#I'm sorry if this sounds pedantic

[polutrope]

There is no version of events in which Maedhros and Maglor find Elrond and Elros in a cave.

There is one in which they left them there.

... sorry about the clickbait intro, but this is important!

Perhaps you've heard of a 'version/draft' of the finding of Elrond and Elros after the sack of Sirion in a cave ? Perhaps you've read that Maglor and Maedhros found them? Maybe even heard that the murder brothers named them?

So here's where that version comes from (I assume, anyway). It's in Letter 211 to Rhona Beare (Oct 14, 1958), who asked Tolkien to "explain the meaning of El- in Elrond, Elladan, Elrohir" (i.e., whether it's 'star' or 'elf').

(I'm cutting parts of the passage that aren't relevant but I'll put the whole thing under the cut for those who, like me, don't trust "[...]". Emphases are mine.)

Elrond and Elros, children of Eärendil (sea-lover) and Elwing (Elf-foam), were so called, because they were carried off by the sons of Fëanor, in the last act of the feud between the high-elven houses of the Noldorin princes concerning the Silmarils. [...] The infants were not slain, but left like 'babes in the wood', in a cave with a fall of water over the entrance. There they were found: Elrond within the cave, and Elros dabbling in the water.

Now I'm gonna break this down and turn the passive verbs into active ones for clarity.

If we assume this story is being told in sequence (which, I think unless there's good reason not to, we should, because that's the default storytelling convention), the events in order are:

The sons of Feanor (agent) carry off Elrond and Elros (object acted upon)

[Unspecified agent] does not slay E & E

[Unspecified agent] leaves E & E in a cave

[Unspecified agent] finds E & E in the cave

#2 and #3 are (logically and probably grammatically) the same unspecified agent. #4 is logically someone else (it doesn't make sense for the same agent to leave E & E in a cave and also find them there).

The only named agents in any of this are the sons of Fëanor - same guys who attacked and sacked Sirion. Given there are two implied agents here, which one are the SoFs more likely to be? Listen, I'm not out to torch anyone's fave and stir up controversy (also I love Maglor), but very probably the sons of Feanor are the agents who 'don't slay' and 'leave' the infants in the cave.

So who found them there? I don't know, up to the imagination!

Also, nothing in the story about them being named by anyone - that's only implied by the fact that this is an origin story for their name meanings.

Full passage below the cut, as promised.

Elrond, Elros. *rondō was a prim[itive] Elvish word for 'cavern'. Cf. Nargothrond (fortified cavern by the R. Narog), Aglarond, etc. *rossē meant 'dew, spray (of fall or fountain)'. Elrond and Elros, children of Eärendil (sea-lover) and Elwing (Elf-foam), were so called, because they were carried off by the sons of Fëanor, in the last act of the feud between the high-elven houses of the Noldorin princes concerning the Silmarils; the Silmaril rescued from Morgoth by Beren and Lúthien, and given to King Thingol Lúthien's father, had descended to Elwing dtr. of Dior, son of Lúthien. The infants were not slain, but left like 'babes in the wood', in a cave with a fall of water over the entrance. There they were found: Elrond within the cave, and Elros dabbling in the water.

#elrond #elros #maedhros #maglor #tolkien meta #silm meta #oh and no shade on anyone who had understood this the other way! #I did too until I looked at it with a microscope #I didn't get into the whole conversation around this just being a version etc etc #and published silm is the primary canon and so on #that goes without saying to me #I'm sorry if this sounds pedantic

[sophieswundergarten]

MBS Characters as Neat Words I Like

So. Listen. Some of these words are going to have fitting definitions. And some of them are just based on how they feel/look to me. Do with this what you will, and I hope you at least learn some fun new words :)

Mr. Benedict - Esoteric: requiring or exhibiting knowledge that is restricted to a small group / of special, rare, or unusual interest

It's very green and a bit orangey to me, like the scenes in S1 where he's sitting in the cabin, or a very nice rock. Maybe something with a fossil in it. But it's a good, slightly rough but ultimately quite pleasant texture. It's got the layers of an old book with age-stained pages and uneven edges because of how often it's been read. It's a really comforting word, and it's warm and inviting, like the feeling of walking into Mr. Benedict's house and seeing all the light come through the glass and the smell of books and the very clear evidence that it is lived in and full of love. If it had a physical form, I would keep this word on my shelf and look at it every day because it makes me smile.

Number Two - Librocubicularist: someone who reads in bed

Definitely a yellow word. It's got some nice light blues, like sunlight on a clear day streaming through a window, and a couple hints of green in there, but this word feels very warm and a bit like running your hand along the hard carved edge of a bookshelf. It's very square and cube-y, like a stack of little building blocks or one of those geometric M. C. Escher kind of designs. (Also I can see her just sitting on her bed and reading when people would want her to sleep when she was a kid)

Milligan - Hugger-mugger / Gallimaufry: Respectively, "secrecy" and "hodgepodge"

The first one is an automatic choice, because it basically sounds like a warped version of the words "hug" and "Milligan". It's a very warm, soft word that's a dusky orange-and-pink, like an old jacket or scarf that's being used to muffle a sound. The second word is chosen more for its meaning, as Milligan himself is a bit of a jumbley hodgepodge when we first meet him. It's coloured like moss covered stones along a riverbed, like the colours of that screenshot in Episode 1 where Milligan emerges from the secret tunnel in the yard. The tumbling of the word also mimics the curved brim of his hat.

Rhonda - Sophronise / Kismet: Respectively, "to imbue with moral principles or self-control" and "a hypothetical force or personified power that determines the course of the future events, fate, destiny"

"Sophronise" is because of how wise and quick-witted she is. She's a role model for the younger kids, and it was a really nice sunset- night-sky kind of ombre, a hint of deep magenta (Like that jacket she wore outside the cabin in S1) and the barest touch of yellow-orange, quickly moving into royal and midnight blue, and a whisper of silver that can almost be stars. "Kismet" is similarly multicoloured and beautiful, but more swirly like a wind-chime or suncatcher made of many different pieces hung just so, in such a way to catch the light and reveal glimpses of what's hidden deeper. It's a mostly wine-magenta and blue kind of colours; jewel tones.

Kate - Rawgabbit: somebody who speaks covertly about a subject of which they know nothing

This one's silly, because it just came to me because of its look. The definition doesn't really fit her at all. It's a helter-skelter word that is racing, fast moving and fidgety. It's a full kaleidoscope of colours, red and fierce and yellowy lemon gold and green like sun through new leaves and blue like daubs of fingerpaint all swirled and tumbling over each other, much like Kate's jacket.

Miss Perumal - Pluviophile: one who finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days

This is a very soft word, and it is a soft, watercolour kind of pastel. It's lavender and cherry blossom pink and a light sky blue, and it feels exactly like one of her nice sweaters or jackets. The lapel of a good, strong, felted jacket kind of feeling, like something you'd find at a thrift store and know that it was well loved, but taken care of so respectfully that you'll be able to wear it for years too. A pragmatic word. It is also very round and swooping, in much the same way her cadence of speech is.

Sticky - Uhtceare / Kenning: Respectively, "lying awake before dawn and worrying" and "a metaphorical compound word or phrase (such as swan-road for ocean) used especially in Old English and Old Norse poetry"

The first word is more because of the meaning, but it does have some hints of his shades of blues. The "uhtc" part is like glass as a lens, and the last part is like little round bits of blue sea glass, all tumbled and smoothed. It's a very pensive and reflective word, and it catches light in many different facets, something to be studied from many different angles in the solitary silence away from other people."Kenning" I chose because of its neat, rhythmic sound, like very even stitches through a piece of stormy blue cloth. It is a deceptively simple sounding word, but it has such a deep history, and I think that's something Sticky would really enjoy learning and knowing.

