#I don't tend to go in for shipping all that much in general truth be told - it's just not where my interests lie

[saints-who-never-existed]

what is (or are) your favorite terror ship(s)?

(pairings not the sailing vessels, tho if you have opinions on those i’d also be happy to hear them lol)

Ooh fun! :)

Slightly niche perhaps but one of my enduring favourites is actually Gore/Little.

I just really love the idea of Golden-Boy Man-of-Action Gore discovering that he rather likes being bossed around/dominated/treated like the pretty little princess he is.

And I'm equally enamoured with the notion of sweet Nedward finding that he enjoys getting to be powerful/assertive/just a bit of a sadistic wee bastard for once. ;)

[thechekhov]

Dungeon Meshi Quick Reacts: CH45

Slumber party!

Fair, but consider: She deserves a little murder. As a treat.

Kabru be like "IS THAT MY BACKSTORY???"

That sure is....a ship. With no one on it.

Ah, shit the Americans are here.

Two things: Toshiro being tended to like a pretty pretty princess is hilarious.

And also, the fact that they think the elves can kill Falin......... hmmm.... Pressing X to doubt.

............... oh. Laios. 😂

But also like. How was he MEANT to keep it silent? Put a little something in it? I thought since it was a magic bell you could code it to only ring when it's shaken with INTENT?

Fancy ass house.

Also, Namari...........are you hitting that yet? Both of that?

Oh, it's backstory time.

Okay one: that's fucking tragic, it sounds like the Elves are just forcing the dungeons closed with no regard for how the ecosystem compensates and what people suffer by being in close proximity......

And another thing: Kabru. Kabru, isn't that what YOU'RE after? Having all the power?

Why is this so much like that one meme where the girls at the party are looking at you.

It's the same picture.

Kabru that's. That's maybe not the way to go about it. you're going to give them MORE reasons to go in.

Nevermind the governor not being into this 'good boy, now sign' talk, Toshiro's kinda right. Ya fucked up Kabru.

No matter how far Laios runs, he cannot escape other people trying to tell him how to live his life. Poor guy. But at the same time...

Is this real? Or a red herring?

Laios' father and mother seemed to be living relatively pious lives. They clearly had a good house, but it didn't seem like they were extremely rich. Then again, perhaps he's just a cousin of royalty? Is that why his parents wanted him to have children?

They want to.... halt the growth of the dungeon? Is this another part of the natural ecosystem of things? Dungeons growing seems to point even more towards the idea that it's a gigantic, fleshpit-like creature instead of simply a construct.

Then again, constructs CAN be creatures. Like the golems.

Elves not understanding how old humans are continues to be hilarious because like.

As humans, we HAVE this same concept of variant aging. Like. Dogs. We understand that dogs live less than us, and mature a lot slower. But this is.... COMMON KNOWLEDGE. Most people do not make it into adulthood without understanding that dogs mature within 1-2 years of their birth.

The fact that elves, a species with FAR more time on their hands, who have lived alongside other races for AGES....... have STILL not got the general concept of aging down....means their education is atrocious. Or they're all not paying attention.

.......this. THIS is the most fascinating concept in this chapter.

The fallen.... turned into MONSTERS.

We know that dying inside the dungeon doesn't mean permanent death. But dying above-ground does.

We know that dying in the dungeon doesn't mean your body turns into a monster (aside from ghosts and ghouls?) ..... but dying aboveground.... DOES......?

WHAT'S THE TRUTH.

👁👁

Hm.

If Kabru and Laios fused, they could almost make one functioning human being.

Senshi just beginning to speak in the middle of his own internal monologue is so real.

...... what's going on there with the expression, buddy?

Bread.......are they STILL carrying around flour with them?! How are they getting bread?!

Also, it's awesome that the eggs are canonically hard to crack, because it makes sense that they don't break during their many fighting events.

Izutsumi really said ◉_◉

Don't tell me Laios, who is sensitive to ghosts has ALSO been seeing things?

Not gonna lie, that's highkey terrifying.

Props to that ghost that's been following Laios around, not ever giving up hope that it can bother him into acknowledging it.

And also - hey, it already saved them once! that means it's probably not evil!

That, or it's the king of the bloody dungeon. Wouldn't that be something!

[aihoshiino]

Atp i would like to see how ruby and aqua's relarionship will go. Not in "Yasss incest!" way but more of how they (mostly ruby) realize that they need to go their past lives and accept their relation as siblings. Or at least how wrong it is even if ruby wants it so much. There is no way incest would happen because Aka hates it. I am more interested in their psychological state and their conflict and resolving that conflict.

I don't think we can definitely say Akasaka Loves or Hates XYZ just because none of us know him, but there is a weird sense of like... discomfort or maybe avoidance on the topic of incest in OnK that I find kind of interesting to just poke at in my head sometimes. Because like, one of my main issues with the way OnK has handled the incest since 123 is that it just... well, hasn't.

I know that sounds insane in a post 143 world but going through the way the AquRuby stuff (or lbr just Ruby) has been written since 123, it feels like there's a very clear distinction between the ideas of "Ruby having feelings for Aqua, her brother" and "Ruby (& Sarina through her) having feelings for Goro, her doctor". When the story wants to play AquRuby for laughs, it leans into Ruby being attracted to her brother. When it actually takes things seriously, the framing is almost always Ruby addressing Gorou and the concept of incest is so loudly, conspicuously absent. You can even sort of see this line being drawn all the way back in 123, just at the end where Ruby very pointedly first addresses Aqua and then, separately, addresses "Sensei". It's almost as if she's purposely trying to create a divide so she can have one without dealing with the reality of what it would mean to be with the other.

It's hard to tell whether or not this is intentional in the sense of being part of Ruby's arc but it nevertheless creates a sense of the series wanting to have its cake and eat it too, indulging in the shock value and spicy intrigue of incest as a taboo without meaningfully engaging with it as subject matter. I've described it elsewhere recently as the series exclusively toying with the *aesthetics* of incest, its surface level referential language and set dressing, while resolutely avoiding going any deeper and I still stand by that. The 143 kiss is actually a really good example of this - the imagery is that of two siblings kissing but on that very same page, Ruby reminds us that in her eyes, she is talking to and in love with her "Sensei". The series has conducted this deeply convoluted narrative trick where it can depict what is very clearly incest without it technically being incest. Even when roadblocks to the GRSR relationship are addressed, it's only ever in reference to their age gap and Ruby always frames it as something that *used* to stand in their way but is no longer an issue now she's 18.

On days I am feeling charitable towards the series, I'm inclined to think this is an intentional part of Ruby's arc and that she is, in universe, being a bit delulu about the whole thing as an unhealthy coping mechanism - her being avoidant of emotionally inconvenient truths is something we see popping up more than once, so this being an extension of that tendency would make sense. When I am feeling more cynical, however, I tend towards thinking this is just an excuse to indulge in shocking imagery that generates clicks without ever having to actually commit to upsetting readers by sinking *or* canonizing incest ship. My best guess is that the truth is somewhere in the middle but it must be stressed that this is just my thoughts and I have no idea what goes on in Akasaka's brain.

