#used the bennet sisters as reference

[kaelderdoer]

The Archeron sisters

From A Court of Thorns and Roses

[thought--bubble]

There is still hope.... isn't there? PT 1

Tom Bennett X (Best Friend's Sister Reader)

Warnings after the break

A/N: had to use this gif because his smile here is one of the best things I've ever seen lmao.

There is Still Hope ... Isn't There? Master List

Tom Bennett Master List

Full Master List

Banners by @arcielee

Warnings:: Age gap. (5 years)

Your older brother is the best brother in the world. As far as you were concerned, no one compared to Josh. 5 years older than you, he always made sure to protect you. Defend you. Once your father died when you were only ten and he fifteen, he stepped up to be the man of the house.

Your mum worked, but the type of work women did just didn't pay enough to support a three person household. So your brother resorted to less than legal ways to try and make up the shortfall. He and his best friend Tom Bennet were always working on some scheme or another to try and make some money quickly.

While Josh was out running amuck with the ladies and his schemes, he always made sure to keep you on the straight and narrow. Boys were basically all chased off, and he was hyper aware of who your friends were and what type of reputation they had.

Josh and Tom were basically glued at the hip in their teenage years. If Josh wasn't at home, it was safe to assume he was out somewhere with Tom. The two of them known locally for their trysts with the local girls and their make money quick schemes.

Tom Bennet was a problem. A problem you desperately wanted to have. Yet him being 5 years older than you and you being his best friends little sister made you entirely invisible to him.

That feeling was not reciprocated. To you Tom was much more than just Josh's best friend You were crazy about Tom Bennet, and as you got older, you tried to show him that you were older, a woman now, or what a young teen thought a woman should be. This all went over and under Tom's radar. Him going as far as referring to you as "kid." The nickname annoying you to no end since it was a reminder that this is how he viewed you. Josh's kid sister and nothing more.

All hopes of showing him that you are a woman in your own right were dashed as Tom joined the Navy and went off to war. The few times you saw him while he was on shore leave, nothing had changed between you.

He would hug you, call you kid, maybe mess your hair up a bit. But he never looked at you the way you wanted him to. As a woman. Now that you were 19, it was even more of a disappointment that he still seemed unable to see you for the woman you had become.

When you had heard the news of his ships demise you and Josh had mourned, Josh had leaned on Tom so much in his youth he just couldn't imagine a world without Tom in it. Josh was sullen and closed off for weeks, and it didn't help that your mum had gotten very sick very quickly and passed shortly thereafter. The playful goofy Josh you had grown up with was a more serious man. A colder man after having to accept the truth of these two devastating losses.

This only served to bring Josh and you closer together. He was even more protective of you than before. If you were out, he would wait up for you to get home unable to sleep if he didn't know you were safely back home.

Then, the devastating loss of Mr. Bennet and the Bennet family home seemed to erase Tom further. The place where Josh had spent so much of his youth was wiped off the map.

That's why when Tom showed up at the flat, you now share with your brother alive, a little brow beaten but alive you couldn't help but shreik and throw yourself into his arms.

He chuckles as he grabs you. " Calm down, kid, you'll knock me off the stoop!"

"How are you? We thought you? Oh my gosh! You're here!" You reach up and pinch his cheeks. " you're really here ain't ya?"

"Yeah, kid, I'm ere. Josh about?" He tries to look over your shoulder and into the flat.

"He's at work. it should only be another hour or two. You're welcome to wait for him inside. " You open the door, further waving him inside.

"Alright then," he walks through the doorway and into your kitchen.

"You hungry? I can make ya something"

"Nah, I don't want to take your food. I know things are limited." He's holding his rucksack in his hands and looking around the kitchen awkwardly.

"Tom Bennet, you put that bag down and take a seat and let me fix you up something to eat," you say this sternly while putting your hands on your hips.

"Looks like you've grown up a bit while I've been gone, lass. You're a proper lady now, ain't ya?" He gives you that cheeky grin that has always made you melt.

Your heart flutters at his words. As a heat crosses your cheeks. "I've got some apple tarts I made last night" you move around the kitchen to prepare him a plate while avoiding eye contact less he see your rosey cheeks and the small grin you just can't seem to stop.

You give him the tarts, which he happily gobbles down quickly.

"I was real sorry to hear about your da." You weren't sure if you should bring up the death of Mr. Bennet, but it felt like you had to say something. He had to know that others grieved his father as well.

He nods "Yeah thanks..... so where is Josh working nowadays? He a proper business man or summat?"

You chuckle. "Oh yeah, runs his own company," you say sarcastically, whacking Tom on the shoulder.

"He works at the garage."

Tom laughs heartily, "the one we used to nick from? Surprised they'd even let him in there"

"Yeah, well, he's grown. After mum....... he started to take things far more seriously." You're not sure if Tom knows about your mum passing.

"Yeah, I get that." he rubs the back of his neck. "Guess we've all grown up a bit, eh?"

"That's the way of things, i guess." You sigh and wipe down the counter. It's already clean, but you feel like you have to do something with your hands.

"You want tea or something?" You bring down a cup before he answers

"Yeah, thanks, that would be great." he taps his fingers on the table. "How bout you? You workin?"

"Yeah, I tend down the pub a few nights a week." You pull down a second cup for yourself and put the kettle on.

"You're a barmaid? That's my kinda girl!" He winks at you at you, so you turn away quickly, that grin coming back to your face.

You just laugh lightly and touch your cheek. It's so hot you know you must be bright red.

"Gonna go out front for a fag be back in a minute" he gets up and walks out the front door closing it quietly behind him.

You turn your back to the counter and lean against it, bringing your hands to your cheeks.

"He's killing me," you chuckle to yourself while trying to use the coolness of your hands to bring down the burning on your face.

When he comes back in, the two of you drink your tea and chat about a few innocuous topics just passing the time until Josh returns.

When you hear the door open you can see Tom's eyes light up.

"Hey, I'm ba-" Josh completely freezes when he enters the kitchen.

"Look at ya, lad. Thought food was limited? You look like you've doubled your intake" Tom teases as he stands up from the table.

Josh smiles but is still at a loss for words. He just slowly walks toward Tom. Who walks up to him and gives him a big hug smacking him on the back.

"Holy shite mate," Josh says, still in shock as he pulls out of the hug. "Thought you were sitting at the bottom of the ocean somewhere"

"Nah, that would be boring." Tom chuckles, "was hoping I could have a word with ya mate." Tom briefly looks over to you "alone?"

"I have to get ready for work anyways," you smile and go towards Tom for another hug.

He pulls you in and hugs you tight. "So happy to see you're alright," you say into his shoulder and then pull away and head upstairs.

You get yourself dressed for your shift, and when you head downstairs, you can see that Josh and Tom are seated in the living room on the sofa speaking in hushed voices.

You smile to yourself as you grab your handbag and head out the door.

He's back, and he's alive. He's alive.

Part 2

A/N: I had this premise kicking around in my head for a while, and since I am pretty much done with Kitty Cat (Ettore series), I decided to start posting this one. 🥰

To be added to taglist click here

[bethanydelleman]

Did you know that Mary Bennet is never associated with Fordyce's Sermons in the novel? Examining one of the most fandom confused characters in Austen:

An update on one of my older posts.

[sundrop-writes]

Announcing my new fic: Heaven's Gate

Heaven's Gate is a long oneshot starring Daryl Dixon and a gender neutral reader character, featuring angst, hurt and comfort, and some fluff.

