#they are my OTP and I am on this ship permanently

[kelbies-fandom-locker]

Have another edit cause they a perfect pair and I can’t sleep . Also bonus points if you know what song this is .

[damian-lil-babybat]

"My Anatolia" & "My Alexander"

If DC remained truthful to their own canon, and let Talia lied about the miscarriage/abortion instead (like before the retcon, which the author admitted to have misremembered details for iirc), then my OTP since "Batman: The Animated Series", would have not crushed and burn like the city of Alexandria, rendered to ashes and dust that it could never be fully revived in canon.

Based on this panel from Boy Wonder (2024) by Juni Ba.

Headcanon: This is the rose of taif, you cannot convince me otherwise 😭

[love-in-the-time]

One of the things that kills me so much about it is that once she had her memories back, and was back in her own self, she knew how much he loved her. She remembered what he felt back then, which she knew the first time but had to forget, and now she knows the redoubled love and desire and need and want he has for her. She knows his name, knows his feelings for her, and knows that he never meant to hurt her.

It's why when she says "you don't have to stay forever" he is so quick to say "we'll see" because he's going to stay. He's going to stay because he loves her, and because now he understands that the first time around Donna needed to know how he felt and wouldn't assume it on her own. Even the second time around she won't assume it; he is holding her, kissing her, talking to her, telling her it is about her after all.

She figures out that he's come home to her and it heals her even more. The bi-generation is ridiculously romantic for DoctorDonna purposes. He loves her so much he doesn't want to leave her even when he changes, so a part of him stays with her forever. And by extension, as long as he is with Donna, being loved into recovery, all the rest of the Doctors can continue.

I think Donna was very calm when she was the Doctor Donna because she could see what was in the Doctor's mind. She knew that he loved her and he was very sorry to lose her. She was completely full of love and peace. But after the meta-crisis left, she was unnecessarily mad at him because she was still angry about leaving her behind in Journey's End. And triggered her lack of self-worth. She started to figure it out towards the end of the episode. After all those kisses and chats.

Well written.

[cm-matz]

🩶 30-Day HELLVERSE Challenge 🩶

Day 3: Favorite Ship

There’s a couple of them, soo…

#1, aka my OTP, aka the main two reasons why my brain chemistry has been permanently altered by this silly little show…

LITERALLY me 24/7 rn:

#2 goes these babes for having the literal textbook definition of a green flag relationship:

but alsooo… size difference, anyone? 👀

#3 goes to this being the perfect example of the only dynamic acceptable in hetero ships: he is a soft nerdy loverboy & she is badass fiery violent & unhinged, & THEY ARE COMPLETELY & UTTERLY OBSESSED W/ EACH OTHER ❤️

ps - I also just really love that they’re already married when the show starts 🥰

and #4 is for my lover girlies💕 bcuz I am a bisexual woman & a girl’s girl at heart🩷

Just realized all my ships are CANON (Stolitz still not being 100% confirmed is already causing too much emotional turmoil for me lol), so here are some honorable mentions, bcuz these AREN’T canon (YET??) :

Day 4: Least Favorite Ship

Do NOT even get me STARTED on how sick I get to my stomach when I see fanart of these two being in a happy relationship 🤢🤢

(all credits go to the original artists for each of fhe pics, i found them all on pinterest!!)

[totallyjustabunchofhocuspocus]

I know "fuck canon" is always an option and generally the more sensible thing to do, but with last night's episode I had two smidgens of HOPE and now with Tim's apparent new interview I just want to crawl back into my cave again 🫥

Hi nonnie!

TLDR (cause I'm having THOUGHTS): I don't think anything is off the table, if I had to bet money I'd lay somewhat decent odds that Buck and Tommy get back together, and I don't think either side of the ship war has anything in particular that indicates victory.

I'll preface this by saying yes, 'fuck canon'is usually the more sensible option. 'Fuck canon' is where no one ever dies, people do not make stupid decisions, and couples never break up.

And I'll also preface this by saying that Buck is my favorite character (honestly one of my favorite characters of all time, not just this show) and my ultimate OTP is Buck/Happiness in this show, however he gets it and whoever gives it to him. I am quite happy being a multishipper and I started out in fandom spaces back in the mid-nineties, where the etiquette and relationship to the content were vastly, vastly different than today and that really colors the lense I view fandom through. In the ship war, I'm mostly Switzerland.

Still with me? Okay.

My main source of optimism re: Buck/Tommy is the simple fact that guys...911 is Not That Deep. It's a fun show (usually), predicated on ridiculous Situations (increasingly), and in movie terms is a cash-grab popcorn flick. Have they hit something with the characters and actors that often elevates it above its station? Absolutely. Are there parts that make you go, "whoa, this came from the shark on a highway weewoo show?" Of course! But 911 isn't fucking Inception. There's no hidden messages and jaw-dropping plot twists that No One Saw Coming.

Like...all the cries about "learn some media literacy you cretins!" really have me scratching my head because, uh, taking everything solely at face value--this absolutely is the Third Act Miscommunication in the relationship. Both parties expressed a desire for the relationship to be more. They broke up on the tried and true "I'm doing this for both our sakes'even though it hurts" and not a dealbreaker schism which they ABSOLUTELY could have done. Literally, one scene of "wow I can't wait to be a dad/oh, uh that's not something I want" and we have a reason to break up that has the exact same "no villains just circumstance" vibe.

On the other hand, it absolutely is a stopping point that is believably permanent.

They went out of their way to show how desperately much Buck wants to talk to Tommy (like we turned it into a meme, but they didn't really have to show him baking That Much) and how he's spiraling in a way we haven't really seen since Abby. In a Hallmark romcom this would be where the audience is reassured that our plucky protagonist has Real Feelings for the LI.

