#overly verbose answer...

[fictionadventurer]

Positive opinion on the last book you read?

I'm taking advantage of this opportunity to gush about Framley Parsonage.

Mark Robarts is an interesting, if somewhat infuriating, main character. He's a young, well-liked clergyman with a good income and a good wife, who's good friends with his patroness. But his ambition for high society leads him into debts that almost destroy everything. He's not the complete wide-eyed youngster, but he's still young, and can easily be taken advantage of by experienced swindlers, and I like that it explored how a man can continue to mature even after he's a full-blown married-and-settled family man.

Once his sister Lucy showed up is when I was really onboard. I heard someone describe her love story as a better version of the one in Doctor Thorne, and that was so right. It's still the story of a poor, lower-class girl who falls in love with a titled lord whose mother wants him to marry someone more suitable, but it's so much more interesting in every way. We get to see Lucy and Lord Lufton meet each other, and he's charming, and they're charming together. She's quiet and unassuming in public, but very witty in one-to-one conversation. And that's what he falls in love with! Because he's willing to take the time to get to know her! It's so cute.

But what I really love is that the really important relationship here is the one between the romantic heroine and her future mother-in-law. Because Lady Lufton isn't just some Lady Catherine style fire-breathing gorgon. She's a kind woman who genuinely loves her son, and has to figure out how to react when he wants to marry someone very different from the type of wife she envisioned for him. How often do you see that kind of dynamic?

Miss Dunstable! By far my favorite character from Doctor Thorne makes a triumphant return here, and it's so fun to see her story continue. She still gets to be loud and friendly and sensible and waltz across every social boundary and throw money at every problem, but we get to explore her more as a human being. She's in a society that values her only for her money and encourages the worst sides of her nature. How can she hold onto the truly kind, honest, loving person that she is underneath?

There's such a prominent theme of friendship. Valuing the friends you have, but more importantly, trusting them to help you in your problems.

What really sold me on the book and the themes was the Crawley plotline. We contrast Mark--the young clergyman who has been given a plush position and is wasting it--with Mr. Crawley, a devout clergyman struggling to support his wife and children on a poor salary. Mr. Crawley wants to push away his richer friends because his pride won't let him accept charity, but that's portrayed as wrong, and those friends keep persisting in offering help because they're his friends and that's what friends do.

And there are just so many cameos from other books? The Granteys and Proudies from Barchester are back on the scene, as antagonistic as ever. Mr. Harding gets to have one scene of being a fantastic grandpa (even if his granddaughter doesn't appreciate how sweet he is). Most of the cast of Doctor Thorne is still hanging out with Miss Dunstable, you get a much different picture of the Duke of Omnium, Mr. Arabin shows up to knock some sense into Mr. Crawley. It just enhances the world so much and makes these people feel like real people with real lives.

Maybe this one isn't all that different from the other books in the series, but it's the one where the fact that it is a series really started to pay off and turned this series from something I slog through for the sake of the characters into something that I'm genuinely enthusiastic about.

[jichanxo]

re:titles> and i'm surprised how people name their projects after they are done! for me, it's easier to centre a story around one or several words, and harder to fit a whole-ass completed story into a really short description. how does it work for you then? (and good luck with senseific's title, i know you can do it)

this got long. uh.

that makes sense in a way, having it picked out early is just picking out your point of focus so that whatever you write matches what you’re trying to convey (at least that’s how I’m understanding you?) I suppose the inverse, deciding late, is more like going with the flow and seeing what surfaces as the most important theme/imagery/whatever… though I can definitely understand it being difficult to pick out what’s the most important part when you’ve written a lot. I guess in the end it’s about decisiveness? or at the very least picking something that Does The Job. Not all of them can be winners after all.

in cases where the fic title is the same as phrasing within the text (3:21am, Passing Grade, Memorisation Game), it feels more natural to see what words come naturally through writing as opposed to deciding beforehand. It’s certainly a bit literal but it captures what I think are the defining features of those fics.

“3:21am” is from the setting, which is incidental really, but it sets the scene well enough.

“Passing Grade” refers to the Kitakata sensei au (so school themed) and is also a direct quote from Yagami’s flirting in that fic.

“Memorisation Game” is a reference to the emotional core of that fic – Yagami missing Kuwana, rationalising his attempt to call his number as a game so not to feel so pathetic about it.

For reference, my document titles for these fics are: “yagami late 3am.docx” (referring to the pov and the setting), “kuwagami sensei eating.docx” (referring to the au and the main thing I use to get them to interact for that fic), and “kuwagami card fic.docx” (the initial idea being about yagami keeping kuwana’s business card). It’s a little funny how blunt they are, but it makes it easy to understand at a glance what everything is.

I guess the commonality here is that you can see what my starting idea is from the document titles, but by looking at the title of the posted fics, you can see where my writing ended up in terms of emotions or themes. “card fic” is the idea I started with, the instrument to get the ball rolling, but by the end of the writing, the final, most clear idea within that fic was memorisation game. I had some idea it was going to end in that direction, but I didn’t have those exact words until I wrote them out.

It’s probably a similar process for my other titles, and not just the literal ones, now that I think about it.

“kuwagami deep wound.docx” refers to the imagery I was trying to use in that fic which became → Wound Pried Open, which is… similar, but the “pried open” part I think calls attention to the idea of Kuwana doing it, of it being on purpose, not just the wound itself but the process of agitating it intentionally, which is… more important than just a reference to the wound on its own. I started that fic thinking “man the kuwagami stuff I make is so clean, I should write something more grimy” and ended it with… well… wounds as a vehicle to explore this idea of painful intimacy.

So I suppose what I’m saying is that deciding later leaves room for me to find the core of the story naturally after starting from my initial idea.

[1800duckhotline]

I neeeeeed to stop playing to draw bc now I'm thinking so hard about epilogue salice. with or without romance involved. but I'm brain rotten so you know. methinks many things can occur. many are saying this (it's just me)

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Word Economy

Word Economy - careful management of the words that end up in your text.

In the simplest of terms, it means keeping sentences, paragraphs, and chapters as short as they can be without degrading your storytelling or rhetoric.

Does striving for economy of words mean that authors have to constantly track their word count and try to reach a fixed quota for overall words? No it does not.

But it does mean that you need to monitor your word choice to make sure you aren’t filling your prose with superfluous words that make sentences longer but not necessarily better. When you review your own work, ask yourself: “Could I communicate this same idea using fewer words?” If the answer is yes, then rewrite the relevant sentences and paragraphs with that in mind.

 Tips for Improving Your Word Economy

It’s rare to find good writing that’s needlessly verbose. If you want to reach large audiences, get a publishing deal, and perhaps end up on the New York Times bestseller list one day, you’ll need to learn how to economize your language. Here are some ways to do that:

Use the active voice. When writing in the active voice, the subject of a sentence performs an action. Passive voice sentences contain subjects that are the object of the sentence’s verb. They are not the “doer” of the sentence; they are the recipient of an action. Sentences constructed with the active voice use fewer words and are easier to understand.

Use strong verbs. If you want to revise a sentence to make it better, start by looking for a stronger verb. If you choose a verb that accurately describes the action of the scene, you can cut down on modifying words you might otherwise need to better explain that action. Precise, strong verbs get to the point, which is great for word economy.

Avoid wordy prepositional phrases. A lot of inexperienced writers weigh down their prose with prepositional phrases without adding any further meaning. So instead of writing, “He ran in the style of someone who was a professional athlete,” just say, “He ran like a professional athlete.”

Use the English dictionary and thesaurus effectively. Some young writers mistakenly believe that making a phrase longer will make you seem smarter. In reality, the opposite is true. Economical word choice makes your prose more fluid and clear, so use the dictionary and thesaurus to help you make phrases shorter, not longer.

Have individual scenes accomplish multiple things. Introduce a character by writing a short, solitary scene. Place your character in a situation that both advances your story and provides character development.

Keep chapters lean. Make sure each chapter has a purpose that ties in to the bigger story. Don’t fluff up the novel with irrelevant content. Establish trust with your reader that you will not waste their time with authorial indulgences.

Plan your narrative, and stick with the plan. In a thriller, for example, people want to be on the edge of their seat the whole time, and this requires narrative focus. Don’t meander too far from your main storyline—that is, from scenes and dialogue that develop your stakes.

Compress your dialogue. You should keep dialogue economical in the same way you do with your prose. Unless your character is naturally verbose, tighten up their language, conveying only the information that will deepen the character or move the story forward. Making people seem real on the page often means giving them shorter sentences. Most people are naturally economical speakers and will tend to say “I’ll go” instead of “Yes, I will go.”

Avoid info-dumping. Beginning writers tend to drop large chunks of information onto the page all at once. This is called info-dumping, and not only does it bore readers, but it stops the momentum cold. You want to make your information feel natural and interesting. You can avoid the dreaded info dump by having your characters discover information in the course of a conversation. If that feels overly expository, let them discover information via action.

Compress, compress, compress. Go through your writing and see how many words you can cut while keeping the original feel of your work. (Hint: adverbs—words like gently or beautifully that usually end in “-ly” and modify verbs or adjectives—are a good place to start.) Next, beware of places where you’ve given too much description, especially of a static object. Do you need to spend two whole paragraphs describing a building that’s not essential to the plot? One powerful detail will often do the trick.

Source ⚜ More: Notes & References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[anneapocalypse]

On Urianger in ARR.

I'm not sure I agree with what seems to be a popular opinion that Urianger is more cryptic in ARR. I think he's actually just not as cryptic as the reputation the precedes him, period. Pretty much everything he says in ARR has a pretty clear intended meaning when you understand the language he's using to say it.

The times I think he truly comes across as cryptic (as in, what he's saying does not have a clearly discernible meaning and is open to some kind of interpretation) is when he's quoting someone. When we first meet him in the Waking Sands, he greets us with a quote from Louisoix, which while maybe a little overly formal or socially awkward relative to the other Scions, isn't really inappropriate to the situation. Nor is the quote he chooses especially cryptic, though he doesn't get through the whole thing because Minfilia gives him a Look and he swiftly course-corrects and says, "The words of a dear friend. I am glad of our meeting," which is a pretty straightforward greeting. His diction is archaic and poetic, and sometimes a bit verbose, but that's not the same thing as cryptic. (Compare this to the verse he quotes in Stormblood to see the Scions off the Far East, which is far less clear in its meaning and how exactly it's supposed to aid you.)

When Urianger is indirect in his own words, there is usually a reason for it beyond just trying to sound mysterious. I think a good example of this is his dialogue in the Waking Sands as the Scions are preparing to leave for Revenant's Toll, and Urianger will be staying behind:

Urianger: Thou art ever welcome, Forename, but I require no assistance. Pray take thy leave unburdened by concern for my well-being. Urianger: Verily, thy countenance bespeaks a desire to quit this place without further delay. Hm. Mayhap thou thinkest this chapter of our tale concluded─that these halls should rightly be consigned to the annals of history...? Urianger: In man's eagerness to seize the future, how readily he doth set down the past. Urianger: Full many a proud pioneer hath bravely stridden into the great unknown, only to find there the banner of his ancestor, faded by the eons. And still man glorieth in his discoveries. 'Tis through his pride that wisdom doth ever give way to ignorance, while they who lurk in shadow remain hidden, lost no sooner than they are found. Urianger: <sigh> Be not offended, Forename. Thy conduct hath ever been beyond reproach. Despite thy surpassing strength, and all thy many victories, thou hast never been so convinced of thine own greatness as to imagine thyself above the failings of thy forebears. Mayhap it is the Echo which hath opened thine eyes to the lessons of history. Would that the same could be said of─

Here, he is concerned that the Scions are ignoring the lessons of history and heading down the wrong path, though he assures the Warrior of Light that he finds no fault with their actions. The object of his criticism is pretty clearly the decisions being made by Alphinaud and Minfilia--both of whom he respects too much to directly tell them he thinks they're fucking up, and yet he comes really close to saying it directly to the Warrior of Light here, before he's cut off by the scream from the Solar. I don't see this moment as him being cryptic nearly so much as him wanting to share his concerns directly but stopping just short because he feels it improper to do so. That he confides even this much to the Warrior of Light to me really speaks to the fact that he already places a lot of trust in them.

But beyond that rare moment, most of the time in ARR, he's just... answering questions, providing information, or asking the WoL to do stuff.

Urianger's writing in parts of ARR and particular the early primal quests has some oddities in its own right--there's multiple places where modern English conjugations slip in, and a rare instance of Urianger saying "Yes" rather than "Aye" (if you know of others, I'd love to see them!). And the writing is really inconsistent about using "thine" before a vowel instead of "thy," sometimes even within the same paragraph. It's kind of all over the place when you really look closely at it. I can only assume the English writing team at the time was shaky on Early Modern English and whoever was writing him wasn't getting consistent direction and editing.

But what I wouldn't call any of it is cryptic. His dialogue about the primals tends to be a bit long-winded, and peppered with effusive praise for the Warrior of Light, but it's not cryptic; in fact, it would be counterproductive for him to be cryptic, because he's trying to give you intel. He doesn't even really do much prophecy quoting at all; he likes to cite that particular Louisoix writing about "primal desires" and the "blade born of light," which I think he definitely sees as prophetic and the Warrior of Light as fitting that appellation. But his meaning is never obscure or ambiguous. Frankly, I wonder if the writing team was struggling with what to do with him now that the mysterious doomsayer persona he was playing in 1.0 was no longer necessary for the story, and the new role chosen for him was one of conveying fairly straightforward information. Perhaps this is what led to the idea of having him play a deceptive role in post-Heavensward, in order to bring some mystery back to the character, though I can only speculate.

If he seems more straightforward in later expacs, I venture to say the reason is twofold. First, you're just more used to hearing him talk; you've picked up on some of his speech patterns if you were previously unfamiliar with them, and his meanings are easier to parse. And second, as the story proceeds, Urianger's role in it grows both larger and more personal. While his dialogue in ARR isn't actually cryptic, you might not have much investment in it and be inclined to hastily click through without reading it as carefully, leaving the impression that it was more impenetrable, while in later expacs, you might be more invested in him as a character and thus listening more closely to what he has to say.

[criminal-sen]

Hello!! Going back to that post about being ok with people asking you about your fic... can I? 🙏 I'm gonna 🫣

So when I first found Imperfect, I hadn't watched Bleach in... dunno... 10-15 years?? Gawd don't wanna think about it. So, I'd forgotten a lot of stuff, and I hadn't finished the last 3-4 seasons. So I thought a lot of stuff you wrote about was canon, and when I rewatched it all for the upcoming 3rd part of tybw, I was like... so when are you guys gonna mention this??

But anyway, focusing on the actual question, how did you come up with all the little details about Mayuri? Like the way he talks to AJ in their own internal world, the microdosing of Super Human drug in daily life and they way it feels, the ability to smell pheromones... it makes the story, which is already awesome, much more realistic to me. It's almost like he wrote it himself, it's so, so enjoyable. Love it sm, you already know 😊

Anyway, no pressure to answer, just been thinking about it for a while and thought I'd chance it!

Aw that's so cool u mistook my stuff for canon, I feel like it's Highest Honor for ff to be believable enough to trick someone>:3c Tho I'm sure it was kinda frustrating too, sorry for that haha (and I've also been fooled so I very much understand the feeling)

Future Sen here: when I say I'm long-winded, this is what I'm talking about. This is like.. the textbook definition of Verbose. So under a cut it goes, have fun with soooooo many words:D

Hmm so the microdosing Superhuman Drug just popped into my head right before I wrote it in (chapter... 5? I think? Where he's sitting in the hotel after a flashback), I think I was having a bit of a conundrum on how he could sit there and have such a long and detailed flashback in such a short time? And before I could do the obvious fix of having more time pass, as literally nothing was at stake time-wise, I remembered the Superhuman Drug exists. And the more I thought about it, the more sense it made for him to use it, to the point where I choose believe it's canon unless proven otherwise XD Like you can't tell me someone whose whole thing is Thinking wouldn't jump at the opportunity to do more of it in less time. As for the way it feels, hmmm idk, I just thought real hard and made it up. All we know from canon is what he explained to Szayel, and what Szayel experienced, which is just. Brain thinks faster, making time feel as though it's passing slower. And od'ing on it is Real Bad💀

Hheeeehooo What Next>:3 (btw im having a blast rn, ty for giving me a free pass to be sooooo long winded about this very niche thing XD) Right, Jizo communication here we go>:33333 So him talking to Jizo was based on what I read in a wiki about the Zanpakuto... rebellion arc? I think it's called (could definitely be wrong)? Where everyone's zanpakuto spirit is running amok? I just remember reading he didn't speak. And though I have mixed feels about the design (hence he is Moth in my fic XD), him not speaking really made sense to me. He just seems like such a fucked up little guy🤔 Like.. okay so I've mentioned this briefly in a chapter preface but want to elaborate... so I strongly believe he consents to being modified, cuz even Mayuri would probably have a hard time wielding a zanpakuto that fucking hates him. Which means he's loyal (arguably to a fault) and trusts Mayuri to do very fucked up and painful things to him. Which, to be fair, Mayuri does equally painful and fucked up things to his own body.. and that makes me wonder if Jizo isnt merely consenting but is of the same mind about this fuckery? Like idk if I can even say this in a way that makes sense🤦‍♂️ but I like to think they share this no-holds-barred, nothing-is-sacred delight for experimenting on themselves. Like Jizo is also a mad scientist in all but name>:3 (I decided on this version bc it Fucks Severly imho, but also bc it's FAR less depressing than the overly-trusting, Stockholm syndrome one, like i cannot deal with writing something that sad tbfh) Anyway, regardless of which version, he is an intensely weird Creachure. And I just can't fathom him saying fucking.. anything... that would even remotely make sense to anyone but Mayuri??? And the telepathy thing just fits Mayuri's whole.. fast thinking, Big Brain vibe. If a zanpakuto were to impart information to him through words, I can see him tapping his foot like GET TO THE POINT>:(

Lastly, the pheromone thing.. haha well this one's pretty short (future Sen here, i am a liar! It is not short😬) - I borrowed it from another ff. It's that one I mentioned at the end of.. who knows which chapter... Quantum Mechanics by Illegitimi (no link, sorry, might put one after i post)... which was Mayuri/Isane, and which I loved So Much back in the day, despite hetero romance being kind of a fuckin.. icky vibe for me in regards to Mayuri. No problem with it fyi, just usually wouldn't choose to read about it. Ugh I'm talking too much about it already but I have changed a LOT since.. 2016? Give or take? And I don't think I could stand it nowadays for a whole bunch of reasons. But. BUT. It was very well written and had some very cool hcs for him that I've clung onto. The pheromone one just fits him - if he could sharpen his ability to sense something, ofc he'd do it - plus it's very fun for romance and smut reasons, which is undoubtedly why the author thought of it. They also had that scar across his nose, though iirc it was kinda squiggly and not the upside down V that I made up. In my defense though, there's a lot I didn't borrow from that fic, too. Some highlights: Mayuri practiced feng-shui (like he'd spend his precious Sciencing time to do smth like that smh) he had these absolutely luxurious captains quarters, complete with a whole fancy bathhouse, like there was a waterfall and shit nsvdhshdv (I'll admit this was quite fun in the ff but i obviously interpret his quarters a lot differently)... and, last one I mention I promise😬 his paint rubbed off easily, big reason why I changed it tbfh cuz it immediately didn't make sense to me, like his hands especially? Is that different paint than the rubbing off paint? Or does he leave paint on every surface he touches, and discreetly wipe it up and reapply before anyone notices???? Expmain yourself, ff writer😤 jk jk it was really good for what it was, and I still very much appreciate it for helping me form my version<3

Omfg I really... shit what time is it😭 (over an hour, I've been sitting here for over an HOUR jesus fucking.. goddamn) Okay well I don't get to blab v often about this stuff, and it turns out I have a LOT of words in me today! So it was a perfect storm😩 Well I hope this was enlightening, thanks sm for the ask, it was a very fun hour lol. And sorry for the uhhh. the amount of words:p

[atrueneutral]

Secretly pining Raphael reacting to Tav saving his life, but when he asks why she did so or what she wants in exchange for saving him, Tav very clearly almost admits that she did it because she cares about him, but she catches herself and, even though it's very obvious that the both of them know exactly what Tav was just about to say, the adventurer "corrects" herself ("I did it because I- Because you're my ally."). Tav then quickly tries to excuse herself; poor thing feels awkward and embarrassed because the cambion has not made his feelings for his little mouse clear at all.

(This became a Part II to the Iron Flask ask)

Three days later, Tav was called to the Devil’s Den to receive her reward for saving Raphael from the unknown depths of the iron flask. Neither of them sat; it was an offensive move on his part - so as to not invite her to get comfortable, and a defensive move on her part - it was in her best interest to leave once her ‘wish’ was granted.

It was thus that they stood appraising one another from a safe distance.

“I’ve come for my reward,” Tav prompted. She then decided to get a bit cheeky. “My reward for saving you, lest you forgot.”

Raphael’s face darkened alongside a grimace.

“And you’ll have it, Little Mouse, as soon as you answer a question.”

Her gaze turned suspicious.

“Alright…” she said, full of caution.

“Why did you come for the flask?”

Tav found humor in the way he avoided calling it what it was - a rescue effort. Then again, she found humor in a lot of what Raphael said and did; his overly verbose nature at times, his theatricality, the way his face shriveled with displeasure more often than not when it came to her retorts, the way he seemed to make a special effort to butter her up when he wanted her for a task–

“Because I care about y–” Tav froze for a fraction of a second, but it was a fraction of a second that was not lost on Raphael. “Your rewards. And because you’ve become an ally. Who gives me rewards. I like rewards. Your rewards - not you.”

“Not me,” Raphael repeated flatly.

“Nope.”

“Oh, I see,” he said, looking suddenly too smug for comfort. “Yet you like that my rewards come from me?”

Her face was burning.

“I meant that I like rewards only, Raphael, and I’m long overdue for my latest one, so please…”

“And what is to be your reward, Little Mouse? Hm?” Raphael asked with a tilt of his head. His voice was low, too low - dangerously low. “There is little I would deny you, as long as it’s in my power.”

The kind of low that caused arousal to flare in her lower abdomen.

He was teasing her, and his teasing was making her mouth go dry.

“Gods! Would you believe me if I said I had a conflicting appointment that I just now remembered?” Tav realized how terribly unconvincing she sounded as she stepped backwards towards the exit. “We’ll have to do this tomorrow. Or next week. But not now, so I bid thee farewell. Goodbye.”

She turned, fled out the door, and left Raphael in the Devil’s Den with a pleased smile on his face.

[incorrectfbaaquotes]

heyy!

this might seem stupid lol but i do not use instagram so i always miss book annoucements, so i wanted to ask you because youre like the one person who post stuff about fbaa

i wanted to ask if you knew when the next fbaa books were coming and which series theyre a part of? i mean like, after asoab, when is the next book coming? i searched on google but cant get a proper result

(for context i have read fbaa till asoab, and the nyktos series till the second book, tho i know the next book has been published in that series)

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE AND SORRY FOR BOTHERING YOU ILYYY ❣️❣️❣️

Not ever a bother and you are sweet. And I will use any excuse to talk about this universe. 😁

The short answer to your question is Primal of Blood and Bone comes out June 10, 2025. I don't know if that varies a bit by country, almost certainly by most non-English translated versions, but that's the release date for most of us.

And because I just have to be overly verbose, to expand on that topic a bit...

Here is the current order for only the Blood and Ash series (Poppy x Casteel), without the Flesh and Fire series (Sera x Ash/Nyktos) :

1. From Blood and Ash

2. A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire

3. The Crown of Gilded Bones

4. The War of Two Queens

5. A Soul of Ash and Blood

6. Primal of Blood and Bone (To be released June 10, 2025)

This is the end of Poppy and Casteel's story. However, there will be at least one more Blood and Ash book, Millie and Malik's book. There is no expected release date for this one yet. This is mostly because she won't write this one right after finishing POBAB. She will instead finish the Awakening series, which I believe is intended to be a duology, (book 1: Fall of Ruin and Wrath). It does loosely tie into the Blood and Ash series by acting as a super duper prequel to both Blood and Ash and Flesh and Fire by telling the story of the Ancients. At least one of the players in that book is confirmed to be in POBAB.

To sum it up, these are the only books confirmed to still be coming:

1. Awakening / FORAW #2

2. Millie and Malik's book

There has also been brief chats and asides to potential other stories, but nothing concrete. She has mentioned being asked to write (I think by the publisher but I'm boycotting FB so I can't check 😢) a novella of, like, some of the in between F&F and B&A. The one story she had stated multiple times she has no plans of writing is Malec and Isbeth's story. Because she writes HEA guaranteed and their story is absurdly tragic.

Also including for any other new initiates, the Flesh and Fire series, Seraphena and Nyktos' story, is finished with the fourth and final book, Born of Blood and Ash, releasing last year. Their order is as follows:

1. A Shadow in the Ember

2. A Light in the Flame

3. A Fire in the Flesh

4. Born of Blood and Ash

Originally it was suggested by JLA to read these series in publication order. Now, that stance has changed a little. If you haven't started either series yet, she says to start with the Flesh and Fire series and then move on to Blood and Ash. That way it isn't necessary to split the Blood and Ash series with all of these other books. If you have started Blood and Ash, I would suggest at least stopping between TCOGB and TWOTQ to read Flesh and Fire before continuing to get the best experience. Absolutely read everything published before it before getting to POBAB. FORAW is the odd one out that can read whenever. I read it after BOBAA and kind of wish I had read it before, but that's a me thing.

[Reading order cheat sheet based on publication order by VeryTiredWoman on Reddit. All credit to her. I thought it was a nice visual to use here.]

[conkreetmonkey]

I have a weird, muddy opinion on how people on this site call The United States of America "USAmerica." Yeah, it works, and it removes any confusion about whether you're talking about the country or the landmass, but at the same time, it feels clunky? USAmerica just feels... idk, it's like you couldn't say it out loud without sounding goofy? You can say "the USA" out loud and it sounds good and makes sense, but at the same time the "the" makes it a bit awkward gramatically, and you can't just say "I'm from USA," but you can say, in text form, "I'm from USAmerica."

THEN there's the fact that people from that country are typically referred to as "Americans," and things from there as "American." When someone says "America," you don't think about the two connected continents the term could technically be referring to, you just think about the United States of America. It's an unusually "built" country within the region, made up of 51 smaller, unified nation-states that have combined into one very large, culturally and geographically disjointed country under one sprawling government, where every state, now functionally more of a province, retains the ability to have differing laws and economic policies, yet must answer to the grand government that controls them all as a whole, like if every country in Europe was ruled by one overseeing organization but were free to remain distinct as mini-nations rather than homogenized provinces. Two USAmerican states are far more different in legislation and culture than, say, two Canadian provinces are.

Given this, it makes sense for the country to simply be named "The United States of America." It's a bunch of states from America that are united into one big Voltron of a nation. Of course, though, you can't just say something like "this book is a great work of United States of America-ian literature," due to the way the English language works. Within the framework of English grammar, ideally, a country needs an adjective form of its name to concisely describe people and things from there, and while there are no hard rules as to how to go about that to my knowledge, there are a few different ways. You can apply a prefix to the country's name such as "ish" (British, Scottish, Turkish), "ian" (Brazillian, Russian, Indian), "ese" (Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese), "i" (Pakistani, Somali, Yemeni), or "an" (Guatemalan, German, Mexican), or if it sounds good you can just get funky with it and change a vowel or two (Norse, French, Dutch, Malagasy). And then there's Iceland with the "ic" (because they're special).

So BASICALLY, from THAT standpoint, using "American" as the USA's adjective makes sense. It flows well, does what it needs to. The problem, of course, is the overlap with the name of the landmasses. Technically, when one says "South American," they could be referring to either the continent of South America, or the south of the USA. Same with "North American." Now, nobody actually uses either of those terms to describe regions of the country, probably due to this overlap. A USAmerican could simply say "I'm from the north" or "I'm from a southern state," and you would understand given the context of them being a USAmerican. But then again, they couldn't just simply drop the country and compass-ional (whatever tf the term is) region in the same clause like people from any other country could without it sounding weird. "I'm from South France" makes sense as a sentence, as does "This plant grows in Northern Australia." "I was born in the South of the United States of America" is clunky and overly verbose, yet the lack of a proper country name without a "the" throws a wrench into that.

So what do we (typically) do? Just say "American" and let context do the work, clarifying if neccesary. "I'm from Southern America" obviously is not intended to apply to the continents, although it technically could. The reader, simply due to the context of knowing that South America is a continent and "America" usually refers to the USA unless otherwise stated, understands that the writer almost certainly means they're from a place like Texas or Louisiana, rather than Argentina or Chile. This way of writing/speaking is imprecise and requires unspoken context, but it gets the job done. America the country is a weird case in terms of its makeup, and that's reflected in its name. You're not referring to one country, you're referring to 51 micro-nations held together with one big fat federal government spread over them, like the thick plastic wrap holding a pallet of crates, boxes and sacks together as one shippable unit. And besides, nobody ever says "America" to refer to both continents, even though they technically could. They say "The Americas," because while technically one region, NA and SA are both very distinct and barely physically connected at all, held together by a single small landbridge (that has a canal though it now anyways, so you can't walk from one continent to the other without crossing water anymore).

So, in conclusion, idk, the term "USAmerica" removes the needless complexity of situational context, but it's somehow clunkier-feeling than the preexisting norm of just saying "America." I use and will continue to use the term USAmerica for brevity's sake since it's the norm on this site, but I'd certainly never use it anywhere else. America is an unusual country, and its name reflects that. A square peg in a language made of round holes, that can still fit if you turn it sideways a little. idk. I suppose the only real lesson here is that a) American exceptionalism is unintentionally portrayed in the language the country speaks, and b) English has a weird grammar system where things that are objectively correct within it sometimes don't "feel right" for no reason other than lacking succinctness.

[cain-e-brookman]

Belong, Seek, and Avoid Tag

Rules: A person's identity can also be shaped by their social connections. Identify three things about your character: What groups do they belong to, and what groups do they believe they do not? What kind of people do they tend to seek, and what kind of people would they rather avoid?

Thank you for the tag @spideronthesun!

Gonna mix things up and do this one for Crucius

Belong

Crucius had a very solitary childhood. Due to family secrets and a few disabilities, he spent most of his time in his studies, yet still doesn't see himself being or belonging to the scholars. He shuns most academic groups and organizations with a distaste for both unearned superiority and what he sees as meaningless echo chambers. For the most part, he sees himself as separate from most, but not in a belief he is unique, but as a difficulty in finding like-spirited people who can tolerate his detached and cold facade.

Seek

He purposely surrounds himself with talkers. He seeks out people with lots of opinions and the voice to tell you about them. Of the few friends he can claim and the family he has, the only common trait is being loud, verbose, or otherwise vocally meandering. He especially like to find people who's areas of interest are far removed from his, as his love of learning can attach itself to anything if heard of with enough passion.

Avoid

He hates people who are boastful or overly-proud and people who are insensitive or cruel needlessly. Contrary-wise, he avoids overly idealistic people as he finds them to be just as delusional as the opposite side. Outside of his father's partner and Uthyr, he stays away from most who claim strong religious ideals.

realizing how little i can answer these things without major spoilers lmao. crucius is certainly an enigma

i tag @xenascribbles @illarian-rambling @emrowene! do if you'd like!

[christineonthemoors]

Post 3 - I am Not Ready for Mainstream Discourse 

“But you really don’t need to be accurate. It’s just a book. That is not based on real life. It’s all art.” 

-Kharmel Cochrane, Casting Director for Emerald Fennell’s upcoming adaptation of Wuthering Heights (2026)

April of 2025 is a surprisingly decent time to dedicate a blog to Wuthering Heights. Even though the book was published almost two hundred years ago, there’s an abundance of chit chat resurfacing all about it because of the upcoming adaptation from Emerald Fennell. This director is famous (infamous?) for Saltburn and Promising Young Woman, and I have no commentary to add on these films because I have not seen them. In an effort to emulate The Great Gatsby’s non-judgemental Nick Carraway, I won’t condemn what I have not seen. However, I think there’s some room to critique a little bit of what we’re seeing from this new Wuthering Heights adaptation buzz, but before doing so, I want to clarify a few things. 

I have noticed that in online circles especially, it is particularly trendy to just express hatred and disgust from a point of pompous dissent – it’s very cool to be disgusted, and I think we should be quicker to celebrate than we are to criticize. Or, at least, criticize in tandem with offering a solution. On a personal level, I am really fighting hard to seek first to celebrate and be less harsh on artists. At this point, I am being verbose, but…“I'm inclined to reserve all judgement, a habit that has opened up many curious natures to me and made me the victim of not a few veteran bores…” 

In general, I refuse to be overly precious about adapting a movie to screen when I believe there is room for a bit of artistic liberty to allow for new and creative forms to take shape. Books aren’t rigid scripts, and filmmaking is an artform with unique customs that I don’t fully comprehend. I’d like to think I have an openness to new generations and their interpretations of Wuthering Heights. It’s a perennial classic to be enjoyed for the years to come – right? 

