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duckprintspress · 3 years

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What is a Story?

When Duck Prints Press put out our call for applicants, we asked everyone to submit “a sample of their work (between 1,000 and 2,000 words)… [that] must function as a short story.” When we reviewed the 100+ samples we received, we noticed many areas where writers commonly struggled. Based on what we learned, we’ve planned a number of blog posts to discuss these challenging areas, and we’ve decided to tackle one of the most frequent issues first. Many otherwise strong submissions lost points on our rubric line regarding “plot and events,” and specifically, they scored a 1 or a 2 because “the story has no plot (for example, is a vignette).”

So, this begs the question, what is a story, and, of course, what isn’t a story?

(note that throughout this post, I use the word “narrative” to refer to any amount of text that may or may not be a story, and I use story only in a more narrow, specific sense.)

What is a story?

The answer is deceptively simple: a story is any narrative that has a plot. But...what is a plot? There are many ways to define a plot, but at its most basic, a plot has a beginning, a middle, and an end, and by the ending, something has changed. If, at the end of the story, nothing has changed, then it’s not a story. However, even if something has changed, it’s still not necessarily a story, because characters and time-frame also influence the definition. A narrative without at least one character is not a story. Likewise, a narrative time-frame, if it’s discussing events at a meta-level (“this happened, then this happened, then this happened”) may show that changes occur, but it’s still not a story - it’s an overview or an outline. The lines, of course, can be blurry - and where any given author, reader, or DPP reviewer draws the line between “this is a story” and “this isn’t a story” will vary.

How is a story communicated to the reader?

To function as a story, the narrative must include characters. Now, character doesn’t necessarily have to mean person, or even require sentience, but there must be some point of view being explored, and if the character is an animal or an inanimate object, writing it as a character will require a degree of anthropomorphizing. The key aspect is that the character has some form of agency - some ability to interact with and influence their surroundings. This character will have a point of view and a perspective that affects how they perceive the story’s setting, and by the end of the story this character should have either changed themselves, or changed their surroundings, or changed their relationships. The circumstances around this character must be different by the end of the story than they were at the beginning - or else it’s not a story.

What is change?

As part of the narrative, one or more characters in the story must engage in some form of activity that results in the world around them changing. Writing advice most oftenly calls this “conflict,” but honestly? I hate that word. The classic couching of “person vs. self, person vs. person, person vs. nature, person vs. society, person vs. fate” as the available types of conflict is tired. Defining the only kind of change as conflict and specifically describing it as “x versus y” is to automatically get a potential writer thinking in terms of antagonism. While antagonism is one available type of change, it’s not the only, and while many pieces of writing advice point out that these “versus” constructions don’t mean enmity by nature...why not simply choose a less confusing construction, one that doesn’t require addenda to explain the existence of narratives that clearly are stories but are less “versus” and more “and” - “person and self,” “person and person,” “person and nature,” “person and society,” “person and fate.” I’ve opted to use the word change, because one of the clearest ways to tell if a narrative is a story or not is to look at the nature of the character(s) are at the beginning, and look at the nature of them at the end, and say - what’s different? Maybe they’ve built something. Maybe they’ve reached a new understanding. Maybe they’ve conquered a challenge. Maybe they’ve altered their perspective. Maybe they’ve learned something. Maybe, they’ve changed the world, or maybe, they’ve just changed a light bulb - but something has changed.

Before some writing snob comes at me and says, “okay, fine, we dare you to come up with a plot that doesn’t fit into the classic five conflict types” ...of course we can’t. That model functions because all stories can be shoehorned into it, as long as very loose definition of “conflict” and “versus” are used. But because it’s described in oppositional terms, a lot of writers get distracted by that terminology and think there has to be, well, a conflict, in the narrow definition of the word. And that’s clearly absurd - many of our favorite fanfiction tropes, for example, are fluffy and comforting and soft precisely because they’re not about conflict, they’re about harmony. Yes, “enemies to lovers” is wonderful, but so is “friends to lovers.” Two people going on a date that ends with a marriage proposal is a story: they started out as a couple and ended engaged. Something has changed - their relationship status. But to call that “person versus person,” while perhaps technically correct, is ludicrous. Now, to keep it interesting, there might be some “person versus self” - “I’m not worthy of this love, omg do they really care for me, oh will society give us problems if we say yes?” which is how it can be shoehorned into the “conflict” model. But be it ever so soft, and their love ever so accepted, and their faith in each other ever so steady - if there really is no conflict, just those two people meeting up and having a nice night and ending in a proposal...it’s still a story. To say it’s not a story because there was no conflict, only an advancement of their relationship...yes, a story like that is borderline to being a vignette or “slice of life” narrative. Certainly, if there’s zero sources of tension, it may not be a very interesting story, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a story.

What else does a story need?

Honestly - not much. Don’t get us wrong - a story is stronger if it has a setting so that it doesn’t just take place in endless blankness. A story with multiple characters but no form of dialog (verbal or non-verbal) may be a little flat. A story where something changes but some of the introduced plot elements aren’t resolved will feel incomplete to a reader. A story without any negativity could be boring. Stories lacking these elements may not be good stories...or they could be amazing, and innovative, showing how a tale can be told without elements we usually consider essential! As long as something or someone has changed, and the story is told in a narrative, descriptive format that includes a character - it’s a story.

What isn’t a story?

Things that aren’t stories fall into two broad categories:

Narratives that have description, characters, dialogue, setting, and other story elements, but nothing changes. Examples of this are “slice of life” narratives and what, in fandom-parlance, would be called an episode coda or canon insert - a chunk of narrative deliberately meant to make a bridge between two established events but in which nothing can change because the surrounding events remain established. (A coda or insert might be a story, it varies.)

Narratives that are either entirely “show” (for example, a vignette) or entirely “tell” (for example, a synopsis), These can also be seen as relating to time - either there’s little or no passage of time (usually the case in vignettes) or far too much passage of time (usually the case in synopses). Narratives like this may or may not include a character, but even if they do, they’re still not stories. Why not? Because any story that is entirely “show” and involves minimal passage of time is unlikely to result in change, and instead will be an extended description of a moment. And any story that is entirely “tell” and depicts a large swath are overviews - there’s no element to actually grab a reader and no reason the reader should care about this dry relationship of events. That’s not a story - it’s a history textbook.

Drawing the lines between these categories can be difficult, and to some extent will come down to taste. Anyone who says there’s a hard-and-fast rule in writing is a liar. Just because a synopsis or a “slice of life” narrative isn’t usually a story doesn’t mean they will never be one. But, in general, if you’re looking at a piece of work and you’re trying to determine if it’s a story or not, there are some signs that will strongly suggest it’s not a story:

There are no characters.

There is no setting.

Nothing has changed between the beginning and ending of the narrative.

The entire narrative is an extended description of a single person/object/setting.

The entire narrative could easily be reworded into a sequence of, “thing one happened, then thing two happened, then thing three happened, then thing four happened.”

The narrative feels like a “pause,” or a “bridge” that takes place between two events that aren’t depicted in the narrative.

A central conflict or issue is introduced or described in details, but nothing is done to try to solve the issue.

Now, for the most important part of this discussion of what isn’t a story: writing something that isn’t a story isn’t a bad thing! Especially in fanfiction communities, we live for self-indulgent narratives that make us happy. We love to see those “moments between.” We live for a thought-out thousand-year history for some setting that didn’t originally have that much background. These kinds of narratives are fun to write, and especially when they’re part of an existing franchise, can be a delight to read. We are not saying that there is literally anything wrong with writing a narrative that isn’t a story.

That said, Duck Prints Press’s applicant call specifically asked authors to submit a writing sample that was a story, with the eventual goal of selecting authors to write short stories for an anthology. Which is to say: there’s nothing wrong at all with writing “slice of life” stories, codas, canon inserts, vignettes, or synopses - it’s simply not what we asked people to submit in this specific case, and we’ve come to see that a lot of people submitted non-stories without an apparent understanding of the difference, and we wanted to explain that difference.

But, to everyone reading this: write whatever brings you joy, in as much detail or vagueness as makes you happy, and share it with whoever you want. Just also understand, that for many types of narratives, if you’re asked “is that a story?” it’s not. That’s not to create a hierarchy - they’re all equal as art forms, they’re just not the same.

Okay I kinda understand this in theory but what do these differences actually look like in practice?

In long-form works, it’s usually relatively easy to recognize what is a story and what isn’t. Almost every novel ever published has a plot, and has things change, and is therefore a story. (though there are exceptions - Wikipedia lists a few longer vignettes and, when done thoughtfully, it can be astonishingly effective.) However, in shorter works, it can be difficult to tell the difference - and, as previously mentioned, the lines can blur.

In the interest of giving an idea of what the differences are, here are a few examples I quickly cooked up to try to show you all, since I’ve done a lot of “telling” so far (this blog post: also not a story, ha!) and very little demonstration. These are each around 150 words, to show that even in a tiny word count, any of these narrative structures is a viable choice. (Sorry these aren’t high literature - I just threw them together for this post, so I’d have something that suited.)

(read more)

A story - a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end, where something changes:

The door slammed open. Looking up from her embroidery, Victoria blinked as Margaret strode into the room.There was an air of expectancy that was inexplicable to Victoria; she grew more confused when Margaret approached and dropped to one knee.

“What are you doing?” Heart pounding, Victoria attempted self-restraint, but she couldn’t rein in her hope, because it almost looked like...it seemed like...but--

“Proposing,” announced Margaret, pulling a velvet-covered box from her pocket and opening to reveal an emerald set in a gold band.

“But you can’t!”

Margaret tilted her head to the side and frowned. “Why not?”

Objections occurred to Victoria, but examining them...she couldn’t think of a one that Margaret wouldn’t demolish with her usual brilliance. “You know what? You’re right. Who’s to stop us? And...I accept.”

And as Margaret slipped the ring onto Victoria’s finger, she knew: there could be no objection. Nothing had ever felt so right in her life.

“Slice of life” - a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end, where nothing changes:

“What a day!” said James, dropping onto the couch with an exhausted sigh.

“I know what you mean,” Tom agreed. He fumbled a hand across the cushion separating them, and James delighted in the simple comfort of threading their fingers together.

A beep, beep, beep sounded in the kitchen, announcing that the microwave had finished nuking their leftovers.

“You getting that?” asked Tom.

“It’s your turn!” James countered.

“But I don’t want to let go of your hand.” Tom gave his hand a squeeze, and a pleased glow suffused James’s chest.

It was Tom’s turn to retrieve their dinner.

But Tom was right - holding hands was wonderful.

“Let’s get it together,” James suggested.

Hesitating, Tom remained still as James sit up and gave a tug on their joined arms, then he broke into a smile and rose at James’s side.

“I love the way you think.”

“I love you, too, darling”

And together - always together - they got their dinner.

“Bridge” scene, episode coda, or canon insert-style fic - a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end, where nothing changes:

Arriving home after the battle, Sandy opened the rough-hewn door and shed her damaged armor. Her dented cuirass had left an aching bruise across her chest; she carried it to the smithy out back for repair in the morning. A gash on her thigh throbbed where an arrow had pierced the straps holding her greaves in places; she brought them to her leather-working station. Nicks and fissures marred her once-gleaming sword blade. All Sandy wanted was to collapse in bed, but resisted the pull of relaxation, because blood limned the damaged places red, and repair to the damaged weapon couldn’t wait. Taking a seat, placed her feet on the treadles that set her whet stone to spinning and set about polishing out every imperfection.

Yes, she was exhausted.

But her sword must be cleaned, and smoothed, and honed, and prepared.

Sandy must be prepared.

There would always be another battle to be fought.

Vignette, a narrative without a beginning, a middle, or an end, which may or may not have a character, and nothing changes and in which the emphasis is on showing, rather than telling (but, as in this example, a combination may be used):

The wind blew chill down the narrow mountain pass. All was silent, save for the rush of the breeze. All was still, save where gusts stirred the tall grasses and the branches of trees that reached, claw-like, toward the sky.

Once upon a time, a stream had carved this cut through the cliffs, forcing its way through soft chalk and hard shale, leaving jagged stones that emerged from the steep pass walls like teeth. The stream was long dry, now, only water-smoothed stones strewn across the ground to show where it had ever been.

Once upon a time, travellers had traversed the dried-up rill bed, pounding down the dirt, knocking the rocks aside, leaving scars where their fires burned. They’d lived, and laughed, and explored, and sought...and left, never to return.

Now, there was nothing: nothing but the storm.

And all was silent.

And all was still.

And the wind blew, chill, down the narrow mountain pass.

Synopsis, a narrative with a beginning, a middle and an end, which may or may not have characters, and where something changes, and in which the emphasis is on telling rather showing:

Emperor Xiang Zhen was born in 9884 to Dowager Empress Luo Zexi and the warlord Xiang Yijun. After his birth, there was a long period of strife. Those who supported Xiang Yijun’s claim to the throne battled those who still supported the Dowager Empress’s deceased husband Peng Zhenya. Eventually, the factions found common ground when Xiang Zhen came of age, and he was enthroned in 9902.

With his reign came peace and prosperity. The arts flourished. Scholarship advanced, and many great Dao masters arose, using cultivation to rid the land of evil’s left by the long war. Xiang Zhen longed to join a Night Hunt himself, but he was trapped by his political position. He didn’t dare risk the fragile stability in the Empire. If something happened to him, the results could be catastrophic. So he studied, and ruled, and adjudicated, and endowed, and endured.

Xiang Zhen did as he must.

But, oh...he wished he weren’t alone.

I know this is long, so we’ll leave this discussion at this point. Hopefully you found it helpful, and please do let me know if you have any questions! Duck Prints Press is always here to offer support to writers, and we love getting writing asks!

#duck prints press #writing advice #original content

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harpyloon · 3 years

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little red

Pairing: Harry Potter x Ginny Weasley (BUT this is more of a Ginny Weasley and Sirius Black friendship HC if you will)

Summary: “Excuse me, but I care what happens to Sirius as much as you do!” said Ginny, her jaw set so that her resemblance to Fred and George was suddenly striking. - Chapter 33: Fight and Flight (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)

Warnings: Small battle scene, minor mentions of blood and injuries, small mentions of death... I think that’s about it? Mostly fluff and humor.

Word Count: 6.8k+ (oops)

A/N: hello! This is my first time posting an HP fic here so I hope you'll be kind! This idea has been an itch in my brain I've been wanting to scratch ever since I re-read OOTP. It's mostly canon apart from the ending (y'all know what ending I'm talking about lol). Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!

Order of the Phoenix missing moments

Read on AO3

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Sirius always knew. He thinks he's known from the very beginning, but even more so when he chanced upon her creeping down the rickety stairs of Grimmauld Place—clutching a hand full of round mud brown pellets that looked all too familiar—with a mischievous glint in her eyes and lips pursed in strict concentration. With as little noise as she could possibly yield, she made it to the bottom of the second landing, eyeing the offending door with the equally offending Silencing Charms casted to muffle whatever it was the "children" were not allowed to hear.

Leaning over the bannister to get a good view of her target, her fiery red mane tumbled over one shoulder like a curtain, concealing half of her determined face from Sirius who was gazing up at the show with amusement; he was suddenly in no hurry to get back to the meeting that was getting fouler by the day. Although the sounds were muffled, he knew exactly how riled up everyone was behind that door, the very reason he had to step out in the first place.

Fighting in the first war, Sirius knew that every moment for members of the Order of the Phoenix was as good as their last. "We might as well seal our deaths," James's voice echoed through his thoughts at the distant memory of him and his friends officially joining the Order that one bleak winter evening. He could still feel Lily's grip on both his and James's hands as she sat between the two, not once glancing at anyone as Dumbledore spelled out every possible danger being a member of the Order would entail.

"Might as well," Lily breathed out and looked at Dumbledore straight in the eye, "Count us in."

Dumbledore didn't need to look at the rest of the gentleman for approval. Lily might have been James's woman, but whatever Lily Evans said the Marauders always followed.

Almost always.

"Ah, crud."

Sirius is yanked back into the dreary hall of Grimmauld Place, just as a putrid ball of manure bounces off the charmed kitchen door and zooms past the cobwebby chandelier, straight for his startled face. Times like these made Sirius truly grateful for his canine instincts, as he stepped aside just in the nick of time.

The mud brown ball splattered onto a worn-out tapestry, right beside the large troll’s leg umbrella stand.

"Oops."

He glanced back up at Ginny Weasley who was grinning sheepishly down at him from the second landing, "Sorry, Sirius."

"Good aim," said Sirius, winking up at her, "Although I believe your mother has the door Imperturbed, little red."

Ginny scrunched up her nose and it reminded him too much of another red head he knew, "That's no good. Well if Dungbombs won’t work then it's a long shot for Fred and George's Extendable Ears."

Sirius quirked an eyebrow, "Extendable Ears?"

Ginny waved a hand, "Eavesdropping contraptions they made up over the summer—" she stopped short and eyed Sirius warily, "Will you tell? Because if mum finds out, you didn't hear it from me."

Sirius grinned. As if anyone would expect Sirius Black, 1/4 of the Marauders, to ever tattle about anyone's mischief. "Bound me by oath, I shall tell no living soul."

Ginny sighed in relief and tucked her hair behind her ears, leaning over the bannister even further. If Sirius didn't catch the tips of her shoes hooked through the railing, he'd be afraid she'd fall flat on her face.

"What are you doing out here?" she inquired curiously, "That door may be Imperturbed but I'm almost positive I heard yelling."

"Precisely why I'm not in there," he sighed and glanced at the kitchen door. He didn't feel like going back inside the chaos at all.

"Really?" Ginny looked even more interested than she was a minute ago. "Don't tell me it's boring?"

Sirius nearly scoffed, "No, little red. Quite the contrary. But being in a room discussing plans for a war you cannot participate in can get quite stale."

He grimaced at his own tone. Sirius wanted to stop feeling sorry for himself, truly and largely through with all the pitiful stares Remus kept sending his way (although discreet) every time Dumbledore so much as shrugged off his requests at lending a hand (or paw) to anything the Order might need. He knew he was being overbearing, which was the last thing he wanted to make anybody feel with his presence. Although being stuck in his wicked mother's house filled with nothing but forbidding memories did no good to his sanity or his morals. He glanced back up at Ginny who was chewing on her bottom lip, deep in thought.

"Anyway, little red, up you go before your mother finds ou—"

"Wanna play Quidditch?"

Sirius blinked.

"Quidditch?"

"I need to practice."

"Trying out for the team are you?" he asked.

Ginny shrugged, "I think Ron wants to have a go, but he's always been Keeper. Just staying on my toes in case Angelina needs a new Chaser this year."

"Chaser, eh?" said Sirius smiling. "Was Keeper myself back in the old days. James, however, was—"

"Chaser, I know. I also knew you were Keeper," said Ginny impatiently. "So do you want to play?"

Sirius peered curiously up at her once again. He wasn't sure even his own godson knew of his Quidditch history. "How did you know I was Keeper?"

Now Ginny had the nerve to look shameful.

