#i'm here and i'm gonna make it everyone's (in my system) problem lol

[waffles-and-flapjacks]

i can't draw without a reference, and i can't really deviate from a reference. does that make me bad at art? was my creativity just beaten out of me from art schooling?

i think maybe i was already like this. making art is hard.

how does anyone make anything, lol. it requires so much trust in your own abilities, so much understanding, etc. it's so hard to do things when you don't have your full abilities

i'm gonna blame this on the DID, that i can't like. remember how to do certain things because the skills are locked behind certain alters.

it'll take a miracle to get them to front. sigh.

[intheholler]

There’s no other thing “aesthetic” blogs hate more than a spelling mistake. god forbid ppl deep in the appalachia mountains make a spelling mistake. Forget the unbelievably bare bones, underfunded education in the area. They Better know how to spell “dying” or it ain’t going on MY southern gothic blog! …. The classism is pretty ridiculous when these blogs are using these areas and therefore these people as aesthetics lol

YES LORD. amen to all that. ain't it some shit though?

sucks that they only want the "pretty" parts of us and laugh/talk down at everything else without even trying to understand.

i get it, though. who wants to take the time to learn about boring facts of life in appalachia like suffocating gerrymandering or comparatively nonexistent educational funding or egregious poverty rates and what those things and more can do to a person.

why, when you can just........ feel superior by posting a picture of a cross on a decrepit church cause its pretty (but not before correcting the grammar on the church sign out front, of course). more fun than caring that that cross and all it stands for in the hands of a fire and brimstone preacher traumatized us when we was young.

we love pictures of broken down buildings with rotting wood and sheets over windows because it looks soooo quaint but we'll ignore that it means in reality you're freezin to death at night and sweatin like the devil in the day cause whose old ass houses actually got central heat and AC?

i could go on but y'all know.

i appreciate that people can see the beauty of the region. there is so much to love. but you can't skim the good cream off the top and insist the rest of the milk is spoiled.

anyway idk. i'm not trying to be 'woe is us.' everyone at every intersection got systemic problems like this. but i'm also not just gonna sit here and smile when they try and take a shot at us i guess

sorry. i'm still bothered. can you tell. thanks for what you said <3 it's so true. and thanks for giving me the space to scream further into the void about it

[be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie]

Alright we're gonna do our first big compilation of my longass notes for a friend of the blogs fic, obviously we mUST start with The Thunder Answered Back by @spicymiilk

Fair warning, I would read the whole fic before reading my notes and laughing/crying along with me. I do think you can go chapter by chapter if you wish. Also a fair warning, I usually cull my notes before posting a fic comment; I really let myself go wild here. Proceed with caution.

Chapter one I didn't have too many notes bc I was deep in it and also there wasn't too too much cringe. Idk if this is well known about me, but I can watch like, hardcore porn or gore and not flinch. I used to watch Animal Planet vet shows while eating cheese its when I got home from school, just munching away while they did surgery on little puppies. But if you write even a tiny bit of cringe it takes me like 5 business days to recover. I fully cannot look at the screen. I will leave the room if an awkward conversation happens in my tv show. I also can't not react to cuteness as well. These notes were mental escapes a lot of the time in this fic, like mother of GOD I want to die even imagining these conversations. Mortifying. Anyways.

Unhinged things I would say on the google doc but here!

DIALOGUE, dialogue, dialogue, dialogue. It can make or break a piece and it CARRIED in this one. It's so very cringe and realistic lol. Dialogue is usually the hardest for writers but I don't think our man here has this problem lol.

Great setting as well, I can feel the heat. A setting you can physically feel is so immersive, it sucks you right in, and my ass has never been to Italy but I've been on a dock and I've been in a hot thunderstorm and I can feel it all.

Obsessed with the way Spider steps into the house and Neytiri's like "dinner, gayboy??" like she was on his ass instantly skskskks. HER LITTLE SLIGHTS AT HIM?? EXPLAIN, LOL. WHAT DID THE CHILD DO? Reminds me of the time my friends mom asked me to stop calling her Chris and I didn't understand why and just blurted back "Okay, Chris." It's just so funny to me when she hates Spider in modern fics, because there's no systemic context it's just her beefing with a small child oddly lol. Having read the whole fic now, it's just Quarich's racism connection, I believe.

I am obsessed with the plight of the boys. Obviously Spider needs to leave, but I'm hoping Lo'ak escapes the military industrial complex lol. I'm so torn. I had Sully fam on the brain, and I wanted Spider's continuing relationship with them all so badly. Maybe I simply need for them to ask Spider to stay with them? Like "live with us for a year buddy, get yourself ready for college. You can do anything king but also ur part of the family, now go deflower our son."

Here is that clarifying question I asked: Did Kiri and Spider have sex??? Or did Mandy tell her about Spider's dick? OR BOTH? I simply could not figure that out. Also missed opportunity to name that character Ninat for the lols. The next generation of Ninat's beefing with and over Sully men.

Now that you've given me my answer, truly hilarious comedic content for everyone around.

Kiri, at night: want to hear about Spider’s dick?

Lo’ak, charcoal and paper out, ready to create an impressive sketch: ew, no, go ahead.

Chapter two, FUCK OFF Jeytiri flirting karaoke is adorable, that’s hilarious. The whole scene made my heart happy bUT NOT HAPPY ENOUGH not enough comfort I need more of it.

Spider turning to Lo’ak who's aLREADY LOOKING AT HIM cause they’re both like “oh you mentioned love, let me look at my best friend,” I’ll die.

Lo’ak literally BEGGING Spider to sing so he can swoon in the corner. I love this headcanon that seems to be cropping up of Spider being like a really good singer, it's very interesting to me.

JAKE UNDERSTANDING SPIDER I’ll die. Jake’s adopted that child you can’t convince me otherwise. Dude, even Neytiri fucking sees him as part of the family, I’ll scream. The tooth gem thing??? Iconic. Loved it. She’s giving Spider specifically cookies??? I’ll die. She's included him in all their shit. Not just anyone can do family game night karaoke. The karaoke, I am obsessed. Adorable. The Kiri and Lo’ak banter means the world to me. Their limp wrist agenda, the limp wrist bullying. What will he do when he can’t hold that against her? She must be unbearable to him in return when Spider isn't there. We love a homophobic gay. It's like what I said about my roommate i slept with twice (who follows me on here and we all better hope doesn't perceive this post); "I only get offended when SHE calls me slurs because I know then it comes from a place of true homophobia."

Kiri is literally begging Spider to understand Lo’ak wants him. BEGGING LO’AK TO UNDERSTAND SPIDER WANTS HIM. Kiri trying not to die at how obvious they both are. Kiri, going to beat the shit out of Lo’ak for asking about Mandy of all people bc of how far he's gone to avoid learning about that. I STILL AM UNCLEAR AS TO IF HIS ASS ACTUALLY DIDN'T KNOW SPIDER BROKE UP WITH MANDY OR HE WAS JUST BEING AN ASS.

Also fuck u for underestimating the importance of Tuk to Spider, he wants Tuk to remember him please I swear.

Also I have noted you have hinted at Spider’s praise kink. I can see it clearly. Nothing more will be said on that topic, but sometimes a praise kink simply makes sense for a character.

'IT COMES OUT MORE LIKE GAY' that was just for me, I know. So was Ninat's kid, obviously. Now that it's cONFIRMED for me I love to know that I am the target audience of all locorro fics ever.

Spider: *calls Lo’ak baby and gets embarrassed*

Lo’ak: *rebooting*

Lol Spider punching Lo’ak for saying slurs is so funny. Lo’ak's like if I say it I ain’t it, and that's on falling for the guy that is punching me for saying the slurs.

This little "I knew" reveal was CERTAINLY not what I was expecting. Not at all. A delightful little twist huh? A little trope subversion? AN EXPLICIT DRUNK CONFESSION IS SO HEART-WRENCHINGLY AWFUL OH MY GOD. WHAT HAPPENED THEN WHAT DID THEY D O I MUST KNOW. "It’s not a big deal bc I… like u too obviously lol." That's the end of the sentence and the end of the communication. I was driven insane by that, I just finished XO Kitty, worst show ever, and I was reminded how much I despise when communication would solve legit every problem but it's handled realistically here. Communication is so hard for the boys Kiri will throw hands. And I brought your inhaler with me obvs cause I’m in love with you.

I’m sad about an asthmatic fist fight but it’s so appropriate. I am sad tho. I am a hurt/COMFORT bitch where is my COMFORT. I don't think my body is ready for a nocorro fic from u @spicymiilk my blog is about to become all comforting headcanons and we're going to ignore the plethora of Hunger Games ones I got today.

