#I am very opinionated but this is not the place. my advice is b reasoned & critical and stop seeking others validation. peace n love ensues.

[cerosin-bis]

Okay once and for all I am not interested in mwii's Latest Fandom Drama (it changes every week this is a general statement) and "fans of x are saying y about z!!!" and whatnot. I do not want you to put it under my nose asking for my "opinion" about it. I am 27, I work fulltime AND I am entirely irrelevant to the mwii fandom. I am the ignorer and all i do on this blog is focus my energy on sharing things I like with whoever likes it too: my blog is a place for creative outlets, mine and others' and that is literally all 🫡

[josefavomjaaga]

Duroc the mediator

Which, I believe, Duroc often was. This particular occasion however took place in 1809, and he acted as a go-between with Napoleon and Eugène, in April and May 1809, after Eugène’s defeat in his very first attempt as commander-in-chief, on April 16, at Sacile. Eugène was heartbroken over it and very afraid of Napoleon’s reaction to the news. Napoleon – full credit to him for once – originally kept his cool and in his first answer was not even very severe. He only became angry when Eugène’s reports, in his opinion, did not give him enough information on the situation.

And as usual, when he was really angry, he deemed the culprit unworthy of receiving a direct message. Or perhaps Duroc intervened voluntarily, in order to soften the blow? In any case, it was he who wrote the following missive:

Duroc to Eugène, Landshut, 26 April 1809 My Lord, the Emperor, who is extremely busy, is unable to reply at the moment to the two letters from Your Imperial Highness. - These two letters have not satisfied His Majesty, in that they do not give him any details of what has happened to your army, of its position, of its losses, so that he cannot give you any advice on the best course of action for Your Highness to take. The Emperor says: It is nothing but a lost battle, and there is a remedy for that; but he cannot tell you what that remedy is, because he does not know where you are or what forces you have. His Majesty knows Italy and all the positions so well that from here he could tell you the best position you could take for your army.

I am not entirely sure if Eugène really did not know how to write a proper battle/situation report, or if he was being evasive on purpose. I kinda suspect the latter, and so do apparently most historians, assuming that Eugène did not want to admit what mistakes he had made. That may very well be the case, but, Eugène being Eugène, I could also imagine two more reasons: a) he wanted to protect his subordinates and not give Napoleon the opportunity to look for somebody to put the blame on (as Napoleon later would start to do with general Sahuc) and b) he on pupose gave away as few details as possible because he did not want Napoleon to start micromanaging the Army of Italy from his headquarters in Germany. After all, it was he, Eugène, who had created this mess. It was up to him now to sort things out.

In a circumstance such as the one in which you find yourself, and in general in all circumstances of war, it would have been preferable if you had sent an officer who had seen everything clearly and who could have given an account of everything to His Majesty. A courier says nothing, not even the little he is told. His Majesty would therefore have liked a detailed report, he would have liked Your Imperial Highness to have had General Caffarelli write at the same time. His Majesty sees with sorrow that you are concerned with the Tyrol, where there are only a few troops who have fomented insurrections; but all these insurrections will subside, and the troops who have entered there are turned and taken, if they do not evacuate, as soon as the Emperor's army arrives in Salzburg, which cannot be far off. Here, matters are still going well. [...]

Followed by lots of reports about Napoleon beating the Austrians at every occasion. Thanks for rubbing it in, Duroc! - So, just to summarize, Eugène’s greatest fault in Napoleon’s eyes was not the fact that he had lost the battle but that he was sending his reports about it via courrier or by the army post office, instead of sending one of the officers.

As to Tyrol, that part of the letter will not age well…

With no better information incoming over the next days, or rather, as a matter of fact, with pretty much no information reaching Napoleon, despite Eugène writing every second or third day – which may in part very well be because the insurrection in Tyrol had interrupted communications – His Imperial Impatience was fuming. And it showed in his letters. In the last (that luckily only reached Eugène when it didn’t matter anymore), he openly praised both Masséna (whom Eugène despised) and Murat (whom he possibly despised even more) to the skies, going so far as to order Eugène to call Murat from Naples and to cede supreme command to Murat. The ultimate humiliation!

At that time, however, the situation in Italy had already changed completely. After Napoleon had beaten the Austrians in Germany, the Austrian archduke Johann had been recalled by his brother. The Austrians were retreating from Italy rather hastily, and the Army of Italy was pursuing them. In this situation, Napoleon’s brutal missives were not helpful at all.

At least that was what the above mentioned general Caffarelli thought, the minister of war of the Kingdom of Italy. And because he thought so, he wrote to … nah, not to Napoleon, of course. You can’t just write to a monarch, after all. He wrote to - Duroc. And after a short description of the situation and the difficulties they had overcome, he states:

Caffarelli to Duroc, Venice, 7 May 1809 […] His Imperial Highness appeared to me to be greatly affected by the Emperor's discontent; he is extremely worried about it, the Prince suffers from it, and I could see that his grief comes more from his heart than from regret at having experienced an ill-fated affair. He needs to be reassured, because if he continues to believe that the Emperor is dissatisfied, he will suffer even more, he will torment himself and, despite the fine state in which His Majesty's victories have put matters, he might not be able to benefit as much as he could from the fine prospects open to him. He is in a position to repair, with interest, the harm he has suffered. […]

Ey! Can you not get him to back off a little? We’re in a good position and we need the boy functional, okay?

(Just to bring the story to an end: by the time Eugène had led his army through the Alps and reached Napoleon, his stepfather had already lost the battle of Aspern-Essling and had seen Lannes mortally wounded. Morale in his army was extremely low, and Napoleon’s tone when welcoming the Army of Italy was much different from that of his letters to Eugène.)

[liyazaki]

Hello! This is @vegasandhishedgehog

Been meaning to ask for a while, but I am hoping to make a trip to Thailand in about 6 months (April-Mayish) and I wanted to ask for any advice you could give since you did yours! I'd be going on my own, which is a little daunting, but I am considering making part of my trip a guided tour so I won't be entirely lost. I got started working on the language and need to pick it back up 😅 but I really want to be able to communicate/read at least some. Anything you can think of is welcome, and if you know anyone else who might help I'd love to be referred to them as well!

that’s so exciting! solo travel can be intimidating but a blast, too- and in my opinion, Thailand would be a great, pretty safe place to do it. my awesome travel partner @flukenatouch could give her own advice, and my friend @parralex0889- who we got to hang with in both Bangkok and Phuket!- has been to Thailand many times and may be able to give you reccs, too.

we were happily surprised (and very grateful) at how many people knew conversational English, so you should be able to get by just fine with some basic Thai.

another thing that surprised us was how impressed- sometimes even thrilled- people were with the bare-bones Thai we knew, which makes me think that a lot of foreigners don’t learn even basic greetings before going to Thailand. making a point of speaking at least a little Thai (even if it’s just hi, thank you & yes/no) is a small gesture of respect that goes a long way.

I’m not sure which cities you’re planning on going to, but one tour recommendation everyone says is a must, even if you don’t like tours (that we unfortunately just didn’t have time to do) is a cooking tour through Bangkok.

you meet with a chef and your tour group in the early morning hours at a market, and they help you pick out the ingredients you’ll need. the group then cooks a multi-course Thai meal before feasting. it seems like a really awesome way to get immersed in the culture while stuffing your face with authentic Thai cuisine (bonus: you’ll know how to cook it when you get back home).

now, onto my random AF but strongly felt opinions/musts (plus a warning or two):

7-11: aka Convenience Store Heaven

my first 7-11 dinner (of many) that cost maybe $6

if you told me that one of the things I’d miss the most about Thailand is their 7-11’s, I would’ve laughed in your face, but it’s a fact. be prepared to fall in love with- of all things- a convenience store; really, THE convenience store of Thailand. there are so many 7-11’s, some are literally across the street from each other.

here’s why we fell so hard: they all seemed to be open 24/7; they offer delicious, non-frozen Thai meal options for $1-$3 USD (that they’ll offer to heat up for you); they have decent, strong coffee that they prepare for you (no sticky self-service machines here), and they have plenty of non-food essentials, like body care, household items- even incense for the temples or to take home.

the best part- and why you’ll never catch me complaining about the sheer amount of 7-11’s? the selection actually varies from store to store, which kept us coming back. one even had prescription contact lenses for less than $7 USD, which I never saw at any other 7-11 we went to! you never know what you’re going to find- although I guarantee you’ll see sponsored products from the shows we all love in every one!

(sorry boys, but don’t believe Mile and Apo’s adorableness: that kombucha is horrendous & I love kombucha 🤣)

The Almighty Grab App

The Grab app was formerly owned by Uber, and has Uber’s same, basic function: connecting you with local, registered drivers- adding a level of safety/security you won’t get with most taxi services- who will get you from point A to point B for the exact rate listed in the app- no more, no less.

that last part is essential for budget reasons: with Grab, you know you aren’t going to get hit with astronomical “tourist rates”. it also eliminates language barrier stress because your driver will already know where they’re taking you.

all that being said: from 3PM on in Bangkok especially, hopping on the MRT (subway) or BTS (sky train) if you can will be much faster than ordering a Grab. we got stranded one night at our favorite budget shopping mall (Platinum Fashion Mall, my beloved) because the traffic was so bad, Grabs couldn’t get to us for hours!

another aside: unless you’re dead-set on the novelty of it, don’t waste your money on tuk-tuk’s. they’re expensive, slow and the drivers tend to be intense upsellers- some may try to divert you to jewelry stores and other shops where they get a kickback for your purchases. we don’t feel like we missed out on anything by skipping that “classic” experience.

back to my favorite part of Grab: it’s so much more than a taxi app. craving Tom Yum- or pizza, Taco Bell, whatever- at midnight? switch to the Delivery section of the app, order what you want and a Grab driver will have your food to you in less than 30 minutes (typically) for $1-$2 USD. break the zipper on your suitcase and need pliers to fix it (this actually happened to us 😂)? someone will go buy it and drop it off for again, $1-$2 (mind = still blown).

the Grab app also has a grocery delivery section and other features we didn’t have the time or need to check out. it seriously does everything and I don’t know what we would’ve done without it!

one caveat: if you want to use a card with the Grab app (they actually accept cash on arrival for everything, including rides), make sure you have a card that plays nice internationally/with Thai baht.

The Grand Palace + Scammer Avenue

99% of our interactions with locals were positive. the only scammers we ran into were outside The Grand Palace, and dear Lord- they’re pros!

the entrance to The Grand Palace is not the easiest to find, and the road leading to it is filled with people who will try to tell you the temple/grounds are closed for a special Buddhist holiday- some were even in uniforms with official-looking booths. don’t believe it: it’s a ruse to get you to hop on a tuk-tuk, usually to go to one of the kickback stores I mentioned before.

this is the intersection where we got hassled the most. if you find yourself there, get your power walk on, ignore them or tell them no if they’re being aggressive, and you’ll be fine.

The Grand Palace is a stunning feat of architecture, filled with cultural and religious significance- it’s worth it, I promise!

I could go on and on about the things we loved, experienced and what I’d love to do again, but we’d be here all day- plus, I’ve already written out most of it in the 30ish page Google Doc we made to plan the trip, if you’re really interested 🤪

it can be daunting to plan a trip like this, but we were so happy we did the legwork of figuring out what we wanted to do ahead of time. we knew what our priorities were (lots of BL filming locations, Thai massages and good food 😂) and how we’d make them happen, which freed us up mentally to enjoy ourselves and be spontaneous when we felt like it.

if you need more advice or have other questions as you’re planning, send me a message! 💖

[rozieramati]

Do you ever worry about being so active as a diy artist on social media? Like, that it deprives you of the mystique that artists of past generations have thrived off of? Also what advice do you have for someone who struggles to cry

this is something i think about a lot. i have tons to say on it.

the answer is sometimes, but then i remember all the artists that became famous off of myspace and how everyone forgot. frank ocean used to be active on twitter and tumblr, the weeknd, tyler the creator used to troll the internet incessantly, but people forgot. tyler especially, i feel like maintains a sense of mystique and public- perception renewal despite his past.

i view it like this, people can have access to this time in my life, in the small ways i allow them to, for the sake of the music and being able to create a career in my favor. the industry is terrible right now. the only way to generate any fan base is if you're rich and have connections, or if you find a way to promote your stuff on social media.

regardless i think generally people forget. i also see this time of my career as an opportunity to be as active as possible before i can't anymore. i haven't released a project yet and only started releasing music last year. i'm a baby in the grand scheme of things, i have the rest of my life to be mysterious. though, i think the first step in ruining mystique is trying to be mysterious in the first place.

it's pretty interesting though, despite putting myself online people still seem to maintain that i'm a "mysterious" person in real life. i don't know what makes me mysterious to the people i meet. social media, to me at least, is very un-real. no one knows the real me even though i am online so much. i do keep a lot to myself. i think if anyone wanted to get to know me i would have to write them letters consecutively, or they would have to read my diaries, or listen to my album with the deep intent to understand me. even still, i've only been around one or two people in my life that i feel like really know me.

mystique is more of a natural energy that one gives off, in my opinion. anyone can create mystique simply by inviting confusion into the equation. most of the songs on my album are pretty experimental and forward-thinking. that mixed with the social media presence tends to confuse people. i could very easily shut up online and instead assume a position of importance. but i really don't care to, at least not right now. the reason i make music at all is to connect with people. i think the only way to real true success is to give to the people who are the foundation, the people at the beginning. my beginning is now, so i intend to give now.

when artists get so caught up in being mysterious, i find it's more of an ego battle than it is anything else. the people that had a mystique in the past gained it by pure circumstance, and usually at the expense of their art. exhibit A: jai paul's first album being leaked. exhibit B: frank ocean having to release his first album, nostalgia ultra, for free because his label wouldn't clear the samples (which generated chatter.) it was never on purpose. artists these days are so caught up in being mysterious that it often brings them away from putting themselves out there, thus ruining their chance at achieving anything at all. you have to put yourself out there whether you like it or not. frank ocean would take action behind the scenes from what i know. he was a socialite, out at events and networking.

mystery comes with a price. i think once it's all said and done though, my digital footprint will contribute to a mystique in a way. i've had many phases on the internet. people re-discovering it all, if they do, will only add to the lore and make things more interesting.

if you struggle to cry, write a two page diary entry everyday for a week. write the most horrible things you can entertain, everything you hate about yourself, everything you hate about your parents, family, childhood, past friends or partners, write about everything you wish was different in your life. then, on the seventh day, chop five onions, wipe your eyes with the residue, and read it all back to yourself.

[onewomancitadel]

I have a question of characterization. Do you think it makes sense for Cinder to have a thing for sweets? or does it make more sense for her to be into spicy food?

Oh, this is so funny because I've already written this, so I have a very concrete opinion.

I don't really enjoy giving out such specific fic advice mostly because a) figuring it out yourself is the fun part, b) I don't want to style myself as some sort of authority you must defer to, and c) it leads to me inadvertently feeling a bit like a show pony at times. I am happy to give generalised advice though and that's the angle I would take for this sort of question.

Food preferences or preferences in general are really arbitrary and boring unless you ground it in the ideas you want to explore. If Cinder is someone who prizes higher ideas of power and protection, she's probably not spending much time thinking about idle, true enjoyment of life - little things, sweet things. You should be asking about what she lacks and what she might secretly long for - in this case I lean into opposites as well (if Cinder is a bitter thing, she would not want bitter things. She's also got such associations with hunger/denial/starvation that food is a touchy topic and worth writing with care).

Canonically she tries to eat a strawberry off a cake she bakes at The Glass Unicorn (keyword tries, so denial is operative here). So if Ruby's favourite food is strawberries, and Ruby has an incorrigible sweet tooth (based on the way Weiss makes her coffee in V5) then you should be connecting the dots.

What that says about Cinder is meaningful and not arbitrary.

