#totally not alluding to a ship with the second one

[charlies-a-thief]

Kajii chibis <3

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

Okay, my one and only major complaint about Bad Batch is that I don't think they handled Tech's death properly (I still don't think they should have killed him off at all, but here we are; and even if they intend(ed) to leave things open-ended to maybe bring him back later, the titular characters in the show wouldn't have known that); and with all the reasons I've seen floating out there as to WHY Tech's death was handled the way it was and why the characters reacted the way they did (or didn't), I just want to explain why none of the "reasons" cut it for me. If you're satisfied with how Tech was handled in season 3, I am genuinely happy for you (and lowkey jealous, ngl 😉). I've just been thinking about this a lot and need to spell it out!

Reason #1: "Why do we need to see more of the characters mourning? What we got was enough. We don't need a 2 hour episode that's all about the characters grieving." (Yes, someone actually used "2 hours" in their argument.)

Let's recap what we got: 1) A scene where Echo looks sadly at the Marauder's pilot seat, Wrecker actually sheds some tears (bless him), Omega's in denial, and Hunter tells Omega they're going to retire on Pabu because Tech is gone... followed up almost immediately by the villain dropping off broken goggles as the only proof that Tech was ever on Eriadu; 2) a scene where the audience is shown Tech's goggles but Hunter doesn't interact with them- instead, he looks at Lula, proving that his driving motivation is recovering Omega (which is fine when taken from the perspective that he can't do anything about Tech, whereas he can do something for Omega; but that perspective is ultimately just headcanon because the show never reiterates or follows up on this); 3) Wrecker alluding to Tech (not by name) to try to convince Hunter to be more cautious; 4) Omega name-dropping Tech (wait, does Crosshair even know what happened?... yay for context clues, I guess); 5) Echo name-dropping Tech in relation to data decryption with the team looking down sadly for 5 seconds (I timed it) before Crosshair changes the subject; 6) Phee name-dropping Tech in relation to her not knowing what m-count is; 7) Crosshair referring to Tech's information on Ventress; 8) Omega leaving Tech's goggles in the Archeum with none of her brothers around (hot take: it kinda bothers me that the goggles are given the same treatment as Lula, I totally understand the context/deeper meaning of Omega leaving her childhood behind by leaving Lula, but we're talking about the one relic they have of their fallen and irreplaceable brother being given the same emotional weight as a doll); 9) Phee referring to Tech having a discussion with her about Crosshair while Tech's goggles are in the background (and, noticeably, Crosshair doesn't react at all and just changes the subject back to needing a ship); 10) Crosshair says the squad died with Tech, Wrecker says Tech understood the risks, and that's that.

So, what we got was enough to establish that the characters were sad in the immediate aftermath of Tech's death, that some of them may have stayed sad about it all through season 3, and that the show didn't completely forget that Tech had been a main character at one point.

What we DON'T get is any real reference to what Tech meant to the family as an individual and a brother, any real indication of how the loss of Tech (distinct from the mission to save Omega) influences his family's actions or the story's overall narrative, any actual acknowledgement in the show of Tech's sacrifice having any meaning or the family moving past grief to express any form of gratitude for Tech's presence and influence on their lives, any reference to Tech having a true impact on 4 of his 5 siblings (Omega is the closest we get to witnessing Tech's continued influence on any of his siblings and even seeing that involves squinting/head tilts at times)... in other words, we get a few minutes of sadness, but never any catharsis. We see they miss him, but never does this truly inform the narrative or their decisions in season 3, AND it's left frustratingly vague where the characters are in the grieving process (more on that later).

Besides, no one (that I have come across, at least) was ever asking for a 2 hour episode. At most, Kanan got a 22-minute "eulogy" episode, and most of us aren't even asking for that. I'd have been at least minimally satisfied with a "Mayday moment" for Tech - and that scene lasted a grand total of 20 seconds. What would have been more satisfying would have been the show taking all those superficial name drops and converting at least a few of them into meaningful mentions indicating what Tech means to his brothers and/or how he continues to have an influence on his family and/or how his sacrifice is a motivating factor for them.

Reason #2: "There was no time."

Leaving aside the fact that there was apparently plenty of time and opportunity to make Tech (among others) a red herring...

Let's assume that the showrunners were not only told they only had 1 season left to wrap everything up, but were given highly specific time allotments for each episode to where they weren't allowed to add any scenes (I highly doubt this is what happened, but we're rolling with the "no time" thing here). You know what you do in that scenario when you're talking about something like following up on a main character's death that clearly has left your entire fanbase in an uproar? You MAKE time: you trim down the action scenes, you make the characters walk a little bit faster, you decide whether an extended scene of Echo giving Omega a crossbow that is never going to show up again is actually worth saving (I actually like the scene, by the way; just giving an example), you cut out a few of the extremely vague lines of dialogue Fennec and Asajj indulge in. What you DON'T do is kill off a beloved main character and then rely on convenient time lapses/time skips to just brush over all the fallout apart from a few name drops that do nothing to establish just how important said character was to the other characters in the show.

What's more, they could have EASILY included some true closure with ANY of the Tech name-drops/scenes that were already in the show. Have Hunter look at Tech's goggles before looking beyond them at Lula in 3.02. Have the brothers be present with Omega when she decides to leave Tech's goggles in the Archeum in 3.11. Have any of the brothers say one meaningful line about Tech while they're otherwise silently basking in the sunshine in the end scene on Pabu in 3.15!

Reason #3: "They're soldiers."

Of all the reasons given for why Tech's death was mishandled, I dislike this one the most. What does CF99 being soldiers have to do with the aftermath of Tech's death being reduced to perfunctory allusions? (If you want to get into the argument that soldiers in general have to figure out a way to "move on" and The Clone Wars didn't really spend any time on the clones processing losses after battles, let me just say I don't care for how this topic is covered in The Clone Wars either, and Bad Batch was a golden opportunity for the Star Wars franchise to move past this unfortunate trope.) Fallen soldiers in real life get memorials/funerals too, even if it's months after the battle. Fallen soldiers are honored and remembered by their families and those closest to them. If the show is trying to push the stereotype that soldiers move on from tragic deaths of comrades by being "stoic" and holding it all in and never talking about it, I strongly disagree with the perpetuation of this stereotype; and if the characters as soldiers actually DID grieve Tech in a healthy way, why didn't the show depict it?

Reason #4: "Star Wars writers don't know how to write meaningful scenes/payoff regarding death and characters dealing with death/loss."

The Bad Batch writers proved time and again how brilliant they are at writing emotional storylines with maximum payoff. Case in point: Mayday. Enough said (I'm writing too much on this general topic as it is).

Reason #5: "They got over it."

Maybe I'm reading things wrong, but a rather drastic change in behavior for one character (going from cautious and weighing all risks, to reckless and jumping headfirst into situations without proper backup), and another character including Tech's death as just one reason why he "deserves" to go on a suicide mission, does not read to me as the characters "getting over it." It reads to me as "avoidance behavior" and "continued internal conflict." (Granted, Hunter's more reckless behavior in season 3 likely had as much to do with the Omega situation as it did Tech's death, but the point still stands. And if the point DOESN'T still stand, then I've got even MORE issues with how this plotline was handled, so we'll just keep assuming it does.)

Furthermore, if the characters had truly "gotten over it," there shouldn't have been any hesitation or issue with them discussing and honoring Tech in meaningful ways.

Reason #6: "They DIDN'T get over it."

Right, and we ended the show that way, with no clear resolution to them actually coming to terms with Tech's death and honoring his memory. Great.

Reason #7: "Whatever. It's good Tech stayed dead. Tech's sacrifice meant something."

... Did it? Did it really? I mean, I know I say quite frequently that Tech's sacrifice is what made the happy ending possible for the others (because that's the only thought that got me through a rewatch of season 3). But the show, the narrative itself, certainly doesn't act like it really meant anything. Hunter says in the season 2 finale that they "weren't going to waste Tech's sacrifice" because they were going to retire on Pabu... and that discussion promptly gets forgotten and never brought up again, not even when the squad is trying to stay off the Empire's radar in season 3 after Omega returns. Never is there any discussion that "not wasting Tech's sacrifice" by hiding on Pabu to make sure no one else dies (a very understandable reaction, of course) also goes against the very mission Tech pushed for in the first place: rescuing Crosshair. Never do we hear Omega tell Crosshair, "Tech didn't give up on you, I'm not giving up on you, that's why you ARE going to escape with me." Never is there any talk about "Tech wanted us to live and stay together, so that is what we are going to do." Never is there any acknowledgement at the end of the show that they are all going to live in peace on Pabu because Tech made sure they could live.

The last half of season 4 of Rebels is full of references to Kanan's sacrifice actually meaning something and having direct tangible consequences not only for the family but for Lothal and the Rebellion. For one thing, the show itself literally spells out that the mission to shut down the Imperial factories on Lothal was actually a success because all the fuel reserves were destroyed - Kanan had died, but the mission had succeeded and directly led to the success of the bigger mission to completely free Lothal, and while this is very poor consolation for the loss of Kanan, at least the show openly acknowledged it. Kanan and his influence is also openly credited for Ezra foiling Palpatine's plans with the Jedi Temple and the WBW, Ezra learning to let go and again disrupting Palpatine's plans in the finale, and doing what was needed to ensure Lothal was fully freed.

Imagine how different Rebels would be if Kanan's death had been treated like Tech's: no mention that his role on the mission had any impact whatsoever. No reference to Ezra or any other member of the Ghost crew living up to what Kanan had taught them all - or, at best, there's a perfunctory reference in the epilogue that Ezra decided to keep using the Force the way Kanan had taught him to. No depiction of Ezra or Hera or Sabine or Zeb accepting Kanan's death and letting go of the pain while holding on to the memories. Nothing to show that any of the Ghost crew members act in memory of Kanan or that he is a motivating influence on them. No indication that Kanan's sacrifice drives Ezra to decide to follow up on their initial success with the factories and ultimately completely drive the Empire from Lothal.

Rebels just wouldn't be nearly as fulfilling.

Now, imagine if Tech's death had been treated like Kanan's, and maybe it will become more clear why I have a REALLY hard time agreeing with the argument that the show itself actually depicted Tech's death as "meaning something."

[a-d-nox]

web of wyrd: the career number

the number we are focusing on today is based on the SACRAL PHYSICS NUMBER AND THE FLOW NUMBER (ex: my career number is 7: 8 + 17 = 25 -> 2 + 5 = 7 (recall that numbers must be summed a second time if they total 23 (i.e. 2 + 3 = 5) and above)). for some reason this is a calculation error in my astro-calc chart - my monetary number and relationship numbers are swapped (don't be afraid to question your numbers and check the math of websites).

but what does this number mean?

this number represents your career and monetary situation in this lifetime. that being said, this number can give you insight into what you can do for a career long-term, what you are like at work (your strengths and weaknesses in the workplace), and your monetary mindset.

so let's talk about some examples:

7 - the chariot

click here for the card description of the chariot found in a prior wyrd web post.

for unblocked 7s it is important to maintain focus, have clear intentions, and a plan in their line of work. they often work from the bottom up - they start in an entry level position then come into power (in some theories, the charioteer was both the page of swords and the page of wands before they came into power in the major arcana). often it is their careful planning and plotting that gains them their success.

blocked 7s often lack confidence at work and fear being talked down to / judged for their actions. they often lack focus and direction, which causes them financial stress. they are in need of careful planning and reflection to get out of their burdensome situations. they should try to be less impulsive and more intentional at work and when searching for jobs in order for them to find what works for them.

careers for the charioteer are chauffeur, delivery driving (UPS, amazon delivery, mail, etc), military services, pilot, police men, emergency services (firefighting, EMT, etc), security guard, equestrian, chemist/pharmacist, chef/cook/baker/nutritionist, political diplomat, marine biology, phlebotomist, ship captain, babysitter/nanny, hotel manager, housekeeper, fisherman, fertility specialist, farmer, land baron/baroness, pottery maker, plumber, real estate agent, and other related fields.

