#would we Actually get in trouble if we did? probably not. but its the respectful thing to do. the JP fandom has this etiquette too

[ultramarine-spirit]

I'm sorry, Mari, I know you don't want to talk about it anymore, but why is it so problematic to repost other photos? I feel like one of the biggest reasons people do it is because they don't know why. I understand that you can't publish images of chapters that have to be paid for like webtoon or merch (although I don't know why either) but wmmap has already ended years ago so I don't understand what the problem would be.

Yeah, it's as you've said, firstly, because most of it is paid content. That's why you'll see that manhwa accounts on Twitter almost always post proof of them having purchased the chapters. Secondly, because this fandom has a huge reposting problem in general (art, fics, translations, edits, etc). For "regular" pictures I have less of an issue, but if it's "exclusive" content, I feel like I'm already edging the line of what is respectful to publish/leak. Yes, there are hundreds of illegal uploads of the manhwa, but that's not something I wanna promote. I wanna encourage people to support the author. Spoon has also spoken about this a bunch of times. But I guess some people might disagree with my stance.

Let me put it like this. When I stay up until 5am to watch a Chinese stream and get news about the donghua, and people immediately repost the pictures without keeping my @, it's tiring. When I spend my own money to attent Spoon's art class (at 3am), take notes, work with Japanese and Chinese fans/friends to provide English fans a translation and summary, and people immediately repost it without asking, it makes me wonder why I even bother. The last thing I want is to sound all "oh, woe is me" though, that's why I haven't spoken about this many times (I believe this is the second time in 4 years I bring it up).

For pictures that have translated content (such as what Lithi does), I think it's way worse, because you are basically "stealing" their labor without any credit. Fan translators already operate in a grey area, legally speaking. There has been a lot of drama in the fandom around this subject, and in general, translators hate to see their work reposted. Most of them have deleted their translations because of this (Ever wonder why you can't find fan TLs of the novel very easily anymore? Lithi has also deleted a bunch of her novel posts and I don't blame her). Sure, reposting a single picture/page might not be big deal, but this has happened a million times.

And then there are instances when people straight up copy posts word for word, pic for pic, which is just kinda annoying/comes across as clout-chasing. Not reposting other people's posts is kind of online etiquette.

[zukosdualdao]

i know some people take the moment of azula speaking up in the flashback to the war meeting in sozin's comet as azula trying to "protect zuko" after he starts (while carefully choosing his words) disagreeing with ozai, but i really can't see it that way.

even aside from the fact that i don't think we should ever argue that her advocating for genocide here was a good thing, based on everything else about their relationship, i can't see this moment as anything but her once again trying to establish dominance and superiority over zuko. it actually reminds me of a different scene, all the way back from the flashbacks in zuko alone.

in both situations, ozai is testing his children in a way, and when zuko can't or won't give the "right answer", azula interjects and is able to say exactly what he wants to hear.

in zuko alone, of course, ozai is asking them questions that seem to be related to whatever (heavily inundated with propaganda, clearly) schooling they get. something that i find really interesting is that zuko doesn't seem to only struggle with firebending, but with his schooling as well. which isn't exactly surprising: abused kids often have trouble in school, and that seems particularly likely when ozai is already treating zuko like he is weak, incompetent, and unworthy in other areas. it's a self-fulling prophecy, on ozai's part: he demeans zuko for not being good at firebending (and perhaps for not being good in school), and, because kids are very naturally going to clam up and not get better at something when they're treated as worthless for any perceived flaw, it affects his ability to build his skills or performance in school.

but i think there's also a way in which zuko probably struggles to keep up in school because he's receptive to the values ursa tries to instill in him from a young age. he probably doesn't realize the things they are learning are things that are morally wrong, but there's a way, at this point, in which he can't relate to them, can't understand the motives of why it would be considered a good thing to defeat an enemy in such a brutal way when it runs so counter to the values of kindness ursa is trying to instill in her children, be it by explaining that throwing bread at turtleducks is not nice or that we shouldn't wish death on other family members.

by contrast, the emphasis on azula here is that she's clearly fully bought into the propaganda, that she respects and admires the brutality of the tactics. (also, is it just me, or does she sound a little like she's reciting a textbook, albeit with a lot of glee?) and notably, at the end, when she gets the answer 'right', she side-eyes zuko with a smug smirk. just like she does in sozin's comet as she's told she's right.

just for comparison's sake:

the situation in the sozin's comet flashback is different, of course, because they're not being quizzed on their schoolwork so much as they are being asked to put what they've learned about war and tactics into practice. zuko has a lot more understanding now than he did as a much younger child of the realities of war because he's seen it up close. and because of that, not only can he not condone or suggest any of the brutal and egregious tactics that are clearly expected of him, but he actually says something in defense of the earth kingdom, albeit trying to choose his words carefully, and with ozai (quite possibly willfully?) misinterpretating them.

to suggest that azula is protecting zuko here is its own form of a willful misinterpretation. you have to ignore the entire context of their relationship, azula's established motivations, and the tone of the scene itself to come to that conclusion. she does not interrupt zuko to keep him from saying something that will get him hurt, but because she wants to prove once again that she's better, that she's right and he's wrong, that he’ll never catch up. but zuko is starting to realize that he doesn’t and shouldn’t want to.

[3liza]

the other thing about duvets is i dont like that theyre a big pillowcase. this is more trouble than its worth imo. i think duvet covers should actually be two separate pieces, or one long piece in a taco format, and you just spread it out on the bed or floor, spread out the duvet on top, and THEN fasten the top of the duvet cover closed with either buttons or a concealed zipper along the edge. zipper texture unpleasantness could easily be tucked inside a padded border so it doesnt scratch you at night.

duvet covers were introduced to the usa in the 1960s as a part of the "scandinavian" interior decor movement during midcentury modern (they were brought from Sweden, so not actually scnadinavian, but americans dont know the difference and we dont care [edit: i am being informed sweden is actually considered part of scandinavia, i had been previously misinformed]), apparently from the Habitat store in London. i thought Biba was involved for some reason but I may be confusing a bit of documentary i watched with something else. in the documentary, the older lady they were interviewing who used to work at the department store that she claimed popularized the duvwet (either Habitat or Biba) talked about how the sales girls were trained to "demonstrate" the "convenience" of the duvet vs the traditional British method of quilt+sheets, and she remarked she got so good at it she could put the duvet in the cover in about 30 seconds. however when she tried to demonstrate for the presenter she got completely flummoxed by the damned thing. it was at that point i knew duvets were a mistake

anyway im finding some interesting gadgets for securing duvets rn, the one that looks least ugly is a thing that looks like a fabric-covered button that snaps into another button using a tack that pierces the duvet and cover layers. the other solutions also seem fine but are all ugly plastic doohickeys that would bother me on an aesthetic basis. the tack would probably damage the fabric but if you're not using your nice linens i bet it doesn't matter much, especially if the duvet cover is a rustic textile of some kind

the wikipedia article about the duvet is very interesting. i especially liked the part about how previous attempts to introduce it to england were failures

one of the other home bedding issues in the usa is that home washers and dryers and apartment washers and dryers are generally not big enough to effectively wash a down duvet or a quilt thats larger than about a Full, depending on thickness. this bothers me. feather down is especially irritating in this respect because it will get mildewy instantly if it isnt bone dry immediately after laundering. mentioning Sweden yet again, a friend showed me her shared laundry facilities in her Swedish apartment once and they DID have large, industrial machines that could easily take a duvet. she said this was typical. america continues to be difficult to live in for no good reason. its like literalyl everything you do here is 160% harder and more expensive than any other "comparable" country

[cuubism]

Dreamling Olympic Equestrian AU, the Sequel (less Olympics, more Equestrian)

-

Hob wished he could say he took a ‘reasonable’ approach to dating Dream after the Olympics. In actuality he basically just went home with Dream and never left. He helped him get Jessamy settled in, and then Dream wanted him to stay over, and then Hob made him breakfast the next morning, and then—

He did eventually have to go take care of his own horses, and generally get back to his real responsibilities, but it was done with reluctance. Damn him, but he’d immediately started missing Dream. Too attached, too quickly, that was always his way.

And then not a week later Dream had invited him to bring his horse and go on a hack, and, well. Maybe Hob wasn’t the only one being unreasonable about it.

Safe to say they had never really gotten rid of each other after that.

By the end of the year Hob did very much the opposite of getting rid of Dream. Which was to say, marrying him. He was now the proud owner of some very cliche wedding photos of them leaning over to kiss each other while on horseback. He wouldn’t change a thing.

Afterwards, they’d both sold their respective properties, pooled their resources—mostly Dream’s resources if Hob was being totally honest—and bought a place together.

Hob still remembers finding the farm on the market and taking Dream to see it for the first time. He’d been so excited for Dream to see it. Dream had such high standards and Hob had been sure they were going to have to compromise on something, but this property had everything Dream had ever expressed wanting in a farm and other things besides. Rolling fields and connections to nearby bridle paths. A massive indoor arena for riding in inclement weather. Three-sided shelters in all of the paddocks. Automatic waterers. Heated wash stalls. The damn floors were heated too, not that they used the stalls much, but Dream’s geriatric ponies would surely appreciate it come wintertime.

(Hob had been extremely charmed to learn, upon first visiting Dream's farm, that Dream still owned the incredibly fancy ponies Hob had correctly assumed he'd grown up riding as a child. They were now ancient and feral and tended to bite anyone other than Dream. It was delightful.)

Hob’s favorite part of the property was the house. It was set a bit off from the main barn, close enough to be an easy walk but out of the way of the traffic if one was to operate the place as a full-service livery. Dream had loved the cottage at Hob’s previous farm, and this house was much the same, quaint and cozy with its own pond and meandering garden path. It even had a screened-in patio for Dream’s persnickety cats to sunbathe.