In this fic, you and Daryl get separated when the prison is attacked by the Governor, and though you both believe the other person is dead, you two end up finding each other at the most unexpected time. This fic is about hope, the human connection, and how love is about more than romance - it's about how people take pieces of each other and grow with them, never truly able to forget each other.

This fic is going to be a longer oneshot that is currently about 15k long - and will likely be longer by the time it has gone through editing. It is 80% of the way done in my drafts (not including editing), and I hope to have it posted by April 30th - which is a tentative date that may change. If you want to know for certain when the fic is posted, you can follow me here and turn on notifcations or you can subscribe to me on AO3 to get an email notification when the fic is posted. I am really excited to share this fic with all of you 💖.

Below is a short preview of the fic - so if you wanna get a better sense for the upcoming fic you can read it. If you enjoy this preview and you're excited for what the fic holds, please let me know!

Also an important note: with my gender neutral reader fics, I don't use any references to gender whatsoever (this is not a 'GN afab' fic). And in this fic in particular, I didn't use any pronouns (other than you/yours) or gendered terms for the reader - and at points where the terms they/them were used, I made it purposefully vague so that the dialogue could be referring to the whole group as 'they' or just the reader. I want my gender neutral fics to be enjoyed by everyone - cis women, cis men, gender non conforming people, trans people - every kind of fanfiction reader.

I am making this post for two major reasons - one, I want to generate as much excitement for oneshots as there is for series. Especially for oneshots that are longer than 10k because those take a lot of time and effort. If a series is like a TV show, then long oneshots are like a feature film. And two - nobody seems to read my pinned post where I announce new upcoming fics anyway, so I might as well make posts like these so that people can know what to expect from me. And hopefully you guys will get excited about my upcoming fics this way. And when I tag these posts with the relevant tags, people interested in those topics can follow me to anticipate the fic if they want to read it.

Heaven's Gate (Daryl Dixon x GN!Reader) - Preview

Preview Word Count: 1,800

Warnings: no pronouns used for the reader other than you/yours; there are major plot spoilers for The Walking Dead if you are watching the show for the first time - spoilers for Season 2 all the way up through Season 5; typical warnings for TWD - mentions of death, emotional despair; all of these themes and emotions are expanded upon in the full fic.

...

“Daryl!” 

You called out his name as you jogged up toward the stables, and he stopped in his tracks, waiting for you to catch up with him. 

“Daryl, hey.” You greeted him with a small smile. “Rick told me you’d be up here.” 

He grunted in reply. “Yeah. ‘m gonna take a horse out. Make better ground t’ look for the girl.” 

Your stomach clenched at him mentioning her. 

The group was supposed to be headed out towards Fort Bennet - supposed to be finding refuge at the hopefully safe military base. Instead, you were all setting up camp at the very reluctant Hershel Greene’s farm, not straying too far from where you had lost one of your own in the hopes of finding her. 

But that was why you had come to talk to Daryl in the first place. 

Sophia had become like a sister to you in the few short months that you had known her, and though it was unlikely, you were hopeful that she was alive - that she would be found. And you did believe that Daryl would be the one to find her. 

“How’s the trail?” You asked. “Do you think you know which way she headed? You - you can be honest with me.” 

You hesitated on the last part. But you did want his honesty more than anything. And you knew that he was never one to sugar-coat things. Even if you hadn’t told him that, he would have given you the truth anyway. 

“Trail’s a little muddy.” He said, doling out that honesty. “‘m gon follow the river. It’s her biggest landmark out there, so she’ll probably be somewhere around it.” 

You smiled at him. And then, you remembered - 

“I brought you something.” You noted, reaching for the back pocket of your jeans. 

Daryl watched with quiet curiosity as you pulled out a piece of paper - when you showed it to him, he quickly realized that it was a half-used set of stickers. 

“These are some of the stickers that I got for Sophia,” You explained. “My mom always used to tell me that cardinals are good luck.” 

You peeled off a sticker of a bright red bird - as much of a nature man as he was, Daryl was never one for bird watching. He didn’t care about identifying certain species of birds unless he could shoot and eat them. But he quickly reasoned that this must be the cardinal that you spoke of. 

“Give me your bow.” You said, shoving the rest of the sticker sheet into your back pocket again and holding out your hand expectantly. 

“I don’t need no luck.” He replied, voice full of snark. 

“Just give it.” You replied - equally snarky, equally stubborn. 

Daryl sighed and tugged his bow’s strap over his head, presenting it to you. You placed the sticker on the bow’s handle, in one of the places where it wasn’t as worn down from him holding it. 

“There,” You said, giving it back to him with a smile. “Now you’re all set.” 

It was more for you than it was for him - a token of good faith and protection. The idea that you could do something to bring Sophia home when you felt so powerless. 

Daryl let out a harsh sound - somewhere between a laugh and a sarcastic snort as he walked away. “Thanks.” 

“You’re welcome,” You replied brightly, edging on sarcastic once again. 

… 

When the prison was attacked, Daryl got out with Beth. 

He almost couldn’t stand her bright eyes, big eyes staring at him, waiting for answers - her chirpy little voice, prodding at him, demanding that they ‘follow the trail’ and go look for everyone else. Telling him that he was a tracker, that he could find them. As if it was his damn responsibility just because he had the skills to get it done. 

It was all too reminiscent of you, telling him that he could find Sophia. That it wasn’t an ‘if’ - it was a ‘when’. 

Perhaps that was what got him off his ass and doing what he did best - reading the dirt. 

“What’re you doin’?” He asked, staring at the girl curiously as she went to one of the bushes and rushed to pick berries from branches. Had she not gotten enough to eat that morning? 

“They’ll be hungry when we find them.” Beth told him confidently. 

Of course. That undefeatable streak of optimism. 

Daryl knew that blueberries weren’t your favorite - but he should have something to give you. He would be too busy tracking the footprints to properly hunt for squirrels or rabbits and clean them for you. So, he found himself pulling a large bandana from his back pocket and offering it to Beth - something to hold the berries in to keep them safe as an offering for you. 

“Here.” He grunted at her. 

Beth smiled at him. 

It was one of the last smiles she gave him for a long time. 

When they came across those bodies splayed out beside the tracks - any sense of hope was crushed inside of him. The picture you had gifted him was heavy inside his breast pocket, and he hated that tears threatened his eyes - even if he knew that none of those bodies belonged to you. There was no trace of you there. 

The days started to blur into each other, and Daryl couldn’t get you off his mind. 

One hazy evening, as they both stared into the fire with dead looks on their faces, he took the drawing out of his pocket and unfolded it. 

For good luck. 

He didn’t believe in luck - because it didn’t exist. The world was fucked. Nobody was lucky. You and your good luck were dead. 

He tossed the drawing into the fire, and it was only a moment, when the corner of it had barely caught, when Beth snatched it out. She stomped on it with her boot, successfully saving it. 

“Don’t do that.” She hissed at him. 

Daryl snatched it from her, and crumbled it up, tossing it aside. He let out a grunt, but refused to look at her. 

“That was from Y/N, wasn’t it?” She posed. 

He could feel her imposing stare as she waited for an answer. 

He didn’t give her one. 

“You can’t burn them just because you think they’re dead.” Beth sighed. “You can’t burn up memories. We’re gonna find them. Y/N, and Maggie, and Michonne, and - and everyone.” 

Daryl scoffed. “Yeah. Cause that’s gon’ happen.” 

Beth rolled her eyes, but didn’t speak any further on the subject. 

