#the last two are star wars comics though so no one knows them

[themyscirah]

Was fuckin around on the blog creator and unexpectedly scored a canon url

Guys I'm not ready for this kind of responsibility

[mysticstarlightduck]

Late Writeblr Intro!

Hello, friends!

I figured it was about time I made an actual blog intro of my own since I forgot to make one when I started this blog last year. Better late than never, lmao!

Pls, reblog, like, and/or reply to help boost the blog! 💕

Let's get started:

Personal Stuff! 💜🩶🖤

My name is Anna/Anya but you can call me Mystic, Ducky, or just Anya on this blog! My personal nickname is Ani and I adore it (:

I am an Asexual woman (my pronouns are she/her!) and I'm also personally an atheist who puts my faith in the spirits of Mother Nature, though I respect all other religions equally!

I'm Gen Z and Latina (Brazilian). I was raised bilingual (Brazilian Portuguese + English) and I love learning languages - currently, I'm working on learning French and Spanish! Career-wise I am studying in college to become a character designer and hopefully animator, as I want to pursue a career as an artist and writer! I also wish to have my WIPs published in the near future (:

Some fun facts about me!

My favorite shows are Critical Role, Game of Thrones, Castlevania, The Legend of Vox Machina (animated series), Star Wars, Voltron, The Dragon Prince, Avatar the Last Airbender, Legend of Korra, and DC Comics content, as well as many more lmao. I love watching movies and series!

My favorite Vox Machina characters are Vax'ildan and Percy (:

I am a younger sister 💖

My hair is short and curly (pixie style, similar to the haircut Rapunzel has at the end of the Tangled movie!)

I adore listening to music, especially songs that can inspire me to write my WIPs! Playlists are a huge part of my writing process and something I really enjoy making.

I'm currently rereading Shadow and Bone (+ Six of Crows) and I am always looking for more good dark fantasy/historical fantasy books to read so book recs are always welcome! I also am a huge fan of the Percy Jackson series and Trials of Apollo (by Rick Riordan), though I'm usually more of a gritty/dark fantasy fan (like Game of Thrones)!

I have three dogs and two cats!😺🐶

I know how to play the piano, though I haven't done that in a while because things have been chaotic for me, but I'd like to start playing regularly again in my winter vacation.

I have worn glasses since I was 5 years old and have terrible eyesight without them (and some days with them, lol, so bear with me).

My friends and I are doing a DnD campaign every Sunday, where I play as a half-elf rogue named Aeryn (he/him). I'm adoring this adventure so far, it's so fun!!!

I love to bake and am rather good at it, but am a painfully average cook lmao (some specific recipes I make are actually rlly good, but it depends a lot on my mood and the 'alignment of the stars' lol)

I want to learn how to knit/crochet! 🧶

I'm a theater nerd and love musicals (:

About my Writing!🏹⌛

I write fictional works mostly in the genre of fantasy (high fantasy/epic fantasy/dark fantasy/historical fantasy/urban fantasy, etc. You name it!) and science fiction (space opera/cyberpunk/superhero, etc).

My works usually revolve around themes such as epic quests, secrets, adventure, rebels fighting an oppressive system, sibling bonds, acceptance/respect, outcasts, and much, much more! I love fluff and whump equally, and though my stories tend to focus on serious topics (or at least darker/heavier themes) within a fantasy/sci-fi setting, I like to have a good bit of humor, lighthearted fun, and comedy to my stories to lighten up the mood!

My main WIPs:

Song of Thorns

🌹WIP Intro: (here)🌹

Genre: dark fantasy, medieval fantasy, adventure/mystery, dark fairytale, eldritch horror (mild)

Style: Standalone (possible Trilogy)

Tags: #wip song of thorns #song of thorns

Short Summary/About: "A peasant girl moves with her siblings from her struggling seaside village to the kingdom's glittering floating capital, but after her older brother is kidnapped, she ends up discovering the dark, bloody secrets hiding behind the long-lasting royal family of the town and must team up with a young dhampir thief, the exiled prince, and a lonely druid girl to save the dying kingdom from this web of lies".

Supernova Initiative

🎇WIP Intro: (here) 🎇

Genre: space opera, adventure, exploration, laboratory whump, heist, thriller/mystery

Style: Episodic book series with an overarching plot (each chapter/group of chapters equivalent to an episode in a TV series)

Tags: #wip supernova initiative #supernova initiative

Short Summary/About: "A young intergalactic thief and his crew are captured after a heist gone wrong and forced to accept a strange deal - complete a mission for the Junction, retrieve important missing files, and get their freedom back. All the while that is happening, Jack Tithus, the protagonist, finds himself trapped as a test subject to an immoral, and elusive, man known as the Director."

Enchanted Illusions

💀 WIP Intro: (here)💀

Genre: Victorian fantasy, adventure, mystery, gothic fantasy, dark fantasy, crime-solving

Style: Possibly a trilogy

Tags: #wip enchanted illusions, #enchanted illusions

Short Summary/About: "On a magical setting inspired by Victorian times, a group of strangers and outcasts must work together to thwart a powerful secret organization and stop a murder spree that could lead to another civil war between myths and humans."

Of Starlight and Beasts

✨⚔️WIP Intro: (here)⚔️✨

Genre: medieval fantasy, epic fantasy, adventure/quest, dark fairytale, sword and sorcery, prophecies

Style: Book Series

Tags: #wip of starlight and beasts, #enchanted illusions

Short Summary/About: "A young knight in training and an amnesiac star mage embark on a quest to prevent an ancient prophecy from coming to fruition as a vengeful sorceress queen's army marches relentlessly onto their land with the intent to destroy all their kingdom has built."

The Last Wrath

🔥⚔️WIP Intro: to be made...⚔️🔥

Genre: dark fantasy, warfare, political intrigue, espionage, adventure/quest, medieval fantasy, whump

Style: Book Series (currently on hiatus)

Tags: #wip the last wrath, #the last wrath

Short Summary/About: "In a land torn by an ancient war between two sides of a continent, a mageborn girl finds herself trapped amid the bloodshed after her past comes back to haunt her and her family. Now, stopping the war may be the only chance she still has to survive."

Tales of Wilted Flowers

🥀WIP Intro: to be made...🪻

Genre: RPG-inspired fantasy, high fantasy, adventure, fairytale, epic quest, heist story, whump, light fantasy

Style: Trilogy (currently on hiatus)

Tags: #wip tales of wilted flowers #tales of wilted flowers

Short Summary/About - "A group of youths rejected and betrayed by society in many different ways come together due to unexpected circumstances and must rely on each other to prevent the kingdom's corrupt Head Sorcerer and the King from reviving an ancient evil."

Realms of Loss

🍂WIP Intro: (here)🍂

Genre: dark fantasy, warfare, medieval fantasy, high fantasy, ancient times fantasy, Viking-inspired, prophecies & curses

Style: Book Series (currently on hiatus)

Tags: #wip realms of loss #realms of loss

Short Summary/About - "In a continent destroyed by the fall of the Old Gods, and trapped in an endless toil for survival, a cocky young prince discovers his role in an ancient prophecy after his brother, the King, is murdered and assassins come for him too. Running away into the forsaken land beyond the walls of his kingdom, he'll have to learn to be a leader and save his people as a dead, murderous God awakens."

Mutant Inquiries/Open Secret Files

🤖 WIP Intro: to be made..🤖

Genre: superhero, cyberpunk, futuristic, dystopian, science fiction, urban fantasy

Style: Episodic Series, still in development

Tags: #wip mutant inquiries #wip open secret files #mutant inquiries #open secret files

Short Summary/About: "In a dystopian, high-tech future, a group of mutant teenagers become vigilantes and crime fighters to rebel against the oppressive government regime and survive their crime-ridden city."

I have a few other smaller-scale WIPs I occasionally, less frequently work on, such as Lies Untold and Jade Ruins, but those up above are the main ones that I wish to publish. I've also got a big, secret extra WIP I'm working on for fun and will share it with you guys soon!

[wander-wren]

sometimes i wonder about what fandom is going to look like in 5 or 10 years. i think we might have already started to see a shift.

because, look, most of the oldest, biggest fandoms are from tv shows and movies, in particular ones that go on for years and scores of episodes. star trek, star wars, stargate (is everything star?), doctor who, supernatural…even sherlock really got its biggest popularity boosts in the modern day from tv adaptations. marvel and dc were comics first, too, but movies made them more accessible; their “cinematic universe” tags are the biggest on ao3 by far.

but what tv shows are we getting now? short, 8-episode things that get canceled two or three seasons in, that are usually less-than-faithful adaptations of other media anyway.

what movies are we getting? well, marvel turns more to slop every day, and everything else is remakes and sequels no one asked for. the general populace will still go see them and find some good movies that they like, but there’s not much really for fandom to grasp onto.

the best shows for fandom that we’ve had recently, that i can think of, are stranger things, game of thrones, and maybe our flag means death. stranger things is dying off, especially since they’re looking at a 3-4 YEAR gap between s4 and s5. game of thrones’s popularity plummeted after its final season, we all know that. our flag means death is still chugging fairly okay, but after that second season a lot of the fandom dropped it, and with it now being cancelled, i don’t see it sticking around.

yes, we can chalk part of this up to a new generation to of fans having this growing idea that fandom is super temporary, to be abandoned as soon as its not on trend. but media used to be on trend for a whole lot longer than it is now. seasons were longer, we had filler episodes, things were lower quality sometimes but at least they came out on a consistent schedule. i don’t mind if supernatural isn’t an artistic masterpiece, but if i was a stranger things fan waiting until 2026 for the final season, i would be annoyed if it wasn’t damn near perfect. that’s assuming i watched it at all—we’re all so used to not getting endings and moving on, so why would i bother?

i think there are two types of shows doing sort of okay about this. one is procedurals—9-1-1 is a popular one i’ve run into, and it started in 2018, around the beginning of the decline, but it’s managed 7 seasons in those six years, most of them with 18 episodes. the other is, honestly, anime—though we can and SHOULD talk about the terrible working conditions that make the fast turnarounds there possible. look at how big some anime fandoms are.

judging by the relative fandom popularity of other procedural dramas (grey’s anatomy, law & order, criminal minds), i think that’s going to remain sort of niche. fandom likes fantasy and scifi best, and they just don’t tend to have as strong of an overarching arc to dig into. at least, that’s why i wouldn’t watch them. i think there’s also a good chance these will start to die out in the coming years as well.

anime could also die out a little bit. better working conditions would necessitate less/slower content, and it’s true that most of the popular anime fandoms have been around for years, even decades.

so, what, no new, lasting tv show or movie fandoms anymore?

what will the biggest fandoms be in 5-10 years?

podcast fandoms have a shot. the magnus archives is still going strong, and i’ve been seeing a lot about dungeons and daddies. i think we’re kind of almost past the golden age for podcasts, but i am an outsider, so maybe that will change.

book fandoms seem like a kind of obvious choice, but they just don’t get as big without, you guessed it, a movie or show adaptation. and the downsizing has hit them, too—can you think of anything from the last 5 or 10 years that rivals harry potter, percy jackson, warriors, lord of the rings, hunger games, acotar…even game of thrones (asoiaf) again? i can’t. the collapse of the publishing industry is another post entirely.

2020 is really what cemented these changes, though they were starting in the late 2010s, at least. with actual industries shutting down, there was room for indie creators making things alone in their houses to pop up, and people had more time on their hands to try new things out and get into them.

the two things that have really been on the rise since 2020 is rpf and video game fic—often both combined. we’ve got genshin impact, call of duty, minecraft of course being huge, rpf of various youtubers, and k-pop rpf. now, i think rpf is contentious enough that it won’t really become the main fandom, but video game fic…might be it.

even video blogging rpf can often be a blurred enough line that people are more comfortable with it. and the thing is…youtube creators are actually more reliable than mainstream television these days. they need to be, to maintain their platforms. they need to not cancel series and to live up to their own hype as best they can and to not abandon the channel for 3 or 4 years at a time. and again, you can talk about burnout and unrealistic expectations and all of those things, but it’s still true.

maybe i’m completely wrong. maybe in 10 years the film and publishing industries will all sort themselves out and we’ll go back to the status quo. but i think this position fandom is finding itself in is interesting, and i wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if what’s most popular (both in the specific source material sense and the medium/genre sense) is different some time down the road.

[electronickingdomfox]

TOS comics ranking

At this point, I've read all the TOS comics out there (or almost), so this is my personal veredict, from best series to worst:

DC comics

The best by a long shot imo. Also the longest running series. Set mostly after The Search for Spock (vol. 1) and The Final Frontier (vol. 2). The following are my favorites.

