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Hendrik hates bugs. Hendrik really, truly despises bugs. But when someone else expresses care for all insect-kind, he feels it is not his place to be the cause of further grief.

Dragon Quest XI Fanfiction featuring Hendrik, Serena, & Sylvando, 1206 words, general audience

#dqxi #dqxi fanfiction #dqxi hendrik #my writing #come see Hendrik read way too deeply into a simple request #and require a rescue from his own overthinking #is this humor or angst? whichever you want it to be I guess

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Office prompts: 2-Serena and/or 12-Hendrik (perhaps both in the same story if you're feeling it?)

Serena gets the promotion that nobody wanted.

"From today onward, I would like to introduce everyone to our new assistant manager."

The whole room fell silent as Jasper spoke to his department, which was about a dozen people gathered at a long, rectangular table. They were sitting in the glass conference room in the center of their floor, the room employees dubbed "the fish bowl."

It was so silent one could hear a pin drop. Suspense weighed upon each person's shoulders as shifty eyes moved down the table.

"Serena," Jasper said with a sharp clearing of his throat.

"Oh! Yes!"

Serena shot to her feet, almost knocking over her cup of water, and hurried over to the front of the fish bowl. Jasper declined to set a hand on her shoulder as a different boss might have, instead gesturing as he spoke.

"Everyone, please welcome Serena into this new role."

A few claps sounded across the table.

"Thank you so much, everyone! I'm so—"

"Okay that's enough you can go sit down now," Jasper interjected, all the words quick as if melting into each other.

Serena noded and stepped back across the carpet to her seat.

Jasper was the only person to leave the office once the meeting was over. Other coworkers walked up to Serena to give her consolatory pats on the shoulder or offer to get her out of it, in Erik's case.

"I'll pay for drinks tonight," Erik said.

"Oh, thank you! That's so considerate of you to offer to celebrate!" Serena said.

"It's more consolatory," he muttered as he gave her one last pat on her shoulder. "Good luck, Serena."

(from this ask game!)

#I have thought about this au at least 8 times since you wrote the first piece about Zoom Dog Hendrik #Good luck Serena

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12 and... take a guess... (Henjasp pls)

"Zoom meeting and A (*cough* Hendrik *cough*) doesn't know how to turn off the dog filter" (354 words)

An early-morning meeting. Two cups of coffee. One lemon poppyseed muffin.

None of that had prepared Jasper to log into the weekly Zoom meeting to find a 3D rendered brown dog staring back at him in his little square. Tiny, cartoonish eyes blinked as Jasper gawked at him. On the bottom of the user’s box read the name, “Hendrik.”

Jasper, whose legs had been folded up like a pretzel in his office chair, paused and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

“What in the everliving—” he said as a notification appeared at the bottom of the screen to let him know he was muted.

He unmuted himself and repeated the sentiment once more.

“Good morning, Jasper,” Hendrik said as other boxes began to flicker on with coworkers joining the meeting.

Jasper noted some people covering their mouths, eyes crinkled up in amusement.

“Good morning, everyone,” dog-Hendrik repeated. “Please give me just a second as I try to fix my machine.”

“You need to go into settings,” Jasper said. “You have to go into the avatar settings and select ‘None.’”

“Can I still do that when I’m in a meeting?” Hendrik asked.

Somehow, he looked even more pathetic in a dog form.

“Yes,” Jasper said.

As he spoke, the chat box lit up with one unread message: an article leading to the same steps Jasper had already spoken aloud. Hopefully it had images like a picture book to guide Hendrik through it step-by-step.

“I am not seeing it,” Hendrik said.

“Are you on a mac?”

“Yes.”

“Go to system preferences.”

“Okay.”

Hendrik continued to parrot Jasper’s instructions as he clicked through the menus himself, Jasper keeping his messages curt. It didn’t take as long as Jasper thought to get the dog avatar reverted, revealing Hendrik’s face with those stray strands of lavender hair sitting on his shoulders. His cheeks flared pink as he shifted in his chair and adjusted his camera.

“Well then, thank you, Jasper. After that small hiccup, are we prepared to start?”

Jasper held back a smug grin as he gave a nod. “Absolutely.”

(From this ask game!)

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I'm just putting this out there because I'm thinking about it and because I want people to know it's not just them.

I don't really read fic anymore. It's not because I stopped liking it, though. It's because I made a rule for myself that I'm not able to follow.

I told myself that if I read a fic, I should comment on it. And not just "I loved it!" but a detailed comment. A live reaction or at least quoting favourite lines. Maybe talk about symbolism or about references I caught or about characterization etc.

I did that because I loved the authors I was reading and because I'd received so many lovely comments like that and I wanted to be able to pass that joy onto others. But then I found it hard to actually comment like that.

I could manage it sometimes? Oneshots weren't too hard, for example, but multichaps? My rule was that I had to comment every chapter. And the kinds of comments I wanted to write, well that meant reading on my laptop because I hate typing on my phone.

