#that’s one of my favorite things about lwj as a character and it has everything to do with wyb’s portrayal of him and how masterful he is

[eleanorfenyx]

Adding @yibo-wang ‘s new tags in reply:

WANG YIBO as SECRETARY YE HIDDEN BLADE (2023) | 无名, dir. Cheng Er

[wangxianficfinder]

I'm in the mood for...

July 18th

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1. Itmf fics like the adults are talking by agloeian where someone adopts bby xue yang.

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2. HI!! itmf any modern au fics woth an inexperienced wei ying and experienced lan zhan so basically lan zhan FUCKS @yesibest

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3. Iitmf fics where Hanguang-Jun and/or Yiling Laozu are titles that can be passed down. I read 1 WIP forever ago that was a modern au where the titles and the powers passed down through the ages and I'd love for some more of that concept. Please and thank you. @itsthenerdwonder

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4. I asked about a jc choking wwx fic, I found it its called "The River Brought You Here" by ChilianXianzi. But if anyone knows any other fics that diverge at that point (jc choking wwx and that having consequences) I'd love to hear those too!

Lay my body down by tawaen (M, 48k, WWX & WQ, WWX & WN, wangxian, WWX & JYL, Canon Divergence, Time Travel, Rogue Cultivator WWX, Eventual WangXian, No Golden Core Transfer, Not Cultivation World Friendly, Canon-Typical Violence, Not JC Friendly, What if WWX saw the first siege of the burial mounds and said Nope to the war, OCs, OC point-of-view for one chapter for plot reasons)

Army Dreamers by Forever_Marie (M, 24k, WangXian, WIP, Fall of Lotus Pier, Post-Fall of Lotus Pier, Sunshot Campaign, WWX Needs a Hug, No Golden Core Transfer, Protective LWJ, Good Uncle LQR, Injury Recovery, Major Character Injury, LWJ Has Feelings, Hurt WWX, Soft WangXian, Inventor WWX, Supportive LQR, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Not JC Friendly, Soft WWX, Protective LXC, Attempted Sexual Assault WWX is So Done, Innocent XXC, Established SL/XXC) LWJ finds WWX half dead and strangled in a field after JC thought he had killed him and left him there

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5. hey fic finder community! for the itmf, can i have you favorite sizhui & wwx fics? doesn’t really matter which era or au

Love Song In Reverse by timetoboldlygo (T, 237k, WangXian, Amnesia, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Falling In Love, Slow Burn, agressively mixing and matching novel and cql canon, No Homophobia, Mentions of Starvation, Parental WWX) not entirely about sizhui and Wei ying but one of my favorite fics that portray their relationship

my little love by mellowflicker (T, 54k, WangXian, Modern, Single Parent WWX, kindergarten teacher LWJ, Kid Fic, Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Pining)

Would You Come Home? by s6115 (Not rated, 46k, WangXian, Junior Quartet Centric, Time Travel Fix-It, Canon Divergence, Junior Quartet Dynamics) even though wwx doesn't show up until the end, it's Sizhui learning about his past with wwx and wanting to know him 🥺

🔒 Not Yet (There As Needed) by sunrise_and_death (T, 13k, LSZ & WWX, JL & WWX, JL & LSZ, WangXian, Post-Canon, Family Feels, Family Bonding, POV LSZ, This Fic Has Everything, even more yearning, WWX & LSZ figuring out wtf their relationship is, Dramatic Revelations, JL being the contrary lil bean he is, all the juniors thinking WWX is the greatest thing to ever happen to them, and in case you missed it yearning)

Chapter 2 of 🔒 Response by Aki_no_hikari (G, 12k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Family Feels, Love Confessions)

🔒❤️ kick at the darkness ‘til it bleeds daylight by AlfAlfAlfAlfAlf, tardigradeschool (T, 75k, WangXian, Hurt/Comfort, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Eventual Happy Ending, Getting Together, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Inspired by The Parent Trap (1998), Kid Fic, teen shenanigans, two a-yuans, Fluff and Angst)

your name, safe in their mouth by astrolesbian (G, 10k, LSZ & WWX, WangXian, Father-Son Relationship, Injury, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, More aligned with CQL than novel canon, Miscommunication, Eventual Positive Communication, Trying to be a family, how to tell your dad you want him to be your dad in 6 easy steps!)

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6. Hi! I'm in the mood for some fics where LWJ gets damseled and WWX saves him. Read a really good one about that earlier and now I need more! Just some good Bamf!WWX saving his ziji! Thanks in advance! @hikato-chan

the field meets the wood by astronicht (T, 7k, WangXian, BAMF WWX, slight whump, Ritualistic Self Harm, Canon Era, Tang Dynasty style, Blood Loss, Blood and Injury, salt economics, Post-Canon, [podfic] the field meets the wood by jellyfishfire, [Podfic] the field meets the wood by semperfiona_podfic (semperfiona))

How to piss off the Yiling Laozu in one simple step! by Eicas (T, 3k, wangxian, kidnapping, hurt/comfort, pre-slash, hurt LWJ, mojo’s bookmark)

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7. Hi ,

I am looking for same type of au wangxin teen fiction like The fifth type of non contact force by caixx . This is one of the best fiction I have read and looking for same type. thankyou @dog-89

Tempo Rubato by Spodumene (E, 108k, wangxian, modern, angst w/ happy ending, romance, persuasion au, separations, pining, miscommunication, depression, self-harm, reconciliation, smut) one of my favorites

Make The Fireflies Dance Silver Moon’s Sparkling by Sweetlittlevampire (T, 23k, wangxian, modern, highschool au, friends to lovers, teenagers, growing up, getting to know each other, getting together, slow burn, first kiss, first love)

Unrequited Letters by Anonymous (T, 5k, WangXian, High School, Modern, Pining, Crushes, Unrequited Crush, Fluff, Light Angst, Humor, First Kiss, Secret Crush, Love Letters, Secret Admirer)

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8. Hii does anyone have any recs with post canon wwx being depressed? Like, maybe not eating, sleeping, etc

Silenced by Tasharene (M, 63k, WangXian, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, PTSD, Temporary Blindness, Aversion to touch, Fear of crowds, Panic Attacks, Post-Canon, WWX Whump, Hurt WWX, Whump, Angst with a Happy Ending, world-class troll LXC, see the archive Warnings BEFORE you accuse me of not tagging things!!!) this one is post canon wy has ptsd

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9. Hello!

I have a type of fic I'm just in the mood for, but it's hard to find any for this. I'd like to find some Wangxian marriage AUs that involve Wuxian figuring out the ribbon marriage that Wangji does to them before others point it out, basically a less oblivious Wuxian AU if it exists. Thanks! (ʘᴗʘ✿)

30 Days of Secret Marriage at Cloud Recesses by starandrea (T, 43k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Bunnies, Gusu Lan Forehead Ribbon, Accidental Marriage, Coming Out, Falling In Love, supportive family, Fluff, Happy Ending, the whole story is happy) fits for 9, if I'm remembering correctly.

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10. Everyone please give me your fav mpreg fics please 😭😭😭 but don't give books where it's like*5 years later* kinda situation or it's a hidden pregnancy or there's just mpreg for 1 chapter and it's over. I want actual pregnancy please. ***No bottomji***

The early bird gets the worm, the early fox gets the bird. But the dragon wakes the earliest of them all by sekhmetpaws (E, 52k, WangXian, Foxxian, Dragonji, A/B/O Dynamics, Royalty, Prince LWJ, dragon LWJ, fox WWX, Arranged Marriage, but not really, Mistaken Identity, Omega WWX, Alpha LWJ)

Take Responsibility by draechaeli (E, 187k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Mainly Novel with a few CQL and Donghua bits, Everybody Lives, Original Children Characters, Adoption, Adoption but WWX birthed them all, Mpreg, Teen Pregnancy, Pregnancy Kink, Male Lactation, Lactation Kink, Consensual Non-Consent, Light Bondage, Pregnant Sex, easy to skip nsfw chapters, Fix-It, Happy Ending)

To Deliver an Heir by cerbykerby (E, 49k, WangXian, slight dubcon/noncon but wangxian are into it, A/B/O, Alpha LWJ, Omega WWX, Heat Sex, Knotting, Royalty Medical, Emperor LWJ, Physician WWX, Mpreg, Postpartum Depression, Breeding, Creampie, LWJ literally cannot stop himself from coming in WWX, Breastfeeding)

🧡 Accidents Will Happen by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 45k WangXian, Post Canon, Mpreg, Fluff, Light angst)

If the requester likes modern AUs, I'd recommend:

All I Want by Selenay (E, 47k, wangxian, Modern, Mpreg, Post Holiday Romance, Consequences, Reunions, Idiots in Love, wangxian attempt to be sensible adults about it, they are very bad at it, Teacher WWX, Rating earned in later chapters, Handwavey Biology)

🧡 Brilliant Mistake by brooklinegirl (E, 53k, WangXian, Modern AU, Sex Pollen, Mpreg, dubcon, Modern Cultivators, Dubious Medical Science)

On The Way Home by vesna (mrsronweasley) (E, 59k, WangXian, Modern, Mpreg, Non-a/b/o mpreg, Unprotected Sex, Unexpected Pregnancy, Friends With Benefits, Getting Together, Pining while fucking)

Butter My Biscuit by LikeAFlamingKiss_Consume (E, 23k, WangXian, nonbinary LWJ, Transman WWX, Trans Male Character, Mpreg, WWX Has a Pregnancy Kink, Pregnancy Kink, Unplanned Pregnancy, Vaginal Sex, LWJ Has a Pregnancy Kink, ace spectrum LWJ & WWX, LWJ & WWX Have a Breeding Kink, Consensual Somnophilia, Somnophilia, Hormones, as in WWX's dial his libido up to 15, discussion of transphobia, Hints of dysphoria, Lactation Kink, Breastfeeding, Giving Birth, I guess a bit of sadism?, WWX is very much not having a good time and LWJ is Into It)

OMEGA GRAD STUDENT GETS PREGNANT: YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHAT HAPPENS NEXT by attackofthezee (noxlunate) (E, 21k, WangXian, Past WWX/Unnamed Character, Mpreg, A/B/O, Omega WWX, Alpha LWJ, Graduate School, Unplanned Pregnancy, San Francisco Bay Area, Pining, Falling In Love, Kid Fic, Fluff, sometimes a family is a man his baby the man who's helping him raise his baby and all their friends)

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11. Can everyone give me their fav canon era/canon divergence completed , longer than 60k fics please 🥺🥺🥺

In Your Dreams, I Smile by 0_Heta_0 (E, 60k, WangXian, LSZ &LWJ, LSZ & WWX, LSZ & LXC, LXC & LWJ, Canon Divergence, Reincarnation, bunny WWX, Falling In Love, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending)

🔒 as the clouds part and clear, we finally meet again by 12262325 (E, 76k, WangXian, Younger LWJ, Older WWX, Canon Divergence, Eventual Smut)

🔒 Life is Like a Stranger by through_shadows_falling (T, 69k, wangxian, Kid Fic, Child LWJ, Child WWX, First Meetings, Canon Divergence, Cute Kids, Orphan WWX, Autism Spectrum, Fix-It, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Alternate Canon, POV LWJ, Growing Up Together, WWX raised at Cloud Recesses, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Puberty, Growing Up, Coming Out, teenage angst, Wet Dream, Pining, This fic gets a little raunchier as the kids become teens, But it won’t get too explicit, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Spanish Translation, Brief mentions/moments of WWX kissing others in chapter 22 but only on the cheek, also characters kiss WWX on the cheek in chapter 23, but his real first kiss is with LWJ, Перевод на русский | Translation in Russian)

Death of a Ghost by Gotcocomilk (E, 107k, Family bonding, Fluff, Angst, Parental WWX, BAMF WWX, Hurt/Comfort, Ghost sex)

❤️ in case of fire, break glass by Jenrose (T, 65k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Post-Canon, Canon Divergence, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, unless I hate them, BAMF WWX, BAMF LWJ, Genius Inventor WWX, NHS Finds His Calling, No Women Die)

🔒 if you can’t beat them, recruit them by moeblobmegane (T, 228k, Wangxian, NHS & WWX, WWX & WQ, Time Travel Fix-It, Conspiracy, Spies & Secret Agents, Team as Family, Found Family, Burial Mounds, Temporary Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, Pining, Morally Ambiguous Character, Rumors, Politics, Developing Friendships, Good Uncle LQR, Demonic Cultivation, YilingWei Sect)

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12. Hello! Are there any fics that compare the similarities between SongXue and WangXian? I love both ships and I've always felt they're very similar on a lot of core levels and I'd be really fascinated to read a story that compares them :D

Indoctrination by ama (E, 16k, WangXian, SL/XY, WWX & XY, Puppy Play, Kink Negotiation, Kink Exploration, BDSM, Voyeurism, Vibrators, Orgasm Control, Sex Shop, Dominant XY, Submissive SL, Dominant LWJ, Submissive WWX)

Curse Broken by Anonymous (T, 19k, WangXian, Alternate Universe, frankencanon, Mutual Pining, Jiang family being flawed but ultimately loving, AU with no demonic cultivation and no war, Unreliable Narrator, POV WWX, XXC and SL are cousins, Dragon LWJ, Phoenix WWX, Phoenix BSSR, phoenix XXC, Dragon SL, Protective LWJ, WWX in WWX's Body, Mentioned JC/WQ, Hints of future SL/XY, WWX lowkey adopts XY, phoenix and dragon lore are largely inaccurate/made up for the purposes of the story, especially the phoenix lore, it draws more inspiration from western phoenix lore than fenghuang)

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13. hi admins! can you recommend any fics where during the cloud recesses study, lqr/lxc/lan clan ig realizes how much of a genius wwx is, (could also be that he’s not being treated accordingly in jiang sect and they’re like ??? about it,) and decide to just. keep wwx for themselves? read a couple fics with that premise and been loving it recently, thanks for any help!

🧡 Stunted, Starving Juvenility by TomatenMark (E, 828k, WangXian, WIP, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Getting Together, Supportive LQR, Hurt/Comfort, Fix-It of Sorts, Supportive LXC, Canon Divergence, Inventor WWX, Possessive LWJ, Cultivation Sect Politics, Pre-Sunshot Campaign, Fluff and Smut, Burning of the Cloud Recesses, Fall of Lotus Pier, Angst, Sunshot Campaign Not JFM Friendly, split into parts, Part 1 complete, Part 2 complete, Original Character(s))

💙 Holding shreds by barisan (T, 5k, WangXian, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, No Sunshot Campaign, Body Swap, Not for sexy shenanigans, Chronic Pain, Hurt WWX, Hurt LWJ, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Abusive YZY, Bad Parent YZY, Bad Parent JFM, Good Uncle LQR, Hurt/Comfort, Medical Inaccuracies, POV WWX, Angst with a Happy Ending, Not Jiāng Family Friendly, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Getting Together, Smart WWX)

🔒 in the shadow of moonlit flowers by Reverie (cl410) (T, 56k, wangxian, LXC/NMJ, Cloud Recesses, LWJ & NHS Friendship, Developing Relationship, POV LWJ, Minor Injuries, Autistic LWJ, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, aka the Madam Yu warning, Genius WWX, Light Angst And Hurt/Comfort, WWX Protection Squad, Gusu Lan Sect, Slow Burn, Protective LWJ, LWJ-centric)

🧡 To have and to hold by Moominmammashandbag (M, 78k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Major character injury, CQL verse, Happy Ending)

Like stones on an unseen board by Vir_Abelasan (Not rated, 11k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, Dark LWJ, Older LWJ, Teacher LWJ, dark twin jades, Age Difference, Manipulation, Protective LWJ, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Corporal Punishment, Relatively canon-typical abusive Jiangs, WWX Get a Happy Ending, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Not JC Friendly, Not Jiang Clan Friendly) also fits but Lan Wangji is aged up in this one and is a teacher.