But it's up to you. It depends on what you want to write and whether you think that connection to Ruby is relevant. It's not really something I can tell you is one or the other and frankly that takes the fun out of it, doesn't it? The fun part of writing fanfic or figuring out characterisation is approaching it on your own terms, not having to do so according to what other people say.

So my general advice would be to think about what Cinder wants and what she doesn't have. If there's a place she can't go back to where there was spicy food that she can't get anywhere else, then that itself might be meaningful - really our food preferences are often more than taste and also about memory and desire. Most people's palates aren't absolute, either, so there's no reason it's not both.

[juniperhillpatient]

hey rose, it's heathers anon! been a while! hope you're having a good new year! have you seen the new mean girls?

just wanted to say i saw the post you just made and i wanted to share something that happened last night that really upset me (if that's ok)

remember how i ship janica (janis x veronica) and i realized i really liked shipcest? last night on ao3 two separate people, one after another, made me feel really bad about shipping them (in general), and considering i thought it was a party of one over here it really put me in a bad place.

the first one was a rated g fic with a tag that said "not a ship" and it's like? they didn't tag any relationships in it. romantic OR platonic. so yeah? of course it's not a ship here? no one was thinking that? literally no one? i click on it because it had some things that interested me anyway and the first thing i see is this:

!!!!!!!!NOT A SHIP!!!!!!!! if you ship this please back about 900,000 feet away from me Janis and Veronica are way too far apart in age for any canon ages to work because Veronica is about thirty years older than Janis at any given time so for this story Veronica: 19 Janis: 5

considering they also fucked with the ages for their story to work idk what they're trying to say here. also they made them cousins for some reason.

so that annoyed me and i was ready to write spite fic. but then i decided just close it and quit. but then i was like, no. so i'm writing spite fic.

the other was from a person i already don't like that much on another platform but i stumbled upon their ao3 anyway because i recognized the name. theirs IS a shipfic and i was like oh!! oh okay!!

and then the first thing i see when i opened theirs was this:

Welcome to the second Veranis fic on Ao3 that isn’t a fetish story! No offense to the fetishists, of course, but their work isn’t accessible to most people. [...] This crossover ship used to be my thing, so to speak; in fact, Veranis was my username on every platform for years because of it.

and it's like... there's only 9 fics tagged with this ship. including theirs, 5 are rated t. and the other 3 are m. 7 of those were written by a friend of mine for me. for the longest time the only one was an e-rated work.......... what the fuck are you talking about???

also i think my shipname is better. and i can write better than both of them. idk, i'm just... this ship is already so small, i thought i found more people to get excited about it with even if it's a) with someone i'm not very fond of, and b) without (imo) one of the more interesting aspects of their relationship. instead i feel more alone than ever and it just sucks.

sorry to be a debby downer. hope you're having better luck in your fandoms than i am <3

I find it very strange there are antis for such a small ship let alone that it’s because of age gap discourse when both characters are teenagers in their canon media. ? Also that there seems to be incest discourse when they… aren’t even from the same media let alone related? I mean you can write them as related of course but still…. Idk it’s such an odd, niche thing to try & police people over!

You did the right thing muting them like you mentioned in your other ask. I’d just try to avoid these specific people as annoying as it is to do in a small fandom. Anyway, keep creating the stuff you wanna create & don’t let the haters get you down!

I know you did not ask for advice per se but I would advise against writing spite fic. It’s my opinion that putting that much energy into this kind of discourse sucks the fun out of what’s supposed to be a creative outlet. If you wanna write a fic about Janis & Veronica do it out of love for the characters & your vision for the ship!

I have not seen the new Mean Girls but it seems really cool. My sister who also loves Mean Girls & musicals saw it & really liked it & I like Reneé Rap so I have high hopes 😊

[megalony]

His Queen

This is a new King! Henry Cavill imagine that I am hoping to turn into a series. I’m imagining it being set around the late 1800′s/ early 1900′s and it’s a bit different than what I usually write but I hope you will all like it.

Feedback is always lovely.

Taglist: @lunaticspoem @butlegendsneverdie @langdonzvoid @jennyggggrrr @rogmeddows @radiob-l-a-hblah @rogertaylorsbitontheside @chlobo6 @rogertaylors-lipgloss @sj-thefan @omgitsearly @luckytrashgooprebel @scarsout @deaky-with-a-c @killer-queen-ofrhye @bluutac @vousmemanqueez @jonesyaddiction @ambi-and-sunflowers @milanosaurus @httpfandxms @saint-hardy @7-seas-of-fat-bottomed-girls @mrsalwayswritex @rogerina-owns-me @hellsdragon @im-an-adult-ish @crazylittlethingg @allauraleigh @onceuponadetectivedemigod @ceres27​ @thereisa8ella​

Part 2

Summary: All (Y/n) wants to do is prove herself a good and intelligent Queen and to have a child with Henry, the King who loves her with everything he has. But neither of those things are easy when being a woman counts for very little.

Enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"My Lady, Sir Porter is requesting to see you, again." Jayne bent her knees and lowered her head as she sank into a curtsey in front of (Y/n), smoothing her hands over her dark crimson dress as her eyes lifted to look at her Queen. It was very clear to (Y/n) and the four other ladies in the room that the last word was spoken with an air of distaste and they could all see why.

Sir Porter was one of the King's advisors but he was frequently asking to seek conference with (Y/n). Everyone knew that the King relied on his wife for advice even though he was sure of himself and knew what he was doing. Porter was not a fan of this, believing (Y/n) had far too much influence over her husband when Porter himself was secretly desiring to be the one the King went to confide in.

"Please send him away, I am not entertaining him again."

(Y/n) dismissed the subject quickly much to Jayne's relief before she leaned her head to rest on her hand. Her irritation and unwellness was growing by the minute and all of her ladies could see that. Lady Florence had drawn a bath to try and see if it would help (Y/n) relax and feel better but she hadn't had the strength or the will to get into the tub yet.

Two times already this week (Y/n) had let Mr Porter into her chambers, even when she had been unwell, she would not permit him to bother her again when there was no reason for it. As much as (Y/n) was beginning to relish in the confidence her husband had in her and how he seemed to want her opinion more and more, she didn't like the way some people saw it. Many of the advisors in court talked to (Y/n) about important business since she was the Queen and it made her feel ecstatic to know that she finally had a place rather than just the King's wife who was there to secure him an heir.

"That man should give up pestering your Highness." Amber shook her head whilst looking over at (Y/n). She was one of (Y/n)'s Ladies in Waiting and she was certainly a lady who was devoted to (Y/n).

She really was very lucky to have ladies around her that she could get along with and rely on. When (Y/n) first married Henry just over a year ago and came into the Royal Palace, she had worried about the new household of maids, ladies in waiting, chambermaids and companions she was required to have. (Y/n) didn't want to surround herself with ladies who didn't hold the same opinions as her or who would cause scandal or simply ladies who she could not get along with.

They were all to be together everyday, it would be insufferable to be surrounded by people she could not get along with. (Y/n) felt for her husband who didn't have as much choice or preference when it came to the advisors and the councillors he was surrounded by.

"Madam, why do you not tell the King?"

"I can handle Sir Porter on my own Alice, I do not need to run to my Lord whenever there is a slight inconvenience."

(Y/n) couldn't run to Henry every time someone bothered her even if Henry would want her to. He was the King, he was busy with business of state and the much talk of war. He always made the time and effort for (Y/n), especially since she had told him she was pregnant, but she didn't want to be seen as distracting him or making a fuss over something simple. She had to handle her own problems and her own household with decorum and be above everything.

It would be seen as very informal and critical of (Y/n) if she said anything other than 'My Lord' or 'His Highness' or even just 'The King'. It felt too formal and too cold and regimental to be referring to Henry like this when he was her husband. He was the man she had laid with in the most intimate of ways, he was the one she loved and the person she confided in. Why should she not be able to say his name or his closeness to her?

But (Y/n) couldn't say much else, she wasn't permitted to be so frank with her ladies in the manner of using simply Henry's name instead of his title. And she would not refer to him as the King for it made it seem as if he was not her husband but her sovereign.

"Are you ready for your bath now, Ma'am?" Lady Florence rested her hand on (Y/n)'s arm, her eyes creasing at the corners with affection for the young Queen.

Lady Florence was the oldest of the Ladies who were in (Y/n)'s household, she was forty-five but she got along with (Y/n) so well as if they were mother and daughter. She held wisdom and grace and (Y/n) could confide in her and ask her for her opinion on almost anything. With her being older it meant she was more experienced in the world and the ways of court and that along with her friendly manner made her indispensable to (Y/n).

"Not yet, I don't think."

Moving her free hand, (Y/n) rested her palm to the lower part of her mounding stomach, feeling her baby wriggle and kick within her. There had been relatively very few problems during this first pregnancy and (Y/n) couldn't have been more thankful. Her morning sickness had been very little, her spirits and energy had been high throughout and her pains such as her back and ankles and her protruding stomach had been very light and easy to bear.

But today there was no energy within her at all, her body was weighed down like it was made of gold, her head was clouding over and heavy and the baby would not cease in moving and disturbing her when she tried to find a comfortable position.

In just one more week, (Y/n) would reach the eight-month mark and that would mean that no more work or any royal duties for her. She would be moved to a different apartment in the palace and would be there in confinement for the last month and there ready for the hard labour ahead.

"Sir my Lady does not permit your presence- no-" The struggle in Jayne's voice was evident to all of the ladies whose eyes turned, startled, to look at Mr Porter barging his way through into (Y/n)'s living chamber.

She silently praised the Lord that this was not her bedroom or privy chamber he had barged in upon or else the King would have his head for going into her private and most intimate chambers unannounced and without permission. He was lucky that the King was not here right now to see his insolence at ignoring Jayne and deciding to follow his own righteous ideas and come in anyway.

"Madam, I must have a word-"

"My Lady I told him he was not permitted to be entertained when you are not well but he would not listen!" Jayne's voice hissed like a snake as she appeared at Porter's side, her dark emerald eyes glaring holes into his frame. How dare such a man burst into the Queen's chambers without permission like this and simply demand she talk to him when she had refused his presence.

The Queen was not well and with child and Jayne was fiercely protective over (Y/n) who was the closest friend she had and who was of the same age as she.

"Mr Porter, although clearly whatever you must tell me is urgent, I am sure it could wait or you could talk to My Lord instead. I am not well enough to entertain today."

"I appreciate you are not well Madam, but this is to do with My Lord. He has informed me that he is trying to conquer France and will go ahead with invasion preparations. This is not in the best interests of the Kingdom at all and am I right in presuming you have helped to turn his head in this direction?"

His foot was tapping rapidly against the carpeted floor and his hands were tightly held together in front of him like he was trying to control himself and stop from waving his arms in a rude manner. He knew better than to even think about insulting the Queen for the King would tolerate no one being rude to his Queen but Mr Porter and (Y/n) were at odds.

No matter how (Y/n) tried to see reason with him, he was a man green-eyed with jealously of the way the King confided and relied on his Queen. (Y/n) was in no way controlling the King or forcing his hand but she could not help that he valued her opinion more than that of a simple aristocrat like Porter.

"It has always been My Lord's wish to conquer France, I have in no way put that idea into his head and it is not for you to say that his decisions are not in the interest of the Kingdom which he rules over. He knows his duties and what he is doing, Mr Porter, and so should you."

(Y/n) didn't know where her sudden burst of strength and confidence came from but she was glad she found it somewhere inside of her.

She was beginning to feel a lot worse very quickly today and Mr Porter was not helping her situation, he was only making it worse. Confrontation was never something (Y/n) was comfortable with and right now she felt horrid. She wanted to get up and leave the room in a flurry but she couldn't even gain the strength to get up. All she could do was manage to sit up straight and face her opponent who was hell-bent on acting like she was the villain in the story when she was anything but.

"But Madam has helped persuade him of this invasion now, for it would benefit that of your family and not that of the country that you live now. The Lord's head has been well and truly turned by you and he does nothing without your insight, a woman should not have those influences over a man- a King, dare I say! And yet when you are due for confinement in a week the King will still have you in his ear urging this plot-"

"Mr Porter! Have great care of how you speak to My Lady. Not only are you blind in your whimsical assumptions, you are intruding in her private chambers against her own wishes when she is with child and not well. The King himself would have you dismissed for treating her with such indecency and callousness. Amber, send for his Lord here right away."

Lady Florence was seething.

Her plump, ever so wrinkled features were taught and pulled back, her face burning red with anger as she stood to her feet beside (Y/n). Her hands were clasped together in front of her abdomen, her head tilted to the side making her look the figure of elegance and class even though her expression showed she wished she was a man so she could shove him right out of this chamber.

Calling (Y/n) Madam when he was not a servant showed he was treating her with less respect than he was bound to and his frankness and rudeness was outrageous. He was speaking to the Queen, the young girl who Lady Florence cared for like her own daughter and moreover, the woman whom held the King's heart in her hand.

If Henry found Mr Porter had barged his way in here without permission and was being rude and harassing his wife, he would lose his temper.

Henry was known to be a ruthless and at times, a cold ruler but the people had faith in him because they saw what he did for them. He sorted problems, he always attended business and went to Court, he built his armies and made the land prosper. His enemies suffered but his people did not.

And those fortunate enough to see and serve him in the palace knew how kind and tentative he could be. And when people saw him with (Y/n), they saw the pure love he held for her and it stopped him from being so intimidating to people when he was around his Queen.

"I mean no disrespect, I only mean to make her Highness see how her influence-"

"Enough! I am not in the health to be pestered now leave my chambers Mr Porter."

A rather loud gulp sounded from (Y/n)'s young Lady in Waiting Alice as she fidgeted on the spot, looking at her Queen with panic in her eyes. When (Y/n) managed to stand up, her body swayed and none of her ladies missed how she was subtally shaking and had paled to resemble a ghost right in front of them. And her voice was no longer strong and confident, it was weak and croaky. She wasn't well and being stressed was not going to help her in any way.

Porter seemed to see (Y/n)'s ill health just as her ladies had, for he clamped his lips tightly shut and nodded his head, giving (Y/n) a short and rather curt bow before he turned to leave the room as asked.

"Lady Florence... I- I must lie down."

(Y/n) reached her shaking hand out to her left towards the elder woman, a small but insistent sign of help. She didn't feel able to walk to her bed chamber on her own, her legs were trembling like they were made of water and her head was stuffed with cotton. (Y/n) just wanted to lie down and sleep and have the baby inside her calm down and settle so she could start to feel better than this.

Florence reached her hand out and held onto the Queen's hand, pulling it under her arm for protection and reassurance as she kindly smiled.

But the smile slipped from her features as quickly as it had surfaced when (Y/n) suddenly whimpered in what Florence guessed was pain before her Queen suddenly stumbled.

(Y/n) couldn't do anything but allow herself to fall down to the harsh floor, thankful there was carpet beneath her and not hard wooden floorboards to break her fall.  Her knees were slightly cushioned by her dress but the impact still sent her frame rattling and she was relieved when Jayne reached out for her right arm so she didn't fall on her front when she couldn't hold herself up.

"Highness!"

"My Lady! My Lady, what is the matter?!"

Her ladies stood holding her up as Alice gasped, covering her mouth as she didn't know what she was supposed to do to help. But she saw that she didn't have to do anything at all for just as Porter turned around in horror and confusion, the chamber door opened to reveal Amber and the King himself walking into the room.

The moment Henry's eyes bypassed Porter- who he had been informed about by Amber on the way here- his eyes darkened until they were black holes when he set his sights on his wife.

His Queen was bowed on her knees, her arms limp as they were held up by her two struggling ladies who were desperate not to let her fall onto her front and harm herself or the child within her. But it was clear they were struggling to hold her up and they couldn't seem to get (Y/n) to turn so they could safely lay her down either. They were stuck grasping onto their Queen as their King rushed to their aid, shouting for doctors and midwives to be sent for immediately.

