#whose willing to write this slowburn I would but my writing is... not great

[quercus-queer]

A Slice of a Normal Life au

Grace and Simon Edition... this ones long lmao:

They met at a train station as little kids and didn’t see each other again until high school

High school was rough for both of them and was really shitty in general so i’ll just leave that up to you but i’m starting with college

Grace ends up going to Juilliard and Simon feels betrayed because they were supposed to stick together no matter what 

Plus Grace lied about it and put off confronting the issue until right before she left but Simon already felt something was up and his abandonment issues and other problems pop off so he distanced himself from her and started being a dick (sorry they’re still codependent and problematic at this point) until Grace goes off on him

She leaves and Simon has a breakdown and ends up in a psych ward but he does finally get some actual help and diagnosis (the high school counselor was trash), he never reaches back out to Grace and skips town afterwards which really impacts Grace and she’s just like... bro... do i need therapy too? 

And then she actually seeks out a therapist with the intent to get better and does! She has pretty great time in college and makes actual friends in her dance program and ends up getting a girlfriend at some point... it was a long and pretty healthy relationship but ended on kinda bad terms, but she navigated her first relationship! Yay!

Simon is a dumbass and got with this girl he met while he was institutionalized... it didn’t go well but it was a relationship... it was like a few months long... but yeah... she also tells him to get a grip lol

I also changed my mind Simon doesn’t live with Samantha in high school, he tracks her down after his breakdown since he’s a legal adult and can do whatever he wants and lives with her and Frank afterwards

Simon starts working in a bookstore The Apex (its called that because they live on a mountain and its in the downtown of the city thats at the peak of the mountain) and actually really likes it and Samantha and Frank are good parental figures and he goes to actual therapy

There’s a little reading club for kids at the bookstore which is comprised of the Apex kids that he is in charge of now because the owner has her hands full (her, Simon, and a high school girl are like the only workers there)

Simon also gets a boyfriend he actually manages to keep and its a pretty good relationship and ends on relatively good terms since Simon’s actually getting therapy and has a good life set-up now so yay! He managed an actual relationship!

Samantha and Frank live in a cabin on this mountainous city btw which has a popular resort that Samantha manages and Frank is a chef there... it’s a very popular resort... a very common place for a retreat...

Grace and her dance crew in college take a trip there and she sees Simon and nearly dies, no seriously she was walking and then slipped and hit her head

She ends up in the hospital and her friends (she has actual good friends now) are like Grace what the fuck just happened you’re not that clumsy?

But you know who is? Simon, who is at the same hospital because Lucy from the kids club who is also a clumsy disaster got a fucking pencil in her eye and he had to drive her to the hospital

He sees Grace and doesn’t know whether to laugh cry or say hi so he just stares at her blankly like the dumbass he is and then leaves

Anyway, this kicks off a 200k mall-rats slowburn that goes harder than Tulips and Mikayla’s 

Grace doesn’t see him again until the next night when he’s in the lobby and he actually goes up to her and they talk because he had time to process it, they awkwardly talk... mostly sit though, and then Grace’s friends call her over and Simon quickly offers for her to come over another day

Grace doesn’t know what to do and her friends ask her whats up and convince her to go, not alone obviously Jennifer is gonna go with her to make sure she doesn’t get murdered 

Its awkward again, there’s small talk between Samantha, Frank, Jennifer and the two idiots and they play card games until Frank decides to finish up dinner and Jen ditches Grace because Frank is the coolest mf on the planet so Grace and Simon are alone again

They just sit there until Simon asks about her dance program and college and then they talk about that until Grace mentions her therapist and Simon’s like??? and Grace is like whoops and then they eat dinner and Grace and Jen leave

Simon goes by the resort more often but they don’t rlly talk until Grace is about to leave and Simon just apologizes for everything and Grace says she’s sorry too and Simon just doesn’t know how to respond to that so he’s like if you ever want to come back here I’ll be here