Now we have to sit here in this world where Lo'ak thought Spider was emotionally(?) cheating on Mandy with him if he thought they were still dating, the fucking clown idiot fool.

FINALLY, for the third and final chapter, with some bonus answers Andrei has given to my demanding all caps questions.

I’m so mean, I’m laughing at the idea of Kiri waking up at an ungodly 7:34am to Lo’ak ugly crying over Spider’s fake bed on the floor like he’s gone off and died in the war. She’s just like the pizza box community meme like uhhhh. Now I know this must happen oFTEN so I again figure that she must have gotten really good at sleeping through his ugly sobbing.

JHUST FUCKING LEAVE QUARITCH THIS IS SO ANNOYING GET OUT OF MY PLOT I’M TRYNA SEE KIRI’S TEXTS, ugh I'm so biased I despised how much he was in this chapter he should choke I wish asthma was contagious. Although, for some reason Quaritch calling Spider Lo’ak’s wife did things to me personally, The sweet homosexual love line then took me out back and popped me (I mean this in a like, Italian mafia putting me down outside way and not like, doing poppers outside a club although for some reason both are giving the same energy).

Neytiri murdering Spider for both turning her son gay and also making him sad can be something so personal. I still am in denial of every universe where she doesn't like him, and in this one I just love the idea of them slinking back to Italy having eloped or some shit where Spider now has to build that relationship but now having deflowered and stolen her son in the night. Hilarious. They must bond over talking about how stupid he is. They're so similar, how can the people with Jake and his clone not be.

Lol I also forgot Lo’ak got a black eye, that makes Kiri’s texts earlier so much funnier. Kiri was like they made out so hard he was struck with love. Developed a bruise. His gayness punched him in the face.

SPIDER KILL YOURSELF IM IN YOUR ROOM KICK YOUR DAD OUT IS SO FUNNY TO ME THE KYS SPECEFICALLY KILELD ME.

Oh my god the crying was all a lie, a fantasy, I’m so disappointed. More realistic, sure, but still. I am unclear as to if it was rEAL.

I had the cunt thing spoiled for me when I was catching up on posts I missed; never did I imagine lol. Almost as hilarious as Lo’ak telling Spider to die because he didn’t look at him, gay.

Spackle covering the hole in the wall, hmm, I wonder who punched that there?? Also abusive Quaritch giving romantic advice is making me want to puke up all my organs. I know Andrei says say the hole in the wall was nothing, but you can't have an abusive dad character and then mention a hole in the wall and nOT have us thinking that Quaritch punched a hole in the wall. Every reader is gonna think that.

Lol those Kiri texts and what she says is sO MEAN god I totally get why she did it but omg way to ruin a man over something that is not his decision or his fault. She’s just so so mad about the gays being dumb. Can’t believe she finally coughed up this info. Also the way Quaritch could probably hear all this through the wall makes me wanna die.

Speaking of Quaritch, what an interesting portrayal of their relationship. As a Quaritch hater, there's very few fics where I don't just fully skip long interactions with him. I gotta have really been sucked into the world, and I was with this one. I can't tell what of my feelings on the characters have made me biased on the relationship and what are my feelings on what the text portrayed. The feeling of too late in their relationship is there, overwhelmingly and devastatingly, but part of me found myself unconvinced by the attempts from Quartich. I literally can't tell if it's my own bias (most likely) or if it's my own lack of explicit background knowledge.

What we do learn of the past we learn in fragments, passing lines from Spider's internal monologue. They aren't the focal point of the story, but they are deeply important to the world created, and it leaves me with a feeling like I'm in an unfinished paint by numbers; I don't quite have the full picture. (Again, as I always say to you in my beta notes Andrei, these are incredibly harsh comments for fic. It's just good enough I'm treating it as though it's more lol (bc it can be)).

As to why everyone is finding Kiri mean; yeah she's neurospicy and we do clearly get the vibe that they talk to each other in this way, this casual banter that doesn't really mean anything. That being said, casual "kill yourself" or like "this is all your fault" and shit like that when the character is clearly upset and angry comes across as serious. Knowing Kiri as a character I didn't think she was, but reading it took me aback because as a standalone I don't have that context. In arguments and serious moments those words pack a punch, especially to a reader in such close third as we are with Spider in this one. We are WITH him and seeing only his thoughts and perspectives, his hurt is front and center so it's easy to feel hurt and defensive as a reader. I digress.

Lo’ak’s like every man in a crime show calling his wife to hear her voice one last time before he goes to to the dangerous mission and almost dies. He's like "I'll hear Spider's breathing and then know the US military is the way for me." Spider, the barrier between Lo’ak and the goddamn US military. That’s so funny to me. This is another reason to feel confused by Kiri's vitriol; it's not Spider's fault what Lo'ak chooses to do with his life and it is unfair to blame him. One line of her doing it I get, but she does it several times and the only excuse we get for her is from Spider.

Kiri is better than me I’m an awful secret keeper. But also maybe she could’ve coughed that bad boy up earlier, huh?

Tbh tho, on a serious writing note; it’s so well written because from the beginning we know exactly what is happening. They both like each other and Kiri knows both sides. That was obvious to me. You tell us from the get go that Spider is leaving when he turns 18, and that Lo’ak is leaving to join the military, WE KNOW WHATS GOING TO HAPPEN. And yet the train chugs on and each event sets it in motion instead of derailing it, leaving us with an inevitable tragedy we all saw coming. Well done. If I was giving line edits on a publishable work, I’d say speed up the timeline. Make the whole fic (so excluding prior events like the party) all happen like. A few days before Spider leaves. I want to feel it all in real time, up close, as it happens. No breaks in time. I also want that memory convo with Lo’ak earlier lol, so that the realization of it can hit later. And honestly, if it wasn’t fic I’d leave it with the Kiri and Spider convo. No happy ending. BUT NOW LET ME GO READ MY WELL DESERVED HAPPY ENDING. U would've been SICK for not including one.

Extremely uncommon fanfiction Jake Sully W here. It should be more common I am an unapologetic stan.

Them going to find each other is so funny to me. Kiri was personally sending them on a wild goose chase as revenge.

OH THERE IT IS THE COMMON JAKE SULLY L. Although driving your gay ass son to do an airport rom com moment at 5:45am is actually quite the parenting w, where the fuck was Neytiri she would’ve been much more efficient. I mean she wouldn't have let him go, but she would've been efficient about it.

The idea of Lo’ak making his final decision to go to the military earlier in the day and then not actually doing it until he wakes Jake up at 2am makes me cackle. Jake: you go get that dick son, your mother can kill us both later.

ALSO WHY’S HE PULLING HIS SHIRT COLLAR SO HIGH, HMMM, ANDREI??? Showing up to meet his grandmother absolutely dEFILED. Does Lo'ak even have a change of clothes, that monster.

It’s 2:18am (when I originally write this), I have work tomorrow as I do literally every day of the week, and I’m just smiling to myself at this shit. Criticism: not enough of them being happy and also I didn’t get to learn what depraved things Spider wanted to do to Lo’ak that he drunkenly told him about that Lo’ak then had to live with torturing himself (and Kiri) over for months.

Andrei's response on what Spider drunkenly said to Lo'ak for the people: The depraved things are as follows— spider sat his ass in Lo’ak’s lap, completely and utterly gone, and waved poetry about Lo’ak’s long and strong fingers for at least ten minutes. He also made sure to mention his borderline tank top kink. Lo’ak definitely did not internalize that

I just have to say; I should've expected that. Those two gay ass losers to simply lose their minds over tHAT, which is like nOTHING. A REGULAR CONVERSATION I'D DARE SAY. ONE OF THE FIRST CONVERSATIONS I HAD WITH ONE OF MY ROOMMATES WAS ABOUT HER HAND KINK, SO I RECIPROCATED BY SAYING I THOUGHT THE DWARVES IN LOTR HAD GOOD HANDS. LO'AK WAS DEAD, SIMPLY MURDERED, A BLUSHING FOOL OVER THAT.

Lo'ak, stumbling into his and Kiri's room: Spider confessed his love for me and said... depraved things.

Kiri: OH MY GOD WHAT DID HE SAY.

Lo'ak: He said he likes my tank tops... I can barely speak of it out loud.

