#basically this is heavily based off a fic i read on ao3

[ryoko-san]

(cw: gendered listener - male! FL)

I'm not sure if I posted this before but

This was supposed to be my interpretation of the cataclysm ending but since everything didn't really went as I imagined– perhaps maybe this is just a timeline lol

(note, this was drawn BEFORE the ending of cataclysm so,,,,)

tags:

@roryzz @annahope @cupid-moon @kitkatkoneko

[loosesodamarble]

Sorry you were forced to ask questions in a roundabout way, @vilandel. I forgot to open the inbox before I went to bed last night. Thus the ask game posted but my inbox wasn’t open. 😅

Hopefully you’ll forgive me. 🙏

Now, onto your questions.

7) your preferred writing fonts

Times New Roman. All my writing is drafted in Times New Roman (really stuck in those school essay expectations/lh) I just use Tumblr and Ao3’s default fonts when I post because I don’t feel the need to try and change it.

16) favorite place to write

Basically the only place I write is in my room. I sometimes write in one other location but it’s my own room 99.99% of the time. I don’t want to risk someone looking over my shoulder and reading scandalous stuff like Nacht and Josele snuggling in bed while getting philosophical about life experiences.

29) how easy is it for you to come up with titles?

Fairly easy, I’d say. I base titles off the main concept of a fic or sometimes songs if I use a song as inspiration. I mean, a title should be related to a written work’s contents but in general I find it easy to title works as long as I aim to summarize the fic in the title.

Like “Firefly’s Dance,” I based the song on “Night Bugs on a Rainy Street” and the bug I tend to think of in association with the nighttime is fireflies. But also fireflies inspire Morgen to have his little dance with Josele in the fic.

Then for something like “The Beasts in the Shadows,” well that’ll make sense when/if I actually continue writing the fic. And the first chapter of the fic “Those Forsaken by the Land” heavily involves peasant characters (the Yverns, Josele’s father, and the peasants in the BB) and the chapter title refers to the fact that peasants live in the Forsaken Realm of Clover Kingdom.

Although right now I’m having trouble titling a certain fic because I don’t know how to encompass the fic in a single phrase because it’s a little multi-faceted.

[naranjapetrificada]

Fic recs based on what bits of s2 promotion made you go 👀

So obviously we only have a couple days left and I shouldn't have put this off for so long, but I've been making connections between fics I've encountered and questions raised by the teaser, trailer, and BTS video and thought I'd share some of them. Light (extremely light, like you've just emerged from an isolated cave light) s2 spoilers possible, although it's still mostly speculation?

Anyway this obviously got very long, so I'm throwing in a break now so I don't slow your scroll.

Maybe time in nature helps Ed do some healing?

Fallow Land & Bigger Sky, which I can't ever seem to shut up about was such a rewarding and healing read for me. Especially recommended for people who are interested in Ed's inner life, healing journey, and coping mechanisms, maladaptive or otherwise. Also folks who are excited for him to have an animal friend like Stede Bunnet, although in this fic it's a sweet little black lamb that he sometimes carries around in his shirt.

It begins with Ed having spent a year since The Dock living incognito on a remote (but not deserted!) island trying to get his head around everything that happened and looking for something like peace, however he can get it. It's written in an evocative, poetic way and includes some incredibly lovely flashbacks, believable character growth, important realizations, and tender emotional moments. The vibes are more pastoral than castaway, but Ed is still given time and space to do the work he needs to do in rugged, isolated surroundings so it still scratches that itch for me.

[There are definitely some triggers to be aware of but it feels like the author did a good job of mentioning them at the beginning of each chapter.]

Maybe they do some healing together?

There's no need to reinvent the wheel so I'm going to borrow heavily from an earlier post I made about healing and fanfic two make the case for these two:

Brace Yourself and Nestle into Me: The premise is that Ed and Stede figure out that they're into each other around episode 7, and they're deliriously happy to know that they feel the same way about each other. But Stede has some (understandable) sexual dysfunction around being queer thanks to the horrible society that he grew up in. Ed is a darling trying to help him through it all, and along the way he realizes he also has some of his own hangups he needs to work through, and that they can both support each other's healing.

I appreciate that this one doesn't treat healing like a straight line because it never is, and emphasizes that trust can't just be implicit, you really have to talk it through as a crew, even if it's just a crew of two broken middle-aged men who are desperately in love with each other. It also gets into some of the stuff I've been talking about on here about grieving your former selves and the selves you never got to be, which was validating as hell. That sounds heavy and there are concepts that are literally part of modern therapy modalities woven into the story, but there are also warm and loving and hilarious moments too, including this gem:

“Also can you just imagine how proud little horny baby gay Stede would be know you would be to know that whatever he went through, today you’ve got your own ship and are getting completely railed by Blackbeard? I mean, just absolutely dicked down by the most famous pirate in history? He would lose his mind.”

Adrift Between the Dreaming Seas: Based on my usual filtering on ao3 I probably never, ever would have come across this fic if it weren't for a recommendation someone posted here. It's got fantasy elements, allegory, metaphors stacked on metaphors, talking animals, and so many other things that would have kept me from ever discovering it on my own. My life would be poorer for it.

Basically Stede is cursed to be a lighthouse keeper on an island that seems to move around the world. Animals show up and the ones who talk to him are members of the crew, and Ed is an actual kraken. It's all this symbolism about monstrosity and trauma and maladaptive coping and the messiness that is Stede's kindness scraping against his self loathing. I shed tears of many kinds along the way, and it made me think hard about community and recovery and the things we do to and for ourselves and others.

It's just a lovely little gem of a story that made me feel so much so deeply while also making me laugh much more than I was anticipating. I'm so glad I gave it a chance.

Maybe there's a massive, life-altering storm?

A World of Tempestuous Things, which is nearly finished and has been such a rewarding, moving journey to follow as it explores another take on their reunion story. There's the expected angst and misunderstandings, but also wit and warmth and longing and rage and these casually devastating historical asides, some of which still haunt me out of the blue because of the staggering and inescapable nature of the passage of time. Speaking of passages and being haunted, dig if you will, this picture:

so little time to dwell amongst strangers as a citizen of the world will never, ever stop reverberating in my head like a cymbal crash and I guess that's just something I live with now. @lostakasha, you've given me the existentially beautiful prose version of tinnitus.

Maybe Stede's slut party era is finally upon us?

If so, good for him, he deserves it so much.

When the Light Shines In is a missing scene/lightly canon-divergent take on s1e06, if you just like the idea of meeting a jolly version of Drunk Stede (vs that "unhand me or bleed" guy, who is hot in his own way or course but can't beat messy earnest bossy Stede in my opinion). It's set immediately after the fight with Izzy. Ed is patching him up and trying not to vibrate out of his own skin, while Stede is affectionate and chatty and besotted whether he knows it or not, and steadily working his way through a bottle of rum for the pain. So not really related to season 2, but it will still scratch that same itch and make you smile real big.

Well, I Ain't Tactful is actually set during season 2, inspired by the moment in the BTS video where Ed sees Stede getting drunk with his new leather buddies. If you asked yourself what might happen if Ed felt compelled to keep an eye on Sloppy Stede and tuck him in with a glass of water, then this one will be fun. Ed is caring and lovely about it all even while still being a bit mad at him for everything, and Stede is a mess but so sweet and still so, so in love.

Maybe we'll get to see young Ed on Hornigold's ship?

There's no evidence of that so far beyond the whole ghost of Hornigold thing, but it certainly would be a treat. But even if it doesn't, if the idea of more young Ed appeals I cannot possibly recommend the pre-canon Never Shall We Die enough.

Now there's no getting around two crucial things that may be dealbreakers for some people: first, it's long. It's very, very long. Second: it's a WIP. Only one of two I've allowed myself to follow in this fandom so I don't get overwhelmed or bogged down. But!

The writing is so impeccable that it stands head and shoulders above almost everything I've ever read on ao3 and honestly above a lot of commercially published original fiction I've encountered in the same span of time since I've started it. The settings are deliciously (and sometimes, due to the realities of life on a pirate ship, disgustingly) immersive, the action scenes are perfectly paced, and the emotional beats, when they hit, hit hard and ring true and stay with you.

Starting at at age 13, young Ed's growth and development over time is equal parts rewarding and harrowing. Threads are pulled together from canon and from earlier parts of the story to coalesce into a portrait of a living, breathing version of our favorite guy trying to find his place in the world, stumbling along the way, and eventually realizing that if he wants a place he'll have to make it himself. The secondary characters leap off the proverbial page too, and the connections he does or doesn't form with them have interesting, believable fallout for everyone involved.

