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scr-ppup · 4 months ago

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Coinfight prep info. Team villains

I'm going to already tell y'all I'm a throughout guy lol and this is fuckig long. Feel free to check around idk, it consists of things about me and so on like last year. It's big to give people an idea for things to coin and what I'm good with being included in and so on. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'll at least try to answer.

Lil nitpick info btw

- I will most likely be making primarily alterhuman or general non-gender specific related flags. That's been happening quite a lot recently so might continue on that path lol.

Edit: related to the upper text, I'm focusing on gender flags instead since I wanna get back to gender coining again. :)

- Please ask me for a revenge chain if you wish to do one. Since my school starts at the same week of the event, I'm not sure how well my spoons will hold up and I don't want to end up leaving anyone on the shore with a started revenge chain lol.

- I'm more than welcoming of combo, themed, and non-gender flags and terms, this including from aldernic & dissos, to misce to orientation & MAD related flags.

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So starting on interests & themes

- medias; Ninjago & dragons rising, Voltron legendary defender, Arknights, CoD franchise, criminal minds, subway surfers, code 8 & part 2, BNHA, school bus graveyard webcomic, the blank city webcomic,

— character specific; Subway surfers; frank, miss Maia. Criminal minds; Aaron hotchner & Spencer Reid. CoD franchise; the shadow company & KorTac (Phillip Graves, Velikan), the konni group (Makarov), Terminus Outcomes (Sona "keres" Mirzoyan). Ninjago; Garmadon, pythor, the dragons, the wolf clan, the stone army. SBG; Ashlyn & Logan.

- Bands; Hollywood undead, fall out Boy, class animals, new medicine, arrested youth, get scared, Jann, Kesha, ashnikko, femtanyl, creepP, odetari, scene queen, derivakat, graveyard guy, arctic monkeys, poor man's poison, ado, Luluyam, set it off, the ooze, jazmin bean, baby bugs, cassytte, and lustsickpuppy,

- I enjoy splatterpunk, medical horror and generally horror themed things. Also gorey and macabre art and literature, devotional love to someone or an entity and self destruction for that love.

- animals: reptiles; bearded dragons (pogonas) especially!! (<- owner of pogonas vitticeps) Snakes. Raccoons, opossums, hyenas, jackals, magpies, ravens, cats. Pitbulls, greyhounds, borzois, dobermans.

- medical themes are welcome, no cutesy nurse-related things though. When I mean medical, I mean combat/field medic and doctor professions specifically with themes related to my interests. Also mad and cruel scientists !! :3

- taxidermy, hunting, bones, dead Animals & mysticism behind that. grotesque, death, suffering, and whump themes are more than welcomed.

- apocalyptic and scavenger themes, gas masks, apocalyptic fashion

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Identity;

Gender labels and related; genderqueer, genderless, demi(gender)fluid, androgyne, boynymgirl, cisneutral, muttgender, divinemutt, whumpgender, theorpangender, gendervir

Lurkerian, Slasherval, marvlaen, Hazexiv, Exulancian, Gorture, limerencial, homipavren, lectence, dimensen, altumen

Mōna transmasculine, transandrogynous, and transneutral. (Thistle) femmetwink, green anole, mutt, pedigree, flying lemur leaning raccoon, lasiurus, black squirrel, jumping spider, opossum, harbringer, final person, chinchilla, GNC, tomboy.

Orientation labels; achilligirl, sapphic achillean/sapphillean, gay, quroplatonic & queerplatonic, Apothderium attraction, euclidean aroace, aroacespec, sunne lesbian, tulipian.

MAD stuff: ADHD (heavily suspected by self & family), AVPD-ish, religious delusions, social anxiety, social anhedonic, MADD adjacent immersive daydreaming. sleep issues. (I'm also hypermobile with a fucked up knee and get bouts of chronic pain due to this and costochondritis lol.)

Alterhumanity related labels; nonhuman, transspecies, paraanthro, alteranthro, holothere, fictionkin. Immersive. Lith.

If needed, undercut is the whole list of what I am for individual things. It also features info of my misceverse identity at the very bottom. Okay, bbyyeee.

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Alterhumanity

Alterhuman (preferring nonhuman terminology instead of alterhuman), transspecies, otherkin, and holotheres and such. I'm polykin and my alterhumanity spans morely from neurodiversity, attachments, disconnections, and trauma (I'd describe that as being apothane). I also use plenty of dissodic and aldernic terms.