It was all perfect. Dream had actually squealed when Hob brought him to see it. It was lucky Dream had money otherwise Hob would have probably done something illegal to afford the place just to see that look on his face every day.

Six months and an amount of money Hob didn’t want to think about later, they had their own farm and had started taking on clients. It should have been idyllic. In many ways it was. Jessamy and Hob’s retired event horse, Ellie, were getting along swimmingly in their big field. Dream’s feral old ponies were rampaging about the place. The amount of space was a bit dangerous, as Dream kept sending Hob photos of pretty horses for sale, saying we have the space for it, Hob. He didn’t seem to care that the prices of said horses were upwards of one hundred thousand pounds.

It was both a blessing and a curse to have married someone who came from money.

All the better to get clients in so the stable was actually making some money instead of just bleeding cash in exchange for more horses. And this was where the trouble began. Because Dream may have been disagreeable around people but he had a soft spot for troubled horses. And when troubled horses intersected with the clients that made them that way, well. That was how they got this.

“I was led to believe I’d be getting results,” Roderick Burgess was saying as Hob stepped into the arena, leaning against the wall to watch Dream ride. “Surely an Olympian should be able to do better.”

Hob grit his teeth, but didn’t say anything, yet. Dream could handle himself.

“If you don’t like my methods, you’re free to take your horse elsewhere,” Dream said. He was trotting the horse—its name was Ruby—in a big circle at the far end of the ring, riding on a long rein, just trying to get it to bend and loosen up its neck. It didn’t seem to be particularly easy for the horse, which was troubling considering a horse that had had ‘a few years’ of training—according to Roderick—should be able to at least do basic flatwork. And should be less stiff about it besides.

“We both know that won’t happen,” said Roderick. He was probably right—now that Dream was starting to get a sense of the horse’s poor prior training, he wouldn’t want to send it elsewhere—but Hob nevertheless wanted to walk over to Roderick and toss him out of the ring. Wasn’t the point of owning your own place that you could kick out clients you didn’t like?

“Perhaps if you’d been honest about his issues, we’d have better results,” Dream said, turning across the middle of the circle to change the bend. Ruby tossed his head, struggling with the change in direction, but Dream persisted in asking him to bend and eventually got him to drop his head again, now stepping up into a canter. “I was promised a horse at at least third level yet you’ve brought me one that struggles with basic self-carriage.”

Hob thought expecting any results yet was unreasonable considering it was only the first time Dream had even gotten on the horse. He’d only gotten it in last week, and just lunged it yesterday.

“You have to be more aggressive with him,” said Roderick dismissively. “Just make him do it.”

“Am I paying you, or are you paying me?”

And on it went like that, Dream working through his usual regimen, slowly building up the difficulty, Roderick nitpicking and criticizing all the while. Hob didn’t know what he really wanted. Maybe he just got a kick out of being an asshole.

Hob did love watching Dream ride, though. Watching him work with an inexperienced horse wasn’t nearly as seamless as it was when he rode Jessamy, but his patience and light touch were always a delight to behold.

Dream eventually took up his reins, gauging the horse’s ability to go around in a more collected frame. That ability was dubious at best, but Dream kept at it, working in circles of various sizes, transitioning up and down the gaits. He would get the horse where it needed to be eventually, Hob knew. If Roderick didn’t keep interrupting with unreasonable demands.

“Are you going to do any lateral work at all?” asked Roderick with annoyance, predictably interrupting again, and Hob could almost hear Dream’s jaw clench.

“Yes, I am getting to it. It’s a horse, not a racecar.” He turned the horse down the quarter line, lightly brushing the end of his whip, which Hob hadn’t seen him use yet, against its flank to ask it to step sideways and under.

And at the first touch of the whip Ruby exploded.

If Hob had looked down for even a second he would not have seen it move, it was so fast—the horse bolted sideways away from the whip, head thrown up, legs scrambling. Dream pulled back hard on the left rein, trying to stop through a turn, but Ruby just plowed right through it, tossing its head. Hob heard the bang as they—or more likely Dream’s knee—hit the arena wall, and then Dream yanked harder and managed to turn, spinning the horse into a circle until it was forced by the tight angle to slow to a nervy walk.

Hob had automatically lurched forward to try to help, but realized fast enough that rushing over would only make things worse. He watched, tense, as Dream finally brought Ruby to a halt. A lesser rider would have been thrown; Hob was glad Dream’s seat was better than that.

“Ah, yes,” said Roderick nonchalantly from where he was still sitting, ankle crossed over his knee. “He does not enjoy the whip.”

“Were you planning to inform me of that,” said Dream, out of breath, “before or after we went through a wall?”

“I would have thought you could handle it,” Roderick said.

Hob kind of wanted to punch him in the face. Instead he went over to Dream.

Ruby was standing stock still now, breathing hard, and let out a loud huff, nostrils flaring, as Hob stopped at Dream’s side. Dream scratched the horse’s neck.

“Are you alright?” Hob asked quietly.

Dream nodded, handing the whip to Hob, though his expression was pinched, and Hob worried for his knee. “Once more and then we’ll be done. I don’t want to end on that note.”

“You cannot let him get away with that,” said Roderick sternly, seeing Hob take Dream’s whip. “He must tolerate the whip.”

“And I’m sure persisting now will teach that effectively,” Dream bit back. “Do you want an explosive horse, Roderick? Because that is what you have handed me, and if you insist upon pushing the matter like this, you will only make it worse.”

“I hired you to fix it,” Roderick snapped.

“Then let me.”

Dream brought the horse back up to a trot, did a lap around the ring and then came down the quarter line again, this time asking him to leg yield over just by bending him around his leg. Ruby was tense now, jiggling the bit in his mouth and fighting Dream’s hand, but he did move over, and once they’d reached the wall Dream let him drop back down to a walk, letting his grip on the reins slide down to the buckle. Ruby snorted loudly, dropping his head to the floor as he walked anxiously on the long rein.

“You do not have to beat him to get what you want,” Dream said, turning to Roderick.

“You care too much about their feelings,” said Roderick dismissively.

“Not caring about their feelings has gotten you very far indeed,” Dream said back.

He halted the horse by Hob and hopped down, stumbling on the landing and leaning hard on his left leg. Shit. Hob knew he’d hit the wall. Goddammit, Dream.

Before Hob could take the horse from him, Roderick’s kid, Alex, crept into the arena and came over, eyeing his father as he did. Normally Hob considered Alex kind of a liability to have around the farm—he was convinced the kid was going to get himself kicked in the head at some point—but now he handed him the reins. It was Roderick’s horse, the two of them could deal with it right now.

“Make sure to walk him out,” Hob told Alex, and then, ignoring Roderick, who’d already focused on Alex, presumably to berate him for something, he wrapped an arm around Dream’s waist and led him out of the ring.

By the time they made it into the lounge, Dream was leaning heavily against Hob’s side, limping on his right leg. God, Hob hoped he hadn’t broken something. He could only imagine how long that sort of knee injury would take Dream out.

Hob sat him down on the couch. “Can I take a look at your knee?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Dream said, even as the corners of his lips were still pressed tight in pain.

“Dream, I heard you hit the wall from the other side of the arena.”

Dream sighed, but finally started unzipping his boots.

“Breeches, too,” Hob said.

Dream gave him a look but, having removed his boots, started stripping off his socks and black riding pants as well. He looked small like that, perched on the couch in just his black boxer briefs and short-sleeve polo. Hob winced at the sight of his knee. It had already turned horribly purple from his impact with the wall. Hob crouched by him to look closer, taking Dream’s ankle in his hands, turning his leg this way and that, carefully testing the motion. “How much does it hurt?”

“Tolerable,” Dream said, watching Hob intently. Hob mentally increased all of Dream’s descriptions by several degrees of pain. “I don’t think anything is broken, or sprained.”

Having looked closer, Hob didn’t think so either; he was pretty sure it was just bruised. A nasty bruise, though. “Should keep off it for a few days, though.”

Dream sighed, put upon, but didn’t contradict him.

“I’ll get you some ice.” He had ice wraps in the freezer, and pulled one out, laying it over Dream’s knee.

Dream’s lips twitched up in a small smile. “That is for horses.”

“Well, now it’s for humans, too.” He sat beside Dream on the couch as he iced his poor knee. “We should get it checked out if it’s not any better by tomorrow. Don’t want to risk permanent damage.”

Dream touched Hob’s shoulder with light fingers. Hob was, unfortunately, speaking from experience on this matter. Though in his case it had been less ‘deciding not to get it checked out’ and more ‘completely obliterating the joint to the point that it was kind of moot.’ Hob had shown Dream the video of that fall a while back. It was not a pleasant video.

He still had a mostly functional shoulder, though.

Fortunately, Hob didn’t usually have to worry about that happening with Dream. Having a horse flip on top of you was the kind of thing that was more likely to happen when you decided it was a good idea to gallop at solid objects. Which Hob had done. Frequently.

He was kind of glad he hadn’t married a fellow adrenaline junkie.

“I can’t believe Roderick put you on that horse knowing it was going to react like that,” Hob said. He really should kick the guy out. Prick.  

“Roderick created that reaction,” said Dream. “He hardly cares if it gets someone thrown, so long as that someone is not him.”

“I care!” Hob exclaimed. “It’s our fucking stable. He can’t just use you as a crash-test dummy.”

Dream raised an eyebrow. “I am not easy to crash.”

“That’s not the point, Dream. I’ll kick him out, I swear to God.”

“I can handle Roderick Burgess. And the horse. You needn’t protect me.”

“Maybe I want to,” said Hob. He took the ice off Dream’s knee and took another look at it. The bruise only looked more hideous. “Maybe part of being your husband is that I get to protect you.”

Dream touched his cheek fondly, but said, “If we send him away, he will only take the horse to someone else, and nothing will improve.”

