#so i built a better version (imo) as a treat

[sundogsandrainbows]

Hi, I'm sorry to write to you out of the blue, but Of Elves and Humans was the first DA longfic that got me hooked back in 2011 when I, as a dumb teen, happened to pick up DAO. Ever since then, the DA universe has been a constant fixation of mine and my admiration for you as a writer as well as someone who isn’t afraid to call out the franchise's flaws has never wavered. Now that Bioware decided to take a massive shit on everything pre-DAV and their oldest fans specifically, I'm really devastated and feel like a fool for having been so invested in DA and its lore for those past 13 years. It’s incredibly encouraging, however, to see you keep on keeping on. "So since they spat in my face like this I ignore this atrocity of a game even exists" is where I hope to be at soon, too. Thank you.

(First of all apologies for the late reply, I put it in my drafts when i was too tired to complete it, and then my adhd brain forgot it existed due to being distracted by new shinies 😂☠)

But aww omg i cannot believe i was the gateway drug into dragon age, or rather the old version of my story on FFN was. I am so very honored <3 And nonnie, I feel you. I am invested in DA as a series since DA:O's release in 2009, like I bought it on a whim for XBox because I liked Mass Effect 1 sm. So that is 15 yrs of my life i spent loving and discussing a thing while still being critical of the thing, but now i feel so very protective of the world, lore and its characters that "New Bioware" has decided to take a massive dump of shit on, and not only the games but the old fans I feel are treated with disdain too and do not matter to them any longer.

Long, subjective rant about current bioware aka the shambling corpse of its former self and talent incoming. Spoilers for Veilguard bc i don't give a fuck to avoid them :D You (general you, not you in particular dearest nonny <3) should use your time better than to play this shit anyhow 😂

It feels like calculated malice of new Bioware to apply the scorched earth tactics to offscreen destroy everything that old fans and fans of the other games in general held dear, and was supposed to suck out the enjoyment of DAO, DA2 and DAI. Like it is obvious they plan to create a sequel on DA's scorched bones, but jfc, you can do so story-wise without spitting everyone loving what old bioware has built in the face after dropkicking them. But to me that is part of the problem, since if i remember correctly and i wish i could find the bit... they praised Veilguard as "The best Dragon Age game ever", with the most interesting companions and best most improved combat system, comparing it to the other three games in a near smug fashion. There is marketing and there is putting the other games down to prop up your most favorite and only child mattering and they were definitely doing the latter. And don't get me started on the whole "Who is Zevran" debacle or we are gonna here all day.

Bottom line is new/current devs and writer do not give a shit about and very possibly have never played any other game than Inquisition, and you cannot tell me otherwise. And since a lot of devs/writer have left since the start of this project that would become this abysmal game, I also have the impression that there is a lot of underlying resentment toward what these former colleagues have created and so they piss on it in order to make it fully theirs now. Like dogs marking their territory, and well that did not work out, imo. At all.

Ever since they announced respecting our past choices by ignoring them (????) it was clear to me that I would not play Veilguard but just watch a playthrough and all spoilers and then move on. And everything i saw before release was shocking... like i was flabbergasted at how baaaad the dialogue was, which as a writer myself is super important to me in my story. There was no subtext, characters just blurt out everything they think and feel, like a lifeless doll you squeeze and words tumbling out and just as natural. It is stilted, awkward and 80% of it exists for info dump or info dumb rather as they keep repeating the same shit they just told you a few seconds ago as if you as the player are braindead. Here is a good example of what i mean.

Jfc, who edited this crap? There is so much superfluous dialogue that adds nothing to a scene but annoyance for the player and says nothing at all. Just pure senseless yapping in the most cringy way. Why was no one there to trim this nonsense as you should as a writer/editor? Hell, they really disregarded every simple and basic writing rule (everything is told never SHOWN for example especially in dialogue) which really made me question their competence in what they were doing and thus the quality of the upcoming game but i still held out hope for it to not be that bad.

Well shit, it was even worse. In all regards. Especially the writing that cringed this writer into a new dimension with its incoherent incompetence. Jfc. they got paid for that? I'm convinced the majority of fandom writer can do much better, even unpaid. Hell my cat just by walking over the keyboard can manage a better draft and script...💀

But I digress. That is a rant for another time. Point is, nonny, despite my defiant words, I struggled too for days after i got to know the full extent of Bioware's spiteful fuckery to even look at anything da related, in my case my Alistair/Mahariel longfic. I was really down for a few days, ngl. Then again, there is nothing better than spite fueling my creativity to prove "i can write better" soooo in the end and with the help of the much better first version of DA4 in the artbook, I was able to exorcise the demons and feverdream-mindfuck of mediocrity sold to me as a turd with gold-glitter that is this game.

I have successfully now rejected its existence, filled the void with the version that should have been from the artbook and vowed to give no fucks what bioware is doing or saying and infinitely more fucks when writing my own version of thedas and the version of DA4 that should be. REWRITES BBY hell yeah. So OEAH:R is just the beginning of a verse-wise rewrite. But if you need a pick me up, nonny, you are very much welcome to take a trip down memory lane to Dragon 9:30 and see how much this iteration of the story differs from my first one back in the days. Because in this house of mine, we grow and learn as writers, unlike bioware where writer ego reigns surpreme (oh boy and does it ever show in VG) aka eating their own turds and tell themselves it is the finest chocolate 💀

There is still a lot of good about DA out there, but we have to accept it does not come from Bioware any longer. Instead it came, comes and will come from the fans and creators of art and texts and words defying their bullshit with their love and respect for the world, its lore and characters. Also very unlike Bioware.

As we should <3

[bonefall]

but what makes characters like fallenleaf and bb!brokenstar redeemable?

Choice. They were stripped of their power, put through extreme circumstances, and then made the choice to leave their violent histories behind them.

And you will note that it's VERY rare that I show these types of characters being redeemed. There's two 'redemptions' in a very long history of tyrants. Tigerstar, Dalestar, Skystar, Ashfur, Darktail, One Eye, Leopardstar, Mudclaw, Thistlestar technically if he had become leader. 2 out of 10 is a very small ratio.

(and fallenleaf isn't really 'redeemed' in my mind, so much as she simply stopped being a tyrant. There is no way for her to ever make up for what she did and that is a part of her character.)

And of them, Skystar is the worst individual. By far. He has no reason to want to change, nor would he ever. He loves power too much. He would look for it anywhere he went, because he hates listening to anyone tell him what to do. Having this is important to him than anything.

BB!Brokenstar is so different he's not a great comparison to Skystar, imo. He's a protector spirit, the embodiment of SkyClan's fallen 5th oak tree, and basically the logical conclusion of the "might makes right" mindset that defines Clan Culture in his era. So his redemption in finding his place as SkyClan's guardian is basically about "righting a cosmic wrong," and putting the magic to rest in its rightful place.

Brokey's a mortal when he takes the shape of one, but the story I'm trying to tell with him is that fury, righteous love, and protectiveness have their place. He comes to understand that as he watches SkyClan form, and realize that no matter how different they are from the toxic culture he was born into and molded by, he loves them, and he needs them to become what they want to be.

THIS is what that fury is for. To kill the rats and defend the besieged Clan, so they can live freely while he slumbers.

Fallenleaf's a better comparison. Both she and Skystar wanted to forcefully remake society in their own images, and would brutalize anyone who didn't live up to their strict standards.

(contrast to BB!Brokenstar who strategically took out only two cats. Raggedstar and Marigoldkit. He actually limited violence against his own Clan.)

But Fallenleaf and Skystar are very different people. Fallenleaf did what she did out of strict, obsessive dedication to the Code. She was fueled by what she'd been taught by Bramblestar, allowing Ashfur to physically abuse Lionpaw "for his own good." That you have to hurt what you love to protect it.

Still; I very much made it intentional that her punishment is SO harsh. The Lake cats HATED her. She ruined everything and she knows it. Sol gets bored of her, steals her body, and leaves her stranded 100 years in the past. She's forced to stay in those tunnels and cling to the mortal plane, just thinking about her family to keep her tethered, as civilizations rise and fall outside.

Now back in her home, she's almost unrecognizable. She's traveled so far and lost so much, and been forced to sit with her shame for a very long time. Not even StarClan is old enough to remember her crimes; and it's she alone who carries that burden. It's a weight she chooses to carry, to remind her of the worst version of herself. Something she could become again, if she isn't careful.

BB!Skystar's a venerated founder.

Nearly everything he did in life was to serve his own ends, his own ego, and he's lauded for that. His followers ate up his excuses like slop. He built the battle culture the Clans would come to know, by making a move to crush anything that mildly offended him

Of course he's not going to regret shit. Power gets him everything he wants. He's got a circling entourage of sycophants to tell him how smart and strong he is all the time, droves of warriors who pray to him for strength in battle, all of his enemies in life are now forced to treat him like a god-among-gods in heaven. And this is exactly the way he likes it.

Man got away with it, over and over. He collects his reward every starry night.

Any time where he WOULD be threatened with having his power taken away, he would simply gaslight/gatekeep/girlboss his way back to the top. What? You gonna stop him? He will kill you and then frame your murder like a grand triumph over the Great Unfairness of the world. He has the most prey in the forest. He has the strongest cats in the land. What are you, to him, besides an angry squirrel chattering atop the branch?

Why would he ever choose to be different? He wouldn't. Power gets him what he wants, and he loves getting what he wants.

[snowblack-charcoalwhite]

Hello, I just found your blog and after going through a lot of your posts/asks I completely agree with most of your opinions on HOTD ss2. I also wanted to ask your thoughts on the characterization of Aemond and Aegon this season. With Aemond there were a lot of disappointments for me in how the writer treated his character. I know the two nude scenes caused a lot of mixed opinions, but in my opinion, they were completely unnecessary and didn't contribute much to character building. Like Alicent's 3 sex scenes, I feel like the showrunner is just taking advantage of Olivia/Ewan's popularity. Aemond has very few lines, does not interact with anyone in his family, and we hardly know what he thinks about the events taking place. He is removed from the narrative and we hear about how others think of him rather than knowing what he really thinks. Him becoming a villain left a bad taste in my mouth because of the way the writer stuffed it and forced us to swallow it instead of finding a way to build it up properly. It makes me, an Aemond and Ewan fan, feel sad for effort that Ewan has put in just to receive little screen time and bad writing for the character he cherishes so much. With Aegon, even though I'm not a fan, I found him very interesting right from season 1. And in this part, I think the writer has put in effort to compensate for what is considered to be worsening the character's image. Overall, Aegon in ss2 was received very well and he won the sympathy of the majority of viewers in the fandom. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts, ss2 disappointed me a lot and I have very little hope for the second half of the season, but I still look for reviews in the fandom because it's still a highlight for me after every episode.