I mentioned action scenes earlier, but I want to circle back around to them again because NSWD takes Izzy's season 1 comment about Blackbeard being the greatest sailor he's ever known and says the same with its whole chest. I know I'm not alone in hoping to see Incredible Sailor Ed in season 2, but in the mean time this is more than scratching that itch for me. We see Ed set foot on his first ship with no skills beyond attracting (mostly) unwelcome attention and observational skills that become the foundation of his later abilities with the sea and with the art of fuckery. From the outside he looks like a savant but on the inside he builds his skills slowly over time, delighting in learning new things and seeing a plan come together. But best of all, he delights in the skills of others, eagerly learns from them when he can, happily teaches what he can to the few people he trusts, and takes pleasure and pride in their own success.

I could literally keep talking about this fic until the next chapter gets posted, but the good news is that happens regularly! I know it can be tough to trust a WIP but I for one am so thankful for the moment of poor impulse control that led to me starting this one. New chapters come roughly every two weeks, and looking at @tresdem's output elsewhere helps me feel secure that we'll actually get to the end.

[still-a-morosexual-help]

I want to read ALL of your works, but you have collections in AO3 that are interconnected... And I'm a little lost of how read them/what read first.

Can you give me a tip of the order/ where to begin? :3 🧡💜🧡💜

Ohhh there are no direct sequels to anything, I just put fics that have a similar theme into the same series (eg: 5 + 1 fics) so really if you want you can eenie meenie mini mo it and it'll make no difference

Here are the different series;

There's some overlap in what fics fit into what series, but overall I have

27 OM! fics

22 unnamed gn! MC x Mammon fics

3 named MC x Mammon fics

2 gen no pairing fics

Two unrelated human au coffee shop fics (2)

Fics that happen pre series or between seasons (3)

Fics that happen from Lucifer's PoV (3)

Very loosely connected fics dealing with grief/trauma/moving on (2)

Unrelated 5 + 1 fics (4)

Unrelated fics based off very specific canon moments (you don't need to have seen those moments for the fics to make sense though) (5)

Connected reversed au fics: demon! MC × Human! Mammon (1 - it's still a wip)

Unrelated fics for the monsterfuckers (3)

Fics with a named MC (3)

Fics based off tumblr prompts for unnamed gn! MC x Mammon (16)

This one fic, that didn't fit into a series, about MC "scamming" simeon

This fic is in a series but it should get it's own special mention. Each chapter is unrelated and based off a "fake title". Basically people sent titles and I made heavily detailed outlines for the fic I'd write for that title which led to lot of different AUs cropping up eg: witch & familiar Au, mer & pirate Au

Ummm if you read any I'd love to know your thoughts...

[samthehyena]

Sam's Guide To Writing Chatfics

Step 1: Read chatfics

Browse your local ao3 for chatfics to find what you like in them and what stuff makes them difficult to read.

One of my favorite things about chatfics is how much a username can reveal about a character - plus it's a great way to include puns. The trope of having characters change their usernames based on the flow of the story is also very fun (e.g. in my Togachako chatfic Himiko changed Dabi's nickname to Dad-bi and Hawks' name to Pop-eyes after they basically adopted her). Chatfics are also a great way to balance having a lots of characters talk at once.

Now one of the things I have a hard time with a lot of chatfics is that it can be difficult to keep track of who is who - especially if it's a story with a class group chat. One way to mitigate that issue is to periodically have your characters address other characters by their name. Having usernames directly relate to common HCs or very specific traits unique to the character is also a good route to go with (e.g. 3D_Printer for Yaoyorozu Momo).

Step 2: Find character voice

Since character interactions are the foundation of chatfics, characterization and imitating the way your characters speak in canon is important.

To get a character's vibe right I usually start off by watching clips on YouTube so I can get a refresher on what kind of words they use, how formal their register is and most importantly how to make characters with somewhat similar personalities more distinct.

For example, Tsu and Jiro in my Togachako chatfic have a lot of similarities in the way I write them. Both have a bluntness to them and won't take anyone's shit. So I try to differentiate them by their role in the conversation. Although both make blunt commentary, Tsu has more of a stating the obvious angle while Jirou adds her dry sense of humor to the fic via sarcasm.

Another thing to consider is how a particular character would realistically text. Which characters don't use capitalization because they couldn't be bothered? Who relies heavily on emojis to reflect how expressive they are in canon? Who uses abbreviations and makes Internet references because they seem like they'd be tech-savvy? Who always writes in full sentences and super formal?

Step 4: Humor

Chatfics work extremely well for banter and can tie in well with broader meme and Internet culture, making them the perfect platform for humor (oh, my beloved Crack Treated Seriously Tag).

I find that a particularly effective way to incorporate humor into chatfics is by weaving in fandom inside jokes since the rapid-fire back and forth for the convos suits that well. (e.g. Toga Himiko literally being thought to be a vampire).

There's also all sorts of room for jokes like someone not understanding an Internet reference or a character making typos - oh dear lord, I can't think of anything else of substance to say for this section.

Step 5: Plot or no plot?

Ah, the big question! Some people like how chatfics can be silly slice-of-life stories that are fun and episodic without an overarching plot, and others want more conventional linear storytelling out of their chatfics.

Both are great routes to choose! I tend to write chatfics with some sort of plot (if we want to generously call it that), but my two cents on chatfics that aren't plot driven is to focus on the same group of core characters so that readers can get investigated in their dynamics and interactions.

Now for plot-driven chatfics one thing that I keep in mind is justifying why this story needs to be a chatfic rather than a full-length prose story. Maybe there's a catfishing storyline. Maybe conspiracy theorists meet through an online forum. Or for a specific example here's the summary of my Togachako chatfic: "Ochako's friends are suspicious of her online girlfriend. For all they know Himiko could be a villain, a serial killer or even a vampire."

The fic's plot hinges on the chatfic format since otherwise the online relationship aspect doesn't hit quite the same.

Of course, you don't need your chatfic to be one-hundred percent chatfic. If there's a plot-point where you think it would be nice to incorporate introspection to make emotional moments hit or have characters interact IRL, go for it y'all!! The way I like to do this is by just switching between chatfic and prose sections. Other authors split off the prose parts into their own one-shots (The Todoroki In-Laws series is a very well-executed example of this).

Step 6: So Formatting

The bane of my existence tbh. A lot of authors have neat coding tricks up their sleeve or go the extra mile to add times for each text for ultimate immersion which is very cool.

But alas I am lazy. When drafting my chatfics I use the characters' initials or sth and then I add all the usernames and formatting later.

Screenshot of one of my chatfics:

Step 7: PC or Phone

Whether you prefer to write chatfics on your phone or laptop/computer is up to personal taste. I've done both depending on my mood.

The pros of typing on a phone is that it makes accessing emojis or kaomojis easier - plus it's easy to get in the headspace of characters who are texting. And you get to write your fics while being all snuggled up in bed. The downside is autocorrect which makes typing a lot slower especially when I try to add distinct ways of texting.

The pro of PC is that it's easier to switch between full length prose and chat fic sections and I at least type faster on my laptop. Of course the caveat is that emojis tend to be less accessible via Google docs and word ... Or at least there isn't as much variety as on a smartphone.

So yeah just go with whatever feels right. I find chatfics pleasant to write while traveling since I don't need to whip out my entire laptop on a plane and can draft chatfic on my phone instead

Step 8: Have fun!!

Ultimately there are no rules, this stuff is just my takeaway. Do whatever suits your fancy because fanfic is all about being self-indulgent and YOU having fun.

[nautilusopus]

20 questions for fic writers

Tagged by @subdee, may as well since it's been a while

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

40

2. What’s your total ao3 word count?

590,973

3. What fandoms do you write for?

FFVII mostly, but none of that spinoff bullshit. I have some stuff for XV in the works despite hating XV and the characters having zero fucking personality because this is just my grieving process I guess??? They're basically all crossovers with VII except one though so ¯_(ツ)_/¯

I've also got a couple things for Spy X Family I'm excited for but unfortunately am a bit hamstrung due to certain reveals and lack of reveals so it's on pause.

(Also Ever Crisis and Remake back to back have sucked all the fucking joy out of me in one fell swoop so I'm trying to remember why I even fucking like doing this when FFVII has effectively been erased.)

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

1)The Number I.

Go read it. I worked hard on it and it's very dense and heavily character-driven and a genfic focused on plot, and, most importantly, is complete. I'm going to shill this one directly I ain't give a damn:

Predominately involves Cloud, now four years out from Meteorfall, struggling to adjust to civilian life given he's still gene-spliced with an Old God, who begins losing control of his body to a heretofore seemingly unknown entity with inscrutable goals. As it gradually becomes clear that the events of the previous four years aren't as they seem in more ways than one, things start to go off the rails completely as Cloud winds up enmeshed in conflict between multiple parties: an international initiative studying cosmology and the two doctors leading it; the WRO, who has considered him a Jenova-based liability from day one; interpersonal friction with his newfound family stemming from the residual baggage of everything he went through; and reality itself beginning to deteriorate.

