#dragonifyoudare

[smoothshine]

2022: greatest hits

@roseofbattles thanks for the tag! 💕

Not the easiest task you gave me here, ahah, but here are the points I'm definitely grateful for this year:

1. Changed a studying program and got accepted into a new (my current) university!! I was previously in a medical school, but this year I decided to change both my uni and a studying program (gonna ba a clinical psychologist now yaaaay!!). Both my physical and mental health improved a lot after this change, and I got to meet a lot of new wonderful people, while also still staying in contact with some of my folks from the previous studying place.

2. Got more opportunities to spend time with my very close friends - for quite some time we were all caught up in our studies and haven't seen each other in a long while, but I feel like this year we became even closer than before. I love them with all my heart and soul, and I'm looking forward to spending the next year by each other's side.

3. I got back into drawing and started my own blog! I had a strong art block for the past year and a half, for several reasons, but still. It felt so satisfying to pick up my favorite hobby again, and moreso to be able to draw for the fandom I'm currently into x) Huge thanks to each and every person who supported me until this point, I always enjoy reading all your lovely comments in the tags and just talk about stuff with everyone who feels like it! 🥺 💛

4. Which leads me to the next point - FMA (and especially Royai) fandom - thank you all so much for all the encouragement and positivity and just for being such an awesome and welcoming community of cool people!! Special shout out to my dear tumblr pocket friends and my lovely Discord people, you guys absolutely rock 😎💕

5. My health improvement! - I was able to get my final big eye surgery, so I hope I won't have to go back to this stuff next year and that I'm finally leaving this part of my life behind.

6. Movies, books, fics and music - all this stuff gave me a lot of strength and inspiration during the year, well, especially the latter two, not gonna lie, ahah. I guess it's partially related to the fandom point, but especially music always has played a pretty big role in my life, and, since I got an honor to meet such incredible writers in 2022, I wanted to mention this point separately as well:)

I'm afraid I won't be able to get to 10, but anyway x)) This year with all honesty was a rough one for me in many aspects, but I'm glad I still have all these good things that I got and can share with you all.

Tagging all these beautiful people more as an act of appreciation, hehe, but I would love to read your lists if you feel like doing them too! (Upd: some of you already did, but I wanted to tag you anyway, it's my equivalent of a forehead kiss, *muah* ✨️)

@jedidragonwarriorqueen @nightofnyx8 @klainelynch @scienceoftheidiot @chrysopoeias @goneadrift @g3yser @monnigu @fullmetalscullyy @chewytriforce @peartato @firewoodfigs @musing-and-music @dairogo @niconiconina @hanamuri @tsaritsa @viridashi @magipies @dragonifyoudare @js589

Happy New Yeat everyone, very excited to see what it holds for us all:)

[musing-and-music]

2022: Greatest hits

That's an amazing idea @roseofbattles! So many bad things can happen in a year that we forget good things have happened, and happen everyday as well. So, 2022 for me has been:

After one and a half year unemployed, I've finally found a job! A short contract, but it was the first time I could be autonomous, and less than one month after the end, I've already found another job, and a long term one!

In March and October I became aunt for the second and third times, and my nephews and my niece are all so cute!

My family got to meet twice with everyone, and it was really nice to get the time to chat with my SiL (and we talked about fanfictions!)

I've been more spontaneous this year, and thanks to this I've reunited with a friend I hadn't seen in two years! I went to her city and got to visit Strasbourg and a few places in Alsace in October

I've begun to see a therapist who works with hypnosis, and it has been great for my self-confidence!

I've taken part to a few exchanges for the Jaime/Brienne fandom, and I had lots of fun doing it! I won't stop, that's certain!

I've also taken part to the amazing project that was the Royai Wedding Podcast! I'm doing the voice of the Aerugonian ambassadress

I've reached 100 works on AO3!

I've developed and found new friendships, and I'm glad I met them all

Thanks to them, I've also drawn again! (to the people who have received them, you can share the fanarts I've sent you!) (because I didn't scan them...)

