Jason and the realtor discussing in there lol

I won't spend a lot of words on how Candy "decided" it was the right moment to move out, I understand she wants her autonomy and indipendence but the Tasha's sketch wasn't a good example. If such a scene had happened in irl, it would have had a different ending. Certainly my mother wouldn't have defended her knowing that I would have to go to work while my sibling is messing around, trying some TikTok trend in the only bathroom of the mansion. But alas that's how they do it in the Dolga's household and, as a consequence, Candy has to wash herself in the kitchen sink... I feel for you love :/

Anyway, leaving this nonsense aside, the whole visit to the apartment was a nice, peculiar emotional rollercoaster. Starting with a Jason who blindly agrees to pretend to be our fianceè, to a Candy who has to pretend to be his mistress. Damn, Jason really? You didn't have any other ideas in that pretty head of yours? What were the chances...

And so begins the banter between the two, with a pinch of sexual references. At the beginning, they were funny, ngl — I was a bit shocked to hear such innuendos from Jason already, but that's fine, I'm not complaining AT ALL.

However, the problem was their excessive repetition, and given the context, they were totally out of pocket rip realtor who had to witness this whole charade, I would ask for a raise for the hours wasted with these two

As they say, the joke's gone far enough and Candy, after being humiliated for the thousandth time, goes apeshit with JayJay. I really appreciated when she dropped the act and demanded some respect. Knowing her backstory it's obvious that hearing all those mean things and having to play the role of the mistress, even if only for pretend, brought her sorrow and unpleasant memories Ioan when I catch you, you filthy worm >:(

Unfortunately, Jason doesn't realize the gravity of the situation he created and continues to tease her until Candy finally bursts into tears and tells him about her past with Ioan. I loved how as soon as she tells him, his expression completely changes, and he suddenly slips into the who did this to you trope.

I mean- LOOK AT HIS FACE, LOOK AT THE SUDDEN CHANGE OF EXPRESSION WHEN HE HEARS ABOUT IT UGHSKJSNKA I LOVE HIM SM AGENT

And so we get the special scene. I think it's one of my favorites; it's the first time we see Jason being so distressed and regretful while apologizing to Candy and carefully wiping her tears. BEAUTIFUL.

I love when my men beg for forgiveness.

After the special scene Candy cheers up, even if still pissed at Jason, decides to forgive him because, quoting her verbatim, she "doesn't want to stay angry with him indefinitely" oh dear you're also so down bad

Also, it seems that Jason already knew Ioan's last name, and it also seems that he wants to make him pay. I'm totally in for whatever form of revenge you pick dear, 'cause he deserves it. A bummer though that my Goldreamz and EPMC collab headcanon will remain only a mere headcanon :(

The episodes ends with the poor, traumatised realtor kicking us out of the apartment and Jason, who is trying to talk business with him (maybe he wants to pay her back for ruining the visit and giving her a second chance to rent the apartment?), while Candy is running out with tail between her legs, ready to start the afternoon work shift. 🙃

What an eventful lunch break it has been, uh?

Anyhow, the next ep leaves me confused?? Although I don't like Roy and I don't want to know anything about his weird swimming practices — I'm curious in how they're going to include Jason with such a peculiar plot. 🤔

[kingdomoftyto]

I've started and deleted three drafts now trying to get my thoughts into a coherent recommendation, but there's just so much.

Let's start with the basics: You should read the graphic novel if you're a fan of the original show. You just should. It's new content of your old faves, and I'm telling you now that the art and writing are great and that you should give it a shot based on that alone.

But as for exactly why I'm losing my mind over it this much...?

It... feels like watching the show. But a version of the show unafraid to explore its own worldbuilding. A version of the show where continuity and character growth matter. A version of the show without jokes written by people far too old to understand mid-2000s teens.

And it is actually, honest-to-goodness funny. I went in fully braced for a badly shoehorned "fruit loop" one-liner, and instead I got incredible deadpan asides like this:

The art, too, manages to perfectly ride the line of looking enough like the original style to be convincing, but improving on the expressiveness of the characters' faces and actions to elevate it to something arguably better than the show:

(Like, I'm being so serious when I say the fight scenes are among the best I have ever seen in comic form. I'm the kind of person who tends to go for anime over manga because the fights are harder for me to follow in little sequential snapshots, but I can tell exactly what's happening in these battles AND they still look super cinematic and cool.)

And the story. Man, the STORY.

I won't spoil any of the plot here, but it's... really good. A little winding and goofy toward the beginning, but once things get serious, it really grabs you and refuses to let go til it's done. (Much like the best episodes of the show! Funny how that works.) It has a satisfying conclusion, but it also leaves a massive door open to continue telling more stories in the setting.

And I want more stories in this universe. The threads being dangled here might be even more enticing than those left by the original show. There is potential here for an INCREDIBLE series of comics.

We just have to prove how badly we want it.

If you can't buy the book yourself right now (it's relatively cheap for a graphic novel--I think it was about $15 even with tax from my Barnes & Noble), then please at least let other fans know it exists (I wouldn't have had any idea if not for tumblr) and keep the hype going on social media. I'm stoked to see that DP is trending on tumblr, at least, and I hope the same is true elsewhere. It's a small thing, but it's something corporate decision-makers take note of.

Fingers crossed we get to see more someday. This is one series that deserves to come back from the dead.

But, whether or not we get that continuation: welcome back, Phandom. Congrats and happy release day. 💚

[mundrakan]

Author interview tag

I was tagged by @thistlecatfics and it makes me very happy that she thought of me :D

total works: 428 at the current moment, though there are already works to be published on my harddrive

total word count: 2,152,780 (OMG)

your top 5 stories by kudos/likes?