Good day/night!

The way Aemond has been treated this season is awful indeed. Of all the Green characters he suffered the most (maybe along with Alicent) from the writers attempts (regrettably, successful ones) to divide TG and deprive them of common purpose and pretty much any affection for each other. The scraps of the latter we got (for example, those between Aegon and Helaena) might have gone unnoticed altogether for the majority of the viewers if not for the actors' interviews (and I doubt that many of GA folks have watched those anyway).

It seems that the writers decided to make Aemond into a "lone wolf", so to say: a person who, due to some kind of mix between arrogance and grievances suffered in the past, feels like he doesn't need anyone in this life because 1) everyone he searched love and compassion from failed him, 2) he is utterly confident in his ability to handle every problem that may arise on his own. I personally don't like the concept of Aemond being isolated from his family - but the main issue here IMO is not even the idea itself but the execution. While I'm not a fan of the brothel part either, I believe that those scenes could have fitted into his arc better - if not for the sloppy and neglectful manner in which this arc has been built. Skipping the important bits of Aemond's story (like reaction of his family members to Luke's death), making him indifferent to the murder of Jaehaerys and depriving him of the scenes that could have connected the different points of his emotional and psychological journey (mainly of the scenes with other Greens) - all of it makes it difficult to perceive the different sides his character is supposed to have.

Ultimately, as I see it, both Aemond and Alicent are treated by the show as tools for presenting the audience with the story of Westerosi feminism: the former - to uphold the image of "cruel men", the latter - to paint the image of a victim (who is also kind of responsible for her own suffering at the hands of men because she chose the wrong side).

As for Aegon, he's been the luckiest out of the Green characters storywise - but it doesn't mean that I'm satisfied with the show version of him. Dumbing him down, using him as a way to show how callous and cruel other Greens (specifically Aemond and Alicent) are - that's not the treatment I wanted for one of my favourite characters. I would even go as far as saying that if the Aegon we have seen in the show so far was the only Aegon I knew (without me having any knowledge of either source material or Tom's interviews or participating in fandom) he wouldn't be one of my favourite characters as I simply would have very little interest in him. Once again, in comparison with other Greens he's doing really well, but I can't help but feel that Aegon - and Tom - are also being used to create a character the audience can pity and to have a good shot at the Emmy campaign. And as soon as HBO guys get what they want (or if they don't get it), Aegon might be thrown under the bus just as easily as it already happened to Aemond after he attracted lots of attention to season 1.

To sum it up, the main issue of HotD is that HBO doesn't care for the characters and for the story: it cares for the hype, viewing numbers, reviews and awards. And with this kind of attitude it's difficult to expect any significant improvements in the quality of the show.

[canonicallyobserving911]

Eddie Diaz: 7x7, 7x9 and 7x10

Eddie Diaz is my favorite character but I still don't like the storyline they gave him for the end of the season.

(Full disclosure: I did a similar post about Bobby's storyline but before 7x9 airs, I decided to do one about Eddie too.)

It's been a couple of weeks since the plot or whatever TM (showrunner) is trying to do with Eddie's character was revealed (man is obsessed with his deceased wife's doppelgänger but he ignores the woman who's been by his side the entire time) and I still HATE it. Therefore, I'm not looking forward to whatever this raggedy "Vertigo" storyline is supposed to be for multiple reasons.

The main reason why I don't like it is because IMO, Eddie's storylines have always taken a backseat to those written for other main characters and the truth is he hasn't had a storyline all his own since he was involved in the illegal fight club in season 3. All of his other storylines were made to be about someone else or they weren't given adequate room to be developed, i.e., the shooting, his PTSD and his return to the 118 at the end of season 5. His breakdown was shoved into the last 5 minutes of 5x13 then he went to therapy once afterwards but the audience didn't see any more of his sessions.

Also, if his storyline didn't take a backseat, he was sidelined for the majority of a season (for most of season 6, he was treated like a side character with nothing to do for 13 out of the 18 episodes and the ones they gave him in 6x7, 6x14, 6x15, 6x17 and 6x18 were lackluster at best) and they were treated like "This will do" for his character while other mains got-well thought-out storylines that didn't make the audience dislike them.

Three things that have been magnified about Eddie since 7x5 aired is (1) people who already didn't like him (it's possible they're jealous of him because he's so beautiful and Buck's in love with him) despise him even more without a valid reason; (2) people who hate cheating storylines have already dismissed him and are now classifying him as irredeemable and for whatever reason they don't think he deserves redemption or to work through it even though others (Hen and Buck) have cheated too; and (3) those who shipped Buddie before, no longer believe Buck should wait around for Eddie since Buck's in a relationship with a discount dollar store version of Eddie. I mean let's be real here for a minute because the show literally wrote the character of T*mmy to be a cheap bargain basement version of Eddie Diaz.

Aside from him emotionally cheating with his dead wife's doppelgänger 🙄, it appears there was no real thought put into his season 7 arc and for those who've seen the movie "Vertigo", they might be interested but I am not. I get it, he's grieving the "relationship" he thought he could have had with Shannon but wouldn't it have made more sense to let him deal with his grief in therapy LAST SEASON WHEN THEY DIDN'T GIVE HIM ANYTHING ELSE TO DO?

YES! They could have used those 13 episodes to allow him to go to therapy so he could have already worked through this situation with his deceased wife instead of shoving it into the end of an already robust and limited season. Or was the F*X network against letting him move past it too? I think it was poor planning and lazy storytelling but that's just me. Also, why is Maris*l still around? Eddie's storyline could have worked without her so what's the real goal here? It's unclear if his storyline will end the way it did in season 5 with him sliding down the firefighter's pole and rejoining the team like everything had been fixed but hopefully that won't happen this time and he'll get the help he needs.

Finally, as a Buddie shipper, I WILL NOT SETTLE FOR A KNOCKOFF VERSION OF A RELATIONSHIP FOR EDDIE OR BUCK BECAUSE THEY BOTH DESERVE BETTER. Therefore, why should Eddie or Buck settle for something that doesn't compare to EVERYTHING THEY'VE BUILT TOGETHER FOR THE PAST SIX YEARS?

IMO, they shouldn't and it's time for the show to stop delaying their CANON love story. I for one don't want to sit through another season of LIs being thrown at them like javelins and hoping one will stick. This is EXHAUSTING just like season 5 was and I'll watch the episode after it airs so I can fast foward through the parts I don't want to see.

I ONLY SHIP BUDDIE!

[ice-sculptures]

#stucky#i'm putting them here even tho i never needed them to get together#bc endgame's existence is a loss all on its own

So real and true! I could not have phrased this better myself. there are quite a few ships that I actually prefer in fanfic (for worry that the canon writers would do them dirty) but endgame... that was a travesty. *insert that Nick Fury meme about electing to ignore canon*

-TWS anon

P.S. sorry if this sends multiple times. Tumblr was being a butt so I'm not sure if this came through the first few times.

oh don’t worry, it only sent once!!

and yeah…i love steve and bucky’s friendship in canon, and i never needed it to be romantic in the source material because it’s a marvel property, for starters, so hoping for that is totally out of the question (and bc i know a million fanfic writers who could do it better, lol) but i’d genuinely hoped for the writers and directors to respect the bond that They built themselves — like, it still fucking blows my mind that TWS and endgame were created by the same people….the downgrade, lol 💀

i feel like a lot of people think stucky shippers are mad about steve ending up with a woman, but imo that’s ridiculous. if steve had married a woman at the end of endgame, but had stayed in the future, and his relationships with bucky and sam had been treated with respect? i would have been overjoyed. my problem isn’t with the steve/peggy of it all, it’s with him going back in time and a) leaving behind everyone he knows, especially his best friends and b) living in a world where he knows about all of the atrocities happening, including bucky being tortured for 70+ years, and doesn’t do jack shit to stop them. however tired he is, however strong his desire for a peaceful life is, the steve rogers i know would never stand by and just let it all happen and i hate that endgame gave me a version of steve that is the total antithesis of the character i loved for so long.

[necrotic-nephilim]

@an-android-child listen your argument is perfect because all jokes aside when you're discussing a character like Bruce Wayne who's existed for nearly a century of on-going content there is going to be so many versions of him that it's hard to discussion him as a whole because you have to pick some sort of baseline. what is to me a terrible father figure based on the canon content I consume could be a great father figure based on the canon content someone else consumes so he's always fluctuating and changing. and while yes I prefer and think it's more "in-character" for Bruce to be flawed I can't discredit the opposite argument because something something the inherent nature of the art of comic books as a medium. HOWEVER COMMA

when we are discussing *Batcest*? There is *no* version of Batcest ships involving Bruce -BruDick, BruTim, BruJay, BruSteph, etc- where I think Bruce should be a good person. like my personal vision for *any* of these ships is built on the foundation of how terrible Bruce is to all of them. My Batcest ships are dependent on my Complicated Asshole opinions about Bruce. I think if healthy Batcest floats your boat I am cheering you on bc I totally get it, happy married couple BruDick does pretty well fit their vibe sometimes (particularly if you're using a Pre-Crisis or Rebirth framework where they get along The Most) but I want them unhealthy and toxic about each other. Dick and Bruce are That Couple™ who break up and get back together so often you have to text to ask them if you should send them joint or separate invitations to your Christmas party and by Christmas the relationship status has changed again. They are *so* deeply devoted to each other. They'd die for each other. They'd try to kill for each other and have the other half stop them. They also are only on speaking terms every other week. and 99% of the time Bruce *is* the problem. he's incapable of treating those he loves kindly because his hyper-vigilance is what drives him as a person.