Kiri: Oh. 🙄

Also lowkey Kiri has to be enraged they’re normal now that they’re away from her. ALSO DOESN’T THAT BITCH LO’AK HAVE SCHOOL?? Hilarious all around. Lo’ak brings Spider back because they cannot be apart and then keeps him in his and Kiri’s room for the next year until he finishes high school. They see how long they can go without Quaritch finding out Spider’s nearby. Kiri hates them so much, especially now that they fuck in her space.

Andrei said in response to this: Lo’ak finished school in Florida!! Pulled a fast one on the school system and said hey I’m smart enough to finish like two classes here. Kiri didn’t speak to EITHER of them for months. Neytiri would call to check up and Kiri would be whining in the background about how she’s betraying her

They make up when Spider saves up to get her a ticket to visit them for a summer 🤸

The idea of Lo'ak never returning is so funny to me in so many ways. First of all, Spider dropping him off and picking him up like he's the sexy older boyfriend in every romcom ever. Second, the idea of Spider bullying him for having to go to school still. Three, they just squat with Spider's grandma, and she's like god I expected one gay loser not TWO. Four, Neytiri calling to check up just resulting in her and Spider both bitching about Lo'ak and Kiri respectively here is how the Neytiri and Spider fanboys can win-

Also, the idea of someone having to tell Neteyam about this makes me want to cry real tears of laughter. He’s in his first semester of college someone free him.

Andrei said: Let neteyam live in blissful ignorance. He knew Lo’ak was a raging homosexual for their entire lives and the second he saw spider he was like. Oooohhh okay. And then he never looked again the mental strength required to deal with it was just too much

Kiri, on facetime: so Lo'ak followed Spider-

Neteyam, opening a textbook in his Harvard dorm room or some shit:

[cee-grice]

Hello! I'm getting caught up on all your amazing asks here... But here's my pre-emptive Ask for Storytelling Saturday for next week:

Describe your WIP in bullet points so my ADHD brain gets it quickly!

hey hey Belle!! oh man, I also have to clean out my inbox, it's getting a bit embarrassing haha... I know you said this is a pre-emptive STS ask, but!.. I saw it and got excited lol, so you're getting it answered Now

so! my current WIP, When White Crows Cry, described in bullet points:

(this is gonna be long)

it's a science fantasy?? only instead of robots and space we have chemistry and pathology lol

also dark academia vibes

set in a secondary world reminiscent of 19th century-esque europe, only with modern advancements in science

the magic system is science-based - essentially, if you wanna manipulate the fabric of reality, you gotta. understand said fabric of reality

so, to cast a believable illusion you need to perfectly understand color and light and depth and all that (so you gotta be a kickass realism artist lol)

or, to change a glass ball into a gold one, you gotta understand the molecular composition of each material and know how to manipulate it so it would change forms

there's one tiny teensy issue with magic, though - it is a limited resource ahaha

ANYWAY that's the gist of it

main character - Quil, an exceptional transmutation mage who got exiled some years ago for performing human transmutation (very bad very taboo)

(he, of course, continues doing human transmutation)

(despite the Trauma)

the second most important character - Endra, who has this nasty magical parasite slowly eating away at his body and mind, and his only hope at a cure is... human transmutation

you can see where this is going

anyway so that's the Past timeline - Quil trying to figure out what's going on with Endra's body and finding a way to fix it

(this is also the Romance timeline lol)

we also have the Present timeline

and that starts with Quil getting revived a year after his death in the country he'd gotten exiled from

:0!

(that's literally the first chapter so it's not a spoiler lol)

anyway he gets offered a Deal - help his ex-mentor with her project that could potentially save magic, and in exchange he'd get amnesty

the issue? he really, really hates his ex-mentor

and he would have really, really preferred to stay dead

this whole magic dying thing is Not his problem, either lol

counter issue? the project concerns the same magic parasite that Endra had (has?), so it could put him in danger, and Quil quite literally would die again before he let that happen, so.

he agrees

(so that he could sabotage it lol)

but also! Quil doesn't know what happened with Endra post his death, so that's something he works on figuring out as well

(he gets far more questions than answers. where IS this guy)

anywayyy that's the gist of the story

now for the lightning round

this would be for you if any of this intrigues you:

highly questionable academic and medical ethics

characters forsaking morality to get what they want and losing sight of what truly matters

So Much Interpersonal Drama

no physical fights - a Lot of verbal fights

dealing with the horrors of resurrection

dealing with the horrors of facing your loved ones after they'd mourned you for a year

a cast of eccentric scientists

an obsessive, codependent queer romance between people who don't know how the other looks like

a lot of fucked up queer characters in general

an incredibly spiteful trans protagonist who just wants to be left the fuck alone but everyone insists on dragging him into their shit, so instead he's gonna Make them leave him alone

everyone wanting you to live apart from You

magic biology! magic chemistry! magic science! nerd shit!

anyway oof idk if this helps but omggg is it hard to explain a fantasy story quickly ahaha....

(this is the general tag for this wip so u can check out more stuff about it that's explained in a more cohesive manner lol)

[tmmyrp]

hi everyone, tommy here! not tmmyrp, but tommy aka bell from metfell's system. I run tmmyrp and have for a year now! that's pretty fucking crazy like holy shit. i didn't expect this silly roleplay blog to turn into one of my favorite projects ive ever worked on, and i've been able to do it with some of my best friends!!

ive been having creative burnout with tmmyrp for a bit. now- now before you get all fuckin concerned n shit i'm not stopping the blog!! i just thought id let you all know. me n fern- our cranboo- are a bit more active on latenightmining right now, since this blog's plot has pretty much been resolved in a way im happy with. i'm still gonna be roleplaying on here, but i'm moving away from any huge serious conversations. there will be a few more, there's still some stuff id like to resolve with songbird, and of course october and november 16th are coming up. but overall i want tmmyrp to finally have some peace. he's okay now, he's happy. so send asks prompting him to go hang out with tubbo or techno or wilbur or quackity or even phil- hell even ranboo we can figure that out!! ask him about his knitting and sewing projects, his favorite things he's made and favorite places to go. ask him about his favorite time of day or weather or give him an idea for something to do! he's here to have fun :)

we've had so much fucking fun and so many memories. there was the start of finding gertrude, carving pumpkins with songbird, ranboo dying and dream escaping, the gala, getting tulip, ranboos SECOND death leading to the creation of petalsbrough with tubbolul, the shapeshifting or stress shitting lol, the reconciliation with technoblade, getting to interact with casinoroyale and then bring charlie back home to him, live roleplaying while the queen died, exile 2 and the scary shit with bestnightmares, when bestnightmares got fuckin terminated mid thread and it was so goddamn funny everyone lost their minds, tommy locking beeduo in a room to sort their problems out, tommy embracing puffy making him the server therapist and trying to therapize people but needing it more than anyone, the way everything changed november 28th and bedrockverse branched out to be its own little thing.

i love everything ive written with everyone, and its kind of crazy that this is my first experience roleplaying ever. there's nearly 1000 of you now, and i don't know what i have planned for the anniversary! im writing this a couple days early because i got so emotional. you've all seen me grow and get better at writing and now i feel so satisfied with the product ive made here with everyone else. it's a group effort, we all worked so hard trying to make something memorable, something that represents how much we love these characters from this silly minecraft roleplay server.

you all mean the fucking world to me <3 sorry i'll be a bit less fuckin sappy and emotional n shit uh. women primes fuck you get bitches die. or something.

[science-lings]

idk if I'm going to ever write for it so I'm gonna put it here, my reborn Yatagarasu AU. I guess if I get a little encouragement I'll want to write it more but I have to get some thoughts out or I will explode.

It started because I thought Beanix and Kay should meet and do crimes together. I think they should fight corruption and be overly dramatic while annoying Edgeworth. I mean, think about it, in the first game, Phoenix's whole thing was exposing notorious blackmailers and corrupted officials and generally being unafraid of facing mob families when everyone else is kinda scared to take any action.

before the cut to so much rambling, I need to get one question out of the way so...

anyway, lore below, I just didn't want to put that under the cut where no one will read far enough to see it lol

That and he also has experience with eccentric thieves. Also, they're both named after mythical birds and named specifically to be silly with their dialogue ('Mr. Wright, right?' "Kay 'kay?'). I also just want a reason for them to pose as father and daughter and be able to pull it off perfectly.

Now for actual plot stuff, I am of the opinion that Phoenix has acquired some weird-ass skills that he uses in weird-ass ways, I mean in canon he has a talent for bluffing and he uses it to absolutely dominate at poker. So I'm thinking this guy, who hasn't risked his life in over a year, fresh out of leads to fight the case with his disbarment, needs enrichment. This comes in the form of Kay investigating him out of interest as his role of 'that man' and discovering that he's pretty neat actually. She looks at his case files and finds him silly enough to recruit for a new project.