Grace does not know how to respond to that so she’s just like uhhh okay bye

The dance team comes back the following year and she sees Simon again and he’s like “sorry for fucking you up” and Grace is like “don’t give yourself so much credit I already needed therapy unless you forgot about the fact I had counseling right after you?” “I try to block out everything from before 19 tbh” “fair enough... I suppose there wasn’t much to want to remember huh” “I’m... I remember telling you, you were the best person I ever met and I meant that” Grace doesn’t know how to respond to that and then they don’t talk for the rest of the trip, they just wave at each other and smile in passing

The dance troupe grace joins after college goes on annual trips to the resort so Grace and Simon continue to have three conversations each year plus Jennifer makes sure a visit to Samantha’s and Frank’s happens

the yearning... the pining... WHEW its a lot and Samantha, Frank, and Grace’s entire dance troupe, plus the family that always vacations at the same time are SICK of it

They don’t even become close friends again until their late twenties. 

The kids club thinks Grace is amazing and Kai bases their whole look off of her

Mall-rats officially happens in their thirties and they get married in their forties

when I say slowburn i meant it

Idk where to put this: 

Samantha lost custody of Simon as a kid because of a hoarding problem she still struggles with but Simon is an adult now and him and Frank help keep her in check

Simon was with Samantha from a couple weeks after entering foster care and most of middle school

Samantha and Frank are actually just roommates 

Grace is like “so Samantha and Frank...?” “They’re roommates” “Simon... is that what they told you?” “well yeah, but they’re seriously just roommates” “ummmm...” “Grace they’re both gay” “OH”

Simon works at the bookstore his whole life and he loves it, Grace is a professional dancer, they’re both happy

They look the same as in canon except Simon can shave and Grace gets be the fashion icon she deserves 

Simon still cant dress so most of the time he just wears different sweaters he’s been given and alternates between his three pairs of jeans

[threewaysdivided]

I saw your conversation about Sam Manson. I was talking to Imekitty about this, but I’ve noticed a few things that (sort of) make Sam’s relationship with her parents seem more like teen-drama than actual hardship. If you look closely, she’s got a lot in common with them: outspoken political-activism, possible shared-interest in vintage clothes, and no shame in saying they don’t like certain people. Also, after the Fentons, they were the first to volunteer to use the Ecto-Skeleton, risks and all.

(In reference to this post.)

It’s been a little while since I rewatched DP so I’m not well-placed to do a detail-analysis implication-breakdown right now, but yeah - that fits with the overall impression I remember getting.  To me they came across as being sort of old fashioned set-in-their-ways conservative and snooty, and maybe a bit too Pleasantville -  but more often in the way of parents who do genuinely want good things for her and to be able to be proud of her despite not really understanding her interests, choices or friends and being very bad at expressing it.  Plus she seems to have her grandmother fully in her corner a lot of the time.

I really wish that the writers had committed to one or the other; either making it clear that Sam’s martyr/ persecution complex is mostly just regular self-inflicted teen-drama BS and giving her an arc addressing it, OR fleshing out the idea that she faces a lot of judgement/ pressure/ control/ nonacceptance in her home life and that her negative traits are a bi-product of defensive/ coping mechanisms resulting from that strained dynamic, rather treating things with Roger Rabbit Rules.  

(Which isn’t to say that a person can’t have similar interests/ personality traits to, and positive interactions with, their parents while still having a strained, broken or even abusive relationship with them on a deeper level, but the show never really goes hard enough in either direction to make it work.)

As mentioned the last post, this is kind of a consistent pattern across DP - the writers tend go with the low-effort first answer for whatever is Funny or Awesome or Convenient in the moment rather than putting in the work to find a solution that’s consistent with the characterisation, themes and world-lore overall.  There’s enough internal contradiction in the show that I don’t think it’s actually possible to take every canon detail as canon without fundamentally breaking things.  And in some ways that’s kind of cool; it makes the series more open to interpretation, and trying to distinguish authorial intent from authorial incompetence and come up with theories that account for as many pieces of canon as possible is really satisfying.  But, you know, it’s also kind of bad writing in general.