Constance - Fudgel: pretending to work when in reality one is not doing anything

Come on. This word is perfect for her. It has that hint of sweetness with "fudge", and yet it sounds stubborn and obstinate. It's a "fighting word", so to speak. Stout and short and compact, like a dense piece of wood that someone can heft and throw. And while I would not originally say that it has any of Constance's colours, there are parts of it that can be malleable, and there's definitely a hint of pink in the middle, a reflection and glimmer that comes from it being placed next to her name.

Reynie - Wergild: the value set in Anglo-Saxon and Germanic law upon human life in accordance with rank and paid as compensation to the kindred or lord of a slain person

This word came to me immediately. It isn't coloured so much like Reynie (Being mostly kind of deep purple and shaded forest green with the barest hint of gold, like brambles that have grown and woven themselves into an intricate shape), but for some reason it fits him. Maybe it's the complex depth that's hinted at in the heart of it. It's a wild word, but also very warm and trusting in that it expects the other person to honour their promises. Its etymology is basically "man" + "payment", and the idea of it being the value of a person when in relation to Reynie, who values every person as incredibly important is intriguing. Also, the first time I read it was in a fictional context as part of a spell or binding magic that connected people to one another, which is a much more vague and subjective reason, but it's a little more positive than "murder debt"

SQ - Welkin / Wanderlust: Respectively, "the vault of the sky / the upper atmosphere" and "strong longing for or impulse toward wandering"

Now. These words both start with "w" because "w" and "q" are coloured somewhat similarly to me, especially since there's an "s" involved. "Welkin" is a complex word, like running your hand over a particularly detailed and well-crafted mosaic. It's a very light baby blue fading into purple, a very mystical and soft word, like if you could tough fog. It speaks of walking softly down a grassy hill at dusk, looking up at the stars as they wake up and being able to trust that you won't trip. It's also got these kind of two curves, like the top of the "S" right next to the "Q". "Wanderlust" is dreamy and full of stardust. It's got that bluey-purple touch, but it sparks at the end, gold and shimmering and falling out of sight like a shooting star, just beyond the horizon, where you know you can follow it.

Curtain - Sanguine: marked by eager hopefulness, confidently optimistic / bloodred / consisting of or relating to blood

It's not quite the correct colour for Curtain, but the feel for it is right. It has a bit of dark blue, but it's also slimly and squelchy the "gui" bit makes it kind of greasy and hard to keep a hold of. It also fits him because of the different meanings; originally, "sanguine" meant "cheerful" because of the medieval concept of the four humours governing the human body, and it came from the Latin "sanguineus" which means bloody. The seemingly jarring differences between "happy" and "bloody" are a good representation of Curtain's duality.

Garrison - Gerrymandering: the practice of dividing or arranging a territorial unit into election districts in a way that gives one political party an unfair advantage in elections

This word also came to me really quickly. I kind of "see" spelling in my head, so even though the "g" in gerrymandering is pronounced like a "j" instead of how it is in "Garrison", it works. The word is coloured very much like her: light, dappled green and a little pink and some specks of orangey-red. It's also a strong word, a tiny bit mischievous but with hard lines that won't be crossed, no matter how much trickery and metaphorical dancing around delicate topics is involved to attain a goal.

#I'm sorry if these don't make any sense #I decided to let myself go all out with the descriptions #Or as much as I was comfortable with #Since it's just supposed to be silly #I nearly gave Curtain “pedantic” because it's kind of like the bitter and serious brother of “esoteric” #But the feeling wasn't quite right #Either way #I enjoyed getting to put all this down #It's been in my drafts for weeks because I was so nervous about rambling and sounding insane #But I'm putting it out there! #And now I shall shut up and stop stalling in the tags #the mysterious benedict society #mbs #mr. benedict #nicholas benedict #number two #milligan wetherall #rhonda kazembe #kate wetherall #miss perumal #sticky washington #constance contraire #reynie muldoon #sq pedalian #ld curtain #nathaniel benedict #dr. garrison #ALSO #SOME OF THESE ARE OLD ENGLISH #SO THEY AREN'T REALLY COMMONLY USED/DOCUMENTED

[fragmentedblade]

hopefully this isn't too weird lol but as a quiet follower i did wanna say that i just rly do appreciate getting to see ur thoughts and analyses on characters i rly love. i'm also someone who feels largely disconnected from a lot of fandom takes, so it's always nice to find people with similar thoughts. so uh idk i just figured i'd say i appreciate your words on a game and story that's near and dear to me and that it's always rly cool when you mention diff literature and books you read in relation. it's cool and insightful!!

Oh, I just saw this.

I'm surprised you noticed I mention other sources. I didn't think I did it often enough to be noticeable xD

Thank you very much for taking the time to write this. It is very sweet, and I'm surprised to find it's also encouraging

#I often fear I sound very pedantic when comparing sources so I restrain a little #also because it's not like I think there's direct inspiration most of the time #But I have a lot of fun with that and I can't help but see similarities between things I love #I often say I love the same story retold over and over but just that one story basically #Different intonations of the same story #Like that one text by Borges #Anyway I'm sorry for posting this but it was so nice I wanted to reply #Thank you #I talk too much

[kneelingshadowsalome]

I do not want to sound pedantic and I am sorry if I sound rude but the estimate of König needing at least 3500kCal a day is quite off

I broke down the size of König for @suimon a while ago so that people could understand how big he was and if we are going off the 6'10", which most people see as canon, he would probably be around at least 300lbs to 400lbs at max

Due to him having a very physical job we know he would need more calories than most and using a calorie counter we can guess that if he is 300lbs he would need around 4660kCal while if he was 400lbs he would need around 5522kCal a day but it could be even more if we consider the fact he may want to eat more for many reasons

These reasons could be that due to being a bigger guy he could have a bigger appetite, he could have a faster metabolic rate, he is probably burning even more calories from having sex, he probably does even more exercise than he needs to due to having extra energy that he needs to burn and he seems like an active man who would probably love hikes (I am guessing that he probably would do ten to twelve hours of exercise a day with his job and with the extra exercise he does for fun), he probably wants to bulk out a bit when not on deployment to make up for eating less when on missions but also so he can be a stronger brick wall to protect his family, he probably burns some calories from fidgeting as he most likely would do it constantly such as pacing or leg tapping or messing with a knife, but this is only a few reasons and there could be more

Due to these reasons I would probably add an extra 1000kCal at least which means that at 300lbs he would eat around 5660kCal a day and at 400lbs he would eat around 6522kCal a day (with König who is a foodie I would not be surprised if he gets up to 7000kCal or 7500kCal a day especially if his partner loves to cook as he will just burn it off)

Sorry if I am being a bother I just wanted to share this information and I feel sorry for whoever he lives with as they would probably be cooking a giant batch of meals worth around €300 that probably only lasts three days (you would probably need a giant kitchen with an extreme amount of cupboards and a few fridges and freezers to fit all the food for this man, at least with his job he can afford it)

Also this may not be fully accurate but it is based on what I know from exercising and calories, but also assumptions I have made based on what people headcanon for him

You're not being a bother and I'm kissing you on the lips too solely for putting up with all that math, also printing this out as a part of the official König bible, thank god for pedantic people like you!!!

#guy burning extra calories through fidgeting and toying with his knives I CAN'T #let me cook for him!!! #I can't afford it but he can so it's no trouble at all trust me

[olderthannetfic]

Heads up: I'm going to sound pedantic and bitter, sorry. Readers have been warned.