14 - temperance

rider-white's temperance (symbolic of sagittarius) depicts an angel facing the view with their eyes shut. their purple-y/red wings emphasizes their passion for the mystical as well as harmony. their golden curls are haloed showing that the angel is an enlightened being. they stand in a white (innocence) robe with one foot on land and the other in water - which shows they are connected to the emotional and the physical world. water seamlessly flows between the cups, meaning to show the flow of energy in life forces. a sun (alludes to the sun card) rises in the distance and illuminates a path for the angel to take. the irises to their [the angel's] right show that they have the wisdom needed to take on whatever gets in their way on this journey.

unblocked 14s seek help from those around them so that they can reach their monetary and career goals. they look for signs as to what they should act upon in their career and as to what they should do for their long-term career. they are flexible at work and are often very even-keeled. they are patient at work and when it comes to making money.

blocked 14s often try very hard at work and to make a lot of money - they can be too hard on themselves and their co-workers. they might struggle with relaxing - they have a lot of monetary stress. they have to realize that being overworked does not mean they are working efficiently/effectively. look at you schedule / your role and try to find ways to slow down so that you can realign with your values and goals.

careers for the angelic temperance person are medical careers (doctor, nurse, etc), pharmacist, scientist, librarian, life insurance agent, marketing/advertisement, air steward/stewardess, attorney, banker, religious leader, teacher, philanthropist, philosopher, publisher, podcaster, radio show host/hostess, writer, and other related fields.

18 - the moon

rider-white's the moon (symbolic of pisces) depicts one wild dog/coyote and one tame dog (the duality of human nature) barking at the moon or rather an eclipse. behind and between the two dogs is a lobster - the lobster is a bottom feeder of sorts, thus could represent the shadow self. the lobster emerges from the water to walk a moonlight/guided path through the mountains similar to how the hermit once walked the mountains - thus alluding to the lobster doing self-discovery / the quartet doing shadow work. first the lobster must walk between the rebuilt towers - likely face personal change.

unblocked 18s embrace their darker selves when in the workplace - they are okay with failing and having weaknesses. they see it as room made to grow/evolve. while they know how to be civil, they also know when to be impulsive and aggressive to get things done. they are open to others ideas - they are open to learning what they perviously didn't know before. they are ambitious and want to go outside the scope of what they are already know. they don't fall for things that sound too good to be true in their financial realm. they are willing to confront why they maybe the ones in their own way of gaining more money, getting a raise, etc.

blocked 18s often refuse to acknowledge that they are in a career that is making them unhappy or is not compatible with their monetary lifestyle. they might be the type to ignore their debts for awhile or to the point where it gets bad and they struggle to catch up / recover. they are also prone to falling for "get rich quick" schemes; they also might struggle with gambling - the might not know how to walk away when they have made money back / are gaining. they hate failing at things or having weaknesses in the workplace. they are prone to staying in a job that is comfortable for them without growing or accepting promotions. don't be afraid to break free.

careers for the moon are night club owner/manager, psychic, doggie daycare center management, dog kennel owner, dog breeder, night club performer, professional water sport athlete, alcohol vender, sommelier, marine biology, art therapist, artist, bartender, mental health professional, chemical engineer, detective, drug manufacturer, life guard, prison guard, private investigator, relief worker, writer, and other related fields.

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© a-d-nox 2023 all rights reserved

[epickiya722]

At this point, he's trying to change the narrative to shift it to his favor which it just disrespectful to Horikoshi and his team.

Ain't it funny that out of all the lines, it's just that one line? The very last line? Yet, all the other lines seem to still keep their meanings. Hm...

Like, every time there's a line that shows just how far Bakugou and his relationship with Midoriya has developed, the "official" translation is a total different line with a totally different meaning.

He would not say "OFA couldn't keep you on the ground...", he would not start that line like that because he has grown. Saying that just makes him sound like he's kinda boasting about his own quirk and downplaying OFA aka Midoriya’s quirk.

Now him saying "we'll finish the job" sounds less... bad given that bit could be interpret ss him saying "him and Midoriya". But... it also makes no sense because the fan translation also alludes to the fact that he and Midoriya could win together. Him saying that he'll take up what Midoriya can't is him saying "I got his back, we got this together, they're a duo". The previous chapters and the second movie show as such.

So why change the line though? Hm? So couldn't there be a line that was similar to the fan translation instead of that whole line change?

See the problem! The fan translation worked out a way better translation with Bakugou saying he'll take up what Midoriya can't because it's a callback to his apology, one of his biggest moments within his character development. Also, Horikoshi often makes callbacks.

And that said callback refers to Bakugou's growth. He still will be there so they can win together.

I know some people will be like "here's the BkDks complaining again".

Forget it being about shipping! The "official" translation just didn't do Bakugou as a character justice here. Yes, his development does involve Midoriya. But even without shipping goggles, one could see how that last line isn't fair to Bakugou's development.

Actually, you know what?

The thing I find funny about this is antis will see everyone's reactions to this and say "BkDks are making it about shipping" even though they're just as bad, even worse.

This is an example.

Let's be honest. The reason why that translation changed is probably because a certain translator feels some kind of way towards Bakugou and Midoriya. Probably why we gets "mistakes" like this constantly.

If I was translating the manga and I didn't care about BkDk, I still wouldn't be mistranslating for the simple fact I wouldn't want to change the narrative that Horikoshi wants to give. It's his story, after all. I damn sure don't want anyone doing that to me.

Especially over some damn ship they want to be salty about.

Which a lot of people who hate on BkDk do. They like to shift the story into what they want just for a chance to shit on a ship and its shippers.

Now, how can anyone be that pressed, how can anyone be so in their feelings that they would change the narrative of a story that is not even theirs by even translating wrong, I do not know!

[raspbeyes]

Alright imma say it

It totally makes sense why everyone would be more upset over Kaito's death than Kokichi

Idk why theres this sentiment that Kokichi's desth was unfairly overshadowed by Kaito BUT YEAH NO HARD DISAGREE literally none of those remaining classmates would have any reason to show compassion for kokichi over kaito

Shuichi: as he is mc/player character his perspective matters most, so ill say the most on him. Sorry to saiouma fans (dw i do think the ship is cute but honestly works better under different circumstances for the two) but Shuichi has spent more time with kaito. After Kaede's death, it is Kaito (in Kaito's questionable way) who helped get Shuichi's willpower back. Kokichi says as much in ch 4. With shuichi being a very sensitive detective, he needed that pillar of support from kaito, one kokichi, while providing help in trials, doesnt give emotionally. Sure u can argue bias on Shuichi's part, but it is Kokichi's plot in ch 4 that caused him and Kaito to have a falling out, injured and captured Kaito in a bunker, and is the reason Kaito becomes the blackened Shuichi is forced to exposed and now watch be executed

Maki: Self explanatory af, but kokichi exposed her talent to everyone to have her be isolated due to kokichi's own distaste for murderers, regardless of maki's intent. Kokichi is the one who fucked around in ch 5 with her feelings, making her harbor guilt over supposedly killing kaito. It's his plot that gets Kaito killed off as blackened so yeah dont expect sympathy from her

Tsumugi: while idk if confirmed whether Kokichi had gone off Tsumugi's script, if that is the case, Tsumugi would 100% frustrated for kokichi messing up her plotline. Shes devoted her life to dr and has been a writer in numerous prior seasons. To have some kid try to attack the mastermind directly by messing with the game would to her feel like infringing on the game's intended entertainment. Besides, if everyone else hates kokichi, it's best for her to go along with it to blend in

Himiko: there def is a weird dynamic between the two, with himiko falling for exisal kokichi twice which is weird ... but yeah no overall himiko has a negative opinion of kokichi. While he did indirectly help her releasing her bottled up emotions in the end of ch 3, it's Kokichi’s way of doing things, meaning it usually comes off as rude. Pretty sure what Kokichi (and Gonta to an extent) caused in ch 4 is unforgivable for himiko, since literally everyone liked Gonta. Himiko out of everyone believed kokichi was the mastermind, feeling great despair once he revealed the truth of the outside world. While not specific, himiko is more of a case of kokichi's general creation of distrust in others. In contrast, kaito is uplifitng to himiko, being the one to defend her in ch 3 when tenko's death was ignored and moving the group along during ch 5.

Keebo: keebo admittedly has the most sympathetic view of kokichi after the trial, alluding to his "hopeful" nature and such, as well as his logical understanding of kokichi's motive. But generally, kokichi is just robophobic to keebo for the sake of pestering keebo, as well as asking invasive questions (do robots have di-?)

Kaito: without getting into kaito and kokichi's relationship/rivalry, kaito id argue does have the second most sympathetic reflection on kokichi, providing the group with Kokichi’s last words. Tho he does doubt them, mentioning he believed kokichi's plan wouldnt work (i personally hc that as just bluff to make shuichi feel better tho). And since its kokichi who blackmailed him into the plan, kokichi is in a sense responsible for Kaito's death so he'd probably wanna focus on making Shuichi and Maki feel better

Kokichi is my fav dr character but ngl he's a little shit to the remaining survivors. While i as an audience memebr feel terrible for him, im not upset or shocked by the characters' disinterest in his death

[phantomato]

I love this addition so much!

> I wish that more (non-judgmental, non-condescending) conversations happened across fandom spaces about the sometimes (often?) conflicting and/or competing feelings that authors can have on these matters.

> realistically it’s an outpouring of a basic human desire to be seen and respected.

> for as much as any author can swear up and down that they’re only in the writing for themselves and not for the attention/praise of others, I’ve yet to meet one who’s been able to fully divorce themselves from the affirmation of having a second/third party say their work is enjoyable.

(Forgive me for chopping up the ordering and context of these pull quotes)

This is exactly what I’ve wanted for the years (years!) of my own personal journey to make peace with fic feedback. Admittedly, for the most part, my conversations have been private; I could do more to be the change and state this publicly, where other fans in the community might see and benefit from it.

I’m happy with how I manage my relationship to feedback now, and that phrasing is extremely intentional. I manage that relationship: I cut off negative thought patterns early, I practice being grateful for the feedback that I do get, I have a support network for when I need to vent, and I remind myself that I’ve tried writing some of those more popular things and it did not make me happier—in fact, it was worse. 

“If only I wrote the juggernaut ship” doesn’t work as a depressive spiral anymore because I did, I hated the experience of writing for a NOTP, and I’m not tempted to try it again. “If only I could be fannish about other media” did work, because I looked for new canons and I liked them so much that they now make up most of what I write! “It would be fine if I just got at least one comment” led me to multifandom exchanges, where writing a thank-you comment for a gift fic is a widespread norm, and many readers specifically look forward to the social event of a collection being revealed. They aren’t the totality of my fandom efforts right now, but I feel comfortable dipping into MFEs when I want that kind of interaction.

I have no idea what this process looked like to someone watching from the outside. Certainly, my fandoms list grew, and my overall output shrank, and I’ve alluded to parts of this in various social media posts. But I was writing niche fic two years ago and a year ago and I’m still doing it now. I suppose I’ve achieved the endpoint that gets called “write for yourself,” but tbh I was writing the niche fic that I wanted when I was unhappy and jealous. To find satisfaction, I asked myself what writing changes I was capable of making, and I tried a bunch to see which ones I liked. I put work into recognizing negative spirals and diverting them. I grew my community of fannish friends and acquaintances. I definitely blocked all AO3 stats with a site skin. 

But I still strongly value community! I still write the stories that I want to write! The parts of my relationship to fandom that have shifted to allow me to be chill/less affected feel nearly invisible, in light of that.

So, like, I’m not sure exactly where that leaves me. I hope that in another year or two, whenever I hit my next rough patch with my relationship to feedback, I’m able to bounce back more easily because I’ve practiced this all before. I don’t think I’ll ever escape it, because like AO3COTD says, it’s in my mind as an (imperfect) metric of community. Yes, I want to be seen. But I can’t bring myself to embrace the mantra of “write for yourself,” in light of these experiences—an author can very much be writing the stories of their heart and feeling negatively about that; it will take work for many people to have the tools to shrug off disappointment, and that work will look different for everyone. I really want every fan creator to get there! Fandom is better for having more perspectives in it. And so I very much appreciate the call for more open discussion of how fans have navigated this challenge in their own lives, because seeing that there are so many ways to reach a healthy relationship to feedback—seeing that most people are not simply born with an immunity to feelings of creative envy, and have to work to grow away from them—sounds like a net positive to our community.

managing creative envy

Just like in other areas of our lives, it's easy to be jealous of others when we create in fandom spaces and post online - the online aspect of fandom just offers more opportunities for it. Hits, kudos, comments, reblogs. Whatever unit of measurement you look at, there's always some number out there ready to tell you who's "better" and who's "worse" at whatever creative endeavor you engage in.

Except that none of those numbers actually gauge skill or quality.

When we're jealous of those numbers, what we actually wish we had isn't bigger numbers, it's attention. Reassurance. Excitement. Community. Whether the number is 5 or 5000, that's what it represents. We want those things and that other person has more of them, and so we end up jealous.