"I've been walking past the Trophy room on the third floor to all my classes since first year," she blushed, "Charms was always fun. Professor Flitwick never really minded if I took too long in the loo."

Her embarrassment ebbed when she saw Sirius's proud grin.

"Anyway, all the Gryffindor teams over the years are listed on the Quidditch board," she said.

"And you have them memorized?"

She ignored him. "So? Will you help me practice? Or were you no good?"

Her eyes held a glint of a challenge and was filled with outpouring mischief Sirius hadn't felt in years.

Dreadful meeting forgotten, he asked, "And where do you propose we are to practice? I've played quite a few years to know we need more than a grimy hallway to fly, little red."

Ginny's eyes were filled with mirth, "I know just the place."

----—-----

Ginny Weasley was a fantastic flyer. Her small but built frame made her agile and quick enough to score a couple (more than a couple) past Sirius, who, admittedly, was rusty on a broom, but could neither deny the fact that the girl was akin to a zapping ball of flame, whizzing past him zealously.

The small alcove behind Grimmauld Place (that Sirius previously remembered to be a dump for old furniture the Black family disposed of ) was cleared and mowed into a backyard of sorts; although the grass was a dying shade of brown, weeds scattered the soil, and the lone shrub by the fence seemed to be in its last breath.

"Mum had Bill and I clear it out just in case the kitchen got too full," explained Ginny. "But nobody's used it yet, and we've still got room. Mad Eye had the surroundings Disillusioned so we can fly as high as the attic."

Sirius spent the next couple of weeks training with Ginny on a Comet Two Sixty they borrowed from Tonks. It was the highlight of his days, superbly scheduled right after Order meetings. An angry Sirius coming out of the kitchens to practice was something Ginny looked forward to (and often hoped, although she'd never admit), only because he wouldn't have the mind to hold out on blocking her Quaffles— almost saving every attempt she had at a perfect goal. There were days when the twins and Ron would come out for a match, three-on-two, and Sirius would give Ron tips on how to Keep.

“You’re fast,” he told Ginny at one point, trying to catch his breath after her third goal of the day; the Quaffle zoomed behind his broom and into the makeshift goal post after her clever diversion of swerving around his front. She raised her eyebrows at him as if to say Duh. He rolled his eyes.

“Have you ever considered Seeking?” he inquired.

“Seeking?” she frowned. “Nope. Never. Besides, that position’s not up in the air anytime soon anyway.”

The perpetual loneliness was in no hurry to crawl back into Sirius's mind. Out of all the members of the Order (children included), it was Ginny Weasley (apart from his godson) who made him feel the most welcomed into the world once again; treated humanely, and not some fugitive on the run. She even managed to find the time to occasionally rally him with a game of Exploding Snap.

One particular night that summer, Molly walked in the living room carrying a tray of sandwiches which she set down beside the two.

"Would you know where the extra sheets are, Sirius?" asked Molly, "I need to prepare Harry's bed for tomorrow."

Sirius doesn't miss the way Ginny paused the slightest, then carried on with playing a card down. He swiftly taps the top card with his wand, his opponent only seconds behind. He grins at her cheekily. She missed.

"That point was mine thank you— Ah yes, Molly, of course. I'll have Kreacher bring the sheets up to Ron and Harry's room."

"Harry's arriving, mum?" asked Ginny behind her cards, seeming as though she was deciding which one to play next.

But Sirius could register her unfocused eyes.

"Mad Eye and the rest are leaving at dusk tomorrow. You best tell Hermione and Ron as well. Like twitching worms those two are, can't stop asking when Harry'll be arriving," Molly sighs wistfully, "My poor boy."

Although he hadn't been in the best moods with Molly these days, Sirius couldn't help but grasp her hand to give it a light squeeze.

"No need to worry, Molly. You know Mad Eye. He'll be very thorough."

"Oh, I suppose you're right," said Molly, squeezing Sirius's hand back and reached out to rake her fingers through her daughter's hair.

"Not tired yet, Ginerva? You spent the whole afternoon flying," she looked back at Sirius reproachingly.

He merely shrugged with a small smile.

"I'll sleep when I beat him," said Ginny, finally looking up from her cards.

"Fat chance, Weasley," said Sirius.

Molly sighed tiredly. "Oh why do I even bother," she grumbled as she gathered the empty mugs on the coffee table and walked back into the kitchen.

"Love you, mum!" Ginny yelled after her mother as she grabbed a sandwich on the tray and started nibbling.

"You haven't drawn," she said with a frown.

Looking from the cards piled on the floor and back to the ones she held, "It's your turn. Go draw."

But Sirius didn't draw.

He gazed at his cards instead, as if concentrating hard.

"So," he spoke casually, "my godson will finally be gracing us with his presence. About time."

Ginny didn't answer.

He looked up from his cards to see her shuffling with her own, mumbling to herself.

"I suppose you two are friends?" he asked.

"Hmm? Oh yeah— er — well, sort of..." she trailed off, clearly having no intention to confirm nor deny.

Sirius waited two beats before realizing she wasn't going to elaborate, "Sort of?" He never really saw much of Ginny around the trio while he tailed them restlessly in dog form through Harry's third year.

"Aren't you going to draw?" she snapped irritably, making a show of how annoyed she was that he was interrupting their game.

"Are you?" he spoke slowly, "Friends with my godson?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "I heard you the first time."

"But you haven't answered."

"I have! I said yes!"

"Actually, you said 'sort of'."

"Well, I meant 'yes'!" Ginny huffed indignantly, her ears were turning pink. "Are we still playing or not?"

"Fred said you never talked around him," he said casually.

At this remark, blood swiftly rushed to her cheeks and her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Did he now?"

Sirius no longer bothered to hide his grin.

"George said you fancy him even."

Ginny was so red, her freckles were more prominent than ever before. She seemed to be debating whether or not to abandon their game and flee to the safety of her room, or abandon their game to run off and hex her tattle tale twin brothers.

"For your information," she finally spoke, swallowing a lump in her throat before proceeding, "I used to fancy him a little bit. Not anymore, not for a very long time now actually."

“Oh?”

“Over him. Done. Moved on.”

A pair of cards exploded between them, emitting red and orange sparks.

“You’ve done it now,” groaned Ginny. She glanced up at Sirius whom she saw was smiling knowingly at her, his cards abandoned.

“You know what?” she said, “I’m going to bed. Good night, Sirius.”

“Oh come on,” he laughed as she gathered the cards and neatly put them away in a box, “Is Harry that bad? Can’t be as bad as James can he? That git never had the balls to man up to Lily until our 7th yea—"

“I’m seeing someone,” Ginny announced suddenly, which shut Sirius up quickly.

“Seeing someone?” he blinked up at her as she stood from the carpeted floor where they sat and began to gather the cushions around her.

“Yes. Michael Corner. He’s in Ron and Harry’s year, but in Ravenclaw. He's cute. We met at the Yule Ball and been writing at the start summer,” she had a small smile as she mentioned their exchange of letters, as if she had a nice little secret tucked inside her pocket.

Sirius’s brain, however, seemed to have stopped working.

Michael Corner?

His godson was losing a battle to a boy who did his homework? And who maybe even enjoyed it?

"Although I haven't heard from him since we moved here. Can't owl to him now either," she said with a frown, as if she didn't like the thought. "Maybe I should ask Dad to check if I've got post at the Burrow..."

Sirius's head continued to spin at the outrageous thought, but he looked at Ginny calmly.

“Yule Ball, eh? A dancing chap then,” he swallowed the profanities doing somersaults in his brain. “So, a Ravenclaw...”

Ginny eyed him warily, “That’s right.”

He forced an excited grin, “Splendid! Does he play Quidditch? Bet we can invite him over sometime.”

Impossible, Sirius thought. First of all, he was still a fugitive. He reckoned Michael Corner wouldn’t want to be tossing Quaffles with a man who escaped Azkaban; and second, wanted or not, he didn't think he’d ever let Harry get away with letting a girl like Ginny escape from his fingers. He didn’t let James cower away, he sure won’t let Harry either.

He heard her sigh and focused on keeping his face devoid of any inner turmoil.

“He doesn’t play Quidditch," said Ginny.

DOESN’T PLAY QUIDDI—

“Doesn’t play Quidditch?” Sirius raised an eyebrow, keeping his tone neutral. “Interesting.”

What’s she going to do with a bloke who doesn’t play bloody Quidditc—

“So what does he do?” he clears his throat, “in his spare time? Any hobbies?” He seriously should consider an acting career once his name got cleared.

Wrapping the quilt she was sitting on around her shoulders and balancing the tray of sandwiches her mother left on her hip, Ginny pursed her lips at Sirius and huffed, “Nothing that would concern you, Mr. Sirius Black. After all, what other hobbies did you have back in the old days? Other than stirring up trouble?”

She gathered the trail of her quilt with her spare hand and started walking towards the stairs, up to the bedrooms.

“Oh, come on, little red!” said Sirius exasperatedly, “What did I say? Tell me more about Michael Corner! What does he do? What sort of lot does he hang out with?”

He blanched at a sudden thought, gaping at her retreating back in horror.

“Michael Corner doesn’t hang out with Madam Pince does he?”

Ginny trudges up the stairs and doesn’t look back, but her steps progressed louder and heavier.

“If you stop saying his name like that, maybe I’ll think about answering your questions!” she growled and was out of sight.

----—----

Dear Padfoot,

You were right! I did get Seeker! But only because Harry received a lifetime Quidditch ban from Umbridge. I’m sure you’ve heard. That old hag. Fred and George got banned too. I wasn’t supposed to tryout till next year, but Angelina was desperate. You should’ve seen her face. Nearly close to tears every time I see her at breakfast.

I’m sorry you can’t floo anymore. I kept everyone out of the common room the last time. Pavarti left her Herbology homework by the fire but I convinced her to pick it up in the morning instead. I also told the Creeveys that the house elves were cleaning out the common room that night. Nobody wanted to bother them and welcome a bad breakfast. I hope you got to talk to Harry enough. If that old toad didn’t barge in, I’m sure he would’ve told you more about the D.A.

He’s a really good teacher Harry. REALLY good. He reminds me a lot of Remus, the way he teaches. Did you know he can produce a corporeal Patronus? I’ve known of course, from Ron, but seeing it up close was bloody brilliant. You’d be proud. Especially since his Patronus is a stag. Didn’t you say his dad was Prongs?

He’s also seeing this girl, Cho Chang. She’s nice. Very pretty. A Ravenclaw. She plays Quidditch as well. I guess we both have a thing for Ravenclaws? She always cries though, I’ve noticed. It must be hard for her, dealing with Cedric’s death. They were a thing before he died you see. I hope she doesn’t make Harry too sad at least. He’s been looking a lot gloomy these days. Always BROODING. And don’t get me started on his temper.

Anyway, this will likely be my last letter before Christmas. They don’t bother monitoring my owls as much as they do Harry, Ron, and Hermione’s, but it’d be best if you didn’t write back till after the holidays. Hopefully I see you for Christmas. I’ve already got you a present.

Don’t go sulking around too much!

With love,

Ginny

----—----

Never in her life has Ginny ever seen Harry Potter as broken and desolate as he was now, right before her eyes. That is to say she's seen quite a bit of his dismal days. But it was nothing like this. Although, of course, she knew she couldn't feel the extent of his pain, but pain she still felt; the hollow ache in her chest reverberated, first through her arms, paving way for gooseflesh to rise up to the very tips of her fingers, then down her legs and she felt her knees wobble desperately, as if they were telling her, We can carry you no longer.

With her sprained ankle and failing knees, she gripped the bed post nearest her so tightly it croaked beneath her weight. She watched as Harry did his very best to stand back helplessly and watch the healers fuss around Sirius's frail and pale body, casting stabilizing charms and fixing various droughts by the bed where he lay in the Hogwarts hospital wing.

It almost hit him.

Ginny whimpered at the memory of waking to Sirius's barking voice echo through the Department of Mysteries. Despite her busted ankle, she dragged herself up and registered Luna and Hermione passed out cold, while Ron struggled through the binding tentacles of thought wheeling out of the brain that held him captive. Neville and Harry were nowhere to be found.

"RON!" she yelled at her brother, who seemed to have finally snapped out of the laughing jinx he was in. "Hold still—"

"I HATE BRAINS!" screamed Ron. He managed to have pierced a tentacle with the tip of his wand and the bindings around his torso pulsated, as if the brain yelped in pain although no sound came out.

"GINNY, NOW!"

"Diffindo!"

The brain's tentacles weren't severed as Ginny would have hoped, but it weakened its hold on Ron most definitely that he succeeded in wiggling his way out.

"I've got it," mumbled Ron when she bent down to reach for him, "It might get you too." He finally kicked the tentacles of thought away and it trembled furiously on the cold floor, flashes of memories fluctuating.

Both siblings were panting heavily as they paused to catch their breaths. Ron's right knee jutted out in an odd angle that didn't look particularly natural. He shifted his weight to his left backside, scanned the room, and spotted Hermione lying across the room from him with her eyes wide open. His face paled.

"Hermione," whispered Ron weakly.

Ginny glanced over at her and Luna's lying forms.

"They're stunned," she said. "We need to get them back to school. We all need to get out of here."

She wouldn't have known if Ron heard her for his eyes were fixed solely on Hermione, but he gave a quick nod, "Yeah we—," his eyes suddenly darted around, searching, then he looked back at Ginny in panic.

"Where's Neville?" his eyes were filled with fear, "Where's Harry?"

A deep booming yell echoed from the open door, and Ron's face first scrunched up in confusion, then suddenly turned to a hopeful expression.

"Is that— is that Moody I hear?" his voice was almost weepy.

"Yes," said Ginny, struggling back up on one foot. "And I think I heard Sirius too."

She tried helping her brother up to his feet but to no avail. His right knee was most definitely not okay.

"I'm going to get help," she said. "Stay here and look after the others."

Ron looked like he was about to protest but swallowed the argument quickly. "Wait—" he quickly glances at Hermione then at Ginny's angry and swollen ankle, "you can barely walk."

"Compared to you I can," she said and winced as she shifted her weight. "Look after the others."

Ron swallowed painfully but nodded, his eyes finding Hermione again. No one would dare doubt Ginny's hexing skills, but as the older brother it was instinct to worry.

"Hurry back, yeah?"

Ginny stared at her youngest brother and felt her heart swell almost as much as her throbbing ankle (the pain intensifying to the point of numbness, which made it easier to ignore). People always thought it was Bill that she favored the most among her brothers, them being particularly close as the eldest and youngest. But while their closeness was unquestionable, there was one brother whom Ginny revered the most. Sheer—although closeted—admiration.

Ron always wore his heart on his sleeve, no matter how much he tried to clam it up—which Ginny admired profusely, if not envied at times. While he regularly complained under his breath about the state of poverty their family lived in, his face often falling behind his mother's back whenever he found out he'd be inheriting something of his older brothers' (like Charlie's old set of school robes instead of getting fresh, personally tailored ones from Madam Malkin's)—it was exactly this that made him all the more benign.

It was Ron who always lent Ginny his hand-me-down broom after an afternoon of spitting out tantrums all over the Burrow when her other brothers refused to let her play along, Ron who merely huffs in annoyance every time she barges in his room, plopping down on his bed as she talked his ear off—though he let her anyway; Ron who was just so selfless despite all his lamenting, never thinking twice about giving.

You're my hero, Ron, Ginny thought to herself as she gave her brother a nimble nod.

"Wand out," she cautioned him, and he snorted.

"I'll give those Death Eaters a Bat-Bogey hex in your honor."

Ginny had to swallow back her tears. She didn't know why she was getting emotional at this point. Perhaps it was the thought of death not very far from where they stood, as Death Eaters swarmed the Ministry. She pointed her wand to his knees to distract him from the glassy sheen forming in her eyes.

"Ferula."

Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. He winced as they secured themselves and then he heaved a grateful sigh. "Thanks. Hold out yours."

Ankle patched and throbbing dulled to a minimum, Ginny limped out of the Brain Room, wand out and ready.

If Sirius and the others are here, we'll be alright, she thought, fighting down the growing panic that if the Death Eaters didn't get to him first, the Ministry would capture him instantly. He was, after all, still a mass murderer on the lose. She refused to think about Harry, who was god-knows-where, probably being impulsive and angry and careless with a helpless Neville on his toes.

Ginny evaded all abhorrent thoughts and swiped traitorous tears from her cheeks angrily.

He has to be okay. They all have to be.

She headed straight to the only other door still open, the one through which the Death Eaters themselves had come. Gripping the frame tightly as she fought through the pain on her ankle, she saw—to her horror—Mad-Eye lying on his side in the middle of the room by the dais, bleeding from the head, his magic eye spinning across the floor near a paralyzed Dolohov; Kingsley was swaying across her field of vision, battling with a now mask-less Rookwood, and she saw Remus, who had successfully disarmed Lucius Malfoy.

Her eyes scanned the room in panic, but was suddenly swept with utmost relief at the sight of Harry and Neville hobbling up the stone steps towards her.

Ginny stopped the scream from bubbling out of her throat, noticing the glass spherical prophecy tightly clutched by Neville's hand, not wanting to draw attention to them any further.

“Come on!” she heard Harry cry desperately, hauling at Neville’s robes. “Just try and push with your legs —”

Something hot like liquid heat was suddenly melting down Ginny's ankle. She looked down to see that the bandages Ron had given her were glowing a deep purple. It's not the bandages, she realized, it's my foot— the glowing stopped.

What the—

"It won't last, Ms. Weasley, but it'll do long enough."

Ginny turned, wand raised, to see Albus Dumbledore standing behind her, his own wand equally aloft, his face white and furious. She felt a kind of electric charge surge through every particle of her body—they were saved.

"Professor," she stammered, "I—"

"Mr. Longbottom is in need of your assistance, dear one," Dumbledore said with no preamble. "Go. The spell on your ankle won't last long."

She wasted no time.

Running down the stone steps, she ran into Neville, clutched him by the arm, and he almost sagged on top of her completely if it weren't for Harry holding him up.

"Ginny!" Harry looked at her in panic. "Where's Ron?"

"He's fine," she panted, hitching one of Neville's arms over her shoulders, "They're all fine. Harry, listen. Dumbledo—"

Announcing his presence was futile, she realized, as screams of fury suddenly rang throughout the chamber.

All three of them turned back to see one of the Death Eaters running for it, scrabbling like a monkey up the stone steps opposite. Dumbledore’s spell pulled him back as easily and effortlessly as though he had hooked him with an invisible line.

Only one couple were still battling, apparently unaware of the new arrival. Ginny saw Sirius duck Bellatrix’s jet of red light: He was laughing at her. “Come on, you can do better than that!” he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room.

The second jet of light barely missed his head. Sirius staggered backwards in shock. Ginny saw Bellatrix's face erupt into a triumphant smile as she raised her wand, pointing straight for his chest—

She heard Harry yell to her right but she had no more time to think, adrenaline and desperation pumping through her veins. She grabbed the prophecy from Neville who's grip had slackened in fright. This is way lighter than a Quaffle, a voice spoke in the back of her head as she let go of Neville, though unaware of doing so, shifted her weight back for a split second and released the glass orb with all her might, aiming for the space between Sirius and the tip of Bellatrix's wand.