From Volume 1:

-The Mirror Universe saga (issues 9-16) by Mike W. Barr: It becomes a bit of "star wars, phaser pew pew" in the second half, but still pretty entertaining.

-The first Annual, also by Barr.

-Double Blind and The Last Word (issues 24-25 and 28) by Diane Duane: The first one is hilarious, while the second is pretty moving and spones-coded.

-The Paradise Lost saga (issues 43-45) by Michael Carlin: A payback for The Apple episode.

-The Dante's Inferno/Death of James Kirk saga (issues 48-55) by Peter David.

From Volume 2:

-The Trial of James T. Kirk saga (issues 1-12) by Peter David: The humor is overdone at times, but this author brings a unique freshness and originality to the series. The trial itself is absolutely hilarious, specially when the gangsters from A Piece of the Action show up as surprise witnesses.

-Once a Hero (issue 19) by Peter David: Kirk has to conduct a memorial for the redshirt that just died protecting him, and he finds out he doesn't know anything about the man. Brutal, honest, and has one of Jim's best speeches ever.

-The Class Reunion saga (issues 25-28), The Tabukan Syndrome (issues 35-40), A Little Adventure (issues 42-43) and the Time Crime saga (issues 53-57), all by Howard Weinstein.

-The Alone (issues 62-63) by Kevin Ryan.

2. Wildstorm

Only two TOS comics from this publisher (actually a branch of DC if I'm not mistaken): All of Me and Enter the Wolves. Both are pretty good.

3. IDW

I haven't read all of them, since some series focus on characters I don't care much about, like Gary Seven or Number One. From those I've read, the ones I liked the most were New Visions (made with photo montages from the series), Hell's Mirror and Mirror Images (both set, of course, in the mirror universe), Echoes (set in the TMP era) and The Primate Directive (a crossover with Planet of the Apes).

4. The Tokyopop mangas

There are three volumes. Some stories are fine, others are meh! Perhaps the second volume was the best.

5. The UK comics

Do they have a lot to do with TOS? No. The authors were not really familiar with the series. But they're bizarre, fun and have pretty art.

6. The newspaper comics

Some of the first story arcs were quite good, though it lost quality over time, specially in the art department. Set in the TMP era.

7. Marvel second series

Consisting of the Unlimited and Untold Voyages series, as well as a mirror universe one-shot and a crossover with X-Men. Rather generic. Haven't read the Early Voyages series, focused on Pike.

8. Marvel first series

These are quite bad. Set in TMP era.

9. Gold Key comics

Some stories are imaginative, but they could be about any characters instead of Star Trek and it'd be the same. This is a problem with the UK comics as well, but somehow I enjoyed the others much more.

[casp1an-sea]

people often talk about the weird things in Star Wars legends, so let’s talk about the weird things that are actually Cannon.

There is a Cross over arc between the Star Wars comics, and the doctor Aphra comics, where Aphra coerces Luke into teaming up with her to help her unlock an ancient Jedi relic that she really has no intention of allowing Luke to use. She hands Luke over as a gift to some Queen on a weird planet because she’s obsessed with Jedi things, in return for said queen unlocking the artifact for her.

anyway, the weird part of this book is the queen is some sort of life force vampire. Every night she feasts on the life force of her citizens, and since Luke is force sensitive, she is obsessed with drinking his life force. At one point she is successful in capturing Luke, as well as Han, because Han was being stupid as shit. And then she hooks luke up to this machine that somehow turns his life force into a liquid, and then she drinks it.

she also has a whole bunch of these really dangerous brain parasites that are kind of like giant bugs, so I’m scared how they get into your head. the visuals were quite disgusting but I just don’t know how they can even fit in there, but anyway, she infects Han with one of these, and also forces him to drink some of Luke’s life force, which raises is a lot of questions, that are, of course, never elaborated on.

but anyway, the parasite basically allows the queen to control. Han through a hive mind, but I guess drinking Luke’s life force allowed him to still have some cognitive function rather than being a mindless zombie, but he’s evil. It was actually very interesting, though I had a hard time, keeping a straight face while listening to Han be evil. Unfortunately, thought Leia somehow got him to switch sides by talking to him? I don’t know it got very confusing at the end. But all I’m saying is evil Han didn’t last long enough.

Then they rescue Luke, or Luke rescues himself I can’t really remember. He also got infected by a brain parasite at one point, but he beat it with the force so was never really turned evil.

also, Dr. Aphra’s murder droids are with them, and for some reason, Leia trusts Trip to get the parasite out of Han unsupervised. And it is mentioned that Trip ended up (tw: kinda graphic) cutting a hole in Han’s head, while he was fully conscious, because Leia did not specify to sedate or numb him… it’s very on brand for trip, but Jesus fucking Christ

also, the art alternates between two artists I believe, and it is wildly inconsistent. Sana’s hair switches between an Afro and dreads, some of the volumes give the queen pupils some of them don’t, in some evil Han has his normal clothes, and others. He has the uniform of the queens guard. It was kind of annoying. I still love the book for how bat shit crazy it is though. And it’s also pretty funny.

Oh and of course, Luke is again questioning if he has a crush on every single girl that is nice to him (you know because he doesn’t know he’s gay yet) and Sana had to break it to him that Aphra is a lesbian

—————————————————————————

The books are

The Screaming Citadel 1

Star Wars (2015) 31

Doctor Aphra (2016) 7

Star Wars (2015) 32

Doctor Aphra (2o16) 8

All of these books are available as free audio comics on YouTube. They are very well made :)

[pterobat]

I want to talk about some of the tie-in stuff featuring Lance Bishop that I took in recently.

“Broken” by Rachel Caine, in the anthology Bug Hunt.

The idea that a previously-established character has to be special—bothers me a bit, and I can’t say why. I do know that I felt, after years of pushing back against the mechanistic/deterministic view of the Zentradi in Robotech and Macross fandom, it was time to accept that a character might lack something in the way of “free will” and might not be one of a kind—but still be sympathetic

However, Bishop didn’t put that egg on the Sulaco, Your Mom did, and he asked to be euthanized for firmly "human" reasons, not utilitarian ones.

Anyway, “Broken”, states that Bishop having a stronger altruistic drive than the AP norm, which very briefly leads to the possibility of him being scrapped, and then later lets him disobey orders and save some people in his non-actiony way.

It’s still mostly satisfying, except for two things: Bishop has “brothers” named after other chess pieces (except "Queen" because of cowardice), and while that’s cute, it’s at the expense of the Frankenstein-ish story in the novel below, where he shares the name with his "Father".

Secondly there’s the groaner when the last scene of the story leads right into Bishop meeting Apone’s unit after being repaired by Hudson and the Knife Trick getting brought up already.

William Gibson’s Alien 3 (Novel and Comic Version):

To steal from Dostoevsky, all versions of Alien 3 are stupid in their own way. It’s hard to think of where to go from Aliens, though it’s not my job to do so, right?

At least there’s no chance of Gibson’s version being lionized as a course-correction or a bold strike against some imagined saccharine future. Instead we get something that’s readable and likeable enough, but pretty bland. Kind of like Hicks as the main, really—nothing against the dude, but there’s just not much going on with him.

Part of it’s not the fault of Gibson: he had to write out Ripley, but man, you don’t have to give it a gold star just for otherwise trying. I can also see how the Xenomorphs as a Thing-esque virus would occur to writers, but it just doesn’t feel right.a

Also, for what’s supposed to be a riff on the Cold War and MAD, the Union of Progressive Peoples are cartoonishly silly, constantly thinking about “capitalism” while capitalism doesn't think of them, while the narrative makes a point of how run-down and crappy their tech is.

Even Bishop notices that without any spite, while the UPP are harsh towards him out of an understandable vision of worker’s rights, but in a Dolyist sense is only there to make them more unsympathetic and caricatured.

As for Bishop, he’s fun to follow because I like reading about him just being totally chill about everything, still without coming across as heartless. But he doesn’t have much of his sense of weirdness or of that awkward kindliness that makes his character more interesting than the average friendly AP.

Two more things: I was first harsh on the idea that an ovomorph would grow from Bishop’s exposed guts, but I came around when I realized it was an example of a slightly-more grounded Xenomorph evolution/adaptation than the virus, just putting more of the mechanical in bio-mechanical—plus it was the only example of gender fuckery to be found for miles.

Secondly, I liked his quiet little monolgue at the end that humanity ought to destroy Xenomorphs for their own good. It’s the usual trope of having a heroic character fascinated by monsters, who must prove they are still heroic by killing or opposing them.

Aliens: Bishop by T.R. Napper

It’s funny that this book came out last December, like it was waiting for me to start thinking about the character again.

Sadly, the original characters were not so entertaining, which is often but not always the curse of tie-in fiction. It’s another reason why it’s hard for me to be fannish about the larger Alien-a-verse besides not much of it sounding interesting.

It doesn’t help that the story starts out with a USC Marine mission lead by an Apone, with a male corporate stooge on board, and our new MC gets the nickname “Cornbread” within a few pages—come on with this. Otherwise, she’s like Hicks in the sense of readable and serviceable.

To go back to Alien 3 for a second, and franchising in general—they repeat themes and motifs because that makes the selling easy, and you can make a keen case for “The Real Enemy is Man” being a theme of the Alien universe.

Because of that, having Michael Bishop be who/what he said he was makes the most sense if you want not only a thematic through-line but the Frankenstein-ish subtext of the book which is like catnip to me.

Normally resurrection is thematically cheap in fiction, but given that Alien 3 comes off as cheap (lazy) to begin with, and we’re dealing with an AP, and the results are interesting, it doesn’t take much to win me over.

I don’t know how much research the author did, or if it’s just serendipty, but Henriksen said he played Bishop as an abused child, as a being who knew he was disposable but consoled himself by knowing he’d outlive those who could hold that over him. And even though they look the same age, the abusive-father subtext is all over this. Michael is nice enough until he doesn’t get what he wants after being “patient” and “giving”.

And speaking of franchises and theming, something about creator/creation in the Alien series no longer feels out of place in post-Prometheus world, even if the execution in those movies was a letdown.

Transhumanism also comes into the picture, and while it first seemed Michael would steal Bishop’s new body, instead Michael wants to transfer his body digitally and succeeds. It also feels out of place in the larger franchise, but I might check out a sequel.

I also wish the book were more creative about trying to do something with the Xenomorphs. Michael pretends it’s about something different as part of his manipulation, but alas it’s the same old militarization.

It’s kind of funny that Bishop meets the captured Morse who quirkily tells him a few things about how humans don’t value other humans. It helps Bishop get rid of the last vestiges of attachment to his Shitty Dad, and Bishop otherwise returns to the same place he was before, just with a new unit.

I was waiting for some other shoe to drop, but the Apone #2 unit appeared to have no ulterior motivations when it came to finding Bishop. Returning to a quiet status quo does suit him in a way, since Bishop is so chill about everything.

The book also establishes that Bishop asked to be euthanized because of grief. I didn't want a purely utilitarian reason like reaching a damage threshold that cheapie W-Y labelled unsalvageable--that doesn't work narratively/tonally/emotionally--but it was enough to think poor Bishop decided on death because he couldn’t ever reach adequate quality of life.

So a lot of fun here, even what with the brief moments where Bishop is emotionally demonstrative or fights physically and it’s cringe-inducing rather than an extrapolation of the character.

[avacoleman]

when the lights go out || a firstprince fic

summary: Henry Fox’s career is in crisis and his dating life isn’t faring much better either.  After a chance encounter with a charming man becomes memorable for all the wrong reasons, Henry throws himself into his next assignment: writing the memoir of a beloved C-list actor. Henry, however, knows Alex best for the role he played as his random, awkward one-night stand. Henry enters their professional partnership keen on keeping their relationship just that. But after Henry confesses that their hookup was less than spectacular, Alex concots an arrangement that Henry is unable to resist. In addition to ghostwriting Alex’s life story, Henry will teach him a thing or two about satisfying a man.  As they spend months out on the road together, they must decide if the connection between them is yet another story worth telling.

chapter 2/8 || rated e || read on ao3 *updates every tues. and fri. *

Portland, OR Rose City Comic Con Day 1 [Unknown number] hey, i hope you’ve made it safely [Unknown number] in case it wasn’t clear, this is alex. i’ll catch you later. maybe we can grab a bite or something after today’s panel? Henry saves Alex’s number and confirms that yes, he’s arrived in one piece and would be happy to join Alex after the event. All of this is still wrapped in impossibility for Henry. Even though he’d been fully briefed on the tour and signed his contract, the fact that he’s now embarking on a multi-city tour with Alex hasn’t sunk in yet. The six and a half hour long flight didn’t do much to lessen the surrealness and now that he’s here at the venue, Henry doesn’t see an end in sight to the feeling. The convention center is, in a word, daunting. For as much as Henry loves Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, he can’t say his appreciation for the franchises has ever been this devout or even close to it. All around him people are decked out in elaborate, truly remarkable costumes. Some are easy to ID like Doctor Who and Marvel characters. But others are so obscure that Henry can’t even hazard a guess. It’s overwhelming but also kind of intriguing too, seeing people be wholly themselves and embrace the things they love. He forces himself to focus up as he grabs a directory map of the convention’s floor plan for reference before going up to one of the booths for his credentials. With his badge secured, he looks at the map again and makes his way over to where Alex’s panel is being held in one of the larger rooms. It takes him some time to find it; the convention center is practically a maze. But he spots a blowup outside the door clearly marking the panel, Supernatural in the Mainstream. By the time he gets inside, the room is packed and the excited chatter is practically tangible. 