Opposites attract (Regulus/Harry, postwar trauma healing)

The Spin (Harry/Theo, spicy romance)

I died but I got better (The Old Guard, Nicky/Joe, AU, self discovery spanning hundreds of years)

Half a soul (James/Tom, Soulmate AU)

Happy birthday sweet sixteen (Harry/Sirius, festfic)

do you respond to comments?

Almost immediately, though I often feel like I am not doing them justice.

what's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Uh... that's a hard one. I have written SO much Angst. The most likely candidate are probably Guilt and shame (Sirius/Voldemort) though that feels a little cracky to me, and Window of opportunity (Sirius/Severus)

what's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

I don't really do HEA, and all my happy endings have at least a sprinkle of sadness or at least scars from what was going on before. I think the most hopeful is probably Advent Calendar, a Drarry with Christmassy feeling and a soft ending.

do you write crossovers?

There is one WIP on my harddrive. That aside....

have you ever received hate on a fic?

I wouldn't say hate. Some people were upset about how I characterized their blorbos (faulty, how dare I), but real hatred? No. Maybe I am just too weird to get when someone means it hateful.

do you write smut?

OH yes!

have you ever had a fic stolen?

yep, unauthorized translation. My Russian is too bad to get it taken down (and I would have ALLOWED it, if they only asked)

have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, as mentioned in Russian, but also in Spanish and Czech.

have you ever co-written a fic before?

As of yet, no... though I would love to work with some people

what's a wip that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

A Black family project, where the younger generation unites to prevent being used as pawns by their parents and grandparents.

Oh yeah.. and the Arturian legend fic (Modred/Galahad) that i so want to write)

what are your writing strengths?

Emotion, Dialogue, description (when I bother), characterization

what are your writing weaknesses?

Fight scenes. They are my nemesis. I never seem to get them right (and I am doing a good deal of LARP, so I know how fights work in general)

Comedy. I can't be funny on command.

what are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

No strong feelings here. I have done it either way, both translated and with only translations in the footnotes, and both are valid.

what's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

Discworld, my forever unachieved goal. WIth how I struggle to write funny, I just couldn't do it justice.

what's your favourite fic you've written?

Impossible to choose just one. Even Categories don't do it justice. Also: it depends on my current state of mind, which I think is best.

But: I cannot resist showing off at least a few of my personal candidates.

Love thy enemy (Mordred/Galahad, one-shot)

Bad things (Fenrir/Sirius, and the start of my obsession - thank you so much @metalomagnetic, it's your fault)

And because it will forever and always appear in any of these lists:

Imperfections (Sirius/Severus - my first real attempt of writing them, and still holding a special place in my heart)

I tag @metalomagnetic, @meloms-ao3, @squintclover and @fictionalsimp09 no pressure :D

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Ep. 8 "Bad Territory" Review

This episode was honestly the fluff I needed after last week's tense and crazy two parter. There was the usual action and excitement, but I loved the amount of fluff we got. Omega is forever our little ray of sunshine. I feel a bad feeling that it's going to get much darker after this week so I'll take any fluff I can get.

As always, spoilers below

It was really cool to see Fennec again and it makes senes that out of all the bounty hunters, the boys would choose to seek her out. She was originally after Omega, but she's not needlessly cruel like Cad Bane. If Omega's life were truly in danger, I don't think Fennec would want to see her get hurt. Cad Bane wouldn't give a second thought about it. Speaking of the ending, I definitely think she was talking to Ventress or someone like Quinlan. After all, Ventress is a Force-wielder and could be connected to whatever Hemlock is doing.

Overall, I really liked the interactions between her, Hunter, and Wrecker. Their banter was great and the joke about the Batch being straight up broke had me cackling. Like yes, these 5 guys with a kid are clearly enjoying Space Greece or whatever the fandom calls it. They're not gonna be looking for jobs right now. I also enjoyed seeing the boys use their skills like Wrecker's demolitions knowledge again. It's been so, so long since we've seen the boys go on a classic mission. That's not a bad thing either to have an "adventure of the week" style episode. It was cool to see them back in action (you know, non lethally).

The environment looked great, Wrecker and Hunter throwing hands with gators was pretty epic, and the final fight with the other bounty hunter (?) was exciting. I'll admit, the antagonist's design was cool and it allowed from some fun fight choreography.

Shoutout to the Phee cameo btw! Love seeing her as always. I think she'll be back after the Pabu invasion or she'll be back in time for that event to happen. Crosshair not knowing who she or Fennec was though was pretty funny. He's missed so much. (Also, this is the first time we hear him call Echo by his name fun fact).

Of course, Crosshair and Omega were the standouts because their dynamic is just that good. They're finally getting Crosshair's hand addressed! And I'm so glad Hunter stepped up to make sure it got looked at. Hunter loves Crosshair despite the past and he will look out for him. As many of us thought already, Crosshair's tremors are psychosomatic. We don't what happened on Tantiss (aside from some vague details), but whatever it was, it was bad; real bad. Crosshair is afraid of talking about it because it hurts. His reactions to even thinking about it were heartbreaking.

My theory is that Hemlock did something that broke a part of his identity. Maybe the identity erasure almost worked. Maybe he had Crosshair kill someone during a trial session to see if the reconditioning worked. Whatever it was, it traumatized Crosshair (on top of everything else he went through). For Crosshair to move forward, he's going to have to confront his trauma. He'll need to accept what happened to him and learn that it doesn't define who he is now.