Everyone has good things, even small ones, that have happened to them this year: @goneadrift @klainelynch @equinooxe @wind-on-the-panes @dragonifyoudare @magipies @vayalda @scienceoftheidiot @js589 @rosenlily-aka-choconut if you want

[goneadrift]

Was tagged by @traumschwinge to post some sentences from a current wip 🧡 I just finished and posted my most coherent wip so here is the start of a crack fic I was trying to work on:

“Are you absolutely sure that this is necessary?”

“Yes, I am. And yes, it is,” Mustang grumbled for the dozenth time, each time sounding less and less sure.

“I hope I don’t have to bring this up in the report, though,” Havoc whined, checking his outfit in the mirror.

“You don’t,” Mustang sighed, hoping that this would finally placate him.

The outfit in question was actually lacking in clothes for the upper part of the body. Havoc’s legs looked even longer due to the dark pants that were baggy at his hips but narrowed down on his waist, coming in touch with the most prominent part of the look — the black corset that hugged his torso and ended right beneath his defined pectoral, leaving his nipples and the rest of his chest exposed. The overall image looked quite striking and made Havoc hesitate about his readiness to go along this plan after all.

“Look, Major Armstrong walks shirtless on a weekly basis and no one bats an eye. You have nothing to worry about,” said Breda in an attempt to reassure Jean. Attempt was rather poor as the comment was unflattering and Breda was barely holding back his laugh all the while.

Tagging @musing-and-music @scienceoftheidiot @dragonifyoudare @klainelynch if you want to 😊

[jedidragonwarriorqueen]

2022 Greatest Hits

thank you to @nightofnyx8 and @smoothshine for the tag!! Such a lovely idea! Ten good things that happened this past year:

Back in the spring I finally switched out of a job that was actively harmful for me and got a new one that's a much better fit! I am no longer working in a hospital, but in an outpatient setting, and it addition to being much less stressful it has much more structured working hours, and I cannot stress how much better my mental health has been since the switch.

I got to see my best friend 4 times this year!! A massive improvement from when we weren't able to see each other in person for a year and a half after graduation because we were both broke, and then after only one visit had to stay apart another two years because of the pandemic. We've already got several trips/visits planned for this coming year and I can't wait to see what those bring!!

This year I really started experimenting with clothes and style more, after over a decade of not wanting to spend money/being afraid of judgement/body image issues/religious purity culture crap. Haven't really found a particular style for myself yet but I'm enjoying the journey of letting myself try new ways to express myself!

It's coming up on 6 months since I started taking pole dance classes back in the summer, and the whole experience has been an absolute blast. I originally just wanted something to help keep me in shape after failing soooo many times to get back into running, but I love it so much more than I ever liked running!! I've met so many wonderful people and it's really helped bolster my self image and confidence. And I forget it's technically a workout, because it's just so much fun!!

Back in the spring I went to see Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in concert (one of those visits with my best friend💕) and it was the closest thing I've had to a religious experience since I saw the sun set over the Cascade Mountains last year.

Still writing plenty of fanfic, and this year I started working with beta readers for the first time!! @arnieb95 has been an absolute gem who's come through so many times and helped me nail the characterizations and themes I want to get across, and @dragonifyoudare has an unbelievable eye for detail and tone. You guys have helped my writing and confidence improve so much, I can't begin to thank you enough!!

Related to the job thing, my anxiety has been much more manageable since I started my current job. I still occasionally have anxiety attacks, but they are much fewer and farther between, and I'm getting much better at catching them before they start and taking steps to help prevent them.

I had my first online friend irl meet-up this fall with @peartato !! We spent a lovely long weekend exploring the area and trying good food. Hope it's the first of many visits, and the first of many friends I'll get to meet irl!!

Didn't quite make it to ten, but I think that's still pretty good! Absolutely no-pressure tags for @mountainsatellite, @blu-on-main, @klainelynch and anyone else who'd like!!

[klainelynch]

10, 23, and 28 for the podfic ask game!

Thank you for these asks!

10: What podfic was the quickest to make? In this year's Voiceteam, there was a Speed Challenge to make a podfic within one hour. Even though Shakespeare's Avatar: the Last Airbender is only 1:08, it took me about 50 minutes to make it. A lot of that was from rerecording lines as I was trying to get just the right take 😅

23: Did you do any collabs? Yes, quite a few! Voiceteam is all about the collab, and early in the year saw the Royai wedding project. But I want to give a special shout out to Elegies and Bittersweet Odes because @dragonifyoudare and @goneadrift wrote the text of Riza and Roy reincarnating, and her trying to protect him throughout the centuries, and it was absolutely beautiful. It allowed me to do a lot of technical editing which I absolutely adore, and challenged me with my voice acting too.