Henry spots a few Crescent Valley fans in t-shirts referencing the show. Admittedly Henry still hasn’t started the series, but before he hopped his flight out of JFK, Pez spent the vast majority of their last few days together giving Henry a pretty substantial rundown of the essentials, including some cast trivia. Most notable from the recap was learning that Alex had dated one of his co-stars, Nora Holleran, during season two. Henry decided it was none of his business– only after doing a Google search on her.

Even with the knowledge that the show resonated with so many people while it aired, it’s strange to reconcile it with the fact that the guy he met on a whim at a bar is part of such a cultural force.

After a few moments, a woman takes to the stage, introducing herself as the moderator. The audience is ravenous as she introduces the panelists and Henry almost goes deaf from the screams Alex earns when his name is called.

Henry studies Alex as he crosses the stage, waving to fans and putting a hand to his heart in appreciation for the warm reception. The large monitors on either side of the stage zoom in on his face and the sincere gratitude Alex feels is plain as day in his eyes.

“Alright, let’s get started, shall we?” the moderator says to kick things off.

Alex in his element during the panel, magnetic really. Even though he’s one of four panelists, it’s so clear to see how he effortlessly draws people in. 

Henry takes out his notebook, hoping to glean something in any of Alex’s responses to the questions directed at him that can be a kernel of an idea they can turn into the core of this book.

He can’t shake Alex’s words during their lunch with Zahra, the way it seemed that Alex sincerely wanted his book to be about something real. 

Vanity cash grab celeb autobiographies were a dime a dozen. Henry figured for people who lived so heavily in the spotlight, it probably felt like the natural progression of things. But with Alex and his team being so adamant in their search, scouring through profiles in hopes of finding the right person to pen Alex’s story, he had to believe this book would actually stand for something other than more dollars in their pockets.

There isn’t much that Henry is able to take away for research other than noting the way people gravitate towards Alex. More than once, he’d actually seen people in the audience quite literally shift to the edge of their seats as he spoke.

When the panel is over, Henry fights against the current of attendees to make his way backstage. He presents his badge to the man at the entrance who gives it a once-over before deeming it to be authentic and ushering Henry through the curtain.

Alex is easy to spot, holding court just as he’d done on stage before, this time with a small audience of just the moderator and his fellow panelists. He’s got a water bottle in his hands, preparing to take a sip when he catches sight of Henry instantly and politely excuses himself from the group.

“You survived day one. How’d you like it?” he asks.

“Your world is very different from mine, but it’s pretty cool,” Henry admits.

“Good, I'm glad to hear it.”

There’s a lull as Alex looks him over and Henry suddenly feels oddly self-conscious and small. Seeing this side of Alex, the sheer star power, is a bit overwhelming.

“You're done for the day, right? I took another look at the itinerary this morning. You’ve got the signing tomorrow, yes?”

Alex nods. “Yeah, I’m all yours starting now.” The man’s face instantly flushes. “You know what I mean.”

Henry offers up a smile that feels more like a white flag. 

“We should head out,” Alex says.

He moves away and heads back to the others in the room, making his parting remarks before touching Henry’s elbow and guiding him to a set of double doors he hadn’t initially noticed when he entered. Henry is treated to a glimpse of the convention center’s underbelly, the private exit that leads them to a secluded area outside on the street level.

Henry is sure it’s probably all in his mind, but now that it’s back to just him and Alex, away from the adoring fans and bright lights of a main stage, the man standing before him now is someone else entirely again. Henry wonders if he’ll ever be able to wrap his head around the two versions of Alex that exist in this world.

“There’s a park not too far from here. Do you want to walk around for a bit?” Alex asks.

It’s a random ask but Henry is glad for it. He’s not sure what to do with himself as they try and find their rhythm around each other.

They make it to the park a few minutes later and walk alongside the edge of a small pond.

Henry turns to attempt starting a conversation and it seems as if Alex had the same thought too; they bump arms immediately and both rush to apologize.

Henry sighs and stops walking.

“I have to ask. Are you still sure about this?” 

Alex’s eyebrows furrow. 

“What do you mean? This walk?”

Henry crosses his arms and gives him a dry look.

“Ah. You being on this project then,” Alex says.

Henry nods. 

Alex looks at him. “Of course I am. I won’t lie, it is a bit of a mindfuck when I stop and really consider it. I’m still trying to figure out how to be around you. But my opinion on your work? My decision to collaborate with you? That hasn’t changed. Not one bit. So, yeah, we had a good night. Great conversation and even better sex,” he muses. “But I can forget it if you can.”

Henry snorts out a laugh in surprise that he quickly tries in vain to cover up as a sneeze. Alex, rightfully, doesn’t buy it though Henry wishes desperately that he would. He hates the way Alex’s face falls. 

“Are you…do you mean you didn’t enjoy it? That I wasn’t…,” Alex trails off.

Henry’s basic functions betray him and his mouth merely opens and closes like a landlocked fish struggling for breath.

In the end, no response is an answer within itself and Henry watches the varying degrees of what can only be described as horror play out across Alex’s face.

Goodbye tour, goodbye contract, Henry thinks. All gone before it even truly got started.

For a man that writes for a living, Henry falls short on what to say. How could he possibly salvage this now?

“I…it…,” he flounders. 

Bang up job, Henry, he internally chides.

“Oh, my god. Oh, my fucking god,” Alex whispers to himself. “Crap, that’s why you snuck out then, isn’t it?”

Henry winces. While that is an astute, wholly accurate description of what he did last week, hearing it so plainly — and from Alex’s lips no less— just makes it sound that much harsher.

“Maybe it was just an off night. It happens sometimes. But look, we don’t have to talk about it. Like you said, we can both forget it ever happened. Today can be our official day one.”

Alex shakes his head, refusing to let it go.

“No. What didn’t you like about it?”

“Alex, come on. Seriously. We don’t have to get into it.”

Alex takes a step closer.

“Please? I want to know what I did wrong.”

Henry frowns.

“That’s harsh; don’t frame it like that. Just think of it as…areas of improvement.”

Alex crosses his arms. “That isn’t much better, but I guess you’re right.” Alex pauses. “Okay then, what do I need to work on?”

Henry groans and looks up at the sky.

“I…how is this happening right now?” Henry mutters to himself, rubbing his forehead and turning his eyes to the water.

He gets a wild fantasy of jumping into the pond and hiding in its depths to avoid this conversation. Could he hold his breath long enough to wait Alex out? He’d be willing to test that hypothesis if it meant even five seconds away from this talk.

When he looks back at Alex, the man’s eyes are unwavering and Henry’s instantly transported to the night in question. To how wide eyed and earnest Alex had been after they had sex and he checked in. It makes something in his chest crack a little, enough to put a hole in the wall he hoped to build around the truth.

“Well, the handjob was a bit…rigid. And when you were working to open me up, that felt a touch awkward. And then when you were actually inside me, it was rushed and uh, a tad repetitive. You were enthusiastic, which was nice, but I couldn’t quite mirror that.”

He hopes his answer is diplomatic, but he knows there’s simply no easy way to say any of this. 

Alex’s brows knit together deeply and it feels like a lifetime before he speaks again.

“So…sex. You’re telling me I’m just straight up bad at sex as a whole?”

Henry groans and slaps the palm of his hand against his forehead.

“Like I said, it could have been an off night. We were drinking, we were both overexcited. The room was cursed or perhaps I really was, remember? There’s a lot at play here.”

Alex is quiet again, too quiet for Henry’s likings. Henry awkwardly scratches the side of his nose and rocks slightly on the balls of his feet as Alex stares off at nothing before turning his gaze back on Henry.

“I’ll take this into consideration. Thank you, Henry. I appreciate your honesty.”

It’s clinical and closed off and Henry wishes he could take back the last few minutes. But the truth is out there, the ball squarely in Alex’s court and Henry can’t help the sinking feeling that he’s about to lose it all.

~*~*~

Rose City Con

Day 2

Much like yesterday, Alex continues to be incredible with fans. It’s only a signing today, but Alex’s energy is on one hundred for each and every person that comes his way. He poses for pictures and makes good conversation with fans. He asks them questions, learns a bit about each of them. It’s clear to see the knack he has for making everyone feel like they’re having a unique, truly personal interaction with him.

Several people come up to him already in tears and overwhelmed, but Alex doesn’t seem fazed by it at all. Henry is impressed with the way Alex puts them all at ease in no time, cracking jokes as he signs merch.

Henry has no clue how Alex manages to keep his enthusiasm going for hundreds of people. The fact that this is only the first city makes his head spin. He’s not even the one engaging with people and yet Henry feels exhausted merely watching Alex in action.

Henry barely managed to sleep last night. Each time he closed his eyes, he was brought right back to the water’s edge with Alex, replaying every painstaking moment of their conversation. 

There was no time to talk about it this morning. The last thing Henry wanted to do was throw a wrench in Alex’s day when he had this signing scheduled.

Looking at Alex now, it makes Henry commend actors for their ability to truly compartmentalize and put their focus where it needs to be.

Once the signing wraps and the final Crescent Valley fan is off with a bag full of newly inked merch, Henry sees the first crack in Alex’s mask. His shoulders sag a little and he rolls his neck from side to side before standing.

He hops down from the slightly raised platform he was seated on. Henry walks towards him without really thinking about it.

“Are you heading back to the hotel now?” Alex asks.

Henry cocks his head to the side, adjusting the strap of his bag.

“I was going to…unless, do you have something else you need me to shadow you on?”

Alex shakes his head.

“No. I was hoping we could talk.” 

Henry looks around. There are still some stragglers from other signing lines though they’re out of earshot.

“We can go back together,” Alex says decidedly. 

They take a car service back to their hotel and Henry is all too relieved once they’re outside again. The ride over was silent and heavy with the weight of whatever Alex wanted to say but couldn’t in the moment.

All that free time merely left Henry with a thirty minute window to dream up scenarios of what Alex wanted to discuss. Every single one of them ended in him being fired and pulled from the tour.

“Can we go to your room?” Alex asks.

Henry nods stiffly. He figures maybe it’s for the best. At least he’d be able to pack his things immediately after Alex chewed him out and sent him on his merry way back across the country to New York.

For now, three thousand miles don’t separate them, merely three feet as they head up the elevator. 

A feeling of déjà vu sweeps through Henry, but this evening couldn’t be any more different than the night they met. Instead of crowding each other’s space and making out, they keep enough distance that their clothes don’t even come close enough to touching, never mind any other parts of them.

Henry lets them into his room and pockets his keycard as he steps inside. The door slamming shut behind Alex sounds ominous though Henry fully recognizes that’s probably his irrational brain conjuring the sense of foreboding.

“So…you wanted to talk,” he says, toeing off his shoes and setting them neatly along the wall. The sooner they got this over with, the better.

Alex nods, crossing his arms against his chest, his hands holding firm to his biceps. The positioning makes him look so small suddenly, vulnerable even. It’s such a sharp contrast to the energy Alex had with fans not too long ago. 

The enigma of Alex Claremont-Diaz continued to baffle him.

“After we spoke yesterday, I took some time to think about everything. I decided to do some research,” Alex says. “I went back to past partners to see if they shared your point of view.”

This isn’t at all where Henry thought this conversation was going. All the same, he plays along, still bracing for the worst. This could all well be a roundabout way of him getting the axe.

“And what were the results of your findings?” he asks.

“They were inconclusive. They all said they never faked it with me which got me thinking again. There’s a factor to consider here that varies from the others.”

Henry's confusion must register on his face because Alex sighs and rubs his face.

“I’ve recently…uncovered something about myself that probably should have been super obvious to me. But hey, you know what they say about hindsight.” 

Alex groans in frustration at himself.

