#especially the ones with those super niche aus

[madwheelerz]

Have I said I love fanfic writers lately? No. Well, I LOVE fanfic writers

[shippingmyworld]

Youtuber!Timmy and Youtuber!Jimmy AU

Follow up to my Youtuber!Danny Phantom AU from this post cus I can't stop thinking about this AU.

Timmy runs a channel named Fairly Odd Creatures where he makes full-blown mockumentaries about all kinds of mythical creatures/cryptids. Once every 2-3 months he will post a video that's about 60 minutes long and the production value that goes into them is absolutely mind-blowing. People are constantly flooding his inbox, demanding to know what his secret is. There are all-out wars in the comment section of his videos (or whatever social media platform his videos are being discussed on) debating on how in the world the footage is pulled off. Nobody can agree on if it's super-advanced cgi or the best blend of makeup and props the internet has ever seen.

Timmy's secret of course is just the fact that Cosmo and Wanda will simply poof into existence whatever creature Timmy needs for his video. Then he just has to follow it around for a few hours with his camcorder and then edit the footage together.

The funniest part of his videos (and probably the reason that they're so popular) is that nothing in them is even remotely in line with what has already been popularized. For example: "Chupacabra's? Yeah, it turns out they don't drink the blood of livestock. They eat metal. Specifically, automobile metal. Don't believe me? Well I lost this Chupacabra in downtown Dimmsdale for a few hours and it ate half of this totally random car before I found it again. Here's a clip of it taking a chomp out of the tire like it's a donut." (The car belonged to Mr. Crocker and it wasn't an accident).

Each and every video Timmy uploads is guaranteed to hit number one on trending for a few hours, and then hover in the top 20 for a few days. This gives Timmy a bit of an ego, especially since whenever he posts a new one everyone at school is talking about it the next day. He tells himself that he can't reveal his identity because then he's have to explain how he's pulling everything off (his voice is disguised with a magical voice modulator that makes him sound like a dramatic narrator) and thus risk exposing Cosmo and Wanda. However, the second that Trixie off-handedly mentions she watches them he spills the beans. Thankfully for his fairies, nobody believes him.

Jimmy's channel is called Brain Blast in which he posts about his projects and the science behind them. While he does have a small and dedicated subscriber base, most of the comments on his videos are from months or years after he's uploaded them in the first place of people thanking him for posting such great study aids.

Part of the reason why he has a smaller subscriber base is because he doesn't edit his content. They're all done with a single take, which only is extremely impressive to anyone that notices. He writes the script, preps his slideshow and props, and then hits record. Even though he does plenty of "Fun Science" videos ("Alternative Travel Methods feat. Bubble Travel", "How to Launch Your Toaster into Orbit", "Make Your Own Rust in a Can", etc.) the low production and sound quality for everything gives off the same energy as those channels run by a middle-aged man recording stuff about their niche interest on their phones.

Sheen and Carl appear in most of his videos as his assistants (or lab rats depending on the context). They're pretty great helpers, despite the fact that Sheen always goes off script and Carl gets so camera shy that he forgets his lines. Jimmy has to cut in a lot with "That's an excellent question!" to get them back on track. Libby and even Cindy will make occasional appearances. In fact, most of his popular uploads come from videos that his friends requested: "How Real is the Science in Ultralord?", "Surprising Biology of Lamas!", and "The Science Behind Enjoying Music." are counted among his most popular uploads.

Cindy once tried to get her own channel up and running and was pretty popular for a while, but after a few months she decided that even part-time content creator wasn't something she wanted to invest her time into. Instead, she'll just muscle her way into Jimmy's videos on occasion. More than once she has basically hijacked Jimmy's script halfway through to talk about famous women related to whatever topic Jimmy is covering.

Jimmy can't really bring himself to interrupt Cindy's hijacking's, because whiles she's right about the contributions these famous women have made, they're not super relevant to the hyper-specific topic/experiment he's currently covering (he will just shoot a second video when he's alone and upload it to make sure all his points got covered). Eventually though, he'll get so annoyed with Cindy barging into his lab whenever she finds out he's planning to film (Sheen spills the beans to Libby all the time and she reports to Cindy) that Jimmy will begin to start most of his videos will a few quick facts that he thinks Cindy will like so she'll leave him alone.

When the Youtube algorithm starts recommending Jimmy some of Timmy's mockumentary's, Jimmy will start posting follow-up videos to Timmy's in order to debunk Fairly Odd Creatures. This in turn starts to push Brain Blast up in popularity due to association. Then a portion of Timmy's fanbase gets latched onto Jimmy. They start taking stills from Jimmy's videos to use as reaction images (because Jimmy gets very upset and frustrated with just how wrong everything in Timmy's videos are).

As to not expose himself on his channel, Timmy creates a second channel in which he uploads videos in exactly the same style as Jimmy's. He discredits this "Science" thing that Jimmy is apparently basing all his arguments on and jokes about how Jimmy sounds like a witch. The second channel isn't very popular until Jimmy posts a "In Response to..." video addressing Timmy's second channel directly. This inadvertently brings Timmy's second channel a flash rise in popularity and sparks a whole chain of video uploads between the two of them. There's a solid month of them uploading daily and basically yelling at each other about why people should unsubscribe from the other person.

Timmy throws himself heavily into the second channel (so much so that he almost forget to film content for Fairly Odd Creatures once), adopting a conspiracy theory persona that believes the earth is flat and that the moon is just a government projection. He invites his totally real alien friend Mark Chang onto the channel all the time to talk about Yugopotamia and help discredit Jimmy ("Like yeah man, I totally saw your radical disc-looking planet and had to fly down and check it out.").

And because people are normal on the internet, there's a whole sub-genre of fans that have started to ship Jimmy and Timmy's YouTube channels. 'Enemies-to-lovers' is the most popular trope for them, and there's even a whole subreddit dedicated to the ship that gets fanart and fanfics posted to it on a regular basis. Timmy is very aware of this group of fans and will occasionally sneak in an off-handed remark about Jimmy just to fuel them because he thinks it will piss off Jimmy even more. In fact, there's a whole slew of small channels that clip and compile 'JimTim Evidence' to fuel their theory that Jimmy and Timmy are secretly dating.

Little does Timmy know, there's actually a clip out there of him saying, "Jimmy may not be able to use his oversized head to deduce simple facts, but that least he can pick out glasses that make his eyes look pretty." Jimmy has watched that clip at least a thousand times on loop because he's low-key attracted to Timmy but refuses to admit it. It's part of the reason as to why he gets so worked up about Timmy's responses to him, because how can someone he's attracted to be just so wrong about everything???