Specifics —

Holotheres; undead, zombie, apocalyptic scavenger, medic, Ashlyn banner (from school bus graveyard.). Creature/cryptid, eldritch (mimic that mimics humans), faceless, glicthed & winged being separately. Hostiakind/hostiaen, immortal. Mutt/hound, hound-/dog-/puppyboy hybrid/kemonomimi. Kalma.

fiction; Sentinel, lycanwing, monstrous nightmare, and speed stringer (from HTTYD & HTTYD:RTTE). Logan Fields (from School bus graveyard). Pidgey and the green and red lions from Voltron. Fictional/mythological canines such as blink pup, and hiiden hurtta-adjacent. MC spectator (Minecraft). Lucario, poochyena, and Houndoom + Houndoom/onyx cross (pokemon).

Deityfolk related; deity of death & medicine (generally medicine, medical areas, knowledge, and practices) and deity of crossroads and the lost. Eldritch deity. Hostiaen/hostiakind (sacrificial specifically). Oracle & immortal, death omen and harbringer.

Therian/animal types: African wild/painted dog, jackal, mutt/hound, manned wolf. Hyena, wolverine. Magpie, sparrowhawk. Eels.

Concept; violent death/surma, immortality, eternity & winter conceptkin.

Alterhuman; infected/plagued, apocalyptic scavenger, polymorph, merfolk (apocalyptic merfolk, carrion [feeder] merfolk, scavenger merfolk). Revenant, time traveler.

Transspecies specifics: undead, werewolf, African wild/painted dog, mutt, dogthing/boy, zombiez

—

Undead, unholy, ghostly, folkloric, celestial nonhuman & alteranthro and paraantrho. Anjesque but not angel.

Species specific: Morima, calamoer, drakemoian (specifically fear & melancholy drakemoians), eldrorian, aniluma, korathioner; chioner & vathmer specifically, but relation to koramer. Suianis. canithrope.

Animas; Eternity, eldritch & eldritch mer, immortal,

Eitments; eldritch, eternity, void,

Emsouls; eldritch, mutt, Lurkerian,

Emotionalink to crows & ravens.

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Misceverse identity;

Misceverse for those who may take interest in coining;

Dynamics; dynamic fluid, but primarily Iota & anull (In my verse Iota is described to be beta aligned Omegas, and the individuals of this dynamic may also be called "iota omegas" without being a bidynamic since that's related to temperament and behavioral patterns, nitpick info lol.); Guardogdynic (guard dog),

Scents; scentfluid! bitter herb, peppermint, cherry, violent death, blood & smoke, wet dog, petrichor, lavender, ocean, corvidae, otherwordly corvidae, metal, gunpowder, death/rot, carrion, melancholy, (Primary scent is bitter herbs, cherry, and peppermint.)

Behavior: jumping spider, eldritch, merfolk. Otherwise den maker & denning iota,

#coinfight #: köytetty koira #long post

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crystaleevee4 · 1 month ago

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okok i have so many fics i enjoy.... um i'm just gonna copy-paste the archive notes lol. and only rec' one for now, but more later. because i am. Busy

____

Rating: Mature

Archive Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death

Category: Gen

Fandom: Hermitcraft SMP

Relationships: impulseSV & Skizzleman, GeminiTay & impulseSV, impulseSV & MisterJoker & Skizzleman & TangoTek, GeminiTay & GoodTimesWithScar & Grian & impulseSV & Skizzleman, GeminiTay & Misterjoker & TangoTek

Characters: ImpulseSV, Skizzleman, Geminitay, GoodTimesWithScar, Grian, TangoTek, MisterJoker

Words: 36,282 | Chapters: 9/? (Unfinished)

Ghost hunting's not an easy gig. While the rewards can be great, the sacrifices can be greater, and Joker, Impulse, Tango, and Skizz found this out the hard way. Years after they go their separate ways, Tango and Joker are approached by Gem, a member of Impulse's new ghost hunting team—a team that has gone mysteriously missing on a job gone wrong. Gem needs help, and despite all of their years out of the business, Tango and Joker can't resist the call to return to the world of ghost hunting. There are still so many questions they need to answer, after all—like why did Impulse stay, even after everything went wrong? What happened to Gem's team? And why did no one tell them about Skizz?

Additional notes from me:

As far as I know, the MCD is temporary. No one dies for real!