“Can you, like, just face the wall or something? I’d really rather not have to look at you when I say what I’m about to.” 

“Your ridiculousness truly knows no bounds, does it?” Henry huffs but Alex quickly levels him with a glare.

Henry holds his hands up in defense, knowing a lost cause when he sees one.

“Fine, fine,” he says, turning away. 

He can see Alex in the reflection of the TV screen and a part of him feels guilty for not owning up to this fact when sees the tension in the man’s shoulders and watches as Alex shakes his hands as if warding something off.

“My past partners were all women. It’s come to my attention in recent weeks that I’m bi and the night we hooked up…that may or may not have been the first time I had sex with a guy. So maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t stellar at it for what I think is a pretty valid reason when you think about it.”

Henry turns back so suddenly the soles of his clothed feet scrape against the carpet. He’ll think of the rugburn later, but for now, there are bigger things to focus on.

“Alex,” he says, unsure of where to even go next. His mind is racing so quickly, it’s hard to make sense of anything right now, not with Alex’s confession laying bare before him. 

“Your shoulders barely even fit through doorways so I don’t want your head getting big too,” Alex quips, “but…I wanted to be with you that night. It felt like nothing else really mattered to me except getting into bed with you because we really vibed and I wanted to see where it could go. And I know that sounds totally lame and cheesy and probably pathetic as hell or whatever, but it’s true.”

Alex rolls his eyes at himself, stuffing his hands in the back pockets of his jeans.

“This doesn’t have to be a big deal. Hell, it doesn’t even have to be a thing, period.”

“Alex,” Henry says again. This time, something in his voice must stand out because the other man finally stops talking and looks directly at him.

Henry holds his gaze for a moment, needing his words to ring clear.

“It should be a thing because it is in fact a big deal, contrary to what you might think of the matter. Coming into your sexuality, it can be a lot mentally and emotionally. Add in making physical strides…you took a major step that night. That sort of thing isn’t easy to do.”

Alex huffs out a terse laugh.

“It was a swing and a miss.”

“I’ll pretend that’s a cricket reference instead of the tragic baseball one I’m sure it was intended to be.”

Alex’s lips quirk into a reluctant smile just as Henry was hoping it would.

“The only cricket I’ll acknowledge is Jiminy,” he says.

Henry laughs. “I’ll allow that inane response. We’ve got more important things to discuss.”

Alex sighs and takes a seat at the edge of the bed, his head lobbing back as he looks up at the ceiling. All it does is expose his smooth neck and Henry looks away before the sight gets the better of him.

He follows Alex over and sits beside him, his hands resting on the comforter on either side of him. Alex doesn’t rush to speak which Henry grows a little concerned with. Alex is hardly ever quiet or still. Seeing him like this now, Henry can practically hear the whirlwind of rushing thoughts. 

“I should hope that by now, you know you can be honest with me. That’s quite literally what I’m here for. Whatever’s on your chest, you can say and it’d be completely safe. Let your conscience be your guide and all that.”

“God, I hate you,” Alex says, but there’s no bite to his words, especially as he smiles softly and rests his head against Henry’s shoulder.

“Thanks for being so cool about this. Part of me is still not entirely convinced I won’t be struck dead from embarrassment later but, if I had to get news like this from anyone…I sure as shit am glad it was you.”

“You’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. This just explains a lot. I’m sure you’ll only get better from here on out, now that you know.”

Alex sits up and snorts a laugh.

“And how many guys will I have to fuck until I get it just right?”

“Is that a riddle? A rhetorical question? Some kind of demented R-rated Goldilocks reference?”

“I’m genuinely asking here,” Alex says sincerely, enough to get Henry to quiet down. “What if I never figure it out and I’m just this trash partner for dudes going forward? How many is standard for it to, you know, click?”

Henry smiles sympathetically. “I can’t answer that for you.” Alex frowns, but Henry continues. “It could be ten or it could be as little as one. It’s different for everybody. You just need to get more comfortable with it.”

Alex’s brows furrow, his lips pinching slightly before he looks away. It’s almost an identical look to his expression that night when he was taking his time in touching Henry for the first time.

“What are you thinking?” Henry asks now, unlike that night. They’re well past that stage of being tentative.

Alex opens and closes his mouth before shaking his head.

“Nothing. It’s nothing,” he says, getting up from the bed and running a hand through his curls.

Henry rises to his feet too as Alex turns back to him and speaks suddenly.

“I’m hungry. You hungry? What do we think the room service situation is like here, hmm? I’m guessing high volumes of quinoa and other rabbit foods. A damn shame. I weep in Texas barbecue. Fuck, what I wouldn’t give for some good barbacoa right now,” he prattles on as he tries to sidestep Henry.

Henry gently catches hold of his arm and stops him in his tracks. Alex sighs defeatedly and looks up at him.

“Maybe we’ll get to a point where I’ll be able to read your mind, but until then, I’d really like to know what you’re thinking,” Henry says. “Please.”

Alex sighs again. “Well, when you ask so nicely.”

Henry lets go of him then and holds his gaze. The stalemate ends as Alex collects his thoughts and courage.

“I was thinking, maybe you’re onto something with that whole ‘one person’ thing. Like…I don’t know, maybe that one person could be you? You could, maybe, teach me. Show me the ropes. Or at the very least, explain how I could be better. You know, give me pointers and stuff…if you’d even go for that.”

Henry’s jaw drops slightly, his blood rushing and pounding in his ears. For all his ribbing and joking before, Henry can tell Alex is completely serious now.

“You know, I can’t read your mind either, right? You’re gonna have to say something. Ideally right this second because if I thought I was out on a limb before, I’m freefalling right now and spiraling is not cool or sexy,” Alex says.

Henry blinks twice, letting Alex’s words fully sink in.

“Wait…you’d want to…with me again?”

Alex rolls his eyes and throws his hands up.

“I feel like you deserve a redo. And besides, do you see any other hot British men around here who know my secret shame?”

Henry startles out a laugh.

“You shouldn’t be ashamed and we British men do not travel in packs.”

“Tell that to the Redcoats. British men traveling in packs,” Alex repeats and shudders. “No good ever came of that. Just open any history book at random.”

“My god, do you ever stop talking?”

“Usually when my mouth is occupied in other ways.”

Henry quirks a brow.

“Down, boy. Get your mind out of the gutter. I was absolutely talking about when I’m drinking coffee or eating food or—“

Henry puts his hands on either side of Alex’s face.

“For the love of God, can you be quiet for two seconds so that I may think?”

Alex mirrors his raised brow.

“Holy shit, you’re actually gonna consider this?”

“Did you think I wouldn’t?” Henry shakes his head and lowers his hands. “I mean, yes, there are a hundred and one reasons why we shouldn’t. Chief among them being that we’re here for business not pleasure.”

“But seeing as though we kinda shot that to hell without meaning to…,” Alex supplies. “I freaking love loopholes. I really do.”

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

Henry looks up at the ceiling briefly before shaking his head.

“If we do this, we’re going to have to be very, very careful. I don’t want to jeopardize our working relationship. This book has to always come first.”

“Of course.”

Henry sits once more on the bed, Alex stepping close to him with his arms crossed against his chest.

“If this were to happen, we’d need to establish some ground rules. No staying overnight in each other’s rooms. If, for any reason, one of us wants to call it off—,”

“No questions asked. No awkwardness,” Alex says. “Simply not wanting to anymore would be reason enough.”

Henry nods. “Yeah, exactly.” He purses his lips. “And it won’t be a daily thing either.”

Alex scoffs and puts his hands on his hips.

“Jesus, do you think I’m insatiable? You’re hot, but I promise you, I can in fact exercise some self-control.”

“In the short time that I’ve known you, I must admit that’s coming as quite a revelation, but I suppose I’ll have to take your word for it.”

Alex rolls his eyes and smiles softly, his face a bit thoughtful. Henry can’t look away as Alex speaks, especially as he takes note of Alex’s change in tone, the way he grows more serious and contemplative.

“I’m gonna make it up to you. That night.”

“You don’t owe me anything. Besides, this isn’t even about me. I’ll just be here to help you figure out what your future partners might like.”

“And the best way for me to start with that is by learning what you like. When the time comes, yeah, I’ll figure out how to make another guy come undone. But in the meantime? These next few weeks? It’s just me and you. I want to make you feel all the things you should have when we were together. Every sigh, every moan, every desperate breath. I’ll earn it for real this time.”

Henry’s throat feels a bit dry at the thought, at the determination in Alex’s eyes. 

“Is that a promise then? A challenge perhaps?” he manages to say, trying to keep his composure even as he feels himself getting aroused.

Alex doesn’t miss a beat as he says, “Sweetheart, that’s a goddamn guarantee.”

~*~*~

Phoenix, AZ Canyon Con

One of the best parts about agreeing to be the ghostwriter for this project is undoubtedly the ability for Henry to visit cities he’s never been to. 

The flight to Arizona with Alex was enjoyable and this time around, they’re set up in an AirBnB for an entire week.

They’ve settled into their temporary new digs pretty nicely and Henry is looking forward to making further progress with Alex and this book. 

Neither of them has actually brought up the other day and the deal they’ve struck with each other. Henry hasn’t been sure how to breach the topic, but now that they’re set to stay inside this rental for the week, it feels like it’ll take true Herculean effort to ignore the elephant in the room for much longer.

He reasons that since it was Alex’s idea, he’ll leave it to him to mention when he’s ready. For now, they have been able to tiptoe around it, making conversation about virtually anything else.

Henry takes up residence on the couch with his laptop, headphones on as he queues up Crescent Valley. He’s begun watching the series as part of his research. He’s halfway through season one and he still can’t tell if he likes the show or not. Despite that indecision, he can sincerely say Alex is a pretty great actor.

The show itself is campy at best, but there’s something very earnest in Alex’s portrayal of a newly turned vampire attempting to find balance in the two worlds he’s a part of.

Episode nine begins and for better or worse, Henry finds himself getting sucked into it. He rues the day already when he’ll have to confess to Pez that he should have watched along with him back when they were roommates in university. He’ll never hear the end of it. He’d better start preparing now for the resounding chorus of “I told you so”.

Henry’s so wrapped up in the show that he jumps a little when he sees a figure in the doorway of the living room. Alex is now both on his screen and here in the flesh.

Henry awkwardly makes to get up, hitting pause and taking off his headphones.

“Did you want to watch television in here? I can go.”

Alex’s brows furrow a little.

“Oh, no. I just wanted to hang with you. I know we haven’t really had much time to sit down about the memoir yet, so maybe we could now? But if you’re busy though, we can do it later.”

Henry shakes his head and closes out of Crescent Valley. He switches over to the Google Doc he created, storing away all the notes he’s been taking from various interviews he’s watched and read of Alex.

“Now would be great. It’s been nice seeing you out there with fans, but what I’m still trying to understand is the reason why you want a book at this time. What’s the angle or message you want readers to connect with?”

Alex takes a seat on the single seater across from Henry. 

“I want to talk about my sexuality, my ADHD, being a tragic child of divorce, the highs and lows of being in this career. But, mostly the first part.” 

Alex takes a deep breath and lets it out.

“I want to come out and maybe in doing so, it’ll help someone else to make sense of the things they might’ve been feeling for years, but never knew how to dissect or put a name to.”

Henry thinks back to their initial business meeting. Alex had made it clear that despite their past, Henry still remained his top pick to ghostwrite. Alex had also said there were different reasons why he hid the truth of who he was. Now it all slid into place since Alex’s admission the other day.

“Alex, that’s incredible. This is huge.”

Alex smiles nervously. 

“I can’t believe I’m doing it, but I feel good about my decision. My friends and family know. I feel good about myself, even though I’m still figuring this out.”

“You’re taking a big step and on the world stage no less. That’s pretty remarkable. I’m proud of you. I’d be honored to help tell your story.”

He takes his phone out of his pocket.

“Do you mind if I record? It helps me to get details correct and it’s also useful in getting your cadence right when it comes time to start writing.”

“Not at all. Go for it,” Alex says.

Henry nods and opens his voice memo, hitting record. He asks questions about Alex’s upbringing, the sort of little things a quick Wiki search can’t tell a person. 

True to the terms of the contract and Zahra’s assurance, Alex makes himself, for a lack of a better term, an open book. He gets candid about how his parents’ divorce coupled with his relative celeb status has made it difficult for him to put much stock into the concept of dating, especially with people outside the industry.

This fact in particular strikes Henry though he decides not to examine that too closely.

After about an hour and half, Henry decides they’ve covered enough ground to get him started.

“This was great. Thank you,” he says, looking over the new notes he’s taken and saving the recording.