It's slice of life, it's cosmic horror, it's a character study, it's about grown men crying and legacies and grief and trauma and intimacy and autonomy and gender as a microcosm for broader truths about the nature of the self, it's got angry tearful fistfights, bottoms that haven't figured out you can take it in turn to service top, Cloud telling everyone his strong and correct opinions about magic and materia and bikes, found family shenanigans, and me talking about garlic for way way way too long. Something for everyone!

I wasn't kidding about any of that by the way, heed the warnings at the top of the chapters because I do NOT pull punches and we get into some heavy shit. Go hard or go home.

Originally it was a 500 word pee joke I was gonna show to two people in response to a terrible LTD argument I saw someone make and was sure I'd "wrap it up quickly". Oops.

2) An Idiot's Guide to Holding Hands. I wrote this in response to, I'm not kidding, the worst most hateful fanfiction I have ever fucking seen in my life. As big of a beef as I have with the Crisis Core fuckers treating the women like shit and being pretty hateful towards them as a whole, they're still at least clearly writing because they genuinely love Crisis Core and the characters in it for reasons that are presently unknown to me. This thing on the other hand was oozing contempt for the cast of VII and Evangelion and the women in particular and I genuinely don't know why someone would put that much fucking effort into making something like this and felt a sudden need to rebut everything it stood for. It's not super great as a fic tbh but y'all seem to like it so at least something came of it.

3) Don't Ask How The Job Interview Went. Harry Potter/VII crossover I shat out in like 6 hours on a whim because a Halloween prompt one year was "witches and wizards" and I hated all the existing crossovers (ugh again with the crisis core). Honestly had an entire multichapter fic as a sequel lined up that I was pretty excited for but as things went on I felt grosser and grosser about even making it. Maybe I'll do something with the outline one day, it was basically finished. Still kills me that this thing is so fucking popular but there you go.

4) What's Dead and Buried. This is literally just Chapter 18 of The Number I (which you should go read!). I wrote it, realised it worked great as a standalone fic and gateway drug, and published it as its own thing. If you're on the fence about TNI, maybe check out this oneshot. Features shitty gremlin child Cloud interacting with Vincent and a lot of grim implications about both their lives that Cloud is too young to really get. Very very black comedy.

5) Adjacent. I don't like this one sorry. It was a commission and while I like the individual headcanons of freaky shit Cloud is inclined to do and was chomping at the bit to use them somewhere I don't like how they wound up getting utilised. Feels like generic fandom fluff to me. I'd delete it but people seem to enjoy it and I don't want to take that from them.

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

Always and as soon as I possibly can! I'm immensely flattered people actually take the time to comment on stuff and I enjoy getting to talk about the stuff I wrote in a bit more depth.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

It's Full of Stars easily. Fucked that dude up beyond repair. Also was considering a sequel for this one too so I could explore some of the stuff fueling what the fuck is going on here, though that might obviously ruin the ambiguity of said ending and what exactly was done to him.

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

I'm a big baby I actually almost always try for happy endings, or at least bittersweet. Probably Tidewaters, nobody even gets pulped in that one.

8. Do you get hate on fic?

Basically no. I've gotten five negative comments in all the years I've been doing this:

Two were people whinging about how I made Aeris Jewish in a fic and how that was reverse racist against Christians (die mad about it lol).

Two were someone that wanted an in-depth essay over my right to use a slur within the context of a character talking about people calling him that slur in a character arc partially about feeling alienated from gender and basically demanded I out myself to "prove" I could use it while missing literally everything about why that word would be used to where they felt the need to send that shit to begin with (gee thanks did you do it did you make the queers feel comfortable). Reading comprehension is so so important you are all going to kill me.

The last one was a long six paragraph rant completely unrelated to the fic in any way because I joked in the author's notes about not liking a video game that they liked(????), followed by an even longer ten paragraph rant about how actually the unrelated game was "95% perfect" (lmaoooo) and how "5% of it being bad isn't a good reason to hate it". The first half of it's on there, I deleted the second comment because my fanfiction comments are not the fucking gamefaqs forums dude. (Also die mad about it lol.) That remains to this day the only comment I've ever deleted from any of my fics and that includes the one that literally just said "penis" and nothing else.

9. Do you write smut?

If you squint lol. TNI has a couple sex scenes in it. They're uh

they're in it.

Boy are they in it.

10. Do you write crossovers?

Hell yeah I do. Also I'm a purist about this term A CROSSOVER IS WHEN YOU CROSS THE TWO THINGS OVER BUT THEY ARE STILL THEIR OWN DISPARATE THINGS. A FUSION IS WHEN THE TWO SETTINGS ARE FUSED. WORDS MEAN THINGS. ALSO A DRABBLE IS 100 WORDS EXACTLY NO MORE NO LESS. I'LL KEEP SITTING ON THIS PORCH SHAKING MY FIST AT THESE CHILDREN UNTIL THEY FUCKING LEARN.

Anyway I'll dump FFVII on everything and nobody can stop me. FFXV. Mass Effect. Spy X Family. Aliens. Ellen Ripley can, should, must, and will fight Jenova with a power loader.   

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nah I talk a big game but I ignore the Comp too hard to break into the mainstream. I'm small potatoes.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nah and no surprises why. Shit's too wordy.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind of? Fuck I gotta finish that thing.

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

meh. Does Loid/Yor even count? Everyone keeps writing it wrong and we still haven't seen the penny drop but it's sweet in its extremely fucking dysfunctional way (which is the best way GO READ TNI COUGH COUGH).

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but probably won’t?

Frame-Perfect. Should not have started writing before finishing the damn outline, don't know how to resolve this thing without it being a massive downer any way you slice it. This is why you should never pants VARETH.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue babyyyyyyy. I literally won an award for it once lol. Probably also psychological horror. Those two things combined means there's a lot of stream of consciousness shit in nearly everything I do, and if that's not your jam you probably won't like it.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

It is so, so hard to get a character from a location to another location. It shouldn't be hard. Why is it hard??? I should be allowed to just go And then he went, in exactly that cadence every time and everyone should just deal with it UGH 

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

Extremely hit or miss and you can almost always tell if the person in question doesn't speak it. Use sparingly because you are playing with fire.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

FFVII. The Number I is technically my first fanfiction ever, actually!

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

Either TNI obviously, but also as a whole either Replacements or Tidewaters. Replacements I whipped up on the spot day-of in a few hours on a whim and it basically turned out perfect???? I've never been able to replicate that before or since. Tidewaters is Cloud Yuffie Nanaki shenanigans which I love, and I was shocked and horrified to learn I'm basically the entire tag of that as far as that's concerned (I'm working on rectifying that I promise shhhh).

Everyone I know that writes was already tagged basically uhhhhhhh

@varethinsilico, @denebolaleo-ffwriter, @spectroscopes, @terror-billie, @jenovacomplete, anyone else who wants to take a crack at this pretend I tagged you.

[scrabbleknight]

With it being 24 hours since I've updated my fic, it's time to go through my thoughts over Chapter 10 of SatF.

First off, I'd like to thank everyone for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. I worked hard on it and it happened to be my longest chapter yet. Second, if you read the Author's Notes in AO3, you'll find that there were a large number of deleted/heavily modified scenes that I unfortunately didn't bother to use. So I won't go through that since my thoughts over it are already laid bare.

Now onto the analysis:

Choosing between two chapters

The Wartwood chapter was actually one of two choices I had when I started. Before beginning, I had to choose between two ideas that I wanted to write and even had to get an external opinion about it. In the end, I chose to write about Wartwood and its citizens since it's a chapter I wanted to write for so long and this seemed to be the perfect time for it. The other chapter idea was actually an Anne chapter!

Expanding the characters

The main purpose of this chapter were two things; to expand existing characters and to expand the worldbuilding. Every story brought in something new, such as one-off characters (Nelly), racism in Amphibia (Maddie) and family names (Tritonio). Also, the reveal of cultists which was always implied in the past, and their importance in the future. There's a really neat system regarding cultists in particular and it will be brought up, but basically it's just layers upon layers of secrecy.

Racism in Amphibia

Racism is a pretty hot topic and Amphibia, being based on traditional Tolkien/DnD fantasy, has some of it (but not too much because Disney show). So I wanted to put some focus in it too. Amphibia's racism is mild and hidden; it's not outwardly like those other fantasy stories. It's especially obvious during the Three Armies episode where newts and toads have a rivalry, and frogs are looked down upon. This seemed to have happened during Andrias's rule, so he most likely has a hand in it.

So I wrote the insidious and lurking nature of racism as well. In this case, we see that Maddie can't become a proper witch/curse practitioner because she's not allowed to enroll in a special school due to her species. Maddie, of course, shrugs it off because she can still do it, just illegally and only outside of Newtopia where the rule is enforced.

