#i harp on the smaller details

[the-badger-mole]

Why are you so obsessed with Mai's clothes?

I'm not really obsessed with her clothes as much as this perception that Mai is some sort of counter cultural icon (among her fans). I feel like her clothes play a large part of that perception, and I think it's undeserved. Her clothes don't stand out from the rest of what we see in the Fire Nation, so to me, rather than showing us how different Mai is from the other girls from the rest of the major Fire Nation characters (except Ty Lee, who I argue is the true counter cultural icon), her outfit shows how well she fits in.

It's not really about the fashion for me. It's the visual storytelling. Outfit changes are a simple, but effective way to show us what's happening in a characters head. Heck, it's a tactic that's been used in the show before- mostly with Zuko. Having Mai drastically change her clothes after she left her parents would have been an easy way to show that she'd been repressed with her parents. It would've made her complaints about them more realistic. It would've made the existence of her character arc easier to believe. I still think her redemption arc would've have been pathetically weak if they'd only changed her clothes, but it would've been traceable at least.

[nycbaby21]

Trevor Zegras Imagine

Double date with Jamie and Trevor

word count: 2,869

“C’mon please,” I hear for probably the eighth time in the past hour. I take a deep breath and close my laptop knowing this essay isn’t getting finished tonight. The past three days my roommate Harper has been trying to get me to agree to go on a double date with her and her boyfriend.” If I go tonight there are gonna be some requirements agreed on first,” I sigh knowing soon enough she’d make me cave.

She jumps up from the couch running over and hugging me at the kitchen counter. I laugh as she squeezes me and say,”Harp calm down okay. I said yes but you owe me.” She pulls back, her bright blue eyes filled with excitement, and nods while also slightly jumping up and down.”You will be buying dinner every night this week. You have to do all the dishes too. And lastly, this is the biggest one, please don’t just leave me alone with someone I just met,” I say knowing she will do atleast two of the three things.” Sounds like we have a deal.” Famous last words.

I knew I was being dramatic, Harper knew, hell even Jamie knew I was and he wasn’t even here yet. It wasn’t because I was trying to be difficult honestly, but the idea of going on a date with a professional hockey player was really nerve wracking. Luckily I knew Jamie well enough to know what his roommates name was, so after a quick google search to make myself feel better I felt worse. Trevor Zegras, New York native, number 11 for the Anaheim Ducks, and lastly hottest guy I had ever seen. A soft knockon my door breaks me from my staring contest with my phone.” Come in.”

Jamie opens my bedroom door and smiles wide at me. I return the smile halfway as he sits at my desk chair.” Y/n I want you to listen to me okay. I know you are nervous about tonight and if you really don’t wanna go you don’t have to. I don’t want you doing anything uncomfortable with. Harper is only being so annoying about it because of Z. After he saw her lockscreen of the two of you from Halloween last year he hasn’t stopped asking about you. He finally annoyed her enough for you to come tonight.” I snap my head towards him and raise an eyebrow confused.

” What are you talking about Jamie? I thought you wanted me to go tonight because you felt bad ditching him on his first night back from his trip,” I ask because that is what Harper told me. His blue eyes go wide and blush quickly rushes to his face and falling all the way down to his neck.” Well yeah… I mean of course that’s why… we,” he started stuttering knowing he had messed up. I give him a look as he jumps up and races down to the kitchen. I quickly follow him and am met with him kissing Harp bye and headed home.” See you later,” he rushes as he closes the door.

“What the hell was that,” I look at her and then back to the door.” What? Oh Jamie. Well you know I love him but he is kinda an odd duck sometimes,” she smiles not making eye contact. “Harper was what Jamie said true? He wanted to meet me because of your lock screen,” I question rounding the corner and standing beside her so she has to look at me. She takes a deep breath and finally looks at me.” Yes okay. Jamie didn’t know that I may have left some details out so don’t be upset with him. Trevor saw my phone and said you were the prettiest girl he had ever seen. I just know you Y/n. If you knew Trevor was excited to meet you it would freak you out, like it is doing right now. I promise I didn’t mean to upset you I thought I was helping,” she looked up with sad puppy eyes. I knew she wouldn’t hurt me on purpose and neither would Jamie. I lean over and wrap my arms around her. She sighs and nuzzles deeper into the hug.

“You were right. I am kinda freaking out. I also may or may not have googled him,” I say my voice growing smaller as the sentence finishes. She springs backs and looks at me laughing.” Y/n! This is too good oh my gosh. So, what did you think,” she props her head up with her hands and smirks at me. I push her head and get up walking back towards my room.” Just so you know this is gonna be in my speech at your wedding.”

Hours later I take one last final look in the mirror. I went with a light green sweater and light washed jeans. The jeans were tight enough to show my figure, but not too tight to be uncomfortable. I lean down running my hands through my freshly curled hair and smile. The doorbell ringing makes my smile drop. My stomach is swirling with nervousness. I haven’t been on a date with a guy I didn’t like in forever and now I’m going on one with someone I do. I slowly walk down the stairs to see Jamie waving through the window by the door. Laughing at him, I reach down and twist the doorknob open.

The sight I’m met with is straight from a rom-com. Two ridicously attractive guys standing at the front door with flowers and huge smiles. My eyes drift from Jamie to Trevor’s flowers then finally to his eyes. He smiles and I can see a light pink dusting on his cheeks.” Well don’t you guys look nice. Come in Harper is just finishing up,” I say pulling the door wider and let Jamie lead them in. I laugh silently at Jamie even ringing the doorbell since he already has a key to our place. He makes quick work of finding two vases for the flowers as Trevor stands to the side awkwardly. It was cute seeing this super confident guy look like a kid being dropped off by his parents on the first day of school.” You can sit if you want to, don’t have to stand there the whole time. Harper always takes forever getting ready,” I smile at him hoping to calm both of our nerves.

He joins me at the kitchen counter and slides into the seat next to me.” I’m Y/n by the way. I know you knew that already but it felt weird to not introduce myself.” He turns and I can see just how bright his eyes are this close. His smile curls up his face as he lets out a laugh.” I’m so glad you said that. I was wondering if I was supposed to because Jamie told me you knew the basics about me, so I’m glad you led the way. I’m Trevor by the way and these are for you,” he pushes the flowers in my direction. I take them from him as our fingers brush each other’s and we stop. Looking up quickly at each other and then blushing again. I twirl the small bouquet of daisies around and smile at them.” Harp said they were your favorite,” he says quietly. This is a very different verison of him that I thought I would be meeting tonight. From all the stories and interviews I knew he was a loud lovable goofball but seeing him kinda shy and reserved was interesting.

Jamie interrupted our staring contest by placing the vase down infront of me and softly pulling the flowers from my hands to get them into water. Before he can make a comment, which I could tell he was going to by the twinkle in his eye, Harper finally made it downstairs and greeted Jamie with a small kiss.” Okay let’s go people. Seriously I have no idea why we haven’t left yet,” she jokes laughing at how even she knew her and time had a difficult relationship.

The night exceeded my expectations by a thousand percent. We all walked around the fairgrounds and as the night went along Trevor finally let his personality start to show. We followed closely behind the happy couple infront of us and both laughed at how such a small girl could drag the defencemen around like it was nothing. As I followed them into the line for the ferris wheel, I felt Trevor stop behind me. Turning around I can see the nervous look in his eyes mixed with dread. Sensing his resistance to get in line I figured he wasn’t the biggest fan of heights. Jamie and Harper turn around and see us standing back from them. As Trevor opens his mouth to explain why he stopped I cut him off,” I’m not really feeling this one guys. Trev do you think it’d be okay if we skip this one and do something else.” The anxiety visibly leaves his body as he nods quickly. Reaching down and lacing our fingers together I look back to our friends.” We will catch up with you guys after,” Harper says coming over and giving me a quick hug. She then leans up as close as she can get to Trevor’s ear due to their height difference,” you pull anything your ass in mine Zegras.”

After basically prying Trevor from the spot he had been frozen to since Harper threatened him, we make our way to a small table to eat our shared funnel cake.” Thank you for that by the way,” he says looking over at me with a shy smile. I shake my head,” hey don’t mention it. If I’m being honest I’m kinda glad we skipped it. I’m having fun just the two of us.” His smile reaches his eyes and he slowly reaches out and connects our hands again.” Me too,” he exclaims while rubbing his thumb back and forth on my hands. We finished up and stood up looking around for the rest of our group. A message from a group chat including the four of us, which was just made, explained how they saw us having a good time and decided to go back to the boy’s place for the night. I laugh at the face he makes reading the text.” Oh you think this is funny missy. I love them but they haven’t spent time alone together in a minute so,” he stopped his sentence not having to finish it.” I find it hilarious mister,” I say poking his chest,” because if I’m not mistaken I had to deal with Valentine’s Day so I dont wanna hear it.” We both laughed at our shared trauma of sharing a wall with the two of them.” Okay so what’s next? I do not wanna go home yet,” he says walking forward lacing our fingers back together. I look down and smile at how natural it feels.

“Well they close soon so wanna try and find somewhere else that’s open this late,” I ask pulling out my phone again to search for things to do. I let out a squeal as I notice I never cleared my recent search history, the one including my cyberstalking of Trevor.” No way I just saw what I think I saw,” he laughs reaching down for my phone. I quickly move it behind my back slipping my other hand from his to have a better grip on it.” I have no idea what you are talking about,” I laugh nervously knowing he probably thinks I’m a weirdo stalker now.” Okay then let me see your phone.” As the words leave his mouth I blush even harder and shake my head. He continues walking towards me as I walk back away from him. All is going fine until I feel something hard hit my back. Silently cursing I notice I literally backed myself into a wall.

Trevor finally reaches me and stops just a couple inches from my body. Both of our breathing is heavy and the phone was the last thing on our minds. His blue eyes dart from mine to my lips a couple times making sure I can see it. I smile at him as he leans down slowly, giving me any chance to stop this. Getting frustrated, I lean forwards connecting our lips and wrapping my arms around his neck. He quickly recovers and leans more into me, pushing me deeper into the brick wall behind me. Only pulling away because we need air, I hear him chuckle as I still have my eyes closed scared that if I open them this could all just be a cruel dream. Finally opening them I see his flushed face and slightly swollen lips.” There she is,” he whispers looking into my eyes. I laugh and lean forward resting my head on his chest. I can feel the rapid beat of his heart and just sit in the moment for a second. That second was quickly interrupted by him snatching my phone from my hands and running to put some distance between us.” Trevor! Seriously no,” I plead but it’s too late. He is scrolling through my google laughing the whole time he does it. Feeling so embarrassed I turn away from him and start walking towards the exit. I guess he noticed and caught up to me quickly, stupid long legs. I try not to make eye contact and keep walking ahead when he stops right infornt of me.

“Hey look I’m sorry okay. Please look at me,” I can hear the sincerity in his voice, but that doesn’t help with how stupid I feel. I refuse to look at him, my eyes drifting everywhere else. He lightly places his hand under my chin and moves my head to look at him.” Hi,” he smiles at me almost making it hard for me to be mad he stole my phone.” Hi,” I whisper back finally letting myself relax alittle.” I am sorry Y/n. I just got a little excited. I mean it’s not everyday that you find out the girl you have been dreaming about was looking you up before a date,” he speaks softly like you would to a scared animal. I sigh and let a lone tear fall down my face. His thumb quickly swipes it away,” I just don’t want you to think I’m so weirdo who stalked you.” He laughs and puts both hands on my cheeks. I reach up and wrap mine around his wrist keeping him locked in afraid he may run.” I mean I do think you are a weirdo but not because of that.” I laugh and roll my eyes at his joke.” Seriously I think it’s cute. I totally scrolled all the way through your instagram the second I learned your name from Harper,” he confessed.