To manage that jealousy, we need to understand what we need and then find ways to get it. It might not come from posting on AO3, but maybe it comes from a local writer's group. Maybe there's someone in your life that you wish cared a little more about your "silly stories" and took you more seriously when you spoke about writing. Maybe what's missing isn't related to writing at all and it's more about having someone who cares about you and thinks you're important.

But numbers are just one thing to be jealous of. Perhaps the envy is instead because of another person's abilities. They come up with such interest plots! They have such fun ideas! They always have the perfect words, the singing phrases. For them it's easy, and for me it's just impossible!

Whether it's easy for them or not isn't what's making us envious, though. It's not about them and their abilities at all. It's about feeling like our own skills are lacking. The envy comes in because that person has what we want and don't yet have.

If we want to get past this type of envy, we need to refocus our energy away from being sad or angry or hopeless because another person is able to do something. Focus instead on celebrating the things we already do well. Take the time to notice improvements. Identify specific things we want to do better, and figure out how to learn. Remember, asking for help is always an option - and it might even lead to that feeling of community that might be lacking too.

Emotions are information that we need to take the time to interpret. Take the time to reflect on what's causing it. Find the thing that's missing from your experience and then figure out how to fill the gap.

[edoro]

Huntlow for the ship bingo.

i really like Huntlow! i have in fact written a whole 3 (soon to be 4) fic series about it so yeah you could say i'm invested.

(extensive rambling about my personal Huntlow appreciation journey + my feelings about their dynamic under the cut)

i've had an interesting journey here, because prior to the back half of s2 dropping, it was really one of my least favorite Hunter ships! it felt very 'pair the spare' to me and a lot of the content i saw for it was just... i don't know, kind of relentlessly blandly Babies Ever After-ly heterosexual in a way that did not really feel in keeping with either of their characters, and just Did Not Appeal To Me At All. it was not my thing at all, and i was just a lot more interested in exploring Hunter's relationships with other people.

and even when it started getting teased after s2e13, i was still pretty reluctant... honestly, i spent quite a while in s2 being really anxious that anytime the two of them showed up on-screen, we were going to get some kind of ship tease or confirmation that would be Awkward Forced And Rushed And Then I Would Hate It.

however, i actually now really like both the ship and the way it's being handled in the show. i mean, they definitely could still totally beef it in s3, and i think that if they do go anywhere with it other than just kind of background teasing Hunter having a crush, it's probably going to be a little rushed just because of their severely compressed runtime, but right now at least i basically have faith that whatever they do, i'm not going to hate it.

i really like the way TOH handles romance - Lumity imo was really well done and drawn out and built up way more than i would have ever expected from a cartoon like this, and it's continuing to change and develop as a relationship and also with the two of them as characters, so it feels organic and natural.

Raeda is absolutely delicious and i really appreciate the way we've been shown there are still feelings there, but there hasn't been any kind of rush to get back together or reconcile, because they have bigger things to worry about now. basically, the show tends to handle romance in a way that feels organic and realistic and doesn't feel like it's just shoe-horned in there for the sake of Having A Romance Plot,

and therefore i have no reason to suspect that Huntlow (whether it's confirmed, sunk, or just continually teased in the background) will be any different.

(i know some people feel like it's rushed, and i've seen criticisms to the effect of either "it's way too soon for Hunter to have a crush, they barely know each other" or, like, even worse, "Hunter is too traumatized to be in a relationship so it shouldn't happen" - for the first all i can really say is that i must have had a very different experience of being a teenager, because 'getting crushes on people basically just bc you think they're cool after one interaction or even just bc you Like How They Look' sure was normal for me and my friends.

tbh it feels a little bit like a weird ripple effect of the way people treat fictional adolescent sexuality like it's radioactive and even alluding to it means you should be put on some kind of list, so, like, we can't go "maybe he just thinks she's really pretty and is interested in her that way, and his attraction is only increasing as he gets to know and admire her"

as far as the second one goes, i mean, 1) the specific ways he's traumatized really imo make him more likely to get very attached very quickly and 2) the fact that he's traumatized in ways that mean he's likely to have some really unhealthy thought patterns and behaviors around intimate relationships of any sort is in fact part of why i like the ship - i think there's a lot of potential there for, you know, a recovery narrative/Hunter learning about healthy relationships first-hand, or alternately just A Really Entertaining Trainwreck)

but yeah like... there really is a lot of potential! they have a lot in common! they can relate to being treated as 'half a witch', outcasts due to the way their powers (or lack thereof) manifested/work, they both have this kind of self-sacrificing tendency, i think Willow would certainly have some feelings about the high-school Mean Girls shit Hunter endured at the hands of the other coven heads in the castle

and Hunter is just like, so eager to find someone to dedicate himself to, which could and probably will go some unhealthy places but is also very fun. does Willow not deserve to go mad with the power of having an incredibly loyal boytoy who also has elite military training? i submit that she absolutely does.

they could be really good for each other - having someone who believes in her so wholly and has confidence in her leadership skills would really help Willow's self-esteem, because she's still at the point where if anything goes wrong, she just immediately crumples into a wadded up ball of self-loathing. but Hunter's used to things going wrong, and while, yeah, it seems like he does also internalize that a lot, he does also seem to have the ability to just pick himself up and keep trying.

if a mission goes sideways and you're in charge, you can't have a breakdown in the field, you have to rally your troops and do what salvage you can and then figure out what went wrong and how to keep it from going wrong again next time. for all that his constant attempts to Be Better And Fix Things come from this place of really frantically seeking approval from like, literally anyone who will give it to him (and in Belos's case, a person who he can never actually earn it from), that's genuinely a very valuable skill to have, and i think it's something that he could teach Willow.

he can offer a sense of perspective about a lot of things, and in a way i think it'd be easier for her to believe it coming from him, because - well he's her friend (and/or boyfriend) but also he was a professional soldier, a coven head, and he's sort of a latecomer/outsider to the friend group, and he is decidedly uninvolved in the whole little drama knot with Amity and etc, and didn't know her as a kid - his perspective on her is just really different compared to Gus or Luz (or Amity), and i think she could really benefit from that perspective.

and then on her end, well, mostly she can teach him how to be a normal, well-adjusted person. she can treat him like a person, rather than a tool or a weapon or a reflection or extension of the Emperor, which is something he desperately needs. one thing i like about the idea of him basically just shifting from living his life for Belos and being Belos's tool to living his life for Willow and being Willow's tool is that she wouldn't actually like or want that - they'd end up having to talk about it and boundaries would be negotiated and it would be a good experience for Hunter.

just in general it seems like Willow is pretty good about boundaries in some ways. she's learned not to take crap from people, even if she still gives it to herself and her confidence is still shaky. she's a pretty calm and level-headed person, esp in interpersonal situations, which is absolutely not the case for Hunter - he can keep calm in a high-stress combat situation, but he just falls to pieces when it comes to interpersonal stuff.

just! ah! they go together in so many interesting ways! their respective strengths and weaknesses and traumas intersect in so many fun ways! also there's so much potential for shenanigans oh my god!!

it's just actually very good although i am tbh still incredibly picky about what fic i want to read for it. i have certain very specific opinions about the ship. but i've really come around from my initial feelings about it.

[twdmusicboxmystery]

I got a couple of questions and also wanted to share my love for TWD.

Does Daryl still carry Beth's knife around? Is Lydia? I've been rewatching s10 in preparation for rewatching s11 with my best friend, it'll be the first time watching s11 for her. And I've been trying to spot it.

Secondly, I wonder if you have any thoughts about this. I've noticed the friendship between Daryl and Connie, and it seems like their either alluding to a relationship or the shippers are just loud. And Daryl and Leah had a relationship, a unhealthy one albeit, and Maggie was the divide and ultimate choice between them for Daryl. It made me theorize something happening similarly with Connie and Beth. Not Daryl killing Connie to protect Beth, but rather between them both, he chooses Beth, maybe symbolically instead of something clique and out of character like them fighting over his affection.

My friend and I eagerly await the final episodes of the flagship show. It's so bittersweet. We love Daryl and Beth and I've told her there are theories that Beth may come back. Even if she doesn't, I'm excited and hope they end the show strong. All 3 spin-offs sound amazing, and I can't wait to hear about Daryl's spin-off, we've got so little information on it, perhaps because their waiting for a reveal. 😊 I only recently started watching TWD four years ago, shortly after my mother died, and it helped me engage in something and process my grief a little (I've still done my own work on my grief). I love zombie apocalypses, and beautiful characters and stories. These characters are like a second family. And I'm a big sucker for unique storytelling, excellent cinematography, and small character beats. I love how films and tv are made, and hope to have a YouTube channel one day where, among many other video ideas, I discuss and analyze TWD.

That was quite a lot, my apologies. But I wanted to ask and then I also felt like sharing. I'm loving the recent posts. Happy to be part of Team Delusional/Defiance. Have a lovely day.

Thank you so much for sharing! I absolutely loved this! I'm so glad the show helped you process your grief, and gave you so much comfort and hope. It's been that for many fans, and that's why the show is so popular. I agree that the characters feel like family.

I also want to say that I love that you said the show is amazing and you're excited for the spinoffs even if Beth doesn't come back. Don't get me wrong, I totally think she will and that's a big part of the reason I continue to watch. But so many people are always declaring they will be done with the show if something doesn't happen: their ship or what they want to happen in the plot or whatever. I think the show is amazing regardless, so thank you for saying that.

As to your questions, a couple of years ago, a friend of mine managed to ask Norman a question on one of his panels. She asked if Daryl still had Beth's knife and he said yes. He didn't hem or haw over it. Just, "yes, he does." So, Lydia isn't carrying it. If they were going to do something like that, they would make it very obvious. Daryl still has it somewhere stashed away, and if Norman knows that without having to defer to one of the writers, that tells me they have plans for it that Norman knows about.

As for Daryl and Connie, it's been pretty well established now that they are just friends. I actually wonder if she *might* die in 11c. No way to be sure, of course. We'll just have to wait and see. But Norman is heading off to do the spinoff, and Lauren Ridloff (who plays Connie) will not be involved in that. In fact, she's already gotten another job on another series. So, whether she dies or not, it doesn't look like she'll be very heavily involved in the show moving forward. If they don't kill her off, they could always bring her back down the road. I wouldn't mind that in the least. But either way, Daryl and Connie are never going to be romantic. They've told us that several times on the show.

Hope that helps! Hope you keep watching and loving on TWD. And I'm glad you, and all of us, are part of Team Delusional too! Xoxo! 🍁💞

[sisterofleatherfrog]

TBB Soulmate AU (pt. 1)

Hello there! Hi! I hope you’re having a good day after the events of 1x15! I started writing this before that, but I’m slow and it’s done now and hopefully the fluff can be of comfort! 

 I read a lot of fanfiction and something I really love is soulmate AU’s, so I thought: “Hey, I love the Bad Batch, I can do something with this!” and so this (and it’s part 2) were born. I’m focusing on the trope of ‘first words to each other are tattooed on your body’ soulmate trope. I hope you enjoy! If you do, please let me know. I love talking to other people here and maybe we can recommend fics to each other!

You POV is gender neutral with no descriptions.

Warnings: None, SFW with some NSFW alluded to. All fluff no bite.

Word Count: 2914

💕🌙🌸✨

At first, the Kaminoans wanted to see if they could get rid of the words and cut the clones off entirely from things that weren’t defending the Republic. Later though, thanks to some helpful Jedi and senatorial interference, the consensus was that the words would help inspire them to fight; giving them a glimpse of hope for a different life once this war was over. Different clones, of course, react differently to the words etched on their skin, and even more so to the person responsible for them...

Crosshair- ‘Something snarky,’ he snarked.

-So as I’ve heard others say, this man is 99% bite, and 1% soft.

-10/10 though it probably made him a little insecure to see the words arcing along his left rib cage because they were pretty sharp.

-He ended up growing into a bit of a sea-urchin of a person so maybe it was to be expected. 

-You on the other hand, were always a little confused about the words on your ribs, they were rude, fightin’-words, and you weren’t going to take that from nobody. 

-When the war started you enlisted to support the GAR as a mechanic.

-Despite the debriefing you got stating ‘you will mostly NOT be interacting with the clone troopers, you are to remain professional at all times, blah, blah, blah.’ the troopers would often approach the nat-born mechanics to talk, and how could you turn down their company?

-Despite what a lot of senators and other politicians said, they were not soulless automaton husks of men, they were all brimming with personality and plenty of charm and you loved to hear them talk about their brothers and adventures.

-Something that was often brought up by the ranks was soulmate words.

-Some were curious about them, others suspicious about the person on the other end, others endlessly happy that there was somebody out there for them.