“Yeah, of course.” Alex still looks contemplative and for a moment, Henry merely chalks it up as a side effect of their in-depth conversation until he stands and Alex speaks up.

“Um, could we talk about the other thing too?”

Henry doesn’t need clarification. He tucks his laptop under his arm and sits back down.

“Of course we can.”

Alex lets out a relieved breath.

“I couldn’t sleep last night and I kept thinking about the problem areas you mentioned. One thing you’ll learn about me is that I like making lists and stuff to keep me on track. There’s a neurosy or two in there, but let’s not look at it too hard right now. We can get into that later for the book,” Alex says.

“Point is, I ended up making a sort of…outline for us and these sessions so they have some structure to them. You can talk things out first and then maybe we could have a practical portion. I can link you to the live doc.”

Henry blinks a few times.

“That’s comprehensive. You've made a sex syllabus.”

Alex’s cheeks flush slightly.

“It’s too much, isn’t it?”

“Alex, I’m British. I thrive off structure and formality. I’d quite like to see this outline so yes, please, link me.”

He stands up again.

“Maybe you could come by my room in about an hour?” Henry suggests. “The deal was that the book comes first. I’d say we made sufficient progress today in that area,” Henry says, tapping his laptop.

Alex blinks twice. “Sounds good.” 

His tone is almost detached and before Henry can ask if he’s alright, Alex is already on his feet with his phone in hand.

Henry retreats to his room and sets his computer down on the nightstand. He hears the chime of his inbox and he opens it to find an email from Alex, subject line “aforementioned sex syllabus 🍆💦”.

Henry laughs and opens it.

The first lesson, Back to Basics, has subsections for kissing and touching.

Henry closes out of the doc as his eyes look at later topics like fingering and oral. He begins to pace, his neck feeling hot at the road ahead. 

In all fairness, at least, this first lesson won’t be difficult at all. Kissing is as harmless as it comes and Henry can attest to the fact that this wasn’t actually an area in which Alex needed improvement.

All the same, Henry knows there’s merit in easing them into this new working relationship instead of jumping into the deep end on day one.

An hour goes by much faster than Henry could have anticipated and suddenly Alex is knocking at his door.

Henry squares his shoulders and crosses the room to let him in. He takes some reassurance in the fact that Alex looks as uncertain as he feels.

“Hey,” Alex says as he comes in, taking a look around himself before landing back on Henry. Even though these sessions were Alex’s idea, Henry gets the feeling he’ll have to be the one to get the ball rolling tonight.

“I will preface this lesson by saying you don’t need any pointers in this department.”

Alex smiles to himself and Henry has to admit, it’s kind of adorable seeing that reaction.

“Regardless, I think your guideline was pretty smart in starting out slowly with these sessions. We can build up from there.”

Alex nods. “Cool, I’m glad you agree.”

Henry stuffs his hands in his pockets. “And you’re sure you want to do this, right? I won’t be offended or anything if you’ve had a change of heart in the past hour.”

Alex shakes his head. “No, I’m still in. I guess I’m just nervous about screwing things up a second time. I don’t know if I could readily bounce back from that level of humiliation.”

Henry steps closer to him, removing his hands from his pockets and instead encircling Alex’s waist.

Alex’s eyes widen but he doesn’t shrink away or look uncomfortable. If anything, he looks curious. Expectant even.

“I think the best way for us to get past the awkwardness might be to simply embrace it,” Henry says.

Alex peers up at him, his eyes drifting to Henry’s lips and back just as he’d done that night right before they kissed for the first time.

This time around, it’s Alex who makes the first move and tugs Henry closer. Henry can’t hide the way this affects him. His breath catches as Alex leans in and presses his lips to Henry’s.

It’s reflexive to kiss him back at once. Alex had left his brain in an absolute fog that night in New York as they kissed on the street and weeks later, Alex hasn’t lost his spark.

This kiss doesn’t mean anything. It won’t lead to anything and Henry thinks that’s what allows him to rid himself of any self-consciousness or second thoughts.

Alex’s kiss grows hungry and quickens and for the sake of Henry’s quickly beating heart, he needs them to take it down one notch or two.

“A bit slower,” Henry says softly against his lips. “I don’t want to rush this.”

Alex smiles and does as he’s instructed. He kisses Henry agonizingly slowly, perhaps out of spite, but Henry relishes in it. Alex’s tongue skims along the seam of his lips and Henry opens his mouth to him at once, gripping Alex’s hips as their tongues meet.

He breathes in deeply, his mind growing hazy in that way that Alex is too good at initiating. Henry feels like absolute putty in Alex’s hands, entirely malleable. 

Alex must know it too as he takes control and walks Henry back to the nearest wall. Henry instinctively drapes his arms over the man’s shoulders, lightly threading his fingers through Alex’s hair.

Alex lowers his hand between the two of them and lightly cups Henry. Henry sucks in a surprised breath at the touch.

“Next time,” Alex says quietly, tauntingly.

Henry whimpers in protest.

“Unless,” Alex tacks on in question.

Henry pulls his face back a little and licks his lips.

“Touch was on the agenda, right? We can do a teaser.” Henry sighs. “Rather, selfishly, I really want you to keep touching me. That felt nice,” he admits.

Alex laughs softly but places his hand back over Henry. His cock twitches immediately at the attention. He clenches his jaw as Alex strokes him lightly over his clothes. Henry’s eyes shut, his head resting back against the wall.

His arousal grows with each stroke, his whole body feeling liable to melt. If Alex had touched him like this their first night, it most definitely would have set a different tone for the evening.

He rocks forward as he resumes their kiss. Alex tentatively squeezes his cock. Henry moans against his lips, heart pounding. Alex squeezes him again before continuing to stroke him. Henry can feel himself leaking.

Alex’s hand creeps up, gripping the waistband of his jeans. Henry desperately wants to feel Alex’s skin on his in earnest, but he reminds himself that this is merely their first day. He can’t lose himself like this, no matter how good it feels.

He touches Alex’s wrist lightly and opens his eyes. Alex stills at once and lets go.

“I think that’s good for day one,” Henry whispers.

Alex nods. “Yeah, that was, uh,” he clears his throat and returns his arm to his side as he steps back, “that was enough.”

And yet still, Henry wants more. He wonders if it would be wiser or more efficient for them to blow through the lessons in one go. Maybe that way they could in fact spend the rest of their time together doing what they’ve signed contracts for and are actually getting paid to do.

But the knowledge that he can get access to Alex like this for several more weeks makes him throw away all sense and logic. He wants an excuse to keep these clandestine meetings going.

“I’m gonna grab a shower,” Alex says unhelpfully. All his words do is put images in Henry’s mind that shouldn’t be there.

Henry nods stiffly. 

“I’ll get started on dinner for us in the meantime,” Henry says. Maybe getting lost in the rhythm of cooking will make it easier for him to calm down.

“I’ll see you in a bit then,” Alex replies.

Henry sees him out and waits until he hears Alex’s footfalls down the hall before locking his door and undoing his pants to finish the job Alex started.

[the-red-butterfly]

20 Questions for fic writers

Tagged by @bad-at-names-and-faces and @i-did-not-mean-to

Thanks guys!!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? I have 96 works in Ao3 BUT I have 104 on Fanfiction (yes, I still post there don't judge me.) I think there are just like 3 works that I have on Ao3 that I didn't pu up on FanFiction.

2. What's your total AO3 word count? 411,089 (Not too bad, not too bad)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Primarily I write for Tolkien works, Star Wars and Batman (bat fam to be more specific). But I'm very much a, write one for each thing I love kinda gall. Honorary mentions include Sandman, Frozen, Twilight Avengers, Merlin and Teen Titans.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Lonely Stars Drifting In The Black (Star Wars) (so not surprised XD)

Kudos: 2,276

The Unexpected Pop Of Things (Lucifer TV)

Kudos: 1,265

This Isn't What It Looks Like (Lucifer TV)

Kudos: 762

Death of a Star (Lucifer TV)

Kudos: 760

Alone Never More (Batman comics) (you are just an okay story, why are you here? 😭)

Kudos: 729

(I'm kinda surprised and offended that I didn't put Lucifer on the honorary mentions and it still took places 2, 3 AND 4 👁)

5. Do you respond to comments? Oh yes (though I might take a couple of months if I some slip my mind). Almost all of them. I tend to not answer back to emojis because I'm like... I don't know what to answer?

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? This was kind of a hard question and it took me way too long to answer, so here, have the three runner ups.

A Crime Of Passion (Twilight: New Moon)

Ends with: Carlisle being forced to drink blood and being unable to deal with it.

At The End Of The Earth (Hellboy del Toro movies)

Ends with: John Myers being mauled by wolves and his last thoughts being of how alone he feels and of dying alone.

She's not a very good mother (Batman comics)

Ends with: Janet Drake dying as she chokes on poison and regrets she wont be able to do better by her son. She always thought she'd have more time.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Unlike the last one, this one was so easy to pick because, yeah... I'm an angsty girly for sure so the pool for REALLY happy endings was SMALL.

Drizzle Bt The Sea (Teen Titans cartoon)

It's quite short and all around just happy in vibes. Just Robin and Jericho playing by the sea under the rain.

8. Do you get hate on fics? I don't remember that I ever have? Thought I thought a couple might get hate, they didn't.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I tired it ONCE. And you know what happened? The sex was interrupted by trauma and they characters had to top to talk about the whole thing.

There is also that other one time but we're not going to talk about it.

But all in all I'm much more interested in exploring gen stories ✨

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? I LOVE crossovers. I don't have many, but I am plagued mentally by them. I have 3 posted (only one on Ao3). And I'm not sure which one's craisiest. But the 2 on FF are both Rise of the Guardians crossovers, one with Avengers and the other with LES MISÉRABLES. What was younger me smoking? I would really like to know.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I'm aware 👁

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I think someone might've asked one or two times? But I honestly don't remember, if it ever happened, it was ages ago.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Oh yes! It's always so fun to me. I've done it a couple of times with @slightly-crimson-tornado and I'm currently working on one with @pushing-daisies-renaissance ✨

14. What’s your all time favourite ship? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Steve Trevor x Diana Prince I think. Close runner up is definitely Satine Kryze x Obi-wan Kenobi. And I'm VERY fond of Bruce Wayne x Selina Kyle.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I have a stupid amount of wips so I'll just go by posted ones. I have this story idea that I REALLY Like but I came up with it ages ago, and though i still like the idea I'm doubtful that I'll ever give it the time it deserves to go back to ):

Because the truth was too terrible (Avengers)

It's a story about Natasha being trapped inside her mind and Thor getting in to wake her up. I'm still pretty fond of the general gist of it. But it's OLD now.

16. What are your writing strengths? Aaaaaahhh. Trauma management? Like, they way people go about it and navigate it; how they talk about it with others? At least I THINK that's my strength. People keep complimenting those things XD

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I am too flowery with wording and I get sick of myself. It's out of control and I sometimes can't help it.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I love it. If I can't get help I'll just wing a google translate, or god forbid do some research on structure. I'm BAD at it, but I love it and use it frequently.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Inazuma Eleven (anime) hehe. Love of my youth, protect me.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? I love this this Twilight one-shot I wrote some years ago. It made me suffer a lot (for reasons you can find in the author's notes) but the idea has always had a tight grip on me. I really like it (and hope to got I can get the sequel out one day).

A Crime Of Passion (Twilight: New Moon)

BUT two honorable mentions. One, my Star Wars series where Obi-wan get's rescued from Death Watch by Jango Fett. And Two, my VERY self indulgent crossover between Avengers x Merlin, I love the story and I'm really super fond of what I've gotten down so far.

Celestial Bodies Of The Lonesome Variety (LSD) (Star Wars)

Of The Old Things Hidden In The World (Merlin x Avengers crossover)

Ya know, just in case you feel like it, tagging @slightly-crimson-tornado , @cilil , @dottie-wan-kenobi , @fishing4stars , @arlenianchronicles , @scary-grace

[chiliconsharls]

“Triangles are the strongest shape there is. Any weight placed on them is evenly distributed on all 3 sides. They represent geometric sturdiness; no matter how much weight you put on any side, it will not break.” With this science fact in mind,

let’s talk about ObiAniDala

(a ship manifesto brought to you by the joined forces of my silly brain and my much smarter besties at the discord server)

Also known as “Prequel Trio”, this is the triad ship for Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala (Naberrie), our main protagonist characters of the Star Wars prequel films (Episode I, II and III) as well as the subsequent shows, comics, and novels.

Most of the basis for this ship is centered around their interactions and established dynamics within the films canon more than any other piece of media but fans do not neglect the rest, as it also expands on their relationship. It also presents, as most polyam-oriented ships, a solution to fandom phenomenon known as shipping wars, in this instance mostly between the Obikin (Obi-Wan/Anakin) and Anidala (Anakin/Padmé) fans.

Obianidala is, as of January 2023, the second most written trio relationship in the Star Wars fandom on Archive of Our Own, with 536 works on their tag. They’re only topped by the sequels trio, Poe/Finn/Rey, who have over one thousand works.

Their nature of being the protagonist characters in two of the three films of the prequel trilogy is enough to warrant some people would’ve shipped them, but the special interest fans have in them has to do with the fact that they are intrinsically connected, even if only by proximity (in Obi-Wan and Padmé’s case). Anakin is the protagonist -turned antagonist-; Padmé is his love interest; Obi-Wan is his mentor/brother/best friend figure. Each of them have a loud presence in each other’s lives and thus, the importance of the others in each of their stories is pivotal.

What’s established in canon?

While I’m not a firm believer that we, as a society, should be bound by the shackles of canon, I also understand sometimes knowing you’re not picturing things in your head feels very vindicating. It’s good to know creators are onto something you’re digging with your little fan goggles. And Obianidala is no exception to that.  

As I mentioned above, they’re all connected. Narratively speaking, Obi-Wan and Padmé pose two opposing forces for Anakin, even though some fans even see them as foils of each other (as they do with Obi-Wan and Anakin as well); yet it is evidently clear that he loves them both deeply and strongly, equally. They are the most important people in Anakin’s life.

In fact, Anakin’s personal view of Padmé and Obi-Wan as opposing roads for him to take and the amount of love he feels for them is something that contributes to his falling to the dark side, aided by Sidious latching on his weakness and exploiting this internal turmoil he has.

From Matthew Stover’s Revenge of the Sith novelization:

Now, this quote infuriates me for several reasons but mostly because people see it as an ‘end it all’ to arguments of how much more Anakin loved one or the other. Personally, I see it as Palpatine pushing Anakin to his already preconceived idea that he had to give one up (and a perfect showcase of his reluctance to do so, too). Anakin ultimately had to make a choice, yes, but saying he loved one more than the other based on that is very debatable.

Throughout the films it is established that Anakin gravitates around them both, but the novels take a very special dive into this, often highlighting how Anakin’s mind seems to have Padmé and Obi-Wan as a single unit:

(From the RoTS novelization)

(Both from Wild Space by Karen Miller)

(I’m personally insane about that last one because sure, that’s a TOTALLY normal thing to think about. ‘I wish me and MY WIFE would make my BEST FRIEND be less alone’. Anakin Skywalker, I know what you are)

As for Obi-Wan and Padmé, the same thing goes, albeit in a more reserved and collected way – as it is their nature. While Anakin is constantly struggling with how much he loves the both of them and how he suffers because he eventually will have to make a choice, Obi-Wan and Padmé are at peace with their affection/love for Anakin AND the presence of the other in his/their lives.

In fact, they also care and deeply trust each other as well.

Padmé is the one who decides to go to Obi-Wan’s rescue in Attack of the Clones, and she also suggests they could trust him to help them with the whole pregnancy ordeal.

Then, there’s also this from the RoTS novelization:

Which even goes on to suggest Padmé might’ve even trust Obi-Wan more than she did Anakin. 

She accepts, willfully and unreservedly that they both love Anakin and therefore will always be present in each other’s life. And she spares some affection, warmth, and yes, perhaps even some love for him, too: 

Obi-Wan, the super-ego character of the trio, also cares for them very deeply, even past his otherwise private and reserved nature. It’s established in an episode of Clone Wars (7x02) - as well as a deleted scene from RoTS- that Obi-Wan is aware that Anakin has a relationship with Padmé and has been for quite some time yet he never tells the Council about it and he only ever tries once to talk to Anakin about it, trying to remind him that attachments are forbidden for the Jedi. Yet, Obi-Wan doesn’t press on this because he himself is attached and Anakin’s happiness is more important to him than Jedi rules. (Ok, maybe I’m interpreting it but, it’s true, I’ll show you). 

Snippet from the RoTS novelization because the screenshot was gonna be too big:

"Senator-Padme. Please." He gazed into her eyes with nothing on his face but compassion and fatigued anxiety. "I am not blind, Padme. Though I have tried to be, for Anakin's sake. And for yours." "What do you mean?" "Neither of you is very good at hiding feelings, either." "Obi-Wan-" "Anakin has loved you since the day you met, in that horrible junk shop on Tatooine. He's never even tried to hide it, though we do not speak of it. We... pretend that I don't know. And I was happy to, because it made him happy. You made him happy when nothing else ever truly could." He sighed, his brows drawing together. "And you, Padme, skilled as you are on the Senate floor, cannot hide the light that comes to your eyes when anyone so much as mentions his name."

From Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View: 

What I find interesting in this quote is the fact that Padmé is paired with Obi-Wan’s canonical love interest and the other two characters Obi-Wan has a more canonically familial bond with. So, yes, I do have the receips when I say Obi-Wan loved Padmé as well as he did Anakin.

This is from the RoTS screenplay, and it’s also RoTS canon, it just didn’t make it into the final cut but it’s very important to point it out because while here it’s explicitly said, in the film it’s implied, so it still counts: 

“I know you both too well” // “We’re all friends, I care about both of you”... Obi-Wan Kenobi, I SEE you. And so does Padmé: 

(I’m adding this one simply because it’s very inch-resting to me that both Anakin and Padmé seem to be very concerned with Obi-Wan’s loneliness... THAT’s suspicious) 

Even going to present content, the Obi-Wan Kenobi show very clearly establishes that Obi-Wan is mourning both Anakin and Padmé as they were the closest people to him in their last days. 

He sees Padmé in Leia (”Nothing, you just reminded me of someone” -1x02- “When I look at Luma, all I see is her mother’s face” -1x03-) and he finds a new life purpose in looking after Luke simply because he’s Anakin’s son (”To keep watch over Anakin's son-" Obi-Wan sighed, finally allowing his face to register a suggestion of his old gentle smile. "I can't imagine a better way to spend the rest of my life." -RoTS novelization-). 

It’s also very evident how much he loved and how high he regarded Padmé and Anakin when he’s listing the qualities of them that he finds in Leia: 

“Both were exceptional people who bore an exceptional daughter.” (From Obi-Wan Kenobi (TV series) – 1×06)

What about them from a meta point of view?

Now that we talked briefly (and I do say briefly because I could’ve gone even deeper with the canon stuff), let’s dive into this ship from a meta lens. What’s the REAL juice in this one true threesome? 

Well, we talked about this in the Obianidala discord server a few days ago, prompted by me asking why they shipped the trio, mostly because I couldn’t believe no one had written a ship manifesto yet, and as acting CEO of this OT3 I felt it needed to be done.

Here’s the masterpost of all their valid and incredible answers:

Pluto: Poly. I’m biased bc im poly, but like, I love poly ships

Saathi (@saathi1013): The balance among the three of them! How each pairing has its own dynamic but the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts! It's because it feels like any of the other pairings are incomplete and/or unstable comparatively? They're def enjoyable and I throw no shade to ardent supporters of the sub-pairings, but in MY head:

-Padme/Anakin are the impetuousness of youth, passionate but not grounded;

-Anakin/Obi-Wan carries the tension Anakin feels about the Order (and the War), lacking the outside perspective Padme brings;

and any way I slice it, Padme/Obi-Wan are either clinging together out of grief post ROTS or I have to mentally rewrite AOTC so she & Obi-Wan get together instead of Padme/Anakin, which might either precipitate Anakin's fall OR they end up like Obi/Satine so however I slice it, it's kind of heartbreaking.

Bere (@bereweillschmidt): Because they complement each other and are a perfect balance in their relationships. Both O and P are perfect pillars for Anakin. Also they’re all beautiful af

Ash (@cypanache): Okay so I’m coming at this from the perspective of an obidala shipper first but here’s my view on them.

Both Obi-Wan and Padme’s relationship with Anakin is flawed and doomed to fail on its own. Not just for the fact that the act of trying to love both of them separately tears Anakin apart because he simply doesn’t know how to love in moderation and the resulting sense of being forced to choose us what contributes to his descent. But also for the fact each only speaks to one half of Anakin and it’s weakness is the other relationships strength

For Obi-Wan his ability to set boundaries to hold Anakin to a standard of expected behavior Padme has never been able to maintain.

For Padme her ability to make Anakin feel unconditionally loved in a way Obi-Wan has never been able to get him to believe

At the same time I truly believe Obi-Wan and Padme’s relationship that love is the missing piece of what they all need. And the lack of it is why they all fall apart

Obi-Wan’s respect for Padme and his willingness to challenge her is what would give her the strength to hold her own in a relationship with Anakin without losing her sense of self

Padme’s caring.  Her compassion and heart and her passion is what would pull Obi-Wan out of his rigid ‘perfect Jedi’ persona and allow him to feel free to love and be loved he couldn’t do with just Anakin alone because of their history and the tempestuous nature of their relationship.

You need all three pieces for them to work.

Loki (@chaoticdumbassrogue): Polyamory for the win

Jeka (@darlingamidala): There are countless reasons why I ship these three characters together. I don’t feel like I need to go into the reasons anidala, obikin, and obidala are all fantastic pairings on their own, and it goes without saying that they all have chemistry with each other. So instead, I’ll focus on why I love them so much more as a polyamorous triad.

A large part of it is the way they balance and complement each other. Any two of them have the potential to bring out the worst in a each other, but when you put the three of them together, they bring out the best in each other. They balance each other in ways that allow their relationship as a triad to be greater than the sum of its parts.

Anakin and Padme are rather hopeless romantics, and they can get swept up in their relationship to the point where it almost becomes an escapist fantasy. Obi-wan is more practical and pragmatic, he keeps them grounded in reality, which is important for maintaining a healthy relationship in the long term.

Anakin and Obi-wan have such a complicated relationship, where they know each other on an incredibly intimate level and yet also struggle to see eye to eye. And Padme I think understands them both where they fail to understand each other. She helps them fill that gap and communicate their feelings when they don’t know how.

Padme and Obi-wan are deeply dedicated to their duties and responsibilities, often to the detriment of their personal lives. Both of them would feel like pursuing a romantic relationship would be a neglect of their duties. But Anakin is passionate and stubborn and devoted, and he pushes them not to neglect their own happiness.

There’s so much history between the three of them, their fates are woven together from beginning to end. They’ve been through a lot together, and they care about each other so much. They trust each other so much, and they love each other so much. Even when everything falls apart in Revenge of the Sith, and they’ve all broken each other’s hearts and can no longer trust one another, there is still a deep love between the three of them that can never be broken.

Jui (@nicolos): Like yes balance, and their delicious delicious dynamics, but also I got into OAD first bc I kept getting annoyed at one or other character being fridged or vilified in fics. Which is a fandom answer not a canon one, but it did get me thinking about it

Leo (@anakinkshamer):  I ship OAD bc it’s hot, I love polyamory, and the ✨chemistry✨

Vic @//vesper29: 1. Anakin is the chosen one. Very powderful. Fight of the immediate people he loves (padme and obi). 2. Because Obiwan and Padme if you look into their personalities and life purpose, they are cut out of the same paper. And to balance the raw force nature of Anakin, we will need both Obiwan and Padme. One show him way of life (career, life goal); the other love, family.

Joey (@alabama-metal-man​): it's all about how they dull each other's harsh edges, and temper their more more bullish traits, while also honing their strengths and hearts, thus creating this incredible balance. 

In summary, they balance each other, just like the triangle is meant to spread all stress equally to make up for the strongest of supports. In a perfect world, them together would’ve saved the entire galaxy from a lot of troubles.

So, if you’ve made it this far, I hope we got you at least quirking an eyebrow at the way Anakin stares intensenly into both Padmé and Obi-Wan, or Obi-Wan’s ridiculous use of plurals all the time, or how obvious Padmé is that even Yoda can tell:

[squids-comics]

With all this hype for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, I have been desperately hoping that we get to see one of my favourite guardians, and one who I feel is criminally underrated, Bug!!

(Spoilers for Annihilation and Annihilation: Conquest ahead)

To fully explain why bug is so underrated, we have to go back to the Annihilation event. Annihilation was a huge crossover event from 2006 that brought all of Marvel's cosmic superheroes together to fight a common foe, Annihilus. This helped pull the cosmic side of Marvel back into popularity and gave a fanbase to characters who were previously obscure. One of these obscure characters was Peter Quill AKA Star Lord. While not playing a huge role, Star Lord was an entertaining side character who seemed to gain the largest popularity boost from the event.