The re-emergence of the Yatagarasu is directly correlated to the dark age of the law and the increasing corruption practically everywhere. The law makers and law keepers of Japalifornia ignore the truth for their own self interest and that is Not Good. Kay recruits Ema, who is interning at the police department and on her way to becoming a detective turned forensic investigator. She is also stem girl extraordinaire who wants to use her tech for good and not to help the police. Funded by Franziska (because the best use of Manfred's fuck you money is actively fighting the corruption he was a part of) the Yatagarasu plan to expose as much corporate and legal filth as possible. Because to build a new legal system, the other one must be destroyed a bit.

In comes Phoenix, who through past cases and his work at the Borsht Bowl, just happens to have a pretty good amount of criminal connections. He's inconspicuous, already kind of undercover, and he knows how to get people to talk. He's disillusioned with the law and settled into a character that requires him to convincingly act at all times. Also his daughter is a magician and I think it would be really funny for him to learn a little sleight of hand and how to use throwing knives only for him to turn around and use those skills for Crime.

In return for info and his help with the Yatagarasu project, Phoenix gets more assistance in his investigation into Kristoph, which makes it easier to keep him and Trucy safe. Also in this AU Kristoph is worse and more invasive and more willing to cause problems if he catches Phoenix learning too much. Every one of their shared dinners consists of Kris poisoning Phoenix's wine and them switching it until they're both confused and Phoenix ends up drinking it but survives anyway.

Another part of this AU that I would want to touch upon would be Phoenix's reputation outside of being a fallen famous lawyer. I think that his work getting multiple mob members, prosecutors, a police chief, and generally terrifyingly powerful people incarcerated would get him noticed by people. I like to think that he's trying his best to look pathetic and depressed but the whispers around him make him sound kind of terrifying and it's only because of that that he feels secure enough to take Trucy along with him to the bowl for poker matches. He also is trying to learn her perceiving power, which he can't do but he does get really good at silently communicating with Trucy to the point that they become a kind of terrifying duo.

I just... weird girl crime group (Maya is not allowed, she'll just get falsely accused of murder again)

[bonesbuckleup]

You’re writing a book?! What the hell that’s so exciting!!

I was gonna ask you about it bc I’m 👀🍽️ but then I saw the ask game you were having and realized that nr 17 fits perfectly >:) (ofc you can be as specific as you want/are able to be) I’m also really curious about 23, more specifically if there’s a place you often go to where you generally feel more productive?

(and if these have already been asked you can just pick whichever question you feel like you want to answer lol ♥️)

Answering out of order!

23. Describe the physical environment in which you write. Be as detailed as possible. Tell me what’s around you as you work. Paint me a picture.

I have a standing desk in my bedroom with a walking pad. On that desk is a Bluetooth keyboard, a stand for my laptop, and a second monitor. There's also a lamp, some speakers, a copy of Save the Cat Writes a Novel, a bunch of notebooks, some scrap paper, a mug with pens, some thumb tacks, and a candle. I've got a white board to the left, cork boards, and a conspiracy wall of paper taped everywhere for easy-access notes. I'm talking full Pepe Silvia set up, to be honest. It is not elegant, but it gets the job done.

17. Talk to me about the minutiae of your current WIP. Tell me about the lore, the history, the detail, the things that won’t make it in the text.

Rambling vaguely about my original projects beneath the cut. There are two: the one I'm about to rewrite that I've been submitting to agents, and then the shiny new thing.

Project One! A YA contemporary fantasy novel called Initiate. To steal my twitter pitch/aesthetic.

The women of 16-year-old Cal Townsend's family have two traditions--witchcraft and secrets. When her father suddenly dies, and Cal is sent to live with her estranged maternal grandmother on a remote island in Lake Superior, Cal unknowingly enters into both. Initiate has:

Great Lakes gothic vibes

A Superior-based magic system

Queer kids trying their best

Sentient shadows

Hauntings of various kinds

Breaking generational curses

So! Much! Ice!

ANYWAY. I am about to rip that one apart at the seams, so that's all I have to say about it. However, I am also working on a new one that would probably appeal to Batfam fandom fans, so why not pop it in here as well.

It does not have a title yet, and is only the crime mage boys wip.

Set in a world that's exactly like ours except magic is an unquestioned part of it, the vibe of the crime mage boys wip is The Outsiders meets Rear Window but, like, also with magic and Chicago. Basically almost everyone has the capacity to do small magic (light a cigarette with a snap of the fingers, etc etc), but a small portion of the population can't do any (null) and another small portion can do big magic (mages).

The Grayson brothers (I know okay shut up) are hanging on by a thread. Leo (23, null, Tired™️) has been his brothers' legal guardian for the past 5 years and works multiple jobs with long hours to keep them afloat. JT (18/19, on week 52 of being in a bad mood) was a promising mage who had his magic permanently cut off by the police after being in the wrong place at the wrong time-- effectively torpedoing every future plan he'd ever had in a single night and leaving him floundering. Miles (14, protagonist, text book flight risk) just wants to keep his head down and not add to his brothers' many problems.

To bring in some extra money, Miles secretly works for a PI and helps her gather evidence (photos of cheaters caught in the act, checking to see if people really live at addresses--low risk recon jobs, basically). But add in a witnessed murder, a DIY-vigilante who keeps putting himself in Miles's way, and a growing mages' rights movement sweeping over the city, and Miles is getting a hell of a lot more than he bargained for.

ANYWAY that one is still very much in progress, but please enjoy these picrews of the three brothers: Miles, JT, and Leo, in that order.

[ayadoesart42]

Hello! If you’re still in need: Ofc age appropriate, but HC’s for the guys learning they’re going to be dads? It’s one of my favorite hcs to think about lol

I enjoy your other HC’s, too!!!

💕

This was actually really sad to make, and I apologize I’m pretty sure this was supposed to be light hearted… sorry. Also I’m going off of unexpectedly becoming a parent with s/o, rather than planned bc if it was the reaction would be just “yay” and less interesting so LETS GO

Ichiro- (in 20s-ish so similar amounts of maturity) Really really happy and overjoyed. He would be beaming for like a month straight. He would also be determined to be the best dad ever and fix everything that his dad did wrong.

Jiro- (also 20s) PaNiK 😱 But like- happy panic (hopefully)

Saburo- I sat over this for like an hour and eventually gave up, sorry he is a child

Samatoki- would go spiraling and panicking about how terrible his childhood was and how he doesn’t want to turn into his own father and let someone experience that, also be worried about a kid growing up in the environment of a Yakuza with a smoking problem and would go off trying to right his life

Jyuto- Honestly he would probably break up and chicken out- he has too much to do to care for a child

Riou- Would consider it his new mission, and dedicate himself to completing it with honors

Ramuda- N/A

Gentaro- Become Edward Gorey and start to write children’s books with tragic endings

Dice- Would have taken his chances with knocking a woman after a night at a casino and lost. He’d probably not be emotionally ready for it and he would have no kind of connection with the woman, so they would just move on with their lives.

Jakurai- Would adopt again and take the new child to see Yotsutsuji, their big brother, once a week and maybe start a nice mini foster care system for children in need.

Hifumi and Doppo (I’m sorry I have to do these together): Hifumi would quit his job being a host to be a stay-at-home parent, cooking and cleaning and raising the child while Doppo pays the rent. Hifumi would be joyous forever and Doppo would go through phases of “I am so happpppyyyy” and “I am so tireeeeeddddddddd this is gonna end meeeeee I don’t wannnnaaaaaaaaaa”

Sasara- Quit being a comedian to be a parent because he doesn’t want his kid to be constantly surrounded by paparazzi, and he wants to be there for his kid, and try to not give them the childhood that he had.

Rosho- First of all, Rosho wants to be a parent SO BADLY, I think he straight up considers his students his temporary kids. But if he got an actual child he would be over the moon and do all the cringey parent stuff like put pictures of his kid all over his desk at school and give his students updates at school and everyone would refer to his child as the class’ “little sister/brother/sibling”. Also I think having an actual child would push him into starting a program where he can go to places like hospitals and areas with children that don’t have access to nice schools and he would teach them simple lessons and give them a small, free, education. (CRYING)

Rei- Well we’ve all seen how this goes

Kuukou- I disagree with the fact that Kuukou is having an unplanned child, he is a MONK. So he would become the parent of a very large rescue dog or something and unleash it at the temple and take care of it well.