Laughing I lean up and connect our lips and then quickly pull back. He makes a small noise of protest and I giggle,” now who’s the weirdo.” He laughs and leans his head down to rest on mine. We stay in the moment until some guy yells at us saying the park closed five minutes ago. Grabbing his hand, I take of running pulling him along with me laughing the whole time. We uber back to my place and Trevor walks me up to the door. He swings our hands with every step and continues even when we reach the door.” I had a really great time tonight,” he blushes running thumb along my hand again.” Me too. Best date I’ve ever been on,” I smile up at him. He leans down and give me one final kiss before walking towards his car, Jamie and Harper must have come back here and got hers. Our hands stay connected until they can’t anymore. I laugh at him and yell out,”dork.” He smiles and runs back up to me kissing me again suddenly.” Only for you,” he winks then runs back to his car heading back to his place. I wave at him as he pulls out and I finally make my way upstairs and get ready for bed.

After getting settled I lay down in bed with a huge smile on my face. This night couldn’t have gone any better. Then my thoughts are cut off by the small ding of my phone. One new message for Trev 😍🥵😮‍💨. I laugh at the contact name he must have put in there when he had my phone.

Trev 😍🥵😮‍💨: I made it back home and I’m laying down wondering what’s the point of going to sleep when my dreams already came true 😘

Number 1 fan 🧡🖤: That was the cheesiest thing I have ever heard. I’m glad you made it home. I can’t wait to see you again.

Trev 😍🥵😮‍💨: Same here. Can’t keep my number one fan lonely now can I?

Number 1 fan 🧡🖤: I’m glad you have to listen to them tonight just for that comment.

[girls-and-honey]

okay so

!! you know 'my longest yeah boy ever' that was my reaction to getting this bc you're the first person to be on the requesting side of info dumping being a 24/7 event on this blog thank u anon

okay gotta choose the info dump topic... we're going with harps because... I can! below the cut because this got long alsdkfj

okay so!! harps are freaking cool there are so many kinds and lots of different styles to play them in and yeah it's not the most common instrument to play or anything (I'm thinking largely because of the cost of the instrument itself and also the availability of teachers although there are plenty of online resources now!) but anyway there are some really really talented harpists out there!! one of my favorites is kristan toczko she's amazing and I can only hope to be 1/10th as good as she is someday (for real it's amazing the level of talent and skill she has go look her up!) okay so let's focus on some different types of harps because I'd guess you won't all picture the same thing and that's okay! I'm going to disregard the large amount of cultural variations because there are so so many versions of plucked string instruments across the world and I don't enough details to speak accurately about the variations so I'll talk about a few types more common cross-culturally and largely still in use today.

okay so there are lap harps/ handheld harps which are great for being able to bring places (picture those little upside-down-omega shaped harps you may see at ren faires, or the kind you'd see in a celtic style music video of someone sitting in a field in a pretty dress). they're also on the more affordable side (for harps at least) and come in all kinds of different designs, and these are the ones that you can usually find handmade by independent creators! the two biggest downsides are that they have a smaller range of notes (fewer strings, usually 15-22) and they don't usually have a way to quickly change the pitch of the string while playing (but some do) so depending on what kind of music you want to play may or may not limit the specific songs that can be played. but you can tune to a specific key before playing so you can play in different keys just not change between them quickly. okay next category!! lever harps are bigger than lap harps, they usually sit on the floor and are played while sitting on a stool and are not so portable. these guys have more strings (usually 34-40, mine has 40!) so wider range and! you can change the pitch of the strings! the pitch is changed with levers (hence the name) near to top of each string and it raises the pitch by a half tone. so just like a lap harp you could tune first to the lowest key you'll need (I keep mine tuned to 3 flats) and change keys much easier with the levels AND you can change the levers during songs so! more flexibility there. downsides are: not very portable, and somewhat pricier. plus, if you wanted to change key and put for example all Ds to be D#, you'd need to change the lever on each D string. and finally! the pedal harp!!! this is the big fancy kind you'd see playing with an orchestra but they're also beautiful solo or duet instruments. *slaps soundboard* you can fit so much pitch flexibility in this bad boy (anyone? that spaghetti car meme?) so this one also sits on the floor and they have even MORE strings (47!! 47 strings!) and instead of having levers on each individual string they have 7 pedals, one for each note, that connect to pins which tune ALL strings of that note at the same time! so to make all Ds sharp you'd just use your foot to move the pedal one direction, or to make all Ds flat you'd move the pedal the other direction! this makes it SUPER easy to change keys and individual note pitches while playing because you don't even need to stop playing with your hands you can literally use your feet at the same time!!! downsides of course: also not easily portable (but they have special equipment to help move them) and much pricier to much much much pricier (there are some really fancy ones with custom engraving, painting, and even gold components but even a base level good pedal harp is going to cost you 5 figures yikes)

alsdkfjsd I was also going to info dump about strings but I feel like that's enough for now so! if anyone made it this far good job lol and I hope you enjoyed learning some harp info!!!

[audio-luddite]

Some very special LPs

Back in ancient times there was an LP club like a book club who would send you new albums every month based on a flat rate which was really cheap. Based in New York it was the "Musical Heritage Society." Great value and high quality music.

They secured copies of less popular recordings mostly from Europe's smaller labels. I have a few of these. Each has a story. They are all really good quality. I do not know who mastered them or pressed them, but vinyl was still king back then. Well done vinyl.

So first I played " History of Spanish music volume 16" there is an included booklet that goes into some depth about the history of the Vihuela. They go into detail about how a Vihuela is not a lute but is actually the daddy of a guitar. Or more precisely the guitar is a Vihuela with fewer strings. The music is 15th Century and lovely.

The recording is excellent with great tone in the solo Vihuela and the mezzo-soprano singer for about half the tracks. Recorded in Spain no surprise.

Next up was MHS "Indian flutes harps and guitars" a collection of native music from the Andean parts of South America. It is unique and interesting and not "latin" but genuine native music from those nations. I enjoyed the listen as it had been a long time and the system sounded phenomenal.

Now there is a story here.

Not that long ago (yes decades) when there were loops of music videos playing on the TV a new release came up. I saw yet another blonde bikini clad bimbo appear and thought oh not another one. Too many Britanny Clones! Then the music started and it was way different. It wasn't pop blah blah it was Andean! WTF! It turned out to be Shakira born in Columbia from Lebanese Parents who had absorbed the music of the natives and wove it into something unique.

https://youtu.be/weRHyjj34ZE

Hey it did not hurt that she was cute, but smart with something like 7 languages and writing lyrics in most of them. I became a fan because I liked that authentic Andean music, and later Arabic music. I liked it because of this record club in New York. Did I mention she is cute?

The music heritage society has recently been re-animated from death. Their catalog is being built back and they have a lot of unique and interesting stuff.

Less good ways to waste time are available.

[overworkedunderwhelmed]

So, there is a post circulating and harping on the don’t donate to Ao3 again.  I thought about replying to it directly, but I really didn’t want to give it more attention. While they have done some research into past 990 forms, they are being very irate about a figure of about 13,000 for Management & Administrative because the Non-Profit staff doesn’t get paid and fear-mongering that the higher ups are embezzling the money instead of putting it to good use.

Now, I cannot speak to server costs and the massive scalability increase needed for the newer requirements especially in these Covid-era years.  Although, I know as a writer and reader on Ao3 myself, I know that Ao3 has made lots of improvements since this time.

However, the linked post OP seems to fundamentally miss something very important, something which I assume most people in the general public do not even need to know exists.  That 13,000 cost and category looks like it could absolutely be a Non-Profit accountant, which is a very specialized niche of accountant who knows the tax code relevant to Non-Profits and who make sure all of the accounts meet the legal requirements and the organization wouldn’t lose that hard won Non-Profit status.

Now, I myself would be very in the dark were it not for the fact that I personally was a treasurer for a much smaller non-profit for about 3-4 years nearly a decade ago.  That means I didn’t get paid for the hundreds of hours of my timing tracking all of the financials for my group.  However, you better believe even a small organization like ours shelled out about $7,000 (during my tenure) to have that accountant with the right expertise vet all my work and handle all coordination between the federal and state tax authorities, even though we were also a group that never broke past about $200,000 revenue/income mark at the time.  (My memory on what the exact thresholds were or are now is fuzzy at best.)  Since Ao3 is seeing numbers in the millions, that larger dollar figure raised explicitly requires more time (and cost) intensive level of scrutiny by the accountant to ensure auditing compliance of all records submitted to the tax authorities. 

The one complaint review cited on Guidestar (of a past BoD member in 2014) talks about the functional sunshine requirements and visibility.  This likely expense 100% speaks to make sure they are doing everything right and above board.

Now, obviously I cannot confirm that Ao3 doesn’t have some tax accountant volunteer who is out there somewhere doing this work pro-bono (as nearly all the all-volunteer staff clearly does.)  However, it is just one very expensive line item that comes to mind off hand that most people are not aware is not just required, but is essential to ensuring the organization continues to serve its users as intended.  

The 990 form will never be that detailed, as they are intended to provide a big picture view to the public (and the authorities, of course).  However, that detail is there behind the scenes and is going to be vetted in incredible depth to ensure the organization is properly serving the public.

[verlaines-corner-archive]

please share your headcanons with us!! (if you want of course <3)

Always happy to dear anon!

Here are some (more) assorted hcs of our beloved Fedya

He can play multiple instruments. The cello is the one he plays the most but his favourite is the harp. Along with that he knows piano and violin.

Suffers epilepsy, resulting in seizures. Due to his less than ideal health and horrid work habits these have gotten more common.

He drinks his tea with a spoonful of jam! His preferred flavour is raspberry, though he doesn’t mind strawberry either. Going off this he has a sweet tooth, though doesn’t indulge it all too often.

Here’s a really fun stupid one; he can’t tie ties.

Has a complex relationship with religion. Has a cross necklace, but seldom does he ever actually wear it. He tries to pray once a week, though lord knows he looses track of time far too easy, so it’s usually once a fortnight, sometimes not even. I won’t go into too much detail here, but I'd wager some form of religious trauma.

Very big on communication and understanding with his lover. He’s not the best at it, especially at first, but it is something he values. 

Speaking of lovers, a relationship with him is all about respect and trust. He’s not the type to get with someone he views as lesser than him, or even weaker for that matter. Due to this he’s willing to give them as much power and control as they give him, it may simply take a while to get to that point. We all know he’s in no way quick to trust. 

He’s also a very devoted lover! Will put his all into the relationship, as long as it’s returned. His devotion is also more quiet, appearing in smaller moments as opposed to larger ones.

A big fan of forehead kisses.