28: Favorite podfic you made? I had SO much fun with smothered and covered, which is a fic I wrote about Team Mustang ending up at the Waffle House at 3 am. It's another collab, and I was so stoked that friends were willing to offer up their incredible talent for this pod! It's also definitely my favorite cover - I think 35% of the reason the podfic exists is because once I got the idea, I HAD to do it xD

[okiedoketm]

Tagged by @dragonifyoudare!

3 ships: Gideon/Harrow (TLT), Cecil/Carlos (WtNV), Adora/Catra (She-Ra)

Last Song: Pantyhose by TV Girl

Last Movie: Muppet Christmas Carol

Currently Watching: One Piece (before you weep on my behalf, I’m watching the fan-made remaster One Pace, which is MUCH faster)

Currently Consuming: Medications and water

Currently Craving: There’s a Korean chicken place that I tried for the first time last week and holy fucking shit it was the best fried chicken I’ve ever had. I’ve had Korean fried chicken before, and it’s of course better than American fried chicken, but this was even better than normal Korean fried chicken. Oh my god. The skin is so crispy. And the meat underneath is so juicy it was dripping. And the SAUCE. fuck me. The Yangneum sauce is all over this bad boy in a perfect dance of spicy, sweet, and savory. The chicken is swimming in the sauce and it’s marinated into the crispy shell- you read that right. Even with all that sauce, it’s still CRISPY. Oh my god. I can’t let myself get it for a third time this week but if you’re ever in San Francisco go to DAK Chicken for me.

Tagging: @primtheamazing @grubus @lyralemon @no-lava

[theaceofdragons]

dragonifyoudare > theaceofdragons

it was past time

[borkthemork]

Idk if you remember me (I pointed you at a Middle Eastern cookbook I think you found useful for Get a Hobby, Asshole), but I want you to know that I've started watching Amphibia entirely because of you and so far I'm really enjoy8ing.

Amphibia is a delightful funky frog show, I can tell you that! I will say though, do expect the formula of the show to be more akin to something like SU or GF in how they carry their plot — increasing plot pacing as time goes on with consistent characterization arcs — but other than that, I really do hope you enjoy the ride.

It's also nice to see you again! I still got that pdf in my storage just because I love it so much, I really do appreciate it!

[envythepalmtree]

Is this a wholesome headcanon? I think it might just be dumb: Alphonse's old armor is survives. They coat in in carpeting and turn it into a cat tree.

ASDJFHDSJHADKFLJHS

Al’s armor becoming automail is out, Al’s armor become a cat tree is in 🥰

And hey, why not? It already was a cat tree when Al was inside it. It can be a cat tree again. :D

Send me wholesome FMA headcanons and things

[catie-does-things]

Opinion: AtLA should have had a "friendship is endgame" ending. They were all too young for serious relationships. Zuko and Katara should have gotten together, but at least a couple years later. Thoughts?

That would have been better than what we got, at least. I could have accepted it gladly. But I wouldn’t say it was necessary.

The show, like a lot of children’s fiction, does treat its adolescent characters like semi-adults, and when the characters are written as behaving in a mature manner, it works as a genre convention. If we accept that Zuko is old enough to become the ruler of his country at the end of the series, it seems a little silly to say he’s not old enough to be in a romantic relationship. And the same does apply to Aang - if he’s old enough and mature enough to end a war and resolve international political disputes, it seems like he should be mature enough to have a girlfriend.

The problem is more that Aang wasn’t really written as acting in a mature manner. I think I’ve said in several posts at this point that one of the biggest problems with Aang as a character is when he’s written like a normal twelve-year-old but still treated by the narrative as being wise and mature beyond his years. It’s what spoils his romance arc, and it’s what spoils how he responds to a lot of his challenges, up to and including his moral dilemma over what to do about Ozai.

Coming back to Zuko and Katara, I don’t think the series should have ended with their wedding or anything. But it would hardly have been outrageous if they had one kiss in the final scene.