-You wondered about yours, the insult you lived with your entire life stamped on your side, and hoped the banter was at least worth it.

-One day, a few of the troopers were buzzing about the new clone force that would be coming to the base, an experimental group of ‘defectives’ called Clone Force 99.

-You didn’t quite see the reason for all the excitement, but maybe they’d shake things up a bit.

-Later, you were trying to organize a bunch of equipment by the ship you were working on, and while you were moving a long piece of metal, you caught somebody with your swing.

-You looked, seeing a tall, thin man with silver hair in black and red armour, but before you could apologize he hissed: “Watch it! Or are nat-borns raised without being trained to look where they’re going?”

-You didn’t even hesitate before firing back: “If you don’t stop being an asshole I’ll whack you again and it won’t be an accident.”

-You were so miffed it took a second before it clicked, you could see the same realization going on in his own head as his eyes widened. 

-Oh no. Oh no, no, no. “Not this asshole!” You exclaimed in unison. 

-Jokes on you both though, the snark is hot and you find the banter is totally worth it.

Wrecker- A cheesy, cheesy, line

-Listen, we all know that one deleted scene in season 7 of The Clone Wars, when mans isn’t in dad mode, he’s ready to find somebody hot and go down (both figuratively and probably literally as well).

-I really don’t think he’s as easily flustered as some people write him, he’ll get embarrassed about his slip ups, but not about flirting and the horizontal bop.

-Wrecker was always a head, and later head and shoulders, above the other clones around him. There was no disguising the fact that when he stood in a doorway, he became the entire door.

-Because of this he always thought that his words were a little silly maybe? Then again, time and time again he kept hearing them from the various new people he met with the work his batch did.

-Actually, he started to become kind of anxious because of how often he heard his words and was worried he’d miss them by accident if he did actually meet his soul mate. 

-You were quite confused when you were little because your words made your parents absolutely mortified. When you were older and finally got the innuendo, you also were for a while.

-Now you were just waiting for them to try that line on you.

-While doing some administrative work for your planet’s branch of the Republic government was when you first heard that an elite group of clones would be stationed at the local GAR base. 

-It was a bit of a big deal because they would be working with the local government to best direct them in some covert operation or another, so they would be coming to your work directly.

-While delivering papers one day soon after you turned a corner and rammed into a wall that hadn’t been there 15 minutes ago.

-”Wrecker, that’s a prime example of why you should watch where you’re walking.” said a calm yet exasperated voice.

-”Yeah, yeah, Tech I get it.” Said a rougher voice. The owner of the voice, the person (not a wall) you had run into, was standing ahead of you, thick legs greeting you from your position on the floor.

-You looked up and saw him, he was handsome with a strong brow, a nose that looked as if it had been broken before, and a large scar spidering around the left side of his face toward his one white eye. When he leaned down to help you up, his hand consumed yours completely.

-It was probably rude but it just slipped out: “Kriff you’re big.”

-He looked you up and down and grinned, “That’s not the only thing that’s big.”

-The people with him, four of them, groaned at that line, but you could only laugh saying: “You know what, I’ve always wondered who I’d hear that line from, but at least you have the physicality to carry it off.”

-It took a moment to click in his head, but when it did you were swept up by the biggest man you’d ever met. Later on he did indeed prove to you that he wasn’t the only thing that was big… his bomb collection was quite impressive too.

Tech- Nerdy heart-eyes

-Unlike Wrecker, Tech is definitely more easy to fluster, especially when he’s treading new territory.

-Don’t get me wrong, with the things he’s familiar with he can take the reins and lead no problem, but new things, especially social situations, can throw him for a bit of a loop (even if he is eager to learn).

-That being said, it came as no surprise that as soon as he could understand what was written on his arm he researched it, and found the words actually referred to a type of word puzzle.

-Being inclined to that sort of thing anyway, he found an enjoyable pastime to fill the hours between training, eating, and spending time with his brothers.

-To you, your words were always kinda cute. There was a pronounced stutter there and you wondered if it was part of them or if your line was just that good.

-To be fair though, plenty of people stuttered for many different reasons, sometimes soulmate words were so innocuous that people missed each other. You really hoped that wasn’t the case with you.

-As you were working on rewiring part of the internal communications system at the base you were currently at you suddenly realized the time, so packing things away temporarily you went to stretch your cramped limps and find lunch.

-Grabbing some of the daily slop, you took it out to sit by the entrance of one of the hangers to get some fresh air and watch the ships come and go.

-As you approached a good spot, you suddenly saw a head of reddish hair poking up from behind the crates you were planning to sit on. Pausing briefly you continued toward them and thought that maybe they’d like some company.

-Coming up behind them, you saw it was a man in armour slightly hunched over a data pad with a display showing a grid of mostly blank squares, a key above it displaying-

-”Oh! Is that a penta-lingual crossword? I love those!” You enthused.

-Yeah, nerd. You loved words and loved the extra challenge of trying to determine which word in what language was the correct one to fit in the puzzle. 

-He jumped and his head whipped in your direction, owlish eyes wide behind a pair of goggles.

-He was adorable, in a grown man way.

-”Ah- um yes.” He seemed a little taken aback by your presence.

-You felt a little bad for having surprised him, apologized and introduced yourself, then explained you were here to have lunch and would leave if he wanted his privacy.

-He shook his head no emphatically, “It is quite alright, I am Tech. You will not be disturbing me if you stay.”

-So you did, at first picking away at your lunch and periodically glancing at Tech. You noticed he would glance at you too from the corner of your eye. He was cute, so you decided to be bold.

-Setting your lunch aside you leaned closer to him and looked at the puzzle he was working on. “I think 17 down is ‘mesh’la’, and across is ‘mirdala’.” 

-”Yes you are.” He softly mumbled before freezing at what he just said aloud.

-You laughed and slid down to sit beside him and started working through the puzzle together. Occasionally a word or a particular clue would bring up a topic and you would get lost in the conversation for a while. 

-Suddenly you remembered time existed and you looked, groaning as you realized you were two hours late in returning to your shift. Your job probably wasn’t in danger, but you would get a talking to.

-You told Tech as such and went to rise, “It’s been fun, I’ve never met anybody else interested in these puzzles.”

-Suddenly his hand was on your wrist, stopping you from leaving, “I… enjoyed this as well. I most likely would never have heard of them if it was not for you though.” As he said this he shyly looked up at you through his top lashes.

-It took a moment for it to dawn on you, but when it did, the smile you felt come upon your face was so big it hurt.

-Tech spoke again: “If you want, I could tell your superior you failed to return to your post because I requested you help me with a mechanical problem, you would not receive any demerits for that.”

-”Thank you.” you said softly. “If you’re still here tomorrow… would you like to sit and do some more? I only have a quick thing to do in the morning if nothing else breaks here.”

-His gaze was dreamy as it met yours, “I’d like that very much.”

Mando’a note: Mesh’la=Beautiful,  Mirdala=Clever

Echo- Easy, unexpected, unhurried

-Echo has been through, and seen a lot (understatement of the century).

-He’s at a point in his life where if he wants something, he will ask (because the worst you get is a no).

-His words reflect that, seeming to come from a perfectly innocuous social interaction.  

-While he would be more than happy to meet his soulmate and see what sort of person they were, he understood and happily lived without them. Soulmates, despite what the holodramas said, were not the be-all end-all of the love you received in your life.

-Unbeknownst to him, you were of a very similar mind in regards to romance. 

-You had family of all sorts scattered across the galaxy you were always happy to see, and you’d had plenty of experience and affection from previous partners to know what made you happy both in and out of relationships. You were secure to live without them.

-One night out in Ord Mantell, you were sitting alone at a table having a few when a sonorous voice asked: “Is this seat taken?” 

-You looked up, taking in the voice’s owner. He looked like a clone, but different in several ways: his skin was a little paler, his face more sunken and angular, and most apparent were his cybernetics. All together intriguing and handsome.

-”Not at all.” You said nonchalantly, expecting him to take the seat and move it to one of the other tables occupied by patrons. Instead he put himself in the seat and took a sip from the glass he’d brought with him.

-You smiled and raised an eyebrow at him: you liked a little boldness.

-You ended up sitting and talking to Echo until the last call and closing time came, and you talked all the way to your place and into your room (where not too much talking was done after that).

-He was a busy man, apparently also not a friend to the new Empire and was often away, doing missions for your old boss Cid (small galaxy isn’t it?) with his brothers. 

-Whenever you could though, you spent time together. He was a good man and you wanted to make that time for him (and how happy you were when he did the same for you).

-One night while luxuriating in the late afternoon light filtering in, Echo was tracing the black words on your leg: Is this seat taken?

-He no longer had his legs, but he told you how he remembered his own black words, clear as day: Not at all.

-Well, didn’t that sound a little familiar?

-Neither of you could really recall perfectly what was said on that first night thanks to the wine, but either way, words or no: you’d both made your choices and weren’t going anywhere.

Hunter- Caring father, loving man

-Ah yes, our sci fi-fantasy Rambo with the heart of a dad. Mr. ‘If anything happened to Omega I’d kill everybody else in this room and then myself’.

-Would be SOFT for anybody who likes kids.

-Your words worried you a lot when you were younger, the influence of holodramas ever present thanks to the obsessions of your close gaggle of friends. 

-What if they were already in love with somebody else? What if, like a cheesy B-holo plot, you were the reason a perfectly happy couple separated?

-As an adult you didn’t think so much about it (or like that) anymore. Whatever happens, happens, adults make their own decisions.

-Secretly though you wanted somebody to love you as much as they obviously did ‘them’.

-Hunter was always very confused by his words though. Who was ‘she’? Who would they be and why did she need to be protected? Who was it that helped this ‘she’?

-There was only a very select group of people who he could say with absolute certainty that he loved, other than them, there wasn’t another soul whom he could name who he’d treat that way too. 

-Also, as a professional soldier and elite clone squad member, the only times he spent time with potential partners were one-night stands. There was no love there.

-One day while restocking some of the shelves of the store you ran, you heard the bell above the door loudly ring, signalling somebody had entered. 

-Turning you saw a small blonde girl who was breathing heavily with eyes darting madly as if looking for something.

-This of course made you very concerned as she did not look well at all. “Hello there,” you said calmly, catching the girl’s attention “is everything okay honey?”

-She shook her head ���N-no, me and my family were just doing a job for somebody and now we’re all being chased!”

-You were shocked to say the least and ushered her behind the register and into one of cubbies below to hide while you kept watch. As she curled up, she lifted a comm device and called for somebody called Hunter.

-Some time passed and nobody came by, until suddenly the door was violently swung open by a man in a green shirt with half a skull tattooed on his face. 

He looked around before calling, “Omega?!”

-You were about to tell him nobody else was here, but were interrupted by the girl scrambling up, running to the man, and hugging him tightly. He also wrapped his (well built) arms around her.

-”It’s okay Huntah’, the nice person helped me.”

-The man, Hunter, looked up from his protective hold of Omega and turned to you, a serious expression on his face: “Thank you, she means everything to me.”

-It softened you to see the obvious care and love this man had for his child and (also recognising those words and seeing an affection you couldn’t help but understand) you said, “I’m glad I could help protect her.”

-Still concerned for Omega, it took him a moment to also recognize what was happening, but when he did his eyes met yours again, wide and wondering.

-In the end, you were both equally loving and protective of Omega, and soon she had also adopted you as her new parent. 

***

Pt. 2 

[frogblast-the-ventcore]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? Three at the moment.

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 16,204 as of today.

3. What fandoms do you write for? Battletech (as part of the collaborative writing/RP group I accidentally kicked off :3) plus Star Wars and Star Trek

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? Well, I've only got 3, but here they are:

1. Angels From On High - the new Star League Defense Force arrives to finish the Word of Blake on Helios (collab fic; AFOH is part of a larger story that's unfolding in our Battletech collection: Touchdown 3153: A Battletech AU) 2. The USS Sorcerer Files, Section 1 - absolutely nothing past happens on an accidental time travel to the past 3. "T'ad kar'tae, hettyc tome." - two famous bounty hunters realize their feelings for each other.

5. Do you respond to comments? I do, as quickly as I can once I see they're there! I love comments! More comments!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I would say The USS Sorcerer Files, Section 1 at the moment - but that's because its a very very setting specific horrible cliffhangar.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? - at the moment, probably "T'ad kar'tae, hettyc tome." It isn't exactly "happy" by all definitions, and is in no way finished, so the actual happy ending has not occurred yet. But it probably will be that one.

