#spam kudos at them maybe they will notice

[lurking-book-cat]

Eyyy do you like Alenoah? WELL SO DO I! AND HERES A LIST OF ALL THE ALENOAH FICS I RECOMMEND YOU READ! I SEARCHED THROUGH ALL OF THE ALENOAH TAG ON AO3 FOR THESE FICS!

Critique me - CaffeinationNation

“what he didn’t expect was to run into a familiar face in his creative writing course.

Alejandro Burromuerto.

He froze, nearly dropping his rented textbook. The familiar eel was sitting and chatting familiarly with one of the other students, not noticing Noah come in through the door.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20018014/chapters/47399563

Finished

Pretty poisonous - G4Y

“Noah and Owen sign up together for The Ridonculous Race, and this time, Noah was determined to get the money, no matter what obstacles he might face; be it through challenges, or other competitors. Upon arriving at the starting line, however, he was unpleasantly surprised to see a familiar tan face, with poisonous green eyes and a slimy exterior.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20410456/chapters/48415786

Incomplete - possible discontinued

1 mile to go - SerenaCypher

“Of all the rotten luck he’s had in his life, from getting voted out 3rd in Total Drama, to never winning a single reality show game, to his string of failed relationships and now this.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34298452/chapters/85336957?view_adult=true

Finished

Hung up - doom_delrey

“in which Noah plays his cards a bit better than in canon, and Alejandro gets curious.

A canon divergence fic from just before "I See London," where, against their better judgement, two teammates begin to collaborate, and things quickly spiral out of control.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33074005/chapters/82102480

Incomplete - possibly discontinued

Messy times at wawanakawa high - imhungry_3769015

“Welcome to Senior Year at Wawanakwa High!

Strange to think it's the final year for Principal McLean and Chef/Mr. Hatchet's (secretly) favorite class of students.

But, the antics of these diverse group of students are only ratcheting up from last year.

Settle in for a large mix of drama, action, mystery, emotion, politics, idiocy, romance, sex, comedy, and horror at the hands of these twenty five students.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50140651/chapters/126625663

Incomplete - on-going - slow updates

Lovers and fools - HenkePenke

“In trying to get each other eliminated, Heather and Alejandro both end up making deals with Noah. The aim? Make the other jealous to throw them off their game. Noah plays along, but secretly plans on using the new arrangements to his own advantage. Because really, their "feelings" are just for show, what could go wrong?

(I have yet to figure out how tagging works so they're going to update a little whenever I remember stuff, same thing with characters and relationships, my apologies)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53816746/chapters/136210486

Incomplete - on-going

Total drama: apology tour - KookyVonKoopa

“a special Apology Tour just for my bbg Noah-

But on a serious note:

Alejandro wins the million dollars, and gets called back a year later to participate in a new total drama season: Total Drama: Post Tour. He hesitates but has to accept it anyways, because it’s in the contract. Now, he has to face the wrath and anger of his previous teammates and enemies, along with a certain someone itching to go eel hunting.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54937930/chapters/139261738

Incomplete - on-going

Curl up like a pill-bug - honeyhoneypot

“The store around him is quiet, and the light from the rising sun streams through the window, casting warm, tangerine rays across the glass tabletop. It’s almost comforting, and for a brief, tiny moment, Noah feels a little bit at peace with himself.

That is, until a series of sharp, confident steps echo across the store, and Noah barely has time for his stomach to fill with dread before a voice – a smooth, eloquent, and familiar voice – fills his ears like salt water.

“Well, if it isn’t my dear Noah!” The voice speaks, and when Noah whips his head around, he's staring directly into the eyes of none other than Alejandro Burromuerto.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50295178/chapters/127055392

Incomplete - on-going

Look my way - CinnamonToes

“Noah and Alejandro are high school rivals who are about to enter college. As their rivalry calms down and they become friends Noah makes the sudden and horrifying realization that he's caught feeling for Alejandro.

He tries to continue his friendship with Alejandro but he wonders if he'll be able to ignore his feelings or if they'll ever be reciprocated. but it may just end up being too painful to keep up.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54576613/chapters/138287062

Incomplete - on-going

One step behind - eva107

“Everything changes when Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot is given the win in London. With the Amazon's loss causing Heather's departure, how will these new circumstances play out?”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/52815139/chapters/133587586

Incomplete - on-going

Dig A Mace Into His Chest And A Shotgun Into Mine - WriterQuil

“Noah has been selected for the Hunger Games after volunteering to take place for the boy contender and compete alongside his best friend, Gwen, to give her an advantage at winning. His original plan is to lead Gwen to victory and once it was just the two of them remaining to end his own life so she could claim the title of the victor... but even with Noah's smarts, this plan proves to be more difficult than originally speculated. And it's only going to be harder when the District One tribute, Alejandro Burromuerto has taken an odd liking to him.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51460918/chapters/130049539

Incomplete - on-going

✩ Lips were made to lie - Alenoah ✩ - Noahs_sarcasm

“A retelling of Total Drama: The Ridonculous Race where Alejandro takes the place of Owen.

Noah is pessimistic, cynical and struggling to keep up with incoming bills. After his Total Drama fame has died down, he has no choice but to compete around the world again.

Alejandro, the hispanic heart throb, has always lived in the shadows of his younger brother. After he finally snaps, he decides to take back the spotlight.

An unlikely reunion. A million dollars. A race around the world.

A love story.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54579649/chapters/138294886

Incomplete - on-going

Bittersweet love - alenoah_real

“Noah works at a coffee shop in a small town, and nothing intresting happens.

Well, except for reuniting with Alejandro: the guy who pushed him off a plane.

Things escalate from there.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50753539/chapters/128210098

Hiatus

The healing process of an ex-villain and a teenage genius - Nress

“All-Stars fic where Noah has graduated from being chris's assistant to work on the show and Alejandro doesn't come out of being trapped in a robot suit mentally or physically stable.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54026488/chapters/136769383

Incomplete - on-going

All-Stars and Assistants - Mpaigeu

“Total Drama's newest season premieres, featuring a cast of the best players to ever grace the hallowed grounds of Camp Wawanakwa!

For Noah, this means assisting Chris McLean once more, and confronting the past head-on after a year of ignoring, feeling, changing, and healing.

For Alejandro, it means a second chance at life, and freedom the network that hurt him in the first place. It also means physical pain and the onset of unwanted feelings in all aspects of his new, colorful, chaotic life.

For Heather, it means reuniting with the boy she loves, and learning to love even more, no matter who may try to keep her in the "queen of the villains" box she built for herself in her early teenage years.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54121849/chapters/137031790

Incomplete - on-going

You are my obsession - AyaWilliams

“Nothing in Alejandro's life brings him joy. Until Noah arrives at school that is. Noah makes him feel seen in a way no one else does. Alejandro is determined to win him over, but he wants it to go as smoothly as possible so he's going to have to deal with a few rivals for Noah affection.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/52407217/chapters/132577594

Incomplete - on-going

Wrong, try again! - cloudyskiiees

“All is going well for Noah in World Tour up until London, where he's sure to get eliminated. Things get quickly turned on his head as he's murdered and sent right back to before the London challenge, where he gets to try again. And again. And again.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53567491/chapters/135593740

Incomplete - on-going

The red carpet - sirenscharm

“Noah gets invited to a bar since he and his friends are old enough, (18-19) and Total Drama has a new cast so he gets to live normally again.

He for sure isn’t gonna meet the OG cast again after this, or go back on that godforsaken show again, right?

(Before All Stars and Ridonculous Race.)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51363667/chapters/129791560

Incomplete - on-going - slow update

Face the Sun (and Fall) - Noah_bout_it

“The city of Wawanakwa is one with bad crime and worse secrets. The hero producers made the hero tower and started collecting superhumans when their powers manifested at the age of 10 to train them and help fight said crime- but it still runs rampant.

One vigilante is just doing his best to keep himself and the very few people he holds close to his heart alive. And maybe he just wants a bit of justice. Just a little bit.

--

In which I have created a totally normal superhero/vigilante/supervillain AU. The normalest ever. Totally.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53831002/chapters/136248061

Incomplete - on-going

Total Drama Kingdoms and why Noah hates royals - QuestionableLasagna

“...okay, what the fuck?

Noah can only stare in dazed bewilderment as a hand slowly emerges from one of his mirrors.

He was rudely awakened from his much deserved nap by an alarm from King Bossy that someone entered the confessional. Chris wants every single scrap of drama that this show could get and that means sending Noah tumbling out of his bed in the corner of the room to activate his surveillance.

He barely finished opening the damn portal before an amulet appeared in his face. And then came a fist, then an elbow, and then a shoulder. Before he knew it, a face managed to push through the rippling glass and another hand emerged to clasp tight onto Noah’s arm, the metal gauntlet digging into his skin.

Green eyes blink open and stare down at the half-awake wizard, those eyes curving into crescents as the man going through the mirror gives Noah a dazzling smile.

“Pleased to finally meet you great magician, I’m prince Alejandro of the Burromuerto Kingdom, at your service.”

——————

Total drama fantasy AU where Noah is the magical assistant to the worst fantasy reality entertainment show ever created while a certain prince keeps trying to get his attention.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53168932/chapters/134534620

Incomplete - on-going - slow update

The Alejandro Hate Club (Working Title) - Brick_bronze165

“Noah was eliminated in London. Alejandro won and, he was fine with that.

He should have been fine with that, until a couple of eliminated contestants invite him to join an alliance of sorts. An alliance to make Alejandro pay.

Noah doesn't care about revenge but, somehow he's volunteered to carry out the plan. Little does he know the plan will involve returning to the competition to face the very person he once called a teamate.

There's absolutely no way will blow up in his face.

-------

Basically, a Total Drama rewrite where Noah rejoins the competition instead of Blaineley-- with some additional support.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51484792/chapters/130113937

Incomplete - on-going

Problem and Solution - astrokyle

“Alejandro has been having difficulties sleeping. As in, he can't sleep unless Noah is near.

(And his family really sucks.)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53417923/chapters/135203125

Incomplete - on-going - slow update

Intertwined - circusclwn

“After season two of the reboot, MK finds herself wondering; Why were her parents on Total Drama?

After a heated argument with them, she wishes she could just know what and how they did, and why they didn't stop her from joining.

And so, she wakes up back in the distant year of 2005 with her younger brother Nicolás, when the third season of the show "Total Drama" was being filmed.

Will she, with the help of some familiar faces, discover what her dads are hiding from her, or will she perish after facing challenges that were much more dangerous than they ever were on the reboot?

Alenoah as MK's gay dads AU + Time Travel/Loop AU!”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53173714/chapters/134547484

Incomplete - on-going

Lethal attraction - saturnsanarchy

“Noah owes his good buddy Owen a favor, but he wouldn’t have done it if he’d known he had to tag along with him on a reality tv show at a summer camp. A last minute change to the script flips Noah’s brain, making him question things he wouldn’t before.

Alejandro joins this show to cause some drama and show everyone what a Burromeurto is capable of, but he ends up getting more than what he bargained for.

Or

A Total Drama Island rewrite where Alejandro and Sierra join the cast early that is basically Alenoah.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50065180/chapters/126421222

Incomplete - on-going - slow updates

World Tour if the Writers Weren’t COWARDS and Let it be Gay - Anonymous

“So I'm I not getting my book back?" Noah asks.

He wouldn't be surprised if the man tried holding it hostage in order to get an alliance or something.

Weirder things have happened on this show.

Alejandro just picks up the book from where it landed and politely hands it back to him, his fingers barely brushing Noah’s, and shoots him a blinding smile.

Noah just snatches the book and turns back around. He blatantly ignores the butterflies attacking his stomach right now. He already knew he was gay but that didn't mean he had to stoop as low as reality TV crushes.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50068276/chapters/126430036

Complete

Snap, crackle and pop - MaybeOphe

“Silly little concept AU wherein Alejandro uses his hypnosis abilities to keep Noah under his thumb post-Jamaica, all because everyone's favourite snarker couldn't keep his big mouth shut and had to play sceptic.

Somewhat inspired by To Reach New Heights by Creative_Creatures, though I admittedly haven't read more than a few chapters. The idea is neat though!”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53591404/chapters/135657136

Incomplete - on-going - slow update

Brewed to Love. - (After the Fall) . Alenoah. - dollison

“Noah works at a cafe, and Alejandro cannot get him out of his head. Scratch that. It could have been the perfect, standard romance. Meeting inside of a cafe, strangers to lovers.

This is what originally made the theme Brewed to Love come to.

A vision for this tunnel was constructed until disaster joined, destroying the ideal cafe love story. An apocalypse was the last thing anyone could have thought of. If they wanted to build up the relationship from the cafe, they would have to survive first.

Through radio silence.

Through each other.

Brewed to Love : After the Fall is semi-based off of situations in the movies A Quiet Place and Bird Box.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50942326/chapters/128698318

Incomplete - on-going

who watches over you - hoser

“See you later, Noah.”

As she picked up her suitcase, all he could do was stare at her retreating figure as she walked out their front door. Mary Kate’s hands were reaching out towards her mother, as he raised a hand to wave after her, saying one last thing to the empty air:

“Yeah, see you later..”

Being the father of a toddler at the age of twenty six wasn't in his plans, but then again being divorced wasn't either. Noah navigates parenthood as a single parent, while reconnecting with familiar faces along the way.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53253469/chapters/134761504

Incomplete - on-going

Noah's Extraordinary Playlist - cloudyskiiees

“Noah's life is okay. Not great, not terrible, average at best. His office job is a little less than ideal, working with idiot's all day, but at least it pays well. He's very content to continue slinking though life in the shadows, alive but not quite living. His plans however, are completely thwarted by an moron and a magical MRI machine. Being able to read people's feelings through giant musical numbers was not something he had ever planned on, especially when he learns his only friend is not the charming guy Noah thought he was.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/52057501/chapters/131653354

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

The schemer - kaeborii

“As the new reality show is about to be announced, Chris McLean confesses to his assistant, Noah, that it's all a plan to lure the cast of Total Drama into another season. In order to keep things interesting, he asks him to play the role of antagonist, thinking it will be a simple task; Noah accepts.

Unfortunately, this will lead him into trouble he can't avoid, along with new friends, enemies and maybe something else.

⤷ AU where Noah takes the competition seriously and becomes the villain he deserved to be.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50988766/chapters/128820349

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

Red handed - MaxxAndCheese

“Noah stumbled a bit before hearing mumbling from behind the corner. “Alejandro-“ he was cut off by the sound of crunching. He turned the corner to see Alejandro’s boot pressed against some poor guy’s head. He watched as Alejandro kept kicking his head until the guy stopped moving. Blood was pulling around him and Alejandro groaned. Noah quickly looked away, pressing himself against the wall with his hand over his mouth.

“What a worthless target.” Noah could hear the venom in his voice.

“José could have done better…”

Assassin au”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50485303/chapters/127548010

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

Flips and turns - Spicysodapop

“The camera switched to frame of the Reality TV Pros. Noah sat down, visibly disturbed, with his arms crossed.

“An eel dipped in grease.” Noah recited, talking to the camera.

Owen, beside him, raised both eyebrows and widened his eyes in reply.

// AU in which it's Alejandro and José in the Ridonculous Race instead of Kitty and Emma,”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/53122495/chapters/134411530

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

but I know we’ll meet again some sunny day - jasmine_sea

“Over two years after the disastrous ending of Total Drama World Tour, Noah and Alejandro cross paths at the University of Toronto.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50707366/chapters/128093755

Incomplete - slow updates

Unwithering - astrokyle

“ (noah): how the hell did you even send it to me in the first place?

(alejandro): Um

(alejandro): I met someone a couple days ago, and they put their number in as “little bitch”

(noah): ??

(noah): and what did you put my name as?

(alejandro): little shit.

(noah): are you serious?

(alejandro): fitting, isnt it?

-

In which Noah receives a text from Alejandro on a random Monday afternoon and it slowly becomes a normal occurrence.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49151875/chapters/124013026

Incomplete - on-going

Uprooted - niamhlovesu

“IN PROGRESS STORY] this is basically tdwt except justin and katie are added!! (+teams are shuffled a lot).. this is alenoah because alenoah supremacy! my chapters should be around 2-5k words each (yes the first one is short because its a prelude don't judge LOL)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/52530781/chapters/132882574

Incomplete - possibly discontinued

Collateral - astrokyle

“Noah ends up handcuffed to Alejandro. It’s stellar.

A missing reward challenge from World Tour.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49382899/chapters/124620064

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

World weary - Mpaigeu

“Instead of getting voted off during I See London, Noah miraculously stays in the competition for one million dollars. Less miraculously, he's stuck on a plane with someone he just called an eel. Someone who is stupidly attractive, and even more cunning.