Of course, the ideal scenario would be they get together in book four.

[smoothshine]

Rules: shuffle your library and list 10 songs and tag 10 people

Tagged by @scienceoftheidiot and @fullmetalscullyy, thanks for the tag! ✨️

1. Numbers - Daughter

2. Black Flies - Ben Howard

3. Meet Me in the Woods - Lord Huron

4. Unsteady - X Ambassadors

5. Reiar - Myrkur

6. Young - The Paper Kites

7. Sing To Me - MISSIO & Death Stranding: Timefall

8. Come to Your Senses - Alexandra Shipp & Vanessa Hudgens (this one is from "Tick, Tick... Boom!", hehe)

9. Oh, Ms. Believer - Twenty One Pilots (wow, this one is really from a loooong while back)

10. New York Torch Song - The Amazing Devil (gotta love that even here my current obsession gets a spot too x))

No-pressure tags for @nightofnyx8 @jedidragonwarriorqueen @monnigu @tsaritsa @firewoodfigs @goneadrift @roseofbattles @dairogo @dragonifyoudare @chrysopoeias and everyone who feels like participating <3

[musing-and-music]

Rules: Shuffle your library and list 10 songs and tag 10 people

I got tagged by @scienceoftheidiot! I have my library, painstakingly grown since 2006, transferred from SD card to SD card, with a few stays on my laptop or the family computer.

Summer of Farewells - Aoi Teshima (From up on Poppy Hill)

M9 - Takami Yu (Library Wars)

Saison 1 Séance 2 - MagoYond (Chez le Psy)

Gratitude - Jerry Goldsmith (Mulan)

The Indigo Waves - Aoi Teshima (From up on Poppy Hill)

Les Aubes Sont Mortes - Indochine

Crime and Punishment - Senju Akira (Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood)

Troll farceur et elfe farci - POC et le Naheulband (Le Donjon de Naheulbeuk) (POC is Pen of Chaos here)

Saison 2 Séance 12 (partie 1) - Magoyond (Chez le Psy)

Kaikou Encounter - Naoki Satô (Rurouni Kenshin)

... I think I'm back in high school and preparatory class 😅

Animation movies, anime, live action movies, Indochine, and mp3 sagas... yup, I made a jump almost 10 years in the past!

Tagging @klainelynch @fullmetalscullyy @goneadrift, @vayalda, @ssadropout @chrysopoeias @dragonifyoudare @halfagod @monnigu @peartato if you want!

[likeabxrdinflight]

You literally just posted about how you're not on tumblr as a mental health professional, so I super understand if you're not interested in answering this question, but: Do you have any thoughts on what kind of treatment would have been helpful for Azula? I ask out of selfish, fix writer reasons, but also just plain curiousity.

Ah, that’s a pinned post at the top of my blog to let people know that I’m not here in a professional capacity and the things I post on my blog are not a reflection of me in that role. That said I’m happy to answer questions most of the time.

So, treatment for Azula...I assume you mean this from a modern context? Because it would depend on a variety of factors. The big one is how long does her psychosis last- if it’s a brief episode or a long-term problem, that’s going to change what you do with her. If it’s long term, there’s very little option for psychosis outside of medication, unfortunately. There are some psychotherapy treatments that can be used (such as cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis), but they’re meant to be given in tandem with medication. It’s just very hard to do therapy with someone who’s actively psychotic. If her psychosis was a one time episode, however, I might skip the meds with Azula as they can have nasty side effects and just might not be necessary (and also she’s 14). Then, meds or not, I think you’d have to dive into some pretty serious, long term therapy. And for someone with her history, I think you need to be giving trauma informed care on top of teaching things like empathy, recognizing and processing emotions, and interpersonal skills. She has a lot of unlearning to do and that’s going to take a lot of time and patience, and I don’t think the therapist can do it alone. There’s also the cultural aspect to consider as she grew up believing her father and the Fire Nation were justified in doing what they did. She’d need a support system and a better environment in which to heal. 