Hob knew it was true. He would have just bought the horse and given it to Dream just to get Roderick off the property, but he was pretty sure Roderick would just take the money and go buy another one so that wouldn’t really accomplish anything in the end.

Hob was always going to end up doing what made Dream happy anyway.

“Just…” he rubbed Dream’s thigh, careful of the bruise. “Be careful. God only knows what else he’s taught that horse to do.”

“We will find out, I suppose. Roderick will not be happy with me, though. I intend to take the horse back down to basics. He will doubtless be furious.” He did sound somewhat satisfied by the thought of it.

“Roderick can get on the damn thing himself if he’s so upset,” Hob said.

“That would be entertaining to watch, though less so for the horse,” Dream said. “Perhaps he will make Alex ride it.”

Hob rubbed his forehead in despair. “God help us all.”

“Indeed.”

“You should go back to the house and rest a while,” Hob told him.

“First I want to make sure they haven’t managed to kill Ruby,” Dream said. He levered himself to his feet, handing Hob back the ice wrap. “Besides, I am fine.”

The way he limped about while pulling on his breeches and paddock boots belied that, but Hob knew better than to argue further. At least he wasn’t getting back on the horse.

He went with Dream—only limping a little bit now—out to the barn, where Alex was getting Ruby settled in his stall. Alex looked distinctly nervous brushing the horse down, but hadn’t managed to get it—or, more surprisingly, himself—killed yet, which Hob counted as a win. Roderick was nowhere to be seen, which was probably for the best.

“Did you walk him out?” Dream asked.

Alex nodded anxiously. He seemed intimidated by Dream—which, to be fair, was a common experience for most people. Hob frequently had to remind himself that the version of Dream he saw every day—curled up in the kitchen alcove with his tea and a cat on his lap, chasing his ponies around the barn, resting his head in Hob’s lap for Hob to play with his hair—was not the version most people saw.

Ruby seemed little worse for wear for his ordeal. Dream pet the horse’s nose fondly, and it tried to nibble at his palm.

“We’ll try again tomorrow,” he said, to the horse, now ignoring Alex. “We’ll sort it out, won’t we?”

Ruby just tried to nibble on his fingers again.

With another pat to the horse’s nose, but no more words for Alex, Dream strode away again. Hob followed. Once they were out of the barn, he caught up to Dream and scooped him up in his arms, Dream clutching at his neck with a squeak.

“I’m carrying you home,” Hob said, starting off for the house. “You’re not walking.”

“I am not an invalid,” Dream protested.

“Oh, I should put you down, then?”

Dream clutched at him tighter. “You would not dare.”

“Thought so.”

And so he carried Dream down the short walk back to the house. After all, Hob thought, this was the whole point. He couldn’t necessarily prevent Dream from getting on insane horses or dealing with insane clients. But he could be there at the end of the day to carry him home.

[aayakashii]

I always considered fiction my main way of escapism from my own troubles and the world's troubles. After yesterday, I feel like we all need a little bit of escapism and comfort, and I did the only thing I can offer, which is to write. I hope this can bring a little bit of comfort to anyone who's feeling depressed or scared. I hope my blog can be a little safe space if you need to escape. Please take care of yourselves and ily <3

Warnings: angst, hurt/comfort, actually a lot of comfort, Luca helps reader cope with their feelings

Frostheim always made you feel inadequate. Small. Wrong. Not enough. Your blood wasn't blue and your voice didn't have the sound of centuries of generational wealth, unlike all of its students. Thus, you had no place in speaking up, or expressing your discomfort. Much less saying no.

Which was why you found yourself stuffed inside itchy, uncomfortable clothes that had been bought with Kamurai money – another reason why you couldn't run away from that place – nursing a glass of champagne that you would, most probably, not drink.

Frostheim's balls were a whole different torture on its own.

It's not surprising that the rich would pride themselves in following obscure little etiquette rules that made them feel like they were better than everyone else. It was fine, really. They could choke on their diamonds and coins and silver cutlery for all you'd care.

It's the fact that you had to endure them that truly abhorred you. Endure the waltzes, and the fancy canapes, and the constant flood of drinks, and the stares and the whispers and the stares and the whispers.

The stares and the whispers.

You knew how much people loved to gossip in that godforsaken dorm, but you hoped your professional (and almost friendly) relationship with both the Captain and Vice-Captain would keep them at bay, at least in front of you.

But you forgot that rich people have no respect for those they deem less important than them.

So you were standing on your own, in the corner of the giant ballroom, as you counted how many people would pass by, stare you down and snicker.

Your record for the previous ball was a little over 20 people. This time, you were already on 23.

What a lovely setting.

All you wanted to do was run, go to the campus’ store and beg Benkei to give you a little discount on a bulk of instant noodles and cheap wine. You refused to eat their expensive food as much as you refused to get drunk in front of them.

That was your plan, until the loudspeakers, carefully placed in every corner of the giant room, began playing a gentle tune that reverberated deep inside your bones, and caused you pain you weren't quite expecting.

At least not at that moment.

Much to your dismay, your eyes began to sting as the first words of the oh-so familiar song reached your ears and your grip on the glass tightened instinctively.

It was such an old piece. A cheesy, melancholic little tune released back in your early teens. Back when your biggest worry were your grades and being noticed by your cute classmate.

You downed the champagne in one go, trying to force the lump on your throat to disappear. Breathing became a little bit harder as you felt your chest squeeze with painful nostalgia and you stumbled towards one of the many balconies of the vast building.

You knew they would most always be empty due to the harsh winter weather right outside its glass doors, but you didn't mind. You needed space. Air. And if you were going to ruin your makeup, you wanted to do it on your own.

The singer's voice was slightly muffled, but you could still hear her. The lyrics lamented a wasted love, but all you could think of were the memories associated with the song.

You remembered carrying your childhood dog in your arms as you danced to it in your old bedroom, thinking about fairytale romance and the bright future ahead of you.

You remembered crying to the sound of it after your first heartbreak and the taste of salt on your tongue while your parents drove you to the beach, the song playing softly in the car's speakers.

You remembered sleeping soundly in a friend's room during a sleepover, the song playing time and time again after you all forgot to turn off the computer and the old music player.

You remembered your past life, seeming so far away from you despite you still being so young.

White, glittery flakes barely fell despite the biting cold that enveloped Frostheim like a snow globe. You shivered constantly, but were focused on how strongly you were biting your bottom lip, trying to keep the tears at bay. Your hands gripped the balcony's railing tightly, as you tried to ground yourself.

You missed the sound of the door opening in your intense focus, only snapping out of your daze once you felt a warm coat being draped over your shoulders.

“You shouldn't be outside without a coat. You could catch a cold, or worse.”

Warm breath tickled your cheek and you turned around, only to face two bright violet orbs that widened as soon as you showed your tear-stricken face.

“What happened?” Luca placed his hands on your shoulder, squeezing them lightly, voice frantic. “Are you okay? Did someone say something to you? Did you get hurt?”

You sniffled, quickly shaking your head in order to stop the barrage of questions. You enveloped yourself with his coat a bit tighter, finally realizing how cold you felt. The scent of bergamot on his clothes managed to ground you better than your own nails ever could.

“No, I'm fine. Nothing happened.” You murmured, looking down, a bit ashamed that your breakdown just had a witness.

“Something must have happened. You're crying. If you're distressed, you can tell me.”

You stared at Luca's worried expression for a second before sighing. He walked to your side, leaning onto the balcony's railing like you were just a few moments before.

“It's… nothing important, really. It's just a song that was played there.” you murmured.

“A song?”

“Yeah, I… it's a song I used to listen to when I was younger. It made me remember, you know? Stuff. My life out of here.”

Luca's worried expression morphed into one of sympathy. His lips pursed as he nodded, understanding what you meant without needing other words.

“You must be missing a lot of people.” He said quietly as you settled yourself beside him, looking at the winter wonderland that were Frostheim's gardens.

“Haha, yeah…” You sighed, tired. “A lot of people I didn't get to say goodbye to, nor explain anything. People that probably miss me too. My pets as well. Friends. I had a lot out there. It wasn't much, but it was mine.”

Your voice became strained as your eyes watered once more. You cleared your throat, trying once again to push down that lump. You might have ruined your makeup, but you didn't want to cry even more in front of the boy – you didn't want to feel like you were victimizing yourself, even if deep down you knew you were anything but guilty of your situation.

Luca placed his hand on your head, his touch heavy and warm despite the ambient. His violet eyes looked at you with a swirl of empathy and pain.

“I understand you.” He said, swallowing hard. “It's jarring. The sudden changes, the fear of the unknown and what the future holds. I miss my family too.”

“Right… you came from another country.” You felt dumb for a moment. For venting your anguish onto someone that was living something so similar to you. And in Luca's case, he was all alone in a foreign place.

You suddenly felt small.

“Yes. And it's hard sometimes. Most times, actually.” He chewed on his bottom lip before giving you a small smile. “But I try to keep my mind set on something so I won't get lost in my emotions. Nor in my grief.”

“Your brother…”

He nodded.

“I set my mind into finding a way to get him back. And I won't back down from this until I've done all I can, until I have him back with our family. But also…” His eyes flickered towards yours, scanning your face.

“What?”

“I do have another goal to keep me afloat. Something else I fight for, so I won't give up despite how hard it all is.”

You tilt your head in curiosity. Luca places his gloved hand onto yours, the warmth seeping into your skin as he squeezes you tightly and his eyes burn with determination.

“I also want to find a way to cure you of your curse. To send you back to those people you love and miss. I want to help you get your future back.”

You couldn't help the way your eyes welled up once again, this time out of gratitude for the boy that stood right beside you.

