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stilydinski · 4 years

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Anime Pretty Boys™️: A List

So basically no one asked but all of a sudden I felt the need to make a top 10 ranking list of some Pretty Boys in animes I could think of so why not share with the weebs.

To clarify: When I say Pretty Boys I mean pretty and not hot in general ! There are so so many more attractive characters out there but this is a list of guys that just look so incredibly beautiful it makes me want to bawl my eyes out. While I ofc would sell my organs for tons of anime boys, these are just the ones that make me go "mmhhhmm pretti" before thinking they're hot or whatever. I hope this makes sense aha ha.

10. Chisaki (My Hero Academia)

Those of you who haven’t seen the show might be asking yourselves what’s up with that mask but let’s just ignore it (masks are a thing everywhere now anyways right? man’s just staying safe ssjsj). Basically when I first saw this man I was speechless because wow his face is so ?? intense and pretty at the same time. The hair is casually messy, the eyes boring into your soul and the ear piercings are just hot. Also his style??? hot damn?? i mean the jacket he always wears looks so mf expensive and the suits like Yes Sir fuck me UP but at the same time he is so intimidatingly pretty that I wouldn’t mind joining the bad guys here. However because of the high hotness factor he’s lower in the list might be the dangerous aura who knows

9. Sesshomaru (Inuyasha)

Basically this man has more elegance than anyone could ever obtain. The way he always wears this fur thing on his shoulders just as a statement and never gets it dirty or loses it? an icon. Everything from the hair to let’s call it the “make up” to the outfit is just on point and you won’t ever catch the man slipping. This is the only character ever that could make me disregard the fact that he’s technically a dog demon and over 500 years old and just let him step on me.

8. Daisuke (Fugou Keiji: Balance:UNLIMITED)

I don’t think I need to say much here. First time I saw this man I was legit already on my knees without knowing a single thing about him. Some of you might say he’s more hot than straight up pretty but I beg to disagree because he is genuinely one of the most beautiful men I have ever seen. Now I do agree that in comparison he certainly can be considered more hot which is why he’s a little lower on the list however you can’t tell me that his face wasn’t shaped by God personally.

7. Usui (Kaichou wa Maid-sama!)

ON GOD if this man asked me to marry him I would not hesitate for a single second. Effortlessly pretty, the flavor is immaculate, never tasted anything like this before. Not only is he the perfect man but his face is so insanely pretty. Now Usui’s more of a casual beautiful because his face doesn’t necessarily have something outstandingly special but as a whole there is just not a single flaw.

6. Victor (Yuri!!! On Ice)

Now, you can’t tell me the hair doesn’t hit different. The man literally looks like a Greek God like that’s just a FACT we all know that, he knows that, Yuri knows that, the other Yuri knows that. Man's literally chosen to do the most elegant sport looking LIKE THAT as if he wouldn’t completely change figure skating forever. His face is so pleasing to look at because he just has this angelic aura around him that makes you think he came down from heaven personally to raise the bar for us all.

5. Yato (Noragami)

Let me just say what we are all thinking: EYES. I can’t think of anyone with prettier eyes and that’s for a good reason. Yato’s not a God for nothing, the godly looks are very evident even if he’s a little bruised up in the gif. His face is perfect, the hair looks elegant and yeah the eyes are just mesmerizing. Homeboy might be spotting a track suit at all times but damn he can wear it while living his Immortal Pretty Boy Life.

4. Guren (Owari no Seraph)

This one’s a funny one because let me tell you I know absolutely nothing about this man. I have not seen the anime and I barely know his name but I saw this man a few weeks ago and when I tell you I almost started crying I mean it. It’s hilarious how this man could be the biggest asshole who murdered my family and I’d still think he’s insanely beautiful. Now I sadly can’t get into this as deep as with this others because I have zero knowledge about him but the fact that he was the third person I thought of when making this list even if I don’t know him should say enough for now. Face is 10/10, he’s living that pretty boy lifestyle doing whatever it is that he does but god does he look graceful while doing it.

3. Shoto (My Hero Academia)

Now THIS. This is interesting because can you BELIEVE that this incredibly handsome boy does not even KNOW how pretty he is? Looking like that he would be allowed to have such a huge ego but he isn’t aware of the facts??? The two colored hair and eyes are both iconic and groundbreaking. His face just screams pretty boy in every possible way and on god i would do anything for him to realize that. Everyone in Class 1A knows how beautiful he is except him?? I could write you a three pages essay on how beautiful he is and that would just be the outer appearance without getting into his great personality. I would be ready to declare my love for him on 10 pages in four different languages but let’s not get into that now.

2. Akaashi (Haikyuu)

I honestly don’t even know how to start this. Akaashi is one of a kind. I lie awake at night thinking about the fact that he is so insanely beautiful and I wonder what the creators were thinking. Imagine you wanna create a volleyball anime and while drawing someone who is not even on the main team you come up with this? What kind of process goes through your head?? How could you publish a character like this knowing no other character you ever draw will ever live up to his pretty face? I wouldn’t know how to act. Looking at Akaashi is the most pleasing thing and the fact that he is not only crazy pretty but also has the best personality just sends me over the edge. No one’s doing it like him. This man can have my credit card, my house, my family and my liver, he can take it all and I would still worship him like the God he is, thank you.

1. Howl (Howl’s Moving Castle)

Ladies and gentlemen, may I announce the prettiest Pretty Boy of all time. This wouldn’t be a list of Pretty Boys without Howl. The man literally invented being pretty and god is he dramatic about it. Most of us probably count him to our childhood crushes. Remember when he said “I don’t see a point in living if I’m not beautiful” because he accidently dyed his hair black? I have never seen anyone this dramatic but of course his ego is big with a face like that I mean if I looked like THAT I would act up too. I would drop everything for this man and that’s on Sophie leaving behind her life to live in his castle yeah i know she didn’t do it for him back then but lbr i would. Anyways Howl literally said I support the ugly community but it ain’t me and it’s true, if you look up Pretty in a dictionary his picture will show up. I honestly don’t know what else to tell you because Howl leaves me speechless on a regular but that’s fine.

This marks the end of my list, please let me know if I forgot someone. If you made it this far with reading this mess thank you for keeping up with my amazed ass, i’ll go cry over how beautiful everyone on this list is now. I will probably regret the rankings in a week from now so don't mind them too much

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ailuronymy · 3 years

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Thoughts on the new discourse? Warrior cats naming conventions and rank names being straight up stolen from native American people? So many people seem to be... Straight up leaving the Fandom or changing all of their fan content and it feels very performative and, people not actually thinking critically and just being scared of getting "cancelled"? I feel like your opinions on these matters are very informed and well written so I wanted to ask given that this blog main theme is, well, warrior cat naming system and that seems to be the main issue of the new discourse.

This is probably going to get long, since there's sort of a lot to say about it in order to talk about this whole thing fairly and constructively, because from what I’ve seen there’s a lot of hyperbole happening, and panicking, and disavowing this series and fandom, and so on, like you say, and also some people genuinely trying to have complex meaningful conversations about racism in xenofiction, and also probably some bad faith actors in the mix--as well as some just... stupid actors. Kind of inevitably what happens when two equally bad platforms for having nuanced discussions--i.e., twitter and tumblr--run headlong into each other, in a fandom space with a majority demographic of basically kids and highly anxious, pretty online teens. I don’t mean that as a criticism of fans or their desire to be liked by peers and “correct” about opinions, it’s just the social landscape of Warriors and I think it’s worth pointing out from the start.

If I’m totally honest with you, if not for this ask, I wouldn’t actually be commenting on it at all, because none of this is going to impact this blog or change how I run it in any way. But since you’ve asked and frankly I do feel some responsibility to try to disentangle things a little for everyone stressed and confused at the moment, because I know a lot of people look to this blog for guidance of all sorts, I’m going to talk about what I think has happened here, and how to navigate the situation in a reasonable way.

Quick recap for anyone blissfully unaware: from what I understand, this post (migrated over from a presumably bigger twitter thread) has got a lot of people very worried about Warriors being a racist and appropriative series, and now are trying to figure out what ethically to do about this revelation. The thing I found most interesting about this screenshotted conversation is that it makes a lot of bold claims, but misses some pretty surprising details (in my opinion). If you do look critically at what is being said, here’s a few things to notice--crucially, there are two people talking.

Person 1 says that a lot of animal fantasy fiction + xenofiction (fiction about non-human/”other” beings, such as animals) is frequently built upon stereotypes of First Nations and Indigenous people, and/or appropriates elements of Indigenous culture and tradition as basically set dressing for “strange” and “alien” races/species etc., and this is a racist, deeply othering, and inappropriate practice. This person is right.

I’ve spent years researching in this field specifically, so I feel pretty confident in vouching (for whatever that’s worth) that this person is absolutely right in making this point. Not only is it frequently in animal fiction/xenofiction, but it’s insidious, which means often it’s hard to notice when it’s happening--unless you know what you’re looking for, or you are personally familiar with the details or tropes that are being appropriated. Because of the nature of racism, white and other non-First Nations people don’t always recognise this trend within texts--even texts they’re creating--but it’s important for us all, and especially white people, to be more aware, because it’s not actually First Nations’ people’s responsibility to be the sole critics of this tradition of theft and misuse. Appropriation by non-Indigenous people is in fact the problem, which means non-Indigenous people learning and changing is the solution.

Person 1 offers Warriors as a popular example of a work that has this problem. Notably, this person hasn’t given an example of how Warriors is culpable (at least in this screenshot and I haven’t found the thread itself, because the screenshot is what’s causing this conversation), only that it’s an example of a work that has these problems. And once again, this person is correct. We’ll look at that more in a moment.

Person 2 (three tweets below the first) offers, by comparison, several more specious insights. Firstly, it’s really, really not the only time anyone’s ever talked about this, academically + creatively or in the Warriors fandom specifically, and so that reveals somewhat this person’s previous engagement in the space they’re talking into re: this topic. In other words, this person doesn’t know what has already been said or what is being talked about. Secondly, this person explicitly states that they “[don’t know] much about warrior cats specifically but from what I see it just screams appropriation,” which as a statement I think says something crucial re: the critical lens this person has applied + the amount of forethought and depth of analysis of their criticism of this particular series.

I’m not saying that using twitter to talk about your personal feelings requires you to research everything you talk about before you shoot your mouth off. However, I personally don’t go into a conversation about a topic I don’t know anything about except a cursory glance to offer bold and scathing criticisms based on what it “just screams” to me. By their own admission, this person isn’t really offering good faith, thoughtful criticism of the series, in line with Person 1′s tweet. Instead, Person 2 is talking pretty condescendingly and emphatically about--as the kids say--the vibes they get from the series, and I’m afraid that just doesn’t hold up well in this court.

So now that there’s Person 1 (i.e., very reasonable, important, interesting criticism) and Person 2 (i.e., impassioned but completely vibes-based opinion from someone who hasn’t read the books) separated, we can see there’s actually several things happening in this brief snapshot, and some of them aren’t super congruent with each other.

Person 1 didn’t say “don’t read bad books,” or that you’re a bad person for being a fan of stories that are guilty of this. They suggested people should recognise the ways xenofiction uses Indigenous people and their culture inappropriately and often for profit. My understanding of this tweet is someone offering an insight that might not have occurred to many people, but that is valuable and important to consider going forward in how they view, engage with, and create xenofiction media.

Person 2 uses high modality, evocative language that appeals to the emotions. That’s not a criticism of this person: they’re allowed to talk in whatever tone they want, and to express their personal feelings and opinions. However, rhetorically, this person is using this specific language--consciously or subconsciously--to incense their audience--i.e., you. Are you feeling called to action? What action do you feel called to when you rea their words, despite the fact their claims are not based in their own actual analysis of or engagement with the text? It’s, by their own admission, not analysis at all. Everything they evoke is purely in the name of “not good” vibes.

Earlier I mentioned that Person 1 is correct that Warriors is absolutely guilty of appropriation of First Nations and Indigenous people and culture. I also mentioned that they didn’t specify how. That’s because I think the most egregious example is in fact the tribe, which in many ways plays into the exact kind of stereotyping and appropriation of First Nations Americans that Person 1 mentions, and not the clans, contrary to Person 2′s suggestion. For instance, in addition to the very loaded name of “tribe”, there’s a lot of racist tropes present in how that group of cats is introduced and how the clan cats interact with them, as well as the more North American-inspired scenery of their home. It’s very blatant as far as racism in this series.

When it comes to the clans themselves, though, I think it’s muddier and harder to draw clear distinctions of what is directly appropriative, what is coincidentally and superficially reminiscent, and what is not related at all. Part of this difficulty in drawing hard lines comes from the fact that, on a personal level, it actually doesn’t matter: if a First Nations person reads a story and feel it is appropriative or inappropriate, it’s not actually anyone’s place to “correct” them on their reading of the text. Our experiences are unique and informed by our perspectives and values, and no group of people are a monolith, which means within community, there will always be disagreement and differenting points of view. There is no one single truth or opinion, which means that First Nations people even in the same family might have very different feelings about the same text and very different perspectives on how respectful, or not, it might be.

I’m saying this because something that gets said very often when conversations of racism and similar oppressive systems present/perpetuated in texts comes up, people frequently say: “listen to x voices.” It is excellent advice. However, the less pithy but equally valuable follow-up advice is: “listen to the voices of many people of x group, gather information and perspective, and then ultimately use your own judgement to make an informed opinion for yourself.” It means that you are responsible for you. The insight you can gain by listening to people who know topics and experiences far better than you do is truly invaluable, but if your approach to the world is simply to parrot the first voice, or loudest voice, or angriest voice you come across, you will not really learn anything or be able to develop your own understanding and you certainly won’t be making well-informed judgements.

In other words, one incomplete tweet thread from two people who are each bringing quite different topics and modes of conversation (or perhaps gripes, in Person 2′s case) to the table is not really enough to go off re: making a decision to leave a fandom, in my opinion. In fact, I think in responding to anything difficult, complex, or problematic (which doesn’t mean what popular adage bandies it about to mean) by trying to distance yourself, or cleanse of it, will ultimately harm you and will not do you any good as a person. It is better, in my opinion, to enter into complex relationships with the world and media and other people in an informed, aware way and with a willingness to learn and sometimes to make mistakes and be wrong, rather than shy away from potential conflict or fear that interacting with a text will somehow taint you or define your morality in absolutes.

So. Does Warriors have racist and appropriative elements, tropes, and issues in the series? Yes, of course it does, it’s a book-packaged series produced by corporation HarperCollins and written by a handful of white British women and their myriad ghostwriters. Racism is just one part of the picture. The books are frequently also ableist, sexist, and homophobic (or heteronormative, depending how you want to slice it, I guess), just to name some of the most evident problems.

But does the presence of these issues mean it’s contaminated and shouldn’t be touched? Personally, I don’t think so. Given the nature of existing the world, it’s not possible to find perfect media that is free of any kind of bias, prejudice, or even just ideas or topics or concepts that are challenging or uncomfortable. I think it’s more meaningful to choose to engage with these elements, discuss them, criticise them, learn from them, and acknowledge also that imperfection is the ultimate destiny of all of us, especially creators.

I’m not saying that as a pass, like, “oh enjoy your media willy-nilly, nothing matters, do what you want, think about no-one else ever because we’re all flawed beings,” but rather that it’s important not to look away from the problems in the things we enjoy, rather than cut off all contact and enjoyment when we realise the problems. That doesn’t mean you have to only criticise and always be talking about how bad a thing you like is either, publicly admonishing yourself or the text, because that’s also not a constructive way to engage with media.

As I said, there’s a lot to say here, and believe it or not, this is honestly the shortest version I could manage. There’s always more to say and plenty I haven’t talked about, but pretty much tl;dr:

I don’t find Person 2′s commentary particularly compelling, personally, because I think it’s a little broad and a little specious in its conclusions and evidence, and I also suspect that this person is speaking more from their feelings than from a genuine desire to educate or meaningfully criticise, unlike Person 1. That’s not to say Warriors isn’t frequently racist and guilty of the issues Person 1 is discussing, because it is, but I don’t think this tweet thread is a great source of insight into the ongoing history of this problem in xenofiction, or Warriors specifically, on its own. I would recommend exploring further afield to learn more from a variety of sources and form your own opinions. I hope this helps.

#just in case anyone sees this post and gets the wrong idea: i'm not inviting debate on this.#i am saying that first nations people are allowed to have ANY relationship with texts because that's how subjectivity works.#they are allowed to have negative neutral or positive experiences of texts--even 'bad' ones that have a lot of problems.#the people in this tweet are just talking about their thoughts and it's their bad luck the world's a public forum and it's spiralled.#the other thing i am saying is that if your approach to media is exclusively to cut out any problematic text like it's a cancer #that's not a great strategy. just straight up. you're better off developing critical insight and your own opinions and confidence.#by most parameters i can think of warriors as a series pretty much sucks really bad and i've been saying that for nearly ten years.#despite being so phenomenally flawed it can still have value--and much of its value in my opinion is IN these conversations about it.#so yeah tl;dr 2: i'm not here to slap-fight with teens which is what much discourse devolves to after 5 mins on tumblr so don't try it.

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mariesocuniverse · 3 years

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Relationships: WayV

MaeKun

if it werent for the the laws of ncity he wouldve asked her to join wayv and stay in their dorms

Since they don’t live together or are part of the same unit they don’t really spend a lot of time together but he’ll be damned if he doesn’t want to be with Mae

Large parent/protective older brother energy

not as protective as 127 hyungs but you know

Yeah she’s a menace when she teams up with other WayV members but she doesn’t clown him as much as they do it’s cause she saves that energy for doyoung lmao

mae claims she visits the wayv dorm for him but he’s 50% sure she’s just there for the animals

the other 50% is because she wants him to cook for her which he does even if she doesnt ask

hes like those parents who insist on giving you leftovers to bring home to your family

he taught her to do magic tricks bc she was insistent on wanting to learn at least one

okay but honestly she thinks he really cool despite all the clowning she does to him

like singing? dancing? cooking? visual? magic? and he can fly a plane????

one of the reasons she has high standards ngl

MaeTen

ten has unofficially adopted her whether people like it or not

he has fought with taeyong and doyoung about it she is his baby

if mark and johnny are his brothers, mae is basically his younger sister

if you look at his photo gallery he has a folder dedicated to mae and mae only

any photo or video of them together is basically ten clinging to her like a koala

he looks at her like she put all the stars in the sky but the same goes for mae

she has admitted in an interview that ten is one of her role models because of his talent and work ethic

whenever she needs help with dancing he’s one of the first people she asks

xiaojun once asked him who’s his favorite between yangyang and mae and you could see him malfunction for like six seconds before jokingly scolding him

“yah how could you ask me that type of question?”

fun fact! ten was the person she asked to go with her when she got her first tattoo!

he arranged the appointment at the place where he got his and held her hand when she was getting it

Lowkey considered getting matching tattoos but never really took the time to think of what tattoos they’d get

MaeWin

another top ship among czennies

these two are so soft for each other omg

just one glance at the two and you’re already melting

You can see Yuta screaming about MaeWin whenever the group is together and they’re interacting

And if you can’t see it you’ll probably hear it

MaeWin: casually talking

Yuta: is this what heaven looks like

MaeWinMark is just yuta’s weakness and he doesn’t even bother to hide it

Okay back to MaeWin before I get ahead of myself and make an entire post about Yuta and MaeWinMark

If they’re gathered in a large group their interactions aren’t really noticeable unless you’re actively looking for it

While the others are talking you can just see Mae playing with his hands or winwin giving her a soft smile while patting her head

They talk more when they’re either in a small group or just the two of them

MaeWin shippers were devastated when they got separated so when nct 2020 happened they went feral

Every once in a while they go out for hotpot and talk about what has been going on

LuMae

this man right here

they first met when she was visiting NCT U dance practice for BOSS with food and she heard him from the hallway

its one of the reasons why she wasn’t intimidated by him even though hes a giant

she was excited to see what kind of energy and personality he would bring to nct

and she was not disappointed at all

personal hype man

whenever they’re on a variety show together and mae is asked to do something he just yells “FIGHT HAEYADWAE”

of course the same goes for mae but less loud bc last time she kept yelling she lost her voice and couldnt talk for the rest of the show

He just has this energy where if he’s hyped up about something she feels energized to be hyped up well so you just hear the both of them cheering loudly

its always interesting to see because you just see a gentle giant cheering loudly with this smol girl next to him trying to match his energy

he always makes sure she’s comfortable when they’re at a schedule

like we know how he’s really silly on camera but he’s also very observant and caring

one time mae complained about how her feet hurt from the heels she was wearing so he just picked her up bridal style and walked to the van without a word

XiaoMae

They’ve heard abt each other from Kun and ten and greeted each other when they passed by each other in the halls but they never really had a chance to grow close until nct 2020 happened

Mae wasn’t in the Make a Wish unit so there weren’t a lot of chances to get to know each other while promoting either but it doesn’t mean they’re not friends

ten also hogs her attention when she visits the wayv dorms but we dont talk about that

these two arent as close as the others but not to the point where they actively avoid each other

whenever they’re together they just vibe

theres no awkward silence or small talk they just talk about random stuff

“no lucas, i dont hate xiaojun hyung we just dont hang out as often as we do”

“yes hendery we do have each other’s numbers we just don’t talk often”

WayV is lowkey tempted to lock the two of them in a practice room together and do a vlive to see what’ll happen

prime candidates for “It’s Awkward but It’s Okay”

their dynamic is kinda DoRen where they pretend to be awkward around each other as a joke

like they went out together once and everyone as excited bc omg they were interacting

XiaoMae shippers are starved for content and will accept any crumbs that come their way

HenMae

the duo people didnt know they needed until they met

its not like people didnt want them to become friends its just that theyre energies match well

these two are such a vibe

you know how there are ppl who don’t see for long periods of times but you still want tackle them in a hug whenever you meet? yeah its like that

kun sometimes wants to separate the two bc of how much chaos they cause together

they’re the duo where they think something is a good idea at the time but ends up as something bad at the end

kun has banned the two from the kitchen bc of a fire they started

HenMae shippers are thriving because of all the stories of the dumb shit they’ve done

lowkey considered doing a series together on nct daily but then the channel stopped uploading vids so it was never mentioned again

one time he was on call with his sister when she walked in and accidentally mistook her as his gf and now they jokingly have each other as bf and gf in their phone contacts

ten nearly had a heart attack when he saw the contact name pop up and mae picked up the call

yangyang has the whole thing recorded on his phone and refuses to delete it

MaeYang

(A/N everytime i see this gif i need a moment to pause and try and remember my ideas cause my head goes empty when it comes to yangyang)

okay if HenMae are chaotic, MaeYang are worse

kun doesnt need to dye his hair gray bc of all the stress these two cause him

czennies thought they didnt interact much bc of different schedules and groups but once nct world happened they changed their minds

MaeYang slowly climbing up the ranks of nct ships

during one of his lives yangyang mentioned how he spoke a lot with mae and that she wanted to add him to the 00liner gc

czennies lost it that day bc 1) holy shit theres a 00liners gc and 2) why tf hasnt yangyang been added into it yet

insists that she calls him oppa/hyung even though theres only a one month difference between them

Mae and Yangyang: whispering in the corner of the room

kun: theyre either talking shit about someone or world domination and i cant tell whats worse

he tried teaching her some german once and she now knows like three sentences

“Hallo, Ich bin Mae. Was geht ab? Mir geht’s gut.” (A/N this is the outcome of my three years of german lessons everyone)

and basically all the swear words but we dont need to talk about that

haechan jokes that he’s stealing mae away from the dreamies so he wont be the maknae in wayv

#nct 24th member #24th member of nct #nct female addition #nct female oc #nct au #kpop female addition #nct addition #nct dream female member #nct dream female addition #nct 127 female addition #nct 127 female member

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finnoky · 3 years

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AU where Quirin takes and raises Eugene after the DK falls

•| Send me a potential AU and I’ll tell you five fun facts |•

Oh you have no idea how much this enables me - I stand by Quirin raising Eugene until the end of time bc it’s what they BOTH deserve

1) Oki so, here we see Eugene taken away as a baby without disclosing an EXACT location — that will not stop Quirin though, who had a stance against cutting him off completely despite it being Edmunds orders [It made sense to send the boy away but to send him to an ORPHANAGE was another story] Quirin finds Eugene a month or so after they get separated, during that time he found a house and a stable farm to raise a kid on [Gotta have an income] and then promptly goes to the orphanage and adopts Eugene.

By then, Eugene’s name has already been changed and frankly... Quirin thinks it suits him, though he occasionally slips up and calls him Horace. He feels a duty to raise the Prince but also kinda has a “My son now” mentality! Disagrees with Edmunds choices + decides... His kingdom is doomed, so he’s gonna ensure Eugene gets a stable upbringing with KNOWLEDGE of the Dark Kingdom without necessarily telling him “Oh BTW you’re the prince”. Being a father is hard and he struggles a lot, esp in early days, it’s a whole new challenge from being a knight but... Not one he really regrets?