We know in the ATLA world she stays in the mental health facility for at least a year. In the real world, it shouldn’t have been much more than a week, after which I think she would have realistically been released into Iroh’s care, as her last functioning adult family member (remember she’s 14 and legally a minor). So while in the show Iroh showed very little interest in helping Azula, I’d like to think after her breakdown and realizing how troubled she is, he’d be willing to step up. Perhaps with Zuko’s help. 

This is kind of all a real world, admittedly western answer- I don’t know any other system of mental health care in our world. If you’re wondering what treatments might work in canon- honestly, I think that might be up to your imagination. Perhaps the spirits could help her, perhaps there’s some herbal remedy, perhaps her chi is badly blocked and could be released through something like acupuncture or waterbending. There’s a lot of ways you can play with it in canon. 

[goneadrift]

Rules: shuffle your library and list 10 songs and tag 10 people

Thanks @musing-and-music @fullmetalscullyy and @smoothshine for tagging 🧡

Am I Ever Gonna Find Out by Lifehouse

Forever in Your Debt by The Slow Readers Club

Troubled Times by Green Day

Sing To Me by MISSIO

Who’s In Control by Set It Off

Nothing Else Matters by Metallica

Love Is Mystical by Cold War Kids

Wish That You Were Here by Florence + The Machine (hehe, "year wrap" said i listened to Florence 602 times)

The Wrong Place by Hooverphonic

Rain by SID

Tagging @klainelynch @niconiconina @saecookie @traumschwinge @cyborgartalchemist @dragonifyoudare @dr-fancy-pants @lonepiper5758 @chrysopoeias @peartato (no pressure 😊)

[sketch-elf]

Tag 9 people you'd like to get to know/catch up with

Oh boy it's been a while since I've done a tag thing. Thanks for the tag, @the-shrimp-alchemist!

3 ships: I'm not a shipper either (mostly because I'm aroace so I care more about other types of relationships) so when it comes to ships I usually get heavily influenced by what I frequently see on my dashboard or by canon. So going from that... Heartshipping (AKA YugixRyou) from YuGiOh! I love those two game nerds and they're adorable together. Also Ryou deserves the world. TodoDeku from BNHA. Another cute pair of nerds. And lastly Percabeth from PJO. The ship grew on me just like the two of them grew on each other. ^u^

Last song: Don't Threaten Me With a Good Time by Panic! at the Disco. I was drawing Greed yesterday and that song is the final one on the (currently way too short) playlist I have for him.

Last movie: The Lego Movie 2: the Second Part. (I still get emo over Rex's story every time I watch it T-T)

Currrently reading: I'm not really... actively reading anything right now. I mean I got several fics that I'm in the middle of and haven't continued reading for various reasons, but it's starting to be a while since I stopped so I don't think I can say I'm currently reading any of them. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Currently watching: I'm currently rewatching FMA:B. The last episode I watched is 53: The Adults' Way of Life.

Currently consuming: Fruit tea!

Currently craving: Tayaki... I had one once when visiting Japan 3.5 years ago and seeing them in a drawing on my dashboard reminded me of how much I want to eat one again... But I haven't been able to find any places in my country that sell them. :c

By the way those last four things remind me a lot of that stuff you put on the start/end of your DeviantArt notes like "Eating: Drinking: Watching: Listening to" so thanks for giving me flashbacks to that XD

Tagging: @idiotwerewolf, @vibe-check, @crizpi, @heroesneedalancer, @dragonifyoudare, @russkayas, @astralmelodia, @minmcglaughn, @somegrumpynerd

And as always with these tag things, you don't have to answer if you don't want to ^u^

[klainelynch]

Thank you for tagging me @musing-and-music !

3 ships: I am very much in a Gen state of mind right now, but Royai (FMA), Loidyor (spy x family), and Sukka (Avatar) jump to mind

Last song: Sideways - Carly Rae Jepsen

Last movie: Guillermo del Toro's Pinnochio

Currently (re)watching: Black Sails and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Currently reading: Fruits Basket, currently on Volume 18

Currently consuming: the last of my laptop's battery before I have to get off the couch and plug it in (at which point I might as well just go to bed)

Currently craving: a snow day, but it's going to be 42 F (5.5 C) and rainy this week AGAIN 💔

Tagging @mothermartingale @dragonifyoudare @iammistressofmyfate @applejuiz @oohlookakitty if you want!