You knew how Luca had to consciously choose to fight against the odds time and time again, despite how others didn't understand his drive and even deemed him weird or inconvenient. You knew how he worked so hard to one day achieve his goals and to have him so openly offer his hand to help you achieve yours warmed your heart.

“Luca…” You muttered, feeling the tears freely run down your cheeks.

“You won't be lost if we're like this.” He raised the hand that was intertwined with yours. You nodded, drying your eyes with the flimsy sleeve of your clothes.

“I'll help you find your brother too.” You announced, as determined as him, through a stuffy nose and dry mouth.

“Thank you.” He beamed at you, his smile blindingly bright. “And when you feel like this again, when you're lost in your own grief… I hope you know you can count on me. As much as I will count on you when I need your help. Okay?”

“Okay.” You nodded. “Let's just ask Tohma to delete that song from his playlist, please.” You added and Luca laughed in agreement.

He pulled you towards the glass doors, leading you back into the warmth of the ballroom.

Before he opened the doors, he looked at you one more time.

“Let's help each other stay afloat?” He asked, smiling gently.

You smiled back.

“Let's. Thank you, Luca.”

“It's what I'm here for.”

He opened the doors and ushered you inside, shielding you from the cold outside.

[egg-emperor]

Is it just me or is eggman kinda chill woth amy? I was playing frontiers as amy, when i noticed that all the dialogue between her and eggman is kinda chill, especially when compared to the other characters.

Plus, then there's his egglog about her, where he's kinda, sort of proud of her? I dont think pride is the right term for it, but its the best i can use to describe it.

I mean sure, he did hold a gun to her head at one point, but it feels less out of malice, and more useing her as a bargening chip. Which ultimetly, he would do to any character regardless if it benefited him. Even sage if pushed to it.

Im not too framilar with sonic games though, so i could be wrong about this, but thats the general vibe ive got from them. Deffinetly not freinds, but not as at eachothers throats as i thought they'd be.

Im curiouse to hear your take on this though, since you seem very knowledgable on eggman lol.

Eggman does have an interesting attitude towards Amy in Frontiers. There's definitely been development in the way he feels about her over time, the most significant aspect being he's literally even thinking about her as her own person at all- with his own admission that he used to just see her merely as a pawn to ensnare Sonic in the memo

However now he's seeing her as her own person and calling her clever and tenacious, so clearly something changed. It seems she's proven herself to be more than that in his eyes, likely as he's seen/heard more of her doing things on her own and showing her strengths, independence and determination to work towards her goals

But also not without him saying that he feles she had trouble finding herself, so it seems he thought nothing more of her than just being a pawn to use as bait for Sonic to come along and thought of her as an obsessed fan who's life completely revolved around Sonic. So now she seems more than that to him, he feels it's something to commend her for

He's glad her life doesn't seem to completely revolve around his loathsome arch nemesis lol. It's funny how he says Sonic has an ego too, he's the exact type of guy to groan about someone having an ego or accusing them of such even when they don't because nobody should have an ego or even anywhere near as much as regular confidence like him XD

He's never really seemed that antagonistic towards Amy herself beyond the times he's kidnapped her and that was only with luring Sonic in in mind. He hasn't insulted her in the same ways/as often as with most of the other characters beyond calling her "that kid" condescendingly in Adventure and I think that says a lot about how he used to feel too

He probably saw her as just a little fan girl that wasn't any serious threat for a while and was just a pawn to lure in the ones he was actually interested in fighting so he didn't put that energy into it. However like all the rest, if she causes him trouble and gets in the way he will absolutely become immediately hostile and violent towards them, of course

But it's like he never really considered her an adversary and really just another common enemy just for being on Sonic's side. He couldn't see an identity in her besides chasing after Sonic, just like how he looks down on Tails living in Sonic's shadow. In his eyes nobody should center their lives around Sonic regardless of how true that is lol

Because be probably thought lowly of her in that sense but otherwise just didn't really think of her at all besides that, it probably made it easier to respect any accomplishment she made. When she proves herself to be a worthy opponent he will praise that, we know he's even willing to give credit where it's due with Sonic and Tails too

He seems to like to recognize and commend his enemies on their skills and I feel it's because praising them for their skill and strengths proves his own for being able to hold up against them in battle. Because if they have respectable skills and strengths, what does that say about him for being their absolute biggest recurring threat?

He praises both Sonic and Amy for their tenacity, which is something he of course has a limitless amount of himself, which supports that. Also for the cleverness he praises in Amy. It's like he can see himself in them in a sense and with that it makes even more sense, praising them praises himself, it makes him even more tenacious to be so in the face of their own tenacity

With that it makes sense he projects having an ego onto Sonic too lol. He has confidence but not in the immense egotistical way Eggman does- but because he doesn't believe Sonic's confidence is anywhere near as deserved as his own with the most inflated ego in the world, he thinks anyone else being confident in themselves is egotistical :P He's glad Amy isn't fuelling it

But yeah he's come a long way from thinking a bunch of Sonic's friends were just insignificant common enemies. He'll always become directly hostile the second they directly cause him problems/significantly aid Sonic in doing so but besides that he didn't think much of them, either lowly or not much at all. In Amy's case especially he seemed to hardly see her as enemy but now she's proven herself to be a worthy opponent now that he can see that she's her own person

He's not one to downplay their skills- well except for when he's trying to knock down their confidence in battle lol- when he recognizes them for how they can prove his own. They give him a challenge and he can prove himself and his own strengths even in his failures for still being able to hold up against them and the way that he still manages to keep coming back to try again, also proving his tenacity

In the Egg Memos, it seems he's thought deeper about all of Team Sonic as individuals, who they are, and what they can do rather than just being Sonic's insignificant friends over time. He shares little thoughts on Amy, Knuckles, and Tails in the memos like Sonic in the actual cutscenes. But it's interesting how it seems he has the least bad to say about Amy while he's at it

Their convos in Final Horizon with Amy do seem to be some of the most chill. Eggman acts passively annoyed at being approaching like "what do you want, if you're looking for Sonic he's not here" still acting like her life does revolve around Sonic to her face despite the contrary of what he says about her finding herself in the memos lol, and Amy saying things he doesn't like and sassing him and him getting defensive and correcting her which is funny

But there's not the same immediate hostility between them than say, Sonic and Knuckles. And he seems willing to discuss his knowledge with her, I mean he loves showing it off to all of them but something feels a bit different in his way of going about it, seems a little less condescending than with some of the other characters. They're more casual despite still bickering a bit but they can tolerate each other to get the job done

Eggman isn't the type to hold back on anyone if they get in his way though, so he immediately becomes extremely hostile and violent if she gets in his way, like when she interferes in SA2 and he tries to deal with her and Tails jumps in to save her. He was also willing to kill her the times he kidnapped her, with the way he says if she values her life she'll do as he says when he held her hostage with the gun to her head and threatened that "she WILL die" in Crazy Gadget in SA2

So there's definitely malice towards her in certain situations but yeah when he kidnaps her it's mostly just him seeing her as a pawn to get what he's really after with Sonic, rather than specifically as an enemy to take down, aside from when she specifically gets in his way. But he also seems to think more highly of her as a worthy opponent now, which could potentially lead to that actually changing and he sees her as more of a formidable adversary to fight! I'm interested to see where it goes

[not-so-allegiant-general]

I did a math. IT would be possible for Hux and Kallus to meet. Let's assume that Kallus is still alive and capeable.

JUST IMAGINE THAT.

Kallus and Zeb living their best live with other Lasats as they accepted Kallus as one of them. They didn't want to intervene with the Resistance bc "They will be fine" Zeb always said. But now they got the signal, calling for help from the Resistance to entire Galaxy. And Kallus just can't sleep, eat or function bc existing of First Order is already like a slap for him. He can't stand that after all of it another empire will win. And Zeb can't stand looking at distress Kallus, so he said. "Okey. Get on this damn ship Alexandr. We are going."

They found Resistance. And caused a lot of exitment bc there are actual legends about ghost crew and almost everyone knows them. Poe even knew one song. But when he offered to sing it Kallus offered to shot him and Zeb had to intervened. After everyone calm down a little Poe blured out that they have a spy on board one of First Order ship and Kallus went absolutely feral about it.

" You tell me that you receive information from someone out there. And didn't even bother trying to pull him out!?"

" I… I proposed that but general Organa…

"Well. I am not under any general."

" With all respect Alexandr we appreciate your help but if you want to stay you should.."

"Excuse me, princess. I went in too much trouble in life by just following orders. Not any more. If there is a man or a woman out there. A person. Alone. Who risked their life just to send you information. Valuable i suppose. And now they stoped responding i am going there. Because if i learned something in my life from these rebels scums that i grown to like its not leaving anyone behind. No matter what."

"Damn. He is good in this " Finn shook his head.

"am coming with ya!"

" Poe no!" Leia said.

"Poe Yes!" Finn responded.

**

Plan was simple and stupid. But Kallus had an honest belief that when it comes to rebels only this kind of plan work. They suppose to get caught, wait until spy undercover himself. If it not happened in spawn of five days they had backup escape plan. He didn’t have to wait. First time he saw Hux he knew. He didn’t tell them. It was hard enough to pull out low ranking officer. When it comes to general it will be way harder. When it comes to Starkiller, Kriff… it's probably imposible. He knew now that if they want to leave the ship they had to do it on Hux's terms.

And this damn kid was clever.

And as he expected Hux wasn’t also easy to kill.

They were running to the ship trying to avoid blaster bolts. He remembered the first time he had to shoot to imperial officers, he missed every shoot back then. But Hux was different. Every his shot reached the target. Except one. Hux froze holding a blaster in an extended arm. Mitaka was standing before him, blaster in hand, aimed to the ground. Mitaka dropped the weapon, eyes wide open, face pale like paper. Hux took a deep breath taking off finger from the trigger. Kallus wanted to push him away, but he was to slow. Blaster bolt reached Hux’s arm. He screamed in pain falling to the ground and before anyone else reacted Mitaka grabbed his blaster. The shot was clean and successful, stormtrooper dropped dead. They got Hux to the ship.