On the other hand, the show often uses Buck as comic relief and the keep away with the phone could absolutely be the indicator that this breakup isn't as serious as Buck thinks it is and he should move on.

The interviews are pretty disheartening, but the interviews for this show really honestly have always had a kind of weird monkey's paw quality to them. Like, they don't lie exactly, but there's a lot of misdirect.

As it stands now, the relationship 100% reads like a Hallmark romcom that is being written by people who Had a Gay Friend In College Guys, So of COURSE We Know What We're Doing...wait why are you discoursing?

On the other hand, as it stands now, it also wouldn't be surprising if this was the end. I honestly don't think they have 100% decided how it's going to go and the writing and especially the pacing this season has been so uneven that it's not hiding the flaws in the storytelling as well as it usually does.

But, if canon goes in a direction I don't like, I have no problem saying 'fuck canon' ;)

[machiroads]

Fic Writer Interview

Thank u @plusultraetc for the tag wheeeeee

How many works do you have on AO3?

8️⃣

What's your total AO3 word count?

251,850, 150k of which is one fic lmao

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Nine Lives, by an order of magnitude over 2nd place

Naruhata Noir

A Tumultuous Sea, You and Me (the mer-pirates fic)

Being No One, Going Nowhere (the 2 broken arms fic)

waiting on the seasons to change, waiting for the curtain to fall (the fortuneteller fic)

I am surprised to see the 2 broken arms fic in the top 5 tbh!

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I like to get responses to my own comments, so I try to reply to everyone's comments :]

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Uhhhhh PROBABLY 9L since it ends with everyone going off to war haha oopsie

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

Uhhhhhh probably merpirates? It's really gross and sappy. Dive into the ocean and kiss a mermaid in front of your entire crew. The 2 broken arms fic also got a pretty happy ending (Aizawa goes to bed and also maybe jerks it a little)

Do you write crossovers?

Not crossovers per se but I do enjoy a deep in the weeds AU

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

I don't think so? The worst I get is people saying "wow almost no typos" which is very tame lmao

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Not yet! Kintsugi (the epilogue to 9L) will have some mild spice but I'm at a point in my life where I just couldn't be jazzed to write folks doing it sloppy style

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so except for that website that's scraped like a ton of fics a few months back

Have you ever had a fic translated?

I had one person request to translate 9L into Ukranian, though I never saw if they ended up doing it. Recently I've also had a couple people leave comments in Spanish so I assume they translated the story into Spanish somehow!

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

The unpublished FFXII AU is partially co-written by Robbirdthe8th, but it's been parked for like a year and a half. Also I would be remiss to omit @kyurilin who might as well get bonus credits for the Nutstang

What's your all-time favorite ship?

I have been in fandom spaces for over a decade YOU CAN'T JUST MAKE ME CHOOSE A SINGLE ALL-TIME FAVORITE IT'S IMPOSSIBLE. Perhaps a low-commitment list of OTPs from across the years:

Erasermic (obviously)

Edwin (FMA)

Netteflix (FE3H)

Asanoya (HQ!!)

Kanej (6 of Crows)

Yuchi (FB)

Asucaga (MSGS)

Soukana (FMP)

Maiko (ATLA)

Hanvi (DB)

Nejiten (Naruto)

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

Probably any of the Fire Emblem or Fruits Basket fics I started drafting in 2020/2021 before I figured out how to write fic lol

What are your writing strengths?

People tell me I am good at characterization! I think I'm also good at describing a setting, a skill that I exercise often in my technical writing.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Exposition, my nemesis. A necessary evil, but it's like pulling teeth, every time.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Short answer: I just. Don't.

Longer answer: I think there's a time and place for it, and I've seen both well-executed and clunky ways of doing it. I've never seen a need for it yet in anything I've written.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

BNHA was the first fandom I published anything for, though honourable mention goes to Fruits Basket and FE3H for convincing me that I can tell my own stories (and then get stuck trying to figure out how to write fiction woops).

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

Idk man I'm just vibing in my lane of erasermic et al right now

What's your favorite fic you've written?

Listen it's gotta be 9L. This fic is the reason I have made so many friends in this community. People have drawn fanart for it (one of which now lives permanently on my desk in the form of a mousepad, thank u Dragon). It is the story that got me into writing fic because it was a story that nobody else was telling, so I wrote the story that I wanted to read.

People still get to the endnotes on 9L and are like THIS IS YOUR FIRST FIC???? and yeah. I started writing fanfiction at the tender age of 28 and the first thing I decided was worth sharing is still my magnum opus. Anyone can write fic! Find a writer whose style you like, emulate it, and write the story you want to read. It's that simple.

[magpie-come-east]

If you're still doing the ask meme, talk about your own OCs! Cyrielle for the ask meme?

favorite thing about them

I've been planning a reread of Gilded Apotheosis to recalibrate my characterization of Cyrielle. But I remember her being very caring and humorous. She was never particularly clever, but her blunt humor and attitude were endearing. She sassed Margit [affectionately] and sassed Morgott [derogatorily] and I think her characterization made her an OC shipping fodder protagonist people actually connected with!

I also like the design element of her golden scar. Its a physical feature that makes her stand out amongst the dozens of women Tarnished with braided hair (we all have great taste).

least favorite thing about them

I wish I had fleshed out her backstory more. For some reason I believed it was canon that Tarnished are revived with little to no memory of their past lives. I think I was just led astray by popular fanon haha. But regardless, I think Cyrielle is flatter than most other Tarnished OCs because of her lack of compelling backstory.

favorite line

"I suspect there are a lot of things I am supposed to feel about you. First among them being disgust. I am meant to be mortified by you, by your presence and your touch. But I don’t. I don’t feel that way. In my short life I’ve seen one hundred horrors. If you are fated to be counted among them, then you are the least of them all. By far."