I think the thing that bothers me about Sam’s characterisation in particular is that - where it tends to be more obviously out-of-character when it shows up in other places - there’s a pattern to the inconsistency with how the writers handle Sam:

Throughout the series there’s a double standard in how Sam sees herself/ seems to expects others to act, compared to her own behaviour:

Despite being pro-pacifism she’s okay with smacking Tucker and encouraging Danny to destroy the trucks she doesn’t like

Sam values self-expression and is a feminist, but derides other girls for wanting to express themselves in a conventionally feminine way

Sam doesn’t like being forced to conform to others’ values but is okay with forcing others to conform to hers

Despite being anti-consumerist she shows very little discomfort at, or awareness of, her lavish home life and material belongings

She encourages Danny to take the moral high ground towards his bullies but has no problem antagonising and getting into petty verbal spats with Paulina herself

Sam stalks Danny and his love interest out of jealousy/ protectiveness but threatens to end their friendship when he does the same

In Mystery Meat, when Danny tries to express his discomfort/ anxiety, Sam hijacks the conversation to complain about her own parents instead of listening.

In One of a Kind Sam photographs Danny and Tucker hugging in their sleep, without their knowledge, with the stated intent of putting it in the yearbook, then uses it to blackmail them into silence. 

Side note: this joke is also tacky on a meta-level because it boils down to “male intimacy ha ha toxic masculinity no homo amiright?“ Would have been nice if show didn’t use low-key sexist humour as much as it did.

Instead of expressing that she’s hurt by Danny’s “pretty girls” comment in Parental Bonding, Sam retaliates by pushing him to ask Paulina out - a move she knows will most likely result in him getting publicly shut down and humiliated.

Then, after getting the result she wanted, she comes over to gloat and insults Paulina, rather than dropping it now that her point’s been made, which is what ultimately sets off the episode’s subplot.

In Memory Blank Sam permanently physically alters Phantom’s appearance to better suit her tastes while he’s not in a position to understand or give informed consent, then lies when Danny notices and asks about it later.

To be clear this definitely isn’t the be-all-and-end-all of her character and it’s not there 100% of the time - there are plenty of moments when she is loyal and generous and helpful and sincerely kind and where her stubbornness comes in handy.  But it’s the aggregate pattern of all these small instances that drives a crack through the foundation of her character integrity; producing this insidious undercurrent alternate-reading of Sam as someone who, at a deep level, just doesn’t respect or recognise that the emotional needs, pains, opinions, autonomy and boundaries of others are as real and valid as her own, and who responds to criticism with passive-aggressive hostility.

Again, I think that’s why people are so quick to point out that line from Phantom Planet, even though we all know the episode was a complete mess.  None of the examples above are particularly bad in isolation - you can’t really point at any one of them and say “oh no, bad girl” without sounding like you’re making a mountain out of molehill and irrationally hating on her just to hate on her.  It’s an uncomfortable slowburn pattern of subtle micro-transgressions that accumulates across the series - a “you might not notice it but your brain did”.  And it makes sense that it would be the worst-written episode that amplifies and brings that regular bad-writing undercurrent close enough to the surface for people to consciously recognise and use it to articulate those frustrations.

To wit: Not because it’s most telling of her character but because it’s most telling of the specific bad writing that regularly hurts her character. 

And again, from a storytelling point of view, it’s okay for Sam to have flaws.  She’s a teenager!  She’s learning.  She’s allowed to be egocentric and self-important and do things that aren’t the best at times.  It’s okay if these are her character weaknesses and a source of conflict with the rest of the cast.  But again, for that to be satisfying something really should have come of it.  It would have been nice if the writers were willing to have any self-awareness about these flaws being flaws that a person should recognise and grow past in order to have healthy relationships with others.  But they didn’t - because it’s easier to keep her as she is - to the point that they’ll actively bend the narrative to roll back or skip over moments that would have necessitated that growth.  So, even though they call attention to her flaws, the writers end up rewarding and enabling them instead of letting her learn.

And again, this isn’t meant to hate on Sam.  Hanlon’s Razor in full effect: it’s clearly a result of authorial/editorial incompetence rather than deliberate malice.  I know this isn’t the intended interpretation.

