#i think maybe that spelling was more common in the author's time but i'm not used to it :/

[bookpdf]

also speaking of books. one of the ones i'm reading rn is a 1000+ page behemoth and the author spells "nonetheless" as "none the less", and i keep wondering how much shorter the page count would be if it was corrected

[mwahsturns]

First choice // Matt Sturniolo Pt 1

matt sturniolo x fem!reader

Contains: cussing, fluff, flirting, talk of death, Semi-proof read! I think that’s it let me know if there’s more! Also if there’s any grammar or spelling mistakes please ignore them 😭🙏🏻

Synopsis: Y/n works at a record store and one day while she’s working two very cute guys walk into the store but one especially catches her eye and later so happens they end up having more then just there music taste in common ;)

Word Count:1,890

Author’s notes: Hii bbys !! <3, So I’ve never written a fic before or posted on tumblr, So I’m sorry if this is bad I’m new at this please go easy on me😭🙏🏻. If you guys have any suggestions, tips or advice please message me I hope you enjoy my new series!!, this took me a very long time to come up with so I hope you love it💗.

* *:･ﾟ✧💒*:･ﾟ✧

The sound of music always brought me peace, I work at a record shop because I love being around vinyls and just anything music related really. I also really enjoy reading It's always brought me a sense of comfort as well as writing and poetry. Honestly it makes me really happy, and ever since I was a kid I've always written songs and maybe sang a little bit but that’s a secret. I don't know what it is but I always feel like it helps me forget about everything that’s wrong in my life, my parents died when I was 16 so it’s always been just me and my two little brothers. I love them more than anything and I'd do anything for them. Today was just a regular day at work I was putting vinyls on the racks that they go on when two guys walk into the store, I look over and give them a soft smile.

‘hii welcome let me know if you need any help finding any artist or vinyl specifically’ they smile at me and nod as one of the boys catches my eye, I’m a very shy person so I decided not to say anything unless I needed to. After a couple minutes I felt a tap on my shoulder, I turned around and saw the guy who caught my eye standing in front of me. ‘hi um i wanted to ask you something’ he seemed very nervous but also very confident weird mix. ‘yes of course how can i help you’ I smiled softly at him hoping to make him more comfortable, ‘do you happen to have “circles” by Mac miller’ he says as he does a side smile. I smile at him as I think about how I also enjoy mac miller.

‘yea over here!’ i walk over and pull it off the rack, ‘this is one of my favorites’ i say chuckling, ‘i really like this one’ he says turning the vinyl around. ‘what other artists do you like?’ ‘i really like d4vd and um frank ocean oh! Omg Dominic Fike omg Tyler the creator?! is so amazing and oh my god i'm rambling im so sorry’ I blushed getting a little nervous, ‘nah you're good’ he smiles as I look up at him and smile softly. We stand there until the guy he came with comes up to him ‘woah you guys twins or am I dumb?’ ‘nahh triplets’ he says laughing ’oh cool” i say and start checking them out. ‘You're the first to not ask us a million and one questions about being triplets’ he chuckles, ‘yea nah y'all will tell me over time’ I smirk i say with my boston accent coming through a little.

‘oh so you plan on getting to know us’ he smirks a little ‘oh totally y’all look cool’ I laugh, ‘you're from boston?’ The other guy says noticing my backpack in the back with the Boston logo. ‘yes i am’ i laugh ‘us too!’ ‘What's your name?’ The guy who got my eye says ‘I’m y/n’ ‘cool im matt and hes chris’ ahh Matt hot guy hot name. ‘cool!’ I hand them the bag and me and Matt make eye contact, ‘have a good day’ ‘thanks you too’ matt says smiling at me. They walk out and i really hope i see them again.

* *:･ﾟ✧💒*:･ﾟ✧

  I finally got to clock out of work It was so tiring and I needed to make sure my little brothers were ok. I get to my car and get settled in and connect my phone to the aux and play “Ivy” by Frank Ocean. I’m so glad to be going home I think as I started driving I decided that I was gonna pick up a pizza for my little brothers because I got paid today and I know how much they love pizza. We aren't broke completely but we definitely struggle sometimes recently things have been rough but I finally got a promotion so it's getting a little easier I got the pizza and started heading home I got home and when i opened the door and my brothers cody and alex run up to me and ‘sissyyyy we missed you’ alex says hugging me, ‘aww i miss you too bud’ ‘sissy you bought pizza!’ Cody says looking like his eyes are gonna pop out of his head. 

 

i walk over to alexa who’s been my best friend for years, she helps me with my brothers and just around the house ‘thank you so much lex’ i say hugging her ‘Of course love that's what best friends are for’ she says smiling softly ‘wanna spend the night and when i put them to bed we can talk?’ ‘yeah okay sure’ Alexa smiles at me while i feed the boys.

I start to give the boys a shower and as i’m showering cody he looks up at me with the biggest smile on his face. ‘sissy I wanna be just like you when i grow up.’ He says playing with the bubbles, ‘aww little c i love you a lot bub and i know one day you’ll be even better than me’ i say tearing up, cody has always been more clingy to me than Alex is but not as much, cody doesn’t like to leave my side and he is the sweetest kid ever. Him saying he wants to be like me does hurt a little because I've been through a lot of shit but the fact that I look strong in his eyes makes up for it all. I put them to bed and Me Alexa got some wine and took a seat on the couch.

‘So how was your day?’ She says sitting next to me. ‘it was good omg lex these two really cute brothers came into the shop and oh my god girl’ I say blushing thinking of Matt ‘speaking of cute brothers you know the guy i was talking to?’ ‘yes why?’ ‘this is him and his brother I’d think you like him’ she turns her phone and pulls out a picture.

‘hold up hold up let me see that?!’ i say taking the phone from her ‘omg thats the cute guys that came in today’ ‘Omg?! yeah i've been talking to chris for a minute now’ ‘matt’s pretty attractive just sayin’ I couldn’t help myself but blush i don’t know what’s wrong with me fuck Y/N get it together. ‘oooo y/n has a crush?’ ‘oh shut the fuck up’ ‘oh come on you haven’t had a boyfriend since your parents died’ she says starting to get serious, ‘i know but my brothers mean the world to me lex i need to make sure there ok i don’t have the time’ I would love to give Matt a chance but i don’t know.

‘your brothers would want you to be happy y/n/n’ she says rubbing my knee, ‘I know but it's not about me being happy i need to make sure there happy i have to be a mother figure to them they need me’ ‘i get that babes but you need to remember you lost them too your only 20 rasing two kids you need to be a kid too especially since you were forced to grow up so quick’ i look at her and nod I mean I understand where she’s coming from but my brothers are all I know. ‘i love you y/n i'm just looking out for you ima head to bed goodnight love’ ‘night babes’ as she walks off and goes to into the guest room i kinda sit there think about what she said and i mean she's right but i can’t risk something happening to my brothers.  I head upstairs and head to bed because i have another day of work but holy fuck thank god it's friday. 

* *:･ﾟ✧💒*:･ﾟ✧

I woke up the next morning only because my alarm for work went off and i see it’s 9:44 so i know Alexa is getting my brothers ready for school I get out of the bed and i started to get ready for work. I finished getting ready for work when my younger brother Cody came into the room with tears in his eyes. ‘sis…’ he says in a sad tone I turned around quickly and scooped him into my arms ‘aww what's wrong love?’ i say concerned.

‘i don’t wanna go to school i wanna stay home with you can you please skip work..’ he says in a whiny tone, ‘Aww bub i wish i could help but you know the rules’ When i got custody of cody and alex the court gave me really strict rules to follow, i had to make sure they were always at school, they weren’t falling and that i kept a stable job and make enough money or else they would take them away. ‘I know but i hate being at school kids are mean to me and alex’ i look at him feeling bad but i don’t wanna risk losing them. ‘I’m sorry bub if i could keep you and alex with me 24/7 forever i would’ i say hugging him tightly.