Anyway this is just a long and rambly way of saying "word". Regardless of what direction the story takes AquRuby, I just want the story to finally fucking commit to something instead of chickening out every time it gears up to do so.

[theheirofthesharingan]

I just found your blog recently, I hope you don't mind that I've been crawling through and liking so many posts. I've always loved Sasuke and never minded Itachi, he was a good villain but it may be saying something that his crimes (while not insignificant) are only rated so highly (from my pov) because he did it all in one night. There are plenty of ninja who did far more heinous things for worse reasons (Orochimaru is a far worse person let alone dangerous villain), so while the big reveal of the plot around Itachi's betrayal was somewhat surprising, it was not exactly "shocking" so much as it felt like it recontectualized things.

I don't really think it makes sense for ss fans to even bring up that "S*kura would never put Sasuke through what Itachi did" considering she was never and would never be in a position to act as Itachi did... but very few ship vs ship arguments are made with "good sense" in mind. (I actually liked her genin arc, she changed from her rather damaging pushy behavior to taking ownership of her own emotions but that then backslid during shippuden... making her once again pushing her own agenda without anyone's input)

I just found your blog recently, I hope you don't mind that I've been crawling through and liking so many posts.

I don't mind that at all. Don't worry about it.

I've always loved Sasuke and never minded Itachi, he was a good villain but it may be saying something that his crimes (while not insignificant) are only rated so highly (from my pov) because he did it all in one night.

I believe it's true but it's also a dreadfully one-dimensional way to look at the situation when a myriad of information is later provided to give context to the whole thing. He's introduced as a cold-blooded killer with zero redeeming qualities, which after the reveal turns out to be more nuanced and layered than we earlier thought. While his actions are still unforgivable, there's so much more to it. So, sticking to what he's shown as initially and refusing to acknowledge anything and everything that follows afterwards isn't how you assess a character or a piece of media in general. It's just looking at his actions and motivations on the face value and refusing to take a deeper look like a petulant child.

There are plenty of ninja who did far more heinous things for worse reasons (Orochimaru is a far worse person let alone dangerous villain), so while the big reveal of the plot around Itachi's betrayal was somewhat surprising, it was not exactly "shocking" so much as it felt like it recontectualized things.

I would not be comparing Itachi with the likes of Orochimaru who was evil and never showed an ounce of remorse.

He did this. This is creepy as hell. Itachi would never, ever do this.

Now, Itachi's crimes are horrible but there's more to them than just "he followed the orders and killed his clan" and "he traumatized his little brother." People tend to downplay his trauma because he isn't a perfect victim and his reaction to the life he lived deeply affects Sasuke. He's only seen as a perpetrator, when, in truth, he's a perpetrator because he's a victim first. There are lot of things he had to learn and acknowledge, but he never rationalized his crimes.

Among his many objectives to die at Sasuke's hands one was that he wanted to be punished for his crimes by the person he'd hurt and wronged the most, because of all things, Sasuke didn't deserve to go through any of what he did.

The guilt he lived with would have been colossal because forcefully prolonging the life so he could be punished for his crimes that weren't even entirely his own fault is a big deal. This is why he's so well received among the audience as well. He doesn't feel entitled to being treated right or with respect. He doesn't think he's worthy of forgiveness or deserves justice.

During his fight against Kabuto, his interaction with Sasuke is also quite interesting. He keeps telling Sasuke and Kabuto both he's not worthy of the praises they shower on him. And he actively avoids looking into Sasuke's eyes.

There are moments he looks in Sasuke's direction, but mostly he avoids looking at him. This is just one example. It's the body language of someone who's heavily guilt-ridden, someone who feels disgusted with himself especially the way he asks both Kabuto and Sasuke to not see him as a good guy.

I don't really think it makes sense for ss fans to even bring up that...

Oh, obviously. She was never placed in the circumstances where she had to make hard choices keeping someone else in mind. Not just that, Itachi did what he did because he wanted to keep Sasuke alive, because the life he'd lived showed him death was the worst thing to happen, so he wanted to protect the person he loved the most from this. When it came to her, though, instead of learning his reasoning, she jumped to the conclusion that Sasuke needed to die. She wanted to do this to "save him from the darkness." Funny, because he was the same boy who'd sacrificed himself to save Naruto's life not too long ago. Who'd wanted to save her life at any cost from Gaara. Who had killed Orochimaru and Itachi - the most dangerous criminals. He'd also freed Orochimaru's prisoners. Considering Konoha was following his trail, the news of this would have reached Konoha too. Despite this, her first response to learning Sasuke falling into darkness was that he should be killed.

I actually liked her genin arc..

Same. I liked those bits. And she was brilliant in Pain arc as well when she saved lives of the wounded Shinobi and civilians, and also during the war arc. But she should have moved on from the person who'd done nothing but brutally humiliate her, reject her. It's not even a character flaw, it's just... Idk what it is.

[aziraphales-library]

Hi! Sorry, don't really know how to request fic recs and I don't know if y'all have responded to any specific requests like this before (probably have and I just can't find it) but do y'all have any recs for fics that center around (a) flashback(s) or just historical moment(s) with Az and Crow? Specifically Rome, 1940's, or 1650's with piracy (gotta love OFMD brainrot)? I would prefer fluff but won't say no to some angst as well, just maybe not completely smut since I tend to skim that. That's all then, have a great day!

You'll want to check our #through the ages tag. Here are some Rome, 1941, and pirate fics to add...

the stars are aglow / and tonight how their light sets me dreaming by pearl_in_the_nebula (G)

Post-canon 1941 scene. Aziraphale has some modern music to show Crowley.

like the sun, softly I take you into my arms by Milky_Etoile (G)

It was nearing the end of their celebratory lunch at the Ritz when Aziraphale realizes Crowley's silence. It becomes clear to him that it's due to exhaustion over the events of the averted Apocalypse. He tries to suggest resting, but Crowley's unwilling after their escaped executions. It would take more time and effort to get Crowley to relax, but those were things Aziraphale was more than willing to give for his dearest demon. or In which Aziraphale coaxes Crowley into resting with wine, a shared couch, and a foot massage. Somehow, Aziraphale ends up even more smitten.

The Kiss That Was No Oyster’s Fault by SeedsOfWinter (T)

All the taverns in all the cities in all of Creation, and the demon slithered into Aziraphale’s. There was no mistaking Crowley. All mourning black wrapped and hellfire haired, slouching towards inebriation, there could be no other. There never would be. (Or, What if Aziraphale and Crowley throughout the ages, but a first kiss of some kind always happens? In Rome, Aziraphale and Crowley have time on their hands and oysters on their plates...)

Demons of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Golden Angel by CaspianTheGeek (T)

All Crowley wanted was a carefree jaunt at sea with his pirate beloved, but the powers of Heaven and Hell have other plans... starting by cursing his ship! When Duke Hastur steals the Golden Angel and declares himself captain, Crowley's plans to reverse the curse are put in peril. He needs to get the vessel back so he can go home to Aziraphale, but he can't take on the crew of the damned by himself. With the Caribbean seas filled with enemies, angelic and demonic alike, he'll need to sail carefully to avoid capture, or worse: the truth coming out. Luckily, this is also the story of two unlikely human allies, descendants of Agnes Nutter and of the witchfinder general she exploded. Cue pirate music!