8. Do you get hate on fics? I'm very thankful to have never gotten any yet!

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I've alluded to smutty things in "T'ad kar'tae, hettyc tome." but nothing overly explicit.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? I have not written any crossovers. I find the concept a little silly in my own mind.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Not to date.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Yes! Almost all of the work on Angels From On High was collaborative; two of the chapters weren't even written by me, though they were collated by me from the Tumblr posts they initially appeared in!

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? Is it selfish to say one of the ones from our collaborated BT project? Well, I'm saying it anyway: Kargrid, Kargrid, Kargrid. The characters of Karrie DeLacey ( @ace-disgrace-on-the-case ) and Sigrid Guntran ( @red-sprite ) , both MechTechs. The story that their two authors are weaving together has made me audibly sob with how beautiful it is. At the moment, only one one small part of the whole is up on AO3, Chapter 3 of Angels From On High, but trust me when I say this is A+, A++, S tier writing.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Is it weird if I say I do tend to have WIPs? Much of my writing is done in my head, and then committed to the page when the blorboquakes reach 10 on the Writer scale. So I don't usually have documents lying about sitting unfinished, or if I do, they're ones I intend (at some point) to go and finish.

16. What are your writing strengths? I'm told I'm very good at the little details of worldbuilding, and being able to play with emotions.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I feel I have yet to truly do a full deep dive fic on one of my characters and really truly get to know them myself through the process of writing them. But I do hope that

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I would love to, I just don't know enough of any other languages to feel properly prepared to attempt it. A machine translator like DeepL can't do the same work as a real person knowing the language from living it.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Star Trek. First full cast of blorbos I settled on, and my second ever fandom of any sort.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? Oh, Angels From On High, without doubt. Before I accidentally started the entire Tumblr Battletech RP scene/writing group, I had no clue just how transformative it would feel, having others there to collaborate and discuss and help improve my writing.

Okay, now for tags:

@stellanslashgeode

@obiusperson

@buttsandboltguns

@ace-disgrace-on-the-case

@red-sprite

@msn-04iinightingale

@a-rebellious-waffle

@a-krogan-skald-and-bearsark

and anyone else, or just YOU, reading this on my blog.

20 Questions for Fic Writers

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 49. I have a few options for #50…

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 299,440. Ok, I hadn’t realized I was that close. Now, my answer to #1 might be “a new 560-word drabble.”

3. What fandoms do you write for? I’m nearly exclusively writing for Avatar: Legend of Korra, with a little bit of Last Airbender, where it fits in.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

1. Rainstorm - Su is there for Lin, for once. 2. The Well of Need - My first long-form story, with Lin taking care of Kya. 3. This is My Anchor - A mid-sized Kyalin story where Lin doesn’t make Kya take care of her. 4. I’m Sorry I Need You - An angsty one-shot that fits with a couple others in the “marriage is hard” domain. 5. Walk With Me - A longer-than-intended one-shot variant on a Tumblr joke.

5. Do you respond to comments? I do, as soon as I can. Sometimes, that means getting off work. Sometimes, that means giving a response as meaningful as the comment was to me. 

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? For complete stand-alone stories, that is likely Something Changed, where the last words are usually joyous. I can’t find the link for the worst-worst ending I have, so just pretend that never happened.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? The happiest ending? I like my happy endings, so this is tough. But I think I’ll go for Elemental Changes, because that launched my collaboration with @slowdissolve on Red Jade.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Not hate, exactly. One reader informed me that I had ‘let them down’ on a follow-up story because I didn’t write the story that was in their head. 

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I’ve done a little, but it hasn’t been a focus for me. And, aside from the polyamory aspect, it’s all as vanilla as it comes.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Not unless you count LOK + ATLA a crossover, which I don’t.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Not to date.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? @slowdissolve and I wrote Moonsigns together, and we published two versions. One is told in first-person language and color coded, on Tumblr. We then followed it up with a more traditional third-person version that does not rely on color, on AO3.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? Kyalin is where everything opened up for me. 

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I’m taking quite the long view of all of this. I haven’t added to Their Sacred Year in a while, but have the outline for the next installment, so I don’t consider it abandoned.

16. What are your writing strengths? Folks seem to like my dialogue and plotting.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I struggle with the final rising action / climax / falling action, to keep the pacing appropriate to the story.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I don’t plan on it, given I am uneducated in the languages appropriate to this setting. 

19. First fandom you wrote for? Legend of Korra.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? Saving the hardest for last. Naming the favorite child. Ok, fine. In that case, I’ll have to choose <wrestles with self> Elemental Changes (see #7), mostly because it’s a completely off-the-wall idea that I was able to see through and complete. And to have Slowdissolve illustrate the ending was an absolute capstone.

So I get to thank both @krastbannert and @wishingforatypewriter for their invitations!

Now, it's time to throw the floor open to folks like @yell0wsalt, @dont-blame-it-on-the-kids, @linguini17, @frogblast-the-ventcore, @badlucksav, @cdlunee, and of course,

you.

[phantomphangphucker]

Phic Phight: [REDACTED] “Oh Goddamnit. DANNY!”

Prompt Creator: @mr-lancers-english-class

Even Danny’s school projects cause ghostly issues and Lancer really should have seen this coming.

Alright fine, Lancer knew this was a bad idea. He knew it. And yet... here they all are, with each of his students doing their self-chosen presentations. And as he should have expected, Every. Single. One. has been on Phantom. Sure at least there’s been some variety. Star’s piece on his fashion and how that reflects on his personality and the era he died was actually fairly interesting (if it wasn’t for the fact that Phantom spiced up his jumpsuit with t-shirts and whatnot sometimes then this would have been a very boring one). Kwan also surprised him some, apparently he’s spent the past year or so sneaking photos of Phantom eating and did a piece on Phantom’s rather peculiar food tastes (who dips their pickles in milkshakes???) as well as effectively providing proof for the existence of ectoplasmic food (there’s no way any earth apples are neon green on the inside). Dash’s wasn’t even correctly calculated, trying to figure out how far Phantom could throw footballs based on his known strength and if he could kill someone by tackling them (disturbingly the answer -regardless of Dash’s bad math- was decidedly yes. Daniel seemed particularly disturbed). And Paulina’s was quite literally a badly written self-insert ship fan fic; the added drawings of what their child would look like only made it worse (Daniel left, not that Lancer could blame him. Lancer’s also glad for the ghost fight interrupting the presentation). Emilie’s was... disturbingly about ghost hunger and purposed the thesis that Phantom, for the good of the town, should eat the aggressor ghosts (he actually had to cut her off for getting too graphic).

But the single most interesting thing was that a ghost apparently caught wind of this and literally Every. Single. Presentation so far had words that were permanently replaced with [REDACTED], which, needless to say, caused some chaos when Samantha gave the very first presentation.

-

Lancer clicked his pen, crossing his legs and resting the evaluation sheet on his thigh, “alright, Samantha. Feel free to start whenever you please, though soon would be preferred”, by ‘preferred’ he had meant required, but no need to be mean. He chooses to ignore the goth teen's eyeroll.

Predictably the projected screen doesn’t work when she opens her file so Lancer has to spend ten minutes fiddling with the outdated tech that they wouldn’t give the school funding to replace. Eventually, he does get it up and running showing Ms. Manson’s title screen reading ‘Phantom And Hate Crimes Against Blood Blossoms’. Lancer’s positive ‘blood blossoms’ are a type of flower, figures she would do something nature-focused. She’d make for a great herbalist or botanist someday. He does catch Daniel and Tucker giving her ‘death glares’, as the kids call it, though; Samatha doesn’t look any less smug. The second page has what he thinks was supposed to be a detailed drawing of a flower but it’s severely pixilated, almost as if it been blurred; Samantha looks visibly upset so he’s going to assume something when wrong with the file or pasting format. He’s not marking on artistic capabilities though, so effort is effort there.

She quickly clicks to the next page, where the actual writing of the assignment is and looks decidedly pissed; Lancer even quirks an eyebrow since at least two-thirds of the words are a very bold noticeable [REDACTED]. Lancer watches her yank out her physical copy while glaring with murderous intent at Daniel -Lancer will have to dock him marks if he messed with another student's project- before looking at the physical copy in bafflement for a few seconds. Half the class shrieking when she drops the papers and basically launches herself over the desks at Daniel, “OH YOU LITTLE FUCKER!!!! HOW THE FUCK!”.

Lancer’s sighs and stands, “language, Ms. Manson”, moving to pick up the papers and quirking an eyebrow over them looking the same. Sighing again and eyeing Daniel, who’s being choked -or throttled perhaps?- by Samantha yet is grinning innocently. “Daniel, messing with other students' work is against student policy”, sighing yet again, “and I’ll let Star go while Samantha fixes her document”, summoning up the blonde while glaring at Daniel. Some days that boy was more trouble than he was worth but he was also insanely bright and had a heart of gold. Lancer knows he’ll do good things someday, and that’s why he still tries with him.

Half the class is snickering or laughing now and Star is very clearly trying not to laugh as she sets up.

However, as soon as it opens up the class is met with a very familiar sight. [REDACTED] litters every single page; he checked. And Star’s physical copy was in the same state.

Kwan blinks, “okay seriously, what is going on”, before scrambling to grab out his own physical copy; the rest of the class going wide-eyed and following suit. Lancer just puts his head in his hands and sighs very audibly while shaking his head. Why could nothing go right? Sighing again as the class erupts into noise.

“Mines all weird too!”.

“Same here!”.

“Okay there is no way Fenturd messed up everyone’s work”.

“And I actually tried on mine! It was about the merits of Phantom getting armour!”.

“Oh damn do we just get auto hundreds now? Please please please say yes”.

“Oh damn, Phantom would actually look awesome in armour”.

“I know right”.

“Can we just skip class entirely now?”.

“Oh my Zone a ghost messed with or work”.

“Holy Shit”.

“Wait! Wait! Wait! You don’t think Phantom did do you?”.

“Why the heck would he do that? How would he even know??????”.

“Oh I hope Phantom was inside my computer. That would be so hot”.

“Oh I don’t know, maybe someone told him or he overheard shit. He’s a ghost, he can be invisible. Heck, he could be here, right now, invisible”.

“Invisible and laughing at us”.

“No! No! Hold up! What if he doesn’t want us writing about him or maybe someone wrote some sus shit and he just nerfed us all for good measure”.

“That would mean Phantom totally read my stuff, aw Hell yeah man. That was some boss shit”,

Lancer sighs and stands up, “alright that’s enough”, sighing again because why did this have to happen to him, “and I apologies for blaming you earlier, Daniel”.

Samantha snaps, “oh no, I still blame him”, and continues glaring at the teen. Lancer suspects Samantha would continue blaming the boy even if it was firmly proven he wasn’t at fault.

Addressing the class again, “here’s what we’re going to do, you’re going to read off what of your projects you actually can and allude to the rest. Please reframe from repeating what you know was there beforehand as I’d rather not have whatever ghost responsible -Phantom or otherwise- come here pissed off”, glaring at few students who look slightly encouraged rather than discouraged by that prospect, “anyone who does will receive automatic zeroes”, ah and the encouraged looks have deflated. Good. Gesturing at Star, “you’re already up here, so do continue”. Better to not bring the clearly infuriated Samantha back to the front until she’s had some time to calm down.

Star nods and clears her throat, thankfully everyone quiets down. “O-okay, well, um”, gesturing at the screen, “I did my piece on Phantom’s sense of fashion and the cover image was one with him dressed in one of the Spook Sense stores meme shirts....”.

-

Lancer shakes away the memory, he honestly slightly regrets giving this project. But regardless right now is Daniel’s turn and Lancer is honestly slightly fearful of what his file is going to look like. Thankfully all their files were saved to his computer before the [REDACTED] debacle, so no one could go back in and edit theirs to add [REDACTED]’s for an easy grade. Lancer’s still not exactly sure how he’s supposed to mark assignments that were anywhere from one-fifth to one-third [REDACTED]. That word will be burned into his head after this grading period.

Lancer moves to find the boys file, but stares when clicking it crashes the computer. Not once. Not twice. But thrice. The fourth time rebooting the computer he inspects the file and is a bit dumbfounded, “Daniel, your entire file’s corrupted. The file type has even been changed to redacted, which I’m fairly sure, isn’t actually any possible file designation”. Everyone’s silent for a bit before bursting out into laughter.

“Just what the Zone did you write, Danny!”.

“Oh we so have to know what this is now”.

“Danny has the forbidden knowledge! We haft found him! The keeper of things forbidden and Ghostly! Haza!”.

“Ha! It was probably so lame that Phantom wanted to save him the embarrassment”.