After she had fallen asleep - when the fire was dull, Daryl picked up the crumbled ball and smoothed it out again. The charred corner hadn’t even touched your bird. He felt like a fool doing it, just as much of a fool as he accused you of being, but he folded it neatly - well, as neatly as he could - and then put it back into his breast pocket again. 

But that was the thing - Daryl wished that he could. He wished he could burn up those memories. 

That you would stop haunting him. Then he wouldn’t have to feel like this anymore.

… 

“Can I see it again?” Beth asked, suddenly changing the subject. 

Again, this was a confusing little whip for Daryl - something that clearly only made sense to Beth in her own drunken mind. 

“See what?” Daryl replied. 

“The picture.” Beth answered. “The one you tried to burn.” 

Daryl felt a pinch of guilt surge over him at the thought. Oddly enough, this was the one time he would be willing to admit that Beth was right - you can’t burn up memories. 

“It was Y/N, wasn’t it? That drew it.” Beth added on, her words slurring slightly - she lifted the mason jar of booze to her lips again and Daryl was tempted to snatch it away from her. 

Instead, he found his hand drifting to his breast pocket and reaching to take the picture out. He presented it to Beth, who put down her drink to unfold it - she stared at the picture fondly under the brightness of the moonlight, tracing a finger over the slightly faded details. 

“You know… my daddy used to tell me that a cardinal is like an angel.” Beth said, recognizing the bird from her father’s teachings on the farm. “Someone - someone you loved who passed away, watching over you from heaven.” 

“Y/N said they was good luck.” Daryl replied. 

Beth shrugged. “Same thing.” 

It was this thought that kept Daryl going for a long time. The idea that even if you were dead, you were watching over him somehow. He sure as hell didn’t believe that someone like Merle would be an angel - but you, you definitely were. And even if it was a waste of your eternal life, you would be determined to watch over Daryl - to make sure that he was safe, well-guided. 

You would make sure that he was lucky. 

That thought alone carried him through the long journey to D.C. 

It was something that lingered in his mind as the group hunkered down in a random barn - as he spotted something carved into one of the wooden beams holding the place up. Even though it wasn’t colored, he could have sworn that the long tail and pointed head of the silhouette indicated that the carving was meant to be cardinal. Of course. 

Who knows who had stayed in the barn before them - if it had been left there by a weary traveler, or even put there by someone who had used the barn before the turn. But Daryl could have sworn that you - your ghost, your angelic hand - had led him to this very spot. 

It was a thought that gave him strength as he held the doors up - helped to keep them from caving in while the storm raged outside. 

Your luck, and your damn bird - you would keep him safe. 

When they reached Alexandria, and they were forced to give up their weapons - Daryl spotted your bird perched on the fence. Bright red, with its pointy head cocked sideways at him. All too knowing, staring at him like it wanted to say something. Just like it had been when he had fallen off the cliff out in the woods when he had been looking for Sophia. 

Oddly enough, it made him feel safe giving up his crossbow - perching it on top of the fully loaded cart of weapons before the awkward, bespeckled woman wheeled it away. 

Rick was still weary of this new place after Terminus, and Daryl understood. He followed Rick’s lead. Especially because he couldn’t tell Rick that he had a good feeling about this place because he saw a damn bird. 

But even if it was just in spirit, he felt you there. He knew that it was the home you had chosen for them.

[anghraine]

I think one of the reasons that I've always been deeply annoyed by the conception of Darcy as a brooding, humorless love interest (and inferior because of it) is because I actually really enjoy his sense of humor.

Maybe it's because I don't have much of a sense of humor, myself (so I also find this annoying because of the assumption that not liking most humor is some kind of moral failing). But when I do find things amusing, they're often dry and understated asides that I find really funny. I love, for instance:

“I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow.”

Miss Bingley immediately fixed her eyes on his face, and desired he would tell her what lady had the credit of inspiring such reflections. Mr Darcy replied, with great intrepidity,—

“Miss Elizabeth Bennet.”

+

“I am afraid, Mr Darcy,” observed Miss Bingley, in a half whisper, “that this adventure has rather affected your admiration of her fine eyes.”

“Not at all,” he replied: “they were brightened by the exercise.”

I think my other favorite Darcy-Caroline interchange is even simpler, but I do find it entertaining:

“Tell your sister I am delighted to hear of her improvement on the harp, and pray let her know that I am quite in raptures with her beautiful little design for a table, and I think it infinitely superior to Miss Grantley’s.”

“Will you give me leave to defer your raptures till I write again?”

I also always laugh at the book version of this scene:

“That is a failing, indeed!” cried Elizabeth. “Implacable resentment is a shade in a character. But you have chosen your fault well. I really cannot laugh at it. You are safe from me.”

“There is, I believe, in every disposition a tendency to some particular evil, a natural defect, which not even the best education can overcome.”

“And your defect is a propensity to hate everybody.”

“And yours,” he replied, with a smile, “is wilfully to misunderstand them.”

Here, I also enjoy the use of a quite serious contemporary philosophical point (and the fact that he references it in a conversation with a woman at all, tbh), but the sudden shift to banter is what makes the interchange to me.

None of these are like ... haha-funny jokes, but I wouldn't find those amusing, anyway, while these always make me giggle.

[sarahmaclean]

when did people start saying "sexy"? this feels like a thing you would've researched before giving sesily that nickname and my own googling has been unfruitful

oooh! this is a GREAT question, and making me think that I should bring my favorite Twitter thing, Foul Language Etymology with Sarah, to Tumblr!

So! Those of you who have read Bombshell know that much of London calls Sesily Talbot "Sexily Talbot" which is supposed to shame her and only makes her more committed to f*cking things up. Fun writing fact, this happened because every time I typed Sesily while writing the first book she appears din--her sister Sophie's book, The Rogue Not Taken--autocorrect would correct Sesily to Sexily. And I was delighted. (Sometimes you just write where the universe leads you.)

BUT...you can't just let autocorrect from 2015 tell you what to write in 1830, so...you have to go to the source! The source, in this case, being the Oxford English Dictionary which is amazing and provides etymology on every word in the English language (at least the ones that have been around for a while). Fun additional fact: if you have a library card, you very likely have free access to the OED online. Get a library card. Libraries are the literal best.

So. To the tape!

"Sexily," as an adverb, meaning "In a sexy manner," is first seen in print in 1929 with the following line in New Statesman: Simply I will say—slowly, sinuously, but not, I hope, sexily, ‘Welcome, Miss Bumfiddle! welcome, Alimony!’ Which...well...I'm not quite sure what to say about that, except to say that I needed another explanation for her name.

"Sexy," as an adjective, meaning "Containing or characterized by explicit sexual content; erotic, risqué; bawdy, saucy," is an American word from the 1890s, first spelled seksy (Come on, America, Really?) in a text by Enoch Arnold Bennet that reads "Lane had decided..not to handle your work of genius, on the score that it was seksy & America didn't want no seks-problems." Now. I don't know if "work of genius" is a euphemism or what, but I can say America, in fact, has a fair share of seks-problems, so Lane is a dirty liar.

Now, an important thing to note is that words like this (foul language, words relating to sex, and slang), are often in common language for years before they end up in a dictionary. So it would be reasonable to suggest that "sexy" might have been around since the 1860s or 70s. But my book was in the 1830s, so I needed something earlier.

"Sex," as a noun, to describe male or female has been around for what historians refer to as "a long ass time." It's in the Bible. But that doesn't really work. What's worse? "Sex" as an action -- touching butts, if you will -- isn't in print until 1900! HOW! Literally HOW! Honestly, I don't know. Language is nonsense.