* *:･ﾟ✧💒*:･ﾟ✧

i got to work over an hour ago and to say its boring is an understatement. Just as i think that i hear the bell ring meaning someone walked into the store, i look up ready to greet them and i realize its matt. ‘Matt? Hey’ i say smiling. ‘Hey um i know this might be weird but i um.. Well so my brother chris the one that was with me last time uh i found out that the girl hes been talking to happens to be your best friend right?’ ‘yeah shes my best friend’ ‘well um she kinda encouraged me to come back..’ ‘what do you mean?’ ‘well i uh wanted to see if you were willing to go out with me… you don’t have to its o-‘ he starts to say but i cut him off. ‘Sure why not’ i say smiling i don’t know what happened but he was too sweet for me to say no to.

‘Wait really?’ ‘yea i mean i can’t deny you are pretty cute..’ ‘well thank you’ he laughs damn something about the way he laughs i dont know but it feels almost addicting to listen to. ‘Uh are you free saturday?’ ‘yeah i am’ i smile ‘sweet! Ill text you’ ‘okay bye matt’ ‘bye” he blushed a little bit as he left the shop. Shit who’s gonna watch cody and alex?!                                                                   

Author’s notes:heyyy I’m back! So I hope you enjoyed the first part of this series and I’m sorry if there was any typos, spelling mistakes, etc I’ll try to fix the ones I can if I miss anything please let me know but I hope you enjoy and have a great day 💋

[gimjarack]

I was thinking back on all the companion characters across the Dragon Age series, and besides that one Dalish mage lady from Awakening whose name I can't remember, there's only ONE companion that I legitimately hate...

Vivienne from Dragon Age Inquisition.

I cannot stand her, both in terms of story and gameplay.

Gameplay is self explanatory: when you unlock all the companion characters unique skill trees halfway through, Vivienne has absolutely GARBAGE abilities. I get why "melee mage" might be interesting in concept, but it was executed so poorly. A mana sword spell, a worse version of fade step, and time bubble spell that doesn't even work on larger enemies (compared to Sera's flask of Lightning that can Za Warudo a fucking dragon, it's an absolute joke). It's whole "noble militant" history thing (via the trainers dialogue for this subclass as a mage inquisitor) feels unbearably snooty after the past two games delved into how oppressed the mages are. And Vivienne, as a character, to have this subclass is even more ammunition to my hatred. Her experience with being a mage was nothing but privilege and luxury, so learning that fighting style of "dangerous elegance that inspires your allies" makes me wanna barf then introduce her to Fenris and Anders to give the boys something to agree on: Vivienne is as privileged as the Tevinter Magisters and cares nothing for the abuse and oppression the Circle Towers have always contained. Let's see how her little glowy sword does against the two of them...

As a character in the Narrative, she is introduced around the same time as Sera, and at first most players (including myself!) felt repulsed by Sera and charmed by Vivienne. As the game progresses, you come to see them in opposite lights:

Sera is, above all else, a protector of the common people. She, and the rest of the Friends of Red Jenny, undermine the nobility who abuse their power over others, just by gaining the trust and help of the servants those Noblemen believe are beneath them. Through all that brash demeanor and colorful swearing, she keeps the Inquisitor humble, reminds them that their title and authority will get in the way of saving the world if they forget that they and all who serve the Inquisition are people.

Vivienne, on the other hand, is an entitled brat who never lived in a Circle Tower long enough to see the truth of what they are: Prisons. She got to learn magic from the comfort of Orlais, and played politics as she danced the waltz before snacking gingerly on some shrimp or whatever. She was never beaten bloody by a Templar who was just looking for an excuse to "punish" a mage, or gone through The Harrowing with the terror of knowing failure means execution by the Templars, or Maker forbid being thrown into a damp cell and forgotten about by the Templars who put her there until starvation claimed her life; Cole can attest to that last one if Vivienne dares to deny that level of cruelty being possible from the "protectors" of the mages.

In "Here Lies The Abyss", there is a graveyard in the Nightmare's domain; a graveyard where the tombstones read out the darkest terrors of all the companions. I'm still fascinated and confused by what Sera's fear of "The Nothing" means, and would love some explanations in the reblogs! But Vivienne's fear is... Irrelevance! 😂 Yeah Vivienne, it must be scary to be forgotten about huh? To lose your popularity, your attention, your "friends" among the nobility? Josephine could do it to you, it'd take her a week at most and I'd be more than happy to order her to destroy your precious reputation...

Vivienne joined the Inquisition because Morrigan stole her spot as Empress Celene's "occult advisor", and she wanted to feel and be important again. But I am happy to leave her to her own devices in Skyhold, letting her wallow in her insignificance.

If anyone has a higher opinion of Vivienne, reblog with your defense of her. Maybe there's something I missed somehow, I'd love a debate on this!

[withered-rose-unbreakable-lotus]

About Sophia's origin

Ok so I'd like to clear this up cause when I make mistakes I admit them most times. Some time ago I made a post about Sophia and my being pissed that even though she appeared Greek, Reverse's team didn't seem to have tried as hard to find a native or sb with an at least understandable accent for her Greek spell but it appears this wasn't necessary because Sophia is most likely not Greek (or she's half).

For context, when the current patch came out I could guess from the aesthetic the inspiration would be either Greek or Roman and then by the focus on Pythagorians I could tell it was indeed Greek inspiration, but I didn't expect there would be a single character that'd actually use the language, like for example French characters do. So when it did I was excited but also disappointed cause unless you read the subs, you couldn't tell what Sophia was saying.

Anyway long story short, from Sophia's mentions in 6's story, she appears to be Anatolian. And while the inspiration could be mixed, time-wise, cause anyway we're in 2007 in the game but everything else is based off ancient Greece, I think she too is supposed to be from the ancient version of Anatolia, therefore neither Greek nor Turkish but either Hattian or some other Anatolian ethnicity of that time. It is said that people at the shores of Asia Minor back then did speak Greek, probably cause of the trade situation with Greece and all, therefore it now makes sense to me that they went with the broken Greek option since she is not supposed to be native.

There. These are my "findings", or rather realizations. So yeah I apologize, I didn't know and I hope she is Anatolian and neither Greek nor Turkish cause that brings in the forefront ethnicities that went extinct and adds even more diversity in the game. However I have to admit I'm a bit sceptical about the choice of hair colour as well. 37 has light blue hair and Sophia firey red so this couuuuuld be addressing one is Greek and the other Turkish, or maybe's it's me overthinking xD. Cause some of you might say oh then why 6 and 210's hair aren't significant. Well, the men's duo doesn't seem to bring a cultural contrast in the forefront but one of authority and social roles and standards. It's the common sense of the island vs the one that wishes to not follow stuff blindly. 37 and Sophia's focus though has to do with cultural contrast and differences and Sophia's adjusting to the mindset of the island through observation of the common ways (island people) and 37 (sb's different and independent approach to the common ways), while also stressing the significance of learning from each other and finding a middle ground like when 37 also tried to play, in her own way, and try to understand more about Sophia through her father's notebook.

That's all. At the end of the day, games and storytelling are artforms, so unless we have specific mentions of things, everything is up to the viewer's interpretation. That was mine.

[joannerowling]

On the issue with James, I do think this is one area where the books aren’t ageless and have to be read in the context of an English school in the 70s written by an author in the 90s. Because by today’s standards, James is less of your garden variety ‘boys will be boys’ type bully and more of an actual sociopath well past the age of criminal responsibility who by 16 had committed one public sexual assault and was an accessory to attempted murder who backed out last second. But I don’t think that’s at all what Jo meant to convey.

Let me guess. Snape fan? :P

Look, my issue with this discourse has always been that only James seems to get so much flack for his most morally ambiguous actions. I mean, Hermione disfigured a girl her age with zits spelling "sneak" because she'd given the DA members out to Umbridge. Harry nearly gored Malfoy to death by using an unknown spell he knew was meant "for enemies". Yet, i've never seen anyone hating on James that would go as hard against these other characters.