My preferred reading of Sam Manson is that she’s a Rosa Hubermann/ Hermione Granger/ YJS1 Artemis Crock-type character.  Someone who’s passionate and forceful and maybe a bit abrasive and hard to love at a glance, but whose core nature is compassionate and sincerely kind and loyal-to-the-death for the people they value.  I wish I could 100% like her without caveats; to be able to say that even if I don’t agree with her flaws I can at least understand that they’re a valid product of the life she lives, that they make her who she is and that she’s trying her best to be a good person who will get better despite them.  

But I can’t because the writers don’t give her that.  They’re always prioritising other things over the integrity of her character.  They don’t give her background enough time and context to make her negative traits feel resonant with it (because that would take time away from the Wicked Cool Radical Ghost-Fighting Superhero Action™) and the framing and plotting doesn’t give her chances to recognise or grow past them (because that would mean character development and those negative traits are an easy source of cheap conflict).  The writers just don’t seem to care all that much about Sam - her actual character, who she is, how she came to be that way, what she wants or how her negative traits would actually play against Danny and the others.

And that sucks.  Because she has a lot of potential to be a well-rounded and great character.  I’ve seen plenty of fics that seize that potential and roll with those gaps and the result is very good.  I wish I could like her canon depiction without feeling like I have to actively ignore a bunch of latent behavioural red flags as the price of entry.

She deserved better.

[ahtohallan-calling]

chapter 19 of love is the only thing we can carry with us (kristanna slowburn/angsty but cute/no magic au, rated t) is up!

next chapter // all chapters

He wanted to weep, to shout for joy, to kiss her so soundly that there was never again any doubt that he was hers, completely, no matter how great the distance between them, and then all at once she was there beside him, slipping her little hand into his, standing at an angle and adjusting her skirts no one could see. “Are you really here?” she whispered, her voice hoarse, and something in him shattered.

chapter 19: the party

She needs you.

Nothing else mattered. 

Kristoff raced back to town with Olaf, dropping him off without even saying goodbye.

She needs you.

At his cabin, he slung essentials haphazardly into his satchel, snatching up his festival clothes and stuffing them on top; it was the closest thing he had to ballroom finery, but it would have to do. He was back on Sven within five minutes, galloping down the mountain. The party started that evening at seven; if the postman had been even an hour later, he might not have made it in time. Even now, it was going to be close.

She needs you.

It didn’t matter. Nothing did, nothing but getting to Anna. If he missed the engagement party and whatever deadline that involved, he’d just keep going, all the way across the vast expanse of ocean to the Southern Isles, further if he had to. He had only been kept from her side by the knowledge that it was her choice to go, her sacrifice to make, and he would never dream of taking that freedom away from her. Even now, he was prepared to turn and come back the moment she asked him to, but if Elsa had had to be the one to write him…

“Faster, Sven,” he pleaded, and the reindeer sped up, snorting as if he understood.

Already it was beginning to snow, a few fat flakes drifting down and landing in his hair. The old fears began to surface in his mind again; if Anna is out in this-- if she’s sick again-- if it’s too late--

He gritted his teeth. She needed him, and so he would come to see her through it, to whatever end.

---

True to her word, Elsa had posted two men at the gates-- but to his surprise, they waited outside of the city, not by the castle as he had expected. Were things so dire that he had to be guided from this point on?

One of them raised a hand in greeting, and Kristoff tugged on the reins. “Our visitor from the mountains?” the man asked, and he nodded.

“Follow me. My friend will take care of your reindeer.”

Kristoff stiffened. “Sven goes--”

“He’ll be at the castle with you,” the man reassured him. “He’ll just be getting there another way. We’ll have him waiting for you outside the kitchens. Queen’s orders. I’m sure you understand why better than we do.”

Kristoff nodded again, wishing that he understood any of this. The man led him on a winding route through the city, taking back alleyways at every possible opportunity. Kristoff was grateful for a guide; between the snow and the setting sun, he would have had a hard time navigating even if he had been more familiar with the city. To his dismay, he realized that there was only one way to the castle itself: through a massive set of gates and across a wide, stony bridge. His companion noticed his worried expression and heaved a sigh.

“Not ideal in a moment like this, but at least not many people saw you get to this point. Once we’re over, there’s a back route again, the way the servants come and go.”

