#event: new years 2025

[mxstball]

[New Years 2025] Checkpoint

Zinnia found herself sitting on the edge of a bed. Looking around, she could see several of her Pokémon sleeping peacefully to prepare for the next morning. Salamence, Altaria, and Umbreon were nestled together. Goodra was snoozing by herself. Only Tyrantrum and Shiro weren't seen, but that was more likely due to the fact that they were too large to fit.

Zinnia looked around. There were small posters of several dragons from Dragonite to Garchomp to even Exeggutor scattered around. Her nightstand was flickering in and out when she turned it on. Next to it, her notebook and pen rested peacefully, as if ready for the next adventure that she was to take it to. Zinnia leaned back. "Must be back at the Village," she mused to herself. Zinnia smiled and got out of bed, got dressed, and went to Salamence and the group to lightly pet each of them. They all deserved the rest, especially for being worried about her for so long.

"It's a new year, guys. I… I know that I say every year that this year is going to be special, but… this year is going to be special for us. I just know it."

"...It already is special for you, Zinnia."

Zinnia stopped petting her friends and turned around to the bed, where the voice came from.

"...Lacey."

"Happy New Year, Zinnia." The True Arceus was sitting on Zinnia's bed, smiling.

"I'm… in another one of your checkpoint dreams, aren't I?"

The Arceus nodded. "You're in the Hall of Origin snuggling right now, so I decided to pull you here."

"Oh…." Zinnia turned to the trio again. Despite getting this information, she gave Salamence a little peck on the top of the forehead before walking back over to join the Arceus on the bed. She turned to the lamp, turned it off, and lightly opened the blinds, letting natural light get through. "Y'know…. Grannie told me that Zuki moved in to my room, though she said that Zuki preserves it almost perfectly like how I kept it… barring a new bed, of course."

Arceus nodded. "Zuki cares a great deal about you and preserving your past. In a way, she considers herself as one of your mothers, after all."

"Yeah…. She and dad fight a lot over me now, though it's in part because they like riling the other up and claiming that the other isn't my parent." Zinnia laughed a little. "Honestly? Doesn't matter all that much to me. Dad's gonna be dad an' Zuki's gonna be Zuki."

Arceus nodded. "And they're both are going to get on your last nerve at some point."

"Damn right they are!"

The girls laughed a little, although they both were just stalling for the inevitable serious question that was coming.

"So… New Year New Me, huh?" Zinnia looked down at her hands. For now, they looked normal… for now, everything looked normal… but she knew what she felt when she was awake… when she lost control of herself…. When she looked down at herself and saw the sharp claws and black-clad scales. "Didn't consider for that to be taken so literally."

"Mmm." Arceus leaned back. "How… are you holding up? I know that the last time we talked, you mentioned having dreams of turning into a Latias, but—"

"I… I still don't know." Zinnia closed the palm that she was looking at. "This… this is just temporary, right? Like, how Nergal turned me into a Latias during Halloween? I'm sure that Lady Arceus will just turn me back to normal when I recover, right?"

"??? Wait, 'Lady Arceus'? Did Izanami do this to you?"

"…" Zinnia nodded. "I… assume so. She was there when I woke up like this. She taught me how to fly around and shift back and forth between my forms – and she was also there when I started freaking out an' lost control of myself." Zinnia scratched her head.

"Do you remember what happened before you woke up like this?" Arceus tilted her head.

"I… remember meeting a Lillie. She came up to my gym. For a second, I thought that she was my Lillie, but when I realized that it wasn't, I tried to ask her where she came from but – but then she pulled out something and then a loud bang went off and I fell to the ground—"

"…" Arceus took a moment to consider the circumstances. "It sounds like that Lillie impersonator must have tried to kill you. You're lucky to be alive if that's the case."

"…." Zinnia sighed. "So… does that mean—"

"It also sounds like whatever Izanami did to you was an attempt to save you." Arceus nodded. "Of course, we won't know unless we ask, but…."