BUT. A writer who is procrastinating really will not be thwarted. Because there, way down on the list of OED references to "sex" is:

"Sex: slang or euphemistic. A person's genitals."

1664. T. Killigrew Princess  ii. ii, in  Comedies & Trag. 22 Another ha's gon through with the bargain... One that will find the way to her Sex, before you'le come to kissing her hand.

And there it is. The winner. Historical romance novelists have been referencing his or her sex for literal decades, and this is why! Even better, calling someone "Sexily" is even more slut-shamey than before now that it's literally referring to a body part. Perfection. Sexily can laugh in the face of society, Caleb can come absolutely unhinged, and on with the show.

Read all about it in Bombshell.

Also, as always when I talk about the way we police language, please accept this: Words are not inherently dirty. They are just words. When we police language--especially language used by marginalized groups--we are often policing something else entirely. If you're interested in how smashing the policing of language can also smash the patriarchy, please read Mona Eltahawy's The Seven Necessary Sins for Women & Girls.

[keirainaustenland]

I created this template of two dogs making “caught off guard” or embarrassed expressions to emphasize my own feelings when I read the part in Mr. Darcy’s letter where he insults the behavior of Elizabeth’s entire family. He says that, “the situation of your mother's family, though objectionable, was nothing in comparison of that total want of propriety so frequently, so almost uniformly, betrayed by herself, by your three younger sisters, and occasionally even by your father. -- Pardon me. -- It pains me to offend you.” 

The left side shows a dog with a somewhat apprehensive and polite expression, with the text "Roasting Lizzie's whole family." This refers to the part of the novel where Mr. Darcy writes a letter to Elizabeth Bennet (Lizzie) after she rejects his marriage proposal. In the letter, he explains his actions and also, quite frankly, criticizes her entire family's behavior, though he does so with a mix of directness and restraint, similar to the polite apprehension shown on the dog's face.

My reaction was closer to the second dog’s face – I was cringing internally when I read this, and wanted to tell Darcy that maybe the way to a woman’s heart is not pointing out how distasteful you find her loved ones. We are all rooting for you Mr. Darcy, but don’t offend her if you want to get a yes to your next attempted proposal!!

While doing research for this scene, I found a website, Shmoop, that has created a scale for “Pretentiousability” that you will be charged with if you were to quote any line given from a novel. The line “until then I never knew myself” (stated by Elizabeth Bennet after reading Darcy’s letter) was given a 4/10. The writer explains that it is always a little pretentious to quote a classic novel, but since it is self deprecating it is less of an offense. I thought this was just a funny and silly website discussing Jane – and wanted to bookmark and make sure to reference it before my next dinner party of course. 

Elizabeth Bennet’s revelations made after this letter were definitely pivotal to understanding Austen’s intentions with both titles of the novel, her first draft being titled “First Impressions” and the second being “Pride and Prejudice.” Elizabeth becomes aware of her own pride and prejudices that she held towards Mr. Darcy based on her (incorrect) first impressions of him and is very embarrassed at herself. Lizzie is beside herself, stating, 

“She grew absolutely ashamed of herself. -- Of neither Darcy nor Wickham could she think, without feeling that she had been blind, partial, prejudiced, absurd.``How despicably have I acted!'' she cried. -- ``I, who have prided myself on my discernment! -- I, who have valued myself on my abilities!”

Noting the use of the words “prejudice” and “prided,” referencing the title in a very satisfying way, Jane Austen reveals her declaration to always be careful when assuming things based on a first impression. However, I still think Mr. Darcy should have watched his manners and not insulted her entire family. But I guess his appeal is in his honesty?

[fictionadventurer]

I'm just going to meta about Powers and Prejudice for a while because it's my blog and I can do what I want.

Even though I gave Jane super strength mostly because it's funny to imagine the sweet, pretty sister being the indestructible brawler, it also works really well for her role in the story. She's got abilities that are perfectly suited for her mother's dream of seeing her daughters established in superhero careers. The family's hopes rest on her, because if she can get established, the other girls have a connection into that world. It puts a lot of pressure on her to carry the rest of the family. If I can make an Encanto reference, she's Luisa and Isabela rolled into one: the beautiful beloved first-born and the sister who's expected to carry a lot of family burdens who's expected to be both perfect and strong.

Changing Lizzie's powers to make her super-smart also fits in well with her role in the family. Mrs. Bennet's not going to see how this fits in to a superhero career, making Lizzy her least favorite. But Mr. Bennet thinks she's the only worthwhile daughter because of this, and holds her above the rest of them. He comments often that Jane got the beauty and the brawn, but Lizzy's the brains, and he says it in a way that makes it clear that Jane's negligible because of that supposed lack.

Within their new power set, Lizzy is particularly vulnerable to Wickham. She likes him because he confirms all her prejudices against Darcy, and she assumes she can trust her judgement-- that she'd notice if Wickham was shady, because she notices everything. But she forgets to factor in that she makes Wickham smarter. She interacts with him at his most intelligent, devious and calculating, because he can mirror her exact level of intelligence, and that boosted brain power helps him figure out exactly how to keep her from noticing there's anything off about his story. But she's so used to being the smartest person in any room that she doesn't bother to consider the possibility that he could match her.

[vera-dauriac]

Ok @verdiesque. You asked how to plot a longer work, and I hope you don’t regret that. 😉 Anyhow, here’s the most basic 3 Act structure I use when writing. It’s primarily based on the work of Syd Field, and like a lot of plotting systems used by me and other novelist/prose writers of varying lengths, its roots are in screenwriting. I’ve tried to use examples I think you will know or that are easily explainable/generic/universal so that they will make sense. If you need clarification or a better example, just ask.

OK. Let’s go.

Act 1 (Roughly first 25% or less)

Opening Image: We see the character where they are starting from in normal life and the tone it set. This will often be a deliberate mirroring of the Closing Image. (If you’ve seen the 1988 Dangerous Liaisons, this is done really well. We open with the Marquise de Merteuil at her dressing table, putting on her persona, and the last shot is her wiping her makeup off, all of which says so much about her and her world.)

Inciting Incident: Something happens to start the protagonist down his/her path. If this is a romance, this is the couple meeting. If it’s a procedural, the detective gets the case. In adventure, the hero receives a poke to start his adventure.

Plot Point 1: This is the moment that changes everything. The protagonist only has one direction available. In Star Wars, it’s the Empire destroying Luke’s home and killing his aunt and uncle, so he literally can’t go home anymore. In Black Hawk Down, it’s the literal title event—the Black Hawk goes down.

Act 2 (Roughly 50% or more, split in half around the aptly named Midpoint)

Pinch 1: This is a thematic reminder of what the story is about. The point of the Pinches is to apply pressure to the protagonist and keep the story from bogging down. (See Pinch 2 for more.)

Midpoint: If the trajectory of the story has been positive up to this point, things should start going wrong, and if the trajectory has been down, this is when things start trending up. I once heard the Midpoint described as the moment when characters stop asking questions and start coming up with answers. Frequently, this will be a big crowd scene or party. In Fellowship of the Ring, this is the Council of Elrond: All the free peoples of Middle-earth have gathered to discuss the problem of the Ring; they debate the feasibility of walking it into Mordor; a better plan is formed and implemented. The second half of the movie starts. (Aside--in the larger story of LOTR, this is Plot Point 1. Really well structured continuing series will do this, and it's awesome.)