Kristoff tried to remain calm and inconspicuous in the crowds of people crossing the bridge, wondering if they could sense that he didn’t belong. A carriage rolled by him, clearly on its way to the party, and he heard titters of excitement from the others on the bridge, questions about who was inside, what the prince looked like, what the princess would be wearing, whether the Queen might be married next. 

He wanted to take them by the shoulders, shake them and ask them why they weren’t worried, why they weren’t asking about why this was happening; how could they stand around gossiping idly about gowns when Anna was giving up everything for this, for them, when she needed him and he still wasn’t there yet?

He shoved his hands in his pockets, clenching his fists until they were over the bridge and cocooned once more in the blessed silence of the back streets. The guard glanced back at him with sympathy. “You alright?”

Kristoff forced himself to nod. He didn’t know how much this man could be trusted. Luckily, he didn’t press him with more questions; instead, he squared his shoulders and picked up his pace, the urgency of the situation clear to him even without an explanation. At last they reached the back doors of the castle, and the man bowed. “This is where I leave you,” he said. “Upstairs two flights, take a right, at the end of the hall. Knock four times.”

Kristoff didn’t have to be told twice. He took off, nearly running, and grateful that everyone in the lower part of the castle seemed to be moving at a similar pace, rushing to prepare things for the ball. It had to be starting any minute now; he could hear violins warming up as he pounded up the first flight of stairs.

At last he found himself at the set of heavy, oaken doors and knocked the mandated four times, his heart in his throat. The door opened just a crack and he slid inside. “Where is she?” he panted, hardly waiting for the door to be shut again.

“Kristoff,” Elsa breathed, looking as panicked as he felt. “I was starting to worry you wouldn’t come.”

“I’m here. Where’s Anna?”

“In her rooms-- stop!” she said, catching the sleeve of his shirt as he turned to go. “She’s with Hans.”

His stomach turned at the thought of him there with her. “What does she need?” he asked, forcing down the rising tide of nausea.

“She has to get out of here. I can’t let her go through with it.”

“She still wants to go with him?”

“No. But she will if you can’t talk her out of it.”

Kristoff swore under his breath. “Tell me what I need to know. Only enough, we’re--”

“Running out of time, yes. Did you bring formal clothes?”

He nodded, already pulling them out of his satchel. “Good,” Elsa said, relieved. “Change while I explain.”

She turned her back for modesty’s sake. “You know why she had to leave. Arendelle is--”

“In a mess.”

“To say the least. He’s taking advantage of the situation, plans to take the kingdom one way or another. He’s convinced her that this is the least painful route for all parties.”

“You used to agree with that.”

Even though her back was turned to him, he could hear the wince in her voice. “Berate me for the past later. For now, help me convince her to stay. She can do more for Arendelle here, even without this alliance.”

“What if she says no?”

“She might. She did to me. But you…” She glanced over her shoulder, meeting his gaze. “She might yet listen to you.”

“There’s a lot riding on my powers of persuasion.”

“There’s a lot riding on how much she loves you,” Elsa said, turning to help him with the buttons of his vest. He let her; his fingers were shaking too badly to even keep hold of them. “Hans wants to leave with her before the storm starts.”

“It already has.”

“Then we have less time than I thought. Walk with me while we can. You’ll have to go back down the way you came, come in through the main entryway.”

He hurried after her, still trying to make sense of it all. “If she agrees to break it off?”

“Get her out. Hide her somewhere.”

“Why? Can’t you just kick him out?”

“We can, but I worry he’ll take her with him anyway, whether she wills it or not.”

“Anna’s tougher than--”

Elsa turned back, placing a hand on his arm. “She’s sick, Kristoff.”

And you weren’t here to-- He shoved the thought away. “How sick?”

“I don’t know. She won’t--” Elsa closed her eyes for a moment, composing herself. “She won’t tell me.”

Kristoff didn’t wait to hear more; he pushed past her, heading down the stairs, praying to every god he knew that he wouldn’t be too late. 

He slipped in with the crowds, forcing himself not to elbow his way past them all and burst into the ballroom. Panic was rising in his throat, but he forced it back; panic wouldn’t save Anna. At last, he was through, standing in a ballroom that could have housed half of his village, but he had eyes only for her. He shouldered his way through crowds of dancers with murmured apologies, searching frantically for any sign of her. “Damn it, Anna,” he muttered, “why couldn’t you be taller?”