and then with BruJay, honestly what better ship than those two, to depict the dynamic of loving someone to the point of possessive devotion but also wanting to change quite literally everything about them. Jason needs Bruce to be willing to break his moral code to prove he loves Jason. Bruce needs Jason to be a version of himself he's not anymore. they're so possessive of each other. they also can't stand each other because Bruce won't let himself believe anyone but him can be right about these things. i think BruSteph falls into a similar vein tbh, though with Steph i think she's less about wanting to change him and more about just wanting to push back and change how he sees *her*. someday I'll convince this fandom to ship BruSteph more tbh bc i think it's *rife* with problematic dynamics of Bruce being the Worst to her bc of all the power dynamics and her refusing to just take it, pushing back against him.

and then. and then BruTim. not to have favorites but if a ship has Tim it's going to be a favorite. these two are terrible for each other. i think viewing their history through the lense of shipping is so fascinating when you consider Tim's choices and how he feels Batman needs Robin. imo BruTim is one of those ships that's codependent on a past history of BruDick, even if it was one-sided. because if Batman needs Robin and Bruce and Tim end up in a weird relationship, that means the need for Robin relies on Bruce's need to be kinda Weird about Robin. is it consensual? yes. but consensual in the way of Tim considering the risk/reward ratio of essentially being a lamb to slaughter for Bruce. offering himself up in that way because if it's good for Gotham, he'll sleep at night. and then of course you add the respect Tim has for Batman and how Bruce takes advantage of that (sometimes even in canon) to get Tim to do what he wants. it's willful codependence on Tim's side, and Bruce just accepting this random kid as the next Robin and them slotting into a Weird partner/mentor/mentee/lovers/therapist relationship. and Tim being the first Robin Bruce has to have parents that are alive and he has a decently healthy relationship with, there's no pretense of it being father/son or Tim being a ward like with Dick or Jason. there's less of a reason for Bruce to need to hold himself to a "fatherly" standard around Tim, which i think shows in a lot of Tim's comics. so they're more openly Weird with each other and i like that a lot.

anyway sorry for infodumping on you but your comment gave me a chance to just run my mouth about dirtybadwrong fun ships. so ty this was delightful to get into.

If you want to be bothered. Maybe this for dick and Bruce???

i ALWAYS want to be bothered these are always the highlight of my day tbh you're a delight for letting me just yap <3

Dick. For the canon isn't real square I am Specifically talking about the Tom Taylor Nightwing run. Usually I ignore bad runs but given this one is ongoing (though about to end THANK GOD and get replaced by Dan Watters who i have high hopes for since i adored his Sword of Azrael (2022) run but i digress) so I counted it. Especially since it's so debated if that run is bad or not, for some reason. I'm a 90s Nightwing truther. I love Dick so dearly and tbh recently I've been more enamored with him the more I read his Discowing era, I didn't used to be as big of a Dick stan as I am these days.

Bruce. Honestly where do you even start with Bruce. I want to fist fight him and also patch him up. He got me into comics and superheroes as a whole but I roll my eyes whenever he shows up in a story. He's a bastard and usually not a good father but also complex and should be dissected under a magnifying glass. I love him dearly. He's also just the worst. I think that's why I love him. I'm always a fan of unabashedly Complicated Asshole Bruce who's generally not always the best person, particularly not to the Batfamily and that being the driving force of his relationships with them, especially in shipping.

And for bonus points, Tim. Because know above all else, I'm a Tim Drake kinnie /deg. He's been my number one for a decade and I've yet to uproot him from my brain. He's literally the Worst half the time and I love him for it. And the canon isn't real refers to Tim Drake: Robin because... that sure was a comic. And that's about all I can say about it. Pre-Flashpoint Tim I miss you so dearly. I think it's fun that I want to put him in a blender and drink the juice but also want Nothing Ever to happen to him.

[sharkneto]

The floor still has its ratty carpet, impossibly worn now and full of holes. She thinks it might have been green, once. In one corner, there’s a massive chalk board, filled with equations in Five’s familiar lefty-scrawl. The walls are covered in more math. A heavy wooden desk has been pushed against the wall and plastic bins full of clothes are stacked on top of it, off the ground and carefully taped where they’ve cracked to keep bugs out of them. In the far corner, there’s two honestly disgusting cushions, stained with stuffing sticking out. Another bin of what looks to be blankets sits next to it. That must be where Five sleeps, she realizes with a start.

I want to know everything about Five's little den at the end of the world. Gimme all those feels, Shark! *Jaws theme begins to play* (Crueler to Remember, chp 2)

I had so much fun thinking about Five's apocalypse set up in Crueler to Remember. The glimpse of his camp we get in S1 drives me nuts because it's so fucking impractical. Just a tent? And all those books sitting out in the open? It's been 45 years! They'd be little piles of mush. So, I had to figure out what I thought would be a practical camp for Five.

An important factor is that I think Five was insane enough (and sentimental enough) to stay in the same city for the entire time, so his base needs to be something that can last that long (aka: not a fucking tent). The destruction of the city seems rather absolute from the glimpses we get, so an already standing structure is out. He could build one, but probably not until he was older, so what did he find until that point (and then stick with because it worked and he's insane). He needs something sturdy and protected from the elements, somewhere cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Enter idea: Underground! Yes, delving underground in a city obviously ravaged by the equivalent of an earthquake is usually a terrible idea! But this is my fic, so Five gets to find a sturdy basement to turn into his survival bunker, at the library as a treat.

There are further logistical problems to living underground that I tried to think of, whether or not my solutions are actually practical. He's saved from getting snowed in and buried alive by the fact I have him down a hallway from exposed stairs, so snow tapers off in accumulation before it can reach his door. He can make a sandbag wall to block it off when it rains and save himself from bad flooding. The hall with an opening also gives him a place to have a fire near his door without giving himself carbon monoxide poisoning. There is no light, because underground, so he gets creative with mirrors to reflect some light back, and then there is a careful maintenance of solar lanterns for light as he needs it inside.

No light means that the space is for Survival, and his actual work happens outside (weather permitting). It is where he keeps food and supplies, where he can sleep, where he can keep Important Things safe from the elements (like physics books and notes and Umbrella Academy merchandise). He keeps his clothes and blankets in bins so bugs can't eat them. Food goes in a closet-turned-pantry that he's sealed as best he can against bugs. His bed is disgusting because I think all mattresses that survived the blast would be disgusting from bugs almost immediately and we're a decade in when we visit Five in this fic. Delores is a well-established habit (and newly wedded!) at this point in the fic, so she has her own bin of clothes and Spots Five puts her inside and outside.

Speaking of outside, that's more traditional. He's got his fire pit, he's got his wood storage, he's got his miscellaneous piles of shit that are weather-hardy. He's got his soon-to-be garden now that the sun is out consistently enough for plants to start growing, which is good timing because at a decade in, we're hitting the end of canned food being reliably edible (absolutely disgusting by this point, but only just starting to turn dangerous). Five has a diet of veggies and cockroaches for his foreseeable future.

I love thinking about Five's time in the apocalypse so much - the angst of it, of course, but also the logistics of it all. It's such a terrible, incredible puzzle. One day I'll share my fic on that - maybe before it's finished, even, because I love it so much and it feels a shame it just sits in my WIP folder. Five's life is just so goddamn tragic.

send me ~500 words from one of my fics for director's commentary

[haleigh-sloth]

What Present Mic said to Shiragiri in this chapter bothered me, and I know it's best to wait until the full translation but I doubt the translation is going to make it sound better I'm pretty sure it's going to be the same thing still. I'm tired of the villians being dehumanized.

It's good that it bothers you, because it's supposed to.

Mic was never the one who was going to be super tied to ShiraGiri's influence on the battlefield. That was always, always Aizawa.

Mic is barely a character. I mean he's been there from the beginning, but beyond knowing his attachment to Shirakumo and Aizawa, he doesn't have much to him. So it wouldn't have made sense for him to have an open mind.

Not to mention, I feel like people forget this actually, look at the difference in his and Aizawa's reactions to Aoyama:

Mic has a slightly averse reaction to Aizawa saying he "feels the same as the kids" (foreshadowing much?). And then:

Mic says this, meanwhile Aizawa:

I mean, imo Mic hasn't earned the "suddenly an open minded old gen hero ready to change the status quo" role in the story. I expect him to ultimately side with Aizawa and the kids in the end, but only because that story calls for it and not because his character was necessarily built up to it.

That talk Aizawa had with Aoyama is so obviously meant to be repeated later...to someone else.

"I feel the same as the kids". Blatant foreshadowing for Aizawa. Not to mention him thinking about Kurogiri RIGHT then and there when he is saying those things. It's almost like he knows this speech might apply to more than just Aoyama, at some point, somehow.

Look at all the adult characters who have relevance and impact on the plot: All Might, Endeavor, Aizawa, and Gran Torino. Out of those characters, the only one who has the same type of arc as the kids who will save the villains is Aizawa. ShiraGiri is his villain. It's pretty much the exact same type of set up.

He has to reconcile the current version of his villain with who they used to be. Midoriya sees the crying kid inside Shigaraki, so the next step is tying that kid to the person Shigaraki turned into, and helping those two parts of him reconcile--thus he is saved. Shouto knows Touya is his brother, and by god he is TRYING to view him as Touya, but he keeps treating him as Dabi. He's trying. Toga, same story. She was a normal teenager like Ochacko, experiences the same feelings as her. Ochacko has to accept Toga for who she is now by acknowledging who she used to be.

Aizawa---it's exactly the same. Accept ShiraGiri for who he is. Someone different, but still the person he knew in his childhood nonetheless.

Mic doesn't have that ingrained into his arc. He's kinda just there, and he's presenting the opposing ideals that are set up to eventually be shut down later. He sounds like Gran Torino--"death is better". We as readers know BNHA doesn't believe that. So his beliefs will be shut down later.