Omega is so gentle and patient with him; I absolutely love it. She doesn't push him nor does she just leave him to get trapped in his mind. Instead, she tries to teach him coping mechanisms. The way he trusts her is so good too. Crosshair doesn't know what to do, but here is sister whom he loves. She's never left his side since they were imprisoned together and she was the only one who really advocated for him back in season 1. This girl loves him and he loves her. The scene where she holds his hand because it won't stop trembling genuinely means so much to me. It's such a small gesture that means so much. I really do appreciate that the writers are taking their time to show Crosshair going through the healing process. His hand doesn't get magically fixed because he escaped Tantiss nor because he redeemed himself. He achieved that. Now, he needs to finish the rest of his journey. AZI even mentions that it could be permanent. Real life mental health issues don't disappear in one night nor do they go away permanently. It comes and goes and that's what Crosshair will have to do. He'll have to cope with his trauma and hopefully the tremor will steady over time.

Many have pointed it out, but I would love to see a scene with him and Echo. Echo understands Crosshair's plight as he too was held captive and subjected to horrific experiments. I hope we get a scene between them where Echo comforts him. It would be a nice moment between two characters who often don't interact much.

Aside from that, the animation and music were great as always. That last scene of Cross and Omega meditating while Pabu's sun begins to set is truly gorgeous and it might be my favorite landscape shot of the show. It's also reminiscent of Hunter and Crosshair together on Barton IV. I am truly so happy to see Crosshair finding peace and happiness after so long. I honestly never thought we'd see him like this. But now, we do. (Side note: he looks so much smaller and vulnerable without his backpack or shoulder pads).

Anyways, I could go on and on about Crosshair. But I'll save that for another post. Can't wait for next week and hopefully we'll see Ventress!

[megaawkwardhuman]

shit you not I've been really sleepy all day and so my tired ass didn't prosses that new image of nandor and guillermo was new until like five seconds ago after I took a nap

anyway not here to talk about this image WIJNJJNEJJNDNDJND NEW SHIT LET'S GOOOO

despite it all being like what 10 seconds of new footage over all THATS STILL ENOUGH FOR ME TO LOOK TOO DEEP INTO THIS LMAO

note: pulling all of these images from this post cuz I'm still a little eppy and while yeah I've seen the video these are from I'm not going to sit through it over and over again for screenshots

first things first not going in order

HELLOOOOOOOOOOO

my main question is does this mean nandor KNOWS what's going with guillermo or is laszlo and guillermo basically doing that thing where you give your sibling an unplugged controller and act like they're helping?

maybe if he doesn't know they're framing it as guillermo testing vampire myths with laszlo?

also LJDFSNSOJNBSQOJBOJBO OMFG THEY'RE BRINGING IN THE WHOLE VAMPIRES LIKE TO COUNT GRAINS THING LMAOOOOOO

this is one of my fav not that commonly used pieces of vampire lore just cuz of how funny it is

like imagine being chased by a hot vampire and then seeing them pausing just to count a small pile of rice on the ground

damn didn't expect them to show guillermo blowing nandor on camera

ok bad joke aside this is a cool shot

I'm assuming this is sometime after the colin X nadja scene?

maybe colin backed down and nadja is pissed? idk

imagine if you show up to a date and she pulls out a talking doll that looks like her (I mean I wouldn't mind but I think most people would)

this just confirms (as if it hasn't been basically confirmed already) that the nadja dating shit is mainly for doll nadja

I have nothing to say about this I just wanted to take a moment to appreciate this screenshot of nandor :)

also RINGS-

aaaand that's all I'm going to talk about since the rest is just too short from me to really read into if there's anything to read into

[radio-writes]

Hellish day, you darling sinners!

After internally struggling with wanting to answer asks, while also not wanting to spam your dashes, I've decided to just compile some of them into one ridiculously long post.

Oh, stop peeking into my WIPs folder anon. You wouldn't want to spoil yourself now—that's my job!

None at the moment. But I am starting to see the allure of another Hazbin Hotel man, so maybe I'll be considering it in the future.

Unfortunately, it is not Vox. Sorry, anon.

I hid your identity for your own safety because the internet can be such a weird place.

I actually like the little guy too, and I fear I'm far too old for cringe culture. But not liking something is also valid, don't worry about it!

I am really sorry if I skip over your comments or asks, I promise it's nothing personal! I likely just did not see it or forgot to reply entirely!

Or I simply do not know how to respond to it

I don't have any plans for writing for ships, really.

But I do like a few!

Huskerdusk makes my heart go soft and it's really a comfort ship for me.

Radioapple is weird, in a way that I absolutely do not want them romantically or sexually involved ever, but I do love their enemies to pettier enemies dynamic. Soulmates in a "one was made to piss off the other" kind of way.

Radiosilence I absolutely adore. And honestly if it isn't canon I think I—and a great deal of the fandom—would genuinely be shocked.

Oh, you're not wrong at all, anon! I did love it!

I searched it up shortly after musical divorce anon sent the song in. I've had Hermes' song on repeat for a while now actually!

The funny part is, I do!

Sometimes my tired brain just doesn't catch all mistakes still.

But be rude to me again, anon, and I'll proof read you

Why, hello there! Are you new to the internet, dear fellow? Just kidding, of course!

Jokes aside, dear anon. I'm just more used to darker themes when it comes to writing. The plot just flows easier for me.

Not the same with fluff. When I think of fluffy scenarios, all that comes out is screaming and cuteness aggression.

I'm just going to run with this as a compliment from now on.

Thank you, lovely anon!

I do, actually! But I cannot draw to save my life so she'll just remain in my head I suppose.

I named her Venison because I want the Alastor to eat me.

Ending with these two lovely messages.

Truth be told, I, being bi and a little hyper sexual, didn't really intend to write the smut pieces with Alastor's canon sexuality in mind.

I really just wrote how I thought Al would be like during those scenes, but I am very glad that it translated to such a way anyway!

Thank you all so much for your support so far! I hope I can continue to provide wonderful entertainment for all your depraved little hearts.