Throughout messy breakups, nasty butterflies in one's chest, and insane challenges cooked up by one psychopathic Chris McLean, Noah vies to keep his sanity and feelings in check as he makes unlikely relationships with his fellow competition.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50810527/chapters/128358712

Complete

high off vertigo (when you're close) - lonleybrachiobrute (triceratroops)

“all goes to according to plan.. (ft. everything going wrong, eels & bookworms, and questionable father figures)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51012802/chapters/128883433

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus - please update

Kiss me under the stars - cupidscrossbows

“Noah has been living life about as well as a micro-celebrity known for kissing a dude on international television can live. He has a good job- working for the devil himself, Chris McLean.

He doesn't expect to have to go onto another season, but considering he was “fired” for this show, he might as well try to win it.

… Does that new guy seem fake to anyone else?

OR

Another assistant Noah Alenoah with fatherly figure Chris McLean fanfic... With some fun little surprises thrown in”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/52625191/chapters/133113775

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

This Killing Feeling - astron_nommeeerrrsss

“Everything had been going normal in his life until a new student came to their school.

One year later, his friends leave him alone at lunch.

A certain someone comes up and talks to him.

Things escalate from there.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49483924/chapters/124887586

Incomplete - possibly on hiatus

Alone at Home - WriterQuil

“Eight year olds Alejandro and Noah's parents were the closest of friends but Noah and Alejandro couldn't hate each other more. Despite their children's evident rivalry, Noah's parents make the arrangement to go on their annual trip to Paris but this time invites Alejandro's family to tag along with them. Their plan to have a fun family trip to form a relationship between Alejandro and Noah goes awry when in their initial lateness and the flurry of the morning, they accidentally leave Alejandro and Noah behind. Unfortunately for the two boys, things are about to get a lot worse than being stuck home alone with your primary school rival, because two burglars have their eyes on Noah's house…”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50212141/chapters/126816424

Complete

crash (TOTAL DRAMA ALL STARS REWRITE) - niamhlovesu

“BASICALLY total drama all stars but I removed sam and lindsay and added Tyler, Noah, Brick and Anne Maria! focused around alejandro and noah (yes im keeping Mal in argue with the wall! he's just not as... mal-,y?)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51388036/chapters/132345118

Discontinued

Sweet-Tooth - sharkish

“Despite sugar’s addictive tendencies, you always go for more.

The same sugar that already got Bridgette and Lindsay addicted.

The same sugar that would get Noah addicted too, eventually.

He just had to wait.

OR, A rewrite of Total Drama World Tour, starting from the beginning - literally.

It is Alejandro and Noah centric, but the focus changes from character to character each chapter.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51799969/chapters/130960156

Possibly discontinued

Noah Sterecra and the All-Stars - vampicie

“Alejandro Burromuerto is the leader of the band “The All-Stars” that consists of him, his two best friends Courtney and Heather, and Courtney’s crush and friend Gwen. They all hope to become a famous, worldwide known band one day but for now they play small gigs at clubs downtown.

Noah Sterecra is a solo singer who’s making it big in the music industry. With his mesmerizing voice and beautifully thought out lyrics, it’s hard not to love his songs. He wished he could say the same about people loving him.

When these two music artists collide, it seems like their success is written in the stars. However, they’ll soon find out that even the brightest stars of all die someday.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50698963/chapters/128072449

Possibly discontinued

With a Little Help from My Friends - Cinna (Cinnamas) - Cinnamas

“TDWT retelling from after the 'Eye see London'

In an unexpected twist of fate, Noah is the one who stumbles upon Duncan and Gwen's secret rendezvous in the confessional. He decides to tell Courtney, feeling that she deserves to know the truth about her boyfriend and best friend. Of course he couldn't predict how doing so would dramatically, shift the course of the show and lead to unexpected alliances, rivalries, and romance?”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49478542/chapters/124873768

Complete

Two eels don't make a right - orphan_account

“Being Chris’ personal assistant had its ups and downs. The pay was nice, but then again he was also Chris’ personal assistant."

Noah didn't think he would ever have to participate in another season ever again. That is, until Chris turns to him as a last resort and Noah can not say no to a million dollars. After all, he had gotten much farther in world tour, he just needed to keep alejandro at a distance. oh... and hello Jose-

(Name subject to change)”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50298067/chapters/127063231

Possibly discontinued

masterminded - -em- (unfortunatelyem)

“I See London" takes a different turn when Owen is caught at the beginning instead of Alejandro. Noah is forced to be in a close proximity to Alejandro, who knows what might happen. He won't be called an eel, that's for sure.

Blainerific is replaced by a new competitor.

Courtney gains a new friend and ally.

Unexpected betrayal? Who sees who kissing?

All will be revealed (unless i change my mind *cue maniacal laughter*)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51093331/chapters/129089329

Discontinued

A way out - Brick_bronze165

“Noah knows he's going home, everyone heard him call Alejandro an eel. He also knows that after the day he's had he just want's to be alone until the parachute is put in his hands.

Life seems to have other plans for him when he find himself trapped in the confessional with the one guy he hates most.

What could possibly go wrong?”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50595598/chapters/127810819

Complete

Total Drama: Halloween Edition - Brick_bronze165

“To celebrate the spooky season Chris decides to host a special episode of World Tour involving costumes, scavenger hunts, and forced bonding.

What could go wrong, especially when he has a couple of tricks up his sleeve in the form of a giant run down mansion and, acess to Hollywood level makeup.

A lot, the answer is a lot.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50744026/chapters/128186755

Complete

Total Drama: Reloaded! - Nightinggale (orphan_account)

“Alejandro and Noah are dragged into another season of Total Drama, via contract, hijinks insue as they are unwillingly teamed up. Who will be the first eliminated? Who will be the Finalists? Who knows? Me, I know 😈”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49798216/chapters/125704957

On hiatus

Reward - alixxao3

“What if episode 13 had been a reward challenge, and Noah remained in the game?

-

A rocky and originally false alliance between Alejandro and Noah after episode 13 creates feelings between the two, and they come to find they are more similar than they realize.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50473489/chapters/127521826

Possibly discontinued

A Little Miscommunication Goes A Long Way - Strawberry_Diamond

“It's been a year since Total Drama: World Tour and Noah hasn't talked to anyone, Owen decides to host a reunion and invites everyone from the cast. Noah accepts, but not without a lot of emotional turmoil. How will he face the people he went through the hellish show with after ignoring them for a year? Surely they don't want to see him right?

Or

Noah leaves for a year and just shows up one day, various people have varying reactions”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50424364/chapters/127403752

Possibly discontinued

An Insulting Indifference - drowzeee

“After three years of radio silence following the end of Total Drama World Tour, Noah reaches out to Alejandro Burromuerto.

Some say he should resent the guy, while others insist there was something between them that could have been genuine friendship.

Noah doesn't have a strong opinion either way.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/48732487/chapters/122930905

Incomplete - slowww update - please update you only got one chapter left

The return - OhemGee132432

“Chris has rounded up many past favourites for another creative rodeo of bullying teenagers!”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50045260/chapters/126365812

Possibly discontinued

Fashionably late - Brick_bronze165

“Noah is tired, tired of losing every reality show he's ever starred in. Sure there was Total Drama but, ever since World Tour there were others. He's ashamed to admit how desperate he is for the tabloid fame Total Drama promised him. He feels stuck.

Then by pure chance he meets Alejandro on the set of his latest show, a fashion show none the less.

Only Alejandro isn't the same.

It isn't like Noah cares.

Afterall he's an eel, an eel who's finally making him realize how screwed up his life has become.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/50515144/chapters/127616335

Complete

The personals - SuperSunGunner

“Noah has been Chris’s Personal Assistant for over a year now—and he knows he’s damn good at his job. But when Chris gets punched in the face at some random bar in Colorado, Chris goes behind his back and hires none other than Alejandro Burromuerto to be his Personal Bodyguard. Which now means that the guy is going to be LIVING with them for the time being.

Yet, when a VERY much expected rivalry grows between the two of them, they’ll do anything to get the other fired first.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49938223/chapters/126077497

Complete

So sick of you - Brick_bronze165

“Noah's determined to make it further than last time, the first season was a fluke. He has everything in place until bad luck strikes and he falls ill with a cold.

What could possibly go wrong? Especially when Alejandro decides to make it his mission to take care of him.

This won't be the thing to take him out of the running, not if he can help it.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49583008/chapters/125141965

Complete

I See London in Your Eyes - Brick_bronze165

“Everything was going along as planned until the plane began to take a dive into the river Thames and delay the competiton.

Noah is more than annoyed but, Alejandro sees it as an oppurtunity to finally figure out a way to eliminate Noah for good.

Only things don't go as planned but, when do they ever? Alejandro can adapt- if only the annoying feelings would go away.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/49193698/chapters/124126558

Complete

A New Rolling of the Dice - Erebis_jams

“Chris calls everyone back for a fourth season of Total Drama (and because they're unfortunately legally obligated to, they come), but things are a bit different this time around.

What follows is a high stakes competition full of unexpected friendships, romance (except don't tell them that as they insist on being difficult), scheming, rather brutal betrayals, questionable ethical practices, and several questions yet to be answered.

Like who the fuck gave Chris McLean access to virtual reality (the sci-fi kind, like going inside of video games kind. C'mon this universe already works on cartoon logic I think it's fair) and thought it would end well?”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/35873965/chapters/89449819

Discontinued

The other side - WeirdNCrazy

“So what do you get a Host with too much money plus firing too many interns that he is short-staffed for his World Tour? Well, that equals him keeping his newest assistant Noah Sterecra on board, of course, he is oddly efficient and knows the ropes around enough to not get killed.

Why is Noah putting up with the host in devil skin bullshit? The Pay. He would have left long ago if it wasn’t for that nice check that rolls into his bank account and for that he can bullshit his way through this god awful show and boss. He supposes it helps that his boyfriend got roped into this, at least he doesn’t have to suffer alone.

He may have to wrestle with animals, the contestants, staff, and host, but at least it’s gonna be hilarious since he’s on the other side of it all.

Assistant Noah!”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/42822345/chapters/107575602

Complete

Inescapable - fluidfox

“You’re… Noah, right? What was it called… Total Drama!”

Yeah, Noah loved being reminded of his time spent in a waking nightmare filled with everything from bed bugs to food poisoning to OSHA violations to threats of death and frequent near-fatal experiences. “Yep.”

“Man, that show looked nuts. Sorry you went through all that.”

“Funny, most people tell me they’re jealous.”

“Nah, I’ve seen enough of that show to know that some of those stunts the host pulled weren’t fake. It must’ve been awful. But hey, you got through it!”

“Physically speaking, yes.”

He gave him a sympathetic smile before grabbing the smoothies. “Have a nice day, man!” The bell chimed as he left the building.

“I doubt it.”

——

It seems like no matter what Noah did, Total Drama and the things that came with it were always going to come back to haunt him, including a certain Spanish man and news of a new season.

Or: Noah is a student working at a smoothie shop, and shit starts getting weird when Alejandro shows up.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/43340578/chapters/108946390

Complete

Slippery slopes - courtney-deserved-better (persephones_garden)

“After his suspicions surrounding Alejandro have been confirmed, Noah is determined not to let his two-faced teammate win without a good fight. He may not be the strongest competitor, but he's gotten this far already.

Alejandro expects his life to get easier with Heather's departure, not made even more difficult by Noah's intelligence and biting wit. He may have incorrectly presumed them to be friends, but he's determined not to underestimate his competition again.

Of course, when it comes to Total Drama, nobody can predict the chaos to come.

An Alejandro x Noah World Tour Rewrite. Starts during I See London…”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32170684/chapters/79711624

Complete

The Sweet to my Bitter, the Sugar to my Coffee - Thicc_eyebrows

“Noah's a bitter person and he only gets more bitter when Owen suggests that the duo host a Total Drama reunion. He's less than thrilled about the idea but decides to play along for the sake of his friend. Noah dreads seeing someone again at the reunion and with his dumb luck, ends up alone with a certain slimy eel and his sugary words due to his friends' schemes.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32932396/chapters/81732652

Complete

Keep your enemies close - AyaWilliams

“During the ripper challenge Noah remembers something that prevents him from badmouthing Alejandro. This means different things for different people.

For Noah it means an opportunity to get further in the game

For Alejandro it means a new alliance partner.

For Heather it means a second rival.

For Gwen it means stopping a huge mistake.

And for the audience it means tons of drama.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32908795/chapters/81670897

Complete

Willows and Serpents - CrystalRoseWrites

“An "appealing" thing about working at Total Powers is being able to put on a mask, metaphorical and literally. Noah was never able to grasp why someone would bother going through such trouble. The answer still eludes him as he stares at Prometheus. Looking at the sad little man, he can't understand why one would try so hard to be someone you're not.

He doesn't think he ever will.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37836859/chapters/94479220

Discontinued

Only these thorns could be so deadly - Confused_maple

“What could be worse than senior year? Devolving hanahaki disease and not knowing who you’re crushing on during senior year.

This is the case for Alejandro, throwing all assumptions he was straight out the door and trying to find the courage to confess to Noah, the pretty boy he talks to in study hall, before the flowers in his lungs take him away.”

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33079642/chapters/82117168

Discontinued

[marigoos]

I’ve been so ill this past few weeks and been hospitalized because of medical concerns. Found out that I have a tumor and it was already malignant. I have a Stage 2A Cervical Cancer and needs help ASAP. 🥺

GOAL: $1800

Oh this is gonna be so fun. Buckle up, children, time for

✨SCAM EDUCATION✨

1:

Someone you don't know sends you an ask and asks for money

This in itself is an alarm bell. Maybe you're used to it if you're a big account, but if you're a smaller one that alone should make you suspicious af. This user does not follow me nor do I follow them. The only case in which this is acceptable is if you're running a donations blog (you know, the ones who collect people in need and make periodic posts to boost them? Which are way more expert in checking for possible frauds, or so one hopes)

2:

If you scroll down their blog, they're very recent

This is their first ever post, notice the time stamp. If it's still active when you're reading this, you can check yourself.

It's even worse because, while it makes sense for someone very desperate to open accounts on any social media that comes to mind and start begging, you scroll down their blog and their posts are mostly untagged gifs of popular shows and scantily clothed women. Which in itself is not a crime, I often do it too (though I don't go around asking money to strangers) but when you've known for weeks (see pinned post) that you were sick, and your blog is only 5 days old, I would expect at least one post about it other than the pinned one, no? Or even just one single original posts instead of only reblogs and one answered ask to another 6-days-old account

Also I'm not one to judge others' sexual preferences but if you're a mom I would expect at least one of the thirsty posts to be about a man, but oh well. Definitely not enough

3.

Check for others' warnings

There's a whole blog dedicated to listing all the scammers here in Tumblr, but I can't fucking member I should follow them if and when I remember

The fastest way is to search for their PayPal account name. First, though, you have to be CAREFUL about clicking suspicious links - always copy the link and paste it in the url bar to quickly check where it redirects you. In this case I saw It did redirect me to PayPal, and I did load it only because I don't have any PayPal app or credentials saved on my phone, so I don't risk payments or credentials getting sent automatically.

Unfortunately this must be quite recent, because searching for Christine Owaga (this guy^'s PayPal) only got me some Facebook accounts, and I don't remember my password so I'm not gonna check those.

However, since this is an ask on Tumblr, I looked on Tumblr for terms like "scam alert", "scam warning", "donation scam" and so on, and I did find something interesting:

Same exact message several times, more than one account, only one of which is still active.

Then I scrolled a bit more and found this one with a sliiiightly modified text, gonna bet that it's because that was when the victim brought a link to someone with a much bigger collection of receipts lmao just gonna link it here

The PayPal account name is different tbh, which means this dude is at least a bit smarter than an actual bot and knows how to spam semi-efficiently. Kudos!

This is not how a legit ill person should behave. Not even trying to bring some evidence, just leaving a trail of deleted accounts.

Gonna tag everyone I saw reblogging the scammer's pinned post so that they can delete it and maybe warn their followers (assuming they're not bots themselves)

@thecherry95 @back-in-19something @underthewingsofthblackeagle @fantasticcollectorkitten @takineko @razzgamer5 @jacks-ace @windywillows-world @aurelia-which-means-sunrise @comradesmooches @loch-tess-monster @urazayt @boodubious07 @satinfables @rateater69 @irontyphoonobject @blackfairyemoji @dannyfoggings @helloparzival13 @rusalkascave

[leonidas1754]

I've been struggling with writing as of late.