This takes us into Annihilation: Conquest! Things are kicked off when Star Lord tries to aid the Kree empire in rebuilding after the war. He accidently gets them enslaved by robots. The Kree respond by drafting him into their military and forcing him to go on suicide missions for them. But he's not alone! Star Lord is joined by a cast of characters so obscure, only the most intense Marvel fans would know who they are. Joining Star Lord was Gabriel Vargas AKA Captain Universe, Sharra Neramani AKA Deathcry, Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, and our favourite two toed guardian, Bug! This series reads almost like a blueprint for the Guardians of the Galaxy and is a good read, especially if you're a Guardians fan!! The team goes on missions, people die, and eventually the day is saved!

This brings us to the formation of the modern day Guardians of the Galaxy. Star Lord feels guilty for accidentally starting a second huge space disaster only a few years after the first, so he assembles a team to prevent any more from happening. He does this by grabbing all the heavy hitters from the Annihilation: Conquest event: Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, Adam Warlock, and Phyla-Vell. He also recruits every surviving member of his team except Bug, this being: Rocket Raccoon, Groot, and Mantis. The team gets a base in Knowhere, where they meet and recruit chief of security Cosmo! Having Bug be the only surviving member of Star Lord's free trial Guardians still standing who doesn't get recruited is pretty awful for the guy, but he does get his moment to shine! When the team encounters drama and half the members quit, Rocket reforms the team, recruiting Bug and Major Victory!! On the first mission of the new team, Bug cracks jokes about how he wasn't good enough to make the original cut of the roster.

From left to right we have: Phyla-Vell (now going by Martyr), Jack Flag (one of Captain America's sidekicks from the 90's), Star Lord, Gamora, and Bug!!

Bug stayed a loyal and dedicated member of the team until the end of the first Guardians comic run, which led to the team being rebooted to match the movies closer, with the only members being Star Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket, Groot and Iron Man (for some reason). As far as I have read, that is the last time Bug has been featured on the team.

Not only was Bug a cool looking, fun character on the team, he had been there pretty much since the start. I would really love to see him in the MCU one day, but Marvel has had issues with the licensing of the character (he's owned by Hasbro), so we might not get to see him anytime soon. I would really love to see him make a return in the comics though!!

[itashiro-hitsuchiha]

My thoughts on the shutdown of RT by Warner and on RWBY

Read on if you wish.

Ok so there's a good bit of things for me to say on this matter. Normally I don't do personal posts a whole lot like this but I want to express my thoughts on the matter. I will disclaim that this is a matter of opinion based on my understanding of the situation and I will explain more on certain subjects when I get to it. This is more of my inclination towards RWBY as a series than anything else.

So let's start with the short and simple part of my thoughts on it. It does suck that the company is shutting down mostly for the workers involved. As I understand from secondhand knowledge and statements by other onlookers that the company leadership has made very poor decisions with their franchises, both in writing direction and with treatment of the staff and also consumers. I can't say much more on that front as I will admit I haven't looked into it much and I haven't delved into that matter too much either so that's about all I have to say with that.

Onto the thoughts/feelings on RWBY. Now I enjoy RWBY as a franchise and series to a degree. I know lots of people have issues with how the show's writing became after some points in the series, myself included, but I remain hopeful. Warner still tried to do stuff with RWBY by aligning it with DC comics for crossovers. I haven't watched the two crossover films but I do intend to check them out despite what others say. I am more driven by curiosity with the show than much else. I won't sing it's praises nor will I bash the hell out of it. I get my initial impressions then I gauge what others think and adjust based on what I may or may not agree with after giving much thought on it.

My opinions on things can change drastically. One example which I will use as a somewhat loose comparison, is with Star Wars. I love the world of Star Wars and I always have since I was a kid. I was excited for the sequel trilogy and gave it a go. Force Awakens was an ok start, nothing spectacular, but its problems were showing but they still had time to pivot and correct these errors with the next two movies. The Last Jedi came out. I watched it and was at least entertained on the first watch. Then I saw the discourse erupt in the fandom. So I was curious to what made people so mad. I looked at a lot of writing critiques of the movie by fans of the series. Then I saw the behind the scenes things going on and it changed my view. At first I liked TLJ but that opinion quickly fell into greatly disliking it. I didn't even want to see Rise of Skywalker based on rumors of the plot of the movie. Mostly the ending. But I still watched it just to finish what I started. Even though I disliked it heavily and never touched that trilogy again.

What's this have to do with RWBY? Well it's the same thing for me. I started watching with a friend who was into it. I got into it. And for the most part I enjoyed it. After the fiasco with Star Wars I refrained from giving full opinions until after viewing the show or movie and thinking about it after. I also look into viewpoints of others to see what people liked and didn't like and see if I agreed or not. I seek to understand what turned people away and what made others stay. While I don't agree with everything others list I at least understand why they think about it the way they do. But in the end even if I agree with them I still want to see where it ends. I want to finish what I started. I can understand other people leaving the show after a certain point and not coming back out of outrage or disinterest. But I enjoyed the show at first and even if the ending is dog shit, much like with the Sequel trilogy, I will stay on this ride until it ends.

Now onto extra thoughts. So I did read the article explaining the closing of RT and based on my understanding, Warner may still be looking to complete the series they have, even if its just to milk what they can out of it, at the very least the final season of Red vs Blue is confirmed to happen. I haven't seen anything regarding the state of RWBY but I remain optimistic and hope they will keep most of the hardworking team (the ones that make the show happen and not the dumbasses who mistreat them) and treat them fairly so they can end the series on at least a decent note. There's no undoing what they've done at this point and it's naive to expect one or possibly two final season(s) to fix it. But they can at least try to give it a respectful ending. It is optimistic and it may be a long shot or very unlikely but even so I want to see what they do.

Hopefully this is clear enough in my thoughts and opinions on this matter. I haven't stated anything specific to the series in terms of writing but I don't feel it necessary to do so at the moment. Especially since I still need to catch up on it. You may not agree with my viewpoints or reasons for things but that's ok. I just wanted to get my voice out there.

[spotsupstuff]

I wanna learn more about Blessing / Boreas. What’s up with all the bat flies with him? What’s his city like?

-rubs my hands together like a fly- uuuuuu boy, time to shake my blatantly favorite child Hell yeah huhuhuhuhuuu

the batflies enter the scene a good while after the Mass Ascension- they are his coping mechanism after Zephyr collapses and goes dark!

from the comic where they talk about Euros' n Sparrows' relationship, one can probably guess how close these two are. Boreas might be the big scary dog of the whole Eo family that punches things in the face rather than take any miniscule amount of shit, but when it comes to Zephyr he is very open and sweet. she's the only person who can actually influence his opinions and ideas greatly, because he loves and trusts her enough to allow her to do so. so when she collapses, he takes it the worst out of everyone. in a very quiet way. his pain if for him to keep, nobody else can know he's hurting

bear witness to Ňuňu

this lil shit was basically Boreas' therapy dog. just.. very very feckin teeny

child...

she is as smart as your typical bat, but the thing was that when she accidentally made her way into his chamber, he didn't have much will in himself to send the animal to eeby deeby so she got to flutter about. and as animals do, girlie used the empathy trap card to figure out this person who doesn't seem to be posing any danger is Sad. so she landed on his head, crawled up to look into his eyes and chirped

n that was the straw that broke the camel's back and Boreas had his first grief-inflicted breakdown ever. Ňuňu stayed during it and even after it, so emotionally-empty-feeling Boreas decided to take her in. hardly can replace Zephyr, but at least he isn't alone

Ňuňu later brought friends and Bee decided that he will look after them then. even after Ňuňu passes away, he still houses and raises them. the younglings like sleeping on his antennas so he has to watch himself to not move them too much sometimes. Euros has a folder full of photos like that

to his city- the name kush is:

originally from me looking for latin words for Rage. ended up going with Desaevio, because Bee is indeed positioned in a fitting place for the word

and the storm connection plus the last two are the main reasons why the Ancients called the city as such. after project Abet Zephyr ended in such a failure, they had to vent some stuff out. and we are going to claim that it is anger because that isn't as pitiful as shame or embarrassment

(the fact that almost every translator i put it into gives me "i'm sorry" works wonderfully, too. because what else will ultimately Boreas do, but quietly mutter to himself a mantra of apologies when he'll be lying in his chamber 30 seconds from his death, drowning in his regrets and mistakes?)

Desaevio was capable of comfortably supporting over 5 million people (no other Iterator city ever reaches that far- the max is ambitious Gen 3 cities that only ever reached around an estimate of 2.7 million) but at times housed over 6-7 million. despite lying close to the geographical location of Bergen in real life, Desaevio is very far from reaching such nice vibes (the old towns Boreas' structure overshadows come close, though). it is way closer to New York, but more dystopian. if u look up dystopian city on google images u get to see pretty closely what it looked like. combine it with Coruscant from star wars for bonus authencity with the layering

made up of skyscrapers, with endless layered bridges for means of transport (most commonly expres trains), with what little decoration of the buildings chipped away by time without anybody caring enough to restore the beauty- the grey, gloomy expanse of Desaevio is as majestic to witness as it is absolutely harrowing

with it being a layered city and one with Boreas' consciousness/structure, some wonder when does one truly leaves the borders of the city and enters the giant's actual insides. it's hard to tell, with old models of Iterators not being all that enclosed and isolated like Five Pebbles is. there is no karma gate to tell you when exactly the walls turn from homes for people to homes for wires, tubes and alien-like organic life of a colossal Hivemind

despite the whole "Iterators are above the cloud level" thing, i like to imagine that it rains in Desaevio either way. at least- some levels are just straight up Wet like after rain. but it'd be those normal rains like we have, not the annihilating ones that the old towns need to bear with down below. or maybe it's just the upper layers' waste water seeping through the ceilings

most of light of the lower levels comes from streetlights, neon signs and Boreas' own systems once deep enough

cameras and such security systems litter all the streets and every public room- and the private homes are still accessable by overseers- and All of that feeds directly into Boreas' memory cache

this omnipresence is why Boreas later suffers with the fuckin

nobody is as unhappy with Boreas' omnipresence as Boreas himself. no wonder he's always ticked off, imagine being a witness to All of New York's road rage 24/7

[dapurinthos]

some later acolyte thoughts:

+ darth plagueis aka hego damask ii my favourite fucked-up occult scientist, literally bred to be a sith, you utter bitch, welcome to the screen. i am becoming increasingly glad that all we got was the cameo because i'm holding the darth plagueis novel with a circle of salt around me so disney can't get at it.

- though that cameo makes this whole story kinda useless. it's a shaggy sith story. even moreso than i thought it would be. i'm taking mae's memory wipe as a half-win for my 'mae's going to die' prediction because who she was from 8-years-old onward did die.

+ cortosis is on television baby! not just the fuck-off big ascendant sword from the aphra comics, but part of top-level canon (don't try to tell me that's something left behind in legends no there are still obvious tiers of canon).

- can we stop with the whole 'omg the jedi are flawed that must mean that they're actually evil!!!111one' movement? 'what if one of you snaps?' says senator wearing-a-crimson-dawn-looking-pendant well sir it looks like you don't know the history of your own fucking government, which instituted sweeping changes at the last sith war (the result of one of them snapping. heeyyyy phanius/darth ruin) so that the jedi did not have access to armies, large-scale weaponry, etc. and that's at least the second time a schism like that's happened.

it's the senate. it's always the senate's fucking fault because this is star wars and it's always the government's fault. the senate is all 'oooh we should meddle with the jedi' the jedi go 'can u not?' the senate really, really wants to, so they dip a toe in the meddling pool and splash it around a bit, which send the jedi into a tailspin because they're unfortunately under the thumb of the senate and you get vernestra covering things up sorry i've may have been dooku-ing a bit too much.

+/- cortosis's new feature of literally blocking the force is new. the way it works in legends is that it messes up the feedback of the lightsaber and shuts it down that way (a lightsaber blade is more of a loop than an actual blade). sidious wouldn't have had it in his walls if it blocked the force, but here qimir just pops on the helmet and vanishes from vernestra's perception. aw, did someone not learn the quey'tak meditation correctly?

+/- the whole 'you are the same person' thing with mae & osha. is this actually true, given that it was sol saying it (authorial intent reads to me that we're not supposed to trust him because he lied about brendok), but the implications. the fuckery this could bring. a dyad is one person in the force (are the twins one? if they practised?), but what does that mean? you share powers, you can communicate across distances, extra powers, but two people being one is something incredibly fucked up—do they pick up each other's traits? are their minds slowly merging until they, literally, are one person in two bodies? 'always one, but born as two.' i mean really. (is part of the sith notion of it more in this flavour, in that the dominant one of the pairing would eventually take over like essence bleeding instead of transfer?)

