#they were my only hetalia ship for so long

[luckycapybara]

Hetalia USUK Feels

Hetalia for all its problematic portrayals esp towards South Korea and Eurocentric focus, is still very entertaining to watch and rewatch. I’ve been a fan since 2014, over a decade ago. Rewatching it again for the new year made me feel so nostalgic and it’s such a fun way to start the new year.

Rewatching it made me think about how I felt about USUK too. I remember when I first watched it, I was leaning towards FrUk, thinking oh, these two are the enemies to lovers trope. Though I didn't really care about any ships outside of AusHun and GerIta. For the first four seasons of Hetalia, I did not consider a romantic relationship between America and England. It wasn't until season 5 that I began to question the relationship between them. America prank calls England, and they have annual Halloween scares, and America is always trying to rile England up? That made me rewatch the previous seasons trying to understand their interactions and begin reading the manga. The manga made it 100x worse for me and my shipper brain. And then it was just been downhill from there, I'm now still a hardcore USUK shipper.

There's a certain longing between them that gets brought up here and there, masked under banter and competition. And America is always trying to get England's attention, and only exclusively from England. He visits other countries and forms relationships with them but his interactions with England alone seemed to be special because he seemed to be always seeking him out. He prank calls England every new year, has annual scare competitions with him on Halloween, and he seeks him out to dress up with him as Batman and Robin for Halloween and Himaruya specifically points out that their costumes are from different versions Batman and Robin, with the Robin that America chose for England being one that didn't have pants. America is not known for teasing any other country, and certainly not the kind to try to get other people to show skin, and this attention is reserved only for England. My question for Hima is why? Why develop America's relationship with England in this way? I can't see it as siblings or parents, there's no hecking way you would choose a costume specifically to show off skin for a family member and then tell them to show off their legs??? Maybe if they were sisters and if America was trying to find a bf for England but I don't get that sense at all.

Their feelings for each other are very complex and layered, and America definitely holds grudges against England as stated by Hima. But even so, he can't help but want England's attention, and doesn't seek it out like parental or sibling attention. He loves teasing him and I think his physical attraction to England was hinted at during the Hetaween event. And there was also that panel from the BSV strip showing that America wanted chocolate specifically from England. America has other friends, why doesn't he want chocolates from them? So I think that America probably has a crush on England, buried underneath all his other complex emotions towards him from both his toddler and colonial times. And I think America is indeed aware of his own romantic feelings but chooses to swallow them because he's still not over the Revolutionary War and he's still navigating how to interact positively with England post war. It's hard to say when those feelings for England developed but I headcanon that he's had them since his teenage colonial days but modern America is good at compartmentalizing his emotions so I imagine he must have been that way then too. For the sake of his people, he cannot let his feelings for England get in the way.

After the war, America is shown to have insomnia and wanted to see England after hearing he became sick. It absolutely haunts him how broken the relationship between them has become and how it affected England. England is also canonically heartbroken for over 100 years and although it's never revealed who, it's obvious who. England gets sick every year on America's birthday. I think America knows how fragile England is emotionally and how heavy his emotions are. So he avoids having to bring out those heavy emotions as much as he can now, by covering up his own.

As for England, I theorize that his feelings for America are a little less complicated. I don't think he necessarily has a crush on America, as he's shown to dream about little America from the time he treated him as his brother in WW2. He's a tsundere and he does love America and he longs for him but I don't think it's necessarily romantic. It's reminiscent of the love Yoojin has for Yoohyun in The S-Classes That I Raised, although those two are actually blood related brothers. But the point is, Yoojin's been very heartbroken because of Yoohyun before and to him, his brother is the most important person. That's how I see England's love towards America, although I think it is changing because England is starting to see America as more than his ex-brother because it's also hard for him to reconcile America's treatment of him as purely brotherly. Plus they're not real brothers.

I think it's hinted at that America has a crush on England. And it's delicious to see. Hima is surprisingly good at writing romance. He loves to incorporate angst and underlying romantic tension between characters and making readers wonder, will they/won't they? He hesitates to confirm anything but leaves out of place hints for couples that strongly imply romantic attraction that makes you wonder how deep these feelings run for the characters. He does this for GerIta, he does this for SuFin, he does this for AusHun, and he does this for USUK.

Happy New Year everyone!

[sigdom]

I was tagged by @schmedterlingfreud. Thank you so much!

Let's go!

Three ships:

They are all Hetalia ships.

-Spamano: I fall in love with them the first time I saw them together and I have been writing about them for so long that they're just a part of my daily basis, for saying it somehow.

-FrUK: they love and hate each other, the perfect example of the "with or without you". I love their interaction in the series, they're so funny together.

-PruHun: I have always thought that these two complement each other so well. He is the only one that doesn't mind her behavior or bad habits, he loves her the way she is and she hasn't to restraint herself when he is near.

First Ship: RoyEd (FMA): I never thought of them as a couple until I read a fanfiction about them (the first one I read) . I rewatched the series and I couldn't stop thinking about them being a couple for a long time (they were 15 years of difference!). Fortunatelly, that time passed.

Last movie: Last night I watched "Catch me if you can" for... nth time. It was on TV. Well, it shows a young Leo DiCaprio (in an age in which his girlfriends were his age too XDD).

Last song: "Vengo a fidarmi di te" by Francesco Gabbani.

Currently Reading: "El misterio de la cripta embrujada" by Eduardo Mendoza. Currently Watching: Ao no Exorcist, in fact I have to watch the last and the current season.

Currently Eating: Nothing, I had dinner one hour ago. Currently Craving: a sleeping infusion with some chocolates.

I'm tagging:

@starsmadeinheaven, @irimaru, @smoothie03, @chizooo, @lydia-denise-la-rue

Feel free to do it or no.

[milaisreading]

Can I request a part two to isolation? I really wanna see c/n meet Norway and Iceland. Maybe Mr Puffin decides to make a few loud comments or something.

🌱🩷: Hope u are fine with what I came up for this request!

Warnings: Reader uses she/her. Requests are open

🌍Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya🌍

"(C/N)!!! HURRY UP! YOU NEED TO HURRY UP AND MEET MY FRIENDS!" The girl cringed from the spot she was standing on, looking at the approaching boat of her friend and ally, Denmark. It had been roughly 6 months since she agreed to open up her country. So far it was good, she established some trade deals with Russia, Belgium, and Netherlands, who she even met 2 months ago. Currently, her boss was negotiating trading offers with Britain, France, Spain, and Prussia, who she really wasn't keen on meeting, so her boss went without her.

'They all sound so intimidating from what I could read.' She thought, thinking of all the things she read about them. And right now she was waiting for Denmark to pick her up so she could meet 2 other nations. The Dane already established a strong relationship with her, so naturally he thought it would be a good idea for her to become close with 2 other nations he knew, Norway and Iceland. (Y/n) was pretty familiar with the two, well not familiar, but she heard a lot about them in the six months and prior to isolating herself. Denmark loved talking about his friends... a lot.

'I wonder if he talked about me.' She thought while nervously playing with her fingers. Too lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice the ship dock on the port and the blonde nation running to her.

"What's with the long face?! The king is here to cheer you up!!" Denmark yelled, pulling the girl into a tight hug.

"D-Denmark?! Don't hug me so out of a sudden! And I was just thinking!" (Y/n) said, trying to get out of the hug as the people sent them weird glances or giggled at the exchange.

"But I missed you!"

She rolled her eyes at his words, but stopped the struggle, anyway.

"Are you ready? Did you pack what you need? Jeez, did it get colder since I last visited you?" Denmark kept asking as he let go of the smaller nation, shuddering as a gust of wind hit them.

"Well, you did visit me in June, now it's September, of course it will be colder now. Besides, you shouldn't have come to pick me up, I could have come with a ship." (Y/n) said to the taller, who shook his head.

"No way! I doubt that you remember how bad the North sea can be, it would be better if you don't go alone." Denmark argued as (Y/n) raised an eyebrow at her comment.

"I have well-equipped sailors, you know."

"I know you do, but better safe than sorry." Denmark added in and patted her head.