[hazbinshusk]

first of all hai hello i updated my pinned post if u wanna know more ab me n the shit i'm into second of all i canNOT stop thinking about the dancing scene. soft blitz is real and i LOOOOVE it with this new material i'm thinking about what his love languages might be... hmmm... i mean acts of service for sure i saw one post, though i can't remember who it was from- they talked ab the idea of blitz's love language being like- giving attention? mayhaps? anyway that aside, now that i'm somewhat geared up for writing, it'll probably be just a bunch of self-ship dialogue and rambles for blitz x the hopeless romantic and sensitive sinner but I'M SO EXCITED????

this COULD be an idea for you, i might write something for it as well, but i think a good start could be introducing/combining christmas/holiday of choice and sinsmas traditions, like different foods or activities, that could give you some soft stuff to branch off of since the holidays make me feel warm n comfy-cozy sometimes :3

thought about making pinterest boards again,,, i'd be happy to make some for stuff you write or for help with scenes or settings if you want cuz i REALLY like making pinterest boards and it helps me a lot with my idea process,,, it may not be exactly what you envision because we're different people n all that but maybe just for funsies :3

sorry this is like a whole sandwich worth of shit but i woke up with the need to WRITE !!

clo! I meant to reply to this and then I was like, no, wait 'til you have enough time to answer it properly and then got distracted by the holiday and whoops it's midnight but here I am! 😅

that dance has been living rent free in my mind since I watched it. I feel like I've watched it at least once an hour every hour since then?? because they're just so soft and warm and blitz's voice in the scene and omg brandon how do you go from "get your hands off my bottom biiiiitch" to the softness of "only as creative as you were flexible" and not expect me to like, die?

I feel like blitz has like, most of the love languages in his repetoire, which is ridiculous considering how emotionally constipated the lizard usually is lol. I think definitely physical touch and acts of service, and I'd say quality time too (having moxxie and millie days on his calendar, and honestly in the last episode words of affirmation seems like a big one (honestly, not a surprise when you look at how he talks to his loony-toony lol). I wouldn't be surprised if he hits all of them and gift-giving is one too, even if they're weird gifts. Like his version of a cat bringing you dead things because it loves you lmao.

I can't wait to see what you come up with! I feel like I'm not seeing as much blitz x reader content as I was when I first joined the fandom, which makes me sad. I need more of it!

It's so funny that you're idea is so similar to that christmas fic request I just put out today lol. I definitely need to write more cuddly blitz fics, just curled up together and sharing space. ugh, little gremlin man I love yoooou.

that would be amazing! I've never really had anyone make anything based on my writing! (I had a friend who would make banners for me back when I wrote spuffy fic for buffy the vampire slayer though). I would love to see what you come up with - it'll tell me how accurate my descriptive writing is lol!

Happy holidays bb!

[mc-i-r]

Hi hi hi!!! On the bandwagon to say how good Disposable Heroes is! (also - what a title!) I love how this take exposes everyone's biases in such a casual way, that through something minor, it snowballs. Not a single person (adult or kids alike) thinks to check on Steve, that one misunderstanding becomes an excuse to treat Steve how they truly view him (ie, still an asshole, taking digs at his personality and intelligence, how easily they distance themselves after everything he's done for them with zero regards to his well-being and feelings.) Thinking of the party trying to defend themselves by downplaying Steve's part in everything, only to have it pointed out that half of them wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for Steve - but how it also extends past mortal danger as well, all the outings, check ins, lunch and arcade money, a shoulder to cry on, someone to talk to - And everyone now being forced to confront these biases, that Steve isn't a two dimensional NPC they can recruit whenever they need a tank, devoid of feelings or emotion outside of them. That he's been struggling with the trauma of this shit too. I love your exploration of Steve's character - how he's alarmingly aware and observant of the people around him, how he assesses quietly and chooses to take action for better (despite it maybe not being reciprocated - that scene in Family Video where Steve is so earnest with Eddie... it broke my heart.) It feels so true to his writing, even all the way back to S1/S2 when he realises where he went wrong, tries to make up for it. Also the angst, the good good angst! Dying to read when Eddie finds out Steve's true feelings and what Steve's had to endure this entire time... and how harmful the King Steve moniker actually is. Selfishly, I want the party (+ extended) to grovel a bit to earn back his friendship - but I love that your version has one steadfast Robin Buckley by Steve's side. Such a good premise!!! Sorry for such along ask haha, i got excited. I'd love to be tagged for future updates! - @foundintheshallows

Thank you so much! It amazes me how much positive feedback I'm getting from Heroes, it truly feels surreal. The fact that so many people are liking it is insane to me but it's definitely encouraging me to keep writing more!

Funny little thing about the title, it's actually based on a Metallica song from Master of Puppets! I was listening to the album when I was writing one day and as soon as I was trying to think of a good title, this song came on and the lyrics just... Fit. It's not super important, but I think it's kinda cool :)

That's something I really wanted to express, how people's biases never really go away despite knowing or thinking otherwise. I wanted to show that bias can hurt a person, even when you don't think about it or actively do it. Steve gets hit with a lot of that since his character was one who had a rough past, so I really wanted to drive the point home that even though people can change, they can still get hurt.

Trauma in the show, I feel like, is immensely overlooked so I wanted to amend that. Steve has been through some shit- including Russian torture- and he would obviously have permanent issues from that. Physical issues such as his eyesight (all those concussions had to have fucked up his vision somehow), migraines (seriously, head trauma is no joke), and hearing (which will come in later) as well as mental issues such as panic attacks, paranoia, dissociation, and anxiety. But, despite all that, he puts it all aside for the Party even though they never do so in return and that's where some of that sweet, sweet angst comes in.