Cue some fluff! Knight-dad trying to raise a baby and establish a life in a new country — Over time he grows and becomes Village Leader + Develops a bond with the monarchs based on his knowledge and previous high-rank in society from being a knight! Gets offered a guard position but turns it down in favour of spending time with his toddler son. Eugenes first word is Dada and Quirins never felt so content. Baby fluff of Eugenes milestones — Quirin has Eugene helping on the fields as soon as he can toddle without tripping (tho it’s mostly Eugene playing and running around while Quirin works) Toddler Eugene is a little darling and knows exactly how to use his cuteness to get praise and sweets

2) Eugene starts thievery / acting out soon after Quirin dates and marries Ulla, though it soon become a hobby he usually indulges in with his friend Arnie [though they take on the names of the coolest book characters Flynn Rider and Lance Strongbow!] Quirin thinks it’s just a phase and leans into the whole calling Eugene ‘Flynn’ because... He really loves the books, that’s not too odd? Though he doesn’t know of crimes + just thinks they go out to play a lot. Eugene ignored Ulla for the first few weeks because he doesn’t like the idea of someone new staying around — He doesn’t hate her, it just raises a lot of questions about his mum that Quirin doesn’t know how to answer... He resolved on the explaination that she was very sick and couldn’t take care of him anymore, though loved him dearly — it’s enough to placate him.

Eugene doubles down on stealing when he’s 10 and suddenly there’s gonna be a new baby in the house. [He doesn’t WANT a sibling + worries Quirin will love the baby more than him since he knows he’s adopted & all that though is too scared to ask] Eugene grows an attitude and Quirin finds himself exhausted and constantly caught in petty bickers as Eugene keeps running away + acting up, especially to his wife (Who loves Eugene very much, of course) ‘Flynn’ declares he wants to travel the world and be far away from step-mums and nasty babies, uhhh Domestic fall out stuff?

Things change when baby gets here and suddenly Eugene is a big brother and Quirin is MORE distracted, sometimes they forget to even read him a story and he can’t stand the squirmy little creature... All it does is cry and take what little attention his misbehaviour had earned him... So naturally, petty crime continues + Eugene starts caring less about getting caught, so it becomes more risky. He and Lance befriend some bad influences and start taking Big Kid Crime. It’s fun! Until Eugene is brought home by a guard and Quirin gives him the silent treatment for the next week. Quirin... He loves his sons, both of them, but he just isn’t sure how to handle a distressed 11 year old and a baby, it feels like there’s not enough hours in the day and Eugene is SET on making life harder for everyone.

Eugene stays against ‘Varian’, frequently makes the baby the villain in his games and makes him cry on several occasions. It gets even worse when he starts crawling bc now he can’t get anytime alone, it’s just frustrating! The solution probably comes when Varians starting to talk and he says ‘Oo-gee’ as one of his first words — ‘Lisa’s first word’ style — and Quirin and Ulla admit that Varian is obsessed with Eugene. It’s sorta a wake up call for Eugene to start trying to get along with the kid, and it works! He finds it fun to teach him things & have someone to talk to (even if he just babbles back) By the time Eugene is 12 he’s calling Ulla mum and love spending time with his little brother

3) Right! When Eugene is about 18 he picks up theiving again, mostly because he isn’t suited to the farm life and it’s easy money (Plus how else is he gonna achieve his dream of financial independence?) He moves out the farm under the guise of finding a new life with his best friend, though they quickly realise it’s not amazing when they get tangled up with the Baron + his antics. Eugene visits home every so often and claims everything is fine, it’s going great, he doesn’t need any extra help + his life is just dandy. His dishonesty mostly bc he doesn’t wanna worry Quirin and there’s been a bit of a strain since Ulla passed away.

Life keeps on like this. Eugene ages, steals alchemy supplies for Varian and hides his true income source because he wants to make Quirin and Varian proud! Varian grows up to be more headstrong in what he wants because he has someone standing up for him and telling him he’s proud, though the longer Eugene spends away the harder it gets? He loves it when Eugenes here! But the house feels empty without him, and Quirin is so busy + stressed from Varians experiments that there’s still that desire to do more, prove himself.

4) Movie diverts a bit! Eugene finds out about the hair glow and thinks... If one person knows about this then it’s him, and takes Rapunzel to Old Corona over night rather than a campfire. Varian is ecstatic to see him though gets confused by a random girl Eugene claims to have just found — He’s about to ask questions when Eugene asks if Varian could do his magic thing to find out about her hair. Varian insists it’s alchemy and agrees, dragging Raps down into the lab! Boop gothel talks to her when Varians gathering all the equipment and talks her ear off about how cool Eugene is and asks how they found each other since the story is weird... Experiements start!

Meanwhile Eugene is talking to Quirin, when Quirin pulls out a wanted poster and puts it on the table. He finally found out about how bad Eugenes crimes are and wants answers. Now. Eugene sits and tries to explain its not what it looks like, but Quirin doesn’t wanna hear it. The disappointment is evident and Quirin criticises “I thought you grew out of this, what role model is this for Varian?” Eugene doesn’t have an answer but argues his case that it was to be reliant — and he doesn’t wanna do it anymore anyway! Quirin accuses him of using the girl, while Eugene insists her name is Rapunzel and he’s just helping her, get the crown, be set for life and never have to bother him again.

Their argument is cut short by a Varian coming back upstairs looking frazzled, says there’s something about the magic that’s familiar but he can’t place it — sure is strong tho, and continues gushing and asking Eugene for all the details of what he’s been up to. Eugene... Explains, his usual light-hearted rendition of a great quest, while Quirin leaves and stays upstairs the rest of the night.

Varian sees them off in the morning! Hours after they’re gone Vari is still looking into the magic thing — that’s when he remembers the old legend about a sundrop... about how it saved the Queen... About the Princess. Varian sneaks out the house and heads up to the lantern festival to tell Eugene and Rapunzel his revelation, but he gets there just as Eugene is being lead away by guards. Varian finds Max and tells him how they need to free Eugene + basically... Helps him escape with fewer pub thugs and more alchemy. When they get to the tower Eugene tells Varian to stay on the floor and climbs up to help Raps - Varian stays at the bottom of the tower for approx 10 minutes before finding the back entrance and climbing up. Figure he gets there just as Gothel deages, it’s suddenly and before anyone knows it Varian is the one pushing her out the window bc he saw a stabbed Eugene and put two and two together. Then! Cue New Dream scene, except Varian is sitting on the floor in shock a distance away... After New Dream hug Eugene looks at him and Varian admits that “Ok, magic isn’t that bad”

5) Oh god the series! First off — Raps is closer with Varian in this (that’s becoming a theme...) so doesn’t just throw him out into the blizzard when he comes asking for help. Instead he and Eugene go back to Old Corona together after the storm, Varian isolates himself from guilt + has a tough time dealing with what happened, but he lives in the castle as Eugene starts getting angrier with the king and wants answers for what happened. He’s the one that finds Dark Kingdom stuff and he and Varian work on it together... Eugene has a suspicion he came from the Dark Kingdom so when the rocks start pointing there he’s like dope!

No villain Varian joins them on the trek to the Dark Kingdom + it’s all fun and games, Eugene tries to get more answers from Adira as they travel but she says it’s not her place to say... All he needs to know is the kingdom fell, and everyone was evacuated... She’s almost annoyed as she explains it, then Hector is treble annoyed when he finds out Eugene was raised by QUIRIN since that went against the direct orders... Though Adira defends it and says he was doing his duty of keeping Eugene safe, it’s basically a rift between them that’s confusing until they get to the DK and the revelation happens.

I feel... Moongene could be a thing in this AU? but since I’m running out of points I’ll leave it with Cass taking her canon role! I will point out! when Quirin is freed initially only Varian runs into his arms... Eugene hadn’t really spoken to Quirin properly since their movie fallout & he’s not sure he belongs... Until Quirin holds and arm out to him and pulls him into the hug too (PARALLLELS) and we get a happy reunited family (tho with some issues to work out regarding somethings... they need to rebuild trust, but work on it slowly. Edmund stays ‘Edmund’ to Eugene. He sees Quirin as his father & doesn’t push as much to reconnect with Edmund... Though that makes it easier in a way. There’s less pressure once Edmund understands and they form a friendship, but Quirin is Dad 100% (Sometimes Edmund gets called Dad 2))

#tts #tts au #ask #au ask meme #tangled the series #tangled #varian #Eugene #quirin #alternative universe

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johannas-motivational-insults · 3 years

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Jo’s Top 10 of 2020

I see lots of artists doing that thing where they post a piece from each month of the year... unfortunately my content creation isn’t necessarily consistent and it’s hard to track what month individual fic chapters were posted in, but I figured I’d do something similar and post my Top 10 pieces of content I created in 2020, what they’re about and why I love them. I actually did get a fair amount done this year thanks to the lockdown, but I’ve narrowed it down to these ten that I’d like to reflect on. (To be fair, I’m probably forgetting something huge. Feel free to leave comments if you think I passed over something important lol.)

10. Friendship in the Horde (meta): This is something I’d wanted to write for a while but finally got around to finishing in February. It’s basically a sociology paper lmao, an analysis of the social hierarchies and systems of the Horde. It was also a convenient excuse for me to gush about Catralonnie, an underrated (friend)ship. But honestly this was an important piece for me because I have always identified with the Horde characters way more than any of the rebels (other than Adora, who grew up in the Horde) and part of why is how they are in an unsafe environment and end up forming relationships that are helpful for survival but hinder them psychologically. And I think to understand the Horde characters and really evaluate their motives and choices you need to understand this first.

9. The Sting in My Eyes: On the surface this is just a run of the mill hurt/comfort oneshot, but it was a really important post-canon processing fic for me. I had a lot of feelings about Catra’s relationships with Shadow Weaver and Melog in season 5, particularly about how Catra must have felt really conflicted after Shadow Weaver told her what she wanted to hear all those years but in a way that felt unearned and out of the blue. It was really cathartic for me to write a scene where she struggles with those mixed feelings but has Adora and Melog to help her process them. And I had long associated the song the title is from with Catra and Shadow Weaver’s relationship, and the way she died trying to redeem herself really solidified that connection.

8. Hail Mary, chapter 6: This was supposed to be a short chapter mostly about the backstory between Catra and Scorpia in this au, with some Catradora yearning thrown in. It evolved into a massive, sprawling thing that is very atmospheric in terms of how the setting and vibes are described and how in the moment it feels. Hail Mary is like that sometimes but that type of narration is usually about football games rather than parties, so this chapter was a fun change of pace in many ways. It was really nostaglic for me to write too, the nerves of being a teenager at a party with your crush and how intense everything feels. And the Scorptra stuff really is delicious, it was nice seeing them have that conversation they never got to have in canon and truly make up, and the tiny sliver I added of Catra’s earlier history was heartbreaking in the best way. So this was not what I intended to write, but it turned out way better for it.

7. A Better Son or Daughter (AMV): I’ve done other Adora AMVs, but this one is really my iconic piece. The song is perfect for Adora, so perfect it’s on Noelle’s Adora playlist. The vid itself is a character study about Adora’s mental health struggles and the way she represses them, as well as a tribute to her resiliency and her eventual triumph of getting to a better place in her life. This is a song that gives me a lot of feelings and once I was making it about Adora it gave me even more, so this was a very satisfying piece to complete. I wish Noelle had gotten a chance to see it but oh well, maybe down the line.

6. Hail Mary, chapter 12: This is the chapter that much of the fic had been building to, Catra and Adora in conflict because Catra finally got the chance to be Adora’s hero and Adora shot her down. It’s painfully analogous to canon, both in terms of how (I suspect) Catra felt in Thaymor and Adora’s tendency to victim blame because she’s so pragmatic. There’s definitely some tones of Taking Control in there but Lonnie does a much better job of examining Catra’s psychology and needs than Glimmer did in canon (a writing error imo, Glimmer should have had more insight). Adora just wants to help but sometimes in her quest to do so she disenfranchises others, and this was a much needed look at that aspect of her character. It’s also an excellent illustration of what it’s like to play a peacekeeping role in an abusive household and how stressful it is trying to protect others while also protecting yourself.

5. Unstoppable (AMV): This is not my favorite Catra AMV I’ve ever done, but it might be the cleverest. The soundtrack is a song about mental illness masquerading as a song about being a bad bitch, which is basically Catra in a nutshell. The lyrics are incredibly fitting for her and her arc as it develops over seasons 1-4. The vid itself takes a hard turn in the interpretation of the lyrics, going from talking about how no one can stop Catra to how she can’t stop herself because she’s in such a terrible sunk cost fallacy spiral, and I think I got several death threats over that twist lmao. As someone who primarily deals in angst, there’s hardly a better compliment to be paid.

4. Demons, chapter 31: This one got real dark on me. The concept of this chapter was originally an examination of how comparing abuse can get really dicey but you also have to respect that other people have had different experiences from you and you have to be careful not to equate things or make it sound like you’re talking over someone else. I guess it’s also a bit of a look at how autistic people (like myself) will often explain why they can empathize so others know they understand rather than saying empty platitudes, but that can come off as insensitive or like they’re making things about them. I mean, in this case Adora kinda was making things about her, but she was provoked into it by a parade of comments insinuating she didn’t suffer at all, which was also unfair. Anyway it’s one of the more important Catradora fights in Demons and something I’d written bits of over a year prior, it was that important to the plot, but it also took a turn I was not originally planning. I finished the chapter when I was in a really bad depressive and self-loathing spiral and that bled onto the page, but it worked perfectly for Catra in this scenario... that push and pull of feeling like the world has hurt and victimized you mixed with knowing you’ve done some bad things yourself and feeling like you don’t have a leg to stand on when mourning the ways you’ve been hurt. It’s intense as all fuck but it’s excellent.

3. Hail Mary, chapter 11: Speaking of dark Catra content, this chapter... whew. It was really something else, to read and to write. I have written flashbacks in Demons that are more detailed and even include explicit violence but because those scenes are always in flashback form I never really got the chance to sit in the head of an abuse victim waiting for the other shoe to drop for an entire chapter like I did here. It’s quite different from the rest of Hail Mary stylistically and is both highly sensory and extremely internalized. It took me back to some terrifying moments in my own life so it was difficult but also extremely cathartic to write. It’s important too because it really sets up where Catra was at mentally heading into her big fight with Adora, and that chapter is in Adora POV. This chapter is ranked so high simply because it’s... polished, as @malachi-walker put it. It almost is its own story within the story and really noteworthy as a piece all its own.

2. Demons, chapter 26: This chapter is very similar thematically to Hail Mary 12, just based in the canonverse. It deals with one of the core (but highly neglected by fandom) conflicts between Catra and Adora, where they both need to feel like they can take care of and protect the other but also detest feeling weak or vulnerable themselves. It leads to Adora’s ego making Catra feel disrespected and Catra’s behavior confusing Adora and making her think she’s an ungrateful brat rather than someone who needs so badly to be needed, just like her. There’s definitely some power struggles in this chapter but finally they’re able to get to the heart of it and seeing them talk it out is so satisfying. Getting this chapter published was also important to me on a personal level because, like I said, this aspect of their conflict and relationship is rarely acknowleged for how important it is when really it’s one of the deepest conflicts between them in the series. It’s a scene I started writing pretty much as soon I knew I was extending the fic into something longer because I just needed them to have this conversation, so finishing it was so satisfying.

1. Satisfaction, chapter 3: This chapter took me a really long time to write, both in terms of time to get it published and time I actually spent working on it. It’s the crown jewel of a fic that’s really important to me and I had to get it just right, so I spent more time agonizing over every detail and rewriting things to get them absolutely perfect than I usually do (I’m a perfectionist anyway, but this took it to a whole other level). But in the end it was worth it, because this chapter is damn fine. It’s really hot, as you’d expect from a smut fic, but it’s also an excellent character study of how both Catra and Adora were affected by their abuse and trauma and the issues it raises for them in terms of sex and intimacy. Also, come on, we need more BDSM fics out there that focus on the actual point of it all (the trust involved) and promote communication and do the character work to explain why they might be into it in the first place.

BONUS (from December 31, 2019): One of my favorite pieces of 2020 technically came out in 2019, but I posted it on New Years Eve so most people first saw it in 2020. It’s an absolute banger of an AMV called I’m Not Jesus that’s all about Catra and Adora’s anger towards Shadow Weaver and their refusal to forgive their abuser. Funny enough this came out before Adora’s iconic “I will never forgive you” line, and Shadow Weaver definitely made things more complicated with how she went out, but I think the sentiment still applies.

#2020 recap #happy new year #writing #vidding #fanfic #spop #catradora #demons #hail mary #satisfaction #the sting in my eyes #a better son/daughter #unstoppable #i’m not jesus

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gillian-greenwood · 3 years

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My initial thoughts and theories on the upcoming series of Line Of Duty.

Okay so this introduction isn't the one I initially wrote, what started as a quick summary of my thoughts after seeing the trailer and easter eggs turned into hours of my brain going into the depths of Line of Duty madness. We are under a week to go until series 6 finally hits our screens and there has been so much more teased already with interviews with the cast and so on. So, here cometh an essay of me turning into Charlie from It's always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Before I go into each point, I've tried to split my thoughts into different sections as there are more significant things that I think will feature in Series 6. These are all what I personally think will happen or likely scenarios if I'm undecided - I've listened, watched and read plenty of other theories too and I've really been enjoying it. With a show such as this, we do go totally crazy! I did see something mere moments ago where Martin stated that he's seen some 'spot on' theories - 1) it makes me excited to hear the cast are reading what we think and 2) I've more than likely read what's going to happen but I don't know it at this point - that's kinda insane!

So, I'm now going to get into the main points and then will address smaller things later on. For those of you who read all my rambles and thoughts, I really appreciate it: hopefully then I'm not completely talking to myself. I could be right, I could be wrong in these. But that's part and parcel of theorising. I've seen some great theories and seen some crazy theories but I really appreciate anyone who has taken time to share them. I mean we've got to have the outrageous and completely nutty theories, we need a good giggle!

So here we go...

Who is the fourth “dot”?

The one question that has been firmly on all our minds over these past couple of years has been whom is the fourth person pulling all the strings for organised crime? We know H isn’t a singular person but a code name for multiple people. According to Dot’s dying declaration, there are four dots, or four caddies - however you want to call it. I'm definitely sick of the whole who's H question (hence referring to it as the fourth dot) as it has been established that H isn't just a person - but so many are still completely attached to the idea of H and I think it's because that whole plotline wasn't completely rounded off or people weren't satisfied with the revelation so have become quite obsessed with it. I’ve felt a bit strange about the whole revelation since series 5 aired in 2019 though - I felt it was a huge stretch Steve recognising the Morse code from one still frame and coming to the conclusion he shares with Ted - that Dot was trying to communicate in Morse Code - I’m going to elaborate more on the declaration further on.

But back to the main question before we trail off too far! We have several possibilities. Off the bat, I can’t see it being any of the main three at all. Already, Steve has been accused of being “the caddy” and Ted has been accused of being “H” (Which in fairness has transpired to be the same thing) - Kate on the other hand has not yet come under suspicion of being bent and involved with organised crime. The trailer has cleverly hinted that it may well be Kate’s turn at being on the other side of the table. But, it’s being too obvious - creating discussion - very similar to what happened with Ted. I know a lot of people have suspicion over Kate and have done for a long while and I can see why - I just can’t see it concluding that she's the definition of corrupt - she's not completely squeaky clean but I don't think she's been a mastermind in all of this. It would be a very shocking twist but it wouldn’t make loads of sense to me with other things that's happened in the show. I do feel though Kate deserves a whole section to herself so I'll definitely go over all that further on. Main three aside - we have three other favourable suspects in my eyes.

Firstly, PCC Rohan Sindhwani was introduced in series 5 - dedicated to exposing corruption amongst the police force, running on a platform of transparency and working alongside DCC Andrea Wise. We don’t see much of him however his one direct link to organised crime is Gill Biggeloe - his senior legal counsel who was exposed as being one of the corrupt members of the police force. When things continued to go “pear shaped” with Operation Pear Tree - his mantra of complete transparency meant that he’d have to highlight the lack of progress - however rightfully so he’s been advised to suppress the truth and Gill very conveniently stresses that he needs to retain public confidence - and that having a “non-exclusive relationship with the truth” is part of the role of the PCC. As series 5 wraps up, he looks uneasy about the conclusions of Operation Pear Tree that were shared with the public - that there was no links to corruption and organised crime - which were of course completely against his own personal principles. During series 5 he hasn’t really displayed any tendencies of being bent, quite frankly the complete opposite. Although that's not to say he isn't dodgy. The trailer for series 6 has cleverly been cut together and tried to make him appear suspicious. However, I think it’s extremely unlikely that it’ll be him - he’s far too new of a character and has supposed strong ambitions to cut out all the rotten apples within the ranks. Gill could have easily sent him astray but I'm just not buying him being involved with organised crime at all. So I’m happily ruling him out.

Next we have the newly promoted DSU Ian Buckells. Having first appeared all the way back in the beginning of series 1 as the SIO on the Jackie Laverty case, appointed by Derek Hilton - he was a bit of a verruca on TO20’s foot - therefore being made to feel unwelcome by DCI Tony Gates who he replaced - no surprise there. As the first series progresses - there’s not much reason to think of him as bent, he just looks like a detective lacking passion and just turns up to do what he has to do. There are little details though that become apparent when re-watching. He has a connection first and foremost to Derek Hilton having been appointed by him personally but even at this point, there wasn’t reason to suspect Hilton either - therefore plays off as a totally innocent matter. Next, after DC Kate Fleming interviews a young Ryan Pilkington, he turns up flustered and very disgruntled that Kate has proceeded to interview him - especially after it transpires she was an undercover officer from Anti-Corruption. On early viewing - it's easy to put that down to the fact Kate had gotten there first and because it transpired she was an UCO. But we never see what went on in the respective interview apart from Ryan asking for a Big Mac. We last see Buckells allowing Dot to talk to Tommy Hunter after he’s arrested - and we all know how that turned out. But, it does appear that Buckells hasn't got a clue what's going on, he just shrugs and gives that whole yeah no skin off my nose approach, displaying quite a laid-back and care free attitude still. Buckells reappears in series 4 as the replacement SIO on Operation Trap Door after DCI Roz Huntley is removed from the case, again appointed by Derek Hilton and coincidentally where Kate is again undercover. No surprise Kate looks worried as they'd already crossed paths at TO20. Hastings and Arnott quite rightly confront Buckells and instruct him to keep Fleming's true identity secret and if her cover was compromised, everyone would know who to blame. When her cover is initially blown, the first and foremost conclusion was Buckells had not listened to strict instructions given. However, after details of Kate's personal life were leaked also, Kate didn't feel like the leak had come from Buckells as it was unlikely he knew anything regarding that. And, when confronted, Buckells concluded spitefully that UCO's have a shelf life therefore easily being recognisable after time. This is the last we see of him. The theory that Buckells could be the fourth dot has certainly become more spoken about recently. He's been featured in the show since the beginning albeit for two of the series, and will be appearing in series 6 too, part of Hillside Lane nick. The fact he's quite an unpopular and quieter member of the force could hide him in plain sight to being bent. In black and white, the idea of Buckells ordering hits and pulling strings for some of the most dangerous criminals is kind of hilarious. But, evidently there are little details scattered during his stints on the show that have got people talking. I do feel Jed has always known from the start who's bent and who isn't or has at least had the basics thought out - I've never seen a writer with such sharp continuity, there are plenty of writers and creators that should really take note! But, moving on from my very slight tangent - do I think Buckells is the fourth dot? Okay, I've changed my mind on this numerous times but since watching the trailer, I'm more cemented on no. I think there could be some dodgy stuff going on with Buckells, he's ascended up the ranks quite quickly, even if he isn't the sharpest tool in the shed at times. We often say it's always the quiet ones. And he's had connections to Hilton but I'd be very surprised if he's been calling the shots. His whole demeanour could have been a farce from the off but I think we have more chance of floating up the lagan in a bubble. I mean he looked like he'd been caught robbing an orchard when he was confronted by Ted and Steve. I think he'll pose an interesting asset to the new series but I

don't think he'll be the main guy.