[mercutio-the-velaryon]

Hello stranger, I saw you asking about gen v supe names so I come bearing offerings:

For Marie, the best I've heard so far is Heartstring (which I think would work especially well if we're imagining vought's influence, and trying to push Marie as the new Starlight) I also like Heartstopper and Queen of Hearts, but I think those lean more towards villain names

For Emma, she could keep Cricket, but I like the idea of her picking something to do with her giant form, so: Giantess, or Colossa, or Titania

For Jordan, (now realistically vought would chew them up and give them the most cliche, cringy name possible, but ignoring that) my personal favorite is Pulse or Pulsar.

For Cate, I've seen Push as a good option, but I also like Siren, Whisper, or Piper (as in like the pied piper)

For Andre, I hate to say it but I think he'd just take up Polaris. Though I also think Magneta, (I know it sounds like magneto but TB universe doesn't know that) or Steel would work, I could also see Vulcan (the Roman god of metal) being cool but that might be too niche. (Metallo would be my first choice but it's been used sadly)

For Sam, tbh Sam's powers are pretty stock, so he could probably pick anything he wants. I could see him taking up something that follows the same format as his brother, so: _____ boy (ironically the first choice that I think would come to Sam's mind is superboy, but that is of course off limits, though personally, I'd find it hilarious) maybe Ultra Boy or Power Boy, or the Strong Man (who am I kidding these are all terrible, I've got nothing for Sam... Super Sam?)

Really though when you look at naming conventions (both in the boys and in superhero tradition overall) a lot of heroes' names don't have a ton to do with their powers and are either: highly generic (Superman, Mr. Fantastic, Captain Marvel, Wondee Woman etc) or have to do with a gimic that isn't necessarily related to their powers, so there's actually quite a bit of wiggle room, to just pick whatever sounds good.

Omggg these are great, I wanted to write an au set in the near future, where the cast had their superhero names so thank you for this if you would kindly allow me to steal these names for that purpose 👀👀

Heartstring is so good, it fits Marie so perfectly I gasped because yes exactly. I was thinking Emma should have a name change to kind of symbolise her regaining her autonomy from her mother with how she was forced to portray herself, I'm feeling Titania tbh. I really really like Pulse for Jordan simple effective love love love. Siren for Cate is insane cause not only does it encompass the nature of her powers but it also speaks to how she's used them, how she's lulled her friends into a false sense of security then caused them harm (wiped their memories) like yesssssssss. Ugh this is such a good listttt. Andre I think would change his name from the one he'd inherit from his dad, I was workshopping something like Silver Bandit, Heavy Metal or Ironclad (already in marvel lmao fml) or Steel Knight to pay homage to his rebel without a cause energy. I wanted just Steele but that's already a version of superman I think, John Irons I believe holds that mantle. I think even just Ultra would work as a name for Sam. Or maybe just The Boy like how Kimiko's The Female idk.

Thank you this is so helpful!!!!!

[alliluyevas]

Fic Author Interview (meme)

I was tagged by the lovely @heckofabecca. Thanks, Becca :)

1- How many works do you have on AO3?

71...I honestly was a bit surprised it was that many. I guess I've had that account a while and it adds up! Almost all of them are oneshots, though.

2- What's your total AO3 word count?

204,091.

3- What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

They're all ATLA, which makes sense when you think about it. ATLA is probably the second-biggest fandom I've written for other than ASOIAF, but ASOIAF is so big it's sometimes hard to get noticed. That being said, when I sort by hits, three of the top five are ASOIAF so I guess more people are reading those and not liking them. It probably helps that my top-kudos ATLA fics are all Zuko-centric and he's one of the most popular ATLA characters in fic whereas I think the ASOIAF topics I focus on are perhaps a bit more niche.

tongued with fire (728 kudos)

i got soul, but i'm not a soldier (714 kudos)

cold fire (655 kudos)

we die with the dying; we are born with the dead (597)

the sword and the pen (577 kudos)

4- Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to! I'll respond to all comments on recently published fic (unless it's a hate comment, which I delete) and for older works I try to respond, especially if it's a substantive comment. I like to engage with readers, especially since I tend to write a lot of really niche fandoms and it's nice to connect with other fans.

5- What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

probably either another atla fic that's set right after ursa leaves zuko and azula behind or this big love fic which has an ending that is... not necessarily angsty for the narrator but super bleak in context.

6- What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

I don't typically write fluffy romantic fic (I usually do more bittersweet gen focused on family relationships) but I did when I participated in the Jaime/Brienne ship exchange a few times and this bakery-themed modern AU is probably my fluffiest/happiest ending. Exchanges are kind of fun because this is very much the type of fic I would not have ever written on my own.

7- Do you write crossovers?

I have not!

8- Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes, lol. My Lannister twins genderswap fic was very controversial among a certain subset of fans who vocally disagreed with my characterization (I will sum this up as them basically believing that genderswapped Jaime would just be canon Cersei which...lol). That's the only fic I've ever got hate comments on, though I did get a really bizarre comment back in ninth grade on FF.net before I migrated to ao3 where the person enjoyed the fic but also used the comment to grandstand against abortion, a topic that in no way was mentioned in my fic. Sir This Is A Wendy's.

9- Do you write smut?

I do write sex scenes but I wouldn't describe them as smut because they're non-explicit and mostly like fade to black stuff.

10- Have you ever had a fic stolen?

YES LMFAOOOOOOOO SOMEONE TOOK A MULTICHAPTER FIC I WROTE ABOUT NINA AND OLEG FROM THE AMERICANS AND SELF-PUBLISHED IT ON AMAZON AS AN EBOOK.

11- Have you ever had a fic translated?

I think someone asked if they could translate one of my fics into another language but it was years ago and I don't remember if they did it or not or which fic it was or even which language it was.

12- Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, my first ever fic! Me and my best friend wrote it in sixth grade and it's an unfinished sequel to Ivanhoe. We never published it, though. It's really, really bad lol.

13- What's your all-time favorite ship?

Tony and Carmela Soprano. sorry. Not ship in the fandom sense but...relationship of all time. (I honestly tend to write for canon pairings that I want to build on, anyway). In the traditional sense of "wanting them to get together in canon", probably Jaime/Brienne.

14- What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I honestly don't really have a lot of published WIPs, because I tend to do oneshots and if they're not ready they're just not published. Right now I do have a two-chapter Greek mythology/Iliad retelling I wrote in high school that is absolutely never going to get updated ever, but frankly I don't feel particularly strongly about finishing that. I did have an actual multichapter WIP with the Lannister genderswap fic that I really felt bad about not working on, but I finally finished it!

15- What are your writing strengths?

I think I'm good with dialogue and characterization! A lot of my fic focuses on precanon/younger versions of canon characters ("flashback fic") and I think I'm pretty good at developing backstories. Also if I may say so myself, I write decent prose.

16- What are your writing weaknesses?