This is really just an excuse to dive into the mind of the tiny Steve that lives in my brain because he gets so little attention in the show regarding his character and I wanted to fix that. Showing how kind and compassionate he is- and really has always been- is something I really really wanted to get right. That scene in Family Video was an example of that (I'm really glad you liked it, I rewrote it soooo many times) and I wanted to express how genuinely thoughtful he is to others even if they don't give him the same courtesy in return. He's had a lot of character development, and this is just my way of paying homage to it, I suppose.

I don't wanna give away too much, but the Party definitely feels some retribution for what they did to Steve and he really takes his time to fully accept their apologies. It'll all come full circle in the end, and a loooot of loose ends are tied up.

I'm jumping between Robin's and Eddie's chapters right now to try and iron out some final details so your wait might not last too much longer!

Thank you so much for this ask and I'll add you to the tag list right away!

[juicybiohazard]

Yes, finished my first playthrough of separate ways. The game is RE4 remake so I can't say anything about the gameplay that anyone doesn't already know, so... I'll talk about what I really care about here, the story, you see... Ada Wong and Albert Wesker happen to be my favorite characters in this series, I like the AWs yes. Naturally that means that I noticed how different both are from their original portrayals, listen there is a reason why in my mind the one true canon/continuity is the OG games and not the remakes, because its in those older games when I first experienced the RE world and ended up loving these people as they are, so how I could like these new versions of them when they are so different? they may as well be new characters. The appearance is the only thing they share, they are similar to the OGs on a superficial level but thats where similarities end, and of the two I think Wesker is the one that changed the most and not for the better, from little things like his voice not being so distinctive anymore and sounding generic af to his personality being a cardboard cutout of a cartoon villain, some might say, wasn't Wesker always like that? I mean you can choose to describe him as a cartoon villain but any older version of Wesker wouldn't admit to be willing to murder billions and reveal his plan to some random mercenary he doesn't know... he knows better. Even RE5 Wesker wouldn't do that, ever wondered what happened to the scientists that helped developed Uroboros? You get the general idea from multiple files, it looks like they all got killed and essentially they never even knew what they were doing and what was its true purpose

It goes beyond dialogue, even his mood is different, in the old games he is cool and collected in any situation in this game he is easily irritated by ANYTHING 😂 its kind funny how Ada seems to just exist and Albert huffs at her presence, seriously I could go on forever citing each and every single difference between the old Wesker we know and this new take on the character, but I'd rather end this post today

Like I said before in my little RE4 review, my only real dislikes of this game are the changes to Wesker and Ada, and subsequently Krauser. I loved the dynamic of these three in the old game and its completely gone now. They are no longer deeply connected like before, it's all superficial now, they just happen to be in the same place at the same time due to circumstances of fate, not because they know each other. You know what, that sucks, I don't like that one bit because it feels like taking things away just for the sake of making something different. Ada used to be a true grey character, remember Separate Ways was developed for the ps2 version of the game after it launched on GameCube so the times you saw Ada in the OG game where few, far between and the game gives you no reason to believe she isn't genuinely on Wesker's side. Maybe the devs always wanted her to end up betraying him but whatever the case I'd very much prefer if she wasn't just another good guy, we have enough of those and too many haven't returned for a long time (a lot of people still want Billy and Sheva to return). The amount of heroes in this series is astronomical, do we really need another one? why can't Ada at least be in-between? let her believe that ends justify the means at least, let her believe that some good can come out of eugenics, let her believe that the world needs an enema to erradicate true evil. I don't know I'm rambling here, but I hope this made a bit of sense, I always liked the idea of Ada and Wesker going way back and him being the reason she is alive today, meaning she feels she owes him and genuinely cares about him (I admit this might have never been on the table from the devs perspective so this is just how I wish things were for them) but it is what it is, story aside, the game is fun and this DLC is worth every peny

One last thing...

The post credits scene will live rent free in my head for the coming months, it seems more obvious than ever that RE5 remake is in the works, or it will be after RE9 is out. What a crazy time to be resi fan, it looks like capcom isn't going to stop giving us content. Can't complain about that one

[valeriefauxnom]

Ah, Doomsday Getaway. Probably quite a few people's favorite events, for the combination of music, story, etc, even if the freebie ultimately ended up a wash for quality.

But amid all the things going on, I just found this exchange a little bit funny even if what's being discussed isn't.

Everyone else has largely been crossing their arms and going 'nu-uh' to Carmen's claim and refusing to play the game.

Elisanne, though, quickly decides to start playing for the worst-case scenario that Carmen's words are 100% true, and then starts eyeing to try and set up a mass-murder/suicide scheme with Ranzal to force the game to end up with Euden as 'winner' since, well, it's pretty obvious Euden wouldn't play the game if his life depended on it (literally). As an aside, Elisanne definitely chose her prospective partner-in-crime well, as among the main 5, Ranzal as the more gritty, realistic, 'willing to get dirty for the boss' is probably the most likely to agree to do such a thing.

Ironically, even if they did team up to do this and pulled it off, Euden would then likely be the only one to die or otherwise suffer a horrible fate with the whole 'psyche, would-be winner, d'ya want to bite the bullet to resurrect all your pals' twist thrown in last minute. Funnily enough, though, this is probably like the singular time Euden expresses any hesitation at the notion of sacrificing himself for everyone:

However, I'll throw in a bit of a wrinkle to that initial scene. While that first scene ends with Ranzal's comment and is only implied what Elisanne was proposing it does return for a brief part in the next scene in more explicit terms.

...However (part 2), this scene turns around into this:

...which quickly is simply revealed to be just a nightmare Euden was having.

This is a minor conspiracy theory, but if Euden was dreaming that last part, was maybe the first part ALSO a dream?

Was Euden maybe fearing somewhere deep in his mind, that his friends were secretly starting to plot the murders of everyone besides him given their protectiveness? I might also point to the fact that Dream!Amane being able to guess so accurately what had happened the night before without actually knowing what they were discussing.