Jyushi- iS a cHiLd

Hitoya- Read attorney of law repercussions and amendments instead of bedtime stories. Also always say “you never his a woman.” To his kid no matter what 24/7 idk why but he would. He would pay the money for the house but also take a surprising amount of time to be an active father.

Bonus

Nemu- (Unhypnotized) Would be very very happy until she realized she would have to tell Samatoki

I AM NOT SURE IF THATS WHAT YOU WANTED BUT UH HERE YOU GO

and ofc I'm never not in need of hc prompts lol

[stupid-sloot-headcanons]

Hello! I was wondering if you were still in a 'I love the game Bully' talking mood because geez that game was great! I loved the idea of slowly taking over the gangs that control the school to become the leader was a great goal. Gary was a wonderful villain that I wish had more on screen time(But only a little bit.) What was your fav mission and romance target? I'm curious if you don't mind. Thank you!

YES BULLY FAN

My favorite mission...I'll probably say the one where Gary betrays you and has you go down into the hole (I think it's legit called "Russell in the Hole" or something iirc). He's so cartoonishly evil and you KNOW he's gonna betray you, but the fact it's earlier than expected and it's a hard turn right into the first major boss fight is great.

I think the game would've benefitted a lot from more Gary here and there. After the Russell fight he only pops up for a second during the egg mission with the Preps; instead I wish we could've seen him scheming just a little more so you know he's up to something lol. Have him hang out in the game world by one of the other cliques, and when you approach him he can brush you off. And some of the ambient student chatter can involve rumors Gary is spreading or what they've seen him doing around town.

The game is peak Rockstar writing in the sense that subtlety and complexity is nonexistent. You're in a cartoon stereotypical high school. And yes, a lot of shit is outdated by modern standards: Pete being called a femboy, fatshaming w/ Eunice and Fatty, a mission where you actually help Coach Burton get panties from the girl's dorm...but this is a mid-2000s ROCKSTAR GAME, so what you see is what you fucking get lol. And Jimmy being canonically bisexual was and still is a very bold move to make and I'm glad they didn't cut it from the final version.

As far as love interests go, that's tough. Probably Pinky, just because she's the nicest Prep (which isn't saying much) and I love her personality. Every time she's a bitch she actually walks it back. But I also like Mandy, even if Jimmy fucked her over so hard...like her pictures that HE TAKES of her for Earnest get spread around, so he basically causes the problem that his later mission has him solve. I remember Pat from SBFP saying it was like the fucking D.E.N.N.I.S. System from Always Sunny and I busted out laughing

It's just so FUN. All the voice actors, the artists behind the game's design, the writers, everyone just seemed like they had a great time making it. And the SOUNDTRACK HOLY FUCK, it's amazing

[suguwu]

😱😱😱 Bee you do it to Takao like that?? You kill him like that!? No goodbye, no last "I love yous" that's so cruel!!

okay before i get into THAT, you never fail to provide the most beautiful detail to every mundane moment, but if i gushed over every one, this ask would get five part series too

Honest to god i was so certain Takao would've actually left in the end. Like "oh your soulmate's here? guess i'll die" and he just!! goes!! and let's be real in his shoes, i dont blame him. at least he said something. he communicated his feelings and he took a step back because he wanted space.

like yeah reader suffers a bit, but she's got a solid support system. she's got her parents, she's got her friends. have i mentioned i love Abe and Yoshikawa so much?? what would this story be like without them? how would Reader cope without them?? i dare not think.

also you're so good at describing food, i wanted those crepes so much

okay and i must know, what's the soulmate clause in the marriage contract, what was all that about??? it sure sounds like a lot of boring paperwork to me, and a headache to work through. you're so good at weaving subtle worldbuilding in where it matters, but that's the problem, i want the story to be about bullshit soulmate clauses in marriage contracts. what are soulmate laws here, what do they look like

Kita is so good, that's the problem. the progression of their interactions between text and phone call to eventual physical visits was very sweet. If he was an asshole that'd make things easier. and honestly i was Very nervous where it was going because like especially when the wedding got cancelled after reader met her soulmate, i'd lose my mind because you KNOW that got people's tongues wagging.

it's unfortunate that it's not hard to imagine that a lot of people would in fact, find reader insane for not immediately choosing her soulmate in a heartbeat. your neighbors, your co-workers, distant relatives, people on the goddamn street etc

oh my god speaking of, i wasn't kidding when i said i would've fist fight Atsumu in the streets, i could've HOWLED.

Aran is a fuckin blessing because i knew the twins were gonna have Opinions on reader after she rejected Kita. THEY may be protective of Kita, but I'M protective of reader and i'm stronger, i know it. i could beat them. the social expectation surrounding soulmates would be abysmal, can you imagine?? and we only got a little taste of it, when Atsumu just threw his hands up like "He's your soulmate!" as if that was supposed to be the end all be all statement to end an argument. when reader is MARRIED??

oh, you already have a partner? forget them! you met your soulmate! guilt tripped reader for KITA'S choice to remain in contact as if it's her job to manage his feelings. i'd ream Atsumu so hard it'd strip the hair dye from his follicles and he'd have to go back to Onigiri Miya, a brunette again.

thank god reader has supportive loved ones. thank fuckin god. if i got grilled by the general public, or even people in my life why i chose Some Guy and not my Soulmate, i would kill everyone in the room and then myself. SMH

okay i definitely had more to say but i'm gonna cut myself off now before i go insane luv u so much bee, congratulations again on getting part 2 out!!

whisper beloved this had me ROLLING lmao thank you so much for taking the time for this!!

cut because this is a long answer lol

i did do it to takao like that i'm afraid,,,he deserved better but i couldn't give it to him. i knew it from the start

takao could have peaced out and honestly it would have been the expected thing for him to do in this society! so he just took a step back. which i think was hard for him but easier than it could have been, knowing the support system reader has in place. i'm SO glad you love abe and yoshikawa they are also near and dear to my heart,,,love a good friendship!

lskjdflksjdf once i'm done with the fic i may release some of my worldbuilding notes! for the shrine clause (and a clause used by most marriage venues), it's one that allows the person getting married to get out of the contract without any consequences if they meet their soulmate. so they would get their deposit/any money back and not be held responsible for any penalties that might otherwise be described in said contract.

for the form they hand in at the time of marriage, some countries track soulmates and have bureaucratic systems around it. it's almost like a census in some ways. the form is essentially a report about whether either party has met their soulmate and if they are marrying their soulmate. it can be used as a way to stop the marriage if the soulmate desires to do so.

kita is Very Good and that's half of the issue, like you said! and yes, society has a Lot to say about reader's choice - it's very unusual and there's a lot of controversy around people who don't stay with their soulmates (don't even get me started on soulmate divorce).

PLEASE I AM CACKLING honestly atsumu deserves a fist fight for that one! both the twins do in their own way (osamu distracted kita so atsumu could go after reader). reader's been hoping to avoid them because she knew from aran's stories (they've met a few times, mostly over facetime when he was visiting kita) that meeting them probably wouldn't go well. and...on the money with that one.

thank you thank you for all of the thought that went into this ask. you are always far too kind and i'm so glad you enjoyed it!!!

[troglobite]

lol whoops an aita video got me In My Feelings bc i felt ppl were being deeply unfair to the op in one of the stories

family stuff under the cut? i'm gonna keep it short bc i left a long comment and 2 replies on the video already lol

the story in its shortest form was this: op is 19 w 16 year old brother. 3 years prior their parents got divorced bc their dad cheated. their mom has remarried a man w 2 young daughter (13 and 9). op loves them. brother HATES them and says so frequently, saying they're not his family. he has "been grounded for 2 years basically" bc he never listens to stepdad. op said "if you don't consider stepsisters your sisters, then i'm no your sister either." she is away elsewhere at college & won't come home bc of the argument. brother has now left to live with biodad.

everyone is dogpiling op telling her she's an asshole, that ultimatums sucks, you can't control other people's feelings, experiences, or relationships.

and i'm feeling very upset bc while i think what she did sucks, i don't think ANYONE is an asshole here (w the possible caveat that their biodad is a giant asshole).

a quick list of the things that everyone is overlooking or forgetting

they automatically assumed stepdad was the one grounding & disciplining brother. are we just going to ignore that it could be THEIR MOM doing it bc she's upset at how angry he is?

they automatically assumed op was being really overtly vicious and unfair to her biodad (called him a cheating slimeball and her sperm donor), but that the brother hating the stepfamily automatically means they're being cruel to him

biodad's influence in this situation. are we really going to pretend that horrible dads will often use their sons as "confidantes" to try and justify their actions and turn the sons against their mothers and any other family members?