Saw someone calling themselves "fandom elder" for thinking that "drabbles are 500 words or less and vignettes are from 500 to 1000". Then you aren't "fandom elder".

I don't know how/when the heck the diviation from the SF definition (and thus the one fandom adopted) started, but like. No, sorry. You aren't a "fandom elder". You are just kind of mad someone corrected you that "drabble" meant "exactly 100 words" since the 80s and you weren't in fandom yet at the time.

Like hell, use "drabble" to mean "500 words or less", I couldn't care less since I don't tend to read them. Just don't call yourself "fandom elder" when you're just leaving your 20s and don't even know where "drabble" came from. (And vignettes aren't much about word count iirc, it just happens that the vast majority are really short.)

--

[immediatebreakfast]

One thing that I do have to ask (regarding of course that most of these academic discussions, interpretations, and analysis have put more thought into this than me, along with not spreading an anti-intellectualism sentiment) about Lucy, and her themes related to her gender, her metaphors, and her literal and symbolic death is:

Why do everytime I search about Lucy's death, and transformation into a vampire, the only responses that I seem to get are all about sexy sex, sexual liberation, "feminist" slut shaming, and stuff about modernism with a weird sexual twist?

I'm sorry if I sound pedantic, but how can anyone read about Lucy's suffering, illness, then death (that is textual in the novel), and get that the conclusion is somehow that Lucy is now sexually liberated from those icky victorian rules thank to Dracula.

You know... the same vampire who put her through hell until he killed her.

Nuance is everything with these analysis, and the themes that are laid out in the novel have enough dept to cover a lot of interpretations, yet I can't shake the idea that the only way someone can reach the "she is allowed to be a sexually liberated slut now!!!" idea with Lucy is by willfuly misintrepeting the actual written text to fit their reading of it.

Are Dracula's attacks to Lucy sexual in nature? Yes, he is an older man preying on a younger woman, and taking advantage of her chronic illness to inflict his power upon her, then leaving behind only pain and confusion. Are these attacks insinuated to somehow be good for Lucy? Absolutely not, the text is clear in Lucy's suffering, and how she grows weaker by the day thanks to Dracula's constant assaults.

The text even remarks that Lucy is finally happier when Van Helsing and Seward are by her side protecting her, and giving her the means to recover from these attacks.

It's like these reads don't consider Lucy's character traits, nor her words about her own situation. She has never expressed any type of disatisfaction with her love life, nor her fiaance, nor the romance around her. One could even argue that Lucy is the most "innocent" character regarding that theme in the novel despite her being very eager to marry Arthur.

Wouldn't be better to argue about the actual liberation that Lucy goes through in the text? The death of Mrs. Westenra symbolizes Lucy's final step into becoming an adult.

Lucy has been treated like a child by her mother despite being ready for marriage. It has been implied that Lucy even holds resentment towards her mother for it, and still acts like the perfect daughter. Which means that Lucy has never been allowed to put in practice all of the education that goes into becoming the lady of the house.

And what happens when her mother dies in the most gruesome way, and Lucy realizes that she is all alone, and that the power has shifted to her? She immediately does all of the steps to calm everyone down, to order what to do, and to write what actually happened so no one gets blamed for the atrocities of Dracula.

That is the liberating moment that Lucy goes through which finally allows her to grow. Even if it was short, it was a moment that mattered to conclude Lucy's arc.

Lucy sadly died, but her death is one transformed, a wiser Lucy dies. What is left is not her.

#Not everything is about sex in this novel #Except the Harkers that are going freak nasty as we speak #But aren't these academics tired of repeating the same shit at eachother? #Can't one of them go ''alright... what else do you have?'' #dracula daily #dracula #lucy westenra

[laora-ryn]

Hello everyone, sorry for disappearing from Tumblr for a month (it's happened before and it'll probably happen again) but I finally broke my two-year streak of Not Writing!!!

I wrote 9000 words of a Magnus-verse crossover between Archives and Protocol that I'm very proud of actually!!! (And posted it like, two minutes before episode 8 dropped, so it still counts lol)

Spoilers through MAG200 and TMAGP 7 !!

“We fell through a crack within the fabric of our universe, and landed here in yours—”

His companion groans. “Oh, don’t start with this again. It’s time travel—”

“—I’m sorry I’m ’pedantically splitting hairs about the very nature of our existence in this universe,’ Martin, but if I—”

Sam blinks, hard, as something trips that sense of deja vu again. The way he said that, even more stuffy and academic than before, sounds incredibly familiar in a way that’s almost within his grasp.

“Wait a second,” Alice says abruptly, her voice pitching up. The strangers pause their bickering, turning to frown at her as a huge grin spreads across her face. “Are you Chester?”

—

Martin cuts the tether; two strangers appear out of nowhere in the OIAR break room.

I'm proud of myself for writing it and y'all should be proud of me too!!!!!

(also, I am SO sorry to everyone who follows me for Gundam, I promise I'll get back to the Dylandys eventually, but Jon Sims is my entire life now)

#mine #the magnus archives #the magnus protocol #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #samama khalid #alice dyer #tma #tmagp #tmagp spoilers #not really actually. i thought of this and wrote this before ep 8 came out #but just in case anyone wants to block anything from protocol

[gb-patch]

the way you describe the jealousy system makes the difference between "jealous over" and "jealous of" sound more like the difference between jealousy and envy. I'm sorry if this sounds pedantic, I just thought maybe those two terms would be a bit less confusing without further explanation. I'm super excited for OL2 either way, I love the series with my whole entire heart! Stay hydrated!

Thanks, I'm glad you like the games! I get what you mean. The concern I have is that not everyone will know what makes 'jealous' and 'envy' distinct feelings. They're often treated as synonyms. For some people it might come across as 'jealous 1' and 'jealous 2', with no hint of what you'd get by choosing one over the other. Putting 'jealous over' and 'jealous of' makes an attempt to differentiate the feelings more actively. Maybe we could put in 'envious' to replace using 'jealous' a second time, but we'd have to keep the 'over' and 'of' part. Having just 'jealousy' and 'envy' wouldn't be enough, I don't think.

It's always hard to pick a single word or two to express an entire dynamic, aha.

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#our life #our life: now & forever #ask #gb patch games #gb patch

[kaija-rayne-author]

Is Solas a Villain?

Spoilers for Dragon Age Inquisition and Trespasser DLC. Maybe DAO and DA2 too.

So is he a villain?

Nope!

That's not me being a Solas apologist.

That's me being a pedantic AF writer/editor/word and literary nerd.

Solas, no matter how players feel about him, is an anti-hero.

Firstly, what is an anti-hero?

1. A character who is a hero to some, a villain to others.

Solas was a hero to the ancient enslaved elves, even if he did end up basically destroying the world. If he does what I suspect, he'll also end up a hero to the current generation of enslaved elves, too. He's mentioned he has spies, many, indicating that many people, even good people, serve him. Because they think of him as a hero.

2. A character whose existence offers a critique of social morals and reality.

Can you think of any other character in DA:I who calls attention to the problems of the status quo more than Solas? I mean, truly pointing out the uncomfortable truth?

This convo w/Dorian sort of illustrates that point.

Dorian: Solas, for what it's worth, I'm sorry.

Dorian: The elven city of Arlathan sounds like a magical place, and for my ancestors to have destroyed it...

Solas: Dorian... hush.

Solas: Empires rise and fall. Arlathan was no more "innocent" than your own Tevinter in its time.

Solas: Your nostalgia for the ancient elves, however romanticized, is pointless.

Solas: If you wish to make amends for past transgressions, free the slaves of all races who live in Tevinter today.

Dorian: I... don't know that I can do that.

Solas: Then how sorry are you?