[oviids]

pls share some of your spn fic recs 🥺🥺

ok, a few things first:

followers and mutuals who do not have supernatural brainworms, kindly avert your eyes

i don’t normally rec or even read much fanfic any more but this is a CRISIS ok (cont.)

there is so. much. content for deancas out there and i have incredibly high standards, several ancient ao3 bookmarks, can speedread, and want to spare you guys the experience of wading through it all.

i also have a section for spn femslash since I was pretty into that back in the day (sadly a lot less fan content for this :/)

I don’t really like au’s or pure smut (I honestly usually just skim or skip those scenes) so if you’re mainly looking for that kind of thing this probably won’t be very helpful to you. jsyk.

i’m not great at describing stuff but i’ll do my best, i’ll also try and add tw’s when neccesary.

i wil try and keep updating this with any other decent fics i find, feel free to rec stuff too since i’m like 7 years behind.(edit 1/25/21) this is getting looooong so i’m going to start making another list on my spn blog rather than update this one

(edit 1/3/21) since this has gotten pretty long i’ve added rating/approximate word counts and marked my particular favorites with an asterisk.

Dean/Cas fic:

So Says The Sword*** - explicit/85k. FUCK its good...au/time travel where dean is not pulled out of hell by cas and says yes to becoming the michael sword. honestly could serve as an alternative to actually watching the show, if you want to get into dean/cas without actually doing that to yourself.

Fata morgana.*  - teen/6k, pst s9 finale. very bela centric and i love it, she finds cas looking for dean in hell.

Redemption Road -misc/600+k. an incredibly long fic from a collaborative writing group back in the day. canon divergent from the end of s6 on, has a cool take on godstiel and the leviathans, as well as the lovecratian mythos connection. ngl when i reread it i only made it about 28% in but imo the casual reader can actually stop around there, the rest concerns a lovecraftian apocalypse that is still good (i think i don’t remember it very well) but not required to enjoy the first half. if you prefer i have an ebook version i can send you on gdrive.

Someone Who's Feeling For Me* - mature/45k, s12. they run into lisa braeden and dean thinks cas is into her while cas thinks dean still likes her. treats lisa way better than the show ever did and the miscommunication is pretty funny rather than annoying.

a turn of the earth - mature/95k. time travel fic where cas from s10 keeps showing up in deans life from a few years before s1 to right before the hellhounds take his soul.  slow burn, good character study, and at one point cas punches the dad in the face and it rules.

On the Wings of War - teen/85k, canon divergent s5. dean accidentally becomes the Horseman of War. plays fun, fast and loose with biblical lore, michael has some rights.

Named - mature/95k, alternate s5. EXTREMELY blasphemous in a fun sexy way. manages to predict metatron almost to a T. there’s one major character death and its literally jesus christ, everyone is very sad about it and it sets the rest of the story rolling. an alternate interpretation of cas’ mission to raise dean from hell which had me on the floor. ngl its kind of misogynistic at points, but its from 2010 and tracks with late oughts-2010 spn (sorry anna the author did you dirty here:/).

The Girlfriend Experience - explicit/15k. uhhh i don’t normally rec or even read smutty stuff unless someone i know is specifically asking for it but this has stuff like sam trying to be a good ally and dean thinking holding hands with cas is ‘kinda gay :/’ minutes after having gay sex with him.

i crippled your heart a hundred times - explicit/19k, s8. cas confesses his feelings and dean spends a long time getting his head out of his ass about it. truly hits different after the actual confession, despite being written six years early it feels like its actually what could have gone down more or less if the writers weren’t talentless demons who hate us.

My Roots Take Flight** - mature/125k. reverse au where cas is a hunter and dean’s an angel...OR IS IT???? an alternate retelling of s4. tw for briefly being set in a psychiatric hospital/the hospital being mentioned somewhat frequently throughout the fic, plus more references to torture in hell and heaven than usual.

The One Thing You Can't Lose* - teen/4k.you know those posts about how cas is a super-strong super-tough ancient warrior but he just lets dean tug him around because he likes it? thats it thats the fic.

Hands, From Which All Things Are Built - teen/14k, post s8′s ‘goodbye stranger.’ cas is on the run with the angel tablet but keeps in touch with sam and dean by text, he and dean still manage to be terrible at Actual communication.

Autrement, Danger - or, The Account of an Exceedingly Long Day - mature/30k, post s11. a monster that takes the appearance of your soulmate leads to some wild miscommunications and dealing with years of repression, also dean gets to see cas’ true form which is always cool. tw for non-graphic mentions of underage sexual assault/sex work.

Down to Agincourt - mature/explicit/900++++k, endverse continuation. endverse!cas survives his encounter with lucifer and discovers another time-displaced dean from s7. i’ve only read the two of four parts but its really good, veeeeery slow burn, has a lot of fun oc’s and takes a rather surprising but (imo) entertaining and intriguing turn into Hellenic history and mythology. usual tw’s for endverse/endverse!cas but nothing graphic, it’s actually pretty light-hearted (relatively speaking of course).

Nothing Equals the Splendor** - explicit/8k, THEE finale fix it fic you’ve been waiting for! posits that the entire final episode was just a (very bad and lame) djinn’s vision.

like moses and batman and james dean - explicit/31k, post s8. explores dean’s trauma and internalized homophoba from his technically canon experience with sex work and its impact on his relationship with cas. the sex work itself isn’t really shown in any detail but it’s still a relatively heavy fic.

Crazy Diamonds - explicit/25k, s4/alternate s14. fresh-out-of-hell dean and dean from 10 years in the future are displaced from time and sent to each other’s present.

where the weeds take root - explicit/30k. au where the men of letters kick them out of the bunker and they accidentally move out into the country, get over their codependence and semi retire. featuring chicken coop building, sam volunteering at a dog shelter, gardening, and blissfully mundane domesticity.

No Resting Place - teen/6k. djinn dream fic, switches back and forth between cas’ dream of being married to dean and retired from hunting to the aftermath when he wakes up. tw for brief mention of suicide since, y’know, djinn dream.

any port in a storm - mature/52k. post s8 finale. cas and dean have to pose as a couple going through a rough patch for a case and actually deal with their emotional baggage, cas struggles with being human and metatron is up to stuff.

all this and heaven too* - explicit/7k. in the author’s own words ‘...a love letter to every trans person who ever projected onto Dean Winchester.’ absolutely unzipped me emotionally and theologically, its just. so good. tw for very brief mentions of internalized transphobia/dysphoria.

Because it is* - mature/6k, finale fix it. killing chuck does not bring back anyone back and the winchesters spend a very long time dealing with what they’ve lost, cas and dean SOMEHOW still manage to have signifigant communication issues even after the confession. tw for suicidal thoughts/brief attempt.

Vena Amoris and Other Old-Fashioned Bullshit* - teen/4k, s6. when cas fell for dean it automatically soulbonded/angel married them, shenanigans ensue when dean finds out during the angel’s civil war. funny and actually written back when s6 was airing so cas is still (or at least pretending to be) kind of an OP asshole which is fun.

Rinse, Repeat - teen/3k, s8. angsty character study of cas as he’s reprogrammed and trained to kill dean. not really dean/cas since its just cas’ pov of canon events but its beautifully written and ends with him snapping out of it through the power of love (also now a canon event!).

Emergence - explicit/59k, canon divergent after s11. dean meets a hunter he only recognizes as their friend claire novak’s missing father, but soon realizes he might be the answer behind the mysterious void in his memories and feelings (aka everyone’s memories of cas are completely wiped away for three years).

Cuckoo And Nest - explicit/10k, early established relationship/character study, cas tries to figure out how he fits into dean’s life and space in the bunker.

Build a Home* - teen/20k, canon divergent s12. sam and eileen are cute and turn the bunker into men of letters/hunters hq and everyone but cas moves in, mutual miscommunication issues and pining ensues.

Down in the River - teen/5k, early s8, cas prays to dean in purgatory while sam and dean try to figure out a way to get him out.

Teaching Poetry to Fish* - mature/52k, ?? BC through the entire series/canon divergent s14 and 15. retelling of crucial scenes throughout the shows timeline from cas’ pov, feat. actual fish and poetry.

the minor fall, the major lift - gen/4k, post confession/finale fixit. dean goes into the empty to save cas and runs into several old friends (and enemies).

With the Kisses of His Mouth* - teen/3k, gen later seasons. dean and cas keep kissing by accident.

Remaining Grace - explicit/109k, alternate s6. au where cas asks dean for help with raphael and dean, of course, does. tw for temporary major character death/semi-graphic depictions of alcohol withdrawal.

The face of heaven.* - teen/10k, au, dean is a regular guy and cas is a fallen star (think ‘stardust’, kinda).

Stories Are Made of Mistakes*  - teen/5k. newly human cas has trouble getting used to a human body and humanity in general, but still figures out that he and dean are A Thing before dean does.

Hurry Up And Wait - mature/21k, canon divergent s12. a fairyland and quite possibly LOTR related case comes up and dean goes full fanboy, mary is introduced to the wonders of the peter jackson adaptions, many references and comparisons (including between cas and dean’s ‘friendship’ and arwen/aragon). also charle is still alive and has just been doing fairy stuff this whole time.

There Are Many Things - explicit/28k, s9. cas is extremely lonely/touch-starved and trying to figure out this whole human thing, as well as where he and dean stand after being kicked out of the bunker.

It's A Long Life to Always Be Longing - teen/40k, post s11 finale. amara helps dean by putting him in a magical coma so he can finally get some much needed rest and show him possible futures for him, sam and cas. meanwhile sam and cas go on a roadtrip (or several) to find componets for a spell to wake dean up. really good sam and cas friendship, they actually talk about their shared lucifer trauma and stuff.

Non-Photo Blue - gen/2k, s4/5/alternate s5. fifty moments from cas’ memories of dean.

Tall Grass - explicit/57k, canon divergent post series. cas becomes the ultimate plant dad. feat the wayward sisters gang, cathartic character growth, fun oc’s, domesticity, and lots of actual botanical info-dumping.

on vessels - no rating/gen/2k. established dean/cas, cas tells dean about how he used to imagine what it would be like to have him as his vessel.

search for tomorrow on every shore* - teen/11k, post-finale (extremely derogatory). some angels in jack’s new heaven act out and dean gets temporarily resurrected in 2003 and runs into his younger self.

Architecture of the Minotaur’s Heart - explicit/45k, very canon divergent post s1. dean’s new house seems to have a life and mind of its own, while in his dreams he sees glimpses of a world and apocalypse that never came to be and an angel that looks strangely like his mysterious neighbor, cas. loosely inspired by the book house of leaves (which i highly recommend for fans of weird horror).