There's some passive suicidal ideation, so watch out for that

Actual scenes of (implied) suicide, but it's not real. On that note...

Unreality

Some pretty unhealthy, codependent relationships

Anyways! Really, really good fic. Magpie also wrote the Lifeline AU, if you know what that is, and if you're someone who's read LLAU and enjoyed it, OH BOY are you in for a ride with ACTTV. Especially my fellow imp and skizz fans, i'm so normal about them in this fic trust me

LLAU fans, remember Impulse and Skizz's dynamic in the series? yeah this is basically a role reversal and it makes me SICK

No one in this fic is in a particularly healthy mental space, but especially not impulsesv. He is the author's favorite guy to put through So Many issues

Magpie's usual themes of grief and change and betrayal and love!! yay!!

You ever regularly go through a process that is making you slowly lose your sense of self in order to have just a little bit of security? yeah that's [REDACTED] in this fic

Also, a song I heavily associate with this fic: Fire With Fire by AlicebanD! Great song, highly recommend you give it a listen!

you know what I haven’t seen going around in a while, and could use some of myself? fic recs! so, consider this both a rec and a self-promo post: recommend some fics to me in the reblogs and I’ll reblog your recs! in general, try to include both a summary and why you’re reccing it (whether it’s a self-promo or someone else’s), and let’s get some eyes on fics!

#enen says stuff #fic recs

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pensivetense · 4 years ago

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A List Of (Mostly TMA) Fic Recs Sorted By Vibe

Not an exhaustive list by any means, just a few favourites that caught my fancy. I shortened many of the summaries for space.

I’m going to pin this here and update it as I go.

Also, I’m pensivetense on ao3

MELANCHOLY VIBES

for when you want to feel comfortably muted

(sad but not utterly bleak endings here)

Hope, Etc. (Dickenson, et al.) by yellow_caballero

Jonathan Sims, six months after the Unknowing, wakes to find himself without a daemon - without humanity, without a soul. It’s a cursed half-life, but existence as a shell without a heart isn’t so bad: between solving the mystery of a persistent illusion cast over his friends and some light pseudo-cannibalism, a life as a monster is better than no life at all. At least, it would be, if it wasn’t for the fucking Owl.

A freaking. Amazing. Daemon au. Ties the lore of Dust with TMA lore very satisfyingly, but is mostly about Jon navigating what it means to be human, or, in the absence of that, a person, and doesn’t require prior knowledge of His Dark Materials. Cannot recommend highly enough.

after one long season of waiting by nuinuijiaojiao

Annabelle is not used to having nice things. or, Annabelle heads to Upton House, muses a little, and gets some well-deserved rest

I love survivalist Annabelle and also the concept of the Web as kind of a horrible Patron, actually.

i love you. I want us both to eat well. by SmallishWormMasterOfTheUniverse

At the safehouse with Martin, Jon decides it's time to quit statements once and for all. The Eye disagrees. Martin just needs Jon to be okay. It's quite possible that nobody is going to get what they want.

Scottish Safehouse Era, Jon and Martin coping with their respective Entities... really, really good.

the friend by doomcountry

He always greets a new spider when he meets it. It’s instinct, born in childhood, the same way he instinctively counts magpies, or flicks salt over his left shoulder. A little harmless superstition. A bit of politesse.

A great Martin character study with eldritch spider horror included. The imagery regularly haunts me (in a good way).

autumn’s rare gift by bee_bro

Annually, the two meet, renewing the binding ritual where it had all started. The procedure simple: a waltz.

Singlehandedly made me ship Gertrude/Agnes so there’s that. It’s so bittersweet and bee_bro’s writing is, as always, incredibly poetic. (I’d recommend everything they write, actually.)

smile, you’re trending by Goodluckdetective

During an encounter with another Avatar of the Eye, Jon faces his past, Martin takes a turn at playing Kill Bill and Basira has a second look at the monster she’s determined to see. For three people associated with the Eye, they could all use some perspective.

Features an original Eye Avatar character who’s a YouTube personality; she is infuriating and inspired and genuinely frightening and I cannot say enough good things.

Humility by The_Lionheart

have you no idea that you're in deep?/i've dreamt about you nearly every night this week,/how many secrets can you keep?

An OC centric story but don’t let that put you off, it’s amazing. Very heavily focused around Jonah Magnus and the other Avatars as they change through the years. Also, I’d die for the OC.

oh, for one sweet second without the eye series by faedemon

Beholding does not like in the way humans do, but it likes its Archivist all the same.