A Pastel Sky Above the Wine-Dark Sea by maniacalmole (G)

It's 1725, the Golden Age of Piracy is nearing its end, and an angel and a demon have both been sent on a mission across the seas. Aziraphale has never been one for boats. Crowley, however, is thrilled.

My Funny Valentine by theshoparoundthecorner (G)

“You’re kind,” Crowley said with another small laugh. Aziraphale looked over at him. His gaze softened. “Y’know, people like that sort of thing. Kind people.” Aziraphale nodded. Crowley felt something strange stirring in his stomach, and he wondered if perhaps he’d had a little too much to drink. He was beginning to get the urge to do something stupid. To reach forward and take the angel’s hand. To trace the lines of his smile, and the creases of his eyes, and memorize what he looked like in case it was a long while before they saw each other again. Whoa now, said the only logical part of his brain he had left, maybe it’s time to sober up. Five times Crowley gave Aziraphale a gift on Valentine's Day, and one time it was the other way around.

- Mod D

[curry-and-gunpowder]

Okay so I have some stuff to get off my chest, might get a bit heated, but I mean no disrespect to anyone, just expressing my genuine confusion and frustration and trying to make my stance on some matters clear.

Clearly I ship Odazai. But that does not mean I reject other interpretations of their relationship. Be it platonic, queerplatonic, brotherly, it's all lovely to me - I genuinely just enjoy their unique dynamic.

However, I am constantly on the brink of losing it over hearing them referred to as a father/son pair by so many people in the fandom. And I'm gonna attempt to break down why this interpretation bothers me so much.

Firstly, it just flies in the face of my personal experience of intergenerational friendships - I'm a young-ish Millennial with many Gen Z friends. And I find it completely incomprehensible to try and force people who are relatively close in age into such a dynamic. I'm aware that a lot of bsd fans are teens or young adults who maybe don't have much social contact with people outside their age range. But as a 30+ person on the Internet, let me tell you, five years? That's nothing. The plain truth is, the older you get, the less age starts to matter. Once you get out of school, you will interact with people of all ages regularly and you will have friends who are older or younger than you and nobody fucking cares. The thought of seeing any of my younger friends as my children is, pardon my french, fucking ridiculous.

Secondly, and I've spoken about this before, the fandom's tendency to parentify Odasaku way beyond what the text ever implies. It's easy to put him into the role, considering the way he cares for his orphans. In that way, he has some parental traits - but it's only a facet of his personality, and, i would argue, one that the fandom puts way too much emphasis on, imho. I'll gladly write some more meta on that at a later time, but doing that here would make the post even longer than it already is. Just to quickly reiterate, for anyone who hasn't read the dark era lightnovel - Oda does explicitly NOT treat the kids like his children. Why then would he treat Dazai like one? Dazai, whom he explicitly invites to go drinking with him in TDIPUD? How does that track? Is he supposed to be just a shitty parent? Or could it maybe indicate that he sees Dazai as his equal more than anything?

(Tangentially, I would argue that Oda's perception of what constitutes a child/an adult is horrendously skewed, considering his own past.)

Thirdly, and this is probably gonna be the one that might get me into hot water with some people, the thing I like to call the Cope. The tendency in fandom to manifest a hard line between groups of characters that somehow should never be crossed when shipping, otherwise that makes the ship badwrongtoxic. This is a phenomenon I've observed developing more and more in recent years, and it's ngl pretty worrying, because it's generally used to present one's own ship as "superior", and all "rival ships" as less than/bad. Ships with "significant" age gaps tend to fall into that category relatively often, but I suspect very few people actually genuinely care about the characters' ages, but rather use it as a shield to justify why these relationships are To Be Avoided. Odazai is an absolute stellar example of such a ship - by all means it should be way more popular than it is, considering the themes that surround it and the way its absolutely center to the nareative of bsd. But without fail, when I look up media for the ship, be it YouTube videos or simply browsing the tag on tumblr or pinterest, I see the same mantra repeated over and over - "how can you ship them, they're like father and son!"

(I'm concerned about the relationship you have with your parents, I say to myself in response.)

And its, quite frankly, just not the case. I cannot for the life of me find any indication of this so-called parental relationship anywhere in the text. All I can see is two people who are friends who have a deep and sincere love for each other.

In conclusion, not every relationship has to fall into the category of familial or romantic. Sometimes... people are just friends. Sometimes friends are some years apart in age. It's not shocking or special or anything, it literally happens all the time.

Just let them be friends. It's fine, really, it's allowed.

[tinywitchgoblin]

Oya vod! I’m brand new to this, so hoping I’m doing it the right way. :)

Could I request a ship?

I’m a 6’6”, relatively fit terrestrial ecologist (biologist) and a horseback archer. I have a passion for all wildlife, especially avian creatures. I spend a lot of time in the outdoors assessing habitats, identifying birds (sometimes at long distances) by sight and sound and just enjoying the freedom of the natural world. I should probably just go ahead and build a cabin in the forest, because that’s where I feel most at home. Owing to having to work twice as hard to gain the same amount of respect respect in the traditionally male-dominated field of biological science I’m pretty independent and self-reliant but am flexible and can work as part of a team too.

I find large social situations challenging, and am generally slow to connect with people but once I do they are part of my clan for life. ;) People tend to perceive me as confident and capable, but in truth people mostly make me anxious. I connect with animals far more easily - they’re honest!

When I’m not in the forest, I can probably be found with my horse, firing arrows at targets as we gallop across a field, shouting along to metal tunes while driving my Jeep on trails, or working on some ridiculous craft project (probably a wool bird sculpture or leather armour that no one will ever see). Come to think on that I have some rather contrasting traits, haha!

Thank you! These have been fun to read!

Of course, I'm glad you're enjoying them!

I ship you with...

Crosshair!

Our resident sentient toothp(r)ick enjoys spending time outdoors, especially alone, where no one can bother him and he can have some peace and quiet. Just like you, he doesn't like large social gatherings and is very hesitant to let people in. However, once you accepted each other and started dating, you spent a lot of time alone together.

Once he finds out that you do horseback archery, he begged asked you to teach him everything show him a couple of things, and you happily obliged. Initially, he wasn't very good at it because it was so different from his usual skills as a sniper, but eventually, he started showing some improvements. There are few people in the galaxy more stubborn than Crosshair, and he was determined to be good at horseback archery, so help him god.

Having grown up with Tech, Crosshair is very familiar with listening to ramblings about various topics (animals included) and identifying local flora and fauna. However, having it come from you instead of his brother made it very different. He asked Tech for some resources to learn about the various birds in the area (which Tech was very curious as to why Crosshair would want all of that information all of a sudden. suspicious), so when you and he went birdwatching, he had at least a basic knowledge of what you were seeing and hearing, and it made you happy that he put time and effort into such an activity- because as much as he refuses to admit it, your smile is far prettier than any bird.