His eyes caught on a streak of red hair, and it took all he had not to break into a run there and then. It was Anna, but not his Anna; he had never known her like this, never seen her so pale and delicate that she looked like a snowflake ready to melt away. She turned, escorted into a dance by a man whose ostentatious silver suit matched her gown, and Kristoff swallowed hard; the cut of her dress was low enough for him to see her shoulder blades flutter with the movement, unnaturally sharp against her skin.

Feeling ill himself, he watched her dance with the man-- Hans, no doubt-- knowing how much it had to be costing her. He was trying to figure out the best way to cut in without causing a scene when suddenly, by some miracle, her eyes landed on his, just for a moment. He froze in place, wondering if she had realized it was him; she kept dancing as if she had noticed nothing, but then only a moment later in the midst of a spin her eyes locked on his, widening in recognition. He dared to move a little closer, staying on the fringes of the crowd, knowing that this would likely be his only shot.

The song ended at last, and she made a neat little curtsy to her partner before leaning up to whisper in his ear. He nodded and moved away through the crowd, making his way with practiced ease. The moment his back was turned, Kristoff pushed forward, his heart pounding.

Anna moved towards him, looking stunned. The world seemed to slow around him, all the colors and sounds fading into a blur as she reached for him, eyes even bluer than he had remembered, even with shadows smudged underneath them. He wanted to weep, to shout for joy, to kiss her so soundly that there was never again any doubt that he was hers, completely, no matter how great the distance between them, and then all at once she was there beside him, slipping her little hand into his, standing at an angle and adjusting her skirts no one could see. “Are you really here?” she whispered, her voice hoarse, and something in him shattered.

“Yes,” he said softly, squeezing her hand, the way he had dreamed of so many times during the seemingly endless sweep of empty days. 

A little whimper escaped her then, her eyes welling up with tears. “Kristoff--”

The music started up again, and he hastily set his other hand on her waist. “Stand on my feet if you need to,” he said hurriedly, beginning to lead her into the dance. “Just try to make it until we’re closer to the doors.”

“How did you-- how are--” She broke off, already having to pause to catch her breath.

“Don’t talk,” he said, fighting the wave of terror threatening to consume him. “Just stay with me.”

She nodded weakly, and he tugged her a little closer, letting her put more of her weight against him. “Elsa asked me to come. She’s worried about you. She wants you to stay here.”

Anna opened her mouth, ready to protest, but Kristoff shook his head. “You don’t have to explain. She told me you think this is what’s best for Arendelle. But Anna-- think of everything you could do here. Nobody loves this place like you do. Imagine how much more you could accomplish if you stayed.”

“It’s not that easy,” she said, sorrow settling over her features. “He wants it for himself. He won’t stop.”

“You could stop him.”

“You put too much faith in me,” she said, forcing a pitiful laugh. 

He shook his head emphatically. “Anna--”

She stumbled then with a near-silent cry of pain, and his heart squeezed in his chest. Glancing up, he spotted a shadowy corner blocked by a large plant and pulled her into it, knowing he had only a few moments left before someone noticed she was missing. “Anna, who’s to say this wedding will be enough for him? What if you go and he still goes through with the rest of it?”

She bit her lip. “I-- I know he might…”

“You could stop him from here. You’ve got your sister, you’ve got the people backing you. There’s still a chance--”

Her eyes widened suddenly; she pushed him away, dropping his hand. Kristoff looked over his shoulder, a cold chill running down his spine as Hans approached, murder in his eyes.

“You think to make a mockery of me at my own engagement party?” he hissed, reaching down to yank Anna forward by the wrist. “You think I’m too much of a fool to notice you slipping away?”

“Hans--” Anna started weakly, but he yanked her closer, making her cry out in pain. Kristoff started for him, ready to put an end to it all then and there, but Anna shook her head, fear in her eyes. He followed her line of sight and realized, blood draining from his face, that two guards wearing the regalia of the Southern Isles were watching, hands on their swords.

He turned back after a moment’s calculations, ready to snatch her away and run, but already they were gone.