[peachblossomstudy]

now results day has been and i can officially say that i didn’t fail year 13, i thought i’d put together some advice for new year 13s! i’m including a bit of everything so this is a bit of a long one, but i’d recommend giving it a read <3

ucas + personal statements

(these tips are mostly geared towards early applicants seen as this was what i did, but could also apply to non-early applicants)

start a first draft of your personal statement as soon as possible - personal statement deadlines will come thick and fast at the start of the school year, and writing it often takes quite a lot of time, so make sure to start well in advance

try and beat the deadlines - if your teachers have a deadline for handing in order to get feedback, the earlier you hand in your personal statement the quicker you can receive feedback and redraft

this also applies to your actual ucas application - your school has to check and send them, so to make sure you’re not stressing about it getting sent in time, try to  submit it well before the final deadline

think about whose feedback matters the most - if you get a lot of feedback from different sources (especially if some is conflicting) then think about whose is likely to be most useful - e.g. the school admissions officer is likely to know more about a good personal statement than your parent

fill out all the sections of your ucas application asap - this is more of me beating you over the head with starting things early, but i can’t say it enough or for too many things

check! every! section! before you submit - i’m talking double, triple and quadruple checking. then you won’t end up like me and accidentally applying to live at home while studying at a university a couple hundred miles away 

always ask your school admissions officers if there’s anything about your application that’s confusing. spending extra time double checking is better than submitting things incorrectly

on the subject of checking, do the same with your personal statement - it helps to have someone who’s not staring at it 24/7 read it as it will be easier for them to spot any grammatical error

a couple of oxbridge specific tips (from your local oxbridge reject lol):

if you have an admissions test (esp. for maths) and haven’t already started studying for it then for the love of god please start right now. i don’t mean to alarm, but the maths admissions tests are hard, and not starting early enough was what cost me a chance at a cambridge place

regarding personal statements, oxbridge generally don’t care about your extracurriculars - they would prefer to hear about supercurricular activities, e.g. extra subject reading and your thoughts on it, course relevant work experience

the rest (studying, coursework + misc) is going under the cut to save your dashboards, but please keep reading!

studying + revision

this is a reiteration from the year 12 tips, but is still one of my number 1 tips: if you have them, make good use of your frees. during year 13 there is always something you can being doing - making notes, doing homework, practice questions - and your frees are a perfect time to find a quiet place in school and get some work done

active revision > making notes - i loved making notes to support my later revision and as something reasonably productive to do when i didn’t feel like hardcore studying, active revision should always take precedence over notes. if you get to a point where you only have time to make notes or do active revision, stop making notes and start revising

active revision techniques include: practice questions (and marking them!), flashcards (challenging yourself to remember them rather than just reading them) and explaining concepts to others

spaced revision is one of the most effective ways to retain information, so try and plan out a way to revise as you go along

tied in with the above point is one i’ve always had in these advice posts: revise for your mocks like they’re the real thing! this gets you into the habit of revising, allows you some time to work out what works for you and what doesn’t, and also means you’ll already have a lot of revision of topics under your belt when it comes to your real exams

make a detailed revision plan - i’m planning on doing a separate post on this, but my main advice is to try and schedule each specific topic, rather than just time for each subject. this means you’ll have definitely covered everything you need to know, and you won’t be tempted to skip sessions because you haven’t got a clear plan

your teachers are there to help you - if you don’t understand something in a lesson or while revising, go and ask your teacher about it as soon as you can

coursework

(disclaimer - i only did computer science coursework, so these tips are very much based off that experience, but i’ve tried to keep them pretty general)

here i am sounding like a stuck record, but my top tip is to start as early as you can. i’ve harped on about it enough for you all to know the benefits of this, but it still needs saying

if your coursework requires you to choose an idea/project to pursue, try and spend some time really thinking of a idea you like and can hit all the marking points with - this saves you from changing your idea and having to start again further down the line

talking of marking, find the markscheme for your coursework and treat it like your bible - look at all the marking points for each section in the top band, and make sure your coursework explicitly has all of them

e.g. in computer science the top band requires decisions to be justified in your write up, so use sentences like ‘the justification for this is...’

set yourself intermediate deadlines - break down the large amount of time you have into smaller chunks and set yourself a deadline for each of the sections of your work

e.g. by 2 weeks in i will have settled on my idea, by 4 weeks in i will have done research (strange example, but it illustrates my point)

make sure you hand it in in the right format and with the right file name - ask your teacher to specify this

be prepared for it to get marked down in moderation - sadly the mark your teacher tells you may not actually be what you get, and it’s more common for coursework to be marked down than marked up

miscellaneous

try to stay active as much as you can - exercise is great for shutting your brain off from worrying, and you shouldn’t stop all sport/activity for revision. you may need to cut down on the amount you do, or skip some sessions, but i found that keeping up with at least some rowing while i was revising really helped

it’s likely that you will experience some academic rejection over this year, and it will suck - try and prepare yourself to deal with disappointment, and really celebrate every success you have

year 13 is going to be hard, and busy, and stressful, so please try and be kind to yourself. there will be times when you’re too tired, or ill, or just not in the right headspace for work, and it’s completely ok to take a break and come back to everything when you’re feeling better

as i always say in these posts, but always bears repeating, ask for help if you need it! easier said than done, but we’re simply not made to go through everything alone, and there is no shame in getting help from a friend, a teacher, a parent, professionals or anyone else

if you’ve read this far, thank you so much and i hope this has been useful! my ask box and dms are always open to any questions or suggestions for other posts like this. good luck to all the new year 13s, you’re going to smash this 🥰

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

Everyone secrete hidden talent, like maybe some is an excellent wood carver or dancer…

(Headcanon Masterlist) (Full Masterlist)

Ah this is so fun!!

Ok so. After Merlin got that little Dragon from Balinor, he definitely started carving things himself. I feel like, at first, he tries to do it with his magic but it just backfires terribly and comes out kinda lifeless and soulless, so then he begins putting actual effort in and does it with his hands and... he really loves it?? It's so soothing?? He wastes many a night carving perfect little renditions of his friends or animals or the castle, it becomes a little bit of an obsession (mainly because like... he has no other hobbies so he just hyper focuses).

Arthur can play the harp!! Or something else just as poncey as the harp. He had all sorts of lessons growing up, including in music, and whilst he was terrible at singing, ok at dancing, and couldn't play the piano or lute to save his life, he can play the harp like a godamn angel. No one knows this except maybe Leon, and Leon is also a Noble so he doesn't really consider it noteworthy or odd, so it never comes up. Maybe he has one stashed away in his anti chamber or something?? He forgets about it for ages, especially when he first becomes King, but Merlin has to stay in that room for whatever reason and he pokes around of course and finds it, and then points it out to Arthur who goes "😄" and starts playing. Merlin is baffled but very impressed, and he brings his wood carving stuff up to the room whilst Arthur plays/composes in the evening.

Gwaine! Can!! Sing!!! Yes, mostly tavern songs, but because of that he's got one hell of a lung capacity, and when he isn't drunk and puts actual effort into it, he really has got a lovely voice. Very few know this, like literally just Elyan or Percival, because he's sung them to sleep quietly after a nightmare before, and he made them swear not to tell anyone. OR they woke up to hear him singing whilst he was on watch and didn't say anything, so not even Gwaine knows that they know.

Leon is a pro at dancing. Because he's Noble, it's actually sort of expected, so it's not really hidden, but he doesn't show it off, and none of his closest friends (other than Arthur, who can just about manage the important pre-choreographed dances) are Nobles, so they don't put two and two together. It'll be at some important banquet later down the line that he's finally forced to dance, probably with one of the others (Morgana/Gwen because they're friends and it's expected, or Gwaine/Merlin because they thought it would be funny and made him) and everyone goes "😳" because he's so amazing and beautiful and captivating.

Percival... hmm... I reckon he's an artist. The man can paint!! Mostly he focuses on landscapes, but he's semi decent at portraiture as well. I reckon Arthur knows because he walked in on him painting once, and only the two of them know that the giant painting hanging in one of the dining halls, a landscape of the meadows just beyond the city with the citadel in the background, was actually painted by Percival over several months. He has a smaller book with paintings of all of his friends in, doing various stuff or pulling various faces. There are more of Gwaine than there are of anyone else.

Elyan is a jack of all trades. And a master of all of them too. Gwaine got by on his travelling by running when he was in trouble and cheating at gambling, Elyan got by on his travelling by doing odd jobs here and there, and filling the job market with whatever needed doing so he could get paid. He can blacksmith, yes, but he's also a pretty decent architect, he has a good eye for detailed embroidery, his plumbing ideas are modern day innovations, etc etc. Every once in a while he'll just... do something insane and with incredible skill. It's baffling, but also very handy.

Lancelot has a good eye for gardening, man's got a tender touch when it comes to plants, and he can bring anything back from the brink, and grow anything no matter the state of the soil/weather conditions. Gaius thinks he's the Gods' gift to the Earth when he discovers this, and has the knight dutifully maintaining a herb garden throughout the year.

Gwen, and this may not be surprising to us though it'll be surprising to the others, can fight like hell with a sword. Of course she can, she grew up in a blacksmith's making them all day everyday, but the others, through a mix of prejudice and just being stupid, are absolutely blown away (except maybe Elyan and Leon, who grew up with her) when she picks up a sword and starts kicking ass one day for whatever reason. Arthur resists asking her to train with them because he's an arse, until Merlin or Gwaine make a comment about how he just doesn't want to be beaten. She doesn't train with them very often at all, she doesn't really consider her skill with a sword important or impressive, but sometimes when she has a free morning or she's stressed out she'll beat someone to a pulp to use up some energy.

Mordred grew up as a Druid, and Druid communities are super self sufficient, so anything to do with mending/making clothes. Kid can sew, knit, darn, crochet, just make a whole outfit out of scraps of fabric. He makes pretty much all of his own clothes, and he finds it kind of soothing and reminiscent of home, so he'll often fix other's clothes—without even telling them, he'll just do it. Gwaine regularly wakes up to a pile of no longer hole-y socks on the end of his bed because Mordred couldn’t sleep and decided to waste a few hours fixing them all.

Morgana can embroider, I reckon. It’s a skill that requires concentration, attention to detail, and the ability to stay focused on miniscule, repetitive motions for possibly hours at a time, which is perfect for when her nightmares are keeping her up. Gwen (and Arthur, I suppose) is the only one that really knows as she is often the one to provide her with all the materials, but also because a lot of the time, it’s Gwen’s dresses that Morgana embellishes. When her and Arthur are on better terms (either as younger teenagers, or after everything), she’ll add sneaky flowers to his clothes in places he won’t necessarily notice (along the bottom of shirts or cuffs, the pockets of trousers, etc) just to annoy him when someone points it out and he has to act as if it were a choice, and not an idiotic mistake.

Gaius writes poetry under a pseudonym, and his little books, published by anonymously by Geoffrey, are all the rage in the Kingdom.

~

I pulled most of these out of my arse (I mean definitely Gaius’. I was tired and running out of time so... poetry), but it was fun to think about, and I hope you enjoyed it!! I love y’all!!!

