#i'm not even saying that only my characterization is correct but i just wonder.....

[confessionseddie]

i find it so interesting how sometimes fic characterizations really work for me literally right up until the point where they have sex. is that a me problem or what. does anyone else experience this frequently

[dedalvs]

ive done a lot of translating to high valyrian in my day and id like to think im pretty good at it sometimes (the way ive spent literal hours researching how just one piece of grammar works to change a noun to an adverb or something is maybe insane)

anyway all that to say i usually know what to look for and how to apply it, but i am struggling with this new bit im trying to translate. “i disdain all glittering gold.”

ive replaced disdain with hate cause there doesnt seem to be a word for disdain in valyrian and hate is the closest approximation. same with glittering — replaced that with shine, and had to manually transform that to an adjective (jehikagon -> jehikere? dunno if its right)

so what i have now is “nyke buqan unir jehikere aeksion”

(im not as concerned with getting the word order right as i am with the rest of the grammar)

ive learned from a previous answer “nyke” is potentially (probably) unnecessary here, so that leaves it as “buqan unir jehikere aeksion,” but the unir there in the middle kinda makes it feel off and im not sure if maybe that also needs to be part of a compound word like valar or how to make it one if so because idk what part of valar is all and what part is men and how to fit aeksion into that equation.

i lost track of what my question was originally meant to be but i guess im wondering if im on the right track and if theres some guidance you may have to get me all the way there.

thank you for your time 🙏

Uhhhhhh... Not to be that dude, but...maybe be more concerned with that...?

I'm not sure if you know about this site, but my wiki is exhaustively updated with respect to High Valyrian, specifically. There's a team of people that work on High Valyrian and it's massive. For example, you could go to the entry for jehikagon and see that jehikere is wrong: it should be jehikare. And, of course, it has to agree with āeksion (note the long ā), so it should be jehikarior. To get the sense of repetitiveness (with "glittering"), you might add ā- to the front, so ājehikarior.

Now for "all", why not use the collective? This is how you get "All men must die", so it should work for "I distain all glittering gold". That would be āeksior. Of course, it would need to be in the accusative, so altogether it would be ājehikarior āeksȳndi. By adding the repetitive you kind of get the aliteration, too, since they both begin with ā.

Finally you have "disdain", for which buqagon serves. Aside from sound a little more posh, the difference between "disdain" and "hate" in English seems to be one of duration. The words "disdain" and "loathe" seem to emphasize that this is a character trait rather than a reaction. If you disdain something, you've given it some thought, have experience with it, and may use this as a way of describing or characterizing yourself. You can do this with "hate" as well, but it's a much more common word, and so can be used in other more basic ways, whereas "disdain" and "loathe" tend to only have specalized uses. To try to approximate this, you could use the frequentative with buqagon to imply a lengthy duration. That would give you jobuqan "I disdain". In fact, you could even use the aorist if you really wanted to imply that it was a description of yourself, i.e. jobuqin.

Now that you have the pieces, though, I really hate to say it, but the words must be in the right order. I mean, you can change the order of the noun and adjective, if you'd like, but you simply cannot put the verb first and think you've created a Valyrian sentence. It's not just "kind of" wrong: it's completely wrong. It'd be like suggesting "I him saw" is close enough in English because the forms are correct. It's not. It's wrong. This is not a minor part of the grammar you can ignore. High Valyrian is aggressively verb-final. The verb must be at the end.

All in all, that gives you:

Ājehikarior āeksȳndi jobuqin.

Hope that helps!

[lieutenantfloyd]

heyyy so i just read the rooster sfw alphabet and i was wondering if u could do one for mr hangman? if not it’s totally ok! have a great day or night :)))

SFW Alphabet — Jake "Hangman" Seresin

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x reader

Warnings: mentions of alcohol, jealousy, etc

a/n: A year later, and I'm finally in my Hangman era.

Also If you haven't yet, please check out the general Hangman headcanons I posted a while ago, as it gives a bit more context to my characterization of him!

a- asking (Who's the first person to confess and how does it happen?)

Jake will ask you out (or offer to take you home) first but when it comes to actual confessions of feelings, you'll need to initiate it. I truly believe that once Jake begins to fall for someone, he panics. He has no idea what to do with these feelings and will need you to take the reigns.

B - Butterflies (How they act when they're nervous.)

Do you think Hangman is cocky with a strong streak of narcissism now? A nervous Jake is an infinite amount worse, as he uses his already contentious traits as the ultimate defense mechanism.

c- cuddles (What is their favorite cuddling position? Do they like physical touch?)

Given the correct circumstances, I fully see Hangman as being very cuddly. Particularly when he's sleepy, drunk, or just returning from deployment. Once Jake is in a relationship where he feels safe and secure, he becomes more than a bit clingy as well.

d- domesticity (Are they the type to settle down with you? Are they willing to help with chores? What is your daily routine with them?)

Contrary to popular belief, Jake is 100% the type to settle down. Furthermore, he's the type to have the full American dream. Several kids and a nice white picket fence included. As far as domestic chores go, he was raised in a very traditional household where the men did none of the housework. Once he settles down though, he wants to help out but doesn't know where to start. Instead, he throws himself into more "masculine" chores, like mowing the lawn and paying the bills.  While it'll take a bit of time (and patience on your part) for him to break the habit, soon he'll be cooking, cleaning, and caretaking better than you could've ever dreamed of.

e- encouragement (Do they encourage you to achieve your goals? If so, how do they support you?)

If there's one thing Jake can do, it's hyping someone up. Once you're in a relationship, all bets are off and he instantly becomes your personal hype man. There's even been a few times he nearly got himself kicked out of an event for being too rowdy. Whether it's celebrating a major life goal or completing your weekly shopping, Jake will be by your side cheering you on.

f- favorite thing(s) about you (What are their favorite personality traits/physical features about you?)

He loves how you challenge him and push him to be a better man.

g- goofiness (Do they like to make you laugh? How often do they joke around with you?)

He's the type of man to make a complete fool of himself just to make you crack a smile. Ego be damned.

h- honesty (Would they lie to you? How much do they share with you?)

While I don't think he's a liar, he does have a tendency to spin things in his favor to avoid conflict. This is especially true early on in your relationship before he feels fully comfortable. Once you two start building a life together, this habit disappears completely.

i- i love you (how fast do they say the L-Word?) 

I can see this being a pretty big point of contention in your relationship. It's not that Jake doesn't love you (he's actually head or heels boots for you) it's just that those same insecurities keep bubbling up. His heart all but begs him you say those three words to you, but his head keeps winning out. What If you don't feel the same? What if he scares you off? What if you laugh in his face? Vulnerability is far from his strong suit, so this can only end up one of two ways. If you say it first: He'll give you the biggest, widest smile and pull you into the tightest hug. It's not lost to him how a few tears spill as he echoes those three words. If it turns into a big blowout fight: Only to end up spilling his guts while dodging your eyes, silently praying to whatever is out there that he made the right choice.

j- jealousy (Are they the type of person to get jealous? If so, how do they react to being jealous?)

Hangman, for better or worse, is jealous as the day is long. It all stems from several poorly hidden insecurities. A major one is that deep down he's always waiting on the other shoe to drop, as he believes that he doesn't deserve you. Jealous Jake is explosive, flippant, and often downright mean. This is especially true if he's at the hard deck and has had a drink or two. On a good day, he'll stomp around the bar and give you the silent treatment. On a bad day, he'll be going toe to toe with whoever gives you more than a passing glance.

k- kissing (Where do they like to kiss you? How frequently do they like to kiss?)

In public, he's an old school, arm around your shoulder, kisses in your hair kinda guy. In private he's a big fan of sneaking up behind you and giving you a few kisses on your neck.

l- love language (What's their love language?)