-

Thanks for reading! If you want a ship request like this one, drop it in my ask box, and don't forget to reblog 💚

[thenwethrowitonthefire]

Fandom people you want to get to know better

Tagged by @harriet-bailes

3 Ships you like: Marith, Raeda, Catbirds (Laura/Shelley). (Bonus mention of Crowley/Aziraphale because I can't not mention them, but I think literally everyone already knew.)

First ship ever: believe it or not, but my having-identified-as-aroace-for-a-long-time-and-only-recently-realised-sapphic ass feels like they don't ship very much, I tend to just follow what I'm presented with and either like or dislike that, but I generally don't necessarily Will It one way or another. So going with the kind of definition of shipping where I myself wanted things in canon to go a certain way? Huntara/Perfuma. (I also love where canon ended up though!) The only other time I actively shipped was Laura/Shelley. (However if the definition of ship here is the first pairing I actively liked, the answer here would have been Neo/Trinity.)

Last song you heard: Benjamin Clementine - Ode From Joyce

Favourite childhood book: Tim de Merel. (The title means Tim the blackbird.) I've never been much of a reader and I don't think I necessarily grasped the full context of the book as a child, but it's basically a blackbird who leaves his nest/garden and has adventures all over the world. (I only recently realised the book is him writing letters to his parents about his adventures, even though the cover of the book is literally made to look like a postcard I feel like I missed that fact back then (I really was quite young when I read it). But it makes sense that that's why stories in the book were segmented the way they were. It worked perfectly for my audhd brain though.) I really liked the fact that the animals in the book were not made to be too human, they very much were still fully animal. I liked animals so much better than people (I didn't like people at all truth be told), which explains why it was one of the very few books I liked. (Another book I liked was about a really small human girl who had adventures in the animal world, I didn't necessarily like her, but I really liked the animals. It had great pictures, too.)

Currently reading: as I said, I don't really read. But a very nice book that's been laying next to my bed the last 2 years is Braiding Sweetgrass, which was a gift from a good friend. I've read a little bit of it, eventually I'll read more if it. I'm sure it's really good :) (Talking fanfic, I'm reading Seasons of Lilith - the story that follows after Answers For Mary. At the moment I'm also slow with reading fanfic though.)

Currently watching: nothing really, though I generally do tend to watch a lot of things. I'm a bit in-between things with so many shows having been cancelled. I just finished a rewatch of Sense8 though. I love it and it's extremely beautiful, but it's also rather more violence filled than where my current taste is at.

Currently consuming: warmth. (It's 9:30pm and I'm cold and tired. I had enough to eat with supper, so I'm enjoying some blankets now.)

Currently craving: peace, rest. Both personally and globally. (In daytime it'll be the same answer with the addition of candy, I've really been enjoying candy recently. I think my brain has been needing extra sugar.)

NO PRESSURE TAGS: @nobodyorlando @impromptugarrote @jyou-no-sonoko19 @tokyoterri2 @hydr0phius @confessions-of-ailu (< I still owe you a reply from my main blog - I'm so sorry it's taking me so long!)

Anyone else who wants to do this one, consider yourselves tagged by me! (Apologies if I tagged you and you've already done this.)

[thana-topsy]

1,6,8,11,17 for the ask thing!

Answered #6 in this post, and #8 in this post!

A fanon characterisation that you love

Oh, this took some thought. I went scrolling through my AO3 bookmarks for this one. But at the end of the day I have to go with my good friend @nientedenada's interpretations of Elenwen and Ondolemar in her Q&A style fic: "The Dominion is Here and They're Answering Your Questions" - her take deeply influenced the way I wrote both of these characters in "Hollow Men" as well as just helped to shape the Thalmor into people in my mind, as opposed to stick man villains.

11. Recommend a fic with an unusual/original headcanon or characterisation that you loved

Accidental Double Thalmor Post, but I'm going to have to recommend "Evil is Made of Us" by LeviathansEyes on AO3 for their masterful interpretation of the Thalmor. It's a purely OC-driven fic that's technically a sequel to a much longer fic, but I think it can be enjoyed on it's own easily enough. I had already finished up my own Thalmor-centric fic (Hollow Men) by the time I was reading their work, but I was still SHOOKETH by the end of that story. It was an unflinching look at how "evil" manifests itself, but also how, at the end of the day, people are just people. "Evil" is a concept within the framework of an institution.

17. Something you love that you don’t often share because you’re worried what others will think

Hmm... well, for the most part I'm pretty shameless with most of the stuff I share. I put myself out there in good faith, and generally expect that my work will be taked in good faith in return.

I think, maybe, if I want to be vulnerable for a minute, I'll admit that I tend to meme on Neloth publicly a lot to cover up just how deeply I've been impacted by writing his character. More below the cut, because this turned into a bit of a ramble...

I write Neloth as a low-empathy individual who arguably has a personality disorder (I won't throw around specific labels, as I don't think there is a specific one that I had in mind when going into his stories). My love for Neloth runs incredibly deep because I've been working with this fatally flawed, deeply damaged character who has built his own defences up so impossibly high over hundreds of years that even he is unsure of where his own walls end and the core of himself begins.

And then, to pair him with Teldryn, (which I think most people who only see the ship art or the memes think I just picked two characters and smashed them together for fun or because Hee Hoo Gay, which... isn't a lie, but it isn't the whole truth either). I write Teldryn as an endlessly compassionate person beneath the armor he's been forced to wear (literally and figuratively) over the years. The Nerevarine Prophecy left him questioning his own place in the world with a terrible case of impostor syndrome, and then the Red Year absolutely ripped out his heart (no pun intended??) and left him feeling that everything he did amounted to nothing. So he's cynical and jaded, he's hiring himself out as a merc, he has every reason to hate the gods and the life that's been thrust upon him. And then, for whatever reason, when I put him and Neloth in a room together for long enough, they somehow managed to crack through each others' shells. And it wasn't pretty at first, and, hell, it wasn't even romantic. But it happened. And sometimes, writing can be magic like that.

So here's Teldryn, a literal hero, giving this (by all accounts) terrible person a chance to show that he's capable of both receiving and giving love, actually. And that love can look a little different in everyone. And augH GOD, I HAVE A FUCKING CHARACTER TYPE, OK???

Anyways, tl;dr -- Neloth is actually more than just my special little meow meow babygirl blorbo, he is my shadow self, my darkest reflection, the opposite of everything I strive to be and everything I fear becoming. And I think, by writing him as still being worthy of love and companionship and joy, I'm writing to let myself know that I am also worthy of such things.

[jadethest0ne]

How do you feel about Leosagi?

TL;DR - It's not for me. I tend to not like romance/shipping. There is very little case for it in canon, and in fandom I don't like it when a character is utilized only for romantic/shipping purposes, which Usagi often is.

Read below the page break for details:

I tend to not be involved in shipping discourse, and most of the time I do not enjoy romance, whether it be in fandoms or in general media. I especially do not like it when there seems to be no evidence for the romance involved other than the creator wanting the characters to be romantic and deciding from the get-go who winds up with whom without the proper set-up or chemistry.

When it comes to fan ships, the greater the ratio between the amount of a certain ship that I see in a fandom and the amount of actual romantic moments shown in the source media there is, the greater the annoyance I have for seeing said ship.