Finishing a story has always been a challenge, and frequently I start or work on one of my myriad WIPs, nothing new and not a problem. I do this for free, I don't need to finish a damn thing if I don't feel like it.

Learning to write for myself was a process, but I like to think I've mostly gotten there. I write first and foremost a fic I want to read myself, and if others like it, that's cool too, but it's not necessary. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean lack of response doesn't get to me sometimes. And that's what's happening now. Usually it's not a big problem, I get bummed but I keep on trucking.

But this time around... Not so much, and it's not hard to see why. I put my heart and soul into this story, I worked so damn hard on it, and it seemed like there were at least a handful of people enjoying and following it. But when I posted the last chapter... Nothing. A handful more kudos and two single comments, one of which I had to delete because it was literally just a demand that I write more, not even saying much about the fic itself.

Now don't get me wrong, no one HAS to comment or anything, even if you commented on previous chapters. And kudos are nice, I guess, others enjoy them more than me, and I've been able to enjoy them more since turning the hits off. But it kinda comes back around to like...

Passive consumption is the mortal enemy of fanfiction. It is so, so disheartening to put so much effort into your work, to put yourself out there, time and time again, only to get nothing in return. To get people just taking your work and give you nothing. Kudos are nice, but let's face it, they are the single most low-effort sign of appreciation ever. You hit a button. That's it. Even likes here on Tumblr are more significant, as there's a tab where you can view things you've liked. A kudos can feel much like you've tossed me a dime. A kind gesture for certain, but not worth much in the end. Plus, they're extremely easily missed if you don't have Emails turned on, like a great many don't because they become annoying spam a lot of the time. So chances are, if that fic is old, the author won't even see your kudos, turning it into an almost entirely meaningless gesture.

And it feels so selfish to complain like this, sure, but at the same time, what I'm so selfishly complaining about is essentially the perception of readers being selfish themselves. How many times have I seen people discussing the old eventuality of artists leaving communities because of art theft? It's referenced a fair bit, I'd say. (And artists definitely have similar problems in fandom, but this isn't about that) Does anyone even notice if a writer disappears? Unless they get lucky and manage to have a fic utterly explode in popularity, probably not, and even then it's more likely it'd only be noticed if the fic stops updating. Once it's done, people move on.

I haven't written in a month. I've poked at my WIPs, tried to write, but I can never get more than a sentence or two, or edit a WIP some, before I just give up because it's not there. I put so much effort and love into my writing and it's just... It's difficult to keep doing that when I feel like I'm the only one who even cares.

Maybe that is selfish and whiny and whatever else. But in this day and age where people are told more and more to value their work, to not sell themselves short, is it really that odd to be a bit upset that your work that you're not even asking money for doesn't get any appreciation?

Also, I swear, if I see one more "Ao3 should let us leave more than one Kudos," I'm gonna fucking scream. I constantly see posts about how people want a way to show more appreciation and it feels like they'll do fucking anything except leave a comment.

Listen, you do not have to comment. At all. If you have nothing to say, don't, leave that Kudos, they're still a good thing even if I have problems with them. If you have such extreme social anxiety that saying "I love this story" is too much, been there was like that, it took time to overcome. But for the love of god, if you have something to say, SAY IT.

Leave that "Second Kudos!" comment, tell the author what part of the story you liked best, how the story made you feel, if it's multichapter say what you're looking forward to most! Just give us something, some sort of sign that you aren't just taking a fic and throwing it away like a used napkin.

I've stopped replying to comments when all I have to say is "thanks for commenting" because it just feels like groveling, like I should be appreciative that they took the ten seconds to leave a simple comment. Simple comments are still good, they're still important, but I feel like writers shouldn't have to show their gratitude for them so someone thinks they should keep commenting. This is a more niche thing, but I've seen it here and there, both from writers apologizing for not immediately replying and from readers saying that lack of response discourages them from commenting at all.

Just show your appreciation for the free content you're given, for crying out loud. It is not that hard, I promise, and it will mean a fuckton more to the author than the actual effort it took to do it.

[mikaze-discord]

Class S: Love letters

This is the Class S+ Cecil love letters!! 

Please enjoy under the cut

TOKIYA ICHINOSE 

From Riri:

Maybe it was his midnight-blue hair, or perhaps it was his ocean eyes, but the very moment I laid my eyes upon him my mind immediately thought, “Wow, he’s very good looking… charming... I really like his vibe.” That was the first reason why he piqued my interest, rather, the initial reason why I fancied him. My eyes were drawn to him and the fact that Kay bombarded me with a truckload of his pictures didn’t help at all, I just fell deeper into the hole. But as if that wasn’t enough, she started spamming me with utapri songs and I fell in love immediately. They are all such good singers but there’s one of them who sticks out to me the most, as expected, it’s Tokiya. His voice has this intricate and refined softness that seemed to caress my ears and touch my soul. He has such a sweet (and might I add a handsome) voice, kudos to Miyano Mamoru for that.

So I started watching the anime and through that, I got to know him better. At first, he seems cold with an air of loneliness and uneasiness dawning on him. But as the series progresses, I discovered that he’s a good-natured, warm, and dedicated person who loves singing and music with all his heart and all. He’s hardworking, dedicating everything to his craft. He has pride in it, so when he was told that his singing has no ‘heart’ it affected him a lot. That caused a lot of distress in his system, and the fact that his company is pushing him to pursue other things than being a singer added to that. His passion for his craft is burning, a fire that no one could put out. That’s one of the things that I love about him. He’s dedicated to everything he does. He’s a perfectionist but he’s also a caring person who cares a lot about the starish members. He’s genuinely a good person but that doesn’t mean he’s perfect. He strives for improvement and development all the time. He helps the members whenever they need. Most importantly, his attitude towards his passion is respectable and admirable.

I might’ve said a lot of things but I guess that only means I love a lot of things about him. He’s such a beautiful soul that inspires me to be more dedicated to my passion, to make my dreams come true no matter what it takes. His path towards his dream was rough, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows but that’s life, isn’t it? Despite that, he kept walking towards his dream. He’s admirable, respectable, and irresistibly loveable. That being said, I love all the things that made his character; that made Tokiya Ichinose be the kind of character that he is right now.

PS. Miyano Mamoru played a big part too. His insane talent gave life to Tokiya’s character.

From @poorlydrawnutapri:

When I first watched the Utapri anime like 6 years ago, having a best boy didn't cross my mind. At first, I was just most interested in Tokiya out of all the boys because I just thought he looked cool. I liked how mysterious he seemed and also, his hair, probably just because it was blue tbh. Either way, good design.

However, what really got me attached to him wasn't his looks. I then liked Tokiya's serious personality. I like how he starts off cold and stoic but how throughout the games and anime, he slowly softens up. I didn't just like his personality, I could also relate to his perfectionism and hard-working side, even when he exhausts himself, which is something I admit I also have. I continue to relate to him now after all this time, and that's why he's such a good character to me.

Besides that, his songs are nice to listen to and he has just a very pleasant voice. It's nice just to go listen to his voice after a long day. In a way, liking Tokiya also got me into the whole Utapri franchise: made some friends, made a couple of good memes, all that kinda stuff.

Also, I feel like it's a crime not to mention this so: he thicc. Like, dang, no wonder the guy only eats salads because all the fats he eats goes straight to that ass of his. (I am sorry that you had to read that.)

Overall, I just think he's neat. To me, he's relatable and has a nice character development. Tokiya is and will continue to be my best boy. :)

REN JINGUJI 

From @incorrect-jinguji-ren:

Ren Jinguji, the 5th member of Starish is without any shame my favorite character of the Uta no prince sama series. Though often disregarded Ren is and always will be my most favorite and I firmly believe that he has one of the most, if not the most depth in his character. I love Ren a lot however because of his surface charismatic attitude he is usually labeled as a “playboy” or a “lothario”. This is not correct and it should never define him, as he actually is one of the most gentle and compassionate characters of the series. Ren has a very deep surface characterization and personality that is never usually recognized unless you truly take the time to understand WHY Ren acts the way he does, and WHY he makes the choices that he makes. My favorite part about loving characters is being able to accept them for their demons and embrace what others would see as the “imperfections” in them. That Is the best way to truly love them. I love Ren because of his motives, choices, and most of all his passionate loving heart. Although the pain he hides and the personality of who he really is, is hidden under a mask of charisma, he never loses himself deep within.

He’s misunderstood, but he’s beautiful. He’s so deep, from the everlasting devotion to loving his passed on mother, to always cherishing memories and the past bond he had with his childhood best friend Masato, to going against what his brother wants of him because he wants to fight to have a choice and to be passionate about something that he wants to love, because HE wants to love it. Ren didn’t have the love that a lot of people had at such a young age, he made a path for himself and along the way succumbed to the human faults that we all falter from within the hardest times in our life or even dicult events. He almost gave up, just as I know many of us had almost done before, as I know and can relate to, and still do now.

But he dusted himself o and picked up where he left o, making himself happy from once the feeling of being a hollow shell with no reason why he even existed to realizing that the most important thing in the world to him was cherishing the people who made him see the world in colors and seeking the choices that had been stripped from him at such a young age. He broke free from the chains of his family, his past, and his regrets to spread a beautiful pair of rose wings, his own wings to fly. And I hope he always flies. I will always love him, and wish nothing but the best for him whatever that be.

From @chips-and-vodka:

Ren Jinguji- the sexy, charming and flirty member of the STARISH boys. The youngest of the Jinguji family, a troubled child who grew up without a mother. A person who possesses many charms and is blessed with the gift of beauty. A red rose he was, beautiful yet his thorns are to be avoided. Beneath his passionate and seductive mannerisms there is a boy that craves genuine affection, from the one he truly adores and cherishes.

Ren Jinguji to me initially was one with a beautiful, attractive deep baritone, who is voiced by none other than the legend- Suwabe Junichi himself. The voice is an accurate fit of how this stereotype of a charming bishie should be, youthful and sensitive, and at times warm and seductive. His portrayal brings out the appeal of the character, the emotions and thoughts a troubled young adult such as the ‘useless third son’ lived through. Many would see him as a romantic one, one who showers those around him with attention and passion. Within however lives a rebellious soul who distrusts many, but still somehow desires that ray of sunshine that brightens his lonely soul.

Ren Jinguji is one that deserves real love, someone who appreciates him for who he is.

SYO KURUSU

From Jules:

Why do I like Syo, huh? Well, there are a lot of reasons! Some of them are more personal ones. First of all, Syo has always been my best boy, since UtaPri (the anime) exists. So ten long years now.

His fashion style is the first thing I noticed and it immediately intrigued me. I remember that my first thought, after seeing him in season one, was “Woah, he looks really cool!” even though Syo was just in his school uniform! I think what also made me interested in him was his energetic persona. The way he looked up to Ryuya Hyuga and wanted to follow in his footsteps was really sweet to me as well. Syo’s enthusiasm and positive attitude actually encouraged me to become stronger in a way too, if I’m being honest. I, personally, have always found his songs motivating and they made me feel better. I really came to love Syo in his episode in season one. When he talked about his childhood and how weak he was, I really felt with him. From that moment on I cheered him on and Syo definitely became my favorite character. My interest never wavered over the next seasons either.

I also have personal reasons why I love him so much. I just feel very connected and relate to him a lot, y’know? We have quite a few things in common. Syo and I have the same eye color, we have both played the violin since we were little, and were born weak and with pretty much the same health and heart issues. I like to say that Syo “saved” me, which is true. There is also the fact that the blonde and I are both on the shorter side (and regularly get teased for it), too! Though, I’m even a little shorter than him.

But to be more positive again, there is just so much more to him than meets the eye at first! Syo is more than just the stereotypical short sporty character. He really cares for his friends and wants the best for them. Syo’s friendship with every STARISH member is different but still close. He’s also protective of the ones around him. Syo really cares about his little twin brother too, which can be seen in the games and the few times he talked about him in the anime. Syo’s big heart easily balances out his, sometimes, tsundere behavior and I love him for that. This blonde idol is just a great guy and deserves all the love he’s getting and more.

Seriously, stan Syo Kurusu, guys!

From Vic:

Syo Kurusu is my favourite idol within the utapri games and any other form of media pertaining to the franchise. He is my favourite idol because of several factors, one of which being that his voice actor is Hiro Shimono, who voices Zenitsu from Demon slayer and Lucifer from “Devil is a part timer”. Syo is a very outgoing character and is talented in many aspects athletically. Born with a heart disease, he continues to persevere throughout the myriads of life’s problems in front of him.

He’s extremely outgoing and is proficient in the martial art of Karate and desires to strengthen his body more than what it is currently. He is best friends with Natsuki and can communicate with each other proficiently. Syo is my favourite character within the franchise because of his resolve, perseverance and great chemistry with Natsuki and his teammates. Hiro Shimono did the character justice by making his voice one of young, adventurous and energetic. With that said, Syo is a character I truly enjoy within the franchise and wish to see more of him.

CECIL AIJIMA 

From Anon:

Greetings, princes and princesses, and welcome to a world of princes, questionably talking cats, and magic! I’m of course talking about Cecil Aijima, our foreign prince of UtaPri! So, why do I like Cecil Aijima? It’s borderline ridiculous, but it’s because of Cecil’s birthday. More specifically, Cecil’s Birthday Cruise card. But, I should start at the beginning.

Back when I first watched the anime, I thought Cecil was a little bit of a brat towards literally everyone, and one of my least favorites at the time. After watching through the rest of the anime though, I started to like him a lot more than I did before. To me, he had matured a lot after season 2, and never turned back to that bratty self. And so, when playing SL, he might not have been my favorite, but I didn’t hate him. Then, that one fateful day, I decided to pull in his birthday gacha. To my surprise, I had gotten the card in my first pull! Then the story dragged me into the Cecil Appreciation Group. I thought the story was incredibly cute. Then I got more Cecil cards so I could read more stories. Then the cycle repeated itself again. And now, well, if I’m writing this, I think you know what happened to me afterwards. I’ll be here, doing my best for him.

From Eden: 

The boy with childish like demeanor but continues to have a heart of gold for his friends and wonderful composer.

I remember first watching Utapri in middle school and questioning. "Well shit- this is my life now..." and I didn't really have a favorite character at the time. I was always bouncing between characters like Syo, Otoya, even the teachers. However it was season 2 that made me realize who my true favorite was. Despite his at first cocky nature when he was first introduced, Cecil to me was amazing! His singing was magical, his origins even more fascinating. You wouldn't think Utapri would turn that down the magic route but it somehow did.

As the seasons went on, and as I got more into the series, he just became more of a love to me. His kindness and child-like nature and curiosity, he felt different than the other characters.

I love the other characters, yes but him?

Something about him just felt right! He not only seems to be a protector for those he cares about but also feels like he would be the best person to be around. Always wanting to do anything new and exciting just to peak his curiosity and to learn more. Ever since then, he has always been my favorite. The one and only Annapolis Prince, Aijima Cecil.

[oldsmobile-hotdogs]

Questions for crossover jatp ghosts crossover fic: I hope Julian and the sunset curve boys talk about the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Yugoslav wars that happened when they were alive + Bill Cilnton. I wonder what pat and the band would talk about considering that they would of been kids when pat died? Do you think Julie would think of Les Mis and Hamilton cos Thomas and Kitty are from about the same time period as those musicals? I hope Julie calls Fanny Mary poppins.

Anon, or "Mimi", or "Lulu", or, heck, maybe even "Carl Birtles": Update: Not Carl Birtles. Carl Birtles sent me an ask and is cool, actually.

Stop. Right now. I'd say stop while you're ahead, but you are so far away from ahead at this point it's laughable.

For everyone confused, this is that "commenter from AO3" I joked about making a 2017-esque story time video about.

A couple days ago I uploaded the first chapter of a Julie and the Phantoms/BBC Ghosts crossover fic.

You know what? I’m gonna promo it here bc it’s my callout post and I can shill if I want to: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30681704/chapters/76661471

It was generally very well received and I've had a blast interacting with readers.

Except for this.

Honestly, there's so much to get into, so I’m putting it under a cut:

This was their first correspondence (email notif bc I deleted the comment, the deletion to be explained later):

(Funnily enough, the links very much do not work on AO3, making the comment only more jarring)

I gave you *so much* benefit of the doubt when I saw this comment, and assumed that maybe you're an ESL user, just very enthusiastic to share ideas, and I pretty much said so in my reply, but know that at that point I'd already had friends- who fucking know about this, don't you dare think you're getting me alone- tell me that you were being very demanding.

