#if they should see this story & it's a fic that isn't giving her the redemption arc most AUs she's in give her

[alteredphoenix]

There’s a part of me that wants to do a W*W/Danny Phantom multi-chaptered fic that’s set in Shadowlands but via Vlad’s POV, where the Veil between Reality gets torn apart and the Ghost Zone starts to get subsumed by the presence of the Maw and the Army of the Endless. (This being a very vague idea, just imagine some shit happens to Danny, or Vlad, or both, and they just get caught up in the whole thing.)

Also Vlad takes one look at Sylvanas and realizes that there’s someone just as pathetic and cowardly than he is, if not more so, and while it might not give him a complete Change of Heart it does make him Think.

[sapphic-agent]

I really hope my ask won't be seen as mean, hope to word correctly....bc your last post about how Eri and Shig do share some common ground. I agree but it irks me how LoV stans use this to make shig sound not so bad.

Many fics and arts where "shig saved Eri" exists as Eri is an accessory for Shig and nothing else.

I do see the paralels here. I do wonder about the mother....did overhaul killed her?

It's very convenient for the heroes to label Eri's quirk as good ...bc if she had just decay...she would be label as having a bad quirk. Maybe the heroes wouldn't care much. (Makes me wonder where are the healing quirks or medical advancement in this world)

But while they have a similar backstory...how Izu would possible know? I sincerely ask here bc AM went radio silence regards Shig to Izu, same with Gran and the police did a really lousy investigation (I'm assuming is lousy bc we don't see what they did and whatever they did it was one time thing) and didn't share the infos with Izu.

Does Izu knows about the nomus?

Im even surprised he knows shig is TENKO...but of course, such reveal is underwealming as fuck and him and Nana don't take at all.

Izu is mistreated by the narrative and no one talks to him ever.

Not to harpy on your post bc I agree this could have been useful....but like how Izu would know anything about Shig? Unless Shig tells or Izu becames the best hacker ever...or reads mind...he can't know. Ever.

I've said this before, but the reason Izuku doesn't understand Shigaraki is because they haven't interacted enough prior to the Final War.

Their conversation at the mall was a good moment. It shows that a) Izuku has the capacity to resonate with a villain's intent AND disagree with their actions (Stain), b) Shigaraki at this point didn't have a goal or direction, and c) it IS possible for Izuku to understand why hero society is corrupt. It also highlights the differences between them, attempting to show them as complete opposites.

The mall scene was a great way to explain the dynamic between them. And it's something that should have been expanded on throughout the story.

Admittedly, I don't know how Shigaraki's backstory would come up. But I'm sure it wouldn't be a hard thing to do. Didn't All Might pull up Tenko Shimura's disappearance? Maybe Izuku figures it out on his own somehow. Idk.

But to me, it doesn't even specifically have to be Tenko's actual past. It could be an implied thing that Izuku learns from watching how people treat Eri. Hell, part of him already has a clue from his fight with Shinsou.

(One thing I actually hate about Izuku's character is his inability to acknowledge the corruption of society despite being a victim of it. He started off being able to do this with Stain, but for some reason that just went away. He studies under Endeavor, even defends him to Dabi and tells Todoroki he's ready to forgive him. Lady Nagant spelled it out for him and he just... Doesn't react. Doesn't even think about what she said. This is on Horikoshi's awful writing decisions, but it's the one criticism of Izuku that's 100% valid)

Eri shouldn't be used for Shigaraki's redemption. I honestly wouldn't want her around any of the LOV, that's putting her in danger to make another character look better. It's the same issue that I have with Aizawa making Bakugou watch her.

But I do think that Izuku's experiences with the people around him- which includes Eri- should give him a broader worldview. That's typically how development and growth work. If Izuku was going to reach out and try to save Shigaraki, it should have been with an understanding of how society failed Shigaraki.

Saving him also could have meant a lot of different things. Saving Shigaraki from AFO's influence/brainwashing wasn't a bad goal. Saving him from himself, though, is different. People have to want to change, you can't make them. You can give them support, but Izuku wasn't in a position to do so because he's, y'know, a sixteen year old who isn't even an official pro hero. Of course he wasn't equipped for this. Most actual pros wouldn't have been

[mikodrawnnarratives]

Okay I finished the BOOK

YAYYAYAYAYAYYAYAYAYAYYA

God I need fanfics of Molly living with Giovanni now like T-T

AHGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH JUS

JU- AHHAHHSHHSHAHDJXBJBSKSJKZBSJS

Everything I ever WANTED

AND NOW THAT IVE FINISHED

My verdict on Lorelai:

I'm glad that whatever growth she may go through, Molly won't be suffering when she inevitably backtracks along the way. It'd be nice to see the two mend their relationship but it is definitely for the better that they've been separated.

I wanna see Lorelai struggle and grow but she shouldn't get anymore opportunities to hurt Molly, much less for the sake of her learning a lesson. So it's better this way imo

And now that Molly isn't there, Lorelai's gonna have to run the shop and learn her lesson through CUSTOMER SERVICE joining zuko and others in the redemption arc trend of becoming redeemed by dealing with bitchy people

I very much don't mind rotating Lorelai in my brain a lil more cuz I don't hate her. I want to bunt her across the room when she hurts Molly ofc, I will not retract my statements, but I hate HER FATHER more than her

Cuz her father has no excuse to be the way he is. I'll get back to Lorelai in a moment cause she is definitely NOT faultless, but HIM?? He enabled all of this. He never checked in with his daughters and was always so inconsiderate of them. AND HES A GROWN MAN! It's telling that Giovanni goes off on him more than he does Lorelai cause in the end, he did nothing.

Back to Lorelai, she feels like a very intentionally immature character. Immature and selfish in a way that contrasts with Molly when Molly is the actual kid. I mean, Lorelai is 17 and all but by that age you can fairly expect someone to grasp not leaving your 12 yr old sibling to suffer under responsibilities your supposed to share.

And Lorelai being immature I think is added to by her fear that she's the reason her mother died. And the grief in all that. I think it's a good enough reason to feel sympathetic for how she's spiraled into this unhealthy coping mechanism and separates her from her father when it comes to being a rotten person.

By the end of the book it still felt like she hadn't grasped WHY what she did was bad to me and I'm kinda hoping that was an intentional writing decision. The book shows how she doesn't grasp some things like what makes someone a genuinely horrible person and so for her to still not quite see how what she did was bad, feels fitting.

By the end of seemed to me like, she KNEW what she did wasnt okay because Giovanni told her off and she was confronted with the truth that, she wasn't the good guy. Yet knowing that didn't make her understand what her actions specifically caused. Despite. Molly telling her.

I want to look up shenanigans between Molly and Giovanni in fics but I also kinda want to see Naven and Lorelai's relationship with the steps she'll make to become a better person

So def a ways away from growing significantly but I like that Naven has stuck around offering his help should she accept it. I mean Giovanni did that too but Naven's role in her story hits HARD

[EDIT: God I'm embarrassed Naven only pointed out Giovanni's card he left behind, ONLY GIOVANNI reached out if she wanted to work on herself to be better BUT I STILL LIKE TO THINK SHE AND NAVEN KEPT IN CONTACT SHUSH he could like give her some tough love]

Speaking of relationships, idk about Giovanni x Lorelai

I mean I still think it could be cute, Lorelai's crushing scenes are hilarious as much as they are sad and envoke feelings of "I just want good things for Lorelai". I def don't think she deserves him rn but I do think that, since Giovanni hasn't shut down her becoming his minion in THE FUTUREE, when she learns to be good at being bad, she has a shot.