3. A character who is the focal point of conflict in a story.

Rather a no-brainer on this one. I truly think the actual villain/s of DA:D won't end up being Solas. I think, as he was in DA:I, he's a massive distraction. A misdirection of attention.

4. A character who is particularly engaged in the conflict, typically on their own will, rather than for a specific call for the greater good. As such, the anti-hero focuses on their objective first, and everything else is secondary.

Solas, if Romanced, gives up his heart's desire, the Inquisitor, the only person that has ever drawn his attention from the fade, for his goal, even though you can see how much it destroys him to do it.

His heart, hers, his friends... NOTHING can get in the way of the goal. And it's a goal he's taken on of his own will. He's taking the responsibility of fixing his fuck up because he fucked it up. (He's foolish because if he'd just stop and think for a second, he'd realize he's really bad at fixing things.)

5. An Anti-hero is still operating for what they think is the greater good. Solas truly believes that fixing what he broke is for the greater good of Thedas. Not just his own people, (that's an enjoyable side benefit XD) but Thedas itself. Because it was never meant to have the veil in the first place. (We'll just brush that whole evil self-absorbed mage-gods being set free at the same time under the carpet? Because he has "plans". Solas, Solas, just stop and think for a minute!)

6. They tend to be flawed heroes in the sense that they do wrong things/screw up/cause harm.

Welp. That's pretty much a dictionary definition of Solas, isn't it?

So how is that actually different from a villain?

A villain is a malicious, often cruelly malicious character, who is involved in or devoted to wickedness or crime or hurting others for their own sake. One who contributes evil agency (motivation) to the plot.

The literary purpose of a villain is to stand opposite the hero to help the plot move forward.

In contrast with the hero (which is defined by ingenuity, bravery, pursuit of justice and the greater good), a villain is most often defined by their acts of selfishness, evilness, arrogance, and or cruelty. They are often cunning and display unilaterally agreed upon immorality that can pervert or oppose justice.

In short, an anti-hero is a character who does too much good to be truly bad, and too much bad to truly be considered good.

Solas, as a character, gives unflinchingly of himself to the Inquisition. He gave them his home, if you believe Skyhold is actually his.

He gives of his blood and flesh in battles.

He gives his knowledge.

If Romanced, he gives his heart to a mortal inquisitor.

And he's willing to give whatever is left of his heart, his soul, and very possibly his life to fix what he broke.

Sorry, Solas haters, he's just not the villain you want him to be.

And that's what makes him so bloody fascinating!

Humanity loves our anti-heroes.

Did you know the term anti-hero was used as early as 1714, but that the character archetype has been used by Homer (Theristes), in Ancient Greek drama (Medea), in Roman mythology (Hercules), and in a lot of Renaissance literature (Don Quixote)?

At some point, the existence of an anti-hero character eventually became an established form of social criticism. Which Solas is very good at.

Other examples of anti-heroes most folks will likely recognize

Wade Wilson/Deadpool

Huckleberry Finn

Lou Bloom/Nightcrawler

Bruce Wayne/Batman

Mad Max

Captain Jack Sparrow

Lisbeth Salander (Girl w/dragon tattoo)

Han Solo

Pinnochio

James Bond

Lestat de Lioncourt (Interview w/a Vampire)

Geralt of Rivia (Witcher)

Tyrion Lannister (Game of Thrones)

Dexter Morgan (Dexter)

Indiana Jones

John Rambo

T-800 (The Terminator)

John McClane (Die Hard)

The Beast (Beauty & the Beast)

Tyler Durden (Fight Club)

Magneto (X-Men)

Logan/Wolverine (X-Men)

Riddick

Shrek

Stitch (Lilo & Stitch)

Harley Quinn

Hellboy

John Constantine

Frank Castle (The Punisher)

V (V for Vendetta)

Tony Stark/Iron Man

Sherlock Holmes

Judge Dredd

John Wick

Maleficent

Venom

Angel & Spike (Buffy)

Dean & Sam Winchester (Supernatural)

Oliver Queen/Green Arrow

The Mandalorian/Din Djarin

Wednesday Addams

I'll stop there, because the list could probably go on for a looong time (as if it hasn't already? 😅)

My work of words is my only income. Please consider a tip or becoming a patron. :)

#dragon age series #solas #solavellan #dragon age #dragon age inquisition #inquisitor lavellan #solavellan hell #dragon age confessions #solas dai #dai

[thyandrawrites]

Part two of me being pedantic about nuance because I can

While the official translation isn't wrong at all, I feel like the phrasing chosen here makes Nagi appear more distant than he actually is. In japanese, his inner monologue is more akin to "I'm sorry, Reo. Please, let me say something a bit selfish"

He's using causative. He's asking Reo's permission. And sure, we could make a case for how he doesn't say that aloud, so it's a moot point... But the implication is that he knows Reo won't like this but he wants Reo to be okay with it. For his sake. Just this once.

And "I'm gonna say something selfish" doesn't convey that at all. If anything, it makes it sound like he knows Reo won't like it and he doesn't care

#I swear this time I wasn't hunting for reasons to be pedantic #I was just reading Nagi's inner monologue about bachira in jp and then I noticed this lol #Blue lock #Nagi seishiro #Nagireo #Bllk thoughts #Anyway stan nagi and his shit communication skills #Where else do you get someone who's this bad at talking he conveys the exact opposite of what he means #Also this isn't a diss towards the official translation at all either! Most lf the time it's the best translation out there #Much better than the scans for sure #It just sometimes misses out on nuance #And sometimes kinda... Censors shit #It's funny that the official translation had no issue with sae shidou and isagi's dirty dialogue #But they thought bachira calling isagi his partner was too much #In the same sentence where he tells him he loves him lmao #It's just... Very hit and miss #That's why I like to fact check every now and then #Tho this time it was purely by accident

[ladyswillmart]

"THAT'S Bowser's Keep?!" Mallow squinted into the smoldering distance; whatever he perceived with his beady black eyes, it evidently did not impress. He frowned with a little sigh. "It's pretty crumbly now that I see it from here."

"Crumbly!" snarled Bowser. "Crumbly, he says! About my castle?"

"That's what it sounded like to me!" said Peach.

"Ghrk... well! Well!!"

Mallow turned his beady eyes towards the overgrown turtle. "Well what...?"

"D'aw, well, of course it's gonna look crumbly!" was his stellar retort. "Damn thing's got a big fuckin—"

"—language—!"

"—sorry, Princess—I mean the darn thing's got a big fuckin' envelope opener sticking out of the foyer! You know we just renovated that part of the castle? We were gonna put the new Bowser's Castle Welcome Center and Gift Shop in there," Bowser continued; while his brave face was game as usual, it would once more be stymied by the way his eyes welled up like overflowing toilets. "It was looking real good, too! Mario saw it! Yeah, you saw it didn't you? Didn't it look real good?"

The plumber nodded and gave a couple energetic bounces with his arm raised in the air; by now his traveling companions knew to interpret this as an enthusiastic yes.

"So don't gimme that crumbly crap! It's just... It's just got a boo-boo right now, okay? Eh? Oh yeah, that reminds me—oi, Geno! Oi!"

The caped creature failed to respond to Bowser's verbal hailing, forcing the testudine tyrant to resort to a more physical means of address; the well-timed punch to the shoulder not only did the intended trick, but also did roughly 8-10% AOE splash damage to the rest of the party.

"Ow!" Geno yelped and clutched his arm, thus putting paid to the question of whether or not a doll's body could feel pain (at least while occupied by the incomprehensible essence of an extraterrestrial lifeform).

"What was that for?" he begged.

"Got a question for you!"

"Great! Can you ask it without maiming us?"