"Avada Kedavra!"

It almost hit him

The jet of green light flashed through Ginny's memory, colliding with the the spherical orb of the prophecy instead of Sirius's chest, although its force was so strong that it knocked him off his feet, he passed out cold on the Death Chamber floor....

"Ginerva? Ginerva, dear, I told you to lie back down— Oh, my sweet," Madam Pomfrey's voice shook her out of her painful daze. She was back in the hospital wing, hand numb from clutching the bed post so tightly; the pain from her ankle was making her dizzy that she didn't realize the tears pouring out of her eyes.

"Is," she sniffed and wiped her nose on her sleeve messily, "is he going to be—"

"The healers are doing everything they can," Madam Pomfrey murmured quietly although her face was grim. "Let me have a look at your—"

"I'm okay," said Ginny stubbornly. She wouldn't move an inch farther away from Harry and Sirius than she already was.

"Ginny, I swear if you don't let Madam Pomfrey look at your leg I'll hex you myself," she heard Ron growl, although tiredly, from the bed behind her. "There's nothing you can do just lie back down."

Ginny gritted her teach so hard they almost hurt as much as everything else. She stared at Sirius's lying form helplessly from afar, then shifted her eyes back to Harry who now had a tired-looking Remus guarding him from shaking his godfather awake.

She gave a defeated sigh and let the school matron lead her to bed, sleep consuming her instantly no matter how hard she fought it.

----—----

It's been almost a week. A week. And Sirius still hasn't woken.

Ginny was finally discharged after four days; Madam Pomfrey casted final charms to fully mend her ankle and prescribed her with the Potion for Dreamless Sleep to help her with her shock and nightmares.

Ron and Neville had to stay for two more nights, and Hermione for another week—the curse Dolohov had used on her, though less effective than it would have been had he been able to say the incantation aloud (Hermione had cast a Silencing Charm on him before he attacked), had nevertheless caused, in Madam Pomfrey’s words, “quite enough damage to be going on with.” Hermione was having to take ten different types of potion every day and although she was improving greatly, was already bored with the hospital wing.

This gave Ginny every excuse to drop by everyday without fail. She brought everyone Honeydukes sweets, some pastries from Dobby, and fresh flowers for Sirius's bedside. She's also piled his stash of Pumpkin Pasties so much that she heard one of the healers attending to him scoff in disdain.

"If the rebound curse won't kill him, those sweets will, deary," said the healer in disapproval.

But Ginny didn't care, of course, she merely hid the stash under his bed, away from prying eyes. He would thank her when he woke up. For a laugh (more for her than anyone, really), she also hoarded volumes of The Quibbler from Luna, specifically the editions flooded with speculations of Sirius being the innocent singing sensation Stubby Boardman, lead of the band The Hobogoblins.

"You have to wake up now," she told his sleeping form, making sure to sound as miffed as she possibly could. Dumbledore said that talking to him might help, although she suspected he only said so for Ginny's sake. She sat on the edge of his bed one Hogsmeade morning. She barely went anywhere besides the hospital wing these days—despite Dean Thomas's efforts in coaxing her a trip to the Three Broomsticks. "You haven't even seen me play Seeker, Stubby, what happens when your godson takes it back next term?"

But she was only met with Sirius's steady breathing. Which was a good thing, at least is what the healers from St. Mungo's said. The collision that the Killing Curse and the prophecy made was enough to block the curse's intentions, but was able to emit some kind of stunning aftermath, knocking Sirius out cold. She remembered when they all thought him dead, Harry shaking with fury as he dashed out of the Death Chamber after Bellatrix Lestrange.

"You should've seen him, Stubby," she whispered, her eyes roaming all over Sirius's pale, gaunt face. "He looked like he would've killed for you."

She thought she saw a hitch in his breathing, a change so subtle that she held her own. But the following breaths after that were as steady as it had bin, making her convince herself it was only her hopeful imagination.

"Ginny?"

She was so focused on studying Sirius's breathing that she didn't hear privacy curtain open behind her.

Harry Potter, skinny, pale, and hair mussed up as ever, stood awkwardly by the foot of his godfather's bed, his hands holding a bowl of what smelled like onion soup with sides of sliced bread. His glasses were askew and misty from the spring wind and he looked like he just shimmied out of bed and put on the first jumper he saw, because he was wearing one with a big 'R' on his chest.

It was then that Ginny realized that she hasn't seen much of Sirius's godson in the long period that he's been lying in the hospital wing. Every time she visited, even when the others were still around, Harry would've already left to god-knows-where, or she would have had classes and missed running into him. Even sightings in the common room or at the Great Hall were rare.

It's not as if you've been avoiding him, Ginny thought to herself as she stood up to leave, it's just bad timing is all.

"Harry," she smiled at him and nodded at his bowl of soup, "That for the dog?"

He gave out a laugh that made her insides thump erratically. She hasn't seen a smile on his face for so long and she's missed it terribly.

"Yeah," he said with a small smile, and looked at Sirius. "Looks like he's not hungry still."

His smile still held its place but his eyes were almost cheerless.

Crossing her arms dramatically, Ginny turned to glare at the benumbed form before them, "Hear that, Stubby? Your godson's been bringing you breakfast and this is how you repay him?"

Again, they were met with silence and she heard Harry chuckle, "Maybe that'll work," he said, "I've been spitting praises all over to try to get him to wake."

She rolled her eyes, "Don't spoil him," she warned although she smiled fondly down at Sirius, "he might be enjoying it too much."

Harry let out a tiny laugh once again, making her warm all over. She loved seeing him not brooding. It was a rare sight this term, and now that Umbridge was gone, she hoped she'd see more of it.

"Well," she started as she scanned the floor for her book bag, "I'll leave you with the rascal then—"

"You don't have to leave," said Harry and she looked up at him to meet his alarmed gaze. "Really, Ginny I—," he stammered, "you don't have to go."

Ginny stared at him worryingly, "Are you sure? You don't have any secrets to talk about?"

He chuckled, "Yes. I mean no. No—we— I have no secrets," he was surely flushing now, and Ginny sniggered.

"Well alright then," she said, hoisting herself back up on the edge of Sirius's bed. "Is that onion soup I smell? Haven’t had breakfast."

Harry sighed with relief and rounded the bed, grabbing two spoons from his godfather's bedside drawer and sagged down the chair beside Ginny's legs. They sipped the onion soup in silence for a few minutes before Harry cleared his throat and glanced up at her.

"I—," his face was red and she was sure it was because of the soup, "I never got to thank you."

Ginny raised her eyebrows at him questioningly before slurping loudly from her spoon. Harry burst out laughing.

She grinned cheekily at him, legs swinging back and forth on the edge of the bed, "What for?"

He shook his head, "What do you mean 'what for?' You saved Sirius."

It was Ginny’s turn to look embarrassed. Seeing as this was the first time they were actually talking about what happened at the Ministry (the first time talking at all after the Ministry), the subject of the prophecy that Ginny so careless sent flying (quite literally) was never mentioned, not even by the others. She didn't think anybody even knew about it—apart from Harry and Neville and other members of the Order present in the Death Chamber. She had little thought for it, all her worries focused on her friends and her brother getting better.

"Barely," replied Ginny, shrugging nonchalantly at the boy in front of her. "To be honest, I could've thrown something more durable," Harry laughed at this, "but balls are the only thing I'm good at aiming with and that was the closest thing." She frowned after a thought, "To be honest, I wasn't thinking at all."

Harry shook his head again and looked at her with something she could've described as awe, "Well I'm glad you didn't think," he said and a hint of despair flashed in his eyes, although quickly appeased. "I don't even want to think about what would've if you did."

They were quiet for a moment, both now focused on Sirius's rhythmic breathing. Ginny chanced a deceitful glance at the boy she so perplexingly pined for for so long. She couldn't deny that her fourth year in Hogwarts drastically changed now that Harry was more to her than just her brother's best friend. She could actually call him her friend. She couldn't believe it took her this long to woman up and finally start talking around him, realizing how much of an awkward bloke he was.

Well, I won't miss out on you anymore, Harry Potter.

She smiled wistfully at the fact that his hair was as unkept as ever, not realizing that her own hand was reaching out in a foolish attempt to tame it...

"Hey, I was thinking!"

Ginny gave a startled jump, Harry's voice slicing through her shameful haze, and reared back her hand so fast that her elbow hit Sirius's knee.

"OW," she yelped, clutching her joint closely.

"Wha— are you okay?"

"What in the—what is this man made of? Steel?" She rubbed her elbow, wincing, and hoped Harry took no notice of her mortifying intentions.

He merely laughed, "No, I don't reckon Sirius is much of a Superman."

"A super what?"

His eyes were full of amusement as he gazed a Ginny's disgruntled face. "Never mind. Listen, what do you think about trying out for Chaser next year?"

She blinked at him.

"Chaser?"

Harry blushed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah I mean—er—I know you're Seeker now," Ginny was smirking now, "but uh, you have really good aim and— well, that's not saying you're not a good Seeker already. I mean— I don't even know if next year's Captain will take me back in if—"

Before Ginny could stop herself, she grabbed a piece of uneaten bread from the meal they just shared and flicked it straight for Harry's face.

It hit him square in between his eyebrows, nudging his round glasses even more askew.

His expression was priceless.

She laughed boisterously at his stunned look. He was gawking at her.

"That aim good enough for you, Potter?"

It took him a beat to recover, a wide playful grin spreading across his face. "Pretty good, Weasley," he admitted, then tapped on his forehead mockingly, "Could definitely use some practice though, you missed the scar."

Nothing but absurd and ridiculous banter issued after that, their conversation flowing with so much ease, that Ginny swore to herself she would never allow her foolish feelings to keep her from Harry ever again.

And if she wasn't so enamored by his breath-taking laughter, she might have noticed the impish ghost of a smirk from the patient lying on the bed.

#by gabi #hinny fic #ginny weasley and sirius black friendship #harry potter #ginny weasley #sirius black #ootp #order of the phoenix missing moments #Sirius lives #byGabi

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panharmonium · 4 years

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Hi! Love your blog l, found it today and inhaled all of your Merlin Meta. All of it just resonated with me. So, I just wanted to ask what your thoughts were on 2x08 when Merlin lied to Arthur about the truth of his birth, and what other ways it could have possibly played out, i.e. do you think it would have been possible for Merlin to have stopped Arthur from killing Uther but without saying that Morgause was lying?

Hi, nice to meet you! :D So, I’ll admit right up front that the first part of my answer to this is gonna be super boring, because I am totally the worst person to ask about other ways this scene (or any scene, really) could have played out. I’ve never had much interest in AU scenarios, so I virtually never think about them - I think the only exception is the “Will comes to Camelot” story that a few friends and I are perpetually playing around with, and that’s only interesting to me because it’s Will, and I enjoy pretty much anything where he’s concerned. X)

But besides that, I don’t typically enjoy thinking about alternate pathways - I really like the way the canon Merlin story plays out up until the finale, so generally all I want to do is think about the canon. I’ve never wanted to dream up new ways for things to go (I dunno why; I’ve just never gotten much interest out of it). So unfortunately I don’t have any cool ideas about other ways this could have played out, but I know there are tons of people in this fandom who love making lots of AUs, so maybe if anybody has recommendations they can point you in the right direction in the replies here!

In terms of just general thoughts on 2.08, one of the most interesting things to me about this episode to me is how Morgause actually *is* lying (not completely, but enough.) She doesn’t tell Arthur the whole truth about what happened with Uther, and she doesn’t even truly summon Ygraine; it’s an illusion of Morgause’s own making. And we know that because “Ygraine” herself gives it away - earlier in this episode, Arthur says, “I never knew [my mother]. She died before I opened my eyes,” but then when the so-called Ygraine appears, the show specifically makes sure to have her say, “When I last held you, you were a tiny baby. I remember your eyes. You were staring up at me.” Which is the tip-off for us - that’s not her.

And because of this, Morgause has complete control over the framing of what Arthur hears in this scene. It’s true that Uther went to Nimueh, and it’s true that he knew a life would have to be taken in return, but he didn’t know whose. Morgause, though, through her illusion of Ygraine, specifically makes it sound like Uther knew Ygraine herself would die (”He sacrificed my life so the Pendragon dynasty could continue”), and I mean, it’s not that I think Uther’s decision is any better just because he was willing to sacrifice some random person’s life instead of his wife’s, but it’s relevant that Morgause embellishes the truth specifically to engineer a particular reaction from Arthur.

And, given this, it’s also relevant to note that Merlin doesn’t actually lie to Arthur at the end of this episode. He says, “Morgause is lying. She’s an enchantress. She tricked you. That wasn't your mother. It was an illusion. Everything, everything your mother said to you - those were Morgause's words.” And that’s true. Arthur makes the assumption that this means that the substance of Morgause’s words was all false - and Merlin allows him to think this - but Merlin never actually says as much.

And to be honest, it shouldn’t even matter what Merlin says. Afterwards, when Arthur asks Uther flat-out whether Merlin is right, Uther never actually denies the part he played in Ygraine’s death. Arthur says, “Swear to me that it isn’t true, that you are not responsible for her death,” but Uther just replies, “I swear on my life, I loved your mother. There isn't a day that passes that I don't wish she were alive. I could never have done anything to hurt her.” It’s a pretty clever bit of maneuvering, but it’s not a denial. He swears that he loved her. He doesn’t swear that he didn’t cause her death.

And the thing is, Arthur is fully capable of realizing this. Uther’s dodge is painfully obvious to everyone listening. Arthur knows what he really asked his father, and he hears the evasion his father offers in response, same as everybody else in the room. Regardless of what Merlin said previously about Morgause (all of which is technically correct!), Arthur is still completely capable of arriving at the truth on his own. Uther’s own words make it very clear. If Arthur would just think about it a little harder, or look at it a little deeper, he would see that.

But he doesn’t want to. He chooses not to examine it too closely. It would be too hard to accept, and it would hurt too much, and the only way he can make all his difficult feelings go away is to fall back on a familiar, comfortable, “sorcery is evil” explanation. It papers over the truth for him. It allows him to continue on with his life without having to confront pain.

And that’s a problem, as I’ve said many times before. We can rag on Merlin all we want for having the audacity to stop a friend from committing patricide, and we can blame him for arresting Arthur’s momentum and letting Uther live and sentencing the magical community to further suffering, but the ultimate fact of the matter is that Arthur is the one who ultimately chooses to look away here. Arthur has all of the information he needs regardless of what Merlin says, and he chooses not to pursue it, because it would cause him too much pain.

And it’s not the first time he’s done this. I talked about it before, in the tags of this post, when Arthur reacts to a so-called sorcerer who dies saving his life, and it’s the same exact progression - he’s confronted by something that challenges his worldview, and for a second he feels troubled/pained/guilty, and then, to escape those uncomfortable feelings, he retreats back into a framework that makes sense to him. A framework that is easier for him. A framework that hurts less, and, most importantly, a framework that doesn’t implicate him in any wrongdoing.

So what I’m saying is, in my opinion, it doesn’t matter if Merlin tells Arthur that Morgause was tricking him or not. She was! And Merlin’s acknowledgment of that fact isn’t enough to dissuade Arthur from attacking his father; Arthur is still pressing Uther to swear his innocence after Merlin says it. It’s Uther’s words that make Arthur back down, but those words are also exactly what make Uther’s guilt apparent.

Arthur just doesn’t want to acknowledge it yet.

#the once and future slowburn #meta #replies #hope this is at least slightly relevant to what you were asking!#sorry i couldn't help with the first part of this question! au's are way out of my wheelhouse generally XD

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festivegrant · 3 years

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You said 4A finale fell flat and I agree but I’m just curious in which ways did it fall flat for you? To me, I guess I was expecting some type of cliffhanger. Didn’t have to be scary or intense, I just expected something. And yeah that could have been Maddie going into labor. And I know people can debate until the end of time about Eddie and Ana but personally I have no problem with them like overall, if you stand back and look at the big picture. Eddie is trying to move on and Ana seems sweet and smart and nice but when you step closer and look at it, Eddie to me seemed so out of character in that episode. He was doing things that he wouldn’t normally do. Like, ok you went on maybe 2 or 3 dates with her and even after your son throws a fit you still think it’s ok to introduce her to him that soon? And also in the middle of a pandemic?? When his son is high risk and his son hasn’t even seen his friends or other family (I’m assuming). It just seems out of character. And before anyone comes for me, I’m fine with Eddie moving on and getting into a relationship. He could literally date anyone and I wouldn’t care as long as he’s happy. And maybe that’s the point of all of this- to show he’s trying to move on but Ana isn’t the one. Maybe she is and I’m a clown but I don’t personally see it. She’s lovely but I don’t see it. Buck and Taylor was interesting though. I’m all for them being friends because both of them seemed to have matured

glad you asked! my response ended up longer than i’d anticipated so i’ll put it under the cut:

i FOR SURE expected some sort of cliffhanger. i mean, tbh overall the episode didn’t really stick in my head that much? the most cliffhanger-y thing we got was hen and karen not being able to adopt nia (heart-wrenching but good narrative choice) although i would have liked for them to really dig it in and indulge us in more wilson family moments before ripping it from our grasp. i love to suffer <3 and i just think that if we had had a scene where the madney baby is born that would have been such a bittersweet contrast?? like actually watching it would have destroyed me and i probably wouldn’t have liked it bc it would have made me sad but since im playing god on this website it WOULD have been fantastic narratively and i WILL pretend i wouldve liked it.

buck and taylor was cute (and I LOVE their banter), but i kind of feel like the sudden friendliness came out of nowhere?? @benjji2795 made a post about this a little bit; taylor never apologized for what she did to bobby, so it doesn’t totally make sense for buck to be so nice to her?? however i love taylor and im glad she’s on the show. one of two things should’ve happened: she apologizes to bobby and wham bam now her and buck are besties with a fun dynamic (note FRIENDS, not romantic partners, because they have different priorities and are canonically not romantically compatible!! and thats okay!!) OR her reoccurrence on the show is established as some sort of antagonistic ally. i think that would be so fun.

okay okay i have my own thoughts on eddie and ana and that whole situation. let me split this up to make it legible:

on eddie being out of character:

something was definitely wrong this episode. him introducing ana to chris does not sit right (for ALL the reasons you mentioned, which I completely agree with). As far as i’m concerned, there are two possible reasons:

eddie was just plain ooc and it was due to bad writing. it makes me disappointed, but i think this is the one that’s most likely.

eddie was in character, but he was jsut the worst side of his character. someone made a post about it that i found pretty interesting. idk if i completely agree with it bc to say that eddie introduced ana to chris so she could fill what eddie thinks is an empty space in their lives sort of undermines the whole talk he had with bobby the scene prior.