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14. for the itmf, can you guys recommend fics where while wei wuxian is dead either jin ling or jiang cheng find out lan yuan is family bc he’s actually wwx kid? sorry if this is too specific, but an example would be sing to the clouds in summer or would you come home? on ao3. great fics

Gently Haunted by LusBeatha (T, 19k, WangXian, Character Death, Sentient Burial Mounds, Autistic LWJ, Shutdowns, Canon Divergence, Ghosts, Child LSZ, Oblivious WWX, Getting Together, Ghost Marriage, ghost parenting, Grief/Mourning, but only for ghosts that are still present, Golden Core Reveal, Soup, Happy Ending) its a small part but Sizhui calls Jin ling family because hes wwxs nephew also features ghost xian

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15. I just finished Concord and fell in love with the angst of Wei Wuxian marrying in Lan Sect and being unhappy and Lan Wangji trying to make it better 🥰 do you know anything similar? For the itmf I guess thank you @kanrax-blog

what you have tamed by lianhua_lianzi, Senforza (E, 94k, WangXian, Animal Traits, misunderstandings (not the romcom kind that can be resolved in a 5min convo), Courting Rituals, Pining, Lan family dynamics, Drama, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Arranged Marriage, Wangxian break up but get back together, Eventual Happy Ending, vague biological essentialism (animal species have different mating preferences), Canon Typical Alcohol Usage, Implied Mpreg, Unresolved Sexual Tension, unintentional and eventually resolved “gaslighting”, Dragon LWJ, Fox WWWX)

Betrothed by Dixielis (E, 10k, WangXian, A/B/O Dynamics, Hybrids, Fox WWX, Dragon LWJ, Arranged Marriage, Omega WWX, Alpha LWJ, Top LWJ/Bottom WWX, Miscommunication, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Mildly Dubious Consent, Mpreg, Unplanned Pregnancy)

a light hidden and singing by occultings (microcomets) (E, 48k, wangxian, arranged marriage, pining, getting together, slow burn, misunderstandings, miscommunication, blood & injury, happy ending, smut)

Mourning Robes by Starlight1395 (T, 17k, wangxian, No Sunshot Campaign, Arranged Marriage AU, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Depression, dissociating, Mild Blood, Fluff, juniors idolizing WWX like he deserves, slowburn between WWX and Cloud Recesses, Hinted smut, Jingyi has a CRUSH, Supportive JC)

Marriage of duty by ninho_emy (M, 33k, WangXian, Rape/Non-Con, A/B/O, Alpha/Omega, Arranged Marriage, Mpreg, Canon Divergence, Angst and Tragedy, Angst with a Happy Ending, First Time, First Kiss, Rape between the main characters, be warned)

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16. Hi this is for ITMF

A) Where WWX act as a demure and perfect spouse and everyone didnt know or forget that he is deadly. Maybe like The True Story of How Concubine Mo Deviously Deceived The Entire Imperial Family by Enigmatree

B) Arranged marriage or a political marriage or a love marriage between wangxian but WWX has Jiang support and power backing him. I prefer if its royalty au but its okay if not @idontknowwhattowriteforusername

16B)

True Gold Fears No Fire by defractum (nyargles) (M, 75k, WIP, WangXian,  Royalty, Ancient China, Wuxia, Historical, Historical Inaccuracy, Arranged Marriage, Identity Porn, Mutual Pining, Emperor LWJ, Empress WWX, Eventual Happy Ending, Misunderstandings)

much sweeter than by mellowflicker (T, 3k, WangXian, Royaltyish, Arranged Marriage, a little bit of YLLZ WWX, Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending)

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17. Hello! ITMF dragon-Ji keeping and saving all of WWX's gifts (drawings, notes, papermen, presents, etc) in his hoard? Thank you all so much!

Snow Burns and Fire Falls by Liebing (T, 12k, wangxian, Fluff, Fox WWX, fox LWJ, snow fox LWJ, red fox WWX, Childhood Friends, Orphans, LXC is 8 years older than LWJ, LWJ and WWX are besties, LXC is the best big brother, WWX is adopted by the Lan clan, Happy Ending, Sweet, soft, Cute, Fluffy, Jealous LWJ, WWX has the whole of cloud recesses in love with him… baby LWJ is pouty, LQR loves WWX, Literally everyone loves WWX, The entire Lan clan: we would die for little WWX, Thwarted dog attack, LQR trying to arrange marriages, Time jump forward, No one is harmed in the dog attack not even the dog, Clan leader LXC, Jealous WWX, Oblivious WWX, love at first kiss, Wangxian fox babies)

A Baby Dragon’s Guide To Seducing Your Huli Jing by sweetlolixo (M, 102k, wangxian, Fantasy, But still in the Cultivation World, Dragon LWJ, Fox WWX, Younger LWJ, Older WWX, Fluff, Humor, Eventual mpreg, Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Boy A-Yuan)

Dazzle Like a Diamond by Tsukimiko_san (T, 4k, WangXian, Dragon LWJ, Crow WWX, Cloud Recesses Study Arc, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, No Angst, ok maybe a tiny sprinkle of angst but like, usual LWJ thinking WWX is just teasing him, it doesn’t last long, Getting Together, they are both so whipped, Boys Kissing, Courting Rituals)

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If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***

[letteredlettered]

Since people expressed interest in the comments about the music I used to write my current fic, I wanted to share some of what I explored to write it. I don't think that you need to know this canon or have read this fic to read this post, though I do spend a bit of time talking about how canon influenced the choices I made. Anyone who has been following this fic knows that it was supposed to be porn, and largely, it really still is for the most part a fic about sex. But I did do a lot of research on music with which I'm frankly not very familiar, and the process was really rewarding.

The fic is Time Signature, if you're interested. This post has a lot about music, electronic music, Chinese music, and music theory, as well as some links to music that interests me and inspired portions of the fic. I don't expect anyone to read anything this long, but it was nice to write it.

Canon. One of my favorite things about both book and drama canon is how in synch WWX/LWJ are cultivation-wise. It’s not just that they can predict the talisman the other will use or the seal the other will cast; they also have the same hunches solving mysteries, the same instincts protecting others, the same ideas about where to go. When writing an AU, it’s important to me to show that synchronization (beyond physical attraction and sex), mostly because I think it’s hot.

In canon, however, WWX revolutionizes cultivation, inventing a whole new method when no one ever thought that possible. I also think this is hot. I also think it’s hot if LWJ thinks it’s hot. Look, canonically, LWJ disapproves of demonic cultivation because it will injure WWX’s spirit and body, but imo there is a reason LWJ is so into WWX, and it’s not just because WWX bugs him. It’s not even just because WWX is really cute and happy and exuberant and everything that’s the opposite of his upbringing. I also like to think that it’s because WWX is a fucking genius, and LWJ doesn't mind the idea of upending tradition and the entire cultivation world as much as it really seems at first that he would; he just struggles with anything that could hurt WWX. So anyway, WWX being revolutionary, in basically a technological sense, is important to me.

Wangxian both play music canonically. LWJ’s playing is noted to be particularly powerful, and WWX’s chosen music is at least one part of his revolutionary cultivation method. Additionally, the song LWJ writes for them is an important plot point. It makes sense that in a modern AU, music is a point of connection, so that is what I chose for their careers.

The final point about canon I want to make in connection to the music for this fic is that this is a Chinese canon with Chinese characters set in China. I don’t think it’s wrong to write AUs set in the west. I have done so, and I think there is value in examining a Chinese canon that has become very popular in the west through the lens of the Chinese diaspora. But I also think that there is a lot of value in a western person such as myself trying to learn and understand the cultural context for a canon that I really like, even if I sometimes get it wrong.

I had decided to set this fic in China because I thought the setting would not strongly feature, which would give me an easy “in” to write something set in a place I don’t know much about. Directly after choosing the setting I chose their careers, which made me realize I needed to do a lot more research—both about the careers but also about the setting--than a fic that was supposed to be mainly porn should have really required.

Music genre choice. Lots of AUs I’ve read have Wangxian’s mutual interest be that they both play western classical instruments. This baffles me, but it’s what I’ve seen, so I loosely started there—ie, I spent some time thinking about what would be revolutionary in western instrumental music, which entailed doing some research on contemporary classical music. There are obviously pioneers in any music genre, folks doing new things, but it turned out I just did not know enough about this genre to really understand what would be truly avant-garde.

I took a step back and thought about the instrumental music I have personally heard that feels really new and different, and Philip Glass was the first thing that came to mind. I first heard of Philip Glass when I saw The Hours, for which he wrote the soundtrack. I still think that soundtrack is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard, and I did use it as inspiration for music in this fic, particularly LWJ’s. More on that later.

Philip Glass is great, but for all his eastern minimalist influences, he is a strong figure in the western paradigm. I did some research on Chinese contemporary instrumental music, but most of what I found had a really western flavor. I think there are two reasons for this—one is that I am in the west searching for articles in English; for all that we like to imagine the internet is universal, search algorithms and search history is actually making it far harder than it used to be to find material with which you are completely unfamiliar. Secondly, western music did in fact have a notable impact on Chinese music, which is fine, it’s still Chinese, but I worried about everything I wrote just sounding like it was about western classical, which is a concern of mine I’ll address more later.

Since I wasn’t finding what I wanted, particularly for WWX, in the “art music” (aka, lowercase “c” classical music, which Wikipedia says is also known as “cultivated music, serious music, or canonical music”—ie, instrumental music with strings, winds, percussion) scene, I realized I needed to examine the other contemporary music, by which I mean everything else. Since I am most familiar with rock, Radiohead immediately came to mind, but Radiohead is a band, and there are lyrics. Though the lyrics are not where the meaning of Radiohead songs lie (the vocals are treated as largely instrumental), if there were lyrics, I’d need to write about them, and I didn’t want to. More importantly, Radiohead is singular in what they do, which makes them difficult to categorize, and this makes them difficult to describe textually. You can say that Radiohead revolutionized rock, or even reinvented it, but that is not really addressing how fundamentally avant-gardeRadiohead is. Describing how revolutionary Radiohead is on paper really is just saying “but they’re different!” over and over again.

What I needed for WWX was a music genre that was revolutionary, an entire school of music that felt cutting edge and frankly, unfamiliar, and for that, I realized I needed my brother.

Some stories about my family. My brother is a music artist who creates electronic music. If you want to understand why it took me this long to get to my brother in this thought process, you should understand a few things about him. First, I love him a lot, but we’re not very close. Second, my brother is probably the quietest person I know—like, idk, LWJ levels of non-talking. Last, I do not understand my brother’s music. I’ve tried! I listened to it a lot! But when I didn’t understand, I asked questions, and my brother cannot explain any of it. He’s an expressive guy! Just not verbally, and as a very verbal person, I have a tough time when people cannot use their words. Like, even asking him what type of music he plays, he’ll say something like, “It’s complicated.” (This is a lie. He’ll look at me and say, “Type?” And I’ll try to explain what I mean. And he’ll say, “I don’t know.” And if I said, “Okay, but if you had to label it?” He’d laugh and say, “Why?” And if I said, “So I can better understand your music,” he’d think for a long time, then look very frustrated, and laugh, and say, “I don’t know?” I think we’ve literally had this exact conversation).

Anyway, possibly through one of these type of exchanges, where I’m grilling him like a school marm and he’s acting like I’m making him take a standardized test he hates (I’m his little sister. Would it be easier to subject him to these horrors if he was my little brother?), I learned that one of my brother’s influences is Aphex Twin. My brother loves Aphex Twin. I . . . don’t. I’ve listened to a lot of him (in order to understand my brother better); I do not like it, and I do not understand it. My brother talks about Aphex Twin like he’s a genius (if and when my brother talks at all). Now, my brother is a very smart guy; it’s not that I didn’t believe him when he said Aphex Twin was a genius, but he also gets . . . swept up by things, and as previously discussed, he doesn’t talk a lot, so I didn’t really understand what my brother meant by this. It took hearing about Aphex Twin randomly, in a couple other places, for me to realize Aphex Twin is a Big Deal. When I looked up Aphex Twin at some point in order to better understand the music my brother makes, I found that Aphex Twin is considered by many to be a genius and also a pioneer. Apologies to all of you who already knew that about Aphex Twin.

Sidenote, my brother’s wife is also a musician, though not professionally. She could have been, considering that she was ranked as one of the top flute players in Texas, and Texas is fucking huge. But no, professionally, my sister-in-law is in cognitive science and linguistics, which you may remember was the career LWJ had in Say More (my fiancée is also a linguist. I also know a few other linguists. My life is convenient for my Wangxian AUs, I gotta say). I mention my sister-in-law because my sister-in-law has enough musical acuity to also recognize that both my brother and Aphex Twin are geniuses, which really helped me to understand that even though I’m not really into this music at all, it really is a Big Deal.

So, I researched Aphex Twin and also went to my brother’s website for his music to find out what the hell this type of music is called, and it turns out there’s not a good name. IDM, which stands for intelligent dance music, is a label Aphex Twin himself famously does not like, and my brother labeled his own music as “acid, techno, house, electro.” Wikipedia said that Aphex Twin is known for techno, ambient, and jungle.

Anyway, into this confusing morass of electronic revolutionary music is where I decided to plunk Wei Ying.

Electronic music. Note for this section that I know nothing about electronic music. I’m writing this post partly to document the journey of discovery I went on to write this porn. I’m not really trying to educate anyone so much as I’m trying to provide insight as to what I researched for this fic and what the references are, in case the fic interested you.

When you really get down to it, music made with electronics has as many genres and styes as music made with more traditional instruments, and the labels are just as confusing (see this Wikipedia list of electronic music genres). For instance, “electronica” just means music made with electronics to some people, but to others it’s more specific. You’ve also got a bunch of other terms: ambient, EDM, techno, house, IDM.