"…." Zinnia rested her head on the Arceus's lap. She's had over a week to process this, but it still felt like so much to take in. To think that she nearly died again – and that this time she had to lose her humanity to survive was… a lot to think about.

"Hey, Zinnia."

"Yeah?"You're safe right now.

"I know this is going to be a lot for you but… I want you to know that no matter what you've become, human, Pokémon, or whatever, that you're still… you. Even if you think that you lost something – you still have yourself in here—" Arceus pointed at Zinnia's chest. "… and, ultimately, that's what matters most of all."

"… even if I become lost in not knowing what to do with… whatever I got going on?"

"Especially then, because we'll all be there for you every step of the way." Arceus smiled.

"….Thanks, Lacey. It… really does mean a lot."

[egophiliac]

still rolling around on the ground over the contrast between Jack and Mal. it's so...🤌🤌🤌

[toadlessgirl]

So I guess the universe decided we're not doing subtle metaphors anymore in 2025.

[fanfic-reading-challenge]

The 2025 Fanfic Reading Challenge

Welcome to another year of the Fanfic Reading Challenge (FRC)!

I won't bore you with the history of the challenge, this year, but I will welcome you to check out past posts that do explain some of it, as well as include a brief overview of what, exactly, this challenge is, though it does change year to year. (Essentially you read fics to complete goals and win bragging points and an artsy badge.)

This year is especially different, as I had the extreme pleasure of having @noxsoulmate as a partner in crime in keeping me hostage on track to completing this year's FRC. Another valued member of the mod team is @jandjsalmon and speaks for all of us if you need questions answered!

As for the challenge....

This is, indeed, a challenge. Of course.

First of all... you must obviously read fanfiction. As if you don't already!

You also need to download and make your own copy of the spreadsheet, which can be found here, as well as below in the important links section.

To participate in the challenge, you read fics that match the tasks in the challenge. An example of a task can be: "read a fic with a title containing the word purple in it." Should be easy! Of course, there are harder ones.

Which is why there are different modes of challenge to the FRC. These are as follows:

Participation (Complete 1 task)

Regular Mode (Complete 80 tasks)

Hard Mode (Complete 150 tasks)

Extreme Mode (Complete 220 tasks)

Complete (Complete 250 tasks)

The challenge lasts from January 1st, 2025, to December 31st, 2025.

There are badges that go with the modes completed, and even a secret 6th badge that will be fairly obvious if you look at the spreadsheet! Doesn't mean it'll be easy to complete though. *smirks* (Blame Noxy)

Most important of all: this challenge operates on the honour system. We don't check your work, or your reading logs (see below), so I mean, I guess if you want to be slippery with the rules, you do you, and that's on your conscience, but honestly it's so much fun to see how much you can get done by following the letter of the law/tasks! You can be slippery even with following the tasks fully. It's great fun. ;D

I think that's enough for an intro, really, maybe too much.

Important Links and Reading Logs/Trackers

As there is a component of the FRC that includes tracking numbers of words read, most of us use a reading log/tracker to keep count of how many fics we read, including data such as words, of course, chapters, month completed, ship, author, title, fandom, link to the fic, and such. It's a great place to mark what fics you want to read in the future as well!

This year we have FOUR trackers on offer, quite different from one another, so take a look, play around with them and check out their "intros", and choose according to what you think will work best for you!

Fic Tracking Sheets

Juulna's 2025 Reading Log

Noxy's 2025 Reading Log

2025 Jandy's Fic Tracker

Taru's Fic Tracker 2025

Discord

We have a blast on Discord. From general chatter to sharing pet pics to being there for each other during the tough times to forming lasting friendships and making friendships you’d never make in a ship- or fandom-specific Discord, to asking for help ‘rolling the dice’ (pick a number between 1-10!) to choose the next fic to read, to finding some of the really challenging task fills in fandoms people might not have ever read but are willing to try, or finding fandoms someone has never read and is very tentative about stepping out of their box, but they’re being 100% supported and know they don’t need to complete the fic for it to count for the task, stepping out of their comfort zone… we’ve formed a very odd group of, if not friends, then companions (but there are definite friendships that have formed!! Just ask the people who have started watching NHL and NFL together in our off topic channel!).