Bypassing behind Jayne, Henry bowed down on his knees in front of the three ladies but his eyes were focused on (Y/n). He had visited her only this morning before he had gone to Court and although she had looked very tired and rather worn down, he hadn't thought that there was anything ailing her. Nor did he think the moment he walked into his wife's chambers would he find her collapsed on the floor after being told Porter had barged his way in and had been course in his words with her.

"Love, what's wrong?" Henry's voice was gentle but stern, calming but full of nerves as he slid his hands under (Y/n)'s arms to take her weight from the two ladies struggling to keep her upright. He leaned (Y/n)'s weight onto his chest and gently tilted her head back so he could look at her but it was clear she was about to faint.

"I-it hurts." (Y/n) barely managed to move her hand that was shaking far too much for her to control. But when she moved her hand to cradle her stomach, Henry felt his heart dropping down to the pit of his stomach.

All of (Y/n)'s ladies moved themselves out of the way when Henry leaned (Y/n)'s weight onto his chest and slid an arm under her legs and bunched up her dress so he could pick her up properly without snagging on any of the velvet materials. When she was safely held in his arms in a manner that would have made the ladies swoon if it were not for their concern and distress of their mistress, Henry turned to face them.

He locked eyes with Lady Florence who watched the way (Y/n)'s face contorted in pain and her head nuzzled into the crook of Henry's neck to try and make herself disappear.

"Get a midwife, now."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was not appropriate.

There was no place for men to be at the presence of the birth, there was no meaning nor reasonable explanation for a man to be present at the birth of a child.

This was a woman's place. Women were the ones who went through the months of pain and anguish, they were the ones whose bodies changed and adapted for the very purpose of bringing new life into the world. Men had very little to do with the process therefore they were not needed at the birth. It was a woman's place to help another woman give birth, midwives knew exactly what they were doing and other ladies were able to get the water, towels, utensils and clothes needed to help for the birth.

The only reason a man would be needed was if the birth was too complicated and a doctor needed to be present.

But Henry was no doctor. He was the King, the sovereign of this land and yet here he was, seated next to his Queen on the birthing bed because she had screamed his name and he could no longer wait outside.

Henry knew what he was supposed to do, his men had gone through the whole process with him. He knew that once it was confirmed that (Y/n) was pregnant he was no longer supposed to be so intimate in bed with her because it could be seen as harmful for the heir to the throne. He did not want to pose a risk to (Y/n) or their child's health. He also knew that in the last month of her pregnancy (Y/n) was meant to go into confinement where she would rest and become prepared for the ordeal ahead.

Even if she was now in labour before she had had the chance to be confined. He had also been told that when (Y/n) went into labour, Henry would be the first to be informed and it was appropriate for him to wait in his own chambers until the news of the child and her health was told to him.

Henry found it aggravating that he wasn't permitted or supposed to wait in (Y/n)'s chambers in the next room. Even if he would hear her pleas and screams and wait for hours on the outside, he would want to wait as close by her as possible to make sure she was okay. And if things had gone according to plan, Henry would have listened and waited in his chambers throughout the night.

But when (Y/n) had gone into labour, Henry refused to leave her chambers. He waited with his councillors and the few ladies in Waiting who were not needed in the bed chamber with their Queen. No one had been able to get him to leave. And the moment (Y/n) had screamed his name so horridly, Henry had bolted from his seat and burst through into the bed chamber to find his wife.

(Y/n) was his Queen, she was his world and his life and he couldn't bear to be on the outside when she was in pain and needed him there.

As annoyed as the midwife had clearly been that the husband was in the room, her distaste was swallowed down and she stayed silent on the matter. It was clear that as unholy as it was, (Y/n) was calmed by her husband's presence.

And he was the King. The midwife was not going to go up against the King and tell him to leave the room. She did not hold that power or that right and he had made it clear he was staying here with his Queen, she could not oppose his wishes in any way.

"Another push, Madam, and the babe will be born."

(Y/n) couldn't feel her legs anymore. She could feel the pounding pain in her head, the shredding skin in her stomach and lower regions. She could feel her skin heating up and prickling to the point it felt like she was going to shed her skin like a snake. But the horrible feeling of her baby slithering into the world between her legs made her want to be sick.

This was supposed to be a precious, holy moment for her. The pain she had to endure was supposed to be one worth while for the babe she was bearing into the world. She was giving birth to the sovereign, the next heir to the throne. But above all, she was giving birth to her and Henry's first child.

But (Y/n) had not been prepared for this.

She had not gone through her month of confinement and been prepared for this. (Y/n) was going through this a month too early, her baby needed the most protection to make sure they would survive and that protection came from still being within (Y/n). But they were being born now and it was too early for (Y/n) to bear thinking about.

"Praise be, Madam, a boy!"

(Y/n) leaned her head on Henry's broad shoulder, feeling his lips pressing to her damp hair as his arms secured more around her waist to keep her against his chest. His arms never failed to make her feel safe, secure and loved and right now his hold was the only thing stopping (Y/n) from disappearing into the darkness that was trying to draw her in.

She relished in the feeling of his lips pressing all over her head and temple, trying to show her how much he loved her and whispering against her skin how well she had done.

When (Y/n) managed to open her eyes properly, her gaze fixated on the midwife who was holding her baby in her arms. She had the newborn resting on her left arm on his chest whilst her other hand was rubbing forcefully up and down his back, clearly trying to clear his airways and start his breathing.

(Y/n) paid no mind to the other midwife who was delivering the placenta and trying to patch (Y/n) up. She was at the point of kicking her away because all she wanted was her babe in her arms to hold and cherish. For she had done what was needed and asked of her. (Y/n) had given the country an heir, she had provided them with a boy, a little prince. Henry had a son! They had a boy with their first pregnancy.

Many other Queens had suffered numerous pregnancies trying to produce a male heir to the throne because although girls could become Queens, they could not rule over the lands on their own and they did not hold ties to the throne they were born to.

(Y/n) knew her own mother back in her homeland had produced four boys and three girls, only two of which had survived, (Y/n) and her youngest brother.

Children were prone to infections and illnesses, surviving infancy, even for a child born into such riches and wealth, was a hard thing to come by. The late King's sister had produced nine children, only one of which who had been a boy and he had not survived past his birth. It was a harsh world but (Y/n) had prayed that the baby she carried would be a boy. She wanted to give the country an heir, it was her duty and she wanted many babies.

"Henry..." She no longer cared about formalities or that she was calling him by his name in front of her ladies, (Y/n) wanted his comfort and she wanted their son in her arms.

"Is he okay, is he breathing?" Henry's voice was breathless and desperate but there was a menacing tone to his concerned voice.

He wouldn't know what to do if the answer was no.

Agony arose in (Y/n)'s chest as she watched the midwife turn over the baby in her arms and try inevitably to jolt his chest and start him breathing. But all she managed to do was get a choked sound to escape the newborn’s pale blue lips before he went still and motionless in her arms.

The scream that left (Y/n)'s lips was a scream of a banshee.

It was the sound of a mother losing their child for no good reason. God had no reason or sin to punish her for that justified taking her baby from her like this.

Tears distorted her vision and her body crumpled over like she was deflating on the bed. The horrid screams of torture that left her lips made everyone in the room shiver and weep for their Queen but it was Henry who all the ladies were fearing.

The way Henry was holding (Y/n) was so comforting, pulling her into his chest, resting his lips to her hair, smoothing his hands over her burning skin to try in vain to calm down his Queen. But his eyes were maddening. His pupils had all but overtaken his eyes making them dark voids of pain and anguish. His lips were curling up in distaste, wondering what he had done to make (Y/n) go through this kind of torment when she did not deserve any of it. His features contorted and tightened like his skin was being stretched over his features and it made the ladies worry that their King was transforming into a demon right there in front of them.

As soon as the midwife wrapped the child in a blanket, it was clear she was about to leave the room to place the child in the chapel until things were put in place for the funeral.

But she got nowhere near the door when (Y/n) screamed in such a shrill, horrid way that made everyone jump.

Henry seemed to be the only one who worked out that her blubbering, mushed words were her saying 'my baby' over and over again on repeat. She wanted to hold her son. He was gone but they couldn't take him away without (Y/n) even being able to look at him for the first and last time. She wanted her baby in her arms to prove to herself that he was real. These months of pain and torture had been all for nothing but she needed to know it had been real and not a nightmare or a distant memory.

"Bring him to us."

The midwife looked torn. She was a young girl, no older than (Y/n) herself and although she had dealt with newborn deaths like this, she had never dealt with it in such a place as the palace. She thought she was being given a great honour to help deliver the Queen's first child, the first heir to the throne. But she had been given a great burden.

It was not customary to let the mother hold her dead child, it would only serve further pain because she would not want to give the baby back. Letting her see the baby was an act of cruelty, the babies were always taken away instantly when there was no chance of helping them.

A growl escaped Henry's lips when (Y/n) screamed again before she seemed to be trying to move.

She couldn't wait around in agony like this, it was unbearable. (Y/n) tried her best to shuffle her numb, broken legs off the edge of the bed and force her broken form to go retrieve her baby. But the blood that was still trickling down her legs made her head feel cloudy and turned her broken legs to jelly.

Henry's arms tightened around (Y/n) to stop her from leaving the bed but she was pushing against him. With a deep intake of breath, Henry tightened one arm around (Y/n)'s back and moved his other hand to the back of her head, smoothing his fingers into her hair. He let her scream and sob into his neck causing his skin to shiver but he paid no mind to it. Henry moved so he was in (Y/n)'s way, very gently shuffling her back into the middle of the bed before he laid her down on the mountain of pillows, resting his upper half on her chest to stop her from fighting against him.

As much as he didn't want to have to pin her down like this, he couldn't have her trying to leave the bed when she was still bleeding out and suffering the after effects of giving birth. She would serve to hurt herself if she tried to move now.

"Shhh... shh, my love it's okay. I've got you darling." His words were whispered into her ear so quietly that no one else would be able to hear.

He could tell his words calmed (Y/n) down but without her baby in her arms she couldn't stop uselessly and weakly fighting her husband to try and get to her baby. She knew there was no way she was going to move Henry off of her but she had to try. She had to try and get to her baby, her body and soul simply would not rest until that little dead prince was laid in her arms and she could look at his features.

"Let her hold her baby."

"But my Lord, i-it is not right to-"

"It is not Holy for you to part a mother from her child and she is in distress. Bring him to my Queen now!"

This was a direct order from the King, what was she to do other than to obey?

Henry's voice was shrill and snappy which was all the midwife needed to make her stumble over to the couple with the Royal Prince laid dead in her arms. It was not customary, but then again having the King in the room was not part of customs either and if he was giving an order, even here in the bed chamber after labour, no one could oppose him.

Henry sat up straight enough so that the midwife could place their son into (Y/n)'s trembling, waiting arms and the moment she did, a great calmness seemed to overtake the poor Queen.

Her sobs ceased into nothing, her shaking subsided greatly and her tears momentarily stopped as she looked down at her baby.

He was small, not as small as (Y/n) thought he would have been for being only eight months formed but it made him look all the more precious and delicate. His nose was turned down at the end in the same manner as Henry's and the small strands of hair on his head were dark brown, just like Henry. His eyes were closed and (Y/n) had no heart to dare try and see what colour his eyes were because she did not want to disturb how peaceful he looked.

"I- I have failed."

"I see no way in which you've failed, my love. You gave me a son and you have made it through this ordeal, please don't think like that."

Henry couldn't have that conversation now.

He knew what she was saying and he knew why she was saying it but her argument was without evidence. She had made it to eight months with their baby which was very good for a first pregnancy. (Y/n) had given birth to a son, it wasn't her fault that he simply couldn't make it into the world, it wasn't her wish or her will and Henry would never hold something like this against her.

She had survived labour, she wasn't in danger of dying and leaving him and right now he was relieved about that. As long as he still had his wife, he could bear the loss of their son.

There was still time to have an heir, but the health of his Queen was more important to Henry.

[the-evil-duckling]

And now that Pride Month's over, Let's Talk About Pratchett.

The companies have taken down their flags. The marches and rallies are fading away. Rainbow colours are melting back into grayscale. And now that all the hubbub is dying down, let's talk about an author who did perhaps more than any other to introduce gender-and-sexual minorities to the public (and not just as a cute oddity to be cooed at from a distance, either).

Let's talk about an author whose works are perhaps the most representative, hard-hitting, and wholesome, in all of well-written English literature.

Let's talk about Pratchett.

Before we dive into the lovely little nitty-gritties, I want to just take a quick look at what Pratchett's writing really is, and what makes it so very exceptional. It's pretty simple, really.

He's funny.

That's the "secret" formula to Terry Pratchett's success across the global; he's funny everywhere, everywhen, across multiple generations and multiple decades and multiple geopolitical borders. You don't have to read Discworld with a lot of effort, thinking deeply after every line about the message the author is trying to convey. You don't have to analyze every character and every situation to see how the author is sculpting a crystal-clear mirror and holding it up to the face of Society. When I'm feeling down (cause college and life and pressure and dreams) and wanna start gouging out my forearms with my nails, I can just curl with one of my comfort books (like Men At Arms, or Unseen Academicals) and laugh and chuckle and just feel better. You can just enjoy it.

Now, I think, I can get to the fun stuff; analysing all of my favourite characters and the roles that they represent in mirroring Pratchett's view of People. (I should mention at this point that I am mainly going to be focussing on the Sam Vimes novels, and what I will be writing are my own thoughts and opinions. Anyone who knows more - or has just read/interpreted the books differently - is of course free to add their own musings.)

Fred Colon: Sergeant Colon is that rarest and yet most typical of things: Fred Colon is an ordinary person. He is no hero, or genius, or leader. He is not evil or even mildly malicious. And that is the very point that needs to be understood. People (most people) are not deliberately evil; they are, on the whole, fairly decent people who treat their friends well and try not to make enemies. It is just... petty selfishness, petty prejudices, petty apathy... all summated in every single member of the populace, and suddenly everyone knows that dwarfs are just money-grubbing bastards who'd bite your kneecaps off for a copper coin and trolls are dumber than the rocks they're made off but they'll as soon smash you to pulp as look at you and you can't trust a vampire cause they're too dead to be alive and-

Carrot Ironfoundersson: Captain Carrot is a cliché. Captain Carrot is a cliché wrapped inside a trope hidden in a Mary Sue, all turned on its head. Captain Carrot, rightful heir to the throne of Ankh, leader of all manner of beings, man who once beat Detritus in a fistfight... is not the hero of this story. In any other series, the story would have been of a brave new cop (who is also the king) standing up to the corruption and lawlessness of the Patrician while taking advice from his grizzled old half-drunk commander who dies four chapters into the first book with some vaguely portentous words that the hero remembers at the very last minute to give him the tools/strength/motivation necessary to keep fighting. But this is Pratchett. And the hero of the story, if there is one, is very much the grizzled old commander. Two other points have also always struck me about Carrot. The first is the matter of identity. Biologically, Carrot is very much a human, but in all other ways that matter he is entirely a dwarf - his name is Kzad-bhat, and even the deep-down dwarfs do not question his dwarfishness - and yet that does make him any less a human. In this is reflected the multiplicity of identity (not just of gender, which is what most people immediately jump to, but all identities). The second point is of the relationship between Carrot and Angua, which seemed to me a representation of a healthy dom/sub relationship. Unlike the twisted shit we find on ao3 (and in some published books that I don't feel that I need to name), Angua is at no point portrayed as lesser, weaker, incapable, dependent, or deferent. She is her own person, and the two of them just happen to have this kind of chemistry.