It just feels a bit too convenient, especially combined with Dream!Euden immediately being able to start 'taking action' and gaining a presence in the dream right after it seems like it might be too late, the kind of 'helpless nightmares' that a lot of people have. It also seems like the kind of nightmare he would have, as between actual events like Fractured Futures where he's helpless and forced to watch a Zethia die, to his overall character of 'having to save everyone/do everything' tendencies, I'm thinking Euden really doesn't like being caught feeling helpless to fix things.

Admittedly, I don't really have evidence either way, nor is it very important to the broader story. It's entirely possible that the first initial conversation with Ranzal actually happened, Euden overheard somehow, and then had nightmares of the second. The one piece of evidence to suggest part one happened is this tidbit, which implicates there was at least one time where the two of them were talking alone about something:

Even then, they might have had a private conversation wherein the trusting curse was triggered (since what we saw of that conversation, it wasn't triggered) that Euden saw but didn't hear, later had a nightmare imagining what was going on and then had Nightmare the Sequel later with Amane and Elisanne, trying to re-contextualize the nightmare with Ranzal dead instead of everyone else around them dropping.

So yeah, minor, inconsequential food for thought. With the cliffhanger at the end, though, I do wonder if they were plotting a sequel-style event or other followup later on. Wonder what that would've been like!

[chrysanthemumgames]

I just read chapter 8 and wow, it was so amazing! I don't even know if I prefer the aftermath of the chapter 7 fight + the ending with the fruit and all, or if I prefer the whole Orpheus and Eurydice thing!

Eurydice literally tackling Orpheus out of the Underworld had to be one of the biggest "she did WHAT" moments of all times for me, but it was so great! Especially with it allowing a good ending too! Or well, at least as good as it could have been given the circumstances. Not to mention, I quite admire you for making something inherently "funny" still being more shocking and suprising than anything else thanks to how you described it. It could have easily turned into a comedic scene considering what happened, but somehow you avoided the pitfall. I also really liked the small detail to allow the MC to stim out of stress during the whole ordeal. It's these little details and how much freedom we get over them that truly make your game special - well, among other things.

Back to the fruit scene though... It's interesting - I was somehow both surprised and unsurprised that it was such a "mundane" thing. It's a bit hard to describe, but on one hand I thought that maybe eating the fruit would be something dramatic, and on the other hand it also felt like people in the Underworld would just treat that as something "normal" to do. Well, I'm assuming if the MC keeps the fruit for now but doesn't eat it yet it may turn to be more dramatic later heh - but that wouldn't really make sense for my specific MC. I really love the fact we can decide to share the fruit though! Again, such a nice thought.

That aside, I have a two questions if you don't mind!

First one is about the magic sharing thing (sorry if it was asked before and I somehow missed it!). Will we be able to determine how our MC feels about their "partner's" magic? I don't mean how they feel about the fact the magic is shared in itself - we can already determine that - but really how they feel about their partner's specific magic. Hades saying he finds the MC's magic rather pleasant was so sweet, and I'm curious if we'll be able to determine how the MC feels in return, basically.

Second one is about Orpheus and Eurydice. In my ending to the story, they will be staying half of the year in the Underworld and half in the mortal realm (I love the parallels with the original Persephone deal here too!) - for any good ending where it's relevant (I'm assuming there are variants), will we be able to talk with them a bit more in future chapters, once they've calmed down and all? Especially since it would be interesting for the MC to discuss being a demigod with Orpheus I think - all the more since he was raised as a mortal and the MC as a god. During the whole trial thing, my MC talked with Eurydice because it's what made sense - they were sort-of-friends at that point, and it made sense that she would be the person my MC would seek there and the one easier to "influence" out of the two to help them succeed, but that means he didn't have the opportunity to interact with Orpheus, sadly.

Thank you and have a great day!

Heya! Thanks as always for the reading and the feedback. :) As to your questions:

I don't have the next book planned down to the individual choices or anything, but I'm pretty sure that one will come up, yes.

Sort of the same answer, really. I do think I'll be looking for opportunities for the PC to talk to other demigods (besides Pyri), and an Orpheus who is around some of the time is definitely an option there. So I suspect there will be, depending on where they are and what they're up to, further opportunities to interact with those two!

[helluvapurf]

*claps* Just finished the newest HB dropped today, lets talk about it! :>

TL;DR version: Found it a... "decent" ride overall (prob among the "better" eps of the S2 lineup so far), though nothing really to write home about compared to other fave eps-

Longer Version: *warning ahead for spoilers*

So, positives out of the way first!

-Striker's back again... and YAY, didn't end up dying after all 🙏😭Was kinda scared with him going against Stolas they were gonna start watering him down to a "mwaha I'm macho~" cliche, but imo he remained pretty competent from start to finish (and even still carried that whole "f*ck the monarchy" attitude towards Goetias while interacting with Stolas (whilst simultaneously working under Stella)... which I really hope the show builds on more for any future appearances down the line)

-M&M themselves got to lead the show in chasing Striker/fighting him (no Blitz or Loona intervention whatsoever), which was also pretty refreshing! 👍 I enjoyed their antics in the Wrath ring and the eventual fight scene itself proved a fairly entertaining one too (*that music change midway though lol*)

-Ngl, I was kinda worried that with Stolas' "damsel" bit it was gonna get old quick... but I'm pleasantly surprised to see the guy actually bite back fairly strong in his own way (both with words and a bit with physical strength too like the stone-stare attempt). And with the inclusion of that "heavenly" rope voiding his powers, it helped offset him feeling too "woobified" compared to past eps .3.

-Blitz and Loona stuck together throughout their visit to the hospital, which proved sweet & funny to watch too ^^. Always nice to see some vulnerable sides in this girl aside from just being moody all the time imo.