+ lololol we're 2/3 for crystal bleeding being done like it's no big thing as opposed to vader's whole vision sequence when he's doing it.

- look. we get it. we know order 66 happens. we know what happens to the jedi. we don't need to be reminded of it constantly. you don't need to have characters in-text be ominously foreboding about it like they know it's going to happen.

- what was the point of having vernestra rwoh in here? like, three lines mentioning specific high republic things? they should've left it as it originally was planned, which wasn't to be part of the high republic storyline. because now it's hard not to read her ‘he justified every selfish step he took with his love for your sister’ moment as a HEY VERNESTRA TELL US HOW YOU REALLY FEEL ABOUT ELZAR MANN moment. she's not on the high council, there's mention of a 'small council' but nothing more is given on that. is she supposed to be aligned with the shadows? no? yes?

+/- so qimir's basically a mix of kibh jeen and darth venamis, then, in the 'was a [jedi] before he turned to evil' (really. REALLY. the important thing about star wars is that it rhymes, not that it literally repeats) and 'poison-flavoured sith apprentice', respectively. darth dentabis or darth pharmakis it is, then.

[ussenterpeen]

jeebies' most wanted!

Hi! I'm Jeebies (32, cisfem, queer, EST, been roleplaying for 20+ years) and I am a writer and moderator on Denouement, an 18+ pan/multifandom roleplaying site that's been going strong for over two years. We have a Jcink hub for apps, lore, and basic info, but most of the writing/RP takes place via real time chats (utilizing Tupper), post-by-post threads, and comm threads on Discord. We also use Cbox for RP, particularly for real time group RP. What makes Denouement unique is the sheer variety of fandoms/muses represented -- anime/manga, live action tv & movies, novels & comics, musicals & podcasts. It's truly a panfandom experience -- not leaning towards one genre or medium or another. We welcome the most niche fandom characters as well as fandomless original characters. Our members love sharing their OCs and hyping up others' as well. Below, I've written a few detailed blurbs for characters I'd really like to write against. The character wanted is in bold, and I write the character in italics.

Rebecca Welton for Ted Lasso (platonic or romantic)

I took Ted from the end of S3, leaving for Kansas City. Writing him against a Rebecca from S1 who is still bitter and an emotional mess could be a lot of fun; Ted would be able to use his therapy techniques and improved emotional intelligence to help her adjust. Talk about a reversal of which fish is out of which body of water! I think being stranded together, desperately clinging to one another for sanity and security, could be the spark of potential that leads to a slow burn Tedbecca relationship -- though I am absolutely cool with keeping them platonic/unrequited if that's not your speed.

Dean Winchester for Castiel (platonic, ideally romantic)

My Cas is from the end of S5, and I have also put him on the Summer Path, meaning he has all of his angelic powers but no memory of who or what he is. So far, he's been working as a humble gardener and beekeeper, interacting with other non-humans to try and figure out who he might be. Having Dean show up and try to help him remember things would help reshape Cas back into the being he's meant to be. And maybe they kiss a little along the way?? Plus, Denouement's got a whole lot of baddies to gank!

Tony Stark for Peter Parker (familial/platonic)

My Peter is from the end of No Way Home, so he arrived in Denouement under the impression no one would know or remember him, with both of his closest parental figures gone. He has MJ, a beacon in the darkness, but he's struggling to decide if he needs to give up being Spider-Man for good, lest he destroy this new world the way he nearly destroyed his own. Having his mentor back to help him find his way would be so great for his development. Also, if you pick up Tony, there's already a Stark Industries waiting for him to play with (and I also write Steve Rogers which could make for some draaaaaamaaaa). Plus, we have a whole cast of Marvel chars to write with.

Leonard 'Bones' McCoy for James T. Kirk (platonic)

I pulled Jim from the end of STID, so I am looking more specifically for an AOS Bones to write against, but also happy to write against TOS Bones if that's your vibe! Jim needs his bestie, and no world will ever test Bones' patience like Denouement; there are so many strange and hazardous situations that need a doctor. We have an AOS Spock, a DIS-era Pike, and a few other Star Trek OCs to write with as well!

Here's some helpful links to get started!

Guidebook Taken Canons Reserves Path/Ranking System Discord

I also write: Eddie Munson, Edwin Paine, Emma Meyer, Fiona Goode, Five Hargreeves, Joel Miller, Karen Page Rey, and Steve Rogers. I'm happy to toss plotting your way with any of these folks should you choose to join!

Aaaaand, a few other of my wanted fandoms/fandoms I just wanna see:

Star Wars, Stranger Things, The Umbrella Academy, The Last of Us, The Boys, Gen V, American Horror Story, Kingsman, X-Men, The Adventure Zone, Yu Yu Hakusho, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Barbie, Dead Boy Detectives, Doctor Who, Severence

[fancoloredglasses]

[RERUN] Wonder Womaaaaaaaan!

(Thanks to ScreenBlaster13)

Is there a more fitting song to denote star-spangled ass kicking? I mean, even Captain America has a hard time inspiring viewers compared to this!

(Thanks to FistThingsFirst)

[NOTE: If anyone is interested in the wall of text that was the original review, you may do so here]

If you ask any fan of comics who knows the difference between DC and Marvel (and isn’t a complete misogynous ass-hat) who the “Big Three” are in DC, over 90% will name Wonder Woman as the third (don’t insult my intelligence by pretending to not know who the other two are) However, it took 75 years after Wonder Woman’s debut for her to make her big-screen debut, and there has only been one live-action television series (well, technically two, but since the second series is in the same continuity as the first, everyone calls them the same series)

Before I get started, I need to give a bit of history to those who only know Gal Gadot’s performance…

(Thanks to the Cincinnati Enquirer)

Wonder Woman was created in 1941 by William Moulton Marston (under the pen name Charles Moulton), a psychologist who believed that women would rise up and take charge (and Wonder Woman was going to get the public ready for the matriarchy. It certainly couldn't be any worse that what we've dealt with in the last decade or so)

Like Superman and Batman, Wonder Woman’s origin is pretty much unchanged since her debut, save for a few slight modifications to reflect a changing world:

The Amazons were a civilization of women during the time of the ancient Greek myths (later co-opted by the Romans). In the myth, Heracles (or, as the Romans would call him, Hercules) was tasked with retrieving the Girdle of Strength from Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. Hippolyta was going to hand it over peacefully, but a miscommunication led the rest of the Amazons to attack and Heracles, thinking betrayal, murdered Hippolyta.

Obviously, the murder didn’t happen in the comics (as Hippolyta is alive and well in the DC continuity), but Heracles’ attack led the Amazons to flee the World of Man and form a new civilization on an island they dubbed Paradise Island (after Wonder Woman’s origin was retold post-Crisis they named the island Themyscira) Whatever the island is named, the Amazons have superior physical traits to mortals (and are obviously unaging, since Hippolyta still rules the Amazons after over 3,000 years)

An indeterminate time after the Amazons relocated, Hippolyta gave birth to a baby girl she named Diana (actually, she was formed of clay and the gods gave it life) Post-Crisis she is imbued with the power of the gods (later still it’s revealed she’s a demigod), but in the 70s she is merely superior to her fellow Amazons physically.

And this is where the series begins.

The series begins during World War II…

…with Wonder Woman (whose Amazon name isn’t revealed; played by Lynda Carter)

…and Major Steve Trevor (played by Carol Burnett Show alum Lyle Waggoner) fight against Nazi spies on the home front. Wonder Woman adopts the persona of Diana Prince, Navy nurse (pictured above with Steve), when not fighting the Third Reich’s agents.

After a short first season, ABC dropped the series, but it was picked up by CBS (renaming the series The New Adventures of Wonder Woman), who continue the continuity by fast forwarding 35 years to “modern” times…

…where Wonder Woman (who finally has been given the name Diana)

…and intelligence operative Steve Trevor (what, what?! oh, it’s Major Trevor’s son...who just so happens to look exactly the same) fight against threats to the US.

Once again, Wonder Woman adopts the Diana Prince persona, inserting herself as an agent alongside Steve.

Much like the comics, the beginning of each “series” is pretty much the same with a few tweaks to reflect changing times, though in the second series Wonder Woman isn’t quite the “babe in the woods” dealing with the World of Man as she was in the first (she returned to Themyscira Paradise Island after the War) Also note that this is the way events more or less unfold in the comics (and if you saw 2017′s Wonder Woman film it should seem somewhat familiar)

Steve Trevor’s plane goes down over Themyscira Paradise Island (In the original series, he’s shot down in a dogfight, while in New Adventures the crew and passengers of Trevor’s jet are incapacitated and the Amazons land it remotely…umm, HOW?! They’re an ancient Greek civilization that should not possess that kind of technology!), where he’s discovered by Diana and nursed back to health.

Hippolyta (who is never named in either series) decides to send an emissary to the World of Man to assist Trevor. Diana volunteers, but Hippolyta refuses. Diana wins the right (by athletic tournament in the original series, but by vote in New Adventures; guess the Amazons felt a second tournament would be a moot point), but is challenged by another Amazon before she can be given leave. The two women settle their challenge in the ancient tradition of Bullets and Bracelets (firearms in an ancient Greek civilization, centuries before gunpowder is inverted? Someone needs to brush up on their history!)

Upon winning the challenge, Diana takes Steve back to the World of Man in her invisible plane (OK, seriously…what part of “ancient Greek civilization” do people not understand?! Not only can Diana pilot a plane (which the ancient Greeks certainly wouldn't have access to), but they have stealth technology (which MODERN technology hadn't developed at that point)?), which is little more than a plane-shaped piece of plexiglass (as I noted in my Superfriends write-up, I fail to see how stealthy an invisible plane is if you can clearly see the pilot and passengers)

Diana comically runs afoul of economics (in the 1940s she finds out you need something called “money” to obtain things, while in the 1970s she finds out that things cost more that they did in her last outing due to something called “inflation”)

Meanwhile, Steve runs afoul of trusting the wrong pretty face, getting overpowered (after showing he might have held his own if there weren’t so many thugs) and captured. Wonder Woman swoops in, handily takes care of the same number of thugs, rescues Steve, and Saves The Day.

Unlike Batman, I did see Wonder Woman first-run, though as a pre-teen. As such, I didn’t fall prey to drooling over Lynda Carter running around in her underwear. I just thought it was awesome seeing Wonder Woman kicking so much butt.

While the series is tongue-in-cheek (it was the 70s; all “adventure” shows were similar in tone), it was nowhere near the level of campy/silly as Batman or Superfriends. I would put it on-par with The Adventures of Superman in terms of tone.

If you would like to watch the series, it's available on Max or behind your favorite paywall.

Once again, let me know if you would like to see any episodes reviewed.

And now, as a bonus, Gal Gadot kicking WWI German ass to the tune of the TV theme…

(Thanks to Sebastian Hughes)

[partnersincrimesuau]

PARTNERS IN CRIME - Stevinel SU Fan Comic Chapter 2: Rogues Like Me Page No. 20

Ch.1 Start Ch.2 Start Previous Next

WELCOME TO INTER NOBIS 5, MY FRIENDS!!!

If you follow me on DeviantArt, you may recognise this drawing I posted on the seventh of January last year - EXACTLY a year ago today!!! That drawing was of course concept art for Pink's Armoury. You may notice one or two changes between now and then ^^

Now, I know what you might be thinking… why is Pink Diamond’s Armoury NOT on Earth where her first colony was? Well, I wouldn’t guarantee this is Pink’s ONLY armoury. It’s just her FIRST armoury – and I wouldn’t imagine the Diamonds building all their armouries on their colonies. Surely they’d build them on other planets and things so that Injectors, Dropships and weapons can be built BEFORE colonisation starts. Make sense? I’m going with it. It’s my comic, I can do what I want XD

This planet IS a real planet in the show, however, the name "Inter Nobis 5" is original to me! Only ONE person so far on both DeviantArt and Tumblr within the past year has guessed which planet this is (we only ever see it once, and as I mentioned before, it is unnamed) so I’m quite excited to hear what people say in the comments!!! (Hint: It's not Kamino from Star Wars. Even though that would be awesome.)

(FROM HERE ON, some pages will be including Gem Glyph!!! I use “Gem – Steven Universe Translator” from the website lingojam.com. It’s free to use and it’s a lot of fun!!! I greatly appreciate the work of the developers, because this site has helped me a LOT in the making of my comic.)

Info and FAQ about PIC here. Join the official PIC discord server!

(Made in FireAlpaca) Steven Universe is owned by Rebecca Sugar (There appear to be three new faces here... i wonder what their stories are?) ;)