#hope these are all under the fantasy genre because i'm not 100% sure
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arthurtaylorlester · 1 year ago
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I love horror as much as the next person, but I've been on a really big fantasy kick lately. Do you have any recommendations for (preferably full-cast) fantasy audio dramas?
i'll be honest anon, i'm so picky about my podcasts i've only ever finished 6 shows.
i've never stepped out of my comfortable horror bubbles, but i have an extensive to-listen list i can pull some recs for you, from the podcast fandom itself!
DND podcasts tend to be great if you're looking for full-cast and lore based fantasy, so consider dice shame (if you already like malevolent), the adventure zone and dames and dragons!!
if your itch is more for proper audio dramas, consider caravan, the once and future nerd, greater boston and radio:outcast
again, i havent actually listened to any of these, but i hope youll like them, happy listening :)
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mak3itr7ght · 2 years ago
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pair: Namjoon x fem!reader (Sing au)
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genre: Animation movie, fantasy, romantic.
Movie: Sing
*Is it possible for a human being the a koala's nephew? Well.. nothing is impossible~
Namjoon's pov
The Moon theater.. the world's most beautiful theater, in my opinion.
My uncle, Buster Moon, is the chief of this amazing theater and I really admire him.
Since I was a child, I come here to watch the shows' premiere.
To be honest, at first, they seemed boring...
But.. I've really felt sorry when I discovered that the whole building just collapsed and that my uncle lost everything.
Because..yes, for him, this theater is his life, above all, 'cause my grandpa worked hard for buying it for his son.
Luckily, my uncle's positivity never betrayed him, not even then:
He setup a pseudo theater with the remains of the old one, and obviously, with the help of his crew too, then bring a mind-blowing show.
He managed to rebuild the Moon Theater, and after several adventures, he managed to debut together with the other members of the crew in the famous town of Redshore City, in the Crystal Tower Theater, just think... that even the great Clay Callway was part of the show and now...it's part of the crew!! But I think you already know all the details, don't you?
It seemed like a hopeless situation! But my uncle's voice was still enthusiastic as he told me what had happened and it was also full of amusement. After hearing this story and seeing for myself the show that brought uncle Buster and his crew to their current fame, "Out of This World", literally a whole new world opened up for me.
I started to appreciate theater more and also started to develop the dream of wanting to bring my own show. I've always loved hip hop and rap for as long as I can remember.
I always had a deep connection with music, through my lyrics I tried to express myself and most of the time I was able to do it great, in fact, I still do it now.
Even at school I spent hours writing down lyrics, and I got numerous scoldings from the teacher because I completely forgot about the lesson.. one day, I even rapped the verse of one of my songs, out loud, during a class test... despite this, however, I was a model student!
Anyway....
other times, I did Freestyle battles with my other classmates or older students and... I always won, modestly. And  when I don't write lyrics or produce songs, for lack of inspiration, I take refuge in books or in nature. Books inspire me a lot and also thanks to them I have the pleasure to flex my open mind.
I like reading especially under the huge oak near my house, with the sounds of nature accompanying my reading sessions.
Going back to my big dream... before becoming interested in the theatre, I didn't have a real dream, in fact one of the songs I am most emotionally attached to, is "No more dream", written before my conversion. I would love to include it as an introduction to my show.. but I never had the courage to talk about it with Uncle Buster.. but today I know it's the right day to tell him!
I'm sure he'll take my idea and help me make it happen! I run to the theater with a USB full of songs that I recorded. I enter into my uncle's office, almost breaking the door, because of the emotion, and find Miss Crawly, my uncle's over 100 year old secretary(Johnny and Ash speculate that she has existed since the time of the dinosaurs) cleaning the desk.
'Good morning, dear Namjoon!! Did you sleep well?'
After all, she's a sweet old lady.
'Good morning, Miss Crawly! Yes! I slept very well!
Can you tell me where I can find uncle Buster?'
I ask, impatiently.
'Oh, Mr. Moon is downstairs, he's helping the guys carrying their suitcases!'
I am perplexed.
'Suitcases?'
'Yes! The tour starts today! Don't you remember?'
Oh god the "Out of This World" tour.. I totally forgot about that.
I won't see my uncle for months... And I'll have to postpone the realization of my dream... again...
I go, feeling down, with Miss Crawly, downstairs where i find uncle Buster on his own. I run to hug him and wish him a safe journey. I'm sure this tour will take the show even higher and I'm so happy for the whole crew. This has always been my uncle's biggest dream and then... he deserves it, he has gone through everything to achieve this goal, he worked hard, all of the members worked hard.
'Listen, Nam, I want to give you a very important task!'
Uncle's voice always energizes me, he's always so full of positivity, one of the many reasons I admire him.
'What kind of task??'
I ask, curiously.
My uncle is unpredictable, you never know what can go through that hairy head.
'I want to entrust the teather to you!!'
HE WANTS TO DO WHAT?
...
...
I don't know what to say, I can only gasp. I told y'all, my uncle is unpredictable... but I didn't that much..
'I'm sure you're the best person to run our wonderland! And then you will not be alone! Miss Crawly will be there to help you!'
I can't say anything, but I think uncle felt my happiness. That theatre, that place of wonder, would become mine, temporarily, but mine.
my uncle smiles. I knew he would understand anyway. He always told me that he finds a little bit of himself in me. And there is no more beautiful compliment for me.
'But now, if you'll excuse me, the bus is leaving!! I love you, my nephew!!'
And after hugging me again.. he goes away, leaving the whole theater in my inexperienced hands.. But come on... at least there's Miss Craw-
'Namjoon!! Have you seen my glass eye????'
...okay maybe it will be more difficult than expected..
As I help Miss Crawly in looking for her glass eye, hoping I haven't already crushed it and shattered it into a thousand pieces under my foot, without realizing it, in my head there is a tangle of thoughts and ideas but, obviously, the most accentuated one, and which let a toothy smile appear on my face, is certainly to make my biggest dream come true. It seems a bit as if uncle already knew..and therefore he had literally left me a blank check..because when Uncle Buster is absent with the company, generally, the theater remains closed..
I turn around, looking at the building keys, in my hands.
Now it almost seems as if uncle, with this move, told me "Hurry up and seize the moment, my nephew" By now I'm almost 30 years old, I want to bring my own show and I'll try now, moreover, I also want to discover myself and I really want to identify myself as Namjoon Moon and not just "Buster Moon's nephew". I run to the office to move all the songs I've written down over the years to my uncle's computer, at least the most suitable ones, and I start writing the script for my show. As soon as I conclude the first draft of the storyline, I realize that it is already evening.
I decide to print the script and, while looking for a stapler, I finally find the Miss Crawly's glass eye, I have to advise her to put more glue on it..
After a week finally the plot of my show is finished and ready to be put on stage. I also adjusted the melodies and lyrics.
Now the main problem ... the actors / singers and dancers .. I think it will not be a piece of cake as my face is little known beyond my neighborhood, also I have never presented myself as a public figure, but it won't be bad to try, right ? Maybe my surname will help me in this case.
'Miss Crawly!! Can you please print some flyers for the show's auditions? I'll send you a draft!'
Miss Crawly's office is literally attached to my uncle's, so between our offices there was just a transparent window. So i asked her to print the flyers with all the info about the auditions, like the time of the event, it will be tomorrow at 9:30 PM.
Hope we will be able to deliver all of them in time... 
After printing enough flyers were printed, the Miss Crawly's fan just decide to 'share' them by flying them out of the window...well...so.. the teather itself is trying to help me. 
I remember that this happened to uncle Buster too, when he was still in debts .. maybe it will bring me good luck too. I cross my fingers..
I'm going to move here, for this period. I will sleep in uncle's room. Yes, he sleeps in the theatre, did I already tell you that this theater is literally his life? Probably yes. Now that I think about it, I'm starting to bond with it too. I feel that... something beautiful, really beautiful, is about to happen.
Y/n's pov
"I'd still catch a grenade for ya
Throw my hand on a blade for ya
I'd jump in front of a train for ya
You know I'd do anything for ya.."
I love this song. I've always been a big fan of Bruno Mars and this song is one of favorites of all the time. I've always imagined what it was like to feel a love so strong to get to the point of, take a grenade, jump in front of a moving train, put your hands on a sword... in summary, sacrifice yourself for your loved one. I feel a love like that for singing, not for a person, every now and then I take some lessons, but I've never performed on stage, and I don't think I would ever be able to, as much as I wish. I love to hum when I read. Yes, I also love to read, especially psychology books. But tonight was different. Instead of starting one of the novels I bought at the bookstore today, my friends literally dragged me to the disco and... I'll be honest... it was not only the first but also the last time I'll set foot in such places... it's not my cup of tea I've always been a person who doesn't like these kinds of entertainment. For me, leisure is reading, on the comfortable bed in my room, singing outloud when I'm alone, taking walks on the hill behind my house, or... going to the theater!! We have one of the most renowned theaters in the nation in town, the Moon Theater! Actually my passion for singing was born right there! Before that.. I didn't have a real dream and I was desperate because I wanted to find one!
I went to the show that Mr. Buster put on after the fall of his theater and from the very first performance, in which Mrs. Rosita and Gunter danced and sang to Taylor Swift's "Shake it up", to the last performance, in which Meena, I love her voice, sang "don't worry about a thing" by Tori Kelly, Johnny's performance too, where he sang "I'm still standing" by Elton John, i admit i had a big crush on him for a few months.. In summary, my life has changed since then, and I still go there often... that place has something magical about it... it's a land of wonders.. now that I think about it, they staged a show on 'Alice in Wonderland' too! That's one of my favorite shows. I really should go there, these days, who knows what show will be scheduled... I get lost in thoughts, remembering the shows I went to watch in the last period, while I take one of my friends to her house, who is completely drunk, then, a paper sheet stuck to my face. I take it, seeing that it's a flyer for auditions... FOR THE MOON THEATER!!!! Either there is someone spying on me... or finally the wind is blowing in the right direction.. Okay. Maybe tonight didn't was the best of my life..but what if it was fate?
BUT.. THE AUDITION IS TOMORROW I HAVE TO HURRY!!
I hurry to take my friend house and, at the speed of light, I comeback home then I spend all night looking for the right song for tomorrow's audition and.. after evaluating about 1294 songs... yes.. exactly .. I opted for the usual, 'Grenade'. I realize it's 4 in the morning, I panic, and I immediately go to sleep, I have to collect these 5 hours of sleep or at least I'll try. I just hope I don't panic or shy on that...big, huge, stage...help. I noticed that Mr. Moon won't be there, this audition was launched by his nephew, Namjoon, I've seen him in the past, at the theater, a few times, but I've never spoken to him.. I hope he has inherited his uncle's dreamy and positive vibe. In my heart, I feel that something beautiful, really beautiful is about to happen.
Namjoon's pov
I wake up with the sound of uncle Buster's alarm clock, I set it at 6 so I would have 3 hours to organize everything better. With Miss Crawly we check the stage, the lights, the props, clean up the entrance and even uncle Eddie came to help us! I call him uncle, but he's practically uncle Buster's best friend and the nephew of the great Nana Noodleman, who financed the theater when the building completely collapsed. Full of anxiety, I run to the office to double-check the script and when the time comes, I see people approaching the entrance, leaflet in hand. I'm so excited but at the same time.. scared. A few minutes before the entrance opens, I decide to go through a sort of "secret passage": It is located in the part of the ceiling above the stage, uncle Buster always brought me here when I was little, other times I used to come here alone, to have a sort of "VIP seat" and better follow the show. My uncle, every time he has to start the shows, comes here, sits on the fake moon and then he slides down... what an entrance, right? I think I'll adopt it too, maybe it will become the signature of the Moon family hehe. I go down to the grandstand and as soon as 9.30 am I immediately ask Miss Crawly to open the doors. There are almost 200 people .. wow. I didn't expect to attract so much attention, but as I said before, my surname and the name of the theater helped me. However my goal is to create my own name, not to live in the shadow of uncle Buster and the Moon Theater.
I breathe a sigh of relief and welcome the candidates one by one.
'Hello creatures great and small, welcome to Moon Theater, I am Namjoon Moon and I am ready to show you new shades of the magic of this wonderful theater! And I want to do it... with your help!'