"Would it be so horrible if my King was also my friend?"

'If Aster chooses to fight, you’ll be sent to answer his challenge, won’t you? [...] Tell Morgott to send me in your stead. However the two of you communicate."

This one's difficult! To me Cyrielle has plenty of memorable scenes but very few striking lines. Morgott wins out in that regard. But these three jumped to the front of my mind. They are just really tender and loving. The first and third quotes are her addressing Margit before she learns of his double identity. It just. Auughhhh!!! And the second is her confronting Morgott with that truth.

brOTP

Mohg and Cyrielle! 

I enjoyed the shift in HSPS when Mohg went from barely acknowledging her to being her confidant and friend. She’s one of the few people that doesn’t know a lot about his baggage and just treats him like her brother in law. Thus he was there for her at her lowest moment.

Cyrielle and Aster

Yeah, they're mortal enemies now but thinking back on their relationship makes me almost nostalgic in a bittersweet way. They fought their way through Gelmir together! And Liurnia! They were besties! And now Aster can only regret the relationship he destroyed (and the memory of it too). And Cyrielle wants him to die. Tragic!

OTP

Cyrielle x Morgott of course. After four kids and a century of marriage they'd better be!

nOTP

Aster x Cyrielle and Shanehaight x Cyrielle 

I remember a couple of people suggesting to me that those two men had crushes on Cyrielle while I was writing GA. On the one hand, I’m flattered that their rapport and interactions were compelling enough for people to come to those conclusions! But it’s very much not the case. Aster is gay. And Shanehaight sucks! Haha

random headcanon

Before meeting Aster and beginning her earnest bid for Lordship, Cyrielle was recruited by D to collect Deathroot for Gurranq. This deepened her faith in the Golden Order- which eventually drew her to want to side with Morgott. It also makes her eventual fatal Deathblight wound all the more ironic.

Since Tarnished were largely persecuted and spurned in the Lands Between by the time of her arrival, she spent most of her Tarnished life living nomadically. Finally having a permanent residence allowed her to discover a love of cooking and gardening. But her standards of home cleanliness are really low.

She has 9 INT

unpopular opinion

I’m don’t think I can have an unpopular opinion about my OC!

song i associate with them

Arms Unfolding by Dodie for sure. (Cyrielle shares a lot of Morgott's songs because they are ship songs haha)

Dream State by Son Lux

Broken Open by Adam Lambert

favorite picture of them

Refer to that picture from my Morgott answer. It's the only one of her I've got! Or this

[harlstiel]

Ships with Stiles that I enjoy | RANKED

1 : Stisaac

Stiles/Isaac

My favorite. 10/10. The DRAMA, but also the shared trauma, they're perfect. Sure it's a BIT toxic but it's a guilty pleasure, what can I say.

2 : Stalia

Stiles/Malia

Only lower on the list BECAUSE Malia should've had SO much more mental development before going into a relationship. But they were cute, 10/10

3 : Stydia

Stiles/Lydia

Only third because of how FUCKING LONG IT TOOK. AND HOW LITTLE WE ENDED UP GETTING. Jeff Davis can go suck a wrinkly dry hairy testicle. Still 10/10

4 : Stira

Stiles/Kira

HEAR ME OUT. They would geek out so much together its NOT even fucking funny. They're both socially awkward nerds that ramble and I live for it. 10 out of fucking 10. Prefer Malira tho...

5 : Sterica

Stiles/Erica

Low-key wanted this to happen for a bit. Maybe not permanently because I always saw the both of them to be more bisexual types but they would've been cute. Also I can't remember where the whole "Batman" "Catwoman" nicknames came from but it is my only life support rn. 9.5/10

6 : Sterek

Stiles/Derek

My favorite blorbo Derek Hale. I didn't get the hype with this ship when I first started watching, but then I kept seeing things in this show that made me wonder, "Jeff, was this intentional?" Bc they're so very gay with each other. Alas, age gaps are an iffy thing for me personally due to my own personal traumas, but I still love them. 9.5/10

7 : Stora

Stiles/Cora

Cute, could've happened, not mad that it didn't, but def a wasted opportunity on Jeff Davis' part. Solid 8/10.

8 : Stanny

Stiles/Danny

This was definitely more of a humor thing but I liked the idea of these two together from the get-go. In my opinion, there was definitely a little crush on Stiles' part and I love that. 8/10

9 : Sciles

Scott/Stiles

I changed my mind about this one because I went down a rabbit hole of Sciles and Allisciles stuff and I just. You read a fic so well written and see the most beautiful piece of art and all of a sudden you're binge reading every. Last. Fic in the tag, yk? SOLID 8/10

(Their parents are also an otp of mine. Noah and Melissa are perfect together and the best thing I've ever experienced)

Reasons

For not including other ships.

Steo : I am a Thiam shipper through and through. And Theo did things to Stiles that doesn't even make enemies to lovers valid in my opinion. IK he got a redemption arc and he was being manipulated since he was a child but STILL. I love Theo but he's not the one (for Stiles, anyway🤭).

Any ship with him and an adult ; ie, Peter, Chris, Parrish etc. : Do I even have to explain this one? I mean REALLY?

Stiam : They are like Mother and Child to me and I will take that to my GRAVE.

Stackson : Last season-T.W. Movie Jackson MAYBE but early seasons Jackson was a toxic mf who loved NOBODY but himself based on how he treated Lydia.

(Pointed out by a commenter) Stallison : I actually never knew people shipped this and didn't know it was a thing until now. After this was pointed out, I began to see the appeal and I read some Allison/Scott/Stiles fics and now I'm hooked. (Wish I knew about it beforehand tbh 😅)

Pretty sure I covered evertyhing, but if I missed someone, let me know!