But Albus has a reaction to it. He feels guilty because he has a privilege that Maddie did not, and he didn't notice. It can make one wonder how many other advantages they have in their life that are seemingly invisible. Of course, Maddie comments on it, stating that it's not Albus's fault. After all, he simply lived in privilege; he was hardly the cause of it or propagated it. Just knowing and being aware of it is the very minimum, and acting with that knowledge is the ideal.

Fatherless

Ivy's fatherless behaviour actually started as a joke. I wrote the scene about Felicia getting mad about him and it expanded from there. But then, I added more content regarding it and brought it back full circle near the end. Tritonio being an orphan was always planned after the Three Armies episode but his relationship with the family was only added in this chapter. The chapter was also going to mention why he left and it was because he utterly humiliated his brother (the head of the Espadas and an actual blood-related member) in a duel which led to him leaving to avoid persecution. I'll definitely bring that up in the future. And Ivy being mad about her absentee father was only added in the last minute, which I say worked incredibly well to tie it all together.

The brief history of Amphibia: Blue Blood Massacre

Now this is something I really wanted to write, in excerpts and journals. The purpose of this entry was to give out names of important families, specifically the Lilypads and the Leopolds. The latter is related to Loggle and his family will have an important part during Sasha's time in Newtopia, hence him giving her his eyepiece which was also the Leopold emblem. The Lilypads aren't brought up yet but in this AU, Lady Olivia would be a member, hence her close proximity with Andrias. Family lines are incredibly important in Newtopia and it's important to establish that early on because it can be the cause of major conflicts.

When writing about the Blue Blood Massacre, I had to choose between either making it explicit or implicit. In the end, I chose the latter, as shown with Andrias being labelled a victim for it. Of course, we (readers) know better. Additionally, it was also the perfect time to include Andrias getting his cybernetics since it was never explained what medical procedures he used, so the average person could wave it off as magic.

I didn't write it but each of the Five Founding Families specialized in different things which allowed them to work together. The Lilypads were agriculturists, the Leopolds were craftsmen and the Leviathans were researchers. As for the Larns and the Livres, they were soldiers and merchants respectively which was why it had to be carefully planned to take them out. Each family also would've represented each species: Lilypads for frogs, Leviathans for salamanders, Larns for toads, Livres for newts and Leopolds for axolotls. With the toads and newts families being wiped and the Lilypads being replaced from frogs to newts, it established a newt supremacy that Andrias can easily control.

You might be thinking; why didn't he just weaken the Livres since they're newts already? That's exactly why he did it. So long as people remembered their heritage, it's difficult to truly control them since they have something to look back to. But replaced the frogs with newts in Lilypads, it meant that the newts didn't have anything to look back to. It wasn't theirs; they simply took the original's place.

I probably won't write this in the fanfic since it's too obtuse and technically counts as in-universe libel, but the heritage of the Lilypads will be brought up.

The bow and what is it used for

I can't say much about it but the bow is designed in such a way that all three girls can use, essentially making it a shared weapon. Even the materials are important; blue sea anemone (Anne) and green wood (Marcy). Red is the only thing that's not in it because I have a red material for something else. Another important part about a bow is that it's a stationary weapon; you don't need to move to use it. This is important for S3, where it'll be useful for a particular character.

The ending will be super cool, trust me.

And that's about it for this chapter. Any more would be spoiling future content which would be a bummer. I am glad you guys read the story and I hope you liked it. I'll be expanding more stuff in the future and until then, I'll see you all soon :D

[azumasoroshi]

going fucking insane over one of my wips because it's for a really small subgroup of a really small fandom of a really small fandom of a really big fandom that everyone fucking hates because people are cancelled like every other week and basically i cant talk about it with anyone without needing to explain like 60 pages worth of story that I wrote PLUS no one wants to talk about me because it's one of the cringiest ships in existence that sounds HORRENDOUSLY heteronormative on paper and like half the fandom calls them siblings even though they have been confirmed multiple times not to be and the other half is like oh the girl would never be in love with the guy because she's in love with the player!! as if being in love with her ideal of the player is healthy for her all and can't change or she can't fall out of love with someone whose interactions were limited to basically just looking at her, clicking through her text and DELETING HER

yeah so is about monipai as in monika from ddlc and senpai from friday fucking night funkin (i know. im sorry) im so down horrendous im on like seventeen doses of copium and counting and there's 11 total monipai works on ao3

one of them is mine and the other ones are either written by a 10 year old (because it's fucking fnf, what sane adult would write unironic fnf fanfiction) or unfinished (because fnf fics get no traction and unless you're fucking insane like me and have 60 pages of pure brainrot there is NOTHING keeping you going for such a nonexistent audience) and oh my god why am i here

the other fandoms ive been in recently are vashwood and shizaya and those are great!! those are normal!! vashwood has been getting boatloads of content that i cant stop looking at/reading and im getting fun ideas for aus and there's so many people in the community rn to interact with

and shizaya is a bit of struggle because the fandom is smaller but there's so much older content to go through/reread that it's fine and my posts about them get some traction and in some places you can actually talk to people who have been in the fandom from the beginning of time and overall it's a good fun time

AND THEN THERE'S MONIPAI. the ONE straight (bi4bi according to me and im always right) ship in fnf that no one likes because they're "sibling coded" for some god forsaken reason (and im usually all for sibling headcanons/prefer them over romantic ones but NOT THIS ONE SENPAI LITERALLY CONFESSED HIS LOVE FOR HER IN THE MOD) and it'll only make sense to people who like DDTO enough to not forget about it after playing like 19832529 other mods and even THEN like half of them ship it in the really cringe heteronormative way that dudebros ship them like GOD FUCKING HELL GET ME OUT OF HERE

ive never been madder about anything ive shipped ever. i LOVE getting comments on my fic and im surprised ive gotten any at all but holy shit

you know that one person who made like 3000 fics for their honeyworks throuple. honey i feel you cuz what the fuck is this

and with my usual ships i can send them to my friends who know what to expect and be like ok so these are the gayasses you're obsessed with this week but with this one. like the very premise is so ridiculous id be laughed out of their dms but this is literally like the most in-depth and serious ive gotten about any of my fanfiction plots ever (there's like themes and callbacks and motifs and everything, thats how you know it's bad). this is probably better written than my book drafts and it makes me SO MAD

ive even considered like. what if i just made them my ocs, since i've developed them so much and the plot is entirely my own creation. that might even be easier but the fic is so heavily based off of canon content that it just wouldntd make SENSE how am i supposed to rewrite all that canon lore when i take them out of it. i cant. im stuck tying them to ddtoverse

back to what i was originally talking about: basically i got this really nice comment on ao3 on my monipai fic and i was smiling really hard and spinning in my chair and i was inspired to try and write again so i update my. oh it's 71 pages. 71 page document to try and update chapter 3 and i end up going to my other ideas and workshopping them and suddenly ive penned down ideas for 4 DIFFERENT CLIMAXES?????????? AND THEY ALL HAVE THEIR PROS AND CONS AND THEY ALL BASICALLY LEAD TO THE SAME ENDNIG AND I DONT KNOW WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE AND I CANT ASK ANYONE BECAUSE IF THEY'RE INTERESTED ENOUGH TO READ IT I WANT THEM TO READ THE FIC AS IT'S BEING UPDATED BUT NO ONE'S INTERESTED ANYWAY

and trying to ask about which one i should choose while removing all incriminating details (read: monika and senpai's names) is so hard because there's SO much i have to explain as backstory and no one even responds to it anyway so there's no point :sob:

anyway i love monipai and specifically my version of monipai and it's legitmately ruining my life how's your day going

[cinematicnomad]

I must admit, whenever I see your gifsets for "The Terror", I always end up waiting to know more. I've never heard of this show before but it intrigues me, especially the pairing you make content for, fitzier I think you named them?💜

Just wanted to tell you that. Please keep making content for this show and pairing :))

oh lol 😅 i'm out here in my hyperfixation era re:terror so i'm gonna keep making gifs until i'm bored. like, i've posted almost 50 sets for this show already and they're routinely getting less than 100 notes and i don't even care 😂 this is a niche show with a small fandom that came out in 2018 and i definitely missed the boat on its height but i'm having fun so!! this is for me.

basically the show is an adaptation of the novel by the same name which is itself a fictionalized exploration of what happened to the lost franklin expedition it the 1840s. the franklin expedition was a real british expedition where 2 renown ships (called erebus and terror respectively) holding 130 men tried to find the northwest passage and instead went missing with everyone presumed dead. based on what was left behind, we know that the ships were trapped by the ice, that at least 2 dozen men (including the expedition commander) died before the ships were eventually abandoned and the now-in-command crozier and his now-second fitzjames tried to lead the survivors to canadian mainland on foot and all vanished. what evidence remains shows that the men most likely died due to scurvy, lead poisoning, starvation, hypothermia, and more (and there is also some evidence of possible cannibalism).