I tried to be as convincing as possible. Now let's start the auditions. Some performances were good but... not suitable for my show.. others were perfect: A couple who duet 'Shallow' by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper... wow what chemistry, what chemistry.. she has a sweet and strong voice, just like Lady Gaga's, incredible, he has a very low voice, very sensual...I like it; Another couple, he rapper and dancer accompanied by another girl, only dancer, on the notes of an unreleased song, 'more'...wow... they have a great complicity too. She literally seems to burn for him, I bet the whole theater, that those two aren't "just colleagues" as they said in their presentation, he has a bit hoarse voice, the perfect voice for a rapper, moreover, he manages to change his flow in a second, finally here we can talk about full-blown Rapper. Together, they'll set audiences on fire, I'm sure;
A guy, another rapper, brought his unreleased track called 'Daechwita'...HE RAPS BETTER THAN EMINEM. Wow wow wow I'm getting excited, another rapper with all the skills, who manages to insert a certain sensuality even in a song that has a completely different topic. And finally, three other boys, with different but beautiful voices, who respectively brought, An unpublished track, 'Abyss', this boy's voice is high, but not too much, sweet and ringing, 'Snowman' by Sia, the other's voice is almost feminine, but for me it's not an insult, on the contrary, I admire his voice, it manages to reach such high notes that it's enviable even by the best singer in the world..and 'falling' by Harry Styles, this boy has a particular voice, I don't know how to describe it, but he reminds me so much of Johnny, he's a born singer, you can see it in his face.
In the evening, I marked the names of those six boys and two girls in my diary. I have found some real talented people, however.. I feel that something is still missing.. I don't know.. 
As I'm about to close the entrance, I see a girl running towards me. "SORRY SORRY SORRY!! I WAS VERY LATE YOU MUST FORGIVE ME! Is there still time for another audition?" I can't tell her no, just because she could be the 'thing' that is missing in my show. 
Y/n's pov: 
Mr. Namjoon, oh my..calling him mr. seems a bit of an exaggeration since we probably have a few years difference between us, anyway, he was very kind to let me do the audition, just like I thought,  at the end, he is Buster Moon's nephew. This morning I didn't hear the alarm and I continued to sleep peacefully until 5 this afternoon.. I'm mortified.. it seems like fate wanted it to go this way. This feeling of being on a real stage is strange.. but at the same time I'm scared.. so scared 
'Whenever you want! Y/n! I'll start the base'
I can already hear the start of the song but I feel almost paralyzed.. 
'I-I..'
I can't even speak.. Namjoon shuts down the music, gets on stage, and approaches me, putting a hand on my shoulder.
'I know someone who started out like you, and now she's on tour and she's the best singer in my uncle's crew, I assume you know Meena, don't you?'
I nod. She is my idol .. and I didn't know that she was scared, like me, at the beginning... 
'My uncle encouraged her to sing by saying a line which souynds like his 'motto', "Don't let the fear stop you from doing what you love most." 
So now, even if you're a little scared, let it go away and sing, you will feel good.. then.. it's a love song, right? You will definitely have a boyfriend, so think about him, and let your feelings go free, they will sing with you.'
 Wow, Namjoon looks so much like his uncle in this aspect. I'll follow his advise. Although..I haven't a boyfriend.. but... I'll let myself go...let's get it!
Before starting to sing I turn my gaze to Namjoon, he has a beautiful smile on his face, which calms me down, he also has dimples, how cute~ I heard the base and.... Here I am, singing, without thinking about it, and, incredibly, during the chorus, the only person that comes to my mind is.... Namjoon.. Him? A boy that i just met few minutes ago? Crazy stuff... but... okay, I'm in the theater where anything is possible, so, it's okay.
" Yes, I would die for ya, baby But will you do the same?"
My head decided to change the lyrics, without my permission. I connect with the real world again and I see Namjoon and his secretary standing, clapping, I hear more applause coming from behind the scenes, where I see a group of people smile at me. 
'Well! Smile Y/n Y/s! Even your colleagues were amazed by your voice!' 
Colleagues? Does this mean...THEY GOT ME? AM I SERIOUSLY IN??!!!?!?!? I smile, beaming more than ever , also looking at my new colleagues. All thanks to Namjoon. I can't wait to work with him... ah and of course with the others too... 
Our leader, as it got late,sent us home, saying that rehearsals would start early the next morning, repeating us to not to be late.. I feel particularly involved, hearing that sentence.. As soon as we left the theater we decide to spend the evening, eating out to get to know each other better. Everyone is so nice. There are ten of us in Nam's crew, including him, who obviously is a rapper, although I haven't had the opportunity to hear him yet: There are Seokjin, Taehyung, Jungkook and Jimin who have the role of singers, and I am among those , along with a certain girl whose nickname is Luv, she seems very nice and knows her stuff, she showed us a part of 'Blank space' by Taylor swift and I love her tone of voice. Furthermore Jungkook and Jimin are also dancers, Taehyung is a good dancer too, but Namjoon decided to give him only the role of singer. Then there's Yoongi, Hoseok and Angie, the other girl, who is, as I understood, Hoseok's girlfriend, or at least, they claim they're just colleagues, but in my opinion they're either hiding something from us, or they're together without even realizing it... Yoongi and Hoseok are rappers and the latter is also a dancer, together with Angie. We make quite a good gang. I haven't had such a nice evening in quite a while. I rushed to sleep, eagerly awaiting the morning. That morning which actually arrived right away. This time I woke up on time and immediately run to the theater where Hoseok, Angie, Taehyung and Luv are already waiting, the others are probably arriving. At 9 Namjoon and Miss Crawly welcome us into the theater and take us to the rehearsal room. There are different rooms to rehearse, one for dance, one for singing, one for rap and many others! I feel like I'm living a real dream! After we settle in, Namjoon makes us gather on stage and announces that first he would let us stage a provisional show and then he would reveal the real show with which we will really debut... such a mysterious boy.. The others are a little perplexed, but something tells me that I have to trust him, I'm sure he has something great in store for us! And he'll have his reasons for keeping it all from us, for now.
timelapse  
About 2 months have passed since then, we have bonded a lot among us  and Namjoon has also proved to be more present than expected, especially with me. We get on quite well together, to tell the truth, I think I'm falling in love with him.. but I feel that, for him, I'm just a person to admire.. it hurts, but that's okay.. maybe time will open Namjoon's eyes. For now, in his heart, there is only room for the show that he dreams to take on stage. The day of the provisional show arrives, obviously not public, but  the show will be attended by Miss crawly, Nana Noodleman and her nephew Eddie ... I admire Nana .. but ... that lady scares me a lot .. 
From behind the scenes, I see Namjoon, standing on the fake wooden moon, on which Mr. Buster always climbs for opening his shows. 
'All creatures great and small...' 
Namjoon's pov:
As I recite the opening of the show, I am very nervous. In these months, I haven't been able to say anything about the real show to my crew.. mostly because, I hate to admit it, but I'm scared abou that too . I'm scared of their opinion, that they might disagree.. here's what I didn't inherit from uncle Buster , his leadership.. his ability to keep the attention and the authority, while remaining the cute koala  he actually is, remaining professional.. he just convinced Ash to sing 'Call me maybe'!!! 
I'm afraid to show my songs to the public.. So, I put this show on the spot, to prove to the others, but mostly to myself, that I can do it. As soon as the presentation is over, the show begins.. I will have to perform last, with Y/n, I admire that girl a lot, she has a wonderful voice, and she is so kind, but when she wants, she can also be tough, I'll be honest . I noticed that we have many things in common, she also likes reading and walking in nature and above all she discovered her dream thanks to the Moon Theater too. I admit I've developed pretty strong feelings for her, but I have to take them apart, we're colleagues, we can't be anything else.
I just admire her. 
The show seems to go smooth as butter, I also included some of my unreleased stuff, like 'Jamais vu' that Hoseok, Jungkook and Seokjin will sing, 'Friends' that Jimin and Taehyung will sing, since they told me they've known each other since elementary school , for Yoongi , honestly, I gave him all the freedom he needs, he told me that his dream is to become a composer, so I decided to let him use another unpublished work of his, 'people'; For the girls, I gave them already famous songs. I don't know... there were some songs in which I saw them more, compared to my unreleased ones. For Luv I opted for Katy Perry's 'ET'; for Angie, I decided to make her dance on Shakira's 'Whenever, wherever'; For Y/n, I assigned her 'Rolling in the Deep' by Adele, a sort of remix, in which i added a rap part written by myself. During my performance with Y/n...it was a bit tense but..everything seemed to be going well even if, I'll be honest, there's something wrong..I hope it's just my imagination. After the show, the boys ran, exhausted, behind the scenes. I'm about to reach them when I hear my name being called. I turn around and see Nana asking me to go over her.. I have a weird feeling.. 
Y/n's Pov: 
The show went pretty well. My fear didn't stop me, and that's very reassuring, although, I admit, taht during the duet with Namjoon, I thought about the fact that he probably doesn't prove the same things as mines... which spoiled the mood. I tried to keep everything hidden, but I'm afraid that I failed... who knows what Nana thinks of our chemstry, will she consider it up to Buster Moon's crew's? At one point, as soon as we see Miss Crawly take Nana to her limousine, we catch Namjoon join us behind the scenes, with a look.. a bit gloomy. 
'hey Nam!! Is everything okay?'
 Taehyung asks. 
'What happened?' 
asks Yoongi.
 'Did Nana say something bad?' 
Jungkook asks 
'Did Miss Crawly lost her eye again?' 
Angie's usual way to resolve the situation.. 
' guys, let him explain. Boss, what's going on?'
 Luv silences everyone, giving Namjoon space to speak. 
'Guys, I don't know if we can perform the show..' 
Namjoon lowers his head.. I don't understand.. 
'WHAT?!'
I shut my mouth, realizing I've screamed. 
'yeah.. Nana called me aside because she wanted to see the real show I had in mind. I showed her the storyline and everything and she said that the audience probably won't like it.. and I'm not cut out for this role.. I'm sorry guys.. I know I shouldn't listen to her.. She could definitely be wrong, but..' 
Namjoon can't finish the sentence, his voice shaking.. how I feel bad for him.. he can't give up.. not at the first difficulty. I see Nam rushing upstairs to his office, leaving us all speechless and confused. 
'Y/N, you should go..' 
I hear Seokjin's voice telling me to go to Namjoon. 
'Me?'
I answer even more confused. 
'It's evident that Namjoon gets along better with you, maybe you will be able to understand what happened and to convince him to don't give up' 
So...to the others' eyes Namjoon and i have a sort of connection... I hate seeing him like this, during the rehearsals he was full of positivity but at the same time quiter than his uncle. He has a dream and he can't let it go like this. All right. I'll go talk to him. I nod to the others and run upstairs. 
Namjoon's pov;
Nana's words occupy my head. 
Flashback
'I'm sorry Namjoon, but I think you're not cut out for that.. Theater is more, romantic, more, magical, it's not hip hop, or whatever.. I appreciate this little show you put on here, but you won't go far if you continue like this, I don't think this is what your uncle taught you.. Then you see that there is a sort of tension among you and your crew, you should have faith in them, so that they will have it in you. .' 
End Flashback
Those words reverberate in my head like a drum... I ran away from the guys too, they'll think I'm a loser, that they trusted the wrong person and indeed, now they're all probably already at home.. Nana said it, they don't trust me.. 
'Namjoon'
 A familiar voice takes me out of this hurricane of thoughts. 
'Y/n.. I thought you were back home..'
'I would never move from here, even if the building were collapsing again, like in the past..'
Y/n sits next to me. 
'Tell me what happened and what Nana exactly told you'
 Y/n always manages to calm me down, with her slightly low but sweet voice, for a few seconds, my thoughts disappear. So I decide to tell her everything... 
'But Nam!! You don't have to listen to her! Do you realize that you could bring about a revolution in the theater?? A bit like Goldoni did it with the Venetian theater!!!!'
'Y/n! Do you understand that... I.. I'M SCARED'
I almost yell at her without realizing it, I can feel something wet coming down my cheeks.. Am I crying? Really? Is Namjoon Moon seriously crying? Y/n puts a hand on my head, bringing it to her shoulder. 
'It's normal to be afraid, boss. But, as you told me that time, when I looked like a lost, scared animal, on that stage below, "don't let fear stop you from doing what you love most". If the show goes badly.. Never mind. We will try again! But think if it will go well, if you are successful, your dream will come true and... I will be happy to be part of it. And then.. there's a crazy chemistry among all of us, you've always been there, with Miss Crawly, together with us, supporting us like never before in these two months.. Do you remember when I didn't want to try that high note in Ariana Grande's 'Problem'? I was just trying it with you and we stayed until the next morning trying it. Or when Seokjin and Taehyung had a fight over that cup of ramen?...you rolled up your sleeves and made them reconcile, or when Hoseok thought he couldn't make that pas de deux with Angie because they'd never tried to dance on a slow song like 'in the name of love'? When, with a lot of patience, you taught Jungkook to play the piano, just because you wanted so much to make him sing 'I'm still standing'? You tested all of us. And we trusted you blindly. 
