#aka hillie is being sappy

[crazycatfaery]

A love letter to the Winxsource server.

This post is a gift for the wonderful people on the @winxsource server, and its amazing moderators. Sorry in advance, it has become quite a long read, heh.

At the start of 2023 I had been reading several Fate fanfics to cope with the second season's ending, and the closely followed cancellation of the show near the end of 2022.

This quickly sparked a renewed interest for writing (the last time I wrote for fun was literally more than a decade ago). Heck, seeing the art and gifs even inspired me to do fanart.

I joined a FTWS Discord server, and a few months later this led me to another Discord server where, lo and behold, several of the people who I'd been reading fics from and/or whose fanart I had enjoyed were chatting and hanging out!

At first I felt very star-struck. Many of these people had been writing, drawing, etc, for years, and here I came, a total newbie to fanfiction and fanart. Next to that, depression had dragged my self-esteem through the mud for the past few years, which had made creating a lot harder.

But everyone was and still is so incredibly nice and funny. An abundance of jokes, love and support goes around, and people are eager to help when asked. There are no stupid questions, you’re not silly for liking very specific things, and everyone respects each other.

And that takes me to the ones who organise it all.

I want to hereby thank @skloomdumpster and @fitztragedy for moderating the server, organising all of the events, providing support when needed, and just being the lovely and fun people that they are (and a shoutout to @septemberrie and @shadowofnight as well!). You are amazing, and I hope we’ll get to enjoy your server for a long time!

Now, at the risk of becoming way too sappy, and before finally releasing you from this wall of text, I want to say this:

The people in the Fate: The Winx Saga fandom, especially the Winxsource server, have given me a reason to create again. I’ve always had the hardest time to just create for myself, with my own brain kicking my butt constantly. This still happens of course, but it has become increasingly easier to keep trying, stay motivated, and to even become proud of what I create.

Knowing that, no matter what I create, there will always be at least one person who will enjoy it, has been one of the most important lessons and experiences I've had this past year.

It's as some have said before: it's like having little pocket friends that I get to speak to every day. Isn't that amazing?

Thank you, truly,

and I hereby wish you all a very happy and healthy 2024. May it be filled with an abundance of good laughs and lots more new Fate content!

Love,

Hillie

[saberwitch]

Character Rambles.

Just been thinking about the characters I have (and have recently made) and how I'm running out of character slots. So this is kind of a who's who, and kind of a what's what.

(I've been playing since release but I had a bad habit of getting bored with my alts and deleting them and starting over from scratch, so I don't really have any long-term characters.)

The Old Guard, aka "Destiny's Middle".

Arare Breide, Human Guardian

Petra Merchant, Human Engineer

Hekja Stoneheart, Norn Revenant

Caheris [Sparkweaver], Sylvari Elementalist

Arare is my oldest character (4 yrs). I made her by random selection in the CC, and fashioned her with whatever I initially pulled from a selection of Black Lion chests. Petra, Hekja and Caheris are all modeled after NPCs Arare met "in the field" (as it were). Arare and Petra are childhood sweethearts; Hekja and Caheris are also a couple. I have a decent amount of sappy romance fic written about them. They're not seeing much play lately, but they're my comfort characters.

The New Guard

(There are a few of these characters but I'm only going to mention the ones I plan to keep)

Investigator Hilly, Asura Engineer. Hilly is a ghost hunter (remember those "reality" shows?) and I really love her combination of scientific zeal and skepticism.

Ouija Planchette, Human Revenant. Born from the idea of a Victorian parlour seance gone horribly wrong when the host actually starts channeling real spirits. Ouija and Hilly are a fun team.

Fayne Skavin, Human Necromancer. Fayne was my attempt at making a Final Pam. She failed spectacularly, because even with the wonky sliders, she still ended up looking oddly cute. The Rat Princess is one of my favourite characters, and she will never die.

Hearthfire Steading

All these ladies came about from my enduring love for the Norn and their culture (warts and all). The "main" character of this story-heavy idea, Halennia, was designed after a patron goddess of travelers.

Halennia Hearthfire, Elementalist. The ultimate "mom friend". Guide to wanderers and travelers, adoptive parent of lost Nornphans. Will make sure you're hydrated and have snacks.

Stara Halennisaetr, Ranger. Also based on a pagan goddess, and Halennia's daughter. Very social, somewhat mischievous. Bunny Acolyte.

Saskia Deathsong, Necromancer. My current main. I've written a fair bit about her lately. She was the first adoptee into the Hearthfire family.

Ruenar Deathsong, Thief. Saskia's little sister. A work in progress, but I hope to have more about her soon.

Mischief Crowcaller, Mesmer. Absolutely a trickster deity in disguise. Like Rue, a bit of a work in progress.

Meade Honeybrew, Engineer. Brewmaster supreme, follower of Dolyak. She, Elke, and Herring get into a lot of (usually consumable-related) trouble together. Fiery, butts heads with folks a lot, very stubborn. Will help you move for a round of ale.

Herring Rollmop, Guardian. Mostly just wants to fish and enjoy pickles. Can't fathom how she keeps getting caught up in Meade's shenanigans. Absolutely agrees to any and all shenanigans when they are presented to her. Culinarily adventurous, will eat anything that's been brined or fermented. Quiet, stoic, and unshakeable.

Elke Sheepshear, Norn Warrior. A sheepfarmer's daughter (*cough*), Elke is obsessed with being warm and cozy but also loves trying new things (see Meade, shenanigans thereof). Expert on all things wool: shearing, carding, spinning, dyeing, and weaving/knitting. Can and will make you a cozy sweater.

Veerle Deathsong: still a vital component of the Deathsong family drama, but I really don't want to play her as a character, so she'll be going.

Hijinks Squad

Just Kasmeer, Human Mesmer. My Kas clone. Honestly not sure how much actual play she'll get but she's fun so I'm keeping her.

PENDING *Lady Nae Trews, Human Guardian. My first "started as a joke" alt who kind of took on a life of her own. She's not a fan of pants (that's it that's the character)*

Bearyn Bearjayl, Norn Ranger. Exists solely to win GW2. Will she stick around after she succeeds? Only Bear knows for sure.

And finally: plans. I really want to make a vampire themed character but haven't had much luck sticking with one. Current thought is a Norn whose Spirit of the Wild is "Bat". Could be fun? (There are canon vampire bats in the game, so.)

All this said, my main focus right now is Saskia, and getting her through the story so I can play the new expansions as soon as possible. She is my main, and my 'get things done' character. But knowing me I'll be jaunting off on a "side quest" or two, doing fashion stuff, and/or participating in events and other things, so some of my other ladies will likely pop up now and then.