Words of affirmation. His less-than-stellar childhood paired with his career in the armed forces has left him craving the particular type of love only words of affection can give. Just a mere "Have fun!" Text, when he goes out with Javy, is enough to make his heart pound happily in his chest.

m- marriage (Do they want to marry you eventually? Who proposes to who?)

As mentioned in letter D, he's the all-American type, and marriage is just another aspect of that. I don't see him doing a big planned proposal though. Instead, he'll end up asking for your hand while you're like, washing the dishes (or something equally as mundane). He's actually been thinking about it for like two years but he's too nervous to say anything, but this time the thought of his wife washing the dishes in his house was too much to bear

n- nicknames (What do they call you? What do you call them?)

He calls you: Sugar, Doll, cupcake, or anything else sickeningly sweet You call him: Honey, Darling, Jakey, Jay... Cowboy and/or Tex when you want to get on his nerves

o- openness (How much do they tell you about themselves? Do they reveal everything at once or gradually throughout the relationship?)

You wouldn't be a fool to think Jake has told you everything. Lord knows that man loves to talk about himself. Yet if you look hard enough, you'll see inklings of a deeper, darker story lying beneath. Despite this, you won't press him about it. It stays in the back of your mind until one day, when the sun shines just right, he'll choose to reveal every part of his backstory to you.

p- PDA (Are they affectionate in public or do they prefer to keep your kisses behind closed doors? Are they the type to brag about their SO?)

One thing that surprises you when you first start going out with him is that he's shockingly shy when it comes to PDA, especially around those that know him best. As your relationship grows he'll be a bit more lenient when it comes to ODA, but he'll still always prefer to keep the larger displays of affection behind closed doors.

q- quality time (how do they like to spend time with you?)

Paintball, hiking, axe throwing... He likes to try new activities or do something physical. Really, anything that allows him to be a show off.

r- romance (Are they the romantic type? If so, how do they express their feelings?)

Hangman is the most accidentally romantic man you'll ever meet. On any random Thursday, he'll cook dinner, string up fairy lights in the backyard, and hire a string quartet. Not to be romantic, just because he thinks you'll find it cool.

s- security (How protective are they of you? If they are, how do they show this?)

Hangman would quite literally both kill and die for the people he loves. Luckily, in everyday life, he takes a more chill approach to things and is instead very trustworthy and dependable.

t- turn-offs (What traits do they find unattractive?)

Jake is a son of Texas through and through, and is immediately turned off by anyone who is disrespectful and lacks manners. Oh, and anyone who supports Aggie football.

u- understanding (Are they good at sympathizing with your problems? Do they listen to you when you need to rant?)

He's decently understanding. If you're prone to more emotional responses, he may struggle a bit with that. Nonetheless, he will always sympathize and/or let you rant to him if need be.

v- value (What do they value most about your relationship?)

Having someone in his corner. With his choice of career, he understands better than most the importance of having someone you can depend on no matter what.

w- wild card (A random headcanon about your relationship)

Hat. Rule. If you're going out with Jake, his nice white cowboy hat will inevitably become a staple of your wardrobe.

x- x-ray (How well are they able to read you?)

When it comes to emotional labor, he is more than a bit oblivious. He'll even admit that it is a foreign concept to him. Like other areas of your relationship, give him some grace and a few pointers and he'll figure it out soon enough.

y- yearning (How well do they cope when their SO isn't with them?)

It takes a while for your absence to sink in. After it does, his ego won't let him admit he's in shambles without you. Unfortunately, anyone who has the (dis)pleasure of being in his presence during this time Is well aware. Javy has even taken it upon himself to alert the rest of the squad when you leave town, etc so they can prepare.

z- zappy (Are they fast-paced in a relationship? Or do they like to take things slow?)

A relationship with Jake will start off as an achingly slow burn. But give him time and your unwavering love, and before you know it, you'll have a full-on forest fire.

[ducklooney]

"Ah s**t, here we go again."

I have absolutely no interest in who likes what and who thinks what, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but this is stupid to make a wiki blog called "Loathsome Characters Wiki" and put everyone you don't like here. What is your frustration?

All in all, yes there are plenty of characters in cartoons, comics, video games, anime, manga and other media where they are really bad and boring, but they wouldn't be characters if they didn't have their flaws. There are some bad and some good versions of the characters. Well, now the problem is that supposedly "bad" versions of those characters were put on that blog, even though there is nothing to hate about them. I mean why put Mugman from The Cuphead Show here: https://loathsomecharacters.miraheze.org/wiki/Blog:Mugman_(The_Cuphead_Show!)

But the worst problem is that I saw that the author of that Wiki blog listed Huey, Dewey and Louie Duck from Quack Pack and Donald Duck from Mickey Mouse Cartoons by Paul Rudish among the obnoxious characters. What makes them disgusting? I've watched both series, and I'm a Quack Pack fan myself, and I've never seen the characters being obnoxious anywhere. There may have been moments where they behaved badly, but a character should have his flaws and correct them, not be a Gary Stue or a Mary Sue. Donald Duck did treat Mickey badly in the first episode "No Service", and it's normal to be jealous of him in certain things, but in the end Donald lost to Mickey. Yes, there were bad moments with him, but he changed and what I liked is that Donald is a really good person in Mickey Mouse Cartoons and what's good is that he didn't remain the butt-monkey he was in Mickey Mouse Works and House of Mouse. And he cannot be flanderized at all in the first seasons, because flanderization usually happens in later seasons, not in the first seasons. So to say that Donald from MMC and WWOMM (Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse) is a loathsome character is wrong. Also, check out this episode where Donald isn't as nasty to Mickey as he seems to be and it's Mickey's own fault for putting Donald in danger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7O22GuSc58

Split Decision is called that episode.

As for Huey, Dewey and Louie Duck from Quack Pack, they put too much on the 1990s settings, but if they turned off the 1990s and only looked at their personalities, it would be really cool, that is, in my opinion, their good characterizations appeared in puberty. Maybe the only version where I see them growing up. It's true that in certain episodes they misbehaved with Donald and played bad tricks on him (episodes like "Can't Take a Yolk" and "Duck Quake"), but they got their karma back from Unca Donald when he got revenge on them via trolling or setting it to turbo level with the earthquake machine produced by Ludwig von Drake. Donald taught them a lesson in the end, although he also did stupid things that got his karma back (that's how bad luck works). And they're not assholes except Huey, he is. But to say that they don't respect their uncle is idiotic, because every time their uncle was in trouble, they decided to save him, just like Uncle Donald did them every time. And their dynamic relationship worked really well as a father-son relationship, and Donald was a really great parent to them. Otherwise worse situations between Donald and his nephews were in classic shorts and old comics. So they are spouting too much nonsense for that site, which probably didn't even watch the series properly. And Donald's nephews were not flanderized because every episode showed the good and bright points of those characters. Too bad there aren't more episodes or comics about them. And yes, there are worse versions of Donald's nephews than the Quack Pack, especially if you look at House of Mouse and Mickey's Twice Upon A Christmas. Still for me the Quack Pack of Donald's nephews is the best version of them after the classic version from the OG Ducktales, Carl Barks, Dutch and Italian comics.

Not to mention how that author also put Daisy Duck from House of Mouse as an abomination, which is really unacceptable. I'm not against different opinions, but this is idiotic. So everyone I don't like is a disgusting character? Lol. All in all just put the reaction of Peter Griffin from Family Guy saying, "Oh my God! Who the hell cares!" and I don't care what certain people with problems have to say nor do I care what others say. So much so that we can close already this time around the unnecessary hatred towards Donald and Donald's nephews, which makes absolutely no sense. It's a good thing that the Quack Pack hate has lessened and that the series and fandom has become popular again unlike before. And yes I like Donald from Mickey Mouse Cartoons by Paul Rudish and Huey, Dewey and Louie from Quack Pack.