The third person is the new Chief Constable Philip Osborne. In series 1, he was the Chief Inspector for the Counter Terrorism Unit where Steve was involved in the wrongful killing of Karim Ali. He demanded that the team lie about the incident so the killing was justified however Steve refused and was ultimately removed from the unit and subsequently assigned to AC12. He does crop again as the series progresses, seemingly having a close relationship with Hilton (they all seem to be close to Hilton) and after DCI Tony Gates diverts the motive behind the murders on the Borogrove estate being linked to terrorism and not drug dealing. He's last seen at the inquest into the death of Karim Ali which led to no prosecutions for any of the officers involved. It has since been revealed he's the new Chief Constable of Central Police as of Series 6 and I'm sure he's bound to appear. Whilst not heavily featured over the show's run, I'm feeling it likely for him to be the fourth dot. Just like Buckells, he's had direct connection to Hilton and definitely appeared to have at least a professional friendship. He was quick to order a cover up into a wrongful shooting. And was very willing to help with the possible terrorism links with the incidents on the Borogrove Estate which were bogus. Whilst off-screen he's worked his way up to the top. Ted remarks in the trailer "A bare faced liar, promoted to our highest office!" - and whilst it alludes to him talking about Sindhwani - I think that's going to be way too obvious. I think he's either talking to or talking about Osborne. Of course Ted was very supportive of Steve during the inquest in series 1 and was definitely not impressed by Osborne's actions and wouldn't be pleased with him being the CC. Also, the show would ultimately be going full circle to the beginning again and I really like the idea of that happening. So much of series 1 has been significant later on. We've not had much screen time with Osborne but I think he's my favourite to be the fourth dot. He certainly fits the bill of being corrupt and has plausible connections. There's a scene with Osborne, Hilton and Dot in series 1 and I certainly love the idea of three of the most corrupt officers being thrown right in our faces right at the beginning and us all being none the wiser. I'd considered him before but after the trailer and easter eggs, it's looking far more likely. Of course no one knew that the show would have become the roaring success it has back in series 1 however I am confident Jed had foundations in place and possible scenarios as to where the show would go.

In conclusion, there are plenty of possibilities of who this mysterious fourth dot is, but I'm happy with my conclusion of Osborne. Hopefully after the seven episodes I can either be impressed with my deductions or cringe as to why I ever came to such conclusions!

Dot Cottan's Dying Declaration

Series 3 concluded with the death of DI Matthew Cottan whom AC12 finally learned was the real caddy and not DS Steve Arnott who Dot had tried to pin it on. His explosive exit is mine and many people's favourite series finale. We only saw a glance of his declaration that DC Kate Fleming took - that then led to the conviction of Patrick Fairbank. It's not until series 4 however where PC Maneet Bindra is blackmailed to harvest this declaration and we as viewers finally get to view more - having been recorded on a fellow officers body-cam. Kate tries to get Dot to reveal the top dog by asking him "blink twice for the first letter of his name" - we all know he blinks at H however the medics intervene before Kate can get him to finish. This was of course the first encounter with "H". We revisit Dot's dying declaration in series 5 during Ted's questioning by AC3 - again we're shown the same part, slightly extended to showcase the morse code sequence, however, Kate's dialogue is different - now saying "right, blink with the first two letters of his name." I personally never noticed this until I saw others discussing it and apparently they differed in the scripts too so was a deliberate move by Jed. I think this will be picked up in some regard and Kate herself will come under fire for it. I believe the body-cam footage was actually shot along with series 4 and Craig Parkinson was invited back for the scenes which subsequently featured again in series 5 too - and I'm feeling confident they shot both versions as Jed would have likely had future plots planned out. Like series 1-3 had some kind of arc, I think 4-6 is the exact same and a lot of things will be rounded off. I imagine it will be picked up that there are two versions of the declaration. I know there are very mixed feelings on this subject but knowing the way Jed works, the differences will be significant. I will be very shocked and disappointed if this is not addressed but seeing how we left the previous series with more questions thanks to the declaration, it surely has to feature again. The question of why it was changed? I think it was more than likely doctored by Hilton to try and incriminate Hastings for being H - blinking for the first two letters, H being first, Kate trying to start the sequence again but being cut off by medics, what's first? A! Hilton replaced the original with the edited version which was able to be accessed by the necessary personnel however I'm sure the original still exists somewhere, possibly for leverage? But how could he have changed the dialogue and make it sound convincing? It's farfetched and I mean I'm sure anything's possible but the whole Morse Code thing was also very farfetched too so I'm at that point of my tether where that could honestly happen. Hastings of course has seen both versions and Kate having been the one taking the declaration surely would have noticed but there is no indication that he's noticed a difference nor Kate. And after the meeting he shared with Hilton in series 4, I'm sure that was the trigger of him editing it. Or Kate could have edited herself which a lot of fans have suggested but the only was she'd have access surely is if she was bent - this is a really hard one because there's a lot of theories! Mine is a wild and very patchy theory but I just can't see them not addressing the fact that they were different. Again I'll cover a bit more about Kate's possible involvement in her own section.

And mentioning the Morse code aspect of the declaration - anyone I've spoken to personally about it were left feeling conflicted with the whole idea. Is it going to be a total red-herring and Steve has clearly been barking up the wrong tree? No doubt there is still someone who's very corrupt within the force but I wouldn't have left the series hanging on that revelation if it were to turn out to have no meaning. Also, there were many easier ways of indicating the number four - but then again Dot was pretty much dead at this point so wasn't exactly able to function properly, haha!

To summarise I think we'll see the declaration again and both versions will be flagged and we'll find out why. If we're thinking about series 4, 5 and 6 having an arc, it is a very important aspect to be answered and concluded. I'm rather excited about them going into this again. I can see Hilton having doctored the footage but Kate will come under fire for it. Or maybe Kate did it herself, but why? What has she got to gain, unless she's bent, or been blackmailed? This is going to be a headache, I can sense it now! Imagine if we got the answers from Dot himself... nah, he's dead.

DCI Joanne Davidson

Kelly MacDonald has taken over the lead guest role baton and it's very exciting! We have finally seen more than a glimpse of her character in the trailer and teaser. All we know thus far is she is the DCI at Hillside Lane Station and that she'll be coming under scrutiny for her handling of the Gail Vella murder case. Kate appears to be on her team (as herself or undercover is currently a mystery) and alongside we have DSU Buckells, PS Farida Jatri and newcomer DS Lomax (Played by Perry Fitzpatrick). Honestly one of the first questions that plagued on my mind was will she survive? Four out of the five prior lead guest stars have met a grizzly end. I mean let's face it Roz didn't exactly escape unscathed either with only one hand left. It's hard to judge before the series starts on the guest lead. We were led up the wrong path last series with Stephen Graham. I know this next series will be jam-packed and the most insane yet so I'm expecting a lot from Kelly's character! I think she's going to be the most complex of the leads and I think we'll be often changing our minds about her - from what we've seen she seems a promising and good copper, but PS Jatri has stated in the trailer 'you don't know what's she's capable of,' very exciting! I'm looking forward to her being interrogated, she'll knock those scenes out of the park! It's hard to put predictions out there when there's not a lot to go on but I'm sure I'll have more solid theories once the series has started!

Have Kate and Steve really left AC12?

We've been accustom to a couple of teasers. Steve talking to his ex Nicola Rogerson about feeling that his road with anti-corruption is at an end and looking likely to be joining her team. Maybe he does feel this way because he still hasn't got his promotion!!! Some people have suggested he might have instead been demoted, ouch! Then Kate out with Joanne and her team, referring to her as 'boss'. I'm sure Kate's undercover but perhaps maintaining the farce that she's moved on from AC12. As Ian Buckells stated, UCO's have a shelf-life and I'm sure she'd be recognised by most forces now, especially with the awards she's won. Then again she could just be plainly undercover - what surnames beginning with F hasn't she used? Haha! We haven't seen Steve undercover in the same way as Kate, he was technically undercover when being all pally with Lindsay Denton but it would be cool to see him as a full blown UCO and I don't think he'd be suspected. But why would Steve be going undercover? That's what I'd be unsure on. Again, plenty of questions with not many answers. AC12 has come under fire plenty of times so it's likely it's in favour of being dissolved, especially with an easter egg of CC Osborne highlighting AC12 as a cause of concern, especially with Ted running the ranks still. Or is it a massive twist that Kate has really left and Steve is following suit? I remember when they first started filming in early 2020 there was a tweet shared with a picture of Martin, Adrian and Jed - captioned "But where's Kate?" - of course we were all quick to speculate that she was undercover but from the information we now have, she may in fact have moved on. We know she has rekindled her marriage but things still looked rocky - maybe she has left to save her marriage by working in a department where she's going to be a 'better mum and wife.' (Come on her husband was a total dick.) However, I do like the idea of the fact that she's undercover, but only Ted knows, so even Steve believes her AC12 days are over - and that could even be ammunition for him to leave as he's got itchy feet not having Kate as his working partner anymore - but as I said maybe Steve is moving on because there's no promotion or even a demotion. (Oh I love the joking about his poor promotion that got lost in the post). But, from other behind the scenes snippets we've seen also, our favourite trio look to be working together within AC12, so whatever happens, they'll be all back in their rightful places eventually. To add, Adrian said on Graham Norton the first episode starts in an unexpected place with a lot for us to get our heads around - so I imagine things are going to appear very different first thing and our favourites being absent is looking highly likely! Weighing up the options, I am leaning towards Kate being secretly undercover whilst everyone believes she's in fact moved on. I'm guessing Steve will be going undercover as well, I don't feel he'd leave AC12 on his own accord with so much still unsolved without absolute good reason - unless of course, no promotion (I'll stop now).

Has Steve Arnott FINALLY got his promotion?

(Sorry I'm not stopping) A major running joke now - poor Steve has remained a DS throughout the show. Whilst Kate progressed from DC to DI between series 3 and 5. Series 4 featured both Steve and Kate eager to progress to Detective Inspector. Ted favoured Steve due to 'experience' - leaving Kate extremely disheartened. Fair enough though, Steve had a lot more years under his belt at the Sergeant level. However Ted had been accused of being sexist and I think that made him uncomfortable. But firstly, Steve found himself in another situation half way through series 4 - being attacked with a baseball bat and chucked down some stairs - leaving him unable to walk and facing the prospect of never walking again. This of course would put any ambitions on hold and something Ted would have to consider too. It's not really touched upon in the rest of the series. When we return in series 5, we quickly learn that Kate is now a DI. More than likely due to Steve's accident but could also be to tick boxes too - Gill Biggeloe does make a point of highlighting that Ted had promoted a woman and joked that would exactly be what a sexist would do. There doesn't appear to be any hostility between Kate and Steve throughout series 5 in regards to this but I do side with Kate on the fact he kept quiet about Corbett being the CHIS because she was an inspector - not the only reason but one of them. Then again, Steve has a tendency to get himself in situations so it's no surprise. Moving forward to the golden question, I think we've all noticed that Steve's epaulettes have been conveniently hidden in promos - however eagle-eyed fans have concluded that it looks like he does in fact have the inspector epaulettes in the trailer. About time! The circumstances around his promotion are hard to guess though. Will he get promoted in the middle of the series - it deserves all the fuss after all right? Or will he be replacing Kate because she's 'moved on' - who knows but I'm feeling confident we'll wrap up series six with Detective Inspector Steve Arnott. Imagine if Jed was teasing us and he doesn't get promoted or has in fact been demoted to DC - it's safe to say we'll all be unhappy haha!

Oh boy, what's occurring with Kate?

Over the past five series, Kate Fleming has been awfully lucky and escaped the main brutal drama - usually Steve being handed it. All she's really endured is her cover being blown on undercover operations, having an affair with her friend Jayne's husband who turned out to be as dodgy as Jayne and ultimately being kicked out of the family home as a result and losing custody of her son - and getting a good kick in the gut from Lindsay Denton. In comparison, not as brutal to almost getting a finger amputated and being chucked down some stairs along with numerous failed relationships. As I mentioned before, Steve and Ted have been accused of being bent - got to be Kate's turn now right? Definitely a bookies favourite of being 'H' (Come on folks, we know H isn't a person anymore.) or being the fourth person. I'm sure anyone who follows my blog can see who my favourite is and how I'll be very devastated if she turns out to be corrupt. But I'm feeling quite sure that she'll finally be the other side of the table officially (being questioned in series 1 and 3 doesn't count in my books as she was undercover). We've already had a teaser of herself and Joanne being surrounded by armed police - and Steve and Ted (Is this the first time Steve's seen her in a while? I'm leaning towards this being the case), looking terrified and having a gun on her - so yes - we do already know there will be Kate drama at this point. Line of Duty is always full of surprises. A big twist has been teased in episode 4 - will Kate be involved? I reckon it's likely. We've seen a police car appear to fly off road into water - and I'm pretty sure Kate will be in that car! Out of the trio - we definitely know the least about Kate. All we really know is that she trained at Ryton, is married with a son and not much else. She explained to Ryan her parents split when she was young and was out of the house a lot cos of this, not caring what she got up to. Eagle eyed fans would also know her full name is Katherine Laura and her maiden name was Donnelly (Series 2 whilst Denton was looking at her file). It would be interesting to learn more about her background as we really don't know much! At the end of series 5 we see her arrive home late to an empty house - her husband and son having gone to the pictures as planned - I do think they were certainly alluding to the next series (With Steve also but I'll get to that) - we'll see more of her personal side. You know I wouldn't be surprised if she was separated again.

And because we know so little, has she been dodgy from the off and we haven't known? Someone shared a really interesting theory on the basis of what she shared with Ryan, (featured on the shrine of duty podcast) that in her teens, someone may have attempted to recruit her just like Dot was but she saw through it, knowing it would lead to something that it would be best to stay clear of. Was she a troublemaker in her teens? Up to all sorts of anti-social behaviour? I love this idea and can totally see it! We know Steve's story of ending up in AC12 and we know Ted's background in the Royal Ulster Constabulary. But we don't know much about Kate's circumstances of joining the force or even AC12 - I would love to find out more about that!

Could her husband be dodgy? We don't know much about him at all. That would be an interesting twist. There's definitely still hostility there and I was surprised they got back together.

Especially from series 5, a lot more people have leant towards Kate being bent, being the fourth dot, etc. I've already said I can't see her being bent, or not in the same terms as Dot for example. Some people believe Dot took the bullet because she was in on stuff, but pulling the caddy investigation in on Dot wouldn't make much sense then. That all seemed to me she was doing the right thing and wanting the appropriate persons brought to justice. However a lot of her decisions in series 5 have come under fire from fans. For example not taking a declaration from Hargreaves, not addressing Ted's unlawful Fahreinheit order until after the events played out to name a couple. Even still, all her decisions to me seemed to warrant doing good and going after whoever it was being bent. I mean she had been happy to go after both Steve and Ted but I always saw that because she wanted the bent coppers getting their comeuppance - and in both instances, instead discovered other people were in fact the culprits and did what she could to put the investigations in the right direction. I mean yes she's happy to pin stuff on anyone but herself but that doesn't mean she's dodgy, just that she wants to get the job done - I don't think anyone would lead an investigation straight for themselves, that's just silly!

Has she edited Dot's declaration? I think the only two logical people are either Kate herself or Hilton as I've previously discussed. We'll see her come under fire for some things for sure and that would be one of them!

I've never been a huge fan of any of the main three being corrupt - I think any copper can do things that could be seen as bent, but that's what happens when you have the power of the law. All three have made questionable decisions. I don't think it's possible to be squeaky clean as anyone can make decisions that lead to consequences.

To summarise, I think Kate will be accused of being bent, I think she's going to have a lot of drama coming her way. I think she's going to get in a lot of bother. But I don't think she's going to be what we'd call bent. I think we'll learn things we won't expect about her, especially regarding her personal life. What I know for sure it's going to be exciting, thrilling, action-packed - and I cannot wait to see Kate's prime time to shine.

Steve and a painkiller addiction?

In the series 5 'wrap-up' - we see Steve alone in his flat taking medication - clearly for his back. Some fans looked into that sequence as foreshadowing to a possible pain-killer addiction? It would be an interesting turn for his character. There was a point where he wasn't sure if he was going to walk again and has clearly been dosed up on painkillers since the incident. One of the easter eggs that's been shared is of his prescription - and I'm certain he's still on the medication when we resume - one of the medications he's taking has a warning of causing addiction. Addiction in drama is usually focused on illegal drugs - but not often with prescribed medications. I don't think Jed would have had a sequence focused on Steve's medication if it weren't to be significant. He's clearly still coming to terms with his injury and its affected him in the bedroom too - I won't be surprised if poor Steve is still having issues - maybe that's why he turned down a drink with Nicola and not because he was trying to be professional. Maybe it's why he's leaving AC12. He came back to work on his own decision, I don't think a professional would have advised his return to work so early and now that's catching up to him. We've seen a lot of physical stunts upcoming, and Steve on the front-line with a firearm. I won't be surprised if his medication causes issues or he actually ends up causing more damage to his back, especially because he appears to be in a white van and we know there is a stunt involving a white van! I think his injuries will seriously catch up to him!

Returning characters?

We've had the surprise of Nicola Rogerson reappearing for the first time since series 2 (mentioned in series 3). Most of the time surprise returns are kept under wraps until transmission. Lindsay Denton's return in series 3 probably being one of the biggest and most notable cases. The trailer also revealed PC Farida Jatri will be appearing in series 6, first appearing as an officer on Roz Huntley's team at Polk Avenue. I think we all like to check IMDb to see if anything has been spilled, Steph Corbett has appeared on the list and whilst that's actually plausible seeing Ted looked as if he were giving her the missing 50k, IMDb has often had incorrect cast listings on purpose. I'm pretty confident Philip Osborne will be returning. I imagine we will see Sam Railston again too. I would love Nigel Morton and his cane to return, he's got off lightly to say the least, and he definitely knows what to and not to get involved in. And with a video from Martin's instagram, we've seen both Anna Maxwell Martin and Gregory Piper lurking so I'm happy to assume DCS Carmichael and Ryan Pilkington will be back for sure. I believe the two shady prison officers who made Lindsay Denton a cup of tea look likely to reappear, that will be interesting! With Jed, anyone who isn't dead could return... Then again remember when he posted that picture of Stephen and Craig and people went nuts thinking Dot was really alive? And, there's been a lot of teasing as to who could crop up. Lindsay Denton's name has been floating around the past couple of days thanks to Jed, she's quite frankly dead but will we get a flashback or some new footage? I think we will all go nuts if Keeley Hawes had sneakily returned to film new stuff, especially with her very hectic schedule, that woman hasn't stopped. Anything's possible at this point. We can't always trust everything but that's part of the fun of it!

A new character we haven't seen but has been mentioned!

I'll briefly touch on this. It has been alluded a character will pop up that has been mentioned in passing but never been seen before. Popular theories include somebody off Danny Waldron's list (Plausible after Fairbank was see in the trailer again) or one of the officers off the H board. I am personally leaning towards Dot Cottan's ex missus turning up. She was mentioned to Kate by Dot, and we know she works in forensics, a very convenient place to work if things need tampering with. I just think she'd be the most interesting person to turn up after all this time, mentioned once and never again - it's surprising seeing Dot turned out to be bent and she was working in the force too...

What next with Ted?

Ted did go through a lot at the end of series 5. Being accused of being H, murdering John Corbett, Anne-Marie McGillis and being bribed with 50k (Sorry 100k but shh they don't need to know that). Ted was cleared on all charges but has been given a final written warning. AC12 is definitely going to be under the watchful eye of the higher ups as alluded too in easter eggs. We've seen Ted very distressed in a lift and him getting awfully flustered at the Police Headquarters. I don't think his troubles are going to be over any time soon. The case of the other 50k could possibly come up again, seeing Mark Moffatt was sure to stress it was 100k. We don't know what happened between him and Steph, and with her supposedly reappearing - it's likely it'll be revisited. Will his money troubles be any better? Is he finally going to be out of the Edge Park Hotel with the dodgy toilet? Has he finally moved on from Roisin? I saw a suggestion from someone somewhere (can't remember who or where) that Roisin was now involved with someone who may be the corrupt officer, god could you imagine if her new fella turned out to be Osborne? What a way to really kick Ted whilst he's already down. There were also a couple of other things too that were left unanswered. Why did Ted REALLY dispose of his laptop (come on Ted, no one disposes their laptop for watching naughty things)? What did Ted say to Lee Banks? I don't think we'll ever learn the latter and that'll be down to audience interpretation but the laptop definitely needs to be addressed again. Is Ted actually dodgy? He ain't H put it that way but he's made some questionable decisions. Right now I want to know what's got him upset in the lift! And will Ted reach the end of his journey at AC12?! I really hope not but he's skating on thin ice being on a final warning, and the higher ups don't have a lot of trust to say the least.

Ryan in the police force.

At the end of series 5, Ryan has begun his police training. We've been told roughly 18 months have passed between the two series so I reckon if all's gone well (It has, of course it has) - he'll be a police officer somewhere within central police, being naughty. As already mentioned, we have seen Gregory Piper behind the scenes - so we'll be seeing Ryan again, which was inevitable really. It's hard to guess where he'll turn up but more than likely away from the trio. However I'm looking forward to Steve coming face to face with him again. He's managed to lie-low and not be detected by the team - as far as they're aware, most if not all of the OCG has been neutralised. He did a pretty good job staying out of the way with all the drama that happened. In the trailer, I did notice Ryan's picture on the infamous board - so he's definitely going to be detected - but how, by who and when? I'm looking forward to seeing how it all unravels but I'm sure it's going to be explosive.

Is Dot Cottan alive in witness protection?

Did he really die? Well... Nahhh you thought I was really going to talk about this? I love Dot, he's one of my favourite characters and I do deep down think it would be awesome for him to be alive somewhere. But realistically I do think it would be a big 'cop out'. He's Dot Cottan, not Dirty Den... Yeah yeah we never saw a mention of a funeral and the camera panned out before he officially died but yeah I think he looked pretty screwed, don't you? I will admit that I was low-key hoping that picture of the geezer leaving those flats was Dot... I do miss all the series 5 speculation. But yeah, Dot Cottan is definitely dead.

My overall hopes for Series 6.

I'm definitely not the only one who's hoping six won't be the last series. It has now been revealed that Jed 'doesn't know' and suggesting that everything that needs answering will be this series. Just like in series 3. Series 3 was the best series so far and I'm hoping series 6 will live up to that, and the cast have certainly teased that it will. It feels weird knowing so much could be wrapped up in seven weeks. I'm going to make the most of this series seeing a seventh might not be on the cards. I trust Jed and if the show comes to a natural conclusion after this then needs must. I think we'll have a better understanding if the show could go on once we have seen all of series 6! I really hope Steve finally gets his promotion and things will start to look up for him. Ted as well, he's had nothing but crap shovelled into his bubble recently. I also hope we get plenty of explosive Kate scenes which I think we definitely will. Having only seen a little of Kelly MacDonald in action so far I can't create any hopes without seeing more. Maybe she'll be the first lead guest star to survive and with all limbs in tact. As one of Scotland's finest actresses - I know that we'll be in for a real treat! I'm hoping for DCS Carmichael to have lots of scenes - I actually really love her character and hope to find out more about her. Seeing Anna sneaking in the background of one of Martin's instagram stories, no doubt she's reappearing as I mentioned before. I'm hoping for an explosive reunion with Ryan and Steve. I'm excited for all the Tedisms. I'm looking forward to bad-ass queen Kate. Oh and I can't wait to hear our favourite beeeeeeeeepppppp - interrogation scenes are really the best. I'm feeling like this will be the greatest and most explosive series yet.

Oh boy, this has taken up a lot of my time and I'm glad I didn't finish until some more information had come to light. I want to thank anyone who read all of this long ass post. I want to thank a couple of my absolute favourite blogs for giving me a push to finish and share this. I know I've probably missed some stuff but what was going to be quick thing turned into hours. These theories could be correct, could be completely wrong! But I'm looking forward to re-reading this after everything's happened. I'm not sure whether I'll share thoughts after every episode yet but if my mind is whirring enough I'm sure I'll conjure up something! It's almost 4am and I'm glad to be done with this! I'll be curious to know what you think! I apologise if I have made any mistakes in this but I've gone through and think all information is correct, if not, Ted will be issuing me with a Reg 15 quicker than you can say houl yer whisht!

Much love and gearing up for Sunday!

#line of duty #series 6 #ted hastings #adrian dunbar #steve arnott #martin compston #kate fleming #vicky mcclure #this turned out to be long didn't it #i've gone crazy #but thank you for reading it all #bbc #jed mercurio #line of duty theories #kelly macdonald #joanne davidson #tedisms #i didnt float up the lagan in a bubble #houl yer whisht

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calzona-ga · 3 years

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She might change her mind; she certainly has before. But midway through an interview, Ellen Pompeo casually drops the bomb that after more than 360 episodes, the upcoming 17th season of “Grey’s Anatomy” may be its last.

“We don’t know when the show is really ending yet,” Pompeo says, answering a question that was not at all about when the show might end. “But the truth is, this year could be it.”

Pompeo has played Meredith Grey — the superstar surgeon around whom “Grey’s Anatomy” revolves — since its start. The show, created by Shonda Rhimes, premiered on ABC on March 27, 2005, and became an immediate, noisy hit. Since then, for a remarkably long time in Hollywood years, the drama has been among the most popular series on TV, even as the landscape of television has changed seismically. At its Season 2 ratings height, the program drew an average audience of 20 million viewers. And all these years later — in a TV universe now divided by more than 500 scripted shows —“Grey’s” ranks as the No. 1 drama among 18- to 34- year-olds and No. 2 among adults 18 to 49. In delayed, multiplatform viewing, Season 16 averaged 15 million viewers.