[empiressmpheadcanon]

hii im back and i have more on rivendell, now including house blossom!!

i already talked about how rivendell has pipe organs, but they also have a variety of other metal- and wood-based wind instruments. they often like to add gold detailing to them, and certain patterns can have significance. maybe family crests or job occupations? and not to mention rivendells choirs. theyre not the only empire with choirs, but boy oh boy when you mix all these together it feels completely different than any other country. (also rivendell prefers slower, more relaxing music usually, but may play something more upbeat for specific occasions!)

house blossom, on the other hand, is talented in playing string instruments, most notably the harp and the lyre. strings are woven from plant stalks, and the body of the instrument is always hand-carved from wood. groups of harp players sometimes get together and play. maybe those with smaller harps even walk through their town as they play, creating a little wandering band/paradr type thing (yes they do sing while playjng harps sometimes!). it's pretty festive for the most part, but can be just as gentle and relaxing.

so since the two empires are so close to one another, their cultures often mix. house blossom was quick to implement their own wood-based reed instruments, probably similar to a clarinet. rivendell started making string instruments, and thanks to the abundance of sheep (you can look it up but its mildly graphic be warned), they started producing higher quality strings. that began some more trade between the empires, and more shared music.

the festivity of house blossom rubbed off on rivendell, while rivendells wide sounds became more popular in house blossom.

ill be back with more on external influence on various empires culture later hehehe >:)

im imagining katherine and scott playing a duet w scott singing and katherine on the lyre :]

[walkingdeadbitch]

Have u noticed that when us poc plus size readers request something the authors r always so bland with their descriptions… instead of making their writing include everyone of all shapes and sizes. Like they should know there’s so many ways to describe other than to heavily note “soft hair” “tiny waist” “pale smooth skin” idk if it’s just me but that’s so cringe to describe. Also when they do include us plus sized they make it sound like we built like Meg the stallion by saying “ya he loves ur beautiful curves” that’s all they describe us as. And if they try to describe black readers they go for the “he kissed ur chocolate coated skin” like bro… there’s more to having a black reader than them just having dark skin wtf is wrong with ppl

no cuz listen. LISTEN. you can tell when it's a white or smaller person writing these, YOU CAN TELL.

that soft hair shit... girl, we all know you talking bout them 1c and 2b creases, don't play 🦟. and bringing this up to them causes MAD LEVELS of damage control.

"FANFICTION IS MEANT TO BE FUN!!!!" "IF THAT'S WHAT THOSE SKINNY WHITE GIRLS WANNA WRITE, THEN LET THEM." "YOU WRITE FOR YOURSELF, NO ONE ELSE!!" COME ONNN. you under the 'x reader' tag not the 'x michaelmyers'cumwhore' tag, it's annoying, getting into a story then outta nowhere you're jump scared with a "staring at your flushed face." and that awful, AWFUL "pink pussy" line

and you can write for these groups without going into such heavy details like bruhhh. cuz once again the constant need to mention that you're "curvy" just further reinstates that there's an acceptable plus sized, big tits, fat ass, real small waist. personal tangent, but I've noticed when they DO mention shit like stretch marks, they always keep it cute and light.

"You've got little tiger stripes." "Lightning on your skin." maybe it's just me, but while i do have the faint pale ones, my shit's also dark and raised, like c'mon, aint they cute too 😩.

people really forget that fat people exist and wanna exist as fat, and while they can have the traditional hourglass or pear body type, it just makes no sense harping on that like that's the only way to be attractive when you're plus sized.

AND THE SKIN THING - just nasty, just NASTY. "your gorgeous, chocolate, almond, peanut butter, mocha, pistachio, caramel, brown sugar, cinnamon -" WHO? DAWG. you can compliment someone's skin tone and NOT compare it to food, cuz they don't call them white or pale girlies, "sweet vanilla" but i digress.

but then, why are you harping about the shade of my skin?? like it really gets annoying cuz it almost seem fetishy, bipoc are much more than their skin tone, and people seem to forget that just cuz you're not insulting it, doesn't make us any less uncomfortable.

[vickyvicarious]

Leverage Redemption Pros/Cons List

Okay! Now that I've finally finished watching the first half of Leverage: Redemption, I thought I'd kind of sum up my overall impression. Sort of a pro/con list, except a little more just loosely structured rambles on each bullet point rather than a simple list.

This got way out of hand from what I expected so I'm going to put it all under a cut. If you want the actual bulletpoint list, here it is:

PROS

References

Continuity

Nate

Representation

Themes

New Characters

General Vibe

CONS

'Maker and Fixer'

Episode Twins

Sophie's Stagefright

Thiefsome

You might notice the pros list is longer, and that's because I do love the show! I really like most of what it does, and my gripes are fewer in number and mostly smaller in size. But they do exist and I felt like talking about them as well as the stuff I loved.

PROS

References

There is clearly so much love and respect for the original show here. Quite aside from the general situation, there's a lot of references to individual episodes or character traits from the first show. For example, Parker's comments on disliking clowns, liking puppets, disliking horses, stabbing vs. tasing people. The tasing was an ongoing thing in the original, the stabbing happened once (S1) but was referenced later in the original show, the clown thing only had a few mentions scattered across the entire original show. The puppet thing was mentioned once in S5, and the horses thing in particular was only brought up in S1 once. But they didn't miss the chance to put the nod to it in there; in fact with those alone we see a good mix of common/ongoing jokes and smaller details.

We got "dammit Hardison" and "it's a very distinctive..." but also Eliot and Parker arguing about him catering a mob wedding, and Eliot being delighted by lemon as a secret ingredient in a dish in that same episode (another reference to the mob episode). Hardison and Eliot banter about "plan M", an ongoing joke starting from the very first episode of the original show. We see Sophie bring up Hardison's accent in the Ice Job, Parker also makes reference to an early episode when describing "backlash effect" to Breanna, in an episode that also references her brother slightly if you look for it.

Heck, the last episode of these first eight makes a big deal out of nearly reproducing the iconic opening lines of the original show with Fake Nate's "we provide... an advantage." And I mean, all the "let's go steal a ___" with Harry being confused about how to use them.

Some of the lines are more obviously references to the original show, but they strike a decent balance with smaller or unspoken stuff as well, and also mix in some references between the team to events we the audience have never seen. If someone was coming into this show for the first time, they wouldn't get all the easter egg joy but most of the references would stand on their own as dialogue anyway. In general, I think they struck a good balance of restating needed context for new viewers while still having enough standalone good lines and more-fun-if-you-get-it callbacks.

Continuity

Similar to the last point, but slightly different. The characters' development from the original to now is shown so well. I'm not going to go on about this too long, but the writers clearly didn't want to let the original characters stagnate during the offscreen years. There was a lot of real thought put into how they would change or not.

It's really written well. We can see just how cohesive a team Parker, Hardison, and Eliot became. We get a sense of how they've spent their time, and there's plenty of evidence that they remained incredibly close with Sophie and Nate until this past year. The way everyone defers to Parker is different from the original show and clearly demonstrates how she's been well established as the leader for years now - they show this well even as Parker is stepping back to let Sophie take point in these episodes. Eventually that is actually called out by Sophie in the eighth episode, so we might see more mastermind Parker in the back half of the show, maybe. But even with her leading, it's clear how collaborative the team has become, with everyone bouncing ideas off one another and adding their input freely. Sometimes they even get so caught up they leave the newbies completely in the dust. But for the most part we get a good sense of how the Parker/Hardison/Eliot team worked with her having final say on plans but the others discussing everything together. A little bit more collaborative than it was with Nate at the helm.

Meanwhile Sophie has built a home and is deeply attached to it. She and Nate really did retire, at least for the most part, and she was living her happy ending until he died. She's out of practice but still as skilled as ever, and we're shown how much her grief has changed her and how concerned the others are for her.

There's a lot of emphasis on how they all look after one another and the found family is clearer than ever. Sophie even calls Hardison "his father's son" - clearly referring to Nate.

Nate

Speaking of Nate! They handled his loss so, so well. His story was the most complete at the end of the last show, and just from a narrative point, losing him makes the most sense of all the characters. But the way he dies and his impact on the show and the characters continues. It's very respectful to who he was - who he truly was.

Nate was someone they all loved, but he was a deeply flawed individual. Sophie talks about how he burned too hot, but at least he burned - possibly implying to me that his drinking was related to his death. In any case, there's no mystery to it. We don't know how he died but that's not what's most important about his death. This isn't a quest for revenge or anything... it's just a study of grief and trying to heal.

Back to who he really was real quick - the show doesn't eulogize him as better than he was. They're honest about him. From the first episode's toast they raise in his memory, to the final episode where Sophie and Eliot are deeply confused by Fake Nate singing his praises, the team knows who he was. They don't erase his flaws... but at the same time he was so clearly theirs. He was family, he was the man they trusted and loved and followed into incredibly dangerous situations, and whose loss they all still feel deeply.

That said, the show doesn't harp on this point. They reference him, but they don't overwhelm new viewers with a constant barrage of Nate talk. It always serves a purpose, primarily for Sophie's storyline of moving through her grief. Anyway, @robinasnyder said all of this way better than me here, so go read that as well.

Representation

Or should I say, Jewish Hardison, Autistic Parker, Queer Breanna!

Granted, Hardison's religion isn't quite explicitly stated to be Jewish so much as he mentions that his "Nana runs a multi-denominational household", but nonetheless. He gets the shows big thesis statement moment, he gets a beautiful speech about redemption that is the emotional cornerstone of that episode and probably Harry's entire arc throughout the show. And while I'm not Jewish myself, most of what I've seen from Jewish fans is saying that Hardison's words here were excellent representation of their beliefs. (@featherquillpen does a great job in that meta of contextualizing this with his depiction in the original show as well.)

Autistic Parker, however, is shown pretty dang blatantly. She already was very much coded as autistic in the original show, but the reboot has if anything gone further. She sees a child psychologist because she likes using puppets to represent emotions, she stims, she uses cue cards and pre-written scripts for social interactions, there's mention of possible texture sensitivity and her clothes are generally more loose and comfortable. She's gotten better at performing empathy and understanding how people typically work, but it's specifically described as something she learned how to do and she views her brain as being different from ones that work that way (same link). Again, not autistic myself but from what I've seen autistic fans find a lot to relate to in her portrayal. And best of all, this well-rounded and respectful depiction does not show any of these qualities as a lack on her part. There's no more of those kinda ableist comments or "what's wrong with you" jokes that were in the original show. Parker is the way she is, and that allows her to do things differently. She's loved for who she is, and any effort made to fit in is more just to know how so that she can use it to her advantage when she wants to on the job - for her convenience, not others' comfort.

Speaking of loved for who you are.... okay, again, queer Breanna isn't confirmed onscreen yet, and I don't count Word of God as true canon. But I can definitely believe we're building there. Breanna dresses in a very GNC way, and just her dialogue and, I dunno, vibes seem very queer to me. She has a beautiful speech in the Card Game Job about not belonging or being accepted and specifically mentions "the way they love" as one of those things that made her feel like she didn't belong. And that scene is given so much weight and respect. (Not to mention other hints throughout the episode about how much finding her own space meant to her.) Also, the whole theme of feeling rejected and the key for her to begin really flourishing is acceptance for who she is, not any desire for her to be anyone else, is made into another big moment. Yeah, textually that moment is about her feeling like she has to fill Hardison's shoes and worrying about her past, but the themes are there, man.

Themes

I talked a bit about this yesterday, so I'm mostly just going to link to that post, but... this series so far is doing a really good job in my opinion of giving people arcs and having some good themes. Namely the redemption one, from Hardison's speech (which I'm gonna talk a little more about in the next point), and this overall theme of growing up and looking to the future (from above the linked post).