If you like this meme and agree with me, feel free to like and reblog this!

[extraordinarilyextreme]

Are you watching under the skin 2? What do you think of the season so far?

hiiiii~ thanks for asking, and sorry for such a late reply. i had been watching but couldn't finish it until recently (hence why im answering so late)...

in short, i don't like it. so if you don't wanna read abt a negative opinion then click away~

i think the cast delivered as wonderful performances as usual, and i think the cinematography was quite beautiful (there are a lot of details that i really adore as an artist). but the script/writing/pacing... even the characterization... left much to be desired.

there are so many things to critique...

to start with, as someone studying psychology, i've found it laughable since s1 that everyone buys into Freudian psychoanalysis so much - but they really took it to the next level in s2. i'm a staunch abolitionist and also anti-police, so i'm always watching shows like this with a critical eye, but it's just utterly mind-boggling that this show/the writers really suggested that crimes can be solved and culprits can be pinpointed because they drew a house in a certain way. and i hate that the show made DC out to be the bad guy for "limiting SY's talents/intuition" or whatever.

i already don't trust our so-called "justice" system; now you're telling me police should be solving crimes and accusing people based on a hunch? (that "hunch" in real life often looks like profiling and stereotyping, mind you, and it can be fatal.)

Du Cheng isn't in the wrong! and i hate even more that even in the last episode before Shen Yi's confession they had him say "but i was wrong. my boundaries, in truth, were limiting your talents." (and yes i know SY corrects him, but) IT FEELS SO OUT-OF-CHARACTER compared to the resolve that DC had back in s1. there, SY's laoshi begged DC to return SY to the art world, but without even flinching, DC firmly rejected that notion.

because being an officer beside DC, in Beijiang, is where SY belongs. AND THEY BOTH REACH THAT CONCLUSION AT THE END OF S1. they both affirm their convictions, that they belong beside each other - so why did we just spend another 28 episodes only to reaching the same result ("where you run to, is where i'll fly to." and "where you are, is where the circle is too." and "i will forever be your best trump card.")???

another issue: yes, SY has always had his reckless streak - but how can he possibly get away with doing so many investigations completely independent from DC and without DC's knowledge?? that's not realistic at all. and, fine, obviously they're dramatizing things, but what i liked about s1 is that it was just realistic "enough" to keep me invested - it deviated just "enough" from your typical procedural/crime-solving show (by tackling cases from the unique lens of a sketch artist) that i could just convince myself it was grounded in reality. but what they did in s2... like, come on. let's not kid ourselves.

Shen Yi being so infallible and able to get away with so many reckless stunts is a Huge failing of s2. talk about "main character energy". they made this into a 大男主 drama when what (i found) appealing about s1 was the fact that it made both DC and SY brilliant and competent in their own ways. this season tried so hard to make DC seem like an unbudging traditionalist or something but ??? like, no! i agree with him that you can't just be arresting people based on their choices in interior design or jewelry! what the fuck??

(but, seriously. i will not deny that our subconscious influences our behavior and choices in many, MANY ways - but for Shen Yi to be making the most outrageous leaps in logic because this one guy had a certain painting in his office or this other guy had a lioness statue, like shut the fuck up... talk about trying to make/find meaning out of nothing.)

(also, also, LOL at talking abt the Oedipus complex in earnest. are you shitting me right now? have you picked up a Psychology 101 book at all?)

the fact this show even remotely suggested that Freudian psychoanalysis could be used as empirical evidence immediately destroys any goodwill i have toward the cast.

ON TOP OF THAT. the fact this show even remotely suggested that eugenicist Cesare Lombroso's theory of the "criminal man" should be treated as empirical and sound research is just... what are we doing here. what are we doing here???

(also if you look up the "warrior gene" and whatever other stuff FKY was "citing"... again, it's not empirical research. and i HATE that the writers tried to pass it off as an established concept.)

honestly i feel like the way they wrote this FKY guy in general is disrespectful af to what scientists actually do (or what scientists should strive to be). at the simplest level, how can he allow SY to walk into his lab so easily? and look at his data?? don't we have IRB protocols in place to protect research subjects??? what about where he gets his funding??? any oversight agencies???

but in terms of characterization, i felt that the parallels they were trying to draw between pre-7 years SY and FKY were such a stretch. because even pre-7 years SY was fundamentally kind - LIKE DOESN'T THE SHOW EVEN ULTIMATELY REACH THAT CONCLUSION TOO?? why WHY would SY ever feel like he and FKY were mirrors; they are fundamentally different in their bottom lines.

all this to say, i love the cast and i'm glad it was 原班人马 because everybody Delivered (and zheng yunlong did a great job too) - but, like, no wonder the original screenwriters left. this story is bs. we should've just left it at s1 because, to me, s2 did nothing except pander to shippers (and i'm mostly happily pandered! but i also care about the story goddammit).

(i say "mostly" because, again, i think they tried too hard to give SY a "protagonist halo." it weakened both him and DC, and their relationship as a result.)

i can't believe they're making a s3 but of course i can because they're making great money from this... hoping and praying that they can get the original writers back.

[celaenaeiln]

Hello, love. I just wanted to say that I get on tumblr once in a blue moon and i came here from Chapter 10 of your react fic on ao3. And I love you??? I'm BINGING your Dick Grayson posts and I love them. Even if you didn't have screenshot proof, i would believe you 100%, but i LOVE that you put screenshots and pictures and references. Genuinely, the Best. I need to comment on the chapter with all of thoughts and squealing but it's like 3am for me XD, so I'll have to do it later. Thank you so much!!

(And I'm super tired and I haven't looked through everything of yours but i was wondering how exactly you felt about WFA and Dickie in that, particularly the most recent episodes wirh him and Bruce. Only if you'd like, i dont mind)

Link to fic

OMG BESTIE!!!! HI!!!!

GIRLIE YOU CAN LITERALLY LEAVE A DOT AND YOU'D HAVE ME KICKING AND SCREAMING ILYSM!!!! <333!!!

IM ALWAYS SUPER SUPER SUUUUUPPPPEEERRRRR HAPPY TO SEE YOU!!!!

HMU LATER I HAVE SO MUCH TO SCREAM WITH YOU ABOUT!!! omg LOVEEEE talking to you, you always get me hyped!!!

babe, i'll talk about everything with you, with utter joy! Omg sorry for the late response, you and anon especially, I genuinely just had no idea how I felt about wfa.

I thought about this for a long time but it wasn't until I got a third post on it that I realized what i thought about it and why.

I, personally, kinda hate it. But let me also start off by saying that because I hate it, I don't read it. I've seen some of it on tumblr and it's cute but also the thing is it's not really accurate and I'm alllll about not standing for mischaracterization just because there's already so much of it present in the batfam fandom, a serialization of this just makes the incorrect assumptions worse.

See, the thing about wfa is that it's the batfam set in a very idealized world. And because of how the perfect world is created, some of the characters personalities and actions have been altered. So their trauma and beliefs are kinda bashed away, but it's implied that their histories still follow canon comics.

And that's where it pisses me off. If wfa was pure crack and humor, I would love the heck out of it, but the irritating thing is it tries to stay accurate to the characterizations. But because it's set in such a perfect world, the character's personalities are distorted in some aspects but left alone in others.