Plotting, which is why I tend to do shorter character-study stories. I really struggle with doing actual plotlines. (This is also a problem in my original fiction, lol. I'm always like. Okay I have these fascinating people in an interesting setting. Now what the hell are they going to do).

17- What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

If it makes sense in context, like a bilingual character, sure. I do think it should probably be written so that it's clear what is going on to readers who only know the primary language of the fic, though.

18- What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Other than the aforementioned Ivanhoe sequel, it was Harry Potter.

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

Can't really think of anything!

20- What's your favorite fic you've written?

I'm very proud of the Lannister genderswap fic because it's probably my most significant achievement in terms of plotting, which as I mentioned is hard for me, and I'm really happy I returned to it after over a year's hiatus and finished it! I'm also really proud of this big love fic because I appreciate the effort I put into fleshing out the characters' world (including historical research) and I think it is a really good work of character study.

Tagging @when-did-this-become-difficult @ofhouseadama and anyone else who wants to do this, I can't think of many mutuals on here whose fanfiction output I'm particularly familiar with.

[darthpastry]

This isn't really much of a question but I'm not really sure how else to phrase this. Give me all your Glitchtrap and Mimic head canon and AU ideas. I don't care how dumb or trivial you think they are. I wanna hear them. I just really love hearing people pour their hearts out about stuff they're really passionate about. Especially if it's something super niche like this.

Oh my gosh I accidently deleted the reply to this... but I have so many and this time I can do better formatting lol

Mimic:

Not entirely Glitchtrap, but kind of a mix of the Mimic program as well as Glitchtrap that has resulted in something just as violent as Glitchtrap, but not really malicious. Not saying it has any sense of morality, but more along the lines of "huh, weird, that fleshbag I just attacked isn't moving anymore. Oh well." It has a bit more of a childlike nature at times, like with the costumes.

Glitchtrap doesn't care much for having all the different characters that Mimic has come up with, as opposed to just having one alter ego, but enjoys the sadistic side of using a person or character someone cares about to lure them to their death. Finds it funny and all.

Speaking of the characters, the Mimic loves coming up with all sorts of characters and making costumes to "play pretend" with others before killing them. It doesn't have a lot to do after it got sealed away, so it spends hours drawing and making costumes.

Also, Mimic is not Burntrap. From my understanding, Burntrap and the Blob only exist within the "true ending" of SB that was effectively retconned via the comics in Ruin. The again, perhaps "the Blob and Burntrap aren't canon" is on the same level as the "Golden Freddy isn't real" video on Game Theory.

Glitchtrap:

Where do I even start with Glitchtrap? To anyone affected by the Glitchtrap virus, it can visually appear. Not entirely a hallucination, but not visible to anyone else, of course.

It can also create objects out of nowhere that only it and those infected with it can interact it. Mostly because these objects aren't actually real, and it just convinces the subconscious of the victims that it's real to the point of them being able to interact with the objects. These objects always look purple and glitchy. Kind of like a glitched game texture.

It can also pull objects out of the digital world and bring them into the real world. Such as, if Help Wanted was left open on a VR headset, it could reach into the headset and pull out a basketball, making it real. It could then take the basketball and toss it to Vanessa, who could toss it to anyone else. More likely take over Vanessa's body and then use the basketball to brutally murder someone, but you know.

Glitchtrap will also move around either with an absurd gymnastics routine or by teleporting. The teleporting is it disappearing and then reappearing wherever it wants in a cloud of the same purple glitches that appear on the objects it creates out of nowhere.

It understands morality a bit better than the Mimic, but just sort of understands the fact that morality exists, and people find murder unacceptable. But it also doesn't understand why they see it this way and will continue to make jokes about murder and torture to Vanessa and Gregory.

For how Gregory got Glitchtrapped, my headcanon was that Glitchtrap forced Vanessa to adopt him, since she was a beta tester, she would've been able to steal a copy of the game. Glitchtrap can also mess with computer systems, of course, so it was able to prevent her from getting in trouble.

It also talks very enthusiastically; random capitalized letters and an exclamation point at the end of at least every other sentence. Lots of dramatic, exaggerated motions while talking and almost never staying still.

Glitchtrap also likes using planners and calendars. Not necessarily to fully plan things out, but just because it likes hoarding both demented and childish ones. For example, the blood eagle calendar mentioned in the Special Delivery emails, but also made Vanessa get a daily planner with sparkles, rainbows, and unicorns.

Once MXES, who Gregory and Vanessa created after the 3-star ending, comes around, MXES and Glitchtrap end up have a sort of Lego Batman and Joker relationship. I say sort of, but it's exactly like that. Glitchtrap being mildly upset about being its plans being messed with, but also excited about having a worthy opponent that isn't some child (Gregory). In a "HEY! How's my FAVORITE nemesis doing?" sort of way. Meanwhile MXES very rarely talks and usually just does what it was made to do and disappears again, occasionally with a judgmental look at Glitchtrap's antics.

Glitchtrap also thinks of Vanessa as a friend, knowing but not understanding or caring that that's definitely not what friendship looks like. It sees the whole Vanny moniker as a fun nickname and will casually chat with her about anything and everything. It's also genuinely confused why she's not happy about the whole situation but doesn't particularly care.

It's also influenced by William, but not really. Maybe something of a caricature on how William saw himself, but certainly not the same. William would never be so intentionally goofy or enjoy dancing and gymnastics that much.

Glitchtrap also loves music and has questionable taste. While in the game it listened to the unused showtime file a highly questionable number of times and has given Vanessa a ton of terrible music recommendations. But at the same time enjoys watching ballets, one of the few times it'll sit still. Same with cartoons, it adores cartoon violence and absolutely takes it as suggestions.

It also is incredibly cheerful, no matter what it's doing, and will act like the most horrific things are complete normal and maybe pretend to be annoyed by people disagreeing.

I don't have a ton of AUs, but the one I'm working on, the timeline sort of got stuck in the blender and made a very weird but also fun smoothie. If that metaphor makes any sense. But the main changes are that no canon characters have died, and the timeline is far more compressed. As in, Help Wanted and SB both take place in the 90s and that technology can exist at that point in time just because sort of compressed. Cassidy also ends up playing a major role, she's the one who created the Princess Quest games in the AU. I'm also a firm believer in the "BB's Balloon World was Gregory's PQ" theory, so in the AU she ends up making that game as well. With some help from the Afton kids and Charlie, since they're her friends and already involved in the situation. Another major difference is also that William never got springlocked, adopted Vanessa to try and raise the perfect assistant and serial killer after abandoning his own kids, and then invented Glitchtrap when she turned on him. Then Henry ends up building the Pizzaplex because he was thinking of expanding anyway and it can also be used as a way to try and get Vanessa closer to the PQ games.

I also think it would be epic if MXES and Glitchtrap just got into a street fight, but that's neither here nor there.

