#mainly because i didn't want to hide sister daniel under a cut if i'm honest

[buskingalbatross]

i met dan and phil two months ago today! 💫

the intrinsically strange and nerve-wracking social interaction that is a m&g is something i once assumed i would simply never choose to put myself through. but, considerate of their argument that we are all in fact mortal and i may never get a chance to hug them ever again, i realized that i had assumed wrong. back when this tour was first announced, i realized i really did want to meet them after all these years if i could.

several people can attest to how epically i vacillated over what to have them sign (it was truthfully a months-long series of vacillations). i eventually decided that what i wanted was a single object that encapsulated all – or almost all – of my creative offerings to the phandom in 2024. so, after some thought, i started learning bookbinding. so that i could bind together the phanfics i’ve written and have them sign them.

the project plunged me into the world of ficbinders and bookbinders, a world which i now delight in being granted access to. the book that they signed, which i posted photos of in this post, is simple and the work of a beginner, but i’m also quite proud of it. for someone who famously cannot tell what a straight line looks like, it’s a miracle i made such a neat and structurally-sound book.

the stories in it range from a howl’s moving castle-esque wizards au (but weird) to vampire phan to the story i wrote from the pov of a wagtail. there’s also some phyuri in there too. four different phanartists have artwork in the book, and all of them are absolutely amazing. i want to mention one of them, @pierogish, because without her support of my stories i absolutely would not have had the guts to walk up to dan and phil and ask them to sign those stories.

to help contextualize the whole thing to them, i opened up the book to show the page i wanted signed, where i had already tucked a print of pierogish’s art of them as wizards (which you can see more of here!). they were both so kind and enthusiastic – phil said “i love being a wizard!” which sort of made my entire life, and dan said he loved my presentation of the book. because i had basically meticulously choreographed the whole interaction for myself beforehand, that comment meant a ton to me.

on behalf of pierogish, i also got to show them (and gift them a print of) her Sister Daniel art – an honor of the highest order.

as the proclaimed winners of rpf forever and also as creators who inspire me to live life and tell stories in my own kind, creative, queer way, dnp signing this book was one of the coolest moments of my life. being surrounded by the phandom was magical, as it always is. and seeing their show was unquestionably as healing and celebratory for me as they hope it is for everyone.

bonus signed pierogish art + tit set in nashville: