#respect goes both ways ffs

[offtorivendell]

What you all seem to be missing is that this isn't even a topic of infertility, it's of delivery. The discussion is NEVER "can Elain get pregnant" because the problem was not "could Feyre get pregnant." The plot introduced into the series was what happens after she became pregnant and carried the baby to term, could a non Illyrian safely deliver a baby with wings which has now carried over into the discussion of Elain since it's canon that Feyre and Nesta were changed while we were not told the same of Elain. It's not a reason Elain can't be with Az but it is a valid topic of discussion within this series since the author posed it as a plotline. In the real world, most women safely choose a Caesarean section if they're dealing with delivery issues in their pregnancy so acting like delivering a winged baby has real world implications is simply you jumping on a pedestal for something to yell about. That's not to say there aren't delivery issues in the real world but this scenario is not one of them.

TW: death, infertility, pregnancy and childbirth related trauma. Also a brief mention of sexual assault.

Hi anon,

Respectfully, please stop being deliberately obtuse. Let's break this down, line by line.

What you all seem to be missing is that this isn't even a topic of infertility, it's of delivery. The discussion is NEVER "can Elain get pregnant" because the problem was not "could Feyre get pregnant."

I'm aware! I assume that you sent me this ask because I reblogged an old post of mine yesterday, so what you seem to be missing is that I've already discussed this.

Here, where I implicitly acknowledged both infertility and trauma related to pregnancy and childbirth as potential triggers in the post:

And here, where I explicitly stated that we know you guys don't mean that Elain is unable to conceive at all - which is impossible to know, as per the text she hasn't tried. If you read what I wrote, you'd see I said that - assuming Nesta had not changed her anatomy and would not be able to in the future, or that Elriel would even conceive winged children if they wanted kids at all - Elain and Azriel together would be functionally infertile*, as any child with wings (which is not a guarantee, by the way, though as you guys treat it as a foregone conclusion I worked off that premise) would die before or during birth, killing Elain at the same time.

* Is it more correct to say they'd suffer from "impaired fecundity"? Yes! But please read a little further.

The plot introduced into the series was what happens after she became pregnant and carried the baby to term, could a non Illyrian safely deliver a baby with wings which has now carried over into the discussion of Elain since it's canon that Feyre and Nesta were changed while we were not told the same of Elain.

It's really not hard to understand that we are discussing a fictional woman's ability to successfully have a specific man's children, and that their impaired fecundity does not (or should not) impact her worthiness to be loved by that man; that it has been equated to the struggles that many real, living people have experienced with regards to conceiving, carrying their babies to term and giving birth; and that - while an oversimplification - all these issues are being lumped under the umbrella of "infertility struggles" to be concise and accessible.

That being said, let me correct you quickly. While you very carefully said that we were "not told the same of Elain," with regards to Nesta changing her anatomy, you neglected to mention that SJM actually had her choose wording that didn't explicitly exclude Elain from the change, either.

The brisk spring wind whipped her golden-brown hair across her face. “I gave it back to the Cauldron in exchange for the knowledge of how to save them.” She swallowed. “But a little remains. I think something else—someone else—stopped the Cauldron from taking all of it. And I made some changes of my own.” The Mother. The only being who would see the sacrifice Nesta had made and give a little back. Perhaps it was she who had peered out at them through the Mask. “What did you change?” Nesta rested a hand on her abdomen. “I changed myself a little, too. So none of us will have to go through this again.” - ACOSF, chapter 78

Also of note, Nesta specified she had the "knowledge" to perform the change, which suggests that even if Elain wasn't changed then, it could be done in the future.

It's not a reason Elain can't be with Az...

Literally all that ever needs to be said on the topic.

... but it is a valid topic of discussion within this series since the author posed it as a plotline.

You should have stopped after the first half of the sentence. Elain's lack of pliable bones - ie. the second half of the "Illyrian womb" discussion that posits Gwyn as the only logical love interest - is not even a medically accurate theory, so it shouldn't be entertained full stop. While SJM may have posed Illyrian womb/wing issues as an issue for Feyre and Rhys, she never suggested it would impact any couple's decision to get or stay together. In fact, Nesta and Cassian were mates while Nesta was still unable to birth winged babies, too.

In the real world, most women safely choose a Caesarean section if they're dealing with delivery issues in their pregnancy so acting like delivering a winged baby has real world implications is simply you jumping on a pedestal for something to yell about. That's not to say there aren't delivery issues in the real world but this scenario is not one of them.

Once again I'm asking you to put your thinking cap on.

Obviously we do not have to consider the delivery of winged babies in the real world, but if you cannot see how the frequent suggestion (that Elain's hypothetical inability to successfully have Azriel's children is a valid reason as to why an author would separate, or even hint at separating, a potential couple) could be hurtful and upsetting to the many people who have/are currently struggling with infertility - or who have lost their much wanted and loved babies during the course of pregnancy or childbirth - then I have to assume that you're either suffering from a catastrophic lack of empathy or, respectfully, you have a sheep or two loose in the top paddock.

As I mentioned in the post I linked above, if the fandom is (rightfully!) expected to handle the topic of Gwyn finding love after experiencing SA with grace - out of respect for real life assault survivors - then it is not wrong to expect the same degree of care in return when discussing the anatomy change in ACOSF, out of respect for those who have trauma associated with infertility, pregnancy and childbirth in real life. It's an incredibly simple act to listen in good faith, rather than jumping straight to accusing us of wanting to "yell about" something just because you are prioritising shipping discourse over being kind.

It's 2025, the "Elain doesn't have an Illyrian womb or pliable bones" theory is both medically inaccurate and hurtful, and it really needs to end here.

Please.

[atskiruma]

his attempts at courting you

expl: he finds himself thinking about you more often, wanting to seek you out consistently, and giving you numerous gifts every day to see you smile

a/n: it has come to my attention that the last ff i wrote, (snow day) was not very well depicted for all readers to enjoy, i want to apologize for that and promise that i will get better at trying to make sure everyone is able to read it and enjoy it, my writings are targeted for all | unfortunately, i can not edit it right now seeing as there's a poll going on, but once that poll is finished i will change my wording in the ff

ask me anything masterlist

second person writing no pronouns used

Zhongli often felt himself thinking about you more often while he was working around the parlor. Even seeking out your name in conversations and listening more attentively when someone was speaking about you. It didn't confuse him though, he was aware of his interest in you.

You opened up the warmth in his heart and welcomed him kindly every time you two saw each other. It made him happy to see you happy, and this was evident when flowers were delivered directly to your door one sunny afternoon.

"These are for you," The mail lady said before turning around and walking away to do more deliveries. You didn't even get to ask who they were from before she was gone. Staring down at the bouquet of tiger lilies in front of you, you could only assume that the bright orange and black colors could depict a certain someone's hair color.

It was a nice piece on your kitchen counter and went well with the other decorations spiraling around your house. That was, until the next morning, you were greeted again with another gift. A bright orange vase to compliment the tiger lilies you received the other day. It was funny, why was he going out of his way to send you such nice gifts?

You finally managed to confront him when you saw Childe and Zhongli sitting together on the seats of an outside cafe. Walking over and waving to the both of them. They greeted you back, and small talk was given for only a couple minutes.

"I actually came over here to thank Zhongli," This caught his attention, and he turned to look up at you, "I really loved the flowers you sent and the vase goes really well with them too!" You said while smiling.

He nodded back at you, seemingly collecting himself extremely quickly at the fact you figured out so quick who it was. "I'm glad you liked them," He said.

"I came to give you this in return," You said," "I know it's probably not as extravagant as the ones you gave me, but I like it." Handing over the small gift box, he opened it and smiled softly at the item. It was a small keychain, nothing special, and it was decorated with a lovely orange seem.

That same keychain would be hung up right next to his bedframe, along with variant letters you sent him on the table accompanying it.

Diluc was someone who took courting another person seriously. He found it tradition since his father had spoken so much of it when Diluc was younger. He always wanted to treat the one he loved with respect and be as much of a gentleman as possible.

This was why you were taking a stroll with him through his grapevines on a sunny afternoon. He offered for you to come down to the Winery a couple days ago and you had just gotten around to accepting his offer. His hand rested on your back as he took you through multiple different paths and explained everything. As you strolled, he talked about things concerning the vine, his profits, the seasons they needed to be planted, etc.

You smiled at him, knowing it was something he took dear to his heart, and listened very attentively to what he was saying. In reality, Diluc was really hoping that all he was talking about didn't bore you in any way.

Then, the next couple of hours were spent sitting in his large dining room, eating food made by the cooks in his home. It was nice, and you were very happy that he wanted to spend this much time with you. Diluc even found himself watching you eat here and there, asking you if the food was good or if you needed anything else in the time being.

After everything was over, and the night sky shined over the two of you as you stood outside his doors, he leaned down and pressed a small kiss to your hand. Telling you how much of a pleasure it was to have you here, and how he wished you could stay longer.

Diluc even offered to walk you home, tediously not taking no for an answer, he reached down to take your hand and hold it the whole walk home.

Alhaitham was very closed off when he first met you, he was closed off with anyone in general. He found it strange that you always seemed to be there when he was thinking about you, and when his eyes would try and search a room in the akademiya for you.

He realized that something had to be done about this, so, he did what any other raging nerd would do, and researched about it.

You also found it odd when you'd see him looking at you from across the library, or holding the door open for you whenever you'd walking behind him. Alhaitham always seemed like the guy who only cared about his own, yet he was so evident in helping you out here and there.

Helping you when you'd be confused about a book, rewording your essays to make them better. Alhaitham seemed to want to assist you with almost everything. This was no different than today.

You found yourself back at the library looking down at a long-written parchment on the forest rangers' activities. Trying to figure out how you could make this work in the essay you were conducting on Sumeru's forest.

This was when you heard the chair scrap right next to you, and looked up from where you had originally been focused. Alhaitham took his seat next to you, slightly taking up more space than necessary with his manspreading.

"Do you need help with that? It looks like a longer report than usual for you."

"Longer than usual?" You shot back, "Are you saying that I'm not capable of reading this?" His eyes widened a bit and he instantly tried to retort his original statement. "No, no, I thought- Well- You know you usually read shorter reports in order to get more details. I didn't think you'd take something this large to account."

His confession made you smile, and you leaned in closer, "How'd you know how I like my reports?" At the response with your cheeky grin, a blush formed on his cheeks before he looked away.

"Scholars are supposed to be attentive, it's natural to know a few things you prefer in order to work best with you."

The response he sent back your way caused you to roll your eyes and turn back to what you were originally doing. "To answer your question, no, I do not need help, but thank you for offering."

That didn't seem to make him budge, because he kept sitting there watching you copy down and write words from the book.

"You misspelled climate."

The sound of a book colliding with his head echoed throughout the library.

Ayato enjoyed your company, a lot, so much that he seeks you out anytime he and his sister go down to festivals or strolls through the city. He always wanted to start up a conversation with you, and if anyone else walked by anytime he'd be down there, Ayato would be right next to you listening with a smile at whatever you said.

Ayaka loved you too and found it amusing that her brother was so interested in you. She often found herself trying to spark up conversations with you, asking if her older brother proposed yet in a joking manner.

You laughed it off, Ayato was nice but you were sure he had other rich and important people to concern his love life with. He was just a very nice man to talk with here and there, and you didn't seem to notice that you were one of the few he'd actually seek out.

That was, until, every time he saw you, he came with some form of jewelry or expensive item to give you. Asking you how your day was, what you were doing, and if you wanted to come to spend some time up at the estate with him.

"What about Ayaka?" You said with a tilt of your head in confusion. He smiled back and said, "I'm sure she'd rather stay down here and explore more of the shops.

Ayaka would have loved to come along, but before she could even turn around, the two of you were already heading back up to the estate.

He catered to you, made sure you were comfortable, and even asked if you'd like anything from his personal chefs. It was a bit much to handle, seeing as you weren't used to living so luxurious, but he was very nice about it all and understood.

The catering didn't stop after that day either, more and more people began to wonder why the Kamisato siblings were spending so much more time outside their palace. Ayaka once mentioned that you loved a certain color, and the next day Ayato was handing you a box with that color, and a necklace with the pearl containing that color too.

He even found himself marching over to you when he saw someone speaking to you in a more flirtatious matter. Moving next to you and asking if everything was alright while his hand wrapped around your own.

[regregregulusblack]

My official intro post . ⋆✮ ˚ . ✩°｡⋆｡

𝙷𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘. My name is Regulus Black, and no, you are NOT allowed to call me Reg or Reggie.

A photo my friend Evan took of me without my permission. I will never forgive you, @barbie-wants-to-be-me-fr !!!

I am intersex and I go by he/they pronouns. I don’t like to label myself, but at least I am not straight. I am single and not looking for anyone at all at the moment. I am also autistic and have ADHD. NOT the wild sort. The fucking-tired-bitch-stfu-sort.

My interests:

• Art

• Quidditch (I’m a seeker)

• Poetry (both reading and writing)

• Reading books

• Defence of the Dark Arts

• Analysing every single lyric in every single Taylor Swift song and crying about it

• Makeup

On this blog I will be posting quotes, poetry, art, photographs and selfies and just silly little things that I feel like sharing. If I see any posts about me, I will read them and BEWARE, I will be critical. So you might see me around :) You have been warned.

You will also probably see me having chats with my friends, @remus-lupin-offical is one of them but I’m still waiting for my other idiot friends to finish making their bloody accounts. I will add them here as soon as I can! Update: Took as them long enough, but now they’re also on Tumblr! People you will see me interacting with:

• @sirius-thesstar (Ew)

• @remus-lupin-offical (Why’d you choose my idiot brother as your boyfriend? You’re better than this.)

• @the-real-marls-mckinnon

• @xxcassiexx Dorcas Meadows, a Slytherin I have deep respect for. Say hi to Dorcas!

• @barty-not-barry (My batshit crazy friend)

• @pandora-notyetalovegood (Fellow Slytherin, say hi!)

• @lily-evans-for-ya (In a world of annoying people you are a nice person. Take it as a compliment or don’t. It’s up to you.)

• @captainjamespotter (Annoying Gryffindor)

• @stolemyheelsfromlegolas (DO NOT CALL ME REGIANO FFS) (MARY YOU HEAR ME?!)

• @barbie-wants-to-be-me-fr (Another lovely Slytherin asshole, he and Barty should just shut up and kiss by the way)

• @ur-local-peter-pettigrew (Gryffindor)

• @itty-bitty-bella (Cousin)

• @therealcissyblack (Cousin who loves me :))

• @andro-black (Cousin AS WELL)

• @the-best-slytherin (Luna, a fellow Slytherin)

• @yourfavouritehufflepuffgirl (Ew Hufflepuffs) (Ooc: I love Hufflepuffs)

You will see me arguing with my brother, @sirius-thesstar. Like, a lot. Don’t mind Sirius, he’s an idiot. If we’re arguing in French, do NOT translate if you’re a scaredy cat…

Do not interact if:

• You’re Sirius and you’re mad at me

• You’re a Gryffindor (yeah that goes for you too Sirius) (Slytherin is the best Hogwarts house)

• You’re transphobic

• You’re homophobic

• You don’t like me for some other reason

• You’re a Taylor Swift hater

I love Taylor. Don’t you ever disrespect her. Her new album only further proves that she’s a true poet. Even @sirius-thesstar agrees with me on that.

Other things I love are:

• Cats (I dream of having two black cats and naming them Phoebe and Ruby)

• The sea (It’s so calming to watch, but I HATE swimming. It’s too cold. And wet. Yuck.)

• The rain

• Conan Gray (No one can take his album “Superache” from me. Don’t ever try or I’ll bite u.)

Hope I’ll see you around! (Or not. Depending on my mood)

My tags: #regregregulusreg, #thetorturedpoetofthecave, #regulussy

Random edit: Ooc: Eh so I’m a minor and I’m a victim of actual physical and mental abuse and I’m still going through stuff, so eh, “Reggie” might be talking jokingly about abusive parents and a tough upbringing on here and stuff like that… just know that that is my fucked up coping mechanism okay, and I don’t mean any harm, and please if you’re joking around with me about abuse don’t take it too far since it might be triggering for me. Thank you.

[orchidego]

ao3 has taken me places I wouldn't even go to with a g*n

smoking on that dramione pack

( @ailenach asked me for a dramione rec list so that's what this post is, anyone else read at your own risk )

Compiler’s note - skip down to the list if you don’t need to know why/what exactly I like in fic!

aka my dramione ethos: The most compelling dynamic in a ship, for me, is when it comprises of two people giving each other the strength to be the people they need to be.

Before he can be loved, Draco must be redeemed. In a way, he’s awfully bad at being a blood supremacist (lacking real conviction). Draco’s Slytherin morality, at least as a teen, compels him only in the direction of protecting and preserving himself and his own; he doesn’t seem to have a morality outside of this. Everything else is borrowed from his fear and desire to conform to his loved ones’s expectations. Contrast with Hermione, who has an outsized sense of morality—she knows exactly what is good and right, and she throws herself into her causes with self-righteous conviction, headstrong and beautifully off-putting.

Draco, the boy who belonged everywhere, watched his fragile worldview turn to ash and became unmoored. Hermione, the girl who belonged nowhere, bent the world towards her through obstinate radiant willpower, and established herself. Two people who could, maybe, find a home in each other.

A Draco in love with Hermione might wrap his morality around her courage, might steady himself while in the service of her. A Hermione in love with Draco might be preserved by him, may be bolstered against burning out or being misunderstood or unseen. They’re both industrious with their respective tasks (she researches! he toils!), which lends itself to them having intellectual parity. They’re both kind of intense. Then there’s the general enemies to lovers appeal, the idea that at no point in time were these two characters ever indifferent towards each other. The banter potential alone…!

So this is some of the kind of exploration I like in fic, pressed in many different tones; ff is especially unique in that we can play around with the elements (AUs, contrived circumstances, tonal shifts, narrative beats) and be more experimental because the weight of canon grounds it.

My rec list:

Before I truly begin, I feel like I have to comment on it: I did ultimately enjoy Manacled. A "Voldemort wins" fic with a Handsmaid Tale twist; it has compelling structure, with a D/Hr dynamic suited to my tastes and what I find interesting about the characters. However, it's dark (mind the tags) and I’m still not certain if the content was handled as effectively as the author meant it to be, and so I don't think it's a universal recommendation despite its staggering popularity. If you do want to read this I would recommend downloading it because she's going to delete it off ao3 once the novelization of it comes out next year.

My quintessential dramione recommendation is, of course, The Disappearances of Draco Malfoy. It's a full Deathly Hallows rewrite where Draco goes Horcrux hunting with the trio and as far as I'm concerned, it's canon. Unlike every other fic on my list, I would recommend this to everyone. Written very closely in style to the books, I think it has universal appeal and it’s the perfect jumping off point for the pairing while being convincing. Sometimes I would find myself wishing that this was the direction the books had taken. PG-13, in terms of violence and sexual content, which I find significant enough to bring up since there’s usually a lot of sex in popular ff.

My favorite humor-based rec: Bad Omens. Written in the vein of Terry Pratchett. I would describe this as a "star-crossed morons" kind of story. It's literally perfect.

Remain Nameless. Caveat that this sort of trailed off for me once the central tension with the relationship was resolved but I think in terms of an adult redemption arc it was very sweetly done. Sometimes achingly tender.

The Fallout is probably my favorite “extended wartime” fic of all time. The intimacy in this makes me want to kms, in a good way. I'm linking to a downloadable pdf here since it's been removed off other sites.

Love in The Time of Zombie Apocalypse. Zombie outbreak AU. Strays from canon characterization but. Plot goes crazy. Complex character work. Hooked me all the way through.

Thirteenth Night. Post-war, Hermione assigned to monitor a memory-charmed Draco. Less epic than a lot of the other recs on this list because the scope of the world is small, but it’s quietly good.

This is just my plug for anything PacificRimbaud has ever written, but particularly the historical rom com Love and Other Historical Accidents, the raunchy and funny One and Done, and the tender romantic one-shot Les Pelerins.

BLOODY, SLUTTY, AND PATHETIC. Listen to me. Listen to me. The title sort of explains the tone and it carries entirely throughout. I am obsessed with this version of Draco. All men should be bloody slutty and pathetic. Post-war, ministry employee Hermione, marriage law AU (which tbh I don't tend to love usually, so this really is exceptional).

She Whom He Harbors. Ok before you read the summary/tags and judge me, yes, this is basically a "fuck or die" fic. I figured I needed to make the rec in case this is a vibe anyone is interested in pursuing. But it's not just gratuitous smut, I swear, there's a compelling plot here. Lot of orgasms. But there is a plot.

Brand New World. Epic in scope. Diverges in plot while they're still at Hogwarts. Great Draco redemption arc (which is important to me!)

The Gloriana Set. ThebeMoon is my personal queen of Hogwarts Eighth Year fics. I would also rec The Darkwood Wand, by the same author. Both very fun reads.

Things Without Remedy. Time travel! Adore the serious relationship build in this one.

Tea & Necromancy. Sort of an experimental tone. Equal parts funny and morbid.

Sucker Punch. Also would classify this as experimental; you'll know if you jive with the writing within a few paragraphs.

Choice and Chance. Absolutely delicious plot divergence at the point of Hermione's torture at Malfoy Manor. Involves multiverse elements.

Beyond Recall or Desire. If you like soulmate bonds!

Malfoy Shrugged. On the shorter side; just a great two-shot.

Tromp as Writ. While I'm recommending perfect one-shots.

Mindbound. This author has a series of very short works based on fairy tales. This one is my favorite but I'd recommend the others too.

Past / Present / Future. Barbara Kruger AND a perfect adult Draco characterization? J’adore.

My very last recommendation is something that is so important to me, but I'm separating it like this because it's a WIP whereas all the others are completed fics. Please don't let that deter you, if at all interested.

Lionheart. !!!!

What can I say about Lionheart, except that its author somehow resides in my brain and created something for me, specifically? I've really so rarely read fic that is so perfectly balanced in dialogue, character understanding, narrative arc, plotting, action—when I read this, I feel like how I felt at 11, reading Harry Potter. For real. It's a whole series rewrite, truly epic in scope, asking the question: what if Draco had been sorted into Gryffindor? Currently the storyline is complete as to book four, partially through book five, and being updated. The character work is especially stunning to me. This is the sweetest slowburn friendship-to-lovers of my dreams; obviously heavy on the friendship arc since we're not all the way through, and yet I find that my emotional investment in this is so heightened it doesn't even matter to me. I want to read thousands of words of this (luckily, it's already got 600k+ of those). Thank you greenTeacup, for my life.

I obviously have read more than this so if there are any specific tropes/interests/limitations you want a rec for, I'm open to give an opinion. Also I have my eye on a few fics that I just haven't read yet, so alas, this list is not perfectly complete. The next thing I want to read....Détraquée....

[eavangeek]

You bring up a great point re- jealousy. I love the idea of everyone flirting with the hot professor and Rook just laying their claim in subtle ways.

The jealousy thing goes both ways, I think.

(Again, the Therapy Speech™️ of this game pisses me off, and I will cling to that goddamn verbal hissy fit with my claws. I want my fiction to be a mess ffs)

I think you could really play in the space of both Rook and Emmrich having insecurities via the relationship and it would be Delicious™️

You have Emmrich who has multiple codex of past lectures, and while he might have started life as a Butcher's Son, he's so removed from that life now it's kinda laughable. He's got money, respect in his field, and TENURE. Forget everything else about the man, on paper he's a golden meal ticket.

Do you know how many people have salivated on the idea of hanging off his arm? Do you know how long, colleagues and students alike, have probably spent trying to get closer to the Prize rather than the man himself?

And then Rook, regardless of faction, is the de facto Wild Card Rebel. They got picked by Varric Tethras, known "make a street rat into a hero" author. You have someone who, if you do LoF or Crow, was someone who did the right thing, but not the Politically Sound Thing. If you have a Shadow Dragon or Grey Warden, the secretive organization that helps the helpless? No one outside those organizations knows what the slight was, they just see an archetype. And a Veil Jumper or Mourn Watcher has the academic backing, sure, but Rook is the equivalent of an Indiana Jones (in both derogatory and Romantic Adventurer sense).

Pre-Game, the only people who were hanging around Rook were fellow rule breakers and fanatics. I can guarantee two things:

1) there has absolutely been a Mr Incredible "you're not affiliated with me!" Moment in Rook's Career

2) Rook fits the bill for a MidLife Crisis Partner

People on the outside looking in, who don't know either of them, will try to get in the middle of it. And that's where the jealousy rises. Because neither of them are stupid, but oh my God we could play with this space. We could have them try to out maneuver their feelings (failure) and their respective polite societies (mild success and lots of marking)

[symphonyofsilence]

I love Wangxian as much as the next guy, but my unpopular MDZS opinion is that both LWJ & WWX after the resurrection were really shitty brothers. Both to their own brothers and to each other's.

Like...JC just threw himself in front of WWX & his boyfriend & Jiggy's sword & took a stab to the chest just narrowly missing his heart, & Wei Wuxian DIDN'T EVEN ASK HIM HOW HE IS! I'm sure JC didn't want him to thank him, but totally ignoring that & forgetting about it is... you know, not fine. even LXC was more worried about his wound. After the temple, when everyone was talking to everyone else, & WWX thanked JC for giving Chenqing back to him, he doesn't even wait until JC's answer is fully out before he immediately turns back to look at LWJ!

Even JL who wasn't talking to JC at that moment saw that JC had something to say! But WWX not only didn't give him a chance to talk, but didn't even have any interest in what he had to say, and wouldn't listen to him just like all the other times when JC tried to talk to him (Repeatedly reminding WWX of his promise & even asking why didn't you go back to Lotus Pier). As you try to do, after you brother has returned from the dead, after causing his own death, your sister's and your brother-in-law's. WWX doesn't think that that's an issue that they need to talk about. Because it's unpleasant for him. While he is not the one who's owed an explanation or an apology. He's not the one who gets to decide if they're having this conversation or not. Let alone asking about JC's wound! WWX! just! Left! With! His boyfriend! & didn't look back! Not even after JC's public meltdown!

And and, what's worse, for both LWJ & WWX is this! Here is what happens when JC is trying to have a conversion with WWX about the non-consensual surgery WWX performed on him by mutilating himself on JC's behalf:

Why yes, he is injured, Hanguang-Jun! He's injured because he threw himself in front of WWX & you little fuck!

He does this once, and it causes JC's wound to open and start bleeding again, and then he goes to do it again!

It's a matter that seriously needs discussion, Hanguang-Jun. JC's world has turned upside down without him having a say in it or even being told about it for years, Hanguang-Jun. JC has every right to talk about it to the person responsible, Hanguang-Jun. It's a family matter, Hanguang-Jun.

And ffs What do you think WWX's brother wants to do to him?! After he took a stab to the chest for him?! He is wounded and his spiritual energy is sealed, what can he do? He's going through it right now in front of everyone. why would you humiliate him even more?! They're brothers! It's none of your business!

And WWX doesn't say anything! It's Jin Ling who must beg Hanguang-Jun to spare his uncle!

(I think they understood what a shitty move it was in the CQL, cause WWX at least lifts a hand to stop LWJ there. And LWJ doesn't actually push JC, opening his wound again, And then try to do it A SECOND TIME AFTER THAT!)

Like...Beating someone's family member in front of them is a very, very rude thing in general when they're themselves handling the situation very well. They were just having a family argument, and LWJ felt the need to beat JC. If you want to de-escalate a family argument, you do it the way JGY does. Or LSZ, A CHILD, de-escalates situations. While respecting both parties. Or else it just escalates even worse.

And this happened at the Jiang ancestral halls, too. WWX was the first to attack JC (which was totally within his brotherly rights when JC was being a little shit) and JC counter-attacked. JC's spiritual powers, unlike WWX's and LWJ's, hadn't returned yet. WWX totally got this. It wasn't their first time fighting. OK, LWJ deflected the first blow of Zidian. He didn't need to intervene further when WWX was beating JC in JC'S ancestral hall. WWX himself passed out when he realized wtf he was doing. (& bear in mind that hours ago, JC with his spiritual powers sealed, barely able to walk, picked his sword and was going to go back for WWX in the burial mounds, before he knew about the golden core thing)

Imagine your friend invites you to their home which they've ran away from when they were very young, their sibling that now owns the house lets you in even though you don't even say hi to them or acknowledge their existence there in anyway, & your friend invites you to somewhere you really have no business being in. IDK. Say, the master bedroom that's been locked ever since their parents' death. Your friend's sibling arrives there and they have an argument. You get offended in the crossfire but your friend leaps in to protect your honor, by beating the said sibling. The said sibling beats back. Can you imagine actually beating the sibling?! Trying to separate them, sure. But beating them?!

& others have talked in depth & better than I about how LXC just murdered the love of his life after some very shocking revelations & was 100% ready to die with him & was clearly going through it & LWJ just left with his boyfriend to fuck when LXC was the one who was there for him when HIS boyfriend died. Like..no LWJ didn't leave his brother after a few days. HE LEFT HIM THAT VERY MOMENT! DIDN'T EVEN GIVE HIM A HANDKERCHIEF OR A PAT ON THE SHOULDER!

And people have also talked better than I about how WWX didn't tell LXC about Sisi bc...he might have shown JGY mercy?

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

THE ONE TIME IN THE ENTIRE SEASON HE DID THE RIGHT THING, IT WAS BECAUSE OF SYD

03x01

And you want her to walk out on him when he clearly needs her the most because she was offered THE EXACT SAME ROLE elsewhere by someone we don't know for sure if is better than Carm or even worse, and neither does she, btw, and Carmy is what? NOT PRINCE CHARMING and FUCKED UP? Get out of my kitchen, chef!

Not only will she stay, she has to and he can only get out of the hole he is in with her help and his own will, which he will definitely lose if he loses her. He will be beyond redemption if Syd leaves. That can't happen plot-wise because Carm is the plot, he has to redeem himself, and the whole series is his redemption arc FFS!

THIS IS HOW YOU SERVE AN ENDGAME DISH

She should scare him shitless. The conversation SHE HAS BEEN AVOIDING has to be had ASAP. My preference is in the hallway post-panic attack as S4 opening act and I want all Sydcarmy action from then on throughout the whole season. Throw Sydluca in the mix too, bring back Claire if you want to, IDGAF, I want it all, I want jelly Carmy and Syd finally letting herself feel what she really feels for Carm and not approving of it at first but eventually giving in and Luca, who already said that will be staying in USA for only a few months can go back to Noma or where the fuck he wants after that, his purpose will be served.

I want Claire to even fucking beg Carmy to fuck Syd because she finally comes to her fucking senses and realizes he's an emotional cheater and calls him out on his shit and for once she doesn't tell him the most unfuckingbelievable line ever thrown on TV: "Never apologize", she actually forgives him even if he can't apologize to her for feeling what he feels for Syd, especially after the conversation Sydcarmy had in her hallway that resulted in her declining Shapiro's offer and staying with at The Bear.

So Carmy humors Claire and decides to finally grow a pair and now with Luca outta the pic and Claire too, he goes for it and finally Syd, after all this is said and done, lets him in. No more fumble on either side → "If it's not perfect, it doesn't go out."

That is what is marinating here in the potential realm, that is one of the menus Storer can serve next season with the ingredients he prepped in S3.

I don't wanna see anything else unless Storer surprises me with something even better, which would be a full-on Sydcarmy main dish all the way, but I won't hold my breath for that one.

I'm not saying all of this will happen to the T, I'm saying that the story is at that point exactly. All of the aforementioned can very well unravel in 04x01 and go from there in this order, with these characters without disrupting their respective arcs.

Richie will be an ally, and the Faks will come around or not, who the fuck cares? And Nat will be happy that Syd signed the agreement and when she finds out about a potential Sydcarmy relationship she will play Cupid. But she will also be too busy being a first-time mom and mending the relationship with her own mother, who along with uncle Lee can come in and save the restaurant when Cicero pulls the plug after The Bear got its ass served by The Chicago Tribune and then or in the middle of all this: either the JB award or the Michelin Star or both can happen. And then:

[justanotherquinnfan]

On the subject of consent and/or anonymity

So, I've been noodling on this topic for a while now, both for this blog and also just in general. As a Quinnling, I see two different kinds of VAs: The ones who show their faces and the ones that don't. Some share their name (at least their first name) and others go by a stage name. Some are also screen actors and some are strictly voice actors. But regardless of gender identity, sexual proclivities, or chosen audience, these all fall into 2 general categories, the anonymous and the known.

Now, I feel that general parasocial rules apply across the board. And for those playing at home, here are they are:

Be kind

Be respectful

If you don't like something, that's cool, keep it to yourself though

Don't Make It Weird (this one feels difficult given the nature of Quinn, but there's a difference between cheeky and intense - you can be flirtatious and share your reactions, but ffs, Don't Make It Weird)

You are not entitled to their private life or anything more than is being given

I'm open to more rules being added to this, but this is how I tend to look at things. When it comes to the Anonymous VAs, I would also emphasize these rules, especially the latter two. Just because they are also hidden doesn't give you the right to be weird and gross and none of us are entitled to their identities.

Off the top of my head, there are a handful of creators that I feel get an inordinate amount of attention: Anonyfun, Naudio, The Devil of Dublin, and Bad Influence. There may be other extremely popular accounts and, if so, please feel free to share them, but these are the ones I hear the most about.

Now, from what I can gather, Anonyfun has taken a break from creating, Naudio has left social media, Bad Influence, or Milo, has left Instagram, but is trying out a weekly newsletter instead, and The Devil of Dublin is teasing a face reveal. All of this makes me deeply uncomfortable for various reasons. Of course, I have zero problems with people taking a step back or reinforcing their boundaries. It's less what they are doing and more why they are doing it. From what I can tell, they are either being harassed to the point of retreat or, in the case of Milo from what I read from his stories, nearly having their identity revealed because a bunch of fans decided to play creepy detective.

Hearing all of this was super disheartening, mostly because it shows a lack of gratitude for what we were being given. Whether it's Quinn audios or tiny pieces of what goes on behind the curtain, every interaction is a gift and to be greedy smacks of selfishness in the worst way.

As for The Devil of Dublin, I will not even try to suss out what he's thinking with the face reveal. For all I know he is super excited to reveal himself, that is more than possible! But I worry that pressure is the catalyst here and, moreso, I worry that it could backfire.

Recently, I saw a post on Reddit where someone was bemoaning the fact that they don't know what their favorite VAs look like, how they longed to put a face to the fantasies. There were some responses shutting that thought process down, but there were one or two that were concerning. Primarily, someone worrying over the possibility that if they did see their favorite actor's face, they wouldn't find them attractive. I actually did see this happen with some Twitch streamer, who finally gave into pressure and did a reveal, only to receive backlash. Over. His. LOOKS. Like FFS are you KIDDING ME? How shallow and cruel. And I know nothing of TDOD besides what he shares, but I do know there is a possibility of backlash and I would hate to see another fantastic creator retreat in the face of it. Or in the face of the opposite reaction, which is terrifyingly rabid approval.

Either way, I feel like there has been a recent shift towards throwing out the old consent playbook out the window and that needs to be examined and repaired. Not just for these wonderful people who are just trying to do a job, but because it ruins the fun for everyone. Besides the fact that it scares away such talent, it sort of kills the fantasy.

Milo mentions in one of his unplugged audios about the liminal space in which he and The Listener get to meet. Let me tell you how excited I was when he said it because I had been pondering this concept with the exact same phrasing! It's nice to be part of that hive mind, you know? And honestly, every single VA inhabits this space when you put your headphones in. But there is something about when you don't know what the other person looks like.

Because in this space, the space between your ears where The Voice of Your Choice reaches, he/she/they can be whoever you want. They can look like your greatest desire. And on top of that, you can be whoever YOU want. You can be the sexiest, brattiest, most confident version of yourself. This is fantasy, this is play, and there is so much you can do with just a whisper and your imagination.

So why ruin it with reality? No offense to the gorgeous faces we DO get to see because that is also VERY fun, but being able to create the entire interaction from scratch, up to and including everyone's appearance? How can you not feel powerful?

I guess this incredibly long post is just here to act as reminder. That this is fun, this isn't real, and anything real WE DO get should be treated like the precious gift that it is. Because it takes a special person to want to fulfill a fantasy and be vulnerable at the same time.

This is meant to be fun, let's live in the moment, in the liminal space, and let the rest of the obsession go. Natural curiosity is to be expected, goodness knows I'm guilty of it, but there is no reason to take it any further.

And all of THAT being said, I highly suggest subscribing to Milo's newsletter. I read the first one and he gives some interesting BTS info on the technical side of recording, as well as giving his own reviews and being his general cheeky self.

[venndaai]

What do you think would happen in a fitzoff- i.e, put Fizchivalry Farseer ROTE with Fitz(?) Kreiner EDAs.

I love seeing an incredibly and rather bizzarely repressed and mentally ill fragment of text on my dash that is clearly from *some* kind of 90s novel about some guy named fitz abd needing a second to figure out which one is it, but having only very cursory secondhand eda knowledge i feel inedaquate to form opinions on which fitz goes through more/ is more messed up, or how they would react and mesh

Excellent A+ ask thank you.

I think the thing to keep in mind here is that while both Fitzes go through frankly absurd avalanches of trauma, Fitzchivalry's repression technique is depression and self-isolation, while Fitz Kreiner's is projecting a carefree persona. Fitzchivalry's mental narration is of the "everything sucks, I suck, I want to die," variety, while Fitz Kreiner's is more like "everything's actually so great and I am cool and awesome I want to die".

Other differences:

FF is a violent murderer but a general woman respecter; FK is very gentle but is also a sexist sleazeball

FF had multiple fathers who failed at parenting; FK had a mother who failed at parenting

FK is fairly aware he is in love with and attracted to his male presenting nonbinary best friend, he just is Choosing Not To Think About That

FF has a lot of conflicting loyalties and motivations to sort through. FK's only priorities are 1) protect The Doctor, 2) try to do the right or just least horrible thing, 3) get laid?

I think Kreiner wins any angst-off just because he suffers for over two thousand years, which is. Kind of hard to beat. Although he was then replaced with a clone of himself who didn't go through that, but had to angst over the knowledge that the 'real' version of himself did. Yay Doctor Who weirdness!

I think they would loathe each other ngl- FK would be disgusted by FF's violent and sullen ways, while FF would despise FK for being a womanizer and a coward. I do really want to write this crossover now though because I think both of them would instantly fall in love with the other's boyfriend, eheheh.

[002yb]

I was reading all your dickjay posts and im very fond of the ones where damians in (and i also read the one damijon with jon coming back and AHHHHH)

So i was wondering, what if Damian got hurt at patrón or at school and they call jaydick and these two idiot parents rush back to the manor just to find Jon taking care of Damian and are very endeared but also???? Thats their baby and jon and him have this aura of hearts fluttering around and noooo damian is too young (damian us very much embarrased but doesnt wan jon to leave)

Alright, my first and foremost thought is this being aged-up!Jon with Damian. ANd Dick reaches critical hypocrite levels with the extent in which he's (ʘ言ʘ╬) because he loves Jon, they're cool, but really? Fawning over Dick's son brother? To which Jon would make an awkward quip about Dick fawning after Dick's brother and Dick shifts to Σ(ಠิωಠิ|||) because oh damn, Jon got him there.

Beforehand though, it was a stupid happening on a mission and Damian insists he's fine although he's battered and bruised, but Jon still flies him home and helps Alfred look after him.

Jon and Damian only having all of like, twenty minutes to get cozy with each other before Dick and Jason both burst into the room and Damian clicks his tongue in annoyance because ffs

It's only because of Jon's hearing that Jon leaned back enough that they both look innocent. Which they were. Are. Still, Jon is sat on Damian's bedside and Damian is more bandage than boy at this point and it's a lot for Dick to process.

Jason doesn't bother processing the same things. He's more than aware of Damian's crush on Jon - it's whatever. Who is Jason to judge over 'inappropriate' love interests; it's a complicated situation also it's whatever he raised this boy right he's fine

Anyway, at any and every opportunity, in situations like this Jason will shove Dick out of his way. Nothing will get between a mother nanny brother and his son charge brother.

So Dick goes flying off into a wall while Jason races right on over to Damian.

Jon gets similar treatment. Despite being fully capable of being an immovable object to someone like Jason - Jon still gets sent flying. His strength is nothing compared to that of a fretting mother nanny brother.

Jon catches himself, floating back towards Dick to watch from a distance as Jason nags and frets in that way he does. Gruff, but kind. A very Damian characteristic that Jon wonders sometimes if it was influenced by Jason.

But yeah, Jon watching them with fondness.

Which Dick does, too. Until he realizes Jon is doing the same and Dick's protective tendencies come about.

That Dick recognizes he'll have to apologize to Bruce for forcing him to experience similar feelings of petulance and grief is something he's not looking forward to, but Dick gets it now; he wasn't prepared!

Dick and Jon bonding over how smitten they are for their respective ornery firecrackers though.

And Dick being very intimidating before letting Jon return to Damian's side - just a friendly clap on the shoulder and smile before giving the reminder that Damian is .𖥔 ݁ ˖𝒯𝒽ℯ ℬ𝒶𝒷𝓎.𖥔 ݁ ˖, behave (◠‿◠✿)

Dick has been Jon before don't think he can outsmart Dick for a second; Dick has pulled all the plays he knows (◠‿◠✿)

Damian sinking into his pillows because ffs something strike him down stop it immediately grayson; todd, make him stop

Which Jason does. He beckons Dick over and Dick will never not answer a call from Jason or Damian, so he goes and they sit together and check over Damian's injuries and make sure he's fine/if he needs anything/etc.

But yeah then Jason picks up on Damian wanting to be with his friend/crush, so he excuses Dick and him. Which Dick is affronted at, but Jason scoffs and makes it happen.

There are threats about the door being left open though

Then both Dick and Jason do that eye pointing thing to Jon as they slink out and Damian is composed, but so exasperated and embarrassed in his own way

And Jon adores them regardless of their protective threats and shenanigans. He adores them for how they love Damian, for how they look after and treat him.

He takes his spot beside Damian on Damian's bed again and it's easy, even after all of that.

Until Jon shudders because he feels a foreboding presence he hadn't sensed before? When he suddenly turns his head -- Dick. Peering in through the shadow of the door and Jon actually gets jumpscared and it's soft, but Jon hears it, the quiet huff of Damian's laugh.

[beevean]

Man its just that the average nfcv fan vision of the belmonts is a human centipede. You grab the og belmonts, you kno the good hearted almost superhuman warriors who fought and killed Dracula time and time again, let nfcv turn them into regular vampire hunters that are framed as morally gray bc "muh poor vampires :(", and who are cynical jerks that don't do much of anything. And then you let the fandom bully them into the ground bc haha loser men and muh girlbosses.

And its kinda weird bc its also often making fun of them due to their traumas? Like yea maybe alcoholism due to losing your entire family at a young age isnt a joke you know. Or seeing your mother get killed in front of you as a child. Yes ofc you can make fun of dark stuff i'd be lynched as a hypocrite if i said you cant, but the way its done and how continuous it is... irrespectful? Like they dont respect the serious aspects of the character and legit think they suck for having horrible things happen to them? Im bad at gauging jokes like that but... yea (they just dont know how to bully fictional characters unlike us who throw Isaac off a 10 stories building everyday <3)

In any case, N! Trevor and N! Richter do not deserve that sort of treatment already, and much less their mainline counterparts :/

And regarding girlbosses, they way ppl need to put down their men to show how cool the girls are just, reeks of insecurity to me? Why does having a "loser dumb wife guy" makes her a girlboss? Why would a confident gal need a loser to take care of instead of a good partner were both compliment eachother's strong and weak points? Maybe im being a bit dramatic here, but it carries off a similar mentality to sexist guys that need to put down their gal's accomplishments to feel well Plus, the way how fandoms still revolve around said loser guys and how a lot of the times the writing itself makes the girlboss character a compliment or a motivation for the man without depth for herself makes it all feel performative. Just write a normal character with character traits who happens to be a woman ffs :/

It's incredible. NFCV alone feels like a shitty fanfiction, full of those fanfic tropes that would make me close immediately: flanderization, wimpification of "pretty" male characters, thirsting, juvenile wit, spotlight-stealing OCs, gratuituous sex and SA treated with the finesse of a charging hippo. Then you let the fandom fandomify this shitty fanfic even more, and the result is just a disaster, a kiddie pool of the most baffling misconceptions you could see.

Just to make one example, Trevor in the games is a noble but ruthless hunter, both friendly and fierce, fighting for mankind yet wanting respect yet gladly giving credit to his friends; in the show, he's a washed out Bojack Horseman-esque asshole, who despite his cynicism admittedly attempts to do the right thing when push comes to shove; and according to fandom he's pretty much a funny penis man with two braincells, Sypha and Alucard. the scene where he punches Dracula and he goes "you must be the Belmont" became a meme for a reason :^)

And yeah you're right that the fandom doesn't seem to. like the Belmonts much. But then again, they're acting like the show wants them to :) The writing doesn't take Trevor's alcoholism seriously, so they don't, alcoholism is a funny joke that makes people silly and just a tad pathetic (and it's not a serious addiction and symptom of larger problems no sir). Richter is a goofball who cries in a corny way, so it's easy to laugh at him - and that's when fans don't say that Julia deserved to die for being a "colonizer". Lenore is sexualized to hell and back, so the fans thirst for her and they think that Hector must thirst for her too, and look, wasn't her death so prettly tragic, maybe she was a good person after all!

The way fandoms treat girl characters nowadays is... barely an improvement over the 2000s when Amy would be called a slut for having a backless dress. Now it's all about how stronk and kewl and queens and girlbosses they are. And you can't criticize the writing of a female character because "just say you hate women 🙄", even when the said character is a female victim of abuse who was written by a molester as a smug radfem whose personality never goes beyond "i want to steal from men because men bad" *coughcoughcough*

The show itself is regressive when it comes to its female characters. They're all the damn same. They're either spunky sassy gals who put their men in their place, or evil but hot dommy mommies (Striga and Morana don't fit the mold because they're not characters). Most of them are magic users, even those who in the games were normal women. I will forever stand by my point that Annette did not need to be a metal bender, and if the writers truly cared, they could have fleshed out the skeleton provided by RoB. But they didn't. Because girl power!!! but only if you're conventionally "badass" and have a "strong" attitude.

[whumpbby]

I think my problem with LWJ is that I love him in his teen years and when he’s being stuck between protecting WX and his clan, but I find his grown up version unappealing. I liked him being conflicted and having to make serious choices with consequences. I don’t like him leaving his brother alone after his own traumatic conflict without even looking back. Hell even WX in the extras asked LWJ if they should check on his brother to which he just kind of shrugs. I hate that it feels like any loyalty he had to anything outside of his relationship with WX has evaporated. He’s not like other MXTX leads he has someone else who needs him that he’s ignoring and it just feels wrong, especially with how tortured we saw WX and JC’s separation was for them both. He goes from an interesting character to a blank lover and it’s a down grade.

Yep, that's kinda my opinion too.

I actually love him in the Gusu-arc. He's so weirdly repressed and helpless to make this strange boy make sense! To make his own feelings make sense! He struggles with himself and his feelings and what he knows should be appropriate way to deal with it, but somehow isn't. I cheered and cackled when the porn book happened to him and his virgin eyes!

And then he just...stops being that. He turns into a Love Interest and that's his whole role.

Does he have friends? Does he have duties in CR he has to preform? Is he the first disciple?? Does he even talk to anyone there at all apart from his brother and his young ward???? Like, where is your life Lan Zhan? You're meant to be the half of the main couple, where is your life??

After the Nightless City, JGY took control of the richest sect around, got married, got and lost a kid and did some murdering. Nie Huaisang was inventing a cruel and unusual punishment for the murderer of his brother, and failing at running a sect. JC built a sect from the ground up and raised a kid. What have you been doing, Lan Zhan? Apart from going around and fighting stuff, and being a periodical dick to JC, what was his life about in the time he apparently 'got over his loss'?

I wrote before that I wish these years between his seclusion and WWX being back were spent by Lan Wangji on regaining his standing in the sect and the respect of the Elders. That it would be amazing to see him facing the choice of getting his place back or 'here we go again' with Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian who, as far as Lan Zhan knew, didn't like him all that much.

Does he go back to his stoic life or change it all on the man he fell in love with as a boy? Is he the copy of his father after all - trailing after an uninterested person to soothe his own feelings? Does he slowly start to figure your that while his crush is not perfect, a lot of things just went very wrong for everything to go to shit so badly and he doesn't want it to happen again? Does he think that while his brother is in pain, he still has support of their uncle and the clan, while Wei Wuxian once more chose to walk alone and he wants to follow???

Give me something ffs!TT

I'm not gonna lie, nine out of then times I prefer Lan Wangji in fanfics than in the canon. The writers usually add character he is solely lacking in his post-ressurection iteration.

[madam-wakefield]

Open when...Chapter 1

AO3 Link FF Link

Summary:

When a few years into their relationship Bernie is asked to go back to the army and deploy Serena isn't sure how she's going to get through the nine months without her girlfriend. What she doesn't expect is for it to be her girlfriend who has the perfect set of surprises to get her through both the best and the worst days. Canon divergent - Elinor lives (well actually the accident never happens), Raf lives, and Cameron isn't a total ass! The staff of AAU also probably didn't all work on there at the same time in canon but do in this! The fic is already fully written with the first few chapters having already been Beta'd. 27 chapters including the epilogue. Hoping to post every Monday and Friday!

Chapter 1

Open when you get this…

Serena always knew she’d go to work the day after Bernie had deployed. In some way, she can make herself believe that this is just like the times when Bernie has gone away for a few days for a medical conference or to visit an old army friend. But deep down she knows it’s not, knows that she won’t see Bernie in person for nine months. 

She walks into their office and there on her desk is a beautiful floral box full of what look like ivory envelopes. Serena sits down in her chair and pulls it close to the desk, noticing one delicate envelope propped up against the front of the box.

She stares at it, eyes fixed upon Bernie’s messy writing on the front: Serena - Open when you get this…

She stares at it a little longer, wanting to commit this image to memory before complying. 

My Dearest Serena,

The main reason for writing these letters is because I love you! I love you so much and I want to be able to remind you of that as much as I can. In your moments of weakness. In your moments of joy. When you need to feel loved know that I will always love you. These letters are just here to remind you of that while we are apart for the next nine months. Put them somewhere you will see them often, or carry them around with you if you have to, so you always remember to Open When You…” 

I love you and miss you so much already.

All My Love, Bernie,

Your Big Macho Army Medic x 

She knows she doesn’t have time to respond instantly, she’s got ward rounds to do, and a short surgery scheduled but she promises herself this is the perfect excuse to write Bernie her first bluey. 

She plans to write to her on her break but of course, all the best laid plans always go wrong. Bernie’s red phone rings just as she’s about to go and get herself a pastry from Pulses. She’s missing her girlfriend, so who can blame her if she wants a bit of comfort food?

She goes into surgery with Raf, naturally taking the lead. He’s a good surgeon and she knows it, but it’s going to take her some time to be able to give up control to him in that way. She’s so used to working with Bernie in that respect, where neither of them really takes control, they just work side by side effortlessly without there needing to be a lead. 

After surgery she updates the patient’s family and is just thinking that she’ll have a break now, and maybe actually write to Bernie, when Sacha comes onto the ward to remind her that she’s ten minutes late for the clinical leads’ meeting. Thankfully, she can blame it on the emergency surgery.

She spends more of the meeting thinking about Bernie than actually paying attention. Wondering how Bernie’s flight was. Wondering exactly where Bernie is now. Wondering how she is ever going to get through the next nine months without her girlfriend. 

Normally after a meeting, Bernie will spoil her with coffee and a pastry and kisses if there is time, but she knows she isn’t getting that today or for the next nine months and she can’t help but feel a little deflated at the thought. 

She’s professional enough to offer her opinion a few times to make it look like she’s paying attention to the meeting but doesn’t really stretch herself. She’ll make up for it another time but today isn’t it. 

After the meeting she grabs her own coffee and pastry from Pulses and is this time determined to write Bernie’s letter, so she walks back onto AAU and locks herself in her office. She takes her time thumbing through the envelopes in the box, allowing herself to glance at what’s written on some of them, from love, to sorrow to anger, although she’s not convinced, she’ll need to use that last one. She then turns to her own bag and gets out one of the blueys she has in there—she and Bernie had picked up a stack from the post office before her deployment—and her favourite writing pen before sitting down at her desk. She knows she could use the INtouch electronic mail service to send Bernie an email but she wants the first letter she writes her girlfriend to be a handwritten one. 

Dear Bernie,

How!?! How did you ever get time to think so much about my needs while doing all the things you had to do? The idea of the envelopes has filled my heart with joy and all I can say is I’m so damn lucky that I am the woman you want to share your life with.

I had a quick look through the other envelopes, and I cannot believe all of the different occasions you have managed to cover. I do not have the words to tell you how loved this gesture of yours has made me feel. And you say that you don’t think you’re very good at romance!

I’ve got so much more I want to write but I’ve got to cut this letter short as your red phone is pulling me away from my break, but I promise to write again soon. 

All my love, darling…

Stay safe, soldier.

Serena x

The red phone call leads to a complicated surgery. Serena stays with the trauma patient and completes the surgery, even if it does mean that it’s two hours past her shift when she finally finishes. By the time she gets home and into bed she’s at least so tired and in need of rest that she doesn’t have as much time to miss Bernie, so she falls asleep much more easily than she had the previous night. 

[iwant-fuitgummi]

Inazuma Headcanons pt. 2!

(pt. 1 here)

Kirara

he/they

17

Transmasc, Bisexual

Family: Yae Miko (FF Mom), Gorou (FF Brother)

Best Friend: Charlotte

I don't know why but transmasc Kirara is so real to me.