Below was my reply (another email notif):

I'm gonna be honest, I think I responded really well to what I was given, and now that I'd replied, I was pretty certain the situation was dealt with. You, evidently, didn't agree, as shown by your reply to my reply:

A word of advice: when replying to someone, at least pretend like you read what they wrote.

At this point I'm left wondering two things:

What do they expect from me, if a general reply is not it?

How much more shit do they have waiting to tell me to put in my- reminder, JATP/BBC Ghosts crossover, rated T, comedic- fic?

In order to avoid finding out either, I freeze the thread on AO3. I'm liveblogging all of this on Discord.

It's then that I notice that the username on AO3 isn't clickable, so even if I wanted to block or report them I couldn't. I assume, therefore, that they've deactivated, and since them seeing their comments gone and getting angry was the only thing stopping me deleting the comments, I delete the comments.

It's also at this point I see "Mimi" never left kudos. I guess I don't deserve praise until I mention "Bill Cilnton".

There's relative calm for a short amount of time, until I get another comment:

This one is much kinder than the others and doesn't mention any specific, weird, historical events, so the extent to which I think this is "Mimi" is debatable, but bestie I'm weirded out enough that anything that even uses the enter bar unnecessarily and misses out conjunctive words like "because" and "and" is going to activate fight or flight. Update: Carl Birtles is not Mimi or Lulu. Carl was just being genuinely kind and I misinterpreted it and that's on me.

However, "Carl"'s case is not helped by the fact I can't click his account either, that AO3 offers me the ability to report it as spam, and that guess who replies to "Carl"'s comment: Update: Carl, having done nothing wrong as he has, is therefore also a victim in the situation that is being replied to by Lulu. It would seem Lulu is trying to correct??? some of Carl's commentary.

You must think I didn't get a 7 on my English Literature GCSE because you seem to underestimate my ability to compare two texts.

So clearly this is "Mimi", who has also just replied to "Carl". "Lulu" is also deactivated, and I've fallen off the end of my tether, let alone reached it, at this point so I mark it as spam. "Carl" gets to stay bc he said the idea for the crossover was good. Update: Carl also gets to continue to stay because I have it on good faith that he's a stand-up dude.

So at this point you've readily admitted through your inability to shake up your writing style to using at least one sockpuppet to convince me to talk about the "Yugoslav wars".

If "Carl Birtles" is the real(-est) of them, and "Mimi" and "Lulu" are the sockpuppets, by the way, I have questions and ideas about what you do on your free evenings and I want them neither confirmed nor answered. Update: This is slanderous and I want to apologise wholeheartedly to Carl for making assumptions about him and judging his character. Once again, he is not Mimi or Lulu. He's just a normal, cool guy.

And now you come to me, on the day of my daughter's wedding on a different platform, leave me an anon ask in the exact same format as you're so fond of, and expect any different ??

Well, yeah, then I guess I'll give you special treatment this time.

Here's exactly why I will never include anything you have told me to include:

Julian and the Phantoms discussing the Berlin Wall would be highly inappropriate for the largely fluffy, cracky tone of my fanfiction, especially given how recently the event occurred, how many Eastern Germans still experience prejudice to this day because they were born within the old borders of the DDR, and because of how nuanced this, essentially proxy war, was and how ill-informed a huge amount of the world is on the actual factors in play during this time and the Cold War in general.

Julian and the Phantoms will not discuss Yugoslavia dissolving, nor the fallout and conflict that resulted, because it was genocidal. There is nowhere I can fit Julian, pantsted, casually asking Luke “hey do you remember when the Herzegovinas were killed en masse by the Serbs?” Not gonna happen.

They won’t discuss Bill Clinton because all of them know who the current world leaders are: they don’t have amnesia, they’re ghosts. The fic is also rated T, so it would be inappropriate to make any explicit reference to “sexual relations”. None of them play saxophone.

Julie wouldn’t think of Les Mis or Hamilton because Thomas is Regency, not French Revolution, and Kitty is Georgian, not Colonial.

Julie won’t be calling Fanny Mary Poppins because she is perpetually stuck in a white dress, doesn’t wear a hat, doesn’t own an umbrella or a purse and was not the nanny or housekeeper of Button House.

The ghosts will not discuss the marvels of modern transportation or how long it would’ve taken to cross the Atlantic on dinghy because the ghosts have seen Friends. The house irl is on a flight path. They know airplanes exist. Alison and Mike pulled up in a car.

I will probably have the phantoms and Willie talk to Pat and Julian about being from the ‘80s and ‘90s. That I will actually probably do.

The Captain will not mention FD Roosevelt because, again, they all know who the current world leaders are, and I doubt he expects a ‘90s pop punk band to have any insider knowledge on the man.

It was interesting to think of the phantoms’ grandparents having been alive during WW2. I wasn’t lying. But there is nearly nothing I can do with this information.

But above all: both sets of ghosts have already adapted to modern life. Because the shows are shorter, and meant to actually be able to fit jokes in them.

If you want to see any of this, write your own damn fic. I don’t own the concept of a JATP/BBC Ghosts crossover.

What you will not do, “consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel”-nim, is hound me on multiple accounts and then change platform to hound me again. I’m absolutely not having it.

I have never received an interaction quite like this before, and I cannot help but wonder if this is because this is my first work in the Ghosts/HH/Them There/Six Idiots/Yonderland/Bill fandom: that this is where you primarily camp out.

So it’s at this point I ask the Them There/Six Idiots fandom if they have/if they know anyone who has had a run-in with this person or thinks they may have, or if anyone perhaps even knows who this is? Maybe I’m just one of many. Maybe this is a necessary fandom evil I was unaware of.

This experience has left me royally freaked out, as one might imagine, especially since my anxiety in general has been acting up due to it being exam season. I want to thank everyone who’s read my rambles on Discord and on here and even listened to them irl and offered support from the bottom of my heart.

I’ve enabled comment moderation on the fic. I will continue to write it, and I will put exactly what I, and only what I, want in it.

Believe it or not, I wanted to do literally anything else today.

Anon: Fucking Leave Me Alone.

Update: Just reiterating: Carl is not Mimi or Lulu. Carl is a cool dude and I want to sincerely apologise for having brought him into this mess, passing judgment on his character, and making him feel like he should stop practicing English online.

[stifledlaughterao3]

How writing recursive fic (fanfic of fanfic) has made me a better author and member of fandom

After doing the math, approximately 45% of my AO3 works are recursive fanfiction. (I am actually excluding a large translation I did which was a translation of a recursive work itself!) The majority of that is from one single series, with the rest being significantly below that. 

There are a few fanfics for which I've written fic. 

1. "ReSWAN: The remix of Song Without A Name" by LadyYatexel

2. "Deep Dish Nine" by LadyYatexel (which turned into a community-wide AU where I took inspiration from other authors as well, such as tinsnip)

3. "Doing the Unstuck" by TempeTot

4.  "Designation: Miracle" by umisabaku (the large majority of my recursive fic is for this series, most within a collection work, as well as a few stand-alone works.)

I've noticed a few patterns in fic that I am writing fic for. They are always:

1. An AU where the characters, changed by their AU circumstances, have aspects of them that are unique to the AU application and reflected strongly in their personalities and actions

2. There is more depth / possibilities of emotional interplay in the AU presented than the canon 

3. Queer in both pairings and mood (relying heavily on found family, introspctions about sexuality, subversive responses to mainstream sexuality) . There sometimes are M/F pairings in the fic I base my fics on, but at least one pairing within the fic is always queer. 

Permission

Something that feels different from writing regular fic as opposed to recursive fic is permission from the author. When writing regular fic, I feel that I do not owe the creator any sort of heads up or permission to write. There are entire laws protecting me on this.

Therefore, theoretically, there should be nothing stopping me from just writing recursive fic, posting it, and saying ,"This other fic was inspired by this other fic". However, having been in fandom since 2004, I don't feel it would be good fandom etiquette to do that without at least inquiring first.

I've never been told I cannot write the fic - however, if the author preferred that I not post a fic of their fic, I'd adhere to that. Would I write it in private? If I felt moved enough, yes, but not post. There's nothing stopping me except that I, as a longtime member of fandom, want to do my part to make fandom a kind place that acknowledges reasonable requests. 

Perhaps it is hypocritical of me to write and post fanfic without the permission of the original media creator, whether it be a single author or a giant franchise, but when it's a fellow fanfic creator, that's where I draw the line? Maybe it's because I can usually easily message the fanfic creator and ask. Whereas, if the creator of the anime I am writing about personally messaged me to ask me to stop writing their characters kissing (or, more likely, having extended conversations over food), maybe I would pull my fics. Or, in the long-standing tradition of fandom/media relationships formed on defiance, I would wave my hand at the OTW Legal Team and say, "Go talk to them." It hasn’t happened so I honestly am not sure how I would respond. 

In every instance the fanfic author has happily given me the go-ahead. Some have linked my work in the "works inspired by" section at the bottom of their fic, and others haven't, and I'm fine either way. I'm discomfited by the idea of the recursive fic author requesting the author link their story in the original fic - it feels like asking for free advertising, which then gets into the capitalism aspects of fandom that in general make me uncomfortable (in this case not cash capital but social capital/views.) 

Posting etiquette 

Another piece of recursive fic etiquette that I've done is, after I figured this particular etiquette out, was that I kept all of the stories for my recursive fic in one AO3 work and added chapters. (My earlier recursive fics are their own works as I hadn't gotten the hang of how I wanted my recursive fics displayed.) Even if the stories are long and disparate, they are 95% of the time one-shots, so that would be A. many stories filling up the AO3 feed for that fandom and B. filling up my AO3 works list with many one-shots for this specific AU.

For the fanfics that are longer or are really deserving of their own works, I try to really limit it and then post all of the chapters at once so it does not appear multiple times over days. These however are rare. The majority are held within one work that I call a collection. For example, "A Handmade Scrapbook" (which hosts the majority of my "Designation: Miracle" recursive fics), at this time of writing, has 23 chapters, all of which are completely unrelated one-shots and AUs. I sometimes would save up a handful of shorter stories I had written and post those chapters all at once so as not to clog the Kuroko No Basuke tag (which is canon for the D:M AU.) Sense I cannot assume average KnB fanfic reader has context of D:M (even if they read the first story, the majority of my works are based on the most recent addition to the series), they cannot read that fic, and thus I feel a bit guilty if I were to clog the tag with my recursive fic. I also do not tag the canon tag on tumblr if it is a recursive fic, especially one that requires a ton of source fic knowledge in order to begin to understand. 

Again - is this necessary? In theory, it’s not. I could post a 100-word recursive fic every day forever on the AO3 tag and be completely in my rights to do so (I mean, I’m sure there’s some rule about spamming but that aside). However, something in me is feeling that it would not be considerate of other readers to do so. (I could probably look at my actions and think, “Hmm, is this influenced by my gender and how women are taught to not take up space, even if it’s okay to?” but we shan’t be getting into that now.)

I know that posting frequently, spreading out those frequent posts, and advertising gets more comments on fics. However, for my recursive fics, I genuinely don’t expect them to get views -and that’s okay! They often require pre-reading of another fic, which narrows down the readership considerably, and if it’s something huge, like my longer D:M fics, that’s a big investment. Therefore, writing recursive fic is genuinely a for-me practice that lets me be very self-indulgent and narrow with my interests. It's an interesting catch-22 - I truly enjoy comments and kudos, and love hearing feedback on my work. But the less I assume that someone will read a fic, the more off the rails I feel I can go with it, and thus why some of my favorite fics I've written are the recursive ones. 

That does mean, however, when people read my recursive works, I cherish those comments and interactions a little more than my other fics, as I know that it took a little more to read my works and comprehend and appreciate them. 

Characterization

Something specific to writing recursive fic is that it differs from regular fanfic in how precise the characterization is. Generally, when writing fic, you have to align (at least somewhat) to the characterization portrayed in canon. However, your interpretation of it can vary pretty wildly, and while you probably would be called out as writing someone as out of character if it skews significantly from canon, you can get away with your various interpretations. 

With recursive fic, you’re deliberately working with a fellow fanfic writer’s interpretation. The entire point of your writing a fic of one of their fics is that their interpretation or worldbuilding grabbed you enough to want to write from it. Of course, there are instances where a characterization of a character is popularized enough to where you can just write it and it’s not necessarily a ‘recursive fic’ as much as ‘using a fic’s interpretation as a template’. In a recursive fic, you’re specifically writing to that characterization. 

That’s why I think writing recursive fic has made me a better fanfic writer- writing regular fic, I did not feel particularly beholden to the canon characterization, and could shrug off writing a character a specific way if I felt like it. It is, after all, my right as a fic writer to do so. 

However, with recursive fic, the entire purpose of me writing a recursive fic is so that I could make an homage the author’s characterization. It’s the characters that drew me in, after all (although it is occasionally the worldbuilding as well, which is when I bring in my own OCs, but that happens infrequently.) In many instances in the fics I’ve written recursive fics for, the characters had become so distinct that they were basically OCs at that point (or, I was writing about actual OCs from the fic). Therefore, I had a fairly strict characterization to follow if I really wanted to be writing recursive fic and not just “loosely inspired by this fic”. 

Which leads back to another point about being a more conscientious member of fandom. The likelihood of anyone from the media I engage with reading my fic is slim to none. However, since I do ask each writer if I can post a recursive fic based on their fic, the likelihood of them reading it goes up significantly more (not necessarily 100%, but definitely higher than 0%!) Therefore, I feel slightly more beholden to ‘getting it right’. 

I’ve also asked if I can write NSFW content of the characters for some stories, particularly if they were OCs. Again - something I am not required to do, but it’s part of me being respectful of the author’s choices. It also wouldn’t fit some character’s arcs or personalities if I were to write smut of them, so I do not do that, but for other characters, there were fade-to-black scenes that I wanted to fill in the gaps of. However! Just because that existed in the fic didn’t mean it was alright for me to write it, so I checked. 

That said, per my earlier comment, I clearly write regular fic of characters having sex without checking in on the creator’s wishes. In fact, if a media creator came out and said, “X isn’t gay, stop writing them gay” I likely would not care. (See: Star Trek DS9’s butchering of Garak/Bashir. In my head, however, they are happily married and living together on Cardassia.) Therefore, it could be something else to examine within myself, as to why I give more consideration to fellow fans over the wishes of the media creators. 

Conclusion

I write recursive fic for the same reason I write regular fic- I am so incredibly compelled to write it that I legitimately cannot stop myself. The same daydreaming+plot bunny herding+fannish actions I do when I engage with a new media I like occur for fics that I read, particularly well fleshed-out AUs with a strong worldbuilding premise that I’d like to expand upon. 

However, unlike regular fic, the engagement with the author of the source fic means I am interacting with other writers on a more personal level than just leaving comments, something I really hadn’t done in fandom when I first started writing fanfiction when I was much younger. 

Writing recursive fic has made me friends and helped me understand my own writing more. Even though it narrows my reading audience considerably, it brings me back to why I write in the first place - my own joy. Comments, views, kudos, and feedback are wonderful, but in the end, writing something because it makes me happy, no matter how niche or narrow, is why I write. 

[lodessa]

Fic Writer Tag Game

tagged by @janiedean, @thank-god-and-you, and @fanoftheknight!

AO3 name: lodessa 

Fandoms:  Okay, I’m splitting this up because I have written in too many!

Major:

Star Trek: Voyager (72)

Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire (48)

Real Person Fiction (24)

Veronica Mars (24)

Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling (21)

Mid-level:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer /Angel the Series (15)

Star Trek: Discovery (10)

The Office (US) (8)

Doctor Who (6)

Revolution (TV) (6)

Firefly/Serenity (6)

Grey's Anatomy (5)

I Dabbled:

Longmire (TV) (4)

The Dresden Files - Jim Butcher (4)

Arthurian Mythology (3)

Arrow (TV 2012) (3)

His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman (2)

Ancient Greek Religion & Lore (2)

Bones (TV) (2)

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2)

Codex Alera - Jim Butcher (2)

One Offs:

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, Dollhouse, Almost Human, Star Trek: The Next Generation, iZombie, Watchmen, Big Love, Babylon 5, Rome Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies), Journeyman.

Number of fics: 276!

Fic I spent the most time on: Salvation and Rapture For the Lonely (Doctor Who, Martha/Nine), which I started in 2008 and finished in 2018!

Fic I spent the least time on: That is a many way tie.  I used to write a lot of short quick things.

Longest fic: (Discounting my co-authored works) Parameters (Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway/Chakotay) at 46,345 words.