New Characters

Harry and Breanna are fantastic characters. I was kind of worried about Harry being a replacement Nate, but... he really isn't. Sure, he's the older white guy who has an angsty past but it's in a very different way and his personality and relationships with the rest of the crew are correspondingly different. I think the dynamic of a very friendly, cheerful, kind, but still bad guy (as @soundsfaebutokay points out) is a great one to show, and he's got a really cool arc I think of learning to be a better person, and truly understanding Hardison's point about redemption being a process not a goal. His role on the team also has some interesting applications and drawbacks, as @allegorymetaphor talked about. I've kind of grown to think that the show is gradually building up to an eventual Sophie/Harry romance a ways down the line, and I'm actually here for it. Regardless, his relationships with everyone are really interesting.

As for Breanna, first of all and most importantly I love her. Secondly, I think she's got a really interesting story. She's a link to Hardison's past, and provides a really interesting perspective for us as someone younger who has grown up a) looking up to Leverage and b) in a bleaker and more hopeless world. Breanna's not an optimist, and she's not someone who was self-sufficient and unconcerned with the rest of the world at the start, like everyone else. She believes that the world sucks and she wants it to be better, but she doesn't know how to make that happen. She outright says she's desperate and that's why she's working with Leverage. At the same time, Breanna is pretty down on herself and wants to prove herself but gets easily shaken by mistakes or being scolded, which is a stark contrast to Hardison's general self-confidence. There are several times when she starts to have an idea then hesitates to share it, or expects her emotions to be dismissed, or gets really disheartened when she's corrected or rejected, or dwells on her mistakes, or when she is accepted or praised she usually takes a surprised beat and is shy about it (she almost always looks down and away from the person, and her smile is often small or startled). Breanna looks up to the team so much (Parker especially, then probably Eliot) and she wants to prove herself. It's going to be so good to see her grow.

General Vibe

A brief note, but it seems a fitting one to end on. The show keeps it's overall tone and feeling from the original show. The fun, the competency porn, the bad guys and clever plans and happy endings. It's got differences for sure, but the characters are recognizably themselves and the show as a whole is recognizably still Leverage. For the most part they just got the feeling right, and it's really nice.

CONS (no, not that kind)

'Maker and Fixer'

So when I started writing this meta earlier today, I was actually a lot more annoyed by the lack of unique 'maker' skills being shown by Breanna. Basically the only time she tries to use a drone, the very thing she introduced herself as being good at, it breaks instantly. I was concerned about her being relegated into just doing what Hardison did, instead of bringing her own stuff to the table. But the seventh episode eased some of those fears, and the meta I just wrote for someone else asking about Breanna's 'maker' skills as shown this season made me realize there's more nuance than that. I'd still like to have seen more of that from her, but for now the fact that we don't see a lot of 'maker' from her so far seems more like a character decision based in Breanna's insecurities.

Harry definitely gets more 'inside man' usage. His knowledge as a 'fixer' comes in handy several times. Nonetheless, I'm really curious if there are any bigger ways to use it, aside from him just adding in some exposition/insight from time to time. I'm not even entirely sure how much more they can pull from this premise in terms of relevant skills, but I hope there's more and I'd like to see it. Maybe a con built more around him playing a longer role playing his old self, like they tried in the Tower Job? Maybe it's more a matter of him needed distance from that part of his past, being unable to face it without lashing out - in that case it could be a good character growth moment possibly for him to succeed in being Scummy Lawyer again down the line? I dunno.

Episode Twins

This was something small that kind of bothered me a little earlier in the season. It's kind of the negative side to the references, I guess? And I'm not even sure how much it annoys me really, but I just kinda noticed and felt sort of weird about it.

Rollin' on the River has a lot of references/callbacks to the The Wedding Job.

The Tower Job has a lot of references/callbacks to The White Rabbit Job.

The Paranormal Hacktivity Job has a lot of references/callbacks to the Future Job.

I guess I was getting a little concerned that there would be a 'match this episode' situation where almost every new Redemption episode is very reminiscent of an old one. I love the callbacks, but I don't want to see a lack of creativity in this new show, and this worried me for a minute. Especially when it was combined with all three of those episodes dealing with housing issues of some kind. Now, that's a huge concern for a lot of people, and each episode has its own take on a different problem within that huge umbrella, but it still got me worried about a lack of variety in topics/cases.

The rest of the episodes failing to line up so neatly in my head with older episodes helped a lot to ease this one, though. Still, this is my complaining section so I figured I'd express my concerns as they were at the time. Even if I no longer really worry about it much.

Sophie's Stagefright

Yeah, I know this is just a small moment in a single episode, but it annoyed me! Eliot made a bit of a face at Sophie going onstage, but I thought it was just him being annoyed at the general situation. However, they started out with her being awful up there until she realized the poem was relevant to the con - at which point her reading got so much better.

This felt like a complete betrayal of Sophie's beautiful moment at the end of the original show where she got over her trouble with regular acting and played Lady Macbeth beautifully in front of a full theater of audience members. This was part of the con, but only in the sense that it gave her an alibi/place to hide, and I always interpreted it as her genuinely getting over her stagefright problems. It felt like such a beautiful place to end her arc for that show, especially after all her time spent directing.

Now, her difficulty onstage in the Card Game Job was brief and at the very beginning of being up on stage. @rinahale suggested to me that maybe it was a deliberate tactic to draw the guy's attention, and the later skill was simply her shifting focus to make the sonnet easier for Breanna to listen to and interpret, but he seemed more enraptured when she was doing well than otherwise in my opinion and it just doesn't quite sit well with me. My other theory was that maybe she just hasn't been up on stage in a long time, and much like she complaining about being rusty at grifting before the team pushed her into trying, she got nervous for a moment at the very beginning. The problem there is that I think she'd definitely still get involved in theater even when she and Nate were retired. I guess she could've quit after he died, and a year might be long enough to make her doubt herself again, but... still.

I just resent that they even left it ambiguous at all. Sophie's skills should be solid on stage at this point in my opinion.

Thiefsome

...And now we come to my main complaint. This is, by far, the biggest issue I have with the show.

I feel like I should put a disclaimer here that I had my doubts from the beginning about the thiefsome becoming canon onscreen. I thought the famous "the OT3 is safe" tweet could easily just mean that they are all still alive and well, or all still working together, without giving us confirmation of a romantic relationship. Despite this, the general fandom expectations/hopes really got to me, especially with the whole "lock/pick/key" thing. I tried to temper my expectations again when the character descriptions came out and only mentioned Hardison loving Parker, not Eliot, but I still got my hopes up.

The thing is, I was disappointed pretty quickly.

The very first episode told me that in all likelihood we would never see Hardison and Parker and Eliot together in a romantic sense. Oh, there was so much coding. So much hinting. So much in the way of conversations that were about Parker/Hardison's relationship but then Eliot kept getting brought into them. They were portrayed as a unit of three.

But then there was this.

I love all of those scenes of Parker and Hardison being intimate and loving and comfortable with one another and their relationship. I really do. But it didn't escape my notice that there's nothing of the sort with Eliot. If they wanted a canon onscreen thiefsome, it would by far make the most sense to just have it established from the start. But there aren't any scenes where Eliot shares the same kind of physical closeness with either of them like they do each other. Parker and Hardison kiss; he doesn't kiss anyone. They have several clearly romantic conversations when alone; he gets important conversations with both but the sense of it being romantic isn't there.

Establishing Eliot as part of the relationship after Hardison is gone just... doesn't make any sense. It would be more likely to confuse new viewers, to make them wonder if Parker is cheating on Hardison with Eliot, or if they have a Y shaped relationship rather that a triangle. It would be so much clumsier.

Still, up until the Double-Edged-Sword Job I believed the writers might keep it at this level of 'plausible hinting but not quite saying'. There's a lot of great stuff with all of them, and I never expecting making out or whatever anyway; a cheek-kiss was about the height of my hopes to be honest. I mostly just hoped for outright confirmation and, failing that, I was happy enough to have the many hints and implications.

But then Marshal Maria Shipp came along. And I don't really have anything against her as a character - in fact, I think she has interesting story potential and will definitely come back. But the episode framed her fight with Eliot as a sexyfight TM, much like his fight with Mikel back in the day. And then his flirting with her rode the line a little of "he's playing her for the con" and "he's genuinely flirting." The scene where he tells her his real name is particularly iffy, but actually was the one that convinced me he was playing her. Because he seems to be watching her really closely, and to be very concerned about her figuring out who he really is. I am very aware though that I'm doing a lot of work to interpret it the way I want. On surface appearance, Eliot's just flirting with an attractive woman, like he did on the last show. And that's probably the intention, too.

But the real nail in the coffin for me was when Sophie compared herself and Nate to Eliot and Maria. That was a genuine scene, not the continuation of the teasing from before. And Sophie is the one whose insight into people is always, always trustworthy. She is family to the thiefsome. For this to make any sense, either Eliot/Parker/Hardison isn't a thing, or they are and Sophie doesn't know - and I can't imagine why in the hell she wouldn't know.

Any argument to make them still canon leaves me unsatisfied. If she knows and they haven't admitted it to her - why wouldn't they, after all this time? Why would she not have picked up on it even without an outright announcement? Some people suggested they wouldn't admit it because they thought Nate would be weird about it, but that doesn't seem any more in character to me than the other possibilities. In fact, the only option that doesn't go against my understanding of these people and their observational abilities/the close relationship they share.... is that the thiefsome is not a thing.

And furthermore, the implication of this conversation - especially the way it ended, with Eliot stomping off looking embarrassed while Sophie smiled knowingly - is that Eliot will get into another relationship onscreen. Maybe not a full-blown romantic relationship. But the Maria Shipp tension is going to be resolved somehow, and at this point I'm half-expecting a hook-up simply because of Sophie's reaction and how much I trust her judgement of such things. Even if she's letting her grief cloud her usual perceptiveness... it feels iffy.

It just kinda feels like I wasn't even allowed to keep my "interpret these hints/maybe they are" thiefsome that I expected after the first couple episodes convinced me we wouldn't get outright confirmation. (I mean, I will anyway, and I love the hints and allusions regardless.) And while I'm definitely not the kind of fan who is dependent on canon for my ships, and still enjoy all their interactions/will keep right on headcanoning them all in a relationship, it's just.... a bummer.

Feels like a real cop-out. Like the hints of Breanna being queer are enough to meet their quota and they won't try anything 'risky' like a poly relationship. I dunno. It's annoying.

.

That's the end of the list! Again, overall I love the new show a lot and have few complaints.

[shadowed-dancer]

MHA prediction on how Shigaraki’s story might end (and some thoughts on Eri’s quirk)

What we know…

His whole thing as a child was he “never heard what he needed to hear” (presumably that he could be a hero)

There’s an overwhelming theme of holding out a hand to someone you wish to save

AFO is able to… control(?) Shigaraki’s body because of his hate/anger

Deku wants to save Shigaraki next time they meet (sorry if YOU don’t like the villains, this is literally something Deku has said he wanted to do)

Extreme acts of violence did not defeat ShigarAFO and led to Star’s (supposed) defeat (in some form or another)

A big theme Shigaraki likes to bring up is that “violence breeds more violence”

Eri’s quirk seems to have a lot of uses and can be specified to rewinding certain aspects of a person (which I will talk about below)

Based on all this, here’s my prediction: when Deku finally confronts Shigaraki they will have some sort of fight (because this is a shonen series) that will span a few chapters. Deku is very smart and will probably realize that fighting is pointless and, at this point, he is so outmatched that it isn’t a question of who would win in a physical fight. At the end of it, rather than end with a massive attack, it will end with Deku reaching a hand out to Shigaraki and screaming to him that “he too can become a hero” (the same lines All Might said to him way back in chapter 1)

While this won’t instantly end the fight, the Tenko part of his mind will become so overwhelmed with a sense of joy/calmness that AFO will be physically unable to keep his hold over him. This could give Deku enough time to restrain him and get him to a place that can help (possibly to Eri, who could undo the procedure and get AFO (both the quirk and the guy) out of Shigaraki’s mind).

