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[poetzproblem]

Hi poetz! I was watching catching up on traitors and wondered would Rachel do any reality TV stints? What type of reality TV show would she do? Also would Quinn ever do the same a la dancing with the stars maybe as Rachel dancing partner?

DB version or otherwise?

DB

Rachel isn't a professional dancer - it's her weakest talent, after all, so she and Quinn would never be partners. They'd be competitors and that would not be fun for their marriage.

I'm not sure she'd want to put herself into any competition type reality shows where she'd be away from her family and stuck with a bunch of strangers, other celebrities or not, for an extended period. She might, however, agree to be a celebrity judge on something like The Voice.

Quinn would be a definite no for all the reality things. She's happy to stay mostly out of the spotlight.

Non-DB

In a universe where they are not already together, Rachel may be more inclined to do a reality show, especially if she isn't already famous. In fact, she would absolutely audition for The Voice or American Idol.

I still don't see Quinn wanting anything to do with competition or being under a microscope post-high school.

[poetzproblem]

About the AO3 "No Guest Comments for a while" warning

If you're not following any of AO3's social media accounts you might be in the dark as to what kind of "spam comments" have engendered this banner at the top of the site:

These spam comments have been posted about a great deal on the AO3 subreddit for the past couple of days. Initially they comprised a bunch of guest (logged out users) bot comments that insulted authors by suggesting they were using AI and not writing their own fics. Some examples, from the subreddit:

But it then escalated to outright graphic porn images and gifs being posted in comments, again by logged out 'Guest' accounts. Obviously, I'm not going to give examples of those, but between these two bot infestations, AO3 has clearly decided to act and has temporarily closed the ability to post comments for users who are not logged in with an AO3 account.

Unfortunately, this means that genuine readers who don't have an AO3 account won't be able to leave comments on fics that they enjoy.

If you are a genuine reader who doesn't yet have an AO3 account, I strongly suggest getting yourself on the waiting list for one. More and more AO3 authors are now locking their fics down to registered users only - either due to these bot comments or concerns about AI scraping their work - which means you're probably missing out on a lot of great stuff.

Hopefully guest commenting will be enabled again at some point soon, but I suggest not waiting until then. Get yourself on that list.

Wait times are going to be longer than usual at the moment, due to the current Wattpad purge [info on Fanlore | Wattpad subreddit thread], but if you're in line, then your invite will come through eventually.

Update: There's now a Megathread about this on the AO3 subreddit.

[poetzproblem]

I am excited to see what Rachel future carrer brings to the table. I wonder if she does happen to choose what you will i love the idea that sabastian would end up being trans <3. I do wonder would adaption keep or adjust the original dilouge to still keep it old English even in modern setting? I am thinking how 12th night david tennant and catherine tate adaptions of the play? Or will it be translated to like modern english? Also does Quinn ever help her rehears and do they ever get carried away lol?

I imagine a total modern adaptation, so tossing the old English, which definitely helps with the musical aspect of it.

Quinn will certainly help her rehearse. I wouldn't say they get carried away - Rachel is very serious about rehearsing after all - but they definitely get a little, shall we say, sidetracked from time to time.

[poetzproblem]

would db quinn ever consider going back to acting?

I mean, she kind of goes back to acting every year on the first of April.

But no, she leaves the stage and screen to Rachel (and later on Celeste.)

[poetzproblem]

Hi Poetz, I was wondering once DB Rachel Career get going does she ever get the chance to do adaption of shakespear play 12th night? I imagine her being a wonderful Olivia! Maybe in a play musical type of adaption? Also who would you cast as her Viola? I was watching a adaption of much ado about nothing and just couldn't help but wonder! I imagine Quinn being a Lil jealous of whoever it is. Lol

Funny that you should ask about Twelfth Night, or What You Will.  For quite some time, this has been one of the two pieces of source material that I’ve been considering for the new original musical that Rachel will sign on to do after Celeste is born. The fact that Rachel will be going back to the stage as her first post-pregnancy project has already been hinted at in I’d Search the Moons of Endor.

Raising two kids is its own unique kind of stress; a fact that Quinn has firsthand experience with now. She's not sure she could manage it as smoothly if Rachel had gone back to work after a couple of months instead of staying home with her and their girls nearly full time for the last year—though more than one production has tried to woo her back to a stage or a set already. She's starting to get antsy though, enough that Quinn won't be surprised if the next workshop invitation that falls into her wife's line of sight convinces her to finally end her maternity leave.