I’m just so fond of the way this is done stylistically. I have a great weakness for dialogue only/dialogue heavy writing, not to mention all of the wonderful character beats and interplay of humanity/inhumanity for Jon and Melanie.

Rewind by WhyNotFly

It takes eight days of forced confinement for Jon to start hallucinating. [...] It’s Martin, though, that his exhausted brain conjures, because of course it’s Martin. After all this time, of course it’s Martin.

Jon willingly allows himself to be confined rather than hunting for statements, and examines his relationship with Martin.

for a firmament series by supaslim

There is beauty in destruction. There is art in becoming. In which Jon becomes the Archive, and the Archive becomes Jon.

Part two posted this morning and uhhh. Good. Also if you’re here for weird eldritch body horror (I am), this one’s for you.

ONES THAT JUST HURT

for when you want to feel sad

(somewhat bleaker endings here/everyone is NOT okay)

Feste by yellow_caballero

If asked, Martin would say that he became the shadow director of the Magnus Institute by accident. But nobody ever asked, and nobody ever cared, and it was in this way that Martin stopped lying to himself. Or: break free, Martin. All you have to lose are your chains. And your sanity.

Oh, this one totally didn’t go the way I expected it to. A study in isolation. Could go into the category above, as the ending is not bleak, but the tone of the whole is somewhat more depressing than most there.

Ghosts of Love by RavenXavier

Nothing made Martin more grounded in the world than yearning for Jonathan Sims.

Lonely!Martin that really captures a sort of visceral ache. Hurts me and yet I keep rereading.

i do desire (we may be better strangers) by godbewithyouihavedone

For ages, it only knew how to worship, taking human bodies and living off the fear of those who remembered. It never knew love until it became Jonathan Sims. Now it must fight against every instinct to save Martin Blackwood. Archivist Sasha, Not!Jon/Martin, and the worst kind of Fake Dating AU.

Oh, this one just made me sad. The poor not!them, which is something I never thought I’d say.

Apple Of Your Eye by fakeCRfan

In which the Eye is fond of Martin. Perhaps a little too fond for comfort.

Somehow manages to be both sweet and horrifying—the characterisation of the Eye is incredible. ‘The Eye loves Martin’ is a scenario that’s so utterly doomed to failure and yet the writing is packed with so much pathos that I just want them all to be happy. A fantastic use of themes of agency and choice, and the single best use of Beholding as a source of horror I’ve read.

The Last Press by copperbadge

Jon Sims is awake, and has begun preparations for the Rite of the Watcher's Crown. Peter Lukas, who woke him, would be content to rule at his side. Martin is very upset about all of this, and the Lukases aren't thrilled with it either.

I really can’t say anything without spoiling the end and it’s so good. An alternate take on the Watcher’s Crown. Not a pairing that I ever thought would work for me, but this made it work.

watch the blood evaporate by 75hearts

It starts, like so many things in Jon’s life have started, with a nagging itch of curiosity. Jonathan Sims uses his healing abilities throughout s4. Read the tags.

Dear God please read the tags. But this is some high quality pain if it’s for you.

the lighthouse series by low_fi

Peter Lukas is a lighthouse keeper. One evening, he gets a call from a cryptic overseer tasked with monitoring his work.

This is such a vivid and yet subtle story—from the setting to the emotions portrayed, it creeps up on you slowly. The ending was like the gentlest possible gut-punch. The sequel just completed, and yeah, just as wonderful. This one is very much LonelyEyes but I listed it here because it is just exquisitely painful.

SATISFYINGLY HOPEFUL VIBES

for when you want to feel cozy

Clutching Daffodils by Gemi

Martin has always liked the idea of love at first sight. It’s such a romantic idea, the whole thing of it. Seeing someone and instantly feeling that strange, twisting feeling deep inside that every single media likes to obsess over. Of knowing you are in love within the day, petals falling from your mouth and warmth filling your chest as love burrows deep, vines twisting through your lungs. He always liked the idea of it. And then Jonathan Sims starts working at the Magnus Institute.

Somehow manages to be lighter and fluffier than most hanahaki fare, despite the setting. I’ve reread this one a lot.

the least he could do by Prim_the_Amazing

Martin should in fact not pick this man, specifically because of how attracted he is to him. It would be the responsible thing to do. Except he’s already following him. And he’s hungry.