Strikingly, technology is such that teenagers who were born when the show premiered, and later binged “Grey’s” on Netflix, watch new episodes live with their parents. The series has spawned two successful spinoffs for ABC, “Private Practice” (which ran from 2007 to 2013) and “Station 19” (which enters its fourth season this fall). “Grey’s Anatomy” has been licensed in more than 200 territories across the world, translated into more than 60 languages, and catapulted the careers of music artists — from Ingrid Michaelson and Snow Patrol to Tegan and Sara and the Fray — whose songs have played during key emotional sequences.

In its explosive initial success, “Grey’s Anatomy” was an insurgent force in popular culture. The Season 1 cast featured three Black actors — Chandra Wilson, James Pickens Jr. and Isaiah Washington — as doctors in positions of power at the Seattle hospital where the show is set, and Sandra Oh played the ambitious intern Cristina Yang, who would become Meredith’s best friend. For the women characters, the “Grey’s” approach to sex was defiant and joyful, starting in the pilot with Meredith’s one-night stand with Derek (Patrick Dempsey), who turned out to be one of her bosses at the hospital.

Rhimes presented these images to the world like they were no big deal, when in fact, nothing like “Grey’s” had ever been seen on network television. Krista Vernoff has been the “Grey’s Anatomy” showrunner since Season 14, as anointed by Rhimes, and was the head writer for the first seven seasons. She remembers the moment she realized how radical “Grey’s” was — a medical show driven entirely by its characters instead of their surgeries — as she watched an episode early in Season 1. “My whole body was covered in chills,” Vernoff recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh, we thought we were making a sweet little medical show — and we’re making a revolution.’”

Still, no one expected “Grey’s Anatomy” to become the longest-running primetime medical drama in TV history, outlasting “MASH” and “ER,” the previous record-holder. Since 2005, “Grey’s” has inspired countless women to become doctors, and along the way, its depiction of illness has even saved a few lives. The show has remained popular through three presidential administrations, the Great Recession, tectonic shifts in how people watch TV and two cultural reckonings — one feminist, one anti-racist — that demonstrate how ahead of its time “Grey’s Anatomy” has always been.

And they’re not done yet. When Season 17 premieres on Nov. 12, “Grey’s Anatomy” will tackle the subject of the coronavirus as experienced by the doctors at Grey Sloan Memorial, all while filming under strict COVID-19 protocols. The season is dedicated to frontline workers. And Pompeo, a producer on “Grey’s” — whose Meredith has removed a live bomb from a patient’s body, was in a plane crash, was widowed after Derek died in a car accident, was beaten nearly to death by a patient and, in a separate incident, actually did die briefly after a ferry accident — is intent on making the show top itself once again.

“I’m constantly fighting for the show as a whole to be as good as it can be. As a producer, I feel like I have permission to be able to do that,” Pompeo says. “I mean, this is the last year of my contract right now. I don’t know that this is the last year? But it could very well could be.”

Pompeo has been refreshingly transparent about her fight to become the highest-paid female actor on television, having detailed a few years ago how she negotiated a paycheck for more than $20 million a year. She clearly knows what she’s doing with these frank pronouncements as well.

As Pompeo laughs over the phone from her car, she says in a near shout: “There’s your sound bite! There’s your clickbait! ABC’s on the phone!”

The “Grey’s Anatomy” team — led by Rhimes and executive producer Betsy Beers — created the first season in a vacuum, because the show did not have an airdate. The 2004-05 season was a comeback year for ABC because “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost,” both of which debuted that fall, became phenomena — not only ratings successes but also watercooler events.

But at “Grey’s,” Rhimes was getting noted to death by network president Steve McPherson. According to Vernoff, McPherson — who resigned in 2010 under a cloud of sexual harassment allegations — stonewalled with “pushback every step of the way,” as ABC’s then- head of drama, Suzanne Patmore Gibbs, fought for the show. Vernoff was close with Patmore Gibbs, who died in 2018, and recalls her talking about her clashes with McPherson.

“He just didn’t get it; he didn’t like it,” Vernoff continues. “Honestly, I’m going to say, I don’t think he liked the ambitious women having sex unapologetically.”

Wilson, when she was cast as Miranda Bailey on “Grey’s,” was a New York theater actor (“Caroline, or Change”) relatively new to series television. But she was well aware of the network’s issues. “We took a creative break around the Christmas holiday, which to me meant ‘Oh, we’re out of a job.’”

Pompeo was frustrated: “Once we finally got an airdate, two weeks before that airdate they wanted to change the title of the show to ‘Complications.’”

In an email to Variety, McPherson disputed these assertions, saying, “I made the original deal with Shonda. I developed ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ at the studio. I picked it up at ABC.” He praised Patmore Gibbs, and added, “As for defaming me again and again, I don’t know what to say other than it’s sad that anyone feels the need to spread lies about me.”

Yet there was so little faith in the show that the writers were asked to clear out their offices when they finished the season. But to Vernoff, who had clicked right away with Rhimes, the early episodes had “felt like a labor of love.”

And it was worth the battle. “We fought for the right for Meredith and Bailey to be whole human beings, with whole sex lives, and not a network TV idea of likable,” Vernoff says. “You might not have been likable, but now you’re iconic.”

As far as the medicine went, the cases were often ostentatious. “Every kind of crazy accident that had ever caused terrible harm to any human ever, that was our homework at night,” Vernoff says. It was up to Zoanne Clack, an emergency room doctor-turned-writer, to be a sounding board in the writers’ room. She began as the only doctor on staff during the first season, and is now an executive producer. “What was interesting was that the writers don’t have those boundaries because they don’t know the rules, so they would come up with all of these scenarios, and my immediate thought was like, ‘No way!’” Clack says. “Then I’d have to think about it and go, ‘But could it?’”

When the program finally premiered — on a Sunday night after “Desperate Housewives” — to massive ratings, it was a shock to the cast and crew, given that they had shot the first season under a cloud, Pompeo says, adding, “So the fact that the numbers were that huge the first time we aired was a big f–k-you to McPherson!”

With Season 2 now a given, everything changed, Vernoff says: “It was like a hurricane-force gale, and everyone was just trying to hold on.” They had made 13 episodes for Season 1, airing nine of them and holding the final four for Season 2 — Meredith finding out that Derek was actually married (to Addison, played by Kate Walsh) had felt like the perfect finale. But upon the writers’ return, Vernoff says, the feeling was “Holy s—. We have to make 22.”

The entire cast — mostly unknown actors like Katherine Heigl as the sunny Izzie Stevens, T.R. Knight as the chummy neurotic George O’Malley, and Justin Chambers as the troubled, secretly vulnerable Alex Karev — had become famous overnight. For Wilson, whose Bailey was the stern teacher the interns called “the Nazi,” it was a new experience. “Folks were scared to talk to me, like in the store or in the Target — people would just kind of leave me alone,” she says. “It was like, ‘What’s going on?’”

According to Vernoff, “Paparazzi were following the cast to work — it was wild.”

The mid- to late-2000s were the height of glossy gossip magazines such as Us Weekly (and its copycats), as well as the inception of TMZ and Perez Hilton as celebrity-hounding, news-breaking forces that fueled (and soiled) the fame-industrial complex. The cast of “Grey’s Anatomy” was firmly in the sights of these new, often toxic forces in media.

Pompeo says the cast was so talented that it “was all worth it” — but yes, the transition to stardom was hard for the group: “At the time, it was just a real combination of exhaustion and stress and drama. Actors competing with each other — and envious.”

Heigl, Knight and Isaiah Washington all went through press cycles that made the show seem scandal-prone. To rehash it all now seems pointless; you can look it up. Washington was fired in June 2007. Knight and Heigl asked to be written out of the show preemptively, in Seasons 5 and 6, respectively.

Vernoff and the other writers were watching the internal messes unfold. They had to deal with how the fallout affected the show’s plot, as when Washington was fired just as Burke, his character, was about to marry Cristina. “When word comes down that an actor is leaving the show, and what you’ve got scripted is a wedding …” Vernoff trails off, laughing.

“There was a lot of drama on-screen and drama off-screen, and young people navigating intense stardom for the first time in their lives,” she continues. “I think that a lot of those actors, if they could go back in time and talk to their younger selves, it would be a different thing. Everybody’s grown and changed and evolved — but it was an intense time.”

Pompeo doesn’t want to talk about what happened with individual actors from the show, because when she has in the past, “it doesn’t get received in the way in which I intend it to be.” But she does make a point about the way television is produced. “Nobody should be working 16 hours a day, 10 months a year — nobody,” she says. “And it’s just causing people to be exhausted, pissed, sad, depressed. It’s a really, really unhealthy model. And I hope post-COVID nobody ever goes back to 24 or 22 episodes a season.

“It’s why people get sick. It’s why people have breakdowns. It’s why actors fight! You want to get rid of a lot of bad behavior? Let people go home and sleep.”

Debbie Allen would eventually be Pompeo’s savior in that regard, but that was years away. Allen — an actor and a dancer — began her directing career when she was on the 1980s TV series “Fame” as a “natural progression” because, she says, “I was in charge of the musical numbers, and so many directors didn’t really know how to shoot them.” She went on to be a prolific director and producer, most notably overhauling NBC’s “A Different World” after a tumultuous first season. As a fan of “Grey’s Anatomy,” Allen wanted to work on the show, and in Season 6, she was hired to direct. To prepare for it, Allen shadowed Wilson, who had been tapped to direct by executive producer-director Rob Corn. (“He came to me and said, ‘You should direct,’” says Wilson, who has now helmed 21 episodes. “And I said, ‘OK.’ Because I didn’t know what else to say.”)

Directing that sixth-season episode led to Allen’s fruitful relationship with “Grey’s.” In Season 8, Rhimes wrote Allen into the show to play Catherine, a star surgeon, a love interest for Richard Webber (Pickens) and the mother of Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams). Ahead of Season 12 in 2015, Allen became the show’s EP/director. Her duties included hiring all of the directors, weighing in on scripts and casting, and, as Allen puts it, “minding that people feel good about themselves.” Several years before the revived #MeToo movement would lead to calls for systemic changes behind the camera in Hollywood, Allen set a goal of hiring 50% women directors. She also increased the number of Black men who directed “Grey’s” during her first season as executive producer, among them Denzel Washington. (When she sold him on it, she recounts, he said to her, “I’m going to say yes, Debbie Allen.”)

Pompeo and Allen are close. Allen began her new role the year after Dempsey left, “at a time when we were really broken,” Pompeo says. “And so much of our problems were perpetuated by bad male management. Debbie came in at a time when we really, really needed a breath of fresh air, and some new positive energy.”

Pompeo continues with a laugh: “Debbie really brought in a spirit to the show that we had never seen — we had never seen optimism! We had never seen celebration. We had never seen joy!”

According to Pompeo, Allen began advocating for her to have more humane hours — Fridays off (Pompeo: “And I was like, ‘What? What? Fridays off?’”) — and for the show to shoot 12-hour days maximum, and ideally no more than 10 hours (Pompeo: “And I was like, I love this woman.”).

Allen speaks affectionately about her bond with Pompeo. “Coming out of Boston, she’s so earthy and real in a way that you might not know,” Allen says. “There’s a sisterhood between us — I guess you would say it’s almost a Blackness that exists between us. And she’s part of our tribe.”

Allen has been a key member of the “Grey’s Anatomy” brain trust since Season 12, and two seasons later, Vernoff returned to run the show. She’d left at the end of Season 7, consulted on “Private Practice” for a few years, and then went to Showtime’s “Shameless” for five seasons. As her contract was set to expire, Rhimes asked Vernoff to lunch, and told her she wanted her to take over. “It felt like she was saying, ‘Hey, our kid needs you,’” Vernoff says.

Before accepting the offer, Vernoff had to catch up on the show. She had always written “Grey’s” as a romantic comedy, and what she saw on-screen during her binge was dark as hell — especially after Derek’s death. “If this show that you are currently making is the show that you want ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ to be,” she recalls telling Rhimes, “I am, in fact, not the right writer for it.” But Rhimes was insistent, saying it was time for a change after the mourning period for Derek.

Vanessa Delgado, who started as a production intern during the seventh season and has worked her way up to being lead editor and co-producer, says the show’s trajectory shifted when Vernoff came back — it was a return to the original, saucier tone of “Grey’s.” “We changed the music completely,” Delgado says. “The dialogue felt lighter and more fun, and wewere having fun again.”

That lightness will be difficult to maintain this year, of course, when, as Allen puts it, “COVID is No. 1 on the call sheet right now.”

Vernoff at first wondered whether “Grey’s” should ignore the coronavirus, thinking the audience comes to the show “for relief.” But the doctors in the writers’ room convinced her this wasn’t the time for escapism, saying to her, “This is the biggest medical story of our lifetime, and it is changing medicine permanently.”

When they’ve had doctors and nurses come speak with them this season, Vernoff says, “they were different human beings than the people we’ve been talking to every year. And I want to honor that, tonally. I just want to inspire people to take care of each other.”

Pompeo, who is not shy about offering criticism, sounds positively enthusiastic: “I’ll say the pilot episode to this season — girl, hold on.

“What nobody thinks we can continue to do, we have done. Hold on. That’s all we’re going to say about that!”

Pompeo has a few more months before she decides whether she wants to continue — and as Rhimes and ABC have made clear in recent years, the show will likely end when she leaves. “I don’t take the decision lightly,” Pompeo says. “We employ a lot of people, and we have a huge platform. And I’m very grateful for it.”

“You know, I’m just weighing out creatively what can we do,” she says. “I’m really, really, really excited about this season. It’s probably going to be one of our best seasons ever. And I know that sounds nuts to say, but it’s really true.”

Vernoff doesn’t worry about the creative well drying up. “We’ve blown past so many potential endings to ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ that I always assume it can go on forever,” she says.

And Wilson knows how important “Grey’s” is to its audience, in that the characters have essentially become people who “live in their house.” As one of only three actors who’ve been on “Grey’s” since the beginning — the other is James Pickens Jr. — Wilson is in it until the end: “In my mind, Bailey is there until the doors close, until the hospital burns down, until the last thing happens on ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’ That is her entire arc.”

Whenever the show does conclude, part of its legacy will be about the talent it launched into the world, beginning with Rhimes, who will soon release her first shows for Netflix, after her company, Shondaland, made a lucrative deal with the streamer in 2017.

But it will also be about the characters of “Grey’s Anatomy”— mostly women and people of color — who are trying to make the world a better place as they find friendship, love and community.

“The show, at its core, brings people together,” Pompeo says. “And the fact that people can come together and watch the show, and think about things they may not have ordinarily thought about, or see things normalized and humanized in a way that a lot of people really need to see — it helps you become a better human being. If this show has helped anybody become a better human being, then that’s the legacy I’d love to sit with.”

#grey's anatomy #Ellen Pompeo #chandra wilson #Debbie Allen #krista vernoff #season 17 #variety #news

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watanabes-cum-dump · 4 years

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Some Dragon Raja HCs

- So, here’s one thing I feel the need to address. I mean, it seems like before the Black Swan Bay incident, you never knew anything about hybrids and stuff. Before that, I assume MC has never entered a blood rage. So, I have a feeling that EX’s are triggered by stress or trauma. They can be triggered regularly with enough training, but more often then not, they’re triggered by strong emotions. Luminous’ activated his immortality skill when he was protecting Erii, and MC entered a blood rage after the Black Swan bay incident

- MC is good at music to some extent. Come on, there’s a guitar in your cabin in Black Swan Bay, and one of the career options is being an idol. It just adds a few quirks to a character you need to project yourself onto. I mean, it’d be really cute and funny if MC performed in Takamagahara and the squad was shook. It’d be so cute

- Cassel college splits it’s dorm like in Harry Potter. Meaning, that maybe there are the Lion heart dorms and then the Student Union dorms. Idk, I think it makes sense since they’re sort of like factions within the school.

- Johann and Caesar have destroyed the dorms before and Caesar payed for it. You cannot change my mind

- Finger almost set the dorms on fire once

- MC’s power is something that let’s them copy someone else’s EX’s to some extent. I know it’s just a game mechanic, but think about it. It’s totally possible. Maybe that’s why you’re an S rank, because you’re pretty much over powered and can copy EX’s

- MC is like an older brother/sister to Luminous

- Luminous gets training lessons from MC and they’re a really gentle mentor

- Johann is really fond of MC and makes it blatantly obvious, everyone is kind of shocked about it, but, what are they gonna do?

- Caesar gives alcohol to the freshmen even if he’s not supposed to

- Johann is like a lighter/flashlight

- He could also be immune to fire

- He’s never cold

- If MC is a girl, Nono is really fond of her and they’re sort of like sisters. And they braid each other’s hair

- If MC is a boy he probably hangs out with Luminous and Finger a lot and plays video games with them.

- Finger gets MC and Luminous in trouble a lot

- regardless of gender, Johann has a crush on MC

- I feel like the devs were trying to imply that Johann likes MC, and that he is our love interest since they knew the game would attract a lot of teenage girls. But they never went with it because the player could also be a boy and they didn’t want to imply anything gay

- MC is also canonically a boy, which is why the Devs scratched that idea

- Nobody has the nerve to fuck with MC since they’re an S rank

- Finger dabbles in illegal substances. Idk, he gives me shady drug dealer vibes

- Luminous accidentally put a virus in the school computers after he watched porn on one of them. It could have been Finger too honestly

- Regardless, MC had to help them get rid of it before any of the teachers saw it. This probably happened at like 2 am so they were up the whole night trying to get rid of the virus

#dragon raja #dragon raja incorrect quotes #dragon raja anjou #dragon raja caesar #caesar gattuso #johann chu #dragon raja johann chu #dragon raja nono #luminous lu #finger von friggs #dragon raja finger #you can't change my mind about the last two

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its-bound-to-get-loud · 4 years

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Why I believe 5SOS didn’t work as a pop-punk band (+ my opinion on THAT Rolling Stone article)

This title of this post may be an unpopular opinion for a lot of you. But I don’t believe 5SOS worked as a pop-punk band. In this post I will explain exactly why. I hope that even if you don’t agree, you will at least understand my POV. This post is probably gonna have a lot of text. Not a lot of links, videos or pictures involved. I hope it will still be interesting for you. All of this is just my personal opinion, I have no way of proving that this is 100% true. It’s just a careful deduction of things I’ve seen and thought about over the last few months, mixed with some personal opinions. With this post I’m trying to tackle some topics that are being talked about often and showing them in a different light. I’ve put quite a lot of time into writing this, so I’m hoping you will appreciate it. Finally a huge, massive thank you to my friend R for proofreading this, it means a lot to me.

To start things off, I’ve had quite a lot of thoughts about this topic: I don’t think 5SOS truly worked as a pop-punk band. The image didn’t fit them and it wasn’t right for their era. It was a fun sound, I enjoy listening to it, they probably even enjoyed making it. Obviously fans enjoyed it as well. I fully believe that when they first started, pop-punk is what the guys wanted to sound like. It’s the music they listened to, those were the bands they looked up to. When they got signed they had not been a band for a super long time, they were young and barely had any experience in both life and music. I’m not someone with an extensive knowledge of pop-punk groups, but from what I know a lot of these bands were misfits, outcasts. People who didn’t feel like they had a place in society. In some cases from broken homes, with bad childhoods, etc. That’s who they were and it’s what their music was about.

I’d say 5SOS as whole do fit those characteristics. They were from a small town where music wasn’t really a career for most people. So they felt the need to get out of their town and pursue music. Michael dropped out of school for music, Ashton obviously had a very difficult home situation. Calum has mentioned that his family didn’t have a lot of money when he was younger. I’m not sure how the situation was for the others. But besides this, everyone but Ashton came from a stable home, Calum’s parents separated later on. So I can see why the guys related to these pop punk bands put out songs about this. Especially when you’re a teenager you often feel misunderstood by everyone else.

But when 5SOS started they looked more like a boyband than a pop punk band. Their earliest songs were mostly love songs. While the boys might have felt like being a pop punk band, and maybe even considered themselves to be one, I would say they were more of a pop/pop rock band.

In some cases a label can mold an artist or band into a certain image upon signing. But 5SOS had already gathered a following before they were even signed, so molding them into a rougher pop-punk image right upon signing would not have worked, it would not have been organic. They probably didn’t want to alienate the fans they already had, because they were valuable in getting the word out about 5SOS.

Their first manager, Adam Wilkinson, didn’t seem to think 5SOS would work as a pop-punk band as well. Just look at these quotes taken from That infamous 2015 Rolling Stone article (I will not link it, because I despise it, just google if you feel the need to read it).

“While they cannot cross into the realm of pop punk, they can stand on the sidelines and capture the end of that market.”

“They always wanted to be Blink 182 or Good Charlotte, but I’ll be the first to admit I thought that was shooting too far,” says Wilkinson. “We tried to make them a little more pop.”

That last quote is basically what happened. 5SOS ended up connected to One Direction, a huge pop act at the time. A connection that wasn’t as much of a “coincidence” as they wanted to make it look like. Louis was never the one to truly discover 5SOS, this was simply a smart PR decision to connect 5SOS to the 1D fanbase and grow their audience. I highly suggest reading this post that lays out exactly how 5SOS came to get signed and how their connection to 1D began. You will see that there is clear evidence that it didn’t happen like they wanted us to believe.

And let’s be real. Take a look at this early 5SOS picture. Does this look like the next Green Day or All Time Low? They all look like the boy next door, with maybe the exception of Michael. Basically they had the looks of a boyband, and while they never have been a traditional boyband (and certainly aren’t now), they certainly were marketed as one early on. This is a label that still sticks to them to this day.

I fully believe that their team (management/record label) tried to slowly evolve them into a more pop-punk image as they got bigger. They couldn’t ride the 1D train forever and had to stand on their own 2 feet. That’s where we arrive at the Sounds Good Feels Good era. This is a fascinating era for me, because there is a shift. Their looks start changing, suddenly they slowly become rockstars, piercings start happening. The boys are growing up. They are old enough to drink, girls are in the picture, etc. Musically it’s also clear that their sound is changing. The self-titled album is still fairly pop-rock, 1D but a little edgier perhaps. Sounds Good Feels Good is the more pop-punk album. But is it really? Because as most fans will know, the album knows 2 sounds. It has the clear pop-punk bops, such as Money or Safety Pin (to name a few), but there’s also some songs that already predict the sound for Youngblood such as, for example, Waste The Night and Vapor. It’s clear to me that while they probably still enjoyed their pop-punk sound the guys were growing up and were slowly discovering what music their sound as a band should be.

If we’re being honest for a moment. What songs from SGFG really feel the most personal? Sure, She’s Kinda Hot is a bop, but what about Vapor? Vapor is by far my favorite song on the album, it tells me a story, it makes me feel emotion. Now I’m very biased towards SKH, because (unpopular opinion) I don’t like the song much because of the lyrics. But that’s a different story (we may get to that someday). There is nothing wrong with a song that’s a bop, you need those. I could enjoy SKH if it wasn’t for the lyrics. But bops can have meaning too. SKH doesn’t in my opinion. Besides the fact that the guys were growing up and maturing their sound, the music scene just wasn’t very pop-punk or even rock based anymore. It wasn’t a sound that was popular anymore.

I took a look at the billboard charts and pulled some statistics. Friday October 23 was the release date for SGFG. The Top 3 Billboard hot 100 songs that week were

The Weeknd – The Hills

Drake – Hotline Bling

Justin Bieber – What Do You Mean?

The songs/artists closest to 5SOS in sound in the WHOLE Billboard Hot 100 that week were One Direction – Drag Me Down, Fall Out Boy – Uma Thurman and Twenty One Pilots – Stressed Out. That’s 3 songs in a list of 100 songs and you can debate how close the sound of those actually was to the sound of 5SOS at the time.

Taking a look at the Billboard 200 Year-End chart, the #1 is Taylor Swift – 1989. SGFG ended up at #136 (keep in mind that the album was released in October, so close to the end of the year). 5SOS self-titled ended up at #73. The LIVESOS album ranked #176. There’s a few other records that can be considered rock in the list, but barely any pop-punk in the whole chart. The only one to be considered for that title would be Fall Out Boy’s – American Beauty/American Psycho album, which was #15.

Pop-punk or rock in general, wasn’t a popular sound that topped the charts around the time 5SOS got started as a mainstream act. Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week 5SOS released their first ep (Unplugged) was Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen. The real mainstream success of pop-punk was mostly in the late 90’s running all the way through the early 2000’s. This is why I wonder why the label tried to make them into a pop-punk band in the first place. My best guess is that their team relied on the fans to push the success of the band forward after they came off of 1D’s Where We Are tour. They might have tried to create an edgier version of 1D with similar success. Where you create a fan base that is big enough to support the band without the need of casual listeners or fans from different demographics (male, female, old, young, etc.).