So what's the problem with this? It causes the webtoon to be both correct in their characterizations and absolutely as far wrong as possible. If the webtoon was completely wrong with the portrayal of the characters, it would be easy to enjoy or critique the content and easy to at least be aware of what's true and what's not. But it's not like that. It's 50% absolutely correct and 50% horribly, couldn't-be-more wrong which just increases the amount of mischaracterizations that going on about the characters. If there's a problem it lasts for liek two seconds and they immediately fix it without exploring the character's thought process in any way that can be taken seriously. All their problems are treated like scratching at the newly healed skin of a wound. It's useless but a temporarily worthwhile distraction.

Of the pages I've seen, I also don't like it because while it's light hearted, it's not my style of humor. Everyone is literally just a big manchild. It's nice in a objective kind of way and it's entertaining in that it comes up with a lot of fantasy scenarios that are new but the character's personalities are bland and all kind of the same. They're all happy, sarcastic, and pouty.

If this was the masked singer style and wfa characters were drawn with no identifying features - just a blank circle for arms and some rectangles for body parts but had dialogue, you literally wouldn't be able to tell them apart.

So in summary I dislike it because while the super idealized world is nice, the character's personalities are altered only sometimes to make them act in a way they never would in canon while at the same time, picking and choosing what they like from canon relationships which causes the horrible mischaracterization and bland personalities. It's manchild humor and lame jokes. But it's very creative and I can appreciate it for that. So I dislike but I don't hate it. It just sort of irritates me.

[aihoshiino]

(I had this crazy moment when thinking about ONK today and wanted to tell someone)

If your speculation on the HKAI "I cannot love you" moment is correct, I wonder if the AQRB confrontation re Ruby's request to be seen (and loved) as Sarina to Aqua's Gorou will lead to a similar respond. Ie "I cannot love you the way you want me to, even in the scenario you just described."

Because at the end of the day, if I'm reading it correctly, Gorou was never serious in his "till you're 16" response to Sarina. They both knew that she wouldn't live past 12. Sarina/Ruby is delusional but only in a way a girl (sick and fated to die at 12 with the only person kind to her being her doctor) who didn't get to mature in her thinking could be. And imo that parallels to Hikaru, who's experience in "romance" was offering himself in exchange for "love". (Airi's defense for herself was that they were in love, which I suspect was something she told Hikaru, too.)

Tldr: Ruby in her right mind would not proposition her brother, just like 15YL Hikaru in his right would not think grooming is a form of romance. And it is the other person's responsibility to say "no, I can not offer you what (you think) you want".

Another response that's ultimately too late oops… I do still have a lot to say on this topic tho so I hope it's still interesting to read!

Message from future Claire after they finished writing this ask: tehepero… this one turned into a huge ramble so um. please forgive me. Also, spoilers for Usagi Drop made their way in here, if someone somehow doesn't know the big twist of that ending in 2024…

RE: Gorou and Sarina, this is for sure the intended read of their relationship to a degree . Spica downplays/sidesteps this aspect of their relationship a lot but even there it's said explicitly that Gorou was one hundred percent aware that Sarina's long term prognosis was basically non existent. It definitely makes him way more indulgent of and receptive to the "omg Sensei marry me stuff" but even then it's pretty clear that it is, again, just indulging her.

The manga by contrast is much more strongly characterized by this sense of shared but unspoken preemptive grief for the inevitable, where both of them understand but don't really want to talk about it out loud. It added an interesting wrinkle to their relationship that I liked a lot and was disappointed to see Spica iron out but ironing out the interesting parts is kind of what Spica does in general and isn't specific to Gorou and Sarina lol

BUT UH my point is that because of this shared sense of grief and awareness of Sarina's mortality I never really got the impression that she was under even the slightest illusion that Gorou was serious which is why later materials' framing of her as being convinced she can and will be in a relationship with him feel so weird to me. The SENSEI KEKKON SHITE thing doesn't even really feel like Sarina herself is all that serious about it - the energy is almost more like a running bit. Obviously her feelings for him were very strongly and sincerely held and I do think it makes sense for her to jump to actively wanting to be in a romance with him and thinking it was plausible post 123 when her brain has been ensoupened but again, there's that backfill in both Spica and main story material that implies she was ALWAYS that hung up on and deluded about him and tbh I don't really know what to make of it.

In an exclusively post 123 context though, I do really agree with this take on Ruby! This is obviously not a healthy response nor is she thinking at all realistically about what she's propositioning, especially given the kind of weird energy in 143 where she just never even acknowledges Aqua's existence as her brother. Honestly the way OnK has handled AquRuby since 123 and its reluctance to actually acknowledge the incest when it bothers to take Ruby's feelings is very strange to me and I can't quite tell if it's intentional or not yet.

If it IS intentional, then I think it's the set up for Ruby being smacked in the face with the reality of what actually being in a relationship with Gorou-via-Aqua would would actually mean. Because like, regardless of how you or me or anyone feels about incest as a fictional device, in-universe Oshi no Ko is essentially set in our own world - a dramatically exaggerated version with supernatural elements, sure, but still paralleling our own closely enough to comment on real world issues. For OnK to treat most of the other taboos and issues it addresses as seriously as it does and NOT do the same with incest would be incredibly jarring and deeply incongruous.

If you'll forgive a tangent within a tangent, this is a big part of why the infamous ending of Usagi Drop comes off as so fucking unhinged. It's not just that the story twists itself into a pretzel to hook up Rin and Daikichi (though, you know… that), it's that everyone in the cast acts like a fucking space alien on service of making it happen and it occurs with no conflict or consequences. There's this bizarre energy around the cast interactions that's hard to accurately convey, but every time someone in-universe finds out about Rin's feelings for Daikichi, it's immediately treated like them hooking up is not only the obvious and inevitable conclusion but that Daikichi is somehow obligated to enter a romance with Rin purely because she has feelings for him. Daikichi's own feelings on the matter are irrelevant. As far as the story is concerned, him going from seeing Rin as his daughter to seeing Rin (very explicitly and textual) as a romantic and sexual partner is as easy as flipping a switch and it's purely macho stubbornness that keeps him from doing so. It's absolutely mind boggling to read.

Anyway. Oh my God. To cut my EXTREMELY long rambling short and actually loop back around to the point of all this: Because of ^ ALL THAT ^ and the way the story has very conspicuously dodged around the HKAI breakup and suddenly swerved to 15YL's depiction of Ai's time in hospital, I'm still pretty certain that the "I can't love you (like that)" is going to be the main emotional capstone for Ruby's own character arc within the Movie Arc as a whole and possibly the emotional climax/resolution of wtfever OnK is doing with AQRB (& GRSR through them) right now. Given how much weight was given to that scene in particular way back when I'd be shocked if we skipped it and I do think there's some merit to the reads of Aqua and Ruby each paralleling the 'opposite' parent, so to speak - Nik (@akane-kurokawa) even pointed out in their 143 review that while the AquRuby kiss is paralleled by the in-movie HikaAi kiss, Aqua is in Ai's position and Ruby is in Hikaru's.

I do hope that this is something intentional and that we'll see something come of it - if nothing else, seeing Ruby have to deal with her relationship to and feelings about her father and the knowledge that he killed her beloved mom is something I really wanted out of the Movie Arc and I've been sorely disappointed by it being reduced to gag fodder thus far. But like I always say at this point, the Movie Arc is such an unfocused clusterfuck I have no idea if this is something we can rely on to be a long term theme.