Though, it's still a little lost on me if Giovanni has figured out she has been crushing on him HARD. Like, he picked up on her cheating and bullying but did he pick up on any of the signs for her affection?? Makes me think she's gonna have a hard time in the friendzone if she became a minion. Not sure what Giovanni with a crush would look like either tho so.

I have a bit of a hard time seeing Giovanni crushing on her but I still think their dynamic is cute enough! Just dragged down by how awful she's been to everyone and HIS NUMBER 1 MINIONNN

but the more I think about it, I think it'd be great to see them as just friends. Like, getting on the level of best buds and Lorelai loses her crush on him. Both still maintaining the dynamic they had in that last fight with all the bantering cuz they are pretty similar

If they ever became romantic though. Like. Molly and Lorelai's relationship NEEDS to be healed and I think healed for a WHILE. I just can't see it working out otherwise. This would probably need to ring true if they were to become best friends too but EVEN MORE SO if they got mushy (as in the failed baking trials that would compromise 40% of the time they would hang out. Love language quality time)

Anyway

Ngl I already got my own angsty ideas for Lorelai because self hatred + not wanting to be the bad guy is such a delicious combination of traits that contradict each other yet still exist never the less

I wonder how Lorelai reacted the morning she realized Molly was gone and gone for good. I'm betting she at first believed she'd be hanging out with her friends and would be back. Then a day passes. Then another. And another. She asks her father if he's seen Molly and is reminded he doesn't care. I wonder if she confronted Naven about where Molly was, if she'd at first lash out when he doesn't tell her, and that reminds her why this happened.

She probably couldn't wallow in self pity for very long since she'd be working now, but still vry interesting how it'll play out

[burst-of-iridescent]

Oh, thank you, my day is good, but after your message it got even better! I really found solace on Tumblr, which I could not find either in these terrible comics or in LOTR. To be honest, I hardly mastered the latter at all, literally forcing myself to watch series after series, searching in vain for the former depth of characters and conflict. In my opinion, LOTR is a complete failure on all fronts, with the exception of high-quality drawing. If it's about comics, it's an illogical development of events, which, unfortunately, is laid down in the last series. I wanted to ask you -how do you feel about Ursa's line? I was offended by her decision to leave the children (of course, it happened against her will, but still -to change her face and personality, forget about her beloved son and lead a happy life with an old lover?! Don't get it wrong, a woman should suffer for the rest of her days because of a failed marriage, she should not give up happiness if fate sends. But in the context of this story, in your opinion, does it not look like a betrayal, first of all of herself (Ursa?), and of course her children. She couldn't help but understand what kind of hell they got into, first of all the son, after her disappearance. And if you also disagree with this "canon", what would you see the fate of Zuko and Azula's mother? (sorry for such a long letter!)

hi again! thank you, you're so sweet!

i 100% feel you on both LOK (i'm guessing LOTR is a typo?) and the comics. it's so disappointing because both the show and the comics have some great conceptual ideas, and in the hands of competent writers, could've been excellent continuations of ATLA and worthwhile successors... but instead we got a flaming pile of garbage that deserves to be at the bottom of the sea.

the search isn't the worst atla comic imo (that honour goes to the promise) but it's definitely doing its damn best to earn that spot. i hate so many things about that comic: the outdated, insulting depictions of mental illness and mental healthcare in azula's story, zuko getting a "replacement sister" in kiyi as a fix-it bandaid, the fact that it becomes a whole gaang adventure when the correct narrative choice would've been for zuko and katara (and maybe azula at most) to take this trip together as a full circle from the southern raiders, katara and sokka's only role in the story being to foil zuko and azula and nothing else, and of course... the complete annihilation of everything ursa's character was set up to be in atla.

i agree with you that it is very much a betrayal of ursa's character for her to willingly lose her memories. she knows she's leaving her children in the hands of a dangerous abuser, one who's already molding her daughter into a lethal weapon and was fully ready to murder her son, who has proven his willingness to sacrifice his children without hesitation if it benefits him. but despite this, despite the fact that she committed murder, accepted exile and even risked her life (for she had no way of knowing if ozai would simply let her leave peacefully) to protect her child... suddenly she's willing to throw all of that away and fuck off with her childhood lover at the first opportunity?

it baffles me why bryke didn't at least make ursa's memory loss an accident, which would've both explained her absence and why she never went to look for her children without committing character assassination in the process - but that's probably expecting too much logical writing from those two.

i'm actually planning a post-canon book 4 zutara fic that would include a rewrite of the search, where ursa didn't just fuck off to do nothing, but actually had a redemption arc very similar to zuko's after secretly fleeing to live in the earth kingdom and seeing the damage the war had done. she takes it upon herself to right the fire nation's wrongs, and grows particularly invested in air nomad culture, seeing it as her duty to try and bring back some of what the genocide had destroyed. shortly before zuko's banishment she sets out to find the remnants of a people long believed to be gone - and finds that maybe they're not entirely gone after all.

i won't spoil the rest, but i think it'll both explain why ursa never went back for zuko and azula while still giving her a meaningful story that didn't involve just swapping one family for another. if only we'd gotten something similar in the comics but alas... bryke gonna bryke.

thanks for the ask! no worries about it being long, i thoroughly enjoy reading your thoughts <3

[courtney-deserved-better]

8 and 24 for the fanfiction ask!

8. Post an out-of-context spoiler from a wip.

Courtney sighs. “And there goes the numbers advantage.” Bridgette squeezes her shoulder. “Hey, we’ve beat worse odds before. We’ll be fine.” “Yeah,” Courtney gives her a small smile. “I’m sure you’re right.”

this is from the courtney time travel au 👀

24. How do you choose whose POV to write in?

ooo this is a good question (and very fitting considering the ask i just answered)! usually it depends on who the "main characters" of the fic are, like alejandro and noah for slippery slopes, and the main six for amicus curiae, and then who i think will serve the story best by seeing their pov based on the events that happen if that makes sense?

like chapter 12 of amicus curiae was written in emma's pov instead of kitty's (even though that broke the pattern) because i thought writing their argument from kitty's pov would make emma seem very one dimensional while writing it from emma's pov could give the reader insight into why she's behaving meanly. we get all this information about how emma wants to protect her sister and believes she's acting logically and isn't intending to come across as harshly as she is, while from kitty's pov emma would (reasonably) just seem like a major bitch because she isn't verbally expressing any of this.

i like writing in the povs of characters that can be easily seen as rude to others to get inside their heads and see where they're coming from. that's a big reason of why i wrote hawaiian style from duncan's pov of all people, because he's very unsympathetic in slippery slopes and i wanted to not only give him some kind of redemption but flesh him out more so that we can understand why he's doing what he does. (this is making me think i should write more fics from heather's perspective...)

and also sometimes i just gravitate toward a specific character depending on the scenario! i absolutely LOVE writing from courtney's pov, she's one of the characters i feel like i understand and can flesh out the most, and not only does she have one of the highest counts of chapter povs in amicus curiae but ive already written 70k words from her pov for the time travel au and im not even halfway done. i LOVE writing from courtney's pov. but for some reason whenever i write gwourtney fics i tend to gravitate toward writing from gwen's pov even though i rarely write from her pov outside of gwourtney fics. idk what it is!

thanks for the ask!