“Was it always like that?” Kallus looked at Zeb.

“Like what?”

“ We rescued the spy. But he is General who exterminated Hosnian Prime. We also rescued someone else, entirely unplanned, and he is in shock now. “he glanced at absolutely traumatized Mitaka sited on the ground “We created more problems than we solved. “ Zeb laughed.

“Yeah. Yeah Kal, it was always like that.” Kallus narrowed his eyes throwing a suspicious look.

‘Alright. You!” he looked at Finn and Poe “Which one of you two reckless idiots unintentionally recruited the Starkiller??”

Finn looked at him in surprise.

“What? What are you talking about….?”

Poe cleared his throat, scratching his head. “Poe?…”

“Yeah, well it’s a funny story buddy. Em… “ Zeb was amused, Kallus was visibly done with all of this, Finn was horrified, Mitaka still in shock and Hux was looking at the pilot, he was smiling.

“It’s not funny at all, Dameron. I told you, you have to stop laughing when it's time to cry” He wrapped himself tight in his coat. Poe turned around to look at him.

"Hey… Good to see you alive, Hugs." Kallus sighed already knowing the look on his face. Zeb grinned.

"Alright lovers, enough of that. Get us home Dameron" They both screamed in protest and Kallus just smiled. Memories humming in his head.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

You’ve mentioned how boring the Avatar movies are despite how visually stunning they can be (I can’t help but agree.) How would you rewrite it to be a more interesting?

Can't be done and not for the reasons you're probably thinking.

The Thing about James Cameron

To get into this, we have to talk about James Cameron as a director.

Now, I say this being a large fan of The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day, as well as generally liking Aliens and Abyss.

But generally, the focus of James Cameron's films is not the story or the writing: it's a new cutting-edge technology he wants to develop and try out and or a particular setting. The story is presented as an excuse to do these things and is paper thin at best.

The focus of Titanic was the ship itself, the exact timing of its sinking, seeing all of the ship (both upstairs and downstairs) both before and after the sinking, and to aid that along we get this story of Jack and Rose where they run around the ship like lunatics so we can see everything.

Abyss, similarly, is exploring the concept of a setting at depth and the technology needed to produce such a film.

Now, what also ties into this, is that Cameron has a few tropes he really really really likes in films that aren't that... deep I guess I'd call them. Generally, in any Cameron film, you can count at least one (usually more) of the following:

US Marines (Good or Bad or Both)

Evil Corporations/Evil Rich People

A Surprisingly (!) Good Scientist/Science/Robot People

An Uncomplicated Action Hero/Heroine

An Uncomplicated Love Story

In the case of the Avatar series, Cameron had thought up this fictitious world Pandora, the native people there the Nav'i, and wanted to push both CGI as well as 3D to the limit (notable is that Cameron did 3D for these films in a way films generally don't, in that he did actual 3D where most '3D' films just have two cameras for stereo. This is why Cameron's 3D looks so fucking good and is actually worth seeing in theaters versus other 3D films which are eeeeeeh watch it at home). And, as usual, what we see is a story written in such a way to show off the setting, the made-up culture of the Nav'i, and the technology used to produce the film rather than the story in and of itself.

So, in the first film, we get a story that hits all the usual marks for Cameron. Through Jake's adventure, we get to explore Pandora and see all the things Cameron really wants to show off to us, we also get all the tropes Cameron usually loves: an uncomplicated love story, evil corporations, US Marines, surprisingly good scientists who seem bad at first but then are misguided, and a dumb uncomplicated hero.

In this case, it's just the plot of Dances with Wolves (almost to a tee) but uh... more blue.

(The second film is even worse in this respect, as well as just as a film, as Cameron now wants to show a new part of Pandora, the ocean but uh... has no reason for the characters to be there so has to make something up that doesn't make much sense or give the characters much to do.)

The trouble is where this works for Cameron in other films (Terminator and Terminator 2 were great in that they didn't need to be complicated, the setting and special effects provided what we needed for great films), in Avatar we're hampered by a plotline that has both aged and that we've seen before, and by a script that's... just not good.

But the point I was trying to make is that Avatar would not exist without Cameron. This isn't a case where you hire a new director, new screenwriter, new anything, this is Cameron's vision and there's really not much wiggle room in that without dumping out everything Cameron wanted.

The best someone could do is rewrite the script to make the lines more catchy/memorable/quotable without changing the plot.

(Caveat, again, I think Cameron is great when he's great. What he does well he does very well, and he has made some fantastic as well as very entertaining movies. However, sometimes, it just doesn't work out.)

Back to the Question

So, to 'fix' Avatar you have to have a script Cameron would like, one that shows of Pandora in the way he wants, and with the uncomplicated characters he generally likes.

Trouble is, that is Avatar. I can think of no way to produce what Cameron would have wanted beyond what Cameron himself did. He was involved in every step of that movie and it shows.

And again, to make it better or different is to make something that never would have happened as, well, it's not Cameron.

Long story short, you can't have Avatar without Blue Pocahontas in Space.

[magicalcursegirl]

Random mass effect 1 headcanons and thoughts, as someone who hasn't moved on to two or three but has been exposed to some minor spoilers.

- Batarians used to be proud of being the "got the job done" shady scum demographic. They resent our pirates more than our legitimate people - or they would, if they recognized that there was a distinction at all.

- The fact that they don't is a major factor in the diplomatic failures that led to open war with humanity, though their insular tendencies and distasteful baseline culture do not help.

- Thresher maws are a bioweapon made by either precursors, or a civilization that predates that. They are too adaptive to be entirely natural. (Alternatively, the different enviroment maws are entirely different strains, and possibly even different species.)

- Prothean pyramids are either memorials or boasts of military victories. When they were built, every one was placed on the grounds of a ruined city. They're nearly impossible to chip or move, too.

- Mass effect 1's "human" gear is actually "Asarii" gear. Both human and Asarii-supplying companies are enjoying the increased customer market - but not the increased direct competition.

- The current official Volus political faction have no interest in getting a Volus into the Spectres. However, there have been multiple cases where they've tried to petition that violence and combat should not be mandatory parts of the job description. Obviously, they have not succeeded.

- Thorian is not actually extinct, but A) it will not return to activity for centuries, and B) the damage caused has harmed its memory significantly. It has learned a lesson about taking meat with independent will, regardless. Namely, it has learned it is not useful enough to be worth the risk or the trouble. Better to merely convert the dead into creepers.

- This is fortunate for the Thorian, because by the time it returns to activity, someone will have created an incomplete antidote to Thorian spores.

- Most Spectres with renegade tendencies add probably-nonlethal options to their loadout. Stunning an obstructive bureaucrat gets less criticism from the council than killing them. Even if it turns into manslaughter, using your license to manslaughter is still going to get less criticism than deliberately killing said nuisance.

- One of the many legitimate reasons humanity lacks Spectres is because of all the incidents where we failed to respect their authority. Noveria's-opening style obstructions do not happen nearly as often in Council-dominated territories.

- The Spectre license weaponry - HMW - is frequently revised. Previous versions are often found on black markets and collector sites - as are up-to-date versions given or sold by Spectres to fund their own missions. Both are, thankfully, rare. Most HMW gear that can be safely and easily sourced for under ten million credits is over a century old, and not in anywhere near mint condition. As a historical relic it has value, as a weapon it is obsolete. Certain wealthy types might still choose to wield such weapons - mostly out of ignorance.

- Spectre License Armor used to be a thing as well, but unlike weaponry, the tech underperformed and was generally not worth the credits.

- Captain Andersen is biased against Saren. While that doesn't make any of his information incorrect in the present, I highly suspect that he demonizes past Saren. (I already know present-Saren is under the same domination as Benezia - and I find the spin-offs dubiously canon at best.)

- Most of Citadel's - and Aliens in general's - issues with humanity are legitimate. On the other hand, Humanity's issues with the Citadel are also legitimate.

- Udina is manifestly unqualified for his actual position. Did folks forget how to do diplomacy in any form other than a boardroom hard sell negotiation? Are we trying to fill the "brash and abrasive" niche that it seems that Batarians left open after we kicked their butts until they ragequit? Is the Council's general refusal to give them anything not a damning indictment of that strategy?

[ao3gobi17]

What do you think your custody au quaritch thinks about Jeanniebug's weaving the web spider and quaritch respectively?

How would he feel about cyren myadd's quaritch or spider? Like his thoughts and opinions on them if they were to ever meet?

I see Cyren has replied to this - so I'm looking forward to reading the answer - esp if you've sent it to all 3 of us!

So I hadn't read Weaving the web until recently - I am actually still reading it as we speak! There's a chance I may not know something super relevant, but at the point I'm at, there's three different Spider personalities. My plan is to finish it soon.

I do actually really like the idea of some kind of Spider multiverse collab, though I don't know if its actually practical or possible.

I think Custody-Quaritch is going to gravitate towards collecting Spiders at the first sign of trouble from any of the Quaritches. My impression so far on WTW-Quaritch is that he's trying to do his best by Spider (minus letting the interrogator thing happen twice - as far as he knew - before stopping it), so I don't think Custody-Q would have a huge issue with him if he met mid-fic. He might later on if he found out about the interrogations. In contrast he'd have an issue a mile wide with BITTW-Quaritch from the get-go. The Spiders he would intellectually understand aren't his Spider, but he'd probably view them as an extension of his Spider and therefore under his remit and he'd struggle to leave them be if he couldn't build a good relationship with his counterpart.

In terms of the Spider personalities.. in some ways it doesn't matter to Custody-Q, his kid is his kid and he can try to fix things once he has him safe.