This is all based on what I learned from Wikipedia, but here are some loose definitions as I understand them: There’s ambient, which is really made for background listening, and then there’s EDM (electronic dance music), which is made for active listening—ie, dancing. Within EDM you have lots of genres, such as techno; techno is usually characterized by a specific tempo and repeating structure, and house, which . . . is also characterized by a specific tempo and repeating structure, but the tempo is different. From what I can gather, house is also a bigger tent than techno; ie, many different genres and styles can be house, but techno is more often just techno. (Note that part of the reason all of this terminology has so much overlap is that it originated in different places; techno was invented in Berlin, house in Chicago.) Meanwhile, the list of genres of house is so big that it also has its own Wikipedia page, which is almost as large as the list of electronic music genres.

Note that there is such a thing as “house ambient”, which explodes the entire concept of ambient vs EDM. To aid in that explosion, IDM is described on Wikipedia as including styles such as ambient techo, and “is regarded as better suited to home listening rather than dancing.” What stands out about IDM, and the reason it is featured in the fic, is that it’s known for being experimental. (I’ll add that it emerged in the 90s, which isn’t great for my fic. Whatever WWX is doing, he is on the edge, and 90s music already old to him, even if he’s Aphex Twin’s biggest fan! But alas, my research could not tell me what is happening right now, because you really have to be involved in The Scene to understand what’s new. By the time it’s documented, it’s already really a little old.)

If you are researching electronic music and how it is revolutionary, you’re probably going to get into its evolution and history, since this is a new style of music. And if you are looking into the origins of this kind of music, you’re going to find Brian Eno. And if you’re looking into Brian Eno, you’re going to find minimalism.

Minimalism. Brian Eno is an extremely famous dude. I’d probably heard of him before, but I am very good with big concepts and pretty bad with details, so because I didn’t know anything about the bigger concepts behind ambient/electronic music/minimalism, I never paid attention. Now I’m hearing about him literally everywhere, which is funny, since it’s not like he’s new news. Ezra Klein was literally waxing poetic about Music for Airports just a month ago.

Eno is famous for his pioneering work in ambient music and electronic music, and, as one might expect, electronic ambient. Eno was always doing experimental, avant-garde stuff, and early on he embraced a minimal style. He later coined the term “ambient music.”

What’s interesting about this is that around the same time as Eno was doing this in later 1960s/early 1970s, a new kind of art music was being born in classical circles. This is the capital “M” Minimal music, for which—you guessed it—Philip Glass is really famous. And when you look at Philip Glass’s influences, he was deeply influenced by the minimalism of eastern music, especially Indian and Tibetan music. I couldn’t really find anything saying that Brian Eno was directly influenced by traditional eastern music, but Eno is definitely a fan of Glass and vice versa; they really build on each other.

This ended up just being a very cool intersection for the fic that I didn’t plan. I didn’t end up using it very much, but I must say I was stupidly pleased that the kind of music I was looking into for both of these characters has such deep roots in eastern music traditions. So now let’s talk a little bit about eastern music, specifically Chinese music, since that’s where this fic is based.

Chinese music. I did read a bit about Chinese music for this fic, and I have to say that I still don’t know a lot about it. As stated above, I’m in the west, using my western search techniques, looking for primarily articles in English (though I get Google to translate some things). I also just have a western understanding of music and music history, and it turns out, surprise, different cultures are different, and my entire paradigm for understanding music does not really apply to music from other cultures.

I, and many of us, want music to be a universal language, something that can move through all barriers and touch us in our souls. And it is! I have listened to and loved music not from my culture! But thinking of music as something intrinsically universal and therefore immediately moving to everyone really collapses the rich history of musical tradition all cultures have. Music really is like a language, in that it is built on the culture that creates it; it has its own internal logic; it has style and meaning that depend on the history of that tradition and the understanding of its audience. The brief reading I’m going to do to write some porn will not give me to understand the deep and rich tradition of Chinese music, but also, frankly, even if I turned all my efforts and career to learning and understanding this right now, I still would not have the best comprehension. I don’t even comprehend western music, and I grew up with it. So, forgive me for the paucity of my understanding and knowledge, and please correct me if I make mistakes.

When I think about Chinese music that I know about, I think of two things: modern and traditional. The modern stuff I’m thinking of is stuff like C-pop, but also the things you might hear on the soundtrack for a drama or movie. To me, none of this music sounds that different than western pop or western soundtracks. There are a few reasons for this: one, there are tons of Chinese music that is not reaching me. Two, maybe I just think it doesn’t sound that different because I can only really process what I recognize. Three, in a similar vein, maybe I’m thinking “that sounds like what I know” when really what I know sounds like what I’m hearing. Globalization is definitely doing things to music; if you’re telling me that Asian pop is not influencing western pop right now, I’m going to think you’re crazy, considering the influence and popularity Asian pop has in the US and Europe right now. And four, western music did have an impact on Chinese music, so there’s that.

Obviously, the music genre I chose for Wei Ying falls into the modern sphere, and I certainly looked into the techno/EDM/IDM/electronic/ambient/house scene in China. Articles I found stated it took a little longer for EDM to pick up steam in China, but now it’s definitely going strong. There are some great electronic music festivals, EDM clubs, underground EDM scenes, and EDM music artists (composers and DJs!) in China. Researching these artists was pretty difficult, especially because I wanted Wangxian’s musical discussions to be highly technical, and for highly technical discussions about EDM you are wandering into some very niche spaces. I’m sure such spaces about EDM in China exist, but they’re most likely to be in Chinese.

As I’ve said, globalization is a factor when it comes to cultural difference in music, and I’d add here that because this genre of music is so new, globalization has even more influence, from what I can tell. That said, I do not want to diminish how much influence very specific locations have to do with this type of music. EDM is very tied to clubs (because of the dancing) and performance (because of deejaying, and also because of things like live coding/algorave), which is probably why we get so many granular genres of house—Chicago house is different from Detroit, just for example. Regardless, I stuck with researching a lot of western artists for both the music and musical discussions in the fic, mostly because the music is supposed to be so new and avant-garde that is should not be something overly familiar to the reader, even if they’re steeped in electronic music genres.

Then there’s traditional music.

Traditional music. Traditional music obviously had a huge influence on Chinese modern music. The influence of traditional eastern music on modern eastern music, as well as traditional eastern music itself, is what really influenced a lot of western minimalism of the 1960s and 70s (and onward). To be clear, not all “eastern” traditional music is the same. It’s just as richly diverse regionally as traditional western music, if not more so, given “the east” is fucking huge—though I will say that a lot of people think of western music as pretty monolithic, because folk is characterized as a separate tradition than classical. When you consider ancient western folk, there’s a shit ton of it, and it’s quite diverse. There is also folk music in eastern music traditions, and this is different than music that would have been played in courts and palaces, so there’s really a ton going on.

Traditional music is what people think of when they think of eastern music being “weird,” which is something I really hate. Look, I love being weird; I think weird is cool; it’s great. But weird means unusual, and traditional music is very usual; people who say that just mean it’s unusual for them, and they should think about their words. What they’re trying to say is that traditional eastern music will sound very different for many western listeners, even though, again, we like to think of music as so universal, actually!, because it’s based on math, actually!, and math is so universal!!! The truth is that math is patterns, and patterns are things that your brain recognizes when there are familiar elements, and when there are unfamiliar elements your brain has trouble recognizing the pattern. So, again, music is a way to communicate across all kinds of boundaries, but it is not a universal translator. (But it does make you wonder . . . if Lan Zhan played Inquiry, could Aeneas answer???)

Regarding the unfamiliar math, what we’re talking about is scales. I think most people know this part. Eastern scales are based on math, just like western scales, but the frequencies are divided up differently. Among other things, traditional Chinese music did not use equal temperament, which means depending on what note you start with, the intervals for all the notes on the scale were be different. A way of thinking about this, at least as I understand it, is that a piano is even tempered. All the notes are always the same whether you’re playing in C major or B flat, because you have no control over the frequency produced when you press the key. But if you’re using just intonation—say you’re using an instrument with just a few strings—you’re adjusting the frequency of the note to match your scale. It requires extremely precise hearing and playing ability.

Notation for traditional Chinese music was really different than how I as a westerner understand it. For one thing, it didn’t include rhythm, and for another, it represented more a framework for improvisation than every single precise note. (See Gongche notation, Wikipedia.)

Authorship was also thought of pretty differently. When I googled “great Chinese composers,” the only results I was getting were twentieth century. There are some great ancient Chinese composers, but I had to do a lot of digging to find them, and trying to find someone like the Chinese equivalent of Beethoven is just the wrong approach. When you get right down to it, this really seems to be about the fundamental difference between western individualism vs eastern collectivism and community-based thinking. The individual artist is not the hero of the story. That said, the tradition of the music is very heroic. For instance, the notation allows such variation that the same piece can really build and grow through different artists, much like a story through oral tradition. Additionally, for an artist in an ensemble piece to stand out would really be quite rude; the point is not the individual talent of the musicians but the fundamental beauty of the piece. (This was a particularly hard thing to research, and I mostly found out what I laid out above from various folks answering questions in forums. The best one I found is here.)

Another thing is that harmony, as we think of it, was just not really a thing in traditional Chinese music. The focus was on a melody, which is where minimalism comes in. I’d add here that the “as we think of it” is pretty important, because the western paradigm, including western music language, is not super great at really capturing the nuance of Chinese music. I am terrible at tracking my sources when I research stuff for fic, so I was trying to find some of them now, and I came across this article, which examines the harmony that did exist, but how different it is from what we think of when we think of western harmony.

Despite the reading I did on this subject, very little about Chinese traditional music made it into the fic. I do have Lan Zhan reading a book on traditional music that he hates. This isn’t based on a book I found, but rather to show that Lan Zhan isn’t really into the idea of musical “purity,” that is, ideas of what you should and shouldn’t do with music. That said, I’m not really aware of what strictures around traditional Chinese music are like, or what the Chinese thought is on that. I am aware of how deeply restrictive western thought is regarding music theory, and that’s really where that part of the fic was coming from.

I’d originally had Lan Zhan reading a book on western music theory and very deeply hating it, but I also felt like having him read a book on western theory could reinforce the idea that he’s working within a western paradigm, when really the whole point is that this Lan Zhan very intentionally uses traditional music values. Due to his inspiration from Wei Ying, he’s breaking the norms of how that music works, but he's not necessarily making it western; he’s making it avant-garde. Basically, my inspiration was a Chinese Philip Glass, but I didn’t want to say that because as mentioned above, Glass is still western, no matter his influences. That said, Wei Ying does compare Lan Zhan to Philip Glass and also Tan Dun, who you might recognize as the guy who did the soundtrack for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, among many other very famous projects.

Tan Dun has in fact been called the Chinese Philip Glass, which is probably not very respectful to Tan Dun, who is himself an incredible (and experimental!) composer. I should note, however, that Tan Dun is Chinese American—he was born in China, but got a degree at Columbia and has lived in New York since. Also, he is particularly famous for marrying Eastern traditionalism with western style, and that really wasn’t what I wanted for Lan Zhan. I didn’t want Lan Zhan to be incredible because he was using western traditions, though he is familiar with them and can make very talented use of them. A lot of very famous Chinese modern composer are famous for that, and that music is still very Chinese. That said, I felt that if I made that Lan Zhan’s style, it would feel like I was saying Lan Zhan’s music is special because it’s western, and that was something I really wasn’t keen on.

In the end, I possibly did the fic and traditional Chinese music a disservice by having Lan Zhan read his book and hate on it. One of the whole reasons western music theory sucks is it can be pretty racist, and that’s what I was trying to avoid, but by conflating my rage at western music theory with eastern, I didn’t really help things much. But anyway, since I’ve now mentioned it, let’s just take a slight detour to talk about what I mean by racist music theory.

Western music theory racism. There’s a scene in the movie Tár that really solidified my feelings on the subject. In it, a student who identifies as BIPOC and pangender, says they don’t really have much use for Bach because of Bach’s misogynist history. The extremely famous director, Tár, played by Cate Blanchett, lambasts the student for “cancelling” Bach because of Bach’s personal life. The student goes on to say that they really just don’t have much interest in cis male white composers, and Tár continues to lambast the student for considering things like gender and race in conjunction with the art.

My understanding of this scene was that it was demonstrating that Tár is a jerk, so full of herself that she can’t listen to other voices, and so steeped in her 18th century western ideas of genius that she’s literally silencing the music voices she’s supposed to support. That was not most people’s reading of the scene, and in retrospect, possibly not the intention of the film. It seems rather telling that not a lot is known about Bach’s misogyny or lack thereof; there are plenty of other “great” western composers that are known to be worse in terms of misogyny and abuse, and yet the film did not make this scene about them. In retrospect, maybe that scene wanted to paint this student as kind of ignorant for cancelling Bach, and Tár really puts them in their place when she describes how art is more important than the artist.

Fuck that. I certainly believe that art is more important than the artist. JK Rowling sucks; that doesn’t mean I will stop loving HP fic and the part it’s played in my life. But the ugliness of the scene is that it hinges on importance of Bach, and look here, shocker, Bach is not essential, just as JKR is not essential if you decide you don’t ever want to familiarize yourself with the literature of TERFs. Even if you want to be a musician and create or conduct music, Bach is just not essential.

He’s pretty important if you want to be a western music historian, true, but when we talk about music there are many, many music traditions that are incredibly worthwhile and important that not only weren’t created by cis white men, but also weren’t ever derived or influenced by cis white men. If you think that you need Bach to know and love and create and perform and conduct music, it’s because you’re operating in a single paradigm that has become yes, universally known, but also for that reason oppressive and imperialist. I am not saying western classical music is bad because it’s imperialist, just to be clear. Bach’s great! Hate ‘im, but I do love me some Beethoven and he was also very cis and male and white and also a complete douche! What I’m saying is that forcing this music tradition on others is deeply imperialist, and it happens all the time.

Anyway, this is really a tangent, because despite my very good intentions to write about Chinese music, as I have stated, almost everything I used for reference was western, even a lot of the stuff I listened to. Maybe I just wanted to acknowledge that that’s a little racist, even though I tried not to be. Maybe I also wanted to hate on Tár and leave you with this interesting video about white supremacy in music theory.

References. Finally, we’ve reached the part I had originally intended to post, which is why I started writing this. Below are the essays and articles I used to write this fic. They were used in three ways: 1) to describe the music (though I also listened to things, see next section), 2) to inform Lan Zhan’s critiques and Wei Ying’s ideas—though I read a lot of essays to do that, just a crazy amount considering how little of the fic is actually about that, and 3) to describe the reading material Wei Ying and Lan Zhan exchange.

Music Beyond Airports – Appraising Ambient Music

This is a series of essays largely focused around Brian Eno’s Music for Airports, though there’s a lot of other stuff as well. I didn’t read everything in here, but the collection is absolutely fascinating. “Ambient House: “Little Fluffy Clouds” And The Sampler As Time Machine” is one of the “articles” Wei Ying sends Lan Zhan; meanwhile, the collection as whole is what Lan Zhan sends Wei Ying when he says he’s been reading about ambient house. Additionally, “Adaptive Game Scoring With Ambient Music” really influenced Lan Zhan’s commentary about arpeggiation, the first time he comments on Wei Ying’s music.