[verfound]

What do you think of Adrien redemption fics, and would you ever write one?

I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and believe you're not asking this to stir up trouble, but I will admit I am deeply cynical and untrusting and knowing Quick just got this same question on anon has me suspicious. (She also answered it wonderfully, by the way, and I agree with her 100%.)

That being said, I do not like Adrien. I do not like what the show has done with him, he has So Many Red Flags I find lowkey triggering, and while I don't necessarily think that he's beyond redemption I don't see him having the agency for redemption (because of his character and the show's writing/agency in general - what is motivating him to change/grow if he doesn't see a problem with his behavior?), so what's the point? Ultimately, though, I do not like Adrien and therefore don't want to invest the time in writing him.

It has nothing to do with redeeming the character (which isn't my job, the character should speak for itself, Adrien shouldn't need the fanbase to redeem him do you see the problem there) and everything to do with me, personally, and the types of stories I like to tell. I'd rather finish up some of my House Band WIPs than write a fic where Adrien sits through a sexual harassment seminar and learns no means no and that's ok. 🙄 Mellie giving Luka headaches is more fun for me than "redeeming" Adrien.

I'm also a big believer in cultivating your own online experience, so if I don't like something, I'm not going to intentionally seek it out. Life is crazy and distressing enough without intentionally seeking out things that will piss me off. I'm in fandom to have a good time, and in my experience mentioning Adrien (especially when you have admitted to not liking him) is like poking a beehive with a stick (note: I am deathly allergic to bees). I don't follow blogs that stan him and I block his tags. I don't actively seek out Adrien fans to stir up trouble (why do that, what's the point, why). Adrien is rarely if ever a major focus of my fics, and yet attacks from his fans are the main reason I stopped posting on FF.net. I'm not saying all Adrien fans are bad, but the ones that seem to be the most vocal are also the most...aggressive, we'll say. Mean. And I have better things to do than pander to strangers on the internet who never learned basic fandom etiquette, you know?

Anyway. Sorry. 😂

TL;DR: Adrien's not my cup of tea, so no.

[belokhvostikova]

Holy shit. I'm done in. This was epic. I'm so glad posting it all together won in the polls. To break that up would have been criminal.

The structure of this was fantastic, I've said the same thing about a previous chapter I think, but it paced the story so well. Building up to her arriving at the trailer while simultaneously taking us through her being at the trailer, it created such suspense. Her staying the night at Eddie's being broken up by the lead up to, and then the actual date, kept it from being too much though, like little pauses of slushy goodness to combat the angst. There were a lot of time jumps but I found it easy to keep track of what point we were at.

The date. I loved it. Couldn't stop smiling. Them both freaking out getting ready 'why the hell do people let him walk out of the house like this?!' I snorted at that whole section 🤣 the bickering over music and the Shrek reference were hilarious but his reaction to her teasing and flirting was my favourite part. the hand holding in the van! I nearly expired. that date in theory should have completely tanked. both of them rushing from other plans, creepy old men, the hideout in general, but it worked so well! Them being so into eachother has overridden any scetchy date locations.

Wayne! I'm so happy they met, I like when he's a bit standoffish with Eddie's love interest in fics, at first at least. He's not used to many people being nice to Eddie, so the drill is to be protective from the get go. Especially with that he knows of their history. But then they make Eddie cook the pancakes and sass him the entire time 😍 absolute gold.

Urgh then her dad. Feels like he needs his own essay to deconstruct everything wrong there. He's interesting in this though, because it's not as simple as just 'good' and 'bad' people. Good people do bad stuff sometimes and vice versa, it's hard figuring out which way round people are sometimes. Like he sees himself as a good person for not leaving, not hitting her, pushing her for good grades and college, and doesn't see his emotional detachment, cruel words and punishments as being a 'bad' person. It's so sad that parents see their children as just an extension of themselves and everything comes back to how it affects them or how they are seen. Seems very narcissistic. Although his teeny tiny reaction to her words imply that there's something there, maybe of who he used to be, or who he could be, but refuses to explore it like Eddie is doing. That Harry potter quote about our choices defining us comes to mind. Her dad isn't choosing to try and change anything, whereas Eddie is.

Chrissys redemption arc remained fully intact and she was major comic relief at times in this, the 'get real, Eddie's probably wearing that t-shirt he doddled on with markers' line got me 🤣 and stopping the kiss, then her bickering with Eddie later on for the suprise date. 'just give me my food' yes Chrissy. you eat that burger. And then her being completely oblivious to 90% of what's gone down between them, and still hitting the nail on the head. She's great.

But obviously my favourite thing thoughout the whole chapter was the build up of love. It's like he's completely dismissive of it at first with the strike through text. But then it's becoming harder to ignore, finally coming to a head right as he thinks she's leaving him. When she goes to him at the lake, that whole section was gorgeous. He's come so far, he's just accepting so readily that she's going, the Eddie from the beginning of this fic would have been pleading and manipulating and trying anything at his disposal to keep her. And her reaction, her cashing in on him making it up to her. Really beautiful.

And then the thing through this whole chapter of 'being ok' Eddie asking her at the start and her being anything but. And then him being far from ok himself being heartbroken over how she's been treated and the college news. They both say to eachother 'its ok' for situations and past actions that really aren't. But by the end they really are.

I'm so sad it's all over, loved this so much and really had to edit myself on not commenting on every tiny detail (her calling him mean so many times this chapter when it's the least mean he's been this entire time 🤣) stuff like that! Loved reading and commenting on this so thank you for sharing, so glad I found your blog 🖤🖤

I love you *literally screaming* You were one of the first people to comment on chapter one when I was new to writing, and ever since then, I have anticipated your thoughts every time I update, because you are quite literally one of the only people who gives me commentary on my series! AND I LOVE IT! You are a writers’ favorite type of reader, and I hope you know that. I’ve seen you give your thoughts on other writers’ fics, and it’s such an incredible feeling seeing someone take genuine interest in our work. Your commentary is heavily appreciated to me and this fandom!

I’m so happy people were okay with it being a long read, because I was panicking wondering if it was too much, but I’m so glad you and everyone else enjoyed it!

Thank you so much for the structural feedback, I was a bit hesitant with it, thinking it may have been too confusing, but hearing your thoughts, it’s great knowing that it provided some relief from the angst. I was heavily focused on the buildup of the story, and mapping out the events that lead to the catalyst of the story was my main goal, and I’m so happy it worked out! 

And the date! It was literally one of my favorite parts to write. Getting to see their dynamic when it wasn’t revolved around their personal issues was so comforting to delve into. Particularly knowing how bad the setting was, but seeing them triumph through, because moments like that are so scarce for them- ugh! And I got the idea of reader meeting Wayne from you! You had suggested it after chapter five, and I fell in love with the idea, so all credits to you! Thank you so much! If anyone has seen “The Notebook,” the scene where Allie meets Noah’s dad is exactly what I was going for. Just that homey vibe.