I GOT RID OF THEIR HUMAN EARS BECAUSE WHAT. WHY DO THEY HAVE THOSE. THEY HAVE CAT TAILS AND CAT PAWS BUT HUMAN EARS?

Kirara is penpals with Collei. He's since developed a small crush on her.

Talks to Charlotte all the time! They bring her new cameras as a gift and in exchange, Charlotte gives them

He's epileptic, so he always has Yoimiya warn him beforehand if she's gonna have a firework show.

I don't know much about Kirara yet so there's not much I can really say about him.

Kuki Shinobu

she/her

25

Cisgender Woman, Bisexual, Polyamorous

Dating Kujou Sara and Sangonomiya Kokomi

Family: Ms. Kuki (Mom), Kuki Miyuki (Sister), Arataki Itto (FF Brother), Akira (FF Brother), Mamoru (FF Brother), Genta (FF Brother), Granny Oni (FF Grandmother)

Best Friend: Shikanoin Heizou4She often goes to Watatsumi Island with Itto to visit their respective partners. If she can't find Kokomi, she'll head to her secret hideout. Oftentimes, Koko is asleep at her secret desk. Shinobu takes off her jacket and puts it over her shoulders as a blanket before either heading off to find Itto or just sitting down in the corner with one of Kokomi's books and waiting.

She always thought that Sara was beautiful, even way before they first started talking. She often referred to her as "the Pretty Tengu" when talking to Itto. She eventually began to talk to her (outside of getting Itto and the gang out of jail) and slowly became smitten.

She has a small shrine in her home that's dedicated to the Oni. She hopes that, by praying to his ancestors, Itto will be a little bit safer. she doesn't take the best care of it, since she hates the idea of being a shrine maiden even if it's her own shrine, but still.

Her right leg is a prosthetic. She was born without it. She also wears braces on her arms and often uses elbow crutches.

She always has a first aid kit on hand. Even though she heals with her vision, she uses the first aid kit for herself. She also uses it for minor injuries that don't warrant elemental healing.

She has selective mutism. Itto, Heizou, and Sara are all pretty good at understanding her body language and are usually able to communicate for her if needed. She also has communication cards.

idc if it's not canon. Shinobu has scars on the sides of her mouth like Iguro Obanai from Demon Slayer. She also has a split tongue and lots of piercings.

Shikanoin Heizou

they/he/she

23

Genderqueer, Pansexual

Dating Kaedehara Kazuha

Family: Sayu (Sister)

Best Friend: Kuki Shinobu

Honestly I didn't change much about Heizou. I love him as is.

Autistic. They hyperfixate on cases until they're solved.

He has OCD, too. If things aren't done in the right order, he starts to panic.

She keeps a personal copy of each case she's ever solved, just in case she needs to go back and recheck it.

They pack Sayu's lunch every morning before she leaves to do ninja things. It typically consists of two katsu sandwiches, two onigiri, sunsettia slices, and a juice box. They also add in some sakura shrimp crackers for a snack. The lunch is the exact same every day, since Sayu is a picky eater.

Naganohara Yoimiya

she/they/pep/pepself

20

Transgender Woman, Bisexual

Dating Kamisato Ayaka

Family: Naganohara Ryuunoske (Dad), Tartaglia (FF Brother)

Best Friend: Arataki Itto

Her right leg was amputated after she blew it up in a firework accident. It is amputated mid-thigh and is now a prosthetic.

They are partially deaf in both ears. Working with explosives will do that to ya. They know sign language, and so do Ayaka, Thoma, and Itto.

Pep has type 1 diabetes and wears an insulin patch. Pep wears it on pep stomach, and has it decorated to look like a fish. It matches with some of the tattoos that pep has covering pep body.

She is autistic and has trouble regulating her volume. Being partially deaf doesn't help, and neither does the fact that she's constantly shouting over fireworks!

They have competitions with Itto to see who the kids of Hanamizaka like better! The kids know about this and milk it, getting both Yoimiya and Itto to be as awesome and fun as possible. Sara's had to intervene to stop Yoimiya from shooting off fireworks in the middle of the day in the city.

Okay so like. In a modern world, Yoimiya's definitely a decora girl. That's it. That's the headcanon.

Pep has a service dog named Kingyo! She's a boxer who helps with peps diabetes.

Kaedehara Kazuha

they/he/it

22

Genderfluid, Asexual, Panromantic

Dating Shikanoin Heizou

Family: Beidou (FF Mom), Ningguang (FF Mom), Xinyan (FF Sister)

Best Friend: Gorou

Kazuha is always tired. They're narcoleptic. Beidou always makes sure that there are multiple comfortable places on the Alcor for them to sleep if needed.

Kazuha's perfect idk what else to say :/

[quincyhorst]

HC Potpurri: Catalan People

First off, this post goes dedicated to @marmolao , given they requested headcanons about the Inazuma Areori Catalans (Barcelona Orb + the Catalonian Quartet from Muteki no Giant) as a bday gift. Originally I wasn't sure if I had enough content of them in my mind, but I did manage to compile lots of things I've written so far. Hope you like it Marmo!!! 💟

Keep on mind most info is still on proto-stage due to lack of focus and time working on these; so there's things that might change or not. PLUS, like always, I'm waiting for VROH to give profiles to the non-main characters as to know about them better.

Either way, let's go!

I think this is a given already, but I do like to see the Catalonian Quartet as the equivalent of the Red Matador Jocks on the AreOri timeline; just that the other group represents Navarre instead (At least 3/4 of them ig). If you really think about it, both groups have a huge keeper who's animal themed (Alonso / Fermín), a cocky striker that randomly goes challenging people (Luther / Samuel), another small forward that tends to be too confident (Bergamo / Davi) aaaand obviously the captain + emblem player of their respective teams (Clario / Querardo). I also like this comparison due to the Scar- I mean Red vs Violet motifs they have. 🍊🍇

Though if I had to say whose group is more united, I guess the catalonians win this round. I like the idea that Clario, Bergamo and Luther were close knit friends since infance, with Alonso joining the group by himself later on. Seriously. Since they first joined Barcelona Orb, the keeper straight up started to stick around for no apparent reason. The three were confused, but after seeing he meant no harm, they just let him in. But overall, their bond is very strong even overseas :)

Honestly though, I do see Alonso being a complete enigma most of the time. None even knows what is he cooking inside his head. It is even more unknown how does he even get to see his sorroundings given he's always with his eyes closed, but he won't ever tell his methods (?

About FC Barcelona Orb as a whole, I like to see it being as a branch of the actual famous team, containing a special squad for teens around Junior High age. So, its members come all from different parts of the city, from different schools and contexts.

They all train on Inazuma's own equivalent of the real life Camp Nou; which means they can also get some interactions with the actual adult representatives of Barcelona. In few occassions they themselves offered to help the teens train!

But what about this team on the OG timeline? Both the FC and the junior team DO exist, but their presence is less important. In Reloaded it is mentioned this team managed to win the Spanish Youth League, which happened either at the same time or before as Japan's FF. HOWEVER here's where the differences start: While Luther and Bergamo do play soccer in the OG, Clario nor Alonso DON'T. The fluffy keeper just couldn't develop any interest on soccer at all, and Clario never felt confident about himself as a player. He doesn't know about the potential and skills that lay dormant beneath him, of couse. But without these key players, BO sadly lost its chance to win.

After that they also participated on few matches as to decide the Catalonian represensatives for the prior Spanish Community Cup (Inexistant in AreOri, managing to get some BO players into the team. But then again, only Carlos would be choosen to represent Catalonia *worldwide*, so it was all a huge letdown.

When it comes to the actual spanish team over at Liocott, I think Alonso is the only one who supports it (Mainly because he just happens to find Fermín dreamy). The other three do not feel very fond of RM at all (And like we said, the poor catalonian representation does not help their case)

Now as for the other players...

...Okay, I'll be extremely self-indulgent here. I've joked many times about F. Dazzlo looking VERY closely to a certain paldean pokemon character, Arven; so I like to base my HCs on him. For now, I can picture Dazzlo making little sandwiches for everyone post practice :D He also has a pet dog,; but worry not, they're okay.

Also... While I do for now avoid developing too much anyone minor from BO / MNG, I DO admit I'm cooking something with Gregorio Habaro. He mainly remains a side character, obviously not joining the national selection but with his own side plot as he follows the spanish to Russia. I'd LOVE to explain more but it is HEAVILY tied with an OC and I haven't even told her story on the OG yet HELP!!!!!!!!!

Maybe one day we'll get there and I'll tell it all (Or I could share it by other methods); but for now: Remember his name, keep a pin on him, he's very important to someone.

At least on the meantime, I also see the BO defenders as friends. Imo Oscar seems very sweet, I have a feeling he could be the most upbeat player of BO (At least after Alonso, no one beats his ":3" vibes).

Well, guess that's all for now. As always, if you want something more on detail or request anything else, go on!

Aaaaalso last thing I've discovered while re-watching Reloaded again: Barcelona Orb has a coach....