"Apparently not." Bowser shrugged. "I just wanna know one thing! Whenever we fix that Stairway to Stardom thing you keep going on about—"

He paused.

And Geno waited, only a few awkward seconds before it became clear enough that that blankly blinking prompt was meant for him. "Huh...?"

"Aren't you gonna correct me and go That's Star Road like you always do?"

"I hadn't planned on it," he replied. And he really hadn't planned on it; in truth, he gave up on trying to correct everyone's constant misnomering long ago. The endeavor started to feel both pedantic and pointless, and frankly he couldn't tell which one was more grating. "Why, do you want me to say it?"

"Ghrk—! Of course I want you to say it! How the hell else am I supposed to know you're payin' attention?"

"...that's Star Road, Bowser."

"Yeah! That's more like it." He nodded, eminently satisfied. "Now. If we collect all the pieces and actually fix the Star Rail thing, that'll definitely get rid of that overgrown Ginsu knife squatting in my castle, right? Like automatically, right?"

Geno tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Mm. Now that's going to be hard to say."

"What do you mean by that...?" asked Mallow.

"I mean it's going to be impossible. Impossible to say."

Bowser growled, a promise of a threat. "Don't care much for that word, Timbertoes. Especially when it involves my castle..."

"Sorry Bowser, but I just don't know," said Geno. "So far, my experience in your world has led me to conclude that only two things are an absolute guarantee: Death, and a Toad-Mart in every village. And given the number of Dry Bones I've seen lurching around the place, I'm not so sure about the former."

Mallow resumed gawking at the castle across the chasm; crumbly as it was, the sword itself had a rather mean look about it. The hilt glared back at them hatefully, daring them to approach. The blade looked new, sharp enough to effortlessly split infinitives.

"You think we're gonna have to fight that thing, then...?" he wondered meekly.

"Well. The kid did say Death is one of this world's absolute guarantees," spat Bowser.

With these hopeful words left hanging in the air with the smoke and cinders, Mario jumped up and down a few more times, his arm raised high.

#super mario rpg #in an alternate life i write super mario rpg fanfic for 27 years

[reachartwork]

Hey I fundamentally disagree with you about the ethicality of ai art. But like whatever I’m not changing your mind and you’re not changing mine

I do think, however, that the phrase “you're never too old to make homestuck fanart” is INCREDIBLY misleading. Someone who is anti ai art but isn’t the best at deciphering what is and isn’t ai would 100% believe that this is human made based on that line and I don’t think that is fair. I don’t think you should be captioning ai art with something that sounds like you made the art by hand without also saying it’s ai in the body of the post (not just the tags). I don’t know. It bothered me to see that caption please just be more mindful about people who do not want to interact with ai art at all like myself

a bit of my addendum to my previous ask: I’m sure this is not your intention based on the rest of the blog but that phrase REALLY comes off like you’re trying to pass off ai art as traditional art which is not fair to traditional artists. There is a difference there and you know it. I am an artist and I do not appreciate that difference being minimized in a deceptive way. I honestly believe you have good intentions but this was not it.

respectfully: no.

a: that post is over a year old at this point, i tagged it as ai art, my blog mentions ai art in the bio, when you link the post (or my blog) from elsewhere it says that this is an ai art account. if you are getting "fooled" at this point you really only have yourself to blame.

b: i don't see what medium has to do with making homestuck fanart. would you get this pissy if i made a collage instead.

c: nothing in the post implies that i made it by hand. even if we're getting really pedantic almost none of the art on tumblr is "handmade", it's digital, but also assuming that me saying "you're never too old to make homsetuck fanart" implies that i handmade said fan art is kind of insane.

d: you said yourself that the art was tagged ai art. why haven't you blacklisted or blocked it yet. this is a solvable problem, and instead of solving it you're going out of your way to ask me to put a big fat "THIS IS BADWRONG AI ART, DON'T LET YOURSELF GET TRICKED BY THE AESTHETIC APPEAL OF IT" disclaimer on all my posts. do you not understand not only how juvenile but also how insulting this is to me?

e: moving onto your second ask, i need to point out here that you're literally inventing a problem and then getting mad at it. nowhere in my entire blog have i EVER, EVER passed off ai art as traditional art. any "deception" is, i am so sorry because i'm about to sound gaslighty here, something you are making up in your head. i have been straightforward from the absolute beginning, DAY ONE of this blog about what i do and how i do it. i have claimed many times that I am an artist, which is true, but i have never claimed a single time that i am an illustrator, photographer, painter, or traditional artist. nothing in what i said implied this equivalency that you are, and i repeat, inventing in your head. of course there's a difference between traditional art and ai art, dude! i'm literally dating a traditional artist.

this whole two-ask combo is honestly one of the most ridiculous things i've ever read. certainly not as offensive as that one dude from the other day who told me to kill myself but it's definitely up there in sheer absurdity. this is definitionally "making up a guy to get mad at in your head". all of the problems you are DEMANDING i fix are either problems with existing solutions that you have refused to implement or non-issues that you invented out of whole cloth by inserting nonexistent read-between-the-lines implications into my otherwise straightforward and blunt statements.

you are an unserious person. please do not return to my inbox.

cheers, -reach

#ai art #discourse #ai art discourse #ask #not art #long post #personal #come on guys

[gojonanami]

Dear lovely Sab, 

I hope you will forgive me. I sent you two tasks already, but I'm afraid both were riddled with grammatical mistakes, and my feelings of embarrassment won't let me let this go unless I sent you a clean (or, perhaps, rather, it'd be better to say cleaner) version of my previous asks. I am really, very sorry for clogging up your ask box once more. I do hope you will forgive me.

After I read an ask asking you how you feel about people sending you 'long things', I saw that you don't mind people sending you fics, and instantly, I felt inspired, and I ended up writing all of the text embedded in this message in a burst of inspiration.

Just as a disclaimer, I really hope you won't find this creepy or weird. I just got really inspired by that ask and your work. 

I'm pretty sure I eradicated all grammatical mistakes, but perhaps one or two escaped my notice. For that, I ask for your forgiveness.

I would also like to emphasise that my talent comes nowhere near yours. I'm constantly in awe of how much you can write and how clean, slick, and practised your writing sounds. I find your stories to be a lot of fun to read, and I hope this little silly story of mine can entertain you as well.

I'd like to close off this message by extending my sincere gratitude to you for running this blog, for writing such wonderful stories, for being such a lovely person, and for reading this message. (As well as reading my previous two asks. Again, I sincerely apologise. I'm afraid I happen to be both dyslexic and a little too pedantic when it comes to proper SPAG.)

Wishing you the most wonderful day/evening xxx

Cf reference ask below:

🥹🥹 I would be so flattered? I’m not sure if you mean asks or fics but either way 🥹💕 I would be very touched and so happy! it makes me happy no matter what you guys send me — short or long or anything in between 🥹🫶

***

I sit in front of my laptop, staring at it.

I can feel eyes on me.

"What?"

Keen eyes stare back.

I lower the lid of my laptop, closing it and sliding it further away from me. 

He stares at me.

He grins. His grin is sly.

"You think Sab'll write me a happy ending? This time?"

I shrug. I pour myself a third cup of tea. 

I gently lift the pot, cradling the teapot, my pinkie gently holding down the lid of the teapot, the tea oozing out, yellow coating the ceramic, and bits and pieces of fruit gliding into the cup.

"Who knows. I'm not an oracle."

His grin sours. It turns into a frown.

"You should know. You keep up with her stuff."

I lift the cup in an attempt to distract myself. Holding the cup in front of my face, the lower half of my face is covered. I feel protected.

"How should I know? I'm not telepathically connected to her."

