#i just feel like its a disservice to not include the link to the fanfic

[geisterzeit-art]

Maybe someday he’ll feel comfortable living for himself, but right now the thought of doing so is too sickeningly selfish to bear. For them, though... he can do that. He can’t live for himself, but he can live for his soulmate, and his friends, and the memory of Benten.

I've been re-reading Separate but Syncopated by @prydon, one of my favorite Penumbra fics from one of my favorite authors on here. There's nothing quite like diving back into a story you hold dear... So here's a little piece for the last scene of the first chapter!

[darkpoisonouslove]

💛 (Valtor) 🤍🤎 (Fallen Love)

🌷

💛 Yellow: Do you ever alter, highlight, or de-emphasize certain canonical traits in a character? If so, why and describe how.

Sure! I write a lot of AUs and you have to tweak here and there to make the story work. Now I don't want to look at my earlier work because I now consider it to be completely OOC, especially where Valtor is concerned. But in more recent fics there are two trends concerning how I write him.

First of all, I tend to make him less overpowered. He is still super powerful and formidable but I often emphasize the fact that security measures can and will be an obstacle even to him (usually by making Griffin necessary to the equation or hinting he has to strategize hard to pull it off alone). It's important to me that I don't let him accomplish things too easily because that does a disservice to both him and whoever he's up against. His cunning and power shine brightest when they're challenged at least a little and besides, what kind of story would it be if he can do anything without breaking a sweat? Where are the stakes? Where's the suspense? That's just not how you write a good story.

The second thing I do is to include him breaking his composure sometimes. I think that canon is particularly egregious in failing to keep his power in check which in turn allows him to keep too much composure most of the time and that leads to a misinterpretation of his character. He is only calm and collected when he's fully in control of the situation or can easily spin it to his advantage. The moment a real problem arises, he loses his temper which... happened about 3 times on the show because nothing can challenge him. It's just not interesting. You can make a character that's powerful as hell and still has to face hurdles. It just doesn't make sense that everything works so well for him until it doesn't. It's inconsistent with the backstory as well.

🤍 White: What's a fanfic scenario or idea you'd like someone else to write so that you can read it?

This is such an ironic answer because I started outlining this for the sole purpose of writing a better witch x witch hunter story after a book annoyed me with its execution. To say I'd like someone else to write it completely defeats the purpose but at this point I have so many more ideas that have a hold on my mind that this is hardly on the list of priorities. Wouldn't mind reading it though if someone could write it for me and write it well.

If it's unclear, the answer is the witch x witch hunter AU (more info in the link). I liked the story at the time but, again, Valtor is OOC and there are structural problems with it. It could work with this structure but it doesn't feel optimal and, frankly, even if I fixed the structure, I'd have no time to write this. Which is a shame because I still think the story has a lot of potential and I do have that half a notebook of notes on it that are going to waste (I might post those as bullet points some time). It's really painful to look at something that you see as full of potential and have to throw it away so it'd be great if someone could take this off my hands so I can read it but not write it.

🤎 Brown: How did you decide to write (or why are you writing) a certain fanfic? (Asker, feel free to choose a specific story you're curious about. You can also let the answerer choose the story.)

First of all, thank you so much for asking about Fallen Love! It is my baby and I am so in love with how much of a dysfunctional disaster Griffin and Valtor are; I cannot look away from it!

I swear to god, I haven't abandoned this story! I think about it every day and I have made some progress on chapter 2 (as well as on the outline for the other chapters, which have definitely grown in number significantly). I just want it to be good and that's making things go agonizingly slowly. No, really, I am in literal pain but I'm going to stick with it no matter what. It doesn't just live in my head rent-free, it lives in my bones!

Now to answer the actual question - I can't remember the exact line of thought but I know I went "Hey, what if Valtor won the war and he has everything he wanted including Griffin but she's moping so much about losing Faragonda that it's really driving him up the wall?" It has changed a lot since then and is now more about Griffin and Valtor's broken relationship (hence the title) and, hopefully, about them taking responsibility for the actions that led to this point. Not to imply that things will get better because they won't really but the idea is to put all cards on the table and figure out how to proceed when they can't get rid of their mutual obsession with each other. Plus, I love the chaotic energy of them trying to outwit each other and pulling out all the stops when it comes to getting what they want. The upside (and downside) of being this obsessed with each other is that they both believe they can pull any stunt they want and the other will just have to deal with it. In a way they're both desperate to be proven wrong about that and be saved from the madness that is their relationship but they would also kill anyone and destroy anything trying to come between them. They're just stable that way.

This story has given me brain rot. It is such a perfect opportunity to look into where things went wrong for them and bring it back to basics. It's just the two of them! There are other characters in the story but there's no one that can come between them. It makes them face the fact that everything they did to each other was because of them and they can't blame anyone else. And with all of their other goals more or less put aside, there are no distractions to keep them from examining their relationship aka really bad news for them. But hey, they also get to be completely unhinged in every way so it should be a great show!