Eventually, I felt so guilty when I read fic without commenting on it that I stopped reading fic altogether. Better to just not read if I wasn't able to hold up my end of the bargain.

I shifted out of my fandom not long after that, and I haven't found a new one that's sparked the same interest (ie obsession), so I don't know if I might be able to fix this habit if I ever get into a new fandom in the future. All I know is, don't be like me.

Comment as you can and when you can, but don't set up strict rules like I did. I can't speak for all authors of course, but I know that personally, I'd rather you enjoy my work without commenting at all rather than make yourself feel so guilty you stop reading it altogether.

#fic etiquette #things that make me feel better about my inconsistent commenting style #I'll try to put some energy into it if I have it in me that day #but even if I've been following a multichapter fic sometimes it comes out like #sorry I forgot I was trying to take notes while I read this chapter #or I forget to go back and do the comment step #anyway please don't let the question of if/how to comment on MY stuff stress you out #all (not-antagonistic) comments are always welcome but never required

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quick lil Sylvando doodle as a birthday pressie for my buddy @finlands-beret✨!

#reblog for Sylv

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Epilogue: use your words

I needed some time to myself to think.  Not sulk, mind you!  I needed to think things over, like the calm, rational man I was. I heard someone coming, and I jumped into the bushes.

#dqxi fanfiction #my writing #final chapter #proof it's possible to finish a story with a 2 year hiatus in the middle #pleased with how this one came out

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Chapter 14: underleveled

“Erdwin’s tiny tush.  Did I fall asleep in the can?”

#dqxi fanfiction #my writing #the feeling when you draft a scene and still are delighted by it two years later

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Sometimes I had nightmares about a monster casting a mind control spell and making me attack people and then making me march through town in my underwear while everyone booed and shouted “Darkspawn!” at me.

#dqxi fanfiction #my writing

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“Erik’s up there right now?” Mia asked. She glared upwards, and then before I realized what she was doing, she cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, “Hey, idiot!”

#dqxi fanfiction #my writing

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“A dire evil threatens the world,” Jasper said, as if he hadn’t been on Team Evil last month. “Therefore, our mission is to build our strength as quickly as we may. Together, we shall bring our enemies to ruin, and their tears shall water the crops of our future!”

#dqxi fanfiction #my writing

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Summary:

I was in the can while the impostor showed up.

The Luminary is strongest with his friends around him. But when an apparently identical copy of himself shows up and runs off with all his companions, he’ll have to find other allies in the quest to reclaim his destiny.

A gen-fic focus featuring mid-game Luminary, Jasper, Faris, and Mia, with a comedic leaning.  10/15 chapters.  Anticipate a weekly update schedule for the remainder.

#dragon quest xi fanfiction #dqxi luminary #dqxi jasper #dqxi faris #dqxi mia #my writing #link goes to chapter 1 because it has been a LONG time since I touched this one #but new draft goes all the way to the end so let's go

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Gerbera lives AU

#aaaa #reblog for Sylv

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Absolutely stunning pictures of my Sylvando cosplay from Elfia!  Amazing photo’s shot by Marie Jeanne Sol Photography

#this makes me so happy #reblog for Sylv

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Chapter 15 (beacon of joy)

in which Erik sasses an injured man

#dragon quest xi fanfic #my writing #sylvando/erik #hendrik/jasper #final chapter #we made it!!

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Thanks for the tag @error707-thatdude <3

nine people you want to get to know better

Favorite color: green

Currently reading: a Lynn Flewelling series, and a lot of DQXI fanfiction

Last song: Mama Swing, by Lucas Pittman

Last series: hmm I think the last one I finished was Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Last movie: geez it's been a while for a whole proper movie. Might have been Dune.

Sweet/spicy/savory: savory, then sweet. I am mostly a wimp with spice (though I may have accidentally built a tiny tolerance for a few specific types)

Relationship status: I'm in one

Song stuck in head: Father to Son, by Queen (intermittently blurring together with others from that album)

Last thing I googled: Tingting asmr (I like it when she tells little domestic anecdotes from China)

Dream vacation: rent a nice cabin with friends and play board games all week

Currently working on: last chapter of longfic(!)  (I think it’s good to go, just needs transfer to ao3)

tagging: @sarunohadaki @daezedglownut @chohouse @daovihi @stardust-lightning @finlands-beret @angsty-dude @thekindestdays in case this sounds like a fun time to any of you.

#peeking out of my tumblr hermit cave #tried to tag a couple more people but tumblr defeated me #I'm only even ninety percent sure this is how tagging works

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heyyyyyy guess who came back to life

(it’s me)

Anyway, come see me! I’m on AO3! Grief! Laughter! Devotion! Self-indulgent headcanons! Somewhat obscure lyrical titles! Entirely too many AUs! We’ve got variety this month!

#listen it starts off with DAVE fic #very good angsty Dave fic

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Chapter 14 (completely unfamiliar problem)

in which Jasper gets to monologue a little

#dqxi fanfiction #sylvando/erik #stealing the show #my writing #I think this really is the second to last chapter this time