I think that's everything I have, thank you so much for the ask, this was a lot of fun to answer!

[sorcerous-caress]

Hi hello I'm back and non-anon (bc I'm not scared anymore lmao), I sent in the star elf/eldarin ask!!

First off, for your influence on my DM work, I table for a party of really really new players, so a lot of them are just starting out as humans for now. To kinda get them further into the realm of exploring different worlds, I built an elf NPC somewhat inspired by your modern AU (but a little bit turned down on the sexual stuff bc I need them to not get distracted lmao), and a lot of your more general posts led me to want to explore the specific customs and practices of different elven groups, which led me down a rabbithole and now I'm trying to piece together dnd lore from the very beginning, like the genetic origins of the current species and stuff. It's been a super fun inquiry, and I have you to thank for inspiring me!!

As for your response to my ask...

DAMN. the Echoes of the Fey concept was SUPER COOL and now I really wanna look into that too bc it could work for some insane roleplay and some neat scenarios. I just love the idea of nonverbal and magical communication bc it has so much potential, and it's even better if it doesn't follow the mechanics of speech and is more based around general emotions or a different quantifying system. It's so fun to explore!!

Also oh my godddd, HUMANS AND HUMAN WORLDS AS A BREATH OF FRESH AIR. My ask was all over the place but you fully caught on to exactly what I was talking about!!! Even beyond the sexual side, there's something so intimate and beautiful about removing your "higher" level methods of communication for a raw, gritty ability to just feel. The idea of essentially letting down all of those magical concepts that are inherently emotional and having to go it alone and figure it all out physically is just so, UGH. There's something there but I don't have the words to explain it (but you did, and I'm so glad you get where I'm coming from)

But yeah there's so much to explore there and I love it so much

Love ya 💜💜

I love ya too!! 🩷🩷

Also omfg using the human infatuated modern elf as a guide for your new players is a genius move.

Like this one loser high elf with a respectful facade who is just so obsessed over humans that the second they see a gaggle of new human adventure waddling around like ducks, looking at everything with shiny eyes, the elf takes an emergency holiday from their high paying job and goes to the humans.

Imagine all the pep talk they'd give themselves.

"Okay okay we got this!! We got this! We practised this before in the mirror.

All you have to do is walk up to them and introduce yourself yes yes, mention that you're a high elf and throw some elvish words around, humans love these right?

Do NOT mention the porn and do NOT ask to touch their ears no matter how adorable and tempting they look to squeeze-well maybe...if the human is willing and it's not weird right? They'd allow me to touch their ears if I asked nicely so maybe-

NO-NO NO NO. no touching ears, stay focused for Corellon's sake! It is my job to guide humans after all, yes? All those stories you read of elves guiding humanity weren't just fantasy, if the elves don't look after the humans then who will? The dwarves? HA, as if."

Then they walk up to them, pretending to be all graceful and noble like.

"Ehem! Aethen, uh, humans, right? Isee that your kind is still as lost as ever. Maethe you are in need of a guide, yes? "

They'd also be a bit protective of them, especially around other elves who call humans biir aka garbage. Having an entire argument with the other person in elvish and insulting their entire lineage before turning to the humans like nothing happened and asking if they'd like to go to a tavern? The elf's treat.

Also this elf's whole education about humans came from the Internet and half of it is misinformation. Somehow they know the most niche of medical facts about humans yet lack knowledge about the most basic things.

This is just me talking about my modern human kink high elf. Your npc was just inspired by them so I'm not expecting them to act the same or have the same concept, still this was a fun idea!

And Aaaa thank you so much <3333 you're so kind. This praise is going straight to my heart and making it bigger. Feel free to drop by anytime and share any of your human kink idea or even knowledge about elves!

Rn I'm reading about the human age boom in the forgotten realms, it is kinda interesting to think about a time where humans were far and between before literally ruling over the earth in the span of thousands of years.

[nicki0kaye]

Star Wars Sentinel Guide nonsense

To make things easier for everyone, I've decided to just lay out how my Sentinel/Guide au works. Please feel free to rip me off entirely and apply these ideas to any blorbo you choose.

I've done a few pics for Pre-Empire bonded Kalluzeb, and started a fic for Post-Empire, Pre-Fall of Lasan Kalluzeb, but there's a bunch of other AUs that branch off of this main premise, and the fic especially drops the audience into the deep end re: how shit works, so lets just go ahead and spell shit out plainly.

First and foremost, yes, the Force is involved and the Jedi do know about these sub-categories of Force-sensitive ppl. Typically, the cultures they exist inside already have accommodations for 'Sentinels' and 'Guides', and these two sub-sets have very limited access to the Force itself, so it doesn't really benefit anyone for them to be picked up by the Jedi, as they lack the access to the Force required for full-on Jedi training, and the Jedi don't really specialize in their care. Only in very extreme cases would a Jedi want to adopt a 'Sentinel' or 'Guide'; ie when they are utterly alone and lack all outside support.

What even are Sentinels and Guides? In the broadest terms, they are specialized Force-users with complimentary adaptations, meant to work as a unit.

Sentinels have enhanced senses, mental capacity, memory recall, strength and speed, but can struggle to regulate their own nervous systems and risk being locked in vivid flash-backs due to their near-perfect recall.

Guides are empaths capable of influencing the minds and bodies of those around them, typically only within their line of sight, although with practice they can widen their range of influence. They are very sensitive to the pain of others, and can become overwhelmed by second-hand emotions without proper training.

Both Sentinels and Guides can sense the Force to a degree, though it's mostly limited to the 'souls' or 'auras' of other sentients, meaning no tapping into nature or inanimate objects (excluding kyber crystals. that shit they can in fact sense.) Guides can interact directly with other's 'auras', that's kind of their Whole Deal, but Sentinels have an acute awareness of their own 'aura', especially when interfacing with another's. This allows Sentinels and Guides to recognize one another, though a Sentinel may inaccurately contribute their awareness of a Guide to another sense, such as 'seeing' their aura or 'hearing' their soul.

A Guide's aura must interact with a Sentinel's aura to properly regulate a Sentinel's nervous system. This can be a temporary arrangement, after which one or both could disconnect their aura and suffer no ill effects. However, it's possible to form a 'bond' after prolonged interaction, especially if the two are 'compatible'. Compatibility between Sentinels and Guides is not a hard science, it's more a vibe that these two get on really well, and it works on a spectrum. The more compatible the pair, the stronger the bond; the stronger the bond, the more painful it is to sever. While super not recommended, you can sever a bond by force--outside Guide/Force-user interference--or by distance. No matter the method, a severed bond is traumatic for both parties, but at least with other Guides around, some of that trauma can be tended to immediately.