Usagi doesn't appear a whole heck of a lot in TMNT as a whole. He's there in maybe a handful of episodes at most. Whenever he does appear he is either a much older adult and/or has rather equal screentime with all the turtles. The most Leo-Usagi interactions that can be seen in the franchise is in 2003. Usagi's age in that version is also dubious (but it can be argued either way, and I'm not gonna police a gray area like that). Regardless, their interactions are very obviously not romantic. So, for the canon, there doesn't seem much going for them there.

So this very much is a case of the fandom largely pushing the two swordsmen together. And that's where my initial problem with romance is - I don't like it when a character is created/utilized purely for romantic purposes. This is essentially what Leosagi is (and it's also why I tend to dislike a lot of OCs created purposefully to ship with a canon character). To me that's just bad writing, because you are deciding on the result of the relationship before actually putting the work in to create the romantic dynamic. It feels like the equivalent of a kid smacking their dolls together and saying "kiss". But I digress.

Usagi has his own backstory, his own character, and his own comic. It is a disservice to his character and to the comic that he comes from to essentially ignore that just for romance. Sometimes I get the feeling that folks don't even know that the comic Usagi Yojimbo exists, nor the fact that it is as old as TMNT and has its own separate storyline. I highly doubt most of those shipping Leosagi have actually read them.

Truth be told, I have been getting more and more annoyed at the ship the more and more I see it, because of the above reasons. To be clear, if you want to ship them, that's not my call; do whatever you want. It's just really not for me.

[pleuvoire]

actually it's time to speak my truth i just don't understand fandom's obsession with polycules in general. nothing wrong with polyamory in the abstract or in real life but the way people go about it in fanfiction tends to involve sanding all the interesting sharp edges off different character relationships to have everyone hold hands in one big cuddlepile. also i find polyam shipping to be one of the most egregious offenders in the "grabbing two characters who kinda know each other and deciding that they are fluffy in love dating" category because a side effect of deciding that everyone in a group is dating each other is declaring that even the two guys who like exchanged an awkward fistbump once are also dating each other. and even when it's just "everyone is dating the same person" there's still the problem of like i said people just kind of sanding off all the differences or potential friction between characters and turning it into one big cuddlepile. like there's just so much completely making up your own version of the relationships going on as far as i've seen. i'm sure there's a way to do polyam shipping right but i've rarely seen it actually deployed in a way i agree with and i've developed something of a bias against the whole concept as a result

[sophiainspace]

How long did you have the idea for and how much plot was ready/sorted out when you started writing "An Honest Thief"?

How I had the idea: I had Covid in October. I was in bed rewatching a big chunk of season 1, and I ended up watching through an Iris-focused lens. How did she feel about the extreme number of people she cared about who lied to her, over months? (They only sort of addressed that in the show - she got mad with Joe and Barry, but forgave them pretty quickly, to my mind.) Then I got to the Snart episodes and of course started thinking about Coldwest and how, if they'd known each other, he wouldn't have lied to her - he'd have been brutally honest, maybe to the point that she would have found it a bit much. And that's where the idea grabbed me.

How much plot was ready: I wrote about 8000 words in a few days, whenever I could sit up.* I drafted everything up to just after Iris finding out who the Flash was...

...and then it became clear this was going to be a fic partly focused on Iris being aro, and I went shit because I didn't feel qualified to write that. Whatever that means - I mean, I don't believe the purity culture nonsense that you can only write a thing if you've lived it, and also I am grey/demiromantic, but I've never thought about that very much - until this fic! So I slowed down in the second half and tried to work out where things would go once Iris knew the truth, and got help from the excellent @achangeinpriorities (who has now looked at many snippets and commented on the aro rep - thanks!), and generally floundered around a lot. This is not how I usually write - I tend to plot out a fic from the beginning, even if things change while writing - so it's been a rollercoaster. I think the tone of the fic has shifted, which might have lost me readers, but I'm having fun and that's what matters.

I did not have a resolution in mind at any point (except I'd planned one final scene with Len and Iris). As you can probably tell by the whole thing with the Coldflash side ship and then Coldwestallen hitting me out of left field (although that's prob not to be resolved until a hypothetical sequel). I thought this thing would have about 5 chapters - it's currently up to 10, with at least one more to go. I've been scrambling around for an ending for weeks, and the perfect one just hit me, the other day. Which is great, as if I write too many more chapters of this thing, I'll lose even more readers than have already stopped bothering with this weird monster of a fic ;)

Which, honestly, I'm not surprised this one hasn't had many readers. The Flash fandom isn't very active now - the remaining fans are mostly Coldflash folks (a ship I like but don't write very well). But post-show tiny fandoms are my favourite place to write fic (hence all my years in the Buffy fandom). You get a few dedicated readers (like you, Toby!), and you lap up all the fic that's still being written, and it all becomes much more friendly than a huge fandom ever could be.

Thank you for the question! 🩶

*Despite being really quite sick, apparently my muse was still very active in churning out fic nonsense. Brains are weird.

Talk Shop Tuesday

[punkrogue]

Confession: I used to be one of those antis who hated the Roguneto age difference and saw Gambit as the "correct" love interest. But then I got older and stopped thinking about things in black and white, I realized that Rogue doesn't give a shit since her two adopted moms also have an age difference. I think a lot of Rogue "fans" project their thoughts and desires onto Rogue instead of accepting some of the less stereotypical sweet "Southern Belle" image they like to compartmentalize her into (one reason why 80s Rogue is superior to 90s Rogue is she's a subversion of the stereotype instead playing it straight like the more palatable to general audiences 90s version of the character). Looking back, I like how the "I can't touch a man" problem was sorta resolved with Roguneto in AoA, so instead Rogue's character focus in that universe is being a team leader and going apeshit to protect her son instead of angsting over Remy and how she can't have sex with him.

First off I think that regardless of context concepts like the "correct" love interest are never good. I think that's just become more and more obvious over the years as fandom has become more toxic and more people feel comfortable calling you shit like an abuser for liking a "problematic" or hero/villain kinda ship. The ships are fictional, the people aren't. Who gives a fuck if people ship milo from atlantis and yzma from the emperor's new groove (yes this is a real ship i've seen) it's not my problem. Neither of us will gain or lose brownie points with a god or whatever because we shipped the right ship. Not an attack on you just my Thoughts because that's a common issue now in fandom that I know I certainly didn't see it at these scales when I was a teen.

AS FOR THE OTHER STUFF--

god you're spitting SO MUCH TRUTH.

Okay I wrote the rest of my reply to this originally in notepad bc i don't trust tumblr and god.... this is so long 💀

But then I got older and stopped thinking about things in black and white, I realized that Rogue doesn't give a shit since her two adopted moms also have an age difference.