The other possibility would be a musical adaptation of Imagine Me & You where she would, ironically, play Rachel, in a role very similar to her real life, considering she almost married Finn once upon a time. In either case, the role will be very gay, which is exactly what gets Rachel excited about it - the chance to play an LGBTQ character and put some good representation on stage. 

And you are correct. Rachel would be Olivia if it ends up being Twelfth Night that I pick - though the show would probably run only with the second half of the title, What You Will, because it would be a modern adaptation set to music. Think She’s the Man but without the soccer. I’ve envisioned it being much gayer than the original, in that Sebastian would probably be trans, possibly with a more tragic backstory. I haven’t really settled on why Viola would be taking on his identity - maybe to get revenge on the person she thinks is responsible for his death.  But she’d be bisexual, so her attraction to Olivia is as real as her attraction to Duke. Olivia would still think she’s hot for a dude and so would Duke, and they both have a big gay-panic awakening by the end. I also like the idea that Viola actually ends up with Olivia, because let’s face it, didn’t we all want that to happen in She’s the Man?

As for Quinn, she’s mostly proud that Rachel is playing the role and getting good reviews, but yeah, she’s never super thrilled to see her wife kissing other people. She might find it just a little more uncomfortable when Rachel is kissing other women. I mean, Rachel kissed a lot of guys before dating Quinn, so she was kind of used to seeing that, but Rachel never kissed another girl before. 

Do we think that would be better or worse if her co-star ends up being her friend, Jessica Foster?

[poetzproblem]

Hey Poetz! Just wondering once DB faberry begin house shopping for a house what are they looking for specifically? Room numbers and studio and what of sort of style do they go for? Was it a buyers market when they take the plunge and what is their max budget? I can see Rachel pushing the burget a bit if a house has a studio rook already built in.

Sure, we'll pretend it's a buyer's market. After all, DB-verse exists in an alternate reality where COVID never happened, Hillary won in 2016, and all the fascists assholes in power die painful, fiery deaths at the hands of the people they've screwed over.

They aren't looking for any particular architectural style when they start seriously house-shopping, though Rachel does tend to be more drawn to Tudors and Cottage exteriors. We already established when she rented their honeymoon 'cottage' that she doesn't tend read descriptions but is inclined to make decisions on aesthetics alone. Quinn is more drawn to clean, bright interiors and open spaces.

Their search is primarily driven by number of bedrooms, a nice big kitchen, location, and a decent sized yard that their girls can play in. So at least four bedrooms (though five would be better), two full bathrooms, and room enough for Quinn to have an office and Rachel a studio or music room.

At this point in their lives, Quinn has written six books, finishing her Wishing Stone series, and is starting on a new writing project. The first film based on her series was a hit and the second is in post-production. Rachel has four Broadway shows (and one tour) with lead roles, two albums, one film, a television series, and several awards on her resume and the paychecks from each of them well-invested. (I low-key head canon that Hiram was a stock broker and helped Rachel compile a very profitable portfolio of investments.) So their budget for a house is much, much higher than the apartment hunting they were doing before Calliope was born.

If you've ever perused the houses currently on the market in the Riverdale and/or Fieldston area of the Bronx with those room requirements, you'll see we're talking several million. They're intending this to be their 'Forever" home, so they both agree that they'll go higher than their budget if they find the perfect place.

I have a few sample properties bookmarked as references for what they end up with, but I have now made it DB-canon that it's a recently renovated Tudor on a tree-lined street that's reasonably set back away from the nearest neighbors for a least a little privacy.

Quinn will get her office and Rachel will get a music room. They need somewhere for that piano to go, after all.

[poetzproblem]

Hey Poetz! Can you tell me a little bit more about Rachel having to leave to go on tour with les mis? What was the night before she had to leave like? What did they do? What were they feeling? Did Quinn come with her to the airport? How was their “goodbye”?

Answered with a short ficlet:

--

There are two packed suitcases standing in the corner of their bedroom. Rachel loathes seeing them there. She resents that she had to pack them. She’d whined and complained the entire time, but Quinn had been insistent despite the stark red tinge to her eyes that belied her unwavering demeanor.  

“I don’t wanna go,” Rachel mumbles dejectedly, arms crossed and glaring at the bags from her seat on the edge of their bed. “You can’t make me.”

Quinn sighs sadly, jostling the mattress as she sinks down beside her. “I’m not exactly happy about this either, Rachel, but you need to go.” Hearing those words fall so easily from Quinn’s lips feels like a knife in her chest. “You signed a contract.” 