there is so much missing information in the story, partly bc op is so angry at her dad

op, her brother, and their mom are all DEEPLY traumatized by what happened, and it's RECENT, and it's really hard. they are ALL missing each other bc of their ongoing extreme pain.

relatedly, op is likely extremely in her feelings abt it bc as the oldest, and as a girl, she saw how badly her mom was hurt. in addition to however much op was hurt.

the brother was going to move back in w biodad anyway--they almost always do. what op did and said was just the justification he had clearly been waiting for to do it.

so that's what i've left in the comments.

bc my dad did that shit to my brother and turned him against our mom for years, and we still don't know if he believed the lies my dad told.

and though the birth order is reversed for op, it just proves to me that dads will pull that shit w their SONS, not the oldest sibling.

and i think op has more information and more shared pain w their mom than the brother does.

no one handled anything optimally in that situation, but i don't think anyone is an asshole. i think they're hurting and need some kind of intervention. a family counselor or just an unbiased outside person to help them talk through how much they're all hurting.

but yeah. i got worked up bc i ALSO hate my biodad. i've ALSO been there. and i've ALSO been at odds w my brother over it.

but our circumstances were different enough and i have enough distance that i can see the similarities and differences, and i can see the missing information & read between the lines.

and i got invested and kinda upset abt it. lol

i think it's so unfair to call her an asshole (which is what everyone is doing).

they're all stuck on "don't give ultimatums!" and "you can't force other people's relationships!" and "you can't make him like them!"

when that's not even the ACTUAL PROBLEM, HERE.

so yeah. had to uh. get that out of my system. lol

[starsarefire824]

Heeey moot! Just woke up! Even though I'm late, I just wanted to say that you deserve to write whatever tf you want and I'm sorry some peeps were harassing you about The Pact. I don't think folks know how hard it is to not only write, but then to post it for others to see. So, for them to criticize you when it's just a fun fic that they can ignore or filter out (tags on ao3 are meant to be used geez) its wild to me. You're doing something very unique with the characters and including a lot of different subgroups of the queer community splendidly while keeping them flawed like real teens - all in 1 fic. As a demi ace myself, I was so happy to see you incorporate that in your fic respectively and a lot of my queer Sex Ed came from detailed, researched fics bc even though my parents and school system talked to me about sex, there was nothing for the queer kids, let alone ace kids to get guidance on. So, for fic readers/writers like me, using fics to explore sexuality was a godsend.

Can't help but also think it's the biphobia kicking in again, specifically for characters like Mike. No one has a problem hc Max as bi even though it seems like lumax is clearly endgame over elmax or elumax, but when it comes to Mike being bi it's like the world is ending despite it clearly being byler endgame. I personally ship all hcs of Mike's sexuality cuz only Robin and Will have been confirmed queer. Everyone else in ST to me is undisclosed until stated straight or queer. But again that's me.

Also love your poly rep cuz my sib is poly and so were some of my grandma's cousins from 1950s-now. So, again, all or most sexualities explored in fics is a must, regardless if you ship it. I've always been a polypartycule shipper and enjoy how you include all party members and mention Duzie sometimes cuz too many times I found fics/hcs excluding the fact Dustin has a stable relationship with Suzie in favor of just highlighting byler and elumax as the romantic ones of the party.

Sorry for the rant but I had to let it out. I hated scrolling through my feed and seeing that post you made of folks getting heated over fiction like you're gonna convince the Duffers to change the whole script. Anyways I hope my support is felt. This is still me typing in a sleep daze and yeah. I'll continue reading your work cuz I enjoy good writers first and foremost and omg lol you made it having some harrassers cuz the greatest books were on the banned book list. Not saying you deserve the irrational hate, but that's how I'm framing it - this is giving "banned book energy" just cuz The Pact is exploring romantic madwheeler when no one cares about byclair or henderhop or henclair (despite folks labeling El as a lesbian). Anyways, you do you moot be blessed out here

Hello deer moot!!!! <33

Thanks so much for the positive vibes!!! I truly appreciate it. I guess I was just feeling a little let down that a select few people made it so far into a fic and then were angry about the way things were going and/or felt the need for me to tell them the ending. At first it didn't bother me, but after answering the same questions 1,000 times and trying to sort of reassure everyone it got to a point of being exhausting! I want to talk about the fic, but I don't really want to have to defend my writing/story/ship choices every chapter. It's kind of exhausting and was bringing me down a little bit. But anyway, enough about that.

I am SO GLAD that you are like...really vibing with some of the choices in that story? Especially with your unique pov being demi ace and having poly family. I think that fanfiction can be a very important tool for a lot of teen when it comes to exploring sex, especially if it's not a cis het-normative type or even just....dealing with sex from a young person's pov and all of the obstacles that everyone faces in that regard. Also, I think it can just open up a conversation or make a person think about things that maybe they might not of before etc etc. Or! They can just enjoy those scenes for the writing/good time. I'm here for all of it.

I'm not sure if it's a biphobia thing? It honestly hadn't occurred to me, but you may possibly be right. I know a lot of people headcanon Mike as gay, which I fully support. I wouldn't be surprised if that is the case. I think if Byler happens in canon, he'll be unlabeled. BUT I do like to write Mike as bi, I personally think that there were feelings for El at some point. I personally headcanon him as a bi-romantic, and sexually leaning towards men. But that's just me....

But anyway, as that pertains to madwheeler, I also really enjoy the bi for bi Max and Mike dynamic, specifically because it's fun to write, and secondly it's another thing to add to their already similar personalities. And yea. I agree... unless a character's sexuality is specifically stated like El and Will's, there is room for exploration for most characters and that's what fanfic and art is for.

I do think there is this strange thought process regarding bi characters, that if they have a relationship with a person of the opposite sex it's like they're not "queer enough" for other people. Like it's somehow lesser than if Mike has a relationship with a woman, even though he already, in canon, is well, with a woman. And that people tend to forget that people are still bi, still queer, even if they are in the most outwardly straight presenting relationship, cause let's face it....you can't really help who you're attracted to and who you fall in love with. it just is.

And when it comes to the madwheeler in this fic, I am fully aware it is one of the least popular ships out there, but again, that is one of the reasons I wanted to explore it. And a a bi, poly person my self it was really interesting putting these characters in a dynamic where they were both involved with people of differing genders and orientations. It gives you a lot to work with when it comes to having things to write about! シ

And as you said, it also allows for some messy, realistic teenage angst! Which I am always a fan of! ;)

Anyway, thank you for the rant. I appreciate it so much, and am honestly still blown away by the positive responses to this story. Even if it's not everyone's cup of tea!

[gumjester]

OOHHHH GUMJESTER!!!!!!!! 🎶🎶🎶

IT'S ME OKLO, BACK AGAIN TO TALK ABOUT THE NEWEST CHAPTER OF EAH;RIR!!!!!!!!!!!

FUCKKK THIS CHAPTER MAKES ME SICK IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE

I read it with my sister out loud and she keeps on reminding herself about how raven is gonna give everyone the choice to rebel and how soon this will all be a bad dream for Ashlynn that'll end but I told her to FORGET THAT FOR NOW AND JUST INDULGE IN THE ANGGGGGSTTTTTT❗❗❗❗

WEAKLING❗❗❗❗ (don't worry sis I'm joking I'm also really fucking afraid)

Actually, I reread the entirety of the fic so far out loud to my sister and I've made sure she's just as invested as I am!!!! We're having so much fun!!!!!!!! AND YOUR WRITING IS SOOO GOOOD

BUT ANYWAY, back to the chapter at hand.

I didn't expect Ashlynn to be the pov character this chapter but WOWWW IT WAS A PLEASANT SURPRISE.

The character you established with her is WAY MORE MEMORABLE THAN WHAT THEY DID WITH HER IN THE SHOW. SHE WAS AROUND IN THE FIRST AND SECOND SEASONS BUT EVENTUALLY, SHE STOPPED TRULY DEVELOPING AFTER TRUE HEARTS DAY. WHICH UPSETS ME.

YOU.... MADE HER SO MUCH MORE ENGAGING. With her TRYING SO HARD to rationalize this destiny shit, like, not wanting for her mom to go away, and not wanting to break away from hunter, but still feeling obliged to fulfill her destiny because of tradition, and being so confused, and scared, and conflicted with what she wants. I feel horrible for her.