In any case, our Discord is not necessary, but it is a worthy and tactical element to completing many of the tasks of this challenge. 💙

And.... without further ado....!

The 2025 Fanfic Reading Challenge! (link)

There is an info/rules page as the first sheet on the spreadsheet that should fill in any further questions you have. It also has more contact info than just this page if you have any further questions and perhaps need a more immediate answer for your needs.

*Occasionally you will run into something that looks like an error, and it may in fact be one! Let us know if you see it. It's hard not to make a mistake on as large a spreadsheet as this.*

Please, first of all, have fun and just read fanfiction that you enjoy! I (Juulna) did that last year and didn't even come close to completing the entire challenge, and I still had a blast because I was enjoying what I was reading and rereading. Others took the challenge right to the completed end. Others forgot about it halfway through but still had fun, and some even went back and filled in the sheet for a really good showing! The challenge is what you make of it, what you want from it. So... just have fun. Read fic. Smile. Enjoy. :)

Second of all... well, we would love if you signal boost this post!!!!

Third of all, we do have our pinned post that includes a link to this page and that will include a link to our Discord and all our trackers as well, including past links for memento and informative purposes.

Thank you, and a blessed 2025 to all!

[neverreallythoughtaboutthefuture]

Happy New Year!!!

There are now officially only 12 days left to enjoy "Pacific Rim" as a movie portraying "futuristic events"!!!

Important dates to add to your calendar!!!

Between January 1 and January 8, 2025:

Striker Eureka is decommissioned from active combat.

Category IV Kaiju, Mutavore, breaks through Anti-Kaiju Wall and is killed by Striker Eureka, thus proving the Anti-Kaiju Wall ineffective.

Stacker Pentecost recruits Raleigh Becket for breach assault.

Raleigh Becket arrives at the Hong Kong Shatterdome.

Pilot tryouts with Raleigh Becket begin proper.

Raleigh and Mako nearly destroy the Shatterdome during their first attempt at drifting together in Gipsy Danger, prompting Stacker Pentecost to ground her, and inform Raleigh that he would be paired with another co-pilot.

January 8, 2025:

Double Event.

Newton Geiszler drifts with a Kaiju brain.

Category IV Kaijus, Leatherback and Otachi, emerge from the breach and attack Hong Kong.

Crimson Typhoon, Cherno Alpha, and Striker Eureka are deployed.

Crimson Typhoon is destroyed and the Wei Tang brothers are killed by Otachi.

Cherno Alpha is destroyed and the Kaidanovskys are killed by Leatherback.

Striker Eureka is incapacitated by Leatherback's EMP, and Herc Hansen's arm is broken.

Since Gipsy Danger is analog and the only Jaeger able to withstand the EMP (don't ask! I didn't quite get that part!), Stacker finally agrees to let Raleigh Becket and Mako Mori co-pilot her in the field.

Stranded with an unresponsive Jaeger, Herc and Chuck Hansen decide they should do something really, really stupid climb on the top of the head of Striker Eureka and shoot at it with flare guns. For the record that was Herc's dumbass idea!

To absolutely no one's surprise, the flare guns do absolutely no damage to the Kaiju whatsoever, and they only manage to piss Leatherback off but still look badass doing it!

Gipsy Danger is deployed and saves Herc and Chuck Hansen 's sorry asses.

Chuck Hansen is revealed as a secret Gipsy Danger fanboy.

Leatherback and Otachi are killed by Gipsy Danger.