I lower the cup, turning my face to the side, hiding. The light of the chandelier playfully skims across my skin as I fidget and squirm.

"I know you read her stuff. Every day. That's what you do. Each morning. You think I don't know?"

I look down at my lap. Then at my teacup. It's almost empty. I lift the cup to my lips, tasting the tea. It's now mild—a little too cool for my liking. I lower the cup and pour myself more tea.

"Just because I appreciate and admire her talent doesn't mean that I know whether or not she's going to give you a fairytale-like ending in her next story."

He doesn't respond. Instead, he takes away my teapot, tutting at me.

"It's now gone cold. Let me pour more hot water."

I don't respond. I allow him to do what he wants. As always.

He takes the teapot, placing it aside, leaning forward, and scrutinising me.

I open up my laptop.

Instead of looking at my work, as I should be, and researching for my doctorate, I open up Sab's page and reread one of her works once more.

"Whatcha lookin' at?"

I blink and then dim the brightness of my screen.

"Work. Nineteenth-century English architecture. Liverpool. Italianate style."

That was a lie. An obvious one. 

Instead, I was rereading my favourite work. The one I've been rereading again and again for the past few months. 

He doesn't say anything. He relaxes in the chair in front of me, stretching.

"How boring."

I briefly look at him and then lower my eyes again.

I just got to the good bit. I mean, all of this is good, but this is my favourite. That sentence, that scene—it just captures my heart, and I want to read it again and again and again—

He lowers the screen of my laptop for me. "How rude. I'm a guest."

I blink, surprised. Stupefied. Embarrassed. 

"Would you like tea?"

He laughs. My brows furrow. I continue. "Chamomile? Earl Grey, English breakfast, Moroccan mint tea, rooibos, hibiscus, white tea, or something else?"

I don't recognise my own voice. It sounds hesitant—a little too shy for my liking.

He stops laughing. Instead, he grins.

"Rooibos would be nice," he says, leaning forward. "Pretty."

For a moment, I don't react, frozen. Then my body reacts on its own accord, squirming and fidgeting, and my hands feel clammy. I rub them against my thighs.

"Rooibos it is."

I stand up then, promptly, like a good host, walking over to the kitchen, leaning up, reaching for the cabinet, and surfing my collection of teas. I choose between two boxes of rooibos, picking the more expensive one.

"Hey," he starts, breaking the silence. "Why'd you like her writing so much anyway? She never writes happy stories about me."

I pause. I pick out one of my prettier teapots. It's got a grid-like design on it, pretty blues criss-crossing with pretty whites in a netlike design, with small, pretty crosses adorning each intersection.

"That's not true," I start off as I take out a small wooden spoon, dip it into the small, pink tin full of rooibos tea, fish out a generous portion, and dust it into the teapot. "She's written happy stories about you."

Then I sigh, pausing and glancing up at the ceiling. "I like her stories because," and I pause, because I realise then that I like them so much that I can't find the words to adequately express how much I like them. "I like them because they're fun," I start off, and then I frown.

No, that's not enough. When I read them, they make me feel alive. I feel like I can don multiple costumes, transform myself, and learn more about myself through the multifarious second person. I can discover more about myself and the things I never knew. I can learn through her writing what I should do and how to engage the reader. I like her descriptions. I like her use of imagery, word play, the way she writes dialogue, and so much more. I can live through her stories, learn more about the characters that I love, spend more time with them, expand and extend my love for them, and keep myself fixated, entertained, and happy. 

"That's it?"

He sounds unimpressed.

I turn around then, my back pressed against the kitchen counter, and frown. 

"Well, no," I refute, and then I turn around once more, back to the tea. I pour water into the kettle, setting it off, and stare at the rooibos leaves. They're a pretty mix of brows and reds—an autumnal colour scheme. "I like that she's a good writer," and I grimace, because even that doesn't feel like enough. "I like that I can live vicariously through her stories," I continue, and then I find my voice, continuing. "I like that," I pause, "she knows what she's doing. That she knows what metaphors to use, when to use them, how to structure her stories, how to make them sound good, how to edit, how to clean up her stories, how to structure dialogue, and how to give her characters their own voices," I trail off, thinking and ruminating.

"That's why you do humanities, huh?"

I turn to look at him, and when I do, I see his smile. It looks warmer and kinder than his last one, almost a little fonder.

I look down at the ground. I can't bear to look at him when he's so handsome and so pretty—a creation out of another universe, something celestial coming down to our earth, an angel incarnate standing in my kitchen. "I guess so," I say, my voice lowering and dropping to a soft whisper. "I just really like her writing."

I wish I could write like that.

"Sweet."

The kettle lets out a yelp. I snap out of my momentary reverie, picking up the kettle and pouring the water into the teapot. The pretty pressure leaves swim upward, reacting to the force of the water, spreading across the teapot and inside it, marking territory. "Tell her to give me a better ending next time, yeah? I don't want to die or something."

I snort and shake my head. "Sab knows what she's doing," I insist, smiling a little, confident. "And besides, you should be grateful she's writing about you in the first place. Not everyone gets written about. Means you're memorable, inspiring a writer to write about you. And a fantastic one to boot."

He says nothing.

For a moment, I think he doesn't hear me. Or maybe he mishears me. My voice has a tendency to be a little too low sometimes. Sometimes, I swallow my consonants too, and my diction suffers. And so I open my mouth with the intention of speaking when he interrupts me. 

"You're right," he says finally. His voice has a quality of finality to it, one I don't understand the reason for.

The silence persists and continues, straddling the line between being awkward and comfortable. I stand still, watching the rooibos tea leaves swim about, abundant, languid, and carefree. They're pretty.

And as I sigh and watch the leaves swim about like pretty koi carps, intertwining, swimming against each other, away from each other, being pulled towards each other, repelled from one another, his voice interrupts the silence and my thoughts. "I am grateful, you know? That she writes about me. And that people read about me. It's cool."

That's an understatement.

But he continues. "I," he pauses, almost like he's embarrassed. I turn, look at him, but I don't meet his gaze. He turns his head away from me. Shy boy. "I read her stuff. It's good, I'll admit." He sighs, his head hanging low. "I'm not as verbose as you. Not writing a doctorate." He laughs, a little shyly, a little nervously. "Well, anyway. I like her stuff. Probably read more of her stuff than you."

I blink, confused, and I study his face one more time, but he turns his face away even more, his face evading my scrutiny.

"That's cool," I find myself saying. "Really cool."

"Yeah. It is. Makes me feel like a celebrity."

I smile. My smile grows fonder. 

Reaching out for tea cups, I find myself reaching out for my prettiest set—a delicate, flower-like set with gentle, fragile ceramics shaped into bulbous, soft flowers, with the daintiest of handles painted gold. I pick them up gingerly, set them one by one on pretty accompanying saucers, and then arrange them on a tray, the one my grandmother got me with pretty flowers strewn across it, peonies, and bring it forth, setting the tray before him gently, tenderly, resisting every urge to just bash the tray against the table with my un-calloused roughness.

He looks at me, and his smile grows even warmer. He looks like an angel. "You're probably her biggest fan, you know?" he tells me, his voice warm, like melted butter. Like delicate chocolate. Like pretty meringues laden with cream and strawberries. Like the softest of ice creams melting in the summer heat. "Well, besides me."

I forgot the teapot. As I walk back to it, I smile a little, amused and intrigued.

"So you admit you're a fan?"

He answers without hesitation. "Yes. Proudly so."

I gently lift the teapot. It's warm, almost teetering towards being scaldingly so, but I like the heat. I bring the teapot to the table, setting it on the tray, completing the set: the pretty teapot and the pretty teacups sitting in their respective pretty saucers. "You forgot the tea strainer."