-We finally get Andrealphus' canon debut, and he proved to be a fairly decent villain himself too. Being smart enough to recognize the risk in killing off Stolas too quickly (esp. while Via's still his only other heir), and seems to be generally manipulative in steering his sister in the "right" direction (while talking down to her at the same time like a ditzy child), which I'm curious to see played out as well as the season progresses further.

-Bit more of a "minor" point, admittedly... but yay! A Via mention~ 🥺Looks like she'll eventually be more involved in Andre & Stella's plot in the far future, so that'll be interesting to see~ :o

Now... for the negatives? ...Weeeell-

-Stella... just, *sighs*. What more can I say about her that others haven't done so before? 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️While I never really minded her being a bitchy villain tbh, I was expecting at least a little competency written in to her role trying to tear Stolas (+Blitz) apart... but, now? She's... literally just so one-tracked & immature onto wanting Stolas dead (not even reacting to Andre mentioning her daughter during their "plan"), that even her own brother is calling her out of how stupid she's being...? 😐Just... yikes, man...

And like, even all this I wouldn't so much mind if HB was a strictly comedic cartoon/Stella herself was just a one-off threat (like Martha & those old guys from the "Cherub" ep)... but with Stella clearly being framed as the new "big bad" of the series after first calling that hit on Stolas back in "Harvest Moon" (framed all dramatic-like both there and later on in "The Circus")... its otherwise embarrassing that Stella's about as complex as a slice of white bread... 😒😒

(*Heck, if you think about it I don't get why we couldn't have Andrealphus be Stolas' evil ex since he's clearly gonna be given more substance than his sister by the looks of it (esp if those potentially dangerous ice powers of his are any indicator)... but, idk I'm just rambling at this point lol >>*)

-I feel like some of the emotional beats didn't... quite hit as they should've, at points? Like, that last shot of Stolas browsing through his phone messages w/ Blitz seemed like it was trying to address what happened in "Ozzie's" (with Stolas even seeming to respect Blitz' boundaries better while their "deal" is still ongoing)... but then with the sad music playing and Stolas just turning away all sadly at the end, I wasn't sure whether to take that as hopeful or... just angsty, I guess? .-.

-In terms of the humor this time, while def a step-up from the last couple eps... I feel like some of the jokes didn't land as strongly compared to others? Like, for every decent bits like Striker (then later Millie lol) telling off the annoying music band, others like the... erm, "endowed" Striker statue & the karen fight Blitz had at the hospital just felt a bit too... "on-the-nose", I guess? 🤷‍♀️

-While I don't really mind this being a shorter episode, pacing-wise I feel like got a bit rushed at certain points (Like, I'm surprised Andre just kinda randomly showed up right at the first few seconds with how "hyped up" his initial concept was lol). Which could easily be fixed by just tweaking down some of the unnecessary filler bits imo.

[gontagokuhara]

po!Nagito: *literally saves hajime from death, lives together with him, has been in a relationship with him since ancient times, has basically been raising children with him for centuries, is quite literally married to him*

also po!Nagito: does he even like me fr

It's like I understand it as a komahina enjoyer but it also makes me wanna cry as a komaeda enjoyer😭 though he's not in the story much your characterization is so full and spot on that like I can fully understand the characters who only show up in 2 chapters (cough cough TAKAA my beloved<3) Like in only 2 chapters of screen-time we literally saw the interior design/gardening geek nagito, the panicked and screamy nagito, the tired dad nagito, the heartbroken nagito, and the god of luck who played rockpaper scissors for his husband's life, again, in like 2 chapters alone!!!! Don't get me started on taka I already rambled about him in the comment section

P.S. It's also funny how literally everyone (mainly kokichi) is questioning the big five's relationship choices 💀 I honestly feel like naegami has something to do with "big five god eye candy"💀💀💀💀💀

just for the record i literally do not mind these asks/questions in the slightest to the contrary i LOOOOOOVE yapping especially about danganronpa especially about my own writing especially about pointy objects. no spoilers, but i do get a little in the weeds about behind-the-scenes, doesn't-fit-in-main-fic stuff

speaking of yapping: YOU KNOW THE DRILL

if only the extent of my yapping was known.........nagito and hajime are my favorite barbie dolls to mash together i love thinking about them i love writing them they are my danganronpa #2 and #3 (gonta <3) i am So mentally ill about them. ok.

so it makes me SOOOOO happy when people say they get my characterization. getting beneath a character's skin and making them feel both 1) recognizable as said character but also 2) distinct in that they fit naturally in the universe i'm writing them in is The thing i'm most attuned to when writing i think. (that and sniffing out plotholes i am so pedantic about my story telling). focusing on the v3 kids gives me very ample time to flesh them out into a balanced mix of the two, but with characters that aren't mainstays it makes me very happy hearing that it's not just, like, a dialogue machine spitting plot-relevant lines and instead the actual character that's meant to be talking. you know? ALL of that to say nagito is notoriously a tough nut to crack, it's a crapshoot on what you'll see him characterized as (with the potential to be really REALLY good and really Uh not so much), so hearing good things about MY guy <3 makes my heart grow five sizes or whatever

ok ok. god help us all when i post kmha writing again IM insane so moving on: other insane people (kokichi) (rantarou)

i could ALSO yammer on for ages about the messy god drama that i've mapped out in my mind palace. i can get much more specific once the fic is actually wrapped but the big five ESPECIALLY. oh what a mess. oh what a nightmare. there's like 1 and a half sane motherfuckers in that club and the half is presently threatening to end the world along with half the others. so. LMFAO

relationship drama especially (i've said that word so much oopsies) among the gods but the big five.........oh great heavens. it's not even the newest relationship within the big five but naegami has sooooo many haters. junko (makotophobic), mikan (in an abusive relationship, functionally makotophobic), nagito (byakuyaphobic), fuyuhiko & peko (also byakuyaphobic), izuru (thinks they're both cringe), hajime (wouldn't send rantarou/shuuichi to camp no matter how much he begged).....and that's only characters we've seen on screen so far LOL. kokichi is not alone in being a hater rather he's the new generation of virulently homophobic gay people. love wins <3