Counterpoint - Tracking in the Music of Aphex Twin

I have some embarrassment about this, given that the article is about counterpoint, and as I have discussed above, eastern traditional music doesn’t really employ that in the way westerners think about it. However, it’s also pretty backwards to restrict Wei Ying to traditional eastern music, as modern Chinese music includes plenty of counterpoint, and part of the point of the fic is that Wei Ying is doing entirely new things that haven’t been done before. Well. They’ve been done by Aphex Twin, as described in this piece, which also describes the first piece that Wei Ying plays for Lan Zhan in the fic, in the car. I did lift the phrase “pedagogy of counterpoint,” and could not decide whether it was long enough or significant enough to credit in the fic.

Unequal Temperament: A Review of Aphex Twin’s SYRO

I can’t remember what I used this article for. It’s an interesting read.

Reverb Machine (the entire website)

This is the site I kept returning to over and over and over again. Most of the articles about electronic really focus on either the equipment used or chords. In the fic, Lan Zhan isn’t supposed to know much about equipment or how any of it is used, because he does not do electronic music. Also, I didn’t really want to talk much about chord progressions, because those discussions are steeped in western music theory, and I wanted it to be possible for Wei Ying to be using the kind of scales traditional Chinese music used, even if a lot of modern Chinese music does use an even-tempered 12-tone scale. However, this site has a lot, and I ended up returning to it again and again so Wei Ying could say an offhand thing about reverb, and to describe certain things.

Notably, Wei Ying’s track, sex.mp3 is loosely based around Trent Reznor’s and Atticus Ross’s soundtrack to The Social Network. I haven’t even talked about Trent Reznor, but he was also someone I considered deeply when I started thinking about making Wei Ying do electronic music. In case you don’t know, Reznor was the artist behind Nine Inch Nails, but in later years he moved on to more experimental things, including movie soundtracks. Side note, movie soundtracks and video games is where a lot of these experimental artists doing either minimalism, ambient, or electronica, or a combination of all three end up, and I ended up reading a lot about video game music.

But anyway, when I saw the Social Network, I came out of it 1) admiring Aaron Sorkin and wishing I didn’t admire Aaron Sorkin because he’s kind of a douche, 2) shipping Mark and Eduardo way too much for my comfort, 3) going HOLY SHIT THAT SOUNDTRACK. Turns out I was not alone in finding that soundtrack totally different and new compared to anything I have ever heard, because as it turns out, it really was—wait for it—revolutionary. I understand that I have now said that about Glass, Eno, Radiohead, and Aphex Twin, but hey, people are doing things in music. Like I get that pop and hiphop artists are revolutionizing their genres all the time, but also it is possible for music as we know it to be redefined, and it’s not just the weird shit you hear that sounds like noise (there is a place for the weird shit that sounds like noise, and Brian Eno is closer to it than any of the above mentioned; I am not dissing weird shit that sounds like noise, because it is part of how we get where we are going).

Anyway, I used this website’s essay about The Social Network’s piece, “In Motion” to describe some of the music and inform some commentary on it.

“East Meets West: A Musical Analysis of Chinese Sights and Sounds, by Yuankai BaoSounds, by Yuankai Bao” by Jiazi Shi

This was the only essay I found that really had the extremely niche technical jargon that I really wanted for the fic that was also about Chinese music. You’ll note that it’s about a Chinese composer who is, again, famous for marrying eastern and western tradition, but this was what I could find in English, and I searched a lot. You’ll note that Lan Zhan’s very specific comment about the key change is something very directly inspired by this grad school dissertation. You’ll also note that this is where I found “Flowing Stream,” including a description of the song and the lyrics.

Music. A lot of fics like this one will link you to a specific piece that the character is playing. I could not do that, because the music in my fic is very intentionally made up. As I have been saying, the whole point is that Wei Ying is pushing the boundaries, inventing music that does not exist. So is Lan Zhan, by the end. I listened to music to inspire the descriptions, but it is not what they are playing, and almost none of it is Chinese. I’d be very interested in finding some Chinese music that is working on some of the principles of minimalism and electronic that these pieces employ.

Aphex Twin – Stone In Focus

Now you’ve come to the climax—this is really the story of how I learned to love Aphex Twin. This piece makes me cry. It’s what I used to describe the piece that has the remix of Lan Zhan’s guqin piece from 12 years ago. Obviously, the guqin piece mentioned in the fic is the canonical piece, Wangxian, but I find Wangian in the drama cheesier than I want it to be, and this Aphex Twin piece doesn’t have the Wangxian part. It’s just the sad longing part before Wangxian enters, but you’ll also notice that there are no flutes! Again, this is not the piece Wei Ying wrote; it’s just what I used for the description.

I didn’t link to the YouTube video I was watching, because the video was a collection and this didn’t come on until after minute thirteen. But that video just has this very sad tunnel that looks like maybe it’s for a train, and the rain is falling, and that makes me cry as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHl4NVytGpo&t=1074s

Book featuring Ndidi O - Hold On, I'm Coming

Wait, you’re saying, this is not electronic/house/ambient at all; this is just a trick to get me to watch one of your favorite wangxian vids! You’re right! But frankly, I was not focused on the genre when describing the music; I was focused on getting the feel of it that I wanted. The opening sequence to this was what I used to describe the track they make love to. (Lan Zhan starts making out with him and kind of slowly humping him to the track with the wangxian remix, but then Lan Zhan demands he plays something else, and this is what I listened to to get the feel for it.)

This pieces is a cover, and frankly, I can’t find out much about it. But just thinking about it turns me on and makes me cry and makes me feel so much, I can’t do it too often.

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – “In Motion,” from soundtrack to The Social Network

As noted above, this piece inspired sex.mp3, but I will say that the article I linked above about this piece, as well as the memory of the soundtrack itself, inspired descriptions more than listening to the piece itself. In the fic, sex.mp3 is initially described as “violent.” This was because I didn’t know if the track would play a big part in the fic, and then when it did, I really had to change to both to fit the meaning and the flavor I wanted; it became “anxiety inducing,” and that’s when it became “In Motion.” “In Motion,” however, is kind of too bright and peppy to really be sex.mp3, though I will say I was trying to listen to it just to write this section of the post, and I had to turn it off. It makes me SO anxious.

Philip Glass – soundtrack to The Hours

I’m linking the whole soundtrack, because in the fic Lan Zhan writes several related pieces, which is what this soundtrack is. I can’t even recommend one piece on this soundtrack, because it’s the thing as a whole that really makes you cry, and I can’t say I listened to a specific part of it to describe Lan Zhan’s music, because I know it so well that I only have to listen to a small piece to get all of it.  

Flowing Water, played by Chen Leiji

The part this played in the fic is obvious. I listened to at least five versions of Flowing Stream/Flowing Water, and this is the one that I like the best. However, like all the renditions I listened to, the piece eventually becomes pretty complex and different than I wanted for Lan Zhan. In fact, what the narration describes as “showing off technique” is what I found in all recordings of this piece. I guess if you’re going to play “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” on YouTube you’re going to do something impressive with it, but I will say this piece is still very close to what I wanted.

I will also say that when I searched for this piece, as well as several other traditional songs, the search results had a lost of stuff that said you can listen to these pieces for tranquility and calm and meditation. I suggest listening to this one as extremely passionate and longing, and you’re going to get a lot more from it. If you resign it to the background, yeah, it’s kind of nice. If you let each note really speak to you, you’re going to really ache in a beautiful way.

Brian Eno – Ambient 1, Music for Airports

After hearing so much about Eno and Music for Airports, I was a little afraid I wouldn’t like it. After all, this isn’t really my genre, and witness how long it took me to find something I liked by Aphex Twin. However, I really needed some inspiration for the piece Wei Ying composes after Lan Zhan breaks them up, so I started listening to it.

The opening to this album is not the heartbreaking thing that the fic describes. It in fact does break my heart, but that is because there is something so sweet about it, lonely and sweet, but also perfectly fine being by itself. This piece is like a child alone in a room, figuring out blocks. This piece is like a cat on a piano, content with its nonsense noise. This piece is what it’s like to be alone and to be fine with that, to love from afar and be fine with that. It still brings me to tears, listening to it.

Radiohead – Everything in its Right Place

Apparently I did not succeed in writing all the music without Radiohead. I will say it happened because I happened to be watching a TV show that just happened to use this song right when I needed something powerful. I was already thinking about them, because my BFF was listening to a podcast about In Rainbows, which explains the children shouting “Yay!” in 15 Step. I really wanted something other than rain to get sampled in Wei Ying’s music, and my brother has specifically used his children talking or his babies crying as samples. Once Lan Zhan knows about A-Yuan, I wanted to use that idea, so I listened to 15 Step again, which is far too peppy for what I needed. But then Everything In Its Right Place came on, and it’s actually way too melancholy for what I needed, but that doesn’t really matter; I just needed to get a few notes described, so this is what I used for inspiration for what Wei Ying plays Lan Zhan after he admits to being in love with him. I will just say that re-listening to this song really does remind me of just how much Kid A means to me, but also how much it means to, like, music. There was really nothing like it at the time.

-

I will end this post by saying that I am not, in fact, a "music" person. So many people need and rely on music to get them through tough times. I mostly don't care about it. I don't have a Spotify account, and I can't imagine taking the time to really curate playlists.

But one thing I can say about me and my tastes is that I'm interested in learning. I want to try new things and hear things that I haven't heard before. To be a little self-aggrandizing, I think that that's a good thing. I think it makes me a better person to work on listening to things that I'm a little unfamiliar with and learn what's great about them. I think I got to do that quite a bit writing this, even though in the end I used a lot of pieces I was familiar with to do the actual writing. I hope that maybe someone reads this and decides to listen to something new, just like I did.

[accio-victuuri]

yuguyao content is truly the gift that keeps on giving. this fandom is keeping us busy with updates from both sides, but that doesn’t mean we will forget the sweets!

this is part four. enjoy ^^

An incident that got lots of attention with cpfs, because XZ mentioned CQL in the interview. and that was because it was asked how may times he had filmed in hengdian and so he mentioned all the projects. which included cql. I must admit that it was nice hearing it from him again. 💕 not exactly proof of whatever cause we know he loves cql and wwx. It would be out of character if he leaves it out.

but of course some entertainment accounts will twist this cause apparently, we’re not the only ones “not over” CQL and their association. It’s all BS. We all know WYB’s change in Weibo has nothing to do with “contempt” for CQL.

Let me just enjoy the parallels i see popping out and the continued Shiying x LWJ examples 😌

My absolute favorite tho and what people have been interpreting is this “mindset” that he has which is similar to WYB. You may think that this applies to both life in general or romance. The answer he gave to the question in the tencent video ruxi interview in particular. How it compares to his 2019 answer about a similar question. He is still the same stubborn XZ!

2019: "For what he thinks is right, and for the people he loves, he can work hard regardless of everything" "This is also the person I want to be."

2021: (Knowing the established destiny, will I still choose the same)" I'd love to say I will. " " But it's going to be hard work, but I'm still doing it."

So the connection people are getting at is, in the story of YGY, he knows that Zhu Yan will be the one that kills him but he still goes and falls for her. That’s just the kind of person that he is irl too isn’t it? Not saying that WYB is his Zhu Yan but the same theme as loving someone ( everyone says ) you shouldn’t. If you believe in SZD, you have to admit that ZZ can have anyone he wants. He can choose the easy route and just let go of WYB but he didn’t. They are both committed to each other and continue to stay in love despite all the noise. Same goes with WYB, how he said, “ love is like this. you can’t help it” . It’s like they don’t care what people say their “fate” will be, loving each other is a conscious choice.

They are both logical people when it comes to life and their career but when it comes to love — they really follow their heart.

The same persistence even when things get tough is a trait they both have. This is why they still continue to be relevant years after CQL.

I found this comment on one of the posts and I wanna scream cause it’s true. I’m sure that if asked, ZZ will say yes. Didn’t he say that if can re-shoot CQL, he will do all the scenes again? 😌

I’m also cackling at this part cause he now knows what it feels like to play that cold character like LWJ.

One of my feelings at the time was that you must not play him as a face, because the truth is that I really don’t want to play this kind of cold character. Most of them don’t have too many expressions. What is conveyed in front of the camera will make the audience feel like a person with facial paralysis. The audience won't believe it.

Which is the exact same fear WYB had to the point that he panics in some scenes cause what can he do when he can’t show much expressions. I’m here clowning about them talking about ZZ should play Shiying, probably WYB giving him tips. Do you think ZZ rewatched CQL and watched his Lan Zhan? LOL. I imagine WYB will get jealous 😂😂😂😂

Shi ying’s animal form also has a mole under it’s lip and yes it has always been ZZ’s “thing” even before WYB met him. However i think that WYB was the one who really put emphasis on it and add the heart with a mole onto that. Especially the “.” that XZ even started adding to his art signature.

for reference: part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 3.5

END.

[runespoor7]

chengqing

What made you ship it?

Back then we were thinking about people to ship JC with, and WQ existed. Since then, Untamed gave our little crackship food. And since then I also started OTPing Chengxian and the core transfer has been a object of easy fixation. It would be inaccurate to say that I started shipping Chengqing because I started shipping Chengxian. But I certainly ship Chengqing through a certain amount of WWX feelings - not only Chengxian, in fact.

What are your favorite things about the ship?

sometimes a mad scientist performs a secret, impossible experiment on someone who doesn't know what's going on and they get together afterwards, and suddenly there's this huge, grotesque thing between them.

I think they should kink on it, but I also think JC would deal very badly indeed with WQ's involvement in the gc transfer. (in my mind she doesn't tell him until she has no choice/it comes out.) I can't overstate how much I adore the kink (in a wide sense) potential between them.

they get one another, about duty and family and keeping the people you care for close and safe and not trusting easily.

also - this is notably less my thing - but I think they'd be good at taking of one another when they're not tearing each other apart for the heavy topics (they agree on duty, but that doesn't mean it would never come up in a bad argument, and the core transfer reframes everything there - suddenly wq has very little room to argue about her dutifulness! you were rearming a direct enemy of your sect babe! you were 100% betraying your sect!)(unless: and I think this is juicy: unless WQ explains that she expected JC to die after the core transfer. no JC with a core, no betrayal.)

and yes also chengqingxian, or at least wq and wwx being besties.

also very into the age-gap between them. she's older! she's already respected and established and a wordly grown-up! it's not relevant to post-canon chengqing except as a contrast to how things were back then, which is still very interesting, but in a canon divergence where the Wen siblings go to Lotus Pier, or sth like that, I really like the idea/image of WQ's crush on JC. it's funny and it's cute and look I think JC should get a win. The win in this case is WQ horny-clamping her jaw and respecting him. his brains. while looking disrespectfully.