[empyreansentinel]

1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 13 for borderlands

1.OTP? not taking the easy answer with our beloved old man yaoi and saying that i think conceptually moxxi and mordecai are pretty heartbreaking. not as a permanent they live happily ever after deal, but still. TPS era nisha and aurelia are also hilarious to think about. 2.OT3? moxxi/lilith/tannis. i am not immune to bittersweet milf yuri. i also cannot think of another ot3 off the top of my head that doesnt make me want to explode.

3.NoTP?

looks at the camera. yknow. 4.Is there a popular pairing you don't necessarily dislike but aren't too invested in?

im at risk of being shot for this for being an angel poster but. gaigel. i dont have anything against it though! ill probably draw or write something for it eventually. 9.Write a recommendation of someone else's fic you enjoyed!

im going to be honest, the only borderlands fic ive read in the past few years have been yours. i WILL take the opportunity to talk up your writing however because i always do. specifically your delirium has been in my head recently ive been putting off drawing something for it. your monty is so interesting.

there was also another fic thatd id recommend if i could but it got deleted way back. nisha, timothy, angel, rhys and vaughn got arrested by the crimson raiders. timothy got executed at the end iirc. it was a small one but i still remember it very distinctly because of how nisha was written in it. 13.What's a character or ship you haven't written/drawn yet but would like to some day? hm! for characters probably sasha and fiona! ive had a fiona sketch saved up but posting her without her baby sister feels wrong they should not be separated. for ships, i havent actually drawn nisha and aurelia yet so. perhaps soon.

[calsvoid]

santana for the character ask

character ask

version 2 — give me a character and i will tell you

how i feel about this character:

she’s my baby my daughter my little princess also she’s so me as we’ve discussed in the glumblr server lol i’m so happy about her getting her happy ending it’s everything she deserved and more she’s iconic she’s sexy she’s perfect and evil and where would we be without her lines

all the people i ship romantically with this character:

obvs brittana they’re perfect and i still am in shock they got together

pezberry, i am obsessed with fucked up relationships and i just think they’re so fun like i desperately needed them to have hate fucked multiple times throughout their lives

quinntana, except romantically is kinda a stretch. in my head, they work as weird fwb who also kinda hate each other sometimes and would probably kill each other if they got together properly

my non-romantic OTP for this character:

blaintana my beloved they’re my everything the true lesbian gay solidarity friendship the world (me) needed. i love all their moments, they’re so cute but also she’s this close to stealing his coffee and splashing it onto his face

unholy trinity save me save me unholy trinity. they’re so funny together and i love how they canonically are just really in sync with one another because yknow friendship (and obsession but shh)

also pezberry because as much as i love them with their sexually charged rivalry, i also love them just being besties. i’m so happy they made their relationship better (sorta) in the later seasons and it’s just adorable and i love them both so much

honorary mention for my sebtana step cousins hc because of course i have to talk about them. literally no basis in it for canon except like a handful of scenes one of which was deleted and all of which sebastian was being an annoying prick, which i ran with and decided to make them be each other’s least favorite/most favorite (step) cousin and please help this was just a funny idea and now it’s like a permanent part of my fanon universe

my unpopular opinion about this character:

i don’t think i have one?? i usually go with the popular stuff i feel like

the closest i can think of is that i hated the double wedding (it was cute but what the fuck do not fucking improvise a wedding hello marriage is very serious don’t do that) but that’s more to do with my issues with anxiety than it does santana

one thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon:

they should’ve had pezberry fuck. also more furtana

my OTP:

brittana <33333333 they’re literally perfect for each other still can’t believe they’re wives

my crossover ship:

i’m not a big crossover fan rip so none

a headcanon fact:

hates horror movies (i think glumblr was talking about it earlier) she’d insult them a bunch to make it seem like she thinks they’re bad instead of she’s scared. would watch one for brittany though because that’s the love of her life

[magnaflourious-nerdity]

So the ask got deleted accidentally, but @autisticharrywells asked me about SANGYAO for toxic ship bingo, and now that I have forcibly dragged them through all 50 episodes, i can at last go off---- you FOOL! you have fallen directly into my trap!!! Muahahaha

I do not know how I ended up here. I don't know WHY I ended up here, except that I'm some kind of masochist.

Like I was all prepared to be 100% team wangxian otp and read all the fic and shit, and I started out so promising. (And I do love them...) But then. Then. That little demon brought a bird to class. And the other little demon protected him during the Wen thing. The stabbing ?? The warning as Meng Yao was leaving to huaisang DESPITE actively bleeding. The pleading to Mingjue to let Meng Yao stay despite no evidence of Huaisang ever really standing up to question NMJ decisions before like that (esp in front of other clan members) (other than with things like blowing off Sabre practice) THE FAN CLENCH. MY HEART. And THEN they committed their various atrocities during which the no turning back point was hit for them so many times and yet i do believe the remorse was there and so too was some affection still, twisted as it was by time and hatred and isolation and i... I just....I slipped?

There's so much there!!! (and please keep in mind I'm mostly talking from a cql/the untamed perspective, though I have seen the donghua and am aware of book cannon, I just kinda prefer the show as the version I take to heart (with some notable jgy or Huaisang based exceptions bc i'm nothing if not willing to excuse their pretty boy mid-divorce war crimes))

These two have such a deep shared history that spans the entirety of the cannon, and their relationship is extra fascinating on rewatch as you can more clearly track the downward spiral of events.