Separately, Sentinels and Guides have a few obvious niches they can gravitate to; Sentinels can excel at most any activity they set their mind to, especially physical ones such a sports or warfare, while Guides make talented healers and diplomats. They of course work best as a unit, something recognized and often revered in every culture they appear in.

Sentinels and Guides are most commonly found in non-human species, including but not limited to the Wookiees, Bothan, Cathar, Chiss and Lasat.

[shoot-of-corruption]

💚

💚 a ship that you think deserves more love

What a question... there is so many of them, I could talk about those forever, too...

Especially ships including our amazing girls...

It's so niche of me to ship Illusionshipping (Mai Kujaku x Yami Marik) and finding any content that isn't brutally violating is... REALLY hard 🥲 practically impossible, tbh.

For the sake of your character, I'll pick Boundshipping (Yuugi Mutou x Thief King Bakura) though.

Like, I know that is also a bit niche, but there is AT LEAST sparse content for this one. This is a great AU ship. You can do 500 plots with this ship and they never get old.

It can be funny, sad, EXTREMELY NAUGHTY, or really super sober... I really love to read fiction about it. (But I'm a dirty Caste/Kingshipper (Thief King Bakura x Atem) as well, sooooo x'D))

It definitely deserves a lot more love!

[sea-salted-wolverine]

P, Q, T 👀

*insert grumble mumble while I hunt down which questions those are*

P- invent random AU for a fandom.

Uhhh... Klondike gold rush era Alaska. 1890s and there's money coming out of the ground at the ends of the earth. The corners of the map have all been filled in but there is one last frontier to explore. The mounties are making your characters carry 3 years worth of supplies up the chilkoot pass. They have more money than God in a place where there is nothing to buy. Wump opportunities galore. The only people actually turning a profit are the outfitters and the whores. The closest version of western civilization is a tent city in a swamp run by gangs stealing luggage. (Anchorage mention) Robert Service is writing poetry about a frozen zombie mailman. Jack London is writing about murder dogs.

Yeah.

I am not optimistic about the quality of a gold rush AU written for fan fic purposes because its a super niche thing that would require assloads of research, but its an incredibly rich setting and frankly a fucking insane period of history. Go read the Cremation of Sam Mcgee and slot in whoever you feel would fit. Tag it as #wouldn't it be fucked up if

Q- i don't so much abandon ships as I put them in drydock and forget about them. I have a habit of latching onto underdeveloped characters in mediocre media that are never going to get any more fleshed out than "cute naive love interest" or "comic relief character #2" and then I'm vaguely dissapointed when the mediocre media wraps up and is content to leave them as accessories of the plot. I have a handful of fics that started as ships, and I did so much work extrapolating personalities and fleshing out the characters that it just became original fiction. The worst offenders are usually Shonen Manga and action movies because while there is a solid chunk of my media taste that is a 9 year old boy who wants to see explosions and superpowers and giant rock-em sock-em robots, those are generally not the kinds of stories that have much in the way of character depth.

Though, sometimes I am surprised and a ship I had thought was moldering away in the back, ready to be scuttled for artificial reef building, comes charging up to the forefront guns blazing and colors flying. Usually when someone has an opinion about Christopher Eccleston. NineRose doesn't so much live in my head rent free as it chewed a hole in the wall and pops out at random moments.

T- do I have any headcannons i will die defending?

I have a bit of a unique approach to head cannons. If it makes the story work better If it makes the story work better then everything is fair even if its contradictory. Senshi is the equivalent of a 20-year-old with a full beard and a 1000 yd stare is supported by canon and contradicted by the supplemental material, but thats not the thing that makes or breaks the headcannon. Its hilarious and fits the themes, despite the fact its not the authors intent.

I do get protective over intentional allegory especially unstated intentional allegory. Just because there isn't a great big banner stating that Pacific Rim, the movie about giant monsters from the ocean, rated on a 1 to 5 category system, showing up specifically because of rising CO2 levels and a warming atmosphere, that the goverment decides to fight for a little bit and then ignore and slap an in effective seawall on it and just let everyone on the coast get fucked, is about hurricanes, doesn't mean that I'm making things up when I say it's about hurricanes. The same with reading the Matrix as a trans allegory. The Wachowski Brothers were the Wachowski Sisters by the time they finished making a trilogy about taking a pill to remain comfortable in the status quo or taking a different pill to make some difficult changes and see the world as it is. So denying any queer interpretation of those movies is somewhere between willful ignorance and illiteracy, especially when the pills are color coded to zanax and oral estrogen.

[bitterrobin]

tiny appreciation post/insane rambling about Tom Bronson

re-re-re-reading JSA 2007. Tom Bronson is a good character, fight me. Everyday I claw at the air in rage for the many characters introduced into the JSA and then never given any more detail. There's just too many people in the '07 JSA, man. Too Many. Tom is unfortunately one of those comic characters that has a super niche fanbase and nothing to follow up on outside of JSA.

so, in light of me inserting him into the TAXONOMY!verse and putting the guy smack dab into the Battle for the Cowl and Bette Kane's radar - I'm just gonna gush a little bit about his first appearance. (and include some headcanons for the au).

Putting aside my favorite Old Man Trio, can I just say that I like how pretty the art makes Tom look? The first time I read this comic, I got a very James Dean/1950's bad boy vibe from Tom. I'd like to think it was a little bit intentional in order to parallel Ted Grant and his eternal Old Americanism. At least it's something I'll keep in mind.

Getting into the main post though, throughout his first appearance and the later fight with Vandal Savage, its made clear that Tom is surprisingly knowledgable about superheroes and the surrounding goings-on of them. He knows who Wildcat is (though obviously Ted is canonically an old hero, he has to be somewhat well-known) and he instantly recognizes Vandal Savage.

(sidenote: Ted looks like a stiff Barbie doll being thrown into the kitchen there)

I take the fact that he recognizes and correctly identifies heroes/villains as a point towards my "Tom is an observant and analytical person" hc.

Earlier on in issue #3, we see that Tom gets right to heart of things when talking with Ted and that he's quick to reach (somewhat right) conclusions.

Despite this, he doesn't really show it anymore as he quickly drifts into a side character spot as the comic run goes in. I choose to believe that Tom doesn't voice his thoughts to the JSA bc he doesn't know them well and he prefers to make snarky remarks in conversation instead of inserting himself into anything personal.

Later on in the series, Tom is reluctant to learn how to box and is shown to dislike fighting in general.

Given the whole estranged-dad-is a famous boxing champ thing, Tom probably doesn't like boxing specifically because of Ted. He says that he doesn't like fighting because of his were-cat form, which it's assumed that he would unconsciously shapeshift into whenever he got into conflict.

(sidenote: why is this the only time I see his inner monologue in comics *sob*)

This distinct trait of disliking combat, at least the personal fist-flying kind, is definitely something I'm including in the au.