On your first point: James wasn't an accessory to attempted murder who backed out last second. Sirius was the one who tricked Snape and nearly got him killed (which would have made Lupin an accessory to murder). James acted to stop it as soon as he realised what Sirius had done. His reasons for doing so remain obscure - Snape thinks he wanted to save his own skin because he would have been blamed alongside Sirius, but that's Snape's interpretation, not exactly the most unbiased source.

Next: i ressent people misusing the term "sexual assault" to describe what James does in Snape's worst memory (a take that, btw, i've only seen upheld as if it were common knowledge by Americans, or very "Americanised" fans). The definition of sexual assault is "unwanted sexual contact", and in the UK especially it pretty much means "rape without penetration". I do think Jo meant for it to be taken seriously (its parallel with the Muggles's treatment by Death Eaters in GoF is clear), only people didn't really at the time. Still. James humiliated Snape, i'd say what he did qualifies as sexual harrassment, and he's rightfully painted as the bad guy in that episode, but he didn't sexually assault Snape.

Also, because we only have that one scene to work with, everyone seems to forget the larger context, namely: Snape created that spell. Judging by the way Death Eaters were still using it 15+ years later, i imagine James wasn't the first nor the last in his generation to use it against another student. I always saw it as a bit analogous to those dangerous/humiliating games that suddenly become trendy with high schoolers until someone gets hurt enough for adults to intervene. I'm comforted in that interpretation by the fact that Snape implies James didn't even know HE was the one to invent the spell, suggesting it started as a thing Snape showed to other Slytherins to gain some social cred, which then spread to the whole school.

Anyways, if that makes James a sociopath, then Hogwarts must have been chock-full of them in the 70s, starting with Snape himself. Maybe the point isn't that Snape or James (or Sirius) are sociopaths, but that imminent war tends to turn people more prone to violence and less likely to abide by moral principles, or consider their designated enemies's humanity. I have no doubt that James morally justified himself and his actions by the fact that Snape belonged to the "bad crowd" of Voldemort's future recruits. Even though we readers know enough about Snape to be able to tell that he was never seriously convinced by Pure Blood superiority.

[pttucker]

She got royally irritated and began following after this fool's comments. She even clicked on 'downvote' too. Like a bewitched person, Han Sooyoung read only Kim Dokja's comments and not the novel itself. – Will Jihye finally awaken next chapter? – Author-nim! I've discovered a typo on page 7! With my lacking opinion, I think the spelling here should be… Ah, I looked into it and it's actually my mistake. My apologies. I've learned something new today. – Please, just smack that fool Joonghyuk-ie in the back of his head… This guy, he never once missed writing a comment on all those thousands of chapters. And every single one contained understanding and love for the world created by this author. ⸢Han Sooyoung was envious of that.⸥ She believed that there was simply no way anyone would be reading a novel as bad as this, that it had to be the author himself busy blowing his own trumpet. She thought that the author had created two separate IDs and wrote the novel with one while with the other one, wrote all those comments and uploaded recommendations, too. – Isn't recommending one's own work prohibited? ⸢Just like how Yoo Joonghyuk was an imagined character to Kim Dokja, Kim Dokja was exactly like that to Han Sooyoung.⸥ She thought that such a person wouldn't be real, but… That very person within the texts was standing right before Han Sooyoung's eyes.

Unexpected Sooyoung & Dokja backstory?!! 👀

Okay, so Dokja has said before that he totally called out Sooyoung for plagiarism so that's not the surprising part, but it's so Sooyoung to just angrily start stalking him afterwards and assume that he must be the author in disguise because who could actually like that drivel?

...While at the same time being envious that TWSA had such a loving and dedicated reader.

Also this is totally trying to emphasize that Sooyoung can't be the author of TWSA, and I know that it doesn't really make sense for her to think he was the author while being the author, but it, perhaps illogically, makes me actually even more convinced that she is the author of TWSA?

Because what it says is that this was her first encounter with him, not her first encounter with TWSA, she'd read TWSA before. And it goes out of its way to mention once again that she lost half her memories to her first avatar so I'm wondering if things have gotten twisted in her head.

She lost a portion of her memories while creating avatars and she couldn't clearly remember what happened back then. What was certain, though, was that she had indeed read the novel called the 'Ways of Survival'.

Mmmhmmm. Does this or does this not sound like Asuka Ren and Peace Land? Especially with the way she's described Predictive Plagiarism, looking at various tropes and common themes, etc. Maybe she filled in the holes in her memory with what she thinks should be there? She assumes that she would assume that Dokja is the author?

.

.

Though...

If I were to stick with my original theory that Dokja is the author...

Sooyoung could be right.

"Dokja" could be a fake account made up not necessarily to boost the comments or popularity, but to perhaps help the author (aka Dokja) figure out what to write next? Sort of like programmers with the rubber duck. Or maybe just the account of a guy with no friends who loves one particular story more than anything basically pretending to be his own fan/friend because there's no one else? Or maybe it did originally start out as a means to boost the novel's popularity by pretending to be a big fan but when everyone abandoned it he couldn't bring himself to stop because he really does love TWSA?

And now the author, aka Dokja, has written himself into the story because he couldn't figure out how to end it and/or because he was literally writing the story just for himself anyway. I mean, we literally just had that speech from Uriel about how a story doesn't have to be for someone else, and also we have Dokja realizing now that this is their (his) story and their (his) epilogue.

And it'd fit with my idea that Oldest Dream is Dokja too. I've already gone into my theories that Dokja could be Oldest Dream's avatar (and thus Dokja wouldn't have all of Oldest Dream's memories, only what was given to him) and that could be why Sooyoung is emphasizing that particular tidbit about avatar memories once again.

And Oldest Dream created this specific worldline and Oldest Dream gave Joonghyuk his stigma. The stigma that not only lets Dokja's favorite character that he loves live forever, lets his favorite novel go on forever, but also is the main point of the story. They kinda got into this a little bit with Joonghyuk, but basically Joonghyuk is a Regressor because the story required a Regressor. That was the plot. So literally you could say that the author gave him the stigma, not his sponsor.

The fact that Dokja is a "real person" standing right in front of her right now means nothing. Joonghyuk is literally standing right next to him.

.

.

UGHHHHHHHHH I just gave up my theory that Dokja is the author but now I'm so torn!!!!!! They both make sense!

(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻

Why must you torment me, ORV???????

I guess if I have to pick which theory I'm favoring atm I'm gonna stick with the idea that Sooyoung is the author for overall thematic purposes.

Joonghyuk, Dokja, Sooyoung.

Secretive Plotter, Oldest Dream, The Author.

Character, Reader, Writer.

[upon-lavender-hills]

I hate it when people get inspired by someone else's work and not give the original author a proper credit, so I decided to not be a douche and do it now. @good-wine-and-cheese, your Grunge fan fiction served as an inspiration to me and in some aspects you could say that I referenced it. Maybe it's not noticeable, but I know I did, since I've reread these fanfics several times. I still keep returning to A Quet Aftermath and Blood and Bone from time to time, so they were bound to have left an impact on me and my own work somehow. It also appears that we share a lot of common ground on Grunge. Personally, I wish there was more, but it's not up for me to decide on this sort of thing.

This came out way too dry, I'm sorry 😭 Also, I would like to say that I read all the tags, and first of all, thank you for your support, and second of all, I don't really hate it when people call Runge 'Lunge', I just think that this spelling is not correct. However, since the translators made this mistake in the official English release (is that correct?) and people are used to this version of his name, I have nothing against them or the fact that they use it. I know I said that I hate it, but to think of it, I just dislike the initial mistake. Like, not even moderately at this point. If you're used to it, you're used to it, nothing to be done about it. As long as everyone understands each other, it should be okay.

And since I'm writing this post, uhh... Returning to the topic of tags, I would like to thank everyone who is leaving them, as well as replies. I really enjoy reading them, so if you're leaving tags on my works and are reading this – thank you, they are fun, and I really appreciate them!