Otachi's baby Kaiju is born and dies via strangulation by umbilical cord during pursuit of Newton Geiszler.

January 12, 2025:

Triple Event.

Category IV Kaiju, Scunner and Raiju emerge from the Breach.

Since Herc Hansen is unable to co-pilot Striker Eureka with his son, Stacker Pentecost decides to take his place in the conn-pod.

Stacker Pentecost launches "Operation Pitfall", an assault involving Gipsy Danger and Striker Eureka on the Breach.

Category 5 Kaiju, Slattern, emerges from the Breach.

Raiju is killed by Gipsy Danger.

Striker Eureka self detonates thermonuclear bomb near the Breach, killing Scunner and a bunch of fishes and badly wounding Slattern.

Slattern is killed by Gipsy Danger.

Gipsy Danger uses Slattern's dead body as a "bar code" to grant them access to the Anteverse through the Breach.

Raleigh Becket sends Mako Mori to safety in her escape pod after she loses consciousness upon entering the Anteverse.

Raleigh Becket arms Gipsy's nuclear reactor to self-destruct, destroys the Breach, and narrowly manages to escape the Anteverse through his own escape pod before the Breach collapses.

Herc Hansen stops the War Clock!

[missholoska]

happy new year of utdr ❤️

[novella-november]

Happy New Year! It's past midnight for me, which means its officially January 1st!

Who's ready for Public Domain Day Dash??? 🎉🎉🎉

For the first week of January find yourself a short, newly-Public Domain work you enjoy, and then write a short story based on that work to celebrate the Public Domain!

Edit: and here's yet another link, that you can edit the search query, and use this to find other, less-notable works from 1929!

Once you've found something interesting, just make sure you double check else where to confirm its age if it's not included on the material itself :)

https://archive.org/search?query=date%3A1929

[thelcsdaily]

Thank You

Another year is here highlights how crucial it is to surround yourself with positive people. There are many curves and twists throughout the journey. I still hold gratitude and love in my heart. I am happy for my loved ones who are still with me. I still feel grateful. I am grateful for the joy of life. I hope everyone has a lot of love, happiness, and luck. To all, a happy new year!

"The magic in new beginnings is truly the most powerful of them all" - Josiyah Martin

[thebrightestwitchofherage]

It’s 2025 and 100 hostages are still held captive , since October 7th. Bring them home now.

[ratwithhands]

Happy New Year!

I only just heard about this year's Chinese zodiac so I figured it'd be nice to bring the serpents back for a little doodle. There's usually little bouts of wakefulness through their winter hibernation, and Emmet tends to rouse more often, so he usually checks up on any communications while they're out. He probably sets up a little event with the office when he and Ingo return to work.

[sainz100]

Carlos Sainz | F1 London Live in 2017 | x x x x x

[podcast-bookclub]

AuFiCon - Urgent Event Slot!

We've had a last-minute conflict with a presentation and would like to fill that time as soon as possible. The open slot starts at 1 February at 6:00 PM GMT / 1:00 PM EST. If you're involved in podcasting and interested in hosting something - a live episode reading of your show, a workshop, a presentation, etc - please reach out to us at finch@podcast-bookclub.com with your pitch before 11:59 PM EST on the 21st of January. Thank you!

[firecodex]

Official artwork for Friend-Making Battle

Art by Tika Matsuno (Twitter/X: TikaMatsuno)

[hillbillyoracle]

Been using Field Notes as my bullet journal for the last couple months so I put together a new set up for the new year and threw this bucket list bingo in the back of it.

If you're interested in making your own, you can make it with Bingo Baker (google it) and then print it at 40% scale. Fits great.

Excited to hopefully start crossing stuff off.

[bullseyelover]

benjamin “dex” poindexter aka bullseye october 2017 —> winter 2025

[salon-maiden-anabel]

We need to pray for a Year of the Snake themed Lucy alt for new years event in pokemon masters harder then we've ever prayed before over this coming month