the book, and the show, takes liberties with the story, turning it into a supernatural horror narrative where, along with being threatened by the inhospitable land they're trapped in, the men of the ships are also hunted by a local mythological bear-type creature. crozier, portrayed by the talented jared harris, is arguably the lead of season 1 though it does have a large ensemble cast. i first heard of the show back in 2018 when it first came out but i could never find anywhere to watch it until i finally stumbled across it on hulu this september and i have been obsessed ever since.

as for fitzier, i'm not big on "shipping" characters portraying real life people but given the heavily fictionalized and paranormal narrative of the show i've mostly gotten over that. there are some amazing fics on ao3 that i've read (naturally i read a lot of fix-it fics lol)..there's just something about doomed love that really gets to me. especially between crozier and fitzjames—the two start off at odds with each other (as you can probably tell from the gifs i've been posting) but they grow so close over the course of the show that when they're inevitably parted by death it's such a gut punch even though you always knew it was coming.

if you do want to watch it i HIGHLY recommend. i binged it all in a single night back in september and it has stuck with me ever since. there is a second season but i've never seen it—it's an anthology series and s2 has nothing to do with s1.

[ao3feed-brucewayne]

HBO Titans x Comics Bats Crossover!

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/9x2ClJu by Arkham_Knightx Basically just a crossover of Prime Earth and CW Earth-9 (Titans), except I've changed Prime Earth to become more fluffy and less violent, and added my own canon divergent AUs. But it's based off of Prime Earth (Rebirth). Takes place following the end of Titans 03x13, after saving Gotham with Lazarus water, the Titans are celebrating, when suddenly the world starts ripping itself apart. Meanwhile, the Bats in Earth-0 are finally having an off day after stopping yet another mass Arkham breakout, when the world starts trembling, and Flash sends an emergency message to the JLA, saying there's something wrong with the Speed Force, right before the world goes white. Words: 611, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English Series: Part 10 of ArkhamKnightx's Batfam fics, Part 1 of ArkhamKightx's DC Multiverse AUs Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types, Titans (TV 2018) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: Gen Characters: Jason Todd, Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Damian Wayne, Duke Thomas, Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown, Harper Row, Koriand'r (DCU), Raven, Garfield Logan, Donna Troy, Cassie Sandsmark, Kon-El | Conner Kent, Komand'r (DCU), Barbara Gordon, Bart Allen Relationships: Comics Batfamily & Titans (TV 2018), Jason Todd & Jason Todd, Dick Grayson & Dick Grayson, Tim Drake & Tim Drake, Bruce Wayne & Bruce Wayne, Barbara Gordon & Barbara Gordon, Koriand'r & Koriand'r (DCU), Raven & Rachel Roth (DCU), Garfield Logan & Garfield Logan, Kon El & Conner Kent, Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent, Dick Grayson/Wally West, Roy Harper/Koriand'r/Jason Todd, Artemis of Bana-Mighdall & Bizarro (DCU) & Jason Todd, Teen Titans & Titans Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, DC Multiverse Crossover, Earth-Prime (DCU), Earth-9 (CW DC TV Universe), Focuses more heavily on the Jasons because I love them read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/9x2ClJu

[redjaybathood]

i think there are certain things about fanon jason that fans have said happen in canon more frequently than they do (protecting sex workers or victims of abuse for example) and I’d prefer if Jason were to actually do those things on his own

You have to excuse me but I slept zero hours in the last 2 days. I will try to be short but I probably won't.

1) if someone says Jason did something in canon that he had not, or tries to spin fanon as comics canon specifically, that's obviously wrong, as in not factually correct. I understand the feeling; I am, too, frustrated with similar instances of fanon things framed as canon, or simply misconceptions. Like: Jason wanted to kill Tim Drake in Titans Tower and slit his throat. Or, Bruce is a good father.

2) that said, Jason being protective of victims of sexual violence and exploitation, especially children, women, and sex workers is not fanon at all. And basically, there's going to be four of five stories that get cited for that. Feel free to add links in reblogs for already existing mega popular threads on that. Because when we're talking about Jason fans saying it's canon, well - that is exactly the sort of posts that do.

and believe me, most of us who talk about canon, actually read canon, and actually want more of it in canon as well

3) Now, difference between blink and you missed canon, headcanon, and fanon could be defined differently, but how I define it, with a few examples:

Blink and you miss it canon: Jason being a victim of sexual abuse as a child, and/or sexual exploitation. Where it's from: nixed AIDS storyline; Winnick work with Green Arrow, I don't remember exact name; Morrison's video that Bruce recorded for Jason. Or, another example: Bruce killing Jason in the UtRH. Mind you, it didn't take, but.

It's fine if you disregard it. Because pick and choose your canon. If you don't like something, off with it. But it's what writers intended.

Another example: Jason being overprotective of victims of sexual violence, sexual workers, and children.

Headcanon: based on both Urban Legends and lead up to Death in the Family since at least Dumpster Slasher, I may headcanon that Jason wasn't a victim himself but instead had been a powerless witness of his mother being a victim of sexual exploitation or assault. Which led him to push Robbie the drug dealer down the stairs. Then, as he gets retraumatized during his time as Robin, it repeats with Jason pushing Felipe down the balcony. Another example: Jason is immortal now.

It's something that heavily based on canon, extrapolated from it. It makes sense to the people who subscribe to headcanon but not necessarily to others, and that's fine.

Another example: Jason during his time as a crime lord, also used his power and influence to be "the roof" for sexual workers, based on a) his known protectiveness of them b) a line in Batman and Robin (I think).

Fanon: Jason currently being a sexual worker to finance his vigilante life, as he stopped being the crime lord/gave the club to Suzie Su. Or, another example: Jason having a special relationship with Death, seeing ghosts, but in a different way than in canon (in canon he sees ghosts of All Caste and he died twice and came back so something definitely up, but the fanon I'm talking about is more clear cut like him being a medium or necromancer or something else).

It's something that usually has been inspired by canon but mostly is about "wouldn't it be cool if". Could be freely ignored, might sometimes become very popular so people would think it's canon.

Another example: Jason is boondocks saint of Park Row. Cool concept, never showed or hinted at on page.

4) people who don't read comics have their own canon based on Ao3, Tumblr, Twitter, whatever. Your canon is created by DC, theirs by you. By our collective subconsciousness. I think they're clear winners in life here because sometimes it's a real pain, reading comics.

5) I know all about dumb takes and looking for fics you want to read and not finding them because people have just their own canon - that's fanon for you; or they might have just read different comics. Like. Have you read all Jason appearances? I didn't. Look. I struggle very very much with reading comics. And lately, I have had difficulties with reading at all. So. I won't be a person who is like: you don't read comics, you're not a true fan, you don't know who Jason is, you're delusional or laughable or unpleasant. All of which are the takes real people on this website really have. But so what? If pick and choose your canon is true, then it's true for everyone, okay. Just be careful when you go into discussions.

And I am not saying you are not allowed to be mad about someone's dumb opinions on your favorite character, or the character you love to hate, or anyone else. Or that you can't vent, or rant about it on your blog. You are.

But so is true for anyone else who might not like your takes on canon, your fics, your headcanon or fanon. Just keep it civil so that the fandom would be less toxic.

And by you I don't mean you as a person who sent me an ask, but general you.

6) I am falling asleep a bit. What did we start with? "Certain things about Fanon Jason that fans said happened in canon more frequently that they did". Okay, if things happened in canon, they're canon, if they didn't, they didn't. If someone says something happened in canon when it didn't, they might be either mistaken, or misremembering things, or don't read comics canon and so you can basically consider they have another canon, like sometimes people write about only Arkham Knight, or only in Young Justice the cartoon series, etc. It's the same Jason, but different. You can only stop them from writing what you don't like by making them interested in what you like. And being judgmental is never a good way to go about it. I'm not talking about you here, but again, more in general.

7) Wanting things you're interested in to be portrayed in canon is a natural thing, and I am 💯 behind the notion that someone - I have high hopes about Martinborough (I have probably totally misspelled his name, I'm sorry) - writes Jason exactly like protector of the most vulnerable people he has kinship or similar experience with. Put him in Park Row, Hills, Narrows, East End in general, and just make him make good here, extrapolating from what's already been established about his character before DitF and cemented in Lost Days.

I fucking hope this all makes as much sense as it has in my head. Have a good day.

[val-aquenta]

I know I know it’s late, but here it is. My Jedi June entry for this week based on Defence prompt in regards to lightsabers. 