HOWEVER this interpretation also gives ana the opening to have narrative agency and set boundaries for herself and tell eddie she likes him but she didn’t sign up to be a mom. but i don’t think the writers (or r*an, because he sucks and is also not that great of an actor) are thinking that deeply about his character (but maybe they are. who knows).

on ana:

i’ve said this before and ill say it again. the way she’s set up to be both disliked by the audience (because she’s so blad) and disposable to the narrative (because she’s so bland!!) makes me upset. she literally doesn’t deserve that and it’s disturbing to watch (both onscreen and in fandom reactions). i don’t know what else to say except i hope she either gets a well-written, significant story arc or she leaves the show soon. i don’t want to see her being a romantic accessory anymore.

also i think she’s cute but that’s just gabrielle walsh kjdsfl

on eddie and ana together:

okay i agree that a relationship is necessary for eddie to be able to move on. like i get that. i agree. it’s part of his growth. here’s the problem with that though.

the WAY the show handles eddie moving on is very blatant. it is very streight forward. ‘oh, he’s moving on? new girlfriend!’ the thing is, they kind of forgot to give said girlfriend a personality (see above). and BECAUSE OF THAT (or, at least, it’s a contributing factor) they have no chemistry and are terrible to watch onscreen.

i tried to like them. i really did. i tried to frame it as ‘hey, theyre jsut two people who have crushes on each other and we can watch them flirt and yadda yadda and itll be cute, right?’ ive made posts about their dynamic together and trying to find an angle to make it fun. but i cant. i literally cant do this anymore. i actually cringed at nearly every scene they had together. it was unpleasant and boring and i would love it if it were over soon. if the creators are seeking to both produce a good/entertaining and moving show AND keep eddie and ana together, i’m curious to see how they do it because i truly have got nothing for them.

anyways. In conclusion, I’m only emotionally investing myself in the wilson family, the grant-nash family, the buckley-han family, and fanfiction-based buddie :) <3

#this was sooo long #and i didn't even talk about buddie! well this is all buddie aside #ask #anon #911 fox #also i made like thirty edits because tumblr formatting hates me so if you see a different version after my initial posting that's why

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realityhelixcreates · 4 years

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Lasabrjotr Chapter 63: Land of Enchantment

Chapters: 63/? Fandom: Thor (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe Rating: Mature Warnings: none Relationships: Loki x Reader (There We Go) Characters: Loki (Marvel), Heimdall(Marvel), Additional Tags: Post-Endgame: Best Possible Ending (Canon-Divergent), What Beautiful Music They Make, Even When Diner Food Is Bad It’s Still Pretty Good, Not Very Healthy Though, Get Thee To A Waffle House

Summary: Loki visits Townsvill, USA

Loki had to admit a grudging respect for the human invention known as the internet. Such lawlessness. Such chaos. Such memes! And the fact that anything, anything at all, could be found there. Including information on the-to Loki's surprise-thousands of species of cicadas. It was one of the great mysteries of Midgard; this grand proliferation of living things. When just one version of something would have been fine, there somehow had to be dozens to thousands of kinds of that thing. Especially among the insect world. Why so many beetles? Why?

In your vast Iowa, there seemed to be almost twenty species, though, aside from size and color, there didn't seem to be much difference between them. They were all shaped like fat teardrops, with lacy, gossamer wings covering, but not hiding, their chubby, pointed abdomens. He did learn some interesting insect facts-there were some that only appeared every decade or so, some even went a full seventeen years without showing up, but when they did...

The word 'swarm' seemed to put it lightly.

Horrifying.

He learned about the singing frogs, and their whimsical names; the Bullfrog, the Chorus Frog, the Spring Peeper.

He researched the crickets, locusts, and grasshoppers.

He found recordings of all of these and more-coyotes, owls, the soft squeaking of bats. The loud, crepuscular Swifts, the equally loud, nocturnal Whip-Poor-Will, a well camouflaged bird named after its signature cry.

He could do something with all of this.

In the times in between doing his princely duties, he had things prepared. Some silk needed to be woven, some wooden frameworks made. It would take a little bit of time, but everyone worked faster when it was at the prince's request.

Once he had the blank 'canvas' on its series of wooden 'frames' he sent it to his favorite painters, with an image he wished for them to reproduce.

All the while he waited, he also dove into the study of your homeland.

Midgard was so very large, and he had spent so little time actually being there, and learning his surroundings. The sizes of countries baffled him sometimes. The United States was one of those countries that seemed to contradict its own existence. While not the largest of countries, it was still so large that its central government could not govern its entirety. Instead, it was broken up into 'states'; great chunks of land, many being so large as to be countries all their own. Each of these states governed themselves, reporting back to the central government. It was an odd arrangement, that struck Loki as woefully inefficient and ripe for rebellion.

In fact, his studies taught him that several such rebellions had occurred in the past, and had the possibility of rising again in the future.

He tried to listen to some of the music common to your nation-sized state, but could not stand it for more than a few songs. Modern Midgardian music was mostly terrible, in his opinion, lacking in melodiousness and refinement. The lyrics tended to be simplistic at best, examples of beginner's poetry.

He found some grudging enjoyment in the unusual instrumental achievements of what the radio stations called “Eighties Hits”, whatever that meant, but he would not be admitting that anytime soon.

The pictures and recordings didn't seem like enough. The music wasn't enough.

He needed to be there.

Loki could not take you to Old Asgard exactly, but he could make illusions to immerse you in the world in which he grew up. But you couldn't do that, you couldn't bring your homeland to him. If he was to understand you better, he would have to go there himself. Surround himself in your land, eat the food, breathe in the air.

And so he began planning a little vacation.

Or was it an espionage mission? No one other than Heimdall could know he was there: He was still very much a persona non grata in the United States. He could not take you with him. He would have to go in disguise. He would have to go at night, while you slept, so that you would not suffer for his distance from you.

Maybe someday he would be allowed back; to take you back to see all your friends and neighbors. Until then, he would just have to bring some of it back to you.

One evening, he kissed your forehead gently, telling you that he had an errand to run, and might not be back until morning. You were tired; it was clear to him. You didn't even question what he would be doing.

As he left the city limits, he let his outline shimmer and fade away, replacing himself with features that would be less likely to draw suspicion. Soon there was nothing but a grizzled old man in worn jeans and a stretched out black tee shirt. Boring. Ordinary. Unremarkable.

All the things he was sure he was not.

Heimdall met him with a sarcastic stare.

“What have we here?” He said in a flat voice. “A lost, Midgardian peasant? I suppose I shall have to send you home.”

In a time past, Loki might have felt bashful, but that was before he had realized that the gatekeeper had a sense of humor drier than the center of a star. Now he only felt grateful about how willing Heimdall was to break the rules.

“I wish to learn some things.” Loki said. “It's for the good of my subjects.”

“Plural?” Heimdall questioned. Loki pursed his lips and looked away. Heimdall twisted the sword.

The light gathered Loki up, and flung him across the sea.

*****

The fields were vast in the dying light, stretching so far on every side, that it was impossible to see their end. The only break in the tall rows was the equally endless road Loki walked. He could smell the green plants as the sun disappeared beneath the corn, and the dust, and the mud in the roadside ditches.

Heat distorted the distance, assaulting his senses, but not as much as the noise.

Everywhere, every cubic inch of the world was the sawing scream of cicadas. It filled his skull, filled his bones, inescapable and omnipresent. How did you sleep in this? How could anyone sleep here?

But as he walked, as the day faded and the night awoke, Loki began to hear the song. The insects cries had a rhythm that rose and fell in rounds, constantly changing as a frog in a ditch puddle sang along, as crickets among the corn roots added their harmonies. The interruptions as something, perhaps himself, disturbed the nearest singers, causing them to fall silent, and change the melody entirely.

The whole world around him was alive, and reveling.

A dome of light on the horizon indicated your town. He would be there soon, an hour's walk at most.

The closer he got, the less he could see the emerging stars, a problem even the smallest of Midgardian settlements seemed to have. There were more vehicles too, several of them stopping to ask if he needed help. These he waved away with a friendly declaration that he was just out for a nice evening walk.

Eventually, there came a break in the cornfields, a wide verge between farmland and civilization. A sea of grass and barely visible wildflowers, closed up against the darkening night. He leaped over the ditch and strode a few feet into it, focusing on the last vestiges of wildflower scent, of the insects that rose into the air, the evening choir all around him.

The flashlight shining in his face, the stern questioning of an officer. The warning to move along. He wasn't even bothering anybody, and still, he was somehow in trouble.

The officer also offered him a ride, but Loki didn't trust it. A ride to the local prison maybe. The fellow was a bit too canny; he didn't seem to believe a thing Loki said.

He finally passed a city limit sign, that boasted of its two thousand residents. Smaller, even than Asgard, yet you'd spent your whole life here. Hemmed in by cornfields, like great, green walls. Lulled by the song of nature. Sick, and starving, and scared, without him.

And for a year of it, nearly alone, surrounded by dead fields, like even greater walls, no word from the outside world. Isolated, endangered, without even a single member of your family to draw comfort from. All because of Thanos. Just like Thor had been, in the aftermath. Just like he had been, after he fell.

But never again. None of you had to be alone now.

For a town, the place was surprisingly empty. There were large spaces between buildings, overgrown lawns and poorly manicured houses. There were churches; though in this country, there seemed to be churches on every corner. There was the grocery store he had taken you from. The memory had grown soft and treasured in his mind. The way you had fallen so dramatically in front of him, like a swooning maiden faced with raw power. The way life had flowed back into your limbs when he touched you, the way strength seized your soul, and you had so adorably tried to break his nose.

All he had felt then was your warmth. The blow might have felled a human man, but he was so much more. And he had since proven that to you. Mostly.

You still weren't ready for further steps into this relationship. That was okay. You had a busy life now, lots to think about. Your days were full of so much more than just deciding what icing to put on the cupcakes.

Speaking of...

Loki wandered the isles of the grocery store, imagining that you had done the same. Day in, day out, up and down these cramped, harshly lit shelves, until it was memorized. He stood outside the bakery section-closed by this time of night-knowing that you had spent years in that very spot. How the work of your hands had been appreciated by everyone who had bought any of the wide variety of baked goods on display, but had never been attributed to you. Every worker in this place wore the same uniform, the same hat, the same color. They were forced into facelessness.

You had worn that same uniform when he first found you. You'd lost your hat in the mire outside New Asgard, and he'd had the ugly, ill-fitted uniform thrown out. Only the apron remained, decorated, bettered, made more worthy of you and what you were becoming.

Loki adored the style of clothing you wore now; a mix of traditional Midgardian forms and Asgardian details-as unique in its position as you were. And you had taken to it so naturally! It would be nice to see you in some purely Asgardian pieces though. Specifically, Asgardian lingerie...

Loki tore his wandering mind away from that alluring subject, lingering instead on the array of presumably delicious baked goods before him. There were confetti cupcakes with galaxy-colored icing, covered in glitter, labeled 'Sayd-cupkakes', and a little photoshopped picture of you with rainbows and sparkles fountaining from your hands. He was sorely tempted to filch it, but he had already stolen something from this place.

On a table next to the cupcakes, there were green iced croissants, slightly unfurled before baking, in order to make them look less like a swirl, and more like bulls horns. These were labeled 'Lossants', and Loki struggled with amusement at the awful puns, and awareness about how inappropriate this probably was, considering all he had done. This would never have gone over in New York. The store would have been shut down immediately.

But your old workplace honored you. And seemed to at least acknowledge the reality of himself. If this tiny town could do that, perhaps there was hope yet.

Loki headed down the street, where it seemed a majority of the local eateries were located, and chose the most rustic looking. This would be the place where the local poor would eat, when they could afford to.

The décor was odd to him-it seemed there was little thematic cohesion, with everything from old signs, to movie posters, to farm animals made of wood or tin affixed to the walls. The false leather of the booth seating was red and cracked, and the yellowish lighting threw a grungy pall over everything.

Even in the guise of a rough old man, Loki managed to charm the waitress, ordering a combo plate of breakfast foods, which he was pleased to find were served all day. These were delicious, but he could see how they would be unhealthy for a human, who burned calories at a slower rate than Asgardians did. But Loki knew that peasants of both species needed hearty fare, to do the work that they did.

Personally, Loki found these 'waffles' to be delightful in taste and texture. Did you like these? Had you sat in this seat, smiled at this waitress, eaten waffles off these plates? Did you like this sublime sweetness known as maple syrup?

Or did you eschew these things in favor of the protein? These heavy scrambled eggs, the crunchy bacon, the sausage that was uncomfortably greasy. Asgardian food had been refined over millennia to provide for the needs of mighty warriors: it would be much healthier for you than this.

But maybe he could have some greasy sausage brought for you sometimes. He knew how you loved strong flavors.

He could feed you little tidbits. You could lick his fingers.

Again, Loki had to drag his thoughts away from such subjects, and concentrate on satisfying his other hungers. He had to pay with Icelandic money, bespelled to look like American dollars, but he would likely not be back this way again, so it wouldn't matter when the spell wore off.

Besides, they could just exchange it, couldn't they? It was the correct amount.

He wandered out into the night, allowing himself to get lost in the streets of your town. It was mostly quiet, but the sounds of music and television sets could be heard inside the houses, and cars ran back and forth infrequently on the hot streets. There was smoke in the air, the sounds of gatherings in backyards, and even here, the cry of cicadas. Loki located your 'High School', and what must have also been your 'Middle School', and 'Elementary School', though he still didn't understand the distinction. But there was only one of each in this little town, so you must have attended at least one. Perhaps you had been selected for the 'High school' due to your intellectual acuity? But then why were you still a peasant among humans?

You were exalted in Asgard now, paramour to a prince. He wanted to believe that it didn't matter, but it was your upbringing. It was what had shaped your personality, and informed your outlook on life. This town, with its run down buildings and overgrown lots, fenced in by walls of corn, it had created you. This was your true maker; it moulded you, and was still a part of you, like the Shining Realm would always be a part of him, no matter what was going by the name of Asgard now.

Loki was not so sure that he really liked this place. For being so flat and open, it still felt hemmed in and constricting. But he liked you, so he liked something of this place.

He walked all the way to the other side of town, and out towards the corn. There was a verge here as well; grass and wild plants between the town and fields, and he lay down there, watching the stars go by.

He must gave dozed off, because next he knew, he was waking to a different song. Birds made up the chorus this time, and he sat up to the rising scent of clover, their little pink and white flowers heated by the light of the morning sun. They mingled with the honeysuckle vine winding along the fence behind him, and-yes those were the flowers you had shown him in the Akureyri botanical garden.

Eager to be gone before anybody noticed, he gathered a bouquet of the cheerful, purple blooms. These he pressed into your hands when you greeted him on his return, as well as a quick kiss on the top of your sleepy head

If you wondered how he had gotten them, you were too drowsy to ask, and he bid you go back to sleep. You could both be late today.

#lasabrjotr #loki (marvel)#loki x reader #Heimdall (Marvel)

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llcebaby · 4 years

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@xgodlike said:

😡♀☿ ☯▼

@hopingforjustice said:

♀ ☿

Ask the mun! | Accepting

😡 : Worse role play-related encounter and what advice you would give to others to avoid similar situations?

The worst I can think of is four years ago. An old mutual [ who I was previously pretty passive and accommodating towards ] straight up asked me to use my muse to assault their child muse [ don't really want to go into detail but you get the picture it was gross. ] It scared the shit out of me and I stopped writing for a couple of months completely after they asked. I think the best way to avoid encroachment of your comfort zone is to KNOW your limits and be very clear with what is alright and what is out of the question with whoever you write with. I still struggle today with being firm with people, but that situation taught me that it's important to put your foot down on stuff.

♀ : A trope you catch yourself falling back too often?

UhHH big stoic villain men & unhinged nasty villain women aksfhJDJGK. Villains are my most common trope, I fucking love writing them and their individual mentalities. I kind of struggle with extroverted protagonists because I tend to internalize a lot of my writing with a character.

☿ : A trope you dislike?

Love triangles, 100%. I rarely see them executed well, and it always feels like there’s a blindingly obvious choice or its just pretty much a coin toss for person A when person B and C are equally viable and attractive. Shallow, boring and done to death skfjkg.

☯ : Greatest challenge to writing your character?

Actually keeping him interested in someone/something. Naturally, he will switch off or flat out dismiss anything he doesn't deem either as a threat or as directly important. Because of this, Vanilla also tends to be pretty ‘black and white’ with how he reacts to things -- he's either a belittling asshole or a passive sycophant. But it can be kind of fun to force him into a more gray area when facing a situation or muse outside of his normal framing.

▼ : Are there popular head canons for your character that you disagree with? Why?

I don’t like the fandom's tendency to project all of Vanilla's fanatical and ruthless behaviors into some whiny one-dimensional yandere trope, or an incel that will lose his shit if DIO isn't constantly throwing him a bone or is interacting with other characters instead of him. People tend to forget that Vanilla's most common state of being is calm and level-headed, it’s how he’s introduced and acts through most of his screentime and that won't crack even in life or death situations. I agree he has an explosive temper that he struggles to ground himself from, but the reason he went ham on Iggy in the first place was because, in Vanilla's mind, he was forced to defile an image of his God that he's completely devout towards [ the literal only purpose he lives for. ]

As for the whole obsessed yandere idea, it would be completely out of character for Vanilla Ice to feel any sense of possession over DIO or even expect him to give him anything in return. The man was prepared to end his life for something as brief as giving DIO some blood, you really think he's going to be up in arms over something trivial like not getting his hand held

#xgodlike #hopingforjustice #Too Cold - [ ooc. ]#Please Excuse Me - [ Asks. ]#// assault ment #nobody:#me: incoherently raNTS about a pantless crackhead for 200 words to defend his honor #that's MY pantless crackhead <3 😔#thanks for asking guys! <3

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skamofcolor · 5 years

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I don't completely hate, but have never been a fan of the Noora/William season on OG Skam. Is Skam Netherlands any good? Do they fix all the weird slightly abusive issues with William in Netherlands? I kinda wanna watch because I like the actress for Netherlands!Noora.

**Spoiler warning and mentions of sexual assault in this answer**

I would highly suggest watching both seasons of Skamnl if you haven’t already, but only if you’re okay watching things with sexual assault in them (if you’ve watched OG season 2 you already know about this storyline, and I would say NL makes it more explicit. They did add trigger warnings to those videos though after fans reached out to ask them to, in case you still want to watch but need to skip those clips). Both Suus de Nies (Isa / Dutch!Eva) and Zoë Love Smith (Liv / Dutch!Noora) are radiant mains and superb actresses, plus the supporting casts are so fun and bring a lot of emotionality to their roles. I think NL works because of it’s strong foundation (talking about the NL showrunners, not necessarily OG) and a dynamic cast.