Fluffy vampire au which everyone’s probably already read, but was too good not to mention.

rather interesting by bee_bro

Jonah Magnus realizes that, for some reason, when he comes in contact with weed, Elias Bouchard's consciousness will come into his life banging pots and pans.

Oh boy. So these are all favourite fics but this one is a favourite amongst favourites. The way Jonah is characterised (i.e. incredibly sensitive to scrutiny) is my favourite depiction of him, and the slow-burn between him and Elias is far sweeter than it has any right to be. Also, it’s hilarious.

The Magnus Records series by ErinsWorks

In a world parallel to that of the Archives and the Institute, a supernatural sanctuary stands against a cruel and uncaring world: A world of bureaucracy and tyranny, of murder and carnage, of loneliness and surveillence, of plague and death. But in this world of fear and misery, 14 entities born of the hopes of the world have emerged. And one of them has made their home here, at The Magnus Sanctuary. Perhaps, the employees within may lead happier lives than their counterparts did in the Archives.

This is just so goddamn pure. The author writes a really imaginative, fleshed-out alternate world and alternate Entities with engaging, well-written short statements. All of the character voices are absolutely on point, and it’s overall absurdly hopeful without ever feeling overly saccharine. I love this series so much, you guys, you don’t even know. I want to print it out and paste it on my wall. I love it.

HARD APOCALYPSE

for when you want to feel dark and angsty (and eldritch)

Most of these are shorts/oneshots because it’s just that kind of genre, y’know?

Ashes to Ashes by marrowbones

A conversation at the end of the world.

Oliver Banks is one of those minor characters that I am overly attached to. Love him here.

Employee Benefits by equals_eleven_thirds

The Magnus Institute offered some normal employee benefits: a pension plan, holidays, travel subsidies, free lunch on the last Friday of each month. Rosie makes it work.

This manages to hit that perfect sweet spot of satisfying and hilarious. Rosie gets to torment Elias, as she well deserves.

a rose by any other name by Duck_Life

Part of Jon blooms in Jared Hopworth’s garden.

This one was sad and honestly too gentle to really belong in this category, but I love it.

Eye to Eye by Dribbledscribbles

In which Jonah Magnus attempts a post-apocalyptic pep talk.

Unreliable narrator at its finest, and the implications are suitably horrific.

commensalis by doomcountry

The tower is endlessly, impossibly tall, but Jon’s work is taller.

If you’re here for the eldritch imagery, then this has some of the best.

SOFT APOCALYPSE

for when you want to feel gently triumphant

apocalypse how series by sunshine_states

Humanity adjusts. The Entities have Regrets.

Some nice vignettes set in a kinder apocalypse.

ceylon series by Sciosa

The one in which Jonathan Sims decides that no, actually, he isn't going to let the world just end.

I include this only for the sake on completeness, as everyone has no doubt already read it.

rituals by doomcountry

Martin is the first person to knock on the Archivist's door since it arrived, fully, into its little waiting temple. The Archivist saw him coming from down the hall, but decides to feign interest when the knob turns, and Martin—still a little bit smaller, a little more translucent than before—stands uncertainly just outside the room.

This one’s a little less focused on the world at large and more on JonMartin specifically.

we raise it up by savrenim

Jonathan Sims reads a book and saves the world; although maybe the real salvation is the friends he makes along the way; (although perhaps the world itself and the darkness that exists behind it isn't quite as out to get everyone as it seems).

More ‘soft revolution’ than ‘soft apocalypse’, but has the same vibe. A time travel fix-it. Incomplete but worth it if this is a mood that appeals to you.

Scarred Ground by DictionaryWrites

“You see," Elias said softly, "people always have this idea that only living things can be scarred - and they're right, of course. But a building is a living thing, Martin. And the ground can be scarred, too." "I don't have any scars," Martin said. "Yes, you do," Elias said. "You just need the right light to see them.”

Falls somewhere between ‘Apocalypse’ and ‘Soft Apocalyse’ but I’m putting it here because I feel like it. Also technically a LonelyEyes fic. I found it hard to follow at first but it’s worth sticking with; things will eventually begin to make sense and come together.

LONELYEYES

for when you want to feel lonelyeyes

marrying anguish with one last wish by procrastinatingbookworm

In which Elias isn't Orpheus, and Peter isn't Eurydice, but Elias brings Peter home anyway.