You understand it? We are here with you. And then there's one thing you have to give up..being liked by everyone. Remember that nothing and no one has ever succeeded in pleasing everyone. You may prefer some musical genres to others and you preferred the nine of us to other artists, during the audition, who will have been as good as me or Luv or Seokjin or Yoongi or others in the crew. It's Okay, Namjoon. We are doing something we love. Let's not care about the opinion of others, we are talking about dreams, something that goes far beyond a simple opinion of others. Look around.. This theater, this wonderland has always helped us. Even Mr. Buster, your uncle, has always been close to us, still during the tour. And then.. there's a phrase that Mr. Buster has always repeated loudly.. "When you hit rock bottom, do you know what the most beautiful thing is? It's that the only direction you can go is... up"..so Namjoon Moon, you are not like your uncle, and trust me, you are perfect just the way you are, and you are a fantastic leader, even if you don't notice it..my lead-em..our leader'
 Y/n is right, she is right in everything she said.. We are talking about dreams, not opinions.. I tested all the crew and they passed it.. now that I am put under the test.. I have almost failed. Yes... almost.. because now.. we're going up. Up to the moon. I have my crew, I have Y/n and there is also my uncle and the others supporting me...
I have decided. I have to put this show on stage and it's going to be AMAZING. I look at Y/n and smile at her. God how grateful I am to her.. what if I hadn't allowed her to audition?... where would I end up now? I don't know, nor do I want to know, from now on, one only looks straight ahead. I hug her tightly.  She doesn't hesitate to hug me back and, I feel like she's sobbing... she's crying too.. I feel a strange feeling in my heart.. but for now I can't give it weight. I smile at her and only after being reciprocated, I take her hand, that delicate little hand, and we immediately run downstairs. As I go down the stairs I see all the boys surprised, but I can feel a certain happiness in their eyes. Their gazes are spreading.. relief? I don't know, but this makes me relieved too. They are my first real best friends, almost my second family, even though we know each other from few months, I feel there was a reason why I chose them that day. In front of me, in front of us, I can already see a future brighter than the sun. There will be obstacles.. but hey, where's the fun otherwise? 
'Well guys, sorry for what happened earlier. I'm ready to tell you everything and above all, today.. I'll tell you know about the show that will take us to the top.'
 All my crew smiles at me, Nana has already made a mistake about this, there is something magical among us. After making the guys sit in the stands, I go on stage, starting to tell a sort of presentation on which I have been working on for the past 2 months: 
The show will be called "The most beautiful moment in life" And it will talk about the story of a group of friends, a boyband, which will be us 7, Seokjin, Yoongi, Hoseok, Jimin, Taehyung and Jungkook and me, Namjoon. They will debut with a song "No more dream" and, after several songs, they will reach a point in their career, where, they will lose themselves and decide to think about their solo works, to find what they had lost, they will release a song as a " ""goodbye""": 'Yet to come'. During their solo projects, three of them will find their twin flame, Hoseok will find a fan, Angie, from another nation, younger than him, but a sort of harmony will born between them that will set everything on fire ...thanks to Angie, Tae will come introduced to Luv, a friend, who will become Tae's twin flame, even if Tae is initially uncertain about his feelings.
And then, there is Namjoon, who finds.. Y/n... with her, he will be able to find his way.. The group will come back fully united and, in the end, there will be the grand finale, where they will all sing together 'For youth', as a love song for their fans, because after all Hoseok and Tae have found love among them, stating that, they will continue to sing for a long, long time to come.' 
Before speaking again, I catch my breath, addressing my friends, my crew.. I explained everything... putting my soul into it, as if the show had come to life in my head while I was telling it.. I admit I didn't explain all like this to nana.. i'm very tense.. this is literally the show i've been working on for all my life, this is the business card of the most important dream of my life.. i'm afraid of what they might think, what the public will think, what uncle Buster will think.. I'm afraid to express my weak point, but fear won't stop me. I'll make my dream come true...or die trying. 
'so.. What do you guys think?'
 I say, in a surprisingly confident voice. After a few seconds, I hear a clap. I look closely at the origin of the sound and I see her, Y/N.. I can see her hands becoming red from clapping so much and observing her closely.. she has tears in her eyes... 
Y/n's pov: 
I can't help but applause, Namjoon only showed us an outline of the show.. yet here I am, with red hands, still clapping and with tears in my eyes.. I think I understood what "reduced" me like this: The feeling with which Namjoon laid out these four lines of plot. His eyes sparkled, as if he were showing his greatest treasure. He brought it all out... and I feel so lucky to be one of the first people he did that to. 
'READY TO SOLD OUT AROUND THE GLOBE MR JOON?'
 I scream without even thinking about it, and soon after, I see Namjoon with tears in his eyes, for the second time today, but those are different tears, he is happy. I turn to the others and they are moved too, intent on applauding and rooting for our leader. I can't wait to start rehearsals for this masterpiece...and to be honest, I'm really happy to be Namjoon's twin flame, at least in this show, the most important project of his life? WHY DID HE CHOOSE ME? Aish.. I don't know, but... I love him, I love him to death. Now I'm starting to really understand what Bruno wanted to say through "Greande". 
Timelapse
Another 4 months have passed since then. We've been working hard every single day, and the debut of 'The most beautiful moment in life' is in two days. There's a lot of anxiety in the air, you can almost touch it, but at the same time, we're all excited. The general rehearsal started yesterday. In the end we decided to insert a choreography for all the songs of the "bangtan boys", the name of the boyband, so Namjoon, Seokjin and Yoongi went started dance lessons, the choreographer of the Mr. Moon's crew also helped us, Nooshy, although she could help just a little, since she is on tour with his crew, but with several video calls we managed to compensate. Then we have some ACEs here, Angie and Hoseok, who, personally... are scary when they have to play dance teachers.. Luv and I are saved, we will also have some steps in our duets, but nothing too difficult. Speaking of Mr. Buster, as soon as we told him the date of the premiere, he immediately moved the date of his show to that evening, in order to be free to see his nephew's debut. I'm so euphoric I can't stand still aaah. Ah and about the relationship between me and Namjoon? Well... nothing new, we just seem like best friends, and I don't have the slightest intention of confess my feelings.. just being with him is enough for me, so I've kept my feelings a little apart, at least for now. 
'Anxious?'
Angie interrupts my thoughts. 
'Well.. you don't?'
 I add, laughing. 
'Okay okay you're right Y/n. And.. tell me... there are rumors that you will confess to Namjoon during your duet, I hope they are true!! Now Miss Crawly too ships you two!!'
Angie comes up to me giving me a little nudge and a mischievous smile.. BUT WHO HAS SPILLED THIS RUMOR?
'Are you kidding?????? But I would never think of confess to him in that situation!! Whoever put up this voice got screwed up.'
I reply, but I already know I'm blushing, Angie's giggle is proving me that. 
'Mh okay... but what if it will be Namjoon who will confess his feelings for you, instead? What would you do then?' ...actually I had never analyzed this option.. But... naaah 
'Don't worry too much, it won't happen, Namjoon only feels admiration for me, at least that's how he made me understand..'
 I say with a slightly despondent voice, lowering my head . 
'And let me understand.. do you think two lovers can't feel admiration for each other? In my opinion, loving someone also means being a fan of your loved one, I could be wrong.. but my instinct tells me that I'm more right than you think hehe'
 Angie winks at me, then goes back to practice.. she's not entirely wrong .. maybe it's my greatest wish, to be Namjoon's lover.. who knows... 
'Y/n!!! We have to try 'Love'!! Run!!!'
 You speak of the devil... here he is calling me haha I better go.. 
' I'm Coming.. Nam!!!!' 
Timelapse 
Namjoon's pov: 
It's the day of the show and to my immense surprise.. we did a sold out... There is not a single empty seat out there.. And there are also journalists, critics.. All here for my show... 
'So.. guys! Come here'
We'll all get in a circle. 
'It's the big day... let's go out there... and show them who we are.'
 'YES!'
They all answer in chorus.. my gaze obviously goes to Y/n, you can see she's as anxious as I am, but I know what she's thinking: "Let's do it", so let's really do it. Through the usual path, I hold on to the fake moon and signal to uncle Eddie to start the special effects.. Let the show begin.. 
'Creatures great and small!!!! It is a pleasure tonight, having you here with us, Today.. you will be witnesses, of a revolution. Today... I'm going to tell you a story... which... starts like this...'
 Author's pov: 
With the lights off, 'The most beautiful moment" in life begins: 7 guys, who have already reached their twenty years old, who still can be considered teenagers. All brought together by their passion for music, but there is also something else that unites them, the question ... "What is my dream?" What's your dream?...' 
You can already hear the voices of the journalists, the audience taken by that hip hop rhythm, by the coordinated steps, by the voices of those seven guys.. that no one would have ever imagined seeing climbing the highest peaks of the world. And if you don't believe me.. keep watching, how mankind itself has evolved over the centuries, how a caterpillar turns into a butterfly... these guys have changed, passing from the hip hop of 'No more dream', 'We are bulletproof', 'N.O', 'Boy in luv', 'Danger'; To the sweetest and most melancholic notes of 'I need u' and 'Run'; To the energy of 'Fire' and 'not today'; To the sensuality of 'Blood, sweat and tears ';
To the fairy love of 'DNA' and the strength of 'Mic Drop', the unhappy love of 'Fake love', the redemption of 'Idol'; To the genuine love of 'Boy with luv'; To the poetics of 'On' and 'Black swan'; To the sweetness of 'Life goes on'; Up to the freshness of the singles 'Dynamite', 'Butter' and 'Permission to Dance'; And then? And then... here they are... When you are in a group.. sometimes you can lose yourself.. so. The seven stars have decided to put an end to the first chapter of their career with 'Yet to come'..
 'You and I, the best moment is yet to come..'
 And start a second one.. From which...they will come out many surprises. The dancer, the bearer of hope, met a fan of his, spoke a different language than his, or so it seemed, and had two hopeful green eyes.. he didn't necessarily need her, yet his eyes saw her not as a fan , but something more.. She had kindled a flame in him.. it was up to him whether to put it out or feed it... 
'Equality is you and me..'
If the flame of love burned on one side, the one of doubt was next to it, a singer, with a voice so low, almost chilling, who fortunately, or unfortunately, found himself together with his dancer friend, when the fateful encounter took place, the green-eyed girl had a friend with her, with sea-colored eyes, in which the singer was almost shipwrecked .. It almost seemed like a dream .. but the boy with the frozen voice could not give in, perhaps out of fear, out of cowardice, out of disbelief, he wanted to let her go but ... 
'Never mind, I' I'll find Someone like you..'
No one would ever be like her.. so the boy relented. And he did not regret it. Three boys find their Beatrice. 
Well, I'm about to tell you about the Third, perhaps the one who least expected a gift like this from life. The rapper, the leader, walking down that country road, starts humming an almost improvised song, but his singing gets a response. Another girl there, humming with him, for him. in love they could try each other.. But... there was something.. he still didn't know, that love that was blossoming in him, for that girl, who sang with him.. 
'Is this love, yeah Is this love, yeah Sometimes I know, yeah Sometimes I don't, yeah'
Namjoon's pov: 
Wait... I have Y/n right here in front of me... I wrote this script before I even knew her.. I .. I've done everything without thinking about it until now... now that my mind is free.. now that all this is about to end.. I have her in front of me, this woman, the woman who has never stopped supporting me , to stand by me.. the woman who.. without realizing it... I seriously loved and that I'm loving even more, now that I'm aware of it. Fuck the royalties, admiration and all... I love her.. 
Y/n's pov:
I hear the music finish... I sang with Namjoon for the umpteenth time, yet today was different- I feel.. something soft on my... lips... wait... N-Namjoon? Is Namjoon kissing me? Yes... he's doing it.. and I'm kissing him back?... My body no longer responds to my mind.. I feel like I'm lost in a limbo, as if time has stopped... it's such a beautiful feeling...Did he do it for the scene? We've never talked about kissing...was it out of enthusiasm? Possible... but... I feel something special, as if with these kisses he is trying to tell me something.. When the curtain is about to cover us, I can clearly see an "I love you", mimicked from Namjoon... I smile at him miming "me too". We don't have enough time to talk.. We have to sing 'For Youth'... Throughout the song we kept exchanging glances and smiling at each other... I don't know what happened to him.. but I'm glad he opened his eyes. I am happy that this wish of mine has been fulfilled. But...wait! Did that crackhead Angie know something? Who knows... she's Cupid's descendant there... apparently. After the show, I thought too much on me and Namjoon, when I realize that, in front of my eyes, in our... eyes, there is the loudest audience: Who applauds, who cries, who laughs, who smiles, who screams... And... there's also Mr. Buster and his crew in the audience.. Nana, all the critics, my family... They're all there.. To frame this magical moment.
My gaze can only go towards the others, all moved, and on Namjoon, my Namjoon, on his knees, moved more than all. 
Namjoon's pov:
 There was my uncle there in front of me, my idol, the others, the delirious audience, Nana winking at me, that sheep, she had done it on purpose to tell me those things.. 
' YOU WERE GREAT MY NEPHEW!!'
uncle's screams could only increase that idyllic feeling I was already feeling, my gaze then falls on Y/n, who already was looking at me, smiling, that wonderful smile... We stood there applauding for more than 10 minutes to then go backstage and of course the first thing I did was hug my sweet Y/n. 
'You did it' 
She says smiling even more. I dry her tears. 