There's also the tragedy that it COULD have been avoided, was so close to being avoided several times bc JGY is not really EVIL, (any one who says this is being super reductive imo) but he does preserve himself above all other things and people through sheer learned necessity (with the exception of xichen and isn't that also a beautiful part of sangyao tragedy?? That so clearly xichen and JGY were destined to be the tragic counterparts to wwx and lwj's relationship not nhs and jgy? That xichen was the only thing JGY ever sacrificed true parts of himself for, that huaisang knows that he could have done the same for him, but didn't? Because there was too much history with Mingjue to let it go, and also bc the devotion or affection he held for huaisang when they were both on the mountain never surpassed that point. He had too much caution to truly be himself, and Huaisang, I don't think could ever truly see past JGYs status in the way that xichen was able to since he served as his big brother's vice general and also his appointed companion to a degree. ) And where does that leave huaisang? Where he always is. ALONE. On a mountain he never fit in on in the first place. Where does it leave JGY? Stuck in a permanant customer service role to his awful father and branded further untrustable as a spy. Humilated and broken down to the point of just. So much murder. (Some of which I still maintain tain as a public service coughcoughJinGuangShancoughcough)

They are so much alike and yet so different in such key aspects, that I also have to believe they were meant to act as parallels to one another, just like wwx and jgy, or xichen and wangji. The planning and manipulation they both do (in their own ways bc i am in the camp that while huaisang is smarter than the average bear, smarter than he ever wants to let on bc it makes his life easier, he isnt able to truly outpace JGY's ability to craft a situation. What he is good at is manipulating people and social situations, and adapting his outlined plan extremely well on the fly- with the exception of maybe xichen. I dont think he meant to truly hurt xichen like that. I think that was a natural panic that if JGY was allowed to live it would mean Huaisang actually had to die at some point instead, Though I do also think perhaps there is some lingering resentment there that leads to it to bc why is JGY worth pardoning after his crimes to xichen? Doesn't this mean he inherently valued JGY over Mingjue, over Huaisang’s own pain and anguish? (he did, but not maliciously, lans are love blind we know this))

The tragedies of nie huaisang are inextricably linked to the tragedies of jgy and vice versa! Technically, huaisang, as a bastard of the clan leader with one of his concubines, (I think that's right) should be discounted as a noble son, esp considering his weaker nature and lack of talents dictated to be valuable by the standards of the nie clan. He should have the same status really or at least a status more closely similar to jgy who is constatly looked down on because of his mother's position and bastard status, despite his constant hyper competency, as we see so vividly. And yet Huaisang is given title and rank and (some) respect where JGY gets trodden into the mud and shit of life, even as he succeeds in raising the jin clans success through his actions and talents. Meanwhile, huaisang is thought to be a useless leech by others, untalented in the ways of ruling or anything that's deemed an actually respectable skill by clan leader standards. A pathetic little dude who doesn't know how to do anything, and yes, he does get cast as a headshaker in the eyes of the people, but it's never his background thats brought into question as to why he might be failing. It's considered a result of his personality, not his upbringing. And even then he doesn't get shit talked as much as JGY does. Huaisang has all the privilege that JGY was never afforded, and does that color JGYs view a bit? Does it make him just bitter enough that, when combined with his father’s looming threats and taunts, and Mingjue’s inability to ever let anything JGY does go, that he's willing to hurt huaisang in such a way, even just as a byproduct of his mission?

Huaisang’s plan is successful, bc people discount him as incompetent, yes, but also bc they still see him as a noble, as someone of enough inherent value, diminished though it may be, that he weilds that influence even when playing the fool. JGY doesn't get that respect even at his height of his power and competency as a ruler.

They are, neither of them, strong cultivators. But that factor only really affects JGY bc it means he has to fight even harder for acceptance and validation. Huaisang also gets the luxury of CHOOSING not to be a strong cultivator. Because his position in life IS secure, he can slack off. He is allowed to try his hardest to avoid the fate of his family and do his utmost not to cultivate in that manner. Which I think, too, causes some of the resentment. On both sides. Huaisang never has to work a day in his life, has barely any expectations to live up to and still gets the respect Meng Yao is constantly robbed of. And for huaisang- On top of killing his brother via musically-induced, full-bodied rage embolism, JGY is now also the reason that huaisang is thrust into a position he was entirely unprepared for way before he was supposed to be.

And we know, we KNOW that JGY is responsible for so many of Huaisang’s pretty little things. His beloved indulgences granted not by his own brother, but by his doting san-ge. Things that got burned or destroyed by Mingjue simplu for the fact that a) they were from JGY and B) they are not the type of things NMJ cosidereds respectabke hobbies or skills. A large number of his fans and painting supplies are gifts from JGY, and he stood up for and encouraged those hobbies against the person he probably fears the most at that point, Mingjue (even if he's already actively trying to kill him by then). And huaisang seemed genuinely pleased that JGY had found acceptance and was getting what he (thought he) wanted. The friendship and affection was real, just not near strong enough to withstand the crimes of the other.

And oh boy that divorce was rough and bloody and beautiful and tragic and I just love the messy nature of the relationship, how deep and how twisted it went and became. And i think, right up until the very end, JGY didn't truly want to believe that Huaisang was capable of doing this to him, I don't think he ever wanted to hurt huaisang again the way he had to when he killed Mingjue. Use him? Maybe. But not in a malicious way, not by his standards.

I am happy to read any sangyao content I can get, however! I love reading about them as companions on the mountain, growing together, bonding. Maybe young and in love? I love reading the gradual drifting apart. The years they schemed and used each other. The final divorce. And what comes after. Or what could never be. Any content, I will take, and it depends on where in cannon we are that a particular square is filled in.