Lives in my head rent free forever. My favourite lonelyeyes fic.

ouroboros by Wildehack

“You know,” Jonah says, a muscle in his calf quivering agreeably where it’s slung over Mordechai’s shoulder, “it’s really quite--fortunate--that I don’t care for you at all.”

Oh, this one hurts in the best possible way. The endless cycle of their relationship, the way it comes full-circle... yeah, good. Actually, no, this one might be my favourite. It’s a tie.

Breaking all the Rules by Thedupshadove

Elias proposes a somewhat...unusual wager.

Soft lonelyeyes? In my recs? It’s more likely than you think. Short, sweet, and... sweet.

Threefold by Sprinkledeath

Peter Lukas breaks three rules.

I’m just a slut for mythology allusions I guess.

Luck Be A Lady Tonight by prodigy

In 2014, Elias Bouchard takes a rare trip outside of his comfort zone. Peter Lukas wastes a bunch of money. You'd be surprised how many things can go wrong for two beings of cosmic power.

I love the sense of the history of them you get while reading this.

love is just a word (the idea seems absurd) by kaneklutz

"Something's wrong. It's stopped hurting" An avatar of the Lonely and an avatar of the Beholding walk into a bar relationship. It was bound to blow up in their faces.

Short, sweet, painful. Excellent exploration of their priorities.

Victor by penguistifical

elias tries something with his powers that he hasn't attempted before

The one where Elias tries to raise the dead. Not incredibly LonelyEyes centric but that’s still the pairing.

Simon Says by penguistifical

“Peter asked me to drop by and have a word with you, and, so, here I am.” Simon chuckles at Elias’s disbelieving stare. “Well, he asked in his own way. He’s not a complicated man, you know. He either comes from your arms looking like a stroked cat that’s been given a dish of cream or looking like he’s been in that toy boat of his out in an unexpected storm. He was far angrier than normal, so I daresay you weren’t cream today.”

I mean personally I’d just go ahead and rec all of penguistifical’s LonelyEyes fics but this is a standout for me.

AROMANTIC AND ASPEC MOODS

for when you want to feel Seen

The Aro Archives series by WhyNotFly

These are all just really really good. From Aro!Peter to two different aro-spec versions of the Scottish Safehouse to a long and beautiful aro hanahaki fic, this series is uniformly wonderful. The two Scottish Safehouse ones (Torn Edges and Murky Water) are my comfort fics.

and now all fear gives way by j_quadrifons

Before he can think it through, he murmurs, "Is that what it feels like? Being in love?" Martin's hand stills in his hair and Jon's stomach drops.

This one just. Wow yeah this is how it be. Another absolute comfort fic of mine.

Sweet As Roses by Prim_the_Amazing

Jon takes Martin by the shoulders, leans up on the tips of his toes, and kisses him.

I’m going to be honest—I didn’t know where to put this one. But it ended up here because the real standout of this fic for me is the portrayal of Sasha, and especially her portrayal as an aro character. So I’m putting it here. Mind the content warnings with this one!

HUMOUR

for when you want to feel delight

The Torment of Sebastian Skinner by Urbenmyth

After the Eye's victory, the statement givers are trapped in their horror stories, living them over and over again. Naturally, this works out better for some then for others.

Premise? Delightful. Execution? Fantastic. I read this one to cheer myself up when I’m sad.

Unlucky by VolxdoSioda

Jon’s dice betray him

Short, sweet DnD au, and the reason I cannot get DM!Elias out of my head now.

Voracious by beetl

A bird hits the window. Jon experiences The Flesh's thrall.

“Dead Dove: Do Not Eat” but make it literal.

The Stupid Endings by Urbenmyth

There are a lot of very deeply thought out and creative AUs on this site. These aren't among them. These ones are how the story could have ended, if Jonny Sims was a dumbass.

These are just uniformly hilarious, I cannot recommend them highly enough.

PODCAST CROSSOVERS

for when you want to make one of those “if I had a nickel for every time...” posts

The Sabbatical by morelikeassassin

Nicholas Waters is in need of an all-knowing eldritch entity beyond the confines of human imagining to help with his latest ritual. He'll have to settle for Jonathan Sims, who happens to have nothing better to do.

Crossover with Archive 81 (s3, specifically). Both fun and bittersweet.

The City And Its Sorrows by cuttooth

“What makes you think your friend is in Eskew?” David asks. He feels he can risk the scrutiny of the city that far. “I read that this is a place people end up when they get lost,” says the man. “This is a place people end up,” David agrees./The Archivist comes to Eskew.