And meeting Wayne would end up opening reader’s eyes to how much she just yearned for a great relationship with her father. I really wanted to show how something so simple, like wanting to eat dinner together, could transpire into a huge argument, because of how strained the relationship is. And thank you for picking up on his subtle emotions, it was so important! Her father’s ego has essentially tainted everything for them. I wanted people to see how different their forms of love are; reader desperately wants the little things, and her father believes superficial support, like basic care, is enough. But because he refuses to believe he’s in the wrong, it ultimately destroys them. But, of course, there’s still an underlying love for her, it’s his daughter, he’d just rather be right. I loved your comments on that!

And we love our best friend Chrissy over here! A pure friendship between teenage girls was heavily needed, and Chrissy truly provided that support. Her and Eddie working together for reader, because they love her is everything!

And truly, I cannot thank you enough for paying attention to the minor details. They played a big part in the buildup to their relationship, especially the question of “being okay.” The whole journey was them realizing the severity of their mental and situational state, and going through the path of finding happiness. 

Again, I can’t say it enough, thank you so much! You and everyone else have been so kind with the feedback, and I’m so glad people like you enjoy my work enough to share your thoughts!

[onewomancitadel]

If Salem is going to be redeemed what do you think will be the catalyst for her change? How does she develop?

Oh it's like the ultimate epoch of the show, so basically everything in the show is building up to it.

The reason I don't really go into detail with how I think it works is because I'm a fic writer with a WIP exploring the love story of Jaune and Cinder featuring post-canon beyond Volume 8, so I'd prefer to write about what I think that might look like.

Every single redemption arc and character fall, basically, are working towards it, and once you hit that point of helping Salem instead of fighting her, you're left with dealing with the brother gods - and every single sibling or sibling-like relationship and conflict in the story has been working up to handling that (just look at Ruby and Weiss in Volume 1).

It's also so big of a question that this is why everything is working towards it, because it's not really one thing. Cinder's redemption arc is key to it and precipitates it - I think the thing with Cinder's redemption arc is that you can't pass the buck onto Salem and blame her for everything Cinder's done. That's exactly the kind of retcon, pseudo-redemption move that's incredibly annoying. Cinder can have complicated feelings about Salem, no one's denying that, but Salem doesn't get all of the responsibility. Responsibility = potential for redemption. Though in Salem's case she does have an extreme Grimm Dark Curse, even more than Cinder, which gives us even more reason to sympathise with her from the outset of The Lost Fable. In her case it's because she's forgotten the core of who she is and is lonely. She thinks redemption is only possible through isolation; 'true' redemption is not.

A major motivation in arguing for Cinder's redemption arc is that it's probably the most significant precipitating event of the narrative resolution. As you soon as you start majorly healing the ways the Ozlem conflict has reincarnated itself through the story then you're already setting up literal healing with Ozlem themselves. So if Jaune, Cinder, Ruby, and Oscar are 'the next best thing', once you cap off their romances and Cinder's redemption arc and work towards breaking Oscar's curse, you are already getting the hard work out of the way.

The question should be 'if even Cinder can be sympathised with... who else can be?'

and that's exactly what I expect them to pose. This is why the redemption arcs of more and more important characters are happening in the story, gradually developing themselves. It's not 'Cinder is good, but Salem is evil and will be killed' because you can't get Cinder's redemption without the thematic key that Ozlem needs to fixed, not killed, that the brother gods are not in the right, that it's not about fighting what you hate, but saving what you love.

That right now a lot of the fandom is convinced Cinder is evil and Salem just needs to be killed in a different way perhaps even with nukes is sort of what I suspect they're banking on as well, but they gave you the answer as soon as they said Salem can't be killed. Because it's not about killing her. The lorewise justification - that that's her curse - is within it carrying the narrative message that you can't kill your enemy, so you need to find another solution... and it's not locking her away in a cupboard and throwing away the key.

That was already done to Cinder. It didn't work.

So I can't really tell what the exact events are going to look like. Probably anything in any way that sets up sympathising with Salem any more than we've already got is going to be dismissed by the audience, so let's ignore subtext here, and focus on at what point we should see it textually. That's only going to happen after, or around, Cinder's redemption. There was a reason that Ironwood was the villain of Volume 7/8, precisely because it was meant to make you wonder about who is the hero of this story and who isn't (or if there's only one solitary hero at all - also to see the betrayal Ozma has experienced and was introduced to us with Lionheart). Salem's inherent loneliness as the sole protagonist of her lost fable is actually in part the wound of the story. You also can't get helping Salem without helping Ozma - Ozma's one-man role given to him is really not right and that's exactly why Oscar is there to tell off the bad wizard, so let's speculate further with Oscar's parallels to Cinder (Maiden vessel/Curse vessel): Cinder probably plays a role in challenging Salem.

After all, she slew her first owner, but she might not slay this one. Because the curse runs deep. It's deeper than Atlas and bigger than Atlas, and if Cinder accepts her responsibility as a guardian and the Fall Maiden and is part of saving the world, she'll recognise how deep it truly goes. I think everyone's going to play a role to some degree, though. (I mean look at Yang and Salem's interaction in V8).

So the effective catalyst of her change is curse-breaking everywhere in the story. That's why every relationship reflects Ozlem to some degree - even in broken ways like Blake/Adam. It's the ultimate realisation of all of their themes. Salem will probably be successful in her goal but it's not going to go the way she thinks. The Relics aren't the point of all of this, they're a means to an end (and they imprison Maidens so they're bad news) and probably need destroying too, and the brother gods need to sort out their brotherly business and responsibility to humanity... do they need sympathising with? If they're gods they stand apart from humans, but they have their petty quabbles as humans would. Really you need to parse some of R/WBY's theology here which is probably that the Relic gods are kind because they extend affection to Ruby and co. (even Jinn looks sympathetic towards Cinder) and humanising the gods or setting them free might even be necessary. I have extremely big ideas for the resolution of the story and I can only imagine what the creators have.

If you're looking at this monomythically then returning with the elixir of life, healing the community and the world being transformed in some way is on the table and so I expect nothing short of that. On that note I don't think the norm of fighting schools will be returned to, in fact I think that's a conceit of the show that's broken for a reason, the Huntsman academies are part of the farcical war of Huntsman vs. Grimm... Ozma vs. Salem... and that's why I think the thematic answer expands far far beyond 'how do we make things go back to normal' like a lot of people seem to assume is the goal of the story.

To fully answer your question, my best approach to analysis is looking at things structurally and what is being metaphorically represented. I can't tell you exactly what one event might look like - from Cinder's redemption self-actualising in the full to finally confronting Salem (her freeing herself from Salem might involve a one-on-one for sure) - but I can tell you how these ideas relate to each other. You're never reading Salem in isolation, you're never reading Cinder in isolation, it needs a holistic approach.

My best bet is that this is the 'and then' situation - everyone thinks that you just get to a point where you kill Cinder and then Salem and then rejoice, story over with, Relics acquired and that's it. Sounds terribly boring and unlike R/WBY. You hit Cinder's redemption (after previous redemptions like even Raven's) and then you've got people going - hang on, this isn't quite what I thought... and then you nix the whole point of the Relics and make it obvious how bad news they are, and then you deal with Oscar's Curse, and then you sympathise with Salem, and then you take on the brother gods... then you've got something interesting cooking.

The fact that throughout the entire story we have Salem and Ozma's inherited conflict being explored and healed tells me enough about what to literally expect. They have to become people again and remember who they were and grow beyond that.