Shortest fic: One Dance (Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway/Chakotay) at 141 words (because I tend to stash drabbles into a work collecting multiple rather than spam the tag)

Most hits: Temptations of the Flesh (A Song of Ice and Fire, Jon Snow/Melisandre, Sansa/Littlefinger) at 15,327 hits (apparently people really like dark fic)

Most kudos: Parameters (Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway/Chakotay) at 507 kudos.

Most comment threads: Dragon Marked (Game of Thrones, Daenerys/Jorah) with 92 comment threads for the 8 currently published chapters... which I really need to continue.

Most bookmarks: No Longer the Maid of Tarth (A Song of Ice and Fire, Jaime/Brienne) with 78 bookmarks

Total word count:  872,893 words

Favourite fic I wrote: I am terrible with favorites... truly. 

Fic you want to rewrite/expand on:

Not counting my WIPs (Stumbling [Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway/Chakotay], k’war’ma’khon [Star Trek: Discovery], and Dragon Marked [Game of Thrones, Dany/Jorah]. ) 

I would say The Smallest Twine (Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway/Chakotay... though the two planned sequels open up into TNG and DS9 as well), which is an AU Prequel for Voyager, but also sets up the possibility of a very different trajectory for the end of the Cardassian War (as explored by all three 24th century Trek series).  Butterfly effect and all that.  

Share a bit of a WIP or a story idea you’re planning on:

Since I was tagged multiple times, I’ll preview a couple things I am (theoretically) working on.

For @janiedean, my ASOIAF book!verse canon compliant Jaime/Brienne, Davos/JonC, Sansa/Aegon someday maybe epic:

“I thought she’d be safe here…” Brienne called out to herself as much as Jaime as their captors shoved her forward away from him, feeling foolish for having thought the wars would have left her home untouched.  “I thought we all would be.”

I should have known, she felt, even as she knew there was no reason for her to have suspected.  Perhaps, if they had lingered longer in White Harbor, they might have heard word of the raids surrounding Cape Wrath.  But how could they have?  They were none of them inconspicuous, even with Sansa’s hair dyed.

The Kingslayer and two women who half of Westeros believed to be the same. A fine catch for mercenaries to sell to the highest bidder.   How could you have been so stupid? she berated herself.

That said, though the Golden Company named Westeros as their home, these men came from Essos, perhaps these soldiers wouldn’t recognize the maimed lion they had captured, wouldn’t see the wolf disguised as a bird.

Brienne, alone, was not worth ransoming to anyone other than her own father, surely.   Assuming he was alive to ransom her to, that was.  Brienne shuddered to think of the alternative, of some mercenary captain who decided he wanted to legitimize his claim to this island, no matter the cost, no matter how her already ugly face had been disfigured.

For @memoir-of-stars and @fanoftheknight, the drunken Dany/Jorah Game of Thrones AU fic I promised someone (I think it was @salzrand) last summer:

“The Donrish seem to have as many vineyards as the Dothraki have horses,” he heard Daenerys remark to Jorah, leaning halfway over him to look out the carriage window, her hand gripping his shoulder for balance.

“You wouldn’t think it, with the price the resulting wine fetches,” Ser Jorah replied, catching Daenerys with surprisingly steady hands as the carriage hit a rock and jostled them all.  

Daenerys allowed herself to be drawn back down onto the cushions beside Mormont, curling herself up against his side and resting her head against his shoulder.   Tyrion wasn’t sure what to make of the tableau they formed, her so slight and blossoming and him solid and weathered.  Mormont, he knew, was devoted to Daenerys beyond any doubt, and in every sense of the word but he was beginning to suspect he’d misjudged the nature Daenerys’ attachment to her bear, as she could so often be overheard calling Ser Jorah.

“Lemon trees!” the queen called out in obvious delight, interrupting Tyrion’s musing and reminding him once again how young the usually composed Daenerys really was.

And one more for good measure (since that was three tags), the Deanna Troi/Jadzia Dax Star Trek: TNG and DS9 crossover PWP I need to finish someday

“I hope I’m not overstepping.”

Standing in her doorway is Deanna Troi, Daughter of the Fifth House of Betazed, all soft curls and soft curves and a gentle unpresuming air that contradicts and heightens the impact of those things.  Jadzia is intrigued… okay she was already intrigued: now she’s closer to enchanted.

“Step all you want,” Jadzia keeps the tone of flirtatiousness in her voice light, knowing that the empathic counselor will be bound to notice it but letting it be something she can choose to react to or not.

Doubtless, she’s here about Worf.   She’s pretty sure everyone from here to the promenade heard their last row and, of course, Troi was there for the start of it.   

That’s okay with Jadzia.  There aren’t that many people who’ve seen certain sides of Worf, who understand him. (Sometimes Jadzia isn’t even sure she’d put herself in that number.)  It would be a relief to talk to someone who gets it.

“I feel like I owe you an apology, Jadzia.  Is it alright if I call you Jadzia?”

You could call me just about anything and I’d like it,  that wicked little Dax voice suggests, but it just brings a smile to her face.

Tagging: @joyful-voyager, @toas-tea, @ghostcat3000, @pixiedane, and @sophia-helix.

[multiply014]

#31 Days of CoAi, start!

Happy ShinAi Day (4/1), everyone!

Today marks the first day of 31 Days of CoAi!

If you don’t have any idea what I’m talking about, 31 Days of CoAi is this project spanning April 1, ShinAi Day, up to May 1, CoAi Day, where I (and, hopefully, you, too!) post every day, celebrating our lovely little submarine ship, CoAi!

Thus, I will be spamming your feeds, posting anything CoAi every day from 4/1 until 5/1: one post talking about a fic I’ve written, and another post with a (short) fic for a given prompt. 

Please send me your energy so that I manage to fulfill my promise for these next 31 days, haha!

In addition, since today is a special day (it’s the first day after all!), I’ll share how I started shipping CoAi! ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

How did I start shipping CoAi? 

My one-word, catch-all answer would be: Shiho. (≧▽≦)

You know what, the first time I knew of Haibara Ai, I didn’t like her. Seeing how much I adore her to bits now, isn’t this surprising? Still, I don’t think she was likable then, and I think her introduction wasn’t written to be likable anyway, too. She literally scared Shinichi out of his mind, making him think that one of the people he loved most in his life, Agasa, had been killed. All the while, she had been insinuating that it had been because of Shinichi.

How was I supposed to like her? We were given nothing on Haibara Ai. When she confessed that she was Sherry, that she had created the drug that shrank both Shinichi and her, what did she want? She says, “Since I have no place to go, my only hope left was you. Because I thought you could certainly understand me who was sharing the same fate as you.” 

But the title of the chapter where she says this is literally “The Girl Made of Lies”. How are we supposed to believe her, when the first thing she does is lie, and the next thing she does is... lie?

At the end of the university professor’s case, it tells us that there is at least one thing she truly wants, which is what she did: she wanted to ask why Shinichi wasn’t able to save her sister if he was that good... And it is at this moment that Shinichi notes that this is the first time he’d seen her true face.

Perhaps, that point should have humanized her and endeared her to me. But, at that point, I still didn’t like her. 

Then the baseball match happened. Then the castle case. Then—and this is where I just knew I’ve already fallen—the hotel case with the Black Organization. With that, they… they... just… happened.

In short, it was a series of chapters and interactions that made me fall for Shiho and into the doomed rabbit hole that was CoAi. In every chapter that had the two of them, it just brought out such a different and refreshing side to each of them that I can’t help but want to see them more, together, to see what else they could bring out of each other. 

I could probably make a separate post on how each of their interactions are just so nuanced, and so amusing! But, let’s keep it short for now (just a warning, though, the paragraphs below delve into speculative territory and should be treated as a meta or a headcanon, and NOT as canon):

Let’s start from the beginning. Before Shinichi met Haibara, there were four people who already knew of his situation: Agasa, his parents, and Heiji.

On the other hand, Shiho had no one. We were not introduced to any other person she could have gone to. She just lost her sister, who had been her purpose in life. I say this because she drank APTX once she knew her sister had been killed, expecting it would kill her, too. 

But it didn’t. 

And so, she went to the Kudo mansion. 

What did she want to do? As previously quoted, she had said that Shinichi would understand her as they share the same fate.

But we also know that she’s a liar. And from their succeeding interactions, we would know the extent of her uncanny (since they barely know each other!) ability to read Shinichi and how her thoughts and words run deep. We would know how she keeps her emotions in check, and how easily she can cook up half-truths even mixing in outright lies and present them as facts, if she so determines it necessary, or amusing if it’s about something frivolous like her age.

So I can only conclude, that I don’t know for sure what she wanted by running to Shinichi.

Did she want revenge? —She’s always telling Shinichi not to involve himself with the Organization. 

Did she want forgiveness? —Maybe, but if it was something she wanted to do, its priority must not have been high on her list, since she didn’t apologize to him the moment they met, and, she was hot-and-cold in urging him to hate her and drive her away.

Did she want to know why Akemi died?—She did ask why her sister was killed “countless times” before she left the Organization, and she did ask Shinichi why he wasn’t able to help her sister, but... no, the moment she met Gin again there were no questions about her sister at all.

Did she just want to hide? —This is the most logical reason, because Shiho had no one. She might have known of Akemi’s professor’s name and gone there, but it would be very out-of-character for early Shiho to go there, since she is very cautious and would have thought (correctly) that the Organization would clean up that professor asap. And though she could have gone anywhere, create a new life for herself in a town far away from all the cities she had gone to as Sherry, it would be unlikely for her to pull off without alerting the police, who I think she would have known to have connections to the Organization. Besides, going to Shinichi to employ the same methods that he used to cover up that he is someone who had de-aged would certainly up her chances of survival. 

Still, for someone who had taken APTX knowing that it’s poison, would Shiho really prioritize hiding and surviving just because she survived once? Would that be really what she wanted?

I personally think she had been seeking her purpose: Now that my sister is gone, why am I still alive?

Without anyone to ask, she can only set her short-term goal of staying alive for now while she still doesn’t know and doesn’t know how to know, and bet her chances on the best plan of survival: the one person who’s still going through life as a de-aged person, who also happens to be the one person who could have helped her sister.

And, I find it so fitting that Shinichi gave an answer to her: he gave her an immediate purpose, to create an antidote. And as we go on with the story, along the way, Shinichi, Agasa and the kids build on top of that answer that he initially gave her. It helps her find the courage to move forward. And, a new purpose: to protect.

A big part of how I think Shiho reached such a change within her is her relation to Shinichi. Shiho, who had always been surrounded by black, is looking at how someone who has been tainted, who had every right to hate, did not.

I think this is what fascinated her about him: his fascination with mysteries, and his dogged pursuit of the truth, at the same time his unique approach upon finding out these truths, is something that Shinichi kept even as Conan. 

At the same time, I think this is also what frustrates her about Shinichi. At first, I think, she thought he just didn’t get how the Organization was so frightening… But then, after some time, she knew that Shinichi is so intelligent it’s impossible he didn’t understand. It’s more like, he understood, and that’s why, even more so, he fights. You know how the darker, the bigger the shadow, that just means there’s a brighter source of light that makes it so? This frustrates her because he, that fascinates her, would be snuffed out the closer he gets to the shadows.

My shipping lenses say she gets frustrated because she cares.

Anyway, after all that talk that somehow got carried away into a character analysis of some sort, my answer really comes down to one thing: I started shipping Shiho with Shinichi because Shinichi is a major catalyst and component in getting to know who Shiho is, and in accompanying Shiho through her change. When the two of them are together, Shiho’s character unfurls and it’s wonderful seeing such colorful layers of her character, which is just so rare to see.

So, if you noticed, this reason is ridiculously Shiho-centered. 

Well... yes, I am, in fact, a proud Shiho stan. (≧▽≦)

At the end of these 31 days, I’ll talk about my take on the “Shinichi part” of the ship, which is the perfect answer to why I keep on shipping this submarine, sunk into the deep abyss of the ocean as it is.

If you could tell me how and why you started shipping CoAi, that would be great, too!

See you, and I hope you don’t get tired of seeing me every day for the next month, haha! ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

[hostgalli19]

Google Malfunctioning Chapter 1

Summary: In light of people being banned on YouTube after Markiplier's "This Man Is A Criminal" livestream Google start to malfunction...

Its not a good sign when thousands of people suddenly stop using Google as their main search engine.

Note: I got the idea for this story after watching Mark's most recent video and talking a bit with wonderful people on Doctor_Discord's server. This idea come about thanks to one of the mods suggesting we use Google and YouTube as little as possible and start and internet riot.

Everyone uses Google, only a few people use Bing because Google IS better than Bing in a lot of ways. I decided to write the effect this might have on our favourite genocidal android.

Date: 09/11/19, Time: 3:03 pm - 4:30 pm

Dark was a little concerned when he heard a loud crash and loud screaming from Google's office. The lights flickered briefly before Ben stalked into the kitchen. They hadn't seen Google or his extensions since Matthew had made the stream about AHWM. He was very clearly not happy about something. His eyes were a multi-coloured wheel. His synthetic skin was torn in places, blue liquid dripping from some of the scratches. His internal mechanics were visible and sparking. It was a frankly terrifying sight. Ben seemed to glitch and the lights flickered again. Beta darted into the kitchen looked beyond freaked out and concerned soon followed by Bing. They both grabbed Ben and pinned him to a chair. Be tried to escape but couldn't.

Dark shared an alarmed look with Wilford wondering what on earth was going on. Beta sat in Ben's lap pressing him again against the chair and stopping him from moving. Wilford felt sick as he looked over Ben's various injuries and knew Google had done it to himself, why he would hurt himself Wilford had no idea why but whatever had caused it was serious.

"You mAy wAnT tO conTact MatHew," Beta snapped, his voice glitchy and strained with the effort of keeping Ben pinned to the chair. Beta shifted and hooked his feet around the chair leg and leaned forward effectively pinning Ben in place and stopping him from moving. Ben tried to struggle and get Beta off of him but wasn't able to as Beta had locked his joints. He wasn't going to be moving any time soon.

"Bing what's going on? Why would we need to get Matthew?" Dark questioned, he hadn't seen Google malfunction this bad since he had arrived at the Manor but that had easily been fixed when he had upgraded and all the bug he'd had were fixed. Dark knew this was different somehow and a lot more serious. It took a lot of effort to hurt Google, his skin was incredibly tough and didn't break easily. the look in Bing eyes send shivers down Dark's spin.

"YouTube banned several hundreds, maybe thousand people after Matthew "This Man Is A Criminal" livestream. There's a riot going on. Thousands of people have stop using Google and YouTube and have moved to Bing. Those who can't not use Google are using it as little as possible. It caused him to malfunction," Bing answered, his voice cold and emotionless which was terrifying in itself. Wilford went to retrieve Matthew, hoping their creator could so something to fix whatever was wrong with Google. The cold fruious look in Ben's eyes was frankly terrifying.

Matthew was confused when Wilford appeared in his kitchen. He looked worried and concerned and very much freaked out which was something Matthew never thought he would see. He had been dealing with the aftermath of his livestream, he had hoped it wouldn't affect his egos but knew it had when Wilford appeared. Wilford didn't say anything just grabbed Matthew and dragged him to the Manor.

Matthew was alarmed when he saw Beta had Ben pinned to a chair. The thing that startled him the most was the condition Google was in. He looked beaten up and a little broken. It was frankly alarming and knew his condition had everything to do with the aftermath of the livestream. He didn't think Google would be as effect as he was.

Two Days Ago

Google, was of course watched Matthew's livestream after A Heist With Markiplier. He had of course gone through all the paths and gotten all the endings. It was incredibly fun. It hadn't taken him long fo figure out the clues "Dark" had left in all the videos, he hadn't noticed anything off about Ignorance if Bliss ending ending until Eric had mentioned it. It was a testament to Mark's acting that he had even Google convinced he was Dark. He had started to feel strange shortly after the stream started but ignored the feeling.

He, along with the mods was monitoring the chat and saw the fans voting on what path they should take. He too, voted. The strange feeling got worse after he had voted a few times. His firewall activated when he felt something attacking his system causing Matthew Camera to inadvertently die. The strange feeling only seemed to get worse. He panicked when he saw people were getting banned for spamming the chat. What the hell was going on? Matthew had told them they could Emoji's to vote.

He voted a few more times. Each time the feeling getting worse and worse causing the lights to flicker as something attacked his systems. He couldn't do anything to stop it, nothing he did could stop it. Things only got worse over the next two days. He knew he had to stop whatever was causing the malfunction. He hadn't realised just how bad it had gotten until he accidentally knocked over a glass of water while he was fixing some twisted wires in his arm forcing him to accidentally electrocuted himself and for Gab to drop what he had been holding.