Read Here on ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/39451506/chapters/99148857#workskin

It has some inspo from a fic which I can’t find anymore which had this section about the idea of raising a lightsaber for a reason. Sorry I can’t fin the fic, but yeah I got inspo from that. 

A Jedi’s lightsaber is the symbol of a Jedi. It is said that pulling out a lightsaber should be the last resort to a situation. Once a lightsaber is ignited, a Jedi has already lost; conflict is ideally ended peacefully. The world is far from ideal. 

“Why do you raise your lightsaber?” Every Jedi must ask this question when they raise their blade. Is it for attack, defence, protection? Do you even know why?

If the answer is that you do not know, or that you desire to cause destruction and pain, then you should not have raised your lightsaber. If the answer is for protection, defence, justice, peacekeeping, or training, the blade should be raised. 

A lightsaber is also unique in all weaponry. Capable of great damage if used without control, and great defence when in control. Deflecting blaster bolts is the first skill a Jedi learns. Blocking, protecting, and defending themselves and perhaps their charge is imperative. Jedi learn later how to accurately deflect blaster bolts back in certain directions.

An elegant weapon of great power, which gives the wielder much responsibility. A Jedi must learn to protect themselves and others before even considering learning attacking moves. The highest regarded Masters are capable of standing immovable against any attack, to be the rock which the current must part for, protecting all those in the eddy behind. 

“Why do you raise your lightsaber?”

Ahsoka had learned Djem So during the Clone Wars. Two lightsabers had been difficult to control at first, but she had managed. It allowed a wealth of movement and defence. She was no Obi-Wan who could become an impenetrable wall against blaster fire, but her defence was not a laughable thing.

During the Clone Wars Djem So had suited her. She was raising her lightsaber for the defence of the freedom of people in the republic, and she faced an enemy that relied heavily on blasters. 

When the Empire rose, she left her lightsabers behind, relying on what weapons she could scavenge. Vibroblades, blasters, and her fists became her weapons of choice. The loss of the Jedi weighed heavily on her mind. She felt guilty; hadn’t Maul warned her of the Sith Lord? Hadn’t she thought the information unimportant and wrong? If she had told someone, anyone, would the Jedi still live? Would Anakin be alive? Would Padmè? Had her inaction led to the Jedi purge happening? Rationally, she knew that was not the case, but emotions were rarely rational. 

She was no Jedi, for there were no Jedi and her inaction had allowed their deaths to occur. And still, eventually, a lightsaber found its way into her hands. The Force is funny, sometimes, Master Kenobi had once said with a soft grin, it circles around and around sometimes, rhyming past, present and future. He’d glanced at her, eyes sparkling with humour, that which is lost is often found and then lost once more. A cyclical occurrence. Funny, isn’t it?

At first, she was clunky. She couldn’t do the graceful parries, dodges, and attacks of her youth. None of the weapons she’d used in the past were good practice for a lightsaber. However, she began with the basics. Simple moves with her hands firmly planted on the hilt and a makeshift practice droid humming around her. Eyes closed and the Force moving through her, she learned once more how to block and defend herself. An endless practice of blocking and occasionally missing. 

Only when you can defend yourself and those around you from the threat of the galaxy out there can you begin to fight back offensively. You are far better off being able to keep yourself safe than expend energy risking an attack. With Mace’s words from her initiate training running through her, Ahsoka slowly began to block every bolt that the droid shot her way. One lightsaber first, then two until she was confident in her defence once more. 

As she undid her blindfold, blinking her eyes into the light, Ahsoka found that once more, in a long time, she felt like a Jedi. She felt like herself.

“Why do you raise your lightsaber?”

Vaapad was considered the most aggressive form of lightsaber combat by most. Mace, however, felt that it was incorrect. Vaapad expected the wielder to already have a strong defence and be able to block any strikes, using great strength to do so. When he’d created Vaapad, he’d had in mind using strength to overpower opponents, not aggression. When he used Vaapad, all his blocks and parries carried strength. It wasn’t an attack, not really.

“I don’t know, Master. I’m not sure I’d suit the style.” Depa sat across from him on a meditation mat but was notably not meditating. “Master Drallig always said defence is the most important aspect of combat for a Jedi.”

Mace nods, “you’re not wrong, Depa. I wouldn’t think of teaching you Vaapad if you didn’t already have a strong defence.” She blushes slightly from the praise but keeps eye contact with him. 

“I know…it’s just that Vaapad seems so…aggressive.” She trails off, appearing uncomfortable. 

Mace shuffles, changing position to cross his legs in front, holding them up with his arms. “Vaapad is strong, Padawan, not aggressive.” He tilts his head and tries to find a way to explain the idea well to Depa. “You know that, when threatened by a predator, bantha defend themselves?” Depa nods in understanding. “When there is a threat to the herd, a bantha will focus on trying to keep the herd safe, leaving the safety of the group to face the threat, keeping it at a distance with their horns.”

“And…that’s like Vaapad?” 

“Yes,” Mace nods with a smile. “A bantha doesn’t attack the threat, not really. It uses the size advantage it typically has to overpower the threat and keep it from the herd. Vaapad is not dissimilar, as you said. The basis is strength, meaning that the defence has more aggressive, shall we say, elements included.”

Depa smiles in understanding, one hand awkwardly tugging at a braid, “I think I get it. Sometimes the defence looks like an attack, even though the point is to defend.” She blinks and smiles, “I think I quite like the idea. Perhaps…Vaapad could be a good option for my training?”

Mace smiles again and wonders how in the Force he got such a sweet padawan. Then he thinks of the many…pranks Depa has played on him and he thanks the force she’s not too mischievous. “Of course you know I’d be happy to arrange for you to learn another form. Soresu can be good for focusing on defence and resilience. But, yes, Vaapad would probably be a good fit for you.”

“Perhaps I could learn some Soresu, just in case?”

“Of course. After all, Master Drallig is correct. Defence is the most important facet of combat for a Jedi.”

“Why do you raise your lightsaber?”

When Anakin had started learning combat, Obi-Wan sat him down with a serious look on his face. He’d gotten better at reading Obi-Wan’s more reserved facial features, and he could certainly tell that the older man was serious. “What is it, Master?”

“There are some things you must know about a lightsaber before you pick it up and raise it.” Obi-Wan holds the training sabre that Anakin was going to use in his hands carefully.

Anakin cocks his head curiously, “what things?”

Obi-Wan took a deep breath in and then looked at Anakin deeply. “The Jedi have a saying. A question really, that all Jedi must ask themselves when they raise their lightsaber; why do you raise your lightsaber?” He pauses, fingers tracing the edges of the training sabre. “You see, a Jedi must first and foremost raise their lightsaber to defend themselves and others out of a desire to do good, not out of fear or anger, as those emotions can lead down to painful and dark paths.

“Whenever you raise your lightsaber, you must think of why you’re doing so. Are you sure that it’s necessary? If not, why is the lightsaber raised? Do you understand?”

Anakin hummed, “yeah. A little at least.” He casts his memory back a little. “Mom always said that I shouldn’t go looking for fights as a kid. She said that I can only fight when I have to, is it like that?”

Obi-Wan thanks Anakin’s mother for the lessons she managed to impart on him. “I think so, yes.” He takes a moment and thinks about it for a moment. “I’m not sure why your mother told you that, but it’s similar certainly. A Jedi only fights when necessary, and focuses only on fighting to defend and bring justice, no more.

“You see, a lightsaber can be dangerous, especially in the hands of someone who is emotionally out of control. To know why you raise a lightsaber can help you focus on how to achieve your goal, and perhaps bring a new way to achieve the goal without the use of a  lightsaber” He chuckles a bit. “Being a Jedi isn’t really about swinging lightsabers, is it?”

Anakin laughs, “no, it isn’t.”

“And so we must make sure we are keeping and defending peace when we use our lightsabers, something which only internal reflection will clearly illuminate.”

“I…I think I get it now, Master.” Anakin says, young face earnest and excited. Obi-Wan finds that, when faced with Anakin’s endless optimism and drive, it is impossible not to echo that feeling.

“That’s good. Wonderful, Padawan. Of course, we’ll talk more about this as we continue, but understanding why this little reflection is important is a good step.” He takes a pause and smiles softly at Anakin who is pink from praise. “Now, here take your sabre.” He offers the training sabre to Anakin who takes it with grace looking down and then up at Obi-Wan again. “So, why do you raise your lightsaber, Anakin?”

“Why do you raise your lightsaber?”

[nerdypanda3126]

An Interesting Little Relationship

This was written for the @lovebugs-and-snakecharmers Sprint Fic Challenge.

The "rules" are three 15-minute sprints with 24 hours for light editing, which includes new writing to smooth transitions or make it feel complete. Except I broke a few rules on this one... so I used I think six sprints total (lost count a bit 😅) and in between sprints I let myself keep writing until I got stuck. 