The Distance Of The Setting Sun - explicit/17k, post s5. established dean/cas relationship, team free will finally takes advantage of cas’ abilities to go on vacation around the world.

diamond star halo - teen/5k, s11. dean lets cas use him as a temporary vessel while he recovers from rowena’s spell, sam is a long-suffering third-wheel.

Make Known** - teen/16k, s6/7. dean struggles to understand how cas could have become his enemy and whether he ever truly knew him in the first place.

blunt little instrument* - mature/1.4k, post finale. dean finally confronts his father in heaven, very cathartic.

my heart a compass*** - teen/10k, post confession. the empty forces cas to re-experience his most regretted moments while dean tries to snap him out of it and bring him home.

A Crash Course in Someone Else's History - teen/11k, s6. cas from the very start of s4 is brought forward in time by s6!cas to distract the brothers from his and crowley’s plans.

The Cuckoo Father - mature/8k, s7 au. the woman who found cas in the river post-leviathans does not marry him bc he was sent to her by god or whatever, but actually identifies him as jimmy novak and sends him back to claire and amelia.

The Dead Dean Clause* - teen/5k, post alt s5 ending. team free will celebrates surviving taking down lucifer by getting blitzed, cas lies to a cop and gets an impromptu driving lesson. title/description sound dark i know but it’s actually very funny and light.

Suck It, Judy Garland - mature/20k, s12 (after the ‘i love you...i love all of you’ episode). cas and sam have to pretend to be a couple for a case and dean is NOT happy about it.

By Daylight and In Dream - teen/16k, s5. pre-dean/cas, dean invites cas to use his dreams to hide from the other angels. tw for very brief mention of a memory/dream of alastair sexually assaulting dean.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven - mature/22k, post-canon. an actually happy (if sometimes bittersweet) heaven endgame written several years ago, though some details are rather eerily similar to the show’s ending.

heaven is a place on earth* - teen/2k. dean’s pov of some of the times cas left him behind throughout the show, and one alternate ending where he finally gets to stay.

I Cleanse The Mirror - teen/20k, alternate s6. dean’s body is stolen by an ancient elemental and his soul has to hitch a ride in cas’ vessel.

an exploration of gender; angelic*** - mature/4k. *oscar isaac voice* lets get into angel gender politics!! aka cas is trans.

Zenith - explicit/33k, s9. after 9x06 an angry witch curses cas with the ability to see supernatural beings and human souls.

La cucina. - gen/3k, alt s9. dean goes wild helping a newly-human cas find out what kinds of food he likes, or the early s9 domesticity we deserved!

Dean Winchester, Cocksucker at Rest***** - teen/7k, post-finale. john and mary finally come over for dinner and john reacts to dean/cas in a rather predictable fashion. SOOOOOOOOO good omg, its so funny and a little sad and very very cathartic. part of a series that has a few other really good short fics.

The Way You Didn't Go - teen/5k, s15. coda to 15.09, dean has nightmares about the moc!cas timeline.

On Drowning - teen/28k. dean saves cas after he nearly drowns, they both try and deal with the physical/mental fallout (aka the fic where thee iconic “you only touch me when you think I’m dead or dying” originates). tw for realistic depictions of drowning/triage/misc medical information.

The Thirty-Six Questions That Lead to Love* - mature/13k. claire has dean and cas pretend to be her gay dads for a case and they play the titular 36 question game, get mistaken for swingers, and birdwatch, among other things.

Assorted F/F stuff:

Deep Breaths* - mary/ellen, au where mary said no to azazel’s deal and let john stay dead, still becomes a milf.

Like Rebel Diamonds - krissy/claire, they become hunter gf’s on the hunt for cas to kick his ass for taking jimmy. not-so-stealth dean/cas as well.

To Ash and Bone - anna/ruby, same author as the previous fic (p much all of her stuff is good from what i recall). au where ruby is a witch and helps anna when she’s cursed.

Holy Clockwork Angels - jo/ruby, STEAMPUNK au with very cool worldbuiilding.

At Day's End - jo/anna (my fucking KINGDOM for more jo/anna content, the dean/cas parallels are allllll there), au where they are both at the camp in the endverse and gfs.

these posts - ok so not actually a fic but i’m now obsessed with this hannah/meg dynamic.

Tagelied - mary/ellen, the true story of how ellen got into hunting before angels interfered.

Hell's Bells** - meg/abaddon, alternate s8/9 where meg survives crowley’s attack with sam’s help and teams up with abaddon (who she has a sk year old crush on) to take back hell.

The Ecstasy of the Rose - anna/ruby, anna travels back in time to escape heaven and becomes a signifigant part of ruby’s old human life.

Angel Underground - anna/jo, kind of an urban fantasy au with a very intriguing premise (sadly its very short, i’d love to see more if this ‘verse).

Clover, Flame - billie/mary, billie was always the reaper that showed up to take mary after her death(s) over the years.

Drag Me To Heaven - anna/ruby, a variant on the ‘last night on earth’ thing with dean.

Come Home* - jo/anna, canon-divergent au where anna is the new waitress at the roadhouse and helps jo set up a (probably not really) haunted house for halloween.

[lemonhemlock]

To me, this seemed like 1. Martin's crush on Jon was implied from the beginning and throughout S1-S2 (though, it was subtle, blink and you'll miss it, herein you can also argue Death of the Author, I guess). It does get confirmed by Elias when he looks inside Martin's head at the end of S3 and asks him why would he waste energy on someone who treats him so badly (paraphrasing bc I haven't listened in a while). and 2). It wasn't supposed to turn explicitly into Jmart but it was kind of sprung on by how positively fans reacted to it after the S3 finale? And that's how we got the S4 romance plot shoe-horned in.

To be fair, Jon does become nicer to Martin in S3 after he comes back from his hidey-hole, but from acting friendly to outright being in love with someone is a huge gap. No offense to jmart shippers, but these people are not well-suited to each other. What do they even have in common? What attracts them to one another? What do they even know about each other?

Ultimately, there are discrepancies on both sides, IMO, bc Martin is someone Jon absolutely despises in earlier seasons. He definitely starts off as a prickly character with a lot of room to grow, someone that is very difficult to get close to, but he has none of this attitude towards Sasha, Tim or Elias. Martin just somehow ticks his buttons so much that he doesn't even seem to respect him. ? He gets a lot better later on, granted, and in S4 you can argue he is in such a bad situation that Martin is kind of the only person available (well, not really, bc he's busy with Peter) who doesn't bite his head off just for existing, so NOW he is drawn to him. But it's. Such a sad state of affairs to base a romance on.

Whereas Martin gets his own character growth after Elias calls him out for his crush and even admits in S4 he was kind of fooling himself and that they don't even like each other in the Archives. So that looked a lot like self-awareness? Realizing that your crush is predicated on an illusion, but still doing the right thing, as is - he's standing up for Jon in front of the others and he's refusing Jon's offer to run away with him. S4 Martin is kind of a refreshingly actualized character.

It's the romance ending of S4 that feels kind of implanted. Jon has had little contact with Martin after waking up from his coma; I struggle to see how the Martin he seems to yearn for isn't some fantasy he's built in his head, whereas S4!Martin was mature enough to break through the illusions he had constructed about Jon as a romantic partner.

Like, I could buy this relationship as two people not necessarily suited to each other, but maybe finding each other in bad circumstances and making due. But that's just it - they're not each other's soul mates, they're settling for each other, because there's no one else available. And that's kind of realistic in and of itself, even if it's depressing. That could have been the point of S5, but it wasn't acknowledged as such. Instead, Martin really regressed from all his S4 growth and turned into his most annoying version, clinging to Jon no matter what, often trying to control and manipulate him.

So, to me, at least, it does seem like this relationship was written pretty chaotically and doesn't really look like something that was planned from the very beginning. The narrative doesn't decide what the dynamic between these two characters should be. Is it a great love story? Is it abusive? Is it just passing time? Are they sincere, are they fooling themselves?

it is still. Unbelievable. to me. that they made jonmartin canon in like full sincerity. that this was a good thing somehow that the narrative rewarded. getting to 158 - 160 felt in many ways like rounding a corner and getting hit in the face with a cast iron pan. i successfully predicted the main gist of the watcher's crown some time around the end of s3 and i was totally BLINDSIDED by canon jmart. hit with a 2x4 fr.

[deafchild2000]

So, I was talking to a friend and told her that Alyssa is a lot like Hope but it seemed like everything about her character (once she appeared) was half-done.

Alyssa must have a powerful affinity for magic otherwise her entire house would not have been blown up - as well as her parents in the process. And think about it: A powerful witch with no parents? Sounds like Hope, only while she thinks she's alone, Hope has family and judging from Alyssa's backstory, her parents were all she had.

And this is where things get (imo) funky. Hope is still going by "Marshall" by this time, but Alyssa is freshly brought to school and you can't tell me her arrival wasn't the biggest news around! Treated like a ticking timebomb, no one wanted to be friends with her. Not to mention the girl had a temper that developed over time. So it makes things worst when her scenes always involving her in trouble or causing trouble, especially with the Saltzman twins.

But why did the three not get along in the first place? Honestly, I have a very good idea of what happened and it goes by two words:

Josie. Saltzman.

Considering this is a girl who looks like an angel but has no problem going behind her twin's back and making fun of her while low-key alienating her, I truly believe back when the sisters were equally footing the Mean Girls role, Josie might have started things with Alyssa and caused it to make Lizzie look bad.

Lizzie makes herself a bad guy and I won't blame the bipolar disorder! She needs her sister to side with her and make her feel validated even when their parents don't.

So for an Asian witch whose Hope's foil, we get a clear idea of what Hope would had been dealing with if her identity at Salvatore was always known.

How I see it going down: Because I believe the circumstances around Alyssa's enrollment would have been in her private file, I believe one or both of the twins found out about Alyssa and spread it throughout the school. So when Alyssa got there, everybody knew.