I think they relied too much on 1D fans to gravitate towards 5SOS as well, which may have been a mistake. Not all 1D fans actually liked 5SOS, some even actively stayed away from them the more they were pushed under their noses. When I entered the 1D fandom in 2014 most things I saw about 5SOS were negative. 1D fans considered them problematic and didn’t like them. This is partially why I steered away from 5SOS at the time. Besides that, I had enough going on with 1D to keep me occupied. Of course 5SOS’s fan base still grew quite a bit from the 1D exposure, but they never got to the same heights as 1D did. In several interviews the guys have said that they were being called “the biggest band that nobody has ever heard of”.

On a more personal note. As a recent fan, the whole pop-punk image never felt very genuine to me. Which might be because I came into the fandom backwards, starting with CALM and going back to their older material after that (side note: I did listen to the Youngblood album once or twice before). Don’t get me wrong, I love SGFG, I play it regularly. Money is a banger, Hey Everybody!, a bop, Permanent Vacation, love it! But as a fan I like to identify with songs and recognize that the artist is telling something that is personal to them. I don’t get that feeling from some of these songs.

An example of a song that is emotional, yet (mostly) not personal to the band is Broken Home. It’s a beautiful song, but I generally skip it. 1, because it’s a very sad song and it’s not always something I’m in the mood for. 2, because it’s not a song I relate to on a personal level. And most importantly 3, I don’t see the song relating to 5SOS as people, other than maybe Ashton. An interesting quote about the song, made by their producer John Feldman, is on the genius page for this song.

“Other than Ashton, the three guys have parents who are still together. Ashton has never met his father. Ashton really connected into the theme. “We’re saying something with this song, it’s going to connect with the audience, at least 50% of our audience comes from broken homes. We’re actually taking a stand.” The other guys are loyal and family-driven and sweet, so they were like, “What are our parents going to think about us singing about a broken home when we don’t come from broken homes? How authentic is it?” It was a two-month debate.”

So the guys themselves were already questioning the authenticity of the topic when they were recording it. Ashton connected to the theme of the song, but the others didn’t. It wasn’t something they had experienced. It doesn’t say why the song made it on the album anyway. As stated in the quote, a lot fans can relate to it. I’m sure many fans found comfort in the song, which is a nice thing. The song doesn’t make you relate to the band though. If any of them had written this song from a personal experience it would have connected a lot differently. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing that the song is not personal, it just doesn’t feel very genuine when you know the artist has no relation to the story they are telling.

Moving on to the 2015 Rolling Stone article I have mentioned before. This seems to cause some division among fans. Was it all true or was it made up? My opinion is that it’s a mixture of truth and BS. But a whole lot of it feels taken out context or exaggerated. I have been a fan since March, so I wasn’t around at the time this came out. But since becoming a fan I have watched tons of interviews and clips and have extensively discussed this band with my friend, so I’d like to say I have done my homework and have a good picture of this band. On top of that I’d like to think being a 1D fan sharpened my critical thinking skills and might have helped me see through certain bullshit. I don’t claim to be the person with all the answers, but maybe my thoughts make sense to some people. There might be some context that I’m missing or facts that I haven’t come across, if you feel like there’s a piece of information I’m missing, feel free to let me know.

The way the article starts, it reads like fanfiction. Literally. The extensive description of the surroundings, the time of day, everything. The first time I read it, it made me cringe so hard I had trouble getting through the whole thing. First things first. This interview takes place the day after the AMA’s. Who the fuck scheduled this? Either someone should have prevented them from getting drunk and partying, or they should have scheduled this on another day when these guys were in a better state of mind. That is, assuming things went the way they went as described in the article. Which is something I highly doubt.

The only direct source saying that this article is not genuine is this tweet from Luke. Besides that I have only read secondhand that the band and people surrounding them have spoken up about the inaccuracy of the article.

Some people believe 5SOS could have sued Rolling Stone for slander if this article was really as false as they claim. Now I’m no lawyer, but this is not how things work in the entertainment industry. An article like this has been agreed upon before. The interviewer didn’t just decide to drop by one day. During celebrity interviews there’s always someone from their management or PR team around to make sure they don’t say any stupid shit. Celebrities are a brand, they have an image to protect, albums to sell. If they say things that make them look bad it can cause damage to their good name. Record companies have invested money in artists and they want to see a profit in return. They don’t want to risk losing money, that’s why celebrities have PR teams. RS may have had a reputation for being a very honorable publication, but these days that’s not the case. They are not that far removed from cheap gossip rags such as the Sun or The Daily Mail nowadays. They still get read by a lot of people, which puts them in a position of power. Often when an interview takes place there are certain topics that have been agreed upon before, there are also topics that can be blacklisted if the artist or their team doesn’t want them talked about. For example relationships or family matters. These will also be agreed upon beforehand.

Here is a story about a former journalist for the British tabloid The Daily Star, who has admitted to making up stories and explains how they get away with it.

For arguments sake, let’s say the guys slipped up and showed their “true colors”. With a big publication like this it’s common that their team would have to approve the article before it comes out. If there’s anything in there that was not agreed upon that they don’t like, the article can be edited.

This leaves us a few possibilities.

The article is completely true and their team is shit at their job. They failed to prevent the boys from slipping up about stuff they shouldn’t and did nothing to stop Rolling Stone from publishing.

The article is true and their team just allowed the article to be published for whatever reason.

The article isn’t true, but their team let it happen anyway, possibly because they wanted to move the band away from their boyband image into a more punk-rock image that went with their sound.

My vote goes out to the last one. I think their team wanted to make the boys look more edgy/punk-rock and get rid of their boyband image and this is how they tried to do it. I think parts of the article may be true, but a lot of it is greatly exaggerated and in some cases made up. If my theory is true, it also means 5SOS or their team had no reason to sue Rolling Stone if they wanted to. Because it would mean you have a major publication on your bad side, which means no more future promotional opportunities for the band and/or the label. While Rolling Stone may be trash, it’s a publication that a lot of people read. Therefore it’s a very important connection that you don’t want on your bad side.

If you still think they could have sued Rolling Stone then take a look at some examples from 1D. 1D has been targeted by the British tabloid The Sun for YEARS. They wrote the most awful shit, a lot of it not true. Yet they still had exclusive scoops whenever something important happened. Exclusive meaning, these topics were given to them exclusively for publishing. It was proven that their PR manager is friends with the journalist from The Sun responsible for most of the stuff written. 1D never sued The Sun for those articles, because they most likely were agreed upon by their team beforehand. 1D has never tried suing the Sun over anything, despite what they wrote. This was not 1 article, these were many articles. Especially towards the end of 1D, when it was clear their label was losing 1D, there was a smear campaign in the media to discredit 1D and its members. There was a chance some members were going to sign with a competing label, and that’s something their label didn’t like. Here is a good collection of headlines from that smear campaign. Nobody ever got sued over these articles.

Do you still think 5SOS could have just stood up and sued Rolling Stone? The entertainment business is full of politics. If you don’t play the game you’re out. Also, question yourself. Why does Luke still say the article was twisted and inaccurate 4,5 years later? He has owned up and apologized for past mistakes, yet he keeps insisting the article didn’t tell the truth. He even goes to say that the article “broke and hurt him”. If you believe Luke is still covering his ass for what he said in that article, that essentially would he mean he is emotionally manipulating people by saying the article hurt him. Is that the person you think Luke is?

1 more thing I want to point out. Yes, I am aware of the fact that Calum has a large version of the magazine cover hanging around in his house. I can’t say exactly why. This is my best guess. That cover was still a big thing in their career, despite the article, it is still a Rolling Stone cover. That’s a milestone that not every artist gets to do in their career. Just because he has the cover hanging around doesn’t mean he enjoyed the article that came with it.

This whole post has gotten super long, it may not be the easiest thing to get through. So thank you if you made it till the end. As stated before, this whole thing is mostly just my opinion. But the parts about how PR teams work are a fact. I do not work in the music or entertainment industry, I’m not a lawyer, so I may have gotten some things wrong. If I did, please let me know and I will try to fix it. Feedback is always appreciated.

#5 Seconds Of Summer #Ashton Irwin #Calum Hood #Luke Hemmings #Michael Clifford #5SOS #musical direction #pop-punk #Sounds Good Feels Good #Rolling Stone #original

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tiramisiyu · 3 years

Text

【未定事件簿】 Tears of Themis: 【惊心一刻】 Xia Yan’s Shocking Moment Date Translation

Translation Masterlist | Xia Yan Masterlist

Video: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1Hh411Z7qk

I love how Mihoyo takes every opportunity to remind us about Xia Yan’s three years. (I do not)

PART 1

Detective Office

MC: Today’s recommendation: “Extreme Rock Climbing” – a documentary that’ll make your palms sweat wildly…

I flipped through the magazines on Xia Yan’s desk and couldn’t resist making a sound in surprise.

MC: So amazing, how do people climb up this…

I had just finished speaking when a little black figure, accompanied with the sound of a few crisp chirps, flew towards me. It then stably landed on my shoulder.

MC: Peanut? Are you very interested in this? I feel like Xia Yan would also like this a lot.

Xia Yan: What is it that I’d like? What are you whispering to Peanut…

Xia Yan walked in front of me, holding a tiny little box.

Xia Yan: This is for you – Peanut’s baggage is all in here. Its birdcage and bird frame can be folded into a light, portable shape.

Xia Yan: These few days when I’m gone, I’ll have to trouble you to take care of it well.

MC: No problem. What about your luggage, then? Have you packed it all?

Xia Yan: Don’t worry, I’ve packed all of it. Though I’d just finished packing when I heard you two talking about something interesting – quick, tell me.

MC: There’s a film review in this magazine about a documentary on barehanded rock climbing.

MC: So I thought that you’d like this kind of sport!

Xia Yan: Is that so? Show me the magazine!

I handed the magazine I was holding to Xia Yan, specifically pointing out the illustration for this review. A man without any protective measures on was barehandedly scaling a cliff that barely had any footholds.

Xia Yan: Mm… it is very impressive, but it’s too dangerous. I won’t go try it.

MC: Even if you wanted to go, I would definitely hold you back anyways.

MC: I’m guessing that what you would be interested in would be the more typical rock climbing activities with safety measures.

Xia Yan: Is it that… you want to go rock climbing?

I was completely befuddled until Xia Yan handed the magazine to me and pointed to the rock climbing club advertisement, published behind the film review…

Ads these days really are unpredictable…

MC: I hadn’t seen that side…

I was just about to explain that I didn’t mean it that way, until I saw Xia Yan’s slightly worried expression. Was it because rock climbing is troublesome? Something that could make him feel that it was difficult… I’m suddenly looking forward to it a lot! I’ve never seen him in an activity that he’s not good at!

MC: Although, it’s not like I mind trying it out!

Just when I was looking forward to seeing Xia Yan admit defeat for the first time, he instead laughed and nodded.

Xia Yan: It’s just rock climbing. Since you want to try it out, then let’s go after I return!

MC: Eh?!!!

One week later.

Novice Rock Climbing Area

On the weekend, there were a lot of people at the location, but most of them were all at areas of different difficulty levels, so the novice area seemed somewhat calm.

As for me, when I saw the rock climbing walls that I’ve only seen in magazines and entertainment programs, I inhaled a deep breath.

MC: I never would’ve thought that we really would come.

Although, I’m lucky that Xia Yan found this outdoor rock-climbing site. I’d originally thought that we really would go out into the wild to climb a cliff.

MC: We’re here anyways. If I don’t experience it properly, I’ll be letting myself down.

MC: I’ll do some warm-up exercises first.

Right then, Xia Yan walked towards me, holding two bottles of mineral water.

Xia Yan: I’ve bought the water. How are your warm-ups?

MC: Almost done!

Xia Yan: Let me see. Mm… raise your arms a little more, your elbows should be leveled with your shoulders…

My posture didn’t seem to be up to standard, so Xia Yan directly walked behind me to help me adjust my movements.

Xia Yan: That’s right! Remember to flex your fingers after finishing those.

MC: Mhmm!

After warming up, a coach headed over with rock climbing gear to instruct me on novice rock climbing techniques. But after the coach finished with his instructions, he didn’t seem to intend on leaving – instead, he looked over Xia Yan and I back and forth.

Coach A: The two of you must have come here together. Are you interested in participating in today’s rock climbing speed competition?

MC: Competition?

PART 2

Novice Rock Climbing Area

Coach A: We often hold some interesting competitions. Today is the two-person speed competition, where the competition scores are based on the total duration rankings of the individual climbing of the two.

Coach A: Signups for the competition are done at one’s will. Whether you participate or not, either is fine. The prizes are four journals, specially designed and custom-ordered by this rock climbing place.

I’d originally been completely disinterested in the competition, but when my attention was perked as soon as I heard that the prize was journals!

MC: Are they rock-climbing themed?

Xia Yan: I remember that you used to like to collect pretty stationery before!

Coach A: Of course. A lot of people who come to compete, come for the prize – after all, they’re limited-edition.

MC: I’m a little interested. Xia Yan, are you joining?

Xia Yan: Since you want the journal so much, then I’ll definitely join!

Coach A: The competition is happening at 3:30. Don’t be stressed, you can get a prize as long as you rank.

Coach A: Though I have to let you both know that the rock wall used in the competition is a bit different from what’s usually used.

Coach A: It doesn’t have that many routes. With pure speed and force, people with a foundation in sports won’t find it difficult to start with some more practice.

MC: Thank you, coach! It’s 2-o’clock right now – one and a half hours of time to practice.

Xia Yan: Want to try climbing the novice cliff first? We have time to compete after adapting to it.

MC: Mm, then I’ll try it out first. Are you going to do it with me?

Xia Yan: Me?

He seemed to have thought about something. After revealing a surprised expression for an instant, he very quickly smiled at me helplessly.

Xia Yan: The novice area is pretty safe, so I’ll observe here. If your posture is off somewhere, I can also immediately correct it.

MC: …Have you remembered all that the coach taught us?

Distracted by the journal and competition matters, I had already forgotten a good portion of those movements.

Xia Yan: Wanna guess? Although, no matter how much theory you listen to, it can’t compare to experiencing it yourself. Only practice results in true knowledge.

I nodded and began to apply slip-resistant powder to my palms. When I was preparing to stand in front of the rock wall, Xia Yan inspected the safety equipment I had on.

Xia Yan: Shouldn’t have any problems… try and see.

MC: Mm.

I stood in front of the rock wall, then reached out to grab the chunk of rock in front of me, then visually searched for a suitable foothold. When both of my feet had stepped on the rock points, my whole body had pressed against the rock wall. I followed Xia Yan’s instructions, gradually shifting my body. Though each movement was very slow, they were quite stable.

Xia Yan: How do you feel now?

MC: No problems whatsoever!

I had just spoken when my foot, which had just stepped on another rock point, applied the slightest bit of force and then slid. Luckily, my other foot kept my body stable.

MC: Good thing I hadn’t stepped completely onto it. I really can’t afford to be careless at all…

Xia Yan: Are you alright?

I turned around with difficulty and looked down at Xia Yan. His eyes were full of worry.

MC: I’m fine! The occasional mistake is also a part of accumulating experience.

Xia Yan: Seriously, you’ve never changed in how you are when you encourage yourself.

Xia Yan: Although, being able to do this much for your first time rock climbing is already really amazing. Do you want to come down and rest for a bit?

MC: Xia Yan, do you think if I try a little harder now, I’ll be able to get to the top?

Xia Yan: You want to get to the top?

MC: Mhmm! Giving up halfway isn’t my style.

Xia Yan: Though it’s a bit hard for a novice to reach the top… but if it’s you, there definitely won’t be a problem!

Hearing Xia Yan’s encouragement, I turned around and looked at the rock wall in front and spurred myself on mentally. I can definitely do this!

Though my progress in climbing the wall was somewhat bumpy, I was still able to successfully get on the top of the rock wall in the end. After getting down from the rock wall, I immediately ran to Xia Yan.

MC: I understand why so many people enjoy rock climbing.

MC: The sense of accomplishment after getting to the top feels just like I’ve conquered both sky and earth!

Standing beside me, Xia Yan smiled as he looked at me, but he didn’t say anything.

MC: What are you looking at? Is there magnesium powder stuck on my face?

Xia Yan: There is a little.

Xia Yan raised his hand, seeming to want to wipe it for me, but he had only stuck out his hand halfway before putting it back down.

Xia Yan: Here, there’s a little bit rubbed on beside your lips.

I rubbed at it with the back of my hand.

MC: Any more left?

Xia Yan: No… ahem, I’m gonna go buy two bottles of water again. Rest a bit before the competition starts to restore your stamina.

After speaking, Xia Yan left rapidly. No matter how you looked at it, it looked like he was running for his life. What’s up with him?

MC: …

I didn’t have the time to ponder over why Xia Yan’s reaction was so strange before my attention was drawn to a person nearby. That person was in the middle of climbing the other side of the rock wall quickly. The cohesiveness of his actions was absolutely smooth and natural – it was clear that he was a veteran.

MC: Though I signed up in a moment of interest, it’s really hard to achieve that level of familiarity within this short time.

Xia Yan: No matter how hard it is, you won’t give up, right?

MC: Xia Yan! When did you get back?

Xia Yan: Just when you were sighing about how familiar others were with rock climbing. Here, this water’s for you.

After taking the mineral water from Xia Yan, I opened the bottle cap and took a drink. Within the period of time when Xia Yan and I were talking, that person had already climbed to the top.

MC: He must be a professional to have gotten to the top so fast.

Xia Yan: It’s not that fast. The rock wall that he was climbing only had one route, so it’s supposed to be used for speed practice anyways.

Xia Yan: If he wants to get on the level of a professional, he’s got to improve his speed by at least 50 seconds.

MC: Saying this, do you think you can do it faster than him?

Xia Yan: That’s for sure!

MC: Then why did you look so unwilling when I brought up rock climbing at the beginning…

Xia Yan: That was because…

MC: Because what?

Xia Yan: Ahem, that was because I wanted to surprise you. I’ll prove it to you now!

PART 3

High-speed Rock Climbing Area

The rock wall that the person had just climbed up was from the high-speed rock climbing area, which was also the area where the competition would be held. Xia Yan and I walked over, and Xia Yan had me get on the top platform to wait for him.

Xia Yan: The competition will be held soon. The built-in timer for the rock wall needs to be reset to zero – I’ll need to trouble you to time me on the top platform.

MC: No problem. The person just now used around one minute – can you…

Xia Yan: Then I’ll be a bit conservative – 40 seconds.

MC: 40 seconds is conservative?

Xia Yan: Because I’m not too familiar with the equipment here yet.

Xia Yan: Hurry up there – I’ll start right after warming up!

MC: Mm.

Only when standing at the top of the rock-climbing wall and looking down did I truly feel how high the rock wall was.

MC: 50 metres… Xia Yan bragged that he could do 40 seconds, but is that too much of a rush…

I looked towards Xia Yan in the middle of his preparations. Maybe he felt my gaze, since he tilted his head up and smiled at me. Though Xia Yan had a lot of confidence, I still suspected that he was putting on a brave front, especially in how he wanted to climb up a 50-metre rock wall in 40 seconds.

MC: Xia Yan! Don’t force yourself, I’m worried…

I yelled in his direction.

Xia Yan: No way. When have I never successfully done what I’ve promised you?

Well, that was true.

He walked to the fixed spot two metres away from the rock wall, adjusted the position of the starting mat, and waved at me.

Xia Yan: I’m ready! After counting down from 3 seconds, start the time!

3, 2, 1… the moment I pressed the timer, Xia Yan got on the rock wall at a speed that surpassed my imagination. His movements were agile and smooth – it was clear that he was no novice.

MC: Is there anything that he can’t do…?

Other people who were resting all gathered around, watching Xia Yan climb up the rock wall at a high speed.

Bystander A: Who’s this expert – how come I’ve never seen him before? That speed really is something else!

Bystander B: The expert’s agile skill simply can’t be criticized! I bet the club’s records are gonna be broken very soon.

Bystander C: Breaking the record? That record has stuck around for three years – how could it be broken so easily.

In the blink of an eye, Xia Yan had long passed the middle of the rock wall.

His expression was focused and firm, and magnesium powder floated around him, sparkling brilliantly in the sun. The closer he got to the top of the rock wall, the more I couldn’t shift my attention away from him. Even the noise on the ground was nearly inaudible.

The more Xia Yan passed over that protruding rock wall, the more the endpoint became within his reach.

MC: Do your best, Xia Yan!

Hearing my voice, Xia Yan smiled slightly, then grabbed a rock point and rose up suddenly…

My heart suddenly tightened. Under the surprised gasps of the crowd, Xia Yan stably grabbed onto the last rock before the top. He, who’d just finished this with skill and ease, winked at me, not even forgetting to casually say a few words…

Xia Yan: It’s almost over. Watch the second timer and prepare to stop it.

MC: You haven’t gotten on the top – there isn’t much time left.

Xia Yan: This is just a warm-up – of course I won’t unleash my full ability.

Xia Yan: But since you’re using provoking methods, then I have to…

As he spoke, my eyes suddenly seemed to blur. I didn’t see Xia Yan’s movements at all when he successfully got on the top, appearing by my side.

Xia Yan: How was that – how much time did I take?

Time? Ah! I forgot to stop the timer!

MC: 34:57 seconds…

Even though I pressed it late by a few seconds, Xia Yan was still able to do as promised within 40 seconds.

MC: Congratulations, Great Detective Xia, you were successful!

Xia Yan: Now you believe that I really am amazing at rock climbing, right.

MC: Yes yes yes, super amazing, I’m in complete awe!

Xia Yan: Then did you think that I looked really cool?

MC: Yes yes yes, the Great Detective was especially cool!

Xia Yan: Then, do I have the honour of being the private rock-climbing instructor for the Great Lawyer?

MC: Haha, no problem, this lawyer will definitely hire you!

Laughing, I high-fived Xia Yan. As our fingertips brushed over each other, he transmitted his warmth to me. The moment that our palms pressed against each other, I could even feel his beating heart clearly.

PART 4

High-speed Rock-Climbing Area

After laughing together, I carefully thought back on Xia Yan’s movements as he got on the top. My eyes told me that I could do it, but my body… clearly wouldn’t be able to learn it…

Xia Yan: What are you thinking about?

MC: I was thinking that your movements in getting to the top are unsurprisingly very hard.

Xia Yan: I was showing off my skill – a typical person wouldn’t do that when getting to the top. I’ve got to perform in an eye-catching way to have you forget about that person just now.

Xia Yan: Although, I only dared to do those kinds of movements because I was sure of my success, so don’t worry.

Seeing Xia Yan’s happy expression, I thought again of his distressed expression that day.

MC: Now can you tell me why your expression was so odd back when I brought up rock climbing?

MC: I’d even thought that you weren’t skilled at this…

Xia Yan: This… one reason was that I was afraid that your stamina wouldn’t be able to catch up. After all, rock climbing isn’t like other sports – it consumes a lot of energy.

MC: Being a lawyer means that I often have to work overtime over several days, and I have to run around to different places to get evidence. I feel like my stamina should pass the standard.

MC: You said “one reason” just now, so there are other reasons?

Xia Yan scratched at his hair, seeming somewhat embarrassed.

Xia Yan: It’s not good... for my...

MC: Ah?

His voice became as quiet as a mosquito, and I didn’t hear what he said clearly.

Xia Yan: To a novice, falling down in the middle of rock climbing is very typical.

Xia Yan: As long as I imagine this, even if there are safety measures, I still feel very anxious.

Xia Yan: So… it’s not good for my heart!

MC: You’re worrying too much. Since you had me trust in you more, you also have to trust in me a bit more.

MC: Plus, with such an amazing Teacher Xia instructing beside me, I won’t fall down, right?

Xia Yan: That’s for sure. The Great Lawyer is right!

Thinking of Xia Yan’s skill just now, my confidence in the competition increased by a few points.

In the high-speed rock-climbing area, Xia Yan taught me for a while longer. Only after confirming that my start and acceleration all had no problems did he bring me to the rock wall to be used in the competition.

it was probably because the competition time was nearing, but the competition area was bustling with activity. It was much noisier than the practice ground from earlier.

MC: So many people… it must be very hard to rank…

Xia Yan: The prize journal must be very special for it to attract so many people to participate in the competition.

Xia Yan: This also proves that we were correct in choosing to join the competition, right?

MC: That’s also true.

MC: Ah, there’s no point in overthinking anymore. It’s better to not pressure myself too much, and to instead focus on participating.

Xia Yan: Are you really nervous?

I felt somewhat discouraged, being exposed by Xia Yan all at once.

MC: Even if this isn’t a field that I’m skilled at, the me who’s tried hard still hopes to get a good result.

MC: I know that this kind of thought process is a little willful and unrealistic, but…

Xia Yan laughed, then looked towards the faraway rock wall and spoke.

Xia Yan: Having a strong will to win is a good thing, especially for a lawyer like you…

Xia Yan: But sometimes, letting go of your will to win and simply enjoying the pleasure of competition is also an excellent choice.

Did Xia Yan say that? I didn’t hear wrong, right? This sort of sincere, earnest tone that would usually come from some old veteran doesn’t suit him at all!