This time around I used the prompt: "As if life hasn’t been hard enough lately…you just met your soulmate, and they’re not even human. (Supernatural/monster AU)" 

And @airi-p4​ wrote this minific based on a Julie and the Phantoms AU and it all just kinda clicked in my head. Although fair warning for those of you who know the show, I did take away the ability to handle the instruments to play more with the "can't touch real things"... thing.

Read on Ao3 

The question had been on Marinette’s mind ever since she first met Luka. Which wasn’t too out of the ordinary. For those with visible marks, it was often the first thing people noticed. Marks stood out like wedding bands—jet black for those still waiting, brilliant color for those who’d already found their soulmate, a permanent reminder of the first touch. 

Luka had three black marks like smudges across the backs of his fingers, as if he were destined to brush his knuckles against some stranger’s at some point in his life and discover what everyone hoped to. 

The problem was, Luka’s life was already over. 

He and the band had first shimmered into existence when she found their demo buried along with the rest of their things in the attic and popped it into the dormant CD player. As she’d listened, nodding her head along to the punk rock beat and appreciating the skill of the guitarist, suddenly there they were, three ghosts standing right in front of her.

She’d screamed. They’d screamed. Eventually everyone calmed down enough for Luka to explain that her attic was their old studio and introduce his sister, Juleka, and their drummer, Ivan. And as he gestured to himself, her eyes went straight to those three black marks that she’d been watching ever since.  

She rubbed at her own mark—three black streaks on the side of her neck, just below her ear—as they worked on writing a new song together. Luka was brainstorming aloud, pacing back and forth soundlessly, while she handled the pen. 

Touch was tricky for him. If he focused sometimes, he could pick up small things. He’d managed to grab a pick once and strum it across his guitar in its stand and he’d been giddy about it for days afterward. Sometimes it made her think that maybe it wasn’t all that crazy that her marks seemed to match with his. Maybe it was possible… 

“Hey, you okay, boss?” Luka asked, breaking her out of her thoughts as he took a seat next to her on the old couch and laid his arm casually along the back of her seat. She could almost imagine his weight settling into the spot, although of course he himself was weightless. She frowned at the unburdened upholstery under his thighs as if it had personally offended her. 

“Isn’t it weird?” 

“Isn’t what weird?” 

“You can sit there, and you can pick things up sometimes and you don’t go through the floor or anything, but you can’t touch… other things.” 

As if to prove her point, Luka propped his legs up on the small table she’d brought up, crossing his graffitied high tops across her notebook and smirking. She rolled her eyes and went to shove him off out of habit. Her hand passed right through him, making his feet look like a staticky TV picture for a second before they were back to normal. She frowned at them, too. 

Luka seemed to take her meaning because he moved his feet back down and leaned forward on his elbows instead, tracing lazy patterns on her notebook with his painted fingernail as his eyebrows furrowed in thought beneath his blue-tipped bangs. The paper crinkled under his touch in the quiet between them.

“Yeah, it’s weird,” he finally agreed. 

She kept her eyes focused on those three black marks. For a moment she fantasized about taking his hand and tracing them, but she knew her hand would pass through his like she was trying to hold onto air. “It just doesn’t make sense,” she started again, “if you can’t touch people, why do you still have your marks?” 

He laid his hand flat on the table, then, considering them. She rubbed at hers again self-consciously.

“I don’t know,” he said quietly. “I guess it’s maybe because I died before I met them. You know, seventeen. I didn’t have much time. Jules still has hers, too.” His eyes flicked to her hand covering her mark. “Why do you ask?” 

“It’s stupid,” she muttered. “I’ve just been wondering if maybe… you know…” 

His eyebrows disappeared behind his bangs as a disbelieving grin spread across his face. She wished she could shove his shoulder or tug his beanie down over his nose or flick the gauges in his ears or do something to him. As it was, she tossed her pen at him, taking what small pleasure she could from it when it passed between his eyes, at least marring that grin for a split second. 

“Shut up,” she said, her face flaming as she turned away. “I told you it was stupid.” 

“What if it wasn’t, though?” he asked. “I mean, you said it yourself, I can touch other things. And who knows how these things really work, right? Maybe it doesn’t have to be a touch, maybe it can be… I don’t know, the intent of a touch, or—” 

“Luka…” His name came out half as a warning and half as a sigh. 

“I’m just saying, maybe we could try. Maybe—”

“It’s not you, Luka,” she said, her tone slipping out with more petulance than she meant it to. Which one of them was she trying to convince, anyways? “It can't be you. You’re—well, let’s face it. You’re a ghost. You're not real. Even if it was you—which it’s not, but if it was—I mean, how would that even work? I can’t touch you, you can’t touch me, and the marks only change when someone touches you for the first time. Everyone knows that’s how this works, and we—” 

She stopped when she caught sight of his face again. Only a moment ago she’d been wishing she could wipe the grin off his face and now that it was actually gone, now that his shoulders were slumping in disappointment and his eyebrows were furrowing again, now she wished she hadn’t brought it up in the first place. 

It hurt more than she thought it would. That maybe he’d thought about it, too, and wanted it as much as she did. 

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, avoiding his eyes. “Forget I said anything.”

She felt it when he poofed away a moment later, like a small bubble had popped leaving the atmosphere a little harder to breathe. She groaned and let her head fall against the table with a heavy thunk, then thunked it again a few more times for good measure. 

***

And he did forget about it. Or at least he didn’t bring it up again over the next few weeks, although she did catch him looking at her marks more often. Usually with the same concentration as when he was trying to write his own lyrics down using the pen he was getting better and better at manipulating. 

It wasn’t until she overheard him and Juleka arguing one night that she realized it was even still on his mind. She didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but Luka’s exasperated tone made her pause before opening the door to the attic. 

“She deserves someone real, Jules. Her real soulmate, whoever the lucky bastard is, and I’ll never be able to give her that. I mean, okay, let’s say I do tell her, and by some miracle she wants to give up waiting for her soulmate and be with me. Our options are basically I stay here, forever stuck at seventeen, and I watch her grow old and…” 

The way he trailed off made Marinette picture him turning that focused gaze of his on his guitar as his jaw tensed, the way he sometimes did when his words failed him. It always made her think he wished he could let the guitar speak for him. 

“I mean, she can never have a family with me, we can’t share our lives together,” he continued bitterly after a moment. “Hell, she can’t even tell anyone I exist because they’ll think she’s insane. Or what if I somehow manage to cross over and she’s left to try to figure out how to move on? It’s just…” For once Marinette actually heard him sit heavily on the couch, the leather whooshing out from under him and the supports creaking under the weight of his emotion. “I don’t see the point in telling her.” 

There was a long pause and Marinette was starting to wonder if Juleka was even still in the room with him, but then she heard a sharp smack and Luka’s annoyed protest. 

“The point,” Juleka shot back with more force in her voice than Marinette was used to hearing, “is that I’m sick of watching you moping around like this. And besides, don’t you think Marinette deserves to know?” 

“Well—” 

“Look, maybe you’re soulmates and maybe you’re not. You may never know, right?” 

“Jules, I don’t think you understand—”

“But you love her, don’t you? Regardless of fate or whatever.” 

“Of course, but—”

“So tell her.” Juleka’s voice was like steel and it made Marinette shiver to think of being on the receiving end of it. 

She waited, breathless, for Luka’s response, but she only heard a small pop as one of them left. Tentatively, she pushed on the door and let it swing open. Luka was still on the couch with his head in his hands and his fingers dug into his hair as he stared at his shoes. He didn’t seem to notice her entrance until she knocked on the doorframe. His head snapped up and his eyes widened, but before she could even say ‘hello’ he popped out of the room, too, leaving her mind spinning and her heart pounding. 

***

He wasn’t avoiding her. If anything, they spent more time together now than… before, but he always managed to make sure someone else was around. Her parents, especially, because he knew she wouldn’t talk to him in front of them, but that didn’t stop him from doing those annoying ghost things that drove her crazy. 

Like pushing her plate to the side just as she was about to take a bite, or turning lights off  randomly and grinning at her when her parents wondered about the fuses, or tucking doodles and notes and lyrics torn out of her own notebook but in his scratchy handwriting into her shoes and her hair bands and her backpack and—why did he have to be so infuriatingly adorable? 

She was running out of reasons to explain why she was blushing and smiling so much nowadays. Especially since her mark was as black as ever. 

***

It took a while, but eventually he slipped up. It was a band meeting. Juleka was missing, which wasn’t surprising; she’d been gone more often than not and anytime they asked where she’d been she’d mutter an excuse and hide, blushing, behind her hair. 

So Ivan was acting as Luka’s buffer, preventing her, as usual, from asking him about what she’d overheard, until Luka mentioned a name, Mylène, and Ivan went quiet before he popped away without another word. 