Of course, lots could happen during this fight and plenty could happen afterwards, so I’m not going to harp on that for too long. That’s my main theory, regardless of the smaller details. Anyways, a quick analysis of Eri…

Eri Quirk Explanation:

Eri’s quirk is weird in that we never get a full breakdown of how it works. We know that she can rewind people, and in its most basic, untrained form, she will simply wipe someone out of existence (presumably because she is rewinding their age). However, from context clues, I think that she is able to specifically target certain aspects of a person that she wants to rewind

Overhaul’s line of “use it right and you could turn someone into a monkey” seems really weird until you consider the way the bullets work. The bullets “rewind the person to a point where the species didn’t have quirks” meaning Eri could (in theory) target someone’s genes rather than their basic body.

While we haven’t seen a ton of Mirio since his return, it didn’t seem like he lost any of his memories (he seems to remember Sir Nighteye’s final words), meaning she may have targeted his quirk genes specifically OR rewound him in such a way that he didn’t not suffer memory loss. This means that she could technically rewind Shigaraki in a way that undoes the AFO procedure without erasing his memories/characterization.

Just some thoughts, maybe it’s just wishful thinking. It’s way too early and I’m kind of sleepy.

[maddiewritesstucky]

Can I sluttily inquire what Jockverse’s favorite sexual acts to perform on and receive from one another are? 😌✨💖

Hooo boy. Okay. I fucking love this ask, and you knew I would, just like I’m sure you knew exactly how carried away with it I’d get.

I give you...

Settle in, this is detailed.

BUCKY BARNES

21yrs | English major | Wide receiver

LIKES TO RECEIVE...

Bucky is a slut for Steve’s mouth. In literally any capacity he can get it

From the moment they first drunkenly made out at a frat party, Bucky was hooked

The lips are fat, okay? They’re big and juicy and soft and so goddamn red, and Bucky didn’t think anything could feel better than having them wrapped around his dick...until Steve put them on his asshole

Bucky. LIVES. for the Steve Rogers Rim Job

This is his absolute favorite thing in the entire world. He would choose this over any sexual act ever, any day of the week

Steve eats it like he means it, has zero reservations about getting his face in it deep and putting in work. It’s borderline savage.

He gets those big hands on Bucky’s cheeks, is hella gropey with it while he Dines Out, squeezing Bucky’s hips and thighs and waist 

He’s noisy with it too, and not because he’s trying to rile Bucky up - he’s just that into it 

It’s all wet sounds and soft groans and muffled cussing, and it’s all entirely sincere. Sometimes he gets so carried away Bucky thinks Steve might come just from having his tongue in Bucky’s ass 

Also...

F A  C E    S I T T I N G

Riding the Steve Rogers Jawline Express all the way to Jizzville, USA

In summary - Bucky likes getting his cake ate

LIKES TO GIVE...

H e a d

Straight up. Bucky loves to suck cock

Specifically, he loves to suck Steve’s cock

Steve Rogers has the single most flawless dick Bucky has ever seen. He wants to take a photo of it and save it as the background on his phone, but apparently ‘tHat’s tOo fAR bUcK’ 🙄😒

It  was the closest thing to a religious experience Bucky ever had, the first  time he dropped to his knees in front of Steve in the locker room showers, and Steve said ‘do it’

He loves every single thing about it. He loves the way his mouth literally hurts trying to stretch around Steve, loves flicking his tongue up under the head and over the slit. He loves the battle of stuffing Steve down the back of his throat and trying to swallow, feeling the spit drip down his chin and the occasional tear slipping down his cheek from how damn much it is

It’s something Bucky knows he’s good at, has always been pretty confident in his abilities, been told many times that his mouth is made for it. But Jesus, the way Steve responds?

Steve crumbles for it. He makes these desperate little noises, looks down  at Bucky like he can’t fucking believe it’s happening. He gets his hands all tangled up in Bucky’s hair and his thighs shake and he moans like a shameless little whore for it, every fucking time

He always warns Bucky when he’s close, but it’s not because he thinks Bucky doesn’t want it in his mouth…

He just happens to know that Bucky wants it even more in the face

...Okay 🥵 Let’s hydrate, and move onto Steve, shall we? 

STEVE ROGERS

20yrs | PoliSci major | Quarterback

LIKES TO RECEIVE...

Not to be crass, but like...Steve is an Entire Weak Bitch for getting Bucky’s dick in him

No one has ever fucked Steve the way Bucky does. And Steve has been around.

Bucky is so unfathomably confident in his own body. Steve could see it well before they ever fell into this Thing they’ve got going

He sees it out on the field, he sees it in the way Bucky carries himself around campus...fuck, he sees it in the way Bucky dances, when he’s had enough to drink?

Bucky has total control over his movements, has a grace about him that also reads as entirely sexual, and Steve’s pretty sure Bucky knows it, too

Steve’s not much for making assumptions on a person’s sexual prowess based on this kinda thing, but goddamn did he feel vindicated on this one when he finally got Bucky inside him

Bucky caught on pretty quick to exactly what does it for Steve, and he’s     merciless in using it. He’s not here to play games, he’s here to get them both off as spectacularly as possible, and it shows

The fact that their connection is predominantly physical only seems to add to it, because he’s not trying to prove an emotional point. He wants to be  the best Steve’s ever had because he’s a cocky sonofabitch, and that’s that

I’m not gonna harp on foreplay here because I’m trying to focus on the     question at hand, but Bucky plays Steve’s body like an instrument, both before and after he gets inside him. By the time his cock’s rubbing up against Steve’s insides, Steve is usually drooling for it (often literally)

And fuck, the way Bucky’s mean. Steve didn’t even know he was into it until Bucky started mocking the sounds he was making one day when Bucky was balls deep inside him, and he almost came on the spot. 

Bucky’s not afraid to throw his weight around either, even goes so far as to treat  Steve like he’s smaller than Bucky sometimes (which he is definitely not) and god but that does it for Steve

Bucky manhandles him into positions that put Steve at his mercy and fucks orgasms out of him like it’s his job, and Steve finds himself on multiple occasions laying awake at 2am, googling the symptoms of sex addiction because he literally cannot stop thinking about it

LIKES TO GIVE...

I feel like Steve is just genuinely obsessed with every single opportunity he gets to touch Bucky’s body

Steve is a naturally tactile person, so physical intimacy is very deeply     rewarding and satisfying to him, in any context. It’s why he loves sex so much, and it’s certainly a big part of why he likes sex with Bucky so much, because there’s this understanding between them that this is the exact reason they spend time together - to touch and be touched

There’s no pretense between them, they know it’s about exploring and meeting their sexual needs, and it makes it weirdly pure, in a way

There’s a freedom in it that Steve’s not sure he would feel if he were having to think of all the other things that factor into building a deeper relationship, of trying to fit his life together with someone else’s

He can just be his body, for a while, and it feels so damn good

Steve is also a naturally giving person, and he gets off on his partner’s pleasure, so literally anything that feels good for Bucky, is good for him too

He loves rimming Bucky, just as much as Bucky loves to be rimmed. He loves sucking his cock and mouthing at his balls, loves when Bucky wants to be fucked and he gets inside him 

But if I had to pick a specific weakness?Fingering Bucky

Now, I think it’s not so much the act itself here, as it is the context in which it can happen. Yes, it feels incredible burying his fingers in that vice-tight heat, and watching Bucky squirm for it, but the where and when  is what gives it an edge for Steve

Fingering Bucky in a bathroom stall after practice, while their teammates are getting changed mere feet away from them? ✔️

Crowding Bucky into a dark corner at a frat party, and slipping his hand down the back of Bucky’s jeans? ✔️

That night he drove Bucky home after a team meeting ran late, and they pulled over on a side road so he could fingerfuck Bucky in the backseat? ✔️

It’s the versatility of it, ya know? An act he can whip out anywhere, if they’re discrete enough

Also, he likes that he can be looking at Bucky’s face while he does it. Likes to make intense eye contact and talk at him and bite at Bucky’s trembling lips. Because as much as Bucky loves to be in control, those moments when Steve can physically see and feel him give it over? Unparalleled.

...This ask is a blessing to the JockVerse, K. You have done the Fantasy Fuckball League a great service today.

[poptod]

Pull the Stars Out of the Sky (And Gift Them to Me), pt. 11, (Ahkmenrah x Reader)

Description: Thunder for the God.

Notes: this is it! the final chapter. I wanna say thank you to a few people cause I rarely ever respond to comments directly, mostly cause i never know what to say, but @diasimar, @edteche2, @moon-stars-soul, @crewman-penelope, @hah0106, thank you so fuckin much for your comments!! it really kept me going while i was working and really motivated me. im rly worried this last chapter is gonna disappoint but i gotta post it at some point! WC: 1.7k

+

A feast was held. Of course it was––the only way Egyptians knew how to celebrate was with plenty of food, plenty of booze, and lots of sex. Already people wrote songs of your exploits, performing them as they waited for you and Ahk to appear in the courtroom now filled to the brim with the people of Memphis. Clashing drums and lutes accompanied by harps and singing voices all came from behind the walls, but the room Ahk prepared himself in remained mostly quiet, occupied only by you and himself. Piye was busy tending to the citizens with the help of Gyasi, who offered his services in helping the now-blind vizier.

"I never thought to see this day," Ahk said softly, staring at his reflection in the mirror. His outfit, which had taken about an hour to get on (plus makeup), left him the striking image of the Pharaoh you had first met––drowned in gold, in gemstones, reeking of rich, spoiled tastes.

"What, that you'd be attending a party in your own honor?" You asked with a chuckle.

"No," he said, turning to you, "I didn't think I'd see you willingly stand beside me."

"I didn't either. I hated you."

"Rightfully so," he mumbled. "I'm sorry, again, for how I treated you."

"You could've been a lot nicer while kidnapping me."

"I know. But you're happy now... right?"

"Yes," you said, grinning. "What would you do if I wasn't?"

"Abandon everything," he said with a careless shrug. "Run away with you. Leave it all behind."

"Even with a feast outside those doors?" You asked as you stepped closer. He took advantage of that, pulling you in by your waist and smiling when your chests met.

"Well, I might have to go to that first. But afterwards, I would go anywhere for you. Do anything. You are mine, now," he said, growing soft as his lips brushed against your temple, "and I have fought long to prove it."

"I think you belong to me more than I belong to you," you chuckled.

"Perhaps you're right," he said, swaying with you to the muted tunes of harpstrings. "I don't mind either way as long as you love me."

"I do," you mumbled.