Samuel Vimes: Ahhhh. His Grace, His Excellency, The First Duke of Ankh, Blackboard Monitor Samuel Vimes, Commander of the City Watch. The protagonist, if not quite the hero, of the series. He is not perfect, not even close. He is casually discriminatory (species-ist?) and thoughtless in most of what he says. his saving graces are that his discrimination is universally applied at all beings living and dead, and that he has never, not even once, allowed his personal feelings of prejudice stand in the way of justice (which is at times, all that separates him from Fred Colon). Does that mean that it's all okay, and everything is now fine and dandy and hunky-dory? No. Not even fucking close. Words matter and actions matter and even how you feel deep inside - all of it matters. Prejudice is prejudice, and it is always wrong. there are no mitigating circumstances, no 'yes, but...' that can make it acceptable. But only an idealistic idiot would say that it is not better than the alternative. And this is the reason that Vimes is one of my favourite protagonists; he is not a hero. He is real.

Leonard of Quirm: A parody of the public perception of a genius (perhaps of Roundworld's Tesla and da Vinci), I have loved Leonard as a character ever since I realised he was gay. Allow me to elaborate. As I was recently re-reading Jingo, I noticed a line that went something like 'He started drawing how The-Going-Under-The-water-Safely-Device could be improved, piloted by a muscular man who was not overdressed'. And just like that, a couple dozen other off-hand comments slotted into place and I realized the homosexual truth. And I love this portrayal of homosexuality, because most books or movies or tv shows or fanfictions with a gay MC (or even sidekick) tend to have a storyline roughly equivalent to 'hey my name is [insert name here] and I'm GAY and I have a destiny to save the world and my family and my GAY boyfriend whom I'm dating cause I'm GAY and before I go outside I have to pick my outfit really carefully better go with salmon-rose-flutter pink cause I'm GAY and now I'm outside and I'm not very popular and this is my tragic backstory cause a lot of people don't like me cause I'm GAY and-' Yeah. This is not good writing. By barely mentioning anything, Pratchett somehow still managed to emphasise that a) homosexuality is one of your identities, not all of them and b) just because a story has a character who is gay doesn't mean that the story becomes about a character being gay.

Trev Likely: One sentence. Just one sentence. 'Hating people was too much work.'

If you actually made it this far, you are obliged to reblog. I'm sorry, but I don't make the rules. (Please?)

[ctl-yuejie]

How the diverse world of the addictive tv series “Cherry magic” got made

(interview with scriptwriter Yoshida Erika by Yokogawa Yoshiaki)

沼堕ち続出ドラマ“チェリまほ”の多様な世界はどうやって作られたのか【脚本家・吉田 恵里香さん】2020.12.22  横川 良明

for @howdydowdy because we were talking about what a fantastic character Fujisaki is and the notion of consent when it comes to reading someone’s mind

Currently, societal values continue to change rapidly. On one hand the movement of respecting each other’s diverse individualities and making it easier for each and every one to live in society has become more active, one the other hand it is not a rare occasion to be lost for words when suddenly unconscious discriminatory biases – derived from not being able to cut loose old values that are rooted deep in oneself – raise their heads.

How should we exist within this period of polarization? This series is to create the opportunity to think about this topic by having discussions with the toprunners in the entertainment world. The person I am introducing for the first edition is screenwriter Yoshida Erika.

She is behind the script of “Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!”, the tv series that has grabbed the first spot on the oricon satisfaction ranking for 4 weeks in a row, and has gained fast popularity despite its late-night spot. The enthusiasm for the show can be attributed to the soft view Ms. Yoshida has on the world.

Yokogawa Yoshiaki (YY): I am happily watching the series. I really liked the original work, however the way it was adapted to a television format has been brilliant. One big thing is the making of the character of Kurosawa played by Machida Keita. By Adachi’s magic (played by Akasouji Eiji), the voice of Kurosawa’s heart spills out, and while the original text had him be quite blatant in his expressions overall, the drama carefully examines them.

Yoshida Erika (YE): That is definitely where there is a difference in depth. The original has the premise of a work in the BL genre, readers are expecting a BL-like development, so they can take such things in stride, but the viewership of the tv series is more varied. Under them there might be people who do not like BL. That is why I was conscious about how different people from different backgrounds might watch this show.

It is not okay to assault someone just because you were invited to their house, kissing or touching without consent is not okay and being of the same or different sex makes no difference in this. Treating such things as okay because it is BL would be rude to the parties concerned. Because we are using the BL genre, we want to specifically protect the “firsts” of the parties concerned. That is something the producer Ms. Honma Kanami and the director agreed about and I therefore paid extra attention to.

YY: Adachi himself, as he is about to step into Kurosawa’s house thinks “Not that I might possibly get assaulted?!”, and is very vigilant, but with some soul-searching realizes that that is rude towards Kurosawa. To say it briefly, you can feel the probity of the creators.

YE: I thought that a main character that thinks that he will get assaulted when he steps into the house of someone will not be loveable. No matter how well received the person is who acts it out, if we cannot love them on a human level, this drama will not work. Adachi’s power to read people’s hearts is also the action of seeing people’s darker sides on his own volition. That’s why a character we cannot love as a person will receive push-back by the viewers.

YY: Just like you said, the act of reading peoples’ hearts includes great violence. That is why I think that when he realizes that Kurosawa has fond feelings for him, unlike the original where he reads Kurosawa’s heart on purpose, the drama treats it as an accidental force. Over the whole series, it is of focal importance that Adachi doesn’t overuse his magic.

YE: That is where we were extremely careful. In the manga easy comprehensiveness is important and that type of suspense is interesting - and we don’t intend to deny that - but if you do it as a drama, I didn’t want to make him into a young man using his powers at ease. That is why, especially in the first half, he decides and tries very hard not to use his powers when possible. The scene where he reads the CEO’s heart appears in the first issue of the original, but in the drama we pushed it back to the 5th episode. We made it a point to illustrate how Adachi is filled with the emotion to help Kurosawa and that is why he uses his powers.

                                                       -

That what I don’t want others to do unto me, I do not want to inflict on characters.

                                                       -

YY: His colleague Fujisaki (Satou Ryo) is a Fujoshi in the original and that premise was cut from the series. If you decided to have a Fujoshi character on a prime time show, did you think that misunderstandings might arise easily?

YE: That was definitely a thought. In BL as a genre it is not an issue that a character exists that takes the same viewpoint as the reader, and I love Fujisaki in the original, but the people who are acting it out in reality are real people. At that point, loudly fawning about someone else’s’ love life is not perceived as good conduct. At the least, I thought that I wouldn’t want to be treated like that.

YY: It is fine to envision fictional characters as romantic partners, but it is different when you make a real acquaintance the target of that.

YE:

A thought we had was that if Adachi and Kurosawa were to really date it would be one thing, but grinning at someone - who might even be heterosexual – because you inflate your own BL adjacent delusion isn’t much different from a man grinning at a woman with big breasts and calling her sexy. I wouldn’t want to get treated that way, so I didn’t want to inflict that on the characters in the story as well.

When it comes to Fujisaki it isn’t like she isn’t a Fujoshi. We do not clearly state it, but I thought there was no reason to show it in the drama. 

YY: You are saying, that it is fine that people might interpret Fujisaki as a Fujoshi when she is smiling at Adachi and Kurosawa.

YE: Yes. That is where you are free to imagine (laughs).

YY: What I thought was very fresh is that instead of proclaiming her to be a Fujoshi, Fujisaki is turned into someone who “is happily living her daily life even without romantic love”. We don’t often get characters like that in Japanese tv series.

Personally, I also like romantic tv series, but while feeling venerated when the main characters have realized their love in the final episode, when trying to build a romantic connection to someone else in real life it might not go well and beyond that, it is not that it never happens that I, who also holds interests in other things than romance, end up feeling empty because of the lonely feeling of having been left behind (when watching a romance on tv unfold).

But with having Fujisaki appear, it felt like I got rescued.

YE: Until now, for several projects I made the suggestion of a character that is not interested in romance, but I wasn’t understood. “Is it necessary to do that?” “Aren’t you overthinking it?” were things I got told often.

But with this production, when I said that I wanted Fujisaki to be asexual or aromantic, no one denied me. From that stage on I thought that this place was a good one, and thanks to the original writer giving her agreement it got turned into reality.

YY: Since this kind of character hasn’t really appeared in a tv series, it felt like people like Fujisaki were assigned to be non-existent in this world. But thanks to you envisioning her like this, seen from a person that like Fujisaki might say “I got used to acting “normal”” and feel a notion of despair when confronted with people not understanding them, it felt like it got emphasized that people like her also exist in our society. Picking such little voices feels like it is one of the purposes of entertainment.

YE: If that could become the case I would be glad about it. 10 to 20 years prior, a “fairytale gay” (describing the flamboyant gay friend, that mentally supports the heroine by giving some harsh but accurate advice) often appeared in tv series from abroad, but this portrayal slowly changed, finally it has reached the point where the view point that being gay isn’t something special has penetrated the public.

So this time, I believe that one of my duties was to tell the story of people that are not interested in romance or people who do not only love one person, not from a standpoint that is convenient for consumption, but to have properly realized characters up to their individual backgrounds.

                                                     -

I hope the time comes where it isn’t necessary to especially say “This is a BL series”

                                                      -

YY: Please let me speak on something that has confused me this far. Prior, when you explained Fujisaki in context of the script, it felt like it wasn’t okay to call her asexual or aromantic because she herself doesn’t use any of those labels. I was somewhat afraid that an outsider would just selfishly declare that “you are asexual, aren’t you!?” in regards to someone who hasn’t professed anything.

YE: There is the point of both of the terms asexual and aromantic not being widely known in Japan as much as compared to overseas and I also think there are people who just wouldn’t use these words. Even when you think you are not interested in romance at the moment, it could also be that you just haven’t found the person that makes you feel that way. That’s why I can understand how labelling someone has a violent notion.

YY: My next question is also relating to that: This applies to Cherry Maho, but generally when I write about over works that feature a lovestory between men I try not to use the word BL.

This is my own opinion but to me it feels like the term BL has too much of a sexual image.

In private I casually use the word BL. However, for the content of an article that is read by an unspecified number of people, I remember stumbling over labelling something as BL. Using BL as an easy genre specifier has the effect that there will be a layer that won’t get looked at. I simply want to have more people enjoy a piece of work. I don’t object to the editor using BL in the title but in the content I write, I try not to use the term BL story but simply “love story between two men” and keep it close to how you’d address it in reality.

YE: I understand that. Obviously, I don’t intend to shame the taste of people that like BL. However, I understand that there are people that feel a sense of resistance towards BL as a genre. That is why I also don’t use the word BL when I promote on twitter. I do think that it would be great to have a new word.

Just like women have things they don’t want to be subjected to, men also have things they don’t want to be subjected to. This kind of awareness has become more broadly spread bit by bit. However, in order to have it really penetrate society it needs for the voices of the affected people to be heard. But it is also the reality of today’s society that violence is directed at people that raise their voice. That is why I feel like it is the job of the people that create tv shows to speak up instead.

At the least, that is how I want to straightforwardly create the world, so that in 10 years without directly stating “this is a BL series” we have a society that takes it in as a “new cool romantic drama beginning” with “the leads being actor x and actor z” and as nothing unusual.  Now we really have such a transitional period, and as a writer I want to build the steps towards it.  

                                                          -

original article: https://mi-mollet.com/articles/-/27045?page=3&per_page=1

[sirikenobi12]

Dear Mr. Filoni: About Qui-Gon Jinn

Mr. Filoni, I know you are pretty much the undisputed Padawan of George Lucas, but like many students they can sometimes misunderstand their teachings or interpret things from a certain point of view. While I won’t deny you are a brilliant creator who have brought us some amazing Star Wars content you said something a little while back about Qui-Gon Jinn that I think is rather nearsighted and in my opinion incorrect.

“And with the death of Qui-Gon Jinn, Anakin loses the father figure who truly could have understood him – and maybe prevented what was to come.”

This implies several things, the first is that Anakin never had a father figure in his life. Or, rather that he lost the father figure he truly needed. In many ways this is implying that if someone grows up without a father (or a traditional father figure) then they are missing out or won’t have a stable childhood. What about all the people who are raised by single mothers or grandparents or aunts/uncles or by their older siblings? 

Pixar’s Onward is a great example of finding a father figure through an older brother, it highlights that just because Ian never had a chance to meet his father didn’t mean that he lost out on a father figure in his brother Barley. 

“I never had a dad, but I always had you.”

Saying that Anakin lost the father figure who truly could have understood him also just spits in the face of a young man who also lost his father figure in that moment and gave up everything to raise Anakin. 

Let’s unpack that a little bit. Imagine if you will you’re twenty-five years old, you’ve worked your ENTIRE life for a particular goal which is to be a Jedi Knight, traveling the galaxy doing the most good that you can while discovering who you are on your own. Then maybe down the road when you are ready to settle down and possibly train/raise an apprentice you’ll take one on. Suddenly the only father you’ve ever known pushes you aside for a child he’s just met (without even discussing it with you first) and then uses his last words to push this child on you, making him your responsibility, thus shattering your chance at the freedom of a true Knighthood. 

By all rights Obi-Wan could’ve given Anakin’s training over to the Council, the boy was in no way his responsibility. Much like an adult sibling doesn’t have to take on the responsibility of raising their minor siblings if their parents die, they could give the children over to the state and have a chance at a normal young adulthood instead of being thrust into being a parent before they are ready. But, Obi-Wan didn’t do that because he A.) Respected/loved Qui-Gon too much not to fulfill his final wishes, and B.) Knew it would be better for Anakin to take the boy under his wing. 

I will say this until I am blue in the face: OBI-WAN WAS A FATHER TO ANAKIN!! 

In fact, in Episode 2 Anakin refers to him as a father/father figure multiple times and it is clear their relationship while Anakin was a Padawan was that of a Father/Son. It isn’t until Anakin is knighted and they are peers that you see their relationship shift to that of brothers.  

Am I saying that Obi-Wan didn’t make mistakes when raising Anakin? Absolutely not, but would I argue that Anakin was missing out on a father figure because Qui-Gon died? No, I would not. 

The second part of that quote claims that Qui-Gon Jinn could’ve been someone who understood Anakin and might’ve been able to prevent what was to come. I 100% believe that would not have happened, while I think Qui-Gon Jinn is a very interesting character there is no indication in either canon or legends that he would’ve been a good influence on Anakin. In fact, quite the opposite. Here are the top ten reasons Qui-Gon would’ve been a terrible father influence for Anakin: 

1. Qui-Gon Jinn thinks the rules don’t apply to him: While many fans applaud Qui-Gon (including apparently you, Mr. Filoni) for going against the Jedi Council and being a “Maverick” I would argue that more often than not it was to his or his mission’s detriment. This is not to advocate that the Council was 100% correct or that Jedi shouldn’t question things, but there is a difference between questioning authority figures and flat out being obstinate. This is something Anakin excels at even with being raised by the rule abiding Kenobi, imagine how bad it would’ve been had Jinn raised him.

2. Qui-Gon Jinn was selfish: There are several examples of Qui-Gon using the guise of “the will of the Force” in order to get his way. Are we honestly supposed to believe that somehow this one man was more in tune with the Force than any other Jedi (including 12 powerful Jedi who were on the Council)?? And, if he truly believed in following the will of the Force then why did he constantly bend the rules to make sure the “Force” went his way - an example of this is had he actually believed it was the will of the Force that he free Anakin, he wouldn’t have had to make the chance cube go the way he wanted it to go. He flat out cheated so he could get his way.  