In my past memories, Xia Yan was the most persistent and stubborn person, and having him admit defeat was basically an impossible task. Sure enough, something must have happened in those past eight years…

But seeing Xia Yan’s smile, I realized that this wasn’t the time to ask.

MC: If you’re saying these things to make me less nervous, then I’m so sorry, but you’ve gotten the opposite results.

MC: Pleasure and victory – I’ll have them all!

Xia Yan showed an expression with “I knew you would say that” written all over it. I released a breath for my correct response.

Xia Yan: Ah… I never thought that it would become a way to provoke you.

Xia Yan: Since you want it all, then it’s time for me to show off my true strength!

MC: Don’t forget that this isn’t a single-person competition. There’s also the absolute novice that I am.

Xia Yan: Are you talking about the absolute novice who got to the top on your first time here?

Xia Yan: With a teammate like this, isn’t my win basically guaranteed?

Just when I had been teased by Xia Yan until I was grinning from ear to ear, I heard the coach shouting at us.

Coach B: Team Xia Yan! It’s your turn, are you both ready?

MC: We’re ready!

Coach B: Who’s climbing first?

Xia Yan and I looked at each other for a moment. Immediately after, Xia Yan clapped my shoulder and strode forward one step.

Xia Yan: I’ll go first! Let me set a good foundation, so you can also confidently and freely do your thing!

MC: Do your best!

PART 5

High-speed Rock-Climbing Area

After the sound of the coach’s whistle, the timer started. Like an arrow fired from a bow, Xia Yan climbed upwards, faster than the speed that I had seen earlier. The surrounding crowd, including me, were completely focused on Xia Yan. We hadn’t even recovered from our shock before Xia Yan arrived at the top.

The display screen beside the rock-climbing wall declared Xia Yan’s score – 9 seconds.

The same rock wall, yet he performed even better than last time by nearly 30 seconds! Looks like he really was just warming up earlier…

Enthusiastic applause suddenly sounded in the grounds, only dissipating when Xia Yan got down from the rock-climbing wall.

Xia Yan: I beat second place by nearly half a minute – not bad, right?

MC: Xia Yan, you’re too… I don’t even know how to describe it!

Xia Yan: You’ve got a new recognition for how amazing I am, right!

Xia Yan’s eyebrows curved, and his smile was quite proud. If he had a tail, it would definitely be sticking up towards the sky.

MC: Mm! It’s my turn! I definitely will not hold back! I’ll do my best for our journals!

Xia Yan: Do your best!

After high-fiving and making the switch with Xia Yan, I stood ready and waiting in front of the rock wall. I had just placed my hands on the rock points, waiting for the start signal, when I noticed that Xia Yan had already put on the safety lock and was standing by my side.

What’s going on?!

Xia Yan made an “OK” hand signal towards the coach with a “let’s go again” expression, and looked at my totally confused face.

MC: Did the competition change rules? Why did you come again?

Xia Yan: I just sought out the coach and said that my partner was coming for the first time, so I wasn’t too at ease.

Xia Yan: The coach made a special allowance for me. Under the fair competition circumstances of no interference, I can accompany and protect you on the side.

MC: You really are too worried…

Xia Yan: An excellent detective will always consider all possibilities and carry out his plans after.

MC: …

Xia Yan: Do you think I’m a hindrance?

MC: How could that be? I’m just a little surprised.

Xia Yan’s joining in made me feel safer, as well as more courageous, with the desire to give it my all.

Xia Yan: That’s good!

Hearing the coach’s start order, I didn’t have time to reply to Xia Yan before I put all of my body and heart into the competition. The race start, a burst of speed… the high wall in front of my no longer seemed to be a hard-to-surmount obstacle. Everything happened very smoothly, and my condition was even better than when Xia Yan took me to practice.

In the middle of the competition progress, my arm suddenly felt sore when I applied strength.

It was probably because I was somewhat tired from practicing earlier. I stopped all my movements and tried relaxing my hand exchange.

Xia Yan: What’s wrong?

MC: Nothing, I’m just taking a bit of a rest.

As I spoke, I continued climbing up, but the soreness in my arm got worse and worse…

MC: I should be able to hold on until the end…

I muttered quietly to myself, took a few deep breaths, wanting to get to the top with a spurt of energy.

Xia Yan: MC, slow down a bit, there’s still time!

Xia Yan’s warning had me calm down slightly. Only then did I realize that I had been too impatient.

However, I had just slowed down when my arm suddenly went numb. As if it was a slow-motion playback, the motion of my powerless fingers releasing the rock point played frame by frame in front of my eyes, and my heart gradually went cold…

MC: Ah—

After I let go, I could no longer maintain my balance, and fell in midair…

During the sudden matter, I unconsciously closed my eyes, waiting to come down on the safety mat.

But the image I predicted never occurred. Something tightened abruptly around my waist, and I fell into a warm embrace.

Xia Yan: MC! Are you alright?

When I heard the familiar voice, I opened my tightly-closed eyes. Xia Yan’s face full of worry fell into my sight. One of his hands held tightly on a rock, and the other held me, with both of his feet placed squarely on the rock wall. His arm then tightened around my waist a little more, probably because he saw me not reacting.

I unconsciously reached my hands towards his chest and carefully took a few breaths. Only then did I get back my feeling of safety.

Xia Yan: I already told you…

Xia Yan’s raised voice seemed to be a little angry, but he had just started speaking when he frowned again.

Xia Yan: Ss—

Seeing the moment when Xia Yan frowned, my heart jolted.

MC: Xia Yan, are you alright? Were you hurt anywhere?

Xia Yan: Don’t worry, I’m not hurt.

MC: How could that be? I saw you frown just now. Did you get hurt when you caught me?

MC: I’ve been dieting for weight loss recently, but regardless, an adult shouldn’t be able to pull their arm muscle into a state of injury from the force of falling…

Xia Yan: I really am alright. Look, does my expression look like someone who’s been hurt?

I stared at Xia Yan’s face. After confirming that he really wasn’t showing any signs of pain, I calmed down.

Right then Xia Yan and I reacted, realizing that the distance between us was so close.

Xia Yan: We… we should head down first…

MC: Mhmm…

PART 6

Because of my mistake, Xia Yan and my competition score did not bear results, so ranking was out of the question. Plus, after seeing Xia Yan’s pained expression as he held me, I looked for the coach after landing safely for the infirmary’s location.

Infirmary Hallway

MC: …

I sat on the chair outside the rock-climbing infirmary door, pinching my sore arms, waiting for Xia Yan’s examination report.

Xia Yan: The doctor said I didn’t have a single wound, so you can completely relax.

Xia Yan, who had just walked out of the infirmary, looked relaxed, forming a sharp contrast with the worry all over my face.

MC: Good thing you’re alright. Losing the competition isn’t a big deal, but if I hurt you…

Xia Yan: Even if I got hurt, it would just be a little wound – it’s nowhere near as important as your safety.

Xia Yan: You’ve already confirmed that I’m fine, so now you should be willing to find a doctor for an examination, right?

MC: You’re talking like I’m avoiding this on purpose.

Xia Yan: No no, I know you had me get examined first because you were worried.

Xia Yan: I’m also worried about you… so…

Seeing Xia Yan’s face, I didn’t know why, but the scene when we came down from the rock wall emerged again in my head.

MC: I’ll go do the examination – take a good rest here.

Xia Yan: Mm, I’ll wait for you.

I nodded, then pushed open the infirmary door.

After hearing the infirmary door close, Xia Yan sighed quietly. He hadn’t done any examinations in the infirmary – he just discussed an excuse with the doctor to prevent him from saying the wrong thing when asked.

Xia Yan: I don’t have much time left…

He clutched tightly at the key in front of his chest, until the joints had whitened from the force he was applying.

Xia Yan: …

After turning around to look at the infirmary door, he smiled helplessly, then closed his eyes.

After coming out the infirmary, I saw Xia Yan leaning on the chair, closing his eyes in rest. Probably because he heard my footsteps, he suddenly opened his eyes just as I was planning to play a trick to scare him awake.

Xia Yan: Seeing your movements… did you want to launch a sneak attack on me?

MC: Yeah, though I didn’t have time to carry it out before you noticed.

Xia Yan: How were the examination results? What did the doctor say?

MC: The doctor said that I just pulled my muscle a little, and it’ll be fine after a few days of rest. Don’t worry.

MC: Although… I feel a little sad when I think about how we didn’t rank because of my mistake.

Xia Yan: Learn from our lessons of failure, and next time we come, we’ll definitely win!

MC: You’re right!

Just when we were about to leave the infirmary, the coach who instructed us at the beginning blocked us.

Coach A: Please wait, are the two of you Team Xia Yan? There’s a gift that the club wants to give you two.

MC: Present?

I took the present in the coach’s hand. When I opened it, I saw – two journals?!

Coach A: The prize pack with four journals was prepared for the athletes who were the ranked winners of the competition. However, Mr. Xia Yan broke our single’s speed rock climbing record.

MC: He broke the record? Then how many seconds was the last record?

Coach A: 11:57 seconds. That’s basically the limit for typical people who haven’t undergone professional training. After all, the world record is 5:58 seconds.

I looked at Xia Yan. Though I knew a long time ago that he was very amazing, I never would’ve thought that he was this amazing…

Coach A: Mr. Xia Yan, would it be alright if you let me know what your occupation is? Me and my colleagues are all very curious about exactly where such skill comes from.

Xia Yan: That’s easy, I own an antiques shop. Here’s my name card – if you’re interested, you can come take a look.

He took out a name card and stuffed it into the coach’s hand.

Coach A: Antiques shop? Strange…

The coach muttered quietly as he left. Xia Yan shook his head, then sidled up beside me, carefully scrutinizing the notebook.

Xia Yan: The design of the layout isn’t bad – it looks pretty good!

I handed one to Xia Yan and flipped through one myself. The workmanship really was very good.

MC: In the end, we still had to rely on you to get the prizes…

MC: But I won’t admit defeat. The next time we come, we definitely will take the other two books!

Xia Yan: I’ll accompany you anytime! Although, we have to wait until your arm has completely healed.

Thinking about how my arms might hurt so much that I wouldn’t be able to raise them after today, I silently postponed this promise.

MC: Then it’s a promise – we’ll challenge it again next time!

-END-

#tears of themis #weiding shijian bu #xia yan #夏彦 #未定事件簿 #mihoyo #gotta echo mc here #is there anything that xia yan can't do #also yes the regular dose of knives for xia yan fans #it hurts #tot translation

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the-dumb-smart-friend · 3 years

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I spent way too long on this so please give it attention

So my one friend and I have been working on the same rp for ~2 1/2 years, and right now we’ve been on a big break because of the whole quarantine thing, and inconsistent scheduling.

LET ME TELL YOU,

So many characters have changed so much in my mind over the break that I’m going to need to look through my logs of the characters before the break. I have plans for the story that can have it continue for multiple years into the future.

I have so much planned character development and minor conflict planned, not to mention the scandalous temptation of corruption arcs. My friend’s main character has literally murdered/hurt/threatened one of my characters on many occasions, and now they’re going to have to work together in order to save both their friends, family, lovers, and the entire concept of a continuous timeline before the winter solstice.

Meanwhile, the main villain has gone from pretty much an unstoppable god mary sue character to a touch starved twink with bad intentions and an attack dog evil scientist.

Every single character believes that what they’re doing is good, even if they know deep down that what they’re doing will have awful consequences.

And I’m not even done. I finally made a concrete reason to the timelines constantly looping, and the whole revival problem, as before I just had a loose idea. The two main gods that have been hinted at to be evil and really powerful and awful and stuff (despite one helping out the protagonists and the other being neutral/evil leaning) actually worked together thousands of years ago to do this really powerful spell thing so that every time this select group of really powerful people died (along with everyone that knew them, it was often one big catastrophic event), they would all be revived in the most recent year, over and over again until they found out how to break the “curse”.

The timelines will loop over and over again until the characters all find out how to stop it, which is to somehow keep magic (one of the key building blocks that’s holding life and the world as we know it together) from completely disappearing and dying out.

So the god of magic power was like “Dudes I’m gonna die if we don’t do something to keep magic from dying out.” and all the other high ranking gods were like “Bro no, last time we intervened with something on the mortal plane, we killed all the dinosaurs.” so then the magic god was all like “Fine, but you guys are all pricks.”.

So the he asked his sister (the goddess of time, memory, and significant events/holidays) to help out, and so they created the time loop idea. They cast a really old, really forbidden, semi-DIY’d spell with all their power, but because of the great crime they committed, the more powerful gods cast them out, and took all of their memories, condemning them to the surface for the rest of time.

oooh, looks like you’re interested, nice.

Also I’m on new meds, so sorry if this is confusing.

(TW for death, mentions of gore w/o graphic descriptions, mentions of kidnapping, hints at abuse, dissociation, cursing/verbal aggression, grief)

So the two ex-gods gave themselves new names, and decided to wander around, trying to find out who they were. The two had some moral conflicts and decided to part ways. Time Goddess, who now gave herself the name Raestress (pronounced Rye-stress) eventually stumbled upon one of the mortals that she and her brother cursed for the rest of time, and decided to stick with said mortal for a while, and by that, I mean kinda stalking said mortal.

Because Raestress wasn’t the one to come up with the time loop idea, and was the one that told the other gods, she was allowed to keep some of her powers, however she had absolutely no clue how to use them.

This next pert gets a little fuzzy, and I still need to iron out the details of it, but it ends with Raestress sacrificing both her life and all her power to the mortal, but because of her punishment from the other gods, was cursed to stay as a sort of ghost or spirit that follows the mortal (Remi) she just helped, only able to talk though/to her.

The sacrifice of Raestress’ powers to Remi led to Remi being able to remember all the past timelines she’s lived through, and all the other people that were chosen to live and die over and over again, and decides that she needs to be the one to bring them all together.

Back to modern day, Remi has amnesia for unknown reasons, and makes a bunch of new friends in this little north island town she lives in. One day, a random new math teacher shows up at her highschool, then one of her friends goes missing, then her friend’s sister goes missing and is later found dead, completely torn to pieces. Then she and some friends are about to take a little walk through the forest, when one of her friends is shot with a crossbow, and dies. Sure, they’ve gotten plenty of threats before, but they all just thought it was just some kids trying to pull a prank, but now Alice is dead.

The group try to compose themselves as they wait for the police to arrive, looking up through the trees as to where the crossbow could’ve been fired from, but everything is completely obscured by a swishing sea of branches and leaves. Remi looks up through the leaves, watching them spin and swirl, growing darker as her body seems to float back and fourth in an invisible ocean.

Her vision goes completely black for a moment, but she then sees herself, standing still and looking down at her friends, who have gone from hysterics to almost silent. The world seemed to have washed itself in a shade of periwinkle, swaying like the ocean, any sounds coming out as muffled and distant. Remi watched as her body began to shudder, shoulders bouncing up and down. She watched as her body laughed completely out of her control, quickly pushed against a tree and drowned out by muffled yelling and screaming from one of her friends, Aqua.

The others tried to hold Aqua back, but despite her small frame, she could fight like a 6′ brickhouse. Remi couldn’t do anything. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t explain, or shout “That isn’t me! I’m right here!”. All she could do is watch as her body’s eyes shifted from bottle green to a sharp, brassy yellow, somehow untouched by the blueish haze that blanketed the rest of the world.

Still, her body laughed, going on and on about something that Remi couldn’t hear, no matter how much she strained to.

The rest of the day seemed to continue in a blur. the police arrived, taking all the standard procedures, but it was hard to pay attention to anything but Alice’s body being carried away in a bag. Nobody really knew what happened.

Remi was still trapped outside of her body by the time they got home that night. Whatever or whoever was controlling her was managing to get under everyone’s skin without completely shattering the illusion of Remi still being in complete control. Guess those are the consequences of being known as the one who laughs at horror movies.

As soon as they both stepped inside, Aqua had thrown Remi against a wall, holding her by the collar of her shirt.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” she screamed, voice breaking before she could finish her sentence.

Remi’s body chuckled with squinted eyes, playfully glaring down at Aqua, boring into her skull.

“I should be asking you the same thing, sweetheart.”

Finally at that moment did the rest of the group realize that whoever was piloting Remi’s body definitely wasn’t her, because whatever spoke was using a voice that didn’t match in the slightest.

It’s voice sounded like it could’ve been either a young man or an older woman, familiar and welcoming yet cold and sharp as ice, sharp enough to cut through whatever was muffling the voices from wherever Remi was stuck.

Aqua dropped whoever this person was, taking shaky steps backward, clearly trying to say something, but no sound came out.

This strange person took a step forward, bowing and swishing their arm with a flourish.

“Though I can’t explain everything now, I’m sure that your dear friend Remi will.” They purred, staring through the veil and directly into Remi’s eyes.

“Who are you?” Aqua shuddered, invisible hands trailing cold fingers up her spine.

“A nobody, a somebody. A friend, an enemy. Nobody really knows when or where I’ll come or go, but if you were to call me anything, feel free to call me Crow.”

Something about that name just didn’t sit right, it seemed to send an imaginary bullet through Remi’s head, swimming through her thoughts and flipping every switch in her brain. Something, somewhere, was screaming at her, remember, remember. The already strange world started to get stranger, dark figures appearing all around Remi, reaching out and covering her eyes, ears, mouth, nose, everything until all she could sense was a dark void.

Crow smiled, kneeling down to meet Aqua’s new level on the floor.

“Right now, I’m serving as nothing more than a distraction, and maybe just a little something to get this story going” they said,

Aqua again tried to respond, but her voice had seemed to just disappear at the most crucial moments.

“I do hope we meet again.” Crow ruffled Aqua’s hair just as all the lights flickered out, leaving complete silence and confusion, after all, what was there to say?

Minutes passed, though nobody was keeping count. Nobody moved, and instead just stood wherever they were, trying desperately to process all of today.

When the lights finally flickered back on, Remi was passed out on the floor, but after everything that just happened, it took everyone a while to notice. Nobody said anything.

Will had carried Remi upstairs to her room, hoping that maybe staying by her side could make a nice distraction. Aqua had stayed sitting on the floor, back to back with the couch, head in her hands. Everyone decided to keep to themselves for the rest of the night.

By the next morning, Remi still hadn’t woken up. Sure, not quite unusual, but right now what everyone needed was an explanation, or one of her sarcastic jokes at the very least. It was at noon when everyone had started to worry.

It had reached 5PM when she finally jolted awake, catching her breath and running her hands through her hair.

“I remember...” She whispered,

“I remember everything.” She said again, quickly standing up and rummaging through her desk, despite Will telling her to take it easy.

“My notebooks, they’re all gone!”

“Remi, please,” Will tried to step forward and calm her down, but she pressed on.

“Don’t call me that.” She demanded, mumbling something afterward, “Just call me Rei.”

Alrighty so I might finish this at some point, idk, but the explanation/TL;DR is pretty much that BBEG had tried to kill Aqua, the main thing holding him back from achieving his goal, but Alice had jumped in the way and sacrificed herself.

Rei was then pushed out of her own body by a mysterious deity known only as Crow, who by the way is not Raestress, I just didn’t know how to quickly explain everything. Both Crow and Raestress had somehow managed to together give Rei back all her memories of the past timelines, but because of Crow’s distraction, the BBEG was able to steal all of Rei’s logs of strange dreams and little songs, all of which can be pieced together into an encrypted spell that has the ability to bring back the dead, a spell that has long since been completely banned and erased from the world.

When Rei was trapped outside of her body, she was actually pushed out into limbo/the spirit world, and all the dark figures were different versions of her from her past, though that was never really specified in the original story either, I just left it up to debate.

There is still very little known about Crow, but we know that they’re a sort of grim reaper character, have a past with Rei, and that they’re working for the BBEG for some unspecified reason.

The reason Rei doesn’t like being called Remi is because the letter M is considered evil and bad luck to her and others that are enemies of/know the atrocities or the BBEG and his family. Also because she prefers to distance herself from her past with Crow as much as possible.

Will, who was mentioned at the end, is actually Rei’s girlfriend.

Aqua is my friend’s main character, who is kinda really hotheaded, and is later tricked into killing one of my characters.

BBEG and his siblings are all children of the god of magic that was mentioned earlier.

If anything is confusing, or if you want more of the story, let me know, and I’ll try to add more.

#rp #writing #original rp #original character #oc roleplay #oc #oc story #original story

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theoneandonlyameliajones · 4 years

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Out of Sync (Part 2 of 2)

Summary:

Deku and Ochako have been married for the past 8 years and have two wonderful kids. Too bad marriage isn't easy. Ever since Deku lost his quirk two years ago, he's been in a slump. He's now a stay at home dad while Ochacko is a very popular pro-hero. The downside? Her agency works her so hard that she's barely home. Basically, Deku and Ochako realize it takes more than love to make a relationship and family work.

Uravity finally lost the battle with her supervisor. If she wanted to succeed then she had to comply with her agency's goals. She found the whole situation a little funny, this was never the life she imagined for herself. She always wanted to become a great hero and make enough money to support her family, which she could now do. She never expected the fame though, it was a little surreal. The feeling was intoxicating at first, but now she just felt hungover. The world was watching her though, so she didn’t have much of a choice but to comply with her agency’s requests.

“You okay?” she was so stuck in her head that she didn’t even notice Shinsou come into her office.

“Yeah,” she shook her head back into the moment. “I’m just a little tired, today was...chaotic.”

“Isn’t every day chaotic for the famous Uravity?” he joked, but there was truth in his words. Work felt like such a chore lately for Ochako.

“You’re probably right,” she forced a laugh. She wondered how other heroes were able to deal with the stress so gracefully. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Shoot,” nodded Shinsou. He juggled an apple between his hands and sat on the empty chair in front of her.

“How do you keep a work-life balance? I mean you have a kid and marriage too.” Ochako knew that Shinsou and Kaminari adopted a 5-year old this past year and neither seemed to struggle too much with the balance, at least not as much as she did.

“Well it isn’t easy, but we take shifts and make sure we can spend time with her. The hardest thing is probably spending time with each other though. Date night once a week is essential. It’s also important to keep intimate if you know what I mean.” Shinsou said as he took a cheeky bite of his apple.

“Lucky you,” Ochako buried her face in her hands. When was the last time she and Deku had sex? She couldn’t even remember and it’s not like they had gone on many dates recently either. She wished she had the time, but right now she could barely spend any time with her kids let alone be intimate with her husband.

“To be fair, they don’t slave drive me. I’m not the agency star, so I get off the hook pretty easily. A 40-hour workweek, most of which is nighttime patrols, affords me way more free time than you get. I even get two days off a week,” explained Shinsou.

“I don’t know what to do about it,” huffed Ochako. At this point what could she do? They wanted her to work even more hours now. If she didn’t then there was no way she could make Japan’s top 10 in the next hero ranking. “They need me here.”

“They don’t need you, they want you. You're their rising star.” Shinsou gave her a sympathetic look. “Do you even like being popular?” Uravity knew the answer to that question, she just didn’t want to admit it.

“Honestly no, but I’m in too deep now. How would Japan feel if Uravity suddenly stopped being a great hero so she could stay home with her family? What can I do?”

“You could always quit and join another agency. It’s not like Japan would lose Uravity, they’d just see her a little less. Also if we’re being honest, half your time is taken up with those damn publicity events. Maybe if you join another agency you can focus on the hero work.” suggested Shinsou. “Anyway, I got to head home, but I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“I’ll be here,” she waved him goodbye but she was still stuck on his previous comment. She couldn’t just quit and join another agency. Could she?

It was 3 p.m now and Deku had finally gotten the kids to take a nap. This was one of the rare moments of the day where he got time to himself. He opened up his dresser and dug out the different police academy pamphlets he kept on hand. He wanted to talk to Ochako about this, he really did, but for some reason, the thought terrified him. He had lost a part of himself the day he lost One for All and maybe he could never get it back. Still, he had to try. He was looking through some of the pamphlets when he felt his phone buzz.

Shouto: Hey, I’m in the neighborhood can I come over?

Deku didn’t know how to feel about Shouto coming over. On one hand, he could use a friend to talk to. On the other, he was still upset about what Toshi said earlier. He supposed his feelings for the former were stronger so he sent his friend a text.

Izuku: Yeah sure, the kids are sleeping though so we’ll have to keep quiet. If they find out you’re here they’ll never let you leave.

Izuku heard a knock on the door only a few minutes later. His friend was still in his hero costume and Izuku assumed he just got back from work.

“Busy day at work?” he asked the taller boy who let out an exasperated sigh.

“Work? Nah that’s been the easy part. It’s wedding planning that’s killing me. Momo is keeping me so busy right now. I might be hiding out here.” said Shouto with a stupid smile.

“Well, I’ve been trapped in this house for so long, I don't even know how the outside world looks anymore. You might as well join me,” said Izuku.

“When’s the last time you’ve been out?” asked Shouto.

“Does the grocery store or children’s playground count?” sighed Izuku. He never had time to go out. He always had to take care of the house and the kids. Shouto always suggested that he get a babysitter, but he felt bad about it. His only job right now was taking care of the kids. He at least needed to do that properly.