So, Alyssa has to go through the initial first days hearing everybody talk and maybe either ask her upfront or talk behind her back while they avoided befriending her. Considering she likely didn't know the twins' involvement, Alyssa likely tried to befriend them but in a way only children can be, it might have went badly. And then there's the jealousy: The twins live in a school basically built for them and their parents run the place and most of all, they have parents. If Alyssa couldn't communicate her jealousy of any affection Caroline or Alaric showed them, she expressed it through her magic.

This didn't get better over the years and the girls are still Mean Girls. (Cue Alyssa and the popcorn scene as preteens).

But here's where I'm stumped. The incident involving the delayed linking explosion and Alyssa nearly ending up in the Prison World. Does magic give you a whole lotta power to do stupid shit? Hell yeah! But why the explosion spell? And why just Lizzie? Wouldn't it be more in character to attack both twins?

My theory: Alyssa found out the circumstances of her isolation due to the leaked confidential information upon her arrival from Josie, who made it look like Lizzie was completely to blame and Alyssa was so angry, she was blind to Josie and set the bomb on Lizzie's notebook.

(Look, I acknowledge how "kids can be kids" can be inexcusable but I also acknowledge how cruel they really can be. And this is anti-Josie because as good as they try to make her look, without someone to keep her in check, Josie's a girly version of Kai in the making who secretly bullied and isolated her sister behind her back and made ableist comments left and right! I'm calling this shit out because I can completely see Alyssa's bad reputation she unintentionally created through the hidden machinations of the Saltzmans and Josie!)

[trans-p03g]

Would you care to elaborate about your P03² ship?

ABSO-FUCKING-LITELY. It's actually a pretty cute ship imo, if a bit weird

So the entire premise of P03 swap AU is the P03s of Mystery of the Scrybe, Humanity's Edge and Lost Souls somehow switch places with each other. H'sE P03 goes to LS universe, LS Poe goes to MotS universe, and MotS P03 (gonna call them Pace from this point on) goes to H'sE universe.

Now the thing about Humanity's Edge, is that it's more of a big bag of AUs? Basically, the only standard thing about this AU is the worldbuilding and some of the backstories, but the actual plot and relationships may vary. So in this story I decided to make the scrybes former friends that are super dysfunctional and toxic yet stick to the status quo, perhaps out of habit alone, and P03, unfortunately, joined the other three when their relationship already began to sour so he doesn't have the best experience with the other three. It's well past the events of this AU's version of act 3, where P03 felt betrayed and hurt and thus lashed out and tried to hurt others in return, leading to his takeover, and even after he was toppled down and went away for a few months to collect himself, none of them addressed the root cause of all of this and the wounds never truly healed. Their relationship took a sharp decline following these events. The P03 swap AU itself opens with Leshy badly injuring P03 in a fight (he HATES IT when P03 trespasses on his territory).

I thought it'd just be a neat contrast. Lost Souls scrybes (and Like) are in a long-term loving relationship, MotS scrybes are good friends and work well together, and Humanity's Edge scrybes would barely hesitate to fucking murder each other.

P03 slowly unlearns their toxic behaviours and realises how bad their situation was when the Lost Souls gang treat them with kindness and compassion even though it's technically the reason their partner isn't there. So P03 isn't excited to return home but it still works on trying to find a way just because returning Poe home is the right thing to do and it doesn't want the people who treated it with such kindness to miss them.

They do eventually manage to connect the dimensions (and then connect to MotS dimension when it turns out to be a three-way swap (though it is a relief that Poe wasn't the one who was subjected to the mess of H'sE scrybes' bullshit)). Unfortunately, P03 has no idea how to close the passages without some disastrous results (they might have jumped the gun a little bit) so the 3 groups opt to instead build structures around them and protect them for now. And yeah P03 did get his ass chewed out for this.

It's also worth mentioning that Pace is rough on the outside but soft on the inside. Appears abrasive and unpleasant to be around hut once you get to know them better they're ultimately a kind and'll care for you and treat you with respect if you show them the same respect. But they also don't let people walk all over them and are quite loud about it. So they truly gave H'sE scrybes hell. See, P03 wouldn't shy from starting and joining fights, but would immediately back down if things got physical as they're physically the weakest scrybe and are more built for speed and agility (but that's also a problem sometimes too thanks to their chronic pain and joint problems). Meantime, not only would Pace not back down when threatened, they'd goat the other scrybes on and dare them to do something. Pace and H'sE Grimora, Leshy and Magnificus are like these videos of a pissed-off honey badger attacking lions. They could easily fold him like clean laundry but don't.

Anyway, back on topic. The three P03s start to work together on how to close the rifts. Though Poe isn't doing much on the account of them having no powers or knowledge like the other two, and eventually just starts coming over to learn or hand tools over, but most of the time dips to hang with others leaving Pace and P03 alone. P03 also starts spending a lot less time home, finding any excuse to leave that place, and spending time with Pace starts to be a regular thing for them. The two get along well and start to develop a close friendship.

It gets to the point that when P03 eventually finally finds out how to close the rifts he just...chooses not to tell anyone. Eventually, though, Pace finds a way too and invites P03 over to excitedly tell them the news, only to realise that P03 looks very...off. Pace knew that P03 would be sad in some way about separating but they never expected this, they thought it'd be at least a little bit excited.

When pressed about this P03 eventually admits that he knew for a while and didn't want to cut connections, he didn't want to leave Pace, he said that he now knew just how bad his and the other scrybes' situation was and that it felt overwhelming, and he didn't want to be alone again. But after a pause, they admit it's what the others want so it'd be selfish for them to not go through with the plan they already agreed on months ago, and tries to reassure Pace that they'll be fine.

Pace pauses at that, looks at the papers they're holding and promptly tears them to shreds. P03's surprised but before they can even ask anything Pace grabs them and pulls them into a hug, promising that they'll never be alone again. P03's shocked at first but gladly hugs them back.

I haven't thought of specifics after that but it's the Gay Turnpoint™ for them and they start having a weird little gay thing going on that neither of them wants to admit to having because that's weird. But they grow closer and eventually do admit to each other yeah we're so fucking gay.

In other plot threads, P03 also develops a close friendship with the LS gang, confronts the other scrybes about their messed-up situation which they agree on as it eventually hit them too, and Lech and Leshy also have a gay thing going on because Blue said so.

[bigskydreaming]

Dick has said it out loud explicitly, to Damian, that the mantle of Robin was his to pass on. Why do people still feel entitled to talk over him?

IMO? For the exact same reasons that people harp on so much about it being a retcon that Robin was Dick’s mother’s nickname for him and that originally he based the name on Robin Hood. To be perfectly honest that doesn’t make a damn bit of difference in regards to the fact that either way the point is still that Dick created Robin and it wouldn’t exist without him.....but the constant attempts to minimize its emotional significance to Dick and any kind of special attachment to it that he has and that the others can’t claim to share....

IMO these are just attempts to distance Dick from the mantle and make him seem less relevant or important to its very existence....freeing up people to focus on the importance of Robin as a symbol and a mantle to everyone else but without having to attribute any special credit or significance or respect to Dick as the originator of the mantle and the character that the other Robins are literally the legacy characters of.

It’s pretty annoying and very shortsighted IMO as actually, emphasizing the connection Robin has to Dick’s first family just enhances the weight and poignancy of Dick ultimately giving each of the other Robins his blessing when he didn’t have to and thus literally choosing them as his new family even without having to rely solely on a connection to each other via Bruce.

Of course people don’t seem to really want to do that either....given how rarely Dick’s blessing even gets acknowledged amid all the angst about who replaced who and who was fired and who wasn’t. It’s kinda ironic...I know so many fans HATE the version where Bruce fires Dick and so whatever they can not to acknowledge it and dismiss it as a retcon....and the ironic thing is? I get it. I totally see why it’s not something they want to run with and to be quite honest I can take it or leave it myself. I like exploring versions of events where Dick was fired, I like exploring ones where he wasn’t. Both have room for digging and delving imo.

My only beef with people who are soooo loud and quick to always dismiss the firing as just a retcon that doesn’t count.....is that in the pre Crisis version of events where Dick voluntarily gave up Robin and decided it was time to move onto a new identity....he gave Robin to Jason himself. The significance of that version of events isn’t JUST that it was Dick’s own choice to move to a new identity and that there was no conflict between him and Bruce about it...it was equally of significance that the Robin mantle was still viewed as inherently his, made by him, and his and his alone to pass on to a successor.

There is no version where Dick gave it up voluntarily but had no role in choosing Jason. The very premise of that mix and match honestly makes no sense because why make such a fuss about Bruce not having overstepped and fired Dick when it was never his place to say what he could claim as his identity or mantle on his OWN (fire him as his partner, sure that was always Bruce’s right, but tell Dick he couldn’t be the hero persona he created for himself? Fuck off Bruce LOL).

But my point is that mix and match makes no real sense because why preserve Bruce’s character from stepping between Dick and the mantle he created to honor his first parents....only to then turn right around and have Bruce still treat it as a Wayne family hand me down that Dick had outgrown when it was only EVER a Grayson family hand me down whose only connection to the Wayne family was through Dick being a member of both families and a bridge connecting them?

Whether Bruce fires Dick as Robin and gives it to Jason or JUST gives it to Jason without Dick making that choice....the one isn’t any better than the other because in both cases the actual offense is still the same: it was never Bruce’s to do ANYTHING with other than what Dick wanted done with it. Take on a new partner? Sure. But give him the mantle made of Dick’s work, Dick’s past, Dick’s every action as Robin? Nope.

So really the mix and match only serves one real purpose, for anyone who is intent on dismissing the firing as just a retcon but sees no need to uphold Dick choosing to give Robin to Jason instead of Bruce doing that...when Bruce doing that is literally part of the exact same retcon they’re so intent on discarding!

The only real purpose that mix and match serves is to keep Bruce centered in the Robin succession with his choice to give it to Jason being the basis of Jason associating Robin with Bruce. It keeps Bruce as the person Jason thinks of and feels connected to every time he thinks of why he’s Robin at all....because Bruce is the one who gave him the symbol that was already well known and full of meaning when Jason stepped into those shoes.

And then of course at the same time the mix and match also ‘lessens’ Bruce’s offense to Dick in taking Robin against his wishes WHILE also suggesting that Dick has less basis of feeling resentful of Bruce passing it on to someone else without his say so because it’s not like he was using it anymore right? And that was his own choice right?