Both Tom and Bette are chosen for the au partially because I like them, but also because they have distinct personalities and philosophies that clash with baby Damian Wayne who's coming fresh into the Bat-scene. There will be conflict as Damian will dislike and mostly abhor Tom's personal disdain for fighting. Tom doesn't seem to fight unless necessary and he canonically prefers to rely heavily on his powers to get out of fights. He's only shown getting more violent than usual after Grant Emerson's death, which is pretty reasonable. They were clearly fast and close friends.

Hooo boy Grant should not have died. Especially in Blackest Night, of all things. Despite my personal dislike of it though, I'm still flip-flopping between leaving him dead and then resurrecting him in the au - or just ignoring his canon death altogether. On one hand, I like Grant and I like their friendship so I want him to appear in the au somewhere (alongside Maxine). On the other, his death allows for a just a little bit of dramatic character development/detailing for Tom that lets me explain why he's not with the JSA and instead is in Gotham. Choices.....

Ending the post here with the final smorgasbord of headcanons and blurbs for the au.

he is Mexican-American, but distant from his roots because his mom raised him single and cut-off from her larger family.

he and Bette will enter a relationship. It came to me in a vision and I decided to implement it bc why not. Tom/Bette is bi4bi.

they start dating bc they both strike me as "why not?" type of people, but it develops relatively quickly after Damian enters the picture and they have to co-parent/watch over him as Gotham collapses in slow-motion around them

its shown in the background of some of the panels above that he's into music, specifically guitar and piano

so he will be in a band at some point

bc Alfred does not have the same relationship with Damian in the au, Tom is one who gives him/lets him keep the kitten

(also bc I don't subscribe to the "League of Assassins hate/kill animals" idea - Tom bonds with Damian over a mutual care for animals/cats)

Tom and Damian are a rocky pair, and it takes them longer to get along than Bette does with Damian

He treats Damian as the annoying little brother he never had, and their sense of humor kinda lines up

Tom fully encourages Damian’s sarcasm and rude comebacks

Believe me, there will be a scene where Tom unconsciously purrs in his werecat form and Damian definitely notices

adding to the maybe Grant stays dead part, I'm still iffy on whether to include a one-sided crush on Tom's part that adds to the angst

unlike Grant though, I'm definitely keeping Yolanda Montez alive

Tom and Yolanda have a semi-distant sibling relationship that's a little awkward bc of the age gap and differing experiences with Ted

Might also resurrect Jake Grant, I need the Wildcat family reunion

Ted and Tom still talk, and even though Tom doesn't stick with the JSA, he's still regularly invited to whatever gathering they have

Tom still keeps up with working out/a bit of training - but he focuses on defense and avoidance instead of out-right conflict

Tom got into heroism bc of Ted, but he stuck with it bc of Grant and Maxine

he does not have strict ideals or a drive to save the world, but he likes to focus on the small things and helps where he can

[antitheticaally]

Answer the questions and tag five fanfiction authors you know!

tagged by the wonderful wonderful @asteria-argo

Wow hi everybody I know I vanished off the face of tumblr for a good 6 months, and I'm hesitant to say I'm "back" but... hi!

1. How many fandoms have you written in?

Well, I've written in a lot of fandoms over the years (almost everything I've ever hyperfixated on I've written fic for), but I've only ever published in one. As you all know, it is my one and only Ted Lasso fic. I've written a lot for Buffy the Vampire Slayer - that's probably the other big one, and then I definitely wrote some Percy Jackson fics in my youth, as well as *sigh* so much Harry Potter at the age of like, 10. But those are all (thankfully) buried in the recesses of my google drive and will never see the light of day.

2. How many years have you been writing fanfiction?

I think I probably wrote my first "fic" around the age of 6 or 7, and I'm 21 now, so... 15-16 years? Wow.

3. Do you read or write more fanfiction?

I definitely read wayyyy more than I write. When I'm really into something I can go through like, 3 fics a day, but it's a lot harder for me to write consistently.

4. What is one way you've improved as a writer?

My grammar and just like, use of language and developing my own style has improved immensely just from writing for soooo long. I think I've definitely found my own voice whereas, when I was younger, I used to kind of take on the tones of other writers I liked. I've also gotten a lot more confident in sharing my writing, especially since I joined tumblr and published something in the last year. That doesn't exactly have to do with the quality of the writing itself, but like, the relationship I have with what I write.

5. What's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

Oh boy, well, I did a lot of football research when I was writing for Ted Lasso, because I am not a sports girly. But back in middle/high school when I was super into Buffy I ended up doing a weird amount of research on 17th century England for some AU thingy I was working on. I think I still have the notes on that haha

6. What's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

I love all comments, because I crave validation way too much. But long ones especially. Like, when people go through and pick out all their favorite bits and lines and take the time to tell me how much they like them... it's very Special To Me. <3

7. What's the most fringe trope/topic you write about?

Hmm.... I feel like I'm lowkey kind of basic in terms of what tropes I write... But I guess I write a lot of stuff that focuses mainly on like, friendship and platonic love and intimacy and usually not a lot of romance, which, like, I've found a niche of people who love that shit for sure, but I guess maybe it's not asssss common? Idk

8. What is the hardest type of story for you to write?

Oh god I can't write happy. I literally have never successfully written a story where nothing goes wrong. How?

9. What is the easiest type?

Angst. But like, angst with with comfort. Is it projection? Is it being a psychology student? We'll never know.

10. Where do you do your writing? What platform? When?

I'm a google docs girly through and through. I do have a notebook that I jot down drafts in a lot of the time, but if I'm typing its on google docs. As for where and when... basically anywhere private. So, anywhere within my room. I can't write if there's even a smidgen of a chance that someone could walk by and peek at my computer screen. If I'm super into writing something I'll work on it all day, but unfortunately for my sleep schedule, most of my ideas come to me at 12 am when I'm trying to go to sleep.

11. What is something you've been too nervous/intimidated to write, but would love to write one day?

Honestly, at this point, I'll write almost anything as long as I think I can do it in a tasteful and respectful way. But there was a while where I was terrified of writing anything sexual or "smutty", I've kind of gotten past that as I've embraced my sexuality a lot more, and I have written sexual content. None of it is published, because a lot of it is from original short stories or older fics, and because I usually write platonic relationships, but I've done it!

12. What made you choose your username?

Aahaha... this is actually the second iteration of my tumblr username. A lot of you previously knew me as @antitheticallyargumentative, which came from a Taylor Swift song. I am a huge Swiftie, which I haven't realllly talked about on here, but I love her music and lyricism a lot. So the username came from a line in a song that was "argumentative, antithetical dream girl", and I just thought it was kind of fun so I messed around with it a bit and eventually came up with "antitheticallyargumentative." Then I revamped my account and shortened it a bit. So yeah.