"Ok, ok. Anyway, want something to eat? We prepared some food for you and your men."

"Sure! Do you have any alcohol?"

"Yep. We made sure to get beer for you all." The girl said as she led Denmark into the city.

Two days later, Denmark and (C/n) left the port and ship set sails towards Denmark's place. Aside from (C/n) joining Denmark on the ship, she had brought some material goods as a gift to him and the 2 friends that were waiting for them to come back.

"I already prepared a whole plan for us! Since you are staying at my place for the next 2 weeks I made sure to write down all the important places for you to see." Denmark said excitedly as (Y/n) went over the list he gave her. She was really impressed with how detailed the list was.

"Thank you, but you didn't need to plan out so much. I would have been fine with anything. This was probably a chore to do." The girl looked up at the blonde as they sat in a cabin, the Dane only looked at her in confusion.

"It's not a chore, you are my friend so I want you to be comfortable while visiting. I didn't get to hang out with you in a long while."

"Still, I don't want to burden you-"

"You are not burdening me." Denmark interrupted her, sighing in annoyance as he poked her forehead a few times.

"Norge!! I brought my friend with me! Where are you and Iceland?" The Dane announced as he walked into his house, (Y/n) kept quiet as she looked around. It was a lot different than hers, not to mention that the weather was a lot warmer.

"I shouldn't have brought so many clothes along, now that I think about it." She mumbled to herself, jumping a little as she heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Must you be so loud? You don't know how silent the past days were without you." (Y/n) peeked a little behind Denmark to find a blonde boy with indigo eyes staring at Denmark in annoyance. He was a lot shorter than the Dane, but still a little taller than her.

'The descendants of Vikings are giants! The rumors were true!' She thought as the blonde turned his attention to her.

"I must apologize for him, he is a loud mouth most of the time." The boy said in a monotone manner, earning a loud protest from Denmark.

"I am Norway, by the way. You must be (C/n), the Dane talked a lot about you."

"He did?" She wondered in confusion as Denmark pushed her in front of Norway.

"I-I mean, he talked a lot about you and another country as well. It's nice to meet you."

Norway nodded his head and shook her hand.

"Well, it's nice that someone else in this house knows about manners as well." Notway off-handedly commented.

"You want something to drink? I made tea."

"Would be nice, thanks." She nodded her head, still a little awkward with the new nation.

'But, he seems nice. It's worth giving him a shot, I think.' (Y/n) thought as Norway led her to the kitchen.

"Hey! Don't forget about me like that." Denmark pouted, walking after the duo.

"The tea tastes amazing, Norway! Thank you  I really needed it after that trip we had." (Y/n) said as the blonde nodded his head.

"The North sea made issues again?" Norway wondered, glancing at Denmark.

"Just the usual. Though, (C/n) didn't sail on it for a while, so she was more shaken up."

"True, it was a terrifying experience." She admitted as Norway glanced at her.

"Understandable, I still remember the first time I sailed on it, but you get used after a while." The Norwegian shrugged as Denmark let out a loud sigh.

"Enough with the small talk, (C/n) didn't come all the way here for that." The two looked at each other and then at the blonde.

"We should go look for Icey and go around the city. Copenhagen changed a lot since she visited me the last time.."

"I am fine with it." Norway shrugged his shoulders, looking back at (Y/n).

"You fine with it as well?"

"O-oh! Sure, sounds great!" The other nation answered, still not used to his monotone voice.

'But he is very nice. Tho, I wonder why they don't have much food around. Denmark never told me he had any issues.' She thought, glancing at the kitchen suspiciously.

"Alright, I will go and get that rascal-"

"No need! He is hiding here!"

(Y/n) gasped in surprise as she heard a rough voice and turned to where the entrance to the kitchen was, only to find a black bird.

"Isn't that a Puffin? I read a lot about them. I didn't know that they could talk." She commented, looking back at Norway as Denmark walked over to where the bird was.

"Should have read more then, Missy!" Norway sent the bird a warning glare before looking back at (Y/n).

"Nr. Puffin is a special case, I guess. He can be a little rude, but please don't take it to heart." The blonde said as (Y/n) nodded her head.

"Don't worry, I can handle it." She said back.

"But, can you tell me why you have such a lack of f-"

"Let me go! I can walk on my own, I am not a kid." A new voice interrupted (Y/n)'s questioning and she turned to where Denmark was holding a much shorter boy with silver hair and purple eyes.

'Adorable!! Such a cute child!" She internally squealed as she looked a the boy, who was holding Mr. Puffin now.

"You sure are acting like one now, Iceland." Norway commented as both him and (Y/n) got up to where the trio were.

"You are Iceland?! It's nice to meet you, my name is (C/n). I am a new friend now, I guess." She said, fighting back the urge to hug the smaller.

"It's nice to meet you." The silver-haired boy blushed and looked away, embarrassed by the attention he was getting.

'So cute!' (Y/n) thought as Denmark put him down.

"By the way, did you bring us any food?" Iceland asked bluntly, looking at the nervous Dane.

"Ehm, well.... Boss said we will get new shipments next week."

"You said that last time." Mr. Puffin announced loudly as Iceland nodded his head.

"Uhm, are you guys struggling with food or something?" (Y/n) whispered in worry to Norway as Denmark tried to explain to the other two.

"A little. We had a small crisis after a conflict with Sweden. Denmark is trying his best to hold everything up, tho." Norway nodded, going back to calming down the two as (Y/n) thought everything over for a moment. She didn't want her new companions to suffer, especially when a little kid was involved. And besides, her boss did say she could do whatever as long as she made allies.

"Uhm, if you are having a hard time with food..." The four looked back at the girl, who became nervous from the attention she was getting.

"We... My people have a lot of food that we can give you."

"Food?! A lot of food?!" Iceland's eyes lightened up at those words.

"Huh? That's very generous of you. Will your boss be fine with that?" Norway asked, surprised by the offer.

"Don't worry, he won't mind. Are you fine with it, Denmark?"

The Dane was taken aback by the offer. Sure, she was always nice to him, but the help she would send was always well-thought of, and not so impulsive.

"T-that would be great, if your people are fine with it as well."

"Don't worry, they will be."

(Y/n) assured them as the Puffin landed on her head.

"I might need to change owners. Missy, do you want a bird?"

"Uhm..." The girl muttered as Iceland stomped over to get the bird while Denmark and Norway started scolding him.

'Quite an interesting bunch.' She thought in amusement.

[decembercamiecherries]

20 questions for fic writers

No one tagged me to do this lol but I saw it on someone else's blog and thought it was really cool! And I'm trying to get better at being proud of my writing so here I am doing it!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

125

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

1,205,862......wow that is a lot more than I expected

3. What fandoms do you write for?

It's mostly hxh, but this year and last I've been dabbling in other fandoms like MDZS and Hazbin Hotel

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Words That Water Flowers - HxH, killugon, hanahaki au

Running Start - HxH, killugon, high school soulmate au

Sleepover x At x Wing's - HxH, killugon, post-canon au

Match Point - HxH, killugon, high school au

Make x It x Everlasting - HxH, killugon canon & post-canon au

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to but I have a hard time staying on top of them so I mostly just respond to comments on fics I've recently posted haha ^^; but I love comments it always makes my day to receive one!

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

For HxH, it's probably: The Soulmate Phenomenon - modern soulmate au in which Killua rejects Gon being his soulmate Time x Bomb - canon au in which Killua is taken by Pitou instead of Kite For non HxH, I would say Statues which is a she-ra fic in which Adora dies and Catra ends up living at Bright Moon with her grief.

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

Oh gosh the happiest??? I write a lot of happy endings but purely happy fics are a little harder to come by so I'm just going to focus on HxH fics: After x Glow - post canon aged up au of Gon and Killua cuddling nothing else but you - modern au in which upcoming musician Gon visits his long distance boyfriend Killua during the holidays Shotgun Lovers - modern au in which Gon proposes to Killua after a month of dating

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not often but there's been a few comments here and there about elements in my fics that some people didn't like. A lot of people were unhappy with Time x Bomb so that's probably the one I've gotten the most hate for.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Lol yeah I have but only with friends as an rp sort of thing and that was yearsssssss ago.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I don't write a lot of crossovers but I think my daemon au series is the closest I've got? It's basically just HxH but with daemons from the His Dark Materials series.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of and I hope I never will!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! I've had a couple of very nice people reach out to me, I'm honored that people liked my fics enough to want to translate some of them.