“You know I never understood why you got married at 19. You already have two kids at the age of 27,” commented Shouto. Ochako and he decided that they didn’t want to wait to get married and start a family. He loved her so much and back then they were all over each other. He still loved her, more than anything, but it was different now.

“What can I say? I liked it so I put a ring on it.” Shouto cringed at Izuku’s comment.

“Never mind, maybe I’ll just go and hide at Bakugou’s place,” joked Shouto which caused Izuku to throw a pillow at him.

“Shut up,” chuckled Izuku. “Anyway I can’t believe Yaoyorozu and you took this long to get married. You’ve been dancing around each other since high school.”

“Well, we were at different agencies for a while and it took a while for us to reconnect. The timing was good though. We’re both ready to get married now, although wedding planning is giving me a huge headache. Why can’t we just elope already.” the bi-colored boy collapsed on the couch. “I swear if I have to taste another piece of cake then I’m moving to Mexico.”

“You wouldn’t survive a day in Mexico.”

“Oh yeah? Watch me.”

They soon settled into a comfortable silence. Shouto was his closest friend from UA and they made it a point to talk to each other often. Before the incident, they would go out almost every weekend. They even worked at the same agency. Things might have been different now, but he knew Shouto would always be there for them. Still, he didn’t forget what Toshi told him earlier.

“Hey Shouto?” the taller boy turned to look at his friend. “Did you tell Toshi not to talk to me about quirks because I’d feel bad?” The silence wasn’t so comfortable now.

“I just didn’t want you to worry about it. I remember how devastated you were after the incident. I figured if Toshi kept talking about quirks then you’d feel worse. You’ve come so far, Ochako and I just didn’t want that to change.” explained Shouto. Izuku knew what he was trying to do. Ochako was doing the same thing. She’d never talk about hero work in detail, mention who she saw at publicity events, or talk about quirk training with him.

“I know what you’re both trying to do, but quite honestly it makes me feel worse. I hate that those closest to me are walking on eggshells around me. The fact that Toshi was doing it just hurt. I’m not ‘Deku’ anymore, but I feel more useless than ever.” He hated feeling like this, but he did. Why couldn’t he just move on? He hated himself for it, for being someone others had to take care of.

“I’m sorry. I know things haven’t been the same.” Shouto paused. Izuku knew what question was coming next. “Did you sign up yet? Did you talk to her at least?”

He was talking about the police academy. Honestly, Izuku didn’t even want to tell Shouto about it, but his friend had connections at the local police station. Izuku went over once to ask about the job requirements and Shouto heard about it.

“I know I keep saying this, but you should talk to her. It’s been two years, and none of us want to see you like this. I know you love your kids, but I can tell you’re miserable being trapped here 24/7.” Shouto came over and placed a hand on his shoulder. Izuku knew he was right, he had to talk to Ochako about this.

“Shou-chan?” his sleepy toddler emerged from her bedroom. She must have woken up because of the noise. He wanted to get back out there, he did, but could he just leave them?

It was 5:30 now and Uravity just finished up another rescue mission. There had been a cave-in at a local mine and they needed her zero-gravity quirk. Another half an hour and she’d be able to leave work and go home. That was if she wasn’t called in in the next thirty minutes for another save. She desperately wanted to make it to dinner with the kids today, it was Sunday after all. She sat at the desk in her office and looked at the unread messages on her phone.

Deku: Shouto came over. Looks like Hikari likes him.

Below that was a picture of her friend carrying her daughter on his shoulder. Hikari looked so bright and happy that she couldn’t help but smile. She looked beautiful like that. Below that was another photo of Hikari smearing paint on Deku's face with her hands. She must have been finger painting. She lived for these pictures and was hoping she could get home fast enough to greet her friend and join in on the fun.

Izuku glanced over at the clock. It was 7:30 now and Ochako still wasn’t home. He wasn’t surprised though, he wasn’t even angry anymore. Shouto left an hour ago and the kids and he just finished dinner. They knew better than to expect their mom at dinner when she was busy with hero work, but it still hurt to have an empty seat at the table. He missed sitting and laughing together as a family. He missed looking over and seeing Ochako stuff her mouth with food and Toshi asking her a million questions about work.

It was 9:00 now and Ochako had just finished another rescue mission. Looks like Japan doesn't want her at home with their kids. She took the train home, ready for more hollow words from her husband. He would insist that her absence was okay and would tell her he understood, but she knew better. He wasn’t okay with it, but she couldn’t figure out if he was angry or apathetic. She hoped it was the former because that would mean he still cared. Maybe he even missed her.

Deku heard the door open at 10:15, which was late even for Ochako. The kids were both asleep now and had to go the entire day without seeing their mother. It wasn’t like Izuku could spend too much time with her either. She was probably tired and had every right to be. He was so proud of her for being such a great hero and he was probably a bigger Uravity fan than even Toshi. It had been a long time since he’d spent time with his wife though. He wanted to hold Ochako in his arms, not Uravity. He wasn’t too mad today though. He desperately did not want to talk to her about the police academy. Telling her would mean he would have to go through with it. He wanted to, but maybe he was too messed up now? That and the kids, he didn’t want to leave them, but at the same time, he didn’t want to be trapped with them.

“They’re asleep aren’t they?” sighed Ochako. She missed them again. How many more nights would she miss with them? How fast would they grow under her nose? “I’m sorry, I thought I could come home earlier, but there was a last-minute rescue mission. It seems Japan can’t give me a break.”

“It’s fine, you know I understand. You’re a busy hero, I get it.” he gave her an empty smile and got out some food for her to eat.

“No you don’t get it,” said Ochako. She was done with this little dance they had memorized. This wasn’t the life she wanted. She used to love hero work. She used to love coming home and spending the day with a kid in her lap. She loved it when Deku came in after her and kissed her on the cheek. She loved laying down in her husband’s lap while they watched T.V on the couch. She didn’t get to do any of that anymore. Life just felt like an endless loop of disappointment.

“What do you mean?” he hadn’t seen Ochako frustrated in a long time.

“I work all day and come home so late that I can’t even see my kids. My daughter doesn’t call me Mama, My son sees me as only a hero and my husband…”

“Your husband?”

“My husband hasn’t acted like the man I love in a long time.” Ochako winced as she watched Izuku’s face fall. Maybe she had gone too far.

“Well, I’m sorry I’m just dead weight then." Izuku retorted.

"That's not what I mean." Ochako sighed.

"Then what do you mean. You always walk on eggshells around me Ochako. I feel like a wounded animal around you."

"I'm trying to be considerate. You know you're no better, I feel like such a robot around you!"

"Robot huh?" Izuku calmed down a little. He realized he had been treating Ochako a little like that recently.

"Yeah a robot. " huffed Ochako. "I mean, I don't blame you. That's how I've been acting recently. I'm just a machine that works and sleeps at this point."

"I didn't realize you felt that way. At least you get to go out and be your own person,” said Izuku. “I feel so trapped here, both physically and mentally, but I need to keep it together because I know you already go through it at work.”

“I never asked you to keep it together. I want you to talk to me, I want you to trust me again. I am here for you whenever you need me. Lately, it feels like you hate me. You don’t even look me in the eyes when I get home.”

“I don’t hate you. Do you know how much I miss you?” He turned to face Ochako. “Do you know how much it hurts me to not have you here? I don't say anything because I know I can’t add another thing onto your plate late like.” Deku pulled her in for an embrace, resting his chin on her brown hair. He should have held her like this sooner.

It felt warm in his embrace and for the first time in a long time, she could breathe freely. He was different now, he had changed from the incident, but in the last 8 years, she had changed too. She still loved him, she never would stop loving him. “Don’t let go,” she whispered into his chest.

Izuku realized just how much he lost himself these last two years. They had both changed so much and maybe it was time for another change. “I’m sorry for being so useless,” he mumbled into her hair.

“Don’t. Don’t do that to yourself, don’t snuff all the light out. I want to see your bright eyes again. You're not useless, you never were. You do so much for our family and I want to see you do something for yourself again.”

“Ochako?” his breath hitched. “I-I don’t know if I can do that.”

“You can, I know you can. Please, just try for me. Don’t be afraid of what’s out there.” She broke away from his embrace and cradled his face, still wearing her gloves from work. That way he wouldn’t float up in the air. Even without her using her quirk, Deku felt pretty weightless right now.

“I-I was thinking of maybe joining the police force. I wanted to enroll in the police academy, but I’ve kind of been avoiding talking to you about it. What if I fail in that too? I don’t know if I can handle so many broken dreams.” he was crying now. He didn’t allow himself to cry in front of the kids, but he was crying now.

“Hey, I can’t imagine what it must have felt like to retire from hero work at such a young age, but don’t let that moment define your life. If you’re ready to move on, I’m here to support you.” Ochako smiled at him. He knew she was right.

“It’s not like I haven’t been quirkless before, but it feels different now. I had a taste and then suddenly everything was gone. I’m grateful I got to be a hero for as long as I did, but sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if All Might gave One for All to someone else.”

“Don’t talk like that Izuku. You inspired so many people during your time at UA and as a hero. One of those people being me, and besides, if you never got One for All we might not have met. Then Toshi and Hikari would never have been born. What I’m trying to say is don’t live in the past and look towards the future.”

“I suppose if my lifetime achievement was inspiring the great Uravity then my life wasn’t so bad.” he smiled as he worked to regain some composure.

“About that..” Ochako frowned at the comment. “What if I didn’t want to be so great anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I love hero work and everything, but maybe being a top ten hero isn’t for me. I’d rather have a few more hours with the kids than be so popular.”

“Are you sure about that Ochako?” frowned Izuku. “I mean is that not your dream?”

“My dream was never to become a famous hero. I just wanted to make enough money to support my parents, and I’ve made plenty to do that. It’s just I want to support my family in a way that’s not purely financial. I want to be here to see our kids grow up and I want to spend more time with you too. I’m ready to be Ochako again.”

“Well, whatever you want to do, I’ll support you too.” Izuku kissed his wife but was interrupted by the footsteps of his sleepy son.

“Mama?” Toshi said, rubbing his eyes awake.

“Toshi, why don’t you head back to your room, I’ll tuck you in,” said Izuku.

“Please can I do it?” Ochako asked. Izuku gestured for her to go ahead. Tonight was good for them, their shoulders had been freed of the loads they'd been carrying. A change was on the horizon and they were both ready for it.

Ochako woke up to her husband drawing circles on her back which was unusual considering it as 5 a.m on a Monday.

“What are you doing?” she whispered to him.

“I’m tired of waking up to an empty bed,” he said to her.

“Well, let’s hope that’s not the case forever.” She kissed him on the cheek and got ready for work.

It was noon now and Izuku had been struggling to dial the number on the pamphlet in front of him all day. He already talked to Ochako about it, but it was still hard. Somehow he managed to suck it up and dial the number.

“Hello my name is Izuku Midoriya and I was looking to enroll in your police academy. That is if there are any spots available” He was doing this, he was really doing this.

"Yeah we can offer you a spot, but you'd need to pass the physical test first. How does Friday sound?" the voice on the other end of the phone said to him.

“Okay, yeah Friday sounds wonderful. Thank you for your help.” He did it, well he almost did. He would have to go in to take a physical test first, but it felt good to finally be moving on with his life. He got out his phone to text Ochako.

Deku: I did it! I called them. I still have to go in for a physical this Friday though.

Ochako smiled at her phone, she was proud of him. Now it was her turn, she needed to confront her supervisor.

Ochako: That’s great news, hopefully, I’ll have some soon too.

Uravity braced herself for what was coming next. She took a deep breath and opened the door to her supervisor's office. This was going to be difficult. When she walked in the older woman was focused on the paperwork in front of her, paying no attention to the panicked look on Ochako’s face.

“Hello, Uravity? What is our agency’s star looking for?” her supervisor asked, eyes still focused on the paperwork.

“I’m actually looking to resign,” Ochako said while twiddling her thumbs. Her supervisor was an older woman in her sixties, but she still scared the living daylights out of Ochako.

“What do you mean?” her supervisor looked up at her and for a moment Uravity thought about running away and pretending nothing happened.

“Listen, Ma’am, I appreciate all this agency’s done for me, but I can’t keep working this hard. I love being a hero, I do, but I also have a family and have no time to spend with them. I know this will mean I won’t rank high, but I just don’t care too much for that anymore.” Ochako explained.

“So you’re quitting hero-work?” the older woman pursed her lips together in disappointment.

“No, of course not,” Ochako waved her hands in refusal. “I was planning on joining a smaller agency and working fewer hours. That way I can be a hero and still have time to spend with my kids.”

“I see. Well, we can’t afford to lose you.” sighed her supervisor. “I can give you 8 hour days and 1 day off a week.” Ochako couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She normally worked 12+ hour days so the extra time would be a huge help. Nevertheless, she still wanted to test out her luck.

“Two days off per week,” she added.

Her supervisor pondered the suggestion. “I suppose that can be done. Nice having you Uravity.” Ochako walked away feeling lighter than air. She pulled out her phone to text Deku.

Ochako: Good news, I’m still at the same agency, but they cut my work hours and I have two days off per week.

Deku: Really? That’s great :)

It was 6:30 now and Izuku was busy making dinner when he heard the door open. He had a sneaking suspicion Ochako would be coming home early today, but he didn’t tell the kids about it.

“Mama? Mama, you’re home early!” cheered Toshi as he went to hug his mother at the door.

“Hey, honey. Mama’s going to be home a lot more now.” she smiled at him.

“Uravity!!” she heard her daughter say while pointing at her. They still had to work on that, and the extra time at home would definitely help.

“Nice to have you home Ochako.” Deku smiled at her and she swore his eyes were a little brighter than before. He was slowly, but surely getting his spark back.

“Nice to be home,” she smiled back at her husband.

For the first time in a long time, the Midoriya family enjoyed dinner together. Nothing was completely fixed, but that was okay. Change was around the corner, and they were both ready for it. Ochako and Izuku signed up for a lifetime when they married each other, no matter the struggles it might bring. They were ready to juice every last moment from it. When dinner was done, the couple retreated to the couch together as their kids played in their room.

“I love you,” Izuku whispered as he kissed his wife on the forehead. He was excited to work again. He was going to miss the kids, but he needed to do this for himself. At least he knew he could count on Ochako to be there for him when he needed her.

“I love you too,” Ochako whispered back as she leaned her head on his shoulder. Her heart swelled with joy from being back home with her family again. She grabbed her husband’s hand and laced their fingers together, never wanting to let go.

#izuocha #izuku midoriya #izuocha fic #mha izuku #uraraka ochako #izuku x ochako #deku #uravity #pro-hero uravity #marriage is hard #izuocha married #izuocha family #izuocha kids #pro-hero life #deku loses one for all #stay at home dad #working mom #quirkless deku #deku loses his quirk

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a-student-out-of-time · 3 years

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Twisted Sister Aftermath Review Part 2

And we are back! Sorry the last part was a bit meaty; I couldn’t really cut bits out and most of the relationship stuff could be covered in the first part. And with this part we move onto the more plot relevant sections. So, seeing as we are going to start on a bad note (you will soon see what I mean by that) let’s hop right in!

Plotly Plot Stuff

Unfortunately, we cannot go one Arc without going back to Mr. Polarising himself, Yasuke. If A Student Out of Time ever gets its own TV Tropes page, Yasuke will definitely get the ‘Base-Breaking Character’ trope to him, because yikes has this guy been debated among Anons. Heck even my original review of Yasuke caused some tension! And to address some of the criticisms I’m been getting about Yasuke being nothing like Byakuya…what I meant was that he is a good ‘Rival/Antagonistic’ character. The villains aren’t going to challenge the Quantum Crew’s views, they know they are bad and they are going to get punished. Tsurugi despite being touted as Hajime’s rival isn’t going to challenge him from a moral standpoint, it’s basically like Sae towards the Phantom Thieves, when one riles up society, the law is going to oppose, and as we know the law is evil, it kinda dampens Tsurugi’s viewpoint. Yasuke though, can challenge Hajime as he’s made Hajime think whether going a Pacifist playthrough is really the best way forward. Given how irredeemable some of the villains are, and that simply imprisoning them might not be good enough, it’s going to be a real test to see if the Quantum Crew can go forward without spilling any blood. Granted Yasuke’s morality is twisted as his only friend is Junko…who isn’t the best of influences, and he is narrow minded in thinking that because his girlfriend is invincible, not helped by how much of a Villain Sue she was in Despair Arc, which is another among many reasons why the anime was a piling hot piece of crap. I used Byakuya as a comparison because really the other rival characters are nothing like Yasuke, and I needed something to get my point across. But the best part about his appearance was the savage beatdown Umeko gave him for thinking that the Many Worlds theory is valid. See this is what I love about this blog, the Mod could just go the lazy option when it comes to time travel, but no they take the time to research a plethora of topics and all the research into quantum physics is so good, it’s like reading a better version of Game Theory. Again, the whole Yasuke Multiverse thing could have easily been avoided if the Mod decided to take a break and not write when they were tried, as it seems to be when the most questionable story choices come from, and used their revised idea of having Umeko toss some ideas to Hajime, Hajime thinking about the Many Worlds Theory and heck even using the fact he played the Zero Escape franchise to get a better idea of time travel so he thought he was SHIFTing, and then when he found out he was wrong, for Umeko to chew him out. Anyway, that’s enough talking about Yasuke, I hope I don’t have to touch this jackarse again in a while, I don’t like him, you don’t like him, the Mod doesn’t like him and pretty sure 95% of Anons reading this don’t like him and just talking about him stresses me out.

Umeko wasn’t the only person to throw punches at Yasuke though because Chiaki had a few choice words to say to him as well. And while Umeko is more of ‘Your knowledge of quantum physics is BS’ Chiaki is more from a morality standpoint that she is very sus about Yasuke’s role in the mess. And think about it, he’s been sus of Hajime and co for a while now, we only have his word that Junko doesn’t know, and that ain’t good enough, and it seems the only reason why Yasuke wants to ‘help’ the Quantum Crew out is because they claim his original plan with Junko fails and he wants to ensure there is no chance that the Mindwipe process once he perfects it on Kanade can be done flawlessly with Junko. And again, Yasuke could be secretly involved in the whole plan because the one thing that for many of us is a concern regarding Kanade’s kit to start a school massacre is the BCI containing intel on Class 77-B. You can make an argument about Junko being involved with the other stuff, her analytic talent would have allowed her to create the complicated chemical formula for the addictive, as a model Junko is loaded so she has plenty of money to spend on stuff such as experimental armour on the black market, and her darling sister could have provided the combat data. Yasuke was in Hope’s Peak and would have known that Hibiki came to Hope’s Peak after Kanade was arrested and bonded with Class 77-B. Bear in mind as soon as Junko saw the news that Kanade was arrested, her first response was to call Juu and said she has plans for Kanade but they can wait for now. Obviously, Junko was waiting to see what was going on regarding Kasugano and wanted to test him by seeing how easy or hard he is to break. People often debate why Junko converted Class 77-B and not her own class but I think the reason why she went after them is because of how unified Class 77-B are. As we learn more about other Hope’s Peak classes it becomes clear just how much of an anomaly Class 77-B are in the regards that they are all friends with each other, and have a high level of hope, which of course Junko due to her desire of a challenge went to break them as sending that class into despair would give her the ultimate satisfaction, even more so than her own class. I think Yasuke isn’t going to be talked about for a while because his very presence stresses people out and after how much the Mod was savaged from their last usage of him, they are going to have to seriously rethink how to use Yasuke in a way that doesn’t cause a scrum debate among us Anons.

Still Yasuke did raise a fair point that against someone with no morals like Junko, the Quatern Crew are going to be hard pressed to keep their ‘Thou shall not Kill’ policy. While Hajime claims he has beaten Junko before in the OG timeline and will do so again in the various times Junko has lost, she has played by her own rules and allows room for failure in her plans, because due to how much of a despair fetish she has, the prospect of losing and tasting the despair of losing is too tempting for her. But if Junko realises that Hajime is hell-bend on standing against her, and that the very laws of time are against her, Junko might just go ‘fuck it’ and forgo that prospect of failure and become, much, much more dangerous as a result. Chiaki’s response to this is simple, they just need to expand their ranks and hire more people. In other words, it’s time for the entirety of Class 77-B to know. To some this is a case of ‘about time!’ But there was a reason why Hajime didn’t want to involve the class. He wasn’t aware on how much history can be changed, and as soon as he discovered he can change the timeline, he also became aware that fate is actively working against him, and the more he fights against it, the bigger the backlash. The last thing Hajime wants is his only friends, Class 77-B, to be hurt due to ripple effects of the Ankle Effect. While half of Class 77-B knew, Hajime didn’t go out of his way to tell them, they either forced Hajime to tell them, or they got caught up in one of Hajime’s plans and he had no choice but to tell them. Chiaki got sus of Hajime when he saved Natsumi and Sato and thus he had to spill, Mikan overheard Hajime and Chiaki talking to Umeko about the future, and the only reason Hajime told her is because he knew there was a risk that Umeko could accidently expose Hajime. Sonia and Gundham went to the Melody Rhythm Concert on their own separate investigation because Koroko and Yoruko was talking about serial killers in order to help get intel into Kanade’s mindset, Sonia got sus about all the mysterious deaths around the Otonokoji Twins, and thus got caught up in Hajime’s plan to save Hibiki and stop Kanade. Mahiru and Hiyoko were investigating Kasugano when they got kidnapped by Junya and Haiji, and Fuyuhiko and Peko were the only ones brought in because Hajime needed extra muscle to deal with the traffickers. And it is becoming apparent that changing the future is a task too large for one person as without the help of his fellow time travellers, his classmates that know, Void, and other allies, Hajime wouldn’t have achieved all the victories that the Quantum Crew have enjoyed. And given that Kanade tried to kill them all, its something they cannot hide from their friends anymore and thus its time to spill the truth.

This of course means that the rest of Class 77-B (Teruteru, Imposter, Ibuki, Nekomaru, Nagito, Kazuichi and the Canon Akane) get to meet Void, Another Akane and Sora for the first time. The interactions between them are both sweet and bitter. Sweet because all the Class 77-B interactions are wholesome, Nekomaru and Maku are developing a bromance similar to what Maku enjoyed with Shinji in SDAR2, Akane is done to have a scrap with Maku, Kazuichi is simping for Emma, I hope that doesn’t last, Iroha is fawning over the Imposter, Taira and Teruteru dosed Pornhub, and Kazuichi and Chisa are amazed that Sora exists. But also, bitter because if you noticed, I didn’t mention Nikei. And that’s for a good reason as Nikei didn’t really interact with the rest of Class 77-B, his only interaction is helping Mahiru getting the two horny members (you know who they are) away from each other. We could have had at least an interaction between him and Ibuki as those two actually met before, but nope. This is a clear example on how the other Void members have become comfortable around Class 77-B and warmly welcomed the other class members with open arms and yet Nikei is still gated off. Clearly our Reporter friend here is going for a slow burn character development but one that hopefully will pay off in the end because I will cry rivers of joy when Nikei finally becomes comfortable around Class 77-B. Oh yeah forgot to mention, Chisa and Juzo are in the truth meeting as well. I was wondering if they would be told but it makes sense to tell them as they alongside Kyousuke are doing an internal investigation into the dark under dealings of Hope’s Peak and in Despair Arc came the closest to foiling Junko’s plans to despair bomb the planet. They failed because A) it’s a shitty prequel anime and Junko is a Villain Sue in this and B) she brainwashed Chisa and blackmailed Juzo with his feelings towards Kyousuke dosed with a lot of homophobia, because we didn’t need any more reasons to hate Junko already. Once all the fuzzy feelings are done, the truth is spilled and everyone is horrified, as you would if you found out that in a couple of years’ time the world would end, you are the reason the world ended and you were basically turned into some Anarchist Model’s mind slaves. Naturally some are a little hesitant to accept it, but at the end of the day, its their friends at the end of the day, they didn’t tell them not because they didn’t trust them but because they didn’t need to know and they didn’t want themselves to be hurt by the forces they are up against. Its unclear how many are official Quantum Crew members or just allies, as knowing the truth about the future and being a Quantum Crew member are two different things. Natsumi, Sato, Fuyuhiko, Peko and Mahiru were all offered the chance of membership and they refused for their own reasons, but they didn’t rule out helping the Quantum Crew out if they need their help. Koroko and Kyoji aren’t official Quantum Crew members and yet they pull some serious weight in regards to the various missions the Quantum Crew go on. Chisa and Juzo agree to help as well, and Kyousuke is being left in the dark because he would go and try to kill Junko and we know from experience how well THAT would go. Spoilers: Not very well, just ask OG Juzo and OG Nagito.