'We did it together, all of us' 
I add, before giving her a kiss. 
'GROUP HUG' 
I hear Jungkook's screams and then everyone else all over me and Y/n. Miss Crawly was there too!!! And then... I see my uncle coming towards me, smiling like never before. 
'I'm so proud of you, Namjoon'
 I smile at him.. 
'It's all thanks to you, uncle, and...to my crew' 
I hug Uncle Buster, a little harder than other times. Then I see some dudes coming towards me. 
'These gentlemens want to offer you a contract... my dear nephew, apparently this is just the beginning.. this show will remain on everyone's lips for a loooong time' 
I turn abruptly towards the others, we all look at each other with wide eyes.. 
'So what? Are we going to climb this peak?' 
'OBVIOUS' 
they yell in chorus, my guys. Y/n runs again to hug me.. 
Alright, I was right.. something beautiful, really beautiful.... it really happened.. But.. The most beautiful moment.. is yet to come.
Author's Note
so... i decided to translate from italian to english all the one shots i wrote and the ones i'll write in future! Hope that this one helped you to have faith on your dreams and to never give up!
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swordshapedleaves · 1 year ago
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Once again I have opinions on new seasonal anime no one asked for!
Thoughts on the 14 new shows I tried under the cut.
Shows I'm Excited About
My Happy Marriage
It's an arranged marriage romance with magic, though there wasn't any magic overtly present in the first episode. It has these relatively subtle references to fairy tales that I really like and the animation is really gorgeous. Looking forward to this one!
Zom 100
An office worker is so burnt out that the actual zombie apocalypse is a fresh change of pace. The energy is great and the animation is gorgeous. I love zombie media that's aware of zombie media. I also really like the OP, which is the same group that did the OP for Yamada 999 last season.
Shows I'm Optimistic About
Ayaka
This show looks like the anime adaptation is a fantasy BL visual novel but is apparently an original IP. I dunno why the MC's dead dad's will banished him to a childhood of trauma off island only to return when he's just old enough to start dating but I hope it's so he can end up smooching some of these color coded magical boys.
Dark Gathering
It's spooky! I feel sorry for any ghost fighting show that's going up against the second season of Jujustu Kaisen but this one seems way more of a creepy comedy than an action show so hopefully it finds its own niche and excels there.
The Gene of AI
As someone with memory problems this first episode made me super uncomfortable! It's doing what good science fiction should do, which is using future tech to tackle uncomfortable philosophical questions, but it remains to be seen if it addresses them thoughtfully. I will say though that the idea of someone who loves me crying uncontrollably because the fact I forgot a new recipe for scrambled eggs means I'm not really the person she knew really hurt. I have genuine fears about my memory problems ruining relationships and seeing it done so ham-handedly feels bad. Definitely gonna keep watching though because at least it's interesting.
Helck
This is a fantasy anime about a big strong muscle guy who is trying to become the King of Demons. Even the first episode couldn't pull off any visual appeal so I have low expectations but I'd like to have a fun time cheering on our Conan rip off who's going off script by trying to join the side of the demons.
Noble Farmer
This is a series of shorts by and about mangaka Hiromu Arakawa of Fullmetal Alchemist fame. She is the scion of Hokkaido dairy farmers and is passionate about her roots. The first episode felt like it was paid for by a dairy farmers association but Arakawa is so charming I don't even mind.
Undead Murder Farce
This show has great vibes and a fun premise. All the yokai and oni and such are being eradicated as part of the Meiji restoration. A couple of them are trying to survive and also solve a murder of sorts. The vibes are great but the animation is kinda mid.
Shows that Cater to my Bullshit Specifically
The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior
That name is awful but the Otome game villainess reincarnation micro genre is my jam. This villainess cries a lot and I'm hoping for a good time as all the people who were her enemies in the game fall in love with her.
Sweet Reincarnation
I love cooking shows and also fantasy stories so when they get smushed together I'm almost sure to have a good time. This feels like a less clever Ascendence of a Bookworm in a lot of ways. Person is killed by their specific interest falling on them, only to reincarnate into a world where the thing they love is very expensive and out of reach at their current status. So they simply use their knowledge of our technology to reorder society in a way that allows them to feed their special interest. This time it's a pastry chef who loves sweets instead of a librarian who loves books. His new name is Pastry.
Stuff I Tried That Didn't Make the Cut
Am I Actually the Strongest?
His sister is obviously the reincarnated Demon Lord. Looks boring.
The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again Today
It's like Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid without the charm or the sex appeal, plus the camera work is weirdly unsettling.
Reborn as a Vending Machine, Now I Wander the Dungeon
This one was also boring. It was one of the first shows we tried this season and I've already forgotten it for the most part.
Reign of the Seven Spellblades
Magic school with a 20% death rate, and one of the freshmen this season is a Samurai. I might watch a second episode if I have time to kill but there just wasn't anything really exciting in this first episode to get me past the Harry Potter but Edgier vibes.
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leserattevirginie · 4 months ago
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Point of Knives by Melissa Scott (Synopsis and longer, rambly thoughts under the cut)
Genre: Fantasy, Procedural, Novella Star Rating: 3,75 ⭐️
Plot: ⬜️ Plot holes big enough for a herd of elephants ⬜️ I think I've read this before. (Unoriginal to the max.) ✅ Enjoyable but not super memorable. ⬜️ You have my undivided attention. ⬜️ Mind = Blown
Characters: ⬜️ Mary Sue is in the house! ⬜️ These are cardboard cut-outs. ⬜️ Good main cast, but the rest is forgettable at best. ✅ Generally well written. ⬜️ Complex ⬜️ What do you mean characters? These feel like real people!
Personal Enjoyment: ⬜️ DNF ⬜️ Somenody free me from this hell (but also no, I won't DNF) ⬜️ WTF did I just read??? ⬜️ I don't like it, but I also don't hate it. ⬜️ It's a good book but I just never want to pick it back up. ⬜️ No strong feelings either way. ✅ Enjoyable read ⬜️ What a page turner! This is fun! ⬜️ I think I'm in love ⬜️ (new) all time favourite
World Building: ⬜️ This takes place in our world. ⬜️ Worldbuilding what worldbuilding? ⬜️ This feels like a TV set. ⬜️ Not super deep, but present. ✅ Detailed, believable. ⬜️ You bet every single ant has its own 100 page backstory!
Pacing: ⬜️ drags/is rushed in all the wrong places ⬜️ Inconsistent ⬜️ something undefinable feels off ⬜️ I don't love it it but it fits the book perfectly. ✅ Good/no complaints ⬜️ Amazing! Could not put this down!
Writing: ⬜️ This is painful ⬜️ I'm cringing ⬜️ Not great, but not bad either. ✅ Neutral (Didn't really notice.) ⬜️ Elegant but not overly flowery. ⬜️ So beautiful I actually stopped and noticed it. ⬜️ I'm not sure if this is just a bad translation. ⬜️ I'm not confident enough in my language skills for this language to comment on the quality of the writing.
Synopsis:
The events of Midsummer have hardly been forgotten by the Fall Balance, and Nicolas Rathe can hardly complain that they've done any harm to his reputation, or to the reputation of the Points in general. However, it has meant that he's more in demand as an investigator, and the increased recognition and workload has made it hard to pursue friendship, or anything more, with Philip Eslingen, his comrade in the rescue of the stolen children. Eslingen is still Hanselin Caiazzo's bodyguard and Caiazzo is involved in any number of questionably legal ventures, and it does neither of them any good to be seen too often in each other's company. When a father and son who are both rumored to have been pirates are murdered on the same night, and Rathe finds Eslingen standing over the son's body, Eslingen proves his innocence easily enough, though he refuses to say exactly what errand he's running for Caiazzo at that hour of the morning. But when the old man's grandson and the son's self-proclaimed wife quarrel over the son's meager belongings, and Caiazzo dispatches Eslingen to represent his interests in the investigation, Rathe begins to wonder if their friendship is going to survive. Or whether they'll survive at all.
My Thoughts
Plot - Since this is a novella, the plot was a lot more straight forward than in the first book in the series. Personally that didn't bother me at all, since I thought Point of Hopes way maybe just a bit too...rambly? The author definitely nailed the balance between plot and characters in this one! (Although I have to admit that the mystery in itself was maybe not all that captivating 😅)
Pacing - Again, the story was forced to move faster than in Point of Hopes due to the limited page count, but it never felt rushed to me.
Writing - Maybe it is just me, but the writing just felt a hint more... casual? than in book one. Whether that is because it is a novella, or because Scott wrote it by herself, I cannot say (maybe I can tell by the end of the series?).
Worldbuilding - I have a love/hate relationship with the Worldbuilding in this series so far (mostly love). From the way the author(s) write about the City of Astreiant, I absolutely believe that they know its history, customs, etc. What makes their approach interesting is that there is no handholding for the reader whatsoever xD The characters won't go out of their way to have long, drawn out conversations or inner monologues about things that are (to them) perfectly ordinary, just for the sake of exposition. You'll simply have to figure things out with whatever context you're given. Most of the time I love this, I think it's fun - but sometimes I just want to know, dammit xD
Characters - Probably my favourite part of the novella is that we finally see more of the relationship between Nico and Philip. I don't know if it's due to the change in publisher, or just that this was written 17 years (I think?) after the first novel was published, but the jump from extremely vague hints about maybe, possibly being attracted to each other to "oh yeah, they've been sleeping together for a while now" was wild xD (but very welcome). While there wasn't really any strong character development, we got to see more of their personalities when they aren't under (too much) pressure. One thing that surprises me though is that we, the reader, just like Philip, don't really know all that much about Nico, despite having the benefit of being in his head for half the story. Maybe because he's just really, really focused on his work (and Philip, occasionally)? What I appreciate the most is that the characters don't just jump to random conclusions/have entirely avoidable misunderstandings for the sake of plot and drama.
All in all, I had a fun time with this book and will probably pick up the next one sometime soon.
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bookofmirth · 4 years ago
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It's just impression, maybe.
If they're still on theory off Az and Elain's page, he disobeyed Rhys and everything and I don't think he did. If he met Elain in secret, wouldn't it look like "Hidden Love" would happen under Az's influence?
Would Elain, influenced by Az, keep it a secret instead of trying to talk to Feyre and work it out on her own?
Couldn't Elain appear to have no will of her own and let Az fight for her?
Even so, to have it, because Feyre and Nestha would put Rhys in his place if they knew that the couple "In Love" is forbidden to be together.
Sarah always does Couples inside the pages and doesn't leave the obvious in Acofs of who is next...
Her protagonist has become an extra and I can only see a part of the fandom thinking it's Elain because she's the last sister Acheron.
I think Ellucien closes Acotar with a lot of good sense and would love it.
I'm not sure you understand the essence of what I mean.
I think I got you!
There are a lot of implications of these theories that haven't been thought out. Like you said, the assumption that Azriel is willing to fight for Elain assumes that he has been disobeying Rhys, which we don't have evidence of. It also assumes that, like you said, Elain would go along with it and hide it from her sisters. And that Elain would keep being passive, letting someone else fight her battles for her. I don't think that's what anyone wants for her? For her to just be quiet and submissive and pretty and 🙂
When you say that it's under Az's influence, do you mean that he is taking charge? It does seem like he's the one who wanted to rebel, and that isn't in Elain's character. Elain is generally a people pleaser and doesn't create conflict. Nesta and Feyre are the people Elain has been closest to her whole life, so it feels out of character if she were to decide to go against Rhys, ignore what she knows about the mating bond, and have this whole relationship in secret without input or help from either Nesta or Feyre.
You're also 100% right that if Elain told either Nesta or Feyre that she wanted to be in a relationship with Azriel and that Rhys had forbidden it, Rhys would have gotten his ass kicked by one of them. He's already way too involved in that sister relationship.
But you're also right that Sarah doesn't do off-page romance. Especially the beginning of the romance. These are fantasy romance, and so it would be completely against the genre for anyone's relationship to start off page. Personally, I wouldn't be interested in that? The whole point is seeing how people overcome their internal or external conflicts and realize their feelings.
I kinda understand the argument that the next book should be Elain's based on the three sisters - however, we know there is another full book, and finishing the series with a character who isn't an Archeron? That doesn't make sense to me. In ToG, we had a story that took us away from Aelin for a minute, but then the series still closed by focusing on her. It makes sense because it makes the story come full circle.
If the next book were Elain's, we would have gotten her POV or her thoughts at some point. If the next book were Elain's and the Az chapter was the way she tried to introduce that to us, I'd be pissed because Elain is more than her sexual urges. It would frame her entire character in romantic terms, though we know she has many other issues that need to be resolved that have zero (0) to do with romance. If anyone read acosf and the valkyrie friendship and doesn't understand that friendship and family relationships are just as important to sjm as romantic relationships, then idk what to say to those people.