I do not know whose already been tagged or whose already done it so.... whoever sees this... go ham.

Love ya!

[chowmoon2]

Well,since I’m now talking about my Mortal Souls au,I might as we’ll talk about my other Kirby au,Dark Star,for a bit

It’s not as big and dramatic like Mortal Souls and Dark Star is way more of a crack Au but it still has some angst and stuff happening

I came up with the Au when I saw a bit of fan art of Dark Nebula,more specifically,canary where he was apart of the Squeak Squad (as a small child) and ones where he is basically the edgy teenager of the Dark Matter group

At first I was like “That’s neat” but then later,I got a hyperfixation on the extremely niche character of Mr. Star

Then I notice that “Hey,Nebby and Mr.Star are both stars lol” then I notice that Super Star Stacker came out right before Crystal Shards so I was like “I can make a Au out of this”

Then boom! Dark Star was born!

I don’t have a exact time period for this au,it’s definitely before Star Allies and a few years after the events of Squeak Squad but idk

The basic plot is that Nebula manages to reform into a smaller form (with weaker powers) and after wandering around a bit,he just decides “You know what? I’m just gonna live with the Squeak Squad” and the Squeaks were like “Alrighty,just don’t do evil stuff”

So yeah,Nebby is now a somewhat official member of the Squeaks! He grown a close bond to them and especially to hang out with the Squeakers (and sometimes prank them) he can even occasionally join on their heist!

Kirby and co found out soon and while Kirby was excited by a new friend,the others were suspicious and on guard,especially Meta Knight,due to the fact that Dark Nebula is still dark matter

To make matters worse for Nebby,he starts to have dreams about another him,Mr.Star,and losing his star pieces and meeting Kirby (basically the events of Star Stacker) then he gets memories of encountering the Dark Matter trio and getting brutally corrupted by them into what he is today…..

Which makes him go through a existential crisis and he hides this to everybody cause they are not sure what they will think

Oh also,those three Dark Matter Return somehow and is now out to seek how they can revive their race (they also possess Gryll at one point)

So yeah,the other half of it is just random shenanigans,Feel free to ask questions about this Au too!

(If you are wondering,my interpretation for Dark Nebula is that he is just a very edgy teenager with a dramatic way of speaking,like he use Shakespeare like words and refers to Kirby as the pink one,things like that,but he secretly likes childish things like playing with toys and pranks)

[sassydefendorflower]

hey rora 7, 17, and 37 (no pressure tho :smek: )

Roma!!! Hell yeah!!! (and put the pressure on -smek-)

7. Any worldbuilding you’re particularly proud of?

That's an evil question and you know it ;D Well... let's see where I shall begin.

There is, of course, i am apart (everything is connected) - i put a lot of thought into the worldbuilding for that fic. The idea of the belief system of the person influencing their metaphysical connection to the universe and as such alchemy and alkahestry was something I created for this fic, even if it has since firmly morphed into a general headcanon. This fic is also doing some stuff politics-wise that I really like - some of it is more subtle, like the hints on how I imagine the Imperial Court System in Xing to function, and some of it is more overt: the real troubles of slowly changing a country and returning to peace after years and years of war.

I am also deeply proud of my worldbuilding in an undertaking of deconstruction - more commonly called the Eastern Liberation Front AU. Because in this I get to play around with background characters, their world views, and the workings of an anti-establishment movement. My POV character (mostly Ed) doesn't see the world in all it's complexities, but that doesn't mean they aren't there. If anything, this is something that allows me to explore Scar's backstory, Shou Tucker, and even Roy and Riza's relationship through a different lens - and with that comes a lot of worldbuilding and geopolitics :D

But I can also mix it up with a bit of DC! A Constellation of Complications is a cyberpunk space-noir case fic in which Dick Grayson, bar owner and spy, has to solve a series of cyborg murders. This fic was a lot of fun to create because it deals with the question "what is a human? what is a person? and what is a cyborg?" only to fundamentally decide: it is all arbitrary but the system is so broken, we have to act within it. The laws are unjust, society broken, and yet... our protagonists can't escape those definitions and secrets and consequences. Lots of fun with that worldbuilding for SURE!

17. What highly specific AU do you want to read or write even though you might be the only person to appreciate it?

-sobs in my pillow in sorrow-

I mean... the Eastern Liberation Front AU is right there. This AU is so large and detailed in my head... I could write a thousand fics about and it would still not be enough. Especially since the fandom doesn't seem to share my unadulterated joy about... Ed and Al as "terrorists" and enemies of the state.

But there is more! Of course! Roy and Riza reaching their goal and then having to deal with facing the consequences of their actions - in a way that respects the good they did since then, but really delves into the nitty-gritty of "some things are just unforgivable"... and that deals with how liking someone makes it hard for the people around them to acknowledge their faults and misgivings and that that's--- okay. This one is truly more a vibe AU than anything else...

Super specific and somewhat cringe.... The five sacrifices get teleported to 1915 Europe instead when Father tries to teleport them to his lair - and now they are in our world, in the middle of a war, without alchemy (Shamballa-style). BUT what makes this AU way weirder and funkier and niche... the Truth basically sent them there with a "once you manage to find a way how to stop father sucessfully, i'll get you back but I really don't want father to eat me so.... have fun" and now the five sacrifices are immortal... (or something similar enough) and stuck in a different time/world. And then... this somehow turned into a Marvel/FMAB crossover? As in Roy and the Elrics are involved in the Super Solider Program, but the Elrics leave because they don't actually want to help any government at all, and they then just travel the world, join universities, and make low scale trouble until in 2014 the Avengers notice a similar heat signature from some files in 1915 and search for them to figure out what the fuck is going on.

Is this specific enough? :D

37. Promote one of your own “deep cut” fics (an underrated one, or one that never got as much traction as you think it deserves!). What do you like about it?

Hm... to stay on the FMAB train... Hero Of The People, the second part of my Eastern Liberation Front AU. It's the Shou Tucker incident but in an alternate universe in which Ed and Al never joined the military. Instead, they end up at Shou Tucker's place after one of their informants tells them about his library - they have to be sneaky because Roy and Riza are hot on their tails after Ed almost killed Hawkeye during an alteration in a train, and Nina is a breath of fresh air (but we all know how that story ends).

I like it a lot because it plays around with Ed being a lot more angry and unrefined than he is in canon - and yet he and Al still want to save little girls and learn how to change the laws of the world. They are the same, and yet their different story changed them and the world around them. Also... Scar's there and that encounter does indeed go very different than it does in canon.

I don't know--- I just have an eternal soft spot for that story and the world it is set in.