Ah, yes, I did. 

I smile, a little demure, a little embarrassed, and nod, and then walk back, sifting through my cabinets in search of one. "You know, she should publish a book. Like an actual one. I'm serious."

I nod in agreement, continuing with my search.

"I know. I told you she's talented."

I fish out the tea strainer. It's light in my hands. A little Venus flytrap.

"No, I'm, like, well, being serious serious, you know? She should get a book deal and everything. Eh, I don't know how that stuff works. Don't work in publishing. Jujutsu is my calling."

I find myself giggling girlishly, quietly amused, and sounding almost giddily tipsy, even though I haven't had a single ounce of alcohol. I don't drink.

"I know. I'll tell her that."

Then my giggles grow a little louder, sounding pure, childlike, naive, happy, giddy, and unaffected. "I mean, you could do that too, you know? If you have a Tumblr account, you can get a silly pseudonym and everything. Reallyintojujutsu101."

He doesn't respond. He just eyes me, almost like he's silently judging me. But then the moment breaks, and he breaks out into a smile too—a wide one, a delighted one—and laughs once more.

"You don't think I already have one?"

I spill the tea over the cup as soon as I hear this. Swiftly, I switch places between the cups, giving him the one wherein I poured the tea just right, not overspilt.

"You do?"

He laughs even more, amused. He's pretty when he smiles.

"Hell yeah. I send her asks and everything. It's cool, you know? I like reading those asks. They're fun."

I blink, and then I sit down in front of him, look up at him, and lift the cup to my lips, tasting the tea. "I think she's pretty damn talented, honestly. Think you should write that doctorate of yours on her rather than some old buildings no one cares about."

I smile and place the cup on the saucer, a little amused.

"Maybe. Maybe I'll switch disciplines, go into English lit, and do a postdoctorate. Just maybe."

We sit in silence then, drinking tea, as I observe him, watching the way he lifts the cup to his lips, chronicling him as he tries the tea, assesses it, and tastes it. 

And then I attempt to interrupt the silence, looking down at my teacup. In spite of the tea strainer, a few stray leaves slip into my tea, swimming about like lost koi carps. One darker, one lighter. Pretty. 

"I—"

He interrupts me. He digs something out of his pocket, a box, some cube of sorts, with pretty drawings and droopy eyes with long, lush eyelashes, and slides it across the table, a cheeky grin on his face.

"Give it to her. Sab. As a gift. From me. A personal thanks of sorts."

I look at the box, intrigued, lifting it, feeling it in my hands, and trying to guess what it is. Jewellery? A bracelet? A necklace? A matching set?

His grin turns knowing. "I think she'll like it."

okay I don’t even know how to begin to respond to this because it literally has made my life. this is so incredibly sweet, adorable, beautifully written — I was grinning and giggling when I read this like???

you’ve rendered me speechless (which is impressive, I truly never shut up) in the best way possible

firstly you are not creepy at all - do not say that about yourself — this is so incredibly kind, I don’t even have the words to tell you how much this means to me. it’s so cute by the way how you sent multiple drafts — I literally want to hug you — don’t apologize you’re completely fine — I miss errors all the time and it bothers me to no end so I get it

but onto the content of this — oh my god your writing is so charming 🥹💕 I think you did a wonderful job writing this — it was so engaging and cute and I think the banter was so fun to read — also your imagery and the way your described things was amazing. the koi fish imagery for the tea?? I think that’s brilliant and I literally was admiring the way you crafted this

also the fact you think so highly of me is very very kind and I feel so honored that you wrote this for me — like truly — I wish I had the words to tell you how this made me feel, but words have failed me to fathom how much this touched me. the fact you think that I’m good enough to publish means so much — also the fact suguru is my fan 😭😂 that’s so sweet. Also the ending with the prison realm hahah — I thought that was so clever (fun fact, I ordered the AirPods case of the prison realm so I will fulfill this prophecy).

I just love this so much — I could literally write a whole essay about how much I love this 🥹💕 I love you so so much — I appreciate you — I literally ah, sab.exe has stopped functioning 🥹💕I love you really. Thank you so much 💕✨🥹

#sab [asks] #sab [anons] #sab [faves] #sab [praise] #I will cry #long post

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hopefully you or some of your wonderful followers can help me out with a really odd question: what is the difference between an AU and a crossover fic?

This might sound silly, but I've always assumed that a crossover is something like "Sherlock and John, while solving a case, cross paths with Mulder and Scully who are also trying to solve their mystery, and they join up to work together." vs. an AU is more like "Sherlock and John are solving cases in the X-Files universe" and their characters are like combinations: Sherlock/Mulder and John/Scully. But the characters from X-Files don't actually exist in the fic.

Or even fics that are just a completely new universe altogether, not necessarily based on an already known one (like Sherlock and John are from Las Vegas and Sherlock the always winning poker player is under suspicion from security guard John that he is cheating, and that is how they meet, etc etc) would be considered an AU.

Anyway, that is how I've always filtered on AO3 when searching. But now I've come across a few lately that are tagged AU but when I start reading them, they are more what I consider crossover fics (which aren't my preference, sorry. I just don't care to read about Sherlock and Iron Man working together lol).

Maybe I've missed out on some great fics that were tagged as crossover but were actually AU's? Is my assumption of which one is which completely off base? Other than reading every fic until it's obvious which type of story it is, is there a better way to at least get an idea for filtering purposes?

I don't want to miss out on fantastic fics because I don't really understand what they're about because I've misunderstood all along!

Thank you for any help you or your followers can give! 😁

Hey Nonny!

Alright, so here's how _I_ personally understand it, and I'm probably totally off-piste, but it's how I've always understood and try my best in my sorting of fics. PLEASE note that EVERYTHING BELOW is how I PERSONALLY UNDERSTAND it all.

Generally, there's a VERY thin line between AUs and Crossovers AND it also melts into Fusion fics as well.

Alternate Universes:

Basically, AU (or Alternate Universe, for my newbie lovelies) is the "larger umbrella term" that all fics NOT following canon events have. These can be as simple as a non-canon-compliant fic, but GENERALLY it's understood as stories that take place in different franchises, eras, timelines, professions, species, etc. That's the broader definition. It covers everything, really. It doesn't necessarily mean just other franchises, but it can contain them.

But in terms of "this story with BBC Sherlock Characters takes place during the Avengers" for instance, each character from BBC Sherlock REPLACES a character in the Avengers. They would never ever meet any of the cast of the main Avengers IF they are a replacement character.

So let's say we're adapting the Avengers. For the sake of this example: Sherlock is Tony, John is Captain America, Molly is Black Widow, etc. Now THOSE characters in the Avengers franchise should never show up AS those characters. We are doing one-for-one replacements to put Sherlock Characters into the MCU AS Iron Man, AS Black Widow, AS Captain America. Tony, Natasha, and Steve cannot exist in this universe.

(as an aside though, given the MCU's current state of Variants existing in multiverses, it can be argued that they can exist, but I'm being pedantic... for the sake of this example let's say they don't)

TL:DR; we replace main characters with other main characters, and those main characters from either franchise should never meet. So TECHNICALLY what is labelled for your example is actually correct (Crossovers and AU), and unfortunately the filtering needs to be whittled down more. Filtering by "Alternate Universe" does NOT guarantee no-Crossovers, so you will have to add crossovers as an exclusion in your filtered terms. On AO3, there is a place to select exclusions, so just type in "Crossovers" there, or character names.

Crossovers and Fusions

I'm grouping these two together because my understanding of these two is that they're PRETTY close to each other enough that they do overlap.