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

...this is very dependent of "what-ifs" but: I don't think JC would be totally okay with WQ and WWX's relationship.

He's deeply insecure when it comes to people loving him, and WWX betrayed his trust and convinced WQ to go along with it. (in Untamed it's made worse by the fact that JC and WQ already knew one another.) For me, WWX and WQ get one another to a level that other characters don't, I'm only 10% kidding when I call them soulmates, and imo JC would not be able to deal with that very well unless it's solved in Chengqingxian. (which I think he'd shoulder better because they're both here; if WWX is with LWJ it's... it's not exactly YZY while JFM is thinking of WCZ and CSS, but something like that. to me. I do think he'd be jealous.)

less unpopular than it seemed at one time, but bears repeating that it's fine for WQ to neither peg nor dom JC. I mean I'm failing to write that but I think WQ needs and wants to be pampered from time to time. Otoh I also think she's a lot more likely than WWX to tell JC what she needs, since her self-image isn't all twisted up in being better-than-jc at all times.

I clearly didn't try hard enough to keep WWX out of this answer.😔

[phneltwrites]

fic writer meme

I was tagged by @ziusik <3

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

between my two pseuds, 132. I started posting end of 2018 and i orphaned 1 fic so that's everything

2. what's your total ao3 wordcount?

996,548 words

3. what fandoms do you write for?

Right now various Thai BL, mostly offgun, and I'm on the docket for a DCU fic for a pal who won me in a raffle

4. what are your top 5 fics by kudos?

the top 17 of my most kudosed are all MDZS wangxian, what a powerful fandom (then a witcher then a leverage)

Love Is More Than Telling Me You Want It - the omegaverse big gender feels one

Yeah I Know How You Like It - wwx gets telepathy and lwj is horny then touching about it. love every time i get a comment on this that's like this is a pwp why am i crying. hehe

your persuasions - lwj has a big dick and wwx is a san francisco based high tech software programmer. they fuck about it

the earthquake in the room - alternate universe Canada modern university fic. In which lwj does not make wwx toast

wild for your skin - canonverse pwp

from this i suppose that most people are pretty disappointed when i update and it isn't smut

5. do you respond to comments?

always! I feel like fandom is this thing we're making together and when people reach out to me I reach back and in that way we both add stitches to the tapestry that is the community

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I think most of my fics have a hopeful ending. So it might be Verbs are a Tragedy the Captain Marvel Carol/Maria fic about Maria grieving. Or wait! maybe the Never Let Me Go fic because it ends right before you know that Chopper is about to get his heart broken. Or the John Wick fic about Helen cause you know she dies later and isn't able to keep her promise of helping John leave the business? Ok maybe I do have some angsty endings.

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

ha what is happy. Maybe the Leverage fic where Eliot has to pretend to be married to Hardison even though they are exes and that one ends with him proposing to Parker and Hardison and them being happy together

8. do you get hate on fics?

Rarely. Not usually hate at me but sometimes my fics make people pretty angry. I don't love it when people yell at the fic. the funniest though is getting an angry bookmark on a fic that i turned comments off of cause people were angry. like you do you in the bookmarks but lmao

9. do you write smut?

do i ever

10. do you write crossovers? what's the craziest one you have written?

I write fusions and crossovers! My wildest crossover is a 5x fic about Fezzik and Inigo from the princess bride meeting different other characters which actually might be the angstiest one now that I think about it because their last section is them going to the grey havens from lotr so they can sail into the west together. they also party with phryne fisher

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

i think only onto wattpad

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, and it's so cool!

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

Twice! One time on a leverage fic and it taught me how to use semi colons and also write introspection, a lesson i have forgotten and one time lesbian beach volleyball porn with a friend.

14. what's your all time favorite ship?

uhhhh oh no. they're all my favourites. of the ships i've written... no can't do it.

15. what is a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I dream of finishing my pacific rim x avatar fusion with mdzs. the worldbuilding was so much fun.

Everything else I think I've comprehensively abandoned in drafts. rip carol and maria having fun in space, jon and tormund going to winterfell, and the shl ocean's 11 au oh shit also the fic where wwx was adopted into the nie sect and it changes very little in some ways. Otherwise I tend to finish things I'm kind of a robot

16. what are your writing strengths?

smut and extended metaphors

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

description, romance, tenses, character introspection. i also think my sentence level writing is not that strong

18. thoughts of writing dialogue in another language in fics?

do whatever you want forever

19. first fandom you wrote for?

leverage! my first fanfic is on ao3 for that show. though technically i did a creative writing exercise where nietzsche and the librarian from a Borges short story hooked up as a class assignment in university so idk i guess maybe literary rpf

20. favorite fic you have written?

uhhhhh. i genuinely don't know. they're all their own little thing. im more interested in hearing which of my fics are other people's faves

tagging @idrilka @defractum @daltoneering @giraffeter @ginnymoonbeam

[fincalinde]

qi rong! i kid, i kid. how about jc.

I will ignore your cruel taunting and focus on my viniferous darling.

a song that reminds me of them

I don't think I have a personal anthem for him, but En Fortapt Bror (A Prodigal Brother) by Rotvelt would probably go on the playlist if I made one, just for this bit alone:

Kan ikke ta det tilbake Kan ikke få du gjort Jeg vil ikke ha tilgivelse Det vil ikke vaske det bort

Can't take it back Can't get you done I don't want forgiveness It won't wash it away

what they smell like

If we're getting poetic, like lotus fragrance and ozone.

an otp

No one in the cast is right for JC but I do think he wants and deserves a suitable wife so I like the idea of reading something where he's in a relationship. His problem is that he needs just, so much therapy before he can make an effective life partner for anyone. He features in this postcanon AU I wrote and that's a reasonable depiction of how I think things could shake out for him after many years have passed if he's worked on himself. Basically, I know his extracanonical list of qualities he requires in a wife is meant to be humorous, but I tried to incorporate them into an OC while also making her a match for him.

I dabbled in reading Sangcheng because I am a slave to @starwife and like, in theory, many many many many many years postcanon who knows what might happen? And mightn't that be interesting? Sadly I have come to the conclusion that it's too much of a stretch and isn't my cup of tea. Pls forgive

a notp

I was racking my brain to think of a JC pairing I kneejerk hate beyond the general 'well, he isn't really compatible with any of the characters we meet' stance and then I realised I had forgotten Xicheng exists. Pause for audience laughter.

What can I even add here? It's based on nothing and it's not even like there's the intelligence of a thoughtful resistant read behind it. The laziest possible pair the spares approach taken by people whose reading comprehension is so poor they think JGY is an irredeemable cackling villain and WWX is a noble woobie. Thankfully it's easy for me to avoid and therefore ironically ends up irritating me less than bad Xiyao in practice.

favorite platonic/familial relationships

I love his relationship with his mother. She's just horrendous to him and I don't think he ever has any concrete evidence she loves him until their final moments together, but what I find most interesting and realistic is that he seems to understand her. He can see why she is who she is, which doesn't in any way mitigate the damage she does but is an important part of their dynamic because it's an element of why he defends her and it contributes to how he internalises her criticisms.

My favourite JC and YZY moment is this:

Jiang Cheng was stuck between his father and his mother. After a moment of hesitation, he moved to his mother’s side. Holding his shoulders, Madam Yu pushed him forward for Jiang FengMian to see, “Sect Leader Jiang, it seems that some things I have to say. Look carefully—this, is your own son, the future head of Lotus Pier. Even if you frown upon him just because I was the one who bore him, his surname is still Jiang! … I don’t believe for one second that you haven’t heard of how the outside people gossips, that Sect Leader Jiang has still not moved on from a certain Sanren though so many years have passed, regarding the son of his old friend as a son of his own; they’re speculating if Wei Ying is your…”

YZY emotionally, verbally and sometimes physically abuses her son. She is failing him as a mother and as a mentor. But she is not failing him as badly as JFM is failing him, and everything she says here is completely correct. And when JC and WWX talk about it afterwards, JC is also correct. WWX and LWJ kill the Xuanwu of Slaughter and no one cares or gives JC credit for his less glamorous contributions. His own father prefers WWX and doesn't even like him, and that is appalling.

WWX means well by trying to gloss over it, but it's an open secret and pretending it's not true is harmful. YZY is also going about it all wrong, but she's the only person who calls JFM out directly for failing his son. Pot, kettle, but there's a reason why when JC is stuck between his parents he ends up going over to his mother's side.

a headcanon that is popular in the fandom but that i disagree with

I'm going to go radical here and say I don't personally enjoy or want to read any postcanon Twin Heroes reconciliation. The novel is pretty final about how things end up for them, and it's my belief that they are both far better off not being in each other's lives any more. It's sad because they were close as brothers and love each other so deeply, but ultimately it's for the best. They both appear to be in agreement about this.

the position they sleep in

Probably looks all super cool and handsome when he sleeps, but unfortunately not quite as super cool and handsome as WWX.

a crossover au i’d love to see them in

Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Can you imagine.

my favorite outfit they’ve ever worn

We all know I'm MDZS first in almost everything, but I'm not a huge fan of JC's hair in the official art. Besides, it cracks me up that JC is far and away the most stylish member of the cast in CQL, and yet there's no indication that it's actually an interest of his. CQL NHS wearing his same basic bitch grey and white yet again while CQL JC swaggers past in his shoulder pads owning the entire world—amazing. How could I pick a favourite? I do like his official photo look though, because the gold looks great with the purple.

[oikawa-tooru]

Hello.....if you don't mind me asking, who are your favorite romantic relationship's couples in books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series (can be canon or non-canon)? Why you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks...

ooo this is such a great question anon! thanks for asking, bud, i've never got this before! Since this question was sent to my animanga blog, i'm going to just answer about couples in fandoms i rb on here!

Even though it seems like I go hard for non-canon couples (which believe me I do), there are so many canon couples that I actually love with my entire heart:

hak/yona (akatsuki no yona)

even though i still have to catch up to this manga, this couple has owned my heart since the moment they appeared on page. they are the definition of a true power couple who will go to the ends of the world to save one another. they throw themselves into danger just so the other can have the chance of safety. they've got one another's back through everything and anything. they will yell at one another but hold hands together side by side as they stand staring down their enemies. i just love how hak inspires yona to stand on her own and yona inspires hak to see the value in himself.

sakura/syaoran (cardcaptor sakura)

they're one of my top three childhood couples. they are just adorable and precious and they deserve only good things ever. they are just children who don't deserve to shoulder so much on their shoulders and yet they do it with minimal complaining. they are there for one another, especially through the hardest moments. he's her pillar and she's his heart. also they jumpstarted my pink x green shipping and i will always love them so much.

inuyasha/kagome (inuyasha)

they are also one of my top three childhood couples. they are everything. inuyasha sees the strength in kagome's compassion when she doesn't see it herself and kagome sees the softness in inuyasha's toughness that he doesn't let others see. they are one of the it couples. they fight, push one another to the edge, and bring one another back without another word. inuyasha's unwavering belief in kagome allows her to grow into a fucking warrior of a girl because his strength keeps her going and growing. kagome accepts all of inuyasha, which is huge for him because he's been accepted by neither world because he's never been enough for either world. but there comes kagome, not giving a shit about the worlds beliefs and going with what she believes in and that's him. it's beautiful.

lan wangji/wei wuxian (mo dao zu shi)

i'm going to cheat here because i haven't finished watching the anime but i have read the novel and watched the live-action show. i have been shipping them ever since i watched the show first because anyone who knows me knows that i love the red x blue ship aesthetic. i love how they went from strangers to friends to enemies (but not really) to lovers. it's a classic trope and i will always love it. the fact that lwj recognized wwx when he came back?? that's true love. lwj is there to support wwx when he doesn't want anyone to see him falling and wwx is there to break down lwj's world, to show that there's more to the world than just blindly following rules. the fact that they went from star-crossed lovers to being married is just the best thing ever. they are filled with all the angst AND they get their happy ending.

On to my non-canon couples (they are kept alive in my heart thanks to ao3):

dabihawks (boku no hero academia)

i will say that i have dropped bnha for now (unless two characters die, in which case i'll definitely pick it back up) but that being said, the fact that dabi grew up the child of a hero and turned to villainy while hawks grew up the child of a criminal and turned to heroism? this shit is so poetic. they are parallel lines moving in the opposite direction, ships in the night, opposites attract in such a hellish way. not only is their aesthetic red vs. blue but it's also angel vs. devil - the hero with the wings bathed in the colour of blood vs. the villain with the flames bathed in the colour of the sky. they've got an apollo/icarus vibe that i love so much. there's so much mutual destruction and they had so much potential to be even more insane than they already are.

soukoku (bungou stray dogs)

they are probably my otp of otp's right now, the ones that really kicked the whole red/blue shipping out of control for me. they are idiotic strangers to idiotic frenemies to idiotic enemies to idiotic partners forever. it's so poetic to me that dazai's ability is named no longer human and yet he's the one to bring back chuuya's humanity to him. i just really love that chuuya, who feels so brutally human so much of the time, hosts a god of calamity and can only be brought back to himself by dazai's touch. like point me to a better lvoe story than that? you can't because they are the epitome of catastrophic love. they don't judge one another's actions because they understand one another better than anyone else can. they are each other's weakness and each other's strength. they will destroy one another before anyone else can get the chance.

[isabilightwood]

5-4-3-2-1 Fic retrospective + resolutions!

Tagged by @wrecklwj Thank you! 💕💜

Post the following: 

top 5 works you’re most proud of that you released in 2022 (not necessarily your most popular, and non-ao3 works count!)

your top 4 current WIPs that you’re excited to release in the new year

your top 3 biggest improvements in your writing over the past year

your top 2 resolutions (ways you wish to improve your writing/blog) for the new year

and your number 1 favorite line you’ve written in 2022! 

Tagging @spookykingdomstarlight @fapamir @rubberduckieassassin @tapiokay @habibinasir and anyone who wants to participate 🥰

My answers below the cut!

Top 5 works you’re most proud of that you released in 2022

1. sweet beneath sharp edges - (CQL/MDZS) Light horror murder mystery monsterfucking rom com in jazz age Shanghai. This one was, ngl, very difficult to pull off. It took a lot of research, less on broader history of China in that period (which I was familiar with) but the details, like had flash bulbs and washing machines been invented yet? What flowers and fruits and vegetables should be growing at that time of year? And I think the result was pretty fun! 2. inevitable everything - (CQL) Pretend war prize but the self-arranged marriage is real. Wangxian can admit their attraction to each other, but not their feelings. Cue the pining while fucking (+ Plot). I'm happy with how it turned out -- I felt like the characters' emotions landed where I wanted them to and writing a 194k fic in a year was just a big accomplishment in general (one that I will not be repeating this year for my own sanity 😅) 3. doing the wrong thing wholeheartedly - (CQL/MDZS) modern cultivation with rivals to lovers and truly wacky worldbuilding decisions about dragons. This fic made me feel positively gleeful while writing it -- there's really something to be said for writing specifically to an audience of yourself! 4. something wicked - (CQL/MDZS) modern with magic coffee shop au. WWX's a witch who helps the living sort out their lives and the dead move on, LWJ's just been turned into a talking bunny. The curse can only be broken by True Love's Kiss -- but they're both convinced they've just been rejected. I actually struggled a lot with this one, sat on it for months, begged help from @/luckymarrow before I felt comfortable releasing it. I like the final version quite a bit, and it really seems to have made people happy, which is always my goal

5. red strings and eager hands - (MDZS/CQL) canon divergence where WWX believes LWJ has betrayed him, and LWJ responds by stripping. Written for jing's gorgeous art! It was a bit of a challenge to write LWJ's feelings during the smut, and that was very much a good thing for my writing! This was another one that was a lot of fun to write and I love the outcome!