But he would be alarmed for sure by the multiple personalities on WTW-Spider and would want him in therapy asap, getting the best medical care. He'd be very precaution-heavy with 'Miles' but he'd try to foster a bond with him and adapt his approach regardless. 'Spider' and 'MJ' I think would be much easier for Custody-Q to manage and depending on context I think he'd really struggle with wanting 'Spider' to front and ultimately win out as the main personality because he's the original, and getting a bit of a catch up feel with MJ on the childhood moments he missed with his own Spider. But ultimately he'd know the MJ part wasn't healthy, so I do think he'd try to get 'Spider' back wholly.

BITTW Spider is more impulsive than Custody Spider and he probably yearns even more for love than Custody Spider does, so I think Custody-Quaritch would take to him very easily, especially if there's no 'did you kill my mom' thing hanging between them! <3

[greatwesternway]

All Engines Ought to Have Names

"Yes," agreed Edward, "it's most important."

Engines care a lot about names. It's one of the few things that engines have ownership of and not every engine is lucky enough to get one. It's a mark of distinction on most railways and, by that measure, it's perhaps notable that engines on Sodor are nearly always given names if they don't already have one.

No. 1 - 5 (Thomas, Edward, Henry, Gordon, and James)

We can assume Sir Topham Hatt named all these guys because their respective backstories allow for that. Most of them are experiments that weren't ever meant to see real use, and we can afford Edward and Thomas that engines generally have to earn names outside of Sodor.

Hatt seems to favor common names for his engines. He's been around long enough perhaps to see what too lofty a name might do to an engine but leaving an engine unnamed has never been his style either. Giving an engine a name is a gesture of intent: you don't do so unless you plan to keep him around. It's also a great leveler: even the lowliest of engines on Sodor have names. Everyone is distinct, everyone is important to the railway.

No. 6 (Percy)

Percy is the only engine we actually see Hatt name. The big book of people, places, and things suggests Percy has a quite diverse prior work history, but taking his introduction in the book at face value, we could assume he's freshly built. If he did indeed work so many other places before without getting a name, being given one more or less sight unseen would be quite the statement to him.

I quite like to think he's named for Mr. Percival. They have a similar emotional intelligence.

No. 7 (Toby)

Toby already had a name and Hatt generally respects existing names which is why some other engines have names that do not follow his common naming convention, like Salty and Whiff.

No. 8 (Montague/Duck)

Duck is a Great Western engine and Hatt is said to be an admirer of the GWR. In fact, he came up at the Swindon Works. So when he asks Duck what his name is, it's an assumption that Duck does indeed already have one. And if he's a GW engine, he's undoubtedly quite proud of it. Hatt probably did expect that name to be somewhat pretentious, as the GWR seemed to take a humorous delight in that sort of thing, but that Duck had a nickname he preferred was probably a surprise.

He apparently received this nickname because the other engines thought he waddled. This could be a relic from the GWR, but I rather prefer to think it's from his time on the BR, where pannier tanks were perhaps a less common sight. Duck is also shorter, more relatable among other common engines, and easier to shout and hear over busy train yard noise. That he prefers it over Montague is probably practical (and it is merely a preference, he seems equally proud of his real name in "Duck in the Water"), but there's room for to be a trophy of acclimating to the BR.

SR No. 1 and 2 (Skarloey and Rheneas), MSR No. 1 (Duke), CFR No. 1, 4, 5, and 6 (King Godred, Culdee, Shane Dooiney, Lord Harry)

A lot of railways like to name their engines after scenic features of their lines or people that are important to it. This is particularly a mark of being a flagship engine on that railway.

MSR/SR. No 3 and 4 (Sir Handel and Peter Sam)

Beyond Duke, who was named for the Duke of Sodor, the Mid-Sodor Railway preferred to name its engines for their designers (Falcon and Stuart). If the railway had lasted longer, they might have run into trouble with that, but it didn't so all's well that ends well enough.

When Falcon and Stuart were sold to the Skarloey Railway, they were renamed Sir Handel and Peter Sam, after people significant to the SR.

Jinty and Pug

So an interesting note about these guys is that Jinty and Pug are actually nicknames for their classes of engine, not names proper. BR engines seem to usually go by a class name or a number; they're rarely given genuine names as far as we see.

Diesel

So it follows that Diesel is probably not a name proper either. And unlike other diesels who were eventually brought into the NWR, Diesel himself remains without a name proper.

I think Diesel has a complicated relationship with his place on Sodor and that he continues to lack a proper name speaks to that. However, I also think he likes it that way. When you speak of him, you have to qualify that you mean Diesel Himself. And even if he was not the first diesel to properly join the NWR (he even lacks a number, black sheep as he is), he gets to be called Diesel because he was the first to arrive. Though the distinction is dubious, it's a distinction all the same.

SR No. 5 (Rusty)

As seen with Sir Handel and Peter Sam, the done thing on the SR was to rename an engine after an important person to the railway. If we take Rusty's counterpart Midlander into account, who was bought from a quarry for the Talyllyn, it's possible Rusty already had a name upon arrival to the SR and was permitted to keep it. Rusty typically does not do customer facing work, so the name doesn't strictly need to fit the convention.

SR No. 6 (Duncan)

I suspect that Duncan was allowed to keep his name from his factory days as well, despite that he does do customer facing work and so should have been renamed to match the rest of the fleet. While it might just be that Duncan is a grumpy little cuss of an engine and so naming him after someone might come off as an insult to them, I prefer to think this is actually a consideration for him.

Given that factories probably don't need a whole fleet of engines and that Duncan has Opinions about diesels despite this, it stands to reason he was obsolesced and replaced by one. He's a complainer anyway, but he's probably not thrilled with his new lot in life. He's used to tidy, evenly laid (and probably indoor) rails and being able to say whatever is on his mind without worrying about what high-minded passengers will think.

Mr. Percival's got five kids. He gets it. No one likes change. Let that cunty little engine keep something that's his. It's a gesture to let him buck convention.

No. 9 and 10 (Donald and Douglas)

Hatt also asks these guys what their names are upon meeting them. If naming engines was likely on the Caledonian too, then Hatt expects they have names already, despite being BR engines at the present. They claim to have only given themselves names when they lost their numbers, but they're already lying about that so it's possible they're also lying about this. All the same, the BR apparently has little need for names, so it's a lie that would pass muster. If Hatt called the controller on the BR, he'd probably have no idea about this.

No. D1 (Daisy)

Daisy is the only BR engine who seemingly came with a name right out the box. Given that the BR wasn't exactly handing them out, but that she's apparently been treated very preciously by her fitter, I'd have to guess the name came from said fitter. Maybe that's where she's learned all her French nonsense too.

No. D2 (BoCo)

BoCo first gives his name when Edward spits out his entire class to Bill and Ben and they struggle to apologize to him in the face of it. It's a reversal of Co-Bo which is the name for his wheel arrangement. Given the more "affectionate" sound to it, it was a perhaps understatedly bold of him to give a name for himself. Co-Bo would have been utilitarian and given for ease of use, plausibly deniable if anyone objected. BoCo is a choice, it's him taking the liberty.

He was an NWR engine all along.

No. 11 (Oliver)

Also a Great Western, and so he had a name to begin with. And he uses it, even before he's accepted on the NWR. He might not be completely devoted to the Great Western Way as Duck is, but few engines are going to neglect a name if they have one.

No. D3 (Bear)

Bear was named by the other engines on the NWR, for the growling noise he makes. He likes the name his new friends have given him.

"It's nicer than just a number," he says. "Having a name means that you really belong."

[rwby-confess]

60-something confessions, weve paid our tribute, what are YOUR confessions

Okay, here goes 10 confessions from me:

1.

I wish we had seen Pyrrahs friendships, I think she and Ren would've been good friends since both of them are so level headed.

I headcanon that they would take care of the school garden together, Pyrrah would struggle a bit with delicate plants but same time be happy to be able to learn from his peers new things for once.

One day she learns that Nora and Ren are orphans. Her respect for them grows, seeing them as so much stronger for not having the same support she had growing up, yet here they are thriving. She makes sure to invite them over during holidays and for other things they possibly missed out on as kids.

She doesn't care for cooking but often goes to shop for ingredients with Nora.

2.

I think Freezerburn is incredibly soft.

Weiss is able to cool down hot-headed Yang and Yang is able to melt away the Ice Queens tsundere tendencies. :'-) <3

3.

I miss seeing the street fashion influence when it comes to designs, ofcourse I understand why it isn't there as much anymore but I can still moan about it.

Yangs' tsuyome-esque looks was my fave, it was fire and I wanted to cosplay it so badly.

Ruby's look reminds me of something I wore when I was 12yo actually

4.

Only on my second watch I realised that Ironwood looks really hot with this look and it's a shame that it got SO little screen time. And same with Winters first look.

5.

Also on my second watch I realised that the straps on Oscars' gloves are green not black ???

6.

Remember bootleg Neptune from volume 4? Yeah he sure exists. But what if he did more?

Weiss is trapped in Atlas, she's lonelier than ever, she can only go to places and events dad approves of. And this guy keeps coming around, maybe they meet at the Schnee Manors garden, why not go for a bad boy?

They have fling going on, for Weiss it's mostly out of boredom and finding him good looking. If she's trapped might as well have fun. Maybe they'll get in trouble or have some other sort of side plot going on together but eventually when Weiss gets a window to escape out of Atlas, she's faced with a decision.

Stay with the guy who obviously finds it insane to trade living high life in Atlas to go chase some pals she met at school in other kingdom. Weiss snaps out of the rose coloured glasses after hearing this, ultimately choosing her friends.

Idk I just wish they let them do the usual young people fuck ups and learning experiences if there's going to be whole volume of them sitting around

7.