Lancer sighs, but Daniel gestures Tucker up, “hey Tuck, feel like trying to fix the file”. Tucker chuckles and walks up, though apparently glaring at the boy. Based on Daniel’s smirk he finds this quite amusing.

Tucker does manage to make the file viewable at least. Lancer nods and leans back in his seat, “thank you, Mr. Foley”, while the file loads on screen.

Tucker sits back down with a head shake while Daniel stands at the front and gestures to the screen, “aight, as you can see from my not redacted title-”, that earns a couple laughs, “I did mine on Phantom’s portfolio of crime. Every single time our dear Phantom broke ghost law. Including such wonderful things as, that time he caused not one, not two, not even three, but five, prison breaks in one day. Or that time he invalidated a Observant spectator duel by bringing an inflatable sword”. Samantha slams a hand on her desk, “IT IS YOUR FAULT YOU DICK!”.

Lancer has some serious questions as Daniel clicks for the next page, the entire class going dead silent as a screen comprising of almost nothing but the word [REDACTED] shows. Lancer sighs very audibly. Eventually the class starts up again.

“Fenton... actually has forbidden knowledge”.

“If it wasn’t for the teacher computer saved thing I’d think he was fucking with us”.

“I mean... he is a Fenton, right?”.

“Okay the fact that this entire presentation is on ghost crimes is concerning alone. But they’re forbidden ghost crimes at that”.

“Shit I wanted the tea. Damnit”.

“Better question, how does Danny know?”.

Daniel clicking the button to go forward is very audible. And, Chicken Soup For The Soul, every single page is [REDACTED] to the point of being completely and utterly unintelligible. There are occasional lines pointing out how Phantom apparently ate confetti at a ghosts third wedding (which is apparently illegal for some reason) or that time he beat someone up with a violin that had a pie inside it (Lancer can see this one, Lancer himself has smacked a ghost with stranger).  Literally the only photo that isn’t blurred beyond recognition is one of Phantom in a prison uniform (Paulina was very vocal about liking men in uniform here). Lancer is absolutely positive the end of his conclusion ‘[REDACTED] are a bunch of [REDACTED]’ is an insult.

Samantha chucks a boot at his smirking face, “YOU IDIOT. Of course they were going to block you from talking about them. Ancients, I can’t believe you”. Tucker’s busy laughing into his hand.

“Oh my Zone, they know too”.

“They’re really earning that weirdo trio title, huh”.

Daniel snickers as he sits back down, “they broke into my room and wrecked that epic puzzle I was working on. They shoulda seen this shit coming. Literally”. Tucker snorts, “they probably did but couldn’t do anything else about it. They can’t stop you and your endless bullshit”.

“Damn fucking straight”.

Lancer isn’t going to claim to know what exactly they’re talking about but apparently Daniel effectively orchestrated this entire fiasco just to annoy some ghost. Lancer is honestly more impressed than disturbed. A for effort but an A- for making everyone's work nigh unusable.

End.

Prompt: For the last project of their senior year in high school, Mr. Lancer is letting his class do presentations on literally whatever topic they want. He is very, /very/ sure that this is going to go poorly, but that's a problem for later...

[sepublic]

SEASON 2 OF THE OWL HOUSE!!!

          RUHGISN/LIFNALARNGLIENARE

           Onto business first and foremost! We get twenty-one episodes, an extra one to make up for the rather odd, nineteen-count from the first season! That’s forty episodes in total! Then Season 3…

           OH, Season 3… I love it but it hurts! The Lord giveth and taketh away, it’s confirmed, but it’s only THREE 44-minute specials! By my calculations, that’s about the length of SIX normal episodes… THE OWL HOUSE IS SO DANG POPULAR AND THIS IS WHAT YOU DO DISNEY?!?!! First Amphibia’s finale gets screwed over, THEN this?! But at least Amphibia gets its full third season… At least I assumeit does, oh for the love of Titan if it doesn’t…

           It is extremely imperative that we petition Disney to let TOH’s third season be full-length! Because Dana herself admitted that the main reason she left Twitter was to cope with THAT news, and… OH MY GOD POOR DANA you fought SO hard against all odds to give us this show, this previous love-child of your mind and heart and spite, for this!? But it might not be too late- If we assault Disney with our demand, they MIGHT just change their mind! SO GET ON WITH IT! Let the cartoon community rally AGAIN!

           But, right-

           The first half of episodes for Season 2 is going to be TEN episodes, the second half will be eleven! Already better than the first season, but as a reminder, that’s what we’re getting so far before our mid-season hiatus! And on THAT note…

           We have confirmation for the first FIVE episodes, which will begin airing just a mere FOUR WEEKS from now! We have Separate Tides, Escaping Expulsion, Echoes of the Past, Keeping Up A-fear-ances, and Through the Looking Glass Ruins!

           These episode titles spell out “SEEK T”, presumably “Seek t(he)”, so we can already guess the next two episodes after TtLGR! That leaves fourteen more letters for the Season 2 message; The last one was “A witch loses a true way,” so perhaps this season is advising Luz to seek something that will help her get back home? Something that will help her confront and defeat Belos? A little bit of both?

           Separate Tides is the season premiere! Luz is feeling guilty about the loss of Eda’s powers, poor girl, so she’s going to set sail for a lucrative bounty? Interesting… Perhaps a real Bloom of Eternal Youth? Something magical and bile-related? More lore on the nature of magic and its origins???

           Escaping Expulsion… hoo boy, THAT’s what we’ve all been looking forward to! Odalia and Alador get Luz, Willow, and Gus expelled?! No rights for them, even if that was already obvious but WOW. But more importantly, Luz strikes a deal with the two?!? What do Odalia and Alador want from Luz, to get her back into Hexside?!?!

           Dana mentioned how Season 1 had more focus on Hexside at Disney’s request. Given how Season 2 is more her style and freedom, we might see Luz and the others remain expelled from Hexside, if only to detach them from the coven system for the time being as their rebellion grows… And give focus to OTHER things as well! Which is going to suck a LOT and I’m going to hate Odie and Al even more for this, taking away not just Luz’s opportunity but also Willow and Gus’… Especially Willow since they DID follow through on that threat, holy shit, Amity and Willow must be hurt and traumatized from this!

           But what do Odalia and Alador want from Luz? Do they want to use her as leverage against Belos? To use her FOR Belos? I’m suddenly reminded of that idea I had about Odalia and Alador being interested in Luz as like, an actual suitor for Amity… GOD my Lumity heart would actually love it if that were the case! Obviously in the long run it’s bad and for THEIR purposes, but the idea of Luz learning to be more proper for them, for AMITY really… Oh man, this is reminding me of my speculation of Luz and Alador parallels! We might just see what makes Alador so interesting to Dana in this episode, and just the SECOND one of Season 2, no less- Right into the story meat!

           ECHOES OF THE PAST! King lore! KING LORE!!! Even better Luz, Lilith, and… HOOTY… go to a new island?! An island related to King’s past? Is Eda sticking with King to make sure he doesn’t do anything, or god, did King’s antics get her into trouble again? And Hooty… HOOTY is coming with Luz and Lilith???! I’m grateful for Luz and Lilith interaction, we might get to see them talk things over, but how is Hooty…? Is the house coming along?

           Dana mentioned two spoilers and a lie, one of them was Hooty leaving the house! I guess this is one of them… The others were Camila beating someone up and Gus getting a growth spurt, which we’ll get onto later; So I think Camila beating someone up is the lie! Dang it… But a dangerous new island, could this be related to the various pieces of Titan bones mentioned in The Unauthorized History of the Boiling Isles, scattered throughout the boiling seas, all alluding to another incomplete Titan?!

           Are they KING’S REMAINS??! And his bones are incomplete because he still has his SKULL!!!!

           Keeping Up A-fear-ances is pretty obviously Gwendolyn. Screw you, Gwen, and the confirmation that her presence is causing strain for everyone… YIKES. Hopefully we’ll get Young Eda and Lilith backstory, and see how they transitioned from the YBOS flashback to present-day! Perhaps Gwendolyn DID help Eda when she first transformed… Either way, I do not like her. But she’ll be fascinating to see!

           Through the Looking Glass Ruins! As I said before, Gus gets a growth spurt, and he’s trying to impress kids from Glandus… Which YES GLANDUS, more schools lore! But uhh… If they’re at Glandus, is it because they didn’t get back into Hexside after all, and they’re moving to a different school? Luz and Amity are exploring a dangerous library there, which, Lost in Language flashbacks! But why is AMITY there… Oh Titan, does SHE choose to leave Hexside at the end of Escaping Expulsion, as a means of defying her parents’ will, to go with the friends she loves! If so… YEAH AMITY! That, or she’s out on a visit. Will Amity run from home and live with the others, or maybe Willow and her dads? Gus and Perry? Or will she still be at the Blight Manor… Dana wasn’t kidding about Emira and Edric being distracted from Grom!

           Maybe Amity works something out that gets her expelled from Hexside, and Glandus is the new school for her, who knows? Perhaps it’s because of Belos, and so Odalia and Alador are furious, but they want their kid at a school regardless, so Glandus it is! The Hexside Banshees lost their best captain… Not that she was even playing so it doesn’t matter, but still! THIS would be quite a shock and change for Amity! And Luz, Willow, and Gus… Dang, they’re just losing a lot huh?

           If they ARE going to Glandus and enrolling there, then maybe the episode will end in a failure, or maybe they’re pretending to in order to access the library, maybe a library incident will get their enrollment cancelled! I’m interested in seeing Glandus’ location, we know it’s on an island elsewhere… I kind of want to see the principal of Glandus, will they be cool like Bump? Have a rivalry with him??? Hexside lore??? FORBIDDEN SHIP BETWEEN BUMP AND GLANDUS PRINCIPAL??!?!

           But yeah, those are the episode synopses, and they promise a LOT! It seems each episode so far is just pure character or plot stuff… Not to dunk on ‘filler’, which I think is misused for a lot of episodes honestly, but I like it! I guess Dana and crew have to make the most of their time thanks to Disney’s weird thing with Season 3, screw you Mickey… But yeah! I’m definitely gonna say more stuff and talk about the intro, but for now, I AM HYPED!!!

[knockoutqueenoftheunderworld]

Nancy & Henry Solving Mysteries: A Game-by-game Timeline

My HCs for Henry joining Nancy in cases after cry. Features/alludes to my myriad of ships, possibly including: ned/henry, frank/nancy, deirdre/george, joe/sonny, frosty/chase. I might update this when more inspiration hits.

CRY:

Henry totally crushed on Ned when they first met in college and he got a little irked and disappointed when he found out Ned had a girlfriend, so he tries to date Summer to get over it, which is why he kind of acts cold to Nancy when they first meet, because Ned literally sent her to his house lmao (courtesy of lauren)

VEN:

Henry rooms with Colin

I need those interactions in my life

Colin is the definition of an incel

HAU:

Nancy talking to Ned in the phone booth with Henry awkwardly hovering outside the phone booth because car-crashed banshee late-night the-weird-guy-in-the-den-with-the-bruise-kinda-flirted-with-me-and-idk-what-to-do-with-that separation anxiety

And Ned's being a weirdo because of the party side plot going on, only sounding interested/relaxed when Nancy mentions henry and how Iggy won't let go of Henry's neck due to being spooked in the crash, how Henry made friendship bracelets on the plane to calm his flying nerves, how thrilled Kyler is that nancy brought a plus one, etc

Nancy mentions Kit and Kyler's weird dynamic but how he hinted at sleeping with Henry or something and Ned gets very quiet

Like the "..." In the chat in these games

"...Guess he's over Summer then?"

"Oh, Henry's just outside if you want to talk to him!"

Cue Ned loudly protesting while she forcefully shoves Henry in to talk to Ned because shes the least tactful person ever

And they have an awkward conversation about Kit and dating and Ned's like,, "Hey, love who you love, man. As long as you're happy, I'm happy."

BUT HIS VOICE BREAKS ON THE SECOND SYLLABLE A LA FRANK TALKING TO NAN IN CAP

anyway. when they're trudging around the grounds Nancy and Henry have a discussion about Kyler and Matt's unhealthy relationship and Henry's experiences with unhealthy relationships

and at the ceremony Henry and Nancy are lowkey side eyeing each other because this marriage won't last lmaooooo

But anyway, Henry asks Kit to dance at the reception because he is growing beyond his past yay

RAN:

Henry is very anxious even before arriving at dread isle

Because he's gonna meet some of Nancy's besties and THE PRESSURE

But he and George hit it off pretty quick

He can't stand Coucou and doesn't love the monkeys but he's SO GOOD at the games they play. Even the spinner game. He kicks ass and Nancy sucks

WAC:

Nancy is a student, Henry is a snack shop employee

Henry: “hi what can I get for you”

Girl: um,,,,, toasted bagel with uh, lettuce

Henry: ????