Rachel whips her head to the side to glare at her girlfriend. “You made me do it!”

Quinn arches an eyebrow, only mildly amused with Rachel’s melodramatic antics. “We talked about this.” Though some of the talking had sounded suspiciously like arguing. “You have wanted to play Eponine since you were eight years old. It’s your number four role after Fanny Brice, Evita, and Laurey from Oklahoma.”

“On Broadway, Quinn,” Rachel reminds her petulantly. She wants to play those roles on a Broadway stage.  “I’m going to Kentucky, which in case you’ve forgotten, is nowhere near Broadway.”  She tosses her hands up in frustration. “It’s practically back to Lima!”

Quinn sighs again, really more of a huff this time, and she looks far less amused if still generally miserable for all the same reasons that Rachel is—the six month separation that’s looming over them as the clock silently ticks down to Rachel��s flight tomorrow morning. “It’s a Broadway tour,” she reminds Rachel gently, reaching for her flailing hand and catching it to hold on tight. “You can’t pass up this opportunity, sweetheart, no matter how much we both wish you were staying here.” 

Rachel bites her lip in an attempt to stave off the tears that want to escape. “I know,” she practically whispers, finally surrendering to the inevitable. 

She’d spent four months auditioning for anything and everything she could find, but nothing more than a few voice overs had panned out. She’d been on the verge of desperation when Evelyn had pointed her at the opening in the touring company for Les Miserables. She’d been so dejected by then that she’d fully expected another rejection after her audition and hadn’t even let herself consider the touring part until she was being offered the role. 

Her first instinct had been to turn it down because leaving New York (and being away from Quinn for so long) was not an option. But Quinn had argued that she should do it, that it was an amazing opportunity, that it was only a six month contract, and Quinn would never forgive herself if Rachel gave up one of her dream roles for some misplaced sense of obligation to her. 

That had caused a few arguments. Her commitment to Quinn and their relationship is in no way misplaced. (And maybe she’d been—still is—a bit worried that six months apart could fray the edges of their still settling foundation. Out of sight, out of mind, and all that.) They trust each other, of course they do, but they both still have their moments of insecurity, and being hundreds, maybe even thousands, of miles apart when one of those moments strikes is going to suck so much. 

Quinn pulls Rachel’s hand into her lap and cradles it with her own, staring down at them. “We’ll talk every day, and we can have Skype dates whenever we’re able,” she recites softly, a noticeable tremor in her voice that betrays her own sorrow over their necessary separation. “And I’ll come see you as much as I can.” 

That last part sounds wonderful, but, “You have a job, Quinn.”  She’s a very busy assistant editor at a major publishing company. She can’t just go on the road as a Broadway groupie, no matter how much Rachel wishes she could. 

Quinn shrugs, finally lifting her glistening eyes to meet Rachel’s gaze. “You’ll have a few weekend shows close enough for a quick trip. I can make it work. I already have a ticket for Philadelphia next month.” 

Well, there’s really no way to stop those tears now. Rachel feels them spill out, blurring her vision, and she smiles through them. “I love you so much.”

A matching tear appears on Quinn’s eyelashes, delicately dancing down her cheek. “I love you too, and I’ll miss you every minute.” She lets go of Rachel’s hand so she can shuffle closer on the mattress, pressing a comforting palm over Rachel’s back. “But we’ll get through the next few months, and then you’ll be back home, winning all of your dream roles and playing to packed houses right here where you belong.”

Rachel loves the way that sounds; loves that Quinn’s belief in her is forever constant and unshakeable. She gently cups Quinn’s cheek, brushing her thumb across the lingering trail of moisture there. “And coming home to you every night,” she murmurs, fresh adoration blooming in her heart for this woman. “That’s the most important part.” 

“It is,” Quinn agrees, leaning closer. “And tonight I’m going to make sure you remember exactly what you’ll be coming home to.” 

Rachel inhales quickly, enthralled by the intent in those hazel eyes. “As if I could ever forget.” Every moment spent in Quinn Fabray’s presence, every word and touch and expression, is practically woven into the very fabric of Rachel’s being at this point. 

The hand on her back moves down and around to curl over her leg. “Better to make sure, wouldn’t you agree?” 

“Uh huh,” is Rachel’s very elegant response right before Quinn’s lips render any further verbal responses entirely infeasible. 