The Azriel chapter told us more about who he is and what he is going through. If the next book were to be about Elain, I would have expected the same - to get more insight into who she is as an individual and what she is experiencing, thinking, and feeling. I wouldn't want to be introduced to her character in 100% shipping context. If that makes sense.
Yes, we have a lot of questions about her, but that's... because we haven't had her book yet. And we are going to get it, at some point. I have a lot of questions about a lot of the characters, but that doesn't mean I assume they are going to be answered in the next book. That just makes me think that by the end of the series, I'll have most of those answers, if not all of them.
I hope that makes sense! And that I addressed your thoughts. I think you have a lot of valid points!
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comicreliefmorlock · 4 years ago
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A Reader's Guide to Writing, Lesson #3: Predictability
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"It's predictable."
Horrifying phrase, isn't it? I'm sure everyone's heard or used it relating to some story-based piece of media, and it always has negative connotations. We call things "predictable" in the tone that we call things "boring." Movie studios are becoming so obsessed with out-guessing their audience that scripts are parceled out a page at time, actors are misled about the direction of the story and stories are honestly... starting to make absolutely no fucking sense.
Predictability, when it comes to story, is not. inherently. bad.
Say it with me here. Predictability. Is. Not. Inherently. Bad.
A story follows, essentially, a set of rules developed by the hundreds of years of media that precede it. When you pick up a high fantasy novel, you're picking up a tiny piece of centuries of mythology, folklore and yes, Tolkien. When you snag the latest sci-fi movie for a weekend's watching, you're choosing something with decades of social development, scrutiny, scientific discovery and Mary Shelley all wrapped into it.
Stories do not exist as a lone tale, told without context, meaning or purpose.
This means those rules, developed and agreed upon by every author who sat down to write something inspired by what excited them about a story they heard, exist for a reason. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with following the rules and writing a story that is comfortingly predictable--that abides by genre convention, has archetypes, uses a cliché or two and has the audience guessing the ending correctly.
Here's the thing about Readers that is apparently terrifying to some creators. They're not dumb. Readers (or viewers, depending on your creative media of choice) are savvy to your genre, they're hip to the latest developments or trends in media, they know what they're getting into when they pick up a mystery, a romance, a horror.
And they chose it for a reason.
No one picks up a Stephen King novel when they really want a Danielle Steele. No one chooses to read Tom Clancy when they're honestly itching for some Ray Bradbury. Readers choose the book they want to read and it is 100% frustrating as fuck to pick up a book expecting a particular type of story and discovering that no, you've been lied to. This isn't what you were hoping to enjoy; this is something else entirely and now you've wasted three hours to get to a point where you're now mad that the author misled you.
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If someone can read part of your story and make some accurate guesses about what's going to happen, this does not make your story bad. This does not make your story boring. This does not mean you have to rewrite it.
Here's the thing about predictability, and we'll use mysteries in a story specifically as a very clear, solid example.
When writing a mystery, your job as the author is to provide enough clues that your audience can guess the mystery's solution. They're not going to stop reading just because they know who the killer is or they know what that mysterious painting is about. They're going to read on, eagerly, to find out if they're right. And if they are? GOOD ON YOU! You have managed to provide enough clues and context to let an intelligent, discerning reader glean the information needed and make the connections to come to the right answer.
Now if you lay out those clues, you provide the context and then you abruptly throw a third party in on chapter 47 out of a 50 chapter book who is suddenly The Bad Guy... You are Jeffery Deaver and I hate you.
Seriously. What the fuck was what, Deaver? What the fuck was that?
[Yes, I'm still mad about "The Skin Collector."]
You see the point, however? Yanking the rug out from under your reader doesn't make You, The Author, Smart. And it certainly doesn't make you Smarter Than Your Audience. You don't want to be that kind of author because that's the kind who are absolutely unre-readable. You can't pick up a book like "The Skin Collector" and go back and see what clues you missed or reread the book knowing the clues and wanting better context. Because those clues? They were pointless. They had absolutely no bearing on the final solution and your "lack of predictability" has now made your book a one-and-done.
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One of the most brilliant examples of "the twist" correctly is consistently shown in Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone" and even then, a lot of the 'twist endings' can be guessed. By this day and age, we all know the precise twists, so those aren't what I'm talking about.
What I am talking about is the fact that when Rod Serling set out to startle the audience, he did so in a carefully constructed manner that provided context clues which framed the narrative and paid off at the end.
There's a lovely tumblr post talking about why it is that some twist endings land and some fail. And the key to that is twist endings that land do so because they're connected to the question raised by the story or the theme it addresses. A "twist" has to tie into the story for it to make sense, and if someone can guess the twist, you've provided context clues and enough framework for them to make a reasonable jab at what you're going for.
Which is not, I remind you, inherently bad. Maybe you need to do a little work to be less explicit about your clues, maybe you need to reframe your narrative a bit to address the theme more than a direct, explicit question, but you have NOT done the Bad Thing.
The Bad Thing is, of course, slap a goddamn red herring down in the last few scenes of the story and insist that it's supposed to be there because it's the twist.
When you write a story that follows genre conventions or plods along some well-worn literary pathway, you're doing what thousands of authors before you have done. And the reason those well-worn paths even exist is because the framework of each genre, the style of world in which it exists, speaks to us as people.
YOUR job as the author is to tell a story as ONLY YOU CAN. I do really ascribe to the notion that there's only thirteen plots available under the sun. You're rarely going to come across a story that's so absolutely unique you can't liken it to about five others. (I haven't found one yet, honestly.) What you are going to do is write one of those thirteen plots with YOUR voice, YOUR characters, YOUR world, YOUR tone, YOUR mood.
And if someone reads your story and makes accurate guesses as to what will happen next?
Then by gosh and golly, you've done pretty well, haven't you?
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a-blue-secret · 4 years ago
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CHAPTER IV
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BACK TO MASTERLIST
Chapter III | Chapter IV | Chapter V
GENRES: royal au; fantasy au; magic au; friends-to-enemies-to-lovers; king!beomgyu, vizier!taehyun
PAIRING: taegyu
WARNINGS: none
WORD COUNT: 3.2k+
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AN: I did a little fencing when I was younger, so this is based on my very limited experience. I had fun writing this part- there's not as much angst!
SUMMARY: Best friends turned enemies, Kang Taehyun has managed to trick Choi Beomgyu into his service, and to rule for a year and a day, until his youngest brother would be old enough to take the throne. Choi Beomgyu has no intention of being obedient however, and tries to thwart Taehyun’s orders at every turn. With a growing amount of distrust and lies within the court, will Taehyun manage to keep the kingdom of Gojongja from falling apart?
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So how good are you at fencing, Yeonjun?” Beomgyu asked, picking up his foil. He’d already finished getting dressed, and was waiting for Yeonjun to be ready too.
“Me? Oh, I am by no means a master,” Yeonjun said as a servant tightened his gloves. “But I am rather good, if I do say so myself. How about you, Your Greatness?”
“Well, I am a master myself. Be prepared to lose in the sorest ways possible,” Beomgyu grinned. Yeonjun smiled back, picking up his own mask and foil. “Ready?”
Yeonjun nodded, and stepped aside. “After you, Your Greatness.”
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
“En guarde.”
They raised their foils towards each other.
“Pret.”
Beomgyu was rather surprised to see Yeonjun’s stance looking so firm. No one he’d sparred with had looked that comfortable in a fencing stance before.
“Aller.”
Beomgyu advanced almost immediately, thrusting his foil out towards Yeonjun’s side. The elder back-stepped quickly, staying just out of reach. They exchanged hits, moving backwards and forwards as they alternatively defended and attacked. Finally, Beomgyu managed to strike Yeonjun on his back, using the flexibility of the foil to curve it round to touch Yeonjun. They parted, panting.
"Break?" Beomgyu offered. Yeonjun nodded, already taking off his face guard.
As a servant handed them a towel each, they walked over to a table with drinks on them.
"Wow, you're pretty good," Yeonjun marveled, gulping down the water. "No one I've met has ever been able to perform that so well before."
"Thanks," Beomgyu said, patting the towel along his hairline. "It takes ages to master as well. I'm not surprised there are few people you know who can execute it."
"How did you learn it?"
"My father," Beomgyu explained. "He was a general slash Lord. He taught me how to fence, how to do bareback horse riding, how to sword fight, and so much other stuff."
Yeonjun nodded. "Wow. Your father sounds so cool."
Beomgyu smiled. "He was. Anyway, how did you learn fencing?"
"In court. I was born a noble, so it's kind of a given that I had to know how to do it, so I was taught by fencing masters."
"Cool. Here in Gojongja, I believe we have a swordsmanship school where the kids can learn sword fighting and fencing. It's kind of like a summer camp thing I think? I heard we had it anyway."
"I heard that you do."
Beomgyu set down his glass, and placed his mask on top of his head. "Ready to go again?"
Yeonjun grinned. "Get ready to be beaten by me."
Beomgyu laughed, taking his foil from a servant as they walked back. "Oh, you wish."
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
"It almost looked like you were using a whip! How did you do that?"
Beomgyu and Yeonjun finished fencing (with Yeonjun not even managing to touch Beomgyu once), and Beomgyu suggested they go do archery. They were currently walking through the castle to find the door which led to the outdoor fields.
Beomgyu laughed. "You're not going to let go of that, are you?"
"No, I'm not! I've never seen someone do that before!"
Beomgyu let out a chuckle, tapping the side of his nose. "It's a secret."
"...It was luck, wasn't it?"
"What are you talking about?? It was a tactic which I 100% meant to use, and how dare you think otherwise!"
"Yeah it was. Don't deny."
".... Okay fine, maybe it was, but it was still cool, right?"
Yeonjun looked at Beomgyu, and they both burst out laughing. Their light-hearted banter reminded Beomgyu of how it used to be between him and Taehyun. With Taehyun always saying a sarcastic comment, or seeing through Beomgyu's bravado, and then all it took was one shared glance and they'd start laughing. The thought made Beomgyu a little sad, and then angry. He pushed thoughts of Taehyun aside. He shouldn't be thinking about the younger. Right now, it was about bonding with Yeonjun, and becoming friends.
"So," Beomgyu said. "You have any experience in archery?"
"Oh, loads," Yeonjun said. "I'm a bit of a Robin Hood myself."
"Ah," Beomgyu sighed regretfully. "I'm not the best archer in the field, so it seems like in this sport you'll have the upper hand."
"Hey, don't doubt yourself," Yeonjun said. "You never know! You might beat me again."
"No, but archery seriously isn't my strong suit," Beomgyu said. "I remember in one of my archery classes, we were meant to hit the board which was like three metres away, and I managed to get the arrow caught in the tree. Behind us."
Yeonjun laughed. "But this was when you were little, right? Surely much has changed since then."
"It was five years ago."
"See? Five years! Not that bad, eh?"
"I was twenty."
"Ah." It was obvious Yeonjun was at a bit of a loss as to what to say to that. Beomgyu laughed, nudging Yeonjun.
"I'm joking! I was five. This wasn't five years ago, don't worry. I've improved since then, I'm sure. I think. I hope."
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
Beomgyu stared at Yeonjun's target. The elder had managed to get two in the bullseye, and three in the red ring. He was watching intently as Yeonjun shot his last arrow.
Thwip!
It landed right in the center of the yellow bullseye, and Beomgyu clapped.
“Whoo! Well done!”
Yeonjun grinned, and playfully bowed. “Well, I did say I was a master at archery.” He sighed a little regretfully, walking up to the target to tug at the arrows. “It’s annoying I didn’t get these three in the bullseye too.”
“You're good, though. Like, really good."
"Thanks. How did you- oh," Yeonjun laughed, seeing Beomgyu's target. Beomgyu had managed to hit everywhere apart from the centre. "Hey, at least you hit one into the red ring, right?"
"That one I shot with my eyes closed."
"Even better!"
Beomgyu laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. "I was aiming for the target's leg."
"You what?!"
“Yeah. That was my last arrow, and I thought, ah, whatever, let’s just aim for the leg stand, and then it just flew straight to the red ring.”
Yeonjun shook his head in wonder. “Wow. I guess archery really isn’t your area of expertise, huh?”
“Standing archery isn’t, but I can do it pretty well on horseback," Beomgyu said conversationally, going to take his arrows out of his own target.
“Woah,” Yeonjun said. “I can sort of do it, but isn’t it harder when you’re moving?”
“I dunno,” Beomgyu shrugged. “I find it easier because the momentum adds to the power of the arrow, and I was pretty much brought up on horseback.” He mimed going up and down as if on a horse, and brought an imaginary bow up to eye level and mimed shooting into the air. “Yeah, I find it easier on horseback.”
“That’s so weird! Most people are the other way round, because you have to take your hands off the horse, and your legs are like the only thing securing you. You must have really strong thighs then.”
“Yeah,” Beomgyu laughed. “I do. But my butt’s been hurting like hell recently every time I’ve gotten on a horse, so I’ve been taking a break from horse riding.”
“Well, you still up for a little horse riding session?”
“Hell yeah! I miss Toto.”