[jandjsalmon]

2023 FFRC - July🌞

Hello friends! July passed in the blink of an eye. I'm definitely not looking forward to the end of summer (because it snows like 9 months of the year where I live and I just want to freaking enjoy my back-yard okay!?) Anyway - I hope you've all been enjoying the sunshine.

As far as the @fanfic-reading-challenge goes- I’m 5 tasks away from finishing the whole thing - (4 of which I can’t finish until December) so that’s neat. Gotta get up to 15 million words and then I'll just be waiting to finish the monthly tasks. This month I got to help Juulna sort out next year's list of tasks though and that was a super fun time.

July 2023

As you can see, I read lots of really great stories this month. I reread a lot of fic and then double read fics too - there isn't a lot of new content for Wenvier so I reread over and over again. It's never a bad time to reread. I also read a Needle Bughead story that I'd held off on because of the tags - but it was wonderful - as all of her stories are. I'm glad I came back to that one. And given the circumstances, I think I'm going to deep dive into some Fexi favourites this week - so if you have any suggestions, please send them my way. 💔

As always - I’ve gathered a couple recs but I'm going to put them under the cut to save your dashboard. I hope you enjoy them.

–*–

Dear Annabel Lee by @ozmathegreatand (Wenvier - T 6/6)  Summary: Wherein Wednesday is forced to Cyrano her own love story when she is tasked to take up the mantle of Annabel Lee, the school newsletter's biweekly advice column, and receives a letter from Xavier asking for advice on how to get over her. Notes: It's always a special treat when someone gifts you a fic. BUT it's even more special when the fic is as fun and lovely as this one. Wednesday is forced to be an advice columnist and Xavier unknowingly bears is soul to her. It's funny and sweet and yet still perfectly in character. It's wonderful. Read and Review. Do it! 😉

–*–

–*–

Xavier Knows Wednesday Loves Him (series) by Agmo (Wenvier - T/E 4 fics) 

Summary: Xavier keeps a running list in a notebook in his desk drawer.

Notes: This story started out with one story with bullet points of how Xavier knew Wednesday Loved him - then expanded into this SUPER cute fic with a chapter for each one of those points (but the chapters are sometimes only a few lines long). Then there are a couple more one-shots to really flesh out some of the bigger points. And each and every one of them was delightful. All told, the series of 4 stories is only 20,000 words, so it's not long but it's wonderful and funny and touching and perfect. Give it a try!

Starving Faithful by @shesonlylittle (Fez/Lexi- E 1/1)  Summary: In most respects, he’s a nineteen year old. With the glaring exception that he can feel where his wings have been clipped— and that he can nudge the material world a little, here and there, from time to time.  He has childhood memories, a normal human’s wants and desires, but he also knows he’s got a divine mission. And that he has it because he fucked up somehow. Ash was supposed to be his redemption. He was supposed to watch over him, keep him safe.  -- or: Fallen Angel Fez has one last shot at redemption, his new charge Lexi Howard. Guardian Angels probably shouldn't be down bad for the humans in their safekeeping, though. Notes: I have a lot of feelings right now. After yesterday's news - the first thing I did was go find and read a Fexi fic to calm my broken heart. This one is SO good. Fez is SO well written. And there is a lot of neat religiosity that fits with him too. It hurts to read because we've lost Angus - but it has a happy ending and it's beautiful. So you should read it too!

–*–

See you back here in a few weeks! Happy reading! 🖤

[jennagrinsoverml]

I love your rec lists!!! I was wondering if you knew of any stories that are obviously good, but also have some good Chloé redemption arcs sprinkled in? Bonus points if there’s merichat lol

[IMAGE ID (with minor edits to improve readability for those using screen readers):  hey! i see and use your wonderful fic recommendations on the regular, and you have amazing taste so i can trust you with this. do you have recs for fics with a chloé redemption/ already redeemed chloé where she isn't just a background character thrown in to appease readers? something where her dynamics with other characters is wonderful too. thank you in advance! /ID]

Figured I’d group these two together, even though the first ask is a lot older than the first. (Sorry, anon!!)

I don't tend to read a lot of fics with Chloe redemption because the sodium content tends to be really high. And, well, what I want to see in a Chloe redemption and what a lot of authors seem to want to see is not the same thing. 

I really could only think of one fic off the top of my head, and didn’t want to go out looking for more since, like I said, it’s not my preferred trope and my reading time has been really restricted lately as it is.

Restorative Justice by @kasienda

Chloé has never been a fan of Ms. Bustier’s community building activities. In fact, she detests them. She doesn’t want to learn about the drab boring lives of her peers. And she absolutely can’t stand it when their confessions make her feel things. Feelings that she doesn’t even have names for. But when Adrien unknowingly shares his struggles with his double life, Chloé vows she will do anything to get Ladybug set things right. Even if it means pissing off the heroine. Chloé was already mad at her anyway.

Multichapter. This is a WIP, but what's been posted is already extremely satisfying with a lot of the big revelations coming out and I don't believe it leaves off on any kind of cliffhanger. This is such a beautiful examination of Chloe as a character, especially why she does the things she does. Even when she's acting out, you understand why she does it. And it's not that she doesn't care. Also the love square is amazing!!

Would anyone like to reblog with their favourite Chloe redemption fics for anons? I’m sure there’s plenty more good ones out there.

ETA: Thank you to @gentil-minou who pointed out that I missed a fic I really should have included.

Echoes of You by @kittinoir

In the day time, she's Marinette - a normal girl, with a normal life. A normal girl, with a normal life. A normal girl, with...

Multichapter. Marinette gives up the miracle box and her memories, and Chat is frantic trying to figure out what happened to his Lady. (And the love square content, including a lot of Marichat, is fantastic!) Meanwhile, Chloe is trying to do better following the events of Miracle Queen. I don’t want to give too much away, but if you care about Chloe and want a Chloe redemption, you’ll love this. (I haven’t read the WIP sequel yet but I understand it continues Chloe’s arc.)

[redjaybathood]

Fic Tropes: Jason is a poor little meow meow who never did anything wrong and the Batfam are all mean, authorities thugs and or naïve idiots for not wanting him to go around beheading people and controlling crime.

So I apologize in advance if I misunderstood this ask! But I really struggled with answering this question. Because that's me! Isn't it? Thing is, I don't know!

Altogether those tropes are bad, because it, again, creates an over-the-top impression. Like abused genius baby Tim. But separately, or just carefully balanced... It could work.

Jason as poor little meow meow is, well, as popular as he's hated (by me, at least). Because yeah, our boy went through some shit, and then some more, and more and more yet. And it's honestly - fucking tragic, and I am attracted to this tragedy. But he's like. Giving as good as he gets, it's important imo.

At least, up until he doesn't.

And I might be misunderstanding PLMM as a trend, but I think I do write him like that. I have, I think, at least three fics where Bruce outright kills him? I remember a not-so-good reaction to one of it in particular because I didn't tag it with Major Character Death, even if he empathically does not come back. And I was like, huh, I really didn't tag it. It didn't occur to me, because Jason always dies.