3. Qui-Gon was dangerously reckless: Many Jedi are reckless, even Obi-Wan said to Yoda in ESB “so was I if you’ll remember”. But Qui-Gon was reckless in ways that was pretty astounding. For example, EVERYONE told him that his plan to get off of Tatooine was dangerous and frankly stupid. Couldn’t they have just sold the Naboo ship and then purchased a clunker that would get them to Coruscant? Honestly, that would’ve probably hidden them better from the Trade Federation in the long run...but no, he instead decided the best course of action was to put a slave child in mortal danger, thus also placing all of their lives in the hands of a boy who had NEVER won a race before. Now, it ended up working in his favor, but even still those few days spent fixing up Anakin’s pod and then the race itself delayed the Queen from getting to Coruscant which meant more people died on Naboo all because Qui-Gon refused to see any other solutions. 

4. Qui-Gon was often a bully: our Maverick had no problems throwing his weight around to get what he wanted. The Council meeting with Anakin is a perfect example, he didn’t get the answer he wanted. So he put his hands on his hips and refused to leave the room until the Council caved to his demands. Another example of this is in Claudia Grey’s Master & Apprentice where he refuses to do his duty as a Jedi and fulfill the mission simply because he had a vision. He doesn’t discuss this with the Council or with Obi-Wan beforehand, he just decides for himself this is how it’s going to be and then throws a hissy-fit when he doesn't get his way. Or how about he is the one who cheated to get his way in winning Anakin and when Watto calls him out he threatens to get the Hutts involved? He just bullies his way to getting what he wanted.

  5. Qui-Gon never saw the bigger picture: Master Jinn’s whole thing is to focus on the here and the now, and while that’s great advice (especially for Obi-Wan who often looks too far a head) it also means that Qui-Gon often misses the big picture. An example of this is in the book Master & Apprentice where he wants to free the slaves on Pijal’s moon, but Yoda has to remind him that there is a bigger picture and they can only act if it’s in their mandate. He says this not because the Council doesn’t want to free slaves, but because there are incredibly complex consequences and if they were to just do whatever they wanted/could do as Jedi it would cause all kinds of issues for others and while he could maybe free a handful of slaves now it would cause countless others to suffer in the long run. But, Qui-Gon wouldn’t accept this, because he refused to see the bigger picture - he refused to look at anything except what was right in front of him.

6. Qui-Gon has a history of failing his Apprentices: Now, I know this isn’t Canon at the moment, but by the time we make it to TPM Qui-Gon has already done severe damage to 2 former Padawans, and is in danger of having history repeat itself. Xanatos was his second Apprentice right before Obi-Wan, and this Padawan was extremely powerful and Qui-Gon insisted he be trained, but the boy fell to the darkside because he had been too old to start training and had a healthy attachment to his family (sound familiar?). Qui-Gon was so devastated by his fall that he went back and reputed his first apprentice, Feemor, claiming he was such a failure of a Master that there is no way his first apprentice should’ve been knighted. He basically in his grief pushed aside an apprentice who while on paper wasn’t anything special, but was kind and dutiful and a true Jedi (sound familiar?). He then begrudgingly takes on Obi-Wan (only after 12 year old Obi-Wan offers to kill himself to save others) and then time and time again tries to basically pawn off Obi-Wan onto someone else (even as far into their relationship as the Master & Apprentice book). Then, when it finally looks like the Kenobi/Jinn team have figured out how to work well together Qui-Gon has to literally be reminded that his Obi-Wan even exists because Qui-Gon is so blinded by Anakin’s power!! How in any way does this seem like a better father figure option for the emotionally needy Anakin?

7. Qui-Gon Jinn has a history of Attachments: The specific example I have is again from Legends, but it shows how Qui-Gon allowed attachments to become dangerous. He had a childhood friend who he fell in love with, they decided that they could handle being committed to each other as well as the Order so they “pledged themselves” to one another (my guess is basically this is like a Jedi marriage so to speak). Sounds beautiful right, and it is, but...But his love interest Tahl was injured on a war torn planet where the children are so sick of their parents' civil war that they form a third army and go to war against the adults. Tahl is caught in the middle of this and is gravely injured. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are sent to rescue her, and Obi-Wan is sickened by the sight of children fighting and wants to stay and help, but Qui-Gon is so blinded by his attachment for Tahl that he for the first time EVER actually follows his mandate and tells Obi-Wan that they weren’t sent there to help the children, but to rescue Tahl. Obi-Wan who is only 13 doesn’t understand so instead of taking the time to really explain it, Qui-Gon just LEAVES his young apprentice behind on a war torn planet. Now, I’ll admit that Qui-Gon did give Obi-Wan a choice, to come back to Coruscant or to stay and fight, thus leaving the Jedi Order and Obi-Wan did make the choice to stay. But, it was Qui-Gon’s responsibility as the teacher to fully explain the situation to Obi-Wan and let him know that they could do more good if they were to go back to the Council and the Senate and try to return with supplies and reinforcements. But no, Qui-Gon just yelled at him, disregarded his feelings and told him their mission was to rescue Tahl. He didn’t bother using this as a teaching moment for Obi-Wan because he was so concerned about his attachment. And then later when Tahl actually died, Qui-Gon nearly fell to the dark side and it was Obi-Wan who saved him.  And then Qui-Gon went on to decide that because of the pain that had been inflicted by losing Tahl he’d basically give Obi-Wan an ultimatum when it came to the woman he loved (and basically downplayed it as nothing but a crush). Now, say what you want about how Obi-Wan handled Anakin/Padme’s relationship - maybe pretending it wasn’t happening instead of confronting Anakin about it wasn’t a healthy/smart choice, but at least he didn’t downplay it and make it look like Anakin’s feelings weren’t real or valid.

8. Qui-Gon refused to apologize: There are several examples where Qui-Gon refuses to accept any responsibilities and won’t apologize. One such point is in TPM where he basically traded his current Padawan in for a newer/shinier model in front of the entire Council (which if this alone isn’t enough cause to prove the man wasn’t the best father figure…) he then refused to even approach Obi-Wan about it, in fact the twenty five year old Apprentice who had just been tossed aside for a supposed prophecy came and apologized to Qui-Gon!! Another example is back in the Jedi Apprentice books where Qui-Gon leaves Obi-Wan on the war torn planet (as mentioned in #7) it is up to Obi-Wan to make it up to Qui-Gon and prove his worth once again. I’m not certain given Anakin’s tendency to need constant affirmations that this would’ve been a good combination.

9. Qui-Gon was manipulative: Oftentimes we see Qui-Gon manipulating people to get his way (I’m not talking about Jedi Mind Tricks). In TPM he manipulates Watto to win Anakin’s freedom, he even manipulates Obi-Wan into taking on the burden of training Anakin by making it his dying wish. He is not above manipulation if he gets his desired result. We see Anakin does the same thing, so one could argue Qui-Gon would’ve only encouraged this behavior.

10. Qui-Gon cared more about the prophecy than the boy: I’m not saying that Qui-Gon didn’t care about people, or even Anakin, in fact he was a very compassionate character. But, all of his arguments to have Anakin be trained was that he is “the Chosen One” not once does he talk about how the boy needs training simply because it’d be dangerous to leave such raw power alone in the galaxy without training, or that it would be the right thing to do. He doesn’t ever talk about how learning to be a Jedi would actually benefit the boy. Every single time he brings up Anakin needing training is because of the prophecy. Now, as far as it looks in both canon and legends Obi-Wan tried incredibly hard to not bring up the prophecy to Anakin (except on Mustafar), Obi-Wan would bring it up to Mace/Yoda but that was about it. Obi-Wan wasn’t blinded by the prophecy because until ROTS it didn’t really appear that he even believed in it - he believed in Anakin for who he was as a person. Something we just didn’t see with Qui-Gon.

Now, Qui-Gon has a lot of great qualities, I am not denying that, but to say that he would’ve been the father figure Anakin needed is just misguided. If you believe in the idea that there is a will of the Force one could argue that Obi-Wan training Anakin was that will, otherwise Qui-Gon wouldn’t have died. 

Also, Mr. Filoni, why is it that Anakin supposedly suffered because he didn’t have a father figure yet you turned around and gave Ahsoka a brother, not a father? Are you suggesting Ahsoka suffered as well because she didn’t have a father figure? Or, was Obi-Wan by this time finally “old” enough to be considered a father figure? 

This idea that Qui-Gon Jinn would’ve been the fix it to Anakin’s issues is just silly and once again places the blame of the Jedi’s destruction in the hands of the Council and specifically Obi-Wan, thus not forcing Anakin to be held responsible for any of his actions. 

I’m sorry, but it’s not a theory I buy due to a lack of evidence. 

[defdaily]

JAY B Interview [HYPEBEAST]

From GOT7 to H1GHR MUSIC’s JAY B

On the 11th of May, it was announced that GOT7’s leader JAY B had joined H1GHR MUSIC. Ever since his time in JYPE, Jay B has been taking on the responsibility of writing lyrics and composing songs for albums, even participating as a producer. On Soundcloud, he has released 5 mixtapes under the name Def., showing his ambition as a solo musician in various instances. That’s why the fact that he did not join a KPOP entertainment company but instead joined H1GHR MUSIC is not a particularly surprising thing. However, it’s no lie that this will bring a huge change to his career as an artist. <HYPEBEAST> met with JAY B and had a talk about the reason he decided to move (to H1GHR MUSIC), his new single ‘Switch It Up’, his future activities as well as his ambition.

HYPEBEAST: You’re known for being on “team mint chocolate”. You even left comments about it on <HYPEBEAST>’s instagram page.

JAY B: I like the way the flavour is pungent yet wrapped up in chocolate. I don’t really like plain chocolate. I like it when something is added to it, such as chocolate milk or white chocolate, but when I had mint chocolate for the first time, it was really revolutionary. After that, I’ve been enjoying eating it.

HB: It’s still something that sparks a lot of debate. There are also a lot of products released aimed to spark controversy.

JAY B: There’s something I always say. If I am eating it well and I like it, I just hope that you won’t say things like “why would you eat that?” to me. If you’re enjoying your food and then someone next to you says that sort of thing, you’d lose your appetite, right? Just don’t say that kind of thing to someone who’s eating. Let’s love one another!

HB: Your group, GOT7, left JYP Entertainment after 7 years. How did you feel promoting without a company for the past few months?

JAY B: I feel the same now. It’s more fun. Personally, one of the reasons why I decided to leave JYP was because I wanted to take on more challenges. Maybe it’s because of that but the time I spent as a kind of freelancer felt really new. Even though I won’t be able to know everything about what kind of system I’ll be working in, I got to learn about it roughly and gained a more serious attitude regarding work. I also felt a sense of pride and that it was precious.

HB: Out of the ‘challenges’ you mentioned, your photo exhibition was one of them, right? We heard that you like taking pictures.

JAY B: Even this morning, I saw a pigeon spread only one side of its wings. I’ve never seen that before, so I wanted to take a picture of it, but in a short moment it sensed that I was there and flew away. I’m the kind of person who takes a lot of pictures of those little moments. In that way, I got to hold a photo exhibition too. Honestly, I was embarrassed to do the exhibition. I was just going to try to do it personally as a small thing with the pictures I took myself, but JYPE said “let’s do it even better”, and as we exchanged ideas, the scale got a bit larger.

HB: Is there a particular theme that you like when taking pictures?

JAY B: I’m the kind of person who comes up with (themes) as I take the pictures. As I am taking pictures of something, thoughts like “ah, it would be fun to hold exhibitions with this kind of pictures” come to mind. For my first exhibition, I took pictures revolving around the theme of ‘loneliness’, ‘living alone’, and ‘even if you are living alone, you need someone by your side’. It was mainly involving people/figures, but I actually prefer taking pictures of landscapes or larger compositions.

HB: In the past, you’ve said “I think my next album will be a product that includes the loneliness felt in life”. Is it related to your first photo exhibition <ALONE>?

JAY B: There’s no relation between the two. I wanted to work out all the feelings I had after being under a lot of pressure as I lived my life. Putting aside whether the album is good or not, I think it will be an album where I honestly share what I felt when I felt pressured. I don’t know whether or not it will be released, and if it does, I don’t know in what form it will be released in, but for now I’ve just made the album with this theme. It might sound boring, but it contains a lot of my honest thoughts.

HB: We don’t know when or how, but it will probably be released through H1GHR MUSIC now right? After your contract ended with JYP, you probably received offers from various places, why did you choose H1GHR MUSIC?

JAY B: I’m well aware of the fact that I was protected by the fence called JYP. But as I mentioned previously, I left JYP because I wanted to try and experience something on my own. I also had doubts regarding whether I was an artist who could bring in as much profit as the company wanted. I think that changing my image in order to earn a profit is something that I’ve done a lot in the past. After leaving the company, I received offers from multiple places, and some were really good companies too. However, the most important thing was that it had to be a company that I could exchange opinions and create with. I think H1GHR MUSIC matched up with that the best.

HB: As the field of your promotions change, it will probably come with some concerns as well.

JAY B: I’m the kind of person who worries a lot and is cautious. My own concerns aside, I was really worried about whether H1GHR MUSIC’s image would be damaged because I joined. I thought people might say that an idol joining would muddy the waters* (*ruin the label’s image). No matter if there’s a good or bad reaction, H1GHR MUSIC has already accomplished things, and I would be a new addition. On top of that, I’m not someone who is just starting to make music. I’m making a new image based on the one I already had. Even so, just this once, I wanted to make a decision that was for myself. That’s why I was even more cautious with each and every step.

HB: Is the title of your new single ’Switch It Up’ referring to the changes you are going through?

JAY B: When I came up with the title, I did think that it was possible to give it that sort of meaning. I wanted to express a basic love story while also including the meaning of switching up my life. However, Jay Park hyung gave me some advice, saying that rather than doing that, it might be better for me to naturally blend in what I’ve already been doing. Following that advice, even though the title itself carries the meaning of change, the lyrics are just about love.

HB: How was your first production at H1GHR MUSIC?

JAY B: I had a lot of concerns and was worried. After I made the decision to join H1GHR MUSIC, I told Jay hyung that I wanted to release a song or an album quickly. It just so happened Cha Cha Malone was back in Korea, so we aligned our schedules and produced songs together. Everything happened naturally. Jay hyung said that I shouldn’t go all out from the beginning, and that it’s more important to keep going steadily. I agree with that. I’m satisfied with the result too. I worry a lot so I’m the type to ask around for opinions, but everyone said it was good. But honestly, I’m not sure how the public will react to it. (laughs)

HB: Sokodomo’s feature was really impressive, how did he end up participating in the song?

JAY B: The funny thing is, it really came about naturally too. When I went to the studio, sokodomo was there and he asked if he could stay while we were working on our songs, so we said it was okay. As we worked on songs like that, after I finished up my recording, sokodomo suddenly went into the recording studio. I was wondering “what’s going on?”, but what sokodomo showed us was really good. Turns out, while I was recording, he came up with some ideas and asked if it was okay if he tried it out which I didn’t hear. But what sokodomo came up with was a style that I couldn’t express well. And so right there and then, I cautiously asked if he would be willing to feature in the song, and he agreed without hesitation. That part was so good that I even thought “I can’t be eaten by (overshadowed) sokodomo”. Haha.

HB: In the past, you were a B-boy, and even in GOT7 you received a lot of attention for your dancing. So we were wondering if we would get to see you dance to ’Switch It Up’.

JAY B: You’ll be able to see it through the live clip that will be released at the same time as the single. There are various elements in the live clip. First of all, I tried really hard to make it look cool. I sang live with sokodomo too. I think there’s a lot to see. The dance comes on at the very end. I thought that since I’m a performer, I should dance too. Honestly, at first when I listened to ‘Switch It Up’, I thought it would be kind of hard to dance to it. But even so, I have to dance. Other artists are cool too, but I think Chris Brown is really cool. He dances and sings at the same time really well. Because dance was my beginning, and I gained interest in singing later on and ended up working hard at it, I can’t let go of dance.

HB: Do you have any plans or ideas for the next album you’ll release through H1GHR MUSIC?