But on another note, I love how much more present her magic touch of being able to speak to animals was!!! I have a feeling understanding animals had made her into a very kind, soft, and caring person. (Which I love her for) EAH has a problem with not utilizing their characters talents completely and just, having a graveyard of characters with so much wasted potential, so I LOVE the attention to detail in your fic so far!!!!!!!

Ashlynn and her mom make me so sad lol like,,, WOW CINDER REALLY WAS THE ONLY MOM WHO CARED ENOUGH ABOUT HER DAUGHTER TO DROP HER OFF AT SCHOOL WITH A GOOD WORD. LIKE "I LOVE YOU" (STARES DAGGERS AND SNOW WHITE AND EVIL QUEEN)

AND SHE'S THE ONE WHO'S DESTINED TO DIE EARLY?!?!?? Life's unfair man.

And her words make it sounds like she's definitely had a lot of time to make sense of the entire Cinderella destiny, just to soften the blow of fulfilling such a heavy destiny. Convincing herself it's for the greater good, and sacrificing personal comfort for the good of the system.

This is gonna be a recurring theme isn't it?

But anyway, new character drop!!

HUNTER HUNTER HUNTER!!!!! MY BOY!!!!!!

I LOVE THE WAY YOU WRITE ASHLYNN AND HUNTER SO FAR. IT ALSO HURTS ME A LOT. WHICH JUST PROVES MY POINT OF YOU WRITING THEM WELL.

You can tell just how much they care about each other, and hunter specifically being more worried about Ashlynn cause he understands how big her destiny is. And of the anxiety it must cause Ashlynn.

I really hope only for the best for them in the future. Their so sweet and they love each other so much, they deserve only good things.

I hope we get to see more of Hunter somehow!!! I hope you have something planned for him, even if just a little bit. What family issues does HE HAVE. We know he does from the books!!!

Briar and Apple appeared near the end!!! Briar makes me sad after 30 seconds. But she's so so cool. I LOVE HER DYNAMIC WITH ASHLYNN.

AND ACTUALLY. I'M JUST GLAD THE ICONIC TRIO ARE TOGETHER!!!!!! They were always so funny together, and I'm glad we're seeing more of their dynamic here!!!

“ Grimm , I am so glad you’re here,” she gasped, squeezing Ashlynn into a hug. “I need help deciding on my outfit for the Book-to-School party. I showed Apple what I have but she keeps saying it’s ‘a little too much’.” “So, she hates it,” Ashlynn translated. “She hates it,” Briar confirmed, pulling her along. “But I swear, the whole thing is fine, she’s just being uptight because it’s Legacy Year. I need an actual second opinion, plus you can pick out my shoes!”

THEY ARE SO FUNNY PLEASEEE

BUT I'M ALSO SCARED ABOUT THEIR FRIENDSHIP.

Apple already seems to be acting really weird with them cause it's legacy year.

The three of them clearly have different priorities this legacy year.

Ashlynn wants to somehow fulfill her destiny without the pain of losing two important people from her life.

Apple wants to fulfill her destiny in the most perfect way possible cause she's made to believe that's all she needs to prove her worth to everyone and her mother. And then she'll finally achieve peace. (Even though we all know she's playing a game she'll never win)

And Briar is desperately trying to distract herself from her impending doom. My poor girl. She's probably a bigger mess than most people would expect!

At the end of the chapter, we finally get a small piece of proof that signing your destiny could ever POSSIBLY BE GOOD. IN ANY WAY. wow. So these small things are the reason royals stay royals huh? That and the life-long suffocating pressure from everyone around them to conform and do as what's expected of them.

Heeeheee just girly things

What is wrong with ever after. IT'S AN ACTUAL DYSTOPIA......

GHEHEHEJEJJ AND THAT'S ALL MY THOUGHTS FOR THIS CHAPTER!!!!!

I LOVE THIS FIC SO MUCH AND I WISH FRIDAY WOULD COME SOONER EACH WEEK.

(sorry for being such a messy rambler I wish I could get my points across in a more professional manner but- but- idk!!! This is a Tumblr ask wtf am I saying)

Hey hey heyyy gumjester can you give us a random teaser for the next chapter. It can be anything! A random dialog, a picture, a gif that encapsulates the vibe of the next chapter. Anything!!!!

Really excited to see the story open up, good luck on the next chapters!!!!! Your doing amazing so far!! :DD <33

WAVESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII OKLOOOOOOO

first of all, COMPLETELY insane to me that you are reading my silly little fic out loud ???? to your family????? your own flesh and blood???? every day you layer new honours upon me i feel like im getting an audiobook made. how lovely that youre both enjoying the questionable things i am putting these characters through!!!!! shoutout to oklos sister, im so pleased to have you along for the ride <3 and hold onto your hat, ashlynn WILL be alright eventually but 😐 ... it is gonna take a while

second, YOU ALWAYS KNOW JUST WHAT TO SAYYYYY WIPES TEAR. i really wanted to make ashlynn engaging and fun to read in this seeing as shes really quite flat in the show for such a theoretically important character???? it's been fun expanding on neglected aspects like her communication with animals and her relationship with her mother.

hunter too is just very therapeutic to write lol... just a big chill guy... i do love hunter and am trying to make room for his pov. hopefully i can balance him in 😵‍💫 SOOOOOO many characters 2 keep track of... im still having my issues with them but this is encouraging feedback!! love ya <3

and YES the royal bestie trio is HERE BABY and they have PROBLEMSSSSSSSSSS IT'LL BE FUN I PROMISE. EVERY ONE OF THOSE GIRLS IS RIDICULOUSLY STRESSED AND NONE OF THEM CAN LET THE OTHERS KNOW LOL

youre spot on about royals clinging to the little things to rationalise destiny btw. and the way cinder thinks about destiny. and about the dystopia. LOLLLLLL THIS WORLD IS HELL

I LOOOOOOOOOVVEEEE HEARING UR THOUGHTS THANK YOU BAE

in regard to the next chapter, it won't be a new pov, but you do get a couple more character intros. as for a teaser:

“Come in, Ms White,” he called from inside. Apple turned the freezing doorknob - it was made of steel, shaped into the oval symbol of an eye - and opened the door.

see you next friday <3

[thelonewolf48]

MSHD Season 3, Episode 3

Let's see how wrong this series can go and still give us our ship.

This post got out of hand so, be warned that is LONG!

High Hills and the whole teaching three languages, robotics and computer science gives me war flashbacks to my own school (I went to a private catholic school up until 6th grade). But they did teach us a little about ecology and horticulture... as for the meditation, well, we slept around at least two hours in kindergarten and had like an hour for ourselves (aside from lunch break) for reading and doing other things... so, I don't see a problem there.

But I do know where this is going and I mean, sure, there are schools like that, but at least in my city public and private school accept everyone. Gay or not. NOW, that they discriminate the kids and their families... yeah, that happens everywhere in our conservative and religious society.

I don't like the translation change they did in Alta's comment: The subs read "Ah, wonderful, Miss Ana. They're gonna be as smart as their ma." To which Mariana and Ana simultaneously answer "Oh, God, I hope not" and "They will."

But what Alta really said was "How cute, Miss Ana. Are they going to attend the same school as you?" (Or, I guess, it sounds better as Are they gonna attend your alma mater?") Whichever it is... I don't like that they changed the comment because it seems that Mariana doesn't want the girls to be as smart as Ana, even though she tells everyone that Ana is really smart. Anyway, little easter egg.

You know what? I love Victor and Tere's dynamic. I've seen men like him, my dad and one of my uncles. My aunt had a high risk pregnancy and we all helped her out so, I kinda understand Victor but I don't think Tere isn't that bad... she just needs rest lol But I love them and the whole plots Tere does to try to go outside, while Victor tries to prevent her to escape. LOVE THEM!

Ro, cutie pie, I understand your hate and bad behavior... but the fact no one is telling him to tone down his comments is off. Especially, coming from a Mexican mom. Which, fair, not all moms are the same but if I ever said something like that or raised my voice or even rolled my eyes, my mom (and aunts and basically any grown up) would scold me and maybe ground me for a week (to say the least)

Again will rant about the subs! It sounds so damn aggressive, in the subs JC says "Did you not learn the lesson?" and Ana answers "I learned you're an asshole." WOW, WOW, WOW! JC actually says "See why I sued you?" and Ana answers something along the lines of "because you're stubborn" or "you're a fool." To tell someone asshole, here in Mexico, is like a really big thing and Ana didn't insult him here... so, I wonder why they decided to write asshole... I need answers!