Send me a color

[lynfantasy]

Lotor?

(For this character ask challenge)OOF. Alright, prepare yourself for salt, because I absolutely love this character no matter what, and that is precisely why I am very mad at the official crew about him. (Though I swear this isn’t ALL salt.)

The last time I did this ask challenge, I answered these questions for Lotor here, but that was before season 5 even came out. Now…

(Putting this under a read-more because this is LONG – there’s two long playlists under the “song” section, and I added a ton of screenshots at the end.)

Favorite thing about them: I loved how complex and out-of-the-ordinary he was. He wasn’t a hero, he wasn’t a villain, and he wasn’t even a traditional antihero. He wasn’t good, but he was altruistic; he wasn’t bad, but he was willing to do things that no one else would. He was neutral, and he didn’t need to be redeemed into goodness. He certainly didn’t seem to have any reason to fall or rise – he already knew what he wanted and how he was going to get it, and both his motives and means were shockingly pure.And then…Least favorite thing about them: Season 6 just completely ruined him. That colony thing?? I’ve vented to many friends about this, and there’s a post I have half-written that I might put up sometime, but it just doesn’t make sense to me. The creators of the show said that they wanted him to be a morally gray character, but then they had had him commit a truly evil act? And he doesn’t even seem repentant for it? I just can’t forgive them for doing this to him. This wasn’t some “cool plot twist.” I’m not sitting here, thinking, “Wow, I really fell for that, didn’t I?” I don’t feel like Lotor betrayed me. I feel like the writers betrayed him and did him a disservice.Favorite line: “All I ask is that you judge me by my actions rather than your preconceptions of my race.” This line was just… wow.Also: “My father’s blood is not just in my veins. It’s also on my sword.” Damn.I also still very much love his opening speech in season 3, and a special shout-out goes to his speech in the beginning of season 6 until Sendak interrupted it.BrOTP: Mmmm, well, Team Sincline forever. In a better universe, they’re all still getting up to their own shenanigans together.I also still wish that Lotor and Keith had gotten a chance to bond. It could have been great.But let’s all take a moment to acknowledge what a great and supportive friendship Lotor and Shiro had in season 5. That was good. Good on you, (clone) Shiro.OTP: Lancelot. I can’t really explain why, but this is my favorite ship. In a close second place comes Polycline, the ship of Lotor and his generals all together in a romantic sense, which just warms my polyam-loving heart.As for what I would like to see in canon, well, I was pretty happy with Lotura, and I’m still holding out hope that they might have some dramatic redemptive reconciliation.NoTP: Eh, I don’t really do NoTPs. I can’t say I’m fond of Lotor/Throk, though.Random headcanon: I think Lotor’s ships are perfectly capable of making it through the Quantum Rift without being subjected to the time dilation effects. I also think that, on more than one occasion, Lotor has purposefully turned down the protection against time dilation because he can’t afford to take time off but he really needs a break, and what better way to accomplish that than to take a trip that will give him weeks or months to himself but will only cause him to miss about a week in regular time?Unpopular opinion:

FANWORK CONTENT CREATORS CAN STILL MAKE CONTENT WITH A SOFT CHARACTERIZATION FOR LOTOR. SHIPPERS CAN STILL SHIP LOTOR/PALADIN SHIPS. CANON SHOULD NEVER LIMIT CREATIVITY.

Song i associate with them: Hoo boy, I have not one but two playlists for him… Instead of linking a playlist, I’ll just list the songs for you all to find at your leisure, since everyone uses different music services (and honestly, I just pirate off of YouTube 99% of the time).

My “canon” playlist, in chronological order, is:

Natural by Imagine Dragons – I’m so glad this came out recently, because if there’s any singular theme song that fits Lotor in every canonical aspect, this is it.

Who We Are by Imagine Dragons – Team Sincline. Need I say more?

Best Day of My Life (minor key) by Chase Holfelder – If you only know this song in its major form, you might very well be wondering why it’s here, but Chase Holfelder’s minor key version has a very different tone to it, and I think it fits Lotor quite well for season 3.

Gold by Imagine Dragons – This works for his rise to power in season 3 and fall in season 4, as well as hinting at his eventual rise and fall again in 5 & 6 and that final snap at the end of 6. It could honestly go at the end, but I thought it fit best here, as the season 4 song.

Icarus by Bastille – I associate this song with both Keith and Lotor in seasons 3 & 4. Honestly, if you listen to the chorus, it sounds like them both at the end of season 4. Icarus (Lotor) is flying too close to the sun… Icarus (Keith) is flying towards an early grave.