Yang's probably closest thing Oscar got for mother figure...

8.

The bird thing. Make Raven tell Weiss and Yang how the experience was as she remembers, give them reason to be shocked. So here's my suggestion:

Maybe the process was violent since current humans aren't used to magic in any shape, they're stripped from their autonomy in that moment and it's humiliating.

Like Amber was in the chamber beneath Beacon, Oz did it to Branwens there in similar way? Underground to not attract grimm, no one to hear their screams, its cold and dark, they're stripped like Amber to act as guinea pigs for this man.

Qrow has (more or less) made peace with all that trauma and what happened since he thinks its suffering for the greater good. After all, the man doesn't really have home to go back to. He doesn't want to bring misfortune to people he loves and the tribe doesn't really want him back.

However Raven learns that Salem can't be beaten, meaning she and Qrow suffered for only to be ideal candidates for a suicide mission...

9.

I want Qrowin angst, please crwby, I want to suffer lmao

Give Qrow absolutely losing it, calling Winter after Atlas falls asking her if she knows where the kids are? Where did she last saw them?

And when Winter tries to answer Qrows questions she can't bring herself to say it; they're gone. She was there and she couldn't save them, not even her own sister. The words just won't come out... and after the silence she tells him to meet her in Vacuo, after all he deserves to know.

Whatever differences they had in the past feel so miniscule now.

(Aaand I headcanon that both of them craved for a "normal" family, making this little story even more horrible!)

10.

Yang "shooting" kids' leg on live TV should've had more consequences me thinks. Give me atleast someone commenting or being vary of her.

Her arm is brand new Atlas tech according to Tai, maybe someone would see it as an issue after finding out that she got it for free from Ironwood himself.

Maybe anti Yang propaganda being showed around town could've pushed her to work with Robyn (lol)

"Quite frankly miss I'm about to piss myself right about now, so this one is on the house"

[piffany666]

Ok just one more punk progeny won't hurt ~

Chapter 3: consent (part 1)

(Ftm trans Bright eyes - he/him pronouns)

Let it never be said that Samuel was proud of the way he had treated Bright when he was first turned.

He was harsh, however at the time it seemed appropriate considering Bright had essentially led Sam's progeny to his death.

Because of that, Sam had placed all the blame onto Bright since the beginning of his turning.

That combined with Bright eye's already existing young-adult-angst, newborn vampire emotions and a newfound hunger.....let's just say they didn't exactly mix well.

However it wouldn't be fair to leave out the struggling situation Sam had found himself in at the time.

He had a thousand excuses but none of them got him any sympathy from Bright. But its not as if Sam was looking for it.

He only began to regret his treatment towards Bright after meeting his darlin, Tanker.

Meeting Tank gave Sam a chance to better understand Bright.

Maybe it was wrong to say, but they had so much in common. And the way Tank talked about how they acted in their adolescents, it made sense that they got along with Bright so well.

Admittedly, introducing the two was a way to get Bright off his hands but funly enough, Bright having somone he could talk to that he knew wouldn't judge him was actually decreasing the amount of arguing Sam and Bright did.

So, when Sam got a call from William requesting a meeting, he wasn't anticipating it being about Bright eyes.

He assumed it would be something to do with Porter coming back or the upcoming summit, maybe Sam would be lucky enough to find out why he wouldn't be attending.

So you can imagine his surprise when William revealed that the meeting was about his troubled grand progeny.

His instant reaction was getting very quiet and eventually saying in a cold and serious tone

"What did he do?"

But William was quick to jump to his defence

"He didn't do anything Samuel, you have nothing to fear"

He said this but after a moment, William looked...unsure

Maybe it was a good idea not to mention the whole, broke one of my walls and burst into my office situation, thought William.

"With all do respect your highness, I don't believe you"

"I assure you, nore him or yourself are in any form of trouble"

Sam paused for a moment

"Then what is this meeting about?"

William sighed, Sam prepared himself for what was to come but no matter what, he would have never anticipated this.

"It is no secret that you two don't get along very well and with all due respect, it's gotten out of hand. I'm aware that your arguing has died down and you know that I am very sympathetic towards you, but tell me, how is Bright doing in terms of his vampire training in comparison to Fred?"

Sam felt embarrassed. He didn't want to seem immature for his treatment of Bright or that he was being petty in any way but he had to answer honestly.

"He's far behind Fred....but that's probably just cos he was turned by someone who was turned 2 seconds before him"

Despite his excuses, William looked like he had heard enough.

"Between your arguing and Brights inability to use and understand his powers, I'm sorry but I don't see you being his mentor going anywhere

It's unfair that your realationship has, though I'm sure unintentionally, stifled his learning"

Sam was defeated. William had made up his mind. And he had nothing to say about it.

Because he was right.

........

"So what do you propose we do?"

"Well~, I've been pondering this idea for a while now and I've ran it by Vincent and asked for the opinion of Bright eyes himself on the matter and~"

William reminded himself not to look so happy and to restrain his excitement.

"I would like to ask for your consent to take Bright eyes on as MY progeny".

Sam was dumbfounded to say the least. There was a part of him that was expecting that but it was such a small part that he didn't expect it to be correct.

After a long pause, Sam began.

"What did Bright say to that?"

William explained that after telling Vincent, he then went to tell Lovely and Bright overheard them.

Sam assumed the worst, Bright bursting in and screaming at William and just genuinely being a brat.

He was prepared to start apologising for whatever Bright did on his behalf but then William went on to say that after he had explained that it was up to him, he calmed down and they had a quote 'delightful' conversion.

Sam couldn't possibly fathom the consept of Bright being 'delightful' but he listened on.

"So he said he'd 'think about it'?"

"Yes"

It was better this way, he knew that, but somehow, for some reason, it still hurt.

He had failed one of his progenys.

"You can have him"

He was about to leave but then somthing came to his attention.

"But before that I have one question...

Why? Why go through all this trouble? Why NOW?"

Sam mentioned to Tank before this meeting that William wasn't one to do things just to be nice but he couldn't think of any other reason why William would want to take in a punk like Bright eyes.

The real reason was simply because......he couldn't help himself.

Every time he has had a new progeny it's been the same.

He couldn't help himself with Alexis and she was a.....disappointment to put it harshly.

So he said "no more. Never again"

Then he saw Vincent and he COULD. NOT. HELP. HIMSELF.

So he said "one last one"

Porter was a different story all together.

And now there was Bright eyes.

He had accepted by now that when he sees a troubled vampire youth he simply cannot help himself.

But he wasn't about to tell Sam that.

"Well....you know the summit is coming up-"

"Ah right of course-"

"Let me finish"

William knew what Sam thought about the summit. That it was just a huge pissing contest and an excuse for vampires to show off to each other.

While he did have a point, it meant more than that to him.

"I simply meant that it would be most convenient to make this kind of decision at this time because if he says yes then its just easier to make arrangements for his coronation. As you know I won't be attending this year so I'll have yo make arrangements for what to do regarding that"

That did technically answer the question of "why NOW" but Sam wasn't convinced.

I guess we won't know until he decides, thought Sam as he got up from his chair and left.

Bright wasn't his problem anymore....so why did he feel so...

Disappointed in himself?

Tagg - @darlin-collins

[kingprinceleo]

BET YOU DIDN'T EXPECT ME SO SOON

I did the dessert vampires playlist first since it was the shortest!

Stampede- very good interplay with the characters. Gives the vibe of I respect you but we fundamentally disagree on some big issues. Would be fun to play in the background of like a joint operation scheme? like they've gone undercover at a fancy party and this is them working together during it

Vulture- this is such a Shadow backstory song like- i don't know exactly what happens with GUN and Maria in this au but THIS is the song you play to express his feelings. The first verse at least low-key also sounds like Knuckles during or immediately post transformation to Rouge. He's very angy

Welcome to the Circus- a jaunty little tune. bar/saloon coded, probably plays wherever Amy works i think?

Recommend songs for this playlist: Desperado by Rhianna and maybe the entire Anti album based on vibes alone.

Blood Like Lemonade- strong vibes

Trouble Valerie Broussard- more Rouge centric i think

For other playlists:

Like a Vampire Catrien Maxwell, for vamp au Sonic

A Little Wicked - im thinking of Rouge for it but if it fits a different character i wouldn't be surprised

Little Girl Gone Chinchilla - very vamp au Shadow coded imo

Eve Precious Pepala- Shadow coded

All up in your mind- feels like Shadow thinking about Sonic's effect on him in vamp au

Hope these are good and have a nice timezone 🫶🏽. I go to sleep now

~🩸🎵

welcome back fhbghbjfdfdg !!

This playlist is a little more tough to explain bc i havent shared the major plotpoint that changes the whole title of the au fjgfjghf, but ill get there eventually !! Stampede- idrk know how to explain this one beyond its just Them, their conflicts their compromises, how the two are trying to work together in the situation theyre in, big time agree on the respect with huge disagreements tho, thats one of their major sticking points Vulture- RAHHHHHHH THIS IS IS KNUCKLES @ SHADOW !!!!! the entire time its knuckles rage and defiance !!! and im slamming my head into a wall so fucking hard i prommy it makes so much sense when i share the plot Welcome to the circus- its a rouge @ knuckles song ! like i said the subject itself is kinda weak but it hits on some of their core dynamic pieces --- Desperado- this one i could see being very rouge @ shadow but its a bit too forward and honest ! rouge would defo more take the angle of "im following you bc ur hopeless without me <3" Blood Like Lemonade- strong vibes on its own but doesnt particularly fit with anyone at least right now, i might come back to it after fleshing more people out (also i am sadly biased against songs that are kinda slow sob. i need that constant stimulation music {i almost didnt include vulture in the playlist bc of its speed but it was just too accurate and picks up with some heavy hitting stuff near the end}) Trouble- very correct w the rouge part !! defo eying this one up in consideration

---

Like a Vampire- defo not vampire au sonic , it actually lines up more with desert vampires rouge (i adore the singers voice btw omg) idk if its going in any of the au playlists but it sure is going in mine ! dfhhdfhg A little wicked- shrug tbh ! i see it for rouge but it feels like its missing something, her spunk, her 4kids saxaphone (im assuming if you dont specify an au you just mean for the canon gamers !) Little Girl Gone- THIS IS SO VAMPIRE AU SHADOWCORE LITTLE UNHINGED BASTARD !!! the blood on my teeth line caught my attention....and then the screaming part sold me HDSHDHF hes sooo silly <333

Eve- im so sorry im really biased against love songs so i dont see it personally !! esp not for shadow </3 All up in your mind- eeh there are a few lines there that work, but overall just misses slightly. big fan of the idea that shadows just making up all those lines tho and sonics never said any of it, thats funny fdgjfjdgfg i feel bad for not enjoying all of them wahh, but i am just really picky tbh,,, its gotta bounce the braincell right... but i appreciate the suggestions sm!!!! tyyy!! have a good sleep !!!