Top 4 current WIPs that you’re excited to release in the new year

I only have 2 active WIPs right now but --

YLLZ!Wen Qing! This one's been living in my head for over a year, slowly growing from an initial idea Wen Qing with ghost girls to vague concept of what if JGS and WRH's roles were swapped and the Jiang were allied with the Jin to mostly outlined with 10k on the page. I'm very excited to write Wangxian in a secret relationship that puts WWX in an impossible position re: saving the Jiang siblings, an angsty slow burn for Wen Qing and Mianmian, and some very creepy monsters

My Bottomji Big Bang fic! Which I cannot talk about, but will be very in line with my typical nonsense 😆

I have thoughts on a something wicked prequel about Wangxian becoming friends when LWJ could newly see ghosts. They are just thoughts so far

A something wicked where WWX is trying to help a pair of starcrossed lovers get together, and LWJ is just trying to get railed on their anniversary. This is also just thoughts

Top 3 biggest improvements in your writing over the past year

Atmosphere - particularly in sweet beneath sharp edges, which was a bit of a stylistic challenge

Visual detail - I feel like I've improved on how I describe settings, appearance, etc and choosing when to do so with less disruption of the flow of the story

Smut - I've written a lot more variety in my smut scenes in 2022 and (I think) gotten better at getting them to flow

Top 2 resolutions

Take my next long fic at a slower pace instead of pushing myself to complete it. 2022 was busy, but 2023 is likely to be even more so and I don't want to burn myself out over something I do for fun

Write what makes me happy!

Number 1 favorite line you’ve written in 2022!

I was seduced by music and conversation and kindness in the sunlight.

[llycaons]

ep44 (2/2): not that I like him but the antagonism towards su she seems a little classist

why did wwx terrify children for fun lol. more importantly, why did wen ning go along with it? he seemed intentionally intimidating. I don't think he wants to be seen that way

anyway wwx bemoaning the fact that he can't strike fear into children's hearts is so funny. like he doesn't want to be blamed for everything going wrong but he DOES want to be seen and respected and maybe even feared for his power. and actually I get that. he is super powerful and he's been disrespected by the kids for weeks

oh yeah, again they have the same skin tone BUT lwj is shinier. must have something to do with the lighting or makeup

omg my favorite minor character, Female Cultivator With Dirt on Her Face. you can tell she's an antagonist because of the. because of the dirt

aww I forgot this. good old ozz, standing up for wwx. jgy's plan was quite bad honestly because if he starts shit and blames wwx then all wwx has to do is show up to prove his innocence by saving the kids. saving children is the number one way to rehabilitate your image. also sect leader ouyang's hanfu is tight as fuck

CLASSIC NHS LINE

who tf is this and why is he named. who cares. would be funnier if we wasn't named

aw sweet we got a visual of lwj standing with wwx against the world. well, another one

SWEET hanfu my leige

wwx shouting and pointing at the jins: THERE CAN'T BE ANYONE ELSE!!! LOOK!!! THEY'RE THE BAD GUYS!!!

this section of the show always felt kind of awkward and pointless to me. just a lot of people yelling and wwx not liking it very much and also lwj is there

uh oh. that wwx expression...oof. when you still really care about someone even though they've hurt you really badly and don't want anything to do with you and you feel guilty for what happened between you but you also can't stand how they treat you. and they're bleeding in front of you. anyway he jumps in to protect him

lqr too! lwj jumps right in as defense. I don't think his relationship with lqr is actually too complex. lwj doesn't deal well in vagueness or uncertainty. he defied his uncle and will do so again, and certainly disagrees with him about things, but he still respects him and cares about him as an elder and as his uncle

and look...a wen saving them. the irony

locked in a room with no spiritual energy and the yiling laozu, who says this to you. everyone's worst nightmare

nhs is bleeding?! I don't know if we've EVER seen that. he keeps out of danger pretty well

also, he's pushing the narrative into wwx's hands.

THIS TO SU SHE 😭 he's so polite too with his 'allow me to ask a question' then so rude even if unintentionally lmao

rly embodying the teacher role here.

lwj's love language is acts of violence, as petty a misuse of power it may be. you know that quote from bottoms? it's so them

lqr either likes ljy or hates ss because ljy did NOT quiet down about criticizing the su sect and he's right next to lqr and only lsz chastised him

okay I do not like su she but the fact that people hate him for 'copying the lans' is so fucking stupid. if he wants to found his own sect, what else is he going to do? he has the skills the lans taught him, of course that's his basis. in criticizing him so harshly, the lans come off as petty and really insecure for a rich and established clan. and this in the screenshot...THEY started in on HIM. the man was just defending himself. as soon as he complains about the disrespect, suddenly they're all 'well we have to be civil!' I swear this series makes really good point about classism with wwx but then it turns around and uncritically reinforces gentry hatred of lower classes by making characters like su she jealous antagonists who just aren't good enough to respect

anywayt. I always liked how wwx turns his back on everyone to ask lwj something. he gets all quiet and intimate

ohhh neat idiom

I love wwx verbally demolishing antagonists so much. he's that bitch

this is smart tho. like this is what I'm saying. granted betraying the sect was bad but he was a teenager and like he's shat on and disrespected for his entire life for not being very talented or original I guess when I KNOW there's gotta be untalented cultivators in other wealthy sects that still have a place in the cultivation world. but like he's SMART he figured that this would work and it DID.

here's nhs pushing the narrative for wwx again, helpfully verbalizing his thought process so everyone else gets it quicker.

personal highlights:

lwj's smiles in the very beginning of this episode were so nice

mm family <3

wwx's radiant gorgeous smile when looking at toys with lwj

wwx's moment remembering the wens, and his decision to let the past go with that beautiful scene of letting the dirt pour out

Lady with Dirt on Her Face my favorite minor antagonist

all the gathered cultivators' sick threads

wwx's 'why don't we have a chat' and his polite rudeness and his teaching voice

nhs nudging things along

everyone like 'noooo don't be divisive' once su she starts insulting the lans after first BEING insulted by them. come on guys

[admirableadmiranda]

I like the contents under your blog tag, "wei wuxian is our guiding light" on the bright side I see so much wwx positivity. and on a bitter side I see people comparing wwx to JGY and XY. Sighs, smh. Tsk tsk. How can y'all compare this best uncle and one of the best person in the world of MDZS to scum who laughed while killing people. Was there ever a narrative where where WWX laughed when he killed people? No, but what was there was anger. How about jgy? XY? smh. People keep villainizing (is that a word?) wwx and uplifts XY and jgy just coz they did something good. What good did XY even do? Pray tell. Was it because he felt sorry that xxc died? Is that even good? He basically fooled the person for idk how long and drove him to kill his bff. bruh. JGY? He gave jl a pet? Later on he ordered the dog be killed and implied that he'll do something to the kid. This reminds me of that one law of physics. for every action taken there's an opposite reaction(?) Is that the whole quote? Dayum I wish I can be like WWX who can ignore insults. Even tho technically I wasn't the one insulted

.

.

You know what, I love MXTX. I love the way she writes. Everything is subtle you have to learn to read between lines. You have to see thing from another perspective. Sometimes I wonder what could happen if mxtx didn't write mdzs the way she did.... I think mdzs is great the way it is tho. I love WWX. I love that he has LWJ. They deserve each other. I love them.

Thank you anon. That is one of my favorite tags that I've ever created. And yeah, you've really hit the nail on the head on the differences. People really do villainize Wei Wuxian to lift up the actual antagonists of the story and explain away their actions as viable and valid when the story itself condemns them. It can be depressing at times. It would be easier if we could tune them out as Wei Wuxian does, but at least there's the block button.

I adore MXTX and her writing so much. She's really good at telling stories, building compelling characters and weaving narratives that hold up so well you can't just casually poke holes in them. She makes you stop and think about what you're reading as you're reading it. I too, think MDZS is great the way it is. Wei Wuxian is fantastic, Lan Wangji is fantastic and I love them so much.

Thanks for the great post!

[wutheringheightsfilm]

right back atcha wei wuxian!!!! and hm! jiang yanli!!

YAYYY

wei wuxian

My first impression:

he's everything to me

My impression now:

HE'S STILL EVERYTHING TO ME!! protagonist of all time

Favorite thing about that character:

i love his confidence, his righteousness, his intelligence!!! he literally is so fucking smart and i just really love how he saw the way cultivation society functioned, how it was designed to uplift him only when he served them, and decided to say fuck all that i'm going to do the right thing and did it. ugh

Least favorite thing:

nothing but my least favorite thing about how a lot of fans write him is that they will write him as being overly insecure when in canon he honestly isn't. is he repressing his emotions? sure. does he have a bit of a self sacrificing complex? yes. but is he insecure about himself to the point of thinking he never deserves any love ever? no. like i don't mind this per se it just gets very tiring when fic after fic stylizes wei wuxian this way AND it's usually coupled with making him extremely immature. it just gets so tired

Favorite line/scene:

IT HAS TO BE THE SIEGE.... HOW CHEAP YOUR ADMIRATION WAS!!!

Favorite interaction that character has with another:

of course the "who do you take me for?" "i once thought of you as my zhiji" "i still am" is the most iconic scene of anything forever. but i also really love the one scene where wei wuxian is sitting on the steps and wen qing sits next to him... it's so good

A character that I wish that character would interact with more:

MIANMIAN... i really do think they would be bestie boos if mxtx didn't hate women

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character:

in my mind i have a very specific web weaving post that i have yet to actually make online that web weaves heathcliff from wuthering heights and wei wuxian together. don't worry it all makes sense TO ME

A headcanon about that character:

even outside of cql and the fact xiao zhan is a singer, i think wei wuxian sings to himself like, all the time. i think he's always making noise. he's either singing or talking to himself like, all the time. it helps him think

A song that reminds of that character:

so so many but i'll narrow it down to just one. mercury by sleeping at last

An unpopular opinion about that character:

this wouldve gotten me guillotined back in the day before cql aired but i am team wei wuxian and lan wangji are the same height forever and ever. i also think they're both vers and now THAT'S unpopular

Favorite picture:

i currently have this as a widget on my phone...

OKAYYY jiang yanli time!!!

My first impression:

omg she's so sweet i love her

My impression now:

omg she's just like me fr

Favorite thing about that character:

HER PATIENCE. if i was her i would've blown up lotus pier by age 18 to be quite honest

Least favorite thing:

the fact that mxtx fridged her so hard it's insane. i guess it's thematically relevant to the story that she dies but i refuse to accept that tbh. also when fans in the fandom insist that jiang yanli can't be sect leader because that's "girlbossifying her" wait til they find out she doesn't have to 1) fight violently to be a sect leader and it doesn't mean she has to change her entire personality to do it and 2) chronically ill characters can still hold leadership positions isn't that crazy.

Favorite line/scene:

oh definitely her confronting jin zixun at the golden banquet like she was legenderic for that

Favorite interaction that character has with another:

any time her and wei wuxian interact with each other is the best thing on planet earth idgaf. also that one singular conversation she had with lan wangji... in my mind i've spun it into jyl and lwj being best friends and i hate to see that isn't canon

A character that I wish that character would interact with more:

literally any other woman. also in my fic i have her, nmj, and lxc being friends and i wish that was canon too

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character:

hmm this is hard...she sort of reminds me of fuuka yamagishi from persona 3 !

A headcanon about that character:

my most famous headcanon that spurred me to write a fic about it is that she only became so good at cooking in order to avoid arguments with her parents

A song that reminds of that character:

everything's alright from jesus christ superstar but specifically the sara bareilles version

An unpopular opinion about that character:

i feel like very few people in the fandom actually understand her. like yes she's chronically ill and sensitive and quiet but that doesn't mean she can't do things like hold leadership positions or stand up for herself. everyone seems to think that just because mxtx wrote her with the women belong in the kitchen vibe that means everyone needs to take that word as law and never have her be an active participant in her own life. it's very tiring and very fucking annoying.

Favorite picture:

i love her in this scene so so so much!

THANK U FOR ASKING MY BELOVED LIEUTENANT!!!

[faery-snow]

I posted 1,354 times in 2022

That's 1 more post than 2021!

13 posts created (1%)

1,341 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@accio-victuuri

@rainbowsky

@starsxinxthexbluexsky

@wwx-lwj-ai-ni

@theusernameiwantedwastakenlol

I tagged 1,341 of my posts in 2022

Only 1% of my posts had no tags

#the untamed - 463 posts

#cql - 249 posts

#wangxian - 241 posts

#yizhan - 203 posts

#mdzs - 195 posts

#xiao zhan - 184 posts

#wang yibo - 166 posts

#lol - 106 posts

#beautiful - 78 posts

#cql cast - 72 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#pretty sure it was yibo since in a post-filming cql promo interview xiao zhan was asked if anything good had happened to him bc of the role

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

It's from the show couple of mirrors and it's a wlw show! It's really cool! You can find it on youtube under 'couple of mirrors'.

I HAVE JUST FINISHED IT AND IT’S AMAZING!!!!

Republican-era China: 1930s style and swag and even some boogying. It starts out looking like it’s going to be a family drama, but quickly gains murderous edges. O_O

It covers emotional abuse and gaslighting. It shows a woman who sticks to her convictions even when the world is against her. It shows a world where children belong to the one who births them. It has epic 1930s spy movie vibes.And yes, the lesbians both get a happy ending.

It’s on Youtube and Amazon Prime. It is a must-see.

Thank you so much for telling me about this, anon. You are a star <3

3 notes - Posted March 8, 2022

#4

Being in the MDZS fandom means 🌄 morning sex and 🪦 mourning sex are both viable tags and you'll never know if the author mistyped until you read the fic

6 notes - Posted October 20, 2022

#3

Best Independent News re: China

Guys, I love the news site What's On Weibo. I use it to keep up with the larger mind of Chinese society and where it's at. How they feel about their government's handling of "Zero Covid" lockdowns. The events in Tangshan where several women were beaten by men in a restaurant, and how netizens reacted. What shows and movies are big hits right now.

Everything from the heavy to the light, current news to social movements to entertainment.