Pinch 2: Another thematic reminder of why any of this matters and an application of pressure to keep the story moving. To use Star Wars again, Luke and Gang once more clash with Stormtroopers, which is thematic of fighting the Empire, and unifying because both times it’s Stormtroopers. (In an adventure romance I’m outlining right now, I do pretty much the same thing. Both Pinches involve battles scenes that don’t go great for the lovers because of the antagonist.)

Plot Point 2: There’s a dramatic reversal, and it’s usually very bad. Sometimes referred to as the Dark Night of the Soul, things are never worse for the protagonist. Very specific romance structures will sometimes differentiate between Plot Point 2/Dark Night of the Soul and the Break Up, but it’s essentially that moment. It’s Elizabeth Bennet, dealing with the fact her dumbass sister has run off and she knows that Mr. Darcy is in the world thinking ill of her.

There is an alternative to a Dark Night of the Soul, turning this into a moment of “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore.” For an example, um, see Network.

Act 3 (Roughly 25% or less)

Showdown: Shit is now going to happen and get figured out for good or ill. The protagonist and the antagonist come face-to-face. Final battle, hero running through a crowded city to kiss his beloved on New Years Eve, etc.

Resolution: The hero’s problem is solved, either positively (we’re getting married!) or negatively (oops, I’m dead or dying), depending on the type of story you’re telling.

Closing Image: The final summation of your characters and themes and what you’ve been trying to say in a single shot/line/paragraph/chapter/epilogue. Bonus points if it mirrors the opening shot. (Examples: TE Lawrence on the road, Eleanor leaving to mirror her arrival in Lion in Winter.)

In a shorter work, each of these headings (beats) could just be a paragraph. Multiple beats can happen in the same chapter. In longer works, each of these might get their own chapters with all sorts of fun stuff in between. (Next post if you’re still interested—resources to help you figure out the in between stuff.) Point is, it’s flexible.

[daydreaming-ace]

The Darcys (P&P OCs)

More info is under the cut, but here's the basics:

In order of oldest to youngest, their names are: Benjamin Edward, Elizabeth Cassandra, and Anne Evelyn.

They all inherited the Darcy 'tism (tm), because the headcanon is fun.

I'm assuming that P&P takes place during the later part of the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815), so they exist during the late Georgian Era (1714-1837) to the Victorian Era (1837-1901).

Elizabeth and Benjamin are the only ones that can look for potential spouses, though Benjamin is the only one doing so.

The picrews I used were made by fronounxes and baby_carrot_art. Both of these picrews have characters that are facing forward, meaning they can probably trigger scopophobia.

Benjamin Edward Darcy

Age Range: 19-21

Birthday: February 28th

He is biromantic and nebularomantic, though he's a hopeless romantic.

He primarily wears brown and neutral colors, since he is a simple/humble person. His outfit also makes him look warmer than his father, who wears cool colors.

"Benjamin" is the closest thing his parents could get to naming him "Bennet"; the Bennet family was not notable enough to name their child after, so "Benjamin" was the compromise. His middle name is derived from Mr Gardiner's name, since he signed one of his letters with "Edw. Gardiner".

He is commonly nicknamed "Ben" or "James", though he prefers "James" when in public.

Due to an accident from when he was younger, he uses a walking cane. No one is really sure what happened, with the only known detail being that he injured his left knee.

Ben is very shy, though his overt kindness makes it seem endearing. This kindness is usually interpreted as romantic by potential suitors, though he usually means nothing by it.

His shyness is caused by social anxiety. This has resulted in him not trusting his judgement, as he thinks it's just his nerves.

He knows how to play the pianoforte, and often plays his own songs. However, he primarily does this when there are no guests.

Elizabeth Cassandra Darcy

Age Range: 16-18

Birthday: February 14th

She is a lesbian.

She primarily wears light green, especially mint green. It's mainly because her father wears dark green, but it could also be read as being associated with her homosexuality... it could also be because green was a popular color.

She was named after her mother, as she's the oldest daughter. Outside-of-universe, she was named after Jane Austen's sister, Cassandra Elizabeth Austen; her middle name being "Elizabeth" was a happy coincidence, and I ran with it.

She is commonly nicknamed "Beth", "Betty", or "Cassie", to differentiate from her mother's nicknames of "Eliza" and "Lizzy". She is mainly referred to as "Beth", though those close to her call her "Cassie".

She wears glasses due to being nearsighted. Without them, she can't tell the difference between a person and a door.

Beth is rather blunt with her thoughts, since she doesn't want any miscommunications. Surprisingly, this has caused miscommunications.

In the past, she has accidentally turned down potential suitors because they were being too subtle with their feelings. Multiple people have tried to pair her up with a suitor, because of this.

She writes poetry whenever inspiration strikes her. She mainly writes about nature and the people she encounters, though she recently has started writing about an unknown person (known only as Beloved).

Anne Evelyn Darcy

Age Range: 9-11

Birthday: August 23rd

Due to her age, she hasn't had any romantic experiences. As a result, her romantic orientation is unclear for now.

She primarily wears light blue, though she thinks it's a darker shade. It is primarily associated with freedom, which is something Anne wants to have; blue is also associated with purity and serenity, which are traits adults would want her to have.

She was named after Lady Anne de Bourgh, since she couldn't have children of her own. Her middle name comes from the family midwife's surname, as she's been with the Darcys for decades.

Due to her name being short, she usually isn't referred to by a nickname. However, she is occasionally called "Annie" in an affectionate manner.

Her eyes are usually closed, since her eyes are sensitive to light. She does have a pair of shades, but they're too small to actually work.

Since she primarily hears interactions, she has learned to pick up on changes in tone. She has often made mistakes, though, due to some vocal cues sounding similar.

She's still trying to figure out how life works, and how she fits in the world. This is difficult, due to her sources ranging from "rich man raised rich" to "unmarried servant-class woman".

She loves watercolor painting, though most of her paintings are abstract. Once in a while, she has painted a landscape or a portrait, though.

[keanthegooseman]

Book Review | Pride and Prejudice

Author: Jane Austen

Genre: Classic Regency, Romance

Publication Date: January 28, 1813

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆

"There are few people whom I really love, and still fewer of whom I think well. The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all human characters, and of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of merit or sense."

I was (re)playing Saints Row 4 a couple of months ago, and not gonna lie, the multiple references to Jane Austen got me interested in checking out some of her works. I saw a copy of Pride and Prejudice for sale, so I took the chance and bought it.

Pride and Prejudice centers on the rocky relationship between Elizabeth Bennet, the novel's protagonist, and Fitzwilliam Darcy, a wealthy landowner. Elizabeth, having a habit of making quick judgements of people, has a less than favorable first impression of Darcy after overhearing his comments about her. Darcy, on the other hand, is a man of respectable position. Because of his class, he has no interest in anyone that could tarnish his reputation. The story revolves around both characters having to let go of their biases, and seeing each other for who they truly are.

Long story short: it was decent, and the romance was great. I was just expecting something better, more amazing. I guess the abundance of praise I hear about Jane Austen, and specifically this book, shot my expectations through the roof. The first half of the book was a bit slow, a bit boring I might say, but when I reached the middle of the book, the story started to pick up and I was hooked from that point onwards. 

I really enjoyed the relationship between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth and its progression from hostility, to holding affections for one another. Getting to see the both of them overcome their pride and prejudice (roll credits) felt very fulfilling. The pair of them becoming better people at the influence of the other was great. At first I didn't really like Darcy at all, I viewed him as a pompous and arrogant man because of the way the book describes his actions. But then I realized that the story was being told from Elizabeth's prejudiced point of view. On a second read of the book, Darcy's actions begin to make more sense. I was a bit disappointed, however, that the story ends at them already being married, without seeing the wedding take place, or any look at their life in the future. 