In regards to Noah (Dutch!William) and Liv (aka, Noliv) in particular… (take this with a grain of salt because NL’s S2 isn’t over yet so we don’t know how well this analysis or opinion will hold up, particularly around Noah’s reaction to Morris (Dutch!Niko) assaulting Liv…)

I am an avid anti-William and anti-Noorhelm person, precisely because William reminded me of my abuser and I didn’t seen anything romantic about their storyline. One of the hard things about answering this question is that (and this is true of all the “Williams,”) is that they’re based on such an abusive creep that each remake would have to had changed the characterization and storyline from S1 to really make me enjoy the remake counterpart. I don’t think any remake has done this, to be frank; the baseline is so horrible, imo, that doing so might have actually been impossible. But that being said, I think Nl, Druck, and España changed enough aspects of their William so that they A) don’t remind me of my abuser and B) are actually a bit fun to watch. At this point I’m not a Noliv, Winterberg, or Norandro shipper but they’re tolerable enough for me that I’m not anti- like I am with Noorhelm and the others (at least when it comes to S2).

imo there are a few things that make NL S2 so much better than the OG, and a lot of it has to do with the framing of the story as more about Liv and her growth rather than like… William manipulating Noora and Noora… realizing William wasn’t all that bad? idk. Noliv is central, don’t get me wrong, but it almost feels like a secondary point, just one of many things going on in Liv’s life, as opposed to being the only thing that matters (as it often felt for me during Noora’s season, even with all the other stuff going on for her). For all intents and purposes, Noora’s season always felt like it was about William’s feelings and reactions, not about Noora’s - even her being sexually assaulted was framed as more about how William would react, and then, how he did react. It always felt like Noora was (I’m not talking about her sexual assault here) was a passive player in her own season, constantly gaslit and doing things because of William. Liv seems to have more agency in her own story - she does things because she wants to, even if she doesn’t want to admit it to herself yet.

So with this framing in mind, I think that there are a few major things that I would say make Noliv better than Noorhelm:

1) The acting. Sorry, it has to be said. I’m not sure who directed Josefine (Noora) to look constantly frightened and/or annoyed or who directed Thomas (William) to look like a serial killer but that really didn’t help. I’m not sure what people are talking about when they say Noorhelm has chemistry just because the two actors looks so flat and uncomfortable all the time in every scene, imo. It’s sad because generally Josefine lights up the screen and is great at microexpressions but she looks genuinely frightened or flat in most of the Noorhelm scene that are supposed to be “romantic.” Thomas either looks creepy or bored. In contrast, Zoë and Monk (Noah) I think bring really nuanced emotions to Noliv. Monk portrays someone who seems 50% serious, 50% laughing at everything in any given situation, and I think he brings something fun to Noah. Even in Noah’s creep moments (like when he keeps showing up at Liv’s place unannounced) Monk is so… charming in that role that it’s easy to forgot that this is like… something an actual stalker does and it’s not cute. Similarly, Zoë makes Liv look at Noah with a genuine fondness as their relationship grows, like “I can’t believe I actually like this dork.” Zoë portrays a host of emotions that make sense in the scenes, and is great at showing hints of emotions that Liv feels but doesn’t want to show.

2) Liv’s agency. So again, I always felt like in OG S2, things were happening to Noora or that she was pressured into things as opposed to her choosing to do things. I think NL made a few dialogue and timeline changes to make it seem like Liv had more choice than Noora did, imo. For example, when Liv asks Noah to stop contacting Engel, he says “sure, if you go on a date with me,” but it seems like a joke? And then… suddenly Liv and Noah are on a date AFSGRG it didn’t have the blackmailing/build up that the OG Noorhelm date had, imo. Or how Noah’s mom dies during the season (actually, during the first Noliv “date”/meeting/whatever), and the show doesn’t try to frame him as being!an asshole from that trauma? As opposed to William, who was an asshole because of the trauma of his sister being killed… offscreen… years ago. But anyway in doing this, it’s Liv who decides to go to Noah’s house and stay over to comfort him, rather than Noora going to a party “for Vilde” and then staying over. There are a few other things but I always got the feeling (which is why it read like abusive) that William was always controlling and one step ahead of Noora. Liv and Noah seem like they’re much more even footing, oftentimes with Liv controlling the narrative.

3) Noah’s characterization. Look, I’m the first one to say being a ~sensitive artist~ doesn’t mean you can’t be a raging misogynist, and I think that’s true for Noah. A lot of his actions in S1 were rooted in misogyny and he never really made up for that. But at least Noah has a personality. And it’s not just being an artist hipster, I actually find him funny and occasionally thoughtful and he’s charming enough for Ralph to like him. I also think he’s more intuitive then William was, just in terms of how he responds to Liv’s reactions to him. It’s baseline empathy but he leaves when she asks him to, he seems to take her fears about their relationship seriously (instead of just rolling his eyes and telling her to get over it), he often waits for her to make the first move. It’s like… from the beginning we know he’s interested in Liv but a lot of the framing is that he’s not actively pursuing her or cross her boundaries - it’s her who comes to him, imo. I actually see redeemable qualities in Noah (again: with the caveat that the season isn’t over yet). I find him fun to watch and I actually smiled at a lot of the interactions between him and Liv. I even thought his reasoning for beating up that guy made sense (the OG bus fight parallel), and I was sympathetic to both his and Liv’s feelings about it. I also think it helps that none of the characters (and, dare I say the show itself) take Noah very seriously? LMAO I always felt like William was supposed to be like, this Unattainable God (ugh) but Noah is just… funny? Like during one of his slow-mos in S1 someone shoots a literal canon of glitter as he walks by! Or how the girl squad keeps calling him “wack painter kid” LOL. This again, has a lot to do with Monk’s humor coming through, but Noah isn’t overblown the way William was, imo. There’s no idol-worship happening behind the scenes…

So with all of this together I think they did manage to make Noliv better because it doesn’t feel abusive the way that Noorhelm does. In the beginning of S2 Noah is still creepy and the show seems to be framing it as cutesy which is my biggest issue with the ship (plus the Engel (Dutch!Vilde) and Noah S1 backstory). But so far, I think they’ve managed to make it something that’s at least a bit enjoyable for me and not downright hard to watch. This is just my opinion, though, if other abusive survivors feel differently they’re also entitled to their opinions! But if the sexual assault storyline won’t bother or trigger you, I would say give S2 a try. NL also isn’t geoblocked and the skamdutch team adds English subtitles right on the Youtube clips! So def watch it on their channel if you try it out.

- mod Jennifer

**NOTE: formatting should be fixed, ok to reblog now**

#answered ask #anti noorhelm

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gatesofember · 5 years

Note

1/3 Hi! I just wanted to send a message about the AM au. I LOVE reading it, and a friend and I bond over it, and we just wanted to tell you that we read the au because of your writing, and how beautifully you handle the balance of “but this is historically more accurate” and “but this makes for a better story”. And we’ve both been seeing how much you seem to feel pressured to include an explicit consummation scene in the story, while you don’t seem to feel like it fits, and for what it’s worth,

First of all, I’m sorry it took me like a week to get around to answering this. I am now a foster mother caring for an teeny tiny perfect adorable kitten who needs attention at all hours of the day.

I am so flattered that you and a friend have bonded over my fic and I love to hear how much you appreciate all the work I’ve put into it! I definitely try to find a balance for the au - both between historical accuracy and good story and between what I want and what the readers want.

Early in my fic-writing career, I promised myself that I’d never take requests or commissions. Commissioned and requested fics of my favorite writers had always fallen short for me and I suspected that was because the writer wasn’t enjoying themselves. My worst fics are the ones I don’t have fun with and my worst scenes are the ones I want to skip. It took me a while to come to this conclusion, but the way I see it, if I don’t want to write it, no one will want to read it. Whenever I get to a scene that’s dull or tedious to write, I know I’m doing something wrong. I ask myself, “How can I reframe this scene? What might make it more interesting? Is it necessary? Should it be replaced?” Thinking like that has rescued so much of my writing. I dropped many scenes from “The Whitethorn Hearth” because they didn’t fit and rearranged a lot of the events to improve the flow. I over-wrote chapter 3 and I struggled to pull the chapter together because it was such tedious work. When I caught myself thinking, “I just want to get this chapter over with,” I finally stopped and said, “What is going on right now that’s preventing me from enjoying myself and how can I fix it?” So I took a step back, figured out what was wrong, and ended up really happy with the chapter.

When I started this au, I promised myself that I wouldn’t let audience reactions change my vision for the story. I’ve done my best to stay true to that, but I’ve definitely been influenced. I wanted to write a historically-inspired drama about two people in an arranged marriage, but story veered toward romance because I felt like that was what readers wanted. Mostly, the betrothal part of the au became longer and more detailed than expected. And that wasn’t always a bad thing! I mentioned some of my regrets about the engagement in the guide, but I prefer some of the changes. Originally, Nico and Will didn’t actually say the “L” word until after the wedding, but I’m much more pleased with “The Whitethorn Hearth” than the initial wedding plan. But on the downside, the late changes meant I was unprepared. Because I didn’t take the time to reframe the story, many of those changes were poorly executed.

What I regret most is how much Will’s character fell flat. I only intended to write a few fics about the betrothal, enough to establish Will as a pure-hearted boy who’s always been surrounded and protected by good friends, a loving family, and his connections to powerful people. He starts out innocent and underdeveloped in contrast to Nico, who carries a lot of baggage from his past. AM au Will was also supposed to contrast with canon Will, who I interpret as hardened by the loss of two brothers and fighting in two wars. AM au Will’s character was supposed to develop while he struggled to live far away from his family, to find his place in a new home, and to figure out his relationship with his husband. Unfortunately, because of the extended betrothal phase, I was stuck on the innocent, underdeveloped Will for a long time. I should have reframed the story to figure out how to make him interesting and dynamic in the early story when I realized I’d spend so much time writing the betrothal phase. But at least now that the wedding is over, I can save Will’s boring character and we’ll watch him grow into the war-hardened yet still calm and kind Will Solace we know from canon.

As far as explicit sex is concerned, the reason I started writing smut was because I felt like there was a tragic lack of good, non-underage content in the Solangelo tag. I thought, “hey, I’m a decent writer, maybe I can do something about that.” Then people liked it and they wanted more. But…smut is kind of boring to write, honestly. There’s a formula to it: describe the action, describe the sensation. Maybe add a bit of fun dialogue, possibly some romance, but once you’ve written a few smut fics, you’ve written them all. Sure, you can try different positions, different types of play, or different anatomies, but at the end of the day, it’s still just describing physical arousal. A lot of the time, if you change the setting, the universe, or even the characters, you can still copy and paste the actions and sensations. Smut doesn’t have much room for creativity. I always tried to make mine different; I did my best to frame it to be unique to the setting and I used a lot of dialogue to showcase the characters’ personalities and relationship. Even then, it got boring after I’d written a few, and although I said no whenever someone made a request, I still felt like I had to keep writing smut even though I wasn’t having fun.

Thankfully, I’ve gotten a lot better about staying true to myself since my smut-writing days. If I have a hard time writing the consummation fic, I plan to stop and ask myself why, then find a way to fix it. I don’t think it will be very pornographic. The purpose of the consummation fic isn’t to elicit the reader’s sexual arousal; the purpose is to tell a story of the developing relationship between two characters, specifically them figuring out their sexualities and physical compatibility. It’s also meant to have a slight commentary on how heteronormativity has influenced same-sex sexual practices in the au, with hints of existentialist questions like “What defines sex? What is its function as a non-reproductive practice, personally, interpersonally, and societally? Where does the definition of sex begin and end, and what actions count as sex? Is there an objective definition, or is it entirely subjective? And if it is entirely subjective, can we say that sex exists at all?”

But mostly it’s full of absurdist comedy with a dash of dirty humor, plus some romance.

So no, I don’t want to write smut. But I do want to write the story of Nico and Will hilariously making complete idiots of themselves while trying to figure out anal. If I focus on the aspects of the story that I want to write, then I’ll have fun doing it.

Thank you for your support and for reminding me not to let myself be influenced by expectations. I think most readers will be ok with my choices. I occasionally get comments that are rude, demanding, or entitled, but the majority of my feedback is wonderful and supportive! And if readers are dissatisfied by the level of explicitness, they can fuck right off and find a different fic to read. I’ve already contributed enough smut to the Solangelo tag. It’s my au and I’m going to do what I want!

#lionessfeather #arranged marriage au

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johannesviii · 6 years

Text

The Adventuress of Henrietta Street

Some highlights of the last EDA I’ve read (The Adventuress of Henrietta Street).

I took these screens while reading, along with my reactions. As usual, this is full of spoilers.

“Let’s wish for something simpler next time. I need a break.” (me, right after reading Grimm Reality)

OH SHIT OH PLEASE NO NOT NOW. NOT. NOW.

This is not what I wanted.

I’m not going to make any friends here, first because I’m sure this book has a ton of fans, and second because I don’t dislike it for the reasons you might expect. Sure, it sidelines Fitz and Anji, sure, the ideas aren’t as numerous or groundbreaking as the ones in Alien Bodies and Interference, sure, the pace is extremely slow, sure, it does some debatable things with the internal logic of the series, and yes, sure, it mostly takes place in a brothel. But while these things can be considered problems, they’re not real problems to me. Some of the most creative things in this story are actually possible thanks to them.

No. I have a problem with the way this story is written and framed. And I can already hear someone saying something like "what, is the academic style too much for your small brain?", but I actually think it doesn’t go far enough with its fake academic style.

By all means, write a fake pseudo-academic paper! Invent a ton of fake sources and names! Write horribly long digressions in footnotes until they eat up the rest of the page! Analyse this story like a bad history student and put on paper some really weird conclusions about it- most of them probably wrong. Even if you don’t go all out and write House of Leaves lite, at least write Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell lite, please. Have. fun. with. it.

But it’s not written like a fake master thesis, because there’s no sources, no footnotes, no actual goal or real analysis (right or wrong), and in the end, it’s mostly written like a normal novel, except it has a very flat tone and often digresses to talk about historical events. Reading Henrietta Street is not like proof-reading a badly organised master thesis written by a dispassionate student: it’s like trying to read a novel buried under piles of gratuitous infodumps. And that’s a real shame, because there’s an interesting story somewhere in there. 4,5/10

Okay, this is interesting.

That’s VERY cool.

That part made me laugh pretty hard.

Apparently the biggest danger that sex workers face in their line of work is accidentally summoning demons, and that also made me laugh pretty hard.

I’m not sure this is supposed to be funny, but it sure is.

Aaaaaaand she actually summoned a demon by accident and that guy was killed. Okay.

That’s very nice but there’s a distressing lack of footnotes and fake references in that pseudo-academic book. Also if there’s no quote from the dream journal (or if there’s some, but boring), I will riot.

Okay, first, I have to say Scarlette sounds incredible.

Second, I immediately pictured her like Mylène Farmer’s 18th century libertine persona, except with black hair.

This is probably a bad thing.

Oh my god

Ah, I was starting to wonder where our main idiot was.

Please tell me Eight is fencing with Scarlette. PLEASE.

YESSSSS Oh my god what a wonderful mental picture.

SCARLETTE, NO.

WAIT WTF EIGHT HAS A BEARD NOW?!

Ooohhh, he has finally discovered where he was from and probably what happened to Gallifrey! Interesting!

We already kinda knew that was what made The City of the Dead and its magic possible, but it’s always nice to have a clear confirmation.

I’M HOWLING

"Hello I’m the Doctor, can I stay here" "Sure"

So he’s looking for magicians. And clearly doing some research. I have to ask, though: where are Anji, Fitz and the TARDIS?

Meanwhile, on "The Doctor Is Asexual", episode 75647

These books have recently acquired a strange taste for tarot reading.

Wait, the Doctor is sick?

That’s all very interesting but could you please hurry up a little bit?

Again, I wish this kind of fake document had fake sources and/or footnotes to accompany it.

Again, I wish there was a fake drawing and a fake source there.

Interesting.

Also... is it bad if I’d like to read that book instead of the one I’m currently reading?

So the demons actually look like apes. Uh.

How much do you want to bet these creatures were inspired by this painting?

I love this dialogue.

What is your plan and what the hell are you trying to do.

"When Scarlette asked reasonably what on Earth she thought she was doing"

I laughed out loud at this awful, awful typo in French. That should be "par les couilles" and the level of sheer incompetence on display here is worse than any misused French ever printed in these books (yes, even the non-sentences of The Turing Test).

If you don’t speak the language, don’t pretend you do & send it to an editor anyway. You already know I don’t speak English very well, but you don’t see me trying to get my English typos printed in a book costing actual money and bought by actual people.

What are you trying to achieve.

Well you’re not wrong.

FINALLY

This is a wonderful little scene.

"It’s worth stopping" YEAH YOU THINK

WAIT WHAT, THEY DIDN’T ARRIVE WITH THE TARDIS

WHAT’S GOING ON

Another wonderful mental image.

Okay so I think that’s an important character. I don’t think anyone spoiled me anything too important about this book, but I’m pretty sure this guy comes back later.

The fact I didn’t stop to consider how awkwardly Fitz would behave in a brothel is all you need to prove how innocent minded I tend to be

This would be so much better if it was either written completely like a fake academic work or completely like a novel, because this weird hybrid thing isn’t working.

CUTE

How much do you want to bet he did a James Bond impression.

Fitz no.

Also this is a pretty great scene.

Is that a compliment or an insult

Oh. So he was looking for magicians of sorts who could act as a replacement for the Time Lords?

Anji as a prophet and a force of nature is a marvellous thought.

"But they had a tendency to giggle every time [Fitz] walked past"

Okay, I guess Sabbath is bad news, then.

Is Sabbath actually human? Because if he’s a Time Lord survivor, that would explain a lot of things.

Probably panic.

It’s not a real EDA until someone is coughing up blood

Or because this book is clumsily organised.

And here’s another typo in French (éventrés).

Also who is that random guy with a rosette and why is he, like, metaphorically eating popcorns in the background?

Is that battleship a TARDIS?

It’s completely anachronistic, so it could very well be.

A question you could be asking yourself in quite a lot of these books, Doctor.

Take a shot every time an adjective reminds you that Sabbath is fat.

I’M HOWLING

Ohhhh is it his fault because he destroyed Gallifrey? Is that it?

What the fuck are you two talking about.

So the wedding is some sort of ritual? What?

What inspired the author to sit down and write this book also remains unclear.

That still sounds wonderful and I’d gladly read that book if it existed. Although it’s easy to picture it like some sort of Codex Seraphinianus variant.

A strange way to talk about regeneration, but a pretty cool one.

Of course, Doctor, of course.

Why is the author so fucking terrified by this very mundane detail about women.

"Assassin" as a noun doesn’t have a feminine equivalent so this is yet another typo in French.

Ohhh, is he trying to rebuild a TARDIS? Where is the real TARDIS, anyway?

You really don’t want Anji to have any kind of major role in that story, do you?

So this is what the ‘horizon’ is like. I like the black sun thing. Well okay it’s a bit of a goth cliché, but still.

I SPAT OUT MY TEA

DON’T MAKE ME THINK OF BETTER STORIES

And I’m pretty sure this would be a lot more dramatic if this book was written like a novel OR like a cold academic piece, but it’s neither, so it just sounds disinterested.