Crossovers are stories that characters from one franchise meet and interact with characters from another franchise; no characters are omitted intentionally, and don't replace other characters in a story. For instance, in a Harry Potter AU, the Sherlock gang all go to Hogwarts, and Harry and Co. all exist and continue on with their story, probably interact occasionally, but we're focusing on the Sherlock gang and their exploits rather than Potter people.

Fusion stories, or my understanding of them anyway, is one of two things:

You have characters that replace SOME of the characters but keep OTHER characters from Universe 2 to interact with Universe 1. Let's go back to the Avengers sample; Sherlock (Tony), John (Steve) and Molly (Natasha) meet and interact with Bruce Banner and Clint. Now it's a FUSION of two universes, interacting and existing based on the actions of what our BBC AvengersLock is doing.

A fusion can ALSO be adapting or using a franchise storyline as inspiration for the plotline of what an author is writing, ie. the rules of ONE franchise's universe can be brought into another. So you can have a FUSION of Sherlock and the X-Files by adapting an X-Files episode as inspiration for the story with BBC Sherlock characters, but doesn't necessarily take place in the X-Files Universe, just simply the rules of the X-Files universe apply also to the BBC Sherlock Universe.

======

ALL that said, the gist of what I'm trying to say is this: All Crossovers and Fusions are Alternate Universes, but not all Alternate Universes are Crossovers/Fusions.

I tried my best to simplify everything as best I could, so I hope I helped a bit. And hey, if I'm wrong somewhere, or you want better clarification, feel free, all, to reply or send me another ask :)

Cheers, all <3

#steph replies #fanfiction #my thoughts #definitions #alternate universes vs crossovers #my definitions #ask me anything

[sixohsixoheightfourtwo]

15 people 15 questions

tagged in this meme a few weeks ago by @isaksbestpillow!! here we go

1. are you named after anyone?

My first name is the name of a specific figure from UK history! someone a lot of uk people have heard of, but it's unusual to actually have this as a name. I get some incredulity and some people who politely ask where i'm from. I have to say i'm not 100% sure what answer they're expecting.

My tumblr url is a B-52s song which seemed somehow relevant back in uhhh 2013 or whenever it was.

2. when was the last time you cried?

I thinkkkk possibly when i was doing my taxes back in january. These days I tend to cry from stress and anger and frustration but it's really bad for me because once I start I find it VERY hard to stop, it makes my emotions spiral, I get more and more upset, so I really have to squash it down. For me crying is not cathartic, it just ruins the day.

3. do you have kids?

No - BUT - I have a lot of much younger cousins - and I babysit them & help with childcare fairly often so I am quite used to kids. Fortunately my cousins think i'm super fun

4. what sports do you play/have you played?

I am extremely noncompetitive! I was terrible at team sports at school and also had terrible hand-eye coordination. I have been at times an OK swimmer and I played a lot of table tennis in my last couple of years of school with the other four or five people who'd been deemed too useless for netball etc. As an adult I do youtube yoga, I periodically do app-based running stuff like Zombies Run or Nike Run Club. Ideally I'd like to go every day on like a 5 mile walk in an interesting location with a reasonable amount of ascent and descent but in a city it's hard to orchestrate that. Also I put my little cousins on my shoulders and get them to direct me where to go so they can learn the difference between left and right

5. do you use sarcasm?

I think I actually don't! Maybe a little bit sometimes. I tend to me more uhhh. pedantic and literal. tend to deconstruct .

6. what’s the first thing you notice about people?

uhhhhh probably skin texture . or haircut . or I look at their clothes. i don't know . sounds creepy. sorry.

7. what’s your eye color??

I think if you average it out it's brownish / greenish . think filippo berio bottle . maybe a bit browner / greyer than that. I tried to take a picture but it only confused me. Also when you look close enough at someone's eyes you might get flecks of like eight different colours.

8. scary movies or happy endings?

I do watch and enjoy scary movies and I have learned that I have a higher tolerance for them than some people BUT if I must pick between the two - I am team happy ending.

9. any talents ?

Little bit doublejointed! Can play a little bit of ukulele. Good memory. Good cook. Can make cocktails .

10. where were you born?

London, UK

11. what are your hobbies?

cooking, language learning, walking. Tumblr . opening new browser tabs . I'm getting some wine qualifications which is partly work related partly hobby.

12. do you have any pets?

no but my sister & her partner just got a dog and I do feel I am now an auntie

13. how tall are you?

167 cm I think? i think that's 5 ft 6? normal amount.

14. favourite subject in school?

probably languages ........... honestly I don't remember. unfortunately I had a thirst for knowledge and enjoyed most subjects.

15. dream job?

What I do now (print media production work, magazine production work) is pretty good for me

I'm going to do what @isaksbestpillow did and tag the last 15 people in my notes, that seems fun. no obligation obviously! @rociopath @fizzbuzzbananagram @magicmarker @autisticmisabel @starburger @the-omnishambles @itsmapes @youvegotaluckyface @misterhaderach @jestershark @lanninglurksnomore @sirquacklesdefoof @tracybaconnnn @321claratin @alien-ally

#deciding this is the year of doing the memes ppl tag me in . 2k24 the year of participation. fuck it we participate #tumblr life #tumblr memes #15 people 15 questions

[lloydfrontera]

I thought he met with clients when he said he likes the Alicia types who are very specific in what they want when the garden was made, as opposed to the client he had that was nice but kept changing what he wanted because they said something like 'I'm fine with anything'

about this

ah! i know what you're talking about!

Just then, Lloyd's mind traveled back to his laborious days in South Korea. One time, he was called in to work on a private residential house. The owner was a hard client to deal with. But it wasn't because he maliciously abused Lloyd or used his money and power as leverage against him and the others. That man was a hesitant, wishy-washy, and indecisive but good-natured man. Lloyd realized for the first time then that the most frustrating and troubling type of client to work with was the good-natured but indecisive ones who didn't know what they wanted. I didn't believe it at first, but it really was the case. The owner was definitely something. At first, he said that anything was fine. As long as it looked good, all was okay. He nicely went along with anything at the initial phase of the renovation. But as the project progressed… He slowly started to change. His demands started increasing. He slowly became more ambitious in his vision. Why? It was because he didn't know what he wanted at the start of the project. And so, the owner only came to figure out his needs midway. "Oops! Now that I see it, I'd like the tiles in the first-floor entrance to be gray, not white." "I'm sorry but can we do this door in another style? Not this one?" "I'm seeing it now, and it looks like we should get rid of the shower booth." Surely, it would have been relatively fine if the project had ended that way. Lloyd and his team did reflect on the changes with a good heart. But the project wasn't finished with such a beautiful ending. "Oh, seeing it now, I think I like the very first one best. Let's go with the first one." Eventually, the house had to be redone all over again. Dammit. Just thinking about it pisses me off. I worked my ass off and gave him what he wanted, and he what?

i see why that could give the impression it was lloyd himself dealing with the client. however. i am gonna be so pedantic here but. he never actually mentions being in charge of the project.

he was "called in to work". not hired to design, not to plan, just to work. he also mentions "others" and "his team", which to me sounds more like a he was part of a construction work squad rather than lloyd being in charge and having people under his charge.

also when you do construction work on a private home you don't hire a civil engineer. you might hire an architect, but if it's a small renovation you might just skip it and go straight to the construction workers and direct them yourself.

civil engineering is about planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure for the public, not for particulars. lloyd would have,, no business being hired to plan or design on a private residential house. however, he would have business being hired to work under someone else's direction as a construction worker.

does this make any sense??

#hey i got an ask #Anonymous #tged #the greatest estate developer #lloyd frontera #ch 212