Henry, texting Nancy: this is her third bagel today. Each time she orders a different topping. I’m beginning to get concerned.

little does he know theyre just going there to see him lol

Henry: oh yeah Rachel? She’s secretly a twin.

Nancy: WAT

Henry: obviously

Henry: if you werent so distracted playing games against leela you would have noticed

Henry snooping through Izzy and leelas room with Nancy: THIS is Jacob?!!??! what has society come to

Henry: at least date a player that’s halfway ATTRACTIVE

Henry: Jacob is a chad

Henry: Mel probably has good taste

Mel: I'm gay

Henry: see? Taste

Henry, to the camera: okay not going to lie tho Mr. Harris is kind of a snack

“….don’t tell anyone I said that”

“I have a reputation”

and Henry is the only snack not on sale at the snack shop

Nancy walks upstairs to find Henry in the sitting area looking deep in thought, staring at Mel's door

Nancy: "what's up?"

Henry: "how many scales can one person practice in a day before they lose their mind?"

Nancy: spots the white squirrel on the branch outside her window "I'm gonna climb out and get it."

Henry: "I'm literally begging you to do anything else."

Henry just has a plethora of Edgar Allen Poe knowledge stored away from his EMO emo phase in high school

Nancy saying, "but what was the deal with all those glass eyes?" In the bathroom is her on the phone with Henry lmao

(all of this courtesy of cambria, maddy and lauren)

TOT:

Chase reminds Henry of Ned because he's so wholesome and kind

When Henry mentions it, Nancy remarks that frosty reminds her a bit of Henry

Henry uncovers that Frosty and Chase are a couple thanks to the flash drive

OOooooOoOoooohh cIneMaTiC paRAlLels

Nancy mentions Ma to Pa every 5 seconds and Henry elbows her every time but she just. keeps. going

Henry tries to calm Frosty down with the mice thing but fails and then Chase comes in and Frosty is fine is 2.5 seconds and Henry is exasperated and Nancy is all-knowing

Debbie adores Iggy and pet sits him while Nancy drives Henry around to photograph clouds bc Henry is far more artistic and Nancy is more logical

Henry and Ned have been texting since wac

Nancy also intoduces Henry to Frank and Joe over the phone

Joe wont stop texting Henry ab random shit but its okay

Henry's phone has been blowing up between Bess and Ned and George and Joe and occasionally Frank and Kit a couple of times

So he's becoming more confident and feeling loved!

"Who are you texting?" Nancy asks

"Hm?" Henry asks, pausing while posing for a selfie. "Oh, Joe wanted another pic of Iggy." Iggy blinks at Nancy from his perch on Henry's shoulder. "C'mon." Nancy crowds in and he wraps his arm around her. They're both wearing plaid, mostly as a joke. They grin.

Iggy croaks, smiling as well.

Henry sends the snap, laughing to himself.

Nancy catches his eye. "Joe's single, you know," she says mildly.

Henry raises his eyebrows. They've never really talked about his sexuality, or his dates, Kit notwithstanding. "So is Frank," Henry replies.

Is she - is she blushing?

"Yeah." She bites her lip. "It's hard to know -" she sighs.

Henry doesnt know how to break it to her. How do you tell your best friend you have a thing for her ex-boyfriend? "Joe's awesome, but... he's not my type."

"And that's okay," Nancy says. "You know you can tell me anything?"

"I know." Henry pauses. Holds his breath. Lets it out. "Almost ready."

Nancy laughs. "Just tell me when."

After Scott blah blah blah....

"It's too bad, yknow." Henry says. The team looks at him, Debbie with tears in her eyes, Chase gripping Frosty's hand, Nancy with her hands on her hips, defiant. "He was kind of a DILF."

Chase roars in laughter, Frosty fake gags, Debbie giggles, Nancy is yelling in delight.

Henry snaps Scott's arrest to Joe and Bess with the caption "rip scott's career he was a dilf". Across the country, Joe cries tears of pride and Frank sighs, long-suffering. Bess' skin has cleared, her crops are watered, Henry has reached his full chaotic potential, all is right with the world. George looks at Bess' phone over her shoulder and scoffs.

Thanks to Lauren ( @henrikvanderswoon ), Cambria ( @an-american-teen-against-crime ), and Maddy ( @professorhotchkissesta )

[sineala]

The gay Invaders

Hi, internet! Today I'd like to talk about one of the chronologically-first canonically-gay couples in Marvel Comics history: Brian Falsworth (the second Union Jack) and Roger Aubrey (The Destroyer). (I mean "chronological" in terms of in-universe timeline rather than RL publication date; I'm pretty sure Northstar is still the first to publication as far as unambiguously-gay Marvel heroes go.)

If you are a fan of reading or writing about Captain America being queer, you should care about Brian and Roger, because they were two of Steve's fellow Invaders in the 1940s, meaning that they are two of the people on the list of Steve's Old Gay Friends And Teammates, because, yeah, Steve sure had a lot of canonically gay friends during the war. Probably more than you'd think he would have had in the forties! (The other two are Percival Pinkerton, who's part of Nick Fury's Howling Commandos, and of course Steve's childhood friend Arnie Roth. Pinky is gay by word of Stan Lee, IIRC; Arnie was as canonically gay as DeMatteis could make him in the early 1980s, so they didn't say the word "gay" but it's really, really not subtle. Steve compares what Arnie feels for his "roommate" Michael to what Steve feels for his girlfriend Bernie. Yeah.)

I previously made a Tumblr post about Brian and Roger, rounding up some of the canonical evidence of their relationship, but that post is six years old now, and in the intervening years, Marvel has thoughtfully put the rest of the 70s Invaders run on Unlimited as well as the two Citizen V miniseries that star Roger and retcon his relationship with Brian as romantic. So I've read them now, and I've got panels.

Okay. I should probably begin by saying that Brian and Roger are not canonically gay in their first significant appearance together, which is in Invaders vol 1 #19 and #20, published in 1977. Roy Thomas does not seem to have intended them to be a couple, and they aren't canonically one in any of the original Invaders run. However, if you enjoy gay subtext, it's very nice.

This whole arc is the one that introduces Roger in modern canon. He's been brainwashed by the Nazis and the Invaders rescue him and get him back to his normal self. But in #19 we get his backstory in flashback, as related by Montgomery, Lord Falsworth (Brian's father; yes, MCU fans, the name should look familiar) and it turns out that Roger and Brian were basically best friends since childhood:

They were the dearest of friends!

Anyway, they both ended up captured by Nazis, they presumably changed their minds about appeasement as a policy, Brian got out and joined the Invaders, then they had to rescue the brainwashed Roger, and it's a fair amount of fun in a two-issue arc.

The subtext is even more prominent in Invaders #34, in which they find out that someone going by the Destroyer (which is Roger's codename) has been doing villainous deeds, and the Invaders worry that Roger's gotten himself brainwashed again. Brian immediately insists that it can't really be Roger because he knows Roger and Roger Would Never:

Unsurprisingly, Brian is right. It's not really Roger; Master Man is impersonating the Destroyer, and the villains have taken Roger captive, and the Invaders break him out and there is an extremely significant moment where it just so happens that Roger has to catch Brian, saving his life for a change, and they stare deeply into each other's eyes and Brian seems to be having difficulty finishing his sentences:

Some people who read this therefore concluded that Brian and Roger were extremely gay for each other. While ordinarily this sort of shipping is mostly confined to fandom, in this particular instance, one of the people who started shipping Brian/Roger was Fabian Nicieza, and Fabian Nicieza, as you probably know, writes comics for Marvel. I think you see where this is going.

However, first I must inform you that, sadly, Brian has been canonically dead for years. Captain America vol 1 #253-254 -- the two-parter about Baron Blood in the Stern/Byrne Cap run in the 80s -- establishes that Brian died in a car accident in 1953. (This is also the run where Joseph Chapman -- a friend of Jacqueline Falsworth's son Kenneth -- becomes the third (and current) Union Jack.)

(Roger then appears in a bunch of T-Bolts issues; I assume there's nothing interesting there on the gay front because I feel like someone would have told me. I should probably read more than three T-Bolts issues someday.)

So, anyway, in 2001, Fabian Nicieza wrote a miniseries called Citizen V and the V-Battalion. Roger, who is still superheroing as the Destroyer despite being pretty old by this point, is part of the titular V-Battalion, and he has a very prominent role in this miniseries. And in #1, we have the usual splash page of character backstory, and there's a very, um, interesting line there:

Regarding Brian and Roger's relationship, the narration informs us: "It sounds much gayer than it probably was."

This is interesting, obviously for a couple of reasons. One is that, up to this point in canon, as far as I can tell, literally nobody thought any of this sounded the slightest bit gay at all. (Other than, I guess, Fabian Nicieza.) The other reason is that, as we soon find out, it actually was as gay as it sounds. Thanks, Fabian!

In 2002, Nicieza wrote a second miniseries, Citizen V and the V-Battalion: The Everlasting. Issue #1 opens with a flashback set in 1953; specifically, we see Brian's funeral:

Roger is extremely sad, and when Lord Falsworth expresses his sympathy about the death of Roger's "friend" and saying that he knows how much this hurts him, Roger mutters under his breath that he doesn't have the slightest clue:

All is revealed on the next page, when one of the other characters tries to ask Roger about superhero business and Roger snaps at him because, as he says, "I just watched my friend die in my arms."

Except "friend" isn't the word he starts to say:

Yep. That would be "lover." So Roger nearly outs himself. So, yes, now it's absolutely canon. Hooray.

Later on in the issue, which is set in the present day, we have a couple pages of Roger staring at pictures of the two of them and continuing to be sad:

Yeah. They were a couple.

So the question you -- being a Captain America fan -- might ask yourself is, okay, did/does Steve know about any of this? (The reason I started looking all this up was because I wanted to know if Steve knew.) I don't know if we have a panel of Roger specifically admitting any of this to Steve (and if we do, I would like to know about it), but I would be comfortable saying that Steve probably knew back then -- because, well, he seems like the kind of guy who would actually have been fine with it in the 40s, what with all his gay friends -- and also that I can't think of a reason why he wouldn't know now. Because he's definitely worked with Roger again in fairly recent comics, and also Roger is very much out, these days.

In fact, New Invaders #4 (2004) opens with Roger attending Pride:

So, yeah, he's out.

(Then he has to fight, as far as I can tell, homophobic Nazi vampires. They're yelling slurs in German. Great.)

In All-New Invaders #10, which is from 2014 (and which is not the same series as New Invaders), Roger shows up to help out the Invaders, and in passing, he just happens to mention to another character (Joseph Chapman, the current Union Jack), that he is in fact gay:

He and Joseph don't really like each other much; as far as I can tell, their acquaintance in New Invaders consists of Joseph being vaguely homophobic and Roger being bitter about him being Union Jack because he actually wanted to be Union Jack himself to honor Brian's memory -- you know, that thing superheroes sometimes like to do to honor their dead superhero significant others, viz. Hank when Jan was dead after Secret Invasion -- and now Union Jack is this annoying kid and not, y'know, the love of his life. This exchange from New Invaders #4 seems pretty representative of their relationship:

Anyway, yeah, he's pretty obviously out.

Steve isn't actually present for this conversation in All-New Invaders, but he mentions in a later issue of this run that he knows what Roger and his pals have been up to, plot-wise, so I feel comfortable assuming that he's talked to Roger at some point in the previous ten years or so, and therefore, since Roger is completely out at this point in canon, there's no reason Steve shouldn't know now.

On an unrelated note, it's also a fun issue if you're a Steve/Tony fan because this is clearly running in parallel with Hickman's Avengers run, which means that he spends half a page telling Namor that he's mad at him and the rest of the Illuminati (but mostly mad at Tony because... he's just obsessed with Tony in this run, I guess?) about the mindwipe:

This is the sum total of my knowledge about Brian and Roger. No, wait, I know one more thing, which is that Brian was a character in the late, lamented mobile game Avengers Academy, in which he was also actually gay; Roger does not seem to have been there. There's a CBR article that you can read about the whole thing, which mentions some of these details from the comics in passing. (I have no idea why it says that their relationship was alluded to in the Stern/Byrne run; unless I missed something big, the only thing those issues do is establish Brian's death. As far as I can tell, no one is gay in them.)

So, yeah, that's Brian Falsworth and Roger Aubrey, the two gay Invaders. Steve sure has a lot of gay friends.