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

Only in an rp sense

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

Killugon, obviously haha XDDDD the only other ships I would consider to be my otps are usuk (Hetalia) and gamkar (Homestuck)

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

The Wild Card and Gold Stained Blue TTT^TTT The Wild Card is a hetalia cardverse au that was my first attempt at a multichapter fic and I just don't have the energy to continue it any more. I'm planning to post a final summary of the ending so at least it will have some closure for readers. Gold Stained Blue is a killugon musician au written out in like bullet point form across three different google docs because it's so ridiculously long. I never got to post any of it because I was too tired after typing all the bullets out so rip. Maybe one day I will post the rough draft just for fun lol.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think I'm really good with dialogue and also one shots. I love writing requests too because I get to create a whole story that has to be told in just a few paragraphs.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I'm not too great with worldbuilding or coming up with non-prompt ideas. I always feel like my more original stuff doesn't make sense and it's too exhausting to flesh out.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I think it's cool but I wouldn't do it again for a fic of my own because I can only speak english and I do not want to butcher another language haha

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Maybe....sharkboy and lavagirl??? I loved that movie a ridiculous amount haha. But the first fandom I posted anything for online was Hetalia.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

This is so impossible to answer aaahhhhhh! I have a soft spot for all my long multichapter fics (Words That Water Flowers, Graffiti, Swan Feathers, Waiting On You) but my the most fun one shots were the most indulgent ones (5 Times Gon Was Jealous, steal x your x breath) and I also like how painting flowers for you turned out since it was a very different fic than my usual ones.

I'm just going to tag all the fic writers on here that I know! So @xyliane, @cyberflamingo, @storybookprincess, @fireolin, @autumnxsunflower and @murderkitten666! No pressure of course if you don't want to do this ^-^

[cowboy-robooty]

hiii! I was going through your acc today (well now that I say it out loud, it sounds weird) and I wonder how many AUs of you have cause I’m curious

omg i wrote an entire thing and the draft didnt saveeeee.... divine intervention saying STFU ALREADY. wwwww im glad to hear you read my blog like the morning paper though *angel emoji* i need to blog on here more often.... well... wiener is dying in the california fires rn. so thats why you been seeing im talking about whatever all the time LOL.

anyways if you mean only hetalia aus then I have my angel demon au (you probably know it) and my idol au that I have not released publically online yet but GOD I HAVE SO MUCH SHIT FOR IT LOL. Whenever I make an au i get really invested as you can tell and tbh im always pondering if i should just make this shit my ocs. but mehhh idgaf im never making an actual tv show or comic even though i envision it in my head so who gaf i keep it as itager yatta! I want to release more about my aus and such but I always somehow get so caught up in making things properly organized and such bc i get so wrapped up in world building..... i need to just post whatever and let those who like it search around my blog to learn more -_- I hope everyone will like my idol au when I release it though. You all know I'm Japanese and i think this au really proves I am since I have the gene that compels mangaka to make a series where the premise is like "I won a cereal voucher for an ultra rare prize that the moon goddess wanted but I lost it somewhere and now we have to fight a bunch of villains very obviously based off characters in sherlock holmes to get it back" and then they just roll with it. because my idol au is kind of a bunch of bullshit but its because it's based off that one idol italy drawing I drew over a year ago for wiener and i went "okay. what could make germany become an idol manager? hmmmm.. okay this is the only possible way [most dumbass idea ever]"

If you also want to know about my aus for other fandoms uhmm i have my au for the boondocks where tom and sarah divorce but its like a whole episode thing and tom ends up dating pretty boy flizzy and at first grandad n the boys are kinda weirded out but flizzy is a millionaire and immdiately after grandad is homophobic to tom in the lowkey sense (that tom doesnt notice) tom is like "thanks robert for being so supportive. well I've got to get going, fitzgerald (it would be fucking hilarious if flizzy's real first name is fitzgerald) and I are going jet skiing with post malone. Yeah, and afterwards were having wagyu sushi lined with gold leaf caviar and dodo bird! How fancy right?" and grandads all like DODO BIRD? AINT THAT EXTINCT? etc etc and increasingly he sees that actually tom dating pretty boy flizzy is amazing bc flizzy is rich and spoils him. and hes like BOYS PERHAPS I WAS TOO HARSH ON THE LGBT COMMUNITY. and riley even gets in on it too cuz flizzy is a cool ass rapper and hes like shiiiiiiiiiiiit hes kinda gangsta af though. and like after this ep they turn out as a real long term couple for the rest of the series. theyre in the bg and shit and come in to help when some bullshit is going on as usual yk. I need to think more about how to make it a proper episode with classic boondocks flavor social commentary though. I want to make it a doujin one day and have my black in-law friend help me with the script bc im not going to say the n word but its not really boondocks dialogue without it so i will need him to collaborate with me.

i also have my golden kamuy aus too. the yaoi ogata au is a big one but this post is becoming gianormous so send me another ask if you'd like to be introduced to yaoi ogata. and i have my usakado au that isn't really an au but I have a very specific way I want this ship to occur. because I don't think it's canon at all but if it were to happen the only way it could (and should) is if kadokura is about to be trampled to death by noahs arc bc of his luck but then in a twist of events usami ends up getting trampeled. and kadokura thinks that this is good luck but actually its his regular bad luck bc after usami heals from the incident he has critical brain damage that transfers his lust and yandere obsession from tsurumi to kadokura (being loved by usami is worse than dying LOL). And it spirals from there. I want it to also have a lot of biblical references because I think it really fits usakado to have kadokura like a jesus marytr since his bad luck will counteract usami's unending lust for world destruction. Since by being together the bad luck makes it so usami always fails at the crazy shit hes trying to do and it's like kadokura is protecting the world from usamis insanity by taking it all..... figuratively and in the ass too! how beautiful is that?

[pvffinsdaisies]

CHARACTERS I TEND TO PORTRAY AS WOMEN

A short little list of character that, generally, when I’m speaking about them, I’m speaking about a female alternative and a short explanation on why. Excluding nations that are not canon in hetalia (e.g. the Faroe Islands).

NYO REPLACEMENTS:

“Nyo replacements” refer to nations where I still acknowledge the existence of the male counterpart, I might include them in ships or different AUs, but generally speaking, I prefer to treat their nyo as the “main” portrayal.

NYO ICELAND:

“Hrafnhildur Ingólfsdóttir”

Whilst I have never actually taken any issue with regular Iceland, I, at some point, just started gravitating more towards Hrafnhildur, instead. I actively developed her more than I did regular Ice, and became more comfortable with her. Iceland is also one of the best countries for women in the modern world, it was one of the first in Europe to elect a female head of state, for example. Other reasons, but my explanation is getting long as is.

NYO ESTONIA:

“Ivika Tamm”

Mainly thanks to Finland, who can be seen in OC replacement, I personally just love the idea of Finland and Estonia as a sister duo more than a brother-sister duo. Also, Estonia was actually a pretty good fighter back in the day.. and kind of unhinged… and I just love female “warrior” Eesti. And, similar to Iceland, I just developed a nyo Estonia before I did hws Estonia.

NYO ITALY:

“Angelica Viola Rossi”

Again, another one where I just developed the nyo counterpart more than the male one, women are just easier for me. If I were to list countries that just give me a more “feminine” vibe, Italy would be one of the first ones to name. And I’ve just always loved and gravitated towards nyo Italy, so I use her far more often. Feliciano is cute, but he just never stood out to me in the way Angelica does.

NYO POLAND:

“Felicja Skłodowska”

I debated whether or not to add Poland to this list, but ultimately decided I should. Whilst I do love the “Poland is the land of fem-boys” meme and I appreciate how it fits Feliks perfectly, regular Poland has never stood out to me at all, really, where as Felicja is more fun. I prefer Poland’s female design, and would’ve preferred to see them as a woman, like originally intended.