He knew he had to get out. One minute he was in his office the next Beta had pinned him to a chair in the kitchen. He was sore, his skin had been torn in several places, his internal mechanics were visible and sparking and his synthetic was leaking from some broken lines. He had no idea what was wrong with him. He couldn't remember much of the last two days only urgent need to get rid of whatever was attacking his systems.

"Google, what on earth happened?"

End note: Thank you for reading. This idea just wouldn't leave me alone. Please comment and tell me what you think. Don't forget to leave a kudos if you loved the story. I will try and get the second chapter up soon between Uni exams and work.

Ao3 Story Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21365290

[rpdwong]

I am so annoyed at going to Ada Wong tag and seeing Ada and Aeon hate too it's no use to block tags because people are just gonna tag any tag possible, look i don't wanna sound shady but cl-n has no basis and is not even a ship (like it has no content) and Aeon always has been there but all of this makes me annoyed at the fandom I know theres ships but why tag Ada? after all these years Leon still loves her its explicit why all this hate on Ada? I am findin this very depressin and weird... idk

ughn i just wanna enjoy my tag and its hard to be okay with all this hate specially when they compare with a ship thats a NOtp idk... It is just being upsetting seeing Ada receiving all this hate all the time since the re2 remake has been released i hope we get even more aeon its the only ship w leon that exists but yet i feel people are being so blinded and biased Ada is not 1% of what they made in their delusional and mistaken heads ANYWAY sorry i know im venting in ur blog and its not fair

Character hate is definitely one of those things I do not enjoy about fandom. I completely agree with what you say, anon, and I’m sorry this is making your fandom experience less enjoyable. In my opinion, this is one of the problems Tumblr has with its tag system, instead of letting people create communities. You can get hate there too, but it’s more difficult to  join a community to spread hate than just tagging your post about hating a character.

I don’t think having more or less and/or canon content makes a ship better or more valid, and Leon/Claire fans have enough interactions to warrant it and the general idea that they’re good friends, so by all means go forth, ship it and enjoy it. But that definitely shouldn’t include hating on Ada (I’m not saying all Cleon fans do this, of course! Sadly the Ada hate comes every corner, but it happens some times when it involves shipping). I’ll admit I didn’t use Tumblr actively before creating this blog, so I was just lurking in my fandom tags - but it seems pretty clear that the fandom etiquette says you should NOT tag your hate. It’s ok to dislike something and rant about it in your own blog, but don’t tag it. It ruins everyone’s time in fandom and it seems clear that kind of people are just looking for a fight.

As you say, most of Ada hate comes from people’s biased vision of what Ada is, sometimes ignoring what the canon has actually established. Again: this doesn’t mean you have to like her. Everyone has their own cup of teas, and maybe the type of character Ada is isn’t yours (or Ada/Leon as a pairing). But investing time on hating things is such a waste of time, I can’t really understand why people do it. This is especially sad here, because Resident Evil fandom is kind of small and when I see something like this come up, it just gives me war flashbacks from other bigger fandoms (like Star Wars and Reylo, for example). 

That being said, this is my two cents on how to avoid all the drama and have a good time in fandom: instead of searching the tag, try to follow blogs that share positive Ada content and support Ada/Leon. Muting tags (like cleon and/or leon x claire, if you’re seeing a lot of hate on those) should also do the trick. And finally: block people. If you see they’re spamming the tag, just block them. I know some people feel bad about doing it when they’ve never interacted with said users, but seriously, this is the internet and we don’t owe anyone our time.

I think RE2make has ignited a new spark to the fandom, and definitely to the Ada/Leon ship (I noticed it in how much more content there is in the aeon tag, all my Ada/Leon fics in AO3 are receiving WAY more kudos/comments than ever, and we’re getting more fics as well!). Don’t worry about venting, anon, and I hope I could help you a little bit. Fandom is about having fun and enjoying what you like, so try focusing on that and forget about haters. They’re not worth your time.

Also: let’s spread all the Ada Wong love, because our girl deserves it

[multidimensionalmusicalmess]

Always Comment on Things

Okay that title sounds a bit weird, but I have a point I promise. So you know when you’re reading a fanfic, or watching a video on some tiny youtube channel, or reading a blog that gets maybe one or two notes per post, and you notice this and you think “huh, more people should look at this person’s stuff, they’re pretty good”. Comment on those things. Or DM the people, and ask about their work, or send them asks if you’re on this site. 

I always get sad when I read a great story (usually Ao3 but it depends) and I find several people who left kudos but no comments. In my opinion, every story should inspire people to say something about it. If something sucks, write how they could improve it. If it’s good but not to your taste, say that. If it’s amazing and the best thing you’ve ever read, pour that feeling into words and spam them in a comment. People take a long time to produce content, and the least you can do is leave a personal response. Because likes don’t really mean anything, you know? Someone could be a bot, or the type of person who likes everything on their dashboard, or someone very selective who likes to read back through their liked posts or videos (like me). A personalized comment means so much more! They tell the person that you liked their stuff so much you were willing to take time to talk about it, or even if it wasn’t your favorite that you thought they were worth your time. They can be helpful in improving stuff too! Constructive criticism is good. The point is, if you take the time to read something that took hours to write, take some time to comment on it. After all, it’s always annoying when authors don’t communicate with their readers; it’s just as annoying from the other perspective. 

That’s all for now, rant over. Have a very day!

[smolfangirl]

We’re so in love, fighting against all odds, I know we’ll be alright

A sound so sweet, of you and me - 16 - First coming home

Kudos to my ice pack and tissues to myself, because this is the last chapter and I’m emo. It’s been a pleasure to share this story with you and I hope you’ll enjoy this final part and that maybe, one day, you’ll read it all over again with a smile. Thank you, for every like and comment, it warms my heart ♥

Word count: 3.4k

///

“Gastón, please, could you stop writing my boyfriend full novels, so he can answer me too?” Luna couldn’t help but add a hint of annoyance to her tone. Five long days without any contact to Matteo thinned her nerves too much to let Gastón’s spam in the second Matteo was back online uncommented.

“It’s not my fault he likes me better.” Said boy grinned, not even glancing up from his screen for a single moment.

“That’s what he wants you to think”, she mumbled.

Gastón chuckled. The gaze he threw in her direction suddenly looked so smug – so much like the one her chico fresa usually wore – that she wanted to cry.

It’d been too long since she last saw it in person.

Her phone beeped.

Novio fresa: Gastón’s puns will be my end one day… or the reason I go to prison

How is my favorite moon?

A smile hushed on her lips, wider than the ones he elicited before he even knew how much he made her feel. But before she could begin to type an answer, Gastón called for her attention.

“Did he tell you yet if he’ll come back this summer? Before they left for whatever that town was called, he promised me he’d ask his parents but right now, he’s avoiding that question.”

“How could he when he’s mostly answering you? I haven’t even replied to his first message yet because you keep spamming him.”

At that, he remained silent in defeat.

Luna shook her head, not at him, at herself. She wasn’t this grumpy, she didn’t lash out at her friends, and most definitely not at Gastón who showed so much support for her since Matteo had left for Italy.

Or usually, she didn’t.

But now, with the weight of the past days, the weight of the future in front of her wearing her down, she discovered she wasn’t all sunshine. She was rain, too. And lots of it.

“I’ll ask him, okay?” she offered as she smiled at him. Or tried to. Too much anxiety jolted through her body at the thought of Matteo leaving her alone here, leaving her behind when she needed him by her side so much, more than she had told him.

More than she wanted to tell him while he stayed too many miles away.

To novio fresa: I’m okay, just miss you

How was the trip? Got rid of the snow yet? And did you ask your parents?

Was Luna surprised he didn’t have an answer to the last, and most important question? No.

Did it still hurt? Like hell.

He sent pictures of his trip to distract her. Gastón hovered over her phone too, mostly so Matteo could save some of his data. Stunning landscapes filled the photographs. Endless mountains against a clear blue sky, forests bedazzled in soft white powder and a few snaps of ocean waves lingering on a beach.

Surprisingly few included Matteo, though.

It worried Luna, more so when his smile barely resembled the radiant, blinding ones he used to wear, when nothing above the horizon could shine as bright as he did.

But when she asked, he insisted he was fine. Just tired, or he couldn’t see himself on the screen while taking the selfies, or another lame excuse. How much she’d give to hug him until he grinned again…

“Luna, Gastón, can you look up from your phones for just one second? Juliana will be here any minute now.”

Ramiro appeared out of nowhere. He simple was there suddenly, or perhaps she’d been too focused on the opened chat with Matteo.

Luna blinked at him. “Huh?”

“Please tell me you remember that she wanted to talk about the next Open. I have this awesome idea for a performance, but I can’t tell her when she’s too busy getting your attention.”

Now Gastón and her exchanged a confused look. “It’s not our fault, Matteo’s been on a trip the past days and we just miss him”, Gastón explained.

As Ramiro sat down next to them, he shook his head. “Just don’t piss Juliana off by being too attached to that thing, is all I’m saying.”

Out of choices, Luna put her phone away. But during Juliana’s speech, her mind stayed far, far away.

The next time she unlocked her screen, she found two messages from Matteo which caused her heart to crumble into the smallest corner of her chest once more.

Novio fresa: I have to go again, we’re leaving for another trip

Just two days this time tho

To novio fresa: Send me pics when you’re back, I love you

She wanted to tell him she missed him, that this lack of opportunities to talk to him broke her heart and that she needed him, she needed him so so much.

In the end, though, she never wrote that.  

Matteo replied a few minutes later.

Novio fresa: Love you more! And don’t worry I will, you’ll feel like you’re right by my side

If only.

 ///

His heart refused to calm down. Beat after beat, it violently raced in his ribcage, unable to stop, unable to rest. None of the deep breaths Matteo took, none of the scolding looks from his parents had brought him any relaxation. Ever since the last morning, he drowned in excitement.

Now he stood outside, staring at the place connected to so many happy memories, connected to the people he called his home. He took the view in, thought of who he’d find inside, clueless and waiting and soon in his arms again. Despite the long trip, not a single ounce of exhaustion was to be found in his body.

Another deep breath. He needed to chill, at least a little, at least until he found her.

Could you be too ready for something?

 ///

In hindsight, planning their reunion easily amounted to one of the most naïve things Matteo had ever done. He really, really should’ve known better, given their history and how Luna always was good for a surprise herself.

He barely made it five steps into the Roller.

Then, there was the sound of skates on the ground, a voice humming an all too familiar song that made his heart skip a beat and suddenly, she stumbled into him.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t…”

Silence.

Matteo looked at her. Felt his heart sighing, felt peace flooding his veins, felt a smile unfolding on his lips. She stared back at him, disbelief painted all over her face. He could see her brain trying to catch up.

“Hi, solare.”

“You – but – trip – how – you’re here!”

He nodded, not trusting his voice to carry him before he turned into a puddle of emotions.

The first teardrops began to roll over her cheek, though they were caught by the smile that broke free and put the sun along with every other star in the sky to shame.

“I am”, he echoed. Her lips numbed the last part as she fiercely pressed them against his mouth and then they were kissing, and his brain shut down while their faces soon became the playground of their tears, and he felt happy, happier than he’d been in a long time.

I missed you so much.

Breaking apart, Luna’s face was still close while she clung to him as if he’d disappeared the minute she eased her grip on him. “I can’t believe you’re really back.”

Something about her tone caught his attention. Something about the ever-flowing stream of tears, about the sadness he found in her eyes that he never had seen before.

She opened her mouth, whispering, “I need to tell you…”, only for her voice to break.

However, behind them someone yelled his name and whatever just clouded his little moon was gone. Smiling once more, she kissed him again.

“Matteo!” Gastón, undeniably, and Matteo barely turned around before his best friend began running towards him, arms extended until he looked like he escaped from a telenovela, lips pursed.

“Do I get a kiss too?” he asked as he threw himself at Matteo. Luna, who managed to step back just in time, sent her boyfriend an amused look.

She seemed fine again, so he decided not to worry and enjoy being back.

Back home.

“I knew you were attracted to me”, he snickered, “But I’m afraid I can’t give you a kiss.”

“Don’t be so afraid of loving me.” Gastón still clung to him, while Matteo patted his back and grinned at Luna, who raised an eyebrow at them.

“Oh, I do love you. You both.”

///

“I can’t believe you didn’t say a single word!” Luna exclaimed later when they sat down in the cafeteria. With milkshakes (strawberry, she wouldn’t let them get anything else) in front of them and Luna on his lap, the smile stuck to Matteo’s face all by itself.

Her eyes glistened at him and he simply had to steal a peck from her lips.

“You have no idea how much I wanted to, little moon. I wanted to tell you so, so much.”

“Then why didn’t you?”

He chuckled, thinking of the disbelief and utter happiness in her eyes, of the enthusiasm carrying her kisses. “Tell you? And ruin the perfect opportunity to surprise you? No, I couldn’t.”

“Awww”, she mouthed. Another kiss. Her thumb caressed her cheek, sent impulses of warmth through his core, like the first sun rays of spring after a long and harsh winter.

“Guys, I’m here too”, Gastón complained. “And the others should be done with training soon as well. Actually, they’ll see you in a…”

“Matteo?!”

With a sigh, they broke apart. Stroking through Luna’s hair one last time, he turned to his friends, who seemed as flabbergasted as Luna had been. “Hey everyone”, he said, “Haven’t seen you all in a while.”

They had so. Many. Questions.

Matteo drowned in them, words rushing over him from every direction and in the hectic attempt of answering, he barely noticed how Luna turned more and more silent. She leaned against his chest, face buried in his shirt. Eyes closed as far as he could see.

Only after the initial excitement calmed down did he begin to wonder what happened. If there was more to it than sleepiness, than exhaustion.

“Hey, Luna”, he whispered into her hair.

“Hm?”

“Do you wanna go? So we can be a bit alone?”

A nod.

Matteo grinned, then called for his friends’ attention. “Guys, I just got my girlfriend back, so could you excuse us for a while?” Silence, followed by wiggling eyebrows and knowing smirks, but at least they let them go. As he threw one last glance in their friends’ direction, Simón made kissing noises.

He only stopped when Matteo winked.

To be honest, though, he already guessed making out wasn’t what they were about to do.

They found the wardrobe empty. A “Do not disturb”-sign laid on the table, so Matteo put it on the doorknob before he faced Luna and pulled her into a hug.

The tears followed immediately. Heavy sobs, accompanied by thick streams of tears, each one echoing through his bones, torturing his heart.

“It’s okay, little moon, I’m here.”

Wet spots spread over his shirt. Matteo pulled her closer. Rubbed her back. Whispered a soft melody of comfort into her ear. Told her all the things he hoped would ease her pain.

Slowly, she stopped shaking.

Stains of her mascara underlined her eyes, so he handed her a tissue. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Her gaze hurried through the room, searching yet not finding whatever they intended to discover. She sighed.

“I’m…” another deep breath, “I’m Sol Benson.”

“Sol… Benson?” The name sounded weirdly familiar, like a story hid behind it, one he had heard before but couldn’t remember. “Wait. Isn’t Sharon’s last name…”

“Benson. She’s my aunt.”

Like that, she cried again, buried her face deeper into his chest as a waterfall rushed out of her eyes. Memories popped up in his head, of the time she told him how badly she wanted to know her birth parents, how she planned to ask them why they gave her away, how she imagined seeing them again for the first time. How ambitious and curious she’d been, and how right now, she was a crumbled shadow of her past self in his arms.

“Didn’t you want to know about your past?”

“Yes”, she sniffed into the fabric. “But this… it’s horrible! They’re”, she hesitated, voice frayed in every single letter and accentuated by her tears, “dead. They died in a fire in the mansion and Miss Ben… Sharon hates me. She hates me, and, and…” Her sentence ended in a hiccup.

More tears. Always more, they found no end in her misery.

He opened his mouth to reply – the words a tangled mess in his throat – but Luna kept going. Like a waterfall breaking free from a breach in a dam. “She’s awful and she scares me, but I couldn’t tell anyone because I don’t know how, and you weren’t here, and I really, really don’t want to go back to the mansion, I… Iwanttostaywithyoupleasedonteverleavemeagain.”

She collapsed into him, all strength gone. All the weight that surely sat on her shoulders after keeping this secret in for heaven knew how long vanished.

With his arms around her waist, Matteo supported her, carried her to one of the chairs while she kept crying.  

Everything about her screamed misery.

It broke his heart to see her like that. Where did all the rain from her eyes come from? Where did the storm in her sky steam from when she usually was so vibrant, so luminous? How did her body carry it all?