It’s slow, this kiss, languid and unhurried, as if they have all the time in the world when that’s never been less true. They have a single night together, mere hours, before they’ll call a taxi to the airport where Quinn will kiss Rachel one last time before they bid farewell.  The thought of that brings fresh tears to Rachel’s eyes despite the heat blossoming low in her belly, and Quinn notices immediately.

“No. No tears tonight, Rachel,” she commands, though her voice trembles with emotion. 

“I can’t help it.” She hugs Quinn to her as tightly as she can in their awkward position. “I’m going to miss you so much.”  

“Miss me tomorrow.” Quinn kisses away the tears on one cheek and then the other. “Be here with me now.” 

A simple, heartfelt request that Rachel can’t deny, not when she can see every emotion that she’s feeling right now reflected back to her in Quinn’s beseeching gaze. So she pushes away all those sad, intrusive thoughts about tomorrow and focuses on Quinn—only Quinn. The firm softness of her lips, the sure touch of her hands, and the radiant warmth of her body as it presses into Rachel, urging her down into the mattress. She lets Quinn strip away her clothes, piece-by-piece, and then does the same to Quinn, eyes drinking in every inch of naked skin as it’s revealed to her.

They only have hours, but they spend them relearning every curve and dip and blemish of one another’s bodies. Rachel paints a memory with her fingertips, conducts a symphony of sighs and moans and whispers of love to replay in lonely hotel rooms in the months to come. And when exhaustion finally forces them into a sated sleep, sweat-soaked skin molded together in a tangle of limbs, she sinks into dreams of hazel eyes and husky promises of love that will carry her home. 

[poetzproblem]

"Quinn can't help feeling grateful that Rachel is here with her—on her knees and pressed into Quinn's side as much as she can be. She can count on one hand the number of times that either Finn or Puck had done this for her when she'd been pregnant with Beth and still have four fingers left over."

What was that one time?

As much as I generally don't like Finn Hudson or the way he was written, I do think that during the time-frame when he believed he was Beth's father, he genuinely tried to do the right thing and take care of Quinn. It's just that he was a self-involved, kinda dumb, sixteen year old boy, so the mileage on that was pretty limited.

But I imagine that he tried to do the whole 'hold her hair back' thing at least one time while Quinn was living in his basement. I also imagine he had to run and sympathy puke right after so that was that.

[poetzproblem]

since we’re on the topic of fabedroom, i’ve got one — i’m sure you’ve probably heard that trope (maybe not trope, perhaps common saying?) between couples esp in film/tv where when one is trying to bargain with the other they promise “i’ll do that thing you like…” what would this be for quinn and rachel, respectively? (i imagine one quinn would use for rachel is the strap-on, are there any others?)

Oh, Quinn certainly uses the strap-on - as in, she'll let Rachel wear it. (Sometimes she'll offer to wear the strapless one too.)

But Rachel is also generally much fonder of getting out the video camera to film while they have sexy times than Quinn is, so Quinn will use that as an enticement as well. Also, there's one specific Wicked role-play (with song included) that Quinn would rather not revisit unless she can get something she wants out of it.

On the other side, Rachel isn't super in love with being blindfolded but it's definitely one thing Quinn likes that she can use. (Also being tied up in general.)

And really, those plaid skirts came home with them for a reason too. The specific thing Quinn likes involves Rachel in the skirt and nothing else - and possibly a paddle and spanking.

[poetzproblem]

Hello Poetz, I have a odd question about db faberry do they ever mock wrestle as some couples do? If so who ends up on top? I can imagine Rachel being pretty scrappy regardless of height and melodramatics.

Does sexy 'wrestling' count?

They don't really wrestle as a habit. But Quinn does occasionally amuse herself with a game of keep-away if Rachel is after something Quinn doesn't want her to have, and that has devolved into a sad attempt by Rachel to wrestle it away.

She is pretty scrappy. You are correct. But Quinn Fabray can go head-to-head with Santana Lopez in a hallway smackdown, so Rachel only ends up on top by playing dirty - like sexy wrestling dirty.

[poetzproblem]

are db quinn and rachel more morning sex mains or night sex mains? do either have a preference?

We're back in the fabedroom, it seems.

They are, by necessity, a whenever they have the time and the mood strikes them kind of couple.

In the very early days when they first started dating, with Rachel doing evening shows and Quinn working eight to five, it was Thursday nights and weekend mornings.

These specific nights and mornings change with each different show schedule, of course, and once Quinn starts working from home, they tend to drift towards more mornings and early afternoons because Rachel is usually tired when she comes home at night.

Pre-fababies, it was whenever they were feeling frisky, but obviously that's a little more restricted once Calliope comes home with them.