Okay, that’s enough moral cosplay – I can now embrace my role as a scathing, Scrooge-like critic with nothing but scorn for this imminent catastrophe. There was room for modern integrations of inclusivity for this movie, and perhaps living within my openness to bringing the book to a new generation of readers – Heathcliff has an essence that could be effectively captured by an actor from a non-White ethnic background. Instead, Jacob Elordi will be playing Heathcliff. I am willing to give him a chance to really make the role his own. But I am baffled by the choice of casting a White actor to play him. Oh, and casting non-White actors to play Linton and Nelly (Linton especially, whose privilege is a driving force in the novel). Well, whatever. I am less bothered by the casting choices and a few anachronistic costumes (yeah, that’s a whole other story) than I am what appears to be Cochrane’s philosophy of literature and cinema’s relationship. What is the purpose of bringing a novel to life in a movie? I suppose I could think of a few things. 

Give a stimulating visual dimension to things like dialogue and fashion (especially in novels from deeper in history) 

Pay homage to a great work of literature by respecting the integrity of the author and their plot 

Bridge the gap between readers and movie fans by offering a fresh medium for storytelling 

To be completely transparent with my feelings – I think the allure of the Wuthering Heights title is being used to market and profit from a redesigned story. Is that honest? Is that fresh? My answer is no. I am writing this not just to express my protectiveness over the book, but also just to bemoan the lack of novelty in modern storytelling and cinema. Are we really in such a creative rut as a culture that we cannot produce something new? Must we instead crank out fan-fiction about beloved novels to express our modern sensibilities that will soon feel cringey and dated? I suppose the old scripture is correct: What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. 

I hope those in the school of Kharmel Cochrane’s thought reconsider the purpose of cinema – yes, it’s all art, but let’s seek to make good art. I suppose it is one thing to use Wuthering Heights as inspiration for a truly new story. There’s plenty of subject matter there. Supernatural occurrences, forbidden love, class disparity, and generational trauma can inform a modern story of interest. But no, Fennell and Cochrane appear to be using Wuthering Heights as a foundation for their own story – which feels like an easy way out. It feels like stealing. And it feels icky. The online discourse I have seen about it seems to indicate cynicism and a lack of high hopes. I know no one’s asking me, but in case anyone decides to, I do have a message. Let’s be honest in our adaptations and creative in modern storytelling. Stop exploiting the intellectual labor of literary titans of the past and corrupting their work to express a flailing idea of what you think a story should be. In conclusion, I am still going to watch this movie. Even if it becomes inevitable that my only motivation is to create a snarky review, I still want to engage with the way Wuthering Heights shapes the modern age and pop culture. In my own little world where I feel exceptionally pretentious at times with my high and mighty literary opinions (in which the pretentiousness is only compounded by my Master’s degree and teaching career), I still want to find something to enjoy. I can’t even begin to articulate how fantastic it is to see contemporary discussions on the Brontes in the year 2025. Even if this move is a complete disaster, is there really any loss in the fact that there is more Wuthering Heights discourse in the air? This book regularly proves that history will not forget it.

[pinkaditty]

I'M SICK TO MY STOMACH I MISSED YOUR BDAY WAAAHHHHHHHHHHH but I will make up for it with your romeo request..... I PROMISE.....

I AM CURIOUS ABT A LOT OF STUFF BTW so I will send A BUNCH of questions BUT!!!!!! Feel free to answer just some of them if it's too much 😭 Ily Mal you're a HUGE inspiration of mine and I hope your bday was great and your days are great as well!!!!!!

The questions: Satan, Beelzebub, Barbatos, Xavier, Rafayel, Nero, Haru, Rui and Yuri

AYAAAAAAAAAAA YIPPEE!!!!!!!! i am eagerly looking 4ward 2 my romeo req...

and it's fine u get a pass u can ask as many as u like

AND IM SO GLAD IM AN INSPIRATION!!!!! you will never know how much that means 2 me

cutoff for mentions of dead bodies. also minors dni.

Satan: Have you ever genuinely hated or despised a character? Why?

Answer: In all honesty, it's really hard for me to hate anything, much less anyone. I don't like hating people (or hating on things in general) because it just makes me feel bitter and then I get anxious about hating things. And there are better things to do than hate.

That being said. I might genuinely dislike Lucifer from Obey Me. Not hate. Not despise. But a genuine, strong dislike. And it's insane because I have never truly hated nor disliked a character in otome games. I am one of the ones who believes in harems and thinks all the LIs are deserving of love in some form. I don't believe Lucifer, however, is deserving of any love from me. I don't like him because he's off-putting, too forceful, and quite literally the fandom blueprint for a mean dom or whatever. Anytime he approaches me I just tell him to wrap it up. And quickly, at that. Usually I don't mind characters like this because sometimes they're funny, but I dunno. I don't find Lucifer funny in any context. I just think he's weird. He has his redeeming qualities, but overall? He's my least favorite of the seven brothers.

Beelzebub: What kind of writing can you never get enough of?

Answer: Descriptive writing. Be sooooooooo descriptive. Be over the top, be verbose, be disgusting, use the most colorful words the internet can give you (in the right context!), and my life is yours. Literally. Describe the squelch, the whimper, the groan of despair, the twisting of expressions and the cracking of bones and the gurgling of voices. Describe the warmth of the sun on backs and the chill of snow on cheeks. Describe the stinging of tears, the shivers of giddiness, the twinge of fear. I don't care what you're writing; smut, romance, angst, found family, whatever! Be so overly descriptive that I can't put it down. My life will literally be yours.

Barbatos: What trope of characters are you most likely to get along with?

Answer: Easygoing characters. Characters who ride the winds of time and change like it's no big deal and take everything in stride. They keep a level head and serve as a grounding, stable presence. I am a very anxious and tightly wound person, and while it's something I'm actively working on, having someone who can ground me when I get too in my head is ideal.

It's either that or cheerful characters. Characters who manage to stay positive (preferably not to their own detriment) and are flirty, funny, and can cheer someone up in seconds. I love people who can see the bright side to most things, and will help me stay positive in a good way. Plus, I just like flirty, funny people. They're easy to get along with and are typically kind. It's soothing to be around them. And I'd love to return the favor if they ever need someone to cheer them up.

Xavier: Favorite food, color, and animal?

Food: Pasta. I don't care if it has cream sauce, tomato sauce, or oil sauce. If it's a pasta with delicious toppings and a rich sauce, I will absolutely destroy it.