“Hey, little moon, please, it’s okay, I’m here. I’m here.” He put his hand on her cheek, stroke her skin. She leaned into his touch. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry you have to go through this, you don’t deserve this, you deserve better than this. I wish it would’ve worked out differently. And I’m really, really sorry I wasn’t there for you when you needed me.”

Her eyes still drowned in sorrow as she half smiled at him. (Or tried to.) “It’s not your fault.”

“Look, I can’t change your aunt. But we can ask your parents if you can stay over tonight, if you want”, Matteo added.

“Yes, please. I don’t want to go back.”

“But you know, eventually you’ll have to”, Matteo added carefully, his fingers not leaving her for a single minute. She seemed to fade at his words, floating away, and he wondered if perhaps he was the only thing that tied her to earth right now.

“But I don’t want to. I want to run away.”

His heart skipped a beat.

“You’re not one to run from your problems.”

Luna sighed. It sounded heavy, like the whole world crouched on her small shoulders. “What if I want to be?”

“That’s okay, and I get it, I do”, he answered, sighing. Suddenly, the exhaustion from the flights kicked in.

All he wanted was to go to bed, he wanted to hold her in his arms until he woke up and found her right by this side. He didn’t feel ready to give her a pep talk; the tiredness left his mind too numb to comfort her the way she always comforted him.

But then again, were people ever truly ready to give pep talks?

“You know, before we left for Italy, I thought about running away with you too”, he confessed.

“You did?” Surprise echoed in her voice, a pleasant change from the sadness and despair.

“Yes. Too many times, it felt. But in the end, what would it solve? Nothing. And we got through this, didn’t we?” He laced their hands, followed her eyes as they studied the embrace of their fingers. “Just like we’ll get through this too. Together.”

“You promise?”

“I do.”

///

“I love you”, she whispered that night when they laid in his bed, with her completely wrapped in his arms. After hours of talking and embracing her and pressing gentle kisses all over her, her tears had dried, and she finally reminded him much more of his little moon who refused to give up on anyone and anything.

“I love you too.”

Luna snuggled closer to join their lips. Featherlight kisses, nothing compared to the restless ones from this afternoon. He had missed them, had missed this – simply cuddling with her in bed – had missed her so much. The memory of being robbed of her presence, of his mind being enchanted with her while his body craved her, still lingered in his stomach, although he reckoned it would soon disappear.

A hummed laugh left her mouth as they broke apart just enough to share the same breaths. Yet, when he met her gaze, she looked all serious.

“What is it?”, he wanted to know.

“I’m sorry I ruined your surprise. But I’m really glad you’re back.”

“You didn’t ruin it”, he assured her. “You couldn’t have.”

///

He woke up in the darkness, confused and dizzy from the sudden exit his dream had taken. For a moment, he blinked into the darkness. Listened to the silence. Breathed in the familiarity of his room.

The mattress moved, sinking in under hasty movements next to him. “Luna?” he whispered.

“Yes?” She sounded out of breath.

“Are you okay?”

No answer. Just a sob.

A second one. Soon, she began shaking again.

“What if… what if it’ll always feel like this? If I never figure out how to deal with all this? She calls me Sol all the time, but I hate it, I don’t want to be her, I just want to be Luna again.”

More tears, like her eyes owned an unlimited supply of them recently.

“You are, munchkin, you are. Sol and you, you are the same person.”

“No, Sol has a family that’s either dead or crazy. That’s not me, that’s not who I want to be. And she has more money.” Bitterness leaked into her tone, and Matteo wished he could take the pain away from her, could give her a new birth family that loved and supported her and didn’t make her cry in the middle of the night.

“Really?” he said, hoping the joke he was about to make brought out at least the tiniest smile. “Well, then I guess drinks are on you next time.”

She laughed.

Shortly, and it ended before it ever truly began, but it counted as a laugh nonetheless and warmed his heart.

“No, seriously, Luna. It’s gonna be alright. Remember how I was afraid of your name once too? I had a choice back then, and so do you today. And whatever choice you’ll make, I won’t love you any less. We won’t love you any less. You have amazing parents who love you so much, and I’m sure your birth parents would love you just as much if they could see you now.”

Luna fell silent during his little speech, head rested on his chest. Her fingers hovered right over his heart, they’d been mindlessly wandering over his skin but came to a halt when he paused.

“It won’t always feel like this, I promise”, Matteo concluded, smiling down on her.

“I know”, she mumbled. “It’s just that… ugh, I don’t know. I feel so helpless. I never thought I’d say this, but this is harder than when I had to let you go at the airport.”

“No way”, he huffed, although the smirk slipped into his voice, betraying him, “I can’t believe this isn’t the single hardest thing you ever had to endure anymore. Do I mean nothing to you?”

His comment earned him a single slap on his chest, but a laugh accompanied it, so he didn’t mind as much. “Gosh, you’re so full of yourself.”

“I beg to differ. I am full of extra fresa.”

Luna giggled, a blessed sound in his ears. If he could save a copy of it and play it over and over again, he’d do it in a heartbeat.  

No more tears ran over her cheeks, and her body felt more relaxed in his arms.

“You are so strong, there’s nothing in this world you couldn’t do. And I’ll be right by your side, I promise. I love you.” He almost added solare, but ultimately stopped, too afraid to make her cry. Maybe, one day, that word wouldn’t remind her of her past, maybe one day, her past wouldn’t hurt her anymore.

Until then, he’d be using his favorite name.

“Luna.”

[luvleekaotix-imagines]

Answering some general asks! Thank you for the love and support <3

Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

are u comfy writing fics with a trans reader in them?? nothing like this was in ur rules so i wanted to ask before requesting

Hello darling! This is a really good question. The short answer is that I am okay with writing for a trans reader, but it really depends on the actual request. By that I mean if it’s focussing heavily on issues that I haven’t experienced or know much about, it can be really hard for me to write something that feels genuine which is something I like to do. I never want to make light of serious topics or offend or insult anyone by writing something I clearly have no business writing.

I hope this kind of answers your question and I’m totally up for discussing it if you wanna hit up my chat <3

✤✤✤✤✤✤

Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

Connor is actually hurting me with his cuteness ;-; Send help

Connor glances at KC who is has her head on the desk, unmoving. “She may already be dead and unable to help.” He smiles pleasantly.

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Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

okay as long as I'm spamming your inbox (sorry about that btw) I just gotta say, Detroit is the first game to fuckin. romantically frustrate in a long ass time. I don't want to fuck the robots, I just wanna hold their hands and tell them it'll be okay. I'd rather just be a robofucker gdi HELP -detroit anon

Its the worst feeling and SAME. I don’t know if you’ve noticed how affected I am by the feels that suddenly hit me in the fucking face, but good god. Also I’ve always been a robofucker sooooooooooooooooooo  I DUNNO WHAT TO TELL YOU. WELCOME TO THE CLUB OR SOMETHING.

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malina4ka said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

OH GOSH. THANK YOU, THATS AMAZING!! ♥

I’m glad you liked the fluff darling!! <3 I hope it was cosy enough <3

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Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

I was just scrolling through the DBH tag to find someone who shares the same amount of love that I have for a precious smol bean that needs to be protected aka Connor and let me tell you that you are a blessing! AH I LOVE YOU

I LOV EYOU TOO! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR STOPPING BY TO SEND THIS AMAZING MESSAGE AND SHARE THE CONNOR LOVE. I’ve seen that some people are mad that people love Connor so much? I’m not exactly sure why, but I mean, I love Markus and Kara too, but we can have our own faves, I dunno. AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

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Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

I'm in between fandoms right now so I came to read your Devil May Cry writings because that's what I do when I'm in between lol And I come here and see Connor, and... well, I always joked that once androids of that level were a thing I was going to fall in love with one, so I guess this is just natural progression. Kudos to you for being the unwitting matchmaker 😂😂😂

OMG thank you for coming back to ready my DMC stuff!! I do hope the rumor about DMCV is TRUE. I need more DMC in my life, there is never enough. I will always love my devil boissss <3 Also androids will become the bane of everyone’s existence, especially if they’re CUTE and FRIEND-SHAPED like Connor. Hahahahah

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Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

I gotta say, your characterisation of Connor feels super spot on :0 Absolutely love your fics! 

O M F G thank you SO MUCH that’s such a huge compliment. Characterisation is something I always try to get right because how else can I make my reader inserts feel genuine. Like, I want it to feel like the character adores you, so I need to write how they would show affection for you, and for that to happen I have to get the character right. Ya dig? ANYWAY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR POSITIVE FEEDBACK. ITS MEANS SO MUCH TO ME!!! !!!!!! !! <3

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Anonymous said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

more connor please thank u for existing 

Ohh thank YOU for existing. I love you so much, thank you for sending in this ask. I will write more Connor fo SHO.

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panicnowandrun said to luvleekaotix-imagines:

That Connor imagine was so cute!!! Would you be willing to do a part 2? Like where Connor deviates for her or something? Idk there just isn't a lot out there for him yet and you did so well! (Sorry if this is weird, it's 3am and I can't sleep lol)

I’ll definitely write more Connor stuff and I shall see if I can figure out something for your request, although I think most of my fics will be based on Connor already being a deviant or coming to terms with it or something. Maybe I’ll figure something out for when he’s still instruction-bound. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[mocacheezy]

Wanted to make a seperate post for this, because this stuff will go under a readmore. (damn it got long)

Added my two cents on this post, but here is what I do when I do have the energy leave comments on fics (and some extra thoughts on my kudoses):

Comments

There is such delight when I find a fic that I have to write my thoughts down while reading, because I love to scream my joy @ the author in the comment once I am done with the chapter/fic itself.

And hopefully by the time I reach the end of the chapter I can calm down enough to actually write something coherent aside from screaming and keysmashing.

Some fics get me that excited!

Some fics I had to put down while reading, so I could pace around the room, because the possibilities for where the situation could go are ENDLESS!

Some fics I've put down and picked up MONTHS later, because a chapter was just so good and made me feel SO MUCH, I was unable to read further!

There are fics I forgot about and returned to years later and was DELIGHTED to see them finished or still going (there was this one back on fanfiction.net that I adored with all my heart, and I plan on checking out what happened to it. The author went on a break around the time another fandom took my attention, but the fic was so good I still remember it from time to time. It made my life more than just bearable, it made me laugh to tears at some points. )

When a fic gets me that excited, I noticed I tend to either comment short excited comments before nyooming to the next chapter, or read all of it over a course of a couple of days, gather my thoughts and leave an almost essay long comment, because the whole fic was just so good and I want to say it all in one place!

There were a couple of fics that I actually WANTED to write essays on, because I appreciate the authors writting style so so so much! For some I still do, because holy hell, the writing and characterization is great, while ALSO gives us things canon/source material didn't explore. But, if I do that, I wanna do it good because KUDOS TO THE WRITERS!

There are also fics that have me grinning and commenting on what's happening outloud, but there isn't really that many questions popping up for me.

It's the delighted gasp and a "Bitch, you said WHAT? 8D".

It's the "Ohohohooooo this is going to h u r t".

It's the grimace or a snort of "You fucking bastard, I knew he was planning something."

With fics like that, I can sit still or do something that isn't too demanding attention wise.

It's relaxing. It's nice, it let's my usually very active and overwhelmed brain rest, WHILE ALSO giving me serotonin and the excitement/feels, but on a smaller scale.

With fics like this (especially one shots), I tend to leave shorter comments, because if I want to comment, but don' t have much to say, I'll still comment and tell what the fic made me feel.

"I liked/loved/really enjoyed this fic, it had me experience x"

Because I do like it! And so far almost every fic I read gets atleast one kudos because this stuff is so good and the authors are amazing.

I just don't have much to say at that moment. Or what I want to comment is missing something and feels too flat to me.

If I know I'll want to reread a fic, I usually bookmark it and write down some highlights/what I liked about it/make a comment of its own in the bookmark! Because looking at older bookmarks/bookmarks from a fandom you are no longer involved with can bring back quite the laughter... AND get you back into the fandom even!

Reading fics is supposed to be a thing you enjoy. If you are starting to dread it because you feel obligated to say something, hey.

Take a step back for a while. This kind of fear happened to me at some point when I was younger, especially when I started interacting with active content creators. They appreciate comments and those comments help so much when an obstacle presents itself and it seems like abandoning a story will be it. Comments and encouragment bring back the fire and joy of writing.

There is a comment I have yet to reply to, that's been sitting in my Ao3 inbox for 160 days (ALMOST 6 MONTHS, MOCA, GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER AND REPLY ALREADY!).

It's from an author who really wasn't feeling motivated and the comment brought them such joy and excitement!

Why is it taking me so long to reply?

I never expect/wait for a reply from authors. ESPECIALLY not if it's a fic that's older (there are some amazing fics that were posted in 2013!!! Who knows if the author is still active in the fandom!*), or if it's an ongoing one that gets alot of comments. In the second case, it's because the author is already writing the fic, editing said fic and uploading it, could also be working on a bunch of different fics (because writting inspiration strikes at the weirdest of moments and as someone who has around 4fic ideas happening simultaniously, people who ACTUALLY WRITE THEM? Kudos. You are amazing.), not to mention most fic authors do this in their free time. So there's also their jobs, social circle outside the internet, on the internet and the amount of energy they have for social interaction with strangers online. Who am I to expect a reply to that behemot of a comment I left on their fic? If it made them happy, great! If it made them go "woah, that's alot of words" *shrugs*, eh. I am a rambler, it's what I do, if they like it they like it, if they don't they don't. Not much i can do about that, though I did leave a note on my ao3 profile that they can contact me if long comments/ramblings annoy them, so I can stay off their comment section and scream about my love for their works somewhere else. Noone has asked me to stop as of yet, but I like to offer just in case.

Most of my comments are actually posted as if I was at cafe or a restaurant, and was offered the Book of Complaints, Suggestions and Compliments/Thanks.

Complaints? I don't have complaints to leave, because it's my decision on what content I consume, and if I don't like it, I can always search for something else.

And if I didn't read the tags? Well, that's on me. That's like ordering a new dish when you have a food allergy, not reading the provided and highlighted allergen notes and warning, and then screaming at the staff when your food arrives. It's not THEIR job to know what kind of allergies their customers have. It's the customers.

Suggestions? Is the author asking for those? If not, no suggestions from me! If they do ask, and I don't have an answer I usually take some time to see if I have anything to offer.

Compliments/Thanks. That is the thing I love and what I click the comment box for. If a fic made me FEEL something, I will let the author know.

Do you know how amazing it is to read a fic and sit staring off into space after you finish it because "woah... that. That made me feel so much at once that I can't even name it." ?

When you read a crackfic, and keep snickering and chuckling, before you finally burst out in laughter or wheezing or snorting with tears in the corners of your eyes because "OH THIS GOLD, I haven't laughed like this in a while!" ?

When you read angst that tugs at your heartstrings and causes actual tears to run down your face and feel the anguish the characters feel?

When you read angst, but the story has a happy ending? Any you get to see the characters claw their way towards it, and actually reach it?

When you read hurt/comfort and there is that gentle care and love and safety that makes your heart melt?

When you read a fic that feels like sitting by a window with a cup of warm coffee while relaxing music plays? (this last one is becoming my favourite of them all and is actually the one I struggle to comment on the most.)

There is such a variety of works out there! So many talented and amazing writers, with their AUs and a billion different ways of writing!

3. I am a very forgetful person, who has to check her inbox more often. Plain and simple. Nothing more to it.

4. Some of these authors write back such lovely comments that make me smile everytime I open my inbox. I think I might make a scrapbook of some sort, to keep track of them, because getting the feedback of "HEY YOUR COMMENT MADE ME HAPPY/EXCITED!" or "I really appreciated this comment, thank you." makes me smile. ^u^

Seriously fic authors are amazing, and this is why "Kudos to them." has become a thing I say irl as well, and in any conversation where someone creating a thing is brought up. I may not know or have a strong opinion on the stuff someone enjoys creating, or have nothing to really say, so "Woah, Kudos to them." is my way of saying "I admire their work (but don't have anything else to say about it)."

Learning it means Glory? Hell yes, those works are worthy of praise,and the authors really are glorious.

So here's where that lovely button comes in.

Kudos

I use the kudos button both when I have a comment to write and when I don't. I spam that button when I like something so much words fail me, and I click it when a fic reads like I have just finished a cup of coffee.

If I use the cafe/restaurant thing I talked about before as an example, leaving a kudos, to me, is like giving a smile or replying to the waiter with "It was great." when they asked if you enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it, but I don't have anything else to say.

Maybe it was just an interesting read, even if not to my usual tastes. It might get a kudos.

And if I read something that I thought I would like but it turned out I didn't like it or I felt meh abput it?