NYO PHILIPPINES:

Currently unnamed

Like many people, before Philippines was released, I was in the camp that they should’ve been a girl. Whilst I am not knowledgeable on Filipino culture, from what I’ve heard, it would make most cultural sense for the Philippines to have been a woman. I’ve seen multiple female Philippines OCs that I have loved, and whilst I do not have my own portrayal, I feel as though a female Philippines just has more potential. But I have no problem with canon Piri, he’s pretty fun.

OC REPLACEMENTS:

“OC replacements” refer to characters where I refuse to admit could even be nyos. The male counterpart does not exist to me at all, they are dead, deceased, I personally killed them.

FINLAND:

“Aino Lemmikki Järvinen”

Mainly thanks to “Suomi Neito” or the Finnish maiden, in English. A female personification of Finland within Finnish culture, originally stemming from the idea that the land looks like a woman. Even besides, I personally find making Finland a girl to be a good visual way to show the difference between them and the other Nordics. This was before I replaced Iceland with nyo Iceland, keep in mind. I’ve spoken about this before, multiple times, so I won’t say much here. The only time I use male Finland is when I’m using a friend’s portrayal.

IRELAND:

“Saoirse O’Reilly/Ní Raghallaigh”

I cannot express the disappointment I felt when Ireland was released as a man, I was one of the many people who was really rooting for a female Ireland. I tried to make my peace with male Ireland, but I just could not. Ireland will forever be a woman in my mind. There are so many strong women who come from Ireland, and Ireland just in general has strong feminine vibes imo.

NORTHERN IRELAND:

“Niamh O’Reilly/Ní Raghallaigh”

Again, similar to Ireland, I personally headcanoned N. Ireland as a woman before actual Northern Ireland became canon, and whilst my disappointment wasn’t as strong, I just could not sit with a male n. Ireland. I did consider her a nyo for a while, but eventually I just gave up with that.

SOUTH KOREA:

“Im Soojin”

Mainly thanks to @itstokkii and their wonderful portrayal of Korea 💕 South Korea just has such strong feminine vibes to me, and I just cannot picture them as anything other than a woman. South Korea, as a character, I just did not care about at all until I started viewing them as a girl, I love my hyper-modern tech whizz girly ig, what can I say?

NEW ZEALAND/AOTEAROA:

“Maia Ngaio” as I’m unfamiliar with Māori names, as notes or suggestions are very much welcome.

When it comes to New Zealand, I just think of so many strong, amazing female activists and fighters. New Zealand was actually the first country to give women the right to vote, and is also just so great for women’s rights. Which has to account for something, right? I just love female Aotearoa so much, I always have done, and a male portrayal just has absolutely no appeal to me at all anymore.

[hwsfemmephenomenon]

Check out our preemptive FAQ here!

Without further ado, here are the answers to your questions from the interest check:

☆ I would like to apply to be an art mod, but my Hetalia fanwork is a bit old and not up to date with my current skill level? Can I submit some non-Hetalia fanwork for my mod portfolio?

If this is the case, submit any work you're proud of, regardless of its relevancy to Hetalia!

☆ What does "spread" and "page" mean?

☆ Where do I sign up?

Contributor applications will be opening July 1, 2024. We’ll make a post with the link to the contributor apps at 3PM EST on July 1, but you’ll also be able to find a link to the apps on our Carrd when the time comes! Right now the button on our Carrd is a placeholder, but if you press it now, you’ll be rewarded with a cool and funky video :]

☆ Will page size/formatting guidelines be given?

Yes! At the moment, there are placeholder measurements in our info-doc. Proper formatting will be finalized before contributor apps open once we’ve onboarded our formatting mods and discussed what sizes are best!

☆ Can my contribution include multiple HetaGirls?

YES!!! Let them interact!

☆ Are ships allowed?

Yes! As of right now, our only restrictions are no Belarus x Ukraine and no NSFW content.

☆ How many contributors will you accept to the zine?

At the moment, we’re a bit unsure! This is both Soph and Arson’s first time hosting a zine so we don’t want to bite off more than we can chew. As of right now, we may accept up to ~30 visual contributors and ~10 writing contributors, but those are estimates. We’ve gotten a ton of support for this zine, but we need to find our footing first! Ultimately, the final number of contributors will depend on what the mod team feels they can handle and how many applications we get!

☆ Why are you putting limits onto how Nyotalia characters can appear in the zine?

This zine originally came to be with the canon women in mind. We want the zine to focus on Ancient Egypt, Belarus, Belgium, Czechia, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Seychelles, Taiwan, Ukraine, Vietnam, and Wy, as much of their canon material treats them as supporting roles to the male characters. We additionally would love to see submissions for Ancient Greece, Kenya, and Zimbabwe!

The Nyotalia characters are understandably very popular because they're a different take on the main cast. While we also love Nyotalia, we worry that very popular characters, like the main 8, will overshadow the characters we created this zine for in the first place. Nyotalia women are allowed in supporting roles because it would understandably be a little difficult for the writers if they were only limited to a specific set of 12-17 characters.

Some examples of work featuring Nyotalia characters would be:

A frying pangle fic where Hungary interacts with Nyo!Austria and/or Nyo!Prussia

A group illustration centering Vietnam’s interactions with Nyotalia ASEAN

An AmeBela illustration where Belarus interacts with Nyo!America

Some exceptions may be allowed on a case by case basis.

TLDR: You can draw Nyotalia women so long as they play a supporting role to one of the canon ladies.

☆ How many OCs will be allowed?

It depends on how many applications we receive! So long as they're a nation & aren't already canon to Hetalia, it's fair game. We want to see ladies from all over the globe!

☆ Why do you want more than one pitch?

We don't want to force people to make work they're disinterested in, but we also don't want there to be a disproportionate amount of material for one girl over another. As of right now, Hungary is in the most demand with 69.2% of responses, but Wy (34.6%) and Monaco (42.3%) have the least amount! We want to encourage more work for the more neglected ladies!

☆ Can I make more than one submission?

As of right now, yes! So long as everyone isn't doing more than one piece and if the contributor thinks they can handle two pieces during the time frame, we wanna see those HetaGirls!

More on this to come when acceptances roll out and we start working on pitches...

Got more questions? Submit them to our inbox!

Thank you all for the love and support you've shown the zine thus far!

[berrymarais]

Fanfiction Author Interview Game

Thank you so much for the tag, @cornistasiathecoblinking

How many works do you have on AO3?

30, although I have another longfic I just haven't gotten around to posting on AO3 yet.

What's your total AO3 word count?

282,997

Your top 5 stories by kudos/likes:

Copper Country Drains My Powers -- 348 Kudos

You Are Destined For Eggs -- 287 Kudos

Roxanne Ritchi Rides in the Invisible Car From Detroit to Metro City -- 168 Kudos

Quiet Time at the Manor at 161 Kudos

The Monster Within at 131 Kudos

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I always respond, even if it's just to say "Thank you!" I appreciate every comment I receive (except for negative comments, but I've never received a negative comment on AO3).

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

That would be The Fruited Plain (fandom: Hetalia), which I haven't yet uploaded to AO3 from LiveJournal. It was painfully honest, and I couldn't really give the characters a happy ending even though I really wanted to.

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

Why One Attends Chapel At Midnight (fandom = Harry Potter)

Do you write crossovers?

Rarely, although I have a FMA/Harry Potter crossover fic called Owls and Alembics.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Oh, yeah. I received some pretty heated hate over The Fruited Plain.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes, mostly M/M. And I got to explore writing poly smut in You Are Destined For Eggs.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, someone translated my earliest Sailor Moon fic (The Thorns of Balm) into ... Polish (?) if I recall. But that was a long time ago, and I can't remember exactly.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, and I doubt I ever will. I get really opinionated when it comes to writing stories, and I want total control.

What's your all-time favorite ship?

That's hard to answer, because it changes. I weave in and out of fandoms. Right now I mostly ship Metroman/Megamind. My most enduring ship, however, was probably Ontario/Quebec (Iammatthewian).