"Say it," he said, parting from you to look you in the eye. His hand came up to your face, stroking the soft skin of your cheek as he gazed into you, searching for words he had longed for all this time. "Please."

"I love you, Ahk."

There he went again––tears down his face, dripping into and caught by the smile that spread across his rosy lips. He leant in to kiss you, still wet with those salty tears, but you happily returned his affections.

Until his kiss grew deep, devolving into him biting at your neck again, pressing himself against your body till your back inevitably hit a wall. He sandwiched you there, running his hands from your chest to your hips and back up to your face.

"Now then, your people wait for you. Don't disappoint them by not showing up," you warned him, but there was little resolve in your tone, already torn up by the blush pervading your cheeks.

"I'll be quick," he muttered against your skin, followed by a laugh when you groaned.

"But you can also do this later, when you can take your time," you said, but couldn't stop yourself from smiling even as you tried to push him away.

"I can do it twice."

"Ahk!"

"Call my name again, love," he said, drawing away from you with a shit-eating grin.

"We can do this after," you said as you fully pushed him away. "Even during, depending how the evening goes."

"I like how you think," Ahk said, offering his hand to you with a cocked chin raised high. "Ready to go?"

You nodded.

The doors before you opened, and a short walk up to the throne led you to overlook the crowd, scanning over every citizen's face whose eyes fell to you. Without a word spoken from you or Ahk, silence fell in the hall crowded past the brim. Torches flanked either side of the long room, illuminating the moving heads, as well as marking the searing smoke of meat and the plates of food presented out on the many tables.

It was not unlike the feast for Amun, but this time the only human images standing on a podium were you and Ahk. No more golden statues. Now what remained was the Pharaoh in all his glory, glowing as though blessed with an ethereal light, sheer silk with sewn gold cascading from him like a comet trailing the sky.

Once most everyone's attention was on the Pharaoh, he spoke.

"I know that much of my rule has not been through peaceful times," he said, meeting the eyes of every listener. "I thank you all for your patience with me. We have seen the rising of my brother's empire, and it has ended in ruin––we have seen the death of three Pharaohs, myself included."

A quiet laugh murmured through the crowd. Out of the corner of your eye, you spied Piye sticking to the wall by themself. You jogged over, whispering a beckoning, before taking their hand and personally leading them up the pedestal.

"I am sure you have all heard of what I've done. The events that have come to pass. Whether or not you have the whole of the story, or any true part of the story, is what worries me. I want all of you to know why I did what I did––why, exactly, I am not a heretic. You deserve that much."

Ahk spoke as though conversing with an old friend, something you were sure made his approval rating amongst the populace skyrocket. He continued that tone of voice, that familiarity, as he recounted the long events of the past few months, from your appearance in the castle (which he labelled as a gift from the Gods), to Ma'at herself locking Amun into the sky. They all listened closely, believing every word of their loving Pharaoh.

"I did what I did to protect myself, my people, and my friends. They were necessary evils. But now I have Ma'at's blessing, and I take my rightful place as your Pharaoh," he said with a growing confidence that boomed in his projected voice. "I am Ra's Son once more."

An eruption of cheers and shouts burst your ears, and you grinned from ear to ear, glancing to your side to watch for Ahk's reaction. He was smiling as well, prideful as he deserved. Piye held their own small smile as well.

Instruments came back in full swing, humming and thrumming with the vibrations of the tall chamber. Though at first they were the melodies of many songs, playing one after the other without pause, they converged into a tune that filled your head, seeping into the thoughts of every listener. You paid little attention to the words they sang in perfect harmonies till a word caught your attention––your name. Looking out across the citizens of Memphis, of Kemet, you realized they were singing about you.

The fire that reigns on the burning King will never yield to the sword! The spells that remain pour down in the rain as the Nile boils in the sea

What wonders they bring! This thunder for the God, Amoke and the hundreds that sing the name of the God, Amoke

Pray to the earth for a saving grace As the magi searches the planes The dead, they seek The living antique a God of his own who can't rest on his throne Call to the name of the holy

We sing to thee! Sunset for the God, Amoke Sing praise for thee! Thunder for the God, Amoke Thunder for the God, Amoke! The beauty of the God, Amoke!

Your mouth hung open as you watched them sing, ignorant to Ahk, who was now smiling at your shocked expression.

"... and so will you be remembered," Ahk murmured, his arms wrapping around you as he came up behind you. "A God for all of time.”

“My Amoke."

~+~

You had access to great temples––to places of worship hundreds of years old, intricately detailed spells shown on every wall, bases of golden statues littered with flowers and offerings. Instead you stuck to your tiny altar, hidden away in one of the smaller storage rooms not in use. Ahk didn't quite understand it, but he allowed it happily, and left you alone to your devices.

The only item standing on your altar was a tiny statuette in the form of Mahjur. If Ahk found out that was who you were praying to, you weren't sure what he'd do, so for the time being you kept it secret. Besides that, it was nothing more than a table you set incense and tiny plates of food and water on.

It was the only light in the room––the tiny rushlight, the lit incense drawing smoke into the air. Layers of it fell above your head, knelt low in respect of the God who had helped you.

Physical feeling fell away, and in that moment, your forehead pressed to the table, you realized the many prayers you'd sent into the stranger of an underworld were being answered at last.

A single, high note rang in your head as the image of open, glowing eyes pierced your thoughts.

"Is Ahk ssssafe?" They asked in a whisper in your head that you could barely hear.

Yes, you thought, keeping your eyes closed to maintain the connection.

"... you haavvvvve.. other questionss... correct?"

Amun is an all-powerful God, yes?

"Yes."

How did we escape him? How did we hide away? Why did he not pluck me from the sky? How did we survive the ire of a creator God?

"Ahk hasss cccertain experiencess... with Gods. He issss ssssmart. He isss untraceable by annnny Gods' mmagggic."

How? You pleaded.

"He hass died annnnd come back. He issss... undead. No longer human. Nnnnot entirrrrely."

You swallowed thick, forcing yourself not to open your eyes from surprise.

And Piye?

"A mmmmagi. Invvvvissssible. Too... absorbed innn the world.. to see," they hummed, glowing eyes still probing your thoughts.

... and me?

There was silence for a moment, and the eyes blinked, but remained within your head.

"You... are not.. hhhhuman," they whispered.

Your eyes flew open.

What?

––––––

If you want to hear the song I wrote about in this story, I actually recorded it and you can find it here.

[surfalldaybaby]

SPOILER ALERT!!!!

DONT READ UNTIL YOU HAVE FINISHED!!!!!

My full review of ACOSF 3 seconds after reading it.

Probably unpopular opinion. Idk.

First off wow. I did not expect that shit at alllll! I liked it but I would rate it a solid 6.5/10. To me it wasn’t that good. It was a book with a good plot for about 3/4 of the way and then it gets weird with smut scattered throughout it with no real purpose.

First I want to say that I still feel that Nesta and Cassians relationship is so strange and forced. I wish I liked it more. I don’t. The initial romance scenes were so quick and weirdly put together they literally did nothing for the plot. It was just a lot of sex scenes that I was like eh ok. They’re steamy and raunchy but with little to no purpose. Like Maas just decided to make this her sexiest book bvs of how many views it would get without calculating the plot into it. They just end up making out and having sex a lot but I didn’t see the buildup or anything it just happened out of nowhere. And then it stopped and then it happened again. I wish their mating bond snapping into place had been more of a plot line I was left a little confused when I read it. Nesta apologizing and accepting Cassians apology was too quick he said he was shackled to her. Hellllll no. She became a pushover.

I did like how now Nesta has a relationship with all the IC. However her instant forgiveness and her apologies to the IC were very rushed and ingenuine. She was treated very poorly by rhys and amren and shes the one who throws herself at rhys and apogkizes? She’s the one who apogizes to amren? No. It doesn’t seem at all like the Nesta that I would have expected. I wanted at least a little rebuttal or fire. Like I understand all of their hesitantion and why they were so mean but I wanted a little apology or explanation.

I hate to say it but Maas really did seem to cut the fire out of Nesta. I didn’t want her to be a bitch but I wanted to go retain of her sassy energy and she just seemed like a wash rag at the end. Nesta was done wrong by Cassian rhys and amren a lot and she was the one who ended up fixing or apologizing in those relationships and it doesn’t fit right that they don’t at least mention their mistakes to her as well. And this is coming from someone’s who didn’t like Nesta, or didn’t rlly care for her, so I can’t imagine what people who liked her thought after reading this book.

I didn’t like how she never apologized to feyre or Elain. She did in actions but I wanted a verbal apology. I loved the total sacrifice and I thought it fit her arc. I thought it was very full circle. Obviously Nesta and feyre love eachother and I’m elated about that. I like that Nesta had to give up her power and was able to keep a bit of it. The power would have killed her I think if she was able to keep it.

Lowkey I was expected each sister to have to be called to a made item and I thought it would have been a cool plot idea to introduce Elain into the story.

I love how Elain was so bold in this book but there were moments where even I was like calm down girl.

I loved her slow development with Mor. mor was aggressive at the beginning but really came into herself and i liked their friendship all the way through. I liked how mor is portrayed a lot. Hopefully mor snd emerie are a thing. But, how does nestas jealousy just go away? How does mor just accept that Nesta and Cassian are having sex? How does every charter just act fine with it when they all were so cautious around her? Seems kind of gross to constantly smell the sex. Ew.

Az and Nesta are so great as a pair. Hopefully we see more of Gwyn with him.

Love emerie and Gwyn but how the three of them were able to complete the blood rite after only a few months of training is so unrealistic and just not what I expected. It seemed so played out and sacrificial martyr like I was bored of it. Very predictable. Especially how Cassian goes against the crown to save his mate like okay next.

I wish Maas had just kept her as a leader for assault survivors I think that would have been amazing. But Nesta and her friends after literally 3-4 months of training being illyrians is unrealistic. Nesta seemed to transform into Feyre at the end and while I love Feyre Nesta is not Feyre and I was not a fan of seeing another recreation of that sacrificial lamb trope.

The whole pregnancy plot point was weird and I didn’t like it. I get it at the end but literally I could have done without the whole thing. Rhys keeping it from Feyre that she was gonna die- horrible. Them making a pact they would die together is absurd and so weird. They would never do that like ... someone has to fucking rule the night court.

I loveeeeeed the dance scenes and the importance of music.

Eris is fine. I don’t like him I don’t hate him. He’s whatever. Same with Lucien. Literally this whole thing he was with Mor about her knowing the truth like literally don’t care. It’s mor making me curious it’s just a stale detail now that’s been repeated a lot with no follow up information.

I would have liked more touching up on mor azriel and cassians relationship. It’s like Maas is fostering confusion with Elain and morrigan over azriel and it’s not mysterious it’s just annoying.

There was some amazing detail that went into this novel and I applaud the well thought out and carefully constructed attention to history and mythology. I thought a lot of the smaller scenes and chapters were brilliant- the harp scenes, the initial training, the library and house scenes, the female relationships, music scenes, etc....- but as a whole plot it felt like 6 stories being forced together and tied with a ribbon but the stuffing was coming out so your left confused and a little like wtf okay.

Overall I liked the story thought it was very good “redemtption” arc for nesta but I wish it had more to do with her psychological journey and not so much out on her psychical one- Illyrian blood rite, hiking, weird sex- with odd plot points and rushed relationships and forgiveness.