I particularly like that their articles are about the people, not the government. You get the broader view, seeing how the people aren't a homogenous group agreeing with the PRC, but rather a patchwork of many beliefs and views and thoughts and voices.

I highly recommend What's On Weibo to other international fans of Chinese culture, entertainment, etc.. They're one of my favorite independent news orgs that has reliable info about China, and which lacks the typical Western bias against all things Chinese.

Personally, I'm a very satisfied reader. They're currently free of outside influence--no political or commercial groups funding them, no larger news org controlling them. They're looking for independent funding from readers so they can continue in that vein.

Anyone interested in supporting independent coverage of China, look no further :)

7 notes - Posted October 5, 2022

#2

The "cool girl" Liu Yuxin

I emerged from a haze of doctors' appointments (seeing medical specialists every 5.3 days for the last 2 months and yes I looked at my calendar and then used a calculator to figure that out STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT)--to watch the first episode of SDC season 5!

I'm using the method of watching the non-subbed full episode and the subbed talking-only bits simultaneously, switching back and forth between them on my computer. Which sucks, yes, but the Youku app didn't work for me. The talking-only portion isn't actually all of the talking, which sucks further. I'll rewatch when the full subbed episode is available.

I cracked up when Liu Yuxin talked about being apparently "cold" and unreactive.

Just like Yibo has been accused of in the past, lol! A bland smile, or no expression at all, that's her default. She's very calm and level about things. I like that about her a lot.

Of course, being told you're not emotive lands very differently for a woman* than for a man. Luckily, they don't make a big/gendered deal of it, just some light ribbing from the interviewer/editing team--no different than we've seen Yibo get for his same lack of effusion.

*I'm using woman and she/her for her because that's what she goes by in entertainment circles. In her personal life, she may be an androgynous woman or she may identify as nonbinary, I don't know. But that's the thing: I don't know. I don't want to make assumptions of queerness (although maybe we ought, since we make assumptions of straightness and cisness all the time).

Just like Yibo, of course, she has her moments of surprising emotion. When she sees a particularly awesome move, for example. She's very cool and I'm a little in love with her.

See the full post

15 notes - Posted September 23, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

WWX: I have this idea--

LWJ: That is the stupidest idea I have heard.

LWJ: I will come with you.

-later-

LWJ: I feel like I am doing something dumb by being here.

WWX: Then why are you still here?

LWJ: I did not say I minded.

WWX, having a revelation: I'm dumb, do me.

*stupid idea promptly abandoned*

51 notes - Posted April 28, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[wangxianficfinder]

Fic Finder

~*~

1. Hi! Thank you so much for your hard work! I have two FF requests, and a questiln I'm not sure where would it fit...

A) I read a story not long ago, but the scene I actually remember is Yunmeng siblings and LWJ are together at Lotus Pier, and WWX has A-Yuan, and somehow they are talking about tucking him in bed, and WWX asks if that's really a thing, JC says WWX saw his mother doing it with him, but WWX says he thought he would be in trouble, so he just pretended to sleep when she came in.

B) this is female WWX, I think, because it isn't mpreg. she and LWJ find A-Yuan and love him, there is a scene where WWX talks about sicrificing for JC, because his family gave her everything, and LWJ tells her A-Yuan better be strong, because he will hace to sicrifice himself fr their biological children, and WWX understands why what she said is wrong. And my question! Coould mods please recommend their favorite authors? Thanks a lot! (I will put your question in the next ITMF post ^^ - Mod C)

1A)

FOUND? For Both Of Us (And Time Is But A Paper Moon) by sami (E, 65k, WangXian, Time Travel, Some People Live/Not Everyone Dies, Fix-It, Hurt/Comfort, Healing, Yunmeng Shuangjie, Canon Divergence, Asexual JC, First Time, Getting Together, BAMF JC, BAMF LWJ)

1B)

FOUND? Quiet Night Thought by Starlitverses (Not Rated, 64k, WangXian, Female LWJ, het wangxian, Arranged Marriage, Canon Divergence, let lwj have friends agenda, lwj and mianmian and wq and jyl friendship, LWJ and NHS friendship, slightly less oblivious wangxian, Mutual Pining, YZY Bashing, Bad Parent YZY, LWJ-centric Protective LWJ, Protective WWX, Golden Core Transfer Fix-It, WangXian Get a Happy Ending, Scheming NHS, Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies) Hi! I knew #1, B on last fic finder sounded kind of familiar... it is Quiet Night Thought by Starlitverses, but it is actually LWJ who is a girl

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2. Hi! Hope you're doing well. I was searching for a fic where most of the characters got engaged at a young age and one of the pairings is huaisang/wen xu? WRH agreed for amusement at first and like later tries to reverse it during their Cloud Recesses years. I think most of their parents were alive also? Thanks <3

#2 sounds familiar. The one I vaguely recall was a wangxian time travel, I think both arrived as children and they have an early betrothal. And with all the visiting it become A Thing for heirs and all to travel from sect to sect learning together. Baby!NHS ties a ribbon to WX, copying the story he heard about LWJ and WWX. He even gets a gift at the CR study arc when WZ escorts WQ and WN? I can't believe I remember all this and STILL not know the fic ugh.

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3. I stumbled onto a fic and I think the link was from here, but I didn't bookmark it and it's gone. In it, WWX befriends LWJ during the CR study arc and they meet in the woods to discuss cultivation theory. They find a book that explains how to share qi outside the body and they master it. This allows them to save CR and help end the war much earlier. I think they also save all the Dafan Wen. Any help finding it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

FOUND? Gentians in bloom by teawater (M, 251k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, AU after cold spring, Political Marriage, Dysfunctional Family, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Hurt/Comfort, LQR bashing, (not really), POV Multiple, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Eventual Happy Ending, BAMF WWX, JC is actually a lot better than canon, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, yzy bashing, (again not completely), JZX is much better than canon too)

~*~

4. Hi! I'm not sure if I am doing this right...so I apologize if I am not.

I am asking about a fic that people on reddit are looking for. I KNOW I read it and enjoyed it but I cannot seem to find it again. I told everyone I would try to track it down for them! Here are the details

LWJ works for a company who's trying to reach WWX. He has to drive out there to try to get his help, but oh no! There's a storm, so LWJ has to spend the night, and there's only one bed.

LWJ is a specialist called in by the company when they couldn't figure it out themselves, and he knew this code, he recognized the touch. But he wasn't going to tell them, since some of it skirted legality and he knew that his old schoolmate WWX still had enemies who would love to blame him for any flaws in the system, so he had to go find him himself @deeper-ground

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5. I’ve been looking for forever I’m sure I read a fic where ljy and lsz realise mxy!wwx likes lwj and try to warn him that lwj is still in love with yllz. Then they overhear mxy!wwx laughing confront lwj that he’s still in love with him and they realise mxy!wwx is wwx @quillwritten

FOUND! things we're all too young to know by someitems (T, 11k, WangXian, Misunderstandings, Junior Ensemble Shenanigan, Mistaken Identity, Found Family)

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6. Hiiiii... I've been looking for ages for this one modern day fic where WWX and LWJ break up because of a misunderstanding (WEX thinks LWJ is losing interest in him if i remember correctly) but keep living in the same house. WWX starts encouraging LWJ to go out and see other people. LWJ goes but it later turns out that he's been doing something else everytime (visiting LXC I think but not sure). They make up and have a happy ending in the end. Sorry for the trouble! :')

FOUND? there's no promised goodbye here by Yuisaki (T, 54k, WangXian, Modern AU, Post-Break Up, Roommates, Domestic Fluff, Drunken Shenanigans, Sharing a Bed, Cuddling & Snuggling, Sharing Clothes, Drinking, Pining, Angst with a Happy Ending, Getting Back Together, Ensemble Cast, Unreliable Narrator, CW IN BEGINNING NOTES)

~*~

7. a question for the fic finder! looking for a fic wherein after wwx comes back, lwj keeps having to fight off various cultivators who randomly approach and attack him (lwj). ofc he defeats them all, but wwx is v disturbed by all this unprovoked aggression towards his boo. he doesn’t like it at all, but lwj won’t let him interfere. wwx later learns that this happens because at some point while he (wwx) was dead lwj agreed that if someone could take his jade pendant in a fair fight, he would marry them. i think he did it to get the lan elders off his back or smth like that?? turns out lwj gave wwx the jade pendant as a dizi ornament (or a gift of some sort) right after he came back. so all these ppl have been trying to get the pendant while wwx is carrying it around dangling from his dizi 😂 does this sound familiar to anyone? i’ve probably got some of it wrong, but as far as i recall that was the gist of the story

FOUND! dream of a funeral; hear of a marriage by defractum (nyargles) (T, 36k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, First Time, Fluff and Humor)

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8. Hi! Could you please help me find a fic? In it, kid Lan Jingyi doesn't know why everytime he is sad, his parents and grandparent take him to Zewu Jun... as chapters go by, it is implied that he is actually ZWJ's son with late NMJ, and can feel ZWJ in certain way, so when he doesn't, others know ZWJ is in danger.

FOUND? a saber sheathed, a battle cry by stiltonbasket (G, 16k, LXC & LJY, LJY & LSZ, LJY & LWJ, LXC/NMJ, background wangxian, father-son relationship, grief/mourning, family secrets, fluff & angst, happy ending, reunions, WIP)

~*~

9. Oh fic finder gods/mods, please help! I must have dreamed this bc I can’t find it anywhere.

The fic is at least a year or two old. It’s longish. Either lwj is captured or given as a bride (spy?) to the yiling lazou. The cultivation world considers wwx’s sect (clan? tribe?) to be barbarians. Lwj learns eventually that while their ways are different and unrefined, everyone there is kind and fair. They aren’t in the burial mounds- they’re somewhere else far away, big wide spaces with mountain ranges -and they have horses. (I think)

Lxc is worried about how his brother will be treated- it will be dangerous to get him back but he’s working on it. The Wen sect are the stupid bad guys but the Jin sect are the manipulative bad guys that no one sees coming except wwx ofc. It culminates in some big battles near the end, there’s an attempt on wwx life (a sniper arrow?) and he’s injured.

ALSO, I remember there being a language barrier for when lwj first gets there. He’s staying in a tent with a cot and wen ning makes sure he’s comfortable and brings food. Wwx comes in at some point, stares in an intimidating way and leaves. Lwj is taken aback by how wild and savage he looks and doesn’t understand anything anyone says. That may be purposeful on wwx’s end, to unbalance lwj. Wen yuan is little and attaches himself to lwj which is ultimately how wwx softens to him. Wwx may remember lwj from before, but it’s not clear if lwj remembers him? Idk.

There’s plenty of good sex so I know it must be rated M or E. Wangxian get married and lwj is All In with the barbarian tribe LOL. Every single character is in there somewhere more or less staying true to canon. I don’t remember anyone really important dying unless you’re counting the ones we want to die lol

I wish I remembered more details but its more impressions than anything. I think there was a fire at some point? Ugh idk. I’m going crazy. It’s not cicer or any of the popular war-prize fics that are usually tossed around. Please put me out of my misery! TIA!!

FOUND! OK, so I don’t remember reading a wangxian fic (though that is there in the BG also) but a LXC/NMJ fic that sounds super like the fic you’re looking for? soaring, carried aloft on the wind by Skadiseven (E, 68k, NMJ/LXC, LXC & LWJ, NMJ & NHS, wangxian, JGY/NHS, arranged marriage, horses, romance, friendship, twin jades dynamics, nie bro dynamics)

~*~

10. Tx for your amazing work! I appreciate all you guys do and also I kinda search with your tags to read new fics <3. With that said, I lost a fanfic xD. It was a time-travel fix it/watching series in which juniors found a talisman WWX was working and decided to send memories back to save JYL,LZX,NMJ & more so they "send the memories to all sects leaders & main people involved" but then there was also WRH who took a liking to WWX (also it was know as the great sleep?)

FOUND? 💖 Teen Project to Change the World by animeloverhomura (Not Rated, 657k, WIP, WangXian, Watching the Show, With a bit of the Manhua and Book thrown in, Basically Whatever I Want, characters watching their show, characters watching the future, BAMF WWX Fix-It, Attractive WWX Homophobia, disturbing imagery)

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11. Hi, I’m looking for a fic where WWX died thinking his son lan sizhui is death and there's nothing left but lan sizhui is not death and there're wen kids who save his life and bring him to Cloud Recesses, also I remember WWX was in danger but LWJ couldn't go to him because someone gave him sleeping pills, after WWX death LWJ lost all his hope thinking his son died to but then someone from wen bring him to Cloud Recesses, every day LWJ wait for WWX in hope he could talk to his soul, sorry I'm not good with explaining and for my English 😅 @ryl-2021

FOUND? Until The End by abCEE (M, 365k, wangxian, LWJ & LSZ & WWX, established relationship, communication, mpreg, good uncle LQR, BAMF JYL, canon-typical violence, LSZ is wangxian’s son, WWX has new golden core, fix-it of sorts, canonical character death (WWX), happy ending)

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12. Hallo! I'm looking for a fic in which the juniors are told a suger-coated version of the past and then in some way find out about the truth. (Unsure if this was a fic finder or ITMF, please let me know if I am wrong and I will move it ^^ - Mod C)

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13. hi guys! I'm new here but I'm absolutely elated to find a subreddit for mdzs!! (haha I don't use reddit that much nowadays but I used to be obsessed)

anyhow, I have been searching for a fic - a modern au fic where both wwx and lwj think that the other is poor so they keep going out of their way to make sure that the other feels comf on dates by acting as if they are poor as well? one or both of them were musicians in the au, and their living was by playing in the orchestra? but since they had to act as if they were in an orchestra that was struggling to make ends meet instead of some national, grand, official orchestra type of thing?

there were also some scenes in which they weren't able to pay properly in restaurants or didn't know how to take public transport? and there was also one scene were lan huan and nmj were having a chat and then lwj asked them whether it was normal to buy a car as a gift since he didn't want wwx to be struggling so much on transport (or so he thinks)?

I've been absolutely wanting to find this fic for a while since I had so much fun reading it the first time round, and would really appreciate it if you guys knew what fic it was!! thank you so much!(haha don't know if this is relevant but just in case - I think I read it on ao3? thank you!