(also as an aside of the 'eye candy' thing; in the human world makoto doesn't beat the trophy husband allegations, but among the gods the roles are 100% reversed LOLLLLLLLLL when shit isn't hitting the fan he gets sooooo bullied during meetings if makoto isn't there)

okay and LAST thing that i sorta briefly touched on a second ago: no, rantarou has not been to camp before! hajime and nagito have offered COUNTLESS times, especially since shuuichi's mother died, but they've remained adamant on their decision to keep them at home in defiance of junko. they have very, very good reason to be extra vigilant about their kids' safety, and when contending with rantarou's precognition + shuuichi's ignorance on the gods......rantarou has been very informed on things, from a very young age. obviously he doesn't get Everything, but he's kept pretty up-to-date on the affairs of the gods. he knows about camp, he knows there are about a dozen or so there, and he knows who the counselors are — knew who hajime was as soon as he began teaching at he and shuuichi's last school, and who nagito was/had his number from a chat he and hajime had very early on into his tenure as their history teacher.

wow okay. THAT got long (as always) but as always i luv answering them!! so thank you <3

[thebreakfastgenie]

⭐

I am going to take this opportunity (highly appreciated!) to talk about one of my personal favorite things I've written, Campfire.

I started writing this fic in the woods. I was literally in the woods (in Maine of course) and I had left my phone in the car because there was no reception anyway. And this fic just started coming to me in waves. Entire sentences. I was terrified I would forget it before I could write it down. When we went to the car for lunch, I grabbed my phone and quickly put some stuff in the notes app so I wouldn't forget.

And then we got home and my mom wanted to watch that Amazon Prime Cinderella movie and I just wanted to write. Aaaaaaa. So this is all leading into one of the things I'm not totally happy with, and probably why I think technically it's not quite on par with The Emergency Room, which is that I was so eager to get it posted the second half could have been better. It's not bad, but I'm not sure it's up to the first half.

The other thing I'm not entirely happy with is the title. It's fine, but I just went with it because I couldn't think of anything else, which is usually the case with my one-word titles.

The response to this fic was really gratifying, because I wasn't sure to what extent fans of a politics show would put up with what I affectionately thought of as summer camp bullshit. I'd had the image of Josh as a kid talking about his dead sister after being encouraged by a counselor, and everyone reacting uncomfortably, in mind for a long time.

My original vision for the summer camp section, when started writing it in the woods, was much darker. Josh remained a social outcast for the entire summer, and the focus was really on Irving. Irving was originally going to ruffle his hair during the breakfast scene, but I was worried that was too creepy, so I changed it to just a nod. I'm not sure that was the right call.

Before I left the woods, Issac, Barry, and Becca had demanded their existence, and Josh had friends. I looked up several alternative names for Becca, but ended up going back to my first choice. Two boys and a girl felt natural, but of course it mirrors Toby, Sam, and CJ.

I think my favorite part of this fic is the parallelism of "though they leave that part unspoken"/"though he leaves that part unspoken." I had quite a time trying to find books for Josh to read and I never really found one that was the exact level of recognizable I was going for. The little moment of guilt over tossing the bag is the sort of thing I would feel.

I named a kid with some minor significance Aaron, and people probably assumed it was a reference to Aaron Sorkin, but I honestly forgot that was his name. I was just looking for nice Jewish boy names to fill out the camp and it was hard because I didn't want to use names like David and Daniel that already belonged to somebody in the show. Alan from Hoboken is funny in hindsight because shortly afterward I would become obsessed with Alan Alda, famous for living in New Jersey.

"he knows that Cadillacs crash just as often as Chevrolets" I thought about googling the actual safety stats but I didn't. The choice of these two cars as a class signifier is entirely taken from Movin' Out by Billy Joel.

Something I think about a lot with Josh (especially but not exclusively in relation to Toby) is that he comes from a very privileged background, but he still has this major trauma. It's really very Jewish. That's why I wrote the part about "sheltered suburban kids." Then there's this:

What he learns is: they don’t talk about it.

I love this sentence to death in my head. I can hear the pause. I could not figure out how to make it look right. I tried a comma, a semicolon, and a colon, as well as no punctuation and just italicizing the second clause. I finally went with the one I hated least.

The genesis of the second half is that I've long believed CJ was the first of the main characters (aside from Leo, who as a friend of the family likely already knew) that Josh told about Joanie. I'm really invested in their sibling dynamic, and CJ is the one he talks to in The Crackpots and These Women. I had done this one-shot-two-narratives thing before with The Apple, and I really like it!

I'm really happy with this piece of dialogue in this scene:

“I’m sorry," she says, after a moment. “I mean, not I’m sorry. I'm just— I’m sorry seems so trite, but I can’t think of what else to say.” She takes a breath, composes herself. “I’m sorry I don’t know what to say.” Josh forces a sideways smile, wanting to reassure her. “No one does. It’s okay.” “It’s not,” she says. He shrugs, just one shoulder. “Maybe not.”

I wrote this story in September, a month that always gets a little weird and angsty for me as the anniversary of my best friend's death when I was ten approaches, and that definitely found its way into the fic. The details are all fictional, but Camp Greenfern is based on Camp Winnebago, where my grandfather's ashes were scattered.

I'd really like to write more about Josh and CJ, eventually.