And then, the next comment seems a bit off because she's not being as aggressive as the subs make Ana sound... (or maybe it's me who feels it's aggressive?) Anyway, the subs read "And you don't need to know everything if it's what's best for the girls. I figured it'd be okay" and in reality Ana says "Because I do include you in everything, but in due time. I don't even know if there's an spot available."

Subs, you're sus!

They did not just dressed a girl in a cosplay, right? ... No, they did... because of course that's how everyone looks like inside a japanese company... Never change, Mexico. Never change. LOL

Ferran and Mariana, sighs. I'm not gonna dig into that and I will rant about JC and Ana but that a few paragraphs later.

Subs... you're giving me a headache... It sounds so wrong how JC sounds when he says "if you come, dress nice" when in reality he tells Ana "think about it and let me know" SUBS YOU'RE ON THE AGRESSIVE SIDE!

Hmmm, eating soil strengthens the immune system, really? THEN WHY I GET SICK ALL THE TIME?!!!! I've eaten my share of soil and still get sick all the damn time! /sighs/ anyway, Ana throwing chocolates to the kids is so funny though!

Cynthia really is a mini Ana in the making lol, poor Pablo though.

I gotta love Romelia's guts and clever ideas, she doesn't buy that Mariana and Ana are dating but also wants to prove that Mariana and Ferran are together. I love her lol

SUBS HOLY SHIT, WHAT?

The subs: "I never want you to be seen in public with that dumb little slut ever again"

What they really said: "I never want you to be seen in public with that girl"

And the subs called Mariana little slut twice in the same scene... and he never said that...

Then, subs go into a different direction. In the subs, Ana says "With that mouth, I hope it all burns to the ground" JC says "Ana, come on, it's for the children", then Ana "No, this is for you, Juan Carlos" and Ana in reality says "I will not follow your discriminatory rules" JC's dialogue is the same but then Ana says "No, it's because of the children (that I'm saying this)"

And then, it's interesting that when Ana is telling JC's father off that again in the subs, Ana is attacking him when in reality she is defending JC and accepting part of the blame for their failed marriage. In subs, Ana says "And because you're an incompetent sorry old man, I will never help you" vs what she really says "Just because I don't fit into your old-fashioned, conservative mold."

Ana isn't just angry telling him off, she is also telling a message to everyone who thinks like him, viewers included (or at least, I hope that was the writers' intentions)

Subs being sus, again!

What's up with the subs and them calling everyone assholes? JC calling his father an asshole in the subs is totally wrong because he doesn't insult him... but I'm not gonna continue ranting about it.

Subs... I'm...

I don't know what to do with these subs... They're aggressive when they shouldn't be and then they aren't when they should!

Subs: Tere: "And you won't tell me what to do with my body! Or what I want with it! A body you won't touch! Even when the doctor says so. Get it out of your head, or it's a problem, hmm?"

Reality: "I'm a woman with her own life and body! A body you won't touch! Even when the doctor said we can fuck without problems, hmm?"

Subs: Tere: "Look at me. I am a woman. Never ever again say that! I am anything other than what you see right here. And now get out of my face, hmm?"

Reality: "I am a free, funny, and sexy woman! And I will not allow you to stop seeing me as such! Nor will I cease to be!"

Although similar in it's message, I think it gives the scene very different messages. Although, again, maybe it's just me.

Business partners with benefits... I need a business partner, anyone available? LOL

Cynthia and Pablo, 11/10

The other issue I have is that after Ana and Mariana crashed the school entrance, Ro goes back into a loving kid and we never see Ana acknowledging the bully Ro was suffering, nor we see Ro telling Ana he is sorry for the way he behaved... and now it turns out Ro was only trying to protect the babies... THAT'S... THAT'S... /sighs/

And I need to go, but I love that JC finally see the light and pulled the law suit off! YAAAAAAY now I wonder what mess will the writers throw at me... lol

[soundsfaebutokay]

2 and 10 for the Love Run ask game? ❤️

So happy you made one again!!!

I'm thrilled to bits that everyone's having fun and playing along.

2. What song from Love Run gradually grew on you?

Hah, New York Torch Song. At first I was like, great, yet another thing about New York, why is everyone so weird about this city? lmao. See, I had just come from a prolonged Hamilton phase and we all know how New York-y that musical is. And before that were Steve Rogers, Daredevil, Elementary, Brooklyn 99, the musicals The Last Five Years and If/Then, and even freaking Sara Bareilles with "Manhattan." For some reason I just keep falling into successive fixations somehow related to New York. I'm a country girl who hates big cities and I am not doing this to myself on purpose, I swear.

Also when I first got into the album, my favorite way to listen to it was to put it on the big sound system while I did stuff around the house, and I often had to skip NYTS because those FUCK YOOOOUUUUUs at the start were very clear and unmistakable and I was worried that the neighbors might complain about their little kids overhearing and being corrupted lol. Then I got myself some headphones and that solved that problem.

But those headphones gave me new problems, because then I could concentrate on the lightning-fast lyrics and how Joey and Madeleine totally made language their plaything during that song. I tumbled head over heels into that song's glorious chaos. Then ruin the album came out, and Ruin the song provided the perfect counterpoint to NYTS that helped me appreciate it more, and by then I was well and truly obsessed with YET ANOTHER NEW YORK THING. WHYYYYY.

10. What lyrics are still unclear to you?

Gonna stick with NYTS:

Your bastard lasting nightbus asking

WHAT. What does that mean. That's how it appears on Bandcamp, and I've played it over and over and over again to hear if it really is "your bastard" or "you bastard" because the second one makes more sense to me than the first. If it's "your bastard" then suddenly a child (born out of wedlock) is involved in the story and that confuses me. But I really can't tell.

(The Love Run SONG ask game can be found here.)

[the-other-art-blog]

I've never interacted with the Bridgerton fandom before but I lurk sometimes and I agree with you. Since they planted the seed for a potential queer relationship for Benedict, I think they literally don't know where to go/what to do with it. I know it sounds dumb but I think they really don't know what to do, or if they do and go for a queer relationship, they're struggling really hard to make it work as something Benedict can be open with in society. I've been a historical romance reader for a few years now and the few queers love stories I read were not displayed for the entire society to see. Benedict could not dance with a man or kiss him in public and since queerness has already been shown as something to experience in the shadows, it seems a very big thing for Benedict to tackle for his arc, do I make sense? Since it's all about doing what he want and be himself without society caring, it ticks the box but they would have to have very good writing without make it like Benedict's relationship could end homophobia for everyone bc it's a bit much for a systemic issue. If he can't be out in the open, what is the point of it? That's why I think they don't say a thing about Benedict or Sophie, I think they've not thrown out the idea of a bisexual or gay love story yet but they're not sure what to do and they can't talk about Sophie all the time to then have someone else be Benedict's love interest. Personally I wouldn't be mad if Sophie was a man but I don't really trust the writers at this very moment. I think being a historical romance reader is making me a disservice here. I don't mind changes at all, I know how things are written in the media but I know what tropes I do and don't like and in making changes like they did in season 2, they made the characters do things that makes sense in a way but also make them borderline unlikeable for me and if I don't like them or root for them in my historical romance, it's not good. It's growing into it's own thing, its own drama and I love drama, Downton Abbey is one of my fav shows and it's dramatic as fuck. It just feels like they've been baiting romance lovers with the first season being very much like a historical romance book in its essence and now their writing choices are throwing me off a little bit. I do still trust them with Polin, if they did it so well for Anthony I know they can do it again. But Benedict? For some reason I'm not so sure. I care and ramble too much lol and some of what I said is obviously a "me" problem but yeah

I disagree, anon. I think they know exactly what they should do with Benedict. JQ may have ceded a lot, but she must have made guaranteed her endgame couples. From a business POV, it doesn't make sense to tell a completely different story from the one in the books. Yes, Kanthony was very different, but they're still Kate and Anthony, and traits of their book counterparts are in the series. Also, I understand that they couldn't have two consecutive seasons with the same storyline: we got caught so we had to marry and learned to love each other along the way. Even JQ said so.

So, I'm sure the production knows they have to cast Sophie and tell the story. The problem is that a section of the fandom (notably not a lot of benophie fans) and the press is pushing a gay storyline exclusively for Benedict! The reason why they don’t mention Sophie is because they don’t want to lose those viewers. They didn’t expect that kind of reaction from the fans in s1. CVD said that that was not what they intended at all. And now they have to deal with it. I think they are hoping those demands died out in the future.

But at the same time, they are trying to emphasize that Benedict is straight. He was in the art school, he could have seen a male model, but no. He saw Tessa and quickly slept with her. I think we are gonna see Benedict with other women in s3.