Jgy had to fight for both acceptance and sheer survival, and huaisang never really had to do either. Except maybe during the ~10 years of the gap when Huaisang had figured him out, but was pretending to be useless to achieve his ends. You could argue the mindset that aside from just avenging his DaGe, he was also concerned about his own survival bc what if he became an Inconvienience instead of just the annoyance he was playing up to be? If he actually stood in Guanyao's way? It would be much easier to take him out than Mingjue, realistically. But what would be that threshold to have JGY actually do anything? Are Huaisang’s histrionics and uselessness useful to him? Or a result of guilty indulgence? Or left over fondness from a ti.e they were so close? Some combo of all? Who can say and I fucking love that uncertainty about them

Saying all that, these two are the poster child for OTP I don't want to end up together in Canon, lol. Unless it's one of the many time travel fix it aus, they simply have too much history and shared issues and rage between them to ever make sense working out. But their stories are so incomplete without the other, they are inexorably linked, and I just think they're neat!

(Please don't come for me cql fans. im sure I've misunderstood or posted an opinion that's utterly debatable on here. But like, also. I'm tired and I love them and I don't care.)

I have more to say about them that you'll probably get to hear at some point when we talk, but for now, they have BROKEN MY BRAIN.

Also, to all my fellow sangyao peeps: please feel free to send fic recs if you want. I am so hungry for the content.

[imunbreakabledude]

I've recently finished your long Maeve x Elena fic and honestly I'm obsessed. I've always liked Elena but the show didn't show to much so I was rather indifferent to their relationship until I found the maevelena tag on here and then your fics. You make them both so human . They're just two complicated women trying their best .

I was also pleasantly surprised by Ashley and Maeve's dynamic . I was not expecting to enjoy those 2 together so much . I'm glad that Ashley got over her crush on Maeve . Even though ,maevelena is my OTP but id be lying if I didn't enjoy Ashley's yearning. I would be curious about an AU where Ashley does win over Maeve maybe even with Elena . ( Although I think Elena and Maeve are to possessive of each other for that )

Poor baby Maeve ! All the parts talking about her childhood made my heart ache . I never gave much thought before about her childhood and how hard that would of been . I love the story as to how she came up with the Queen Maeve name . It's a shame her mum died as I would of been curious as to what their dynamic would of looked like

Anyway I'm going to stop rambling now . Thank you for the good read and I will eagerly devour any new content you post ❤️

first off, thank you! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it. that fic was a labor of love in every sense, and I wrote it for myself above all, but it really means a lot to me to hear when other people enjoy it. because it was a joy to tell a longer, serialized story in the style of a tv spinoff, for an active audience to engage with. (even if a very small audience).

I, too, didn't think much of Elena the first time I watched the show - I mean, she doesn't get a lot to do on the show, unfortunately. but as I rewatched and grew fixated on Maeve, i realized there was a lot more depth implied to Elena than first appears... and grew intrigued at filling in more about her while fleshing out more about Maeve as well, and... even though 95% of the elaborate history I've written for them is my own creation, a decently large percentage of it is actually implied by their few scenes in the show! I find them so fascinating and layered and fun to explore. "Two complicated women trying their best" is a great way to put it. that's exactly why I continue to love to think about them after so long. they're far from perfect, individually and as a pair, but so layered and really need each other.

glad that you enjoyed the maeve/ashley content as well! of course it had to go the way it did in the fic, being a maevelena story primarily (well, it's not necessarily a "ship fic" overall but that is certainly a primary relationship), but that one was very fun for me to write. and if you wanna know a secret... back when I was first conceiving this "spinoff" story idea, including ashley was one of my first ideas, and actually the first hazy version of it WOULD HAVE been maeveashley endgame. because for whatever reason, I didn't envision elena being a major part of it at first - a "guest star" at most. I think because i was taking a lot of inspo from Angel's format as a spinoff and once it occurred to me that Ashley could be the "Cordelia" to Maeve's "Angel", that felt so perfect, and I'm a sucker for their love story in the spinoff, so I envisioned a similar unlikely-but-perfect love developing between Maeve and Ashley. tbh, i think it could and maybe even WOULD happen if Elena was not back in Maeve's life for whatever reason.

As it is, though, Maeve and Ashley definitely have a weird, permanent, deep platonic bond in this story's universe though. a bond which is not the SAME as her relationship with Elena, or Annie, or anyone else but possibly just as important. and tbh even though I don't know that I can imagine an Elena/Maeve/Ashley throuple working (i am very creative with ot3s, but this one seems TOUGH lol), i do think Ashley becomes weirdly a sort of fixture/add-on to their marriage in again, a weird unquantifiable way. like it's Maeve and Elena... and Ashley. she's just always in their lives and even Elena comes to accept and maaaybe even appreciate it after a while lmao.

I'm going off on tangents now because I actually have sooo much more in this universe thought out, from some stuff that happens after the end of that fic, to miscellaneous snippets in the past/time skips of that fic, but I haven't written/posted much of it because... well... there was a small audience for it at the best of times and as more time goes on there's less and less interest in stuff about a character who hasn't been on TV since 2022.

so I wanted to emphasize, thank you for sending this message. for reading the fic and enjoying it and letting me KNOW that you did. <3 it may seem silly but this came at the perfect time, I haven't been feeling the best lately especially when it comes to writing, and I've been looking for a way to enjoy writing again... and getting feedback like this, that someone appreciated something I enjoyed making, helps a lot. and knowing there's maybe still an active desire for it, makes me want to dust off some of the many WIPs I still have about maeve in the pipeline. so, thank you for this message.

[brookiidookiii]

oughhh jock! jock i love you jock. for the ask

Oh thank you for this. They’re my childhood OTP so I do have a lottttt to say. Sommeliershipping permanently doomed me to only enjoy rivals to lovers dynamics

1. What made you ship it?

First off they are constantly touching each others chests MY GOD. Not to mention how often they get up in each others faces holy shit.