[annabtg]

8, 9, 11, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 23, 30 :) 💜

Oooh, thank you for the extensive list, jayne!! 💜💜

8. What fic meant the most to you to write?

A few fics could fit this bill but the top place goes to Verses Written In '74. I've had the skeleton of the concept in my head since I finished writing My Best Friend's Girl (the fic that probably takes all-time top place in 'meant the most to me') and it was wonderful to actually put it into words. Also, I hadn't written Sirius/Lily in a while and I have a soft spot for them - I had to! And lastly, it makes use of one of my favourite songs ever. ❤️

9. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

The Big Little Moments. Not that it didn't give me trouble at some point, but overall it was so fluffy and I was so happy with my writing in it and I got to fit all the late 70s headcanons I wanted in it so :D

11. What fic was the most difficult to write?

Perhaps counterintuitively, Verses Written In '74. It's a setup not many people, um, agree with, so I had to set it up properly, make it read independently from MBFG (Idk why I just didn't want it to be a sequel??) get the characterizations right, and do all that without destroying the atmosphere that I wanted it to convey. The smut was the easiest part. :p

15. What was the hardest fic to title?

The Three-Minute Initiative was the only one that gave me real trouble! And I wasn't sure about the title even after posting it - though I admit it sounds catchy!

17. Share your favourite opening line.

Going through my fics, I realize that my opening line is usually a statement, and the good part comes right after. xD I'd say that the first line from Drunk With Power is a fun one!

“Sit up straight, Evans.”

18. Share your favourite ending line.

Hah, ending lines are much more my strength! I'll go with the last line of crawl home, which was different in the first draft but I had it in my mind that it had to end with a sentence similar to the one we see here and I was very pleased with myself when I got it right:

There was nothing to fear — he was already dead. And nothing else to do but clamber out of that wretched grave, face the right side of the earth again, and crawl home.

20. Share your funniest line.

Have I even written anything funny this year? Lol 😅 Probably this exchange from Drunk With Power:

“You have to set a good example.” His wand tip presses harder into her back – it doesn’t hurt, it’s just annoying enough to keep her head up. “Correct posture is very important when you’re reading. You don’t want to get back pain.” “I do have a pain in my back, as it happens.”

21. What's something that surprised you while you were working on a fic? Did it change the story?

Well - Anemoia was supposed to be a Jily fic from Harry's POV, but it ended up becoming a Harry-mourning-Sirius fic with some Hinny. I'm not too upset about it. xD

23. If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?

Sadly, I don't think I had THE moment. Writing Fixed Luck might be a good candidate, because when I started working on it I hadn't written anything in exactly two months and was already questioning whether I'd be able to ever write again at all.

30. What would you like to write next year?

I want to finish my Ironmaster AU!! AAAAAAH I was on such a roll with it until I got stuck in my own head about the worldbuilding etc. and now the words aren't wording at all. I need to restart my brain somehow. Hopefully once this stupid cold goes away I'll be able to focus better!

2024 in review questions here!

[yujeong]

For all the time I've been losing my mind over Pete's tattoo (to the point of getting it tattooed on my own fucking body), I've never really talked about it here, have I? Well. Let me do it now I guess.

The first thing I would like to present here is the origins of Pete's tattoo from the novels. I know, I know, the novels suck and I wasn't proud of including it in Trust is a fragile thing but it was compelling enough that it fit Pete's characterization. A broken clock shows the correct time twice a day or however the phrase goes. Apparently, Tankhun forced all his bodyguards to get tattoos at some point, and Pete got that one for reasons I'm not aware of. I've heard people say that Daemi found the phrase nice and tbh, I believe those people. The purpose of its usage becomes clear in this snippet taken directly from the novels:

(I can go on a whole ass rant about what we're witnessing here, but I'll spare you the headache.) So, what is the actual origin of the phrase? For the people who don't already know, it's from "All's Well that Ends Well", a play written by Shakespeare. It's about a woman who's given in marriage to the man she longs for, but, because she is of lower rank, he refuses to accept the marriage. The phrase, as always with Shakespeare, has more than one meaning and shouldn't be taken at face value. I had found a wonderful analysis about it here:

I find it fascinating how it works with Pete so well, despite Daemi being oblivious to its true meaning. I also find the fact that it works for Pete no matter how you interpret the phrase, equally fascinating. You can take it literally and connect it with Pete's job; how he's honest about the violence he inflicts, the activity he's enacting for the Theerapanyakuls, how he's accepted the nature of it, how "there are no heroes or villains in this world" and so on. You can add his loyalty in there too and make it even juicier. You can also take it ironically and connect it with Pete as a person; how he's not actually honest - he's not open about himself, his desires, his feelings - so with this, it's like he's admitting that he has no legacy. It encapsulates his lack of personhood and it's fucking brilliant. Him sneering at Vegas slightly when he told him "There's no such thing as honesty in this world" after seeing the tattoo on Pete still gives me brainworms, because both of them are thinking of different things here. To me, Pete is thinking of the literal sense which I described above, while Vegas is talking about how people are deceitful and will just lie through their teeth to get what they want (like him). I don't know if that's what the intention was, but them having completely different concepts in mind is something I believe strongly. Now, one very, very important aspect of Pete's tattoo is its position. In the novels, it's on his chest, more specifically on his left side, where his heart is:

Not so subtle, Daemi, huh? The show changed that, as we all saw, and ooohhh what a glorious choice, I love it so much. For a couple of reasons:

The position is more sexual, which contradicts Pete's seeming naivety in regards to sex and romance in the show (proof being, every interaction he had with Porsche, plus the infamous "Kissing is for people we like only"), making everything he and Vegas did in ep12 not come out of nowhere.

It's super fucking low. Obviously it is, given it's his hip but I implore you to look more carefully at the screenshot I shared above, because the distance between his belly button and his tattoo rivals Kinn's open shirts. Istg you can see faint hints of pubic hair right below "No legacy", I swear I see it I'm not insane.

The tattoo being so low means Pete will only be able to see it when naked. I say only naked because even with only his underwear on, it's still hidden. Almost like it's something he'd want to hide even from himself, hmmm curious.

Another fun thing about the tattoo, which kind of applies to both the novel and the show, is the fact that, since it's a phrase, Pete will not be able to read it unless he looks in a mirror and sees the reflection (something I realized by wanting to read my own lol). Alas, another barrier Pete puts on himself to prevent introspection. (I will not touch upon mirrors here, but Pete and mirrors oooohh, what a concept I would love to explore one day.) I could talk about this all day, but I think I got the main points across. I lovelovelove this so much and I'd love to see if there are more analyses of Pete's tattoo out there. Please bring them to my attention if you have them.

[theonethatwatchesalotofshows]

Hello there! Totally random but I've been watching Dawson's Creek and had a hot take and needed to share, and you have some of the best hot takes about these shows so I'd though I'd bother you with it lol sorry.

Granted, I haven't finished the show yet, I've seen til the season 3 finale, so this might be proven wrong by later seasons, but I've been thinking this for 3 seasons straight - Is it just me or is it completely and visibly Gail and Mitch's fault Dawson is Like That? Like, yeah, there are a lot of scenes of just Dawson complaining about his parents' relationship, but honestly? He's kind of justified! Their relationship is a mess, and they always put their son in the middle, and the drama was so needless and repetitive that by their S3 wedding they were even more boring a relationship than Dawson and Joey. And whenever he tries to bring it up with them, it's framed like he's just in the way of them being happy (whether that means being together or apart, whichever they're feeling like that week). It's not really any wonder that he has such a messed up relationship with Joey, because watching his parents, sure, why wouldn't he think he can treat her any way he wants and she'll still want him and they'll be "meant to be"? Works for Mitch and Gail! Not to mention, all their parenting consists of is telling him what a special and perfect boy he is (correct me if I'm wrong but I think the only time they "discipline" him is having him work at their family restaurant?). Once again, no wonder he gets such a protagonist complex and thinks he should always get his way and whines when he doesn't.