[linxuelian]

I found a Chinese BL Warring States Game of Thrones, three years older than The Untamed

And I just had to write a review about it! It’s 60 episodes long so I haven’t finished it yet at the time I’m writing this - but I decided to just go ahead and recommend it anyway.

Why, you ask?

For one, it’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms with all the Hollywood action and adult HBO things. It’s got explosions:

Horses falling down:

People getting flogged:

Sweaty soldiers getting mauled to death:

Children used as hostages:

Dead bodies presented in court:

Stylish dye jobs:

Loving father figures:

A Jon Snow lookalike:

And very gay innuendo:

That’s right, unlike The Untamed, which was first written as a straight series featuring Wen Qing as the main female lead and then rewritten again after fans of the novel decided to boycott it, this series was written to be gay from the very beginning. It got taken down by the Chinese Censorship Board after twelve episodes and river-crabbed to death, but a good number of scenes survived censorship. Those that did not made it to BiliBili in the form of “hidden” videos and disguised as “music videos”.

That’s not all. For a warring period Wuxia series, it’s got very beautiful actors, backdrops and clothing. It’s dressed like a fairy tale, with different kingdoms sporting different colours and styles in fashion and tastes.

In terms of art direction, it’s pretty low-budget for a series but the team makes good use of existing props, locations and brighter-coloured fabric to make up for the quality. The costume design is more fantasy-based than period, and the vivid takes and angles in the first season add to its charm.

There’s also its complex story line, which brings us to...

Men with Swords is not a title for the faint-hearted. There is an acute absence of black-and-white morality depicted in it.

If you think a BL series with such beautiful backdrops and fairytale-like clothes is for the simple-minded, one-track-good-vs-evil sort, think again. The series is a tale about Murong Li, a vengeful prince disguised as a musician and his rise to power, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction in its wake.

Where The Untamed fails at delivering gray morality unlike the novel it’s adapted from, choosing to alter its script to fit a more general audience (a commercially-wise decision which got it into Netflix), Men with Swords succeeds in faithfully telling a tale where there is no good or evil, only humanity, jealousy, grudges, rebellion, loyalty, life, death, greed and love.

Everyone has both good and bad sides, just different camps and motives. Men with Swords tells the story from not just one person’s perspective, but from the perspective of many different people, all of whom become entangled in a battle for their figurative Iron Throne - to become the king of the world.

There are no “what ifs” in this story, only decisions, reactions and repercussions

A prevailing theme in this series is that there are no “what ifs” and no turning back in life, only things that have happened and will happen. Murong Li starts his journey as a prince who has lost everything and a victim of war, wandering around for three years while being put down and getting sexually harassed, eventually losing it, taking his chances and hardening his heart as he walks down his conniving, badass path of destruction towards the top.

Men with Swords is not a series for the faint-hearted. It’s a game of chess where the main character, Murong Li, is cunning and decisive, cold and ruthless and many recurring characters die horrible, sudden deaths, friend and foe alike, a la Attack on Titan.

The series is filled with political strife and warfare, peppered with some sweet, comedic and romantic undertones. There is a stark contrast between fluffy and dark in its narrative, which is pretty refreshing overall.

With that all aside, I know what you’re probably scrolling down for:

The main characters and their boyfriends

This is it. This is what you’re here for. Most “BL” series are actually bromances, but the real upside for a BL fan is that this show is not a bromance - it’s a BL title, and even with censorship, the love stories prevail.

I’m going to put this under a cut because it’s LONG AF, but what that means is that there is a LOT of BL content available, and not the type that you have to hunt for. They’re very open about it.

While the show itself has a lot of ships, there’s a larger focus on three main ones, namely the beautiful Murong Li and two powerful kings, the fairy-like Ling Guang and his servants, and King Jian Bin with his general.

Murong Li: Da Ji 2.0 and his rich and powerful kings

If you’re a Jin Guangyao fan, you’ll probably enjoy Murong Li and his elegant, charming viles and ruthless scheming. He’s a surprisingly good fighter too, and unlike most elegant and waif-like beauties in dramas and novels alike, he’s a beauty with brains who uses his physical weakness as his strength, bending and seducing his way up to power.

Murong Li only really goes after rich and powerful people, worming his way into the kingdom and taking them down from the inside. Two main love interests are King Zhi Ming, the childish but rich king of Tianquan:

And Yu Xiao, a powerful barbarian king with a soft heart:

Murong Li, while wandering around as a musician, picks up many tricks along the way to hone himself. He’s adept at dressing up, making himself look helpless and alluring to bewitch powerful men, for one:

See that small smile right there? Yes, our boy knows what he’s doing.

Aside from that, Murong Li’s also pretty good at manipulating people by using their jealousies and insecurities, getting them to fight with each other over him.

Murong Li, although modeled after the cruel and beautiful Murong Chong, the Emperor of Wei, is likened to Da Ji, the favorite consort of the King Zhou of Shang. Da Ji was said to be a malevolent fox spirit who started the art of foot-binding to hide her fox feet. Everyone else looking in can see it, but the King was blinded, just like Murong Li’s powerful love interests. In fact, the series draws a direct parallel to it:

The Guo Shi here uses the term “yao”, which alludes to a malevolent spirit.

It’s not that Murong Li doesn’t have a weakness, though. Just like every Jin Guangyao has a Lan Xichen around to cause him to slip now and then, Murong Li surprisingly is weak towards the most naive and childish character in the series, the truant King Zhi Ming, whose only qualities are having purple bangs and being rich and playful.

No matter how calculative and ruthless Murong Li is in the series, he does end up almost slipping up and giving everything away when it comes to this bumbling fellow:

He’s saved only at the nick of time by one of his followers. Murong Li tells a lot of lies, but the one thing he can’t lie about are his feelings towards King Zhi Ming, who is ultimately the one thing he can’t give up next to his kingdom.

There’s a lot more one can write about a complex character such as Murong Li, but the second ship is just as good. It features:

Ling Guang: The Ex-Arrogant Depressed Hamster hung up over a dead ex

Ling Guang, the mortal enemy and foil to Murong Li, is a baby-faced, very-much-older-than-he-looks character whose sole purpose in this series is to wear frilly magenta clothing, destroy the kingdom of Yaoguang, set Murong Li down a path of vengeful destruction and piss off eligible, probably younger bachelors by comparing them to his very handsome, very loyal and very dead boyfriend, his personal guard, Qiu Zhen, who died sometime over thirteen years ago.

The bachelors’ pissed off takes to this are particularly priceless:

Here’s another one from season 2:

That HMPH face is to die for.

Ling Guang’s delusions are met head-on by these eligible bachelors, his ministers and his allies alike:

Only to be met by a, “haha, NO.”

Frustrating, right? It only gets worse as the series progresses. Due to Wuxia’s fantastical existence of sword souls, he begins to actively test his subjects out to see if they’re his dead boyfriend, whose sword soul is still alive:

Gu Shi’an: WTF.

So why do these eligible, handsome bachelors, particularly this guy from season two, jump at his lap every chance they get?

First off, he’s very, very pretty. He’s arguably the prettiest and fanciest king in the series, with a cute rounded face, favoring fluffy organza, frills and feathers in his garb, and sporting fabulous curls like that of a swan princess on a good day.

Secondly, and more importantly, it’s likely because he’s the type loyal dogs adore.

He’s stupidly and openly attached to his bodyguards and servants, unable to hide his feelings or control them. Ling Guang’s relationships are technically the opposite of Murong Li’s. While Murong Li hides his feelings and goes after men of power and tends to use them before leaving them, Ling Guang’s willing to sacrifice everything, including his kingdom, his health and his own life for men who are merely servants.

He's a king who doesn’t know proper protocol. He’s the type who’ll demand to eat with you at the same table:

Creeps outside the palace to see you off:

Hugs your sword around like a pillow while he waddles around listlessly and sleeps with it by his side after you’re long dead (grand total: 13 years):

Coddles you when you’re sick:

Takes arrows for you:

Isn’t afraid to cry and tell you how it is:

Faints violently and won’t rest until he can get your stolen body back:

The results?

If he’s not what loyal bodyguards like, I don’t know what he is. If Murong Li’s love interests have to pit themselves against each other to show how useful they are for his sake, Ling Guang’s love interests need to wrestle with a dead man he can’t let go of... which is hopeless, because you can’t kill a guy who’s already dead.

As a foil to Murong Li, what’s also interesting to note is that it’s alluded to and foreshadowed that he’s exactly the sort the loyal Yu Xiao, the current barbarian king, would have loved to have as a lover - honest, loyal and doting - unlike Murong Li himself. Gongsun Qian, a deputy minister with great foresight, had wanted Ling Guang to go to see the new barbarian kingdom, but he had refused to go outside the palace, shutting himself inside like an otaku. This decision ultimately gave Murong Li a step forward with his plans, at the great cost of four kingdoms, including his own.

Jian Bin: My boyfriend can (REALLY) fight

Next up is Jian Bin and his general. Jian Bin’s the king of Tian Ji, a new kingdom founded by astrologers. The catch here is that Jian Bin and his boyfriend, Qi Zhi Kan, are both men of science, and this tank of a boyfriend is a genius on the battlefield who doesn’t give a single shit about star signs, astrology and superstitions.

A story between a serious, loving king and his handsome general who was once a simple sword-maker in the woods, King Jian Bin meets his handsome ex-lumberjack boyfriend when he’s attacked, falls down from his horse and is rescued by the man himself.

Jian Bin then brings the guy back to his palace and dresses him in armor:

This puts the king’s general on the war path of several ministers and the superstitious people in their kingdom. As lovers, the two go through various trials together in an attempt to run their kingdom their way.

Qi Zhi Kan may seem like a herbivore in front of the king, but he’s really not one at all. He’s terrifying to a degree when it comes to warfare, and very, very difficult to take down. Unlike the other ministers, Qi Zhi Kan knows that he can expand the kingdom quickly and solve problems by waging war.

Even his allies are scared of him:

Ultimately, it’s a ship meant for those who like watching the king teasing his loyal subject and caressing armor whenever he’s around AND not around. Jian Bin even admits to it on-scene:

This loving and devoted couple were originally blessed as the ones with the most piggyback scenes, tender bandaging-your-chest and armor fondling, but they got censored unfortunately.

Scenes like these made the cut, though:

And that’s it! There are actually other minor ships, but these are the main ones for now.

If you’re sold and interested in the show, the series is available online on Rakuten Viki. https://www.viki.com/tv/35524c?locale=zh

[clare-with-no-i]

20 Questions: Writer’s Edition!

Thank you for tagging me @maraudersftw @startanewdream woohoo!

How many works do you have on AO3

28! 31 total I believe, including Tumblr dot com

What’s your total AO3 word count?

231,120 (oh my god when did I pass 200k...)

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

HP and before I was really into HP I wrote a few for a show that I no longer like lol but I orphan’d them so...HP! that is my truth!

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

1. one long day (all my love will make you shake)

2. color theory

3. I will carry you, always

4. New Age Romancing

5. to be always kind and true

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I do mostly! I’m SO SO SO behind, but trust me it is not a reflection of anything other than the fact that I’m overwhelmed. NAR comments became a lot and then after that it all snowballed

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

er...probably invictus, I’d say. open ending, but still alludes to canon. so...angst.

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

LOL. I’d have to say foreigner’s god, wherein I literally gave Jily a second life with Harry. or my they lived AU’s but that’s more the entire stories, not just the endings

Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written?

nope! unless you count my outlander-inspired fic, but that’s really only for the time travel premise. crossovers are not my thing.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

sort of? yes? on NAR, which was tough because that story was already making me nervous to put out there. it’s kind of slowed me down on updating it, but hey life happens

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

very complex relationship with that, so sort of a yes/no.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

.........iykyk

Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! my story about Regulus and Sirius, en-dessous de la lune qui chante, got translated into Russian, which is so cool I can’t even begin to process it

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

not...yet (eyes emoji)

What’s your all time favorite ship?

jily by a MILE

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

uhh I don’t think I have one of these. also I reject this energy on account of the fact that I don’t even want to consider not finishing a fic lmao

What are your writing strengths?

WALL OF TEXT

What are your writing weaknesses?

maintaining a timeline, outlining stories, consistency...writing movement lmao

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

love it. currently doing it with Ancient Greek, which is...a lot. but hope to write a whole fic in spanish one day! :)

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Percy Jackson and the Olympians! aaaaages ago.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

um. oh god. idk. I think half bond and free and half foreigner’s god? oh god I really do not know

tagging @keepingupwithpotters @figg-anon @cesays and @sunshine-marauders !! have fun bb’s