It never occurred to me before how the age gap between Mystique and Irene would effect her perspective but that’s such a good and interesting point! We’re not clear on even when Mystique was born or how old she really was when she met Irene and we know Irene is like easily 100 when she dies. She and Mystique met in the late 1800s — even if you keep her dying in the 80s and don’t fudge around the timeline at all for the current date 1880 to 1980 is a century. Rogue was raised by geriatric lesbians. Idk WHAT this means for her psychologically or in how her love map got formed but it’s a Thing lol. I think the big takeaway really from being raised by mystiny is really that she expects a certain level of partner care and maturity and in syncness. Say what you want about Irene and Mystique as people but they’re absolutely an in love and loving couple. They’re totally in sync and have complete faith in each other, they’re each other’s rocks. Which ofc is why Mystique went so off the rails when Irene died.

There’s definitely a lot to be said about her expecting/needing/wanting a certain amount of maturity in her partner as a result of being raised by two older women in a very established relationship. Barring the dudes who’re born in test tubes (Longshot and Joesph) basically all her love interests are older than her by some amount. Even Remy is at least a few years older than her no matter how you pace out his life.

I tend to think worrying about age gaps in a society/world or whatever like comics is dumb when everyone in question is legal. Half of them are like 50+ by now (the 05 were teens in the 60s technically, xavier fought in the KOREAN WAR, etc), some are aliens, some are gods, some people got stuck in a time loop for like 2 years, some people where in another dimension for a while, etc etc etc. It’s more trouble than it’s worth to get up in arms about it when you’re not talking about adult/minor pairings. Magneto is like, 100 now sure. He’s also been de-aged like, twice, once that I remember to the point of being a fucking toddler again. This is automatically so fucking wild and impossible to map to anything real world you’re just gonna hurt yourself trying to comprehend the ramifications of that catastrophic life change on even how the fuck he STILL REMEMBERS HIS PREVIOUS LIFE AS AN ADULT AFTER THAT let alone his future relationships with anyone lol.

I think a lot of Rogue "fans" project their thoughts and desires onto Rogue instead of accepting some of the less stereotypical sweet "Southern Belle" image they like to compartmentalize her into (one reason why 80s Rogue is superior to 90s Rogue is she's a subversion of the stereotype instead playing it straight like the more palatable to general audiences 90s version of the character).

I think you’re very right about that. When you sit down and read Rogue’s comics through all at once the difference between her in the 80s and her in the 90s is wild and not in a good way. All the edges get knocked off of her, her morals become simplified, they gloss over her tense relations with the rest of the X-Men even more than they did before. She was created with the kind of character design slogan “the girl from the wrong side of the river” and it very much seems like few people remember that when writing or drawing her and I know why that is to some extent — stripping away her “problematic” nature (remember, Rogue DID stalk and attempt to murder Dazzler and did some other fucked up shit), stressing her more mainstream insecurities, removing her heavy metal/punk/butch interests and making her more in line with a 90s pinup girl in looks makes her more appealing and fuckable to the mainstream predominately male audience of comics. Alt girls are niche. She only got to get her tat sleeve and be a motorcycle mechanic and sing rock songs and be really wild again when Claremont takes her over again in X-Treme X-Men in 2001 and it really does feel like a breath of fresh air. She’s rough and coarse and rude again. She and Storm are at each other’s throats at times. She’s angry and she’s reckless and she’s funny and she’s you know That Bitch.

“Okay but characters change and grow, they kind of have to, and just because their creator intended them to be one way doesn’t mean they have to stay that way,” some will say and this is true! If we kept to the letter of the character creator’s intentions Cable would be boring as fuck and Shatterstar wouldn’t be pansexual. But here’s the thing—

Both of those Liefeldian monstrosities still to this day have maintained their “character slogan”, their Vibe, their Flavor if you will.

Cable is still a super douche with mega guns and 80 pouches who loves shooting things and is Edgy. He’s just better written now and has more depth. Shatterstar is still an American Gladiator made into a Real Gladiator clone boy thing who loves carnage and communes thru media lingo. He just sucks dick now. And is better written.

Note how this is not what happened with Rogue. Consider how LITTLE of her time in the 90s was say, about her conflicted feelings about her Still Evil Mom or her trouble really making friends in the X-Men because of personality differences or you know HOW HER POWER SUCKS THE SOUL OUTTA THEM or her love of mechanics or any of the other things that really only seem to crop up when it’s Claremont or someone taking notes from his characterization at the wheel. Her Character Vibe is “girl from the wrong side of the river joins a different paramilitary group for better healthcare”. THAT’S LITERALLY WHO ROGUE IS. THAT’S WHY SHE JOINED THE X-MEN. There’s absolutely room for growth here but that growth does not mean she has to stop having a mullet, or stop wearing studded belts, or stop being the other lovable unwashed mongrel in the house next to Logan.

But Possum Girl is not fuckable to most men so they don’t wanna write it and they don’t wanna see it and very few girls wanna see it because they can’t project themselves onto that. Also, misogyny— internalized or otherwise. Girls aren’t allowed to be ratty, loud, coarse, butch, aggressive etc etc etc. Rogue’s name is FUCKING ROGUE she’s NOT A SOUTHERN SWEETHEART that literally DEFEATS THE PURPOSE OF HER.

“When she was younger, Rogue thought the name made her sound like an outlaw. she played the part to perfection—using her power to imprint the skills and psyches of anyone she touched—until she realized she was stealing little bits of their souls." — X-Treme X-Men I think I cannot for the life of me remember what issue this is from but I know it’s a comic quote I had to type it out myself years ago since it’s not quoted anywhere else.

“The name 'Rogue' is not just a super hero code. She is very much a wild child. She likes danger and is much more of a Mississippi soul than a Louisiana soul.” — Claremont in a 2016 interview.

Rogue is SUPPOSED to be rough and wild and reckless and YEE-FUCKING-HAW MOTHERFUCKER. She’s r/THE_PACK in mutant form. There’s SO MANY WAYS to allow her to grow and change that do not mean she must sacrifice the skynyrd. But she doesn’t get to keep that. Cable gets to keep his stupid fucking pouches and his grimdark 90s patina but Rogue’s gotta have BIG 90S BAYWATCH HAIR and wear DAISY DUKES LIKE THAT ISN’T FUCKING VICIOUS ENDANGERMENT OF EVERYONE’S LIVES all so she can be the sexy southern gal and spend the majority of the 90s hemming and hawing over the practical logistics of hopping on Remy’s dick as though that man doesn’t have enough working general sex and BDSM knowledge to tackle the logistical end of a hookup with her and instead of trying to WORK WITH HER ON THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES just kinda fucking pressures her like a 10yo boy demanding a kiss from his crush for a while there before someone fucking LET HIM HAVE BETTER WRITING. Both of them are done dirty by that and most current writers more likely than not came in on this version of Rogue and Remy which is why we’re now being subjected to their malformed vapid bastard children in modern comics.

80s Rogue (and a lot of 00s Rogue) Imo are the superior Rogues because she’s an alternative girl. We have PLENTY of more mainstream girls in the X-Men but we don’t have any really who are ratty and mentally unstable and metal/punk and cause issues and don’t always sync up totally with X-Men “philosophy” and who’re Really Okay with committing Lots Of Violence and who are like, AGGRESSIVELY not perfect.

