#someone send me a message and tell me how the results are looking 😂

[amaliabalash]

just went through a bunch of AO3 comments and one person said they found my fic after reading my door discourse here, and it made me wonder...

[wordsmithic]

Your book seems and promising and refreshing. It's a retelling but it's det in other times and combines other cultures as well. The best part is that it doesn't look like the typical trope of forcing labels and stereotypes.

For example, many retellings have the forced sa trope in greek mythology and the guys look either sexist expect the main protagonist. Yours look like it focuses on plot and all the characters are important to the story and Ismene is strong because she has to from her position and status, not to force some message.

I'm so happy the story feels like that to you! I think it would be good for the readers to FINALLY see some Greek culture, and also the Persian culture which is like a cousin to ours!

Many stories/retellings accentuate the female heroine's misery and note how bad and evil all the male characters are. Even the original myth we are aware of is more nuanced than that, and makes notes about the ancient patriarchy in a more grounded way. Either way, I am not doing an exact retelling, and some situations are changed. Plus the story takes place in our current century when no reasonable person in Greece and Iran is ok with abducting brides, and the patriarchy is not the main obstacle in the story so I cannot have the same framing as the original myth.

As my story takes heavy inspiration from the Hades and Persephone/Charos and Lygeri story, Ismene is the "Persephone/Lygeri archetype" and Raphael (the Persian Iranian immortal) is the "Hades/Charos archetype".

Lygeri (Maiden) and Charos (Death) are two central characters in Greek folklore, something like Hades and Persephone, to illustrate the juxtaposition between Life and Death. In our traditional songs Charos is a cut-throat SASSY businessman, let me tell you that 😂 (See this small video for more)

The abduction/taking happens but it's in the context of a long war between the species of Niruvei and Isior, and captives are taken from both sides. So, Ismene in Raphael's House is neither personal nor the result of targeted action. It's an emotionally wrecking process for both Raphael and Ismene as they struggle for power as a means to achieve peace. (There are also many central Greek and Iranian characters in the book, with different povs and motives)

Ismene is a certified Pain In The Ass for everyone 😂 She can be the feral type of "gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss" that makes mortals and immortals go "what THE FUCK???" Ismene can be very cute, she plays the violin, does gardening, wants justice, and has a soft heart but........ the gal is trained in killing and torturing and does both in the book. This gall will send all your money to an offshore company of hers. She will beat people up. She will lie to your face a hundred times per day. She will empty your alcohol cabinets. The story is called "The Other Evil" for a reason 😂 And, let's be real for a second. Power and influence are often gained through dirty means.

Raphael is absolutely disgusted and starstruck by Ismene but that's because he's far from a saint, too, and he wants some salt and someone competent in his life. Raphael just wants to live in peace. His second-to-last child died just a decade ago and he's not in the mood for brides and weddings. (Not that he would ever abduct his lover or future bride!) All he wants is to watch Greek soap operas and pet his three-headed dog!

99% of male characters in my story are decent in general. They try their best and aim to help as many people as possible from their positions. Of course, they are not perfect but they want to keep their family and friends happy and safe. They live in the age of information and they are more than aware of social issues. Most also have the experience to go with it.

[imagine-the-absolute-beard-quest]

20 weeks on Testosterone

This week I had my injection done by a nurse I haven't had before. She was lovely and did the injection quickly and kept the Sustanon warm for me so it didn't hurt when she injected it. But nearly a week after having it it's still sore and feels like a small hard ball shaped lump where I had the injection. I've not had this before but I have heard of quite a few people getting it so I'm not worried about it I've just been putting heat packs on it to help it go down.

I also have my job interview Friday. I've never been nervous for interviews before until this one! So I'm hoping it will go okay 🙈

Updates:

• I've been getting quite spotty again on my face and also started to get some on my back.

• my throat has been scratchy and sore this week. It has also gone as bit deeper again! :D

• I've noticed I'm getting hairs on the back of my hands that are slightly darker and today I had the realisation I am going to get hairy and I actually don't mind that anymore!

• My weight hasn't really fluctuated too much. I was worried it would increase a lot now my dosage is more frequent but it's still early days and I just keep telling myself if it does increase a lot as long as you feel happy with how you look then the scales don't matter!

• I haven't really been sweating much different to when I was Pre testosterone, which I'm surprised about considering a lot of people I know have had increased sweat and body heat since starting testosterone!

• My face is fuzzy to the point now when I run my hand over it it does that rough scratchy sound! :D I did try to make the hairs darker to show you guys but my attempts failed 😂 I will try again at some point to see if I can show you the progress.

• I'm feeling hungry all the time or not at all so I'm seesaw'ing between hunger and feeling full all day which is a bit annoying when at work having to make sure I have enough food with me and some days I won't eat any of my food lol.

• I did think my muscle mass decreased visually but recently I'm happy with how my muscles look again which either means I have gained a bit of definition again or I just assumed I lost muscle mass before and had a grump week with how I looked.

I am still struggling being at home where I get misgendered by accident but it's still happening and my mom was telling me about someone she saw in town yesterday and they asked how (old name) is, my mom responded as to this person is if (old name) was still my name now and hearing my mom say it did make my cringe a bit I really hate hearing my old name but at work someone has the same name as my old name and I don't get weird hearing it or even associate with it. So it's a very hit and miss moment lately with pronouns and hearing my old name.

My next injection will also be when I have my blood tests done so I will let you know how that goes and hopefully the results come back better than the last time now I'm on sustanon every 3 weeks!

That's all the updates for now !

Thank you for listening (reading) sending my love to you all for following my journey so far and listening to me go on about randomness non stop. If ever you have any questions feel free to message me! 😊

Have a picture of me with my child 😂 my dog means a lot to me so I feel like you all should see him! He is normally better at looking at the camera but he was fixated on a toy of his on the floor !