Dam, this show is just a mess... Every character either starts great and is completely assassinated or forgotten about (Joey, Andie, Jen, ...) or starts badly and is given a redemption arc bc the writers realized the actor can act (Pacey, Jack) or is barely even a character, just a plot device at the whims of the writers (Dawson). Anyways, this is all just because I've heard for years before watching the show about how Dawson is the worst and actually watching the show has me thinking Mitch and Gail might really be the worst. Sorry for the rant! But I needed to share this with someone. What do you think? Am I totally off base here or does this actually make sense?

Hi! No worries, you don't bother me, I love hot takes (unless they're extremely stupid lol).

My hot take is that Dawson is not the antichrist as most of the fandom tried to paint him. Is he annoying and whiny? Sure, but what teenager isn't. Now that I think about it, maybe the reason the fandom hates him so much is because they see themselves in him and they don't like it? Just a thought.

You are so right about his parents though! People like to say: "Dawson has nothing to complain about, all other characters have it worse". Sure, Dawson's parents are not dead (at the beginning), in jail, physically abusive, mentally ill or didn't ship him off to live with his grandma, but that doesn't mean they are perfect. They put him in the middle of their messed up marriage and fighting. No 15-year-old should know about their parents' sex life and that his mother is having an affair. I also think they were too chill and let him get away with too much, like you said. But that's in almost every American show. I can't imagine talking to my parents the way teenagers on tv talk to theirs, that's not just a Dawson thing. It might have something to do with how the actor plays Dawson perhaps?

As for the character assassinations, I feel like the problem is that the writers mold the characters to whatever they need in the moment rather than having consistent characterization and letting conflict naturally arise from that. That's why the characters contradict each other a lot and seem to change so much (I still maintain that Andie cheating on Pacey was completely ooc). Also what bothers me is that the writers rewrite history a lot in order to be able to recycle old plot lines. The best example of this is how Pacey underwent such a great character development while he was with Andie only for it to be erased so he can undergo it again with Joey. When he told Joey: "I have never gotten an A before" I rolled my eyes because he literally had the same storyline with Andie like two seasons before! It's like in season 2 the writers wanted us to root for Pacey and Andie, but in season 3 and 4 they changed their minds so they ruined Andie's character to make room for Pacey and Joey. But then in season 5 they decided: "scratch that, Joey and Dawson it is" so they erased all Pacey's development again and had Joey pine for Dawson again.

A bit off topic but I thought it related to what you said about the characters. I don't think Dawson is the worst. He was annoying but I feel like he got progressively less and less annoying as the show went on. Joey is a different story. I could rant more about that but it's a very unpopular opinion since everyone on here loves Joey.

[weebsinstash]

Ok so finished watching Across The Spiderverse in theaters and here are my thoughts, under readmore so you guys won't get spoiled cause I'll mention plot shit

Nonspoiler review: these movies really are works of art, both visually and in sound. They draw on very relatable and powerful emotions of wanting to fit in, feeling like you belong, feeling like you're important, are you doing the right thing, are you living up to the expectations of others. These are the kinds of movies that could introduce people to the franchise and even if you're not into superheroes the emotion and visuals and writing itself is spectacular. Definitely a movie I could own and rewatch later

Now, here's my takes with more spoilers

-Miguel is actually so snarky and sassy. He is 100% done the entire movie and he's sarcastic or condescending almost every time he opens his mouth. He has a sense of humor it's just more mean spirited lmao "well you're gonna have to shut up and trust me" saying "how wonderful" sarcastically to Miles, being all "spiderverse? No thats dumb, its called the Arachnid poly multiverse, which, I guess sounds just as dumb"

-seeing him on the big screen really was like wow. He could be go from being sort of a dork to being so imposing and threatening, like, there was a small part where he steps closer to Miles as a silent intimidating gesture because hes so much taller, he could be so stone faced and cold when things got serious when Miles wasnt taking his warnings, but initially he was trying to be more compassionate, just, mwah, definitely going to help with any writing endeavors and characterizations of this man

-just seeing how the wristwatches and "daypasses" work is useful for any fanfic ideas I'm having ;) but holy shit you could just glitch until you die? I much prefer the concept of "Reader somehow whether being a mutant or an anomaly or just lucky gets transported to other dimensions instead or just back home"

-God just. Gwen's opening was amazing I don't even know how to describe it. When she's recounting her past and she's starting to talk about Miles while she's playing the drums and her drum playing keeps getting more and more intense, her music angry and frustrated and powerful as she keeps saying "and he's not the only one", speaking of his pain and isolation and how she feels connected to him, just, the way these movies write relationships between people and emotions is so human

-Spider Cat my beloved. LEGO Spiderman my beloved. Plushie Spiderman my beloved. Sun Spider is a fancharacter and got a speaking role. The thick, plus size, and fat spiders. Just the variety. It really is fun to imagine a Spidersona and feel represented kwim

-Jesus the intro to Mumbattan was insane. The way these movies constantly have you flying and falling through the air and falling through multiple levels and layers as objects whiz by, the music, the choreography. Just. The visuals and music the entire movie was insane

-HOBIE! definitely a fucking star. He's smart enough to build his own watch dude!! Love that guy. Definitely see him being in some stuff of mine as a helping hand if nothing else. Hobie helping Reader out during the YouTwo drama by offering you safe haven in his universe?

-I'm guessing Miguel has to give himself regular, spider nanomachine whatever injections? His powers kind of seem to have changed from his comic book a little bit. In the comics he has organic webs and was atomically spliced with spider dna but in the movie I think it's all technology idk? Correct me if im wrong, maybe they're red and glowing in the comics too 🤷‍♀️

-something something "smutty story where Miguel boyches a formula and turns himself into like a possessive horny borderline pure animal in heat and of course you're the lucky lady to stumble into him first"

-I got the bunny filter version of Lyla by the way!

Ugh this movie has me filled with so many emotions and also I snuck alcohol into the theaters and was on an edible gummy so I was FEELING this movie and just. Definitely two of my all time favorite movies

[duckprintspress]

in your Rules and Guidelines you say mildly dubious consent is okay. is mildly dubious consent like. for instance, the non-monster is in a situation where they are non-consensually given or sold, but they are received by a monster who gives them as much choice as they could possibly have under the circumstances, courts them with their consent, and is only ever interested in maintaining the non-monster's overall wellbeing?

is that mildly dubious in a correct way? or is that too dubious?

Hey anon!

While there's no solidly definable line between mildly dubcon and dubcon, it's all spectrum, we generally use "mild dubcon" to reflect cases where consent is fairly clear but not explicitly given. The kind of "I just couldn't resist any more, so I kissed him, oh thank fuck he's into it" kind of situation. It's mostly included as an option for this anthology on the assumption that there's a lot of types of monsters and consent will likely look different for different creatures, and some monsters may not be capable of human speech and therefore unable to give explicit spoken consent. We want people to know that if they want to write a story where consent looks different than the standard explicit consent in human/human relationships, we're all ears for that.

I know that this description of "mildly dub con" is so close to consent that most people wouldn't even tag for it; it's just a choice that we've made as a press, as some readers are uncomfortable when consent isn't explicit. We absolutely do not require explicit consent for our stories, and consent also doesn't have to be spoken to still be clearly explicit, and there are plenty of other examples I could give, the one above is just the instance that's come up most often in our tagging. Mild dubcon should still, ultimately, amount to: it becomes pretty clear that all involved parties are into it, even if it's not clear at first, and there's no mindfuckery (such as power dynamics, magic, drugs, psionics, age difference, etc.) involved that'd make it harder for someone to give true consent.

As to a slave situation such as you describe, that's definitely a "power dynamic mindfuckery" case. I think it'd depend on the story and the characterizations where on the dubcon spectrum that would fall. If the slave creature really has no way out, I'd probably lean toward dubious consent (rather than mild) even if the courtship and everything was with their apparent consent. When one person is owned by another, their ability to give true consent is inextricably linked with that.