[maybeitstimetoearnmybluebead]

I posted 487 times in 2022

That's 62 more posts than 2021!

15 posts created (3%)

472 posts reblogged (97%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@afterthefair

@popkin16

@cakemakethme

@xiaq

@canibecandid

I tagged 44 of my posts in 2022

#harry potter - 11 posts

#fanfiction - 4 posts

#hockey - 3 posts

#help! - 3 posts

#fic search - 3 posts

#fandom - 3 posts

#nhl - 2 posts

#ao3 - 2 posts

#fanfic - 2 posts

#queer - 2 posts

Longest Tag: 88 characters

#we stay up all night reading like its the 2000s and a new harry potter book just dropped

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Congrats to Jamie-Lee Rattray! You were my neighbor (in some way, shape, or form) all four of our years at Clarkson, my classmate in that one history course senior year, and our social circles overlapped in multiple places. Now, as a member of Team Canada's Women's Hockey Team at the 2022 Winter Olympics, you (and 3 others) are truely Golden Knights!

1 note - Posted February 17, 2022

#4

Ugghhh. I found a fic that I absolutely love. That I adore. That positively speaks to me. I have been reading it on repeat for days. It's a WIP, and so well written, unique, and complex that I feel like I'm reading new source material, not fic. And as a result, it has given me much inspiration.

In the past two days I have managed to churn out one 1700 word long fic and 3400 words (and counting) of another, which looks like it'll become a monster of it's own. I'm waiting to see if I hear from the original author before I post these "fics inspired by" (which I will tag, credit, and link appropriately on AO3).

In the meantime my holiday fic exchange contribution for another fandom sits in my WIPs at about 300 words, where it's been for months since the writer's block hit, and is *checks calendar* roughly 5 weeks overdue.

2 notes - Posted January 25, 2022

#3

looking for a fic

Harry potter fandom-

I am on the search for a fic I read a couple of months ago on AO3. If I recall correctly, Harry is spending the summer in Diagon Alley and ends up starting a school where he, Hermione, and Daphne Greengrass teach incoming muggleborns useful stuff like how to use a quill, some basic spells, and wizarding culture (Harry is also taking that lesson) so that they aren't behind the wizarding raised kids when they get to Hogwarts. I think Flitwick helps? And the building they use is one that it turns out Harry inherited because the Potters owned properties. There's other stuff, too, like Harry having multiple heirships and starting to get involved in politics (which is where Daphne came into play).

And then when they get back to Hogwarts Harry gives Daphne a portrait of Slytherin from the Chamber to put in her common room. Harry had been going down to the chamber and learning from books/a portrait he found down there so I think this takes place in maybe 5th year? I feel like the characters are too mature to be third years and I don't think the tournament is happening, so 5th year makes more sense. Might even be summer after 5th year- I don't remember Sirius being in the fic but I do remember Harry being Heir Black so his absence would make more sense if it's after 5th year.

3 notes - Posted May 4, 2022

#2

Potter Puppet Pals: The Mysterious Ticking Noise

Congrats all- The Mysterious Ticking Noise is 15 years old.

11 notes - Posted June 23, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Thought-

You know how Snape talks like a mix of some academic and some posh person out of the turn of the century? Yet we also know that, given his working class background, that's probably not, like, his natural way of speaking?

I think he started talking that way when he first started teach to combat imposter syndrome and to make himself seem older than he was, and he just stuck with it.

Like, seriously, he was 31 years old at the start of the first book, and contextual evidence leans towards indicating that he likely started teaching when he was 20 or 21. The 5th/6th/7th years at the time would have been students who remembered him as a surly, bitter, dark upper year student when they were 1st/2nd/3rd years, and his fellow professors would likely still be somewhat thinking of him as their student. Can you imagine suddenly being a teacher at your old Junior-Senior High when you're barely in your 20's?

He had to do something to differentiate himself from his history at the school, and to make himself feel like an adult in a place of authority. I mean, I'm 30, own my house and car, have a steady, well paying job, have completed both a BS and MS, and I still don't always think of my self as a real "grown up".

So he started talking like a posh, pretentious academic prick and stuck with it.

But his inner dialog is probably all, like, 'these fuck'n littl' idiots.'

21 notes - Posted January 25, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[seriousbrat]

I sent this question to another fanfic author, but seeing your recent posts about patronus vs occlumency, I want to ask you too!

Aside from Snape, Dumbledore, and Draco, which other characters you think could have been talented occlumens? Maybe not necessarily as good as Snape or Dumbledore, but competent and comfortable using the technique.

I'm thinking maybe Peter Pettigrew (he always surprises people), Augustus Rookwood (because he was a spy and seem to have gotten away with it for a long time)... Kingsley Shacklebolt... maybe Andromeda, Narcissa? Maybe more?

Sometimes in the fandom I feel like people assign "a thing" almost exclusively to a character that is canonically good at it - and nobody else is allowed to touch it or be as good as them. But this is magic accessible and useful to all, so I like to imagine other people interacting with it.

I imagine it would be useful for everyone in the Order to try their best to learn it - in case they're captured by DEs or the Ministry, and maybe they're all able to hold their ground against some lame ministry official or dumbass death eater.

I imagine Tonks would be quite bad at it since she wears her emotions on her hair and features.

Actually I do bring this up in my fic, but I think Regulus is an uncommonly good Occlumens! For me it's because his true nature isn't ever revealed to anyone, and he keeps his cards close to his chest. And of course, he fooled Voldemort.

Rookwood definitely would have to be an accomplished occlumens. I imagine a lot of the higher-ranking Death Eaters were required to train in Occlumency, maybe even all Death Eaters. Bellatrix is obviously good enough to teach Draco, and Narcissa good enough to risk lying to Voldemort. I think it also fits Narcissa's character to be good at Occlumency.

As for the Order, they definitely should have been trained lol but for some reason I don't think they really were, especially the younger members like James and Lily. If they were I think Lily in particular would have trouble with it the way Harry does. And you're right that Peter would probably be quite decent at it. I imagine that Voldemort had him trained once he switched sides and started acting as a spy, but on the other hand Peter had the advantage of nobody really paying him much attention.

It's not really clear how common legilimency is. We only really see three legilimens-- Snape, Voldemort, and Dumbledore. If it was commonly and freely used I think we'd see more instances of it from other characters. Umbridge would definitely have tried it for example. I don't know if it's something that the Ministry would employ, it might even be legally restricted because of its invasive nature tbh. And powerful legilimens like Dumbledore and Voldemort are probably quite rare. Someone like Bellatrix might be able to perform the spell but not as adept at getting the right information as Dumbledore, Snape, and Voldemort are. So unless there's a specific reason to learn it (like Harry's connection to Voldemort, or Snape's role as a spy) it might not be hugely necessary. But still probably a good idea haha

[vtori73]

Hmm, people are making a big deal about interpretations/interpreting that one scene in Dunm3shi with the succubus and La0is and doing deep dives and shit but honestly?

I think it was just mostly a funny gag scene mixed with the author turning the tables on common troupes & readers desires & thoughts when it comes to things like this. In this example, the main characters if the opposite gender will be pushed together either by the story narrative or the readers assuming they have a thing for each other so the author wanted to not only reject that kind of troupe/thinking but also do it in a comedic way.

Most people would assume there are some romantic feelings at least coming from La0is because he is a man and while I can acknowledge her looks probably are closer to his type that doesn't necessarily mean all that much considering people can have types but not be interested in a person who fits that criteria, plenty of people end up with people who aren't technically their "ideal/fav" type physically doesn't mean they find the person less attractive because of it or would want to be with someone more who does fit their "ideal" type because in the end looks really aren't everything. BUT, this is specifically a personal opinion, even more specifically it's what I WANT the scene to mean, I don't really want it to be some big deal that means something deeper and would rather it just be some funny way the author went about spitting on common tropes.