Truthfully, I had a hard time reading this book. Since Jane Austen wrote this around two centuries ago, some of the words used in the book were archaic. I also found the way characters were addressed to be a bit confusing in the beginning. Most characters were addressed by their last name, with Mr being used for men, Mrs for married women, and Ms/Lady for unmarried women  their first name seldom used. It certainly didn't help when five sisters are all addressed as Ms. Bennet, or having a wife refer to her husband as Mr. Bennet. A lot of the humor also flew past my head so I didn't really find this novel funny or witty as other readers may have.

Pride and Prejudice is a true romance classic. The character arcs of Elizabeth and Darcy feel natural and fulfilling, with the romance being equally so. While the old style of writing and humor make it a bit difficult to understand, it still is very worth the time it takes to read. If you're a fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope or prefer purer depictions of romance, then this book is definitely a must-read for you.

[rozetheeuwu]

OUTDATED: WILL UPDATE WITH TOYHOUSE SOON

Fangame ocs basic info:

I kept getting some basic facts messed up like the regions they were born/raised so I'm writing it here!

Parent ocs of characters will be added eventually, but because they're usually not the main focus for me I'll add them later.

Refs (Some of the art is outdated, might update in the future. Ones with current artstyle: Cressilda, Mavis, Daniel):

Reborn:

Miles Moore:

Male (afab)

He/him

Mid 20's

Bisexual/Biromantic

Pink hair, pink and purple eye color.

Trainer class(es): Pink Enthusiast, Reborn Champion

Type Specialty: He prefers using pink colored pokemon

Relatives: David (younger brother, 13), Rose (younger sister, 16) Davis (younger brother, 2), Maria Moore (mother), Daryl Parra (father, deceased), Lin (does get adopted into the family however they don't really refer to each other as father or daughter, more like siblings)

Romantic partners and and (possible future) in laws: Cal (Boyfriend, future husband), Saphira (girlfriend, future wife), Ace (partner, future spouse), Taka (boyfriend, future husband) Laura,( future sister in law), Bennet (future brother in law), Charlotte (future sister in law), Blake (future brother in law)

Born and raised in Ryme City, lives in Reborn during and after the events in game

David Parra:

Male (Amab)

He/Him

13 years old

In the future I can see him figuring out he's biromantic asexual

Brown hair, blue eye color

Trainer class(es): Enthusiastic Student, Reborn Professor (future)

Relatives: Miles (older brother), Rose (older sister), Davis (younger brother), Daryl Parra (father, deceased), mother (identity and location unknown)

[Check Miles for possible future in laws]

Born and raised in Ryme City, lives in Reborn during and after the events in game

Rose Keetal:

Female (Afab)

She/Her

16 years old

Lesbian

Black Hair (dyed), blonde (natural), red eye color

Trainer class(es): Goth Girl, Athletic champion (future)

Relatives: Miles (older brother). David (younger brother), Davis (younger brother), Daryl Parra (father, deceased), Mary Keetal (mother, deceased)

[Check Miles for possible future in laws]

Davis Parra:

Amab

He/him

2 years old

Brown hair, green eye color.

Trainer class(es): Trainer (future)

Relatives: Miles (older brother), David (older brother), Rose (older brother), Daryl Parra (father, deceased), mother (identity and location unknown)

[Check Miles for possible future in laws]

Chad Collins:

Male (afab)

He/Him

20 years old

Homosexual, Homoromantic

Black & bleached hair, red eye color

Trainer class(es): Ex-Cultist, Reborn Champion

Type Specialty: Ghost and Dragon

Relatives: Aasha (real name unknown, adoptive mother), Desmond Collin (father, deceased), Dimitri Collins (younger brother, deceased) Nia Collins (mother, deceased), Dearil (last name unknown, younger brother, deceased and reincarnated as the interceptor in Aevium/Rejuv)

Okay so Chad is going to date like most of the male (and the two nbs) cast of reborn so here's this: Cal, Taka, Ace, Arclight, Adrienn, Zero, Cain, Fern, Blake, Archer

Future in laws (okay so Chad isn't married to all of his partners in the future so those who he isn't actually married to will get a * because they're honorary in laws okay?): Jay* (brother in law), Whatever Arclight's parents were called, Aya LaRue* (Sister in law), Solaris (father in law), Florinia Sevilla* (sister in law)

Future kids (planned for a story!! Eventually lol):

Alba and Arrow Whitaker (Cal/Chad), Florian Whitaker (Blake, adoptive), Robin and Raven (Taka/Chad), Duncan Collins (Zero/Chad), Miriam (Arc/Adrienn, Miriam sees Chad as a third parent figure), Minerva (Archer/Chad)

Born and raised in Oblivia Renbow Island, Cocona Village, currently lives in Reborn during and after the events in game

[The Reborn Triplets]

Jack Willow:

Male (afab)

He/Him

22 years old

Pansexual, Panromantic

Black hair, chestnut eye color

Relatives: Anesa Willow (mother), Jeffrey Martin/Willow (Adoptive/Step father), Katie Willow (sister), Saywer Clark (sibling), Sirius (Paul Clark) (Biological father)

Trainer class(es): Herpetologist, Reborn Champion

Type Specialty: He prefers using lizard and snake-like pokemon

Romantic interests: Cal Whitaker

Born in Reborn in Subseven Sanctum, but raised in Almia, Pueltown.

After the events of the game he'll live in Reborn.

Katie Willow:

Female (afab)

22 years old

Bisexual, Panromantic

She/Her

Black hair, chestnut eye color

Trainer class(es): Top Student, Professor (future/right after post game)

Relatives: Anesa Willow (mother), Jeffrey Martin/Willow (Adoptive/Step father), Jack Willow (brother), Saywer Clark (sibling), Sirius (Paul Clark) (Biological father)

Romantic interest: Blake Whitaker

Born in Reborn in Subseven Sanctum, but raised in Almia, Pueltown.

After the events of the game she'll live in Reborn.

Saywer Clark:

Nonbinary (amab)

22 years old

Asexual, Aromantic

They/He

Black hair, chestnut eye color

Trainer class(es): Meteor Admin, Perceptive

Relatives: Anesa Willow (mother), Sirius (Paul Clark) (Biological father), Jeffrey Martin/Willow (Step father), Jack Willow (brother), Katie Willow (sister),

Born in Reborn in Subseven Sanctum and raised in reborn.

[Citlalli twins]

Axel Citlalli:

Male (afab)

He/Him

20 years old

Homosexual, Homoromantic

Black Hair, Pink eyecolor

Trainer class(es): Friendly helper (pre-timeline reset), Last Hope, Reborn Champion

Relatives: Angelica Citlalli (mother), Logan Citlalli (father), Marcus Citlalli (twin brother)

Romantic interest: Cal Whitaker

Born in Unova. Pre timeline reset he lived in Castelia City from age 0 to 13 until he got into an accident and his parents moved to Nacrene City. After the timeline reset he lived in Castelia city his entire life. When he becomes champion he'll live in reborn.

Marcus Citlalli:

Male (Amab)

He/Him

20 years old (physically)

Asexual, Heteroromantic

Black Hair, Pink eyecolor

Trainer class(es): Fairy Tale Prince, Reborn champion (pre-timeline reset), Elite Four Guiding Light

Type Specialty: He has a fairy tale themed team (pre-timeline reset), Dark/Steel

Relatives: Angelica Citlalli (mother), Logan Citlalli (father), Axel Citlalli (twin brother)

Romantic interest: Victoria Marlow

Born in Unova. Pre timeline reset he lived in Castelia City from age 0 to 13 until his brother got into an accident and his parents moved to Nacrene City. After the timeline his spirit resided in reborn for the most part, however he would be able to visit Axel in Unova thanks to their connection.

Hiram Hazel:

Male (Amab)

He/Him

Mid 50's

Asexual/Biromantic

Blond hair, Caramel Brown eye color.

Trainer class(es): Deacon

Type Specialty: Normal and Fairy types

Relatives: Elias (Older brother), Luna (Niece), Divers (Child), Ordell (Son), Zero (Adoptive son)

Born and raised in Reborn

Divers Hazel:

Nonbinary (Amab)

They/Them

22/23

Demisexual/Panromantic

Blond hair, Red eye color.

Trainer class(es): Bishop

Type Specialty: Dragon and Fairy types

Relatives: Elias (Uncle), Luna (Cousin), Hiram (Father), Ordell (Twin brother), Zero (Adoptive brother)

Born and raised in Reborn

Ordell Hazel:

Male (Amab)

He/Him

22/23

Bisexual/Biromantic

Black hair (dyed), blonde hair, Red eye color.

Trainer class(es): Bishop (pre-main game events), Crusader, Reborn Champion

Type Speciality: Doesn't specialize in any type, but does prefer humanoid and alolan pokemon

Relatives: Elias (Uncle), Luna (Cousin), Hiram (Father), Divers (twin), Zero (Adoptive brother), Hal (Adoptive father)

Born and raised in Reborn, at age 15 ran away to Alola where he lived until he became 22/23. He then returns to Reborn.

Cressilda Whitaker:

Female (afab)

She/Her

9 months old

Light blue hair, Hazel eyecolor

Trainer class (for when she gets older): Cheerful kid

Relatives: Kuro Lengile (Father), Cal Whitaker (Father), Blake Whitaker (Uncle)

Born in: Reborn City

Ref (will be made later)

Walnut:

Nonbinary (agab unknown)

They/Them, Xe/Xyr

12 years old

Brown Hair, Hazel eyecolor

Trainer Class(es): Strange Kid, Reborn Champion

Relatives: Unknown

Born in Orre (or so they say)

Rejuvnenation:

Mavis:

Male (Afab)

He/Him

17 years old (chapter 1-8), 18 years old (current)

Trainer Class(es): Pokemon Trainer (chapter 1-8), Goth Guy (current), Interceptor (current, only used in certain situations)

Type Specialty: Fairy

Relatives: Nancy (mother, deceased)

Host: Axel

Romantic Interests: Ren, Aelita Royer, Crawli

He has no known place of birth or where he grew up, when asked where he is from he'll say he's a trainer from East Gearen.

Desolation:

Marble:

Demiboy (Afab)

He/They

19/20 years old

Homosexual,Homoromantic

Brown Hair, Light Pink eyecolor

Trainer Classes: Ray of Sunshine

Type Specialty: They use weather themed teams.

Relatives: Unknown

Romantic interests: Tristan (lol rip), Hardy (probably), Reeve (probably)

He has no known place of birth or where they grew up

Daniel:

Nonbinary (Unsure about agab yet)

He/They

Mid 20's

Pansexual/Panromantic

Purple Hair, Blue hair (dyed), Indigo eyecolor

Trainer Classes: Crescent Ace

Type Specialty: Psychic

Relatives: Unknown

Romantic interests: -

Used to be childhood friends with Justice (friend's oc) and Garret, but they grew apart after he joined Crescent.

Insurgence:

Not much info on them yet, here's what I have. Their name is Aiden and he is a fairy/ghost type specialist.

More will be added later

[bethanydelleman]

A Full Defense of Lydia Bennet

Lydia Bennet is not a villain, but she gets a lot of hate for carelessly running off with Wickham and possibly ruining her sister’s lives. The narrator and characters, however, do not blame Lydia very much and I don’t think the author meant for us to hate her. She was failed by her parents, who did not teach her how to properly behave and did not ensure she was properly protected.

Obviously, the real villain is Wickham.

The most vicious takedown of Lydia is put in the mouth (letter) of a character we should not respect, Mr. Collins. We already know that his morality is skewed, as he seems to view the collection of tithes and sucking up to Lady Catherine as his primary duties, he writes this of Lydia, “I am inclined to think that her own disposition must be naturally bad, or she could not be guilty of such an enormity, at so early an age.” (Ch 48). However, even he mentions the real cause, “a faulty degree of indulgence”.

Elizabeth feels this cause strongly, and lays out a good argument for her father on why Lydia should not go to Brighton, “She represented to him all the improprieties of Lydia’s general behaviour, the little advantage she could derive from the friendship of such a woman as Mrs. Forster, and the probability of her being yet more imprudent with such a companion at Brighton, where the temptations must be greater than at home.” (Ch 41). Mr. Bennet dismisses all these great arguments because he is too lazy to deal with Lydia’s disappointment. He’s been a lazy parent and continues to be.

Mr. Bennet then takes on the responsibility for what happened, ““Who should suffer but myself? It has been my own doing, and I ought to feel it… No, Lizzy, let me once in my life feel how much I have been to blame.” (Ch 50). Lydia has been allowed to run around flirting with officers for months, without any check on her conduct. She does not act within the rules of society, and while Elizabeth and Jane have tried to correct her, Lydia knew they had no real authority. She needed parents and neither of them did their duty. 

Mr. Bennet also acknowledges that he failed his daughters by not saving money for their future provision, “Had he done his duty in that respect” (Ch 50).

Mrs. Bennet shares this guilt, little as she will accept it: Mrs. Bennet, to whose apartment they all repaired, after a few minutes’ conversation together, received them exactly as might be expected; with tears and lamentations of regret, invectives against the villainous conduct of Wickham, and complaints of her own sufferings and ill-usage; blaming everybody but the person to whose ill-judging indulgence the errors of her daughter must principally be owing. (Ch 47)

Lastly, Lydia was failed by Darcy, who talks about his share of the blame here: “Wickham’s worthlessness had not been so well known as to make it impossible for any young woman of character to love or confide in him. He generously imputed the whole to his mistaken pride, and confessed that he had before thought it beneath him to lay his private actions open to the world.” (Ch 52). We see in Sense & Sensibility Elinor asking everyone who knows him about Willoughby’s character. Character references were important, that is how women knew they were safe in a man’s presence. Darcy knew the truth and he left Meryton and the Bennets in danger.

Lydia did make a choice (and certainly the wrong one), but she does not deserve all the blame for what happened. The narrator makes it clear that no one should be surprised by the outcome. Lydia was not taught was what right, she was not taught to control her impulses, and she was put out in the world too young, as Colonel Brandon said in Sense & Sensibility, “But can we wonder that… without a friend to advise or restrain her… she should fall?”

Related posts: Lydia too young to be out, Should Darcy have warned Meryton?

[severalpossiblemusiks]

You know the classic “parents hate rock and roll” sentiment? It started with racism.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, music was, as with all things in the US, segregated by race. There was white music and black music. There was white radio and black radio. With the postwar economic boom and the vast amount of new jobs, more black people were living into the cities, and with many radio shows moving to the new popular medium of TV, there was tons of open airspace on radio to be filled. The airspace was filled with music. Lots of music from and for both white and black audiences. Black music was largely referred to as “rhythm and blues”, and a few enterprising white DJs trying to break black music into white airspace relabelled R&B as Rock and Roll to try and work around the prejudices surrounding the title of R&B. A key element here was that white music was very inoffensive, meant for popular appeal with little potential for scandal, which resulted in a rather bland musical style that was carefully created to have the most popular appeal possible. Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennet, Bing Crosby, and Perry Como are the prime examples of this style.