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

I think I have only one incomplete fic on AO3 -- Not On My Watch (fandom = Megamind). I dashed off the first chapter with great enthusiasm, but couldn't decide where to take it from there. EDIT: I just realized I have 4 more unfinished fics on AO3, all from Bleach (apparenly my Bleach plot bunnies were running wild and a bit rabid): How to Pill a Third Division Captain (Bleach) Reclaiming Gin (Bleach) Curable From Within (Bleach) Cupid Keigo (Bleach)

What are your writing strengths?

I think I'm pretty good at constructing scenes, with an appropriate balance of action, dialog, description, introspection. And I love writing dialog. I was a professional script writer for SOE many years ago, and that helped strengthen my chops.

What's your favorite fic you've written?

Probably The Thorns of Balm (fandom = Sailor Moon). It was the first fic I ever put online, and I really got into it. That was also the first time I started getting mail from readers.

[raijintosworn]

Celebrating TOA and the people who contribute to make our group what it is.

Repost, don't reblog. Only fill in what you feel comfortable sharing!

Happy anniversary, TOA! Here's to many more years spent together.

Name: Cyan

Pronouns: she/they/he

Birthday (no year): 28/05 (I share my birth with Siegbert and am between Mercie and chrom!)

Where are you from? What is your time zone? From France, live in England so like 5 hours ahead of the toa clock so I miss a lot

How long is your roleplay experience? Like 15 years now??? What the fuck

How were you introduced to roleplaying as a whole? So I had a friend in school who was a weeb and asked if I RP. And I thought he meant. You know. Nsfw. So I was like Ew no :( I am a teen that is gross. Then he explained he meant like fandom RP and how it works and then I joined him on GaiaOnline YES I'M THAT OLD THANKS AND YES I STILL USE GAIA. I started with hetalia. Yes I'd still like to die

How were you introduced to TOA? Lailah hinted at me for like 2 weeks with lines like "I joined this group and you know Gerome misses Cynthia" and I kept going "sounds fun :)" and did not realise they were hinting until they straight up asked. wow I have been here 6 months

Do you have any pets? No :( I don't have the time for them

What is your favorite time of year and why?(Season, holiday, general period) Summer despite you know. The bugs. But I can actually function in summer

What is your IRL occupation? Data entry; it's why I'm on the discord server most of my day now

Some interests and things you like/enjoy? I like cooking, baking, oh and I'm a cosplayer! I've been at it for 3 years and yes it's mostly fire emblem bar ONE (soon to be two)

What non-Fire Emblem games do you play? Tales of (WHERE ARE MY TALES FRIENDS AT), Persona, critically acclaimed mmorpg FFXIV, octopath, ?? I'm not sure what else? I tried playing dragon age but it crashes constantly even with the fixes

Favorite Pokemon type & Pokemon: I don't think I have a fave type but I really really love Dragonair 🥺

Tell us some funfacts and trivia about yourself! I once wrote about the ships I hate for an English exam. Got an A. But at what cost. One was a hetalia ship (I was a child.) and another was Bart and Milhouse. 😑 Yes that Bart and Milhouse.

How did you get into Fire Emblem? I was told to play Awakening because I'll love it and I'll totally love all these characters. Um. I never finished it. Then Fates came out, twitter didn't shut up about that and I refused to play it. Then 3H came out. I saw Edelgard and it was joever for me. So I bought it and I've been here ever since.

What Fire Emblem games have you played? Engage, 3H, Fates (all three routes baby), Awakening, Echoes, Warriors, Sacred Stones, a little FEH until I was put off cause I summoned Easter Xander, a little FE7 and I WILL. FINISH. PATH OF RADIANCE. I SWEAR TO YOU ALL RIGHT NOW.

First & Favorite Fire Emblem games: first was technically Awakening but I didn't like it so I dropped it until 2022 I wanna say? So really my first FE was 3H. My favourite? Depends on the day.

List your 5 favorite Fire Emblem characters across the series!

Who was the first character ever to make you go “ooh I like this one in particular” and why? Can be any context and reason!

Any Fire Emblem crushes? 😳

If you’ve played (or are familiar with) the following games, who was your first S support? Who would you S support nowadays?- Awakening:- Fates:- Three Houses:- Engage:

Favorite Fire Emblem class?

If you were a Fire Emblem character, what would be your class and stats? Would you be playable?

If you were a Three Houses character, what would be your affiliation? (Black Eagles, Blue Lions, Golden Deer, Church of Seiros, Those Who Slither in the Dark, unaffiliated civilian, other - for example Almyran)

If you were an Officers Academy student, what would be your boons, banes and potential budding talent?

If you were an Engage character, which nation would you originate from? (Firene, the Kingdom of Abundance; Brodia, the Kingdom of Might; Elusia, the Kingdom of Knowledge; Solm, the Queendom of Freedom; Lythos, the holy land of the Divine Dragon; Gradlon, the desolate land of the Fell Dragon)

How do you pronounce TOA? 🤔(separate letters, to-ah, other?)

Current TOA muses: Cynthia and Ryoma!

Past TOA muses? Alas :(

Who was your first TOA muse? If you no longer have them, can you see yourself picking them up again? Cynthia! My beloved. I didn't think she could be such a strong muse I picked her up cause I was bullied into it. Now she bullies me daily

Do you believe you have a type of character you gravitate towards writing? (If you filled this out last year, has this changed in any way?) I don't know actually? I love posh assholes. I love sweet girls. I love chaos characters. I dunno you should see my muse list on my indie it's a wild mix

Do you have characters or types of characters you don’t think you can handle writing, but wish you could? I wanna write unrepentant assholes but I can't :( I struggle with that. I'm trying tho

What kind of scenes, situations etc do you believe you enjoy writing the most? (If you filled this out last year, has this changed in any way?) um. Well. I like intimate stuff if you're picking up what I'm putting down. But then I run away about 2 replies in so I write fanfic usually. I like kissing too. Um. I love high emotional scenes too. If I could describe my writing style, it's "My Dinner With Andre - the novel" (I've never seen the film but I get the gist)

Do you have any scenario in mind for your muse(s) that gets you thinking “man I hope I get to write this one day”? I want Ryoma to be happy. Like genuinely I want him to be in a place where he can forgive himself, maybe even forgive the nohrians. I want him to move on and have a peaceful life as a teacher. But I also want him to fall in love which is. So silly. But. My brain is a shipper lol. As for Cynthia? Hm. I have thoughts for her but that's a whole arc

Favorite TOA-related memories? I dunno! I've had a lotta fun here but I can't think of any specific stuff offhand? Maybe how welcoming everyone was when I joined that was nice 🥺

Present or past tense? Present! I live in the moment! I tend to tense match but present. I like third person and second person POV too but I can't RP in second person BC it feels weird? I mostly write in second person if I'm writing a vent fic. Why? I dunno

Normal size text, small text, no preference? I like tiny text but again I size match. I snoop to see what my partner does and copy them :D

Got any potential muse delusions to share? 😉  I am working towards the worst fucking creature. 0/10. I hate him (Innes. Yes he's my discord icon rn why do you ask). If someone else grabs him, hm. Tana? L'Arachel? I had more but I'm gunning for my moron mullet man ngl I have THOUGHTS

[katiefrog217]

10 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks @eviebane for the tag!!

No pressure tagging: @bellisima-writes @knifeforkspooncup @thatskindarough @nik-knight @onceuponapuffin @quoththemaiden

1. How many works do you have on AO3? |

Currently two!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

8,934 if I added right. I've written well beyond that but it's not published or published to AO3.

3. What Fandoms do You Write For?

Currently Good Omens! Back about 10 ish years ago, I used to write a lot of Hetalia and Pokemon (if you were on DA/Quotev and read reader inserts in the 2010s, I'm sorry) and also had a short stint with Yuri on Ice. If we go for never published stuff, Inuyasha.

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do! I try my best to at least - I really like interacting with comments and seeing what people have to say!

5. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Actually yes - quite a few times! Tbh I wouldn't be surprised if they are still being stolen to this day by random Wattpad users (it was always fucking Wattpad). My fic "Just the Way You Are (BTT X Reader) [yes I was that songfic author - again I'm sorry] was stolen quite often, along with a few others. As a result I'm quite protective over my fics - used to do line editing so I could put my name extremely small in the text so when it was copy pasted my name showed up multiple times haha.

6. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No! I haven't actually - did some creative writing prompts between people in discord before and am part of an ongoing project but as of this moment I haven't. Have helped my girlfriend with her own stuff but that's for the most part her own thing.

7. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Fuck I have to pick ONE? Sweating rn uhhhh... I have two of equal measure I can think of off the top of my head: AziraCrow (Aziraphale x Crowley - Good Omens) and Hualian (Hua Cheng x Xie Lian - Heaven Official's Blessing).

8. What are your Writing Strengths?

If I go off what people tell me: heavily immersive and visual writing. And characterization. And short form story writing.

9. What are your Writing Weaknesses?

My inability to focus on a single project, along with my terrible habit of starting fics on a whim before abandoning it because I have no idea where the story was going in the first place. My ADHD makes my motivation come and go like the wind so I can go months without updating anything, and led to a lot of my old ones getting abandoned. I also have a terrible habit of dragging scenes out because I tend to want to explain a lot of things, which leads me to procrastinate a lot when I can't think of how to describe what I want. I'm trying to get better at it. Oh, and a personal pet peeve of mine is not being able to write a fic under 5k words, because I don't like publishing shorter fics, especially self contained ones. I admire people who are able to publish shorter stories a lot, I just personally get really anxious over putting out something that wasn't at least 5 word document pages long as a chapter.

10. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

If we count unpublished and never seen the light of day, it was Inuyasha. It was a fic called "The Golden Arrow", which was based off a dream I had somewhere in the early 2010's. The only one who saw anything for it was a school friend of mine, and while I generally remember the gist of it, it's been lost to time for the most part, as it was written on an app on an old phone I have but lost the cord to.

If we wanna talk actually published to the internet, I'm pretty sure it was Pokemon.

[koolkat9]

22. What fic of yours deserves more love?

43. What appeals to you about the ships you like?

✏️Hetalia Fanfics Writers Ask Game✏️

22. Hmmm...I really liked Two Worlds Collide. One of my EngUkr fics. Though not one of my strongest fic, this scene alone makes it deserve more love I think:

Whatever was going on, without thinking, Arthur leaped out of his hiding place. He gave a slight bow. “Pardon my intrusion, Miss. But I, God of the Aleron Forest, have heard your prayers and I shall help you avoid this troublesome–”

Kateryna drew her sword without a second thought, eyes dark, stabbing it clean through Arthur’s stomach.

“Ack…Quick draw,” Arthur noted, impressed. He stared down at the sword impaling him. Nothing more than a paper cut to a being as powerful as him. “Quite the skilled warrior, how surprising. I-I mean…I just…You always seemed so kind. What’s that human saying? Wouldn’t hurt a…a fly? You seem like you wouldn’t hurt a fly but…”

Kateryna’s face paled, eyes wide. She stumbled back, shrieking.

“Hey, easy now…Oh right.” Arthur pulled the sword out, his wound healing over almost immediately. “That’s not normal for humans right?”

“You’re…You’re…” She choked out.

“God of the Aleron Forest. Yes, yes I led with that. Now about your–”

“Have you been listening this entire time?”

43. Okay let's see how many I'm going to be able to put without being too long.

GerEng - Two lonely stubborn men finding comfort in each other. Falling in love through sharing music during I think it was the 60s? It at least started then. Anyway. Though their stubborness and tempers can cause conflict I think their stubborness is what makes them work in the end. Both hate being vulnerable, so they need someone stubborn to stay, push back and rip those barriers down. Plus, I think Arthur has a tendency to push people away especially if he loves the person, so having a stubborn lover provides a needed push back to snap him out of these self-sabotaging habits.

NedCan - The history is what really drives this ship for me. Canadians played a huge role in liberating the Netherlands during WW2. Canada also housed a lot of monarchies during WW2, the Dutch Royal family being one of them. Princess Juliana was expecting a baby and ended up having to give birth in Canada, the Canadian government declared the maternity ward "extraterritorial" so the baby would only have Dutch citzenship and thus be the next heir of the throne if they were born a boy. These two actions by Canada has led to a tradition of Netherlands sending tulips to Canada each year. In the Hetalia contexts what could be more gayer yet still accurate to irl?

CuCan - They just have such a cute Bromance in the manga. I really wish we'd get some new strips with them. Also this. I like them both as besties and boyfriends:

EngUkr - I just think Arthur deserves a tall girlfriend (I tend to headcanon Ukraine as just under 6ft if not at the 6ft mark). Also Arthur is my favourite male character and Ukraine is my favourite female one.

GerCan - Enemies to lovers relationship everyone is sleeping on. German troops were TERRIFIED of Canadian troops during the world wars (specifically WWI). Canadian troops were brutal to say the least. I think Matthew had a burning hatred for the German bros during this time because they were a threat to his loved ones (Scot, Eng, Fran). He killed them at least once if not multiple times leaving scars on them. This becomes important because I like to think Matt vowed he wouldn't be like the empires who raised him, he wouldn't fall into bloodlust. Yet he did. He didn't want to be like Francis and Arthur, at each other's throats one minute, kissing the next. Yet with Ludwig he did. And he derives a sick sense of pleasure and possessiveness when he sees those scars he left. Very angsty, but nowadays, despite their bloody beginning, quite wholesome. Also I just like the idea of them going camping together.

Canmano - Came to me in an rp. Just the "he asked for no pickles" meme. Angry small x calm tall.

[aphfanficwriters]

Every month we will pose a question and collate responses as a fun and informal little exercise in getting to know each other and spark discussion.

For Hetalia's 18th anniversary, we asked our writers:

“How did you first get into Hetalia?”

Beetroot / @council-of-beetroot: People had recommended it to me prior since I'm a geography nerd but I heard it was offensive. At one point I read a fanfic about Hetalia Lithuania and that piqued my interest. But then like six months, around March of 2022, later I recalled my sister talking about a funny scene from Hetalia. So I decided to look up Hetalia out of context on YouTube. I decided nothing could be more offensive than I was at 13 so I watched that and then knew I had to watch the show. I watched the show in a weekend. It was particularly funny to watch at the time because my best friends that year in highs were foreign exchange students from Germany and Japan. Anyway here I am now.

Angel / @billowingangel: I got into Hetalia around 2015 by reading x Reader fanfiction and I stumbled upon a Germany x Reader on DeviantArt and then I went down a rabbit hole of the Hetalia countries x readers. The x reader fanfiction comforted me immensely as I was struggling greatly at the time and that was probably the worst time of my life. Then I found other Hetalia fanfiction and fanart, and I then watched some of the episodes on YouTube. Since then Hetalia has been something of great comfort and nostalgia to me. Hetalia honestly means so much to me and there's been so many lovely people in this fandom that I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with 💗

Didi / @teaedon: Searched my country on deviantart, found Hetalia OCs comics. Watched the anime when it had just 1 or 2 seasons out (both 2009), and began to keep up with blog and page translations on Livejournal (did I understand English at the time? Barely lmao). Then jumped from Livejournal to Tumblr but because a funny-unrelated-to-Heta blog, but soon more than later I started following Hetalia blogs... Made my sideblog in 2015; I should have done that sooner, it's around that time that my actual main fandom was another for a while. Even with the manga hiatus ending in 2021 (also new anime season), I only fully returned in 2022. No fics until... 2023, omg (the deleted ff.net one from when I was in school doesn't count).

Tama / @delgumofics: Back in 2012 my sister suggested I check it out, said it was funny. I watched ep1 subbed and by the end I had a glassy look in my eyes, shut it off, and promptly forgot about it. Later on it was on Netflix so I gave the dub a shot and died laughing. I binged the whole original run in a couple days then started looking at fics.