---------------

Since I'm here anyway I want to mention something I've been wanting to write down but haven't yet... While I like Dunm3shi I also have some "eh" feelings about it and I think I finally (mostly) understand why that is after reading someone's long analysis of the above scene I was talking about (that I didnt even agree with 100% but in one section it did help me understand my feeling/thoughts more on La0is/the series in general). My main thing is that while a lot of people like the series because of its more realistic look on race/racism between various races & creatures and having it actually addressed and spelled out and while I do think it does help enhance the story and build the world up more and make it more realistic I ALSO think it doesn't really at the end of the day say or do much... which I guess it doesn't HAVE to but well... let me explain my thoughts below.

But, real quick I want to add that I also find it interesting how people dont differentiate between racism & fantasy race/creature prejudice/bigotry because racism is specifically about RACE, as in skin color and something that deals with HUMANS and not different creatures/species and to conflate the two is never really a good thing because you can't really and often can lead to messy narratives that we especially find often in fantasy like settings.

Anyway, moving back to my thoughts on this, which aren't too deep but basically while I do like that aspect and that it gets addressed and pointed out moreso than regular fantasy (which I think is why I've never been a big fan of fantasy the old timey-ness mixed with that and real world racism/bigotry coming from the people who make this stuff just never sits well with me it's kind of like the phenomena of white people who wish to live in the 50s or something without thinking for one second how they would be the only ones who could/would be able to live safely in that sort of time) I also have a hard time liking what it actually does do/say with it which isn't much. Sure EVERYONE is bigoted in the world, most people in real life are too but is this REALLY ever stopped & questioned all that much? It is really challenged all that much, does anyone stop to think maybe we should be better? Sure at the end of the story things are changed due to what happens (trying to keep this spoiler free) but like... bigotry in general seems more like an aside thing, not really important and more so the whole idea of desires and how they corrupt and such and humanity or something.

This paired with a protagonist who is not just white, but a little close to what white supremacists hold up as the ideal with having blonde hair (but no blue eyes, gold color instead) who has a BIG prejudice against ALL humans due to personal experiences because he isn't like other humans and always seems like it kind of justified due to how EVERYONE, especially human, even friends, seem to react to him with the added aspect that he himself is not free of being racist/prejudiced either and doesn't seem to ever see or acknowledge it or is confronted by it really (racism/bigotry against Shiro & the mountain people specifically). With the added aspect that even different races (races aka the meaning of race in OUR world) are all the same and treated the same it seems and while we can say MAYBE racism like in our world isn't really a thing in this world or as big of a thing in this world it still is weird considering how race actually IS a big factor in the real world and how just... weird this comes off, the white boy feeling the MOST ostracized and out of place in a world of monsters and different race humans & creatures & such to the point of wanting to BE A MONSTER because monsters kill humans (okay so I failed in being spoiler free my bad)... I mean hell, one of his traveling companions is one of the most oppressed races but he doesn't desire things like La0is does.

Now I do feel like I have to add so people don't get the wrong idea tha, no, I don't hate his character or think he is evil or horrible or the worst thing ever I just acknowledge that it comes off odd is all when you analyze all of his character. Sure, he is heavily implied as not being neurotypical and is mistreated for that and can count as something he is oppressed for but plenty of others in the story are oppressed and don't end up wishing for the kinds of things he does, sure he does care about others at the end of the day but im not going to pretend he's a perfect character just because he has faced hardships due to being different. It just reminds me of all the white people in real life who go on about the one or two area of oppression they face while ignoring they still hold a lot of power in the world for being white and use that oppression they face as a shield and sword against anyone who dares criticize them. Instead of acknowledging they gain to benefit from continually perpetuating bigoted rhetoric & ideas that have long been said and done against other oppressed groups they go on the offense and stick their head in the sand wanting to desperately believe that because they are oppressed in x way means they can't possibly still be oppressors/privileged.

It's all just a little weird to me, I can't even say anything past that it just comes off a bit weird to me when I take a step back to analyze it all.

I mean, technically speaking we could say it's sort of realistic with how at least in America and similar places white men tend to be the demographic that commits the most violent acts (shootings for example) but I don't think that was exactly the authors intentions especially considering it all works out in the end and he ends up saving people and the world due to his desire to want to be a monster/his hatred against humans which is kind of funny because it wasn't even INTENTIONAL on his part it just sort of worked out which is... something. Kind of funny but still.

I really liked dunm3shi when I started it, I thought it was hilarious and was why I picked up the manga because the anime made me laugh but once I got to the end I felt meh about it and didnt really understand why and honestly at first thought it was because everything worked out in the end and i interpreted that as meaning i wasn't thrilled about a happy ending but it was actually something a bit more than that. Pair this ALSO with the fact of how white fandom is reacting to La0is and relating to him and even saying how they find all the characters to be racist in some way "realistic"... (Yeah I know I said the same thing but it wasn't the ONLY thing I said, and you'll see more of what I mean when you continue to read) really REALLY leaves a gross taste in my mouth and makes me feel like the story and La0is as a character is making these people feel more emboldened to excuse their own prejudice/racism for x reason whether it be because "uwu no one gets me because im not neurotypical," to "everyone is just like that so it's fine that I am, I don't need to improve or change at all."

Now, no, I'm not saying the story is LITERALLY doing this or even the author I'm saying that's how people are interpreting/reading it which makes me uncomfortable as not only a non-white person but also someone who ISN'T neurotypical and also isn't cis or hetero that I don't feel the way La0is feels and kind of abhor that kind of thinking and really often tends to come from rather privileged people (yes, especially white people). Sure maybe at most I feel that way against white people, MAYBE, and while some will say to me "that makes you no better," that only shows to me that you don't know enough about racism & power dynamics to have a say on this discussion because at the end of the day people hating and maybe even wanting their oppressors dead is not the same as being an actual oppressor who has the power to not only do what some may wish/fantasize about with little to no consequence but probably already has or done so in the past and actively benefits from it. I know oppression works a TAD bit differently in this world with the long lived races having more power and say in the but... I don't really think it detracts from my overall thoughts much if at all tbh.

Alright... I think that's it, I may have missed something and probably didn't explain as well as I could have but this was kind of an ADHD rant so... YEAH, it is not going to be the most organized/well explained thing, deal with it, lol.

[citadelredlightdistrict]

What would your OC's First impression on Drac. Just by appearance alone. Jacwyn (male/female), Samael, Tink, Dew and Loti. (Up to you if you want it be descript or not. Just trying to get a feel on the surface level personality)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Impressions and thoughts

Jacwyn Female: "Whoa, is that an angel or... no, right?" She looks over the young man intently, he was so pretty, petite, and yet she could sense a kind of power that only her sister Samael had ever given off before. She both felt comforted, and scared by him.

Jacwyn Male: "Are you part... bird? Whatever, you're clearly not an elf so I assume you're a servant, you can fetch my dinner then. Now!" He looks over the other petite man, he could sense the power in him, but he couldn't afford to appear weak. His mother was already angry with him, the staff already saw him as a joke. So despite his instincts telling him to submit to the young man, he had to assert himself as the dominant party. He just really hoped the stranger didn't put him in his place as a result.

Samael: "You're not meant to be here. Name yourself creature, and identify as friend or foe." She'd long since sensed him coming, had prepared for this moment for several hours now. At a thought there were over a dozen powerful wards ready to snap into place, including an anti-magic field, an area of silence, and a barrier. If he broke through those she had the spell Banishment prepared, sending him back to his home realm should buy her enough time to prepare stronger countermeasures. She didn't know who or what he was, but she couldn't risk him trying to steal away HER beloved if he was a foe.