At least we have excerpts from the dream journal mentioned at the beginning!

...we know. It’s a very, very mundane thing, dude. It happens when a lot of women are living together. It happens in nunneries too. There’s nothing magical or evil about it, and this is getting very ridiculous.

Recently, in one of these liveblogs, I was wondering how many stories had living planets in Doctor Who and particularly in the EDAs... so I’m glad somebody else thought it was a recurring theme as well.

No seriously who the fuck is this guy.

Okay okay I laughed pretty hard.

I seriously doubt that.

138 PDF pages, and next to nothing has happened yet, apart from a lot of exposition.

Yes okay but could you please do something with this idea instead of just exposing it layer after layer?

A bit too meta for my taste, but still enjoyable.

Again, more explanations for this very cool concept, but nothing new.

Okay. Now do something.

We knew this already. Now do something with it.

An interesting parallel but the book still refuses to do anything with its ideas at this point.

Meanwhile, nothing happens.

YOU DON’T SAY

OH. Okay. At least we know the purpose of that wedding thing now.

It’s… very weird, honestly. I mean, the Doctor never really had ‘roots’ with Gallifrey, he hated the place (in Classic Who, at least – and in New Who as soon at it existed again) and tried to get away from it as soon as he could. But hey, fluidity in canon and all that, so why not. Can’t say I like it, but yeah, why not.

Meanwhile the Doctor gets worse and worse and Fitz finds yet another girlfriend "out of boredom"- which is understandable at this point.

Usually I would be like "OH NO" but since something is happening at last, I’m like "OH MY GOD, FINALLY"

Wait wait wait.

You know I try to avoid spoilers for these books but I couldn’t avoid this one. So.

Is this the book where Eight loses a f█cking HEART

I WISH

And now the Babewyns have a leader, since you persisted to do nothing.

Again, I wish this book was full of fake sources for this kind of things.

Good description of the TARDIS’ sound!

Finally, someone’s doing something about the Babewyns! Go Scarlette!

I like this detail.

WAIT A F█CKING SECOND

IS THAT THE MASTER

IS THE MASTER JUST CHILLING IN THE BACKGROUND OF THIS STORY WITH POPCORNS WHILE WAITING FOR THE SHIT TO HIT THE FAN

Okay, so the wedding plans had to be changed and now the bride will be Scarlette.

And the Master is drinking in the background, like:

Eh eh, so Moffat wasn’t the first one to think about this!

Take a shot every time an adjective reminds you that Sabbath is fat.

Holy shit, Scarlette rules.

And this is very sweet.

Well you’re not wrong.

Eight you are literally dying, there is no shame in using a wheelchair, okay

This is a great mental picture.

I’m pretty sure "howl of laughter" wasn’t the intended reaction, but I’m sorry, he kissed Scarlette and instantly started the apocalypse, I can’t stop laughing

You know what, just for fun, I am going to pretend this is a post-apocalyptic version of the Library of the Serpent’s Hand from the SCP mythos.

Ooooooh boy.

YEP. YEP, YOU ARE THE MASTER. YOU LITTLE SHIT.

At least he’s being reasonable for once.

How very convenient for you.

Yes I was about to ask, could you please hurry up and die already?

OH SHIT JULIETTE HANGED HERSELF.

YEAH YOU THINK

ISN’T THAT OBVIOUS WTF

Wait for it.

FDSDFGHFDSGHFDFH I KNEW IT

To be honest, this book is FINALLY getting intense and interesting.

WELP, FITZ ISN’T THE LEADER ANYMORE, BYE BYE FITZ

YOU DON’T SAY

Bye bye, Master.

You weren’t very useful, were you.

YOU DON’T SAY

This place looks terrifying in my head.

Finally, FINALLY, this book is gripping.

But it took the Doctor, literally dying on the floor, in a pool of black blood, in a post-apocalyptic dimension for it to become gripping.

Or just a self-insert.

OHHHH HERE IT COMES, FOLKS.

Ah yes, one last typo in French, just because.

YOU DON’T SAY

Hey, isn’t that the cover?

SFSDFGHGFDHHHH ONE OF YOUR HEARTS WAS LITERALLY TORN AWAY FROM YOUR DYING BODY FIVE MINUTES AGO, CAN YOU PLEASE SIT DOWN FOR A SECOND BEFORE CHALLENGING GIANT MONSTERS IN A FIGHT TO THE DEATH

Hi happy Eight, we missed you!

YES BUT SCARLETTE WITH A SWORD IS AMAZING

Holy shit, Eight.

Holy shit dude.

I hope Scarlette isn’t really dead.

Apparently she is. F█ck.

There’s hugs, though. Hugs are always good.

DOCTOR WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING

COME BACK HERE THIS INSTANT

OH SHIT SCARLETTE FAKED HER OWN DEATH

And she’s still pretty great, too.

How very convenient for you.

EXTREMELY OMINOUS.

Phew. I’m glad this book is over. It was just as exhausting as the previous one, although in completely different ways.

#The Adventuress of Henrietta Street #Eighth Doctor Adventures #Eighth Doctor #Fitz Kreiner #Anji Kapoor #EDAs #an EDA liveblog full of useless comments #doctor who #long post #nostalgia #caps lock #body horror tw #blood tw

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sunwukong-stoaway-blog · 6 years

Text

Oh shit, 3AM, time for a hot take on the FNDM from the perspective of someone who’s drifted in and out of it for years now. And yeah, spoilers, it involves Sun, the Bees, and experience therein.

We do need a few things set for the record before I dive further in. First, there is indeed a difference between normal Bee fans and flat out Wasps. Y’know, the psychopathic harassing jerks. There is also a segment of the Blacksun fndm that is more than happy to be as harassment heavy and take things too damn far. The problem in judging which is bigger is that you’ll only ever see the size of whatever groups you happen to be in contact with, which means if you’re a normal fan of one side, you’re likely to only see the hate-filled opposite side. And if you’re removed, then it’s a roll of the dice whether you see Wasps or... whatever the BlackSun equivalent is. And whichever side is bigger, they both still exist, which is the main problem. Now let’s take a stroll down memory lane and acknowledge a few things.

First and foremost. The Bees as a ship only exists as it does because people were throwing the first characters on screen at each other and held to them. This was true of Ruby and Weiss after the Red and White trailers, then true of Blake and Yang after the Black and Yellow trailers. We didn’t know anything about any of these characters, (in fact it completely flipped Ruby and Weiss’ personality traits, making Ruby a cool and aloof sniper chick and Weiss a soft melting princess) but the ships were already cemented and beloved by the community.

This kept going into the first season proper. Sure, we had alternate blends of ships, like Ladybug, Freezerburn, and Monochrome. Even Enabler, Ruby/Yang if anyone remembers that incestuous ship, before it was burnt to the ground by canon. But Whiterose/The Bees were the biggest game in town. Seemed to be backed by the canon too, to an extent. All the characters introduced were paired off and sent on their way, including JNPR, but this didn’t stop FNDM from laughing and enjoying themselves. (One particularly popular joke during the Jaune Arc was snickering that Yang and Blake were doing the do offscreen instead of running for help, for instance.) It didn’t matter Yang and Blake didn’t have a single conversation that didn’t end in Blake snubbing Yang and Yang writing Blake off as a “lost cause,” they were the pairing and nobody else was around, so, that was canon. And then episode 15 rolled around.

Everything broke down with episode 15, though not all at once. It introduced Sun and Penny, and FNDM wasn’t entirely sure what to do with them. Some, like myself, found the new characters and their dynamics fun and interesting. Some, on the other hand, declared immediately that Sun was a rapist/stalker/murderer/assassin of the White Fang, sometimes all at once. Some people had been a little bored of Jaune by this point but Sun was the first morally good character the FNDM declared a monster, and to this day, has received the roughest ‘welcome.’ And, among the accusations, the declaration that Sun was nothing but a genderbend of Yang for a hetero ship. And so the tensions began to mount.

Bear in mind, up until this point the Bees had grown to be the de facto biggest ship in the FNDM. Nothing against Ruby, Weiss, or Whiterose, but Blake and Yang were the most mature/adult of the team, and consequently, got the most attention, desire, fanart, et cetra. Now here comes the first character to make contact with Blake in a definitively different fashion and connect with her. Without question, they saw Sun as a threat and an excuse to attack the show for not giving them the Bees. Hell, it’s no surprise they even shipped him with Penny (Optimal Primates) for a time, just because they debuted the same episode, to try and get him ‘away’ from Blake in the fandom’s eyes. The response to Sun by these proto-Wasps, otherwise known as ‘the entirety of the Bees at the time’ was swift, overwhelming, and nothing short of cruel. Especially when they started harassing Sun RPers, those who defended him, liked him, and so on. People who drew those first few pieces of Blacksun art were flat out attacked and screamed at to shut down their channels. (Similar attacks started appearing at this time too at artists for other pairings, noticeably Ladybug.) And for a time, that oppressive and painful atmosphere was reality.

Then, I put up a post pointing out how little canon the Bees actually had, and compared it to Blacksun. In V1? This was an overwhelming difference. I outright called the Bees a “Ghost ship,” a ship that had absolutely no basis in canon yet sailed anyway... And attacked others. Needless to say, this was not taken well by the proto-wasps.

It didn’t matter that I actively shipped Whiterose, passively Ladybug, and eventually Nuts & Dolts. It didn’t matter if what I said was true, that the emperor had no clothes (or canon.) All that mattered to these people was slamming me down and declaring me to the world a homophobic monster for not shipping their ship. To do everything in their power to break my spirit, break my connections with people, and break any place I had in this fledgling FNDM of comfort. All for their blatantly bullshit moral highground arguments.

This went on for a good three weeks after that first post. Round the clock attacks, harassment, and vile displays of power. It really did break me, all things considered. That much negativity drove me into a deep depression, to the point I could barely leave my dorm room in university for food, let alone class. I’m still hesitant to use the term for fear of it’s overused impression, but this made the Bees ship into a full on trigger for me. Triggering every emotion of fear, depression, and anxiety that constant bombardment thrust upon me around the clock. To an extent, it still is such a trigger, and so I can admit without issue I’m biased.

Thankfully, it did all have a silver lining. I became a lightning rod of hate, but the heavy atmosphere was broken. Bees no longer were unchallenged rulers of the FNDM, and people legit began to call out the behavior of these proto-wasps as full on bullying, or at least stopped acting like the Bees were canon. There was room to move forward now. But... of course, it didn’t stop there.

V2 rolled around. On the one hand we got Yang and Blake having the first dance, as well as actually having a real conversation on screen and developing some kind of unique bond, flimsy as it may be to some. (Seriously, Blake’s having severe overwrought depression and anxiety over Adam and the White Fang, Yang makes it about her. Yeah, that can show solidarity for the cause, but it does little to assuage Blake’s issues. I do see it as a good scene, but it’s still not a great relationship.) On the other hand, we were confirmed halfway through the year, and thanks to Sun/Neptune being cut from that last part of the Paladin fight, Blake had to be the one to ask what Yang’s Semblance was. ...Yeah. Half a year of being partners. And she doesn’t canonically know yet what Yang’s Semblance is. Hell of a partnership, yeah?

And on the other side of the coin. Sun and Blake had their full on dance, came to it as a date, and it included Yang stepping aside to give Blake to Sun. This on top of meeting Sun’s team for the first time and solidifying his place as being right there with RWBY and JNPR. ...And to counterbalance, we got Neptune. Seriously. Wasps had Neptune pegged as Sun’s “actual girlfriend” from the second his name was dropped. Then the design came in, they declared Neptune FtM trans, and that Sun was dating him. I mean, clearly, right? Then Neptune actually showed up, he turned out to be the most aggressively straight-showing guy on the show yet, and the FNDM HATED him for it. Pitched him into the same bin as Sun right then and there, while shouting they’d be a better couple than the alternatives. (This also ended up, for the first time, generating enmity from Monochrome shippers for Sun. Before, Blacksun and MC shippers were effectively “ship and let ship” considering both had suffered under the Bees, but since that stranglehold had been broken after V1. Now Neptune came to town and fucked that peace up too.) Seriously. Just like the Bees, Seamonkeys only exists as a ship because the FNDM slammed the characters together without a clue what they were even like. Same as with Optimal Primates, remember?

Overall, V2 ended up being more or less like the aftermath of V1 the whole way through. Salty and bitter Wasps bickering and yelling about Sun even being in the same frame as Blake, trying to reaffirm their position, while everyone else just relaxed, some bitched about Jaune existing, and others enjoying the moment. ...Then V3 happened.

V3 was a powderkeg of moments for both Blacksun and the Bees. From the fingerguns/blushing/”dork” scene, to Blake tearfully holding Yang’s... one remaining hand, to the questions of where Blake was going after the ending. And consequently, the ship-to-ship combat had grown once again. Things like editing the fingerguns scene into a gif of Weiss proposing to Blake, or conspiracy theories that Sun was a mole for the WF hiding in plain sight, or just generally arguing back and forth over how important Blake holding Yang’s hand and Sun’s poppy love song were. The thing was, by V3, enough new fans of the series drawn in to all the Bee fanart that didn’t have the Wasp mentality existed to properly differentiate between the two groups. And consequently, some would-be Bee fans were surprised when their open appreciation for the pair was met with negativity and disdain by those who were used to liking the Bees being associated with far worse. The Wasps still existed, without question, but their presence muddied the waters and turned what was once a straight-forward fandom war into messy, vile person-to-person conflict, with bystanders dragged into the fighting. This, to my knowledge, is where the wasp-equivalent of Blacksun fans ended up coming to be, unable to differentiate between the Wasps that they hated and the Bee fans that they shouldn’t. In short, V3 was the most divisive and painful of the seasons for this warfare.

As we approach the modern day it should be noted that the longer the show runs, the less and less these ship-to-ship combats make an impact on the FNDM as a whole. This is a good thing, realistically, but it comes from an unfortunate division in the FNDM in general, with camps splitting off into effective echo chambers, and generally only interacting to spit hatred at each other.

V4 was easily the single lowest point for all of the Bees. With Blake and Yang canonically split apart, and Sun hanging around Blake full time as her only traveling partner, the Bees had effectively nothing to do but sigh and hope for a reunion soon. The Wasps, on the other hand, eagerly took to instead tearing into Sun’s character again, this time jumping on the questionable decision to shadow Blake and keep her safe, and characterizing it as flat out stalking... even without full knowledge of the situation. The Wasps just painted the scene as “Sun has spent months following Blake in a coat,” and a large part of the fandom picked it up in turn. Then, as a follow-up act, decided to screw with Sun a different way and ship him with, of all people, Kali, or Blake’s mom. Yeah, it was creepy and fetishism, and had no purpose other than to break Kali’s implicit acceptance of Sun as a partner for Blake into bizarre OOC lust. It’s telling that there was far and away more porn and pure shipping for Sun/Kali than Ghira/Kali for a while, despite the Bees laughing to themselves that “of course YANG would be accepted by Ghira, unlike Sun~.” Legit, Sun/Kali was just another attempt at slamming Sun together with the nearest character that wasn’t Blake. Just like Penny. Just like Neptune. But, V4 was the volume of personal growth and discovery for each of the main cast... And consequently, this journey down each of their four paths was panned by many “rwde” fans for not having the inter-team connections they wanted. Funny how the volume most about each member of RWBY and their personal stories gets panned as the one least about them. Whatever. All of this led to V5, however, and where we are now.

And where we are now is... Right back to how we were in V3. With giddy Bees squealing over Yang and Blake exchanging eye contact and words, while Wasps re-characterize Sun’s connection to Blake (including pushing her back to the team that she ran away from because it was time to reconnect and he knew that) as “pushing Blake to be with Yang.” It’s kind of absurd, right? Well... That’s what this FNDM war has been to me. Just absurd.

I’ve watched wasps shout down Micheal Jones because they don’t like Sun being close to Blake. I’ve seen wasps countless times call out RT as queerbaiting for not giving them the Bees right fucking then. I’ve heard directly from Wasps that it doesn’t matter to (the ones I talked to) whether any other LGBTQA+ people/ships/focuses appear or are naturally featured in the show, unless the Bees are made canon, they believe RT lied to them.

And that astounds me. RT did not lie to you. Either you were lied to by fans from that Trailer era, the original proto-wasps, or you lied to yourself. You were told the lie that the Bees were canon, had to be canon, needed to be canon or something was wrong. That Sun is a monster. That you are owed anything. Hard fucking stop.

So where does all this leave us? ...Hopefully, understanding that this fighting has been going on for far too long, and is over far too little. I want anyone in the FNDM who has ever been affected by the ship wars to read this, to share this with others with similar experiences, on either side of it. Because ultimately, I’m only on one side, and I’d love for Bees to give their take on all this. To get both sides to come to an agreement to ship-and-let-ship, to put to rest the anger and frustration and fear of the other side that fueled Wasps and, perhaps, myself for so long.

This shit’s gone on long enough.

#ooc #rwby #fndm #shipping #I truly hope this goes over well.

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vaultsexteen · 6 years

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The Vault Sexteen End of Year Fic Rec List 2017

because i read a lot of fallout fanfiction in the last five months and i want to justify it

i get into the nitty gritty of Why I Like These Fics So Much because i love explaining things, so i’m shoving this under a cut!

Honesty, Industry, Prudence by meanoldauthor

Slaves of Caesar's Legion are all but invisible. Most use it to avoid punishment, but the clever might turn it to their own gain. A rare few, through a roll of fate, might gain unexpected influence on the Legion itself.

Caesar's Priestesses are the only women held in any regard among the Legion, and even then only as caretakers and nurses to children. A mysterious and select group, their influence seems to go no further than the Temple doors. However, one lucky slave sees beyond the safety and softness of their work--and into a far deeper potential.

a wholly self-contained, character-driven story that takes us through life in the Legion through a woman’s eyes, and also one of the first FNV fics i ever read that captured my interest. i love worldbuilding and i super love when fics explore and build upon established canon and give these worlds their own space to breathe, to take a peek behind the curtain. this fic builds upon the Legion’s lore excellently, weaving a rich tapestry that makes the setting come alive. Aquilina is also a very compelling character with strong motivations, and keeping up with her life was always super interesting.

Qui Sumus by ghostofshe

A deceiver, two frumentarii, and a Courier, betting on the future of the Legion with a stack of mismatched cards and stolen caps.

4 chapters and yet to be finished but i love love love it. the Courier gets replaced by his twin sister and it’s already an intriguing premise but the writing for the characters really sold this fic for me. if you can’t tell, i am a sucker for character-driven stories, but that’s really because the characters are the backbone of a good story, for me - and the ones here are super strong and distinct and are really fun to watch. Cato and Nox and Canus are great, but i also love the depiction of Vulpes Inculta here - here’s a version of him that’s around someone familiar, which is super jarring usually, but what we’ve seen of him so far works for the character in my opinion.

dear hearts and gentle people by cheloniidae

The Courier survives the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. Her mother loses her all the same.

the Courier’s exploits told from her family’s point of view - a concept that’s been done before, but this one pulls it off the best, in my opinion. short but bittersweet! all the details about Johanna’s life and her relationship with her family come forward, and her motivations for the events of FNV, which take place off-screen, are at the forefront.

oasis of light by cheloniidae

A late night's work before the war.