Also I liked the azriel extea chapter it was fine. Kinda made az look like a little morally grey but we now know he is interested in Elain, that Elain wants him back, and that he is lonely. Hopefully he doesn’t hurt Gwyn.

Loveeeeed the feysand chapter. Rhys is dead on about his characterization of Elain.

The next book will def be about as, Lucien, Elain, mor, and probably Gwyn. LOVE THAT.

[bestworstcase]

farran rereads lost lagoon: chapters 9-10

it’s been a hot minute! previous installments here, in case you’d like to refresh your memory first.

- this chapter opens with rapunzel observing that cassandra is angry and concluding, correctly, that it’s because rapunzel followed her. i think this is a very interesting choice for howland to make. tts rapunzel is not like this. she often, particularly in s1, fails to notice when cass is frustrated with her and is startled when that frustration erupts into anger after repeated pushing. she is also generally quite bad at linking cause and effect together like this; she might recognize that cass is angry, but miss why. she stomps all over cassandra’s boundaries in large part because she doesn’t know any better. she can’t see how her behavior is hurting cass. but lagoon rapunzel does know better. she’s far more emotionally intuitive, and she can see right away that sticking her nose into cassandra’s business upsets cass, yet she will continue to do it. part of me wonders if this change is to facilitate the character growth lagoon rapunzel gets (which tts rapunzel does not)? it’s much easier, after all, to fix poor behavior if you’re able to see how it’s hurting people you care about.

- rapunzel here also observes that cassandra’s “eyes were wide and vulnerable,” indicating how afraid cass was of the water situation. cass denies that she was afraid when rapunzel asks her. this has a lot of similarities to how cass acts in fanon, cassunzel fanon in particular—outright denying her feelings, even when rapunzel accurately identifies them. and i know i’m beating a dead horse here, but tts cass is not like this. tts cass readily expresses her feelings to rapunzel—except when she thinks rapunzel isn’t willing to listen to her. in COTB, her reticence with rapunzel comes on the heels of rapunzel doing something cassandra pleaded with her not to do. in RATGT, rapunzel outright tells her to ‘be okay with’ the way rapunzel treats her, and in RDO cass bottles up her feelings and refuses to talk until rapunzel forces her to. actively hiding her feelings is a behavior she develops after becoming friends with rapunzel, because rapunzel continually dismisses or ignores her feelings. this is probably not the last time i am going to harp on this over the course of this little reread. it’s a huge pet peeve of mine.

- re: romance novel: “I hadn’t seen Eugene since the night before. After Cassandra left my room, I sent Pascal to follow her. I instructed him to come get me if she went anywhere.” ksdkjf

- cassandra, of course, wants the lagoon to be their—or rather, ideally, her—little secret, because she’s decided this is the thing that will prove she’s ready for the guard. her approach to getting rapunzel on board with this secret-keeping is to imply that frederic and arianna might compromise corona’s national security if they are informed. i think this is very funny.

- (again, contrast this to what happens in tts: when cass begs rapunzel to keep their midnight excursion a secret, she explains her reasoning in detail, because tts cass knows how to communicate like an adult.)

- “It’s so…blue” jksdfl cass has a way with words huh

- i do not think ms howland knows what a lagoon is, because what she is describing is absolutely not a lagoon. it appears to be a cenote. i suppose ‘rapunzel and the lost cenote’ doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, though, does it?

- cassandra reveals that she doesn’t know how to swim. i will get into this in a moment.

- corona has 315 miles of coastline, according to ms. howland. for purposes of comparison, rhode island has around 380 miles of coastline. now! in addition to those three hundred odd miles of coastline, corona has 212 lakes, 121 ponds, 67 rivers, of which 17 are significant in size and let out into the sea. with some cursory research i haven’t been able to get a precise count of the number of freshwater bodies of water there are in rhode island, but wikipedia tells me that about 90% of the inland freshwater in the state is contained in 237 lakes and ponds, which is a bit less than corona’s 333 total lakes and ponds, so… assuming the other 10% of rhode island’s inland freshwater is contained in a few dozen smaller lakes and ponds, those numbers are quite close as well. and according to wikipedia, rhode island has 59 rivers, of which 17 are ‘considered major rivers either geographically or historically.’ 

there is not really a point to this digression except that i think it is interesting. rhode island is 1,214 square miles in size and based on the general closeness of these numbers i have decided to tentatively conclude that corona is meant to be roughly similar in size. let’s call it a nice even 1,250 square miles for the sake of ease and to account for the greater number of lakes and ponds. 

this is quite a bit larger than the kingdom appears to be in tts—unless the kingdom is very lopsided and island city is situated within a couple dozen miles of the nearest border—but it’s also quite small for a country. (europe has a few very small microstates and city-states, but excluding those, the smallest country in europe is almost twice the size of rhode island). 

for my own writing, i decided that corona was quite a bit larger than this—bitter snow corona is in the neighborhood of 13,125 square miles, of which about ⅓ was formerly saporia and another ¼ is the disputed territory/province of malinar, meaning saporia is/was about 4,375 square miles, malinar is about 3,288 square miles, and pre-conquest corona would have been about 5,462 square miles—but, if you’re writing fanfiction and looking for an approximate ‘canon’ size for corona, 1,250 sq miles is not a bad guess. just remember that that big old wall rapunzel’s so eager to get to the other side of has to be within about twenty miles of the island capital in order for horses to be able to comfortably get there and back in less than a day! so either the island has to be very near the nearest border, or the wall isn’t actually corona’s border but rather a defensive wall around the capital or something like that. 

- now back to cassandra, and the matter of her inability to swim. i think, given that they live on an island and the generally high standards to which he holds his daughter, it beggars belief a little that the captain did not force the issue of her learning how. it’s a safety matter. if you live near water you need to be able to swim.  but, fine, she has a phobia, whatever. it’s for the romance novel™

- but i hate this. i hate it. ms. howland expects me to believe that:

1 - cassandra hasn’t been in swimming lessons since she could walk

2 - cassandra’s phobia was so severe that the captain never forced the issue of her learning to swim, while living on an island

3 - rapunzel magically knows how to swim, because the three or four minutes she spent almost drowning in a slowly flooding cave and then being spat out into a river and dragged to the bank by eugene was sufficient for her to become a great swimmer.

4 - all it takes for cassandra to overcome her debilitating phobia of water is for rapunzel to spend maybe ten or fifteen minutes gently coaxing her into the water and teaching her how to tread water

5 - swimming in the lagoon with rapunzel then becomes one of cassandra’s most treasured pastimes, and

6 - merely a few months after this, cassandra is a strong enough swimmer to (in fitzherbert pi) DIVE INTO THE FUCKING OCEAN FULLY DRESSED WITH HER BOOTS ON in order to rescue shorty before he drowns.

and NO!!!!!! NO! THAT’S NOT HOW SWIMMING WORKS THAT’S NOT HOW ANYTHING WORKS!!

now i get it. i get it. this is a romance novel and the symbolism of rapunzel liberating cassandra from her fears and teaching her a valuable new skill that they bond over and becomes their shared special secret thing to do together is obviously powerful and a staple trope for the genre. but it makes so little sense for this to be a skill that rapunzel has but cassandra does not. it feels almost infantalizing of cassandra and aggrandizing of rapunzel. like… rapunzel is an exceptionally competent young woman, yes. but no she can’t fucking swim you can’t learn to swim from that one time you almost drowned in a FUCKING cave. fuck!

- i’m still on the first page of chapter 10 and i am steamed.

- “It’s amazing how fast you can pick something up when your life depends on it.” FUCK you, ms. howland. you don’t learn how to turn sommersalts or swim laps by almost drowning. at most you might teach yourself how to doggy paddle.

- this scene would have worked just as goddamn well on the romance novel front if cass were the one who knew how to swim and rapunzel desperately wanted to learn and made big sad puppy eyes until cass caved and agreed to teach her. like! ffs you could even squeeze in the phobia stuff - rapunzel freaks out when she gets to a certain depth because it throws her back to being in that cave and cass, who has plenty of experience dealing with her own panic attacks, is able to gently calm her down.

- but that would require ms. howland to allow rapunzel to be bad at something. grumble.

- i don’t think rapunzel is qualified to give cass exposure therapy.

- this is nitpicky but i’m annoyed. this is not how you clean plate armor. “First you hang your suit of armor up to make sure every piece is properly aligned and that there’s no rust” WHAT? it’s not… like, it’s not like a onesie. plate armor is a bunch of individual components tied or buckled to an arming doublet or, in some cases, to other pieces of plate. you can’t ‘hang up’ a suit of plate armor the way you’d hang up, like, a jacket. you can put the pieces together on an arming doublet that you’ve hung up on a dummy, but… why would you do that in order to clean it.

“Then you attach the foot coverings” gjksdfjk just… the mental image of cassandra painstakingly putting a suit of armor together on a fucking mannequin and buckling the sabatons to the greaves or what the fuck ever she means by this and trying to clean the set that way is destroying me

“Then you need to polish the chest plate, with a soft cloth, work in circles, going outward” okay yes but you’d do the cuirrass separate from the rest of the set and you’d do the inside too and cass ought to know the proper name for all of these pieces please it’s not hard

“The arms can be tricky because the joints” WHAT. for arms you’ve got, like, a pauldron (or spaulder and rondel), rerebrace, couter, vambrace, gauntlets. these are separate pieces. you clean them one at a time, inside and outside. does howland think you just… don’t need to clean the inside of a set of plate armor? does she think the inside isn’t just as if not more susceptible to rust as the outside? does… does she realize that you can take plate armor apart i am CONFOUNDED

WHAT is a “mouth cover” in this context. is she refering to a visor. hinged pieces like on an armet? does she mean a bevor? the bevor isn’t even part of the helmet aljksdflkjsfdj

cassandra refers to cuisses and greaves as “thigh plates” and “shin [plates]” respectively i’m die. she also completely skips the poleyns. i do not think this cass has ever cleaned a suit of plate armor in her entire life.

i am losing. my. mind.

- in the immediate aftermath of cass learning how to tread water i think rapunzel asks her more personal questions than she does in the entirety of tts itself. like, it’s almost jarring how much more interested both rapunzel and eugene are in cassandra as a person in this book than they seem to be in tts. compare this conversation to the way cass opens up to rapunzel in beginnings - here, it’s prompted by rapunzel asking questions, expressing interest in cassandra’s feelings and encouraging her by telling her she’s brave. in beginnings, rapunzel builds a pillow fort in cass’s room because she wants to force a bonding moment and cass, after initially trying to kick her out, relents and volunteers some personal information as a kind of apology for being hostile. the vibes are completely different, so different that it feels like i’m not even reading about the same characters.

- like can you imagine tts rapunzel saying something like “it’s your story, that makes it important” to cass? lmao

- cass reveals that she’s afraid of water because she got dragged out by the undertow at the beach when she was small, and her dad saved her and then got so mad at her that she remembers being as afraid of him as she was of the water. this is not unrealistic per se, but… if cassandra was as scared of her dad that day as she was of drowning, then… shouldn’t that have more of an impact on her relationship with him? like…he screams at her after she almost drowns and she walks away with this debilitating phobia of the water but zero lingering fear of him?

- this chapter has given me a headache

- re: romance novel: “Rapunzel gripped my hand. This time I didn’t flinch.” snrk.