Color: Contrary to what is probably popular belief... My favorite color is blue! When I was seven years old, I set up a pink and purple crayon in an attempt to choose between the two colors for a favorite. I ended up reaching too far and picked a blue one. I decided to go with it. Blue has been my favorite color ever since, and over time, it really has become my genuine favorite color.

Animal: I don't have a favorite animal. However, my favorite animal group is literally any bird ever. I love birds; I think they're all so funny all the time.

Rafayel: What do you like to do to pass the time?

Answer: A variety of things, really. Rewatch my favorite shows (big fan of murder mysteries, period pieces, comedies, fantasies, and slice-of-life shows), read webtoons or books (action and fantasy are my favorites), write poetry, even painting! It's a hobby I don't dedicate much time to, but I enjoy it when I do it.

Sometimes I like to watch let's plays of juicy plot-heavy games or really funny ones. It depends on my mood.

My favorite hobby, however, is playing games. I love casual games, plot-heavy RPGs/simulators, and a good, juicy otome game.

Nero: What’s something you would love to learn more about? 

Answer: Human Anatomy. Forgive me for being a little over the top here, but if I had the opportunity, I would indeed crack a dead person open just to study their tissues. My god, it would be cathartic. I've never flinched at any of the scenes of dead bodies in TKDB because I always think about how cool it would be to examine them up close. The beheaded bodies are my favorites.

Haru: How much time do you typically put into your writing? How high of a priority is it?

Answer: Oh, hours. Hours and hours and hours. It isn't my top priority as I do have a job and other responsibilities, but writing is very high on the list because it's how I decompress. It doesn't even really matter what I'm writing about. if I'm in the mood to write, I'm doing that!

Rui: What inspires your writing? How long does the inspiration last?

Answer: It comes and goes in random strikes. Sometimes something completely unrelated to a fic I have in progress will happen and it will strike me with inspiration so deeply that I am possessed to get up and immediately write.

I came up with my perv!Sho fic while watching a murder mystery. I came up with Pavlov's Ghoul soon after reading your leashed leo fic and thinking about autumn settling in. I came up with my perv!Haku fic while doodling, drinking tea, and burning incense. Inspiration is anywhere and everywhere. It strikes randomly and suddenly. It lasts until my brain dares to forget it, and I'm not one to forget an inspiration.

Yuri: Is writing strictly a hobby, or do you plan to monetize it one day?

Answer: It's a great hobby. I do intend to monetize it one day. But that's not happening anytime soon. Some requests I've gotten, however, have REALLy pushed my limit, so I'm thinking about implementing a paywall if things get any more crazy.

want 2 submit an ask yourself? see my birthday ask game!

and thank you all for the well wishes! i had a happy birthday!

[trickiwooao3]

Questions for Writers

I enjoy reading other people's answers but can't imagine why anyone would be interested in mine--other than the kind folks who tagged me -- @demora00 and @flowertrigger. How many works do you have on AO3?

7 What’s your total AO3 word count?

217,449 for only 7 works. Told you I'm wordy.

What fandoms do you write for?

Schitt's Creek. I can't imagine writing for anything else.

Top fic by kudos:

From the Sunny Day I Met You -- by a mile. It’s all about timing. I'm thrilled to get half as many for anything I write now.

Do you respond to comments?

This is a big thing with me. Comments are ever so much more satisfying than kudos (but please do leave kudos!). I respond to every single comment, usually within a day, sometimes immediately. If I didn't respond to your comment, I didn't see it (and I'm so sorry!). If I stumble on new-to-me comments even years later, I'll respond. I match my responses to the comments. A couple of words or an emoji (those are fine, shy people!) get a "Thanks!" I give long, thoughtful comments long, thoughtful responses. I've had the most wonderful experience "chatting" back and forth with people who comment on every chapter. That kind of engagement makes it feel as if all my efforts have some purpose beyond scratching a creative itch.

I'm not one of those super popular writers who gets a zillion comments for every chapter. If I were, I hope I would still respond to each, though it would take me longer and I'd be less verbose. But who knows? Maybe I'd throw my hands up in resignation. I'll never find out. I don't intend to guilt trip those who don't respond to comments. It takes a lot of time and mental energy that not everyone has. I also know that few people are as "into" comments as I am. I'm probably extreme in this regard, but if I don't get a response to my comment, I don't leave any more comments for that writer. This is not an indictment; I figure they're just not into comments. I find it too frustrating to type into a void, especially if I take the time to leave a long, quotey, gushy comment and never get any kind of reaction, not even a "thanks!" or a thumbs up or whatever. I end up feeling embarrassed and worry that I've been overly dramatic or annoying. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

David didn't remember to pack his charging brick at the end of Sunny Day. That's about as angsty as I get.

Do you get hate on fics?

I'm too under the radar and my fics are too mild-mannered to elicit much negative energy.

Do you write smut?

No, nope, uh huh, never. Beyond the fact that I'd be terrible at it, I enjoy finding ways to explore sexual situations beyond the literal "this goes here and that goes there; moan, groan." I write a lot of words about sexual conversations, reactions, and so forth, but leave the mechanics to the reader's imagination.

Crossovers:

I don't write them, but I think a gimmicky crossover between Murder She Wrote and SC would be fun. (Spoiler: Roland did it.)

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yes, my own computer stole an entire chapter from me. After a prolonged freakout, I was able to grab it back with a series of CONTROL Zs.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Only if you count my betas helping me convert Southernisms to standard English.

Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

No. I’m probably too much of an obsessive control freak to be tolerable as a co-writer.

All-time favorite relationship?

Me and my coffee while I write about Patrick and David.

What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

If an idea makes it from my brain to an outline, I eventually finish it. The idea that will probably never be anything but thought bubbles is a sick fic sequel to Sunny Day.

What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue, plot, relationship arcs. Also writing mechanics, grammar, and style basics like parallel structure, verb tenses, avoiding word repetition, maintaining POV--basically, the skills that got me an A in my college composition class.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Description, images, symbolism, metaphors -- basically, the high level skills that get better writers an MFA.

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

No puedo. Ne peut pas. Hiki ole. Chan urrainn. Ant-kay.

Favorite fic you’ve written?

Ubi Caritas. I spent the better part of two years obsessing over these college boys. I miss them every day. This has been around a while and also I worry that my answers are cringy so I'll skip tagging.

[merakimoonglade]

Hello 🌝 Hope it's not a bother, but I do want to know, so I'll pass you this 😅

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last 10 people who liked or reblogged something from you! Get to know your mutuals and followers ❤️

Thank you for sending it to me! I'm looking forward to yours and everyone else's answers since I'm new here though I've been on A03 for just over a year. My overly verbose response:

My kids. I have 2. They're great 97% of the time.