Tink: "Dew! Dew where are you? Oh! Hey there, have you seen Dew nearby?" Tink flitters around him, looking around for her friend before sitting down on top of his head without bothering for permission as she tried to think through where Dew could have gone. "Hmm, I don't remember being here before, maybe Dew is still back at that lake? Damn it, boss is going to be so angry if we don't find that stupid elf soon. But I have to find her first..." (She's a bit too preoccupied, Powers like him aren't common in the Fae Wyldes, but he's hardly the first she's met.) Dew: "Hey! I'm sorry to ask, but have you seen an elf nearby? Umm, let's see where is the description we were given, ah! Ok, so umm they're pretty, light skinned, bright eyes, light hair... I mean, probably the only elf in the Fae Wyldes I suppose." Who is this guy? Oh man I really hope boss didn't send him too, there's no way we'll be able to claim the reward if one of the Powers grabs him first! Tink where are you? Oh I really hope you've found the elf first and you're making your way back to the lake! Loti: "AH! H-hey, hey there, umm sir, I mean, please forgive me, I meant no insult." She kneels and bows her head, her mind racing as she is met face to face to one of the Powers of the Wyldes. It was one thing to encounter one of the Authorities, another to meet a Power that was an Authority, both of those were beings who created order and the rules of the Wyldes, but rogue Powers were something else entirely. Beings like him were usually out to become an Authority, and that usually meant death and destruction in their wake. The only way she knew to save herself in a situation like this was to prove herself more useful alive than dead.

(Jacwyn isn't involved in politics and is lacking in the proper context to be afraid of him. So as a female she's more curious than anything else, as a male he's too focused on proving himself worthy of his family and is confused by the feeling of attraction. Samael despite her relative youth compared to most elves is already arguably the most naturally powerful and gifted mage in the material realms, given a few more years she might even be a rival for some lesser gods. So Samael sees him initially as a potential threat that might need to be dealt with before he harms her Jacwyn. The two pixies are too focused on their mission to get Jacwyn, and Loti has never met a Power within the Wyldes and just knows the terrifying stories of what they're capable of.)

[mediaevalmusereads]

The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter. By Theodora Goss. Saga Press, 2017.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Genre: (YA?) historical sci fi/fantasy/mystery

Series: The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club #1

Summary: Mary Jekyll, alone and penniless following her parents’ death, is curious about the secrets of her father’s mysterious past. One clue in particular hints that Edward Hyde, her father’s former friend and a murderer, may be nearby, and there is a reward for information leading to his capture…a reward that would solve all of her immediate financial woes.

But her hunt leads her to Hyde’s daughter, Diana, a feral child left to be raised by nuns. With the assistance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Mary continues her search for the elusive Hyde, and soon befriends more women, all of whom have been created through terrifying experimentation: Beatrice Rappaccini, Catherin Moreau, and Justine Frankenstein.

When their investigations lead them to the discovery of a secret society of immoral and power-crazed scientists, the horrors of their past return. Now it is up to the monsters to finally triumph over the monstrous.

***Full review below.***

CONTENT WARNINGS: madness, mention of suicide, blood, self-inflicted wounds, animal death, violence

OVERVIEW: This is another book that sat on my TBR for ages. I remember picking it up at a used bookstore solely because I liked the vibes; I'm not usually a fan of books that use characters in the public domain (it feels too close to fanfiction for me), but I thought I'd give it a chance. Overall, my opinion of this book is not glowing. I can see how some readers may like it; it's kind of fun, and a girl group that goes around investigating secret societies has appeal. However, I wasn't very impressed by the writing, and the way the narrarive progressed just wasn't great. So this book gets 2 stars.

WRITING: While I think Goss's prose is fairly clear and easy to read, there were a few features that I personally disliked.

For one, this book is heavy on the expositional dialogue. Characters will speak for whole paragraphs at a time, explaining things so that the story has context.

For two, Goss uses a lot of filter words so that I always felt a little at arm's length. Phrases like "Mary wondered" or "Mary thought" were common, and while they didn't bother me all the time, they did add up.

For three, Goss uses a lot of exclamations and prompts "suspense" with a bunch of questions, which make the book seem aimed at a younger audience. Phrases like "He had swallowed the fly!" and "how tired she was!" felt like they were inserted to spell things out, as well as questions like "but why was she killed?" - as if Goss didn't trust the reader to infer things. I guess maybe this would be ok if the audience is in fact YA (though it's hard to tell - there's nothing definitive that I can find).

And lastly, I just wanted something more out of this book regarding female monstrosity. This may seem like an unfair criticism, but Goss's author's note claims that the idea for this book stemmed from an observation that a lot of 19th century mad scientists in literature were hung up on female monsters. That observation is a good one, but ultimately, I didn't feel like this book really dwelled on the theme of female monstrosity or did anything interesting with it. The book was mostly about all these lady monsters going around and being badass, and even then, they're not really all that monsterous.

PLOT: The plot of this book follows Mary Jekyll - daughter of Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Henry Jekyll - who is left penniless following the death of her mother. When Mary discovers that her mother had secretly been paying for the care of someone named Hyde - the same name as her father's associate and criminal-at-large - she figures she can turn him in and claim the reward money. However, Mary discovers that Hyde is in fact Diana Hyde - Mr. Hyde's daughter. The two find themselves tangled up in a murder mystery (being investigated by Sherlock Holmes) which leads them to the daughters of other famous scientists: Beatrice Rappiccini, Catherine Moreau, and Justine Frankenstein. Together, they seek to uncover a secret society that united their fathers while also exploring what it means to be the progeny of monsters.

There was a lot about this plot that felt fairly whimsical and joyful. I could tell that Goss was enjoying the writing process and those who have read the 19th century stories this book references will surely get a chuckle out of some things.

However, I couldn't help but feel like this book was aimed at a young audience, in part because there wasn't much about the plot itself that was clever. It often felt like Goss was hand-holding a bit too much, and though the characters tell us the girls are smart, they never really do anything exceptional. All of their insights feel obvious if you're familiar with the stories the book is referencing. As a result, this book felt like a Ready Player One but for 19th century Gothic novels - it's mainly enjoyable for the references rather than the story itself. If the audience is a YA one and truly meant to be just a fun 19th century monstrous girl gang, then I guess I can see the appeal. But since I struggled to determine the audience, I'll just have to call it like I see it.

Lastly, this book felt stuffed with unnecessary details. There were quite a few paragraphs about characters eating meals or descriptions of where they were sitting in the room. There were also a lot of explanatory phrases that let the reader know why characters were making decisions or why things were in the world, and dialogue would get long and meandering. I think a lot of these details could have been cut or inferred and the pacing of the plot as a whole would have felt much better.

CHARACTERS: This book primarily focuses on 5 girls, their housekeeper, and Sherlock Holmes and Watson.

There were moments when the characters were charming. Diana Hyde, for example, was feisty and obstinate, and Justine Frankenstein was sweet-natured and timid despite being so strong.

However, I do think the writing style tends to flatten them out, and though I didn't mind their chiding in the "interruptions," I also don't feel like I fully got to know them as people. I think the characterization would have been better if each of the girls grappled with their own identities and with their own concept of monstrosity. While there's a little of that, it's quickly brushed aside and the characters don't so much grow as they have adventurous romps together.

TL;DR: The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter tries to have fun with female monstrosities from the 19th century, but the lackluster mystery and the prose style make this book tedious to read.

[radiantlyrey]

I never do stuff like this, but @bowiesinspace did this neat little questionnaire, so I thought I'd give it a shot, too.

Are you named after anyone? Yes! I was named after a beloved great-aunt of my mother's. It is a unique spelling of a semi-common name, so I'm not tellin' it here. As for my internet name (Skye, short for Skye_Writer or SkyeWriter30 or whatever), I chose that myself because I like puns.

When was the last time you cried? I almost cried yesterday thinking about something that I can't remember now. It was either a movie or tv episode, or maybe a book? Maybe? I cry at the slightest provocation, at least when it comes to media, so yeah.

Do you have any kids? Nope! And very happy that way. My siblings both have kids, though, and I very much love those kiddos, but I do not ever want any of my own.

What sports do you play/have you played? I played girls' softball when I was ten or eleven and it was against my will.

Do you use sarcasm? Yes. Constantly. It is my conversational bread and butter.

What's the first thing you notice about people? Usually? Their hair or clothes. Things that make them identifiable, stuff like that.

What's your eye color? Dark brown. (Though in more direct light they look kind of amber-golden, which I love.)

Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings all the way! I am not a huge fan of downer endings, or endings that are bleak for bleakness' sake. I don't mind an ambiguous ending (like say, Inception), but I much prefer happy endings, or at least happy-for-now endings.

Any talents? Not really? I guess? I don't know. I'm good at picking up new crafts and such, I guess. I don't know. I'm so bad at actually looking at myself objectively. Sigh.

Where were you born? Long Beach, California. I'm only telling you this because I live nowhere near Long Beach, California anymore.

What are your hobbies? Writing and reading, mostly. I also enjoy cozy-type video games (also Pokemon) (basically just any kind of game where you don't have to fight things, or if you do, the fights don't require good reflexes). I crochet a lot, too; I'm currently making an amigurumi dragon and having fun with it. I also enjoy doing puzzles, and I keep meaning to pick up my ukulele or ocarina and get better with those.

Do you have any pets? Yes! We have a 2-year-old dog who's extremely rambunctious, and then four cats. I love them all, tho one of the cats is sometimes a jerk.

How tall are you? About 5'7" or 5'8" (so around 1m70cm or so??). Middling tall is I guess how you'd describe it.

Favorite subject in school? English, a thousand times over. Runners-up include Chemistry (which I took two courses on in uni), and Math (I took Calculus for fun in uni). Also I really enjoyed the Film classes I took for my Film Studies minor in university.

Dream job? In an ideal world where I was not actively hindered by my own brain, I would be a published author or something. But honestly, I'd settle for something simple enough that I wouldn't stress about it (anxiety is a lame-ass BITCH), that I could also sit down while doing (back pain? ALSO a lame-ass bitch).

Not tagging anybody bc that ain't my style. Enjoy this unprecedented look behind the curtain!! *swishes cape and dives offstage*

[tuulikannel]

5, 14, 15, 19!

5. where do you buy books?

I used to work in a bookstore (for over 10 years), so at that time I naturally bought pretty much all my books there, and I'm still in the same habit. ^^ In general, I do prefer physical stores to online stores. Its more fun to browse there. Sometimes I buy books from Adlibris (a Swedish online book store, which is pretty big in Finland too).

14. do you ever mark/dog ear books you own?

…no. Or, I'm sure there are occasions that I've done this in the past... >_> I'd still say no. I own a gazillion of bookmarks, tho most often there just some random piece of paper stuck in-between the pages. ^^;;

15. recommend and review a book.

……a book? As in only one? What am I to choose…

I'd like to pick something from C.J. Cherryh or Clifford D. Simak, couple of my favorite authors, but maybe I'll choose instead Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes (published in 1966). It's a beautiful book, I think… moving, but quite sad. I think I'll start with the back cover blurb:

"Charlie Gordon, IQ 68, is a floor sweeper, and the gentle butt of everyone's jokes, until an experiment in the enhancement of human intelligence turns him into a genius. But then Algernon, the mouse whose triumphal experimental transformation preceded his, fades and dies, and Charlie has to face the possibility that his salvation was only temporary."

Now… one thing I would like to point out is that this so-called 'salvation' isn't so black and white to begin with. Is being smart really the only thing that matters?

Out of curiosity, I checked 1-star reviews on Amazon. There's three kinds of them: 1) those who didn't like the swearing/sexual references and who had bought this book for kids (I mean… what about it made you think it's a children's book?), 2) those who found it too hard/boring to follow (I'll refrain from any comments), and 3) those who complain about spelling errors. The last thing is hilarious to me. This book is basically Charlie's diary, and like I said, his IQ in the beginning is 68. He doesn't know how to spell (in the beginning). So yes, there are spelling errors. A lot of them. Here's the first sentence: "Dr Strauss says I shoud rite down what I think and remembir and evrey thing that happins to me from now on." If this kind of writing gets on your nerves, maybe you should skip this book. XD

19. most disliked popular books?

First I couldn't think of anything but…… there's this pretty popular (I think?) fantasy author, Tad Williams. And I do like him too! Some years ago I got this urge to read some proper fantasy, and I ended up rereading his Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series, and I loved it just as much as I did back when I first read it. And then I noticed he had just decided to continue it (after 25 years or so, impeccable timing from me, isn't this!) The little book that connects the old trilogy to the new trilogy(?) is called The Heart of What Was Lost and… it's so bad. So bad. ;_; People and places just had common names with the old, familiar things, and that's all; change the names, and it could have been just any other (quite mediocre) fantasy book, set somewhere else. The world-building, part of what had made the original series so fantastic, wasn't there either.

And people love that book! There are reviews under such titles as "Magic of Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn Recaptured," "An Excellent Re-Introduction to Osten Ard," "A great followup to Memory Sorry (sic.) and Thorn trilogy!" and "Williams hovers on the edge of greatness," and I'm just like, have we read the same book? O_o I personally found it bad as a book, and awful as a continuation to that series! (Sorry if it's your favorite book. >_>)

(Also, the followup series… it's okay~ish, but again, nowhere near to the original series either. I've only read the first two books. The third part has apparently come out last year. Maybe I'll read it some day. Or maybe not, we'll see.)

Huh. Ok, rant over. ^^;;

[mangodestroyer]

I got into fanfiction back in 2014, which is a long time, but compared to some people, I'm still a fandom young. I'm well aware that people have been doing this since the og Star Trek days. I know there are people in their 70's, maybe even older, who still write fanfiction. And I love it because these people will sometimes hop onto forums and share their fandom experience from decades ago.

And let me tell you, sometimes, fandom from the 90's and 2000's boggles my mind. One thing I've heard about from the 2000's was how authors would hold their story hostage if they didn't get enough reviews. And they had to be nice reviews too. No pointing out a spelling error or anything.

And these demands weren't light. They'd ask for five reviews per chapter. Sometimes even ten! I can't even imagine getting an average of ten comments per chapter. I'm typing up chapter five of my longfic currently and would be surprised if I got a comment because the first four chapters have been silent. After two months of posting, not a single word from the audience. And yet there were people so used to getting comments that they'd demand ten of them per chapter? People get comments on their stories???

In all fairness, comments did seem to be much more common back in the day. I remember when I first posted, the amount of comments I got almost matched the favorites on the story (back in 2015, I posted a very poorly written fic that got nine favorites and I think around seven reviews and I was pretty pumped because that was like a comment every chapter). Maybe us authors just got a little spoiled and some of us started expecting more. I think the people doing this were also probably very young. I know there are some very immature people in their mid-20's and older who hang out in fandom spaces, but that kind of behavior is much rarer with older individuals.

I still get bitter over my no comments though, lol. I might not say anything on my ao3, but I'll sometimes moan and groan about it over here on Tumblr. And I won't be holding my fic hostage over it. I'll pretend I'm taking it gracefully when in all reality I'm a little disappointed.

[magicblooms]

Of course Albus wouldn't even consider apologising for the mistakes he had made. Gellert readily accepted his own role in the destruction of their bond but he could see that the other man did not. He was far too proud and feeling self righteous in his beliefs and actions. Hearing that some of those choices were painful as only slight vindication but it wasn't enough. "No, I'm fully aware that you have no intention of joining me." Gellert would never admit aloud that he had still been hopeful that maybe, maybe Albus would see reason and realise the mistakes he had made. He would realise just what the Ministries were doing to their kind, all in the name of protection when what they really needed was protection from them. Albus should have known better then most just who the authorities sided with and it wasn't with the wizarding world. "You'd rather be the Ministries lap dog then ever admit that you were wrong." He snapped before he could help himself before he took a deep breath. He had not come here to fight and Albus was barely in a state to function, let alone argue with him.