“Toto?”
“He’s my horse! Well, I say mine, but really he’s one with nature.” Beomgyu began talking animatedly to Yeonjun about Toto as they walked to the stables. “Oh, and just a fair word of warning: some of our horses are very, um, unique.”
“Unique, huh?” Yeonjun laughed. “We have unique horses back home. One of them has three legs.”
“Three legs? They’re not a race horse, are they?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I said yes, would you?”
“No way! You make the three-legged horse run a race?”
“No, but Nellie is really, really good. Seriously! She’s won three times out of the five races she’s competed in.”
“Three-legged horse wins the race, hmm?” Beomgyu mused. "Well, our horses are even more unique than that."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. You'll see."
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
“I… When you said they were unique, I didn’t think you meant like this.” Yeonjun was staring at a horse in a dumbfounded state. The horse nickered, tossing its orange mane. Yeonjun started a little, stepping away. His wide eyes were fixed on her orange, beak-like muzzle. “How do you even breed these types of horses?”
“Easy. They breed among themselves. No, we don’t cross-breed the different animals,” Beomgyu laughed at Yeonjun’s shocked stare. “Starburst, for example, the horse you’re looking at. She’s just like that. We think a curse, but we’re not sure. Orion over there, though, is a type of elemental horse we found in the woods. He's among the last of his kind, and we're breeding them until they flourish again.” Beomgyu patted Orion's watery muzzle. "We're going to protect you, aren't we? As for Starburst, we're trying to make sure she stays okay while under a curse."
“How old is she?” Yeonjun asked, still standing a good deal away from Starburst.
“I don’t know. I think Taehyun said she’s been around even before he was born.”
“Woah.” Yeonjun raised his eyebrows. “He’s around the same age as you, isn’t he? And Starburst looks so young.”
“Yeah, Kang’s a year younger than me. I dunno, she might be immortal.”
“Can I…?” Yeonjun gestured to the horse.
“Oh yeah, yeah,” Beomgyu said. “Despite her appearance, she doesn’t bite. Well, she doesn’t bite much. Stroke her nose. She likes that.”
“How do you know so much about them?” Yeonjun asked, gingerly reaching out to Starburst. “About court and stuff.”
“Kang and I used to be best friends. He told me so much about everything. Also, I’ve been doing my own asking around. I like horses.” Beomgyu walked up to a greenish horse with a feather-like mane standing in the corner. “Hello, hello. Yes, I’m back now. Did you miss me?” The horse whinnied, tossing its mane before nuzzling its nose into Beomgyu’s shoulder. The boy laughed, stroking the horse. “Alright, alright, I get it. I missed you too, Toto. Are you ready for a ride?” He turned to Yeonjun. “You picked a horse yet?” he asked.
Yeonjun was still staring in surprise at the unusual horses. “I knew you had pegasi,” he said. “Those take part in your wars and parades. I knew about the unicorns, ‘cause we have them too. But everything else?” He turned around, face a mixture of shock and awe. “I didn’t even know half of them existed.”
“Benefits of our long history of preserving wildlife and our abundance of wild forests, I guess,” Beomgyu said, taking out a brush. “Anyway, do you want me to choose you a horse? Tell me what you want and I’ll pick for you.”
“No, no it’s okay,” Yeonjun said slowly. “I’ll go with Starburst.”
Beomgyu nodded. “Good choice. Seems like she likes you as well. Oh! Yeonjun, meet Toto. They said he’s a breed of Amazona Equus. Apparently he’s a parrot-horse? I’ve never seen him sprout wings though, so yeah.”
“Well, uh, nice to meet you, Toto. My name is Lord Yeonjun.” Yeonjun bowed to the horse. Toto regarded Yeonjun for a few moments, before inclining his head in a bow of his own. Yeonjun smiled at Beomgyu in disbelief. “Did he just bow back at me?”
“Yep,” Beomgyu smiled. “It means he trusts you.” Yeonjun gave a smile.
"Okay, so let's go brush and tack the horses. Meet back in front of the stables?" Yeonjun asked. Beomgyu nodded.
"See you then!"
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
"Whoo!" Beomgyu yelled. "Race you to the oak tree!"
"Hey!" Yeonjun called. "That's not fair! You're in front of me!"
"Come and catch up then, slowpoke!" Beomgyu laughed over his shoulder, galloping full speed towards the tree. He yelled out again, the yell turning into an overjoyed laugh at the end. His face was split into a wide grin. God, he'd missed this. The stinging wind whipping against his cheeks, the feeling of the powerful horse beneath his legs, the exhilaration he felt from riding. He'd missed it.
He glanced over his shoulder back at Yeonjun, who was riding behind on Starburst. He grinned. Leaning forward, he patted Toto’s neck.
“You ready? Wanna do the trick?”
Toto flicked his ears, letting out a neigh as they continued to canter towards the tree. Beomgyu laughed. “Okay bud. Get ready, ‘kay? I’m trusting you!”
Gingerly, Beomgyu released Toto’s reins. Toto seemed undeterred, continuing to go forward at a steady pace. Now was the hard part. Gritting his teeth, Beomgyu brought his knees up, closer to the saddle, before slowly easing them up further until he was crouching on Toto’s back. He looked back at Yeonjun.
“Wanna see something cool?” he yelled. Then, he stood up on Toto’s back fully, raising his arms up and letting out a loud whoop. Yeonjun cried out, either in terror or amazement, Beomgyu wasn’t sure. He couldn’t hear much over the whistling of the wind and the happiness in his heart.
“Whoo!” He tilted his head back, closing his eyes. But he immediately shot them open again, seeing that they were close to the tree. He jumped back down into the saddle again, laughing. “Was that fun? God, I haven’t done that in ages.” Toto flicked his ears again, and Beomgyu grinned, riding faster.
When they we're a short distance away from the tree, Beomgyu pulled at the reins, slowing Toto down to a walk. Yeonjun came thundering up beside him a few moments later, grinning and panting hard.
“Oh my god! You actually did that?”
Beomgyu laughed. “Oh, it’s nothing special.”
“Special? You stood on a horse’s back! And at that speed too!”
Beomgyu shrugged. “I find it easier at higher speeds.”
"Wow!" Yeonjun laughed. "I don't think I've ever galloped that hard before."
"Better get used to it," Beomgyu grinned. "Here in Gojongja, we ride hard and fast."
"Evidently," Yeonjun said, still out of breath. "Why don't we, uh, go for a little walk?"
"Okay," Beomgyu laughed. "Follow me. There's a cool lake around here somewhere I think."
Beomgyu and Yeonjun rode side by side, in amiable silence.
"So, tell me Yeonjun," Beomgyu said. "What was your life like in Aruyeonan court?"
"My life? My life was, well, almost ordinary for an Aruyeo noble. I live in a big house, have a large inheritance, have matters within court. I suppose what makes me different, however, is the fact that I always have matters within court. Her Supreme Highness is fond of a few select nobles, and those are the ones which she sees all the time."
"I assume you're one of them?"
"Yes. While you here in Gojongja have meetings with lots of Lords and generals, we narrow it down to five people plus the Queen."
"Ah yes, your Queen does not have a vizier, does she?"
"Queen Erajin does not, no."
"Hmm. Ah, we're near. See that shiny, round thing in the distance? That's the lake. We nicknamed it 'the Shield', because in just the right angle it looks like it's a huge, silver shield."
"Who's 'we'?"
"Oh, Kang and I. We used to come here," Beomgyu muttered. "But anyway! Here we are. You up for another race there?"
"You bet," Yeonjun grinned, already galloping off.
.・゜-: ✧ :-  
They reached the lake and dismounted, letting the horses drink and rest for a little. The two of them wandered a little aimlessly around the lake.
You know," Beomgyu said, "I have experience within the Aruyeo court as well. You probably don't remember, but about two or three years ago I came to stay in your court."
"Oh really?" Yeonjun raised his eyebrows. "Hm, no, I don't think I remember."
"You guys were really welcoming," Beomgyu remembered. "Especially this one Lord. I can't remember his name exactly -I think it was foreign?- but he was adopted by the Jinju Choi clan. Kai? I think that's his name? Wait- Yukai? No, no, I remember. Hueningkai. He was really kind."
Yeonjun tripped over a pebble. "Sorry, didn't see the rock. Hueningkai, huh? Hmm… I know a lot of the nobles in my court, but I can't remember seeing a Hueningkai…"
"I dunno. He was really nice. I remember him because he was adopted by this clan, so he wasn't even native to Aruyeo court. And yet, he was welcomed so readily. You could see it, because everyone greeted him so normally. It was obvious he wasn't a pure Jinju Choi, and yet they didn't treat him any differently. It was nice."
Yeonjun nodded slowly. "We in Aruyeo pride ourselves on making no one feel excluded. It's one of the things we are adamant about."
"You guys sure do a good job of it then." Beomgyu laughed slightly. "I must confess, there were times I felt more at home within Aruyeo than I'd ever felt inside Gojongja." Yeonjun gave a small, proud smile.
They stood there, silently. Beomgyu was staring down into the lake, but Yeonjun was looking out back into the direction of the palace. He squinted.
"Hang on… is that Kang Taehyun?"
"Hm?" Beomgyu turned around, following Yeonjun's line of sight. "Oh. Yeah it is."
"And is he riding that horse… bareback?"
"Yeah." Beomgyu turned away, walking up to Toto before mounting the horse. "He's coming to lecture us about staying out. Must be almost supper."
"That's so cool though. He's riding bareback!"
"Eh, he's gonna lose his cool in a minute if we don't get going."
They both began making their way back to the palace, and Taehyun, seeing that they were coming towards him, halted his horse to wait for them.
"Do you know how long you were gone for?" Taehyun glared when Beomgyu was within hearing distance.
"No, and I don't care," Beomgyu retorted. "And did you seriously have to come riding bareback?"
"What, you have a problem with it?" Taehyun scoffed, turning the horse around back to the direction of the palace, Beomgyu a couple of places behind. "You shouldn't have a problem with it. It's better for the horses to have no saddle on them anyway."
"Uh huh."
"You're just mad that I'm right," Taehyun said. "Anyway, would Lord Yeonjun care to join us for dinner? It seems a little mean to get him to eat on his own."
"Since when did you care about seeming mean?" Beomgyu scoffed. Taehyun glared at him.
"Shut up. That's rude."
"Hey, don't tell the King to shut up. That's rude."
"Anyway," Taehyun said. "Would you like to eat with us? You spent the whole day with His Greatness, so perhaps it's only fit you eat with us as well."
Yeonjun inclined his head. "I'd be much obliged." He gave a slight grin. "I've been having meals in my room these last few days, so a change of scenery will be nice."
"Well let's hope there is any food suitable enough to eat," Taehyun said, glaring at Beomgyu. "It's an hour past supper time. An hour!"
"Stop nagging, geez! You sound like a mum. Ow! What the heck?”
Taehyun hit Beomgyu around the back of his head, causing the elder to glare at him.
“I’m the King! You can’t just go round hitting me on the head! What were you doing??”
“Simply trying to knock some sense into you,” Taehyun said calmly. “But then I realised you didn’t have any in the first place.”
Beomgyu rolled his eyes, before slowing down his horse so that he was in step with Yeonjun. “See? Kang has literally no respect for me whatsoever.”
“I can hear you,” Taehyun called. “And hurry up, or you’re not getting any food at all.”
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norcani · 2 years ago
Note
for the book ask: 1, 9, 17, 22, 25
under the cut
1.How many books did you read this year? 100, although I did read some manga (I add one volume of manga for every finished series, regardless of length) towards the end of the year to specifically reach 100 . Looking back I probably didn't need to. I reached 100 at around mid month and then I purposefully didn't read for 2 weeks to not surpass it. Here are all the books: https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2022/49695561
On an average year without "trying" I end up at around 80 generally. I read more than usual this year , partly because I had no wifi for like a month and around that time I finished a book every 2-3 days.
9. Did you get into any new genres? I answered this twice with answers that really stretched the question and I'm going to do so again. This year I read two nonfiction books about AI. Thats kind of like a genre right? I rated both 5 starts too, but theyre very different.
You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place by Janelle Shane
Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans by Melanie Mitchell
I would highly rec either to someone who wants to understand AI better, the 2nd is more comprehensive and somewhat more technical in the sense it actually tries to explain mechanics behind it. The former is more "pop science-y" and shows how AI works with fun examples. Either could work for the right person as a good explanation of how AI works.