On those occasions when their schedules allow - when Rachel doesn't have a Broadway show to tie up her evenings - they both do generally enjoy sex to end their day together. And that certainly ends up working better with kidlets in the house.

But they are certainly not averse to some afternoon delight when the kids are in school.

[poetzproblem]

does quinn ever push herself too far during sex and aggravate her injuries and if so how does rachel react?

You know, I'm picturing some very enthusiastic bedroom acrobatics right now.

Quinn makes sure to stretch before 'working out.'

But, yeah, inevitably, there are some occasions where she tweaks her back by moving in the wrong way, especially as she gets older. Rachel is always very attentive after the initial disappointed dousing of her libido. She offers ibuprofen, heating pads, and massages all while battling that age old guilt from being partially responsible for Quinn's accident.

And when Quinn starts recovering from the latest little injury, Rachel offers to kiss it even better.

[poetzproblem]

(If I’m not mistaken) I remember there being an allusion to Rachel surprising Quinn by coming home on/near Christmas Eve while still touring either Les Mis and I love that concept. How did she manage to surprise Quinn? What was Quinn’s reaction?

You are not mistaken:

The third year found them finally cohabiting, but Rachel had been on tour with Les Mis all through November and December, so Quinn had been forced to undertake the decorating duties all alone once again. Rachel had been upset about being so far away, and Quinn had been sad that she was spending the holidays without her girlfriend, but when Rachel had flown home late on Christmas Eve for a two day break from performances, they'd both been incredibly happy to celebrate their reunion in front of an already decorated tree.

I didn't actually say it was a surprise though. I think when I wrote it, I was more imagining that they both knew Rachel had the short break for Christmas Eve and Day during the run in, say, Dallas, but it wasn't a guarantee that Rachel would be able to get a flight home on Christmas Eve.

A full out surprise showing up at the apartment with a 'Merry Christmas, baby' is a nice idea, but I feel more like Rachel would have called Quinn from the airport to say she was coming home, and then Quinn would be tracking her flight and waiting for the call when she landed and then turning on all the Christmas lights, lighting some candles, putting on some music, and wrapping herself up in a nice negligee and a bow to greet her girlfriend when she comes through the door.

[poetzproblem]

Hi Poetz! Thank a ton for the adorable update lol it made me think I def had a question for the Q blog. Like does the strap come out during either pregnancy and if soo was it more of a hassle due one being pregnant at the time??

ANSWERED BY LADY Q:

Why, yes, dear strap-on anonymous. Thank you for asking.

The strap was used during both pregnancies to great satisfaction.

I, myself, of course, generally prefer to wear it while my dear wife-y is always happy to receive. Deep penetration doesn't usually do much for me, however, I found it to be more enjoyable during my pregnancy from about month four to month six. Of course, everything was more enjoyable during my pregnancy.

The trick is communication. Wife-y knows that I like to be in control on those rare occasions I receive, so we found comfortable positions where I could be on top and control the depth and angle.

Wife-y, conversely, loved it even more during her pregnancy. 'Doggie-style' was quite popular for a few months.

[poetzproblem]

Dear Poetz 💛 I’m so happy I asked you to write an April’s fools fic way back in the day 🥹 Look at this wonderful tradition you’ve made 😍 Thank you so, so much! I hope you’ve had a great Easter 🐰 Sincerely, your Norwegian friend

Ah, so it's you I have to thank for my yearly labor of prank loving fun. It gets a little harder every year to think up something unique and feasible for Quinn to pull off.

Sadly, my Easter was not great. I'm currently rocking a case of covid so things are a little fuzzy. Luckily, this ficlet was pre-written and already loaded to post before I got sick.

[poetzproblem]

Live and Learn From Fools and From Sages

Look - this is not high quality, but it's words on a page in keeping with tradition.

Chapter 65 of It Happened In A Blink.

AO3

FFN

[poetzproblem]

what do you think db faberry would consider the best sex they’ve ever had? i know it would very obviously be with each other of course, and i can imagine their first time and their wedding night would be up there. are there any others?

They will tell you that every time is better than the last.

But those two occasions are certainly up there - though I suspect the 'first time' more for the emotional aspect of it than the physical. It was fantastic, of course, but there was still that little bit of awkwardness with Rachel being a bit uncertain of what to do.

I think a few occasions of pregnancy sex make the list, especially that time Rachel gave Quinn a really, really intense (multiple) orgasm.

And they both recall that first role-play with their high school wardrobes with a certain fondness.