But so what if it was? That doesn’t make it any less his creation and his legacy. It doesn’t make it any less a Grayson family connection and somehow more a Bruce Wayne family connection.

And that’s my beef. That’s the big irony of how flat out counter intuitive the mix and match retcon thing is and always has been. It only accomplishes half its objective....keeps the later Robins more connected to Bruce via it than they are to Dick via it....because it ultimately still runs through Bruce. But it fails to accomplish its secondary objective simply because refusing to acknowledge that Robin is intrinsically tied to Dick Grayson and not Bruce Wayne like....doesn’t actually make it any less true.

And that’s why imo the question should never have been “does your fic go with the version where Dick gives up Robin or the retcon where Bruce fires Dick” ...no, the right question in my mind should have always been “does your fic go with the version where Dick gives Robin to Jason or the retcon where Bruce gives it to Jason.”

And here’s the sticking point:

People always point to Bruce and Dick’s initial connection as the basis of their entire Dynamic Duo partnership. They understood each otrher via their parallel experiences losing their parents to murder. Bruce saw himself in a young Dick Grayson and he wanted to help Dick figure out a way forward to life after his parents’ death by drawing upon his own experiences.

But at the same time, they aren’t the same. Even with Bruce guiding Dick forward through his trauma and grief by following a map made of his own prior experiences, the end result was not the same for both....but it still used some of the same road marks on their respective journeys.

And this is why the Dynamic Duo were always emphasized as partners, as complementing each other, balancing each other....things they could only do because they were not the same and even using similar coping mechanisms to deal with their PARALLEL tragedies....produced entirely different results.

Both used their tragedies, their traumas, their PAIN to fuel their pursuit of justice and desire to help protect people. Both built new personas for themselves to use in their shared missions here....personas which embodied what they wanted to accomplish in these guises while at the same time reminding them why they were doing this.

But the personas they created ended up looking very different despite being born of similar crucibles...because they prioritized different things....and because they were honoring different people.

No matter how much Bruce and Dick have in common due to circumstances they are very different people who are both products of the families and places they come from....and thus even when using similar PROCESSES to build something out of their parallel tragedies, what emerged from the fires once they were done creating from their traumas.....don’t look the same. Aren’t interchangeable.

And neither are their creators.

Bottom line, it in my opinion flat out does not work to attribute more connection to Robin and the succession of that mantle to Bruce than Dick.....because Bruce would never, COULD never create that specific mantle out of his grief and pain any more than Dick ever would or could have created Batman out of his. Because they are too different. They needed different things out of their journeys forward, they were commemorating having had different journeys behind them, they were walking a shared path side by side but you can’t switch the clothes they made to wear going forward anymore than you can switch their footprints beneath their feet....they don’t fit into what the other made because it wasn’t made BY them and it wasn’t made FOR them.

So riddle me this, Batfandom: how does it make sense to focus on their parallel tragedies and how they moved forward from those in similar ways and on a shared trajectory, emphasizing how this is the entire basis of the Batman and Robin partnership from its very inception.....

Only to then view the role Bruce’s grief, his loss, his pain played in birthing the Batman mantle as something sacrosanct, undeniable....these things go hand in hand, there’s no separating them even when others end up wearing the Batman mantle as well, even through multiple generations....

But at the EXACT SAME TIME....treating Dick’s grief, HIS loss, HIS pain and the role all THAT played in birthing the Robin mantle....as something that barely comes up as a footnote the second you put the costume on anyone other than Dick? Something the others never even feel inclined to THINK about when reflecting on the mantle they’re wearing and where it came from and why it exists?

Why is the one rated as so less significant than the other....if the entire point of Batman and Robin is that both heroes were born from the ashes of tragedies so similar they understood each other in ways most other mentors and sidekicks never came close to?

How’s that work exactly?

Look, you’ll never catch me arguing that Bruce isn’t and shouldn’t be central to the Batman mantle, mythos, succession, etc. And I loved Dick as Batman too. But it ultimately should always come back to Bruce no matter how many people add to it in their own ways. Because it’s not just about what Bruce made.....it’s why he made it that matters too. The act of creating Batman is as important to the story of Batman as the created Batman.

And those very same reasons are precisely why Bruce shouldn’t be regarded as central to the ROBIN mantle, succession, etc.

To dismiss the Graysons as not being definitive to the greater Robin mythos is to say Thomas and Martha Wayne bear no special significance to the Batman mythos.

I love that being Robin connects these siblings and ties them all together as part of the same family. I love it being a shared family tradition that encompasses all of them and marks this family of choice as having been specifically chosen by not just it’s patriarch but each other.

But it’s not Bruce’s family tradition and it’s not a Wayne or even a Batman hand me down.

Because it doesn’t even come from Bruce’s family.

It comes from Dick’s. He brought it with him. It’s what connects him to what came before life with Bruce because as everyone knows but so many people often forget to give MEANING....

Dick Grayson, for as much as he is Batman’s son and is undeniably Bruce’s family, had a life of his own before he ever met Bruce.

He didn’t begin with Bruce Wayne. He didn’t come from Bruce Wayne.

And neither did Robin.

[citrus-cactus]

You ever grab a digimon side character and be like "IM GOING TO TREAT YOU LIKE AN OC... NOW BECOME DEVELOPED"

Sometimes! I think I have built my own impression of Willis/Wallace from the many years I've spent thinking about him (for better or for worse), but he's a struggle to flesh out because he's so... intentionally enigmatic and different depending on which source material you're using, rotfl.

I do have some headcanons/ideas I've wanted to expand on for the sake of character development in fanfic regarding the following minor characters (but sadly have very little fanfic to show for it).

(This got kind of long, under the cut to spare your dash):

(The Fuji TV crew! Mainly the two on the right, Sakurada and Chioka--although Yuki and Hiroaki play a small role in the snippets about the other two I've written. Spoiler alert: these two guys get digimon partners in the end!)

(Maki and Daigo! I have been writing a fic that shows select moments of backstory/Tri from Maki's perspective, but its been stalled for a while. ERGH!)

(THIS L-corp scientist! How exactly did we get here, L-corp scientist?? You might actually be the most important living* adult in Appmon, you deserve a real name and a backstory and BOY do I have THOUGHTS on THAT!)**

* “living” meaning “not assumed to be dead” for a significant portion of the series.

** Please watch Appmon ;D

But then again, I'm just as likely to take a minor character and give them something to do for the sake of continuing the development of a MAJOR character, or exaggerate their traits/take them to the next logical extreme for a quick laugh (i.e. dumb comics and sketches). This has resulted in:

Cody's grandpa Chikara and old!Gennai bonding over a shared love of prune juice;

Mr. Fujiyama being single and Actually Clueless when it comes to giving advice about romance and dating (and asking Nancy Takaishi on a date anyway, to TK's horror);

TK's grandpa Michel giving Tai advice on his love life;

Davis becoming CONVINCED that Jun is using some sort of black magic/love potion on Matt and Tai, because they have been spending Way Too Much Time Together for No Reason He Can See (hijinks sibling warfare ensues);

Izzy & Ms. Kamiya do more baking together (post Digimon Movie). Izzy is a bit thunderstruck by what she considers "following a recipe" (bizarre substitutions and food combinations that would make 1950’s-era instant food corporations proud), but they have fun and eventually make something edible (to Tai's relief). Now that I think about it, she and Mimi would really hit it off!

(Writing this, I realized I have a lot of ideas about the American English dub versions of the minor characters, particularly the adults, because they are so cartoony/embellished themselves! One of the great things about the dub IMO is it gave them a lot of personality and character traits, which are ultimately a good match for my sense of humor. Also I am Old and like to see the adults do things and go on their own adventures, lol).

I don't believe that any of my interpretations or the situations I would be likely to put these characters in are particularly original or unique to the point of seeming like OCs to me (mmmmmaybe L-corp scientist a little, because there's almost nothing about her in canon and fan mentions tend to be very brief/divided, but I have Many Thoughts about how, exactly, we got there). Ultimately, I tend to be of the opinion that characters exist for the purpose of telling stories, and therefore I end up only developing headcanons or engaging in minor-character character development when it seems appropriate for whatever story I'm trying to tell (which makes individual characters somewhat subject to change from story to story, although I strive for SOME consistency between individual works because I'm particular about that sometimes!). But I DO really enjoy seeing other people's headcanons and stories, particularly since we don't have a lot of in-universe information about these minor characters. Having that much room for interpretation is really fun!

(Jyou/Bike Girl is still one of my favorite minor character ships, even though we as a fandom know NOTHING about her :))

I don't know if that answered your question, but thanks for the ask!

[angelamoores]

I can't argue with HOA S3's subplots being a bit of a mess. Part of my issue with S3 is that the subplots are all over the place by being introduced and then dropped (anything with Fabian) or dropped temporarily then brought up again random (Patricia/Eddie's relationship), or undoes character development (Jerome cheating). Then there are those who don't really have much going for them in the Sibuna plot and Subplots (Fabian, and to some extent, Patricia). It's my main reason for hating S3.

honestly I hated season 3 for so many years but recently I just can’t anymore I enjoy it too much. I want the extra content and I love kt and the good far outweighs the bad in my eyes.

honestly I don’t think jerome cheating was ooc or did it bring his development backwards. I think he always liked mara because he put her on a pedestal as perfect and she treated him much nicer than the others did at the time because she saw good in him. but their actual relationship was uncomfortable because she expected him to be a whole different person for her. he definitely could’ve gone about the cheating thing better but he tried to get mara back so many times before moving on to willow who he only really liked because she was supportive of his schemes rather than yelling at him. I loved him with joy because they actually worked well together and he definitely liked her more than he ever liked the others. it was a fun interesting storyline for all the characters not involved in the mystery that still had them do something exciting. just because a character does something bad and makes mistakes doesn’t mean they lost their development, in fact he got much more development through how he dealt with mara’s revenge and his relationship with joy imo

fabian definitely got less of a plot than a lot of the others but considering so much of his character was built off of him and nina I don’t necessarily know what they could’ve done with him that would’ve felt satisfying. he was still solving the clues and supporting his friends

patricia and eddie’s relationship did suffer a bit from the five less episodes than the previous season and the fact the plot was much more time consuming this time around. they transitioned from the fun side couple that didn’t have too much going on outside of each other to the show’s main characters/relationship so drama that would’ve happened to fabian and nina instead went to them. but they did get quite a lot of cuter scenes and a lot of the reasons it felt weird was because of patricia being a sinner much earlier on than the others.