Whether he did something wrong or not, is rarely in my focus. Who cares if you did something wrong when the one who kills you is your father, who is supposed to love you unconditionally? Who wouldn't even kill Joker? (that applies to some extent to fics where Bruce doesn't kill Jason, but they still are antagonistic; i.e. who cares if Jason murders the whole Earth, if, in an ideal world, it wouldn't matter to Bruce either; look, he's a hero, but he is also a father; as a hero, his responsibility to stop Red Hood. As a father, his responsibility is to support him. Yeah! It's not realistic to expect from Batman to support a murderer but! The murder, in this case, is a metaphor, okay)

And then we get to the second part of this trope: Batfam is mean. Yes, I love using this in short stories. Mostly because that's what Batfam stans themselves say: that they, their favorite characters, wouldn't be kind and accepting to Jason, because he's a murderer who's beheading people. Irrevocable differences.

Dick honestly wishes Jason died during his fight with Bruce;

Tim never thought Jason is his Robin, he thinks he's a loser;

Cass would never accept death as a matter of course;

Steph paid with her life for the right not to become a Red Hood of sorts;

Damian had to work to overcome his conditioning and redeem himself (which, a funny fucking premise, Damian's redemption; I would argue that he is not, in fact, at fault or has anything to redeem himself over; I hate the idea of him needing redemption) and so he wouldn't appreciate Red Hood who's still (kinda) how Damian was in the past.

They all will be mean to Jason in my fics because they're mean to him both in comics and in the collective consciousness of their fans.

Seriously, even if I don't look at it as a writer but as a reader, I will have far fewer issues with Batfam being mean vs Batfam welcoming him with open arms. It's not going to happen - it's not supposed to. Jason is passed that, and they, let's face it, were never looking at him charitably. Always seeing the worst of him, from Bruce to Alfred to Barbara to Dick. Which is the view that Tim, Steph, and Cass should have inherited via the stories they were told.

And basically, with Batfam honestly expecting the worst out of Red Hood and whether or not Jason meets their expectations, it's a great premise. For me, it's never about murder good vs murder bad. It's about the extent of family acceptance, and what you personally sacrifice of yourself to fit in. Will Batfam accept Red Hood? (no) Will Red Hood carve out a piece of himself to be accepted? (also no) Will they still remain a family? Were they ever a family? (...)

And this is, like, only one of the probable takes on the trope. Back to my short stories where Bruce just kills Jason and doesn't even realize it, it's honestly just that. A tear-jerker. Yes, not much literary merit to it. And people can, like, judge me about it but don't tell me it's unrealistic.

So my verdict: this is a trope that looks bad but could be good. Jason is a poor little meow meow, Batfam is mean.

If you balance the shit well and don't go over the top, you can pull that off.

Things that will put me off: Batfam not only mean but also morons (talk about unrealistic); OP Jason (he's good but he's not god-level, there have to be some limitations); moralizing (don't try to be Jason Todd's lawyer, please, he doesn't need it).

[primsgirl89]

Um.. #Primsgirl89schallenge

So, I had an idea for a #Daminette fic. I have read a few fics for this ship and thought to give some people a prompt if they are having a bit of a block.

Since I haven't seen anything from the Marvel Universe, and probably don't plan to, I can't say for sure who anyone thinks Marinette should be paired with. I have only read the Daminette ship, so if you would like to switch it up and pair her with someone else that is fine.

So I guess this is a #Maribat ship prompt?

Yeah, I know, I am rambling. You would be too if you were giving an idea to something you never seen before. Not to mention that these shows seem really popular.

*sighs deeply*

So the prompt. Or some points I would like to see in the story if you choose to make a story based on this prompt.

Marinette isn't Ladybug she is Multimouse

Guardian marinette

Adrien isn't chat noir

Kagami and Luka are Ladybug and Chat Noir (change their names if you'd like)

Trip to Gotham

Multimouse asks for help

Possible Multimouse revelation

Batman decides to help- asking the Justice Leage to watch over his City until Hawkmoth is defeated

Cold Damien

#MarinetteisSunshine

Relationship isn't slow burn, but isn't too fast to build

Marinette was chosen by Fu to be the guardian

Damien and Marinette are kidnapped by other guardians

Fu keeps his memories

Arranged marriage between Damien and Marinette

Chloe redemption

Lots of Lila and Alya salt

Marinette moves to Gotham after Hawkmoth is defeated

Marinette joins batfam

Has to be long (milti-chapter)

[theemptyskies]

Real talk.

Note that this is all my own opinion.

In an Azula Redemption fic, in my opinion, she would not have to apologize for anything she did during the war to anyone. Not Aang for shooting him with lightning. Not Mai or Ty lee for imprisoning them. Not the Gaang for chasing them. The only one I might concede is targeting Katara during an Agni Kai.

What she probably should do, is apologize for the way she treated Mai, Ty lee and Zuko when they were children. If it takes place post smoke and shadow then she should apologize for what happened then as well.

She does not owe Ursa anything. While Ursa did love her, she very much neglected Azula which left her feeling that something was wrong with her. She has every right to never let Ursa in her life again. There is no argument that can be made against it. Azula's feelings are valid. She was neglected by her mother. Ursa's personal feelings don't matter. She may have loved her but I don't recall any instance where she actually told Azula that, or spent time with her, or showed even close to the same level of affection. Ursa did kiss her on the cheek the night she left, however I will point out that she woke up Zuko and made sure the last thing she said to him was basically I love you while she left Azula unconscious, unaware of the action. We never even see a scene where Ursa says "I love you" to her.

It's what makes the hallucinations so tragic at the end of season three. Those scenes can be read in a multitude of different ways. My reading of them, examining Ursa's relationship with Azula, noting that every interaction they had was shown to be confrontational, referencing "The Beach" where she did show that Ursa's relationship and abandonment did hurt her deeply, implying that she did want her affection, is this.

Ursa's neglect of Azula throughout her childhood caused Azula to develop feelings of inadequacy. This feeling pushed her to try as hard as possible to earn Ozai's affection, where she succeeded until he left her behind before the final attack in the Earth Kingdom. Coupled with Mai and Ty Lee's betrayal, this caused her feelings of inadequacy to resurface stronger than before. Everyone left her behind. Her mind conjured the image of Ursa, the origin of her feeling, saying "I love you Azula, I really do.", things we never saw her say.

I read these scenes as the hallucination saying things Azula always craved to hear. Affections that were always withheld from her, hammering away at her already fragile psyche. Reminding her repeatedly that she was never good enough for either of her parents.

So no. I don't think Azula ever needs to forgive Ursa or give her a chance and there isn't an argument that could be made to convince me. At most, I think Azula should confront her as the core of a majority of her trauma, similar to how Katara did with Yon Rah.

For me, an Azula redemption is about her coming to terms with her trauma. It's about her finding her place in a post war world. Her rebuilding her relationship with Zuko, the only family she was ever truly close with. It's about her seeing through the lies and manipulations implanted by Ozai from a young age. It's about her gaining a good, healthy support system that won't give up in her.

It's about her, in the end, finally finding peace, whatever that happens to mean for her in your particular fic. If it involves romance, that's great. A lot of people who make "shipping tier lists" rank almost every ship with Azula at the bottom, often saying things like "nobody deserves to deal with a relationship with Azula" which, as someone who grew up in an abusive household who also relates a lot to Azula, I gotta say it kind of hurts hearing people say those things. Everyone deserves love.