As long as the ownership situation exists, if the owned creature has no escape option and hasn't been freed... how much choice do they really have? What are the consequences if they refuse, and what would happen to them if they were actually free? Whether what you describe is mild dub con or dub con, or even extreme dub con or non con, would depend on the answers to those questions, in my opinion. Like, if the consequence for the owned entity is either enslavement or death, does any consent they give really mean much? Which isn't at all to say that being enslaved removes freewill, obviously it doesn't and a person who is enslaved can give meaningful consent, but as a reader, especially if I'm not seeing the story from the slave's point of view, I'd always have to wonder how much concern for their own wellbeing (understandably!) colors every decision they make. On the other hand, if the consequences for the owned entity is like, enslavement or mild inconvenience of some kind? That's different, because even the enslavement itself is sort of a choice and the entity has made that choice.

There's no hard-and-fast rule, and as I essentially acknowledged when I described what we categorize as mild dub con, I personally tag quite conservatively in this regard, but I'd say most master/slave situations would fall under more-than-mild dubcon, especially with the premise you've given, where the slavery was never the owned individuals choice (like, in BDSM/Total Power Exchange, that's an example of a master/slave relationship that could be 100% consensual. Such situations absolutely exist.)...but yeah, in a situation where the entire premise of the master/slave situation is nonconsensual, it's not that easy for me to see how the slave's choices won't at least somewhat be colored by their straits, especially if the consequences of non-enslavement are severe, especially if we don't see their point of view, and especially if the owner never frees them.

TL:DR It's not a dynamic I would recommend for this anthology, though I can definitely conceive of examples that follow this basic premise that would fall more under mild dub-con. It sounds like an interesting story and one I'd enjoy, just not really what we're looking for here.

-unforth

[kardia-library-official]

I don't usually get into the weeds with this stuff, and yet.

...Actually, I'm not done talking about the Reddit Cecil (and Amber and Kiel for that matter) Hate Brigade. Because like. They're weird.

Like, I get not liking a character, and I get not wanting to marry every candidate (for one thing, you literally can't, at least not in the same save). That's all fine, we all have preferences! But past a certain point, it all just seems way too insistent, and dare I say performative. It seems to come from a place of, like, "look at me, I would never sexualize children! So much that I clutch my pearls at the idea of even liking a fictional character who is short and kinda goofy! I'm a good person, not a freak!" Which just makes one look like a freak about fandom discourse and short people, tbh.

And sure, sexualizing kids is gross, but... Nobody is accusing anyone of doing that on some random Reddit thread of people talking about their blorbos. (I mean, they might, but people try to start fights about all sorts of things.) We can chill! Honestly, it's kinda unsavory in and of itself that this keeps getting brought into it at this level of frequency and intensity. I don't want to think about the abstract concept of someone somewhere being a pedophile when we're just trying to have a lighthearted conversation about which silly little farm game guys are the coolest.

And that was weird enough, but then I realized that I might have it backwards, at least when it comes to some of these people.

Because sometimes I think it comes from a place of... Thinking liking a character and finding them attractive are the same thing? Or at least in a romance-oriented game? So if you think it would be gross to find a character attractive, you have to make a show of hating them, or just instinctively hate them period?

Like I said, it's weird!

As someone who considers Cecil one of their faves in RF5, I can't say I thought about that at all either way? At first, I just thought he was funny and liked seeing his little adventures. Then I realized that his characterization is actually really interesting, and among the most complex of a slightly underwritten bunch.* I like how his issues and story remind me of what it was like to be 18-19 and trying to be taken seriously as a person! The implicit tension around how protective Martin and Terry are towards him when it's probably their lives that would fall apart without him is fascinating. He's just really neat! And I feel comfortable saying that, because "I like this character a lot" isn't interchangeable with "would smash," and that's kind of a weird assumption to make. Do... Do they think that's the only reason to like a character at all? Do they think that's what we're all doing? Is that what we're all doing, and I didn't get the memo?

Like, there's a point where I have to wonder... How the hell horny are these people? If my reasoning is correct, hornier than I can get my head around. O_o

(...Not that I have anything against being horny! You probably know this if you've read my fic. But there's also more to life! You probably know this if you've seen the word counts on my fic. :P)

*imho, he gets what might be the best blink-and-you-miss-it subtle character moment in the whole game... The thing where Yuki said he gives a really good shoulder massage? And then you think about it for a sec and realize where/why/how he picked up that particular skill? I think about that constantly and hope it was intentional and not just me reading into things too much.

[roamwithahungryheart]

Rare Disease Day 2023

I'd like to start by saying a huge thank you to everyone for your support and love after my recent surgery, it truly means so, so much.

As it's Rare Disease Day once again, I want to share my experience in the hope that it helps someone out there to not only understand what it's like to live with a rare disorder, but also to feel a little less alone. So, let's get down to it.

For those of you who don't already know, I was born with a Dandy-Walker malformation and an atrioventricular septal defect specifically known as Tetralogy of Fallot. ToF is characterized by four defects, and according to my current surgeon, my case isn’t textbook. God's plan was to make me as unique as possible!

I had corrective surgery at just 5 weeks old, and my second repair in October 2022. I’ll need further surgeries in the future.

While ToF is one of the more commonly known conditions, DWS is largely unrecognized. Even the specialists I’m under don’t know everything about DWS. That’s the trouble with a disorder with so many variants.

According to statistics from the Dandy-Walker Alliance, 1 in 10,000 children are born with DWS. It’s also more likely to affect women than men. Some people don't live past the age of 40.

My malformation and co-existing symptoms are milder than they could have been. I’m one of the lucky ones who won’t need a hydrocephalic shunt, or end up in a wheelchair, but for some, that’s the reality of living with DWS.

The defining trait of Dandy-Walker Syndrome is an abnormality of the cerebellum, forming a cyst at the base of the skull, and complete absence of the cerebellar vermis. In severe cases, increased cerebral fluid is present. Children born with DWS will have delayed development and poor motor control. My hands mirror each of their movements, and I occasionally experience myoclonic jerks.

Another side effect of DWS is epilepsy. I've had a lifetime of headaches, dizziness and seizures. There are 41 different types of seizure, and I can experience any one of them at any given time. So in short, it's sometimes a real chore to get through the day! But in spite of it all, I've managed to live a reasonably normal life.

I turn 30 this year, and I've been thinking a lot more about my future goals, because as I'm sure you know, women face a lot of pressure to have their shit together by the time they turn the big 3-0. I’m a woman who would love to have children, but know that because of my health, it might never happen. Or if it does happen, there’s a significant chance my child could end up with all the same health complications I have. I can’t count the times I’ve kept myself awake at night, sometimes even cried because of it. Sometimes it’s scary having to admit and accept that. However, I'm a big believer in the old adage 'where there's a will, there's a way'. It's gotten me this far, and I don't intend to let anything stop me from living the life I deserve.

If you're reading this and you have a rare chronic illness or disability - or any disorder - I hope you take a little time today to remind yourself of how unique and wonderful you are. Take pride in being perfectly imperfect.

You are seen, you are loved, and you are stronger than you believe.

[echoeternally]

echo echo echo!

i know you def ship bowsario and you have turned me into a very hard shipper of that, but who do you think luigi would end up with if not daisy?

Ohohoho! Proud that I helped bring you aboard the Bowsario ship!

Hmm. With Luigi, his relationships have a good variety. This is probably gonna be a long post...

Daisy is the best of the ladies, but I like either Waluigi or King Boo for the men...or, uh, ghosts? Waluigi is fun because they'd both have mutual pity parties they could help one another with. Waluigi overall has a lot of probably sad and underrated potential, in and out of story context. (Never gonna star in a main game, smh...)