JAY B: I think that I have to move quickly. I’ll have to wait and see what I’ll end up with, but for now, I think it’s closer to a chill vibe. ‘Switch It Up’ was chill, but it still had a kind of energy to it. Rather than that, I think it will probably be the kind of music that is suitable to listen to while going for a drive. I want to show music that’s groovier and more sensual as much as possible. But I still don’t know. It’s possible that the company might say “let’s go for pop.” I want to create things together with the company, so I’m open to accommodating their opinions for a couple songs.

HB: You’re also promoting with the name Def. and not Jay B. Why did you come up with the name Def.?

JAY B: Actually, even in the early days of GOT7, I didn’t feel any attachment to the name JB. I felt really strongly that it was a name that someone else came up with. I’m more comfortable with people calling me by my birth name, Jaebeom, too. Of course, I like it now. I wanted to separate Jay B and Def., that’s why they are separated. When I was in JYP, I got permission to release my music on Soundcloud, but I couldn’t release albums separately. So I released all the music that I couldn’t release as JB through Def. For now, I decided I would make music that people could approach more comfortably under the name Jay B, and I would release things that are more to what I want to do through Def. I’m not sure how it will end up in the future though.

HB: Listening to the music under these two names, there is quite a difference. The music you release under the name Def. has more characteristics of the neo soul genre.

JAY B: When I made <1/? Vol. 1>, I liked trap soul, so it contains a lot of that kind of music. After that as well, it mostly is filled with songs that were the style that I liked at the time. If you listen to my mixtape, excluding the intro and outro, there are about 5 songs. While I prepared those songs, I also worked on 15 songs that would be for GOT7 albums at the same time, making about 20 songs at a time. I’d work on GOT7 songs from morning till late night and if I had time, I would then work on my mixtape. That’s why they are songs that I really cherish. People might wonder why I would work so hard, but I thought that as an idol, I have to do my job well so that I can gain autonomy within the company. That’s why I worked hard and pushed myself to my limits.

HB: When will we be able to hear your music as Def.?

JAY B: Firstly, I want to get my name as Jay B out there, and later on I want to use the name Def. again when I can do what I want. Things that are more unusual, alternative, and experimental.

HB: Hearing you talk, we can really feel the love you have for music. You also seem like a realistic person.

JAY B: It’s because I feel that if I stubbornly insist on doing what I want to do and it doesn’t turn out well, I’d get a rough reality check. I’m a cautious person, so if I persist only on what I want and then fail, I’d end up thinking that I just have no aptitude for music, and I thought that is more dangerous. If that happens, I’d feel sorry for the music that I like and I might even think that there was something wrong with the music or genres that I like. People might say that that’s “not real”, but it’s “real” to me. It’s just my way of living.

HB: You’re currently also in the crew ‘ØFFSHORE.’ What kind of crew is it?

JAY B: It’s a place where people who sell songs commercially and people who make their own music gather. It started with the purpose of people with the same interests making fun music together and releasing it. Offshore has the meaning of “shore/coast”. On the shore, there are lots of living things. There are times when the waves crash but also times when it’s calm. Just like my Def. character, I think it’s a place where I can freely include things I’ve never done before. It will carry on in the future too, but we won’t have any eye-catching activities. We’ll just go on calmly.

HB: As you share your stories, we’re getting curious about Jay B as a producer too. Will we be able to hear songs that you produce for other artists someday?

JAY B: When I was in JYP, I’ve sent out songs that the publisher said would not work for GOT7. There were also songs that were selected by other people but could not be used because of my name. Now, I don’t think there will be those sorts of limitations, so I want to try producing for other people too. I don’t have confidence in being responsible for someone or nurturing trainees, though. I’m still busy trying to feed myself. But even so, I’d like to try to produce just one song for someone else. I would have a sort of image about someone, right? An image that they themselves wouldn’t even know. I think the process of trying to bring that out would be fun. Of course, I’m focused on my music now, but it would be nice if I got the chance someday.

HB: Another GOT7 member, Yugyeom, joined AOMG. Fans can’t help but look forward to the reunion of your unit ‘Jus2’.

JAY B: Since Yugyeom is in AOMG, I think that if we talk to Jay hyung, it’s possible that we will release something as Jus2. Jus2 and JJ Project both include Jay B, but they are also units that are part of GOT7. I think that if we work hard at promoting them too, fans would feel a sense of security. I think that from now on is the time when both I, as well as GOT7, have to really do well.

HB: You mentioned that you wanted to release 1 GOT7 album a year.

JAY B: I don’t know whether it will work out, but we have to try and plan for it. I’ve mentioned multiple times that GOT7 has not disbanded. I believe that I should keep my word. Right now, everyone is actually busy working on their own things. Even so, we want to try and make one song for GOT7 a month, so that we can promote about once a year.

HB: You have a strong image as a great leader and hyung in GOT7. What would you like to show as JAY B in H1GHR MUSIC?

JAY B: I would like to hear people say “ah, I guess they did a good job bringing him in”. I hope that when people listen to ’Switch It Up’, they won’t think that “Jay Park made the wrong choice this time”. I think it would be nice if people thought that I was worth anticipating. Not that they brought in some strange kid. I don’t want to get cursed at. Haha.

HB: Do you have a final goal you want to achieve as an artist?

JAY B: I don’t. I just want to keep on steadily and quietly making music. To me, saying that you want to receive some sort of reward or that you want to become something is quite vague. I just hope that I can gain the drive to keep going on steadily and continue that cycle of creation. That’s all.

Translation by @mindellay x @defdaily

May contain slight inaccuracies.

[blushingbaka]

october date hcs

featuring: aran, hinata, kita, and tanaka

✰ a/n: i haven’t had a lot of time to write lately, but i just had to do something including cute october dates, so i whipped these up ! it’s kind of a random compilation of characters, but they’re the ones that just naturally came to me! this was my first time writing hcs, so i haven’t exactly found my style for them... it’s honestly more of a brain dump, but i hope you still enjoy them <3

✰ OJIRO ARAN ✰

⋆ so apparently it’s canon that aran watches old movies and series, so i am fully convinced that he would want to have a night where you two binge classic horror movies !!

⋆ he’s been doing this since forever, so he already has the perfect lineup that he is very stubborn about changing

⋆ he’s all too excited to include you in his little tradition, however, so this boy is fully prepared with popcorn, snacks, hot chocolate, and of course blankets

⋆ even if you’re not really into horror movies, you can’t help but to think it’s worth it when he can’t contain his excited toothy grin as you settle onto the couch

⋆ he starts with his arm draped over your shoulders, but eventually it falls to rest around your waist. he has the habit of absentmindedly rubbing circles into the skin just under the hem of your shirt

⋆ you find yourself watching his face more than the movie. it’s cute how he’s totally engrossed in the movie he must have seen a hundred times, and there’s a small smile that stays on his face the whole night. he gets so into that he forgets all about the popcorn, so you find yourself occasionally feeding him pieces

⋆ if you’re the type to point out the inconsistent plot or the character’s illogical decisions, he’ll immediately shush you and place his finger to your lips, telling you to “just enjoy the movie”

⋆ if you’re actually scared, he’ll smile fondly down at you as you bury your face into his chest and he’ll squeeze your side reassuringly. he’ll be honest and tell you when it’s safe to look back at the screen, and when you lift up your head, he’ll plant a swift kiss on your temple

⋆ you really try to fight it, but you eventually fall asleep. despite falling asleep, you still grip the material of aran’s t-shirt with one hand, which causes his heart to swell with affection. as he looks down at your sleeping form, he can’t help but think how he wants you to be a permanent part of his little tradition

✰ HINATA SHOUYOU ✰

⋆ carving pumpkins !!

⋆ you two had already went on a date to the pumpkin patch to pick out your pumpkins and this boy can not wait any longer to carve it. he whines when you insist on prepping the space with trash bags and such, too excited to get started that he doesn’t care about the aftermath of a mess

⋆ goes in for the pumpkin guts with his b a r e hands, and he tries to persuade you to do the same only saying ‘it feels cool’

⋆ when you finish emptying your pumpkins, you immediately tell him to wash his hands but his teasingly extends them towards you

⋆ “Hinata don’t you dar-“ he does dare. he swipes one hand across your cheek, causing you to scrunch your nose up in disgust. already having one cheek covered with the slimy pulp, you see no reason to not retaliate, so you stick your hand in the bowl you two filled, and throw a piece of pulp in the direction of his face

⋆ your arms end up in a tangled mess as you two continue your cycle of revenge, and the room is filled with your laughter

⋆ after finally calling a truce and cleaning yourselves up, you actually start to carve the pumpkins. It takes forever for hinata to decide what he’s going to do, and your advice of ‘just something scary’ doesn’t work because his immediate answer is kageyama’s face

⋆ he finally settles on a design, but refuses to outline it in pencil first, too eager to start carving. he sticks out his tongue as he focuses on his carving, and you can’t resist placing a kiss on his cheek, which causes pink to dust his cheeks

⋆ he carves with so much exaggerated force, he ends up accidentally cutting off parts he didn’t mean too. looks at you with so much awe when you’re able to reattach them with some toothpicks, and presses an excited kiss to your lips, which causes you to be flustered one

⋆ the night ends with you two cuddled on the couch, his head resting comfortably in your lap as you comb your fingers through his hair.  you can just barely smell the pumpkin seeds you have roasting in the oven, and the room is illuminated by both the television and your jack-o’-lanterns that hinata wanted to keep inside just a little longer

✰ KITA SHINSUKE ✰ 

⋆ kita is more than willing to take you on any type of date you want to go on, but when you mention going to an apple orchard, he can’t hide the glimmer of excitement in his eyes. it’s by far his favorite date to take you on in the fall

⋆ he loves seeing you wrapped up in one of his scarves and placing your conjoined hands in his pocket 

⋆ he’ll whisper little tips to you like how you should pick apples from the outside of the tree if you want the ripest ones. gently scolds you if you just pull the apple away from the tree instead of twisting it upward like he told you. you pretend to not understand so he’s forced to show you by enveloping your hand with his 

⋆ loves how you ask him for his opinion on an apple before you pick it, and you think it’s cute how he inspects every apple again before placing it into your basket

⋆ he gives you frequent kisses on the tip of your nose, and will take breaks where he just holds your two hands in his

⋆ when you have to use the ladder, he always has a reassuring hand on you, ready to steady you if need be

⋆ you pick extra apples to give his grandmother, and fondness fills him when you talk about giving her some of the apple pie you two are planning on making

⋆ when he hears your stomach growl, he’s already looking for the nearest stand selling apple cider and apple cider donuts. he wears a fond smile as he wipes some powder from the corner of your mouth. And when you kiss him, you love the lingering taste of apple cider on his lips. 

✰ TANAKA RYUUNOSUKE ✰

⋆ as soon as september rolled into october, tanaka has talked about taking you to a haunted house, and you can pretty much guess his motives

⋆ he promises you have nothing to be frightened over since you’re with him, and of course you can’t refuse his request

⋆ before you enter, he offers his hand to you, but becomes extremely flustered when you not only grab his hand but also the upper part of his arm, pressing your side to his

⋆ tanaka wasn’t too affected by jump scares and you soon found out why. it was because he was one of those people that sped walked through the experience, peeping around each corner to eliminate the chance for a jump scare

⋆ you chuckled telling him to slow down, which he partly listened to

⋆ gets super defensive when someone pops out on your side, and subconsciously pulls you closer to himself

⋆ he’s that guy that eggs the actors on telling them they’re going to have to do better or that they should go get that fake wound checked out

⋆ when you reach the space containing the guy with the chainsaw, tanaka tenses up, and you thought he was actually scared

⋆ “they must be insane, if they think i’m going to let them chase my s/o” he declares squeezing your hand “i’ll distract them, and you run for it” he tells you squeezing your hand. 

⋆ tanaka is definitely skilled at drawing attention to himself, and it’s easier than you think to run along the side, avoiding being pursued. you turn around just in time to see tanaka sprinting towards you despite the fact the guy has given up on chasing him. you chuckle as he collides with you and urges you to keep on moving. 

⋆ when you reach the end, tanaka lets out an exaggerated sigh saying, “that wasn’t so bad, was it?” you hug him tightly and press a kiss to his lips muttering a “no.” the boy’s cheeks are blazing !

⋆ it’s gotten colder, and when he notices you shivering, he immediately takes off his jacket to give it to you, claiming your kiss gave him all the warmth he needed

[copperpieceharlot]

Bud I’m sorry to swing into your inbox uninvited like this but my soul is having an OOTS renaissance thanks to your content in the tag and did you say Leverage AU

haha holy SHIT this got Long. but yes. i’ve been. Thinking. (also literally Never feel like you have to apologize for sending me messages. i was Hoping someone would ask me about this. now i have an Excuse to share EVERYTHING ive written abt it :3)

Obviously, Roy is the leader/brains of the outfit. He grew up having some Strong Opinions abt what’s Legal versus what’s Right due to tragic backstory involving the death of his little brother which was definitely SOMEONE’S fault for negligence but since there technically wasn’t any illegal behavior, there were no consequences for it. Also he’s still angry at his dad bc he thinks his dad is also partly culpable (and also also just a dick). He’s the Moral Backbone of the team (alongside Durkon, more on that later) in basically the same way Nate was in og Leverage. He’s actually not the best at figuring out what people want (that’s Haley and, shockingly, occasionally Elan), but once he has that info, he is the absolute best at figuring out the ideal plan of attack to use in any given case.

Haley is still a thief. I mean she maps to Parker almost PERFECTLY. Her dad was a thief & a conman, her mom wasn’t but knew about it and mostly accepted it, but she died tragically in a mugging gone wrong or smth, which made Ian crank the paranoia WAY up and taught Haley to do the same in the name of “safety”. Let’s keep the “Ian is in Trouble and Haley needs money, Fast” which is why she signs on to the first job in the first place. She’s less acrobatic than Parker, tending towards finding (or making) weak spots in security, but she can still make a tumble check when she needs to.

Elan is the grifter who is somehow an Idiot but also not???? It baffles everyone. When he’s playing a part for a con, he’s FLAWLESS, but then the rest of the time he’s just. No Thoughts Head Empty. He probably gets lured in initially because he’s decided to try his hand at being part of a full team, rather than the two-man cons he’s been running that invariably end w his partner conning him as well and stealing half of his take. Also he likes the idea of being Crime Friends. He’s that tweet where it’s like, Roy: “after the heist is over, we split up and never communicate again” / Elan: [about to unveil his Crime Buddies Forever Friendship Quilt Puppets]: “never?”

Vaarsuvius is the hacker/gadget person. They have a Vaguely Snobby Yet Unidentifiable accent, dyed(?) purple hair (nobody has ever seen their roots) and nobody knows who they “really” are or where they came from, but they’re good at what they do so everyone just accepts the mystery. They probably got suckered into the team by their initial employer (who I’ll get to Eventually, lol) framing it as a challenge to their intellect, like, “oh, I see, you’re not smart enough to make this team work for you...” to which they were like Fucking Watch Me and also melted his computer. Anyways. They are joined (digitally) by their Intrepid Friend And Co-Conspirator (his words, not theirs), a fellow hacker known only as Blackwing, or, on certain forums, Blackwing_Bird. (In the first season, V only occasionally references him when saying they’re “calling in extra help” or smth for a particularly complex hack job. He starts showing up a little more in s2 and eventually by the start of s4 is a regular & established presence, but only appears as actions in a computer interface or output.) Elan is convinced he’s an AI, Belkar doesn’t think he actually exists, Haley pretends she doesn’t think he exists, and Durkon and Roy try not to think about it too hard, as long as B and V still get the job done.

Belkar is the hitter. He is on the team bc their initial employer got him out of jail for it. He doesn’t have a tragic backstory, he just likes doing violent crimes. As the series progresses, he grows some empathy & stuff, but really only for people who actually deserve it. Assholes still get decked. It’s all very touching. (Also he has dwarfism caused by achondroplasia. It doesn’t actually bother him and is useful in fights bc his opponents frequently have no fucking clue how to approach him, but he likes Pretending to take offense at stupid things just to see how far he can go with it.)