I really did like the way alfie and patricia being the descendants tied them into the sibuna plot, but I don’t really see how much else fabian could’ve been involved. he was eddie’s right hand man the way he was nina’s and he still solved the majority of the clues. at the end of the day only so many of them can be descended from egyptian gods lmao

the season definitely had a different feel to it, being more action based after a season of riddle solving tasks but I think suited better eddie as a leader whereas nina was more logical. considering so many of these changes were down to nathalia and ana leaving I think the show did an okay job of keeping to it’s roots without completely replacing and replicating an offbrand version of nina’s sibuna. the friendships this season were super sweet to compensate for the season feeling much darker but it was fun

[tundrainafrica]

do you currently have any snk universe LeviHan headcanons on your mind?

Okay, before I go into this question, I just have to say my brain is literally a conglomeration of head canons which I’ve built up after hanging in this site for months so at this point, I even have trouble telling which one is real or not because everyone just thinks up such beautiful and reasonable ones. 

I wanna talk about one headcanon though which is not really talked about because I don’t think a lot of people jive with. This one resonates with me so well though that I ended up writing it in all my fics even if it’s only barely hinted and was never confirmed in canon. But Imma just drop it here because like I would have wanted to talk about it anyway so now or never. 

Since no one ever confirmed Hange’s history I took liberties with it. 

Hange grew up in a rich family within Wall Sina. 

So my headcanon is Hange grew up rich. Like really rich, not necessarily royalty but at least noble family rich. 

Like Hange could have chosen not to work a day in her life beyond managing family properties and businesses like a larger version of the Reeves company but she just had such a passion for discovering the outside world and research that she ended up deciding to join the survey corps anyway, one of the shittiest factions in the military out of passion. This ended up causing a rift to grow between her and her family which is why she never talks about her family or her history.

Are there hints in canon? 

These are probably my interpretations but I kinda see possible crumbs which can be interpreted as Hange having grown up rich or at least highly educated. 

For one, where do you get the knack and obsession for research? To a degree someone has to have had a lot of time in their life or a lot of time beyond trying to find food or trying to survive to get so deep into something as complex as research, especially in that crapsack world. If Hange was living hand to mouth, she wouldn’t have been neck deep into research. Mind you, Hange is the type of person to get into research for days, completely disregarding her own personal needs and other obligations. This could be interpreted either way but I think not having to work a day in her life growing up, Hange had the leeway to enjoy research and appreciate it, and had built the habit of just locking herself in her room to get stuff done because of her environment growing up. If she had a family to feed, if they were living hand to mouth, I doubt Hange would have built this habit. 

Hange’s room is constantly a mess. It could be interpreted both ways,I know. But we have Levi who hates filth because he grew up in filth. We have Hange who lives in a messy room among clutter because maybe she had someone cleaning up after her growing up? When she finally started living alone, she started thinking, I’m too busy to clean this up myself and just goes about her life. Levi, who had lived in filth all his life, ends up the one cleaning after her because he’s traumatized by filth to the point of fastidiousness. While Hange is not. 

Hange is familiar with powerplay and media manipulation. What kind of work did she do in Season 3? She did a lot of the politick-ing, the media manipulation and the behind the scenes work to get Reeves back into power and she did a really good job at it. I think this could be interpreted as her having grown up within the walls, brushing elbows among the elite to have known how it works. Hange was one of those completely aware that the uprising and the rebellion could not be completed without getting the trust and the faith of the people. She was also one of the people who knew exactly how that type of shit worked and that's why it went so smoothly in her end. 

Hange is okay getting her hands dirty. This could be seen as a counterargument. If Hange was rich, why is she okay getting her hands dirty? I’d like to point out here her motivations for it and the way she goes about it compared to Levi. When Levi fights or tortures, the way he goes about it is he just knows it’s a necessity and something he has to do to get things done. When Hange fights or tortures, there is a sort of wonder or curiosity in her face, which shows she is more motivated by the wonder and the unpredictability that comes with working in the survey corps more than anything. Although Hange has a good heart, she is not as in touch with the struggles of the poor and the powerless as Levi imo. I don’t think it came as naturally for her. In fact, the penchant for survival and the mindset of doing something because it’s necessary did not come as naturally for Hange as it did for Levi. Hange gets her hands bloody because she likes dissection, she likes trying to learn new things (like learning to torture) and this type of perspective, not coming naturally for someone like her at least hints to the idea that she grew up with enough financial leeway to at least not understand that some unfavorable things may have to be done out of necessity.

They glossed over her history. Maybe she had no childhood trauma? Although Hange did have traumas which were put into light after she joined the survey corps, we never hear about any traumas or any big revelations about her life before that. Maybe it was comfortable? Maybe comfortable to the point of forgettable? It was a good life maybe, enough to brush it off lightly. Maybe her life was just so conventionally normal, and the worst she ever experienced is deciding to defy her parents and adjust to a mildly middle class existence as part of the shittiest factions of the military (which is still a farcry from being dirt poor or having lost her parents at a young age.)

What does this mean for my Levihan HC?

It adds an interesting facet to the Levihan dynamic in my end. That’s why I ended up keeping this around as a silent headcanon and I’ll just drop some of them here.

Hange had to teach Levi about living above ground

The culture above ground is completely different. Business language, writing documents are something which Levi probably had to learn when he joined the survey corps and became captain. Hange was rich enough to at least have a good education and formal schooling for her to have sheer mastery of how the rich people talk, how budgets are drafted and how announcements are made in a way to please the rich people. Hange knew that and thats why she ended up doing a lot of logistics and research. In fact, she could have been better than Erwin, which could possibly hint to her even having better education than him.

Levi probably never mastered business language and logistics, which is why he never took any other role beyond special squad leader. Although he has the eye for strategy and combat, he cannot for the life of him handle paperwork or the logistics of being a supreme commander. 

Also, they lived in a medieval place so we can assume this type of education wouldn’t be accessible to most people in the outer walls, which kinda supports the point that Hange wasn’t poor or even lower middle class. Like I’m expecting at the least she was on the same social class as Jean. 

They fight over budgets.

If I remember correctly, this has been confirmed in canon. Hange handles budgets and Levi likes to blow the budget with luxuries. Hange has simple joys for someone who grew up rich. Having grown up with a lot of money and a formal education, I wouldn't find it surprising that she was a master of budgeting and that’s why she ended up taking over that job in the survey corps. She also handled supplies and her department probably required the most budget. Not surprising that she handled the overall budget.

Hange handles the budgeting and Levi likes to blow the budget on tea and luxuries. It was explained before why Levi blows the budget on tea. Levi loves certain luxuries but never really had them in the underground which is why he enjoys them know in the military. Hange doesn’t have much of an eye for luxuries because she grew up with them already. There’s nothing much which would impress her luxury wise so she doesn’t see the need or the joys of blowing the military budget on slight luxuries. 

Hange buys him the teas. 

Although Hange has a rift with her rich family already. I don’t think her relationship with them was ever that bad. She was probably like a black sheep, who they would roll their eyes at during family gatherings. “The one child who ran away to join the shit hole military faction.” I think she still has access to their money and they still drop gifts. I have this head canon that Hange actually buys him the teas or gives the nice pastries or souvenirs she would receive from them to Levi so Levi could at least enjoy those too. 

These are the only HCs I can come up with now but I have sprinkled a lot of my fanfiction with them and it is practically canon in my head for many reasons… Mainly because it is an incredibly interesting headcanon and facet of their relationship to consider.

Analyzing the romantic relationship between two people from different social classes is just incredibly interesting. 

Levi and Hange are complete opposites yet manage to jive. This is a common sentiment and take among all the people in the fandom. But what if you take into account as well that they are from different social classes?

I’ve seen this type of relationship in real life and there’s a lot of adjustment involved but it really puts into light how open certain relationships are that differences in social background are discussed and navigated instead of treated as a dealbreaker on why the relationship won’t work. 

Growing up poor and experiencing starvation stays with people and it manifests itself in the small things. In Levi, it manifested itself  in his having a special appreciation for luxuries and his obsession for cleanliness. Hange never batted an eyelash at any of those luxuries being in the survey corps offered. For someone handling such a  budget, she never felt the need to spend on anything too fancy. In fact, when they were eating beef in that one seen, she didn’t really think too much of it compared to the cadets who grew up in small villages in Wall Rose or Wall Maria. 

Even in my family, my mother grew up poor so she has this certain appreciation for saving everything and keeping it. She hates it when we throw away food.. My father never grew up poor so he has this penchant for investing and reinvesting. He has this mindset that if we earn 100 dollars we spend 10. While my mom points out that that 10% isn’t enough for most people to live in. My parents get into the most interesting discussions and arguments having grown up in completely different social classes and I guess, it ended up why I ride so much with this headcanon. It’s just so dam interesting. Tbh, my boyfriend and I are form completely different social classes too so the way we go about material things and money are really different and it’s really interesting to navigate it when the discourse is calm and comprehensive so these relationships kinda influenced this Levihan headcanon. 

I feel like for Levi and Hange, this social class issue was a give and take. Hange thought him how to butt elbows with the ultra rich in the military, having been trained herself how to talk to rich people and win their favor. Levi was the one who put into light for Hange the realities of the war and the lower classes. 

Hange is a good heart and I’m sure she is aware but I just don’t think she was as in touch with it as Levi who had grown up with it. What she brings to the table for Levi That’s why is the capacity to see the wonder with everything since even in Season 1, it was shown that she wasn’t as jaded as other people in the military. Because she had her whole childhood to build that wonder already, not having seen suffering as a child growing up. 

Sorry, if this is pretty long. This HC is pretty important to me because it just adds another facet of their relationship to explore when I write. 

I hope you enjoyed reading it at least. Thanks for the ask!