Why they chose to live in fucking nowhere Mississippi and what their financial situation is and just— whatever the fucking deal with Mystiny while they raised Rogue aside — Rogue is created as a mentally ill at risk runaway youth living in a foster/adoptive home and is heavily coded as poor/white trash. Like, I get very baffled by what the fuck is going with her early childhood with Mystiny (there’s a LOT of conflicting info) but i tend to assume they're living middle-classish since you know Mystique got that $$$. But Rogue absolutely at least coded as a lower class rough and tumble girl in the 80s and that’s like….. actually very important????????? That’s huge????????? Especially since the X-Men are the Disenfranchised Minorities with Superpowers wonder show.

Now look at any 90s comics or 10s-20s comics and show me ANY issue where “white trash” or “raised by Mystique and Destiny” shines through. Didn’t find any did you? Yeah. Thought so. This is why they’re the shittiest eras of Rogue Comics.

Looking back, I like how the "I can't touch a man" problem was sorta resolved with Roguneto in AoA, so instead Rogue's character focus in that universe is being a team leader and going apeshit to protect her son instead of angsting over Remy and how she can't have sex with him.

Part of why I like Roguneto in general is we just generally skip all the gross borderline fetishist talk about how she can’t fuck because she’d kill a dude or whatever. Magneto fucks. He just DOES. You look at him and you go "oh this man FUCKS". We don’t need to spend time on the fucking mechanics of it — in fact to do so seems INSANE. OFC HE FUCKS!!! NEXT QUESTION! Now yes Remy elicits the same kind of response but not the same level. Magneto is 3 grown children levels of fucks. DILF and GDILF fucks levels. This whole drama is completely fucking stupid with MAGNETO as the stage partner. HE’S LIKE 100 YEARS OLD AND HE OWNED A METEORITE. ROGUE HAS FIST-FOUGHT LIKE ALL OF HIS CHILDREN AT LEAST ONCE. WE HAVE OTHER THINGS TO ADDRESS.

After like 20 years of writers being weird little fetishist creeps about how exactly the logistics of Rogue and Remy fuckin would work when like that’s what a gimp suit and condoms are for, it’s refreshing to just not feel the WEIGHT of that forced conflict hanging over a romantic relationship of hers. With romy there’s SUCH a hyper focus by the writers on their sex life half the time not their overall relationship and it’s just weird and gross. Like they fuck, they figure it out and she works thru her fear of touch— can we talk about rogue’s mental instability and how that affects the relationship and remy’s fear of rejection/abandonment now?????????????? THAT'S WHAT I'M ACTUALLY HERE FOR!!!!!! YALL CAN'T SELL ME SMUT SO STOP OBSESSING OVER IT LIKE PRETEENS AND TELL ME ABOUT THEIR MESSY RELATIONSHIP DRAMA!!!!!!

Rogue also tends to just be fucking bonkers more when she’s with Magneto and I like that. She’s less southern belle and more fuck it we ball and it’s refreshing. It’s a nice combo of personalities platonically and/or romantically because Magneto is really an EXCELLENT emotional/mental rock which she needs and Rogue is 10000000% not afraid to call him a lil bitch to his face and he NEEDS people around him to help keep his ego/doom spirals in check.

Their arguments feel more like real conflicts and debates. When they team up it feels more solid and like a partnership. They just feel like there's more weight and oomph in their interactions. Magneto has such a power and gravity to him. He's literally one of the immovable tent poles of the X-Verse. They'll be finding ways to keep him on the field even when he'd be 1,000 in comic years. So by interacting with him it let's her be more of a serious character. She gets to square up unstoppable force to immovable object and really test herself against him while also knowing at the end they're gonna shake and say "good game."

You don't get that with Remy because Remy's not solid like that, he's built to move. He's meant to be flexible. If you take away his flexibility (morally, in personality, in allegiance, in wants, in self-image etc) then he's just not him anymore. But the issue there is Rogue is also malleable — she's literally absorbing other people. That's two rubber people trying to help each other stand. It ain't gonna work and none of the comic writers wanna put in the real effort to MAKE it work. (fic writers ofc, have cracked this code and know how to write romy who can actually work and be compelling even into the modern era)

for me, Remy was a good first love interest for her and I love his character and I still love their dynamic — just now in a more platonic way. Meanwhile Magneto is a better second and potentially endgame relationship for her. He's more where she is in life now and he both gives her someone to depend on when she's going fucking batshit from her powers and also someone to sharpen her claws on who can take it and dish it back.

[dearweirdme]

So I was browsing the tkk tag and came across some army blogs. Many of the things they accuse shippers of really did make sense to me. One of the most prominent argument they have against shippers is that we really don't know whether whatever we believe is even real. We have no actual proofs. This got me thinking that they aren't really wrong here are they? When viewing myself from their lense, I appear as someone who's very delusional and imaginative.

And then in the comments, both jikkrs and tkkrs use the exact same narrative to call out the other.

Now what I am sure of is that jikook aren't a couple, I've gone through enough content to be sure of this. But if there are so so many people who are also sure that tkk aren't a couple either, maybe there is some truth in it? The people who've been army since BTS' debut have definitely seen more and if they don't believe in any ship then maybe we are just making a mountain out of a molehill.

But then I think about the reasons which made me start to believe in tkk and I feel like how can someone see them and not believe in their relationship? I am not even someone who was aware of shipping coz BTS was my intro to kpop and I am quite new to these concepts. What I see between them is undeniable proofs but if so many people scoff at the mere idea of them being a couple, then maybe I am seeing something that isn't really there?

I've been ping ponging a lot about this since last few days. When I came across your blog and read some of your ans i felt maybe you'll be able to give a better logical ans coz the ones who hate shippers, their only ans is that it's not possible coz they are brothers 😑

Hi anon!

Mmm, so fandom shenanigans are a whole thing. We are all army, but army consists of many varieties of fans. There’s solo’s for each member, there’s shippers, there’s non-shippers, there OT7 who also ship, there’s OT7 who vehemently do not ship, there’s new fans, and there’s long term fans (and I probably miss some still).

First of all, there’s also a lot of Tkkrs who are long term fans… so they know just as much of what has been going on as non-shipping long term fans.

Now do we actually not have any proof? Sure, we haven’t seen them kiss or anything, and we haven’t heard them admit anything. If that’s the things you look for than no, we cannot actually say much about what the truth is. We are looking at a hidden relationship though, so it’s never going to be clear as daylight. When people look for signs of a relationship, they look for the obvious signs.. they do not generally look for the signs of a hidden relationship.

I don’t like the word ‘delusional’ that non-shippers throw around so easily. Sure, there are takes out there that are… a bit much. People tend to refer to a group of shippers as a whole, but there’s a huge variety amongst Tkkrs. Some are a bit extreme, while others are imo a bit more realistic. But.. the crazy always tends to stick out.. and so Tkkrs as a whole are viewed as delusional. But, would people also call fans delusional if they said they heard Jennie sleep next to Tae? Would they also call fans delusional if Tae had kissed Jennie’s neck during a concert? Probably not.

We are not delusional, because things actually do happen. We did not imagine certain things, certain things happened and we saw what we think is love. Non-shippers are not automatically right just because they don’t ship anyone. Non-shipping blogs can also be wrong. It’s kinda a trend to shit on shippers (and don’t get me wrong.. at times some shippers do deserve to be shit at), but we are not always wrong. We have to know how to behave as shippers though, and I think that is where a lot of the times the problem lies.