If your fic doesn't include romance and focuses on her familial relationships then that's also great. She definitely has a lot on her plate and building that healthy support system is an amazing route to take your fic, leading to a great heartfelt ending.

Please note, Azula's misdeeds should not be overlooked. Anyone you want to have her connect with, she will have to earn it. But I feel like it's important to understand why some people behave the way that they do. Not excuse thier actions, but to help map out how they can make up for them. That's why we were shown Zuko's tragic past while also seeing him burn down a village and threaten defenseless elderly people.

With the way she's portrayed, it easy to forget this powerful, intimidating character, is just a child. She's just 14 years old. It's something I think a lot of people who write off her character as irredeemable don't account for. Whenever I dig past her surface level "bad guy" traits with this in mind, admittedly, I'm often brought to tears. She's very much a product of her environment. It's because of that, that I think she can learn to be a better person.

To recap, an Azula redemption in no way shape or form NEEDS to include Azula trying to make the Gaang like her. It was war and every one of her actions during it have no bearing on her, from her perspective. If you want her to connect with them then you can, just don't be someone who talks bad about a redemption fic because she doesn't. 🙂

She did treat Zuko, Mai, and Ty lee very poorly as a friend and sibling. So she does owe them an apology and they are also under no obligation to give her another chance.

Ursa does not need to be forgiven, nor should it be portrayed that Ursa did nothing wrong. Azula's feelings are valid.

The core of a redemption fic (for me) is character growth, in this case for Azula.

Romance is ok in an Azula redemption fic. I personally enjoy Azutara fics where she helps Azula through her mental health recovery and trauma. Citadel is an interesting fic that takes place several years into Azula's stay in a mental institution. Here's a link if you wanna check it out. Keep in mind, it's nine years old so comic events aren't a thing 🙂 https://www.fanfiction.net/s/6939866/1/5

Not having romance is equally ok. There are a multitude of great fics both post canon and AU that follow this route. Here is a fic recommendations for it. This one is an AU taking place during the war.

Her actions should not be excused because her story is a tragedy. She still did bad things.

Hopefully you all enjoyed my little ramble that I also hope is understandable. I tend to go off on tangents a lot. Considering it's 6:30 am where I'm at and I still haven't slept, this probably has horrible grammar and is likely riddled with typos. So I'm sorry about that bit lol 😅

[amjustagirl]

Nikkiiii hihiii how are you?? how was your week?? how was your day?? I hope you got enough sleep >:)

I read Love knows not its depth (until the hour of separation) and... woahh

Okay first off, it just made me appreciate my parents a whole lot more. Recently I've had some downs with them (me and my habit to get distracted with messaging friends being the one at fault primarily) and idk i just felt hurt and annoyed (more so a week ago but not so much now) and its just....when I read your fic i just instantly had a lot of flashbacks of me and my parents and what all they do for me and how not easy raising a fussy child like me was and i just felt so so grateful to have my parents yk.

And second, man the beginning was so painful yet so real. Like often when people write such scenarios they quickly make it fluffy by having one person forgive the other after they change their behavior for a period of time. However, the more likely scenario that i feel happens is that when someone feels cast aside and that hurt, only a week of acting better or helping them out more really isn't enough. It could honestly take years to heal. It hurts a LOT and makes you wish it didn't work that way but it does and I feel you captured that part of redeeming oneself -due to any reason- quite beautifully.

also, ma'am, YOU PLAY 5 INSTRUMENTS I-

YOU'RE SO TALENTED OMG

(fun story, i picked up the guitar in 4th grade, learnt it for a few months and dropped it cuz my fingers ached💀 i started playing it again last year after i made some band friends [im quite a competitive being so really, all i thought when i wiped the dust from my ancient guitar was that i had to master it and play as good or even better than them...they had been playing the guitar for almost 4 years pls what eVEN] and i had to take a break for exams but i seriously started it again this year and i plan to continue it as much as i can...BUT

bruh sometimes you look at other people playing the same instrument and then you listen to yourself play it as a beginner and it just :( also, i have barely 3 more years until college and ig im just worried abt my profile and stuff too and just ajyfgetfege its all such a mess💀👌 im sorry for ranting a little ahdyfg i meant to express my awe for you KNOWING HOW TO PLAY 5 INSTRUMENTS OMG AND YOU WRITE LIKE A GODDESS TOO PLS AMAZING)

ahbyfg that will be all. Take care of yourself <333

Hello Nanini!!! it’s so nice to see you again! 

haha yes - i drew a LOT of inspiration from my mom when i was writing this story, her angst and the hardship she must have suffered bringing up two daughters along with a full time job (and a difficult mother in law) was something i really tapped on. i mean tbh i think a lot of people have fraught relationships with their parents (because parents are human, are some rly aren’t meant to be parents), so im grateful for mine and i’m glad to hear you have lovely parents too (we all go through some angst with our parents in our teenage years, don’t sweat it, it’s only normal)! 

redemption for kuroo was tricky to write. i definitely tried to build it up, show him put in a sustained effort, and show them fall in love and build their relationship again without either of them saying “i love you”. it’s...a very asian thing you know? to say i love you without saying i love you - again, something i drew on from seeing my chinese parents grow up yknow?  

i was worried at first, writing him as neglectful - was worried people might say i’ve mischaracterised him, but i feel like there’s the potential for him to lose sight of his family because he’s so ambitious. he doesn’t do it intentionally - he just has a bad case of tunnel vision imo. 

HAHA i’m not talented! my parents signed me up for piano lessons as a kid (again, very stereotypically asian), and i ended up studying music as a subject in high school so i had to pick up a second instrument (clarinet). then i joined the orchestra and picked up a few more instruments there, mostly out of necessity cos my main instrument sounds....most like a bagpipe so there are some songs that wouldn’t have a part for it! anw - practice the guitar if it makes YOU happy, and don’t compare yourself to others, its unhealthy and rly your only competition is yourself! 

as for college applications - breathe. take it one day at a time, albeit with an eye on your overall goal. i was such an anxious teenager, worrying about college exams and i sorta regret not giving myself the space to truly find myself and have fun. so i’d say, while you should work hard and work smart, don’t forget that you’re only young once, so live life and explore what makes you happy - it’ll stand you in good stead for happiness further down the road <3 

[cassieschaosdimension]

Here is the second installment in the redemption arc of Draco Malfoy.

The First Class (with the Gryffindors; I'm basing this off of the books and it's a fic so...)

He woke up after the feast in the Slytherin common room. Draco grins to himself running his hair through his unruly hair then he turns his head and it falls.

Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, and Zabini were sleeping around the room. How is he going to avoid them as he goes to breakfast?

It was especially hard not to wake up them meanly, but Draco wanted a clean slate where he could be himself without feeling smothered. He tried to be as quiet as possible. He doesn't want Nott and Zabini to ask questions. He may have had to grow up with them, but he doesn't have to be nice to them. Father might be furious at him, but mother said he should just be himself and it would all be fine.

Putting on his uniform and robe, Draco thinks how proud his father will be to see he's in Slytherin just like his parents were. He's always gravitated towards mother; she wasn't as harsh as father and made sure he was taught to be himself. At least she was the one who wanted him to be happy. Father only wanted Draco to become a mini Lucius and as much as he loved his father, he did not want to become just like him.