[selfproclaimedunicorn]

F&B Chapter 2 thoughts:

Completely unserious opening. "King Aegon's 37 year reign was super peaceful if you ignore that it was founded on 2 genocides & setting everything on fire till all your other future subjects give up in fear. You also need to ignore the near 2 decades of war at its start. Those last actual 2 decades though? Practically a utopia!"

Once again: I feel bad for everyone forced to lose because One-gon & his much cooler sisters had dragons. You don't "take advantage of the chaos of Aegon's Conquest" to name yourselves independent if you actually want to be under his rule. They had a whole queen, a named queen, & then here came the literal whole navy & Visenya to threaten the Sistermen into submission. And then we see a queen regnant getting violently deposed by her own men & needlessly brutalized &/or humiliated for her trouble a second time. Marla Sunderland deserved better. Why the fuck did she get her tongue cut out 5 years after the fact, George? And the framing of Steffon Sunderland's sons being fostered with the Manderlys & the Arryns. "He handed them over for his good behavior," they were hostages & probably straight up yoinked. I hope Maester Gyldayn was compensated for his work, because this man was in the trenches trying to make the Targs look good.

The Ironborn have never known how to act, & I love them. Straight up murdering each other for a whole year bc their royal family for the last few centuries got turned into a brick oven pizza in one (1) night. Babes, just reinstate the kingsmoot. Also, I'm willing to believe that Lodos killed himself, but "thousands followed" is so fucking vague. The thousands who drowned with him were definitely killed for the crime of not wanting to live under One-gon/being potential dissidents who would rise up & start this shit over again.

Laughing eternally that everyone keeps clapping when One-gon shows up. "There were so few Ironmen left after a year of killing each other that they didn't resist. Also everyone cheered, they totally wanted to be under Valyrian rule!"

Stan Dorne, we love a Russian Winter Strategy. Also their ousting of Aegon's dudes after he was all "since they aren't here, I won & I'm taking their stuff" is the funniest fucking thing. "The Dornish Lords had a wager to see who could keep people alive longest while torturing them," be for real my dude, I know you pulled that out of your ass just to vilanize them & appease Aerys. This section is peak comedy, & full of icons. We love actually using our brains ❤️

YouExpectMeToFeelSorryForThatBitch.gif (you can decide who this is about, but if you name someone from Dorne you chose wrong)

Hey George, after all those back & forth war crimes bc Rhaenys fucked around & found out I'm gonna need to know tf was in that letter Prince Nymor wrote. You don't need to tell anyone else, just whisper it in my ear & I will take it to the grave. I just want to know what ended all of that, because good Lord. Everyone made the Conqueror Trio's refusal to get off Princess Meria's lawn every person on the respective opposing side's problem. I'm not going to fault Dorne for wanting them out, because context & also no one wanted the Targs around, but dadgum. Both sides were doing the absolute most (also I am not surprised that Aerys was more willing to have beastiality explained to his baby son than why the people of Dorne maybe hated them)

The "Dornish Courage" mockery thing are the words of bitter little haters who are just mad they didn't have the brain power to do what Meria did. Once again: what an icon. Stan Meria Martell.

[lansplaining]

[one snippet of a chengqing hallmark rom com for as many days of december as i feel like!] 

Lotus Pier was done for-- or at least it was meant to be. After 100 years (ancient and venerable, in west coast time) the whole enterprise had gone up in flames-- literally and therefore, one would assume, metaphorically as well. Especially a school, which is not exactly the kind of place that can withstand extended periods of unexpected closure, or any hint that the premises might be unsafe. But those who predicted Lotus Pier’s demise four years ago had failed to account for Jiang Cheng. 

Now, Jiang Cheng sometimes felt like Lotus Pier was actively in flames all around him, metaphorically this time. But in point of fact, the school was standing and operating and-- surviving. It was surviving.

Jiang Cheng was also-- standing. Operating. Surviving. Which was fine, more than enough, especially given his only real confidante usually had other things on his mind. For example--

“Jiujiu!” Jin Ling bellowed the second his feet hit the floor of Jiang Cheng’s office. Jiang Cheng stood to intercept him as he came tearing across the little room, as past experience had revealed that Jin Ling would attempt to just climb over the desk, and would not succeed. Jiang Cheng scooped him up, then turned to see Jin Guangyao looking politely amused in the doorway. 

“Jiujiu,” Jin Ling demanded before Jiang Cheng could get out an actual, adult greeting. “I want a Christmas tree.”

“We put up the decorations in Koi Tower today,” Jin Guangyao said, smiling still, but sounding apologetic. “A-Ling was very taken with them-- weren’t you?”

“Yes,” Jin Ling said decisively. “I want one. I want it-- this big.” He flung his arm upwards, indicating a height somewhere past Jiang Cheng’s head. 

“Right,” said Jiang Cheng. “Well, we’ll... see what we can do. Hi, Guangyao. Would you like to take a seat?” 

Jin Guangyao nodded his thanks and pulled out the chair on the opposite side of Jiang Cheng’s desk. Something about that chair often put people ill at ease-- instinctive memories, Jiang Cheng assumed, of being trouble in school and called into the principle’s office. But if Jin Guangyao felt that, he didn’t show it. 

“So, what did you want to discuss?” Jiang Cheng asked, as Jin Ling busied himself with settling into Jiang Cheng’s lap and playing with the pens on his desk. 

Jin Guangyao wasn’t the type to make annoying jokes about oh, right down to business, he just reached for the briefcase he’d just set down. “I actually wanted to speak to you on behalf of my father. As you’ve probably heard, he’s looking to expand his property portfolio, and there have been such promising redevelopments in the waterfront area in recent years. As you know-- all this construction!” 

“The construction,” Jiang Cheng agreed automatically. He already didn’t like where this was going. Even setting aside the fact that there were still parts of the site they hadn’t had the time or money to fully repair yet, Lotus Pier stood out like a sore thumb these days amongst all the new waterfront hotels and high rises. 

“He’s aware, of course, of how hard you’ve worked over the past few years to get Lotus Pier back on its feet,” Jin Guangyao went on. “And it occurred to him that there might be an arrangement here that would be beneficial to everyone. You would have cash in hand, and could seek out a premises with less complicated upkeep, and my father would be able to pursue a waterfront development.” 

Jiang Cheng just stared at him, silent for a moment or two. “You...”

“Want to buy Lotus Pier,” Jin Guangyao agreed. “Naturally no one is asking you to make a decision right here! But...” Now he opened the briefcase and pulled out a stack of papers. “I wanted to bring you our proposal. The price, of course, but also our plans for the property, as I suspected you’d be interested to know what the land would become before agreeing to anything. It has been in your family for a long time, and we want to respect that.” 

He slid a thick, plastic-bound packet across the table. Jiang Cheng just sort of looked at it, but Jin Ling eagerly slapped his hand down on it and pulled it closer, so Jiang Cheng hand it carefully extricate it from his hands. 

“Thanks,” he said, more out of instinct than out of any conscious thought. He was too dazed to do anything else, too focused on not letting his confusion morph-- as it so often did-- into anger. There was no question Jin Guangyao had done all the work to prepare this proposal, but he was equally sure the idea itself came straight from Jin Guangshan. It would do him no good to get angry at Jin Guangyao, even though he’d seen him withstand being screamed at by his own family without the slightest waver to his habitual smile. 

It was this same state of dazed autopilot that made him, when the phone suddenly started ringing, reach out and answer it. 

“--sorry, let me take this,” he blurted out a second too late. Jin Guangyao agreed with a polite nod. “--hi. Lotus Pier Academy, this is Jiang Cheng speaking.”

“Oh,” said a woman’s voice on the other end of the line, a bit startled. “I didn’t think I’d get straight through to you.” 

“What can I do for you?” he asked, assuming that this random person didn’t actually want to hear about how they still couldn’t afford to hire a full-time secretary. 

“My name is Wen Qing, and I’m calling on behalf of the Nevernight Group. I apologize for cold-calling this way, but I’m going to be in the area for business in a few days and wondered if I could-- sorry, I really thought I’d be speaking to your assistant-- I wondered if I could get a meeting in your calendar while I’m here. My employer is interested in discussing your future plans for your property, and whether you might be open to some form of partnership in relation to the future of the site.”

“--oh.” Maybe, Jiang Cheng thought, there was such a thing as fate. “Yeah, sure. Tuesday lunchtime?” 

“Sounds perfect,” she said. “That was-- very efficient, thank you. I look forward to meeting you.”

“Same to you,” Jiang Cheng said. He hung up the phone, pulled his staff lanyard out of Jin Ling’s mouth, and said, “Well, Jin Guangyao. You’ve got a competing offer.”