Gellert reached out as Albus gasped softly, leaning heavily against the desk once more. He didn't dare touch him, knowing the reaction he would receive. But the temptation to just hold him, to comfort him was overwhelming. He recalled those few times Albus had sobbed in his arms during that summer, still grieving and struggling to find his place with a role that he never should have been burdened with in the first place. He remembered placing feather light kisses across his forehead, stroking those thick red curls as he whispered reassurances and declarations of love and adoration. But those days had long come to an end. At best, Albus would push him away. At worst he would raise his wand against him and this was no time or place to duel. But still he winced at seeing Albus like this. He watched in silence as the man moved across to fetch water. This was never what he wanted, despite how things were now between them. A world without Albus in it was inconceivable, even they were now to remain enemies for the rest of their days. "You should add this to your water. One drop, three times a day. It will relieve at least some of the side effects for now." He pulled a vial from his pocket and floated it over to Albus where he stood sipping water. "Did you really think useless Muggle items were going to destroy what we created? Would you attempt to terminate an Unbreakable Vow with a pen knife?" Gellert almost rolled his eyes at the thought of Albus wasting his efforts. The man was too brilliant to truly think common non magical items could break the troth. Perhaps he didn't really want to break their part or most likely his desperation to be free of him was leading him to act irrationally. He winced again at the mention of Ariana. He knew Albus wouldn't believe that he had also felt her loss greatly. He had come to feel quite protective over her and held her in great affection. He would never forgive himself for his participation in the events that had led to her death. Was that what had come between them or was it Albus betraying him the first time there had ever been a difficult choice to make? He would never forget the look on Albus' face that night when he had raised his wand against the man he had claimed to love above all others. "You might not want to hear it but you trying to break the bond is what is leading it to poison you, poison us." Gellert had never and would never make a pact with another living soul. But he was familiar enough with the magic they'd used, now more than back then. The research he had been conducting only confirmed what he had suspected. "You know the type of spells we used Albus. They bound us together. Past, present and future. It linked our magic and our very souls, if you believe that I still have one." The corners of his mouth twitched to indicate he was teasing. "You can't simply break that bond without consequence."

magicblooms​:

Gellert shook is head, knowing that it was better to hold his tongue than to snap and snarl back. He hadn’t come here to fight, something he felt Albus should have realised under the circumstances. There was no value to him risking his safety and freedom to simply come here and gloat over an old lover. He would have been better off staying safe at Nurmangard and just letting the troth finish off the one who was his ‘enemy’ while working on a cure for himself. “You made your choices Albus that day back in Godrics Hollow and you have had ample opportunity to come looking for me if you had wanted to.” Gellert had made many mistakes back in the Hollow, especially the fateful night that still often caused him to awaken in a cold sweat and gasping for air. He shouldn’t have cast those spells against Albus’ brother, if only because he was Albus’ brother. He knew he shouldn’t have run the way he did but he had panicked. Ariana was dead and Albus had raised his wand against him! Him! Perhaps if he had stayed, tried to talk to Albus and demand an explanation… He had spent decades mulling over this and there was little point to continue. Gellert watched as the troth coiled around Albus’ neck once more, not as tight as it had been earlier but it still felt incredibly dangerous. Just how long had this been going on for? Much longer than he had suspected. Perhaps since Albus himself had come into possession of it. A betrayal, since it had been stolen! By that little red headed pet of Albus’ no less. Gellert had been furious and uncontrollable when he had realised the pact was missing. He hadn’t left a single thing in his office standing or in one piece, feeling nothing but pure rage and grief at the loss. “The troth cannot be beaten by whatever magic or Muggle tools you are attempting to use. I’m afraid we were quite thorough in our spells, even back then.” Neither had even considered the possibility that they might not be together, forever. They’d been fools. So young and in love and clinging to the firm belief in ever after, even if they weren’t so sure it would entirely happy. They’d both known the revolution they were going to create wouldn’t necessarily lend itself to complete happiness. But being side by side with Albus would have been enough.

Gellert made no attempt to leave as Albus once more tried to suggest he leave. If his husband thought he was going to leave him in this state without at least attempting to help, he had lost his mind. Albus might be ready to accept his what he believed to be his fate but Gellert wasn’t going to simply allow him to play the role of martyr so quickly or soon. “Since you have had the troth, what have you been doing with it?” Gellert watched him closely as he waited for his response. He feared that Albus intended to break the blood pact, which would certainly explain why it was attacking them after all this time. Gellert had never wanted such a thing, hopeful for so long that perhaps one day they would find their way back to each other. “Planning to break the bond?”

❝—And  I  stand  by  my  choices,  no  matter  how  painful  some  of  them  might  be,❞  he  quickly  shot  back.  ❝Why  would  I  have  come  looking  for  you,  Gellert?  The  lines  have  been  drawn.  The  only  reason  I’d  need  to  come  looking  for  you  is  to  join  you  and  we  both  know  that  I  will  not.❞

And  honestly  he  wasn’t  trying  to  pick  a  fight.  Heck,  the  last  thing  he  wanted  to  be  doing  right  now  is  fighting  with  his  ex,  but  if  he  kept  making  little  comments,  that’s  exactly  what  this  was  going  to  turn  into  and  Albus  be  damned  if  he  allow  himself  to  be  berated  in  his  own  damn  home.  Not  when  there  was  enough  blame  to  go  around  on  both  sides.

He  let  out  a  shaky  breath  as  he  gripped  the  desk.  He  wanted  to  sit  back  down,  but  he  knew  he’d  be  tempted  to  lull  himself  back  to  sleep.  Now  was  not  the  time  when  he  had  a  visitor  and  one  who’d  likely  have  a  lot  to  say  about  his  sleeping  habits.

The  necklace  went  ignored  again.  Albus  found  it  best  not  to  think  about  its  actions.  If  he  worried  too  much  about  the  coiling  around  his  neck,  he  might  start  panicking  all  over  again.  Gellert’s  gaze  did  not  go  unnoticed  this  time,  but  again,  Albus  brushed  it  off.  Gellert’s  concern  wasn’t  needed  right  now.  Not  when  his  ex  couldn’t  help  much  in  the  first  place.

❝Yes,  well  thank  you  for  the  kind  reminder,❞  he  huffed.  ❝I  gathered  that  much  after  several  vain  attempts  at  busting  it  open.❞

Because  initially,  he  had  sought  to  merely  free  himself  from  the  chains  keeping  him  from  living  life  in  a  new  direction.  The  necklace  was  a  horrible  reminder  of  a  past  gone  wrong.  Ridding  himself  of  the  feeling  had  been  on  his  immediate  agenda.  Much  research  had  gone  into  it  with  Albus  finding  little  by  means  of  destroying  dark  objects  such  as  the  troth.  He  had  given  up  for  a  time,  carrying  on  with  life  until  the  sickness  began.  Subtle  at  first,  and  something  he  thought  he  could  simply  rest  off,  but  in  time  things  only  worsened.  Maybe  it  had  been  naive  to  believe  mere  Muggle  objects  could  destroy  the  chain,  but  it  had  been  worth  a  try  when  all  else  failed.  Now  more  than  ever  he  was  convinced  it  would  take  some  really  powerful  magic,   but  his  own  was  far  too  weak  right  now  and  that  complicated  things.

He  slowly  moved  from  behind  the  desk,  crossing  the  room  with  poise  despite  the  pain.  There  was  a  small  table  that  had  a  chalice  upon  it  filled  with  water.  He  reached  for  it,  taking  a  few  sips.  The  house  elves  were  good  about  keeping  him  something  to  drink  even  if  Albus  often  declined.

Gellert’s  question  made  him  pause,  turning  to  look  at  him  warily.  As  if  he  didn’t  already  know.  What  ELSE  would  he  have  been  doing  with  an  object  determined  to  steer  his  fate?  ❝Up  until  now,  I’ve  been  doing  research  on  how  to  possibly  destroy  it.  Most  recently  I’ve  been  trying  to  smash  it  to  bits,  but  to  no  avail.❞

Albus  turned  away,  scoffing.  ❝The  bond  was  broken  the  moment  Ariana  died.  You  know  this.  It’s  not  some…  grand  secret  that  I’ve  been  keeping.❞