17.Did any books surprise you with how good they were? Generally I start each book hoping it'll be a new fave. But I think one I was surprised by is And I Darken by Kiersten White, and the two other books following it. I had that on my list to read for a while, I think I was mainly curious because it is set party in the ottoman empire. I didn't expect it to be good because it's young adult fantasy and my experience with them has been that they're rather simplistic and follow certain formulaic characters and plots. But! While it wasn't a new huge fave, I really loved these books. Sure, they followed some YA conventions, mainly around romance, but in the end that wasn't a huge part and didn't detract from my enjoyment. I absolutely love the lead, it's so seldom a female character who is also the lead is allowed to be absolutely unrepentant and ruthless. She also just genuinely disliked feminine things despite other characters quoting what could be tumblr posts at her about there being power in femininity too. She just didn't care and murked people. She was incredible and I forgive her for being straight. (The secondary lead was a gay boy and he was the most sad mid 2010s ya sad gayboy to ever have lived and I do not forgive him. )
22.What’s the longest book you read? House of leaves, though because of the formatting it is a bit deceptively long, a lot of the 700s pages are mostly emptly. Not sure what the 2nd longest book is, there are a bunch around 500 pages like Harrow or Tipping The Velvet
25. What reading goals do you have for next year? Read less lol. I want to focus on some other stuff. I put my arbitrary numbered reading goal at 50, I'm going to try not to go over 50 but we'll see. This might also make me more likely to read some of the longer stuff I've been avoiding. Lastly I want to read some of the books I bought physically, ideally I would read all of my physical books by the end of the year, it does seem doable except some are part of a series and I don't like reading multiple series at once.
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patternsintraffic · 3 years ago
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My 100 Favorite Albums of the 2000s: #100-#91
Hi all. As you can tell from the title of this blog post, I am about to take you off on quite a tangent. Music is in the works (both the completion of Lights & Reflections and the first full-length Harsh Lights album), but currently I find myself sitting up into the early morning hours with a newborn while my wife tries to get some uninterrupted sleep. So I am taking the opportunity to finally post this ridiculously long-winded writing project that I embarked on last year. The actual list-making and blurb-penning has been done for many months now, but I never took the time to format and post it. So here I am with some free time, getting around to finishing this undertaking!
As you may have seen, I decided to join in the fun at the turn of the decade and make a list of my favorite albums from 2010-2019. I wrote about my top 20 albums of the decade, and had a blast revisiting those records and sharing a little bit about why they are special to me. However, the most surprising part of the process for me was that choosing 20 albums to represent that ten-year period was...pretty easy? I started my career in late 2009, so the entire past decade I've been working full-time, pursuing my own music in my spare time, and more or less adulting. I've definitely listened to a ton of great albums, but it's hard to find music that truly excites you as an adult the way that it did in your formative years. The whole time I was crafting my list, I was thinking about how much more difficult (and rewarding) a task it would have been to compile a list for the previous decade, spanning 2000-2009.
So of course, not long after posting my 2010-2019 list I got to work compiling my favorite albums of the aughts. That 10-year period starts when I was 12 years old and wraps up as I was starting my post-college career. Pretty much my entire journey of musical discovery and growth occurred during those years. I had little in the way of responsibilities, and for most of the decade I ravenously consumed an absolutely enormous amount of music. Multiple hours worth on an average day. I was still buying physical CDs all throughout those years, so I really focused on each album I purchased, giving them many repeat listens and learning them intimately. And so much of what I heard was new and fresh to my ears. At 12 years old, there were so many sounds and styles of music that I had yet to encounter, and all of those first experiences and coming of age moments left lasting impressions.
Suffice to say, putting together a top 20 list of albums to represent that 10-year period was nearly impossible. I knew I would have to make a larger list to feel like I was doing justice to even a fraction of the albums that impacted me in that decade. What I eventually arrived upon after making an initial list of albums and then cutting it down quite a bit...was 100. Yes, I'm going to write about my favorite 100 albums from 2000-2009. And I'm going to have a damn good time doing it. Most of my favorite albums ever will be contained in this list, and most of them are wildly underappreciated, in my opinion. For the sake of keeping each post to a manageable length, I will be posting 10 albums at a time, starting with numbers 100-91 below. Walk with me down memory lane in countdown form, and I hope you can enjoy me waxing poetic about 100 albums that were staples of my young life. Let's get nostalgic.
100. Paris Texas - Like You Like an Arsonist (2004)
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There are hundreds of albums that I could have picked to round out my list here in the final spot, but I wanted to shine a light on this poppy punk rock record from 2004. It doesn't do anything particularly groundbreaking, but it's a really fun take on the genre and it didn't get the recognition that it deserved. "Bombs Away" and the title track are absolute barnburners. What a shame that the band broke up shortly after this album was released. I remember reading a review of Like You Like an Arsonist around the time of its release that criticized it for sounding like a collection of songs that could blend seamlessly into the soundtrack of a blockbuster action movie. Looking back, I agree with the reviewer's assessment, but I see it as high praise.
99. Greenwheel - Soma Holiday (2002)
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In 2002, you could throw a shoe and hit a band that sounded much like Greenwheel, a radio-ready alternative rock outfit with some heavy riffs and a throaty lead singer. But these guys stood above many of their contemporaries on Soma Holiday, their only major label release. (Their independent EP Bridges for Burning and never-released second full-length Electric Blanket both hinted at a sustainable career that didn't come to fruition.) This album had enough muscle for the rock kids ("Shelter" and "Strong") and enough sweetness for the emo kids ("Dim Halo" and "Breathe," which was later recorded and popularized by Melissa Etheridge). What could have been.
98. Sleeping at Last - Ghosts (2003)
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It's been almost 10 years since Sleeping at Last became a solo project for Ryan O'Neal, releasing themed singles that make up overarching concept albums and EPs. Though the output from the current incarnation of the band is beautiful and soothing, the minimalist and orchestral style is a far cry from Ghosts, Sleeping at Last's one major label album. At the time they were a three-piece featuring guitars, bass, and drums alongside O'Neal's piano and distinct vocals. Ghosts features an uncommon blend of cinematic, ethereal, and earnest indie rock that just seemed to go deeper than its peers in 2003.
97. Taking Back Sunday - Where You Want to Be (2004)
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I've never been a huge fan of Taking Back Sunday, though of course I rocked the singles from Tell All Your Friends like any self-respecting high-schooler in 2002. It was the follow-up, 2004's Where You Want to Be, that really got its claws in me after I picked it up on release week. With a killer opening trio of "Set Phasers to Stun," "Bonus Mosh Pt. II," and "A Decade Under the Influence" giving way to ballads like "New American Classic" and "...Slowdance on the Inside," this is just a great rock record.
96. Sherwood - A Different Light (2007)
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A Different Light is a bright, summery, buoyant pop album full of smooth vocal harmonies, glistening guitars, and shimmering synths. Sure, the lyrical content isn't all rainbows and butterflies, but if you could capture the sound of pure positivity and optimism, it would sound a lot like this record. Between the singalong melodies, handclaps, and "whoa-oh"s, if you don't have a good time listening to A Different Light then music might not be the right medium for you.
95. Young Love - Too Young to Fight It (2007)
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I'm fairly certain that Young Love, the dance-rock side project of beloved post-hardcore band Recover's frontman Dan Keyes, was not at all well-received. But for someone with no preconceived notions or attachments to Keyes' previous work, I thought this album was a hell of a lot of fun. In a world where Young Love made a mainstream impact, alternate-universe Kyle can be seen storming the dancefloor to the title track or "Discotech." Too Young to Fight It also gives us the smooth R&B of "Tell Me," the indie rock of "Take It or Leave It," and the experimental and apocalyptic "Tragedy." This is so much more than a dance album, and if it hadn't been released by a musician with strong ties to the hardcore scene it would have had a fighting chance of being recognized as such.
94. Vendetta Red - Sisters of the Red Death (2005)
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Vendetta Red frontman Zach Davidson has one of the most dynamic hard rock voices I've ever heard, and Sisters of the Red Death is one of the catchiest rock records I've ever heard. Despite those facts, I have a complicated relationship with this album because of its often-horrifying lyrical content, which details acts of sexual violence and gore. That's usually a dealbreaker for me, but I won't completely write off this record since it is a concept album set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world. Apparently female empowerment is at the core of the message, so it's not like Vendetta Red are condoning the acts that they're singing about. It's still a bit unnerving when you get the urge to sing along to one of the plethora of earworm melodies throughout this album and then realize exactly what you're singing. While I may not have the stomach for Sisters of the Red Death in 2021, I can still wholeheartedly recommend "Silhouette Serenade," which contains all of the awesomeness with none of the gross-out lyrics.
93. Ours - Distorted Lullabies (2001)
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Now 20 years into his career, Ours frontman Jimmy Gnecco is surely tired of being compared to Jeff Buckley. But damn, he really does sound like Jeff Buckley. And when you're being compared to one of the all-time great voices in rock music, that's not such a bad thing. Distorted Lullabies is the first proper Ours album, and it's filled with melodic rock songs that highlight Gnecco's incredible range. As the saying goes, I could listen to Gnecco sing the phonebook (those were still around in 2001!), but put his powerful and emotive voice on dynamic rock songs like "Sometimes" and "Meet Me in the Tower"? Yes, please.
92. Armor for Sleep - What to Do When You Are Dead (2005)
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This here is an emo concept album about a boy who commits suicide and his experience in the afterlife. Despite the overwrought subject matter, the songs on What to Do When You Are Dead are carefully crafted and interesting. "Car Underwater" is a scene classic, and my favorite track might be the keyboard-centric interlude "A Quick Little Flight." Armor for Sleep seemed a bit more thoughtful in their songwriting and arrangements than many of their contemporaries.
91. Cauterize - Paper Wings (2005)
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The single "Something Beautiful" led me to Cauterize's 2003 major label debut So Far from Real, but upon purchasing the album I found that the rest of the tracks didn't live up to that song's high bar. Not so with the independently-released follow-up Paper Wings, which was just full of emo rock songs that I absolutely devoured in 2005. This was actually the first album that I had to order online because it wasn't sold in stores. I remember the surreal feeling of the CD showing up in the mailbox, and that first experience attached some additional meaning to Paper Wings. It doesn't hurt that it features propulsive songs like "Wake to the Sun," "Closer," and "Tremble." Cauterize later signed to another label and re-recorded most of these songs for Disguises, which rejiggered the tracklist and added a few new tunes. Even though the production might be a little better on Disguises, I always preferred the Paper Wings versions and the flow of the original tracklist. There's nothing like the first time.
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lunavadash-creates · 3 years ago
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Honey, where I should start.. Maybe your Pandora Box would be the best choice, because it made me really excited and I have something to say about it. As usual.
First of all, I feel pretty unsure of fantasy au’s in non-fantasy genres. And I am saying this as a fantasy lover. However, some of your ideas seem interesting to me. And names!! I love them all! I always have problems with female names because there are only a few I like and they almost always are not adequate to the fandom. So usually my OCs exist without any.
Funny thing the most fantastic trope of your ideas is my totally favorite.! I love mermaids with all my heart! I love them to the point my co-workers bought me a mermaid-tail-blanket. You know, I'm ALWAYS cold and I am the youngest in the team, so they still treat me like a child – in a positive way ofc. The motive of the mermaid in Black Flag? I love it.! It’s quite heartbreaking, but I am a masochist and I would love to read about the moment she finds out about Edward’s death. Such a pity you don’t have an OC dedicated to him. I love this man. Maybe because I got into AC thanks to my friends and they all said that Black Flag is the best game made from all AC franchises. I didn’t have a chance to play them all so I have no idea if it’s true.
The second one of my total faves is OC for Connor. All OCs I have ever created are herbalists/healers/medics/veterinarians so here we are, you totally bought me with this one. And I find Slavic mythology really interesting. Do you have a name for her? I am not too excited about her being an assassin, but it’s only because AC games are too brutal for me. (Yes, I am really sensitive and sometimes killing a bug is too much for me, please don’t laugh at me) I definitely prefer books. And maybe that’s why I like to think about OC/reader as a person not involved in Assassin’s Brotherhood as a member.
Could you tell me something more about Ian? He sounds quite interesting. Ok, I lied. He sounds VERY interesting and I want to know everything about him lol.
I don’t like children, but Bayek and Aya are legendary and everyone on this sick planet loves them so I am kinda interested in the background story? And Bayek has the most beautiful smile amongst all male assassins in the whole franchise. You can’t change my mind.
Buuuut, speaking of such things.. who do you find most attractive out of all AC characters and why? I know Altair is your favorite, but I am not sure if also in a matter of physical appearance.
🔪
Hi Knifey!
I'm really happy you like my little Pandora Box! I have drabbles for some of those ideas, some of them are in this phase of 'im still not sure if I'll write it but it is/was fun to think about. Also allow me to put rest of the answer under the cut!
Mermaids and sirens are one of my fave supernatural beings so I'm so happy you like that idea! Maybe one day I will have oc for Edward but to be honest the game makes me sad. I don't like how Edward behaves - how he treats his wife, the sugar seller and generally people around.
I won't laugh at you for not like killing because it's 100% valid! And this oc for Connor is like that. She used to be an assassin but left because killing is terrible for her and it's completely against her doctors' vows to never hurt. Honestly the moment when Edward buys his swords and Bonnet goes with 'i didn't have money for swords so I have this tiny knife' broke my heart. I was so angry at Edward I had to turn off the game.