Contemplative piece, and I love the way it presents David’s relationship with Eskew, the way he finds it horrible and hates it and yet belongs to it, is almost proud in the way he shows to to Jon. Great little vignette of two people oppressed by eldritch powers, intersecting.

Hiatus by bibliocratic

My name is Jonathan Sims, and I am in Eskew. (Jon gets lost in a Spiral city. It is not as easy as escaping.)

This one is far more focused on Jon than David, and is honestly more Eskew-weird than Spiral-weird. In the best way. Told in Eskew episode style, and is very good.

Sweet Music by Shella688

Eskew has a music to it, if you know how to listen. The percussion beat of thousands of footsteps, the melody in the squealing of the trains overhead. Today, the music of Eskew comes in the form of nine musicians, playing outside my office. My name is David Ward, and I am in Eskew.

Not TMA, but since a lot of Mechs fans go here—this one’s a Mechs/Eskew crossover. Short and simple, mostly David Ward centric, just a little well-written one shot I had to mention because I enjoyed it but it doesn’t have much traffic. Nice portrayal of the Mechs from an outsider’s perspective, and how genuinely strange and frightening they’d come across (especially if you’re already being haunted by and eldritch city). If you like Eskew-style storytelling, check it out!

NOT TMA

...but good enough that I physically cannot make a recs list without including them. Here!

#tma #the magnus archives #fic recs #long post #i'm not kidding you guys it's long #so be warned before you click read more #pinned on my blog

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bentchcreates · 7 years ago

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1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

Seemingly unimpressionable Aomame finds herself living in a world that is almost unchanged except that there are now two moons in the sky. A writer, Tengo, notices the same, and notes its similarity to a fantasy book he has secretly ghostwritten. As the fine line between reality and fantasy blurs, a unique love story between the two blossoms and in time, they must find a way out of 1Q84 to escape the clutches of a mysterious religious cult that pursues them for something neither wants to give up.

I had put off starting this for so long because look at it! Haha! To say that I was intimidated by its size is an understatement. But like what my cousin – who absolutely adores all Murakami stories – said, this was such an experience.

*also, I loved my cousin’s gorgeous hardcover copy so much, it’s graced my IG a bunch of times. heehee

This is my second Haruki Murakami book after Colorless Tsukuru so I was somehow familiar with his subtle integration of fantasy elements in a seemingly contemporary setting. I also know very little about Japanese culture, especially in the year 1984 so I will admit that there were parts of it that I didn’t fully grasp, or have completely flown over my head. Still here’s are my thoughts (also, mild spoiler alert!):

The femininity and sexual fluidity of Aomame. I will use the term sexual fluidity loosely here because Aomame is straight for the most part of the narrative, but as the blurred reality unravels around her, the readers are shown more of Aomame’s background and preferences. I didn’t want to point it out too much –because love is love, and I feel like Aomame’s lesbian trysts were borne out of love – but this book’s nonchalant presentation of it, of a woman comfortable with her sexuality like this, is notable.

Tengo’s complacence and his eventual longing to break the monotony of the life he had built around himself. As with Colorless Tsukuru, Murakami’s male lead here isn’t dead but isn’t actually living. He’s going through the motions. And Murakami shows in this story that it isn’t particularly bad if one chooses to live like this. There’s a reason why people would choose this and although boring, it makes sense. Ultimately Tengo makes a choice to leave it behind, to risk it, and I’m happy it doesn’t all go to waste in the end.

Complexity of characters. Tengo and Aomame’s depth of character were magnificently portrayed in this book. As well as the supporting characters like the dowager, Tamaru, Ayumi (huhu), Komatsu, Fuka-Eri and Ushikawa. I also felt that Buzzcut and Ponytail were distinctly Japanese but maybe that’s just because they remind me of anime goons a lot.

Magical realism. I will admit that I’m drawn more to books/stories where the magic is straight up fantastical and flashy, but the subtleness of the magic here is an artform. I can’t claim to understand and make sense of everything (i.e. what are the maza and dohta and what exactly do they do???)but maybe that’s how the author wants it to be? Reality is whoozy in the world of 1Q84 so my real-world logic must not apply.

Ushikawa. I was ready to sympathize with him because Murakami have drawn out his character so much, even giving him his own POV in the third book and then ~the end~ happens!? Argh. To this day I don’t know what I feel about that.