Thank you SO MUCH ROMA!!! <3<3<3

[ask me a question for fic writers]

[wildfey]

Now, there is no such thing as an AO3 wrapped (and, quite frankly, I’m thankful for that one) but here are some stats I found interesting from this year:

- My total 2022 wordcount came out to 151,227. That’s about 2 smallish novels, which I’m pretty proud of. 2022 has been by far my most productive year for fic, containing about 60% of my total words on AO3 (note that I say on AO3, not fanfiction in general, as I have unpublished fic that probably adds up to another 80k or so.)

- The largest and most popular fic from this year is, of course, The Phoenix and Other Early Birds, published from Oct 2021 to March 2022. This year’s numbers got a big boost from that (100k) fic already being mostly written.

- Everything else from this year is split between 5 fics, with far more series work than previous years - a sequel to the aforementioned tPaoEB, two linked fantasy au pieces that aren’t actually abandoned, I promise, as well as a Athena fic which is mostly abandoned (sorry).

- The one fic I wrote this year that is a standalone is one of my semi-regular adventures into super niche ships, and seemed to be enjoyed by the 2 people I was hoping would like it, which I count as a success. Don’t expect any more Marshallworth from me, but applications are open for whatever rarepair I will become briefly obsessed with in 2023.

- As for 2023, I already have a resolution for what I’m writing in the year ahead. Firstly, I plan to finally finish the apocryphal Franmaya fic. I know I’ve been saying this for years, but it’s getting there, if only at a rate of a thousand words or so every couple of months. Secondly, I have plans for more fantasy AU feat. Trucy! and maybe even a wedding!... There’s also a third fic in the Early Birds AU which is currently sitting at just under 40k, and should probably be finished. If I have any time left after those three, it’ll most likely be split between a Mia!Lives AU that I’ve had simmering for years and a Klapollo fic that I’ve been plotting and writing in-between other things. Watch this space!

All in all, a good year for fic, especially considering how much has been happening in my personal life (I graduated! I’ve had two different jobs! I moved house!) Thank you to everyone who has messaged or commented on my fic, and here’s hoping for an even better 2023!

[amporella]

this is the make or break friendship moment ella— i wanna know YOUR gregstophe thoughts 👀

THE PRESSURE IS ON!! I‘m just going to list my general opinions, because tbh you have covered their specific dynamics way better than I ever could.

Gregstophe (which I have not been able to stop myself from pronouncing as ‘greg-stoph-ee’, which I KNOW is not the right way but the way I do it anyway) was definitely one of the earlier ships I got into, if I remember correctly? It was never exactly on OTP level for me, because style really was my absolute favorite from the very beginning, but the gregstophe niche very much appealed to me in a lot of ways. Despite appreciating it as a ship fairly early on, my fanfiction exploration was very limited, and my fanart exploration - keep in mind I had not yet had a South Park tumblr account at that point in my life - consisted basically of typing ‘gregory and christophe fanart south park’ into Google.

I didn’t have much of a choice on the fanfiction, though! Even now, there are barely over 200 works (several of which being on the ‘most recents’ page being yours!) and when I first got into the fandom, there were around 60. I was actually much more of a kystophe enjoyer back then (and I even read a few fics, though those were obviously limited to), and I haven’t really picked which of the ships I like more in present day.

I still do like gregstophe!! I mean, obviously, since I wrote a fic about them (for you <3). I think they are just so interesting, and BLU really is one of those movies that I just rewatch over and over again when I get the time. I would consider myself more attached to Christophe than to Gregory, and I have been for a very long time. I think Christophe is just the funniest little guy. That being said, while I do love Christophe so so dearly, gregstophe isn’t one of those ships where they are the One and Only for me, because neither of the characters are super, super high on my faves list. I could ship either character with other characters without getting weirdly jealous about it, which is honestly very rare for me!

If I had to guess why I feel that way towards them, I suspect it’s because they exist as an abstract concept to me, instead of a seriously grounded ship. It’s not that I don’t think they would legitimately work, because I do - it’s that gregstophe kind of inherently has to be an au, just by virtue of existing. And not even because Christophe is (seemingly?) dead, but because both of them are just SUCH strange characters that they kind of seem out of place even in the weirdo town of South Park. And that’s what makes them interesting, and very charming! But it’s also why it’s hard to imagine them as a permanent fixture in basically anywhere, which is why I think your ideal of a mercenary (if that’s the right word?) lifestyle works so well for them. Their few minutes of screen time each already sets a precedent for each of them as perpetually on the go, and to consider them having a permanent, domestic life (before the age of 40-50) feels difficult for me to imagine. That being said, I think you do a very good job of making them believable!!!

I love gregstophe, seriously. I think they’re such a charming pair, and one that fit so well together especially given their lack of actual interaction. The gregstophe community is also so committed, and I can always respect that for a rarepair.

NEEDLESS TO SAY, if any gregstophe enjoyers are reading this, Alister is your prime source of gregstophe content. He knows them WAAAY better than I do, so please take a look!!!!

[msmargaretmurry]

2, 17, 30!

2. most used tags — i am both a pretty minimal tagger and not super prolific so the most used "additional tag" i have is futurefic, at... three uses 😂 which is definitely representative and imo undercounts because my band of brothers fic is technically futurefic but not tagged that. after that are "coming out" and "pining" at two uses apiece; pining is absolutely representative, we all know i love pining, while coming out is — accurate in that i have posted two fics on that account that feature it heavily enough that i felt it should be tagged? i don't tend to set out to write coming out stories but i do love stories about people ultimately finding comfort with themselves and the things they want so i suppose it fits in that way.

but also lmao i just checked this on my sock puppet account as well and the tagging there is similarly minimal but the top three (the only ones with more than one use) are blowjobs/anal sex/friends with benefits. stealth mode becky is clearly hornier than mainstream becky.

17. highly specific au i want — i'm gonna give a bit of a cop-out answer on this because i'm not a big full-on au girlie, and i honestly can't think of anything super niche that i REALLY want. so i am just going to talk a little about aus i want in general. i tend to like my aus with one foot still in canon/~reality~, timeline divergences or one-thing-is-different type aus. with hockey, i love a timeline divergence that takes a character's hockey career/future away from them early and makes them navigate the world and their own wants/needs/desires without that safety net/driving purpose. especially if the other half of the pairing still gets to live their nhl dreams — the inherent conflict there is so delicious to me.

30. writing out if my comfort zone — can i say the entire ratnovel? obviously there are some evergreen themes i pulled on there but it had been a very long time since i wrote something where i was starting from scratch with building the romantic relationship as opposed to having characters wrestle with existing feelings, and also i went through this several-years-long period where i felt basically incapable of writing explicit sex, and there is. so much explicit sex in the ratnovel. so i was terrified that all of those scenes would turn out terribly. but i feel more confident in both of those areas now after writing that behemoth! so hopefully that will help me in the future!