That is ZOKE levels of closeness. Jesus

I think you have to be dumb to not see why people ship it. Also that whole “need to be dominated” scene with dawn, then jo shows up right after that and bosses him around. COME ON. Then the rest of that scene and how it played out. Him poking her chest and then she pushes him away in a way that’s like “oh I’ll show you who’s boss.” Squat thruster ‼️‼️‼️ (why did she do that) Plus she seems to have genuine respect for him which is really nice. She’s given him the most nicknames out of everyone too.

Also 2/5 of bricks confessionals are about jo. The other three times he’s just talking about himself. I thought that’d be fun to mention. Jo wants to feel good about herself and brick wants to be a fashion designer and he can make her cute clothes i think.

I am never going to let anyone ever forget about that “maybe brick and jo wanna kiss and make up?” line UGHHH. Even Chris low key shipped it. There’s just sooo much to them. Also comedy potential with lightning thinking Jo’s a gay twink the whole time and idk maybe there could be something with jock and lightning. I’m convinced at least a few animators shipped them.

Just WIWJWJEN there’s so so so much. She’s the only person who convinced him to go against his code. That man is devoted. And then when she pulled him out of that grave and there was music playing and they zoomed in on them holding hands.. I initially shipped them because when I was younger I was looking for fanart and came across a fake screenshot of them kissing and 9 year old me beloved it was real 🥲 you can imagine my disappointment when they didn’t end up smooching. In the finale they’re constantly next to each other too. There’s way too much going on between them, I also take Jo’s dream about letting a guy win because she found him ‘attractive’ as a jock crumb. + they have a good ship name.

That rock climbing scene where brick talks about his rock wall climbing badge or something and jo seems genuinely impressed for a moment, then he goes on and says how he dislocated his hip and jo is like “oh never mind he’s weird.” LMAOOO. Brick really wanted to show off there huh. They’re both so fucking stupid iwhwnsnens

Plus we know Jo’s type is dark hair and cleft chins. She really needs to kiss her rivals okay

2. What are your favorite things about this ship?

Basically everything I mentioned before. Bricks “need to be dominated” basically confirms that jo would be his type, what can I say. And he calls her ma’am, and is just generally very respectful even when she gets under his skin. I really really love how jo tries to get under his skin, it’s so fun. And brick is slowly losing his mind. Also he didn’t vote for her in ep7, he voted for lightning, and we know that because jo got her marshmallow first, meaning lightning got one vote from brick. That is soo. Yeah. He probably would feel bad if he voted for her. He probably didn’t vote for her in ep4 either.

And he breaks his code for her. Like, his entire thing is never leave a man behind, and jo convinces him to leave everyone behind. And that causes his first elimination but MANNNNN…. He really really respects her. And I really like women who bully their boyfriends, it’s so fun. There’s probably so much more that I could say about them that I forgot to add.

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

When people write their platonic dynamic in fanfics is always so. Meh. They treat it like she just harasses him but he views her as an equal, and she sees him as a competitor she can actually have banter with. Also please stop calling them mlm/wlw solidarity. I’m not saying that because I ship them but because she has made it her life goal to make his as miserable as possible. HOSTILITY.

I’ll make my own analysis on their rivalry, not to be shippy but so people just understand how they interact because a lot of people don’t get it.

Jock is very very special to me. The only way I can enjoy m/f ships is if they’re fighting 24/7. It’s awesome. Plus he’s also the only man I can ship with Jo tbh. Other m/f Jo ships make me like ehhhhh I dunno

[kafus]

Liko and Nemona because I couldn't pick between the two

OKAY i'm finally getting to this whoops. i'll do both and i'll just skip questions i can't really answer or don't want to

for liko:

why i like them: liko is like. everything i would have wanted in an anipoke protagonist when i was younger. that's honestly the best way to put it, it's like retroactively healing for my child self in a sense lmao. i love that she kind of just gets to be... a character? like she's a girl but not the token girl. they aren't going hardcore on #girlpower or something, she's just... a character. who is a girl. a well done character at that - i think liko's internal struggles are relatable, and i enjoy that her compassion for others is treated as a strong point, because it is. i also just think her character design goes hard LMAO ken sugimori popped off w that one

why i don't: frankly there's not a lot i don't like about liko? this is more a commentary on horizons' writing and not her but i will say the anime is a bit slow to get her off her feet - like she's REALLY lost in internal monologue in the first few episodes and it drags a bit. but she hasn't had that issue for a while so whatever

favorite episode: oh god i have a handful of favorite episodes, i can't just pick one even if we're just narrowing it down to liko centric ones!! i guess the recent episode where liko rescues a maushold family sticks out right now because recency bias but also like, it really shows off that liko, despite her anxieties, is brave in the face of danger when it concerns the safety of others (including pokemon), and also watching her try to keep her cool after experiencing a cave in was really interesting. obviously horizons wouldn't kill her off or some shit but i will admit i was on the edge of my seat a little

favorite line: there's probably a much better answer for this but my brain is only pulling up "i'm not looking!! gurumin is gurumin!! there's nobody inside her!!" when she barges into dot's room after her computer fucking explodes LMFAO

OTP: GEE I WONDER WHAT SHIP I LIKE THE MOST (it's likodot. it's likodot so bad)