FOUND? The Fault in Our Stars by Vamillepudding (T, 17k, WangXian, Modern AU, Getting Together, Romantic Comedy, Comedy of Errors, Mistaken Identity, Misunderstandings)

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14. Hello I'm looking for another fic. It takes place in the modern world with cultivation world as past. Lan Xichen became immortal and owns a museum with items from the cultivation world. One day a group of Baoshan Sanren's students visit the museum and two of them look exactly like Wei Ying and Lan Zhan. Xichen guides them through the museum and in the room with Chenqing and Wangji the two students go to the instruments and start to play Wangxian. Thank you for your help! @bluekittenfire

FOUND! Come Back Home by LanEgg10 (G, 5k, wangxian, modern, post-canon, reincarnation, immortality, loneliness, LXC pov, supportive LXC, sad w/ happy ending)

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15. Hallo! I'm trying to find a modern wangxian au but everything I remember is kind of vague. So WWX inherited his profession (as a cultivator?) from his parents but the job description is different from canon cultivation and kind of risky. I dont remember if he time/dimention travels or something but he could get stuck there and then there is a case on a train? and LZ is there and they meet and work together but WWX nearly get stuck in this "place"? I'm sorry this sounds confusing😅 @lulusbooksworld

FOUND? a tide in two seas by occultings (microcomets) (E, 81k, wangxian, modern w/ magic, parallel universes, post-canon, getting together, pining, case fic)

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16. Hi! I'm looking for a short fic where wwx leaves the cultivation world with the Wens; he barters with lzh (who is the Emperor, still a Lan, but not a cultivator) his expertise for farmable land. I remember that lzh didn't think too highly of the cultivation world, and at one point he takes leave to visit CR. I think it ends with wwx and lzh growing closer in the quite calm of wwx's small farming town.

FOUND? this is the closest I could find, but it doesn't have the CR part, that might be a different fic? chalcedony by sushicorps (Inclinant) (E, 8k, wangxian, royalty au, prince LWJ, YLLZ WWX, mentions of war, WIP)

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17. Hi! I'm exhausted going through 30 pages of fics and still can't find the one(s) these scenes are from: 1) wwx and lz go to a party together, I think for Yanli, and I think wwx painted her a picture. Mme Yu and/or some of the guests start talkign down to wwx, so LZ gets them away and talks back to them because wwx was there for good reasons. 2) Maybe the same fic maybe a different one, wwx is with his sibs and has to leave because mme yu and jfm show up easiler than they were supposed to. @math-is-magic

17A)

FOUND! the best of you by sysrae (E, 41k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Mutual Pining, Getting Together, slightly undernegotiated kink, but in a very soft and consensual way, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, JFM and YZY's A+ parenting, Dysfunctional Family, Mental Health Issues, therapy is good actually, Reference to animal attacks/animal cruelty, descriptions of past violence)

17B)

NOT FOUND! clean from the war (your heart fits like a key) by sysrae (E, 28k, WangXian, Modern AU, Reunions, past xy/wwx, xy is fucked up but not evil, Hurt/Comfort, Panic Attacks, past wwx/jfm, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Abuse, Rape Recovery, transphobic violence, Victim Blaming, Past wei Wuxian/others, allusions to past self-harm)

FOUND! say it's here where our pieces fall in place by Lirelyn (E, 68k, WangXian, Modern AU, Family Feels, Angst with a Happy Ending, Kid Fic, Adoption, Foster Care, Emotional Hurt/Comfort)

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18. The fic I'm searching for is from ao3 with Bottom Lan Wangji. It's quite dark and angsty where after Lan Wangji got his punishment of 33 lashes, he had to undergo sexual assault from the Lan elders as 'punishment'(Lan Qiren did not know about this punishment). This made him afraid of further intimacy with Wei Ying because he thinks being on the bottom is supposed to be painful and he doesn't want to put Wei Ying through the pain. The ending is happy and the Lan elders get their punishment. @laxstanzis

FOUND? even the proud probably die on their knees by yuer (vintageblueskies) (E, 14k, wangxian, LXC & LWJ, LQR & LWJ, rape/non-con (not between wangxian), gang rape, PTSD, whump, dissociation, recovery, angst w/ happy ending, hurt/comfort, homophobia, smut, bottom LWJ) You have to be locked in to read!

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19. Hi! I hope you're having a great day <3 I need help finding a fic. I remember it was lqr going back in time and bringing wwx to gusu to help him but he doesn't expect wwx to be the stoic one and lwj to be the chaotic and loud one. i'm pretty sure one of the tags was bottom wwx. Thank you!!

FOUND! Pretty sure this one is one of the fics by A_flower_in_the_snow, I can't remember the name of it, but they are unfortunately been deleted.

Wait! I think the author re-uploaded this fic! It's been posted as - Your Name? by xinXiniieboo (M, 11k, WIP, WangXian, Cinderella AU, OOC, ooclwj, UntamedJi, StoicXian, Royalty AU, Jiāng Family Bashing, JC Bashing, YZY Bashing) (I hope I found the right one ^^ - Mod C)

I think 19 is "Uno Reverse" by A_Flower_in_the_Snow. You can find it in the Wayback Machine with the following URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/35522785?view_full_work=true

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20. Hello, I again need help finding a fic. It is a modern AU. Wei Ying is happily married with Wen Chao and they have a son (A-Yuan) together. When Wen Chao dies Wei Ying's world is falling apart. Wen Chao had secretly married Wang Lingjiao and left debts behind. Wei Ying has to sell his house and moves with A-Yuan into a small apartment. He starts working in a nightclub owned by the Nie brothers. There he meets his old highschool boyfriend Lan Wangji again. Thank you for your help. @bluekittenfire

FOUND! please give me the time it takes a tear to fall (so i can be by your side) by prettyxianxian (E, 48k, wangxian, LWJ & LSZ & WWX, past WC/WWX, modern, implied/referenced alcohol abuse, friends to lovers, mpreg, LSZ is WC/WWX son, A-Yuan calls WWX mama, angst w/ happy ending, pining, smut)

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21. I have this weird feeling this is a previous fic finder request but I couldn’t find it so I’ll ask (again?) Looking for a very short fic where wwx comes back as qin su. He immediately sends a message to jc, who immedediately comes with jin ling in tow. they smuggle wwx out of jinlin tai in a carpet a la cleopatra 😂

not FOUND Qin Su!WWX snippet series by @stiltonbasket

FOUND! Chapter 97: WWX summoned back by Qin Su of MDZS short fics by nirejseki (Not Rated, 209k, WIP, Oneshot/Prompt Collection, CQL Vers)

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Apologies, there was a mix up with the numbers! I fixed it but please check your recs to make sure they match ^^ - Mod C

[annalacerda17]

Hi......if you don't mind me asking, can I ask, who are your top 5 favorite characters from MDZS? And why? And what are your top 5 (or top 3) fav moments from the novel? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks.....

Hi, I don't mind at all!

I haven't answered this before, so here I go.

Favorite characters:

1 - Definitely Wei Wuxian! He has everything I like in a character. He has a strong personality, he's funny and fun to read about, he's very intelligent, he's considerate and compassionate, caring and nurturing, always tried to make the best of a situation, doesn't wallow in self pity, he's not afraid to apologize when he feels he should but doesn't accept blame for things he didn't do , either. He never let his circumstances define him, he never allowed others to dictate what his place in the world should be and who he is allowed to be as a person, he's confident and trusts his own judgement, he's incredibly skilled but still has believable difficulty overcoming the challenges the narrative put in his path without needing to be dumbed down, he's competent, he's such a genuinely good person and I adore him.

2 - Definitely Lan Wangji. He's only slightly behind WWX. Like WWX, he's a genuinely good person, he's intelligent, perceptive and, unlike every other character in his social position, he's not blinded by privilege. What I love the most about his character is that he was able to recognize his shortcomings in the past and worked to overcome them without blaming others or being hypocritical about it. I like that he never holds WWX responsible for his own feelings, be it his love or his jealousy, and never expects him to change himself to accommodate his feelings. He's the most successful parental figure in the entire book, too. WWX's perfect match.

3 - Wen Ning. He's cinnamon roll with a secret savage side that only comes out when the ppl he cares about are threatened. What's not to love? But seriously, he's a good person who, despite not being very strong and not being particularly powerful within his sect, still chose to actively help WWX and JC because it was the right thing to do, even though he barely knew WWX and didn't care about JC's general existence. He did what he believed was right despite the great risk to himself and his family. It's no wonder he and WWX are best friends, as they share the same values.

4 - Wen Qing. She's queen. WQ is the best sister ever. She's protective, compassionate, intelligent and competent. I love her. She's a badass woman who never killed anyone, she's strong and she loved her family so much, including WWX. Her ending was so tragic, too. She deserved the world.

5 - The Juniors. I love them, they're so fun to read about. I especially love it when WWX teaches them. They give me hope for the future of the cultivation world. To me, although by the end of the novel, the social structures that allowed everything to go wrong are still in place and society hasn't really changed, just traded targets, it doesn't mean things will never change. One person, no matter how powerful, can't singlehandedly change the world, what they can do is touch the hearts of ppl. To me, although WWX didn't change the world, he did manage to touch the hearts of those juniors, the next generation, and it means that although it didn't happen immediately, eventually things will change for the better.

As for my favorite scenes, that's a really difficult question. I love the whole book, and to me, MDZS is the type of book where the scenes gain more significance when we look at them collectively rather than individually. But I'll try to rank my favorite moments here:

1 - definitely the confession scene. I love it because WWX really opens his heart to LWJ in this scene. Previously, WWX had always been guarded with his feelings for LWJ, he thought of excuses for his actions just in case LWJ reacted badly, he kept testing LWJ. We see in the past arcs, when he talks to JYL, that WWX used to think of love as something akin to a debt, a belief that was reinforced by the behavior of the ppl around him. So, when we look at WWX's character arc, his willingness to open his heart like that, in the middle of a hostage situation of all things, shows how sincere he is. And it's a beautiful confession. He takes care to clarify all of LWJ's points of doubt ( we've seen before that LWJ was afraid that WWX was only reciprocating his feelings out of gratitude, etc.)

2 - When WWX let's himself fall off that tree and LWJ catches him. It's a beautiful moment. I like how it parallels his fall when he was a child, and JYL failed to catch him. To me, this was the moment I felt LWJ was would never fail to be there for WWX. Like, I already knew that, because he'd been staying by WWX's side through a lot by then, but this moment cements it for me.

3 - The first time LWJ calls WWX "Wei Ying" post-resurrection and WWX realizes LWJ had known his identity the entire time. I love this moment because JC had just mocked WWX about LWJ not knowing his identity, which really hurt him. He was scared LWJ really was only helping him because he didn't know who he was, so when it turns out LWJ had always known, it's both reassuring and sweet.

4 - basically every moment when WWX is teaching the juniors. I love all of them. We get to see all the best parts of WWX.

5 - any time when someone accused WWX of doing something to them and WWX is like "who are you?"

[amedetoiles]

its been a year and just reading about the jiang sibs being happy is enough to make me SOB. THEY DESEREVED BETTER

It has been over 12 months since I fell into this hellhole, and I am still crying over Yunmeng siblings. I have no idea why I made this poor life decision, but it seems I am forever stuck bearing the consequences. I am sure there was a time in my life where I did not in fact spent a part of my waking hours crying over fictional sibling relationships and the tragedy of love your sibling so, so much yet being unable to save them, but alas, I no longer remember such peace. I am, however, enormously pleased and grateful to have had you all as company during this apocalypse. <3

In celebration of our constant agony, here is another compiled list of Yunmeng siblings/bros & co fics that I’ve read since my last rec list for all the anons in my inbox who have been asking for another list. Some of these I’ve rec’d individually as I’ve come across them but now it’s in a nice list for easy saving / reading! :)

For reference, my other rec lists are here and here.

in our respective ways ; an aging wound by @veliseraptor ; more gems from lise who really needs no introduction because everything she writes is perfect. jc and lwj searching for wwx for those 3 months during. post canon wwx and jc both tenuously trying to navigate the route to reconciliation. 

display my heart for you to see by @souridealist ; jc-centric (chengqing / mature). an oldie but a goodie. this is mostly about jc and wq. post-canon if set in a world where jc secretly saves wq’s life. everything author writes is a goldmine of sheer mastery.

this blood in my mouth by @shanastoryteller ; sizhui-centric but the yunmeng bro content is glorious even if it’s a small part. i cannot articulate just how much i love this entire fic. sizhui is going through it, and i say he absolutely deserves to be angry for once.

lynchpin by @shanastoryteller ; canon-divergence. time traveling jc is one of my favorite tropes in the world. lots of meta opinions, but the yunmeng sibling content is amazing and everything i have ever indulgently wanted.

by any other name by @shanastoryteller ; canon-divergence au where wwx is gender-fluid and mxy performed the ritual too early leading to some problems. (keep the premise in mind esp if you’re not into that!) in any case, the yunmeng bros and jin ling relationship here is really good.

impossible be strange attempts by comfect ; very indulgent fix-it and i love it. jc crawls through the land of the dead to get his siblings back.

a grave so familiar by @the-first-refrain ; jc and wwx are both injured and stuck in a cave and are both just.. going through it. i wailed through the entire thing. the prose is amazing. jc hurts so good. he loves wwx so much. wwx loves him so much. trauma heavy references; tread softly with your heart.

the dock of the bay (wwx-centric) ; in the morning sun (sizhui-centric) ; still remain the same (jc-centric) by @lesyah ; post-canon character studies as basically everyone goes through it with some canon-typical demon kidnapping. not always the kindest take but love post-canon fics that allow characters to process and have unfair feelings about everything they’ve been put through. especially wwx who regardless of how good he is at moving and not holding grudges still deserves to be angry! the yunmeng bros reconciliation made my heart swell. there’s two other parts to this series that focus on lxc and lwj if you want to read.

just this once by sami ; jc is kidnapped and wwx comes to save him. i am SOFT. everything about this is too much.

utterly inevitable by sami ; post-canon. wwx decides to help by brazenly and unapologetically stomping all over xichen’s wounds and jc (finally) demands what is his. love that for them (i’m sorry xichen). this has xicheng in it and as a non-xicheng shipper, if i’m rec’ing it, you know it’s worth it.

five things that changed for jiang cheng after he regained his golden core (and one thing that never did) by @mikkeneko ; title says it all. it is so so good. i am still wailing on the floor over this one.

letters by @withbroombefore ; post-canon. realized while going through my previous rec lists that i’ve never added this to any of my lists. a mistake i must rectify because it’s so good! and sizhui getting to build a relationship with jiang cheng is just something that i need with my entire heart. there’s so much healing! everyone is moving forward and it is so amazing.

living ; lifeline by @withbroombefore ; canon-divergence. jyl and wwx live. rec’d these as soon as i read them and am definitely rec’ing them again because it is so so good. yunmeng siblings prioritizing each other. just 🥺

coda by @withbroombefore ; guanyin temple fix it. what we all deserved after watching these two dumbasses openly pine in the courtyard. there’s a sequel in the notes. also before i rec the author’s entire list of works, y’all should just go to their ao3 and read everything.

the trick is to keep breathing by @alessandriana ; assassination attempt on jc’s life in order to get to jin ling. literally everything i have ever wanted.

see me, feel me (listening to you) by ghost_honey ; wwx-centric. wwx gets cursed while on a night hunt and on brand doesn’t tell anyone about it because of his abysmal self esteem. juniors galore! plus jc telling him he’s a moron. wwx out here always seeing everything but the fact that everyone loves him.

happy reading! <3