As for other games - I started with Syndicate, then Unity, Odyssey, Origins, AC 1 and then I followed the order. I just played Valhalla after Rogue but before black flag. So as you see Edward is my last assassin so maybe that's why I have troubles with liking him got now. But I hope it will get better!
About Ian. Do you know anime called Durarara? I honesty base Ian on Izaya a bit. If not then it's fine! Ian is an informant who just loves to create chaos and observe people. He is curious by them. He is especially dangerous because this feeling of awe towards humanity is genuine. Because of it he can be bought with money or threatened by death. He does as he please, not caring for consequences as long as he can watch people and their choices.
Bayek. Aya. I love them so so much and I'm always so sad about their story. I wished they could be together happily ever after. This child oc is one of those 'idk if I'll write it but it's fun to think about it from time to time' kind of thing. (Same goes for witch for Malik, tbh Im going more and more to the side that I won't write it because it just doesn't feel right 😂)
And yes! Bayek has beautiful smile!
Who's attractive? Tbh I find them all attractive in different ways. I want to way Altair is the most handsome but he has like 13 pixels on his whole face 😂 if they made him with th same quality as Alexios, Bayek or Eivor it would be much easier to decide!
I think Arno (my type - dark eyes, dark hair) Shay and Alexios are the moet handsome for me. Secondly comes Jacob! Then Bayek, Eivor, Connor, Altair, Ezio, Malik, Edward (he is the last, sorry ;; )
Who is the most handsome for you? And which AC games/books did you read? I read only brotherhood do km looking for recommendations (also I'm still reading ac1 book but the feelings)
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franeridan · 7 years ago
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hey i wanted to ask if you could make recommendations for bakushima fanfics? i'm curious as to what you're currently reading, what your favorites are and what your thoughts on the fanfics you read are! :)
Boi!!! Okay, I guess I did something like that a long while ago, everything I said about those fics is still 100% valid, after making that list I reread nearly all of them a dozen of times and I’ve loved them all just as much each of them, good great fics those - but since then I’ve read a shitton more, so!! Let’s do this? Let’s do this
My (newer) Favorite Fics:
one to ten by crunchrapsupreme - lotsa pining, acquaintance to friends to lovers, incredibly soft and ridiculously happy it gave me such a warm feeling reading it? Kirishima is so pure it made my heart sing, Kaminari is just as ridiculous and negative as he’s supposed to be and Bakugou’s!!! Perfect I’m sure you’re gonna like this one
out of sight, within reach by potato - no powers AU, high school AU, misunderstandings and jealousy and ridiculous babies in love - Bakugou pines!!! It’s actually!!! A fic from Bakugou’s pov with this ridiculous dork pining!!!! I would have loved it just for that, but honestly anything potato writes is worth reading they’re just so good and know the characters so well !!!
get tough, straight up by quactus - this!!!! damn!!!! fic!!!! it’s useless even to drag this for long, the reason why this fic is between my favorites is straight out the incredible amount of Bakugou and Kirishima acting like a couple while they’re not even aware their liking each other might be mutual - they’re soft, got no personal space at all, care for each other so sweetly seriously it’s so good to read it made my insides melt
all good things need sunshine by shizuumi151 - a flower shop AU from another author I love with all my heart! Go check everything they’ve written they’re honestly a fave, such a good grasp on these two - this fic is sweet (I think I used that word to describe all the fics I’ve recced till now? It’s my fav genre what can I do) flowers make me soft and these two acting like the ridiculous crushing idiots they are surrounded by them is just a recipe to make me happy lbr
it’s pouring out here again by shizuumi151 - no power/high school/basketball club AU and I’m pretty certain I suggested this one already between my favorite Kaminari fics? Cause he’s amazing in this one, he and Sero both - so are Bakugou and Kirishima, obviously, the whole atmosphere of the fic makes me genuinely happy every single time I read this fic (which I’ve done… way too many times in the last month already, honestly… rip this is a fav for sure)
Fight Me by ryonello - no quirks/nurse! Kirishima AU and oh my god this fic is so good - it’s fun? and bright? and Bakugou pines in the most endearing way ever? I spent the whole fic nodding and going same Baku same haha
From Pictures to Words by Kivea - snapchat AU snapchat AU snapchat AU!!!! Holy heck!!!! These!!!! NERDS!!!!!!! This is a seriously great fic - Baku/Mina friendship and the squad being it all there and Baku & Deku being on civil terms make it all even better, but g o d Bakugou and Kirishima in this fic. Jesus Christ. I love them so much I can’t even find the words to describe it
little are the things we learn by newamsterdam - a 5+1 fic, 6 PoV total each of them describing the KiriBaku relationship from the eyes of those aorund them - listen. Listen. This might be obvious, because newamsterdam is my absolute fave KiriBaku author, but I live and die for this fic - aside from how I adore the external PoV format in general, every single character is so incredibly IC? And the KiriBaku relationship is so so so well described and complete even if constantly seen from an outsider’s point of view? God, I love this fic. I should reread this fic right now, honestly
but I’ve got an angry heart by newamsterdam (again) - no quirks/college AU good god this fic - you could, technically, go back in my blog and find my reblogs of every single chapter and see me dying under every single one of them. Cause this fic killed me. Kept me alive too, somehow. This might be my favorite KiriBaku fic atm, it’s so complete both from a plot point of view and from the building of the various relationships in it too - there’s Bakugou & Aizawa golden interactions, the whole squad is there and their relationships both with Bakugou and with Kirishima are perfect, I live for the way Baku and Deku’s relationship was brought in this fic and the building of Bakugou’s relationship with Kirishima is just. So. Good. It broke my heart a lot, but it made me super happy too so! It was definitely worth it I love reading this fic always
don’t count on me to let you know when by newamsterdam - I’m just, fucken, reccing all of asma’s fics whatever - this one’s n/sfw so keep that in mind! It’s also happy ending with a lot of pain and miscommunication and PLEASE BAKUGOU FOR FUCK SAKE HOLY SHIT WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS I SWER TO FUC———………..it’s a great fic please give it a try if you like to die a lot I don’t know if I mentioned this but newamsterdam’s characterization is everything I live and breathe for, lately (this fic is also the first of hers I read and the moment I decided I had a new fav author so)
Those Ten Moments by Kivea - I’m starting to notice the names sorta keeps on repeating - anyWAY Kaminari trying to make Kirishima see that his crush is requited, what a good fic it’s so much fun??? So many silly lighthearted shenanigans??? And Kaminari is beautiful in this??? Constantly #blessed tbh
you looked at me by shizuumi151 - okay this is N/SFW. And it’s actually mostly a pwp, which are usually Not My Thing. But this fic. My man this fic. Holy shit. It’s definitely one of my favorite Bakushima out there, like, possibly in my top five? Probably, I love it that much - at this point I made it clear I love this author’s way of portraying them so much, but the characterization in this one is so good? And they’re so… warm? And loving? I mean fuck they barely even know each other and still there’s so much attraction written in such a good way I might have read this fic one too many times okay. I don’t know if pwp’s are your thing. But even if they aren’t try this one out. Seriously.
parted, and never parted by Authoress - this list is getting too long so I’ll just drop the Bakushima side of this author’s AO3 page here and beg you to read everything they’ve written for them - I know I’ve said it a lot already but trust me they are worth your time. The fic I linked is a fantasy AU with God of War!Bakugou and Soldier!Kirishima, and it might maybe be my fave between the ones they’ve written? It’s one of those fics that stay with you even just for the visuals they evoke tbqh
the sunshine people by dellsey - no quirk/zumba instructor!Kirishima AU and aaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh This Fic Holy Shit it’s so warm? So much fun? So much fluff? Sunshine is actually a perfect word to describe this fic, it’s… a comfort fic, the type of fic you read when you need Serious Picking Up, I don’t know how many of my days this fic has saved since the first time I read it
2 A.M. by cityboys - yo would you look at that another author that turns into gold everything they touch - how do I even begin to describe this fic. It’s. A restaurant AU. It’s super long, with an incredible plot, amazingly detailed descriptions, very good platonic interactions aside from the Literally Perfect Bakushima in it. When I read this fic the first time I literally pulled an all nighter to go through it all in one go - I kept on telling myself okay now I’ll stop and yet. It’s that sort of good. This is. A really good fic.
you and I might just be the best thing by poteto - no quirk/college AU with pining Kirishima this fic is??? So much fun??? I’ve read it so many times?? Kirishima is such a damn disaster in this??? He’s a mess and Bakugou’s confused by his antics for most of the fic I love it this fic is what Good Feelings look like when written down
Can you f believe how many titles I just dropped, and it’s not even all the ones I have in my bookmarks - okay now for what I’m following, I’m actually following nearly everything that’s regularly updating atm, but since this list is long enough as it is I’ll just drop you the names of my faves? Yeah, let’s go for that
The potential of you and me [NOW COMPLETE] by Claus_Lucas -  this fic isn’t even done with and it’s already between my bookmarks can you believe - it’s a neighbours AU, only one chapter out and should be done with the next, it made me really happy to read? Kirishima’s such a ball of pure sunshine in it? I love it
his is the sun [NOW COMPLETE] by bwyn - a soccer team/soulmates AU and when I bookmarked this one it was supposed to be done with but looks like there’s another chapter incoming after all!!! What a good!!!! I’m weak to soulmates AU so sometimes I can be a bit biased towards them, but this one is a really good one! Bakugou is… such a fucking idiot… gods 
I let you go, hoping that you’d come back by shiro_yuu - a Single Dad Bakugou Future AU - actually, what I’m really loving in this fic is the way Bakugou and Kirishima have to act around each other? They used to be together but then broke up, so now it’s ten years in the future and they’re still totally smitten but unsure over whether they should try to go for a relationship again and sure the other doesn’t want a relationship anyway - it could have turned into lots of awkwardness and angst, but instead they’re so… familiar? And loving? In the way they look at each other and touch each other and talk to each other, it has a really good atmosphere I’m really liking that about this fic
Electric Moment by cityofnumbersix - a band AU! In which the band members are Kirishima Jirou Denki and Sero and Bakugou’s just joining them - also Mina’s there with them always even though she’s not actual part of the band - it’s!!! The full squad!!!! It’s what got me to try this fic out to begin with honestly. Everyone’s definitely more sexual than what my headcanons for them are, but the squad interactions in this one are Good (the Baku&Jirou interactions are giving me life???) so I’m always super happy when it updates!
slow it down (go easy on me) [NOW COMPLETE] by newamsterdam - ofc I’m following newamsterdam’s current fic, psh - also, hi asma, this fic is stressing me the fuck out (I love it to bits). It’s a Bakugou-gets-sent-to-the-future-and-keeps-it-a-secret fic which is a trope I live for, but also secrets make me go in Constant Impending Doom mode so I need to psyche myself up for hours before I can actually click on the new chapter when it’s out. This fic is making me cry and playing with my heart and I’m loving every second of it, but what am I even saying this for ofc it is and ofc I am
The Lost Continent by cattchi and paglycos - uhhhhhhhhhhhh yeah this is super N/SFW. It’s a pirates AU, and tbh I like the world building and the way it’s written a lot, so I’m leaving this here like, hey this fic is maybe a bit too much on the n/sfw side for my tastes and some things Bakugou does in the beginning make me go w h y, but I’m interested in the plot enough to go :O!!! when I see an update so have it! If you’re more into sex than I am you might seriously enjoy it - do read the tags before deciding if you want to read it, tho!
Tonight, We’re The Sea [NOW COMPLETE]by idratherhaveyou - I can’t believe I forgot to mention this fic this is my favorite fic out of the ongoing ones - it has beautiful sceneries, perfectly written characters (the way Kirishima’s low self-esteem is portrayed gives me life and Bakugou’s awkwardness in dealing with people makes me warm) the interpersonal relationships are all AMAZING (I live for Sero and Kiri’s friendship? And Mina is so good too - Kaminari’s got a weird relationship going on with Bakugou too, such a good way of bringing their canon relationship in the AU!!) and the way Kirishima and Bakugou’s relationship is evolving is so natural - I really recommend trying this one out, it makes me giddy every time it updates
Burn Like The Sun [NOW COMPLETE] by Kivea - if you’re looking for a bakusquad fic this is the fic for you, it’s all five of them being dorks and loving each other so much and tbh that’s what I love this fic so much for - that, and the literally perfect way in which Bakugou and Kirishima are made to fall in love. It’s super slow burn, but the both of them care for each other deeply since nearly the beginning in an open and obvious way and it’s such a pleasure to watch them navigate their very intimate friendship, too. It’s a firefighters AU by the way! And it has really great Bakugou and Deku and Bakugou and Uraraka interactions too, so if you’re into that you’re gonna love this. Also a very brief mention of Tetsu/Kiri, but there too it mostly boils down to friendship in the end. I love this fic, I’m sure it’s gonna be between the ones I’ll suggest to everyone once it’ll be done~
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