BROTP: the obvious answer is roy because they are besties and it's awesome but in my heart of hearts i need amethio to have a redemption arc so her and amethio can also be besties. Right now

headcanon: even after the pendant permanently becomes terapagos, ever since episode 15 when she had the pendant stolen and got her memories wiped, liko still clutches her shirt where her pendant would be as a self soothe/grounding mechanism

unpopular opinion: the fandom for this series is still pretty small cause the dub isn't out yet in the US so i don't really know what's a popular opinion and what isn't? is it too soon to say i like liko more than ash (i still love ash though and he's obviously iconic)

a wish: can liko get an older gen pokemon on her team before bank shuts down so i can rng manipulate it in an old pokemon game and ribbon master it Please and thank you

an oh-god-please-don't-ever-happen: i'm REALLY enjoying that they aren't really baiting liko x roy aside from perhaps ONE facial expression in a really early episode and i really really hope that they never START baiting it. there's nothing wrong with shipping them if you want to, i am just personally sick of ash being shipped with every single girl companion he has ever traveled with and feeling like the girl partners exist at least in part for that purpose. it's so refreshing seeing that turned on its head and just allowing the two of them to be healthy friends. if they start pushing it as a ship i'm going to explode (negative, bad)

5 best words to describe them: compassionate, introspective, naive, timid, kind

---

for nemona (gameverse):

why i like them: GOD EVERYTHING ABOUT HER?? i love nemona she's an icon for every autistic pokemon obsessed person everywhere. i love her passion i love that she exists. i love that she's also the first rival to actually feel more powerful than the player and you have to become strong enough to see her at her full force

why i don't: I LITERALLY HAVE NO CRITICISM

favorite outfit: this is a good time to mention in my mind, despite playing violet and being very attached to my violet playthrough, nemona should be in the scarlet school uniform. like she should be wearing orange. my mental image of nemona is very much based on naranja academy and pokemon scarlet jiodsfoijfsd

OTP: UHH god i ship her with both the protagonist and penny. i think my OTP used to be nemopen but i'm more a nemona x juliana person these days? my QPP is really into juliana and nemona together and both that and the yoasobi MV where gengar marries them sold me LMAO

headcanon: nemona's arm brace is an actual assistive tool for a disability!! she has poor coordination and weakness in her arms and without the brace she wouldn't be able to do nearly the level of pokemon training she does, not to mention just daily life tasks and things. also she's autistic as fuck

unpopular opinion: jokes about nemona being a stalker or god forbid a yandere are really fucking annoying to me. like i know it's not that deep but come on. it just makes me roll my eyes. like god forbid a girl has passion and is a little neurodivergent about it. unsettling to me that people see that as stalkerish/creepy. and people look way too hard into her showing up at the gyms you're at. i'd sooner be concerned about arven calling you on the phone when you're in the middle of a fucking desert or whatever despite not physically being there to see you yet. like arven could be tracking your location constantly with your phone (he's not, it's just a vessel for gameplay to happen, i'm just making a point) but no one jokes about him being a stalker bc of course they don't

a wish: nemona showed up in horizons for an episode, but CAN SHE PLEASE SHOW UP IN ANOTHER?? she said her and roy should battle sometime I NEED THIS TO COME BACK UP SEASONS FROM NOW OR SOMETHING. THEY HAVE TO FINALLY BATTLE

[stardustdiiving]

If you don't mind, 1/2: OTP? or OT3?

Ask game prompt

OTP:

In any fandom overall I think I have to say bakudeku bnha. Which I think might make some ppl grimace a bit but that is sort of why it’s passive ride or die ship for me despite the fact I’m not into bnha at all anymore JUSNDJDJD. Bc esp when I was in the fandom I feel u had to be more on the defensive abt its #mild controversy & having to rlly believe in the meta of the ship to argue abt it when I was 16 just has it in my brain permanently. I loved those guys

In terms of genshin (cont)

idk I just don’t do a lot of strong shipping usually. My genshin ride or die relationship is hat radish (wanderer & Nahida) but that’s platonic. Ummm. I do believe very strongly in zhongven. I think havikaveh is The One True Pairing Objectively & I’m not even like super focused on them I just look at them and I’m like yeah they are gay. What am I supposed to do. Not think it’s good?!?! I honestly think if I didn’t attach to Nahida so much & at the same time of Kaveh’s release there could’ve been an alternate timeline where I hyperfixated on Havikaveh instead of hat radish

OT3:

IM NOT SURE it’s a bit harder since I don’t have rlly strong shipping opinions. I guess the first that comes to mind is zhongxiaoven but it’s less of just an ot3 and more of a complicated love triangle that goes in a circle as a form of hilarious character study

Zhongven are divorced but date for fun. They sometimes drag Xiao into it who sits between them shaking like a chihuahua. Xiao wants Zhongli to use him as a weapon to the point it’s a very unbalanced sort of devoted infatuation & Zhongli enjoys his presence but is trying to be responsible about the power dynamic. Xiao is also infatuated with Venti and tries offering Venti use him as a weapon but Venti (god of freedom) is like ummmm. Please don’t…? And is trying to have a stable relationship but also Xiao needs a lot of stability and Venti has commitment issues so it’s sort of just Complicated in a fun way. Etc

[variabels]

kaiser & isagi, nagi & reo, and sae & shidou 4 the thing :o

Kaisagi

I hate them. They’re my OTP. The day there starts being Kaisagi merch, my wallet dies.

I am a simple girl, two guys want each other dead, I think they’re in love (Shizaya did permanent damage to my brain and perception of love). I am a huge sucker for enemies-to-lovers and rivals-to-lovers.

Reonagi

I won’t lie, I’ve hated this ship since the start, the common fandom representation of it and hardcore stans really don’t help my opinion of it. I just can’t see it working out. I think they make good best friends but can’t see them as romantically compatible. They wouldn’t be happy dating each other

I don’t like best friends ships in sports anime (I am a firm believer that two guys should be allowed to just be best friends, especially when one of them has rivals to be shipped with lmao) and I hate ships where one character’s world revolves around another.

Ryusae

If there’s one ship that should be canon, it’s this one. 99% of my reason for wanting it canon is just for Rin’s reaction. But I do really love this ship (my third favorite).

I think Sae and Shidou are two of the only characters (excluding the pros and older cast) that don’t have Isagi as the ideal partner.