Tiptoeing out of the dormitory he shudders at the thought of turning as mean, heartless, and cold as his father. He never wants to be like that. He wants to bring light and happiness in the world because his father sucks it all up. Draco doesn't remember when he was allowed to laugh and smile.

Pushing open the heavy door, Draco runs into Marcus Flint, Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch House team.

"Hey Draco! Nice to have you finally here! Come on, let's come down to breakfast and stuff our faces before class." At the word class Flint rolls his eyes. Draco is shocked. He didn't realize Flint was disrespectful! The professors gave up any hope of a social life to teach them! The least they could do was respect them, but Flint didn't.

He tries to get away and go see where the people he met yesterday on the train are sitting. Glancing around until he spots them he grins. The grin slides off his face faster than a dementer closing in to perform the Kiss. They're at the Gryffindor table like he expected, but it still hurts.

Hmm, Hermione seems to be off to the side from everyone. He enjoyed going head to head with her on the train. (NOT DRAMIONE NOPE PLATONIC PEOPLE!!!!) Not many people could do that and survive. He wanted to be good friends with someone like her even if she was Mu-Muggleborn. He was going to have to get used to calling them by their proper names, not what his father always called them.

Harry and Ron looked thick as thieves already and it had barely been a day! Sitting down at the Slytherin table, Draco wishes he could have a friendship like that. He had hoped for that on the train, but Neville had squashed that flat. Poor Neville looked absolutely terrified when he heard his name!

Draco was sad as he saw the smile fly off the face of the round faced boy Draco thought would be nice when he introduced himself. Maybe the letter he wrote to his mother would have some answers.

The hooting of hundreds of owls suddenly fills the cavernous Hall. His owl, Talon, soars down to him. The giant parcel dropped in front of him seems to be filled with sweets and cakes. Among the cakes, he finds a folded letter. His mother must have placed this when she sent Talon off again. Bypassing the edible goodies the poor house elves must have been forced to.make for him, he goes right for the letter.

Dearest Draco,

I am hesitant to respond to you in case your father intercepts this, but I have placed this in your parcel instead of sending it with Talon separately.

The boy's name is Neville Longbottom yes? Your concern is welcoming, but the story is chilling.

This was before you were born in early 1980 and Snape has overheard the Divination professor utter a prophecy. Yes, Draco. The prophecy which changed our world forever. He was still very much in love with Lily Evans, who married James Potter earlier that year, and the prophecy scared him beyond comprehension.

He was scared it meant Harry and went to the Dark Lord to beg for the release of Lily Evans as he knew she would never leave Harry to die. But unfortunately, that was not so as you know and the Potters were killed leaving behind a little boy not much older than you were at the time.

Aunt Bella went to the Longbottoms that night and she tortured them for the whereabouts of the Dark Lord because she wanted to know where he went. The Longbottoms were tortured into insanity and left a one year old son, Neville, behind to be raised by his grandmother.

Draco gasps at this part. He knew aunt Bella was twisted, but not to that effect. He felt sorry for Neville and wants to apologize, but not in front of all of these people. He doesn't want to embarrass Neville. He'll read the rest of the letter later, he got his question answered. He'll have to thank his mother later for risking that information.

Draco, putting the letter into his pocket after folding it, digs into the hearty breakfast with relish. The rest of his dorm mates are down by this point. He glances at them out of the corner of his eye. Crabbe and Goyle are pigging out as per usual. Nott and Zabini are turning up their noses at the breakfast. Draco shrugs and goes back to eating.

Soon breakfast is over and he has his first class. Draco is excited because it's Potions and Snape teaches it.He walks alone having declined company. He wanted company, but not the company that was offered.

He was told by Flint to walk towards the Common Room and then turn left and he'll reach Potions eventually. Surprisingly, Flint gave him the right directions. When Draco walks in, the room glass silent. Sauntering in, Draco sits alone hoping Neville, Harry, or Ron will sit with him. The more people that aren't them that scramble in, the more dejected he feels.

By the time the boys arrive, all of the seats around Draco are filled by Nott, Zabini, Crabbe, and Goyle. Draco wants to bang his head against the table in frustration. How on earth is he supposed to apologize for his aunt's behavior if he's never alone?

He tells himself to think of the happy days when he was allowed to be himself and play with the house elves. He had loads of fun with them and he learned amazing lessons from them. Draco thinks of all of the sweets and cakes he was taught in secret as soon as he turned eight. His mother allowed it because he was happy, but anytime his father was around he had to act like him.

A bang at the back of the classroom jerks Draco back to the present. Time to act he tells himself. He's going to loathe it, but until he can explain it to the others he has to act like this. He doesn't want Snape to report to his father that he's not acting like he's supposed to.

Snape's black robe flaps behind him as he makes his way to the front of the room. Draco has to keep from laughing at the sound. Every time Snape takes a step, the robe's hem smacks against the floor. Others aren't even attempting to hide their giggles.

"Twenty points from Gryffindor! I suggest if you don't want more points taken Mr. Finnegan, you will stop laughing. As such, you will receive detention tonight. You will be notified about your detention by Professor McGonagall. The same goes for the rest of you! Now, shall we commence to be introduced to the subtle art of potion making?"

The rest of the Slytherins are sniggering and jeering at the Gryffindors so Draco does it too. He feels absolutely wretched about it though. This is not who he is. Why did the Hat put him in Slytherin again?

The discussion with the Hat was interesting. The Hat told him he would do well in Gryffindor, but he asked to be in Slytherin because he didn't want to be disowned by his father. He didn't understand what his father was doing was wrong until he was eight and started to have to sneak around with the house elves.

Three years later and he worries about the house elves when he's not there. His mother can't protect them from his father's wrath all the time. Snape's voice carries out into the cavernous dungeon and Draco forces himself to listen intend of thinking of things that will make him cry. His father says crying is for the muggleborns, muggles and blood traitors like the Weasleys. Draco doesn't understand why the Weasleys are blood traitors though. The family is a pureblood family?

Oh well. Snape is now interrogating Harry about Potions ingredients and he doesn't answer. Draco knows the answers, but he has to pretend to be indifferent. Hermione has no problems with it. Her hand shoots up each time Harry says he doesn't know. She's brave he thinks to himself. Snape only knows one side of himself. He wishes he could show his true colors, but he's too afraid of his father to even think of it.

When Snape snaps at Hermione, Draco wants to defend her, but again, his father holds too much influence at Hogwarts. No one else defends her either. Is it so hard to defend your own House mate against a teacher?! Then again it is Snape and Snape is terrifying. That's the only reason Draco can think Neville isn't defending Hermione.

The rest of class is like that and Draco wants to cry for Hermione. She takes it like a pro and she must have gotten this treatment at her muggle school. He feels sick to his stomach. No human, or any creature for that matter, should be treated that way.

He wants class to be over so he can apologize to Hermione, but she runs out the door as soon as the bell trills. Draco grabs his books and stuffs them in his bag intent on following Hermione to see if she will let him apologize for what happened with the train and Snape. All he needs is for someone to give him a chance and he will be the most loyal friend they would ever ask for. All he wants is a real friend that isn't with him for his money or influence.

Walking to his next class he thinks about the apology he's going to make to each of them if he ever gets the chance.

Three days later and I'm finally done with the second installment! Enjoy! Please be honest in your opinions, I don't mind!