Luka muttered an apology to the air Ivan had been occupying before he froze and turned those same wide eyes on Marinette. She half-expected him to poof out, but instead he picked up his pen and started twirling it nervously through his long fingers. After what felt like an eternity of silence, she huffed out a breath and dove in. 

“I heard everything, Luka.” 

He nodded, flicking his eyes up briefly before focusing back on the pen. “I know.” 

“So? What happens now?” 

He shrugged and leaned back against the couch, avoiding her eyes. “Your call, boss.” 

He was trying to look indifferent, unaffected, but she could tell by the way his pen was still spinning that he was only trying to distract himself. She rubbed at her marks, considering, then shifted closer to him. If he were actually sitting next to her, her knee would be leaning against his. Instead the boundary between them shimmered like a mist. It gave her a strange sense of warmth mixed with melancholy. She put her hand out on her knee, palm up, offering it to him.

All but his pen had frozen when she moved, but when his eyes flicked down to her hand, the pen slipped out of his focus and clattered to the floor. 

She couldn’t help her small giggle at his astonishment. In a daze, he reached out to hover his hand over hers, his fingers arched so that his fingertips were poised on top of hers, but not quite daring to close the distance. 

When he finally did, both of their shoulders fell when his hand passed entirely through her. 

Luka pulled away with a small, bitter chuckle. She flexed her fingers, wishing that they felt any different. It should feel different. It was only because he wasn’t—no, not that he wasn’t real , because he most certainly was. And she couldn’t even say he wasn’t alive either, because Luka was the most alive person she’d ever known. Or at least that’s how he made her feel. So, then, it was only because they were on two different planes of existence. Two different places. That’s why they couldn’t… 

“This is an interesting little relationship you and I have,” he muttered, but when she looked over he was smiling, flexing his fingers the same way she was. 

She nodded to agree. Interesting. That was a good word for it. 

***

“When did this happen?” Marinette asked as Juleka sheepishly moved her long hair aside to show the bubblegum pink mark across the back of her shoulders. 

Juleka shrugged and hid her eyes behind her hair. “I dunno. A week ago maybe?” 

Marinette shared a glance with Luka. About the same time she started disappearing from band meetings, then. She couldn’t help letting her eyes travel down to Luka’s hand. Juleka found her soulmate in the afterlife. That proved it was possible, right? Or what if Luka was meant to find another ghost like Juleka? What if she was actually the one standing in the way of his happiness? What if—

That strange sense of warmth passed through her and she realized Luka had come over to stand next to her and pass his hand through hers. It was a simple reminder of the other day and she got his message loud and clear. 

I choose this. 

If she could’ve, she would’ve laced her fingers through his and squeezed. Instead, she passed her hand back through his, echoing his message with her own. 

Me, too.

***

The ache to touch him didn’t fade. It was always there, tugging at her heart. But it was nice, what they had. She was getting used to his way of being with her. The way he would sit closer now, letting his shoulder not quite brush against hers. Or the way he would reach for her hand, not seeming bothered when it went through her and instead letting his intent speak for him. 

Maybe it wasn’t how she thought things would go. But it was working for them. 

She was leaning over her notebook with her headphones in, focused on writing something for him when it happened.

She didn’t even know he was there. Usually he’d give her some sort of indication that he’d entered the room. A prickle on the back of her neck or an impression of warmth on her cheek or he’d make some sort of noise as he sat down. Maybe he did and she didn’t notice, but she did notice when her hair was gently pushed aside off her neck and it fell over her shoulder instead. She did notice the lingering sense of a featherlight touch. And not the ghostly touch she was used to. An actual touch. 

She froze and pulled her headphones out and turned to find Luka standing behind her with a look of absolute awe on his face, his eyes locked onto the small expanse of skin he’d managed to bare. He’d managed to touch. 

On the side of her neck, just below her ear.  

“You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," he breathed. 

[shiocreator]

Top five FNAF:SB fanfics, if there's enough that include Sun/Moon/Eclipse, then that specific group

H a h I have only read like, three

And they're all sun and moon x readers- I like the stories and way the authors write okay ehfbdjdj

Solar Lunacy- a fic where you are a jack of all trades employee and end up befriending sun and moon eventually, injuries happen, Sun and Moon are unhinged, and the author behind this fic creates art based off of the fic, @/bamsara is the author

Celestial Omens- is a mermay fic featuring Sun and Moon as mermaids, reader met them once as a kid, helped them, and the present day scenario is where they help reader in return, so far the first chapter is up but overall it'll be a three chapter long series once finished, surprise @/bamsara is the author and has created art based on it too

"It Was In Reality Not Fine"- a fic where reader is not fine, it involves things where the reader insert tends to be stressed a lot and is also very Oblivious and Dumb, they are a technician hired to separate Sun and Moon and they do a lot of things that are Health Risk Enducing like not getting enough sleep and tends to also have imposter syndrome and other stuff- and uh its heavily a self insert fic where I got really hooked despite not really reading y/n stories that involve, romancing anything(i say as all of these are X Readers) wjdjdj- and surprise surprise, @/bones-of-a-rabbit is the author and also creates art based on their fic

all are on ao3 I'm pretty sure

They're all well written and if you dont mind the fact they're all like. A romance self insert type of deal then like- ya might like em- I personally forget Y/N means "Your name" and internally just use "You N" when reading anything anyways so its basically a character that I am not efbdjd

[destinationtoast]

er... um... since you've somewhat recently reblogged a post about it, I have a bit of an odd question... I think I'm accidentally writing RPF.

let me explain: I'm writing an original story (a romance), and one day, perusing the old youtube, I come across a previously-unknown-to-me content creator who is eerily similar to the MC of the aforementioned story. appearance, demeanor, the lot. I go, "ah ah, weird, will people think I based MC on them? what a coinkidink."

and of course I start watching the youtuber to see what they're all about, and I like what I see (I mean, they have all the nice things I gave my MC, so that's to be expected): they're competent, a professional, a great communicator -- and kind of a big deal in their field. and my mind starts to take cues from this person, they'd work perfectly in a story, bla bla.

so I follow the plot bunny and start to write this new story, and I come up with details to fill youtuber-the-character's character sheet, so to say. I leave a few things as they are in reality, like a pretty big appearance thing, because it's one of the things that prompted the whole thing and because *wink-wink* who does that remind you of? in a kind of dumb, referential way.

except, I discover that stuff I'd come up with on my own, based on the world I'm building for the story, turn out to be the factual truth?

like, I'd picked a place of residence because it made sense for the story, and it turns out that the youtuber lives exactly there, I'm talking block-level accuracy. in a huge, sprawling city of millions of people, I pointed my fingers and managed to land it where they live. same with the place where they work (even if that's more understandable, since that it's the kind of place where that sort business thrives)

and now I kind of need those things? like, they're the scaffolding of the story?

I actually never imply it's the youtuber--it's more like the youtuber was weirdly cast in a story with a MC that looks like them, acts like them, and works in their field, but isn't actually them. you know the disclaimer about people and places and events bearing any similitude to real ones being coincidental? I basically did the opposite: the story and details is entirely fictional, but they're clearly the inspiration.

since I find myself now having written a few thousands words, and liking my plot, how do you think I should approach this?

should I (heavily) rework it? be brazen about it and dedicate it to them? (like that weird Adam Driver romance where he's an actor, not the one that's a reylo fic with the numbers filed off?)

any advice?

Hey nonny,

I don't know much about the norms or culture of RPF fandoms in general or YouTuber fandoms in particular. (I have read a bit of RPF, but I haven't written any since back in the days before I had access to the internet, when I was writing RPF about musicians for myself and my bestie.) I also don't read much Original Work on AO3 or original romance novels, so I'm not versed in those norms, either. So I am mostly just going to throw this open to readers in case they have any more informed thoughts.

But naively, it seems to me like there isn't a wrong answer here; it just depends on who your intended audience is and whether/how you want to interact with fans of the YouTuber in question. If you want to attract readers who are fans of that person, you can tag that character/fandom if you post the story to AO3, and you can explain (if you want to) that it's somewhat loosely based on them, or tag it an AU if you think that will help set expectations appropriately. OTOH, if you would rather not attract those fans (e.g., because fear disappointing them), or if you're planning to publish this as an original romance, then you don't have to do that. You can nod to borrowing a few superficial details in your author's note, or you can just leave it at Easter eggs for hardcore fans of that YouTuber to spot. Or you can change more details if you don't want any fans being distracted by it or wondering what your deal is. If you are publishing it as a book, you might look at what authors of books like After have done -- other romances based loosely on real celebrities.

People with more experience in RPF or filing serial numbers off of romance stories (or just stronger opinions than me), feel free to jump in.