Black music, not having the same restrictions as white music, were free to write songs about sex and death and political issues and racism and all the things they had to put up with. This music resonated with the new demographic of teenagers of all colours, as teenagerhood was new and so the idea of having basically 6 years of not being a child and not being an adult was kinda new and nobody knew what to do about it, so the hormonal teens had a lot of stress to deal with, and the rock and roll style appealed to that confusion and exploration of identity a lot of teenagers were going through in the 50s. Naturally the teenagers quickly became a big player in market popularity, and the rock and roll records that had to be independently produced on shoestring budgets became hit sellers, threatening the established crooner music of white adults. Some whites started copying the rock and roll style, most famously Elvis, but Bill Haley and the Comets scored the first rock and roll number 1 hit with “Rock around the Clock”. This encroachment of black music into white circles naturally led to the white record labels decrying rock and roll as degenerate, simplistic, morally corrupting “jungle music”. Parents, not really knowing what to do with the popular new style, joined the white record companies in disliking the music that caused their young ones to get up and *gasp* DANCE! (This was important as most concepts before this were sit-down-and-listen affairs, not jump-and-jive deals). Several early rock concerts ended in riots as police tried to force the energetic teens to sit down when they got up to dance. Naturally parents and authorities ignored that police interference cause the riots and said that rock and roll led to dancing which let to rioting.

Rock and roll, be it back or white, was a musical style that dealt with real life issues and subjects, resonated with a demographic that had a lot of issues, and unintentionally threatened the establishment, who lashed out against it, calling it rebellious, and the rock and rollers doubled down on the rebellion, leading to the likes of the Beatles, Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Mötley Crüe, Metallica, The Clash, the Ramones, Michael Jackson, Twisted Sister, Nirvana, Korn, Slipknot, and no end of modern bands and artists.

All because a bunch of old white guys didn’t like white kids buying black music.

[anghraine]

Revisiting my very old P&P fic!

So I didn't initially remember which fic had the Jane-Darcy scene, only that it was an early one, so I went to AO3 and looked at some of my very early fics to refresh my memory before realizing it was Season of Courtship all along.

I only mention this because it was a bit entertaining to re-visit my old P&P fic (despite the very uneven prose) because they were weird and often melodramatic but are still recognizably mine. Like:

Left to Follow: my first Austen fic ever and it's largely trolling. Darcy has apparently cheated on his wife, who has returned home to her father and family with her sickly baby. It's from the perspective of her father. The twist, revealed at the end, is that Darcy is actually the sickly baby and the POV character is his grandfather the earl. (This originally grew into a much longer and more meandering fic than the AO3 version but it kind of sucked, so I only cross-posted the first part.)

Sword and Sorcery: a vaguely tongue-in-cheek series of vignettes in a fantasy AU. Wickham is a vampire, Elizabeth has plant powers of some kind, Georgiana is unexpectedly a necromancer, and Darcy is an empath and has become so overconfident about his (genuinely very strong) abilities that he doesn't seriously think about why he's not picking up much from Jane (it's because she is also an empath and naturally resistant to his powers) or even bother trying to read Elizabeth properly until she rejects him.

Catalyst: a twist on the then-popular fanon of Darcy only really seeing the truth of Elizabeth's criticisms by talking about the Hunsford fight with a cousin like Colonel Fitzwilliam who advocates for Elizabeth's righteousness. In the fic, Darcy does end up talking about it with a cousin (Fitzwilliam's sister) who takes his side in such a forceful classist way that he realizes he sounded like that to Elizabeth.

Such Terms of Cordiality: a chaotic cluster of AU premises. Lady Anne and Mr Bennet used to be in love but she was persuaded away Anne Elliot-style and married Darcy's father instead (their respective children know nothing about this). Darcy and Elizabeth meet at Ramsgate the summer before the novel begins and fall in love with little complication. Jane is not in love with Bingley and struggling with the pressure to be. Lady Anne is still alive. Mr Bennet is opposed to Darcy/Elizabeth and she ends up confronting him about it. I had planned for it to be a reverse-forced marriage scenario, where Darcy and Elizabeth end up married without their canonical character growth and have to grow within marriage, but it's entirely voluntary (I never got that far).

Season of Courtship: my most popular fic even now and easily the most normal thing from that time (it does have some of the melodrama, but it's just about the canon engagement period).

The Widow: Tom Bertram falls in love with a widowed Elizabeth Darcy.

Incumbrance of Mystery: a cracky murder mystery in which Georgiana gets murdered.

Claims to Reputation: probably my personal favorite of these, but it's not quite a fair comparison because I revised it pretty comprehensively later on. It's an unfinished epistolary fic in which Lydia and Wickham's two eldest children, Bess and George, attempt to scheme and maneuver their way into fortune by exploiting their Bennet connections, confiding their true feelings and motives only in their letters to each other. Bess (the more calculating and amoral of the two) is largely successful with Collins's and Charlotte's mediocre son, while George falls genuinely in love with Elizabeth and Darcy's beautiful but extremely withdrawn and wary daughter. He, however, is hampered by the suspicion of pretty much everyone.

It's basically just this flurry of letters around the whole (double) business from everyone connected with it except Miss Darcy; you have to extrapolate what she really feels about it from the (deeply biased) perspectives we get from everyone else. There are also some references to Bess and George's younger sister, Bella, being a sort of inverted Fanny Price—she's the poor relation/niece raised at Mansfield Pemberley, but has been treated much more gently than Fanny ever was and is integrated into the family.

It was odd and challenging and fun!

[ao3feed-dramione]

Even Tempers

read it on the AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/38949033

by percki

Pride and Prejudice gets a twist - the love story of Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy becomes the perennially popular story of Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy. As accurate as I could make it (to both the characters themselves, Austen's work, and history itself) and with my take on the characters' thoughts along with creatively done extra scenes.

Words: 2101, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M

Characters: Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson, Blaise Zabini, Mrs Granger (Harry Potter), Mr Granger (Harry Potter), Bellatrix Black Lestrange, Narcissa Black Malfoy, Astoria Greengrass

Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger & Ginny Weasley, Lavender Brown & Hermione Granger, Hermione Granger & Parvati Patil, Hermione Granger & Original Female Character(s), Hermione Granger & Harry Potter, Hermione Granger & Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger/Theodore Nott, Hermione Granger & Pansy Parkinson, Hermione Granger & Blaise Zabini, Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Parvati Patil/Ron Weasley, Lavender Brown/Theodore Nott, Lavender Brown & Ginny Weasley, Pansy Parkinson & Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy & Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy & Blaise Zabini

Additional Tags: Georgian Period, Alternate Universe - Regency, Regency, Regency Romance, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Drama & Romance, Pining, Alternate Universe - Historical, Historical References, Pride and Prejudice References, Alternate Universe - Pride and Prejudice Fusion, Inspired by Pride and Prejudice, References to Jane Austen, Alternate Universe - Jane Austen Fusion, Marriage Proposal, Mild Sexual Content, Adult Content, Family Drama, Feminist Themes, Black Hermione Granger, Indian Harry Potter, Indian Pansy Parkinson, Sisters

read it on the AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/38949033