Speaking of Kanye West Sans from Undertale on the Nintendo DS, Iroha started to chat up to him as she’s dating Makoto and he’s going to be Class 78’s Lucky Student if nothing changes about his Worst Day Ever, and Nagito drops a bombshell that Kanata is being upgraded from Class 79 student, to Class 78 student! Ever since Toko was sent to the mental hospital and thus means she could never become a member of Class 78, which was already a small class, debate ranged on who would replace Toko, if it was going only be 15 students, or if someone like Hibiki or one of the Voids would replace Toko. Welp the answer is that Kanata is replacing Toko. That’s going to be interesting because I would love to see how Kanata interacts with the rest of Class 78, especially those like Chihiro and Aoi. Obviously, she would be at great risk because she would be in the same class as the Despair Twins but that cannot be helped. But Kanata moving to Class 78 means there is a gap in Class 79. Now this obviously depends if there ever IS a Class 79 because ideally the school will be open as long as Junko is at large but once she is caught and defeated, the next step would be to expose Hope’s Peak, which would be easy because here’s a hint, what did Hajime promise to Nikei to get him on board with helping him in the first place? But call me pessimistic but someone like Junko, the main villain of Danganronpa isn’t going to be caught in a year, and depending how long it takes to defeat Junko, Class 79 might get formed before Junko is defeated. We obviously have a gap, and it depends if say Hibiki goes back to high school and gets scouted for Class 79 because I doubt while all the Voids would be eligible then for Class 79 (Reason why not all would be eligible for Class 78 is because Iroha is a year younger then the other Voids. The Voids as a whole are the same age as the Trigger-Happy Havoc cast, so Iroha is basically similar age to Class 79) That’s something to be tackled another time though.

One last thing before the Arc concludes and it’s the biggest bombshell of them all. So, one might ask, what is bigger than Kanata being part of Class 78? Here’s a simple answer; how about that being a time traveller isn’t the only way to remember the future? Remember when Mikako came to visit her mother? Turned out it wasn’t just a curtsy visit as ever since Mikako had her brain surgery, she’s been having recurring nightmares and the worrying thing about those nightmares is…they are memories of the OG timeline. She drew a picture of Monokuma, which is something that shouldn’t be possible as Junko didn’t come up with the design of Monokuma until she arrived at Hope’s Peak, and the robot version of Monokuma was only made by Junko influencing Monaca, which given that Monaca is more under the influence of the Quantum Crew, means that the Dis Bear more or less is non-existent in this universe. The nightmares are only the start though as before Mikako had her surgery, she met Kanata because Kanata’s adoptive father is the one who did the surgery to remove Mikako’s brain implant, and Mikako noted that Kanata felt familiar, which if Mikako was getting memories of the OG timeline, she should as Kanata was a classmate of hers. Now that Kanata is part of Class 78, she would no longer be a classmate and Mikako also remembered the Massacre timeline as she thanked Koroko before leaving with Yamato for saving her life, which again she shouldn’t have known as that only happened in the Massacre timeline which no longer exists. Mikako didn’t recognize anyone in the nightmares expect for Yamato obviously, but when shown pictures of future Class 79 members like Akane Taira, she noted of them being familiar. So, WTF is going on? I’ll be clear, I don’t think Mikako is a time traveller or a time traveller in the making. If she was, Umeko would have detected that and she didn’t. But what is clear is somehow Mikako is getting memories of other timelines. My best theory is a few factors. Firstly, being the future Ultimate Exorcist, Mikako possesses spiritual powers and maybe said powers provide some immunity to resets, which means that if Hajime has to go up against an enemy who has supernatural abilities, he has to be careful with resetting as its not just time travellers who can remember. Secondly, in the OG timeline, Yamato managed to develop a solution to reserve the memory wiping that Junko and Yasuke invented, and he used it on himself and Mikako. Granted, said machine wasn’t perfect and it did have side effects, Mikako’s emotions got supressed and she had difficulty expressing them and Yamato’s speech patterns got fucked up, but Yamato isn’t experiencing the nightmares like Mikako is. This obviously requires some investigating and probably another goal for the QC to explore in the next arc, but if other characters aside from time travellers can remember the other timelines, it can be both a boon as it means more allies and a bane because all we need is one villainous character to have this ability and then shit will hit the fan. Bonus points if it happens to be Junko. My big worry for Mikako though is that in DRA Mikako gets framed for Yamato’s murder by Monokuma, and he rigged the trial so that Mikako would be executed, forcing her to take poison so that Monokuma won’t get the pleasure of killing her himself, didn’t stop a spiteful Monokuma from executing her corpse though. Her death was on her terms but still recalling being poisoned to death, as Hajime can tell you is very unpleasant and something that Mikako is going to not enjoy dreaming in the slightest.

And with that we have finished Twisted Sister Aftermath! It was lengthier than I wanted but coming off from a plot heavy arc and being basically the spill over from that, it cannot be helped. I will give this a C overall. Normally I would give it a B because it’s not as intense as the previous Arc but the mere presence of Yasuke and the fact that I could see that most of this Arc was the Mod try to remedy their terrible inclusion of him from the previous Arc knocked it down a few points. At least the Mod learnt that you do not write plot when sleep deprived or lacking in energy, as its when the worser aspects of the story tend to be manifested from. Next Arc should be much chiller in tone and I just hope I can cram everything into one submission there. Nikei’s bemoaning that his article about Kanade’s death being too long speaks to me on a personal level. I hope you enjoy this review everyone and see you next time when we hopefully finish with a chiller Arc, and happy Holidays because I believe by the time the next Arc finishes, Christmas would be behind us! -Review Anon

#mod talks #a student out of time #review-anon #these are super long but I appreciate the time put into them #submission

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wonderlustxennial · 3 years

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Thoughts on TFATWS Season 1, Episode 3

This shit has gotten ridiculous, so I’ve decided that I’m going to start doing reaction posts, rather than posting 20 individual observations. The following was written after my second viewing.

DISCLAIMER: Some of these are my observations, but others I didn’t notice until my favorite YouTube and Tumblr analysts pointed them out. I’ll try to drop credit where it’s due.

NOTE: There’s something I wish more people were talking about, and it’s down in the Madripoor section. If I’m reading this wrong, I would appreciate getting some help in seeing it. So, if you’re game, please check it out and let me know your thoughts. (#tw:racial bias)

[spoilers below the cut]

Walker Raiding the Flag Smasher Sanctuary

Here we get a further illustration that Walker not a defender; he’s working in the interest of fascists. Also, he’s on an invisible countdown to flip his shit. ALSO-also, dude just told the GRC cops not to give anyone “a second…to breathe.” (Marvel, what are you doing? I am not accustomed to relevance from you.) Did you notice the juxtaposition of Bucky asking the cops, “Don’t you know who he is?” to get the cops to stop harassing Sam, against Walker asking, “Do you know who I am?” while roughing up a refugee for not cooperating with him? Same asshole move, very different contexts. Anytime someone thinks it’s a good idea to say, “Do you know who I/this am/is?” they’ve already lost face.

Zemo in His Cell

Clearly, I’ll have to get better about zooming in on stuff, because this is the first time I’ve seen anyone catch that the book Zemo is reading in his prison cell is about Machiavelli AND Leonardo da Vinci; specifically, about how their friendship and exchange of ideas was highly influential on the future of the world. So, does Zemo think he’s Machiavelli or da Vinci, AND who is his “silent” partner? [I didn’t notice that, until The New Rockstars pointed it out (at 04:00 https://youtu.be/xHXhbw_EGL8) annnnnndddd now I’m going to have to read that fucking book (Fortune Is a River: Leonardo da Vinci & Niccolò Machiavelli’s Magnificent Dream to Change the Course the Florentine History by Roger D. Masters, and the bump in book sales is about to have Masters owing Marvel BIG TIME).]

Zemo Is “Royalty”

And here we have my first problem with this episode. BARONS ARE NOT ROYALTY. They’re nobles—low-ranking aristocracy. But do you know what does check out? Zemo and his butler’s thinly veiled distain at entertaining the two low-born Americans.

On the Plane

Look out, y’all: Satan just took the wheel.

THE NOTEBOOK/S

If Bucky has Steve’s notebook, what happened to the one he had in Romania? In CA:CW, I was stressing throughout that WHOLE fight and chase sequence that followed Bucky running from his apartment; not for his safety, but because I hated how vulnerable it left him to have to run without his notebook. I’m not even kidding. Because Steve picked up that notebook, right? Did he think to take it with him? Surely, an embassy or intelligence service swept Bucky’s living space afterward, so who has it now? THIS is the shit I obsess over. Who has that fucking notebook? WHO??!

TROUBLEMAN

There are at least three different things at play here. First, Sam’s enthusiasm and nostalgia for this relic made me tear up a little. He was so hopeful that Bucky would share Steve’s appreciation this classic piece of socially aware art. Second, we get more evidence that Bucky might be having a harder time adjusting to life as a white man in the 21st Century than we’re led to believe Steve did. Third, we know from Zemo’s interactions with his steward just seconds before that, when he praises Troubleman, what he’s actually doing is virtual signaling to build trust with Sam and put Bucky on the back foot. Fourth, I don’t think Sam knows for sure if Zemo appreciated it as much as it says, but he intuits enough about Zemo’s character to be aggravated at the inference they might have something in common; or, that Zemo might be manipulating him to empty rapport. (RIP, Marvin Gaye. You weren’t done.)

DAS OFFENE NEIN IN DER LIEBI

The New Rockstars win again. (Seriously, I have to start paying closer attention.) A book using mythology to explain the psychology of relationships, just before Zemo namechecks Red Skull. Oh shit, y’all.

ZEMO’S PHILOSOPHY ON SYMBOLS & POWER

The slipperiest thing about Zemo is that nearly everything he says has a kernel of truth; you just have to dig out what his true intentions are. Honestly, this is what makes him…I don’t know that he’s the most dangerous villain in the MCU, but it certainly sets him apart. He’s both educated AND smart (the latter doesn’t necessarily follow the former), and he’s particularly insightful in his ruminations on power and its potential to corrupt both the people who hold it and the people who admire them. Bucky and Sam both loved Steve deeply and believed wholeheartedly in the capacity he served as a defender; however, they have a tendency to over-romanticize both. Multiply that problem by the millions who never personally knew him and, when he’s gone, you get…fake!Cap.

More Relevance from Marvel

I read that Marvel had to do reshoots because a few of the themes in this show hit a little too close to home after the pandemic hit (also because the Black Widow movie was supposed to hit first, but again…global fuckery, so they had to shuffle a few plot points.) But also, refugees? “Displacement” camps? Hoarded resources? You don’t say?

Madripoor

Or “When Murder-Sugardaddy Goes Slumming with His Awkward Sugarbabies and Heinous Fuckery Most Foul Ensues”

AT THE CLUB

THE POWER BROKER. THE POWER BROKER. THE POWER… Soooooooo. Many. Name drops. At this point, I don’t even care to speculate on the identity of the mother-fucking Power Broker. Just surprise me already.

And here’s my (potential) second problem with this episode: The Black bartender doesn’t recognize the Black man he’s presumably seen before.

A CAVEAT TO START: I bartended very briefly in one of my many former lives. I was terrible at it. But here’s what’s relevant for the moment: when you work in the service industry, you meet a lot of fucking people, and you don’t necessarily remember them all. I would work giant events where I would serve 1,000+ people in a night, and people would complain all the time that I was carding them even though I’d served them previously. (1) I live in a state where alcohol is highly controlled, and the ABC Board is zealous about doing stake-outs to catch vendors serving to minors. The ABC Board enforcers would only see me serving someone without having carded them first—not all the times I served them previously. None of these people were EVER worth going to jail for over alcohol. Get your fucking card out—EVERY. GODDAMN. TIME. (2) Dude-man-bro, I’ll have served 1,000+ people by the end of the night. Get your fucking card out, EVERY. GODDAMN. TIME.

I’m not saying this bartender in a rogue nation should’ve carded all of his patrons; I’m only saying that when you work in the service industry, you can sometimes serve someone 20+ times before you finally recognize their face or learn their names, and the process can start all over again if they haven’t come in for a while.

Here’s the real issue with this scene, as I see it: In-group bias is an actual thing. There are disciplines of social psychologists and sociologists who specialize in studying it. We’re supposed to believe that the “Smiling Tiger” person Sam is posing as is well-known enough, both by reputation and in that establishment, that the bartender remembered his favorite drink but not Sam as an imposter? I can believe Selby, a Caucasian-European woman, didn’t recognize him on-sight. [Frankly, Whites can often (regrettably) get away with not making any effort to overcome cross-racial bias.] But what about this bartender not recognizing a notable local criminal’s face when they belong to the same racial group, when we’re led to believe he’s served him many times before? And how did he know Tiger-whatever’s favorite drink if the guy had never been in the club? Are we to infer this guy wasn’t high enough on the local criminal food chain to have merited an introduction to Selby?) Is this a plot hole, or am I reading too much into this? I just wonder, given how much this series has devoted to exploring racial relations.

Sam just saw Bucky the most vulnerable as I think he ever has. For the first time, very little was left to Sam’s imagination as to what it must’ve been like for Bucky and Isaiah to have been exploited. And Sam is so good, he can’t help but jeopardize the mission to check on the friend he can’t acknowledge to himself he’s found in Bucky. (He also has no guile, which is so very Steve of him! I’ve just loved Mackie’s performance this whole show.)

I don’t know what to think about how easily it came to Zemo to objectify and use Bucky, again—even if only to pretend.

Bucky is the MCU character I most identify with, but I don’t care to analyze the way the bar scene made me feel. I will say this much, though: THIS is how badly Bucky wants this whole thing resolved. He subjected himself willingly to the stuff of his nightmares, even if to just to perform in the world’s most dangerous live-action role play. As many people were taking pictures in the bar, it’s pretty safe to say that this charade is going to going to have long-term consequences.

People are talking about Bucky “suddenly losing his super-speed” when they had to hoof it away from the bar like it’s a lapse in characterization, but it’s not. Bucky could’ve taken off and left both Sam and Zemo sucking dirt, but he lagged to stay with them. He didn’t ghost them.

SHARON IS A BLACK-MARKET ART DEALER

Godammit. I despise the practice of the filthy rich removing fine art and cultural artifacts from the public view so they can use them for tax breaks and currency. Way to push my buttons, Marvel! And I’m so sure the National Art Gallery of Art and all other art museums worldwide will I mean WON’T appreciate Marvel calling into question the authenticity of their collections, seeing as museum funding and attendance is already anemic thanks to the pandemic. I know it’s bad priorities on my part, but that’s temporarily preempted how much I should probably sympathize with her after her abandonment.

EDIT: The person who gave Sharon the intelligence will figure she had something to do with his demise just a few hours later. I wonder if that will help/harm her ability to do business. Also: holding the barrel of that assault rifle while it fired off rounds should’ve burned her hand horribly.

ZEMO BREAKS THE INTERNET

Did anyone else think “Sprockets!” when Zemo started dancing??!

NAGEL

This is two references to Langley in one episode. For anyone not aware (especially non-Americans), “Langley” is commonly used to reference Langley, Virginia, which is where the most prominent institution is the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (C.I.A.) headquarters. Both Hoskins and Nagel name dropped them in the same episode. Shit.

The Sugars Roll Up to Zemo’s Latvian Bolthole

Bucky’s mission just got a helluva lot more complicated. Sam might have bought the “just going for a walk” bit, but I doubt Zemo did. Bucky owes the Wakandans, but he still needs Zemo. Oh, boy.

Wrap-Up

I’m going to keep coming back to how unexpected it’s been to me that Marvel has finally started to course correct, focusing on characterizations and bringing in themes that are relevant to current events. WandaVision’s explorations of Wanda’s mental health and Monica’s forging of her new identity and TFATWS trying to engage with the audience on topics like race, violence, exploitation, and identity is hugely compelling to me. It’s a fucking TV show, but at this point in popular cultural history, I can’t think of anyone/anything else better positioned to address all of this in an entertaining and accessible way.

#entertainment #mcu #tfatws #spoilers

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ilovemybarricadebabies · 3 years

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another fanfic ask game post! enjoy!

This time I’m doing these questions!

Inspiration and Reading Questions:

1. How long ago did you start reading fanfiction? Writing fanfiction?

Reading: I’m not sure. Maybe 2011/2012

Writing: 2013

2. How do you spend your time when it comes to fanfiction? Are you primarily fic reader, writer, or a perfect 50/50 split of both?

It’s definitely both, but I wouldn’t call it a perfect 50/50 split. It varies. Sometimes I read more, but write less or vice versa.

3. Are there any fics that inspired you to write what you do.

Not really. I usually just write fics for whatever I want to.

4. Link your three favorite fics right now.

Current favorite WIPs.

All That’s Left by @doriangrayscale

flowers for your grave by @grantairesbottle

Lover of the Light by @areyoumiserableyet

Favorite (four) all-time fics

Ask me no question (and I’ll tell you no lies) by Signe_chan

If you offer salvation, I will run (into your arms) by mornmeril

this is fact not fiction by Rianne

Oh, It’s What You Do To Me by captainskellington

5. What are your fanfic pet peeves? Do they have a huge effect on whether or not you decide to read something.

I have a love-hate relationship with slow burn fics. Like I love them because give me the pining, give me the obliviousness, give me the amazing, sweeping first kiss, give me the angst, just give me all the delicious development that comes with finding common ground and falling in love. That being said, however, and I realize that I’m in the minority here, the hate part comes in when the story is really long, let’s 50+ chapters, and the story gets to chapter 50, but the romance still hasn’t started coming into play and I’m starting to just get sick of it because nothing has progressed to romance. Like there gets to be a time where too much is too much and usually, when that happens, it’s time for me to say adios! to the story.

6. How do you find new fic to read? Where do you primarily read fanfiction.

I primarily read fics on Ao3. I loathe FFN.net with every fiber of my being.

I usually just leave the Enjolras/Grantaire category open on and refresh it like three to four times a day for new stories to read.

7. Do you prefer to read short fics or long fics?

It depends on the ship, but I mostly like long fics.

8. How often do you reblog/comment on fics that you like?

I’m absolutely horrid at commenting (I’m working on getting better), but if it’s a story that I really like (ex. the three WIPs mentioned in question 4), I will comment every time there is a new chapter.

9. Tag 3 fic writers you think are underrated/unknown in the fandom/fanfiction community.

I have no idea. In my opinion, I think all writers are underrated and unknown.

10. What’s your favorite fandom, pairing, or character to read fic for?

Enjolras and Grantaire (Enjoltaire) from Les Mis.

Fanfiction Writing Asks:

11. How do you come up with your fic titles?

Through music or quotes. Sometimes one just comes to me, but mostly through music or quotes.

12. Tell the author your favorite fics title of theirs (not the fics, stricktly the title). Author: what’s your favorite title you’ve come up with and why?

I love all the titles of my fics, I can’t possibly pick a favorite.

13. Do you outline your fics? How much of a headache would someone get if they just look at an outline of yours without reading the fic?

I make some sort of outline, but I don’t think they’d really get much of a headache since it’s pretty much just a basic plot, maybe sometimes a little more than that.

14. Do you have personal word minimum that you hold yourself too? Why or why not?

Absolutely not! I write until I think I’ve found a good quitting spot. That can be 500 words or 20k words. It all depends on how I’m feeling and where my motivation is at.

15. Tell the author your favorite fics of theirs. What’s your (the author’s) favorite fic you’ve written?

Forever Was In His Eyes is my favorite with Begin Again as a close second.

Honorable mention because it pushed me out of my comfort zone: Beating of Our One Heart.

16. Do you research your fics? If so, how deep of a rabbit hole have you down by accident while researching?

I only research if the fic absolutely calls for it.

17. How obsessively do you sit and stare at your fic after you’ve just posted and wait for feedback?

On a scale of 1-100, 100. I’m not motivated by feedback like some writers are, but I do love to know if someone is enjoying my fic or not.

18. Do you have WIP that you keep telling yourself that you’ll eventually get back to, but deep down you know that’s probably lie?

Nope. Any WIPs that are unfinished, will probably stay unfinished.

19. Do you edit your fics after you write them, or do you prefer to just post and run (because it’s someone else’s problem now)?

I edit, and then, I’m constantly editing after it’s posted. If I re-read one of my fics and spot a spelling mistake, I can’t just let it sit there, I HAVE to fix it. I am also currently in the middle of long and giant editing project to make sure all my stories are the best stories that they can.

20. What’s your favorite part about the fanfiction writing process?

Um...I, for some strange reason, love outlining. I love coming up with the sequence of events. How do the characters get from point A to point B. How does the story end.

21. What’s your least favorite part about the fanfiction writing process?

Editing and revising. Always.

22. Do you take fic requests? If so, for what characters and why?

Nope. I don’t get enough attention in my inbox to do that.

23. What’s your absolute favorite trope to write?

Forbidden love. I’ve always been such a sucker for this trope.

24. What’s a trope that you’d like to never hear about as long as you live, let alone write?

I’m sure that there are some tropes that I would never touch in a million years, but I can’t think of any write now.

25. Do you listen to music as your write? If possible, link your writing playlist.

I listen to music, but I don’t have a playlist. Most of time it’s just Taylor Swift.

26. What’s your biggest distraction when writing?

Um...if I’m watching a brand new TV show or one I haven’t watched in a long time, I’ll pay more attention to the screen then what I’m supposed to be writing. This goes for movies too.

27, Do you like to give your readers some warning of what might be coming or just slap them in the face with content at random?

I keep my fics under lock and key until they are finished. No one knows any details about them except me. The one exception to this rule was Beating of Our One Heart. I warned that that fic would feature a polyamorous relationship (something I have never written before) while I was working on the outline.

28. How do you deal with writing pressure (ie: pressure to update, negative comments, deadlines, etc)?

Well, the only pressure I usually feel is worry that people won’t like my story, but I think that’s normal for every writer.

29. Have you ever written for an exchange or event of some kind? Which one(s)?

I don’t write for events.

30. Post a snippet from your current WIP without context - no more than 300 words.

R (11:46 P.M.): I’m not sorry.

31. Of the characters your write for, which is your favorite? Has that choice been swayed at all by your followers/readers’ reactions to certain one?

I love writing Enjolras. I’m sure people who have read my fanfics find him to be OOC, but I don’t care. When I write him, he’s half me projecting and the other half is him being the righteous revolutionary that we know him as.

32. Copy and paste your top three favorite lines/jokes/sentences you’ve ever written. What fics do they come from?

I can’t pick three, I have too many favorites.

33. What do you like writing better: one shots or multi-chapter stuff?

It depends. I like writing both. I also really like writing one shots that are 30k+ and multi-chapter fics that are under 10k. It all just depends on my mood and what the fic calls for.

34. How much of yourself and your life experience do you put into your writing? What do you think your readers’ image of you is?

As stated above, I project onto Enjolras. How much, I’m not saying. I do put my likes and dislikes as the characters’. When I write children, I draw inspiration from my nephews. I use my high school class schedule as the characters’ schedule when I write high school AU’s. The jest of what I’m saying is that I have no idea what my readers’ image of me is.

35. How much has writing fic changed your life?

It’s become my escape when things get too difficult or stressful.

36. Are they any fics or fandoms you’re embarrassed to have written or been apart of?

I’m not embarrassed by it, and I never finished or posted it, but I started writing a Sound of Music fic. I don’t remember what it was about, though.

37. Give an update on your current WIP - if you have one, give a sneak peek to a title or idea that you have and would like to write.

My current WIP is almost done. I just have to finish writing more scene.

38. What does your writing process look like? How chaotic is it on a scale of 1 (very tame) to 10 (you can’t handle this kind of chaos)?

It’s very tame, so 1. I write my stories in order of events, if I don’t I get confused on what’s happen. I start by writing an outline, and then I write and I edit (multiple times) before I post.

39. What’s something about your writing that you pride yourself on?

That I write what I want to. No comments can really influence the story (unless it’s a consistency thing) because I write the whole thing out before it’s posted.

40. How did you come up with the idea for [x fic]?

You can see this answer right here!

41. What’s your most popular fic (with the most notes on Tumblr, most hits/kudos on Ao3)?

My most popular fic based on hits: Somethings Are Meant to Be.

My most popular fic based on kudos: The Enjolras Guide to Weddings and Love.

42. Asker: pick three of the author’s works. Author: rank them 1 (the best) - 3 (the worst) based on whatever criteria you want - this could be something totally random that isn’t quality related ( like simply ranking fics based on how many trains appear in them) have fun!

I’m skipping this question!

43. Talk about a positive experience with fanfiction or the fanfiction community that you will always remember.

Every comment that I get, especially if I get it when I’m having a bad day, is like a little ray of sunshine for me. Again I’m not motivated by comments or feedback, but I can’t deny that receiving it is like a cherry on top of a delicious hot fudge sundae.

44. Ran about something writing related.

How long it takes to write. I wish I could just connect some sort of machine to my brain, and it would just churn out the words for my fics and they could be done a lot sooner. And that fanfiction could come before homework and life, but alas it can’t.

45. Fic specific questions - if you have any weird questions about specific works, here’s your shot to ask them!

Skipping this one, but if you have a question about any of my fics, my ask box is currently closed, but my DM’s are always open.

#fanfic asks #personal post #ask game #long post #fic writing

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