[missingn000]

oh WOW where do i even begin with this chapter. okay maybe higuruma and nobara because you've gotten me all invested (again) in a pair that's never actually met in canon. pfpk will get their turn later in this ask lol so dw!

so higuruma and nanami finally meet again!! fuck yeah!! the "you talk all high and mighty" was a nice throwback, but that domain expansion joke was AWFUL. like... "lighten up" ?? um?? higuruma ?? all that aside, i found his description as a "dark figure" that "eclipses Nanami like a silhouette" really neat - it goes really well with their roles as each other's foils! no better way to hammer it in than with a symbolic image from another person's perspective :D

Nanami is the type of dad she’s always wanted, but Higuruma is the one she has. 

i hope u know i reread their fight in ch34 as a refresher and wow i need to write a separate analysis for that one sometime... anyway, it's just really interesting to me how nanami, higuruma's character foil, is the one who manages to earn nobara's respect! both of them have seen the worst of what humanity has to offer, but where higuruma came out of it disillusioned and despairing, nanami was lucky enough to have encountered yuuji & toge before the bleakness of it all could truly set in. the same can be said of the reverse! on the other hand, nobara and higuruma found each other at what was quite possibly the lowest point in their lives; higuruma was grappling with the crippling emotional aftermath of his and nanami's ideological clash, and nobara's grandmother literally just died. they may not realise it yet, but they're reliant on each other to make it through

also the parallel you drew between nanami holding back from killing nara & higuruma murdering the village sheriff Hit me like a fuckin truck. one of nobara's main arguments against higuruma is that he's a literal murderer, which is a very valid and fair thing to be upset over, BUT, and this is an important distinction, while nanami may come off as the ideal parent (in nobara's eyes), higuruma is the one she does have - and needs. and vice versa. also:

Toge expects her to ruminate, but almost immediately: “Thanks, but no thanks,” Nobara declares. “He said to come home whenever, right? That guy can’t cook for his life. I gotta make fun of his shitty dinner.”

he gave her a home!! got it in (...verbal?) writing and all!! the fact she's willing to acknowledge this in front of the ff is so significant too. higuruma says that "she'd be the first to tell you she's not my daughter," but her actions say otherwise! even if unconventional, lol. higuruma wasn't allowed past the threshold this time, but it's obviously just a matter of time and i can't wait. wonder what she has against toji but i'm not gonna dive into that rn. speaking of which - nobara's main issue (with regard to her fighting style) is that she tries too hard, which holds her back, right? i feel like that's also applicable to other parts of her life as well, so of course it'd seep into the way she approaches combat. clever, i like that!

megumi saying to gojo that "sometimes I wish I’d told you sooner that I love you too" absolutely ruined me, esp considering his silence in ch13. which i just read yesterday. don't do this to me. anyway, it's such a small thing, but it really shows how far they've come and it means the world to me! i would elaborate but this """ask""" is getting long enough as is </3

AND NOW

PFPK TIME

alternative title: reincarnated sorcerer tries to navigate the 21st century with a whimsical curse as their sole guide, it goes about as well as you'd expect

really fascinated by the descriptions of mahito's exaggerated imitations of human behaviour, btw. these are my favourites:

Mahito bursts into a jarring cackle.

He folds his arms with a vacant grin.

They wish he wouldn’t laugh like that. It sounds so real. 

all of it feels so staged. artificial. because it is - he copies what he sees humans do, to varying degrees of success. sometimes his attempts are hollow. sometimes they're startlingly... accurate, and blur the lines:

Mahito says, wiping a tear duct, and that’s just wrong. Only people should be able to laugh so hard they cry.

even though mahito actively messes with humans, he's... simultaneously deeply fascinated by them, going so far as to observe and copy their mannerisms AND retain a humanoid form. considering he's able to modify his body, it's not a stretch to assume he quite literally has to maintain his appearance-- but why bother putting in that much effort? if everything he does is a mimicry of the original, why does he bleed red? why does his name mean true person? the parts of himself that he has no control over are unsettlingly, undeniably human. really, he's doomed from the beginning, even though he tries to use his 'curse instincts' to distinguish himself from them.

AND - WAIT FOR IT - that's exactly he's so afraid of making a digestive system!! if he succeeds, he'll be crossing that invisible (and self-made, imo) line that differentiates curse from human. imitate the latter as he might, he still holds himself as separate from them, and he's not going to do anything that threatens that belief. on a subconscious level, he probably knows the truth, which is why he doesn't even try to prove kashimo wrong.

“Then I’ll fight you,” they murmur, beneath the booming crackle of pyrotechnics going out in a final blaze of glory, sacrificing themselves in the victoryless war raging in the heavens above.  “So look forward to it.”

wow. y'know, fireworks in chinese & japanese culture are apparently symbolic of warding off evil. fitting kashimo would talk about trying to kill mahito then, huh? :)

you already know what i think about the gojo-kashimo character foil but i'm putting it here again for easier reference in the future:

something gojo and kashimo share in common is strength (supposedly) being their defining trait, but there're some subtle differences here, namely in how they use it: in gojo's opinion, there's no point in being strong if you can't protect the people who matter most to you. in kashimo's eyes, though, it’s completely reversed. having an emotional crutch is "embarrassing," a hindrance more than anything else, the complete opposite of gojo's mentality. to them, you discard human bonds to become strong. to gojo, you become strong to preserve the people you've formed those bonds with.

the third time gojo and toji tried to kill each other, it was for highly personal reasons. but in kashimo’s and mahito’s hopefully hypothetical future fight ("Then I'll fight you"), it seems to be less about a personal vendetta than being the one to decide how their dearest person’s story will end.

There’s so little you can hold onto, in this world. If you can’t cherish something, maybe it’s enough to decide how you have to let it go.

KAY OH MY GOD. HI

ive already said this to you BUT this comment is everything to me. your analyses are always so insightful and on point dude, it's SO flattering that you put this much time, effort, and consideration into the themes & symbols in this monstrosity 😭❤️️ warm and fuzzies. like my heart is next to a fireplace

OKAY NOW FOR THE COMMENT ITSELF. more below cut!

nanami & higuruma meet again!! yes!! i just had to give higuruma a weird, off-putting joke, considering that "i'm a lawyer, so talking to me costs ¥5,000 every half hour" quip he gave yuuji during his introduction. his dynamic with nanami is so interesting to me, because out of all character foil duos they're definitely the most alike. which is why it's so interesting that you pointed out how nanami is the one who managed to earn nobara's respect; that "Nanami is the type of dad she’s always wanted, but Higuruma is the one she has" line physically hurt me to type. OW. the angst. they totally met at rock bottom, and i don't think they can climb back up without each other, either: you got it totally right that higuruma is the dad she needs!!

they're both already growing. higuruma now realizes nanami was actually lucky to not have to kill toge's aunt, because he saw firsthand the damage murdering the sheriff caused to his relationship with nobara. and nobara realizes she has a home!!! she's wanted!! even though she thinks he "probably didn't mean it like that," the fact that she's willing to hope already speaks volumes to how much she's grown in her short time with him.

dfghjk that megumi line...ive also mentioned this to you but gojo & megumi have one of my favorite canon found family relationships of all time. they're everything to me. i will put gojo & megumi fluff and angst wherever possible. this is a threat

ANYWAY.

PFPK.

i feel like im just gonna repeat what weve talked about in messages but YEAH, that constant sense of "off"-ness about mahito where he's just close enough to seeming human to give someone pause, but inhuman enough to show that he's dangerous. how much of it is an act and how much of it is real? it's a line unclear to even mahito sometimes. you can only pretend for so long before you either get too tired to continue or it genuinely becomes a part of you -- if it wasn't a part of you all along, and you just didn't know how to express it. mahito's "human" act is never one he's continually had to play, because he had some semblance of alone time to go off and commit atrocities.

but he's around a human 24/7 now. he constantly has to figure out how to react to external stimuli in the most human way possible, and i don't think he wants to admit how naturally it comes to him. mahito is born from human hatred: but the thing is, hatred goes so much deeper than just animosity towards others. it's self-hate, it's hate towards your own weaknesses, hating feeling a certain way and not being able to do anything to fix it. i think this is why mahito has such a wide emotional range in canon: hate is a multi-dimensional emotion. hate is fear, grief, anger. i always joke that being a hater fuels me, but to an extent it's actually true -- it's cathartic, y'know? it's fun to hate. you can love to hate. and you can hate to love.

GOJO AND KASHIMO...i was looking in our chat at for my response to this analysis and it was something along the lines of "RATTLING THE BARS OF MY CAGE" which is really in character for me but not great for, uh, actual analytical responses. of all the character foils, i think kashimo and gojo are the most different -- polar opposites, but with that one disturbing, awful similarity about dooming their own partners. it fucking sucks to care about who they each respectively care about, and kashimo won't even admit it, so gojo's really got his work cut out for him. poor guy, dude's dealing with enough already without having to instigate inconvenient realizations in some guy over 20 times older than him

GOD. of course you'd call attention to that last line. i won't lie, "There’s so little you can hold onto, in this world. If you can’t cherish something, maybe it’s enough to decide how you have to let it go" is definitely one of my favorite things i've ever written. it fucking HURTS and represents so much about this story. i need to lie down

THANK YOU FOR THIS MESSAGE!! i seriously have parts of it memorized. i'm sure we'll continue to discuss/screech over all these things and i greatly look forward to it