Eru / @eruverse: I first learned of Hetalia around well 10 years ago, but couldn’t get properly into it. I alrd liked Vanya but that was that [...] I properly got into Hetalia after they released Indonesia, so it was just around 2021. Was immediately thrown into Netherlands/Indonesia, the beloved ship of Indonesian fandom, creating fanarts for them and brainrotting with other Indonesian fans. Good times! Ah, NLID… other Indonesia ships would simply not compare to the weight of history, emotional baggage, and all kinds of other baggage of this one ship. You should check it out, and being Indonesian I have the front seat for accessing juicy historical materials. Nobody in the fandom knows the special side of Netherlands that Indonesians do.

@folightening: Bought and watched the first season a long time ago, I think it was out of curiosity. I remember people talking about it at school and I recognized the name at the store so I got the first season to check out. Didn't do anything more with it until ~2 years ago I think? Watched it again on a whim, bought the series in a collection set, found where I could read it, got my writer's block shattered, and the rest is history.

Yukihitomi / @arthurhonda: This is actually a funny story. So it was back in 2011, and my friend recommended it to me because I like history and was a history kid. It also had nekotalia, and I love cats. Combine the two, and it was a good recomendation. Ironically, she said "don't get into the fandom." Clearly, I didn't listen.

Ash / Lutz: A friend told me the anime was really funny so we watched a few episodes of it when we were in high school. I was hooked and almost immediately started googling amecan fanart lmao

Prush / @proosh: I can't remember exactly but I think my discovery of it was connected to the old DeviantArt series Scandinavia and the World? But it was around 2011, I'm pretty sure, and I got into it via the dubbed parts uploaded to Youtube. It activated me like a sleeper agent, having already had an early interest in history, and I've been trapped in here ever since.

Lacy: I randomly found the series while I was reading some news. (Think it was back in 2013-14). Sort of got very obsessed with it and was joining groups left and right, bought fktons of merch for a lot of characters. (i just love them all crazy at that point of time) One of the groups i was in decided to hold some event and thats where i wrote my first fic. Then theres so much stupid drama i just withdrew eventually and kept to myself with just one ship. (At this point there was this one person who was writing with me). Then came the time when she left as well, so I did question at that point if i still want to stay in this fandom alone (and i did, because i just want to finish up my wips 🫠).

Mossman / @one-more-mossman: I don't remember exactly how I did get into Hetalia , but I checked out the date of my first Hetalia pfp and it's December of 2012. I remember being super into Ivan and putting him on all my pfps and telling my friends about him and being all mushy and stupid. I had pretty limited access to the internet at that time, and didn't speak any English, so I wasn't a part of the Hetalia fandom - neither the English speaking nor Russian. So I didn't know he was an unstoppable rape truck y'know. I was drawing him and just silently vibing with him. I got into the actual fandom about three years ago - was a lurker first, not interacting aside from leaving kudos/comments, then got into fic writing (for English speaking fandom, I thought it was more lively than the Russian one). Found wonderful people here. Happy to be here, glad to have people sharing my interests. (Notice there is not a single mention of liking history. I don't like it. I can't remember a single fact.)

WhiteWings / @smuttyandabsurd: Gosh everyone started so much later than me... Anyway back in 2007, my sister forwarded a random USUK fanart to me on deviantArt simply because "it's BL and you might like it." I binged the first season of the anime and was tickled enough to keep watching as further seasons came out. I was already casually interested in history - it was my second favourite school subject behind English lit - but after Hetalia? Yeah I was reading the densest modern history nonfictions around, hovering in the military history section of the library among random middle-aged men, and writing rapetruck smutfics with a ~historical~ flavour. Anyway, 17 years later, everything from the way I consume Hetalia and tangentially-related topics to my writing has had a dramatic evolution from my humble weeb-y beginnings, but I'm still in this dang ass fandom and I can't find the exit.

Sicily: I was into countryhumans and I came across it, and was like, pft I'm never going to like hetalia.., and now we are here

[sand-rose]

Posted a Hetalia 2024 art collection on ao3!

Since people use ao3 to archive not just writing but all sorts of things, I figured I would publish all my 2024 Hetalia art into a collection on there. Some of the art I used for fics while others were for fun and only posted here, so it's a convenient place to see my art all in one place. Most of it is PruHun (like 90%), but there's also a few others involving BelaSey, an AmeBela meme, and a Frying Pangle piece. I'd like to branch out a little this year and draw some of my other fave characters/ships, so looking forward to that! There were a few other things I drew but they pertain to my long fic WIP so I didn't include them. But if anyone checks it out, I hope you enjoy!

[putagal]

Gal, as a Nedport lover, what do you think of them with other pairs, such as Engport and Nedden? Do you like them? Do you dislike them? Could they have been lovers previously?

anon.. you gave me the opportunity to ramble so i will, apologies it will be long

i will forever be a multishipper girlie BUT nedport is my #1 and will probably be for a very long time. i like other port ships too, love love love engport, like its a little hard to have the world's longest diplomatic alliance, 650+ years, and not be just a liiiittle gay for each other, portu is genuinely one of england's only friend in mainland europe and ykw.. make it gay. And while some people in the fandom think of spaport as siblings/cousins, most of the time i think of them as lovers, i think they could have dated back when they were younger and also during the iberian union (i have made up a whole universe in my mind for spaport iberian union, anon... anon im crazy.. im ill). i do like them as siblings/cousins sometimes when people do it well, one of the fics i most enjoy has them as siblings and it's fun, i just change my perspective on them depending on suits best the situation, i enjoy portcau too from time to time but usually in a one sided way (on macau's end)

now... yeah i do like more port ships than ned ones because i am from portugal so i grew up exposed to portuguese history so it's easier for me to think of historical aspects for ships (though i will admit i had NEVER heard of the dutch-portuguese wars in my history classes, that's not something we touch on while we talk about the iberian union)

i love to be able to think of historical eras for ships so because of this, and i haven't been into hetalia for that long, and i don't know a lot about the netherlands history, the way i am with other ned ships is mostly "oh! that's cute/fun"

i know about indoned which i still don't know if i like it that much or not, denned i know about too but i don't know much about them so i can't say, and then there's nedpan which i think out of these is the one ned ship i could be inclined to liking the most but unfortunately the way i see some artists draw them ruined it a little for me.. Oh but i've seen such good art too, i like to appreciate art even if im not a big fan of the ship

so tldr; yes i do like their other pairs but mostly just portu's. and they have been alive for so many years, i think they had other lovers too.

[disacurveball]

Hello. Thank you for enabling this discussion. My apologies for this long message. I would like to address the person saying they love asakiku and afraid of being ‘judged’ for having a ‘different characterization of Kiku’. I would request that they place themselves in our shoes for a moment. Asakiku is a ship with many Asian fans. It is unpleasant for me to open fanfictions looking to enjoy a story, only to see white writers fetishizing Kiku with inappropriate racial stereotypes. Or to see other people praising such works. So there is no confusion, I am discussing historical hetalia fanfictions, not other genres where it is fine to have characters be very cute and ditzy in a romantic comedy.

A pattern I noticed is that some white asakiku fanfiction authors seem to dislike the possibility of Kiku having relationships with other Asian nations. It reflects a rather possessive orientalist desire to separate Japan from Asia. It is a white foreigner’s biased understanding of Meiji, Taisho and Showa Japan. What I am referring to is this tendency to characterize Kiku as an admiring Anglophile completely besotted with Arthur or NyoEngland. To such extent that he gives them a 'pass' for their imperialism against nations he has centuries or thousand year old relationships with like China or India. He experiences no personal conflict over the British colonization of Asia. One example is a fanfiction I read of Kiku and NyoEngland, where the white writer said Kiku had a ‘curdled love’ for China, but miraculously bore England no grudge at all for her imperialism or the Opium Wars, yet he dislikes Portugal for incidents centuries ago. In this fanfiction, Kiku repeatedly blushes, behaves bashfully and gratefully thanks NyoEngland when extraterritoriality ends and appears to be immediately taken with her beauty and femininity.