(Instead of a family, Robert House has a city.)

if i am a sucker for anything, it’s character studies, and this was an excellent character study for House. it’s under 700 words but it perfectly encapsulates House’s motivations and feelings so well that it made a huge impression on me, and made me think about how i frame the motivations of my own characters.

G, You Look Good To Me by moon_crater & SynthApostate

Razz has a problem. O’Hanrahan is more than happy to help! Cheerfully, annoyingly happy to help. Whether Razz wants him to or not.

this fic is SO CUTE. it’s SO GOOD. minor FNV characters really got to shine in this fic, it has 6 chapters so far and i love every single one of them. it does a fantastic job of setting up the budding relationship between its main pair, their chemistry is so great. they’re finding that they have more in common with each other than they thought - but they also start to appreciate their differences, too. and it’s not just about o’hanrahan & razz, but poindexter and mags have integral roles, too, and their relationship as a whole unit is explored as well. i love how their friendships are slowly but surely developing together.

Here’s to the Losers by moon_crater

Fate decides Benny needs to acquire four-feet-ten inches of mouthy sidekick. Benny disagrees. Too bad he's got no say in the matter.

don’t you love it when characters are kicked down a peg or two or ten? ‘cause i sure do, and this fic hits Benny hard. Benny Gecko, shitty garbage man, has to take care of a smart-mouthed little kid, and it’s beautiful and also amazing. he’s still so obviously Benny, he can smooth-talk his way out of getting killed by raiders but he’s also always looking around every corner for anything that might kick him in the gut or stab him in the neck, and it’s just amplified when he’s in a situation where he has to look out for something other than himself. they got his character down cold and the situation they put him in is a great test of that character. plus, the kid is super funny and a great character in their own right, and i love their interactions! they play off each other super well!

The “Moron” in “Moroni” by TerribleAndSadThings

“Men like Graham do not change, Courier. His loyalty was never to Caesar, but to the war Caesar provided him. His religion is not that of New Canaanites, but that of battle. His god is not of kindness or mercy, but of slaughter.”

first off, THIS COURIER. WHAT A CHARACTER. seeing this Courier that is just a force of nature is so great, and my favorite kind of Courier if i’m being completely honest. just reading the other NPCs try to figure out how this Courier even works is always entertaining. and then there’s his relationship with Joshua Graham, which feels like such a cataclysmic disaster yet feels very very right. this fic has maybe one of my most favorite depictions of Joshua Graham ever.

and that’s not even getting into the SMUT PART

Case File: Vulpes Inculta by RandamHajile & turianosauruswrex

In the year 2299, over a decade and a half since the death of Caesar and the fall of the Legion, we’ve followed two reporters, Delilah Wells of Radio New Vegas and Carlos Rendón of the New Vegas Times, as they’ve come together in the capital city of the Mormon nation of New Deseret to uncover the mystery behind a grave anonymous tip they’ve been given–is Vulpes Inculta, the infamous war criminal said to have been slain in 2282, still alive and free in the Holy City of New Zion? And if so, what sort of danger could he pose, and can he be brought to justice for his heinous crimes? Join us now as the trail goes hot, and the mystery deepens…

now this list is NOT in any particular order BUT... this is the Best fanfic i have ever read this year, bar none. it’s at 2 chapters so far, but don’t be fooled: it’s an epistolary whodunit with loads of journal entries, audio recordings, letters, transcripts, and more to pore through and discover. what i can say here, i already said in the comments for chapter 2:

Words cannot grasp how much I love this fic, but by Jove, I'll try. It's SO GOOD. And wonderfully written and presented, holy crap. It's plain to see how much effort went into making everything look, and it adds so much to the characters and setting: examples that stick out to me are the pristine, color-printed recruitment pamphlets of Brotherhood of Steel; Delilah's photographs; Arthur Young's ADORABLE stationary; the sketches in Carlos' notepad; the New Vegas telegraphs... I'll be here all day if I list 'em all. And those are just the VISUAL element...

The audio recordings have mismatched volume levels for each actor and are at times hard to make out, which is explained in-verse by having the recordings be from a wire - not saying it's bad, in fact I think it gives the recordings lots of personality. And the voice talents themselves do a great job! Delilah has a nice, clear voice for radio and Carlos is mumbly with a sort of flat voice, which I think suits him perfectly.

The writing and worldbuilding is just stellar, too. Delilah and Carlos KNOW what they're doing, and I love learning more about them as more and more details begin to show themselves, and it's all very seamlessly integrated with the main story. Trying to figure out the mystery of Vulpes Inculta along with them never feels boring and I am on the edge of my seat wondering how things are going to develop aaaaahhhhh oh my GOD.

In short, I love this fic and I think anyone who loves Fallout should read it. Thanks!

THOSE HAVE BEEN MY TOP PICKS FOR THIS YEAR! YOWZA!!!

#fallout new vegas #fan fic #The Vault Sexteen End Of Year Fic Rec List #fan fiction #fic recs

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tinkdw · 7 years

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I asked a bibro/anti if they could ever see destiel as canon. They said some interesting and definitive statements for someone who isn't a spn writer or production member. "Dean is not going to turn gay/bi." "Jensen hates destiel" "Dean is not going to mature into a non-codependent relationship with Sam partly because he has no desire to, partly because they’re actual literal soulmates, and partly because it would be boring TV."

I can see you really want an answer to this question as you asked me this twice so...

I just can’t even, I’m facepalming so hard.

Look antis are just hateful. They hate nice things. Ignore them.

As for bibros, I’m sure there are nice bibros, however this is not my experience. I know one who is kind of ok but still resorts to online bullying and calling us delusional for things that have already been textualised as canon on the show so meh.

Dean is not going to TURN Bisexual if he is canon bisexual. IT HAS BEEN THERE ALL ALONG. That is why we have written REALMS of meta on it, SINCE SEASON 1. Just because they don’t like it and refuse to see it doesn’t mean it’s not THERE.

This is the same for the end of the toxic codependency. And Destiel. And everything.

They say “it can’t happen because it would be OOC” and yet they are yelling that everyone is OOC since season 12 because they just don’t see that this is them BEYOND THE FACADE, being the REAL them. Jeez. They really don’t have a leg to stand on I’m sorry. They’re just flat out wrong and yelling about it.

The toxic codependency LITERALLY ENDED IN 12x22!!!! I mean even if it rears it’s head here and there or IF it gets re-verted (which I doubt given how much emphasis they gave the scene and build up to it in 12x22) it’s still framed as BAD and if you watch Andrew Dabb’s own episodes he frames the toxic codependency as BAD BAD BAD and that it has to end. Then he’s showrunner and WAM BAM. End.

He’s the one who wrote 5x16, the episode that the bibros love because apparently it says they’re canonically soulmates. PFFFT THIS WAS NOT WHAT DABB WAS SAYING AT ALL!!!!!! A. No, just no. There is no reading for this that is concrete, it’s a vague concept that I can understand but overall makes no sense. So all you have to do is look at author INTENT. Watch the rest of Dabb’s episodes and you see that the “canon soulmates” reading is completely contradictory to the rest of his writing. What he was saying was that Dean’s toxic codependency on Sam was BAD and terrible for his own personal wellbeing and that Sam just wanted to escape because of the burden of it all. Literally all of this episode was showing that Sam DID NOT WANT the codependency. Then the next episodes show Dean’s spiral into feeling he should say yes to Michael as he feels unloved by Sam and unwanted, because his hold on the codependency is so strong. It’s BAD BAD BAD. SHEESH. (Also ironically or perhaps not it’s CAS who helps him break out of this mindset through something that he doesn’t want on the top level in this terrible moment of regression to his old ways but helps him in the long run. Meta much).

Then later Dabb episodes bring this up more and more as bad and to END, I mean Carver did too obviously, season 8 was all a huge exposition of how terrible the codependency was, culminating in them failing to save the world because of it in a direct subversion of season 5, they kind of become anti-heroe because of the codependency.

They become BAD because of it! It’s TERRIBLE for their individual characters and together and it’s due to the codependency!!

Anyway.... so after all this we are now seemingly heading to a positive endgame and the toxic codependency is GONE. Dusted. @elizabethrobertajones has been yelling at me about how they sat at the table in 13x02 and how this is really important to show the dynamics of the codependency, namely that yes it is now ended, just as we hoped/expected it would be after 12x22.

"Dean is not going to mature into a non-codependent relationship with Sam partly because he has no desire to, partly because they’re actual literal soulmates, and partly because it would be boring TV."

I JUST WHAT?!!?!! Dean has no desire to?! This has been his journey all along!! Yes he APPEARED to not want to because he was hanging onto it but all he wants is to be EMANCIPATED and be his own person!!!! Facepalm. Again this is seeing top level Dean and thinking this is who he ACTUALLY is. Freaking surface level reading much.

That’s what the whole point of the “young Dean” and “uninhibited Dean” episodes are for - to set up who he wants to be. OUTSIDE of the codependency and the responsibility of patenting Sam being thrown on him he is totally different! He is soft, there are parts of him that are totally still HIM, helping people, wanting to do the right thing, but the facade is GONE. This is the point of the “inhibitions reduced” episodes like 12x11 or when he’s drugged up etc - and lo and behold he starts flirting with guys, saying he loves stuff he usually wouldn’t (Disney, Taylor Swift) ETC ETC.

These people are literally looking at PERFORMANCE LEVEL DEAN and thinking this is all there is to him.

It’s infuriatingly insulting to the writers, also to Jensen, but Jensen himself sometimes falls into it so I can’t even have such a go when he himself forgets to mention Taylor Swift and obviously does sometimes see Dean as the performance. But literally THIS WEEK he went into a whole spiel about how Dean has layers bla bla bla he’s seeing this more clearly as it becomes more obvious and yes thank you Jensen.

I have a whole tag for the Jensen x destiel thing because he varies on this but ultimately whatever happens he and no-one is going to just flat out come out and say “yeah guys we’ve been building this for X years and aw well it was supposed to be a huge big socio-political reveal but I’ll say yes here at this random con”.

So whatever, I stick to what the story is telling us and right now Dabb era is VALIDATING ALL OUR META.

- end of the toxic codependency. check.

- dean has to face the pedestal view of his mother to start learning to accept himself as flawed but still good. check.

- dean has to be more emotionally honest. check.

- sam has to face his past and his guilt through something to allow him to move past it and forgive himself (Jack is perfect). check.

- dean has to face his issues with his father (FUCKING CHECK BIG TIME THIS WHOLE SEASON IS ABOUT FATHERS AND JOHN ALREADY HAD AN OUT OF NOWHERE MENTION IN A BUCKLEMMING EPISODE NO LESS TO HAMMER HOME THAT THIS IS GOING TO BE A HUGE FACTOR. IM LIVING).

- Destiel. Destiel is a huge part of Dabb’s own episodes writing. No wonder it’s so blatant in his showrunning and looking more and more like canon endgame.

So yeah, the bibros who kinda have a grasp on subtext are screaming that the characters are OOC and the writing is bad right now because they don’t like what they’re seeing. The ones who don’t grasp subtext think the show is great cos it’s just about the bros again and Cas is old news. They literally cannot see that Cas is ALL OVER 13x01/02 and I cannot even comprehend the stupid. They have even said it in all the interviews let alone in the actual show that he’s the undercurrent of Dean’s grief and he only get better when he’s back.

JEEZ.

So yeah. Sorry, this is such a rant because I am so done with this. I am so done with people thinking these hateful nasty people’s negative awful concepts of the show have any VALID meta reading.

They just don’t right now. Dabb is validating the positive meta that some have been writing for over a decade and I myself have only become a part of over the last year. To say it’s not true is not just infuriating but it’s insulting to the writers who put so much effort into doing it in the first place!!!

It’s snobby I know, but I do sometimes just sit back and think hey, the people I speak to regularly are all well educated people, most of them with with degrees, MAs, PHDs in literature, some actually work in writing/literature/cinema. We are not the idiots here. On top of that the fact that Dabb literally seems to have a checklist of our meta and is ticking it of.

Because it’s also HIS meta, it’s the way he wrote the show, it’s just validation that our readings were correct because that was the way they wrote it!

Yes things could flip if the showrunner or endgame for some reason changed but honestly I do not understand how that could happen now. It’s set up so strongly for the positive endgame we’ve been talking about for ages and now everything is setting up for it even more, we are like 85% of the way there, why would the final 15% change?

The antis/bibros just refuse to see the 85% of the story and are stuck on some warped view of what was set up as the BAD START as being the thing to strive for in the end. That’s not how story telling works.

They set up the BAD START so that in the end it could be subverted (you can see a lot of it is in Swan Song for example but not all of it, so that they could continue the story, in fact the things that aren’t or the way it’s then immediately subverted is then set up as the NEXT bad thing to continue the story ie. Sam always had to redeem himself and die but then he comes back WRONG).

It’s standard storytelling! Set up the bad start so that the heroes subvert it and end up in the good ending!

If at the start the hero is alone and alcoholic and clearly strives for a family but much of his blood family is negatively framed, doesn’t accept himself and hides parts of himself and “just wants someone to love him” (these are all things that are TEXTUALLY set up in season1 for Dean for example) then this is his endgame: a healthy life, found family around him and someone who loves him for exactly who he is warts and all.

This is blatantly what is happening (among others obviously but this is the easiest example as Dean pretty much carries the main emotional arc these days) and I’m so excited for it :)

#anti antis #wank for ts #imo #endgame positive #Anonymous

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4evafitstore · 4 years

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Popular Vlogging Cameras in 2020

Worried about which Vlogging camera would be best vlogging camera 2020 in your price range? Let us help you find one from some best vlogging cameras for you..Vlogging has become one of the most popular and trendy phenomena in today's world, especially among YouTuber’s. Anyone with a camera at hand can just start recording videos and share on YouTube or other online video streaming places anytime they would like. Getting connected with people all around the world became hundreds of times easier than any other time in human history. To record a live event for your views or to get live feeds from people are not something only big tv network companies are capable of. Anyone with a good video recording camera can do it now and in a much more interesting way then old boring news reporter.

From showing exotic & luxurious places to mundane of everyday life, video blogging or also knows as vlogging is the easiest and most trendy way to share your experiences with people around the world. Only crucial thing you need is a suitable camera.

10 Best Vlogging Cameras In 2020

Worried about which camera to choose or is it going to be in your price range? Let us help you with these problems. From interchangeable-lens to all in one compact camera's and even smartphones with great cameras, there are many fantastic models out there with awesome features that will be enough for you want to do and more. Also, you put together the best cheap camera deals around right now, the perfect time to invest in vlogging cameras. With few of the main features in mind we created a list for you, which gives you freedom to do almost everything you want to do as an everyday vlogger or even as a professional vlogger. Features like having an external microphone port is something every professional video creator would tell you is crucial if you want to have the best audio outcome in your videos. Another main feature that helps tremendously a vlogger is the LCD flip screen. It can flip round and help you see yourself vlogging while you are video tapping yourself which helps you to detect the right light and background direction. it's quite easy with if you are recording with smartphones but not that common to have in mainstream cameras. But choosing the right camera can be bit tricky given the features you absolutely need for your particular vlogs and also let’s not forget the cost. If you want everything in a single package then a compact camera is something you are looking for with portability, affordability and convenience. But a interchangeable-lens camera gives a vlogger better flexibility and comes with larger sensors. Surely, we can forget about smartphones, especially new ones with advance technological improvements. As you can carry them around with you everywhere you go all the time and given that mobile phone cameras technology is getting more and more upgrades all the time, and also most of them have audio headphone jack & front cameras.

Live streaming cameras

A camera with auto-focus system can make your life 10 times easier especially when you choose to do a live streaming, as you won't be able to adjust the camera while streaming. An auto-focus system can keep track of you and your movement while you are busy doing your thing. Features like face recognition with AF and eye AF can be a huge deal here, as the device will automatically gravitate towards focusing on you. Do you really need a 4k! It actually depends, most of the vloggers records their videos in full HD rather than in a 4k resolution, given it’s more costly and takes a lot more space in memory drives. But 4K does offer more features and cops for editing and cropping later in the videos, so we have also prioritized them as a key feature for our best vlogging cameras list. So, here is the list of best cameras for vloggers with the best deal in market right now. categorized from compacts for regular everyday vlogging and smartphones for the easiest way to carry around everywhere you go to interchangeable-lens cameras for larger control and more professional results. So, here is the list of best cameras for vloggers with the best deal in market right now. categorized from compacts for regular everyday vlogging and smartphones for the easiest way to carry around everywhere you go to interchangeable-lens cameras for larger control and more professional results. Mirrorleess Cameras Mirrorless cameras are the best choice for serious vlogging. Versatility of interchangeable lenses and have more powerful features for recording videos. We aren't ruling out the DSLR’s (especially the recent Canon EOS Rebel 3 / 250D), but mirrorless cameras have the lead right now for vlogging.

Image credit : Sony

Image credit : Sony Previous Next

1. Sony A6400

With a front facing screen and 4K video, the A6400 is a brilliant choice for vloggers. Type: Mirrorless | Sensor: APS-C | Megapixels: 24.2MP | Lens mount: Sony E | Screen: 3-inch tilting touchscreen, 921,000 dots | Viewfinder: Electronic | Continuous shooting speed: 11fps | Max video resolution: 4K Pros & Cons Great image quality and resolution 4K video performance Sophisticated autofocus Design feels dated List Price : $798.00 With Deal : $498.00 You Save : $300.00 (38%) Check on Amazon Used to be any camera with a front-facing 180-degree screen was immediately dismissed as a ‘selfie’ camera, but the big change came when the rise of blogging, vlogging and Instagram has brought video to the frontal, and front-facing screen sets the A6400’s apart from many of its rivals and makes it a desirable and also very powerful tool for single-handed video shooters who talk directly to the camera. The A6400 is also a great camera for stills. Design of this camera isn't very up to date as it is still following the first model A6000. Yet it's not a deal-breaker given that the Sony is so good at video. It's not just the 4K video that makes this camera stand out as a vlogging tool, but its state of the art autofocus system, and especially its Eye-AF performance. It's sold body only (handy if you already have Sony lenses), but if you intend buying it with a kit lens we'd recommend paying the extra for the Sony 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, which has much longer reach and better optical quality than the standard 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 PZ lens.