Aaaand last but not least, Durkon is the least involved member of the team. He’s actually a career criminal and Roy’s mentor, and wasn’t a member of the initial team that [redacted, I’ll tell you later, PROMISE] put together for a couple of reasons, the main one being that he’s Officially retired in order to spend more time with his family, which consists of his mom, his friend (not girlfriend) Hilgya, baby Kudzu, and a truly stunning number of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Roy frequently calls or visits him for advice and he Occasionally shows up to help out on local jobs, but generally he avoids doing crime if he can (as part of a deal with Hilgya, who is also a career criminal; basically, they’ve both cut back on the crime in order to provide a more stable home environment for Kudzu. But sometimes, you gotta do a little crime, and in those cases, Sigdi enjoys spending time w her grandson.)

NOW. THE BIG REVEAL YOU’VE BEEN WAITING FOR. Who got the team together in the first place?!

The answer: Lord Shojo (or whatever Normal Person Name you want to assign him). Now this is where it gets tricky: he had them do a thing that they thought was good, THEN they thought it was BAD, but then when they confronted him he revealed that it Appearing to be bad was actually a test of character and would they consider working as basically internal investigators for him? But then he had a heart attack, so, rip. But THEN it turned out that he’d left them a bunch of money anyway and they were all feeling kind of Inspired so they formed the Order of the Stick, LLC (which, no, i am not coming up with a new name, actually, because I just don’t care. someone else can come up w a justification for that name, tho, i’m sure it’s possible). Also Miko was there and was unhappy abt their actions, and also their general existence.

Moving on. Villains!

Redcloak is the Sterling replacement, because that DEEPLY amuses me.

Xykon is a season-long main villain, probably one that Redcloak finds himself working for but then “teams up with” (read: blackmails) the Order to bring him down bc even Redcloak finds Xykon distasteful. That’s season 3, let’s say.

Tarquin is another season villain, say season 2. Nale probably shows up pretty early in s1, actually, as another recurring antagonist like Sterling but uh. Less good at it. Anyways the s2 final 3 eps deal with them (accidentally) discovering that Tarquin runs some Evil Empire Company, then trying to outplay him and take him down. Idk if Nale still dies in this version tbh.

Tsukiko is a one-off s1 villain who returns briefly in s4 alongside Miko, who has gone well and truly off the rails.

Season 1 finale has to do w Roy finally getting Vengeance for his little brother.

The vampire squad is the s4 finale villain who do smth terrible to Durkon and then get the Mother Of All Revenge served up to them by the Order.

I envision the show as being 5 seasons (like og Leverage) but I’m not going to sketch out s5 because I think it should be based off whatever happens in the current story arc, possibly involving some legacy of the OotSquiggle.

Other stuff!

The Order of the Squiggle is a legendary criminal team from the 60s who stole a BUNCH of famous shit & then proceeded to legendarily implode. This has no bearing on the plot I’ve sketched out, I just think it’s fun.

The Sapphire Guard members should probably be reworked as FBI. I don’t care about most of them but I do think that Lien and O-Chul could be like, FBI agents who Choose to look the other way while the Order does their very-much-not-legal-but-still-fair Justice Crime, and maybe even help them out on occasion.

So, the Final season-by-season outline, based on everything I’ve written so far:

s1 e1: getting the team together, doing a con for Shojo, then at the end he dies and the gang is like “dang what now?" and intend to split up except then they Don’t.

mid-s1: Nale shows up and tries to trick the Order, but then gets beat like a drum.

late s1: Tsukiko is an underling of the Villain Of The Week, winds up in police custody. But She’ll Be Back.

s1 finale: Roy’s Vengeance: The Vengeaning. also we meet Redcloak as an antagonist.

s2 e1: the truth abt Haley’s father comes out

early s2: The Two Live Crews Job but it’s the Order vs the Linear Guild and the Linear Guild ARE all bad guys.

mid-s2: Redcloak returns. ugh.

late s2: the sapphire guard FBI makes its first appearance, hello O-Chul and Lien.

s2 pre-finale: once again they’re in conflict w Nale over smth, he spends the whole episodes making Cryptic Remarks, they basically beat him (like a drum!) but then the stinger at the end is that Tarquin reveals himself and Elan is like “Dad?!”, roll credits.

s2 finale, part 1: Elan is hanging out w Tarquin bc he’s DEEP in Denial, the Rest of the team tries to take Tarquin down, but it doesn’t work.

s2 finale, part 2: Elan finally gets a clue and they manage to beat Tarquin. still haven’t decided if Nale dies or not, but I’m leaning towards yes. also they rescue Haley’s dad.

s3 e1: fuck dude idk.

early s3: Redcloak shows up, AGAIN, everyone groans. he has blackmail on them, he wants them to take Xykon down.

mid s3: The Rashomon Job but it’s about stealing the Talisman of Dorukan and it turns out that Nale was there too (“oh!” Elan says. “I was wondering why I looked so weird in all those mirrors! But it wasn’t my reflection, it was Nale’s!” “Sweetie, that wasn’t Nale’s reflection,” says Haley. “Huh,” says Elan, “so the mirrors were broken?”, cue eye rolling from everyone else.), and the Successful thief was Hilgya, who’d nabbed it from the owner before it even went on display.

s3 finale: they beat Xykon, actually factually, because he deserves to get his ass Thoroughly kicked, even if only in AU form. Lien and O-Chul are there, so are some other less helpful FBI people. There’s a bit where O-Chul Exact Wordses his way out of telling his superiors about the Order’s less legal activities without technically lying. King shit.

s4 e1: doesn’t really matter. maybe smth to do w some legacy of Tarquin’s company to set up the drama w Malack & Durkon later.

early s4: Durkon gets SENT TO PRISON. Malack approaches the Order abt this because sure they have Different Ethics but they’re still Friends. (Roy is surprised and a little hurt that he’s never heard of Malack, but he ignores that in favor of Let’s Get Whatever Fuckers Did This To Our Friend.)

immediately after that: Miko and Tsukiko return as a Team, preventing the Order from working on the Durkon situation

mid s4: Redcloak makes another unexpected & unwelcome appearance but he’s maybe a little less of a dick? the Order collaborates with Malack & his Crime Buddies (hello, Vector Legion) to pull one over on him tho, because “less of a dick” does not mean “a pleasant or decent person”, and also he was mean abt Durkon being in jail, so he totally deserved it. he still gets whatever he wanted tho, just takes a blow to his pride. also prevents the Order from helping Durkon. they’re having a LOT of setbacks wonder why that could be, not to make sure the season fills its whole length or anything, no sirree

s4 finale: something something taking down the organization, headed by Hel (yes that’s her real name), which framed Durkon for their Big Crime. Durkon goes free and Extra Firmly retires, For Good, He Swears, but says he “met someone new” who might be an asset.

s5 e1: minrah joins the team! and the episode is set in like, somewhere really snowy. that’s all i got.

the rest of s5: don’t know, don’t care, it’s open-ended until the comic finishes up.

[padawanlost]

I still, up until this day, have no idea why the council held such a personal dislike towards anakin. Aside from the “he’s too young” or “he feels too deeply.” Didn’t anakin try to follow the rules? Unpopular opinion, but the fandom tends to drag how Anakin was the embodiment of rebellious and recklessness at every turn but... he’s really not?

The Council’s behavior around Anakin had NOTHING to do with who he was as a person. Just like Obi-wan’s ‘pathetic life-form’ dismiss, the Council’s rejection of Anakin happened before they even knew what he was. People use Yoda’s ‘fear is the path to dark side’ speech to validate de Council’s decision but the truth is that they had already dismissed Anakin before that. and even if they hadn’t, it baffles me how some people have no trouble with how a 9 years old child was treated. Anyone who looks at 9 years old and gives up on them because ‘they don’t like a good person’ or that they are ‘beyond helping’ is an asshole. The audience may know, but at that point not a single character knew what would become of Anakin. 

Like Anakin, I was well past infancy when I began my training at the Jedi Temple. There was much concern about whether I was too old to learn the ways of the Force, that my Cerean childhood might cloud my judgments, but … I am not certain of how to express myself. My mind tells me I should feel empathy for Anakin, but my instinct tells me something else. [Ki-Adi-Mundi in Ryder’s Windham’s Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force]

What disturbs me most of all is Anakin Skywalker himself. It is not in my nature to make assumptions about anyone based on appearance, and yet I find it almost alarming that the boy looks so entirely unremarkable. If I didn’t know better, I would have dismissed him as a harmless raga-muffin. [Ki-Adi-Mundi in Ryder’s Windham’s Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force]

This is cruel. A raga-muffin is defined as ‘a poorly clothed often dirty child’. They recognize Anakin’s extreme situation, they know he was a former slavery who had just been separated from his mother but their reaction is: ‘I don’t trust him’. a bunch of grown men treat a poor, traumatized child coldly because they don’t trust HIM. Is that the wisdom I am supposed to blindly admire and defend? The one that dismiss everyone who doesn’t fit in? No, thanks.

There was no sympathy for Anakin.

Inside, Anakin Skywalker faced the Jedi Council, standing in the same place Qui-Gon Jinn had stood some hours earlier. He was nervous at first, brought into the chamber by Qui-Gon, then left alone with the twelve members of the Council. Standing in the mosaic circle and ringed by the silent assemblage, awestruck and uncertain of what was expected of him, he felt vulnerable and exposed. The eyes of the Jedi were distant as they viewed him, but he sensed they were looking not past him, but inside. They began to question him then, without preliminary introductions or explanations, without expending any effort at all to make him feel comfortable or welcome. He knew some of them by name, for Qui-Gon had described a few, and he was quick to put faces to names. They questioned him at great length, testing memory and knowledge, seeking insights at which he could only guess. They knew of his existence as a slave. They knew of his background on Tatooine, of his mother and his friends, of his Podracing, of Watto, of everything factual and past, of the order of his life.  [Terry Brooks. The Phantom Menace]

And yet, Anakin tried so hard to fit in. This super rebellious, ‘fuck you, council’ Anakin the fandom uses to justify the Council’s behavior only exists in the clones wars (2008). Yes, Anakin have always broken rules and had difficulties acting as the perfect Jedi but he never openly defied the Council. If you watch the movies it becomes obvious that Anakin always submitted to them (even when he didn’t like). His greatest defiance (his marriage to Padmé) shouldn’t count as justification for the Council’s behavior because they found out the truth. 

Anakin was submissive. The only time openly challenged the Council to the their face was when they denied the rank of Master and we we all know how that short-lived:

Most of the time, Anakin was really insecure. When he was growing up he desperately needed Obi-wan’s approval. Later he needed Padmé’s support to go after Shmi and later Obi-wan. 

[Padmé] put the cup down on the small table beside her. “Even though you’re concerned for Anakin—and I know you are, so don’t bother with the stoic-Jedi act—I imagine you’re not very pleased with him right now. But you should know, Obi-Wan, he did not disobey his orders lightly.” Startled, he stared at her. Then he pulled a wry face. “Which time do you mean? When he left Naboo for Tatooine, or Tatooine for Geonosis?” “Both times. Obi-Wan, no matter what you might think, he takes being a Jedi very seriously. It’s all he talks about. Being a Jedi, and not disappointing you. He—” [Karen Miller. Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Wild Space]

He was the Chosen One, they told him. He was supposed to bring balance to the Force. Anakin thought that some little extra support might go with being the Chosen One, a helping hand or at least some understanding from the Jedi Council, but instead he was passed around like an unwelcome burden, ending up with Qui-Gon Jinn and then Kenobi because nobody else would have him. His chosen status meant less than nothing; it felt more like a stigma. And they wondered why he was difficult at times. Maybe they didn’t want balance, whatever that was. Maybe nobody liked a Jedi who was that different. He felt like an embarrassment to them. I do everything you ask of me. I try so hard. When is it going to be enough? When are you going to say, “Okay, Anakin Skywalker, you’re good enough”? Karen Traviss’s The Clone Wars

And even if he hadn’t been, NOTHING justifies the treatment he got as a little child because you cannot use something that didn’t happen as a reason. In real life, if someone mistreats a kid because they fear the kid might grow up to be a criminal it would be considered abuse. But because it’s Anakin – the butt of every joke – the cold treatment Anakin receives as child is somehow a beautiful example of the Council’s compassion and forethought. 

It’s kind of funny. I mean, if the Council was right to treat a 9 years with disdain because the kid was going to grow up to be evil I wonder how fans justify Yoda admiring Papatine – an actual Sith Lord – for years?

The Jedi were sworn to uphold the Republic and protect its ideals, not entangle themselves in the fortunes of any one Chancellor. Political careers were not their affair. Personalities were supposed to be irrelevant. But somehow Palpatine was changing that. Not by being a bully or imposing his will. Quite the opposite: he was constantly resisting the Senate’s eagerness for him to assume more and more executive powers. He resisted, the Senate insisted, so reluctantly Palpatine agreed. And every time he acquiesced to its requests, he turned once more to the Jedi for advice. It was hardly an ideal situation. The Jedi Council was not just another branch of the executive office. But how, in good conscience, could it refuse to aid a man who so humbly petitioned for their assistance? A man who championed them in the Senate at every opportunity? Who had worked tirelessly for peace since assuming the highest political office in the galaxy and was now faced with the daunting, terrifying task of keeping their vast Republic intact? How could the Jedi Council turn its back on such a man? Clearly, it couldn’t. Clearly, in the face of these extraordinary times, the Jedi must set aside their traditions and come to the aid of the man a galaxy looked to as its savior. [Karen Miller. Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Wild Space]

Somehow, I guess it’s okay to treat 9 years old Anakin poorly because he *might* be evil at the same it’s also okay to treat a sith lord with the uttermost respect and bending the rules to accommodate him because he *is* evil but they don’t know it yet ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

So, this is not just about Anakin and how the fandom has a lot of trouble sympathizing with him. This is also about how the fandom fails to recognize the Council’s shortcomings.

Not to quote Filoni again but...”I’ve always felt that one of Anakin’s downfalls, like it’s never that Anakin was innately going to be evil, but the people around him, the Jedi, in their lack of compassion, in being so selfless that they almost forgot to care.” 

[plasticnightmaredoll]

(art commission by the lovely and talented @curious-menace)

It is a time where I would like to see what my followers think about various concepts I have in mind pertaining to alternate versions of one my fics. It may take some time to write out any alternate versions since I've been busy and stressed out so much lately, but I am very curious as to what others would find intriguing to read.

But first, some backstory so be patient. We'll get to the voting at the end of this post.

I've been having a lot of bad days lately, and my mood has plummeted to a major low. This includes my self-esteem, which has always been in the dumps but is now basically a dumpster fire.

However, I don't want to be entirely cruel to myself. I deserve some sort of happiness, some sort of reprieve, and writing can be a good coping mechanism. I put a lot of my own thoughts, emotions, struggles, opinions, etc. into my works, as they serve as a way for me to get things off my chest. Sometimes, it's just cute and funny stuff, other times angsty but eventually fluffy stuff, and other times it's quite depressing and dark.

One fic, in particular, stands out, and that is the Mortal Kombat/Batman Arkhamverse crossover, "Volunteer," (trigger warnings: mentions psychological torture and suicide...more about this fic in a bit for those who would rather not read it because of those triggers) which features Arkham Knight Edward Nigma and Jonathan Crane, as well as a lady friend for Edward named Sara. It also features Erron Black and Cassie Cage from Mortal Kombat (Cassie is only mentioned in the story a few times).