Stories. Books, movies, tv, audiobook, play, any format. I've always been drawn to them and been an avid consumer. I usually read a few books at a time; right now it's 4 books plus an audiobook and random fics. Visual medium: I'm super behind everything (I still haven't caught season 2 of Shadow and Bone 😬), but I'm looking forward to Fallout and season 2 of Arcane. The last thing I saw in the theater was Dune, part 2 (I love Villeneuve), and I want to see Monkey Man.

Writing. Splitting hairs and making this it's own thing because it genuinely makes me happy and I feel a need to write. I wrote as a kid then stopped for a long time. and ACOTAR is what got me back into it. I created all these stories for Elain and Azriel and wanted to write them, and now I also have an original work I'm very slowly moving forward on.

Water. 🌊 Bath, pool, ocean, puddle, tide pool. I find it calming.

Massages. The deeper and harder the better. Turn my muscles into jelly and I will be happy the rest of the day.

[gale-gaze]

4, 28, and 61 for the Tav ask game? I'm especially interested in her reaction to Auntie Ethel considering her background with hags

[ weeps into the void - thank you for these ones, I loved fleshing these thoughts out; overly verbose answers below the cut 💜 ]

4. Is there a reason why your Tav starts out at level 1?

Straight up fear, my dude; Mavis is so scared that [REDACTED] is potentially in danger after seeing them in her scrying mirror with a mindflayer, and then the additional stress of the Nautiloid experience with seeing that made her live with one of her worst fears - becoming useless and forgetting everything she worked to avoid.

She is nervous and skittish on the Nautiloid - she's trying not to have a panic attack until she runs into Lae'zel, whose straightforward attitude in the face of danger eases her fears some; but like an artist putting too much pressure on themselves experiencing skill regression, she has to ease back into everything and spends a lot of time rereading old journals to calm her mind and reassure herself that she is still competent and just needs to keep going.

28. What does your Tav think of Auntie Ethel? What do they tell Mayrina?

Immediate gut feeling that something is off, but tries to keep it to herself in hopes that she is overthinking things due to stress and plays nice initially to be cautious given what she has experienced - especially after speaking with Pandirna and removing the curse on her.

Attempting to save face with Ethel when meeting Mayrina's brothers, Mavis takes her side in the argument and knocks the brothers out - she knows the distraught drive to save a loved one too well. But when the illusion finally falls and she meets Ethel again, Mavis is... defensive, to say the least, and overly protective of Mayrina despite her pleas. But she also knows that she can't outsmart Ethel and is extremely hesitant to go after her when she takes Mayrina, only proceeding after she thinks about her brothers trying to do it themselves once they recover.

Mavis wants to kill Ethel, almost desperately; she wants to take out all of her frustration and grief on her, but knows that it's never that easy to get rid of someone like her, and she doesn't want the fear of a vengeful hag looming over her - not right now.

She begrudgingly spares the hag for the sake of Mayrina, and firmly tells Mayrina to be careful before giving her the wand for Connor; when encountered again in the city, Mavis knocks Ethel out and cuts Vanra from her stomach to save her - despite the Hag's Bane remaining in her bag, unused - before finally finishing Ethel for good.

She is tired, cranky, and wants a nap real bad, but also feels a weight lifted off her - she sleeps like the dead that night.

61. How does your Tav feel about Baldur's Gate? Is it their home? Is it their first time in the city?

Mavis did not grow up in Baldur's Gate, but had heard plenty from listening to her mother talk about it in stories and song while living in Silverymoon in her youth. Mavis had been making her way towards Baldur's Gate (albeit not very efficiently, since she continuously went off course to follow any wild leads and rumors of forgotten or weird magic incidents or to find a new book) because she believed that surely, eventually, [REDACTED] would end up Halfway to Everywhere, just like they said in their childhood.

Mavis does bump into [REDACTED] at the Circus of the Last Days shortly after they had just completed the Test of Love with Zethino, both them and their companion adorned with face paint; Mavis and [REDACTED] are both too invested in their conversations with their companions to see each other before they colide together, causing Mavis to lose her footing and tumble down - when [REDACTED] offers a hand down to help her up, they apologize saying "I hope I didn't break anything of yours" and Mavis is quick to shake it off and take their hand without thought.

[REDACTED] makes a comment about really liking her keyhole ring and jokes that "it better not be cursed - I hate curses" as they pull her up - when Mavis hears that and finally sees that it's [REDACTED] as she meets their eye, she nervously mumbles that "sometimes curses aren't so bad" and apologizes for not paying attention before letting them carry on their way. Gale makes a comment that they sure seem colorful and fun, but he would never be caught dead in face paint like that; Mavis laughs, looks back to them and says "yeah, they seem happy" before taking Gale's hand and continuing with "and that sounds like a challenge to me" as they walk on to do their own Test of Love.

Once she makes it into the city, she is... Homesick, perhaps is the best way to put it. She enjoys parts of the city, and parts of the people, but seeing it in the state it was in with what she had learned on her journey overall tarnished it a bit; Mavis does appreciate their resilience nevertheless, and later seeing [REDACTED] and their companion laughing over drinks at a tavern after the city is safe again makes her appreciate the city in a different way - it's not perfect and it's not what she imagined as a kid, but it certainly does bring people together in remarkable and unexpected ways and truly is Halfway to Everywhere.

Mavis does not talk to [REDACTED] in the tavern, but does finally tell Gale who they are as she shares some Silverymoon Blue that she had been keeping safe for a special occasion with him while they celebrate; Gale laughs and says that Mavis may have a type, and she feigns taking offense as she tells him that "all the best breakthroughs start with a rough blueprint" before kissing him and leaving the tavern together, leaving her scrying mirror necklace on the table at the tavern.

BONUS: enjoy a lil personal favorite track to enjoy with question 61's answer 💜

[ofspaceandearth]

sorry, i have a very hard time understanding what flanderized means? does it mean you don't like the character?

A very fair question!

To answer your second question first, I will say I do like Zamasu. While not my favorite character ever, I do find him very interesting and there was unexplored potential. But that's not what I'm gonna do here.

"Flanderized" is trope talk for character butchery, often times by taking one or two traits from a character that has many and overinflating it to the point it really takes up their entire character. Think of how Broly went from being coherent, sadistic and being able to form full sentences in the first Broly movie to being a near mindless brute who is unable to say anything but Kakarot in the second movie.

I'm mainly doing this bc it's funny to make things overly verbose coming from a character who has admitted he likes the sound of his own voice, and because whenever I let his intro rock in FighterZ, he says things so much slower than anyone else that his 2-3 sentences feel like they take an eternity in comparison. Really, just having a bit of fun, hence the "crack" label to him on my blog.