Image credit : Panasonic

Image credit : Panasonic Previous Next

2. Panasonic Lumix G95 / G90

With a flip-out screen, 4K video and a mic port, it’s one the best blogging camera out there. Type: Mirrorless | Sensor: Micro Four Thirds | Megapixels: 20.3MP | Lens mount: Micro Four Thirds | Screen type: 3in tilting touchscreen, 1.04million dots | Max video resolution: 4K | User level: Beginner/enthusiast Pros & Cons 4K video with V-log Mic port included 2x crop hampers wide framing Some softness in full HD Price : $1,197.99 with deal : $1147.00 You Save : $50 Check on Amazon Panasonic’s video known for its strength to strength performance and in 2019(it’s release date) the Lumix G90 was very well received in this department. Panasonic Lumix G90 made the headline with the inclusive V-Log L mode upgrade from previous G80, something you would generally find in high expensive cameras. This mode allows for the capture of up to 12 stops of dynamic range, creating a flat image that's perfect for digital grading in the edit. And as far as vlogging in concerned, Panasonic Lumix G90 seals the deal with its mic port along with 4K videos. The massive selection of different lenses afforded by Micro Four Third, makes it a perfect tool for making a great vlogging video for yourself in easiest way possible.

Image credit : Panasonic

Image credit : Panasonic Previous Next

3. Panasonic Lumix GX800 / GX850

Panasonic’s cheapest mirrorless model is the most bargaining camera for vloggers. Type: Mirrorless | Sensor: Micro Four Thirds | Megapixels: 16.0MP | Screen: 3.0-inch, 1,040k tilt touch | Viewfinder: None | Lens: Micro Four Thirds | Continuous shooting speed: 5.8fps (4k 30fps) Pros & Cons Cheap to buy Mic port included 4k video and burst shooting for stills No viewfinder Only 16MP Price : $547.99 with deal : $497.00 You Save : $50 Check on Amazon You may feel a bit shy about our first two recommended cameras because they are a bit pricey but you really cannot complain at this one. Not only that it’s the least expensive model in Panasonic’s line of mirrorless cameras, Panasonic Lumix GX800 also great on the go. It’s very small and lightweight, also you can pair it with 12-32mm zoom that’s available as a kit option. Not having a viewfinder may be a drawback but it also helps to keep the size of the camera to minimum and for vlogging purposes, you don’t need it anyway. Panasonic Lumix GX800 with its 180-degree tilt facility, works great with smart selfie modes as well as video, great end result with its ‘beautifying functions’ and also with its face shutter and buddy shutter. Also, its Light Speed AF, 4K UHD for video and rapid drive stills with Creative Panorama mode performs quite smoothly. It’s one of the most budget mirrorless cameras for vloggers.

Image credit : Panasonic

Image credit : Panasonic Previous Next

4. Panasonic Lumix GH5

Is for serious vloggers with in-body stabilization and 60/50p 4K. Type: Mirrorless | Sensor: Micro Four Thirds | Megapixels: 20.3MP | Lens mount: Micro Four Thirds | Screen: 3.2in tilting touchscreen, 1.62m dots | Max video resolution: 4K (DCI) | Mic port: 3.5mm | User level: Professional Pros & Cons Superb, pro-level video specs Broad range of compatible lenses Less ideal in low light Bulky body Price : $1997.99 with deal : $1297.99 You Save : $700.00 (35%) Check on Amazon You will need to look higher up in the Panasonic range is you are serious about doing vlogging professionally. The GH5 has the better image quality then the latest GH5S, so for many vloggers the GH5 is still the best option. It offers huge control over video recording settings, including the ability to capture 4K at up to 60/50fps for a smooth 2x slow motion effect, and also includes an in-body sensor-based image stabilization system, the latest GH5S won't offer you. It's a great camera for vlogging while you are travelling with its 20.3MP sensor, gives great resolution for stills too. The GH5 is pretty much the same size as an enthusiast DSLR along with its high-end video features are for experts rather than vlogging novices.

Image credit : Olympus

Image credit : Olympus Previous Next

5. Olympus PEN E-PL9

A very modern looking camera, perfect for vlogginf and Instagram. Type: Compact-shape CSC | Sensor: Four Thirds | Megapixels: 16.1MP | Screen: 3.0-inch 1,040k tilt touch | Viewfinder: None | Lens: Micro Four Thirds | Continuous shooting speed: 8.6fps | Max video resolution: 4K | User level: Beginner/intermediate Pros & Cons Stylish design 4K video No viewfinder Same 16.1MP count as E-PL8 Price : $599.00 with deal : $449.00 You Save : $150.00 (25%) Check on Amazon For traveler's, possibly the best Olympus camera, the Pen E-PL9 is perfect for someone who just want to be in the moment and busy with capturing moments rather than being busy in the camera settings. Also, it’s always nice to carry a stylish camera rather than an ugly black box. There are few downsides which might not be able to please some serious photographers, such as the lacking of a viewfinder and only 16MP resolution. But if you are used of using smartphones and you share your images digitally rather than via big enlargements, that won't matter. The E-PL9 maintains the PEN tradition of being very intuitive to use and easy to live with. It's excellent build quality despite its compact, lightweight construction. Better still, this camera can capture 4K movies rather than just 1080p and even has in-body-stabilization. The ideally suited to travel photography, especially when the body is paired with the remarkably small Olympus 14-42mm EZ ‘pancake’ zoom, available as a money-saving kit lens option.

Image credit : Canon

Image credit : Canon Previous Next

6. Canon EOS M6 Mark II

With 32MP gorgeous image quality, a super lightweight and very versatile camera for vloggers. Type: Compact-shape CSC | Sensor: APS-C | Megapixels: 32.5MP | Screen: 3.0-inch 1,040k tilt touch | Viewfinder: None | Lens: Canon EF-M | Continuous shooting speed: 14fps (30fps 4K) | Max video resolution: 4K | User level: Beginner/intermediate Pros & Cons Useful tilting touchscreen Lightweight and portable Relatively few lenses No headphone socket Price : $849.00 with deal : $799.00 You Save : $50 Check on Amazon Canon's lightweight mirrorless EOS M series may not have the heft of the full-frame EOS R cameras, but that's what makes it just the thing for vloggers who don't want to lug around too much gear. The EOS M6 Mark II is an excellent choice for the prospective vlogger, as it can shoot impressive uncropped 4K video while making use of the impressive Dual Pixel auto-focus. It's lightly built and easy to carry, making use of the similarly spaced EF-M lenses. While this range doesn't have anywhere near the catalog of Canon's EF lenses, there should still be easily enough for the vlogger's purposes, and with plenty of useful extra features like a microphone socket, a touchscreen that tilts to face backwards, and video stabilization to keep things smooth, the EOS M6 Mark II is an extremely solid all-rounder for any vlogger. COMPACT CAMERAS Normally only mirrorless cameras are recommended for any serious vlogging but there are few compact cameras which meets the needs. With their smaller size and video compatibly front facing screens, makes them very much useful for vlogging in a 4K resolution but the two cameras we are suggesting have 1-inch sensors which make a huge improvement in quality.

Image credit : Canon

Image credit : Canon Previous Next

7. Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III

A compact body, large sensor with a flip-up screen – ideal for vlogging.Type: Compact | Sensor: 1in | Lens: 24-100mm (equiv.) f/1.8-2.8 | Screen: 3in tilting touchscreen, 1.04million dots | Max video resolution: 4K | Mic port: Yes | User level: Beginner Pros & Cons Can live-stream 4K video with no crop A little pricey No headphone socket Price : $799.00 with deal : $749.00 You Save : $50 Check on Amazon After seeing a huge popularity in Canon PowerShot G7 from vloggers, Canon carefully leaned into it and released the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III. A compact that is improved in all the right ways to provide a great vlogging solution. It's option for extract high quality stills from 4K videos are just excellent (very useful for thumbnail), not only 4k video with no crop also has a mic port and even lets you livestream to YouTube! The 24-100mm (equivalent) f/2.8-1.8 lens and stacked 1-inch CMOS sensor works great with it autofocus system and help you to produce videos of excellent quality.

Image credit : Sony

Image credit : Sony Previous Next

8. SONY RX100 MARK VII

Best & latest and not cheap either, Sony RX100 model.Type: Compact | Sensor: 1in | Megapixels: 20.1MP | Lens: 24-200mm f/2.8-4.5 | Screen: 3in tilt-angle display, 921k dots | Max video resolution: 4K | Mic port: Yes | User level: Enthusiast Pros & Cons 1-inch sensor Useful long zoom lens Small and fiddly Expensive Price : $1298.00 with deal : $1198.00 You Save : $100.00 (8%) Check on Amazon Sony's most expensive and latest model in a long running series which is still in production in a large scale, is one of the best cameras for vlogging. If Sony RX100 VIII model is too expensive for you then, it’s well worth looking into its previous models RX100 VI, V, IV. Sony RX100 VII a 1-inch sensor inside a body with a fixed lens – which is a 24-200mm model, much larger than the rest of the model of the series. If you can justify the price then it’s a great vlogging camera with an external microphone and gives you a very professional video quality. SMARTPHONE Not everyone needs interchangeable lenses of a mirrorless camera. With new high-end smartphones advanced cameras with huge megapixels and always ready to use with you, taking very little space, smartphones are really a great choice now a days for vloggers.

Image credit : Samsung

9.Samsung Galaxy S10+

One of the Samsung's latest flagship mobile that features sophisticated camera tech.Type: Smartphone | Sensor (front camera): 1/4in | Megapixels (front camera): 24MP | Lens (front camera): f/1.9 | Screen: 6.4in, 1440x3040 dots | Max video resolution: 4K | Mic port: via headphone port | User level: Beginner/enthusiast Pros & Cons Great-quality 4K video Excellent large display Expensive Design can be slippery Price : $999.00 with deal : $699.00 You Save : $300.00 (30%) Check on Amazon You probably already aware of this flagship phone from Samsung S10+, comes with lots of video upgrades and features that it’s ideal for vloggers to do easy vlogging with it. With the ability to produce HDR10+ video for improve dynamic range and digital video stabilization, S10+ can’t be taken lightly. Thanks to its massive improved battery life, vloggers can do intense vlogging in it. And not the least but Samsung is well known for its displays and here is no difference of that. It has a huge display with a crystal-clear monitor to see your work right on.

Image credit : Huawei

10.Huawei P30 Pro

Holding its position on top #1 in the camera department and the pricing is cheaper considering its rivals. Type: Smartphone | Sensor (front camera): Quad-core sensor | Megapixels (front camera): 32MP | Lens (front camera): f/2 | Screen: 6.47 OLED screen, 2340x1080 dots | Max video resolution: 4K | Mic port: via USB-C port | User level: Beginner Pros & Cons Incredible cameras Excellent battery life Potential future Android problems Clunky UI Price : $716.85 with deal : $679.99 You Save : $36.86 (5%) Check on Amazon Huawei P30 Pro was built completely focused on the camera setup and it didn’t disappoint anyone. Its quad-camera array – consisting of a 40MP main sensor, along with 8MP telephoto camera, 20MP ultra-wide-angle lens and a ToF (time-of-flight) depth-sensing camera – is absolutely class-leading for smartphones, and its 32MP front-facing camera is no slouch either. Being co-engineered with Leica, so it’s quantity over quality. The P30 Pro produces full of depth images and videos even if you watch them in a Full HD display, you will appreciate it. Considering its price and quality, makes it a great choice for vlogging. Read the full article

#camera #cheapcameras #vloggingcameras #youtubecameras

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rwby-party · 6 years

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I’m really REALLY trying to move on from this because man I’m STILL salty about it but

Here’s an alternate thing of what they could’ve done with Sienna if they wanted to keep her important:

A. Never designed her. B. Had Ghira mention her “Fight but only when necessary” ways in his speech. C. Had another scene talking about her death and Adam taking over and have his motives explained either in that scene or in another.

While this would still be disappointing in the sense of the build up with Sienna’s character (That I admittedly completely missed at first to be honest lmao I don’t know where the fuck I was) it would’ve removed the race aspect to this whole thing and still would’ve gotten all the same info out (With the exception of Hazel)

While people would be mad that she got treated this way, it’d be a lot less disappointing for a lot of people if it was like that.

This is kinda for the people who argue that “We don’t need even more characters to focus on.” While you’re right, and I think that RWBY suffers sometimes just because of how many characters it has in it, then you just don’t introduce the character. She could’ve stayed in the background. There were different ways to get all the info from that scene. And I feel like the amount of people that died and we kinda just glossed over is a little too high anyway lol.

However, with that, there was this post I read of a good idea to go on at this point.

This needs to BREAK the White Fang. Not every single last person in the WF should be okay with this, and with what Sun has said about the WF before and how it seems like there’s some amount of faunus that DON’T respect the WF, this should cause a lot of problems. What I felt like should’ve happened though is this:

A. At least developed her a little more than what they did and let her live for more than 5 minutes. B. Not kill off a WoC in a position of power OR design a character that you know was going to be killed as a WoC in a position of power when your show is lacking PoC representation already. C. But even if they did, With A, it would’ve made a bigger emotional impact and would be better to deal with.

That’s the part that frustrates me the most.

I would’ve dealt with it a little better if she had actually been developed. If we actually had time to connect with her, even though would be backlash still at killing a WoC. I figured she was doomed to die just because she was based off of Shere Khan. I assumed she would also sound a lot more evil because of it too.

She had points that I agreed with, though. Not everything, of course, but she wasn’t this radical extremist that everyone that’s notable hates (*Cough Cough* ADAM *Cough*) like the others accidentally made her out to be. Misguided, yes, but not 100 percent wrong evil.

I have a tendency to dislike characters who’s motives are/or shown as purely good or evil.

Adam’s pure evil. We know that now lol. He wasn’t shown to be any good since the very beginning. Salem and her crew are framed as the bad guys, and none of them really showed good or lawful qualities except recently. We don’t even know Salem’s motives yet, but they’re the bad guys and they’re kinda boring to be honest because of it.

Hazel really intrigued me with his “No one had to die today” statement because it showed him to not be evil for evil’s sake. He only killed if necessary. This is something that Salem kinda shows as well but only in a manipulative sense. A sense of “We can use them later.” Hazels line came off more like he was upset that she had died. Not upset in a sad way, but still. Hazel’s influence in that scene was WAY more interesting to me than Adam’s was.

Sienna’s was as well. It showed that she wasn’t 100 percent bad. It showed that even though she was trying to do the right thing by earning respect for the faunus, she was KIND OF going the wrong way about it. emphasis on kind of.

Either way, I felt like that scene was to advance Adam and not Hazel and definitely not Sienna.

With the little dialogue we got from her, I was more interested in her motives than Adam’s. The only feelings I have toward Adam is hate and confusion.

I hate him because he’s an asshole that maims and tries (and succeeds in cases) to kill people. ANd of course, he is the bad guy. We’re supposed ot hate him. I’m confused because of his motives, even though they were revealed. They're so left field it’s not enjoyable for me. If he was fighting for the Faunus to be treated equally it’d be different. Instead he’s just some crazy asshole that wants to enslave the humans. It’s something so bizarre you have no reason to root for him whatsoever even if you’re on the side of the Faunus. It makes no sense. It’s something I personally think is a fatal flaw with him. He’s just pure evil, and it makes me uninterested in him because of it. He feels “Flat” because of it. He feels like your typical baddy mcbad guy, and for a show wanting to develop it’s characters, doesn’t really come off good. (However, I will say it was the best performance we got out of him and his VA. Not that his VA is bad, but Adam seemed a lot more lively in a sense in the scene.) I have no elegant way of saying this lol, but Sienna also kinda went down like a bitch. With Pyrrha, she fought until the very end. She died a hero. It took more than just one stab in the stomach to kill her. With Sienna, we didn’t get a fight. We got a stab from Adam that killed her immediately without her even getting to fight back. (Random side note but some complained that the fact that she didn’t have an Aura protecting her was kinda B.S., and while I’d normally agree, I also feel like Adam’s sword can cut through Aura, hinted at with Yang imo. I think she does have aura. Or however I would need to word it to properly word it lmao) The whole thing felt empty or lacking substance because of that with the little screentime she had. There was no weight to it. The show always wants to kill characters off but besides Pyrrha hasn’t killed any substantial characters. (Which honestly, if you wanna kill characters that’s fine. If you don’t, that’s fine too. It’s just this weird middle ground that’s off.) Sienna was important, but 5 minutes of screentime did her no justice to HOW important she is as the (former) High Leader of the White Fang, the ONLY organization we’re focusing on against the mistreatment of the Faunus.

Instead of hating Adam for killing of a good character, it’s hating him for killing off a character that didn’t have any time to develop themselves. (once again though, this is excluding the race part of it, which is a BIG part.)

We were mad when Pyrrha died because she was a developed character. She grew from Vol. 1 - Vol. 3. She was lovable, and most would agree she didn’t deserve her death. We were upset because we liked Pyrrha as a person and got to know her over the volumes.

and it feels more like a “She died for her cause.” instead of a “Fuck you” from the writers like Sienna’s death unfortunately comes across. As of right now, even though I know it’s supposed to have weight, it doesn’t feel like it. It feels senseless. Pyrrha’s death felt like it had weight to it besides emotional, even though that was the prevalent emotion (For me at least I cried *Shot*) And while we do get a yearn for “what could’ve been” with Pyrrha too, it was more in the sense of because we knew what she was and KNEW of her potential (rather than just “Speculating”), not because the writers “didn’t care” about her.

Also,Pyrrha, for what I could tell, was not a WoC in canon. I know I’ve said it before but there’s a serious lack of main characters that aren’t villians and are POC. So, when you kill off a POC within 5 minutes of introducing her it comes off as really bad.

I truly don’t think CRWBY meant it that way. I’m not labeling them as intentionally racist, but it’s still a huge slap in the face, EPSECIALLY when the faunus are supposed to be a race allegory to begin with. And while it is untentional, it has racist undertones, and as of right now, nothing has been addressed.

When SU had that whole Concrete fiasco, they apologized. They came out and said that wasn’t their intention and people who didn’t even need to come out came and apologized for it. This was also something that many claimed wasn’t really racist or wasn't’ their intention. AND it really wasn’t. It still needed to be addressed though, and I feel like this is a similar situation.

I’m not saying they have to bend over backwards, I just wish they would say something though. Even just a “Hey, we really didn’t mean for that to be interpreted that way, and we’re sorry for doing that.” And though I know that a lot of people still wouldn’t like that, at least they tried instead of staying quiet.

Also, I really don’t mean to be judgmental with this, but I don’t trust a bunch of white people with a race allegory even though I felt like they were handling it better than expected beforehand. I feel like they may want to bring in more people for that sometimes. Same with LGBT+ stuff but that’s not what I’m talking about. They’re doing okay, but when stuff like this happens, you can’t help but be a little upset at least. I just feel like all around Sienna got fucked, from being a Woc in a powerful position to just a character standpoint, she was screwed. She’s one of the worst cases of wasted potential in characters I’ve seen even excluding the race factor, and it really sucks.

I really hate to rip on RWBY like this too even though I’m posting this. I love RWBY and it’s brought me SO much joy I can’t even begin to explain what it’s done for me both emotionally and “Story” wise. I love the CRWBY, and have been a RT fan for years. I love the show more than I should to be honest.

It’s just sad to see these problems.

#/////negative #Sorry I'll shup up I've really been enjoying the show #Otherwise at least

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