The romance. This is not in the same alley as the romance books I normally devour but it is successful in making me root for the characters and feel what they’re feeling. Murakami also painfully teases the reader, putting a lot of situations where they should’ve already met, and then twists it so they won’t meet yet. Agh! I actually had to cheat at one point and skimmed the last few pages for me to know the outcome. I’m not going to say what happens but for someone like me –who absolutely hates spoiling the story by getting to the end first – to take a peek at the endings, I have Murakami’s compelling writing skill to blame.

I understand why people tag this as a difficult read. It took me 8 months to finish all of it and I had to read other books in between for breaks. It’s not so much because the narrative is boring or is particularly bad, it’s just so long and winding. There’s a part here where Tengo was reading something from an encyclopedia (or something) about a group of indigenous people, I don’t know, and I skipped it. It might have something to do with the story, and underlying theme or what not, but I got so frustrated that I felt like I was reading it too slow so I did away with it. No regrets.

5 of 5 Stars. Why a perfect score, you may ask. Well, why not? I don’t think I will ever understand why it had to drag for so long, for a bunch of subthemes to just suddenly be there without direct importance to the plot, but there is no denying that Haruki Murakami has worked on this artfully. Maybe the reader’s frustration is deliberate to express the craziness of the parallel world; maybe it was there to distract us from the fact that Tengo and Aomame’s worlds are converging under our very noses. But when it starts to fall into place, when you’re at the edge of your seat at full attention to what is happening to the characters (this is after you power through 75% of the trilogy, I’m sorry to say) then it becomes clear why Murakami is such a prolific writer with fans all over the world, despite the mixed reviews this book is getting.

Blurb:

The year is 1984 and the city is Tokyo. A young woman named Aomame follows a taxi driver’s enigmatic suggestion and begins to notice puzzling discrepancies in the world around her. She has entered, she realizes, a parallel existence, which she calls 1Q84 —“Q is for ‘question mark.’ A world that bears a question.” Meanwhile, an aspiring writer named Tengo takes on a suspect ghostwriting project. He becomes so wrapped up with the work and its unusual author that, soon, his previously placid life begins to come unraveled. As Aomame’s and Tengo’s narratives converge over the course of this single year, we learn of the profound and tangled connections that bind them ever closer: a beautiful, dyslexic teenage girl with a unique vision; a mysterious religious cult that instigated a shoot-out with the metropolitan police; a reclusive, wealthy dowager who runs a shelter for abused women; a hideously ugly private investigator; a mild-mannered yet ruthlessly efficient bodyguard; and a peculiarly insistent television-fee collector. A love story, a mystery, a fantasy, a novel of self-discovery, a dystopia to rival George Orwell’s — 1Q84 is Haruki Murakami’s most ambitious undertaking yet: an instant best seller in his native Japan, and a tremendous feat of imagination from one of our most revered contemporary writers.

Buy Links:

Kindle EBook: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004LROUW2/

Print copies are available in leading bookstores worldwide.

About the Author:

Murakami Haruki (Japanese: 村上春樹) is a popular contemporary Japanese writer and translator. His work has been described as 'easily accessible, yet profoundly complex'. He can be located on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/harukimuraka... Since childhood, Murakami has been heavily influenced by Western culture, particularly Western music and literature. He grew up reading a range of works by American writers, such as Kurt Vonnegut and Richard Brautigan, and he is often distinguished from other Japanese writers by his Western influences. Murakami studied drama at Waseda University in Tokyo, where he met his wife, Yoko. His first job was at a record store, which is where one of his main characters, Toru Watanabe in Norwegian Wood, works. Shortly before finishing his studies, Murakami opened the coffeehouse 'Peter Cat' which was a jazz bar in the evening in Kokubunji, Tokyo with his wife. Many of his novels have themes and titles that invoke classical music, such as the three books making up The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle: The Thieving Magpie (after Rossini's opera), Bird as Prophet (after a piano piece by Robert Schumann usually known in English as The Prophet Bird), and The Bird-Catcher (a character in Mozart's opera The Magic Flute). Some of his novels take their titles from songs: Dance, Dance, Dance (after The Dells' song, although it is widely thought it was titled after the Beach Boys tune), Norwegian Wood(after The Beatles' song) and South of the Border, West of the Sun (the first part being the title of a song by Nat King Cole).

#bookish #bentchcreates #book review #magical realism #1q84 #haruki murakami

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