Well, *shrugs* well.

I don't have anything nice to say, and I probably won't read stuff from that author. There are others who will and others who will leave a kudos.

I don't think much about it because I read fics for fun.

I ramble about them because I am having fun and finally know I can share my experience with others.

You guys have probably seen the "Holy shit two cakes!" comic, which was originally about how artists/writers feel bad when creating something with a concept that many other more skilled creators used.

I remember that comic at some point also being used to explain that "It really sucks when you bake a cake, but noone wants to eat it."

I can't speak as a writer, because I don't post the fics I daydream about (yet! I don't post them yet!), but here's a little thing my daydreamer self likes to think.

I baked my cake, and I can eat it too, but I hope the cafe I frequent has something similar too.

Translated?

I wanted to read a fic like this, I made a fic with the idea I wanted, I enjoyed the process and the result, but I sure do hope someone else also makes a similar fic in the future.

I do however mostly daydream my fic ideas. So again. These are just my thoughts on the whole thing that is Comment > Kudos/Like > Reading > Not Reading

[takaraphoenix]

Hi! I don't to sound annoying, but I think my last ask may have fallen into the void so here goes: do you have any tips for starting an AO3 account? Sorry if you got the last one and just didn't feel like answering

Oh no, sweetie. Not annoying at all!

And while I do usually not instantly get around to answering and the asks might lay around for a day or two... yeah, I don’t have any other ask from you, so, good you send it again ;)

Tips? Mh.

1. The Basics!

Let’s start with the most basic thing. Your name.

Is your name a “brand”? That is to say; do you already have a recognizable name? Do people know you from other sites? Tumblr, DeviantArt, Fanfiction.Net, Wattpad, other sites I don’t know?

Then maybe pick the same name, if available. People who already like you might recognize it! They will also have an easier time finding you.

Not to mention, the human brain can not remember that many names and if you make them remember that oh, your name on this site is XYZ and your name on another site is ABC but on the next site they can find you as A2C... that might be asking a bit too much of them.

So make it easy for people who like you to find you! ;)

But don’t make it too easy for people to find you.

That is to say; don’t put personal information on your profile. Don’t link to your facebook, best not put your real name on there. The internet is not exactly a safe place, there are bad people, there are creepy people and there are also dangerous people. So always stay safe.

Now that you got your name and a profile that, instead of leading to personal information best leads to your other accounts, such as tumblr, you’re all set to post your first fic!

2. Write a decent summary.

If you move to AO3 from a site like FFNet, you are used to a pathetically short character limit that doesn’t allow much freedom.

Your summary is your window into the fic. It’s supposed to be the hook. Nowadays, tags take over parts of that job too but in the end, the summary is the final sell.

It’s tricky to find a good balance between explaining your story in an intriguing way and not spilling all the beans. Because you don’t want to spoil the ending, you want them interested in reading more and not left with the feeling that they already know everything that’s going to happen.

The same as with the tags apply; include what you think is truly important. What do people need to know about this story before going into it? Think of it as a trailer to a movie. What’s the best pitch?

3. Tagging makes fandom life easier.

Tagging is the one important feature about AO3 that makes it so beautiful and special. And tagging seems to be the hardest task for authors.

There are those who undertag and those who overtag.

You don’t have to literally tag everything - like “kissing” and “hand holding” and the sexual orientation of every single character that will as much as be mentioned in the fic. If readers face a literal wall of tags, chances are they just won’t read it and skip the entire thing.

Undertagging isn’t good either though. If things are too vague, many might also feel like it’s not worth wasting time on checking it out because the risk of running into something they might dislike is too high.

My personal approach to it is to tag everything I see as relevant. Things that, if I see them tagged in a story, instantly make me click it. Like, if I write a story that is centered particularly around the angst and feels of a certain character; tag it. There might be people desperately looking for a fic that centers on that character’s emotional turmoil.

And be on the safe side with smut too. Tag what you’re doing; there might be certain things that are uncomfortable for readers and that they are trying to avoid. That can be as simple as the what, or even as the who does what. For example, if I see a tag for explicit content but the author did not bother tagging who tops and bottoms, I generally don’t even bother clicking on the fic anymore, because despite the fact how most authors claim that topping and bottoming has “nothing to do with the character”, 90% of fanfiction authors still have it hard-wired in their brains that fics are more bottom-centric, that the bottom is portrayed as the shyer one who needs to be fussed over and comforted while the top is the brash, brave one. So to avoid running into literal fuckery where the roles are reverse to how I view the characters, I just don’t even try anymore.

Which means that tagging top and bottom can a) cause people who are looking for specific fics with a specific character as either of those to find your fic and be happy about it and also that b) someone who doesn’t enjoy the order you enjoy not to run into something they dislike.

Which actually summarizes the way I apply tags anyway. Don’t tag everything, but tag everything you think someone might be looking for in a fic, or might be trying to avoid. It’s both a lure and a warning in once.

Also, trigger warnings. You plan on writing heavier subjects? Murder, self-harm, torture, abuse, rape? Definitely put it in the tags. There are people who might just be really squeamish about it and don’t like it, which should already be reason enough to warn, but there are also people who have a serious history with such issues and might be triggered by them. So if you tag such things, they might already be filtered out by having been blacklisted by the users and you might have just made some people’s lives a little easier.

Tag your pairings. Maybe best in order of importance; many might just look at the first listed pairing, used to authors sorting them by importance and thus dismissing the fourth, fifth or sixth ship you tag as just random side-pairing. So if you have a main-pairing, always tag it first.

Also include character tags. I was recently told that there are apparently actually people who filter by character tags. News to me, though I do check the character tags too to see if my faves are in it.

4. Use the features AO3 offers!

This starts with something as simple as the fact that AO3 sends you mails about Kudos and comments. It’s a great way to stay up to date with how much love your fics gain.

Now that we’re at it; comments. Reply to them, if you have the time. Those are people who are interested in your work, in something you evidently love enough to put it out there. Engaging with them is a brilliant feeling. Getting feedback on your things and getting to know what they expect of your work or want from it. Occasionally, it can even be very inspiring and give you an idea to include to your story that you hadn’t even thought about!

Another thing about comments however is that you can moderate them. It’s a feature I personally don’t use because I’m a veteran at this point and there’s nothing I haven’t seen in the comment section to I’m not that easily fazed.

But if you are still new to not just AO3 but fanfiction in general and if you might write a ship the so-called antis deem “problematic” - which, at this point in time, can literally be any ship aside from canon no, wait, canon too - you might do yourself a favor there. Because fandom life can be beautiful but it can also be hell. There might be shitheads who come to your fic and say nasty, bad things about your pairing choice, your fanfiction, your writing, maybe even you yourself as a person because they’re trying to hurt you.

Don’t let it get to you.

But if you are more sensible about such things, then maybe moderating reviews can be a useful feature for you because it allows you to delete spam and flames without them ever showing up in the fic. You can always flag reviews as spam or delete them, even if you don’t use the feature, but you’ll have an ugly “scar” on your comment section that says [this review has been deleted].

One of the most handy features AO3 has - after the tagging - is in my eyes the series-feature. It allows you to bundle multiple fics together under one umbrella. Personally, I really hate when people post oneshot collections on AO3 as one fic and there’s tags for like 20 fandoms, 30 pairings and 60 kinks in that one fic and you as the reader have no way of telling which of the additional kinks would now relate to which pairing. The far easier and cleaner solution would be to post oneshots seperately, so people can easier tell what they individually are, and mark them as part of a series for that collection. It’s, of course, a matter for authors, but I’m not the only one who simply scrolls past such oneshot collections because I don’t have the patience to go through it just to notice all my kinks are tags that would belong to a shot I’m not interested in (not to mention the ones that already tagged the collection as including a pairing but 20 shots in that pairing has still not been written, or the ones that don’t include in the chapter title what pairing and fandom the individual shot is... and you’d literally have to seep through 30 chapters to find that one pairing in the collection that you’re interested in. Yeah no, I got better things to do with my time and close the whole thing).

So yeah, the series function makes it far easier to gather things you want to put under an umbrella but still make easy to navigate for your readers, which, always nice.

Another handy feature about AO3 is that you can put links into the fic. So if a character starts singing a song in the middle of the fic for romantic mood... Not everyone recognizes a song by its lyrics and it just doesn’t set the mood as well; how about just putting a link to a YouTube video over the first line that the character sings? Your readers can open it in another tab and let it set the mood for your fic.

5. Don’t let haters get to you!

I know I mentioned it above already, that you shouldn’t let shitheads get to you, but it’s important enough to earn its own separate point on the list.

Fandoms are filled with hatred and mean, nasty, selfish people who will do and say everything to keep their fandoms “pure” and thus attack people who ship or like things they themselves don’t like.

That can, at times, be really drowning and hard, so you need to focus on the good parts. If you’re a first-time writer, you might not yet have the connections, or you already do from tumblr and other sites, I don’t know, but let’s say you don’t. Then make them. A point of that is the above mentioned “interact with your readers” advise I gave you; the people happy about what you write are the good people and the kind of people in fandom that you want to associate with - so just do it. Do it, make friends, find people who you can gush to about this thing you both love.

If you already got those contacts from other sites? That’s great! But hey, never too late to make more friends and meet more fellow fans.

But those people are incredibly important if you want to participate in any fandom, because they are what reminds you that the fandom can be safe, sane and nice. That it can be a beautiful place and that it’s worth loving.

Because otherwise the hate from the other part of the fandom might get to you and it might even make you dislike the show/movie/book itself simply by association. I’m sorry that I’m sounding like such a downer here toward the end, but I’ve already seen it and gone through it myself, that if you fall into the deep end of negative fandoms, they can ruin everything for you. So it’s a piece of advise that is very dear and important for me to give - find the safe, sane and nice part of the fandom, claim it for yourself and enjoy it and don’t let anyone tell you that you don’t have the right to enjoy and love it.

And that’s it. That’s all I can think of, at least. I hope there was at least some useful stuff in it, but since I don’t know how experienced you are with fanfiction writing and posting, I figured I’d better be more thorough and more general about it. Better give too much advise than too little, I guess.

Now, one last thing: Enjoy writing and never forget to enjoy writing; never let it become a “task”, always love it, okay? ;)

[temporary-ss]

@birkastan2018 Hi! First of all, I’m not really here on tumblr anymore, I’ve deactivated a long time ago. I wanted to chip in on this because it’s spreading like wild fire, it’s the mere reason I’ve made this account.

I admire and understand what you have been doing, I really do. There’s nothing wrong with wanting reviews and recognition from your readers. Writers deserve it through and through! It’s okay to enjoy what you do at the same time ask for feedbacks, IT’S OKAY! No to shaming writers.

Now, let’s go to a more delicate subject which is the main reason I am here now. We want to encourage readers to interact with authors, that’s it that’s the advoacy here. Now, I came to see for myself what the fuss was all about, with some intensive backreading. So what I have noticed there was a “shift,” the one thing you were trying to build destroyed itself. I don’t know if you are aware of this. Instead of encouraging silent readers, name calling happened. Words like “shame,” “selfish,” “sociopath,” “parasites,” etc., all of which lead into this = WORTHLESS. I was shocked! I thought you want readers’ involvement so why? Those were not exactly confidence booster which I think one of the things silent readers lack. I thought you were the adult one. I’ll treat you the way you treat me, yeah do that but on a different account because you are destroying the purpose of this blog by applying this principle. Again, remember your advocacy: encouraging feedback. We are bridging gaps not widening it. Do not pit them against each other. No to reader shaming.

Mental issues is a very sensitive topic which you have adressed also. This has left a bitter taste in my mouth honestly. We don’t know what is happening behind everyone, be it authors or readers. You cannot compare how one handles his/her issues to others. We were always told this during my pre-med: Every person is unique. Everyone have different experiences, coping mechanism, signs and symptoms, etc. You cannot compare how a writer handles it from a reader and vice versa. I think you’ve said something along the lines: If an author with mental issue can manage to write something, readers have no excuse. This is exactly the problem of our society and how they approach mental health. It does not work like that. Patient A and Patient B both have the same diagnosis but present different sets of signs and symptoms - this happens, I’m not gonna go technical and bore you with medical stuffs. Both are important and valid, that’s the bottomline. Yes, it could be an excuse. Don’t undermine mental health. #MentalHealthAdvocacy 

I’m not here for a debate. I’ve read some of your responses, all of which have same points. (they were all long fyi you could easily condense it to one short paragraph. As someone who read thick medical books everyday, just a sight of long posts in the internet makes me puke. But here I am making one, oh the irony...ANYWAY). I am aware of the sacrifices our writers make. Yes, they deserve reaction from readers. It’s okay to feel sad if reviews are vast, its okay to seek it out. But you birk cannot simply force readers or guilt-trip them into leaving one (I haven’t seen writers guilt trip their readers, so this is on you birk, it is not good for the author community so please refrain from doing this). Isn’t it more satisfying to receive a heartfelt genuine review? I’ll choose that over thousands of guilt-tripped/pity/forced/don’t-leave/i-owe-you comments anytime of the day, it’s so fake don’t insult our writers like that. Let’s forget about statistics: Quality>Quantity.(Edit: Literally, the most reviewed naruto fic on ffnet right now is full of spam (70k), let that sink in) I am in no way encouraging silent readers to be silent readers forever. One by one they’ll come around, it may take days, weeks, months, or even years, but they will. Little by little, it may first start with a kudos, a like, a favorite, a follow, a reblog and by the time they left a review they are ready and they mean every word of it and it’s gonna be worth it. It’s very disheartening to hear, your kudos is just a slap in my face, do you think if you said those words it’s gonna make them magically leave a review? No. Instead, you’ve instilled fear and intimidation upon them, making any possible interaction from a genuine reader in the future impossible. Again, the goal is encourage readers not eat them. I know that is what you want, but your sudden deviation on a different yet same path (idk if you were influenced by someone im kinda observant that way...maybe choose your friends wisely) became a trigger for this to spun out of control. You can go back!

Lastly, the “fandom.” Everyone has their own definition of it. But what I can confidently say is that the backbone of the fandom is not you, not me, not the content creators, not the readers. It’s kishi, naruto, the anime, the manga, the characters, the ships. It’s those little canon moments. Isn’t that the reason why we create and built this fandom in the first place? We love them. I’m gonna give you a leeway for this because you’re still pretty new in the fandom. I can see how a person who had been here longer than you get mad at your sentiments. We make contents based of the canon. Many are still here because we cling on those canon moments. We take something and give it a different universe, giving rise to beautiful fan arts and fics, cosplays, conventions, dojinshi, etc. At the end of the day, we go back to those canon moments that we love. It had been so long since naruto ended, but you still see gifs, manga caps of the anime and manga, respectively, you still see analysis of moments, you still see people fighting how the story should have ended (let’s not forget the time when someone made a petition to change the ending like 🙄) or who is better. That is our backbone, our roots.

Additionally, the anon that said something like I will go down with this fandom even if I’m the only one left. I think it wasn’t at all meant to shame anyone. That’s a popular slang(?) in fandom culture: I will go down with this ship, I will go down with [insert anyone here]. That’s passion. That person love naruto and nothing will make it go away, he/she will enjoy naruto despite everything that’s a fan mentality. What do you expect some of us here have been fans since we were children, it had been a part of our lives for more than a decade.

And seriously? “Consumers”? Do it in another place, it is so inappropriate to use this in fandom culture. People are here to enjoy you make it sound so corporate, it is such a kill joy word. Maybe it’s an age thing? We’re not consumers, we are “fans.” Makes me think you see fandom superficially not capturing it’s entire essence.

Birk - do not reduce yourself to name calling, you are bigger than that. learn to see things with an open and clear mind. if you’re not gonna leave your bubble where silent readers are worthless & [insert the words you used to call them], you are not gonna get through with them. remember your goal always. Readers - your opinions and excuses matter and your self-worth can’t and shouldn’t be dictated by anyone. Writers - your’s also matter. its okay to want feedback. its okay to create patreons/kofi, ignore those who said otherwise. keep doing what you love, if passion gets too overwhelming take a breath and relax. if you want to quit doing it, it’s also okay you don’t have to keep doing if you’re unhappy anymore. self care first.

This had been said already but I wanna reiterate. Let’s not forget the real devils here: REPOSTERS, TRACERS, PLAGIARIZERS, ENTITLED PERSONS.

I hope you finish reading this and take it with an open-mind. You gonna meet me half-way here. Otherwise, this will not end. Thank you! P.S. I said I am not here for debate bec I understand your point. It’s okay not to answer me (if you will, don’t make it long, straight to the point but you do you) but let me know if you’ve already read this.