King Boo is like Bowser being obsessed with Mario, just with Luigi, which is all the more entertaining since most villains go ham for Mario, while King Boo would sit there like, "No! Luigi is WAY more appealing...I MEAN A THREAT, I MUST DESTROY HIM!" Not that I've considered that or anything...

For other ladies, I've considered Peach and Rosalina in the past. Though they have more limited chemistry with him than Mario, it's still there. Peach and Daisy feel like they could be paired with the opposite brothers, and I've wondered if they were mismatched in the past. Daisy is bolder and might pair well with Mario's adventurous side, while Peach is softer and sweeter like Luigi. Then again, maybe they balance out one another respectively, hence why Mario/Peach and Luigi/Daisy make more universal sense.

Rosalina, meanwhile, kind of feels like she could be ok with Luigi, but I feel like that's mostly brought about by the one-off treatment they gave her regarding him in Mario Galaxy. After that, it's not really noteworthy between the two. But, they have personalities that mesh together regardless.

Then there are characters from the other games with I guess dubious states of canon. Like, I'd personally love Luigi with Prince Peasley, but he only appears in the story of Superstar Saga and relations. But gooooood, Peasley would be such a fun alternate character to work with, and I'd love to see other royals past Bowser and Peach for mainline, or even past Daisy for spin-offs. (Even if he wasn't a romantic interest for Luigi, he would still be so much fun and so very flamboyant, so that would be a treasure!)

I also would've like to mention Princess Eclair, but like, she went off with the Chestnut King in those stories from Paper Mario, so...nope!

Finally, because of my fanfic, I developed a personal investment in Yoshi as a potential partner for Luigi, which...I admit, has very little support overall. Still, the idea of them seems cute to me! Yoshi tends to be treated as a pet to Mario or Luigi, but I don't think that's the correct way to characterize him, canon or fanon? So, putting him on equal footing as them and then boosting their friendship could be good and from that, well, the potential is there. (Says the leading Bowser/Mario shipper, I know, I know...)

But anyhow, those are my usual suspects to Luigi shipping. It's been like a decade of dealing with it, but I still don't fully get the dynamic of Bowser/Luigi. Lots of people like it because they fit gay male archetypes fairly well, and Luigi fits for those that like him as a substitute for Peach as well. But, I've never considered them over Mario with Bowser instead, and the drama that comes from those two feels more powerful to me.

Others aren't really on the map.

Pauline is worth a mention, maybe, but I don't think they focus on her having a love interest past her history with Mario, which, GOOD. She stands on her own and I'm proud that she came roaring out of the past and forward to the present! (Dream come true for me...now I just need Wart to do the same and I'll feel accomplished somehow!)

E Gadd would probably gross most people out, but that buzzed through my head briefly, so there's a mention. Otherwise, I don't think there's anything much to go for that.

Toad...eh, most people don't even realize he's an adult. Hopefully the movie helped with that? But, I haven't put much stock into that for potential. Limited, but I think doable in a similar vein to Yoshi? Toadette would likely end up in the same place, naturally.

Wario and Donkey Kong don't really interact with Luigi in any special manner like they do for Mario, so I wouldn't really consider either of those. (Though I feel like either would hit the same archetype fulfillment that Bowser does too, so that's at least worth mentioning.)

Hopefully I'm not missing any major names, lol. But yeah, that seems about a longer analysis of Luigi options than I think you were asking for, haha!

Personally, I think that the best options (aka my preferred options) are the earlier mentioned ones, so like, past Daisy: Waluigi, King Boo, or even Peach. Peasley if I can count him on their level.

Whereas the greater conflict and overall drama that surrounds Mario and Bowser for their relationship is what makes their potential dynamic exciting and engaging, Luigi's relationships prime a more introspective look to himself and his partner.

The core is Luigi managing his potential insecurities, and pairing him with someone that likely also has such similar issues, as well as one that would recognize him past everything. Considering the villains getting overshadowed by others (Waluigi gets it from Wario and Bowser, King Boo has the same but mostly from Bowser), they make a lot of sense. After all, they see something in Luigi that no one else will, so, who better than either of them?

Peach herself is nice due to wanting more autonomy from Bowser and Mario, because it feels like her life is too entwined with them. Luigi allows an escape and a chance to help someone who could really use her too, and given that she's a healer type of character, that has a real underrated potential. Peasley could adopt mindsets from both of those, seeing something that no one else does, and could find a welcome respite from his usual lifestyle with someone that he can really retreat away with.

So, yeah! Luigi shipping!

[apoptoses]

Hi! I hope this isn’t a silly question but I was wondering if you have any advice for getting over the fear of mischaracterizing/having characters be ooc in fic? I want to write for vc, i have a few ideas but haven’t started any yet because I’m so nervous about getting it wrong

I do, in fact! So when I was first thinking of writing some VC stuff I made it really low pressure for myself. Like if I got an idea I would write it out in my notes app on my phone, and if it didn't go anywhere then whatever, it didn't matter because I didn't intend to post it to begin with. I messed around like that for a good month and ended up with like fifteen little snippets of nothing that were just me figuring out who the characters of Armand and Daniel were and how they sounded. Which I think was really important because that gave me room to practice writing without the concern about getting it 'correct' on that very first go. Then when I felt like okay, maybe I have something with this concept I'm playing with, I knew I had to have someone do a sanity check lol I just put it out there that I wanted a beta reader and thank god @cup-of-lixx responded. And now this is the key- you have to be open to suggestion. Tell your beta reader buddy you're worried about characterization and hopefully they'll have some kindly worded suggestions for you. The truth is, what is 'in character' really comes down to two things: character voice, and knowing your basic facts. Everything beyond that is subjective and relies on the writer's ability to build a case for why this character wants to do this thing. Say, for example, you want Marius to ride a carousel. On paper that looks out of character, right? That serious old Roman on a carousel? lol But the thing is, if you can nail his voice (he doesn't talk like a valley girl, he's not going to use contractions like 'gonna' and 'wanna', he's probably going to make some references to history in his internal dialogue) and nail the basic facts (he's a vampire, he's got blond hair, he can only come out at night) then…you're halfway there. The rest is all about building up why he's doing this. Would he hop on for funsies all alone? Maybe not. Could you make up some back story about the first time he saw a carousel and thought about all the innovations man had to make since he was a youth in order to create such a thing? And that maybe he first saw one with Pandora and was feeling nostalgic? Sure! Your job as a writer is to convince your audience that this isn't out of character and you do that by building up the character's desires and motivations. The other thing you gotta remember is, there's a difference between canon and fanon. Sometimes in fandom some writer does a really good fic where Character X loves popsicles even though in the books character X never eats a popsicle, but people love the idea so much they repeat it in their fics and headcanons until that act is part of the Fan Lore and people confuse it for canon. And going against Fan Lore can be intimidating, and make you feel like you're doing something 'ooc' for the character but like…if it's not in the source material then it's not Fact and you can do whatever you want. But essentially if you're reading fic and notice a trend where Lestat always wears boxers even though in the books he never puts on a pair, and you don't agree that he would wear boxers? Don't worry about it, it's fan lore, do your own thing. I assure you, there's plenty of people out there reading fic who also don't think Lestat would wear boxers and will be relieved you wrote it. Basically. All of this to say- care about characterization, but don't worry yourself sick over it. Get someone to check your work and then, at the end of the day, go wild. They're fictional people, they're little barbie dolls you as a writer can play with, and as long as you nail their voice and stay true to the basic facts you're free to do whatever else you want. Writing is supposed to be fun, we're not getting graded here. And you can't get it 'right' until you churn out some rough drafts wherein you get it 'wrong' first.

Have fun ♥ I hope that helps.