Blame by Bastille – This isn’t a perfect fit, but it reminds me of Lotor’s pleading with the Paladins at the beginning of season 5 to not hand him over to Zarkon. Honestly, I sort of picture Lance as the one singing the scathing verses. There’s no room for you here.

I’m So Sorry by Imagine Dragons – This could also go anywhere, but I can picture this as a backdrop to Lotor’s final confrontation with Zarkon. It’s so scathing and sarcastic, except for the bridge. I imagine the bridge as being addressed to Lotor’s generals.

White Blank Page by Mumford and Sons – Canon Lotura. Just… just listen to it. It’s so tragic and fits them so well for season 6.

This Is Gospel -> Emperor’s New Clothes by Panic! At the Disco – Initially, I was going to put just Emperor’s New Clothes on here for Lotor’s breakdown in season 6, but I listened to these two back-to-back, and I thought that This is Gospel fits in a tragic way if you think of it as the sane part of Lotor’s mind trying to warn Allura, knowing that he cannot fight the corruption of Quintessence.

Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing by Set It Off – …I mean, in light of season 6, how could I not include this one. The bridge is basically a summary of that final confrontation.

Viva La Vida by Coldplay – Initially, I had this as a song for season 4, but I couldn’t leave this playlist on such a bitter note. I like to picture that Lotor will eventually come out of the Quintessence field and, alone and without resources, will have to hide out somewhere and rethink a lot of things, and this song is perfect for that.

I’ll Be Good by Jaymes Young – Following the thread of an eventual redemption from the previous song, I think this would suit a redeemed, post-s6 Lotor very well. It’s also simply a very bittersweet and beautiful song to end off on, and it stands in very strong contrast against Natural, the first song on the playlist.

My other playlist is for miscellaneous songs that don’t fit into the canon timeline and for ship songs. In no particular order:

Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea by Fall Out Boy – This is such a Lotor song, but it technically doesn’t fit canon, since he did become emperor. However, I’ve got an AU story that this fits perfectly, and I think it suits a lot of other Lotor-centric AUs I’ve seen. Besides, thematically, it really does fit Lotor pre-s5.

Broken Crown by Mumford & Sons – The meaning of this song is ambiguous, but if you interpret the “crown” here as literal, it could suit Lotor pretty well, especially in an AU where he refuses to rule.

Therapy by All Time Low – I think this would fit a human AU best, but it could work for any version of Lotor who is introspective about his own flaws and problems.

Battlefield (Meet Me on the Battlefield) by SVRCINA – I’m a little iffy on this one, but someone else recommended it to me as a Lotor ship song, and I do think it could fit a few different Lotor ships quite nicely. The song is primarily about revolution and altruism, both of which fit Lotor, and the romantic aspects would work well for a Lotor/paladin ship.

I Walk the Line by Halsey & Walking the Wire by Imagine Dragons – These two songs work well as two sides of the same coin. I particularly imagine them for Lancelot. Lotor sings I Walk the Line, talking about the difficulty of maintaining a balance between his relationship and his loyalties in the war but declaring that he will be true to Lance above all, and Lance sings the far more optimistic Walking the Wire, saying that although this balancing act is difficult, they will come out on top, together. It could theoretically work for another Lotor ship, but Walking the Wire is such a Lance song that I really picture it for the two of them.

Hold Me Tight or Don’t by Fall Out Boy – Funny story, I pictured this as a Sheith song first, but then @noirsongbird recommended it to me as a Lancelot song, and… yeah, it fits. It also specifically fits one of her (very good!) fanfics, so that’s cool.

King and Lionheart by Of Monsters and Men – Technically, this could sort of work for any Lotor/paladin ship, but I think it would work better for Keitor, Shotor, or Lancelot. It was recommended to me by @noirsongbird as a Lancelot song, and I have to agree that it fits them very well.

I Don’t Know Why by Imagine Dragons – Again, this could work for multiple Lotor/paladin ships, but I picture it for Lancelot. It’s a great forbidden love song, so it would suit a secret romance across battle lines quite nicely.

So… yeah. A lot of music. Sorry? I’m sure this isn’t even everything, haha.

Favorite picture of them: Oh gosh, how could I choose…

Like… damn.

But also…

He’s so cute and pretty??

I mean, just look at him.

For favorite fanworks, I’ve got to put this one up, of course (and please follow this link to the post for it and give it a like!):

This was a gift to me for my very recent 20th birthday by my amazing friend @honestlyprettychill (thank you again babe)!!

There’s a lot of other really good Lotor fanart out there. Check out @itsnotdoneyet and @invidiaesc for some great stuff.

Annnnd that’s it! Sorry this took so long. I hope I answered the questions to everyone’s satisfaction! I have an ask for Keith that I’ll work on next, but I don’t have any after that yet, so please feel free to send in more!