If you read the blog intro/self-introduction post pinned at the top of my Tumblr, you know very well how I feel about Cassie Cage (particularly in MK11) and the Erron Black x Cassie Cage (BlackCage) pairing. Those negative feelings are mostly due to a very bad experience with a pushy BlackCage fan who just wouldn't relent one bit on their stance and it was emotionally and mentally draining to try and talk to them, including providing counter-arguments.

I've come up with alternate versions for "Volunteer" recently due to the spike in stress, depression, anxiety, and insecurities I've been dealing with as of late. This is where my followers come in!

I would like people to vote on which alternate take on "Volunteer" they would be interested in reading. Now, I can't guarantee when I'd get to it because, as I mentioned already, I've got a lot going on. However, I really want to try and write at least one alternate version of that fic, just to get some insecurities and negative thoughts off my chest.

Now, for those who are wary of reading "Volunteer" because of the trigger warnings, here's my advice: Just read the first chapter, if you want to. Chapter 2 deals directly with the sensitive subject matter, although, you can probably guess what happens anyway just by reading Chapter 1 and if you know anything about Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow...well, he likes to mess with people...mentally. To put it very mildly.

Now it's time for the voting. I have three different scenarios I've come up with that are variations/alternate versions of the current "Volunteer" fic's concept/storyline. I'd like followers to select 1 (one) alternate telling of the fic. I will open anonymous asks again, so if you are shy or just want your vote to remain a secret for some other reason, then that's fine by me. Otherwise, you can reply to this post with your choice.

Edit: if you are turned off by the idea of a Mortal Kombat/Batman Arkhamverse crossover, I get it. I don't read crossover fics myself, and that's usually because the crossovers either make no sense or do make sense but the ideas are poorly executed.

This crossover I'm talking about, though, isn't a full-on crossover of MK and Batman. There's no world-building, no larger plot, and no other characters in MK even appear or are mentioned except Erron Black and Cassie Cage.

If anything, it's more of a Batman Arkhamverse standard AU with Riddler and a female oc, and Erron and Cassie are the only concrete elements of MK brought in. I mean, yes, the other MK characters exist, I guess, but they have no purpose in this crossover I've written, and won't make any appearances.

So, if you had any concerns about the crossover aspect, I hope this clears things up

Choices below the cut!

A) "Don't You Wish"

This version is inspired by a song from Pink, called, "There You Go." In this alternate telling, Erron manages to survive Scarecrow's fear toxin, and escape (most likely because Erron is out of his mind and panicking, thus not a threat, and he has no one to help him, so Scarecrow doesn't give a damn what happens to the dude). The first thing Erron does is go to Sara's place, having already broken up with Cassie after realizing dating her was a mistake, and Sara means more to him than he thought.

Well, it's been several months since Sara basically pushed Erron out of her life for his poor choice in women, and (Arkham Knight) Edward Nigma has proven to be a much better (and, wiser and more sensible -- yes, I know, but he's not a skirt chaser, Guys) friend to Sara. While Erron ran off with a blonde selfie princess, Edward offered genuine comfort and companionship, and now Sara has been in the process of moving on from Erron even further.

Sara humors Erron and lets him tell her -- while sounding terrified, confused, and conflicted beyond belief thanks to the fear toxin -- what happened to him. Now, Sara doesn't know Edward asked Scarecrow to take care of Erron as a means of getting revenge for her. Doesn't matter anyway. She's unsympathetic towards Erron's plight, feeling as if he didn't even give her a chance to confess her feelings towards him, nor did he even seem to notice how she felt; it was like he was too busy with thinking with his privates to realize he had someone in front of him who would have treated him better.

Sara tells Erron -- in a flat, disinterested tone -- that his situation is tragic and all but wtf is she supposed to do? Why not go to his dumb blonde gf? Oh, they broke up? Well, how predictable. And Crane is also a (sort of) friend to Sara, which shocks Erron and leaves him feeling worse than before.

Sara sends Erron on his way, and he wanders off in a daze, unsure of what to do with his life now.

Sara and Edward meet the next day, and they have a pleasant time, obviously moving towards becoming a couple. She chooses not to mention Erron as she is completely severing the cowboy from her life.

B) "I Don't Even Miss You"

This alternate telling is similar to the previous one, but this time it's inspired by a Miley Cyrus song, "WTF Do I Know" (Hey, her Plastic Hearts album is actually fantastic!), and Edward is with Sara when Erron arrives at her place in a distressed state. At first, Sara deals with Erron in the hall of her apartment building, unsympathetic to his plight and basically telling him, "I told you so," and "too bad." Erron is getting more and more upset, even angry at Sara's callous tone, and starts to raise his voice, demanding to know why she is being so cold at a time like this?

Edward overhears Erron raising his voice to Sara, giving her a difficult time, and he gets pissed. Edward steps out into the hall and not only mocks Erron in various ways, but demands that he leave immediately, or what Scarecrow did will seem like a trip to Disney Land. Erron has caused Sara -- who is currently moving on and growing closer to Edward -- enough problems and heartache.

Edward reveals he set up Erron, and while Sara is stunned to find this out, she handles it better than expected. Edward said it was his way of getting revenge for her, and he'd do it again if need be. Erron is sent away feeling so much worse, feeling lost, hopeless, and betrayed.

Sara and Edward talk and she admits she's upset that he did something like this without speaking about it to her first. However, he explains that he genuinely did it for her and he doesn't want her to feel pain at the hands of some "idiotic cowman," who doesn't consider the feelings of others and who behaves like a greedy, violent Neanderthal. (And yes, Edward does care for Sara, and he didn't send Scarecrow after Erron out of jealousy -- maybe a little jealousy but it was mostly rage over Erron causing Sara so much emotional pain)

Sara means more to Edward than he can express, and he may not be the best when it comes to emotions, but he does care about her and wants her to be safe.

Sara forgives Edward, understanding that, through his heartfelt but very nervous and shy confession that he is sincere about his feelings for her, and they make amends. She of course tells him to never do something so extreme without consulting her first, though, because what happened to Erron -- while she doesn't care what happens to him in the slightest -- was a bit too much.

C) "Listen When the Devil's Calling"

Another title inspired by a Miley Cyrus song, "Night Crawling," and this alternate telling involves Telltale Riddler and no Scarecrow. Almost a year has passed since Erron went with Cassie and Sara, out of bitterness and heartache, refused to speak or see him. This didn't sit well with him as she was his only friend, and his relationship with Cassie dies within a few months.

He goes looking for Sara, realizing she has moved out of her apartment. It doesn't take him long to find out where she is, and she's with The Riddler, a notorious criminal genius and one of Gotham's elite villains. Erron is worried for Sara and seeks her out.

Turns out, Sara's just fine. This isn't one of those scenarios where the girl is with a guy who just using her and taking advantage of her vulnerability. No, Edward does actually love her and takes good care of her. He finds people like reckless, selfish, and ignorant people like Erron to be a disgrace but also amusing because of how pathetically primitive they are.

Edward also doesn't appreciate how Erron pushed aside a good thing in Sara to pursue a girl who is a social media brat and has more selfies on her phone than brain cells in her, well, brain. It defies all logic to Edward, but he's also not surprised because of how much of a disappointment Erron is as a human being (hey, this is Riddler we're talking about, and he's not one to be sweet and gentle to those he can't stand). Edward doesn't say these things out loud, though, as it's a bit too vulnerable and personal for him to do such a thing with someone he doesn't know or trust.

Sara is upset that Erron has resurfaced and she remembers how heartbroken she was when he went after Cassie Cage. She wants Erron to leave her alone like she asked, so she can move on. She can't trust him anymore, because he's just a skirt chaser in her eyes.

Erron tries to plead his case, tries to apologize to Sara, and expresses how he really feels, but this just distresses her further. Edward steps in and tells Erron he's done enough to Sara, she clearly doesn't want to see him, and he needs to take his leave.

This isn't a request.

Edward pulls Erron aside, telling the cowboy that the only reason he's going to walk away from this alive is that Sara hasn't asked for him to be killed. Should she tell Edward to take care of Erron, well, you all know what Telltale Riddler is like.

And those are the three variations on "Volunteer."

If you could be so kind as to:

leave a comment with your choice or

send an ask (even an anon ask) with your choice or

suggest your take on this story.

I'd appreciate it immensely!

Thank you all so much for supporting me and my writing and being patient with my sluggish publishing schedule!

[rainbowsky]

Final round-up of fan fic asks

I've gotten a few more interesting responses to the fan fic discussion so I'm going to round them all up here. This will be my final post on the topic until/unless there's a dramatic new development, or a particularly notable response I want to highlight. Thanks to everyone who brought their thoughts and experiences to the topic. I hope everyone at least feels heard.

The biggest piece of advice that I would like to offer is for everyone to focus on what they love rather than what they hate. If we all did that, the world would be a better place. Alongside that, I'd like to remind everyone to please support authors whose work you like. It's so important. Give them a kudos, give them a nice comment, recommend their work to others. You never know what kind of grief and harassment they are dealing with to bring you these great stories, and our support means a lot.

This is in reference to previous posts here and here.

Anonymous asked:

With regard to fandom and fan fic issue, my years of experience being part of very large fandoms has led me to believe that big accounts are v important in facilitating and enforcing the general consensus of the whole fandom. Unless there will be big accs who'll remind everyone of being respectful & just not being a dick over other's preferences, nothing will change.

This is also the reason why I think certain solo fandoms have adapted weird and twisted narratives as their general fandom story because no big acc has tried to police them & and say hey pls be rational. Whether we like it or not, in a place where how far voices, ideas, tweets, posts get heard is based on the number of followers you have, big accs will have the power and influence in creating/curating/shifting the narratives.

So, if you want to know why your/our fandom thinks like this in general, look at what big accs are tweeting/posting, look at what ideas & values they follow, look at their preferences or how strongly they react to certain situations. it's taxing and toxic for big accs given the nature of social media these days, but it's also the reality of system, the more followers/audience you have, the more influence you will have.

So to anyone reading this I hope we all practice more restraint and reflection before we post anything. Remember that words, no matter what medium you write it in, will always carry weight.

So true. It is easy - even for myself who spends a fair chunk of time answering people's asks - to forget that people can sometimes be impressionable and what we say can influence people whether that's our intent or not. I get used to thinking of myself as a regular guy just doing my own thing when sometimes my thoughts and words go well beyond where I initially posted them.

I think it's important for us to be careful what we say, and it's equally important to be careful what we take from what other people say. Especially when it comes to big claims. Always get a second, third, fourth opinion and don't be afraid to ask for clarification if something doesn't sit right or sounds confusing.

It's also important to reflect on how our words and actions might affect other people's experience of fandom, and err on the side of 'live and let live' wherever possible. It's great to have our own preferences and to champion them, but we should try to do so in a way that leaves space for other people and perspectives.

The more unique perspectives and the more friendly, open dialog there is, the healthier the community will be as a whole.

There's nothing wrong with encouraging and guiding growth in the particular areas we are interested in, as long as it doesn't step on, oppress or attack those who are peacefully enjoying something different.

Anonymous 2 asked: bjyx fans attacking gdgdbaby for including zsww/lsfy dynamics in an event named bjyx then turning right around and attacking the zsww/lsfy event organizer for excluding bjyx? god, can you hear my facepalm and sigh of resignation and incredulity from over there? im genuinely not surprised that they're trying to drive an entire part of the fandom out by disgusting them (and me) with these immature tactics. i believe what im about to say next will sound quite bait-y and i respect your decision 1/?

should you choose not to post this. but i do know that it is not only me, in fact there are many out there, that is of this opinion. we just dont talk about it on twitter to avoid the potential mess it will bring lol. okay, here goes nothing. (do note that im talking about the majority here, not every single person is like this) so bjyx fans tend to be cishet females whereas zsww/lsfy fans are more diverse in terms of age and gender, and most of them are part of the queer community too 2/?

i would like to clarify that most of these zsww/lsfy fans are not dynamic exclusive (in the sense that they are friendly and interact with all ggdd fans) they just prefer to "identify" themselves as zsww/lsfy fans (on twitter specifically) just to form a distinction from bjyx fans who mostly are dynamic exclusive (as in; they do not consume non-bjyx content, and straightup refuse to interact with non-bjyx fans, often blocking them). as a result, id say that the zsww/lsfy communiy is way more 3/?

mature and respectful (after all, they're mostly queer people talking about a queer ship) whereas many problems in this fandom, such as the homophobia, adamantly insisting on "drawing lines" between dynamics, stem from the bjyx exclusive fans, comprised of cishet females who "may not know better". so, it is of no surprise to me that they're resorting to these immature tactics of calling gg unsavory names, and organizing retaliatory events with controversial topics in an attempt to "purify". 4/4

I trust that you have arrived at that theory through your own experience and observation. I haven't personally spent much time immersed in this stuff so I can't claim to have any real insight or expertise. If you say that's your experience of it, then at the very least that's how you've seen things up to this point.

I just want to say that I think we should always be careful about making assumptions about people's age, gender/gender identity, etc.

There are plenty of good reasons to avoid doing that; because those assumptions could be very wrong, because those assumptions are often laced with ageism, sexism, etc., because those assumptions - even when correct - might not be an accurate basis for the conclusions we draw.

But the primary reason I recommend avoiding those type of assumptions is because anything that enables us to clump a group of people together in our minds like that will tend to make them easier to demonize and dehumanize. They are no longer individuals who are each responsible for their own unique perspectives, they are now 'the X group' who is known for 'A B C series of easily attackable ideas or behaviors'.

If we attribute undesirable traits and behaviors to a group of people we feel opposed to in some way, that makes us feel more righteous and justified in behaving unfairly toward them, dismissing their humanity and warring with them. It's just risky behavior to engage in, even when it's well-intentioned.

There might actually be some truth to what you're saying. It could very well be that most of these people are young, inexperienced, heteronormative, etc. but if that's the case then we should try to use those traits to better understand and empathize rather than to better dismiss and discredit.

Just my two cents on that.

It can be really frustrating dealing with what feels like other people attacking us, trying to oppress us, etc. - especially when there are more of them than there are of us. In my experience the best solutions to that sort of problem are generally the ones that focus on what we are doing and want to do rather than what they are doing that we don't want them to do.

As I am always preaching, we can't control what other people say, do or think. The only thing we have any control over is what we say, do and think (and how we respond to what they say, do and think).

I have found in my experience that the moment I step out of a conflict mindset and instead step into a problem-solving mindset, everything starts to come together. I feel better, my outlook is more positive, I can begin to see solutions and allies rather than problems and enemies, and most of all, I become more focused on what I am doing than what others are doing.

So I would recommend everyone who is invested in resolving these conflicts focus on that. "How can we best showcase and encourage the types of stories we enjoy?" instead of "How can we stop these other people from doing things we dislike?"

Anonymous 3 asked:

Hello again! It’s anon #3 from the fanfic post. I really do appreciate reading your thoughts on various issues like this, so thank you for always taking time to write in depth. As for supporting without going to war, the simplest way has always been to just show appreciation for the creators, hype them up. Kudos are the easiest way on ao3 but comments in addition are great. This goes for all content—art, fics, vids..etc. Creators love to see and read how people react to their content. Sharing is also great, fic recs are very helpful, just be cautious with art and reposting though. Hope this helps a bit!

Thanks so much, Anon. I think this is excellent advice. And it's true that appreciation is great, but helping to expand the audience is also great. Recommending stories, pointing people to the pages/websites of artists we like (as opposed to reposting), sharing our own ideas and approaches, encouraging people to try new things... all of this helps build healthier communities.

And here's another one: WRITE! DRAW! CREATE!

I urge anyone with creative interests or talents to bring their voices to the community because we all can benefit from hearing from you.

Thanks again everyone for sharing your thoughts on this issue. I hope that over time we can all work in positive ways to improve the situation.

I think this subject has been well-covered now so I'm going to retire it for the time being. If anyone still feels they want to discuss it further please feel free to message me privately. Thanks.