People have many reasons for not thinking Tae and Jk are a couple. Some genuinely don’t see it, bit many also have not paid attention. Some are just homophobic and feel they have to defend Tae and Jk against these accusations. Some feel we invade their privacy and we have no business discussing their sexualities, which is fair maybe.. it’s something I have though about at times and it’s why I do not discuss certain topics (sex) and try to be as considerate as I can.

But most of all I think: non-shippers aren’t smarter or kinder or more knowledgeable than we are. There’s many smart and kind and knowledgeable Tkkrs around, and I think their opinion is just as valuable and valid as that of non-shippers.

Hope this helps?

[sammysdewysensitiveeyes]

12, 15 (I think I know this one but here's you're chance to wax poetic), 20 (can't be pyro), & 21 for avalanche!

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

Since I have already posted a ton of headcanons for Pyro over the years, I'm giving this question to Morph from TAS. Exiles Morph was born with his X-gene activated (basically appeared as a white blobby vaguely human-shaped baby) and also lost his mother to cancer at around 13 or so. Since TAS Morph seems less powerful than Exiles Morph, I tend to assume they were born "normal" and developed powers later, but I consider the dead mother to be part of their backstory. So, my headcanon is that the first thing TAS Morph ever shapeshifted into was their mother - shortly after the funeral, when they were desperately missing her and wishing they could see her again. It completely freaked them out, and it took a little while for them to go, "Oh, I'm a mutant and also shape-shifting can be fun." But if any X-Man ever asks Morph how they discovered their powers, they always give a wacky joke answer because the truth is kind of a bummer and they don't want to get into all that, not to mention all the weird Freudian implications. (Of course, X-Men 97 might completely negate this headcanon.)

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

You're right, you know it's gonna be Pyro and Avalanche. Honestly, I just love the contrast of (relatively) serious, stoic, less chatty guy with excitable, extroverted gregarious guy (not mention the big guy/skinny guy aesthetic). I think Pyro is constantly dragging Avalanche out to DO things, and Avalanche (mostly) enjoys it. And the way those two have been together for so long, through thick and thin, Avalanche going with Pyro to the Savage Land to try to find a Legacy Virus cure even though he's not infected and there's no personal benefit for him. I can't imagine Avalanche going to such great lengths for anyone else. Like even in canon they are bros, even if the comics won't let them bang. From their very first introduction you see them having each other's backs and not really fighting with each other the way they both occasionally fight with Blob. And, much like Mystique and Destiny or Blob and Unus (or Black Tom and Juggernaut), I just love the idea of two criminals in love.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

For Not Pyro. Hmmm.....I'll say that I think Toad should be good friends with Blob, because they have both been on the same team (a few times), both have mutations that make them "ugly" in the eyes of most people, and are treated badly because of it. They've both been through some shit. And I think Freddy's general attitude of "Fuck you, I am who I am, and I'm okay with it," might help Morty deal with some of his own issues. Freddy doesn't really take any shit from anyone, and seems comfortable with himself in general, while Toad is always full of self-loathing.

But since Toad is currently part of the Exiles, I kinda hope he manages to bond with some of them. Third Eye at least reached out to him. Let Toad have some friends.

21. If you're a fic writer and have written for this character, what's your favorite thing to do when you're writing for this character? What's something you don't like?

For Avalanche - much like with Blob (or Pyro) I want to give him some internal complexity and not just write him as a dumb, violent criminal, even though all three of them often are in the comics. And filling in his backstory, of course, dude has been in comics for decades and we know almost nothing about him, even his supposed "wife." One of my headcanons is that he grew up in a large family as one of the older kids and therefore knows a lot about dealing with children because he was expected to help look after his siblings. Put him in a situation with a crying baby, and he will automatically take charge, whether he actually wants to or not, he just jumps into the role of "I guess someone has to deal with this." He has a love-hate relationship with his family, he hated all the expectations and responsibilities placed on him, but he misses the sense of community, and having a place where he "belonged." He also probably got kicked out for being a mutant.

What I don't like in fic - how the popularity of "Lance Alvers" from X-Men evolution has completely overshadowed Dominikos, and any fic with Avalanche in it will likely be Lance. Much like movie Pyro John Allerdyce has mostly overshadowed comics Pyro in fandom. And I actually like the adapted versions, sullen bad boy American teens Lance Alvers and John Allerdyce are both interesting characters. But they definitely are very different from their comics counterparts, Lance is basically just Rictor in all but name, and it's made it hard to find any fan works for the original versions of the characters.

[cchickki]

20 fanfic questions

thank you so much for the tag @soft-girl-musings

How many works do you have on AO3?

15

2. What's your total AO3 words count?

495,132

3. What fandoms do you write for?

band of brothers, hemlock grove, mass effect, overwatch, peaky blinders, spider man, uncharted, unsere mutter unsere vater, crouching tiger hidden dragon, the last of us

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

tomorrow never came surprise! say yes to heaven, say yes to me beyond the deep a woman at war (rewritten)

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

yes!! feedback means so much to me, it's what keeps me going and i honestly appreciate all comments more than anyone will ever know.

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

there's a few, but my oldest fic the ugly truth i think had the angstiest ending (there's other fics that aren't finished and i don't want to spoil them so i won't add them to this list)

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

probably my fluffy one shots like surprise! and say yes to heaven from the spiderverse

8. Do you get hate on fics?

i have in the past when i attracted more readers on fanfiction.net, mostly misogynists so they're not worth the time of day

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

i do, and i don't really know how i'd generalize it. mostly from requests sprinkled in with a few scenes here and there. but in my fics i like to focus on the act being one out of love than lust mostly.

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

i've never written a crossover before

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

i've had suspicions before that people have copied parts of my fics in their own in different fandoms, but i don't think it's blatant enough beyond the realm of "inspiration" to actually accuse anyone. i don't think i'm popular enough on here or on a03 anymore for this to continuously happen though.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

maybe? i swear someone said they translated a woman at war back in the day for me.

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

kind of? there's a history beta i have on fanfiction.net that has helped me with a woman at war (rewritten) on writing certain historical parts in the story to make them as accurate as possible.

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

shepard x kaidan, i can engross myself in reading about that ship all day everyday

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

my peaky blinders fic joanne, i really enjoyed writing it and i received a lot of positive feedback on it on fanfiction.net. but i really hate the direction the show went and it really killed my inspiration for finishing the fic. i would love to, but who knows.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i've heard that how i'm able to write/articulate emotion and atmosphere is good.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

storyboarding in the sense of planning, i tend to wing it so i think that's why a lot of my fics become unfinished or might fall flat at the end.

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

i think it's worth it if you can find a reliable translator instead of google translate.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

the last of us

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

a woman at war - that story is my baby and i cherish it deeply. was a complete emotional roller coaster to write for from a community that i love and value deeply, it also helped me so much grow and evolve as a writer. it will forever hold a special place in my heart.

no pressure tags: @not-those-kids, @swaps55, @feyhunter78, @durrtydawg, @mallaidhsomo