This is a racist fantasy that erases the agency of Japanese people and obscures British imperialism, not reality: people angrily fought for the end of the extraterritorial treaties because of the racist treatment of Japanese lives as worthless. British extraterritorial courts had ruled that British ship crews who had refused to rescue Japanese and other Asian passengers who drowned in multiple accidents up till the 1890s were not guilty of negligence and did not have to pay compensation. Can you see how erasing this perspective and making Kiku have an instant crush on the white nation responsible for all this mistreatment is racist?

It is a white fantasy because the acceptance of Westernization was the goal of avoiding being colonized or subjugated as India or China were. Even during the alliance, there was always a significant group of politicians and ordinary people who sympathized with Asian nationalists in other nations including India who were anti-British. I do not wish to excuse Japan’s imperialism over China, Korea, Taiwan and other Asian countries. I must emphasize Japan truly has to accept responsibility for that. But I am saying that in Kiku’s personal relationship to Arthur or NyoEngland, he absolutely would not be able to completely ignore all this racial inequality as distant 'politics' separate from his personal life in the 1900s. When a white author insists he can do that to justify such a rosy alliance, this is inserting a white perspective of race privilege over a Japanese/Asian man’s experience. Is this possible when whole nations were racialized? Even the most poor and vulnerable Japanese immigrant in the British colonies was seen as a Yellow Peril menace or ‘Asian horde’, alongside the Chinese. We see this awareness manifest in Japan's interest in the Race Equality Proposal for the League of Nations, existing alongside its contradictory imperial rule of Taiwan and Korea.

I am open to nations having a baseline of respect for each other more than humans do. I am not saying we must write nations hurling slurs at each other to be 'accurate'. But it is too much to completely erase Asian racial politics from the historical Asakiku relationship when the entire alliance is rooted in imperialism, when our ancestors could never avoid being 'raced' as 'not white' because the West wouldn't permit it. To not even permit Kiku to express discomfort or disagree with or challenge Arthur or NyoEngland meaningfully or express frustration, and instead illustrate him as a shy, bashful love interest who seems blind to and unaffected by British entitlement to Asia, betrays a racist need for an Asian character to be submissive and politically harmless to white privilege in order to be ‘shippable’.

This is not saying people cannot ship Asakiku as I myself enjoy exploring this ship. But many other ships with white characters like FR/UK or Rus/Ame accept rivalries, mutual suspicion and tensions as adding interesting depth to the pairing. Why can historical Asakiku not be the same? Refusing to allow that when this period of Japanese history strongly justifies that, is a double standard stemming from racism and fetishization of East Asians as being desirable only when we are submissive and praising whiteness.

Hello anon, thank you for taking the time to leave such a thought-out message. I have nothing to add other than thank you for sharing your perspective, and it’s very important for everyone to hear! Hoping everyone takes the time to read!

[gosiksmallspace]

Shipper Tag Game

Thank you @godotismissingx for the tag! ❤️❤️❤️

Sorry that it took so much time 😅

Okay let's go!

1. What ship were you completely obsessed with when you were a teenager, but now you don't care anymore?

There were some k-pop ships I used to ship but as time went by I just stopped. Maybe because I’m not as much into k-pop as I used to be.

I also don’t ship any of Hetalia’s characters anymore.

2. Which ship would you consider your first one?

Stella and Brandon from Winx Club or Kevin and Gewn from Ben 10: Alien Force. That was even before I was aware of what shipping was.

While I was aware, I think it was Shizaya? Durarara was one of the first animes I watched. And Heiwajima Shizuo and Orihara Izaya's love-hate relationship was so good for a 12-year-old me.

Or it could be SasuNaru…

3. Your first fanfic belonged to which couple?

Written it was Merciless. 

But read? That was so long time ago...

I remember I found some Ben 10 stories on the Internet and I read a lot of them as a kid.

But when I read and I was aware I was reading fanfics it was most likely SasuNaru or Darry. It was most likely still on Wattpad or fanfiction.net. On or those self-publishing blogs. Those were popular back then.

4. Do you remember the first couple you saw a fanart over?

Probably SasuNaru. Or another ship that was popular at the beginning of the 2010s.

5. Did you ever get into ship discourse?

I try not to. I mostly believe that fiction is fiction and when I don't like something I just don't read it.

I like to read people's points of view though.

6. Did you used to have any no-otp or have it currently?

Not really. I used to hate UkFrance from Hetalia but now I just don't care. And I never really shipped Destiel. But I'm not sure I would call them a no-otp.

7. Who were the couple in the last fanfic you read?

A new chapter of Merciless fic that I'm always waiting for was published. It's called Hidsight by duty_free. AND IT'S AWESOME, GO READ IT. It's a wonderful continuation to The Merciless that can actually fix those two morons (I have hope, it's still ongoing)

Before it, my friend @frayed-at-the-seams published her fic about Junho and Hoyeol from D.P. It's called Dogs and Cats. It's an interesting supernatural spin on the original story and it allows Junho and Hoyeol to be cute ❤️

8. Currently, do you have any OTPs?

Of course. My absolute favorite obsession is Han Jaeho x Jo Hyunsoo from The Merciless

But there is more:

Roronora Zoro x Sanji (Zosan) from One Piece

Sakata Gintoki x Hijikata Toshirou (GinHiji) from Gintama

Shizuo Heiwajima x Orihara Izaya (Shizaya) from Durarara!!

Oga Tatsumi x Furuichi Takayuki (OgaFuru) from Beelzebub

Lee Dongsik x Han Juwon from Beyond Evil

Kang Yohan x Kim Gaon (GaHan) from Devil Judge

An Junho x Han Hoyeol from D.P.

Miyuki Kazuya x Sawamura Eijun (MiyuSawa) from Ace of Diamond 

James T. Kirk x Spock from Star Trek 

Merlin x Arthur Pendragon from BBC Merlin

James Bond x Q (00Q) from James Bond movies

Harry Hart x Gary "Eggsy" Unwin from Kingsman movies

Tony Stark aka Iron Man x Steve Rogers aka Captain America from Marvel Comics (comics only.)

Peter Parker aka Spiderman and Wade Wilson aka Deadpool from the Marvel Comics

Loid Forger x Yor Forger from SPY X FAMILY

Hino Eiji x Akhn (EiAn) from Kamen Rider OOO

Shijima Go x Chase from Kamen Rider Drive

Kiryu Sento x Banjo Ryuga from Kamen Rider Build

and many many more

Also as an exception to my k-pop rule, I still ship ChanBaek from EXO.

9. Is there any couple that, to this day, you are extremely mad about not getting together?

Robin and Barney from How I Met Your Mother. I get that it was planned from the beginning for Ted to end up with Robin but did they have to make Robin and Barney so good???

Also, Merthur, like they had a whole story about them? All 5 seasons?

And Sterek. 

10. Is there any ship you used to dislike but now you think they are kind of interesting?

Zeke x Levi from Shingeki no Kyojin. I used to not be much into it but there is an amazing reincarnation comic AU on twitter (here) with them and I have to say that they have a potential.

11. Do you have any ship that, in the past, was considered normal but now you would be canceled over?

Not sure... There were some ships that I wasn't aware of age. I don't mind ships with big age differences but I like for both parties to be over 18.

So maybe as an example Levi x Eren? Eren was 15 and now looking back I'm not sure if I would ship it. 

12. What was your favorite crack ship?

Tried to think of something but my head is empty. I don't believe I don't have any crack ships!

13. Who is the couple you read more fanfics of?

Shizaya, GinHiji or ChanBaek. They have big fandoms so I could just move from one fic to another. 

Also YoonMin. I used to ship them a lot but now not really but I read a lot of fics with them.

14. What most of your ships usually have in common?

They usually banter or tease each other. Those love-hate relationships are my favorites. And more of them lately have an age difference.

15. What you absolutely hate in a ship?

Lack of chemistry? I hate too much drama but also don't like where everything is fine. And cheating.

tagging (no preassure): @daxianme @yardmargs @frayed-at-the-seams @bobafvcks @babischlong-six @stanaclown @igonecrazy @chhagiya @lovemevermore @ilikeallthepenguins @manproposes-goddisposes @backtomanyang @inashoe @darktecno @areththeimagine and everyone who wants :)